My Blaylock Ancestry [Revised]

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My Blaylock Ancestry By Gerald R. Gallagher

Revised December 19, 2014

Table of Contents Preface .......................................................................................................................................................... 1 The Origin of the Name Blaylock .................................................................................................................. 4 Early Arrivals in America ............................................................................................................................. 12 Back in Lincoln County, North Carolina ...................................................................................................... 36 Tippah County, Mississippi.......................................................................................................................... 50 South Carolina Sowing Seeds of Discontent ............................................................................................... 73 Civil War Impact in Mississippi.................................................................................................................... 83 Civil War Impact on North Carolina and Georgia Relatives ...................................................................... 119 Mississippi Life After the Civil War ........................................................................................................... 133 Gone to Texas ........................................................................................................................................... 146 From Melancholia Through the Great Depression ................................................................................... 159 Rebounding ............................................................................................................................................... 173 Afterword .................................................................................................................................................. 183 Appendix A - The Rainey Letters ........................................................................................................... 184 Appendix B - Searching for Blaylocks in Arkansas Who Served in the Union Army in the Civil War .... 221

Preface My mother’s maiden name was Vonda LaRue Blaylock. Her grandfather, Thomas Madison Blaylock, had died 25 years before she was born. Her father, George Freeman Blaylock, was only 3 years old when his father died and as a result, very little information about the history of the Blaylock family was passed from one generation of the family to the next. Only one photograph of Thomas Madison Blaylock is known to exist but it is known that he was a Methodist Protestant minister and throughout my childhood I was told that he had died of lockjaw.

Thomas Madison Blaylock 1874 - 1906 Every time I had to get a tetanus shot as a child, I was told that my great grandfather had died of lockjaw and that the tetanus shot would protect me from his fate. It was even explained to me how horrible it was to have lockjaw causing a person’s teeth to be clenched uncontrollably and being unable to eat, resulting in starvation. Obviously, I didn’t want to get lockjaw, so just like all other children, I took my tetanus shot. The truth is that I really had no other choice. I later came to realize as an adult it was more painful than most other inoculations. The only problem was, my great grandfather actually died of My Blaylock Ancestry

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typhoid fever. Somehow the cause of his death had been confused over the years, probably because tetanus and typhoid both begin with the letter T. I guess I still needed all those tetanus shots. Anyway, I got them whether I needed them or not. Family history that is based on stories passed from one generation to the next can contain gems that were never documented in any public records. These stories can also be inaccurate. By researching the available records and using the limited amount of family history that has been shared with me, I have learned some very interesting things about the Blaylock family. I have contacted distant cousins who had some oral history of the family and I have searched for records that document events in the lives of my ancestors. In some cases, the information I have found is limited to birth, death and marriage dates which can be very boring to read. So much so that when many people research their family tree and provide this type of information to living family members, it is often never read. I have tried to find information that goes beyond these basic facts in order to glimpse into the past and understand something of the lives my ancestors lived. I have described family research to others as being similar to solving a jigsaw puzzle but instead of having all the pieces in the box when you start, you only have a few pieces on one edge and you have to go and find all the other pieces. Sometimes you find pieces that seem to belong to your puzzle but turn out to be for a different puzzle all together. Other times, there are just missing pieces that no longer exist because the event was not recorded or the record was destroyed. If I only had a dollar for every time a County Clerk told me that the Courthouse records burned in a fire prior to 1900. But just putting the pieces of the puzzle together without understanding the events that the people lived through is like putting a jigsaw together and looking at the back of the puzzle rather than the picture on the front. So I have tried to put the births, death, marriages and children into context for the time and places my ancestors lived. At the same time, keeping track of the names of the men in each generation can become confusing especially when some individuals have a common name with their father, uncles, cousins or grandfather. In addition, because women have traditionally taken the last name of their husbands when they married, it can be very difficult to determine who a specific woman’s parents were. I have included a chart on the following page that may be useful as a reference as you read through the history of the family. There are still many unknowns and I intend to search for more information which will provide additional insight into the Blaylock heritage which I will share with my family. But rather than starting with the most recent history and working backwards, which is what is required in researching the family’s history, it is more understandable to start at the beginning or at least the earliest Blaylocks that I have been able to connect to my family.

My Blaylock Ancestry

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My Blaylock Ancestry

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The Origin of the Name Blaylock Generally, last names came into use in the British Isles around 1000 A.D. as the number of people increased and there was a need to identify a specific person when several individuals living in the same area used the same Christian name. The last name might be based on the occupation of the person, some physical characteristic of the person, or refer to the place where the person lived. There are several theories on the origin of the name Blaylock and it is very possible that more than one of these theories is correct. The Theory of Scottish Origins The most authoritative source of information on the origin of the name Blaylock was published in 1946 by George F. Black and titled The Surnames of Scotland which I quote here: “Blayloc. A rare name recorded in Annan, 1801. Suggested to be from Old English, blæ meaning livid or lead colored hair, but perhaps of local origin. Cf under Blellock.” Others have given the meaning of the word blæ as ash colored and the old English word loc to mean a lock of hair. The word blæ is also the origin of the word bleak we use today when we say we have bleak weather meaning a gray or colorless day. Many old English root words are derived from Norse words as a result of the influence of the Viking’s many interactions with the English and Scots. The modern Norwegian word for lead is “Bly” and the modern German word for lead is “Blei” which may be a clue that the Old English word blæ was the result of Viking influence. Based on this explanation, I would assume that the person or persons who first used the name Blaylock had gray or ash colored hair but I wonder if this would really be an unusual trait that would distinguish that person from others with the same Christian name. In the 1500s, living to the age that one’s hair would turn gray could have been unusual since anyone living to the age of 30-40 would have been considered old and it is possible that the people who took up the name Blaylock were honoring an ancestor who lived much beyond the normal life span of the time. But perhaps there was something unusual about the person with the gray or ash colored hair. I only mention this because my mother had brown hair her whole life except for a patch about 1 inch in diameter that turned gray or ash colored later in her life. Perhaps the original person who used the name Blaylock had a similar unusual patch of hair. In any case, George F. Black found the census of Annan township in the County of Dumfriesshire in Scotland taken in 1801 lists a household under the name Blayloc. But other sources claim documents have listed the name Blaylock in Scotland as early as the 1500s. The reference to Blellock given in The Surnames of Scotland is intended to allow for the possibility that the name Blaylock may also refer to a particular farm such as Blailoch in Selkirk in the border lands of Scotland and England which could have been the origin of a family name. Dumfriesshire today is the County of Dumfries and Galloway in the southwest of Scotland. To the east is Northumberland County, England and to the south is Cumberland County, England. This border area My Blaylock Ancestry

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between Scotland and England was the northern boundary of the Roman Empire. During the reign of Emperor Hadrian a wall of defense was built across this area to separate Roman England from the barbarians in the north. The wall was constructed beginning in 122 A.D. and the township of Annan lies only about 10 miles from the path of Hadrian’s Wall. Over the centuries, conflicts to preserve the independence of Scotland on the one hand and the desires of those in England to conquer Scotland on the other hand, lead to battles in the border area. Obviously, England succeeded and Blaylocks must have been firsthand witnesses to the conflict.

Remains of a Section of Hadrian’s Wall built by Romans in 122 A.D. In July 2013, my wife, Lisa, and I took a vacation trip to Ireland and Scotland. We went to Dumfries and found records for the Canonbie Parish Register which recorded christenings for Jannett Blaelock daughter of James Blaelock and his wife, Jannett Murray, on March 27, 1698 and the children of Francis Blaelock and his wife, Elizabeth Underwood; Mary Blaelock christened on December 14, 1762 and Francis Blaelock christened on January 8, 1767. By the 1790s, the Canonbie Parish Register recorded christenings for several Blaylock families and the spelling of the name appears as Blaylock after that time. The Canonbie Parish Cemetery also has memorials inscribed with at least 5 Blaylock families’ names beginning as early as 1765. One of the memorials is for Francis Blaylock who died at the age of 94 on February 15, 1860 and appears to be the same person as Francis Blaelock who was christened on January 8, 1767. This information conforms with the information given in The Surnames of Scotland by George F. Black regarding the evolution of the spelling of the name from Blælock to Blaylock. The spelling of a name by a clerk in the church or by a stone mason depended on the training of the person making the record because most people could not read or write at this time and they relied on the education of those who could to know how a name should be spelled. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Village of Canonbie Today, Canonbie is a small village with a population of approximately 390 people on the River Esk located 2 miles north of the border between Scotland and England. The Canonbie Parish population is estimated to be about 1,250 people. In 1983, the A7 highway between Carlisle and Edinburgh was constructed along a scenic route and passed on the west side of Canonbie while the old road runs through the village. Prior to the building of Hadrian’s Wall, a Roman settlement had been built in this area along the Roman road going north into Alba (the Roman word for Scotland). Most histories of Canonbie report that an Augustinian Priory was first built there in 1165-1170 A.D. as an outpost of the Jedburgh Abbey located about 40 miles to the northeast. However, some histories claim the Priory was established in the reign of David I of Scotland between 1124 and 1153 A.D. Canonbie grew as people moved near the Priory and by the 1500s Canonbie Parish was a population center for the Debatable Lands with an estimated population of 2,500.

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View of the Debatable Lands today Until Scotland accepted English rule, there were disputes over the boundary between the two countries. The Scots claimed land further south and the English claimed land further north. The land in dispute was known as the Debatable Lands. When Henry VIII renounced the Catholic Church and established himself as the head of the Church of England, all property previously owned by the Catholic Church in England was confiscated and this dramatically improved Henry’s financial position. In October 1542, Henry requested that his nephew, James V of Scotland, renounce the Catholic Church and recognize the Church of England but James remained a faithful Catholic and refused. On November 24, 1542, the English Army under the command of the Lord of Wharton defeated a much larger Scottish Army at the Battle of Solway Moss about 4 miles south of Canonbie. After the battle, the English destroyed the Priory at Canonbie while they pursued the retreating Scottish Army north. Later, stones from the destroyed Priory were used to build the bridge over the River Esk in Canonbie. As a result of the destruction of the Priory, any records that might have existed for the area and might have included Blælocks prior to 1542 have not survived. Whether these Blaylocks were directly related to the Blaylocks who came to America and are my direct ancestors is impossible to determine based on the limited records that are available. But at the least, they represent some of the earliest Blaylocks and provide an insight into the geographical area and the political unrest where the family originated. This would not be the only time that Blaylocks found themselves living in disputed territory.

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An Alternative Theory Another theory of the origin of the name Blaylock is that it was derived from the name Blacklock which is believed to have originated in Cumberland County in northern England. The use of the name Blacklock is reported to have begun as early as 1100 A.D. The old English origin was blac and loc meaning a person with black hair. Some researchers theorize that the handwritten word blac was misinterpreted as blæ resulting in the name Blacklock becoming Blælock and then Blaylock. While this is a popular theory that is often repeated on the internet and is possible, I would suggest that the spoken word was more important when the name Blaylock originated because so few people were able to read and write at that time. In speaking, the words Blac and Blæ sound differently even if they may look almost identical when written by hand as they would have been in any document from this time period and it is the difference in the sound of the two words that causes me to doubt this theory. Blacklock is a much more common name than Blaylock in both England and Scotland which may simply be the result of more people having black hair than ash colored hair. However, the theory that the name Blaylock may have originated in England is supported by the fact that the number of people named Blaylock living in England in the early censuses substantially exceeds the number enumerated in Scotland. In addition, parish registers in Carlisle, Kirk-Linton, Penrith and other towns in Cumberland County list many more Blaylock christenings in a much broader area than those in Scotland. Whether this is due to better record keeping and preservation of records in the English parishes compared to the parishes in Scotland or actually indicates the origin of the name is impossible to know. Dumfriesshire in Scotland and Cumberland County in England border each other, so the name could have originated in northern England and moved into Scotland or the reverse. Regardless of the origin of the name, early Blaylocks lived in the Debatable Lands. Some of this territory is in Scotland today and some is in England. One More Alternative Theory A third theory I have seen but which is much less popular claims that Blaylock is derived from Blacklock but that the origin is based on the word “loch” in Scottish meaning lake. In this theory, the Blaylocks lived near a Black Lake but no specific lake is mentioned. I have found no foundation for this theory but it is interesting that Blaylock is considered a Sept or branch of the Clan Douglas by the Clan Douglas Society of North America. The origin of the name Douglas comes from the Gaelic “dubh” meaning dark and “glais” meaning water or river. Perhaps the origin of the name Douglas influenced this theory that Blaylock could have been derived from words meaning Black Lake. Whether the inclusion of the Blaylocks as a Sept in the Clan Douglas is historically accurate or not is questionable because the Clan Douglas Society of North America is primarily a social organization which includes good fellowship and learning about Scottish heritage among its goals. However, it is known that the Douglas Clan was an important clan in southwestern Scotland.

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Heraldry The likely Scottish origin of the name Blaylock gives rise to the question of a family crest or Coat of Arms and a family tartan. A true Coat of Arms was an emblem to identify a specific person in a leadership position in battle by the design on the front of their shield. These Coats of Arms have been adopted by families as family crests and in modern times have created a marketing opportunity for souvenir merchants. There is no ancient Coat of Arms for Blaylock. However, modern day opportunists have created a family crest which has three black pad locks on a shield representing the family. The fact is that pad locks were never a part of the origin of the name Blaylock and the use of them in the family crest betrays the intent to hoodwink purchasers by those who sell these items. In his book, Blalock and Related Families, Pioneers in Virginia, the Carolinas, Georgia, Alabama and Texas, Delton D. Blalock agrees with the origin of the name Blalock being in Cumberland County, England and being derived from the name Blacklock. This book reports that the Coat of Arms for the Blalock family is of ancient origin and is a chevron pointing upwards with 2 ram’s heads on each side of the point and 1 rams head below the chevron. I have not been able to find any other reference to confirm this statement. In fact, the only similar Coat of Arms I have found is said to be for the Rams family. A similar Coat of Arms was patented for the local government of Huddersfield in Yorkshire in 1868 but the borough was abolished in 1974 and the area ceded to Kirklees and West Yorkshire. However, this Coat of Arms used 3 complete rams rather than ram’s heads. With regard to a family tartan, any Blaylocks of ancient time would probably have worn the Douglas tartan if they were a Sept of that Clan. However, there is some question as to whether the 16th century Clan Douglas actually had a tartan at that early date. It is certain that no ancient tartan specifically for the name Blaylock exists. However, in modern times, Dr. Phil Smith Jr. has designed and registered three tartans for Blaylocks. In 1953 while a student at George Pepperdine College, he designed the Blaylock tartan for Beverly Blaylock of Edmonton, Canada and according to one source the tartan was designed to be used for her wedding.

Blaylock Tartan designed in 1953 Then in 2010, Dr. Phil Smith Jr. designed the Blaylock Annandale tartan for John Blaylock of Los Alamos, New Mexico, and the Blaylock Hunting tartan for Joe Blaylock of Sacramento, California. These tartans can be worn by anyone with the surname Blaylock or any variation of spelling of that name. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Blaylock Annandale Tartan designed in 2010

Blaylock Hunting Tartan designed in 2010 Spelling Blaylock Spelling of any name in the public records depended on the training of the clerk who recorded the record and how the person pronounced their name more than any other factors. For the last 200 years or so in England and Scotland, Blaylock has been consistently spelled with the letter “Y” in the middle. The 1891 census of England and Wales lists 525 households headed by persons with names spelled Blaylock and only 6 households headed by persons with names spelled Blalock. The 1891 census of Scotland lists 91 households headed by persons with names spelled Blaylock and none spelled Blalock. However, this is not the case in the United States. The earliest records here generally spell the name Blalock. The 1840 census listed 120 Blalock and 45 Blaylock households. By 1880 there were 1998 Blalock and 996 Blaylock households in the United States and in 1920 there were 1206 Blalock and 779 Blaylock households. While the United States had an agricultural based economy, most people did not read or write and depended on the person making the record to spell the name correctly. Blalock and Blaylock were pronounced the same so the training of the clerk making the record determined how the name was spelled. However, many of the male ancestors I have been able to research in the Blaylock family did read and write. Even so, I have seen records for our family where the clerk spelled the name Blaylock in the body of the document but the My Blaylock Ancestry

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individual signed spelling his name Blalock. For this reason, I have tried to use the spelling that the individual used when signing a document. As we move forward in time, different branches of the family today spell their names differently. The earliest records in America typically use the Blalock spelling and this begins to change around 1850 to the Blaylock spelling. However, one branch of the family that moved to California and another branch that moved to Houston continued to spell the name Blalock.

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Early Arrivals in America Many researchers try to identify the earliest person arriving in America and then connect all records with the same last name to that person. I have not been able to trace my family back to that point yet but perhaps with more research I will be able to determine more. However, based on records of persons named Blalock/Blaylock, it is very likely that my ancestors arrived in Virginia before 1700 and moved from the coastal area around Jamestown to inland Virginia and then into North Carolina prior to the Revolutionary War. They had arrived in Lincoln County, North Carolina sometime between 1775 and 1800. Lincoln County, North Carolina John Beatty (Beattie) built a home and settled on west side of Catawba River at Beatties’ Ford in 1749. Some say he was the first white settler in what is now Lincoln County while others say Adam Sherrill settled there in 1747. When they arrived, the area was part of Bladen County which had no western boundary. As the population increased, new counties were formed and the area became part of Anson County in 1750, Mecklenburg County in 1762, Tryon County in 1768 and finally Lincoln County in 1779. Today a road runs north out of Charlotte, North Carolina named Beattie’s Ford Road which is approximately 25 miles long and goes to Lake Norman. In 1959, Duke Power Company began construction of Lake Norman Dam on the Catawba River which flooded the valley and Beattie’s Ford when it was completed 4 years later. When John Beatty arrived, the lands west of the Catawba River were inhabited by Cherokees. There are a number of stories about settlers in the area being killed by Indians. In fact, one of John Beatty’s sons is said to have been killed by Indians while he was either searching for his cattle or while hunting, depending on which version of the story is told. It is said that he hid from the Indians in a hollow below a fallen tree with his dog but the dog barked at the Indians giving away his position. He was found, killed and scalped. Regardless of these dangers, settlers continued to move into the area and by the time of the Revolutionary War, several communities had formed in the area that became Lincoln County. Bounty Land Warrants issued as payment to those who had served in the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 brought more settlers west in search of available land. Settlers who had arrived earlier sent news of the area back to relatives and encouraged them to move west. In addition, inheritance played a role in the search for new land. Because families were large, often the farm owned by one generation would not support all of the families of the next generation. It is not unusual to see the eldest son inherit the plantation of the father and other children mentioned in the Last Will and Testament receive other property or payments. This allowed control and political power for land owning families to remain with the oldest son and the younger children could move west to establish their own plantations or farms. Sometimes children would be given their inheritance upon marriage and use these funds to purchase land for their own families. In these cases, the Last Will and Testament of the father might leave minimal payments to his married children and substantial lands, money or personal property to his widow and unmarried children. The large size of families and the My Blaylock Ancestry

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amount of land needed to support them increased the demand for land and it was more economical to obtain land in the lesser populated areas to the west. The establishment of Beattie’s Ford made possible the movement of settlers into the lands previously inhabited by Cherokees which became Lincoln County in 1779. The first church in the area that became Lincoln County was built in 1764 and called Beatties’ Meeting House. It was located about 1 mile from Beatties’ Ford. Churches were important to the early settlers not only for religious reasons but also because they provided a sense of community in the wilderness and a place for social interaction. Living on a farm in the wilds of Lincoln County might mean only interacting with your immediate family for days or weeks at a time. Churches brought people together who shared common values and provided needed social contact. My Earliest Blalock Record Blalocks were among the settlers that moved into the area of Beatties’ Ford. The earliest record that I can identify without any doubt as being my direct Blalock ancestor is in Lincoln County, North Carolina dated July 17, 1822 when John Blalock married Betsy Spain. A copy of their marriage bond appears here. Notice that the bondsman was Richard Proctor who was married to Betsy’s sister Martha.

John Blalock Marriage Bond My Blaylock Ancestry

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Chapter Summary The remainder of this chapter covers the information I have found regarding the Blalocks prior to the marriage of John Blalock and Betsy Spain. I believe that the groom was John Blalock Jr. The records of David Blalock and what I believe were his sons, David , John and William, as well as his daughter Ann, are discussed. Because there are substantial gaps in the records, I cannot be absolutely certain about the relationships between the earliest Blalocks in Lincoln County. My reason for examining the available information is to provide some insight into the movements of the two sons of John and Betsy when they left Lincoln County as young men in the late 1840s. Some readers may find this discussion of records that I have found and what they might mean to be boring or like telling someone how a watch works when they only asked what time it is. For others that are interested in the pieces of the puzzle of the family history, there may be facts that I have found that will help them solve more of the puzzle. Therefore, if you become overwhelmed with details that don’t interest you, please skip ahead to the next chapter. I believe that there are at least three story arcs in the family history that are very interesting even if the details in the remainder of this chapter become tedious. Early Lincoln County Records Prior to the marriage of John Blalock and Betsy Spain, there were several Blalocks in Lincoln County, North Carolina but I have not been able to determine with certainty how they were related to each other although I will share my interpretation of the records I have found. Establishing relationships with certainty is made difficult because marriages and land purchases that we would expect to be recorded by the county clerk’s office were not always recorded. North Carolina law required bonds to be posted by the groom and his bondsman but this law was often ignored. The posting of a bond provided the bride’s family time to evaluate the character of the future groom in the event that he was not well known to the bride’s family. For example, the bride’s family might want to verify that the prospective groom was not already married if he was from another county. The monetary purpose of the bond was to assure that the groom did not accept the dowry and then run off before the marriage, or while betrothed, take advantage of the future bride, ruin her virtue, and leave the county. The bondsman would be a man of means who would vouch for the groom and the bondsman would be required to pay the bond if the groom failed to go through with the marriage. It was assumed that if the bondsman had to pay the bond, he would be able to find the reluctant groom and recover his loss. However, posting bonds required a trip to the clerk’s office and payment of a fee. As a result, the law was often ignored. The Lincoln County records also include the following additional marriage bonds prior to 1823: Groom William Heaker My Blaylock Ancestry

Bride Ann Blaylock Page 14

Bond Date April 30, 1785 by Gerald R. Gallagher

William Howard Hubbard Blalock William Blalock David Blalock Jr.

Anne Blalock Nancy Dellinger Mary Armstrong Louisa Sides

October 7, 1816 June 5, 1819 September 28, 1821 October 12, 1822

There was also a request for divorce filed by a David Blalock who had married Nancy Mathews in 1802 with the reason for divorce being that she had run away with Francis Dunn, but this divorce was denied by the court in 1808. Unfortunately, I am not able to determine how these listed Blalocks are related to each other based only on marriage records. Due to the census records, we do know that the marriage of William Blalock and Mary Armstrong was a second marriage for William. Mary Armstrong was the widow of John Armstrong and her maiden name was Dobbins. Anne/Anna Blalock that married William Howard was likely the daughter of William Blalock from his first marriage because, when William Howard died sometime prior to 1822, his widow, Anna Howard signed over administration of the estate to William Blalock on January 23, 1822. The Ann Blaylock who married William Heaker in 1875 was likely the sister of William Blalock. Sometimes land purchase records can help determine family relationships based on persons with the same last name living very near each other. However, land purchases that might be expected to be recorded at the clerk’s office often were not recorded and there was no law requiring the recording of transfers of deeds in North Carolina in this time period. If two men trusted each other, they might buy and sell a parcel of land to each other and not bother to have it recorded. More commonly, if someone was moving out of the area, he might sell his land, accept the payment from the buyer in hard currency, and leave the county without formalizing the land sale in any way other than a handshake. The buyer would begin paying taxes on the land but might not have a written deed transferring ownership of the property from the seller. Since many people could not read or write, a man’s word and cash in hand were more valuable than a few lines on a piece of paper to most men. Tax lists can also indicate persons living near each other but many tax lists have been lost over the years. As a result, there are gaps in the historical records for the years when the tax lists have been lost. The first recorded land sale for a Blalock in Lincoln County was the purchase of land by David Blalock on July 21, 1777, from Stephen Lyon recorded in Deed Book 2, page 364. Almost twenty years passed before another land transaction was recorded for a Blalock when John Blalock purchased 184 acres from William Maskal for 100 pounds in 1796 in Deed Book 22, page 150. John Blalock sold 114 acres of land to Benjamin Stacy in 1800 for 80 pounds recorded in Deed Book 20, page 125. John Blalock also sold 100 acres of land to William Blalock in 1812 for 62 pounds recorded in Deed Book 25, page 415. William had previously purchased land from Athey (Anthony) Hanson in 1811 recorded in Deed Book 28, page 169. Additional land transactions involving Blalocks include the following: 1812 1818 1823 1823

William Blalock sold 100 acres to John Little for $180 John Blalock bought 100 acres from William Pilgrim for $60 John Blalock bought 51 acres from William Evans for $75 John Blalock sold ½ acre to David Lutz for $3

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Book 25, page 422 Book 28, page 400 Book 31, page 711 Book 32, page 296 by Gerald R. Gallagher

1824 1824 1830 1847

John Blalock bought 40 acres from Young J. Hardin for $40 John Blalock sold 100 acres to Jacob Hoyle for $300 John Blalock sold 95 acres to Michael Whiteman for $105 William Blalock deeded land to the school district

Book 31, page 710 Book 32, page 146 Book 34, page 16 Book 41, page 452

These land records do not provide enough information to determine family relationships but the deeds do describe the placement of the property and offer clues to persons living near each other who might be family members. However, the descriptions of the boundaries of the land in a deed in North Carolina were based on the location of trees, rocks, roads, creeks, etc. and can be very difficult for someone to locate today because trees die, rocks get moved, new roads are built, and creeks dry up. Looking for additional information, the federal censuses can provide additional clues. David Blalock The first US census was taken in 1790 but only includes the name of the head of each household and the number of males and females in each household. No one named Blalock appears as a head of household in Lincoln County in 1790 and no one named David Blalock is in the Lincoln County censuses before 1830 and even then the person listed is David Blalock Jr. However, someone named David Blalock was known in Lincoln County because he was the surety or bondsman on the marriage bond for Benjamin Proctor and Anny Shelton on February 15, 1808. In addition, a parcel of his land was sold to settle a legal suit around the same time. Perhaps David Blalock lived elsewhere but owned land in Lincoln County and may have rented the land or conducted other business there. This David Blalock may have been the father of David Blalock Jr. who married Louisa Sides in 1822 and the son of the David Blalock who purchased land in Lincoln County in 1777 as well as the David Blalock who filed for divorce from Nancy Mathews in 1802. It is also possible that there were only two adult males named David Blalock in Lincoln County prior to 1830. There are several Blalocks listed in the 1810 and later censuses of Burke County, located just to the northwest of Lincoln County, but no David Blalock is listed. In the Revolutionary War, a brief but strategically important battle had been fought at Ramsour’s Mill near Lincolnton on June 20, 1780, which along with a subsequent Patriot victory at King’s Mountain, halted the British advance from the south preventing a consolidation of British forces with Cornwallis’s army in Virginia. As a result, Cornwallis was surrounded without reinforcements at Yorktown in October 1781 ending the Revolutionary War. This battle was fought by about 400 Whigs (Patriots) who gained victory over 1,300 Tories (Loyalists). Both sides were militiamen rather than formal military units and therefore none had uniforms but wore civilian clothing. Historian, Daniel W. Barefoot, writes, "to identify themselves, the Patriots pinned white paper on their hats while the Tories struck green twigs to theirs”. This combined with the smoke from the black powder weapons used in the battle resulted in considerable confusion and possibly some deaths due to friendly fire. At least 2 persons named David Blalock filed pension claims for service in the Revolutionary War. A reading of the pension applications does not provide enough information to establish either David My Blaylock Ancestry

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Blalock as the one who purchased land in 1777 in Lincoln County. The testimony in their pension claims about the residences of these two David Blalocks after they completed military duty does not indicate that either one ever lived in Lincoln County. However, the movement of the troops described in the pension claims indicates that they moved as far west as the Catawba River. It may be that while in service in the military, one of these 2 David Blalocks became familiar with the area around Lincoln County and decided to purchase land there but never lived on the land he purchased. Perhaps he rented the land to be farmed by someone who could not afford to purchase land. Because David Blalock was not listed in the early censuses in Lincoln County, there is no information regarding the size of his family. It is certainly possible that David Blalock who filed for divorce from Nancy Mathews but never appeared in a Lincoln County census, and John Blalock and William Blalock who were listed in Lincoln County censuses, were the sons of David Blalock who first purchased land in Lincoln County, but this cannot be proven or disproven based on the information I have found to date. If David Blalock Jr. who married Louisa Sides on October 12, 1822 was the same person as David B. Blalock listed in the 1830 census of Lincoln County who was born between 1790-1800, then he was likely the son of David Blalock that filed for divorce from Nancy Mathews but would have been a child of David’s from a previous marriage because he was born before 1800 and the marriage to Nancy Mathews was in 1802. I have found no evidence to the dispute this theory and this does seem to be the simplest explanation of the records that do exist. David Blalock, John Blalock, William Blalock and Ann Blalock (who married William Heaker on April 30, 1785) were likely the children of David who purchased land in 1777 in Lincoln County. Other than the marriage record, I have found no additional information on Ann and William Heaker until the 1820 census where they were both over 45 years old and had no children living in the household. However, it appears that the name Heaker was spelled as Hager in both previous and subsequent censuses based on the similarity of first names in those censuses to the families named Heaker in the 1820 census and the fact that there were no Hager households in the 1820 census in Lincoln County. This being the case, Ann was likely not the first wife of William Heaker/Hager because there were 11 people in his household in 1790. William Blalock’s Family William Blalock appears in each census from 1800 through 1850 in Lincoln County. While the first recorded land transaction for William was in 1811, he resided in the area at least 11 years prior to that date. He may have rented land or perhaps never recorded the purchase of his first parcel of land in Lincoln County. William married at least twice and had a large family. According to census records, he had I son and 3 daughters in 1800 but two of the daughters died or married before 1810 without recording the marriage. By 1810’s census, 4 additional sons and 3 additional daughters were born. Prior to the 1820 census, one of the younger sons died and two of the younger daughters died or married without recording the marriage. The household included 6 sons and 3 daughters in 1820 but William appears to be a widower. September, 28, 1821, William married Mary (nee Dobbins) Armstrong who was the widow of John Armstrong. According to the 1830 census, 2 daughters from Mary’s first My Blaylock Ancestry

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marriage joined her and William in his household with his 2 youngest sons and one daughter from his first marriage. William and Mary were listed in the 1840 census with a female child age 15-20, a female age 20-30 and a male child under age 5 but this was most likely a grandchild considering that William and Mary were listed between age 60 and 69. William and Mary were listed in the 1850 census at age 78 and 75 respectively. Considering the size of his family and the length of time that they lived in Lincoln County, most of the Blalocks living in Lincoln County will likely trace their ancestry to William or to the Blalocks from Burke County that later moved to Lincoln County. Based on the ages of the persons in William’s household in the 1800, 1810 and 1820 censuses, William and his first wife had at least 14 children; 7 girls and 7 boys, assuming that everyone in the household was one of their children. Four daughters and one son either died or married without a marriage record before they were enumerated above the age of 10. The names of the girls are particularly difficult to determine due to the lack of records. The 2 youngest boys were likely to have been James Blalock who married Assenath Saddler on January 4, 1837 and moved to Weakley County, Tennessee about 1851 and Samuel Blalock who married Rebecca Simms January 15, 1838 and moved to Graves County, Kentucky about 1851. William, James and Samuel all appear on page 125 in the 1840 census indicating that they lived near each other. William died sometime between 1850 and 1860 and the fact that these two sons moved away from Lincoln County about 1851 may indicated when William died and his estate was divided although no probate records exist. Thomas Blalock age 20-30 was listed on page 206 of the 1830 census and was a possible child of William Blalock but he could also be David or John Blalock’s child. Since William was listed in the census on page 207, it is more likely that Thomas was William’s child because they lived near each other. Thomas has a wife in the 1830 census but unfortunately there was no marriage recorded for Thomas and he did not appear in subsequent censuses in Lincoln County. John Blalock Sr. and What the Censuses Tell Us About His Family John Blalock’s first recorded purchase of land in Lincoln County was in 1796 but he does not appear in the census until 1810. Even though he was not listed in the 1800 census in Lincoln County, he did serve on a jury in April, 1805, in the case of The State v Warner Stockstill where the accused was found guilty of trespassing. Also, in October, 1805, Charles Conner’s Executors sued John Blalock and Alexander Reed in a civil case. In 1812, John Blalock was listed in the muster roll for the 2nd Brigade, 8th Regiment, 6th Company, from Lincoln County, North Carolina in the War of 1812. He was also listed in the Lincoln County tax records in 1819 and 1821 with a 100 acre farm valued at $350 on Buffalo Creek. In the 1810 census of Morganton in Burke County which is about 50 miles northwest of Beatties’ Ford, there is a listing for a John Blalock and the household contains a similar, but not exactly the same, number of people as the John Blalock listed in Lincoln County for the same year. A Revolutionary War Pension file W1807 for John Blalock of Burke County states that he was born in Brunswick County, Virginia in 1762, served as a Lieutenant beginning in 1778, married Polly Dorman in Orange County, North Carolina in 1797, moved to Burke County in 1798, moved to Carter County, Tennessee in 1830, moved to Yancey County, North Carolina by 1838 and died in Yancey County in 1846. He appears in the My Blaylock Ancestry

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1810 census and the 1840 censuses but not 1800, 1820 or 1830 censuses. My reason for mentioning this John Blalock is to prevent any confusion with the John Blalock of Lincoln County. By 1820, two persons named John Blalock resided in Lincoln County on the west side of the south fork of the Catawba River. Even though they were listed as John Blalock and John Blalock Jr., it is possible that these two persons were not father and son. In some cases, the census taker would list persons with the same name as Senior to indicate the older person and Junior to indicate the younger person. There is a male child listed in the 1810 census for William Blalock that could have been John Blalock Jr. based on age but this child could also have been Thomas Blalock listed in the 1830 census for Lincoln County which seems more likely. So while it is not possible to be certain with regard to who was John Blaylock Jr.’s father, the most straight forward answer would be John Blalock Sr. John Blalock Sr. was listed in the 1810 census in Lincoln County age 26-44 with his wife age 26-44 and children, 3 sons and 1 daughter, all less than 10 years of age. John Blalock Jr. was listed in the 1820 census as head of household with 2 males age 18-25, 1 male under 10, 1 female age 26-44 and 1 female under 10 years of age. By 1820 John Blalock Sr.’s household appears to include himself age 26-44, his wife age 26-44, 3 females less than age 10, 2 males less than age 10, 1 male age 10-15 and one male age 16-18. So it is reasonable to assume that John Blalock Jr. is the oldest son of John Blalock Sr. because at least one son from the 1810 census has either moved to another household or died. In addition, because both John Blalock Sr. and John Blalock Jr. lived near each other on the west side of the south fork of the Catawba River and were both listed as a head of household in the 1820 census, it is more likely than not that they are father and son. Combining the information regarding the age of John Blalock Jr. from both censuses, he would have been 18-20 years old in 1820 and would not likely have been married to the woman who was 26-45 years old in his household. However, more information is required to understand the census data. The History of Walker County Georgia by James Alfred Sartain was published in 1932 and one small section is based on the information provided by descendants of John Blalock Sr. The information appears to be provided by the grandchildren of John Blalock Sr. through his son Henry, and his grandson Henry A. Blalock who married Carra A. Sartain, the older sister of James Alfred Sartain. An excerpt reads: “Arriving in the Old North State, the first Blaylock to purchase land in Lincoln County was David Blaylock. who bought land, according to old records, on July 21, 1777. He was the father of John Blaylock who came to Georgia with his wife, Mary Eaton, about 1822, and settled in what is now Fulton County, but was at that time a part of Fayette County. John and Mary's home was located where the city of Atlanta now stands. The records show that J. L. (John) Blaylock, who was a son of John and Mary Eaton Blaylock, was a pioneer citizen of Fayette County and was a representative from that county to the Secession Convention at MilledgeviIle. The children of John and Mary numbered eight, but all their names are not known. Those we do know were Henry, who was ancestor of the Blaylocks living in and around Chickamauga, Georgia, and other sections of Walker County, and David, who was born in North Carolina, February 14, 1818, coming with his parents to Georgia about 1822. He married Caroline Beatty in My Blaylock Ancestry

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1842 to which union were born 11 children. One daughter, Mary, married William Tucker; Jane married a Thornton and went west, and a son, William, was living in Walker County in 1850.” Using other records, I have attempted to confirm the information in Sartain’s book. Historical records do support much of what is reported in this account regarding John Blalock Sr. moving to Georgia. However, there is at least one conflict with the information in the book and the historical records which I will discuss later. The 1810, 1820, 1830 and 1840 censuses provide information on the number of children in the household of John Blalock and the 1850 census listed John’s age as 76 and Mary’s age as 60 but no one else was living in their household by 1850. While Mary and John could have had 4 children by the time she was 20, 5 additional children by age 30, 6 additional children by age 40, and 1 child after turning age 40, this would be a total of 16 children. Sartain states that John and Mary only had 8 children. It is possible that John Blalock Sr.’s household included more than one generation. It is also possible that Mary was married prior to her marriage to John and the census might include children from her possible first marriage. Since the first known child of John and Mary was Jane born in 1816 when Mary was 26 years old, it would have been uncommonly late her life to be married for the first time. While I have not found any record to determine the marriage date for John Blalock and Mary Eaton, there is a record for a marriage bond posted in Lincoln County, North Carolina on November 11, 1809 for the marriage of Robert Kennedy and Polly Eaton. Polly was a common nickname for women named Mary. No one named Kennedy was listed in the 1810 Census of Lincoln County which may indicate that the couple lived with her parents at the time of that census. It appears that the children in John and Mary’s household in 1820 include children from both of their first marriages. Another critical element in establishing that John Blalock Sr. was widowed prior to his marriage to Mary is the age of John Blalock Jr. and William Blalock who are believed to be John Blalock Sr.’s children. Both John and William were born in 1802 or earlier based on their ages in the censuses and could not be Mary’s children if she was born in 1790 as indicated by her age in the 1850 census. John Blalock Jr. appears in the 1820 census in Lincoln County with a household of 1 male child under 10 years of age, 2 males age 18-25, 1 female child under 10 years of age and one female age 26-44. My first impression was that John Blalock Jr. was the head of the household where the father had died but if Sartain is correct and John Sr. had only 8 children with Mary Eaton, then there was an earlier marriage to account for the number of children in John Blalock Sr.’s household over the 1810-1820 timeframe. John Blalock Jr.’s household in 1820 could have included an older widowed sister age 26-44, a brother age 18-20, a nephew age under 10 and a niece age under 10. If John and William’s mother died prior to John Blalock Sr.’s marriage to Mary Eaton, it would not be unusual for the older children in the family to want to establish themselves independently from their father’s new wife and family or it may have been necessary for the oldest children to move out due to the size of the combined family and the space available in John Sr.’s home. This would further support the theory that John Blalock Sr. was married twice and explain the number of children in his household in later censuses. Unfortunately, there is no

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marriage record to confirm when John Blalock Sr. married Mary Eaton or if John Jr. had a married sister who had been widowed by 1820. I have found only circumstantial evidence to support my theory that John Blalock Sr. was married and widowed before he married Mary Eaton. However, the ages of his known children with Mary Eaton indicate they were all born after 1815. The ages of John Blalock Jr. and William Blalock show that they were born around 1800-1802. Because the early censuses do not list children’s names, relationships to the head of household and ages, it is not possible to be certain about the relationships between members in a household without further information. Unfortunately, none of the early Blalock family members from Lincoln County left Last Will and Testaments which would have likely listed their children’s names. What is known is that John Blalock Sr. purchased land in Lincoln County as early as 1796. He was married and had 4 children under 10 years old before the 1810 census. He was old enough in 1810 at age 36 to have a married daughter who could have been a widow by 1820. He enlisted in the 2nd Brigade, 8th Regiment, 6th Company, from Lincoln County in 1812. Based on the 1850 census, Mary Eaton Blalock was not born until 1790 and John’s wife in the 1810 census was born between 1766 and 1784. No record of his first wife’s death exists. All of the facts that have been found could also be explained if John Blalock Sr. had divorced his first wife when he returned home from service in the Army, however, no divorce petition exists in the court records and divorce was very uncommon at the time. John and Mary Eaton Blalock Moved Several Times Now, I would like to focus on the facts I could find to confirm the information provided by Sartain regarding John Blalock and Mary Eaton. Based on census records, John Blalock Sr. lived in DeKalb County, Georgia at the time of the 1830 census. This is in the same area that would have originally been Fayette County and therefore agrees with Sartain’s information. I was not originally convinced that the John Blalock family in the DeKalb County census was the same family that came from Lincoln County, North Carolina because of inconsistencies in the ages of the persons in the household. However, there were 3 generations of households headed by men named John Eaton living near John Blalock Sr. in Lincoln County from 1790-1820. In 1830, a household headed by John Eaton was listed in the census next door to the household of John Blalock Sr. in DeKalb County, Georgia and was probably Mary Eaton’s father, mother and 2 sisters. Because related families tended to relocate together, the census information supports Sartain’s statement that John Blalock Sr. and his family moved from Lincoln County to the area where Atlanta now stands. In 1819, Alabama was admitted to the union. At that time, the western border of Georgia was the Chattahoochee River because the lands in Georgia west of the river were owned by the Cherokee and Creek Nations. Admittance of Alabama as a state resulted in the Indian Nations being surrounded and negotiations began to obtain the Indian lands for settlement. Fayette County, Georgia was formed May 15, 1821. In 1822, DeKalb County was formed including land that was previously part of Fayette County. Then in 1853, Fulton County was created from the western ½ of DeKalb County. My Blaylock Ancestry

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1821 Georgia Map

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John Blalock Sr. is said to have settled near the site of present day Atlanta but Atlanta did not exist at that time. Atlanta was founded in 1837 as the southern end of a rail line to be built from Chattanooga, Tennessee, and was originally named Terminus. The name was changed to Marysville in 1843 and then to Atlanta in 1845. In 1846, two additional railroad lines converged in the center of Atlanta and spurred dramatic growth. However, when John Blalock Sr. arrived in 1822, this would have been near the edge of the frontier in western Georgia. In 1825, Governor George Troop negotiated the Treaty of Indian Springs which would cede land in the upper Creek Nation to Georgia beginning the settlement of Indian lands west of the Chattahoochee River. In 1828, gold was discovered near Dukes Creek in White County on a belt that ran southwest into the Cherokee Nation resulting in a gold rush into northern Georgia and putting additional pressure on the Cherokee Nation to cede its lands to the new settlers. Andrew Jackson was elected President in 1828 and pushed the Indian Removal Act though Congress in 1830 forcing the remaining Creek and Cherokee people living in Georgia to move west on the Trail of Tears and cede the remaining lands in Georgia to the United States. The removal of the Indian population began with the Choctaw Nation in Mississippi and Alabama in 1831. The Seminoles were removed from Florida in 1832. The Creeks were removed from Alabama in 1834. The Chickasaw were removed from Alabama in 1837 and the Cherokee were removed from North Carolina and Georgia in 1838. The Indian Removal Act provided for the surveying of the land vacated by the Indian Nations for the use of settlers moving west. Walker County, Georgia was formed December 18, 1833 in the northwest corner of Georgia. As the population increased, new counties were formed. Chattooga County was established December 28, 1838 in what was the northern part of Floyd County and is adjacent to Walker County. On December 5, 1853, Catoosa County was formed in the northeast corner of what was Walker County. By 1840, John Blalock Sr. was living in Chattooga County, Georgia. His daughter, Jane, born in 1816, married James Thornton Myers around 1837 but I have not been able to locate a marriage record to establish the exact date. James Thornton Myers purchased 40 acres in Walker County, Alabama by patent (an original owner of land acquired from the Federal government) on August 1, 1839, patent number 11411. Thornton and Jane Myers were listed in Walker County, Alabama in the 1840 census and were in household 97 in the 1850 census. This information is consistent with Sartain’s account except that Thornton was not the last name of Jane’s husband but his middle name which was the name he used.

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1850 Population Census of Walker County, Alabama, households 97-99 Sometime before 1850, John Blalock Sr. and his son Henry with their families moved to Walker County, Alabama where they can also be found in the 1850 census. This is also consistent with Sartain’s account that John Blalock Sr. had a son named Henry. However, Sartain appears to have been unaware that much of the family had gone west but later returned to Georgia. Jane and Thornton Myers have 8 children; Nancy, Dicey, John, Jacob, Eliza, Elizabeth, George and William. John and Mary’s son, Henry, born in 1821, was living in a house on the 170 acre farm of his brother-in-law, Thornton Myers, in household number 98. Henry was 29 years old and married to the former Annie Tucker with 2 children named Martha and John. Also notice that Eleanor Dickerson in household 99 was born in North Carolina and has 3 children from an earlier marriage whose names are Melissa, Jeremiah and John Carroll and they were all born in Georgia. I will explain the significance of this but first let me continue with information for John and Mary Blaylock.

