Document name: Caraway Letter-1832.DOC Source: Herb Depke, 257 Harbor Creek Dr., Cary NC 27511 / email: hdepke@msn.com Abstract: Letter from: Charles Caraway, Vermilion County, Illinois Letter to: his brother, Thomas Caraway, Greenbrier County, [West] Virginia Letter date: 21 March 1832 Source of letter: Isaac L. Mitchell, Renick, Greenbrier County, WV, 23 July 1993 Researcher's comments: Historical comment: Thomas Caraway and family were pioneers of Greenbrier County [West] Virginia in the area known as Muddy Creek. Caraway's were neighbors of the John Lewis branch son of George Lewis of Cowpasture. The Caraway Cemetery, extant in this region, is said to contain two or more of this Lewis family. Both Charles Caraway and descendants of this Lewis family subsequently located in Vermilion County, Illinois which is also the birthplace of this researcher who descends from the Lewis's. The book History of Vermilion County Illinois by Lottie E. Jones, Pioneer Publishing Co, Chicago 1911, says in Vol. I, page 133 that Charles Caraway "came to Vermilion County in 1829." Coincidentally, on the same page is William Blakeney, a native of Kentucky, who also came to Vermilion County in 1829, who is an ancester of this researcher. Historical significance of this letter: This letter is a gold mine of information. It tells us something of the situation in Vermilion County Illinois in 1832. The most significant aspect of the letter is that it mentions no less than 23 people, making it a treasure of genealogical information. A list of these people along with information about them, prepared by Mr. Isaac L. Mitchell, Renick, Greenbrier County WV [who possesses the original letter], follows the extract below. Extract: The letter is typed below as a complete extract of the original copy. Line numbers have been added to facilitate discussion and study. Bracketing [ ] indicates questionable information or comments. Some of the right side of the letter has broken away. This extract was edited against the original copy of the letter by Mr. Isaac L. Mitchell, Renick, Greenbrier County WV, the additions and corrections being reflected in this version of 8/21/93. = = = Letter, page 1 = = = 1. Vermillion [sic] County Illinois March 21st 1832 2. We received Yours of the 12th of January which found 3. us all (I mean all that moved with me) enjoying good 4. health with the Exception of John Boggess he has had 5. [a] spell of perhaps 6 weeks sickness called by 6. some the Influenz[a] but has now nearly recovered. 7. I have enjoyed as good health since I have lived 8. here as I ever have in the same length of time. 9. Betsy & the little Girl are well. Mother is 10 well & weighs five pounds more than ever she did 11. in her life even in her Youth. 12. Alexander Church & Ruth are in their usual 13. health[.] Ruth's has much improved since she 14. has come to the Country Jane Bogges[s] 15. has become quite fat & hearty. 16. Thomas Kenney has been some sick & some 17. Scared but has recovered both Betsy Keeny [sic] 18. is well as has another Son, for mind You 19. no married woman form [sic] Virginia known 20. within my acquaintance, and that is not small, 21. has passed more than a few months without 22. adding one at least to her family Hamilton 23. is well making Sugar, Joe M[c]Gary is well & 24. making a Mill, or helping, = = = Letter, page 2 = = = 25. [unreadable, one or two words ?] 26. James Bivens is well & making Rails he 27. cut and made two hundred & forty five Yesterday 28. & of this I want you to inform his Daddy & 29. I have him hiered [sic] by the Year. 30. John Williams & fa[m]ily are well. 31. You say in yours that your not having sold your 32. land is an objection with Sally & same with 33. your self, I must say I would much prefer that 34. your selling before you move for it takes 35. considerable to fit out for farming & living & 36. there is land lying joining that I offer to you 37. & the same quantity which the man would 38. sell for six hundred Dollars (& perhaps less) 39. which would make a supurbe farm, & might 40. be extended to any desireable [sic] size, at [congre-- ?] 