Thomas Davis (1804 - 1878)

Born 1804 in Davis Creek, Kanawha, Virginia, United States

Ancestors

Descendants

Died 1878 at about age 74 in Davis Creek, Kanawha, West Virginia, United States

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Biography

Reverend Thomas Davis was a minister with Methodist Episcopal Church. He was born in 1804, in Kanawha county, Virginia, a son of Thomas M. Davis and Mary Means Lantron. ^[1] Reverend Davis and his family lived on a trace of the Kanawha River, "named Davis Creek for Thomas Davis who bought land at the mouth of the creek in 1790. Two hundred and forty-one acres cost him but five shillings." ^[2]

• At the February term of the General Assembly, in 1790, the following Deed was recorded: Thomas Upton conveyed to Thomas Davis two hundred and forty acres at the mouth of Davis Creek. ^[3]

Davis Creek became known as having thereon the Black Band Iron Ore, that is, there was coal found thereon in which was an iron ore and it was supposed that the coal would smelt the ore and a furnace was built to make iron and it was not a success for some reason, but it lead to a railroad being built up Davis Creek to bring out the coal. Thomas Davis died in 1878, aged about eighty years. ^[4]

Thomas married Sarah Means, born circa 1810 (from census) in Virginia. Children of Thomas Davis and Sarah Means include:

• Sarah Davis, who married Frank Dunlap, parents of Robert Dunlap (see researchers notes)

• Harriet Davis, born circa 1844, (from census) in Virginia

• Liona Davis, born circa 1850 (from census) in Virginia

• Thomas A Davis, born circa 1854 (from census) in Virginia, died July 22, 1925, in Kanawha, West Virginia. ^[5]

• Minerva (Davis) Midkiff, died July 10, 1927, in Kanawha, West Virginia, married E. [Elijah] Midkiff ^[6]

Thomas and Sarah are found on the United States Census of 1870, living in London, Kanwha county, West Virginia. ^[7] All of their children are said to have been born in Virginia because this part of the state did not break away from Virginia and become West Virginia until 1863, at the onset of the American Civil War.

Researchers Notes

"Robert Dunlap, who conducts a general store at Mammoth, was born in Washington District, Kanawah county, March 5, 1864, and is a son of Frank and Sarah (Davis) Dunlap, and a grandson of Reverend Thomas Davis, who, at one time owned the valley of Davis Creek." ^[8]

1870 Census

Name: Thomas Davis Event Type: Census Event Date: 1870 Event Place: London, Kanawha, West Virginia, United States Event Place (Original): London, Kanawha, West Virginia, United States Sex: Male Age: 65 Race: White Birth Year (Estimated): 1805 Birthplace: Virginia Page Number: 44

Household Role Sex Age Birthplace

Thomas Davis M 65 Virginia

Sarah Davis F 60 Virginia

Harriet Davis F 26 Virginia

Liona Davis F 20 Virginia

Thomas A Davis M 16 Virginia

Thomas Bays M 20 Virginia

Household ID: 304 Line Number: 25 Affiliate Name: The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) Affiliate Publication Number: M593 GS Film Number: 000553189 Digital Folder Number: 004268428 Image Number: 00346 Indexing Project (Batch) Number: N01485-4 Record Number: 13407

Sources

1. ↑ https://www.geni.com/people/L-Davis/6000000003266346055
2. ↑ Kenny, Hamill (1945). West Virginia Place Names: Their Origin and Meaning, Including the Nomenclature of the Streams and Mountains. Piedmont, WV: The Place Name Press. p. 201. Digitized here: https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015009099824&view=1up&seq=227&size=125
3. ↑ History of Charleston and Kanawha County, West Virginia, and representative citizens, by Laidley, William Sidney, Chicago, Richmond-Arnold Publishing Company, 1911, page 52, digitized here: https://archive.org/details/historyofcharles00laid/page/52/mode/1up
4. ↑ History of Charleston and Kanawha County, West Virginia, and representative citizens, by Laidley, William Sidney, Chicago, Richmond-Arnold Publishing Company, 1911, page 94, digitized here: https://archive.org/details/historyofcharles00laid/page/94/mode/1up
5. ↑ "West Virginia Deaths, 1804-1999," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F1P2-JVX : 10 March 2018), Thomas Davis, 22 Jul 1925; citing Kanawha, West Virginia, County Records, 8607, county courthouses, West Virginia; FHL microfilm 1,953,237
6. ↑ "West Virginia Deaths, 1804-1999," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F1YH-MJ5 : 10 March 2018), Minerva Midkiff, 10 Jul 1927; citing Kanawha, West Virginia, County Records, 8759, county courthouses, West Virginia; FHL microfilm 1,953,331
7. ↑ "United States Census, 1870", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MZ4L-6VW : 2 January 2021), Thomas Davis, 1870
8. ↑ History of Charleston and Kanawha County, West Virginia, and representative citizens, by Laidley, William Sidney, Chicago, Richmond-Arnold Publishing Company, 1911, page 419, digitized here: https://archive.org/details/historyofcharles00laid/page/419/mode/1up

• http://trees.ancestry.com/rd?f=document&guid=a143fb99-7eca-4069-9c7f-c7ea077c3c54&tid=2283858&pid=568
• United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Fifth Census of the United States, 1830. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1830. M19, 201 Note: APID: 1,8058::0
• United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Sixth Census of the United States, 1840. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1840. M704, 58 Note: APID: 1,8057::0
• United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Seventh Census of the United States, 1850. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1850. M432, Note: APID: 1,8054::0
• United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Eighth Census of the United States, 1860. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1860. M653, 1 Note: APID: 1,7667::0
• Dodd, Jordan R., et al.. Early American Marriages: Virginia to 1850. Bountiful, UT, USA: Precision Indexing Publishers

Acknowledgments

• WikiTree profile Davis-8023 created through the import of NEWEST BACKUP_2011-10-12.ged on Oct 13, 2011 by Season McMillan
• Thank you to [Jeffries-376 | Elaine Jeffries] for creating WikiTree profile Davis-15389 through the import of Turley_McCormick _ Davis_Barke.ged on Apr 6, 2013