Please find the exact location of the cemetary and let me know. I want to do a detailed investigation of the cemetery. Maybe a clean-up, if needed. I have looked for it several times and have not located it. Dan Harris > > From: "macbd1" <macbd1@arthur.k12.il.us> > Date: 2004/01/17 Sat PM 12:25:27 EST > To: WVHAMPSH-L@rootsweb.com > Subject: [WVHAMPSH-L] South Branch - French's Station - FRENCH, GUTHRIE, LEDERER > > I just re-subscribed to wvhampsh-l after a long absence. It's good to see > you are still diligently researching your WHITE line, Tootsie. I wonder > about Dan Harris who also played a key part in a discussion about the > subject names 2-3 years ago. Mary Szy was also very helpful in reporting > about her visit to the site at that time. > > For those who may not know, the subject names of a 'town' or community are > still shown on today's US Geological Survey maps for some reason although > the original site has been abandoned for many years and there are virtually > no surviving buildings. This was apparently a thriving little community as > late as the early 1900's and a train station on the B&O after that line was > built during the mid-late 1800's. It was apparently a place of mercantile > endeavors as early as 1750 by a FRENCH family and may have been a trading > post along the Potomac prior to that. It is located almost a mile east of > the mouth of the South Branch (of the Potomac) River on the WV side. This > link is a map of the area: > http://www.topozone.com/map.asp?lat=39.5201&lon=-78.5767&datum=nad83 > > I was surprised to receive an e-mail a couple days ago from a computer-using > friend of a guy from Cumberland, MD who hunts on a farm located at the old > 'South Branch' site. This hunter somehow learned of our prior wvhampsh-l > discussion, knows the area very well and says he has photos of the old > cemetery there. He will arrange to send these by mail to an interested > person or as e-mail attachments (by his friend) and has even offerred to > obtain permission for escorting an interested party onto this land. The > cemetery is apparently small. Names that can be seen on the tombstone photos > reportedly include FRENCH, GUTHRIE and LEDERER. The first two names are > known from our prior research. > > My McDONALD's left the South Branch area during the 1760's so the cemetery > photos have no personal interest to me. If anyone is interested in receiving > photos or visiting the site let me know and I'll send contact-info. Please > contact me personally at macbd1@arthur.k12.il.us so as not to bother others > at the list. FYI, the hunter says the land is posted and watched closely as > there have been problems with cattle-rustlers recently. > > Regards to all, > Neil McDonald > >