Jane Allison was the husband of
William Ross and the mother of his children.
They were married in Botetourt County, Virginia in 1770 and lived there
through the Revolutionary War (Wm Ross pension). Soon after the end of the war, William and
Jane left Virginia for Greene County, Tennessee (Wm Ross pension). By 1786, they had settled into Greene County
and it was there that they chose to grow roots. They watched their children and
their grandchildren grow into adulthood.
Jane preceded William to the grave, having died in 1827 (Wm Ross letter). A mere seven years later, William followed
his “beloved” wife to the great beyond (Wm Ross headstone).
We know a great deal about
William Ross as the male tended to define the family, at least through extant
records. From his pension application
alone, William Ross descendants are aware of his approximate birth date (he was
unsure of the actual date as he reported his family bible was lost at sea),
birth place in Ireland, approximate year of immigration, places and length of time
he lived at each location, and details of his service in the Revolutionary
War. From Botetourt County, Virginia
records, researchers are easily able to piece together the Ross family
kinships, mainly through the males. The
point here being, less is known about the female partner in each
relationship. For example, William Ross
descendants do not even know the name of his mother.
So, since we are confident in at
least some of the details of William Ross’ childhood and early history, descendants
should have a similar interest in Jane Allison Ross. However, she has unfortunately been considered
somewhat of an enigma. The issues
certainly begin with her current grave marker, which was placed in 1974, nearly
150 years after her death.
My first recollection of learning
about Jane Allison was the possibility that she was either born or died at
sea. Her grave marker states “Jane
Allison Ross 1737-1831 At Sea.” “At Sea”
has become more recently, it is thought, a synonymous term for “At Rest.” But, questions still remain since there is no
other example of the term being used as an epitaph on any known graves. And then, there is the date of death. A letter from William Ross to his sister
actually reveals his “beloved wife,” as he called her, died in 1827. For a clean sweep, that is to make the marker
wholly unreliable, the birth date of Jane is certainly incorrect. William Ross was born in or somewhere near
1844 (he was 88 when he completed his pension application in September 1832). A more realistic birth date for Jane Allison
Ross, considering her marriage and children’s births, places her date of birth
in the area between 1848 and 1855.
For me, I am most interested in
the birth and early life of Jane Allison.
The first real information we have for her is the marriage to William
Ross on 29 December 1770 in Botetourt County, Virginia (as reported in the Wm
Ross pension). Therefore, the question
is – Were there Allison males living in Botetourt before and after 1770 that
could be related to Jane Allison, and who were they? A search on the internet reveals an overwhelming
belief that Jane Allison was the daughter of James Allison. Though more evidence may exist, I have not
been able to locate any concrete sources for this assumed relationship. Most likely, the relationship was at one time
hypothesized (which after time becomes taken for fact) through the following
records:
#1
Botetourt County Court Records
(p. 500) 8 June 1784 – Edward
McDonald was appointed Surveyor of the Road, succeeding William Ross from Dr.
Neely’s place to James Allison’s.
#2
James Allison Ross was born circa
1800 in Greene County, Tennessee, the last daughter of William Ross and Jane
Allison Ross
Virginia in 1784, near the time
William Ross left the state. Counties
had been carved away from Botetourt (red) – which attained these borders in
1777, including Montgomery (yellow) whose borders on this map were established
in 1778. Within five years, Wythe would
become the southern portion of Montgomery County.
Researchers can feel relatively
confident that the William Ross in record #1 is the husband of Jane
Allison. The reason – Edward McDonald
was the brother-in-law of William Ross (Edward’s brother and sister married
William Ross’ sister and brother). At
that time in 1784, William Ross was about 40 and he and Jane Allison had been
married for 14 years. This record would
have occurred just prior to the relocation of the William Ross family to Greene
County, Tennessee. And, William Ross had
been the surveyor of this road for the previous eight years:
Botetourt County Court Records
1776 – William Ross was appointed
Road Surveyor, succeeding Bryant McDonald (p. 475)
And also:
12 August 1778 - William Ross is
appointed surveyor of the road in the room of Bryan McDonald, deceased
*11 November 1778 – John Ross Jr
is appointed surveyor of the road from the half way tree to James Allisons –
which was probably another road nearby
In 1776, this Bryan McDonald Jr. would
have been a close neighbor to William Ross.
The road surveyor was responsible for road maintenance in close
proximity to the surveyor’s home.
Shortly after William Ross took over the surveyor position in 1776, a)
Bryan McDonald passed away in 1777, b) William Ross’ younger brother John Ross
married Bryan McDonald’s daughter Mary in 1777, and c) William Ross’ younger sister
Mary Ross married Bryan McDonald’s son Richard in 1779 (both marriages
occurring in Botetourt County).
Bryan McDonald and the related
McDonald clan were predominantly members of the Tinker Creek neighborhood near
the headwaters of Tinker Creek. Bryan
McDonald Sr. moved to Tinker Creek (then Buffalo Creek) between 1746 and
1753. In 1753 he recived a survey of 150
acres where he already lived and then 1755 on a branch of the Roanoke (Tinker
Creek). Also located on a tract adjoining
McDonald land was John Neely. John Neely
must have been the Neely referred to in the 1784 surveyor record. Therefore, it appears William Ross and his
father (since his siblings married into McDonald family) had been residents in
the Tinker Creek neighborhood at least from 1776 to 1784. Also there, in some form, must have been a James
Allison (at least in 1784). The
1784 record either referred to James Allison as a resident or possibly the
owner of land. On 10 August 1784, John
and Priscilla Armstrong sold 230 acres on Catawba Creek and a branch of the
James River to James Allison for 38 pounds.
This deed adds further to the assurance that James Allison was tied to the
Tinker Creek neighborhood.
The area between the Catawba Creek
(upper left) and Roanoke River (across the lower half) included branches of the
Roanoke such as Tinker Creek in present day Botetourt County. Highlighted are some of the pertinent names
associated with William Ross; McDonald, Neely, Snodgrass, Preston,
Breckenridge, McAfee, and Cole. These
families lived at the headwaters of Tinker Creek.
The approximate location of the
Tinker Creek neighborhood in Botetourt County according to the county lines in
1784 Virginia.