Post by Phillip Troutman on Jul 15, 2020 18:01:41 GMT -5
Hello. I'm looking for any information on any BOYD families of early Blount County, say from before 1800 to the 1850s or so.
There is a family story:
My paternal grandmother, Velma Davis (m. Troutman), told a story about her maternal grandmother, Ellen (m. Hitch), born 1833, surviving an attack by unnamed "Indians" who killed both Ellen's parents, her two younger sisters, and her three younger brothers. She was apparently taken captive and lived with them for some time ("months" in the story told) before escaping. Her age at the attack and at her escape are unknown, but I'm guessing she'd have to have been say 8 to 12 when she escaped, putting the attack at say 1841-1845--but the Cherokee were forcibly removed in 1837-1838, so it seems the attack would have had to happen before then, or was carried out by Cherokee who stayed, hidden in the mountains, or perhaps by others living in the area (were there any Shawnee at that point?).
The story says her parents were BOYDs, but family genealogies have her last name as HARRIS, so I'm guessing she was adopted by a Harris family. I'm trying to figure out who the Boyd family was and whether anyone has any information about them.
It seems like it would have been a fairly well-reported attack--two parents and 5 children all in one raid--so I'd appreciate any leads on oral histories or any textual histories that might reference this. I know there were some early East Tennessee newspapers, but I don't find this referenced in ones I've seen online. (I live outside Washington, D.C., and don't have access to some that may be in paper or microfilm only.)
Thank you!
There is a family story:
My paternal grandmother, Velma Davis (m. Troutman), told a story about her maternal grandmother, Ellen (m. Hitch), born 1833, surviving an attack by unnamed "Indians" who killed both Ellen's parents, her two younger sisters, and her three younger brothers. She was apparently taken captive and lived with them for some time ("months" in the story told) before escaping. Her age at the attack and at her escape are unknown, but I'm guessing she'd have to have been say 8 to 12 when she escaped, putting the attack at say 1841-1845--but the Cherokee were forcibly removed in 1837-1838, so it seems the attack would have had to happen before then, or was carried out by Cherokee who stayed, hidden in the mountains, or perhaps by others living in the area (were there any Shawnee at that point?).
The story says her parents were BOYDs, but family genealogies have her last name as HARRIS, so I'm guessing she was adopted by a Harris family. I'm trying to figure out who the Boyd family was and whether anyone has any information about them.
It seems like it would have been a fairly well-reported attack--two parents and 5 children all in one raid--so I'd appreciate any leads on oral histories or any textual histories that might reference this. I know there were some early East Tennessee newspapers, but I don't find this referenced in ones I've seen online. (I live outside Washington, D.C., and don't have access to some that may be in paper or microfilm only.)
Thank you!