The RUST Family

in

Kanawha

     We will start with Samuel Rust, the father of our original Kanawha County settler's. He was born around 1748 in Westmoreland County, Virginia and he died around 1809 in Fauquier County, Virginia. He married Mary Lee Bailey around 1769. Her name is documented in a book called "A History of the Pioneer Families of Missouri: with Numerous Sketches" which was published in 1876.  Inside is a biography on Thomas Hensley, who married Harriet Rust, a daughter of Samuel and Mary. It is important to note that both Thomas and Harriet were still living when the book was written and obviously supplied the information to the biographer themselves.

     The dates for Samuel's birth, marriage and death are calculated as such. Samuel was the eldest son of John Rust and his heir-at-law. He had only four whole siblings. He had younger brother Benjamin who was born about 1751, who was the older brother of John Rust born about 1754, who was the older brother of Vincent who was born about 1757. He also had a sister named Hannah Boley who was born about 1746. Samuel's oldest son, John, was a taxable male over the age of 16 in 1787.  This implies that John, Samuel's heir-at-law, was likely born around 1770. The chancery records of Fauquier, Virginia show a final exchange on a suit between him and a certain Daniel Floweree in September of 1809 and his son John Rust became his legal representative in October of 1811 because he was deceased. He does not appear in the 1810 census.

     As you can see, contrary to popular belief, he did not move to Kanawha County, nor is he buried in the family cemetery here. He died before a single Rust ever came to the Kanawha Valley. Although he inherited a substantial estate from his father, it seems that he died with very little. He was described as "insolvent" by his half-brother Capt. Peter Rust of Frederick, Virginia in an 1803 chancery suit. He supposedly drank heavily the last seven years of his life which likely lead to his death.

     There is a comprehensive list of his children among those same chancery records. Their names are given as; John Rust, Sarah McClanahan, James Bailey Rust, Hannah Torbert, Elizabeth Bailey Massie, Benjamin Rust, Samuel Rust, Lucinda Rust, Agnes Taylor, Harriet Rust, and Mary Rust. This is a list from 1816, so there are still a few unmarried children at that time. There are also a couple of deeds that were generously supplied to me by Pam Pearson that also list all of the children. 

This indenture made this 22 day of October in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred eighty three Between Samuel Rust of the county of Fauquier of the one part & John Rust, James Rust, Benjamin Rust, Sarah Rust, Hannah Rust, Elizabeth Rust of the other part Witness for in consideration of the love, good will, & natural affection which the said Samuel Rust has for and bears toward the said John Rust, James Rust, Benjamin Rust, Sarah Rust, Hannah Rust & Elizabeth Rust hath granted, given & confirmed & by these presents doth grant, give & confirm two hundred acres of land on Goose Creek, five slaves viz; George, Lewis, Mary, & Alice, three beds, five horses, & four head of black cattle to have and to hold the lands hereby conveyed & all & singular other the appurtenances whatsoever to the only proper use & behoof of them the said John Rust, James Rust, Benjamin Rust, Sarah Rust, Hannah Rust, Elizabeth Rust, & their heirs, executors, administrators, & assigns forever & also to & to hold the slaves, furniture, horses, & cattle before as by these presents mentioned & hereby intended to be conveyed, which land, tenements, slaves before mentioned, furniture, horses & cattle as to be held by this said John Rust, James Rust, Benjamin Rust, Sarah Rust, Hannah Rust, & Elizabeth Rust, their heirs, executors, administrators, & assigns forever without the interruption of him the said Samuel Rust his heirs or of any person or persons whatsoever. In Witness whereof the said Samuel Rust hath hereunto set his hands and affixed his seal this day & year first above written. Sealed & Delivered in presence of John Moffatt, Thomas Fitzhugh, John Williamson, William Cooke, Joshua Kinnard, Matthew Rust, James Kinnard

Samuel Rust

This indenture, made this third day of June in the year of our Lord 1805 Between John Rust and Molly his wife, James Rust, Benjamin Rust, Gerrard McClanahan and Sarah his wife, Hannah Rust, & Elizabeth Rust of the county of Fauquier of the one part and Samuel Rust, Agnes Rust, Lucinda Rust, Molly Rust & Harriet Rust of the other part – Witness that for in consideration of the love, good will, and natural affection which the said John Rust and Molly his wife, James Rust, Benjamin Rust, Gerrard McClanahan and Sarah his wife, Hannah Rust, Elizabeth Rust, has for and being towards the said Samuel Rust, Agnes Rust, Lucinda Rust, Molly Rust, and Harriet Rust, hath granted, given, and confirmed and by these presents doth grant, give, & confirm unto each one of these an equal proportion with us of two hundred acres of land on Goose Creek, seven slaves, viz; Lewis, Lewis, Harry, George, Mary, Alice, & Charlotte, three beds,  & five horses, four heads of black cattle; to have and to hold the land here conveyed and singular other appurtenances, whatsoever, to the only use and behoof of the said Samuel Rust, Agnes Rust, Lucinda Rust, Molly Rust, & Harriet Rust, their heirs, executors, & administrators and assigns forever. In Witness whereof the said John Rust & Molly his wife, James Rust, Benjamin Rust, Gerrard McClanahan & Sarah his wife, Hannah Rust, & Elizabeth Rust have here unto set their hands and affixed their seals, the day and year first above written. Signed, Sealed, & delivered in presence of us; Jacob Braner, William Roach, Samuel Rust, Phillip Woolf, Vincent Rector

John Rust, Molly Rust, James Rust, Benjamin Rust, Gerrard McClanahan, Sarah McClanahan, Hannah Rust, Elizabeth Rust

     On May 6, 1799 Capt. Benjamin Rust bought 1500A of land from John Moffett. This land was part of the Fry Survey on the Kanawha and Pocatalico Rivers.  This land lies within tract #1 in the photo below. Around the same time he purchased from Aaron Grigsby part of lot #8. He did not go to Kanawha and settle it himself, instead he rented the land out to other settlers.

   

     The Fry Survey ended up in chancery, it had been sold by more than one person. Sometimes the owners themselves sold the same tract more than once. Several people were collecting rent off the Fry Survey claiming ownership. The Rust's were forced to settle the land themselves to lay claim. Capt. Benjamin Rust sent his nephews James Bailey Rust and Benjamin Rust to the lands in Kanawha to act on his behalf. Either he or his children sold the tract to James Bailey Rust for $5000 to be paid for in yearly allotments.

  The Rust family finally arrived in Kanawha County after November 1816.  They may have come with their mother Mary Bailey Rust but I can't find an actual record of her in Kanawha to substantiate this. This information has been copied from the book "Rust of Virginia" by Ellsworth Marshall Rust. This book is a wonderful resource but it was compiled from several people who submitted their genealogical data to him and he just published it. He apparently tried to fact check as much as possible. I have found errors just like any work of genealogy but the errors don't diminish the truly awesome amount of work done. My only annoyance is that most of the submitted lines do not site sources to help verify the information.  

     The children of Samuel Rust and Mary Lee Bailey are as follows:

1. John Rust born 1770 Fauquier County, Virginia. He married Mary 'Mollie' McClanahan on December 28, 1796 in Fauquier County, Virginia. She was born about 1778. They lived in Fauquier County, Virginia until 1821, they lived in Kanawha County from 1821 to 1825, then they moved to Bullitt County, Kentucky where John appears in the tax records from 1826 to 1833. He may have moved to Louisville in Jefferson County, Kentucky after that date but I have not found him in the records there. It would be hard to differentiate him from the other John Rust, who was from Massachusetts and operated a Hardware Store there. His children were taken from the book "Rust of Virginia". I can find very little in the records to prove the connections.  John Rust died before 1840 and his wife Mary died after 1850. They traveled to Kentucky with Thomas and Harriet (Rust) Hensley in 1825. The children listed in the book were:

A. Sarah Margaret Rust b. 1798 d. June 23, 1890 in Kanawha. She married Pleasant Thomas on December 26, 1822 in Kanawha.She had a large family of which I will talk more about later.

B. Samuel Young Rust b. c1800 married Sarah Wilson on May 15, 1828 in Bullitt County, Kentucky. They had at least two children possibly three. Caroline E. Rust b.1829 and Benjamin Franklin Rust b 1834. Samuel is in the Bullitt County tax records until 1834. Samuel's widow Sarah was living with her Wilson family in 1850 and 1870 Louisiana. She appears to be staying with the Rust's in 1860, so perhaps she was on a visit during the census.

C. James Bailey Rust b.1802 and died April 13, 1849 in Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky. He married Sarah Forqueren December 12, 1839. They had at least two sons: George Jasper Rust b. 1846 d. 1932 and left a large family and James Rust b. 1849 and died in infancy. Sarah moved back to Putnam County, WV after his death. She married John Craig on September 25, 1853.

D. Amanda Rust b. c1804. I can find no other information on her. The Amanda Rust's that other researchers attach to this family are incorrect as they belong to the Hardin County, Kentucky Rust's. They were also born too late and in Kentucky. According to the early census records all the daughters of John Rust were born before 1815 and they would have all been born in Fauquier County. I hope one day to find more and update it accordingly.

E. Harriet Rust b. 1806 d. 1903 Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky. She married Richard St. John on August 30, 1849 in Louisville. They had no children. She is buried in Cave Hill Cemetery.

