Dear Diary - diaries of Eastern Kentucky

compiled by Teresa Martin Klaiber

I have kept a journal for many years. No, I don't write in it every day but it does include important moments in my life including deaths of loved ones, marriages and births. I call it a journal because every time I use the word diary I conjure up a 1950's little book with key and lock. The journal is on the computer and has been transferred numerous times to upgrade to the latest word processing program. It is backed up and hopefully someday my family will appreciate reading how thrilled I was during their special moments.

The William Lewis Geiger diaries are well known in Boyd County, Kentucky. Boyd County was formed in 1860 and Geiger's diaries begin on 1 January 1860 and continue to 1894. The original diaries are housed at the Boyd County Library and are microfilmed as well. Evelyn Jackson extracted the hard to read entries and a few years ago I indexed her extractions to make them more useful. So I was flabbergasted when I heard a library patron complain about the entries being boring when appearing in The Tree Shaker. Actually she was probably sorry she ever said it, as I explained to her that while we had no county history those diaries served as a day by day history of the development of our area. How lucky we are that they were donated to the library and had been so carefully preserved.

I remember being extremely excited when Col. John Paul Jones diaries were temporarily loaned to the the genealogy room by Robert Pogue De Benedictus of Newark, Licking County, Ohio. Jones was an early Ashland resident. These diaries began prior to the formation of Boyd County while still considered Greenup County. The gentleman had loaned them, short term, for a research project.

The library had an extraction of some religious entries in the vertical files. We are "assuming" the author was the diary owner, but the typed pages are not signed. I noticed that while the notations began in January 1858 they said simply "Revival," "To M. E. Church," or "Mr. T. preached." As I carefully turned the pages of the original diaries, I quickly realized they contained entries of slaves, deaths, births and historical notations that were not listed in the filed extraction.

With pad and pencil in hand I began to extract notations, over the next few days, as I read page by page. Sadly time ran out before I could complete my project and the final entry of 22 pages of extractions reads: "1877 books continue but extractions by Teresa Klaiber discontinued due to lack of availability." The diaries were returned to the owner. My extractions were typed and tucked away for another day.

During a recent project I pulled my extraction. Entries flowed and I again thought of the value of these type of records. "14 July 1858 Delaware Sands buried." "4 September 1858 C. C. Chinn died last night." "15 March 1859 Henry Stotts funeral." Entry after entry of valued genealogical information extracted in 2003. What had become of the original diaries?

Time after time I have seen valued original source material lost and years of genealogical research tossed to the wind. Records from one location end up thousands of miles away from home. I quickly contacted James Powers, who had been director of the library at the time we had the borrowed valued diaries. Powers located Robert Pogue De Benedictus obituary. My heart sank. De Benedictus died 23 May 2008. According to Powers his children were adopted. He had two sisters, Roberta, not married and Anotinette Newman and a niece Felicia A. Andrecht. When Powers had last spoken to "Bob" he had mentioned that he had not decided where the diaries would go.

The extractions are filed at the Boyd County Library. Hopefully the original diaries will resurface. There is a wonderful genealogy society in Licking County, Ohio. Maybe they will be instrumental in seeing that the diaries are returned to Boyd County, Kentucky if they are located.

I am sure neither Geiger nor Jones gave any thought to the historical value of their entries as they did their day to day business. I write in my journal and wonder if my grand daughter will enjoy the memories some day. I joke with computer son to not hit the delete key at my death. I also have told family, friends and library my wishes concerning my genealogical records.

We make history with every moment and every breath. I think I will post this in my journal.

Garrett Chapel United Methodist Church Records

Compiled by Teresa Martin Klaiber
May 2010

Many years ago cherished friend, Hazel Fannin Polokovs, showed me an early ledger of records for Garrett Chapel Church. Knowing my love of history and all things genealogical Hazel graciously allowed me to make a photo copy which I have kept in Family Lineage Investigations office.

On a recent family visit Hazel said she missed looking at the old ledger because another relative had taken it to another state. I immediately told her I would provide her a copy. Then I began to muse about all the times I have been involved with "lost" records.

