Reuben Daniel was a son of Jacob and Mary Daniel, likely a grandson of Elijah and Mary Hawes Daniel and a great grandson of William Daniel Sr. 1680-1765 and FNU Williams. County records in Caroline County are incomplete and probate records there are lost, so much must be inferred from the remaining records. The names of Reuben's parents and birthplace are given in the record of his death in 1857 in Franklin County, KY.



    Elijah Daniel was born before 1713. He married Mary Hawes, daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth Spencer Hawes. Elijah made a deed in Orange County in 1743, "Elijah Daniel of Caroline Co. and Mary, his wife, and Edward Spencer and James Coleman, Gentlemen, Church Wardens of the Parish of St. Thomas, 200 acres purchased by the vestry, also 307 acres for the use of the Parish, for 20,000 lbs. of tobacco... deed to the above men, Churchwardens aforesaid. Signed Elijah Daniels". Orange County was created from Spotsylvania County in 1734, so it is possible that Elijah was in that county prior to his appearance in Orange County records. Elijah Daniel was a Constable in Orange County in 1739. Elijah is mentioned in several court and deed records in Caroline County, Culpeper and Orange Counties, VA. Elijah moved from Caroline County to Orange County about 1736, was in Culpeper County by 1751, but later returned to Caroline County and died there.
    Elijah is mentioned in a letter written in 1839 by Hawes Coleman, a nephew of his wife, “Mary married Elijah Daniel, who proved to be a drunken man, and had many children and brought them all to abject poverty”. It is true that Elijah was involved in numerous suits in Caroline County, but he appears to have had a reasonable amount of property at the time of his death, so the accuracy of Hawes Coleman’s account is not certain, but what can be taken from this narrative is that it is likely that Elijah and Mary had several children. Elijah Daniel died in Caroline County in 1784 when his will was proved on 14 October and his son, Edmund was appointed executor of his estate.
    Edmund appointed his son, Reuben, his attorney in fact to represent him with regard to his brother William's estate in Wilkes County, GA. It is from William’s will, made in 1792 and proved in 1796, which we have a list of Elijah and Mary's sons living when the will was made. Ages and birth order for all of Elijah and Mary’s children are approximate, based on Elijah and Mary’s estimated date of marriage their appearance in records. The brothers of William who were named were Edmund, Jonathan and Samuel Daniel. Jacob Daniel is not mentioned in William's will, but does not appear in any records in Caroline County or Jefferson County, KY after 1790 and appears to have been deceased before William made his will, A Mary Daniel is mentioned in Jefferson County records in 1789, probably Jacob's widow.

     Jacob Daniel is not often mentioned in Caroline County records. There was a suit between Edward Phillips and Jacob Daniel in 1772 for either assault and battery or slander. Tax records there for this period are lost, but Order books show that Jacob "Daniels" was taxed for 5 tithables in 1774. Tithables included slaves, so it should not be assumed that Jacob had a wife and three children at this time. The death record of Jacob's son, Reuben, shown below, indicates he was born in Caroline County in late 1773 or before 23 November 1774 and that his father's name was Jacob and his mother's name was "Mary". On 5 May 1774, Jacob Daniel and Elizabeth, his wife, made Deeds to Robert Wright and William Tinsley. There is a discrepancy in the name of Jacob's wife in the deed of 1774, but it is possible that she was using her middle name at this time, since her mother-in-law, Mary Hawes Daniel, was living then.  The death record could be in error or Mary's full name may have been "Mary Elizabeth", etc. Jacob was probably born about 1750 and fits very nicely into the family of Elijah and Mary Hawes Daniel. It is worth noting that Edmund Daniel, son of Elijah Daniel and likely brother of Jacob Daniel, also named a son Reuben who later appears in records in Spottsylvania County, VA after 1800.
    He was probably the Jacob Daniel who was the Virginia soldier from Caroline County who was paid for service under Lt. Colonel Samuel Hawes in the 6th Virginia Regiment and under Colonel William Russell in the 10th Virginia Regiment. (Virginia Archives Records W. D. 123, 9; 139, 1; 216,1). This is interesting for a couple of reasons, since the wife of Elijah Daniel was Mary Hawes, daughter of Samuel Hawes, and Thomas Daniel, a potential cousin of Jacob, served under William Russell in Lord Dunmore's War, just prior to the Revolutionary War.

