Kuykendall Genealogy Index(Excerpts from)
HISTORY OF
THE KUYKENDALL
FAMILY
Since its Settlement in
Dutch New York
in 1646
WITH GENEALOGY
As Found in Early Church Records
State and Government Documents
TOGETHER WITH
Sketches of Colonial Times, Old Log Cabin Days,
Indian Wars, Pioneer Hardships, Social Customs, Dress and
Mode of Living of the Early Forefathers
WITH ILLUSTRATIONS
-------
-BY-
GEORGE BENSON KUYKENDALL, M. D.
KILHAM STATIONERY & PRINTING CO.
PORTLAND, OREGON
1919
by Dr. George Benson Kuykendall
1919
[page 92]
CHAPTER XIII
NATHANIEL KUYKENDALL (1ST) AND DESCENDANTS.
Nathaniel Kuykendall (3), son of Jacob Kuykendall, was born at Minisink, New Jersey, and baptized at Kingston, New York, Oct. 6, 1728. His father, Jacob, was baptized 1683, and his grandfather, Luur Jacobsen Van Kuykendaal was baptized May 29, 1650.
Nathaniel grew to manhood in the old home in Delaware valley, and went with his parents to Virginia. His career indicates that he was a man of intelligence and force of character. The record shows that he purchased land from Lord Fairfax, the deed for which bore the date of June 15, 1749. There are several deeds yet in existence that were given to Kuykendalls of that region, bearing the same date. In those early days supply points for the settlers were quite remote and only reached by means of "horse paths." Every fall the nieghbors fitted out among themselves a "caravan," or what would these days in the west be called a large "pack train," to go to Baltimore, Maryland, for supplies.
For several years there were no serious difficulties with the Indians, but later, when the French and Indian wars were started up, general hostilities began, and for years afterwards, the Kuykendalls and their neighbors lived in almost constant anticipation of outbreaks during the summer time. Often women and children were put in peril of the tomahawk and scalping knife, and not a few of their neighbors were murdered, or were captured and had to endure indescribable tortures.
There was one renegade chief, who hung around in the valley, "Old Killbuck" they called him. Before the war, he pretended to be very friendly with the whites, and was very well treated by them. He had been in their houses, over their places, and knew every nook and corner, and understood the strength and weakness of the settlers for defense.
When the war broke out in 1755, the old scamp proved to be a traitor to his white friends, and became a wily and most dangerous enemy, who aided the "wild Indians" in their devilment against the whites. All along from 1754 to 1764 and after, the settlers had only short "breathing spells" free from Indian disturbances, until after the Revolutionary War, a period of twenty-five years, during which the country was in a state of turmoil from Indian hostilities.
Hampshire county was cut off from Frederick, and the first court was held in the new county, in December, 1756. Nathaniel Kuykendall was one of the Justices when he was only twenty-eight years old. He was no doubt the youngest member on the bench. He owned at various times numerous large tracts of land and property of various kinds, as shown by the old county records, and was one of the leading men in the community. All through the Revolutionary War, he and his brothers, John, Benjamin and
NATHANIEL KUYKENDALL'S BURYING GROUND 93
James stood firm for the American cause, and were out and out against Toryism.
The first census of Virginia was taken in 1782, shows that the Kuykendall brothers and their relatives nearly all owned a few negroes.
In those days tobacco was generally cultivated, and the Negroes were used in the tobacco fields, or plantations as they were then called.
The home of Nathaniel Kuykendall 1st, was on the South Branch of the Potomac river about six miles above Romney, Virginia, now W. Va. His farm adjoined that of his uncle, Mathew,
(picture)
Old Family Burying Ground of Nathaniel Kuykendall
which was immediately above his, on the "river bottom." His brother Johannes' place was on the opposite side of the river from Matthew and Nathaniel. The old places are still very beautiful and fertile, after cultivation for over one hundred and seventy years, without much, if any, artificial fertilization.
Nathaniel Kuykendall died March 18, 1796, and was buried on his farm, a short distance back from the river, overlooking the valley, the river, and the mountain beyond. There are, in the cemetery, a few other graves, beside his own, marked by slabs of the dark stone found along the river, in that vicinity. A picture of the ancient burial place is shown on this page.
