John Pate appears in the 1824 tax lists, the first for the county, and subsequently through 1829. He is the only taxable Pate in the county during that period. Court records in late 1829 show that he was alive by virtue of his jury selection. In early 1830, John Hubert stated in court that John Pate had died. From here the record gets fuzzy since, reportedly, the records were lost in an 1842 earthquake.

He may have been associated with Elijah Parker, purportedly the first white settler in Obion. During the 1850 census Elijah Parker is still alive and shows a daughter having been born in Kentucky about 1820. Sure enough, in 1820 Hopkins Co., KY is a Elisha Parker, and on the same page, a John Pate.

If these two are the same men found in Obion County Court Minutes, it is possible that there is a family association, and the origin of one may lead to the origin of the other.

Any knowledge shared about either of these men would be greatly appreciated.

--Joe