The Kee (Key) family of Pocahontas County traces its lineage to George Kee (1772–1863), a native of County Tyrone, Ireland, who arrived in America around 1780. After migrating through Pennsylvania and Pendleton County, he settled in the Little Levels and married Esther "Hetty" Buckley, establishing the family seat south of Marlinton at what became known as Kee Flats near Buckeye (where the original 1830s Kee log cabin stood, later preserved by the Pocahontas County Historical Society).
Key Family Lines & Intermarriages
- Buckley Connection
- Esther "Hetty" Buckley (daughter of pioneer settler Joshua Buckley and Hannah Collins) married George Kee. The Buckley settlement along the Greenbrier River opposite Swago Creek firmly anchored the Kee family into early regional frontier history.
- McNeill (McNeil) Connection
- Aaron Kee (son of John Kee and grandson of George Kee) married Mildred "Milly" McNeill, daughter of Jonathan McNeill and Angelina Adkisson of Buckeye. They maintained and farmed the original Kee family homestead.
- Poage Connection
- Hester Kee (daughter of John Kee and Hester Gwin) married into the prominent Poage family of the Levels/Edray district twice: first to William Poage, and following his death, to Henry Poage.
- McKeever Connection
- Alcinda Kee (daughter of John Kee) married George McKeever, connecting the family directly with the McKeever settlements along Swago Creek.
- Gwin Connection
- John Kee (son of George Kee), a noted wagonmaker and farmer, married Hester Gwin, daughter of James Gwin, Sr. (of Highland County) and niece of Rebecca Stephenson/Gwin.
- Duncan Connection
- Andrew Kee (son of George Kee), an expert marksman and hunter, married Mary Duncan (sister of Henry Duncan, originally from the Collierstown area of Rockbridge County, Virginia). Their homestead near Buckeye later passed to William A. Duncan.
- McCollam, Palser, & Moore Connections
- William Kee (son of George Kee) married Ruth McCollam, settling on land later associated with Capt. J. R. Apperson.
- Their son, Confederate veteran George M. Kee, married first Mary J. Palser and second Rachel Moore.
- Stevenson Connection
- Joshua Kee (eldest son of George Kee), renowned locally as a master gunsmith, stonemason, and woodworker, married Rebecca Stevenson of Bath County and settled along the Greenbrier River just below Marlinton.
Primary Inter-Family Summary
| Family Line | Primary Alliance / Marriage | Geographic Footprint |
|---|---|---|
| Buckley | George Kee \leftrightarrow Esther "Hetty" Buckley | Greenbrier River / Swago |
| McNeill | Aaron Kee \leftrightarrow Milly McNeill | Buckeye / Kee Flats |
| Poage | Hester Kee \leftrightarrow William Poage / Henry Poage | Edray District / Levels |
| McKeever | Alcinda Kee \leftrightarrow George McKeever | Swago Creek |
| Gwin | John Kee \leftrightarrow Hester Gwin | Kee Flats / Buckeye |
| Duncan | Andrew Kee \leftrightarrow Mary Duncan | Buckeye / Stony Creek |
| McCollam | William Kee \leftrightarrow Ruth McCollam | Buckeye / Marlinton |
| Moore / Palser | George M. Kee \leftrightarrow (1) Mary Palser / (2) Rachel Moore | Buckeye area |
| Stevenson | Joshua Kee \leftrightarrow Rebecca Stevenson | Lower Marlinton / Greenbrier |
Joshua Buckley Kee (1807–1885) was the eldest son of pioneer George Kee and Esther Buckley. County records and local histories—particularly Rev. William T. Price’s Historical Sketches of Pocahontas County (1901)—highlight his craftsmanship, homestead, and family line.
Mechanical Skill & Gunsmithing Trade
- Master Craftsman: Joshua Kee was widely recognized across the region for his versatile mechanical aptitude, working proficiently in stone, iron, and wood in addition to managing his farm.
- Gunsmithing Specialty: His primary craft was gunsmithing, an essential trade in 19th-century Pocahontas County when hunting and frontier defense remained central to daily sustenance and commerce.
