In the introductory post I traced the paternal line of my grandfather, Truman G. Tracy, back four generations to a Jesse Tracy, born in 1795. Although described as a “Kentucky farmer”, Jesse died in Montgomery County, Indiana and is buried in the old Turkey Run cemetery.
The quaint little cemetery is about a mile south of the town of Wingate (formally Pleasant Hill) and just north of the gently winding Turkey Run creek, after which it is named. It is tucked back from the main road at the end of a grass pathway and is surrounded by farms.
In the fall of 1892, a group of local preservationist minded citizens came together to form a board of trustees and raise money for the construction of an iron fence around the site. A 1893 article in the nearby Crawfordsville Weekly Journal, while calling attention to this group and the general neglect of the cemetery, reported that when the first group of pioneers met to worship on the location the land was owned by Vezey Tracy. Vezey purchased the tract from the government, which means that he obtained a patent through the Federal Land Grant program. He subsequently sold the farm, but not the burial plot. The initial meetings took place in a school house, which then gave way to the log church.
It is clear that the first Turkey Run church was, by the time Jesse died in 1845, likely the center of his and his family’s religious life in Indiana. We may be able to learn more about Jesse by looking for any potential family members who are also buried in that same cemetery. As it turns out, there are four other Tracys buried in Old Turkey Run: Alfred Tracy (1834), John H Tracy (1819 - 1839), Mary E. Tracy (1834 - 1851), and Rachel Tracy (1819 - 1845).
Alfred Tracy, sadly, died in infancy in 1834 at the age of 4 months. He was the son of “V & R” Tracy (the “V” likely being the aforementioned Vezey Tracy).
The gravestones of both Mary and Rachel indicate that they married into the Tracy family. Mary is the “w/o Jonathan Tracy” (wife of Jonathan Tracy) and Rachel is the “wife of V. Tracy” (and therefore the mother of poor Alfred). Neither were the spouses of Jesse.
That leaves John H. He was born in 1819 when Jesse was about 24 years old so he is too young to be a brother - but he could be a son. The gravestone says “Son of J & N Tracy”, so this may in fact be a son of Jesse.
And that is all that we find in the Turkey Run Cemetery. No leads as to who Jesse’s parents were, but he may have had a son named John and a wife “N. Tracy”. If Jesse was born in Kentucky and migrated to Indiana as an adult in search of new land to farm, then his parents may have remained in Kentucky.
That seems to be what happened.
Vezey Tracy obtained a patent for 80 acres of land that sits on or about the Turkey Run Cemetery in 1827, the year before the cemetery was established. This was in addition to two other patents obtained in 1826 for adjacent property, for a total of 240 acres. A search of the General Land Office Records for Montgomery County, Indiana, reveals, in addition to Vezey, land patents purchased by three additional Tracy’s: Bazzle (1827, 1832), John (1828), and Jesse (1829, 1835). With the exception of Bazzle, most of the land is all adjacent to one another.
So four Tracys all migrated to Montgomery County, Indiana, between 1826 and 1829, purchased land, and established farms. Were they all brothers?
Fortunately, we can glean a few more facts about Jesse Tracy from a short biography of his son, Joab, published in 1885 in the book “Portrait and biographical album of Henry County Illinois.” Here we learn that Jesse Tracy, a native of Kentucky, came from a family of four sons and four daughters, and that Jesse lost his father when he was “quite young.” The four sons here could be Jesse, John, Bazzle, and Vezey. 
The quaint little cemetery is about a mile south of the town of Wingate (formally Pleasant Hill) and just north of the gently winding Turkey Run creek, after which it is named. It is tucked back from the main road at the end of a grass pathway and is surrounded by farms.
An aerial view of Old Turkey Run Cemetery as of 2022. It doesn't appear to have changed much in the past 200 years, aside from a paved highway.
The cemetery was established in 1828 along with the Turkey Run Christian church. The church no longer exists on the site but was moved to a new location in 1852 and finally to a red brick building in 1904. After the move it was renamed Pleasant Hill Christian Church. Today it is the Pleasant Hill United Church of Christ. A stone marker is the only evidence of its existence that remains at the original location.
The entrance gate at Old Turkey Run Cemetery.
A stone marker on the site of the original church where the Tracy's worshipped.
In the fall of 1892, a group of local preservationist minded citizens came together to form a board of trustees and raise money for the construction of an iron fence around the site. A 1893 article in the nearby Crawfordsville Weekly Journal, while calling attention to this group and the general neglect of the cemetery, reported that when the first group of pioneers met to worship on the location the land was owned by Vezey Tracy. Vezey purchased the tract from the government, which means that he obtained a patent through the Federal Land Grant program. He subsequently sold the farm, but not the burial plot. The initial meetings took place in a school house, which then gave way to the log church.
