Early Settlers of Union County, Georgia: Cook

Showing posts with label Cook. Show all posts

Saturday, March 24, 2012

The Rev. Alfred Corn, Son of Elder Rev. Adam Corn

The Rev. Elder Adam Corn and his wife, Hannah Heatherly Corn, had at least nine known children, all of whom grew up to be solid citizens. When Union County gave up a section of its land to form Towns County in 1856, the Corn families were in a new county without having to move from the farms on which they had settled.

As we saw in last week’s article about Elder Rev. Adam Corn, he was a Baptist preacher and a church planter. He helped to organize several churches within the Union and Towns Counties areas. One was the Macedonia Baptist Church southeast of Hiawassee. Into the membership of that church, the Elder Rev. Corn baptized his two older sons, John and Alfred in the year 1841. Both of these men became outstanding leaders in church, associational and missions work, and both became ordained ministers and denominational leaders. The story is told that one of the favorite pastimes of these brothers when they were young was to find a stump to use as a pulpit and to “preach away” to anyone who would take the time to listen, perhaps their younger siblings or neighbor children. But even with this early practice as pulpiteers, it was not until John was twenty-eight and Alfred was twenty-four that they were baptized by their father in the Hiawassee River and accepted into the membership of Macedonia Baptist Church.

We will trace first some of the work of Alfred E. Corn, the second child of Adam and Hannah Corn. He was born January 19, 1817 before the Corn family left Buncombe County, NC to begin their travels to other points where they settled. He married Nancy T. Cook on January 16, 1842. I thought I might find their marriage record in Union County, Georgia marriages, since the Corn family moved from North Carolina to Georgia about 1839. I found that Rev. Alfred Corn performed marriage ceremonies for several in Union, but his marriage record to Nancy was not listed in Union. Rev. Alfred and Nancy Cook Corn had children Arminta Jane (1843-1932) who married Mangum Bryson; John Adam (1845-1864) who died in the Civil War but had married Ivy Ann Loudermilk on May 13, 1862. John Adam and Ivy Ann had a son, John Alfred, born in 1863. After his father’s death, his grandfather reared him. This young man became a prosperous property owner and served as both a state legislator and a Senator from the Towns County area. Rev. Alfred Corn’s first wife Nancy died in 1884 and he married, second, to Amanda Matthewson on May 22, 1885.

Alfred Corn was ordained to the gospel ministry by the Antioch Baptist Church of Union County on October 19, 1850. Little did those who sat in on his presbytery realize what a stalwart leader he would become in denominational work. He served for a number of years as an appointee of the Southern Baptist Home Mission Board (known then as the Baptist Board of Domestic Missions) to the Indians in North Carolina. He had to preach through an interpreter to be understood by the Cherokee. He was pastor of the Old Union Baptist Church at Young Harris for about 20 years. He was recognized as an outstanding leader in the Hiawassee Baptist Association and the Georgia Baptist Convention. He and Alphaeus Swanson led in organizing the West Union Baptist Church in Hiawassee Association.

He kept journals which tell of hardships during the Civil War. In one, he told how glad he was to see his son, John Adam, home for a brief leave from the Civil War. But later he lamented that, because of his son’s death, his family could never be together again as they once were on this earth. In 1864 his journal shows that he could not get to some of his church appointments because of unrest and “invasion of Yankee troops” that pillaged and robbed. Those same “snipers” stole his faithful steed that had taken him thousands of miles on his journeys to preach and do his missionary service.

He was also noted as an itinerant preacher and was invited to preach at summer camp meetings such as that at Fightingtown, a summer gathering held on a former Cherokee Indian Council Ground in Epworth, Fannin County, Georgia. He was one of the early invited guests after the camp meetings were reinstated following the Civil War. Known for his level-headedness and attention to duty, he left his mark in several North Georgia and North Carolina counties as he labored to build stronger churches. He and his first wife Nancy Cook Corn were buried in the Old Union Baptist Church Cemetery, Young Harris, Georgia. She died December 26, 1884 and Alfred died July 16, 1905.

[Ethelene Dyer Jones is a retired educator, freelance writer, poet, and historian. She may be reached at e-mail edj0513@windstream.net; phone 478-453-8751; or mail 1708 Cedarwood Road, Milledgeville, GA 31061-2411.]

Saturday, April 2, 2011

Continuing the Self Family Saga (Part 2)

By way of review, last week’s introductory story on the Self early settlers to Union County told of three families with the surname Self that were here in 1834: Job, Thomas and Francis, with a total of 16 people. In 1834, too, was one household, that of Isom Seffle, that unusual spelling, with 6 males and 2 females. Was this a misspelling of Self? Seffle was not found listed again in Union census records. By 1840, the households listed were those of Job, Thomas R. Robert B. and William, with the Self population swelling to 28 persons.

I am always glad to come to the 1850 census record, the first one to list the name of wife and children rather than just the number by ages, not just the name of head-of-household.. By the time the county was 18 years into its life as a division of the state of Georgia, the Self population was as follows:

Household 163: Self, William, age 37, born in North Carolina Wife, Elizabeth, age 43, born in North Carolina

The first four children listed had been born in North Carolina: David, age 17 Berryman, age 14 John, age 12 Sarah, age 10

The next three children were born in Georgia: Mary, age 8 Franklin, age 6 Barbary (Barbara?), age 4

Of these children of William and Elizabeth Self, marriage records in Union that possibly are for these Self offspring are David Self to Polly Long on December 20, 1855 by William M. Duncan, Justice of the Peace. John Self to Rebecca Seabolt, January 1, 1860, by Rev. Thomas M. Hughes. On the other hand, this John could be the son of Francis and Hester Self who was 10 in 1850, or John the son of Thomas and Nancy Cook Self who was 12 in 1850.

With so many children in Self families named John, Francis and Job, to trace those wed back to the right parents takes more adequate family records than I have available on the Self descendants. For example, there are four Sarah Self marriages listed in the records. The three possibilities for William and Elizabeth’s Sarah was to T. E. Jenkins on March 13, 1870; or the Sarah who married James L. Smith on January 2, 1868; or the Sarah who married M. H. Monroe on March 27, 1879. This Sarah definitely is not the Sarah Self who married Allen Simpson on February 2, 1845. This couple must have left the county soon after their marriage, for in 1850 I could not find a Simpson household with Allen as the head and Sarah as the wife and mother. A Mary Self married W. W. Hix on May 4, 1872, with Rev. J. B. Parham officiating. This could be the daughter of William and Elizabeth. Barbery (sic) Self married John Medaris on November 8, 1866, with Rev. S. H. Waters officiating.

Household 542: Self, Robert, age 30, born in North Carolina Wife Martha, age 29, born in North Carolina

Their five children had all been born in Georgia: James, age 13 Susan, age 8 Elisha, age 7 Jane, age 4 Job, age 2

Union County marriage records indicate that Robert Self married Martha Cook on January 25, 1838, with Jarrett Turner, Justice of the Peace, performing their ceremony.

The two James Self marriages listed in the record take place in 1889 and 1896, a little late, it seems for this 13-year old son of Robert and Martha Self. I do not find marriage records that seem to match the ages of the other children of Robert and Martha.

Household 534: Self, Francis, age 32, born in North Carolina Wife Hester, age 31, born in North Carolina

They had five children by 1850, all born in Georgia: Job, age 12 John, age 10 Thomas, age 10 John (yes, a second named John), age 4 Joseph, age 1

Evidently Francis and Hester were married before they settled here, because no marriage record is listed for this couple in Union. The Job Self, son of Francis and Hester, might be the Job Self who married Caroline Hix on January 22, 1860 with James R. Hood, Justice of the Peace, officiating.

In a message from Pat Self, she told me that Job M. Self and Mary Samantha Plott married. I find a J. M. Self and Mary M. (Samantha not as part of her name in marriage record) married on October 8, 1871, with Rev. Alfred Corn performing their ceremony.

Pat Self reported that Job M. and Mary Samantha Self helped to organize the Old Union Baptist Church at Young Harris when it was founded, and were active there until their deaths. But was the Job who married Mary Samantha a son of Francis and Hester? I hope Pat Self will help me clarify who were the parents of this Job Self.

Household 646: Self, Thomas, 34, born in North Carolina Wife, Nancy, age 35, born in North Carolina

Eleven children, all born in Georgia: William, age 16 Sally, age 15 Caroline, age 13 John, age 12 Elizabeth, age 10 Francis, age 9 Jehu, age 7 Monroe, age 6 Newton, age 5 Thomas, age 3 Infant (male), age 2 months

Marriage records show that Thomas Self and Nancy Cook were married in Union County on July 11, 1833 by John Thomas, Justice of the Inferior Court. Searching for names of these children and their marriages, the records show: Caroline Self married Michael Lance on July 12, 1853.

There are two John Self marriage listings: one John to Margaret Daniel on February 10, 1856 performed by Charles Crumbly, Justice of the Peace; and another John, which by age and time of marriage must have been Thomas and Nancy’s son John, age 12 in 1850, who married Rebecca Seabolt on January 1, 1860, when he was 22, with Rev. Thomas M. Hughes performing their ceremony. But this John’s marriage could also have been for William and Elizabeth Self’s son, John, who was also 12 in 1850. Francis M. Self married Rebecca Daniel on August 6, 1863, with Thompson Collins, Justice of the Peace, officiating.

Household 662: Crumbly, William, age 31, born in North Carolina Wife, Jane, age 28, born in Alabama

They have in the household with them a child, Celia Self, age 6.

In the marriage records, William Crumbly and Jane Self are listed, marrying on February 25, 1849, with Charles Crumbly, JP, performing their ceremony.

This article has given mainly census and marriage records, with little help from family research and history that would tie the marriages to the right parents for the brides and grooms. Maybe someone who reads this article knows the puzzles and can clarify and help set the record straight.

