John McKee was born in about "1707." He married first to Jane Logan on 29 Jan 1744 (Bible belonging to John T. McKee's grandfather, in possession of kin, Mr. Oklela Beverlin Dunlap in August 1890). Some say it was in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania* Sadly, Jane who was believed to be with child, was scalped by the Indians during the first Kerr's Creek raid. It left him with many children to raise. After her passing, he married Rosannah Cunningham on 12 Dec 1765.

I have seen references to a christening on 13 Jun 1706 in Drumbo, (south of Belfast) County Down, in current Northern Ireland (previously called Ireland) but have yet to see any documentation. Familysearch's database of Ireland's Births and Baptisms, 1620-1881, lists a John McKee, christened on 5 Feb 1703 and on 13 Jun 1706 in "Presbyterian, Drumbo, Down, Ireland," son of John McKee, Sr., plus on 3 Feb 1703, as same, son of David McKee. Drumbo Presbyterian Church Baptisms 1699-1723 and Marriages 1706-1721, transcribed by David Stewart and later copied by Zara K. Mettam, 1967. The source is Ireland ODM (Ordinance Data Management), on LDS film #823750. How to prove a connection to this family? Requested documentation many times from those using or claiming it and nothing received.

"Statement of Hugh Ware M'Kee. This paper was drawn up for Rev. John Lapsley McKee by his uncle, Hugh Ware McKee, between 1840 and 1850 — probably about 1846. He went to Laurel County, Ky., to get most of his information from "Mountain Billy" McKee, who lived in that county. In 1738 the McKee Family came from Ireland to America, ten or eleven brothers; some of them settled near Lancaster, Pennsylvania and about Pittsburgh, and some of them about Wheeling. I have no correct account of the families of these other McKees, but those that settled near Lancaster, Pa. moved to Virginia about 1760, and two of them, Robert and John, settled in Rockbridge County, near Lexington. Grandfather's brother, William* (one of the eleven) settled in Augusta County (or Botetourt), and his family moved to Kentucky about 1788, or 1790, and most of them live now in Montgomery County, Ky. He died in Virginia. *He was the son of Col. William and Miriam McKee. Some of the McKees spell his middle name Weir." Per The McKees of Virginia and Kentucky, by George Wilson McKee, J. B. Richards, Pittsburgh, p 102 & 103). Note: If there were McKee sisters that came to America, there's likely no record of them.

Annals of Augusta County, Virginia, from 1726 to 1871, Chapter 7, page 211 by Joseph A. Waddell, "III. John McKee, the youngest of the three brothers who came to the Valley, lived on Kerr's creek, now Rockbridge. His wife was Jane Logan, and was killed by Indians, as heretofore related. He married a second time, as appears from a deed executed March 14, 1774, by "John McKee and Rosanna, his wife, of Kerr's creek, Augusta county." conveying two hundred and eighty-one acres of land, part in Augusta and part in Botetourt, Rockbridge not having been formed at that time. He died March 2, 1792, aged eighty-four (born abt 1708). Several of his eight children went to Kentucky, others remaining in Virginia. His descendants are numerous."

"The Rev. Samuel Brown, in his account of the murder of Jane Logan McKee, says: "She besought her husband to leave her to her fate, and make his own escape, if possible. This he refused to do; when she appealed to him for the sake of their children to leave her. If he stayed, being unarmed, they would both be killed; but if he escaped, their young children would still have a protector. Can we conceive of a more trying condition for a husband?" This source gives two more versions of the incident, see her site herein.

John and Jane Logan had McKee children:

Mary, 11 Jun 1746, below

Miriam Miram, 27 Sep 1747 (Col. Wm McKee) KY, below

William, 18 Feb 1750 - 28 Jul 1752 in Cumberland Co., PA

James Logan, 14 Mar 1752, below

Robert, 4 Mar 1754 - 1847 (in KY abt 1790)

John, Jr, 17 Dec 1756 - 24 May 1761 (Kerrs Creek, VA), below

William, 28 Feb 1759 - 1835 (Kerrs Creek, VA), below

David, 25 Dec 1760 - 20 Aug 1825 (Nicholasville, KY)

Following Jane's death (Shawnee Indian raid) in 1763, he married Rosannah Cunningham on 12 Dec 1765 in Rockbridge Co., Virginia . They had a son

John, Jr. 27 Oct 1771 - 1 Dec 1815, below

Junior married Susannah Simonds on 14 Jun 1798 and they had no children. Wife Susannah died 20 May 1815.

