Cecil County, Maryland; Letter from Nathaniel Ewing to President James K. Polk 
regarding Settlement of Octorara Hundred (1844)

Contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by Edgar Bralley 
http://www.rootsweb.com/~archreg/vols/00014.html#0003267

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A Old Letter from Nathaniel Ewing to President James K. Polk Which Relates to 
the Early Settlement of Octorara Hundred
 
Dear Sir 		
Vincennes I(ndiana) Sept. 3d. 1844 

A scetch of your biography happening to fall into my hands, I find that I am 
better acquainted with the early history of your family than perhaps any of your 
immediate relatives now alive.

Your forefathers and mine emigrated together in the same ship from the North of 
Ireland in the year seventeen hundred and twenty seven, landed at Newcastle & 
settled together in the upper part of Cecil County adjoining the Pennsylvania 
line and Lancaster County. There was a large colony composed principally of 
Ewings, Porters, Gillespies & Polks. Your great grandfather and two Grand Uncles 
were of the number. Of your great grandfather and one of his brothers I have no 
recollection. They with some of my relatives of the names of Gillespie and 
Porter had removed to Cumberland County near Carlisle before my time. One of the 
brothers, John Polk remained where he first settled until he died which was 
about the year seventeen hundred eighty three. Him I will recollect as his Land 
and that of both my Grandfathers joined, and a constant friendly intercourse 
alway subsisted between the families, during their lives. On his land was the 
place selected by the emigrants on their first arrival for a burying ground and 
in it is iner'd bothe my Grand fathers and grandmothers, my Farther and Mother 
and Uncles Aunts and cousins without number. John Polk and his family also lie 
there. (I believe this is the same John Polk/Poak who renounced the provisions 
of Joseph Barns’ will, which John Bralley witnessed.)

In the year seventeen hundred and eighty eight I found living on Cripple Creek 
one of the head branches of New River a numerous band of my relatives desendants 
of those who had removed from Cumberland County Pa. and from the old settlement 
in Cecil County, MD. I understood that the Polks had settled further south in 
Carolina. In this tour I found my relatives scattered from Prince Edward Co. Va. 
through Bortitort Wythe Washington and down to Knoxville, all the desendants of 
the emigrants of seventeen hundred and twenty seven. I have this date from 
record. One of my aunts was born on sea on their passage to America and this is 
the recorded yeur of her birth. Here ends my knowledge of the family of the 
Polks except the grandsons of John Polk by his daughter Isabella who married 
Thomas Grubb. With those I was raised and schooled three of whom are still alive 
all living in Pennsylvania one in Franklin Co. and ten in Erie co. near the Town 
of that name. One of the latter Judge Grubb, is a man of six feet four and half 
inches high of good proportions. About ten years ago I visited the ancient site 
of the Emigrants after and absense of more than forthy years. I was much 
surprised to find so little alteration in the superficial appearance of the 
country. The lands were unaltered in the woodland but little deminished the only 
and great change was in the improvement of the soil. The fields which I had left 
in themost decay state of povery I found covered with luxurient crops of clover 
and wheat. The tracts of land which were originally large I found divided into 
small ones not much exceeding one hundred acres on each of which were fine brick 
houses and barns and every conveniance necessary for a neat farm.

In the years seventeen hundred and seventy nine there was one of your family 
living at Natches, placed there by the State of Virginia as their agent to 
accept and pay the bills of Genl. Clark when carrying on his expedition against 
the british forts at Kaskaskia and Vincennes. Thus I have given you my 
recollections and traditions of your family from their first landing in America. 
Your family like mine were originally from Scotland and emigrated from the 
Country during the protectorship of Cromwell. . . . . . 

/s/ Nath Ewing (September 3, 1844)

[Addressed to JKP in Columbia. Polk's AE on the cover reads "History of the Polk 
Family." 

Nath. Ewing was born in Cumberland County, Penn., in 1772 and moved to Vincennes 
in 1807 to take up his duties as receiver of the public land office. He was the 
president of the first bank established in Vincennes and served in the Indiana 
territorial legislature.