This is the fifth family in n Group Number 1 (best fits) of “candidate families,” who could be the families of my great-grandmother Susan Elizabeth Smith (m. 1st Bonner, m. 2nd Hiram Carroll Brinlee, Jr.).
If you are researching this family and found this blog through a search, please contact me - I would like to know more about this family and whether or not it is actually the family of my great-grandmother. Even if all you know are a few details, they might help. You can contact me at my e-mail address, which can be found by going to my profile page (there is a link to that page in the About Me section to the left).
Parents:
Hugh Smith, b. October 1840 at Church Hill, Hawkins County, Tennessee
Mary Ann Cavin, b. 15 August 1847 at Church Hill, Hawkins County, Tennessee
Children:
Elizabeth – b. ca 1867 in Tennessee
Mary Etta/Marietta, b. ca 1869 in Tennessee
Robert – b. April 1874 in Tennessee
Wallace – b. ca 1878 in Tennessee
James – b. June 1880 in Tennessee
Lucy – b. June 1883 in Tennessee
Melvin O. – b. February 1888 in Tennessee
Elbert Hale – b. July 1889 in Tennessee
Hugh appears to have been the son of Alexander Smith (1793-1880) and Mary Polly Goddard (1795-), with siblings Francis, Elizabeth (1814-), Joseph (1828-), Lucretia (1830-), George (1832-), and Rebecca (1840-).
Here is the family in the 1870 through 1910 censuses:
New Canton, District No. 5, Hawkins County, Tennessee, p. 2, 15 August 1870
Line 38 17 17
Smith, Hugh 29 M W Day laborer TN Cannot read or write
Mary A. 21 F W Keeping house TN Cannot write
Elisebeth 3 F W TN
Mary E. 11/12 F W TN Sept.
16th Civil District, Hawkins County, Tennessee, ED 78, p. 31, 1 June 1880
Line 17 280 283
Smith, Hugh W M 40 Laborer Cannot write TN TN TN
Mary Ann W F 30 Wife Married Keeping house TN TN TN
Elizabeth W F 12 Dau Single At home Attended school Cannot read or write
TN TN TN
Marietta W F 10 Dau Single At home Attended school Cannot write TN TN TN
Robert W M 7 Son At home TN TN TN
Wallace W M 2 Son TN TN TN
1900 US Federal Census, McPheeters Bend, Civil District 5, Hawkins County, Tennessee, ED 80, p. 10A, 16 June 1900
Line 45 160 161
Smith, Robert Head W M Apr 1874 36 M 5 TN TN TN Farmer 3 Yes Yes Yes R F 145
Parilee Wife W F Apr 1881 19 M 5 2 2 TN TN TN Yes No Yes
Bettie Dau W F Oct 1896 3 S TN TN TN
Baranchie Son W M Nov 1898 1 S TN TN TN
Line 49 161 162
Smith, Hugh Head W M Oct 1840 59 M 36 TN TN TN Farm laborer Yes No Yes
O F F 146
Mary A. Wife W F Aug 1847 52 M 36 10 8
James Son W M June 1880 19 S TN TN TN Day laborer 0 Yes Yes Yes
Lucy Dau W F June 1883 16 S TN TN TN Yes Yes Yes
Melvin O. Son W M Feb 1888 12 S TN TN TN Farm laborer No No Yes
Elbert H. Son W M July 1889 10 S TN TN TN Farm laborer No No Yes
1910 US Federal Census, Civil District 6, Hawkins Co., Tennessee, ED 121, p. 6A, 22 Apr 1910
Line 29 94 94
Smith, Mary A. Head F W 62 Md 32 10 8 TN TN TN Eng Farmer Gen. farm Emp.
Yes No O F F 73
Lucy A. Dau F W 26 S TN TN TN Eng. None Yes Yes
Melvin D. Son M W 21 S TN TN TN Eng. Farm laborer Home farm W No 0
Yes No
Hale M W 19 S TN TN TN Farm laborer Working out W No 0 Yes Yes
Line 33 95 95
James N. Head M W 21 M1 6 TN TN TN Farm laborer Working out W No 0
Yes Yes R H
Mollie Wife F W 29 M1 6 2 2 TN TN TN Eng. None Yes Yes
Julius K. Dau F W 5 S TN TN TN
Charlie M. Son M W 2 S TN TN TN
Line 37 96 96
Wallis Head M W 32 M1 8 TN TN TN Eng Farmer Gen. farm OA No No
O F F 74
Alice W F W 26 M1 8 5 4 TN TN TN Eng None
Nellie Dau F W 6 S TN TN TN
May Dau F W 4 S TN TN TN
Daniel Son M W 2 S TN TN TN
Arthur Son M W 9/12 S TN TN TN
Hugh Father M W 75 M1 32 TN TN TN Eng None Was in Confederate Army
Showing posts with label Tennessee. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tennessee. Show all posts
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Orphans and Orphans: The Two Preston Moores
[Part 2. Part 1 Searching for Preston Moore]
Something just did not fit. There seemed to be too much information on this Zelig-like Preston; he was in too many places and they did not always fit together. He appeared to have been both in Fort Mifflin (following the Battle of Gettysburg) and among Confederate deserters picked up and incarcerated by Union forces in Nashville, Tennessee. Moreover, his enlistment with a Virginia unit (apparently the 37th Virginia Infantry Battalion) was puzzling, as I had no indication of the family having any recent connections to Virginia.
Judging by his father’s will and the 1870 census for South Carolina, Preston Moore did not return to South Carolina after the war. I checked the 1870 census for Preston Moore in Virginia, and it was unnerving to find him there, in Washington County: born around 1844 (close to the 1843 date indicated by the 1850 and 1860 censuses), with wife Mary. The census indicated that he could not read or write, but the 1860 census for Anderson County, South Carolina had indicated that he attended school, and I knew that his brother, my great-grandfather, could read and write. Too many puzzle pieces did not fit, and I began to suspect that there were actually two Preston Moores.
A search of the 1860 census in Virginia turned up a Preston Moore of the right age in Kanawha County. So could there have been two men named Preston Moore in the same unit? The “U.S. Civil War Soldiers, 1861-1865” and “American Civil War Soldiers” databases contained the information that solved the puzzle: both men served in units with similar names - the “other” Preston Moore in the 37th Virginia Infantry, and “my” Preston E. Moore in the 37th Virginia Cavalry.
At about this time my generous “history husband” returned from a business trip in Pennsylvania with a gift: J. L. Scott’s 36th and 37th Battalions Virginia Cavalry (1986, H.E. Howard, Inc.). The 37th Virginia Cavalry was originally organized as Dunn’s Battalion, Partisan Rangers, with many recruits taken from the South Carolina counties of Greenville, Anderson, and Pickens, and was later mustered into service as regular cavalry – the 37th Virginia Cavalry – on 3 November 1862. Hence the appearance of a South Carolina man in a Virginia unit.
Preston was listed on the roster of the 37th Battalion Virginia Cavalry in Scott’s book:
“MOORE, PRESTON: enl. in Co. E. Deserted and took oath, Dec. 29, 1863, in Knoxville, Tenn.”
To complete Preston’s record of service, I returned to Footnote, which by this time had added more Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers for South Carolina. This time I found Preston E. Moore in the 2nd South Carolina Rifles, which was actually his first term of service:
- He was enlisted for service on 29 October 1861 by 1st Lt. Jo. Berry Sloan.
- He was recommended for discharge due to disability by O. M. Doyle, Asst. Surgeon, Moore’s Battalion.
