Creating a Website

[UKFlounder]

A few months ago, on the "last post" thread, I mentioned the idea of writing a book. Perhaps I should post this message there, but I'm starting a new thread. Sue me (I probably shouldn't say that with all the lawyers, here, LOL)

Anyway, I think my original idea may end up with way too much information for one book. I already have about 1,100 individual Civil War soldier names for men associated with Campbell County (KY) as well as their unit, rank, company and, for many of them, birth date, birth place, death date and burial place. I've even noted many of them as being disciplined by their unit or wounded/killed in action. I'm not sure that information would be appropriate for a book, partially due to space, but also because of a lack of flexibility.

Right now my idea is to still pursue a book with stories of many of these men. It would be an ordinary book written in sentences and paragraphs and that makes sense, but I was thinking of taking the list of soldier names and creating a website (or adding it to an existing site, perhaps my local historical society's) but have some questions. I feel a website would give more space for all this information, would let me continue to make additions to the information and to correct any mistakes or typos that seem inevitable. Also, I could use links to findagrave pages and information about certain units or battles.

Right now my information is in a spreadsheet. If I do create a webpage (through a site like Wix or something else) is it possible to upload the information from a spreadsheet? Do I need to put it in a database like Access? Is there any other better way of adding that information? If I go that route, I would like the website to make the information sortable in several ways - by last name, unit, birthplace, burial place, etc.)

This is still a preliminary thought- I have more research to do, but I have a lot of information and am trying to think of a way to share it and perhaps make it useful to other researchers.

Any thoughts, ideas or suggestions? Is something like that feasible?

[VirginiaCat]

No help on your website but damn I love this idea.

I am still searching for my Great Grandfathers CW record. John Wesley STewart but not sure if he enlisted in Pike Co, Lawrence Co, or in VA ...he was a bit of a scoundrel and had 2 wives at the same time, one in VA and one in KY....

[UKFlounder]

Lol - that’s good.

No help on your website but damn I love this idea.

I am still searching for my Great Grandfathers CW record. John Wesley STewart but not sure if he enlisted in Pike Co, Lawrence Co, or in VA ...he was a bit of a scoundrel and had 2 wives at the same time, one in VA and one in KY....

[catmanjack]

Great idea!

[Darrell KSR]

...he was a bit of a scoundrel and had 2 wives at the same time, one in VA and one in KY....

Great idea!

I was thinking the same thing. What other state should I choose?

[VirginiaCat]

Ok, this may be too unrelated so feel free to delete this post guys. My Kitchen line as the below attestation trying to get a Revolutionary War Pension:

Dale writes in "A Chronicle of Our Ancestors" that his introduction to the senior James Kitchen comes through correspondence written long after his death. On the 25th day of September in the year 1852, John Kitchen from Carter County, Kentucky, wrote the following petition:

State of Kentucky
County of Carter

John Kitchen of said County aged 67 years being sworn does on his oath say that he is one of the children of James Kitchen and Jane Kitchen, his wife, both of whom are now dead. The said James died in Carter County, Kentucky, on about the 28th day of March, eighteen hundred and thirty-two (1832), leaving the said Jane his widow who survived him and remained his widow and died in this County on the 20th day of November, eighteen hundred and forty-nine (1849). The said Jane in her lifetime made a Declaration setting forth the Revolutionary services of the said James Kitchen and claiming the benefit of the pension laws for widows of Revolutionary soldiers. See Declaration and papers in file in pension office.

He states he had often heard his Father say that he served three years and six months in the service of the United States in the war of the Revolution, State of Virginia, at the Mouth of Kanawha as an Indian spy and that he enlisted under one Captain Arbuckle at said Mouth of Kanawha under whom he served the time above stated that he does not remember of hearing him speak of being in any noted battles but in frequent skirmishes with the Indians that the nature of his service was such as that of spying and watching the movements of the Indians bearing intelligence from one station to another. He remembers of hearing him say that said Capt. Arbuckle stated to the clerk to make out his notices and draw pay for his soldiers, but was killed by the falling of a limb from a tree and the documents fell into the hands of his oldest son who would never give them up claiming his Father's interest by seniority, and that at the expiration of said Service at the Mouth of Kanawha he went to Greenbrier County, Virginia, where he was engaged against the Indians as before until peace was made with them. He says he does not recollect of hearing him say in what years he rendered the said services nor what his Captain's name was when serving in Greenbrier County, but that his Major was by the name of James Hamilton.

