George Strother Hancock (1798 - 1875)

Born 6 Apr 1798 in Fincastle, Botetourt, Virginia, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Mary (Davidson) Hancock — married 1838 in New Orleans, Orleans, Louisiana, United States

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Biography

Married 1 :Elizabeth Clark "Eliza" Croghan

b 09 Apr 1801 Locust Grove, Jefferson, Kentucky ("Locust Grove," was the Croghan family estate for many years, near the mouth of Mammoth CAVES (she was the niece of George Rogers Clark) -

m. 28 Sep 1819

d 12 Jul 1833; Locust Grove, Louisville, Kentucky

Married 2 :Mary Holliday DAVIDSON

b 25 Oct 1818 New Orleans, Jefferson, Louisiana;

m. 27 Aug 1875

d 27 Dec 1902, Louisville, Jefferson, Kentucky; 88 years

George died at 77 years of age; USArmy, aide to Gen. Zachary Taylor.

The Papers of Henry Clay: Secretary of State 1827 By Henry Clay https://books.google.com/books?id=x8xu-WZU2yQC&pg=PA1069&dq=%22JOhn+caswell+GRIFFIN%22&hl=en&sa=X&ei=Lx4fVeX4KJXVoASc-YHIBQ&ved=0CCkQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=%22JOhn%20caswell%20GRIFFIN%22&f=false

A Human and Natural History edited by Horton H. Hobbs III, Rickard A Olson, Elizabeth G Winkler, David C. Culver [1]

In 1797, Settlers could buy up to 200 acres (80 ha) of second-rate land (meaning bad farm land) south of Green River for $40 per hundred acres (40ha) under “An act for encouraging and granting relief to Settlers (Little 1809). Valentine Simons (or Simmns, or Simon, depending on the source), a young man in his 20s, used the act to buy 200 acres (80 ha) that included “Two petre caves” referring to Mamoth’s Historic Entrance and nearby Dixon Cave on Sept 14, 1798 (Warren Co 1800).

A few years later, Simons sold the land to John Flatt for an unknown amount fo money and, according to Simons’ great-great-grandson, two mules (Warnell 1997).

Crougan bame from a wealthy, well connected family. His great-uncle, George Rogers Clark, was a revolutionary War hero. Another great-uncle, William Clark, became even more famous by co-leading the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Family friends included Presidents James Monroe, Andrew Jackson, Zachary Taylor, and ornitholight and painter John J Audubon. Croghan lived most of this life at the family manion Locust Grove which is open for tours.

Lore has it that Crghan first heard of Mammoth Cave while in Europe, where some world travelers told him about this magnificent cave that just happened to be in his home state. Actually, Croghan was familiar with the area long before he bought the cave; his family owned land in Edmonson County, and they knew Gorin. Croghan was not just familiar with the survace; he carved his name and the date 1812 into the limestone in Ganter Avenue in the Historic section of Mammoth cave.

The Register of the Kentucky Historical Society, Volumes 68-69 [2]

Sources

• Find a Grave, database and images (accessed 15 March 2022), memorial page for George Hancock (6 Apr 1798–27 Apr 1875), Find A Grave: Memorial #81227839, citing Cave Hill Cemetery, Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky, USA ; Maintained by Kathleen (contributor 47602782) .
• https://wmstrother.org/database/getperson.php?personID=I682&tree=wms