by Jim Surkamp on June 11, 2016 in Jefferson County

(Thanks to Jane Ailes and Michael Musick for providing key information. – JS)

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Moses Baylor was born an enslaved African-American in June, 1825 in Jefferson County, likely on the farm off Darke Lane, occupied by John O’Bannon and the aging Joshua Burton and his wife, Elizabeth. – (See Note 1)

Before Moses was born in 1825, Joshua Burton was getting along with his 66-year old “relic” (wife) Elizabeth and six persons held in servitude, three of whom were under fourteen years. John and Ruth O’Bannon, who were both in their mid-thirties did the farming. – p. 101, 1820 Census; Tombstone Inscriptions, p. 24. (See Note 2).

Among those who would eventually work the 306 acres of John O’Bannon or served in the house were those enslaved by Burton: Moses, William, (also born in the mid-1820s), the older Tom and Nancy. Betsey, who would be born about 1831. – P. 385. Appraisement 9/16/1839 Will Book Volume:9.

John H. Smith, who lived nearby at Meadow Green farm just east of Middleway and south of the Pike, kept a diary with musings on the mystical connection between the soil, the land, and the farmer, fortunate enough to call a piece of land his own, especially when passed down through the generations of farmers within one family. Such a divine bond to one’s “own soil” is just what those enslaved longed for.

Smith wrote:

The man who stands upon his own soil who feels that by the laws of the land in which he lives . . . he is the rightful and exclusive owner of the land which he tills . . . He feels – other things being equal – more strongly than another the character of man as the Lord of the Inanimate world. Of the great and wonderful sphere which, formed by the hand of God and upheld by his power – is rolling through the heavens. A portion is his, his from the center to the sky. It is the place on which the generation before him moved in its rounds of duties, and he feels himself connected by a visible link with those who proceeded him, as he is also to those who will follow him and to whom he is to transmit a home. Perhaps his farm has come down to him from his father. They have gone to their last home, but he can trace their footsteps over the scene of his daily labors. The roof which shelters him was scored by those to whom he owes his own being.

Some interesting domestic tradition is connected with every (illegible). His favorite first tree was planted by his father’s hand. He sported in his boyhood beside the brook which still winds through the meadow. Through the fields lies the path to the village school of earlier days. He still hears from his window – the voice of the sabbath bell, which called his father and his forefathers to the house of God and here at hand is the spot where his parents laid down to rest, and where, when his time is come, he shall be laid by his children. These are the feelings of the man of the soil. Words cannot paint them. Gold cannot buy them. . . – – pp. 112-113 from “The diary (1847-1856) of John Henry Smith of Smithfield (now Middleway).” Perry, Thornton Tayloe (1892-1981), collector, Jefferson Co., W. Va. miscellaneous volumes, 1793-1929. 39 items. Mss1, P4299b36-39. Near to the end of Reel 27.

A friend of Joshua Burton and increasingly prosperous farmer was James Grantham (1793-1861), who in 1822 was using bricks burned on the property to build what would be Tudor Hall, (still in the family in 2016, but partially rebuilt). The brook and family graveyard written about by John Smith are immediately to the west of Tudor Hall: Turkey Run and a graveyard for the first three generations of the Granthams. With his wife, Phebe Fidelia LaRue Grantham (1799-1867), James Grantham would work amassing farm real estate worth over $60,000 in period dollars by 1860, some five homesteads across the southern sweep of Jefferson County. – p. 28-29, Jefferson County Historical Society Magazine, 1956.

By 1838, the aging, increasingly feeble Joshua Burton recognized he needed a man like his friend and neighbor Grantham to settle his estate. His wife died that August. Both John O’Bannon and his wife Ruth died young in their 47th and 46th years respectively back in late 1830. John O’Bannon left his 306 acres to his sons. – Burton Will, WB 9, page 344.

Burton was at the farm with Nancy, Tom, William, Moses and Betsey, who he now wanted to be as free as the farmer who owned his own land. – WB 9, p. 385, Joshua Burton Appraisement.

John Smith wrote a reflection about Autumn in his diary:
The departing summer ushers in “the golden pomp of Autumn.” The promises of spring have been fulfilled and man gathers in the rich products of his toil. On all sides there is joy while the just tributes of promise ascend from many a grateful heart. It is the season of maturity and decay. The leaves of the forest are robed in their most gorgeous dyes preparatory to their fall. “The harvest is past” and the color and serenity of the Indian Summer soon gave way to the gloom of winter. – Smith diary, p. 99.

On October 29, 1839 Joshua Burton wrote:

In the name of God amen, I, Joshua Burton of the County of Jefferson Va., being of feeble but of sound mind and memory . . . do make this my last will and testament in the manner and form following (to wit):

In the first place I will and direct that all my just debts and funeral expenses be paid;

I will and direct that all my slaves be set free at my decease. If I should die possessed with personal property enough to pay my just debts without my slaves and, if I have not enough, my said slaves are all to be hired out until the hires produce enough to pay my debts.

