Saturday, April 14, 2012
Curd Goss
The following photo was found posted on both facebook and Ancestry.com. The photo is believed to be a photo of Curd Goss.
Curd Goss
The following biography was found on the Harrison County, Iowa USGenWeb page. It was posted Jan 2010 by jnjgoss and accessed Aug 2010. http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.iowa.counties.harrison/1459.1/mb.ashx
Curd Goss was born March 19, 1819 in Tennessee, the sixth son of John and Mary. He married Mary Ellen Alexander, probably in McMinn County before 1838. A number of their descendants are actively involved in family history and I will try to make clear which information came from those people and which has been found by my own research. Some have been particularly helpful, especially Gerald Roden of Duncan, Oklahoma, who was willing to exchange some opinions with me and expand on the basic identification of the family tree that exists on the Internet. Some of that information prompted me to dig further for other records and improve my understanding of the family.
Curd and Mary Ellen had 11 children: Martha E. (1838), Emily (1840-1854), Samantha (1842), Nancy (1845), William (1847), James (1849), Mary Ellen (1852), John S. (1854), Margaret Jane (1856-1859), Wiley (1858) and Harriet (1860-1861). Martha, Emily (probably), and Samantha were born in Missouri, the next five children in Tennessee, Margaret in Iowa, and Wiley and Harriet in Missouri. There does not appear to be a record of the family from the 1840 census, although my opinion is that they were in Missouri. Curd participated in the Cherokee Removal to Oklahoma during the 1830s, according to information from some of his descendants. That would have taken him through the same part of Missouri where Alvis lived in the late 1830s and where Allen sold land in 1843. The 1856 Iowa state census, discussed below, supports that opinion.
The first reference to the family was in the 1850 census of McMinn County, where they were recorded with the first six children, all shown as born in Tennessee. That record is probably wrong with respect to the first three daughters, Martha, Emily and Samantha, again based on the 1856 Iowa census.
Curd appeared several times in the land records of McMinn County, the first on November 25, 1852, when John Goss Sr. sold 160 acres to Curd for $1600. That same day, John Sr. sold 75 acres to James Goss. On December 23, 1852, John Goss Sr. deeded an additional 280 acres to Curd for an unnamed consideration. Coupled with some January 1852 records when James deeded land on behalf of John Sr. to settle a debt that the father was unable to pay, it appears that the sons remaining in McMinn County bought out their father in the November and December transactions.
Curd appeared again in the McMinn County land records in 1854, the first time in July when Curd bought a tract of less than two acres from his brother, James. Then Curd apparently sold all of his land in McMinn County (the two parcels from John Sr. and the small parcel from James) on September 12, 1854 to Joseph Neil for $4000. These transactions suggested that he was selling out and leaving the area.
In January 1855, Curd bought land in Harrison County, Iowa, just across the county line from Pottawattamie County and within about five miles of where Sherman Goss had moved his family in 1851. Taken together with the September 1854 land sale, it is clear that Curd knew exactly where he was going when he left Tennessee. He did not return to Missouri, where Alvis lived, but moved to Iowa, where Sherman lived.
I found the Iowa connection with help from another of Sherman’s descendants, Martha Grainger of Las Vegas, Nevada, who sent me a biography of Sherman’s oldest son, John S. Goss, who died in Harrison County in 1892. She had found it at the Harrison County GenWeb site where it had been posted long after my research of that site. When I revisited the site to search for Goss information, I found the biography and other references to John – but I also found four unexpected references to Curd Goss. The four references included two biographies that mentioned a farm previously owned by Curd Goss; a first school in Curd Goss’ house; and an 1857(?) incident in which Curd Goss shot William F. Vore. Following up on the reference to the farm, I found two 1855 land purchases and 1858 and 1860 sales of the same property.
With the biography and land information placing Curd in Harrison County from 1855 to at least 1857 or 1858, I found that there was an 1856 Iowa state census that might add to the picture of Curd’s family. I read the very faint microfilm in March 2003 at the LDS Family History Library in Salt Lake City. Curd was found in LaGrange Township, a farmer from Tennessee, age 37, resident of the state for one year, a voter and militia. His family included Polly, age 41, from North Carolina; Martha E. 17, born in Missouri; Samantha, age 14, born in Missouri; Nancy, age 10, born in Tennessee; William J.A., age 8, born in Tennessee; James, age 6, born in Tennessee; Mary E., age 4, born in Tennessee; John, age 2, born in Tennessee; and Margaret, age ¼, born in Iowa.
The 1856 census was apparently the last in which Curd appeared. There is a record of the marriage of Samantha in DeKalb County, Missouri, in March 1860, but Curd’s family definitely did not appear there in the 1860 census. It is quite likely that the family was on the move from Missouri to Texas and there is one land record in Grayson County, Texas in January 1860 that shows a lot purchased at a sheriff’s sale by “C.W. Goff.” There were Goff families there at that time, but no one answering the description of the buyer of that lot.
Curd was hanged at Gainesville, Texas on October 19, 1862, one of 41 men convicted in what appears to have been an unfair trial. The circumstances surrounding the trial are recorded in several accounts of “The Great Hanging of Gainesville” and were the result of some shootings and the fact that those hanged were opposed to secession. Rather than recount that history here, it can be found in several ways through an Internet search. I do have one possible insight to why Curd was in that part of Texas in the first place. One of the jurors, who objected to the way the jury was reaching their determinations of guilt or innocence, was Thomas C. Barrett. Barrett had lived in Texas since 1848 and in the Gainesville area since 1860. He was married first to Martha Alexander in Tennessee in 1833 and moved to Missouri in 1842. Martha died in 1844 and he remarried before the move to Texas. I think it quite possible that Martha Alexander Barrett and Mary Alexander Goss were sisters and that it was a family tie that took Curd’s family to Texas in 1860, just as it was a family tie that took them to Iowa in 1855.
Curd’s widow, Mary, returned to DeKalb County, Missouri, before the 1870 census, where she was recorded with four of her children: James, John, Ellen and Wyley. After checking various censuses for 1880, it would appear that Mary died before 1880. The children were somewhat scattered by 1880, with William living in Montague County, Texas; Samantha in DeKalb County, Missouri; James and Mary Ellen in Elk County, Kansas; John, probably in Kansas, although I have not yet located him in 1880; Wiley also in Kansas but not located. Regarding John, I have the autograph of his oldest daughter, Laura, who was a classmate of my grandmother, Edith Van Winkle Powell, during the 1890s in Leon, Kansas. Included on the autograph book page is a note with the name “Goff” written down in one corner; that was in fact Laura’s married name. John and his family had apparently moved to Oklahoma before Laura married.
The copy of the Curd Goss family bible indicates that Emily died in 1844; however, she was listed with the family in the 1850 census, so the Bible entries may have been made later with an inaccurate memory of the date of her death. She was not with the family in the 1856 Iowa census, so my guess is that she died in 1854.
My most interesting finding about the family concerned the oldest daughter, Martha. Curd’s descendants had a record of her birth and she was with the family in the 1850 census, with her place of birth shown as North Carolina. I found her with the family in the 1856 Iowa state census of Harrison County, age 17 and born in Missouri. The Missouri answer is probably correct, because I also found Martha in the 1860 federal census in Pottawattamie County, Iowa – with her husband and a two year old daughter. I actually had this 1860 information for three years before I realized that Martha was Curd’s daughter. Her husband was her first cousin, James C. Goss, the second son of Sherman Goss. I had found James and Martha by accident while looking for James’ sister, Mary, who had married in May 1860 to Huston Knight. I found the Knight family as expected, but next to them in the census was the family of James and Martha Goss with a daughter, Mary, age 2. This family was a surprise to me because the history I had for James showed him married in 1863 to Charity Wagstaff, with no record of an earlier marriage. In poking around for information about James and Martha, I found there was a marriage record for a couple by that name in Andrew County, Missouri in 1857. When I visited the LDS Family History Library in Salt Lake City in March 2003, I happened to read the film of the original marriage records of Andrew County, Missouri, and the 1856 census of Harrison County, Iowa, on the same day. The marriage record was specific about the couple being James C. Goss and Martha E. Goss. The census record was specific about Curd’s daughter being Martha E. Goss. Suddenly it all made sense; why this couple, both in Iowa in 1856, were married down the river in Missouri in 1857 and then back in Iowa by the 1860 census. I would suspect neither family approved of the marriage, although James’ father had died in 1855. It is also possible that this marriage was the reason behind Curd’s shooting of William F. Vore about 1857 that led to Curd leaving Iowa and ending up in Texas. While that is only a guess, I am fairly certain about the marriage being between these two first cousins. Martha probably died before 1863, since James remarried in February 1863. His family, as shown in the 1870 census, was as expected from our family tree and did not include the daughter from the first marriage. However, James’ oldest brother, John S. Goss, had a girl of age 12, Catherine, in the household. Since John and his wife, Mary, did not have any children, my guess is that this girl was James’ daughter. Since there was already a Mary in the household, it is likely that the girl was called by her middle name. She was not recorded in the 1880 Iowa census, although she would have been 22 by that time, and there is no marriage record for her in Pottawattamie County that I have found. James moved his second family to LaVeta, Colorado, and then to the Fresno, California area. I have found no indication that his descendants know anything about his first marriage, but there is no surprise there.
I have corresponded with several of Curd’s descendants and they all seem well aware of how Curd’s life ended, although I may have a number of details in this account that are news to some of them. Again, my purpose is not to repeat the accounts of his descendants, but to add some perspective through the things I have found in my research. Curd’s move to Iowa was a major find in sorting out Sherman’s ancestry, something I might not have been able to do without digging deeper into Curd’s history.
Note: Curd's widow, Mary E. Goss, lived with her son, Wiley Goss in Elk County, Kansas. She can be found in the 1880 Federal census and the 1875 & 1885 Iowa State Census records. She died in 1889 in Howard, Elk, Kansas.
CURD GOSS
by jnjgoss
Curd and Mary Ellen had 11 children: Martha E. (1838), Emily (1840-1854), Samantha (1842), Nancy (1845), William (1847), James (1849), Mary Ellen (1852), John S. (1854), Margaret Jane (1856-1859), Wiley (1858) and Harriet (1860-1861). Martha, Emily (probably), and Samantha were born in Missouri, the next five children in Tennessee, Margaret in Iowa, and Wiley and Harriet in Missouri. There does not appear to be a record of the family from the 1840 census, although my opinion is that they were in Missouri. Curd participated in the Cherokee Removal to Oklahoma during the 1830s, according to information from some of his descendants. That would have taken him through the same part of Missouri where Alvis lived in the late 1830s and where Allen sold land in 1843. The 1856 Iowa state census, discussed below, supports that opinion.
The first reference to the family was in the 1850 census of McMinn County, where they were recorded with the first six children, all shown as born in Tennessee. That record is probably wrong with respect to the first three daughters, Martha, Emily and Samantha, again based on the 1856 Iowa census.
