John Wagoner (Abt 1755-1831) of Hagerstown MD but with PA connection
In December 1783 the above-mentioned John Wagoner married Sarah White, the eldest daughter of Peter White, a prominant landholder in Hagerstown, MD, (formerly known as Elizabeth-Town), then a part of the newly formed Washington County. (Prior to the formation of the county, the town was located in Frederick County.) John Wagoner and Sarah White had one daughter, Margaret, born sometime in 1784, who later married John Kennedy, an Irish-born merchant in Hagerstown. (Margaret died in 1818 and her husband became her father's heir.) I know this John Wagoner was German-speaking and practiced in the Reformed tradition. He served as deputy sheriff and sheriff of Hagerstown. He lived on a farm called "End of Strife" that he had purchased from his wife's family in 1797. I find it hard to imagine that he would have been able to marry into such a prominent family without his own land or means prior to the marriage, but I have yet to be able to trace this particular John Wagoner back in time, and after several years of looking in local and state archives, I am running low on hope. As with many people living so long ago, it seems as if he just materialized one day. There is reason to believe that John Wagoner and/or his Kennedy in-laws had relations living in Franklin County, Pennsylvania, but again nothing conclusive has yet been discovered. I'd be particularly grateful for any leads or information the followers of this board could provide. My dream come true would be to locate someone connected with this Wagoner or Kennedy family line who has a family Bible or other documents that might provide more details about his early years prior to 1783 (or new details related to his later years!). Thanks for reading along!