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1850 Population Census of Walker County, Alabama, household 101 John and Mary Blaylock were in household number 101 of the census listed with an age of 60 for Mary and an age of 76 for John. This is the best information available on the ages of John and Mary. However, the ages that people reported in the census were often highly inconsistent from one census to the other. While children’s ages tended to be fairly accurate and increased by 10 years between censuses, adults often reported aging only a few years in a 10 year period. This could be due to vanity or it is possible that the information was provided by a family member or neighbor who was only guessing the age of the person. John’s age is consistent with the earlier censuses with the exception of 1830 when he would have been 56 but was reported in the 60-69 age group. Mary’s age is consistent in all the censuses but many people researching the family have assumed that she was actually 10 years older because of the ages of John’s children in the 1810 and 1820 censuses. Since the 1800 through 1820 censuses grouped adults in to age groups of 16-25, 26-44 and 45 and above, a person can fall into the same age group in more than 1 census. Mary’s age supports the theory that John was married twice and his first wife was 10-15 years older than Mary and more near John’s own age. The non-population census reported farm size and value, quantity of livestock and the crops produced in that year. The population census reported the names, ages and state of birth for each member of the household for the first time in 1850. It is interesting to note that the census taker who recorded the population census spelled the name Blaylock and the census taker who recorded the non-population census spelled the name Blalock. In 1850, John Blalock Sr. was living on a 3 acre farm. He had a milk cow and a hog. Due to his age, he was probably unable to work a larger farm. But it is interesting to note that he once owned a 100 acre farm in Lincoln County, North Carolina before moving to first to Georgia and then to Alabama. It is surprising to me that none of John and Mary’s younger children are in their household in 1850 when John was becoming too old to support his own farm.

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1850 Non-population Census of Walker County, Alabama Initially, John Blalock Sr. and Mary appeared to have died prior to the 1860 census because they were not enumerated after the 1850 census. Some people have incorrectly identified a John Blalock age 75 who was born in North Carolina and died in Gordon County, Georgia in October 1849 of dropsy as John Blalock Sr. who was married to Mary Eaton. However, the census mortality schedule was for deaths in the one year period prior to June 1, 1850 and the actual population census recorded John Blalock Sr. living in Walker County, Alabama on November 15, 1850. In addition, David Crockett Blaylock testified that his father lived until the end of the Civil War in documents I will discuss later which would mean he lived to approximately 91 years of age. Since John Blalock is a name that appears in many records, it is important to consider all the information on a particular record before assuming that it is for a specific person. John Blalock Sr.’s Four Known Children Information I have confirmed regarding four of John and Mary Blalock’s children agrees with The History of Walker County, Georgia but one definite exception also comes to light. First, I will discuss the four children that I can confirm: Jane, David, Henry and Mary. Jane Blalock was born February 20, 1816 in Lincoln County, North Carolina, and moved to Georgia around the age of six. She married James Thornton Myers around 1837 and they lived in Walker County, Alabama by 1838 when their first child was born. Thornton had purchased 40 acres of land in Walker County by patent. The family is listed in the 1850 and 1860 censuses in Walker County, Alabama. Thornton and Jane were the parents of 11 children: Nancy C., Dicey A., John B., Jacob P., Elijah Thornton, My Blaylock Ancestry

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Elizabeth Jane, George Washington, William H., Thomas David, Martha L., and Abraham E. Myers. Jane probably died February 21, 1869 but her headstone in Lindsey Cemetery near the Sipsey River is difficult to read and the date of death is not clear. After the Civil War, Thornton filed a Southern Claim for goods taken from his farm by the Union Army and was successful in obtaining payment which required him to establish that he had remained loyal to the Union throughout the war. Thornton Myers was later married to Sarah Stewart Blevins after Jane’s death. Thornton was listed in the 1870 and 1880 censuses in Walker County, Alabama and died there in 1898. David Crockett Blaylock was born February 14, 1818 in Lincoln County, North Carolina and he married Sarah Margaret Caroline Beatty around 1845. She was the daughter of Thomas Beatty and Elizabeth Drucilla Henry who had come from South Carolina to Georgia before Sarah Margaret Caroline was born. David and his family remained in Chattooga County, Georgia in the 1850 and 1860 censuses. They relocated to Catoosa County, Georgia in 1861, then to Walker County, Georgia by 1870 and then moved back to Catoosa County, Georgia by 1880. The fact that David and his family moved so often implies that he rented or share cropped rather than owned his own land. The granddaughter of David Crockett Blaylock and daughter of John Houston Blaylock was Susie A. Blaylock McDaniel who wrote the Official History of Catoosa County, Georgia, 1853-1953 to celebrate the centennial of Catoosa County in 1953 which reports that David purchased a part of the farm of the widow Johnston in Catoosa County and he and Caroline resided there the remainder of their lives. David and Caroline Blaylock had 11 children; Amanda Louisa, Mary Elizabeth, Margaret Jane, William Thomas, Emma Harriet, John Houston, Patricia Yula, Katherine Helen, Alonzo Forest, Samuel Beatty, and Cora L. Blaylock. David Crockett Blaylock died July 27, 1903 in Catoosa County. Susie A. Blaylock McDaniel also reported that David Crockett Blaylock was a veteran of the Seminole Indian Wars. Based on his age, he would have been involved in the Second Seminole War which took place between 1835 and 1842. On April 12, 1904, Caroline Blalock was granted a widow’s pension #6574 for the service of Private David Blalock in Captain Hodge Raburn’s Company of the Highland Battalion, Georgia Volunteer Infantry in the Indian Wars. The pension commenced on April 19, 1908 and ended with Caroline’s death in June, 1909. I have not found any records of this unit’s actions in the Indian Wars. David C. Blaylock also filed a Southern Claim for goods taken from his farm by the Union Army and was successful in obtaining payment which required him to establish that he had remained loyal to the Union throughout the Civil War. Henry Blalock was born around 1821, in Lincoln County, North Carolina. He married Annie May Tucker in Chattooga County, Georgia, on May 14, 1845, and had moved to Walker County, Alabama by the time of the 1850 census. Henry and his family left Walker County, Alabama before 1860 and moved back to Chattooga County, Georgia where they can be found in the 1860 census. Nine children were born to Henry and Annie May and they were: Martha Jane, John T., William, Matilda, Amanda, James M., Henry A., Robert C. Blalock, and an infant whose name is not recorded. Henry was murdered about 1863 by a Confederate band known as Gatewood’s Raiders and his widow later married James W. Stone. They can be found in the 1870 and 1880 censuses in Walker County, Georgia. Since the 1890 census was destroyed by a fire and water damage, there is a 20 year gap in the census records. Annie and James Stone are not listed in the 1900 census and probably died prior to 1900.

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Mary E. Blalock was born around 1823, soon after the family arrived in Georgia based on her State of birth in the 1850 and 1860 censuses. However, she was inconsistent in reporting her age and in the 1870 and 1880 censuses she stated she had been born in North Carolina. She married William H. Tucker, brother of Annie May Tucker, on May 7, 1845 in Chattooga County, Georgia one week prior to her brother Henry’s marriage to Annie May Tucker. The family must have also gone to Walker County, Alabama for a short time because the first two children of this union were born in Alabama. They had returned to Chattooga County by the time the third child was born. The Tucker family remained in Chattooga County through all the censuses from 1850 to 1880. Mary was the mother of 6 children based on the census information; Elizabeth, Henry Robert, Mary, James, Wiley and John Tucker. Mary died on June 12, 1896 and is buried at Oak Hill United Methodist Cemetery in Lyerly, Chattooga County, Georgia along with William who died February 14, 1899. Annie May Tucker and William H. Tucker were the children of William and Elizabeth Tucker who had moved their family to Chattooga County, Georgia from Lincoln County, North Carolina around 1844. In the 1840 census of Lincoln County, they are located in the Lower Regiment of the county in the same general area as Susannah Spain, John Blalock Jr.’s mother-in-law. William Blalock who appears to be John Blalock Sr.’s brother and his family also lived in the same area. William and Elizabeth Tucker had a large family with at least 11 children and four of their children married Blaylocks in Chattooga County, Georgia. Eleanor/Ellenor/Ellener/Ellen/Ella Blaylock I became curious about Eleanor Dickerson when I noticed that she had been born in North Carolina and was enumerated between Henry Blaylock and John Blaylock Sr. in the 1850 Walker County, Alabama Census. It appeared that the 3 Carroll children might be Eleanor’s children from a previous marriage. I found that in the 1840 Chattooga County, Georgia Census there was a family headed by William Carroll living near the family of John Blaylock Sr. William Carroll was 20-29 years old, his wife was in the same age group and they had a daughter under age 5 which fit the age of Melissa Carroll. The youngest Carroll child in the 1850 Walker County, Georgia Census was John who had been born about 1843. By 1847, Eleanor had married Thomas Jefferson Dickerson and they had their first child and named him Henry. Thomas Jefferson Dickerson was born in South Carolina about 1794 and moved to Walker County, Alabama before the 1830 census where he was listed with a wife, a son and a daughter. On September 10, 1838, he was issued a patent for 40 acres of land in Section 1, Township 14 South, Range 5 West of Walker County. By the time of the 1850 census, he had increased his land holdings to 162 acres. Sometime prior to the mid1840s, Thomas Dickerson was widowed. Whether Eleanor moved to Walker County, Georgia with her husband, William Carroll, and he died there or he died in Georgia before Eleanor went to Alabama is unknown. Since Eleanor could have moved west to Alabama with Henry and John Blalock Sr. as they moved their families, it is possible that William died before the move. On the other hand, since Jane and Thornton Myers were already established in

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Walker County, Alabama, they may have encouraged William Carroll and his family to move there before he died. In any case, Eleanor found herself a widow around 1845. She married Thomas Jefferson Dickerson and had 2 children, Henry C. and Martha Elizabeth Dickerson before the 1850 census was taken. Around 1852, the family moved to Anderson County, Texas where 3 more children were born before the Civil War and they were Paralee, Thomas Jefferson, and Joseph Dickerson. It appears that Eleanor returned to Alabama during the Civil War, perhaps to see her sister, Jane Myers, or perhaps Thomas may have had family or business interests still in Walker County, Alabama, because her last child was James Monroe Dickerson born on May 10, 1864 in Alabama. Before the 1870 census, both Eleanor and Thomas Dickerson died. Their daughter, Martha Elizabeth married Willis Tiberious Richards in Anderson County, Texas on August 23, 1866 and their remaining children were living in the household of their oldest son, Henry C. Dickerson, in the 1870 Anderson County, Texas Census. Most of this family group continued to live in Anderson and Henderson Counties in Texas for several generations. Eleanor’s oldest daughter, Melissa Carroll, married Hiram Roberts about 1852 and remained in Walker County, Alabama. Jeremiah Carroll did move to Texas with his mother and step father where he appears in the 1860 census but John Carroll may have died because he is not listed in that census with the family. Sometime between 1867 and 1870, Hiram Roberts died and Melissa brought her family of 6 children to Anderson County, Texas. In order to establish that Eleanor was the daughter of John and Mary Blalock, it was necessary to find a record of her maiden name. This proved to be a difficult task. If any of the female children of John Blalock Sr. and Mary Eaton who were listed in the 1830 census in DeKalb County were married in DeKalb County before the family moved to Chattooga County prior to the 1840 census, those records were lost in a fire in 1842. If any female child of John Blalock Sr. and Mary Eaton moved with them to Walker County, Alabama after the 1840 census and then married there, the record of those marriages burned in a courthouse fire in 1877. The Walker County, Georgia courthouse records burned in an arson fire set on February 2, 1883. These fires increased the difficulty of identifying the children of John Blalock Sr. and Mary Eaton and increased the importance of other sources of information. Fortunately, one of Thomas Jefferson and Eleanor Dickerson’s sons, Thomas Jefferson Dickerson Jr., lived until March 5, 1942, and as a result a death certificate listing his mother’s maiden name was filed. In fact 2 death certificates were filed for him. He lived near the county line between Henderson and Anderson Counties in Texas. His daughter from his second marriage, Florence Dera (nee Dickerson) Kirby, provided information for a death certificate filed on March 9, 1942, listing his residence in Frankston, Anderson County, and his mother’s maiden name as Ella Blalock. His granddaughter, Callie Mae Dickerson, who was raised by her widow mother in the home of Thomas Jefferson Dickerson Jr. after the death of her father, Jasper D. Dickerson, when she was only 9 months old, provided information for a death certificate in Poynor, Henderson County filed on March 31, 1942, based on a rural farm delivery address and reported his mother was Ellen Blaylock. In both cases, the informants thought that Thomas Jefferson Dickerson Jr.’s mother had been born in England. However, there are My Blaylock Ancestry

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multiple census records that list her place of birth as North Carolina. These 2 death certificates establish Eleanor’s maiden name. Perhaps because Thomas and Eleanor moved from Walker County, Alabama to Texas so early, the family members Sartain consulted had no memory of Eleanor’s name. It is also possible that since both the informants on Thomas Jefferson Dickerson Jr.’s death certificate thought that she had been born in England, Eleanor may not have maintained much contact with her family after leaving Alabama. However, she was the first Blalock/Blaylock to reside in Texas from this family line. J. L. Blalock Was Actually Jesse, Son of Zadock Blalock One sentence in The History of Walker County, Georgia account of the Blalock family is incorrect. Sartain writes, “The records show that J. L. (John) Blaylock, who was a son of John and Mary Eaton Blaylock, was a pioneer citizen of Fayette County and was a representative from that county to the Secession Convention at MilledgeviIle.” In reviewing the census data, I found that there was a man named John L. Blalock, age 24, living in a hotel in Fayetteville in 1860. Because of his youth and lack of property, it seemed very unlikely that this person would have been elected as a representative to the Secession Convention. In fact, Jesse L. Blalock who was 41 years old and an attorney with real estate valued at $10,000 and personal property valued at $27,000 (including 22 slaves) in the 1860 census, represented Fayette County at the Secession Convention and voted in favor of secession. I confirmed this information with the Georgia State Archives. Jesse L. Blalock was the son of Zadock Blalock and had several wealthy relatives with large plantations living in Fayette County, Georgia. So while I believe that John Blalock Sr. had a son named John, it was not the J. L. Blaylock identified by Sartain. The Three Remaining Unknown Children The five known children of John and Mary Blalock were born between 1816 and 1823 as follows: Jane was born February 20, 1816, David C. was born February 14, 1818, Eleanor was born in 1819, Henry was born in 1821 and Mary was born in 1823. Based on the 1840 census, Jane and Eleanor were married and living in their own households in 1840. David and Henry were still in John Sr.’s household. Mary was either living elsewhere or was reported in the wrong age range. Three unknown members of the household were a male age 10-14, a female age 10-14 and a male age 5-9. Sartain states that John Blalock Sr. and Mary Eaton had a son, William, living in Walker County, Georgia in 1850. It is not clear whether his sources within the family gave him information about William or if he found the information in the 1850 census and concluded that this must be a family member. At the time Sartain was writing The History of Walker County, Georgia, the most recently released census would have been the 1850 census. All census information is held by the government for 72 years before it is made public in order to protect the privacy of living individuals. Since Sartain was writing on the history of Walker County, he may have used the most recently released census to gather information about the early settlers in the county. Because of his age, I suspect that William was John Blalock Sr.’s son from an earlier marriage and was the brother of John Blalock Jr. as I have explained earlier.

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1850 Census of Walker County, Georgia The William Blalock listed in the 1850 census of Walker County was 48 years old and married to Mary age 49. They had the following 10 children: John E., Hugh W., Newton William, James, David, Robert S., Joseph Henry, Caroline, Jeremiah C., and Mary Jane Blaylock. Since none of John and Mary’s younger children were living with them at the time of the 1850 Census, it is possible that they were living with another relative, such as William, but it has been assumed that the children in William’s household were his own. Based on the census data, it appears that a son of John Sr. from his first marriage has married and has a wife and a son under age 5 living in John Blalock Sr.’s household in 1830 in Dekalb County. However, the number of males under age 5 in the household is not adequate for both William’s oldest twin sons, John and Hugh. So the youngest son of John Sr. from his first marriage that was born 18021804 is most likely the son in John Sr.’s household in Lincoln County, North Carolina in 1820 and in DeKalb County in 1830. John Sr.’s two older sons from his first marriage, John Jr. and William were then the 2 males in John Jr.’s household in Lincoln County in 1820 but where they were in 1830 is unclear. William Blalock’s family with the appropriate number of children by age range can also be found in the 1840 census of Walker County, Georgia. However, William’s age was listed incorrectly as 20-29 when he should have been listed as 30-39 years old. William Blalock purchased 160 acres from Harden G. McFarland on March 10, 1838 for $300, (lot 217, 7th District, 4th section, Cherokee Territory, which became Walker County in 1833, Deed book 32, page 505). William Blalock sold his 160 acre farm to Thomas R Cameron on December 20, 1854 for $550, (lot 217, 7th District, 4th section, Walker County, Georgia, Deed book 32, page 506). William and his family moved to Pulaski County, Arkansas in 1855, and then moved to Franklin County, Arkansas in 1856 according to Goodspeed’s Biographies for Franklin

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County, Arkansas. In the 1860 census, William was listed as age 63 in White Oak, Franklin County, Arkansas and his name was spelled Blaylock. Another man named William Blaylock was living in the northwest Georgia about the time that the William Blalock in the 1850 Walker County census and his family moved to Arkansas. It is possible that Sartain was aware of both men and used the Walker County census to distinguish one from the other. On February 19, 1855, the William Blaylock that did not move to Arkansas in 1855 married the widow of James A. Snow, Sarah (nee Tucker) Snow, the sister of Annie May and William H. Tucker, in Chattooga County, Georgia. James and Sarah had 4 children born between 1847 and 1855: James W., Martha A., Mary, and Elizabeth Snow. James must have died in late 1854 and Sarah soon married William Blaylock. Very little information is known about William because he was not enumerated in either the 1850 or 1860 census as far as I can determine. William appears to have died before the 1860 census because Sarah was listed as the head of the household number 132 with her four children and they were all living next door to her father in household number 130 and Henry and Annie May Blalock in household number 131.

1850 Chattooga County, Georgia Census – James A. Snow Household #177

1850 Chattooga County, Georgie Census – William Tucker Household #167

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In the 1850 Chattooga County census, the household of James A. Snow also includes John W. Blalock age 22 who was born in Georgia. John W. Blaylock married Bernice H. Tucker on August 11, 1850 in Chattooga County, Georgia. On August 24, 1850, the census taker enumerated John W. Blalock in James A. Snow’s household (number 177) and, a short distance away, Bernice Blalock in her father’s household (number 167). Bernice was the sister of Annie May Tucker, William H. Tucker and Sarah Tucker. Only married 13 days at the time of the census, John was working and living on the farm of James A. Snow perhaps because he had been working there all season and did not have a home of his own at the time he married. John and Bernice had 3 children named Elizabeth, Mary A. and William, but by 1860 John was not listed in the household and Bernice and her children were living in her father’s household number 130 indicating that John W. Blalock had probably died. Henry and Annie May Blalock were in household 131, and Sarah Blalock was in household 132. I found no other records for John W. Blalock or his family after 1860. (It seems that the census taker consistently spelled the name Blalock and the county clerk who recorded marriages spelled the name Blaylock.) Because two of John and Mary Blalock’s children married two of William and Elizabeth Tucker’s children in 1845, it would be convenient if the John W. Blaylock that married Bernice Tucker and the William Blaylock that married Sarah (nee Tucker) Snow were the two missing sons of John and Mary. We do not know William Blaylock’s age but he could not be the son of John and Mary that was under age 5 in the 1840 census. John W. Blaylock was 22 years old when he married Bernice Tucker and could be the son that was 10-15 years old in John and Mary Blalock’s household in 1840. While William Blaylock and John W. Blaylock could be brothers, they could not both be John and Mary’s sons based on the ages of John and Mary’s children in the prior censuses.

1860 Chattooga County, Georgia Census Household #130

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1860 Chattooga County, Georgia Census Households #131-132 It appears that both William Blaylock and John W. Blaylock died prior to the 1860 census. David C. Blaylock’s Southern Claim testimony states that he had two brothers that moved to Arkansas and supported the Union in the Civil War with one brother surviving the war and becoming a minister. I had hoped to find service records and later census information that would confirm David’s testimony and determine finally who the last two sons of John and Mary Blalock were but while there were men named William and John Blaylock/Blalock in Arkansas during the Civil War, they were not these two men. I have not been able to determine exactly how William Blaylock and John W. Blaylock fit in the Blaylock family. Because the censuses prior to 1850 named only the head of the household and did not list individuals in the household, it is not possible to be certain exactly who was in the household and what the relationship to the head of the household was. The census suggests that John Blalock Sr. and Mary Eaton had 1 daughter and 2 sons whose names were not known by Sartain. These children would have been a daughter born between 1825 and 1830, a son born between 1825 and 1830 and a son born between 1835 and 1840. William Blaylock could have been the older son and married Sarah (nee Tucker) Snow in 1855 but without any further information such as his age, it is not possible to know. John W. Blalock was born around 1828, and could also have been the older son. One person not mentioned by Sartain that might be a son of John Blalock Sr. is James Blalock who was born in Georgia circa 1836 and married Martha Garrison in Chattooga County, Georgia on July 8, 1855. While his age fits with the information in the 1840 census for John Blalock Sr.’s youngest son, I have not My Blaylock Ancestry

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been able to locate James in the 1850 census and he was not living with John Sr. and Mary in Walker County, Alabama at the time the census was taken there. However, James and Martha moved from Georgia to Conway County, Arkansas by the time of the 1860 census. By 1866, James had died and Martha married Thomas Sledge on February 11, 1866. This information partially fits testimony by David C. Blaylock regarding his brothers in the Southern Claim he filed for goods taken by the Union Army except that James served briefly in the Confederate Army in the Civil War and I have not found any record that he served in the Union Army. However, the fact that James moved to Conway County, Arkansas between 1855 and 1860 could be important and I will expand on this later. Why Search for John Blalock Sr.? My primary purpose in researching the movements of John Blalock Sr. and his family was to try to locate additional information on John Blalock Jr. and to determine with certainty if the two John Blalocks were father and son. None of these efforts have resulted in any new information about John Blalock Jr. Therefore, I can only say that it is very likely they were father and son, my direct ancestors, and I have not found any information that would contradict this conclusion. In addition, when John Blalock Jr.’s sons, Thomas and Winslow Blalock, moved away from Lincoln County, North Carolina, each of them had a child born in Georgia before moving further west. The primary clues I have found to determine where they went in Georgia are based on the movements of John Blalock Sr. and his children and other families that moved from Lincoln County, North Carolina to Walker and Chattooga Counties in Georgia.

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Back in Lincoln County, North Carolina Since John Blalock Sr. and his family moved to Georgia in 1822, John Blalock Jr. must have been the person who married Betsy Spain in July 1822 in Lincoln County, North Carolina. In 1820, John Blalock Jr. would have been in the 18-20 year age range based on the 1810 census data for John Blalock Sr.’s children. It is unlikely that John Blalock Jr. was married to the older woman in his household in the 1820 census because she was at least 6 years older and possibly as much as 26 years older. Therefore, I have suggested the possibility that she was his widow sister because she was listed in the 26-44 year old age group. Elizabeth “Betsy” Spain’s Family On July 17, 1822, John Blalock and Richard Proctor posted a marriage bond in Lincoln County for the marriage of John Blalock and Betsy Spain. The marriage would be performed with in a short time after the bond was posted, perhaps a few weeks but the exact date is not known. Elizabeth “Betsy” Spain was the middle birth child of Thomas and Susannah Spain. The Spain family had arrived in Lincoln County, North Carolina from Wake County, North Carolina after the birth of their daughter Nancy around 1805 and before the marriage of their older daughter Martha to Richard Proctor in April 1808. Thomas Spain’s family was not recorded in the 1810 census and by the time of the 1820 census, Susannah Spain was a widow. Their birth children that are known were Martha, Hartwell, Elizabeth, Amelia and Nancy Spain. Thomas Spain and Susannah Proctor had married in Wake County, North Carolina on May 20, 1788. Records in Brunswick County, Virginia, Deed Book 4, page 92, show that Thomas Spain and his wife Susannah of Wake County, North Carolina, were appointed guardians of the orphan, Lizzie McKinney, on January 24, 1791. Then in September 1898, Thomas Spain was appointed guardian of Lizzie and Fanny McKinney in Wake County records and a bond of 500 pounds was posted each with Thomas Proctor and William Kilgoe as sureties. Because Eliza “Lizzie” and Frances “Fanny” McKinney lived with their adopted mother, Susannah Spain for the remainder of her life and then lived with their sister, Elizabeth “Betsy” (nee Spain) Blalock until their deaths, tracking the Spain family through the census is made easier. Susannah Spain considered both Lizzie and Fanny to be her daughters as was demonstrated in her Last Will and Testament. Why Lizzie and Fanny were orphaned is not known and why Thomas and Susannah were appointed their guardians is also unknown. It is likely that Lizzie and Fanny were related to Thomas or Susannah in some way. Perhaps they were the children of a sister of either Thomas or Susannah. I suspect some tragic illness or accident, such as a fire, killed the other members of the McKinney household and left Lizzie and Fanny either disabled or disfigured because neither of them ever married and remained in Susannah and Elizabeth’s households until their deaths. In addition, in the 1850 census, Frances was mistakenly listed as a male.

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By the time that John Blalock married Betsy Spain in 1822, Martha Spain had married Richard Proctor (bond dated April 4, 1808), Hartwell Spain had married Elizabeth Ann Chambers (estimated date of 1820), and Amelia Spain had married William A Norwood (bond dated December 17, 1816). Youngest sister, Nancy would marry James Foy five years later (bond dated January 4, 1827). The marriage of John Blalock Jr. and Betsy Spain may have been performed prior to the older John Blalock Sr. leaving Lincoln County. Purchases and sales of land in Lincoln County from 1823 to 1830 appear to be by John Blalock Jr. About 1823, John and Elizabeth had a son and named him Thomas R. Blalock after Betsy’s father. Then around 1825 a second son was born and named Winslow F. Blalock, who was my great, great, great grandfather. Unfortunately, John and Betsy separated prior to the 1830 census and Betsy and her sons moved into the household of her mother. Until I found the Last Will and Testament of Susannah Spain, I had thought that John Blalock had died but this was not the case. What caused John and Betsy to separate is unknown but it appears that John sold his holdings in Lincoln County by 1830 and moved elsewhere. As a result, Richard Proctor became a primary male influence in the lives of Thomas and Winslow. John Blalock Jr. Leaves Lincoln County Not all of the tax records for the period have survived but John Blalock paid taxes in 1825, 1826, 1827 and 1828 on land ranging from 90 to 95 acres and in 1827 and 1828 included tax on 1 white male and 1 black male. While there is a very remote possibility that the black man in the tax roll was a free man of color working for John Blalock, it is much more likely that he was a slave. Free men of color did exist in the south but they were extremely rare. Tax rolls for the period 1829-1831 are not available but tax rolls from 1832 on did not include John Blalock. Killian Creek Families Several families who would intermarry lived on farms along Killian Creek in Lincoln County. Blalock, Beatty, Proctor, Guthrie, Spain, and Whitener are names of families living in the area of Killian Creek in the early censuses. These families became connected through marriage and as the population moved west, many of these family members moved to the same areas. The nearest market to Killian Creek was in the county seat in Lincolnton. Lincoln County had grown from being the western frontier of North Carolina in 1749, when John Beatty arrived, to a country-side of farmers by 1822. After the Revolutionary War, land grants know as bounty land warrants were given as payment for military service by the colonies and settlers moved into the area to claim land for their service. Additional bounty land warrants were issued by the federal government for service in the War of 1812 bringing more settlers into the area. Many settlers came from eastern North Carolina and Virginia but additionally settlers came down the Shenandoah Valley from Maryland and Pennsylvania. Today the nearest large city is Charlotte, North Carolina, but Charlotte’s growth was primarily due to the railroad expansion which was to come later.

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1930’s Map of Lincoln County Showing Killian Creek (which has been misspelled) In reviewing the census records, I found that none of the related families owned slaves after 1820 with the likely exception of John Blalock Jr. in the 1827 and 1828 tax rolls. Some of the previous generations had owned slaves. For example, Thomas Guthrie, the father of Nelson Guthrie, was listed in the 1800 and 1810 census of Lincoln County and in 1790 in the Rockingham County census with 1 slave. The censuses in Wake County for 1790 and 1800 indicate that Fredrick Spain, the father of Thomas Spain, owned slaves but Thomas did not. There are Blalocks in the census who did own slaves in other counties but prior to the Lincoln County tax roll of 1827 neither John Blalock Sr. or John Blalock Jr. had owned slaves according to the records I have located. Perhaps the families moving west could not afford to own slaves due to the expense. The 1827 and 1828 tax rolls may indicate that John Blalock Jr. was prospering and had reached the level where he could now afford to purchase a slave. After the 1830 sale of 95 acres to Michael Whiteman, John Blalock Jr. is not listed in any other transaction in Lincoln County and I have not found any record to determine where he went which initially lead me to believe that he had died. After John and Elizabeth Separate In both the 1830 and 1840 census, the household of Susannah Spain included Eliza and Frances McKinney and Elizabeth, Thomas and Winslow Blalock. The censuses prior to 1850 do not list individuals by name but only headcounts for males and females by age range. From a very early age, Thomas and Winslow lived in their grandmother’s household. Susannah was an unusual woman because she remained the head of her household as a widow for more than 30 years until her death. In 1813, she purchased 50 acres from Aaron Abernathy for $100 which is recorded in Deed Book 26 page 110 in the Lincoln County records. This was probably soon after her husband, Thomas Spain, died. She managed her own business affairs, paid taxes and purchased land. In 1837, she purchased an additional 16 acres of adjoining land from Joseph Graham who had moved west My Blaylock Ancestry

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to Kentucky for the sum of 10 cents as recorded in Deed Book 39 page 162. Because she owned her own farm which was listed on the tax rolls in 1840 as 50 acres valued at $100 (apparently the tax assessor did not realize that she had purchased the additional 16 acre tract), it would have been more typical if she had remarried and there must have been eligible men in the area who would have liked to take over her property. This gives some insight into the household where Thomas and Winslow grew up with their mother, grandmother and two spinster aunts. Susannah’s Last Will and Testament was made February 17, 1843 and was admitted to probate in the September Session of the court in 1845. Susannah probably died in the late summer of 1845 and her Will would likely have been probated at the next session of the court. There is no record of the sale of her land or of any of her property after her death. Her Last Will and Testament reads: In the name of God, Amen. I, Susana Spain, of the County of Lincoln & State of North Carolina being of sound mind and disposing memory (Blessed be God) do make this 17th day February in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred forty three make this my Last Will and Testament in manner following, that is to say: First, I give & bequeath unto my loving son, Hartwell Spain, my bed of furniture. I also give to my grandson, Thomas R. Blaylock, my sorrel mare foal the colt that she is now with excepted. I give & bequeath to my grandson Winslow Blaylock, my clay bank filly. Second, I give and bequeath all the balance of my property, the use of my land & house & plantation, the old mare, the young mare's colt, to my three daughters during their natural life or while they or either of them shall chose to continue there viz: Eliza & Fanny McKinney & Elizabeth Blaylock if she continues separate from her husband, otherwise she is to hold no claim or possession in the property. But if they should eventually agree to quit & leave the plantation that what remains of my property is to be sold & Eliza McKinney to get thirteen dollars & twenty five cents, & Fanny McKinney to get forty dollars as debts owing or debts owing to them out of my estate. The remainder to be equally divided among all my children. And Thirdly, make and ordain my son Hartwell Spain & my son-in-law Richard Proctor executors of this my Last Will and Testament in witness where of I, the said Susanna Spain, have set my hand & seal this day year above write, signed & sealed & published & declared by the said Susanna Spain the testator as her Last Will and Testament in presence of us who were present at the signing & sealing thereof. Susana Spain (X) Witnesses: M. A. Fitzgerald and Jas F. Dixon

It is interesting that the clerk that prepared the Last Will and Testament spelled the name Blaylock with the letter Y in the middle. This is the earliest document that I have found with this spelling for my direct family members. Susannah did not write as evidenced by the fact that she made her mark “X” rather than signing her name. Both Thomas and Winslow were able to read and write and they would sign their names with the Blalock spelling in later documents even in some cases where the clerk preparing the documents spelled the name as Blaylock in the body of the document.

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Susannah’s Last Will and Testament discloses the fact that John Blalock Jr. was alive at the time the will was written and that in order for Elizabeth to continue to live on and have use of the property after Susannah’s death, the couple must remain separate. Susannah appears to have disapproved of John Blalock for whatever reason that John and Elizabeth separated. In addition, Susannah appears to have some concern that John and Elizabeth might possibly reconcile. This could indicate that either John had remained in communication with the family after the separation or that news of his whereabouts may have made its way back to Lincoln County to William Blalock, John Blalock Sr.’s brother, living nearby. Thomas and Winslow’s Male Role Models Who were the male influences in the lives of Thomas and Winslow after their father left? Their Uncle Richard Proctor was a trustee of the Methodist Society of Lincoln County in 1830. Susannah Spain’s only son was also their uncle, Reverend Hartwell Spain, an ordained Methodist Episcopal minister who served in the area in the late 1820s and early 1830s before moving to South Carolina. William Blalock lived very near Susannah Spain and was also probably a granduncle of Thomas and Winslow and was very active in the Methodist congregation. Their Uncle William A. Norwood also lived nearby and was active in the Methodist Church. These roots planted in the Methodist Church in North Carolina would provide a foundation of faith for several generations of Blalocks. A few miles east of Killian Creek, a Methodist Campground was established in 1830 which became very important to these families. Rock Spring Campground Rev. Daniel Asbury was an early Methodist preacher who held worship services in the forest while Rehoboth Church in Lincoln County was under construction in 1794. He had been living in Halifax County, Virginia when he joined Rogers Clark’s expedition in the Revolutionary War but was captured by Indians in his first battle. He was traded to the British for 2 blankets because the British only paid 1 blanket for a scalp but 2 blankets for a prisoner. As a prisoner of war, he had ample time to consider his life and what he planned to do once the war was over. He was released at the end of the war, became a Methodist Episcopal minister and was sent to Lincoln and surrounding counties in North Carolina as a circuit preacher in 1789. He organized the first Methodist church west of the Catawba River at Terrell. His open air services inspired the beginning of regular camp meetings. Annual week long Camp meetings became an event held typically in August when there was lull in farm work before the harvest season began. Historians claim that early camp meetings were attended by as many as 10,000 to 25,000 people from as far away as Ohio. It is very difficult to imagine a group of the size estimated by the historians since this is nearly ½ of the 60,000 required to apply for statehood. Regardless of the size, this continues to be a weeklong religious meeting allowing people of a common faith to worship together and it also provides a chance to reconnect with distant neighbors and family. As families expanded and intermarried, this also served as a regularly scheduled family reunion. The Roby campground site was used until 1829 but did not have adequate water supplies for large groups. On August 7, 1830, Freeman Shelton, Richard Proctor and James Bivins acting as the trustees of the Methodist Society of the Lincoln Circuit, paid $90 for 45 acres of land at Rock Spring to Joseph M. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Monday to establish a permanent campground site. A brush Arbor was built for shade during the camp meetings but part of it collapsed in 1831. A new timber supported shingled Arbor was built in 18321833. The roof has been replaced several times and today is a steel roof supported by the original timbers. Initially pews were split logs that have today been replaced with pews seating about 800 people. An extensive history has been written in 2 volumes by Terry Brotherton entitled, Rock Spring Campground. Rev. Hartwell Spain, was admitted to the Methodist Episcopal clergy in 1817 and served in South Carolina in the Pee Dee District from 1819-1821 where he met and married Elizabeth Ann Chambers, the daughter of an established South Carolina family. In 1822, he was relocated after a serious illness and served in the Lincoln Conference. In the agenda of the 1829 camp meeting, Rev. Hartwell Spain was listed as one of the conference preachers and in 1830-1833 his was listed as the clergy in charge of the camp meeting. Sometime in the mid1830s, Rev. Hartwell Spain relocated to service in South Carolina but over the span of his career was often superannuated or, in other words, on medical leave due to illness. In total, Rev. Spain served 25 years ably and was ill on leave 26 years of his career. He must have been particularly well loved by his congregations because a large number of children born in South Carolina in this time period were given the first and middle names of Hartwell Spain. While agendas for camp meetings after 1833 no longer exist, it is likely that Rev. Hartwell Spain returned to Rock Spring Campground periodically as long as his mother remained alive. In addition, Richard Proctor was listed in the available agendas for the 1829 and 1831-1833 camp meetings as an Exhorter or senior lay leader and he was listed as a Class Leader in 1830. William Norwood was listed as an Exhorter from 1831-1833. In June of 2012, I visited Lincoln County with my wife, Lisa, gathering information on the Blaylocks and related families. We went to Rock Spring Campground and met one of the current trustees, Mr. Little, who explained some of the history and told us about the books written by Terry Brotherton. The Annual camp meeting held at Rock Spring Campground is the oldest continuously running camp meeting in the United States today. The main camp meeting today lasts one week with multiple worship services each day but because of the long term family relationships that have developed here, many people come to the campground a week in advance of the meeting and may stay a week after the meeting is concluded. Originally, camp meetings lasted a full week with preaching in the morning and in the evening. Lots were sold beginning in 1830 to allow families to establish a permanent site for tents. These lots are 14 x 26 feet for the main tent and an additional 8 feet on the front and rear for shed space. The first sale of lots created one row of tent sites in a rectangular pattern around the Arbor. Among those purchasing lots in 1830 were Richard Proctor, James Beatty, William Blalock and Nelson Guthrie. In 1836, a second rectangular row of lots was formed and purchasers included Winslow Blalock, Daniel and Madison Guthrie and Richard Proctor. In 1892, a third rectangular row of tent sites was created. In 1923, a concrete foundation was laid for a generator to power a pump to bring water from the spring to the tent and Arbor area and provide power for lighting the Arbor and passage ways.

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Rock Spring Campground Present Day Arbor The purchase of a tent site by Winslow Blalock was highly unusual because in 1836 Winslow was only 11 years old. Looking into this purchase begins to provide some insight into Winslow’s priorities. Winslow purchased lot 10 on the west side of the square for 37 ½ cents in 1836. No other record of a sale to a minor was listed and buyers in their 20s paid about $1 per lot while the more established older buyers paid approximately $3 per lot. The only other lot sold for less than $1 was sold to Milos Fitzgerald, age 21, the son-in-law of Richard Proctor, and he paid 70 cents for the lot. It appears that prices were determined based on the ability of the buyer to pay a certain price and Winslow may have paid everything he had to purchase lot 10. In any case, Winslow was unusually committed at his young age based on this purchase. It is also interesting that Winslow purchased the lot as the younger brother in the family and not Thomas who was the oldest. The entire household would have used the site during the camp meetings. It is interesting to note that William Blalock was an original purchaser of a lot in the first sale in 1830. While I cannot be certain exactly how Winslow’s father was related to William, I believe that William was John Blalock Jr.’s uncle and William may have taken an interest in Thomas and Winslow after John Blalock Jr. left Lincoln County.

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Aerial View of Rock Spring Campground Today Richard Proctor purchased back to back lots on the south side of the arbor #12, one on the front side in 1830 and one on the back side in 1836 when the second row was added. William Blalock purchased lot #12 on the front west side of the arbor in 1830. Nelson Guthrie purchased lot # 6 on the front south side of the arbor in 1830. William Norwood purchased lots # 7 and #8 on the south back side of the arbor in 1836. Madison Guthrie purchased lot #1 on the south west corner of the arbor in 1836. Milos Fitzgerald, married to Thomas and Winslow’s cousin Eliza Jane (nee Proctor) Fitzgerald, purchased lot #11 in 1836 on the back west side adjoining Winslow Blalock’s lot. So, Thomas and Winslow were surrounded by an extended family of deep religious conviction. While the tents may have been made of canvas originally, over time more permanent structures were built on the lots. The oldest wooden tent was built in 1832. Even though they are still called tents, some of the older structures were made of logs at their base but the last log tent burned in 1981. Today, tents are unpainted frame wood construction with dirt or concrete floors and sheet metal roofing. The walls of the tents are purposely constructed in the fashion of louvers with gaps between the boards to allow for ventilation in the hot summer months. The tents generally have a food preparation area, bed, and table with chairs on the ground level and a loft for additional sleeping. In modern times, electricity has been added for lighting.

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Exterior View of Present Day Row of Tents

Interior View of a Present Day Tent

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In the early days of the camp meetings, the white members of the congregation would be seated under the arbor on split logs. The slaves would be standing outside of the shade of the arbor. After a sermon on one particularly hot day, one of the slaves asked the minister as they were leaving if this is the way things would be in Heaven. This question challenged the minister to examine the congregation’s treatment of slaves and from that day forward, slaves were seated in the arbor but may have remained segregated. It is very likely that this change created a controversy in the congregation. The minister that made the decision to allow slaves inside the arbor must have been determined in his decision. At each meeting the congregation would pray these words in the Lord’s Prayer, “Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven.” However, it is not likely that the congregation was of one mind in their perception of the Lord’s Will. Thomas and Winslow would have known of the decision and any descent among the membership. Perhaps this event had a lasting impression on the Blalock brothers that would shape their attitudes toward slavery in the coming years and their behavior as the Civil War approached. During the Civil War when Union troops took control of Lincoln County, the campground was used as barracks for Union soldiers. At the end of the war, when the Union Army departed, some of the campground was burned but it was rebuilt. Today, tents are passed down from one generation in a family to another and have remained in the same family for decades. Rarely are tents sold today but when a family has no one to inherit, a tent will be sold as part of an estate. Dry Pond Lincolnton was the primary market nearest to Killian Creek but with the establishment of the Rock Spring Campground in 1830, a community began in the adjacent area. On April 1, 1836 a post office was established in this community called Dry Pond. It was so named because there was a swampy area covered with water most of the year near present day Campground Road and NC 16 that would dry up each summer. After the Civil War, the Seaboard Railway built a branch line from Mt. Holly to Newton and the Southern Railway built a line from Lincolnton to Catawba which intersected at Dry Pond around 1870. In an effort to make the town seem more attractive to travelers on the railways, the name of the town was changed to Denver in 1875. Dry Pond was the nearest community to the Blalock family at the time Thomas and Winslow were growing up. Thomas and Winslow Marry in Lincoln County Before the Blalocks moved away from Lincoln County in the late 1840s, Thomas and Winslow had married and their grandmother, Susannah Spain, had died. Thomas’s marriage bond is shown on the following page. Prior to Susannah’s death, Thomas R. Blalock had married Charlotte R. Beattie with the marriage bond being posted on June 29, 1844. Winslow F. Blalock was the bondsman for the marriage bond of his older brother. The original marriage bond was signed by both Thomas R. Blalock and Winslow F. Blaylock.

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Thomas R. Blalock and Charlotte R. Beattie Marriage Bond Then two years later, Winslow Blalock married Dovie B. Beatty and their marriage bond was posted July 21, 1846. I have not been able to determine how Charlotte and Dovie are related. They could be sisters or cousins and were probably great grandchildren of John Beattie who established Beatties’ Ford. Just as tracing the history of the Blalock family is difficult in the early records of Lincoln County, so too is tracing the history of the Beatty/Beattie family due to the fact that marriages and land sales were often not recorded. In addition, the Beatty family was prominent in land sales to settlers in the early days of Lincoln County and the number of lands sales by various Beatty family members complicates the research because the land transactions often were not for their own use but for resale to settlers. In addition, many Beatty family members died without a Last Will and Testament recording who their children were.

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Winslow F. Blalock and Dovey B Beatty Marriage Bond The timing of the marriage bond may indicate that the marriage was performed during the camp meeting in early August, 1846, but there are no records to confirm this theory. The bondsman for Winslow F. Blalock was his cousin, Augustus Albert Norwood, the son of William A. Norwood and Amelia P. (nee Spain) Norwood. This raises the question as to why Thomas R. Blalock did not serve as the bondsman for his brother since Winslow had been Thomas’s bondsman in 1844. It may be that Thomas and Charlotte had already left Lincoln County, North Carolina by the time Winslow was married. Moving West Farming methods used in the 1800s depleted the soil because the same crop was usually planted in the same field year after year. This could be one reason families moved west seeking more productive land. Settlers in virgin territory not only had to clear fields of old growth timber in order to plant but also had to construct housing, dig wells and build barns. Roads were also constructed by the individuals settling My Blaylock Ancestry

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the land and often used existing game trails as a starting point. While people settling a new area knew this work would be required, they left homes behind that already had cleared fields, housing, wells and roads. As a result, it was possible to sell an existing farm in the east at a higher price per acre than the virgin land in the west. Not only could a much larger new farm be purchased but some individuals also purchased land to resale at a higher price as areas became more developed. The 1850 census of Tippah County, Mississippi provides some clues as to the relocation of the Blalock family from Lincoln County. Thomas R. Blalock and his family including 2 children were enumerated on October 19. 1850. His oldest daughter, Julia A. Blalock, was born in Georgia and was listed as 3 years old. Thomas’s youngest daughter, Mary M. Blalock, was born in Mississippi and was listed as 8 months old. Winslow F. Blalock and his family were enumerated on October 10, 1850 with his oldest son, Richard A. Blalock, listed as age 2 with Georgia as his birthplace. Elizabeth Blalock was listed in a second household on the property of Winslow Blalock with Eliza and Frances McKinney living with her, as well as, Noah Duncan who also came from Lincoln County and was probably working as a farmhand prior to his marriage to Martha Guthrie. Winslow was listed with a 160 acre farm and his property included a house for his immediate family and a house for his mother and 2 aunts. Thomas’s farm was also 160 acres and was about ½ mile southwest of Winslow’s farm. When analyzing the 1850 Tippah County census and the families living near the Blalocks, only the Blalock family has children who were born in Georgia. All of the other related families appear to have moved directly from Lincoln County to Tippah County. Whether both families moved to Georgia after Winslow married or Thomas moved before Winslow was married is unknown, but both families did have children born in Georgia between 1846 and 1848. Why did they go to Georgia and not directly to Mississippi as the other Lincoln County families appear to have done?

