(This page serves as a placeholder for my Keisler/Kesler research - it is a work in progress.)
My Kesler ancestors that settled in Franklin County Georgia in the 1820s were German descendants of the Dutch Fork (Deutsche fork) settlement of South Carolina. The correct German spelling is likely Keisler.
I have traced our Keslers back to William Henry Kesler who was from VA or PA. It is not known when he was born nor an exact date of his death in Newberry District, SC. We have records for several Henry Keslers that participated in the American Revolution - they might be the same man. One record is from 1776 for a Henry Kesler from Philadelphia, PA who was in the 2nd Pennsylvania Regiment. The other record is from 1782 where a Henry Kesler was noted at Fort Chiswell in western VA. We have another document for a Captain Henry Kessler (4th Co., 5th Battalion) for 1780-1783 from Codorus Township in PA. In his 1803 Will, Henry notes "Bounty Land". Typically, bounty land was only awarded to soldiers and this may have been land awarded to him for his service during the American Revolution.
The "Dutchfork" region of SC was made up of mostly Palatine Germans but likely there were Swiss and French settlers as well as transplanted Americans of German descent from PA and VA. There were also Scots-Irish immigrants. These immigrants began settling here as early as 1744. Note that there is another German Palatine settlement in SC that began about 1767 called Londonborough in present day McCormick County. I have paternal German ancestors from that region that also wound up in NE Georgia.
Per the 1790 census for Newberry District, SC, one will find Henry's name listed very closely to other known German/Swiss "Dutchfork" settlers: Cromer, Leitz, Sower, Sleight, Ziegler, Metz, and others. (The 1800 census also lists him in Newberry District but the names are listed alphabetically.)
(Plat courtesy SC Archives)
If one examines the Cromer/Kromer land tracts, the tracts for Jacob Cromer and Frederick Cromer are shown to be in the fork of the Broad and Saluda Rivers. Henry's Will also lists land on Second Creek. Today, Second Creek flows W-SW from the Broad River from north of Pomaria towards Newberry.
Henry died about 1805 and he left a Will dated 1802 that named his children.
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- Henry Kesler Jr.
- David Kesler
- Abraham Kesler - note that his Will does no specifically name him as his son but it can be inferred that he is his son by reading the Will in its entirety.
- Paul Kesler
- Elizabeth
- Barbara
- Margaret
- Catherina
- Christina
- Susannah
His Will is witnessed by Michael Dickert Sr., Philip Cromer and James Neely/Nealy. No wife is named; presumed to have deceased when the Will was written.
- Son Abraham Kesler moved to Pendleton District where he died in 1865. He is buried in the Lebanon Baptist Church cemetery near Pendleton.
- Son Paul Kesler moved to Franklin County, Georgia and lived near his brother Henry Jr.
- Daughter Catherina married Christian Sietz per Henry's Will. No further research.
- Daughter Christina married Christopher Dickert per Henry's Will. No further research.
- Daughter Susannah married Frederick Farr/Pharr per Henry's Will. No further research.
- Son William Henry Kesler Jr. (1780-1856) married another German descendant, Barbara Ann Cromer. I have no documents to support this but her father is said to have been a Rev War veteran. If so, he would have been with the SC Militia or Cont. Army because they were in SC well before the start of the Am. Rev. Fold3 has information on several Cromers from Pennsylvania (where there is Henry Kesler listed) and we have a pension application (SC1701) for the widow (Sophia) of Jacob Cromer of South Carolina who served with Colonel Thomas Taylors Regiment.
Henry Jr. remained in South Carolina until the 1820s when he moved to Georgia. He can be found on the 1820 census (name listed as Keasla) in Newberry District and on the 1830 census in Franklin County, GA. It appears that his brother Paul accompanied him to Georgia as they are shown as consecutive entries on the census.
I have not yet located the exact location of their home/farm but I suspect it is very close to where they are buried - I base this on finding the name Adenia Miller listed living fairly close. Adenia/Addeaney Miller is the widow of James Miller - her maiden name is Mayson and she is the granddaughter of Colonel James Mayson (See Mayson page). The Miller Family Cemetery is located very close to the Kesler Cemetery. Samuel Miller, the son of James and Adenia Miller, married the granddaughter of Henry Kesler Jr. (Mary P. Crump).
On August 29, 1848, Henry Jr. donated 10 acres of land to the Methodist "society" that became the Prospect United Church, a church that is still in existence. According to a published church history in 1968, this land was known as Kesler's Campground before he gave it to the church membership. This church history has a brief about the ancestry of the Keslers and the Cromers. My maternal great grandfather, Joel Parks Ledbetter, was the pastor of this church in 1907. There are numerous Keslers, Verners, Crumps and Millers buried in the church's cemetery. Here is the link to the church history that was written in 1968 by Wanda D. Hardman but updated in 1998. >>CLICK HERE<<
We have a page from the Bible of George Kesler, the son of Henry Kesler Jr and Barbara Cromer.
Bible page - George Kesler(Source: Unknown family member)
George is the grandson of Henry Kesler Sr.
Mary J. Miller Kesler is the daughter of James Miller and Adenia Mayson
George and Mary are my 4th great granduncle and aunt via the Kesler side, but Mary is also my 3rd great grandaunt on the Miller side - her brother, Samuel Miller, is my 3rd great grandfather.
(Photo source: Unknown family member)
FOR MORE RESEARCH
- Here is a link to the research of Inez Winans of California that appears to have been done in 1977. I found this online at familysearch.org. >>CLICK HERE<<
- For more information on the Carolina Dutch Fork, visit https://digitalcommons.wofford.edu/studentpubs and search for a paper written by Elmer B. Hallman entitled "Early Settlers in the Carolina Dutch Fork, 1744-1760".
(This page was created on 8/9/2023)