112. Documentation for Frederick Fox
(10 May 1751 to 27 Feb 1837)
father of George Fox
(10 Mar 1781 to 14 Jun 1847)
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Frederick Fox was born May 10, 1751, in Hesse-Cassel, Germany.(1) He was the son of John Frederick Fox and Christina.(2) The brothers and sisters of Frederick Fox were: Daniel, Magdelin, Michael, and Rachael.(3) John Fox was a skin-dresser by trade.(4) John Fox died between January 17, 1784, when he wrote his will, and December 4, 1784, when his will was probated.(5) Christiana Fox died Aug. 6, 1812, probably in Sharpsburg, Maryland.(6)
Frederick Fox and his parents probably lived at or near Fox's Gap, Maryland, during the 1760s. The gap received its name from Frederick's father, John Fox, because he was the earliest settler in the immediate vicinity of the gap.(7) Fox's Gap in Maryland is where the Old Sharpsburg Road from Frederick, Maryland, to Sharpsburg, Maryland, crosses the South Mountain.(8) The Old Sharpsburg Road was part of the Great Wagon Road to Philadelphia, which also was known as the German Monocacy Road.(9) The road also was known as the Road from Conestoga to Opequon, the Monocacy Road, the main road leading from Frederick Town to Sharpsburg, the German Monocacy Road, and the Main Road that leads from Frederick Town to Swearingen's Ferry and near to John Foxes House.
Fox's Gap in Maryland lies about midway between Frederick and Hagerstown, Maryland, and about two miles from Boonsboro, Maryland. Sharpsburg, the site of the Battle of Antietam during the Civil War, lies approximately five miles west. Fox's Gap in Maryland was destined to become not only the home for John Fox and his family, but an historical landmark due to the events of the Braddock Expedition of 1755 and the Battle of South Mountain, called the Battle of Boonsboro in the South, on September 14, 1862.(10) It is unknown if John Fox and his family resided at the gap when General Braddock, George Washington, and Maryland Governor Sharp passed through there on May 2, 1755. It is entirely possibly they did. We can only speculate if the reason or reasons John Fox chose to settle at Fox's Gap were similar or like-minded to those of the Confederate Army on September 13 and 14, 1862.
The Reno Monument, dedicated to U. S. Major Jesse Lee Reno who was killed in the Battle of South Mountain, stands at Fox's Gap.(11) A little more than one hundred years prior to the Battle of South Mountain, on May 2, 1755, the road through Fox's Gap was used by General Braddock, George Washington, and Maryland's Governor Sharpe to travel from Frederick Town to Swearingen's Ferry on the Potomac River, while on their way to Fort Cumberland during the Braddock Expedition.(12)
Frederick Fox was a farmer and perhaps a tavern keeper.(13) He married Catherine Booker on March 1, 1773, probably at or near Middletown, Maryland.(14) Catherine was a daughter of Bartholomew Booker and Margaret.(15) She was born May 1, 1748.(16)
The Fox Genealogy by Daniel Gebhart Fox indicates that The Fox Inn, which still is standing and is occupied by renters in the year 2004, was built on land owned by Frederick Fox.(17) However, Curtis L. Older found no land records that support Frederick Fox as the owner of the land upon which the Fox Inn stands. Curtis did find that George Fox, at age 24, the oldest son of Frederick and Catherine Fox, acquired the Fox Inn along the Old Sharpsburg Road in 1805.(18) The inn stands about two miles east of Fox's Gap and about two miles west of Middletown, Maryland, along the Old Sharpsburg Road from Frederick to Sharpsburg.
Frederick Fox served in Joseph Chapline Junior's Company of Militia, Sharpsburg, Maryland, probably between 1775 and 1777.(19) He signed the Patriot's Oath of Fidelity and Support in 1778.(20) Frederick served as a drummer in the Lieutenant Colonel's Company of the 10th Regiment, Pennsylvania Continental Line from April 22, 1777, to January 1, 1781.(21) He probably fought in the battles of Brandywine, Paoli "Massacre", Germantown, and Monmouth and he was at the Valley Forge Encampment.(22)
Frederick was short and of rather stout build and wore his hair in the olden time cue style.(23) He was an elder in the Zion Lutheran Church of Middletown, Maryland, from 1787 until 1790.(24)
Frederick Fox and Catherine Booker Fox were the parents of seven children: Christiana, Rose, George, Daniel Booker, Elizabeth, Mary Magdalena, and Joseph.(25) Catherine Booker Fox died November 1, 1800, and was buried in the Middletown, Maryland, area.(26)
Sometime between 1800 and 1807 Frederick Fox married a widow, Susannah (Schutt) Young. She was born April 19, 1754 and died November 13, 1831.(27) "Frederick Fox and thirty-two other persons, thirty-one of whom are known, emigrated to Ohio in the early day canvas covered wagons, coming by the way of Wheeling, West Virginia, and arriving in Franklin, Warren county, in the fall of 1807."(28) Frederick Fox died February 27, 1837, in Miamisburg, Ohio, and was buried in the Gebhart or St. John Cemetery in Miamisburg.(29)
Frederick Fox appears as a head of household in the 1790 Maryland Federal census for Frederick County.(30) The household contained 3 free white males of 16 and upwards, including heads of families, 3 free white males under 16 years, 5 free white females including heads of families, 0 all other free persons, 0 slaves.
The 1800 Maryland Federal census lists Frederick Fox as a head of household in Frederick County.(31) The Frederick Fox household reported: free white males - none under age 10, one male age 10 to 15, 2 males age 15 thru 25, no males age 26 thru 44, one male age 45 and over. Free white females included: none age under 10, one age 10 to 15, 3 age 15 thru 25, one age 26 thru 44, and none age 45 and over.
The 1809 Ohio state census for Warren County, Franklin Township, lists Frederick Fox.(32) The 1810 Ohio Federal census for Warren County, Franklin Township shows the Frederick Fox household.(33)
The 1830 Ohio Federal Census lists the Frederick Fox household of Warren County, Clear Creek Township, as containing: one male at least 70 and under 80, one female at least 40 and under 50, and one female at least 70 and under 80.(34)
See APPENDIX ONE for the full text of the will of Frederick Fox; APPENDIX TWO has a list of the Frederick Fox Land Records in Frederick County and Washington County in Maryland as well as records in the Tracey Collection in Westminster, Maryland; APPENDIX THREE has a list of original source material related to Frederick Fox; APPENDIX FOUR has material on Rosina (Rose or Rosannah) Fox, a daughter of Frederick Fox, who is not discussed in The Fox Genealogy by Daniel Gebhart Fox; APPENDIX FIVE has the September 8, 1812, Letter from Jacob Reel of Sharpsburg, Maryland, to Frederick and Michael Fox of Warren County, Ohio; APPENDIX SIX has a Map of The Road from Swearingen’s Ferry on the Potomac River through Sharpsburgh to the Top of the South Mountain at Fox’s Gap. August 23, 1792; APPENDIX SEVEN has an article on the Occupations of Residents along the Old Sharpsburg Road in the 1700s; APPENDIX EIGHT discusses Frederick Fox's records in Ohio; and APPENDIX NINE lists some Fox family related records in Montgomery County, Ohio.
Will of Frederick Fox: page 1; page 2; and page3.
