Wednesday, August 29, 2012

James Axley Stevens and Thomas Smith


The following information is from Janice Brown, an avid researcher and a friend of mine.

     James Axley Stevens, captured along with Thomas Smith on New Year's Day, 1862, survived the war and returned home to Ohio County.  Born in 1817, he was the son of Henry Stevens and Hannah Bennett, both of whom are said to have come to Ohio County, from Montgomery County, Maryland.

     The Stevens and Smith families appear to be closely connected and some of the families may have intermarried.  Almost five years later, on the 21st day of October, 1869, Thomas Smith's friend, James A. Stevens, gave an affidavit, along with several others, on behalf of and for the benefit of Kitty Ann, when she was trying to obtain a widow's pension.  In this affidavit, James declared and made oath:

      "that he and Thomas Smith were both members of Capt. William H. Porter's Company of Home Guards, and that on the 1st day of January, a squad of the company were guarding Borah's Ferry on Green River by order of Colonel McHenry of the 17th, who was then at Hartford, and the Rebels then held Bowling Green and the ferry way between those points, and that the squad was captured by the Rebels, and affiant and Smith were retained in custody until 15th Sept. 1862 when they were paroled and sent to Annapolis, Md. Smith was sick at the time they were paroled, and Thomas was sent to a hospital and died there of diahrrea (sic) which disease he caught while a captive."

      Kitty Ann (Jenkins) Smith, then age 32, was never to see her husband again. She was left with a small farm near Cromwell and the duty of raising their five young children, ranging in age from six months to eleven years.  She eventually obtained a widow's pension by a special Act of Congress.  It took a special Act because her husband was in the Home Guards, and not a soldier in the regular U. S. Army.  But, because the Home Guard militia had been ordered out by Col. John McHenry of the 17th Kentucky Regiment, Thomas Smith's duty at Borah's Ferry was considered to be active war service.  She was granted a pension of $8.00 per month as shown in the Special Act of Congress.

     Additional information about Thomas Smith: Thomas Smith begins in Meade County, Kentucky in 1849, where I first found documented record of Thomas' marriage to Catherine Ann "Kitty Ann" Jenkins.  They were married by George H. Hicks, M.G., on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1848.  Further documentation was found in the "consent" records wherein Benjamin Shacklett Jenkins, father of Kitty Ann, gave his consent to Mr. Fairleigh, the county clerk, requesting him to issue a license for his daughter to unite her in marriage to Thomas Smith.  Likewise, Thomas F. Smith, father of Thomas, Jr., gave consent for his son to be joined in matrimony with Kitty Ann Jenkins.  This was recorded in the Meade County, Kentucky Marriage Bonds Consent notes.  Both were required to have the consent of their parents because they were under age to marry.

      In the 1850 Meade County census records, Thomas Smith, age 19, farmer, born Kentucky, is listed with his wife, Catherine, also age 19, born Kentucky and their new baby, a son, six months old. They were listed in Household No. 382-383 in the Kentucky  District.  Living next door in No.381-382 was Kitty Ann's parents, Benjamin S. Jenkins and Elizabeth, and three of their younger children:  John, 17; Sarah, 14; Fulton, 8, and John Jenkins, 80, born Pennsylvania, father of Benjamin Shacklett Jenkins.

     Further, John James Leach was also captured and imprisoned and returned home as did  James Axley Stevens.  Janice tells the following story that was told to her by her great-aunt, Elizabeth "Lizzie" (Smith) Sandefur: "Auntie said that when the war was over, Thomas Smith was too sick to return home by foot, and the Leach friend went to get him in a wagon to take him to back home in, and before he could get back to the prison -- upon his return there -- he found that Thomas Smith had died two days before." 

     My grandmother went on to say that the men in the family took a wagon and went down to Green River to meet the boat when it was expected to come in, with the Ohio County men on it and to get Thomas Smith to take him home. Of course, they found out he was not on the boat because he had died. My grandmother said his wife, Kitty Ann (Jenkins) Smith had made him his favorite pie - a cherry pie, to welcome him home. Thomas Smith did not live to see his youngest son born." 

     John James Leach died May 12, 1892 at home near Cromwell at age 63.  He was a Mason and he is buried in the Williams family cemetery. 


Sunday, August 19, 2012

Julius C. Jackson


Maybe the following will help some Jackson Family descendant:

Early Deeds of Pike County, Missouri: Book C:535; dated 10 June 1831, Christopher Jackson sold to Julius C. Jackson of Ohio County, Kentucky, for love and affection for his son, Julius C., land on Noise Creek, a branch of the Mississippi River.

Marguerite Leach Bohl


Telephone interview with Marguerite Leach Bohl conducted November 24, 2001.  Marguerite was born 23 Oct 1908 in Ohio County and died 1 April 2007 in Lubbock, Texas.

