Sent:                                           Saturday, April 26, 2025 9:41 PM

To:                                               Jason Duncan

Cc:                                               Jason Duncan

Subject:                                     History news and events - June 1, 2025 - Jason Duncan

 

News and Upcoming Events – June 1, 2025

Jason Duncan

jason@webjmd.com

webjmd.com for previous newsletter updates

 

Click the embedded links for more information.

 

Article:  The Imprisonment of Richard Ransome Gwyn

In 1788, Richard Ransome Gwyn was a 22-year-old Wilkes County constable when he was attacked and imprisoned for forty hours. At the March 1789 session of Morgan District Superior Court, the jurors presented that Enoch Osborne and James Roark, both planters of Montgomery County, Virginia, and Charles Copeland of Wilkes County and perhaps others assaulted Gwyn 'with swords drawn and guns cocked'. Many witnesses were called including Adnirum Allen, Jesse Franklin, Jonathan Stamper, and Benjamin Cleveland.

 

 

NC Trail Days in Elkin

Elkin and Jonesville’s NC Trail Days is being held from June 5-8 this year with a large variety of hiking, river excursions, exhibitors, and music.  .  See the full schedule.  There will be several guided hikes in the area, and I am leading two history hikes at Stone Mountain, both at 9am.

  • Stone Mountain Historical Gravesites Hike:  An easy hike to two cemeteries will be on Thursday, June 5.  We’ll see the Garden Creek Cemetery and the Holbrook Family Cemetery.  We will meet at the Horse Trailer Parking Lot at 9am.
  • Stone Mountain History Hike:  A more challenging hike to the Richard Sidden home and cemetery will be on Sunday, June 8.  We might also get to see the home of his brother William Sidden.  We will meet at Garden Creeek Church at 9am.

 

 

New Books Coming Soon...

  • If all goes according to plan, I’ll have a new book to present later this month on early Wilkes County court records! 
  • I have also worked on a new book for the Wilkes Heritage Museum that will be announced in July!

 

 

Links

Wilkes Tax List Books

Wilkes Land Grants Map

History Videos – last year I made several short videos about local history stories

 

 

Email List...

Do you know someone else who would like to get this monthly (or so) newsletter?  If they send me an email, I’ll add them to the list!  Feel free to forward this to others who might like getting this information.

 

Check out this and previous newsletters on my website.

 

Jason Duncan