Children (Fox) born in Frederick County, Maryland:(35)
i. Christiana, born January 20, 1774
ii. Rose, born September 9, 1775
iii. Mary Magdelena, born December 17, 1778
iv. George, born March 10, 1781
v. Daniel Booker, born June 6, 1783
vi. Joseph, born April 12, 1785
vii. Elizabeth, born September 27, 1788
ORIGINAL SOURCE MATERIAL to support the RELATIONSHIP between
FREDERICK FOX and his son GEORGE FOX
1) Will of Frederick Fox - Will Book C, case #1444, Montgomery County, Ohio, December 10, 1833. Names a son as George as well as other children. Ohio Wills and Estates to 1850: An Index, by Carol Willsey Bell, published by Carol Willsey Bell, C.G., 4801 Mockingbird Court, South, Columbus, Ohio 43229.
Fox, Frederick - W-1837 MT wbC p46; c1444 (MT = Montgomery)
Fox, Frederick - W-1849 WR wbB p301 (WR = Warren)
An Index of Wills and Administrations In Montgomery County, Ohio, Book I, 1803-1893, Transcribed by Lindsay M. Brien from the Probate Records of Montgomery County, Volume I, Chronological Index, Miami Valley Records, Vol. 2, Pt. 1, Typed by W. P. A. Workers, Dayton, O., Dayton Public Library, 1940 [0 00 60 3716119 4]. Doc AI Page 7 Fox Frederick Will Book Cl Page 46, Jan. 10, 1837 to Sept. 10, 1851.
2) Catharine, the wife of Frederick Fox, was buried November 4, 1800. Frederick S. Weiser, ed., Maryland German Church Records Vol. 2, Zion Lutheran Church 1781-1826 (Manchester, Md.: Noodle-Doosey Press, 1987), 77. The Death Register of Zion Lutheran Church indicates "Catarin, wife of Friedrich Fuchs, bur. 4 Nov. 1800. Heb. 4:9."
3) Obituary of John L. Fox, The Hoosier State newspaper, Newport, Indiana, Wednesday 11 January 1899, page 1, column 3. Lists a son as Daniel, parents as George Fox and Elizabeth (Link) Fox, and a grandfather as Frederick Fox. “He was the son of George and Elizabeth (Link) Fox. The father of our subject was a native of Maryland and a son of Frederick Fox, who was born on the ocean while his parents were emigrating to America. The Fox family first settled in Md., where the grand-father kept a tavern at the foot of Fox Mountain for many years. The father of John L. Fox crossed the mountains and settled in Ohio in 1807, making his home in that state until his death.”
4) Tombstones of Frederick Fox, George Fox, and of Elizabeth (Link), wife of George Fox, at the Gebhart or St. John Cemetery, Miamisburg, Ohio. The tombstone of George Fox indicates “Born March 10, 1781 In the State of Md. Died June 14, 1847”.
5) Frederick Fox was an Elder in the Zion Lutheran Church, Middletown, Maryland. Weiser, Frederick S., Zion Lutheran Church 1781-1826, Maryland German Church Records 2:4. Also on page 25, "Samuel, son of Jacob and Magdelena Benner was born April 14, 1801. Baptized June 21, 1801. Sponsored by George Fox, a single person." (Mary) Magdelena Benner was the daughter of Frederick Fox and a sister of George Fox. Frederick Fox and George Fox attended the same church at Middletown, MD.
6) History of Vermillion County, Indiana, Biographical and historical record of Vermillion County, Indiana, published 1888, page 491. The article indicates John L. Fox owned 331 acres of choice land at one time in Highland Township. He was farming 186 acres at the time the book was published in 1888. It lists his parents as George and Elizabeth (Link) Fox and his grandfather as Frederick Fox.
7) 1790 Maryland federal census, Frederick County, Unknown Township, Page 66, Roll M637_3, Image 0491. Frederick Fox appears in the first census of the United States in 1790.
8) 1800 Maryland federal census, Frederick County, District No. 3, Page 123, Roll M32_10, Image 124. Frederick Fox is in the Maryland census for the last time.
9) 1809 Ohio state census, Warren County, Franklin Township, page 013. Frederick Fox and George Fox both are listed in this census record.
10) 1810 Ohio federal census, Warren County, Franklin Township, page 28, both Frederick Fox and George Fox are listed.
11) 1830 Ohio federal census, Warren County, Clear Creek township, Page 173, Roll M19_142, Image 340, Household of Frederick Fox. 1830 U. S. Census for Ohio, Warren County, Clear Creek Township, Roll 142, page 173, George Fox household.
12) The Fox Genealogy including the Metherd, Benner, and Leiter descendants, giving biographies of the first and second generations, with sketches of the third generation, compiled by D. G. Fox, 1914. (n.p) 1924. 1 p. 1., (5)-172 p. 20 com. 37-9439 CS71.F79 1924 Library of Congress. Information included in The Fox Genealogy was collected about 1914 and was done at the time when Fox family members would have had first hand information about John L. Fox, George Fox, and Frederick Fox.
13) Frederick Fox and Margaret Booker were the executors of the estate of Bartholomew Booker. See the will of Bartholomew Booker, Frederick County, Maryland, Register of Wills Records, GM-2-431, October 21, 1791.
14) Daughters Mary and Elizabeth Fox are mentioned in the will of Margaret Booker. See Frederick County, MD, Register of Wills Records, GM-3-126, will of Margaret Book (Booker).
15) Early Settlers of Montgomery County, Ohio, Genealogical Abstracts from Land Records, Tax Lists, and Biographical Sketches, Compiled and Edited by Shirley Keller Mikesell, Heritage Books, Inc.
16) Letter from Jacob Reel to Michael and Frederick Fox, dated at Sharpsburg, Aug. 9, 1812, from a copy obtained from Robert H. Fox of Cincinnati, Ohio. "The following letter received and forwarded from Lebanon, Warren County, Ohio, Sept. 8, 1812, addressed to Msrs. Fredric(k) & Michael Fox, Franklin Township, Warren Co. Ohio". Copy on CD-rom disc entitled Fox's Gap in Maryland, which is at the Frederick County Historical Society, Frederick, Maryland. Frederick Fox had a younger brother Michael who preceded him to Ohio.
17) Photograph of Daniel Booker Fox, a son of Frederick Fox and a brother of George Fox, obtained from Alan Sentman, a member of The Society of the Descendants of Frederick Fox of Fox’s Gap in Maryland. Daniel Booker Fox also is buried at the Gebhart or St. John Cemetery, Miamisburg, Ohio.
Additional Original Source Material Related to Frederick Fox
1) Maryland newspaper items related to Frederick Fox in Maryland. See Edward Wright, Western Maryland Newspaper Abstracts 1786-1798 (Silver Spring, Md.: Family Line Publications, 1985), 1:14.
Item 101. FTM Aug 28 1792/Margaret Booker, Frederick Fox, exec, to sell farm, late the prop of Bartholomew Booker, decd, 304 a., on road from Fred Town to Williams Port, and Hager's Town, about 3 miles above Middletown/
Item 466. EAM Aug 31 1797/Frederick Fox to petition the Assembly to confirm his title to 2 lots in Village of Boonsberry, formerly deeded by William and George Boone to Michael Booch.
Item 485. EAM Jan 11 1798/Letters remaining at P.O. Hagerstown: Frederick Fox
2) Frederick Fox was a farmer. See Frederick County Land Records, WR-19-206, mortgage from Christian Benner to Frederick Fox, recorded April 11, 1799, Shaff's Purchase and Mount Sinai.
