James, Rachel and the Long Hunters

James Skaggs Sr. (d. c. 1780) and Rachel (d. c. 1783) were Manx-descended frontierspeople whose 11 children, all born in Virginia, were instrumental in early Kentucky settlement. The family is documented through Augusta County court orders, deeds, surveys, and wills, Botetourt/Fincastle/Montgomery tax and militia records, Revolutionary War service, and the 1836 Green County, KY chancery suit (Case #3871) over son Moses’s intestate estate, which explicitly names all siblings, confirms prior death and verifies no children for Moses.  Y-DNA testing has been conducted on descendants of all sons of James and Rachel, except Moses.



Earliest Confirmed Activities of James Skaggs Sr.

19 Nov 1746 – Ordered as road worker from Adam Harmon’s on New River to north branch of Roanoke (Augusta Co. Court; VMHB, Vol. 30, No. 2, p. 195; Chalkley).
 
21 Aug 1747 – Appointed appraiser of Phillip Smith estate with Adam, Jacob Herman, Samuel Hannah (Augusta Co. Order Book 1, p. 261).
 
28 Nov 1750 – Appraised John Elswick estate with Thomas Ingles, Ebenezer Westcoat (Augusta Co. Will Book 1, pp. 276–278).
 
26 Mar 1751 – Survey: 82 ac. on Meadow Creek branch, New River (Augusta Co. Surveyor’s Records Vol. 1, p. 52).
 
28–29 May 1751 – Leased then purchased 100 ac. on Little River branch of New River from Francis Reiley (Augusta Co. Deed Book 3–4, pp. 225–228).
 
1751 – Francis Riley acknowledged Lease & Release to James Skaggs in open court (Augusta Co. Order Book 2, p. 561).
 
10–11 Jan 1754 – Leased then purchased 104 ac. on Meadow Creek branch from James Ratlive (Augusta Co. Deed Book 5–7, pp. 98–101).
 
20 Mar 1754 – Deeds of Lease & Release from Samuel Ratliff and William Pollum proved by James Patton & William Preston (Augusta Co. Order Book 4, p. 112).
 
25–26 Apr 1769 – With wife Rachel, gifted land to sons Henry (100 ac., Little River) and James Jr. (104 ac., Meadow Creek; patented 1753 by Ratlive) (Augusta Co. Deed Book 16, pp. 48–53).
 
26 Apr 1769 – Survey for James Scaggs (the longer): 350 ac. corner James Scaggs Junr. and Senr. (Early Adventurers, Vol. 1, Kegley, p. 43).

Children (order per 1836 chancery suit depositions & land/tax sequence)

