The Documented Genealogy of Curtis Lynn Older

98. Documentation for Samuel Kerr / Carr Senior
(06 August 1778 to 23 September 1823)
father of Nancy Kerr / Carr
(1809 to After 1838 and Before 31 May 1840)


Samuel Kerr / Carr Senior, Fourth Great-Grandfather of Curtis Lynn Older:

1) Samuel Kerr / Carr Senior, husband of Nancy Guin (or Gwyn), parents of Nancy Kerr / Carr
2) Nancy Kerr / Carr, wife of Thomas Gouty, parents of Elias B. Gouty
3) Elias B. Gouty, husband of Elizabeth Shute, parents of Joseph P Gouty
4) Joseph P Gouty, husband of Mary Luella Hartman, parents of Robert William Gouty
5) Robert William Gouty, husband of Ethel Belle Fox, parents of Mavis Lorene Gouty
6) Mavis Lorene Gouty, wife of Truxton James Older, parents of Curtis Lynn Older

Download Adobe Acrobat File - 98. Samuel Kerr Senior- (The file has the following text plus images.)

[Note: See Appendix A for a discussion of the dual spelling, i.e. Kerr / Carr, of the last name or surname of this family.]

[See the article by Curtis Lynn Older entitled, "John Kerr, Founder of Kerrstown and Soldier in the American Revolution", A Journal of Franklin County History, Volume XXVIII, 2016, published by the Franklin County Historical Society - Kittochtinny (Pennsylvania).]

See Documentation for Joseph Kerr/Carr, son of Samuel Kerr/Carr Senior

See Documentation for Samuel Kerr/Carr Junior, son of Samuel Kerr/Carr Senior

See Documentation for Nancy Kerr/Carr, daughter of Samuel Kerr/Carr Senior


Samuel Kerr was born in 1778 in Kerrstown (Chambersburg), Cumberland County, Pennsylvania.(1) He was the son of John Kerr and Mary Dougherty.(2) John and Mary were married 16 September 1765 in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania.(3) John Kerr was born in 1745 and died 2 October 1807 in Guilford Township, Franklin County, Pennsylvania.(4) Mary Dougherty was born in 1747 in Peters Township, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania and died in 1815 in Franklin County, Pennsylvania.(5) The family name is correctly spelled Kerr but is often found to be written as Carr, perhaps because the family pronounced the name using an “a” instead of an “e”.

The will of John Kerr, probated 21 October 1807 in Franklin County, Pennsylvania, bequeathed the following:(6)

Son______Joseph____400 pounds.
Daughter__Sarah____400 pounds
Daughter__Jean_____400 pounds
Son______James____1 Spanish minted dollar.
Son______John_____400 pounds
Son______Samuel___Interest only from 400 pounds
Daughter__Mary_____500 pounds for rest of her life

Samuel Kerr married Nancy Guin (perhaps Gwyn) in Pennsylvania in 1799 according to Virginia Shannon Fendrick in her book, Revolutionary Soldiers of Franklin County.(7) However, Fendrick refutes herself elsewhere in her book, indicating Samuel married a Nancy Quinn, daughter of a Patrick Quinn.(8)

Samuel's oldest brother, Joseph, became Ohio's fifth United States Senator and was a General of Ohio troops during the War of 1812.(SEE APPENDIX G) Two of Joseph's [Sr.] sons, Joseph Kerr [Jr.] and Nathaniel Massie Kerr, left Louisiana to join the Texas Revolution. Their horses became disabled and they were discharged from their Louisiana military unit. The brothers proceeded towards San Antonio de Bexar, but before they reached their destination Nathaniel died from unknown circumstances on 19 February 1836. Joseph continued on to San Antonio de Bexar and died in the Battle of the Alamo, 6 March 1836.(See APPENDIX H)

Samuel Kerr appears in the 1800 United States Federal Census, Guilford Township, Franklin County, Pennsylvania.(9) The 1800 census lists one male age 16-25, one female under 10, and one female age 16-25.

John Kerr, Jr. was a son of John Kerr of Kerrtown/Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, and a brother of Samuel.(10) John Kerr, Jr. wrote a letter to a grandson, Augustus Pomeroy Kerr, dated 20 January 1851 at Mt. Hope, Gallia Co., Ohio, in which he stated the following: "my second brother and his wife died about 26 years ago on Big Darby 10 miles west of Columbus [Ohio]. He left a large family of which I know nothing."(11)

The Samuel Kerr family departed Kerrtown/Chambersburg for the state of Ohio in the years of 1805 to 1807. A son of Samuel and Nancy Kerr, Orson, was born in 1805 in Pennsylvania.(12) By 1807, Samuel and his family had moved to Franklin County, Ohio, about 10 miles west of Columbus on the Big Darby. Samuel Kerr was listed as a Justice of the Peace in Franklin County, Ohio, in that year.(13) The Big Darby Creek is a river located in northwestern central Ohio, and an important tributary to the Lower Scioto River.(14)

We learn some very significant information about the family of Samuel Kerr from two books written on the history of Franklin County, Ohio. We learn that the Samuel Kerr family was very close with two other families who lived nearby, the Chenoweths and the Fosters. (William T. Martin, History of Franklin CO, OH (Columbus: Follett, Foster & Company, 1858):

Page 192: Chapter XVI, Pleasant Township. "This township was organized by its present name in 1807, though it then embraced four or five times its present area. It was reduced to its present limits by the formation of Jackson in 1815, and of Prairie in 1819. A settlement was commenced on Darby, near Georgesville, at an early age of the county. Amongst the settlers were, . . . Samuel Kerr . . . and others." Page 195: Samuel Kerr served one year as a Justice of the Peace, 1807.

History of Franklin & Pickaway Counties, Ohio, with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of the Prominent Men and Pioneers (Cleveland, Ohio: Williams Bros., 1880), beginning on page 433:

SETTLEMENT

"The first settlers in the south part of Pleasant township were two brothers, Thomas and Elijah Chenoweth,  natives of Maryland, who removed, with their families, from Pike county, Ohio, to this township, in the fall of 1799.

"Thomas Chenoweth married Cassandra Foster, and lived to enjoy the full fruition of his labors.  After his death, his widow and children removed westward.  None now live in the township.  The children were: John, Benjamin, Thomas, Joseph, Rachel, and Cassandra.  Elijah Chenoweth married Rachel Foster.  He died, Dec. 5, 1828; his wife died Apr. 17, 1825.  The children of this couple were as follows:  Joseph, who married Rachel Morgan, and, eventually, moved to Illinois, where he died; Elizabeth who married John Carr, also died in the west; . . . Joseph, who married Margaret Heath, was also a member of the State legislature; the greater portion of his life was passed in Pleasant township where he died (Mrs. Sarah Hays, who lives in Darby, Pickaway county, is a daughter of above); Cassandra, who married John Morgan, and lived many years in Pickaway county, eventually moved west, where she died; Rachel, who married Jesse Wood, also died in the west; Elijah, who married Nancy Chenoweth, now lives on the old homestead, and is the only one of the children now living in the township. To this gentleman, the writer wishes to express his gratitude for material aid in the collection of data for this history."

"Benjamin Foster and Samuel Kerr, with their families, settled in this vicinity soon after the Chenoweths. Of these, the writer could learn nothing."[note by Curtis L. Older: The family of Samuel Kerr could not be easily traced, in part, due to their surname being spelled both as Kerr and Carr, and also due to the fact they soon moved out of Franklin County, Ohio, after the death of Samuel in 1823.]

EARLY EVENTS

"The first white child born in Pleasant township was, without doubt, a daughter, to Elijah and Rachel Chenoweth.  The date of this important addition to the pioneer colony was Dec. 9, 1800.  The child was named Cassandra.  She became the wife of John Morgan, going to live in Darby township, Pickaway county.  Here her husband died.  She eventually married Joseph Morgan, and removed to the west, where she died.  Among the first marriages in the township was John Chenoweth to Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas and Mary Foster.  The date was soon after the present century began.  The first burials were on the Chenoweth farm, and not far from the present residence of Elijah Chenoweth.  The writer was unable to ascertain who was the first person buried here.  The first log houses were constructed by the brothers Chenoweth, in the fall of 1799.  The first frame house was doubtless built by Samuel Kerr, early in the settlement.  It stood on the farm owned at present by Elijah Chenoweth, jr."

SCHOOLS

"In the summer of 1811, one Thomas Miller taught a term of school in a little log cabin, standing on the farm owned by Samuel Kerr.  This was a small school, and was composed of the children of the Chenoweth, Kerr and Foster families.  This is believed to have been the first school in this portion of the township, though of this the writer has not positive knowledge.  Schools were taught in this cabin for several years."

We learn the following from two other sources. "The first frame house was built by Samuel Kerr."(15) "His brother, Samuel, was a thriving farmer on Big Darby Creek (near Columbus) and he became Joseph's agent sending corn-fed hogs, fine cattle, wheat and corn to Chillicothe."(16)

[Substantiation of the preceding information provided in the two history books about the Chenoweth and Foster families is included in APPENDICES C, D, E, and F]

No census records have been found for Samuel Kerr for the years 1810 or 1820 in Ohio. Nancy, Samuel's wife, preceded her husband in death. Samuel Kerr died 29 September 1823 at Harrisburg, Franklin County, Ohio, and was buried in the Chenoweth Cemetery.(17) He left eight minor children, all 18 years of age or younger.(18)

The 8 October 1823 estate papers of Samuel Kerr in Franklin County, Ohio, disclose the following: Administrators - Reuben Golliday, Lawrence Foster, and William Beatty. Guardianship 1824 – Benjamin Foster, Elijah Chenowith, and Samuel Dyer appointed guardians of
1) Orson Kerr, age 18 years
2) Nancy Kerr, age 14 years
3) Clarissa Kerr, age 11 years
4) Jackson Kerr, age 4 years
5) Robert Kerr, age 8 years
6) Joseph Kerr, age 16 years
7) Samuel Kerr, age 9 years
8) Elijah Kerr, age 6 years minor children of the deceased.

The information provided in the estate papers of Samuel Kerr enables us to conclusively identify and trace most of the children of Samuel and Nancy Kerr after Samuel's death in 1823. See information in APPENDICES C, D, E, and F.

Children of Samuel and Nancy Kerr:

1) (Probable) Mary Kerr, born 1800, in Franklin County, Pennsylvania. There is a strong possibility the first child born to Samuel and Nancy Kerr was a daughter named Mary. The will of Samuel's mother, Mary Dougherty Kerr, indicates there was a daughter of Samuel Kerr named Mary at the time she wrote her will on 30 December 1809. “Item. I will and devise to my granddaughter Mary Kerr, daughter of Samuel Kerr, the sum of twenty pounds.”(19)

If Mary was the first child of Samuel and Nancy Kerr, born in 1799 or 1800, she would have been 23 or 24 years old at the time of her father's death. It is very likely she would have married by that age.(20) The estate papers of Samuel Kerr in Franklin County, Ohio, probated 21 October 1807, do not list a daughter who would have been at least 22 years old at that time. Perhaps she died or married and was excluded from the estate.

2) (Possible - Not Proven) Moses Kerr, born 1801-1804, Franklin County, Pennsylvania. The estate papers of Samuel Kerr in Franklin County, Ohio, probated 21 October 1807, do not list a son named Moses. It seems likely at least one or two children of Samuel and Nancy Kerr would have been born in Pennsylvania between the time a daughter was born in 1800 and Orson Kerr was born in 1805. Perhaps Moses was excluded from the Samuel Kerr estate papers because he was not a minor or he had married.

A Moses Carr [Kerr] married Rebeckah Grayham on 14 March 1824 in Madison County, Ohio.(21) Madison County, Ohio, is adjacent the west side of Franklin County, Ohio. A Moses Carr household appears in the 1830 Fountain County, Indiana census as follows: 1 male under 5; 1 male 5 to 9; 1 male 20 to 29; 1 female under 5; and 1 female 20 to 29.(22) We also find a Moses Carr who married Elizabeth Pyle on 30 July 1835 in Fountain County, Indiana.(23) There is no conclusive evidence at this time that Moses was a son of Samuel and Nancy Kerr of Franklin County, Ohio.

3) Clarissa Kerr was 11 years of age according to the 1823 estate papers of her father, Samuel Kerr. Clarissa was born 27 September 1813 in Franklin County, Ohio.(46) Clarissa married Isaac Demorest on 24 October 1833 in Franklin Co., Ohio.(47) Isaac Demorest was born 11 April 1809. It appears Clarissa stayed in Ohio and did not move to western Indiana in the 1820s with most of her brothers and her sister Nancy. It is possible Clarissa stayed with the Elijah Chenoweth or Samuel Dyer families, who were also appointed guardians, in Franklin County, Ohio. Elijah Chenoweth died in late 1828 in Franklin County, Ohio.

Isaac Demorest of Franklin County, Ohio, purchased 5 tracts of land at the Danville, Illinois, land office on 1 November 1839.(48) These tracts of land were all in the 3rd Principal Meridian, Range 6 East, Township 19 North, Piatt County, Illinois. Piatt County is adjacent the west side of Champaign County, Illinois. The county seat is Monticello.

Isaac Demorest bought three more tracts in later years, all in Range 6 East, Township 19 North: one on 10 October 1840 in which title was to Isaac Demorest of Franklin County, Ohio; one on 10 November 1840 in which title was to Isaac Demorest of Macon County, Illinois; and one on 10 July 1844 in which title was to Isaac Demorest of Dewitt County, Illinois.(49) We found no land purchases for an Isaac Demorest in Ohio or Indiana..

The family was listed in the 1840 DeWitt County, Illinois, census.(50) DeWitt County is adjacent to Piatt County. The county seat is Clinton. The ages given on the census would be correct for Isaac and Clarissa.

Isaac Demorest died 10 February 1845, probably in Dewitt County, Illinois.(51) He was buried at the Union Methodist Cemetery in Columbus Township, Franklin County, Ohio.(52)

Clarissa (Kerr) Demorest is listed with the Leah Demorest household in the 1850 Franklin Township, Franklin County, Ohio census.(53) Leah Goetschius Demorest was the mother of Isaac Demorest.(54) Based on the state listed for the place of birth of each of Clarissa's five children, the Demorest household was in Ohio until at least 1838. They moved to Illinois in late 1839 or early 1840. Clarissa died 11 February 1880 in Franklin County, OH.(55)

Isaac and Clarissa Demorest had a daughter named Eliza A. who was born 4 April 1839 in Illinois.(50) She was listed as age 10 in the 1850 census. Eliza A. Demorest married an E. Edward Miller.(56)

E. Edward Miller and Eliza A. Demorest were the parents of Ethel C. Miller and were listed on her marriage record dated 7 February 1912 at Franklin County, Ohio.(57)

4) Orson Kerr / Carr was 18 years of age according to the 1823 estate papers of his father, Samuel Kerr. Orson was born 19 April 1805 in Franklin County, Pennsylvania.(24) He married Cynthia Clawson, 5 December 1828 in Fountain County, Indiana.(25)

An 1888 biographical sketch of Orson Kerr includes the following:

“ORSON KERR, a prosperous and highly respected farmer of Tippecanoe County, is a Pennsylvanian by birth, born April 19, 1805, a son of SAMUEL KERR, deceased.  He was reared a farmer, which occupation he has followed principally through life, and his education was obtained in the pioneer schools of Franklin County, Ohio, to which county his parents removed when he was a boy.  He came to Indiana in 1827, settling in Fountain County, this State, where he was married December 28, 1828, to MISS CYNTHIA CLAWSON, a daughter of THOMAS CLAWSON, who was one of the old and honored pioneers of Fountain County.  Of the eight children born to this union only four are living, named as follows: SOPHIA, JOHN, TIMOTHY, and THOMAS.  Two daughters, named SARAH and JANE, died after reaching maturity, the latter leaving a child named LISLIE OREAN.  MR. KERR became a resident of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, in 1835, in which year he settled on his present farm on section 22, Jackson Township.  By industry and good management he has succeeded well in his agricultural pursuits, and after selling some land and giving 120 acres to his children, he still has 300 acres, his land being well improved and under cultivation.  He was bereaved by the death of his wife in 1875, who had shared with him the vicissitudes of life for nearly fifty years.  She was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and a consistent Christian.  MR. KERR has been a member of the same church for the past fifty years.”(26)

The Orson Carr household is listed in the 1830 Fountain County, Indiana, census consisting of one male age 20 to 30, one female age age 15 to 20, and one female under five years of age.(27)

Orson Kerr purchased 80 acres on 1 November 1830 in Township 21 North, Range 7 West, Section 35, the West Half of the Northeast Quarter. This land was within the same Township as the 320 acres purchased by Benjamin Foster, guardian of the Kerr/Carr minor children.

