The Tuscarora Ranch: A New Beginning for the Ancestral Land



Buildings, Barns, and Silos
on the Ranch
Sept. 2011



During my trips to the Stony Fork/Mt. Zion Community of Wilkes County, I have been stunned with the beauty of the countryside which is nestled between two mountain ridges in the Blue Ridge Mountains.  As we have driven along Mt. Zion Road, the county road that parallels Stony Fork Creek, I have noticed the handsome brown rail fences along parts of the land and indeed, even around the location where my great grandparents lived for many years before moving to Banner Elk.  In addition, to these fences, various barns, sheds, pavilions, silos, and the like are scattered among the fields.  All of the structures have a commonality, a common personality, which gives the impression that they are part of something bigger.

Of course, I have been aware that much of the land was purchased from the local landowners as they or their heirs sold off their farms.  As I have mentioned in a previous blog, the Mingo Tribal Preservation Trust, which owns about 5,000 acres in the area, apparently purchased much of the land as it became available. 

 

Land Family Cemetery
Upper Right of Fence
Sept. 2010

Also, in previous blogs I have cited the family cemetery plot, the Thomas Land Family Cemetery, on the land owned by this trust.  I definitely have an interest in this cemetery, since, in addition to having West ancestors who lived on the land, I have Land, Carlton, McNeil, and Barlow ancestors who lived and farmed there.  My 3^rd great grandparents, William Thomas Land and Nancy Jane Carlton Land along with two grand uncles, A. Judson West and Willard A. West, who died at young ages, are buried in this plot.   These young children were the great grandchildren of William Thomas and Nancy Land.  My desire is to provide some maintenance of the cemetery on a yearly basis and repair the fence around it. I live too far away (over 100 miles) to do much more.

On my recent visit this past week on Friday, September 9, with the help of BL, the husband of my 4^th cousin, who was transporting us in his truck, I was able to meet someone at the Tuscarora Ranch.  Initially, BL drove down the drive from Mt. Zion Road toward the barn so that we could visit the family plot which is located just behind the barn on a small knoll.  As he was driving toward the barn, he noticed a couple of men working in the corral area.  Therefore, he continued through the gates of the corral so that I could speak with the men. 

As I was getting out of the truck, a young man who was working in the barn immediately came out to meet me.  He greeted us in a most friendly manner and introduced himself as Nathan Winebarger.  Mr. Winebarger, as it turned out, is leasing the land where the family plot is located and operating the Tuscarora Ranch.  My husband, Doug, and I found him to be very friendly, gracious, and courteous.  He listened with interest as I explained my mission and indicated that he, as the leasee, had no problem with our cleaning up the plot and repairing the fence.  We enjoyed meeting Nathan, and both of us left with a very positive impression of him and what he is doing with the land.

 

JJL Walking Along the Front
of the Cemetery Inspecting
Its Overgrowth
Sept. 2011



During a brief visit to the family plot, we continued to be amazed at the thickness of the overgrowth and the deteriorating condition of the fence around the plot.  The crushed grass pathways within the enclosure indicate that animals, more than likely wild animals, are grazing there.  My cousins, JJL, BL, and JP, whom we met for the first time on Friday, hiked up the knoll to the plot with us and helped us evaluate the situation.  They have volunteered to help with cleaning up the plot when we do it in the spring.  We have been told to wait until the snakes are hibernating and the spiders are gone or at least, inactive before we venture into that thick growth.  Also, by March, the growth will be beaten down by the winter weather.  Hopefully, I can enlist other West and Land relatives to help with this project.

Old Mt. Zion Post Office
Sept. 2011

As we drove away in BL’s truck, I felt a sense of comfort knowing that the current use of the land as a rural attraction and the maintenance of it in a natural state of farm and pasture land will be most beneficial to the area and to the preservation of the beautiful pastoral setting.  The buildings and fences that have been erected enhance the pastoral setting.   In fact, the old post office is on Mt. Zion Road across from the land where the West “home place” had been.  I don’t know if the post office has always been in that location or if it has been moved.  I am inclined to believe that it is in its original location.  The sign over the door, a remnant of its past, indicates that it had been the Mt. Zion Post Office.  According to the Tuscarora website, this old post office is now used as the bunk house.  From its appearance, the building is in good repair and still retains its original character. 

I encourage you to look at the web site (http://tuscaroraranch.com/) and see the natural beauty of the land as it is presented by the Tuscarora Ranch.  Indeed, this ancestral land of those early settlers, the forbearers of many of us descendants, is experiencing a new beginning.



 

Site of Former Farm House
of the Thomas Harvey West Family
Sept. 2010 







Mailbox at the Edge
of the Lawn on
Mt. Zion Road
Sept. 2011

Eating Humble Pie: The Resolution of the Franklin West Tombstone Mystery!