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Some Early Self Family Settlers in Union

The surname Self has a long history, going back at least to the time of the Vikings, who in their ships made ocean voyages and explored lands they found long before Columbus discovered America in 1492. This group of hardy people, explorers, were called (anglicized) Seawolf. That surname was eventually shortened, probably by pronouncing it as one syllable, to Self. It is spelled variously Self, Selffe, Selph, Selphe. But to link the surname up to those first daring explorers, we need to remember it as Seawolf.

In Union County in 1834 when the first census was taken, we find three families with the surname Self, and one with a much different spelling which I will list, not knowing quite whether to include it with Self settlers. These I found listed as living in Union in 1834:

Job Self’s household had 6 males and 6 females;

Thomas Self, one male and one female;

Francis Self, one male and one female.

These made the Self population in 1834 total 8 males and 8 females. Then I found the unusual spelling Seffle, for a household with Isom as head, and 6 males and 6 females living in that household. I did not find a last name spelled Seffle in subsequent census records for the county, nor an Isom as head of household with a similar last name. This is one of those odd mysteries of old census records.

Since she was my great, great grandmother, I know of another Self, married to Thompson Collins who lived in Union and was recorded in the 1834 census.

I refer to Celia Self Collins who married Thompson Collins in 1810 in Buncombe County, North Carolina. Thompson Collins was born about 1785 in North Carolina and Celia Self was born about 1787 in North Carolina. Much research has been done to try to identify the parents of Thompson Collins and Celia Self. We can be fairly sure that a Nancy (maiden name unknown) Collins was Thompson’s mother and that his father might have been named Thomas.

Celia Self’s father was believed to be Francis Self. Since no age is given for the Francis Self family, residents of Union in 1834, these may have been Celia Self Collins’s parents. The Job Self, with 6 males and 6 females in the family in Union in 1834 is believed to be her brother, as was the Thomas Self, with one male, one female as residents. Maybe Self researchers who read this can give illumination to more specific tracing of the lines of Celia Self Collins, Job, Thomas and Francis Self, all of whom were residents of Union County in 1834.

The 1840 census shows that Job Self and Thomas R. Self were still in Union, and two more households of Self had settled here, Robert B. Self and William Self. The Francis Self listed in 1834 does not appear in the 1840 census. This leads me to wonder if, indeed, they were the elderly parents of my great, great grandmother, Celia Self Collins, and that they had died between 1834 to 1840. No marked gravestones of same are present in county cemeteries to answer this question.

The 1840 population of Self families had a total of 28 persons. The families registered in that census had constituents as follows:

Job self, 5 males, 7 females

Thomas R. Self, 3 males, 4 females

Robert B. Self, 1 male, 2 females

William Self, 4 males, 2 females

Checking the Union County marriage records for this early period of the county’s history, I looked for Self and found the following registrations of marriages of Self surnames by 1840:

Thomas Self married Nancy Cook on July 11, 1833, with John Thomas, Justice of the Inferior Court, performing the ceremony.

Robert Self married Marthy (sic) Cook on January 25, 1838, with Jarrett Turner, Justice of the Peace, performing the ceremony.

Since their marriage occurred in July, 1833, Thomas and Nancy Cook Self did not have children by the time of the 1834 census. But, in looking at the 1840 census for their household, they had two male children and 3 female children, all under 10. Since Robert and Martha’s marriage on 1838, the 1840 census showed they were the parents of one female child before the 1840 census.

Were Nancy Cook and Martha Cook, who married the Self men, sisters? And were Robert and Thomas Self brothers? This writer assumes they were. Maybe our readers can help us with these puzzles about the early Self settlers of Union County.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Saluting Major James Leon Davenport

When James Leon Davenport, the first child of John Prescott Davenport (better known as Press) and Ethel Lee Souther Davenport was born on December 9, 1926 in Blairsville, it is not known whether his parents then thought of his growing up and becoming a soldier.

Did he play soldier as a little boy, dreaming that some day he would wear the uniform of his country and face the enemy bravely? When he volunteered for the US Army in 1945, he was destined for a career in service, one that would lead him to many places in the world and from which he would retire as one of the most-decorated soldiers from Union County, one who was distinguished for heroism and noble service.

Leon’s friend, Charles Waymon Cook, who grew up in Blairsville and became a teacher and poet, has written a noteworthy tribute to Leon in a poem. With Charles’s permission, I share that poetic tribute to Leon:

A Gallant Soldier
(In tribute to Major James Leon Davenport.
Retired, 24th Infantry Division and 3rd Infantry Division, US Army
by Charles Waymon Cook)

A gallant soldier from the hills
With valor demonstrated;
When Leon’s nation needed him,
He never hesitated.

Twenty-one years in three tough wars
He fought for liberty;
While decorated many times,
He wore humility.

Commissioned on the battlefield
For bravery sublime,
He risked his life for other men
When he was in his prime.

Our country owes its gratitude
For services well done;
He gave the best one man could give
With earthly battles won.

In quietude his pace has slowed
As age and time drift in;
Let’s not forget this gentle giant—
A soldier and a friend.

I am grateful to Charles Waymon Cook, poet, who ably captured the life and spirit of brave soldier Major James Leon Davenport in his poem, “Gallant Soldier.” More of his poems can be read in his recently-published book entitled Beyond the Mountain Haze.

But this salute is to the soldier, Major James Leon Davenport. His military career, spanning twenty-one years, saw him volunteering for the infantry as a private as World War II was coming to a close in 1945. During his career, he served 131 months overseas in various locations. He was in the Philippines, Korea, Japan, Germany, and Vietnam. During the Korean War, he was in the famed 24th Infantry Division about which we can now read in the histories of this war. His was the very first unit to see action in Korea.

From private to major, he worked through the ranks, serving admirably as a rifleman, in a tanker, as a platoon leader, as company commander, and as his battalion’s executive officer. During those years, he practiced fairness and soldierly conduct, admired and emulated by those who needed a role model for their own military service.

On five occasions he was decorated for heroism. Three Silver Stars are among his medals, as are the Purple Heart, Army Commendation Medal, Bronze Star with victory medallion, Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry, Combat Infantry Badge, and others. You do not hear of his decorations from him. Ever humble and grateful that he had opportunity to serve his country, he is the last to talk about or ever boast of how his country recognized his service. But we are beginning to find out, and we gladly salute Major James Leon Davenport.

After his first ten years in the Army, he came back to Blairsville in 1955, but then in 1961 he was recalled to active duty during the Berlin Crisis. He spent eleven more years serving his country until he retired in August of 1972. Toward the end of his service career, he was Inspector General of Fort Knox, Kentucky.

His retirement from active military service did not bring an end to Major Davenport’s career. Recognizing his leadership and administrative skills, the Board chose him to became CEO of the new and struggling Union General Hospital. As administrator there for 21 years, until his retirement from that position in August, 1993, Leon Davenport led the hospital to accreditation and to a stature of notability, with a strong health care team and excellent medical facilities.

Active in his church and community, Leon Davenport is citizen, patriot, family man and friend. He comes from a long line of solid citizens whose ancestors both paternally and maternally go back to the Davenports who settled in the area of Davenport Mountain in the Ivy Log District and the Southers who established Souther Mill in the Choestoe District. Leon’s parents, John Prescott Davenport and Ethel Lee Souther Davenport met “about half-way between” their places of birth—at the Blairsville Collegiate Institute when they were both students there. They were married July 19, 1925. Leon was their first child. He had two siblings: Vivian Evangeline Davenport who married Kenneth Roy Chambers and Douglas Davenport who was born 12/9/1931 and died 6/3/1981.

James Leon Davenport and Barbara Hooper Twiggs were married September 18, 1953. They have just recently celebrated their 57th wedding anniversary. Their children are Cayce Lynn Davenport Friedly (married to David Friedly) and Ralph Douglas Davenport (married to Delila Echemendia).

For his service to country and community, and for his firmly held family and spiritual values that continue to make our country a leader among nations, we salute Major James Leon Davenport!

Friday, July 30, 2010

Beyond the Mountain Haze

Charles Weymon Cook shown with Mrs. Dora Hunter Allison Spiva at her 104th birthday celebration in February, 2009. He read a poem in tribute to her influence upon him as his high school mathematics teacher.

It is seldom that we can read a delightful and revealing story about a mountain family written in poetry, with just enough prose interspersed to make the line quite understandable and appealing.

Charles Weymon Cook who was born to Rufus and Nora Davenport Cook and calls Blairsville his hometown has done just that with his newly-published autobiographical poetry book entitled Beyond the Mountain Haze. Weymon, as he was known growing up in Union, now lives in Macon, Georgia. He is one of those native citizens who has gone out into other places and done well, first as a teacher, and now in his retirement as a writer. In this book paying tribute to his mountain heritage, he has captured in impeccable rhyme and rhythm many aspects of mountain life that are fast passing away under the guise of progress.

What makes the book even more appealing is the fact that its author is what I like to call a “walking miracle.” Charles Weymon Cook underwent heart transplant surgery on September 21, 2000. Not only did he live and do well, but he has been able to write and compile his delightful autobiography in verse and make it available to any who would like to know more about life in the “miracle” dimension of restored health. One way of offering his thanks for the gift of life is this book, well-crafted and pleasing to the eye as well as to the reader. It walks us through woodland paths and family solidarity, helps us meet and greet people significant in his life, and allows us new perspectives on the beauty of nature and the harmony of creation. And with thanks to his beautiful and compassionate wife, a teacher as he, LaVerne Young Cook, and their only child, daughter Christy, who assisted him with manuscript, typesetting and organization for the book, we have for our perusal a volume which I predict the reader will return to again and again.

