Billy Millsaps Letter

The following lines are from and written by the hand of Billy Millsaps, born
in Greene County, Tennessee State, January 10, 1797 and addressed to the 
progeny of family and familiar relatives of my Uncle Thomas and Aunt 
Bathsheba Millsaps, formerly of Randolph County, North Carolina. The 
oldest son of my Grandfather Robert Millsaps, who at the age of sixteen, 
came to America from Ireland with his father Thomas or John (one or the 
other of those names I am not certain which), and family about the year 
1735, who settled in Augusta County, Virginia in two miles of  Staunton. 
My Grandfather had three brothers, whose names were Thomas, Joseph,
 and William. They all four finally left their father's settlement in Virginia 
in the hands of John McDowell, one of their brothers-in-law, and settled in 
North Carolina. This McDowell became a merchant in Staunton and I 
presume there is some of his progeny there to this day. From this state their 
progeny has crossed this continent to California and other regions of new 
territory, leaving behind them a large number of relatives in various states 
and condition betwixt the Eastern and Western coasts of the Atlantic and 
Pacific Oceans. Three of the aforesaid brothers, Robert, Thomas, and 
Joseph slept their last and final sleep in North Carolina. My Grandfather 
and Grandmother, Robert and Ellen (her father's name was King) Millsaps
 had two children; the oldest was named Ellen. She died when small; Thomas
 next, then Jane, James, and Edward (he drowned when about grown), 
Joseph, Moses, Mary, Robert, and William (last). Thomas, James, Moses, 
Robert, and their two sisters and brothers-in-law, Samuel Yates and Thomas
 Farmer, left Randolph County, North Carolina and settled in Greene County, 
Tennessee, a little before I was born, January 10, 1797, leaving Joseph and 
William behind. I do not know whether Joseph or his son John ever left the 
Old State or not, but William married after they left; his wife died a short 
time after, and their Uncle William Millsaps, having previous to this moved 
and settled in Kentucky not far from Cumberland Mountain and not far from 
the Bards Town Road running from Louisville on the Ohio River to Kingston, 
Roan or Rone County, Tennessee. He settled up his business and left Carolina 
for the Uncle William's with whom he has learned the saddler's trade, and 
on his way he stopped at his brothers and sisters in Greene County, Tennessee, 
and after a short visit he left for Kentucky; that is the last reliable account we 
ever heard of him. This was before my rememberence. It is traditionary with me. 
I could recollect a little Uncle Thomas and James Millsaps, and Samuel Yates 
and Farmers, and of seeing Ned Millsaps as he was called, and a few other 
things. He was then near grown. These two uncles lived near together. Farmers 
went fifty miles west and stopped in Jefferson County. He stayed there nine or 
ten years, then went to Blount County, from there to Alabama, then to Indiana, 
and the last I heard of him was of middle Tennessee. (His son William, wife, 
and five boys with him.)  Before Robert, my father, and Moses his brother 
left --- I could remember several places, names, and things. They sold out the 
summer and fall of 1802 (I was then in my sixth year) intending to move to 
Kentucky, and started on horse-back to look out for a place there and 
stopping at Thomas Farmer's, Jefferson County, and hearing of a tract of 
five-hundred acres for sale five and one-half miles south of east from 
William Magbye's Ferry on Holstein River; they stopped to look at and 
bought it and returned back, bringing Uncle Thomas Farmer with them. 
They prepared for and finished moving in December. My Father and 
Mother then had three little boys. My Uncle and Aunt had one son and
two daughters, and one son born in Jefferson County. Their names were 
James, Robert, Ellen, Nancy, and William L. My brothers and sisters names 
were James, Gamatiel, Anna, John, and Marcy. She died by a burn when 
small. Here they lived thirty years one-half a mile apart, the farthest they 
ever lived before. They both sold out the spring and summer of 1815, and 
on the sixth day of October, left for Indiana. (I was then in my 19th year). 
Moses settled in Washington, 42 miles north of west from Salem. My Father 
settled in Lawrence County, 14 miles from Bedford. They were eight miles 
apart and the east fork of White River ran between them. In a matter of time
 Moses’ two sons became masters of all of his real estate and of him, and 
in the summer of 1837, they with their Father and Mother went to the State 
of Illinois and settled in McDonough County, 25 miles west from the 
Mississippi River. Their Father and Mother went to their log home. They 
have both since moved to Iowa. William's oldest son Joseph has been an 
itinerant Methodist preacher for the last 14 years in Illinois. (He is called smart.)

