Have you ever analyzed your Kentucky ancestors? If you get back far enough, you will find that many came from Virginia. Did you know that Kentucky was part of the Virginia Commonwealth? By following wars and the laws, you may be led to your early Virginian and Kentucky ancestors.
Looking
at early Kentucky maps, it becomes apparent that south of the Green River is
consistently designated as reserved territory. This is really obvious when
researching the Mammoth Cave area in south central Kentucky, which is now a
National Park, but at one
point this massive set-aside land was the home of about 13 or more churches, residences
and many cemeteries (few still remaining). Our research of this Mammoth Caves National Park
and a few targeted early residents carried us back to the Revolutionary War and
the French and Indian War. Yet Kentucky did not become a state until 1792.
War Impact
An
often forgotten war in our genealogy research is the French and Indian War,
1754-1763. Perhaps you haven’t traced that far back yet, but it will probably
prove to be significant in your Kentucky ancestors’ research. This war between
British American and New France colonies left a paper trail since Virginia
soldiers’ were awarded land grants in lieu of pay; leaving the researcher a
wonderful collection of early Virginia-Kentucky ancestors’ land records. (The
same is for Virginia-Ohio ancestors).
What are Bounty
Land Warrants?
Our
early military-active ancestors were enticed to join war efforts by the promise
of “bounty land warrants.” Soldiers
were able to first apply for the coveted warrants. If granted, the warrants on
file confirmed the soldier and the number of bounty land acres he was entitled
to based on his rank and other useful genealogical data is provided.
Bounty land acres were reserved specifically for the purpose to pay for military service. For
Virginia militia, land was set-aside in “Kentucky” for the soldiers (or heirs)
to claim. Between about 1773 - 1792, Virginia soldiers, or their heirs, received warrants for bounty land. The land was located in what is Kentucky today. After the Revolutionary War, Kentucky was formed and designated from Virginia. Virginia Revolutionary War soldiers were also offered bounty land in Kentucky and Ohio. At least 4748 bounty land warrants were issued by Virginia to Revolutionary War veterans. The warrants authorized surveys of the soldiers’ land. A
soldier was able to surrender his bounty land warrant for a land patent, resulting
in ownership of the land.
Where are the
Records?
The original warrants
are held at the Kentucky Land Office, in Frankfort, KY and have been
microfilmed by the Family History Library
(FHL): Virginia Grants, 1782-1792. Be sure to also review the Old Kentucky Grants (1793-1856) microfilms held at the FHL.
A
vital resource to our Mammoth Caves area research was the FHL microfilm
rolls of the Grants
South of the Green River, 1797-1866. The
land south of the Green river was also reserved for Virginia soldiers.
Top research resources:
- Kentucky Land Office,
Frankfort, KY
- County Tax List, held
at Frankfort, KY also reference ancestry.com
- Preemption Receipts and
Warrants from the VA Land Commission from the Library of Virginia,
Richmond VA.
- Kentucky Land Office Online Database: Virginia and Old Kentucky Patent Series
The
process of Warrants to Patents has been simplified in this article. Much deeper understanding
of the law is necessary for a successful search. Here are two places to begin:
Accurate
Accessible Data
