Do you have items tucked away in your files that lack solid source citations? I certainly do—and this document from my Crawford Kentucky file is one of them.
Based on my notation “KY Archives,” I believe I obtained this record at the Kentucky Archives. However, beyond that brief note, the details are frustratingly sparse. While the document clearly relates to a court case, I have not yet been able to locate the original record using FamilySearch’s full-text search. For now, it remains a source without a fully identified citation.
The mystery doesn’t end there. I also cannot say with certainty who the individuals in the document are. The surname “Crofford” is almost certainly “Crawford,” and “McPeters” may well be a variation of “McPheeters.” If those assumptions are correct, both men could trace their roots back to families in Augusta County, Virginia—a connection worth further investigation.
For now, this record sits in that all-too-familiar category: intriguing, suggestive, and just out of reach.
While many questions remain, the document itself offers a few clues. Here is the transcription:
KY Archives Crawford KY 055
Case # 63 Joseph McPeters vs William Crawford
Oct 1798The commonwealth of KY to the sheriff of Garrard Co — Commanded to take William Crawford if he be found within your bailiwick and him safely keep so that you have his body before the justices of our court of quarter sessions at the court house the 1st Mon in May next to answer Joseph McPeters of a plea of Detinue damage one hundred pounds
order dated 27 March 1798
Even without a complete citation, this record adds another piece to the Crawford puzzle. A William Crawford involved in a Garrard County court case in 1798 may connect to the broader network of Crawford, McPheeters, and associated families I’ve been tracing. This is exactly the kind of clue that fuels FAN club research—one small record that may eventually link multiple families together.