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The Aaron Stark Family Chronicles Volume 4: Descendants of Jonathan Stark & Sarah Lacock; The Kentucky Stark Families Part 3: The Years in Kentucky Chapter 6: Where Did the Stark Brothers Live In Kentucky By Clovis LaFleur, February 2008; Edited by Donn Neal [Home]
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David Hall wrote the following in an article entitled "Rogers Station Grew from Early Land Deal." [Published in The Kentucky Standard, April 17, 1985.]
James Rogers was one of the 1st magistrates and tallied a tithable list of residents in his district in 1785 described as "on all the waters north of the Rolling and Beech Forks up to the mouth of Buffalo Creek and its waters. Total 126." (See Figure 1)
The present State of Kentucky was under the jurisdiction of the State of Virginia during these years. In an effort to better organize the region, Nelson County was created and officially began operation as a County on January 1, 1785. Reported on the James Rogers List was James Stark and his son William Stark, who was about 15 years of age. Apparently, James and his family had recently arrived in the region, probably temporarily locating at Roger's Station for protection from Indian attacks. [The region and location of Rogers Station is shown in Figure 2.] Joseph Stark and John Stark were reported on the Nelson County tithable list of David Cox in 1785. Joseph was on line 39 of the list and John was on line 40 indicating they were living close together or on the same property. John Stark, about 30 years old in 1785 and newly married with two small children, was the younger brother of Joseph. David Cox's District was described as "on all the waters of Cox's Creek, Simpton Creek Easterly to the County Line northerly of Chaplins Fork." This provides a clue to where they may have been living. "Simpton Creek " may have been present day Simpson Creek, a tributary of the Salt River which is east of Cox's Creek. James Rogers district ran north from the Buffalo Creek junction with Beech Fork to the junction forming the "Y" in Sympson Lake. (See Figure 2) Being on the tithable list of David Cox suggests Joseph and John were living east of Buffalo Creek and north of Bardstown. Deed records report they were probably living on Cox Creek, Froman Creek (a tributary of Cox Creek), and Rogers Run (probably named Samuels Creek on today's maps).
Jonathan Stark [the younger] was reported on the Nelson County tithable list of Thomas Helms in 1785. His district, as best as can be understood, was south of Rolling Fork and Beech Fork, the probable location near present day Elizabethtown. (See Figure 1) Christopher Stark and Daniel Stark were not reported on the tithable list in Kentucky in 1785 and remained in Washington County, Pennsylvania with their families. James had moved from Rogers Station by the time the tithable list was compiled in 1786; for he and his son William were on the tithable list of David Cox in 1786. David Cox's district in 1786 was described as "from where the County road crossed Salt River on the north side of said road including all the waters of Coxs Creek." Therefore, James was living somewhere north of the County Road, east of or on Cox's Creek and south of the Salt River. John, James, and Joseph were all reported living next to each other on this list and living with or near them was Christopher Stark. They may have all been living on the same property where John and Joseph were recorded in 1785, being a large enough family group to provide each other with mutual protection against Indian attacks. In 1787, all of the brothers were reported living in Nelson County for Daniel Stark and his son, Jonathan D. Stark were reported on the tithable list of James Rogers. James and Christopher were on the tithable list of David Cox, his district approximately in the same location as the previous years, probably northern Nelson County and the southern part of present day Spencer County. Apparently, Joseph had moved further south, most likely down Froman Creek towards Bardstown. He appears on the 1787 tithable list of Gabriel Cox, his district located immediately north of Bardstown. From 1788 thru 1791, James, Daniel, Joseph, Christopher, and John are reported on the tithable list of Joshua Hobbs, his district described as the same general area as that of David and Gabriel Cox. Jonathan Stark [the younger] continued to live near Elizabethtown until late 1791 or early 1792, when he apparently moved to the Cox Creek region. [See Figure 2 map showing the approximate region where James, Daniel, Christopher, Joseph, and John lived from 1785 to 1792.] Kentucky was declared a State June 1, 1792 and was no longer under the authority of the State of Virginia. In June, the Kentucky legislature decided to reorganize the State, creating new Counties as a result. Among those previous Counties to be divided was Nelson County and Jefferson County. Washington County was created from the eastern part of Nelson while Hardin County was created from the southern and western parts. Shelby County was created from the eastern part of Jefferson. The Salt River was the northern border of Nelson County; which was shared with both Jefferson County and Shelby County. September 1, 1792 marked the effective date Shelby County and Washington County began operation as new Counties in the State of Kentucky. (See Figure 3) Shortly after attaining statehood, the Kentucky General Assembly approved legislation (effective July 1, 1792) establishing Permanent Revenue. Tax rates were set and under this Act, the number of commissioners within a county was determined by the legislature. The commissioners were required to make alphabetical lists; the tax documents to be distributed to the commissioners by the last day of October (annually). (Source Littell's Statute Law of Kentucky, Vol. I, Chapter X, pgs. 63-75, pub. 1809)
James Stark was a resident of Nelson County, appearing on the Nelson County tax list of Gabriel Cox in 1792 --- compiled in November of 1792. The list reported there was one male in the home over 21 and James had 142 acres. February 11, 1792, a bond was made in Nelson County for Jonathan J. Stark — son of James — to marry Rachel Stark, a daughter of Daniel Stark. The consent of both fathers was required and a witness was Jonathan D. Stark, brother of Rachel and son of Daniel Stark. Both of these families were still living in Nelson County as late as February of 1792. Others on this tax list were Christopher Stark, 150 acres; Jonathan Stark, 100 acres, and William Stark, no acreage. All were reported to be over 21 years of age. Jonathan Stark [the younger] may have been the owner of 100 acres, rather than being a son of James or Daniel. Because the tax list was compiled in alphabetical order, it is difficult to ascertain if they were living in close proximity to each other. William Stark, with no property reported, was the son of James. However, Joseph Stark and Daniel Stark were not reported on this Nelson County tax list. Where were these two families when Kentucky compiled the tax list in late 1792? Joseph Stark, Daniel Stark, and his son Jacob appear on the 1792 tax list of Shelby County. Because all of Nelson County was south of the Salt River before and after the formation of Shelby County, these families evidently had moved to a location in Shelby County which is north of the Salt River. The 1794 Shelby County tax list of Thomas Shannon Esq. reveals Joseph Stark owned 398 acres on are near Elk Creek and a later deed reports this property had boundaries on Elk Creek and Wolf Creek --- a tributary Brashears Creek with a western branch that came near Elk Creek north of Taylorsville. This may have been where Joseph and Daniel moved and, as we will see, were later joined by James, Christopher, and John. (See Figure 4.)