3) Frederick Fox signed the Patriot's Oath of Fidelity and support. See NGSQ Volume 6, #1, April 1917, Unpublished Revolutionary Records of Maryland, page 13, Patriot's Oaths of Fidelity and Support, 1778, Sharpsburgh Hundred. Washington County, MD, Patriot's Oath, March Court, 1778, Sharpsburgh Hundred, March 2, 1778, Christopher Cruss's Returns.
4) Frederick Fox served for a period in the Maryland Militia. See S. Eugene Clements and F. Edward Wright, The Maryland Militia in the Revolutionary War (Silver Spring, Md.: Family Line Publications, 1987), 241. Maryland Historical Society Records for Washington County, Militia Lists of Daughters of Founders and Patriots.
5) Frederick Fox served as a drummer in the Lieutenant Colonel's Company of the 10th Regiment, Pennsylvania Continental Line, American Revolution, from April 22, 1777, until January 1, 1781. National Archives, card numbers 37404176, 4837, 37188278, and 39144421; National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution. 17th Report, Pierce's Register, #67913. Also see Pennsylvania Archives, Series 5, 3:487, 529, 533, and 572.
6) Book B, page 38. Deed dated 1811. Jacob Long to Frederick Fox. Sec 18, T 2, R 5S. Signed Jacob Long. Witness: W. C. Schenck, #2 ? (german script) rec 1812. p 465.
7) Common Pleas (Probate) Docket Book C-1, Term of August 1816. Case 239. Will of Benjamin Richards. Exec: Massy Richards & Benjamin Richards. Witness: Charles Hardy, Frederick Fox. Appr: Nicholas Horner, James Petticrew, William Brown, p. 98.
8) Marriage Record - See Ohio D.A.R. Soldiers Rosters, 2 vol., 1:146.
9) Common Pleas (Probate) Docket Book C-1. Term of August 1816. Case 239. Will of Benjamin Richards. Exec: Massy Richards & Benjamin Richards. Witness: Charles Hardy, Frederick Fox. Appr: Nicholas Horner, James Petticrew, William Brown. p. 98.
10) Older, Curtis L., The Braddock Expedition and Fox's Gap in Maryland. Westminster, Md: Family Line Publications, 1995.
11) Older, Curtis L., The Land Tracts of the Battlefield of South Mountain, Westminster, Md: Willow Bend Books, 1999.
REFERENCES
1. Tombstone of Frederick Fox, Gebhart or St. John Cemetery, Miamisburg, Ohio; The Fox Genealogy including the Metherd, Benner, and Leiter descendants, giving biographies of the first and second generations, with sketches of the third generation, compiled by D. G. Fox, 1914. (n.p) 1924. 1 p. 1., (5)-172 p. 20 com. 37-9439 CS71.F79 1924 Library of Congress, 82.
2. Will of John Fox, Book A Liber 102, Washington County, Maryland, January 17, 1784; Fox Genealogy, p. 12.
3. Will of John Fox; Michael Fox, Frederick's brother, was a member of Joseph Chapline's Company of Militia. See S. Eugene Clements and F. Edward Wright, The Maryland Militia in the Revolutionary War (Silver Spring, Md.: Family Line Publications, 1987), 241; Maryland Historical Society Records for Washington County. Militia Lists of Daughters of Founders and Patriots.
4. Fox Genealogy, pp. 12 and 13; The Bierly Tannery Report, held by the Frederick, Maryland, library, is a report on the tannery business in and about Frederick, Maryland, in the mid 1700s. 5. Will of John Fox.
6. Fox Genealogy, p. 12; Letter from Jacob Reel to Michael and Frederick Fox, dated at Sharpsburg, Aug. 9, 1812, from a copy obtained from Robert H. Fox of Cincinnati, Ohio. "The following letter received and forwarded from Lebanon, Warren County, Ohio, Sept. 8, 1812, addressed to Msrs. Fredric(k) & Michael Fox, Franklin Township, Warren Co. Ohio".
7. Curtis L. Older, The Braddock Expedition and Fox's Gap in Maryland (Westminster, Md.: Family Line Publications, 1995), p. 77-79.
8. Braddock Expedition and Fox's Gap in Maryland, Chapter Three, pp. 69-116.
9. Braddock Expedition and Fox's Gap in Maryland, p. 87.
10. Braddock Expedition and Fox's Gap in Maryland, Afterword, pp. 177-182.
11. Curtis L. Older, The Land Tracts of the Battlefield of South Mountain (Westminster, Md.: Willow Bend Books, 1999), 206; Braddock Expedition and Fox's Gap in Maryland, p. 99.
12. Braddock Expedition and Fox's Gap in Maryland, p. 70.
13. FCLR, WR-19-206, Mortgage from Christian Benner to Frederick Fox, recorded April 11, 1799, Shaaffs Purchase and Mount Sinai. "Between Christian Benner Sen. of Frederick County farmer of the one part; and Frederick Fox of the same county farmer of the other part."; Lemoine Cree, A Brief History of the South Mountain House (Boonsboro, Md.: Dodson, 1963); Ohio D.A.R. Soldiers Rosters, 2 Vols., 1:146; Fox Genealogy, pp. 13-14.
14. Ohio D.A.R. Soldiers Rosters, 2 vols., 1:146; Fox Genealogy, p. 12.
15. Fox Genealogy, p. 12; will of Bartholomew Booker, Frederick County, Maryland, Register of Wills Records, GM-2-431; will of Margaret Book (Booker) Frederick County, Maryland, Register of Wills Records GM-3-126.
16. Fox Genealogy, p. 12.
17. Fox Genealogy, p. 13.
18. Braddock Expedition and Fox's Gap in Maryland, p. 98; Land Tracts of the Battlefield of South Mountain, p. 211.
19. Maryland Militia in the Revolutionary War (Silver Spring, Md.: Family Line Publications, 1987), 241; Maryland Historical Society Records for Washington County, Militia Lists of Daughters of Founders and Patriots.
20. Washington County, Maryland, Patriot's Oath, March Court, 1778. Sharpsburgh Hundred, March 2, 1778, Christopher Cruss's Returns.
21. National Archives, card numbers 37404176, 4837, 37188278, and 39144421; National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution. 17th Report, Pierce's Register, #67913. Also see Pennsylvania Archives, Series 5, 3:487, 529, 533, and 572.
22. Ibid; Braddock Expedition and Fox's Gap in Maryland, p. 212.
23. Fox Genealogy, p. 18.
24. Frederick S. Weiser, ed., Zion Lutheran Church 1781-1826, Maryland German Church Records, Vol. 2, (Manchester, Md.: Noodle-Doosey Press, 1987), 4.
25. Will of Frederick Fox, Will Book C, case #1444, Montgomery County, Ohio; Fox Genealogy, p. 18.
26. Frederick S. Weiser, ed., Maryland German Church Records Vol. 2, Zion Lutheran Church 1781-1826 (Manchester, Md.: Noodle-Doosey Press, 1987), 77. The Death Register of Zion Lutheran Church indicates "Catarin, wife of Friedrich Fuchs, bur. 4 Nov. 1800. Heb. 4:9."; Fox Genealogy, p. 12.
27. Fox Genealogy, p. 15; tombstone of Susannah Fox, Gebhart Cemetery, Miamisburg, Ohio.
28. Fox Genealogy, pp. 15-16.
29. Tombstone of Frederick Fox, Gebhart or St. John Cemetery, Miamisburg, Ohio; Fox Genealogy, pp. 17-18.
30. 1790 Maryland Federal census, Fredrick County, unknown township, image 0491, roll M637_3, page 66.
31. 1800 Maryland Federal census, Frederick County, township District No. 3, image 124, roll M32_10, page 123.
