The materials from Washington and Lee University Special Collections are made available for use in research, teaching, and
private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright law. The user assumes full responsibility for any use of the materials, including
but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used should be
fully credited with the source. Permission for publication of this material, in part or in full, must be secured with the
Head of Special Collections.
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open for research use.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], William and Anne Fleming Family Papers, WLU Coll 0009, Special Collections and Archives, James G.
Leyburn Library, Washington and Lee University, Lexington, VA.
In some cases the citation format may vary. Please contact Special Collections staff to verify the appropriate format.
William Fleming was born in Scotland on Feburary 18, 1729. He studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh and served in
the British navy. He moved to the colony of Virginia in 1755, landing first in Norfolk before moving to Williamsburg. There,
he was commissioned as an ensign to serve under Col. George Washington. He engaged in border warfare. Fleming eventually settled
in Staunton where he married Anne Christian on April 9, 1763. He gave up medicine for farming in Botetourt County (now Montgomery)
at his estate called Bellmont. From 1777-1779, he represented several districts, including Kentucky, in the Virginia Senate.
He took an active part in Western Affairs, twice heading commissions to Kentucky. In his last appearance as a public servant,
Fleming represented Botetourt in the state convention which ratified the Federal Constitution. Fleming died on August 5, 1795.
Anne Christian Fleming was born in 1744 in Staunton, Virginia to Israel and Elizabeth Christian. She had two siblings: William
and Rosanna. Anne and William Fleming married in 1763. They had two children: Ebenezer and Annie.
This collection contains papers created by or related to William and Anne Fleming and several family members on Anne's side,
including her parents, Israel and Elizabeth, and her brother, William.
The subjects include Flemings accounts of his trips to Kentucky, his journal of the first Kentucky convention of which he
served as chair, letters about business, Kentucky land claims, and family affairs. There are commissions, wills and estate
inventories, land surveys and indentures, a manuscript map, and documents related to Indigenous nations. Other documents mention
enslaved people, usually those were to be inherited. There is one folder which holds items specific to Kentucky but here are
other documents throughout the collection that also have relevance to Kentucky, such as correspondence, land records, and
receipts. Daniel Boone's name can be found throughout the collection as he was hired to survey land within what is now Kentucky.
Notable signatures within the collection include Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, James Monroe, and Benjamin Harrison. The
collection also includes an account book kept by Fleming between 1765-1783. Some accounts are medical in nature. Lastly, the
collection holds George Baxter's honorary degree from the University of South Carolina dated circa 1812.
There are transcriptions for correspondence and other items which were done in 2000.
Includes information related to land ownership, list of books and pamphlets, financial information, payments made to Commissioners
and the State of Virginia.
circa 1754 fragment issued by Robert Dinwiddie and signed by George Washington, August 25, 1755 appointment issued by Robert
Dinwiddie, 1762 appointment issued by Francis Fauquier, circa 1771-1775 appointment issued by John Murray, Earl of Dunmore
(part of the document is missing)