Nathaniel Kuykendall 1st, had six children, as shown below:
Abraham (4), born (no date), went to Indiana 1800-1804.
Isaac (4), born July 31, 1766, and died in 1845.
Jacob (4), born Oct. 31, 1770, died Sept. 9, 1833.
94 HISTORY OF THE KUYKENDALL FAMILY
Sarah (4), (no date of birth), married Adam Harness.
Katherine (4), (no date of birth), married George Fisher.
Blondius (4), (no date of birth), married Jeremiah Claypool.
All of these were born in Hampshire county, Va.
Abraham and Jacob went to Indiana as early as 1800-1804, and stayed for a time at or near Vincennes, on the Wabash river, then went across the river and took land in Illinois, not far from Enfield.
Abraham had a large family, many of whom died young, and were buried in the old "Kuykendall Cemetery" near by, which still remains.
Isaac, son of Nathaniel 1st, was born in the valley of the South Branch of the Potomac, and was brought up in times when the primitive log school house was the educational institution in the land.
He married a Jane Calvin, who was born March, 1777, and died May 19, 1853.
Isaac was a very plain, outspoken man with a strong and striking personality. He was prominent among the early settlers of the valley, and was connected with various business enterprises. Was captain of local militia, a man of energy. He assisted his father, Nathaniel, in building turnpike roads and stone buildings. When he was about twenty-eight years of age he and his father erected a substantial stone house, on the South Branch of the Potomac, about four miles above Romney, that is yet in good state of preservation and forms a good residence. They built other stone structures in the valley in various places. Isaac had a large family of children that grew up and became respected citizens and left their mark upon the social, business and intellectual development of the country.
Jacob Kuykendall, son of Nathaniel, was born, as shown in the old family Bible, in Hampshire county, Virginia, Oct. 31, 1770, and died near Vincennnes, Indiana, September 9, 1833. He married Catherine Decker, who was born Feb. 19, 1776, and who died 1839. Jacob took up the profession of medicine and practiced about Vincennes and the country near by.
He helped to organize the "First Medical Society of Indiana," June 5, 1827, at which time he was elected its treasurer. Dr. Hiram Decker was a member of the same medical society, and as Dr. Jacob Kuykendall's wife was named Decker before marriage, Drs. Kuykendall and Decker were probably brothers-in-law. Dr. Jacob Kuykendall and his wife were members of the "Indiana Presbyterian Church," but changed their membership to the church in Vincennes, by letter to the "Vincennes First Church," at which time he was made an elder. He died the September following.
A "Historical Atlas of Indiana," published 1876, says:
"In 1807, an act was passed by the General Assembly of the Territory of Indiana, for the incorporation of the University at Vincennes." The first board of trustees named in the instrument
(picture)
Stone House Built by Isaac Kuykendall, 1789, in West Virginia.
96 HISTORY OF THE KUYKENDALL FAMILY
of incorporation was headed by Gen. W. H. Harrison, followed by twelve others, among whom were Jacob Kuykendall and Luke Decker."
"These men had large and liberal ideas of education, and they reflected the true spirit of the ordinance of 1789."
It will be seen from the above that the Decker family, whose destinies had been linked with those of the Kuykendall nearly a hundred years before in the valleys of the Hudson and Delaware rivers, continued to be united in the valley of the Wabash. Jacob Kuykendall had several children, but so far as is known, there is not a single living representative left on the male side.
The following comprises a summary of what we know of Dr. Jacob Kuykendall and descendants....
98 HISTORY OF THE KUYKENDALL FAMILY
The names of Isaac's children, with dates of their birth are given below, and the descendants will be followed, as we have data to do so, down to the seventh generation.
The children of Isaac Kuykendall were as follows:
Nathaniel 2nd (5), was born Sept. 25, 1796.
Jacob (5) was born Dec. 22, 1799.
John (5) was born Oct. 5, 1805.
Luke (5) was born Feb 15, 1808.
William (5) was born Aug 19, 1809.