Item 1st – I leave to Courtney Kercheval that sum of fifty dollars to be paid to her at my decease.
Item 2nd – I will and direct that all the remainder of my personal property be equally divided amongst my slaves – and in the last place, I leave my trusted friend James Grantham, my executor to carry this my last will and testament into effect. In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal – the 29th day of October in the year of our Lord, 1838.

Small wonder that those who Burton freed took off for Kentucky, disregarding the fine print of the will requiring that they be hired out to pay off any remaining debts of Burton’s.

A judge allowed Grantham seven per cent of the account as commission for “the immense trouble he has given the estate.” Grantham made a $250 trip to Kentucky “after Negroes of the estate, by stages, steam boats and bringing them to the County.”

He also bought nine-year-old Betsey a dress;

new pants & a shirt for eleven-year old Bill “to travel in,” along with two blankets (Bill would be referred to later in James Grantham’s accounts also as “Bill Burton”).

Grantham also bought a bed for fifteen year old Moses, considered the most valued worker. p. 201; p. 202. Current Account: Burton, Joshua; James Grantham, executor 9/17/1849.

1840-1842 – Smithfield/Middleway, Va.:

So the work began.: As still the executor to Joshua Burton’s estate James Grantham (1793-1861) hires out Betsey, Bill, Moses, Nancy and possibly Tom through 1849 to farms mostly near his own home at Tudor Hall, where he lived with his wife, Phebe (1799-1867) and, for a time, their children, William Samuel (who would die young), John James (1826-1912), Catherine (1838-1909), Caroline (1831-1873), Eliza Cornelia (1835-1905), and Anna Louisa (1828-1910). – Bates, Vol. 2, pp. 44-45.

In the following text “JG” is “James Grantham.”

January, 1840: Betsey was hired out to the sons of John O’Bannon at their Darke Lane farm.

John H. Smith wrote of the Winter season in his diary:
In some respects, Winter is a cheerful season. The school-boy shouts wildly with glee, as he speeds over the frozen waters, while the merry music of sleigh bells may be heard on many sides. Its influences, however, are most potent at the social hearth, where the song and jest go round, and where blazing fires bid defiance to the frost King, that the reigns without – But this is only the bright side of the picture. We find nature stripped of all her Summer drapery. The snow is spread as a mantle upon the Meadows, and piled up in the highways. The surly windy howls through the leafless forest and enters the hut of the poor man, through many a crevice, having little pity for the shivering groups who are so poorly guarded against its bitterness. – diary , p. 98.

May, 1842: JG buys new shoes for 17-year-old Moses Baylor for $1.25.

1843 – Smithfield/Middleway, Va.:

January 1, 1843, December 25, 1843, May 25, 1844 – JG duns 29-year-old Smithfield farmer Nathan Barns/Barnes for the $55 owed for a year of hired work by 18-year-old Moses Baylor. – 1850 Census Jefferson County Smithfield, page 356. household 1059.

24 1059 1074 Barns Nathan 36 M WFarmer VA
25 1059 1074 Barns Mary 31 F W VA
26 1059 1074 Barns Lucy 12 F W VA
27 1059 1074 Barns William 11 M W VA
28 1059 1074 Barns Joseph 9 M W VA
29 1059 1074 Barns Eldridge 7 M W VA
30 1059 1074 Barns Sarah 6 F W VA
31 1059 1074 Barns Elizabeth 11 F W VA
32 1059 1074 Barns Mary 3 F W VA
33 1059 1074 Barns Stephen 1 M W VA
– 1850 Federal Census.

All of 1843 – 18-year-old Moses Baylor works at the farm of William Haslett and JG is paid $45 on December 25th.

August, 1843 JG pays $2.25 for pair of shoes for 18-year-old Moses Baylor.

1844-1845 – Betsey at James Coyle’s.

1844 – Smithfield/Middleway, Va.:

January 2, 1844; JG pays $1.50 for shoes for 65-year-old Nancy working for James J. Miller, a 31-year-old merchant in Charlestown. – 1850 Census Jefferson County, Charlestown household No. 17.

August, 1844: JG pays $1.00 for a coat and $1.25 for shoes for 19-year-old Moses Baylor.

1845 – Smithfield/Middleway, Va.:

January 1, 1845: $22.50 owed to JG for work done by 15-year-old “Bill” for Samuel Ruckles.

January, 1845: JG paid $50 by William Haslett for a year’s work by 20-year-old Moses Baylor.

