Family Lore: Will’s Ridge

Separating fact from fiction

Jan 08, 2024

To kick off “52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks” (a writing prompt series courtesy of Amy Johnson Crow), I’ll be exploring the family lore of Will’s Ridge in Floyd County, Virginia and the Dulaney family.

Floyd County Virginia Courthouse; Photographer: Nicole Palsa

The Irish roots of my Dulaney family have a long oral history, but a short paper trail. This is an example of where oral history was twisted over time, yet had elements of truth.

In the Spring/Summer 2015 issue of Floyd Magazine,1 Mrs. Lewis Turner shared the stories she had been told about her Dulaney heritage by her cousin Sharon Reed Cox. In the article, Mrs. Turner describes a man named William Dulaney traveling to America from Ireland around 1746 with his wife and son, William Jr., with hopes of building a shoe factory. She continues on to say that the Dulaney family settles in the Beaver Creek community of Floyd County, Virginia, at the foot of a ridge, and William Jr. has a son, William III. This third-generation William is said to have been the father of Richard Dulaney, as well as Richard’s brothers Hiram, Samuel, and Daniel Dulaney. They supposedly all settled at the foot of the ridge, calling it “Grandfather’s Ridge,” before it was eventually renamed “Will’s Ridge.”

Oral history is a funny thing… It can be a lot like the telephone game. The last person to hear the word or phrase in the game is likely to say something completely different than the original word used when the game started. When a family’s story is passed down several generations, the details can easily morph due to lapses in memory. And, some people may intentionally change the story to paint the family in a more favorable or interesting light.

As genealogists, we have an obligation to investigate these stories and try to find evidence to prove or disprove the claims. I had heard various stories about the Dulaney family’s Irish origins over the years, usually involving “three brothers,” but this story published in 2015 struck me as odd, because I had always heard that the “original” immigrant was named Samuel Dulaney.

So, the search begins. I’ve already documented my Dulaney line from my most recent Dulaney ancestor, Rushie Dulaney Hylton (my great-grandmother) through the aforementioned William Dulaney.

Rushie Dulaney (1911-2006) > Dessie Dulaney (1892-1983) > Madison A. Dulaney (1842-1900) > Daniel Dulaney (1815-1900) > William Dulaney (1774-1854)

Now, we’ve reached the crossroads of family lore and historical documentation. Was William Dulaney actually William Dulaney III? Was his father William Dulaney, Jr.? Surprisingly, the answer was easy to find.

The entry for William Dulaney in the Virginia Bureau of Vital Statistics Death Records2 clearly shows his father is listed as Samuel Dulaney and that the information was provided by William’s son, Hiram Dulaney. The record indicates that William died on 27 August 1854 in Floyd County, Virginia at age 80 years old due to palsy. It also indicates that he was born in Greenbrier (present-day West Virginia).

"Virginia, Bureau of Vital Statistics, Death Records, 1853-1912", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-DRMQ-6NS?cc=3940896 : 1 August 2023), > image 1 of 1.

Side note: While reviewing this record, a name of another relative jumped out at me - Braxton Cox. He is listed as the slave owner of a one-year-old girl named Charlotte, who died of dysentery. Her parents were listed as unknown. Absolutely tragic in so many ways.

Since William’s father was listed as Samuel Dulaney instead of William Dulaney, Jr., what about the other parts of the oral history, which describe a William Dulaney, Sr. arriving in America from Ireland around 1746 with his wife and son, William Jr.? Could the names be wrong, but the date correct?

Samuel Dulaney (mostly spelled as “Delany” in records) died in 1812 in Montgomery County, Virginia. In his will, he lists his children, including William Dulaney.3 Tracing Samuel’s life in reverse, we find him in Montgomery County (1810-1812), Franklin County (1786-1810) [county formed in 1785 from Bedford], Greenbrier County (?-1782) county formed in 1777], and Botetourt County (1774-1775) [county formed in 1770 from Augusta]. Samuel appears in various tax lists and land transactions during his life, but the earliest known record of him is a land survey dated 29 January 1774 in Botetourt County.45

Greenbrier Company Surveys 1751-1776; Library of Virginia; Local Call Number: LOI 121

There is no documentation of Samuel before 1774 (that I’ve been able to find) and no sources have been provided for the oral history claims of the original Dulaney immigrant arriving in 1746. Samuel is a brick wall for me before 1774, so if you have any research recommendations, please let me know!

So, we’ve disproved the story about William’s father. But what about the rest of the story of Will’s Ridge?

In a Montgomery County, Virginia deed book, we find William Dulaney purchasing 96 acres on Beaver Creek from George Reed.6 Aha! The location of Beaver Creek matches the story.

Montgomery County, Virginia Deeds Vols. D-E 1803-1815; Deed Book D, page 550; FHL Film # 007645568; Image 285

You may be wondering… how do you know that the Beaver Creek named in the Montgomery County record is the same as the Beaver Creek in Floyd County? That’s where historical context and maps come into play. Floyd County was formed in 1831 from Montgomery County. Here is an excellent resource for understand the evolution of Virginia counties: https://www.mapofus.org/Virginia/

If you follow William Dulaney in the census records, you’ll find that he appears in Montgomery County in 1810, 1820, and 1830. Then, William Dulaney appears in Floyd County in the 1840 and 1850 census records.

Although there is no evidence of a probate record for William Dulaney after his death in 1854, we are able to determine the names of his children (Richard, Sarah (Sally), Miriam, Samuel, Mary (Polly), Daniel, Hiram, and Rachel) through other records, such as the children’s marriage and death records, which name William as their father. The names of William’s four sons match the oral history as well.

Now, we’ve sorted facts from folklore in the oral history of Will’s Ridge in Floyd County, Virginia.

Do you have a tall tale that’s been passed down in your family? Let me know in the comments!

Family Lore: Will’s Ridge

Separating fact from fiction

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