John (Senior) is believed to be the son of either (seek documentation):

1) William McKee and Mary "Miriam" Brown OR

2) "Robert M'Kie, Mother: Jean Caughy." Not documented but noted for further research.

John McKee or McKay owned land in both Augusta Co. and Rockbridge Co., Virginia. Many are in Lyman Chalkley's volumes 1 to 3. He also appraised and witnessed many docs in Augusta Co. (check out Rockbridge Co. records). He's in a few docs with his "brother" William.

John "McKay's" lots are on the Borden Tract map: 21 May 1747 for 390 acres and 1768 for 150 acres.

=http://image.lva.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/GetLONN.pl?first=187&last=&g_p=PA&collection=LO Grant Author Tedford, John. grantee. Title Land grant 5 January 1780. Summary Location: Rockbridge County. Description: 60 acres on the waters of Buffaloe Creek adjoining the lines of John McKee. Source: Land Office Grants A, 1779-1780 (v.1 & 2 p.1-685), p. 187 (Reel 42). Subject - Tedford, John. grantee. McKee, John. The document is hard to read but says John Tedford afs_ David Logan who afs_ of John McKee a certain tract of land containing 60 acres, by survey bearing date the twenty __ day of 1772. ….waters of Buffalo Creek a branch of James River and joining lines of the said McKee's land. It was signed by Gov. Thos Jefferson. Note: David Logan is likely Jane Logan McKee's (Mrs. John McKee) father.

(NOT our man here, but instead John Mackey's. See the 30 Mar 1899 issue of the Rockbridge County News.

Page 267, 21 May 1747. Benj. Bordin, &c., to John McKAY (sold in testator's lifetime); 390 acres, £19 current money Virginia, part of 92,100; north side Mill Creek; corner to Baptist McNabb. Witnessed and acknowledged as above (Jno. Bramham, Jr.; Thos. Gordon, John Finley. Acknowledged, 21st May, 1747). Lyman Chalkley's Chronicles of the Scotch-Irish Settlement in Virginia, Vol. 3, 260. "McKay" is listed on the map.)

16 Aug 1752 "John McKEE purchased a tract of land in the forks of the James River" per Geo Wilson McKee's The McKees of Virginia and Kentucky and Jos Waddell's Annals of Augusta Co., Virginia .

Page 376.--19th August, 1754. John Kerr, yeoman, and Margaret (her mark) to John McKee, yeoman (signed Carr), £200, 280 acres conveyed to John Carr by Borden, 8th July, 1743, part of 92,100 acres, on Tees Creek. Teste: Samuel Norwood, James Goodfellow, Wm. Woods. Delivered to James Lockart, 17th May, 1757. Lyman Chalkley's Chronicles of the Scotch-Irish Settlement in Virginia, Vol. 3, p. 328. Note: "Tees Creek" was originally in Augusta County, Virginia and later called Kerr's Creek, which became Rockbridge County in 1777.

20 Nov 1754 (321) John and James McKee relieved of levy this year, NOT being inhabitants of this Co. (Augusta Co.) on 10th June last., Chalkley's Chronicles, Vol. 1, p 65.

25 Nov 1762, Jno McKEE and Jas Logan are both witnesses to the will of Jos McCord. Hugh Cunningham guardian of children. Details in excerpt. Chalkley's Chronicles, Vol 3, p 76.

(NOT our man here, but instead John Mackey's.