1850s Path Leading from Beattie’s Ford, North Carolina to Chattooga County, Georgia The straight line distance to Tippah County, Mississippi from Beatties’ Ford is approximately 450 miles. Chattooga County, Georgia is roughly midway between Lincoln County, North Carolina and Tippah County, Mississippi. Using a map from 1850 titled The Mitchell’s Travel Guide, the route of travel using

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major roads goes through Chattanooga, Tennessee but a smaller road from Dalton to LaFayette would have reduced the miles traveled. David Crockett Blaylock who had married Caroline Beatty was living in Chattooga County, Georgia at the time that Thomas’s daughter Julia and Winslow’s son Richard were born. John Blalock Sr. and Mary, their son Henry Blalock’s family were still living in Chattooga County as late as 1845 as indicated by the weddings of Henry on May 14, 1845 and Mary on May 7, 1845. Exactly when they moved to Walker County, Alabama is not known. Henry’s two oldest children were born in Alabama in 1848 and 1850. Eleanor had son born in Alabama by 1847. Thomas and Winslow may have gone to Chattooga County while John Blalock Sr. and most of his family was still there and then left for Mississippi when John Blalock Sr.’s family moved to Walker County, Alabama prior to 1850. John Blalock Sr.’s daughter, Jane Myers, gave birth to her first daughter in Walker County, Alabama around 1838 but the other known members of John Blalock Sr.’s family were still in Chattooga County, Georgia until sometime between 1845 and 1850 and David C. Blaylock and his family remained in Georgia. Thomas had married Charlotte Beatty, Winslow had married Dovey Beatty, and David Crockett Blaylock married Caroline Beatty. There are 15 households in the 1840 Lincoln County, North Carolina census headed by persons with the last name Beatty in its various spellings. There are several that have female members of the household who were of the correct age range to include Charlotte and/or Dovey. Caroline on the other hand is known to be the daughter of Thomas Beatty who was born in South Carolina. It is reasonable to suspect that Charlotte and Dovey were distant cousins of Caroline. There is no direct evidence that Thomas and Winslow Blalock went to Chattooga County when they went to Georgia. This is my theory and could be wrong, but based on the fact that John Blalock Sr.’s family members were in Chattooga County, I think it is a reasonable conclusion. There is no evidence in the census that John Blalock Jr. was ever enumerated after 1820 and therefore his whereabouts remain unknown. Thomas, Winslow, their mother, Elizabeth, and their two aunts may have gone to Georgia with the intent to stay there. They may have wanted to see John Blalock Sr. and his family or may have hoped to find John Blalock Jr. Charlotte and Dovey may have wanted to go to Georgia and reconnect with distant Beatty relations. But for some reason, staying in Georgia was not to be. Perhaps the desire to find more productive land motivated them to move on to Mississippi where many other Lincoln County families had moved. Perhaps a bad year for weather and a failed crop in Georgia spurred not only Thomas and Winslow to move further west but also motivated John Blalock Sr. and his son, Henry, and their families to move to Walker County, Alabama where Thornton and Jane Myers had previously established their family. By 1850, Thomas, Winslow and their families along with their mother Elizabeth and their 2 spinster aunts were in Tippah County, Mississippi.

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Tippah County, Mississippi Tippah County, Mississippi was created from land originally belonging to the Chickasaw Nation and became a new home for many families from Lincoln County, North Carolina. The First Chickasaw Treaty ceded land north of 35 degrees latitude between the Mississippi River, Ohio River and Tennessee River to the United States. This represented western Kentucky and western Tennessee. On October 20, 1832, a second Chickasaw Treaty ceded land south of 35 degrees latitude and east of the Mississippi River to the United States. This represented northern Mississippi and Alabama. The land was quickly surveyed and made available for public sale at a minimum price of $1.25 per acre. Settlers from Lincoln County, North Carolina began moving to Tippah County, Mississippi in the mid1830s. One early settler was Rev. William Morris Asbury, the 11th child of Rev. Daniel Asbury who had started the camp meetings in Lincoln County, North Carolina. Some tax lists have survived to the present day and listed Thomas M. and William J. Guthrie on the 1843 tax roll, and Jeremiah and Osborne Proctor on the 1847 tax roll. The tax rolls for 1849-1854 no longer exist but Thomas and Winslow Blalock were on the 1855 tax roll. Other family names including Beatty, Fitzgerald, Whitener, Abernathy and Norwood were listed on these tax rolls. It is likely that the news of the life in Mississippi was communicated back to Lincoln County through the close connections within each family and between families in the church and in camp meetings. As a result, a significant number of families in northern Tippah County came from Lincoln County, North Carolina While travel from Lincoln County to Chattooga County would have been over land, it is possible that the Blalocks may have gone to Tippah County down the Tennessee River. The Blalocks probably moved from Chattooga County to farms east of Springhill and north of Ripley in Mississippi. (See two green dots on map below).

Possible Water Route from Chattooga County, Georgia to Tippah County, Mississippi

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They may have travelled south to Rome, Georgia and then west to Ripley, Mississippi by land. An alternative route that had also been used to remove the Cherokees from northern Georgia would take advantage of the Tennessee River which flows west across Alabama before turning north and flowing through Tennessee and Kentucky to the Mississippi River at Cairo, Illinois. They may have travelled north to Chattanooga, Tennessee or west to Gunter’s Landing in Alabama and from there they could have taken a steam boat or barge to Eastport, Mississippi. Railroads had not been built along this route by 1848. Blalock farms in Tippah County On October 5, 1848, Winslow F. Blalock purchased 160 acres of land being the southwest ¼ of Section 23, Township 1 South, Range 3 East of the Chickasaw Survey from Hiram and Serena Hines for $100 (Deed book H, page 319). Hiram Hines was a wealthy plantation owner and became a railroad investor. His estate was large enough that it was in probate for 30 years after he died. When the Guthries and Proctors arrived in Tippah County, land was still available for purchase from the federal government and they purchased and patented land as late as June 1848. Winslow’s farm was located approximately 4 miles west of the present day town of Walnut, Mississippi but Walnut was not founded until 1872. Thomas R. Blalock purchased 160 acres of land in the northwest ¼ of Section 33, Township 1 South, Range 3 East on February 1, 1849 (Deed book I, page 88). This would place Thomas’s farm approximately 3 miles southeast of Winslow’s farm.

Numbering of Townships, Ranges, and Sections Unlike the original 13 colonies, Kentucky, Tennessee and the Republic of Texas where land surveys were made by the original land holder using physical elements of the property such as trees, creeks and large rocks as boundary markers, lands acquired through treaties in the west were organized in a square pattern using longitude and latitude for boundaries. Sections of 640 acres being 1 mile long and 1 mile My Blaylock Ancestry

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wide were organized into a 36 square mile grid defined by Townships north or south of a line called a base line and Ranges to the east or west of another line of the survey called a principal meridian. The numbering pattern of the sections is shown in the prior diagram. In the case of the Chickasaw Survey, something very interesting happened. When the boundries were established between North Carolina and Georgia, 35 degrees north latitude was to be the state line. As the southern boundary of Tennessee was surveyed the original survey line was extended west establishing the northern boundary of Alabama and Mississippi. However, because the equipment used in surveying in the late 1700s was not as accurate as equipment that became available later, the angle of the survey line was slightly off. As the survey line extended over 500 miles, the error increased so that by the time the survey line reached Mississippi River, it was too far north by approximately 2 ½ miles. Both Mississippi and Tennessee wanted the disputed area to be included in their state. After a court battle in 1837, the state line was confirmed to be 35 degrees north latitude and as a result some of Township 1 South was located in Tennessee and some was in Mississippi. Farmers in sections 1-12 were in Tennessee and farmers in the north half of sections 13-18 found that north side of their farm could be in Tennessee and the south side could be in Mississippi. While all of the Blalock activities that would be recorded at the county clerks office would be found in the Tippah County seat at Ripley, Mississippi, other related families might record their purchases and sales of land, marriages, or tax payments in Boivar in Hardeman County, Tennessee.

Method of Section Numbering showing Old and New State Lines in Township 1 South of Tippah County This method of identifying where a farm is located makes it much easier to determine where neighbors were located and how far away family members were from each other. In some cases, it is nearly imposssible to determine where a farm was exactly in Lincoln County, North Carolina or any of the other My Blaylock Ancestry

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colonial states because the tree that might have been used as a corner marker may have died or the large rock may have been moved when the land was cleared. Trying to determine how far away William Blalock lived from Susannah Spain for example is very difficult and I only know they lived along Killian Creek but not how far apart. In some cases where the census lists are in the sequence that the households were counted, it is possible to determine that they were close neighbors. In other censuses where the list is alphabetical, there is no way for someone without surveying experience to know how near one family lived to another. Using the Public Land Survey System allows determining exactly where a farm was located and how far apart family members lived. It is also now possible to view stalite images of the land using Google Earth today. This information about the location of family members and neighbors becomes very interesting as individuals begin to take sides when the Civil War begins. Life in the 1850s Winslow and Thomas purchased farms that were located near the northeast corner of the Holly Springs National Forest today. A satellite view of Winslow’s land shows woodlands with a small lake. There is a clearing near the lake that appears to be plowed and may have been Winslow’s homesite. There are several dirt roads crossing the property and a home near the county road on the south end. The county seat of Ripley was about 18 miles to the south. The town of Jonesborough, which had been established in 1843 when Phineas Black opened a store there, was about 8 miles to the east. A stage line ran through Jonesborough to Ripley bringing goods to the store. There was good timber to build houses and barns readily available. If a natural spring was found on the land, clean water was easily available but otherwise a well was dug or a long walk to a neighbor’s farm was necessary to fetch clean water. Clearing land for planting was necessary. Planting in the Spring and harvesting in the Fall required long days of hard work. Livestock was purchased including horses, hogs, milk cows and chickens and all had to be fed and cared for year round. The primary cash crop was cotton even on a small family farm. The Blalock family continued to prosper in Mississippi. Thomas and Charlotte had a second daughter, Mary M. Blalock, born about 1849. Mary was their last child according to the censuses. It is not always possible to know all the children born in a family based solely on the census. If a child died as an infant, they may not have been alive at the time the census was taken. Based on the information that is available, Thomas and Charlotte only had two children. Winslow and Dovey had a second son on September 26, 1850 and named him William T. Freeman Blaylock. This was my great great grandfather. The following children were born after Freeman: James Franklin Blalock on September 6, 1852, Monroe Madison Vincent Blaylock on May 21, 1854, N. R. J. Blalock in 1856, Marcus Lafayette Blaylock on August 11, 1861, and Mary Alice Abigail Blalock in July, 1862. N. R. J. Blalock was listed as a daughter, age 4, in household 676 the 1860 census. I have not found N. R. J. Blalock in any later censuses. Based on census information discussed later, she died prior to 1865. Elizabeth Blalock and Fanny McKinney are listed in household 674 and it appears that Eliza McKinney had died prior to the 1860 census.

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1860 Tippah County, Mississippi Census, page 93

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1860 Tippah County, Mississippi Census, page 94

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William T. Freeman Blaylock used his middle name, Freeman, in all records I have found to date. I have not found any record where he used the name William but instead he used the name W. F. Blaylock or W. Freeman Blaylock. I have indicated that his first name was William based on information in the death certificate of his youngest son, Bishop Marvin Blalock. I do question whether his first name was William or Winslow because information provided on death certificates is often incorrect. The information provided on a death certificate is provided by a relative of the deceased and that person may not have had first-hand knowledge. In this case, the informant was Bishop Marvin Blalock’s son-inlaw, Harley Russell Blue, who was born 5 years after W. Freeman Blaylock died. However, this is the only information regarding Freeman’s first name that I have found. Winslow bought and sold land in the 1850s. On August 11, 1851, Winslow purchased 80 acres of land in the south ½ of the northeast ¼ of Section 22 from Jacob and Samira Treas/Treece for $137 recorded in Deed book K, page 194. This land was then sold to Noah Duncan, who was living in the household of Elizabeth Blalock in the 1850 census, on October 13, 1851 for $150 recorded in Deed Book K, pages 450451. As was required, Dovey testified that she was the wife of Winslow F. Blalock and that she signed and sealed the deed as her own act, doing so freely and without any fear, threats or compulsion from her husband. Liberty Church Winslow F. Blalock serving as a trustee for the Liberty Church along with Augustus A. Norwood, James Park, Thomas R. Blalock, and Robert Proctor purchased 3 acres of land from James and Lydia Prewitt /Pruitt on November 9, 1854 located in the Southeast ¼ of Section 27. The documents were prepared by Thomas R. Blalock acting as Justice of the Peace and recorded in Deed book O, page 99-100. All of the trustees of Liberty Church except James P. Park had come to Tippah County from Lincoln County, North Carolina. The Blalocks, Proctors, Guthries and Norwoods had owned tent sites at Rock Spring Camp Campground. James Park was born in North Carolina but lived in Bedford County, Tennessee in 1850 but I am unsure if he was originally from Lincoln County, North Carolina. There is little doubt that Liberty Church was a Methodist congregation since most of the trustees had been owners of tent sites at Rock Spring Campground before moving to Mississippi, but by 1854, the Methodist Episcopal Church had become fragmented.

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Liberty Church Deed page 1

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Liberty Church Deed page 2

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A Little Methodist Church History While studying at Oxford in England in 1729, John Wesley and his brother Charles organized a prayer and study group that became known as Methodist because of the structure they brought to exercising their religious practice. In 1735, John Wesley served as an Anglican chaplain in the newly formed Georgia Colony. By 1738 he had returned to London, formed the Methodist Societies in 1739 and held the first Conference of Preachers in 1744. By 1760, Methodist colonists begin arriving in America and in 1773 the first Conference of American Methodist preachers was held in Philadelphia and attended by 10 lay preachers who agreed that they would not administer the sacraments because they were laymen but that their congregations would receive the sacraments at Anglican Churches. After the American Revolution, Wesley began to ordain ministers and the movement became the Methodist Episcopal Church in America. In 1830, the Methodist Protestant Church separated from the Methodist Episcopal Church as a result of clergy wanting to have more participation in decision making rather than accepting the decisions of a Bishop. The Methodist Protestants eliminated the position of Bishop, allowed lay members to participate in annual conferences and determined the placement of ministers in the annual conference rather than by appointment by a Bishop. In 1843, the Wesleyan Methodist Church split from the Methodist Episcopal Church due to their total objection to slavery. John Wesley had always objected to slavery but as a practical matter in the South, slavery was not allowed by the clergy but was tolerated by members of the congregation. In 1844, the Methodist Episcopal Church South split from the Methodist Episcopal Church. A conflict on the issue of slavery centered on Rev. James Osgood Andrew of Oxford, Georgia, who was a Bishop and a trustee of the Methodist Manual Labor School which later became Emory College at Oxford. While there is some controversy regarding how he became a slave owner, the New Georgia Encyclopedia reports Bishop Andrew had inherited a slave in the estate of his first wife in 1840 and then married a woman who also owned a slave. As a result, the General Conference in 1844 voted to suspend Bishop Andrew until he no longer owned slaves. The southern delegates questioned the authority of the General Conference and the dispute resulted in the formation of the Methodist Episcopal Church South which invited Bishop Andrew to preside as its leader. Rock Spring Campground was led by pastors associated with the Methodist Episcopal Church South after 1844, however this may not have been true of Liberty Church as I will discuss later. After 100 years of separation, the various fragments of the Methodist Church began to reunite in the 1930s. In 1968, the United Methodist Church was formed by uniting the Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church, both of which had roots in the movement founded by John and Charles Wesley.

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The Community of Liberty

There is almost no evidence that the community of Liberty Mississippi ever existed. In addition to the Liberty Church deed, there is a photograph of a school class for Liberty School in 1908 in The Tippah County Heritage, Volume I by Ida Hensley Richardson which was located in the same part of Tippah County. Liberty school was said to have been founded in the mid1890s and operated until 1939 when it was disbanded and the children were sent to school in Falkner. The school building burned in the mid1940s and people I have talked to in the area have no knowledge of the community of Liberty. I have not found any map that shows a town named Liberty in Tippah County for any time period. However, the members of Company G, 34th Mississippi Infantry Regiment, CSA, which was enlisted in Tippah County in April 1862, were known as the Sons of Liberty. In addition, there is a Liberty Cemetery 4 ½ miles southwest of Tiplersville which would be perhaps 5-10 miles south of Winslow’s farm and some of the graves there date to the pre-Civil War era. I have contacted the Methodist Archive for Mississippi and there is no known church record of Liberty Church that has survived to present day. When the various factions of the Methodist Church began to reunite, the Methodist Episcopal Church was the dominant organization. Records of other factions may not have been maintained as well as the records of the Methodist Episcopal records or they may have been lost in the reorganization. Liberty Church would likely have been associated with the Methodist Episcopal Church South, the Methodist Protestant Church or the Wesleyan Methodist Church. While researching the Blalocks and other nearby Tippah County families, I learned that most of the members of Liberty Church supported the Union in the Civil War. If Liberty Church was associated with the Methodist Protestant Church or the Wesleyan Methodist Church, this would increase the possibility that any records of the church would have been lost. If Liberty Church was associated with the Wesleyan Methodist Church, this would mean that the congregation was strongly opposed to slavery. Tippah County’s population by 1860 included 39% slaves but none of the persons who I know were members of Liberty Church owned slaves. This has raised the question if Liberty Church might have been part of the Underground Railroad. Liberty Church was located about 40 miles from the Tennessee River which is the only river that flows north out of Alabama and Mississippi would have made Liberty Church a potential stopping place to shelter escaping slaves. However, I have only been able to ask the question and have not been able to find any evidence that Liberty Church had any involvement in the Underground Railroad. Railroads Expand Across the South In 1855, the town of Cross City was founded in Tishomingo County less than 20 miles east of Winslow’s farm. Cross City was so named because it was to serve as a junction for the Mobile and Ohio Railroad running north and south from Mobile, Alabama to the Ohio River near Cairo, Illinois and the Memphis and Charleston Railroad running east and west providing the first continuous route across the south from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River. The name of the town was soon changed to Corinth, a crossroads in ancient Greece. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Railroad Expansion In the map above, townships are numbered consecutively moving south from the state line between Tennessee and Mississippi (notice the numbers running south along the county line between Marshall and Tippah Counties). Township 1 South is in the red shaded band. Ranges are numbered using roman numerals and Range III (3) East is just below the word Charleston. Black’s Store is shown on this map and was renamed Jonesboro by 1860. The Memphis and Charleston Railroad was completed in 1857 spanning the entire south. Earlier maps show the completion of the railroad from Memphis to Pocahontas, Tennessee. Winslow and Thomas would have had easy access to the railroad at Middleton or Saulsbury, Tennessee providing access to the cotton markets in Memphis. The Mobile and Ohio Railroad ran through Corinth, Mississippi and the Mississippi Central Railway ran through Holly Springs and Lamar, Mississippi to Grand Junction, Tennessee and beyond providing two north-south routes near the Blalocks. The construction of these railroads brought new settlers and growth to the area. In 1870, sections in Tippah and Tishamingo Counties were taken to form Alcorn County were Corinth is located today. Perhaps it was the influx of new settlers into the area as the result of the railroad expansion that encouraged Winslow and his family to consider selling their farm in Mississippi and moving west again. Land values in Tippah County had increased as the result of constructing houses, clearing and planting fields and new people coming to the area. Based on other sales of land in the area, Winslow may have been able to sell his farm at a profit providing him with the funds to relocate and purchase new land in Arkansas. Moving to Arkansas and Returning Winslow F. Blalock purchased 86 acres in Conway County, Arkansas, and a patent was issued on May 1, 1860 per certificate of public land sale #13417 (west ½ of southwest ¼ of Section 18, Township 8 North, Range 13 West). The act of Congress that provided authority for the sale of this land was passed April 24, 1820 and required a minimum payment of $1.25 per acre. Therefore, Winslow would have paid at My Blaylock Ancestry

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least $107.50. This land is 16.5 miles north of the town of Conway, 1 mile west of the town of Twin Groves and 17 miles south of the town of Clinton today. The exact date of purchase is unknown because there could be a delay of several years between the date of purchase and the date the patent was issued due to the volume of land sales being processed by the government. A satellite view of the property today shows hilly woodland with a house and a small area that has been cleared for a yard. In its virgin state, Winslow would have found a wooded plot with plenty of timber for building a house and with a seasonally dry creek at the bottom of a ravine running through the center of the property. Winslow F. Blalock sold his land in Arkansas to Reuben Hawkins on October 1, 1858 for $175.00. This land and an additional 40 acres adjoining this parcel (southeast ¼ of the southwest ½ of Section 18, Township 8 North, Range 13 West) was patented to Rueben R. Hawkins on May 1, 1860. It appears that Winslow and Reuben purchased adjoining parcels and then Rueben purchased the rights to Winslow's parcel from Winslow and filed the sale documentation. As a result of the time required to issue the patent in Washington, Winslow's patent and Rueben's patent for the combined parcel were issued on the same day. Due to the fact that county boundaries have been changed, the documents for the sale of the land by Winslow Blalock to Rueben Hawkins were recorded in Conway County but now reside in Conway, Arkansas in Faulkner County. Was it Winslow’s intent to move to Arkansas or was this an example of buying property with the intent to sale it at a profit? That is not possible to determine with certainty but it appears he originally planned to remain in Arkansas. Additionally, a possible connection to the Blalocks who had remained in Chattooga County, Georgia was revealed when I found James Blalock, who had married Martha Garrison on July 8, 1855 in Chattooga County, Georgia, had moved to Lewisburg in Welborn Township, Conway County, Arkansas between 1855 and 1860. Lewisburg was the county seat of Conway County at that time. In addition, Jane Tucker, married Cassel (Castle) Garrison in Chattooga County, Georgia on October 5, 1854 and their family moved to Springfield in Union Township, Conway County prior to December 16, 1858 when their son William was born. The town of Springfield is less than 7 miles from the land Winslow Blalock purchased in Conway County. It is possible that Winslow became interested in moving to Arkansas because other family members were moving there from Georgia around the same time.

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Arkansas Land Patent

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Deed of Conveyance page 1

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Deed of Conveyance page 2

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Deed of Conveyance page 3

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Arkansas Land Patent to Rueben R Hawkins Includes Land Patented to Winslow F Blalock on the Same Date

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Back to Tippah County, Mississippi Winslow was assessed personal tax in Tippah County, Mississippi in 1855, 1856, 1860 and 1861. He is not listed on the tax roll in 1858 which indicates that he had taken his family to Arkansas and then returned to Mississippi by 1860. Tax lists for 1857 and 1859 have not survived, so it is not possible to determine if Winslow was taxed in Tippah County in those years. None of the children listed in the census were born in between 1857 and 1860 and because there is a five year gap between N. R. J. Blalock born in 1856 and Marcus Lafayette Blaylock born in 1861, it is very possible that there was one child born in Arkansas in this period that did not survive to the 1860 census. In the 1900 census, Dovey states that she gave birth to 10 children in her lifetime and research shows that one of those children was never listed in a census. I believe that Winslow and Dovey had a child in Arkansas around 1858 that died as an infant. The difficulty of establishing a new farm and the possible death of an infant child while in Arkansas could explain why Winslow and his family returned to Tippah County by 1860. More insight regarding Winslow’s family’s move to Arkansas comes from a real estate tax roll for Tippah County, Mississippi for 1861 which has survived. The taxes for the land that had been purchased in 1848 by Winslow were paid by M. W. Moore on this tax list. Winslow and his family were living in Tippah County at the time of the 1860 census but it appears that he no longer owned his original farm land. There is no record of this land being sold until November 1876. Many land transactions were never recorded by the county clerk if the buyer or seller did not present the documentation for recording. It appears Winslow sold the farm in Tippah County, Mississippi to M. W. Moore in order to raise cash for the purchase of land in Arkansas and moved the family to Arkansas. Then when Winslow decided to return to Mississippi, Rueben R. Hawkins agreed to purchase Winslow’s land that adjoined his own farm. Based on the sequence of families listed in the 1860 census, Winslow and his family did not return to the same land in Tippah County but to land very near his old farm. Winslow’s uncle, Richard Proctor, died in the summer of 1858 leaving his Aunt Martha a widow. Richard and Martha owned the 160 acre farm in the northeast ¼ of Section 26 immediately to the south of Winslow’s original farm in Section 23. In probate on August 16, 1858, William Jefferson Guthrie and Thomas Madison Guthrie were appointed executors of Richard Proctor’s estate, per Tippah County Administration of Bonds and Letters 1858-1914, page 247. An appraisal of the estate by Matchett Williams, Thomas Rainey and James Pruitt was accepted in court on November 15, 1858, per Tippah County Administration Records 1857-1859, pages 405-406. Unfortunately, the will books and the probate files for this time period did not survive the Civil War. In the 1860 census, Martha Proctor was listed as the owner of the farm for household 613 valued at $1,000 where the head of household was her son, Jeremiah Proctor. Elizabeth Blalock and Frances McKinney were living on the same land in household 614 which was miss-numbered as household 615. James Pruitt’s family was in household 615 with real estate valued at $1,000 and Winslow F. Blalock was listed in household 616 with real estate valued at $320. This indicates that Winslow now has a farm of approximately 40-50 acres. There is no record of Winslow purchasing this land in the Tippah County

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Deed Books and Winslow was not listed in the real estate tax roll for 1861, either of which would have given a description of the exact location and size of his farm. From this information, it appears that Elizabeth Blalock did not move to Arkansas when her son Winslow moved his family there. Instead, she and Frances McKinney moved to a house on the property of her brother-in-law, Richard Proctor, remaining close to her sister Martha and not far from her son Thomas’s family. Then when Winslow brought his family back from Arkansas, he must have purchased 40 or 50 acres from his widowed aunt, Martha. Other County Record Insights Winslow’s older brother, Thomas, was assessed personal tax in Tippah County, Mississippi in 1855, 1856, 1858, 1860 and 1861, and Real Property Tax in 1861. Records are not available to confirm tax assessments in other years. In the 1858 and 1860 personal tax assessments, Thomas R. Blalock was not assessed the Military School Tax paid by able bodied males between 18 and 45 indicating that he was not able bodied at the time. Whether he was not able bodied due to illness or injury is unknown but in 1861 he was assessed this tax again, indicating he had recovered and was considered able bodied again. In addition to the poll tax, personal taxes included a tax on certain luxury items such as clocks, watches, carriages, and pianos. In 1856 the records include both the poll tax and personal property taxes. Thomas was accessed tax on a clock valued at $5 in addition to his poll tax with the total tax being 95 ½ cents and Winslow was accessed tax on a watch valued at $8 and a clock valued at $10 in addition to his poll tax with the total tax being $1.10 ¼. By 1860, Thomas had a clock which was still valued at $5 but Winslow no longer owned a watch or a clock according to the tax rolls. Then in 1861, both Thomas and Winslow were taxed for having clocks valued at $5. The fact the Winslow had less personal property in 1860 than he had in 1856 is further indication that his move to Arkansas was a financial and personal setback for him and his family. Tax lists also provide information on nearby neighbors included many families that had moved from Lincoln County. The 1861 tax roll shows the Proctors owned farms in Sections 25, 26, 27 and 34. The Guthries owned farms in Sections 13, 14, 24, 25, and 27. The Whitener family had a larger farm that extended into Sections 25, 35 and 36. The Abernathy’s farm was in Section 33, Noah Duncan’s farm was in Section 15, Milos Fitzgerald’s farm was in Section 23 and Augustus A. Norwood’s farm was in Section 28. Rainey Letters Provide Insight into Daily Life in the Area Thomas E. Rainey was the son of William Rainey and Eliza (nee Thomas) Rainey who had moved from South Carolina to Hardeman County, Tennessee around 1835. Thomas married Mary Elizabeth Whitener around 1856 and owned a farm in Section 26 about 1/2 mile south of Winslow’s original farm. Although most of the Rainey family lived across the state line in Tennessee near the town of Middleton, Thomas’s sister, Nancy, married Daniel Guthrie on January 17, 1848. They owned land in Sections 13 and 24 and were Winslow Blalock’s neighbors to the east. On February 3, 1863 their younger sister, Mary J. Rainey, married John Nelson Guthrie, the son of Thomas Madison Guthrie whose farm was in My Blaylock Ancestry

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Section 25 about ½ mile southwest of Winslow’s farm. A younger brother, Daniel G. Rainey, married Lavinia Proctor, the daughter of Thomas Osborne Proctor whose farm was in Section 24, ½ mile east of Winslow’s farm. William and Eliza Rainey had 7 other children, among them was a daughter named Ann Elizabeth who married Rev. Josiah Henry Dockery Tomson on October 16, 1855 in Hardeman County, Tennessee. They moved to Missouri around 1859 where Rev. Tomson took a job as a guard and the Chaplin of the Missouri State Prison which just a few years later exempted him from service in the Civil War. The Rainey’s were a close family and they could read and write. From December, 1859, to February, 1871, Ann saved 33 letters her family wrote to her in Missouri which provide some insight into life in the area where Winslow and Thomas Blalock lived. I have transcribed these letters and included them as Appendix A because the living conditions mentioned in these letters were shared by the neighboring families. Letters from 1859 and 1860 speak of the health of family members, marriages and deaths in the community, church activities, visitors, schooling, plans for travel, selling of land, and the farming conditions. Church singings on Sunday and during the week as well as camp meetings in the summer were central to the daily life described in the letters. Thirty to forty students attended a school taught by Mrs. Sullivan. Crops were doing well but swine cholera had killed a number of pigs and hogs in 1859 which were a primary source of meat, smoked ham and bacon, for each farm. Fruit trees were damaged by spring storms in 1860 due to the fact that they were heavy with fruit when the storms struck. By late July of 1860, there was concern about the corn and cotton crop due to a lack of rain. In a letter date March 3, 1861, forty days before the first shots were fired in the Civil War, Mary J. Rainey, Ann’s 18 year old sister, wrote “This leaves us well with the exception of Daniel. He had a spell of the typhoid fever some five weeks ago and we got it broke up and it turned to the chills”. Later on the same page, John Rainey, Ann’s 23 year old brother wrote; “I have roamed over the wild plains of the west since I last addressed you. I traveled two months last winter. I found excitement was so high I did not venture north. When I got back to Memphis, I thought I had better come home and wait until the excitement has died out. I think I shall try to see you this Fall. Don’t think that I don’t want to come. No, it was nearly dangerous for one to travel alone…. Times is hard. We have corn planted and fixing for cotton. Wheat looks very nice. Stock is as before..…I am living with Pa. I ain’t going to make any crop myself. I am engaged to Pa until October at $12 per month…..I am stout as a young man. My weight is 156 pounds.” It is hard to imagine someone today being called stout who weighs 156 pounds but this illustrates how different the life style of hard manual labor and limited diet was from what we take for granted today. Political Winds Sweep Over the Country The danger in traveling mentioned in John Rainey’s letter was the result of the presidential election of 1860 held on November 6, 1860. This election was particularly hard fought with 4 major candidates. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Concerns for the direction of the country were deeply felt and emotions were high and tense. The Southern Democrat Party split from the Democrat Party and the Constitutional Union Party was formed creating a four way race for the presidential election. The results were: Candidate Abraham Lincoln John C Breckinridge John Bell Stephen Douglas

Party Republican Southern Democrat Constitutional Union Democrat

States Won 17 11 3 1

Popular Vote % 39.8 18.1 12.6 29.5

Electors 169 72 39 9

1860 Electoral College Votes Abraham Lincoln won the Electoral College ballot but had less than 40% of the popular vote. Any election where the president-elect fails to win a majority of the popular vote is a cause for concern that highlights the divisions within the country. On November 5, 1860, the day before the presidential election, a special session of the legislature of South Carolina convened at the request of Governor William Henry Gist. Normally the purpose of this meeting would have been to appoint electors to the Electoral College for the candidate that carried the state. However, Governor Gist expressed his concern that a sectional candidate committed to the support of measures that would reduce the southern states to mere provinces and stated, “I would My Blaylock Ancestry

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earnestly recommend that in the event of the election of Abraham Lincoln to the presidency, a convention of the people of this State be immediately called to consider and determine the mode and measure of redress.” The South Carolina secession convention was called on December 17, 1860 and on December 20th the convention voted unanimously to dissolve the union between South Carolina and other States united with her under The Constitution of the United States of America.

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South Carolina Sowing Seeds of Discontent The vote for succession was not the first time that South Carolina had found itself in the minority in opposing federal law. In 1828 and 1832 tariff acts were passed by Congress to protect manufactured goods made in the United States from low priced import goods. This tariff benefitted the manufacturing based economy of the northern states but was a hardship on cotton exporting southern states because the primary importer of manufactured goods was England which used the money from selling manufactured goods to purchase cotton. John C. Calhoun resigned as Vice President under Andrew Jackson in order to be elected as Senator from South Carolina as the principal proponent of the constitutional theory of state nullification. Based on the concept that any state had the right to nullify any federal law that the state deemed to be unconstitutional, South Carolina held a state convention in November 1832 and declared the tariffs unconstitutional and unenforceable beginning February 1, 1833. However, a compromise tariff bill was passed in Congress in February of 1833 which was acceptable to the southern states and South Carolina reconvened the convention and repealed the Nullification Ordinance on March 11, 1833. The Supreme Court has rejected the theory of nullification more than once citing the Supremacy Clause of Article IV of the Constitution which states that the Constitution, federal statutes and U S Treaties are the supreme law of the land. The origin of the theory of nullification had its’ roots in The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions of 1798 and 1799 written by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison which argued that the Alien and Sedition Acts, passed in the presidency of John Adams, were unconstitutional. They argued that the states had the right to declare any act of Congress unconstitutional that was not specifically authorized by the Constitution. Not only did southern states argue this theory was a valid response to a federal law that a state opposed but Vermont enacted its’ 1850 Habeas Corpus Law making enforcement of the federal Fugitive Slave Act void based on this theory. In 1854, the Wisconsin Supreme Court declared the Fugitive Slave Act unconstitutional but was overturned by the Supreme Court in 1859. The restrictions on the expansion of slavery supported by Abraham Lincoln and the impact that would have on future federal law as southern slave holding states would become a smaller and smaller minority in Congress, became the root cause of the Civil War. The idea that states had the right to nullify federal law was the strategic premise used to justify secession. Did anyone related to Winslow and Thomas Blalock play a role in South Carolina’s secession? From the time they were toddlers until they were adults, Winslow and Thomas lived with their mother and two aunts in the household of their grandmother, Susannah Spain, in Lincoln County, North Carolina. One of the spiritual leaders of the community was their uncle, Reverend Hartwell Spain. He was admitted on a trial basis in 1817 to the Methodist Conference and was admitted into full connection and ordained as a Deacon in 1819 in the North Carolina District. In 1821, he served the Pee Dee District My Blaylock Ancestry

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(South Carolina) at the Sugar Creek Mission but was superannuated (put on leave) due to illness and returned to Lincoln County in 1822. It was during these early days as a minister that Reverend Harwell Spain met and married Elizabeth Ann Chambers in South Carolina. Her family was well established. Her grandfather, Captain John Chambers, had served as an officer in the Revolutionary War in South Carolina under General Sumter at Huck’s Defeat and the Battle of Camden. He was wounded and taken as a prisoner of war at Fish Creek. Her father, also named John Chambers, had served in the War of 1812 but there were 3 service records for men named John Chambers in 3 different regiments from South Carolina and I am unsure in which unit he served. He was listed in the 1850 census with an 805 acre farm valued at $2,430. Her brother, John Chambers, was listed as a physician in the 1850 census. No record exists to determine the exact date of marriage for Hartwell and Elizabeth. South Carolina law left record keeping of marriages up to the church and there were no marriage records recorded by the county clerk until 1911. A summary of Hartwell Spain’s ministry was written for Early Methodism in the Carolinas by Rev. A. M. Chreitzberg published in 1897 and reads: "Hartwell Spain was born in Wake County, N. C, February 10, 1795; converted to God in 1810; admitted into the Conference in 1817. His connection with the Conference in the active ministry, with the exception of six years local work, embraced twenty-five years. Owing to feeble health he was, from time to time, superannuated about twenty-six years. In person he was tall, slender, and graceful; his face expressive of intelligence and amiability. In preaching he was at first very deliberate, indeed, slow. A stranger would predict failure, but as he warmed with his subject, great would be the change, his tones louder, utterances quickened, and his face very expressive. After a while his whole nature seemed aglow, a transformation such as Patrick Henry's had occurred; his face shone with an unearthly radiance, an entire cessation of self was apparent, and he seemed aflame with God. His audience caught the influence, and, borne along on the stream of his eloquence, (it was) felt that truly God was with him, and high religious enthusiasm was always aroused. His efficient ministry was sadly hindered by inefficient health. His old age was protracted beyond the usual length of time. He died at Summerton, S. C, fully attesting his joy in the Lord.” One fact not mentioned in this history is that Reverend Hartwell Spain was a representative of the South Carolina Conference to the General Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Philadelphia in 1832. He was also an alternate to the General Conference in 1836, 1840 and 1849. He attended the 1840 General Conference as the alternate when the delegate Rev. W. M. Kennedy died before the session was held. In addition, a memoir was written for Hartwell Spain and printed on pages 6-8 of the South Carolina Conference Journal, 1868, Methodist Episcopal Church South which appears to be the primary source of the item in Rev Chreitzburg’s book. Winslow and Thomas would have certainly known their uncle from his activities at Rock Spring Campground. Whether his family travelled to Lincoln County for camp meetings or not is unknown but he was certainly well known in the Lincoln County District as well as in the South Carolina Conference. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Evidence that he was well liked by his congregation can be found in the number of people with the first and middle names Hartwell Spain found in the later censuses in South Carolina. The Next Generation Hartwell and Elizabeth had 8 children: Albertus Chambers born in 1821, Margaret Susan born in 1823, Mary Eliza born in 1824, Elizabeth Ann born in 1827, Nancy Ann born in 1830, Sarah J. born in 1833, Amelia W. born in 1837 and Hartwell Percy born in 1840. All of the children were born in South Carolina with the exception of Margaret who was born in North Carolina. This indicates that the family spent most of their lives in South Carolina. However, Reverend Hartwell Spain participated in the Rock Spring Camp Meetings from 1829 to 1833 based on the meeting agendas that have survived and he may have continued to participate in other years. Lawyer, War Hero and Politician Albertus Chambers Spain graduated from South Carolina College (now the University of South Carolina) in 1841. Upon graduation, he began to practice law. War was declared by United States on Mexico on May 13, 1846. President James K Polk called for volunteers and South Carolina responded by raising the Palmetto Regiment in December 1846 and it consisted of ten companies of men. Albertus Chambers Spain was enlisted as a 2nd Lieutenant in Company A from Sumter County. After the Texas Revolution, the boundary between Texas and Mexico was in question. Texas claimed territory south to the Rio Grande River and Mexico claimed land north to the Nueces River including most of west Texas and parts of both New Mexico and Colorado today. The annexation of Texas as a state on December 29, 1845 and the clear desire of the United States to extend its territory to the Pacific Ocean brought the two countries into conflict. The Palmetto Regiment was involved in many battles in the Mexican War including Vera Cruz, Contreras, Churubusco, Chapultepec, and Mexico City (Gaita de Belen). The first regimental flag to fly over Mexico City was that of the Palmetto Regiment. At the end of the war in 1847, the regiment returned home to a hero’s welcome. The South Carolina House of Representatives authorized the presentation of medals to the officers and men of the Palmetto Regiment on December 8, 1849. The officer’s medals were gold and the enlisted men’s medals were silver.

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Albertus Chambers Spain returned home and continued to practice law. In the 1850 census, he is listed with his first wife Sarah before they had any children. Their first child was born in September after the census was taken. Albertus owned real estate valued at $4,000 and five slaves. He was elected to the South Carolina Legislature for several terms. By the time of the 1860 census, his real estate had increased to $7,000 in value and his personal property was valued at $25,000 including 23 slaves, 7 of which were mixed race. All seven of the mixed race slaves are listed as fugitives and range in age from 1 to 20 years of age. None of the black slaves are listed as fugitives. In 1860, he was elected as a delegate to the Secession Convention in Charleston. By a unanimous vote of 169-0, the Ordinance of Secession was passed and Albertus Chambers Spain was one of the signers. Because South Carolina realized that it was impossible to secede from the Union successfully on her own, selected representatives were asked to travel to other southern states to assist them in the process of secession. Albertus Chambers Spain was requested to go to Arkansas and confer with representatives there. He did travel to Arkansas and on May 6, 1861, Arkansas seceded from the Union.

Signature from the South Carolina Ordinance of Secession In 1861, he moved from Sumter County to Darlington where he remained the rest of his life. This move may have been prompted by the death in October of 1861 of his mother, Elizabeth. His parents were living in Darlington at that time and he may have moved nearer to his father who was ill. I have found no record that he served in the Confederate Army. The South Carolina Civil War Soldiers Index includes him as a signer of the Ordinance of Succession but does not indicate that he served in the Civil War. Albertus Chambers Spain married twice in his lifetime. His first wife was Sarah Jane Hardeman who was the mother of Albertus’s first five children. She died December 28, 1863 in Darlington, South Carolina. His second wife was Davia Donnella Hardeman who was the mother of Albertus’s last five children. Albertus died on January 22, 1881 in Darlington, South Carolina and is buried in Grove Hill Cemetery. On September 30, 1887, Davia filed a Mexican War widow’s pension application #4988, which was approved with certificate #2742. His cemetery monument indicates he was Major Albertus Chambers Spain but I have not been able to determine if this was his rank at the end of the Mexican War or was an honorary title. Daughters of the South Margaret Susan Spain married Dr. Thomas Whitaker Briggs about 1843 and they had 8 children. Thomas was a physician and plantation owner listed in the 1850 census with real estate valued at $3,500 and in the Slave Schedule as the owner of 65 slaves. By the time of the 1860 census he had increased his real estate holdings to a value of $20,000 and had personal property valued at $87,325, which included 101 slaves. Their oldest son, Thomas W. Briggs Jr. served in Company H, 5th South Carolina Cavalry My Blaylock Ancestry

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Volunteers Regiment, CSA, and survived the war. Margaret died in March 1885 in Clarendon County, South Carolina. Mary Eliza Spain married Anthony White about 1844 and was the mother of three children. She died in December of 1849, possibly in child birth. In the 1850 census, Anthony White was listed with real estate valued at $3,000 and in the Slave Schedule as the owner of 27 slaves. In the 1860 census he was listed as a merchant with real estate valued at $4,000 and personal property valued at $13,000, which includes 19 slaves. One slave was mixed race and was listed as a fugitive. Elizabeth Ann Spain married William Ellison Chambers about 1852 and had one daughter, Mary S. Chambers in 1854. Elizabeth died December 12, 1857 in Sumter County, South Carolina. Mary was raised in the household of her Uncle, Moses A. Huggins. Some researchers list two additional children for Elizabeth but I have been unable to find sources to support this information. Nancy Ann Spain married Moses A. Huggins about 1858. They had five children, of which three lived to adulthood, and in addition raised their niece, Mary S. Chambers. In the 1860 census, Moses was listed as a merchant with real estate valued at $6,500 and personal property valued at $34.400 including 3 slaves. Moses died in 1885 and soon after, the family moved to Roanoke County, Virginia where Nancy Ann can be found in the 1900 and 1910 censuses. Sarah J. Spain never married as far as I can determine but lived with her sister and brother-in-law, Thomas and Margaret Briggs until their deaths in the 1880s. Amelia W. Spain married the Reverend John T. Wightman in York County, South Carolina on February 11, 1857. He was a Methodist Episcopal South minister. They had five children. Before 1900, the family moved from South Carolina to Baltimore, Maryland. Their youngest son, Francis P. Wightman, was a successful artist in Baltimore. Amelia died on March 30, 1910 in Baltimore. Soldier to Company Commander Hartwell Percy Spain was the youngest child of Reverend Hartwell and Elizabeth Spain and was born January 1, 1840. On his birthday at the age of 21 and only a few weeks after his brother signed the Ordinance of Succession, Hartwell enlisted as a private in the 1st South Carolina Volunteers Regiment, CSA, for six months beginning in January 1861. This unit was stationed around Charleston Harbor, initially on Sullivan Island and then moved to Morris Island in March 1861. The defenses of Charleston harbor had been constructed to protect the harbor and the city of Charleston from an attack by sea. Sullivan Island on the north side of the channel and Morris Island and Fort Johnson on the south side of the channel had gun placements designed to sink any ship approaching or entering the harbor. However, defense of these positions was weak on the side of a land approach. To improve the defense of the harbor, Fort Sumter was designed to be on an island with no land approach.

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Charleston Harbor 1861 When the Ordinance of Succession was passed, South Carolina demanded all federal troops leave the state. Fort Sumter was located on a man-made island in the center of the channel leading to Charleston and was still under construction but was near completion. On December 26th, Major Robert Anderson relocated the Federal Troops under the cover of darkness to Fort Sumter. Attempts to resupply Fort Sumter were repulsed. South Carolina troops took command of all other military positions around Charleston harbor. A total of 85 federal troops were isolated on Fort Sumter and the South Carolina forces began constructing batteries to be used to fire on Fort Sumter. Hartwell Percy Spain was in a unit that constructed a battery on Morris Island near the lighthouse with two 24 pound guns used to defend Charleston. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Hartwell Percy Spain kept a diary beginning on January 3, 1861, and continuing to March 17, 1861, with entries concerning poor food, accommodations, boredom, illness and the uselessness of drills. He was an avid reader and greatly appreciated books that were sent to him by his family along with care packages of food items and clothing. Comments in his diary lead me to believe that he had been a student at South Carolina College but had not yet graduated when he joined the Army. He was on duty on January 9, 1861, when the Union ship, “The Star of the West”, approached Charleston harbor in an attempt to resupply Fort Sumter but was turned away by a barrage of artillery fire from Fort Moultrie on Sullivan Island. He made one trip home where his father was in very ill health and a few trips into Charleston in this period. Some extracted entries from the Diary follow: Thursday, January 3, 1861, “The 1st of January I was 21 years of age. That day I joined the “Darlington Guards.” A company of respectful and dignified men—men in whom I have unbounded confidence—men in whom I will rely.” Wednesday, January 9, 1861, “Never in my life have I witnessed such a scene as transpired this morning about ½ past 7 o’clock. A vessel was discernible at a distance of 15 miles from this island last night (8th) and at the time above mentioned, the same could be seen about 6 miles from port, approaching rapidly as if fully qualified to meet any emergency and defying the guns of the several islands—the vessel moved within two miles of Morris Island and met with a cordial reception. The guns from Morris Island gave their fair warning not to approach any farther. No notice was taken. Five more guns played upon her bravely and effectively—two guns were fired from Fort Moultrie. What the firing of those guns (the two from Fort Moultrie) indicated, it is impossible for me to say at this time. One of the balls broke the flagstaff and the “Stars and Stripes” which a second before were proudly waving over the “Star of the West” was trailing over her deck. In an instant more, they hoisted another small flag. By this time, she heaved to and after a few more balls struck her, she was far far away on the wise and dignified billows of the Atlantic. We saw no more of her during the day.” Friday, January 25, 1861, “Was a disagreeable day. We were exempt from duty until evening when we were marched two miles through water and rain and all for nothing whatever. Capt. Warley was enraged and exclaimed as soon as we arrived upon the grounds, “We have marched two miles in this rain and up to our knees in water, just because you were too damned lazy to send your messenger to our quarters with the information that there would be no drill.” I must confess, I hesitated in starting, was displeased when on the way, wading up to our knees in water and the rain pouring—in fact the whole performance wore the appearance of gloom intermingled with the elements that seared their billows in the storm. When I ascertained that all our trouble was by the neglect of Adjutant Smith, the rising of blood of revenge passed through my veins, for I had just recovered from a severe attack of cold and diarrhea.” Sunday, February 3, 1861, “Every day that passes I become more and more anxious to return to the country, vain delusive expectation. Mr. Thomas spent the night with me. He expressed his regret and surprise at my intention to remain here and not return to Clarendon. I would like exceedingly to assume the duties of teacher in that fine school. Oh, how much more I would My Blaylock Ancestry

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learn there. But perhaps what I lose in literature, I’ll gain in observation and acquire a good knowledge of human nature. I know that there are very few men equal to my father in intellect and he, I am confident, attended school but nine months.” Thursday, February 7, 1861, “I feel debilitated today. Last night’s labor has wrought its accustomed results. I suppose I weigh now upwards of 100 lbs., gross. I have been unwell for several days. When I write home however, I say nothing concerning it unless I am well at the time.” From the evening of February 16th until February 27th, Hartwell Percy Spain was on leave in Darlington to visit his sick father. Sunday, February 17, 1861, “I found Father very sick and about a skeleton in appearance. He is in bad health, but not withstanding he is so weak, he is perfectly resigned to the will of Heaven.” Tuesday, February 19, 1861, “Another lovely day. Father seems no better. He never looked so badly before. I hope he’ll recover ere I return to Morris Island. This is the dullest place I ever saw. No one at all can be seen in the streets or anywhere else, for nearly every young man has left the place and shouldered his musket. I feel content comparatively speaking for I am now with the beings I love most dear on this earth. I hope to soon return and have Mother and Father to reside with me. I have a strong notion to bestow my affection upon some fair being.” Tuesday, March 12, 1861, “I never heard so many reports in my life—do not know how to take them. For my part, I intend applying for an honorable discharge with the pretext of going to college. One of our Company has left on the same conditions. I say, if ever I’m allowed the blessed privilege of getting away from this strand, I’ll never put foot upon it again, certain. I am sick to death of this place. Catch me signing for six months again will you! I am improving in health now. Last night I had no fever at all and I sincerely trust it will not come on me tonight.” Thursday, March 14, 1861, “For several days past, we have been constructing a battery near the beach and which will be called “Fort Darlington”. It is near approaching completion, and when finished, it cannot be excelled by any on Morris Island…..we have two 24 pounders in her and if an enemy should attempt to land or pass before her, woe to the same!” The regular diary entries end on March 17th about 3 weeks before the shelling of Fort Sumter initiated the Civil War on April 12, 1861. By May 1861, the 1st South Carolina Volunteers Regiment, CSA, was transferred to Richmond, Virginia and was the first regiment from outside Virginia to arrive. This regiment was incorporated into the Provisional Army of the Confederate States as Gregg’s Brigade of the Army of Northern Virginia. On May 22, 1861 from Camp Davis outside Richmond, he wrote a. letter addressed to his sister, Mrs. John T. Wightman, Charlotte, North Carolina, which reads in part: “Well Sissy, I have so much to write about it is impossible for one to begin appropriately – don’t criticize a soldier’s letter I beg you. The camp is all alive and much excited at this time. Orders were sent to the 2d Regt., Col Kershaw’s Com., yesterday evening to the affect, prepare yourselves for marching early on Thursday morning. Our Regt. will go the same time. Tis said we are going in 30 miles of Washington, called Manassas Gap. Our men are in fighting My Blaylock Ancestry

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condition. We are willing, yet anxious to strike a blow for our rights and dearest honor. I would plunge a dagger in the breast of a man if he would dare to speak Union in my presence. Hanging is too good for a low contemptible and cowardly submissionist. They are destitute of having patriotism and pride, who preach submission to tyranny and exterminalism. How dare a human entertain such sentiments to the glorious Union. Tell Bro. John to hurry up the “Old North State.” And Kentucky! Shame, shame forever on her! Assuming a neutral position in such an hour of extreme peril and excitement! I look with disgust and horror upon the action of some of the states who should at once dash the chain of displeasure to affirm ____ join their sisters and grasp with steady arm the shield, and draw with agility the sleeping sword with determination to conquer or die. I thank God for the enabling spirit, that I am destitute of fear. I long to aim my unceasing rifle at the very life primitive of my antagonist….. I’m sorry that Charleston is blockaded. I must confess the Yankees have astonished me this time for I had no idea that they could muster so large a force in the field and extend their impudence and threats to our very doors…..They all will be soon fluttering in the winds of destruction if they continue their encroachments. We, the 1st South Carolina Volunteers, have but five more weeks to remain in service. The Regiment will remain as long as there is prospect for fighting. I think we will have a fight soon.” The final daily entry in the diary was made after returning home to Darlington from the Battle of Stone Bridge at Manassas and reads: Sunday, August 4, 1861. “Many changes have occurred, many vicissitudes have I been subjected to, many disagreeable as well as happy hours have I spent since writing the last lines in this book on the opposite page. It is useless for me to consume time in giving an account of my whereabouts while in Virginia, the “Old Dominion,” where even now her sacred soil is crimson with human gore and where, I am afraid, broad and deep streams of the same will ere long flow. Oh, is not our new born Confederacy in a most dangerous attitude!--Skirmish of Virginia, 17th of June 1861,--21st day of July 1861, Battle of Stone Bridge near Manassas.” After the initial 6 month enlistment, the 1st South Carolina Volunteers Regiment, CSA, was mustered out in July 1861. On November 12, 1861 a new unit was organized as the 21st South Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, and was mustered into Confederate service on January 1, 1862. Hartwell Percy Spain was commissioned as a Lieutenant in Company H of the 21st South Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, and returned to service as an officer. His mother had died in October and his grief over her loss may have spurred him to reenlist even though he now knew the frustration of Army life and the terror of battle from personal experience. The regiment was primarily stationed in the defense of Charleston until the Spring of 1864. On September 7-8, 1863, the 21st South Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, was involved in the Battle of Charleston Harbor with additional action there in August and September. In the Spring of 1864, the Regiment was assigned to the Army of Northern Virginia and fought in the Battle of Walthall Junction on May 6-7 stopping the Union advances and then falling back to Swift Creek to await reinforcements. A second Union advance was repulsed on May 9th at Swift Creek. A third Union advance at The Battle of My Blaylock Ancestry

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Drewry’s Bluff on May 12-16 ended the Union advance on Richmond and the Union Army withdrew. The total casualties, on both sides, in these three actions in defense of Richmond were over 7,000 dead or wounded. On May 31, 1864, the Union cavalry seized the crossroads of Cold Harbor, Virginia. A battle in the Peninsula Campaign had been fought in this same location in June of 1862, and is known as The First Battle of Cold Harbor or as The First Battle of Gaines’ Mill in Confederate records. An attack by the Confederate Army on June 1st was unsuccessful in retaking Cold Harbor but additional reinforcements arrived. By June 2nd, a seven mile battle line had formed. While digging defensive trenches, the Confederate troops unearthed the skeletal remains of soldiers who had died in the First Battle of Cold Harbor and had been buried in the original trenches used in that battle. At dawn on June 3rd, the Union Army attacked the entrenched Confederate lines and paid a heavy price. The battle continued until June 12th but while serving as the Captain in command of Company H, on June 3, 1864, Harwell Percy Spain was wounded and died in Richmond a few days later on June 8, 1864. He was buried at Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, Virginia. Cold Harbor was considered a Confederate victory because it forced the Union Army to move away from Richmond, but it ended the war for Hartwell Percy Spain. Estimates of Union casualties were 13,000 dead and wounded and Confederate casualties were 2,500 dead and wounded. It is estimated that there were between 3,000 and 7,000 casualties in one forty minute period in this battle. In his memoirs, Ulysses S. Grant wrote, “I have always regretted that the last assault at Cold Harbor was ever made. I might say the same thing of the assault of the 22nd of May 1863 at Vicksburg. At Cold Harbor no advantage whatever was gained to compensate for the heavy loss we sustained.” Reverend Hartwell Spain’s Legacy Even though he had a long history of illness and was on leave from his duties as a minister 26 years of the 51 years of his career, Reverend Hartwell Spain survived his wife, one of his sons and two of his daughters. He died March 9, 1868, in Summerton, South Carolina. Whether he had maintained contact with his sisters, Elizabeth Blalock, Eliza McKinney, Frances McKinney and Martha Proctor, in Tippah County, Mississippi after they had moved from Lincoln County, North Carolina, or his sisters, Amelia Norwood and Nancy Foy, who remained in Lincoln County, is not known. What is known is that the Civil War had a dramatic impact on every member of the family and Rev. Hartwell Spain’s eldest son, Albertus Chambers Spain was one of the men who was present at the very beginning and signed the South Carolina Ordinance of Succession. Rev. Hartwell Spain’s youngest son, Hartwell Percy Spain, helped to construct the ramparts, place the cannons and was present when the first shots were fired in the Civil War at Ft. Sumter.

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Civil War Impact in Mississippi Abraham Lincoln took office on March 4, 1861 and by that time Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Texas had followed South Carolina in seceding from the Union. On April 12, 1861 the first shots were fired at Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor in South Carolina beginning the Civil War. Winslow and Thomas’s cousin, Hartwell Percy Spain, participated in the attack. There were no casualties on either side in the bombardment of Fort Sumter. Major Robert Anderson surrendered on April 13th. One Union artilleryman was killed and 3 wounded when a cannon exploded prematurely while firing a salute during the evacuation of the fort on April 14th. This first death in the Civil War was exactly 4 years before John Wilkes Booth shot Abraham Lincoln on April 14, 1865 and Lincoln died in the small hours of the morning the next day. Much of the reluctance to go to war melted away once shots were fired. Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina and Tennessee all seceded by June 8, 1861. Mississippi Secession In Mississippi, the vote for secession came on January 9, 1861. On the first ballot, all the delegates from Adams, Amite, Attala, Franklin, Perry, Tishomingo, Warren, Washington, two from Itawamba, and one from Rankin Counties voted against secession but the votes totaled 84 in favor, 15 opposed, and 1 absent. On January 15, 1861, 98 members of the convention signed the Secession Ordinance. The convention also adopted “An address setting forth the Declaration of the Immediate Causes which Induce and Justify the Secession of Mississippi from the Federal Union”. While the cause of the Civil War is sometimes debated in present times, the points of this document make it very clear that the issue of slavery was the principal reason for Mississippi’s secession. Some of the delegates who voted against secession were actually large plantation owners with many slaves. These delegates from counties that had easy access to the Mississippi River and the cotton markets were willing to accept the proposition made by Abraham Lincoln that no new slave states would be admitted to the Union but existing slave states would not be required to abolish slavery. The long term impact of the imbalance in Congress that this proposition would cause was acceptable to some slave owners who were more concerned about the disruption of markets and the loss of profits that a war would bring. One source of information on the southern Unionists and anti-Confederates is The War Within a War, The Confederacy Against Itself by Carleton Beals. It would be a mistake to think that those delegates that voted against the Secession Ordinance in Mississippi were opposed to slavery. In the end only Dr. J. J. Thompson of Rankin County refused to sign the ordinance and he subsequently enlisted in the Army of the Confederacy. The slave population out-numbered the free population in South Carolina and Mississippi based on the 1860 census. The list of slave holding states ranked by percentage of the population appears on the following page. A map of northern Mississippi from that time period lists the census totals by county. Tippah County was home to 16,206 white persons, 13 free persons of color and 6,331 slaves. Tippah, Tishomingo, Pontotoc and Itawamba Counties were atypical because in many counties in Mississippi the slave population outnumbered the white population. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Percentage of Slave Population in Slave States in 1860

1860 Census Totals by County in Northeast Mississippi

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Formation of the Confederate States of America The seceding states sent delegates to Montgomery, Alabama on February 4, 1861 and by February 8th they had adopted the Provisional Government of the Confederate States of America. The next day, Jefferson Davis of Mississippi was elected President and he was inaugurated at the Alabama State Capital on February 18th. The Mississippi Legislature approved the Provisional Government on March 29, 1861. Immediately, the Provisional Government called upon each state for soldiers to volunteer to protect its’ borders. Mississippi quickly met the quota. The 2nd Mississippi Infantry Regiment, CSA, included troops raised in Tippah County. Company B known as O’Connor Rifles, Company D known as Beck Rifles and, Company F known as Magnolia Rifles were some of the first troops to volunteer in Mississippi and came from Tippah County. The Regiment assembled in Corinth in early May of 1861. John S. Luna whose farm was in Section 24 was a member of Company F. By May 9th they had arrived in Lynchburgh, Virginia and were mustered into Confederate service for one year. At the Battle of First Manassas on July 21, 1861, the 2nd Mississippi Infantry had 25 men killed in action, 82 wounded and 1 missing. Company L known as the Liberty Guards, which was also raised in Tippah County, joined the regiment at Fredericksburg, Virginia on April 6, 1862. It is ironic that Company L joined the regiment on the same day that fighting began at Shiloh, only 30 miles or so from their own homes some 650 miles away. After the Battle of First Manassas, calls for more volunteers raised new regiments. Companies A, B, C, E, G, H and K of the 23rd Mississippi Infantry Regiment, CSA, came from Tippah County and assembled in August 1861. Sidney J. Fitzgerald, the son of Milos Fitzgerald whose farm was in Section 23 just to the west of Winslow’s original property, enlisted in Company C. By March of 1862, the 10th Mississippi Infantry Regiment, CSA, was formed and included one Company from Tippah County and several Companies with members from various counties including Tippah County. Alfred Hensley who married Minerva Proctor, the daughter of Benjamin Proctor and step-daughter of his widow, Martha Proctor whose farm was in Section 26, was a member of Company I. While I have found some neighbors near Winslow and Thomas Blalock who quickly joined the Confederate Army when volunteers were being raised, there were also many men of military age in the area that did not volunteer. In his book, Tippah County Mississippi in the Civil War, Andrew Brown estimated that 1250-1450 men from Tippah County had volunteered for Confederate service prior to the Battle of Shiloh. This represented 8-9% of the white population in the 1860 census and, because the census included women, children and men too old to serve, was perhaps as much as ½ of the eligible population of military age men. However, there were pockets of Union support that were generally ignored in the histories written about the area. On August 14, 1861, the Confederate Congress enacted a law entitled An Act Respecting Alien Enemies which warned and required every male citizen of the United States age 14 and above to depart from the Confederate States of America within 40 days. This act came only three weeks after the Confederate victory at the Battle of First Manassas.

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Winslow Blalock Supported the Union In researching the Blaylock family, I contacted a number of distant cousins in the hope of finding information that might have been passed from one generation to another. Because of the early death of Thomas Madison Blaylock in my direct line, very little information had been passed down to my grandfather or my mother. I learned that the impact of the Civil War on the families that had moved to Tippah County, Mississippi from Lincoln County, North Carolina was dramatic. On August 31, 2005, I met with Mrs. Doratha Allred in Ft. Worth. She was the granddaughter of Monroe Madison Vincent Blaylock, the fourth son of Winslow Blalock. Her grandfather had told her Winslow Blalock died in the winter of 1861 or 1862. Winslow was said to have been against slavery and, at the beginning of the Civil War, vigilantes raided his farm searching for him. The gang entered the house and threw his mother, Dovey, down the stairs when she would not tell them Winslow was working in the wooded area near the farm. Monroe had told Mrs. Allred that his father was either killed in the woods by this group or died of an illness that was contracted due to exposure while evading them. Monroe was about 8 years old when this happened so his memory of the specifics was limited but he clearly remembered his mother being thrown down the stairs. Before meeting with Mrs. Allred, I had found several families who had lived near the Blalocks in Tippah County before the Civil War and had children after 1862 whose place of birth was listed as Illinois in the 1870 census of Tippah County. She explained that because of this event, a number of related families left Mississippi and went to Illinois for the duration of the Civil War and then returned to Mississippi after the war was over. This began my search for additional information to confirm what she had told me. Surely with the number of related families that had moved from Lincoln County, North Carolina, if Winslow had been in hiding, he would have been able to get help from nearby family and friends. As a trustee of Liberty Church, he had been a community leader and had long standing relationships with many of his neighbors. I reasoned that there should be some evidence to support the story Mrs. Allred passed on to me. Union Support in the South The idea that someone in the South supported the Union was not as unusual as it seemed to me when I was told about Winslow Blalock by Mrs. Allred. Peter F. Stevens authored Rebels in Blue: The Story of Keith and Malinda Blalock which tells the story of a grandson of John Blalock of Burke County, North Carolina who was conscripted into the Confederate Army and his wife, disguised as a man and calling herself Sam, followed him into service. When Malinda/Sam was wounded and her identity as a woman became known by the Army doctor who treated her, she was sent home. Keith deserted and returned to the mountains of western North Carolina with her. They became scouts for the Union Army assisting the movement of troops through the passes in the Great Smokey Mountains and later joined the Union Army. Stevens explains that in western North Carolina, many of the families were of Scottish and Irish descent and had fought the British for independence before and after coming to America. Most wanted the government to be out of their lives and many saw the Civil War as a rich man’s cause, fought with the lives of poor men. My Blaylock Ancestry

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In fact, in several states in the South, the support for the Confederacy was stronger in the coastal areas where the old established families had lived for generations and had been Virginians or Georgians before they were Americans. Established families had deeper roots in their State than they had in the Country. On the other hand, western North Carolina, northern Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi and western Virginia were settled more recently by people that had moved from other States. Some of them identified more with being American than they did with being a citizen of a particular State. In Virginia, the population of six counties in the west strongly supported the Union and became the state of West Virginia in 1863 by separating from the State of Virginia which was in rebellion. However, supporting the Union in Mississippi took strong conviction. In southern Mississippi and in all the counties along the Mississippi River, there were large plantations where slaves outnumbered the white population. The owners of these plantations were the center of political power in the state. Supporters of the Union came in conflict with many of the laws and taxes that were enacted in the early days of the Confederacy. Prior to secession, Mississippi had enacted a tax to provide weapons and equipment to the State Militia. In early 1861 the Military Relief Act was passed in Mississippi to raise a tax to support families of Confederate soldiers who were unable to support themselves while the head of the household was in military service. Then in August 1861, the passage of An Act Respecting Alien Enemies required all Unionists to leave within 40 days of Jefferson Davis’ Proclamation of the law. One of the first acts of the Confederate Congress was to enact laws against trading with the enemy. However, the Confederates needed money and salt and the Union needed cotton. Violating these laws was risky because enforcement could be harsh and affected small farmers as well as plantation owners. However, as the war progressed and conditions for small farmers deteriorated, some did take the risk. In April 1863, the Confederate Congress passed three laws that the general population found objectionable. First, an income tax was enacted which was a graduated tax beginning at $500 in income and did not affect many of the small family farmers but still was abhorrent to the citizens because it was a new kind of tax. Second, a tax in kind law provided for payment in crops rather than money because the Confederate money was virtually worthless. Third, the Impressment Act granted the military the right to take forage, articles, subsistence or other property absolutely necessary of the operations of the Army on the orders of a General commanding any unit of Brigade strength or more. Even citizens in favor of secession felt that these laws violated their property rights. War on the Doorstep On Sunday, April 6, 1862, Winslow Blalock’s family had probably finished doing chores around the farm and may have already been in church when they heard a rumbling in the distance to the east that they might have thought was thunder. It had been a very wet Spring. Rains had made it difficult to prepare the fields and do the planting but the sound in the distance was not thunder. Cannons had begun firing on the field of the Battle of Shiloh about 30-35 miles away. In the coming months, concern about wet fields and too much rain would give way to concern for their own lives.

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Winslow and his family would have known that the Confederate Army had massed over 55,000 men at Corinth, Mississippi about 20 miles to the east of their farm. Corinth was at the crossing of the Memphis & Charleston Railroad which was completed on April 1, 1857 and the Mobile &Ohio Railroad which was completed on April 21, 1861. Established as the village of Cross City in 1854, it grew rapidly and was chartered as Corinth on March 21, 1856. The first brick building was built in 1857. Corinth had a population of 1,200 at the time of the 1860 census and had grown to about 5,000 by 1862. Built on high ground between two low wetlands, Corinth had inadequate supplies of good water to support 55,000 troops and many became ill. Good food was in short supply in Corinth and men who could afford the price of a meal would seek out nearby families willing to provide a home cooked meal. While it is unlikely that any of the troops not from Tippah County would have travelled 20 miles for a meal, soldiers from Tippah County may have returned home for short visits and spread the news of camp life. Although well known by the Confederate commanding Generals, what may or may not have been common knowledge was Union General Grant had moved south from Illinois along the Tennessee River to Pittsburg Landing in preparation of taking the middle Mississippi valley with 49,000 men. Confederate Generals Johnston and Beauregard decided to attack Grant at Pittsburg Landing, 22 miles northeast of Corinth, before 45,000 reinforcements under Union General Buell could arrive from Ohio. Originally planned to attack on April 4th but delayed, 45,000 Confederate troops left Corinth but rain and deep mud in the roads caused by the march and the heavy guns and wagons over the wet road slowed progress. At least 5,000 men had remained behind in Corinth due to illness. The Confederates arrived late in the day on April 5th and positioned themselves for the attack at dawn. The rain came again that night but they were not spotted by the outlying Union troops and they had the advantage of complete surprise on the morning of April 6th. Initial contact was made near Shiloh Church and this small log building was used as the Confederate command post. As a result the South referred to this as the Battle of Shiloh while the North recorded it as the Battle of Pittsburg Landing. Because of the rain, the march took more than 24 hours and the Confederates arrived having consumed their rations on the way. The first elements of the Confederate Army rushed the Union camps farthest from the river while they were cooking breakfast. The Confederate troops allowed some of the Yankees to retreat toward Pittsburg Landing while they hungrily ate the breakfast the Yankee’s had been preparing. As a result, the Confederate troops initially moved forward with little resistance on the morning of the 6th. General Grant was summoned from his lodgings in Savannah, Tennessee and he and his staff rushed upstream to Pittsburg Landing by steam boat while sounds of Confederate artillery were heard back in Corinth. By noon the battle was fully engaged. By midafternoon, General Albert Sidney Johnston, commander of the Confederate forces, was wounded in the leg and not realizing that his artery had been nicked soon died from a loss of blood. The Union Army was driven back to the Tennessee River before fighting ended for the day with a Confederate victory in sight. Many tragic mistakes were made and several heroic acts were performed in the Battle of Shiloh. Many books have been written providing great

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detail about each phase of the battle and it is not my objective to completely describe the battle itself but more to relate the impact of the battle on my Blalock ancestors. During the night, the rain came again and brought General Buell form Ohio who arrived around 2:00 A.M. with 45,000 Union reinforcements. On the morning of the 7th, the tide turned resulting in a Union victory. Winslow and his family would probably have heard the cannons in the distance from morning until early afternoon on Monday. They would not have known what the result of the battle was for a day or two. The outcome of the battle affected them for the remainder of their lives. In his concern about the strength of the Confederate force, General Grant refused to follow a traditional practice after the battle of allowing the enemy to recover their dead and wounded from the battlefield. This made accounting for the losses much more difficult. If someone did not return from the battle it was difficult to determine if they had died, been left wounded on the field, gotten separated from their unit or had deserted. Officially, Union losses were 1,754 killed, 8,408 wounded, 2,885 missing and Confederate losses were 1,728 killed, 8,012 wounded 959 missing or captured. Conscription Confederate losses at Shiloh alarmed the government and on April 16, 1862 the first Conscription Act was passed and applied to men between 18-35 years of age. As a result, all men living in the South within the age range were now Confederate soldiers and were required to report for duty to the nearest military command. The Act allowed for substitutes to be hired, which typically cost $300, and exempted persons holding certain jobs. The Conscription Act also exempted persons who owned 20 or more slaves because there was a fear that without enough owners left at home, the slaves would revolt. Additional exemptions were made for persons holding certain political positions. As a result, these exemptions increased the feeling that the war was being fought by the poor for the benefit of the wealthy. A revised Conscription Act was passed on September 27, 1862 expanding the age range to 18 to 45. In February 1864 a new Conscription Act expanded the age range to 17 to 50. By April 1864 approximately 1/3 of the Confederate Army was conscripted. The volunteer Army had allowed Union supporters in the south to remain in their homes. Conscription required military service for a cause that Winslow Blalock did not support. While Thomas Blalock may have been disabled based on the tax records, Winslow was approximately 37 years old at the time of the first Conscription Act. When the second Conscription Act was passed in September 1862, he was conscripted and required to report for duty or be considered a deserter. In April 1862, younger men in the area that supported the Union soon realized that they had to act or become Confederate soldiers. Tippah County Unionist React to the Threat of Conscription When John Rainey wrote his sister, Ann, on June 22, 1862 from Camp in Nashville, the tone of his letters had changed, “I left home May the 11th, 1862 and volunteered May the 16th in the 1st Tennessee Regiment of Union Volunteers. When I left home, the connection was well but times very hard. I am anxious My Blaylock Ancestry

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to hear from you. I haven’t got any connection in this Regiment. There is none of my connection in the Rebel Army and I thank God for it.” In the Rainey letters, the term connection is used to mean extended family. On September 5, 1862, John Rainey wrote to his sister Ann and his brother-in-law J. H. D. Tomson from Nashville: “Our destructed Country is in such a condition. There is no pleasure for me. Oh, I would be so glad to see you. I left home May the 11th 1862. I haven’t heard a word from there since. I left them all crying. J. H. D., I looked at the question on both sides til I thought the Union was the best……The neighborhood was all Union but Bill McDaniel. Me and R. D. Grantham and J. M. Goad and N. C. Goad all left home together and volunteered in the 1st Tennessee Regiment now at Nashville….Our Regiment numbers about 7 or 8 hundred men.” At least 10 young men from Tippah County left home at the same time and volunteered for service in the same Union Regiment in Tennessee. To help place the families in Tippah County, I have cited the section numbers within Township 1 South, Range 3 East where each of their farms were located. John Rainey enlisted as a Corporal in Co. F, 10th Tennessee Volunteer Infantry Regiment, USA, on May 16, 1862 and was discharged due to disability on June 8, 1863. He was the son of William and Eliza Rainey and the brother of Nancy Rainey who married Daniel G. Guthrie whose farm was in Section 24. He was also the brother of Thomas Rainey who married Mary Elizabeth Whitener and had a farm in Section 26. The 1st Middle Tennessee Infantry Regiment was redesignated the 10th Tennessee Volunteer Infantry Regiment. Each brigade typically had 3 to 6 regiments, each regiment typically had 10 companies and each company typically had 100 men. Henry Pruitt, John Pruitt, and Joseph Pruitt also enlisted in Co. F, 10th Tennessee Volunteer Infantry Regiment, USA, on May 16, 1862 in Nashville. They were the sons of James and Lydia Pruitt who sold the 3 acres of land to Liberty Church in Section 27 on November 9, 1854. When the unit mustered on June 6, 1862, Henry was absent and listed as a deserter. John was promoted to Corporal March 1, 1864. John Pruitt was the first husband of Margaret A. Proctor, the youngest daughter of Benjamin and Margaret (neeDavis) Proctor. Benjamin Proctor had died in Lincoln County but his widow Margaret moved to Tippah County and owned a farm in Section 34. This unit mustered out of service April 2, 1865 to May 17, 1865. Richard W. Barber, husband of Isabella A. Proctor, also enlisted in Co. F, 10th Tennessee Volunteer Infantry Regiment, USA, on May 16, 1862. Isabella was the daughter and fifth child of Benjamin and Margaret Davis Proctor. Monroe D. Proctor too enlisted in Co. F, 10th Tennessee Volunteer Infantry Regiment, USA, in Nashville, Tennessee on May 16, 1862 and died from disease November 10, 1862 in Nashville according to US Army records. This unit was not engaged in any battle in this time period but was guarding Nashville and its railroads. He was the son and seventh child of Benjamin Proctor and Margaret (nee Davis) My Blaylock Ancestry

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Proctor and the family Bible lists his date of death as November 8, 1862. He owned a farm in Section 34 which was a gift from his mother. His mother filed for pension benefits based on his service on December 30, 1872, application #207273 and was granted a pension under certificate #181126. Daniel M. Treece/Treese/Trease, Henry L. B. Treece, and James G. Treece were the sons of Valentine Treece who had a farm in Section 27 and were listed in Hardeman County, Tennessee in the census. Hiram Treece was the son of John Lewis Greenwood Treece whose farm was in Section 33. Valentine and Green Treece were brothers. All 4 Treece cousins enlisted in Co. F, 10th Regiment, Tennessee Volunteer Infantry, USA, on May 16, 1862, but failed to report for duty on June 6, 1862, and were listed as deserters. The Impact of Changes on Those Who Remained in Tippah County After the Battle of Shiloh, the Confederate troops returned to Corinth, Mississippi. Urgent calls were issued from Jefferson Davis on April 10th to reinforce Corinth. By the end of April, over 70,000 Confederate troops were in Corinth but more than 18,000 were ill or wounded. At the same time, Union Major General Halleck arrived at Pittsburg Landing and took command from General Grant. Rather than advancing on Corinth immediately, General Halleck waited until additional troops had arrived and by the end of April had 104,000 men under his command. General Halleck took the month of May to move his Army from Pittsburg Landing to positions on the north and east of Corinth in preparations for taking the town. However on May 29-30, the Confederate troops, now under the command of General Beauregard, had evacuated the city moving south on the Mobile and Ohio Railroad to Tupelo. The Union Army advanced into Corinth on May 30-31 after the Confederate Army was gone. Any major battle like the Battle of Shiloh resulted in troops being separated from their units as well as numerous deserters. Some of these men found their way back to their units and some became bands of raiders preying on the civilian population. As the Union troops moved south down the Mississippi River and took Memphis on June 6, 1862, the Memphis and Charleston Railroad came under the control of Union troops. On June 29, 1862, General Sherman moved south from Grand Junction, Tennessee to take the town of Holly Springs. Union scouting and foraging parties were common sights in northern Tippah County. The Blalocks were living along the battle front. The civilian population was at the mercy of both Armies. Union troops could demand livestock, horses and food stocks from Confederate supporters without payment. Home Guard and Confederate units could do the same to Union supporters. Either Army could take supplies from their own supporters and were obligated to give a receipt for future payment but this rarely happened. In reality, there was no rule of law. Any stranger or group of strangers, either in uniform or not, represented a clear danger to any farmer in the area. As the lines of control shifted south on Union advances and were pushed back north by Confederate resistance, inhabitants of northern Tippah County found they were living in a war zone.

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The Confederate Congress had also passed an act on April 21, 1862, five days after the first Conscription Act, which authorized the enlistment of Partisan Rangers. The purpose of the Partisan Rangers was to act independently from the Army against small groups of the enemy to disrupt communications and damage the enemy as much as possible without being drawn into a battle. Partisan Rangers reported to the Governor and were in service to the State rather than to the Confederacy. While they were to be paid like traditional soldiers, they also would be paid full value for any captured munitions taken from the enemy. As such, they operated much like pirates and roamed the countryside in search of bounty. Because Partisan Rangers received credit for military service without actually being in the Army and they generally were on horseback rather than in the Infantry, this service was a very popular alternative to enlistment or conscription. In fact, the regular Army command complained that too many men were joining the Partisan Rangers and hampering the Army trying to increase personnel through conscription. Increasing numbers of Partisan Rangers roaming Tippah County looking for forage and subsistence brought new dangers to any farmer’s doorstep. The only staple money crop was cotton and the primary market for cotton available to the farmers in Tippah County was in Memphis which was occupied by Federals. Confederate laws against trading with the enemy were harsh and although the buyers would pay in gold, the law was generally obeyed creating more hardship on the farmers. Salt was very difficult to get because it had to come from Virginia and the railroad and river routes that had traditionally been used to transport salt were now under Union control. In June of 1862, the price of salt in 100 pound bags was $100 in Tupelo, but little salt could be found. When Memphis fell into Union hands on June 6th, the cotton market fell under Union control. This was a particular hardship for the small farmer who had planted cotton before the Battle of Shiloh planning to sell his cotton as his primary cash crop. By June the crop was about half grown. By September the crop would be ready to harvest but if the farmer was caught attempting to get his cotton to market in Union territory, the cotton would be burned and the farmer’s life would be at risk. Confederate Brigadier General James R. Chalmers while in command of the Fifth Military District of Mississippi wrote the following pertaining to Confederate farmers in northern Mississippi: "When I first came into this district I thought that any man was a traitor who would sell cotton to the enemy for any purpose. I now believe that people on the border who have been compelled to trade with the enemy for subsistence are more patriotic and more liberal to our soldiers than those in the interior, and that they have been greatly misrepresented…..They were dependent upon their cotton crops to buy everything…..They were cut off in the middle of summer (by the capture of Memphis) without having made preparations for such an event. They could not at once make blankets, shoes, and clothing; they were not stock-raisers, and above all they could not make or obtain salt, without which they could not live and even if they could have purchased salt within the Confederacy the railroads were occupied by the enemy and they could get no transportation for it. Under these circumstances they traded with the enemy and the husbands, sons, and fathers of the women in north Mississippi were supplied with many articles that came from the enemy lines. Salt was obtained from the same source, and almost every pound of meat that our army My Blaylock Ancestry

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consumed from March until Vicksburg fell in July, was cured by salt bought from the enemy. The people have cheerfully given all they could spare to the army and while they have been doing all in their power for the soldiers, they have literally been burned up by both armies. Our people burned their cotton, the enemy burned their granaries and drove off their cattle….They have no means of obtaining the actual necessities of life except their cotton. If then their pittance of cotton is burned, their little carts…. and their oxen ….are seized…..we may drive to desperation and disloyalty a people who have been true under every reverse of fortune.” While General Chalmers had sympathy for the Confederate framer, no sympathy was wasted on Unionist that faced the same hardships. Unionists were terrorized daily by vigilantes and Confederate troops arrested those who refused to report for military duty or take the Oath of Allegiance. Failure to report for duty was desertion, selling cotton across Union lines at the cotton market was trading with the enemy, and execution by firing squad was the typical punishment. The Peace Society According to Andrew Brown in Tippah County Mississippi in the Civil War, a Peace Society led by Reverend John Hill Aughey of Tishomingo County operated a system for taking Union sympathizers and slaves through Confederate lines. The members often served as scouts for Union units and provided aid to other Unionist in the area. The Peace Society extended from Tishomingo County into Tippah County and Itawamba County. No known list of the members of the Peace Society exists but it is known that northern Tippah County had a concentration of Union supporters. In 1905, Aughey published his memoirs in a book titled Tupelo. The phrase “Peace Society” did not appear in his memoirs and no formal organization of Unionist was mentioned. He did discuss the events leading up to secession and his experience as the war progressed. Many examples of Union support in northern Mississippi were given and in some cases the names of Unionist, their activities and the consequences of their actions were described. Aughey was born in New York but married in Mississippi and had lived in Tishomingo County for 11 years by the time Mississippi seceded. He was about three years younger than Winslow Blalock. On May 22, 1862, he received a summons to appear for court martial on June 1st for failure to report for military duty. He was approximately 34 years old at the time and within the 18-35 year age range of the first Conscription Act. Some excerpts of his book follow. From pages 77-79, Aughey describes the situation near Corinth in May 1862: “There were two vast armies encamped in Tishomingo Co. Being within the Confederate lines, I, in common with many other loyalists, found it difficult to evade the rigorously enforced conscript law. Believing that in a multitude of counselors there is wisdom, we held secret meetings in order to devise the best methods for evading the law. We met at midnight's weird and solemn hour. Often our wives, sisters, and daughters met with us. Our meeting place was some ravine or secluded glen, or by some mountain mere, as far as possible from the haunts of the secessionists. All were armed; even the ladies carried concealed revolvers which they knew well how to use. We had countersigns so as to recognize friends and discern enemies. Taisez vous was the countersign known by loyalists from the Ohio River to the Gulf of Mexico. The recognition of it My Blaylock Ancestry

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was Oui, Oui (pronounced we, we). It was never discovered by the disloyal during the war. The nefarious crime of treason we were resolved not to commit. Our counsels were somewhat divided. We did not coincide in opinion upon the question whether we should tend the militia musters. Some advocating as matter of policy the propriety of attending them; others, myself among the number, opposing it for conscience's sake, and for the purpose of avoiding every appearance of evil. Many who would not muster nor be enrolled as conscripts resolved to escape to the Federal lines, and making the attempt in squads, under skillful guides who could course it from point to point through the densest forests, with the unerring instinct of the panther or catamount or aborigines, at length reached the Union army, enlisted under the old flag, and have since done good service as patriot warriors. The vigilantes became very troublesome. They arrested and murdered Unionists wherever they could be found. Few loyalists dared sleep at home, but seeking out some jungle or copse they improvised a rude arbor or den in which they spent the night, and to which they betook themselves when an alarm was given by their families or friends. Late one evening I saw the beacon fires burning…..These indicated a special call, either some impending danger was to be guarded against or some Unionist had been wounded or slain.” After he was arrested for treason against the Confederacy, Aughey was questioned about his refusal to take an Oath of Allegiance to the Confederate States and he reports on page 105 that he responded as follows: "I regard Mississippi as still a member of the Federal Union, and the act of secession illegal and unconstitutional, and therefore void. I am a citizen of the United States of America. If the proclamation issued August 14, 1861, was aimed at and included the Unionists, we were recognized as citizens of the United States at that date, many months after the passage of the secession ordinance, and as we have as often as it has been offered, firmly refused to take the oath of allegiance to the Confederate States of America, and thereby become citizens of the Southern Confederacy, we are still, as you must acknowledge, citizens of the United States of America. If we are citizens of the Confederate States of America, why so persistently offer us the oath of allegiance. Many citizens of Germany, Great Britain and Ireland, and other foreign countries, have long resided in our country and have never taken the oath of allegiance, or become naturalized. Why not allow us to remain as residents within, but not as citizens of, the Confederate States of America?" After being held in confinement in the Central Military Prison in Tupelo, referred to as the Bastille, Aughey was scheduled to be tried by court martial in early July. The charges were: 1) Treason for aiding the enemy, failing to take the Oath of Allegiance and acting as a Federal agent in purchasing cotton with funds provided by the United States government; and 2) Acting as a spy. Aughey reported this exchange with the Judge Advocate of the Army, Col. H. W. Walter, on pages 178-179: “He informed me that my trial had been deferred until Monday. He said, ‘You will be tried on Monday and hanged on Tuesday at 2 o'clock P.M.’ My Blaylock Ancestry

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Colonel, if my death is a foregone conclusion you may as well reverse the order and hang me on Monday and try me on Tuesday.” Aughey asked the Judge Advocate why the military court had jurisdiction in his case because all of the charges were matters that should be addressed by the civil courts resulting in the following exchange: "Colonel, I am a civilian. What right have they to try me by military law. The civil court has jurisdiction, and not a court-martial." "All citizens of the Confederate States between 18 and 35 have been declared in the army, by congressional enactment, and have been required to report themselves at the head-quarters of the commander of the nearest military district within a given time, or be considered deserters. Have you complied with this law?" "No, I have not. You have furnished me a copy of the charges against me, with the specifications. Desertion is not one of the charges." "No, there are charges enough without that. I only mention it to show you that that enactment gives military jurisdiction over all citizens of military age. All your interests are with the South. It is your adopted home, though like myself you are of northern birth. Why did you not cast in your lot with the dominant class, for whose society you are fitted by literary culture, and not with that class which is giving us so great trouble, and whose treasonable utterances and acts we must suppress with an iron hand. Our own safety requires that we tolerate no longer the traitors in our midst. We must confiscate their property and exterminate them as we would venomous serpents." Aughey described the execution of prisoners by firing squad on pages 228-229: “The prisoners who were shot suffered death in the following manner: A hole was dug. I can scarcely dignify it by the name of grave. The victim was ordered to sit with his legs dangling in it. The file of soldiers took position in front of their victims, when three balls were fired into the brain and three into the heart, and the body falling into this rude excavation was immediately covered with earth. At first coffins were used, but of late these had been dispensed with, owing to the expense, and the increasing number of executions. In some cases the soldiers purposely missed their aim. It was an odious duty which they endeavored to shun, and only performed it upon compulsion. If the corpse was to be delivered to friends they invariably tried to aim so as to wound without taking life, and many of the condemned have, by feigning death, escaped in this way.” With the aid of other prisoners, Aughey managed to escape before he was put to death. Initially he was pursued by a search party using hounds but he was not found. Travelling west and then northwest from the prison, Aughey found himself near New Albany in Tippah County. His escape was aided by Unionist along the way named Chism, Sanford, and Downing before reaching the Union lines near his home in Rienze in Tishomingo County. While in the company of the Downing’s, he learned of the murder of a Unionist a few nights earlier: My Blaylock Ancestry

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“When we reached Mr. Downing's we partook of an excellent breakfast. The guerrillas had a few nights before murdered a Unionist--a Mr. Newsom. His sentiments had become known to the rebels. They watched his house till they knew of his presence at home. He had been in concealment, but ran the risk of going home to see a sick daughter. They offered him the oath of allegiance to the Confederate states. He refused to take it. In their anger they resolved upon his immediate death. Some proposed hanging, some shooting, but the majority prevailed, and these fiends in human form, these devils incarnate, then deliberately heated water, and in the presence of his weeping, pleading wife and helpless children they scalded to death their chained and defenseless victim. They then suspended the corpse from a tree, with a label attached threatening a similar death to any who should remove the corpse or bury it. Thus perished a patriot of whom the state was not worthy. These, my friends, cut down the corpse by night and buried it in the forest. May God reward them.” In his book on page 333, Aughey quotes a letter from Col. Benajmin H. Grierson of the 6th Illinois Cavalry Regiment, USA, who served under General Grant and advanced from La Grange, Tennessee through Mississippi to Baton Rouge, Louisiana in April 1863. Regarding Unionist in Mississippi, Grierson reported: "The strength of the rebels has been overestimated. They have neither the arms nor the resources we have given them credit for. Passing through their country I found thousands of good Union men who were ready and anxious to rally round the old flag whenever it was possible. I could have brought away a thousand with me who were anxious to come--men whom I found fugitives from their homes, hid in swamps and forests where they were hunted like wild beasts by conscripting officers with blood-hounds." These quotations from Aughey in his book, Tupelo, may correspond to the feelings that Winslow Blalock had as a Unionist. In addition, the actions taken by Unionists to avoid conscription and the consequences of their actions were illustrated better in this source than any other I found. It is not possible to say if Winslow Blalock was a member of the Peace Society or even if there was a formal membership. However, it is known that his neighbors, the Treece family, scouted for the 103rd Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment, USA, from a diary of the unit which refers to the scouts as Union citizens nicknamed “night hawks”. Summer and Fall of 1862 July 1862, when Reverend Aughey escaped from prison, was the same month Dovey Blalock gave birth to Mary Alice Abigail Blalock, the last child of Winslow Blalock. The conditions in northern Tippah County were worsening for everyone and particularly for anyone who supported the Union. Unionist living in Tippah County continued to leave home and join the Union Army. William M. Rainey enlisted in Company I, 11th Illinois Cavalry Regiment, USA, at Bethel, Tennessee on July 24, 1862. He was the 3rd child of William and Eliza Rainey and the brother of John Rainey who had enlisted in Nashville, Tennessee on May 16th. Unlike his younger brother who was single, William was

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married and had four small children. He survived the war and was mustered out of service on June 9, 1865 but each of his four children born before the war died of typhoid fever in 1864. Thomas Madison Guthrie Jr. enlisted on August 18, 1862 in Company G, 6th Tennessee Cavalry Regiment, USA, and was the son of Thomas Madison Guthrie and Elizabeth (nee Proctor) Guthrie whose farm was in Section 25. He mustered out of service with the rank of Sergeant at the end of the war. Benjamin W. Baker enlisted on August 18, 1862 in Company G, 6th Tennessee Cavalry Regiment, USA, and was the second husband of Margaret A. Proctor, daughter of Benjamin and Margaret (nee Davis) Proctor. Benjamin W. Baker survived the war and filed a pension application #1,116,?93, certificate # 979,547 in Tennessee on June 13, 1892 for disability. Margaret A. Baker filed a widow’s pension application #1,017,977, certificate #771,673 on November 26, 1913. September 27, 1862 brought the revised Conscription Act and now included men age 36-45 including Winslow Blalock. This was also the time of the cotton harvest. Either of the causes of death Monroe Blaylock gave for his father, execution or illness contracted while evading Confederates, seem very possible. I had hoped to determine which cause of death was accurate but I have only been able to narrow the time period when Winslow died. When John Rainey wrote to his sister and brother-in-law on September 5, 1862, he had no news regarding troubles at home. On September 19th, the Confederates under General Price had attacked at Iuka, Mississippi a short distance to the east of Corinth and failed in their attempt to retake the town from the Union Army. They fell back to Tupelo and then moved to Ripley to join forces with General Van Dorn. The combined force consisted of 22,000 men. On September 29th to October 2nd, 1862 Confederate troops marched from Ripley through Jonesborough, Mississippi (originally known as Black’s Store and only 8 miles from the Blalock farms) to Pocahontas and Chewalla, Tennessee in order to engage the Union army from the northwest. Since the Confederates had evacuated Corinth by railroad going south, they hoped to surprise the Union Army by attacking from an unexpected direction. However, the Union Army had used the Summer months to reinforce the old battlements that the Confederates had built in the Spring to fight off the Union advance from Shiloh and had 23,000 men ready to defend their position. The Union Army defeated the Confederates on October 4th after 2 days of fighting at Corinth and began a pursuit of the retreating Confederate troops. By October 7th the Union had control in Jonesborough and by midnight of the same day, they had taken Ripley, the county seat of Tippah County. As the Union Army approached Ripley, the county clerk feared for the destruction of the county records once the soldiers took the town. He removed as many records as possible from the courthouse and hid them under the floorboards of his home. The land records, tax records and court records that are available today survived because of his actions. Unfortunately, he was unable to save all the records and so many marriage and probate records were destroyed. The news of all of this military activity from 22,000 men, wagons of supplies and artillery pieces passing through Jonesborough would have quickly made its way to the Blalock family and their neighbors. It is possible that the dust raised as this Army marched by was noticed in the distance. Then when the My Blaylock Ancestry

