I'm sorry again to those of you getting this note twice but I know some Morgan County Ramey folks might be interested in this information as well. Any Ramey researcher knowing who William P Ramey is, could you let me in on the information? Thanks! (I descend from Rachel Ramey and Eleazor Lemaster). > If the note is too long, use your FIND command to go the Browns on the page. WHO IS MANLEY BROWN???? Of interest is the RAMEY family and the SAunders family (hopefully I'll get the Saunders link to the Browns out to you soon). The Rameys married to Mary Bryan Van Hoose's siblings... Mary's son, Jesse, married Edy Brown grandaughter of Thomas C. Brown (my grgrgrandmother). Edy Brown's nephew, Captain Edward Brown had children with Rachel Ramey's grandaughter, Mary Lemaster (my grgrgrandmother). > > Read on.... > Gath, Fleming County, Kentucky > > No Trace of Gath Remains Today > > Small Pioneer Settlement Has All But Been Forgotten > by Dr. William M. Talley > > Published in The Kentucky Explorer, Feb. 1996, Pg.78 > Reprinted by permission from Dr. Talley and The Kentucky Explorer > > The ancient Biblical city of Gath was supposedly the home town of > Goliath, the giant whom David slew with a small stone, according to I > Samuel 17:50. It was one of the five royal cities of the Philistines. > > The name Gath was not as popular a name for early Kentucky towns as > were some other Biblical cities, such as Shiloh, Corinth, and Antioch. > However, in the early days of Fleming County, a town named Gath was > organized and laid out at the site where Locust Creek flows into the > Licking River; opposite Bath County (then Montgomery County). Why it > was named Gath is an interesting and unanswered question. Perhaps it > had something to do with the fact that some of the early residents were > very religious people, active in the Baptist Church, and thus they > wanted a Biblical name for their town. Yet, Gath was a town of the > Philistines and not one of the popular Hebrew (Israelite) cities. The > town came into existence in 1798, was mentioned in the court records > quite frequently for about a decade, and then disappeared just as > quickly as it had appeared. > > If it were not for the fact that its existence is verified by various > Fleming County court orders and deeds, one might dismiss it as being > simply a plan that never materialized. Court records mention roads that > led to the town of Gath as well as rights for building mills, operating > ferries, and erecting warehouses. Strangely, none of the early writers > of Fleming County history (Cotterill, Dickey, Fischer, or Northcutt) > ever mentioned this town, and when older people in the community where > Gath stood were interviewed in the 1950s by this writer none of them > had ever heard their families speak of it. > > This town was laid out in the bottom lands at the site where Locust > Creek empties into Licking River in the southeastern part of Fleming > County, and was opposite to Bath County (but at the time of its > founding Montgomery County). The town plat is recorded in the > courthouse at Flemingsburg. At this location there is a wide, fertile > valley or alluvial plain. > > All facts about Gath come from court actions relating to legal > transactions of the residents of the town and their interactions with > court officials. On July 9, 1798, two years after Flemingsburg was > founded, the county court of Fleming established Gath on the lands of > Byram Routt, a large land owner in that area. It was to be situated on > the eastern bank of Locust Creek. A plat of the town was duly recorded > in Order Book A. This place probably looked like an excellent place to > establish a town because it was on a direct route between Flemingsburg > and Mt. Sterling, and it was also on the Licking River and could serve > as a shipping point for goods and material going down river to the > Ohio. However, the Licking River, especially above Sherburne, was > navigable only a few months of the year and was quite treacherous in > many places. > > The first trustees of Gath were William Burke, William Caldwell, Thomas > C. Brown, and Alexander Simpson. William Burke was a land owner on > Locust Creek. His will is recorded in Fleming County and it was > probated in October, 1801. > > According to the plat of the town in the old court order book, Gath > contained 103 in-lots and 10 out-lots. These 113 lots contained all > together 100 acres. The streets were named East, North Cross, Main, > Lower Water, and Upper Water. In the center of the town was a public > square containing two acres. Running north was a street called Out > Street, which led in the direction of Flemingsburg. > > At