41. Price. You write that you would write soon again 42 perhaps your letter may have arrived at the office 43. by now which if I had it, might require infor 44. -mation that might be communicated in thi[s] 45. I have waited long for an opportunity of writin[g] 46. by J. Sickafoose [sic] he was at my house about 47. New Year going West in quest H Metzker = = = Letter, page 3 = = = 48. he expected to call on me in his return but 49. has not. C & S M[c]Corkle have been on the 50. point of starting for near a Month. I expect 51. to send this by them. Zickafoose [sic] informed 52. me that W Caraway had sold his place and 53. bought Kippers' . I am sorry he had not ma[de] 54. a better purchase. 55. To Joshua you wrote that you exp[ect] 56. to move next fall. if you ever inte[n]d it the s[ooner] 57. the better. I want you to take the supri[nten-] 58. -dance of you [sic] Land for I find it tro[uble-] 59. -some without much profit to yo[u] 60. [or] me. if you come let me Know soo[n] 61. We have had a hard winter & bad [crops ?] 62. especially of corn in part owing to se[- - - -] 63. Spring in part owing to a bad Season & [- - - -] 64. owing to an unusual early frost in the fall 65. all conspiring to make corn bad and scarce 66. and good seed corn is scarcer than last Year. 67. There has frequent requests been made to know how 68. I was pleased how satisfied & I am Well 69. Pleased & Satisfied & would still be better pleas 70. -ed that every one that would not be pleased at 71. making as good an exchange as I have would 72. stay away, out of my way and = = = Letter, page 4 = = = 73. Thomas 74. I have used all my Money in purchase of Land 75. Stock, provisions Tools etc & would like if you could 76. send the amount due from Huffman. Send by Mail 77. Which to be safe would require you to inform the PM & take 78. his Receipt & pay Extra postage of this you can inquire. 79. Chs Caraway = = = Five and one-half inches of space here is the outside or envelope with the following addressee: Mr. Thomas Caraway Greenbrier County Virginia Blue Sulphur Spring [P Office ?] = = = 80. In conclusion I consider my life & health as safe & sure in 81. this Country where Agues, Fevers, Indians, Prearie [sic] Wolves, Rattle Snakes preva 82. -ils as yours in Virginia where Fevers, Consumptions, Rheum[a] 83. -tisms liver complaints quinsys Corsets Negroes etc prevail 84. if the inquirer wants to know more let him come & see 85. I have not room to insert comp[l]iments at full length 86. agreeably to the wish of some but must give them in gross 87. to all etc etc etc. C Caraway = = = Some word definitions: (from Concise Genealogical Dictionary, Glen Harris) = = = Line 81 Agues - malarial fever Line 82 Consumptions - tuberculosis Line 83 quinsy - sore throat [tonsilitus] Line 83 Corsets - not listed = = = People mentioned in this letter = = = This information, copied verbatim, was prepared by Mr. Isaac L. Mitchell, Renick, Greenbrier County WV, circa 12 August 1993. Anything in square brackets [ ] has been inserted by this researcher - hwd] 1. John Boggess [line 4] Moved from Muddy Creek, VA in 1830 to Vermilion Co, Ill where he took up land in Catlin in Sections 29 and 30. Lived here until his death in 1875 Beckwith [Beckwith=author, History of Vermilion Co Illinois, Chicago: 1879-hwd] Boggess name still found near Blue Sulfur Springs, WV. 2. Betsy and the little girl [line 9 - two people] Charles' [writer of this letter] wife [Betsy] who was Elizabeth McCorkle and his daughter born in 1832. (Elizabeth) Betsy was the daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth McCorkle, very early settlers in Muddy Creek. Elizabeth was appointed adm. of