Christopher Odom and His Brothers
I mentioned in my previous Blog about Ferdinand Odom that there were other groups of Odoms in Fayette and Lamar County at the same time as Ferdinand and his family. I am still not sure about the relation betw een the two families, but this is a story to unravel.
As I mentioned previously there was a Christopher Odom who lived near Ferdinand in Gwinnett County, GA in 1830, who I think is the same Christopher Odom living in nearby Tuscaloosa County, Alabama in 1840. Both Ferdinand Odom and Christopher Odom were both issued “Homestead and Cash Entry Patents” on September 20, 1839 in Tuscaloosa County. “Homestead and Cash Entry Patents” were a document recording the passing of a land title from the government, or other proprietor, to the patentee/grantee. This is the first-title deed and the true beginning of private ownership of the land. The two land patents were in the same county but not close. Christopher continued to buy land in Tuscaloosa and Ferdinand bought land in Fayette.
In 1850 we see a new Odom in Alabama. Christopher’s older brother, Richard is shown living with his family on the 1850 census. Richard was 46 years old and unmarried. That would make him one year older than Christopher. We are not completely sure how long Richard had been in Tuscaloosa. There are several other Odom’s in Tuscaloosa County as well. In addition to Richard and Christopher, there was Tobias, Mary Polly Odom Smith, Nancy Elizabeth Odom Elmore, and Thomas G. Odom. We know that all of these Odom’s were brothers and sisters as they were listed on Richard Odom’s will in 1859. If Ferdinand was one of these siblings, he would have been the oldest born in 1801. However, he was living in 1859 and was not mentioned in Richard’s will, so we cannot be sure how he was related.
Christopher Odom (b 1805) was known as “Kit”. He married Sarah Beam and they had at least two children; Martha (1844) and William (1846). Christopher died in or before 1859. He was mentioned in Richard Odom’s will as deceased.
Tobiaz Altuscal M. Odom was born in 1810 and died before 1850. He was known as “Biaz”. He married Mahala Phillips (1821-1850) in 1841 and they had at least four children: Richard (1841-1859), Malissa (1843-1859), Aaron G. (1845-1859), and Martha W. (1849-1859). Notice anything that jumps out? All of the children and Tobiaz died the same year. We do not know if this was the result of sickness or another catastrophic event. But the entire family was gone the same year. Note that both Richard and Christopher either died just before or in 1859 as well. If anyone knows what happended in Tuscaloosa County in 1859, give us a shout. We do know that a number of yellow fever epidemics struck various parts of Alabama in the 1850s, this could have been the reason for so many deaths in the same year.
The next child was Mary Polly Odom (1812-1880). She married James W. Smith in 1838. James Smith was the oldest son of Ferdinand’s neighbor Temperance Bridges Smith. This marriage links the Tuscaloosa County Odom’s with the Fayette County Odom’s. Mary Polly and her husband James have Winny Odom living with them in 1870. This further links the two families. They had three children: Benjamin F. (1842-1863), William Wilburn (1843-1912) and daughter Mary Melissa (1846-1934). Mary Melissa married a William Black and moved to Bell County, Texas where she died.
The next daughter was Nancy Elizabeth Odom (1813-1884). Nancy Elizabeth married John Elmore (1813-1909) in January 1833. They moved from Tuscaloosa County to Pickens County, Alabama by 1870. Nancy was killed on December 26, 1884 when she was struck by a train. There is a ton of reasearch on the Elmore family but I will not pursue it here.
There are lots of stories about Nancy Odom Elmore. Elmore family history says she was the daughter of Tempe Odom from North Carolina. Many in the family think that “Grandmother Tempe” was Nancy Odom’s mother. I do not believe this was true. I think Grandmother Tempe was Temperance Bridges Smith who was the mother of Nancy’s brother-in-law James W. Smith. “Grandmother Tempe” was living with her youngest son Balim in 1870. To make matters even more confusing we actually also have Winny Odom living with Mary Polly and James W. Smith in 1870.
So it appears that we have two grandmothers in the mix. “Grandmother Tempe” who was Temperance Bridges Smith and “Grandmother Odom” who was Winny Odom. They both lived to be quite old and lived in and around the same area with the same children and grandchildren. We will explore who Winny Odom may be in another story.
The last child was Thomas G. Odom (1815-1863). Thomas moved from Tuscaloosa to Chickasaw, Mississippi by 1850. He married Elizabeth Ann Nall (1812-1863) and they had at least 10 children. Thomas was killed on May 24, 1863 at Vicksburg, Mississippi, during the siege. General Ulysses Grant captured Vicksburg on July 4, 1863. The town of Vicksburg would not celebrate the 4th of July for 81 years after.
Ellender Temperance “Tempy” Wallace Jackson
Our story about Ancil McDonald Jackson’s children started when we looked at the lives of his first set of children with Seletia Ann West, daughter of Wade Hampton West. This marriage began the link between these two early Wilson County pioneer families. We looked at the lives of all of their children and now we will look at Ancil’s second family with Ellender Temperence “Tempy” Wallace Powell.
Ellender Temperance Wallace, the second wife of Ancil McDonald Jackson was born on January 19, 1840 in Shelby County, Alabama. Shelby County is located in central Alabama. Her father, Samuel Allen Wallace, was born in Rutherford County, Tennessee on April 16, 1812. He married Mary W. Muse in Rutherford County sometime before their first child John Muse Wallace was born on January 13, 1838.
The family then moved to Shelby County, Alabama where Samuel received a land grant in 1837. They settled down there for a number of years and their family grew. The first daughter, Ellender Temperance was born there on January 19, 1840. The next daughter, Martha Matilda “Polly” was born on March 22, 1844, followed by Narcissa Jane who was born December 28, 1847 all in Shelby County, Alabama. The family moved from Alabama to Mississippi sometime between 1846 and the birth of the last daughter Missouri Caroline “Mazie” who was born on August 11, 1848. By 1850, the family had moved on and was located in Panola, Texas on the 1850 census. Remember Panola and Shelby Counties were where the West family landed after they left Arkansas.
When Ellender’s Mother, Mary Muse died, her father remarried Elizabeth T. Rice Powell, a widow. Elizabeth was the daughter of Parker Merimuth Rice and Mary Willamina “Polly” Bomar. Elizabeth Rice was first married to James D. Powell on November 9, 1839 in Campbell County, Georgia. Interestingly, Campbell County is the same place as James and Jane West lived before moving east to Arkansas about 1830. You have to wonder if they knew each other back in Georgia.
James and Elizabeth Powell had 5 children. The first son was Armstead A (Almarine?) Powell who was born about 1840 in Carroll County, Georgia. Like his father he enlisted as a Private on the side of the Confederacy on February 1, 1862 in the 18th Texas Regiment. He was later taken as a Prisoner of War on April 9,1864 at Pleasant Hills, Louisiana. You can read about the Battle of Pleasant Hill by clicking her. Armstead was released to General Richard Taylor on Apil 20, 1864. The regiment disbanded in 1865. I believe this is the A.A./Armstead Powell was Ellender Temperance Wallace’s first husband. Jack Jackson’s book indicated he was the son of E.L. Powell rather than James Powell. I find a Civil War record for an E.L. Powell who was in Chamber’s Battalion, Texas Reserve Cops Infantry but no information about where this battalion was formed or who was assigned to it.
Samuel Wallace, a widower, and Elizabeth Powell, a widow, married before 1870 and are living in Brazos County, Texas on the 1870 US Census with two of Elizabeth’s younger children from her previous marriage; James 15 and Elizabeth 12. Their older children had already ventured out on their own. John Muse Wallace, her older brother, had migrated to Wilson County by 1860 and was living three households down from Ancil McDonald Jackson.
Beginning on December 24, 1862 he served in the CSA at Fort Davis as a part of Company A of the Texas Mounted Regiment under Captain James E. McCord. This regiment was charged with protecting the western frontier after the soldiers from the United States were withdrawn when the Civil War began. After the end of the war he returned to Wilson County and married Sarah on August 23, 1864. When Seletia Ann West Jackson died on December 20, 1868 leaving Ancil a widower with 5 small children, his neighbor John Wallace may have suggested that Ancil travel back to East Texas with him to meet his sister Ellender, herself a widow.
Regardless of how the couple met Ancil Jackson married Ellender Wallace Powell on December 9, 1869 almost a year after the tragic death of Seletia Ann. When the couple came home they brought Ellender’s two younger sisters, Missouri Caroline “Mazie” and Martha Matilda “Polly” who lived with the Jacksons and with their brother John Muse Wallace who lived in Sutherland Springs. When Martin West’s wife Polly died in 1876, Martin married her younger sister Mazie in 1877.
By this time, Ancil was wealthy enough to afford a fine house for his family and they first lived in “Free Timbers” but soon moved to a large ranch on the Cibolo or the Ecleto Creeks. In 1866, the couple bought what was to be known as the Jackson Ranch located one and a half miles north of present day Stockdale. Ellender having grown up in Alabama and Mississippi in the midst of greenery set about to make the Jackson Ranch her vision of home by planting a wide variety of flowers and trees around the house.
Here is an excerpt from a chapter “Life on a Texas Ranch” from the book “The Rising and Setting of the Lone Star Republic” published by Ancil and Ellender’s daughter Mattie Jackson who became a school teacher. This chapter was written by Ancil and Seletia’s oldest daughter Frances Mahala “Fanny” Jackson Lee describing their home.
“ They had a two-room house built of pine lumber that was shipped from Florida and hauled in wagons from old Indianola, a distance of more than one hundred miles. Besides this large front room with a shed room and a south porch, they built about fifty feet away, another two-room house. This was built of Post Oak lumber. The largest of these rooms fifteen by twenty feet was used for both a kitchen and a dining room. The smaller adjoining room was used for a smoke-house. In this was kept a year’s supply of meat. About one hundred feet beyond the kitchen, a third two-room house was built; this house had a south porch and was made of post oak lumber. Father usually kept the large room of this house filled with un-ginned cotton; during the summer months, and we called it the cotton-house. During the winter months, it was often converted into a bedroom for the boys, but sometimes it was occupied by a family. About one hundred yards from these buildings was a group of corn cribs, in which the corn crops were stored. This plan of building was used by almost all pioneer settlers, to prevent a total loss by fire.
To children of today a two-room house may seem very small for a family of eleven children, but in my father’s house, there was always room for more. They never turned a traveler away and they gave a home to more than a score of people during their life at this place.
This residence was almost surrounded by trees; on the north and west by live oak trees; on the south and in front of the house were planted three English Mulberry trees. In a few years, these trees shaded the whole front yard. Mother was a great lover of flowers and with the help of the children, she had a very beautiful yard. In addition to the flower beds, she had roses, crepe myrtles, lilac, salt-cedar, magnolia, and many other old fashioned shrubs and trees.”
There are many, many more details about the Jackson Ranch in this book so if you want to learn more, the book can be viewed at the Texas State Library and Archives in Austin (Call #917.64.J136).
