Zenas Graves (284) was born 28 Jan. 1752 at Westfield, Mass., and died in 1820 at Cambridge, Dearborn Co., IN. He married Hannah (possibly Franklin[2]) in 1776. She died in Cambridge, Dearborn Co., IN. He was in the Rev. Army in Capt. Silas Fowler's Co., and served as a fifer with the Minute Men in 1775. They lived in Sunderland, Mass., where their first two children were born. They then moved to Vermont near Wells in Rutland Co., near the border with N.Y. state.
It was probably after 1808 (possibly as late as 1810-1815) that Zenas Graves started west with his sons, Franklin Ward, Horace, and probably also Larantus. They went down through the state of New York until they came to the headwaters of the Ohio River. At that point, they built flat boats on which they floated down the river to Kentucky.
They stopped for a while in Kentucky before moving on to Cincinnati, Ohio. From Cincinnati, they went over into Dearborn Co., Ind. Zenas moved to a little place known as Cambridge or Pella, a few miles from Lawrenceburg. He and his wife were buried there in a cemetery now deserted, of which there are no records and where no headstones exist.
Descendants of Franklin Ward Graves, son of Zenas, said they were told that Franklin was his mother's maiden name.
Zenas' oldest child Horace named his sons after his brothers. Thus, there was a Franklin Ward Graves, Jr., who was the son of Horace Graves. The Graves of the Donner party of 1846 were the family of F. W., Sr.
Unfortunately, there is some confusion today about exactly how many children Zenas had, and what happened to them all. By most accounts, in addition to Horace, Rachel, William and Franklin Ward, he had a son Larantus who was also called Rantus.
There is a Francis Graves buried on the William Graves lot in the Caledonia Cem. in Putnam Co., Ill. This is presumed to be Larantus.
