Genealogy Jottings

The Reed family left Kentucky for eastern Illinois on my great-great grandfather’s eleventh birthday in 1829. As I work back in time, I now need to do some Kentucky research to learn any more about this Reed branch. Family events reportedly took place in several Kentucky counties including Shelby, Nelson, and Spencer.

I do know that as the country developed, states carved new counties from earlier ones. This occurred in my family’s area of Kentucky during the time they lived there. Nelson and Shelby counties were carved from the earlier Jefferson County in 1784 and 1792. Spencer County came later, in 1824, from Nelson and Shelby. So where should I begin, and which county should I look at first?  I need to find out when the Reeds arrived in Kentucky, where they settled, and whether they moved around once there.

Often one hears genealogists tell of finding records in various counties even though their family lived in just one place. Records lie in whichever courthouse was the county seat at a given point in time. I have not encountered this situation of evolving counties in my previous research, so answering these questions will be a new challenge for me.

The first problem to sort out is the Kentucky birthplace for my great-great grandfather and his siblings between 1803 and 1822. Family lore says he was born in Elk Creek, Spencer County, but Spencer was not created until after he was born in 1818. What county was it in 1818? Were the other children born at the same place?

The research adventure begins.

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