Hi all! I've been trying for months now to identify the parents of my GGGG grandfather John REEVES (1780/90-1840). 'Still, that goal seems as distant today as when I started! Here's what I (read: "think I") know about John REEVES: John REEVES married Thurisa DEAN with the written consent of her father, Michael DEAN, in Lewis Co., KY on 28 August 1813 (Lewis Co., KY Clerks Records, marraige book A, page 24). John REEVES's family is believed to have moved to Mason Co., KY from Prince William Co., VA sometime in the latter 1790's. Fleming Co., KY "split off from" Mason Co., KY in 1796 and Lewis Co., KY was formed from Mason/Fleming counties later in 1808. 1800 and 1900 Census records for first-born son Michael Dean REEVES's (1816-1906) indicate that he named his father as "John REEVES" who was born in "Virginia" probably sometime between 1780 and 1790. Another son, Thomas Hiram REEVES's (1825-1901), a half-brother to Michael Dean, similarly lists on his military pension records his father as "John REEVES" born in "eastern Virginia." The Will for John REEVES, filed 15 August 1840 in Bartholomew Co., IN (LDS Microfilm #1298942, Bartholomew Co., IN Probate Court Book C, 1833-1840, pp 178-179), listed 12 children: Mary REEVES (c1814-?) Michael Dean REEVES, Rev. (1816-1906)* David REEVES, Rev. (1820-1896)---my GGG grandfather* Eliza Jane REEVES (?-?) Abel Dean REEVES (1824-1876)* Thomas Hiram REEVES (1825-1901) John Moses REEVES (c1825-?) Lucinda Carolyn REEVES (1827-?) William Garner REEVES (1828-?) Thomas Wilson REEVES (c1830-?) Lydia Marie REEVES (1836-?) James Sylvester REEVES (1839-?) Note: everything *but* the actual names listed above was added by me here for clarity's sake; clearly, they weren't in John's Will quite like this! The astericks (*) above denote descendant lines from John REEVES that are both well-documented and proved (therefore not of interest at this point). The first 5 children listed above, in John's Will, were children of he and first wife Thurisa DEAN. The last 7 children were children of John REEVES and Hannah ____ whom John also mentions in his Will. ___________________________ It seems in my REEVES research that I often must go backwards in order to forward! For that reason, I've decided instead to pursue a "descendancy" approach to the problem in hopes of identifying other descendents who can help crack the "ascendancy" or ancestral roadblock for John REEVES. So... I'm *now* hoping to identify descendents of the children of John REEVES *not* marked above by astericks. Subsequent posts will give what little information I have on each. In the meantime, can anyone shed any light whatsoever on any of them or *their* descendents? Greg Reeves greg@rapidnet.com ------------------------------