Charles Weymon Cook’s father was Rufus Cook, “Mr. Ranger,” one of the earlier forest rangers in North Georgia who learned his skills as a forester under the able tutelage of Ranger Arthur Woody. Charles tells us that his father spent 43 years as a U. S. Forest Ranger. Among his skills were certified surveyor, timber-marker, forest-fire fighter, recreational facilities designer and builder, tower radio equipment manager and repairer—whatever the need within the far reaches of the mountain forests, Rufus Cook was there, walking the forests, keeping an eye diligently on the land and its care. Nine of Charles’s poems pay tribute to this giant of a fellow, both in stature and morally and spiritually, who gave him the firm foundation of a solid upbringing. We can sense love in every line in which this poet describes his father. Here’s but a small example from “Mr. Ranger”:

“I thank my God that I was there
To live and love and grow
Amidst the shadow of a giant,
With smiling face aglow.” (p. 65)

His mother, Nora Davenport Cook, has her section in the book. Both parents and their influence are seen throughout the book, but their own sections are especially provocative, leading the reader to recall and appreciate family roots that went deeply into the soil of a developing life and bore fruit in years “beyond the mountain haze.” A descendant of the early Davenport settlers to Union County for whom Davenport Mountain was named, Nora Cook was a stay-at-home mother who worked hard as an avid gardener and a dedicated housewife and mother. She did not tolerate “sassiness,” back-talk, or half-done chores. Her discipline and astuteness to details and homemaking values assured Charles and his siblings that they had a warm loving home where they were taught the principles of life:

“You taught me love with gentle hands,
Encouraging all the way;
You laid the founding cornerstone
By teaching me how to pray.” (p. 54)

I have the recent privilege of being associated with Charles Weymon Cook, teacher, poet, friend, having met him only in recent years through our associations in the Georgia State Poetry Society and the Byron Herbert Reece Society of which we are both members. Occasionally I am able to meet for a meal with him and his wife, LaVerne, or to travel to a meeting together. Having grown up in the same county, Charles and I didn’t know each other back when we were youth. I did know Charles’s older brother, Donald, as we were nearer together in age. The day of Mrs. Dora Hunter Allison Spiva’s 104th birthday celebration in February, 2009, Charles and I were both there and were able to read to her our individual poetic tributes for her profound influence on our lives. She had much to do with each of us choosing and pursuing careers in teaching.

Charles Weymon Cook writes in his “Introduction” to his book, Beyond the Mountain Haze: “My southern style ‘earthy’ verses simply reflect people, places and events that have influenced my life. Some things just tear at the heartstrings and trigger a melody in your soul that you wish to share with friends and neighbors.”

This very modest appraisal by the author of why he had to write the book only goes partially into why he should, indeed, have shared it. He had something to say, and he said it with apparent ease and facility. Find a copy of Beyond the Mountain Haze. My prediction is that you, as I, will return to its pages again and again for inspiration, information and enjoyment. He lifts the haze and allows us to see a miracle heart, restored and ready to give praise to the Creator of all beauty and the Sustainer of life. And this he does in understandable, sensitive and positive poetry. Congratulations, Charles Weymon Cook, mountain lad grown to productive citizen, whose knowledge and appreciation of family, environment and associations shine forth from the pages of your book.

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Judge Thomas Slaughter Candler Wields Wide Influence

Judge Thomas Slaughter Candler at the dedication service of the Brasstown Bald Recreation Area, June, 1971, the last public function he attended prior to his death.

Thomas Slaughter Candler was born December 15, 1890 in Blairsville, Union County, Georgia, the seventh and last child of William Ezekiel Candler and Elizabeth Mary Haralson Candler. His father was a local lawyer. Did W. E. Candler have dreams that his new son would grow up to follow in his footsteps as a lawyer, and go even farther to become a Georgia Supreme Court Justice?

When Thomas Slaughter Candler was born December 15, 1890, Benjamin Harrison, the 23rd president of the United States was in office. Called “the little president” because of his short stature of five feet six inches in height, he dealt with labor strikes in manufacturing areas, and saw passage of the McKinley Tariff Act that put a high tax on goods shipped to America from abroad. It was also the year the Sherman Antitrust Act passed, intended to deal a blow against monopolies. On the very day of little Thomas Slaughter Candler’s birth in Blairsville, the famed Sitting Bull, Sioux Indian Chief, and eleven other Sioux, were killed at Standing Rock Reservation in South Dakota by U. S. soldiers called Indian Police assigned to keep order there. To say the least, the Candler baby was born in a time of unrest. Who knows? Maybe the situation called for growing up a lawyer and judge who could make a difference in the future.

Our Blairsville Thomas Slaughter Candler was well-connected descendancy-wise to other famous Georgians with the Candler surname. Let’s look at Thomas’s ancestors. Thomas’s great, great grandfather William Candler was born in Ireland in 1738. William was brought as a child to Virginia where he grew up and married Elizabeth Anthony in 1761. Eventually, the Candlers migrated to North Carolina and then southward before the Civil War to Columbia County, Georgia. Daniel Candler, born in 1779 in Columbia County, was Thomas’s great grandfather. In 1779 Daniel married Sarah Slaughter, the forebear whose surname was used as the middle name of several of the Candler descendants. Daniel and Sarah Slaughter Candler had several children, among whom were these named ones: Milton Anthony Candler, 1837; Ezekiel Slaughter Candler, 1838; Noble Daniel Candler, 1840; Florence Julia Candler, 1842; Sarah Justiana Candler, 1845; William Beall Candler, 1847; Elizabeth Frances Candler, 1849; Asa Griggs Candler, Sr., 1851; Samuel Charles Candler, 1855.

Of the above-listed children of Daniel and Sarah Candler, all “turned out well,” as we say in the mountains. Some made a name for themselves in business, politics and religion.

Milton Anthony Candler was a Georgia congressman. Asa Griggs Candler bought out Dr. John Pemberton’s recipe for Coca-Cola for $2300 and made a fortune manufacturing that popular soda. He used his wealth to found Emory University and for many other philanthropic causes, including the Candler Missionary College in Cuba. Samuel Charles Candler held public offices in Cherokee and Carroll counties. Warren Akin Candler became a bishop in the Methodist Church in Georgia and left a legacy of good in institutions of that denomination.

Daniel and Sarah’s son, Ezekiel Slaughter Candler (1838-1869) married Jane Williams. They lived in Milledgeville, Georgia when their youngest child, William Ezekiel Candler was born. The Civil War came when W. E. (as he was known) was only eight. His parents sent him from Central Georgia to live with his older sister who resided in Blairsville, hoping that the child could escape death as Sherman’s army marched through Georgia. While young W. E. was still in Union County, his father Ezekiel died in 1869. He remained on in Union at the home of his sister and got his education in one-teacher schools, later reading law and passing the bar examination. According to Union County marriage records, W. E. Candler married Elizabeth Mary Haralson on June 11, 1879, with then-noted Methodist minister, the Rev. Thomas M. Hughes performing their ceremony. Elizabeth Mary’s parents were Thomas J. and Mary Haralson. This marriage joined two families interested in law as a career.

Thomas Slaughter Candler had six siblings. His sister June, the oldest, married Clabis Lloyd. His sister called “Pick” married Pierce Matthews. These two older girls moved to Gainesville and Smyrna respectively. Nellie (1880-1893) and Ruth (1897-1928) died and were buried in the Blairsville Cemetery. Alwayne married Garnett Butt and remained in Union.

William Ezekiel, Jr. married and lived in Blairsville. The last-born child of W. E. and Elizabeth Candler was Thomas Slaughter Candler. On April 16, 1916, he married Augusta Beulah Cook, daughter of Joe and Sarah Cook.

To Thomas and Beulah were born four children: Sarah (died 1992) married Jason B. Gilliland; William Ezekiel (called “Buck” died of diphtheria in 1921); Nell married Walter McNeil; and Thomas Slaughter Candler, Jr. married Blanche Patton.

Thomas Slaughter Candler was educated in small schools in the Blairsville area and graduated as valedictorian of his 1913 class from Young Harris College. He went to the University of Georgia where he graduated summa cum laude in 1915 with an LLB degree. He passed the Georgia bar and worked with his father, William Ezekiel Candler, in his law office until his father died in 1927. Thomas served as a local lawyer, on the School Board, and mayor of Blairsville.

In 1939, Governor Ed Rivers appointed him as Georgia Superior Court Judge for the Northeastern District. He became a Justice of the Georgia State Supreme Court in 1945, appointed by Governor Ellis Arnall, and subsequently elected three more times, holding that office through 1966.

His other achievements included assisting in rewriting the Georgia Constitution.

He gave generous portions of his land for Vogel State Park and for the area around the spring at Bald Mountain State Park. He was instrumental in getting electricity to Union County through Tennessee Valley Authority and in gaining grants for highway construction in the area.

A Christian gentleman, lover of the Constitution—both Georgia and US—supporter of people’s rights, honest, fair and intellectually gifted, this man from Union County stood tall wherever he served. He died June 15, 1971 and his beloved wife Beulah died in 1983. They were interred in the Union Memory Gardens. The Candler surname means “one who lights candles or one who makes candles.” Certainly, Judge Tom Candler lived up to his name and was a shining light in the mountains.

Some More 'First Families' in Union by 1834--the Self Family

From time to time I have been examining the 1834 special census of Union County to see ancestors of those families who may still be living within the area of Union, or those who still come back to visit graves of those who have gone before.

This focus will be upon the Self family. Three households with the last name Self lived in Union County in 1834.

The Job Self household had six males and six females. The Francis Self household must have been a young or old one, for there was just one male and one female registered, no children. The Thomas Self household had one male and one female, and I can more readily account for them, for the first Self marriage recorded in Union was that of Thomas Self to Nancy Cook on July 11, 1833 by John Thomas, Justice of the Inferior Court. This marriage occurred about seven months after Union was created on December 3, 1832. Nancy may have been a daughter of William Cook, the only Cook family in Union in 1834 with 7 males and 9 females. Thomas, the groom, was probably a son of Job Self. Unfortunately, no family article about the Selfs appeared in The Heritage of Union County 1932-1994 to assist with this family puzzle.