“Eating humble pie!”  That’s what I’m eating.  Well, I was wrong!  And, I admit that I was wrong and am, indeed, eating my humble pie.  Previously, I mentioned the “mystery” of the two tombstones belonging to Franklin West, each in separate cemeteries.  Now I must inform you that he has ONLY one tombstone which is in the cemetery called Triplett-Mt. Zion Cemetery just a few miles from the cemetery at Mt. Zion Baptist Church in the Ferguson-Stony Fork communities of Wilkes County.

Last September (2010), I made my first visit to the Stony Fork area of Wilkes County where my 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th, and 5^th great grandparents had lived.  During this fast-paced, whirl-wind trip with three of my cousins, we drove around the countryside and, as well as I could recall, had stopped at only two cemeteries, one of which was the Mt. Zion Baptist Church Cemetery.  The other one, which we thought was the private West Family Cemetery, I recently discovered was the private Land Family Cemetery.  I photographed my 2^nd great grand uncle’s grave, Franklin West’s, at what I thought was Mt. Zion Baptist Church.  In order to document the location, with a separate photograph, I photographed the church. 

Recently, fourth cousin, JJL, visited the cemeteries and photographed her 3^rd great grandfather’s (Franklin’s) grave at Triplett-Mt. Zion Cemetery.  When we compared the photographs in our e-mails, we realized that they looked exactly the same with the same cracks and discolorations even though they were supposedly taken at different cemeteries. 

Of course, I was convinced that I had photographed that tombstone at the Mt. Zion Baptist Church Cemetery, and I even had a photograph of the church to go with it. Also, I was convinced that we had not visited another public cemetery that day.  My husband, Doug, who accompanied me on the trip, remembers visiting only one public or church cemetery.  The fact that Franklin West is listed in the Internet website, Find-a-Grave, as being buried in the Mt. Zion Baptist Church Cemetery provided additional credence to my beliefs.

Throughout all of the confusion, which seemed to be a science fiction encounter, I never doubted JJL’s photograph or her findings. And, bless her heart, she never appeared to doubt mine.  I was ready to return to Stony Fork to try to solve this mystery.  JJL and I agreed to meet there and work on the solution together. 

Finally, we decided to make the trip to Stony Fork which was a 2 hour drive for her and a 2.5 hour drive for me.  Since we had become good Internet friends over the past couple of months, I was extremely excited to meet JJL, my 4^th cousin, and spend time we her.  Yesterday, we met at McDonald’s in Wilkesboro and then drove to the Beaver Creek community and the Stony Fork area.

Charlotte and JJL at Franklin's Tombstone
Triplett-Mt. Zion Cemetery

First, we visited the Walker Family Cemetery and then drove farther down the road to the Triplett-Mt. Zion Cemetery where we did, indeed, find the graves and tombstones of Franklin West and his wife, Cynthia Holder West.  JJL and I purposely had our photographs taken together at Franklin’s tombstone since, of course, I was convinced that we would find another one for Franklin a short distance down the road at the Mt. Zion Baptist Church Cemetery where I thought we could again be photographed together at his second tombstone for documentation purposes.  

Our next stop was Mt. Zion Baptist Church Cemetery, where, to my dismay and chagrin, we did not find another tombstone for Franklin.  As I looked throughout this cemetery, searching for it, I became suddenly aware that it was not there.  How embarrassed I was, certainly, with “egg on my face.”

As I looked at the perimeter and terrain of the cemetery and the newer stones in it, and as I recalled the photographs that I had taken last year, I came to realize that I had visited the Triplett-Mt. Zion Cemetery on that day a year ago and had taken the photograph of Franklin’s tombstone at that location.

Thanks to those of you with whom I have shared this confusion and who were tolerant of my point of view.  For me, the mystery surrounding the possibility of two tombstones for Franklin was like a plot in a science fiction novel.  I was only confused and, as much as I dislike admitting, forgetful.

Yesterday, however, Doug and I had a wonderful day meeting two of my 4^th cousins, JJL and JP who are descendants of Franklin West and Mary Ann “Polly” Swanson West and their son, Thomas Clingman West, and his wife, Bethania Triplett.  Touring the country side with them and JJL’s husband and learning more about our common ancestors were productive and enjoyable experiences.  Our delightful day ended with barbeque and gourmet ice cream at a locally-owned barbeque restaurant in Wilkesboro.  I was able to top off my “humble pie” with two scoops of delicious cherry ice cream, my favorite!  Thanks, JJL, BL, and JP.

Finally, I learned much more regarding the Thomas Land Family Cemetery about which I will share in another post. 

Revisions, Additions, Etc., to My Posts

I am constantly discovering new information that I would like to add to previous posts or changes or corrections that I need to make in them.  Therefore, in order to keep you, my readers/followers, up-to-date and informed of these changes, I will post a note such as this to let you know of any changes I have made in previous posts.

