1.  Edward DAVIS, b. 1773, Augusta Co., VA 
2.  Sarah DAVIS, b. 1780-84 (probably closer to 1780 as she married in 1800) 
3.  Joseph DAVIS, b. 1781/2, KY  {1860: 78, KY}
4.  Phoebe DAVIS, b. 24 Feb 1783, Mercer Co., KY 
5.  Mary "Polly" DAVIS, b. ca. 1790, KY 
6.  Hannah H. DAVIS, b. 1793, Logan [now Christian] Co., KY; d. 16 Oct 1850, Randolph Co., MO; m. 3 Mar 1812, Christian Co., KY, Neal MURPHY (b. 16 May 1791, Ireland)
7.  James? DAVIS

One of our subjects' earlier children is thought by some to have been:
.  Isaac DAVIS, b. ca. 1760-65

There are many arguments to be made for Isaac being their son, including their close proximity in the Christian/Todd Co. censuses, but one major one against:  Isaac DAVIS is believed to have married his wife, Sarah CLARK, ca. 1786 in Sullivan Co., TN.  (Sullivan is a burned county with no extant marriage records, so we cannot prove the date or place of the marriage, but that is where Sarah's parents are believed to have been living at the time, so presumably that is where the marriage took place.)  There is no evidence that I know of placing James and Hannah (RAMSEY) DAVIS in NC/TN, ever, and we know James was in KY by 1780 and Christian Co., KY, by 1785.  So how could their son have been in TN ca. 1786 to meet and marry Sarah?  On the other hand… Isaac's daughter, Sarah Jones DAVIS, and her husband, Andrew Gibson DARBY, are found in the 1830 census of Boone Co., MO, listed just 15 lines from James & Hannah's daughter, Sarah DAVIS, and her husband Jamed HICKS — and both of these young couples appear to later move to Scotland Co., MO, about the same time.  What is the probability of that happening if they are not related?

1.  Jordan R. Dodd, ed.  1993.  KY, NC, TN, VA, WV Marriages:  Early to 1850.  Liahona Research, Orem, UT (Broderbund CD-229):  not found.

.  Census Index:  Colonial America, 1607-1789 (Broderbund CD-310):

1789 Tax List

Davis, James

KY

Mercer Co.

p. 45

Of course, in 1789 this was Virginia, not Kentucky.  Kentucky did not become a state until 1792.

.  Anon.  1990.  Logan County, Kentucky, Taxpayers, 1792-1799.  T.L.C. Genealogy, Miami Beach, FL.

Year	Name
1792	Dadviss, James
1793	Davis, James
1794	Daviss, James
1795	Davis, James
1796	Daviss, James
1797-99	[not found]

As expected, James DAVIS disappeared from the Logan Co. tax rolls when Christian Co. was formed in 1797.

.  Anon.  1991.  The 1795 Census of Kentucky [as constructed from tax lists].  T.L.C. Genealogy, Miami Beach, FL.  On p. 46:

Name	County
Davis, James	Logan

. Christian County, Kentucky, Tax Rolls, 1797-1816.  Heritage Quest, Microfilm No. V20-72 (extracted by Diana Gale Matthiesen):

Year	District	Dates of  Receiving Lists	Persons Names  Chargeable with the Tax	A	B	C	D	E	F	G	Acres			Watercourse	In Whose Name Entered	In Whose Name Surveyed	In Whose Name Patented
											1st	2nd	3rd
1797			Davis James	1		1	1	7				820		W F Red R	John Montgomery	Do Montgomery	Jas Davis
1798
1799			Davis James	1		2	2	9				1120		W F R R	John Montgomery	ditto	James Davis
1800			Davis James	1	2	2	3	8				1120	112	Red R Red R	J Montgomery J Davis	Same Same	J Davis
1801		Mar 19	Davis James	1	1	2	3	8				800  112		W F Red River W F Red River	J Montgomery J Davis	Same Same	J Davis
1802		Jun 7	Davis James									130  112		Little R W F R R	-	-	-
	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Legend for numerical data [grey indicates that particular datum was not taken that year]:  A = White Males 21 or over; B = White Males 16-20; C = Blacks over 16; D = Total Blacks; E = Horses & Mares (gelded male horses and female horses); F = Stud Horses (intact male horses); G = Rate of Covering (stud fee, in dollars); 1st/2nd/3rd refer to 1st Rate, 2nd Rate, or 3rd Rate land.

He is the only James DAVIS in the county.

a.  A.B. Willhite.  [n.d.]  Christian Co., Kentucky, Tax List, 1804-1809.  (self-published; available from author at 4396 Coopertown Rd., Russellville, KY 42276, or from the Christian County Genealogical Society, Hopkinsville, KY):

Pg. in Willhite	Year	Dist.*	Last  Name	First  Name	A	B	C	D	E	Acres	Watercourse
4	1804	South	Davis	James	1		2	4	7	500	W
33	1805	South	Davis	James	1		2	4	8	500 200	W W
75	1806	South	Davis	James	1		2	4	8	620 200	W W
119	1807	East	Davis	James	1		2	4	12	600 200	W W
162	1808	East	Davis	James	1		2	4	12
210	1809	East	Davis	James	1		2	5	10	600 200	W W
Legend for numerical data: A = White Males 21 or over; B = White Males 16-20 (this column not used in 1809); C = Blacks over 16; D = Total Blacks; E = Horses
Abbreviations:  W = West Fork of the Red River
*The county was divided into just two districts:  from 1804 to 1806, into North and South Districts; beginning in 1807, into East and West Districts.  The change tells us that James was in the southeast quadrant of early Christian County, which later became the southwest quadrant of Todd Co., when it was formed in 1820.  This location is confirmed by the location of the West Fork of the Red River in today's southwestern Todd Co.

