For this type of question there are several sources, but I like this one: http://randymajors.com/p/maps.html Put "cape girardeau, mo" in the "near" box, and "1810" in the "as of" box. What it says is: "Full place name: Cape Girardeau, Cape Girardeau Dist., Missouri, USA" Illinois became a state in 1818, Missouri in 1821. Missouri was never part of Illinois. Illinois was never part of Tennessee, eastern Tennessee was part of North Carolina, but only in the very early years would have been "Virginia." Here is the US in 1800 http://www.earlyamerica.com/earlyamerica/maps/1800/ 1810 http://www.worldmapsonline.com/unitedstates1810.htm 1820 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:United_States_1820-1821-07.png and 1830 http://www.worldmapsonline.com/unitedstates1830.htm Now, then, if you're asking if the river changed course, that's another question, and I don't have the answer for it. Maybe somewhere like this? http://www.cityofcapegirardeau.org/CityHall/History.aspx Hope this helps. Pat In Tucson -----Original Message----- From: roots-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:roots-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of fenenga@connpoint.net Sent: Thursday, April 26, 2012 3:47 PM To: roots@rootsweb.com Subject: [ROOTS-L] land question does anyone know if Cape Girardeau Co. MO was part of IL before MO became a state, and if IL was part of TN before IL became a state, and if TN was part of VA before TN became a state? I'm trying to figure out if my Higgins people were in the same place all along, or actually did move around as much as they seem to have between 1800 and 1811. it's possible, but I need to be sure. ===== If you would prefer digest mode to mail mode, drop a note to roots-admin@rootsweb.com and ask for the digest... ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to ROOTS-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message