On this date in our extended family history . . . late in the day on the 10th of May in the year 1902 . . . John Connell, Jr. bleeds to death from a knife wound following an unfortunate domestic disagreement with his son and namesake, John Connell III . . . the decedent is a 1st cousin four times removed to the Keeper of this family history blog . . . the Connell killing and subsequent legal proceedings are mentioned in numerous issues of the Dallas Morning News . . . the following biography is from A Memorial and Biographical History of McLennan, Falls, Bell, and Coryell Counties (Chicago: Lewis, 1893; rpt., St. Louis: Ingmire, 1984) . . .
J. H. Connell, a capitalist of Belton, was born in San Augustine county, Texas, when Texas was a province of Mexico, April 3, 1833, son of John H. and Matilda T. (Roberts) Connell, natives of Pennsylvania and Kentucky respectively.
John H. Connell's father, a native of Ireland, came to America at an early day and settled in Pennsylvania, where he followed his trade, that of blacksmithing. John H., leaving home when a youth, came in 1826 to Texas and engaged in the mercantile business near Austin, where he was married in 1830. Mr. Connell came to Texas with Sterling C. Robertson, and both secured large tracts of land.
The Roberts family were also among the pioneers of this section of the country. Elisha Roberts [4th great-grandpa of the Keeper of this blog] went from Kentucky to Louisiana in 1819, and in 1820 came to San Augustine, Texas. Elisha Roberts was one of the earliest settlers within the confines of the State.
Mr. Connell died at Viesca in 1834. He was truly a self-made man, and during his lifetime acquired considerable property. Belton is located on a portion of the land on which Mr. Connell once lived. Mrs. Connell having donated to the county of Bell 120 acres, in 1850, on which to establish the county seat. John H. Connell and his wife were the parents of two children: Josephine, wife of Anderson Hamblin, both being now deceased; and J. H., the subject of our sketch.
After the death of Mr. Connell, Mrs. Connell was married in 1835, to Samuel T. Allen, of New York, and their union was blessed in the birth of two children: Thomas R., deceased; and Eunice A., widow of Colonel John T. Coffee, of Missouri. Samuel T. Allen was killed by the Indians at the three forks of the Trinity, in November, 1838, and in the fall of 1847 Mrs. Allen married his brother, Thomas J. Allen. Her death occurred April 3, 1879, at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Coffee, in Georgetown, Williamson county, this state.
The subject of our sketch was reared amid the frontier scenes of what is now San Augustine, Milam, Williamson and Galveston counties. In 1854 he went to California, making the trip from Galveston by water; spent two years in the southern part of the Golden State, and while working in the mines lost his health. He was, however, financially successful. Returning home in the latter part of 1855, he engaged in farming and stock-raising in Texas up to the year 1861. The war coming on in that year, he joined the Confederate forces; was in the Trans-Mississippi Department, and participated in numerous skirmishes and battles.
Returning to his home in the latter part of May, 1865, Mr. Connell set about repairing his wasted fortune, and with renewed energy engaged in his old occupation of farming and stock-raising. He continued his operations in Williamson county till January 28, 1884, when he rented his farm and moved to his property in Belton. He owns considerable valuable real estate, his Belton home place consisting of some 250 acres adjoining town. He has a handsome residence, an intelligent family, and is comfortably situated to enjoy life, having practically retired from active business.
Mr. Connell was married September 15, 1869, to Miss Jennie Howlett, a native of Texas, born in Milam county, October 5, 1844, daughter of James and Sarah (Moore) Howlett, natives of Kentucky and Tennessee respectively. Both the Howletts and the Moores were among the early pioneers of Texas.
Mr. and Mrs. Connell are the parents of five children: John H., Jr., T.E., Susan, May T. and Albert L. T.E. is now a student at the State University of Texas. Mr. Connell and his wife are consistent members of the Methodist Episcopal Church South, and are held in high esteem by all who know them.
