Faw family

Biography

The Faw family traces its ancestry to the "Pfau" family from Switzerland, who settled in Ashe County, North Carolina, near Mountain City, Tennessee.. On the maternal side, the Faws are descended from the DeVaults (DeWalds) of Alsace. Henry DeWald, the author of the DeVault will included in the collection, migrated to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, served in the Revolutionary War, and was buried in York County, Pennsylvania. He willed a farm in Washington County, Tennessee to his sons, Valentine and Frederick. Frederick moved to Leesburg, Tennessee, where he built a tavern on the Knoxville-Washington, D. C. stage line. The elder son, Valentine, passed the farm to his son, also named Valentine. The younger Valentine's brother, Isaac, settled on the adjoining farm. After Isaac's death, his daughter, Blanche Hannah DeVault, lived on the farm with her husband. In 1906 the farm was sold and is now owned by the Massengill family. George P. Faw, whose letters are contained in the collection, was a chaplain in the Confederate army. After the Civil War, he became a Baptist preacher and farmer at Boones Creek, Tennessee. George was the grandfather of Harry Faw, donor of the Henry DeVault will. Harry Faw began Faw (later Faw and Sherrod) Real Estate Agency and Faw Trust Company in Johnson City, Tennessee. The donors, Harry and William Faw, are sons of Blanche DeVault Faw.

Found in 3 Collections and/or Records: