Chris,
We are in the land of "nebulae" when we try to deal with the
question of the number of generations of Joseph Callaway in this
lineage. I will just say that our "pure" research has not turned up
evidence that there were two generations of Joseph Callaway in the
descendancy lineage.
I realize that the time span between 1687 when the name of Joseph
Callaway appears on the importation lists, and 1712 when the first
known son, Thomas Callway, was born is lengthy. However, one must
consider that before he could marry, Joseph had to work off his term
of indenture....5 to 7 years....before he would have been permitted
to marry. Also, it appears that the son, John, mentioned by Elijah
Callaway to Draper, was older than Thomas. The daughter, Elizabeth,
could also have been older, thus shortening the time span between
1787 and the 1712 birthdate of Thomas Callaway who was the eldest
surviving son of Joseph. There is also the possiblity of "stillborns"
between these events. Also, there remains the question of "how old
was Joseph Callaway when he came to America?"
Lyman Draper's "Life of Boone" is not a PRIMARY source for
Callaway research. It is SECONDARY at best. Lyman Draper was not an
authority on the Callaway family. He used information provided to him
by others - in this case, Elijah Callaway. Elijah Callaway was a very
old man when he wrote to Draper. He, no doubt, recounted tales he had
heard about his heritage. In these letters, Elijah did give
"provable" misinformation about his family to Draper. We must
remember that the information provided to Draper was from a very old
man who was recounting family stories dimmed by time. Just think
back of our own memories of family tales heard in childhood - how
really clear are these in our minds?
The research we have been conducting in England actually does
suggest that there may have been two generations of Joseph Callaways.
The question is, did both Josephs come to America? Our research is
not yet complete on this subject. We will be returning to England
sometime next year to continue this project. We are far from ready to
announce anything regarding this, since we must follow through in
records to see if the Joseph Callaways we have isolated in England
remained in England, or if one or both disappeared from records. So,
based on the above, we choose to just leave ONE Joseph Callaway to
head the charts of the Virginia Callaways. Clear as mud, right?
Personally, I don't think it is our most important task at present.
There are too many Callaways out there who need to be attached to the
known Callaway lineages. That is where I try to spend most of my
energy in US research.
The date we use for the birth of Richard Callaway is from his own
Family Bible. This Bible is still in existence. I have seen it.
There is a photostat copy of Richard's Bible in the DAR library. The
actual Bible is owned by descendants in Kentucky, and was brought for
display at the 1980 CFA annual meeting in Louisville, KY. Vol. VI
(1981) of The Callaway Journal contains a feature on this Bible. I
might add that the date of birth for Richard Callaway, given in his
Bible, does coincide with his coming "of age" and making his first
appearance in public records.
I hope this clarifies, somewhat, our stance on the subject of
"Two Joseph Callaways."
Sherrill
Distribution:
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