the May term of Fleming Court, 1799, John Hunt and Manley Brown were > appointed to mark out the bounds for a warehouse in the town of Gath > for the inspection of flour and hemp. They finally made their report in > July, 1799, stating they had laid off lots 12 and 13 (half-acre lots) > for the warehouses -- beginning on the bank of the creek, thence down > the same 10 rods, then off at right angles 15 rods, for quantity. > > Isaac Terhune bought the first lots, numbers 5 and 50, in Gath on March > 10, 1800. The trustees at that time were Isaac Lawson, Archibald Glenn, > William Caldwell, and Edward Johnson. (This change of persons on the > board of trustees indicates that a number of people were interested and > involved in the town.) > > On May 12, 1800, Joseph Denton, Archibald Glenn, William P. Ramey, and > Andrew Wills were appointed to view and mark out the nearest and best > way for a road from the ford on the Licking River at the town of Gath > to intersect the road from Flemingsburg to Myers' ferry at or near > Terhune's. On July 14, 1800, they made their report, stating that they > had completed said order. On the same day Byram Routt, Archie Remy, > Shardlow Whiteman, Skinner Hutson, and Roger Dougherty made a report > that they had viewed and marked out the road from the mouth of Locust > to Abraham Tout's, running with the town (Gath) line until it crossed > Locust then up Locust to the mouth of the South Lick, then to near the > head of the said lick and crossing the ridge to said Tout's. On Nov. > 10, 1800, it was ordered that the road from the mouth of Locust Creek > to intersect the road from Flemingsburg be established as a public road > and that Shardlow Whiteman be appointed overseer. > > At the distribution of Byram Routt's estate, part of his lots were > sold. These lots bordered Locust Creek in the town of Gath. Along with > the lots, a grist mill and saw mill with 20 acres were sold. David > Henry purchased these lots and the mill. Some people who knew the area > well (in the 1950s) told this writer that they had seen what they > thought were the remnants of this old mill. > > William Page Ramey was given permission to establish a ferry across the > Licking River at the town of Gath on Oct. 14, 1800. He reported that he > owned the land on the north side of the river (which is where Gath was > located). On Jan. 12, 1802, Byram Routt ordered that a ferry be > established at Gath across Licking, he owning the land on both sides of > the river. > > There is frequent mention in the old records of a school and church > called "Licking Locust," the church being Baptist in denomination. It > is probable that this school and church had its origin in Gath because > of the combined name of the two streams that bordered Gath. Mahaleleel > Shackle, a Baptist minister, preached in the church. > > The last mention we can find of Gath in the court records is in July > 1811, when John Hunt, Peter Mauzey, and Gunnell Saunders were appointed > new trustees. > > Perhaps the town failed to grow and develop as the founders had > expected. First, the original trustees and interested citizens died > quite soon after the town was established and others who took their > places may not have been as enthusiastic. It appears that Byram Routt > was one of the primary leaders of the move to establish the town, and > he died shortly after it was established. Second, the Licking River > floods badly in the spring sometimes and people may have found this > site unsuitable because of the flooding. A third possibility is that > the town of Sherburne, farther down stream and located in a more > convenient setting, began to grow and prosper with a number of mills > and other establishments. It was on a more direct route between Mt. > Sterling and Maysville, thus may have contributed to the decline of > Gath. > > Nevertheless, Gath remains a puzzle. It existed for sure, but had a > short existence. The site is now isolated and is used for farmland. Its > mystery is intensified by the utter lack of any substantiating > information or facts other than the court records. > > (Note: The only known published references to the town of Gath were > historical notes published by William M. Talley in the Fleming Gazette, > Flemingsburg, Kentucky, and by Mrs. Iolene Hawkins, in the Flemingsburg > Times-DEmocrat, Flemingsburg, Kentucky, both in the mid-1950s. All > information in this article was obtained from court records in the > Fleming Court Clerk's office.) > > Dr. William M. Talley, 110 Main St. Vanceburg, KY 41179, is a professor > at McGill University, Montreal, Canada. He is also editor of The McGill > Journal of Education