This week I added another “Alexander” to the lists of those charted in my August 16, 2011, post, “Using Naming Patterns as a Discovery Tool.”

Also, with the upgrades being made to blogger.com, the comment box was temporarily omitted.  I noticed today that the box has been reinstated.  Please use it to add your comments concerning my posts.  If you would rather not “go public” with your comments, please e-mail them to me.  Most of you who are following this blog have my personal e-mail address.  I look forward to hearing from you. 

Puzzlin' Cuzins

Consanguinity!  What’s that?  Consanguinity refers to the state of all of us who are descended from a common ancestor and are, thusly, related by blood.

Who Are Those Lineal Cousins?

Lineal family members and in this case, cousins, include those who are in a direct, straight-line of descent.

1^st cousins have at least one of the same grandparents.  They are children of one’s aunts and uncles.

2^nd cousins share at least one of the same great grandparents.

3^rd cousins share at least one of the same great, great grandparents.

4^th cousins share at least one of the same great, great, great grandparents.

5^th etc.

Who Are Those Collateral Cousins?

Collateral family members include brothers, sisters, cousins, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, first cousins, second cousins, etc.  They also include those cousins who are labeled as “removed.”

Who are Those Removed Cousins?

The term “removed” indicates that the two cousins are from different generations.  Once removed indicates a difference of one generation. Twice removed indicates a difference of two generations, etc.

The child of a first cousin is one’s first cousin 1X removed or once removed because that child is one generation away from being a first cousin.  The grandchild of one’s first cousin is one’s first cousin 2X removed or twice removed because he is two generations away from being one’s first cousin.

Many confuse these labels.  A first cousin 1X removed or once removed is not the same relationship as a second cousin.

In other words, full cousins descend from a common ancestor and are of the same generation. Those cousins that are removed descend from a common ancestor but are not of the same generation or, in more common terms, are not on the same level of descent.

Half Cousins – Some individuals consider some “cousins” to be “half-cousins.”  Apparently, there is some disagreement among those who specialize in such genealogical terminology. Those who are proponents of the concept describe this “half-cousin” relationship as being when two individuals descend from a common ancestor but from a different spouse of that ancestor.

Dear followers, have I just confused you even more?  Various charts and tables are available on-line to help you easily sort out these consanguineous puzzlin’ cuzins.

The West Patriarchs: 3rd in a Series, John Balus West

John Balus West was the first child and only son of John West and Margaret “Peggy” Witherspoon.  Various census records indicate that he was born between 1795 and 1798 in South Carolina. The only documentations found for the year and location of his birth are those given in the North Carolina census records.  Since his name was written on land records as “Balus” West, his friends and family must have called him by that name. I have always been puzzled by that name, Balus.  As I have mentioned in previous posts, the name is spelled several different ways.  I use the spelling, Balus, which is one spelling most commonly found on the latest court documents.  Where did the name come from?  Was it a surname of a maternal grandmother?  However, I have found no evidence that it was a maternal grandmother’s surname.  The best explanation is that provided by Irene Hendrix Basey.  Mrs. Basey indicated that he was probably named for a prominent figure, John Baylis Earle, in the Greenville District of South Carolina, which is now Greenville County, South Carolina.  Mrs. Basey said that John Baylis Earle’s “local popularity was such that numerous male infants were named for him.”  She continued that the name “still occurs with some frequency in that part of South Carolina.”[i]

John Balus West’s father, John West, died while the family was living in South Carolina.  His mother, Peggy, returned to Wilkes County, North Carolina, with her three young children.  Peggy West is found in the 1810 Wilkes County Census with these children: 1 FWM of 10 and under 16, 1 FWF of 10 and under 16, and 1 FWF under 10.  The head of the household was Peggy West (1 FWF of 45 and over).  Other than some of the census records listing John Balus West as born in South Carolina (1850 census) and his sister, Melinda, as born in South Carolina (1880 census), no other documentation for this family having lived in South Carolina has been discovered at this time.

John Balus West married Mary Ann “Polly” Swanson on August 21, 1818, in Wilkes County, North Carolina.  Mary Ann was the daughter of William Swanson and Elizabeth Stations.  She was born about 1799 in Mount Zion, Wilkes County and died after 1880 in Mt. Zion, Wilkes County.  She was noted in the 1880 census as living with her son Franklin West but was not listed again in the 1890 census.  John Balus West died on July 20, 1871 in Mount Zion, Wilkes County.  At this point in time, no burial site can be found for John Balus and Mary Ann.  Again, how sad, it is when no evidence exists of one’s remains.

