Benjamin Borden...my 8th great grandfather

One has to be ready to receive a new relative to their family tree just like a newborn child. All of the excitement is there because they are new to you.  I try to research as much as I can on the previous generation in order to move on to the next or basically back in time. 

I feel as if I have won the genealogy lottery.  As an amateur genealogist, I collect a lot of names and data hoping to be able to research them when I have time. I knew Benjamin Borden's name but didn't know about him until just recently.  For the longest time he was just a name that I have connected to one of my relatives who married into my Campbell family.  

Benjamin was one of two men who helped to populate the Virginia colony.  The other man was William Beverly.  Borden had land (92,100 acres) that was granted to him from the King. Hence, it is known as the Borden's Great Spring Tract. It was exciting to find out that one of forebears was instrumental in the founding of this country.  

Here is where it starts for me:  

Jacob Peck came to America from Ebingen, Wurttemberg, Germany and eventually settled in Augusta County, Virginia. Wurttemberg is located about 50 miles north of Switzerland and about 50 miles east of France. It nestles down between the mountains of the northern encampment of the Alps in a narrow valley through which flows the River Schmie. It is in the uplands of Germany. The Schmie River is a tributary at the western extremity of the Danube.

Jacob's name was really Johann Jakob Von Beck, I have seen it also without Von included in his name. When he arrived to the Colonial colonies, Jacob changed his name to fit in with the Scotch/Irish that were numerous to the area of his new home.  He had been living in Frederick County, Maryland for at least seven years by the time he signed his Oath of Allegiance in 1747.  

Eventually, Jacob moved to Virginia and bought acreage in the Beverly land grant area of Augusta County. It was there that he met Lydia Borden, the daughter of  Benjamin Borden.  From Benjamin's will it was estimated that he owned 120,000 acres of land, including several tracts on the lower forks of the James River. When Benjamin passed away there were legal disputes over surveys and Borden lands which were not resolved until 1897. This was due to Lydia's brother selling off land without going through the proper channels. Lydia was promised a portion of land and didn't live to see the fruition of her claim to it. 

I have still not filled you in on how my family is connected to the Peck's.  One of Jacob and Lydia's Children was Adam Peck. He was a member of the House, 1st & 2nd General Assemblies 1796-1799. As a member of the 1st assembly of the state, he helped draft the Constitution of the State of Tennessee. He was one of the founding fathers of Knoxville, Tennessee. Peck came to Tennessee before 1792, and was the first settler of Mossy Creek, now Jefferson City. Jefferson City was originally named for a creek...Mossy Creek. Adam had a daughter named Jane, who married Archibald James Campbell my fifth great-grandfather.  

I cannot tell you how exciting it was to find out that I have ancestors who were not only good people, but without them this country might have been a bit different without their efforts.  

Source: Library of Congress, Carte de la Virginie et du Maryland (1757)