“My father was Clyde Leach and my mother was Sylvia May McCoy.  Father was born 29 Sep 1879 and died 9 Aug 1962.  Mother was born 1 May 1887 and died 2 Oct 1980.  My grandfather was Samuel William Leach and my grandmother was Finis Swain.  Grandfather and grandmother had 4 sons and no daughters: Oscar, Harney Leslie, Clyde and Chester.

Grandmother Leach (Finis) had a brother we called Uncle Sip who raised trotting horses.  I remember watching them race at the Ohio County Fair.  The horses pulled a sulky while racing.

When I was a child we lived near the Swain farm (Note: I am told the Swain Farm was in the Prentiss area; southeast of Shultztown; and is on the north bank of the Green River near Hudnall’s Landing).  My mother called Uncle Sip's wife "Aunt Willie," and I remember mother telling me to run over to Aunt Willie's home and borrow a cup of flour.  To get there I had to go through the field where Uncle Sip had his horses and they were very big and I was afraid of them.  My father, Clyde Leach, would keep the (racing) time for Uncle Sip with Uncle Sip's stopwatch.  After Uncle Sip died my father ended up with the stopwatch, possibly by inheritance, and I got it when father died.  I gave it to Otis Leach, who lived in Owensboro, and his son, Billy Leach, has it now.

I remember that Uncle Sip and Grandmother Leach (Finis) had a sister that we called Aunt Lydia, and that she married a Cooper and had two children, Juanita and Corbit.  Corbit was a Mason and was very good to Uncle Leslie Leach's (Harney Leslie Leach) widow, Ella, after Uncle Leslie died (Uncle Leslie was also a Mason).  I remember that Aunt Lydia lived west of Beaver Dam, near Centertown.

Uncle Sip had a daughter named Effie T. Swain that married Richard (Dick) Taylor.  They had two children, Ruby and Wilma, who were friends of mine.  I remember that Effie had a family Bible that had all of the Swain family information. (Note:  I see that Elida Quantrilla Swain married a Cooper, and this is probably the person they called Aunt Lydia, so I assume Marguerite is correct about Uncle Sip having a daughter named Effie that married a Cooper.  From another source I have an Effie T. Swain b. 3 Feb 1876 in Ohio County d. 5 Aug 1975 Ohio County, so Uncle Sip would have been 23 yrs old when Effie was born.)

I remember spending the night with Grandmother Leach (Finis) when I was quite young.  She cooked in the fireplace.  I slept upstairs in a little room.  She had a shawl that hung on a nail that she called a facinator. When Uncle Oscar Leach's wife died I was small and they held the wake at Grandmother Leach's house.”  (Note: There is a Leach family cemetery at the old Samuel William Leach farm, which is east of Beaver Dam about 5 miles, just north of the Green River Parkway on Bald Knob Road. I have visited that cemetery and I know that  Samuel William Leach is buried there, as well as several other members of that family.  Marguerite told me she had been to the cemetery many times.  She said it was near where Samuel and Finis lived.)

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Ohio County Historical Markers


Ohio County Historical Markers

  
Courthouse Burned (State Marker 581, Hartford, Courthouse lawn, US 231, Ohio Co.)

A Skirmish In 1861 (State Marker 671, Cromwell, US 231, Ohio Co.)

County Named, 1798 (State Marker 1144, Hartford, Courthouse lawn, US 231, Ohio Co.)

Site of Fort Hartford (State Marker 1195, N. of Hartford at Rough River Bridge, US 231, Ohio Co.)

First Public Building (State Marker 1196, Hartford, Courthouse lawn, US 231, Ohio Co.)

First Bridge (State Marker 1259, Just outside Hartford city limits, N. side of Rough River, US 231, Ohio Co.)

The Ohio County News (State Marker 1266, Center St. across from Ohio County Courthouse, Hartford, US 231, Ohio Co.)

Early Surgery (State Marker 1267, 415 Mulberry Street, Hartford, US 231, Ohio Co.)  

Beaver Dam (State Marker 1330, Beaver Dam, US 231, Ohio Co.)

Ceralvo - Three mile South (State Marker 1370, Centertown, Jct. KY 85 and old Ceralvo Road, Ohio Co.)

Howell Land (State Marker 1461, 5 mi. W. of Centertown, KY 85, Ohio Co.)

Barnett's Station (State Marker 1463, 2 mi. E. of Hartford on Barnett's Station Rd., just off KY 69, Ohio Co.)

Famous Kentucky Artist (State Marker 1485, Main St., in front of Hartford Library, US 231, Ohio Co.)

Rosine (State Marker 1510, Rosine, US 62, Ohio Co.)

Man of Courage (State Marker 1548, 415 Mulberry St., Hartford, Ohio Co.)