He further states he believes that all of his first named services at the Mouth of Kanawha and a part or perhaps all of his services in Greenbrier County was previous to the surrender of Lord Cornwallis that he makes the above statement from hearing his Father say that while serving in Greenbrier, that some of the Indians who could talk English when told that Cornwallis was taken said it was a lie. He further states that he has heard his Father speak of one Captain Lewis at the Mouth of Kanawha in the service while he was serving there. He further states that he remembers one John Kipper and Wm. Richmond whom they left in Greenbrier County, Virginia, often talking with his Father about their Revolutionary services while they lived there before moving to this state. He understood that his Father and Richmond were fellow soldiers at the Mouth of Kanawha and that said Kipper was engaged in fighting the British after the expiration of his Father's time at the Mouth of Kanawha and that he has understood that the said Kipper was on the pension roll in the state of Virginia and is now dead, and said Richmond died a pensioner in Greenbrier County, state of Virginia. That he does not know of any person now living by whom he can prove the facts set forth above neither does he know of any record or documentary evidence of this that since the death of his Mother they had done nothing in the case for they did not know whether it was worthwhile that he makes this declaration in behalf of himself and the following named persons his Mother's surviving and only surviving children at her death, Andrew Kitchen, William Kitchen, Mary intermarried with William Matson and Elizabeth intermarried with Jesse Kesee.
Given under my hand and seal on this 25th day of September, A.D. 1852. The document was signed by the mark of John Kitchen (X)

Dale continues: We have learned several important items of information through John Kitchen's petition to the United States Government to have his father's pension continued to the surviving children. First, we have the names of children who were part of the family beyond James Junior. Second, we confirmed that the James Kitchen of Carter County, Kentucky, was the same Kitchen of Greenbrier, Virginia, and that his wife's name was Jane. We know our James could be found in the marriage register of the Rev. John Alderson, Jr., who founded the Greenbrier Baptist church at Alderson in the then Greenbriar County, Virginia. The church is now found in Monroe County, West Virginia.

The old register reports the marriage as follows:
January the 10, 1780 - James Kitchan with Jane Pattason
It is interesting to note that both Kitchen and PATTERSON were spelled incorrectly in this old document.

Earlier than John Kitchen's petition, in the year 1844, Jane Kitchen herself had applied for her widow's benefits:

State of Kentucky
On this 9th day of September 1844 personally appeared before the County Court of Carter County, Jane Kitchen, a resident of the said County of Carter, aged 80 years last October, who being first duly sworn, according to law, doth on her oath, make the following declaration, in order to obtain the benefit of the provision made by the Act of Congress, passed July 7, 1808, entitled "An Act granting half pay pensions to certain widows." That she is the widow of James Kitchen, who of her knowledge and belief she cannot state the exact time he entered the service, but she believes it was some time in the year 1776, and he left the service in the fall of 1778. She remembers that when he returned home, it was about the time of the coming of frost. She was young, but lived in the neighborhood when he returned. Whether he served under more engagements than one she cannot say. His service was performed under Capt. Matthew Arbuckle at Point Pleasant in Virginia, generally. The Company, or a portion of it, however may have been about from that place a part of the time. Indeed, the said James Kitchen, she understood and believes, served a part of the time as a spy, and as such was perhaps sent out of the Fort for as much as 60 days. She understood and believes that said Kitchen entered the service in the County of Greenbrier and state of Virginia. She believes he was enlisted but is not certain. She cannot state more of his service than his service at Point Pleasant and guarding the frontier. She believes that he served at least sixty days as a spy. She now has no documentary evidence of his service. He had a paper which was called his discharge, but that was burnt with their house on the 14 day of January 1801 in Russell County, Virginia.
She further declares that she was married to the said James Kitchen on the 10th of January in the year one thousand, seven hundred eighty. That husband, the aforesaid James Kitchen, died on the 23 day of March, one thousand eight hundred and thirty two. That she was not married to him prior to his leaving the service, but the marriage took place previous to the first of January eighteen hundred twenty four, to wit, at the time above stated.
The document was signed by the mark of Jane Kitchen (X)

[UKFlounder]

Good stuff

I just confirmed a Revolutionary War ancestor from Pennsylvania, and one of his grandsons, a 3x great granduncle of mine, was a Civil War soldier in Minnesota.

[dan_bgblue]

I was thinking the same thing. What other state should I choose?

Florida, specifically the Tampa vicinity is a great area for shopping