Orson Kerr also purchased land adjacent to Thomas Gouty and to Thomas and Joseph Chenoweth as shown on the Map of the First Land Owners of Highland Township, Vermillion County, Indiana, and as documented by United States land records.(28) This land is in Section 17, Township 19 North, Range 9 West, Meridian 2nd PM, State of Indiana, County of Vermillion, the East Half of the Northeast Quarter, 80 acres, and was purchased on 10 April 1829. He also purchased 80 acres in Section 9, Township 19 North, Range 9 West, the West Half of the Southeast Quarter. These two tracts are adjacent.

The Orson Carr household moved to Tippecanoe County, Indiana, in 1835 and is listed in the 1840 Tippecanoe County, Indiana, census.(29) Orson Kerr purchased 40 acres of land on 5 April 1837 in Tippecanoe County, Section 27, Township 21 North, Range 6 West.

A 1 August 1850 Jackson Township, Tippecanoe County, Indiana, census record lists an Orson Kerr household that includes Orson Kerr, age 44, born in Pennsylvania, and Cintha Kerr, age 38, born in Ohio. The 9 July 1860 Tippecanoe County, Indiana, census includes an Orson Kerr, age 55, born in Pennsylvania, and a Cintha Kerr, age 47, born in Ohio.

An "O. Kerr" purchased three items on the "sale bill of the personal property of Samuel Kerr, Deceased, September 16th, 1852, sold at the residence in Champaign County (IL)." "O. Kerr" is presumed to be Orson Kerr. He purchased one heifer for $17.25 and a second for $20.10. He also purchased one black mare for $95.00 and 8 steer calves for $80.00.(Illinois Probate Records, Samuel Kerr, 4 Oct 1852, Champaign, Illinois, Case #104, Packets No. 102-149, 1852-1855, Cover Page 1, Order Papers 2-9, Account Papers 10-14, Sales Paper, 15-18, Account Papers 19-23)

Joseph Kerr is identified as the brother of Samuel Kerr, deceased, by the widow, Betsy Ann (Taylor) Kerr on 5 August 1852, and she requests that Joseph be appointed Administrator of the estate. Joseph Kerr was living nearby in Vermilion Co., IL. Also listed on the sale bill of the personal property of Samuel Kerr, deceased, was an A. J. Kerr, assumed to be another brother of the deceased. He purchased 8 cattle at $14.60 per head, total $116.80.

The previous discussion leaves no doubt that the Orson Kerr who owned land adjacent to Thomas Gouty, Joseph Chenoweth, and Thomas Chenoweth in Highland Township, Vermillion County, Indiana, was the Orson Kerr listed in the 8 October 1823 Franklin County, Ohio, estate papers of Samuel Kerr. The 1852 Samuel Kerr probate papers in Champaign Co., IL, appear to connect Samuel, Joseph, Orson, and Andrew Jackson Kerr, brothers, in one event.

5) Joseph Kerr was 16 years of age according to the 1823 estate papers of his father, Samuel Kerr. He was born 1 April 1807 and would have been about 23 years old at the time of the 1830 census.(FAG) Joseph Kerr married Jane Davison on 11 March 1830 in Vermilion County, Illinois.(30) It was not uncommon for residents of Vermillion County, Indiana, to go to Danville, Vermilion County, Illinois, to get married.

Joseph Kerr of Vermillion Co., Indiana, purchased 80 acres of land on 1 December 1830 in Vermilion Co., Illinois.(31) Vermilion County, Illinois, was formed in 1826. This land was in Township 21 North and Range 12 West: Section 24 - West Half of the Northeast Quarter. Joseph Kerr has not been found in the 1830 census records for Indiana or Illinois.

Joseph Kerr and James Davison of Vermilion Co., IL, purchased 80 acres of land on 8 December 1830 in Vermilion County, Illinois.(32) This land was in Township 21 North, Range 11 West, Section 19, East Half of Southeast Quarter. Range 11 West is adjacent the Indiana state line on the east side of Vermilion Co., IL. James Davison is found in the 1830 Vermilion County, Illinois, census. He is age 20 thru 29 and his wife is age 20 thru 29. They have one female child under 5 years of age. James Davison was born in 1810 and died in 1875. James Davison was the brother of Jane Davison.

Additional information about James Davison reveals a Chenoweth and Franklin County, Ohio, connection. James Davison was born 3 June 1805 in Pickaway County, Ohio.(34) James Davidson (sic) married Ruth Chenoweth (19 November 1809 to 9 April 1835) on 3 April 1828 at Pleasant Township, Franklin County, Ohio.(35)(Ohio Marriages, 1789 - 1898) She was the daughter of Elijah Chenowith and Rachel Foster.(36) She may have been born on 19 November 1809. She died 9 April 1833 and is buried at the Gundy Cemetery in Bismarck, Vermilion County, Illinois.(37)

James Davison and Ruth Chenoweth were the parents of Rachel Davison who was born 29 August 1829 and died 4 September 1878 in Vermilion Co., Illinois.(38) Rachel married Jesse L. Partlow on 03 August 1848 in Vermilion Co., Illinois.(39)

James Davison next married Sarah F. Humphrey on 16 June 1836 in Vermilion County, Illinois.(40) She was born in 1812 and died in 1890.(41) James Davison is found in the 1840 Vermilion Co., IL, census, age 30 thru 39, 2 males under age 5, 1 male age 5 thru 9, 1 male age 15 thru 19, 1 female age 20 thru 29, and 1 female age 10 thru 14. James Davison is listed as age 54 and born in Ohio in the 1860 Ross Township, Vermilion Co., IL, census records. His wife is Sarah F., age 47, born in Kentucky. An Andrew Kerr, age 26, born in Illinois, appears a couple of lines below James Davison in the census. A John J. Chenowith, age 41, born in Ohio, appears on the preceding page of the census.

James Davison died 3 January 1875 in Vermilion County, Illinois.(42) James Davison is buried in the Grundy Cemetery in Bismarck, Vermilion County, Illinois.(43) Sarah F. Davison is buried at the Spring Hill Cemetery, Block 10, Danville, Vermilion County, Illinois.(44)

Andrew Davison, age 50 to 60, appears on the same page with James Davison in the 1830 census records. He was born 6 July 1772 in Augusta, Rockingham Co., VA. He was the father of James and Jane Davison. The Davisons came to Illinois by way of Ohio.(YY)(page 928, History of Vermilion County, Illinois) They apparently settled in Vermillion Co., IN, before coming to Illinois. Andrew Davison of Vermillion County, IN, first bought land in Vermilion Co., IL, on 5 November 1830. This land was in Township 21 North, Range 11 West. Andrew Davison died in Myersville, Vermilion Co., IL, on 10 July 1842, aged 69 years, 11 months, 25 days.(II)(tombstone)

Joseph Kerr purchased four other tracts of land in Vermilion Co., Illinois:
16 May 1831 - Township 21 N, Range 12 W, Sec. 13, W Half of SW Quarter
16 Mar 1837 - Township 21 N, Range 12 W, Sec. 13, SE Quarter of SW Quarter
01 Apr 1837 - Township 21 N, Range 11 W, Sec. 17, NW Quarter of SW Quarter
01 Nov 1839 - Township 21 N, Range 12 W, Sec. 24, NW Quarter of SW Quarter

The 1870 census for Newell Township, Vermilion Co., Illinois, shows a Joseph Kerr, age 62, born in Ohio.(33) His wife's name was Jane and her age was 60. Living with them was a Jane Kerr age 30, a Charles Kerr age 28, and an Eliza Stevens age 14.

Land tracts owned by Samuel Kerr, brother of Joseph, were in Township 22 North, Range 14 West, perhaps 10 to 15 miles distant from land owned by Joseph Kerr. Joseph Kerr was called the brother of Samuel Kerr by Samuel's widow in her request to have Joseph Kerr appointed Administrator of her husband's estate. Joseph Kerr became the administrator of his brother Samuel's estate when Samuel died in 1852 in adjacent Champaign Co., IL, which was created in 1833. Individuals who purchased items at the estate sale include an O. Kerr and an A.J. Kerr. These two men must have been Orson Kerr and Andrew Jackson Kerr, brothers of Samuel and Joseph. This Joseph Kerr certainly must be the Joseph Kerr listed in the estate papers of Samuel Kerr in 1823 in Franklin Co., Ohio.

Joseph Kerr died 12 February 1872 and is buried in the Gundy Cemetery at Bismarck, Vermilion Co., IL.(FindAGrave) Jane Davison Kerr was born 25 June 1809 and died 6 September 1870.(FindAGrave) She also is buried in the Gundy Cemetery at Bismarck, Vermilion Co., IL.

6) Samuel Kerr was 9 years of age according to the 1823 estate papers of his father, Samuel Kerr. He was born 13 April 1812 and he died 16 July 1852 in Champaign Co., IL., aged 40 years, 3 months, 3 days. He married (Elizabeth) Betsy Ann Taylor on 19 October 1837 in Warren County, Indiana. She was born 15 January 1820.

John Clark Taylor was born 18 January 1775 in Richmond or Hampshire Co., VA. He was the son of Tarpley Taylor and Siball "Libbie" Clark. John Clark Taylor was a member of the House of Representatives, Fleming Co., KY. He moved to Kent Township in Warren Co., IN, about 1828. He was a Justice of the Peace in Warren County between 1836 and 1838.

John Clark Taylor married Rachel C. Cole on 12 March 1798 in Mason, Kentucky.(Kentucky Marriages, 1802-1850) She was the daughter of Joseph Cole and Elizabeth Beeson. She was born 22 March 1782 in Virginia and she died 27 July 1838 in Warren Co., IN. She was buried at the Gopher Hill Cemetery near State Line, IN. John died 16 September 1838 in Mound Township, Warren Co., IN. He was buried in the Gopher Hill Cemetery.

John Taylor of Fleming County, Kentucky, acquired 80 acres of land in Warren County, IN, on 2 November 1831. This land was in Township 20 North, Range 9 West, Secction 19. John Taylor of Warren Co., IN, also acquired 80 acres on 2 November 1831 in Township 20 North, Range 9 West, Section 18. John Taylor and William F. Taylor acquired 80 acres of land on 10 July 1832 in Township 20 North and Range 9 West, Section 17.

John and Rachel Taylor were the parents of (Elizabeth) Betsy Ann Taylor, the wife of Samuel Kerr. Samuel Kerr may have met Betsy Ann Taylor when he stayed at the Joseph Foster home or visited the Joseph Foster home in Warren Co. that was near the home of John and Rachel Taylor, Betsy's parents.

John Taylor's land in Section 19 was the West Half of the Northeast Quarter. This land was within about a mile distance of land owned by Joseph Foster in Section 30 which was in the East Half of the Southeast Quarter. Section 19 was adjacent Section 30.

Other children of John and Rachel Taylor were James Dale Kent Taylor and Mary Ann Taylor. Mary Ann Taylor married a Lewis Evertson. He was born 8 March 1822 in Pickaway Co., OH. Lewis and Mary Ann Taylor Evertson are buried in Highland Grove Cemetery, Morly, Jones Co., Iowa. Lewis Evertson and Mary Ann Taylor, daughter of John Clark Taylor, were married 7 June 1846 in Champaign Co., IL.(Illinois Marriages to 1850)

Caleb P. Evertson became a guardian for the minor children of Samuel Kerr after Samuel's death. Caleb was a brother of Lewis E. Evertson, the husband of Mary Ann Taylor. Caleb P. Evertson was born 25 June 1824 in Pickaway Co., OH and died 4 September 1889 in Vermilion Co., IL. He married Catharine T. Meneley on 21 March 1848 in Vermilion Co., IL.(Illinois Marriages, 1790-1860)

Caleb Evertson purchased land in Township 21 North, Range 14 West in Vermilion Co., IL in 1851 and 1854 and he purchased land in Township 22 North, Range 14 West in Champaign Co., IL in 1854. This land was not far from the land of Samuel Kerr.

Samuel Kerr/Carr, son of Samuel and Nancy Kerr/Carr of Franklin County, Ohio, should have been 21 years old, no longer a minor, in 1835. According to land patents, Samuel Kerr of Fountain County, Indiana, purchased three tracts of land in the northeast corner of present-day Champaign Co., Illinois, on 16 September 1835. These three tracts were in Township 22 North, Range 14 West:
Section 6 - Northwest Quarter, Lot/Tract 1
Section 8 - East Half of Southeast Quarter
Section 9 - West Half of Southwest Quarter
The above land was measured from the 2nd Principal Meridian in Indiana and not from the 3rd Principal Meridian in Illinois.

Samuel Kerr of Vermilion Co., IL, purchased a fourth tract in Champaign Co. on 1 November 1839, also in Township 22 North, Range 14 West: Section 9 - Champaign Co. - Southeast Quarter of Southwest Quarter. Samuel Kerr of Champaign Co., IL, purchased a fifth tract in Champaign Co. on 10 May 1848, also in Township 22 North, Range 14 West: Section 8 - Champaign Co. - Southwest Quarter of Southeast Quarter.

William Chenoweth signed a document, part of the probate records of the Samuel Kerr estate, in which he states that "Samuel Kerr late of said county departed this life on or about the 16th day of July last and that he died intestate as he verily believes and further saith not." The document was dated 6 August 1852.

William Chenoweth of Pickaway Co., Ohio, bought six tracts of land on 1 November 1839 in Township 22 North, Range 14 West. Two tracts of land were in the far northeast corner of Champaign Co. and four tracts of land were on the western border of Vermilion Co. adjacent Champaign Co:
Section 15 - Vermilion Co. - West Half of Southwest Quarter
Section 22 - Vermilion Co. - Northwest Quarter of Northwest Quarter
Section 27 - Vermilion Co. - East Half of Southwest Quarter
Section 27 - Vermilion Co. - West Half of Southwest Quarter
Section 33 - Champaign Co. - North Half of Southeast Quarter
Section 33 - Champaign Co. - Southeast Quarter of Northwest Quarter

William Chenoweth was born 25 January 1802 in Berkeley Co., VA. His parents were Thomas Chenoweth and Elizabeth Watson. Thomas Chenoweth was born 10 May 1777 in Berkeley Co, VA, now WV. He died 25 February 1856 in Harmony Township, Clark County, OH. Elizabeth Watson was born 26 July 1779 in Maryland. She died 7 March 1856 in Harmony, Clark Co., OH. William Chenoweth married Elizabeth Morgan on 26 February 1824 in Fayette Co., OH. She was born 15 March 1803 in Fayette Co., OH.

An Anthony Sims Morgan of Fayette Co., OH, probably the father of Elizabeth Morgan or perhaps her brother, acquired 1 tract of land containing 40 acres on 10 October 1833 in Township 22 North, Range 14 West, Section 34, in Vermilion Co., IL. However, the sales date is shown as 10 November 1832.(Illinois Public Land Purchase Records). On the same date he acquired two tracts in Township 21 North, Range 14 West, Section 1, for a total of 120 acres, also in Vermilion Co., IL. A Newton Morgan of Vermilion Co., IL, bought two tracts of land in Township 22 North, Range 14 West, Section 27, Vermilion Co., IL, in 1837 and 1839.

William Chenoweth may have been in Harmony Township, Clark Co., OH at the time of the 1830 census. He appears in the 1840, 1850, and 1860 Vermilion Co., IL census records. William died 3 October 1869 in Armstrong, Vermilion Co., Illinois. He was buried at the Partlow Cemetery in Armstrong, Vermilion Co., IL. Elizabeth Morgan Chenoweth died 25 July 1856 and is buried at the Partlow Cemetery in Armstrong, Vermilion Co., IL.

William and Elizabeth Chenoweth had a son, Joseph Chenoweth, who was born 16 September 1825 and died 28 May 1858 and is buried at the Partlow Cemetery. We assume it was this Joseph Chenoweth who purchased 2 pitchforks for $1.20 who is listed on the sale bill of the personal property of Samuel Kerr, deceased, September 16, 1852.

A William Brian of Franklin Co., OH, purchased two tracts of land in Champaign Co., IL, Township 22 North, Range 14 West, Sections 5 and 6 on 16 September 1835. He was one of the earliest settlers in Champaign Co. No additional information on him has been found.

One of the children of Samuel and Betsy Ann Taylor Kerr was a Joseph Foster Kerr. It seems possible Samuel Kerr lived with or visited the Joseph Foster family in Warren Co., IN while he was growing up. Perhaps this is why he met Betsy Ann Taylor and married in Warren Co. Since the Kerr, Foster, and Chenoweth families were somewhat close together in Franklin Co., IN, it seems possible the connections between the families continued as they moved west to Warren, Vermillion, and Fountain counties in Indiana and then on to Vermilion and Champaign counties in Illinois.

Joseph Foster of Clark Co., OH, settled in Warren Co., IN, on 5 October 1826. He purchased four tracts of land in Township 20 North, Range 9 West, Sections 30 and 31. Joseph Foster of Warren Co., IN, purchased four more tracts on 3 January 1831, all in township 20 North, Range 9 West, Warren Co., IN.

Joseph (?L?) Foster was born 23 March 1795 in Maryland. He was a son of Thomas Foster and Mary Prather. Joseph married Mary Elizabeth Russell in Pike County, Ohio, on 13 June 18(??). She was born in 1797 and died 3 January 1861. Both are buried at the Foster Cemetery in Warren Co., IN. Children were Elizabeth Jane Foster Chenoweth and William Russell Foster.