32. 1809 Ohio state census, Warren County, Franklin township, page 13.
33. 1810 Ohio Federal census, Warren County, Franklin township, page 28.
34. 1830 Ohio Federal census., Warren County, Clear Creek township, image 340, roll M19_142, page 173.
35. Fox Genealogy, various pages; will of Frederick Fox, Will Book C, case #1444, Montgomery County, Ohio.
APPENDIX ONE
will of Frederick Fox
Montgomery County, Ohio, Will Book C, case #1444
In the name of God, Amen, I Frederick Fox of the County of Montgomery and State of Ohio, being far advanced in years but of sound mind and memory considering the certainty of death and the uncertainty of this mortal life, and as it hath pleased God to bless me with some worldly estate, and to be better prepared to leave this world, whenever it may please God to call me hence, do make and publish this to be my last will and testament, in manner following that is to say:
First, I give and devise unto my son Joseph Fox the use and occupancy of the south west quarter of Section No. twenty two, of Township two in Range five, of the land between the Miami rivers, to my said son Joseph Fox, to have and to hold the aforesaid quarter section, except twenty five acres including a certain lease given to Mathias Wolff for payment of the said twenty five acres, to my said son Joseph to have and to hold the aforesaid quarter section except as aforesaid excepted to him and his wife Elizabeth now living during the life of my said son Joseph and his said wife Elizabeth provided that my said son is not to commit any waste by selling or destroying any timber on the aforesaid premises more than for the use & benefit of said premises on forfeiture of the aforesaid devise.
2nd I give and devise unto my grand son Frederick Fox and son of the aforesaid Joseph Fox twenty five acres of land, to be laid off by said Executors herein after named to my (?) in said twenty five acres the lease given Mathias Wolff in the greater section aforesaid to him my said grand son Frederick Fox and heirs and assigns to have and to hold the aforesaid 25 acres for ever
3rd After the death of my said son Joseph Fox and his wife Elizabeth, I give and devise the aforesaid quarter section except as above excepted to my grand children one son and seven daughters share and share equal alike all children of my son Joseph Fox.
4. It is my will and wish that after my death that my executor herein after named will make sale of the north west quarter of section fifteen of Township Two in Range five of the lands between the Miami Rivers, wherein I formerly lived and also to make sale of my house and lot in the town of Franklin in Warren County to the best advantage and the monies arising from the sale of the said premises to be equally divided between my lawful heirs share and share alike that is to say my son George and Daniel B. Fox and my four daughters to wit: Christena Metherd, Meahany Benner, Rosannah Hogee living in Virginia near Shanodore River, and my daughter Elizabeth Lighterd and to my son Joseph Fox an equal share with all the rest of my aforesaid children to be paid to my son Joseph by my Executor herein named as he thinks the said Joseph stands in need of money at any time or times-
5. I give and bequeath to my daughter Rosannah Hoge's four children that she had by her first husband that is to say one son and three daughters receive of my estate to the amount of the balance of my daughter Rosannah legacy ??? the amount of my daughter Rosannah shall be equal with all ??? ?? ?? as aforesaid-
And lastly I do hereby nominate & appoint my son Daniel B. Fox to this my last will and testament ??? Sole and Sole Executor revoking and ?? Annulling all former wills by me heretofore made allowing this and none other to be my last will and testament. In Witness whereof I the said Frederick Fox have hereunto set my hand and seal this tenth day of December in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and thirty three
Frederick Fox (Seal)
Signed, sealed and declared by the testator Frederick Fox to this will to be his last will and testament who called on us who have subscribed our names to witness the same,
John Liter
Frederick Liter
James Russell
The State of Ohio
Montgomery County (?) Court of Common pleas, March Term 1837.
Personally appeared in open Court John Liter, and Frederick Liter, who being duly sworn depose and say that the paper now before them purporting to be the last will and testament of Frederick Fox now deceased, was by the said Frederick Fox acknowledged, published and declared by him to be his last will and testament in the presence of these deponents, that the said deceased was of lawful age, that he was of sound and disposing mind and memory, and under no restraint as they verily believe that they subscribed the same as witnesses in the presence and at the request of the testator and in the presence of each other,
John Liter
Frederick Liter
Sworn and subscribed this 20 day of March 1837 in Open Circuit
Edward (?) Daniel Clerk
The State of Ohio Montgomery Circuit Ct.
APPENDIX TWO
Frederick Fox Land Records in Frederick County, Maryland
Reference No. Date From Other Party Name of Tract
or To
WR-7-213 Apr 4, 1787 From Bartholomew Booker I Hope It's Well Done
WR-10-643 May 2, 1792 From Christian Kiser Pick All
WR-12-367 Apr 23, 1794 To Peter Hutzele Fredericksburg
WR-13-488 Aug 21, 1795 From William Widmeyer I Hope It's Well Done
WR-17-158 Jul 24, 1798 To George Methard Fredericksburg
WR-18-206 Apr 11, 1799 From Christian Benner Shaaf's Purchase, Mt. Sinai
WR-22-477 Apr 17, 1802 To Christian Benner Shaaf's Purchase, Mt. Sinai
WR-23-286 Aug 9, 1802 From Joseph Chapline Exchange
WR-25-556 May 5, 1804 To Conrad Miller I Hope It's Well Done
WR-31-319 Aug 1, 1807 From George Fox Mt. Pleasant
WR-32-26 Oct 7, 1807 To Joseph Sweringen Fredericksburg
WR-32-28 Oct 7, 1807 To John Ringer I Hope It's Well Done,
Pegging Awl, Turkey
Foot, Mt. Pleasant
WR-32-63 Oct 14, 1807 To Henry Ascherman I Hope It's Well Done,
Shettle, Exchange,
Pegging Awl, Turkey Foot, Peter's Neglect,
Mt. Pleasant
Slave:
WR-25-424 Mar 3, 1804 From Abraham Boyer Negro Woman Eleana
Frederick Fox Land Records in the Tracey Collection,
Westminster, Maryland
Acreage Date Name of Tract
231 1/2 Ac June 8, 1795 Friendship (unpatented certificate #228)
202 Acres May 9, 1797 Addition to Friendship
Frederick Fox Land Records in Washington County, Maryland
Reference No. Date From Other Party Name of Tract
or To
A-368-370 Nov 27, 1778 From Jacob Soufrank 1/2 Lot #4, Sharpsburg
A-536-537 Apr 29, 1779 To Philip Waggoner Lot #55, Sharpsburg
C-510 1783 To Adam Deats 1/2 Lot #4, Sharpsburg
D-579 1783 From Jacob Nafe Lot #5, Sharpsburg
G-441 1791 To Jacob House Lot #15, Sharpsburg
G-442 1791 To Jacob House Lot #6, Sharpsburg
G-443 1791 To Jacob House Lot #17, Sharpsburg
G-444 1791 To Jacob House Lot #123, Sharpsburg
G-445 1791 To Jacob House Lot #5, Sharpsburg
H-601 1794 From Peter Conn Lot #175, Sharpsburg
I-330 1795 From William Widmyer Bill of Sale
L-128 1798 To Henry Shrader Lot #177, JerusalemTown
W-285 1810 To Peter Ham (Out?) Lot #1, Sharpsburg
Frederick County, Maryland, Survey Records
Tract Name Acreage Ref. No. Date Survey Done For
Fredericksburg 75 Acres HGO-1-564 Jul 6, 1792 Frederick Fox
Mt. Pleasant 23 Acres HGO-1-534 Jan 10, 1791 Thomas Van Swearing
Peter's Neglect 37 Acres THO-1-75 May 1, 1796 Adam Rowsann
Turkey Foot 6 Acres HGO-1-267 Mar 13, 1788 Henry Cullman
APPENDIX THREE
Original Source Material Related to Frederick Fox
1. Will of Frederick Fox - Will Book C, case #1444, Montgomery County, Ohio, December 10, 1833.
2. Catharine, the wife of Frederick Fox, was buried November 4, 1800. Frederick S. Weiser, ed., Maryland German Church Records Vol. 2, Zion Lutheran Church 1781-1826 (Manchester, Md.: Noodle-Doosey Press, 1987), 77. The Death Register of Zion Lutheran Church indicates "Catarin, wife of Friedrich Fuchs, bur. 4 Nov. 1800. Heb. 4:9."
3. 1790 Maryland federal census, Frederick County, Unknown Township, Page 66, Roll M637_3, Image 0491. Frederick Fox appears in the first census of the United States in 1790.
4. 1800 Maryland federal census, Frederick County, District No. 3, Page 123, Roll M32_10, Image 124. Frederick Fox is in the Maryland census for the last time.
5. 1809 Ohio state census, Warren County, Franklin Township, page 13.
6. 1810 Ohio federal census, Warren County, Franklin Township, page 28.
7. 1830 Ohio federal census, Warren County, Clear Creek township, Page 173, Roll M19_142, Image 340.
8. Tombstone of Frederick Fox at the Gebhart or St. John Cemetery, Miamisburg, Ohio.
9. Frederick Fox was an Elder in the Zion Lutheran Church, Middletown, Maryland. Weiser, Frederick S., Zion Lutheran Church 1781-1826, Maryland German Church Records 2:4.
10. Frederick Fox and Margaret Booker were the executors of the estate of Bartholomew Booker. See the will of Bartholomew Booker, Frederick County, Maryland, Register of Wills Records, GM-2-431, October 21, 1791.
12. Frederick Fox was a farmer. See Frederick County Land Records, WR-19-206, mortgage from Christian Benner to Frederick Fox, recorded April 11, 1799, Shaff's Purchase and Mount Sinai.
12. Frederick Fox signed the Patriot's Oath of Fidelity and support. See NGSQ Volume 6, #1, April 1917, Unpublished Revolutionary Records of Maryland, page 13, Patriot's Oaths of Fidelity and Support, 1778, Sharpsburgh Hundred. Washington County, MD, Patriot's Oath, March Court, 1778, Sharpsburgh Hundred, March 2, 1778, Christopher Cruss's Returns.
13. Frederick Fox served for a period in the Maryland Militia. See S. Eugene Clements and F. Edward Wright, The Maryland Militia in the Revolutionary War (Silver Spring, Md.: Family Line Publications, 1987), 241. Maryland Historical Society Records for Washington County, Militia Lists of Daughters of Founders and Patriots.
14. Daughters Mary and Elizabeth Fox are mentioned in the will of Margaret Booker. See Frederick County, MD, Register of Wills Records, GM-3-126, will of Margaret Book (Booker).
15. Frederick Fox served as a drummer in the Lieutenant Colonel's Company of the 10th Regiment, Pennsylvania Continental Line, American Revolution, from April 22, 1777, until January 1, 1781. National Archives, card numbers 37404176, 4837, 37188278, and 39144421; National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution. 17th Report, Pierce's Register, #67913. Also see Pennsylvania Archives, Series 5, 3:487, 529, 533, and 572.
16. Maryland newspaper items related to Frederick Fox in Maryland. See Edward Wright, Western Maryland Newspaper Abstracts 1786-1798 (Silver Spring, Md.: Family Line Publications, 1985), 1:14.
Item 101. FTM Aug 28 1792/Margaret Booker, Frederick Fox, exec, to sell farm, late the prop of Bartholomew Booker, decd, 304 a., on road from Fred Town to Williams Port, and Hager's Town, about 3 miles above Middletown/
Item 466. EAM Aug 31 1797/Frederick Fox to petition the Assembly to confirm his title to 2 lots in Village of Boonsberry, formerly deeded by William and George Boone to Michael Booch.
Item 485. EAM Jan 11 1798/Letters remaining at P.O. Hagerstown: Frederick Fox
17. Ohio Wills and Estates to 1850: An Index, by Carol Willsey Bell, published by Carol Willsey Bell, C.G., 4801 Mockingbird Court, South, Columbus, Ohio 43229.
Fox, Frederick - W-1837 MT wbC p46; c1444 (MT = Montgomery)
Fox, Frederick - W-1849 WR wbB p301 (WR = Warren)
18. Book B, page 38. Deed dated 1811. Jacob Long to Frederick Fox. Sec 18, T 2, R 5S. Signed Jacob Long. Witness: W. C. Schenck, #2 ? (german script) rec 1812. p 465.
19. Common Pleas (Probate) Docket Book C-1, Term of August 1816. Case 239. Will of Benjamin Richards. Exec: Massy Richards & Benjamin Richards. Witness: Charles Hardy, Frederick Fox. Appr: Nicholas Horner, James Petticrew, William Brown, p. 98.
20. An Index of Wills and Administrations In Montgomery County, Ohio, Book I, 1803-1893, Transcribed by Lindsay M. Brien from the Probate Records of Montgomery County, Volume I, Chronological Index, Miami Valley Records, Vol. 2, Pt. 1, Typed by W. P. A. Workers, Dayton, O., Dayton Public Library, 1940 [0 00 60 3716119 4].
Doc AI Page 7 Fox Frederick Will Book Cl Page 46, Jan. 10, 1837 to Sept. 10, 1851.
21. Marriage Record - See Ohio D.A.R. Soldiers Rosters, 2 vol., 1:146.
22. Early Settlers of Montgomery County, Ohio, Genealogical Abstracts from Land Records, Tax Lists, and Biographical Sketches, Compiled and Edited by Shirley Keller Mikesell, Heritage Books, Inc.
23. Common Pleas (Probate) Docket Book C-1. Term of August 1816. Case 239. Will of Benjamin Richards. Exec: Massy Richards & Benjamin Richards. Witness: Charles Hardy, Frederick Fox. Appr: Nicholas Horner, James Petticrew, William Brown. p. 98.
Derivative Source Material Related to Frederick Fox
1. Early Settlers of Montgomery County, Ohio, Genealogical Abstracts from Land Records, Tax Lists, and Biographical Sketches, Compiled and Edited by Shirley Keller Mikesell, Heritage Books, Inc.
2. Daniel Gebhart Fox, The Fox Genealogy including the Metherd, Benner and Leiter Descendants. (n.p., 1914).
3. Older, Curtis L., The Braddock Expedition and Fox's Gap in Maryland. Westminster, Md: Family Line Publications, 1995.
4. Older, Curtis L., The Land Tracts of the Battlefield of South Mountain, Westminster, Md: Willow Bend Books, 1999.
5. Fredrick Fox was born on the ocean while his parents were immigrating to America. History of Vermillion County, Indiana, Biographical Sketches: page 491 indicates, under the biography of John L. Fox, a grandson of Frederick Fox, "The father of our subject was a native of Maryland, and a son of Frederick Fox, who was born on the ocean while his parents were immigrating to America." This statement supports the record of John Frederick Fox who came to the Port of Philadelphia in 1751 as being the John Fox who was the father of Frederick Fox.
APPENDIX FOUR
Rosina (Rose or Rosannah) Fox, a daughter of Frederick Fox
Rosina (Rose or Rosannah) Fox was the only child of Frederick Fox who did not move from Maryland to western Ohio in late 1807 with the other members of the Fox family. Her descendants are not published in The Fox Genealogy by Daniel Gebhart Fox.
The History of the Descendants of John Hottel, Immigrant from Switzerland to America, begun by Reverend W. D. Huddle, B. S., and completed by his wife, Lulu May Huddle, Westerville, Ohio. Published by Shenandoah Publishing House Inc., Strasburg, Virginia, in 1930.
The top of pages 726 and 727 in the heading of the book is entitled, History of the Descendants of John Hottel:
3x-h Daniel Hottel, son of George, b. near Mt. Olive, Va., in the seventeen hundred and fifties, and m. twice and probably three times; first, Sept. 16, 1783, Eva Hiser, daug. of Henry. Second, m. May 20, 1804, Rosina Fox, dau. of Frederick, of O., formerly of Maryland, and widow of Christian Wolgemuth, who was a flour miller by vocation and resided at Toms Brook, Va. Rosina d. in 1841. Daniel inherited from his father 220 acres in Hampshire Co., but the tract upon which he spent his life he bought of his brother Henry. It lay on the Shenandoah River near the mouth of Pughs Run, three miles northeast of Woodstock, the seat of Shenandoah county.
second m.:
2409x-e Christina Hottel, b. May 27, 1805
2409x-f Sarah Hottel, b. Feb. 6, 1807
2409x-g Lydia Hottel, b. 1809
William Ernest Fox also provides the following from Shenandoah County, Virginia, Marriage Bonds 1750-1850, the LDS Family History Center, and from Daniel G. Fox, The Fox Genealogy.
Rosina was born 9 Sept 1775 in Maryland and died in 1841. She was a daughter of Frederick Fox and Catherine Booker of Fox's Gap in Maryland. She married Christian Wolgemuth before 1804. Christian and Rosina (Fox) Wolgemuth were the parents of: (MBD- Marriage Bond Date)
1. Jacob Wolgemuth MBD 1. 18 Oct 1818, to Mary C. Coffman; 2. 31 July 1832, MBD Mary Shaver
2. Elizabeth Wolgemuth 30 May 1793, 14 July 1853, Va, MBD 6 Jun 1815, Shenandoah Co Va to Jonathan Zirkle
3. Catherine Wolgemuth, 1798, MBD 22 Apr 1814, Shenandoah Co Va to Samuel Gochenour
Rosina (or Rosannah) Fox, a widow of Christian Wolgemuth, next married Daniel Hottel (Huddle). Daniel Hottel was born in 1756 at Mt. Olive, Shenandoah Co Va. Daniel Hottel died 1811-1814 in Shenandoah Co Va. They married 20 May 1804, (MBD) 19 May 1804. The first wife of Daniel Hottel was Eve Hiser. Daniel's father was George Hottel and his mother was Elizabeth. Daniel and Rosina (Fox) Hottel were the parents of:
1. Christina Hottel 27 May 1805, Woodstock, Shenandoah, Va., 21 Dec 1883, MBD 11 Apr 1823, Shenandoah Co., Va., to Jacob Haun
2. Sarah Hottel 6 Feb 1807, Woodstock, Shenandoah, Va., 23 Nov 1875, 20 MBD 1824, to William Spigle (Speigle)
3. Lydia Hottel 6 Aug 1809, Woodstock, Shenandoah, Va., 7 Mar 1885, MBD 17 Jan 1826, Shenandoah Co., Va., to Joseph Borden
APPENDIX FIVE
Letter from Jacob Reel of Sharpsburg
to Frederick and Michael Fox of Ohio
A copy of the following letter from Jacob Reel of Sharpsburg to Michael and Frederick Fox about the death of their mother Christiana was obtained from Robert H. Fox of Cincinnati, Ohio:
Received and forwarded from Lebanon. Warren Co. Ohio Sept. 8, 1812. Addressed to Msrs. Fredric & Michael Fox, Franklin Township Warren Co. Ohio.
Sharpsburg Aug 9 1812.
Dear. Brothers and Sisters by these few lines we let you know that we are in considerable good stte of health at the present time. Thanks be to God for all his blessings. But we inform you that our aged Mother departed this life the 6th of Aug after a sickness of four weeks and was decently burried on the 7th and hope she is now at her rest. We had a physician who attended her regular. She did not complain of very severe pains in the time of her sickness. We suppose on account of her much sleeping. Mr. Widmeyer and wife were down to see her in time of her sickness and gave advice in some cases it seemed to give her some relief but according to the decree of God "dust thou art to dust return" stands good against all of the human family to which period we all hasten as fast as the wheels of time can carry us and may it please the Great Author our being to grant and give us all that true wisdom from above that we may consider our in most soul to meet the great Redeemer of Mankind who is the great Judge of quick and dead therefore let us all seriously and with good earnest consider the great importence of these things to our souls salvation. So we conclude by remembering our love and esteem for you all Yours Truly. Jacob Reel.
Jacob Reel died in 1844 in Sharpsburg. His Will is found in ?, pages 547-552, in Washington County Records. He mentions Christiana Fox twice in his Will, both times in reference to the 1/2 of Lot #6 in Sharpsburg which he purchased from her. He gives his wife's name in the Will as Elizabeth. On an 1877 Map of Sharpsburg, 1/2 of Lot #6 was owned by a D. Reel. Although this property was left by Jacob Reel to his daughter, ? ? , it could have come into the hands of one of his sons, David Reel.
"Item. To my daughter Nancy Michael, Wife of Adam Michael, I give and devise the half lot and premises in the town of Sharpsburg Washington County Maryland adjoining Crise and Beard and which was purchased of Christina Fox etc."
"To my beloved Wife Elizabeth I give, bequeath and devise for and during her natural life the following property viz. half a lot of ground in the town of Sharpsburg Washington County Maryland adjoining Crise and Beard which was purchased of Christian Fox, also the house and lot on which I now live situate in the said town of Sharpsburg and which I purchased from Jacob Houser etc."
The tombstones of Frederick Fox and his second wife, Susannah, are in the Gebhart Church Yard Cemetery in Miamisburg, Ohio. Also in the Gebhart Church Yard Cemetery are tombstones for George Fox, Daniel Booker Fox, Elizabeth Fox Liter, Christena Fox Mettert, Mary Magdalene Fox Benner, and their spouses. Several of these tombstones indicate the individual was born in Frederick County, Maryland. There can be no doubt the Fox family that lived at Fox's Gap in Maryland was the same one that moved to the Miamisburg, Ohio, area in late 1807.
APPENDIX SIX
The Road from Swearingen's Ferry to Fox's Gap
A map of The Road from Swearingen’s Ferry on the Potomac River through Sharpsburgh to the Top of the South Mountain at Fox’s Gap was recorded on August 23, 1792, and is in the Maryland State Archives at Annapolis, Maryland.
Maryland State Archives, Special Collections (MSA Map Collection) 507 "Road from Swearingen's Ferry on the Potomac River through Sharpsburg to the top of the South Mountain at Fox's Gap." August 23, 1792. [MSA G1427-507, B5-1-3]
The old road shown by plain lines and is the distance of 11 1/4 miles - 56 perches
The alternations made by the commissioners is shown by dotted lines, and the road by them laid out is represented by lines numbered from 1 to 41 Difference 71 perches.
Note: The courses and boundaries above mentioned are to be taken for the middle of the road.
Washington County Sect.
