Origins of the Families of Okey L. King Jr.

As their have been some misconceptions concerning our family origins, often because of faulty oral history, I have been inspired to place in writing my own views of our family origins. These views come both from known facts and occasionally from educated guesses. It is interesting to note that none of our main branches are "pure" anything, but they are an amalgamation of different sources of blood. It is also interesting to conjecture that a number of our more ancient ancestors are our ancestors in multiple ways. With at least one branch, we do not have to go too far in the past to discover this.

I. Families from the Maternal Side

A. Families from the Maternal Paternal side

Stone: As we can only trace out Stones back to James Stone in Greene County, Pennsylvania, we are not sure about the family origin. However, new information states that James's father was an Elias Stone. Often dead ends are caused because of changing of the family name. My Uncle Vernon Stone believed that the name was originally something like Steinbrucken which would have made the family German. Because of the defamation of the American Germans prior to and during World War I, many of our older family members became hostile to the thought that any of their families were German. Although the Stones may have not been, many of our families were. Some claim that some were Holland Dutch and that they came from Amsterdam.. Actually, the families were from Southern Germany. They made the arduous trek across Germany and then Holland to Amsterdam where they boarded ship. Other Dutch ports were also used. Also, many do not understand that the term Pennslyvania Dutch is actually Pennslyvania Deutsch and that this is another way to say German. Personally, I am proud of our German families.

1. Families from the Maternal Paternal Paternal Side.

Miller: Second Great Grandfather George Stone married Lucinda Miller in Fayette or Greene County, Pennsylvania before floating down the Ohio with his young family to near Ripley. George was follow his sister Sarah who had come to Jackson ealier with her husband John McKown. With him came his brother Elias and some other neighbors and relatives. Elias moved his family to Conway County, Arkansas where he has a large number of descendents. We are not positive about the Miller Family origin although it is probably English. However it could be that Miller could also have been the German Mueller.

Bigler: Lucinda Miller's parents were Jonathan and Susanna Tombs Miller. I do not know anything about the Tombs Family. Jonathan's parents were Henry and Catherine Bigler Miller of Greene County, Pennsylvania, Catherine's Parents were Mark and Mary Catherine Lease Bigler. Mary Catherine's father was Phillip Lease who was probably English but may have been German. We can make the same conjecture about the Biglers. The interesting thing about the Biglers is, many of our Bigler Cousins were Mormons and disciples of Joseph Smith. Cousin Jacob Bigler and his family went with Joseph Smith to Illinois where Smith was murdered. At least one Bigler child were born at the Mormon's Winter Quarters in Nebraska. They were also among the original Mormon settlers of Salt Lake City. Of course not all of the Biglers embrace Mormonism, but many did.

Garrison: James Stone's wife was Barbara Garrison whose parents were Frederick and Margaret Garrison of Greene County, Pennsylvania. It would seem that the Garrisons are English. Also, some of this family intermarried with our Dunham Family.

Frederick's father was Isaac Garrison.

2. Families from the Maternal Paternal Maternal Side

Pratt: John Wesley's Stone Second wife, and our ancestor, was Lucretia Pratt. Lucretia's parents were William Pratt and Harriet Thomas Pratt of Greene County, Pennsylvania. William's parents were James and Sarah Ellen Bonar Pratt. James is the last Pratt that we have and the name would seem to be English.

Bonar: Sarah Ellen's Parents were William and Ethel Estle Bonar. William's parent's were John and Christie Inghram Bonar. These names would also more than likely be English.

Thomas: Harriet Thomas's parents were Joshua and Catherine Livinggood Thomas. Joshua's parents were John and Casanndra Dunn Thomas.. John's Parents were Ellis Thomas and Elizabeth Zane Thomas. Ellis Thomas was one of our ancestors who was murdered by the Indians in an attack on the family cabin. Elizabeth Zane was the aunt of the Ebanezar Zane that founded Wheeling which makes him one of our many cousins.

Rakestraw: Elizabeth Zane's parents were Nathaniel Zane and Grace Jane Rakestraw. Grace's parents were William and Grace Wyron Rakestraw from England. It is a good bet that all of these Families are English.

B. Families from the Maternal Maternal Side

We have more information from Mom's maternal side that we do from her paternal side.

