SW Virginia in 1792	Combs &c. Families of Russell County, VA	SW Virginia in 1814

Russell County was organized from Washington Co VA in 1786; Lee Co was established from SW Russell in 1792-3; Tazewell from Russell and Wythe in 1799; and Scott from Russell, Lee and Washington in 1814-5. In 1855, Wise was formed and in 1858, Buchanan (In 1880, Dickenson was formed from Wise and Buchanan). Kentucky lay to the East and Tennessee to the South.

Important! Due to Virginia/Tennessee state line boundary conflicts, Sullivan Co, TN records should also be checked. Also note that except where otherwise noted, sources for this report are:

Russell Co., Virginia Law Court Order Book Records transcribed by Combs Researcher Sue Elfving

Russell Co VA Tax Lists and Census Records: Russell Co VA Index to Census and Tax Lists, Russell Co VA GenWeb

Russell Co VA Surveys: Russell Co VA Surveyors Book 1 and Russell Co VA Surveyors Book 2, both by Rhonda Robertson, Russell Co, VA GenWeb

Russell Co VA Cemeteries, Index to Russell Co VA Cemeteries, Russell Co VA GenWeb

Russell Co VA Birth, Death, Marriage and Mortality Records, Index to Russell Co VA Vital Statistics, Russell Co VA GenWeb

Russell Co VA Deeds: Abstracted by Combs Researcher C. Hammett from "Russell Co VA Deed Book 1, 1787-1795," "Russell Co VA Deed Book 2, 1795-1798," "Russell Co VA Deed Book 3, 1798-1806," Tom Colley, Iberian Publishing Company, Athens, GA, 1995; and "Russell Co VA Deed Book 4, 1806-1814," ibid., 1996.

Washington Co VA Deeds, Patents, Surveys and Marriages: Extracted by Combs Researcher C. Hammett from Summers' Annals of Southwest Virginia, Volume 2

Virginia Land Grants and Patents, Virginia State Library and Archives, Land Office Index

Our Families - Both Combs & Associated

Three to four, and possibly more, Combs Families were in early Russell County, all or most probably descended from the Combs Families of early Stafford Co, VA:

1. William and Anna THOMPSON Combs, Jr. of Weavers Creek, Haytor Valley , Upper District, Russell County (s/o William & Sarah MILLION Combs, Sr. of Stafford Co, VA), m bef 1798, Anna THOMPSON (d/o William and Nancy JACKSON Thompson, gd/o John & Mary THOMPSON and Jacob & Lydia JACKSON). According to her pension declarations, Sarah Ann MILLION Combs resided in Russell Co, VA during part of the 1790s (and possibly both earlier and later). Her son, William Combs, Jr. of Weavers Creek, is only ever found in the Upper District of Russell Co, VA, when he is first recorded on a 1799 tax list. William Combs, Jr. of Weavers Creek remained in Russell Co until his death in 1841. Presumably, he was "somehow kin" to others of the Combs of Russell Co VA, but how is not yet known.

2. The Descendants of both Mason & Sarah Combs, Sr. and Simon & Judith TOLSON Stacy (Pettit), Sr. migrated together from Stafford and Frederick Cos, VA; and Rowan and Surry Cos, NC, to Montgomery Co, VA, and in and out of Sullivan Co, TN and Russell Co, VA. By 1789, at least three of Mason, Sr.'s children and their families had come to Russell: William and Seth STACY Combs, Sr., Mason and Dorothy Combs, Jr., and Benjamin and Ann Combs Stacy, Sr., as well as Judith TOLSON Stacy Pettit and William CODY who m Sinai STACY - with all the STACYS children of Judith.

