The Family of George WARK
 and Catherine _____?
(7th. Generation)

70-George WARK, b. before 1776, d. aft. 8 Jan 1808 and bef. 1810, probably Jefferson Co., VA, m. (71) Catherine ____?, b. before 1775, d. after 1819, Jefferson Co., WV. George WARK may have first surfaces in Cecil Co., MD, with a family consisting of 2 males and 3 females. (need census) The compiler feels that this George WARK (WARKER, WARKES) is the ancestor. They may have come to Cecil Co., via PA, where there were a number of WARK families directly north of Cecil Co., or possibly staight from IRE. In 1790 George WARK is in North Milford Hundred, Cecil Co., MD, with 1 male over 16 (George), 1 male under 16 (Jacob), and 3 females (Catherine, Margaret, and Ruth). By 25 Apr 1795 he is in Jefferson Co., VA (then Berkeley Co.), where on this date fro 25lb VA currency George bought from Charles Washington, the founder of Charles Town, a lot on the corner of Water and Congress street. On 27 Feb 1797, George and Catherine sold to Adam Middleton for 22lb. VA currency, a lot granted to George by Charles Washington, which had an annual ground rent of 3 shillings due to Col. Samuel Washington. In 1800 he appears on the tax list in Morgan District, Berkeley Co., with 1 white tithable, no slaves, and no horses From 1805 to 1808 there are several land transactions: On 8 Apr 1805 they sold a lot and house on Congress Street to Henry Richards of Fairfax Co. for $150; on 9 Apr 1805 they sold part of a lot on Congress Street to Henry Richards for $250; on 9 Apr 1805 they sold the eastern part of the lot on Congress Street to Edward McQuade for $130 VA currency; on 8 aug 1805, John Gill indebted to his daughter, Prudence Gill, entered into a trust with Samuel Shirley and George WARK for $1, placed his funiture in security to be sold at public auction if he defaults on the loan; on 8 Jan 1805; on 8 Jan 1808 George sold to Thomas Mayfield in Frederick Co., VA, for $4500 VA currency, the lot on Congress Street. The original lot must have been fairly large considering the number of sub lots sold by George and Catherine. In the 1810 census, Catherine is the head of household with 1 female 16-26 (unknown), and 1 female 45 and up (Catherine), and 1 slave. Catherine continues to sell property until 1819. On 3 Nov 1818 she sold to Richard Morgan for $120 a lot in the eastern part of Congress Street, and on 6 Jul 1919, she sold to Daniel GRIFFITH (her son-in-law) a lot on Congress Street. In several of the deeds in with her husband George, Catherine was afflected and unable to come to the courthouse. A representative was sent by the court to her home to take a deposition. There was no indication as to what affliction caused this beyond the fact that she could not travel. MDCE1, WVBEB1, WEBE4, WVJE6, 8) By all available accounts, there were only three children:

NOTE: Could this be George WORK: Spesutia Lower Hunderd, Harford Co., MD; Georges Workes 25, Jane 23, Rachel 3, ruth 1, and Jane Gonnikin 24. (MDB1)

70.1 Margaret WARK b. probably in Harford Co., MD, d. aft. 1819 and bef. 1836, m. Daniel GRIFFITH b. 20 Oct 1790, MD, d. 21 Jan 1863, Oldham Co., KY. In 1810 there were 4 males and 5 females in the household. Daniel  appears on the personal property tax list of Jefferson Co.  in 1812 and in the southern district, which places him in Charles Town, or the vincinity. He was taxed on 1 white male over 16 in 1812, and in 1811 to 1820, to 1826, 1828 and 1829; three white males over 16 in 1822; 2 in 1825 and 1827. In 1812, 1814 to 1815, 1818, 1820, 1826 to 1828, 1 horse, a mare, a colt, 2 in 1820, and 10 in 1829. Sometine after 1829, he probably migrated to Oldham Co., KY where he died. This same lot on 23 Aug 1836, was sold by Daniel GRIFFITH and 'Martha' Elizabeth (b. 1810, d. 1845,his 2nd.  wife, to John REED (the husband of Margaret DOWNS, daughter of Ruth C. WARK, their inheritance in Lot #123, which they obtained from Jacob WARK, a lot he inherited from his parents, George and Catherine WARK, and the inheritance of Margaret WARK, the late wife of Daniel GRIFFITH. In the 1810 census he has males and 5 females in the home. In 1828, Daniel and his brother-in-law, Jacob WARK, were co-administrators of the estate of a John Brown. After the death of Margaret, Daniel remarried to Martha Elizabeth _____?, proven by a deed in Jefferson Co., where Daniel and wife, Elizabeth, sold a lot to John REED in 1826, a lot Dnaiel bought from Jacob WARK. He and his 2nd. wife are buried in Mt. Tabor Methodist Church Graveyard in Centerfield, Oldham Co., KY. NOTE: On a monument of his son Jacob Wark GRIFFITH, it is stated that his mother was Martha. Whoever gave this information may have not known about the first wife. Also Martha that b. 1810 was two young to be the mother of Jacob Wark GRIFFITH who was b. in 1819. The total number of children are not known but there must have been more than four given the gaps between those that are known. (KYOLB7, WVJEB11, 12, WVJE6) Known children:

