It still continually frustrates me that I cannot find any trace of Abraham Palmer, father of Vianna Palmer who married Amos Hamby in Christian County, Kentucky on 1 January 1822.

It is important to note that Vianna was born in South Carolina, c1805 and that her husband’s family also hailed form South Carolina.

I have uncovered two facts regarding this mysterious Abraham Palmer:

1. He clearly signed his name when he gave permission for Vianna to marry Amos Hamby.
2. One Abraham Palmer married Polly Parker alias Collins on 17 December 1826, also in Christian County, Kentucky.

There is also an Alpheus Palmer living at the same time in Christian County, Kentucky; He married Obedience Cavender, 20 April 1824, died in Christian County in 1874 and apparently had no children with Obedience or his second wife.

Alpheus was born c1794 in Connecticut and migrated probably first to Virginia before heading west to Kentucky. He has no known ties to South Carolina, either.

This mystery has led me down the rabbit hole of identifying the other Palmers who lived in Christian County from 1810-1830, which have fallen into two separate family groups, apparently unrelated, but both of whom came from Virginia.

The first Palmer family is that of Isaac Palmer, a Revolutionary War pensioner, who provided a clear outline of his life in his pension application.

Isaac Palmer was born in Northumberland County, Virginia on 1 November 1747. He married Ann McAuley and the family migrated from Northumberland County to Spotsylvania County and then to Woodford, Scott and finally Christian County, Kentucky.

There is no mention of South Carolina in his travels, so it is quite unlikely that he is related to my Abraham Palmer.

Isaac and Ann are said to be the parents of at least seven children:

1. Lewis D., born c1780, Virginia; died c1869, Montgomery County, Illinois; married (2) Ann H. Tutt, 22 March 1814, Woodford County, Kentucky
2. Elihu/Elisha – not sure if this is one man or two. Both names appear in the tax records from 1822-1828 in Christian County, although never in the same year. He is usually listed near Lewis D. and Isaac, but never taxed for any land.
3. ???Thomas – no evidence of any Thomas taxed with the others in Christian County in the 1820s
4. ???Nancy – There is a Nancy who married Robert McClarney on 13 December 1838, but she was born c1816 per later census records and seems more likely to be a grandchild of Isaac, not a daughter.
5. Charles C. – appears on the 1824-1827 tax lists, but owned no land. There is a Charles C. Palmer in the 1830 census of Christian County, Kentucky, born 1770-1780. He was apparently widowed with 3 males 20-29, 1 female 20-29, 1 female 15-19, 2 females 10-14, 1 male 5-9 and one female under 5. No further record and no probate records located.
6. Elizabeth, born c1794; married John Duncan, 19 May 1823, Christian County, Kentucky; bondsman was Lewis D. Palmer
7. ???John – There is no John Palmer taxed in this time period in Christian County, Kentucky, nor are any marriage records found for a John Palmer.

Although Isaac was a Revolutionary War soldier, there is little documentation found about his family. His son, Lewis, has quite a few descendants who joined the Daughters of the American Revolution, including some fairly recent members, so there is apparently sufficient proof that Lewis was a son of Isaac and Ann.

If you are descended from Isaac and Ann Palmer, not through Lewis D., more work needs to be done to complete this family sketch.

However, for my purposes, I have found not a single clue linking Isaac Palmer’s family to Abraham Palmer, father of Vianna (Palmer) Hamby, so I will end here.