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James Caudy, I, The Pioneer
b.1707 Netherlands
d.1 Mar 1784 Capon Valley, Hampshire County, Virginia
Family tree▼ (edit)
m. 21 Jan 1730
Facts and Events
James Caudy was one of the Early Settlers of Augusta County, Virginia __________________________ [edit] About James CaudyJames Caudy (1707 – March 15, 1784) was an early American frontiersman, settler, and landowner in the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians of the Colony of Virginia (present-day West Virginia). Born in the Netherlands, Caudy immigrated to the Thirteen Colonies in the 1730s and settled within the Cacapon River valley near present-day Capon Bridge in Hampshire County. As early as 1741, Caudy was associated with the arrangement and development of transportation routes throughout present-day Hampshire County. Caudy twice hosted George Washington; first during his surveying expedition in 1748, and again when Washington returned to the Cacapon River valley in 1750. Caudy participated in the French and Indian War, and is best known for having purportedly defended himself from attack by a band of Native American fighters atop the Caudy's Castle sandstone rock outcrop, which now bears his name. According to tradition, Caudy pushed his Native American attackers off the rock with his long rifle barrel into the Cacapon River below.
James Caudy (1707 – March 15, 1784) was an American , settler, and landowner in the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians of the Colony of Virginia—present-day West Virginia. Caudy was born in the Netherlands, immigrated to the Thirteen Colonies in the 1730s, and settled within the Cacapon River valley near present-day Capon Bridge in Hampshire County. As early as 1741, Caudy was associated with the arrangement and development of transportation routes throughout present-day Hampshire County. Caudy twice hosted George Washington; first during his surveying expedition in 1748 and again upon Washington's 1750 return to the Cacapon River valley. Caudy participated in the French and Indian War and is best known for having purportedly defended himself from a band of Native American fighters on Caudy's Castle—a sandstone outcrop that now bears his name. According to tradition, Caudy used his long rifle barrel to push his Native American attackers off the rock into the Cacapon River below. In his later life, Caudy became involved in a land dispute with John Capper that was resolved by Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron in November 1762. Caudy died in 1784 and was interred on his property south of present-day Capon Bridge. According to local tradition, Caudy was buried with a Native American on either side of him, while another tradition says Caudy was buried with his horse.
[edit] Acquisition of Land in Frederick County, VAAcquisition of Land from Virginia Northern Neck Land Grants 1742-1775, Vol. 2:
[edit] Records in Augusta County, VA
[edit] Early Land Survey in Frederick County, VA
[edit] Information on James CaudyDEATH: Date Conflict - 01 Mar OR 09 Mar 1784 - , Hampshire County, (West) Virginia, USA Immigrant, Pioneer, Indian Fighter. Will written 2 DEC 1783 and Proved 9 MAR 1784. The Colonial Government of Virginia granted James Caudy title to his "Tomahawk Rights". When he received title in 1735, along with John Hiett, everything from the crest of the Blue Ridge to as far west as the British had or claimed control was Orange County. Squatting was often fueled by propertied politicians eager to develop and exploit a colony's resources. In most colonies, politicians believed that territorial development could be accomplished only through immigration. To accomplish this goal, colonial politicians gave grants to individuals and groups to settle on undeveloped land, predicating their title on occupation and improvement. In Virginia, according to Ford, "to seat the tract meant to build a house, plant one acre, and keep stock for one year; if this were not done within three years, the land lapsed to the state." Under Massachusetts law, a settler's duties "included taking actual possession and within three years, building a house of a certain size, usually eighteen or twenty feet square, and clearing five to eight acres for mowing and tilling." In securing the rights they hoped to achieve through such settlement policies, squatters often found the formal system too burdensome or complex. In the chaos surrounding law, land, and property, the migrants realized that if they were going to live in peace among themselves, they had to establish some sort of order, even if it had to be outside the official law. Squatters began inventing their own species of extralegal property titles known as "tomahawk rights," "cabin rights," and "corn rights." Tomahawk rights were secured by deadening a few trees near the head of a spring and marking the bark of one or more trees with the initials of the person who made the improvement. Cabin rights and corn rights meant staking out land by building a log cabin or raising a crop of corn. Significantly, these extralegal rights were bought, sold, and transferred -- just like official titles. And although such cabin or corn rights may not have legally entitled anyone to the land, there is no question that they helped avoid quarrels, were widely accepted in America?s frontier communities, and became the source of legal title years later. http://reason.com/0105/fe.hs.citadels.shtml
Will book 2, page 49, Romney WV 2 Dec 1783, I, James Caudy of the county of Hampshire..VA... First, to Martha Caudy, widow of my son David, all the land I am now possessed of, during her widowhood, and at her death or marriage...
