Page 28 - History of Rockingham Co
P. 28
ROCKINGHAM COUNTY
Of these five districts, Plains is the largest. Its western
half is the famous Brock's Gap country. In 1858, Jed Hotch-
kiss, a few years later renowned as Stonewall Jackson's chief
topographical engineer, wrote of this country as follows:
"The region of Brock's Gap, inside, is large enough for a
county by itself. I was not prepared to find as large a stream
of water there as we did find, nor so much romantic scenery.
All 'Germany' is inside, and it is some ways from the Gap."
The sturdy German race prevails all over Rockingham,
particularly so, it seems, in the Brock's Gap country; hence
the expression just quoted. In years past the region was
frequently styled "Little Germany"; and one of the streams
that drain it is called German River.
There has been a good deal of interesting speculation as
to how Brock's Gap got its name. One tradition is to the
effect that "General Brock," while on his way to relieve
Fort Seybert, camped in the Gap, and thus gave it his name.
If there was a General Brock in the Gap at the time referred
to, it evidently was not the "Hero of Upper Canada." Fort
Seybert was destroyed in 1758, and the general just desig-
nated was not born till 1769. It is most likely that the name
was received from some resident of the Gap. In 1748, as the
Augusta County records show, Daniel Holman and Peter
Gartner became guardians for Julia, George, and Elsie Brock,
orphans of Rudolph Brock, deceased. This shows that there
were Brocks in this part of the Valley at a very early date.
In 1752, as shown by the same records, Christian Funkhousa
and Henry Brock sold to Jacob Bare 400 acres of land ' 'on ye
south fork of the North River of Shanando above the gap in
ye mountain." The property was warranted specially
against John P. Brock and his heirs. The witnesses were
Peter Scholl, Samuel Newman, and John Bare. This seems
to shov/ conclusively that the Brock name was familiar in
the Gap as early as 1752, or earlier.
With this brief outline of the geography of Rockingham
County, let us proceed to the following chapters, in which,
under the various heads, will be found many other facts that
might properly be included here.
—21—
Of these five districts, Plains is the largest. Its western
half is the famous Brock's Gap country. In 1858, Jed Hotch-
kiss, a few years later renowned as Stonewall Jackson's chief
topographical engineer, wrote of this country as follows:
"The region of Brock's Gap, inside, is large enough for a
county by itself. I was not prepared to find as large a stream
of water there as we did find, nor so much romantic scenery.
All 'Germany' is inside, and it is some ways from the Gap."
The sturdy German race prevails all over Rockingham,
particularly so, it seems, in the Brock's Gap country; hence
the expression just quoted. In years past the region was
frequently styled "Little Germany"; and one of the streams
that drain it is called German River.
There has been a good deal of interesting speculation as
to how Brock's Gap got its name. One tradition is to the
effect that "General Brock," while on his way to relieve
Fort Seybert, camped in the Gap, and thus gave it his name.
If there was a General Brock in the Gap at the time referred
to, it evidently was not the "Hero of Upper Canada." Fort
Seybert was destroyed in 1758, and the general just desig-
nated was not born till 1769. It is most likely that the name
was received from some resident of the Gap. In 1748, as the
Augusta County records show, Daniel Holman and Peter
Gartner became guardians for Julia, George, and Elsie Brock,
orphans of Rudolph Brock, deceased. This shows that there
were Brocks in this part of the Valley at a very early date.
In 1752, as shown by the same records, Christian Funkhousa
and Henry Brock sold to Jacob Bare 400 acres of land ' 'on ye
south fork of the North River of Shanando above the gap in
ye mountain." The property was warranted specially
against John P. Brock and his heirs. The witnesses were
Peter Scholl, Samuel Newman, and John Bare. This seems
to shov/ conclusively that the Brock name was familiar in
the Gap as early as 1752, or earlier.
With this brief outline of the geography of Rockingham
County, let us proceed to the following chapters, in which,
under the various heads, will be found many other facts that
might properly be included here.
—21—