Elizabeth Jane Foster was born 4 July 1821 in Ohio and she died 20 January 1911 in Vermillion Co., IN. She married Thomas F. Chenoweth on 10 August 1848 in Warren County, IN. He was born 8 January 1820 in Pike County, OH. His parents were Jacob Chenoweth and Sarah Foster. A Joseph Foster household with 13 individuals appears in the 1820 Jackson Township, Pike County, OH, census. Two lines below is the household of a Jacob Chenoweth.

Thomas Chenoweth, age 30, born in Ohio, appears in the 1850 Highland, Vermillion Co., IN, census. Elizabeth Jane Chenoweth is listed as age 29. Thomas F. Chenoweth died 1 August 1857 and is buried in the Foster Cemetery in Warren Co., IN. The children of Thomas F. and Elizabeth Jane Chenoweth were Americus Chenoweth and Florence Chenoweth.

Guardians were appointed in 1855 to care for the minor children of Samuel Kerr, deceased. Those children were Russell L. Kerr, John C. Kerr, Elizabeth S. Kerr, Matilda M. Kerr, Joseph F. Kerr and Rachael Ann Kerr.(Probate Papers of Samuel Kerr) The guardians appointed were: Absalom H. Wood, Caleb P. Evertson, Edward Edwardly, and Lindsey Corbly.

Absalom Wood purchased land in Township 22 North, Range 14 West, Section 19 and 20 on 20 January 1851. Caleb Evertson purchased land in Township 22 North, Range 14 West, Section 33, on 2 January 1854. Lindsey Corbly purchased land in Township 22 North, Range 14 West, Section 17, on 1 October 1856.

Kerr Township in Champaign Co. was named after Samuel Kerr.(Hist of Ver Co., IL) The township contains four cemeteries: Chenoweth, Patton, Peabody and Tomlinson. Kerr Township is in the extreme north-east corner of the county, and occupies Township 22 North, Range 14 West, 2nd Principal Meridian and Township 22 North, Range 11 East, 3rd Principal Meridian.

7) Robert Kerr was 8 years of age according to the 1823 estate papers of his father, Samuel Kerr. We have found no conclusive records to identify Robert. It is possible Robert stayed with the Elijah Chenoweth or Samuel Dyer families, who were also appointed guardians, in Franklin County, Ohio. Elijah Chenoweth died in late 1828 in Franklin County, Ohio.

There is a Robert Karr listed in the 1880 Concord Township, Iroquois County, Illinois, census records. His place of birth is given as Ohio and his parents were both born in Pennsylvania. He is 65 years old. His wife's name is Carolina, age 59, born in Virginia, and her parents were both born in Virginia. We also find a Robert Kerr who married a Sharlotte Roborts on 26 October 1838 in Franklin County, Ohio.

8) Elijah Kerr was 6 years of age according to the 1823 estate papers of his father, Samuel Kerr. Elijah Isaac Kerr/Carr was born about 1817-18 in Ohio. We have not been able to identify conclusively Elijah Kerr/Carr following the death of his father in 1823.

It appears that several minor children of Samuel Kerr/Carr were not staying with Benjamin Foster in Fountain County, Indiana, in 1830. It is possible Elijah stayed with the Elijah Chenoweth or Samuel Dyer families, who were also appointed guardians, in Franklin County, Ohio. Elijah Chenoweth died in late 1828 in Franklin County, Ohio.

Elijah Kerr/Carr may have been staying with other related Foster households in Fountain County in 1830. James Foster born 3 April 1803, John I. Foster born 08 March 1805, and Basil Prather Foster born 14 February 1816 are three children of Benjamin Foster and his wife who are buried in Fountain County, Indiana, and who may have kept some of the minor Kerr/Carr children in the 1820s. John I. Foster acquired land in Fountain County in 1826 and James Foster acquired land there in 1831. The 1830 John I. Foster census for Fountain County, Indiana, does not list any males other than John I. Foster, age 30 thru 39.

Two Fosters who acquired land in nearby Warren County and whose relationship to Benjamin Foster is not known are a Joseph Foster who acquired land in 1826 and a Jeremiah B. Foster who acquired land in 1828.

The minor Kerr/Carr children also could have stayed with a Chenoweth family in Vermillion County, Indiana. There were many Chenoweth households listed in the 1830 Vermillion County, Indiana, census: Hiram Chenoweth, Susannah Chenoweth, John Chenoweth, Joseph Chenoweth, and Thomas Chenoweth. Ruth, Joseph and Benjamin Franklin Chenoweth all went to Missouri at some point in time.

We find an Elijah Kerr who married Jane Burns Mulligan on 10 August 1842 in Andrew County, Missouri, her second marriage. Jane Burns was born 22 March 1815 in Kentucky. Her first marriage was to Lindsay Mulligan on 22 January 1837 in Casey County, Kentucky. Lindsay and Jane Mulligan were the parents of Matilda S. Mulligan. Matilda was born 1 March 1836-7 and she died 17 July 1859 in Fillmore Township, Andrew County, Missouri.

The first child of Elijah Isaac Kerr and Jane Burns Mulligan was named Clarissa. There was a Clarissa Kerr who was a sister of Elijah, and similar to his sister Nancy Kerr/Carr Gouty, Elijah could have named his first daughter Clarissa. Clarissa was Elijah's only living sister besides Nancy. The 1850 Nodaway Township, Andrew County, Missouri census, enumerated 18 September 1850, lists Elijah Carr, age 32, male, farmer, born in Ohio, cannot read or write; Jane Carr, age 33, female, born in Kentucky; Clarissa Carr, age 7, female, born in Missouri; Emily Carr, age 4, female, born in Missouri; Katharine Carr, age 2, female, born in Missouri; Matilda Mulligan, age 14, female, born in Illinois, married within the year box was checked.

Elijah Kerr, age 53, born in Ohio, appears in the 1870 census for Irwin Township, Brown County, Kansas. His wife's name is Jane and she is 55 years old, born in Tennessee. We believe this Elijah Kerr/Carr died in 1872 in White Cloud Township, Doniphan County, Kansas.

9) Jackson Kerr was 4 years of age according to the 1823 estate papers of his father, Samuel Kerr. Significant records exist to positively identify Andrew Jackson Kerr. He was born 2 April 1819 in Franklin County, Ohio, and died 26 August 1903 in Montgomery County, Indiana.(61) He married Nancy Sayers on 22 April 1849 in Tippecanoe County, Indiana.(62) She was born in 1830 and died in 1864.(63) Andrew J. Kerr is buried at Wheeler’s Grove Cemetery, Lafayette, Tippecanoe County, Indiana.(64) The Andrew J. Kerr household appears in the 1850 U. S. census for Jackson Township, Tippecanoe County, Indiana.(65)

The biography of Robert Floyd Kerr, a son of Andrew Jackson Kerr, follows in part:(66)

ROBERT FLOYD KERR, A. M., is one of the most influential citizens of Brooking, who has always shown an unselfish interest in furthering the intellectual and material progress of its people. He was born in Sugar Grove, Tippecanoe County, Indiana, April 12, 1850, and a son of Andrew J. and Nancy (Sayers) Kerr. Andrew J. Kerr was born in Franklin county, Ohio. His father, Samuel Kerr, came from Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, and was of Scotch-Irish lineage, his ancestors having immigrated prior to 1740 and located at Chambersburg. John Kerr, one of the immigrants, was a sergeant of the Pennsylvania militia during the Revolutionary war. He was taken prisoner at the battle of Long Island, but exchanged after some time.

Andrew J. Kerr, a farmer by occupation, now living in retirement at New Richmond, Indiana, has filled several local public offices in Tippecanoe county, and is an influential and useful citizen. Mrs. Nancy Kerr died in August, 1864, at the age of about thirty-four years, from the effects of an accident. She is a daughter of Robert F. and Martha (McMillin) Sayers. This family moved from Tazewell county, Virginia, in 1830, when Mrs. Kerr was two years of age.”

A second biography of Robert Floyd Kerr states:

“Andrew Jackson Kerr was born April 2, 1819, in Franklin County, Ohio, and died August 26, 1903 in Montgomery County, Indiana. His spouse was Ann Marie Ocheltree and his parents were Samuel Kerr and Nancy Gwyn.”(67)

Another "Biography of Robert Floyd Kerr [1898]”, source unknown, states:

“Andrew J. Kerr was born in Franklin Co. OH. A farmer by occupation, now living in retirement at New Richmond, Indiana, has filled several local public offices in Tippecanoe Co, and is an influential and useful citizen. Andrew J. Kerr removed from Ohio to Tippecanoe County, Indiana, in company with an elder brother, being a lad of eleven years at the time, and he forthwith initiated his independent career and began to depend upon his own resources. He continued to work . . ."

Robert Floyd Kerr submitted an application for membership to the Sons of the American Revolution through the South Dakota Society, approved 17 April 1911, as a descendant of John Kerr of Chambersburg, PA.

10) Nancy Kerr / Carr was 14 years of age according to the 1823 estate papers of her father, Samuel Kerr. She married Thomas Gouty on 14 October 1830 in Vermillion County, Indiana, in a ceremony performed by Thomas Chenoweth.(68) Thomas Gouty (pronounced gow like cow and tee as in a golf tee) was born about 1807 in Caroline County, Maryland.(69)

According to the book Gessie, Indiana, The First One Hundred Years 1872 - 1972, "Henry, Thomas, and Zechariah came to Indiana in 1820. Thomas Gouty was married 3 times and had children by all three. His first wife was Nancy Carr, his second wife was Elizabeth Stutler and his 3rd wife was Catherine Hoobler.”(70)

Thomas Gouty acquired 80 acres of land in Section 17, Range 9 West, Township 19 North, Highland Township, Vermillion County, Indiana, on 5 January 1831.(71) This land was adjacent to land owned by Thomas and Joseph Chenoweth, sons of Thomas Chenoweth and his wife, Cassandra Foster.(72) [See APPENDICES C, D, E, and F for analysis of the Chenoweth and Foster families.] Thomas's land also was adjacent to land purchased by Orson Kerr, brother of Nancy Kerr/Carr.(73)

Nancy Kerr/Carr Gouty named her first daughter after her younger sister, Clarissa, who was listed in the 1823 estate papers of her father, Samuel Kerr.(74) Clarissa Gouty was born 5 July 5 1832 in Highland Township, Vermillion, Indiana, and died 7 April 1875 in Deerfield, Vernon, Missouri.(75) She married John Sampson Chezem (1830-1879) on 5 August 1849 in Vermillion County, Indiana.(76) [See APPENDIX B for court case to allocate land of Thomas Gouty to his children after his death. Clara [Clarissa Gouty] Chezem received 36 acres.] John and Clarissa Chezem had a child named Sarah Ellen Chezem (1854-1931).(77)

Nancy Kerr/Carr Gouty, first wife of Thomas Gouty, apparently died sometime before May 31, 1840, the date when Thomas Gouty married his second wife, Elizabeth Stutler, in Vermillion County, Indiana.(78) It seems very likely Nancy Kerr/Carr Gouty died in childbirth as a son, John Russell Gouty, must have been born in early 1840.

The evidence is substantial and conclusive to identify Nancy Kerr/Carr, daughter of Samuel and Nancy Kerr of Franklin County, Ohio, as the first wife of Thomas Gouty.

Children (Gouty) of Thomas Gouty and Nancy Kerr/Carr, all born in Indiana:
i. Clarissa Gouty, 5 born July 1832 in Indiana.(79)
ii. Elias B. Gouty, born 11 September 1833 in Highland Township, Vermillion Co., IN; died 18 April 1915 in Vermillion Co., IN.(15)
iii. Mary Gouty, born about 1836 in Indiana and died 4 April 1857.(16)
iv. Eleanor Gouty, born about 1838 in Indiana.(17)
v. John Russell Gouty, born about 1840 in Indiana and died in 1907.(18)

ORIGINAL SOURCE MATERIAL to support the RELATIONSHIP between
SAMUEL KERR/CARR Senior and his daughter NANCY KERR/CARR

1) See Sons of the American Revolution Supplemental Ancestor Certificate, Curtis L. Older, descendant of John Kerr, approved 4 November 2015. The application includes the following proof of Samuel Kerr/Carr as the father of Nancy Kerr/Carr:

i) On 08 October 1823, the estate records of Samuel Kerr of Franklin, OH, lists his children Orson (age 18), Joseph (age 16), Nancy (age 14), Clarissa (age 11), Samuel (age 9), Robert (age 8), Elijah (age 6), and Jackson (age 4). On 11 March 1824, Benjamin Foster was appointed guardian of the minor heirs with Elijah Chenowith named as a security.

ii) According to DAR RC#722981, Elijah Chenoweth married Rachel Foster, daughter of John Foster of MD, and died in Franklin Co, OH, on 05 December 1828.

iii) According to DAR RC#842921, Benjamin Foster was a son of John Foster of MD, had a son born in Ohio in 1803, and died in Fountain Co, IN, on 01 October 1844.

iv) The 1830 and 1840 census records of Fountain Co, IN, each show a household headed by Benjamin Foster.

v) The will of Elijah Chenoweth (Franklin Co, OH will book A, p196, dated 21 July 1828 and probated 7 April 1829) names among his heirs, Thomas, Joseph, and Elijah Chenoweth. Elijah is named as the youngest son and, according to his gravestone, was born in 1806.

vi) On 31 Jan 1828, Thomas and Joseph Chenoweth purchased land in Vermillion Co, IN. The 1850 census of Vermillion Co, IN, shows a Thomas Chenowith, age 49.

vii) According to a biographical sketch of Orson Kerr found in “Biographical Record and Portrait Album of Tippecanoe, Indiana,” Orson was born in Pennsylvania, the son of Samuel Kerr. He lived in Franklin County, OH; moved to Fountain County, IN, in 1827; married Cynthia Clawson in 1828; and moved to Tippecanoe County, IN, in 1835. While this source is not well-­‐documented, it is corroborated by official documents and, significantly, was published in 1888, during Orson’s lifetime (see photo of grave marker). Fountain County marriage records confirm that Orson Carr married Cynthia Clawson in 1828. Fountain County 1830 census lists Orson Carr as a resident. Tippecanoe County 1840 census lists Orson Carr as a resident. Tippecanoe County 1850 census lists Orson Keer(44) born in Pennsylvania. Tippecanoe County 1860 census lists Orson Kerr(55) born in Pennsylvania.

viii) In a biographical sketch of Robert Floyd Kerr from a compendium of biographical sketches of citizens of South Dakota, Andrew J. Kerr of Tippecanoe Co, IN, was named as the son of Samuel Kerr, having been born in Franklin Co, OH. The grave marker of Andrew J. Kerr in Tippecanoe Co, IN, shows a birthdate of 02 Apr 1819.

[Note - Point ix) below is incorrect. Samuel Kerr Junior was in the 1850 Illinois, Champaign Co., District 21, census.]
ix) The 1850 census of Fountain Co, IN, shows a Samuel Carr, age 38, born in OH.

x)  Vermillion, IN, marriage records show that Thomas Gouty married Nancy Carr in 1830, in a ceremony performed by Thomas Chenoweth. He later married Elizabeth Stutler on 31 May 1840.

xi) A map of first landowners in Highland Twp, Fountain Co, IN, shows that Orson Kerr owned property bordering properties owned by Thomas Gouty and Thomas and Joseph Chenoweth.

xii) The Vermillion County 1850 census, shows the household of Thomas Gouty. His oldest child, Clarissa(18X), bears the name of Nancy Kerr’s only sister.

CONCLUSION
The Foster, Chenoweth, and Kerr families were closely related in Franklin Co, OH. There is substantial evidence that between 1824 and 1830, Benjamin Foster; his nephews - Thomas and Joseph Chenoweth; and three of his wards -­‐ Orson, Samuel and Andrew Jackson Kerr; moved to Fountain Co, IN. Orson Kerr and the Chenowiths purchased parcels of land next to Thomas Gouty in Highland Twp. In 1830, Thomas Gouty married a Nancy Carr in a ceremony performed by Thomas Chenoweth. Thomas and Nancy Gouty named their first child Clarissa, the same name as the only sister of Nancy Kerr of Ohio. Given the close relationships between these families, it is very likely that Nancy Kerr moved from Ohio to Indiana with her guardian and her brothers and it is she that married Thomas Gouty.

REFERENCES

(1) The South Dakota Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, Application for Membership, Robert Floyd Kerr, descendant of John Kerr, 12 April 1911. The year of birth for Samuel Kerr is listed as 1778.

(2) Will of John Kerr, Franklin Co., PA, Will Book "B", page 331, #918, made 25 August 1807 and probated 21 October 1807; will of Mary Dougherty Kerr, Franklin Co,, PA, Will Book "C", page 420, #1583, made 30 December 1809 and probated 04 November 1815. "Item. I will and devise to my granddaughter Mary Kerr, daughter of Samuel Kerr, the sum of twenty pounds."

(3) Edythe T. Kahn, John and Christiana Nisewanger Kerr, Jr., Their Ancestry and Descendants, 1745-1991 (E. T. Kahn, 12710 N. Lakeshore Dr., LaSalle, MI 48145), 3.

(4) Kahn, John Kerr, Jr., 3.

(5) Kahn, John Kerr, Jr., 3. Kahn gives the year of death as 1819. However, the will of Mary Kerr was probated in 1815.

(6) Will of John Kerr, Franklin Co., PA, probated 12 Oct. 1807.

(7) Virginia Shannon Fendrick, compiler, American Revolutionary Soldiers of Franklin County (Chambersburg, PA: Historical Works Committee of the Franklin Co. Chapter, D.A.R., 1944), 250.

(8) Fendrick, American Revolutionary Soldiers, 178. Nancy Quinn was a daughter of Patrick Quinn whose estate was administered at Chambersburg, 19 Oct. 1801.

(9) Septennial Census Returns, 1800, Guilford Twp., Cumberland Co., PA, 23 and 26.

(10) Will of John Kerr, Franklin Co., PA, probated 12 Oct. 1807.

(11) Kahn, John Kerr, Jr., 17.

(12) Biographical Record and Portrait Album of Tippecanoe County, Indiana (The Lewis Publishing Company, 113 Adams Street, Chicago, 1888), 387-388. "Orson Kerr, “ORSON KERR, a prosperous and highly respected farmer of Tippecanoe County, is a Pennsylvanian by birth, born April 19, 1805, a son of SAMUEL KERR, deceased."

(13) William T. Martin, History of Franklin CO, OH (Columbus: Follett, Foster & Company, 1858), 195.

(14) www.wikipedia.org, Big Darby Creek.

(15) Franklin County at the Beginning of the Twentieth Century (Columbus: Historical Publishing Company, 1901), 74.

(16) Marie Dickore, ed., General Joseph Kerr of Chillicothe, Ohio, "Ohio's Lost Senator" (The Oxford Press, Oxford, OH, 1941), 43.

(17) unknown source

(18) Rings, Blanche Tipton, Francis Herbert Obetz, Margaret Scott, and Ohio Genealogical Society. Franklin County Chapter. Abstracted Wills, 1805-1831, from Franklin County, Ohio, Court Records, with Genealogical Notes. Columbus, Ohio (P.O. Box 09696, Columbus 43209): Franklin County Genealogical Society, 1982. No. 0422, KERR, Samuel - Dec’d., 8 Oct 1823.

(19) Will of Mary Dougherty Kerr, Franklin Co., PA, probated 4 Nov. 1815.

(20) 1800 U. S. Federal Census, Pennsylvania, Guilford Township, Franklin County, Samuel Kerr, 1 male 16-25, 1 female under 10, 1 female 16-25.

(21) Ohio Marriages, 1800-1958, Moses Carr and Rebeckah Grayham, 14 Mar 1824.

(22) Moses Carr, 1830 Fountain County, Indiana census.

(23) Indiana Marriages, 1811-2007, Moses Carr and Elizabeth Pyle, 30 Jul 1835, Fountain County, Indiana.

(24) A History of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, Biographical Sketch of Orson Kerr; Biographical Record and Portrait Album of Tippecanoe County, Indiana (The Lewis Publishing Company, 113 Adams Street, Chicago, 1888), 387-388.

(25) Orson Carr, Cynthia Clawson, December 5, 1828, Fountain County, Indiana, Indiana Marriage Collection, 1800-1941; Biographical Record and Portrait Album of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, 387-388; Indiana State Library Genealogy Database: Marriages through 1850: Spouse 1: Carr, Orson; Spouse 2: Clawson, Cynthia; Marriage Date: 05 Dec 1828; Marriage Location: Indiana, Fountain County.

(26) Biographical Record and Portrait Album of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, 387-388.

(27) 1830 Fountain County, Indiana, census, Orson Kerr.

(28) Map of the First Land Owners of Highland Township, Vermillion County, Indiana. Thomas Gouty - earliest he owned in Vermillion County, 5 Jan. 1831, Section 17, Township 19 North, Range 9 West, Meridian 2nd Prime, State Indiana, Counties Vermillion, Accession Number: IN1060_.079, Document 9351. Thomas Gouty also acquired land in Section 5, Township 19 North, Range 9 West, Meridian 2nd Prime, State Indiana, Counties Vermillion, Accession Number: IN1060 .079, Document 9352. Orson Kerr, 10 Apr. 1829, 80 acres, Section 17, Township 19 North, Range 9 West, Meridian 2nd PM, State of Indiana, County of Vermillion, Document 6378, Accession Number: IN0990 .03, Crawfordsville land office, authority April 24, 1820. Orson Kerr also owned two other tracts that are recorded in the U.S. General Land Office Records, 1796-1907. Orson Kerr, 1 Nov. 1830, 80 acres, Section 35, Township 21-N, Range 7-W, Meridian 2nd PM, State of Indiana, County of Vermillion, Document 8897, Accession Number: IN1050 .125, Crawfordsville land office, authority April 24, 1820. Orson Kerr, 5 Apr. 1837, 40 acres, Section 27, Township 21-N, Range 6-W, Meridian 2nd PM, State of Indiana, County of Vermillion, Document 6378, Accession Number: IN3170 .158, Crawfordsville land office, authority April 24, 1820.

(29) 1840 Tippecanoe County, Indiana, census, Orson Kerr.

(30) Illinois Marriages to 1850, Joseph Kerr, Jane Davison, 11 March 1830, Vermilion County, Illinois.

(31) Township 21 North, Range 12 West, the West Half of the North East Quarter of Section 24.

(32) Township 21 North, Range 11 West, the East Half of the South East Quarter of Section 19.

(33) 1870 census, Newell Township, Vermilion County, Illinois, enumerated 24 August 1870, Joseph Kerr, retired farmer, age 62, born in Ohio. The census Post Office was shown as Danville.

(34) Cooke/Flodquist Family Tree, Ancestry.com, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Ancestral File.

(35) "Ohio Marriages, 1800-1958," database, FamilySearch.Org, James Davidson and Ruth Chenoweth, 03 Apr 1828; citing Franklin, Ohio, reference; FHL microfilm 0285142 V. 1-3.

(36) International Genealogical Index (TM) (IGI) entry, FamilySearch.org.

(37) findagrave.com; Gundy Cemetery, Bismarck, Vermilion Co., IL, tombstone: Ruth wife of James Davison died April 9, 1833. The website indicates she was born Nov. 19, 1808.

(38) Lottie E. Jones, History of Vermilion County, Illinois; a Tale of It's Evolution,Settlement and Progress for Nearly a Century (Chicago: Pioneer Publishing Company, 1911) republished on Books.Google.com.

(39) Illinois Marriages to 1850, Jesse L. Partlow, Rachel Davison, 30 Aug 1848, Vermilion County.

(40) Illinois Marriages 1790-1860, James Davison, Sally F. Humphrey, 16 June 1836, Vermilion County.

(41) findagrave.com

(42) findagrave.com

(43) findagrave.com

(44) findagrave.com

(45) Indiana Marriages to 1850, Robert Davison, Melvida Chenoweth, 11 February 1836, Vermillion County, Indiana.

(46) Sons of the American Revolution application dated 8 August 1967 by John H. Bell or Henry Grady Hardy, Jr.

(47) Ohio Marriages, 1800-1958, Isaac Demorest and Clarissa Kerr, 24 Oct 1833.

(48) U. S. Bureau of Land Management, West half of the south west quarter of Section 15, Township 19 North, Range 6 East, in the District of Lands subject to sale at Danville, Illinois, containing 80 acres. This land is in Piatt County, Illinois. The county seat is Monticello. The county is west of Champaign County, Illinois.

(49) U. S. Bureau of Land Management.

(50) 1840 Dewitt County, Illinois, census. The Demorest household consisted of: 1 male 5 to 9; 1 male 30 to 39; 3 females under 5; 1 female 20 to 29.

(51) findagrave.com; Picture of tombstone of Isaac Demorest, died Feb. 10, 1845, aged 35 yrs. 10 mo.

(52) findagrave.com; Picture of tombstone of Isaac Demorest, died Feb. 10, 1845, aged 35 yrs. 10 mo.

(53) 1850, Franklin Township, Franklin County, Ohio, Leah Demorist, female, age 74, born in New Jersey; Clarrissa, female, age 37, born in Ohio; Russel B., male, age 15, born in Ohio; Margaret, female, age 14, born in Ohio; Emeline, female, age 13, born in Ohio; Eliza, female, age 19, born in Illinois; and Jane, female, age 8, born in Illinois.

(54) findagrave.com

(55) findagrave.com; Clara Demorest, no picture of tombstone shown; birth 1814; death Feb. 11, 1880; Green Lawn Cemetery, Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio.

(56) Death Certificate, State of Ohio, County of Franklin, Township of Jackson, Eliza D. Miller, female, white, widowed, date of birth - 4 April 1839; age - 74 years, 9 months, 18 days; date of death - 21 January 1914; place of burial - Concord Cem; date of burial - 24 January 1914; name of father - Isaac Demorest; birthplace of father - Ohio; maiden name of mother - Clarissa Kerr; birthplace of mother - Ohio. Information provided by Mark Miller, Grove City, Ohio.

(57) Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2013, Sterling Donaldson and Ethel C. Miller, 07 Feb 1912, Franklin, Ohio.

(58) 1840 U. S. Census, Davis Township, Fountain County, Indiana, Samuel Carr household, 1 male 20 and under 30, 1 female under 5, and 1 female 20 and under 30. A Mary Carr is listed two lines earlier, 1 male 10 and under 15, 2 females 15 and under 20, 1 female 50 and under 60.

(59) Indiana Marriages to 1850, Samuel Kerr, Dorothy Jefferson, 11 May 1837, Fountain County (lawful consent).

(60) 1850 U. S. census, Indiana, Davis Township, Fountain County, Indiana, Samuel Carr, age 38, born in Ohio; Dorathy Carr, age 35, born about 1815 in Indiana.

(61) Jackson Kerr, born 1819. Obituary in Crawfordsville Weekly Journal, August 28, 1903, date of death in Montgomery County, Indiana. Wheeler's Grove Cemetery. A death certificate for Andrew J. Kerr appears in City Health Office, Crawfordsville, book H-33, page 77, produced by the Indiana Works Progress Administration. It lists Andrew J. Kerr, date of August 26, 1903, location New Richmond, age 84, male, white. Findagrave. Tombstone at Wheelers Grove Cemetery, Lafayette, Tippecanoe County, Indiana, indicates Andrew J. Kerr, April 2, 1819, Aug. 26, 1903.

(62) Unknown source, Andrew Jackson Kerr, Nancy Sayers, 22 April 1849, Tippecanoe County; S.A.R. application of Robert Floyd Kerr.

(63) S.A.R. application of Robert Floyd Kerr, approved 1911; another source indicates she was born 25 November 1827 in Tazewell County, Virginia, and died 20 August 1864 in Tippecanoe County, Indiana.

(64) Findagrave. Tombstone at Wheelers Grove Cemetery, Lafayette, Tippecanoe County, Indiana, indicates Andrew J. Kerr, April 2, 1819, Aug. 26, 1903.

(65) 1850 U. S. census, Jackson Township, Tippecanoe County, Indiana, enumerated 1 August, Andrew J. Kerr, age 31, born in Ohio; Nancy, age 22, born in Virginia; Jesse, age 4, born in Indiana, and Robert, age 2 months, born in Indiana.

(66) Biography for Robert Floyd Kerr, A. M., "Memorial and biographical record; an illustrated compendium of biography, containing a compendium of local biography, including biographical sketches of prominent old settlers and representative citizens of South Dakota..." (Chicago: G. A. Ogle & Co., 1898), 254.

(67) The Biography of Robert Floyd Kerr, 1904 edited by Maurice Krueger, Publisher, History of South Dakota by Doane Robinson, Vol. II, 1904; John William Leonard, Albert Nelson Marquis, editors, Who's Who in America, 1908-1909, Volume 5 (Chicago: A. N. Marquis & Co., 1908), 1047, Robert Floyd Kerr, educator.

(68) Indiana State Library, Genealogy Database, Marriages through 1850, spouse number 1 - Carr, Nancy, spouse number 2 - Gouty, Thomas, county - Vermillion, date - October 14, 1830.

(69) The 1850 census lists Thomas Gouty as age 44 and the 1860 census lists him as 53. However, see the Thomas Gouty tombstone, Hicks Cemetery, Perrysville, Vermillion County, Indiana, which lists his age at death in 1863 as 61 years. Also see, History of Vermillion County, Indiana, “Thomas Gouty died June 10, 1863, aged sixty-one years.” He was therefore born sometime between 1802 and 1807. In the 1800 US Census for Maryland, the only Gouty names that appear in Caroline County are: Abel, John, Zachariah, and Prichard (i.e., Pritchett). 1800 Maryland census, Caroline County; 1800 US census records, Caroline Co., MD, Pritchard GOUTEE, p.10, 11010-10010-00.

(70) Gessie, Indiana, The First One Hundred Years 1872-1972, David Gouty.

(71) Two records for Thomas Gouty: (1) U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, General Land Office Records website. Land office: Crawfordsville; Gouty, Thomas; document number 9351, 5 January 1831, total acres 80, township 19 north, range 9 west, W half SE quarter of section 17, Vermillion County, Indiana, 2nd principal meridian. (2) U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, General Land Office Records website. Land office: Crawfordsville; Gouty, Thomas; document number 15743, 10 July 1832, total acres 80, township 19 north, range 9 west, W half NE quarter of section 17, Vermillion County, Indiana, 2nd principal meridian.

(72) U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, General Land Office Records website. Land office: Crawfordsville; Chenoweth, Thomas and Joseph; document number 5885, 30 January 1828, total acres 80, township 19 north, range 9 west, E half SE quarter of section 17, Vermillion County, Indiana, 2nd principal meridian.

(73) U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, General Land Office Records website. Land office: Crawfordsville; Kerr, Orson; document number 6378, 10 April 1829, total acres 80, township 19 north, range 9 west, E half NE quarter of section 17, Vermillion County, Indiana, 2nd principal meridian.

(74) 08 October 1823 estate records of Samuel Kerr of Franklin County, Ohio, Clarissa; 1850 Federal Census for Indiana, Vermillion County, Highland Township, page 63, enumerated October 25, 1850, by Thomas C. W. Lake, Dwelling 234, Family 234, lists Thomas Gouty, age 44, male, farmer, born in Maryland, real estate value owned = $3,000, Catherine Gouty, age 25, female, wife, born in Ohio, Clarissa, age 18, female, born in Indiana, Elias, age 17, male, born in Indiana, attended school in year, Mary, age 14, Elenor, age 12; Russell, age 10; William, age 6; and Amos, age 5.

(75) One World Tree, Wolfe Family Tree of Vernon County, Missouri.

(76) Book 20, pages 260 through 263, court case: Rebecca Gouty versus Elias Gouty et al. Vermillion County Court In Partition, Newport, Indiana, 02 August 1865, "3. To Clara Chezem we set off thirty six acres etc." This court case allocated the property of Thomas Gouty to his children after his death; Illinois Marriages, 1790-1860, John Chezum, Clarissa Coudy, 5 August 1849, Vermilion County, Illinois, source Family History Library, Salt Lake City, UT, microfilm 1298747; OneWorldTree, Wolfe Family Tree of Vernon County, Missouri.

(77) OneWorldTree, Wolfe Family Tree of Vernon County, Missouri.

(78) Indiana State Library, Genealogy Database, Marriages through 1850, spouse number 1 - Gouty, Thomas, spouse number 2 - Stutler, Elizabeth, county - Vermillion, date - May 31, 1840.

(79) The 1850 census for the Thomas Gouty family indicates Clarissa was 18 years old and should have been born in or about 1832. The source which indicates her birthdate as July 5, 1832, is unknown.

(80) Elias B. Gouty tombstone, Hicks Cemetery, Perrysville, Vermillion County, Indiana; See Book 20, pages 260 through 263 for court case: Rebecca Gouty versus Elias Gouty et al. Vermillion County Court In Partition, Newport, Indiana: "We find upon a careful examination & valuation of said real estate that Elias Gouty having received the sum of twelve hundred & ninety dollars as an advancement from his Father as found by the court that said Elias is therefore not entitled to any part of said lands in Partition."; Name: Elias, Sr. Gouty; Date: 18 Apr 1915; LOCATION: Vermillion County; Age: 81 yr; Gender: Male; Race: White; Source Location: County Health Office, Dana; Source Notes: The source of this record is the book H-5 on page 77 within the series produced by the Indiana Works Progress Administration.

(81) Birth date estimated from 1850 census records for Thomas Gouty family.

(82) Birth date estimated from 1850 census records for Thomas Gouty family.

(83) Birth date estimated from 1850 census records for Thomas Gouty family.

