The Pierre Chastain Family Association
 

The Pierre Chastain Family Association


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MESSAGES: Last Update 7 Nov 2003..... Please remember to renew your membership by January 1, 2004,  send dues to the Membeship Chair, Tim Chastain..... New queries posted concerning Henderson  Chastain and  Lydia (daugher of Elijah Chastain).....

Welcome!!!

Welcome to PCFA!!  If you're researching a Chastain, or like a spelling surname ancestor, this should be the place for you!!  Most Chastain lineage research generates a direct or indirect relationship with the French Huguenot immigrant, Pierre Chastain (1659-1728).  Pierre's descendants, as with most American families of this era, migrated westward from his original home in Virginia, both across and up and down the Appalachian Mountains, and of course, from there further westward.  Later generations came to use varied spellings of the surname, for various reasons.  Common spelling variations of Chastain include Chastaine, Chasteen, Chastine, Chesteen, Shasteen, Shastine, and Shastid.  The spelling was also corrupted as Chasten and Castain on many early legal documents. 

The Pierre Chastain Family Association was formed in 1975 after Mr. Elby F. Bowan sent invitations to fellow "Chastain" researchers to attend a conference on the interests of further research and the coordination of these efforts into a society or association.  A group of interested parties met on August 31, 1975 at Dyer, Arkansas that lead directly to the formation of the association.  The objectives were to collect, document, organize, preserve, and eventually publish the lineage, genealogical, historical, and related data concerning the descendants of Pierre and in general that pertaining to the Chastain surname.  

There were fifteen charter members of PCFA and by the time of the first issue of the association's "newsletter", The Chestnut Tree©, in January of 1976, the membership had grown to 42 members!  Today the membership numbers approximately 500.  A computer database of close to 40,000 individual records submitted by the membership over the years in their research is maintained by a volunteer Genealogist.  The data includes not only the demographic data associated with usual lineage material but also numerous census, bible, land, and other legal records documenting the descendants of Pierre, often covering 12 or more generations.  Due to the research efforts of the membership since 1975, a great amount of documentation has been accumulated that allows almost instant lineage verification and placed this material in print in volumes such as "Pierre Chastain and His Descendants" for generations to come.

PCFA is a non-profit membership fee based family association that functions exclusively with volunteer participation in the various administrative and clerical areas of organization.  As mentioned earlier, PCFA has a Genealogist who supervises and directs the compilation of genealogical records of the ancestors and descendants of Pierre Chastain. The Genealogist provides the membership with assistance in accessing the existing compiled data and provides research tips and advice to those doing further research on any Chastain genealogy. The Association also has a Historian who directs the compilation and writing of biographies, family histories, and personal histories pertaining to Chastain ancestors and descendants. The Association's Librarian maintains a Family History Library of all Chastain publications. PCFA has continued the tradition of the founding members by holding a "reunion" or annual conference at at various locations around the country, information and details are posted under the link "Annual Reunion."

We are extremely interested in making contact with anyone who has a Chastain ancestor and extend an invitation of membership to all with interest in Chastain Genealogy, detailed data can be found under "Membership Information".  If you have a Chastain ancestor, please contact our Corresponding Secretary - Genealogist Emeritus, Gerre Buland, and relate your ancestry, interest, etc. Gerre's mailing address is noted under Association Officers. It could be you who relates that missing link!


 

 

 

 

 

 

is a registered trademark of The Pierre Chastain Family Association and can not be reproduced without written permission. "THE CHESTNUT TREE", copyright 1975-2003 by The Pierre Chastain Family Association, all rights reserved.

 
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