Person:John Thomas (138)

e-mail from dawoakes@@worldnet.att.net, 2009:

2. John THOMAS. Born about 1752 in London Britain twp, Chester County, Pennsylvania. John died in Mercer County, Kentucky on March 2, 1814; he was 62.

Came to Mercer early 1780's - was appointed the First Surveyor - had beautiful handwriting 1810 Census of Mercer Co John Thomas Males 1 - 1800-1810 1 - 1794-1800 1 - 1784-1794 1 - 1784-1794 1 - bef 1765 Females 1 - 1800-1810 1 - 1794-1800 1 - 1784-1794 1 - bef 1765 1 - bef 1765

In June 1785 when John was 33, he married ELizabeth POGUE, daughter of William POGUE (1735-1778) & Anne KENNEDY (1735-1815), in Lincoln County, Kentucky(now Mercer County, Kentucky). Born on September 4, 1764 in Augusta Colorado Virginia. ELizabeth died in Mercer County, Kentucky on October 10, 1850; she was 86. Buried in Thomas Cem, Mercer County, Kentucky.

William Poage, son of Robert, the pioneer, married Ann Kennedy. In company with Daniel Boone and others, he and his family settled in Ky., about September, 1775. In February, 1776, he removed his family to the fort at Harrodsburg, and in the spring of that year cleared ground and planted corn two miles from the fort. He had great mechanical skill, and during more than two years made all the wooden vessels used by the people in the fort. He also made the woodwork of the first plow used in Kentucky and the first loom on which weaving was done in that state. On September 1, 1778, in a fight with the Indians, he was wounded by three balls, but his companions escaped unhurt. The next day they found him and carried him to a hiding-place. The Indians discovered them and laid for them, but were found out and attacked. Four of them were killed, one of whom had Poage's gun, which was recovered and became the property of his son, Robert Poage of Mason County, Ky. William Poage was carried home, but died the next day. Ann Kennedy was four times married, first to Mr. Wilson, second to William Poage, third to Joseph Lindsay, who was killed at the battle of Blue Licks in 1782, and fourth to James McGinty. She is said to have been a woman of rare energy and ingenuity. Collins says she brought the first spinning-wheel to Kentucky and made the first linen manufactured in that country from the lint of nettles, and the first linsey made from nettle-lint and buffalo wool. William Poage and Ann Kennedy were the father and mother of Robert Poage, who married Jane Hopkins, daughter of John Hopkins the pioneer. Draper Papers 4/cc 85 Statements of Mrs. Elizabeth (Poague) Thomas, Harrodsburg, Mercer Co., Ky I was born in Virginia on the 4th day of September 1764 in Rockbridge County near the Natural Bridge. My father moved on the North Fork of Holston within 4 or 5 miles from Abingdon & remained there two or three years and in March 1775 we moved down the Holston near the Big Island where we remained until Sept. 1775 when Col Calloway and his company came along going to Kentucky, when my father William Poague packed up and came with him with our family, Col Boone and with his wife and family and Col. Hugh McGary, Thomas Denton and Richard Hogan were on the road before us and when we arrived at Boonesborough the latter part of September there was only five or six cabins built along the bank of the Kentucky river but not picketed & being open on two sides, Nat Hart had a cabin above a small branch which headed up near the river hill in a Buffalo lick, some two or three hundred yards distanct, and this was its condition when we arrived we found Boone & Henderson there when we arrived and a number of others to whom Henderson was selling land claims, we remained at Boonesborough that winter in a cabbin built by John Kennedy a brother of Gen'l Thomas Kennedy and in the winter the Kentucky river rose from heavy rains and ran around the cabins next the river hill & we were afraid it would have entered our cabin but it did not & in February 1776 my father & family moved to Harrodsburg into the Fort built by McGary. The cabbins built by Col. Harrod in 1774 were then standing and some of them occupied one by ---- Hugh Wilson whose wife had a son a month or two old which she called Harrod Wilson which was the first child born in this place. I knew Capt. Edward Worthington, he was an Irishman and had a wife or rather a woman by the name of Betsy with whom he lived as such and when he marched with Genl Clarke against Vincennes in the fall of 1778 he left her in Harrodsburg and an amusing anecdote took place between her and Evan Shelby who had a sham marriage with her which she insisted was good and it cost him some trouble and money to get clear of her. She afterwards met Capt. Worthington at the falls of Ohio and they returned to Harrodsburg in 1781 or 2 and lived there for several years and he then moved up onto Lincoln County near Danville in Clarkes run and some years after he went to N. Orleans and died there, he came to Harrodsburg with his wife in the year 1776 he was a good soldier & hunter about 5 ft. 10 inches high and heavy square built frame always ready for an enterprize. Mrs. Thomas was married to Capt. John Thomas, June 29, 1785 and he was next year appointed the first surveyor of Mercer County, they had 12 children and Capt. Thomas died March 2nd 1814 in his 63 year of age. Elizabeth Thomas

They had the following children: i. William Morris. Born on May 12, 1786 in Mercer County, Kentucky. William Morris died in Mercer County, Kentucky on June 14, 1838; he was 52. The Pogue Book lists his middle name as Maurice - family records say Morris

ii. John. Born on February 23, 1788 in Mercer County, Kentucky. John died in Mercer County, Kentucky on July 20, 1819; he was 31. 4 iii. Mary (1790-1821) iv. Joseph. Born on December 30, 1791 in Mercer County, Kentucky. Joseph died in Mercer County, Kentucky on November 3, 1829; he was 37. 5 v. Anne Pogue (1793-1857) 6 vi. Thomas Jefferson (1795-1861) 7 vii. Elizabeth (1798->1860) viii. Henry "Harry". Born on May 6, 1800 in Mercer County, Kentucky. Henry "Harry" died in Mercer County, Kentucky on April 8, 1850; he was 49. ix. Overton Clough. Born on April 25, 1802 in Mercer County, Kentucky. Overton Clough died in Mercer County, Kentucky on October 19, 1823; he was 21. 8 x. Edmund (1804-1877) xi. Lewis Clark. Born on October 23, 1806 in Mercer County, Kentucky. Lewis Clark died in Mercer County, Kentucky after 1852; he was 45. xii. Martha. Born on March 3, 1808 in Mercer County, Kentucky. On February 19, 1829 when Martha was 20, she married Benjamin WRIGHT, in Mercer County, Kentucky. xiii. Rachel. Born on July 6, 1810 in Mercer County, Kentucky. Rachel died on August 15, 1810 in Mercer County, Kentucky.