Michael Kerns Sr.(cr.1730-1807)and Montgomery/Mason Co.W Va.
During the researching of the Karnes Family of Bedford Co., Va. A fellow
researcher, fifth cousin, and good friend, F. Landis Weaver of Blue
Springs, Mo. wrote to me and said if I got the chance to pass through West
Virginia by way of Point Pleasant to Charleston. I might to want stop off
to look for some land in Mason County that Michaels oldest son Adam Kerns
sold to Christopher Clark of Bedford, Va. The 1200 acres sale took place in
1809, two years after the death of Michael Kerns Sr. This land was
mentioned in Michaels Will of 1803 as being in Montgomery Co. Va. along
Sixteen Mile Creek. Thats all. The county was no longer known as
Montgomery but was now Mason Co.
May Ellen and I had a free weekend in 1995 and decided to go to
Gallipolis, Oh. and Point Pleasant, W Va. to see if we could find that 1200
acres. On a Friday afternoon we went to the Mason County Court House in
Point Pleasant, W Va. to search the records for the 1200 acres sale. After
about an hour of unsuccessful searching we suddenly found that in 1814 five
of Michaels sons and their wives (all named) were selling another 2000
acres to this same Christopher Clark.
May and I did not understand, at first, what we had discovered. We made
copies of all of the Land Sales. We thought that the Sixteen Mile Creek
spoken of was the one that flowed into the Ohio River.
What did interest me more at the time was that Moses and his wife Sarah
Kerns was one of the sons. This bit of information settled an argument of
which Moses (there were two at the time living in the same area) was the
son of Michael Kerns Sr. The other Moses had married an Aggie Thompson.
Until now there was no evidence to show which descendants went back to
Michael Sr., this was great news for us.
A few weeks later it began to sink in. How did Michael Sr. acquire these
3000 acres ? Did he buy them from someone ? Was he awarded them for
fighting in the French and Indian War? Did he see this fertile land on his
way to or from the Battle of Point Pleasant in Lord Dunsmores War ?
Maybe he got the Grant for Services in the Revolutionary War.
Then we noticed the phase in one of the copies that said waters flowing
to the Great Kanawha River. Eureka.......we found it. May and I drove
down Rt. 35 south of Pt. Pleasant sixteen miles and found 16 mile Rd. AND
16 Mile Creek, at the same place. We then drove up that road for about
three to five miles, turned around and went back to Rt. 35. Sixteen Mile
Road wends its way up a beautiful and fertile valley with tobacco growing
on both sides of the creek. I know it sounds corny but I had the feeling
I was there on the land of my ancestor .
Now we began to really wonder about how Michael Kerns got this beautiful
land. I wrote to the West Virginia Genealogical Society. They tried but did
not help much. (They had overlooked the miss-spelling of the Kerns name). I
wrote to the West Virginia State Capitol Heritage Complex and after more
than a month of waiting I was ready to give up on them when lo and behold I
received a large packet of copies. They were photocopies of the Treasury
Warrant #8995 for six land grants totaling 3000 acres for Services in the
Revolutionary War. They had not only settled the mystery of the 3000 acres
but also proved Michael Kerns Sr. was in the War for Freedom from England.
One important note, F. Landis Weaver was able to read the Land Sale
copies and has drawn a currant map where the Land Grants were located on
current day maps.
One of the Boundary Lines (it was noted in a Grant) was next to the
Boundary Lands awarded to General Geo. Washington for his Services in
the Revolutionary War.
Copies of Mr. Weavers drawings are (not) included with this story, but
are available upon request.
Robert E. (Bob) Karnes
maybob(a)ix.netcom.com
August, 1996.