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Confederate Army retreated along the same route and were followed by an equal number of Union troops, news of the fighting must have spread quickly. When Jonesborough and Ripley fell under Union control in the same day, everyone in the area would know about the developments. Every thrust by one Army and counter attack by the opposing Army made life more difficult and dangerous. Winslow and his friends were now in a very dangerous position. They had been conscripted but had not reported for duty as required. There were Partisan Rangers looking for deserters. There were bands of deserters roaming the area in search of food and property. Sleeping away from home was now a normal thing to do because the houses were being watched. Harvesting the cotton crop was a problem and may have been done by Winslow’s young sons. An even greater problem was selling the cotton for cash which was desperately needed. Selling cotton to another Mississippian was legal but payment in Confederate currency was almost as useful as giving the crop away. Aughey wrote a passage in Tupelo describing the value of Confederate currency on page 89: "Tis like the Confederate bonds--at first they were made payable two years after date, and they were printed upon paper so worthless that it would be entirely worn out in six months, and the promise to pay would have become illegible in half that time. The succeeding issues were made payable six months after the ratification of a treaty of peace between the United States and the Confederate States. Though not a prophet, nor a prophet's son, I venture the prediction that those bonds will never become due. The war of elements, the wreck of matter, and the crash of worlds announcing the final consummation of all things will be heard sooner.” The cotton market in Memphis paid in gold. Was Winslow willing to take the risk and try to sell his cotton In Memphis? News of Winslow Blalock’s Death On December 14, 1862, John Rainey wrote his sister, Ann, again and he had just received news from home in a letter written to him on December 2nd. I have bolded some key sections relating to conditions at home in a transcript of the letter: Nashville, Tennessee December the 14th, 1862 Dear Brother and Sister, I take this opportunity of writing you a few lines to let you know that I am well and hope these few lines may find you all well. Your letter came to hand the 1st day of December but I taken a chill that morning and I was very sick several days. I have got well but my hand trembles so. I can’t hardly write. I have just got a letter from Paps. They was all well the 2nd day of this month. The guerillas was playing there. While they taken 2 horses from brother Thomas the last of November, they have taken nearly all of the horses in that country. They have pressed a good many in the My Blaylock Ancestry

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service. Pap stated that they taken Valentine Treece and James Ray and Nelson Guthrie and taken them south but what they had done with them was not known. They shot at John Ray several times but with no effect. They shot Bob Rose dead in his father’s yard. John Rose and all the rest is Secesh. Lee Tomson, Patrick and Robert Tomson is all Secesh. Newton Tomson was killed in the fight in Maryland. That tall McCarter was killed in the fight at Belmont and one of the McInnis was killed in the fight at Shiloh. That was a awful fight. I saw thousands of the wounded, legs broke, arms, heads and everything else. Lee Tomson’s boy and Henry and Patrick is still in the Army. I got a letter from brother William the 10th of this month. He was then at Jackson, Tennessee. He is in the 11th Illinois Cavalry, Company I. He stated to me that he had just taken Nancy Tomson’s old man prisoner. That is his brother-in-law. I don’t know whether you ever heard of her being married. She married Hezekiah Fredrick. Ann, I heard from Giles County last fall. Uncle Bill and his boys was all Union. H. L. Sanders had been in the Rebel Army but had deserted and gone home. Brother Thomas wrote to me that he had not slept under his own house roof for three months. You may guess how they live there now. He wrote he was a coming here as soon as the River got up. I suppose that Middleton is burned up. And so I believe I have to give you the particulars from home as far as I know. There is some deaths. John Riggs & Isaac Guthrie & Tom King & Wins Blalock & John Graves & Wash Adams & Caroline McDaniel all have died since I left home. Joseph, times look squally for there is a large army here and we are well fortified. Before the Army came from the north here the last time the Secesh tried to take this place but our cannons was too hot for them and they skeedaddelled from here. It would take a mighty force to take it. We fare well for soldiers. We are stationed in the State House. We have a fine room to stay in. It has two fireplaces and a carpet on the floor. We have plenty to eat and wear. We are well clothed. I am going to try to go home in next month. I want to see home very bad. Home is the best place that I ever found. I wish that I could see you all. I want to see James Franklin. The opinion of some is that the war will end in early Spring. I only hope so for I am tired of the war. This is a bloody sinful war, uncalled for but the ungodly Rebels would have it. Our Army is moving south slowly but there is no particular to write you about the Army. Only the General says he has the Army and he intends to go through this time. I want them to move faster and relieve our country from the tyrants. Paps stated that they was making a Company up to fight the guerillas and he said he expected they would have a hard time of it. I wish I was with them with my gun and cartridges plenty. I would take some of them down if they did not look Sharp. There is a gun boat built here for the mail boat as soon as the river rises, and I hope that will be soon. I will have to close for this time for I have to go on duty. Write to me as soon as you get these lines and I will write you news. I am looking for a letter from you now. If you want to write to the old folks, direct to Bolivar, Tennessee when you write me, Direct thus: John Rainey Nashville, Tennessee 1st Tennessee Governor’s Guard My Blaylock Ancestry

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Company F So, no more. Only remain your affectionate brother until death John Rainey To Mr. J H D and Ann E Tomson This letter refers to the activity of the guerillas taking property from the farmers in the area. In particular, horses were in demand for the cavalry and for officers but were also a necessity for the farmers who could not plow without their horses. In addition it mentions John’s brother Thomas has not slept in his own house in 3 months. Whether he was sleeping in the woods or in a friend’s home is not said but by this time it may have been too dangerous to hide anywhere that could be easily watched. Most importantly to me, the letter mentions the death of Winslow Blalock. Even though the letter does not state how Winslow died, it does help determine when he died. Winslow’s son Monroe had remembered his father being killed or dying of illness in the Winter of 1861 or 1862. Since Winslow was alive when John Rainey left to join the Union Army in May 1862 and Winslow had died by December 2, 1862 when the news from home was written to John that he was repeating, the year Winslow died was 1862. This means that Winslow was still alive when his youngest daughter, Abbie, was born in July 1862. Because Monroe said his father died in the Winter, I believe the men raiding the farm came on a very cold day in late October or in November. They searched the farm and the surrounding woods. Whether they found Winslow and killed him or he evaded them remains unknown but he was dead before William Rainey sent the news to his son in Nashville on December 2, 1862. As much as I have tried to determine whether Winslow was murdered or died from illness while evading conscription or arrest on some other charge such as trading with the enemy or refusing to take the Oath of Allegiance, I have been unable to find the answer to this question. Either is possible and so this remains a mystery. Dovey was now a widow and her oldest son Richard was about 14 years old, Freeman was 12, James was 10, Monroe was 8, N. R. J. was 6, Marcus was 1 and Abbie was around 3 months old. Imagine Dovey’s grief. She had previously lost a child around the time the family went to Arkansas and now she had lost her husband who had been a spiritual leader in the community as well as his family. Her oldest son would likely try to fill the shoes of his father as the man of the house but Dovey had to be strong for the whole family. How difficult this time must have been for her with seven young children and the two youngest still in diapers. Dovey faced more loss when her daughter, N. R. J., died. Whether this happened before Winslow died or after is unknown but it was sometime between 1860 and 1865. Dovey decided to protect her children and leave their home in Tippah County for a safer place as the danger escalated. Danger Continues to Build in Tippah County After Winslow Blalock Dies General Grant’s main objective had always been to gain control of the Mississippi River by taking Vicksburg. The campaign through central Mississippi was one part of the plan of attack from the land My Blaylock Ancestry

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approach to the city and the other part was to move down the Mississippi River itself cutting Vicksburg off from any possible reinforcements. By November 29th, the Union took Holly Springs and on December 3, General Grant ordered Holly Springs to be made into the main depot for supplies of every kind except horses in preparation for an advance on Vicksburg. On December 20th, General Van Dorn led a Confederate raid on the supply depot at Holly Springs and destroyed an estimated $1.5 million cache of supplies, captured many weapons and took 1,500 prisoners. The Union forces fell back across the Tennessee state line temporarily. According to Hubert H. McAlexander who wrote a history of the area, Holly Springs changed hands more than 50 times in the war. Winslow’s farm was about 30 miles northeast of Holly Springs and while he was already dead by December of 1862, those still alive continued to face danger as the control of the area shifted back and forth. On January 18, 1863, John Rainey wrote to his sister and brother-in-law again saying: “Ann, I got a letter from sister, Mary, the 22nd day of December dated the 12th of the same. They was all well but in trouble. The guerillas was doing some mischief in the neighborhood, stealing horses and mules and other things.” On January 30, 1863, William Rainey wrote to his daughter and son-in-law saying: “The health of this country is not good at this time. The small pox and measles is raging all around us and close to us. The Rebel guerillas are doing much mischief in this country. There is some talk of the Rebels coming back up here but I hope if they attempt it they will be driven back. I have not been molested by the guerillas as yet but I do not know how soon they may ruin me. Produce is very scarce in this country.” On the same piece of paper, Eliza Rainey wrote to her daughter, and son-in-law: “My dear daughter, you have no idea the trouble I have seen since this war began. I do not know when it will be any better. Your sister, Mary, will be married next Thursday, the 5th of February at 3 o’clock if nothing takes place to prevent it. We are all opposed to the marriage taking place at this time on account of the hard times and the uncertainty of Nat Guthrie, her intended husband, getting to stay at home. In all probability, he may have to leave her in a short time.” On May 22, 1863, William wrote again: “We are not in a land of peace as yet but the time is not far ahead til we will have better times. The guerillas has been molesting us for nearly twelve months in taking horses and money. Whatever they could get, til there is scarcely a good horse in the country belonging to a Union man. I had but 2 horses and they taken both of them about last January. I did not know what to do for I could not make a crop without horses and that was all the way I had to make a living. Til at length, I concluded to try it again and bought 2 chunk of horses that I thought would do to make a crop with. I went at it but got a late start…….D. G. Guthrie has gone to Illinois to get My Blaylock Ancestry

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shed of the Conscript law in Mississippi and Tom is living in Bolivar to get shed of the same act…..2 fine boys by the name of Charlie Warren and William Day was taken by a company of guerillas and hung and shot through the head…” Putting a Face on the Guerillas The Southern Sentinel newspaper published an article in the August 9, 1894 edition describing a dashing trooper and fearless soldier named Solomon G. Street. Born in 1832, Solomon Street was 29 years old at the outbreak of the war and was one of 15 children. His parents had moved to what is now Tippah County before the Chickasaw Indians ceded the land to the United States. His education was therefore somewhat limited but he had a copy of The Life of General Francis Marion, a revolutionary war hero in South Carolina, which he read as a boy. He said later in life that he modeled his approach to warfare on what he had read in this volume. He was a carpenter in civilian life. Solomon Street enlisted as a private in Company F, 2nd Mississippi Infantry Regiment, CSA, on May 1, 1861 at the first call for Confederate troops. The Regiment arrived in Lynchburg, Virginia on May 9th and was stationed at Harper’s Ferry until given orders to board trains for Manassas. On July 20, 1861, he was appointed 3rd Sergeant of Company F and the Regiment’s action that day was credited with the capture of Rickett’s Battery at the Battle of First Manassas. The Regiment fought again in the Battle of Seven Pines on May 31, 1862 and at the First Battle of Gaines’ Mill (Cold Harbor) on June 27, 1862. Solomon Street was discharged on July 31, 1862 because he had hired a substitute by the name of William Spooner in Richmond, Virginia to take his place. He returned to Tippah County with the proper authority from the Confederate government to organize a command of cavalry scouts according to his own ideals. Now appointed Captain, he began to recruit. Captain Street captured a Union cavalry man singlehandedly near Davis’ Bridge on the Hatchie River and soon his prestige began to attract volunteers to his command. Most of these men were in the Confederate Army previously but disliked strict military discipline and they were glad to be in an organization that prized individual initiative. As Partisan Rangers, the unit’s objective was to harass the enemy whenever possible and capture weapons and supplies. This could have been the group of men that came to Winslow’s farm searching for him on that wintery day in late 1862 prior to being formally recognized as a unit of the Mississippi State Militia. The article in The Southern Sentinel was serialized and only the first installment published on August 9, 1894 has survived. Andrew Brown continues the history of Solomon G. Street in an article titled “Sol Street Confederate Partisan Leader” published in the Journal of Mississippi History in July 1959. However, Brown writes “Nothing is known of Street’s activities from August through November 1862”. According to Brown, in early December, Solomon Street was granted authority to recruit a company of cavalry for home defense by Governor Pettus of Mississippi. On December 15, 1862, Street’s company known as the Citizen Guards was mustered into the State Militia as Company A, 2nd Mississippi State Cavalry. However, Street had been recruiting since he returned to Mississippi from Virginia under the authority granted by the Confederate government and by the time his unit was mustered into the State Militia, he had a full company. My Blaylock Ancestry

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For the next year, the Citizen Guards attacked Union supply trains, confiscated cotton going to Memphis, ambushed Union scouting parties, conscripted men and horses into Confederate service and skirmished with Union troops. All Confederate units were under orders to confiscate cotton going to Memphis, capture merchandise coming from Memphis and turn it over to headquarters. Needless to say, much of the property never got to headquarters and what was confiscation to a Confederate was theft to a Unionist. To be accurate, farms were raided by Union troops, Confederate troops and outlaw gangs of deserters. The Confederate farmers in the area saw Street’s men as a defense against Union troops who raided their farms while Union supporters saw them as guerillas using martial law to steal property and livestock. While the Rainey letters reference raids by guerillas, the Union Army also confiscated goods from the confederate supporters in the area. For example, the Reverend William Morris Asbury, the 11th child of Rev. Daniel Asbury who had started the camp meetings in Lincoln County, North Carolina, had moved to Tippah County, Mississippi in the mid-1830s. The Asbury farm was located in Township 1 South, Range 2 East. The Blalock farms were located in Township 1 South, Range 3 East, perhaps 5-10 miles away. Rev. William Morris Asbury was shot by Union soldiers while defending his home on June 4, 1863. His son, Samuel Lester Asbury, was in the Confederate Army at the time. All of the farmers needed protection from raiders and no real protection was given. A large number of Union troops who had been stationed in northern Mississippi were moved to Chattanooga after the surrender of Vicksburg on July 4, 1863. This allowed the Citizen Guard’s activity in northern Mississippi to increase and made life more difficult for the Unionist in the area. Federal reports on action in the area referred to Street as “the noted guerilla”. In late January 1864, Major General Nathan Bedford Forrest reorganized his command and incorporated Street’s company as part of the 15th Tennessee Cavalry Regiment, CSA. Street was promoted to Major and placed in command of a Battalion in the Regiment. This took Solomon Street’s unit out of the State Militia and into the Confederate Army. On May 2, 1864, Major Solomon Street was shot and killed as he rode into his camp near Bolivar, Tennessee, by a young Confederate soldier named Robert Galloway. There are several versions of the story for the motive Robert Galloway had for killing Major Solomon Street. In one version, Robert Galloway was said to have accused Street’s men of killing his father, William Galloway, while attempting to rob him. A version from the Street family claimed that William Galloway had been killed when Street burned his cotton to keep it out of Union hands. The most complete version of the story I have found was published in the Tippah County Historical and Genealogy Society’s News and Journal which states William Galloway of Saulsbury, Tennessee was killed in December of 1862 during an altercation with Street over the sale of cotton when Street shot Galloway without provocation. It is possible that all three versions have an element of truth depending on the point of view of the person relating the facts. This event happened very near the time that Winslow Blalock died and not far from the Blalock farm. Robert Galloway was only 16 years old when his father was killed but he swore he would avenge his father’s death. He enlisted in Captain Higg’s Company of Scouts, a Confederate Partisan Ranger unit, in My Blaylock Ancestry

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the hope that he would cross paths with Major Street in the course of the war. On May 2nd, Higg’s Company camped with the 15th Tennessee Cavalry Regiment, CSA, outside Bolivar. Robert Galloway spotted Major Street and shot him in cold blood. Major General Forrest was not amused and placed him under arrest with a squad of ten men to guard him until the next day when a court martial could be assembled to be followed by Robert Galloway’s execution. The guards were assigned to watch Galloway in pairs and a rope around Galloway’s neck was to be held by one guard through the night to insure escape was impossible. Two of the guards were John W. Keys and L. H. Russ who heard Galloway’s story as they guarded him. Deciding that if their own father’s had been killed in the same way, they would have taken revenge just as Robert Galloway had, the two guards, speaking to each other in a voice loud enough for Galloway to hear, said that if Galloway untied himself and made a break for the horses, they would shoot at him but would not hit him. Galloway took the hint, freed himself and ran away on foot rather than taking a horse because he knew the area and could cover his tracks easier on foot than on horseback. When Major General Forrest learned of the escape the next morning, he had all ten guards put under arrest. Since the Regiment was on its way to Tupelo, the prisoners were marched under guard at the rear of the Regiment choking on dust each step of the way. At Tupelo, the prisoners were incarcerated in a small shack that had been used as a goat shed and were guarded around the clock. After more than a week, Russ climbed up the chimney while the others distracted the guards and went to plead with his officers to intercede with General Forrest for their release. He then returned to the goat shed and climbed back in the same way he had come out. By this time, General Forrest‘s temper had cooled and he allowed the release of 9 of the men but held Sergeant Sims for an additional week in the goat shed. At a court martial, Sims was found innocent and released. Robert Galloway returned to Saulsbury and after the war some of Major Street’s men went to the Sheriff there to file murder charges against him for the cold blooded killing of their leader. They were disappointed when the Sheriff was reported to have said, “Boys, Bob Galloway has more friends in this country than Street ever had and if anything more is done toward trying him for what he did during the war, there will be a heap more dead men lying around lose in this neighborhood than you ever saw and they will be those who stirred up this matter too.” Thirty nine years later, Galloway and Russ met again at a Masonic Library as they were both Masons. The writer of the article interviewed the two men and Galloway said in regard to Russ in the interview, “As long as I live, that boy shall never want for anything and I have told my wife that, if I die before she does, she must share her last crust with him if he needs it, and you can safely bet that she will cheerfully do so.” There is no way to know if these were the guerillas that came to Winslow’s farm. What is known is that they had the means, motive and opportunity to kill Union supporters in northern Tippah County.

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Unionists in Tippah County Actively Worked Against the Guerillas Green Treece owned a farm in south half of Section 33 in Township 1 South, Range 3 East and the north half of Section 4 in Township 2 South, Range 3 East in Tippah County. He was Thomas Blalock’s neighbor to the south. Green Treece was a civilian scout or Night Hawk for the 103rd Illinois Infantry Regiment, USA, stationed at La Grange, Tennessee. He was the brother of Valentine Treece who owned a farm in Section 22 near Winslow Blalock’s original farm. In John Rainey’s letter dated December 14, 1862 which reported the death of Winslow Blalock, Valentine Treece was listed among those who had been taken by the guerillas and whose fate was not known. Valentine Treece survived arrest by the Confederates and moved to Anna, Union County, Illinois by the time of the 1870 census. After the war, men from the 103rd Illinois Infantry Regiment, had a reunion and collected entries from their diaries for a book, Reminiscences of the Civil War from Diaries of Members of the 103rd Illinois Volunteer Infantry 1904. Two entries tell the story of Green Treece’s actions in pursuit of Captain Solomon Street. The first entry came from the diary of Lt. Isaac C. Worley: "May 22, '63. Sent out four scouts ("night hawks") who are union citizens that are staying with us, to see if they could discover Guerillas. They were attacked about one mile from camp; two of them were thrown from their horses. They all succeeded in getting away without being hurt, two of them returned to camp, and the other two followed the Guerillas four miles to where they put up for the night. One of the scouts (Green Treese) lay in ambush, while the other (Tobe Treese), returned to camp, a distance of five miles, over bad roads, and gave the particulars. Capt. Bishop took about 30 men and 8 "night hawks" and went quietly to the house where the Guerillas were. Lts. Kelly and Worley were of the party under Capt. Bishop. We arrived at the house at midnight, and got within 30 or 40 feet of the house before we were discovered, then rushed up double quick and fired a volley through the (frame) house, under the line of window sills and near the floor; a lively little battle followed in the dark. We had the house surrounded, fired at will and kept up a continued fire for several minutes, we then rushed in the house. We killed 3 on the ground and badly wounded 7, took 5 prisoners and 4 got away, 19 in all. Some of those that got away were wounded. Three of those wounded and captured died in a short time. Our party did not get a scratch, but some had very close calls. There were 2 women and one negro man in the house, but they were not hurt. After taking the wounded and dead out of the house we burned it, leaving them on the ground and took the prisoners who were not wounded to camp with us, returning in the morning with a wagon for the wounded. We captured 13 good guns, 7 revolvers, 11 horses and saddles, etc. Old Sol. Street, the Capt. of this gang, got away with nothing but shirt and drawers on, bareheaded and barefooted." Headquarters, 1st Division, 16th Army Corps. La Grange, Tenn., May 25, 1863. General Orders No. 87. j

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The General Commanding the 1st Division, takes this means of bringing to the notice of the entire command, the meritorious conduct of a detachment of the 103d Illinois, under command of Capt. Wm. W. Bishop, stationed at Porter's Creek. On the night of the 22d inst., information reached Capt. Bishop that the notorious guerrilla band under the command of Sol. Street, was encamped within three miles of his station. He started immediately, with his little command at a double quick through the brush, and succeeded in completely surprising the guerrillas; killing three, wounding six and capturing six prisoners. Loss on our side, in the Captain's own language, "Not a scratch." Another diary entry excerpt from August, 1863 reads: “The 15th, we camped near Porter’s Creek, where Cos. A. and F. had had their little "bout" with Sol. Street, last May. One of the "Night Hawks" (Tobe Treese), who had assisted at that entertainment, was waiting beside the road, and when we came up told us that the Band was all broken up, most of them being dead, and all the others beside him had gone away. His cousin, Green, was dead.” Green Treece had chosen to avoid conscription and work as a scout for the Union. Other men had evaded conscription by joining the Union Army. Written histories of the Civil War often record in great detail the military actions and difficulties faced by soldiers in battle but we often forget the hardships faced by women and children and those men who were too old to fight that were left behind in the lawless war zone of northern Tippah County. Their option was to stay and live in an active war zone or leave and seek refuge somewhere else. Seeking Safety in the North Sometime after the death of Winslow Blalock, Dovey took the family to the town of Kane in Greene County, Illinois. Monroe Blalock was 8 years old at the time his father died. He told his granddaughter, Doratha Allred, that the family had gone north to Illinois by steam boat. They would have probably gone to Memphis about 60 miles from their home either by train or by foot to catch a steam boat going north on the Mississippi River. It is also possible that they may have gone east to the Tennessee River only about 40 miles from their home and taken a steam boat north from Eastport, Mississippi but the Mississippi River was more travelled and appears to be the route commonly taken by others. Dovie B. Blalock and family were in the 1865 Illinois State Census in the town of Kane in Greene County on July 3, 1865. Both Elizabeth Blalock and Frances McKinney were listed in the household as being 70 years and older. Dovey was listed in the 30-39 age group and Abbie was listed in the 10 years and under age group. Richard, Freeman and James were in the 10-20 age group and Monroe and Marcus were in the 10 and younger age group although the census was taken 6 weeks after Monroe turned 11 years old. N. R. J., who was born in 1856, appears to have died prior to the 1865 Illinois census

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July 3, 1865 Illinois Census for Kane in Greene County Was there anyone else I could find that had been a neighbor of Winslow Blalock in Mississippi that might have gone north? In fact, there was. Jerry (Jeremiah) Proctor and family were in the 1865 Illinois State census in Greene County on July 3, 1865 living next door to Dovie Blalock. Being the youngest surviving son in the family when his father, Richard, had died in the summer of 1858, Jerry had remained on the farm that his mother inherited in Section 26 in Tippah County. This is the section where Winslow Blalock owned a farm after returning from Arkansas and where his family was enumerated in the 1860 Census. This was where his family was living when Winslow died. Jerry and Winslow were cousins since their mothers were sisters, Martha R. (nee Spain) Proctor and Elizabeth (nee Spain) Blalock. These families had been neighbors in Tippah County, Mississippi and they were neighbors in Kane in Greene County, Illinois. . Surprisingly, Martha Proctor was not living in Jerry’s household since it appears that her sisters, Elizabeth Blalock and Frances McKinney, were living in Dovie’s household but this does not mean that Martha had died. She was 81 years old and living at the time of the 1870 census. An alternate interpretation would be that 2 of the three sisters where living with Dovey and her family but we cannot be certain which sisters. My Blaylock Ancestry

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1870s Map of Jersey County and southern Greene County in Illinois Exactly when the Blalocks moved to Illinois is unknown but it was probably in 1863 based on the number of their neighbors that relocated there in that year. The first documented event in Illinois for one of the members of the Blalock family was when Richard A. Blalock, the oldest son of Winslow and Dovey Blalock, enlisted on September 3, 1864, in Co. E, 144 Illinois Infantry Regiment, USA, at Alton, Illinois and mustered for duty on September 7th. At the time he enlisted, his residence was Kane, Greene County, Illinois. He was stationed in St. Louis, Missouri and mustered out of service June 23, 1865, just prior to the 1865 Illinois State Census taken on July 3, 1865. Greene and Jersey Counties are located 25-30 miles north of St. Louis, Missouri and neighbor each other sharing a common county line. The Blalock family was listed in the town of Kane in Greene County and several other families that had relocated from Tippah County were in Jerseyville in Jersey County less than 5 miles away. For example, Martha Abigail Guthrie died in Jersey County, Illinois on February 21, 1864. She was the cousin of Winslow Blalock and the daughter of Richard Proctor and Martha (nee Spain) Proctor. Her widowed husband, William Jefferson Guthrie, son of Nelson Guthrie and Catherine (nee Lowe) Guthrie, My Blaylock Ancestry

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married Elizabeth C. Proctor, the widow of Joseph Proctor (who was the brother of Martha Abigail Guthrie), and the daughter of Benjamin Proctor and Ann (nee Shelton) Proctor, in Jersey County, Illinois on July 28, 1864. Joseph Proctor had died around 1849, about 3 years after moving to Tippah County. His widow, Elizabeth inherited land in Section 12 which was in Hardeman County, Tennessee. William Jefferson Guthrie had patented land in Sections 13, 14, 24 and 27 in Township 1 south, Range 3 east and owned additional land in Township 1 south, Range 4 east in Tippah County, Mississippi. All three sons of Elizabeth C. (nee Proctor) Guthrie, the new wife of William Jefferson Guthrie, joined the Union Army in Jersey County, Illinois. Thomas O. Proctor enlisted in Co E, 144th Illinois Infantry Regiment, USA, on August 29, 1864 and served until July 14, 1865. Richard Benjamin Proctor enlisted in Co. E, 144th Illinois Infantry Regiment, USA, on August 25, 1864 and served until July 14, 1865. Joseph M. G. Proctor enlisted in Co. G, 144th Illinois Infantry Regiment, USA, on September 24, 1864 and served until July 14, 1865. John A. Guthrie, son of William Jefferson Guthrie and Martha Abigail (nee Proctor) Guthrie, enlisted in Co E, 144th Illinois Infantry Regiment, USA, on September 7, 1864, at Jerseyville, Jersey County, Illinois and was mustered out July 14, 1865. As a result, Richard A. Blalock served in the Union Army with 4 of his 2nd cousins in the same regiment. The 144th Illinois Infantry Regiment was stationed in St Louis, Missouri in this time period and was not involved in any major battles. Others from Tippah County moved to Illinois to avoid conscription. As early as May 1863, Daniel G. Guthrie was in Illinois according to a letter from William Rainey to his daughter, Ann, dated May 22, 1863. Daniel G. Guthrie, the son of Nelson Guthrie and Catherine (nee Lowe) Guthrie, had married Nancy Rainey, William Rainey’s eldest daughter. Daniel G. Guthrie died August 17, 1863 in Jersey County, Illinois. He had owned land in Sections 13 and 24 in Tippah County and had been the neighbor to the east of Winslow’s original farm. Why the Guthries came to Jersey County, Illinois rather than any other location in the North is unknown. What is known is that many others from Tippah County took refuge in Illinois. John Nelson “Nat” Guthrie had been in Illinois for 13 months when he wrote to his sister-in-law, Ann, on July 30, 1864, “We are living in the yard with the old folks. We have been here 13 months…” John Nelson “Nat” Guthrie was the son of Thomas Madison Guthrie and Elizabeth (nee Proctor) Guthrie. His parent’s farm was in Section 25 in Tippah County. He married Mary J. Rainey on February 5, 1863, in Hardeman County, Tennessee. Her parents had voiced their concerns about the timing of the marriage due to the Conscription Act in a letter to Ann at the end of January, 1863. The marriage license was dated February 3, 1863. Nat and Mary had left Mississippi and taken refuge in Illinois a few months after the marriage and arrived about June, 1863. In a letter on the same piece of paper dated July 30, 1864, Ann’s father, William, wrote that his entire family was now in Jersey County, Illinois with the exception of Ann herself and her brother, William M. Rainey, who was serving in the Union Cavalry. On July 30, 1864, William Rainey wrote his daughter and son-in-law from Jerseyville, Illinois:

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“It is not worth my while to try to describe the troubles that we have seen since this unholy war commenced but suffice me to say that a great many of the Union class had to leave their homes and seek a home in the north. Me and all my children are here in Jersey except William and Ann, that is living. John, poor fellow, is gone from this troublesome world to a world of rest. He volunteered in the Union Army and was in the Army a little over twelve months and lost his health and was discharged and came home about the 27th of June last year and departed the 11th of September. Afterwards, with the evidence that he was a going to rest, it was hard to stand by the bedside and see a dutiful son leave this world. But we have troublesome times now at best and we have to bear them the best way we can. I believe that I hated to leave his silent grave as bad as anything that I had to leave behind me. But I began to think that if I stayed there that I might lose my life or me and my family come to want. I thought it would be best to get away if I could and so I made the trip safe. I came to Memphis and there took water and came to Alton and then came by land to Jerseyville…. on a three year lease…..I learned that a few nights after I left that my houses, corn cribs and stables was burnt up, but if times was peaceable like it used to be, there is timber plenty to build again. The Rebels left me without horses a time or two besides all the other little mischiefs that they done and they seemed to get worse but murdered none of my family…” In addition to the Blalocks, Raineys and Guthries, many other neighbors from Tippah County found refuge in Illinois. Martha L. Duncan was born in Illinois on November 21, 1863, and was the daughter of Noah Duncan and Elizabeth O. (nee Proctor) Duncan, whose farm was in Section 15 in Tippah County. She was also the granddaughter of Thomas Osborne Proctor and Elizabeth (nee Guthrie) Proctor. Noah Duncan had lived in the Blalock household at the time of the 1850 census in Tippah County. Thomas F. Proctor was born in June 1865 in Illinois, according to the 1900 census. However, his cemetery headstone gives his date of birth as June 3, 1863. He was the son of Robert A. Proctor and Sarah D. (nee Whitener) Proctor and the grandson of Benjamin Proctor and Margaret (nee Davis) Proctor. Robert A. Proctor’s farm in Tippah County was in Section 34, less than 1 mile from Thomas Blalock’s farm. Richard W. Proctor age 26, the eldest son of Thomas Osborne Proctor and Elizabeth (nee Guthrie) Proctor, whose farm was in Section 24 in Tippah County, registered in June 1863 in Jersey County, Illinois, to comply with the Conscription Act of the United States. While in Illinois, Thomas Osborne Proctor and Elizabeth (nee Guthrie) Proctor‘s youngest son, Albert J. Proctor, was born in 1865. Mary Ann Proctor married Joseph F. Schuller in Jersey County, Illinois, on February 15, 1866, and she was the daughter of Thomas Osborne Proctor and Elizabeth (nee Guthrie) Proctor. Richard, Albert and Mary Ann were the grandchildren of Richard Proctor and Martha (nee Spain) Proctor and cousins of Winslow and Thomas Blalock. Charles W. Guthrie was born in Illinois in 1865, the son of John Nelson Guthrie and Mary J. (nee Rainey) Guthrie and the grandson of Thomas Madison Guthrie and Elizabeth (nee Proctor) Guthrie whose farm My Blaylock Ancestry

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was in Section 25 in Tippah County. He was a first cousin twice removed of Winslow and Thomas Blalock. William Noah Guthrie was born in Cairo, Illinois on March 15, 1865, the son of Richard P. Guthrie and Mary C. (nee Scott) Guthrie and the grandson of Thomas Madison Guthrie and Elizabeth (nee Proctor) Guthrie. He was a first cousin twice removed of Winslow and Thomas Blalock. Nancy C. (nee Guthrie) Whitener, wife of Philip B Whitener, whose farm was in Sections 35 and 36 in Tippah County died in Illinois in 1864. She was the daughter of Nelson Guthrie and Catherine (nee Lowe) Guthrie. Elizabeth (nee Proctor) Guthrie, the first wife of Thomas Madison Guthrie also died in Illinois. I have not found any record of any gravesite for them but William Rainey wrote of their deaths in Illinois in a letter dated August 3, 1864. In addition to those who went to Illinois, several people from Tippah County went to Graves County, Kentucky. Samuel Blalock, the son of William Blalock, had relocated to Graves County around 1851 from Lincoln County, North Carolina. It is possible that the connection between these families was such that they had maintained contact through the years since leaving North Carolina. James M. Pruitt, age 22, married, born in Tennessee, the son of James and Lydia Pruitt whose farm was in Sections 26 and 27 in Tippah County, registered in June 1863 in Mayfield, Graves County, Kentucky to comply with the Conscription Act of the United States. James and Lydia Pruitt had sold 3 acres of land to the Liberty Church trustees on November 9, 1854 as a site for the church. Robert Augustus Proctor, age 26, married, born in North Carolina, registered in June 1863 in Mayfield, Graves County, Kentucky to comply the the Conscription Act of the United States. He was the son of Benjamin and Margaret (nee Davis) Proctor and his mother gifted him the farm in Section 34 in Tippah County prior to the 1861 tax roll. Sarah Frances Norwood was born Sept 6, 1864, in Graves County, Kentucky. She was the daughter of Augustus Albert Norwood and Harriet McDaniel (nee Proctor) Norwood, whose farm was in Section 28 in Tippah County, and the grand daughter of Benjamin and Margaret (nee Davis) Proctor. Some of the neighbors of the Blalocks remained in Mississippi and took up arms against the Confederacy near the end of the war. Taylor Abernathy, son of Rebecca Abernathy, whose farm was in Section 33 in Tippah County, enlisted in Co. B, 1st Battalion, Mississippi Mounted Rifles, USA, organized in Memphis in March 1864. Zadock Burrell Hudson enlisted in Co. B, 1st Battalion, Mississippi Mounted Rifles, USA, in 1865 for the remainder of the war. He married Mary A. Guthrie December 27, 1868 in Tippah County. She was the daughter of William Jefferson Guthrie and Martha Abigail (nee Proctor) Guthrie. Mary returned to Mississippi from Illinois after the war. Zadock’s father John Hudson also served in the same unit from 1863 to the end of the war.

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My primary purpose in looking for residents of Tippah County who went north or served in the Union Army was to determine if Winslow Blalock was alone in his convictions about slavery and the Union. The list I have recounted of extended family and neighbors that took up arms against the Confederacy, worked with the Union Army as civilians, or simply moved north to avoid the war zone that northern Tippah County had become is long. Clearly, there was a community of like-minded families living around Winslow and Dovey Blalock in the beginning of the Civil War. Winslow Blalock probably had help from the community around him but whether he was killed by a raiding party or a Partisan Ranger patrol or died of illness while evading conscription, any help he was given was not enough to save his life. On the other hand, his death along with many other acts of violence persuaded many in the community to fight back or take refuge in the north. Ongoing Hard Times in Mississippi Probably the saddest letter written to Ann and her husband was by her brother, William M. Rainey, while his regiment was camped near Vicksburg, Mississippi on August 3, 1864. William wrote: “Times is hard here and the weather is very warm. We are camped on the edge of town in an open field. You may guess the sun shines hot. There is a heap of sickness here and some deaths. You wrote to know the news from the old country. I do not know much from there. I have not been there in 15 months…..Bob Tomson went north. He is in Illinois….Dan Guthrie died the 17th of last August with the bilious fever. He had moved to Illinois. Brother John died the 17th of last September with the consumption of the bowels. He served 12 months in the Federal Army and then got a discharge and got home but only lived 3 months. He was buried at the chapel……My children died with typhoid fever as follows: 27th of February, 16th of March, 7th of April. Tommy was taken sick the 10th of March and is sick yet. He had the typhoid fever and it had turned to the dropsy. I got a letter from Linda yesterday. She was well but Tom was no better. She is in Memphis. Brother Tom and Hens Adams is in Illinois. Mary married to Nat Guthrie, they are in Illinois. She had 1 child but it did not live long. Pap’s house was burned by the guerillas after he left. Ann, John Riggs is dead and Isaac Guthrie, they both died with the fever in 62. Mrs. Whitener is dead, Betsy Mad is dead. Martha Jeff Guthrie also. They all died in Illinois….and many others that you know but I have not time to write their names….” On April 20, 1865, William M. Rainey wrote to his sister and brother-in-law while serving in Company I, 11th Illinois Cavalry Regiment, USA, which was then stationed in La Grange, Tennessee protecting the Memphis and Charleston Railroad. Interestingly, William was aware of the assassination of President Lincoln only 5 days before but he did not seem to know that General Lee had surrendered to General Grant at Appomattox on April 9th. William wrote: “…The death of the President caused great excitement here. Various opinions, some thinks it will prolong the war, others believe different. As to my part, I can’t tell. There is something I do know and that is I regret that our noble President fell a victim to the hands of traitors just as the bright morning star of Liberty was beginning to dawn in the horizon. But we must submit to the will of God and trust to the Honorable Andrew Johnson for leader of this great Republic. I think the war will close within 8 months. Mobile is ours and it is reported here in the papers that My Blaylock Ancestry

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General Johnson had surrendered to Sherman. If that be true, the war will close soon. There is a few Rebels around here…..” William over-estimated the time left in the war. He was mustered out of service to the Union on June 9, 1865 and returned to his wife. They were in Jersey County, Illinois by July 1865 when the state census was taken. The last letter saved by Ann Tomson was written by her brother Thomas E. Rainey on February 8, 1871 and includes in part, “Brother Will is in Illinois. He went back there last summer to run a thrashing machine and is there yet. R. L. Tomson is in Illinois….” After moving to Jersey County in the summer of 1870, William Rainey and his wife Malinda remained there the rest of their lives along with William’s mother Eliza. All three are buried in Fieldon Cemetery in Jersey County. James Rimer/Rhymer/Reimer and his Family One month after William M. Rainey enlisted in Company I, 11th Illinois Cavalry, Regiment, USA, James D. Rimer of Tippah County enlisted in the same unit at Bethel, Tennessee. When I found the story about James and his family, I was searching for other possible Union supporters in Tippah County and did not realize that there was a connection to William Rainey until I researched records for James’s military service. There can be no doubt that William Rainey knew both James Rimer as a member of Company I and knew Winslow Blalock as the neighbor of his own brother, Thomas, his sister, Nancy who married Daniel G. Guthrie, and his sister Mary J. who married John Nelson Guthrie. William Rainey and James Rimer may have shared news from home when they received letters, as men in the same unit might have done who come from the same area to serve in the Army. James D. Rimer was a blacksmith who had been born in North Carolina and married his wife, Piety Trott, there around 1838. Their first two children, Nancy C. and William D. Rimer, were born there. The family moved to Tennessee where a son named James H. Rimer was born around 1847. Then about 1849 they moved to Tippah County, Mississippi where they purchased a 130 acre farm in the northwest ¼ of Section 9, Township 4 South, Range 4 East. This farm was about 15 miles south southeast of Winslow Blalock’s farm. James and Piety had three more children, Martha L., Margaret I. and Henry M. Rimer, born in Tippah County. There is no reason to believe or any evidence that Winslow Blalock ever knew or even met James Rimer or any of his family but it is possible that they may have met taking goods to market. In the 1850 census, both families are listed in the Third Division of Tippah County with James’s family in household 126 and Winslow’s family in household 601. In the 1860 census, James’s family was listed as household 137 and Winslow’s family was in household 676 in the Northern Division of Tippah County. However, James Rimer was a Union supporter living in Tippah County at the time of the Civil War and the story of his family’s experience may help in understanding the difficulties that Winslow Blalock’s family faced in surviving the war. The following story was reportedly told by Martha Lucinda Rimer near the end of her life to her granddaughter, Elsa Mae Smith Jacobs, who was born in 1918. According to the source on the internet

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where I found this story, Elsa wrote it about 52 years after her grandmother died on November 2, 1929. The story was said to have been written on March 30, 1981 and reads: “James and Piety Trott Rimer, together with two children, Nancy and Will, hardy North Carolina Dutch, migrated across the mountains to Sullivan County Tennessee circa 1845. A third child, James H. was born in 1847, during the few years in this area. Between 1847 and 1850, the Rimer family moved south to become Northern Mississippians. Their plantation was approximately 130 acres in Tippah County, five miles or so northwest of the county seat, Ripley. Ruecher Cemetary is nearby. June 9, 1850, Martha Lucinda Rimer was born. James, a blacksmith, farmer and plantation owner had slaves. These families were well treated and always kept together. Early in the 1860's the Civil War began. James, basically anti-slavery, decided to contribute his talents to the North. Before leaving for Memphis, Tennessee to shoe horses for the northern troops, he planned well for his family’s welfare. The smoke house was filled with cured meats and stored vegetables. There would be no hunger. Slaves were freed. Having no place to go they stayed on the plantation. Shortly after James' departure, Piety became seriously ill with Consumption (tuberculosis) and took to her bed. As weeks rolled by her condition worsened. Word spread Yankee soldiers were raiding homes and plantations for food and arms. It came as no surprise when they were heard approaching. Quickly Will, Martha's older brother, crippled in either a knee or leg, grabbed the only gun and hid it in a hollow front porch pillar. Raiding soldiers loaded their horses with all the supplies they could carry and took along live cows, horses, pigs and chickens. Food that couldn't be carried was poisoned. The house was searched from room to room for guns, muzzle loading equipment, money or treasures. Piety, gravely ill, was unceremoniously jerked from her bed. The mattress was shredded. Hard times really started. Large luscious hams and delicious looking meats were in the smokehouse. Fear of poisoning kept this food from being consumed. Starvation was a possibility. With the shortage of food, there also was a shortage or lack of salt. Floor boards in the smoke house were torn out and dirt was dug up to extract salt which may have fallen between the cracks in the floor. A few weeks later, another dreaded raiding party came. Since nothing was to scavenger (sic), Will was the object of their ire. Because his physical disability prevented his being a soldier, he was snatched, tossed about among the men, generally roughed up, then "rode on a rail". A future mistreatment was threatened. Next it would be tar and feathers!

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During the winter, Piety steadily became weaker and weaker. Sadly she passed away. Neighbors cared for the remains. Loaded on a log wagon pulled by oxen, the casket was borne to the cemetery. Her barefoot children followed, walking through cold mud and ruts. A cold, uninviting empty house awaited their grief stricken return. No food and no one to help. It was decided the three younger children would try finding their Daddy in Memphis. Placing their few belongings in a gunny sack, Mattie (Martha), 12 years old, Margaret, 9, and Henry, 5, slung the "dunnage" over a shoulder, bid home and remaining loved ones goodbye, "set out" walking west to Memphis. Scared and alone, the three clung together and cried. Mattie, bravely, was the leader. Miles were walked. Devastation and death were everywhere. In places, they stepped over and walked around dead and dying soldiers and horses. Hours later, they were overtaken by a troop of Yankee soldiers. Mattie informed the horsemen they were walking to Memphis to find their daddy, James Rimer, who shod horses for Northern troops. Immediately welcomed and assured of friends, each girl was placed behind a soldier on a horse. Henry, the baby, received special treatment—he rode in front! Traveling problems were solved. Yankee soldiers carried the children from camp to camp, passing them each day to another troop heading west. They rode, ate and slept with the men in blue. In Memphis, unacquainted with the city, the last troops left them on a busy corner. Possessions across the shoulders, Mattie, Margaret, and Henry walked down a street, on their own again, feeling lonely and lost, strangers in a stranger city. Bravely they hurried along. Surprise of surprises -- an incredible happening -- they met their daddy on the street -- a joyous but sad reunion. James took the three to his room. His only food, cheese and crackers, were devoured. Amid tears and explanations, sorrow and happiness, decisions were made. Horse shoeing would be forgotten for a time. James would accompany the children North via boat to Cairo, by train to Jonesboro, Union County, Illinois, to brother Jacob's home. Arrangements were made as quickly as possible. All four boarded a steamboat on the Ole Mississippi, bound for Illinois. As an afterthought, James disembarked for a cup of coffee -- the boat pulled out without him!! As the steamer moved to the middle of the river, they heard him shout, "Wait for me on the dock in Cairo!" Another long distance and desolate adventure for three lonely children. The boat docked in Cairo in late afternoon. Kind people invited Martha, Margaret and Henry to homes or to shelter in the city but each offer was declined. The next boat could arrive any hour -they had to be waiting. Huddled together on the dock, all night they waited on that foggy, dark, wet, muddy riverfront, listening to the slopping river sounds. Daddy did arrive on the following scheduled boat next morning, another happy reunion! Together again, the four boarded a train for Jonesboro and Uncle Jacob's home. After "settling in" in Illinois, James returned to Memphis to continue horse shoeing until peace was declared. The South held nothing for him, naturally he went North to his youngsters. There he established a home in Meishenheimer Township and rented farmland. Several years rolled by. James married Susan Knupp. Martha matured and was courted by a tall handsome young My Blaylock Ancestry

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ex-soldier, "Sandy" Keller. When Sandy asked James for Mattie's hand in marriage, Daddy questioned, "Will you be good to her?" June 4, 1868 was the marriage date -- and he was good to her! January 1867 found James in Tippah County, Mississippi, to dispose of his holdings. The plantation sold for mere pittance, southern land was practically worthless. Also, he found Piety's final resting-place and purchased a marker. His last ties to the south were broken.” I have attempted to verify some of the information in the story since Elsa was only 11 when her grandmother died and she waited 52 years to write the story. I have found that much of the story is supported by records from the time. James and Piety’s oldest daughter, Nancy, married Wylie W. Hedden on July 30, 1860 in Tippah County. James enlisted at Bethel, Tennessee, on August 22, 1862, in Company I, 11th Illinois Cavalry Regiment, USA, as a blacksmith and reported for duty on September 15, 1862. James may have felt his family was in good hands since his son, William, was 20 or 21 years old and his son, James Harvey Rimer who went by his middle name, Harvey, was 16 or 17 years old. However, William married Edna Waldon on December 17, 1862 in Hardeman County, Tennessee and it is not clear if William and Edna lived with his mother after they married. So at the time of Piety’s death, only Piety and the 4 youngest children may have been living at home. Based on the 1860 census data, Piety was 46 years old, Harvey was 17, Martha was 12, Margaret was 9 and Henry was 7 when these events occurred. Why Harvey did not make the trip with his younger siblings is unknown. He would have been subject to the Confederate Conscription Act at the time and may have already fled north or have been in hiding to avoid conscription. It may have been too risky for him to travel at that time. He did enlist in Company B, 4th Tennessee Mounted Rifles Regiment, USA, on January 1, 1864 and mustered into service on April 14, 1864. After the war, Harvey reunited with his family in Union County, Illinois. In addition to the census records for 1850 and 1860 for Tippah County, James was listed in the real estate property tax records there with a 130 acre farm valued at $200 in 1851, $650 in 1861 and $390 in 1869. The location of the farm in the story is almost correct. It was about 5 miles northeast of Ripley not northwest as the story says. If the story is correct that James returned to Tippah County and sold his farm in 1867, then the tax office did not have that information and continued to list him as the owner of the property on the 1869 tax roll. Failure to have a land sale recorded would not be unusual and it is likely that the farm brought a very small price. All the evidence I have seen indicates that the tax roll of 1869 vastly overstates the value that farms were sold for around that time. It was difficult to verify that James owned slaves because there was another man named James W. Rimer who came from South Carolina and lived in the southern part of Tippah County. Since the personal property tax rolls did not include James’s middle initial and was listed by the first letter of the last name alphabetically, it is difficult to be certain which person was taxed. Finding the correct person in the real property tax records was made easier because those records were organized by Section, Township and Range. The James Rimer in the personal property tax rolls did not pay a tax on slaves in My Blaylock Ancestry

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1855 and this was probably an oversight by the tax assessor but in 1856, 1858, 1859, and 1861, James paid tax on 2 slaves and a clock. On the 1850 Federal Census Slave Schedule James Rhymer was listed in Tippah County with 2 female slaves, one age 19 and one age 10 days. In the 1860 Federal Census Slave Schedule for the Northern Division of Tippah County James Rimer was listed with 2 female slaves, one age 28 and one age 9. It is this schedule that convinced me that James from the story did in fact own slaves because the sequence of the names of slave owners on the list is the sequence that the households were enumerated and James’s neighbors were on the same page. Based on this data, James appears to have owned 2 slaves from near the time he moved to Tippah County, or at least 1856, until the beginning of the Civil War. It is difficult to understand how the writer of the story could say that her great grandfather had opposed slavery and at the same time acknowledge that he owned slaves. There is no evidence that James kept the slave families together as the author stated since he only owned 2 female slaves that appear to be mother and daughter and there was no evidence that the child’s father was with his family. The military service records for James show that he served with Company I, 11th Illinois Cavalry Regiment, USA, until November 27, 1862 when he was temporarily transferred to Company G, 1st Alabama Cavalry Regiment, USA. March 12, 1863 he was attached to the Mississippi Rangers, USA, but soon returned to Company G, 1st Alabama Cavalry Regiment, USA. He was sick in the hospital in Memphis in August and October of 1863. James deserted at Vicksburg, Mississippi on August 31, 1864 and his physical description was recorded as age 50, height 5’5”, dark complexion, dark eyes, and dark hair. He returned to his children in Union County, Illinois and was enumerated in the 1865 Illinois census there. The cavalry patrol that found the children in route to Memphis and those that subsequently took the children into Memphis were not identified in the story. However upon their return, the cavalry soldiers would have taken their horses to the stables as soon as they arrived in camp. Since a cavalry soldier’s life depended upon his horse’s wellbeing, it is likely that these soldiers either knew James Rimer or would have found him easily. There were probably restrictions about bringing civilians without authorization into camp that prevented them from taking the children to their father. Remember that Memphis had only been under Union control since June. The next best thing they could have done was to leave the children at a place that could be located easily and then tell their father where he could find them. So while it may have seemed like pure chance that James met his children, I suspect he had been told where to find them by the cavalry patrol that brought them to Memphis. After being reunited with his children in Illinois after the war, James married Anna Knupp on October 6, 1866 in Union County. James died on August 31, 1874, in Union County, Illinois and was buried in St. John's Lutheran Cemetery, in Dongola in Union County. The cemetery has recorded his name as James Reimer. As I have said earlier, there is no evidence of any connection between James Rimer and Winslow Blalock. However, at least one member of Company I, 11th Illinois Cavalry Regiment, USA, certainly knew both men. William M. Rainey had enlisted in the company on July 24, 1862, one month before James My Blaylock Ancestry

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Rimer joined the unit. There can be no doubt that every cavalry soldier knew the company blacksmith and would want to be on his good side. William was the brother of Thomas E. Rainey, Winslow’s neighbor to the south in Section 26 and 2 other Rainey sisters who had married Guthries lived nearby as well. It was William that wrote the letter on April 20, 1865 from the banks of the Mississippi at Vicksburg after learning about the assassination of President Lincoln.

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Civil War Impact on North Carolina and Georgia Relatives Relatives That Remained in North Carolina In addition to the four sisters that moved to Tippah County, Mississippi, Elizabeth Spain Blalock, Martha Spain Proctor, Eliza McKinney and Frances McKinney, and their brother, Reverend Hartwell Spain who moved to South Carolina, two Spain sisters remained in North Carolina. Amelia Proctor Spain had married William A. Norwood and had 11 children. Nancy Spain had married James Foy and had 9 children. The Norwoods The Norwood children who remained in North Carolina were loyal to the Confederacy. Only one son, Augustus Albert Norwood had moved to Tippah County, Mississippi and this was probably because his wife, Harriet McDaniel (nee Proctor) Norwood, wanted to relocate with her family since her widowed mother and her brothers and sisters also moved there. Augustus Albert Norwood was one of the trustees listed on the deed to Liberty Church. He had also been the bondsman for Winslow Blalock when he married Dovey Beatty. He had taken his family north to Graves County, Kentucky during the Civil War and his 8th child, Sarah Frances Norwood, was born there. Any news from his family back in North Carolina during the war would have been heartbreaking. Augustus’s father, William A. Norwood had died July 12, 1856 prior to the Civil War. His mother, Amelia, saw the Civil War ravage her family but lived to the age of 86 and died July 31, 1886, Augustus’s oldest brother, James Theodore Norwood, was born in Lincoln County where he resided as a farmer, at the time of the 1860 census, prior to enlisting in Company G, 52nd North Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, at age 45 on March 25, 1862. He was 5’ 10” tall and had worked as a hospital attendant in Raleigh prior to his enlistment. Mustered in as Private on April 28, 1862 at Camp Mangum, he was promoted to Corporal on December 11, 1862. He was wounded at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania on July 3, 1863. He recovered from his wounds and returned to duty in September-October, 1863. He was captured at Bristoe Station, Virginia, October 14, 1863, and confined at Old Capitol Prison, Washington, D.C. As a prisoner of war, he was transferred to Point Lookout, Maryland on October 27, 1863 where his brother, Thomas, was already a prisoner. He was paroled at Point Lookout on or about March 16, 1864 along with Thomas. He was then moved to City Point, Virginia, March 20, 1864, for an exchange of prisoners and returned to duty in May-June, 1864. In July-October, 1864, he was reported absent and wounded in the hospital but the place and date of the injury was not reported. He was able to return to duty before the end of the war and surrendered at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, April 9, 1865. He died August 10, 1872 in Lincoln County. Augustus’s oldest sister, Susannah Violet Norwood, married Archibald Nixon who was born in Lincoln County where he resided as a farmer. Archibald Nixon enlisted as a Private in Company G, 52nd North Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, at the age of 39 on March 25, 1862. This is the same day and the same My Blaylock Ancestry

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unit that James Theodore Norwood joined the Confederate Army. He was 5” 11’’ tall and mustered for duty at Camp Mangum on April 28, 1862 with his brother-in-law. Archibald Nixon was wounded in the thigh and captured at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, on July 3, 1863. Because of the seriousness of the wound, his leg was amputated above the lower 1/3 of his thigh. He was hospitalized at Gettysburg where he died on July 19, 1863. There is no record that Susannah ever remarried and she died sometime after the 1880 census. Augustus’s sister, Mary Genetta Norwood, married James R. Hagar and they had 6 children before Mary died on December 21, 1854, 11 days after the birth of her last child who was named Augustus W. Lafayette Hager. James remarried prior to 1858 and had 5 children with his second wife, Jane. Perhaps because baby Augustus was an infant when his mother died, he was raised by his grandmother and Aunt Frances. When the war came, James R. Hagar enlisted in Company G, 52nd North Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, on March 19, 1862 and reported for duty on April 28, 1862 along with James Norwood and Archibald Nixon. James R. Hagar was 48 years old and 5’ 11” tall when he enlisted. Because he was over 35 years old when the Conscription Act was passed, he was allowed to muster out of service on May 29, 1862. He died prior to the 1870 census. Augustus’s brother, William E. Norwood moved to Union County, North Carolina and married Susannah M. Wilson McCommon, a young widow with 2 children, in 1850. By the time of the 1860 census, William was a Master Mechanic and because of his skills may have been exempt from military service. The 26th North Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, included Companies raised in Union County. This regiment was an elite unit in the Army of Northern Virginia under the command of Robert E. Lee and was involved in many battles. In early July, 1863 at Gettysburg, the 26th North Carolina Infantry Regiment suffered the highest number of casualties of any unit in the battle on either side. By this time, William and Susannah had five children and had also seen two children die as infants. After Gettysburg, the Confederacy was desperate for able bodied soldiers and William may have lost his exemption, been conscripted, or felt the need to join the Army based on his personal knowledge of men who had died in the war. It is not possible to determine the reason but on October 25, 1864, William joined Company B of the 26th North Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, at Camp Stokes in Virginia. He survived the Civil War and was mustered out of service on April 9, 1865 at Appomattox Court House but he was no longer living at the time of the 1870 census. Augustus’s brother, Rufus Franklin Norwood, was a mechanic and cabinet maker in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. He married Prudence Morehead Alexander in 1855 and they had 7 children. He enlisted in Company F, 5th North Carolina Cavalry Regiment, CSA, on July 7, 1862. He was 6” 4” tall and listed his birthplace as Mecklenburg County. He mustered into service on August 18, 1862 in Charlotte. The regiment was active in many battles in the war and Rufus survived them but his horses were not as lucky. On August 8, 1863, he was granted 30 day a furlough to go home and get another horse. He returned to duty by September 6, 1863 but by March 1864, he was without a horse again and was listed without a horse through September 1864. On June 26, 1864, he was admitted to General Hospital #24 in Richmond for acute diarrhea and was released to return to duty on July 11, 1864. He survived the war and returned home to his family. He died August 14, 1901. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Augustus’s sister, Martha E. Norwood, never married and died August 24, 1863. I have found no information on the cause of her death but the news of the battle of Gettysburg and losses for the Norwood family were compounded by her death in the same summer. It is possible that Rufus was at home on furlough acquiring another horse when his sister, Martha, died. Augustus’s brother, Thomas Spain Norwood was born in Lincoln County where he resided as a farmer prior to enlisting as a Private in Company G, 52nd North Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, at age 28 on March 27, 1862. This was the same unit that his brother James had enlisted in 2 days earlier. He was 6’ 2” tall and mustered for duty on April 28, 1862 at Camp Mangum with his brother, James, and his brother-in-laws, Archibald Nixon and James Hagar. He was captured at Falling Waters, Maryland, July 14, 1863, and was sent to Baltimore, Maryland. Thomas was transferred to the prisoner of war camp at Point Lookout, Maryland, August 20, 1863. This camp was established on the tip of a peninsula at the conjunction of Chesapeake Bay and the Potomac River after the battle of Gettysburg and was immediately overcrowded. The prisoners had only war surplus tents for shelter in the bitterly cold winter and very little food. It was commonly reported that the prisoners ate rats and in one case a prisoner ate a dead seagull raw that had washed up on the shore at the camp. A line known as the dead line was drawn 10 feet from the inside wall of the prison fence and any prisoner crossing the line would be shot. In an effort of humiliate the prisoners, the guards at Point Lookout were from several Regiments of Colored Troops and it was reported that shooting prisoners without provocation was a frequent occurrence. Thomas was reunited with his brother James in October when James arrived as a prisoner of war at Point Lookout. Together they survived the winter, were paroled at Point Lookout on or about March 16, 1864, and received at City Point, Virginia, March 20, 1864, for an exchange of prisoners of war. Thomas was admitted to Chimborazo Hospital #2 in Richmond on the day of the prisoner exchange for rheumatism and was granted a 30 day furlough on March 29, 1864. Thomas returned to duty in May-June, 1864, but was captured again at Burgess' Mill, Virginia, on October 27, 1864. He was confined again as a prisoner of war at Point Lookout, Maryland, on October 31, 1864. However, a second winter at the prison camp was more than he could survive. Thomas died at Point Lookout on January 23, 1865, of dysentery and was buried at the Point Lookout Confederate Cemetery. Augustus’s sister, Frances E. Norwood, never married, lived with her widowed mother and together they raised her nephew, Augustus W. Lafayette Hagar. Frances died July 21, 1909 in Lincoln County. Augustus’s sister, Sarah Lavinia Catherine Norwood, married a widower with 2 daughters, Osborne Gilleland, on September 2, 1857 and they had 1 child together. Osborne is listed in the 1910 census as a veteran of the Confederate Army but I have not been able to locate any records regarding his military service. Both Sarah and Osborne lived long lives in Catawba County, North Carolina and Sarah died September 7, 1923. Augustus’s youngest brother, Richard Winslow Norwood, married Sarah Jane Rone in Union County on August 2, 1858 and they had 6 children. Richard is listed as a member of Company B, Mallett’s Battalion, North Carolina Camp Guards, CSA, at Camp Holmes. Records on his dates of service are very limited showing him on duty in 1863 and a clothing issue on June 3, 1864. Camp Holmes was a training My Blaylock Ancestry

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camp for conscripts located near Raleigh. His headstone at Waxhaw City Cemetery cites Richard as a member of Company A, 39th North Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, but I have not found any records to confirm this. Richard and Sarah remained in Union County after the war and Richard died August 5, 1916. The Foys James Foy and Nancy Spain were married in Lincoln County, North Carolina on January 4, 1827. The name of their first daughter is not known because she died as a child before 1840 but was counted in the 1830 census. James and Nancy Foy appear to have moved several times early in their marriage but eventually lived near Crowder’s Mountain about 10 miles south of Lincolnton and in 1846 Lincoln County was divided and the southern portion became Gaston County. The Foys are listed in the 1830 and 1840 census in Lincoln County. However, in the 1850 census, James, Nancy and their oldest son Jesse are not enumerated. The remaining Foy children are listed in the household of Peter Deck in Gaston County. Perhaps the Foys considered moving west and went in search of land for a new home but by the time of the 1860 census, the entire family was in Gaston County, North Carolina. The Foys appear to have also lived in Cleveland County, North Carolina because Sarah and Elizabeth are reported to have been born there in information listed on their death certificates. Jesse S. Foy, the oldest son, was born about 1829. He appears to have married in the early 1850s but I have found no record of the marriage. His wife may have died soon after the birth of their daughter, Mary N. Foy. Jesse enlisted in Company B, 28th North Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, on July 30, 1861. This was 9 days after the first battle of the war at Manassas, Virginia. His enlistment record states that he had brown hair, blue eyes, and was 5’ 5” tall. The 28th North Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, was part of the Army of Northern Virginia and participated in more than 20 battles in the war. Jesse was taken prisoner of war on May 27, 1862 near Hanover Courthouse, Virginia and transported to Ft. Columbus on Governor’s Island in New York harbor on June 4, 1862. He was released on August 6, 1862 and returned to his regiment. Jesse was captured at Petersburg, Virginia on April 2, 1865, only 7 days before Lee surrendered at Appomattox Courthouse. He was sent to the prisoner of war camp at Point Lookout, Maryland. Fortunately, he did not have to remain in custody through a winter season and he was released on June 26, 1865. However, he may have been in very poor health after 4 years of war and a combined 6 months in the prison camp. There are no other records for Jesse S. Foy and he appears to have died prior to the 1870 census as his daughter, Mary, is listed in the household of her grandparents in both 1860 and 1870. Sarah F. “Sallie” Foy never married but had 2 daughters. Both daughters’ death certificates list their father as unknown. One daughter, Amanda, provided the information for her sister Ruthie Roxana Foy’s death certificate and lists their mother’s place of birth as Cleveland County. Sarah always listed her marital status as single on the censuses and her daughters never married either.

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Elizabeth M. Foy married John B. Cook but I have not found a record of their marriage. They had 2 daughters, Nancy Jane Cook born in 1860 before the war and Martha Emeline Cook born in 1863. Elizabeth appears to have been pregnant when John enlisted in Company H, 49th North Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, on May 13, 1862. John was admitted to the General Hospital at Howard’s Grove in Richmond, Virginia on December 8, 1862 for treatment of acute diarrhea and was released sometime later. Then on December 27, 1862, he was again admitted to the hospital for treatment of small pox and John died in the hospital in Richmond, Virginia on December 31, 1862. Since the typical period from exposure to death for small pox is 3-4 weeks, it is possible that John contracted this fatal illness when he was admitted 3 weeks earlier for treatment of diarrhea. Elizabeth never remarried and died in Gastonia, North Carolina on March 13, 1912. John F. Foy’s marriage record has not been found but he is listed in the 1870 and 1880 censuses married to Nancy J. Foy. They had one son, John Pinkney Foy, who was born around the beginning of the war. John enlisted at the age of 26 on March 22, 1862 in Company H, 49th North Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA. He listed his place of birth as Lincoln County and he was 6’ 1” tall. The 49th North Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, was a part of the Army of Northern Virginia under the command of Gen. Robert E. Lee and was involved in over 20 battles in the course of the war. John reported for duty April 21, 1862 and his service record indicates he was present at each muster and was never wounded. He was taken prisoner at Cumberland Church in Farmville, Virginia on April 7, 1865, just 2 days before Lee surrendered at Appomattox Courthouse. John was released between April 11 and April 21, 1865. He survived the war and died in Gaston County on December 5, 1914. Solomon Eli Foy married Martha Ann Anthony Crawford, a widow with 1 daughter. Martha Ann’s first husband was Thomas Oates Crawford who had enlisted in Company H, 49th North Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, on March 22, 1862 and mustered into service on April 21, 1862, along with Solomon and John F. Foy. Thomas Crawford was wounded in the foot in the defense of Richmond in the Seven Days Campaign at the Battle of Malvern Hill, and died in the hospital in Richmond, Virginia on July 26, 1862. Solomon Eli Foy had also enlisted in Company H, 49th North Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, on the same day as his brother, John, and Thomas Crawford on March 22, 1862. He also reported for duty on April 21, 1862. He was 22 years old and 5” 10” tall when he joined the Army. Solomon was wounded in the arm in the defense of Richmond at the Battle of Malvern Hill on July 1, 1862. He was expected to recover from his wounds and was listed as absent in November-December 1862. In January-February 1863 he was listed as absent without leave but on February 16, 1863 he was given an indefinite furlough to heal his wounds. However, by June 16, 1863 his arm had been amputated and he was paid for 118 days of service. While he was absent, Solomon returned home and married the widow of Thomas Oates Crawford, Martha, in late 1862. Since both Solomon and Thomas were wounded in the same battle and were taken to the hospital to care for their wounds, it is easy to imagine a scene where Thomas realizing that he was dying may have asked Solomon to look after his wife and child after his death. It is also possible to imagine that after Solomon returned home, Martha may have gone to see Solomon seeking information about the death of her husband. Whatever the circumstances, Solomon and Martha married. They had 11 children and both lived long lives in Gaston County. Solomon died on June 13, 1919. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Nancy Salena Foy had a son, James Kervin Foy, in 1874. She is listed as single in the 1880 census and as a widow in the 1900 census. James’s death certificate lists his father as unknown. Indications are that Nancy Salena Foy never married. She died after the 1900 census. James L. Foy enlisted at age 18 in Company H, 49th North Carolina Infantry Regiment, CSA, on August 10, 1863. He joined his brother John serving in the same company. Company H fought in the Siege of Petersburg which was not a classic siege with a city surrounded by troops but was trench warfare along a 30 mile line between Richmond and Petersburg that lasted from June 9, 1864 to March 25, 1865. While at the Siege of Petersburg, Virginia, James deserted on February 25, 1865. He was taken to Union headquarters at City Point, Virginia on February 26, 1865. James took the Oath of Allegiance to the United States and was transferred to Monroe County, Indiana. I have not been able to find any further records for James that I can be confident were for this James L. Foy. Mary E. Foy who was 4 years old in the 1850 census appears to have died prior to the 1860 census. James and Nancy Foy both survived the war and the hardship and heartache that accompanied it. James died February 11, 1875 and is buried in Pisgah Cemetery in Gaston County. Nancy Spain Foy was living at the time of the 1880 census and her date of death is not known. It is likely that she is also buried at Pisgah Cemetery, but if so, her grave is unmarked. Both the Norwoods and the Foys who remained in North Carolina supported the Confederacy and the war had a significant impact on both families. Relatives That Remained in Georgia and Alabama John Blalock Sr.’s move with his family from Lincoln County, North Carolina to Georgia in 1822 has been previously discussed. Unfortunately, the connection between John Blalock Sr. and John Blalock Jr. is only circumstantial. John Blalock Jr. paid taxes in Lincoln County in 1828 but the records for 1829-1831 no longer exist. John Blalock of Lincoln County (assumed to be Jr.) sold 95 acres of land to Michael Whisenant of York County, South Carolina on January 26, 1830. All of my attempts to locate John Blalock Jr. after 1830 have failed. However, the fact that Thomas and Winslow Blalock both had children born in Georgia before moving on to Tippah County, Mississippi, is circumstantial evidence of a connection to John Blalock Sr. Because I suspect that John Blalock Sr. was their grandfather, I have included information on his family and the Civil War. Since this family also supported the Union in the Civil War while the vast majority of soldiers named Blalock or Blaylock supported the Confederacy, it appears more likely John Blalock Sr. was the grandfather of Thomas and Winslow Blalock. The Southern Claims Commission was established by an Act of Congress on March 3, 1871 as a commission in the executive branch under President Ulysses S. Grant. The purpose of the commission was to compensate Union supporters in 12 southern states for supplies officially taken or furnished to the Union Army during the Civil War. The claimant had to provide evidence that he had remained loyal to the United States throughout the War in addition to the evidence that he had provided supplies to the Army willingly or unwillingly. A total of 22,298 claims were filed but only 7,092 were approved for payment. Information about the Blaylocks who remained in Georgia and Alabama survives today My Blaylock Ancestry

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because of the statements necessary to provide evidence that the claimant had remained loyal to the United States. James Thornton Myers’ Claim John Blalock Sr.’s daughter, Jane, married James Thornton Myers and moved to Walker County, Alabama by 1838. James Thornton Myers of Walker County, Alabama, filed claim #3190 on May 22, 1871. His claim was for $311.50 in foodstuffs and included 1,000 pounds of bacon, 150 pounds of beef, 700 binds of fodder, 20 bushels of potatoes and 50 fowls taken on March 26, 1865. Known as Wilson’s Raid, the Union Army moved through Alabama and Georgia with the intent to destroy all Confederate manufacturing capability in its path. On March 27, 1865, the courthouse and several buildings were burned in the county seat at Jasper. As the Union Army moved through, farms in its path were depleted of livestock and provisions. Thornton was not at home at the time of his property being taken and the witnesses to the Union soldiers taking the property were 2 girls about 10 years of age at the time. One of the girls was Thornton’s daughter, Martha L. Myers, and the other was Louisa J. Tidwell, the daughter of Simeon Tidwell, who lived nearby. Thornton estimated the amount of property taken and the commissioners doubted the validity of the claim saying, “We think his claim grossly exaggerated.” In the end, the commission granted $106 on the claim and commented that, “his witnesses testify more strongly to his loyalty than he does, almost too strongly.” Regarding the removal of property, the claim states: “Testimony of the claimant as to taking of property who says that on the 26th day of March 1865, on Sunday he went to church, about 6 miles from home. That in the evening on his return from church, he met his wife, who was then living, now deceased, who informed him that Gen. Winslow’s Brigade of Wilson’s Command had been to their premises that day and informed him of the taking of his property by said officers and soldiers. Claimant turned back and stayed all night with one of his neighbors, a cousin, and next morning went to their camp near Bartonville, Ala., about seven miles off to see his son and other neighbors who belonged to said command, and parties that he might see the officers who took said property, that he might get a receipt or voucher for it. But the officer passed over the names and claimant did not get to see him. So he got no receipt or voucher for said property. Claimant further states that his only means of knowing the amount taken, was from the size of the crib as to the corn, bacon from number of hogs he had killed and salted, dried beef from the size of the beef he had killed, potatoes from the size of the bulk, fodder from number and size of bundles, that when he returned on Monday evening, 27th March 1865, it was all taken, that he saw signs where they had consumed the most of said forage on the premises.” Regarding Thornton Myers’ loyalty to the Union, the claim states: “Claimant further states….that he advised men who was lying out to evade conscription that it would be better for themselves and their friends at home, to join the Union Army, that some of them done so. To wit: Claimant’s own son, Elijah T. Myers, J. R. Cole, Simeon Tidwell, John Morrow and others.” My Blaylock Ancestry

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Simeon Tidwell, testified that he had served in a home guard unit formed to protect the interests of those who supported the Union in the area and that Thornton Myers, as well as other well to do farmers, had provided support and sustenance to the unit. Simeon had visited the Myer’s farm the day before the Army came and when the Union Army came, he said he had enlisted in the 10th Missouri Cavalry Regiment, USA. It is interesting that Thornton Myers cited his encouragement to his son, Elijah, to enlist in the Union Army as proof of his own loyalty to the Union but that Elijah did not testify in his father’s claim. Elijah T. Myers, Simeon Tidwell, James R. Cole and John Morrow enlisted in Company B, 10th Missouri Cavalry Regiment, USA, on March 27, 1865 at Gravelly Mills, Alabama. This is the same day that Thornton’s claim states he had gone to visit his son in service in camp near Bartonville and to obtain a receipt for the property taken by the Union soldiers. Gravelly Mills and Bartonville were probably near each other, but I have found no maps to confirm this and these locations are not listed on any current maps. Elijah was 19 years old with blue eyes, black hair and stood 5’ 8” tall when he enlisted for one year of service. March 27, 1865 was less than two weeks prior to Lee’s surrender at Appomattox Courthouse. Elijah reported for duty on May 3, 1865, the day after the fall of Richmond. As the war concluded, men who had served their full enlistment were discharged from service and many regiments were reorganized consolidating the remaining men into fewer units. Around July, Elijah was transferred to Company G, 2nd Missouri Cavalry Regiment, USA, and reported for duty at Camp Thomas near Chattanooga, Tennessee. On July 22, 1865, Elijah deserted taking a horse, weapons and equipment which the Army valued at $119. By September 19th, he was listed as a deserter owing the government $19 since his $100 enlistment bonus had never been paid and was applied against his debt for the property he had taken. Some years later, Elijah petitioned to have the charge of desertion removed from his record and to be granted an honorable discharge but this request was denied on December 9, 1887. On September 9, 1891, Elijah applied for an invalid pension based on his military service but his application #1055613 was not approved. Elijah did not testify on behalf of his father in the Southern Claims application. He did return to Walker County, Alabama, married and was the father to 11 children. Elijah died on July 22, 1931, on the 66th anniversary of the day he had deserted from the Army. Simeon Tidwell, James R. Cole and John Morrow were all transferred to Company G, 2nd Missouri Cavalry Regiment, USA, on July 25, 1865 and then served until September 19, 1865 when they were discharged from service honorably. David C. Blaylock’s Claim David C. Blaylock of Catoosa County, Georgia, filed claim #16480 on September 10, 1872. His claim was for $1,245 in livestock and food taken by the Union Army and included 675 bushels of corn, a horse and a mare, 2,000 binds of fodder, 2,000 pounds of hay, 6 hogs, 30 pounds of bacon, one acre of potatoes, 16 bushels of wheat, and 40 gallons of syrup. The property was taken about September 18-19, 1863, two or three days before the Battle of Chickamauga according to the claim although the actual date of the battle was September 19-20, 1863. Property was taken by a regiment of Cavalry under the command of Col. Robert Minty who occupied the farm for two days until the battle began. David C. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Blaylock attempted to talk with the soldiers and asked them not to take it all because he had a large family to feed with many children but the soldiers said they could not help it because they needed it and meant to take it. They had lost some horses in a skirmish the day before and needed all the horses that they could get. In fact, Col. Robert Minty commanded the First Brigade, Second Cavalry Division of the Army of the Cumberland which included his own 4th Michigan Cavalry Regiment, USA. On September 18th, they were camped on the east side of Chickamauga Creek near Reed’s bridge when pickets from Minty’s command spotted the advance of the 17th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, CSA. This was the first contact in the Battle of Chickamauga. Minty’s troops were outnumbered 5 to 1 but held the bridge for 3 hours before falling back to Pea Vine Ridge. There they held the Confederate advance until they were relieved around 4:00 A.M. the next morning. The full engagement of Union and Confederate Armies came on September 19-20, 1863. The Confederate strategy involved drawing the Union Army out of Chattanooga in hopes of surrounding the Union forces and defeating them in the gap between the mountains south of the city in northern Georgia. While the Confederate Army was successful in battle, the Union Army was able to escape back to Chattanooga leading to further major battles in the area. Chickamauga was the second bloodiest battle of the war only exceeded by Gettysburg. Union losses were 1,657 killed, 9,756 wounded, and 4,757 captured. Confederate losses were 2,312 killed, 14,674 wounded, and 1,468 captured. The Battle of Chickamauga was followed by the Battle for Chattanooga, the Battle of Lookout Mountain, and the Battle of Missionary Ridge, all within a short distance of David C. Blaylock’s home. In the final settlement, the commissioner allowed $840 on his claim but more important than the financial settlement, the claim provides insight into the Blalock family members and their lives during the Civil War. One statement in the claim refers to John Blalock Sr. when David C. Blalock says, “My dying father was on the side of the Union from the beginning to the end of the war.” Since John Blalock Sr. and his wife were not enumerated in the 1860 census, it would be reasonable to assume they had died prior to 1860. However, because of the information in the claim, it appears John Blalock Sr. lived until at least the age of 91 since his age in 1850 was listed as 76. This was an extremely long life span for that time. In his testimony, David C. Blaylock states that he was born in North Carolina and was living in Chattooga County, Georgia until about 6 months prior to the outbreak of the Civil War when he moved to Catoosa County. Perhaps because he was new to the area and not well known by his neighbors when the War came, David was able to assist men avoiding Confederate conscription. There are many pages in his claim that are too faded to read but much of his own testimony is readable. He stated, “I don’t know that I was ever threatened by the Rebel. I have no education, although I don’t believe I am a fool, but when the questions were discussed, I would listen, instead of taking a side in those discussions.” The claim summary reads in part:

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"Claimant was over conscription age during the first part of the War and was under the protection of the Union Army during the latter part of the War. He was opposed to secession and sympathetic with the Union. He harbored Union _____. Kept his sick brother concealed for some weeks at his house and when his brother got better and went home he was killed by Gatewood's Band. He had two brothers in the Union Army and relatives in the Confederate Service. Four witnesses testify to his loyal reputation and conversation and we see no room or reason to suspect him of disloyalty. Special Commissioner Buck certifies that he became acquainted with claimant in 1862 and always regarded him as a loyal man. The supplies were taken during the latter part of September 1863 just before the battle of Chickamauga and the witnesses hereto are claimant and his family. He claims 40 acres of good corn fairly matured but not hard enough to gather. We allow $840. Abe Sides, J B Howell, D Ferman, Commissioners of Claims” David’s testimony regarding aid he provided to men evading Confederate military service reads: “I have given assistance to a great many Union men that were hiding and dodging to keep away from the Rebels. I kept Benjamin Morton of Chattooga County about 3 months in the latter part of 1862 and mostly on after. The Rebels were after him, so pass on Chattooga and he came then and stayed until he got a chance to go north of the Federal lines. I also gave such assistance to Wm. Thompson, Washington Gantt, Wm. Blaylock, Nathan Gilreath, Mark Stone, these men were hiding to keep out of the Rebel Army. I fed and took care of them until they could escape. I had to be very careful. I was so near the lines. None of these men were my relatives. I took care of other men. I had my brother in my home, sick. He had been to the Federals and was slipping home to his family and got as far as my house, was sick and had pneumonia then six weeks, and then went to his home, and was killed by Guerillas band of Gatewood. I tried to keep him longer, but his anxiety to see how his family was getting along, cost him his life. My house was headquarters for the Union refugees a long time. I have two brothers in the Federal Army, both lived in Arkansas, one was a preacher and was a chaplain in the Union Army. I do not know to whose command they belonged. One was killed in that service or died there and the Chaplain lived to go home is how we got our information. I had several nephews in that service. My family were all Union, brothers, cousins and nephews, one brother guided the Federal Army from Lee’s Mill in Walker County to Dalton, distance of about 30 miles which I think was the reason he was killed at the time he was.” Regarding the men that David C. Blaylock hid from conscription, I found the following information. Benjamin C. Morton was in his early 30s during the Civil War. He was married and had 3 children before 1861. There is no record that he ever served in the military and it appears that he was away from his family for the period of the war because he did not have another child until around 1868. It appears that David C. Blaylock was very successful in protecting him from conscription. He lived in Trion in Chattooga County both before and after the war. Trion was named after the Trion Company which built a factory in Chattooga County to make fabric from cotton. Several of the men that David assisted came from this area and may have been his neighbors before he moved to Catoosa County.

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William Thompson is such a common name that it is difficult to be certain which William Thompson David C. Blaylock assisted. The most likely person was William Thompson who was listed at age 42 in the 1860 census of Walker County, Georgia. He enlisted on March 10, 1862 in Dalton, Georgia in Company C, 39th Georgia Infantry Regiment, CSA, and reported for duty at Camp McDonald on March 28, 1862. The 39th Georgia Infantry Regiment, CSA, was ordered to Tennessee and then to Mississippi and was engaged in battle near Jackson, Mississippi at the Battle of Champion Hill on May 16, 1863. Being defeated by the Union forces, the Confederate Army retreated to Vicksburg, Mississippi. On July 4, 1863, William Thompson was captured at the fall of Vicksburg. Due to the lack of Union prisoners available for exchange, the confederate prisoners of war were paroled by taking an oath that they would not take up arms against the United States until an exchange could be arranged and they were sent home. By September, 1863, the exchange had been accomplished and William Thompson returned to duty. However, on May 1, 1864 he deserted. The 39th Georgia Infantry Regiment, CSA, at the time was attached to the Army of Tennessee and was near David C. Blaylock’s home. William Thompson was likely assisted in evading the home guard attempting to round up deserters. Washington Gantt was married to Nancy Elizabeth Eaton. While I have not been able to establish the relationship between Nancy and Mary Eaton, David C. Blaylock’s mother, it is likely there is a family connection. Washington Gantt was in his middle 40s during the Civil War and would not have been subject to conscription until the latter part of the war. His oldest son, John S. Gantt, enlisted in Company C, 60th Georgia Infantry Regiment, CSA, on September 19, 1861. John served until he was captured at Newtown, Virginia on August 11, 1864. The following day he was in the Wayside Hospital being treated for a wound from a mini ball to the head. John was sent to Old Capital Prison 5 days later and on October 24, 1864 he was sent to the prison camp at Elmira, New York. On May 29, 1865, John was released to return home to his family after taking the Oath of Allegiance to the United States. Washington Gantt’s second son, Henry N. Gantt, also enlisted in the war in Company H, 3rd Georgia Cavalry Regiment, CSA, on August 4, 1862 but soon fell ill and died on October 1, 1862. Washington filed a claim for money owed to Henry which had not been paid at the time Henry died but the claim was denied and the reason given was that Henry’s name was not on the roster of the unit. The only documentation that exists today that Henry enlisted is in the claim filed by his father, Washington Gantt. It is possible that Henry died so soon after he enlisted that the regiment’s roster that was referenced to validate the claim was for a date after Henry had already died. This denial of Henry’s service probably made Washington Gantt very bitter toward the Confederate Government. By the time he would have been subject to conscription, he must have had no desire to prolong the War. Washington Gantt and David C. Blaylock were only about 2 years different in age but this appears to be significant with regard to being subject to the Conscription Act. Washington Gantt survived the war and remained in Georgia for several years but moved to Yell County, Arkansas by 1880. William Blaylock is also a very common name. David C. Blaylock states that none of the men he assisted were relatives. There was a William B. Blalock living in Walker County, Georgia at the time of the 1860 census who was 17 years old and the son of James M. and Elizabeth Cathey Blalock who had moved to Georgia from Haywood County, North Carolina in the 1850s. If the Blalocks living in Haywood County were related to the Blalocks that came from Lincoln County in North Carolina, the connection was My Blaylock Ancestry

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several generations back and therefore would likely have been unknown to either family. William Blaylock enlisted in Company E, 39th Georgia Infantry Regiment, CSA, on March 4, 1862 in LaFayette in Walker County, Georgia and mustered for duty at Camp McDonald on March 28, 1862. He was involved in the same battles as was William Thompson and was captured at Vicksburg, Mississippi on July 4, 1863. Just like the other prisoners of war, William Blalock was paroled by signing an oath to return home and not take up arms against the United States until a prisoner of war exchange could be arranged. By September 1, 1863, the exchange had been made and William was expected back at duty but he is listed as deserted on the roll for that date and there are no additional records for later dates in his file. This is likely when he was assisted by David C. Blaylock in avoiding further service. Nathan H. Gilreath was the husband of Amanda Beatty, the sister of Caroline Beatty. So Nathan was David’s brother-in-law. At the age of 28, Nathan enlisted in Company A, 39th Georgia Infantry Regiment, CSA, at Spring Place, Georgia on March 10, 1862 and reported for duty at Camp McDonald on March 28, 1862. He was captured at Vicksburg, Mississippi on July 4, 1863, and paroled on July 8th by signing the same oath as William Thompson and William Blaylock and was allowed to return home until exchanged. He reported for duty on September 1, 1863 and was captured again on September 5, 1864 in Atlanta, Georgia. He was sent to Louisville, Kentucky as a prisoner and arrived the last week of October, 1864 but was transferred to Camp Douglas near Chicago, Illinois on October 29 and arrived there on November 1, 1864. Nathan was discharged on May 18, 1865 to return home. While being processed for discharge from the prison, Nathan stated that he had always been loyal to the United States, was enlisted through false representations, and deserted to avail himself of the Amnesty Proclamation. Nathan’s service record is not as complete as many I have researched. While there are no records indicating that he was absent without leave, there are many dates where there are no records at all. When David C. Blaylock assisted Nathan in avoiding Confederate military service is not clear because Nathan joined the Confederate Army prior to the passage of the Conscription Act and was not absent without leave prior to being captured a second time based on the records that have survived. Mark Stone was in his early 20s during the Civil War and was a member of the Georgia State Troops. Records regarding his service in the Confederate Army are extremely limited. He is listed on a roster of Rebel Deserters who took the Oath of Allegiance to the United States at Chattanooga, Tennessee on March 15, 1864. While Mark Stone was not related to David C. Blaylock, Mark’s widower father married David’s sister-in-law, Annie May Tucker Blaylock, after she was widowed. David may have assisted Mark in avoiding service before he became a member of the Georgia State Troops or after he took the Oath of Allegiance. Also in the claim filed after the Civil War for payment for goods taken by the Union Army, David Crockett Blaylock states that 2 of his brothers moved to Arkansas and served in the Union Army. One brother was a Chaplin who survived the Civil War and one brother died while in service. I have found records for four men named Blaylock or Blalock who served in the Union Army in Arkansas regiments but all of them have information that conflicts with them being David Crockett Blaylock’s brothers. Because this research revealed information about several Blaylock/Blalock families but did not provide enough

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evidence to confirm the testimony given by David C. Blaylock in his Southern Claim, I have included this information in Appendix B. Henry Blaylock The brother that David C. Blaylock kept in his home for six weeks while he recovered from pneumonia was identified in The History of Walker County, Georgia by Sartain as Henry: “Like a great many other citizens of the county, Henry Blaylock was opposed to secession and this opposition often brought him into conflict with those who favored it. Thus it happened that he became allied with that group of citizens who supported the Union. Because of this, he was taken by Gatewood Raiders and carried some miles from his home and shot to death.” Henry and Anna May’s last child was 6 years old in the 1870 census, so Henry must have been killed about 1863 or early in 1864. Based on David’s testimony in his Southern Claim, Henry had provided information to the Union Army by acting as a guide on the road between Lee’s Mill in Walker County and Dalton, Georgia about 30 miles in distance. David speculated that this was the reason Henry became a victim of Gatewood’s Raiders. Henry left behind a widow and 9 children but by the time of the 1870 census, Anna May had married again. Her second husband was James W. Stone, the father of Mark Stone. William Tucker It is difficult to determine if William Tucker, who married John Blalock Sr.’s daughter, Mary E. Blaylock, in 1855, served in the Civil War because there were several men named William Tucker living in Georgia. However, one William Tucker was recorded in one record for Company B, 39th Georgia Infantry Regiment, CSA, dated April 30, 1864 showing a William Tucker on duty on April 16, 1864. This unit primarily consisted of men from Walker and Murray Counties, and Chattooga County is just south of Walker County. Mary’s husband would have been 45 years of age at the time. When the conscription age was raised to 50 in February 1864, William may have been conscripted into the Confederate Army. He does not appear on any other records indicating that he may have been present only a short time. If his file is complete, William deserted as soon as he was able but it is possible that his service record is incomplete. Their son, Henry Robert Tucker, would have been 15-19 years old at the time of the Civil War and in his entry in the 1910 census he is not listed as a Civil War veteran. Life in Northern Georgia in the Civil War The city of Chattanooga, Tennessee is located on a horseshoe bend in the Tennessee River and mountains and ridges provide a natural defense for the city. As a result, several battles in the Civil War were fought in the area. The Battle of Chickamauga was witnessed by David Blaylock’s family. Susie A. Blaylock McDaniel repeated the story her father, John Houston Blaylock, had told her in her book, The History of Catoosa County, Georgia. John Houston Blaylock, the son of David C. Blaylock, was 8 years old when the battle took place. Three days after the battle, David and his son walked across the fields of their neighbors, which was probably a distance of less than one mile, to see the battlefield. John My Blaylock Ancestry

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Houston Blaylock told his daughter, “on the Kelly and Poe fields dead men lay so thick that you could have walked from one end to the other without touching ground.” Susie A. Blaylock McDaniel may not have been aware that her grandfather, David C. Blaylock had filed a successful Southern Claim after the war when she wrote the following in 1953: “For a long time after the Battle, the country was plagued with bushwhackers. Bands of lawless men on both sides organized and raided and killed as they wished. Neighbors would inform on each other and sometimes cause great trouble. One such instance is recalled. A neighbor of my grandfather sided with the Federals. He did not like my grandfather. During the Battle, a wounded man had gone into the woods in front of his house and died. Sometime after, two of his small sons discovered the man’s skeleton and brought the skull to the house. It lay around a while and then their mother told them to bury it. This they did. Sometime later, this meddlesome neighbor reported to the Union soldiers that old man Dave Blaylock was using a Union soldier’s skull for a soap gourd. They organized a troop of soldiers and rode up to the house and told Mr. Blaylock he was under arrest. He inquired what the charge was. When told, he called the boys and asked if they could unearth the skull. They promptly did so and thus most likely saved their father’s life.” Unfortunately, The Battle of Chickamauga was not the last battle in the area. The Battles of Chattanooga, Missionary Ridge, and Lookout Mountain in the fall of 1863 meant continued military activity in the area and the need for troops to forage for livestock and food. The civilians in the area were often left with nothing. These battles were followed by the Atlanta Campaign in the spring and summer of 1864 as the Union Army moved south to take Atlanta burning much of what was in their path. Surprisingly, Sherman spared the Trion factory in Walker County from destruction.

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Mississippi Life After the Civil War History is in the Eye of the Beholder It has been said that history is written by the victorious but after the Civil War, an effort was made to obliterate any reference to Union support in Mississippi. The results of the war were so severe that any record of decent against secession was painful to those Confederates who survived the war. In a thesis on the 1st Mississippi Mounted Rifles, the only Union Battalion raised in the state of Mississippi, Beau Johnson wrote, “the former Confederates in Mississippi destroyed all the evidence they got their hands on that spoke of the pro-Unionists and anti-Confederates.” The local histories that I have found were primarily written from the Confederate perspective. Unionists were traitors to the Confederacy from this point of view. Civilian scouts who aided the Union troops were spies. Partisan Guards were protectors of the civilian population from an invading foreign army. But from the point of view of the Unionists, the Confederates were traitors to the United States. Night hawks were loyal citizens assisting the rightful military against a revolution. Bands of deserters and Partisan Rangers were lawless gangs stealing personal property and killing civilians at will. The Civil War was horribly expensive to both sides in terms of men killed in battle, men who were wounded and would be disabled for the rest of their lives, soldiers who died of disease due to unclean water or poor rations while in service, wives and children who starved or died of disease while the head of the household was in the service and unable to provide for his family, property that was destroyed, and personal fortunes that were lost both during and after the war because the economy of the south had been crushed. For my family, the death of Winslow F. Blalock, a civilian who supported the Union but lived in a Confederate State, was a heavy price to pay. The Fighting War is Over but Hard Times Continue Richard A. Blalock mustered out of Company E, 144th Illinois Infantry Regiment, USA, on June 23, 1865 after serving in St. Louis, Missouri. He was at home in Kane, Greene County, Illinois, when the State census was taken on July 3rd and he was included in the count of the household. The family may have waited for the harvest in 1865 and the passing of winter before returning to Tippah County or may have remained in Illinois for a longer period if they had leased a farm for a multiple year term as William Rainey had done. After the war ended, those that had gone north began to return to Tippah County. Monroe Blalock was over 11 years old when the family returned to Mississippi and clearly remembered the trip down the Mississippi River by steam boat to return home. Exactly how long the family stayed in Illinois after the war is unknown. A State Census was taken in Mississippi in 1866 and none of the Blalocks were enumerated in that census. However, Jerry Proctor and his family, who had been listed next door to Dovey Blalock in the 1865 Illinois state census, had returned to Tippah County and are listed in the 1866 Mississippi state census although his mother, Martha, is not enumerated in his household. By the time of the federal census in 1870, the Blalocks had returned to Tippah County My Blaylock Ancestry

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What they found when they arrived was burned out farms and a much smaller population. Some had died in the war. Some never returned but found new homes in places that offered more promising futures. In the 1869 real estate tax roll, approximately 2/3 of the land in Township 1 South, Range 3 East in Tippah County was not listed with an owner identified. All of the land had been occupied and taxed in 1861. The tax rolls continued to show values similar to the appraisals prior to the war, but in actuality, there were few buyers and land was almost worthless. In nearby Middleton, Tennessee, only one building had survived the war without being burned at least once. Ann Tomson saved several other letters that were written by her family from Hardeman County, Tennessee after the war. The topics of the letters returned to typical news of farm life and were dated November 25, 1867, December 30, 1867, July 27, 1868, and July 15, 1869. A letter on November 7, 1870, from her brother Robert Ellis Rainey includes these lines: “Times is hard here. Everything is high and money is scarce…..Wages is from $12 to $15 per month……There is a great many moving from this country this Fall going to Texas. There will be 5 families start in about a week….” Thomas R. Blalock’s Family Winslow’s brother, Thomas R. Blalock, left Tippah County and died in Shelby County, Tennessee, probably in Memphis. Based on the tax rolls prior to the war, he had become disabled in 1858 and 1860 but had recovered by 1861. He probably would not have been conscripted if he remained disabled but if he had regained his health, he would have been eligible for conscription. Thomas may have moved his family to Memphis once it was occupied by the Union Army for protection and to avoid conscription. The real estate tax list of 1869 lists his farm in Section 33 as the property of Mrs. C. A. Blalock. It appears that Thomas had died and the land was in Charlotte’s name. Two warranty deeds are registered for the farm and both were executed by Thomas’s youngest daughter and son-in-law, Mary M. and Thomas H. Taylor. The first was dated January 29, 1869 and recorded in Deed Book W on page 790 using the farm as collateral on a loan for $120 from L. M. Brown which was to be repaid by December 25, 1869 and the deed would be voided or, if not paid in full, the land would transfer to L. M. Brown. The loan must have been repaid on time because the second warranty deed was dated October 7, 1872 and recorded in Deed Book 2 on page 127 and sold the farm to John Low for $150. The sellers of the land were “T. H. Taylor and his wife Mary M. Blalock, devisee and legatee of Thomas R. Blalock, deceased of the County of Shelby and State of Tennessee.” Thomas had originally paid $200 for this land in 1849 recorded in Deed Book I on page 88. The farm was listed on the tax rolls in 1861 with an appraised value of $250 and in 1869 with an appraised value of $320 but clearly the value of the land had not been adjusted to a reasonable level after the war. It appears that Charlotte and oldest daughter, Julia A. Blalock, had also died before 1869. The economics of farming in Tippah County after the war are illustrated in the actions taken by Thomas and Mary Taylor. Borrowing $120 for seed and possibly livestock represented almost the full value of the land that was put up for collateral. Bad weather or crop disease would not only mean the failure to repay the loan but also the loss of the land. Good weather and bountiful harvests would provide enough capital to repay the loan and perhaps cover the cost of living until the next planting season. If My Blaylock Ancestry

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one was extremely lucky, it might be possible to sell enough of the harvest to avoid borrowing the following season. However, for many farmers the cycle of borrowing each planting season and harvesting just enough crops to sustain existence until the next planting season lead to dreams of better times somewhere that the destruction of the war could be forgotten. Thomas H. Taylor and Mary M. Blalock married in Tippah County on August 15, 1867. He was listed in the 1860 census in Tippah County as a bricklayer age 24 and was married but only the initials of his first wife’s name, N. E. Taylor, appear in the census. Thomas H. Taylor enlisted in Company A, 34th Mississippi Infantry Regiment, CSA, on February 25, 1862. The regiment was ordered to Corinth on April 30 to defend against the Union advance following the Battle of Shiloh. In July, the regiment moved to Chattanooga and in the latter part of August marched through Tennessee and into Kentucky but Thomas Taylor became ill on the march and fell out of formation due to a lack of transportation for the sick. Service records for the Fall of 1862 indicate Thomas had returned home on parole to recover however records for early 1863 state he was captured in Kentucky and paroled but was absent. By March of 1863, Thomas was absent without leave and was listed as a deserter on March 1, 1863. Thomas had been paid his enlistment bonus prior to the march into Kentucky and appears to have deserted or been captured after falling ill in August 1862, since all service records between September 1862 and March 1863 report him absent. Where Thomas spent the last two years of the war is unknown. Thomas’s first wife must have died during these difficult times and he married again in 1867. What became of Thomas and Mary after they sold the farm in 1872 is unknown. I have not found them together in any census although they should have been enumerated in 1870. Thomas’s father, James, was also a bricklayer whose family was listed in the 1870 census of Tippah County. Several of Thomas’s brothers and sisters were listed in the 1880 census of Tippah County. However, Thomas had a younger brother, George, and his family was listed in the 1870 census in Tippah County but moved to Guadalupe County, Texas by the time of the 1880 census. In addition, Thomas had two sisters, Susan and Margaret, who moved to Caldwell County, Texas. I have not been able to determine whether, Thomas and Mary died before the 1880 census or simply moved away from Tippah County. Winslow’s Family Winslow’s mother, Elizabeth Blalock, and his aunt Frances McKinney died sometime between 1865 and 1870. They both were living on July 3, 1865 when the Illinois State Census was taken but by the time of the 1870 federal census, they had died. The family returned to Tippah County sometime after the 1866 Mississippi State Census. Their neighbor in Illinois, Jerry Proctor, had returned to Tippah County by the time of the 1866 census but Dovey and her family were not enumerated in that census. They may have leased the land that they farmed in Illinois on a multiple year lease and waited until the term of the lease was completed before returning to Mississippi. In one of his letters, William Rainey mentioned that he had a three year lease on the farm he moved to in Illinois and Dovey may have had a similar arrangement.

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Dovie Remarries After the death of Winslow Blalock in 1862, Dovey Blalock did not remarry until 1870 and she was a widow for the duration of the war plus five years. On July 13, 1870, she married Thomas Madison Guthrie who was 19 years older and had known Dovey all of her life. Informally, he used his middle name, Madison, and had moved from Lincoln County, North Carolina to Tippah County, Mississippi after the federal census of 1840 when Dovey was about 10 years old. His oldest daughter was only 3 years younger than Dovey.

Marriage Record of Thomas M. Guthrie and Dovie B. Blaylock Madison was a widower and had been married to Elizabeth “Betsy” Proctor, the daughter of Richard Proctor and Martha R. (nee Spain) Proctor. Betsy had died sometime between 1863 and August 1864 in Illinois and Madison was a widower for at least 6 years. Madison and Elizabeth had 11 children in their marriage but three of the children had died before 1870. Thomas Madison Guthrie took his family to Illinois and one of his sons, Thomas Madison Guthrie Jr., enlisted in Company G, 6th Tennessee Cavalry Regiment, USA. Since Thomas Madison Guthrie Sr. was born in 1811, he was never subject to the Conscription Act. However, John Rainey’s letter of December 14, 1862 mentions that Thomas Madison Guthrie’s father, Nelson Guthrie, and two other men, Valentine Treece and James Ray, had been taken south by guerillas. All three men survived the war but the fact that they were taken from their homes indicates the danger civilians faced. Madison had three children under the age of 17 at the end of the war but two of them were girls. Madison and his family were enumerated in the 1866 Mississippi State census in Tippah County, so he had returned by 1866. On December 9, 1844, Thomas Madison Guthrie was issued a patent on 160 acres of land in the northeast ¼ Section 25, Township 1 South, Range 3 East, patent number 16522.

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Thomas Madison Guthrie’s Land Patent

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By 1869, Thomas Madison Guthrie had acquired the 160 acre parcel of land that had belonged to Richard and Martha Proctor in Section 26 according to the tax roll. This included the 40-50 acre farm Winslow Blalock had purchased when he brought his family back from Arkansas around 1858 and was probably where Dovey and her children lived after returning from Illinois. The 1869 Property Tax Roll shows that the land originally owned by Winlsow Blalock in Section 23 had become the property of Machett Willams.

1869 Tippah County Property Tax Roll However, this information conflicts with the names of the owners and value of real estate listed in the 1870 census which lists many more land owners and much less vacant property than the 1869 tax roll. Many of the people in the 1870 census appear to be living on farms that have been their homes for many years but they do not appear on the 1869 tax roll. The value of the real estate listed in the 1870 census for Thomas Madison Guthrie in household 49 was only $400 which was about the value of his original land patent acreage in Section 25. Jerry Proctor was listed in household 40 in the 1870 census with real estate valued at $600 which appears to be the land in Section 26 that was originally purchased by his father, Richard Proctor. In addition, Jerry’s mother, Martha, was living in his household and she had been listed as the owner of this land in the 1860 census. So the tax and census records appear to be in conflict.

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Household 49 in the 1870 Tippah County Census

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Household 49 Continued Based on the 1860 census, Winslow had acquired land in Section 26 from his Aunt Martha. That land would have gone to Dovey when Winslow died. According to the tax rolls, Thomas Madison Guthrie owned the land in 1869 and would have been Dovey’s landlord but according to the census, several people owned the land in section 26 including Jerry Proctor. The 160 acres of land that Winslow had purchased from Hiram and Serena Hines on October 5, 1848 for $100 in section 23 was sold in a sheriff’s sale to M. A. Ray on November 15, 1876 for $13.40. How many times this land had been sold but did not have the transaction recorded is unknown but the owner in the 1861 tax roll was M. W. Moore and in the 1869 tax roll was Matchett Williams. The 1870 census is the last record I have found for Matchett Williams who was born about 1815. He may have died owing back taxes on the land or may have moved away from Tippah County and either sold or abandoned the land. The fact that this land sold for $13.40 illustrates the decline in land value in the area after the Civil War. Thomas Madison Guthrie and Dovey’s Blended Family In the 1870 federal census recorded on July 22, 1870, Thomas Madison Guthrie and Dovey were listed in household 49 in a blended family with Madison’s children, Minerva and Jeff Guthrie, Madison’s grandchildren, Thomas and Mary Richardson, and Dovey’s children Marcus and Abbie Blalock. Madison and Dovey had been married 9 days at the time the census was taken. Dovey’s older children had left home and had begun to establish their own lives. Richard A. Blalock was enumerated on August 8, 1870 in the household of James Baily in Tipton County, Tennessee where is occupation was listed as engineer. On July 22, 1870, Freeman Blaylock was working on the farm of Noah Duncan in household 36 and James Franklin Blalock was working on the farm of W. F. Stewart, a medical doctor, in household 41 in Tippah County. Monroe Madison Vincent Blaylock was 16 years old at the time of the census but was not enumerated in 1870. On August 3, 1870, William T. Freeman Blaylock and Minerva A. Guthrie were married. This was 12 days after the census was taken and 21 days after her widower father married his widowed mother. As a result of this marriage, Thomas Madison Guthrie became my great great great grandfather. In addition, My Blaylock Ancestry

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Minerva’s mother was Elizabeth, the eldest daughter of Richard and Martha Proctor. Elizabeth had died in Illinois and was mentioned in William M. Rainey’s letter of August 3, 1864, “Betsy Mad is dead.” Because Elizabeth was such a common name, this was his way of saying: Betsy the wife of Madison, in order to distinguish her from others named Elizabeth. As a result of this marriage, Elizabeth (nee Proctor) Guthrie became my great great great grandmother and her parents, Richard and Martha Proctor became my great great great great grandparents.

Marriage Record of Freeman Blaylock and Minerva Guthrie Miles Jefferson Guthrie married M. Amanda Brigman in Tippah County on December 23, 1870 and as a result all of the children of Thomas Madison Guthrie and his first wife, Elizabeth, had left home by the end of the year. Madison’s 2 grandchildren, Thomas and Mary Richardson continued to live in the household. A letter from Thomas E. Rainey (whose farm was in section 26 immediately south of Winslow’s farm after returning from Arkansas) to his sister, Ann, and his brother-in-law was attached to another letter from Daniel G. Rainey which was dated January 15, 1871 and includes these lines, “…There is no school in this neighborhood at the present. The majority of the people here don’t seem to care much for preaching or singing. The Christian order seems to be doing as well as the best of any now. Ann, you can’t imagine how lonesome we are since Pap was taken….” More than ½ of the land in Township 1 south, Range 3 east was vacant according to the 1869 Property Tax Roll although the 1870 census seems to contradict this. As harsh as the living conditions were, Madison and Dovey continued to live in Tippah County with their blended family and had two additional children together, daughters Vina J. Guthrie born in August 1872 and Winney A. Guthrie born in 1873. Their blended family was listed in the 1880 census and included their two daughters, Vinnie and Winnie Guthrie, Madison’s grandchildren, Thomas H. Richardson and Mary E. Duncan, and Dovey’s daughter, Abigail Blalock.

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1880 Tippah County Census for Thomas M. Guthrie Family Thomas Hindman Richardson married Louella Eliza Foster in 1880 and became head of his own household in Tippah County but by Feburary 28, 1894 his family had moved to Lamar County, Texas were his son, Andrew J. Richardson, was born. Mary Duncan and Abbie Blalock were both 17 years old in 1880 and probably continued to live in Tippah County with Madison and Dovey Guthrie for some period of time. Vina J. Guthrie married Thomas Lee Garrett on December 31, 1891 in Tippah County indicating that Madison and Dovey and their two daughters had not moved away from Tippah County before 1892. However, Abbie Blalock was married in Lamar County, Texas on November 10, 1889 indicating that she had gone to Texas much earlier than her step-father and mother who moved to Lamar County, Texas sometime between 1892 and 1894. Thomas Madison Guthrie died on January 10, 1894 in Lamar County and was buried in Red Oak Cemetery in Blossom, Lamar County, Texas. He is my oldest direct relative to have a marked grave. Winney Guthrie married Joe Macum on May 11, 1895 in Lamar County. While the name Macum or Macune appears in the Lamar County records, I suspect that the name may have been misspelled because I have not been able to find any later records for Winnie or her husband but the 1880 Lamar County census lists a Josiah McHam. Regardless of the spelling, Winnie died prior to the 1900 census based on the information provided by Dovey. Dovey last appears in the 1900 census in Red River County, Texas in the household of Thomas and Vina Garrett. She was 69 years old and had given birth to 10 children with 6 of her children still living. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Because the censuses provide the names of 7 of her children with Winslow Blalock and 2 of her children with Madison Guthrie, there is only one child that died prior to being counted in a census. This supports the theory that Winslow and Dovey had a child in Arkansas around 1858 that died before the 1860 census. The four children who had died before 1900 were: Richard A. Blalock who died in Covington County, Tennessee around 1890, N. R. J. Blalock who died before the 1865 Illinois State census, the infant child who died around 1858, and Winney A. Guthrie Macum/McHam who died between 1895 and 1900. In the 1900 census, Thomas and Vinnie Garrett were listed with 3 children; Eula M., Earnest, and Ollie A. Garrett. Both Dovey and Vina died prior to the 1910 census. The exact date of Dovey’s death is not known but Vinnie died on August 31, 1903 in Red River County, Texas of complications of childbirth after the delivery of an infant named Henry, who was born on August 17, 1903 and died two days later on August 19th. Vinnie was buried at Red Oak Cemetery in Blossom, Lamar County, Texas.

Dovie B. Guthrie’s Listing in the 1900 Census Richard A. Blalock’s Family Winslow and Dovey’s oldest son, Richard A. Blalock, married Rosalia C. Winford near Leigh’s Chapel in Covington in Tipton County, Tennessee on December 14, 1870. They had eight children but only three lived to be enumerated in the census. Their oldest surviving child, Joseph Lafayette Blalock, was born in Tipton County on May 26, 1873. By 1876, they had moved to Scott County, Missouri where two more children were born, Lula M. Blalock on July 14, 1876, and William Franklin Blalock on September 14, 1881. On September 17, 1883, Richard filed a Union pension application #495481 as an invalid from Tipton County, Tennessee. He described his disability in his application for a pension as follows: “I contracted measles at Aton, Illinois in Dec. 1864 and while suffering with this disease, I contracted a bad cold which settled upon my lungs and gave me lung disease from which I have never recovered. I was treated for this disability at Alton Hospital about 20th December 1864 until Feb. 1865 by the Regimental Surgeon My Blaylock Ancestry

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(name forgotten). I claim pension on lung disease results of measles.” The Adjutant General’s Office confirmed that Richard had been in the Regimental Hospital in January and February of 1865 and in the Small Pox Hospital in St. Louis in May and June of 1865 but found no evidence of his alleged disabilities and did not certify his claim. Approximately one year after he filed for pension benefits, Richard died on October 29, 1884 from congestion and fever near Newbern in Dyer County, Tennessee. He was approximately 36 years old when he died. An Act in Congress on June 27, 1890 provided pensions for widows of Union veterans who had severed at least 90 days regardless of whether the cause of death was service related or not. On July 30 1890, Rosalia filed a Union widow’s pension application #448695 which was approved with certificate #468791. Her pension claim lists her two children who were under 16 years of age but does not name her other children. Rosalia died of cardiac failure on August 29, 1938 at the age of 83 while living with her grandson, L. L. Blalock, near Saulsbury in Hardeman County, Tennessee. This branch of the family continues to spell the name Blalock without the “y”. Joseph Lafayette Blalock married Sarah Ella Richmond and together they had at six children: Deward, Herman, Livy Louise, Alfred E., Christina, and Laurence L. This family and the descendants continued to reside in Tipton County, Tennessee although they lived a short time in Maypearl, Texas where Alfred was born and died in 1908 and where Christina was born. Lula Mae Blalock married Thomas Martin and they had three children but only two, Ernest Edwin and Claudia M. lived to be enumerated in the census. By 1910, Lula was widowed and had moved with her mother and children to Houston, Texas. I have not been able to find Lula in any records after the 1910 census and she may have remarried. Ernest registered for the draft in World War I and died in Santa Anna, Texas in 1936. William Franklin Blalock married his first wife Ethel about 1905 and they were living in Houston, Texas at the time of the 1910 census. It appears that Ethel died and on November 8, 1912, William married Mary Emma Rutland and they had two children, Clinton William and Gladys N. By 1930, Rosalia had moved in with William’s family but she must have returned to Tennessee before her death in 1938. William was a police officer and his family remained in Houston, Texas after his death in 1951. Final Days in Mississippi By 1870, many families were leaving Tippah County. Richard Blalock had already gone to Tipton County, Tennessee. But his younger brothers remained in Tippah County for several more years. Freeman and Minerva Blaylock’s first child to survive to be counted in a census was Thomas Madison Blaylock born May 5, 1874. He was named after his mother’s father and was my great grandfather. By 1880, Freeman and his family had moved to Hill County, Texas. There were several Proctor families in the area and they may have encouraged Freeman and Minerva to move their family to Texas. Freeman’s brother, James Franklin Blalock, married Elizabeth Brigman on October 4, 1870 in Tippah County. They remained in Tippah County until about 1879. Laura Belle Blalock was born June 18, 1874, My Blaylock Ancestry

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Theodosia Blalock was born December 18, 1875 and Dovie B. Blalock was born in February, 1879 in Texas after the family left Mississippi. Freeman’s brother, Monroe Madison Vincent Blalock, was not listed in the 1870 census but was in Scott County, Missouri in the 1880 census. Listed in household 160, Vincent was a wood chopper and was married to Louisa who was 3 years older. They probably married in Tennessee or Missouri but I have not found a record of this marriage. His brother Richard was in household 100. Freeman’s brother, Marcus Lafayette Blaylock, was living in Tippah County at the time of the 1880 census and was a farm laborer in the household of Nathan and Anne E. (nee Guthrie) Ramsey. Marcus married Anne’s sister, Sarah “Sallie” Agnes Guthrie, the daughter of Daniel G. Guthrie and Nancy Rainey and the cousin of Minerva Guthrie, on January 13, 1881. They had 2 daughters in Tippah County: Cassandra L. Blaylock born In November 1881 and Ivey E. Blaylock born in September 1883. The family moved to Hill County, Texas before the birth of their third child, Minnie Victoria Blaylock born on June 18, 1885. Freeman’s sister, Mary Alice Abigail Blalock, continued to live with her mother and step-father in Tippah County but by 1889 she was in Lamar County, Texas where she married Swan Nolan on November 10, 1889.

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Gone to Texas With the exception of Richard A. Blalock, all of Winslow and Dovey Blalock’s children who lived to adulthood had moved to Texas by the 1890s. Thomas Madison and Dovey Guthrie and their daughters, Vina and Winnie, as well as Thomas Madison Guthrie’s children with Elizabeth Proctor that survived the Civil War, moved to Texas. While most moved to Lamar and Red River Counties, some moved to Hill and McLennan Counties. Most had arrived between 1873 and 1879 but it appears that Thomas Madison Guthrie, Dovey, Vina and Winnie were the last to arrive in Texas sometime after Vina’s wedding in Tippah County at the end of 1891. I would normally continue the Blaylock ancestry with the second son of Winslow and Dovie Blaylock, William Freeman Blaylock. However, because he was my direct ancestor, I will begin with his brothers and sister allowing me to continue his story into future generations in more depth at the end of this chapter. James Franklin Blalock Probably the most prosperous of Winslow and Dovey Blalock’s children was James Franklin Blalock but his life was not without hardship. He and Elizabeth lived in Tippah County at least 5 years before moving to McLellan County, Texas before their third daughter, Dovie, was born in February 1879. Elizabeth may have died in childbirth or from some other cause soon after Dovie was born. In 1880, James married Nancy Priscilla Tankersly Barnes, who had been widowed, and by 1881, they had moved to Red River County, Texas where Isaac Franklin Blalock was born on February 5, 1881. Four more children were born in Texas; Elsie Mae born December 21, 1882, Bennett Bernie born January 24, 1884, Wesley born October 1, 1886 and Bertie born October 31, 1888. Then the family moved to Bakersfield in Kern County, California where the following five children were born; Edward Earl born May 23, 1891, Mary Eleanor born December 25, 1892, Alice Rose born December 6, 1894, Edna born April 17, 1896 and Jessie Ruth born April 20, 1898. Not only did James Franklin Blalock farm in California but he also filed several claims for oil exploration in Kern County in 1891 and 1893 under the names Texas, Four Aces and California. His family was listed twice in the 1900 census because they had been counted in Bakersfield in Kern County and then moved to Goshen in Lane County, Oregon where they stayed about 2 years before returning to Bakersfield. In the 1900 census, Nancy reported that she had given birth to 12 children but only 9 children were still living. Bennett Bernie Blalock had died prior to the 1900 census around the age of 15 and the other two children would have been from her previous marriage. James Franklin Blalock died at the age of 59, one day after clearing land on his homestead in the San Joaquin Valley, on May 13, 1912 in Bakersfield, California and was buried at Union Cemetery. He left behind a large family with many descendants who all spell the last name Blalock without the letter “y” in the middle.

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Monroe Madison Vincent Blaylock Monroe Madison Vincent Blaylock was married by the time of the 1880 census and living in Morely in Scott County, Missouri with his wife Louisa in household 160. He was listed as Vincent Blalock and his brother Richard was in the same area in household 100. Doratha Allred knew very little about her grandfather’s first marriage and the destruction of the 1890 census leaves a void in the information that was available which might have shown whether Vincent and Louisa had children or not. After Louisa’s death, Vincent married Harriet M. Pruitt in Delta County, Texas on May 12, 1895. Hattie was 23 years younger than her husband. He was listed as Monroe Blalock in some censuses, Madison V. Blalock in another and as Vincent Blalock in another. In the 1900 census, he was listed as Munroe Blalock, a Preacher in the town of Davis in Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma. He and Harriet had been married 5 years and she had given birth to two children but only a daughter named Gracie, who was born July 22, 1896 in Texas, was living at the time of the census. In the 1910 census, the family was in the town of Moore in Pottawatomie County with 5 children; Gracie, Vera born in 1901, Theodosia born in 1904, Homer born in 1908, and Desmond born March 28, 1910. The family had moved to Oklahoma before the birth of Vera. In the 1910 census, Monroe Blaylock was listed as a Minister and Hattie had given birth to 5 more children since 1900 but one of them had died. Hattie died March 11, 1911 and was buried in Cummings Cemetery in Maud, Oklahoma. By 1920, the census recorded Madison V. Blalock in the town of Burton in McIntosh County, Oklahoma as a widower, age 60, working as a laborer. His three youngest children were living with him. By 1930, Vincent Blaylock and his two youngest sons had moved to Hartford in Sebastian County, Arkansas where Vincent was listed as retired, Homer was a music teacher and Desmond worked in a printing office. Monroe Madison Vincent Blaylock died December 7, 1936 and was buried next to Hattie in Cummings Cemetery in Maud, Oklahoma. He was listed as a minister in two censuses. Because 2 of his brothers were Methodist ministers, this may have been true for him as well. Doratha Allred said that her grandfather had been a Methodist minister but later became a Baptist minister. I have not found an obituary or memoir to provide any details of his ministry, however, in a book written to commemorate the centennial of Maud, Oklahoma, I found that the original Methodist Episcopal South Church in Maud was founded in the community of Rock Springs in 1902 and moved to Maud in 1903 due to the fact that a railroad was under construction there. Rock Springs was about 3 miles southwest of Maud but there are no natural springs located there. No map identifies Rock Springs today but it is known by the local inhabitants that a school was located there in the past. I was told by members of the historical society there that many places in Oklahoma were named after places settlers came from or felt were important to them in their past. Rock Springs may have been given its name because Monroe Blaylock settled there and knew the importance of Rock Spring Campground in his family’s past. The original church building in Maud was shared by Methodists and Baptists and this could be the source of the story that Monroe Madison Vincent Blaylock changed denominations or could have made changing denominations easier for him. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Marcus Lafayette Blaylock Marcus and Sallie Blaylock moved to Hill County, Texas by the time their third child, Minnie Victoria Blaylock was born on June 18, 1885. Marcus and his family moved often and he was listed in the tax rolls of Hill County, Texas in 1884, 1885 and 1886. When he arrived in Hill County, he had no land or livestock but by 1886 he owned 2 horses and a cow. It appears that he either rented his land or sharecropped. After 1886, Marcus and his family moved from Hill County and appear to have gone to Lamar County and Cooke County, Texas. In 1889, Rev. Marcus L. Blaylock was admitted on a trial bases to the North Texas Conference of the Methodist Episcopal South Church as recorded in the General Minutes for 1889. He remained on trial status in 1890 and was appointed to the Pattonville Circuit in the Paris District. In 1891-1892 he was appointed to the Dexter Circuit in the Gainsville District. In 1892, he was admitted into full connection in the North Texas Conference as an Ordained Minister. However, in 1893 he was expelled from the conference resulting in the loss of his credentials. The surviving records do not indicate why he was defrocked. By 1891 he was listed in the Lamar County Texas tax roll with no land or livestock but he did own a wagon. He does not appear on the Lamar County tax roll after 1891. Two more children were born in Texas; Daisy Aline born September 15, 1890 and Marvin Lafayette born July 15, 1894. Although he was always listed as a farmer in the census, he may have continued to preach as an independent minister because his descendants report that he was a minister. Sallie appears to have died around 1906 and some have listed her date of death as April 23, 1906 in Mabank in either Kaufman County or Henderson County, Texas but have not provided any source for this information. Marcus married Henrietta J. Young on February 20, 1907 in Van Zandt County, Texas. Etta was the mother of one child who was listed in the 1910 census as Emma F. Blaylock born about 1903. I have not been able to locate a previous marriage for Etta and a letter from Emma’s Uncle Peter Luther Pool dated June 21, 1940 informed Emma that her father was named Oscar Lee White based on what her uncle had been told by Marcus Blaylock. Emma had been raised as Marcus’s child but after his death in 1934, Emma began to inquire about her parentage. Henrietta J. Young was the daughter of H. F. Young and Frances Louise Vaughan and was born in May, 1885. Her father died in January of 1885 before she was born. On March 21, 1888, Frances married Elijah Peter Pool in Henderson County, Texas. According to the death certificate of Marcus and Etta’s daughter, Ruth Gladys (nee Blaylock) McCoy, Etta’s maiden name had been Poole. The death certificates that I have located for 2 of Marcus and Etta’s other children, Luther Joe and Clementine Mae Blaylock, list their mother’s maiden name as Young. This illustrates the difficulty of reliance on information from a death certificate since the information is not provided by the deceased but rather by someone who might not be completely familiar with the information that they provide.

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By the time of the 1910 census Marcus and his family were living in Wood County, Texas. Marcus and Etta had a total of 7 additional children after they married with the first 6 born in Texas and the last child born in Hanna, Oklahoma. These children were; Clara E. born about 1908, Therma Clementine Mae born March 3, 1910, Ruth Gladys born April 17, 1912, Oma born about 1915, Luther Joe born April 18, 1916, John Lafayette born May 25, 1918 and Monroe M. born August 6, 1920. I am not aware of any land purchases made by Marcus and in each census and each county tax roll it appears that he had rented the farm where he was living. As a result, he and his family moved often and his children were born in several different counties. Frequent moving would be typical of a minister but it could also be the result of share cropping or renting. By January 26, 1920 when the family was enumerated in the census, Marcus and his family were living in Matoy in Bryan County, Oklahoma. Etta died sometime after Monroe was born and Marcus was listed as a widower living in the Lamar County Home in the 1930 census. Marcus died July 12, 1934 and was buried in Rose Hill Memorial Park in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Mary Alice Abigail Blalock Winslow and Dovey’s only daughter to live to become an adult was Mary Alice Abigail Blalock. Since she was 27 years old when she married Swan Nolan on November 10, 1889 in Lamar County, Texas, she had left the household of Madison and Dovey Guthrie and moved to be near her brothers several years prior to Madison and Dovey moving with their daughters to Texas. Swan and Abbie had three daughters; Myrtle Agnes born March 13, 1894, Annie Laura born September 5, 1897 and Wanda Lillie born November 7, 1899. However, by the time the 1900 census was taken on June 6, 1900, Abbie was a widow. Being a young mother with 3 small daughters depending on her, Abbie married J. A. Smith on December 10, 1900 in Lamar County. However, in the 1910 census, Abbie was listed as Abbie Nolan, a widow, with her three daughters in the household. I have not determined whether J. A. Smith died or was divorced from Abbie. Based on the census data, Abbie died sometime between 1910 and 1920. All three of Abbie’s daughters married between 1915 and 1916 which may indicate approximately when Abbie died. William Freeman Blaylock Freeman and Minerva Blaylock moved to Hill County, Texas sometime between 1874 and 1880. In addition to Thomas Madison Blaylock, they had 3 additional children who survived long enough to be included in a census. They were J. M. Blaylock born May 31, 1880, William Lee Blaylock born November 17, 1883, and Charles Wesley Blaylock born January 8, 1886. In the 1880 census for Hill County, Texas, Freeman and his family were listed in dwelling 111 and as family 131. Minerva’s brother, John Nelson Guthrie, and his family were listed in dwelling 95 as family 101 and her cousin, William Nelson Guthrie, and his family were listed in dwelling 211 as family 217. So several related families moved to Hill County around the same time. John Nelson Guthrie may have been the first to arrive because his son, Thomas, was born in Texas about 1873 and William Nelson Guthrie’s first Texas born child was born February 1, 1878. These families were listed in Precinct 3 in My Blaylock Ancestry

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the Census of 1880 for Hill County. The only towns identified in the census were Hillsboro and McLainsboro (renamed Hubbard in 1881) and Precinct 3 was in a rural area. William Lee Blaylock’s obituary listed Whitney, Texas as his birthplace. The Houston and Texas Central Railroad was the first railroad to enter Hill County and the line ran from Waco north to within 2 miles of the present day town of Whitney by 1876. Originally planned to extend to Cleburne, work was suspended from 1876 to 1879. When work was resumed, the course of the railroad had been changed to run to the west of the original plan and the town of Whitney was laid out and lots were sold. Six small communities were within 7 miles of the new town of Whitney and as the larger town grew those villages declined.

1880 Hill County Texas Census Listing for Freeman Blalock Family There was a crop failure in 1880. Cotton was the cash crop but corn was the staple food crop. Families depended on corn meal for bread and smoked ham and bacon for meat. The failure of the corn crop meant many families went without corn bread much of the Winter of 1880-1881. Hogs were butchered or were turned out to scavenge for fodder and hunting rabbits, squirrel and deer to supplement limited food stocks was necessary to feed the families in the area. In 1881 the railroad shipped in carloads of corn and provided 1 bushel of corn for each person living in the area making it possible to bake corn bread again after a lean Winter. Although it came as a welcome relief, 1 bushel of corn per person would not have lasted long. Fortunately in 1881, the crops were abundant and in 1882, 22,000 bales of cotton were produced and shipped by railroad from Whitney bringing cash into the hands of the local farmers. By 1883, the population of Whitney was approximately 1,200. The Methodist Episcopal Church had been established at Pecan Grove in 1875 and moved to Whiney in 1880. The Baptist, Presbyterian and Church of Christ congregations had also established churches in Whitney by 1880. Public school was first taught in a My Blaylock Ancestry

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store front building and later moved to the Presbyterian Church building. incorporated, established a school district and levied a school tax.

By 1885, the town

Around 1884, Freeman’s brother, Marcus, and his family had moved to Hill County, Texas and was listed in the Tax Rolls there from 1884-1886 where he paid taxes ranging from $1.75 in 1884 to $2.15 ½ in 1886. Freeman was listed on the Hill County Tax Roll in 1885 with no land, 1 wagon, 2 horses or mules, and 2 cattle resulting in a tax assessment of $2.49 ¼ . In 1886, he was listed on the Hill County Tax Roll with no land, 1 wagon, 2 horses or mules, 1 head of cattle for a total tax assessment of $2.69 ½. The fact that Freeman and Marcus were not taxed for owning land indicates that they either rented or share cropped. Farming was a hard life subject to changes in the weather and soil conditions. In addition, the economy in the south was still suffering from the effects of the Civil War as well as the boom and bust cycle of the banking system. In 1887, Minerva died. She and Freeman had been married approximately 17 years and in that time 11 children were born but only 4 children lived long enough to be listed in a census. Perhaps because other members of his family relocated to Lamar County, Texas, Freeman moved from Hill County to Lamar County after Minerva died. On August 29, 1889 in Lamar County, Texas, Freeman married again. His second wife was a widow named Martha Ann (nee Rea) Robinson who had 2 living daughters in 1880; Nancy S. and Mary Robinson and a son named Luther Calvin Robinson. Three of the children from Martha’s first marriage to J. W. G. Robinson had died. Freeman and Martha‘s first child, Bishop Marvin Blalock, was born on August 7, 1890 in Detroit, Texas in Red River County. Three daughters were also born in this marriage but only the name of one is known. Laurissia Blaylock was born February 3, 1894. The other two daughters died before they could be enumerated in a census. In addition to the changes in family, Freeman was making changes in his work life. He began to feel called to the ministry around 1880. Whether the crop failure in 1880 in Hill County and the subsequent full harvest in 1881 or the loss of so many children as infants or small children but the blessings of his remaining family had lead him to feel a call to the ministry has not been passed down in the family history. What is known is that he maintained a strong faith in God and began preaching as a local preacher in the Methodist Episcopal South Church around the time he left Hill County. In the Methodist Church there are two types of lay ministers. Supply Ministers are laity appointed to serve one church and who preach, visit the sick, and provide leadership to the congregation but are not ordained or licensed. Supply Ministers do not oversee the sacraments, consecrate the bread and cup for the Eucharist, or perform baptisms. Supply Ministers often serve in very small churches. A Local Preacher is a lay person who has been approved by the district Committee on Ordained Ministry and licensed by the Bishop to perform the duties of a pastor while assigned to a pastoral charge but is not an ordained minister. This authority is reviewed annually and permits the Local Preacher to conduct worship services and perform the duties of a pastor. To obtain a license as a Local Preacher one must

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complete the necessary studies for the license, be examined by the Committee on Ordained Ministry and provide a certificate of good health. On the Lamar County Tax Rolls for 1890, W. F. Blaylock was listed with no land, 1 wagon, 3 horses or mules, 4 cattle and was assessed $2.83 in tax. Martha was listed on a separate line with 32 acres of land and a lot in the town of Parris which she likely inherited from her first husband. In 1892, W. F. Blaylock was listed on the Lamar County Tax Roll with no land, 2 carriages or wagons, 2 horses or mules, 6 cattle and was assessed $2.94 in tax. Martha continued to own the same parcels of land. On the 1893, Mrs. M. A. Blaylock was listed with 1 wagon, 3 horses or mules, 7 cattle, 5 hogs, owned the same parcels of land, miscellaneous property valued at $257 and paid the poll tax for W. F. Blaylock with the total assessed tax being $9.13. On the 1894 tax rolls, Mrs. M. A. Blaylock was listed with 1 wagon, 3 horses or mules, 7 cattle, 5 hogs, owned the same parcels of land, paid the poll tax for W. F. Blaylock and was assessed $3.88 in taxes. It appears that Freeman was traveling in his new career as minister at the time taxes were being collected in 1893-1894. Tax rolls for subsequent years were not available to me and by the time of the census of 1900, Freeman and his family were living in Titus County, Texas.

1900 Titus County Census Listing for Freeman Blaylock’s Family Freeman served as a local preacher in the Methodist Episcopal South Church for 3 years before he resigned and became affiliated with the Methodist Protestant Church. He served the church as a Supply Minister for two years and then Freeman was ordained in Lone Oak, Texas, in Hunt County on November 10, 1893. From then on, he relocated several times as he accepted different congregations in the Annual Conference. When the census was taken on May 5, 1910, Freeman’s family was living in Franklin County, Texas.