After a few short years, Ancil and “Tempy” as she was called in later years, began their family. They had six more children who survived infancy: Missouri Carolina “Carrie” (1872-1932), Martha Melissa “Mattie” (1872-1955), Laura (1874-1945), Ancil McDonald “Bud” (1876-1927), Phenecy “Necy” (1879-1955), and Narcissia “Narcy” (1883-1964). The couple also had two more babies who did not survive infancy.
Despite the family’s wealth and position of respect in the community, Ancil began drinking and gambling in his later years. So much so that Tempy divorced him on June 7, 1895 supposedly to keep him from squandering all of their property and leave the children with nothing. Jackson family history says that this is what caused his daughter, Mattie’s fanatical anti-liquor stance.
Both sets of children from both Seletia and Tempy got along well. All of Seletia’s children called Tempy, “Mother” as indeed she was for some of the younger ones, the only mother they ever knew. So they were likely devastated when Ellender died on June 3, 1890 at age 56. She is supposed to be buried in the Stockdale City Cemetery but perhaps in an unmarked grave. I have searched for a headstone many times without success. I did find stones for her infant daughters who did not survive. Ancil is also buried in the cemetery and does have a head stone that has been placed there in more recent years.
After her Mother’s death, it was Mattie who had received her teaching certificate four years before who remained at home to care for the younger children and their aging father, helped by her brother Ancil Jr. “Bud”. Ancil died on July 2, 1904 and Jackson family lore says that all of his children from both Seletia and Tempy with the exception of Susan Maria “Sudie” were at his bedside when he passed. He had famously disowned Sudie years before because she married a Mexican man. So that was the end of that generation of Jacksons.
We will pick up our story now with the lives of Ellender’s children to explore how they prospered after their childhood “On a Texas Ranch”. Stay tuned…
Susan Maria “Sudie” Jackson
In this post we will look at Susan Maria Jackson, the youngest daughter of Ancil McDonald Jackson and his first wife Seletia Ann West Jackson. .
The fifth child of Ancil McDonald Jackson and Seletia Ann West Jackson was Susan Maria “Sudie” Jackson who was born on October 8, 1868 in Stockdale, Wilson County, TX. She was just over two months old when her mother Seletia died on December 20, 1868. We do not know what took Seletia at the young age of just 25 but it was a tragedy for her five young children, Fannie, Mollie, Willie, Lizzie, and the baby Sudie.
We don’t know where the nickname “Sudie” came from. Just information passed down over the years. Regardless, Sudie was a tiny baby left without a mother. Ancil’s brother Nathan and his wife Susan Jane Tinkle Jackson lived very close to Ancil according to the 1870 census and it is likely that her namesake Aunt Susan helped a lot after the death of her mother. Her father, Ancil, remarried in just less than a year to Temperance Ellender Wallace from East Texas, more about her in the next story. The couple married on December 9, 1869. Temperance raised Sudie and was the only mother that she knew growing up.
As the years passed, Sudie grew up in relative affluence as the daughter of a wealthy landowner and rancher. She likely attended school along with her sisters and brother. Soon the family grew with the birth of eight more children (six who lived past infancy). A large brood indeed!
At the age of 16, Sudie met and married Little Barry Champion Buckalew from Bandera, Texas. The wedding took place on May 30, 1886 in Wilson County. There was likely a big celebration at the Jackson Ranch similar to that described in Mattie Jackson’s book “The Rising and Setting of the Lone Star Republic” about Sudie’s older sister Mollie’s wedding to Robert Henry Sutherland.
Little Barry Buckalew was from a prominent family in Medina, Bandera County, TX. Bandera County is located to the northwest of San Antonio. Little Barry’s father Little Barry Champion Buckalew Sr. was born in Alabama and later married a widow Mary Ann Clarkson North in Union County, Arkansas in 1849 before coming to Medina County. In 1860 the family included two of Mary Ann’s children from her previous marriage, William Grandison North (1844-1973) and Delaware “Della” North (1846-1879) as well as their own children Melissa (1855-1961), Eliza C. (1857-1864), and Little Berry Jr. born in 1859. Two more children; Mary Ann (1861-1891) and Robert Henry (1865-1938) had arrived when tragedy struck.
On January 26, 1866, Little Barry Sr. was killed by Indians while returning from San Antonio where he had taken a load of shingles to sell and bring back supplies. You can read all about the account in the book, “Pioneer History of Bandera County” beginning on page 45. After this tragedy, Mary Ann returned to the town of Bandera with her children, bought a lot and lived there to send the children to school. She later remarried James Walter Sier in 1868.
Little Barry Jr. grew to manhood in Bandera County and on May 4, 1882 he married his first wife Amanda Bybee born May 3, 1863 in McClendon County, TX. The couple had two children together; first Isabelle born Buckalew January 28, 1886 and then Grace Jean Buckalew born February 27, 1889. Now the mystery begins….
It appears that Little Barry Jr. moved from Bandera County to Wilson County at some point before 1886 as he married Susan Marie “Sudie” Jackson on May 30, 1886 just two months after the birth of his daughter Isabelle and before the birth of Grace in 1889. So what was going on there? I can find no divorce record for Barry and Amanda, but apparently they “mostly” stopped living together after Isabelle’s birth in 1886. Amanda went on to remarry Theodore Lockhart Hughes in 1895 and they had one other child together.
It hard to say how it happened that Barry Jr. married our Susan Maria while he was already married to Amanda Bybee but apparently things like this happen so who knows the real story. However it appears that the marriage to Susan Maria Jackson worked out for Barry and the couple had 12 children together. Their first six children were born in Wilson County, but by 1900 Barry and Sudie had moved back to Bandera where they had five more children.
The first child Verner Virgil Buckalew was born on April 3, 1887. After his family moved back to Bandera he married Letha Ann Gordon (1891-1958) sometime in 1909. Their children were daughter Willie Louise (1908-1998), Louis Preston (1911-1970), Mary Ethel (1912-1990), Floyd Verner (1914-1958), Virgil L (1917-1980), and Agnes Marie (1923-2000). Verner died March 29, 1942 Robert E. Lee, Coke County Texas.
The next child was Aramentia Melissa “Mollie” Buckalew who was born on August 17, 1888 in Wilson County. On April 25, 1906 she married Thomas Watt Hill (1882-1955) in Kerr County Texas. The couple had six children: Blanche Sarah Hill Hyde (1907-1981), Lillian Hill who was born in 1912 and died less than a year later in 1913, Buelah Jane Hill Kuelhler (1914-1999), August Pinkney Hill (1917-1979), Marvin Wesley Hill (1919-1920) who lived less than a year, Adriam Donald Hill (1924-2002) and Sadie Lee Hill Constanzo (1928-2014). Aamentia died January 28, 1948 and is buried in Kerr County Texas.
The third child Little Barry Champion Buckalew III was born April 13, 1891 in Wilson County. He was obviously named after his father and grandfather. Lille Barry III married Haytee Lee “Hattie” Moffett (1890-1957) in Bandera County on August 27, 1911. They had three daughters: Audra Josephine Buckalew Anderson (1912-1995), Marjorie Jewel Buckalew Bays (1918-2015), and Eleanor Sue Buckalew Lee (1924-2023). Little Barry III died on July 7, 1963 in Brownwood, Texas.
The fourth child was Seletia Ann Buckalew who was named after her Grandmother Seletia Ann West Jackson. She was born on October 8, 1892 in Wilson County. She was married twice, first to John Henry Reed on March 7, 1914 in Bandera. They had one child John Henry Reed Jr. (1915-2001). By 1930 the family moved from Bandera to Wyoming where Seletia divorced Henry Reed sometimes before 1920 and lived with her brother James. She and her son moved to Wyoming where she is listed as divorced on the 1930 census. Shortly after, she married James Herald Ballard in Wyoming on December 1936. Sadly, he died on November 2, 1937 after they had been married less than a year. She died in Worland, Washakie, Wyoming on August 31, 1972.
The fifth child of Sudie and Little Berry was Dovie Florence Buckalew born April 1, 1894 in Wilson County. The family moved back to Bandera before Dovie was 6 and that is where she grew up. She married Henry Augusta Schramm in San Antonio. The marriage license date is October 28, 1916 which is two years after their first son George Lee (1914-1952) was born. Not sure about the timing of the marriage license. Perhaps they were married without a license earlier. They had one other child Howard Augusta (1917-2003). Henry died on December 9, 1952. Dovie who generally went by Florence continued to live in San Antonio until her death on April 9, 1986.
The next child was Mary A. “Mollie” Buckalew who was born on March 24, 1896. Some Family Trees say her name was Mary A. Melvina “Mollie” Buckalew. Mary Melvina would have been her Aunt Mary Melvina Jackson Sutherland, her Mother’s older sister. Mollie went on to marry Daniel Earl Dunn (1895-1985). Daniel was from New York City and the couple married sometime before 1929. Since they had no children that I could identify, its hard to estimate a date. Mollie died on May 28, 1985 in Broward County, Florida.
The next child was James Madison Buckalew, known as Jim, was born in on Feb 19, 1898. He was the last child to be born in Wilson County before his family moved back to Bandera. He married Vera Eloise Swinney (1901-1985) in Kerr County, Texas on September 8, 1922. They had five children: James Berry Buckalew (1924-2002), William Calvin Buckalew (1928-2004), Windle Lee Buckalew (1931-2007), and twins: Winson Dee “Buck” Buckalew (1931-2015) and Windle Lee Buckalew (1931-2007), both born on April 3, 1931. James died on December 26, 1987 in Stanislaus, California.
The seventh child was Daisy Dimple Buckalew who was born on February 28, 1900 likely in Bandera. On July 31, 1918 she married John J O’Larnic (1874-1951). John was 44 and Daisy was 18 when they married. John was born in Hungry and immigrated to this country with his family in 1893 when he was 18 years old. In 1899 he enlisted in the Navy in 1898 and fought in the Philippine Islands in the Spanish-American War. The couple had two children: Gladys Irene Buckalew Baca (1919-1992) and John Harris O’Larnic (1921-1992). Daisy died March 23, 1984 in San Antonio.
Child number eight was another son, Shelly Lee Roy Buckalew who was born in Bandera on Mach 17, 1902. He married Lorina Byrl Spivey (1907-1992) on July 22, 1923. They had only one son, Herman Elmer Buckalew (1929-1960) before Shelley died of Typhoid Fever on December 19, 1929 in Mills County, Texas at just 27 years.
The next daughter, Susan Marie Buckalew was obviously named after her mother. She was born on August 20, 1904 in Bandera County. She married Louis George Sutherland (1900-1978) on May 16, 1920 in Bandera County, TX. Louis is not a part of the Wilson County Sutherland Family that are my ancestors. The couple had a number of children: Ellis Berry Sutherland (1921-2010), Florence Evelyn Sutherland Mahan (1923-2001), George L. Sutherland (1927-1944), Coy S. Sutherland (1929 – ?). I find no record of this child after the 1930 census. He may have died young. The next child was Melvin Marshall Sutherland (1929-2011), Oren Wayne Sutherland (1934-2004), Dorothy Sue Sutherland Williams Thorman (1935-2002). Susan Marie died September 21, 1990 in Mills County, Texas.