    Reuben Daniel was in the 1800 tax list and 1810 census of Jefferson County, KY. Several Daniels and related families relocated to Jefferson County, KY from Caroline County, VA in the 1780s and 1790s, including some of Reuben's Daniel cousins,the Buckners, Sneeds, Blantons, etc. Reuben married Isabelle "Ebby" Kirkpatrick on 19 March 1801 in Jefferson County. She was born in 1778 in Scotland, a daughter of Moses and Mary Johnston Kirkpatrick. Her ancestry is proved by a deed she and Reuben and the other heirs of Moses Kirkpatrick made in Jefferson Co., Ky (Deed Book 10, pp. 347 & 348, Jan. 8, 1814). Sometime after 1810, Reuben and Ebby moved to neighboring Hardin County, KY and Reuben appeared in the 1820-1850 censuses there. Ebby died in 1817 and Reuben married a much younger women, who's name is not known. Reuben had at least two siblings, sisters, Nancy Ann who married William Stewart on 17 October 1793 at Harrod's Creek, Jefferson County, KY and Frances "Fanny" who married Edmund or Edward Conn on 20 March 1799 in Jefferson County.
    Reuben and Ebby had: Frances "Fanny" born 1805, Moses Kirkpatrick Daniel, 2 December 1806 to 18 August 1834 (buried McCormick Cemetery, West Point, Hardin County, KY), Jacob b. 1810 died about 1834, John S. b. 1812, James R. born 1814 died 1848 Hardin County, KY and Richard B. born 1816. Birth dates of most of Reuben and Isabella's sons are estimated from census records. Census records indicate that Reuben and Isabella had at least five sons, but only the line of Richard B. Daniel has been successfully traced, so far. Tax lists of Hardin County, KY 1815-1839 and will records list all of Reuben's known sons. Unfortunately tax lists after 1839 have not yet been digitized. Examination of later tax lists may reveal if Reuben had other sons. A letter from a nephew of Isabella Kirkpatrick notes that Reuben and Isabella had five sons and all lived to manhood, but none had children. This was obviously an incorrect statement since at least three grandchildren of Reuben and Isabella were living in 1850, presumably the children of Richard B. and Angelica Robinson Daniel. NEED TO ADD INFORMATION ABOUT RICHARD AND JOHN'S MARRIAGES.
    Reuben Daniel was living with his son Richard B. Daniel in 1850 in Hardin County, KY. Both Reuben and Richard were apparently widowed at that time. Also in the home were Richard B. Daniel's children Isabella b. 1840, (James) Reuben b. 1841, and Charles b. 1846. Richard B. Daniel died about 1852 and Reuben moved to adjacent Franklin County, KY to live with his daughter Fanny Crutcher, where he died in 1857. Luckily, as noted earlier, he died during the brief time that Kentucky required statewide death records be kept. Reuben Daniel and Fanny Crutcher are buried in the Grassy Creek Church Cemetery in Woodford County, KY, which adjoins Franklin County. Richard B. Daniel's children Belle, (James)Reuben and Charlie Daniel were living in the home of a young couple named Smith (George  Washington "Wash" Smith and spouse Sarah Elizabeth Withers) in the 1860 Meade County, KY census. Each had $1000 in real estate and Belle and (James) Reuben had $550 in cash, probably part of the settlement of their father's or grandfather's estate. Charlie did not have any cash, probably because  he was he was a minor and had not received his share of that part of the estate yet.



    James Reuben Daniel was born about 1842 at West Point, Hardin County, KY and died of dysentery on 1 February 1898 in Jefferson County, KY according to his death record in Jefferson County. He is buried in the Cave Hill Cemetery in Jefferson County. In 1870 James R. (Reuben) and Annie Daniel were living in Garnettsville, Meade County, KY. James Reuben's and his family were living in West Point, KY during the 1880 census. He seems to have gone by James or James R. as an adult, but the death certificate of his daughter, Kate Daniel Mossbarger in Kentucky death records gives his first name as Ruben. He married Anna "Annie" M. Applegate b. ca 1846 in Hardin County, KY about 1869. James Reuben and Anna had; Minnie b. 1870, Jesse B. (son) b. 1872 d. 16 March 1913, Alfred Thomas b. 4 February 1874 West Point, KY d. 2 July 1926 New Albany, IN, John b. 1876, Sam b. 1878 and Kate b. 21 September 1878 West Point, KY d. 2 January 1924 Hardin County. There may have been other children. I have not been able to locate Annie after 1880.
        Another researcher/descendant is also researching this line and posted the query below. I have been able to contact her but she is not in contact with any male Daniel descendants from the line of Jacob and Mary Daniel:

"Seeking ancestry and siblings of FRANCES "FANNY" DANIEL and REUBEN DANIEL. Mother MARY father possibly JACOB; however, only Mary found on Jefferson Co. tax records.
1799 FRANCES married EDMUND "Edward" CONN. 1801 REUBEN married EBBY KIRKPATRICK. Both families later moved or land fell into newly formed HARDIN CO. REUBEN later went with daughter Fanny (Daniel) Stewart Mudd Crutcher to Forks of Elkhorn, Franklin Co. Reuben's 1857 death record shows he born 1773 CAROLINE CO. KY and parents MARY and JACOB DANIEL. After her husband's death, FANNY DANIEL CONN moved to Wayne Co., IL.

Fire destroyed many Caroline Co.,VA records and have been unable to find any data on a Jacob Daniel nor his wife. The other Daniels in Jefferson Co. from the same area of VA. How are they related? Any help appreciated."

    The only son of James Reuben Daniel I have been able to trace, so far is Alfred Thomas Daniel. He married Lillian "Lillie" Mae Harris, b. 10 May 1876 in Covington, Kentucky d. 2 August 1950 in New Albany, on 12 April 1897 at Jeffersonville, Clark County, IN. She was the daughter of Edward and Mary Miller Harris. Thomas Daniel of New Albany, IN was listed as the informant on Lillie's death certificate. They had Jessie L. (dau) b. November 1898 KY, Lilly Alberta b. November 1899 IN, Thomas Alfred b. 29 December 1900 d. 22 September 1969, Harry J. b. 1903 IN, Roy E. b. 1906 IN, William Earl b. 1901 IN d. 1973 and Dorothy M. b. 1916 IN d. 1924. Alfred and family were living in Louisville, KY in 1900 where he was employed at an iron works, in New Albany, IN in 1910 where Alfred worked as puddler in an iron mill, and New Albany in 1920 where Alfred was a puddler in a rolling mill.