Help with William Snodgrass, early settler of Virginia/West Virginia

Question

I recently was able to (finally) break through a brick wall in one of my family lines, one such that leads back to William Snodgrass, an Irish or Scottish native who emigrated to the Pennsylvania or West Virginia area in the early 1700s. There is A LOT of misinformation out there on him, and even what is currently on wikitree is a huge mess. I started cleaning it up today with what I was able to ascertain, but I do not have the ability to go chasing down documents in person right this instant, and, like is so common on the web, everyone has posted what they think is correct, but most of it seems to be guesswork. I have found a few records on familysearch that can help, but first would like to know if anyone, at least, knows where some folks are coming up with a birth date for William. He is listed as being born in Ireland in 1697, while others list him as being born 1604 in Scotland, and still others think he was born in Virginia. I found a record that matches his name, his supposed father's name (William) as well as his mother's name (Elizabeth), and has him listed as being born 1603 Renfrew, Scotland. Has anyone dealt with this family and can help give direction? I am guessing there are two Williams, born around the same time but with very different families-one, the one I am connected to, with all boys, and the other with a larger family with lots of girls. I will continue to search for concrete records and references, but thought I would appeal to our community in case someone has some direction.

My line is as follows:

William Snodgrass 1603 m. 1725 Virginia to  Catherine Patterson

David Snodgrass ca 1725 m. Martha Glenn

William Snodgrass 1760 m. Mary Elder

Jane Snodgrass m. John Fleming

Martha Fleming1832  m. George Chamberlain

Rhoda Ann Virginia Chamberlain 1864 m. Joseph Norman

Nat Fleming Norman m Addie M Lawrence

Comments

Jane, or Jennie, Snodgrass married John Fleming and they are my 3rd. grt. grandparents.  I actually have a picture of the two of them.  There is a note with the picture that says he helped move the Indians to Ok. It also says that John was born in 1804.

---

The answer for the different birth dates and places is simple -- people have used their imagination.  If you are interested, I have a lot of documented information about William's children (deeds mostly), which then give the best possible picture of William and his wife Catherine Patterson.  I also have documents (transcribed, not the originals!) about the rest of your Snodgrass lineage.  I have compiled all of these documents into what I call "Snodgrass Source Books."  They are arranged by state, and within the state by county, and within the county chronologically.  I also list the sources I have checked for each county.  The source book for West Virginia, for example, is 629 pages long.  I am happy to share any of these source books with anyone who is interested.  Besides every state, I have created a source book for Snodgrasses in Scotland, and because they didn't all stay in Scotland, I have added to that England, Australia, New Zealand, and what I call "Outlands," which is bits and pieces from countries where there were not many Snodgrasses, like Trinidad, Kenya, South Africa, China, etc.  Anyone who wants a copy of any of these Snodgrass Source Books can email me directly at charloud@comcast.net.

Answer 1

According to Virginia Marriages, William Snodgrass was the father of Martha Snodgrass who married David Fulton 23 May 1791 at Botetourt, VA.

There was a William Snodgrass who served in the 12th Regiment out of PA during the American Revolutionary War.

Comments

Frank, does the Marriages book give any sort of dates? Does it list Catherine as the mother for Martha? I am rather certain there were two Williams, and they are currently very confused in a lot of folks' research. I am trying to track down some concrete sources to define the two separately.

---

For some reason, the name of William Snodgrass' wife and Martha Snodgrass' mother is omitted from the index. 

 

I am puzzled a bit by the dates on the earliest ancestor that you listed. 

William Snodgrass 1603 m. 1725... Did you mean to say 1703 rather that 1603?

In the Pedigree Resource File for Family Search, someone has entered Catherine Jane Patterson, daughter of John Patterson, was born 1705, Catawba Creek, Botetourt Co., VA. She died 1783 in Washington Co., PA. She married William Snodgrass who was born 1697, married 1725; he  died 1783. That was about the same time the Revolutionary War ended. 

 

---

Sorry, ha ha, yes, 1703. Too many things going at once.

Catherine is  my Catherine. Will look into the PRF on Family Search and see what is listed as a source for it. I am find a lot of conjecture.

Answer 2

Its william senior and then the later william jr, father of joseph

Answer 3

William and elizabeth parents of william f and wife catherine patterson