Hi Dell, Thank you for your response. Actually, Runion Creek was originally known as Tunis Creek. My ancestor John Runyon obtained land along Tunis Creek on 13 Dec 1753 when that area was still part of Augusta County. The Runyon family has lived along Tunis Creek ever since. John died there in 1830 and, within a few years after that, 3 of his 4 sons moved to Ohio. Almost all of the family who left VA still retain the Runyon spelling but his son Anderson's family remained in "Brocks Gap" and over the next 20 to 30 years their spelling of the family name gradually evolved into Runion. (Some who went to Hardy Co., WV even evolved to Runions.) If you find really old maps you will find the name Tunis Creek but, due to the fact that most of the people living along it were named Runion, the name ended up changing to Runion Creek. I don't have a time frame on that. My best guess is that a Holland Dutchman migrated to that area sometime before 1753. Most likely he would have come from New York (formerly New Amsterdam) or New Jersey. He must have been one of the 1st settlers there for the village, and the creek that ran by it, to have been named after him -even though the creek starts somewhere in Shenandoah County. I was hoping someone would know who he was. Perhaps early land records would help identify him. Norman ----- Original Message ----- From: "DELLIEMER QUICK" <jddquick@msn.com> To: <VASHENAN-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Tuesday, September 02, 2003 1:20 AM Subject: [VASHENAN] Tunis village > Hi Norman, > That village of Tunis sure seems to be in the same neck of the woods as where my ancestor Tunis Quick Senior lived. I would sure like to know the village name's origin too! > The name Tunis does have a Holland Dutch origin. In my family, an English ancestor (speculative) was Anthony Quick, whose first name became Thennis|Theunis in Dutch when he went to Holland. Descendants of his in Holland migrated to America (more definitely known), bringing Dutch customs. Theunis|Tunis seems to have been one of the most popular names in the Quick family for 200 years. Tunis was used by many other Holland Dutch families, also, though. > My Tunis Quick Senior lived in Shenandoah County 1794-1815 (his land straddled the Shenandoah Co./Rockingham Co. boundary, but I do not yet have an exact location, which I plan to find). His sons were in the area various years. His son Tunis Junior (brother of my ancestor James) seems to have been around the area more than the other brothers. For example, there is record of marriage of Tunis Quick (I guess Junior; it would be a second marriage) in Rockingham County in 1811, and his name is in the sale documents of his father's estate. > Even without an answer to the origin of the village Tunis's name, I am intrigued by the question, because it is exciting to wonder about. Thanks very much for bringing it up and providing the great location description! > By the way do you know the origin of the name Runion Creek? That's close to your last name! > Yours truly, > Dell