Your 2G GF was a neighbor of my 2G GF, George McCullough. I offer as speculation that your Thomas S. Roberts came to Clay County IN from tthe Montgomery County (Mount Sterling) KY area with a group of KY families including the Yocums, Wools, Stewarts and McCulloughs. I searched the Government Land Office Rercords Web Site ( <A HREF="http://www.glorecords.blm.gov/PatentSearch/Default.asp?">Click here: Land Patent Search - BLM GLO Records</A> ) (http://www.glorecords.blm.gov/PatentSearch) and found that he bought land that was next to Jacob Yocum's parcel of land. Going by written history and the land purchases by the families listed above, I am theorizing that they all came over together from Montgomery County KY in 1830 or 1831. These pioneers would frequently buy land from the Government Land Office in Vincennes, IN (which is located across the width of the state from Clay County IN - requiring probably a two or three day ride by horseback) on the same day. The location of the lots in respect to each other makes them all neighbors. There was a cholera epedemic in the Mt. Sterling area in 1830-31, but I believe the decision to come to Clay County IN was already made before the cholera broke out. Your ancestor had land (13N 6W Sec 35) that was next to a 160 acre parcel owned by John S. Yocum and John Downing (13N 6W Sec 34) in Van Buren Township and two sections down from my 2G GF, George McCullough (13N 7W Sec 33) and his wife, Rachel Yocum McCullough. His first purchase in 1839 was of 12N 6W Sec 18 for 40 acres in Dick Johnson Township. I would say that it is a pretty safe bet to believe that your 2G GF was with that group of pioneers that came to Clay County from KY in 1830 or 1831. Perhaps you and I can exchange information on our families. Alan McCullough