By the second census in 1840 four Self families were living in Union. These were Job, William, Thomas R. and Robert B. The household of Francis Self was not listed in 1840. Perhaps he and his wife had died. No marked grave with Francis Self was found in cemetery records. Another Self wedding had taken place since 1834. That was of Robert B. Self to Martha Cook on January 25, 1838, performed by Jarrett Turner, Justice of the Peace. We wonder if Martha Cook Self and Nancy Cook Self were sisters. It is interesting to note the number in each of the families in 1840, as that census lists only the number by gender categories. Job Self’s household had 4 males and 7 females. In William’s home were 3 males and 2 females. Thomas R. Self (Thomas and Nancy who married in 1833) had 3 males and 4 females, or five children. Robert B. Self (who married Martha Cook in 1838) had one male and 2 females, or one child already.

Gratefully, by the 1850 census, not only were names of heads of households listed, but the wife’s name was given, the place, if not Georgia, where persons were born, and the names and ages of husband, wife and children. In 1850 we find four households of Selfs and another household with a child having the last name of Self. William, Thomas and Robert had remained for the decade since 1840. The fourth household, not listed in 1840, was that of Francis Self, age 32, born in NC, his wife Hester, 31, born in NC, and their five children all born in Georgia: Job 12, John 10, Thomas 8, John 4 (this may have been a mistake in transcription, for they already had a son John, age 10), and Joseph, 1. This Francis could have been missed in the 1840 census, for their oldest child, Job, would have been born about 1838.

Tracing the other Selfs in the 1850 census, we find William, age 37 and his wife, Elizabeth, both born in North Carolina. Their first four children were also born in North Carolina: David, 17, Berryman, 14, John 12, and Sarah 10. Mary, 8, Franklin, 6, and Barbary 4 were born in Georgia.

Robert Self and his wife Martha Cook Self were both born in North Carolina. He was 30 in 1850 and she was 29. They had married in Union County in 1838. Their children were James, 13, Susan 8, Elisha 7, Jane 4, and Job 2.

Thomas Self and his wife Nancy Cook Self (married in Union in 1833) and both born in North Carolina had a large family by 1850. Names of their children listed in the 1850 census were William, 16; Sally, 15; Caroline, 13; John, 12; Elizabeth, 10; Francis, 9; Jehu, 7; Monroe, 6: Newton, 5; Thomas, 3; and an infant male with no name yet given when the census taker visited their house in 1850.

The other Self listed in 1850 was a child, Selia (Celia) Self, who lived in the household of a young couple, William Crumley, age 31, born in NC and Jane Crumley, age 28 who listed her birthplace as Alabama. Selia was age 6 and had been born in Georgia. Noting the marriage records, I found that Jane Self and William Crumley were married February 25, 1849 by Charles Crumley, Justice of the Peace. Celia evidently was Jane’s child born before her marriage to William Crumley. Could Jane have named her after her aunt, Celia Self Collins, wife of Thompson Collins?

In consulting the helpful resource book entitled Union County Marriage Records 1833-1897 compiled by Viola Holden Jones of Louisville, TN in 1992, I found a total of fifty Self marriages recorded between 1833 and 1897. Space precludes my listing them here, but it is interesting to see the children’s names of the 1850 households listed among those marriages.

Consulting another valuable resource, Cemetery Records of Union County, Georgia (c1990), I decided to seek marked graves of any Selfs born before 1850. I was disappointed to find only three: Ezekiel Self (1845-1890) buried in Antioch Cemetery; John J. Self (Dec. 6, 1835- Oct. 22, 1921) and Margaret Self (May 28, 1939-Sept. 18, 1928) both buried in Shady Grove Cemetery. Referring again to the marriage records, I found that Ezekiel R. Self married Rosa A. Hix on March 10, 1867 with Jebiah Jackson, Justice of the Peace performing the ceremony. John Self married Margaret Daniel on February 10, 1856 with Charles Crumley, Justice of the Peace, the officiating officer.

At best, this account of first families Selfs is incomplete. I am greatly interested in Self genealogy because I descend from Celia Self Collins, wife of Thompson Collins. They were among the first settlers in Choestoe District of Union County and were here when the first census was taken in 1834. What research I have been able to do reveals that Celia was a daughter of Francis Self and that she had siblings named Job, Sarah, and Jesse. I believe the Job Self in the 1834 Union Census was my great, great uncle, and the Francis Self listed then may well have been my great, great, great grandfather (Celia Self Collins’s father). This research leaves me wishing I knew for sure.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Early Settlers--Jesse Fields Family

In 1837 Jesse and Catherine Fields moved from North Carolina to Union County, Georgia. The 1840 and 1850 census records of the county can be somewhat confusing on this Fields family. In 1840 they were listed as "Jesse Fielder" by the enumerator with six in the household. By 1850, the enumerator listed them as the Jesse Fields household, and since names were given in that year's census, we learn that Jesse, born in SC, was 38, his wife Catherine, born in NC, was 38, and children in their home were: James, 15, born in NC, Elizabeth, 13, born in SC, and those born in Georgia were Sarah, 12, John 9, Thomas 7, and William 2.

The family settled in the Owltown District of Union County and built a log cabin which was later expanded to become the Crump residence, well-known as one of the historic houses of the district.

Jesse Fields was involved in county and community life. It is said that he cut trees and hewed logs for the building of Union County's first log courthouse.

He and his family were among the early members of Harmony Grove Baptist Church founded in 1847. Jesse Fields served as the church's clerk from 1858-1860.

The Civil War came and the Jesse Fields family was affected by it, as were most of the residents of Union County who sent soldiers either to the Union or to the Confederate Army. Two of Jesse's sons, John and Thomas J. served in the Confederate Army.

Before Thomas went away to war, he married Sarah Allen. She had come from Holland with her family and often had stories to tell her family and others about the hardships they endured on the journey by ship from Holland.

With Thomas away at war, Sarah was doing what she could to maintain their farm and make a living for the family. Then she got word that her husband, Thomas J. Fields, had been killed in the war. He had first been a bugler in the 6th Regiment of the Georgia Calvary, and then assigned to the 65th Regiment of the Georgia Infantry.

One day, Sarah was plowing on their farm along the Nottely River. She had an oxen hitched to the plow, but it had balked and was lying down in the river. Sarah, tired and displeased with the stubborn ox's behavior, bowed her head in resignation and perhaps to pray. When she lifted her head and looked toward the rail fence that surrounded the plot she was cultivating, she saw her husband, Thomas Fields, two years reported dead, crossing the fence. The impact of seeing him made her fall into the river in a faint. Records show that he was discharged May 12, 1865, more than a month after the war was declared ended at Appomattox Court House in Virginia.

Thomas and Sarah and their family lived at the Fields (later Crump) residence in Owltown for a number of years after he returned from the Civil War. He had artisans Bascomb and Woodford Nelson add the gingerbread decoration to the old Fields cabin that had been added onto throughout the years and was a stately two-story white frame house. He became a doctor. In 1915 he and Sarah moved to Mt. Airy, Georgia near Cornelia.

The Fields family, descending from first settlers Jesse and Catherine Akins Fields, have figured prominently in Union County's growth. As descendants went to other geographic locations, they became solid citizens and hard-working people. After Catherine's death, Jesse Fields married, second, to Lavina Cook.

Catherine, Jesse and Vinie Fields were interred in the Harmony Grove Baptist Church Cemetery. Catherine Fields' stone does not have a birth date; her death date was November 15, 1857. Jesse Fields was born June 12, 1812 and died November 16, 1904. Vinie, Jesse's second wife, died November 23, 1877. Her stone has no birth date. The tribute inscribed on Jesse Fields's tombstone speaks of his character: "He lived a Christian life."

Saturday, May 29, 2010

Couple leaves Choestoe for New Holland William Bruce Moore and Catherine Souther Moore

Through mountain mists we discern motives as to why people of the late nineteenth century left family and familiar scenes to go to a new location. Sometimes the very survival of families depended on it. Such seemed the case of Catherine Souther Moore (01.16.1869-02.03.1921) and her husband, William Bruce Moore (04.16.1868-08.26.1905).

This couple was married in Union County, Georgia on September 23, 1886. The husband, William Bruce Moore, was from Towns County, Georgia, a son of Andrew and Adeline Greer Moore. Catherine Souther, his bride, was the ninth of ten children born to John Combs Hayes Souther (10.22.1827- 01.04-1891) and Nancy Collins Souther (02.13.1829-07.22.1888).

Catherine had three brothers, William Albert Souther, John Padgett Souther, and Joseph Newton Souther. William Albert married Elizabeth "Hon" Dyer. John Padgett married Martha Clemetine Brown. Joseph Newton married Elderada Swain. Catherine had seven sisters. They and their spouses were Mary Elizabeth Souther who married Smith Loransey Brown; Celia Souther who died at about age 16; Sarah Evaline Souther who married Bluford Elisha Dyer; Nancy Roseanne Souther who married William Hulsey; Martha Souther who married, first, Jasper Todd Hunter, and, second, James Hunter (her husbands were brothers); and Catherine's youngest sister was Ruthie Caroline Souther who married, first, William A. Sullivan and, second, Logan Souther. This youngest sister moved west to Pueblo, Colorado.

Perhaps it was the fact that Catherine's sister, Nancy Roseanne Souther and her husband, William Hulsey, already lived in New Holland that helped Catherine and Bruce Moore decide to move there. Times were hard, and the couple seemed to realize that their chances for a regular income lay, not in tending the land at Choestoe to eke out a living, but to go to New Holland where Bruce could be employed for a regular $1.00 per day salary working in the cotton mill.

