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| The Ross family has been living
in this area since 1776, just before the time when Henry County was formed
in January 1777. Daniel Ross, Sr. had moved to Henry County from Amherst
where he served in the Henry County militia throughout the Revolutionary
War. He was appointed an Ensign, then a 2nd Lieutenant, then a Lieutenant
on September 28, 1780. Daniel owned land on both sides of the Smith River,
but from deeds and tax records his actual residence was on the north side
of the Smith. He lived in the part of Henry County that would split off
and become Franklin County in 1786, but some of his land south of the Smith
fell into that portion of Henry that would become Patrick County in 1790.
Daniel and his wife, Elizabeth Garth through whose family he met and had
dealings with Thomas Jefferson, and their family lived in this Henry/Franklin/Patrick
area until he, Elizabeth and their son Churchill moved to Henry County,
Kentucky in 1811/1812. Some of their children moved to Tennessee, Kentucky
and to Cooper County, Missouri where Daniel died and was buried in 1821/1822.
Daniel and Elizabeth had thirteen children, one being Daniel Ross, Jr.
the tenth child who was born in Henry County, June 4, 1777. His
first wife was Nancy Ingram; his second wife was Joyce Harbour.
D. Lee, as he was called, married Elizabeth 'Bettie' Jamison on November 26, 1868. D. Lee and Bettie built a house for their family in 1869 in the Elamsville area, later to become known as the Ross Fox Farm. In June of 1861 men from Patrick County gathered at this homeplace to volunteer their service to the Confederate Army. They chose D. Lee Ross as their captain, they practiced on his land in the cow pastures and in July of that year these men became Company D of the 51st Virginia Infantry C.S.A. Later he became Lieutenant Colonel in the Virginia State Militia and father of ten children. The Fox Farm was so named as Guy William Ross, the ninth child
of D. Lee and Bettie Ross, lived on the homeplace and raised foxes
and mink. Their hides were sent off and made into fox and mink stoles
that were quite popular at that time. Land that belonged to the
Fox Farm extended across Route 57 West in front of the house where
Rattlesnake Road is located and where the D. Lee Ross Cemetery is
located. There are no Ross graves there today as all were moved
to the cemetery at Ross-Harbour Methodist Church when a memorial
monument was placed there for Daniel Ross, Sr. years ago. The Ross
family gave the land on which the church was built. In 2005 the
granddaughter of D. Lee Ross, Elizabeth 'Betsy' Ross Miers, and
his great grandson, Paul B. Ross, had D. Lee's C.S.A. marker moved
to his burial plot at Ross-Harbour Cemetery. |