1. Families from the Maternal Maternal Paternal Side.

Dunham: My mother Edna Luverna Stone's mother was Iantha Dunham. Her parents were Jesse Bailey Dunham and Sara Francis Barr. The Barrs will be dealt with in another section. Jesse Bailey Dunham's parents were Alexander Allen Dunham and Catherine Crow. Of Springhill Township in Fayette County, Pennsylvania. Alexander's parents were Elisha Dunham and Elizabeth Anderson. We have Moses Dunham as the father of Elisha. The Dunhams came through Essex County, New Jersey. The Dunhams settled in Massachusetts, but, there seems to have been a court house fire that has destroyed the records that connect those in New Jersey to the former state. Dunham researchers say that the Dunhams came to England from Normandy with William the Conqueror. If they were indeed Normans, then the Dunhams would have Viking blood.

Crow: Catherine "Kate" Crow's parents were Michael Crow and Hanna Huhn. The Crows were German. There were at least two Michael Crows that lived in the same time frame. Ours was in Fayette County and the other lived in Greene County Pennsylvania. The latter lost several daughters when they were murdered at one time during an Indian attack. I do not know who our Michael's father was.. Michael Crow was a whiskey maker. He shipped his wares by his own flatboat or one made by family members to new Orleans where he sold his product. He then would take passage to New York where he would buy a horse, ride back to Fayette County and begin work on another shipment of whiskey. Whiskey was the most practical way of getting your corn to market in that day.

Huen: Huen is also German and is one of the many German words for "hen." Honaker is another. Granny Huhn's parents were John Huhn Sr. And Dorothy. John Huhn was born in Germany. The Huhns have been a very respectable family in Fayette County and we still have Huhn cousins living in New Geneva which was once the center of the family boat building business. The Huhns are one of our most documented families.

1. Families from the Maternal Maternal Maternal Side

We have a large number of families in this section.

Barr: Iantha Dunham's mother was Sara Francis Barr. Her parents were John Henry Barr and Mary Martha Rayburn. John Henry's parents were Isaac Barr and Mary Campbell. Isaac and Mary were married in Mason County, but our knowledge of the Barrs ends with them. The 1880 Census lists Isaac Barr as having been born in Ireland.

Rayburn: According to researchers, Rayburn is Scots. Mary Martha Rayburn was John Henry Barr's first wife and her story is a tragic one. Dying before the age of twenty of typhoid in 1853, she left our great grandmother Sara Francis as a toddler and Sara's brother Geroge Henry as an infant. In 1856, John Barr married Nancy Mariam Hunt. For some reason Sara Francis and George Henry were not told of their real mother and history books have listed Nancy Hunt as their mother. Why this happen I do not know, but it does anger me sometimes. Because of this deception, Mary Martha lay forgotten for almost one hundred and fifty years until she was rediscovered by Rayburn researchers. My heart goes out to Mary Martha and she has become perhaps my favorite ancestors. We believe that she is buried in a cemtery on Threemile Creek which is in an area that was devestated by typhoid fever. John Henry Barr had a brother by the name of George W. George married Prudence Anderson and they raised a large family. Some of their children have often been confused with John Henry's children. I have all of these as well as all of John Henry's children.

Mary Martha's parents were Henry Rayburn III and Nancy Barnett. Henry III's parents were Henry Rayburn II and Mary Polly Burdette. Henry II's parents were Henry Rayburn and Margaret Bird Christal. These three Henry Rayburns have caused confusion to researchers and have wrecked havoc with oral history. They are three separate Henry Rayburns. The Rayburns came through Monroe County vis Augusta County, Virginia.

We believe that Henry Rayburn's parents are Edward Rayburn and Margaret Robinson. We believe that Edward's parents are Joseph Rayburn and Margaret Courtney.

Christal: Margaret Bird Chistal's parents were William Christal and Ann Carithers. Researchers say that William was born in Ireland.

Barnett: Nancy Barnett's parents were William Barnett and Mary McGuire. We are not sure who William Barnett's parents, but we believe that he had a brother Robert who settled ion the South Side of the Kanawha River where he raised a large family. William Barnett had a son Robert who settled at Rock Castle where he raised a huge family. Henry Rayburn II's second wife was his daughter-in-law Nancy Barnett's sister Elizabeth Barnett. The Barnetts came through Monroe County.

McGuire: This should be Irish. Mary McGuire's parents were John McGuire and Elizabeth Cottle. We have a dead end with John, but they lived in Monroe County.

Cottle: Elizabeth Cottle's parents were William Uriah and Elizabeth Cottle. William Uriah came to America from England via Ireland as a bond servant. The Cottles were a rough and tumble frontier family but they are one that is well documented. At this time I have more than 2500 individuals in my Cottle file. One of the prominent cousin names in this file is Nutter.

