Horn Family From Germany

The Horn Family: From Germany to Estill County

By Ralph Barnes

Reader Caution: much of the early Horn history is speculative and based on the most probable scenario and not proven research. (They very likely went through a very similar experience in their voyage to the new world). The family history is well documented after their arrival in Kentucky and that part of the Horn history has been authenticated through pension applications, lawsuits, deeds, court orders and census records.

The Horn family that has evolved into a widely scattered clan numbering in the thousands is believed to have originated near the small Westphalian region of Germany. The patriarch of the branch of the family that settled in Estill County and later spread to many other places was a man believed to be of German descent named Aaron Horn. No legal document has been found, nor may ever be found, that substantiates the relationship between Johann Krofft Horn and the Estill County Horns. Circumstantial evidence, as well as the similarities in the oral histories from scattered branches of the family, strengthen the probability that he is the patriarch, but that is far from certain.. The Horns are thought to have arrived in Philadelphia around 1725. Why they decided to leave their homeland.is not recorded, but the conditions in Europe were grim in the aftermath of the Thirty Years War and many Germans immigrated to the New World during that period. Germany has served as the gateway for invading armies since Roman times and the locals have long suffered from the frequent conflicts. The Thirty Years War, as the name infers, was a long and exceptionally savage struggle that was characterized by senseless destruction and slaughter. It was basically a civil war fought between the Catholics and Protestants for dominance in Germany. Trouble had been brewing since Martin Luther split from the Catholic Church a century earlier. The discord erupted into a full-blown conflict in 1618. By the time the fighting ended in 1648, the countryside was in ruins and nearly a third of the population had been annihilated. The disastrous effects that resulted from the fighting crippled the economy of the region for more than a century. Johann Krofft Horn was born into that difficult environment during the later part of the century. An innate skepticism of government and religious institutions, a peculiarity trait of many Horns, was instilled into the family's psyche during that period when government abuse and religious intolerance were of paramount concern to the family. In fact much of the history of the family for the past three hundred years has been driven by the hard lessons learned during the War and its bitter aftermath. It is understandable that Johann wanted to move his family out of harms way. He was provided an opportunity to do just that when William Penn opened his colony to German emigrants. Penn traveled to Westphalia actively recruiting the hard-working natives and many had already immigrated to Pennsylvania. They wrote the folks back home lauding the "land of opportunity" and encouraging others to join the exodus. That propaganda as well as the hard realities of life in Germany must have convinced the Horns to take the plunge. Still, leaving the Father-land must have been a wrenching decision for the family. One can imagine the lively discussions that surely took place around the dinner table as the members of the family de-bated the pros and cons of the move. Eventually the desire for a better life overcame their fears and Horns opted for resettlement. The family made numerous difficult decisions concerning family moves, but none could have been as difficult as the one to abandon their native country for an uncertain future in an alien land. Leaving Europe required the family to learn a new language, adjust to foreign customs and bid a permanent farewell to family and friends. The medieval mentality that prevailed in Europe greatly exaggerated the monsters and savages that were thought to inhabit the recently discovered continents. Those beliefs probably increased the family's apprehensions about the move. The decision to immigrate in spite of the uncertainties exemplifies the courage that sustained our intrepid ancestors in the difficult and dangerous years that followed.

Once the decision to go was made, the next hurdle was getting there. The typical process for immigrating to the colonies began by disposing of excess belongings, loading the remaining possessions on a raft and polling ones way down the many rivers and canals to the Dutch port of Rotterdam. That part of the journey alone could take several weeks. Once the seacoast was reached, passage was booked on one of the tiny sailing ships that passed for ocean going vessels in those days. For emigrants who did not have the fare, arrangements were made to secure passage by agreeing to become an indentured servant for several years. It is not known if the Horns paid cash for their passage or had to indenture themselves. A transatlantic crossing, during the Colonial period, was only attempted by the desperate and the adventurous. The ships were tiny, unsanitary, and bobbed like corks. Being crowded into lice infested quarters and served rotten food was part of the customary consequences of sea travel. The trip lasted weeks and the prolonged exposure to the deplorable conditions resulted in excessively high mortality rates. Sea burials were common occurrences. It must have been a glorious moment indeed when Johann and his little clan got their first glimpse of the " Land of Opportunity". The family had escaped from Germany, where immigration was illegal and had survived the ordeal of the passage. They were rewarded with a spectacular view of the beautiful and bountiful place that had lured them away from the land of their forefathers. However the elation must have been tempered some-what by the realization that the family now faced the even more formidable task of establishing a new home in a hostile and primitive environment.

When the Horns disembarked in Philadelphia the colonies were nothing more than sparsely populated enclaves on the edge of the vast North American wilderness. The arrival of the Horn family predated most of the great historic events that shaped the American nation. The Horns were destined to become active participants in the founding of the United States. As the family walked the streets of the small village of Philadelphia less than a half million Europeans lived in North America. Philadelphia probably was not very impressive to the Horns since they were accustomed to the more populous cities of Europe. As things turned out it was the most civilized area that the Horn family would visit for the next several generations. The followers of Moses languished in the wilderness for forty years looking for the "Promised Land". The Horn family spent twice as long in the wilderness creating a land of promise. It is not possible from a twentieth century perspective to fully appreciate the great hardships, dangers and deprivations that the family endured during their prolonged isolation from civilization. From the time they set foot on American soil until well into the nineteenth century, four generations of Horns were denied the educational and cultural benefits that accrue to those who live in a stable society. As a result of that crippling legacy, most members of the family became farmers and laborers rather than entering the more lucrative professions. The primary concern of the wilderness dwellers was keeping the family fed, clothed and safe. The daily struggle for survival was an all-encompassing task that left little time for academic pursuits. So book-learning took a back seat to the more pressing needs such as mastering the many skills that were required to maintain the family in an isolated setting. Every thing that was consumed, worn or used had to be grown, manufactured from scratch or hunted. As far as can be determined no family was more adept at wilderness skills than the Horns. Understandably, many family members still could not read and write late in the nineteenth century. The prolonged period of isolation also kept the family from being exposed to the new technologies and labor saving devices until long after they were in common use in main-stream America. The experience of the Horns was typical of many of the pioneering families that settled in Appalachia. The descendants are still paying the price for the years of educational neglect that resulted from the extended isolation of their forefathers.

Virtually nothing is known about the time the family spent in Pennsylvania. Records and other chronicles of that time and place are scarce and none mentioning the Horns have been found. Most probably the family lived with other German settlers near the northern border of Maryland since they eventually settled near Baltimore. It is assumed by many that Johann's son Matthias married while the family was still in Pennsylvania and sired the Aaron Horn that eventually brought his family to Kentucky. There were several Horn families living in Penn's colony but no relationship between them has been established.

What is known for certain is that Aaron Horn, the patriarch of the Kentucky Horns, ended up living in Kent County Maryland where some if not all of his children were born. Since a large number of Pennsylvanian Germans moved into Maryland in the decade beginning in 1740, it is likely that some of Horns, including Aaron, were among them. The attraction that lured the Pennsylvanians to Maryland was the offer of cheap land that could be bought or leased for a fraction of the going rate in the more settled areas. For example to entice settlers to the region acreage was leased to the new arrivals for ninety-nine years for only a penny an acre per annum. That was the kind of deal that would attract a young family trying to get started. The lure of cheap or free land was apparently an enticement that the Horns could not resist since they pursued it with reckless aban-donment for as long as the land lasted. However there was a reason the land was so cheap in Maryland. Much of the Colony was remote from civilization and the Indians had not yet been subdued. Hostile warriors roamed the entire region at will and the more unsettled areas were under almost continuous attack. The situation became so acute during the French and Indian War that George Washington, who was an army officer in the area at the time, warned his superiors that if better pro-tection was not provided the settlers there would soon be no colonist left in Mary-land. Evidently Aaron was undaunted by the danger since his family continued to grow during the period that the family lived on the Chesapeake. The old maps of Kent County list a place called Horn's Town so there probably were other Horns in the vi-cinity. The same wanderlust that is said to have driven Daniel Boone must also have been a trait of Aaron because just as Maryland was becom-ing more civilized the family abruptly moved three hundred miles deeper into the wilds.

Aaron claimed 260 acres on the Holston River in the extreme western part of Virginia near the Great Smoky Mountains. He was awarded one of the original patents for land granted in what became Washington County. The trek from the coast must have been an ordeal since much of the terrain was mountainous, including the formidable Blue Ridge range. Their motivation for leaving Maryland just as life was becoming more tolerable is perplexing. Per-haps the Horns had developed an aversion to civilization; or more likely pioneering had become their vocation of choice. They undoubtedly had mastered the skills that enabled them to sustain themselves in a frontier environment. Money could be made by settling on virgin land at the edge of civilization, holding it till the price went up, and then selling out for a profit. The process could then be repeated by home-steading new land deeper in the interior. Shortly after the Horns arrived on the Holston in 1774, the area became the staging ground for parties headed to recently erected Fort Boonesborough

The establishment of Boonesborough in 1774, was perceived by the Indians as an encroachment on their territory. Soon after the fort was established, the colonist broke with England and the British teamed with the Indian nations to dislodge the settlers from their toehold in Kentucky. The arrival of the Horns in Virginia coincided with the founding of the first settlements in the Blue Grass. The family was positioned in the right place at the right time to participate in the colonization of Kentucky. By January of 1778 the situation became critical when Daniel Boone and two dozen men from Boonesborough were captured by the Indians. The survival of the fledgling settlement became a cause for concern among the members of the Virginia General Assembly in Williams-burg. In response, Patrick Henry as Governor formed a military unit out of the men in Washinton County to protect the settlements in Kentucky. The Horn men were included among those that formed the contingent. The soldier Horns and probably other members of the family left for the three hundred mile journey to Boones-borough in the dead of Winter. This latest move meant once again loading everything the family owned onto pack animals and spending six weeks or so under the most difficult conditions imaginable. Hugh mountains had to be traversed and icy streams forded. Most of the adults walked every step of the way, often carrying small children. The route followed was known as the Wilder-ness Road but in reality it was no more than a series of Buffalo traces and Indian trails. The road was hardly fit for hiking was nearly impassable for pack animals and carts. In addition to being exposed to the harsh winter elements, the trekkers had to be con-stantly on their guard against an ambush from the Indians. Our ancestors undeniably possessed the courage and stamina required to face and overcome great hardship and adversity. But in looking back, it is difficult to understand why they were willing to put themselves through such torture repeatedly.

Unfortunately conditions did not improve much for the weary travelers when they reached Fort Boonesborough in April of 1778. The inhabi-tants of the fort had been through a difficult time since Boone and his men were captured and had little in the way of comforts to offer the new arrivals. The residents were unable to get in a crop due to the constant activity of the Indians and food was in short supply. In addition the compound was not a very pleasant place to live. Quarters inside the stockade were cramped, thick mud covered the parade ground area and the unsanitary conditions created an offensive smell that pervaded the compound. Many people lacked adequate clothing to provide protection from the elements and in some cases to even protect their modesty. The Horns as did the other inhabitants of the fort would exist under these deplorable conditions for two long years. However, living conditions were the least of the settlers concerns. In the months following the arrival of the Horns, the fort with-stood the most furious Indian siege in American history.

After the Shawnees captured Boone and his party at the salt lick, they were taken to the main Indian camp near present day Dayton, Ohio. The captives were accorded good treatment and many were actually adopted as Shawnees. However their kinfolk and friends back in the fort had no way of knowing how they had fared and were very anxious about their safety. After the troops from Virginia arrived, several raids across the Ohio River were made in a vain at-tempt to free the captives. Ironically the Horns who accompanied the raiding party were the first to visit the Miami River Valley, an area that would become a Mecca for the Horn family one hundred and fifty years later. Eventually Daniel overheard the Indians discussing a raid on Fort Boonesborough and arranged a daring escape. Boone made the long, danger filled trek back to the fort in time to warn the colonist of the impending attack. Thanks to Boone's timely alarm the fort was able to withstand a nine day siege. That battle was the most important ever fought between the settlers and Indians. After the In-dians and the British were repulsed at Boonesborough they never again seriously challenge the westward expansion of the American nation where retrenchment was even a remote possibility. Had the Indians and British forced the settlers out of Kentucky that could have set in motion a series of events that could have detrimen-tally affected the eventual American victory in the Revolutionary War. Had the colonist lost the war, the history of the United States would have been significantly altered. The Indians continued to raid south of the Ohio River until the end of the war but after September of 1778 the survival of the settlements in Ken-tucky was ensured. It is be-lieved that all of Aaron's family was in the fort during the siege. The men were definitely there and the women including Polly Horn Proctor were most likely with them. There were women in the fort because at one point during a lull in the fighting the In-dians requested that the women be paraded before the Fort's gate so that they could view the white women. The request was granted in an effort to appease the Indians. It is highly likely that the Horn women were among those who were ogled by the natives. At least two of the male members of the family were not in the fort since they were serving in the army in Virginia and did not fight in the Kentucky campaigns. Jere-miah Horn, who died in Virginia while serving in the army and is believed to be one of Aaron's sons, probably, did not participate in the Boonesborough battle. Christopher Horn who later came to Kentucky and was involved in a legal dispute with his mother over his primogeniture rights to Aaron's estate also served in Virginia and was not at the fort during the siege. Because of the Horns participation in the historic events at Fort Boonesborough, their names have been inscribed on the monument at the reconstructed fort and they will be forever honored among the pioneer families associated with the founding of Kentucky. Tragedy struck the family just as the battled concluded when Aaron Horn died. The cause of Aaron's death is not recorded and there is no evidence to support the theory that he suffered a fatal wound during the battle. Aaron probably is buried in an unmarked grave within sight of the original fort's location. The tragic death of the patriarch of the Kentucky Horns was a part of the heavy price paid by our pioneering ancestors to secure a better life for their descendants. Aaron's survivors lost most of their animals and other possessions to the raiders and continued to be terrorized by roving bands of renegades until the conclusion of the war. The most poignant story concerning the high cost paid by the Horns for opening the frontier was found among the per-sonal effects of General Anthony Wayne after his death. In 1795 Joseph Horn had written a note to Gen-eral Wayne, who was involved in sorting things out after the conclusion of the Revolu-tionary War, pleading with the general to seek the release of his three daughters from their Indian captors. The little girls, Kitty, Polly and Peggy had been taken captive by the Indians during a raid in 1782. Joseph stated that he had been frantically searching for the girls for thirteen years and was nearly out of his mind from worry. He had re-ceived occasional reports that they were still alive and he was still hopeful for their eventual return. How this tragic episode eventually turned out is not known.

When the threat from the Indians abated somewhat in 1780, the Horns, Boones and the other occupants of the fort opted to leave the cramped quarters of the fort for more livable accommodations known as stations. The stations were sim-ply a group of cabins clustered together for greater security that were less confining than living within an enclosed stockade. A number of stations were established within the triangle formed by the present cities of Lexington, Win-chester and Richmond. The better known of these were Boone's Station near where Athens now stands, Magee's Station toward present day Winchester and Estill's Station in the vi-cinity of Rich-mond. The Horns undoubtedly knew Daniel Boone and his family well since they were kindred spirits and spent so much time together at Fort Boonesborough. In fact the first recorded Horn wedding in Kentucky took place at Boone's Station between Matthias Horn and Susan Hall. Joseph and Polly Proctor who mar-ried while still in Virginia lived at nearby Magee's Station before eventually mov-ing to Estill's Station. Constructions on the stations began in January during the one of the coldest winters on record that became known as the "terrible winter." Why they did not wait for warmer weather before making the move is difficult to understand. Perhaps they had no choice in the matter and needed to complete the construction in time to do the spring planting. Whatever the reason they spent a miserable winter liv-ing in lean-to shacks while the more permanent structures were being raised. In addi-tion to the record breaking cold, corn and other staples of the pioneer diet were in short supply. Wild game was often the only food available. The widow Horn and her family managed to survive these adversities just as they had overcome so many other hardships. The cabin eventually got built and life became more tolerable. Within a few years the Native Americans were permanently driven from the "happy hunting-grounds" that their ancestors had roamed for a millennium. With the departure of the Indians the stations like the forts before them vanished from the American scene.