Curd appeared several times in the land records of McMinn County, the first on November 25, 1852, when John Goss Sr. sold 160 acres to Curd for $1600. That same day, John Sr. sold 75 acres to James Goss. On December 23, 1852, John Goss Sr. deeded an additional 280 acres to Curd for an unnamed consideration. Coupled with some January 1852 records when James deeded land on behalf of John Sr. to settle a debt that the father was unable to pay, it appears that the sons remaining in McMinn County bought out their father in the November and December transactions.
Curd appeared again in the McMinn County land records in 1854, the first time in July when Curd bought a tract of less than two acres from his brother, James. Then Curd apparently sold all of his land in McMinn County (the two parcels from John Sr. and the small parcel from James) on September 12, 1854 to Joseph Neil for $4000. These transactions suggested that he was selling out and leaving the area.
In January 1855, Curd bought land in Harrison County, Iowa, just across the county line from Pottawattamie County and within about five miles of where Sherman Goss had moved his family in 1851. Taken together with the September 1854 land sale, it is clear that Curd knew exactly where he was going when he left Tennessee. He did not return to Missouri, where Alvis lived, but moved to Iowa, where Sherman lived.
I found the Iowa connection with help from another of Sherman’s descendants, Martha Grainger of Las Vegas, Nevada, who sent me a biography of Sherman’s oldest son, John S. Goss, who died in Harrison County in 1892. She had found it at the Harrison County GenWeb site where it had been posted long after my research of that site. When I revisited the site to search for Goss information, I found the biography and other references to John – but I also found four unexpected references to Curd Goss. The four references included two biographies that mentioned a farm previously owned by Curd Goss; a first school in Curd Goss’ house; and an 1857(?) incident in which Curd Goss shot William F. Vore. Following up on the reference to the farm, I found two 1855 land purchases and 1858 and 1860 sales of the same property.
With the biography and land information placing Curd in Harrison County from 1855 to at least 1857 or 1858, I found that there was an 1856 Iowa state census that might add to the picture of Curd’s family. I read the very faint microfilm in March 2003 at the LDS Family History Library in Salt Lake City. Curd was found in LaGrange Township, a farmer from Tennessee, age 37, resident of the state for one year, a voter and militia. His family included Polly, age 41, from North Carolina; Martha E. 17, born in Missouri; Samantha, age 14, born in Missouri; Nancy, age 10, born in Tennessee; William J.A., age 8, born in Tennessee; James, age 6, born in Tennessee; Mary E., age 4, born in Tennessee; John, age 2, born in Tennessee; and Margaret, age ¼, born in Iowa.
The 1856 census was apparently the last in which Curd appeared. There is a record of the marriage of Samantha in DeKalb County, Missouri, in March 1860, but Curd’s family definitely did not appear there in the 1860 census. It is quite likely that the family was on the move from Missouri to Texas and there is one land record in Grayson County, Texas in January 1860 that shows a lot purchased at a sheriff’s sale by “C.W. Goff.” There were Goff families there at that time, but no one answering the description of the buyer of that lot.
Curd was hanged at Gainesville, Texas on October 19, 1862, one of 41 men convicted in what appears to have been an unfair trial. The circumstances surrounding the trial are recorded in several accounts of “The Great Hanging of Gainesville” and were the result of some shootings and the fact that those hanged were opposed to secession. Rather than recount that history here, it can be found in several ways through an Internet search. I do have one possible insight to why Curd was in that part of Texas in the first place. One of the jurors, who objected to the way the jury was reaching their determinations of guilt or innocence, was Thomas C. Barrett. Barrett had lived in Texas since 1848 and in the Gainesville area since 1860. He was married first to Martha Alexander in Tennessee in 1833 and moved to Missouri in 1842. Martha died in 1844 and he remarried before the move to Texas. I think it quite possible that Martha Alexander Barrett and Mary Alexander Goss were sisters and that it was a family tie that took Curd’s family to Texas in 1860, just as it was a family tie that took them to Iowa in 1855.
Curd’s widow, Mary, returned to DeKalb County, Missouri, before the 1870 census, where she was recorded with four of her children: James, John, Ellen and Wyley. After checking various censuses for 1880, it would appear that Mary died before 1880. The children were somewhat scattered by 1880, with William living in Montague County, Texas; Samantha in DeKalb County, Missouri; James and Mary Ellen in Elk County, Kansas; John, probably in Kansas, although I have not yet located him in 1880; Wiley also in Kansas but not located. Regarding John, I have the autograph of his oldest daughter, Laura, who was a classmate of my grandmother, Edith Van Winkle Powell, during the 1890s in Leon, Kansas. Included on the autograph book page is a note with the name “Goff” written down in one corner; that was in fact Laura’s married name. John and his family had apparently moved to Oklahoma before Laura married.
The copy of the Curd Goss family bible indicates that Emily died in 1844; however, she was listed with the family in the 1850 census, so the Bible entries may have been made later with an inaccurate memory of the date of her death. She was not with the family in the 1856 Iowa census, so my guess is that she died in 1854.
My most interesting finding about the family concerned the oldest daughter, Martha. Curd’s descendants had a record of her birth and she was with the family in the 1850 census, with her place of birth shown as North Carolina. I found her with the family in the 1856 Iowa state census of Harrison County, age 17 and born in Missouri. The Missouri answer is probably correct, because I also found Martha in the 1860 federal census in Pottawattamie County, Iowa – with her husband and a two year old daughter. I actually had this 1860 information for three years before I realized that Martha was Curd’s daughter. Her husband was her first cousin, James C. Goss, the second son of Sherman Goss. I had found James and Martha by accident while looking for James’ sister, Mary, who had married in May 1860 to Huston Knight. I found the Knight family as expected, but next to them in the census was the family of James and Martha Goss with a daughter, Mary, age 2. This family was a surprise to me because the history I had for James showed him married in 1863 to Charity Wagstaff, with no record of an earlier marriage. In poking around for information about James and Martha, I found there was a marriage record for a couple by that name in Andrew County, Missouri in 1857. When I visited the LDS Family History Library in Salt Lake City in March 2003, I happened to read the film of the original marriage records of Andrew County, Missouri, and the 1856 census of Harrison County, Iowa, on the same day. The marriage record was specific about the couple being James C. Goss and Martha E. Goss. The census record was specific about Curd’s daughter being Martha E. Goss. Suddenly it all made sense; why this couple, both in Iowa in 1856, were married down the river in Missouri in 1857 and then back in Iowa by the 1860 census. I would suspect neither family approved of the marriage, although James’ father had died in 1855. It is also possible that this marriage was the reason behind Curd’s shooting of William F. Vore about 1857 that led to Curd leaving Iowa and ending up in Texas. While that is only a guess, I am fairly certain about the marriage being between these two first cousins. Martha probably died before 1863, since James remarried in February 1863. His family, as shown in the 1870 census, was as expected from our family tree and did not include the daughter from the first marriage. However, James’ oldest brother, John S. Goss, had a girl of age 12, Catherine, in the household. Since John and his wife, Mary, did not have any children, my guess is that this girl was James’ daughter. Since there was already a Mary in the household, it is likely that the girl was called by her middle name. She was not recorded in the 1880 Iowa census, although she would have been 22 by that time, and there is no marriage record for her in Pottawattamie County that I have found. James moved his second family to LaVeta, Colorado, and then to the Fresno, California area. I have found no indication that his descendants know anything about his first marriage, but there is no surprise there.
I have corresponded with several of Curd’s descendants and they all seem well aware of how Curd’s life ended, although I may have a number of details in this account that are news to some of them. Again, my purpose is not to repeat the accounts of his descendants, but to add some perspective through the things I have found in my research. Curd’s move to Iowa was a major find in sorting out Sherman’s ancestry, something I might not have been able to do without digging deeper into Curd’s history.
Note: Curd's widow, Mary E. Goss, lived with her son, Wiley Goss in Elk County, Kansas. She can be found in the 1880 Federal census and the 1875 & 1885 Iowa State Census records. She died in 1889 in Howard, Elk, Kansas.
Edward Hampton
From the few records found for Edward Hampton, it appears that he was a single man. His birth date and place are not known, nor are any family relationships known.
McCaslin reported the following about Edward Hampton: “Paid taxes in Cooke County in 1857 on 2 horses. He filed a preemption for 160 acres and paid taxes on it in 1861 and 1862 as well as on 16 horses in the latter years according to the 1862 Cooke County tax roll, UNT.”
Hampton was on the Cooke County tax list for 1857, 1861, 1862, so, he should have showed up on the 1860 US Federal Census for Cooke County. But, he was not found in the records for Cooke or in surrounding counties. A census record would have reported Ed Hampton’s age and birthplace.
Edward Hampton was tried in a double trial along with John A. Morris. Diamond did not give a full account of the trial; instead he stated that “The testimony in these cases is the same as in preceding trials. They were found guilty by the court.” Their crime was that of disloyalty against the Confederacy. They were found guilty and sentenced to hang. According to Diamond, Hampton and Morris supposedly acknowledged their guilt at the gallows and “exhorted the people to continue the work to break up the order that had so ignominiously terminated their existence.” Ed Hampton was hanged on October 10th.
Hampton “scarcely had time to complete his complete his will before being led to the elm” to be hanged. His hangman, Alexander Boutwell, was witness to his will. He left his estate, after his just debts were paid, to be equally divided between A. D. Scott and the heirs of Mrs. Woolsey. Ed Hampton must have been really good friends or connected through family relationships to the Woolsey family, because he left everything to them. A. D. Scott was married to Mary Woolsey, daughter of Elizabeth Woolsey.
Edward Hampton Will & Inventory of Estate
McCaslin reported the following about Edward Hampton: “Paid taxes in Cooke County in 1857 on 2 horses. He filed a preemption for 160 acres and paid taxes on it in 1861 and 1862 as well as on 16 horses in the latter years according to the 1862 Cooke County tax roll, UNT.”
Hampton was on the Cooke County tax list for 1857, 1861, 1862, so, he should have showed up on the 1860 US Federal Census for Cooke County. But, he was not found in the records for Cooke or in surrounding counties. A census record would have reported Ed Hampton’s age and birthplace.
Edward Hampton was tried in a double trial along with John A. Morris. Diamond did not give a full account of the trial; instead he stated that “The testimony in these cases is the same as in preceding trials. They were found guilty by the court.” Their crime was that of disloyalty against the Confederacy. They were found guilty and sentenced to hang. According to Diamond, Hampton and Morris supposedly acknowledged their guilt at the gallows and “exhorted the people to continue the work to break up the order that had so ignominiously terminated their existence.” Ed Hampton was hanged on October 10th.
Hampton “scarcely had time to complete his complete his will before being led to the elm” to be hanged. His hangman, Alexander Boutwell, was witness to his will. He left his estate, after his just debts were paid, to be equally divided between A. D. Scott and the heirs of Mrs. Woolsey. Ed Hampton must have been really good friends or connected through family relationships to the Woolsey family, because he left everything to them. A. D. Scott was married to Mary Woolsey, daughter of Elizabeth Woolsey.