Page 510.--14th May, 1763. John Macky, farmer, to James McClung, Sr., £120, 390 acres on Mill Creek of James River, cor. Baptist McNabb. Proved by witnesses. Delivered to John McClung, May, 1773. Lyman Chalkley's Chronicles of the Scotch-Irish Settlement in Virginia, Vol. 3, p 388.)

Page 118.--19th August, 1765. Samuel Todd and Jane to William and John McKEE, £170, 400 on head of North Branch of Buffalo Creek, Borden's line. Teste: Benj. Hawkins, Joseph Robinson, Alex. Evans. Delivered: Wm. McKEE, September, 1775. Lyman Chalkley's Chronicles of the Scotch-Irish Settlement in Virginia, Vol. 3, p 428.

1764, Botetourt County Deed Book 14, page 464, 17 May, 1768, Patrick Denny and Elizabeth of Forks of James River, to John McKEE, of said Forks, 44 pounds, at head of Kerr's Creek in the abovesaid Forks of James, branch of Kerr's Creek called Cunningham's Creek, 80 acres. Test: John Gilmer, Robert McElhenny, David Tate. Delivered: John McKee, 1773. (this one is not in Chalkley's book)

Page 414.--12th May, 1768. Same to John McKEE, £15, 150 acres, part

of 92,100; corner Jonathan Cunningham. Delivered: John McKEE, April, 1773. Lyman Chalkley's Chronicles of the Scotch-Irish Settlement in Virginia, Vol. 3, p 469.

Page 464.--17th May, 1768. Patrick ( ) Denny and Elizabeth ( ) of Forks of James River, to John McKEE, of said Forks, £44, at head of Kerr's Creek in the abovesaid Forks of James, branch of Kerr's Creek called Cunningham's Creek, 80 acres. Teste: John Gilmer, Robert McElhenny, David Tate ( ). Delivered: John McKEE, April, 1773. Lyman Chalkley's Chronicles of the Scotch-Irish Settlement in Virginia, Vol. 3, p 471.

Page 223.--20th March, 1770. Hugh Cunningham and Sarah ( ) of Forks of James River in Botetourt County to John McKEE, of Kerr's Creek, £300, tract whereon Jonathan Cunningham, deceased, son of Hugh, formerly dwelt, 281 acres on Kerr's Creek, formerly called Teaze's Creek, partly in Botetourt and part in Augusta. Teste: Hugh Weir, Nathan Peoples, William McKEE. Delivered: John McKee, April, 1773. Lyman Chalkley's Chronicles of the Scotch-Irish Settlement in Virginia, Vol. 3, p 495. (Land by the Big Spring, and after the Indian massacres.)

Page 148.--15th March, 1774. John McKee and Rosanna ( ), of Kerr's Creek, to James McKee, their son, on Kerr's Creek, part in Augusta and part in Botetourt, corner plantation whereon said John McKee now lives. Lyman Chalkley's Chronicles of the Scotch-Irish Settlement in Virginia, Vol. 3, p 537.

There are many differing versions, many based on folklore passed down in the families, some shared with Rev. Saml Brown, but somewhat similar and some different, including the dates and people. After Chief Cornstalk's Shawnee Indians attacked the people and burned the homes of Dougherty, Cunningham, Gilmore and Hamilton, "one savage, however pushed on the the house of John McKee, who had sent his 6 children to the house of a friend on Timber Ridge, intending soon to follow with his wife. When the alarm reached him, he and his wife fled down the creek about a mile to a thicket, followed by the savage. Seeing they would be overtaken, Mrs. McKee implored her husband to leave her to her fate and make his escape. This he refused to do. She appealed to him again and again to leave her for the sake of her children. If he remained, being unarmed, both would be slain, but, if he escaped, their young children would still have a protector. He yielded to her entreaties, and they parted, to meet no more on earth. After running a short distance, he saw the tomahawk descend on his wife's head. The Indian, without halting, followed McKee, but was unable to find him in the bush, and, with a loud whoop, gave up the search. At night, McKee returned to the spot where he had left his wife' and found her dead." History of Augusta Co. Virginia , by J. Lewis Peyton, 1953, p 140.