F. Thomas Rust b. c1809. May have been the Thomas Rust who moved to Scott County, Kentucky before 1840 and married Elizabeth Warnock. He appears in the local newspapers of Louisville as late as 1851 for mail left at the post office. It's just as possible that like many of his siblings he died unmarried at that time since his mail was piling up and there was an odd reference about someone taking up his account. 

G. Mary Ann Rust b. 1810 d. 1898 Fresno, California. She married John Birkhead on December 2, 1830 in Bullitt County, Kentucky. She had a large family and moved first to Arkansas, then to Colorado, then to California. This line may have been the source of the research from the book.

H. Nancy Rust b. c1813. I can find no other information on her. Likely she died unmarried before 1850.

I. John S. Rust b. c1818 d. 1846 Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky. He married March 3, 1840 to Elizabeth Fleming, she may have been the widow of John Fleming and her maiden name may have been Antle. In 1840 she and John are living in the 1840 census and there appears to be two young children in the household. They had at least one daughter of their own. Mary 'Mollie' Rust, who died unmarried in 1919.

J. Benjamin Singleton Rust b. 1822 died January 15, 1862 in Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky. He never married and worked as a watchman or policeman. He was shot and killed while trying to make an arrest. He is buried in Cave Hill Cemetery. His obituary alludes to him having only two living sisters.

2. Sarah Rust b. 1772 married April 1, 1796 Fauquier County, Virginia to Gerrard McClanahan. She moved to Kanawha County with her siblings and it appears she died there. She is in the 1850 Kanawha County census.

A. John R. McClanahan 1800-1887 Married Elizabeth Maupin November 6, 1828 in Mason, WV.  He died in Kanawha

B. Benjamin McClanahan 1803-1830 Married Nancy Samuels January 5, 1828 Kanawha. He died in Kanawha

C. William Smith McClanahan 1805-1877 He married twice. First to Virginia Evelsizer c1844 and then to Arenia E. C. Mooney October 23, 1861. He died in Kanawha.

D. George Fleet McClanahan 1808  He married four times. First to Elizabeth Melton on June 13, 1833 and then to Alice 'Alsy' Jopling on December 14, 1845. Alsy was the daughter of Thomas Jopling and Patience Bailey. He married third Barbary Shrown. He married fourth Elizabeth Hawkins. He died in Oregon County, Missouri

3. James Bailey Rust b. 1775 d. 1849 He moved to Kanawha after November 1816. He was the first school teacher in Poca in 1817 and according to Laidley's History his school was in a small cabin about eleven miles up from the mouth of the Pocatalico. He married Mary Purcell January 1, 1807. There is a biography on his son Samuel by Jim Comstock that gives us the name of his wife.

A. Samuel Bailey Rust 1808-1887 He married his first cousin Elizabeth Rust d/o Benjamin Rust and Jane Thomas on May 20, 1836.

B. John James Rust 1811- No other info on him. He likely died unmarried. Last record I found him in was the 1850 Kanawha census with his siblings.

C. Rebecca Redmond Rust 1814-1843 Married Robert W. Wilson. She died c1843. According to a bio on her son Charles Bailey Rust b. 1839, she died when he was 4 years old.

D. Benjamin Rust 1816- He married Mahala Forqueren on November 30, 1839 Kanawha County. They had one daughter named Mary b. c1839 who is living in the family home with her extended family in 1850. I can find nothing more on him after 1850.
Mary married William Perry Emschwiller in 1876 and had one son John Bailey Emschwiller.

E. Vincent Redmond Rust 1818-1894 He married his cousin Matilda Ann Hicks daughter of Stephen Hicks and Emma Rust, and granddaughter of Capt Benjamin Rust and Hannah Bailey. He married second Mary Ann Hansford. He was a teacher. They died in Putnam County, West Virginia.

F. William Tobias Rust 1820- Married his cousin Emma Hicks, daughter of Stephen Hicks and Emma Rust. 

G. Richard Lawson Rust 1822-1872 Married his cousin Felicia Thomas d/o Pleasant Thomas & Sarah Margaret Rust on January 5, 1855 in Kanawha.

H. Mary Lawson Rust 1824-1850 died unmarried

I. George Bailey Rust 1826-1881 Married his cousin Mary V. Hicks d/o Stephen Hicks and Emma Rust on May 14, 1847 in Fauquier County, Virginia. Died Kanawha.

J. Thomas Henry Rust 1828- Died in infancy

K. Henry Thomas Rust 1828- Died in infancy

4. Benjamin Rust 1778-1824 He moved to Kanawha after August 1816. He married Jane H. Thomas d/o James Thomas and Elizabeth Roberts in 1817. He built the first sawmill in Poca. 

A. Elizabeth Rust 1818-1881 She married her cousin Samuel Bailey Rust as mentioned above.

5.  Hannah Rust born 1780 Fauquier County and died in Oktibbeha, Mississippi. She married William Torbert on June 1, 1805 Fauquier County. 

