Hi Carol, we may be looking for similar information. I have seen records on a 'Col. Thomas McCulloch, b. 1795 Washington Co., Va' who was involved in laying out the street plots for Polk Township, Jefferson Co. Iowa in 1849. Polk Township was then renamed Abingdon, 'after Col. McCulloch's beloved family home in Abingdon, Va.' You're right, he does not show up in the 1850 US Census, or in the 1856 Iowa County Census, and my suspicion is that he may have gone back to Virginia. Do you know where he died?

I am trying to track him down as my ancestor, John Mc Culloch lived in Polk Township in 1850, as well as an older brother Charles, and I suspect Thomas was their father. John was born 1827-28 and Charles was born 1826, both in Va. James could have been a younger brother.

This family has been very elusive in the census records because of several variations on their name. So far I have found them as McCulloch, McCullock, McCulock, even as Mc Culloch. My original family records had their name spelled as McCullough. I'm going to be near Abingdon, Va in June so I am planning on stopping by the Historical Society there to see what I can find, as they have microfilm records of the McCulloch family from late 1700's.

If you would like to see the records I have found so far, go to www.rootsweb.com, look under the USGenWeb pages for Iowa, under Jefferson Co. The info on the website is free.

I can be reached at lorinda.hilton@intel.com or margerif@verizon.net. I look forward to hearing from you.