=The Works Progress Administration of Virginia, Historical Inventory #ROC419 by Jas W McClung, The Old Home of John C. Laird, photo from 1937. Home was "built by John McKee in 1820" (son maybe), later owned by J.C. Laird. The original land owner of Borden grant was John McKee. Home passed to John McKee's son William McKee. A list of the owners through 1937 is given in #4. A 2 story log building. #6 mentions the Indian attacks and fortification in the basement for protection from the Indians. Located 7 miles west of Lexington on Rt. #60. Report http://lvaimage.lib.va.us/VHI/html/24/0285.html Report Home Page 

Photograph http://lvaimage.lib.va.us/VHI/P/24/0244.jpg Photograph 

Suspect John Calvin Laird (D 1866) and married to Mary Susan McKee (D 1858) is the same man (both on FaG).

=I found the W.P.A. Historical Inventory Survey on John McKee's home online at the Library of Virginia. It says: It is in "Rockbridge County, Virginia, five miles north of Lexington. Leave Lexington on Route No. 60, thence west 5.5 miles; thence east on Route No. 631, one half of a mile, and this house is on the north side of this highway, adjoining. The first house about 1750; 2nd house about 1875."

"The John McKee Home, now owned by the Patterson family is in a beautiful location, very near the river. The house a two story structure is rectangular in shape. The building is a combination of brick and frame, the original portion being constructed of brick and the large frame addition having been added at a later period. The house has a gabled roof, which is covered with metal roofing. The original front porch to the brick part, is now used as a side entrance. This porch has large, square columns with fancy tops and the entrance door is a large, single door, without transom or side lights." There is more detail of this home on this site. It also says: "The first owner of record in Rockbridge county, was James McKee, who purchased it from Benjamin Borden, prior to 1778, when Rockbridge County was founded, and he built the first home sometime between 1740-1750." (Note: this James (?) is on the Borden Tract map in 1758 with 310 acres and in 1766 with 301 acres, a distance away.)

"James McKee willed it to William and John McKee, will probated on August 4, 1778, Will Book 1, page 19. It remained under this ownership until June 20, 1859, when S. McD. Reid was appointed as a Special Commissioner, in Cause: "Davidson vs McKee" to see and convey same, which he did, and S. M. McKee became the owner, Deed Book HH, page 153. At the death of S. M. McKee, it passed by inheritance to John T. McKee. John T. McKee deeded it to E. M. Lackey on January 29, 1898, Deed Book, 127, page 324. E. M. Lackey deeded it to Hugh E. Wash on April 5, 1928, Deed Book 128, page 42, and he is the present owner in 1936."

"It is a known fact that this house, both original and subsequent, was constructed with a protection in the basement as a means of protection against attack by the Indians, who were plentiful in those early days. It was in this section, only several hundred yards distant, that was the scene of the last Indian massacre, in which many white people were killed. The State Conservation commission has erected a "Marker" at the intersection of this highway, No. 631, with Route No. 60, only a short distance to the west, calling attention to the site at which this massacre took place."

The data in this report was given by Mrs. W. Horace Lackey, a direct descendant of James McKee, Lexington, Virginia .

I also found original owner, John McKee's home, circa 1732, Library of Virginia , 1936 WPA survey for "House on Walter L. Kerr's Farm," #AU-188, building about 1732, Augusta Co., 1 1/2 mi S of New Hope on Rt 608, then 1 1/2 mi W on Rt 612. Wm Beverly to John Kerr 10 Aug 1752, DB54, 464; sold 1761 to Wm Matthews, & to Jas Agnew 1784; to James Kerr, 1788; to John Kerr 1803; to his heirs to Nathaniel Kerr, 1849, DB 71, 282; estate sale to son Vincent Brown Kerr 1895; to brother Walter L Kerr, in 1904. 1936 photo of house included. It stayed in the same Kerr family as best as I can tell.