In the history of New Holland Cotton Mills, it was indicated that the Pacolet Manufacturing Company of South Carolina established a cotton mill in the village of New Holland, two miles northeast of Gainesville in 1901. There the company built a brick building to house the cotton mill, the weaving looms and other equipment necessary to producing quality cotton cloth. Also on the property secured by Pacolet were mill village houses which could be rented by families who worked in the mill. There was a bold spring, supposedly with health-giving water, that provided drinking water for the houses. Any of the ambitious families who wanted to tend a side-patch next to their rented house could plant a vegetable garden and hope for fresh vegetables in a favorable growing season. The manufacturer also provided a mill village store where families could buy necessary supplies. A school for the children, New Holland Academy, was also established. The whole village seemed a haven for families hard-pressed to make a living in the early twentieth century.

William Bruce Moore and Catherine Souther Moore had seven children as follows: James Andrew Moore (08.05.1888 - 12.29.1909); Nancy Adeline Moore (07.07.1890-?) married L. O. Coker; Mary Ellen Moore (10.25.1891-03.10.1935) married Will Voyles; Emma Mae Moore (04.10.1894 -?) married Arthur Franklin; Katie Evaline Morre (12.23.1896-05.08.1957) married Earl Franklin; Martha Wortie Moore (05.25.1900-05/26.1949) married Bruce Meta; and William Virgil Moore (09.30-1902-05.08.1962) married Thelma Cook.

As already mentioned, in that day the New Holland mill employed men for $1.00 per day. Women worked for fifty cents per day, and children, upon becoming age 12, got jobs for fifty cents per day. In the early years when the Moore family worked there, few health restrictions were intact, and workers breathed the cotton dust from the milling processes. It was an unhealthful environment. William Bruce Moore died August 26, 1905, leaving his wife Catherine to raise their family of seven children on her own. Imagine this mother, tired from a twelve-hour day at the mill, returning home, heavy with grief, and having to prepare a meager meal for her children, do their laundry, and keep the house in order. Another sadness came to Catherine Souther Moore as her eldest son, James Andrew, died December 9, 1909 at age 22. Was his death also caused by exposure to cotton dust in the mill?

On June 1, 1903, a tornado ripped through Gainesville and New Holland. Forty were killed in New Holland. Historical pictures show caskets lined up, side by side, in the New Holland mill, awaiting burial. Some, for which caskets had not yet been secured, were covered in materials that had been woven in the plant. Over three decades later, on April 6, 1936, another devastating tornado ripped through Gainesville, doing much damage to the city and to outlying districts like New Holland. In 1936, President Franklin Roosevelt visited the city, surveying the damage, and promising federal help for rebuilding.

My great aunt, Catherine Souther Moore, did not have to worry about cleaning up from the great tornado of 1936. She had quietly laid down her life on February 3, 1921, dying of what was then known as "consumption," a disease of the lungs brought on by years of breathing the cotton dust in the mills. She was buried in the New Holland Cemetery alongside her husband who had preceded her in death on August 26, 1905.

Sunday, May 16, 2010

The Gillespie rifle-a trusted firearm

I wonder how many reading this column have heard of the Gillespie gunmakers or have a treasured firearm made by the Gillespie family of East Fork, N.C., (and elsewhere) passed down through many generations and kept as an heirloom?

I have recently been in touch with T. Dennis Glazener of Midlothian, VA. He is a great, great, great grandson of John Gillespie, Sr. of East Fork, NC, one of the earliest-known Gillespie gunmakers in America. John Gillespie, Sr. lived from about 1753 through April 7, 1822. Gillespie descendant, Dennis Glazener, since his retirement from Lucent Technologies in 1997 as Project Manager, has spent much of his time tracing the family history of the Gillespie gunmakers and even making replicas of some of the rifles in his own gunshop. His book, The Gillespie Gun Makers Of East Fork, N.C., published in March 2004, gives an interesting account of what Glazener has found thus far in his research.

It has been written that "many a mountain man who gambled his life on his rifle trigger swore by his Gillespie rifle." (The Ashville Times). Most Gillespie rifles made before 1830 were flintlocks. These were fired by rubbing metal to create a spark to ignite the powder. Even though other rifle manufacturers began to use other types of firing mechanisms, the Gillespies continued to make flintlocks even after the Civil War period.

The flintlock was a favorite of mountain men. Maybe they liked to smell powder burning and enjoyed the simplicity of the flintlock.

Another interesting fact about the Gillespie firearms is that no two guns were exactly alike. The gunmakers used creativity in the wood for the stock and the metals for butt plates, tangs, trigger and trigger guard, muzzle, and other appendages. Some are of silver and even gold was used on occasion, as well as pewter and iron. Not all Gillespie-made rifles were signed by the gunmaker, but those that were are, indeed, treasured highly. At times, since guns were designed and made for specific clients, the owner's initials and name were carved into the metal plate or elsewhere on the gun.

John Gillespie, Sr. of East Fork, N.C., taught three of his sons the gunsmith trade.

These were William Gillespie (12/28/1785-9/23/1851), Mathew Gillespie (7/23/1788-5/16/1871) and Robert Harvey Gillespie (2/1/1791- 5/29/1881). Two of Mathew Gillespie's sons, John R. Gillespie (12/6/1811- 1/15/1864) and James A. Gillespie (1/5/1822-3/17/1897) moved from North Carolina to Union County, Georgia and set up a gun-making shop.

John R. Gillespie (12/6/1811-1894) was the first-born son of Mathew and Elizabeth Gillespie, and a grandson of John Gillespie, Sr. His move to Union County, GA., was soon after March 24, 1849 when the Mills River Baptist Church records show he received "a letter of dismission" to move to Georgia. In those days, the church to which the migrant moved did not write for a letter; rather, the member took the letter with him as he moved to the new area.

The Union County, GA., census shows both John R. Gillespie and his younger brother, James A. Gillespie (1/5/1822-3/17/1897) living in Union County, GA., and their occupation gunsmiths. Records indicate that John and James worked together until after James married Elizabeth Daniel on Christmas Day, 1851, and they moved into Towns County. However, local legend has another story about why John and James split into separate locations for their gun making. James had placed a gun on which they were working on the furnace to heat so that some changes could be made in the barrel. As the story goes, unknown to James, the gun was loaded. It exploded, and John was injured. After this incident, the brothers went their separate ways, thinking for their own safety it would be better for them to work alone. Whether true or not, the legend seems very probable.

John R. Gillespie signed his rifles with his initials J.G. James A. Gillespie signed his guns with JA G. Some have surmised that the J. G. signed rifles are by the grandfather, John Gillespie, Sr. However, those guns found with the J G signature seem of later vintage than could have been made by John, Sr. who died in 1822. The elder Gillespie may not have placed his initials on any guns he made. Dr. John Burrison has a collection of James Gillespie tools and a rifle on display at the Atlanta History Museum Folk Life Center.

John R. Gillespie was married first to Kizzie Cook. They had no children. In 1880 he married Lizzie Justice. They had one daughter, Johnce. When John Gillespie died in 1894, he was buried in the Old Union Baptist Church Cemetery, Young Harris.

James A. Gillespie and Elizabeth Daniel had three sons: George Washington (1858-1941), Alexander Lafayette (1865-1941) and William Mathew (1868-1926). After James's death in 1897, his wife Elizabeth moved to Hall County, Georgia where she evidently lived with their second son who had moved there.

Union and Towns counties in Georgia can feel pride that two of the Gillespie gunmakers plied their trade here in the nineteenth century.

(Note: This story will continue next week. I have been in touch with two families in Union County who have Gillespie-signed rifles. Thanks is due Dennis Glazener for allowing me to use his book as a reference source for information in this column. If you wish to contact me, my e-mail is edj0513@alltel.net and my telephone number is 478-453- 8751. -EDJ)

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Standing tall like the hills, a tribute to Cecil Woodrow Collins

"God, give me hills to climb,
And strength for climbing!"

These words ending Arthur Guiterman's poem, Hills could well describe the life and work of the late Cecil Woodrow Collins who went out from the hills of Union County and became a productive and useful citizen. But with him, throughout his life was a love for the hills of home and the symbolism they represented in challenge and achievement.

Cecil Woodrow Collins died April 22, 2006 in Northeast Georgia Medical Center at age 92. In between his birth on September 26, 1913 in Union County, GA., and his death, he had packed a lot of living and climbed hills not a few.

He was the first-born of six children, three sons and three daughters, of Francis Thurman Collins (known as Bob T.) and Mary Viola (Collins) Collins. With both his father and mother born into the Collins lineage, Cecil's family roots go back to the first Collins settler in the county, Thompson Collins and his wife Celia Self Collins, and their children.

In Cecil's paternal line were his grand parents, Thompson ("Thomp") Smith Collins and Susan ("Susie") Jane Cook Collins; his great grand parents, Francis ("Frank") and Rutha Nix Collins: and his great, great grand parents, early settlers Thompson Collins and Celia Self Collins.
In Cecil's maternal line were his grandparents James ("Jim") Johnson Collins and Margaret A. Nix Collins; his great grand parents, Ivan Kimsey Collins and Martha J. Hunter Collins; and his great, great grandparents, Thompson and Celia Self Collins.

Back when Bob T. Collins courted and married Mary Viola Collins, tracing of family roots was not as popular as it became later in the twentieth century. Cecil's parents had the same last name. Sure, they both went back to the earliest settler, Thompson Collins. Of "good mountain stock," these "distant" cousins reared six children of excellent character, intelligence and integrity: Cecil, Hazel, Jim, Neal, Mary Catherine and Betty Jane. Of his siblings, one, Jim, preceded Cecil in death.

Cecil was educated at the one and/or two-teacher school at Choestoe, and graduated from Blairsville High School in 1931. He then attended Young Harris College during some of the worst years of the Great Depression, graduating in 1933. After college, he secured a job with the newly-organized Civilian Conservation Corps as clerk. The CCC was a boon for country boys seeking employment, and was founded by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt to help alleviate the job situation in depressed times.

