CAMPBELL CHRONICLES and FAMILY SKETCHES
Embracing the History of CAMPBELL COUNTY, VIRGINIA
1782-1926
By R. H. EARLY
With Illustrations
J. P. BELL COMPANY
LYNCHBURG, VIRGINIA 1927
New London
Around the year 1750 a second group of people came to settle in Lunenburg near
its county seat, and they conformed to the established English church. Among
these was the family of William Callaway, who had obtained a grant of 15,000
acres of land in different sections of the county: 1,600 acres upon the upper
side of Buffalo creek, 4,500 acres lying both sides of Elk creek.
Richard and Francis Callaway, brothers of William, patented land in Lunenburg in 1747; these three settlers are said to have been the first men who cleared land and raised corn on Otter river.
William Callaway was living in the county when on March 12th, 1750, Dr. Thomas Walker passed through it during his second expedition as agent of the Loyal Company. Walker travelled from his home in Albemarle through Nelson and Amherst to James river, which he crossed near where Lynch-burg was afterwards established; probably over the ferry Nicolas Davies operated, which furnished communication and transportation from one side of his land to the opposite, as that appears to have been the only ferry in the locality at that period. From there Dr. Walker went on to Callaway's merchant store, supplied himself with rum (an article considered of the first importance) thread and other necessaries; and thence pursued his journey over the main wagon road leading to New river.
The home of Callaway was not far from where the town of New London, as Bedford county seat, was located a little later, on Buffalo creek near the main road.
At the formation of Bedford in 1753 there were no public buildings which could serve as court house for the new county and the newly commissioned justices met on May 27th, 1754, in the house of Matthew Talbot. Callaway had applied for the patent on 445 acres of land on both sides of Little Otter—2,350 acres on the upper side of Big Otter adjoining the land of Sherwood Walton and 288 acres on the north side of Staunton river joining Echols' land. When court met at Talbot's on July 22nd, 1754, it was ordered that application be made by the sheriff to the governor, for a writ of adjournment from Talbot's to Callaway's on Buffalo creek; awaiting official authority for change of meeting place, court was held again at Talbot's on August 26th, at which time Callaway agreed to build a prison immediately near the main road; and in case the court house should be established upon his land he was to be paid for the building, if part of Arbemarle on the south side of James river should be added to Bedford and the court house be located on his land—in such event he agreed to give 100 acres at the forks of the road upon which court building and prison could be erected—5O acres in fee simple when required and the balance when he had obtained the patent for it; in the meantime he offered to provide a rough house for court meetings.
At a court held November 25th following, a writ of adjournment from Talbot's to the lately erected court house was produced, and two days later the justices adjourned to the Callaway building. The deed for the fifty acres from himself and wife to the trustees, Richard Callaway, Zachary Isbell, and Benjamin Howard (who had been appointed by order of court in 1755) was recorded March 27th, 1757, at which time it was ordered that the town be given the name of New London.
Callaway received patents for 350 acres on both sides of the south fork of Otter in 1756 and for 390 acres on a branch of Little Otter in 1759. He gave the county in 1761 the other 50 acres promised, with a deed to newly appointed trustees—Richard and James Callaway, Benjamin Howard, Jeremiah Early, William Meade, John Payne, Jr., and William Stamps.
http://files.usgwarchives.net/va/campbell/history/chronicles-communities.txt