..Robert Pugh and Evan Hyatt to be whole and sole executors.... Witnesses - Elias Poston, Sam'l Edwards, John Hancher, Sam'l Chesher ..Dots indicate serious editing but only excess words and land descriptions. Source is Maud Pugh's two volumes about Hampshire Co. (Helen Pettibone)
Born Prince George Co. Maryland in 1695 James Coddy (Caudy) married about 1714 in Prince George Co, MD. to Mary McPherson who was b. in the same place (Prince George Co. Maryland) in 1695. James died 9 March 1784 in Capon Valley, Hampshire Co, WV and Mary died there before 1760. Their children are:
He was also married to Mary McCoy (Widow of James McCoy, I think.) Buried in my files, I have a McPherson will that mentions grandsons: James, John and Evan Caudy and Martha Pugh. Martha Pugh was Martha Hiatt who first married David Caudy who, as I recall, died in 1783. The ancestor I'm sure of is:
If anyone has additions, corrections or even theories to end my confusion I would very much appreciate hearing. (Helen Pettibone : Dec 6, 1999 m3@wans.net)
Caudy's Castle or Castle Rock -- A natural rock formation, has a legend all its own. It seems that a pioneer settler by the home of Caudy was ambushed by Indians and ran into this rock formation. The rocks are formed such that to get behind them you have to go through this narrow passage which is only large enough for one person to get through at a time. This enabled Caudy to save his life as he was able to kill all the Indians one at a time as they came through the passage. Located 1 1/2 miles south of Rt. 45 near Bloomery overlooking Cacapon River. <http://wvweb.com/www/potomac_highlands/hampshire/hampshire_history.html> James Caudy (262), grandfather of Margaret Henshaw, was an Indian fighter who helped pioneer western Frederick and eastern Hampshire counties, where he owned hundreds of acres of land. At Caudy's Castle, a magnificent rock formation in Hampshire County, WV, he singlehandedly fought a band of Indians, throwing them off one by one, 50 feet above a 450 foot cliff overlooking the North Mountain and Capon Rivers. In 1748, with Joseph Edwards, he surveyed 400 acres and 358 acres on Great Cacapehon and Dillings Run. He also owned other land on McCoy's Ridge and Timber Ridge. In 1755 he hosted George Washington and his party as they returned from an expedition to Ohio. On September 22, 1756, Lord Fairfax granted him 103 acres in Frederick County, which Caudy sold to James McGinnis in 1779 for 500 pounds. His 1783 will, witnessed by his son-in-law John Henshaw (130), left all his remaining land to the widow of his son John Caudy. His daughter Sarah Caudy (131) was the grandmother of Samuel McGinnis <http://homepages.go.com/~mdmcginn/mcginnis.htm>. <http://homepages.go.com/~mdmcginn/wv.htm> In 1748, listed of Orange Co, with Joseph Edwards, had surveys run on 400 and 358 acres on Great Cacapehon and Dillings Run In 1753, 103 acres from warrant - on Isaac's Cr. which enters into Cacapon; from survey on N side McCoys Ridge on drains of Isaac's Creek, a branch of Back Creek. Caudy's Castle, a magnificent rock formation in Hampshire County, WV, is named for this pioneer family. James Caudy, grandfather of Margaret Henshaw, was an Indian fighter who helped pioneer western Frederick and eastern Hampshire counties, where he owned hundreds of acres of land. At Caudy's Castle, a magnificent rock formation in Hampshire County, WV, he singlehandedly fought a band of Indians, throwing them off one by one, 50 feet above a 450 foot cliff overlooking the North Mountain and Capon Rivers. In 1748, with Joseph Edwards, he surveyed 400 acres and 358 