January, 1845: JG is paid $12 by Joseph Morrow for work by 16-year-old Bill Burton before he ran away and returned to Tudor Hall and put under a doctor’s care. – 1852 Map of Jefferson County, Va. Howell Brown
19 1400 1415 Morrow Joseph 41 M WFarmer 4,280 VA
20 1400 1415 Morrow Rebecca 17 F W VA
21 1400 1415 Morrow John J. 15 M W VA
22 1400 1415 Morrow Joseph R. 13 M W VA
23 1400 1415 Morrow William H. 11 M W VA
– 1850 Federal Census.

February, 1845: JG pays $2 for nailed shoes for 20-year-old Moses Baylor.

March, 1845: JG pays 75 cents for a strong shirt for 20-year-old Moses Baylor.

March, 1845: JG pays $1.75 for cloth for pants for 16-year-old Bill Burton.

July, 1845: JG spent $1.63 to see 65-year-old Nancy at Harper’s Ferry.

1846 – Smithfield/Middleway, Va.:

January, 1846: 66-year-old (approx.) Nancy and JG spend $4.75 to get to Harpers Ferry, and the “bringing of Thomas Johnson.”

March, 1846: JG gives 17-year-old Bill Burton fifty cents to mend some boots.

June, 1846: JG pays 75 cents to 21-year-old Moses Baylor to see 66-year-old Nancy at Harper’s Ferry.

April, 1846: JG pays 75 cents to see 66-year-old Nancy at Harper’s Ferry.

August, 1846: JG pays $2.13 to see 66-year-old Nancy at Harper’s Ferry.

September, 1846: JG paid $1.50 to 21-year-old Moses Baylor to make a new pair of pants from an existing pair of pants.

1847 – Smithfield/Middleway, Va.:

April, 1847 – Thirty-year-old farmer John Henry Smith, who hired from James Grantham the help of Bill Burton, still it seems working off debts from Joshua Burton’s estate. Bill worked for Smith at his nearby Meadow Green farm for part of 1847 and for all of 1848 and James Grantham, as the executor of Joshua Burton’s estate, would present Smith with a bill on January 1849 in the amount of $51.90 for Bill’s work for him. – p. 208 – Account, Current: Burton, Joshua; James Grantham, executor 9/17/1849: Jefferson County, WV, Will Book

In early 1847, Smith was writing in his farm diary:

SPRING – 1847:

That season in which the sun returns to us from his cold recess, bringeth warmth and renewal in his train, is most expressly denominated by the pure English word “SPRING.” Within the tropics Summer holds a constant sceptre. Vegetable growth has no intermission; it has no spring because it takes no rest. But with us, in the temperate zones, everything to which life or motion belongs and is now roused into activity. This is the jubilee of the year. The fountains are unlocked; the reptiles wake from their long sleep; the earth opens to the plough share; while the buds swell and put forth in all their beauty. A fresh impulse is infused throughout the whole of Nature and Man looks with exuberance to Him, who causeth “the seed time . . .”

APRIL, 1847:

April, 1847 Thomas is buried.

Thursday, April 1st – Rather cool day, at Jacob Gilbert’s for peach trees, in the evening looks like snow.

Friday, April 2nd – Very pretty warm day, planting peach trees.

Saturday, April 3rd – Very warm day, in town, at Mill and Baney’s.

17 851 863 Baney Thaddeus 36 M WMiller 3,500 MD
18 851 863 Banrey Susan 35 F W MD
19 851 863 Baney Thaddeus 8 M W VA
20 851 863 Baney Julia A. 5 F W VA
21 851 863 Baney John J. 9/12 M W VA
22 851 863 Baney Jane 6 F W VA
– 1850 Census

Sunday, April 4th – Cloudy morning at Baney’s and Boyd Roberts. Very pretty day. In the evening at Hardesty’s.

Monday, April 5th – Warm day, making garden. Jim at Charlestown.

Tuesday, April 6th – Cloudy and gusty, raining some little, in cornfield, burning brush. Peach and cherry trees in blossom.

Wednesday, April 7th – Very pretty day. At town until eleven, at home until five. Jake here today.

Thursday, April 8th – Very pretty day. George Strain set in for month at home, in the evening planting potatoes.

Friday, April 9th – At home and helping McIntyre at the Barn. Pretty day, in town in the evening.

Saturday, April 10th – Warm day and in town and at Rosenberger’s Mill for plaisters.

Sunday, April 11th – Cold north wind blowing, at Kearneysville.

Monday, April 12th – Very warm, at home until two, then in town, rode home on Showman’s horse.

Tuesday, April 13th – Cold wind blowing from N.E. and cool, in the evening warm. Putting up spouting.

Wednesday, April 14th – Cool windy in the morning, finished putting up spouting, burning brush . . . until dinner, in the evening at Town at Joseph Smith’s.

Thursday, April 15th – Cold wind from the North, in the evening making board fences.

Friday, April 16th – Cold wind from the West, in the Town with Grantham.