[Transcription:
Army of the Confederate States
Certificate of Disability for Discharge
Corpl. Preston E. Moore of Capt. D. L. Donnald’s Company F 1st Batt. Rifles Provisional Army was Enlisted by Lieut. Jo. Berry Slone of the 1st Regmt. of Rifles at Anderson Co. SC on the twenty ninth Day of October 1861 to serve for three years or during the war. He was born in Anderson Dist. State of South Carolina, is Eighteen Years of Age five feet five [inches] his fair Complected Blue Eyes Sandy hair and by Occupation when Enlisted a farmer. During the last two months said Soldier has been unfit for duty Thirty Days.
Camp Johnson…………………D. L. Donnald Capt.
May 1 1862……………………Commander Company]
- He was approved for a Certificate of Disability for Discharge by Company Commander Capt. D. L. Donnald and was discharged on 3 May 1862.
[Transcription:
Camp [illegible]
May 1st, 1862
I certify that I have carefully examined the said Preston E. Moore of Captain Donnald’s Company, and find him incapable of performing the duties of a soldier because of general weakness – not having, in my opinion, sufficient vigor of constitution to enable him to discharge the duties incumbent on him as a soldier.
I think the welfare of the service requires that he be discharged.
O. M. Doyle
Asst. Surg.
Moore’s Battn.
Discharged from the service of the Confederate States May 3rd 1862
John V. Moore
SC 2nd Battn.]
At some point after his discharge, he re-enlisted for a second term of service in the 37th Virginia Cavalry:
- He was on a List of Rebel Deserters who took the Oath of Allegiance to the United States Government “between Dec. 16 and 29, 1863, and, after confinement for a period of 10 days, were then released” – in his case, from Nashville on 11 January 1864.
[Transcription:
(Confederate.)
M/37 Battalion/Va.
Preston E. Moore
Pvt. 37 Bt. Va. Cav.
Name appears as signature to an
Oath of Allegiance
to the United States, subscribed and sworn to before R. M. Goodwin, Capt. & Asst. Pro. Mar. Genl., Dept. Cumb., January 11, 1864.
Please of residence: Anderson Co., SC
Complexion: Fair; hair: Light
Eyes: Gray; height 5 ft. 6 in.
Indorsement shows: “Roll of Prisoners of war released on taking the oath of Allegiance at Nashville, Tenn., January 11, 1864.”
Hd. Qrs. Prov. Mar. Gen’l, Dept. of the Cumb’d, Nashville, Tenn.; Roll No. 521]
Scott’s description of the conditions in Tennessee during the winter of 1863-64 (J.L. Scott , p. 57) make it easy to understand why so many Confederate soldiers deserted: “The 37th Cavalry and Jones’ Brigade were in poor condition. The winter had posed great hardship on the men and equipment. Many were without blankets, some were without shoes. Returning from Tennessee one man froze to death in the saddle and frostbite was common.”
- Illness was also common: Preston was admitted to the General Hospital of the U.S.A. on 11 January 1864 for acute diarrhea, transferred to the Provost Marshall on 13 January 1864, and released on that same day.
That is the last I know of Preston E. Moore.
I doubt if I will ever learn his ultimate fate: when and where he actually died and is buried. Some day I hope to visit the area of the Nashville battlefield, which has not been preserved but does have a few roadside historical markers. Preston may have been buried in an unmarked grave somewhere nearby, or he may have made it partway home to South Carolina, desperately ill and fighting the bitter cold, before he died.
I think of Preston every Memorial Day and remember him often at other times.
His name will not be forgotten.
Sources:
Census
Spencer Moore household, 1850 U.S. census, Anderson County, South Carolina, population schedule, Eastern subdivision, dwelling 637, family 633; National Archives Microfilm Publication M432, roll 848. Accessed via Ancestry.com.
Spencer Moore household, 1860 U.S. census, Anderson County, South Carolina, population schedule, 42nd Regiment, dwelling 951, family 961; National Archives Microfilm Publication M653, roll 1212. Accessed via Ancestry.com.
John D. Young household, 1860 U.S. census, Kanawha County, Virginia, population schedule, Clendennen Post Office, dwelling [not visible], family 387; National Archives Microfilm Publication M653, roll 1356. Accessed via Ancestry.com.
Henry Myers household, Preston Moore family, 1870 U.S. census, Washington County, Virginia, population schedule, North Fork township, dwelling 290, family 295; National Archives Microfilm Publication M593, roll 1681. Accessed via Ancestry.com.
Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, National Archives and Records Administration
Preston E. Moore, compiled military record (corporal, Company F, 2nd South Carolina Rifles): Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the State of South Carolina, Microfilm Publication M267. Accessed via Footnote.com.
Preston E. Moore, compiled military record (corporal, Company E, 37th Virginia Cavalry, variously listed as battalion and regiment): Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the State of Virginia, Microfilm Publication M324. Accessed via Footnote.com. (Note: I have not listed the records for the “other” Preston Moore separately because the two sets of records are listed together.)
Online Civil War Databases
Ancestry.com. Civil War Prisoner of War Records, 1861-1865 [database on-line]. Selected Records of the War Department Relating to Confederate Prisoners of War, 1861-1865; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M598, 145 rolls); War Department Collection of Confederate Records, Record Group 109; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
Ancestry.com. Historical Data Systems, comp. American Civil War Soldiers [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 1999. Original data: Data compiled by Historical Data Systems of Kingston, MA.
National Park Service: Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System. Online database (http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/).
Other
J. L. Scott: 36th and 37th Battalions Virginia Cavalry. 1986, H.E. Howard, Inc.
Typescript of Will of William Spencer Moore, dated 25 July 1865. Copy provided by South Carolina Department of Archives and History,
Final note: This experience has taught me that reconstituting a Civil War service record is no small feat. Units changed – as attrition or recruitment dictated, they became smaller or larger units, disappeared, changed status from irregular to regular, or were swallowed up by other units, often with a different state affiliation; units also had many different nicknames and may have been most often referred to by their commanders’ names. A soldier’s name may have appeared in many different forms, and the records of different soldiers with the same name may have been combined. I have used and am continuing to use this experience in tracing some of my other “orphans” who perished in the Civil War.
Something just did not fit. There seemed to be too much information on this Zelig-like Preston; he was in too many places and they did not always fit together. He appeared to have been both in Fort Mifflin (following the Battle of Gettysburg) and among Confederate deserters picked up and incarcerated by Union forces in Nashville, Tennessee. Moreover, his enlistment with a Virginia unit (apparently the 37th Virginia Infantry Battalion) was puzzling, as I had no indication of the family having any recent connections to Virginia.
Judging by his father’s will and the 1870 census for South Carolina, Preston Moore did not return to South Carolina after the war. I checked the 1870 census for Preston Moore in Virginia, and it was unnerving to find him there, in Washington County: born around 1844 (close to the 1843 date indicated by the 1850 and 1860 censuses), with wife Mary. The census indicated that he could not read or write, but the 1860 census for Anderson County, South Carolina had indicated that he attended school, and I knew that his brother, my great-grandfather, could read and write. Too many puzzle pieces did not fit, and I began to suspect that there were actually two Preston Moores.
A search of the 1860 census in Virginia turned up a Preston Moore of the right age in Kanawha County. So could there have been two men named Preston Moore in the same unit? The “U.S. Civil War Soldiers, 1861-1865” and “American Civil War Soldiers” databases contained the information that solved the puzzle: both men served in units with similar names - the “other” Preston Moore in the 37th Virginia Infantry, and “my” Preston E. Moore in the 37th Virginia Cavalry.
At about this time my generous “history husband” returned from a business trip in Pennsylvania with a gift: J. L. Scott’s 36th and 37th Battalions Virginia Cavalry (1986, H.E. Howard, Inc.). The 37th Virginia Cavalry was originally organized as Dunn’s Battalion, Partisan Rangers, with many recruits taken from the South Carolina counties of Greenville, Anderson, and Pickens, and was later mustered into service as regular cavalry – the 37th Virginia Cavalry – on 3 November 1862. Hence the appearance of a South Carolina man in a Virginia unit.
Preston was listed on the roster of the 37th Battalion Virginia Cavalry in Scott’s book:
“MOORE, PRESTON: enl. in Co. E. Deserted and took oath, Dec. 29, 1863, in Knoxville, Tenn.”
To complete Preston’s record of service, I returned to Footnote, which by this time had added more Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers for South Carolina. This time I found Preston E. Moore in the 2nd South Carolina Rifles, which was actually his first term of service:
- He was enlisted for service on 29 October 1861 by 1st Lt. Jo. Berry Sloan.
- He was recommended for discharge due to disability by O. M. Doyle, Asst. Surgeon, Moore’s Battalion.
[Transcription:
Army of the Confederate States
Certificate of Disability for Discharge
Corpl. Preston E. Moore of Capt. D. L. Donnald’s Company F 1st Batt. Rifles Provisional Army was Enlisted by Lieut. Jo. Berry Slone of the 1st Regmt. of Rifles at Anderson Co. SC on the twenty ninth Day of October 1861 to serve for three years or during the war. He was born in Anderson Dist. State of South Carolina, is Eighteen Years of Age five feet five [inches] his fair Complected Blue Eyes Sandy hair and by Occupation when Enlisted a farmer. During the last two months said Soldier has been unfit for duty Thirty Days.
Camp Johnson…………………D. L. Donnald Capt.
May 1 1862……………………Commander Company]
- He was approved for a Certificate of Disability for Discharge by Company Commander Capt. D. L. Donnald and was discharged on 3 May 1862.
[Transcription:
Camp [illegible]
May 1st, 1862
I certify that I have carefully examined the said Preston E. Moore of Captain Donnald’s Company, and find him incapable of performing the duties of a soldier because of general weakness – not having, in my opinion, sufficient vigor of constitution to enable him to discharge the duties incumbent on him as a soldier.
I think the welfare of the service requires that he be discharged.
O. M. Doyle
Asst. Surg.
Moore’s Battn.
Discharged from the service of the Confederate States May 3rd 1862
John V. Moore
SC 2nd Battn.]
At some point after his discharge, he re-enlisted for a second term of service in the 37th Virginia Cavalry:
- He was on a List of Rebel Deserters who took the Oath of Allegiance to the United States Government “between Dec. 16 and 29, 1863, and, after confinement for a period of 10 days, were then released” – in his case, from Nashville on 11 January 1864.
[Transcription:
(Confederate.)
M/37 Battalion/Va.
Preston E. Moore
Pvt. 37 Bt. Va. Cav.
Name appears as signature to an
Oath of Allegiance
to the United States, subscribed and sworn to before R. M. Goodwin, Capt. & Asst. Pro. Mar. Genl., Dept. Cumb., January 11, 1864.
Please of residence: Anderson Co., SC
Complexion: Fair; hair: Light
Eyes: Gray; height 5 ft. 6 in.
Indorsement shows: “Roll of Prisoners of war released on taking the oath of Allegiance at Nashville, Tenn., January 11, 1864.”
Hd. Qrs. Prov. Mar. Gen’l, Dept. of the Cumb’d, Nashville, Tenn.; Roll No. 521]
Scott’s description of the conditions in Tennessee during the winter of 1863-64 (J.L. Scott , p. 57) make it easy to understand why so many Confederate soldiers deserted: “The 37th Cavalry and Jones’ Brigade were in poor condition. The winter had posed great hardship on the men and equipment. Many were without blankets, some were without shoes. Returning from Tennessee one man froze to death in the saddle and frostbite was common.”
- Illness was also common: Preston was admitted to the General Hospital of the U.S.A. on 11 January 1864 for acute diarrhea, transferred to the Provost Marshall on 13 January 1864, and released on that same day.
That is the last I know of Preston E. Moore.
I doubt if I will ever learn his ultimate fate: when and where he actually died and is buried. Some day I hope to visit the area of the Nashville battlefield, which has not been preserved but does have a few roadside historical markers. Preston may have been buried in an unmarked grave somewhere nearby, or he may have made it partway home to South Carolina, desperately ill and fighting the bitter cold, before he died.
I think of Preston every Memorial Day and remember him often at other times.
His name will not be forgotten.
Sources:
Census
Spencer Moore household, 1850 U.S. census, Anderson County, South Carolina, population schedule, Eastern subdivision, dwelling 637, family 633; National Archives Microfilm Publication M432, roll 848. Accessed via Ancestry.com.
Spencer Moore household, 1860 U.S. census, Anderson County, South Carolina, population schedule, 42nd Regiment, dwelling 951, family 961; National Archives Microfilm Publication M653, roll 1212. Accessed via Ancestry.com.
John D. Young household, 1860 U.S. census, Kanawha County, Virginia, population schedule, Clendennen Post Office, dwelling [not visible], family 387; National Archives Microfilm Publication M653, roll 1356. Accessed via Ancestry.com.
Henry Myers household, Preston Moore family, 1870 U.S. census, Washington County, Virginia, population schedule, North Fork township, dwelling 290, family 295; National Archives Microfilm Publication M593, roll 1681. Accessed via Ancestry.com.
Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, National Archives and Records Administration
Preston E. Moore, compiled military record (corporal, Company F, 2nd South Carolina Rifles): Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the State of South Carolina, Microfilm Publication M267. Accessed via Footnote.com.
Preston E. Moore, compiled military record (corporal, Company E, 37th Virginia Cavalry, variously listed as battalion and regiment): Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the State of Virginia, Microfilm Publication M324. Accessed via Footnote.com. (Note: I have not listed the records for the “other” Preston Moore separately because the two sets of records are listed together.)
Online Civil War Databases
Ancestry.com. Civil War Prisoner of War Records, 1861-1865 [database on-line]. Selected Records of the War Department Relating to Confederate Prisoners of War, 1861-1865; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M598, 145 rolls); War Department Collection of Confederate Records, Record Group 109; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
Ancestry.com. Historical Data Systems, comp. American Civil War Soldiers [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 1999. Original data: Data compiled by Historical Data Systems of Kingston, MA.
National Park Service: Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System. Online database (http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/).
Other
J. L. Scott: 36th and 37th Battalions Virginia Cavalry. 1986, H.E. Howard, Inc.
Typescript of Will of William Spencer Moore, dated 25 July 1865. Copy provided by South Carolina Department of Archives and History,
Final note: This experience has taught me that reconstituting a Civil War service record is no small feat. Units changed – as attrition or recruitment dictated, they became smaller or larger units, disappeared, changed status from irregular to regular, or were swallowed up by other units, often with a different state affiliation; units also had many different nicknames and may have been most often referred to by their commanders’ names. A soldier’s name may have appeared in many different forms, and the records of different soldiers with the same name may have been combined. I have used and am continuing to use this experience in tracing some of my other “orphans” who perished in the Civil War.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
SmithQuest
I decided to give my brick wall (Lizzie Smith) search a glam new name, so SmithQuest it is.
For a while I’ll be giving SmithQuest a rest, since trying to ferret out information on Smiths in Tennessee has become a little bit wearisome, even though I’ve made some progress on this front.
However, before I take a break to work on other families, there are some things I need to do to get set up for more searching in the future:
1. Get in touch with the people who have Ancestry trees on the Smith families that I have identified as good candidates or who have posted on these families in various message boards.
2. Put inquiries in the Smith, Bonner, and relevant geographic location message boards on these families. This may take a while to produce results, but hey, I’ve got time.
3. Compile as complete a timeline as possible for Lizzie’s whereabouts, starting with her marriage to Hiram in December 1891 (her first documented location with a specific date).
4. Survey all the online newspaper archives I can find to see if there are any that cover any of the places where Lizzie Smith lived and subscribe to any that cover the relevant areas (this is where the timeline comes in handy).
Hoping to get a good block of time to work on these items this weekend.
For a while I’ll be giving SmithQuest a rest, since trying to ferret out information on Smiths in Tennessee has become a little bit wearisome, even though I’ve made some progress on this front.
However, before I take a break to work on other families, there are some things I need to do to get set up for more searching in the future:
1. Get in touch with the people who have Ancestry trees on the Smith families that I have identified as good candidates or who have posted on these families in various message boards.
2. Put inquiries in the Smith, Bonner, and relevant geographic location message boards on these families. This may take a while to produce results, but hey, I’ve got time.
3. Compile as complete a timeline as possible for Lizzie’s whereabouts, starting with her marriage to Hiram in December 1891 (her first documented location with a specific date).
4. Survey all the online newspaper archives I can find to see if there are any that cover any of the places where Lizzie Smith lived and subscribe to any that cover the relevant areas (this is where the timeline comes in handy).
Hoping to get a good block of time to work on these items this weekend.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Using Ancestry Family Trees in Research
It is commonly accepted that while online genealogies may provide helpful hints, as a whole they tend to be unreliable or at least poorly sourced. I often use WorldConnect to find “leads” on families and also as an avenue to get in touch with other researchers. However, up until recently I had made only limited use of Ancestry’s Public Member Trees as a separate search function. They didn’t seem to provide any more information than any other online genealogies and often even less in the way of sources. The best contacts I made through Ancestry searches were with researchers who had made corrections to census transcriptions or other database entries or who contacted me through my corrections.
However, the tie-in to Ancestry trees that now appears on the image page as a function of the search parameters used has turned out to be far more helpful than I expected. This has been especially convincingly demonstrated by my most recent project, the compilation of a database of candidate families from Tennessee for my brick wall, Susan Elizabeth Smith. This is a fairly sizeable set of families selected based on the following criteria: last name Smith, a daughter named Elizabeth/Elisabeth, Lizzie, or Susan (or appropriate initials) born between 1866 and 1870, plus the family should be residing in Tennessee or at least Lizzie should have been born there. Right now there are 60+ families in the database, although a number of them have been relegated to the bottom (= least likely) categories based on the poor fit of certain data to the established profile.
And this is where the family trees come in useful – they often contain the additional information that reveals a poor fit; in other words, the “negative evidence” that I am looking for in order to narrow down the group of likely families: the daughter of interest may have died young, never have married, or married a different person. In deciding to whether or not to accept the information as provided I go by how complete and carefully presented the information on the family is: if the researcher has provided complete names (not just the names that appear on the census) and dates, has provided sources within Ancestry constraints, etc. And the sources listed add another benefit: they provide links to the databases – usually a census page – used as the source, so this is often an even easier way than doing a regular search for finding more information on the family. It has helped me confirm my “paired” families (families found on both 1870 and 1880 censuses and identifiable as the same families) and in one case revealed a mistake I had made in connecting an 1880 family to what I thought was the same family in 1870. This information has also helped me with a couple of families that I refer to as “Initial Families” – families with only initials and a last name. In only a couple of cases have I found what I believe are dubious connections.
I would sum up the advantages of the Public Member Tree tie-ins as follows:
1. Potentially useful researcher contacts
2. Finding family members in other censuses
3. “Negative” or supporting evidence for the identity of the family
So, while I will continue to approach online genealogies with caution, I have come to appreciate the usefulness of Ancestry Public Member Trees as an integrated research tool.
However, the tie-in to Ancestry trees that now appears on the image page as a function of the search parameters used has turned out to be far more helpful than I expected. This has been especially convincingly demonstrated by my most recent project, the compilation of a database of candidate families from Tennessee for my brick wall, Susan Elizabeth Smith. This is a fairly sizeable set of families selected based on the following criteria: last name Smith, a daughter named Elizabeth/Elisabeth, Lizzie, or Susan (or appropriate initials) born between 1866 and 1870, plus the family should be residing in Tennessee or at least Lizzie should have been born there. Right now there are 60+ families in the database, although a number of them have been relegated to the bottom (= least likely) categories based on the poor fit of certain data to the established profile.
And this is where the family trees come in useful – they often contain the additional information that reveals a poor fit; in other words, the “negative evidence” that I am looking for in order to narrow down the group of likely families: the daughter of interest may have died young, never have married, or married a different person. In deciding to whether or not to accept the information as provided I go by how complete and carefully presented the information on the family is: if the researcher has provided complete names (not just the names that appear on the census) and dates, has provided sources within Ancestry constraints, etc. And the sources listed add another benefit: they provide links to the databases – usually a census page – used as the source, so this is often an even easier way than doing a regular search for finding more information on the family. It has helped me confirm my “paired” families (families found on both 1870 and 1880 censuses and identifiable as the same families) and in one case revealed a mistake I had made in connecting an 1880 family to what I thought was the same family in 1870. This information has also helped me with a couple of families that I refer to as “Initial Families” – families with only initials and a last name. In only a couple of cases have I found what I believe are dubious connections.
I would sum up the advantages of the Public Member Tree tie-ins as follows:
1. Potentially useful researcher contacts
2. Finding family members in other censuses
3. “Negative” or supporting evidence for the identity of the family
So, while I will continue to approach online genealogies with caution, I have come to appreciate the usefulness of Ancestry Public Member Trees as an integrated research tool.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Family Newsletter Friday: 11 September 2009
Smith (Brinlee)
The past week has been devoted almost exclusively to brick wall census work, or in other words my Smith line (Susan Elizabeth “Lizzie” Smith (Bonner Brinlee)). I completed the initial compilation of “possibles” and am now working on finding as many families as I can in both the 1870 and 1880 censuses. Initially I was able to pair up about eight families from both censuses right away due to some very distinctive names. Now I am part way through finding the 1870 families in the 1880 census. After I find as many of them as possible, I’ll check to see if the unpaired families match any of the 1880 families and then look for the remaining unpaired 1880 families in the 1870 census.
This is very time-consuming work, but it is particularly useful in “weeding out” certain families: when an Elizabeth Smith from the 1870 census turns up as Matilda E. Smith on the 1880 census, I can mostly rule her out. (Note: Due to the unreliability of human memory and the fallibility of census-takers, no one is being completely ruled out or removed from the “possible Lizzie Smiths” database. However, I am prioritizing and categorizing the families, and this definitely narrows down the number of families that I want to devote more attention to based on the closeness of fit to the information I have on Lizzie Smith.)
Despite all the time and effort the work is taking and the uncertainty of ever getting any concrete results (= breaking through the brick wall), this exercise is definitely sharpening my search skills. When the names are all common, you have to use and recombine a lot of different search parameters and be careful about making assumptions. For instance, I have to remember that many families may not have remained in Tennessee.
Norman
Added to Norman To Do List: Check Arkansas County Marriages under Record Search (there are a lot of my Normans listed there).
Miscellaneous
Other positive news for the week is that I cleaned up and reorganized a lot of my genealogy materials and workspace, particularly my files and books. Everything is much more accessible and easier to locate now. Most family-related materials have found their proper binders or folders. I’m hoping that will help speed up my research a bit.
The past week has been devoted almost exclusively to brick wall census work, or in other words my Smith line (Susan Elizabeth “Lizzie” Smith (Bonner Brinlee)). I completed the initial compilation of “possibles” and am now working on finding as many families as I can in both the 1870 and 1880 censuses. Initially I was able to pair up about eight families from both censuses right away due to some very distinctive names. Now I am part way through finding the 1870 families in the 1880 census. After I find as many of them as possible, I’ll check to see if the unpaired families match any of the 1880 families and then look for the remaining unpaired 1880 families in the 1870 census.
This is very time-consuming work, but it is particularly useful in “weeding out” certain families: when an Elizabeth Smith from the 1870 census turns up as Matilda E. Smith on the 1880 census, I can mostly rule her out. (Note: Due to the unreliability of human memory and the fallibility of census-takers, no one is being completely ruled out or removed from the “possible Lizzie Smiths” database. However, I am prioritizing and categorizing the families, and this definitely narrows down the number of families that I want to devote more attention to based on the closeness of fit to the information I have on Lizzie Smith.)
Despite all the time and effort the work is taking and the uncertainty of ever getting any concrete results (= breaking through the brick wall), this exercise is definitely sharpening my search skills. When the names are all common, you have to use and recombine a lot of different search parameters and be careful about making assumptions. For instance, I have to remember that many families may not have remained in Tennessee.
Norman
Added to Norman To Do List: Check Arkansas County Marriages under Record Search (there are a lot of my Normans listed there).
Miscellaneous
Other positive news for the week is that I cleaned up and reorganized a lot of my genealogy materials and workspace, particularly my files and books. Everything is much more accessible and easier to locate now. Most family-related materials have found their proper binders or folders. I’m hoping that will help speed up my research a bit.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Time Travel
This week’s Saturday Night Genealogy Fun as proposed by Randy Seaver of Genea-Musings has a fantasy theme:
1) Let's go time traveling: Decide what year and what place you would love to visit as a time traveler. Who would you like to see in their environment? If you could ask them one question, what would it be?
2) Tell us about it. Write a blog post, or make a comment to this post, or on Facebook, or in Genealogy Wise.
But, Randy – I’ll be talking to a brick wall. No, really. I would go back in time to talk to my brick wall, Susan Elizabeth Smith Bonner Brinlee. I originally thought of going back to 1870s Tennessee to find her there as a child, but I realize that I do not know what part of Tennessee to go to and that to find out more about her past I need to find her as an adult. So I will look for her when and where I know I can find her – in 1910 in Hunt County Texas – when she can answer questions about some of the major events in her life. (Although she lived until 1958, I will not visit her later in life; by that time her memory may not have been as strong.)
Now Randy has specified one question only, so this would be the question:
Who were your parents?
If given the latitude to ask more questions, they would be:
When did your parents die, i.e., were you orphaned when you were a young child? If not, why did you have to work for another family when you were young – was your family that poor?
Who was your first husband, where did you get married, and when and where did he die?
What were the names and dates of birth and death of your three children who did not survive childhood? Were they children of your first husband or of your second husband, Hiram Carroll Brinlee, Jr.?
1) Let's go time traveling: Decide what year and what place you would love to visit as a time traveler. Who would you like to see in their environment? If you could ask them one question, what would it be?
2) Tell us about it. Write a blog post, or make a comment to this post, or on Facebook, or in Genealogy Wise.
But, Randy – I’ll be talking to a brick wall. No, really. I would go back in time to talk to my brick wall, Susan Elizabeth Smith Bonner Brinlee. I originally thought of going back to 1870s Tennessee to find her there as a child, but I realize that I do not know what part of Tennessee to go to and that to find out more about her past I need to find her as an adult. So I will look for her when and where I know I can find her – in 1910 in Hunt County Texas – when she can answer questions about some of the major events in her life. (Although she lived until 1958, I will not visit her later in life; by that time her memory may not have been as strong.)
Now Randy has specified one question only, so this would be the question:
Who were your parents?
If given the latitude to ask more questions, they would be:
When did your parents die, i.e., were you orphaned when you were a young child? If not, why did you have to work for another family when you were young – was your family that poor?
Who was your first husband, where did you get married, and when and where did he die?
What were the names and dates of birth and death of your three children who did not survive childhood? Were they children of your first husband or of your second husband, Hiram Carroll Brinlee, Jr.?
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Brickwall Workshops by the Fairfax Genealogical Society
The Fairfax Genealogical Society will be doing a series of brickwall panels, starting with the September 2009 genealogy education class. Each Society member who wishes to take advantage of this opportunity is asked to submit a Brickwall Submission Form in which the brickwall problem is state as a simple question; this is followed by the basic details known and an outline of previous research done. Here is a copy of the form I have written up (using two previous blog posts on this subject):
Brickwall question: Who are the parents of Susan Elizabeth “Lizzie” Smith, wife of Hiram C. Brinlee, Jr.?
Name: Susan Elizabeth “Lizzie” Smith (maiden name from two of her four children’s death certificates).
Date of birth: 4 April, estimated year 1868 based on claimed age (23) on her 1 December 1891 marriage license with second husband Hiram Carroll Brinlee, Jr. and on 1910 census (41) and 1920 census (50). A family Bible is said to give 4 April 1856, but her last child was born in 1908. Older ages are also given on her death certificate (date of birth given as 4 April 1860 by her son Cecil Odell Brinlee), July 1958 obituary (98), and 1930 census (73). On her Confederate Widow’s Pension Application, dated 27 July 1925, she gives her age as 68, and this is consistent with the 73 on the 1930 census. However, there is a note written by Lizzie that is appended to the application (the date is September 10th, and the year as written could be 1929 or 1924) in which she writes: “i have lost my correct age i am somewhere in 60 i am not 75.”
Place of birth of Lizzie and her parents: All three censuses on which Lizzie is known to appear indicate that she was born in Tennessee; that state also appears on her death certificate and obituary, as well as on the death certificate of her son Lawrence. Knoxville County has been cited as the county in which she was born, but I do not know what the source for this is. The 1910 and 1920 censuses give North Carolina as the state of her parents’ birth; 1930 gives Tennessee.
Early life: A daughter-in-law said that Lizzie “was from Tennessee and had lived with a family that had taken her in to help work, where she washed dishes by standing on a bucket. Therefore, she had to have been fairly young.” This might indicate that she had been orphaned.
First marriage: Lizzie was said to have been married to a man named Bonner before she married Hiram Brinlee. The 1910 census indicates that she has been married more than once, and the 1930 census indicates that she was 17 at the time of her first marriage. Her name does appear to be “Bonner” on the marriage license (her name is given as Mrs. S. L. Bonner), although it looks as though “Brinlee” was entered first and “Bonner” was then written over it. If Lizzie was born in 1868 and got married at age 17, her marriage to Mr. Bonner would have taken place in around 1885-1886, possibly in Tennessee. Since Lizzie was in Oklahoma when she met Hiram Brinlee, she and Mr. Bonner may have come to Oklahoma for the land rush in 1889 and he may have died there.
Second marriage: Hiram Brinlee and Lizzie were married at White Bead Hill, Chickasaw Nation, Indian Territory; Lizzie’s residence is also listed as White Bead Hill on 3 December 1891.
US Federal Census information: Lizzie does not appear with Hiram on the 1900 census (Britton Twp., Oklahoma Co., Oklahoma Territory). Hiram is shown only with his son from his previous marriage, Louis, and a hired hand. Perhaps Lizzie and the children were living elsewhere, but so far I have not been able to find them. 1910 (4 May) – Justice Precinct 2, Hunt Co., Texas. 1920 (30 Jan) – Farris Twp., Atoka Co., Oklahoma. 1930 – Justice Precinct 3, Fannin Co., Texas (living with son Austin). Another possible address is provided on an envelope addressed to Hiram Brinlee at Davis, I. T. (current Garvin and Murray Counties) from William Nelson, Clerk of the Court of the Indian Territory, Ardmore, Indian Territory (the date is not legible, but this information may help date it).
Children: According to the 1910 census, Lizzie had given birth to 7 children, of whom 4 were still living. Those four were all Hiram’s children, but it is not clear if any or all of the remaining three were Hiram’s or Mr. Bonner’s children. The dates and places of birth for the four surviving children are: Lawrence Carroll – 29 Jan 1893 (String Town, Atoka, Oklahoma or, as reported on his WWI Draft Registration Card, Paul’s Valley, Oklahoma), Cordelia Lee – 8 Jan 1895 (Oklahoma), Austin Franklin – 6 Apr 1904 (Farmersville, Collin Co., Texas), and Cecil Odell – 23 Sep 1908 (Collin Co., Texas).
Other items giving clues to location: 27 July 1925: Lizzie files her Confederate Widow’s Pension application from Collin County, Texas. 10 Sep 1929: Lizzie writes a letter requesting assistance with her Pension application; the location is given as Leonard, Texas (Leonard is in Fannin County). The year of Hiram and Lizzie’s move to Texas from Oklahoma may have been 1902, as reported by Lizzie on her Confederate Widow’s Pension Application.
Death: Lizzie Brinlee died on 29 July 1958 in Plano, Collin County, Texas (she was living with her youngest son Cecil Odell Brinlee at that time). Her death certificate indicates her stay in Plano as “several years.” She is buried in Restland Memorial Park, Dallas, Texas.
Sources checked:
Certificates of Death of Lizzie and children Lawrence, Austin, and Cordelia
Obituary of Mrs. H. C. Brinlee from the Plano Star-Courier
1900-1930 US Federal Censuses
Marriage license with second husband, Hiram C. Brinlee
Certificate of marriage with second husband, Hiram C. Brinlee
Confederate Widow’s Pension Application
Still need to check: Social Security applications of sons Austin and Cecil Brinlee and death certificate of Cecil Brinlee
I am excited at the prospect of getting some pointers on working on this brickwall with some of the experts in the Fairfax Genealogical Society. I'll post what I learn here.
Brickwall question: Who are the parents of Susan Elizabeth “Lizzie” Smith, wife of Hiram C. Brinlee, Jr.?
Name: Susan Elizabeth “Lizzie” Smith (maiden name from two of her four children’s death certificates).
Date of birth: 4 April, estimated year 1868 based on claimed age (23) on her 1 December 1891 marriage license with second husband Hiram Carroll Brinlee, Jr. and on 1910 census (41) and 1920 census (50). A family Bible is said to give 4 April 1856, but her last child was born in 1908. Older ages are also given on her death certificate (date of birth given as 4 April 1860 by her son Cecil Odell Brinlee), July 1958 obituary (98), and 1930 census (73). On her Confederate Widow’s Pension Application, dated 27 July 1925, she gives her age as 68, and this is consistent with the 73 on the 1930 census. However, there is a note written by Lizzie that is appended to the application (the date is September 10th, and the year as written could be 1929 or 1924) in which she writes: “i have lost my correct age i am somewhere in 60 i am not 75.”
Place of birth of Lizzie and her parents: All three censuses on which Lizzie is known to appear indicate that she was born in Tennessee; that state also appears on her death certificate and obituary, as well as on the death certificate of her son Lawrence. Knoxville County has been cited as the county in which she was born, but I do not know what the source for this is. The 1910 and 1920 censuses give North Carolina as the state of her parents’ birth; 1930 gives Tennessee.
Early life: A daughter-in-law said that Lizzie “was from Tennessee and had lived with a family that had taken her in to help work, where she washed dishes by standing on a bucket. Therefore, she had to have been fairly young.” This might indicate that she had been orphaned.
First marriage: Lizzie was said to have been married to a man named Bonner before she married Hiram Brinlee. The 1910 census indicates that she has been married more than once, and the 1930 census indicates that she was 17 at the time of her first marriage. Her name does appear to be “Bonner” on the marriage license (her name is given as Mrs. S. L. Bonner), although it looks as though “Brinlee” was entered first and “Bonner” was then written over it. If Lizzie was born in 1868 and got married at age 17, her marriage to Mr. Bonner would have taken place in around 1885-1886, possibly in Tennessee. Since Lizzie was in Oklahoma when she met Hiram Brinlee, she and Mr. Bonner may have come to Oklahoma for the land rush in 1889 and he may have died there.
Second marriage: Hiram Brinlee and Lizzie were married at White Bead Hill, Chickasaw Nation, Indian Territory; Lizzie’s residence is also listed as White Bead Hill on 3 December 1891.
US Federal Census information: Lizzie does not appear with Hiram on the 1900 census (Britton Twp., Oklahoma Co., Oklahoma Territory). Hiram is shown only with his son from his previous marriage, Louis, and a hired hand. Perhaps Lizzie and the children were living elsewhere, but so far I have not been able to find them. 1910 (4 May) – Justice Precinct 2, Hunt Co., Texas. 1920 (30 Jan) – Farris Twp., Atoka Co., Oklahoma. 1930 – Justice Precinct 3, Fannin Co., Texas (living with son Austin). Another possible address is provided on an envelope addressed to Hiram Brinlee at Davis, I. T. (current Garvin and Murray Counties) from William Nelson, Clerk of the Court of the Indian Territory, Ardmore, Indian Territory (the date is not legible, but this information may help date it).
Children: According to the 1910 census, Lizzie had given birth to 7 children, of whom 4 were still living. Those four were all Hiram’s children, but it is not clear if any or all of the remaining three were Hiram’s or Mr. Bonner’s children. The dates and places of birth for the four surviving children are: Lawrence Carroll – 29 Jan 1893 (String Town, Atoka, Oklahoma or, as reported on his WWI Draft Registration Card, Paul’s Valley, Oklahoma), Cordelia Lee – 8 Jan 1895 (Oklahoma), Austin Franklin – 6 Apr 1904 (Farmersville, Collin Co., Texas), and Cecil Odell – 23 Sep 1908 (Collin Co., Texas).
Other items giving clues to location: 27 July 1925: Lizzie files her Confederate Widow’s Pension application from Collin County, Texas. 10 Sep 1929: Lizzie writes a letter requesting assistance with her Pension application; the location is given as Leonard, Texas (Leonard is in Fannin County). The year of Hiram and Lizzie’s move to Texas from Oklahoma may have been 1902, as reported by Lizzie on her Confederate Widow’s Pension Application.
Death: Lizzie Brinlee died on 29 July 1958 in Plano, Collin County, Texas (she was living with her youngest son Cecil Odell Brinlee at that time). Her death certificate indicates her stay in Plano as “several years.” She is buried in Restland Memorial Park, Dallas, Texas.
Sources checked:
Certificates of Death of Lizzie and children Lawrence, Austin, and Cordelia
Obituary of Mrs. H. C. Brinlee from the Plano Star-Courier
1900-1930 US Federal Censuses
Marriage license with second husband, Hiram C. Brinlee
Certificate of marriage with second husband, Hiram C. Brinlee
Confederate Widow’s Pension Application
Still need to check: Social Security applications of sons Austin and Cecil Brinlee and death certificate of Cecil Brinlee
I am excited at the prospect of getting some pointers on working on this brickwall with some of the experts in the Fairfax Genealogical Society. I'll post what I learn here.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Tearing-My-Hair-Out Tuesday: More Information on My Brick Wall
Just kidding, this is actually Madness Monday, only late.
I previously posted information on my biggest brick wall, Susan Elizabeth “Lizzie” Smith Bonner Brinlee, here. This brick wall fits quite well into the Madness Monday theme, however, so I’d like to add some information to that. (The information that I do have on her is so tantalizing and the information that I am missing is so aggravating, that it really does almost drive me to distraction.) This also fits the criteria for Blogging Prompt #12, "Use your blog to break down a brick wall" (late, of course).
Here is some basic information on the Hiram Carroll Brinlee Jr.-Susan Elizabeth Smith family group:
Hiram Carroll “Dink” Brinlee Jr.
b. Sep 1844, Red River County, Texas
d. 20 Jan 1920, Collin County, Texas
& Susan Elizabeth “Lizzie” Smith
b. 4 Apr 1868, Tennessee
d. 29 Jul 1958
m. 3 Dec 1891, White Bead Hill, Chickasaw Nation, OK
|--Lawrence Carroll Brinlee
|----b. 29 Jan 1893, String Town, Atoka, OK
|----d. 9 Apr 1953, Bonham, Fannin, TX
|----& Sallie Frances Norman
|----b. 5 Sep 1892, Talladega Co., AL
|----d. 8 Dec 1984, Ivanhoe, Fannin County, Texas
|-----m. 6 May 1911, Greenville, Hunt Co., TX
|--Cordelia Lee “Cordie” Brinlee
|----b. 8 Jun 1895, Oklahoma
|----d. 23 May 1961, McKinney, Collin Co., Texas
|----& Kingsley Levington Clinton
|----b. 18 Feb 1894, Putnam Co., Tennessee
|----d. 2 Nov 1955, Anna, Collin, Texas
|----m. 1911
|--Austin Franklin Brinlee
|----b. 6 Apr 1904, Farmersville, Collin County, Texas
|----d. 17 Nov 1976, Allen, Collin County, Texas
|----& Mary Katherine Clinton
|----b. 3 Aug 1912, Fannin County, Texas
|----d. 25 Aug 1993, Allen, Collin County, Texas
|----m. 24 Jul 1928, Fannin County, Texas
|--Cecil Odell Brinlee
|----b. 23 Sep 1908, Collin County, Texas
|----d. 30 Oct 1994, Quitman, Wood, Texas
|----& Amy Lorene Kent
|---- b. 12 Dec 1913, Arkansas
|----d. 11 Apr 2000, McKinney, Collin Co., Texas
I have used the above information, the censuses, Lizzie’s Confederate Widow’s Pension application, and her death certificate to put together a sketchy timeline of where Lizzie was at various times in her life:
?1868 to 1889: Tennessee. This is pure speculation. However, since Lizzie and Hiram got married in Oklahoma and appear to have met there, I am guessing that Lizzie and her first husband, Mr. Bonner, might have come to Oklahoma in the big land rush in 1889. Because she stated on the 1930 that she first married at the age of 17, I am putting the year of that marriage at around 1885-86 and probably in Tennessee.
1889 to some time between 1900, when Hiram appears on the US Federal Census for Britton Township, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma Territory (my guess is that Lizzie and the children were with him, but not reported to the census-taker) and 1904, when Austin is reported to have been born in Farmersville, Collin County, Texas: Oklahoma. The year of the move was most likely 1902, as reported by Lizzie on her Confederate Widow’s Pension Application. On Lizzie and Hiram’s marriage license, which is dated 1 December 1891, Lizzie’s residence is listed as White Bead Hill, Chickasaw Nation, and Hiram’s residence is listed as Davis, Chickasaw Nation. Their certificate of marriage was certified by R. H. Grimstead, Minister of the Gospel, and dated 3 December 1891. My grandfather Lawrence Brinlee was reported to have been born in String Town, Atoka, Oklahoma on 29 January 1893; on his World War I Draft Registration card, he lists the location as Paul’s Valley, Oklahoma. My information on Cordelia’s place of birth does not include a specific location in Oklahoma.
6 April 1904: Austin born in Farmersville, Collin County, Texas
23 September 1908: Cecil Odell born in Collin County, Texas
4 May 1910: Hiram and Lizzie appear on the US Federal Census for Justice Precinct 2, Hunt County, Texas.
30 January 1920: Hiram and Lizzie appear on the US Federal Census for Farris, Atoka Co., Oklahoma. Hiram had died on 20 January, but the census-taker must have been following the instructions, which indicated that “individuals alive on 1 January but deceased when the enumerator arrived were to be counted.”
27 July 1925: Lizzie files her Confederate Widow’s Pension application from Collin County, Texas
10 Sep 1929: Lizzie writes a letter requesting assistance with her Pension application; the location is given as Leonard, Texas (Leonard is in Fannin County).
21 April 1930: Lizzie appears on the US Federal Census living with her son Austin in Fannin County, Texas.
29 July 1958: Lizzie dies in Plano, Collin County, Texas. She apparently had lived for some years with her youngest son, Cecil Odell, who signed the application for her mortuary warrant and her death certificate. Her death certificate indicates her stay in Plano as “several years.”
Much of this is guesswork and there are sure to be inaccuracies here; however, these would be the locations in Oklahoma and Texas where I would want to check local resources (courthouse records, newspaper archives, etc.). I have often wondered whether or not Lizzie had any siblings, and if she did, whether she was ever in contact with them. There are so many things I wonder about Lizzie.
I previously posted information on my biggest brick wall, Susan Elizabeth “Lizzie” Smith Bonner Brinlee, here. This brick wall fits quite well into the Madness Monday theme, however, so I’d like to add some information to that. (The information that I do have on her is so tantalizing and the information that I am missing is so aggravating, that it really does almost drive me to distraction.) This also fits the criteria for Blogging Prompt #12, "Use your blog to break down a brick wall" (late, of course).
Here is some basic information on the Hiram Carroll Brinlee Jr.-Susan Elizabeth Smith family group:
Hiram Carroll “Dink” Brinlee Jr.
b. Sep 1844, Red River County, Texas
d. 20 Jan 1920, Collin County, Texas
& Susan Elizabeth “Lizzie” Smith
b. 4 Apr 1868, Tennessee
d. 29 Jul 1958
m. 3 Dec 1891, White Bead Hill, Chickasaw Nation, OK
|--Lawrence Carroll Brinlee
|----b. 29 Jan 1893, String Town, Atoka, OK
|----d. 9 Apr 1953, Bonham, Fannin, TX
|----& Sallie Frances Norman
|----b. 5 Sep 1892, Talladega Co., AL
|----d. 8 Dec 1984, Ivanhoe, Fannin County, Texas
|-----m. 6 May 1911, Greenville, Hunt Co., TX
|--Cordelia Lee “Cordie” Brinlee
|----b. 8 Jun 1895, Oklahoma
|----d. 23 May 1961, McKinney, Collin Co., Texas
|----& Kingsley Levington Clinton
|----b. 18 Feb 1894, Putnam Co., Tennessee
|----d. 2 Nov 1955, Anna, Collin, Texas
|----m. 1911
|--Austin Franklin Brinlee
|----b. 6 Apr 1904, Farmersville, Collin County, Texas
|----d. 17 Nov 1976, Allen, Collin County, Texas
|----& Mary Katherine Clinton
|----b. 3 Aug 1912, Fannin County, Texas
|----d. 25 Aug 1993, Allen, Collin County, Texas
|----m. 24 Jul 1928, Fannin County, Texas
|--Cecil Odell Brinlee
|----b. 23 Sep 1908, Collin County, Texas
|----d. 30 Oct 1994, Quitman, Wood, Texas
|----& Amy Lorene Kent
|---- b. 12 Dec 1913, Arkansas
|----d. 11 Apr 2000, McKinney, Collin Co., Texas
I have used the above information, the censuses, Lizzie’s Confederate Widow’s Pension application, and her death certificate to put together a sketchy timeline of where Lizzie was at various times in her life:
?1868 to 1889: Tennessee. This is pure speculation. However, since Lizzie and Hiram got married in Oklahoma and appear to have met there, I am guessing that Lizzie and her first husband, Mr. Bonner, might have come to Oklahoma in the big land rush in 1889. Because she stated on the 1930 that she first married at the age of 17, I am putting the year of that marriage at around 1885-86 and probably in Tennessee.
1889 to some time between 1900, when Hiram appears on the US Federal Census for Britton Township, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma Territory (my guess is that Lizzie and the children were with him, but not reported to the census-taker) and 1904, when Austin is reported to have been born in Farmersville, Collin County, Texas: Oklahoma. The year of the move was most likely 1902, as reported by Lizzie on her Confederate Widow’s Pension Application. On Lizzie and Hiram’s marriage license, which is dated 1 December 1891, Lizzie’s residence is listed as White Bead Hill, Chickasaw Nation, and Hiram’s residence is listed as Davis, Chickasaw Nation. Their certificate of marriage was certified by R. H. Grimstead, Minister of the Gospel, and dated 3 December 1891. My grandfather Lawrence Brinlee was reported to have been born in String Town, Atoka, Oklahoma on 29 January 1893; on his World War I Draft Registration card, he lists the location as Paul’s Valley, Oklahoma. My information on Cordelia’s place of birth does not include a specific location in Oklahoma.
6 April 1904: Austin born in Farmersville, Collin County, Texas
23 September 1908: Cecil Odell born in Collin County, Texas
4 May 1910: Hiram and Lizzie appear on the US Federal Census for Justice Precinct 2, Hunt County, Texas.
30 January 1920: Hiram and Lizzie appear on the US Federal Census for Farris, Atoka Co., Oklahoma. Hiram had died on 20 January, but the census-taker must have been following the instructions, which indicated that “individuals alive on 1 January but deceased when the enumerator arrived were to be counted.”
27 July 1925: Lizzie files her Confederate Widow’s Pension application from Collin County, Texas
10 Sep 1929: Lizzie writes a letter requesting assistance with her Pension application; the location is given as Leonard, Texas (Leonard is in Fannin County).
21 April 1930: Lizzie appears on the US Federal Census living with her son Austin in Fannin County, Texas.
29 July 1958: Lizzie dies in Plano, Collin County, Texas. She apparently had lived for some years with her youngest son, Cecil Odell, who signed the application for her mortuary warrant and her death certificate. Her death certificate indicates her stay in Plano as “several years.”
Much of this is guesswork and there are sure to be inaccuracies here; however, these would be the locations in Oklahoma and Texas where I would want to check local resources (courthouse records, newspaper archives, etc.). I have often wondered whether or not Lizzie had any siblings, and if she did, whether she was ever in contact with them. There are so many things I wonder about Lizzie.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Madness Monday: My "Bad Boys" - The Brinlee Brothers
I have a lot of ancestors who drive me crazy. How do they drive me crazy? Let me count the ways … no, better not. It would drive me crazy.
I’ll start will The Brinlee Brothers. The originals – Hiram Brinlee Sr., my great-great grandfather, and his brother, George Brinlee. (The spelling of the family name is believed to have changed from Brindley to Brinlee starting with these two brothers.) My Brinlee research began with the family legends: we are related to Collin McKinney (true), there is a strain of German in the Brinlees (true, via the McKinneys), there is a strain of Native American in the Hiram Brinlee Jr.-Susan Elizabeth Smith line (don’t know), and Legend Number Four, obliquely related by my father and his brothers: “Grandma started family research but got disgusted and quit when she kept finding criminals.”
After my initial research revealed that the first two items were true, I began to think the criminal part might be as well, but as I turned up what I could on George and Hiram Sr., they appeared to be ordinary farmers who had led an adventurous youth. In 1824 (or possibly 1823) they came to Texas (George serving as scout) with Collin and Daniel McKinney, and later married Daniel’s daughters. A search for the Brinlee brothers on the Texas State Archives website turned up a number of documents dating to Republic of Texas times; some of these revealed that George had fought with General Edward Tarrant, while others were receipts for serving subpoenas to witnesses and performing other services in connection with murder trials. So, I thought, George and Hiram must have served as officers of the court. Only they didn’t. Their names appeared following “Republic of Texas vs.” They were the accused. Oops. Legend Number 4 – proven.
The Brinlee Brothers have led researchers on some crazy chases: now you see them, now you don’t. They disappear in various ways, often through inconsistent spelling of the last name. George is reported to have died of cholera in the early 1850s while on a trip to New Orleans to sell cotton. He and Hiram Sr. were apparently born in that nebulous area where the dividing line between Kentucky and Tennessee was not firmly established in the early part of the 19th century (their father may have been a squatter on the Indian Lands). They are just plain old hard to pin down.
(This is the first in a new series introduced by Amy Crooks at Untangled Family Roots. I'll have no problem coming up with ancestors who drive me crazy, so you can expect to see more. Since I also post Memory Monday, this feature may be posted slightly earlier - as it is today - or slightly later. But I'll still call it Monday Madness because I don't pay much attention to the calendar, anyway.)
I’ll start will The Brinlee Brothers. The originals – Hiram Brinlee Sr., my great-great grandfather, and his brother, George Brinlee. (The spelling of the family name is believed to have changed from Brindley to Brinlee starting with these two brothers.) My Brinlee research began with the family legends: we are related to Collin McKinney (true), there is a strain of German in the Brinlees (true, via the McKinneys), there is a strain of Native American in the Hiram Brinlee Jr.-Susan Elizabeth Smith line (don’t know), and Legend Number Four, obliquely related by my father and his brothers: “Grandma started family research but got disgusted and quit when she kept finding criminals.”
After my initial research revealed that the first two items were true, I began to think the criminal part might be as well, but as I turned up what I could on George and Hiram Sr., they appeared to be ordinary farmers who had led an adventurous youth. In 1824 (or possibly 1823) they came to Texas (George serving as scout) with Collin and Daniel McKinney, and later married Daniel’s daughters. A search for the Brinlee brothers on the Texas State Archives website turned up a number of documents dating to Republic of Texas times; some of these revealed that George had fought with General Edward Tarrant, while others were receipts for serving subpoenas to witnesses and performing other services in connection with murder trials. So, I thought, George and Hiram must have served as officers of the court. Only they didn’t. Their names appeared following “Republic of Texas vs.” They were the accused. Oops. Legend Number 4 – proven.
The Brinlee Brothers have led researchers on some crazy chases: now you see them, now you don’t. They disappear in various ways, often through inconsistent spelling of the last name. George is reported to have died of cholera in the early 1850s while on a trip to New Orleans to sell cotton. He and Hiram Sr. were apparently born in that nebulous area where the dividing line between Kentucky and Tennessee was not firmly established in the early part of the 19th century (their father may have been a squatter on the Indian Lands). They are just plain old hard to pin down.
(This is the first in a new series introduced by Amy Crooks at Untangled Family Roots. I'll have no problem coming up with ancestors who drive me crazy, so you can expect to see more. Since I also post Memory Monday, this feature may be posted slightly earlier - as it is today - or slightly later. But I'll still call it Monday Madness because I don't pay much attention to the calendar, anyway.)
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