a. William & Seth STACY Combs, Sr. of Crabtree Creek of Big Moccasin, North Fork of Holston, s/o Mason & Sarah Combs, Sr., b 1740, Overwharton Parish, Stafford Co, VA, m bef 1767, possibly in Frederick Co, VA, Seth STACY (d/o Simon and Judith TOLSON Stacy (Pettit), Sr., was probable father of John Combs and William Combs, Jr. (See Surry Co, NC) He resided in Montgomery Co, VA in 1781, and appears to have first come to Russell Co ca 1789 (Upper District), probably from Sullivan Co, TN (where he sold land in 1788), with (his brother?) Mason Combs, and (his son?) John Combs; as well as his brothers-in-law, William and Sinai STACY Cody, and John STACY, Sr., and his mother-in-law, Judith TOLSON Stacy Pettit. Abt 1792, William and Mason Combs and Peter STACY (s/o John Sr.) removed to Hawkins Co, TN, where Mason Combs remained. By 1796, William Combs, Sr. (h/o Seth STACY), and Peter STACY, had returned to Russell Co, from Hawkins, and William and Sinai STACY Cody from Sullivan Co, but this time to Crabtree Br. of Big Moccassin Creek of the North Holston, which is in Russell's Lower District.

b. Mason & Dorothy Combs, Jr. (we think. <g>) Like William, Mason Combs, Jr. was b 21 Feb 1746/7, Overwharton Parish, Stafford Co, VA. He is first recorded in Surry Co, NC when tithed by his father in 1771. He appears to be the same Mason Combs who served in the 1781 Montgomery Co VA Militia with William Combs of Crabtree, and who is found with William in Hawkins Co, TN in the 1790s. Unlike William, however, Mason did not return to Montgomery Co VA, but remained in Hawkins where he apparently died 1801-1808; and where both George "8" Combs (h/o Lydia HARRELL-HERALD) and Elijah "8" Combs (h/o Sarah "Sallie" ROARK) probably married (both sons of John & Nancy HARDING Combs, Sr., another son of Mason). Whether all of the Mason/Meshack Combs recorded in Russell were the same is not yet known.

c. Benjamin & Ann Combs Stacy, Sr. Ann Combs, d/o Mason Combs, Sr., b 1742, Overwharton Parish, Stafford Co, VA, m ca 1764, probably in Frederick Co, VA, Benjamin STACY, Sr., s/o Simon and Judith TOLSON Stacy (Pettit), Sr. They are found in Rowan Co, NC in 1768 on same tax list as Mason Combs, Sr., William Combs, Sr. and William CODY and later in Montgomery Co, VA, came to Russell by 1789, probably with her brothers, Mason, Jr. and William, and the STACYS and William CODY (see below)

4. Alexander Combs, b ca 1795, Loudoun Co, VA, arrived in Russell between 1820 and 1830. Joseph Combs II may have been the ancestor of Alexander (research in progress).

5. John Combs of Upper District, Russell Co, VA (100 acres) first appears in the records of this county in 1799, the same year as William Combs (Jr.) of Weaver Creek, but both John and William ???? disappear from the records for a few years, and John apparently left (or died) before 1810. He may have been the same as John COMM (COUNTS?) of Glade Hollow, Cedar Creek (north of Lebanon), Russell Co, VA.

Side Note: We still haven't figured out exactly who all the Combs of the Upper District were, not just John, but any of them… nor even whether the William Combs who first appears in Upper District, Russell County tax lists in 1799 was the same as William Combs (Jr. of Weaver Creek?)

Note: All of these various Combs Families are probably more closely related than we realize, but at present research is still in progress with no determinations made.

Return to Index to Combs &c. Families of Russell Co VA

STACY: Simon & Judith TOLSON Stacy m 22 Aug 1741, Overwharton Parish, Stafford Co, VA; removed in the 1750s to Frederick Co VA where they are found in records with Mason Combs, Sr., also formerly of Overwharton Parish. By 1768, both the Combs and STACYS were in Rowan (later Surry) Co, NC, which is apparently where they became acquainted with the Cody-Ridge Families. Among their children were: Sithe STACY m William Combs, Sr. (s/o Mason & Sarah Combs, Sr.). Benjamin STACY m Ann Combs (d/o Mason & Sarah Combs, Sr.). Sinai STACY m William CODY. Simon STACY, m Elizabeth DAVIDSON (d/o James & Peggy DAVIDSON, Jr. Mary STACY may have married Abner EVERAGE, and may have been mother of Mary EVERAGE, w/o William CORNETT. John STACY, Sr., s/o Benjamin & Ann Combs Stacy, m Lucy, d/o Henry SKAGGS whose (See Barbara Stacy Mathews' Stacy Family Journal)

