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William and Anne Fleming Family papers

 Collection
Identifier: WLU-Coll-0009

Scope and Contents

This collection contains papers created by or related to William and Anne Fleming and several family members on Anne's side, including her parents, Israel and Elizabeth, and her brother, William.

The subjects include Flemings accounts of his trips to Kentucky, his journal of the first Kentucky convention of which he served as chair, letters about business, Kentucky land claims, and family affairs. There are commissions, wills and estate inventories, land surveys and indentures, a manuscript map, and documents related to Indigenous nations. Other documents mention enslaved people, usually those were to be inherited. There is one folder which holds items specific to Kentucky but here are other documents throughout the collection that also have relevance to Kentucky, such as correspondence, land records, and receipts. Daniel Boone's name can be found throughout the collection as he was hired to survey land within what is now Kentucky. Notable signatures within the collection include Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, James Monroe, and Benjamin Harrison. The collection also includes an account book kept by Fleming between 1765-1783. Some accounts are medical in nature. Lastly, the collection holds George Baxter's honorary degree from the University of South Carolina dated circa 1812.

There are transcriptions for correspondence and other items which were done in 2000.

Dates

  • Creation: circa 1754-1833, 2000

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research use.

Conditions Governing Use

The materials from Washington and Lee University Special Collections are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright law. The user assumes full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used should be fully credited with the source. Permission for publication of this material, in part or in full, must be secured with the Head of Special Collections.

Biographical Note

William Fleming was born in Scotland on Feburary 18, 1729. He studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh and served in the British navy. He moved to the colony of Virginia in 1755, landing first in Norfolk before moving to Williamsburg. There, he was commissioned as an ensign to serve under Col. George Washington. He engaged in border warfare. Fleming eventually settled in Staunton where he married Anne Christian on April 9, 1763. He gave up medicine for farming in Botetourt County (now Montgomery) at his estate called Bellmont. From 1777-1779, he represented several districts, including Kentucky, in the Virginia Senate. He took an active part in Western Affairs, twice heading commissions to Kentucky. In his last appearance as a public servant, Fleming represented Botetourt in the state convention which ratified the Federal Constitution. Fleming died on August 5, 1795.

Anne Christian Fleming was born in 1744 in Staunton, Virginia to Israel and Elizabeth Christian. She had two siblings: William and Rosanna. Anne and William Fleming married in 1763. They had two children: Ebenezer and Annie.

Extent

9.5 Linear Feet (four boxes, five oversize folders, one account volume)

1 Reels (1 microfilm reel. Contains index.)

Language of Materials

English

Related Materials

WLU Coll 0003: George A. Baxter family papers

Title
William and Anne Fleming Family papers
Status
Completed
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
Undetermined
Script of description
Code for undetermined script

Repository Details

Part of the Washington and Lee University, University Library Special Collections and Archives Repository

Contact:
204 W. Washington St.
Lexington VA 24450 USA