5. Jacob³ Chaney (Charles², Richard¹ Cheyney) (#1273) was born in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States 1715.⁽⁸⁷⁾ Jacob died AFT. 1750.⁽⁸⁸⁾

He married Sarah Midkiff. (Sarah Midkiff is #1274.) Jacob Chaney, the ancestor of all the Chaney Families of Pittsylvania and Halifax Counties, Virginia, and the surrounding country, was supposed to have imigrated from France, as the name is generally considered a French name, in the seventeenth century, and settled near the shore. Jacob's father was with him and his mother being dead, his father married again and it is said his stepmother broke a skillet, placed the pieces together and sent Jacob in an old kitchen to bring it. When he caught hold of it , it fell to pieces. His father was gone from home that day and on his return she told him that Jacob had broken the skillet. After his father had severely punished him, he also told Jacob that he didn't care if he went away and that he could never see him again. Jacob was about 18 years old at the time he left his father. He went to Northern Virginia or Maryland and lived a while. From there he moved to Bedford County, Virginia, where he married Sarah Midkiff, then he moved to Pittsylvania County and settled on Elk Horn Creek two miles north of Peytonsburg, Virginia. He at the time had a wife and several children. While Jacob would be gone, sometimes as far as sixty miles to a mill, his wife and children would build large sparkling fires to keep the wild animals away. In those days the black bear, the panther and the wolf were yet to be seen in the forest and were no doubt dreaded by the settlers. I was told by some ot the older ones who are now gone that Jacob dreamed while living on Elk Horn Creek, that further south about ten miles there were two creeks now known as Birch Creek and Buck Horn Creek, a small creek which empties into Birch Creek in the southeastern part of Pittsylvania County. He also dreamed of the large shelving rocks projecting from the earth and inclining south, as the actually are, where cattle could find refuge from cold winds. Jacob's dream had so much weight he came over south to investigate. He found everything so much like he had dreamed it and he was very much pleased. He went around and chopped off as much land as he wanted to pay taxes on and had it recorded at the county seat. This land was government land at the time. This was in the year 1750. Jacob moved over to his new place and settled in the fork of Buck Horn and Birch Creeks near the junction and brought his drinking water from the south side of Birch Creek. Later on, he built a home on top to the hill near the place now know as the Chaney Burying Ground. Some of this land has never been changed from the Chaney name, the present owner S.S. Chaney is one of the fourth generation from Jacob. I don't know whether Jacob was a member of any church or not. I am inclined to believe, however, that he was a devout man, as he named some of his boys scriptural names and some of them were members. Jacob raised nine boys, I have been told, and I will here give the names of them as follows: William, Moses, Joseph, Abraham, Charles, Thomas and Nathaniel. The former six settled near the old homestead. Nathaniel and two others whose names I have forgotten went away to the Western part of this country. I do not know the date of Jacob's death or how old he was, but I suppose he was getting along in years. He was buried in the Chaney buried in the Chaney Burying Ground. written in 1907 by Henry Watson Chaney Abraham Chaney b.1760 @@Halifax, Virginia. Abram's father, Jacob, (b.1715) did come from Anne Arundel Co., MD; and, his father, Charles, b. June 6, 1673, did have a half-brother, Richard 'b.1649/ 1650'. They are sons of the CHEYNEY emigrant, *Richard (b.`1627) in Kent, Eng. Posted to Genforum by Preston Glenn Humphrey on April 26, 1998

Jacob Chaney and Sarah Midkiff had the following children:

+ 7 i. William⁴ Chaney was born on (birth date unknown).

+ 8 ii. Moses Chaney was born before September 20, 1792, the first event for which there is a recorded date.

+ 9 iii. Joseph Chaney was born on (birth date unknown).

+ 10 iv. Charles Chaney was born on (birth date unknown).

+ 11 v. Thomas Chaney was born on (birth date unknown).

12 vi. Nathanial Chaney (#1281) was born on (birth date unknown).

+ 13 vii. Abraham Chaney was born 1760.

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