This is Al Metts, a descendant of Jesse Thomas and his wife, Mary, of Cumberland Co., VA. Records in the U.S.Archives will document the Revolutionary service of Jesse Thomas in the 7th VA Regt. during the Revolutionary War through service at Valley Forge. (Documented with The Society of the Descendants of Washington's Army at Valley Forge.) There is a legend about the heroic service of Jesse Thomas after Valley Forge. On July 2, 1781, Jesse was at home after being wounded at the Battle of Cowpens. He was told that Gen Cornwallis was marching against Baron Von Steuben. Jess sent a slave named Cuff to get his great horse named Fearnought. Then, the wounded man rode through heavy rain and had the horse swim across the James River to warn Von Steuben. The supplies and ammunition were taken across the river and saved. A group of Thomas researchers have been looking for proof that the legend is true. One subject has to do with the horse. There was a great thoroughbred brought from England. It was a bay. The legend claims that Jesse's horse was a chestnut. The letter below is from The Jockey Club, the foremost authority on thoroughbred horse. This club publishes The American Stud Book. The letter, below, states that the great Fearnought sired a colt in 1777 with the same name. In 1781, that colt would have been a four year old, and it was a CHESTNUT! Maybe it was Jesse's horse. - ----------------------------------- THE JOCKEY ClUB 821 Corporate Drive Lexington, KY 40503-2794 Albert Caswell Metts, Jr. 4019 Sylvan Oaks Drive San Antonio, TX 78229 Dear Albert: I regret to inform you that Fearnought, 1755 bay colt by Regulus out of Silvertail and imported into Virginia in 1764 by John Baylor, is not the same horse that Jesse Thomas rode in 1781 to warn Baron Von Steuben of an impending British invasion. According to the first volume of The American Stud Book, the above-mentioned Fearnought died in the Fall of 1776 in Greenville County, Virginia. Prior to his death, however, he did sire Batte & MackIn's Fearnought, a chestnut colt of 1777 bred by Mr. Edwards in Hicksford, Virginia. This foal was out of an imported mare imported by Col. Mail near Norfolk, Virginia. Perhaps this was Jesse Thomas' mount, I'm not sure. That is all I could find out about Fearnought. If you would like to investigate further, you may want to contact the Keeneland Racecourse Library, an excellent source for historical Thoroughbred information. Their address is: Keeneland Association P.O. Box 1690 Lexington, KY 40588-1690 Attn: Library Best of luck with your research. It is fascinating stuff ! Sincerely, /s/ John J. Cooney Jockey Club Communications EXECUTIVE OFFICES - 40 EAST 52ND STREET, NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10022 Dedicated to the improvement of Thoroughbreed breeding and racing for over a century. ___________________________________________________________________ Get the Internet just the way you want it. Free software, free e-mail, and free Internet access for a month! Try Juno Web: http://dl.www.juno.com/dynoget/tagj.