Once the British and Indians were beaten, the Horns and the other settlers set about the task that brought them to frontier in the first place. The era known as "The Great Land Grab" was the beginning of a frenzied rush for the recently vacated Indian lands. Unscrupulous land speculators such as Green Clay, father of Cassius Clay, grabbed as much land as possible, leaving only the less desirable acreage to the more honest pioneers who were not as well connected. That's how the Horns ended up on Ross' Creek rather than the ritzier Blue Grass region. While Mr. Clay and his cronies were an anathema to the early settlers, his frequent court ac-tions to evict the hapless settlers from their holdings has provided the modern gene-alogist with a wealth of information about early pioneer life in Kentucky. The more remote foothill of the Cumberlands, where the Horns eventually settled, was not the most desirable farm-and in Kentucky but the area had many advantages over the Blue-grass. For sheer beauty no place on Earth can hold a candle to the area that became the ancestral home of the Horn family. The closest thing to para-dise on this earth is the panorama of Kentucky River as it meanders through the Valley of the Horns framed by the scenic Cumberlands. The early Horns must have thought they had discovered Eden when they first saw the valley in its pristine state. In addition to its aesthetic qualities the region also offered more practical advantages. The river served as a conduit for transporting farm produce, coal, timber and pig iron to the markets downstream. It was not uncommon in the days before the development of railroads to float a goods laden flatboat down the Kentucky, Ohio and Mississippi riv-ers to Natchez and New Orleans. Kentucky raftsmen were so numerous as well as notorious that all raftsmen were referred to as "Kaintucks". The river also provided natural fertilization during the spring floods, an important consideration before the develop-ment of man-made fertilizers. The area was rich in natural resources such as hardwoods for building houses and furniture, furs for bartering for the necessities that had to be imported as well as game and fish to supplement the food supply. Eventually coal and iron and oil were also discovered in the region. The Horns probably were not slave owners and the smaller farms that could be operated with family labor was better suited to their means. The plantation type farms dependent on slave labor prevailed in the Blue Grass. As far as can be determined most Horns did not approve of the enslavement of their fellow man, a fact in which their descendants can take pride. Exactly when the Horns arrived in area now known as Estill County is not clear. They were among the first people of European descent to settle in the area, probably around 1782 while the area was still a part of Fayette County. The male members of the family signed the petition to the Virginia legislature that resulted in the creation of Madison County in 1785. Estill County was created out of Madison County in 1808. The Horns were citizens of all three counties at various times without moving. Members of the family who are known to have lived in the area were Matthias, Aaron Jr., William and Polly Proctor. Most of the Horns that live in Estill County today are descended from William. Matthias had a large family and some of his family remained in the area but most left the state. Matthias lived on Clear Creek in what is now West Irvine. He is believed to be buried in an unmarked grave in the old cemetery near the motel on State Highway 52. He is known to have donated that land for the original Clear Creek church near the spot. Polly and Joseph Proctor, as far as can be determined, had no children. Aaron Horn II Settled at Boonesborough and probably spent the remainder of his life within sight of the old fort. His oldest son, Nathanial, started the Horn clan in Owensboro, Kentucky. The Madison county Horns probably are descended primarily from Aaron and Matthias. Christopher Horn settled in Breckinridge county Kentucky and Christopher Jr. was still living there in 1830. There was another Christopher Horn that lived in Knox County but his ancestors were English and he was not related to the Estill county Horns.

The Horn family was representative of that hearty group of immigrants who forsook their motherlands and took on the formidable task of carving a new home in a strange and dan-gerous place in order to improve the lot of their progeny. For better or worse, they delivered America from the Stone Age into the Space Age and forever altered the charac-ter of the Western Hemisphere. The modern Horns are blended from Irish, Scottish, English and German immigrants who melded into Americans and created the greatest nation on Earth. The Horn pioneers were a sturdy stock whose mettle was forged by the wil-derness and we shall not see their like again. We, the beneficiaries of their toil, suffering and sacrifices, should remember and honor our ancestors for they served us well.

Back to Horn Family Index