According to John Foster West[ii] and Mrs. Basey, John Balus and Mary Ann Swanson West continued to live for several years in the same section between Elkville and Ferguson of Wilkes County where Balus had grown up.  According to land records that I have researched and documented, in 1835 John Balus purchased 200 acres of land from John B. Ferguson on the waters of Stony Fork and Mason’s Branch. In 1842 he received a land grant for 50 acres on the waters of Redy Branch.  His sons Franklin and A. B. West served as chain carriers – those who carried the heavy metal chains, which were about 66 feet or 4 poles, used to measure the land.  In 1847, he received another land grant for 30 acres on Stony Fork for which he paid $5.00 per hundred acres.  In 1855 with another land grant he received 86 acres on the waters of Stony Fork.  In 1860 he purchased 73 acres from A. M. Foster on the waters of Naked Creek.  Recently, I found an abstract which indicates that John Balus received a land grant for 100 acres on the Yadkins River as early as 1832.  This, perhaps, was in the vicinity of Lewis Fork. With about 560 acres of land, I would assume that John Balus West could be considered a somewhat, well-to-do farmer in his time.  He was relatively uneducated according to “schooling” as was evident by the “X” that he made for his name on legal documents.  The fact that he could not read or write may be the reason for the various spellings of his name.

In 1847 John Balus sold 230 acres on the waters of Stony Fork for $300 to his second son, Alexander Balus West.  Then in 1860, he sold 86 acres on Mason’s Branch for $86 to his eldest son, Franklin W. West.

John Balus and Mary Ann “Polly” had nine children:

·         Franklin W. West (born bet. 1818 and 1820- died 1897) who married Cynthia Adeline   Holder;

·         Margaret “Peggy” West (1828 -?) who married Wilson Hendrix;

·         Alexander Balus West (1828-1864) who married Nancy Land;

·         William Thomas Jefferson West (1830-1863) who married Nancy West, his third cousin, the daughter of Thomas Jefferson West and Elizabeth McCrary of Caldwell County[iii];

·         Melinda “Linda” West (1832-1919) who married Tom Cox;

·         Elizabeth West (1835- bef 1850);

·         Mary Ann “Ann” West (1837-1917) who married William Hamilton Barnett;

·         John Witherspoon West (1840-1915) who married Catherine West, his third cousin, the daughter of Thomas Jefferson West and Elizabeth McCrary of Caldwell County[iv]; and

·         Lucy West (1842-?).

Franklin West’s tombstone(s) reflect(s) the inscription of 1818 for his birth year.  However, census records indicate that he was probably born in 1819 or 1820.  His parents married on August 21, 1818. The mystery surrounding his tombstone(s) will be a saga for another post.

No records can be found for Elizabeth West. Her birth date is undocumented, and she is not found in any census records in which the names of the family members are provided.  The first census which included names of household members was the 1850 census; she was not listed in that census.  However, Lucy who was born in 1842 or 1843 was included in the 1850 census as being 7 years old.  No other evidence of Lucy exists; she would have been 17 by the 1860 census and might have been married by that time.

Sadly, for this family two of their sons were killed in the Civil War fighting with the Confederate States of America.  William Thomas Jefferson West was killed at Petersburg, Virginia, in 1863, and Alexander Balus West, my 2^nd great grandfather, was killed at Winchester, Virginia, in 1864.  Franklin West, who would have been about 40 or 41 years old in 1861, too old to serve in the regular army, served in the North Carolina Senior Reserves.  John Witherspoon West was of an age to serve with his brothers but was not eligible because of a crippled hand.[v]

John Balus and Mary Ann “Polly” Swanson West left a quite a legacy with many descendants, many of whom still reside in Wilkes and neighboring North Carolina counties.  I have been so fortunate to have made contact with several of these cousins, my “Internet cousins,” descended from our common ancestors, Alexander West I, John West/Margaret “Peggy” Witherspoon, and John Balus West/Mary Ann “Polly” Swanson.  These Internet cousins are my second, third, fourth and sixth cousins with some being one or two times removed. I haven’t yet discovered any fifth Internet cousins. I have actually spoken with a few of them on the telephone but have never yet met any of them in person.  However, I am excited about meeting a fourth Internet cousin in the near future!  I truly appreciate and enjoy my contacts with them and thank them for the assistance that they have given me in my ancestral quest for our West ancestors.

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[i] Dunn, Linda Basey, Ancestry.com. Nov. 2, 2010,                  http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/20904524/person/1110849032/media/1?pgnum=1&pg=0&pgpl=pid%7cpgNum

[ii] West, John Foster, “History of the West Family,” Journal-Patriot of North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. Nov. 8,

   1976.

[iii] Thomas Jefferson West was the son of Alexander West II and Hannah Langley and the brother of John West who

   was John Balus West’s father.

[iv] Ibid.

[v] West, John Foster, “History of the West Family,” Journal-Patriot of North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. Nov. 8,

   1976.