Burdette: The Burdette family is a huge well documented family that some believe is French Huguenot in origin. Mary Polly Burdette's parents were William Burdette and Sarah Cornwell. This couple are the ancestors of most Burdettes of West Virginia and many other areas in the United States. They settled and live in the Swopes Knob Area of Wolfe Creek in Monroe County. Their home place is now a place for tourists to spend the night. William's father may have been James, but we are not sure. I am related to most West Virginia Burdettes and have more than 3,400 individuals in my Burdette file.

Cornwell: Sarah Cornwell's parents were Edward Cornwell and Francis Wolfe. Edward's father was Edmund Cornwell and the family is English.

Wolfe: Francis Wolfe's father was Edmund Wolfe. Edmund's parents were Edward Wolfe and Henretta Thompson. One of Edmund's brothers was General Sir Thomas Wolfe who was killed at the Battle of Quebec making the General my 7th Great Grand Uncle.

Thompson: Henretta Thomson's father was Edward. These two families were also English.

This fishes the Families on the Maternal side.

I. Families from the Paternal Side

Knowledge of some of the families on the Paternal side goes much further back than those of the Maternal side. Their origins are greatly varied and the lines are often crossed.

A. Families from the Paternal Paternal side

King (the John Sr. King Branch) Although this family represents my largest family file, knowledge of the family goes back no further than the 3rd great grandparents. My grandparents were William Alexander and Ella Florence King King. Willy King's parents were Alexander King and Elizabeth Jacobs. There is a story that Alexander found his wife Elizabeth while on a trip to New Orleans, but this is not true. Elizabeth lived in Wetzel County and Greene County, Pennsylvania. Alexander was the next to youngest son of John King Sr. And Elizabeth Yeager. Because of the terms of a land transaction the older couple became wards of Alexander and Elizabeth and therefore came to Mason county with the younger couple. Some believe that John's father was another John King called John King I.. He and his descendants lived in the same area where John lived in Pennsylvania. Although this seems likely and I have entered the elder John in my database, the jury is still out. With the Kings, we have a similar dead end that we have with the Stones. There is a great possibility that the name was once the German Koineg.

Jacobs: Elizabeth Jacob's parents were David and Elizabeth Hickman Jacobs. These folks lived in Wetzel County and came from Greene of Fayette County, Pennsylvania. Elizabeth's brother David Hickman Jacobs also came to Mason County where se settled on Sapsucker Run. The Jacobs came from Bingen, Germany.

Yeager: This is a German Family. Christina Yeager's parents were Johanne Georg Yeager and Elizabetha Gowers. Johanne was born in Germany on March 12, 1761. There are some who believe that Christina's mother was a Shawnee Indian but none of the stories to support this desire on their part are anywhere near to being credible because of their embellishment. In addition, Johanne does not appear on any of the released prisoners lists.

Johanne George's parents were Joseph Yeager and Katarina Elizabett Becker. This couple were both born in Germany and are both buried in Jacobs Lutheran Cemetery in Masontown, Pennsylvania. Joseph is the last of the Yeagers that we know. Research might be easier if Yeager was not such a common German name.

Becker: Katarina Elizabet Becker's parents were John Nicholas Becker and Maria Appolonia Bayer. John Nicholas' parents were Johann Peter Becker and Anna Petronella Wendell. This is our end of the Becker line.

Bayer: Maria Bayer's parents were Johanne Androus Bayer and Apollona Heddrich.

Wendell: Anna Wendell's parents were Hans Jacob Wendell and Eva Catherine Von Der Linden. Hans' father was Philip Wendell who was born in 1619 in Framersheim, Falz, Germany

All of these families lived in Germany.

These then are the Paternal Paternal families.

A. Families from the Paternal Maternal side

1. Families from the Paternal Maternal Paternal Side.

This line carries the blood from more nationalities than any other branch of our family. It represents most of Western Europe.

King (The Francis King Branch) Le Florence's parents were Ephraim and Susan Hughes King. Ephraim's parents were William H. King and Lydia Rhodes. William H. King's parents were Francis King and Mary Richards. Francis was the first of this branch of Kings to come to Jackson County and he and his wife are buried at the King Cemetery at Ripley. Francis King's parents were Leonard and Catherine King. Leonard's parents were Walter King and Elizabeth Pratt. Walter's parents were William Gratford King and Sophia Burgess. William' parents were William Alfred King and Judith Peyton. William Alfred's Parents were Robert King and Elizabeth Brook. Robert's parents were Francis King and Dorothy Aston. Francis was the first to come to America and he came as a bond servant. The oldest of this king line is a John King who was born in England about 1370.