  • Henry Skaggs (Long Hunter) born c. 1730s, wife Mary Thompson (married c. 1759) 25 Apr 1769: 100 ac. on Little River from parents (Augusta DB 16, pp. 51–53); 1781 Montgomery muster: age 18–50; Long Hunter by 1761; Montgomery survey 1784; Russell tax 1787–90 (enslaved); Green tax 1795–1801; will 1809 (died c. 1810); 1815 circuit court suit #5389 names 9 children.
  • James "Longman" Skaggs (Baptist preacher) born c. 1730s, wife Mary (married mid-1750s) 26 Apr 1769: 104 ac. on Meadow Creek from James Sr. & Rachel (Augusta DB 16, pp. 48–51); 26 Apr 1769 survey 350 ac. as “James Scaggs (the longer)” (Kegley, p. 43); 1781 Montgomery muster: age 18–50; Dunmore’s War 1774 (Point Pleasant); VA Treasury Warrants 1780; Skaggs Station & South Fork Baptist 1782; eloped w/ Leah Carter 1787 (Russell LOB 1); 1793 deed 450 ac. to sons (Green DB 1); absent post-1793; deceased by 1836 suit.
  • Richard Skaggs (Morgan’s Rifleman) c. 1750–1821 Elizabeth (common-law) Botetourt tithables 1770 (2nd tithable in father’s hh, age 16+); Botetourt tithables 1772 (head of hh, 1 tithable); legal age 21+ by 1770 (Botetourt COB 1770–76, p. 76, debt suit); Dunmore’s War 1774 (4+20 days); Morgan’s Rifles 1776–1779 (Rev. War Rolls); VA grant 1784 (600 ac. Jefferson); KY grants 1780s (1,000+ ac. Little Barren); Nelson tithables 1788 (sons); Green/Barren tax 1799–1818 (114.5 ac.); will 10 Dec 1818 (prob. May 1821, Barren WB); 1820 felony indictment (Barren, bond w/ sons Wm/John); died 1821.
  • John “Gourdhead” Skaggs (King’s Mountain) born mid-1750s, married Elizabeth (surname unknown) Fincastle delinquent tithables 1773 (“John Skeggs, Little”); Dunmore’s War 1774 (28 days); oath 1777 (“Goard Head”); King’s Mountain 1780 (wounded); Russell grant 1781 (320 ac.); pension 1789; Green tax 1795–1801; died c. 1809 (Barren County POA 1809; Elizabeth head 1810 census); 1836 suit #3871 names 6 children.
  • Susannah Skaggs born c. 1730s, married Richard Whitt Heirs (Susannah Criswell, Edmond Whitt) in 1836 suit.
  • Lydia Skaggs born c. 1740s, married Matthias Harman, Heirs (Adam, Henry, Mathias Harman; daus. m. Beavers, Christian) in 1836 suit.
  • Elizabeth Skaggs born c. 1740s, married John Hankins, Heirs (Rachel m. Maloney, Sarah m. Mitchell, Rebecca m. Howell, Prathena, Lucy, Lydia, Joseph, Moses, Mary m. White) in 1836 suit.
  • Nancy Skaggs born c. 1740s, married William Meredith, Sons (James, John, Daniel, Mathias, William) in 1836 suit.
  • Charles “Long Hunter” Skaggs born c. 1730s, married Lucinda “Lucy” Thompson (m. by 1759) Botetourt tithables 1770–72: head of hh; 1781 Montgomery muster: age 18–50; Long Hunter by 1761; Dunmore’s War 1774; Russell land 1787 (290 ac.); Green tax 1795–1800; 1807 POA w/ Henry; will 1815 (died c. 1816, Green WB 1); deceased in 1836 suit.
  • Jacob Skaggs born c. 1763, married: 1. Fanny Whitten (common-law c. 1786–1792); 2. Mary Jane Gore (m. c. 1792) Montgomery muster 1781 (under 18); Washington tax 1784–86; Russell tax 1787–88; Nelson tithables 1789–90; Green tax 1794–97; Jackson TN tax 1803; Weakley TN 1830 census (age 60–69 in son Mastin’s household); died 1830 (post-census, per widow’s 1845 pension R9250); 1836 suit #3871 lists youngest brother, deceased w/ son William.
  • Moses Skaggs c. 1730s, married Elizabeth (common-law) Botetourt tithables 1772: head of hh; 1781 Montgomery muster: age 18–50; Dunmore’s War 1774; oath 1777; Russell tax 1786–89; Nelson tax 1792 (400 ac.); died intestate c. 1796 (tax to “Elisabeth” 1796); 1836 suit #3871 confirms no children, lists all siblings/heirs.

Y-DNA Testing

Y-DNA testing has been conducted on multiple descendants from each of the seven sons of James and Rachel Skaggs.  All descendants tested as R-BY44771, except for two descendants of William Brock Skaggs and Nancy Warren who tested as R-BY114454.

Genetic Summary (Based on Y-DNA Testing)
SonY-DNA HaplogroupNotes
HenryR-BY44771Confirmed with testing
Rev. James Jr.R-BY44771Confirmed with testing; includes R-BY114454 subclade via grandson William Brock Skaggs
RichardR-BY44771Confirmed with testing
John "Gourdhead"R-BY44771Confirmed with testing
CharlesR-BY44771Confirmed with testing
JacobR-BY44771Confirmed with testing
MosesR-BY44771Not confirmed with testing (no issue; line ends)

Key Insight: Uniform R-BY44771 across all 7 sons confirms shared paternity. R-BY114454 is a refined subclade (not a break), appearing ~1700–1800s in Rev. James's line.  Therefore the father of the seven sons, James Skaggs Sr. who married Rachel, was also R-BY44771.

Key Primary Sources Summary

  • Augusta Co.: Road orders (1746), estate appraisals (1747, 1750), surveys (1751), deeds/leases (1751, 1754, 1769), court acknowledgments (1751, 1754).
  • Botetourt/Fincastle/Montgomery: Tithables (1770–72), debt suit (1770), 1781 muster (age 18–50 for Henry, James, Charles, Moses; Jacob under 18).
  • Revolutionary Service: Morgan’s Rifles (Richard), King’s Mountain (John).
  • Kentucky Records: Land grants (1780s), tax lists (1787–1818), wills (1815, 1818), 1836 chancery suit.

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