Samuel's estate with bond of $2,000 on Feb. 21, 1822. Argabrite guardian for Samuel his minor child, on Sept. 27, 1830. Deeds for land in Greenbrier County [WV] in 1831 to John, Charles and William McCorkle. Deed to John McCorkle, 21 Feb. 1822. John McCorkle sold 185 acres to John Piercey on 27 Jan. 1834. Speculation - Could this be the location of Piercey's Mill? According to Beckwith [ibid.] three McCorkle brothers moved to Catlin [Vermilion County Illinois] with Charles Caraway and Betsy. These brothers were John S., Charles and William. John S. McCorkle took up land NE of Catlin and became a prosperous and successful farmer. He died in 1858. Charles and William taught for some time. - Beckwith p. 616 3. Mother [line 9] ? could this be Elizabeth (Betsy) McCorkle Caraway's mother, Elizabeth ? wife of Samuel, Sr ? 4. Alexander Church and Ruth [line 13 - two people] Moved to Vermilion County, Illinois in 1830 and farmed 10 years on land owned by Charles Caraway, etc. See Beckwith p. 630-631. Married in Greenbrier County [W] Virginia, November 1826. 10 Children . See Beckwith p. 617, p. 630 Ruth was Ruth Caraway before marriage - no clue to her parentage. Has to be second generation from Thomas Sr. and Elizabeth (daughter of one of their children) 5. Jane Boggess [line 14] ? ? ? Could she be the wife of John Boggess ? 6. Thomas Keeney [line 16] B. 12 March 1803 M. [married, 7. below] 7. Betsy Keeny [sic] [line 17] Elizabeth Caraway B. 31 March 1810 [comments now refer to both #6 and #7, who are husband and wife] Thomas H. Keeney, probably son of David Keeney ? both sons of John and Catherine. David m. Peniah HICKLEN Keeney. See enclosed "Keeney Update" [not included with this paper] I am unable to say for certain who the parents of Elizabeth were. Must be 2nd generation - daughter of a son of Thomas Sr and Elizabeth [Caraway]. [Line 18 says she "has another Son. . ." - another person-hwd] 8. Hamilton [line 22] Speculation. There was a Hamilton Boggess in Vermilion Co [IL] in 1854 ? One of Thomas H. Keeney's sons was named Hamilton F. Keeney ? 9. Joe M[c]Gary [line 23] No information 10. James Bivens [line 26] [also line 28 = 'his Daddy", another person] Still a common name in Greenbrier Co [WV] Blue Sulfur - Smoot, Rupert 11. John Williams & family [line 30] No information [Ike notes: "and CATHY ?"} [the word family, in the letter, is almost definitely FAILY. It appears Charles just left out the M.] 12. Sally [line 32] Sarah Livesay, wife of Thomas [Caraway] to whom letter is addressed. Her parents were John Livesay and Mary Campbell. John's father was Thomas Livesey who immigrated to USA from Lancashire, England, Feb. 3, 1730. (Muddy Creek Settlement by ca. 1775). 13. J Sickafoose, Zickafoose [line 46 & 51] [same person, spelled two ways in the letter] Still a prominent name in Greenbrier Co [WV] 14. [H.] Metzker [line 47 Name appears in early county records (Greenbrier [WV]). 15. C. & S. McCorkle [line 49] See item 2 above [In other notes, Ike Mitchell tells us C is Charles and S is Samuel] 16. W. Caraway [line 52] This William was a brother of Charles [writer of this letter] and Thomas to whom letter was addressed. He is buried in the Lewis Cemetery. [I am assuming the Lewis Cemetery named here is the one in the Muddy Creek area, not Grassy Meadows - hwd] I tried to find Kipper's Hollow a few years ago. It was where the early Kippers lived and near Blue Sulfur Springs. The old roads are closed now and one would need to walk to the area now reclaimed by Nature. See enclosure - [not with this paper] Heirs of James Patterson Sr. Apparently Charles didn't think much of the land. 17. Kippers [line 53] Intermarried with Caraways - Muddy Creek [Greenbrier Co WV] 18. Joshua [line 55] Brother of Charles [Caraway, writer of this letter] - Vermilion Co. Ill. 19. Huffman [line 76] No information available. Many Huffmans in Greenbrier Co [WV]. 1