- Community Role: Local historical accounts note that his firearms craftsmanship was considered exceptional and provided a vital service to hunters and settlers throughout the Greenbrier Valley.
Homestead & Estate
- Location: Rather than remaining on the main Kee Flats plateau where his father settled, Joshua established his own farm and shop on the east bank of the Greenbrier River, approximately one mile below Marlinton (between Marlinton and Buckeye).
- Operations: His property functioned as both a productive river-bottom farm and a specialized metal and woodworking shop where he forged rifle components, repaired agricultural tools, and handled specialized local metalwork.
Marriage & Descendants
- Marriage: Joshua married Rebecca Stevenson of Bath County, Virginia.
- Children:
- Esther Kee
- Rachel Kee
- Lineage Note: Tragically, both daughters passed away around the time they reached adulthood, leaving no surviving direct descendants from Joshua B. Kee's immediate branch.
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The Armstrong family of Pocahontas County and the surrounding Allegheny Highlands traces its lineage to the Scotch-Irish migrations of the early to mid-18th century. Originating in the Scottish Borderlands and Ulster (Northern Ireland), the family entered North America primarily through ports in Pennsylvania and Delaware before following the Great Wagon Road south into the Shenandoah Valley (Old Augusta County, Virginia) and westward over the Allegheny crest.
Pioneer Settlement & Regional Lineage
As frontier settlements expanded across Augusta, Bath, and Greenbrier counties in the mid-1700s, several Armstrong branches established homesteads along the headwaters of the Jackson River, Bullpasture, Cowpasture, and the Upper Greenbrier River basin:
- Archibald Armstrong & Early Land Claims: By the 1750s and 1760s, Archibald Armstrong acquired frontier tracts on the Jackson River and Muddy Run, near the boundaries of present-day Bath, Highland, and Pocahontas counties. These early tracts adjoined settlements of the pioneer Ewing, Moore, and Jamison families.
- Robert, Thomas, and William Armstrong Lines: Parallel branches established footholds along the Jackson River and the Bullpasture Valley (Highland County), with branches gradually moving west into Pocahontas County across the gaps of Allegheny Mountain and Back Creek Mountain.
- Pocahontas County Settlements: Over the late 18th and 19th centuries, Armstrong descendants settled throughout Pocahontas County, notably in the Huntersville, Knapp's Creek, Buckeye, Edray, Marlinton, and Little Levels districts.
Key Family Alliances & Marriages
Genealogical records in Pocahontas, Bath, and Highland show extensive intermarriages between the Armstrongs and established pioneer clans:
| Intermarried Family | Regional Connection & Geographic Footprint |
|---|---|
| Ewing | Jackson River, Muddy Run, and Swago Creek |
| Moore / McCarty | Knapp's Creek, Marlinton, and Laurel Run |
| Burgess / Kinnison | Levels, Stamping Creek, and Hillsboro vicinity |
| Sharp / Siron / Pyles | Edray, Frost, and the Highland/Pocahontas border ridges |
| Taylor / Beale / Clark | Buckeye, Central Greenbrier Valley, and Droop Mountain |
Migrations & Destinations
Like many families living in the narrow mountain valleys where arable bottomland became scarce by the 1820s–1850s, successive generations of Armstrongs took part in key outward migration waves:
- Adjacent Central West Virginia Counties: Branches moved westward deeper into the central plateau of West Virginia, particularly settling along the Elk and Little Kanawha watersheds in Braxton, Lewis, Randolph, Webster, Nicholas, and Kanawha counties.
- The Northwest Territory / Ohio Valley: Between 1800 and 1840, several sons and daughters joined the broad migration trail through the Kanawha Valley to southern and central Ohio (notably Gallia, Ross, Pickaway, and Scioto counties) and into Indiana.
- Trans-Mississippi West: By the mid-19th century and the post–Civil War period, Armstrong lines relocated further west to farm the prairie lands of Illinois, Iowa, and Missouri, while others moved into the Pacific Northwest timber and rail settlements.
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