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Facts and Events
Records in Virginia
- Deed dated August 3, 1772, from George McDaniel of Amherst County to Drury Tucker of same for £3, conveying 54 acres on Tobacco Row Mt. joining land of Abraham Penn. Marginal note indicates that original delivered to Joseph Tucker. Deed Book C, page 374, Amherst County, Virginia. VAGenWeb.org
- Deed dated September 21, 1772, from Abraham Penn of Amherst County to Drury Tucker of same, for £150, conveying 301 acres on South side branch of Harris Creek and East of Tobacco Row Mountains. Being tract of land purchased by Penn from Baylor Walker of King and Queen County by two deeds recorded in Amherst County for 136 acres by deed dated October 5, 1767, adjoining the lines of John Harris and the other tract by deed dated March 4, 1771, for 165 acres purchased from George McDaniel. Witnesses to the deed were Edmund Wilcox, Benjamin Taliaferro, Thomas Lumpkin, Joseph Cabell, Matthew Tucker, Gabriel Penn. Marginal note that original delivered to Joseph Tucker October 30, 1779. Deed Book C, page 429, Amherst County, Virginia. VAGenWeb.org
- Deed dated August 3, 1772, from George McDaniel of Amherst County to Drury Tucker of same for £3, conveying 54 acres on Tobacco Row Mt. joining land of Abraham Penn. Marginal note indicates that original delivered to Joseph Tucker. Deed Book C, page 374, Amherst County, Virginia. VAGenWeb.org
- Deed dated September 21, 1772, from Abraham Penn of Amherst County to Drury Tucker of same, for £150, conveying 301 acres on South side branch of Harris Creek and East of Tobacco Row Mountains. Being tract of land purchased by Penn from Baylor Walker of King and Queen County by two deeds recorded in Amherst County for 136 acres by deed dated October 5, 1767, adjoining the lines of John Harris and the other tract by deed dated March 4, 1771, for 165 acres purchased from George McDaniel. Witnesses to the deed were Edmund Wilcox, Benjamin Taliaferro, Thomas Lumpkin, Joseph Cabell, Matthew Tucker, Gabriel Penn. Marginal note that original delivered to Joseph Tucker October 30, 1779. Deed Book C, page 429, Amherst County, Virginia. VAGenWeb.org
Notes
Abraham Penn was a Colonel in the Henry County Militia. He was very influential during the was and there is now an Abram Penn Chapter of the DAR. Abraham died June 26, 1801 in Patrick County, VA. William Hannah was witness to the inventory. William Hannah was the son-in-law of his brother Phillip Penn. Rootsweb.com
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 .
" Col. Abraham (Abram) Penn was born in Goochland or Amherst County Virginia in 1743. He married Ruth Stovall in 1767 in Amherst County, Virginia. Shortly thereafter, he moved to Henry County, Virginia and lived on Beaver Creek on land which was later the home of Col. George Hairston.
When Henry County was formed in 1776, Abram Penn was the presiding justice of the County Court. He organized and commanded the Henry County troops in the Battle of Guilford Courthouse in the American Revolution and was at the Surrender in Yorktown.
Sometime after the War, Col. Penn sold his Beaver Creek property to Col. George Hairston and purchased large acreages of land on the headwaters of the North Mayo River, which later became a part of Patrick County. He built a home here, which he named Poplar Grove. With his large family, he lived here until his death in 1801, and is buried in the cemetery near the house.
In 1786, the people in the western section of Henry County (now Patrick Country) complained that the Henry County Courthouse which was located across the Smith River from Hordsville, was too far from the center of the County. The County Court decided to move the courthouse to the farm of Col. Penn, which was nearer the center of the County at that time. At least one session of the Court was held in the home of Col. Penn. Later, a courthouse and necessary adjacent structures were built nearby. Unfortunately, no one now living seems to know exactly where the courthouse was located.
In 1791, when Patrick became a county, the Henry County Courthouse was located in Patrick County. The Henry County Courthouse was moved to its present location on land donated by Col. George Hairston. Due to the influence of Col. Penn and his son-in-law, Col. Samuel Staples, the Patrick Courthouse was moved to its present location.
The building here now is probably an addition, which was later added to the Penn home. One section of the old home was torn down only a few years ago. The original structure has long since disappeared. The remaining section is rather old. A family member says it was added about 1836.
Poplar Grove sits on an eminence overlooking the low land of the North Mayo River Valley. The poplar trees, for which it was probably named, have long since disappeared; but it can easily be seen that the view from the house in those days was a beautiful one.
Col. Penn's descendents continued to live at Poplar Grove for many years. A son, Thomas Penn married Martha K Kennerly, and their daughter, Eliza, married Samuel William Hairston, the operator of the iron works at Union Furnace. Some of the iron was brought to Mayo Forge, which was located on the river just south of Poplar Grove. Here it was made into tools and farm implements.
A large number of the descendents of Col. Abram Penn have been prominent in the affairs of Patrick and Henry County, Virginia since the beginnings of the counties. Many descendents have also been prominent elsewhere. Descendents were prominent in the manufacture of tobacco products. Greenville Penn, son of Col. Abram, moved to that section of Patrick County now known as Penn's Store, and started manufacturing tobacco products. His son, Thomas Jefferson Penn, moved to Danville and engaged in the tobacco business. He later moved to Reidsville, N.C. and established a business, which became the American Tobacco Co.
This page was written by Mr. O. E. Pilson for the 1996 Hairston Reunion"
http://www.geni.com/people/Col-Abraham-Penn-Sr/6000000005013874357
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