Adam Miller

  Noted events in his life were:

• Family History. From A History of Rockingham County Virginia, by John A. Wayland, PhD, Ruebush-Elkins Company, Dayton, Virginia 1912, Pages 34-37. . . . . it appears that as early as 1727Adam Miller, a German, perhaps with a few others of his own nationality, was staking out claims on the south fork of the Shenandoah River, on or near the line that now divides Rockingham County from Page.

On March 13, 1741-2, Adam Miller received from Governor William Gooch a certificate of naturalization, which recites that the said Miller had been a resident on the Shenandoah for the past fifteen years. This fixes the date of his first settlement in 1726-7.[4] In 1733, eight men, Adam Miller being one, addressed Governor Gooch in a petition, praying him to confirm their title to 5000 acres of land in Massanutting, purchased about four years past for more than 400 pounds from Jacob Stover, reciting that they had moved upon the said land from Pennsylvania immediately after the purchase, and that they had located thereon at the time of the petition nine plantations and 51 people.[5] This would fix the date of settlement of the Massanutting colony in 1729or 1730.

The names of the eight petitioners of 1733, who had bought land in Massanutten of Jacob Stover in 1729or 1730, were as follows:

Adam Miller [8] Philip Long Hans Rood
Abram Strickler Paul Long Michael Kaufman
Mathias Selzer Michael Rhinehart

The family names of all these men, with perhaps one or two exceptions, are to-day familiar and widely distributed, not only in the counties of Rockingham, Page, and Shenandoah, but also in many quarters beyond the limits of Virginia. It is quite probable that Adam Miller at first pre-empted his claim on the Shenandoah by squatter right, later meeting properly the requirements of advancing governmental authority. It is possible, moreover, that the enterprising Stover sold him and his friends the Massanutten tract before the said Stover himself had a grant for it, since, as we have seen, the latter did not receive his grant until June 17, 1730. The alarm of the eight petitioners of 1733 arose from fear that William Beverly had an earlier or better claim than Stover. They had learned that Beverly was bringing suit against Stover for the land in question.

4. The certificate is in the possession of Adam Miller's great-great granddaughter, Miss Elizabeth B: Miller, of Elkton, Va. It was printed in the William and Mary College Quarterly, October, 1900, and in Wayland's "German Element," pages 87, 38, in 1907.

5. Tbe full text of this petition may be found in Palmer's Calendar of State Papers, Vol. I, pp. 219,220, and in Wayland's "German Element," pp. 86, 86. It bears no date, but the date has been conclusively determined, by various circumstances, to be 1733

8. Adam Miller, who appears to have been the first settler of Rockingham and adjacent sections of the Valley. was born probably at Schreisheim, Germany, the native place of Alexander Mack, about the year 1700. He came early in life to Lancaster County, Pa., with his wife and an unmarried sister. Later, going to Williamsburg, Va., he heard of the beautiful valley between the mountains from some Spotswood knights, and followed their path westward, crossing the Blue Ridge at Swift Run Gap. Having seen and desired the goodly land in the river plain below, he brought his family thither. He secured first the "uppermost of the Massanutten lots," near the present Page County line, but probably in Rockingham; in 1741 he purchased 820 acres, including the great lithia spring near Elkton, and was living thereon in 1764 when he sold 280 acres thereof to his son-in-law, Jacob Bear. Here Adam Miller lived till he died about 1780, and here the Bear family still resides, the spring being known as Bear Lithia Spring. He was a soldier in the French and Indian War, as shown by the military schedule for 1768 in Hening's Statutes. In religion he was a Lutheran, and was probably buried at St. Peter's Church, four miles north of Elkton. Among his descendants are the Millers, Bears, Kempers, Yanceys, Gibbons, Hopkins, Mauzys, Harnsbergers, and other prominent families of East Rockingham. A descendant, Hon. Chas. E. Kemper of Washington City, deserves special mention for his valuable publications regarding the pioneer.

• Gravestone: From Find a Grave, 1783, Rockingham, Virginia. Adam Miller

Birth: Nov. 17, 1703
Death: 1783

The following is from the program for the Adam Miller Memorial Dedication Ceremony (Friday, May 7, 2010), prepared by the Elkton Welcome Center:

Adam Miller (Mueller)

Adam Miller (Mueller) was born in Germany, probably Schreisheim, in 1703. He was the son of Johann Peter and Maria Margaretta Mueller.

Adam came to America as a young man in 1720. He came with his wife, Barbara Kooger Miller, and an unmarried sister, Catrina. The Millers first settled in Germantown, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, however, Adam was unsatisfied with the farming lands in Pennsylvania, so he moved his family to Williamsburg, Virginia. While in Williamsburg, Adam learned about Governor Alexander Spotswood's 1716 Expedition. After hearing about the wonderful fertile country beyond the mountains, Adam decided to see if for himself. He followed the same trail taken by Spotswood and crossed the Blue Ridge Mountains at Swift Run Gap. He was so pleased with the look of the country, that he immediately returned home for his family and brought them back to the valley. He built a cabin near the present day Page-Rockingham County line, however, this site proved to be unhealthy so, several months later he erected another cabin a few miles further south. This site, known as Green Meadows, is located a short distance north of present day Elkton, Virginia.

Controversy still exists as to who was the first permanent settler in the Shenandoah Valley. There are many records of explorations of the Valley, however, it is traditionally claimed for Adam Miller, that he was the first permanent white settler here. The date given to this first settlement is 1726. It is believed that Adam Miller descendants have his original land patent of 350 acres of land, made at Williamsburg, written on sheepskin and signed by Governor Gooch, June 20, 1749 and his naturalization paper with one of the two great seals still remaining dated March 13, 1741.

Two of Adam Miller's daughters, Anna Barbara and Catherine married two brothers, Jacob and John Baer (Bear). Later in life, Adam Miller deeded Green Meadows to his son-in-law, Jacob, and his daughter, Anna. Adam was able to continue living on his farm until his death in 1783.

Controversy still exists about where Adam is buried. Some say there are historical accounts that place him with his daughter, Anna Barbara, in Bear family Cemetery at Bear Lithia Springs. Others say he was buried in St. Peters Church Yard, a Lutheran Church that Adam helped form and the oldest in Rockingham County. Still others say that his reamins were buried in a family cemetery, on a hilltop across from the Miller homestead, and were removed to Elk Run Cemetery during the 1930s and now lie in an unmarked grave across from the Cover Masuoleum.

In early 2009, the Elkton Centenial Jubilee Committee, decided to fulfill the wishes of the Elkton Historical Society and erect this monument to memorialize Adam Miller traditionally recognized as the first permanent white settler in this part of the Shenandoah Valley.

Family links:
Children:
Anna Barbara Miller Bear (1726 - 1791)*

*Calculated relationship

Inscription:
Recognized as the first permanent white settler in this part of the Shenandoah Valley

Note: The Adam Miller monument was crafted by his descendant Jimmy Miller of J. E. M. Stone Memorials, Elkton, VA

Burial:
Elk Run Cemetery
Elkton
Rockingham County
Virginia, USA

Created by: Jan Hensley
Record added: Aug 24, 2010
Find A Grave Memorial# 57585857

Adam married Barbara Kooger. (Barbara Kooger was born in Germany and died in Elkton, Rockingham, Virginia.)