Dear fellow researchers,
As a new subscriber, I obviously don't know about the discussions that
already
may have taken place. Thus, I hope that I am not repeating a
question
that
has been discussed thoroughly already.
Dave and other new members, welcome to the group. You will have to be
patient. I am sure many "old" members of the group do not like to respond
to items that they have already discussed unless it contains new
information. I can't blame them as time is so precious. However, I am sure
there will always be a couple that will respond.
But anyway...do we know where
Zachariah is buried?
John Ostendorf addressed this but I will go a little further. I have
relatives in Wise County, Virginia including my parents. I did in fact hunt
down and find what was known as "The old Zachariah Wells Cemetery." As you
probably know by now from research, there were several Zachariah's.
Unfortunately, I did not find a stone of 'ole Zach. The cemetery was old.
In fact many of the gravestones had engravings into stones that were
"native" to the hillside and were not Headstones that had been made by
hand. I have come across several other Wells cemeteries, but no clues to
Zachariah. The best clue I have come across is in the records of the Three
Forks Baptist Church which are housed in a museum in Big Stone Gap,
Virgina. The Church records mention the death of Zachariah, unfortunaltey
the page this is on is "detached" and in the book loose. Therefore, without
closer examination it is impossible to determine the date. The records are
very fragile and can only be viewed by appointment and in the hands of the
person that oversees the "old" possessions.
Also, Orin mentioned to beware of some of the dates you come across. One
example, there are many references to Zachariah getting married Jan. 1,
1770 in Grayson County, Virginia. Well, Grayson county did not exist in
1770. Therefore he could not have been married there. In all likelihood, he
was married in what is now Grayson County and I will not be surprised to
find that it was indeed in 1770. But to date, I have not seen any
documentation to verify his marriage. There are several other dates
regarding Zachariah that this is true.
To help people investigating Zachariah, John Ostendorf and myself made a
Timeline. I would be happy to send a file to any members, new or old, that
would like to have it. It lists what is documented and the dates that are
not documented.
In addition, as a descendant of his son, Jeremiah, I
wonder if anyone knows where Jeremiah is buried.
I am also a descendant of Jeremiah. However, I have spent almost all of my
time researching Zachariah. I will check my records, but I do not think
that is known. Although I do believe there is a date of death.
Having visited relatives in
southern West Virginia a lot as a kid, I know that people were often
buried in
little family plots up on the mountainsides that were not
necessarily
maintained and were likely to be lost. I wonder if the resting places
of
Zachariah and Jeremiah may have met this fate.
This is possible. Most of the Wells cemeteries I have come across have been
neglected and run down. Very disappointing. Especially since there is a
large presence of Wells' still in the area.
Good Luck, and I hope the new members can help us uncover some new info!
Greg Scalf
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