Sixty years ago today . . . on Mother's Day in the year 1951 . . . the beautiful young woman in this bricolage was about three months pregnant with the little one shown in the photos . . . the rose in the background is a 1932 antique rose called the Fairy Rose . . . the year of origin of that rose is the same year this young Mother was born in Essex County, Massachusetts . . . she was living in Texas (the home state of her Father, and his Mother and maternal Grandpa before him) by the time she started school, and has been here since . . . the Keeper of this family history blog is the little one in the photos . . . she is the first of four lucky children who are privileged to call this lovely woman Mom . . . Happy Mother's Day, Mom . . . luv you bunches . . . and thank you . . . for everything! . . .
Rockdale Reporter
Rockdale, Texas
May 4, 1939
Monday, May 1 at 1:10 p.m. marked the passing of one of earth's dearest and sweetest little mothers, Mrs. M.A. Nettles. She was born near Starkville, Mississippi, October 24, 1852, daughter of Richard and Sarah Mildred (Carter) West, and christened Mary Annie, but known practically all her life as Mollie. She was nine years old when the Civil War began and many were the interesting tales she told concerning it. In 1869 her family, together with several other families, came to Texas in wagons drawn by oxen and settled in and near Lexington.
The following year she married Joseph H. Nettles who had a woodworking shop in connection with the Hester Blacksmith Shop. They soon moved to Williamson County, but a few years later moved back to Lee County and bought a home in the Cole Springs community, near Tanglewood, where a son, Will, still lives. On May 1, 1890, her husband passed to his reward, preceding her by forty-nine years to the day. Of the ten children born to this union, six survive her, two boys and two girls dying in infancy. The surviving children are --
She had lived on the home place with her eldest son, Will, until February of this year, when she went to Lott to make her home with her youngest child, Joe, and family. It was here, following an illness of bronchial pneumonia, that she passed to her reward. The last six or eight months of her life was spent mainly in bed, but she was given loving and careful attention and was a sweet and patient sufferer. From the wisdom of her years she gave counsel, advice and help to all who sought it, and truly will she be greatly missed by all who knew and loved her.
All of her children, all but five of her twenty-seven grandchildren, and many of her forty-four great-grandchildren were present for the last rites, besides a great host of other relatives and friends. Services were conducted at the Baptist Church in Tanglewood Tuesday afternoon, May 2, 1939, by the Rev. O.J. Morgan, a former pastor of hers. She was a member of the Baptist church, joining in her early girlhood. Interment was in the family plat at the Tanglewood cemetery with Phillips & Luckey of Rockdale in charge. Those coming from Lott for the funeral were --
- Mr. and Mrs. Ed Phillips
- Dr. and Mrs. Patton
- Mr. and Mrs. Luther Reaves and daughter, Dorothy
- Mrs. Claud Day
- Mrs. Grover Stucky
- D. Watkins
- Judge Smith
- Pat Carter and son, Pat Jr.
- Dewey Wright
- Miss Annie Lou Gibbs
The last named was her constant attendant after moving to Lott, and truly a grand-daughter could have been no sweeter to her own grandmother than Annie Lou was to Grandma, who lovingly called her my girl. Present also was Mrs. Richard Mundine Sr. of Taylor, an old friend of the family.
This post is all because of Joan . . . who posted the following comment on my photo blog . . . Doggonit, Vickie, even your charts are works of art. I am wishing that you were my muse. . . . then it dawned on me that there is no reason to have a plain black and white kinship chart hanging there, when I can have a vintage looking chart that is actually pleasing to the eye . . . so I put one together this a.m. . . . and here's a copy for any of y'all who want to use it . . . and if you would also like to have a plain black and white PDF version, just send me an email asking for the PDF relationship chart, and I'll send one to you . . . benotforgot at gmail dot com . . . FYI . . . the accompanying text is freshened up a bit from a post that I originally shared more than ten years ago on my password-protected sites at myfamily . com [retired] . . .
Click on the above chart to open an enlarged view in a separate window.
- Your first cousins are those people in your family who have two of the same grandparents as you, i.e., they are the children of your aunts and uncles.
- Your second cousins are the people in your family who have the same great-grandparents as you, but not the same grandparents.