70.1a George W. GRIFFITH b. 4 Jan 1812, d. 29 Dec 1878, Oldham Co., KY, m. 6 Nov 1847, Oldham Co., Sarah A. BOULWARE, d/o Fountain BOULWARE. George and 2 of his children are buried in Mt. Tabor Methodist Church Graveyard Cem., Centerfield, Oldham Co. (KYOLB3, 7) Children:

70.1b-Jacob Wark GRIFFITH, b. 13 Oct 1819, Jefferson Co., VA, d. 31 Mar 1885, of Peritonitis in Oldham Co., KY, m. 18 Sep 1848, Oldham Co., Mary B. OGLESBY, b. 19 Dec 1829, KY, d/o Thomas OGLESBY and Nancy E. (CARTER) OGLESBY, d. 11 Dec 1915, probably in Louisville, Jefferson Co., KY. Jacob was known as "Roaring Jake" or "Thundering Jake" in KY, came to that state at age 21 in 1840. He was apprenticed to two medical practitioners, and soon established his own practice. In all of the census records, he is identified as a farmer. In 1846, he left KY to fight in the Mexican War. In 1850 he joined a 40 mule-team wagon train going to CA. He returned to KY in 1852 to practice medicine and enter politics. He was elected to represent Oldham and Trimble counties in 1854-1855, and again in 1878-1879. In 1860 and 1870 he was farming in Oldham Co., except when he joined the Confederacy at the outbreak of the Civil War. At the Battle of Corinth in TN, unable to mount a horse due to a previous wound, he led a successful charge in a horse and buggy. In the 1880 Census, they are living in Floydsville, Oldham Co. J. W. was Superintendent of the Sunday School fro 1881 to 1885, at the United Methodist Church, Lagrange, Oldham Co. Sometime after the death of Jacob, the family moved to Louisville, Jefferson Co., KY, where Mary and 4 of the children are in the 1900 census. He and his wife are buried in Mt. Tabor Methodist Church Cemetery in Oldham Co., KY. (INT1, 2, KYOLB1-2, 7, KYOL4-7) Children:

70.1b2-William W. GRIFFITH, b. 6 Aug 1857, d. 16 Jul 1945, m. Ann Marie CRUTCHER, b. 25 Aug 1864, KY, d. 16 Jul 1943.. In 1900, William was a farmer in Simpsonville District, Shelby Co., KY; in 1910, they moved to Oldham Co., and in 1920, they were in Ballardville, Oldham. Two of their children died young. They are buried in Valley of Rest Cem., in Lagrange, Oldham Co. (KYOL7- 9, KYSH10) Children:

  • 70.1b2a Marie GRIFFITH b. Apr 1880
  • 70.1b2b Annie Margarette GRIFFITH b. Feb 1885
  • 70.1b2c Myrtie S. GRIFFITH b. c1905

70.1b5-Jacob W. GRIFFTH, b. 22 Feb 1870, KY, d. 12 Dec 19100, Los Angeles, Los Angeles Co., CA, m. bef. 1892, Ella B. ____, b. Aug 1874, KY. In 1900, they were living in the 8th. Ward, Louisville, Jefferson Co., KY. Before 1910, they moved to Los Nietas Twp., Los Angeles Co., where Jacob d. before 1920. Jacob is listed in the 1910 census, as a newspaper editor. Ella is listed as a bookkeeper in a news office. After the death of Jacob, Ella m. Clyde Collins, b. c1882 in SC. He is listed in the 1920 census as a printer at a newspaper. (KYJF11, kYOLB7, CALA6, 7) Children:

