As we continue to move toward our nation’s semiquincentennial, I’m still focusing on elements of the Revolutionary War effort of attaining independence and the related contributions and connections of families of the Fork, the Knox County lands between the French Broad and Holston Rivers.
Whew! My eyes are burning. Although we obviously have a lot of Revolutionary War period connections to families in the Fork, tracing the lines isn’t always easy. This week, I was about to panic because none of the leads I was chasing were proving to be fruitful. I researched many names and hit dead ends before finding the jackpot with James Brock. But it was down to the wire, and I was working two ends against the middle.
Lots of men by the name of James Brock fought in the Revolution, but which one was the one who eventually owned land along Swan Pond Creek in the Fork after the war? These Brock men hailed from several different places. One was a seaman from Massachusetts on the frigate Boston during the war in 1779, but he was reported as drowned that same year. Was the Brock name originally Le Brock? James Le Brock was also from Massachusetts and served in the Revolution from 1781 to 1782. Another James Brock was a Patriot in South Carolina who butchered 47 head of cattle for the troops in 1779, then served in the militia from 1780 to 1782. Yet another James Brock served in the Vermont militia, protecting the frontier along Lake Champlain…