52 Ancestors: #49 - Samuel WILLSON

Amy Johnson Crow of No Story Too Small has issued a challenge:  write one blog post each week devoted to a specific ancestor.  It can be a story, a biography, a photograph, an outline of a research problem – anything that focuses on one ancestor.

I don’t know what to say about my 3X great-grandfather Samuel WILLSON except that he lived in Rockbridge County, Virginia, and he was the father of my 2X great-grandmother Martha Ann WILLSON.  It says so right here on a marriage bond:

Beyond that, Samuel is still a mystery.  I’ve contacted a number of potential cousins with WILLSON trees on Ancestry.com, but none will claim Martha.  It’s still possible that she belongs to one of them too, but they just don’t know it yet.  After all, she was born in 1833 and was married at the ripe age of 13, so she was out of the family home before all members of the household were ever named in a census.  Without a census list or a will, we family historians can’t always complete the picture of our ancestors.

I spent a couple hours in the Rockbridge County courthouse grabbing whatever I could find that included the name Samuel WILLSON.  Unfortunately that wasn’t enough time to go through every book in the deed room.  Three deeds though looked promising.

The first was the sale of property in 1818 inherited by Samuel and Elizabeth WILLSON and her siblings.  The date seemed reasonable.  The bonus was getting a potential mother along with the maiden name, Hannah.  But wishing doesn’t make it so as I quickly learned upon searching this line in Ancestry.com.  THIS Samuel Willson turned out to be a minister whose descendants conducted lots of research.  Had Martha been in this family, surely her own father would have married her and Mitchell Davis; however, she reported in her widow’s pension application that the minister was Reverend Thomson.  So I crossed this Samuel Willson off my list of possibilities.

The second deed is inconclusive.  In 1847 Samuel Wilson conveyed about 353 acres of land “for natural love and affection” to his sons Hugh J. Wilson and Thomas M. C. Wilson.  Part of the land had been patented to Samuel in 1800 and part had been deeded to him by his father William, deceased.  The land bordered the property of James Wilson. 

Even though that gives me more names to search, surprisingly enough, the names even present a problem.  The indices of the deed books promise some consistency in separating the WiLsons from the WiLLsons.

However, since at least one household had both spellings in the family list in a census, I still have hope that this deed holds a possible connection to my Samuel and Martha.  I’m even more hopeful when I add a deed from 1806 to the mix. That year Samuel WiLLson was heir at law to his son John who died unmarried and intestate.  He sold 9 acres of John’s land to another son named Robert.  The metes and bounds description indicates the property bordered that of Samuel AND Hugh WILLSON.  A few mathematical calculations indicate this is NOT the same Hugh Wilson from the 1847 deed.  Furthermore, it’s not likely this Samuel could be my Martha’s father at all, but possibly he could be her grandfather; if Robert was purchasing land, he must have been born by 1786 making Samuel born by 1766.  

So what I have observed is this:

• The names Samuel, Hugh, James, and Robert are popular among both WiLLsons and WiLsons across many generations.
• The Samuel Willson living in District 53 in 1850 was probably NOT the father of Hugh and Thomas living in District 51 that year; surely they would have lived in the same district based on that land transaction.
• The Samuel Willson living in District 53 in 1850 had a son James, but surely if this Samuel were the father of Hugh and Thomas, he would have saved some of that parcel for this son James. 
• The Samuel Wilson living in District 51 was born in 1803, so he was likely NOT the father of Hugh and Thomas either since he would not have been alive to have a land patent in 1800.  However, he could be the father of my Martha.
• There were a number of other Samuel Wilsons living in District 51, but all were too young to be the father of my Martha.

© 2014, Wendy Mathias.  All rights reserved.

Wordless Wednesday: Wedding Portrait?

Wordless Wednesday is a daily prompt at Geneabloggers that asks family historians to create a post in which the main focus is a photograph or image.

I need help identifying this couple in a tintype found in an album belonging to my great-grandmother Mary Frances Jollett Davis.  I wonder if maybe they were her in-laws, Mitchell and Martha Willson Davis.  Does he look at least twelve years older than his bride? 

One reason I think this is a Davis is that the man seems so dapper, much like my great-grandfather Walter Davis as seen here.

Walter B. Davis 1933

Who is this handsome couple and why didn’t I inherit those good looks?  

© 2014, Wendy Mathias.  All rights reserved.

Sepia Saturday: Women in Bonnets

Sepia Saturday challenges bloggers to share family history through old photographs.

This week’s Sepia Saturday photo prompt suggests several themes:  umbrellas, rain, wet streets, big clunky shoes, women wearing bonnets, even ugly women.  That poor ol’ gal looks like she might read someone’s fortune any minute. 

I have two old photos of a woman in a bonnet.  First up:

Ok, I’ll say it since you’re probably thinking it – yes, she’d qualify for the “ugly women” theme too.  And she might even be able to deliver one wicked fortune.