PFC Wesley Phelps (State Marker 1672, Rosine, US 62 near KY 1544, Ohio Co.)
Medal Of Honor Winner

McHenry (State Marker 1674, McHenry, US 62 near the post office, Ohio Co.)

Charles Wallace Home ---> (State Marker 1745, 2 mi. E. of Hartford, adjacent to KY 69, Ohio Co.) I am told this Historical Marker has gone missing.

John C. Thomas House (State Marker 1829, Hartford, 415 Mulberry St., Ohio Co.)

Rev. William Downs (State Marker 1834, 415 Mulberry St., Hartford, Ohio Co.)

Leach Family Bible


The following came from J. L. Thomas, Morgantown, KY.  He says he is the grandchild of Margaret J. Leach & Nathaniel J. Thomas.  He furnished copies of two pages from an old Leach Bible.  I obtained a copy of this from the Allen County Public Library, Ft. Wayne, IN (April 2005).


Leach Family Bible (actual words)                 |        Charles Leach comments

(family of Wm. C. and Nancy (nee Leach)

Sallie B. Leach was borned June 22, 1813         |       probably a child of his first    
                                                                                    marriage
John H. Leach was borned March 10, 1817       |                  

Lucinda Leach was borned Dec 6, 1818            |       married Ewen Morris

Leonard W. Leach was borned April 15, 1821  |      married Rosanna Morris

R M. Leach was borned June 27, 1823             |                   

Wm. F. Leach was borned Dec 9, 1827            |        married Sarah F. Anglea

Joseph Leach was borned Feb 14, 1835            |                               
wife Kitty Ann

Mary C. Leach was borned Feb 2, 1837            |        married Elizer L. Crowe
                                                                                                 
(family of Leonard W. & Rosanna
(nee Morris)              

Sarah E. Leach was borned Aug 2, 1843           |         married Henry Allen

Ewen Leach was borned March 29, 1846          |                    

Wm C. Leach was borned March 28, 1848       |                    
married Nancy M.                                                       (Young?)

Nancy E. Leach was borned Oct 1, 1850          |        married Robert Simpson

? H. Leach was borned Feb 1, 1853                  |
           
Amanda C. Leach was borned Dec 2, 1855       |        married Anthony Maden
                                                                              
Hester A. Leach was borned June 11, 1857       |        married Ezra Young

Leonard C. Leach was borned April 1, 1859      |                                                        
married Ola Cox; buried in O’boro

Margaret J. Leach was borned Sept 1, 1861       |                                
Married Nathaniel J. Thomas; buried Butler Co.

Marriages:

L. W. Leach & Rosana Morris was
married Oct 10, 184?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  
Note:  This document also says that William C. Leach remarried, after the death of Nancy Leach, to Mary C. Crow (1812-1884), and had four children.  It says the youngest child was Warren C.


Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Cox Family Historians


Cox Family Historians
by Cox Family “Scribes”

In every family there always seems to be one person chosen and called on to be the “keeper” and finder of the family ancestors.  It must be in our genes.  In reading the following chapters about the fourteen children of James William Cox and Mary Elizabeth Mitchell, it is important to know that a number of great-grandchildren of this couple are also family historians in their own right and have contributed information I would never have known about except for them. 

First and foremost credit is given to Loretta Westerfield, the daughter of Cinderella (Cox) and Tom Crowder, whom I corresponded and exchanged information with for nearly ten years.  By the time we finally met each other in 1975 when my family went to Kentucky, we felt like we had known each other always.  And we had, through our letters over almost a decade.

Doris (Cox) Goodwin, the daughter of Talmadge and Stella Cox, son of John William Cox, Sr., contributed much information and many obituaries to the family.  Doris and I have also written and talked to each other for almost a decade now.  I plan to drive up to meet her in the spring of 2010 after my retirement at the end of this year from the bank where I have worked for the past fifteen years.  Doris and I have had a lot of fun analyzing the records and assembling information for many family members on her side of the family.

In the Orlando Clay and Sudie Belle (Allen) Cox family, Ed and Pat Matthews have worked on their genealogy and contributed information for that line of the family.  They came by to see me several years ago and we enjoyed a good visit and talked of family memories.

James Coy Cox, son of Ira Clinton and Anna Martha (Coy) Cox family of Louisville, has shared his family stories and usually talked to each other on phone once or twice a year.  James and I stayed in touch after I first met him in the 1970’s when he paid a surprise visit to my grandparents and recorded their visit on audio tape so he could take it home to share with his mother, who resided in the Masonic Home there in Louisville. 

Before his untimely death, William Conrad “W. C.” Hocker of Beaver Dam and I wrote back and forth about his line, and we talked on the telephone several times.  He was the grandson of Mary Ellen (Cox) and William Cornelius Stewart; he was the son of Ola Myrtle (Stewart) and Searcy Arol Hocker, and was very interested in the family history.