Richards: Mary Richard's parents were Paul and Katherine Richard's and the family may be Welsh.

Pratt: Elizabeth Pratts parents were William Pratt and Elizabeth Cocke. Elizabeth parents were William Cocke and Elizabeth Catesby. Elizabeth's parents were John Mark Catesby and Elizabeth Jekell. They were born in England.

Burgess: Sophia Burgess' parents were John Edward Burgess and Sarah Chew. John's parents were William Burgess and Elizabeth Robbins. William was born in Truro, Wales.

Peyton: Judith Peyton's parents were Cornel Valentine Peyton and Francis Gerrard. It is through these two families that researcher claim to be descendants of Kings of Wales and England that go back to the 8th century. One of the families that are included is the Plantagenets who were kings of England. Names include Sir Other (Otho), Duke of Tuscany. Another is Nesta, Queen of Powys. I believe that the oldest individual is Gwyar, Prince of Deheubarth who goes far back beyond the year 1000. Included in these branches are some of the most prominent Catholic families of England and includes one individual who had his lands confiscated and was hanged by the Protestants.

1. Families from the Paternal Maternal Maternal Side.

This side of the family includes some interesting individuals and some families of diverse origins. Great Grandmother Susan Hughes King's parents were Jacob Hughes and Matilda Staats.

Hughes: Probably of Welsh origin, this family includes probably our most famous ancestor. Susan's great grandfather and my 4th great grandfather Jesse David Hughes the famous Indian Fighter and explorer. Jesse went on the warpath after his father Thomas was murdered by the Indians and provided a great service to the people of the Virginia Frontier. During one of his exploring trips, he named one of the main tributaries of the Little Kanawha River, the Hughes River, after himself. Although Jesse was revered by his neighbors, he is despised by many "enlightened" people of today. Jesse is buried near Ravenswood.

Second great grandfather Jacob Hughes' parents were Jesse Hughes II and Susan Mock. Jesse David Hughes' parents were Thomas and Mary Susanna Baker Hughes. Theis Baker Family goes back to Charles Baker who was born about 1685. We believe that Thomas Hughes' parents were William Hughes and Mary "Sudna" Boone. The Hughes family goes back to John Hughes born between 1580 and 1600 probably in Wales. I don't know for sure yet, but I believe that is the case. The Mock Family goes back to Ebert Mack born in 1540.

Staats: The main stem of this family is Holland Dutch who settle in New Amsterdam (New York) ant a very early date. There is some controversy concerning the exact lineage of this family, but there is no doubt as to the origin. There are a number of Dutch families that are ancestors to the Staats. The first to come to Jackson County were Abraham Staats and his wife Anna King. It is thought that our ancestor Francis king came with them and that Anna may be his aunt and daughter of Walter King. If that is the case, then this results in some very tangled relationships.

Matilda Staats parents were Elijah Staats and Sally Marvin. I do not have any information on the Marvins. Elijah Staats also married Ann Evans and Sarah Sally Burdette who also a cousin of mine. Elijah was a son of the aforementioned Abraham and Anna Staats. Abraham and Anna came from Delaware via Harrison County. Francis King was born in Delaware. It is thought that Abraham's parents were John and Gertrude Quick Staats. Gertrude's parents were John and Maria Gulick Quick. The first Staats to come to America seems to be Jan Pieterzen Van Holzen (Staats) who was born in Huizen, Holland about 1612. His father Peter is the oldest Staats that we have.

The first Staats in our line born in America was Pieter Jenszen Staats who was born in New Amsterdam in 1638. He married Annetje Jans VanDyke. Her parents were Jan Thourasse VanDyke and Tryntje Achias (Hageah) Hagen. Both born in Amsterdam, Holland. The oldest VanDyke that we have is Jans VanDyke born in 1560. His son married Sytje (Verks) Derks. Tryntje Achias (Hageah) Hagen' Father was Achirs Hagen born in 1590.

I haven mentioned the Tanners who go back to Joseph Tanner born in 1682. Our Tanner Family begins for us with Jesse David Hugh's wife Grace Tanner who is buried with our related family of Gandees at Gandee Cemetery at Gandeeville, West Virginia.

I. Conclusion.

In conclusion, let me say that I have not listed nearly all of our families that go back in to antiquity. Let me also say that, although we have identified hundreds of grandparents, we only know a tiny fraction of all of those who contributed their blood to ours. I can only say that is a humbling experience to contemplate all of those souls of such diverse backgrounds who God used to make me.