There was the time when I worked with New Concord, Ohio Village Council and later published a book of early village records. When publicity went out that I was getting all the available records microfilmed, a package arrived from Florida with the first minute book of the village. A note explained that when a new village hall was erected items from the old building were dumped and this person had salvaged the book. Thrilled that it "came home" it has been microfilmed and is now housed in the archives of Muskingum University.

When I physically moved from Ohio to Kentucky we moved approximately 30 ledger books and diaries that I had purchased at auctions while in Ohio. They were used in my office, some with the intent to possibly publish in the future. But once I became settled I knew they needed to "go home." Those Guernsey, Noble and Muskingum County items were donated to the Guernsey County Chapter of the Ohio Genealogical Society so that anyone with roots in that area will have ready access to them.

I stand firm that records belong where they were created in a safe environment for historical purposes. All of my office records are tagged to go to the Boyd County Public Library, eventually, but now that I am aware that the Garrett Chapel Records are not at home anymore it is a time for action. While the copy that has been in my files is not the highest quality it is still clearly readable. The Garrett Chapel Church ledger has now been created in .pdf format and safely filed at the Boyd County Public Library, Minnie Crawford Winder Genealogy Room. A back up .pdf resides in the office of Family Lineage Investigations on dvd [several backups]. The photocopy has been given to Hazel Fannin Polakovs so that she can continue enjoying reading about our area pioneers.

Garrett Chapel United Methodist Church sits along the side of Route #3 at the corner of Route 3399, 2 miles from the Boyd County line. The church ledger is far from complete. Many of the marriages are just notations that they have married without even the year cited. But still it is a goldmine for research.

The first appointment of a Pastor recorded in the book is for R. F. Rice dated 12 September 1887. He ministered for a year and then was replaced by Isaac Fannin.

The first marriage is for James Taylor and Sophia Savage [no dates] followed by the marriage of George Fannin to Emma Lambert 3 July 1910.

The baptismal and member list contains notations such as "gone to Portsmouth," "gone to West Virginia," and "joined the Morman's." While not listed as Pastors J. C. Crooks, John Martin and J. D. Garrett received several members into the fold. J. D. Garrett is listed in the 1898 Minutes of the Annual Conferences of Methodist Episcopal Church South for Mt. Zion in the Catlettsburg District and John Martin is listed at Grayson also in The Catlettsburg District as ministers.

James and Sarah McGlothlin Buckley were members of the church. The Buckley's and Sarah's parents Robert and Rebecca Correll McGlothlin are laid to rest in Buckley Cemetery on a high point across the road from Garrett Chapel. Wade Chambers married another daughter, Martha, and is listed as a member of the church. Wade "went back into the old sinful world."

David Elswick and his father in law Walter Queen appear side by side with the date 29 February 1896. Because the page is a register of members it is unclear if this is a baptism date or date accepted into the church because the notation for both is in the column of "whom married." None the less from my own research David Wise Elswick [1866-1941] married Laura Adelaide Queen 3 April 1890 in Lawrence County, Kentucky. David's parent's Tolbert Birdwin and Margaret McGlothlin Elswick are also members of the church.

Thomas and Rebecca Elswick Enyart appear in the church register. Thomas and Rebecca are also buried in Buckley Cemetery. William N. Bostick and wife Mary Elswick Bostick are listed. Mary died 3 April 1935 in Cabell County, West Virginia.

Charles Henry and Margaret Reynolds Fannin's daughters all attended Garrett Chapel. Their married names have been scrawled beside their maiden names. Emma Fannin Herald went to Columbus. Lewis P. Fannin's death date is entered as 1909. He is probably the son of John Fannin.

Robert C. Ross states "not baptized. Droped" Robert Crittenden Ross [1861-1931] was the son of John Davis and Martha Jane Leslie Ross. John D. Ross appears on the rolls with the notation of a baptism simply written as '40 [1840]. Much has been written about him as the first judge of Boyd County. He is buried in the J. D. Ross Cemetery, Bolts Fork Road, Boyd County, Kentucky.

