During the past few years, many records have been found that indicate two clans of Dilleys were descended from ancestors in a four-county area in northwestern Virginia (Stafford, Fauquier, Prince William, and Loudoun counties) near the Potomac River in the Washington, D. C. area. One group called the "Belpre" Dilleys was descended from John, Richard and Joseph Dilley who lived in Stafford Co. from 1789 to about 1810; then they moved to Belpre Twp., Washington Co., OH in time to appear on the 1810 census. The other group called the "Cumberland" Dilleys migrated from Virginia to Morgan Co., OH about 1839; they settled near Cumberland in the SW corner of Guernsey Co. Because Jesse resided in Shenandoah Co., VA for approximately 30 Years from 1810 to 1839, it was suspected that he was a son of John Dilley Sr. who appeared in Shenandoah Co. in 1773. Jesse (born 1770 in New Jersey) appeared in the 1820 and 1830 censuses for Shenandoah Co. His son Jonathan reported in his biography that he was born in the Potomac area near Washington, but that he was reared in Shenandoah Co. Jesse was in Loudoun Co., VA for the 1810 census; he must have moved to Shenandoah Co. late that year because his son George W. reported in a letter to Jesse Brooks Dille in 1893 that he was born in 1810 in Shenandoah Co. Jesse's two sons James and Jonathan were back in Loudoun Co. living together for the 1830 census there. The relationship between these two branches of the Potomac River clans is not known.

 Several other Dilleys in Jesse's generation were linked to the Cumberland Dilleys by residence in three counties adjoining SW Guernsey Co. (Morgan, Muskingum and Noble counties, the last created in 1851). These Dilleys include Moses, John, Aaron, Ichabod, and Abraham who all appeared in census records as born in Virginia. John and Moses arrived in Morgan Co., OH about 1812 to 1814, and Ichabod and Abraham were recruited in Guernsey Co. for the War of 1812.

 Data collected by Thelma Reeder indicate that a German immigrant, Johannes Dilli, was naturalized in Carroll Co., MD in 1762, and had two children christened in the Manchester Reformed and Lutheran Church. Anna Maria Dilly was christened 22 May 1764 with her parents listed as Johannis Dilly and Anna Maria Heerin (sp?). Christian Dilly was christened 8 Jan 1769 with his parents listed as Joh. Dilley & Catharina Himpin (sp ?). In 1773, a John Dilley bought land in Shenandoah Co. VA and later he sold three parcels of the land in 1778 and 1780; then he disappeared except possibly for an appearance in tax records in Augusta Co., VA in 1782. John Dilley Jr. was born in Shenandoah Co. 13 Mar 1774; he married Elizabeth Ackland in Bath Co., VA 24 Dec 1794. Creation of new counties by division of large, old ones resulted in changing counties of residence for the Dilleys along the VA and W. VA border; but they may have lived continuously in the same localities, including Bath, Pocahontas and Nicholas counties, which became homes for Dilleys after their erection. This included Martin and Henry Dilley born about 1780, and who married about 1810 in Pocahontas Co., (then Bath Co.). Catherine, John Sr.’s probable widow, was a resident of these same counties in 1800 and 1810 by tax and census records.

 All of the four brothers whom Thelma Reeder believes were sons of John Sr. became residents of Pocahontas and Nicholas counties in West Virginia. This compilation is a source of data on VA-born Dilleys. Some families have been presented by Thelma, Marvin Hill and others, but most of the collection of records is intended as a data source. Users should check these data and attempt to find proof for them. Census records have been provided for checking families and ages. There is a separate census index before page 26. The general index covers all other items except the tentative family compilations, pages 63 to 75, which are intended only for work bases. The index includes fathers when known and sometimes wives to help searchers find names of their ancestors. Those tables that are alphabetized are easier to use without the index; therefore, they have been omitted from the general index. Use the list of contents for entry into alphabetized tables. Several letters have been included to show the evolution of VA Dilley research; many speculations are presented. Please be cautious in accepting all records. The Timeline is provided as another index of important events and participants in chronological order.

 The primary sources for this account are: 1. biographies of Martin and Henry Dilley of Pocahontas Co., W. VA. by Wm T. Price of Marlinton, 1902; 2. Thomas Ray Dille, a lawyer who lived in Morgantown, W. VA, and who collected Dilley records from 1920 to 1939 when he died; his records are deposited in the Library of the university of West Virginia at Morgantown. I have some copies from over 1000 pages of microfilm that I obtained in 1950 from Thomas Ray's records; 3. The Dille Family, Three Hundred Years in America by George Earl Dille and his wife and son, provided a genealogy of Martin and Henry Dilley in the appendix of the book. 4. Thelma Reeder of St. George, UT, who has collected Dilley records from a network of descendants for nearly 40 Years; 5. Marvin Hill of Beverly, W. VA who has lived in W.VA all his life and knows many Dilleys and their living sites. Others who have contributed data are Don Dilley of CA, now deceased, Susan King Murphy of Menlo Park, CA, and Neville Dille of Louisville, KY; Both are descendants of VA Dilleys from the Cumberland and Belpre branches respectively.

 I am the compiler of this account for which I accept responsibility; but I am most grateful for the generous contributions of the two co-authors. Thelma Reeder of St. George Utah who has long compiled data on VA Dilleys; and Marvin Hill of Beverly, W. VA who is a direct descendant of Henry Dilley; Marvin has a large collection of data on descendants of Martin and Henry Dilley whose living sites he has visited throughout his life. We welcome corrections and additions to our account. We probably will submit this genealogy to the library of the Latter Day Saints in Salt Lake City for possible microfilming.