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Taliaferro
Craig Family History
First
it must be said that there are several different versions of the origins
of Taliaferro Craig. I have
listed the different stories below.
A
Brief Overview of Taliaferro Craig
Taliaferro was born most likely in 1705 in Spotsylvania County,
Virginia. His name is often spelt Toliver, which apparently is the
phonetic way of saying his name. Taliaferro (meaning cut with iron) seems to be an Italian
surname from long ago. Originally Normans, who were Scandinavians who settled in Northern Gaul
then Italy. There were some Taliaferros who left Italy and
settled in Scotland. It is believed that this Taliaferro Craig line is
Scottish.
This
is a list of events in his life. I have copied these from books about
Craig and Hawkins families. I do not claim to have looked at any
official court records.
1730 resided in Botetourt County, VA
1730 He married Mary Hawkins in Spotsylvania Co, VA
1747 April 17 They sold 200 acres of land in St George Parish, Spotsylvania
Co, VA that Mary
inherited from her father John Hawkins to her brother Joseph Hawkins.
1760 June 2 Spotsylvania Co, VA they gave 276 acres to son
Lewis and 87 acres to son John
1781 June
30 They sold 500 acres for 20,000 Pounds in Berkeley Parrish,
Spotsylvania County, Virginia to William Wiatt
1781 September, they moved from Orange Co, VA to Woodford Co, KY
(most likely this should be Fayette Co, KY which later Woodford Co was
formed from). They
came with the Traveling Church.
1782 August 15 They were in Fayette Co, KY at a fort called Bryant's
Station when it was attached by Indians. (See
Bryan's Station - Its Heroes and Heroines. Toliver and Mary
Craig were the oldest defenders of Bryan's Station.)
1795 He died in Woodford Co, KY. Will filed in Woodford Co, KY.
Taliaferro's
wife is Mary "Polly" Hawkins (19 Sep 1716 - 6 Jan 1804). She
was buried at the Great Crossing Church, near Georgetown, KY. Her tomb
is marked "The Mother of Many Faithful." (Hawkins of
Virginia, The Carolinas, and Kentucky pg42) Some reports say that
Taliaferro is buried there as well but this is not commonly written.
Also, I have seen reports that this cemetery has been paved over for a
parking lot. Her parents are John
Hawkins and Mary unknown. There is a whole other debate over which
specific John and Mary Hawkins this is. As of now, I haven't made a
specific decision on this and choose not to publish what is most
commonly found on the internet.
Taliaferro and Mary had eleven children.
- John Craig m. Sally Page. He was the
first representative sent by Kentucky to the Virginia Assembly. Was in
command of the garrison at Bryan's Station when it was attacked by the
Indians under Girty in August, 1782.
- Lewis Craig, b ca 1737, d 1828, Bracken Co,
KY, m. Elizabeth Sanders. Lewis, born in Orange County, Virginia
was the pastor of a Baptist Church in Spotsylvania County, Virginia.
This church, known as The Traveling Church, moved in the Fall of 1781 to
Kentucky. He died in Bracken County, aged eighty-seven; his wife was
Elizabeth Sanders; their daughter, Mary, married General Philemon
Thomas, her cousin.
- Toliver Craig Jr, m. Elizabeth
Johnson. He came to Kentucky with
the "Traveling Church," and was of the garrison of Bryan's
Station when it was besieged.
- Elijah Craig, b. ca 1743, m. Frances
Smith. Frances probably a cousin, daughter of George Smith and
Elizabeth Hawkins. Elijah was a celebrated Baptist preacher. He moved
from Virginia to Scott County, Kentucky, in 1786, where he laid out the
town of Georgetown, named after George Washington; he was zealous and
enterprising in business as well as in preaching; established the first
fulling and paper mills in Kentucky, and also the first schools in which
the classics were taught.
- Jane Craig m. John Sanders. Jane was the
grandmother of George N. Sanders, a noted politician during the
Presidency of James Buchanan.
- Benjamin Craig m. Nancy Sturman. Benjamin, born in Culpeper County,
Virginia, March 30, 1751. Among his descendants
are A. G. Craig, Vevay, Ind., and George C. and Edward Eggleston,
well-known writers of essays and some books.