Edward Hampton Will & Inventory of Estate
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
A MARTYR FOR HIS COUNTRY
An obituary for Dicy Chiles, wife of Dr. Henry Chiles, gives reference to her husband and the Gainesville hanging.
This obituary was found in the Bedford Times Republican, Bedford, Taylor County, Iowa, and published on 2 Jun 1905.
Dicy A. Chiles died at the home of her daughter in Marysville, MO., May 12 and was buried at Conway, Sunday, May 14.
Mrs. Chiles husband was Dr. H. Chiles, who at the time of their marriage was a young physician and their home was in Eastern Tennessee. Eight children were born to them and their home was happy and blissful. They then moved to Texas. The war broke out and sectional feeling ran high. It was neighbor against neighbor, brother against brother and men lost all semblance of humanity and became blood thirsty brutes. Dr. Chiles was a Union man and for this crime was torn from wife and children and hung. Four of these little children are now well known residents of Taylor county and Mr. Taylor, a man who had a hair breath escape from the same gang of human blood hounds, now lives in Bedford. The incidents of this tragedy as given by the Marysville Republican will be of particular interest to all who know any of these people and some at least of them are known to nearly all our readers.
Dicy A. Kennedy was the daughter of William and Elizabeth Kennedy and was born in Washington county, East Tennessee, Nov 2, 1825. At the age of five years she moved with her parents to Hancock County, Indiana where she grew to womanhood. Here, in 1845, she was married to Dr. H. Chiles, a young physician of Warrington in the same county. He was a native of Virginia who had come to the west to start in life.
Dr. Chiles was of a roving disposition, and within a few years moved to Iowa, and then back to East Tennessee. Here he was joined by two brothers from Virginia, Ephraim and Almus Chiles, and the three brothers with their families moved to Texas in 1860, settling near Gainesville, in Cook County.
The rebellion coming on soon these Tennessee Virginians being strong Union men soon found themselves looked upon with suspicion. As there were a number of Union men in Cook county, they began to devise means for self protection. Among other things, they organized a Union League in which Dr. Chiles being somewhat of a leader was a master spirit. Traitors crept into this organization and in the fall of 1862 they betrayed the names of the Union men to the rebellious mob and they were hunted like criminals rather than human beings. Dr. Chiles and his brother, Ephraim, were among the first captured and they were hung on a tree in Gainesville on Oct. 4, 1862, for no other crime that being Union men. The reign of terror lasted about two weeks, during which 44 men died for their country, nearly all of them leaving destitute families. Almus Chiles was never heard of thereafter, being probably killed in the forest. Among those hung were Wm Scott, Wm Norris, an un-married man, and a Mr. Fields, Charles Taylor, still living in Bedford, Iowa, escaped the researches of the blood thirsty mob, and got away to the north.
Mrs. Dicy Chiles and her family of eight children, the youngest a babe of only a few weeks old, fled the scene of massacre as quickly as possible and settled near Paris, in Lamar county, Texas, where they stayed until 1865 when they moved to Yates City, Knox county, Illinois, where they remained until 1882, when they moved to Taylor County, Iowa. There Mrs. Chiles made her home until a few years ago, when she came to live with her daughter, Mrs. Longley, as who home she died as above stated.
This obituary was found in the Bedford Times Republican, Bedford, Taylor County, Iowa, and published on 2 Jun 1905.
A MARTYR FOR HIS COUNTRY
A Bloody Tragedy of the Early Sixties – Men Die for Principles
NO MERCY FOR UNION MEN
Taylor County Residents Whose Father Died for the Union -- Hung by Guerrillas
Dicy A. Chiles died at the home of her daughter in Marysville, MO., May 12 and was buried at Conway, Sunday, May 14.
Mrs. Chiles husband was Dr. H. Chiles, who at the time of their marriage was a young physician and their home was in Eastern Tennessee. Eight children were born to them and their home was happy and blissful. They then moved to Texas. The war broke out and sectional feeling ran high. It was neighbor against neighbor, brother against brother and men lost all semblance of humanity and became blood thirsty brutes. Dr. Chiles was a Union man and for this crime was torn from wife and children and hung. Four of these little children are now well known residents of Taylor county and Mr. Taylor, a man who had a hair breath escape from the same gang of human blood hounds, now lives in Bedford. The incidents of this tragedy as given by the Marysville Republican will be of particular interest to all who know any of these people and some at least of them are known to nearly all our readers.
Dicy A. Kennedy was the daughter of William and Elizabeth Kennedy and was born in Washington county, East Tennessee, Nov 2, 1825. At the age of five years she moved with her parents to Hancock County, Indiana where she grew to womanhood. Here, in 1845, she was married to Dr. H. Chiles, a young physician of Warrington in the same county. He was a native of Virginia who had come to the west to start in life.
Dr. Chiles was of a roving disposition, and within a few years moved to Iowa, and then back to East Tennessee. Here he was joined by two brothers from Virginia, Ephraim and Almus Chiles, and the three brothers with their families moved to Texas in 1860, settling near Gainesville, in Cook County.
The rebellion coming on soon these Tennessee Virginians being strong Union men soon found themselves looked upon with suspicion. As there were a number of Union men in Cook county, they began to devise means for self protection. Among other things, they organized a Union League in which Dr. Chiles being somewhat of a leader was a master spirit. Traitors crept into this organization and in the fall of 1862 they betrayed the names of the Union men to the rebellious mob and they were hunted like criminals rather than human beings. Dr. Chiles and his brother, Ephraim, were among the first captured and they were hung on a tree in Gainesville on Oct. 4, 1862, for no other crime that being Union men. The reign of terror lasted about two weeks, during which 44 men died for their country, nearly all of them leaving destitute families. Almus Chiles was never heard of thereafter, being probably killed in the forest. Among those hung were Wm Scott, Wm Norris, an un-married man, and a Mr. Fields, Charles Taylor, still living in Bedford, Iowa, escaped the researches of the blood thirsty mob, and got away to the north.
Mrs. Dicy Chiles and her family of eight children, the youngest a babe of only a few weeks old, fled the scene of massacre as quickly as possible and settled near Paris, in Lamar county, Texas, where they stayed until 1865 when they moved to Yates City, Knox county, Illinois, where they remained until 1882, when they moved to Taylor County, Iowa. There Mrs. Chiles made her home until a few years ago, when she came to live with her daughter, Mrs. Longley, as who home she died as above stated.
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Blog Comments on the above obituary:
1. Henry's brother, Ephraim, is known to researchers, but the reference to another brother by the name of Almus Chiles is interesting. Was he involved with the Union League? What happened to him? McCaslin mentions Alonzo Chiles who was captured by Randolph in Sherman(page 100). Could Almus and Alonzo be the same person?
2.Who is the Charles Taylor, who escaped from Gainesville and lived in Bedford?
3. After the hangings, Dicy quickly moved her young family to Lamar County, where she felt they would be safer than staying in Cooke County. Just how dangerous was Cooke County for the widows of the men who were hanged?
4. Dicy felt her husband was involved in the Union League for SELF PROTECTION. She felt her husband's only crime was that of being a Union man.
5. The obituary states: "...their home was happy and blissful. They then moved to Texas." Interesting thought.
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Preacher...Not the kind that preached for the Money
HIRAM KILBORN
"A Baptist Preacher, and not the kind that preached for the money in it."
Hiram Kilborn was a native of Canada. Not certain when he immigrated to the United States. He was in Peoria, Illinois in 1841, when he married twenty-one year old, Adelia (known as Delia) Ann Knowles a native of Vermont, on 12 Dec 1841. The couple was still in Peoria in 1850. Hiram reported his occupation as a carpenter for the 1850 census. Hiram and Delia have two sons, George, age 6, and John, age 3.
1850 US Federal Census, Peoria, Illinois, page 240A
Hiram moved his family to Texas sometime between 1852 and 1856. In 1860, Hiram and his family can be found living in Cooke County, Texas. Kilborn is living next to Eli Scott, one of the men who would later be hanged in the Gainesville Hanging. Clark, also, refers to Hiram Kilborn as being a 'near neighbor.' Kilborn reported his occupation as a farmer in 1860. Hiram and Delia have two more children by 1860; a daughter, Frances, and a son, Wilson.
1860 US Federal Census, Cooke, Texas, pag 227
Hiram seems to have been very involved in the community. McCaslin refers to Kilborn as a Baptist lay minister and states in the footnote on page 67 of his book, Tainted Breeze: "Kilborn became a school trustee and a road overseer for Cooke County in September, 1858, a supervisor for the polling station at Henry Cockrum's mill in the fall of 1860, and again for the polling station at John Ware's house in the fall of 1860 and in August, 1862."
James Lemuel Clark, in his Recollections, writes the following about Kilborn:
"The next neighbor I will name was Hiram kilborn. He had a homestead of 320 acres of land patened to him by the state. Tho tha did not hang him. He was shot an killed by some of the Bourland men in trying to git a way. His foalks never got his body and did not no what tha dun with it. He Kilborn was a Babtist preacher, and not one of the kind that preached for the money that was in it. He was the oanly Babtist preacher in this country when we came here. I am informed by Frank Foremen that [he] helped to bury Kilborn."
Hiram's son, George, was away fighting for the Confederate Army, when Hiram was shot and killed by the Confederate group in Cooke County, James L. Clark was serving in the same Confederate unit. In one of Clark's letters home to his family, dated 20 Mar 1863, he writes: "Mother tell George Kilborns folks that he is still with us but it not verry well. He has a verry bad cough and it is thought by some that he has Consumption. But he is able to go about. He has not been able to do any duty since he left home but has been able to stay with us." George A. Kilborn appened the following note to James Lemuel Clark's letter: "Be sure and tell my Father and Mother to write to me as soon as you get this letter and tell them where I am. I send my best respects to you and your family. Geo. A. Kilborn."
It appears that while George Kilborn was away fighting for the Confederate Army, he did not know that his father had been killed by the Cooke County confederates. No records for George have been found after this time, so he most likely died while serving in the Confederate Army. That would mean that his mother lost both her husband and son during the Civil War.
After Hiram's death at the hands of the Confederate militia, his widow and family moved to Bourban County, Kansas. Delia and her three younger children can be found in the 1870 census for Bourbon County.
1870 US Federal Census, Fort Scott, Bourbon County, Kansas, page 491B
Delia died in 1879 and was buried in the Mount Orum Cemetery, Bourbon County, Kansas. Son, John, married and had a family and continued to live in Bourbon County. Son, Wilson, moved around a bit, ending up in Colorado.
Friday, February 10, 2012
WHY THIS BLOG?
Often the question is asked, “Why do a Blog about a Civil War Hanging?”
Additional questions and comments include: "Who cares about that?, How depressing!, Your not like one of those guys who dress up like Civil War Soldiers, are you?, What does that have to do with anything today?"
The Blog Welcome, on the right side of the blog, explains the goal or mission statement of the blog:
Our goal is to remember all the men who died in the 'Great Hanging'
and find their families – spouse, children, parents, siblings.