- Your third cousins have the same great-great-grandparents, and so on.
When the word removed is used to describe a relationship, it means that the two related people are from different generations.
- You and your first cousins are in the same generation (both two generations younger than your grandparents).
- Your mother's first cousin is only one generation younger than those same grandparents, so your mother's first cousin is your first cousin, once removed.
To identify the exact degree of kinship between any two related people . . .
- Identify the common ancestor of the two people, i.e., find the direct ancestor of individual #1 who is also a direct ancestor of individual #2. The box in the upper left corner of the chart is that common ancestor.
- Across the top row of the chart, find the relationship of individual #1 to the common ancestor.
- Down the left edge of the chart, find the relationship of individual #2 to the common ancestor.
- Read down the column of the individual #1 and across the chart on the row of individual #2. Where the two rows intersect is the box which identifies their relationship.
For example . . . for the Common Ancestor, I am using Christopher Clark who was born in 1681. By the middle of the 19th century . . .
- Christopher's daughter, Agnes, has a great-great-grandson by the name of Samuel (1835-1910) . . .
- Agnes' sister, Elizabeth, has a great-great-granddaughter by the name of Josephine (1842-1899) . . . this Josephine is my 2nd great-grandma, who had lived in Milam Co. TX (where I was born & raised) for more than two decades by the time of her death in 1899 . . .
Since Christopher was the g-g-g-grandpa of both Josephine and Samuel, this puts them both in Column #5 (as his 3rd great-grandchildren) . . . which makes them 4th cousins to each other . . .
As the 2nd great-granddaughter (me) of the 2nd great-granddaughter (Josephine) of Christopher's daughter, Elizabeth, I am the 7th-great-granddaughter of Christopher . . . this puts me in column #9 . . .
If you follow Samuel's Column #5 down until it intersects with my Column #9, you will find that I am the 4th cousin four times removed to this Samuel . . . who was sometimes known to use the AKA of Mark Twain . . .
I assume most of y'all use some type of family tree program that computes your relationships for you . . . I know I do . . . but I still like to keep this chart handy . . . for doing simple computations . . . or for verifying that I am remembering a relationship correctly . . . FYI . . . the following explanation of Grand and Great was found somewhere on the WWW . . . more than 10 years ago . . . I like the way it explains the greats and the grands . . .
- GRAND . . . Grand is a prefix added to represent one generation of separation . . . the father of your father, for instance, is still a father to you . . . however, there is one generation between the two of you . . . so he is a grandfather to you . . . and you are a grandchild to him . . . this term is most commonly applied to fathers and mothers . . . but it can also be used to define other relationships . . . such as a Grand Uncle or Grand Aunt . . . i.e., a brother or sister of your grandparent . . .
- GREAT . . . Great is a prefix that is added to represent two generations of separation . . . if Grand is one generation of separation, then Great-grand (i.e. great-grandmother) is two generations of separation . . .
For every generation of separation above one (Grand), there is a Great added to represent each additional generation of separation . . . your father's grandfather is 3 generations separated from you . . . so he would be your Great-Great-Grandfather . . . the Grand and two Greats represent the 3 generations of separation . . .
This prefix can also be used to define other two-plus generational relationships, like Great Aunt, or Great Uncle . . . as noted, the Grand is more commonly left out (Great Aunt instead of Great Grand Aunt) when referring to relationships other than father and mother . . .
It is common, once you go beyond a Great-Great-Grandparent, to refer to the Greats by number . . . for instance, your Great-Great-Great-Grandfather would be called your 3rd Great-Grandfather . . . and written as G3-Grandfather, GGG-Grandfather or something similar . . .
Today (16 March 2011) marks the 3rd anniversary of the day I started blogging here on blogger as benotforgot . . . two years ago, on my 2nd blogiversary, I wrote about some of my blog firsts in THIS post . . . but . . . if you go by the following definition of a blog, I guess you could say I've been blogging since 1999 . . .
blog - website that allows users to reflect, share opinions, and discuss various topics in the form of an online journal while readers may comment on posts. . . . Entries typically appear in reverse chronological order.