Saturday, April 17th – Cool day, hauling locust posts from the woods, in the evening at the Mill.

Sunday, April 18th – Very cool windy morning and in town, then at Hardesty’s.

Monday, April 19th – Cold and windy, at home until ten o’clock, then at Hardesty’s, in the evening in town, came home with Ada Hardesty.

Tuesday, April 20th – Cloudy, sowing oats in the morning, very hot . . . fox (shot one).

Wednesday, April 21st – Very hot day, at Watson’s.

SUMMER – 1847:

Farmer John Smith writes of farm life in 1847, the year he had Bill Burton working with him at Meadow Green:

20 1014 1027 Smith John H. 33 M WFarmer 7,200 VA
21 1014 1027 Smith Margaret G. 35 F W VA
22 1014 1027 Smith William 9 M W VA
23 1014 1027 Smith Eleanor 8 F W VA
24 1014 1027 Smith Ann M. 6 F W VA
25 1014 1027 Smith Mary L. 2 F W VA
26 1014 1027 Smith James V. 11/12 M W VA
27 1014 1027 Young Mary 56 F W VA
– 1850 Federal Census

The commencement of Summer has been termed “the very carnival of Nature.” The bosum of the earth is covered with flowers, and everything around or about us is full of life and vigor. The frosts and damps of spring are gone, the night air is balm and refreshing. The garden and orchard present us with most delicious fruits, tempting to the eye as well as great spice to the palate. But as the heat increases and pregnant showers become necessary to restore the drooping gardens, who can equal the subliminity, the bursting of the thunderclap or who can imitate the gorgeous colors of the rose of promise? “The ringing of scythes is heard in the hay-field, while the grain hops are rapidly whitening for the harvest.”

He continues in his diary:

Thursday, July 29th – Hot this morning, at Robt Shirleys and Cameron’s Depot, got home by 12 o’clock , in the afternoon at Thomson’s Depot (in Summit Point), came home by 6 PM.

Friday, July 30th – Warm, at home, hauling in Oats.

Saturday, July 31st – Hot, surveying with Haslett in morning, (illegible) the ditch with Grantham.

AUGUST, 1847:

Sunday, August 1st, 1847 – Hot and hazy, wind East, at home.

Monday, August 2nd – Warm, in town all day.

Tuesday, August 3rd – Warm, Mr. Yates here today, Jim’s at Machine.

Wednesday, August 4th – Warm, hauling oats in the morning, uncle Jake here in the evening.

Thursday, August 5th – Warm, in the evening in town to execute a Deed with James Grantham.

Friday, August 6th – Raining this morning, thrashing timothy seed in the afternoon at Jas Grantham’s.

Saturday, August 7th – Cloudy, at home until 10 o’clock, then to town and school. 6 PM Election: Dr. Mc (Macoughtry) out to see the Barn at night.

Sunday, August 8th – Cloudy, wind from S.E. This day Roe died at 10 o’clock PM.

Monday, August 9th – Very hot day, a good shower. This day will never be forgotten by Me, while I am alive. Benny was out in his last carting place at about 5 PM.

Tuesday, August 10th – Very hot day at Riely’s sale. This night tremendous rain. George Gilbert and wife here tonight.

Wednesday, August 11th – Warm this morning, Wind from S.E., at Jas Grantham’s, thence to John Dalgarn’s, then town to wait for mail.

Thursday, August 12th – Warm, at home all day.

Friday, August 13th – Warm, a good shower, at Dalgarns, Sale.

16 746 755 Dalgarn John W. 34 M WFarmer – 1850 Census
– 1850 Federal Census

Saturday, August 14th – Very hot at home until 2 o’clock, at Jacob Gilbert’s at Rosenberger’s Mill, came home.

Sunday, August 15th – Foggy.

Monday, August 16th – Hot, at home until 4 o’clock, then in town, heavy rain, at Grantham’s.

Tuesday, August 17th – Hot, hauling stone. Miss Waugh gone home today.

17 1013 1026 Waugh Elizabeth 65 F W
– 1850 Federal Census

Wednesday, August 17th – Pleasant day, at Joseph Smith’s in the morning at Charlestown, got home by seven PM.

Thursday, August 19th – Pretty morning, Sinclair’s billy here. Uncle Jake here, in town in the after.

Friday, August 20th – At home until 2 o’clock, Winds from S.E.

Saturday, August 21st – Cool morning at a small Barn at Ed Riely’s.

Sunday, August 22st – Raining this morning, Joe Packett and wife here this evening, and Mr. Barns here all night.

12 746 755 Packett Joseph G 36 M WMerchant VA
13 746 755 Packett Isabella 22 F W VA
14 746 755 Packett Margaret 4 F W VA
15 746 755 Packett John J. 2 M W VA
16 746 755 Dalgarn John W. 34 M WFarmer
– 1850 Federal Census.