By virtue of dower invested in an act of the assembly for the purpose we hereby certify that we laid out the road from Swearingen's Ferry on Potomac River through Sharpsburg to the top of the South Mountain in Fox's Gap agreeable to the courses and distances above expressed = As witness our hands and seals this 13th day of August 1792.
William Good (seal)
Jacob (seal)
Christopher (seal)
Beginning at the bank of the Potomac River at the said Ferry and running:
Crse North Degrees Length
No. South East or West
1 N 80 East 12 perches opposite the ferry house
2 S 49 East 56 ps to a post
3 S 62 East 62 ps to a post
4 N 44 East 43 ps to a marked poplar
5 N 62 East 264 ps to a marked white oak sapling
6 N 41 1/2 East 360 ps to a bounded white oak tree
7 N 69 1/2 East 320 ps to the square in Sharpsburg - still continuing the course
8 N 69 1/2 East 110 ps to a post
9 N 60 East 64 ps to a marked locust sapling
10 N 69 1/2 East 112 ps to a marked hickory sapling
11 S 76 East 20 ps to a marked white oak tree
12 N 65 East 84 ps to a marked apple tree
13 N 85 East 16 ps
14 S 54 East 14 ps to Orendorff's Bridge
15 S 77 East 8 ps
16 N 19 East 23 ps
17 N 3 West 26 ps to a bounded black oak
18 N 73 East 40 ps to a post
19 S 85 East 76 ps to a bounded Spanish oak
20 S 88 East 68 ps to a post
21 N 58 East 260 ps to a bounded black oak sapling
22 N 16 East 74 ps to a post
23 N 35 East 54 ps to a marked red oak & locust sapling
24 S 73 East 72 ps to a post
25 N 83 1/2 East 120 ps to a walnut tree at Conrad Snavely's house
26 S 89 1/2 East 161 ps to a bounded black oak sapling
27 S 66 1/2 East 170 ps to a post near a marked black oak sapling
28 S 74 East 71 ps to a post
29 S 85 East 84 ps to a post
30 N 69 East 62 ps to a post
31 E - - - - - - - 324 perches to intersect the old road near top of Domer's Hill
32 S 69 1/2 East 30 ps along the old road
33 N 83 East 20 ps
34 S 86 1/2 East 54 ps
35 S 28 East 20 ps
36 S 84 East 50 ps
37 N 77 East 22 ps
38 N 5 1/2 East 44 ps
39 [estimate - not given on the map - South 81 East 40-45 ps]
40 S 44 East 70 ps
41 N 60 East 41 perches to a stone set up in the road on the top of the mountain at the county line.
Two drawings of the road appear on this map, representing two measurement scales. The uppermost drawing is shown with the following indication: Scale 100P. The lower drawing is shown with the following indication: Scale 1/62,500 topographical map size.
The map identifies the following points along the road: Swearingen's Ferry on the Potomac River (starting point); the square in Sharpsburg (end of line 7); Orendorff's Bridge over the Antietam (end of line 15); Smith's shop (end of line 20); Jacob Russell (end of line 21); top of Red Hill (end of line 23); Conrad Snavely (end of line 25); Samuel Baker's (end of line 26); old road near top of Tomer's (or Domer's) Hill (line 31); Andrew Bash (end of line 36); top of the South Mountain at Fox's Gap (end of line 41)
[Note: There is no course number 39 indicated on this map. The author believes this missing line in the written description of the road should be South, about 81 Degrees East, about 40 to 45 perches.]
APPENDIX SEVEN
Occupations of Residents along the Old Sharpsburg Road in the 1700s
by Curtis Lynn Older
Land tract records provide valuable information about the owners of property along the Old Sharpsburg Road in the 1700s. A review of these records provides us with the occupations of numerous residents along or near the road. Although most of the individuals living along the road in the 1700s probably made their living as farmers, many also worked, at least part time, in various skilled trades.
The various crafts practiced along the Old Sharpsburg Road imply there were enough travelers on the road to support these trades. The route must have been an important thoroughfare. The economy along the road was vibrant. The following review identifies the land tracts along or near the Old Sharpsburg Road from Shepherdstown, Virginia, to Middletown, Maryland, that give the occupation of the tract owner. The discussion attempts to use the chronological date, in the opinion of the author, that someone first occupied the various properties.
James Smith patented Smith’s Hills for 208 acres on 17 April 1745 [MdHR 17,396, 1-23-2-30, PT 1, pp. 261-263] [MdHR = Maryland Hall of Records in Annapolis]. The tract had its “beginning at a bounded white oak standing on the side of a hill within a quarter of a mile of the Waggon road that crosses Anteatom”. The Smith’s Hills tract was not far from the Burnside Bridge on the south side of the Battlefield of Antietam. The patent states “. . . the certificate of survey aforesaid and the land & premises therein mentioned unto a certain James Smith of Prince Georges County planter . . .” Today the tract is in Washington County. Washington County was part of Frederick County until 1776. Frederick County was part of Prince Georges County until 1749.
A tract named Shettle was in the area of the present town of Bolivar, about one mile northeast of Fox’s Gap. Daniel Dulany Esquire patented the tract on 9 September 1742 for 50 acres [MdHR 17,408, 1-23-3-1, Y & S, p. 105]. “. . . that I Daniel Dulany within named in consideration of thirty one pounds fifteen shillings and six pence current money secured to be paid to me by Robert Marks of Frederick County Shomaker have assigned and transferrd and hereby assigns set over and transfer unto him the said Robert Marks the land within mentioned . . .” Robert Marks probably was one of the earliest settlers within a mile or so of what became Fox’s Gap. Traffic along the route of the Old Sharpsburg Road apparently justified the presence of a shoemaker by about 1742.
One of the most significant early deeds identifies Richard Smith as an Innholder. Christios (Christies) Folly was northeast of the Fox Inn. Court records identify Richard Smith as living on the Great Road to Conococheague. See the Newsletter of December 1, 1996, page 13, for a discussion of the Great Road to Conococheague. “. . . between Richd Smith of Frederick County in the Province of Maryland Innholder of the one part & Peter Beaver of the same county & province aforesaid of the other part . . . for and in consideration of the sum of forty six pounds current money . . . “ [FCLR, E-753, Part of Christios Folly, Richard Smith to Peter Beaver, recorded 19 June 1755] [FCLR = Frederick County Land Records at Frederick, Maryland]. The year 1755 is the earliest point in time at which we can identify an innkeeper along the Old Sharpsburg Road between Shepherdstown and Middletown. Perhaps the presence of an inn was the best indicator of numerous travelers along the road.
Many craftsmen owned tracts along the Old Sharpsburg Road by 1770. Another important tract owner was Casper Shaaf, a merchant. Casper acquired The Exchange tract on which the Fox Inn stands. Casper made a resurvey on The Exchange tract. “. . . between Casper Shaaf of Frederick County and Province of Maryland Merchant of the one part and Conrad Young of said County and Province farmer of the other part witnesseth that the said Casper Shaaf for and in consideration of the sum of forty pounds current money of Maryland . . .” [FCLR, E-1026, Resurvey on Exchange, Casper Schaff to Conrad Young, 125 acres, recorded 18 March 1756].
Grim’s Fancy was one half mile west of Fox’s Gap and along the Old Sharpsburg Road. The record for this tract is important in the history of Fox’s Gap. It identifies John Fox’s house and the Road from Swearingen’s Ferry to Frederick Town [FCLR, S-389, Grim’s Fancy, Philip Booker from George Common, recorded 28 June 1773]. “. . . between Philip Booker of Fredk County and province of Maryland Farmer of the one part and Geo. Common of said County and province Black Smith of the other part . . .”