Next we have Velma Viola Buckalew who was born on November 6, 1908 in Bandera County. She married Theodoric Vincent Swinney (1902-1981) on January 10, 1934. The couple had three children: Velma Pauline Swinney Williams (1925-2016), Florence Pauline Swinney Goble (1929-2014), and James Avil Swinney (1935-?). Velma died July 16, 2006 in Paradise, Wise County, Texas.
Last but not least was Ancil Aaron Buckalew named after Sudie’s father Ancil Jackson and her uncle Aaron William “Pony” Jackson who was Ancil’s brothers. Ancil was born on July 31, 1910 in Bandera County. He later married Mary Frances Quarles sometime before 1933 when their first child was born. They had three children Mary Carolyn Buckalew Dye (1933-2013), Ancil Weldon Buckalew (1940-1993), and Joyce Sue Buckalew who was born in 1945 and died at the age of 18 in 1964. Ancil died on July 15, 1974 at Port Aransas, TX.
Sudie died on March 28, 1911 about a year after the birth of her 12th child Aaron Ancil. Little Berry Jr. found another bride and married Rachael Ann Elizabeth Zumwalt Pierson on November 28, 1919. Little Berry Jr. only lived a few more years and died there in Bandera County on June 18, 1923. This would have been just a month after the picture of all of his children (above) was taken. Rachael went on to remarry John Butler (1864-1949) and had one daughter Lilly Jane Butler (1930-2016).
Wow what a big family! Sudie and Little Berry had 12 children and at least 34 grandchildren. Sharing all of the ancestry information about Sudie’s descendants would fill a book. If anyone has a special interest in some member of the family, just comment on this story and I can give you what I have found so far. Genealogy research is never over. You may notice that I rarely mention any living persons in my BLOG to protect their privacy. If anyone has pictures to share, please let me know so I can add to this story for everyone to enjoy.
Next time I will re-introduce Temperance Ellender Wallace Jackson who was Ancil McDonald Jackson’s second wife. They had another 8 children together including some of the most interesting family members. Stay tuned…
Aaron William “Willie” Jackson – The first son
Ancil McDonald Jackson and Seletia Ann West’s first son was born on October 30, 1864 in Free Timbers, Guadalupe County, Texas. He was named after his father’s brother Aaron William “Pony” Jackson. Aaron’s birth was right after his father’s service in the Confederacy during the Civil War in Texas. Ancil served in the Confederacy in 1862 in the 30th Brigade of the Texas Frontier Regiment. Ancil was relieved from duty because of an injury sustained from a fall from a sorrel horse. For the remainder of the Civil War, Ancil served the Confederacy in the Quartermaster Corps providing cattle beef to the Confederacy.
Willie like his sisters; Fannie, Mollie, and Lizzie grew up in relative affluence on the Jackson Ranch in Wilson County. He worked along with his father Ancil as a stockman raising cattle and the horses that Ancil was so proud of.
When Willie was 24 he met and married Marietta Dyal who was 29 on June 13, 1889 in Wilson. Their marriage certificate is #1520. The Justice of the Peace was M.C. McGee and witnesses were N.B. Ware and N. Jackson “Uncle Nathan” who was Ancil’s brother. It is likely that there was a huge wedding celebration between children of these two affluent Wilson County families similar to what is described by Fannie Jackson in the chapter she wrote “Life on a Texas Ranch” for her sister Fannie’s book. There would have been a huge barbecue outside under the trees at either the Jackson or the Dyal ranch.
Marietta was the oldest child of Enoch Dyal (1823-1909) and Sarah “Sallie” Mayo (1842-1872) and was born in Florida on January 7, 1860 just before the start of the Civil War. Marietta’s mother had already died when the family moved to Wilson County and were shown on the 1878 Tax Rolls with Enoch and his 6 children: Marietta, John Jasper, Victoria, Elijay, Ledora, Charles. Enoch was apparently affluent when he arrived in Texas. On the 1881 Tax Rolls he is shown owning 413 acres of the original “De la Garza” land grant, 1 carriage, 16 horses, 10 cows, and 45 hogs. His wealth was comparable to Ancil Jackson at the time. He purchased the land from Ancil Jackson thus establishing an early connection between the two families.
Willie like many others in the county raised stock and grew cotton, In 1897 he had 50 acres that he purchased from Charles Houston also on the original “De la Garza” grant and was located right next to his father-in-law Enoch’s land. When the railroad came to Stockdale in 1898, Willie like many other farmers concentrated on raising cotton now that they had a way to get their crops to outside markets via the train. Jack Jackson’s book says that they had a bumper crop of cotton in 1900 followed in 1902-1903 crops that were destroyed by insects. Although close to bankrupt like many of his neighbors, Willie hung on possibly with the help of his father Ancil and diversifying his crops, a lesson learned in time to avoid the total depletion of his land from growing cotton like happened so many other places across the south.
Willie and Marietta’s children Fred, Ellie Jay, and Maggie attended school in Lilley Grove and were taught by their Aunt Maggie Jackson who one of Ancil’s children with his second wife Temperance Ellender. She is the author of the book “Rising and Setting of the Lone Star Republic”.
Willie’s father Ancil died on July 2, 1904 and all accounts say that Willie was there at his bedside when he passed. Ancil’s death was followed by Enoch Dyal’s death exactly 5 years later on July 2, 1909. Ancil apparently left Willie land upon his death as in 1904 Willie’s land holdings increased by 150 acres.
Willie and Marietta’s oldest child William Fredrick “Fred” Jackson was born September 22, 1891 in Wilson County, Texas. The second son Ellie Jay “Jack” Jackson was born on May 2, 1894. Their youngest child was daughter, Mary Magdelene “Maggie” was born on November 21, 1895.
According to Jack Jackson’s Book on the Jackson Family in Wilson County, Fred grew up working on his father Willie’s farm. We see him there on the 1910 census. As WW I began, Fred and his younger brother Ellie Jay both enlisted in the Army in about 1918. Both were in their 20’s and fought in Europe. Jack’s book says that Fred and his cousin Nelson West (great-grandson of Wade Hampton West) saw action in the same outfit, Battery D of the 131st Artillery. His younger brother Ellie Jay ended up in the Infantry. “He was gassed in the trenches and hospitalized somewhere in France. Their (Fred and Ellie Jay’s) letters home reflect a great love and respect for their parents, concern over how the crop was coming, pet dogs and sweethearts left behind, as well as the charms of French girls. There was a constant complaint that they never received any news from home and assurances that they’d be back, safe and sound, in no time at all. In one letter, Fred tells his mother that Jay (Jack) had been hurt, but not to worry because he will find him and make sure he’s okay. From the tone of their correspondence back home, one would think that they were just out on a grand-scale coon hunt with their dogs.”
After returning from the war, Fred spent a number of years in the Ft. Worth area before returning to Wilson County to marry Ella Lee Varnon on October 15, 1927. Fred was 36 and Ella was 19 when they married. She was the daughter of James Xerxes Varnon and Ida Pearl Johnson Varnon. The couple lost no time starting a family. They had 9 children in all.
Jamie Willette Jackson was born October 6, 1928. She married Jody Wakefield West who was the great-great grandson of Wade Hampton West and Susana Permina Humphreys West. This made him also the great great nephew of Seletia Anne West who was the wife of Ancil McDonald West. So Jamie and Jody were distant cousins and yet another connection between the West and Jackson families in Wilson County. Jamie and Jody had four children: Jamie Willette West George, Jolene West, Ella Mae West, and Jody Wakefield West Jr. Willette as she called herself in later years died on December 8, 1999 in Wilson County, Texas. It’s interesting to note that my father’s sister Hazel Sutherland had Willette as her middle name.
Fay Dell Jackson was the second daughter and was born February 23, 1930. In June of 1944, Fay Dell joined the WWII Army Nurse Cadet Corp and began training as a nurse in St. Joseph’s Hospital in Houston where she graduated on June 6, 1947. The Army Nurse Cadet Corp was authorized by Congress on June 15, 1943 and signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on July 1, 1943. The purpose of the law was to alleviate the nursing shortage that existed before and during World War II. After her training Fay Dell returned to Wilson County and married Connie Newton Calloway on October 18, 1947 in San Antonio. Connie was the son of John Newton Calloway and Connie Mae Reese Calloway. Interesting use of the mother’s given name as the first name of a son. Father’s middle name became Connie’s middle name. This is the first time that I have seen this naming convention in all my genealogy research.
Connie and Fay Del had three children: Cheryl Ann born in 1949, Stephen Jackson born in 1951, and Mary Kathryn born in 1954. Fay Del died January 11, 1992 and is buried in the Pleasant Valley Cemetery in Stockdale.
The third child was another girl, Dorothy Jean born on October 25, 1931. She married Claude Byron White and they had two children: Byronelle born in 1953 and Claudia born October 1, 1954. Both daughters were named after their father Claude Bryon. Dorothy and Claude divorced on March 9, 1990.
Ima Dean Jackson was the 4th child in this brood and was born on August 5, 1933. Ima Dean was still at home with her parents and younger siblings on the 1950 census, but she must have married before the birth of her first child in 1952. The birth record for Sandra Kaye Edwards who was born on May 2, 1952 in Uvalde, Texas shows her mother as Ima Dean and her father as William Henry Edwards. William Henry was shown on the 1950 census living in Stockdale, Texas and working as a History Teacher in the public school. Ima Dean and William went on to have several more children: Paul William Edwards was born in Kerr County, Texas on October 1, 1954 and Drew Fredrick (named after his grandfather) was born March 24, 1956 also in Kerr County. The couple apparently moved back to Wilson County at some point before William Henry died on November 22, 2003. Based on an obituary record in the Austin American Statesman, Ima Dean has passed but I do not have a date.
The third child and first son was William Braxton Jackson born December 27, 1934. William joined the Navy on February 4, 1953 and served in the Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron 2 that was established on March 7, 1952. On November 24, 1956 he married Jeannette Morton in San Diego, California. The couple most likely met while William was stationed on the west coast. Before his death he served as a Aviation Anti-submarine Warfare Technician 2nd Class. He died on July 19, 1967 when his helicopter crashed over land in North Vietnam. He died while missing but his body was recovered and he is buried at the Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery in San Diego. I cannot find any record of children for William and Jeannette.
Members of the Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron were generally deployed on aircraft carries. As submarine action in Vietnam was virtually (if not completely) unknown, a wide variety of activities were conducted by Anti-submarine units in Vietnam. Because Anti-submarine warfare involves the use of magnetic detection gear or acoustic buoys in conjunction with “listening” devices, anti-submarine aircraft and their crews’ training proved especially adaptable to reconnaissance and tracking missions.
Mary Ida Jackson was born on October 29, 1937 in Lilly Grove, Wilson County, TX. She was the 6th daughter of Fred and Ella Jackson. She grew up in Wilson County and graduated from Stockdale High School. She married Charles A Bush sometime before 1957 when their first child was born in Victoria, Texas.
The next daughter Ella Joyce Jackson named after her mother Ella Lee Varnon was born on July 22, 1939 in Wilson County, Texas. Ella was very active in Stockdale High School as demonstrated by many yearbook photos. Soon after graduating from High School, Ella married Franklin Russe Schoenfeld on August 16, 1957. The couple had two children that I can find a record of: Rebecca Lee Schoenfeld born in 1858 and her brother Raymond Neal Schoenfeld born in 1962. Ella and Franklin divorced in 1977. Raymond went on to remarry and have several more children.
Fred Wayne Jackson, the 8th child and the son was born on July 29, 1941. Fred who was named after his father Fredrick was known as “Freddie”. He married Irene Elva West on April 15, 1961. Irene was the great-granddaughter of William Hampton West and the great-great granddaughter of Wade Hampton West. Again the Jacksons and the West’s have intermingled through marriage. Freddie and Elva had at least one child, Ronald Alvie Jackson who was named after his grandfather Alvin “Alvie” West. Fred died on August 17, 2015 in Stockdale, Texas. Irene has died as well based on an obituary in the Victoria Advocate but I do not have the date. Their son Ronald Alvie died in 2014 and is buried in the Pleasant Valley Cemetery in Wilson County.
Last but not least the last child of Fred and Ella Jackson was also a son named Billie Ray Jackson who was born on October 2, 1943 and died the next day. A few years after Fred died in 1961, Ella remarried July 26, 1969. She outlived him by 6 years dying on September 18, 1999.
Willie Jackson and his wife Marietta Dyal Jackson had two other children after Fred. The first was Ellie Jay “Jack” Jackson born on May 2, 1894 and a daughter Mary Magdalene “Maggie” Jackson born November 21, 1895.
According to Jack Jackson’s book, after Ellie Jay’s time in WW I, he spent some years “knocking around”, traveling, and working at odd jobs. He drove a cab in San Antonio and then started driving trucks for various businesses around the San Antonio market district and was eventually able to go into the trucking business himself. He was relatively old when he finally married Cynthia Naomi Pooley May 16, 1940 when he was 46. Cynthia was the daughter of Harvey W. and Katherine Pooley.
The couple had one son Jack Edward “Jaxon” Jackson born on May 15, 1941. Jack was the author of the book that I have referenced many times in this Blog and can be lauded as the first Jackson family historian. Jack married Carol Purse on May 24, 1978 in Austin, but the couple divorced shortly after on September 12, 1980. He later married Mary Christina Herington on August 25, 1983 in Austin. They had one child together, Samuel Angus Herington Jackson who was born on June 26, 1987. Jack passed on June 8, 2006 in Stockdale, TX and is buried in the Pleasant Valley Cemetery. At the time of his death he was writing a book titled “Rawhide Cradle”.
The last of Willie and Marietta’s children, Mary Magdalene “Maggie” Jackson was born November 21, 1895. Maggie, lived with her brother Fred after her parents died. She is listed on the 1930 census in Fred’s residence. In 1931 she married Britt Wiley at the age of 36. Britt was 39. It does not appear that the couple had any children during their marriage. Britt also saw action in Europe during WWI serving in the Army from March 29, 1918 until April 4, 1919. Britt died on August 14, 1967 at the age of 75. Britt had a connection to his mother in law, Marrietta Dyal Jackson. He was the grandson of Marietta’s sister Vick. Maggie followed him on Mach 19, 1981 at the ripe old age of 85.
Wow what a family. Willie and Ella raised quite a brood of children and grandchildren. I am always thrilled to find an occasional rabbit hole to go down to learn something new about the life and times of my ancestors. With the younger generations I am also excited to see so many yearbook pictures. Many of the Jacksons I have written about here are my contemporaries so it is fun to compare notes.
Next BLOG will be about the last child of Ancil McDonald Jackson and his first wife Seletia Ann West, Susan Maria “Sudie” Jackson.
Mary Melvina “Mollie” Jackson Sutherland
Mary Melvina “Mollie” Jackson was the daughter of two prominent families in Wilson County Texas. She was the second child born to Ancil McDonald Jackson and Seletia Ann West. The Jacksons and the Wests were two of the most prominent families in Wilson County when Mollie was born on March 24, 1863. The Wests had been in Wilson County since 1855 and the Jacksons came to Bexar and Wilson County in about 1852. Ancil Jackson’s Father Soloman B. Jackson and Seletia’s father Wade Hampton West were property owners in Wilson County. In 1860 the Jacksons and the Wests lived very close to each other, the Jacksons in dwelling 1745 and the Wests in dwelling 1732. Ancil Jackson was a Stock Raiser and Wade Hampton West was a farmer. It is not at all unlikely that these two prominent families would have spent time together during these years following the war and this is likely where Ancil and Selitia met. They married on September 19, 1860 and Ancil immediately went off to serve in the Confederate Army. This however did not stop them from starting their family.
Their first daughter Frances Mahala, ” Fannie” was born September 13, 1861. Ancil joined the Confederate Army along with many of the young men of Wilson County and served in a Frontier Regiment in the Rio Grande. He was discharged from the Confederate Army in 1862 due to an injury and found his way back to Wilson County where he contributed to the war effort by supplying beef to the Confederate Army from the open ranges of Texas. Upon his return, his second daughter Mary Melvina, “Mollie” was born on March 24, 1863. Mollie was followed by her brother Aaron William “Willie” Jackson born in 1864, Elizabeth Jane “Lizzie” Jackson born in 1866 and Susan Maria “Sudie” Jackson born in 1868. The tragedy struck on December 20, 1868 shortly after the birth of Sudie, Seletia died suddenly at the very young age of only 25.
Needing someone to raise his children, Ancil, remarried Temperance Ellender Wallace Powell on December 9, 1869. Ancil and Temperance could afford a fine house at this time and at first they settled at Free Timbers and then moved to a ranch on the Cibolo . For some reason, the couple did not like this location and they bought what was later known as the Jackson Ranch, one and a half miles, north of present Stockdale. They built a two-room house of pine lumber shipped from Florida and hauled in wagons from old Indianola, 100 miles away. As the family grew, more buildings were added. Clearly Ancil was prospering. His new wife “Tempy” was also bearing Ancil a second family – eight children in all. All indications are that Tempy was a good Mother to Ancil’s children by Seletia.
By 1880, Ancil was a wealthy man, he had over 500 acres of land, 11 horses, and a hundred head of cattle. He had a reputation as a breeder of fine blooded horses and cattle. He kept bees for a supply of honey and had 3 acre orchard producing peaches, plums, pears, apples, figs, pomegranates, and grapes. Mollie was the daughter of a wealthy family with deep roots in Texas.
So how was it that Mollie met and married Robert Henry Sutherland from Arkansas? Robert Henry known to most as Henry came to Sutherland Springs from Northwestern Arkansas for his health between 1870 and 1880. On the 1880 census, Henry is living with another family named Carr: James Carr, born in Arkansas in 1855, his wife Lammie born in TX in 1859 and their daughter Itaska born in TX in 1878. Henry is listed as a boarder with an occupation as a laborer. It is likely that he came to Texas from Arkansas with James Carr.
Ancil and his family were living in dwelling 330 in 1880 and the Carrs were living close by in dwelling 314. We do not know how the couple met as Mollie was the daughter of a prominent family and Henry was new to Texas and working as a laborer and boarding with another family. Regardless, they did meet and married on September 9, 1880 in Wilson County. Their wedding was captured by one of Mollie’s younger step-sisters Maggie Jackson, who described the festivities in her book, “The Rising and Setting of the Lone Star Republic” page 143, Texas State Archives.
“When Sister Mollie (Mrs. R.H. Sutherland) was married, Father had two sheep, two kids and a beef butchered in addition to this, several turkeys were baked. Mother and the neighbor women baked for days and a great wedding feast was spread under the shade of the trees on the lawn.
When Mollie was dressed in white and had her long white veil on, Mother said: “I am sorry I could not buy a wreath of flowers for Mollie, but none could be bought.” Mrs. John Wallace, Mother’s sister-in-law, went out on the lawn and cut a basket of large white flowers Althea or Rose of Sharon, and soon a beautiful bridal wreath was made, and worn by Mollie.
After the ceremony was over, dinner was served, but the guests, as was the custom then, remained the whole day.”
So the daughter of the wealthy man married a poor laborer, so how did their life together unfold? First of all there were lots of children. The couple had a total of 12 children; eight boys and four girls, the first born in1881 a little more than a year after the wedding;
- Maggie Mahalia was born on May 26, 1881 and later married Green Sifford.
- Gideon Thurston “Gid” was born November 20, 1883 and married Clara Mayer.
- Ancil Jackson “Jack” was born May 6, 1885 and married Annie Lou Reed.
- Harry Herchel was born December 7, 1887 and married Anna Belle McIver.
- William Walter “Big Daddy” was born July 24, 1890 and married Alberta Hope.
- Royal Henry “Fritz” was born August 31, 1892 and married Artie Beatrice Odom.
- Laura Belle “Dollie” was born November 4, 1894 and married Newell Phillips.
- James Colbert “Jim” was born May 19, 1896 and married Harry’s widow, Anna Belle McIver.
- Samuel Joseph “Sam” was born September 7, 1899 and married Lena Schulenburg.
- Annie Lee was born January 28, 1902 and married Autry Boyd Earp.
- Mary Elizabeth was born November 13, 1904 and married Eddie West.
- Robert Lee was born July 28, 1908 and married Loleta Mae Ray.
Mollie stayed close to her Father, Ancil and her step-siblings. This picture which is said to have been taken on Christmas Day in 1902 shows Robert and Mollie and many of their children as well as her Father, Ancil and several of her step-siblings. Robert is the tall man with the hat on the right side of the porch, Mollie is next to him holding a young child. Ancil and his children and their spouses are on the left side of the porch. Ancil is wearing a long white beard.
Thanks to Cheri Sutherland Donnell for the family picture of the two families.
Mollie and Robert lived in Sutherland Springs until Robert died of a heart attack on July 26, 1915. However they did not always live together. Mollie and the children appeared on the 1910 census without Robert. Family history says that Robert was a bit of a “rounder” and when Mollie was pregnant, he would skip out-of-town until the baby was born. We have to assume that Mollie’s older sons took care of their Mother and younger siblings when these absences occurred. In 1910, Gid and Jack would have been in their twenties.
Mollie lived on after Robert’s death in 1915. In 1920 she was still living in Sutherland Springs along with several of the younger children; Sam, Mary, and Robert. In 1930 she is still in Sutherland Springs and living with her is her grandson Russell who was Gid’s son. By 1930, Gid and Clara were divorced and apparently Mollie took their son into her home to raise. In 1940 at the age of 77, Mollie was living with her daughter Laura Belle “Dollie” and her husband Newell Phillips.
Mollie passed away on November 10, 1945 in Wilson County and was buried in the Stockdale City Cemetery. Her grave does not have a gravestone but only a cemetery identification marker B-18. Her grave is in a curbed plot along with several other graves including that of her husband Robert.
According to her Granddaughter Mildred Phillips, Mollie was a very tiny, petite, woman barely 100 pounds with a gentle spirit and loving heart. Mildred also remembers, “The first I remember about Grandma Sutherland was that she lived in a house down there in Sutherland Springs called Sour Spring Bottom. It was amongst some of big, big, old oak trees. Grandma’s house was always a haven for the homeless. I mean Uncle Fritz (Royal Henry) went there when his wife lost her mind, he went there and lived with Grandma. He had kids and he had to split up the family. I remember Grandma always taken care of the homeless. Uncle Fritz was a widower, Uncle Gid (Gideon Sutherland) was a widower, and when they became widowers they went home to Grandma.” (The Uncle Fritz she is referring to is my Grandfather, Royal Henry, who was always known as Fritz. His wife, Artie Odom did have a mental collapse in about 1929 and was institutionalized for the rest of her life. More of Fritz and Artie in another Blog)
“She had cows, she had two Jersey cows, she had chickens and she had ducks. She milked her cows once in the morning and again at night, it didn’t make any difference who was there, she got out and milked them cows, and then came in and fixed breakfast. On Christmas and Thanksgiving you didn’t go anywhere but Grandma’s house. I know one time we went from Cuero to Sutherland Springs on the train that was the first and last train I ever road was from Cuero to Sutherland Springs. The depot was right close to Grandma’s house. You could walk from the depot to her house.”
“They built a big hotel there at one time. I can remember the hotel, but I can’t remember what year it was. I use to go down there and stay with Grandma a lot. They had a big dance hall up there and they had two swimming pools. One pool was white sulfur and the other was black sulfur. And the pools were side by side, the water came out of different wells, one (pool’s water) was kind of milky white and the other was dark.”
“People came from all over the world to swim in those sulfur pools. They came on the train, and when they get off the train and the big hotel was close enough, of course the rich probably hired a carriage to carry them up to the hotel. A lot of them walked. When that train came in, that was a lot of people, that’s what they did, they waited at the depot just to see who was coming into town. And the people would stay up at that hotel and there was that dance hall up there close to the swimming pools. “
“I have walked from Grandma’s house to that dance hall, with Grandma and Aunt Mary [Sutherland] Sparks, and Robert [Sutherland]. They were the two youngest ones of Momma’s family. They were still at home. And Grandma would carry Aunt Mary’s slippers that she would dance-in, in a sack. Aunt Mary would wear her every-day shoes to walk in to the dance hall. When she got to the dance hall she would put on her dancing slippers.”
“But they would have a band. You know in your mind and my mind, that dance hall may not have been very big, but at the time it seemed like it was big! And there was a band and they put corn meal on the floor to make it slick and her [Mary] and Robert would dance till the last set. But back then most all the young people had chaperons, and Grandma chaperoned those two, she stayed there until the dance was over too!”
Note: Many thanks to Stephen Haidinger for capturing and sharing these special memories of his Grandmother Mildred Phillips.
Mollie died on November 10, 1945 at the age of 82. Her obituary says she died at the home of Mrs. Wolf who so tenderly nursed and cared for her during her long illness. She was a member of the Church of Christ since early womanhood. Mollie faced a lot of challenges during her life including a less than faithful husband who died early and left her a widow for 65 years. She never remarried. She saw the deaths of four of her sons, Gideon, Ancil Jack, Harry Hershel, and Robert and all of her natural sisters and all but three of her step-sisters, Mattie, Necy, and Narcy. While she had a long life and many losses, it appears that she remained loving though out.
Elizabeth Jane “Lizzie” Jackson – The “Black Sheep”
In my last post, “Jacksons, Jacksons, Everywhere” I shared a lot of information about the oldest child of Ancil McDonald Jackson and Seletia Ann West’s children, Frances Mahala “Fannie” Jackson Lee. In that story we saw a very close link between Fannie and her younger sister, Elizabeth Jane “Lizzie” Jackson resulting in Fannie and her husband Shelly Augustine “Gus” Lee raising two of Lizzie’s granddaughters. This story is about Lizzie and her life.
Elizabeth Jane “Lizzie” Jackson was born on September 28, 1866 in Free Timbers, Guadalupe County, Texas. She was the fourth child born to Ancil and Seletia. She grew up on the Jackson Ranch in Wilson County like her sisters Fannie and Mollie and her older brother Willie. You can read more about life on the Texas Ranch in the book “The Rising and Setting of the Lone Star Republic” written by Lizzie’s youngest sister Maggie. The book was published in 1926 and is available to view at the Texas State Library and Archives.
When Lizzie was 16 she married a local man named, Francis K. “Frank” Rose. Frank was born about 1861 in Robertson, Texas. He is the son of Granville Rose and Marilla “Rilla” Elizabeth Capps. We find Frank living with his family on the 1870 census in Robertson, Texas. There is a lot of confusion on Ancestry Trees as to Granville’s heritage. Regardless, Granville and Rilla moved their family to Wilson County before 1880 where they are listed on the 1880 census. In 1880, Frank was 19 years old and likely working with his father Granville on their ranch. Granville was listed as a “Stock Raiser”. Since Ancil Jackson was also deeply into Stock Raising it is possible that the families knew each other.
Frank and Lizzie married in Wilson County on September 28, 1882. Their first child Harmon Hampton Rose was born February 22, 1884. He was named after Lizzie’s Grandfather Wade Hampton West who was the father of Seletia Ann West Jackson. The second son was born April 28, 1886 and was named Ancil Porter Rose after Lizzie’s father Ancil McDonald Jackson. This is a bit unusual since most first born sons are names after their paternal grandfathers. This likely speaks to the wealth and influence of the West and Jackson families in Wilson County at that time. The third child was a girl named Kate Rose who was born on December 17, 1891.
Sometime between 1891 and 1894 Frank Rose either died or the couple divorced. I have not been able to confirm either event, but can find no further record of Frank Rose in Wilson County after this time. This of course left Lizzie with three small children and no spouse. It is likely that Lizzie and her children sought support from her well-to-do father Ancil during these years.
Lizzie was only alone for a few years, as in 1894 she remarried a handsome Tejano gentleman who was 11 years older than Lizzie. His name was Carlos Garcia. So what do we know about Carlos Garcia? Carlos is the son of Jesus Garcia and Luz De La Garza and was born in 1855 likely in San Antonio as we find him on the 1860 census record living in San Antonio with his mother Luz De La Garza and his siblings; Jesus Jr. 7, Carlos 5, Refugio 2, and Wila 1. His mother indicates she is a widow so his father Jesus Garcia Sr. must have died before 1960.
In 1900 we find Carlos and Lizzie living on South Pecos street along with Lizzie’s children, Harmon, Ancil, and Kate as well as two more children. Carlos Jr. “Charlie” Garcia born on July 25, 1894 and Anna G Garcia born September 6, 1898. Carlos is listed as a laborer on this census report.
Lizzie’s father Ancil McDonald Jackson died on July 2, 1904. Jack Jackson reports in his book, “The Soloman B. Jackson Family in Wilson County” that Lizzie was the only one of Ancil’s children who was not at his bedside at the time of his death. Lizzie became the “Black Sheep” of the family when Ancil allegedly disowned her for marrying a Mexican. In those days that would have been considered a family betrayal by the majority of prominent Anglos.
By 1910 Carlos had a better job working as a foreman in a gravel park. The couple had expanded their family to include Eddie Jackson Garcia born January 26, 1901 and named after Lizzie’s family the Jacksons. Next was Albert Jackson Garcia born on August 5, 1903, Lena Garcia born on September 23, 1907, and last was Frances Garcia born on August 31, 1909. Frances is the small girl with the big hair bow in the picture of Lizzie. The family lived at 821 S. Pecos Street which is now the route of IH 10 though downtown San Antonio.
Carlos only lived a few more years. He died in San Antonio on May 22, 1914 at the young age of 59 leaving Lizzie with a large family to raise. Carlos death certificate indicates he died of hepatitis. Lizzie followed Carlos in death just two years later. She died on June 17, 1916. Her death certificate says she died of “Fiebre Bilisoa’ which translated means Bilious Fever. Bilious fever was a medical diagnosis of fever associated with excessive bile or bilirubin in the blood stream and tissues, causing jaundice (a yellow color in the skin or sclera of the eye). A contributing factor was Hepatitis Aguda when translated means Acute Hepatitis. Both Carlos and Lizzie were buried in the San Fernando cemetery. The information for her death certificate was provided by her brother Aaron William “Willie” Jackson.
All of Lizzie and Carlos’ children grew up and lived in the San Antonio area, Harmon Hampton was married twice. Harmon was first married to Nellie Blanche Johnson sometime before 1904 when their first child Georgia Duff Rose was born on April 19, 1904. They were not together long as we see Harmon listed on the 1910 census living with Carlos and Lizzie. He still claims he is married but in 1910 his wife Nellie and their daughter Georgia are living with her mother Fannie McDuff Castile. By 1917 Harmon lists his wife as Minnie Rose on his WW I Draft Registration. They must have married sometime between 1910 and 1917. I have found no children from this marriage. Interestingly on the 1950 census we find Harmon living with his daughter Georgia and his ex-wife Nellie Johnson Rose North.
Ancil Porter Rose appears to have been married twice. The first marriage was to Mollie Ham sometime between 1900 and 1904 when his first daughter Lilly was born. We find a Social Security Application for Ancil that lists his wife as Mollie Ham and his daughter as Lilly Rose Forester. I have not been able to verify that Mollie Ham is also the mother of Lilly’s sister Margaret. It’s logical that she is but I have found no evidence so far. The couple were no longer together when Ancil married his second wife Clara May Riecher on October 7, 1911. I have no record of any children born in this second marriage.
Lizzie’s third child with Frank Rose was Kate Rose who was born on December 17, 1891. She was only 9 years old when her mother married Carlos Garcia. It is likely that Carlos was the father that she most remembered. Kate maried on November 5, 1908 when she was just 16 to Schradric Nathanial Dixon. Apparently Kate was a seamstress as she is listed as a sewer on the San Antonio City Directory in 1908 and 1909. She worked for the American Overall Company. While this company no longer exists, you can click here to read an interesting history of overalls. Rose and Schradric had six children: Maggie Belle, Thomas Sidney, Mary Elizabeth, Adelaide, Shadrack Jr, and Kathryn Dixon. She lived in San Antonio with her family until her death on May 12, 1927 at the very young age of 35. Her death certificate indicates she died on Auricular Fibrillation (Atrial Fibrillation) and chronic myocarditis complicated by pulmonary tuberculosis.
The mystery about Lilly May Rose and Maggie Rose is still ongoing. I am pretty certain that Ancil Porter is their father but an entry on the 1910 census muddies the water. There is a Lilly Rose and a Maggie Rose of the correct ages living with William Jackson Hudspeth and his wife. They are listed as granddaughters. Also listed is Marguerite Petry and her husband William Petry who is 17 years older than Marguerite. So was Marguerite the girls mother or was it Mollie Ham?