ENDNOTES FOR VARIOUS APPENDICES THAT FOLLOW

(1) Will of John Foster, found in the Office of the Probate Judge, Chillicothe, Ross County, Ohio, signed 11 July 1799 and probated 11 February 1800.

(2) Page 166, Settlements of Estates, Abstracts of Franklin County, Ohio, Records, Mrs. John M. Titus.

(3) Page 202, Settlements of Estates, Abstracts of Franklin County, Ohio, Records, Mrs. John M. Titus.

(4) Maryland Marriages, 1655-1850, Benjamin Foster, marriage date 14 Feb 1798, Catharine Prather, Allegany County.

(5) Dates from tombstone, Aug. 30, 1843, aged 68 y. 6 m. 19 d.

(6) Findagrave.

(7) Per tombstone, Ruppert (or Rob Roy) Cemetery, Attica, Fountain County, Indiana, Oct. 11, 1844, aged 69 y. 5 m. 10 d.

(8) U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, General Land Office Records website. Land office Crawfordsville; date 20 April 1826; Foster, Benjamin; Fountain County, Indiana, 2nd principal meridian: (1) document number 3330, total acres 80, township 21 north, range 7 west, E half SW quarter of section 10. (2) document number 3331, total acres 80, township 21 north, range 7 west, W half NW quarter of section 29. (3) document number 3332, total acres 80, township 21 north, range 7 west, E half SE quarter of section 29. (4) document number 3333, total acres 80, township 21 north, range 7 west, W half SW quarter of section 28.

(9) 1830 U. S. Federal census, Indiana, Fountain County, Benjamin Foster.

(10) 1840 U. S. Federal census, Indiana, Fountain County, Benjamin Foster.

(11) Findagrave.

(12) Franklin Co. Pioneer Families Lineage applicants, Central Ohio Genealogical Notes and Queries by Dr. Frank W. Garner. Columbus Sunday Journal and Dispatch 1933‐1936. Franklin County Pioneer Settlers Memorial: The Ohio Genealogical Quarterly July 1919.

(13) Ohio County Formation Maps - http://www.familyhistory101.com/maps/oh_cf.html

(14) U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, General Land Office Records website. Land office: Crawfordsville; Chenoweth, Thomas and Joseph; document number 5885, 30 January 1828, total acres 80, township 19 north, range 9 west, E half SE quarter of section 17, Vermillion County, Indiana, 2nd principal meridian.

(15) Biographical and historical record of Vermillion County, Indiana: containing portraits of all the presidents of the United States from Washington to Cleveland, with accompanying biographies of each; a condensed history of the state of Indiana; portraits and biographies of some of the prominent men of the state; engravings of prominent citizens in Vermillion county, with personal histories of many of the leading families, and a concise history of the county and its villages (Chicago: Lewis Publishing Co., 1888), 211.

(16) Per tombstone of Cassandra Foster Chenoweth.

(17) Per tombstone.

(18) Per will of her father, John Foster.

(19) Findagrave.

(20) Thomas Chenoweth, Ohio, Compiled Census and Census Substitutes Index, 1790-1890, record type – tax list, year 1808, mixed townships, Franklin County, page 007, OH Early Census Index.

(21) Findagrave.

(22) Findagrave.

(23) Ohio Marriages, 1789-1898.

(24) Per granite monument at Lowe Cemetery, Perrysville, IN.

(25) Tombstones.

(26) Marriage.

(27) 1830 census, Vermillion County, Indiana.

(28) Biography of John Chenoweth; census.

(29) Estate papers of Samuel Kerr, 1823.

(30) Marriage record not found. Findagrave.

(31) Findagrave. Chenoweth Cemetery, Franklin County, Ohio.

(32) Marriage record not found. Findagrave.

(33) History of Franklin and Pickaway Counties, Ohio, with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches, Some of the Prominent Men and Pioneers, published by Williams Bros., 1880, Biography of Joseph Chenoweth, page 438.

(34) Tombstone photo.

(35) Wills: Franklin Co., OH: dated July 21, 1828.

(36) Findagrave.

(37) "Ohio Marriages, 1800-1958," database, FamilySearch.Org, James Davidson and Ruth Chenoweth, 03 Apr 1828; citing Franklin, Ohio, reference; FHL microfilm 0285142 V. 1-3.

APPENDIX A

Dual Spelling of the Family Last Name or Surname, i.e., KERR/CARR

An article entitled John Kerr, Founder of Kerrstown and Soldier in the American Revolution by Curtis Lynn Older published by the Franklin County Historical Society - Kittochtinny in A Journal of Franklin County History, Volume XXVIII, 2016, identifies numerous instances where the last name of Lt. John Kerr/Carr (1745 to 02 October 1807) was alternately spelled either Kerr or Carr. See page 7, where U. L. Gordy, writing in 1934, states, "It was from this Kerr that the part of Chambersburg south of Catherine Street got its local name--Carrstown (Kerrstown)." Page 8, a quotation from Wm. E. Gilmore, "General Joseph Kerr", Ohio History Vol. 12 (Chillicothe, OH: Ohio Archives and Historical Society Publications, 1903), 164-6, states regarding Joseph Kerr Senior (1766 - 1837), son of Lt. John Kerr, "Almost every person who knew him spelled and pronounced it Carr."

Also from the Older article, it was Lt. John Carr who was listed in the Pennsylvania Archives, 5th Series, Vol. 6, page 527, but Lt. John Kerr who was listed in Vol. 6, page 533. These were two references to the same man. The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission website, Pennsylvania State Archives, Rev. War Military Abstract Card File, has a card which states: "Jno Carr, Cumberland, 2nd Lt. March 25, 1778, Capt. William Finley - Duty: served, Fine Book of John Carothers, the basic record proves active duty." This clearly is a record for Lt. John Kerr of Kerrstown, PA.

There has been nothing found in the information on Samuel Kerr Senior, son of Lt. John Kerr, to demonstrate the dual spelling of the Kerr/Carr name. However, there is abundant material to demonstrate the dual spelling of the family name when examining information on the children of Samuel Kerr/Carr Senior.

The 08 October 1823 estate records for Samuel Kerr of Franklin County, Ohio, are found in Abstracted Base Files 1805 – 1831 from Franklin County, Ohio Court Records with Geneaalogical Notes, compiled by Blanche Tipton Rings and Mrs. Francis Herbert Obetz edited by Margaret Hiles Scott, copyright 1932, published by The Franklin County Genealogical Society, a chapter of The Ohio Genealogical Society.

The Samuel Kerr Senior estate papers list Nancy Kerr as age 14 years in 1823. We find that Nancy Carr married Thomas Gouty in Vermillion Co., Indiana on October 14, 1830. See Indiana State Library, Genealogy Database, Marriages through 1850. There is no example we have found where Nancy's last name was spelled Kerr. However, she and her husband, Thomas Gouty, owned land adjacent to Orson Kerr as shown on a map of First Land Owners of Highland Township, Vermillion Co., Indiana.

The 1823 estate papers of Samuel Kerr Senior include an Orson Kerr, age 18. According to a biographical sketch of Orson Kerr found in “Biographical Record and Portrait Album of Tippecanoe, Indiana,” Orson was born in Pennsylvania, the son of Samuel Kerr. He lived in Franklin County, OH; moved to Fountain County, IN, in 1827. Land records show Orson Kerr owned land adjacent Thomas Gouty. Orson married Cynthia Clawson in 1828. The family moved to Tippecanoe County, IN, in 1835. While this source is not well documented, it is corroborated by official documents and, significantly, was published in 1888, during Orson’s lifetime as indicated on his grave marker.

Fountain Co., IN, marriage records confirm that Orson Carr married Cynthia Clawson on 5 December 1828. The Fountain County 1830 census lists Orson Carr as a resident. The Tippecanoe County 1840 census lists Orson Carr as a resident. The Tippecanoe County 1850 census lists Orson Keer born in Pennsylvania. The Tippecanoe County 1860 census lists Orson Kerr, born in Pennsylvania. Also see, Fountain County deed book transactions: Book 3, p. 86. April 12, 1832. Thomas Clawson and Sophia his wife deed of gift to Orson Kerr for dowry, 80 acres in Section 4, Township 21, Range 7. It is obvious this Orson Kerr/Carr was the son of Samuel Kerr of Franklin Co., Ohio, who died in 1823.

Samuel Kerr Junior, son of Samuel Kerr Senior, died 16 July 1852. Some of his estate papers are included in Illinois Wills and Probate Records, 1772 - 1999, Ancestry.com, Samuel Kerr, Probate Date: 4 Oct 1852; Probate Place: Champaign, Illinois, USA; Inferred Death Year: Abt 1852; Inferred Death Place: Illinois, USA; Case Number: 104; Item Description: Packets, No. 102-149, 1852-1855, 23 images. The title page for his probate papers and most of the pages in the file spell his name Samuel Kerr. However, page 24 of the file refers to "The Estate of Samuel Carr Dec." We note that a John Carr, who must have been the son of Samuel Kerr Junior and Betsy Taylor, was living with the Evertson family in the 1860 Champaign Co., IL census.

We have found nothing in any information related to Joseph Kerr/Carr, son of Samuel Kerr Senior, which indicates a dual spelling of his last name. Joseph was the administrator of the Samuel Kerr Junior estate and lived not far from brother Samuel, but across the county line in Vermilion Co., Illinois, which is adjacent to Champaign Co.

APPENDIX A

Estate Papers of Samuel Kerr

Abstracted Wills 1805 - 1831, Franklin Co., Ohio, Court Records with Genealogical Notes

No. 0422 KERR, Samuel - Dec’d.

8 Oct 1823 Administrators - Reuben GOLLIDAY, Lawrence FOSTER and William BEATTY. Guardianship 1824 - Benjamin FOSTER, Elijah CHENOWITH and Samuel DYER appointed guardians of Orson KERR, age 18 years; Nancy KERR, age 14 years; Clarissa KERR, age 11 years, Jackson KERR, age 4 years; Robert KERR, age 8 years; Joseph KERR, age 16 years; Samuel KERR, age 9 years and Elijah KERR, age 6 years, minor children of the deceased.

Note: Clarissa KERR, b Sept 27, 1813, died Feb 11, 1880 md Isaac DEMOREST (she was his second wife) 24 Oct 1833, probably in Franklin Co., Ohio.
Samuel KERR, father of Clarissa, was married to Nancy CHENOWETH (A descendant of this line is John H. BELL 235 West St. Louis St., Lafayette, LA 70501, born 28 Apr 1925.)

The above record appears in:

Rings, Blanche Tipton, Francis Herbert Obetz, Margaret Scott, and Ohio Genealogical Society. Franklin County Chapter. Abstracted Wills, 1805-1831, from Franklin County, Ohio, Court Records, with Genealogical Notes (Columbus, Ohio: Franklin County Genealogical Society, 1982).

(Note by Curtis L. Older: Two “Notes” appear at the bottom of the recorded listing for the Samuel Kerr will. Each of the two notes appear to have been added by the authors, Rings, Tipton, and Obetz, to the original estate paper record. One note regards Clarissa Kerr and the second note regards Samuel Kerr, father of Clarissa. It is my opinion that there was no woman named Nancy Chenoweth that Samuel Kerr could have married. Samuel was married in Pennsylvania before the 1800 census. Samuel Kerr probably was not anywhere near a Chenoweth family until his move to Ohio, and after the birth of Orson Kerr in 1805 in Pennsylvania.In researching the Chenoweth genealogy, there is no individual named Nancy Chenoweth to be found. The likely spouse of Samuel Kerr appears to be a Nancy Gwynn, Guin, or Quinn. More research needs to be undertaken by the author related to the issue of the spouse of Samuel Kerr.)


Pioneer families of Franklin Co. Ohio Franklin Co. Pioneer Families Lineage applicants,
Central Ohio Genealogical Notes and Queries by Dr. Frank W. Garner
Columbus Sunday Journal and Dispatch 1933‐1936
Franklin County Pioneer Settlers Memorial: The Ohio Genealogical Quarterly July 1919 lists a Nancy Gwynn in 1822.

APPENDIX B

Children of Thomas Gouty
-
Husband of Nancy Kerr / Carr
Husband of Elizabeth Stutler
Husband of Catherine Hoobler

The following court case, due to its significance in identifying the children of Thomas Gouty and his three wives is included below in its entirety.

Rebecca Gouty versus Elias Gouty et al Book 20, page 261, Vermillion County Court In Partition

On the 2nd day of the August Term 1865 of the Vermillion Circuit Court. The commissioners appointed by said court to make partition of the lands of which Thomas Gouty died seized of. Situated in the County of Vermillion and State of Indiana among the heirs of said deceased made the following report which was received approved and confirmed to wit - - The undersigned commissioners appointed by an order of said Court at its February Term 1865 & acting under an order on commission issued by the clerk of this court and being severally first duly sworn according law and having examined said lands in the petition mentioned make the following report of partition among the parties plaintiffs & defendants to wit. We find upon a careful examination & valuation of said real estate that Elias Gouty having received the sum of twelve hundred & ninty dollars as an advancement from his Father as found by the court that said Elias is therefore not entitled to any part of said lands in Partition. We then severed the interest of William Gouty and Amos Gouty coming to them through their mother and set off to them in portion twenty acres described as follows Viz Beginning seventy two rods south of the north west corner of the north east quarter of Section eighteen in township nineteen north of range nine west and running from thence east eighty rods -- thence south forty rods -- thence west eighty rods -- thence north forty rods to the beginning. Of the remainder of said real estate we set off to Cathrine Gouty - the widow. the west half of the south east quarter of section seventeen township nineteen north of range nine west eighty acres more or less together with the homestead improvements thereon also twenty eight acres off the south end of the west half of the north east quarter of the same section township and range. Also twenty acres off the north end of the east half of the north west quarter of section number nine in said township nineteen north of range nine west and also thirty acres off the south end of the east half of the south west quarter of section four in township nineteen north of range nine west the same being one third in value according to quality and quantity of all of said remainder of said real estate.

1. To Ellen Shute we set off twenty acres the south half of the north west quarter of the north west quarter of Section seventeen in township nineten north of range nine west and thirty-five acres bounded and described as follows to wit Beginning four (4) rods east of the south west Rebecca Gouty versus Elias Gouty et al Book 20, page 262, Vermillion County Court In Partition corner of the south east quarter of section five in township nineteen north of range nine west and running from thence as follows viz. north one hundred and sixty rods thence east thirty five rods thence south one hundred and sixty rods thence west thirty five rods to the beginning.

2. To Frederick M. Hoobler we set off twenty acres the north half of the north west quarter of the north west quarter of section seventeen township nineteen north of range nine west and thirty five acres bounded and described as follows viz. Beginning thirty nine rods east of the south west corner of the south east quarter of section five in township nineteen north of range nine west and running from thence as follows to wit. North one hundred and sixty rods thence east thirty five rods thence south one hundred and sixty rods thence west thirty five rods to the beginning.

3. To Clara Chezem we set off thirty six acres off the north end of the west half of the north east quarter of section eighteen in township nineteen north of range nine west and sixteen acres in the south half of section five township nineteen north of range nine west bounded and described as follows viz. Beginning four rods east of the south west corner of the south east quarter of section five township nineteen north of range nine west and running from thence north one hundred and sixty rods thence west sixteen rods thence south one hundred and sixty rods. - thence east sixteen rods to the Beginning.

4. To Russell Gouty we set off the north east quarter of the north west quarter of section seventeen in township nineteen north of range nine west containing forty acres more or less and six acres off the east side of the west half of the south east quarter of section five in township nineteen north of range nine west it being six rods wide from east to west and one hundred and sixty rods from north to south and the remainder of said west half of the south east quarter of section five township 19 R 9 W.

5. To Amos Gouty we set off twenty four acres off the south end of the west half of the north east quarter of section eighteen in township nineteen north of range nine west and eight acres off the north side of the north west quarter of the south east quarter of the same section township and range and also eighteen acres in the east half of the south west quarter of section five in township nineteen north of range nine west and bounded as follows viz. Beginning twelve rods west of the south east corner of the south west quarter of said section five in township nineteen north Rebecca Gouty versus Elias Gouty et al Book 20, page 263, Vermillion County Court In Partition of range nine west and running from thence north one hundred and sixty rods thence west eighteen rods thence south one hundred and sixty rods -- thence east eighteen rods to the Beginning.

6. To William Gouty we set off thirty two acres off the south side of the north west quarter of the south east quarter of section eighteen in township nineteen north or range nine west and also eighteen acres bounded and described as follows to wit. Beginning thirty rods west of the south east corner of the south west quarter of section five in township nineteen north of range nine west and running from thence north one hundred and sixty rods thence west eighteen rods thence south one hundred and sixty rods - thence east eighteen rods to the Beginning.

7. To David H. Gouty we set off twenty acres of the north end of the East half of the south east quarter of section seventeen in township nineteen north of range nine west also thirteen acres off the north end of the west half of the north east quarter of the same section township and range and also eight acres bounded and described as follows to wit. Beginning forty eight rods west of the south east corner of the south west quarter of section five in township nineteen north of range nine west and running from thence north one hundred and sixty rods thence west eight rods thence south one hundred and sixty rods thence east eight rods to the Beginning.