John Fox settled at Fox’s Gap by no later than 1760. No land records for him exist, except for tracts in Sharpsburg. Perhaps John Fox was a squatter and never owned land at Fox’s Gap. The will of John Fox indicates he owned skin dressing tools [Will of John Fox, Book A, Liber 102, Washington County, Maryland, 17 January 1784]. Daniel Gebhart Fox, in The Fox Genealogy, describes John Fox as a tanner by trade. The house of John Fox must have been near the site of the Reno Monument at Fox’s Gap. The parcel of land on which the Reno Monument stands was part of a tract named Addition to Friendship that was patented by Frederick Fox.
The Birely Tannery Report may be of interest to those who seek additional information about the tannery craft of John Fox [Archaeological Data Recovery at the Birely Tannery (18FR575) City of Frederick, Maryland, prepared by M.A.A.R. Associates, Inc. of Newark, Delaware, 1991]. The Birely Tannery began operation in Frederick, Maryland, in the 1760s and remained in business until the 1920s! I was fortunate to learn of the report when I met Mr. Domenic A. Saguto, Master Shoemaker, at Williamsburg, Virginia. Mr. Saguto assisted in the preparation of the report, a copy of which I was able to purchase from the publisher.
A tract named Boble (Bubble) was just south of the Fox Inn and the Exchange tract acquired by Casper Shaaf. A transfer in 1761 between Casper Shaaf and Michael Jesserang identifies Jesserang as an Innholder [FCLR, G-17, Boble (Bubble), Michael Jesserang to Casper Schaaf, recorded 4 June 1761]. “. . . made this fifth day of May in the year of our lord one thousand seven hundred and sixty one between Michael Jesserang of Frederick Town in Frederick County and province of Maryland Innholder of the one part and Casper Shaff of same place merchant of the other part . . . in consideration of the sum of fourteen pounds ten shillings current money of Maryland . . .”
A tract named the Resurvey on Chestnut Hill identified Matthias Ringer as a farmer and Casper Shaaf as a merchant [FCLR, K-758, Resurvey on Chestnut Hill, Matthias Ringer to Casper Shaaf, recorded 2 October 1766]. “. . . between Matthias Ringer of Frederick County and province of Maryland farmer of the one part and Casper Shaaff of the same place merchant of the other part witnesseth that the said Matthias Ringer for and in consideration of the sum of twenty pounds current money of Maryland . . .” The Resurvey on Chestnut Hill tract is about a mile south of the Fox Inn and along the road to Burkittsville and Crampton’s Gap.
The Resurvey on Whiskey Alley tract was north of Middletown and near the fork of the Old Hagerstown Road and the Old Sharpsburg Road at the Catoctin Creek [FCLR, L-588, Resurvey on Whiskey Alley, Philip Keywaughver to Nicholas Fink, recorded 28 November 1760]. “. . . between Philip Keywaughver of Frederick County and province of Maryland Farmer of the one part and Nicholas Finck of the county and province aforesaid Taylor of the other . . . for and in consideration of the sum of eighteen pounds current money . . . “
The Resurvey on Learning tract was south of the Fox Inn. A small portion of the tract came up near the old Sharpsburg Road east of the Fox Inn. Henry Lighter (Leiter) was a wheelwright. He purchased part of the Resurvey on Learning tract. A daughter of Frederick Fox married a son of Henry Lighter (Leiter) [FCLR, M-675, Resurvey on Learning, Henry Lighter to Peter Beaver, recorded 12 December 1769]. “. . . between Henry Lighter of Hamshire County in the Province of Virginia wheelwright of the one part and Peter Beaver of the same county and province aforesaid farmer of the other part . . .”
The Goose Cap tract was at the fork of the old Hagerstown and old Sharpsburg Roads at the Catoctin Creek, about one mile north of Middletown [FCLR, O-540, Goose Cap, Nicholas Fink to Thomas Welch, recorded 2 September 1771] “. . . between Nichs Fink of Frederick County in the province of Maryland Taylor of the one part & Ths Welch of same county & province aforesaid Surveyor of the other part . . . for and in consideration of the sum of ninety nine pounds current & lawful money of Maryland . . .”
Shaaff’s Purchase was immediately west of the Fox Inn tract [FCLR, O-112, Shaaff's Purchase, Casper Shaaf to Peter Ruble, recorded 26 March 1771] “. . . between Casper Shaaf of Frederick Town in Frederick County and province of Maryland of the one part and Peter Ruble of Frederick County and province aforesaid Clocksmith of the other part witnesseth . . .”
The Bray-face tract was northeast of the Fox Inn [FCLR, WR-4-531, Bray-face, recorded 25 May 1784]. “. . . between Peter Beaver of Frederick County and State of Maryland Farmer of the one part: and Christian Kyser of the same county and state aforesaid Miller of the other Part . . . All that tract or parcel of land called Bray-face, which being part of the Resurvey on Oxford. Beginning at the bounded tree of said Brayface, one of the original tracts, and runing thence . . .”
The review of the preceding land records indicates the people living along the Old Sharpsburg Road in the 1700s were industrious and free-market oriented. It seems evident why there were able to unite in a common cause to oppose the British by the mid 1770s.
APPENDIX EIGHT
Frederick Fox in Ohio
Early Settlers of Montgomery County, Ohio, Genealogical Abstracts from Land Records, Tax Lists, and Biographical Sketches, Compiled and Edited by Shirley Keller Mikesell, Heritage Books, Inc.
Book B, page 38. Deed dated 1811. Jacob Long to Frederick Fox. Sec 18, T 2, R 5S. Signed Jacob Long. Witness: W. C. Schenck, #2 ? (german script) rec 1812. p 465.
Common Pleas (Probate) Docket Book C-1
Term of August, 1816. Case 239. Will of Benjamin Richards. Exec: Massy Richards & Benjamin Richards. Witness: Charles Hardy, Frederick Fox. Appr: Nicholas Horner, James Petticrew, William Brown. p 98.
Ohio Wills and Estates to 1850: An Index, by Carol Willsey Bell, published by Carol Willsey Bell, C.G., 4801 Mockingbird Court, South, Columbus, Ohio 43229.
Fox, Frederick - W-1837 MT wbC p46; c1444 (MT = Montgomery)
Fox, Frederick - W-1849 WR wbB p301 (WR = Warren)
APPENDIX NINE
An Index of Wills and Administrations in Montgomery County, Ohio, Book I, 1803-1893,
Transcribed by Lindsay M. Brien from the Probate Records of Montgomery County, Volume I, Chronological Index, Miami Valley Records, Vol. 2, Pt. 1, Typed by W. P. A. Workers, Dayton, O., Dayton Public Library, 1940 [0 00 60 3716119 4]
Doc B1 Page 30 Benner Jacob Will Book E Page 110, Jan. 10, 1837 to Sept. 10, 1851
Doc B1 Page 141 Benner Jacob Sept. 10, 1851 to Mar. 5, 1861
Doc B1 Page 204 Benner Mary Sept. 10, 1851 to Mar. 5, 1861
Doc AI Page 7 Fox Frederick Will Book Cl Page 46, Jan. 10, 1837 to Sept. 10, 1851
Doc B1 Page 165 Mettard George Will Book E Page 309, Sept. 10, 1851 to March 5, 1861
Doc B1 Page 298 Metard George F. Sept. 10, 1851 to March 5, 1861