Israel Christian

Israel Christian was an 18thcentury American pioneer, militia officer, politician and businessman. One of the earliest landowners in Kentucky, he founded the town of Fincastle, Kentucky. Christiansburg, Virginia, the county seat of Montgomery County, was also named in his honor. He was also a representative of Augusta County in the House of Burgesses from 1759 to 1761.

Israel Christian was born in Northern Ireland, most likely in the Presbyterian enclave at Derry. His uncle Gilbert Christian had previously arrived in New Castle, Pennsylvania in 1726 and, after living in Lancaster for a time, he and his family were among the first to settle in the Valley of Virginia in 1732. Christian was engaged in the mercantile business in Dublin when he received news of his uncles success in the American colonies and decided to emigrate there himself in 1740. He became a successful merchant in the Staunton River area before arriving in Augusta County around 1740. He married Elizabeth Starke, reportedly a woman of vigorous and cultivated intellect, around 1741 or 1742 and together had six children.

Source: Wikipedia