1999 is the year I started setting up various free surname-specific sites at myfamily . com* . . . and I was basically doing there exactly what I do now . . . when myfamily . com* started charging for their sites a few years later, most of my individual blogs were allowed to sort of fade away . . . sponsors did step forward for a few of those sites . . . and the links below show which of my surname-specific blogs at myfamily . com* are still [as of 2011] alive and well . . . [*myfamily . com is defunct as of 2014]
- rockdale . myfamily . com
27 April 1999
posted 1st news item
- robertsgill . myfamily . com
15 June 1999
posted 1st news item
- nettleswest . myfamily . com
26 June 1999
posted 1st news item
- usmississippians . myfamily . com
28 June 1999
posted 1st news item
- benotforgot . myfamily . com
04 January 2000
posted 1st news item
- rhs1970 . myfamily . com
30 July 2000
posted 1st history item
- journal . myfamily . com
08 January 2001
posted 1st news item
- gonetotexas . myfamily . com
11 September 2001
posted 1st news item
- bencoracing . proboards . com
August 2003 is when I started "blogging" at proboards to keep track of my late husband's racing results [retired]
- benotforgot . proboards . com
January 2004 [retired]
- gonetotexas.proboards.com
October 2004 is when I set up a proboards site for the purpose of posting about my genealogy on a site that was NOT password-protected . . .
- benotforgot.blogspot.com
aka benotforgot.com
16 March 2008 is when I started posting on this blog about some of my ancestors . . .
- benotforgot-calendar.blogspot.com
14 March 2009
- rockdale-myhometown.blogspot.com
24 April 2009
- benotforgot-journal.blogspot.com
16 January 2010
- benotforgot-photos.blogspot.com
07 January 2011
So . . . while I've only been here on blogger for four years now . . . by the definition given above, I've actually been blogging for 13 years . . . with no plans to stop any time soon . . . e-y'all later . . . Vickie E. . . .
Seventy-five years ago today . . . on this date in Texas history . . . the 2nd day of March . . . in the year 1936 . . . celebrations are being held across the state in honor of the 100th anniversary of Texas Independence.
My Mom . . . the daughter of a long line of Texans on her father's side, and an even longer line of Mainers on her mother's side . . . was four years old . . . and living in Massachusetts with her widowed father and maternal grandma . . . her paternal grandparents were living in Runnels County, Texas . . . she had no living great-grandparents . . . Mom would take up permanent residence in Texas sometime before 1940.
My father . . . whose ancestors had started arriving in Texas ca. 1860 . . . was an eight-year-old living in Lee County, Texas . . . with his parents and one sister and a brand-new baby brother . . . his widowed maternal grandma and his paternal grandparents were living in the same area, as well as one great-grandma . . . a great-grandpa was living in Coke County, Texas at the time . . .
FYI . . . the background image is a free blogger template . . . the Centennial banner is scanned from a 1936 Centennial newsletter in my private collection . . . the postage stamps were issued in 1936 (Centennial) and 1945 (statehood) . . . the postcard caption for the lighted night scene says . . . The lagoon and fountain at night, Texas Centennial Exposition, Dallas . . . the back of the same card says . . . The Lagoon and Fountain at Night, all artificially built, with its ever-changing colors and reflections, shows what can be accomplished by mere man with just a little effort. . . . the card was printed by the Dallas Post Card Co., Dallas, Texas . . .
On this date in our extended family history . . . the 26th day of February . . . in the year 1849 . . . James Jefferson Henry is born in Cedar County, Missouri . . . this "Jeff" Henry is a 1st cousin four times removed to the Keeper of this family history blog . . . and while Googling for information about my Henry kith 'n kin, I found the following information at Google Books . . . from History of Kentucky by Charles Kerr, William Elsey Connelley, Ellis Merton Coulter . . .
Jefferson Henry may consistently be designated as the honored dean of the bar of Green County, and during the course of his long and successful professional career he has been identified with much of the important litigation in the various courts of this section of the state.
Though he is not a native of Kentucky, he is a scion of one of the old and honored families of Green County, this state, his paternal grandfather, Belfield Henry [my 4th great-grandpa], a native of Virginia, having been comparatively a young man when he came to Kentucky and numbered himself among the pioneer settlers of Green County, where his death occurred a number of years prior to the birth of the subject of this review. He became one of the extensive land-holders and farmers of the county, and prior to the Civil war owned a large number of slaves. He was of Scotch-Irish lineage, and the original representatives of the family in America came from Ireland to Virginia in the Colonial era of our national history. Belfield Henry married Miss Elizabeth Kirtley [my 4th great-grandma], likewise a native of Virginia, and both were well advanced in years at the time of their deaths.
Jefferson Henry, who is familiarly known by the abbreviated name of "Jeff," was born in Cedar County, Missouri, on the 26th of February, 1849, and is a son of James L. and Margaret (Brownlee) Henry, both natives of Green County, Kentucky, where the former was born in 1811 and the latter in 1810. The father died at Canehill, Arkansas, in 1871, and the mother subsequently passed to the life eternal at Burnet, Texas.
James L. Henry was reared and educated in Green County, and here became a successful agriculturist and stock-grower. In 1840 he removed to Cedar County, Missouri, where he became the owner of a large farm estate, including a stock ranch, and where he maintained a force of thirty or forty slaves in his extensive operations as an agriculturist and stock-grower.
He continued his residence in Missouri until 1862, when he removed with his family to Grayson County, Texas, where he became the owner of a large ranch near Kentuckytown, and where he took his slaves, who there remained with him until the close of the Civil War, which effected their emancipation.
In 1865, shortly after the close of the war, Mr. Henry removed to Canehill, Arkansas, with the primary object of giving his children the advantages of Canehill College, and there he remained until his death, in 1871. He was an uncompromising advocate of the principles of the democratic party, was more or less active and influential in political affairs in Kentucky, Missouri and Texas, and served as county judge of Cedar County, Missouri, from 1840 until 1860. Both he and his wife were zealous members of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Of their children . . .
- the eldest was C. M., who was a prominent and extensive agriculturist in the vicinity of Canehill, Arkansas, for many years prior to his death, which there occurred when he was seventy-three years of age. He served as colonel of a Confederate regiment in the Civil war, near the close of which he received the brevet rank of brigadier general.
- Elizabeth became the wife of James T. Moore and both passed the remainder of their lives in Texas, where Mr. Moore was a prosperous farmer. He was captain of his company in a Confederate regiment in the Civil war, and was severely wounded in an engagement at Froggy Bayou, Louisiana.
- Martha died at Burnet, Texas, when forty years of age.
- Malvina became the wife of Dr. A. J. Culberson, a leading physician at Burnet, Texas, and there her death occurred.
- Jefferson, immediate subject of this review, was the next in order of birth.
- Malvina [sic] became the wife of William E. Culberson, and both died at Burnet, Texas, where he had been engaged in a mercantile business for a long period.
- William was drowned in a cloudburst in Wyoming when twenty-five years of age.
- T. A., who was for many years successfully identified with the banking business, died in 1919, at Red Fork, Oklahoma.
The above record shows that the subject of this sketch is now the only surviving member of this family of children.
The rural schools of Missouri and Texas afforded Jefferson Henry his preliminary education, and after the removal of the family to Canehill, Arkansas, he there attended the high school two years and the Canehill College for an equal period.
In the meanwhile he had applied himself also to the study of law, and on the 22d of January, 1872, he was admitted to the bar of Kentucky. In that year he established himself in practice at Greensburg, where he has since continued as one of the leading members of the Green County bar and where he has long controlled a large and representative law business, which has extended into both the civil and criminal departments of law and recorded the winning of many court victories of important order.
Mr. Henry is a man who has ever been a student, and his reading and study have covered a remarkably wide range, with the result that his cultural powers are of the finest type and his intellectual horizon very wide. At his pleasant home, known for its generous and unpretentious hospitality, he has one of the best private libraries in Kentucky.
His law offices are maintained in the Henry Building, of which he has been the owner since 1878, and which is situated on the west side of the courthouse square in Greensburg, his modern residence being at the corner of Main and Cross streets and being one of the finest in the city.
In addition to these urban properties Mr. Henry is the owner of a well-improved farm on the rich bottom lands at the mouth of Big Russell Creek, Green County.
He has always adhered to the ancestral political faith and is a leader in the ranks of the democratic party in this section of the state. He served eight years as county attorney of Green County, but in the main has had no desire for public office, as he has preferred to give his undivided attention to his large and representative law practice. Both he and his wife are active members of the Presbyterian Church in Greensburg.
The perennial youth of Mr. Henry has been largely due to his vital interest in men and affairs, and the questions and issues of the hour receive his appreciative attention. Thus it was to be naturally assumed that he would take a prominent part in the various local war activities when the nation became involved in the great World war. He was chairman of the advisory board of Green County, served on other war committees in the county, aided in the various campaigns in the sale of war bonds and savings stamps, and to the full limit of his means he subscribed to these issues and gave earnest support to Red Cross and Salvation Army service.
December 12, 1872, recorded the marriage of Mr. Henry to Miss Josephine L. Perry, daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth (Tebbs) Perry, of Green County, where both continued to reside until their deaths, Mr. Perry having long been a substantial capitalist and leading banker of Greensburg. Mr. and Mrs. Henry have but one child, Claudia, who is the wife of Early Vaughan, a successful farmer near Greensburg.
Two hundred years ago today . . . on the 22nd day of February . . . in the year 1811 . . . James Lewis Henry was born in Green County, Kentucky . . . this James is a 3rd-great-grand-uncle to the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
Google Books. History of Kentucky (1922) by Charles Kerr, William Elsey Connelley, Ellis Merton Coulter . . . James L. Henry was reared and educated in Green County, [Kentucky] and here became a successful agriculturist and stock-grower. In 1840 he removed to Cedar County, Missouri, where he became the owner of a large farm estate, including a stock ranch, and where he maintained a force of thirty or forty slaves in his extensive operations as an agriculturist and stock-grower.
He continued his residence in Missouri until 1862, when he removed with his family to Grayson County, Texas, where he became the owner of a large ranch near Kentuckytown, and where he took his slaves, who there remained with him until the close of the Civil War, which effected their emancipation.
In 1865, shortly after the close of the war, Mr. Henry removed to Canehill, Arkansas, with the primary object of giving his children the advantages of Canehill College, and there he remained until his death, in 1871. He was an uncompromising advocate of the principles of the democratic party, was more or less active and influential in political affairs in Kentucky, Missouri and Texas, and served as county judge of Cedar County, Missouri, from 1840 until 1860. Both he and his wife were zealous members of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Of their children . . .
- the eldest was C. M., who was a prominent and extensive agriculturist in the vicinity of Canehill, Arkansas, for many years prior to his death, which there occurred when he was seventy-three years of age. He served as colonel of a Confederate regiment in the Civil war, near the close of which he received the brevet rank of brigadier general.
- Elizabeth became the wife of James T. Moore and both passed the remainder of their lives in Texas, where Mr. Moore was a prosperous farmer. He was captain of his company in a Confederate regiment in the Civil war, and was severely wounded in an engagement at Froggy Bayou, Louisiana.
- Martha died at Burnet, Texas, when forty years of age.
- Malvina became the wife of Dr. A.J. Culberson, a leading physician at Burnet, Texas, and there her death occurred.
- Jefferson, immediate subject of this review, was the next in order of birth.
- Malvina [sic, i.e., Margret M.] became the wife of William Culberson, and both died at Burnet, Texas, where he had been engaged in a mercantile business for a long period.
- William was drowned in a cloudburst in Wyoming when twenty-five years of age.
- T.A., who was for many years successfully identified with the banking business, died in 1919, at Red Fork, Oklahoma.
Genealogy & Biography, Volume V, 3rd edition, 1886, Green Co. [Kentucky] . . . J. L. Henry was born February 22, 1811, four miles north of Greensburg, Ky., and was a farmer; in 1837 he with his family moved to Cedar County, Mo., where he became the owner of 4,400 acres, also owned a large slave property, and became the first county judge; and after Dade was stricken off became it first county judge, and held the position for twenty years, up to the breaking out of the war. In 1861, he went to Sherman, Tex., with his negroes. In 1863 his family joined him. After the war he located in Cane Hill, Ark., where he educated his family. (He had a son, C. M. Henry, who became a brigadier-general in the Confederate Army.) He died in 1871, but his family continued to remain in Arkansas. He was a son of Bellfield and Elizabeth (Kirtley) Henry, both of Virginia. They immigrated to Green County, Ky., about 1800, where Bellfield Henry became an extensive farmer, served as sheriff, and died in 1850. . . .
On this date in our extended family history . . . the 22nd day of February . . . in the year 1819 . . . James Madison Hall is born in Baltimore, Maryland . . . my known connections to this James Madison Hall include . . .
- he is my uncle by way of his 1859 marriage to my 2nd great-grand-aunt, Margaret A. Hall Stewart nee Sharp (1840-ca. 1878) . . . and . . .
- he is my step-uncle because he is the stepson of my 3rd great-grandma, Mahala Lee Sharp Hall nee Roberts (1816-1885) . . .
- which makes him the step-brother of my 2nd great-grandpa, Samuel Houston Sharp (ca. 1839 - ca. 1885) . . .
- who is the brother of Hall's wife, Margaret (mentioned in #1 above) . . .
This Uncle James . . . who wound up in Texas by the age of sixteen (1835) . . . and began his involvement with my family at least as early as 1851 . . . which was when his father married my widowed 3rd great-grandma . . . was thoughtful enough to give me seven years worth of material for a blog about life in Texas during the years of the war between the states . . . because he kept a daily Journal during the years 1860-1866 . . . and in those daily ramblings of his he made frequent mention of an assortment of my kith 'n kin . . . soooo . . . with this time period (2011-2015) being the Sesquicentennial of the Civil War . . . I began transcribing this Journal on the 150th anniversary of the day he penned his first entry in that 19th century ledger . . . and, almost one year ago, I told about my first encounter with the original of that Journal in this blogpost . . .
Tombstone photo shared by sjmj at findagrave.com . . . word collage prepared at wordle.net . . . free background image from Daisy Gray Design . . . James Madison Hall photo from Aldrich book on The History of Houston County, Texas . . .
On this date in our extended family history . . . the 17th day of February . . . in the year 1870 . . . Joseph Vick of Lexington, Texas sat down to pen a letter to his Aunt Amanda back home in Oktibbeha County, Mississippi . . . and one year later . . . on the 17th day of February . . . in the year 1871 . . . L.B.F. Vick of Lexington, Texas wrote a letter to this same Amanda . . . these are just two in a series of letters to Aunt Amanda by kith 'n kin who left a war-ravaged Mississippi following the years of the war between the states . . . hoping for a better life in Texas . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 10th day of February . . . in the year 1912 . . . William Paschal Henry, Sr. died in Milam County, Texas . . . it was a Saturday, and he was laid to rest that same day beside his Josephine . . . in a small country cemetery that is now known as the Murray Cemetery . . . this Wm. P. Henry is a 2nd great-grandpa to the Keeper of this family history blog . . . he was remembered in the local newspaper in the following manner . . .
How uncertain and inscrutable are the ways of providence; how our hearts are made to grieve at the "unlooked for" blow of that terrible monster death. When it strikes our loved ones, when it takes from us that one whom we feel that we can the least spare.
Such is the affliction that has befallen the children, grandchildren and friends of the late W. P. Henry, who died at his home February 10, 1912, after a few day's illness of pneumonia. Grandpa was sick only a few days, and all that medical skill and tender nursing could do was done, but to no avail.
From the first the death angel hovered nigh, and though at times the star in the crown of hope would brighten, it was apparent all along that his pure and perfect life would have to pay the forfeit. So early Saturday morning about four o'clock all pain ceased; the battle was over and his pure spirit returned to the god who gave it.
Yes, Grandpa is gone for a little while only, and no words can portray, no mortal can realize the depths of despair into which those who loved him have been plunged. No words can console them, but listening loved ones will hear the fluttering of a wing and an angel softly whisper, "I am better now, safe in the arms of Jesus, where suffering is no more."
Funeral services were conducted at five o'clock Saturday evening by Rev. J.D. Shelton, his beloved pastor, after which the remains were laid to rest in Pleasant Grove cemetery beside his dear wife, who had preceded him to that great beyond some twelve years.
Peace to his ashes.
The Rockdale Reporter, February 1912
On this date in our family history . . . the 9th day of February . . . in the year 1800 . . . Elisha Roberts and Patsey Gill were married in Green County, Kentucky . . . this Elisha and Patsey are 4th great-grandparents to the Keeper of this family history blog . . .
Know all men by these presents that we Elisha Roberts and John Abney are held and firmly bound unto his Excellency the Governor of the Governor [SIC] of Kentucky in the sum of L50 current money for the true payment where of to be made to the said Governor and his successors we bind ourselves our heirs etc. Jointly and Severally firmly firmly [SIC] by these presents. The Condition is such that whereas a Marriage is shortly intended between the above bound Elisha Roberts and Patsey Gill. Now if there be no lawfull cause to obstruct the said Marriage then this obligation to be void else to remain in full force.
One hundred years ago today . . . on this date in our extended family history . . . the 23rd day of January . . . in the year 1911 . . . the 5th of seven daughters is born to Charlie and Emma Patience (Nettles) Muston . . . Nona Amy is the youngest in the photo shown here . . . the next daughter after Nona was born in 1913, and then one in 1915 . . . which was the same year Charlie died, leaving Emma to raise seven daughters on her own . . . the sister standing behind and to the left of little Nona is my paternal grandma, Ima Lois Pounders nee Muston (1906-1999) . . .
FYI . . . the quilty-looking background for this collage was created from my photo-of-the-day for today . . . I used techniques from both Picasa and IrvanView for this project . . .
On this date in our extended family history . . . the 22nd day of January . . . in the year 1973 . . . Lyndon Baines Johnson dies at his ranch at 3:39 p.m CST at age 64, from a third heart attack . . . his death came the day before a ceasefire was signed in Vietnam and almost a month after former president Harry S. Truman died . . . his health had been affected by years of heavy smoking, poor dietary habits and stress; the former president had severe heart disease . . . he was found dead by Secret Service agents, in his bed, with a telephone in his hand . . . LBJ is a 9th cousin twice removed to the keeper of this family history blog . . . and FYI . . . this collage was created in Picasa using my "photo of the day" for today . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 17th day of January . . . in the year 1927 . . . Robert E. Henry (1905-1976), age 21 years 11 months, is in Abilene, Texas preparing an Application for Enlistment in the U.S. Navy . . . he states that he expects to make the Navy his career, and that he has been employed with his father as a farmer for his entire life . . . he is described as being 5'10" tall, and weighing 170 lbs, with blue eyes, brown hair, and a ruddy complexion . . .
Four years and many miles later . . . on the same date . . . the 17th day of January . . . in the year 1931 . . . the same Robert E. Henry is honorably discharged after four years of service to his country in the U.S. Navy . . . the place of discharge is listed as the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard in Pennsylvania . . . this Robert E. Henry is the maternal grandpa of the Keeper of this family history blog. . . .
On this date in our family history . . . the 17th day of January . . . in the year 1996 . . . following a brief battle with kidney cancer . . . my Dad, Forrest Lee Pounders, died in Rockdale, Texas . . . he was laid to rest in a little country cemetery in central Texas . . . and this mailbox actually stood in that cemetery at that time . . . as if awaiting a letter addressed to one of the residents . . . Dad had delivered mail in Rockdale for many years (go take a look at his grave marker) . . . I snapped this photo shortly after his death . . . the flowers were for his grave. . . .
