Thomas Lewis

(Wikipedia) - Thomas Lewis (April 27, 1718 – January 31, 1790) was an Irish-American surveyor, lawyer, and a pioneer of early Virginia. He made major contributions to the settlement of western Virginia and West Virginia. Lewis was born to John (1678-1762) and Margaret Lynn Lewis (1693-1773) in County Donegal, Ireland. His father came to Philadelphia in 1728, then brought his family including Thomas and his brothers Andrew and William over in 1730. The Lewis family moved west, following the Shenandoah River south into Virginia and finally settling near the headwaters of the south fork in what was then Spotsylvania County in the summer of 1732. John established the family farm, building a stone house for defense against the Indians. Continued

Photo: "house of Thomas Lewis, the King's first surveyor of Augusta and Rockingham County." ( Society of Port Republic Preservationists).