Then came World War II. Cecil Woodrow Collins enlisted in the U.S. Coast Guard where he served as a "90-Day Wonder" Lieutenant JG officer. His two brothers also served in World War II: James Thompson Collins in the U. S. Navy and Robert Neal Collins in the Army Air Force. Cecil was on active duty in the Coast Guard through the end of the war in 1945, and continued as a reserve officer until his discharge in 1955.

In 1946 Cecil Collins began a 45-year career with the Social Security Administration (SSA), serving first as a field representative in the claims department. It was while he was working in Meridian. Mississippi that he met Miss Mamie Lorena Camp. They married December 9, 1951. Two sons were born to the couple, Glenn Camp Collins in 1953 and Andy Thomas Collins in 1956. The boys were born when the couple lived at Athens, GA.

Cecil Collins proved that he was ready to "climb mountains" in his work in the Social Security Administration. He served for more than 20 years as branch manager in the office at Gainesville.

In Gainesville Cecil could look northward toward the mountains that called him home frequently. He took Glenn and Andy hunting, fishing and hiking in the hills of Choestoe. In the family's location in the burgeoning city of Gainesville, they had the best of two worlds-city life and its opportunity and proximity to the mountains and the great out-of-doors.

Active in First Baptist Church, Gainesville, and a deacon and teacher, Cecil's quiet leadership and commonsense wisdom lent much to the work and growth of the church. In community affairs, he was a member of the Lions Club and executive director of the Community Chest which later was named United Way. Lorena likewise was active in church and community and was a long-time volunteer at Northeast Georgia Medical Center.

His funeral was conducted at the church he loved, First Baptist, Gainesville, on April 24, 2006, with his pastor, Dr. Bill Coates, and retired pastor, Dr. John Lee Taylor, and Bruce Fields remembering characteristics of this mountain main who, as Guiterman expressed in his poem, found "hills to climb" throughout his life and went all the way to the top of them. His body was taken back to the "hills of home," and interred at Choestoe Baptist Church Cemetery.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

A Salute to Mothers

Women in this present age often wear many "hats"- career, community activist, wife, mother, grandmother. This time of year we set aside a day to salute mothers and give credit where due to the women who have made a difference in the role of child-nurturing.

I recall a time back in 1948 when I had accompanied Rev. Claude Boynton and Mrs. Boynton on a speaking engagement to represent the then new and struggling Truett McConnell College. Rev. Boynton, one of the first trustees of the college, had been very instrumental in calling the first meetings to get the college organized. As a charter student there in September, 1947, and one of the students selected to go on "deputations" in the interest of the college, I had the privilege of going with Rev. and Mrs. Boynton on a speaking engagement to First Baptist Church, Fairburn, Ga.

"How does this relate to Mother's Day?" you ask. No, it was not Mother's Day weekend, but as we approached Atlanta and saw the capitol building's golden dome reflected in the light, I remember Rev. Boynton's observation: "We say the seat of Georgia's state government is within that capitol building. But my contention is that 'the hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the world.'" He then went into a discussion of how much influence good mothers have upon society in general.

I learned later, by using the "Oxford Dictionary of Quotations," that Rev. Boynton's statement on "the hands that rock the cradle" was the only quotation of a little known writer named William Ross Wallace who died in 1881. He made that insightful two-line saying in "John o'London's Treasure Trove." I concluded that Rev. Boynton must have been well-read, indeed, to remember and quote the cradle/ruler adage, and to launch upon a lecture about it. Maybe already he was preparing for his Mother's Day sermon which would not be too many weeks in the future.

The scene of Atlanta, not so busy on a late afternoon in early spring 1948 as it is today, and the quotation made an indelible impression on me. The rest of the way back to college at Cleveland, Georgia, I thought about the importance of mothers and their roles in society.

I also engaged in some self-pity on the remainder of that trip, thinking that my own mother had to make her contribution to the lives of her four children early-on, because she had died on Valentine's Day in 1945. There were so many things I wanted to ask her, to learn from her before I myself was launched out on my particular journey into life. What were her dreams for me? Was I in any way fulfilling them?

Then I thought of many who had stepped in after her demise to be a surrogate mother to me. There were my mother's sisters, Avery and Ethel Collins, spinsters, with no children of their own. Yet they had the "mothering instinct" and spent much time with nieces and nephews, giving them advice, teaching them practical lessons on life and living. From them I learned much about cooking, sewing, ironing and house-keeping, tasks that fell to me in my own home when I was a lass of fourteen. Add another name to my surrogate mother list, Aunt Northa Dyer Collins. She lived in sight of me, and it was but a brief walk to her farmhouse from ours. She was my father's sister and her husband, Uncle Harve, was my mother's brother. From them I learned multiple lessons in living, one of the main ones of which was to have ambition and dreams and to work toward those dreams. I don't think "impossible" was in their vocabulary.

At high school I had experienced the love of teachers who went the second mile and sometimes were in the role of surrogate mothers. I can name several: Mrs. Grapelle Mock who taught me, among many other things, that I could do public speaking without letting stage fright overtake me. Mrs. Elizabeth Elliott, Mrs. Flora Nicholson, and Mrs. Elizabeth Berry taught me the beauty of words and the joy of putting them together in readable, incisive poetry and prose. Mrs. Geneva Hughes, who taught and was librarian as well, planted in me a life-long love for good books. She also invited me to spend nights in her home on Hughes Street within walking distance of the school when I was a character in the school drama and would not have been able to participate because of distance and no transportation. Mrs. Gertrude Shuler, a paragon of patience as well as an excellent teacher, taught me that if we work through problems without making rash decisions the answers will truly come. Mrs. Lucile Cook was my home economics teacher at the time of my mother's death. Her understanding and ability to help me with housekeeping situations I faced at an early age have been invaluable to me throughout life. Mrs. Dora Hunter Allison (now Spiva) was a stunning example of requiring excellent grooming and good deportment from her students, but at the same time she made hard mathematics problems come alive. Like a problem in arithmetic, life problems can be solved with persistence and faith, she taught.

And at college I had other surrogate mothers. Mrs. Staton, English and journalism teacher, nurtured my desire to be a writer by making me editor of the college newspaper and co-editor of the college yearbook. She, too, invited me to her home and made me feel a special part of her life. Dr. Pearl Nix, psychology teacher, knew how to "pour on the work" to her students, but made us realize that there is no limit to our ability to learn except through our own limited desires to accomplish. Miss Edith Sayer was our librarian and taught mathematics, too. She was an example that even with a mild handicap, one's life can be fulfilling and an inspiration to others. Miss Charlotte Sheets lifted my level of appreciation for good music as she led the college chorus to be good enough to be invited to sing at the Georgia Baptist Convention and notable churches throughout Georgia. Miss Lounell Mullis brought history alive for us, but she also had a faculty residence in our dormitory and advised us girls on proper etiquette, life goals, and, yes, even behavior on dates!

As I think back on William Ross Wallace's quotation, "The hand that rocks the cradle/Is the hand that rules the world," I am grateful I heard this when I was eighteen, and that it lingered with me throughout life. Rev. Boynton may not have realized that the quotation would sink itself into his young parishioner's memory. What we say does make a difference.

I am grateful for my mother's influence on my life, and for all of those who stepped in, relatives, teachers, others, to be strong surrogate mothers to me when I needed a helping hand and direction in life. One of the greatest honors that has come to me in this life is not my career as a teacher, but that I was entrusted to be a mother of two wonderful children, a grandmother to seven fine grandchildren, and now, just this April, the great-grandmother to Gavin and Brenna. "The hand(s) that rock the (cradle)s" of these two have heard my evaluation: "They are the most beautiful great grandchildren ever, and they have a significant role in the future!"
Happy Mother's Day! Enjoy your memories. Tell some mother she is special.

Monday, March 15, 2010

Thompson Smith Collins - "The Poor Man's Friend"

Mountain families (as well as others) have the tradition of passing down a family given name through the generations. In my research on the Thompson and Celia Self Collins family, I have noted that the name of this first Collins settler in Union County has been a favorite to pass on. Several male descendants to the present generation have the honor of bearing the name of this worthy ancestor.

This week we view the life and times of one in the third generation, Thompson Smith Collins. He was a grandson of the original settler and a son of Francis (Frank) and Rutha Nix Collins. Thompson Smith Collins was born July 5, 1850. His parents lived on a portion of the elder Thompson’s 22,000 acres in a house near the vicinity of where William Clyde Collins, Sr. and Jr. now have residences on Collins Road, Choestoe.

Thompson Smith Collins was called “Thomp” to distinguish him from his uncle Thompson Collins (b. 1818) who was known as “Thompie,” long-time Justice of the Peace.

On October 21, 1869, Thompson Smith Collins (July 5, 1850-March 16, 1917) married Susan (Susie) Jane Cook (October 5, 1849-August 5, 1935). She was a daughter of Jonathan and Rebecca Jackson Cook. Susie’s last name was incorrectly entered as Crouch in the “Union County Marriages” record.

Thomp Collins’ main occupation was farming. He was also a part time blacksmith, cobbler and carpenter. He often did smithy work for neighbors in the community fashioning or honing small tools for farm use. From leather he had tanned, he mended or made shoes at his cobbler’s bench. Many houses and other buildings in the community were products of his building skills, a talent he passed on to his youngest son.

Both Charles Hill in his delightful “Blood Mountain Covenant” (Ivy House Books, 2003) and the Honorable Zell Miller in his autobiography, “The Mountains Within Me” (Cherokee Publishers, 1985) refer to an incident in the life of Thomp Collins that attests to his unrelenting loyalty to friends, even at great cost to himself. Thomp Collins lived by strict principles, practicing them in his daily life.

Sometime in the year 1875 two men came to Thompson Collins’ house. They asked him to use his mules to pull their loaded wagon to the top of Tesnatee Gap. Evidently their own mules could manage the wagon on the descent southward into Cleveland, Georgia on the Logan Turnpike, but the weight was too much for their mules on the ascent from Choestoe up Tesnatee.