8. To Frederick Gouty we set off twenty acres the south half of the north east quarter of the south east quarter of section seventeen in township nineteen north of range nine west and thirteen acres bounded and described as follows to wit. Beginning twenty six rods south of the north west corner of the north east quarter of said section seventeen township nineteen north of range nine west and running from thence south twenty six rods thence east eighty rods thence north twenty six rods thence west eighty rods to the beginning and also eight acres bounded and described as follows viz. Beginning fifty six rods west of the south east corner of the south west quarter of section five in township nineteen north of range nine west and running from thence north one hundred and sixty rods thence west eighty rods thence south one hundred and sixty rods thence east eight rods to the beginning.

9. To Lilly B. Gouty we set off twenty acres the north half of the south east quarter of the south east quarter of section seventeen in township nineteen north of range nine west and thirteen acres bounded and described as follows viz. Beginning fifty two rods south of the north west corner of the north east quarter of said section seventeen in town- Rebecca Gouty versus Elias Gouty et al Book 20, page 264, Vermillion County Court In Partition -ship nineteen north of range nine west and running from thence east eighty rods thence south twenty six rods thence west eighty rods thence north twenty six rods to the beginning and also eight acres described as follows Viz. Beginning sixty four rods west of the south east corner of the south west quarter of section five in township nineteen north of range nine west and running from thence north one hundred and sixty rods thence west eight rods thence south one hundred and sixty rods thence east eight rods to the place of the beginning.

10. To Mary Alice Gouty we set off the south half of the south east quarter of the south east quarter of section seventeen in township nineteen north of range nine west containing twenty acres more or less also thirteen acres described as follows Viz. Beginning seventy eight rods south of the north west corner of the north east quarter of said section seventeen township nineteen north of range nine west and running from thence east eighty rods thence south twenty six rods thence west eighty rods thence north twenty six rods to the beginning and also eight acres off the west side of the east half of the south west quarter of section five in township nineteen north of range nine west it being eight rods wide from east to west and one hundred and sixty rods long from north to south and the remainder of said east half of said quarter section the ten share or portions of land or real estate as set off and herein described by us each being one tenth in value according to quality and quantity of two thirds of the real estate of said T(h)omas Gouty deceased after severing the interest of William Gouty and Amos Gouty de(s)cending to them through their mother out of the lands of William Stutler deceased all of which will more fully appear by a reference to a plat of said lands hereunto appended and all of which is respectfully submitted to our Honour for confirmation or rejection as you shall deem right and proper in the premises. Newport, Vermillion County, Indiana, August 22nd A. D. 1865.

George H. McNeill Jonas Metzger Benjamin Whittenmyer, Commissioners

State of Indiana, County of Vermillion} I the undersigned Clerk of the Cir. Court in & for said county do certify that the above and foregoing is a full true and complete copy of the commissioners report in the above entitled cause and that the same was received approved and confirmed by the court witness my hand and seal of said court at Newport this 31st day of August 1865. Wm E. Livengood Clerk of the Ver. Cir Court (seal) Recorded this 19th day of December A. D. 1865 at 1 clk P. M. R. E. Stephens Recorder

APPENDIX C

THE FOSTERS

JOHN FOSTER and Three of His Children:
BENJAMIN FOSTER, CASSANDRA FOSTER, AND RACHEL FOSTER

Reverend John Foster was born in 1735 in Cumberland, Prince George's County, Maryland. He died 1 January 1800 in Oldtown, Allegany County, Maryland. He married Elizabeth Lewis in 1758 in Prince George's County, Maryland. Elizabeth was born in 1738 in Cumberland, Allegany County, Maryland, and died in 1783 in Bedford County, Pennsylvania.

The will of Reverend John Foster, signed 11 July 1799 and probated 11 February 1800, indicates the estate was disposed of as follows, in part: “To sons Benjamin and Joseph and daughters Cassandra Chenworth and Rachel Chenworth property in Ross County, O.”(1)

The parents of Cassandra Foster, Rachel Foster, and Benjamin Foster were Reverend John Foster and Elizabeth Lewis.

Reverend John Foster was born in June 1731 in Prince George's County, Maryland. He died 1 January 1800 in Oldtown, Alleghany County, Maryland.

Elizabeth Lewis was born in 1738 in Cumberland, Allegany County, Maryland. She died in 1783 in Bedford County, Pennsylvania.

Benjamin Foster was born 13 June 1775 in Maryland. He died 10 October 1844 in Attica, Fountain County, Indiana.

Benjamin Foster was named as an administrator, along with John Harvey and Reuben Golliday, on 28 October 1812, for the estate of Thomas Lewis, deceased. Appointed on 17 November 1812 were Elijah and Thomas Chenoweth.(2) Elijah Chenoweth had married Rachel Foster. Thomas Chenoweth had married Cassandra Foster. Benjamin Foster was named as a security for the estate of Elijah Chenowith, Apr. 7, 1829. The administrator appointed was Elijah Chenowith, assumed to be a son.(3)

Benjamin Foster was born 1 May 1775 in Allegany County, Maryland. He died 11 October 1844 at Attica, Fountain County, Indiana. Benjamin married Catherine Prather on 14 February 1798 in Allegany County, Maryland.(4), She was the daughter of James Prather and Sarah Beatty. She was born 11 February 1775 in Alleghany County, Maryland, and died 30 August 1843 in Warren County, Indiana.(5) She is buried at the Ruppert Cemetery (also perhaps known as Rob Roy Cemetery), Attica, Fountain County, Indiana.(6) Benjamin Foster is buried in the Ruppert (or Rob Roy) Cemetery, Attica, Fountain County, Indiana. His tombstone indicates he died Oct. 11, 1844, aged 69 y. 5 m. 10 d.(7)

Benjamin Foster was appointed Guardian in 1824 for the children of Samuel Kerr. Difficulty in tracing the children of Samuel Kerr, in part, is due to the move by most of the children to western Indiana in company with the Benjamin Foster family. Benjamin bought 320 acres of land in Fountain County, Indiana, on 20 April 1826.(8) This land was in Sections 10, 28, and 29 of Township 21 North, Range 7 West.
Section 10 East Half of the Southwest Quarter
Section 28 West Half of the Southwest Quarter
Section 29 West Half of the Northwest Quarter
Section 29 East Half of the Southeast Quartr

The 1830 and 1840 census records of Fountain County, Indiana, each show a household headed by Benjamin Foster. The 1830 U.S. federal census for Shawnee, Fountain, Indiana, lists a Benjamin Foster age 40-50 and wife of the same age range. Both Benjamin and his wife should have been age 55 in the 1830 census.(9) The 1840 U.S. federal census for Shawnee, Fountain, Indiana indicated Benjamin Foster was 60 to 69 years of age. His wife was listed as 60 to 69 years of age. This agrees with the dates shown on their tombstones.(10)

Book 1, p. 424. July 10, 1829. Thomas Clawson and Sophia his wife to Benjamin Foster for 300 dollars. 80 acres in Section 27, Township 21, Range 7.

Book 3, p. 163. April 24, 1832. Thomas Clawson and Sophia his wife sold to James Foster for 500 dollars. 80 acres. Part of Section 29, Township 21, Range 7.

January 20, 1838. Received of Timothy Clawson one of the Administrators of Thomas Clawson deceas. the sum of twelve dollars. /s/ Orson Kerr.

Received of Thomas Clauson one of the Administrators of the Estate of Thomas Clauson deceased, Eight hundred dollars this 7 day of April AD 1837. /s/Sophia Clawson. Appears to have been witnessed by Orson Kerr.

In the 1888 Tippecanoe County History biography of Thomas' daughter Cynthia and her husband Orson Kerr, Thomas is described as: "one of the old and honored pioneers of Fountain County".


Children of Benjamin Foster and Catherine Prather who were born in Ross or Franklin County, Ohio, and who are buried in Fountain County, Indiana:

1. James Foster was born April 3, 1803 in Ross County, Ohio and died 13 August 1845 in Fountain County, Indiana, buried at Rob Roy Cemetery.(11) James Foster purchased 80 acres of land on 5 January 1831 in Range 7 West, Township 21 North, Section 9, Fountain County, Indiana. He would have been 27 years old at the time of this purchase. He appears in the 1850, 1860, 1870 Shawnee Township, Fountain County, Indiana, census records.

2. John I. Foster was born 08 March 1805 in Ross County, Ohio, and died 08 September 1874 in Fountain County, Indiana, buried in Beulah Shawnee Cemetery, Fountain County, Indiana. John (J. or I.) Foster purchased 82 acres of land on 1 September 1826 in Range 7 West, Township 21 North, Section 9, Fountain County, Indiana. He would have been 21 years old at the time of his first purchase. He also purchased land jointly with John Lopp on 15 May 1827 in Section 30. John Foster, age 45, born about 1805, was living in Shawnee Township, Fountain County, Indiana, in the 1850 census. His wife's name is Abigal, age 30, and she was born in Connecticut.

3. Basil Prather Foster was born 14 February 1816, in Franklin County, Ohio and died 02 May 1872 in Fountain County, Indiana. No patent records for Basil Prather Foster have been found. A Basel Foster is in the 1850 Shawnee Township, Fountain County, Indiana census, age 34, born in Ohio. His wife is Eliza, age 30. See page 611 of Past and Present of Fountain and Warren Counties, Indiana, edited by Thomas A. Clifton of the Covington Republican, 1913, B. F. Bowen & Company, Indianapolis, Indiana.

A Benjamin Foster was born about 1825 in Ohio. Listed in 1850 Shawnee Township, Fountain County, Indiana, census

A Joseph Foster, age 40, living in Richland Township, Fountain County, Indiana, in 1850 gives his state of birth as Pennsylvania.

A number of Fosters born in the 1820s are listed in the 1850 Shawnee Township, Fountain County, Indiana, census.

Pioneer Families of Franklin County, Ohio, lists the following individuals and their arrival dates in the county: Chenoweth, Elijah 1799; Chenoweth, John 1799; Chenoweth Nancy 1827; Chenoweth II Elijah 1800; Benjamin Foster 1801; Rachel Foster 1799.(12)

In 1809 to 1810 Madison and Pickaway counties were formed from Franklin and Ross Counties.(13) It seems possible that Thomas Gouty of Pickaway County met Nancy Kerr/Carr while she was living in Franklin County, Ohio. Pickaway County came into existence March 1, 1810, the General Assembly of Ohio, in session at Chillicothe, having on the 12th day of January, 1810, passed an act establishing the county, the full text of which is as follows :

An act for erecting a part of the counties of Ross, Franklin and Fairfield, into a separate county, by the name of Pickaway:
Sec. 1. Be it enacted, etc., That all that part of the counties of Ross, Franklin and Fairfield, within the following boundaries, be, and the same is hereby erected into a separate county, to be known by the name of Pickaway: Beginning on the east side of the Scioto river, at the intersection of a line between township two and three, of range twenty-two, Worthington's survey; thence east with the township lines, to the southeast corner of township number eleven, and range twenty; thence north with the range line, to the northeast corner of section number one, of township eleven, in range twenty; thence west with the township line, to the northwest corner of said township; thence with the range line, to the northeast corner of section number thirteen, in township ten, of range twenty-one, Matthew's survey; thence west to the Scioto river, thence west from the Scioto river, twelve miles; thence south twenty miles; thence east to the Scioto river; thence down said river to the place of beginning.

Thomas Chenoweth and Joseph Chenoweth jointly acquired land before either Orson Kerr or Thomas Gouty. They purchased 80 acres of land on 30 January 1828 which consisted of “the east half of the south east quarter of section seventeen in township nineteen north and range nine west”.(14) Thomas Chenoweth, Justice of the Peace, June 19, 1829.(15)

APPENDIX D

An Analysis of Several Children of
Thomas Chenoweth and his wife, Cassandra Foster

Thomas Chenoweth II was born 12 September 1753 Baltimore County, Maryland, and died 17 August 1814 in Franklin County, Ohio. The parents of Thomas Chenoweth II (1753-1814) were Thomas Chenoweth I and Mary Prickett. He married Cassandra Foster on 17 August 1785 in Allegheny County, Maryland. The parents of Cassandra Foster were Reverend John Foster and Elizabeth Lewis.

Cassandra Foster, a sister of Benjamin, was born 30 Dec 1762 in Cumberland, Allegany County, Maryland.(16) She died in January 1850 and was buried in the Lowe Cemetery at Perrysville, Vermillion County, Indiana.(17) She was the daughter of John Foster and married a Thomas Chenoweth as indicated in her father’s will probated 11 February 1800 in Ross County, Ohio.(18) Thomas Chenoweth, husband of Cassandra Foster, was born 10 September 1753 in Frederick County, Virginia, and died 17 August 1814 in Franklin County, Ohio, and is buried in the Chenoweth Cemetery there.(19) There is a Thomas Chenoweth listed in the Ohio tax list for 1808 in Franklin County.(20)

Cassandra was the mother of a Thomas Chenoweth III and a Joseph Chenoweth.(21) We believe her sons owned an 80 acre tract of land next to Orson Kerr and Thomas Gouty in Section 17, Highland Township, Vermillion County, Indiana. A Thomas Chenoweth III is buried at the Lowe Cemetery in Perrysville, Vermillion County, Indiana. His date of birth was 2 November 1800 in Franklin County, Ohio, and he died 13 February 1859 in Highland Township, Vermillion County, Indiana. His wife’s name was Rachel.(22) Thomas Chinoweth married Rachel Perrin on 27 January 1825 in Franklin County, Ohio.(23)

A monument at Lowe Cemetery, Perrysville, IN, entitled “Highland Township Pioneers, interred in Lowe Cemetery 1832 – 1866, reinterred in Hicks Cemetery July 3, 1968” includes the names of Thomas Chenoweth (1801-1859) and Rachel Chenoweth (1806-1866) and Cassandra Chenoweth (17??-1850)(24) It seems reasonable to believe that Cassandra Foster Chenoweth accompanied her sons to Vermillion County, Indiana, in the late 1820s.

A sister to Thomas and Joseph Chenoweth was a Ruth Chenoweth.(25) She married an Ira Wingfield Parish on 29 December 1814 in Franklin County, Ohio.(26) An Ira Parrish is listed in the 1830 Vermillion County, Indiana, census. Both he and his wife are listed as age 30 to 39.(27) Ira Parish and his wife Ruth are listed in the 1850 census for District 71, Polk County, Missouri. Ira’s age is given as 59 and Ruth’s age as 53. If she married Ira in 1814 at age 18, she would be age 54 in 1850.

Yet another child of Thomas Chenoweth and Cassandra Foster, John Chenoweth (23 December 1785 to 04 October 1865) may have accompanied Orson Kerr to Tippecanoe County, Indiana. John Chenoweth is buried at the Dayton Cemetery in Tippecanoe County, Indiana.(28)

It is very clear that Benjamin Foster, his wife, and children moved to Fountain County, Indiana, from Franklin County, Ohio, in the late 1820s. Cassandra Foster Chenoweth, a sister of Benjamin Foster, and at least some of her children moved to Fountain and Vermillion Counties in Indiana, from Franklin County, Ohio, in the late 1820s or early 1830s.

Thomas Chenoweth II and Cassandra Foster were the parents of
Joseph, Thomas, Ruth, and Cassandra Chenoweth.

Thomas Chenoweth II (1753-1814) died 17 August 1814 in Pleasant Township, Franklin County, Ohio.
Cassandra Foster Chenoweth (30 December 1762- January 1850) died in Vermillion County, IN.

Joseph Chenoweth, son of Thomas and Cassandra, born 29 May 1805, Franklin County, Ohio, and died 5 December 1865 in Bolivar, Polk County, Missouri. He was married to Roseann (or Rose Ann) Mitchell on 24 October 1837 in Vermillion County, Indiana. The 1830 Vermillion County, Indiana census lists a Joseph Chenoweth family with 1 male 20 to 30, 1 female 5 to 10, 1 female 50 to 60. He was buried at the Pleasant Hill Cemetery, in Burns Township, Polk County, Missouri.

Thomas Chenoweth III, son of Thomas and Cassandra, was born 2 November 1800 in Pleasant Township, Franklin County, Ohio. He died 13 February 1859 in Perryville, Highland Township, Vermillion County, Indiana. He married Rachel Perrin on 27 January 1825 in Pleasant Township, Franklin County, Ohio. The 1830 Vermillion County, Indiana, census lists a Thomas Chenoweth family with: 2 males under 5, 1 male 30 to 40, 1 female under 5, 1 female 5 to 10, 1 female 20 to 30. The 1850 Highland, Vermillion, Indiana census lists him as age 49, born in Ohio; Rachel as age 44, born in Ohio; Mary age 25 born in Ohio, Ruth age 20 born in Indiana.