Barns Family in 1852 lived on John Chamberlain Farm – SOURCE: Spirit of Jefferson, September 21, 1852, FARM FOR SALE. P3c7

24 1059 1074 Barns Nathan 36 M WFarmer VA
25 1059 1074 Barns Mary 31 F W VA
26 1059 1074 Barns Lucy 12 F W VA
27 1059 1074 Barns William 11 M W VA
28 1059 1074 Barns Joseph 9 M W VA
29 1059 1074 Barns Eldridge 7 M W VA
30 1059 1074 Barns Sarah 6 F W VA
31 1059 1074 Barns Elizabeth 11 F W VA
32 1059 1074 Barns Mary 3 F W VA
33 1059 1074 Barns Stephen 1 M W VA
– 1850 Federal Census.

Monday, August 23rd – Foggy early this morning, In the Meadow with Walter (Shirley) and his hand mowing. In the evening rode to town with him and Lock, a show tonight in the school of “sleight of hand” and “Negro songs.” Showers tonight. Came out of Town with John Shirley.

Tuesday, August 24th – Warm in Meadows all day. In evening rode to Town with Lock in wagon.

Wednesday, August 25th – Warm in town until one o’clock getting calf muzzle, in afternoon in Meadow with Walter and Lock. They finished mowing today.

Thursday, August 26th – at Bunker Hill, Buckles town and at Baney’s, got to town by 5 o’clock.

34 1378 1393 Buckles William 37 M WFarmer 6,500 VA
35 1378 1393 Buckles Ann 23 F W VA
36 1378 1393 Buckles Mary A. 4 F W VA
37 1378 1393 Buckles John H. 2 M W VA
38 1378 1393 Buckles William N. 2 M W VA
– 1850 Federal Census

Friday, August 27th – Warm, hauling in Hay, in evening a heavy rain.

Saturday, August 28th – Raining this morning, in the afternoon in Town to see show.

Sunday, August 29th – At home, in the morning in town. Windy. Lucy here today.

Monday, August 30th – In town this morning, in afternoon in town again, went down the run with Lock. Windy.

Tuesday, August 31st – Very hot day at Jacob Gilbert’s, Granthams.

SEPTEMBER, 1847:

Wednesday, September 1st – at Jacob Gilbert’s, very hot day.

Thursday, September 2nd – at Jacob’s, came to town by 2 o’clock, got home at seven evening.

Friday, September 3rd – Very hot day with a party fishing with a seine.

Saturday, September 4th – Very hot day, in town had a saddle to ? with Showalter, came home about one o’clock with William.

Sunday, September 5th – Hot with a strong wind from the south. Lock out today. Mowing at Packett’s.

Monday, September 6th – Very hot, at home, not well, in the evening in town.

Tuesday, September 7th – Hot day at home still sick, Mrs. Barns here today

Wednesday, September 8th – In bed all day, sick. Very hot day.

Thursday, September 9th – In bed sick, Uncle Jack here today, a heavy rain by evening.

Friday, September 10th – Cool, windy morning, was this morning walking about, in the evening in bed with chill.

Saturday, September 11th – Raining, a procession at Wise(?)

Sunday, September 12th – Raining, at Barns and Jim Mecht., David Ogden.

Monday, September 13th – Pretty day, James Haslett here.

Tuesday, September 14th – In bed, chill day

Wednesday, September 15th – Warm day, in woods, first daybeen out since I have been sick. In town in afternoon with Jake.

Thursday, September 16th – At home in afternoon rode to town to take Dick to get shod.

Friday, September 17th – Warm with an eastern wind, going Robert Shaull’s for sold wheat. In evening in town.

Saturday, September 18th – East winds, Jim ploughing in lot by House.

Sunday, September 19th – at home all day.

Monday, September 20th – Cloudy, Geo Myers cutting logs, hauled Mr. Brown a load of wood in the evening.

Tuesday, September 21st – Pretty day, hauling wood to town, and brought some seed wheat from Uncle Jake’s

Wednesday, September 22nd – Warm, at Ran Kownslar’s withBaylor and Joe Crane. Jim hauling stone for Beckwith.

Thursday, September 23rd – At Baney’s, T. B. Shawley for seed Wheat. Cloudy day, commenced raining about dark.

Friday, September 24th – Raining hard.

Saturday, September 25th – Cloudy with N.W. Winds. At Kownslar’s for wheat.

Sunday, September 26th – Pretty morning, at home rode by Walter Shirley’s.

Monday, September 27th – At Watson’s Mill and Shawley for seed Wheat. Warm day.

Tuesday, September 28th – Windy.

1848 – Smithfield/Middleway:

January, 1848: 67-year-old (approx.) Nancy’s foot is burned, while living at Harper’s Ferry. JG spends $6.13 to visit her and to assist.