The three men and the loaded wagon soon began the journey. About half way up the mountain, the entourage was overtaken by Federal Revenue agents. Quickly the two men disappeared into the forest, escaping. The wagon loaded with a fresh run of mountain moonshine was an easy target for the agents. The agents offered to free Thomp Collins if he would reveal the names of the two who escaped.

Thomp resolutely refused to reveal the men’s names. He himself took the charge of running contraband liquor. He was sent to Federal Prison in New York where he served two years. During his confinement, his family did not know of his whereabouts or whether he was alive or dead.

Then one day a travel-worn, more mature Thomp Collins returned to his home. He had walked the entire distance from New York. He told his wife Susie that due to the hardships he had endured on his return journey, they would never turn anyone away from their door who needed food, lodging, clothing or aid of any sort. Throughout the remainder of his life, Thomp Collins lived by this principle.

Thomp and Susie Collins had seven children but only four of them grew to adulthood. It is interesting to note, as the children wed, how the marriages joined families of other early settlers in Choestoe Valley.

(1) James Monroe “Roe” Collins (Jan. 16, 1871-June 30, 1954) married Nancy Elmira Twiggs (Feb. 17, 1874-Dec. 26, 1953). She was a daughter of the Rev. John Wesley and Sarah Elizabeth Hughes Twiggs. “Roe” and “Nan” married Jan. 2, 1896. He had been to Colorado where he was getting established as a farmer. They made their home in Eaton, Colorado where “Roe” helped to organize First Baptist Church and served as a deacon and treasurer. He also was instrumental in getting waterworks for irrigation of crops. In 1920 he ran on the Democratic ticket as governor of Colorado, but lost because he would not bow to the radical intrigues of some of the political bosses. It was said of “Roe” that he was too honest to become governor. “Roe” and “Nan” had six children.
(2) William Virgil Collins (1874-1944) married Lydia E. Jackson (1875-1956) on September 11, 1892. She was a daughter of William Miles and Nancy Souther Jackson. Lydia’s mother Nancy was a daughter of Jesse and Malinda Nix Souther. Virgil and Lydia lived in Ault, Colorado, near Virgil’s brother “Roe” in Eaton. Virgil became a successful farmer. They reared 11 children.
(3) Joseph Gordon Collins (1876-1958) married Susan Mason Smith (1889-1966). Joe studied law and graduated from the University of Virginia Law School. He passed the Georgia Bar and began practicing in Gainesville, Hall County, GA in 1903. He was Solicitor General of the Northeast Circuit of nine counties for a four-year term. He assisted with writing practices and procedures for appearing before the Supreme Court. He and Susan had no children.

Children (4) (5) and (6) of Thomp and Susie Collins died young. They were Avory Cordelia Collins (1880-1886); Charles Luther Collins (1882-1900); and Mary Rebecca Collins (b/d 1886).

(7) Francis Thurman Collins known as Bob (1890-1969) married first, Mary Viola Collins (1893-1937) on January 3, 1913, daughter of James Johnson and Margaret A. Nix Collins; and second, Pearl Fortenberry (1906-?) on February 2, 1939, daughter of LaFayette and Laura Fortenberry. Bob was a farmer and a carpenter. He built a house beside his mother and father and looked after his mother in her declining years. Bob and Viola had six children, all of whom had outstanding careers: Cecil, Hazel, James Thompson, Robert Neal, Mary Catherine and Betty Jane.

No one held Thompson Smith Collins’ stint in Federal Prison against him. Upon his return to Choestoe, his life could have been that described by the poet. He “lived in his house by the side of the road/and became a friend to man.”

At the mill one day, a man with a hungry family came by. Thomp Collins gave the man his last turn of meal and went out to buy a bushel of corn to have ground for his own family. One day a neighbor came to borrow Thomp’s mule. He asked the man to let him plow the row to the end before unhitching the mule for his neighbor’s use.

On his tombstone in Old Choestoe Cemetery is this epitaph: “The poor man’s friend.” At this Advent Season—and every day---would it not be well for us to remember the example of Thompson Smith Collins’ life and “be a friend to man,” helping those in need?

c2004 by Ethelene Dyer Jones; published December 9, 2004 in The Union Sentinel, Blairsville, GA. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved

Monday, March 1, 2010

The Cemetery at Six Oaks

It was on May 13, 1983, my birthday. Six Oaks Restaurant was then in operation near Alexander’s Store on Upper Choestoe. My husband treated me to a delightful meal at the restaurant in celebration of my birthday.

When we finished dinner, the late afternoon sun cast pleasant shadows and we decided to explore the old Six Oaks Cemetery adjacent to the restaurant. It got its name from the stately sentinel oaks that shaded the graves, a few marked with name stones but most with only field stones.

Birthdays tend to bring on reflection of the brevity of life. As we examined the gravestones at Six Oaks, only three had legible names and dates: Mrs. M. Jane E. Jackson (Nov. 26, 1863-Jan. 17, 1887); Elmer Jackson (Aug. 1, 1895 - Oct. 1, 1895); and Esley Souther (April 4, 1885 – Dec. 15, 1885).

A faint stirring of kinship and the recognition of surnames familiar to me made me want to learn more about those buried there.

I thought of lines from Thomas Gray’s “Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard.” Perhaps that English poet had visited a cemetery similar to Six Oaks when he penned:

Perhaps in this neglected spot is laid
Some heart once pregnant with celestial fire;
Hands that the rod of empire might have swayed,
Or waked to ecstasy the living lyre.

But “Death, the Great Leveler” is no respecter of persons. Whether prominent or inconspicuous, each person must meet an inexorable appointment. Gray’s elegy continues:

The boast of heraldry, the pomp of power,
All that beauty, all that wealth e’er gave,
Await alike the inevitable hour:
The paths of glory lead but to the grave.

Since that visit to Six Oaks Cemetery in 1983, I have learned that the marked and known graves in the cemetery are of the following people. You can read the list in the Union County Cemeteries book published in 1990. In addition to Mrs. M. Jane Jackson, Elmer Jackson and Esley Souther, these were buried there, too:

Jonathan Cook, 1815-1861 and his wife, Rebecca Jackson Cook, 1816-1860. She was a daughter of William and Nancy Ownbey Stanley Jackson.

Several children’s graves are in the cemetery, some marked and most not. Among the marked ones are Esley Souther, April 4, 1885-December 15, 1885. He was a son of Rebecca LaVerne Jackson who married James Francis Souther. Rebecca LaVerne was a daughter of Johile and Jane Duckworth Jackson. Rebecca and James Francis Souther moved to Taos, New Mexico, leaving behind the grave of their infant son in Old Six Oaks Cemetery.

William Jackson (1798-1859) and his wife Nancy Ownbey Stanley Jackson (1793-1861), subjects of last week’s column, were buried at Six Oaks. Another Nancy Jackson and another William Jackson (no dates) were also buried there.

Under the shadow of Brasstown Bald Mountain, these descendants of William and Nancy Jackson sleep. Several infant graves brought speculation about what caused their mortality. Some resting there may have endured ravages of the Civil War, torn between loyalty to their nation and to their region. Others, barely tasting life, met death before their dreams took substance or were ever formed.

Again, Gray’s “Elegy…” came to mind:
For them no more the blazing hearth shall burn,
Or busy housewife ply her evening care;
No children run to lisp their sire’s return,
Or climb his knee, the envied kiss to share.

That evening in 1983 we drove through Choestoe’s winding roads back to our home at Epworth, Georgia. The setting sun shed a reflective glow on hills and valleys. The poignant message of the wayside cemetery and its three marked graves among the dozen or more unmarked ones kept tugging at my mind. I composed this poem as a result of that birthday experience:

The Cemetery at Six Oaks
by Ethelene Dyer Jones
Were those oaks to speak,
Those stones their muteness break,
The unmarked graves yield forth
The knowledge of their dead,
Then we could know the truth
Of those who lived and died,
And glimpse the lofty dreams
That flowered for awhile.
But time and muteness hold
The secrets of this place,
And buried ‘neath these stones
Are stories never told.
Enotah towers above
These dozen solemn graves;
And Six Oaks branches whisper
No answers to our quest.

William Jackson - Early Union Settler

Last week's column presented Andrew William Jackson and his wife, Minerva Goforth Jackson, their hardships during and after the Civil War and their move west to California. Today's column will go back a generation in time and explore the life of William Jackson, father of Andrew. He and his wife Nancy were in Union County when it was formed in 1832, having been first in Habersham County, going there about 1827 from Rutherford County, NC.

William was a very common first name among the Jacksons. The father of William Jackson has not been firmly established because of the frequent use of William as a given name. He could have been the son of Amos, of William, of Stephen, of John, of Joseph...the list goes on of men in the 1800 census of North Carolina with Jackson as the last name. Of Scotch descent and migrating to America from Northern Ireland, these early settlers were a hardy breed known to us as Scots-Irish.

William Jackson was born in North Carolina about 1798. He married in Rutherford County, NC on December 14, 1814 to Nancy Owenby Stanley, a widow with two sons, one of whom was named William and called Bill. She was born about 1793 and was five or more years older than her husband William who was only sixteen when he married.

About 1827 four Jackson brothers, William, Amos, Jehile and Joseph with their families migrated from North Carolina to Habersham County, Georgia. Were they caught up in the "gold fever" when gold was discovered there in 1828? Perhaps so, but no documentation is available to this writer about their prospecting. Settling in the beautiful Nacoochee Valley, they could look out daily and see the rocky face of Mt. Yonah where, legend held, the young Indian lovers, the fair maiden Nacoochee and the warrior brave Yonah, plunged to their deaths because they were from warring tribes and their parents would never approve their union.

