Semi-weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1853-18??, 1860-07-21

! 80 s
As this distinguished sold sr and citizen is now on
visit to North Carolina the following letter from
the Hon. d. L. Swain, written in 1859, in relation
70 his family and nativity win be read with pecu
liar interest The Lane family has made its mark
not only in this community, where Gen. Lane has
numerous connexions by blood and affinity, but in
Buncombe, in the Western part of the; State, the
County of his birth. There are localities in old
Buncombe known as LANES Pinnacle" {" Lanes
Mine Hole Gap" and Lanes Iron Works. named
from the father of Gen. 10 Lane, who resided for
time in that portion of the State. But it was re.
served for the son to make his impress upon the
whole country, and to carve out a name of which
his relatives his friends and the State of his birth
may well be proud.
From The Memphis A~alanchc
LETTER FROM HON. j.. L. SWAIN.
A friend has furnished us with the copy of let
ter from Hon. D. L. Swain, President of the Uni
versity of North Carolina at Chapel HILL in reply
to a correspondent who had addressed him some
enquiries touching the family history of Gen. 10.
Lane, of Oregon. The letter was private one and
not intended for publication but it contains some
facts, which, considering the position now occupied
by Gen. Lane before the country, are very interest
ing, we take the liberty of laying it before our
readers. The following is the letter.
CHAPEL HILL, Oct 90, 1859.
DEAR SIR: Your letter Of the 14th, owing to my
absence in the discharge of official duties did not
reach me until day two since, and avail myself
of the earliest practicable opportunity to reply.
There is probably no family whose authentic his
tory can no more clearly traced through every
period of the annals of North-Carona than that Of
Gen. Lanes In proportion to numbers, compare
lively few Of its members have aspired to obtain
ed political distinction indeed distinction of any
kind On the other hand there are probably few
that have enjoyed greater average responsibility.
Gen. Lanes great grandfather Joseph, (who sign
ed his Joseph Lane, jr., in 1920 died at his
residence near Halifax on the Roanoke, in ITO
His three sons, JOEL Joseph and JESSE were pioneer
settlers IN the neighborhood of Raleigh, in 1741.-
OF these, Col. Joel was the wealthest and most con-
spicuous. He conveyed to the State the $40 acres
Of land the site Of the present city Of Raleigh His
dwelling house, at the period of its erection the best
within hundred miles, is the present residence Of
William Boylan, Esq. All three were Wings during
the revolution, and Col. Joel and Jesse did service
in the army, the latter as private.
Jesse the grandfather Of General Joseph
Lane and of myself He was born in Halifax July
4th, 1922, and married Winifred Acock. They had
sixteen children, eight sons and eight daughters, all
of whom lived to rear families. In 1879 my grand
father emigrated to Wilkes. now Oglethorpe coun-
ty Ga where he resided until 1900 when he removed
to St Louis, where he died in 1904 in the S2d year
Of his age. Gen. Lane is the son Of John Lane,
the eighth child and fourth Of our grandfather
Jesse. At the time Of the removal of the family to
Georgia QT79) Wilkes frontier county, and,
during series of years subject to frequent incur
sions from the Creeks and Cherokees There were
no members of the family able to bear arms whose
services not put into requisition, and no one
male, or female, who not familiar with the hOr-
of savage warfare. Ny mother beguiled many
an hour during my infancy, in the recital of hair
breadth escapes, which, delicate woman as she was,
rendered her personal history one of remarkable
suffering and adventure.
L have no recollection Of my grandfather or uncle
John. The former visited my father on his way to
Missouri and the later was inmate Of our family
for some time previous to and subsequent to my
birth. / heard much Of him in my boyhood, and
suppose that in all respects the son is counterpart
Of the father brave, enterpriSing, and generous
He was universal favorte in the midst Of the men
who fought at the Cowpens and Kings Mountain,
and who considered foray among the Indians as
little less than pastime.
Gen. Lanes mother was Betsy, daughter of Jas.
Street, the first Sheriff of my native county Bun
combe) The descendants of the sixteen children
of Jesse are dispersed through all of the Western
and Southern States
I enter into these particulars simply to satisfy
you that whilst the family Of Gen. Lane have no
just pretensions to the pride of heradry there is
cause on the other hand, why they should blush
for his ancestry or his connections.
| write in unavoidable haste, but will be ready at
any time to communicate more special information
if it shall be called for.
Yours very respectfully,
D. l.. SWAIN.