In the family of Gabriel Netter Cox of Greene County, Arkansas, whom I recently discovered through the internet website, I have met by telephone Ira Clinton Cox (II), as well as his brother Robert Donald Cox and his wife Ann, who came by to visit recently on their way home from South Texas back to Arkansas.  But best of all, Ira’s daughter, Taunya (Cox) Smith is the family historian of her family and has recently sent photos and much information to enter on the family group chart of “Netter” Cox and his wife, Leva (Howard).  Their family knew hardly anything of the large Ohio County Cox family and all of the cousins they had!  What fun it is to discover new cousins!  Ira and I have talked by phone five or six times already!

Just like me, all of my second cousins named above, are interested in the family memories, their history, and what happened to the earlier generations.

To us, there is an urge to put flesh on the bones of our ancestors and make them live again, to tell the family story, and to feel that somehow they know about our efforts and research, and they approve of it.  Maybe we feel or hear their voices that just cry out to us – “Tell our story.”  And so, we do! 

And to be sure to get it right, I try to document the facts about their lives – the ones who went before us - beginning with Bible records, census, marriage, military, deeds, and tax records – information gleaned from the courthouse, newspapers, death certificates, obituaries, and finally church and cemetery records.  All of these records when put together in chronological order tell a story and provide dates and places and more. 

So for us, “telling their story” is all about the pride we feel in what our ancestors were able to accomplish.  About how they contributed to what we have become today – how they dealt with their hardships and losses, how they never gave up or gave in, but continued resolutely to build a life for their families.

Lest all their stories be lost in time, the scribes in our family continue to share and tell the story to sum up who we are.  Will you be a scribe?  Will you be the one to tell the story of the next generation and take your place in our line as family storytellers?  After us, someone will have to step up, young or old, to continue to restore past memories – and greet those whom we have never known before, who won’t be known, unless the next generation answers the call as “family scribe” and takes our place.

~.~

           The following article about a Cox family reunion was sent to me by my cousin, Doris Goodwin of Jonesboro, Indiana in March 2009.  The granddaughter of John William Cox, she found it in her father’s Bible.  It was not dated, but since it stated that the reunion was held on Wednesday, August 14, I was able to go back and check out annual calendar dates on the internet and determined that this family reunion was probably held on Wednesday, August 14, 1940, at the home of Loretta Westerfield. Loretta gave another family reunion when she invited all the relatives to attend a 50th Wedding Anniversary of her parents, Tom and Cinderella Crowder.  It was also held Wednesday, August 14 – but the year was 1946, so the Cox reunion below was six years earlier:

~.~
Cox Family Reunion
Wednesday, August 14, 1940
~.~
                                   
                                    The families of the late J. W. Cox celebrated with a
                        reunion at the home of Mr. and Mrs. A. R. Westerfield on
                        Wednesday, August 14.  At the noon hour a bountiful dinner
                        was served.  The program in the afternoon consisted of Bible
                        readings and singing and some very interesting talks by Rev.
                        J. J. Willet, Luther Duvall, Oscar Stewart and N. B. Davis.

                                    Those present were Mr. and Mrs. E. G. Allen and son,
Ernest; Mrs. Robert Bonhom and son, Bobbie; Mrs. J. T. Clark,
Mrs. Wavy Liles and daughter, Gloria, and granddaughter,
Prosha Marie Holt, all of East St. Louis, Ill.

                                    Mr. and Mrs. Oscar Stewart, Mrs. Delina Everill and a
                        daughter, Betty Sue and Janis Faye; Mrs. Elmer Edieon and
                        daughter, Lavada, all of Whiting Ind.; Mrs. Neal Patchlin and
                        children, JoAnn and Bobbie, of Albuquerque, New Mexico;
                        Luther Duvall of Akron, Ohio; Mr. and Mrs. Gordon Cox and
                        and children, Cecil, Esker, Wanda, Norma Jean, Willard, Doris
                        Dean, and Stanley of Vanzant, Ky.

                                    Rev. and Mrs. J. J. Willet of Beaver Dam; Mr. and Mrs.
                        Roy Stewart and son, Theron of Cromwell, Ky; Mrs. Charles Oamis
                        of Logansport; Mr. and Mrs. J. M. Christian and Mr. N. B. Davis
                        of Horse Branch, Mrs. Ola T. Leach of Owensboro; Mr. and Mrs.
                        Seth Davis and daughter, Delphine Davis; Mr. and Mrs. Aral Hocker
                        and son, N. C.; Mr. T. H. Baize, Mr. Adrian Stewart of Mt. Pleasant;
                        Mr. J. C.  Cox of Equality; Mr. and Mrs. H. T. Crowder, Mr. and Mrs.
                       A.     R. Westerfield and son Orville of Rosine.

