Blount and Beyond Online Magazine - Magazine - Page 5
Early Families in Blount County 3 The Keeble Family
The Keeble Family by Linda Kay Baker
William Keeble was born on May 23, 1755, in Fauquier, Virginia, to Margaret Cooper, age 20, and William Keeble, age 45.
Truly li琀琀le is known about William Keeble before the Revolu}onary War and less during the }me between the end of the
war and up to the }me of his marriage to Mary White Keeble. William and Mary se琀琀led in what is now known as Cold
Springs in Walland, Tennessee. This was land William received as a land grant for his service during the Revolu}onary
War.
According to a copy of William9s war records as recorded by the Department of the Interior in 1922, William Keeble9s
applica}on for a pension gave a detailed account of his service during the Revolu}onary War. An Act of Congress passed
on March 18, 1818, giving the soldiers the opportunity to apply for bene昀椀ts. William applied for these bene昀椀ts on June 6,
1818. He stated he enlisted about the year of 1776 in Fauquier County Virginia. His captain was James Sco琀琀. Keeble9s
commanders were Colonels Toliver and Stephens along with Major Marshall. William served a term of 1 year as a private
soldier. He fought in the Ba琀琀le of Long Bridge, Virginia and then discharged at the age of twenty-one. In August 1777
William again enlisted in Fauquier County Virginia in the Company of the Ar}llery of Colonel Thomas Marshall9s
Regiment. His captain was Elias Edmonds. He served as a Bombardier and was discharged in Richmond Virginia.
Before William Keeble married Mary White Keeble, he had four children by another woman, all four children were born
in Fauquier, Virginia. His son William was born in 1784 and died in 1804 at the age of twenty. Son John was born in 1798
and died on September 3, 1819, in Blount County, Tennessee, at the age of twenty-one. Daughter Sally was born in 1788.
Daughter Nancy was born in 1794. He named all four in his will and lev each child one dollar. We do not know but we
think his 昀椀rst four children stayed in Virginia when William and Mary moved to Tennessee, but the two boys may have
arrived in Blount County shortly aver their father William.
Mary was the daughter of Hannah Stamps and Richard Keeble. When William married Mary, she had a note from her
father giving her permission to marry William Keeble. They were married by The Rev. John Picke琀琀, Bap}st Minister. in
Fauquier, Virginia, on December 17, 1799, when he was 44 years old, and she was 15 years old. They moved to Blount
County Tennessee in Early 1800, shortly after their marriage.
William and Mary had eleven children together. William had fifteen children total. It is believed by many in the family
that William had twenty-two children total, with seven having died shortly after birth or stillborn.
Family tradition has the Keebles coming to America from Scotland, yet some think they were from Ireland. Family history
states his middle name was McDonald, but that has not been found on any records so far.
The Keeble name has been found spelled variously 3 Keeble, Kibble, Keble, and Cable, sometimes the name was spelled
differently in the same document.
Numerous descendants of William and Mary are still living in Blount County Tennessee.
Mary and William Keeble9s children and grandchildren are listed below:
1. William and Mary9s son Thomas Keeble was born on July 31, 1800, in Blount County, Tennessee.
He married Elizabeth "Betsy" Smith, daughter of Margaret McCutchin and Joseph Smith.
Thomas and Betsy had five children together. Their son James Houston Keeble was born on
December 4, 1824. Their son William McCutcheon Keeble was born on March 1, 1827. Their son
Joseph H Keeble was born on January 4, 1829. Their son Thomas J Keeble was born on February
16, 1831. Their daughter Mary (Polly) Keeble was born on March 4, 1833. His wife Elizabeth
"Betsy" passed away in March 1833 shortly after Polly9s birth.