Ruth Chenoweth, daughter of Thomas and Cassandra, born 21 April 1787 in Mason, Ohio. Married 14 April 1814 Pleasant Township, Franklin County, Ohio, Ira Parish. Died 1854 in Polk County, Missouri. 1850 District 71, Polk County, Missouri census, Ira Parish age 59, Ruth age 53. An Ira Parrish (ancestry.com says Joa Parrish) is listed in the 1830 Vermillion County, Indiana, census. A female is listed as age 30 thru 39 who could be Cassandra Chenoweth Parrish age 39 or 40.

Cassandra Chenoweth (1790 to 1839), daughter of Thomas and Cassandra, died in Warren County, Indiana. Married first a Clark. Married second James B. Perrin, 19 June 1828, in Warren County, IN.(Indiana Marriage Index, 1806-1861) There is a James Perrin age 50, born in Ohio, living in Mound Township, Warren County, Inidiana, in the 1850 census. Oldest female is Julia Perrin age 30. Appears Cassandra Chenoweth Clark Perrin had died by 1850.

Benjamin Franklin Chenoweth, son of Thomas and Cassandra (16 March 1795 - 11 July 1885) Born in Mason, Kentucky and died in Forsyth, Taney County, Missouri. Acquired land in Warren County, Indiana, on 10 April 1826, 20 April 1826, and 2 tracts on 18 March 1837. He acquired two tracts in Vermilion County, Illinois. One tract on 16 March 1837 and one on 1 November 1839. He married Fanny McKenzie/McKinsey (1800-1872) on 16 March 1817 in Franklin County, Ohio. Benjamin Chenoweth is listed in the 1830 Warren County, Indiana, census.

APPENDIX E

An Analysis of Several Children of
Elijah Chenoweth and his wife, Rachel Foster

The parents of Elijah Chenoweth(1762-1828) were Thomas Chenoweth and Mary Prickett.

The parents of Cassandra Foster and Rachel Foster were Reverend John Foster and Elizabeth Lewis.

Elijah Chenoweth was named as a guardian for the Samuel Kerr children in 1823.(29) Elijah Chenoweth married Rachel Foster, a sister of Benjamin Foster.(30) Rachel Foster was born August 11, 1769 in Cumberland, Allegany, Maryland and died April 17, 1825 in Harrisburg, Franklin, Ohio.(31) She married Elijah Chenoweth in 1785 in Frederick, Virginia.(32)

Elijah and Rachel (Foster) Chenoweth, natives of Maryland, were early settlers in Kentucky, and about 1795 emigrated to Pike County, and settled near what is now the southern boundary of Ross.  They removed, in the fall of 1799, to Pleasant township, Franklin county, being its first pioneers.(33) Elijah died 05 December 1828, aged 66 yrs. 5 mo. & 23 Ds. Also engraved on the tombstone is the following: Rachel Chenoweth, died 17 Apr. 1825, aged 56 yrs. 8 mo. & 6 ds. They are buried in the Chenoweth Cemetery in Pleasant Township, Franklin County, Ohio.(34)

Elijah's will was probated on April 7, 1829, mentioning all his living children:  Thomas, John F., Joseph, Rachel, Cassandra, Elizabeth, and Elijah. His son, Lewis, as well as his wife, Rachel, had preceded him in death. Some of Elijah's children went to Vermilion Co., IL, others lived on in Franklin County.(35)

The will of Elijah Chenoweth names among his heirs, Thomas, Joseph, and Elijah Chenoweth. Elijah is named as the youngest son and, according to his gravestone, was born in 1806.(36) I do not believe that Thomas and Joseph Chenoweth, sons of Elijah Chenoweth, are the Thomas and Joseph Chenoweth who jointly purchased a tract of land adjacent to Orson Kerr and Thomas Gouty in Highland Township, Vermillion County, Indiana. I believe they were the sons of Cassandra Foster Chenoweth.

Elijah Chenoweth and Rachel Foster were the parents of Joseph, Thomas, Ruth, and Cassandra Chenoweth.

Elijah Chenoweth was born 12 June 1762 in Frederick County, Virginia and died 05 December 1828 in Franklin County, Ohio.

Rachel Foster was born 11 August 1768 in Frederick County, Virginia and died 17 April 1825 in Franklin County, Ohio.

Joseph Chenoweth, son of Elijah and Rachel, was born 05 September 1798 in Chillicothe, Ross County (now Pike), Ohio, and died 09 January 1869 at Harrisburg, Franklin County, Ohio, and is buried in Chenoweth Cemetery, Franklin County, Ohio. He married Margaret Heath (1796 to 1861).

Thomas Chenoweth, son of Elijah and Rachel was born 22 May 1786 in Allegany Co., Maryland and died 16 September 1849 in Vermilion County, Illinois. He married Rachel Morgan on 9 September 1811 in Fayette County, Ohio. She was born in 1785 in Virginia and died after 1860 in Illinois.

Ruth Chenoweth, daughter of Elijah and Rachel was born 19 November 1809 in Franklin County, Ohio, and died 9 April 1835. She married James Davison on 3 April 1828 in Franklin County, Ohio. James Davison was born 3 June 1805 in Ohio and died 3 January 1875 in Danville, Vermilion County, Illinois.(37)

Cassandra Chenoweth, daughter of Elijah and Rachel, was born 9 December 1800 at Pleasant Township, Franklin County, Ohio, and died before 1880. She married John Morgan, 1816, in Franklin Co., OH. He was born 28 September 1794 in Montgomery Co., VA and he died 28 February 1849 in Vermilion Co., IL.

APPENDIX F

Will of Elijah Chenoweth
(12 June 1762 to 05 December 1828)

Elijah of Franklin Co., OH s/o Thomas
Franklin Co, OH: dated July 21, 1828, filed April 7, 1829
copy procured for the website Cinda Lou Justice, transcribed by Jon D. Egge

Franklin Common Pleas Term 1829, The State of Ohio

Elijah Chenoweth of the County of Franklin in the State of Ohio do make and publish this my last will and testament in manner and form following that is to say, first it is my will that all funeral expenses and all my just debts be fully paid. And I give and devise to my youngest son Elijah Chenoweth the farm on which I now reside, situate and being in the County of Franklin in the State of Ohio containing two hundred and fifty acres supposed to be lying in the Virginia Military lands unto his heirs and assigns forever and all my Horses, Cattle, Sheep and Hogs and farmer tools. Also all my household furniture and other items of my personal property and my son Elijah is to pay the amount of one hundred dollars to each of my other children. That’s to pay my son Thomas Chenoweth one hundred dollars. To my daughter Elizabeth Kerr one hundred dollars – to my son John F. Chenoweth one hundred dollars – to my daughter Sarah Haines one hundred dollars – to my son Joseph one hundred dollars – to my daughter Cassandra Morgan one hundred dollars – to my daughter Rachel Wood one hundred dollars – to my daughter Ruth Davidson one hundred dollars to be had 4 years after my decease.
Elijah Chenoweth (Seal).

July 21st 1828, Witnesses present:
Jacob Grubb
Jonathan B. Perrin
Franklin County Pleas April term 1829 The State of Ohio, Franklin Co.
Personally appeared before the open court the within named Jacob Grubb and Jonathan B. Perrin who examined by the court touching the within instrument depose and swear that they did in the presence of Elijah Chenoweth and the presence of each other and subscribe said instrument as the last will and testament of said Elijah and at his request – that Elijah was at the time of subscribing the same – of sound and disposing mind and memory at the time said – and did declare the above to be his last will and testament and the said Elijah Chenoweth subscribe the same
April 7th 1829
Attest A, McDowell, Clerk.

APPENDIX G

Senator and General JOSEPH KERR
A Brother of Samuel Kerr Senior

BY WM. E. GILMORE, CHILLICOTHE, OHIO.

Volume 12, pages 164 - 166, Ohio Arch. and His. Society Publications
 
[The following article from the pen of Mr. Gilmore appeared in the columns of The Daily Scioto Gazette of March 21, 1903. As this article presents the history of Senator Kerr, nowhere else to be found, it is thought sufficiently valuable to deserve permanent preservation and is therefore herewith re-published.- E. O. R.]

 

At length my inquiries and correspondence, begun in 1886, for the purpose of recovering something of the personal history of General Joseph Kerr, a very early resident of Chillicothe, and in his day a very prominent and important one, has met with some success through the kind assistance of Mr. Henry Clay Carrel, an eminent architect, of 1123 Broadway, New York, who is a son of the well-known Captain Hercules Carrel, formerly of Cincinnati, and a great-grandson of General Kerr.

It has been strangely difficult to get information in regard to this notable person, owing to many peculiar causes. In the first place he himself was utterly indifferent as to whether his fellow citizens or any others knew anything about him or not. In the second place, while his correct name was Kerr, almost every person who knew him spelled and pronounced it Carr, and this fact gave infinite trouble to his descendants afterward, in proving up title to a large land grant, made by the Republic of Texas to soldiers of its revolutionary war with Mexico.

He was defeated in long litigation for that magnificent farm just east of this city, known as the Watts farm, and the defeat almost impoverished him, and greatly embittered him. He had been unjustly treated, he thought, in large contracts for supplies to the army of the U. S., operating under General Hull. He had quarreled with Gov. Thomas Worthington, to whose remnant of senatorial term he had been elected by the General Assembly of Ohio, and finally he, with his family, had made two or three changes of residence after leaving Chillicothe in 1824, and if he ever wrote a single letter back to anyone here, I never could hear of it, although I have made diligent search for such. And so "his trail" was lost, and so completely lost, that even so intelligent, industrious and resourceful an investigator as Col. W. A. Taylor, of Columbus, gave it up, and in his list of Ohio Statesmen, simply designates him as "the lost Ohio Senator." Therefore, when I, this morning, received the documents. which enable me to give the salient points of General Kerr's personal history, as herein given, from his great-grandson, Mr. H. C. Carrel, I was inclined to echo the old Greek's shout, "eureka! eureka!"

General Joseph Kerr was born of Scotch ancestry in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, in 1765, and was married in that city, to Nancy Daugherty, a young lady of Irish descent, in 1788. He removed to Ohio with his young family "in the year 1792," according to the statements of his son, James D. Kerr, (who was still living on a part of the homestead farm, in Carrel Parish, near Lake Providence, Louisiana, in 1887-and I do not know how much later) "and settled on an highly improved and large tract of bottom land, one mile below Chillicothe on the Scioto river, but the title was disputed by a Virginian by the name of Watts, who, after 18 years of litigation, gained the land from my father."

This date, 1792, must be wrong, for it is four years earlier than the advent of Nathaniel Massie's party of original settlers in this valley, or the occupancy of this region by any white people. But certainly Kerr came very soon after Massie's party did, i. e., very soon after April 1st, 1796. I can myself remember that a lane, which led from the northeastern part of this city, eastward to the race track on the Watts farm, was known as "Carr's Lane."  The oldest powder-house was located upon it, near its eastern end.

He was elected to the legislature as a representative from Ross County, in 1804. When Thomas Worthington resigned his place in the United States senate in 1814, to accept the governorship of Ohio, to which he had been elected. Mr. Kerr was elected to fill out the unexpired part of his term, which, however, only lasted from December 10th, 1814, to March 4th, 1815. At that time he and Worthington were decidedly "at outs" with each other, and I never could understand how and why he was selected to succeed to Worthington's remnant of a senatorial term.  It may be that it was as a peace-offering from the friends of the governor-elect in that General Assembly.

Senator Kerr held a commission as brigadier general of volunteers in 1812-1815, and is reported to have seen some service in the field, during the war, but I am not able to say what or how much it was. In 1824, Kerr, with his family, left Ohio, intending to remove to Mexico, but stopped at Memphis, Mississippi, and having bought land near there, for a few seasons followed farming. But this location, not proving satisfactory, he moved further south and settled finally in Louisiana, a little below Lake Providence, in what is now known as Carrel Parish. Here his wife died in 1833, and he followed her to the grave in 1873.

Nine children had been born to General Kerr and his wife during their union. These were, in order of their births, named Aletha, Harriet, Chambers, Elie, Clara, Susan, Nathaniel, James and Joseph. I am unable to follow the story of these children beyond the fact that Elie was appointed a West Point cadet about 1816, and that Joseph and Nathaniel early enlisted in the Revolutionary army of Texas, and were both killed by the Mexicans under Santa Anna, in the assault and capture of the Alamo.

Both Joseph and Nathaniel were born here in Chillicothe, as were also several of their brothers and sisters. In consequence of the confusion which always existed between the names, Kerr and Carr, great trouble ensued in settling the identity of the two sons killed in the Alamo, and securing the land grants which the Republic of Texas gave to the personal representatives of her soldiers who were killed or died in that war. Testimony was taken in the case, here in Chillicothe, notably the depositions of Dr. William Waddle and of his mother, Mrs. Nancy Mann Waddle, and of Col. James McLandburg.
 
BOOK REVIEWS     85
 
General Joseph Kerr, of Chillicothe, Ohio--"Ohio's Lost Senator."

From the Carrel manuscript collection, edited by Marie Dickore. (Oxford, Ohio, Oxford Press, 1941. Cloth. 112p. $1.50.)

General Joseph Kerr was a very colorful figure in the early history of Ohio, living in Ohio for thirty years and leaving the State in 1826. His interests were varied. As brought out in this book, he was an early surveyor, the fifth United States Senator from the State, an industrial tycoon of the Scioto Valley, an exporter, a provisioner of the Army of the Northwest at Upper Sandusky in the War of 1812, active in political affairs and opposer of the United States Bank.

After his financial reverses in Ohio, he left the State for the Southwest and proceeded to build anew. The absence of information concerning him after he left Ohio gave rise to the expression "Ohio's lost Senator." As a result of interest taken in him by his great-grandchildren--Henry Clay Carrel, J. Wallace Carrel, Eleanora P. Carrel and George P. Carrel--much original material, including letters, deeds, surveys and other manuscripts covering the years 1786 to 1824 was found. This collection, supplemented by materials in possession of the Illinois Historical Survey, the Wisconsin State Historical Library and private collections, has furnished the data for this interesting and valuable contribution to one phase of Ohio's history.

The task of organizing and editing this material into the present volume was entrusted to Miss Marie Dickore, an experienced research student and writer of history. The result of her labors is embodied in this book, divided into ten chapters with bibliography and index. Much source material is included. Thanks are due to George P. Carrel in making this book possible. It is a valuable contribution to the State's history and another illustration of the possibilities for valuable research work which may be made available to the public in book form.
H. L.

APPENDIX H

JOSEPH KERR JR. - ALAMO DEFENDER

Nephew of Samuel Kerr / Carr Senior
and
First Cousin, 5 Times Removed, of Curtis L. Older

Documents in the Texas Archives Related to Joseph Kerr Jr. and Nathaniel Massie Kerr

1.
Republic of Texas }

County of Harrisburg} I do herby certify that the within is a true copy of the original letters of administration issued from this office on the 16th inst.

Houston Dec 16, 1837

Witness my hand and seal
this 16th day of Dec 1837
Clerk of Probates ?? ???


2.
Republic of Texas
County of Harrisburg
Probate Court, } On the 6th day of November
Dec. 16 1837 } last James D. Kerr

appeared in open court and applied for the administration of the Estate of Nathaniel M. Kerr deceased: And the said James D. Kerr having complied with all the requisitions of the law, and there being no legal objection filed to his appointment, it is ordered by the Court that the said James D. Kerr be, and he is hereby appointed the administrator of said Estate, with full and ample power to settle the same according to law-always subject to the decrees and orders of this Court.

?? (SS) A? ?Briscoe?
Clerk of Probate Judge of Property
?Justice


3.
Department of State

Republic of Texas

I the undersigned Secretary of State in and for the Republic of Texas do hereby certify that James Collinsworth who administered the oath to the offiant? W H Patton as stated with in was at the time and still is chief justice of this Republic with full power to administer oaths and that all of his official acts as such are entitled to full faith and credit

Given under my hand and seal of Office at the City of Houston this 22nd day of March 1837 and in (not legible) J. Pinckney Henderson Secy of State


4.
Houston Dec 3, 1837

This is to certify that I was acquainted with N. M. Kerr and Joseph Kerr of Louisiana and that the former died in February and the latter Joseph Kerr I have no doubt was massacred at the Alamo on 6th of March 1836 he at this time was Orderly Sergeant.

J. C. Neill then

Col. of Artilery and

Comd of Bexar


5.
City of Houston Republic of Texas
May 21st 1837

Personally appeared before the under?? Chief Justice of the Republic of Texas William H. Patton Quartermaster General of the Texas Army and made oath that he was at San Antonio in Texas on or about the 17th of February 1836 at which place he was ?? ??? ??? ?with? Nathaniel M. Kerr and Joseph Kerr who had entered the Texas army. He understood that they were from Louisiana. Nathaniel M Kerr died after a very short illness on or about the 17th of February 1836 and was ?supposed to be poisoned? and this officiant assisted to bury him - and this officiant is ?informed? ?are? ?this? attack and massacre at the Alamo.

