Elizabeth Shefflett


Submitted by: Robin Bell Lucy13bell@aol.com

Other researchers on this line:
John Spencer Linkes JSLinkes@aol.com, host of The Linkes/Linkous Family History Homepage
Clovis Linkous ClovisLink@aol.com, author of The Linkous Family History Expanded


Comments from Robin: I have an Elizabeth Shefflett who married a Henry Linkous in 1779. I am not sure where the marriage took place but their son John was married in North Carolina to a Betty Trolinger. I knew that Henry Linkous was the first Linkous in America and I am trying to work forward from him to my great great great grandfather Abraham Linkous of Tazewell VA. Henry was born 1742 in Germany. This is all the information that I have on these people. The information came from The Annals of Tazewell Co. I am searching the Linkous, Honaker, Smith and Adkins lines of WV and VA County.

From the Shiflet book: "Elizabeth Shiflet was born ca. 1750 and married a man named Henry Linkous (Lincus) somewhere near the Shenandoah Valley before they moved to Montgomery Co., Va in the 1780's and bought 200 acres on a small branch of Strouble's Creek. [A 4 acre tract of the land that Henry owned on Strouble Creek was bestowed to the Lutheran Church-Montgomery County Deed Book K,p.310- and the first Lutheran Church in the area was built on this land. The area has a marker that indicates the site of the old St. Peter's Church formerly called St. Michael's Church and then Price's Church.] They had nine children including John, George, Thomas, Jacob, Elizabeth, Henry Jr., Adam, Alexander F. and Hannah. On July 28, 1794 Henry Linkous acted as surety on a marriage bond for John Shop and Barcus Shiflet. (Montgomery Co. Marriages). Unfortunately, the parents of Elizabeth Shiflet are not known"

Barcus and Elizabeth may be sisters.

Comment from Clovis Linkous:
Henry was born 1744 in Weissenborn-Lutherode in Germany. Henry was a soldier sent here by the King in Germany to fight with the British against the Americans in the revolution. He was captured in New York and after he was released, he remained here and married Elizabeth Shiflet. He died in Montgomery County Va. in 1822. Mention of his will is made in Adventurers on the Western Waters.

Note from jc: Two of Henry & Elizabeth's children migrated to Hawkins Co., TN. Some family/business names associated with Henry & Elizabeth's children or grandchildren: Early, Taylor, Ballard; a grandson has AMISS as a middle name, another BENNETT.

The following were also documented members of the Hickory Cove Primitive Baptist Church in Hawkins Co., TN: Lucinda, Catherine, Susan M., John W., Luisa, David, Mary and Margaret Linkis; Fanny Sheflet. Nancy Sheflet and John Shell joined the church the same day (3 Shell children m. into the Linkus line). Transcript of church records can be found at http://www.rootsweb.com/~tnhawkin/hcmin.htm.

From the VAGenWeb page for Montgomery Co., VA: County was formed from Botetourt County, which was itself formed "roughly" out of the southern half of that super county Augusta. Fincastle was abolished in 1777 and three counties formed from its territory. They were Montgomery, Washington, and (the now state of) Kentucky. In 1778, Greenbrier was formed from Montgomery, Botetourt and Augusta. and in 1790, Wythe County was cut off from Montgomery.

Revised 27 Apr 2002
Elizabeth Shefflett b. c. 1758 probably in Virginia

m. c. 1779 Shenandoah Valley area

Henry Linkous (Johannes Heinricus Linckorst) baptized on August 24, 1744 at St. Michael's Church of Weissenborn, Eichfeld, Germany; d. 23 Aug 1822 Montgomery Co., VA; will filed Montgomery Co. Will Book 3, p. 505

Issue:

2. John Linkous b. 1780 d. 1822 Montgomery Co. m. in N.C., Betty Trolinger b.1786 They lived their entire life in Montgomery Co., Virginia. John was left with his father's blacksmith tools upon his father's death implying that this was a major activity of the family. John died the same year as his father, but the way the bequest is made in the will for the blacksmith tools suggests John was in good health at the time of his father's death.
2. George Linkous b. 1782 d. bef. 1840 IN m. Mary b. c. 1777 VA. George moved from Montgomery Co. VA to Dubois Co. IN sometime between 1800 and 1820. The 1820 census list George Linlous in Dubois Co. as a farmer with wife plus 3 males & 2 females. The 1830 census list George with wife plus 4 males & 2 females plus Jacob Linkous, apparently the oldest son of George. The 1840 census list Mary Linkous (without George who is apparently dead) plus 4 males & 1 female. The 1850 census list Mary Linkous, age 73 and born in Virginia, with James Linkous (1835- ), born in Indiana. The 1850 census also list Jacob Linkous, born 1800, without a wife, plus 1 male & 2 females and that Jacob was born in Virginia
2. Thomas Linkous b. 1785 d. 1844 m. Susanna. Thomas Linkous is listed in the 1820, 1830, & 1840 Montgomery Co. censuses. The 1820 census indicated Thomas had 2 daughter born between 1810 & 1820. In 1825, Thomas was a witness on a deed from George Surface and Jane, his wife, and Catharine Grissom to John Robinson (Montgomery Co. Deed Book I-J 1824-1827 p. 182.) The 1830 census indicates a second son born between 1820 & 1830. Benjamin is the only child whose name has been discovered. The 1830 census also states that he owned 2 female slaves. The 1840 Slave Schedule shows him owning 1 male 10-24, 2 females under 10, and 1 female 24-36. Thomas was involved in buying & selling land as early as 1811 in Montgomery Co.
2. Jacob Linkous b. 1787 m. Mary Kipps. Jacob is listed as head of a household in the 1810 Montgomery Co. census. He does not appear in the Deed Books of Montgomery Co. as having purchased any lands. He apparently had a go at Tennessee for his son, John Mitchell, is listed as having been born there. The 1860 census lists his worth as $90. He may have been an overseer for some of the wealthy men of the county for that was the occupation of some of his sons. He died in Montgomery Co. according to Court Order Book No. 31, page 95.
2. Elizabeth Linkous b. 1789 d. 1845 m. Jacob Stranger. Elizabeth and John Stanger mostly lived in Montgomery Co. Virginia, but spent some time in Kentucky for the 1860 census records that Henry S. Stanger was born there. The 1830 census states that Elizabeth Stanger was head of the household with her 3 sons, so apparently Jacob died before 1830. The 1880 Montgomery Co. census records that the father of John A. Stanger was born in Ireland. However, Stanger is a German surname. Elizabeth's father's will suggest she may have come into her father's disfavor, but no reason for this has been discovered. Perhaps she had received her inheritance earlier.
2. Henry Linkous Jr b. 1790 d. 1861 m. 4 Mar 1823 Montgomery Co., VA Frances Shell b. 1801 d. 1862, d/o Jacob. Henry Linkous Jr. was the most prosperous of the 9 children of Henry Linkous. He bought out the inheritance of the other 8 children in the home place of his father and expanded the Montgomery Co. farm from 200 acres to 538 acres. Jacob Shell (Shulls) Sr. (grandfather of Frances) was born in Pennsylvania in 1720 and died in Virginia in 1820. He had 11 children, one of which was Jacob Jr. (1752-1811) married Polly Burks and had 8 children. Three of these children married into the Linkous family; namely, John Henry Shell m. Hannah Linkous, Frances Shell m. Henry Linkous Jr., and Margaret Elizabeth Shell m. Henry Linkous
2. Adam Linkous b. 1793 d. 1841 m. 1) 1816 Montgomery Co., VA Margaret (Peggy) Rader; m. 2) 1834 Margaret Reeder b. 1794 d. 1882. The 1820 census of Montgomery Co., Virginia list Adam with 2 daughters under the age of 10 years, so we can be almost certain that Lucinda & Caroline were born in Virginia. Montgomery Co. Deed Book K, page 310 strongly implies that Adam was living in Montgomery Co. in 1826, because George is specifically listed as living in Indiana, but Adam is listed with the other Montgomery Co. heirs of their father. Adam has not been found in the 1830 census in any state. Adams marriage to Margaret Reeder in 1834 was in Virginia, so it is probable that his first wife, Peggy Rader, had died after the birth of John Floyd 1832 and before this second marriage. There is a variability in subsequent censuses about the state in which their children were born. It appears that Adam or his wife was shuffling back & forth between Virginia & Tennessee in the period 1816 to 1834. Margaret filed for a Widow's Pension for Adam's War of 1812 service. According to the application, Reverend McMullen married Adam Linkous & Margaret Reeder in Virginia in 1834 & Adam died in Tennessee in 1841. No record has been found to show that Adam ever owned real estate or paid taxes in Hawkins Co. However, his widow Margaret (Reeder), was awarded land in Hawkins Co. in 1855 for his service.
2. Alexander Francis Linkous b. 1795 d. 1861 m. 11 Mar 1817 Montgomery Co., VA Mary Polly Allen. Alexander and Polly lived their entire lives in Montgomery Co., Virginia as is evidenced by their appearance in every census from 1820 to & including 1860. Alexander purchased land in 1846, according to Deed Book O-172, from John Henry Shell. Alexander and wife, Polly, had their son George baptized on June 7, 1818 in St. Michael's Lutheran Church, which stood on a notch out of Alexander's father's farm. The record of subsequent years does not show that they continued to attend.
2. Hannah Linkous b. 1797 d. 1844 m. 1817 John H. Shell. John and Hannah apparently remained in Montgomery Co., Virginia for we find a sale of land by John to Alexander Linkous in 1846 and finally a deed of land to Harriett from John H. Shell in 1889. This last item is probably the settlement of his estate. For more information on their descendants, please visit John Linkes' The Linkes/Linkous Family History Homepage at http://www.members.tripod.com/~KYLINKY/index.html


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