But, the real question that should be asked, is not “Why the blog?” but, “What prompted you to start the blog in the first place?”
That's easy. While reading the book by Thomas Barrett, “The Great Hanging,” the following passage on page eighteen seemed to jump out of the book demanding attention and action.
“There was an order passed that women should not be permitted to be present at the hanging. The women were not noisy, but the signs of deep despair was manifested by the heaving breast, the falling tears, the heavy groans as though the heart was breaking, and all the vitals of life were giving way. I believe all these men were heads of families. The sun set that night on fourteen widowed families, and thirteen families of orphans, for if I recollect right, all these men had children but one.
Language is totally incompetent to express the deep sorrow of that night. Wailing, moaning, weeping and lamentation existed in these families on that dark and fatal night. Tears fell like the rain drop, as tears fall from my eyes at even this distant day, while penning these lines. When the little ones who were just beginning to talk, would say: Ma where is pa? Pa come home, O, ma, go after him. How these words went like a dagger to the heart of that disconsolate wife. He was her husband, she loved him! Let the world say what they may.”
Who were these women?? -- these widows, mothers, and daughters of the Gainesville Hanging victims?
One thing was certain, these women needed their story told. They needed a voice! They needed to be found! In many cases, who these women were, was not known to present day researchers. Many women are still not known, but many have been “found” since this blog was started and their sad but courageous story is finally being told.
For a list of known spouses of the men hanged at Gainesville, go the the "Weeping Wives" post. It is updated as new information is found.
If you have information on any of the families of the Hanging victims, please share. There are many ways to share: write a book, start your own blog, post your family information on Ancestry.com, leave a message on genealogy message boards, donate your stories to a historical society/library in Gainesville, post the information on this blog, and/or all of the above.
Thomas Barrett, "The Great Hanging at Gainesville, Cooke County, Texas, October, A.D. 1862," Gainesville, Texas: January, 1885; Old West Magazine, pages 49-66, Summer 1981, Note: Original pamphlet was written in 1885. Its author, Thomas Barrett, was on the Cooke County jury that found 42 men guilty of conspiracy against the Confederacy in the Fall of 1862. According to the Handbook on Texas, Barrent "deprecated the role of emotion in the jury's decisions and argued that his being on the jury had saved large numbers of lives." Note: Barrett did NOT mention names of the victims.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
The John Wiley Question?
Was John Wiley Hanged in the Gainesville Hangings?
The following information was sent by a John Wiley descendant. Some in the Wiley family feel that their ancestor, John Wiley, was one of the men hanged during the Gainesville Hangings in 1862. Wiley is included in James L. Clark's list of men who were hanged. In addition, Wiley is mention in the 1880 Galveston news article about the hanging. But, he is NOT reported in Diamond's Account as having a trial, nor is he included in McCaslin's list, "Forty-Two Executed by the Citizens Court at Gainesville."
Information from a descendant:
"I have been seeking more information relating to John M Wiley [1812-1862]. I found one unverified source that indicated that his middle name was Malcolm. He was married to Elizabeth "Eliza" "Lizzie" Ann McCulloch [1820-1877] and there were six known children, five girls and one boy. Avaline [B1837], Mary Jane [B1840], Eliza [B1841], Isaac [B1843], Sarah Ann [B1845] and Maria Louisa [B1849] All the children were born in Missouri. The family was living in Jefferson County, Missouri in the 1850 census. They moved to Grayson County in 1854 and were in the Grayson County census in 1860."
Wiley is not on Diamond or McCaslin's hanged lists, but is mentioned by Clark and in the article by the Galveston News Weekly in 1880 as being hanged.
The following is from a descendant:
"The widow, Eliza was living in the 1870 Grayson County census with her son Isaac and an 8-year-old child named James M Wiley who may be the child of Isaac and the grandchild of Eliza. None of the girls are in the home. It appears that the family did not flee the area after the hanging but stayed in Grayson County. Isaac was born 1843 and died in 1924. He was married to Margaret Ellen Hutton and they had several children. They apparently lived near Collinsville in Grayson County and are both buried in the Collinsville Cemetery.
Eliza Wiley died in 1877 and was buried in Wiley Cemetery near Collinsville near her husband, J M Wiley. This cemetery is small with maybe 5 or 6 graves and located about 2 miles SE of Collinsville. None of the graves there appear to be on Find-A-Grave website. Not sure if they are marked or not. Clark calls him "old man Wiley-landowner" in his account.
The only reference I can find about John M Wiley in Diamond's account is that he was present at the Dye meeting on the night of 1 October 1862. This was mentioned in testimony in one of the first seven trials. There is no evidence that Wiley had a trial, but he was hanged on the 12th, so would likely have been one of the 14 men that was selected from a list by a representative of the citizens mob provided to them by the jury for lynching. It does appear however, that he was picked up by his family or friends and buried in a traditional manner by his family and not in the mass grave on the banks of Pecan Creek."
Diamond's Account of those Tried and Executed
THE FOLLOWING LIST IS FROM DIAMOND’S ACCOUNT OF THOSE TRIED AND EXECUTED DURING THE GREAT HANGING AT GAINESVILLE, TEXAS, OCTOBER 1862.
 |
| Diamond's Account of the Great Hanging |
"George Washington Diamond's Account of the Great Hanging at Gainesville, 1862," edited by Sam Acheson and Julie Ann Hudson O'Connell, can be accessed here on the The Portal to Texas History website. This account was published by the Texas State Historical Association in The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 66, July 1962 - April, 1963.
To learn more about Diamond's Account, click here.
This list is the order of each man’s trial as presented in Diamond’s Account of the Citizens Court, with the date of hanging listed after each name. (Most hanging dates came from McCaslin's book, Tainted Breeze.)
Dr. Henry Childs – Oct 2
Ephraim Childs – Oct 2
A.D. Scott - Oct 19
M.D. Harper – Oct 4
Henry Fields – Oct 4
I.W.P. Lock – Oct 7
W.W. Morris – Oct 8
Richard Anderson - Oct 19
Dr. Eli Thomas – Oct 19
TRIED TOGETHER:
Edward Hampton - Oct 10
John A. Morris – Oct 19
John M. Crisp – Oct 19
Samuel Carmichael – Oct 13
TRIED TOGETHER - Oct 13
C.A. Jones, James Powers, Eli M. Scott, Thomas Baker, Geo W. Anderson, Abraham McNeese, Henry Cockrum, C.F. Anderson, Wm Wernell, B.F. Barnes, Wm Rodes, & N.M. Clark
Ramey Dye – Oct 13
D.M. Leffel – Oct 19
TRIED TOGETHER – Oct 19
James A. Ward & W.B. Taylor
H.J. Esman – Oct 19
W.W. Johnson – Oct 19
Richard N. Martin – Oct 19
Barnabas Birch – Oct 19
TRIED TOGETHER – Oct 19
Curd Goss, Wm Anderson, John Miller, Ar (Phax) Dawson, & M.W. Morris
======
SHOT WHILE TRYING TO ESCAPE:
Dr. James Foster – Oct 10
TRIED BY COURT-MARTIAL AND EXECUTED BY MILITARY:
A.N. Johnson & John Cottrell (together, with Wm McCool)
SHOT WHILE TRYING TO ESCAPE:
Mr. Floyd
Note: Three of the men (not sure which ones) with an execution date of Oct 13 were hanged on Oct 12. Nineteen men were executed on Oct 19, and this list only shows 17 trials for men who supposedly were hanged on the 19th. McCaslin lists John W. Morris and Gilbert Smith with the men who were hanged on Oct 19, but Diamond does not list a trial for them. As always, corrections are welcomed.
Related Posts:
Ephraim Childs – Oct 2
A.D. Scott - Oct 19
M.D. Harper – Oct 4
Henry Fields – Oct 4
I.W.P. Lock – Oct 7
W.W. Morris – Oct 8
Richard Anderson - Oct 19
Dr. Eli Thomas – Oct 19
TRIED TOGETHER:
Edward Hampton - Oct 10
John A. Morris – Oct 19
John M. Crisp – Oct 19
Samuel Carmichael – Oct 13
TRIED TOGETHER - Oct 13
C.A. Jones, James Powers, Eli M. Scott, Thomas Baker, Geo W. Anderson, Abraham McNeese, Henry Cockrum, C.F. Anderson, Wm Wernell, B.F. Barnes, Wm Rodes, & N.M. Clark
Ramey Dye – Oct 13
D.M. Leffel – Oct 19
TRIED TOGETHER – Oct 19
James A. Ward & W.B. Taylor
H.J. Esman – Oct 19
W.W. Johnson – Oct 19
Richard N. Martin – Oct 19
Barnabas Birch – Oct 19
TRIED TOGETHER – Oct 19
Curd Goss, Wm Anderson, John Miller, Ar (Phax) Dawson, & M.W. Morris
======
SHOT WHILE TRYING TO ESCAPE:
Dr. James Foster – Oct 10
TRIED BY COURT-MARTIAL AND EXECUTED BY MILITARY:
A.N. Johnson & John Cottrell (together, with Wm McCool)
SHOT WHILE TRYING TO ESCAPE:
Mr. Floyd
Note: Three of the men (not sure which ones) with an execution date of Oct 13 were hanged on Oct 12. Nineteen men were executed on Oct 19, and this list only shows 17 trials for men who supposedly were hanged on the 19th. McCaslin lists John W. Morris and Gilbert Smith with the men who were hanged on Oct 19, but Diamond does not list a trial for them. As always, corrections are welcomed.
Related Posts:
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Gilbert Smith
Was Gilbert Smith hanged in the Gaineville Hangings?
Gilbert Smith is listed by McCaslin as one of the "Forty-Two Executed by the Citizens Court at Gainesville."
McCaslin (Tainted Breeze, page 203) suggests that Gilbert Smith, age twenty-three, is listed as being in a militia company from Fannin County mustered on July 7, 1861. The twenty-three year old Gilbert Smith in Fannin County can be found in the 1860 Fannin County, Texas Census. He was the son of Robert Smith. He continued to live in Fannin County until his death in 1915. So, the Gilbert Smith from Fannin County could not have died in the hangings of 1862.
There is another Gilbert Smith reported in the 1860 census as living in Texas. He was a 60 year old family man living in Hopkins County. The Hopkins County Gilbert Smith died in 1868, so he could not have died in the Gainesville Hangings in 1862.
The 1860 census of Texas reports one more Gilbert Smith. He was a 29 year old native of Georgia living in Rusk County. His 21 year old wife, Mary, was a native of Texas. They were parents of an eleven month old son, named Ira. It is not known what happened to this Rusk County Gilbert Smith, so he may be a possibility.
Known facts about Gilbert Smith:
1. Witness for the trial of Ramey Dye.
Diamond's Account (page 78) gives the following testimony by Gilbert Smith for the trial of Ramey Dye:
"I was at the meeting on Wednesday night. Present: Ramey Dye, James Powers, Moses Powers, John Ware, John W. Morris, Dr. Foster, H.J. Esman, Harry Gilman, Arphax Dawson, O. B. Atkinson, and Wm boyles. We were all ordered to bring our guns. I loaded mine after I got there. I suppose there were twenty-eight men in all.
