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The Aaron Stark Family Chronicles Volume 4 The Kentucky Branches Descendants of Jonathan Stark & Sarah Lacock By Clovis LaFleur Copyright © August 2006 Present day map of the region near Bardstown, Nelson County, Kentucky showing James Rogers Tithable district boundary ( and location of Rogers Station). Shaded region approximate area where Jonathan’s descendants lived from 1785 to 1792. Rogers Station was located west of Bardstown at the present day junction of US Highway 62 and Ben Irvin Road. By Clovis LaFleur Copyright © 2007-2009 ______ All Rights Reserved By posting this copyright it is my intention to date this material. Reproduction of portions of this text will be discouraged if I do not receive credit and credit is not given to those, past and present, who have made major contributions to our knowl- edge of the Stark Families presented in this publication. Dedication I do not claim what is presented in this publication is perfect or complete. What is being presented is a summary of the diligent efforts of many dedicated genealogists who have been able to gather material from the past with but one objective; to be true to the facts as they were found and to preserve the history of the Stark genealogical line unless it be lost forever. My contribution has been to compile that research which is related to the origins of six brothers with the surname Stark who lived in Nelson County, Kentucky. Early researchers like Charles R. Stark, Walter O. Shriner, Virginia Shriner, Roy Harding, and many others started us down this path of discovery —their only desire — to gather and preserve this family history with the hope younger generations would add to and build on the foundation they started. I would like to thank W. O. "Bo" Stark and Donn Neal for lending their skills in editing to the final production of this publication. Their suggestions are greatly appreciated. Contributors in time, material, and research are Gwen Boyer Bjorkman, Pauline Stark Moore, Pat Mount, Donn Neal and W. O. "Bo" Stark. Without their encouragement and willingness to share their research, this publication would not have been possible. Clovis LaFleur October 2009 ii The Aaron Stark Family Chronicles Volume 4: The Kentucky Branches; Descendants of Jonathan Stark & Sarah Lacock Table of Contents Preface Introduction...............................................................................................................................................................5 The Nelson County, Kentucky Stark Brothers..........................................................................................................5 The Stark Brothers Speculated Origins by Genealogical Researchers......................................................................5 Genetic Evidence: Were the Brothers Descendants of Aaron Stark?........................................................................6 Chapter 1 Summary...................................................................................................................................................7 Jonathan Stark of Connecticut & Jonathan Stark of New Jersey; The Same Person?...............................................8 Part 1: Sons of Jonathan Stark, Their Lives & Places of Residence from 1760 to 1810 Chapter 1: From New Jersey to Washington County, Pennsylvania (1760-1785)..................................................10 Chapter 2: The Kentucky Years; A Narrative...........................................................................................................35 Part 2: James Stark; His Life; Family & Descendants Chapter 3: The Life & Times of James Stark [1739-1821]......................................................................................45 Chapter 4: Descendants of James Stark; Three Generations....................................................................................51 Part 3: Daniel Stark; His Life, Family, & Descendants Chapter 5: Daniel & Elizabeth (Wells) Stark...........................................................................................................55 Chapter 6: Descendants of Daniel & Elizabeth (Wells) Stark; Three Geneations...................................................59 Part 4: Joseph Stark & Descendants Chapter 7: Joseph Stark Biography & Three Generations of Descendants..............................................................65 Part 5: Christopher Stark & Martha Vineyard Chapter 8: Christopher Stark Timeline.....................................................................................................................71 Chapter 9: Who Was Who Named Christopher.......................................................................................................73 Chapter 10: Christopher Stark & Martha (Vineyard) Stark Descendants; Three Generations................................77 Part 6: Rev. William Wood & Sarah (Stark) Wood & Their Descendants Chapter 11: William Wood & Sarah (stark) Wood; A Sketch.................................................................................83 Chapter 12: William & Sarah (Stark) Wood Descendants; Three Generations.......................................................87 Part 7: John Stark & Elizabeth Eddy Chapter 13: John Stark & Elizabeth Eddy, Their Children, & Grandchildren.........................................................91 Appendix Appendix: The Stark Families & The Kentucky Emancipation Ministers..............................................................97 iii Blank Page 4 The Aaron Stark Family Chronicles Volume 4: The Kentucky Branches; Descendants of Jonathan Stark & Sarah Lacock Preface Introduction March 3, 1715/16, the following deed transaction was recorded in Groton, New London County, Connecticut: To all Christian people to whom this present deed of Gift may come William Stark of Groton in ye county of New London in Conecticut Collony in New England Senior sendeth Greeting know ye that I ye abovesd William Stark for ye good will and kinder affection I bear to my son William Stark Junr and my Granchild Jonathan Stark both of Groton in ye County of New London aforesd have fully freely and absolutely given granted aliened ensealled and confirmed unto William Stark Jun aforesd a certain tract of land during his naturall life and then to my grandchild Jonathan Stark....[Groton Deed Book 1, pages 341 & 342] The Groton Town Records report one Jonathan Stark was born to William Stark (Junior) and Experience Lamb on December 10, 1712. About four years later, the above deed allowed Jonathan’s father, William (Junior,) to use and improve the described property during his lifetime —but prevented him from selling the property. As the deed specified, Jonathan Stark became the owner of the property after William (Junior) was deceased. Jonathan is mentioned twice more as living in Groton; once in 1733 on a deed referencing the above property; and May 5, 1736, when he sold the property his grandfather had given to him. Volume 1 of theAaron Stark Chronicles has provided documented evidence William Stark (Senior) was the son of Aaron Stark (1608-1685) and, therefore, confirms Jonathan Stark was the great-grandson of Aaron Stark (1608-1685). After May 5, 1736, Jonathan Stark disappears from the Groton Records at the age of 23. What became of Jonathan? In 1927, in his publication entitledThe Aaron Stark Family, Seven Generations, Charles R. Stark reported Jonathan was born on the above given date to William (Junior) and Experience Lamb; but had no further comment on this person. Could Jonathan have had issue? If so, where was he living after 1736? Perhaps we can answer these questions by examining the movements of a group of Stark brothers living in Kentucky as early as 1784. The Nelson County, Kentucky Stark Brothers Roy B. Hardin reported the following in his 1952 manuscript entitledThe Early Stark Families In Vernon Township, Washington County, Indiana: As early as 1784, six Stark brothers had settled on Forman’s Creek in Nelson County, Kentucky. Those men were: (1) Jonathan Stark with wife Margaret; (2) Christopher Stark with wife Martha Vinyard; (3) James Stark with wife Mary Howell; (4) Daniel Stark with wife Elizabeth Wells; (5) Joseph Stark with wife Hannah; and (6) John Stark. These men were in Washington County, Pennsylvania during the Revolution. Jonathan was a Baptist preacher. Christopher, James, and Daniel served in the Washington County (PA) militia. These brothers later settled in Shelby County and Henry Counties, Kentucky. We know old Christopher Stark and old Daniel Stark were in Virginia as early as 1775, for their names appear on Virginia Militia Roll of soldiers. With them served Stephen Vineyard. Some genealogists claim that the Vineyard family came directly to Virginia from England. One Jonathan Stark and wife Mary, who lived in Clay County, Indiana, in 1850, stated he was 77 years old and was born in Virginia. Hence this Jonathan was born in Virginia in 1773. The descendants of these men have been well documented by Mr. Hardin and genealogy researchers Mary Virginia (Cuppy) Shriner and husband, Walter O. Shriner. Like Mr. Hardin, Mrs. Shriner was a descendant of the above mentioned Christopher Stark. What did they and others have to say about the Stark ancestry of these men? The Stark Brothers Speculated Origins by Genealogical Researchers Roy B. Hardin had these comments: The Stark families do not descend from General John Stark of New Hampshire and Bennington fame. Mr Howard P. Moore of New York City has written a complete genealogy of the