It is clear that the first Turkey Run church was, by the time Jesse died in 1845, likely the center of his and his family’s religious life in Indiana. We may be able to learn more about Jesse by looking for any potential family members who are also buried in that same cemetery. As it turns out, there are four other Tracys buried in Old Turkey Run: Alfred Tracy (1834), John H Tracy (1819 - 1839), Mary E. Tracy (1834 - 1851), and Rachel Tracy (1819 - 1845).
Let's take a look.
Alfred Tracy, sadly, died in infancy in 1834 at the age of 4 months. He was the son of “V & R” Tracy (the “V” likely being the aforementioned Vezey Tracy).
The gravestones of both Mary and Rachel indicate that they married into the Tracy family. Mary is the “w/o Jonathan Tracy” (wife of Jonathan Tracy) and Rachel is the “wife of V. Tracy” (and therefore the mother of poor Alfred). Neither were the spouses of Jesse.
That leaves John H. He was born in 1819 when Jesse was about 24 years old so he is too young to be a brother - but he could be a son. The gravestone says “Son of J & N Tracy”, so this may in fact be a son of Jesse.
John H. Son of J & N Tracy
And that is all that we find in the Turkey Run Cemetery. No leads as to who Jesse’s parents were, but he may have had a son named John and a wife “N. Tracy”. If Jesse was born in Kentucky and migrated to Indiana as an adult in search of new land to farm, then his parents may have remained in Kentucky.
That seems to be what happened.
Vezey Tracy obtained a patent for 80 acres of land that sits on or about the Turkey Run Cemetery in 1827, the year before the cemetery was established. This was in addition to two other patents obtained in 1826 for adjacent property, for a total of 240 acres. A search of the General Land Office Records for Montgomery County, Indiana, reveals, in addition to Vezey, land patents purchased by three additional Tracy’s: Bazzle (1827, 1832), John (1828), and Jesse (1829, 1835). With the exception of Bazzle, most of the land is all adjacent to one another.
Original land purchases of Jesse, Vezey, and John Tracy. Vezey appears to be, at least initially, the most prosperous. The red square is the approximate location of the Old Turkey Run Cemetery at the northern edge of the Vezey Tracy property.
So four Tracys all migrated to Montgomery County, Indiana, between 1826 and 1829, purchased land, and established farms. Were they all brothers?
Fortunately, we can glean a few more facts about Jesse Tracy from a short biography of his son, Joab, published in 1885 in the book “Portrait and biographical album of Henry County Illinois.” Here we learn that Jesse Tracy, a native of Kentucky, came from a family of four sons and four daughters, and that Jesse lost his father when he was “quite young.” The four sons here could be Jesse, John, Bazzle, and Vezey.
Jesse married Nancy Hayden (here is the N. Tracy) in Kentucky, after which they moved to Ohio and then on to Montgomery County, Indiana. They had six children. According to the book, Jesse and Nancy Hayden were married in Mason County, Kentucky. Kentucky marriage records turn up the marriage of Jesse Tracy to Nancy Hayden on Jan 18, 1819, in Lewis County, Kentucky. Lewis County was formerly a part of Mason County, so it’s likely that we will find Jesse’s parents somewhere in that vicinity.
But we still need some names.
But we still need some names.
Read the next tale, 2 - Origins in Maryland
Sources
- Old Turkey Run Cemetery - https://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WMMMKA_Old_Turkey_Run_Cemetery_Wingate_IN
- Pleasant Hill Christian Church - https://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WMFWZH_1904_Pleasant_Hill_Christian_Church_Wingate_IN
- “Turkey Run Cemetery.” Crawfordsville Weekly Journal, 15 Apr 1893. Page 5.
- Portrait and Biographical Album of Henry County, Illinois: Containing Full-Page Portraits and Biographical Sketches of Prominent and Representative Citizens of the County, Together with Portraits and Biographies of All the Governors of Illinois, and of the Presidents of the United States; Also Containing a History of the County, from Its Earliest Settlement to the Present Time. Biographical Publishing Company, 1885. Page 221.
- Alfred Tracy - https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/115625671/alfred-tracy
- John H Tracy - https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/94415221/john-h-tracy
- Mary E Tracy - https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/94415043/mary-e-tracy
- Rachel Tracy - https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/42245356/rachel-tracy
- Jesse Tracy - https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/37609231/jesse-tracy
- Federal Land Grant Records for Montgomery County, Indiana - https://glorecords.blm.gov/results/default.aspx?searchCriteria=type=patent|st=IN|cty=107|ln=Tracy|sp=true|sw=true|sadv=false
- Map of the original land owners of Montgomery County, Indiana - Montgomery County Magazine, April 1979. Pages 16-17.
- Marriage of Jesse Tracy and Nancy Hayden - Kentucky Marriages, 1802-1850, Ancestry.com
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