Virginia

On The Trail of - Colonel CHARLES COCKE

LIFE IN VIRGINIA (1772 - 1803)
The Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia	From at least 1772 to 1802, Charles Cocke lived in Virginia. In 1772, he appears to have been living along Cripple Creek in what is now Wythe County, Virginia. At the time, this was part of Botetourt County and later became part of Fincastle County (1773) and Montgomery County (1777). In 1777, Charles Cocke took his loyalty oath in Montgomery County. Some time after that, he appears to have moved further west into what was then Washington County, and which later became Russell County (1786) and, then Lee County (1793). From 1783 through 1803, he lived somewhere within about a 5 mile radius of Jonesville, in what is now Lee County. Like many settlers of the time, Charles appeared to have acquired land through preemption, which involved putting an improvement on the land and living there for a time. (He may have also acquired land as a reward for his military service, although that has not been verified.) Obtaining land by preemption could be risky. First, many settlers attempted to claim land that was already claimed by another. For example, in the Shenandoah Valley there was extended litigation between Lord Fairfax and the settlers who both claimed the land. In southwest Virginia, the settlers were attempting to settle on land that was still claimed by various tribes of Indians. From time to time, bands of Indians would attack settlements and kill the settlers or carry off captives. Although these were isolated incidents involving relatively small war parties, the settlers were often terrified- and many left. These raids did not end until 1794, with the killing of Chief Benge.

LIFE IN VIRGINIA (1772 - 1803)

The Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia

From at least 1772 to 1802, Charles Cocke lived in Virginia. In 1772, he appears to have been living along Cripple Creek in what is now Wythe County, Virginia. At the time, this was part of Botetourt County and later became part of Fincastle County (1773) and Montgomery County (1777). In 1777, Charles Cocke took his loyalty oath in Montgomery County. Some time after that, he appears to have moved further west into what was then Washington County, and which later became Russell County (1786) and, then Lee County (1793). From 1783 through 1803, he lived somewhere within about a 5 mile radius of Jonesville, in what is now Lee County.

Like many settlers of the time, Charles appeared to have acquired land through preemption, which involved putting an improvement on the land and living there for a time. (He may have also acquired land as a reward for his military service, although that has not been verified.) Obtaining land by preemption could be risky. First, many settlers attempted to claim land that was already claimed by another. For example, in the Shenandoah Valley there was extended litigation between Lord Fairfax and the settlers who both claimed the land. In southwest Virginia, the settlers were attempting to settle on land that was still claimed by various tribes of Indians. From time to time, bands of Indians would attack settlements and kill the settlers or carry off captives. Although these were isolated incidents involving relatively small war parties, the settlers were often terrified- and many left. These raids did not end until 1794, with the killing of Chief Benge.

The Postwar Years in Washington, Russell and Lee Counties (1783-1803)

The Residence at Trading Creek	After the War, the records indicate that his primary residence was on "Trading Creek", near the land of his brother in law, William Ewing. Since the house of William Ewing was still standing when E.W.R. Ewing wrote his Ewing genealogy in 1922, we know that his house was located about 5 miles west of Jonesville which is squarely in Lee County. Charles Cocke may have also been the owner of the land where Coxes Spring was located. This Spring is identified in an 1812 sale of land from Jacob Blubaugh to John Zion, as being on the south side of Poor Valley Ridge. The 400 acres Charles Cocke received from John Ewing on 10 Nov 1783 are said to have been on the south side of Poor Valley Ridge.

A Tale of Three Counties	From 1783 to 1803, Charles Cocke appears in the land records of three different counties: Washington County, Russell County and Lee County. However, this is not because he was moving from county to county. Rather, it would appear that he was always in the same place and that the counties were moving around him, as illustrated below: