Hi listers, I read all of your messages with great interest. I signed up for this page in the hopes of learning more of my Scot - Irish immigrants. So this is my first posting to this board and I sure hope someone can shed some light on a question that has not been answered. My Noble family has been recorded as early as 1772, living in Anson Co., NC. Montgomery County formed from Anson County in 1779. By 1780, the inhabitants of the new county were placed on the tax records. Tax Records for Montgomery Co., NC, for 1780 - 1782 reflect the Noble family as thus: WILLIAM NOBLES, invalid, 1600 acres, 1 slave DAVID NOBLES William Nobel, Jr., single, 400 acres Thomas Nobel, single, 250 acres So the question is, why would William Noble Sr., have so much land? I was under the impression from Mr. Leyburn's book, "The Scot - Irish", that not many of the western North Carolina settlers had much more than 500 acres of land. Am I wrong in that assumption? Oral family history said that the immigrant brothers came from South Ireland, after freeing a brother from jail, sometime in the unknown past,and sailed straight to NC. I'm beginning to feel that this part of the story is incorrect and that they came south through PA/VA. Ok, y'all, tell me what you think? I look forward to reading your posts. Regards, Cory Tarrants (Descendant of David & Sarah Fry Noble)