Dear Jay (and interested others), In reply to your question which is in the message below: When you are trying to find an ancestor *on the move*, you infer or deduce--using your detective skills. You use old letters, tax records, land records, etc. (Thomas Jones, recent co-editor of the National Genealogical Society Journal, has some excellent lectures on 1) Inferential genealogy and 2) collecting the jigsaw puzzle pieces, which quite a bit later may fall into place.  (I keep in mind that our population in this country was not as extensive as it is now.  Both sets of my grandparents lived on a farm or a ranch--quite a bit in the country.  Going to town on Saturday was a social event on unpaved roads in a Model-T Ford (at least for the farmer in my mother's family.) Fortunately, a great-grandmother, not married into the Harris family, had not only written a LOT of letters but she also saved them in an old trunk (remember those?), and from those letters, we can infer where her deceased older husband had lived at various times--probably Hickman Co., KY,  Mississippi Co.,  Arkansas, (down the Mississippi R. from Hickman Co., Kentucky); then Vicksburg, MS (1850 census + old letter + marriage record); and so on to land deeds in Texas.  I infer from the Madison co., later Kentucky, personal property tax list of 1787 of Virginia that Christopher Harris already had some personal property in Madison co., KY but had not yet made the permanent move from Albemarle Co. VA. This was of interest to me as one always wants to put a date (approximate) on a family's move from one locale to another.  Sometimes, it is easy--a new county has been formed from the old one.  (That is why a book like Alice Eicholz's book The Red Book, is helpful.  It tells you when new counties are formed.  This book is held at the reference desk of many public libraries.  Ask for it. ) Personal property is not the same as real estate.  Christopher Harris could have moved a horse or a slave to Madison Co.--and possibly he was NOT physically present at either place when the tax collector came around. His will, made in Madison Co., KY dated..... names 19 children by two wives.  Some of the children were deceased, such as Benjamin Harris. By going to the biography of C.Harris, I have written over the years, I see there is earlier indication of Christopher's move to Kentucky.        It is found in Michael L. Cook and Bettie A. Cummings Cook, Fincastle & Kentucky County VA-KY Records & History, Vol 1 (Evansville, IN:  Cook Publications, n.d.) Furthermore, a book, compiled by Joan E. Brookes-Smith and published some years ago by the Kentucky Historical Society entitled Master Index, Virginia Surveys and Grants, 1771-1791(Frankfort, KY:  KY Historical Society, 1976) lists these Harris males in Fayette Co., later Kentucky.   I am NOT furnishing ALL the details given in cited book.  These men are listed (usual suspects) as the land granted them was on Licking Creek (Hingston Fork), then in Fayette Co.  I do not know that they are all related, but I suspect Benjamin Harris is one of the older sons of Christopher Harris. Harris, Benjamin - 1000 ac. - Fayette - Hinkston Fk. Licking survey date 3-4-1784      "        "            1,000 ac.  Fayette - Unk crLicking                          6-26-1784 Harris, Christopher 1,200 ac   Fayette  Hinkston Fk Licking survey       1-20-1786 Harris, Francis Eppes 366 ac. Fayette  Hinkston Fk Licking survey       9-24-1784      "        "          "     1000 ac Fayette Hinkston Fk Licking survey        9-27-1784 (There are other Harrises, but except for one John Harris, who also had some surveys on Licking in Fayette, I cannot infer that they MAY be related.  I suspect that these Harrises MAY have been related, although I have never stumbled over the name Francis Eppes Harris before. Hope this explains how one rounds up the usual suspects. This research is delaying my lunch period.  I have told you more than you probably wanted to know. E.W.Wallace ________________________________ From: "LambJGLamb@aol.com" <LambJGLamb@aol.com> To: hdanw@verizon.net; mafarr28@peoplepc.com; Harris-Hunters@rootsweb.com; MADKY@rootsweb.com Sent: Thursday, April 19, 2012 5:54 AM Subject: Re: [MADKY] Agnes McCord second wife of Christopher Harris of Albemarle Co. V... "He is listed for Albemarle Co. (same as Jefferson's tax list) and also in Madison Co. So I could approximate when he was making the move to Kentucky."    Just wondering - how would the listing in Albemarle Co., VA and also Madison Co., VA be an indication of when he was making the move to KY?  Jay   In a message dated 4/18/2012 11:38:48 P.M. Central Daylight Time, hdanw@verizon.net writes: Dear M. A. - Unless you have taken a look at the so-called 1787 census of Virginia (3 volumes), you will note that these are NOT land tax records. > > >They are personal property records (personal property and not land).  For some counties, there are three different lists.  Since I do research in Albemarle Co., I noted that Thomas Jefferson had wheeled carriages. > > >Widows are counted, if they had personal property, even though they may or may not have been taxed.  If she, the widow, had a tithable son or two, those would be listed under her name. > >Only when I paid CLOSE attention to ALL the Harrises of Virginia (3rd volume is an extensive index) did I note that Christopher Harris, my ancestor, is listed twice.  He is listed for Albemarle Co. (same as Jefferson's tax list) and also in Madison Co.  So I could approximate when he was making the move to Kentucky.  Even after he died, one John Harris was appointed his executor (or administrator) in Albemarle Co.  I think Chris's widow, the former Agnes McCord, gave consent for this assignment of John Harris.  I don't recall the details now, but it seems Christopher still had property in Albemarle Co. > > >These books are quite expensive, and some FHCs, if they have these volumes, used to shelve them with the census indexes. >Some Universities may have these volumes.  They are worth noting.  Genealogy is hit or miss, anyway!!! > >E.W.Wallace > > > >________________________________ >From: M. A. Farrell <mafarr28@peoplepc.com> >To: EVELYN WALLACE <hdanw@verizon.net>; madky@rootsweb.com >Sent: Tuesday, April 17, 2012 7:24 PM >Subject: Re: [MADKY] Agnes McCord second wife of Christopher Harris of Albemarle Co. VA & Madison Co, KY > >Evelyn, the so-called 1787 'census' book, constructed from limited tax lists, omits so many of the people actually living in Kentucky District in that year.  This is a serious problem; when viewing the actual tax lists for KY District areas, it is very obvious how many of the "lists" were lost or misplaced.  One of the first of these 'tax lists' I saw was transcribed by someone and proudly published in the Register of the KY Historical Society many, many years ago.  Little did anyone know that was only what appeared on one of the subject county's tax commissioner's list, omitting at least 4 more commissioner's lists for that year. >It took many years of record-finding/conserving to reveal which of those many lists actually were found and which were forever missing. >I believe the best reference for KY population from 1780's, are the actual microfilms of the various county tax lists, where the missing lists are clearly identified - which were many. >Of course, for a quick reference of some of the residents, realizing more existed but were not named, this method of constructing 'census' from partial tax lists may be used with caveats. >Mary Alice >............Evelyn wrote...................... >     "......The so-called 1787 Census of Virginia (personal property tax lists) compiled by Nettie Schreiner-Yantis and Florine S. Love, list Christopher Harris in two counties--Albemarle Co., VA and also Madison Co., then part of Virginia.  Look for this valued census (personal property tax lists for various Virginia counties--three volumes, the 3rd being the index to the two preceding volumes) in a University or good genealogical library near you......"  > > > >________________________________________ >PeoplePC Online >A better way to Internet >http://www.peoplepc.com > >------------------------------- >To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to MADKY-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message