However, the truth is, I SUSPECT this might be my great-great grandmother Martha Ann Willson Davis.   What makes me think so?  In the photo album belonging to my great-grandmother Mary Frances Jollett Davis, there are only four portraits from Star Studio:  Mary Frances and Walter Davis, 

and “Ugly Woman” and “Burly Man.”  

Possibly Mitchell Davis
1820 - 1890

Possibly Martha Ann Willson
1832 - 1905

In these photos, Walter and Mary Frances were young, so maybe they are wedding portraits.  Since the Jollett family seemed to like a different photographer, I am reasoning that maybe the Davis family ordered the portraits and that they preferred Star. 

There are no other photos that look like Ugly Woman and Burly Man, but certainly Mary Frances and Walter would have wanted at least ONE picture of Walter’s parents.  Right now, they’re the likely candidates for these unidentified portraits. 

The next photo of a woman in a bonnet is on heavy brown cardboard that has been cut to fit into SOMETHING, a frame maybe. 

On the back written in pencil is “This is Mrs. B. C. Coldorn 305 Penn. Ave, Hampton VA” with a circle around it. Below that is this address:  “122 East 42^nd St, NY 17, NY.”  

I have looked for that name in FamilySearch as well as Ancestry and have come up with nothing that explains who Mrs. B. C. Coldorn was, who owned this picture, or how it came to be passed along through several generations to me.  

I even Googled “B. C. Coldorn” and got “Do you mean Cold Corn?”  

I just love Google – always trying to help me out.

I’ll need a special Magic Thinking Bonnet to figure out who these women were.

Grab an umbrella, a bonnet and your big clunky shoes and make your way over to Sepia Saturday to see what others have made of this week’s theme.

©2014, Wendy Mathias.  All rights reserved.

Amanuensis Monday: Civil War Widow Application

Amanuensis Monday is a daily prompt at Geneabloggers which encourages the family historian to transcribe family letters, journals, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts.

The Virginia General Assembly passed Confederate pension acts in 1888, 1900, and 1902, plus supplementary acts between 1903 and 1934. At first the act provided pensions only to Confederate soldiers, sailors, and marines disabled in action and to the widows of those killed in action. But later the act was broadened to include all veterans, their widows and their unmarried or widowed daughters. The acts required that applicants be residents of Virginia.

Here is the application of my great-great grandmother Martha Ann Wilson Davis.

Click to enlarge

Form No. 3

Application of Widow

I,__ Martha A. Davis__, do hereby apply for aid under the act of the General Assembly of Virginia, approved April 9, 1902, entitled an act to aid the citizens of Virginia, who were disabled by wounds received during the war between the States while serving as soldiers, sailors, or marines, and such as served during the said war as soldiers, sailors, or marines of Virginia who lost their lives in said service, or whose death resulted from wounds received or disease contracted in paid service, and providing penalties for violating the provisions of this act, and I do solemnly swear that I am a citizen of the State of Virginia resident at  __Yancey__, in the __County of Rockingham__  in the said state, and that I have been an actual resident of the said State for __70 years__, and of the said city (or county) for one year next preceding the date of this application, and that I am the widow of __Mitchell Davis__ who was a soldier (sailor or marine) in the service of the State of Virginia in the war between the States, and who was a member of  (here state specifically the command and branch of the service to which the husband of the applicant belonged, and, if possible, the names of his immediate superior officers) __[illegible but possibly Gen’r Milne’s Command]  Col. Maupin and Captain H.A. Kite Militia__ and who, while in the discharge of his duty in the military or naval service of the State of Virginia, or of the Confederate States, during the said war, lost his life (if the husband of such widow was killed or died during the war as the result of wounds received, state the facts of the case as near as possible, giving the date of the husband's death.________________________(If the husband died after the war, strike out all relating to his death during the war, and then proceed as follows), and who has since the said war died (here state specifically the cause of the death of the husband of the applicant and the date thereof)__of heart disease in April 1892­­__ and that to the best of my knowledge, during the said war my said husband was loyal and true to his duty, and never, at any time, deserted his command or voluntarily abandoned his post of duty in the said service, and that I was never divorced from my husband, and that I never voluntarily abandoned him during his life, but remained his true, faithful and lawful wife up to the date of his death, and that I have never married after his death, and that I am now entitled to receive, under the said act, the sum of __25__ dollars annually.  And I do further swear that I do not hold any position or office at either national, State, city, or county, which pays me in salary or fees one hundred and fifty dollars per annum; nor have I an income from any other employment or other source whatever which amounts to one hundred and fifty dollars per annum; nor do I receive from any source whatever money or other means of support amounting in value to the sum of one hundred and fifty dollars per annum; nor do I own in my own right, nor does anyone hold in trust for my benefit or use estate or property, either real, personal, or mixed, either in fee or for life, of the assessed value of five hundred dollars; nor do I receive any aid or pension from any other State, or from the United States, or from any other source, and that I am not an inmate of any public institution and that I am without means of support, direct or indirect; and I do further swear that the answers given to the following questions are true:

 1. What is your age:  Ans. __70 years__

 2. Where were you born:  Ans. __Rockbridge County, Va__

 3. How long have you resided in Virginia?  Ans. __70 years__

 5. How long have you resided in the city or county of your present residence?  Ans. __Fifty-seven years__

 6. What is your husband's full name?  Ans. __Mitchell Davis__

 7. When and where were you married, and by whom?  Ans. __Aug. 24, 1856, Rockbridge Co., Rev. Ralph Thompson__

 8. When and where, as near as you can state, did your husband die, and from what cause?

    Ans. __1892 Rockingham Co., heart trouble__

 9. Have you been married since the death of your said husband?  Ans.__No__

10. Where and with whom do you now reside?  Ans. __Rockingham County with Nathaniel Davis__

11. What property --real, personal or mixed-- do you own?  Ans. __personal property $50__

12. What assistance do you receive, and what income have you from any source? 

    Ans. __none__

13. If your husband died since the war, please state where he died, and, if possible, the name and address of the attending physician?  Ans. __Rockingham County Simmons Gap Dr. ?? Coffman

14. Give the names and addresses, if possible, of two comrades in arms of your deceased husband.  Ans.  __J.W. Baugher   Beldor, Va    Frank Michle Yancey, Va__

15. Give the names and addresses of two persons who are familiar with the circumstances of your husband's death.  Ans. __Wm Wyant  Roadside, Va   J.W. Baugher  Beldor, Rockingham Co, Va__

16. If your husband died since the war, please state whether his death resulted from wounds received in the war or from disease.  Ans.  __Disease__

17. Give, as near as you can, the nature of the wound or the character of the disease from which your husband died.  Ans. __heart trouble__

18. Give here any other information you may provide relating to the service of your husband or of his death that will support the position of your claim for aid.  Ans. ___________

19. Is there any camp of Confederate veterans in the city or county of your residence?  Ans. __Yes __

20. Is there anyone living, the residence and address of whom is known to you, either comrade or otherwise, who has knowledge of your husband's service and of the cause of his death? If so or not, state.  Ans. __Yes, J.W. Baugher  Beldor, Va, H. A. Kite  Elkton, Va___

                                             

Given under my hand this 18th day of March 1903

Martha A. Davis(her mark)

               

I, __A. E. Wyant, a notary public__, in and for the county of __Rockingham__, in the State of Virginia,

do certify that __Martha A. Davis__, whose name is signed to the foregoing application, personally appeared before me in my county aforesaid and having the aforesaid application read to her and fully explained, as well as the statements and answered therein, made, the said __Martha A. Davis__made oath before me that the said statements and answers are true.

    

Given under my hand this 18th day of March 1903    A.E. Wyant [signature] Notary Public

Click to enlarge

The next page is simply a list of affidavits of people vouching for Martha Davis and supporting her claim.  I have summarized the contents. 

A – Oath of Resident Witnesses

D.C. Davis and A.T. Powell swear that they are residents of Rockingham County, Virginia, have known Martha Davis for five years, that she is a resident of the county, that she is truthful and is entitled to aid.

B – Affidavit of Comrades

J.W. Baugher and H.A. Kite swear that they know Martha A. Davis as the widow of Mitchell Davis, that they have known her for 30 years, and that they served with Mitchell Davis under H.A. Kite’s Militia, and 2 others whose names are illegible (Murris? Milne’s? Command and Col. ?? Regiment)

C – Affidavit of Witnesses, not Comrades, as to Wounds

J.L. Marshall and E.C. Monger, both of Rockingham County, Virginia, swear that they have known Martha A. Davis for 20 years, and that she lived with Mitchell Davis up to the date of his death, and that they have no personal interest in the claim.

D – Certificate of Physician

C.S.Wyant and Wm. Wyant of Rockingham County, Virginia, swear that they know Martha A. Davis, and that they visited Mitchell Davis during his last illness, that Mitchell Davis had been attended by Dr. Coffman during his last illness, that the doctor is nowhere to be found, and that they believe Mitchell Davis died from heart disease.

E – Certificate of Camp of Confederate Veterans

S. B. Gibbons of the Camp of Confederate Veterans of Rockingham County, Virginia, swears that he examined the application and recommends that Martha A. Davis be granted aid.

F – Certificate of Ex-Confederate Soldiers

Jesse Wyant and J.W. Baugher of Rockingham County, Virginia swear that they were soldiers in the war between the States, that they examined the application, and recommend that Martha A. Davis be granted aid.

G – Certificate of the Commissioner of the Revenue

J. W. Churchie (?) swears that Martha A. Davis is a citizen of Rockingham County, Virginia.

I need to do some more research to learn about Mitchell Davis's service.  The names of the men who led the command and regiment are not easy to read.

©2014, Wendy Mathias.  All rights reserved.