Our object was to come here, (Gainesville) and rescue the prisoners. Ramey Dye was chosen captain. We concluded to get away when Essman came and reported the number of men in town. We adjourned to meet again the next night and consult what to do. I understood we had spies out. Mr. Welch started up here to see how many men were in town. He was sent by the company. Some men were sent out two or three times to spy out and see if any body approached. Old Man Cochran went over to Red River to see how many members of the order there were over in that section. Snodgrass was there when I arrived. I understood that the signs would protect us when the Northern army came."
2. Attended the Rama Dye meeting for the rescue of prisoners.
As stated in his above listed testimony, Gilbert Smith attended the nighttime meeting called by Rama Dye to discuss a rescue of prisoners in Gainesville.
3. Diamond does not list or include Gilbert Smith in any of the trials. So, did he have a trial and Diamond not list it? Was he found guilty and hanged? There is no record of Gilbert Smith ever being tried or hanged. Was he just a witness? Or, was he a prisoner and then released?
Gilbert Smith is not on Clark's list of men hanged, nor is he in the 1880 Galveston news article. But, neither one of these sources contains a complete list of men hanged. Not even sure if Diamond's account contains a complete list of men hanged.
Conclusion: Not sure that Gilbert Smith should be included in the list of men who were hanged -- unless there is a more complete list found.
Thoughts and comments about the Gilbert Smith dilemma would be appreciated.
Note: McCaslin's book, Tainted Breeze, is the definitive source for information concerning the Great Hanging at Gainesville. When McCaslin published the book in 1994, there were not online census indices available. Nor was there as much information available that today can be easily found in online databases or offline repositories about the individual men who died in the Hanging. Many thanks to McCaslin for his book about the Hanging, and for laying the groundwork for further research by descendants into their ancestor who died in the hangings.
Friday, February 3, 2012
Star-Telegram News Article
The following was posted on the Bud Kennedy Column, Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Mobs don't lynch people - 'tensions of the times' lynch people
Mobs don't lynch people - 'tensions of the times' lynch people
Posted Thursday, Feb. 02, 2012
By Bud Kennedy
bud@star-telegram.com
"It remains the worst mob violence in American history: 41 men lynched, all here in North Texas.
Now, 150 years later, a Rebel-flag-waving movie will tell the mob's "side of the story."
Even by Civil War standards, the Great Hanging is an atrocity.
After a Confederate military tribunal convicted seven men of treason, a vigilante mob set out on the streets of Gainesville and Cooke County, rounding up and hanging 14 more men without regard for trials or the young Confederate nation's constitution.
"The whole town went crazy," said Gary D. Bray, 60, of Forney, a Sons of Confederate Veterans commander lining up extras for the SCV promotional movie Black October.
Bray said the Confederate ancestry group will "tell both sides."
"Everything you read on the Internet says the Confederates were just crazy people lynching folks in a big mob," Bray said.
Well, yes.
But Bray said the movie will blame the lynchings on the "tensions of the time."
By the time the bloodshed ended, 42 men had been lynched, shot or hanged by a tribunal, including five in Wise County and one in Denton.
Bray said the movie's director, David Moore of Parker County-based Southern Legacy Films, has talked with descendants.
"By no means would we want to portray the victims as horrible people," Bray said.
How kind.
The screenplay is based on records compiled by a Confederate soldier who was also an East Texas newspaper editor, Bray said. Scenes have been shot near Tyler, at the Frontier Village park in Denison and at Dexter in Cooke County.
Movie scenes posted online include re-enactments of hangings.
The Sons plan to show the movie in Gainesville to mark the October anniversary, he said.
Some graves there remain unmarked to this day.
One in a Cooke County cemetery is inscribed "Murdered by a Mob."
University of North Texas history professor Richard McCaslin told the story fairly in his 1997 book, Tainted Breeze.
"There's only one book that tries to tell the true story, and I wrote it," McCaslin wrote by e-mail.
"They have made no effort to include me, and the pictures online reflect their lack of knowledge about what really happened."
This movie will be more story than history."
Bud Kennedy's column appears in the Star-Telegram Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
Mobs don't lynch people - 'tensions of the times' lynch people
Mobs don't lynch people - 'tensions of the times' lynch people
Posted Thursday, Feb. 02, 2012
By Bud Kennedy
bud@star-telegram.com
"It remains the worst mob violence in American history: 41 men lynched, all here in North Texas.
Now, 150 years later, a Rebel-flag-waving movie will tell the mob's "side of the story."
Even by Civil War standards, the Great Hanging is an atrocity.
After a Confederate military tribunal convicted seven men of treason, a vigilante mob set out on the streets of Gainesville and Cooke County, rounding up and hanging 14 more men without regard for trials or the young Confederate nation's constitution.
"The whole town went crazy," said Gary D. Bray, 60, of Forney, a Sons of Confederate Veterans commander lining up extras for the SCV promotional movie Black October.
Bray said the Confederate ancestry group will "tell both sides."
"Everything you read on the Internet says the Confederates were just crazy people lynching folks in a big mob," Bray said.
Well, yes.
But Bray said the movie will blame the lynchings on the "tensions of the time."
By the time the bloodshed ended, 42 men had been lynched, shot or hanged by a tribunal, including five in Wise County and one in Denton.
Bray said the movie's director, David Moore of Parker County-based Southern Legacy Films, has talked with descendants.
"By no means would we want to portray the victims as horrible people," Bray said.
How kind.
The screenplay is based on records compiled by a Confederate soldier who was also an East Texas newspaper editor, Bray said. Scenes have been shot near Tyler, at the Frontier Village park in Denison and at Dexter in Cooke County.
Movie scenes posted online include re-enactments of hangings.
The Sons plan to show the movie in Gainesville to mark the October anniversary, he said.
Some graves there remain unmarked to this day.
One in a Cooke County cemetery is inscribed "Murdered by a Mob."
University of North Texas history professor Richard McCaslin told the story fairly in his 1997 book, Tainted Breeze.
"There's only one book that tries to tell the true story, and I wrote it," McCaslin wrote by e-mail.
"They have made no effort to include me, and the pictures online reflect their lack of knowledge about what really happened."
This movie will be more story than history."
Bud Kennedy's column appears in the Star-Telegram Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Samuel Carmichael
Samuel Carmichael was born in Tennessee in 1821 and settled in Cooke County prior to 1860.
The 1860 Cooke County, Texas Federal Census gives the following information about Carmichael. He was a thirty-nine year old carpenter from Tennessee, living in Gainesville with his wife Anna. Samuel had $1,200 of personal property and $40 of real estate. Anna was thirty-seven years old and a native of Illinois. It appears that they had no living children of their own. Living in their household with them are the following individuals; fifteen year old Isaac Abele from Alabama, ten year old Josephus L. Wilson from Norway, and twenty-one year old William Gaston from Pennsylvania. It is not known if the younger children were foster children or apprentices or what?
By 1862, Samuel Carmichael was assessed for 5 lots in Gainesville, 7 horses and 2 cows.
From Diamond’s account of the trials, we learn that Samuel Carmichael was “an outspoken enemy to the South.”
Diamond reports the following about the Trial of Samuel Carmichael:
“It is in evidence that Carmichael was well informed as to the objects and purposes of the organization, but the testimony does not develop the fact that he was ever sworn in. When the detail was made to go to Fort Cobb during the Indian excitement in that quarter, Carmichael peremptorily refused to go, say that he would fight to the death at home, first.
He was an outspoken enemy to the South and, in every way, considered a dangerous and bad man in Society. He was found guilty and hung.”
Diamond's Account of the Great Hanging, Page 75.
So, it appears that Samuel Carmichael was not even a member of the peace party. Apparently, the Citizens Court thought he was just too outspoken and needed to be hanged. McCaslin referenced a newspaper article in the St. Louis Republic, stating that Carmichael was a “big, strappin’ fellow, not afraid of the devil, and he cussed ‘em to the last.”
Carmichael wrote a will just before he was hanged. He named his wife, Anna, executor and sole heir. He tried to get in a last jab at the Confederates, by requesting that Hughes, his attorney, was to collect all monies that was due to him from the Confederates.
Cooke County, Texas Will Book, Vol 1, pg 330-331
Transcription of Will:
In the name of God Amen. I, Samuel Carmichael in the County of Cooke and State of Texas, being of sound mind and memory, and considering the uncertainty of this frail life, do therefore make ordain publish and declare, this to be my last will and testament. That is to say first after my lawful debts are paid and discharged, the residue of my estate real and personal, I give bequeath and dispose of as follows to wit, To my beloved wife Anna Carmichael all of the property I am now possessed for her own benefit.
Likewise I make constitute and I appoint J. C. Hughes my lawful attorney to collect all monies that may be due me from the Confederate States of America. And receipt in my name to the proper officers for the same hereby ratifying and confirming all that he may do in the premises. Likewise I make, constitute and appoint my wife to be the executrix of this my last will and testament, hereby revoking all former wills by me made.
I also state that I do not wish my will to go into Probate Court but wish for my wife Ann Carmichael to settle up and close the estate for the best advantage to all concerned, there is some Hay put up by Henry Smith and myself one half of which ______
In witness whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name and my seal using scrawl for seal this 13th day of October AD 1862
Samuel Carmichael
Samuel Carmichel was hanged on October 13, 1862. No known grave, he was probably buried in the mass burial site along the banks of the Pecan Creek, not far from where he was hanged.
It is not known what happened to his wife, Anna Carmichael, after the Hangings.
The 1860 Cooke County, Texas Federal Census gives the following information about Carmichael. He was a thirty-nine year old carpenter from Tennessee, living in Gainesville with his wife Anna. Samuel had $1,200 of personal property and $40 of real estate. Anna was thirty-seven years old and a native of Illinois. It appears that they had no living children of their own. Living in their household with them are the following individuals; fifteen year old Isaac Abele from Alabama, ten year old Josephus L. Wilson from Norway, and twenty-one year old William Gaston from Pennsylvania. It is not known if the younger children were foster children or apprentices or what?
1860 Federal Census, Cooke County, Texas, Gainesville Post Office, page 223, Dwelling 33
By 1862, Samuel Carmichael was assessed for 5 lots in Gainesville, 7 horses and 2 cows.
From Diamond’s account of the trials, we learn that Samuel Carmichael was “an outspoken enemy to the South.”
Diamond reports the following about the Trial of Samuel Carmichael:
“It is in evidence that Carmichael was well informed as to the objects and purposes of the organization, but the testimony does not develop the fact that he was ever sworn in. When the detail was made to go to Fort Cobb during the Indian excitement in that quarter, Carmichael peremptorily refused to go, say that he would fight to the death at home, first.
He was an outspoken enemy to the South and, in every way, considered a dangerous and bad man in Society. He was found guilty and hung.”
Diamond's Account of the Great Hanging, Page 75.
