Below is a letter I sent to Earl Skelton and the reply back from him. If anyone can prove the missing documentation then please send this to me. Always remember that genealogy without documentation is mythology. If you do not have a copy of the record to prove an existance or know the source then a statement should be made in the notes that this is not proven evidence but speculated. ****************************************************************** Earl, For some time now I have been hearing about William's wife Sarah ____ being a Scales. There has also been sent to me information about William's line being traced back hundreds of years in England. I have made request for sources on this and I have received nothing to prove it. Have you heard anything or have new information? Gilbert ********************************** Dear Gilbert, In all modesty, I consider myself something of an expert on the history of the early Skelton families of North America. Moreover, I am the custodian of the legacy of the late Colonel George Byers to all Skelton families: 4 file drawers stuffed with Skelton data. As you may know, Colonel Byers was descended from both Scales and Skelton lines and spent a good part of his life researching both. Based on my own research and a thorough reading of all of Colonel Byers' papers, I can make the following two statements with a high degree of certainty: (1) Nothing has been uncovered to reveal the maiden surname of Sarah, wife of William Skelton (b. ca. 1743) and (2) nothing has been uncovered to reveal the parentage of William Skelton (b. c. 1743, probably in Virginia). It has been established that the Skeltons and Scales families traveled together, but assuming that William's wife, Sarah, was née Sarah Scales is pure speculation. William's Skelton line has not been traced beyond colonial Virginia, and even that is a guess... albeit a pretty good one. Thanks for asking. Earl