- Jeremiah Craig m. Lucy Hawkins, his
cousin, dau. of Philemon and Sarah (Smith) Hawkins. Lucy
was one of the noted women at the defense of Bryan's Station (Jeremiah
was also of the garrison); also her four children, Elijah, Polly, Franky,
and Hawkins.
- Elizabeth Hawkins m. Richard Cave, a
Baptist minister who died in Woodford Co, KY.
- Joseph Craig b 1742, d 1819, m. Sally
Wisdom. He was an eccentric man and was a preacher for the Separatist
Baptist Church.
- Sally Craig m. Manoah Singleton.
- Joyce Craig m. JOHN
FOULCONER.(Faulkner)
According
to Winchell McKendree in The Craig Family, all the children where
born and reared in Virginia. Most, if not all, married in Virginia. Some
of them moved to Kentucky with their parents and others followed later.
The families settled in Fayette County, Kentucky which later split so
that the Craig families can be found in Fayette, Woodford, Scott, and
Jassamine counties.
Bryan's
Station (also known as Bryant's Station)
See Bryant’s Station Notes
written
by the Filson Club of Louisville, KY. I found a copy on HeritageQuestOnline. This is a compilation of sources.
There
was a fort of about 40 homes built in Lexington, Kentucky on the road to
Paris, KY by a Bryan or Bryant. Many people moved in and out of the fort
due to the Indian attaches. There was one particularly long siege by the
Indians from
May 15 to August 18, in 1782 (Bryant's Station Notes states it started
Aug 17) that made its mark in history.
The
Indians had surrounded the fort. As the story goes, there was no water
source inside the fort. It was decided that for anyone to survive inside
they needed water and that the women and children would be sent out of
the fort to a creek to collect water. They believed the Indians would
not show themselves by attacking the women and children. This was the
case. A memorial was erected near the site by the DAR. John P. Morton
& Co., Louisville, Ky. published a memorial proceedings of Bryan's
Station in
honor of the defenders of the Station. The names of those in the fort are stated, among them Toliver Craig and his wife,
Polly Hawkins (who had arrived in Kentucky with "The Traveling
Church" in the previous mid-winter, after enduring great
hardships); also Toliver Craig, Jr., and many others of Craig and
Hawkins connections.
Who
was Taliaferro Craig's parents?
First
Story (this is the most repeated)
Basically, there where these two Taliaferro brothers. One brother was
named Robert. Other brother has unknown first name but is always
referred to as Capt. Taliaferro or Capt Toliver. Some accounts have them
as being Italian and some as being Scottish. This Capt Toliver was a
ship captain traveling between Virginia and Scotland.
On
one of Capt Toliver's trips, he brought a woman to Virginia. Some people
just have her last name of Craig and other say her name is Jane Craig.
As the story goes, Capt Toliver got Jane Craig pregnant but didn't marry
her. (He probably had ladies in every port.) For some unnamed reason he
just left her to raise the child. This was in 1704.
To
follow the story, Jane had the baby and named him Taliaferro Craig. Much emphasis is put on the fact that he is illegitimate.
Lewis Sanders' (a grandson of Taliaferro Craig Sr)
seems to be the main source of this story. "Two brothers, named Taliaferro,
supposed to be Italians,
came to Virginia in the beginning of the 18th Century. One of the
brothers was a seafaring man, engaged in the trade from Virginia to
Scotland, this brother brought over on one of his trips a young woman
named Craig-- this young woman had a son by Capt. Toliver, which she
named Toliver Craig. This is the head and origin of the numerous Craig
family, now spread out through Kentucky and adjoining states."
A
little on Robert Taliaferro who lived 112 years old. Robert Taliaferro
was married twice. By his first wife he had a son, Samuel Taliaferro,
and a daughter who married a Mr. Bowler. By his second wife, he had five
daughters and two sons. One daughter named Nancy Taliaferro.
What
is odd about this story to me is that there are many records about
Robert Taliaferro and his life. His descendants can be traced today. But
this "Capt. Taliaferro" brother of Robert is so elusive that
no one can find his first name? He had no other children than Taliaferro
Craig? And no one can seem to find his ship records? If anything, I
would think that there would be many official records of a ship going to
and from Virginia and Scotland.
Second
Story
Three Taliaferro brothers came to Virginia from England. One died young,
never having married. Second brother married a widow Craig and took her
name for reasons satisfactory to himself and his elder brother, Robert
Taliaferro. These two brothers were not friendly, their families having
no communication with one another and when they separated they divided
some family jewels. One ring, which they considered a valuable heirloom,
each wanted. They decided the dispute by cutting the ring, making two
complete circles, each taking one.