James Stark was on the Nelson County 1793 tax list of Gabriel Cox, as was Jonathan Stark [the younger]. Christopher Stark reported he owned 150 acres and had 2 males over 21 years of age. The other male over 21 may have been his son, James Vineyard Stark. I believe these families were still living on or near Froman Creek, a tributary of Cox Creek in 1793. From later deeds, it is obvious these men were living near each other in 1793 and the search for the location can be narrowed. June 20, 1798, a deed made by Christopher reports he sold 137 acres to Adam Wells located "on Roger's Run, Froman's Branch of Cox's Creek. " Several months later, Jonathan Stark [the younger] sold 20 acres to David Wells described as on Froman Creek, a branch of Cox Creek. November 5, 1799, Joseph Stark sold 148 acres to William Burkit, described as on Rogers Run, Cox Creek. This last property adjoined the property of Adam Wells purchased in June of 1798 from Christopher Stark. "Rogers Run," — which cannot be found on a modern map — may have been the creek presently referred to as "Samuels Creek," a western tributary of Froman Creek. (See Figure 2 in the shaded area.)Between early 1793 and late 1794, James Stark and Christopher Stark moved from Nelson County to Shelby County. Listed on the 1794 Shelby County tax list were James, Christopher, Daniel, John, and Joseph Stark. Jonathan Stark [the younger] was reported on the Nelson County tax list from 1792 to 1797, indicating he continued to live in the region of Froman Creek in Nelson County and did not move to Shelby County. Jonathan Stark [the younger] later sold all of his interest in Nelson County and had moved to western Kentucky by 1800. His descendants would later move into Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas. Now living in Shelby County between Elk Creek and Wolf Creek, the five remaining brothers would live in this region until 1799. In 1800, All of the brothers except James, appeared on the 1800 tax list of Henry County. James was on the Shelby County Tax list that year and would remain in Shelby County until he died in 1821. On June 1, 1799, Henry County began operation as a new County, created from the northern portion of Shelby County. Beginning in 1800, the following men with the surname Stark appeared on the Henry County Tax Lists.
In 1800, Joseph, Daniel, Christopher, and John were reported living on the patent of John Craig, located on Floyd's Fork. A later deed further suggests all of these men were living in approximately the same location near or on Floyd's Fork.
The tax list clearly reveals Joseph, Christopher, Daniel, and John were residents of Henry County after October of 1799 — the last year they appeared on the Shelby County, Tax List. The 1808 Deed provides proof Joseph, Daniel, and John were living in close proximity to each in that year. As we will learn, Christopher Stark was deceased before the date of this deed. Where could they have been living on Floyd's Fork? Henry County was created from the northern portions of Jefferson and Shelby Counties. Floyd's Fork is a tributary of the Salt River, running through Jefferson County and Bullitt Counties today. When Henry County was created, a small portion of Floyds Fork was in the southwestern portion of Henry County, near the junction of the boundaries of the three counties. Today, this region is still within the boundary of Henry County near Smithfield. (See Figure 5)
The 1810 census reported the following men with the surname Stark living in Shelby, Bullitt, and Henry Counties. There were no men with the surname Stark reported living in Nelson County. (See Kentucky 1810 census records after Conclusion)
By 1810, Joseph, Jonathan [the younger] and Christopher Stark were deceased. After 1810, most of the descendant families of Jonathan Stark and Sarah Lacock had moved to Indiana, where some were already living before 1810. Daniel Stark and his sons Abraham and Jonathan D. Stark were living in Indiana by 1810, and due to Indian problems, would temporarily move back to Kentucky for safety. By 1820, except for several sons of James Stark, the families were well established in Indiana. [Scroll down to 1810 census] [Top of Page]
1810 Census Records for Kentucky The following 1810 census records for Kentucky show all of the heads of house with the surname Stark living in Bullitt County, Cumberland County, Henry County, and Shelby County. All of these persons were most likely related and descendants of Jonathan Stark and Sarah Lacock. Census Records
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Other than that work created by other acknowledged contributors or sources, the articles presented were authored and edited by Clovis LaFleur and the genealogical data presented in this publication was derived and compiled by Pauline Stark Moore; Copyright © 2003. All rights are reserved. The use of any material on these pages by others will be discouraged if the named contributors, sources, or Clovis LaFleur & Pauline Stark Moore have not been acknowledged. Disclaimer This publication and the data presented is the work of Clovis LaFleur & Pauline Stark Moore. However, some of the content presented has been derived from the research and publicly available information of others and may not have been verified. You are responsible for the validation of all data and sources reported and should not presume the material presented is correct or complete.
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