Carlos and Lizzie had 6 more children. Four boys and two girls. Carlos “Charlie” Garcia Jr was born on July 25, 1896. He married Beatrice Garcia and they had at least 3 children: Charlie Jr, Alfonso, and Roger. The next child was Anna G Garcia who was born on September 6, 1898 and married Cecil Paine. They had 10 children: Cecil Jr., Elizabeth, Alfred, Tom, Bertha, Sarah, Josephine, Beatrice, Carlos, and Eddie.
Eddie Jackson Garcia named after Lizzie’s family the Jacksons was born on January 26, 1901. He married first Ernestine Garcia who was 10 years older than himself sometime before 1930, but was separated from her shortly after as he remarried Laura Belle Hall on November 20, 1937. I can find no children from either marriage. His name appears on his parents headstone above. Albert Jackson Garcia was born August 5, 1903 and married several times. He married Cenobia Garza on January 20, 1924 and the couple had 7 children: Henry, Josephine, Bertha, Delores, Mary, Albert, and Maria. Cenobia died on November 2, 1943 leaving Albert with 7 small children. Albert raised the children by himself until he remarried Elvira Barrientos on October 15, 1962.
Lena Garcia was born on September 23, 1907 and married Frank Castenada before 1929 when their first child Francis Garcia was born, followed by George, Angela, and Paul. The last child Francis, perhaps named after her grandmother Fannie was born on August 31, 1909. She married Santiago V. Quiroz on August 3, 1929. They had four children: Ramon, Juanita, Frances, and Irene. Her name appears on her parents headstone above.
What a brood. Together Lizzie Jackson had 9 children and at least 30 grandchildren. These families lived during some difficult times. World War I from 1914 – 1918, the Great Depression 1929-1939, World War II 1939-1945. They also saw amazing technological progress in the form of the automobile, air flight, and the industrial revolution. These children and grandchildren served in the military and worked actively in public service jobs contributing to the success of San Antonio and the country.
I have more information available that is far to voluminous to include here but I will be happy to share. Just reach out to me with your questions using the comment feature.
Next time we will head back to Wilson County and explore the life of my great-grandmother and the sister of both Fannie and Lizzie, Mary Melvina “Mollie” Jackson Sutherland.
Jacksons, Jacksons Everywhere – Frances Mahala “Maggie” Jackson
Hello everyone, I’m back! After several years of focusing on other interests, I thought it was time to return to sharing the information about my ancestors that I have gathered over the past 40 years with a new generation of genealogy researchers.
I am going to begin by looking at the lives of Ancil McDonald Jackson’s children. AM Jackson had a “lot” of children. With his first wife Seletia Ann West he had five children: Frances Mahala “Fannie”, Mary Melvina “Molly”, Aaron William “Willie”, Elizabeth Jane “Lizzie, and Susan Maria “Sudie”. After the death of Seletia in 1868, Ancil went to East Texas and brought home a new wife, Ellender Temperance “Tempe” Wallace. Ancil and Tempe went on to have another eight children: Missouri Carolina “Carrie”, Martha Melissa “Mattie”, Laura, Ancil McDonald “Bud”, Phenecy “Necy”, Narcissus “Narcy”, and two infants that did not survive. All together 11 surviving children.
Frances Mahala “Fannie” Jackson
Let’s start out looking at the life of Frances Mahala “Fannie” Jackson born in Free Timbers, Guadalupe County, Texas on September 13, 1861. We owe so much to Fannie as she captured her memories of life growing up in the Jackson family on the Texas frontier. She wrote a chapter “Life on a Texas Ranch” that was included in the book titled “The Rising and Setting of the Lone Star Republic” complied by her younger sister Mattie Jackson and published in 1926. The book is available for viewing at the Texas State Library and Archives in Austin (Reference Number 917.64.J136).
Ancil McDonald Jackson purchased the first marriage certificate that was issued in Wilson County. If you are interested you can go to the Wilson County Court House in Floresville, Texas and see the original. Ancil and Seletia Ann West were married on September 19, 1860. Seletia was the third child of Wade Hampton West and Susan Pemina Humphries. The West family was another of the very early families who made Wilson County their home and gained wealth and prominence is the ranching business that flourished with good grazing lands and plentiful water.
Fannie was the first child born from this major alliance between the Wests and the Jacksons. She was born on September 13, 1861 just short of a year after her parents were married. In “Life on a Texas Ranch”, Fannie says that “I was the first girl child born in Guadalupe County, Texas, as before this time it had been a part of Bexar County.” She was born in the area known as Free Timbers. This area are got its name from a large tract of land that had been abandoned by the owners thus the timber on the land was free for everyone to use. This area had previously been in Bexar County and would eventually be in Wilson County once the county was formed in 1860 and Sutherland Springs was the county seat. In 1871 a second Wilson County post office was established in the area known as Free Timbers. A committee that included AM Jackson proposed the name “Stockdale” because of the primary industry in the area and the beauty of the country side. This was politically a good name as well as Lieutenant Governor Fletcher Stockdale had much support from the men in Wilson County and was currently serving as an attorney for the railroad. The Stockdale area was anxious to have the railroad come through their new town so it certainly did not hurt their cause to name the town for this man.
Fannie was not the only child for long as on March 24, 1863 her younger sister and my great-great grandmother, Mary Melvina “Mollie” was born. The two girls were joined by their first brother, Aaron Willie “Willie” on October 30, 1864 and then on September 28, 1866 the third daughter, Elizabeth Jane “Lizzie” and born followed by Susan Maria “Sudie” born on October 8, 1868.
Seletia died on December 20, 1868 just a couple of months after the birth of her last child. I have never come across any information as to what caused this tragic death of such a young 25 year old mother. She is buried in the Steele Branch Cemetery next to her Grandfather, James West.
These tragic deaths were not uncommon back in the 1860s where medical care was scarce. Ancil likely turned to his older daughters, Fannie and Maggie and close relatives in both the West and Jackson family to take care of the younger children. Fannie would have been 7 years old when she lost her mother.
Ancil subsequently married a women from East Texas named Ellender Temperance Wallace Powell on December 9, 1869 less than a year after the death of Seletia. Ellen or Tempe as she was known was connected to several of Ancil’s friends. She had just lost her husband Almarine Powell. Family legend suggests that Tempe Wallace and her sisters were cousins of William “Bigfoot” Wallace and old Texas Indian Fighter and early Texas Ranger. I have never been able to find evidence to prove this connection. You can read more about it in my Blog, “Another Texas Legend, Another New Cousin? William Alexander Anderson “Bigfoot” Wallace.”
After their marriage in 1869, Ancil and Tempe had 6 more surviving children, among which was Mattie Jackson who wrote the book “The Rising and Setting of the Lone Star Republic”. More about her in another story.
Fannie and her siblings apparently had a good upbringing thanks to the relative wealth and influence of their father Ancil and his brothers as well as their West family members all of which were among the original settlers in the area. Fannie says she was a pupil in the first school that was taught in Stockdale, Texas, Her uncle Martin West was the first teacher. In later census reports, Fannie indicates she finished 7th grade which was pretty remarkable for the time.
As the children grew up they began to find husbands and wives and begin their own lives. My Great-Grandmother, Mollie Jackson married Robert Henry Sutherland from Arkansas in 1880, Lizzie Jackson married Benjamin Rose in 1882 and remarried Carlos Garcia in 1894 after Benjamin’s death. Sudie married Little Berry Champion Buckalew Jr. in 1886 and Willie married Marietta Dyal in 1889. So by 1890 all of Ancil and Seletia’s children were married except Fannie who would have been 29 which is pretty old to remain unmarried in those times.
We know that Fannie did eventually find love and married in 1895 at the age of 34 to Shelly Augustus “Gus” Lee Jr. Gus was a Police Officer in San Antonio. His father of the same name was one of the first settlers in the Helotes area northwest of San Antonio before 1859 when things were pretty dangerous on the frontier. His ranch was in an area known as “Grey Forest” which is now a commuter community of San Antonio. Shelly Sr, was also in the “Tinner” business in San Antonio at the same time that he homesteaded his ranch near Helotes. While Shelly was an Anglo from Tennessee he married a Hispanic girl from San Antonio in 1859 named Jesusa Maria De La Garza “Susie”. Shelly and Susie raised their brood of 17 children in San Antonio and Helotes area. Our “Gus” Lee Jr was the oldest.
So how did Fannie and Gus meet? Good question since Fannie was living at home in Stockdale Texas and Gus would have been living in San Antonio which was a fairly large town in 1895. I am guessing this it is possible that Fannie met Gus when visiting her sister “Lizzie” Garcia who moved to San Antonio when she married Carlos in 1894. More about Lizzie in another story. Gus and Fannie was shown together living in San Antonio in Ward 2 in 1900. While they had been married about 5 years, there were no children listed. In 1910, they are listed in San Antonio, Ward 3 with Fannie’s niece Dovie Buckelew the daughter of her sister Sudie Buckelew living with them.
Despite living in San Antonio, Gus and Fannie remained close to family. I know from other research on the Sutherland side of the family that Fannie’s nephew Harry Herchel Sutherland, son of her sister Mollie and Robert Sutherland, was living in San Antonio when he died in 1919. Harry was suffering from tuberculosis and may have been a patient at the “Alamo Heights Tuberculosis Sanatorium” at the time of his death. Gus Lee provided all of the information for the Death Certificate. You can read about Harry in my BLOG “Harry Herchel Sutherland, The Truth at Last“.
Fannie wrote the chapter in her sister Maggie Jackson’s book titled “Life on a Texas Ranch” sometime before 1926 when the book “The Rising and Setting of the Lone Star Republic” was published. This is a wonderful account of Fannie and her siblings upbringing in Stockdale, Texas area.
In 1920 Gus and Fannie are listed on the census with two daughters, Lillie 14 and Margarite 11. So if you can do some basic math, you know that these daughters were adopted by Gus and Fannie. As it turns out Lilly was the daughter of Fannie’s nephew Ancil Porter Rose. Ancil was the son of her younger sister Lizzie from her first marriage to Frrank Rose. I believe that Francis Margarete was also a daughter of Ancil Porter Rose. I have not been able to find the name of the two girls’ Mother.
In 1920 we find Gus and Fannie still in Ward 3 living at 738 E. Texas Avenue. The house would have been brand new in 1920. Notice the tin roof. Some of Gus’ father’s tin work? It still exists per Realtor.com if you want to drive by.
In 1927, Gus died of double pneumonia contracted on the job as a police officer. He was 66 years old at the time. He was buried in the Lee Cemetery on the Lee Ranch in Grey Forest Texas. Fannie continued to live at the family home on Texas Avenue after Gus’ death.
In 1930, Fannie is still living at 738 E. Texas Avenue and with her is a women names Frances Schroder who is listed as her daughter. The younger Frances is just 21 and is listed as married. I believe this is her adopted daughter Margaret Rose Southwell. It is likely a census taker error.
On October 28, 1940 Fannie passes away. Her death certificate indicates she died of squamous cell carcinoma of the mouth and throat. This is a very hard death complicated by malnutrition and dehydration caused from her inability to swallow. She joined Gus and was buried in the Lee Cemetery in Grey Forest, Bexar County. The cemetery is on private land so check “Find A Grave” for details if you want to visit.