  • 70.1b5a Ruth G. GRIFFITH b. Nov 1892
  • 70.1b5b Lynn A. GRIFFITH b. Oct 1894
  • 70.1b5c Willard C. GRIFFITH b. Jan 1897

70.1b6 David Lewellyn Wark "D. W." GRIFFITH, b. 22 Jan 1875, Crestwood, near Centerville, Oldham Co., KY, d. 23 Jul 1948, Hollywood, Los Angeles Co., CA, m. 1st. 14 May 1906, Boston, MA, Linda ARVIDSON, b. 1884, San Francisco, CA, d. 26 Jul 1949, New York City, NY, a screen and stage actress, and author. They were divorced in 1936. Two days later, D. W., at the age of 61, m. at the Brown Hotel in Louisville, KY, Evelyn BALDWIN, b. c1910. They were also divorced before his death. D. W. quit school and worked at odd jobs in a dry goods store, and a book store. The "I WILL TRY ORDER" was organized by Miss Loud Catherine Clare for newspaper boys in Louisville, KY, an order responsible for youth welfare work, which preceded the Boy Scouts. D. W., as well as Marvin McIntyre who became Assistant Secretary of the Navy under Franklin D. Roosevelt, were members of this organization. His acting debut was with the Meffert Stock Co. in Louisville. In the 1900 census in Louisville, while living with his widowed mother, he is listed as an actor. He went to New York City before 1906, where he worked as an extra at Biograph Studio for $5 a day. Executives at the studio taking note of his innovative ideas gave him a chance to direct when one of their directors became ill. This started his career as a director, producing 450 short films while at Biograph. His greatest film, "Birth of a Nation" opened at the Liberty Theater in New York on 3 Mar 1915, still a controversial film, depending which biography you read. Throughout his career as a director, he gave may famous actors their start, including Mary Pickford, Lillian and Dorothy Gish, Mae Marsh, Lionel Barrymore, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Charlie Chaplin, and richard Barthelmess. He influenced many directors, among them, Cecil B. DeMille, Rex Ingram, Erich von Stroheim, and King Vidor to name a few. He often returned to KY for long periods at a time, lavishing his relative with gifts. In 1945 he received an honorary degree from University of Louisville. On 22 Jul 1948, he suffered a brain hemorrhage in his room at the Knickbocker Hotel in Hollywood, and died the next day at Temple Hospital, at age 73. He was buried at Mt. Tabor United Methodist Church in Centerfield, Oldham Co., KY. On 5 May 1875, he was honored with a 10 cent stamp by the U. S. Postal Service. He had no children by either marriage. (INT1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 plus) There is a variety of informaton on D. W. GRIFFITH and family at the following sites; some of these would not link, and you may have to type in the URL:

http://kentuckyexplorer.com/nonmembers/01-03028.html

http://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/KY/OL.html

http://www.thehistorynet.com/ah/bldwgriffith/

http://www.gildasattic.com/dwgriffith.html

http://silentgents.com/DGriffith.html

http://www.tvdays.com/biograph.htm

http://alumni.imsa.edu~mitch/directors/griffith.html

http://www.variedtastes.com/encyclopedia/David_Wark_Griffith

http://www.silentsaregolden.com/articles/friffithgrave.html

http://members.aol.com/mcgavgand/armyhist.htm

http://guardian.imdb.co/name/nm0000428/

70.1d Martha A. B. GRIFFITH m. John WATSON. John WATSON appointed Daniel GRIFFITH to secure money due his wife, Martha A. B. WATSON, from the sheriff of Jefferson Co., VA. This probably was inheritance from Catherine WARK to the GRIFFITH children of her daugher Margaret GRIFFITH. (KYOLB10)

70.2 Jacob WARK b. c1787, was in Jefferson Co., VA, when he co-administered the estate of James Brown with his brother-in-law, Daniel Griffith in 1828. In 1850 there was Jacob WARK in Marion Co., VA, with a minor child Ancor WARK in the household. No other information has been found on this son. (WVJE4)

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