Aaron Skaggs' Sons and the Adultery Charges

Back in colonial Virginia there was an Aaron Skaggs who many researchers believe was one of the Long Hunter brothers.  He died prior to 1800 so he would not have necessarily been considered in the Moses Skaggs court case later in the 1800s.  Anyway, this Aaron had two sons, Henry and Aaron, who were brought up on adultery charges in Washington County, Virginia in 1781.
I found an old post from August 30, 2008 on the Rootsweb Skaggs genealogy forum that discusses the adultery cases of Henry and Aaron Skaggs.  I'll post it here for future researchers.


Ginny, the name of Nancy Davis comes from the following 1781 Virginia court record: At a court held for Washington County November 21st, 1781 Present Arthur Campbell, John Kinkead, Robert Campbell, Gentlemen. The Grand Jury Present Alexander Smith for Adultry with Jane Gibson, Jacob Young for horse Raceing, James Douglas for same, Evan Evans for same, Thomas Gross for misprison, Daniel Young for Breach of the Peace, Col. John Smith for Breach of the Sabbath, Andrew Colvill for Horse Raceing, Henry Graham for same, John Young for same, Archibald Brumley for same, James Dysart for same, Joseph Snodgrass for same, Major David Campbell for same, HENRY SKAGGS for Audultery with NANCY DAVIS, AARON SKAGGS for same with SARAH LYON, Sarah Kennedy for Fornication, Mary Pierce for same, William Robinson for Neglect of the Road, Daniel Young for same, John Funchouser for same, James Piper for same, William Batie for same, Widow James for fornication, and they having nothing further to present are Discharged. Ordered that process issue against the Several persons this day presented. --Annals of SouthWest Virginia 1769-1800, p.1091 (appears to be an actual transcription). I sent to the courthouse about 10 years ago for a photocopy of the actual record, and found that the book referenced above transcribed it word for word. I was surprised, but pleased. As Ida has pointed out in earlier posts, this occurred at the end of the Revolutionary period when only the Church of England was recognized for marriages and the like to be "legal" which, I believe, is what caused the above court record to come into being (and others like it). My husband descends from Rebecca, the 6th and last child born to Henry and Nancy Skaggs. (Rebecca named her first daughter after her mother.) Nancy died in 1795 or 1796. Henry married Anna Bass, Jan. 1, 1797, and the following censuses show that she was about the same age as Henry. 1810 Grayson Co., KY, census, p.241, line 9, Henry SCAGGS: 0 0 1 0 1 : 0 2 0 0 1 1 M & 1 F 45 & over (b. before 1765); 1 M 16-26 (b.1784-1794; Aaron?); 2 F 10-16 (b.1794-1800; Nancy & Rebecca). 1820 Grayson Co., KY, census, p.152, line 20, Henry SCAGGS: 1 0 0 1 0 1 : 0 0 1 0 1 1 M & 1 F 45 & over (b. before 1775; Henry b.1759 & wife); 1 M & 1 F 16-26 (b.1794-1804; Burgess Thomas & wife Rebecca Skaggs); 1 M under 10 (b.1810-1820; Rebecca's son Gideon b.1815). 1830 Grayson Co., KY, census, p.321, line 6, Henry SKAGGS: 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 : 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 M & 1 F 70-80 (b.1750-1760; Henry b.1759 & wife); 1 M 15-20 (b.1810-1815; Rebecca's son Gideon b.1815). Burgis THOMAS and wife Rebecca SKAGGS, line 4: 1 1 0 0 1 : 1 0 0 0 0 1. In 1840 and 1850, Henry was living with son James who married Kessiah Ann Witten. Hope this helps to clarify. --Wilene

3 comments:

  1. Did Henry's brother Aaron migrate and live in Grayson County, KY as well ?

    Also, did Zachariah Skaggs live in Washington County, VA as well back in 1781 ?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't know whether Aaron made the trip from Virginia to Adair County, Kentucky. It appears that son William Skaggs was born in 1797 three days after the family passed through the Cumberland Gap into Kentucky. They settled in Adair County first, then moved to Grayson County after 1810. You may want to read this research:

      https://wc.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=thomaswilene&id=I3589

      Delete
    2. Zachariah Skaggs sold his Montgomery County property he got as heir-at-law of John Scaggs on September 23, 1780, however, because of the war it wasn't deeded until 1782. Zachariah shows up as taxable in Washington County in 1782. I don't know where he was in 1781 but I know he didn't show up in the Montgomery County militia that year.

      Delete

Most Popular Posts