=Lyman Chalkley's Chronicles of a Scotch-Irish Settlement in Virginia, Vol. 3; ge 537: page 148.--15th March, 1774. John McKee and Rosanna ( ), of Kerr's Creek, to James McKee, their son (that's her step-son), on Kerr's Creek, part in Augusta and part in Botetourt, corner plantation whereon said John McKee now lives.

=Will of John McKee, Rockbridge Co., Virginia, p 406-407:

In the name of God, Amen. I, John McKee, of Rockbridge county and State of Virginia, this 26th day of October, in the year of our Lord, 1791, calling to mind the mortality of my body and that it is appointed for all men once to die, do, therefore, make and ordain this my last will and testament.

First of all: I give and recommend my soul into the hands of Almighty God who gave it, nothing doubting but at the general resurrection I shall receive the same again by the almighty power of God. My body I recommend to the dust, to be buried in a Christian and decent manner. And as touching what worldly estate as it hath pleased God to bless me with in this life I dispose and bequeath the same in the following manner:

I allow all my just debts and funeral expense to be carefully paid.

I give unto my beloved wife, Rosannah McKee, a sufficient maintenance off my plantation, with a negro wench to assist her, during her natural life, with a horse kept for her use and two cows, with all my kitchen furniture and a bed and furniture.

I give unto my son, John McKee, all the real and personal estate that I possess (excepting the legacies hereafter mentioned) to him and his heirs forever.

I give unto Mary Weir, Miriam McKee, James McKee, Robert McKee, William McKee and David McKee, my daughters and sons, to each of them twenty shillings, to be paid by my executors at the end of one year after my decease. And I do constitute and appoint Rosannah McKee executrix and John Wilson executor of this my last will, and disannul all other will or wills by me heretofore made, and ordain this to be my last will and testament.

In witness whereof I hereunto set my hand and seal the day and year above written. John McKee

Signed, Searled, published

& declared to be my last Will

& Testament in the presence of

Samuel Willson

Ann Willson

Recorded April "3" 1792, presented by Rosannah McKee & Jno Willson Executors and proved by witnesses Samuel and Ann Willson.

Did John have any ownership in the home belonging to his son James Logan McKee at Kerr's Creek, that was built between 1740-1750, near the site of 2 Shawnee Indian Massacres? In 1778, this Rockbridge Co. land was reformed from Augusta Co. See son James' bio. Could he have separately distributed it, at an earlier date?

=McKee: Bible records, 1707-1872; "Microfilm of 2 page typescript copied from the Quarterly Bulletin of the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society, donated by Mrs. George Hallgren, Potomac, Maryland. Includes Dunlap, Laird and related families. John McKee was born in 1707. He married Jane Logan in 1744 and Rosannah Cunningham in 1765, and died in 1792. Virginia and Kentucky are the geographical locations cited." On LDS film, HL US/CAN Film 1036714 Item 21.

=The McKees of Virginia and Kentucky, the Bible belonging to John T. McKee's grandfather (in possession of Mr. O. B. (Okelala Beverlin) Dunlap in August 1890 is on LDS film #1036714, item #21. The Holy Bible was published October 27th, 1802 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was printed for Mathew Carey, No. 118, Market Street. This data is typed and it was filmed 1 Mar 1978. It says "John McKee was born in 1707 and married Jane Logan on 29 January 1744. She died 17 July 1763 and he married Rosannah Cunningham on 12 Dec 1765. They had one son, John on 27 Oct 1771 and Rosanna died 19 Jan 1806, aged 78."

=He MAY be buried here in an unmarked grave according to renowned Rockbridge Co., Virginia author and researcher, Angela M. Ruley's who contributed data on McKee Cemetery at the Virginia Tombstone Transcription Project for Rockbridge County at usgwtombstones. "Some of the unmarked graves MAY contain the following: McKee, John b. 1707 and McKee, Jane Logan b. c1744, w/o John."

="Hugh Wash has bought from E. M. Lackey the home tract of the Big Spring place, long known as the McKEE PLACE and the farm will go down in history as identified with the Kerrs Creek massacre. The dwelling was an old fort and is the oldest standing on Kerrs creek, and is well preserved. We are glad to welcome Mr. Wash and family to the community." Published in the Rockbridge County News, Vol 44, #26, dated 26 April 1928.