So what do we know about Fannie and Gus’ two adopted daughters?
I kept seeing the name Rose associated with Lily and Margaret. After a deeper dive into the Jackson sisters, I remembered that Fannie’s younger sister Lizzie was first married to a man named Frank Rose. She had three children with “Frank” before he died, Harmon Hampton Rose born in 1884 and named after Lizzie’s Grandfather Wade Hampton West. The second son Ancil Porter Rose was born in 1886 was named after his Grandfather Ancil M. Jackson, Lizzie’s Father. I found Ancil Porter and Lily Rose listed on the 1910 Census living with Lizzie and Carlos Garcia. Ancil is listed as a son and Lily as a granddaughter. Margarete was not listed. She would have been 2 years old at the time and may have been living with her Mother or other family members. By 1920 both girls were living with their Great Aunt Fannie and Gus.
Lilly, the oldest child was born on September 15, 1905. She married William Matthew Forester on April 22, 1924. They had one son named James A. Forester born in 1926. In 1930 the family is shown living in El Paso, Texas but are back in San Antonio by 1935 likely when Fannie became stricken with cancer. In 1940 they are living on 24th Street in San Antonio. After Maggie’s death, we find Lillie and her family living at the family home at 738 Texas Avenue up thorough the 1960. The couple apparently moved to Nixon, Texas between 1960 and 1965. Her husband Matt died on October 30, 1965 in Cuero, DeWitt County, Texas but was buried in the Evergreen Devine Cemetery in Devine, Medina County, Texas. His death certificate indicated he was a Drug Salesman and lived in Nixon, Texas.
Lilly lived on for many years after Matt died. By 1993 we find her living at 13010 Diamond K Trl # 1 in Helotes, Texas. Not sure what brought her back to Helotes, the birthplace of her step-father Gus Lee. She died there at age 93 on October 28, 1998 and was buried in the Devine Evergreen Cemetery in Devine Texas where her husband Matt was buried.
Frances Margaret, the younger daughter who was born on December 2, 1908 is likely also the daughter of Ancil Porter Rose. Margaret lived with her Mother, Fannie until 1950 or later. She met a young Canadian immigrate, Alfred G. Southwell, about 1930 who was in the Army Air Corps and stationed at Brooks Field in 1930. Brooks field was the Primary Flying School for the Air Service and Army Air Corps. The Primary Flying School continued operation until 1931 when it moved to Randolph Field in San Antonio.
The couple married and had two children; Richard Shelly Southwell born October 7, 1931 and Betty Jane Southwell born November 25, 1933. Both children were born in San Antonio where their Mother was living. The oldest son Richard Shelly Southwell was born at the Ft. Sam Houston Hospital since his father was in the Army in 1931. It is possible that Betty Jane was also born at the Ft. Sam Houston hospital in 1933 before her father’s death.
Unfortunately PFC Alfred Southwell died on December 4, 1933 while serving in the Army Air Corp. He died at the Fitzsimons Army Hospital located in Denver, Colorado. He died a little over a week after the birth of Betty Jane. This hospital was primarily used for treating Army members with tuberculosis. It is certainly possible that this was the cause of Alfred’s death at age 31. He is buried in the Ft Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio.
On February 23, 1937 Margaret married a second time to George W. Davis on February 23, 1937 in San Antonio. George was born in Van Buren, Maine on April 16, 1898 making him about 10 years older than Margaret. The couple had one daughter, Mary Margaret Davis born July 7, 1940. When George registered for the WW II Draft, he was still with Margaret, but before 1950 they had divorced. In 1950, George was shown working at the San Antonio Tuberculosis Hospital as a Chauffeur. Margaret was shown living at 2201 Menchaca Street with her three children.
We don’t know much about what was happening with Margaret between 1950 and her death on June 5, 1977. The Bexar County Death Index shows her as Margaret Southwell so it appears she took here first husband’s name Southwell after her divorce from George Davis. I have not been able to determine where is is buried but likely in San Antonio.
So ends the story of Frances “Fannie” Jackson Lee. Next we will look at her sister Lizzie since their lives are so intertwined.
I am always happy to hear from readers who have information to share about these amazing ancestors, especially photos so be sure to share.
Seth Graves Harrell, Methodist Missionary in Oklahoma Indian Territory
Seth Graves Harrell was born in Bertie County, North Carolina on March 23, 1802 to Josiah Harrell and Sarah Evans Harrell. Josiah moved from North Carolina to Maury County, Tennessee between 1810 and 1820. Both of his sons, Seth and Peter, came with him. We first see Josiah in Maury County in 1820 when Seth would have been about 18 years old and Peter would have been 26. Peter was married and had several children by this time. He died in about 1826.
Seth married in Maury County in 1830 to Mourning Desmonda Fonville. Mourning is a very rarely used name today, but I have seen it several times in my genealogical research. It certainly was not a cheerful name. Mourning was the daughter of Jeremiah Fonville from Craven County, North Carolina which is very close to Bertie County.
Seth and Mourning had at least 11 children. The first was Sarah Francis likely named after her paternal grandmother. Sarah Evans. She was born in 1828 and went on to marry Fielding Wiggington and between 1852 and 1873 they had at least 6 little Wiggingtons. Next born was my second Great-Grandfather, Joseph Rendel in 1831 who married Amanda Jane West. You can read about Joseph in my Blog “Joseph Rendel: Tennessee, Alabama, Arkansas, Texas Traveler”.
The family moved from Maury County, TN to Marion County, Alabama between 1830 and 1839. Marion County, Alabama is in the far northwest corner of Alabama along the state line and is located just north of Lamar and Fayette Counties where the Odom’s lived just about this same time. You can read about the Fayette County Odom’s in my Blog, “Ferdinand Odom, the Elusive Link”. So why did the family move to Alabama about this time?
In 1830, with the urging and support of President Andrew Jackson, the Indian Removal Act was passed giving the federal government the authority to forcibly remove almost 125,000 native Americans from their ancestral homes in Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, North Carolina, and Florida to make way for white settlers who wanted the rich fertile land for large cotton plantations. The prominent tribes in northeast Alabama were the Choctaw and the Chickasee. These lands were ceded to the United States on September 27, 1830 in the Treaty of the Dancing Rabbit. Their removal made way for those white settlers like Seth and Josiah Harrell.
Upon arrival in Marion County, Seth and Mourning added to their growing family with the birth of Melinda Eveline in 1833. Melinda married Solomon Walker Wigley in 1853 and they went on to have at least four little Wigleys. Next was James McFarland Harrell, born in 1835. James was a blacksmith and after the Civil Was he married Martha Ann Hampton. I can find only one child Mamie Harrell. James lived until 1924 and made his way to Texas as did Joseph Rendel. The next two boys, Henry D was born in 1836 and William W born in 1838 followed by John W. “Jack” Harrell born in 1840.
In 1840, Seth had a plantation and had 23 slaves. Just three years later on December 31, 1843 Seth was ordained as a Deacon in the Methodist Church and on January 15, 1850 he became an Elder. So how does one reconcile being a Methodist minister and owning so many slaves? Today, that combination would be unthinkable, but back in those days, being a minister was definitely not a full-time job and other means of making a living were needed.
More children came in the 1840’s. First was Rebecca Desire born in 1845 who married a Joseph M Wise and had three girls. You have to love these names. First was “Morning Alice Wise” (likely it was really Mourning Alice after her grandmother). Then there was “Susan Desmonda” (again named after her grandmother) and finally little Dora Wise. Rebecca’s sister Tryphosa married Joseph’s Brother John M “Jack Wise.
The next daughter was Tryphina Harrell born in 1848 was followed by Rachael Amanda in 1849 (likely named after her aunt Amanda Jane West Harrell and finally in 1851 Tryphosa Harrell.
Vicksburg
The Civil War brought great change to Seth and Mourning. All of their five sons served in the Confederacy. I feel that it is likely the Seth served in the Civil War, but I have not found a record yet, but since he was now a minister, perhaps he did not serve. Joseph Rendell my 2nd Great Grandfather served with the 42th Alabama Infantry and was captured at the fall of Vicksburg. Later he served with Roddney’s 4th Alabama Calvary until the end of the Civil War.
James McFarland enlisted in the 12th Regiment of the Mississippi Infantry and immediately headed north to join the Army of Virginia to fight in the first battle of Manassas. They fought in numerous battles from Williamsburg to Cold Harbor. They
Globe Tavern
endured the hardships of the long Petersburg siege south of the James River. According to his Confederate pension application James was wounded the “last” time in the Battle of Globe Tavern located just south of Petersburg on August 24, 1864. This battle was to prevent the second attempt by Union forces from destroying the Weldon railroad thus disruption the southern supply chain. James says that he had two bullets removed and still had two bullets in his body as of 1909. When asked if he had ever deserted during his service, he said “NO,LORD, NO!” He was sent home after this and was never able to return to the war.
The third son, Henry L.D. Harrell was a grocer in Marion County and had just married in 1860 and had his first child in 1962 when he enlisted in the 41st Alabama Infantry. His regiment served in Middle Tennessee and he likely participated in the first and second
Battle of Stones River, Murfreesboro
battle of Murfreesboro also known as the Battle of Stones River fought at the end of 1862. Of all major battles of the war, this battle had the highest percentage of casualties on both sides and this is where Henry lost his life. We have not been able to confirm any information about the fourth son, William W. Harrell who was living with Seth and Mourning in 1850. There are a number of W.W. Harrell’s who served in the Civil War, but I have not been able to confirm if they include Seth’s son.
The last son John W “Jack” Harrell also served in the Civil War in the 26th Alabama Infantry Regiment. 26th Infantry Regiment was formed at Tuscumbia, Alabama, in December, 1861. They fought at the Battle of Seven Pines, Mechanicsville and Gains Mill. Toward the end of the war they escorted Union prisoners to Andersonville, Georgia and served as guards at that POW camp. They finally surrendered in April 1865 at Durham Station near Greensboro, North Carolina. After the war he married Emily Cody and they raised a number of children in Marion County.
Seth and Mourning certainly had a different life after the Civil War when all of their slaves were freed and they had no one to maintain the large cotton plantation. The decided to leave their home in Alabama and like so many other southern families, they headed to Arkansas. They settled in Sebastian County Arkansas sometime between 1870 and 1873. But why did they choose this particular part of Arkansas? Remember that Seth was an ordained Methodist Minister. As it turns out there was another Harrell
John Harrell
living in northwest Arkansas at the time. This would be John Harrell (1806-1876) who was born in Perquimans County, North Carolina which is very close to Bertie County where Josiah Harrell came from. John Harrell was also a Methodist Missionary who served in both Arkansas and in Indian Territory beginning about 1832. He specifically moved there to serve as a minister to the newly arrived Indian tribes, primarily the Choctaws and Chickasees. He served as the Superintendant of two Choctaw schools beginning in 1845. He died in the saddle while serving as a missionary to Indian churches and schools on December 8, 1876 and was one of the most well known “White Men” in Indian Territory.
Fifteen miles directly west of Ft. Smith, Arkansas is Skullyville, a small town in Leflore County, Indian Country, Oklahoma. It was located on the California Road and was a stop on the Butterfield Overland Mail route. There were two Methodist boarding schools in Skullyville for the Choctaw children. In 1834 the US Army built Fort Coffee at Swallow Rock, about 4 miles from the Choctaw Agency in Skullyville. The army maintained it for four years; it then reassigned the garrison back to Fort Smith when no longer needed.
Methodist missionaries took over the facility and adapted it as a boys’ school, known as Fort Coffee Academy for Boys. Civil War Union troops burned the Fort Coffee Academy in 1863, because it was being used to house Confederate troops. The school was never reopened.
New Hope School 1855
The New Hope School for Girls, lasted from about 1845 until the Civil War, then reopened in 1871 as the New Hope Seminary and operated until it burned in 1896. Seth and his wife apparently moved from Sebastian County into Leflore County sometime after1870 so that Seth could serve as the Methodist Superintendant at this school. The school reopened in 1871 after the Civil War and operated until 1896. Seth’s wife, Mourning died on September 6, 1878 and is buried in the Hall Cemetery in Poteau, Oklahoma. She was 72 at the time of her death. Poteau is a small town slightly to the southwest of Skullyville. Seth lived for two more years and died on March 26, 1882. He was 80 years old at the time and was buried in the Hall Cemetery with his wife Mourning.
Seth and Mourning left their assorted children and grandchildren scattered across several states. Sarah Frances Wiggington followed them to Choctaw County at some time after 1880. Joseph Rendel moved to Indian Territory and then to Wilson County, Texas in 1882. Malinda Eveline Wigley and her family moved to Freestone County, Texas by 1870. James McFarland moved to Indian Territory after the Civil War and then bounced around several Texas cities and finally died in the Confederate Home in Austin. He is buried in the Texas State Cemetery in Austin. Rachael Amanda Sparks remained in Alabama. Rebecca Desire Wise ended up in Oklahoma by 1900 as did her younger sister Triphosa Wise. Next time we will follow the trail of the Harrells back to Nansemond, Virginia to the early 1700s.
Joseph Rendel Harrell: Tennessee, Alabama, Arkansas, Texas Traveler
We mentioned Joseph Rendell Harrell in out last story about the first Harrell’s to migrate to Wilson County Texas. Joseph Rendel Harrell was born April 20, 1831 in Maury, TN. Maury County was formed in 1807 from Williamson County and Indian lands. The 
Cherokee Indian title was bought in Washington, D.C. on January 7, 1806 for $10,000 and $100 per year annuity paid to “Old Black Fox,” who surrendered all claims to lands stretching from Duck River to Alabama. What is now Maury had been part of that Middle Basin land that the Cherokees, Chickasaws, and sometimes Shawnees and Northern tribes, claimed as their own preserve, defended against trespass by all others.
Joseph and his family moved from central Tennessee to Marion County, Alabama sometime before 1840. The census for that year shows Joseph, aged 9, living with his 7 siblings and his parents Seth and Mourning Harrell. Seth is engaged in agriculture and has 23 slaves working on his plantation. It is likely that they brought the slaves with them from Tennessee.
Marion County was established in 1818 and named after General Francis Marion, who was known during the Revolutionary War as “The Swamp Fox”. Most early settlers like the Harrell’s came from Kentucky and Tennessee after General Andrew Jackson 
established the Military Road connecting Nashville, TN to New Orleans, LA. It was started in 1816 after the War of 1812 and the Creek War of 1813-14 and completed about 1820. The area where the Military Road crossed was huge but sparsely settled and would become Marion, Fayette, Lamar, Walker, and Winston County, Alabama and most of Monroe and Lowndes County, Mississippi. The names Fayette, Lamar, and Monroe should ring a bell as it is the same counties settled by Ferdinand Odom and his family. Read my blog, Ferdinand Odom, the Elusive Link to learn about the Odom’s.
Joseph married Amanda Jane “Mandy” West in Marion County on October 16, 1856. Mandy was born in Fayette County, AL on October 11, 1838. She was the second oldest child of William Lightfoot West and Mary Ann Thompson. Many Harrell and West family historians claim the William Lightfoot was part Indian. Let’s leave that question for a separate Blog as it is an interesting story in itself. Joseph and Mandy began their family there in Marion County having four children between 1858 and 1864. Two boys; William Franklin born in 1858 and Henry Benton born in 1861 and two girls; Sarah Ellen in 1864 and Mary Jane in 1865.
Joseph joined the Confederate army in May of 1862 in Columbus, Lowndes County, Mississippi as a Private. He served in Company K of the 42th Alabama Infantry Regiment until Vicksburg fell in 1863. Company K was known as the “Bull Mountain Invincibles”. After he was released from capture he served in Roddey’s Calvary until the end of the War. He apparently made it home from time to time as his two girls were conceived during the war.
All of the men in Joseph’s family fought in the Civil War including his father Seth. At least two of his brothers, Henry D (1836-1862) and William W (1838-1862) were killed at the very beginning of the war. Joseph returned home but may have been injured in some way as he and Mandy did not have more children until 1873.
So what was going on during the years from 1865 until 1873? After the Civil War ended in 1865, all of the slave labor went away and former plantation owners throughout the south were left with huge acres of land and no one to help farm those acres. Much of the farm land was depleted from scores of years growing cotton, the cash crop of the south. Money was scarce and the reconstruction period was very difficult. The south was destitute and left in ruins.
Apparently, Joseph and his father Seth were able to manage until at least 1870 where they were both listed on the Agricultural Survey for that year. They still had 35 acres each of improved land and a number of additional acres of unimproved land.
We are not sure why, but Joseph Harrell and his wife moved to Sebastian County, Arkansas sometime before 1873 when his daughter, Mourning Dottie was born. She was followed by Nancy “Nannie” in 1876 and then Delia in 1879. His father Seth joined them in Arkansas in 1879 after the death of his wife Mourning Desire Desdemona.
The appeal of Sebastian County may have been land. In those days, land was always a motive for picking up your family and moving across country. All three girls are reported to have been born in the town of Hartford, Sebastian County, Arkansas, which is located in the southwest part of the county near the border with Oklahoma. I have not been able to find them on the 1880 census so we cannot be certain where they were living.
We believe that the family came to Wilson County Texas in about 1882. Family legend indicates they came by Wagon Train. The most likely route would have been following the Texas Road also known as the Shawnee Trail, Sedalia Trail, or the Kansas Trail. It was a major trade and emigrant route to Texas across Indian Territory. The trail crossed parts of Cherokee and Choctaw lands on the way from Fort Smith to the Red River.
Joseph’s father Seth did not follow the family to Texas but stayed behind in Indian Territory in Oklahoma as did several of his sisters. More about Seth next time.
Let’s Talk About the Harrell Family in Wilson County Texas
So who were the Harrell’s and how are they connected to the Sutherland Family History? The first Harrell in Wilson County Texas was Joseph Rendel Harrell. Joseph, who was born in Maury County Tennessee, and came to Texas in 1882 by way of Marion County Alabama and Sebastian County Arkansas. Joseph was married to Amanda Jane “Mandy” West”, who is not from the Wilson County James West family. These West’s are as equally interesting so I will devote a separate BLOG about them later. Joseph and Mandy had seven children.
The oldest son was William Franklin Harrell born in 1858, Henry Benton Harrell born in 1861, Mary Jane Harrell born in 1864, Sarah Ellen “Ella” Harrell born in 1868, Mourning Dottie Harrell born in 1873, Nancy “Nannie” Harrell born in 1876, and Delia F. Harrell born in 1879. The first four children were born in Marion County, Alabama before the Civil War. After the Civil War the family moved to Sebastian County, Arkansas where the other three girls were born.
Our Odom/Sutherland connection is with Sarah Ellen Harrell. She was known as Ellen. When the family arrived in Wilson County in 1882, Ellen was 18 years old. Family history says that the Harrell’s traveled by wagon train to Texas. They came with only the four girls, Ellen, Dottie, Nancy, and Delia. The other children remained in Sebastian County where they married. William, Henry and Mary Jane eventually moved to Oklahoma where they lived out their lives.
In 1882 another familiar person arrived in Wilson County from Monroe, Mississippi, Jefferson Davis “JD” Odom. JD moved to Wilson County from Monroe County Mississippi after the death of his mother, Sarah Hollingsworth Gray Odom the widow of Nathan F. Odom. You can read about Nathan and Sarah in my BLOG, “Nathan F. Odom, Civil War Soldier”.
After arriving in Wilson County, the couple met and married just three years later on October 15, 1885. They went on to have five children. Edward Eurestes Odom (1887), Dee Odom (1890), MT Odom (1894), my Grandmother Artie Beatice Odom (1899), and last but not least Garvie Odon (1902). Dee Odom died in 1899 but the other children lived long lives in Wilson County. You can read more about them in my Blog “Let’s Talk About the Wilson County Odom Family”.
The couple did well in Wilson County. In 1900 census just after the death of Dee, they are living in Justice Precinct Three and have three children, Edward, MT, and Artie. Garvie was not born until 1902. Jeff Davis indicates he is a farmer. They own their own property free and clear and have 215 animals. Guessing they are cattle. By 1910, the family has grown by one new son Gravie born in 1902.
E
llen Odom died April 27, 1918 in Floresville, Texas. She died of a case of Bronchitis and Pneumonia after suffering with Measles. She was buried April 28 in the Floresville, Texas City Cemetery. When Ellen died she left behind four children. Edward was 31 and still living at home. MT was 24 and still living at home. Both likely worked on the farm with their father. Artie was 19 and the youngest son Garvie would have been 16. While this would have been hard on the family to lose their Mother at just 50 years old, the children were old enough to take care of themselves. My Grandmother Artie married a few years later to Royal Henry “Fritz” Sutherland on April 30, 1919. The couple lived with the Odoms in 1920.
So what were Ellen’s parents, Joseph and Mandy Harrell doing these years in Wilson County? Joseph died June 12, 1885 just three years after coming to Wilson County at the age of 54. He was buried in the Shiloh Cemetery which is located 5.2 miles south of Sutherland Springs, Texas on FM 539. The cemetery is located on the left hand side on the road.
His wife Mandy stayed in Texas and raised her four daughters. We see her again on the 1910 census at age 71 with two of her girls, Nancy “Nannie” and Delia. In 1920 she is still kickin’ at age 82 living with another daughter Dottie Harrell Tipton. She finally passed away on June 5, 1922 in Floresville, Texas. This would have been three years after her daughter Ellen died. Mandy is buried in the Floresville City Cemetery near her daughter Ellen Odom. Not sure why she was not buried in the Shiloh Cemetery with her husband Joseph Harrell.
So the journey back through the generations begins with Sarah Ellen Harrell and her father, Joseph Rendell Harrell. We have a long way to go back in time beginning with my next story on Joseph Harrell and his father Seth Graves Harrell….
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