Sarah (5) was born Sept. 25, 1813.
James (5) was born Oct. 6, 1816.
Susan (5) was born Feb. 14, 1821. All of these were born in Hampshire county, Virginia, (now West Virginia).
(picture)
NATHANIEL KUYKENDALL, 2ND
Romney, West Virginia
Nathaniel 2nd, son of Isaac Kuykendall, 4th generation from Luur Jacobsen Van Kuykendaal, married Sallie Abernathy, daughter of a prominent settler in the valley. Nathaniel, during his lifetime, was one of the foremost men in the valley of the "South Branch," both in business and in relation to education, morals and in a social way.
He was closely identified with various public enterprises. He was Superintendent of the Eastern Division of the Northwestern Turnpike road, and had much to do with the construction of that great highway of the early times and the building of the bridges along its course, among these was the one across the South Branch
99 FOLLOWING NATHANIEL KUYKENDALL'S DESCENDANTS
of the Potomac, commonly called the "South Branch Bridge." The local papers of Romney, about one hundred and twenty years ago, contained numerous advertisements, wherein Nathaniel Kuykendall appeared as Superintendent of construction. He organized a stage line between Romney and Mooresfield, and later connected it with a line from there to Parkersburg, Virginia.
The children of Nathaniel Kuykendall and Sallie Abernathy, who were grandchildren of Nathaniel 1st, were of the sixth generation. Their names and dates of their birth follow:
Isaac (6), was born Dec. 19, 1820.
William Abernathy (6), was born Aug. 17, 1822.
James (6), was born Nov. 27, 1824.
Nancy Jane (6), was born Jan. 3, 1827.
Harriet (6), was born Feb. 20, 1829.
Sarah (6), was born March 5, 1831.
Henry Clay (6), was born Oct. 7, 1833.
John (6), was born May 3, 1836.
Of the above, Isaac married twice. His first wife, Sarah Williams, had no children. His second wife was Hannah Fox, by whom he had four children, viz.:
...
106 HISTORY OF THE KUYKENDALL FAMILY
Luke Kuykendall (5), son of Isaac was born Feb. 15, 1808. He was married twice, the first time to Elizabeth Welch, by whom he had three children; second marriage was to Ann Eliza Williams, by whom he had five children, names follow:
Joseph W. Kuykendall, born 1843, married Mary A. Scott. He practiced medicine at Petersburg, W. Va. Fannie, born 1858, married Dr. ------- Scott, died 1906, in Oakdale, Cal. They had moved there a good many years before. She practiced medicine also. William Dempsie Kuykendall was born in West Virginia, 1831, moved to Illinois and located near Armstrong and was living there still in the fall of 1917. Mollie E. Kuykendall married a Mr. Switzler, they resided in Portland, Oregon, many years. Charles V. Kuykendall was born April 2, 1851, in the old stone house built by his grandfather in 1789, a picture of which is shown elsewhere in this volume. When he was a year old his parents moved to Indiana and rented a farm belonging to his mother's uncle, William Fox, near La Fayette. Here the family remained for five years, and in the spring of 1859 moved over into Illinois, near Danville, about one hundred miles from their Indiana home. They moved through rain and seas of mud to get to their destination in time to raise a crop of corn. They got in the corn all right, raised an immense crop, but the bottom fell out of prices; corn went down to eight cents per bushel and some farmers actually used it for fuel. Pork dropped to the amazing price of a cent and a half per pound. In the fall, Charles' father took what was called "milk sickness" and died, leaving five children. His mother sold her belongings and returned to Virginia. Charles was sent to school taught in a little log schoolhouse, with seats made of split logs that had legs put into the round sides below. He tells of how he sat there trembling in fear of being "licked" by the teacher, for those were the days when "lickin and larnin" were thought to go together. The teacher always had by him, in plain sight of the pupils an ample supply of the sinews of war, tough hickory sprouts.