March 25, 1848: JG has 23-year-old Moses Baylor take $5 to 68-year-old Nancy at Harper’s Ferry.

May 1, 1848: JG outlays 50 cents to 19-year-old Bill for washing.

June 16, 1848: JG outlays $5 to Nancy “to help her along.”

July, 1848: Boarding and tending to Bill during a sickness means a $3 expense applied to the Burton account.

September 1, 1848: JG draws from the account $1.50 for additional support for Nancy.

To be continued Part 2 Moses Baylor gets free, goes to Liberia, sails back 1850-1860

Related videos and posts:

Link to Video:
The Granthams of Tudor Hall – Bill and Amon Share Click Here. TRT: 20:43

Link to Post:
Chewy Morsel #8 – A Riddle You Can Solve. Click Here.
480 words

References and “NOTES”:

NOTE 1:

Marriage records – Jefferson County Clerk – December 11, 1877, page 62, line 14, Baylor reports he was born in Jefferson County.
wvculture.org 2 March 2000 Web. 10 March 2016.

Moses Baylor gives an age of 48 on 1877 Dec 11th, but reports his age as 23 in 1850, or being born in 1827) – 1009 1022 1850 Jefferson County Va. Federal Census – household of John J. Grantham (son of James and Phebe), Moses Baylor (M) 23, James Baylor (M) 17. archive.org Internet Archives. 26 January 1997 Web. 10 March 2016.

1880 Jefferson County Federal Census, Town of Middleway, p. 8 line 20 Baylor gives his age in 1880 as 55 (being born in 1825).
ancestry.com 28 October 1996 Web. 10 March 2016. (Fee subscription).

In the 1900 Federal Census of Jefferson County, Wv, Middleway Town, Sheet No. 3A Line 44 Moses Baylor gives his birth date as June, 1825.
ancestry.com 28 October 1996 Web. 10 March 2016. (Fee subscription).

END NOTE 1

NOTE 2:

Tombstone Inscriptions, pp. 24 & 295. (NOTE: The location of the O’Bannon/Burton Farm was confused because, in Tombstone Inscriptions, two very different locations for the same three extant markers are given at two different pages in the book. The mapper for Jefferson County’s Assessor’s office, Victoria Myers, places the O’Bannon Farm at the location given in the Inscription’s citation on page 295 that places the same markers at “the Trussell Farm on the Leetown Road” – immediately south that road on the east side of Darke Lane.-JS).

END NOTE 2

Bates, Robert (1958). “The Story of Smithfield.” Vol. 2. Endicott, NY: R. L. Bates. pp. 34, 35, 42, 43, 44, 45, 60.

Sesquicentennial Farms – Tudor Hall (1773). ”Magazine of the Jefferson County Historical Society. Volume XXII. December 1956. Charles Town, WV: JCHS. – pp. 28-29.

Tombstone Inscriptions Jefferson County, W. Va. 1687-1980. Charles Town, WV: Bee Line Chapter, NSDAR.

“The Diary of Willoughby N. Lemen (June 4, 1839-February 13, 1860).” The Shepherdstown Register (series issues: January 30-June 12, 1947). (On microform), Scarborough Library – Shepherd University.

“The diary (1847-1856) of John Henry Smith of Smithfield (now Middleway).” Perry, Thornton Tayloe (1892-1981), collector, Jefferson Co., W. Va. miscellaneous volumes, 1793-1929. 39 items. Mss1, P4299b36-39. Near to the end of Reel 27. Scarborough Library, Shepherd University.

James E. Harding (October 23, 1979). “National Register of Historic Places Nomination: Middleway Historic District” (pdf). National Park Service.
wvculture.org 2 March 2000 Web. 10 March 2016.

From The Jefferson County Clerk (Incl. online sources):

Marriage records, Wills and Deeds. – Jefferson County Clerk, Charles Town, WV

Record of Marriages. No. 1. 1801-1853; An Alphabetical Transcript of the marriage records of Jefferson County from 1801 to 1853.
Barns, Nathan and Mary H. Grantham 1/31/1837
Barnes, Nathan Norval and Annie Isler 12/22/1860

Evidence of Nathan Barns(Barnes) Family whereabouts in 1852
Spirit of Jefferson, September 21, 1852, FARM FOR SALE. P3c7

The undersigned wished to sell, at private sale, his FARM, situated in Jefferson co., Virginia, about five miles west of Charlestown, the county seat, and within two and a half miles of Cameron’s Depot, on the Winchester and Potomac Railroad, and about one and a fourth miles from the Turnpike leading from Middleway to Harpers Ferry, adjoining the lands of Robert V. Shirley, John W. Packett, James Grantham and others, containing about 224 Acres more or less of Limestone Land. The Improvements consist of a Dwelling house, Stable, Corn house, Smoke-house, &c., and a never-failing well of water near the house, with a young orchard of choice fruit lately planted. Those desiring to purchase will do well to call on the subscriber at Hopewell Mills, near Leetown, Jefferson co., Va., or on Mr. Nathan Barns, who is now the present occupant of said farm. The Terms will be made reasonable, and possession given on the first day of April next. – JOHN CHAMBERLAIN. September 7, 1852 – wvgeohistory.org.

