This sounds like a great place to slide tghis question in. Is there anyplace that has information on brands in colobnial times? We're trying to deterine if the James KNOTT b 1602 was our ancestor. My cousin in Oregon has (I think) our g-grandfathers branding iron from the KNOTTS/OWENS farm near Corvallis OR. Settled in abt 1847-48. Our g-grandfather was William KNOTTS, b 1805 in Queen Annes co. MD. ----- Original Message ----- From: <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, July 07, 2010 2:40 PM Subject: Re: [LDR] HOGG Quarters..listings. > There was no gatekeeper preventing tract names being used again and > again. There were over 60 different patents titled HOG QUARTER (often > spelled then as HOGG ...) spread across Somerset, Worcester and > Wicomico, and a few now in Sussex. As I said in my earlier post, over > a third of these were in what's now Worcester. The most common tract > name, though, was just plain CHANCE, which seems to have been used 155 > times ... This is the sort of thing which can confuse things mightily > for researchers. One of the characteristic problems in Ruth Dryden's > published volumes is her assignment of deeds in title histories to the > wrong tract of the same name. Using that data carelessly has led many > people to barking up the wrong HOG QUARTER, or CHANCE, or whatever. > > Black cattle were among the Somerset 1783 collected stats, too. > Googling a bit, one finds that black Angus also became prized, but it > seems that was a little later breeding development. One wonders if > "black cattle" was somehow a more general term of agricultural art, > applied to "the best", whatever their breed, but this is beyond my pay > grade. I've always wondered about these assessment categories, with > questions like "What about sheep and hogs and oxen?" There was surely > method behind the particular madness of the chosen assets, and only > those. > > John > > > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Michelle Burris Kenerly <[email protected]> > To: [email protected] > Sent: Wed, Jul 7, 2010 4:55 pm > Subject: [LDR] HOGG Quarters..listings. > > > Members: > I have read with great interest your postings of property listed > as HOG > Quarters and HOGG Quarters. It appears that this may have been several > acres and > or passed down to a lot of different folks. > My ancestral records show that my GGGGG Grandfather Sothey KING > bought land > listed as HOGG Quarters on March 18, 1776. The deed showed that he was > living > in Worcester Co., MD at the time. He may have even lost the land later. > Actually, I'm not trying to get into the mix of things, just > thought it > interesting that so many people had ownership of this named property. > Regards, > Michelle > > > > > *************************************** > QUESTIONS about POSTING GUIDELINES, SUBSCRIBING or UNSUBSCRIBING? > Visit The Lower DelMarVa Roots Mailing List FAQ: > http://www.tyaskin.com/handley/ldrfaq.htm > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > [email protected] > with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the > body of > the message > > *************************************** > QUESTIONS about POSTING GUIDELINES, SUBSCRIBING or UNSUBSCRIBING? > Visit The Lower DelMarVa Roots Mailing List FAQ: > http://www.tyaskin.com/handley/ldrfaq.htm > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' > without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message >

The practice in early Somerset was cattle marks (defined cuts in ears), not brands with irons. These are documented in various places across the early deed books, sometimes in lists, occasionally individually. I've always imagined that other MD counties were pretty much the same, but offhand can think of nothing speaking to it. Most states nowadays have Statewide "Brand Books" for livestock, which - depending on the State - may go back a ways. In some states, like Texas, these are maintained at the County level, but mostly they're statewide. As to how you'd round these up for a given venue, it's a googling sort of question. John. -----Original Message----- From: Bob KNOTTS <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Wed, Jul 7, 2010 10:38 pm Subject: Re: [LDR] HOGG Quarters..listings./now record of brands This sounds like a great place to slide tghis question in. Is there anyplace that has information on brands in colobnial times? We're trying to deterine if the James KNOTT b 1602 was our ancestor. My cousin in Oregon has (I think) our g-grandfathers branding iron from the KNOTTS/OWENS farm near Corvallis OR. Settled in abt 1847-48. Our g-grandfather was William KNOTTS, b 1805 in Queen Annes co. MD.