=The Scotch in the Shenandoah Valley by Emeline Christian Cockrill, Chapter III, tells of Col Christian's knowledge of the valley and discusses political ties in the Kerrs Creek Massacres. Published in the Lexington Gazette, Vol 157, # 47, 20 Nov 1957.

="A bronze tablet on a large sandstone boulder was unveiled last Thursday afternoon by the Blue Ridge committee of the Colonial Dames in Virginia on the Midland Trail 7 miles west of Lexington commemorating one of the Indian massacres that took place there a centruty and a half ago. The marker is placed on the side of the road near the Big Spring, just west of the bridge over Kerrs creek beyond New Monmouth church. Colonial Dames Unveil Tablet Marking Kerrs Creek Massacre... ....The tablet is located in one of the most beautiful spots in the county, at a bend in Kerrs creek where the hills rise on all sides to meet the nearby Alleghany mountains." Per the Rockbridge County News, Vol 45, #51, dated 17 Oct 1929.

*Thomas and James McKee were Indian traders in Lancaster Co., Pennsylvania. James and his heirs remained on his original 1737 warranted land, through 1830. In a Historical Sketch of Old Hanover Church by Rev. Thos. H. Robinson, D.D., with a Notice of the Church at Conewago, by A Boyd Hamilton, Published in 1878 by the Historical Society of Dauphin County, p 52-53 (one small example).

"KERRS CREEK NAMED AFTER JOHN KERR. (For the County News.) The following paragraph is from the County News, Sept. 22, 1927; "The name of Kerr attached to Kerrs creek is one of interest. The County News tried to have its history solved fifteen years ago. So far as it was able to learn no Kerr family has ever lived on this stream." The farm on which John Kerr lived for eleven years can be definitely located on Kerrs creek. John Kerr and Hugh Cunningham were on the roster of Captain John McDowell's Company in 1742, and they probably took part in the Indian battle near Balcony Falls, where John McDowell was killed in 1742. John Kerr was constable in Richard Wood's Company in 1746, and he was one of the communicants of Timber Ridge church who signed the petition calling the Rev. John Brown in 1763. John Kerr and Robert Erwin witnessed the purchase of John Gilmore, Sr's, five hundred acre farm in 1746. This body of land was outside of the Borden Grant and was part of a 728 acre tract patented by Francis McCown in 1743. McCown's patent like Borden's is recorded in Richmond. The following abstract is from the Augusta county deed book No. 5, page 376: August 19, 1754, John Kerr (signed Carr) yeoman, and Margaret (her mark) to John McKee, 220 pounds, 280 acres, conveyed to John Kerr by Borden, 8, July, 1743. Part of 92,100 acres on Tea's creek. John Kerr's deed from Benjamin Borden is recorded in Orange county as Augusta county had not been erected in 1743. Other records show that Hugh Cunningham and Robert Erwin adjoined John Kerr on Kerr's Creek. Hugh Cunningham deeded his 281 acre farm to his son Jonathan in 1764. Jonathan died in 1769 and the father sold the farm to John McKee in 1770. It was at the Jonathan Cunningham block house that the Indian massacre took place in 1763. John McKee purchased 150 acres from Borden in 1768, cornering on Jonathan Cunningham. The tract that John McKee bought from Borden was the upper part, the Cunningham homestead was the middle, and the John Kerr farm the Lowe r part of the McKee place. In 1770 John McKee's farm of 711 acres extended from Borden's patent line, at Kerr's Creek post office, to the junction of Gilmore's Creek with Kerr's Creek at Big Spring. James Gilmore and his brother John Gilmore, Jr., owned 716 acres on what was then called Back Creek and cornered on John Kerr at Big Spring. Kerr's Creek flows through the old John Kerr farm and the logical conclusion is that the stream was named after him. After Braddock's defeat in 1765, by the French with the skillful aid of Pontiac's warriors, the inhabitants of the valley became thoroughly alarmed and many took refuge in flight: Some went back to Pennsylvania and others over the Blue Ridge. Many Rockbridge __?__ migrated to North Carolina about this time. John Kerr and his wife Margaret (previously moved ___?____county after selling their farm in 1754 as no further trace of them can be found in the records." Published in the Rockbridge County News (Virginia), Vol 46, #15, p 7, dated 6 Feb 1930 (see photo).

