Jonathan Griffin and Rachel Sharp

Our ancestors in the Griffin family have taken us on a journey which is far from complete. Jonathan Griffin, my 3Gt Grandfather, was born in 1777 in Connecticut, the year that the flag made by Betsy Ross was adopted by the Continental Congress. His wife was Rachel Sharp. She was born in 1787, at Huntersville, in Bath Co., Virginia. (later part of Pocahontas Co.) Rachel's maternal and paternal grandparents had each been killed by Indians, leaving her father, William Sharp, and mother, Mary Meeks, and their siblings, as orphans. William Sharp and Mary Meeks married, and William became a pioneer of the Bath County area. Another descendant has written an account of William Sharp and wife, Mary Meeks, where he is described as "a scout, spy, and soldier against the Indians and the British."

We have much circumstantial evidence to show that Jonathan Griffin, is son of Benoni Griffin Jr. of Simsbury. This Benoni was married several times and migrated to Virginia near the Green Bank area. This Griffin line has been said to trace to England, and back to Wales. The repeating names of Benoni, Abraham, Levi, Samuel are among Jonathan's descendants seem to refer to the Benoni and Abrahams of the Connecticut Griffin families. We are discovering land records which give further evidence of Benoni as Jonathan's father.

In 1800, Jonathan is found as a taxpayer in the personal property tax rolls of Bath County VA. I do not see his name as a land owner, but he was an adult and probably owned a horse and other property which was taxed. He married Rachel Sharp in 1806.

The Bath County Marriage Bonds book lists the following:
Aug 12, 1806: Bond for Jonathan Griffin and Rachel Sharp.
Surety, Robert Gay. Return filed Sept. 1 by Jeremiah Burns. Robert Gay was a justice of the peace. Jeremiah Burns was a Methodist Episcopal minister. I believe that Jonathan's father, whoever it may be, was no longer living, or not living in the area, otherwise, he would probably have signed the marriage bond.

Jonathan and Rachel must have lived with family after marriage as they are not found in 1810 Census records. Jonathan made purchases at the Bath County estate sale, of John Drennan, in 1815. This is recorded in Abstracts of Wills and Inventories of Bath Co. VA 1791-1842 - Bruns. Possibly he and Rachel were ready to set up housekeeping with their young family.

"Historical Sketches of Pocahontas County West Virginia," by Price, [written about 1900] states:
"Rachel Sharp, daughter of William Sharp, was married to Jonathan Griffin, and lived near the head of Stony Creek, on the farm now owned by Levi Gay . Her children were Abraham, Benoni, Jonathan, and Mrs. Charles Ruckman [Rachel]." [We know there were more children: Margaret, William, and Samuel.]

In 1813, we find Jonathan making a large purchase of land on Stony Creek (near present day Edray, WVA.) He also owned land on the eastern side of the Greenbrier River in the Green Bank area where we now find the National Radio Telescope, not far from the area where the first Griffins (from CT) are found in this county. Maybe these land records will give us clues as to Jonathan's ancestry. We find through census and other records that there are other children: sons, William, our ancestor, and Samuel, and another daughter, Margaret, who married Isaac Hamrick.

An article from "Moccasin Tracks & Other Imprints" by W. Dodrill:
"Pioneer School Teachers"…
"In 1850, Robert Gregory built a school house near the present site of the St. Mary's school house. The school building was of the most primitive kind. Among the early pioneer school teachers were the following: William Kain, William and Samuel Given, Israel Clifton, Jonathan Griffin, Joseph Woods and Timothy Holcomb." [ The Holcombs also came from CT with marriages to Griffins.] The Jonathan mentioned may have been the son of Jonathan and Rachel Griffin. He lived in Webster County in 1850s.

Residents of Webster County have related that the St. Mary's school house (and thus the Gregory school) were located "on the road going over Point Mountain from Webster Springs towards Elkins, between the Barton (Curtin) Road and Bergoo Rd."

The last census record where we find the elder Jonathan Griffin is the 1850 Census, Pocahontas VA. Jonathan is shown as age 72, born in Pennsylvania. [This is the only time that Pennsylvania is mentioned. See other notes that say b. CT. I believe the latter is correct.] Also in 1850 census in the same county, we find members of the Sharp, Waugh, Duffield families, and sons Abraham, William, and Benoni Griffin and their families.

By 1860, all the children of Jonathan and Rachel were married, except for Samuel, who never married.
Abraham, b. 1808 in Bath County, VA, married Nancy Waugh, daughter of James Waugh, Jr.
Margaret b. 1810 in Bath County, VA, married Isaac Hamrick, son of William F. Hamrick
William b. 1812 in Bath County, VA, married Elizabeth M. Rodgers, daughter of James Rodgers.
Benoni b. 1814 in Bath County, VA, married Nancy Hamrick, daughter of William F. Hamrick.
Rachel b. 1820 in Bath County, VA, married Charles Ruckman, son of D. L. Ruckman.
Jonathan b. 1826 in Bath County, VA, married Margaret Rader, daughter of John H. Rader.
Samuel b. 1828, in Bath County, VA, never married.

We believe that Jonathan, Sr. died sometime in the early 1850s possibly in Braxton Co. [from note on a land record.] We find that his son, Jonathan, bought property in 1852, possibly using his inheritance [no will has been found.] Benoni Griffin and his wife, Nancy Hamrick, also moved away from Pocahontas in 1852. Abraham and his family probably stayed on or near the home place. By 1860, Rachel Sharp Griffin, and son, Samuel, are living in Webster County, West Virginia with close family friends, William and Caroline Tracy. In 1870, she is about 84 years old, living with daughter, Margaret Hamrick, and her husband, Isaac, in Fork Lick, Webster County, West Virginia. We believe that Rachel died between 1870 and 1880. Her grave is found in the Isaac Hamrick Cemetery, marked "Rachael Sharp Griffin", with no dates.