When land lots became available in what was mapped as Union County in 1832, carved out of the old Cherokee lands, William secured land and settled in the shadow of the highest peak in Georgia, Bald Mountain, Choestoe District. William and Nancy Jackson and William's brother Joseph were all listed as members of Choestoe Baptist Church in 1834, the first year of extant minutes, although it is believed the church was organized in 1832. William Jackson cleared more land on his farm, adding to the acreage once tended by the Cherokee before they were driven from the property he purchased.

Besides Nancy Jackson's two sons by her first marriage, she had seven known children by her second husband, William Jackson. These were as follows: Rebecca Jackson (1816-1860) who married Jonathan Cook (1815-1861). They lived in the Arkaquah District of Union County and reared two sons and four daughters. Rebecca and Jonathan Cook were buried in the Six Oaks Cemetery near Old Liberty Church, Choestoe.

Armelia Jackson (1820-?) married William Neeley (1808-?). This couple moved to Tennessee and no information is known on their children.

Johile Jackson (1822-?), named for his uncle, married Jane Duckworth (1823-1896). They lived in the Arkaquah District and reared a family of four sons and five daughters. Johile and Jane Jackson were buried in the Jackson Family Cemetery on the Abercrombie Farm in Arkaquah District.

Susanna Jackson (1826-1889) married John W. Duckworth (1821-1913). They settled near Old Liberty Church on his father David Duckworth's property. They had a family of twelve children. Susie, as she was known, and John were interred in the Old Choestoe Cemetery but their gravestones have long ago disappeared.

Mira Jackson (1827-1902) married Jehu Wimpey (1829-1899). They had thirteen children, five sons and eight daughters. Their large family has many descendants still living in Union County. They were buried at Old Liberty Baptist Church Cemetery.

Kimsey Jackson (1828-1869) married Lucinda "Cindy" Thomas (1828-1909). At age 41, Kimsey had an unfortunate accident that took his life. He was driving a wagon pulled by oxen loaded with 300 feet of green oak lumber. On a hill near Old Liberty Church the brakes gave way and the wagon turned over, pinning Kimsey underneath it. Kimsey and Cindy had three sons.

William Marion Jackson (1829-1912) married Rebecca Goforth (1833-1901). Marion Jackson liked to tell that he was born near Yonah Mountain in what was then Habersham (now White) County, Georgia. He was the first of William and Nancy Jackson's children born after they moved to Georgia. During the Civil War, Marion joined the U. S. Army. He and Rebecca lived on Town Creek, Choestoe District, and reared six daughters and two sons. William and Rebecca were buried at Old Liberty Baptist Church Cemetery.

The youngest child of William and Nancy Jackson was Andrew William ((1835-1917) who married Minerva Goforth (1840-1915). Their story was recounted in last week's column. They went to California after the Civil War and never returned to Georgia.

William Jackson (1798-1859) and his wife Nancy (1793-1861) were both interred at the Six Oaks Cemetery near Old Liberty Baptist Church.

The Jackson name is still common in Union County among descendants of William and Nancy. The name means "Jack's Son". Jack was a nickname for John. Centuries ago in England, Scotland and Ireland John's Son and Jack's Son were common designations and from them the family name derived. The two first Jacksons registered in America were Isaac and John. Isaac Jackson was born in Ireland in 1664 and died at Londongrove, Chester County, Pennsylvania in 1750. His wife was Anna Evans and they had ten children. John Jackson was born in 1766 in Tipperary, Ireland and died in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1826. John Jackson's ancestors have been traced back to Sir John Jackson, made a baron by King Charles II in 1660.

c2004 by Ethelene Dyer Jones; published Apr. 1, 2004 in The Union Sentinel, Blairsville, GA. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Sunday, February 28, 2010

Andrew William Jackson

At times we read accounts of early settlers in Union County and learn of their subsequent adventures. We wonder how they lived through some of their exploits. Truth often looms larger than fiction. The story of Andrew William Jackson and his wife Margaret Minerva Goforth Jackson falls into the category of "truth stranger than fiction." I am grateful to Watson Benjamin Dyer and Belle Jackson Maury (she was a granddaughter of Andrew William Jackson) for this account of Andrew William Jackson. I have edited the account for structure, chronology and flow, but have kept to the facts as presented by Belle Jackson Maury.

Andrew William Jackson was born in 1835 in Choestoe District, Union County. His father was William Jackson (b. abt. 1798 in NC, died July 27, 1859, Choestoe, GA) and Nancy Owenby Stanley Jackson (b. ca 1793 in NC, died 1861, Choestoe, GA). They were in Union County when it was formed in 1832.

Andrew was the youngest of eight known children. The others were Rebecca who married Jonathan Cook; Armelia who married William Neely; Johile who married Jane Duckworth; Susan who married John W. Duckworth; Kimsey who married Lucinda Thomas; Mira who married Jehu Wimpey; and William Marion who married Minerva Goforth.

William and Nancy Jackson moved from Rutherford County, NC where they were married December 14, 1814. From there they went to Habersham County, Georgia and then to Union County near Bald Mountain. William and Nancy Jackson were early members--perhaps charter members--of Choestoe Baptist Church. Seeing the list of their children and their spouses indicates that there is a rich family history in each of the children and their descendants, many of whom still live in the vicinity. But the focus of this article will be upon Andrew William Jackson, the youngest of the children.

When the Jacksons were settling onto their Choestoe acres, there was much unrest in the nation. The majority of settlers in Union County were not slave holders and they did not want to participate in the Civil War. Many had Union leanings and went to Tennessee to join the U. S. (Northern) Army. Among these were Marion Jackson (Andrew's brother) and John Hunter, a Choestoe neighbor. Some in opposition to the South hid out in the mountains evading conscription. In the daytime deep caves were their hiding places. They ventured out at night and by the light of the moon worked their crops. Times were hard and fear was rampant.

Andrew William Jackson and Margaret Minerva Goforth were married on November 9, 1855, with the Rev. William Pruitt, Minister of the Gospel, performing the ceremony. When the war was declared, Andrew was in the vicinity of Atlanta. He was conscripted for the Confederate Army but did not like it and deserted.

The story is told that at one time when his pursuers were looking for him, he climbed up into the chimney of their home to hide. Minerva and her little children tried to be calm while the search went on. The men left the home and Andrew stayed several hours in the chimney before he came down. He and sixteen other deserters were captured and sent to a jail in Birmingham, Alabama.

Evidently Andrew found a way to get a message to Minerva. He asked her to visit him at the Birmingham jail and to bring the horses, hiding them out near the jail. The men planned to escape that night. Imagine the bravery of this young woman (about 23 at the time--she was born in 1840) to go across the mountains of Georgia into Alabama to a Confederate prison to assist her husband to escape.

One of the men imprisoned with Andrew Jackson had lost a leg and walked with a wooden leg. Andrew asked him for his wooden leg so he could fashion a key to unlock the jail. The man, at first reluctant, said, "If I don't have my leg, I can't walk out."

The story goes that Andrew Jackson told him, "It's either your wooden leg or we'll be shot to death in the morning." How he had that knowledge is an untold part of the story. Andrew did take the wooden leg and carved a sort of key that worked to open the lock. Evidently the guards were asleep or not aware of what was going on within the jail. Andrew was successful with springing the lock and the men walked out. They set fire to the stockade and burned it down, escaping through the woods.

There in the woods was Minerva with the two horses and their children, waiting for her husband. They made their way from Birmingham northward to the old Jackson homeplace in Choestoe. Minerva and the children rode the horses and Andrew walked in the woods, trying to keep himself hidden. They miraculously made the long trip to Choestoe safely.

Just what year Andrew and Minerva and their by then four children decided to leave Choestoe is not certain. But evidently the unrest of the war years was still upon the land. They packed up their meager belongings and set out with their young family heading west. They had great difficulties along the way. Andrew still had to hide out because he was wanted for having escaped the Confederate jail. When they crossed the Mississippi River and arrived in Kansas, they felt safer because they were again among Union sympathizers who helped the young family to find food and provisions and temporary work for Andrew.

It was a sad journey. The two middle children died on the journey and were buried along the route. Their names are unknown to this writer. Milton Bert and Dicie survived the trip. The Jackson family arrived at the San Louis Obispo Valley, sometimes called the Creasy Plains, of California, and there they began farming. They were ready for a new life and gave themselves to it with a passion. There Minnie Matilda, their last child, was born on August 7, 1879.

Milton Bert was given the responsibility of herding sheep. He took the sheep to open range on the mountains near where they lived. The lad was only fourteen when he began this herdsman's job. Andrew went every week to take Bert food and to check on him. The lad did a good job of warding off wild animals and caring for the sheep.

Andrew liked seclusion. When other settlers began to move onto the Creasy Plains and get too close, Andrew would stake out another claim in a less-populated area. He did not like to talk of his Civil War experiences or of the hardships the family endured. One day Bert saw a large scar on his father's side and asked how he got it. Andrew told his son, "It's none of your business."

One day a group of men with winded, exhausted horses rode onto the Jackson ranch. They asked Andrew for his horses, as theirs were spent. He knew they would take them by force if he did not let them go willingly. They promised to send his horses back in a few days and quickly rode away.

Soon afterward, a sheriff's posse came by looking for the men. Noticing the many horse tracks near Andrew's barn, they wanted to know why. Ever the man of few words, Andrew told the sheriff that a lot of riding had been going on there the last few days. The sheriff explained that the Dalton Gang had robbed the bank the day before and the posse was trailing them.

A few days later, Andrew's tired horses reappeared at the ranch. He took off their saddles, and there under the blanket were fastened several $50 gold pieces. Whether Andrew kept the gold or turned it over to the authorities is unknown. Maybe he went by the old adage, "Finders, keepers."

Andrew and Minerva Goforth Jackson did not return to Georgia. They remained in California where their last place of residence was at Cholame. Andrew died there in 1917 and Minerva died in 1915. They were buried at San Louis Obisbo. Their adventures bespeak the independent spirit and work ethic so tightly woven into the character of early Union County, Georgia people.

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