Union Soldier's Letter Home from Danville(Va.)

Gathering information on George Solifelt and found a few new items. One item is a letter home that was published in the Lewistown, PA paper. The letter was written by Union soldier, Joseph Tice who was captured during the Civil War and held at Danville.  The majority of the guys he mentions are part of Co E 20th PA Cavalry.  The only soldier I found by the name of Samuel Wasson for PA was from the 9th PA Infantry.

Danville, C.S.M. Prison

February 2, 1865
Dear Mother:-- This is the first opportuni
ty I have had to write to you since I am a
prisoner, and I hope these few lines will
reach you.  I was captured on the 19th of
July, at Ashby's Gap, along with Geo. Soli-
felt, Larry Brought, John Crawford, James
Summers and Harrison Cupples, from Free
dom Forge.

We are all well and in good spirits, and
expect to be exchanged soon.  Lewis Briner
and John Miller are well also. Samuel Was
son, from Mt. Union, died on the 8th of Nov
1864; please inform his relatives. We all
send much love and expect to hear from you
as soon as you receive this.  Your son,
                            Joseph Tice
P.S. Please inform the boys' friends of 
their welfare.
Direct:--  C.S.M. Prison, No. 1, 
                    Danville, Va.
Care Lt. Col. R.C. Smith

Source:
Lewistown Gazette(Lewistown, Pennsylvania) 1st March 1865 Page 3 Col 1 (at Newspapers.com) 

Estray Notice --Amelia County, Virginia(1766)

An estray notice in the Thursday, December 4th 1766 edition of Rind's Virginia Gazette placed by Shem Cook. (www.newspapers.com)

A search of estray laws at Google Books yielded several books which cover colonial and early American law.  I found one about the areas in which many of my ancestors lived but I'm sure there are others there or at the other online books sites. Try a search for one and include the name of the area in which your ancestors lived.

From Google Books
Laws of the State of Tennessee: Including Those of North Carolina Now in Force in this State. From the Year 1715 to the Year 1820, Inclusive, Volume 1

The Revised Code of the Laws of Virginia: Being a Collection of All Such Acts of the General Assembly, of a Public and Permanent Nature as are Now in Force; with a General Index. To which are Prefixed, the Constitution of the United States; the Declaration of Rights; and the Constitution of Virginia, Volume 1

Revisiting the New River Notes website

I remember looking over the New River Notes website in the late 90s when Jeff Weaver created it. It was great then but it is even better now.  I have 17 more years experience researching and a better idea of where my ancestors lived.   There has also been a great deal added to the website over those years.  I need to take a day and read through it.  If you have ancestors in the counties it covers or in the surrounding counties it really is worth your time to check it out.

Upper New River Valley covers the following counties

• North Carolina   
• Alleghany
• Ashe
• Surry
• Watauga 
• Wilkes 
• Yadkin
• Virginia:  
• Bland
• Carroll
• Floyd
• Giles 
• Grayson
• Montgomery
• Patrick
• Pulaski 
• Smyth
• Tazewell
• Washington
• Wythe

Sat. Night Gen. Fun Post--George Jakes

Following the instructions for Randy Seaver's Saturday Night Genealogy Fun
I took my father's age and divided it by 4 which rounded to 20. Randy's instructions were to write about the the person who was #20 in my Ahnentafel.

#20
George Jakes (great great grandfather).

He was born in Franklin County Virginia in the year 1820 to James Jakes & Nancy Harger. He moved with his parents to the middle Tennessee area and married Catherine Morrow around 1845. His younger brother, James Jakes, was also his brother-in-law since James married Catherine's sister, Margaret Caroline Morrow. George & Catherine lived in the same general area pretty much all their adult life--Dist 1 of Bedford Co. TN & Dist 24 of Rutherford Co. TN. I have not been able to find a death date for George or Catherine. However, since I can't find them after the 1880 census I've narrowed their death date down a little to between 1880 and 1900. George like many men in the Tennessee area in that time period was a farmer.