CODY: William of Russell (ca1741-ca1820, Scott VA) was the s/o Pierce CODY of Surry Co NC and h/o Sinai STACY (d/o Simon & Judith TOLSON Stacy). Among his children were: Nancy m 17 Aug 1785, Montgomery Co, VA, David THOMPSON. Dolly m Reuben PRICE. John m Elizabeth SUMNER (d/o Samuel & Winnifred Combs Sumner (Hicks)). Zedekiah CODY m Tabitha OSBORNE (How do we know that? Who was she?). Thomas CODY m Mary BAYS, and in 1840, is on the same Russell Co VA census page as William & Anna THOMPSON Combs of Weaver Creek. By 1850, he has removed to Perry Co KY where he made a deposition in 1853 in regard to RW William CORNETT. Thomas CODY is listed on same census page as William Combs of Weavers Creek. By 1850, Thomas had moved to Perry Co KY where he made a deposition on behalf of RW William CORNETT. (See George Baumbach's Cody-Combs-Ridge-Tory Filing Cabinet)

Note: According to the Perry Co KY declaration of Thomas CODY, b 1783 (s/o William & Sinai STACY Cody), dated 25 Jan 1853, Perry Co, KY, Mary EVERAGE m William CORNETT abt 1797-1798 "at the house of George MORRISON in Sullivan Co., Tenn. Squire GAINES, a justice of the peace, married them. A short time after they were married CORNET left for the mountains of Kentucky and seven or eight years afterward he [CODY] left for Kentucky with his father, hunting for elk and buffalo, and found William CORNETT and his wife in a camp at the mouth of Bull Creek, a branch of the north fork of the Kentucky River. This was in 1804. Mary and CORNETT were married but a short distance from where his father lived, as all the family were present, as his grandmother STACY [Judith TOLSON Stacy (Pettit)] had helped to raise Mary…" (RW Pension File of Wm. CORNETT)

CORNETT: Samuel was the brother of RW William CORNETT who m Mary EVERAGE (ward of Judith TOLSON Stacy Pettit) in Apr 1796 at the house of George and Polly (WOOD?) Morrison in Sullivan Co TN. According to the 1853 Perry Co KY deposition of Thomas CODY (s/o William and Sinai STACY Cody), he was present at their wedding, and in the early 1800s we find the Codys, Combs Stacys, Morrisons and Woods together on/near Crabtree Creek.

DAVIDSON: James DAVIDSON, Sr. d 1794, Russell Co VA, f/o James DAVIDSON, Jr. (d 1826, Scott VA), whose children included Elizabeth w/o Simon STACY; Ruth, wife of James TATE; and Nancy who m (1) James OSBOURN; and (2) Jonathan WOOD.

WOOD: Henry, John and Johnathan WOOD (Sr. and Jr.) We do not yet know how the various members of the WOOD family are kin to each other; however, it appears, based on the Crabtree Branch Land Records, that Priscilla, wife of George MORRISON of Sullivan Co TN, was neè WOOD, and possibly the daughter of Jonathan WOOD. See also John WOOD and Priscilla WOOD Morrison below, and also note that John HARRELL'S Hawkins Co TN will included (among others) grandchildren, Frank and Samuel WOOD (his daughter and son-in-law's names still unknown), and Lydia HARRELL, wife of George Combs (d Perry Co KY ca 1822). See also James WOOD who witnessed the 1758 Frederick Co VA deed between John Combs & John HARROLD, Jr., and note that RW John Combs of Perry Co KY stated that he served under a Col. James WOOD. Nancy DAVIDSON (d/o James DAVIDSON, Sr.) m (1) Solomon OSBORNE who was killed by Indians by whom she had James OSBORNE and others.; m (2) Jonathon WOOD by whom she had Henry WOOD, Jonathon WOOD, and others. (Combs-Davidson-Stacy Researcher Barbara Stacy Mathews). See also Samuel WOOD of 1755 King George Co VA. Also note that Combs and Wood are found as neighbors in both Stafford and Loudoun Cos VA.

TATE: James TATE, s/o Robert & Mary TATE, Sr., m Ruth DAVIDSON (d/o James & Peggy DAVIDSON, Jr.) and removed to Warren Co, TN where in 1814, he formed a Militia Company whose Sergeant was Martin JOHNSON, h/o Sarah Combs. Shortly after selling his land adjacent to Andrew HARVEY, he removed to what would become Warren Co, TN, where in 1814, Sgt. Martin JOHNSON, formerly of Hawkins Co, TN, h/o Sarah Combs, served in Capt. James Tait's Militia Company in the War of 1812. See also Andrew HARVEY with Sally Combs in Breathitt Co KY. James TATE is also found on the 1812 Warren Co TN Tax Return of John COOPER, as do Champain FARRIS of Crabtree, Reuben PRICE (h/o Dolly CODY),

FARRIS: This may have been the Elisha FARRIS whose daughter, Mary, m as his first wife, Henry LIVINGSTON, s/o William Todd and Sarah (WARE?) Livingston. Mary FERRIS Livingston, her mother, and an infant child, were killed by Indians on 22 May 1791. Henry LIVINGSTON m 2nd, 21 Mar 1793, Wythe Co, VA, Susannah CARMACK, d/o Cornelius and Margaret CARMACK. (See LIVINGSTON). According to Emory Hamilton in "Unsettled Settlements…" (Weaver), a 6 Oct 1791 letter from Henry SMITH, County Lieutenant of Russell County, Virginia, to Governor RANDOLPH, included the following: "…we remained tolerably peaceful, except some horsses stolen, till about the last of August, when part of two famlies were killed; (PENDLETON and McDOWELL), the week following (early September), Elisha FARRIS and three of his family were killed, and his daugher, a young woman, was taken prisoner…" Hamilton goes on to write: "The Elisha FARRIS family lived on Moccasin Creek a short distance from the present Gate City in Scott County."

Probably irrelevant, but: "FERRIS, Nathan, Capt. "Polly FITZGERALD, widow of Capt. Nathan FARRIS, RW married John FITZGERALD aft the sol's death. Dau Polly and her husband James HUDSON and sol's dau Rebecca FERRIS who m James JOHNSON stated that they were the only surviving heirs of Capt. Nathan FARRIS. He and one of his children were massacred at Green River in KY in 1786 abt 10 mi from Casey's station. FARRIS was VA line and also served in 1786 and all were in Pulaski Co KY in 1835 when affid filed. Indians killed Capt FERRIS and one of his children and his brother at Green River in KY abt 10 mi from Casey's Station. Sol left wid w/3 children Rebecca, Sally who was dec'd in 1835 and Polly, date of death not given. James FARRIS, bro of Nathan, was b in 1760 in Halifax co VA and lived in Lincoln Co VA, now KY, lived there 10-12 years then to Casey Co, KY." (Virgil D. White, Genealogical Abstracts of Revolutionary War Pension Abstract Files)

LIVINGSTON: William Todd LIVINGSTON had removed from Essex > King and Queen to Louisa Cos VA to Orange Co NC by 1765 when he purchased land in Rowan Co, NC. He is listed only a few names away from that of Mason Combs, Sr. on Gideon WRIGHT'S 1768 Rowan Co Tax List. When Surry was formed, both Combs & LIVINGSTON were part of that county and when Wilkes NC was formed, his land became part of the latter. By 1775, however, he had removed to the North Fork of the Holston River, Washington County, VA, where he died in 1778. Among his children were Peter and Henry LIVINGSTON both made widowers (more than once) by Indian raids, most specifically by Chief Benge.