He is the only James DAVIS in the county.

b.  A.B. Willhite.   [n.d.]  Christian Co., Kentucky, Tax List, 1810-1813.   (Self-published; available from author at 4396 Coopertown Rd., Russellville, KY 42276, or from the Christian County Genealogical Society, Hopkinsville, KY).

Pg. in Willhite	Year	First  Name	Last  Name	A	B	C	D	E	Acres	Watercourse
	1810
62	1811	James	Davis	1		2	5	7	600 200	W F W F
114	1812	Jas	Davis	1		2	5	6	500 200	W F W F
165	1813	Jas	Davis	1		2	5	6	690 200	W F W F
Legend for numerical data: A = White Males 21 or over; B = White Males 16-20 (this column used only in 1811); C = Blacks over 16; D = Total Blacks; E = Horses
Abbreviations:  W F =  West Fork of Red River

He is the only James DAVIS in the county.

c.  A.B. Willhite.   [n.d.]  Christian Co., Kentucky, Tax List, 1814-1818.   (Self-published.  This book is out of print.  I do not have a copy.  If you have one to sell, please contact me.)

d.  A.B. Willhite.   [n.d.]  Christian Co., Kentucky, Tax List, 1819-1823.   (Self-published; available from author at 4396 Coopertown Rd., Russellville, KY 42276, or from the Christian County Genealogical Society, Hopkinsville, KY).

Pg. in Willhite	Year	First Name	Last  Name	A	B	C	D	Acres	Watercourse
18	1819	Jas	Davis	1	4	5	6	600	W F
86	1820	Jas	Davis	1	4	6	6	500	W F
129	1821	Jas	Davis	1	4	6	12
	1822-23	[not found]
Legend for numerical data: A = White Males 21 or over; B = Blacks over 16; C = Total Blacks; D = Horses
Abbreviations:  W F = West Fork of Red River

James DAVIS must have lived in the extreme SE corner of Christian County in order to be on the West Fork of Red River, but not be in Todd County after it was formed in 1820; that is, most of the watershed of the West Fork of the Red River ended up in Todd County.  James died in Missouri in 1822, so we would expect him to drop from the Christian/Todd County tax rolls before 1822, and he does.  Apparently, James made the trip to Missouri at the age of 78, then died after his arrival.  Another James DAVIS appears in Christian County in 1822, but he has no land or horses (1-1-4-0) and, in 1823, he has land on the Little River.

.  Family Group Sheet of James DAVIS & Hannah RAMSEY  by Anthony Lee Rockefeller, dated 27 Jan 1986 (purchased from Yates Publishing, Stevensville, MT).  Mr. Rockefeller's database is now online at WorldConnect.

.  Denny Davis of Fayette, MO.  29 Mar 1987.  Letter (online in a file by Anthony Rockefeller at WorldConnect):

We know nothing of the ancestors of James Davis, except that family tradition says the Davises came from Wales and settled in Virginia before moving on to Kentucky. The earliest date and place that we can positively identify our James Davis is 22 June 1780, when he entered 400 acres on Beech Fork of Salt River (Possessioners' Report, P. 28, Bardstown, KY) in later Nelson County.  In order to be able to enter that land, he must, by law, have occupied it and raised a crop before Jan. 1, 1778; that is, a crop in the 1777 growing season.  We know James was there in 1777 therefore; and we know it was our James because when he sold it in 1788, wife Hannah waived Dower rights. Daniel Boone arrived in Kentucky in 1775 and there were only two American white settlers there before him, so we can bracket James Davis's arrival in Kentucky 1775-1777.  Probably like other settlers he pulled back to a fort during the early part of the American Revolution, because of the attacks of the Indians who were spurred on by the English.  There is no reason to believe our James was not the James Davis listed on the militia muster at Harrodstown (Harrod's Fort). When James Davis sold the above tract in 1788, he gave his address as Lincoln County, so we know he was by then living on the Christian County tract he recorded in 1785.

.  Anon.  1986.  Family Histories, 1797-1986. Christian County Genealogical Society, Hopkinsville, KY, p. 149. Biographical sketch of James DAVIS. 

.  LDS.  Family Search: Internet Genealogy Service:  IGI - International Genealogical Index (online at FamilySearch.org).

.  LDS.  Family Search: Internet Genealogy Service:  AF - Ancestral File (online at FamilySearch.org).

.  WorldConnect / Ancestry World Trees (online at RootsWeb.com/Ancestry.com).