Joshua Burton
Will: Burton, Joshua 5/20/1839 Will Book Volume:9 Page(s):288;
wvgeohistory.org 5 October 2010 Web. March 2016.

Account: Burton, Joshua, Executor of 9/17/1849 Will Book Volume:12 Page(s):201-208;
wvgeohistory.org 5 October 2010 Web. March 2016.

Appraisement: Burton, Joshua 9/16/1839 Will Book Volume:9 Page(s):384-385;
wvgeohistory.org 5 October 2010 Web. March 2016.

Account, Current: Burton, Joshua; James Grantham, executor 9/17/1849: Jefferson County, WV, Will Book 12 Page(s):201-208.
wvgeohistory.org 5 October 2010 Web. March 2016.

John O’Bannon left his 306 acres to his sons John, Harrison, and Joseph
Will: O’Bannon, John 11/15/1830 Volume:Jefferson County, WV, Will Book 6 Page(s):345-346;
wvgeohistory.org 5 October 2010 Web. March 2016.

Appraisement: O’Bannon, John 11/21/1832 Volume:Jefferson County, WV, Will Book 7 Page(s):122-126;
wvgeohistory.org 5 October 2010 Web. March 2016.

Account, Current: O’Bannon, John; James Hite, administrator 2/18/1833 Volume:Jefferson County, WV, Will Book 7 Page(s):206-207
wvgeohistory.org 5 October 2010 Web. March 2016.

Account, Current: O’Bannon, John 2/18/1833 Volume:Jefferson County, WV, Will Book 7 Page(s):206-207
wvgeohistory.org 5 October 2010 Web. March 2016.

Sale: O’Bannon, John; James Hite, administrator 3/18/1833 Volume:Jefferson County, WV, Will Book 7 Page(s):222-229
wvgeohistory.org 5 October 2010 Web. March 2016.

James Grantham
Will: Grantham, James 9/16/1861 Volume:Jefferson County, WV, Will Book 16 Page(s):381-383
wvgeohistory.org 5 October 2010 Web. March 2016.

Federal Census Jefferson County Va/WV 1820-1920
1. 1850 Federal Census Jefferson County, Va. 40/1009/1022 (John J. Grantham household)

also
Smith, John H – 45 real estate 8,000 personal property 2105, wife Margaret, 45; eight children
Family Number: 431 – Page 62.
fold3.com 16 September 2001 Web. 10 March 2016. (Fee subscription)

2. 1820 Federal Census Jefferson County, Va. P. 96A (Joshua Burton, John O’Bannon)
Elizabeth Grantham p. 101.

John, William and Joseph Grantham & Smith Slaughter – p. 99.

John, Seth and Moses Smith & John Grantham p. 98.

James Roper p. 95.

p. 99 (Autumn); pp. 112-113 (The Farmer) from “The diary (1847-1856) of John Henry Smith of Smithfield (now Middleway).” Perry, Thornton Tayloe (1892-1981), collector, Jefferson Co., W. Va. miscellaneous volumes, 1793-1929. 39 items. Mss1, P4299b36-39. Near to the end of Reel 27. Scarborough Library, Shepherd University.

Summary of Jefferson County commerce and agriculture p. 109.
Population schedules of the fourth census of the United States, 1820, Virginia [microform] Reel 134
archive.org Internet Archives. 26 January 1997 Web. 10 March 2016.

Image Credits:

Montage of property owners in 1864
Map of the lower Shenandoah Valley, Virginia
Brown, Samuel Howell.
Early, Jubal Anderson, 1816-1894.
Created / Published: 1864.
loc.gov 16 June 1997 Web. 10 March 2016.

The Country Store
Edward Lamson Henry – 1885
the-athenaeum.org 23 May 2002 Web. 10 March 2016.

An October Day (also known as Cragsmoor Post Office)
Edward Lamson Henry – 1903
the-athenaeum.org 23 May 2002 Web. 10 March 2016.

A Summer Day
Edward Lamson Henry – 1890
the-athenaeum.org 23 May 2002 Web. 10 March 2016.

“Tom – semblance”
The Chimney Corner
Eastman Johnson – 1863
the-athenaeum.org 23 May 2002 Web. 10 March 2016.

“Nancy – semblance”
Dinah, Portrait of a Negress
Eastman Johnson – circa 1866-1869
the-athenaeum.org 23 May 2002 Web. 10 March 2016.