LOVEALL: Zebulon LOVEALL… resided in Virginia in 1800-1827. Moved or was evicted from property and (ended) up in Wayne Co, KY. Had two sons Jacob and Abraham. Jacob married Elizabeth BROWN, Nov. 26, 1827. (Posted 09 Oct 1998 by James H. Wells to Choctaw Surnames)

HARVEY: One Andrew HARVEY is on Molls Creek in Russell Co. VA 1791 - 1815 with either a sister, Mother or wife named Martha. By 1814 Andrew HARVEY (the same?) has at least 3 base-born children by Susannah HALL, and no further record of him is found in either Russell or Washington Co. VA beyond 1815. One Andrew HARVEY (the same?) is on Troublesome Creek, Clay > Perry > Breathitt Co. KY, appearing in 1816 through abt 1838. He is <periodically> living with a Sarah HARVEY (sister, mother, daughter, wife, mistress???) who is possibly nee Combs , and who sues for his estate in 1843 against Castle and Alley heirs who live outside of KY (in Russell Co VA?). (See Anne Harvey's The Harvey Genealogist, Breathitt KY and Combs Research List Archives, 1998)

FRAZIER: Who were the Fraziers on/near Crabtree? Who was Sinai (HOGG?) Frazier, wife of Solomon, who appears to have possibly been named after Sinai STACY Cody? An Emory Hamilton article in Unsettled Settlements states: "John FRAZIER had settled on Moccasin Creek in present-day Scott County, Virginia, in 1771. His wife was named Mary, and he had sons, Joseph, born September 16, 1771, Solomon, born 1773, James, George and Squire FRAZIER. He may also have been the father of William and Daniel…" The article also mentions a 4 Jul 1790 letter from Henry SMITH to Governor Randolph in which Randolph wrote: "Last Spring (1789), John FRAZIER, Esq. had his little son taken prisoner and I am well informed that unfortunate man has been since had the rest of his family killed on the Kentucky Road."

HOWERTON: William HOWERTON of Crabtree may be the same who appears on the 1788 Montgomery Co VA Militia List of Capt. Daniel TRIGG, which includes both William Combs (h/o Sitha STACY) and Mason Combs (Jr.?). William HOWERTON of Crabtree stated in his Scott Co VA Revolutionary War Pension Application that he lived in Washington Co VA at first enlistment, but in 1778 moved to Montgomery Co VA where he also enlisted, then in 1810 to Floyd Co KY, then to Morgan Co KY where he applied for his pension on 6 Jan 1834, aged 75, and where he died 18 Aug 1841.

MAGEE: A Lieutenant Samuel McGEE is also on the 1781 Montgomery Co VA Militia List of Capt. Daniel TRIGG. Was he kin to Thomas McGEE (alias RIDGE), half-brother of William RIDGE, h/o Winnifred Combs, d/o Mason Combs, Sr.?

COUNTS: The Combs, Counts and Stacys of Glade Hollow, Russell Co, Virginia, are found together earlier in Shenandoah Co, VA. According to E. J. Sutherland's "Some Descendants of John COUNTS of Glade Hollow" (provided by Russell Co VA Researcher Max Ervin): "On Feb 9, 1764, in a Frederick Co [VA] civil suit on an attachment in that county by John COUNTS against John STACEY, the jury found that …The COUNTS farm was on Hawksbill Creek about three miles NW of the present town of Luray, and about one mile south of the mouth of Hawksbill (where it enters the Shennandoah South Fork) in now Page Co. The farm was in Dunmore Co, when that new county was struck off from Frederick in 1772. In 1776,it became Shenandoah Co, and in 1831 Page Co. In Russell Co, on April 28, 1791, John STACEY transferred his entry of fifty acres in Glade Hollow to John COUNTS." See Frederick Co VA for the 1759 record to John COUNTS signed by Simon STACY and witnessed by Mason Combs, Sr.

HICKS: Rev. Robert HICKS married (1) Susannah THOMPSON(??); and (2) 1796-7, Winnifred Combs (ancestry unknown), the widow of Samuel SUMNER (possibly the same who d 1787/8 Montgomery Co VA). Robert HICK'S first appearance on Russell Co VA tax lists was in 1800 in the Lower District (near Crabtree?). By 1808, Robert & Winnifred were in Clay Co KY (with 10 Combs)

More to follow… later…

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