Two of Robert's sons, Moses Taylor and John Wesley, and one of William's 
sons, James Madison, went in 1853 to the gold regions of the western 
mountains. J.W. and J.M. returned one at a time after four or five years stay. 
M.T.  returned from the silver mines near California three years this past 
winter to Illinois, married a daughter of one of his nearest neighbors in 
McDonough County, Illinois, and returned immediately with her. It has 
been said he was worth sixty thousand dollars. My Father left three of his 
sons in Lawrence County, and settled thirty five miles north in Brown 
County by his only son-in-law, G. Weddle. Father was then 60 years old. 
Here in eight years after, both he and Mother died, he sixteen days first, 
each with a spell of seven days illness. The weight of my father at that 
time was about 200 pounds. This was April 1842. The youngest and oldest 
of my father's family are all that are now living. One of them, John, is on
 the ---; he is now 64, and I am over 71 years old. I lived in Lawrence, 
Indiana, and had the misfortune to lose two worthy wives in less than 15 
years after first married, and have lived single ever since. The first had 
three sons and three daughters. The second had one son. My oldest child,
 Nancy Ann, was 21 days over 12 years old when her mother died. I keep 
house with my seven children, and had the fortune to raise them all to be 
married. My second daughter died shortly after; the rest are all living, one
 in Kansas and five in Iowain County. Three in Ringgold, (to wit): William 
A. Millsap, Nancy Ann Erwin and Igeneious Millsap, their post office in 
Estella. F.A.'s post office in Kansas is Mancefield, Linn County. Myself, 
two single sons, and oldest daughter and son-in-law came to this state the 
fall of 1854. We were all here the spring of 1855.

As to uncle James and aunt Elizabeth's family Thomas, aunt Bathsheba 
Millsap, Samuel Yates and aunt Jane's family that lived in Cocke County, 
Tennessee: I have saw them all as well as saw and played with George 
Gouche's oldest son Jacob in his father's live time on the bank of Pigeon 
River while George, Mary his wife, Ned and his wife, all live in the same 
yard. This was in August, Sunday after the general state election in the 
year 1807. I was then in my tenth year. Jacob's father said he was eight 
years old.

As to aunt Jane's children, she had five. The first was called Jesse
 Millsap. He lived in Sullivan County, Tennessee. He was drafted in time 
of War of Twelve and went on his way to seat of war under Jackson --- 
and below Kingston hired a substitute and on his return called at father's. 
Stayed a few hours. Said he had a wife and nine children at home, and 
hurried on his way to them. I never heard of them anymore. She had 
besides Jesse, four, to wit: Mary and Jane, Samuel and Robert. Robert 
died in the Military Service against the Creek Indians. And what became 
of the others, I know nothing about. It is well known that uncle James 
wife and children all went to Missouri about the year 1818 or 1819. Their 
names were Nancy, who died about the year 1808 or 1809, then Elizabeth, 
Jonathan settled in the big bend of the Missouri River, Salleen County.
 Emanuel went to New Orleans, William to Atkinson, North West corner, 
James --- up and down the river. But sense fails me or I might say more
 about them.

The noise and clutter of a busy world has long hushed up with them all. 
My uncle Thomas when last heard from was in --- County, North Carolina, 
and there built a mill. This uncle's wife Bathsheba (Williams before 
marriage) had fifteen children, seven sons and eight daughters. I can not 
name all the girls. Mary was the oldest, then Soloman who lost his life 
by accidental shot from his father's gun when he was seventeen years 
old. Rachel and Bathsheba are all the girls besides Mary that I can name. 
The youngest of the seven were twins, I think. Of the boys, there were 
besides Soloman the first, Ned, John, Thomas, David, Soloman the 
second, and Peter.