Sworn to ??? }

?? the date ?? } W. H. Patton

written }

Jas Collinsworth

Chief Justice



M days

N. M. Kerr 3 11

Joseph Kerr 4 00

(Calculations at the bottom of the document appear to arrive at totals of $47.19 and $42.13 which may have been the amounts due to Joseph Kerr and Nathaniel Massie Kerr respectively.)

Joseph Kerr, brother of Samuel Kerr Senior, his life is well told in a book entitled "General Joseph Kerr of Chillicothe, Ohio. Ohio's Lost Senator". There is also a biography of him in the Ohio Archaeology and Historical Society Publication XII,p 16 4. Two of his sons, Nathaniel and Joseph Kerr, were in Col. James Bowie's group of 100 men who gave up their lives March 6, 1836, at the Alamo.

Joseph KERR, b. 1814, LA; d. Mar., 6, 1836
residence: Lake Providence LA
son of Gen. Kerr of Lake Providence, LA
brother of Nathaniel Kerr (d. Feb. 19, 1836)
uncle of James D. Kerr and Harriett Kerr Davison

Joseph Kerr Junior (1814-1836). Joseph Kerr, Alamo defender, son of General Kerr, was born at Lake Providence, Louisiana, in 1814. He and his brother, Nathaniel, traveled to Texas with Capt. S. L. Chamblis's Louisiana Volunteers for Texas Independence. In early February 1836 they were honorably discharged from Chamblis's company because their horses were disabled. The brothers continued on to San Antonio de Béxar, where Nathaniel died of a sudden illness. Joseph remained with the Texan garrison, entered the Alamo on February 23, 1836, and died on March 6 in the battle of the Alamo.

BIBLIOGRAPHY: Daughters of the American Revolution, The Alamo Heroes and Their Revolutionary Ancestors (San Antonio, 1976). Bill Groneman, Alamo Defenders (Austin: Eakin, 1990). Amelia W. Williams, A Critical Study of the Siege of the Alamo and of the Personnel of Its Defenders (Ph.D. dissertation, University of Texas, 1931; rpt., Southwestern Historical Quarterly 36 (April 1933), 37 (July, October 1933, January, April 1934).


Joseph Kerr Senior (1765 – August 22, 1837) was a Democratic-Republican politician from Ohio. He served in the United States Senate. Born in Kerrtown, Pennsylvania (now Chambersburg), Kerr (pronounced "car") moved to Ohio in 1792. He served in a number of positions as clerk, judge and justice of the peace in the Northwest Territory. After statehood was declared, he was elected to the Ohio House of Representatives in 1808, 1816, 1818, and 1819 and the Ohio State Senate in 1804 and 1810. He also served as a brigadier general of Ohio Volunteers during the War of 1812, in charge of supplying provisions to the Army of the Northwest. Kerr was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1814 to fill a vacancy created by the resignation of Thomas Worthington. Kerr served from December 10, 1814, to March 3, 1815. He did not seek re-election. Kerr's extensive farm went bankrupt in 1826, and he moved to Memphis, Tennessee and then to rural Louisiana, where he purchased a homestead.

Nathaniel Massie (1763 – November 3, 1813) was a frontier surveyor in the Ohio Country who became a prominent land owner, politician, and soldier. He founded fifteen early towns in what became the State of Ohio, including its first capital, Chillicothe. In 1807, the Ohio General Assembly declared him the winner of the election for governor, but he refused the office.

A native of the colony of Virginia, Massie served briefly in the Virginia militia during the American Revolutionary War. He platted the town of Chillicothe on his own land. Massie was one of the largest landowners in early Ohio, and served as a major general in the Ohio militia.

He served as a delegate to the 1802 Ohio Constitutional Convention and was a leader of the Jeffersonian faction that supported statehood. He was a leader of the Chillicothe Junto, a group of Chillicothe Democratic-Republican politicians who brought about the admission of Ohio as a state in 1803 and largely controlled its politics for some years thereafter. Massie served in the General Assembly and was the first president of the Ohio Senate.

Massie led troops in the War of 1812, but died of pneumonia in the late autumn of 1813 at the age of 50.


A Line in the Sand: The Alamo in Blood and Memory By Randy Roberts, James S. Olson Published by Simon & Schuster, 2001 ISBN 0743222792, 9780743222792 352 pages

Ohio's Founding Fathers by Fred J. Milligan

I have the book if you would like more information. "Two of General Kerr's sons, Nathaniel Massie Kerr and Joseph Kerr, were in Col. James Bowie's group of 100 men who joined in the Texan fight for liberty and with him gave up their lives, March 6, 1836, at the Alamo where a bronze tablet marks their last resting place. Their brother, James D. Kerr, was appointed their adminstrator because both died intestate and unmarried and Texas granted them and their heirs vast tracts of lands for their services. Some of this land was lost to the heirs but some was held for their brothers and sisters." Renee Kerr  

Hi: Joseph Kerr and his brother Nathaniel died at the Alamo after joining a group of 30 volunteers. There is a plaque with both of their names at the site. Their father was one of most famous Kerrs, General Joseph Kerr, later referred to as the "Ohio's Lost Senator." He was born 1765 in Chambersburg, PA and died in LA in 1837. He married Mary Daugherty. They had: Aletha, Harriet, Chambers, Elie Williams, Susan Blair, Nathaniel Massie, James D., and Joseph. They all descend from John Kerr, 1745-1807 and Mary Doherty, both from PA. I descend from the General's brother John Kerr and Christena Nisewanger. Hope this helps – Bob

KERR, JOSEPH (1814-1836). Joseph Kerr, Alamo defender, son of General Kerr, was born at Lake Providence, Louisiana, in 1814. He and his brother, Nathaniel, traveled to Texas with Capt. S. L. Chamblis's Louisiana Volunteers for Texas Independence. In early February 1836 they were honorably discharged from Chamblis's company because their horses were disabled. The brothers continued on to San Antonio de Bexar, where Nathaniel died of a sudden illness. Joseph remained with the Texan garrison, entered the Alamo on February 23, 1836, and died on March 6 in the battle of the Alamo.
Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 37, Number 4: 

Footnote 18

On January 9, 1875, before Robert W. Walton, Notary Public of Navarro County, Texas, S. L. Chambliss swore that on or near the first of February, 1836, he as captain of the Louisiana Volunteers for Texas Independence, honorably discharged Nathaniel and Joseph Kerr from his company, because of the disability of their horses. He sent them to join the Texas troops at San Antonio, Texas. He further swore that their names appear as citizens of Bexar County on abstracts of land certificates, but says that is a mistake, for they were volunteer soldiers from Louisiana, fighting for Texas independence, and that they fell at the Alamo.

On the same day and before the same Notary, Mary E. Martin swore that in February, 1836, she saw and read a letter, written to General Kerr of Lake Providence, Louisiana, by his son, Nathaniel Kerr, who was then stationed at the Alamo in San Antonio. In this letter Nathaniel Kerr stated that he and his brother, Joseph, were honorably discharged from their original company in the Texas service, on account of the disability of their horses and that they were then stationed at the Alamo. It was later believed by all their friends that both brothers had died at the Alamo.

Both these men were unmarried, and their heirs were a niece, Harriett Kerr Davisson, and a nephew, James D. Kerr. In their Power of Attorney, made February 24, 1855, the claimants state that Nathaniel Kerr died from a sudden disease at the Alamo on February 19, 1836. Likewise Bounty Warrant, Nacogdoches 416, states the same and gives the man--Nathaniel Kerr--an honorable discharge by death.

Bounty Warrant, Nacogdoches 417, shows that Joseph Kerr "died with Travis at the Alamo, March 6, 1836." These warrants were granted by Barnard E. Bee, December 19, 1837, and were approved by James S. Gillett, June 21, 1854.

The Battle of the Alamo (February 23 – March 6, 1836) is the most famous battle of the Texas Revolution. After an insurgent army Texan settlers and adventurers from the United States drove all Mexican troops out of Mexican Texas, Mexican President Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna led an invasion to regain control of the area. Mexican forces arrived in San Antonio de Bexar on February 23 and initiated a siege of the Texan forces garrisoned at the Alamo Mission.

In the early morning hours of March 6 the Mexican army launched an assault on the Alamo. The outnumbered Texans repulsed two attacks, but were unable to fend off a third. As Mexican soldiers scaled the walls, most of the Texan soldiers retreated into the long barracks or the chapel. Several small groups who were unable to reach these points attempted to escape and were killed outside the walls by the waiting Mexican cavalry. The Mexican soldiers fought room-to-room and soon had control over the Alamo. Between five and seven Texans may have surrendered; if so, they were quickly executed on Santa Anna's orders. Most eyewitness accounts reported between 182 and 257 Texan dead, while most Alamo historians agree that 400–600 Mexicans were killed or wounded. Of the Texans who fought during the battle, only two survived: Joe, spared because he was a slave, and Brigido Guerrero, a Mexican Army deserter who convinced Mexican soldiers he had been imprisoned. Women and children, primarily family members of the Texan soldiers, were questioned by Santa Anna and then released. On Santa Anna's orders, three of the survivors were sent to Gonzales to spread word of the Texan defeat. After hearing this news, Texan army commander Sam Houston ordered a retreat; this sparked the Runaway Scrape, a mass exodus of citizens and the Texas government towards the east (away from the Mexican army). News of the Alamo's fall prompted many Texas colonists to join Houston's army. On the afternoon of April 21 the Texan army attacked Santa Anna's forces in the Battle of San Jacinto. During the battle many Texans shouted "Remember the Alamo!" Santa Anna was captured and forced to order his troops out of Texas, ending Mexican control of the area, which subsequently became the Republic of Texas.

By March 24 a list of names of the Texans who died at the Alamo had begun to be compiled. The first history of the battle was published in 1843, but serious study of the battle did not begin until after the 1931 publication of Amelia W. Williams's dissertation attempting to identify all of the Texans who died at the Alamo. The first full-length, non-fiction book covering the battle was published in 1948. The battle was first depicted in film in the 1911 silent film The Immortal Alamo, and has since been featured in numerous movies, including one directed by John Wayne. The Alamo church building has been designated an official Texas state shrine, with the Daughters of the Republic of Texas acting as permanent caretakers.

James Clinton Neill (c. 1790 – March 31, 1848) was a 19th century American soldier and politician, most noted for his role in the Texas Revolution and the early defense of the Alamo. He was born in North Carolina. Neill was born in North Carolina. He enlisted on 20 September 1814 and was discharged on 10 April 1815. He fought in the Creek War and was wounded at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend in 1814. In the military he commanded a company in Major William Woodfolk's Battalion of Tennessee Militia Infantry. He lived in Tennessee with his wife Margaret Harriett, who bore him three children – George Jefferson Neill (b. 1808), Samuel Clinton Neill (b. 1815) and Harriett (b. 1820). After time in Tennessee he moved his young family to Alabama, Neill served in the state legislature, then on to Texas. The family moved to Texas in 1831 with Stephen F. Austin's third colony where he received a league of land(4,428) acres. They settled in (Viesca District) what is now Milam County. Neill served as a district representative in the Convention of 1833. On January 17, 1836, James Bowie arrived with the suggestion from Sam Houston to remove the artillery and blow up the Alamo. Houston had written the Provisional Government asking for approval of his orders. Houston sent Bowie to San Antonio because he trusted Bowie's opinion. Instead of leaving the Alamo and falling back to Gonzales or Copano Bay, Bowie and Neill became committed to its defense. Bowie, impressed with Neill's leadership, wrote, "No other man in the army could have kept men at this post, under the neglect they have experienced." Despite Houston's orders to have the Alamo destroyed as indefensible, Neill and Bowie vowed "... we will rather die in these ditches than give it up to the enemy." However, Neill was soon badly in need of supplies, as well as soldiers.

On February 11, Neill left the Alamo, likely to recruit additional reinforcements and gather supplies for the garrison.[6] He transitioned command to Travis, the highest-ranking regular army officer in the garrison. Neill was heading back to the Alamo when the fort fell to Mexican troops on March 6 (the Battle of the Alamo). By the day of the battle, Neill had reached Gonzales, where he signed a personal voucher for ninety dollars to buy medicine for the Alamo garrison.

On March 13, he joined the withdrawal of Sam Houston's army to Groce's Retreat on the Brazos River. Unable to transport their cannons, Houston ordered them dumped into the Guadalupe River before abandoning Gonzales. That changed on April 11 when the "Twin Sisters" —two matched six-pounders—reached the Texan camp. The brass cannons were a gift from the people of Cincinnati, Ohio. Since Neill was a ranking artillery officer, Houston named him to command the revived artillery corps. On April 20, Neill commanded the Twin Sisters during the Battle of San Jacinto. During this fight, his artillery corps repulsed an enemy probe of the woods in which the main Texan army was concealed. Neill was seriously wounded when a fragment of a Mexican grapeshot caught him in the hip.

King, C. Richard, James Clinton Neill, The Shadow Commander of the Alamo (Eakin Press; ISBN 1-57168-577-4)

COLLINSWORTH, JAMES (1806-1838). James Collinsworth, lawyer, jurist, and signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence,qv was born in Davidson County, Tennessee, in 1806, the son of Edmund and Alice (Thompson) Collinsworth. He attended school in Tennessee, studied law, and was admitted to the Tennessee bar in 1826. He was an ally of Andrew Jackson, Sam Houston,qv and other leading Tennessee politicians. From April 30, 1829, until early 1834, Collinsworth served as United States district attorney for the Western District of Tennessee. By 1835 he had moved to Matagorda, in the Brazos Municipality, Texas, and begun the practice of law. Along with Asa Brigham, John S. D. Byrom, and Edwin Wallerqqv he represented Brazoria in the Convention of 1836.qv

At the convention Collinsworth signed the Texas Declaration of Independence, introduced and guided to adoption a resolution making his fellow Tennessean Sam Houston commander in chief of the Texas army, became chairman of the military affairs committee, and served on the committee appointed to draft a constitution for the new Republic of Texas.qv After the convention adjourned, Houston, on April 8, 1836, appointed Collinsworth his aide-de-camp with the rank of major. After the battle of San Jacintoqv Gen. Thomas J. Ruskqv commended him for his bravery and chivalry.

From April 29 to May 23, 1836, Collinsworth served as acting secretary of state in President David G. Burnet'sqv cabinet. On May 26, 1836, because of his intimacy with President Andrew Jackson, he was designated a commissioner to the United States to seek assistance and possible annexation.qv The mission failed. Later in the year Collinsworth declined Houston's offer to make him attorney general of the Republic of Texas. Instead, on November 30, 1836, he was elected to a term in the Senate of the republic.

When the judiciary of the republic was organized, Collinsworth, on December 16, 1836, was appointed the first chief justice, a post he held until his death. Also in 1836 he helped organize the Texas Railroad, Navigation, and Banking Company,qv and the following year he helped found the city of Richmond. He was a charter member of the Philosophical Society of Texas,qv founded in 1837.

PATTON, WILLIAM HESTER (1808-1842). William Hester Patton, soldier, surveyor, and legislator, was born in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, in 1808. He moved to Brazoria County, Texas, in March 1832. As an early advocate of Texas independence, he served as a sergeant in Capt. John Austin's company at the battle of Velasco in June 1832. He enlisted in the Texas army on September 28, 1835, at the beginning of the revolution; commanded a company at the siege of Bexar, December 5 through 10, 1835; and was appointed to receive the weapons surrendered by Gen. Martín Perfecto de Cos's army. On December 21, 1835, Gen. Sam Houston appointed Patton acting assistant quartermaster with the rank of lieutenant and ordered him to Velasco to supply arriving volunteers and forward them to Houston's army. Patton was still at San Antonio on February 5, however, when he and the other officers of the Alamo garrison signed a memorial requesting that the soldiers under their command be represented at Washington-on-the-Brazos by Samuel A. Maverick and Jesse B. Badgett. On March 13, 1836, Patton was elected captain of the Fourth Company of Col. Sidney Sherman's Second Regiment, Texas Volunteers, also known as the Columbia Company. Patton was attached to Houston's staff as an aide-de-camp with the rank of major, and his company was led at the battle of San Jacinto by Lt. David Murphree. After the battle Patton was given custody of Antonio López de Santa Anna and was one of the commissioners selected to escort him to Washington, D.C. On July 14, 1836, Patton was one of eighteen officers who testified against President David G. Burnet on charges of usurpation and treason. In 1837 Houston appointed him quartermaster general of the Army of the Republic of Texas, and his nomination was confirmed on May 22. On August 26, 1837, Patton resigned from the army and settled in Bexar County, where he worked as a surveyor and served as justice of the peace. On September 25, 1837, he was elected to represent Bexar County in the House of Representatives of the Second Congress of the Republic of Texas; he served until May 25, 1838. An energetic and aggressive Indian fighter, Patton was severely wounded in an Indian fight on Leon Creek near San Antonio on October 28, 1838. He was murdered at his home on the San Antonio River, some thirty miles below the city of San Antonio, by Mexican bandits on June 12, 1842. Patton's West Columbia sugar plantation was purchased after his death by James Stephen Hogg and is now maintained by the state of Texas as the Varner-Hogg Plantation State Historical Park.