The Civil War came on and with it strenuous times. The family lived in disputed territory, where neither side had complete ascendancy, so that the country was overrun by first one party and then the other. Writing of those days, Mr. Kuykendall says:
"I try to forget those days. The events now transpiring in Europe bring to mind some of the horrors of that rebellion. I thought we were right at the time, but long since have changed my mind. During the war we lived on my uncle's place on Patterson's Creek. At the close of the war, my mother moved to Moorefield, on the South Branch of the Potomac, one of the prettiest spots on earth.
In the fall of 1868, mother married a man by the name of Simmons, who had lived for some years in Oregon, but was back in Virginia, on a visit. I did not want to go, but this grieved my mother so that I consented to accompany the others. we went
BIOGRAPHIC SKETCH OF CHAS. V. KUYKENDALL 107
from where we lived to New York, and from there by the way of Panama. The night off Cuba we had the worst thunder storm I ever have witnessed, it discounting anything I ever saw anywhere. Nine days from New York we reached Panama, nine o'clock in the evening, were aboard the steamer about midnight. We laid over the next day in the bay, the hottest day I ever saw. The voyage was tedious and monotonous, all the worse because we were in a dead calm, with not a ripple on the water. The fifteenth day from Panama we pulled into the Golden Gate, in a dense fog, which came near causing us to have a collision with
(picture)
CHARLES VAUSE KUYKENDALL
Yamhill, Oregon
a clipper ship, but we landed safely twenty-five days after leaving New York. After three days we boarded the John L. Stevens, for Oregon. That craft was the worst old tub that ever ventured to sea. After a tedious and smoky trip along up the coast, we reached the mouth of the Columbia and had to lay outside because of the rough water on the bar. We finally ventured and made it over into the smooth water in the bay. There was a general feeling of relief. At the mouth of the Willamette we transferred to another boat and went on up to Vancouver.
My first winter in Oregon was spent about nine miles above Vancouver, where I attended school three months, and in the spring worked at the salmon fishery of the Hume Brothers. In July, I went out to Harney, Oregon, helped to put and deliver a large amount of hay. Started back in November, found deep
108 HISTORY OF THE KUYKENDALL FAMILY
snows in the mountains and had a rough time. Took a steamer at The Dalles, and was in Vancouver the evening of the same day. Attended school that winter (1879) taught by E. D. Curtis, worked at the fishery during the canning season in the spring. Later in the season teachers were in much demand, and I concluded to try teaching, applied for a certificate. The school Superintendent asked me three questions and said I would pass, and wrote out a certificate, which I have always regretted I did not save to show my children. I applied for a school in Cowlitz county, Washington, where the school had a hard name, as the last teacher had not been able to control the pupils and keep order. The trustees warned me of conditions and expressed doubt of my ability to manage the pupils, though they thought that my qualifications were all right otherwise. The school was taken on my proposition to try it a month, and if I failed I would step out and there would be no charges for my services. We had order that month, and two terms were taught and I was urged to take the school again, but owing to ill health the offer was declined.
Another term taught later in Clark county, Washington, finished my career as a teacher. I then went to Grand Ronde, Polk county, Oregon, and went to farming. April 24, 1875, I married Miss Eliza J. Davis, and in the fall of the same year went to Yamhill county, in which county I have lived ever since.
We celebrated our fortieth wedding anniversary April 24, 1915. We have had twelve children, of whom ten are living. I have seven married daughters and three boys at home. The boys are Lawrence H., Charles D., and Marvin G. The eldest daughter is Lena Walker, living at Chico, Cal. Her husband is a railroad man. The second is Estella B. Walker, living in Portland, Oregon; her husband is chief clerk of the O.-W. R. & N. Co. The third is Zillah B. B. Wilson, her husband at present principal of the high school at McMinnville, Oregon, where they live. The fourth is Catherine Shreve. They live at Goble, Ore. He is an electrician. The fifth is Jennie J. Porter. They live in Portland, Oregon also, and he is an electrician. The next is Hazel Belshe, living near Moro, Oregon; they are farmers. The last is Mary L. Hutchcroft; they live here on a farm.
With a good home, a respected and useful family, beautiful home surroundings and fertile country, with their children pursuing laudable callings, he and his wife can look back upon an eventful life of useful endeavor.