Lancaster Family - Back Creek Hundred Ties?

Here is a wonderful email I received from Don Lancaster who found the blog and was kind enough to write to me. My answers to him are in bold and brackets.  If any of you have information that might help him, please write to me at the email address listed to the right, and I will forward it on to him. 

Thanks Don! Truly appreciate hearing from you!

My family is of very early Cecil Co as wel,l 1670s.

Sinclair Lancaster Captain of the 18^th Battalion,  son Abraham Lancaster married Lydia Foard

This family are family of Pennington. Lum, Bayard, Bouchelle, Hollingsworth, Herman, Thompson [[sadly I don't have any of those names in my family history].

Abraham Lancaster served the war of 1812 Baltimore Maryland and New Castle De, after his father’s death he migrates to Washington of Williamsport 1820 (Ortho H Williams founder)

A lot of Miller’s of Germany are settled of the Han Michal Miller line. [Have researched Hans Miller and others, and we are definitely not related to any of the German Millers (Darn! There is lots of info about Hans, so I wish I did tie in!!)]


Abraham Lancaster son William married Harriet Lucas believed of the Lucas family of Cecil Co Md [sorry, but don't have any info on the Lucas family]

Had three children, Malinda a Lancaster Born in Middletown New Castle De 1826, Benjamin and St Clair Lancaster Born 1833 & 1834 in Chesapeake City  North side of back creek also called Back creek Hundred. [My William Miller, his father, Abraham, and some brothers owned land in Back Creek Hundred for many years.]

This is what makes me wonder of the connection of Millers of Cecil Co Md are of English Decent [I am almost 100% sure that they were of Scotch Irish descent. I can't find any ties to England....thus far! Who knows! My ancestors are quite elusive, no I never rule anything out completely!] and also believed to have Migrated through Virginia to Washington Co Maryland and reason is St Clair A Lancaster

Son of William Married Margaret A Miller daughter of John W Miller Born in Jefferson Co VA 1805.  His son John Lester Miller had a son that moved to Ohio and of this family I found the grandson that submitted his DNA we all hoped for a match with the Millers of Washington Co [Lots of William Miller's inlaws (the Bradfords) lived in Washington County, Pennsylvania....is that the Washington County you speak of?] but of our surprise we found that this DNA was of English Decent. [isn't this DNA thing revolutionizing genealogy?!!]

Kind of a long way around it but a lot of years to go through, I have land deeds with William Miller and Richard Foard/Ford [I have always wondered if there was any family relationship between William and the Fords, so your connection to Lydia Ford/Foard that you mentioned above is very, very interesting] of a Mill on Elk River I do have that deed also so this explains the Miller’s of Washington co being of same in fact owned very important Mills

Of the area.
 Another connection with Cecil and Washington Co is a lot of the same family migrated as well

West Nottingham Cemetery is a Presbyterian graveyard in Cecil County, Maryland. This is a transcript of headstones from that old cemetery, which is located in Colora, a small town west of Elkton. Hopefully future research will reveal whether or not this Samuel and Mary Miller are related to our Miller's.

However, it is certain that Rebecca Bradford Miller's father, Samuel Bradford, was of Scotch-Irish background, and thus descended from a people with strong Presbyterian roots.

Whether or not Rebecca's husband, William Miller, descended from such roots remains to be seen.

It is also noted that the birth year of this Samuel Miller (1735) is close to the birth year of our William Miller (1732).

A Challenge Issued

I was just pondering William Miller's military status (did he serve in the Revolutionary War or not??), and thus gave this record another look. Some have thought this is our William...others disagree.

First question: Does anyone have a clearer copy in order to decipher the handwritten part in the middle?

Second question: While the 3rd Maryland Regiment was not originally composed of men from Cecil County, it combined and recombined with other groups. It formed in 1776 and disbanded in 1783, though members could have finished their service before this. Is it in the realm of possibility that this could be our William?? It's pretty clear that some of his brothers served (we'll cover that in future posts), and we have the family legend that he built boats for Washington for the Chesapeake campaigns. It is hard to think that there isn't some scrap of evidence somewhere regarding our William's possible military service.

Comments are welcome, and I would challenge all of us to redouble our efforts at solving this mystery once and for all.