So, it appears that Samuel Carmichael was not even a member of the peace party. Apparently, the Citizens Court thought he was just too outspoken and needed to be hanged. McCaslin referenced a newspaper article in the St. Louis Republic, stating that Carmichael was a “big, strappin’ fellow, not afraid of the devil, and he cussed ‘em to the last.”
Carmichael wrote a will just before he was hanged. He named his wife, Anna, executor and sole heir. He tried to get in a last jab at the Confederates, by requesting that Hughes, his attorney, was to collect all monies that was due to him from the Confederates.
Cooke County, Texas Will Book, Vol 1, pg 330-331
Transcription of Will:
In the name of God Amen. I, Samuel Carmichael in the County of Cooke and State of Texas, being of sound mind and memory, and considering the uncertainty of this frail life, do therefore make ordain publish and declare, this to be my last will and testament. That is to say first after my lawful debts are paid and discharged, the residue of my estate real and personal, I give bequeath and dispose of as follows to wit, To my beloved wife Anna Carmichael all of the property I am now possessed for her own benefit.
Likewise I make constitute and I appoint J. C. Hughes my lawful attorney to collect all monies that may be due me from the Confederate States of America. And receipt in my name to the proper officers for the same hereby ratifying and confirming all that he may do in the premises. Likewise I make, constitute and appoint my wife to be the executrix of this my last will and testament, hereby revoking all former wills by me made.
I also state that I do not wish my will to go into Probate Court but wish for my wife Ann Carmichael to settle up and close the estate for the best advantage to all concerned, there is some Hay put up by Henry Smith and myself one half of which ______
In witness whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name and my seal using scrawl for seal this 13th day of October AD 1862
Samuel Carmichael
Samuel Carmichel was hanged on October 13, 1862. No known grave, he was probably buried in the mass burial site along the banks of the Pecan Creek, not far from where he was hanged.
It is not known what happened to his wife, Anna Carmichael, after the Hangings.
Those Andersons
Four men with the Anderson surname were hanged at Gainesville during the Great Gainesville Hanging in October 1862. According to McCaslin their names were; C. F. Anderson, George W. Anderson, Richard Anderson and William B. Anderson.
Researching for records using online sites such as Ancestry.com, Fold3.com, WorldVitalRecords.com, FamilySearch.org, Genealogybank.com (newspapers), Portal of Texas History, and using Google's search engine has not provided much in the way of new information to prove who each of the Anderson men could be.
One of the first questions I asked, "Were they random men who happened to have the same surname or were they connected in some way?"
Each Anderson will be reviewed with the information found from McCaslin’s book and Diamond’s account. Any additional information will be added to each man. The most important "new clue" was found in the 1880 Galveston Weekly News article.
Richard Anderson
McCaslin (Tainted Breeze, pg 195): “Richard J. Anderson is listed in the 1860 Grayson County census (F.N. 1,178) as a twenty-eight-year-old farmer from Missouri with $750 in personal property and no real estate. His wife and their three children, the youngest of whom was six years old, were all born in Missouri.”
The census record below is the one referred to by McCaslin. Is the “R. J. Anderson” listed in Grayson County, the same Richard Anderson who was hanged? No records have be found to prove or disprove this theory.
1860 US Federal Census; Grayson County, Texas; Roll: M653_1295; Page: 218; Dwelling/Family #:1152/1178.
Richard Anderson was sworn into the Peace Party by JWP Lock at the same time Lock swore in P. Q. Russell, William Anderson, George Anderson and John Tourly.
According to Diamond’s account of the Hangings, Richard Anderson had his own individual trial, not a group trial. Diamond shares the following about the Richard Anderson trial: “The evidence against this prisoner being the same in substance as that against Harper & Lock, it is deemed unnecessary to repeat it here. He was found guilty, and after [being] sentenced to be hung, made full confession of his guilt.” Since all we have is Diamond’s opinion of the trial, it will never be known exactly what the transpired during the actual trial for Richard Anderson.
C. F. Anderson > E. F. Anderson > Edward Frost Anderson
Anderson was tried in a group trial along with eleven other men. Diamond’s gives the following description of the trial: “The State vs. C. A. Jones, James Powers, Eli M. Scott, Thomas Baker, Geo W. Anderson, Abraham McNeese, Henry Cockhran, C. F. Anderson, Wm Wernell, B. F. Barnes, Wm Rodes and N. M. Clark.” He further states, “The testimony against the above mentioned conspirators corresponds with the testimony herein before produced on the trial of Childs, Fields, Harper, Lock, and others. They all acknowledged their connection with the organization, and made full confession of their guilt at the gallows.”
According to McCaslin, “C. F. Anderson said Lock swore him in and then told him that the organization was for mutual protection when the Federal army came…Lock took the stand in his own defense, saying that he…had organized the Peace party as a protective society, not to attack their neighbors.” During the trial for JWP Lock, “E. F. Anderson” was a witness.
So, were there two men connected to the trials? One named C. F. Anderson and one named E. F. Anderson?? Or, was there only one man, who was either C. F. Anderson or E. F. Anderson?
“C” F Anderson from the group trial who said Lock swore him in, and “E” F Anderson, the witness for Lock, are probably the same person. The “E” to a “C” may have been a transcription error. The Anderson man who was hanged was most likely E. F. Anderson. And, his name is probably Edward Frost Anderson, as explained below.
The 1880 Galveston Newspaper article is the earliest record of names of the Great Hanging victims, outside of the court documents. The 1880 article gave the names of three victims of the Hanging whose names were Anderson: “Frosty, George and William Anderson.”
Research on the name of Frosty Anderson comes up with a “Frost Anderson” who lived in Lamar County, Texas in 1850. What is interesting about this Frost Anderson is that his name was Edward Frost Anderson or E. F. Anderson. The Frost Anderson from Lamar County had two sons who were named William (b. 1832) and George W. (b. 1835). Lock, who swore Anderson into the Peace Party and was hanged at Gainesville, was also from Lamar County. Anderson was asked to testify in Lock's trial. Frost Anderson and JWP Lock most likely knew each other in Lamar County before moving to Cooke County. Dr. Henry Chiles, the first man to be hanged in Gainesville, was also living in Lamar County, Texas in 1860.
Anderson Family in 1850: Frost Anderson, Age 40, born Tennessee; Matilda Anderson, age 38, born Tennessee; William Anderson, age 19, born Tennessee; George W. Anderson, age 15, born Tennessee; Jessee Anderson, age 13, born Arkansas; Susan E. Anderson, age 5, born Texas; Mary A. Anderson, age 3, born Texas; Thomas D. Anderson, age 1, born Texas.
Frost Anderson cannot be found in the 1860 census in either Lamar or Cooke Counties. In addition to the children listed in the 1850 census, some family databases have an additional son, John Anderson, who was born about 1830 in Tennessee.
This evidence seems to point to the fact that C. F. Anderson and E. F. Anderson were the same man and he was most likely Frost Anderson from Lamar County.
Two of his sons, William and George, may have been the William Anderson and George W. Anderson who were also hanged.
William Anderson
McCaslin (Tainted Breeze, page 195): “William B. Anderson is listed in the 1860 Cooke County census (F.N. 451) as a twenty-seven-year-old farmer from Tennessee with $175 in personal property. His wife was from Arkansas, but their son, age eight, was born in Texas. Anderson first appears on the tax roll for Cooke County in 1859; he paid only a poll tax for that and the next few years, but in 1862 he was accessed for 2 horses and 7 cattle. He did serve for a period of time in a military unit, because the 1862 tax rolls for Cooke County found in the archives at UNT declare that his payment would be delayed because he had ‘gone to war.’”
In the above 1860 census, William Anderson is a 27 year old Tennessee native and his wife, Lucinda, is a 17 years old Arkansas native. There is an 8 year old Francis King living in the household, who does not appear to be the son of William or Lucinda. The William Anderson in this 1860 Cooke census would be approximately the right age to be the son of Frost Anderson.
A marriage record in Lamar County can be found for William Anderson who married Lucinda Davis on 3 Nov 1855. Lucinda’s father, Abner Davis, can be found on the 1850 census for Lamar County. He moved to Cooke County, Texas, where he died on 15 May 1859. Lucinda’s widowed mother, Sarah Davis, and Lucinda's siblings can be found living in Cooke County in the 1860 census. It is interesting that Sarah Davis has a 17 year old Catherine King living in the household. Lucinda and William, also, had someone with the name of King living with them.
The age for Lucinda is bothersome, because she would only be about 13 years old when she married. Marrying at such a young age is not unheard of, but also not all that common. I personally had a great-aunt who married at the age of 13 years old in the 1920’s. So, although uncommon, young marriages could and did happen.
The big question was whether or not William Anderson, with wife, Lucinda, in 1860 Cooke County and hanged in the Great Hangings, is the same William Anderson who married Lucinda Davis in Lamar County. But, the above evidence seems to support the fact that both are the same man. Also, evidence seems to point to the fact that William Anderson is the son of Frost Anderson of Lamar County.
William Anderson was tried and condemned to death by the "Citizens Court" in a group trial, along with Curd Goss, John Miller, Arphax Dawson, and M. W. Morris. Diamond (Diamond's Account, page 85) stated of this group trial, "These prisoners all acknowledged their guilt, giving the signs, grip, and password, and were active members of Capt Ramey Dye's company. All found guilty and hung."
William was hanged on 19 Oct 1862. His body was probably buried at the mass burial grave site.
It is not known what happened to Lucinda after the 1860 census, or if William and Lucinda had any children.
George W. Anderson
McCaslin (Tainted Breeze, page 195): “George W. Anderson first appears in the Cooke County tax roll for 1862, when he paid taxes on $124 in property, including 1 horse and 4 cows.”
According to Jackson Mounts’ testimony in Lock's Trial, he (Mounts) was sworn into the Peace party at the same time as “P Q Russell, Wm Anderson, George Anderson, John Tourly, and Richard Anderson.”
George W. Anderson was tried in the same group trial as C. F. Anderson (or Frost Anderson). He was found guilty along with the group and was hanged on October 13, 1862. He was buried in the mass grave burial site.
The above information is all that is found from Diamond's Account and McCaslin's Book about George W. Anderson.
In the Lamar County 1850 household of Frost Anderson, there was a 15 year old George W. Anderson. It is very likely that he is the same George W. Anderson who was hanged in the Gainesville Hangings. He could have moved to Cooke County around the same time as his brother, William. Both men are on the 1862 Cooke County, Texas tax roll.
It is not known if George W. Anderson was married or had any children.
Conclusion:
Evidence seems to point to Edward Frost Anderson, and two of his sons, William and George, as being three of the "Anderson Men" who were hanged during the Great Hanging at Gainesville in 1862. I have drawn my conclusions based on documents such as census records and the 1880 newspaper article, and the Anderson connections to family and friends, such as "Lock".
But, one has to wonder how three men in the same family could have been hanged without mention being made in a record, newspaper or document.
Any help or thoughts or corrections on the Andersons would be appreciated. Thanks.