            Four generations and five states were represented at the reunion.
    All reported a very enjoyable time.

~.~

Apparently, my grandparents, Jasper Newton and Eva (Smith) Cox, and their children, Gilbert, Eula Mae, Retha and Darrell, who were living in South Texas in the 1940’s, were unable to attend, and that is too bad, because they were so far from their “old Kentucky home.”  Both my grandparents always loved Ohio County and their families there.  My grandmother’s favorite song was “My Old Kentucky Home” and when she heard it played, she always stood with her hand over her heart, just like it was the National Anthem.  Her image remains in my mind and memory, and it makes me smile now to remember that!

Family reunions can be much more than a fun-time with family. It is a powerful way to help bond families together.  Reunions enable family members to revisit and reflect on the values of the family when they can gather together.  It allows them to discuss the family history and experiences for the entire family, young and old.  At the same time, reunions such as the Cox reunion in 1940, document the family’s history and was surely a memorable experience for several generations who were able to attend.  It was a chance to share love and rejoice in simply being together–a celebration.

The Cox Family Reunion of 1940 gave younger family members an opportunity to see the family in a whole different light when they got together and enjoyed happy feelings among invited aunts, uncles, cousins, parents, grandparents, and family friends. It was an event that was probably discussed, talked about, and remembered all year long – and for many years later to all those who could recall a happy time in a more leisurely world.

It was good they had this family reunion before World War II started, else these families probably would have been much more scattered than they were in August 1940. This is surely why it was always said of Cinderella and later of her daughter Loretta Westerfield, that they were the “glue” that held the family together by reunions and visits throughout the year.  They always welcomed family members into their homes.  It was a gathering place for those from a far distance when they returned to Ohio County for visits with “the folks back home.”

~.~

This post is excerpted from my book, "James William Cox and Mary Elizabeth Mitchell of Ohio Co. KY and Their 14 Descendants."  


Janice Brown
Sept 2009

Monday, August 13, 2012

CROMWELL HOME GUARDS


CROMWELL HOME GUARDS OF OHIO COUNTY

            Captain Porter is mentioned in Colonel Burbridge's report of the Woodbury Skirmish as the commander of the Home Guard Unit that assisted in this action.   While the Home Guards were not intended to be the first line fighting units, they did succeed in harassing tactics, supplying needed information to active units, and in denying information and supplies to Confederate units active in the area of operations.  Captain Lewers, First Mississippi Cavalry alluded to the success of the Home Guard in supplying pertinent information of Confederate forces in his report of 30 October 1861 to Colonel Wirt Adams.

            The sentiment of the neighborhood in which I was staioned being almost exclusively inimical to our cause, the enemy was always in possession of the most accurate information as to our strength and movements[1]

This company was organized in June of 1861 and maintained its identity for seven or eight months, fighting at different times and places that were not reported specifically. 

NAME                                   GRADE                                 



PORTER, W.H.                    Captain
LEACH, J.H.                        1LT
REID, Jonathon                    2LT
ROGERS, W.L.                    3SGT
*HOUSE, J.W.                      1 SGT
PORTER, M.V.                    SGT
WHITTINGHILL, Elijah         SGT
*TAYLOR, R. F.                  SGT
TAYLOR, M.                        CPL
HOCKER, J.W.                    CPL
*KEOWN, T.M.                   CPL
*WISE, H.P.                        Musician
**LEACH, J.J.                     Musician
ARNOLD, W.                       PVT
ARNOLD, S.                       PVT
ALLEN, V.P.                       PVT
*ARBUCKLE, J.W.             PVT
*ANDERSON, J.W.             PVT
*ALLEN, WE.B.                  PVT
*ARNOLD, Jacob B.           PVT
CROWDER, D.H.                PVT
CROWDER, Henry             PVT
*ARNOLD, J.H.                   PVT
ALBIN, B.T.                         PVT
ANGLEA, Wm.                    PVT
ARBUCKLE, Logan             PVT
BLANKENSHIP, T.M.          PVT
BAIZE, John                        PVT
BRIZENDINE, E.G.              PVT
BROWN, P.H.                     PVT
*BRACKEN, Wm.                PVT
*BRADLEY; Thomas            PVT
BECK, P.A.                         PVT
BRIANT, J.A.                      PVT
BRYANT, Volney                 PVT
*BAISE, Henry                    PVT
COPE, S.R.                        PVT
*COX, L.T.                           PVT
COX, T.J.                             PVT
CULBERSON, R.J.               PVT
*CORNELL, H.T.                  PVT
CROWDER, W.A.                PVT
PORTER, E.O.                    PVT
PERSON, Jordan                 PVT
CHAPMAN, J.J.                   PVT
*COPE, J.E.                        PVT
DAVIS, T.J.                          PVT
DOCKERY, W.E. PVT
*DAVIS, W.H.                     PVT
*DAVIS, T.L.                       PVT
DAVIS, A.H.                       PVT
DOUGHETY, Thos. J.          PVT
DOUGHETY, Benj.              PVT
*AVIS, B.M.                         PVT
DAUGHTEY, W.H.               PVT
*EZEL, B.                            PVT
FINDLEY, J.D.                     PVT
*FLENER, J.A.                     PVT
*FLENER, B.F.                     PVT
FLENER, HARRISON           PVT
GEORGE, J.A.                      PVT
GOFF, H.                             PVT
*GILSTRAP, F.M.                 PVT
HOUSE, P.M.                       PVT
HUDSON, J.A.                     PVT
*HODGES, U.A.                  PVT
*HOBDEZ, J.B.                    PVT
HER, H.L.                            PVT
JAMES, J.L.                        PVT
#JAMES, J.A.                     PVT
JINKINS, John H.                PVT
*JINKINS, B.F.                    PVT
*JONAGIN, J.H.                   PVT
JOHNAGIN, N.A.                 PVT
*JONES, J.H.                       PVT
*JONES, H.S.                      PVT
KEOWN, W.S.                     PVT
*KING, W.T.                        PVT
KEOWN, Harrison               PVT
KEOWN, Nathan                 PVT
LEACH, L.H.                        PVT
*LEACH, J.H.                      PVT
LEACH,  J.G.                      PVT
LIKENS, J.                          PVT
LEACH, W.C.                      PVT
LANHAM, G.J.                    PVT
*LEACH, W.B.                    PVT
MORRIS, H.F.                     PVT
MILLER, W.H.                     PVT
MONTAGUE, A.P.              PVT
*MARTIN, R.R.                   PVT
MARTIN, W.N.                   PVT
MILLER, A.J.                       PVT
MILLER, R.H.                      PVT
MITCHELL, Jno                    PVT
NORMAN, J.P.C. PVT
PARROTT, F.M.                  PVT
RAFFERTY, B.P. PVT
RAFFERTY, S.S. PVT
*RAMSEY, C.P.                  PVT
RAFFERTY, G.T.                 PVT
RANEY, J.S.                       PVT
REID, J.J.                            PVT
*RALEY, J.J.                       PVT
*RALEY, H.J.                      PVT
*RAMER, M.B.                   PVT
RAFFERTY, J.W.                PVT
RAINES, L.H.                       PVT
*ROBERTS, J.A.                 PVT
RUDD, Thomas                   PVT
RAGSDALE, J.E. PVT
RALEY, J.S.                        PVT
RANEY, S.P.                       PVT
STEWART, G.T.                  PVT
SMITH, J.M.                         PVT
STEWART, J.M.                  PVT
SIGLER, Dr. J.J.                  PVT
*STEVENS, H.B. PVT
*STEWART, C.W.                PVT
*SINCLAIR, A.C.                   PVT
SANDIFER, R.J.                  PVT
SHUTTS, M.J.                      PVT
SMITH, N.B.                         PVT
**SMITH, Thomas                PVT
**STEVENS, J.A.                 PVT
STEWART, W.N. PVT
SANDEFER, W.A.               PVT
*SHUTTS, J.L.                      PVT
STEWART, B.W. PVT
SANDEFER, J.B. PVT
SANDEFER, W.H.               PVT
TAYLOR, J.H.                      PVT
*TAYLOR, W.D. PVT
TAYLOR, L.D.                     PVT
TAYLOR, A.W.                   PVT
*TAYLOR, J.R.                    PVT
TATAM, S.A.                      PVT
*TAYLOR, H.W. PVT
TAYLOR, R.L.                     PVT
TAYLOR, W.H.                   PVT
TAYLOR, S.S.                    PVT
TAYLOR, Milton PVT
VOLENTINE, G.Y.               PVT
WILSON, J.R.                      PVT
WATSON, B.F.                   PVT
WALL, Henry                      PVT
WILLIAMS, J.W.                 PVT
WILLIAMS, S.T.                 PVT
YOUNG, P.M.                    PVT
YOUNG, ALFRED               PVT


  
*Enlisted in U.S Service
** captured 1 Jan. Borah's Ferry
# KIA, 1 Jan. Borah's Ferry

Source:  War Comes to Butler County, by Richard J. Reid, EdD
Copyright  Richard J. Reid


[1] OR's, Series I, Volume 4, p.223.


Browning Genealogy Database


Browning Genealogy Database

Although it might seem like a stretch, I have found some information about the death of several Ohio County, KY residents in this wonderful database. While most of the individuals in this database were residents of Evansville and nearby towns, it is certainly worth the effort to check this resource.