A. Thomas Addison Tobert 1811-1884 Married Sarah D. McKinnon

B. William C. Torbert 1819- 

6. Elizabeth Bailey Rust 1781-1865 Married Thomas Massie November 15, 1819 Fauquier County. She died in Warren County Virginia.

A. Thomas Benjamin Massie 1820-1908 He married twice. First to his cousin Catherine Cecelia Hicks d/o Stephen Hicks and Emma Rust. He married second Eliza Foushee.

B. John B. Massie 1823-  died unmarried

7. Samuel Rust 1785- He died unmarried and before 1816. He does not appear in the chancery list of August 1816.

8. Agnes Rust 1788 - Married Matthew C. Taylor on May 22, 1815 in Fauquier County, Virginia. She and her husband moved to Kanawha with her siblings c1817. She and her husband traveled with several of her siblings and their families in 1825 to Kentucky then Missouri. They died in either Cape Girardeau or St Louis, Missouri. It looks like they had at least six children.

A. Lucinda Elizabeth Taylor 1812-1844 She married May 1, 1828 George Steptoe Edmonds. She and her husband were neighbors of Matthew and Agnes in 1830. Thomas Hensley, husband of Harriet Rust was the witness at her marriage. This seems to point to her being a child of Matthew and Agnes. She would have been born prior to their marriage. Many researchers have adjusted her birth to 1816 to fit but that would make her 11 or 12 years old when she married which is highly unlikely.

B. John H. Taylor 1820- Married  Mary Ann Elizabeth Clark on September 10, 1839 Cape Girardeau, Missouri. They divorced in 1854.

C. Matthew C. Taylor b. 1823probably died unmarried St. Louis, Missouri

D. Walter Scott Taylor b. 1826 died unmarried moved to Jackson, Arkansas

E. Susanna M. Taylor b. 1829 married Lorenzo Davis in 1851 St. Louis. Had a large family and moved to Jackson, Arkansas.

9.  Lucinda Rust b c1790 and moved to Kanawha County with her siblings and married Isham Bailey Jr in 1817 Kanawha County. 

A.  Bushrod Bailey 1820-1890 Married his cousin Elizabeth McClanahan January 3, 1850 Kanawha County.

B. Alfred Bailey 1821-1882 Married Ann Elizabeth Agee June 14, 1853 Kanawha County.

(The Children below seem to be a product of a second marriage for Isham Bailey, possibly to a Frances Smith)

C. Fountain Smith Bailey 1829-1883 Married first Susanna Wright December 15, 1852 Putnam County, West Virginia. Married second  Nancy Jane Mottesheard August 30, 1857 Benton County, Missouri. He died in Holt County, Missouri.

D. Terisha Elizabeth Bailey 1831-1869 Married her cousin Isham Jopling on January 31, 1858 Benton County, Missouri. She died in Benton County, Missouri.

E. Saveree Bailey b c1832. Went to Missouri with his siblings and may have died there.

10. Mary Rust 1794-1852 Moved to Kanawha County with her siblings. Married Micajah Daniel on November 2, 1819 in Kanawha County. She moved to St Louis, then Cape Girardeau where she died.

A. Harriet Daniel 1822- Married John Wesley Hancock August 11, 1842 Cape Girardeau, Missouri.

B. Louisa E. Daniel 1825 - Married a cousin Fleming Hensley on October 21, 1852 St Louis Mo.

C. Robert Daniel 1829-

D. William Daniel 1830-

E. James H. Daniel 1833-

11.  Harriet Rust 1796-1876 Moved to Kanawha with her siblings. Married February 19, 1818 in Kanawha to Thomas A. Hensley. Moved to Kentucky in 1825 then to St Louis Missouri then to Montgomery County, Missouri where they died. 

A. Mary E. Hensley 1818-1901 Married September 24, 1834 St Louis, Missouri to James Harvey Berry. Bellefontaine Cemetery.

B. Albert Bailey Hensley 1820-1905 Married St Louis, Missouri to Catherine Denny

C. Lucinda Pauline Hensley 1822-1879 Married December 31, 1842 St Louis, Missouri to Perry Smirls

D. Thomas Pitman Hensley 1824-1890 Married January 20, 1859 Dorcas Ann White. Died Montgomery, Missouri.

E. Benjamin Franklin Hensley 1826-1910 Married March 27, 1867 Montgomery County, Missouri to Elizabeth Jane Clare

F. Emily Hensley 1828-1913 Married December 5, 1848 St Louis, Missouri to Robert J. Gilliland

G. William S. Hensley 1830-1902 Married Susan Clarkson

H. Bushrod Rust Hensley 1835-1917 Married Irene Bethel

I. Amanda Hensley 1837-1899 Married W. C. Archer