In
Historical Sketches of the Campbell, Pilcher and Kindred Families
on page 394, it states: Robert's [Taliaferro] brother, who, tradition says, took the name of Craig, was lost sight of by Robert's descendants, and only a few members of the family knew that they were related.
This
story has holes in it to me. Once again we never get the name of
Robert's brother. So if he did marry a widow Craig woman, why wouldn't
we know their names?
Third Story
This and the two previous stories are told by Bill Davis on
Ancestry.com in 2003. Davis offers these stories as possible origins of
the Taliaferro Craig line. The previous two stories I have read in other
places. This is the only place I have seen this story. Taliaferro
Craig's father could be Captain Richard Taliaferro who was known as
"The Pirate." This Richard was a sea captain who served the
Court of the Colony of Barbados. He married a Sarah Wingfield of
Barbados. Richard died in 1715.
I guess if this is the right story to
believe then it would explain why Taliaferro Craig's father didn't
married his mother.
Forth Story (the more
acceptable one to me)
Memoranda Concerning Some Branches of the Hawkins Family and
Connections by John Parker Hawkins 1913; page 52-53; "THE CRAIG
FAMILY: Among the descendants of my great, great grandfather, John
Hawkins, King William County, Virginia, is the distinguished Craig
family of Virginia and Kentucky, descended from Taliaferro Craig and
Mary Hawkins (born 1716). This Taliaferro Craig (born 1710) was the son
of John Craig, emigrant, who by tradition was descended from John Craig,
of Edinburg, Scotland, a colleague of John Knox, minister of Holy Rood
in 1562, and in 1567 proclaimed the banns of matrimony between Queen
Mary of Bothwell. The name Taliaferro is pronounced as if spelled
"Toliver," and is sometimes written the latter way."
The Craig Family, 1956 by Winchell McKendree Craig
The first quote from the book on page 123: Taliaferro Craig was the posthumous child of John Craig, who died in Scotland in 1704. This John Craig was the great-grandson of John Craig, 1st, who was born in 1512 and died in 1600.
John Craig married Jane Taliaferro, who after the death of her husband, came to America with her brothers, Robert and William Taliaferro. They came to Virginia. John Craig died in Scotland in November, 1704, and his son, Taliaferro Craig was born in Virginia four months after the death of his father. Taliaferro Craig married Mary Hawkins in 1730. Taliaferro Craig died in Kentucky in 1795 . His wife, Mary Hawkins, died in 1804.
The second quote from the book on page
123: The father of Talliver Craig, or Taliaferro Craig, as the name is correctly spelled, was John Craig, Jr. of Scotland, who died in 1704, and who's wife was Jane Taliaferro. After his death, his widow came to America with her two brothers, Robert and John Taliaferro, where his posthumous son, Talliver, was born in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, in 1705. He married Mary Hawkins in 1730, and they were the parents of Lewis, Elijah and Joseph, the three preachers, who led the famous church in 1781. John Craig, the father of Tolliver, was either the son or grandson of John Craig, the Friar, mentioned in the "Sketch of the
Parishes." (Authority: Kentucky State Historical Society Register, Vol. 19, page 119, Year 1921.)
My Conclusions
The most plausible story of
Taliaferro Craig's parents is the Forth Story I offered above. John
Craig married Jane Taliaferro in Scotland some time before or in 1704.
Jane gets pregnant and John dies of unknown causes around November 1704.
Jane's two brothers, Robert and John (or William) Taliaferro, were moving to America.
Jane, recently widowed and probably having no family left, decided to go
to America with her brothers. Maybe John Craig had already planned on
moving to America but died abruptly. I don't know. I haven't gotten to
Scotland to track him down.
It was very common for parents to name a
child by taking the mother's surname and making it the child's first
name. In this case Taliaferro became a first name. (I have found many
examples in my family tree.)
What I find interesting is that the
second quote from The Craig Family book (listed above under
"Forth Story") goes on farther talking about Taliaferro Craig
and it is often quoted by people who are also quoting the story I have
in "First Story" above. How is it that these two parts started
being quoted together when the origins of Taliaferro Craig's parents is
so different?
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