The Browning Genealogy Database is the lifetime work of Charles Browning, who compiled the obituary records of Vanderburgh County and surrounding southwestern Indiana from the Evansville newspapers: The Evansville Courier, The Evansville Press, and now The Evansville Courier and Press. As owner of Browning Funeral Home since 1954, Mr. Browning began 45 years ago compiling and cataloguing obituary records. 
Information on each deceased person listed in the database includes fifteen categories, encompassing age, date of death, survivors, funeral information, cemetery, occupation, and activities.  This attention to detail provides a vital community resource and source for genealogical research.

Currently, the database is complete from the early 1900s to date and is kept up-to-date by the Browning family and the dedicated staff of the Browning Funeral Home. 

The search results are divided into two categories, i.e.  information entered before 1990 and after 1990, with the former being limited to information that was entered on index cards that are viewable, and the latter being saved in a digital format. You can conduct a search by just entering a surname.

Here is a link to the site:  https://www.browninggenealogy.org/cm/Databases

Courthouses Burned During the Civil War


JOHN HUNT MORGAN DIDN'T DO IT ALL; COUNTY HOLDINGS - GALLATIN THROUGH GREENUP
(c) 1997 by Sandi Gorin


     I recently saw an article reprinted from the Paducah Sun-Democrat -
not dated. But thought it might be of interest to the readers. This was
reprinted in an Edmonson Co KY quarterly entitled "Echoes From Edmonson
County" by by Kathie Rajewich:

"Confederates Torched a Dozen .. 22 Courthouses Burned in Kentucky During
the Civil War." Written by Hall Allen.

  "Twenty-two Kentucky Courthouses were burned during the Civil War - 19
of them in the last 15 months of the conflict.

     "The Kentucky Historical Highway Marker Program, under the direction
of W. A. Wentworth, Frankfort, has just finished placing markers of the
historic sites.

     "One side of the marker tells of the buring at athat paraticular
place, and the other contains a map of Kentucky, showing the locations of
all the burnings.

     "The greatest 'courthouse burning spree' was conducted by Gen. Hylan
B. Lyon, a native of Eddyville. He invaded Kentucky with 800 men in
December, 1864, to recruit Confederate soldiers, securing supplies and
divert forces from the defense of Nashville which was under attack.

     "With Confederate fortunes fading rapidly, Lyon found recruiting
slow, and he undertook to enforce the Confederate Draft Law.  In several
towns he conscripted all able-bodied men and put them under oath to join
him on Jan. 20. Later he complained bitterly that all failed to show up
for induction.

     "Lyon's forces entered the state about Dec. 12th, and promptly burned
the Christian County courthouse at Hopkinsville. As in most cases, he
allowed officials to remove their records. After commandearing clothing
and other supplies, he moved tdo Cadiz on Dec. 13.

     "The Trigg County courthouse there was occupied by Union soldiers who
fled as the Confederate forces advanced. They left behind one soldier who
was too ill to travel. A member of Lyon's command promptly decided the
soldier was suffering from smallpox, shot him on the spot, and burned the
"contaminated" building.

     "The following day Lyon reached Eddyville, his home town. He routed
the Union troops but spared the courthouse because it was across the
street from his home and a member of his family was reported to be ill in
the home.

     "The other courthouses burned by Lyon and his men:

     CALDWELL COUNTY:  Lyon and his forces arrived at Princeton on Dec. 15
whre, as the general said in a report, "I burned the courthouse and
annoyed the people."

     HOPKINS COUNTY:  At Madisonville, on Dec. 17, Lyon's men burned the
courthouse and conscripted a number of men who failed to join him later.

     OHIO COUNTY:  On Dec. 20, Lyon's forces captured and paroled a group
of Union soldiers quartered in the courthouse at Hartford. Then he burned
the courthouse.

     GRAYSON COUNTY:  On Christmas Eve a contingent of Lyon's forces
burned the court house at Leitchfield.

     TAYLOR COUNTY:  The courthouse at Campbellsville was burned Christmas
Day. By this time desertions had reduced his forces to about 250 men and
Lyon started moving out of the state to rejoin Gen. Nathan Bedford
Forrest's command.

     CUMBERLAND COUNTY:  The Lyon raids ended at Burkesville on Jan. 3,
with the burning of the courthouse, robbery of stores and seizure of the
houses.  Lyon then moved south to Alabama.

     "Other courthouses burned during the Civil War:

     BRECKINRIDGE COUNTY: On Dec, 28, 1864, guerillas burned the
courthouse at Hardinsburg but citizens saved the records and a part of the
building.

     MARION COUNTY:The County Clerk's office at Lebanon was burned July 5,
1863, by Gen. John Hunt Morgan, to destroy treason indictments against
some of his men.

     MONTGOMERY COUNTY: Confederate cavalrymen burned the Mt. Sterling
courthouse Dec. 2, 1863, to prevent its use as a Union garrison.
  
