In a message dated 1/24/02 5:38:30 AM Eastern Standard Time, [email protected] writes: << Thomas Lee b. 3 Dec 1729 Dichley Plantation, Northumberland Co. Va. d. 2 Jul 1818 Lee Valley, Hawkins County, Tennessee >> ___________________ I carry a Thomas LEE (3 Dec 1729-2 Jul 1816) who married Mary (Ingram?) Rains (d.1818). Both died Hawkins Co., TN (probate court records). According to other researchers this Thomas LEE was the son of John LEE (-1766) of Johnston Co., NC. I note that your family web site states that the Thomas whom you cite is the son of Richard and Judith (Steptoe) LEE. Herein is the conflict. I have been informed that there were two contempory Thomas LEEs in Hawkins Co., TN. and that their data has been badly confused and in some cases merged by earlier researchers. A third contemporary Thomas LEE is found in a cite in the Samuel GRIFFIN Bible which identifies him as Thomas LEE of Ditchley in 1758. The two with Hawkins Co., TN identity are- Thomas LEE, son of John and Mary LEE of Johnston Co., NC, John LEE (-1766) identified in his will Thomas as one of his sons. Thomas allegedly settled in Lee Valley (named for him), Hawkins Co., TN in the 1770s. Captain Thomas LEE who m. Mary (Ingram) Rains rec'd a land grant in Carter's Valley, Green Co., NC (later Hawkins Co., TN) for his RW service. This Thomas is occasionally asserted to be of the Ditchley LEEs and the son of Richard and Judith (Steptoe) LEE. It is easy to see how these two became intermingled and sometimes merged. I have found no documented evidence that Richard and Judith (Steptoe) LEE had a son, Thomas. Neither Richard's will nor the probate records suggest a son, Thomas. The Samuel GRIFFIN Bible has a 1758 death entry for Mary, Samuel's daughter, which states that her husband was Thomas LEE of Ditchley. While this entry would make Thomas a member of the grand clan of Lees of VA, it doesn't confirm a father-son relationship with Richard LEE who was the master of Ditchley at the time. It also does not connect Thomas to the LEEs of NC or Hawkins Co., TN As for Thomas LEE, son of John of Johnston Co., NC, he is also identified as Thomas Greenberry LEE, Sr. I have not found a documented source of this identity, but his son, Thomas Greenberry, Jr. is alleged to be Colonel Greenberry LEE (c1750-1784) of RW fame in GA. I do have evidence for the Colonel, but nothing on his parentage. Ditchley (Hall) came to Richard LEE from his brother, William, who had not fulfilled the conditions of inheritance (have a legitimate male heir) established by their father, Hancock LEE. Hancock was the heir of Colonel Richard LEE (immigrant and progenitor) and to the Ditchley estate. This said, it is reasonable to suggest that Ditchley was the LEE family seat and that many LEE children were born there. Since Colonel Richard LEE (Richard I) had many sons, any one of whom could claim to be "of Ditchley" since they were of the LEE clan. Further, the name Thomas was frequently used in all branches of the LEE family. Research of descent of Richard LEE (I) is not uniform. --Son, Richard (II), has a developed line which includes Henry (Light Horse Harry) LEE and his son, Robert E. LEE, General, CSA. --Son, Philip, was given land in MD and became the progenitor of LEEs of MD. The line is partially developed --Son, Charles, .Developement is less partially inplace. --Son, Hancock, as stated inherited Ditchley Developememt is fairly good. Little is known of sons, Francis and John. Developement is poor to none. The purpose here is to show that many lines of LEEs of Virginia are NOT well developed and, therefore, offer the potential to explain the presence of LEEs in colonial NC and SC and, possibly, of GA, KY and TN. It is my view, and that of others, that some of the LEEs in Johnston Co., NC were of this LEE clan. As to proof, there is scant. A scenario could be that one or more of Richard (I) 's sons and/or grandsons moved to North Carolina in the area that became Johnston Co. Which sons? My interest is in finding LEE data which would expand our knowledge of these LEEs and in clarifying areas of conflict. Much of the problem is as a result of early published research which was done with very limited access to documentation/records and great reliance on family lore which tended to be self-serving. These works seem to hinder progress, because they have gained acceptance by repetition rather than by logic. I don't know your interest, but I would greatly appreciate any information on source matereial of your LEE family. Best regards, Hugh