“Betsey – semblance”
Hannah – Eastman Johnson – circa 1859
the-athenaeum.org 23 May 2002 Web. 10 March 2016.

“Moses Baylor young – semblance”
Strother, David H., “Virginia Illustrated.” Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, New York, NY: Harper and Bros. Volume 13, Issue: 75, (Aug., 1856). pp. 303-323. Print.

Strother, David H., “Virginia Illustrated.” Harper’s New Monthly Magazine. Cornell Digital Library – The Making of America. 19 July 2011. Web. 29 January 2014.
p. 316 – woodpile.

a smoking, small wood stove (detail in the title of the montage called “Hirelings”)
Strother, David H., “Virginia Illustrated.” Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, New York, NY: Harper and Bros. Volume 12, Issue: 68, (Jan., 1856). pp. 158-179. Print.

Strother, David H., “Virginia Illustrated.” Harper’s New Monthly Magazine. Cornell Digital Library – The Making of America. 19 July 2011. Web. 29 January 2014.
p. 177.

“Moses Baylor – later semblance”
Head of a Black Man
Eastman Johnson – circa 1868
the-athenaeum.org 23 May 2002 Web. 10 March 2016.

detail “Moses Baylor – semblance”
Fredericksburg, Virginia. Burial of Federal dead
loc.gov 16 June 1997 Web. 10 March 2016.

Paintings of Phebe Grantham, James Grantham and Col. J. J. Grantham – Courtesy the Grantham family.

Daguerrotype of James and Phebe Grantham – Jefferson County Museum and the Grantham Family.

Title: Winter pastime
Creator(s): N. Currier (Firm),
Date Created/Published: New York : Published by N. Currier, c1855.
loc.gov 16 June 1997 Web. 10 March 2016.

“Spring by John H. Smith”
The Carnival
(also known as Dressing for the Carnival)
Winslow Homer (1877)
Metropolitan Museum of Art – New York, NY
the-athenaeum.org 23 May 2002 Web. 10 March 2016.

“Winter by John H. Smith”
Title: American winter scene
Date Created/Published: Phila. : Published by Joseph Hoover, c1867.
Medium: 1 print: lithograph, color.
Summary: Four horse-drawn sleighs in front of house.
Photo Archives Page 1 – Sleighing and skating 19th Century
wintercenter.homestead.com 4 April 2001 Web. 10 March 2016.

Pictorial Americana
Selected Images from the Collections of the Library of Congress
FARMS AND FARMING
loc.gov 16 June 1997 Web. 10 March 2016.

[New York] Farmer whetting his scythe, by William Sidney Mount, 1848
the-athenaeum.org 23 May 2002 Web. 10 March 2016.

List of Paintings by William Sidney Mount at Athenaeum
the-athenaeum.org 23 May 2002 Web. 10 March 2016

The Long Story (also known as The Tough Story)
William Sidney Mount – 1837
the-athenaeum.org 23 May 2002 Web. 10 March 2016.
the-athenaeum.org 23 May 2002 Web. 10 March 2016

The Power of Music
William Sidney Mount – 1847
Cleveland Museum of Art (United States – Cleveland, Ohio)
the-athenaeum.org 23 May 2002 Web. 10 March 2016.

What Have I Forgot?
William Sidney Mount (1862)
Private collection
the-athenaeum.org 23 May 2002 Web. 10 March 2016.

“Southern Planter.” (1841). Richmond, Va.: P.D. Bernard. Print.

“Southern Planter.” (1841). Internet Archives: Digital Library of Free Books, Movies, Music, and Wayback Machine. 27 Oct. 2009. Web. 12 Feb. 2012.
p. 37; p. 58; p. 20 the new grain planter.

NOT USED
Title: Winter in the country: a cold morning
Creator(s): Currier & Ives.,
Date Created/Published: New York : Published by Currier & Ives, c1863.
loc.gov 16 June 1997 Web. 10 March 2016.

NOT USED
Title: Gift for the grangers / J. Hale Powers & Co. Fraternity & Fine Art Publishers, Cin’ti. ; Strobridge & Co. Lith. Cincinnati, O.
Creator(s): Strobridge & Co. Lith.,
Date Created/Published: Cincinnati, O. : J. Hale Powers & Co., c1873.
loc.gov 16 June 1997 Web. 10 March 2016.

NOT USED
Title: Early autumn: (Salmon Branch, Granby, Ct.) / A. D. Shattuck.
Creator(s): Currier & Ives.
loc.gov 16 June 1997 Web. 10 March 2016.

NOT USED
A Stormy Morning (also known as Leaving in the Early Morn in a Northeaster)
Edward Lamson Henry – 1899
the-athenaeum.org 23 May 2002 Web. 10 March 2016.

NOT USED
The Message
Edward Lamson Henry – 1893
the-athenaeum.org 23 May 2002 Web. 10 March 2016.