RHEA-L Archives

From: "day" <>
Subject: [RHEA] Jehu Stephens
Date: Wed, 24 Sep 2003 17:19:20 -0500

A brief sketch of Jehu Stephens is found in the Draper Manuscript Collection, 30S 79-80.* "Col. Jacob (Jehu) Stephens lived in what is now Wythe County on Reed Creek...-5ft 8-heavy made, & strong active man, a great wooodsman & a fine gunner. Rather illiterate...It was on Goose Creek in Bedford Co. where he Bufords lived, he was raised. Stephens' halfbrother & older(the same mother) was Capt. Henry Paulin...married for his first wife a Ramsey, a sister of Wm. Col. Stephens was a farmer - good character- lived in a Dutch settlement. Moved to Tennessee just as the bells of the Indians Wars...moved to Little River in Knox Co., Tennessee... Died there somewhere about the close of the War of '12."This brief "remembrance" of Jehu Stephens, written many years after his death, seems to indicate that Jehu's
first wife was a Ramsey. But the statement could be interpreted as pertaining to the wife of his brother, henry Paulin. According to Mary B. Kegley,
Jehu's widow was named Bethia: "From other information a John (Probably an error for Jehu as so often happens to his records) Stephens died before the Sept. term of Blount Co. Tenn. Court 1810, and his widow, Bethia (this was Jehu's wife's name), relinquished her right to administer the estate in
favor of John Stephens, Jr. (Perhaps Jehu again?)."

and I ran across this posting --from June 2003
I believe Mary Stephens to be the dau. of Jehu Stephens & Bethia
Shaw, who are my ancestors through their son Henry Stephens, who would be Mary's
brother. Do you have any information substantiating this connection or where
and when John Rhea & Mary married? Or do you know of anyone who might be
knowledgeable of the Stephens? I have a story in my family in which a Stephens
Rhea, who I think might be the son of John & Mary, is mentioned.



I have a copy of a letter from C.B. (Catherine Binkley) Stephens to her great
niece Mollie Hopkins Howell written in 1889, I think. Catherine was a maiden
lady, dau. of Henry Stephens & Catherine Binkley. She was born about the same
time (1829) as her nephew John L. Hopkins, Jr., was the son of Nancy Stephens &
John L. Hopkins. In the letter C.B. attempts to set out information on the
family back several generations. In it she states "Grandfather Stephens name
was Jehu, his wife's maiden name was BILKIAH Shaw. (Note that the only other
record of her first name is in the Blount Co. record relating to the estate of
Jehu Stephens which Mary Kegley has recorded as Bethia and a Wythe Co. deed that
Mary read as Bethiah.) I have not seen either original record, so can't lend
my opinion as to whether they were read correctly. I find only two records in
Wythe Co. of Shaws, one a Joseph & the other a William Shaw. William would be
the best guess as one of Jehu's sons was named William - no Joseph. But I have
found no family information on Shaws.

Alex Hopkins
7-12-2003

>From these postings plus what Robert has shared in a previous posting
It would appear that Jehu Stephens first wife was one Sarah Ramsey and the second a BILKIAH Shaw (Bethia).


Linda Crockett York

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• [RHEA] Jehu Stephens by "day" <>