     POWELL COUNTY: In the spring of 1863 guerrillas burned the courthouse
and other buildings at Stanton.

     HARLAN COUNTY:  In October, 1863, the courthouse at Harlan was burned
for reprisal for the burning of the Lee County, Va. courthouse.

     DAVIESS COUNTY: Courthouse at Owensboro burned by guerrillas on Jan.
4, 1865, while it was being occupied by Union troops.

     LARUE COUNTY: The courthouse at Hodgenville was burned by guerrillas
on Feg. 21, 1865. It had been used by Union soldiers as barracks.

     BATH COUNTY:  On March 21, 1864, Union troops fled the courthouse at
Owingsville as a Confederate force approached.  An overheated stove
started a fire, destroying the building.

     MONROE COUNTY:  The courthousse and other buildings at Tompkinsville
were burned by Confederates on April 22, 1863, in reprisal for burning in
Celina, Tenn. by Union forces.

     CLINTON COUNTY:  The courthouse at Albany was burned by guerrillas
late in 1864.

     CRITTENDEN COUNTY:  The courthouse at Marion was burned by guerrillas
in January, 1865.

     ROWAN COUNTY:  The courthouse at Morehead was burned by guerrillas
March 21, 1864."

ILER Marriages in Ohio County Kentucky, 1798-1900


ILER Marriages in Ohio County Kentucky, 1798-1900

Polly ILER to William LEACH, November 14, 1811, A7
Sally ILER to Samuel LEWELLEN, February 20, 1812, A10
Jacob ILER to Elizabeth LEACH, September 30, 1813, A13
Jacob ILER to Polly MILLER, January 29, 1818, A32
John ILER to Sarah LEACH, September 24, 1818, A32
Nancy ILER to John CANNON, January 5, 1826, A61
Elizabeth ILER to Benjamin PIERCE, March 13, 1826, A62
Patsy ILER to James IZEL, October 29, 1827, A159
Perry ILER to Elizabeth COOKSEY, February 12, 1831, A84
Jane ILER to Solomon PEARCE, October 19, 1832, A88
Mary Ann ILER to Nathan KEOWN, September 25, 1836, A97
Eliza Ann ILER to Thomas TAUGHT, December 2, 1840
William ILER to Patsey WILSON, April 6, 1843, B14
Elizabeth ILER to John RALEY, September 27, 1843, B13
Nancy Maria ILER to Franklin FOUGHT, March 13, 1845, B16
Althea ILER to John H. ARNOLD, August 14, 1845, B17
Henry ILER to Mary STEWART, March 24, 1846, B19
Sally ILER to Jeremiah M. TILFORD, December 10, 1851, F119
Czarina C. ILER to John E. FERGUSON, October 7, 1856, D59
H. L. ILER to Mahala FERGUSON, March 23, 1857, D147
Emma ILER to Leonard T. COX, December 21, 1856, I-335
Thomas W. ILER to Mary Jane AUTRY, August 30, 1867, J389
Zachariah T. ILER to Sallie M. PARKS, October 13, 1868, O-246
Mariah J. ILER to Jasper N. SANDEFUR, August 21, 1869, Q18
Sallie M. ILER to Francis M. MAPLES, November 28, 1870, Q404
John T. ILER to Sarah E. SHOWN, December 31, 1870, R2
Thomas W. ILER to Mrs., Nancy STOGNER, October 18, 1873, S392
John T. ILER to Elizabeth V. BENTON, October 3, 1876, V58
Francis M. ILER to Mary Ellen STEWART, September 2, 1878, W264
Nancy E. ILER to Benjamin S. CHAMBERLAIN, November 19, 1878, W352
Margaret E. ILER to John W. SORRELS, November 19, 1878, W354
F. M. ILER to Victoria LILES, January 7, 1884, 1-157
Amanda J. ILER to W. T. JOHNSON, June 26, 1884, 1-307
T. M. ILER to Mrs. Martha E. ROWE, October 6, 1885, 3-234
James B. ILER to Luella BENNETT, March 10, 1886, 3-458
Nettie ILER to Nehemiah MINTON, January 9, 1888, 4-412
Fannie ILER to J. W. THOMAS, January 29, 1889, 5-134
Mary Q. V. ILER to William W. FERRY, February 14, 1891, 6-312
F. H. ILER to Miss F. A. CROWDER, March 28, 1892, 7-228
Mollie ILER to H. C. SIMMONS, July 18, 1893, 8-138
William P. ILER to Nellie C. YOUNG, April 30, 1895, 9-238
Joseph R. ILER to Eldo LEACH, August 28, 1897, 10-552
Nellie M. ILER to Thomas J. MULLEN, October 25, 1899, 12-316
R. E. ILER to Georgia REID, January 15, 1900, 12-442