Researching for records using online sites such as Ancestry.com, Fold3.com, WorldVitalRecords.com, FamilySearch.org, Genealogybank.com (newspapers), Portal of Texas History, and using Google's search engine has not provided much in the way of new information to prove who each of the Anderson men could be.
One of the first questions I asked, "Were they random men who happened to have the same surname or were they connected in some way?"
Each Anderson will be reviewed with the information found from McCaslin’s book and Diamond’s account. Any additional information will be added to each man. The most important "new clue" was found in the 1880 Galveston Weekly News article.
Richard Anderson
McCaslin (Tainted Breeze, pg 195): “Richard J. Anderson is listed in the 1860 Grayson County census (F.N. 1,178) as a twenty-eight-year-old farmer from Missouri with $750 in personal property and no real estate. His wife and their three children, the youngest of whom was six years old, were all born in Missouri.”
The census record below is the one referred to by McCaslin. Is the “R. J. Anderson” listed in Grayson County, the same Richard Anderson who was hanged? No records have be found to prove or disprove this theory.
1860 US Federal Census; Grayson County, Texas; Roll: M653_1295; Page: 218; Dwelling/Family #:1152/1178.
Richard Anderson was sworn into the Peace Party by JWP Lock at the same time Lock swore in P. Q. Russell, William Anderson, George Anderson and John Tourly.
According to Diamond’s account of the Hangings, Richard Anderson had his own individual trial, not a group trial. Diamond shares the following about the Richard Anderson trial: “The evidence against this prisoner being the same in substance as that against Harper & Lock, it is deemed unnecessary to repeat it here. He was found guilty, and after [being] sentenced to be hung, made full confession of his guilt.” Since all we have is Diamond’s opinion of the trial, it will never be known exactly what the transpired during the actual trial for Richard Anderson.
C. F. Anderson > E. F. Anderson > Edward Frost Anderson
Anderson was tried in a group trial along with eleven other men. Diamond’s gives the following description of the trial: “The State vs. C. A. Jones, James Powers, Eli M. Scott, Thomas Baker, Geo W. Anderson, Abraham McNeese, Henry Cockhran, C. F. Anderson, Wm Wernell, B. F. Barnes, Wm Rodes and N. M. Clark.” He further states, “The testimony against the above mentioned conspirators corresponds with the testimony herein before produced on the trial of Childs, Fields, Harper, Lock, and others. They all acknowledged their connection with the organization, and made full confession of their guilt at the gallows.”
According to McCaslin, “C. F. Anderson said Lock swore him in and then told him that the organization was for mutual protection when the Federal army came…Lock took the stand in his own defense, saying that he…had organized the Peace party as a protective society, not to attack their neighbors.” During the trial for JWP Lock, “E. F. Anderson” was a witness.
So, were there two men connected to the trials? One named C. F. Anderson and one named E. F. Anderson?? Or, was there only one man, who was either C. F. Anderson or E. F. Anderson?
“C” F Anderson from the group trial who said Lock swore him in, and “E” F Anderson, the witness for Lock, are probably the same person. The “E” to a “C” may have been a transcription error. The Anderson man who was hanged was most likely E. F. Anderson. And, his name is probably Edward Frost Anderson, as explained below.
The 1880 Galveston Newspaper article is the earliest record of names of the Great Hanging victims, outside of the court documents. The 1880 article gave the names of three victims of the Hanging whose names were Anderson: “Frosty, George and William Anderson.”
 |
| For transcription go to Galveston Daily News 1880 |
Research on the name of Frosty Anderson comes up with a “Frost Anderson” who lived in Lamar County, Texas in 1850. What is interesting about this Frost Anderson is that his name was Edward Frost Anderson or E. F. Anderson. The Frost Anderson from Lamar County had two sons who were named William (b. 1832) and George W. (b. 1835). Lock, who swore Anderson into the Peace Party and was hanged at Gainesville, was also from Lamar County. Anderson was asked to testify in Lock's trial. Frost Anderson and JWP Lock most likely knew each other in Lamar County before moving to Cooke County. Dr. Henry Chiles, the first man to be hanged in Gainesville, was also living in Lamar County, Texas in 1860.
1850 Lamar County, Texas Federal Census, Precinct 4, page 285
Anderson Family in 1850: Frost Anderson, Age 40, born Tennessee; Matilda Anderson, age 38, born Tennessee; William Anderson, age 19, born Tennessee; George W. Anderson, age 15, born Tennessee; Jessee Anderson, age 13, born Arkansas; Susan E. Anderson, age 5, born Texas; Mary A. Anderson, age 3, born Texas; Thomas D. Anderson, age 1, born Texas.
Frost Anderson cannot be found in the 1860 census in either Lamar or Cooke Counties. In addition to the children listed in the 1850 census, some family databases have an additional son, John Anderson, who was born about 1830 in Tennessee.
This evidence seems to point to the fact that C. F. Anderson and E. F. Anderson were the same man and he was most likely Frost Anderson from Lamar County.
Two of his sons, William and George, may have been the William Anderson and George W. Anderson who were also hanged.
William Anderson
McCaslin (Tainted Breeze, page 195): “William B. Anderson is listed in the 1860 Cooke County census (F.N. 451) as a twenty-seven-year-old farmer from Tennessee with $175 in personal property. His wife was from Arkansas, but their son, age eight, was born in Texas. Anderson first appears on the tax roll for Cooke County in 1859; he paid only a poll tax for that and the next few years, but in 1862 he was accessed for 2 horses and 7 cattle. He did serve for a period of time in a military unit, because the 1862 tax rolls for Cooke County found in the archives at UNT declare that his payment would be delayed because he had ‘gone to war.’”
1860 Cooke County, Texas Federal Census, page 249
In the above 1860 census, William Anderson is a 27 year old Tennessee native and his wife, Lucinda, is a 17 years old Arkansas native. There is an 8 year old Francis King living in the household, who does not appear to be the son of William or Lucinda. The William Anderson in this 1860 Cooke census would be approximately the right age to be the son of Frost Anderson.
A marriage record in Lamar County can be found for William Anderson who married Lucinda Davis on 3 Nov 1855. Lucinda’s father, Abner Davis, can be found on the 1850 census for Lamar County. He moved to Cooke County, Texas, where he died on 15 May 1859. Lucinda’s widowed mother, Sarah Davis, and Lucinda's siblings can be found living in Cooke County in the 1860 census. It is interesting that Sarah Davis has a 17 year old Catherine King living in the household. Lucinda and William, also, had someone with the name of King living with them.
The age for Lucinda is bothersome, because she would only be about 13 years old when she married. Marrying at such a young age is not unheard of, but also not all that common. I personally had a great-aunt who married at the age of 13 years old in the 1920’s. So, although uncommon, young marriages could and did happen.
The big question was whether or not William Anderson, with wife, Lucinda, in 1860 Cooke County and hanged in the Great Hangings, is the same William Anderson who married Lucinda Davis in Lamar County. But, the above evidence seems to support the fact that both are the same man. Also, evidence seems to point to the fact that William Anderson is the son of Frost Anderson of Lamar County.
William Anderson was tried and condemned to death by the "Citizens Court" in a group trial, along with Curd Goss, John Miller, Arphax Dawson, and M. W. Morris. Diamond (Diamond's Account, page 85) stated of this group trial, "These prisoners all acknowledged their guilt, giving the signs, grip, and password, and were active members of Capt Ramey Dye's company. All found guilty and hung."
William was hanged on 19 Oct 1862. His body was probably buried at the mass burial grave site.
It is not known what happened to Lucinda after the 1860 census, or if William and Lucinda had any children.
George W. Anderson
McCaslin (Tainted Breeze, page 195): “George W. Anderson first appears in the Cooke County tax roll for 1862, when he paid taxes on $124 in property, including 1 horse and 4 cows.”
According to Jackson Mounts’ testimony in Lock's Trial, he (Mounts) was sworn into the Peace party at the same time as “P Q Russell, Wm Anderson, George Anderson, John Tourly, and Richard Anderson.”
George W. Anderson was tried in the same group trial as C. F. Anderson (or Frost Anderson). He was found guilty along with the group and was hanged on October 13, 1862. He was buried in the mass grave burial site.
The above information is all that is found from Diamond's Account and McCaslin's Book about George W. Anderson.
In the Lamar County 1850 household of Frost Anderson, there was a 15 year old George W. Anderson. It is very likely that he is the same George W. Anderson who was hanged in the Gainesville Hangings. He could have moved to Cooke County around the same time as his brother, William. Both men are on the 1862 Cooke County, Texas tax roll.
It is not known if George W. Anderson was married or had any children.
Conclusion:
Evidence seems to point to Edward Frost Anderson, and two of his sons, William and George, as being three of the "Anderson Men" who were hanged during the Great Hanging at Gainesville in 1862. I have drawn my conclusions based on documents such as census records and the 1880 newspaper article, and the Anderson connections to family and friends, such as "Lock".
But, one has to wonder how three men in the same family could have been hanged without mention being made in a record, newspaper or document.
Any help or thoughts or corrections on the Andersons would be appreciated. Thanks.
Monday, January 30, 2012
What is Lock's Given Name??
J. W. P. Lock was one of the organizers of the secret society known as the Peace Party. In the account of his trial, Diamond (Diamond, pg 66) refers to Lock as "I. W. P. Lock." But, Anderson, one of the witnesses for Lock's trial, calls him "Wm Lock." McCaslin (Tainted Breeze, pg. 78, 87, 105, 200) refers to Lock as "Leander W. P. Jacob Lock." Was his name Leander or Jacob or William or all of the above? Census records, a marriage record and Diamond's account all list him with only initials -- "J.W.P. Lock"
Note: the “I” in Diamond's account is most likely a “J” that was a transcription error. The first witness in Lock's trial is I. H. Mounts, who is also referred to as Jackson H. Mounts. So, it stands to reason that the “I” in Lock’s name is also a misspelling and should be “J. W. P. Lock”. “J” and “I” are often transcribed wrong by inexperienced transcribers.
It appears that McCaslin combined two people together to come up with the name of "Leander W. P. Jacob Lock." There is a JWP Lock in the 1850 Lamar County, Texas census. He was a 29 year old native of Tennessee. A family headed by Leander Locke is also found in the 1850 Lamar census. As shown from the census records below, they are definitely two separate individuals. But, they could possibly be related.
The Lock referred to Diamond's account would be the 29 yr old farmer, JWP Lock listed in 1850 Lamar County. He was living with his wife, Deannah, and two daughters. The value of his real estate was $1688.
The above Lock is also recorded in the 1850 Agricultrual Schedule for Lamar County, Texas. This time his first given name is recorded: Jacob P. W. Lock. This is the only offical record found so far with his give name of "Jacob" recorded.
Leander Lock also living in Lamar County in 1850.
1850 Lamar County Texas Census, Precinct 6, Page 293, Line 1, 363/363, Farmer; Leander Lock, White Male, age 39, b. Tennessee, his wife, Sarah, and 5 daughters. This same Leander Lock can be found in the 1860, 1870 and 1880 census records for Lamar County, Texas. So, he cannot be the Lock who was hanged in Gainesville in 1862.
JWP Lock's wife, Deannah, died sometime between 1850 and 1853, although probably early in 1853. The 1850 census with wife, Deannah, lists two daughters, Emily (b. 1841) and Ann (b. 1849). Lock gets married again on 5 June 1853 to Evaline Dale in Lamar County, Texas. The name on the marriage record is J. W. P. Lock. The 1860 census with wife, Evaline, lists two daughters, Diana (b. 1853) and Arazona (b. 1858). The older two daughters are not listed and it is not known if they are still living. Could daughter Diana be a daughter from the first wife, Deannah? Could she have died giving birth?
In 1860, Lock is living in New Mexico Territory with his family. He may have left Texas after the shooting (described below). In the 1860 census, Lock is a 38 year old miner living at the Pino Alto Gold Mines with his wife, Eveline, and two daughters. Four boarders are also living in the household.
McCaslin (pg 105) states that Throckmorton asserted that Leander W. P. "Jacob" Lock, whom he identified as the leader of the "Association," had been acquitted of murder several years earlier in Lamar County."
Throckmorton may have been referring to the following murder in Grayson County, Texas (Dallas Weekly Herald, 22 June 1859).
Note: Name may be Harrell instead of Hales. See below news article.
Another newspaper article, that refers to the above shooting. This is probably where the confusion over Lock's give name came from.
Conclusion:
All records indicate that Jacob W. P. Lock was the man who died in the Gainesville Hangings.
His full name may be Jacob William P. Lock. Leander Lock is a seperate person and is not the man who was hanged at Gainesville.
The parents for Jacob W. P Lock are not known at this time. If and how he might be related to Leander Lock of Lamar County, Texas is not known.
Any additional comments or information would be appreciated. Thanks.
Note: the “I” in Diamond's account is most likely a “J” that was a transcription error. The first witness in Lock's trial is I. H. Mounts, who is also referred to as Jackson H. Mounts. So, it stands to reason that the “I” in Lock’s name is also a misspelling and should be “J. W. P. Lock”. “J” and “I” are often transcribed wrong by inexperienced transcribers.
It appears that McCaslin combined two people together to come up with the name of "Leander W. P. Jacob Lock." There is a JWP Lock in the 1850 Lamar County, Texas census. He was a 29 year old native of Tennessee. A family headed by Leander Locke is also found in the 1850 Lamar census. As shown from the census records below, they are definitely two separate individuals. But, they could possibly be related.
The Lock referred to Diamond's account would be the 29 yr old farmer, JWP Lock listed in 1850 Lamar County. He was living with his wife, Deannah, and two daughters. The value of his real estate was $1688.
1850 Lamar County Texas Census, Precinct 8, Page 458, Line 29, 458/458
The above Lock is also recorded in the 1850 Agricultrual Schedule for Lamar County, Texas. This time his first given name is recorded: Jacob P. W. Lock. This is the only offical record found so far with his give name of "Jacob" recorded.
Leander Lock also living in Lamar County in 1850.
JWP Lock's wife, Deannah, died sometime between 1850 and 1853, although probably early in 1853. The 1850 census with wife, Deannah, lists two daughters, Emily (b. 1841) and Ann (b. 1849). Lock gets married again on 5 June 1853 to Evaline Dale in Lamar County, Texas. The name on the marriage record is J. W. P. Lock. The 1860 census with wife, Evaline, lists two daughters, Diana (b. 1853) and Arazona (b. 1858). The older two daughters are not listed and it is not known if they are still living. Could daughter Diana be a daughter from the first wife, Deannah? Could she have died giving birth?
In 1860, Lock is living in New Mexico Territory with his family. He may have left Texas after the shooting (described below). In the 1860 census, Lock is a 38 year old miner living at the Pino Alto Gold Mines with his wife, Eveline, and two daughters. Four boarders are also living in the household.
1860 Census Pino Alto Gold Mines, Dona Ana, New Mexico Territory
McCaslin (pg 105) states that Throckmorton asserted that Leander W. P. "Jacob" Lock, whom he identified as the leader of the "Association," had been acquitted of murder several years earlier in Lamar County."
Throckmorton may have been referring to the following murder in Grayson County, Texas (Dallas Weekly Herald, 22 June 1859).
Transcription of above
"The Sherman 'Texian' records the killing of Howard W. Hales, in the county of Grayson. He had had some difficulty with his wife, who left him and took refuge with at her father's house, to which she was followed by her husband. On reaching the house, Hales made some hostil demonstrations against the family, he was shot at from an outhouse by two young men named Lock, nephews of Mrs. Hales father, sixty or seventy buckshot taking effect, and killing him instantly."Note: Name may be Harrell instead of Hales. See below news article.
Another newspaper article, that refers to the above shooting. This is probably where the confusion over Lock's give name came from.
Conclusion:
All records indicate that Jacob W. P. Lock was the man who died in the Gainesville Hangings.
His full name may be Jacob William P. Lock. Leander Lock is a seperate person and is not the man who was hanged at Gainesville.
The parents for Jacob W. P Lock are not known at this time. If and how he might be related to Leander Lock of Lamar County, Texas is not known.
Any additional comments or information would be appreciated. Thanks.
TRIAL OF J. W. P. LOCK
Diamond's Account of the Trial of I. W. P. Lock
The State vs. I. W. P. Lock
Disloyality and Treason
I. H. Mounts sworn.
Witness: I was sworn into this society, by I. W. P. Lock. At the same time, he swore in P. Q. Russell, Wm. Anderson, George Anderson, John Tourly, and Richard Anderson.
E. F. Anderson sworn.
Witness: I know of a secret organization in this country. The prisoner, Wm Lock, told me it was to afford us protection when the Northern Army should come in. Mr. Lock gave me the signs, grip, and password. Lock told me that we were to get powder at Sherman. The design of the organization was the reconstruction of the old Constitution, and Union.
The Prisoner [Lock]: Jackson Mount swore me and I wore him into this organization. I introduced the password “Arizina,” and the signs, and grips of the order. Mount and myself were the first starters of this order. I have heard that there was an organization to break up both armies. I have heard since that it was the same as this; and that the signs and password would protect us when the Northern army come. Mount and myself took two oaths. We were to kill, or assist in killing, every man who should reveal wither the existence of the order or its plans and designs. I advised my men, (Lock had a company,) not to go to the war.
Dr Eli Thomas sworn.
Witness: In a conversation with the prisoner last night (in person) I made a clean breast of the whole matter. Lock said he had scruples about doing so himself, on account of the oaths he had taken in the order.
He was found guilty and hung.
George Washington Diamond's Account of the Great Hanging at Gainesville, 1862, ManuscripteEdited by Sam Acheson and Julie The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Vol. LXVI, January, 1963, No. 3, pages 331-414.
Note: The “I” in I. W. P Lock is most likely a “J” that was a transcription error. The first witness is I. H. Mounts, who later in the trial is referred to as Jackson H. Mounts. So, it stands to reason that the “I” in Lock’s name is a misspelling also and should be “J. W. P. Lock.” “J” and “I” are often transcribed wrong by inexperienced transcribers.
Saturday, January 28, 2012
James L. Clark's list of Victims of the Gainesville Hangings
James L. Clark’s list of men “murdered” at Gainesville, 1862
Lemuel D. Clark, ed., The Civil War Recollections of James Lemuel Clark, Including Previously Unpublished Material On The Great Hanging at Gainesville, Texas In October, 1862 (College Station, Texas: Texas A&M University Press, 1984) page 109-112.
"After some concideration I will rite a brief statement an give the fact in regard to the 44 good men that was murderd by a mob in Gainesville, Cooke County, Texas in October 1862, as I no more a bout the men then eney body else now in this country. Will say tha were murderd for there Union princeables."
“I will conclude by giving the names of all the men that I pursnoly knew an others that was murdered...In the beginning [I] will give the names of the first settlers that lived in this county when my father came:
One of our near neighbors was William Rhodes. He [came] from North Carolina here, an got 320 acres of land as a homestead from the state. He had a nice famley an his oaldest boy belong to the same company that I belonged to. Now Rhodes sold land to a man by the name of Eli Scott about the time the war started. An Scott moved to the land an was murdered while he lived on the land. He Scott [came] from California here, an had a big famley, an was nice foalks. Him [Scott] an Rhodes were hung the same day. Tha are boath buried on the Rhodes survey, now owned by Sam McClerran.The next neighbor I will name was Hiram Kilborn. He had a homestead of 320 acres of land patened to him by the state. Tho tha did not hang him. He was shot an killed by some of the Bourland men in trying to git a way. His foalks never got his body an did not no what tha dun with it. He Kilborn was a Babtist preacher, and not one of the kind that preached for the money that was in it. He was the oanly Babtist preacher in this country when we came here. I am informed by Frank Foreman that [he] helped to bury Kilborn.
I will give the names [of others who were hanged] as follows:
Wernell – 160 acres
Richard Martin – landowner
Oald Grandpaw Burch – would talk, say what he thought – landowner
H. J. Esmond – 320 acres
Ward
Evans – Or Quinn
Clem Woods – landholder
Wolsey – landholder
Manon – lived on Preston Road
Oald man Leffel
A. B. McNiece – landholder
Wash Morris – landholder
Wesley Morris – landholder – tha were brothers
Thomas Floyd – shot while under gard – landholder
John Crisp – landholder
James Powers
Rama Dye – oald man – landholder
J. Dawson
Oald Man Wiley – landholder
J. Morris
Barnes
Milburn
W. Anderson
Gross
Ward
Dr. Johnson – nation [probably from the “Indian Nation”]
Childs, Senior
Childs, Junior
Hampton
Locke
Foster
Fields
D. Anderson
D. Taylor
R. Manton
Jones
Carmichael
Henry Cochran
Those names are as tha was give to me by McPherson.
Will McCool and two others were murderd at Bill Young Spring on the river after Welch killed Young in Bourland Hollow."
[Footnote on bottom of page 111]
"JLC often mentions a total of forty-four [hanged]. This list is not complete and many contain some errors in names. Even the number of men murdered is not known exactly. The best authorities here seem to be Barrett, Hanging, 21, and Wheeler's diary entry for 19 October 1862. Both accounts give forty as the number hanged and add that two were shot while trying to escape. If two were hanged by the military, the numbers then agree. According to Diamond, three men were hanged by the military. Diamond, "Account," 402."
BlogNote: Men mentioned on above list by JL Clark who are NOT on Diamond's list: Evans, Clem Woods, Manon, Wiley, Milburn, Manton.
Related Posts:
List of Men who Died in Hangings
1880 Newspaper List of Hanging Victims
Diamond's List of Men Tried and Convicted
Occupations of Hanging Victims
Related Posts:
List of Men who Died in Hangings
1880 Newspaper List of Hanging Victims
Diamond's List of Men Tried and Convicted
Occupations of Hanging Victims
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