John Logan

John Logan (1747July 1807) was a military officer, farmer and politician from Virginia who became a pioneer in and helped found the state of Kentucky. He served under his brother, Benjamin during Lord Dunmore's War in 1774, then both moved to what was then called Kentucky County, Virginia. Logan took part in several expeditions against the Shawnee, including some led by Daniel Boone, John Bowman, and George Rogers Clark. After Kentucky County was split into three counties, Logan and his brother at various times represented Lincoln in the Virginia House of Delegates, and John Logan also represented that county at the Virginia Ratification Convention in 1788. When Kentucky became a state in 1792, Logan briefly served in the Kentucky Senate, before accepting appointment as the state's first treasurer, an office he held continuously until his death in 1807. After being becoming treasurer, he moved to Franklin County, where he became one of the first trustees of the city of Frankfort, which became the state capital. He also represented Franklin County at the 1799 state constitutional convention and later became the county's first circuit court judge. Early life John Logan was born to David and Jane (McKinley) Logan in the spring of 1747 in then-vast Virginia County. His parents had immigrated from Scotland by way of Pennsylvania, before settling near the North River in Virginia. John Logan was baptized into the Presbyterian church on May 10, 1747. He had seven siblings. His father died in 1757, leaving no will, so by primogeniture his entire estate passed to his oldest son Benjamin when he came of age in 1764. Benjamin sold the entire estate and divided the money among himself and his brothers and sisters. Benjamin and his brother, Hugh, used their shares to purchase a farm near the headwaters of the James River, and their sister Jane joined them there. John Logan soon purchased of land for himself near his family. In the early 1770s, he married Jane McClure; they had six daughters and a son. Benjamin Logan moved again, this time further down the Wilderness Road in the then-vast but newly formed Botetourt County. They settled on the Holston River, and John and his wife followed in 1773, establishing their home at Black's Fort (now the city of Abingdon, Virginia).