Then I found another article that disagrees with the previous one. It' covers 1 3/4 of 2 long columns. It begins: "ROCKBRIDGE CREEKS NOT NAMEE IN BORDEN'S GRANT. Mention of a number of Rockbridge streams was necessarily omitted in Borden's Grant. The omission is remarkable , in the grant in one particular, in that though the line crossed Kerrs, creek near what is now Kerrs Creek postoffice where that stream had already reached the dimensions of a substantial creek, no mention* whatever is made of the crossing of a stream. The origin of the name so far as the County News learns is buried in obscurity. The conclusion is that, like many other streams in this region it was named after an early settler. The name of Kerr was not common here, though an old and honorable one. One of the original justices of Augusta county, named by Governor Gooch in 1745, was James Kerr. So far as learned no man by the name of Kerr has owned lands on this stream. The bearer of the name must have made an impress in some way on the early settlement; perhaps he was a trader, a trapper or a teacher. The early spelling of the name was Carr; which is often found inter changeable with Kerr in the spelling of this surname. Our court records, previous to 1778 are to be found in Orange, Augusta or Botetourt and are not accessible to this office. This much is evident, that as early as the time of the Kerrs Creek massacre in 1763 the stream was known as Carrs creek. Dr. Janies Addison Waddell, in his Annals of Augusta, relates that it was so called by Colonel John Stuart, who settled on the Greenbrier in 1766, three years after that locality had been depopulated by the Indians, who perpetrated the Kerrs Creek massacre. Colonel Stuart in his "Memoir of the Indian War,'' alludes to the Indian outrages in this locality, writing the name, however, Carrs instead of Kerrs creek. This spelling is borne out in later records. In deed book A of Rockbridge county, as late as March 2, 1779, Robert McElheny conveys to John McElheny a tract at the mouth of " Carrs creek. " The spelling, however, began to vary in right early times. For Waddell relates that a deed executed March 14, 1774, by John McKee of "Kerrs Creek, Augusta county," conveyed lands. Kerrs Creek district contains another interesting and important thoughsmaller stream. It is Whistle creek. The name is a fanciful one, we imagine; and is an attractive one. It seems a faint effort to echo the music of this pretty stream through the meadows and over the rocks. The name is as old as Rockbridge; for turning to deed book A in the county clerk's office it is found that as early as May 5, 1778, Andrew McKinly of Culpeper, deeded to Robert Vance "150 acres in Rockbridge county, in the forks of James river on a branch called Whistle creek." Turning to Buffalo district is found Colliers creek, the main tributary of Buffalo creek. The stream owes its name to the Collier family who occupied in colonial days the fat lands extending from the mouth of Blacks creek down through "Collierstown." The origin of the name was told the County News some years ago by the late Sheriff William F. Johnston, who was remarkably well informed as to the local history of this region, particularly of Buffalo district. With the formation of this county in 1778, this family disappeared, probably as did so many others—in the winning of the West—and the name has been a stranger here since. On this deed book A of Rockbridge county also throws light. It is there found that in 1778 Alexander Collier made two deeds, transferring lands; in 1786 Adam Collier also made two deeds to lands. In one of the deeds of each Collier the lands are described as being on Colliers Creek. In one deed Alexander Collier describe* the land as coming by descent. A transfer of record in 1778 from another party not a Collier, describes the land conveyed as "formerly belonging to John Collier. " These Colters sold their lands, as much as 500 acres, to... Published in the Rockbridge County News, Vol 32, #26, dated 27 Apr 1916.

Bio researched and written by LSP, all rights reserved, do not reprint or copy.