Thompson Berry's entry says "d. 1898". Thompson was the son of Hiram and Kizziah Stewart Berry. This entry predates any vital records for our area.

J. S. McCormick [aka McCormack] has an entry stating "lost sight of." John Samuel McCormack lived most of his life around Boyd and Carter County, Kentucky. He is buried in Elijah Rice Cemetery Lawrence County, Kentucky. His wife Sarah Burke McCormack died 6 January 1935 in Carter County, Kentucky and was buried in Elijah Rice Cemetery. Two years later John Samuel died in Lawrence County, Ohio. Is this why they made the notation "lost sight of"? His daughter resided in Ohio.

The membership list is long. The handwriting is easy to read. With some genealogical research one sees that most are related to each other or close neighbors. I have only listed a few entries and comments from the material. The material is now available to be reviewed by anyone doing research in our area at our wonderful genealogical facility. The Boyd County Public Library is located at 1740 Central Avenue, Ashland, Kentucky.

Anna Sanders McBrayer & The Missing Tombstone

Compiled by Teresa Martin Klaiber 2010

Yes for the moment Anna Sanders McBrayer's tombstone is classified as missing. It proves the extreme importance and value of all those volunteer hours to document row by row readings of cemeteries and the power of the photograph.


In the late 1960's I was utilizing polaroid film. It was in the early years of my genealogical quests and

I did not date the photograph. But we estimate that it was taken between 1968 - 1974. I clearly remember standing in Sexton Cemetery on Pigeon Roost, Boyd County, Kentucky when I took the picture of the stone. We commented that someday it would be nice to repair the stone as it lay on the ground. We were visiting from out of state and time ticked on.

In the mid 1970's the Kentucky Historical Society organized a state wide cemetery reading project. Evelyn Scyphers Jackson spear headed the project in Boyd County, Kentucky. She and her volunteers did a row by row reading of cemeteries in Boyd County, Kentucky. Her field notes for Sexton Cemetery are dated 1976 with updates dated 1977. Anna Sanders McBrayer's tombstone appears on the list. Thus the tombstone was still in the cemetery in 1976.

Working in the genealogy department of the Boyd County Library, in 1999, I created a master cemetery database with the goal to put it on line to assist patrons. With the wonderful help of Michael Fleming and Carol Lovitt we entered all of the recorded cemetery data from the 1970's project. That alone was a daunting task. Anna Sanders McBrayer's entry from the 1977 reading is in the database.

In 2004, as part of the Boyd County Fiscal Court Cemetery Board, we were facing another daunting and now ongoing task. With the advent of digital photography I was able to start photographing each and every stone in cemeteries without the cost of film development. One of the first cemeteries to be digitized was Sexton Cemetery. You now can access the Master database online at the Boyd County Library or visit the library to view any of the digitized cemeteries at the computer stations located in the genealogy department.

While I explained to anyone that listened the importance of updating the cemetery database including new burials, I also pointed out the importance of the new project because of damaged or lost stones. Never did I dream that the lost tombstone would involve my children's 3rd great grandmother.

With recent new genealogical discoveries about the McBrayer family, I turned to the digitized 2004 Sexton Cemetery photographs to provide a descendant a copy. Anna is not there! Thus between 1977 and 2004 something may have happened to the stone. My team methodically shot each stone in the cemetery but mistakes do happen. The cemetery lays on a point surrounded by woods. It is maintained by boys incarcerated at the Hack Estep Home each summer. Thus the stone may have been moved or because it was broken grass and time could have embedded it. It is time to pay the cemetery another visit, taking along a probe, BarPak and base frame. I am optimistic that we will find the stone.

Anna aka Anne and Annie in records was born 6 March 1807 in Kentucky. She was the daughter of Jacob and Sarah Sanders. Anna married James R. McBrayer 7 July 1823 in Floyd County, Kentucky. Sometime between 1839 and 1842 they settled in Lawrence County, Kentucky. In 1844 they purchased land from William C. Carter on what is known as Four Mile. The deed is filed in Carter County, Kentucky. The land is now part of Boyd County, Kentucky.

The McBrayer's had at least 10 children. Three of her sons served in the Civil War. William Parks McBrayer was with Company G, 45th Mounted Infantry and Solomon served in Company D of the 39th Kentucky Infantry along with brother Lewis Parker McBrayer. In August 1863 her husband, James R. McBrayer signed the Oath of Allegiance stating that he would support the constitution of the United States and the constitution of Kentucky and would not give aid to the Rebellion or against the government.

The family moved to Rowan County, Kentucky after 1875. James R. died 5 January 1880. He is buried in what is called Hoggtown Cemetery aka Turner Cemetery. Hoggtown became a part of Elliottville. The family states that Anna was on a visit in Boyd County when she died 25 April 1889 and because the wagon trip would be long & the roads were muddy, she was buried in the county where she died.

This pioneering lady was a child during the War of 1812, saw the formation of 3 separate counties, survived the Civil War and raised 10 children.

Boyd County, Kentucky Genealogy

Boyd County, Kentucky is the gateway to Eastern Kentucky Genealogical and Historical Research.


The county is home to the Eastern Kentucky Genealogical Society and the quarterly publication Tree Shaker. The Tree Shaker's editor, Jimmie Epling provides readers with a variety of records and family histories for Eastern Kentucky Researchers. Members also share a wealth of information inside its pages. While the internet provides us with a vast amount of material, a subscription to the Eastern Kentucky Genealogical Society is a big bang for it's little bucks. Membership is just $10.00 per year. You can join by sending dues to: Eastern Kentucky Genealogical Society, Inc., APO Box 1544, Ashland, KY 41105-1544.

Boyd County also houses Eastern Kentucky's largest genealogical holdings at the Boyd County Public Library, 1740 Central Avenue, Ashland, KY. Staff members work daily to digitize and make records available to the public. Besides an archives containing original source material, the collection includes vast microfilm holdings for newspapers and vital records. Bound publications are easy to locate and use and include many other states. During what the staff is terming "spring cleaning" they are expanding their shelves for larger and more Virginia and West Virginia materials. Several databases are available at the web site and Judy Fleming's Boyd County, Kentucky Marriage database continues to grow daily.

The Boyd County Master Cemetery Database has been my pet project for many years. It now has searchable capability & we have turned over the digitized photograph collection to the library as well. They are available for viewing in-house. If your questions are not answered after reviewing The Boyd County Cemetery Location Guide [it was a labor of love!] please feel free to contact me concerning any given county cemetery or individual. Remember if you did not locate a person it may be that they have an unmarked grave. One tip that searchers need to know is that Rose Hill Cemetery is not included in the database at this time.

Boyd County, Kentucky was formed in 1860 [KY county #107] from parts of Greenup, Carter and Lawrence County, KY. With pioneer waterway travel, researchers should also look at records across the Ohio, in Lawrence and Scioto County as well as the Big Sandy River and {West} Virginia connections.
Our County was named for Linn Boyd, Lt Governor of Kentucky who died in 1859 shortly after being elected. Boyd Countie's first appointed sheriff was William Williams. John D. Ross the first judge. The John D. Ross Cemetery has undergone some renovations over the past few years.
The Boyd County seat is in Catlettsburg, Kentucky. Catlettsburg was laid out in 1849 and incorporated as a town in Greenup County in 1858. Boyd County built the first courthouse in 1861. A new Justice Building opened this past year modernizing the visual look of the main part of town.

I invite you to visit my web site about Boyd County Genealogy as well as information concerning Family Lineage Investigations . You will find a complete reading of Klaiber Cemetery as well as a free copy of a 1902-1906 Blacksmith Ledger with many Boyd county family names mentioned. Just follow the links. Want more information about the author of this blog just click! Please feel free to make suggestions for postings for future blog posts at this site. Let's chat and have a cuppa together!