acres on Great Cacapehon and Dillings Run. He also owned other land on McCoy's Ridge and Timber Ridge. In 1755 he hosted George Washington and his party as they returned from an expedition to Ohio. On September 22, 1756, Lord Fairfax granted him 103 acres in Frederick County, which Caudy sold to James McGinnis in 1779 for 500 pounds. His 1783 will, witnessed by his son-in-law John Henshaw (130), left all his remaining land to the widow of his son John Caudy. His daughter Sarah Caudy was the grandmother of Samuel McGinnis. Maud Pugh, Capon Valley: Its Pioneers and Their Descendants, 1698-1940 Vol. 2, SOURCE: http://awt.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=REG&db=hudson-marker&id=I2178 From David W Caudy, Lincoln, Nebraska (4/25/2002) Re: James Caudy Descendants Hi Howard I have been out of town the last few days and missed your email. I couldn't get your attachment to open on my computer. I'm not very good about sending attachments either. I guess I don't know the proper procedures. My branch of the Caudy's come from Ohio then Illinois where my grandfather fought in the Civil War for the Union. I have his original discharge papers from there. I have also the birth records from the family Bible dating to 1814. It gets fuzzy before that era. I have had limited contact with Caudy's and descendants. I know that a Joann Caffrey from Ohio is one of my missing relations and that she has done a lot of research into the family. My history is mostly anecdotal but interesting non the less. How are you related to the Caudy's? I also have some limited photos. Mostly of my grandparents and great grandmother. She wasn't a Caudy of course but married into the family. Most of the Caudy's have an interesting long life. Several never married and the incidence of twins has been well recorded including my Aunt florence who had twin daughters. It would appear that the name Caudy itself is dying. There aren't that many and they don't seem to reproduce mail heirs. So what do you do in Lincoln and how long have you lived here? My wife and I have lived here for 30 years. We have always maintained a non published phone number and so we aren't easy to find. Hope to hear from you soon and find out the relationship. I am aware of the information contained in the history of Capon Valley in West Virginia and the location of Caudy's Castle. The name Caudy is actually considered a name from the mediterranean area but we have always considered ourselves to be more of the Scottish ancestry but then we have reason to believe why that is also. We know that the Caudy's were here before the American Revolution because of historical documents. Take care and have a good one. I am a teacher for the Lincoln Public Schools. Good to hear from you, David Wayne Caudy. Sunday 10th. We took our farewell of the Branch & travelld over Hills and Mountains to 1 Coddys on Great Cacapehon about 40 Miles. James Caundy (Coddy) owned some 98 acres of land in Frederick County. On 19 Mar. 1752 GW noted that "Pursuant to a Warrant from the Proprietors Office I have Surveyed for James Caudy of Great Cacapehon a certain tract of waste & ungranted Land on the So. Fork of Dillans commonly call'd & known by the Name of the Little Meadows" (survey for Caudy, Vi). Monday 11th. We Travell'd from Coddys down to Frederick Town where we Reached about 12 oClock. We dined in Town and then went to Capt. Hites & Lodged. {illustration </mss/mgw/mgwtext/wd01/0080.jpg>} Belhaven, later to become Alexandria, Va., was surveyed by Washington about 1748. (Library of Congress)
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