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1910 Franklin County Census Listing for Freeman Blaylock’s Family Having lost 7 children as infants his first marriage and 2 daughters as infants in his second marriage, Freeman and his two wives faced heartbreak repeatedly. Then on July 21, 1906, his oldest son, Thomas Madison Blaylock died of typhoid fever in Sweetwater, Texas and on August 1, 1911, Laurissia died of unknown causes in Daphne in Franklin County. Family lore says that Laurissia became very ill but seemed to have started to recover when she had a relapse and died. She was buried in Friendship Cemetery in Franklin County. Only three of Freeman’s 15 children survived him. Freeman began having health problems that impacted his ability to minister around 1908. He died December 8, 1917 in Franklin County, Texas according to family records passed down by his son, William Lee Blaylock. However, no record was made of his passing in the Texas Death Index, no death certificate was filed and no headstone marks his grave. Although death certificates were required by statute beginning in 1903, many rural deaths went unrecorded either because they were not reported or because some county clerks refused to comply with the new law because it created new work for them but did not compensate them for the extra work. About 10 years later, the legislature added penalties to the statute which improved the compliance by the county clerks but many rural deaths were never reported to the county. Funerals were often a family affair with the deceased laid out the front room of his home before the burial and the grave was often a family plot on the deceased person’s farm. So it is not unusual that Freeman’s death was not documented except for the fact that his daughter, Laurissia, was buried in Friendship Cemetery and his son Wesley would later be buried there too and both had death certificates. Freeman may have been buried in Friendship Cemetery without a headstone made of material that would survive the test of time. However, Freeman’s death was not completely unnoticed. The following obituary was published and a newspaper clipping of the obituary was given to me by Mattie Lou Blaylock Halloway. Unfortunately, the source of the newspaper clipping was not noted but the obituary reads: “Rev. W. F. Blaylock departed this life December 8, 1917. He was born in Tiplon(sic) County, Mississippi, September 26, 1850, and was married to Minerva Guthrie August 1870. To this union eleven children were born of which only two boys are living. My Blaylock Ancestry

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He was converted at the age of twenty one years and joined the Methodist Episcopal Church. He erected a family altar which was never broken until death. Brother Blaylock was called to preach and fought against it for ten years before entering the ministry. He preached as a local preacher in the Methodist Episcopal Church for three years. He was grieved by the loss of Minerva in 1887. On August 29, 1889, he was married to Martha Ann Robinson in Lamar County, Texas. Four children were born to this union of which three girls are dead and only one boy is living. He joined the Methodist Protestant Church in 1891 and was ordained at Lone Oak, November 20, 1893. He was a true servant of God and served his people well, and was loved by everyone that knew him. His first work was on the Halesboro Circuit, 1892-1893, and then to Deport Circuit, 1894-1895, from there to Paris Circuit, 1895-1896, then to Sulphur Bluff, 1897-1898; Cookville Circuit, 1899-1901; from there to Minter Circuit, 1902 by request; and was without work from 1903-1906, then was sent to Liberty Circuit, 1908, but on account of bad health was unable to preach until May. He was on the Cookville Circuit, 1909, which was the last work he was able to serve. He was put on the supernumerary roll in 1916. He received the writer and his companion into the Methodist Protestant Church in 1896. Brother Blaylock leaves a wife and three sons. William Lee, Charles Wesley, and Bishop Marvin Blaylock to mourn his departure, but their loss is his gain. He kept the faith and was true to his church, and has gone to reap his reward with the saints of God. L. A. Gill”

Rev. W. F. Blaylock’s Obituary

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Freeman’s place of birth should be Tippah County, Mississippi but the writer of the obituary incorrectly stated it was Tiplon County, which does not exist. Freeman’s first posting as a minister was in Halesboro, Texas, a small community in southwest Red River County. Halesboro had a population of 20 in 1884 and grew to 159 by 1900 with one drug store, three general stores, a school and a blacksmith shop. His move to Deport in Red River County was to a growing town. Deport had a population of 350 in 1890 but had grown to 600 by 1896 with two churches, one gristmill, a newspaper and several small businesses. He moved to Paris, Texas in 1895 which was the county seat of Lamar County as well as the location of a home owned by his wife, Martha. Several railroads ran through Paris by that time and the population was near 9,000 people. This would probably be where Freeman ministered to his largest congregation. The move to Sulphur Bluff in Hopkins County was back to a much smaller community in the range of 300 people. The town had three churches, a gristmill, three cotton gins and a school. Next Freeman moved to Cookville in Titus County. Cookville was located on a major road from Omaha to Mt. Pleasant and was a station on the narrow gage East Line and Red River Railroad but the population was in decline in the 1890s and dropped from 600 to 250 people. Moving to Minter, located 6 miles from Deport in Lamar County, was a move to a very small community where the population was around 100 people. While there is a large town near Houston named Liberty, I do not think this was where Freeman was next assigned. Instead there was a cross roads in Hunt County three miles east of Greenville on Highway 24 going toward Commerce where a community named Liberty once existed and was home to a Methodist Protestant Church. The only sign of the community left today is Liberty Cemetery but because Methodist Protestant Churches were much fewer in number than Methodist Episcopal South Churches, I believe this was where Freeman was posted. A history of the Methodist Protestant Church at Liberty was printed in The Greenville Texan on August 8, 1945 listing ministers of the church from its organization in 1880. Unfortunately, the list of names of the ministers who served between 1894 and 1908 was lost and this would have included the time that Freeman was pastor there in 1908. The congregation of Liberty Methodist Protestant Church was never higher than 101 members. Freeman’s final posting was back in Cookville in Titus County. (The minister of Liberty Methodist Protestant Church at the time the article was published was Rev. Vernon Vessie Voss who had served the congregation since 1942 and was 2nd cousin once removed to Ella Jane Voss who married Thomas Madison Blaylock.) Clearly, Freeman’s assignments as a minister indicate a responsibility for ever growing congregations until around 1896. This may be when he began to experience declining health. He was around 46 years old when he left the Paris Circuit moving to a much smaller church in Sulphur Bluff and he may have requested a less demanding assignment. However, moving to smaller congregations would have meant a declining standard of living for Freeman and his family and moving away from Paris where Martha owned a home in town. In the Methodist Episcopal Church, typically a memoir is written in the annual conference report when a member of the clergy dies during the year. The records of the Methodist Protestant Church have not been as well kept or may not have been documented as well as the Methodist Episcopal annual conference journals. No memoir for Rev. W. F. Blaylock has been found but the Methodist Protestant My Blaylock Ancestry

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Texas Conference Journal, 1930, page 8 lists him and several other Methodist Protestant ministers who died prior to 1930. Martha and Bishop Marvin Blalock In the 1920 census, Martha was listed as M. A. Blaylock living in Nacogdoches, Texas with her son and daughter-in-law, Bishop Marvin Blaylock and Kate, in her household. Bishop Marvin Blalock had married Mary Kathryn Page in Franklin County, Texas on March 15, 1911, six years before his father died. On his World War I draft registration, he spelled his name Bishop Mervin Blaylock and he was working as a fireman for a company in Douglasville in Cass County, Texas. By the time of the 1920 census, Bishop Marvin Blaylock was employed as an auto mechanic in a garage. Later records spell all of their last names as Blalock. In 1930, B. M. Blalock was the head of household in Houston, Texas that included his wife, daughter, mother and nephew. He was now working as a special police officer for the railroad. He and Kate had a daughter named Stella Mae Blalock born about 1923 in Texas. His nephew, Raymond, was living there and working as an auto mechanic. The information on his mother given in the census listed her name as Winnie F. Blalock born in Alabama and this is not correct. I talked with Stella by phone and she told me that her grandmother, Martha Ann, and her cousin, Raymond, had lived with them but was not aware of the incorrect information given in the census. Martha Ann Blalock died of a stroke in Houston, Texas on June 27, 1936 and was buried in Rosewood Park Cemetery according to her death certificate. In the 1935 City Directory, Bishop M. Blalock was listed as a mechanic and in the 1940 census he is listed as Marvin Blalock working as a longshoreman. His household includes his wife, Kate, and his daughter, Stella, who was a student. Bishop Marvin Blalock died as the result of injuries in a car accident on November 21, 1953, 4 miles east of Hockley in Harris County and he was buried in Forest Park Cemetery according to information on his death certificate. Kate died December 6, 1950 of coronary thrombosis and myocardial rupture. Stella married Harley Russell Blue on December 26, 1942 and had three daughters who grew up in the Houston area. William Lee Blaylock Freeman and Minerva’s son, William Lee Blaylock, went by the name Will and married Martha Elizabeth Crawley on October 21, 1906 in Cookville in Franklin County. They moved to west Texas and had 3 children; Ottis Lee Blaylock born November 17, 1907 in Swisher County, Texas, Hugh Freeman Blaylock born August 11, 1912 in Collingsworth County, Texas and Mattie Lou Blaylock born October 29, 1915 in Childress, Texas. Martha died on November 9, 1915, 12 days after giving birth to Mattie Lou. On December 1, 1917, Will married Mattie Shaw. Their first child was a son who died a birth but on May 11, 1921, a daughter named Wilma Lois Blaylock was born. This marriage lasted until Mattie died on March 12, 1965. On July 23, 1966 Will married Exa Ella Powell Hammond in Randall, Texas. William Lee Blaylock died of cerebral arteriosclerosis in Herford, Texas on January 30, 1969. Mattie Lou Blaylock Holloway was very helpful to me when I began researching my family history but she passed away July 4, 2004. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Charles Wesley Blaylock Freeman and Minerva’s son, Charles Wesley Blaylock, went by the name of Wesley and married Ida A. Mitchell in Daphne in Franklin County, Texas on September 3, 1905. C. W. Blaylock was listed as a farmer in the 1910 census in Titus County, Texas with his wife and son, Raymond Lee, who had been born August 15, 1906. By the time of the 1920 census, the family was living in Franklin County and a daughter, Viola Faye had been born November 2, 1913. In the 1930 census, Wesley Blaylock was listed as a farmer in Franklin County and his wife, Ida, and daughter, Faye, were listed in the household. His son, Raymond, had moved to Houston and was living with his uncle, Bishop Marvin Blalock’s family. Once he moved to Houston, Raymond spelled his last name Blalock but the remainder of Charles Wesley Blaylock’s family continued to use the Blaylock spelling. Ida had a stroke about a month before her death on December 23, 1932 in Purley, Franklin County, Texas. She had not been well since the stroke. Wesley and Ida had moved to Purley around 1920 according to her obituary and she had been very active in the Baptist Church there. Just 2 years later on December 25, 1934, Charles Wesley Blaylock died suddenly in the late afternoon. Wesley’s daughter, Faye, was in an adjoining room when she heard her father collapse and fall but nothing could be done for him. His obituary reported that he had been an active member of the Methodist Church since the age of 20. No autopsy was done and the cause of death was not stated on his death certificate. Both Charles Wesley and Ida Blaylock were buried at Friendship Cemetery in Franklin County. Thomas Madison Blaylock Freeman and Minerva’s oldest son to live to adulthood was Thomas Madison Blaylock born May 5, 1874. Know by the nickname, Mass, he was the only child born in Mississippi who travelled to Hill County, Texas with his parents before the 1880 census. I suspect the nickname came about when he was a very young child and either he or his brother was unable to pronounce Thomas but said Mass instead. In any case, the name Mass became the name he used with family and friends. Freeman Blaylock and his children, including Mass, moved north from Hill County to Lamar County sometime between 1886 and 1889. Mass was approximately 12 to 15 years old when the family moved to northeast Texas. On July 9, 1899, at the age of 25, Mass Blaylock married Ella Jane Voss in Hopkins County, Texas. The Voss family’s migration across the United States had been similar to the Blaylock family. They were in Caswell County, North Carolina before the first census, moved to Mecklenburg County, North Carolina by 1800, then to Maury County, Tennessee by 1808, on to Tallahatchie County, Mississippi by 1840 and had arrived in Hopkins County, Texas around 1845, near the time that Texas was admitted to the United States. Ella was the daughter of George Calvin Voss and Mary Jane Bullard and was born January 24, 1881 in Hopkins County. Ella’s mother had died March 11, 1886 when Ella was only 5 years old and her father had remarried when Ella was 10 years old. On November 22, 1898, Ella’s father died. So at the time of her marriage, she was 18 years old and still mourning the death of her father. In the 1910 census, Ella listed her age when first married as 17.

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George Calvin Voss’s estate consisted of two parcels of land of approximately equal value. The five children from his first marriage to Mary Jane Bullard, who were all adults, inherited ½ of his estate. The children of George Calvin Voss and Mary Jane Bullard were Anna Belle born February 13, 1873, William Lafayette born April 10, 1876, Harvey Allen born March 19, 1878, Ella Jane born January 24, 1881 and Viola Silvia born June 4, 1884. The four children from his second marriage to Sallie Cornelia Lovelady, who were all minors, inherited the remaining ½ of his estate. They were Serena Ann born May 15, 1892, John Clifton born October 15, 1894, Clarence Newton born August 12, 1896 and George Calvin born January 12, 1899, just three months after his father died. Rather than selling all the property in order to distribute the estate, the beneficiaries asked that one parcel of land be given to the children of the first marriage and one parcel given to the children of the second marriage. The court agreed. This allowed the children of the first marriage to sell one parcel and divide the proceeds while the children of the second marriage and their mother were allowed to remain living on the second parcel. Thomas Madison Blaylock purchased 10 acres of land from the interest of the children of George C. Voss and his second wife and appears to have paid $40 in a transaction in Deed Book 46, page 520 and an additional $100 recorded in Deed Book 18, pages 566-569. He then sold the 10 acres to J. L. Linker for $144 recorded in Deed Book 47, page 236. These were the only land transactions I found for Thomas Madison Blaylock in his lifetime.

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From Melancholia Through the Great Depression On July 20, 1900, Mass and Ella welcomed their daughter, Alma Modena Blaylock, into the family. The family seems to have been missed in the 1900 census. Then on June 3, 1902 their son, George Freeman Blaylock, was born near Saltillo in Hopkins County and was named after both of his grandfathers, George Calvin Voss and William Freeman Blaylock. In addition to the birth of his son, 1902 was a special year for Mass Blaylock for another reason. He was licensed to preach in the Methodist Protestant Church that year. Rev. Mass Blaylock was appointed as the associate minister of the Elm Creek Mission and the family moved to Sweetwater in Nolan County, Texas. He was only a minister 4 years before he died on July 21, 1906. Rev. Henry F. Purser was his senior pastor and wrote his obituary which reads: OBITUARY Rev. T. M. Blaylock was born May 5, 1874, was converted in 1897, and was licensed to preach in 1902. Died on Saturday before the 4th Sunday in July. He was associate pastor on the Elm Creek Mission at the time of his death. He died in Sweetwater, Texas. Typhoid fever was the disease which carried him away. As his pastor, I visited him during his illness and found him resigned and willing to go. He was a true Christian and was greatly beloved by the people who knew him. I held the funeral service in the presence of a large concourse of people. He has left a wife and two little children. May the blessings of God ever rest upon them. H. F. Purser

Rev. T. M. Blaylock’s Obituary

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Rev. Thomas “Mass” Madison Blaylock Rev. Thomas Madison Blaylock was buried in Sweetwater Cemetery and has a marble headstone at his grave. Ella Jane Blaylock’s brothers had also moved to Nolan County earlier. William Lafayette Voss had left Hopkins County with a team of two mules and worked with the railroads constructing new lines. Two railroads crossed in Sweetwater and that construction brought him to Nolan County. He went by the name of Billy and married Minerva Ann Williams in Nolan County on February 15, 1899 and by the time Mass Blaylock died they had two sons. In the 1900 census, William Voss’s household includes his wife, Minnie, and his brother, Harvey A. Voss, along with a boarder. Billy and Harvey Voss may have encouraged Mass to seek and appointment in Nolan County. The Impact of the Death of Mass Blaylock on his Family When Ella was widowed, she was only 25 years old and had two small children. While her brother, Billy, may have been close by to comfort her, Harvey had moved back to Hopkins County at least three years earlier. Ella was devastated by the death of her husband. It was not unusual for a widow with young children to marry again soon after the death of their husband in order to have a sustainable family life. It does not appear that Ella was in the frame of mind needed to find a new husband and she returned to Hopkins County where more of her extended family lived. By April 30, 1908, a marriage had been arranged between Ella and William Allen Voss, her second cousin, who was 1 year and 4 days younger than Ella and went by the name of Allen. William Allen Voss was deaf and mute. He was never enumerated in any census and his business card gave his occupation as an engraver. I have been told that he travelled selling and repairing household goods and that he was My Blaylock Ancestry

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a talented wood carver as well. I have not been able to confirm this. However, there was a print shop in Saltillo in Hopkins County and Allen Voss may have owned the shop or worked there.

William Allen Voss’s Business Card From all appearances, this was not a successful marriage. Ella was grieving the loss of her first husband, communication with her new husband must have been difficult, and she was unable to function in caring for her children and her household. After only five months of marriage to Allen Voss, Ella was committed to the North Texas Hospital for the Insane at Terrell, Texas on October 6, 1908 with a diagnosis of Melancholia.

Hospital Record for Ella Jane Voss

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Over a 22 year period, Ella was furloughed 5 times and allowed to leave the hospital but 4 of those furloughs resulted in her return to the hospital. The furloughs were from July 18, 1909 to September 9, 1910, June 25, 1917 to August 20, 1917, May 18, 1922 to September 5, 1922, September 25, 1924 to May 21, 1925, and the final furlough began December 26, 1927 and led to her final discharge on January 25, 1930. It appears that the purpose of the furloughs was to determine whether Ella was able to cope with life outside of the hospital or not. The primary method of treating depression today is with medication. According to Laura D. Hirshbein in her book, American Melancholy; Constructions of Depression in the Twentieth Century, the methods of treatment used in the 1910-1930 period could involve treatment of symptoms, such as tiredness being treated with something to bring on sleep, and psychoanalysis. There was little agreement on the cause of melancholia in the early part of the century but some psychoanalysts developed theories that depression represented aggression toward a loss. Fortunately, the use of electroshock therapy and lobotomy as treatments for melancholia did not come into general use until the 1930s. Precisely which treatments Ella experienced while in confinement in the hospital are not known because the records are no longer available but the general purpose of any hospital treatment would have been to allow her to return to her home life and function normally. In the time period of her first furlough, the 1910 census was taken. Surprisingly, Ella did not return home to her husband and children but was a housekeeper in the household of Pat Laramore in Livingston in Polk County, Texas who was a salesman in a general store. Perhaps there was some business connection between Allen Voss and the Laramores that resulted in Ella working as a housekeeper in the Laramore household. It is also possible that there was another woman named Ella Voss that was the same age and had two children that did not live with her, but this seems unlikely.

Ella Voss in the 1910 Census in Polk County Ella’s second furlough began June 25, 1917. Allen Voss had died February 3, 1917 and perhaps Ella felt prepared to return to life outside the hospital as a widow, rather than as Allen’s wife when he was alive, but by August 20, 1917 she had returned to the hospital. Where did Alma and George live after Ella was committed? While Allen Voss was the legal guardian of Alma and George as their stepfather, he may not have been prepared to raise two children. Family My Blaylock Ancestry

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members recall that Alma and George stayed with Ella’s brother’s families; Harvey Allen Voss and his wife Lela who lived in Dike in Hopkins County as well as William Lafayette Voss and his wife Minnie who lived in Roscoe in Nolan County. The census was no help in verifying the family information. While Harvey Voss had lived in Nolan County with his brother Billy’s family at the time of the 1900 census, he had returned to Hopkins County by December 6, 1903 when he married Lela Belle Kyzer. Harvey and his family were enumerated in the 1910, 1920 and 1930 censuses but neither Alma nor George was living with them at those times. William “Billy” Lafayette Voss and his family were enumerated in the 1900, 1920 and 1930 census in Nolan County but were not enumerated in 1910. So Alma and George may have been living with Billy’s family at the time the 1910 census was taken. Ella’s sisters were never mentioned as caregivers for Alma and George and may have been out of state when Ella was committed. Ella’s oldest sister, Anna Belle, had married George Dorsey on November 3, 1895 in Hopkins County. At the time of the 1900 census, they were living in Polk County, Arkansas but they were not enumerated in the 1910 census. By 1920, George and Anna Belle Dorsey were living in McKinney in Collin County, Texas. Ella’s younger sister, Viola Silvia had married John M. Henderson on November 26, 1897 in Hopkins County but they were not enumerated in the 1900 census. By 1910, the Hendersons had three children and were living in Hamilton County, Tennessee. Viola Silvia Henderson died on May 5, 1912 in Chattanooga, Tennessee and by the time of the 1920 census, her two youngest children were living in an orphanage in Atlanta, Georgia which indicates that John M. Henderson had also died by 1920 or was unable to care for his younger children himself. Alma and George’s grandfather, Rev. Freeman Blaylock, had retired from the ministry due to poor health by the time Ella was committed. In the 1910 census, Freeman and his family were living in Franklin County only a short distance of approximately 35 miles from Dike in Hopkins County. His son, William Lee Blaylock, was living in the Texas panhandle in Childress County. Freeman’s son, Charles Wesley Blaylock, was living in Titus County. Alma and George were not living with their grandfather, Freeman, or either of their Uncles, Will or Wesley, at the time of the 1910 census. This does not mean that Alma and George lost all contact with the Blaylock side of the family. George knew his Blaylock uncles, aunts, and cousins but the Voss side of the family appears to have taken on more responsibility for Alma and George as they grew up. Considering all these factors, it seems likely that Alma and George were living with Billy Voss and his family at the time of the 1910 census but the census taker missed this household. Both Billy and Harvey Voss were farmers in the 1910s. Everyone on the farm participated in the work that needed to be done. One day while working on the farm, there was an accident that resulted in George breaking his leg. Unfortunately, the leg was either poorly set or the growth plates in the leg were affected. The result was that the unbroken leg grew longer than the broken leg and George had a limp the rest of his life. About 1½ years after the death of her stepfather, Allen Voss, Alma married William Walter Munden in Hopkins County, Texas on August 4, 1918. William and Alma were granted guardianship of George. On November 26, 1919, William and Alma had their son, Charles William Munden. However, by the time

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the 1920 census was taken, only 8 weeks later, on January 21, 1920, Alma had died and William was a widower living with his son and mother next door to Harvey and Lela Voss’s family in Hopkins County. According to family tradition, Alma had washed her hair on a cold day and gone outside while her hair was wet. She became gravely ill and died. However, no death certificate was recorded and therefore there is no record for the cause of her death. Her grave did not have a marker that survived the years and the location of her grave is not known. William Walter Munden married again around 1928 to Katie Blanche O’Shields and by the time of the 1930 census they had a daughter. However, Charles was not living with his father and may have been raised by his grandmother, Emma Arizona (nee Johnson) Munden, since neither of them was enumerated in the 1930 census. Charles became a mechanic and was listed in the 1947 Dallas city directory with his wife, Nancy. It was during this time that George’s oldest son, Billy Joe, graduated from high school and Charles loaned him a suit to wear for the occasion. Not long afterwards, Charles and Nancy moved to Lubbock, Texas where their first son, Charles William Munden Jr., was born on August 21, 1951 and later they moved to San Diego, California where their second son, David Larry Munden, was born on September 3, 1953. At the time of the 1920 census, Ella was living in the Hospital in Terrell, Texas. Once again, George was not enumerated in the census. His uncles Billy and Harvey Voss’s families were enumerated in 1920 as well as his aunt, Anna Belle Dorsey, but George was not living with any of them at the time of the census. George’s grandfather, Freeman Blaylock, had died in 1917. His uncle, Wesley Blaylock and his ½ uncle, Marvin Blalock, were enumerated in 1920 but his uncle, William Lee Blaylock was not. George was 17 years old by the time of the 1920 census and may have been living on his own or could have been living with William Lee Blaylock’s family in the Texas panhandle. I do not know how often Alma and George were allowed or were able to visit Ella while she was a patient. There may have been restrictions on visitation, particularly for minors. In addition, I have no way of knowing if Ella had much contact with her children when she was on furlough. Ella’s third furlough lasted from May 18, 1922 to September 5, 1922. I am not aware of any events near this time that would have caused her to return to the hospital. Ella’s fourth furlough was from September 25, 1924 to May 21, 1925. Her oldest sister, Anna Belle, had first married Elias Diggs in Hunt County, Texas on February 17, 1890 recorded in the county Marriage Records Book F, page 364. Elias Diggs was a twin and his twin brother’s name was Elisha. According to the 1900 census, Elias was a widower by 1900 and Elisha was not enumerated. Perhaps, Anna Belle and Elias divorced but because of the stigma associated with divorce at that time, Elias reported that he was a widower in the census. It is also possible that the county marriage record listed the groom’s name incorrectly but Elisha has been listed as living until 1924 in some family trees on Ancestry.com. In any event, Anna Belle was married again on November 3, 1895 in Hopkins County to George Dorsey who was 18 years her senior. On February 24, 1920, George Dorsey died in McKinney, Texas. Sometime later, Anna Belle married Lewis Buckner Allen, a lawyer who was 20 years older than she, but I have not been able to locate this marriage record. Lewis was a resident of Roby, Texas in Fisher County which is My Blaylock Ancestry

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located just north of Nolan County where Anna Belle’s brother, Billy Voss, lived with his family. Although Anna Belle and Lewis lived in Roby, she was treated for manic depressing insanity in Arlington in Tarrant County where she died of exhaustion on September 9, 1925 according to her death certificate. Whether Ella was aware of Anna Belle’s death or if Anna Belle’s death had any influence on Ella’s furlough that began only 16 days later, I cannot say. This furlough only lasted 8 months before Ella returned to the hospital. Ella’s final furlough began December 26, 1927. This was only 5 months before George married. George may have visited his mother around Christmas and told her he had plans to marry in the Spring. When she was enumerated in the census for 1930 on April 10th, Ella was the housekeeper for William J. Kelly, a mail carrier in Sulphur Springs. She was using the name Ella Blaylock which could be interpreted as if she did not acknowledge her marriage to Allen Voss or possibly did not want to be reminded of it.

Ella Blaylock in the 1930 Census On October 9, 1930, Ella was married a third time in Hugo in Choctaw County, Oklahoma to James C. Ross who was 21 years her senior. Not only did Ella list her name in the 1930 Census as Ella Blaylock but her marriage license to James was also listed in the name of Mrs. Ella Blalock. James C. Ross was born in Arkansas according to his death certificate or Louisiana according to the 1880 and 1900 Censuses or Texas according to the 1920 and 1930 Censuses. His parents were born in North Carolina and were living in Arkansas at start of the Civil War. They moved to Louisiana near the time that James was born and then to Texas by 1870 based on the States of birth given for their children in the 1880 and 1900 Censuses. While James’s death certificate lists his date of birth as May 1, 1860, earlier records indicate that he was born in 1864. He married Mollie S. Lantrip in Franklin County, Texas on January 11, 1887 and they had 6 children but 2 died as infants. In the 1900 Census, James was listed as a farmer but he later became a businessman. Mollie died August 2, 1903. The next record I have found for James was the 1920 Census which listed him as Jim Ross, a grocery merchant in Commerce, Texas. He had married again and his wife was Ella Ree Ross. His children had left home by 1920. James

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and Ella Ree Ross were listed in the 1923 City Directory of Sherman, Texas living at 501 Mulberry Street but they were not listed in the 1925 City Directory of Sherman, Texas. James was listed in the 1930 Census in Sherman, Texas living at 221 S. Rusk Street with his wife, Ida F. Ross, on April 10, 1930. They also had an adjoining property that was rented to an unrelated family. It appears Ida died soon after the census and in October, James, who turned 66 years old in May of 1930, married Ella Jane Blaylock who was 49 years old. James was listed as unemployed in the 1930 Census. In the 1935 City Directory of Sherman, Texas, James and Ella were listed at 219 S. Rusk Street which was a restaurant and their home was on the same property and was likely the house at 221 S. Rusk Street. It appears they had converted the rent house to a restaurant and it was only 2 blocks from the center of town. When James died of heart failure on August 10, 1936, at least 3 of his children were living. His occupation on his death certificate was retired grocer. He had a daughter named Dimple who was working in a millinery shop in Durant, Oklahoma on April 7, 1930 when she was enumerated in the 1930 Census and his son, Dail Ross, was the manager of a hotel in Commerce, Texas. Ella and James’s children found themselves in a dispute over James’s estate. When the 1940 census was taken on April 22nd, Dimple was listed as the owner of the house and head of household at 221 S. Rusk Street and Ella was listed as her stepmother.

Ella Jane Ross in the 1940 Census When Ella was married a fourth time on August 18, 1940 in Grayson County, Texas to Harvey Anderson Hayden, a prenuptial agreement had been signed by both the bride and groom dated August 14, 1940. In the 1940 Census, Harvey was a widower living in a hotel at 221 W. Houston Street in Sherman. Harvey had been widowed twice and had 8 children by his first wife, Rufie (nee Davis) Hayden, who had died in child birth in 1906. Harvey and his second wife, Lela (nee Kirkpatrick) Hayden, married in 1916 and she died in 1938. Although he was born in Alabama, Harvey had lived in Sherman most of his life and worked as a clerk at Roberts, Hardwicke & Taylor Company, as a stove repairman, a tree surgeon, and as a mosquito eradication officer and employee for the City of Sherman for a period of time long My Blaylock Ancestry

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enough to earn him a pension. The prenuptial agreement acknowledged that both the bride and groom owned property separately before the marriage, that neither party would have any control over the other’s property after the marriage, and that either party could sell their separate property without the consent of the other. Ella would be willed $300 of Harvey’s estate allowing any separate property Harvey owned to be willed as he saw fit. In addition, Ella was given Harvey’s pension payments to provide for food and utilities in their home. Harvey and Ella were married almost 9 years when Harvey died on July 21, 1949. This was the last marriage for Ella. She had been married and widowed four times in her life. She continued to live in Sherman, Texas the rest of her life and died June 21, 1967 at the age of 86.

Harvey and Ella Hayden with grandson Billy Joe Blaylock Ella was a God fearing Christian woman familiar with her Bible. I have a vague memory of her quoting scripture to me while she was visiting my grandparents for a week or two when I was very young. To the best of my memory, the scripture had more to do with the wrath of God than God’s love. She enjoyed dipping snuff and I remember the scent of snuff when I think of her. I was in high school when she died. None of my father’s parents or grandparents was alive when I was born, so my only frame of reference regarding my great grandparents came from my mother’s family. In contrast to my grandmother’s parents, Ella was a very stern woman and as a child I did not feel close to her in the way I did to my Holley great grandparents who were always welcoming to children. When I was told that Ella had been married and widowed four times, in my child’s mind she seemed tough enough to have survived any number of husbands. It was difficult for me to understand Ella as a child but after learning more about the events in her life and the sorrows she faced, I developed more empathy for her as I wrote about her challenges in life.

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I discussed the fact that I had not felt a warmth from Ella when I was growing up with my mother and she said that she too had not felt as close to Ella as her Holley grandparents. In addition, she told me that there had been a tension in the relationship between Ella and my grandmother because at some point Ella had attempted to persuade George to leave his family and move in with her to care for her. I do not know the time period when this happened and I had not known this before my mother told me about it. I can only imagine the feelings that such circumstances would create for both my grandmother and her children that were aware of the attempt to have their father leave his family. George Freeman Blaylock In 1937, George completed an application for employment for the City of Dallas which reported his level of education and work history. The copy I have was signed but not dated so I cannot be sure that he filed the application but it was written in late 1937 based on the dates of employment given. George completed 7 years of grade school in Dike in Hopkins County which would indicate that he had lived with his uncle, Harvey Voss’ family for a substantial portion of the time he was in grade school. By 1925, George had completed 4 years at the East Texas State, Teacher Sub-College in Commerce, Texas which was the equivalent of high school. Then by 1932, he had completed 4 years at East Texas State Teacher’s College in Commerce. Dike, where George completed his primary education, is located 10 miles northeast of Sulphur Springs in northeastern Hopkins County. In 1905, the public school was established with an initial enrollment of 33 students. By 1914, Dike had 6 general stores, a blacksmith shop and two doctors. The population of Dike was 250 residents in 1925.

George and Ruby Blaylock

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While at East Texas State Teacher’s College, George met Ruby Ottie Holley who was also attending classes there. On May 28, 1928, they were married at the First Presbyterian Church in Paris in Lamar County, Texas. The marriage was recorded in Marriage Book 17, page 238 in Hopkins County, Texas. The Holley’s had lived in Virginia until about 1848 when they moved first to Monroe then to Metcalfe and then to Green Counties in Kentucky. James Patterson Holley was born June 7, 1849 in Monroe County, Kentucky and married Mary Elizabeth Young on December 3, 1873 in Green County, Kentucky. They moved with 7 children to Dial in Fannin County, Texas by train in 1887 when Ruby’s father, John Hardin Holley was 9 years old. Five additional children were born in Texas. John Hardin Holley married Willie Ophelia Young on December 7, 1898 in Lake Creek, Texas. Ruby was born January 11, 1903, the third of twelve children born to John and Willie Holley. While searching for information on the commitment of George’s mother, Ella, I found a record that I had not expected to find. Two days before Ruby’s 11th birthday, her grandmother, Mary Elizabeth Young Holley had been committed for chronic melancholia.

Hospital Record for Mary Elizabeth Young Holley Both Ruby’s mother’s and grandmother’s maiden names were Young but they were not related. Mary Elizabeth Young had been born in Green County, Kentucky and Willie Ophelia Young’s parents had come to Texas from North Carolina via Georgia and Arkansas. While it was common knowledge in the family that George’s mother had been committed, Mary Elizabeth Young Holley’s commitment was never mentioned to my knowledge. Mary was admitted to the hospital on January 9, 1914 and was furloughed November 30, 1915, a period of almost 2 years. She never returned to the hospital and was

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permanently discharged on August 31, 1916. Whether Ella and Mary met each other while in the hospital or not is unknown. James Patterson Holley and Mary Elizabeth Young had married in Green County, Kentucky on December 3, 1873. On August 15, 1874, Mary gave birth to twins but one child died at birth. The surviving twin was William Samuel Holley, also known as Cuddy. He was about 13 years old when the Holley family moved to Texas. At the age of 23, Cuddy married Elizabeth O’Guinn. He took a job as the manager of a cotton gin in Harold, Texas and later moved to Granite, Oklahoma with a position as the manager of the Light and Water Department. In the Spring of 1913, Cuddy was electrocuted by a short in a power pole. This may have been the event that triggered his mother’s melancholia and subsequent commitment 6 months later. Because this happened when Ruby was a girl, she may not have been aware of the fact. On the other hand, because the commitment lasted almost 2 years, it would seem that even younger family members would have known about it. Since George and Ruby met while Ella was still in the hospital, Ruby’s possible knowledge of her own grandmother’s hospitalization may have provided her with an understanding of George’s experience while he was growing up. When George and Ruby met, in addition to being a student at East Texas Teacher’s College, George was employed by the Saltillo School Board as a teacher. He taught at Saltillo from September 1927 to May 1933. Saltillo is located 16 miles east of Sulphur Springs in eastern Hopkins County. The public school was established in 1905. By 1914 the town had a population of 350 with several stores, barbershops, a bank, a printing shop and a newspaper. Saltillo continued to grow in the 1920s but because of the depression the town began to lose population in the early 1930s and by 1933 there were only 250 residents and eleven businesses in town.

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While teaching school has been known as a profession with little financial reward, the Great Depression caused a disruption in the collection of school taxes which resulted in a lack of funds to pay teachers. In addition, Saltillo built a new brick high school that was completed in 1930 and the funds to build the school would have been committed prior to the beginning of the Great Depression while tax collections were stable. Paying the construction debt may have taken priority over payment of teachers. In a letter dated July 15, 1935, the county school superintendent, J. Q. Wiler, notified George that there were now sufficient funds to pay for teaching George had done during three weeks at Saltillo in 1931 and 1932. The fact that the school board was unable to pay teacher’s salaries in a timely manner (it had taken 3 years to make the payment that was owed) may have been the primary factor in George leaving the profession of teaching.

Saltillo High School built in 1930 From September 1933 through May 1934, George taught in the Posey Schools 10 miles northwest of Sulphur Springs. Posey was a very small community which had peaked in population between 1910 and 1920. The cotton gin had burned in 1925 and was not rebuilt. By the time George taught there, Posey had only a Baptist Church, the school, two stores and a few scattered houses. George and Ruby had married at the end of his first year as a teacher. At the end of his second year of teaching on June 10, 1929, George and Ruby’s first child, Billy Joe Blaylock, was born in Sulphur Springs in Hopkins County, Texas. Billy Joe was likely named after George’s uncle, Billy Voss. While George taught school during the school year, he and Ruby attended summer sessions at East Texas State Teacher’s College in 1930. George continued to attend summer sessions until he graduated in 1932 and Ruby attended in the fall of 1930 and the spring and summer sessions of 1933. On August 18, 1931, George and Ruby’s second child, Vonda LaRue Blaylock was born in College Hospital in Commerce, Texas. After teaching in Posey just one year, George and his family moved to Dallas where their third child, John Gerald Blaylock, was born on July 28, 1934. John was named after his grandfather, John Hardin Holley. Although the name John was very popular throughout the nineteenth century, this was the first child in this Blaylock line to be named John in 4 generations spanning over 130 years. I remember my My Blaylock Ancestry

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grandfather typically calling his son John, but other family members and friends called him Jerry. However, he went by John in his professional life and Jeannie, his second wife, also calls him John. On Jerry’s birth certificate, George and Ruby both listed their occupations as teachers. The following month, in August, 1934, and George accepted a position with the American National Insurance Company as an agent starting a new career. For 6 months, George and Ruby rented a home at 4017 Holmes Street before moving to 1819 Ripley Street. This was a small 2 bedroom house that they rented which belonged to Ruby’s aunt and uncle, Lou Belle and Albert Sidney Johnson Minter, whose home was on the an adjoining lot but faced N. Haskell Avenue. There was a small park nearby. Around 1936, the family moved to 633 Melba Street in Oak Cliff for 3 months but soon moved back to the house at 1819 Ripley Street which they purchased.

George Blaylock at 1819 Ripley Street Among the papers saved by my grandfather was a letter from J. Q. Wiler dated April 20, 1935. J. Q. Willer was the Superintendent of the Hopkins County Schools at the time and had taught with George in the Saltillo School. The letter expresses sympathy for a tragic event and wishes George and his family a speedy recovery. No one I have asked has any idea what event this letter references. Three months later, J. Q. Wiler wrote to inform George that he would be receiving payment for two weeks of teaching in 1931-1932 as I mentioned earlier but the tone of the sympathy letter seems to refer to some other event that remains a mystery. While George was employed during most of the Great Depression, the employment application lists a period of unemployment beginning in September 1937. Sometime in late 1937 or early 1938, George accepted a position as an agent with Rio Grande National Life Insurance Company where he worked until he retired some 30 years later. I suspect the application for employment with the City of Dallas was never submitted because George found employment with Rio Grande beforehand. On March 7, 1940, George and Ruby’s fourth child, Janice Fern Blaylock, was born at Good Samaritan Hospital in Dallas, Texas.

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Rebounding The 1940s The 1940 Census listed Janice as less than one month old but she was actually one month and three days old when the census was recorded on April 10th. George’s family was living next door to the Ruby’s cousin, the family of Buford Albert Minter who rented the home at 1811 Ripley Street belonging to his parents, Albert and Belle Minter.

1940 Census for George Blaylock Family

Jerry and Janice Blaylock at 1819 Ripley Street Ruby’s parents, John and Willie Holley, had married on December 7, 1898 and on their 43rd wedding anniversary the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. The Blaylock family faced the same shortages and My Blaylock Ancestry

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hardships all families faced in the war years. In the summertime, the boys who were old enough and strong enough would go to the Holley farm for several weeks and work on the farm. It is my understanding that the girls would also go out to the farm but would only stay for a visit with their grandparents and then return home. When the war came, Billy Joe and Jerry were too young to enlist but two of their mother’s brothers, Clyde and Travis Holley, served in the Army and a cousin, Larry Holley, served in the Marines. All survived the war. My father served in the occupation of Japan at the end of World War II and had returned to the United States in late 1946. He was 5 years older than my mother. Sometime around the Christmas season in 1946, one of my father’s cousins hosted a party where my parents met. My mother, Vonda, was an independent minded person and on Saturday, October 25, 1947, at the age of 16, she married Roy Alfred Gallagher, nicknamed Buddy, without first obtaining the consent of her parents.

Vonda Blaylock at 1819 Ripley Street In October 1947, my father had a job in an appliance manufacturing company and my mother was working part-time as a sales clerk at A. Harris & Company Department Store. On Saturday, October 25th, at the end of the workday, she and my father went to a justice of the peace and were married. When she returned to her parent’s home to collect some of her clothing and inform her parents that she was married, George was extremely angry. His first reaction was to have my father arrested but after some argument, he accepted the situation. Since my father had been orphaned and raised by various aunts and uncles and his sister, George and Buddy had a similar childhood. I think that George realized that my father was dependable and hardworking and that once Vonda set her mind on doing something, there was no stopping her. However, I am sure that he was concerned with regard to Vonda’s youthfulness and her decision to My Blaylock Ancestry

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marry at such young age as well as the fact that my father was far from being established financially. If George had hoped to walk his oldest daughter down the aisle at her wedding, the elopement robbed him of that pleasure. While my mother and her older brother, Billy Joe, were often at odds with each other, in this case, he tried to help my mother convince her father to accept the situation. As a teenager, Billy Joe had a job which involved moving heavy sacks of product which resulted in him being in very good physical condition. He had a tendency to be a bully particularly when it came to his younger brother and Vonda tried to protect Jerry from Billy Joe when she could. In the Summer of 1948, Billy Joe was 19 years old when he learned that he was soon to be a father. On August 14, 1948 he married Greta Joan Greer, nicknamed Jodi, who was 16 years old and on March 2, 1949 their daughter, Belinda Marie Blaylock, was born in Houston, Texas. This was George and Ruby’s first grandchild. Jodi was well liked because of her sense of humor and she was welcomed into the family. George and Ruby were also experiencing the responsibility of having aging parents. On July 21, 1949, Harvey Anderson Hayden died leaving Ella a widow for the fourth time. Ruby’s father was also having health problems. John Holley had developed cataracts and was blind. Surgery to remove the cataracts had been scheduled in Dallas but even though today such surgery is done on an outpatient basis, it required general anesthesia in 1950. John was anxious about the surgery and the day before it was scheduled, he suffered a heart attack. The damage to his heart was serious enough that he was never able to have the cataracts removed. The 1950s The 1950s and early 1960s saw George and Ruby’s list of grandchildren grow quickly. I was born on July 27, 1951 and my name came from my uncle’s middle name and my grandfather, Robert Claude Gallagher who had died 11 years before I was born. Perhaps my parents liked the name Gerald because I remember my uncle being a person who enjoys humor, laughed easily and had many friends. He always had a joke or a humorous story to tell. He enjoyed several hobbies over the years such as fishing, boating, midget car racing and ham radio operations. Two months after I was born, my Uncle Jerry who was 17 married Eleanor Anne Beaupre age 18 on September 28, 1951. A year later, on November 25, 1952, Billy Joe and Jodi had their second child, Stephen Holley Blaylock. Two weeks after that, Jerry and Eleanor had their first child on December 5, 1952 and named her Susan Marie Blaylock. Just before I was born, my parents purchased a small, two bedroom, 800 square foot house at 10806 Hermosa Drive. About 1 year later, my grandparents purchased a three bedroom home of 1,300 square feet, 7 houses down the block at 10838 Hermosa Drive. As a result, my grandparents were very nearby until we moved to another house about June of 1957. George did not sell the house on Ripley Street but kept it as a rent house. When I was 4 or 5 years old, I was allowed to go down the block on my tricycle, usually towing my wagon behind me, and visit my grandparents. Usually my grandfather would be at work but my grandmother would be home and welcomed me. She might make me some wheat toast My Blaylock Ancestry

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with butter which was different than the white toast we always had at home because my Dad was particularly fond of Mrs. Baird’s white bread. She might try to convince me to have some prune juice, which none of the children liked but was always in good supply. I could hunt for horned toads in her garden, just have a chat or possibly stay for lunch. I was fortunate that my grandparents lived on the same side of the street because I was not allowed to cross the street at that age. Living so near my grandparents and being allowed to visit them was special and my grandparents cherished all their grandchildren. Around 1953, Jodi filed for a divorce from Billy Joe. This was a bitter divorce and was difficult for both my grandparents but particularly difficult for my grandmother because the result was the alienation of two of her grandchildren whom she loved. The situation was made worse because Billy Joe did not pay child support in a timely manner and visitation was limited by Jodi as a result. Billy Joe subsequently married Grace Rebecca Grant Orfield, a divorcee with 2 daughters, on April 13, 1955. She was 12 years older than Billy Joe. Jodi also remarried around 1956 and her second husband, John William Kelly was able to adopt Belinda and Stephen when Billy Joe gave up his parental rights. Belinda became Belinda Marie Kelly and Stephen’s name was changed to Stephen Greer Kelly. John and Jodi Kelly had two children together but none of the Blaylock family ever had any contact with them. Billy Joe then joined the Army about 1954 and he was rarely around the family until he left the Army 14 years later except when he had extended leave. Billy Joe’s marriage to Grace Rebecca Grant Orfield was short lived and they were soon divorced. One of his early postings in the Army was in Germany where he married a third time. On June 1, 1957, Billy Joe married Elfriede C. (last name not known), who we called Freedle. She was divorced, 10 years older than Billy Joe, and her previous husband had custody of her daughter living in Germany. Billy Joe and Freedle would visit George and Ruby on leave periodically. My brother, Gary Wayne Gallagher, was born January 4, 1954. Jerry and Eleanor had their second child, Beverly Anne Blaylock, on January 16, 1956. My brother, Randal Ray Gallagher, was born July 8, 1957 just after we moved from the house on Hermosa Drive to a three bed room home at 8911 Sorrento Street. Then Jerry and Eleanor had their third child, Yvonne Agnes Blaylock, born on December 27, 1957. My grandfather, George, had been working at Rio Grande Life Insurance since the late 1930s and was having success as an agent selling insurance. Occasionally my grandfather would take me with him to collect premiums from his customers and sometimes at the end of the day we would stop at a soda fountain or stop by his office and I would be treated to a soft drink. For a while, he drove a Crosley station wagon which was a small two door car that I really enjoyed because I could see out the windows better than in a larger car. I don’t think it was a particularly reliable car and, after owning the Crosley, he drove Chevrolets. Each year there would be a sales contest and my grandfather won several vacation trips. The most significant trip that he won that I remember was to Havana, Cuba in 1957. At that time, Havana was the Las Vegas of the Caribbean and was the most exotic place anyone in the family had ever

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been. Just a few years later in October of 1960, a travel embargo was placed on Cuba preventing U.S. citizens from travelling there. On October 26, 1958, Janice married Dwain Carrol Cleere. I remember my Aunt Janice as a generous person with a very positive attitude. Whenever I talk to her on the phone, I am always struck by the uplifting tone of her voice. Jerry and Eleanor had their fourth daughter, Elaine Lucia Blaylock, on May 21, 1959. Janice and Dwain had their first child, Robert Wayne Cleere, on March 25, 1960 and Jerry and Eleanor had their fifth child, a son named John Gerald Blaylock, on November 21, 1960. My youngest brother, Richard Joe Gallagher, was born January 30, 1962. Jerry and Eleanor’s youngest child, George Joseph Blaylock, was born August 11, 1963 and Janice and Dwain’s youngest child, Larry Joe Cleere, was born August 28, 1963. Two National Events Impact Two prominent events from this time period impacted the family. Ruby’s nephew was Charles Hardin Holley, known as Buddy, who had grown up in Lubbock, Texas and was the son of her older brother, Lawrence Odell Holley. When Buddy had started recording music, his last name was misspelled as Holly and therefore Buddy Holly had become his stage name. I remember being in second grade in the Fall of 1958 and overhearing some older girls in the lunch line pointing to me and mentioning that Buddy Holly was my cousin. I thought that was fantastic that girls had a reason to notice me and that I might be more interesting than the other boys as a result. Tragedy struck on February 3, 1959 when Buddy Holly died in a plane crash in Iowa in a snow storm and I was not particularly interesting to girls after that. The family was very proud of what Buddy Holly had accomplish but because he grew up in Lubbock and most of the family was in Dallas or Commerce, there had been limited contact with Lawrence’s family except when they visited my great grandparents in Commerce. My mother remembered family gettogethers at her grandparent’s home in the 1940s that included her Uncle Lawrence’s family. Buddy’s sister, Patricia, was near my mother’s age and they played together but Buddy was 5 years younger than my mother and therefore she considered him to be one of the little kids. As his music reputation grew, the family had followed his progress and was shocked when he died at such a young age just like everyone else. The second newsworthy event that impacted the family was the Cuban Missile Crisis that occurred in October, 1962. While this was a frightening time for all Americans, it was particularly memorable for me because the family was concerned about Billy Joe who was stationed at Ft Bragg, North Carolina at the time. The family assumed that if troops were sent to Cuba, Billy Joe’s unit would be among the first to be deployed because they were so near Cuba. It seemed ironic that in just a few short years, Cuba had gone from a vacation spot of a lifetime to a place that evoked fear for the future of the country.

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Losing Parents and Caring for Grandchildren Near the same time that these newsworthy events were taking place, Ruby’s parents died. John Hardin Holley had hypertension and suffered a cerebral hemorrhage on August 27, 1959. Two years later, on October 8, 1961, Willie Ophelia Holley died of cardiac failure. They had raised 12 children; 4 boys and 8 girls. Three of their children had died previously. Their youngest son, Willie Hardin Holley, who worked as a lineman for the power company died as the result of a horrible automobile accident on February 21, 1937 while on a double date with his brother, Travis. Their oldest daughter, Sybil Lorene Holley, was a music teacher who had married William Benjamin Herman and had 4 children when she died November 7, 1940 as the result of a cerebral hemorrhage. Their daughter, Mavis Dean Holley, was a school teacher in the Rio Grande valley when she learned that she had breast cancer. She returned home and died at the age of 25 on July 15, 1946. My Holley great grandparents were both kind and gentle people who loved children and I always enjoyed visiting them. Through the late 1950s and early 1960s, the George and Ruby’s children and grandchildren often got together for family events such as birthdays and holidays. I remember cookouts together with the whole family at my grandparent’s home. Ruby had a large garden each year and she was an excellent cook in my opinion. I remember one family get together when my grandmother cooked fried chicken for the whole family and it was the best chicken I ever remember eating. Once when I was sick, my grandmother cooked some calf’s liver and onions for me seasoned with sage and after that, liver and onions was my favorite meal, much to the astonishment of my friends who could not understand how anyone could even eat liver. My dad and Jerry also enjoyed fishing and boating. Sometimes both our families would go to the lake together. There were several summer Friday nights when both families would get together and Eleanor would cook spaghetti for everyone. My parents liked to go fishing on Saturday night and come home on Sunday with a large catch of catfish to clean on Sunday afternoon. Sometimes George would go fishing with them and Ruby would stay at our house overnight. One particular weekend, there was a solar eclipse when they went fishing at the Lake of the Pines and my grandmother had her hands full trying to keep my brothers and me inside so that we would not look at the sun and go blind. When Dwain and Janice were first married, they would come to our house for dinner a few times each month. Dwain was the metal shop teacher at Samuel High School and he and my dad built a go cart powered by a lawn mower engine together. We were allowed to go with my dad to the blacktop playground at Truett Elementary School and drive it around on Sundays. One evening when my dad had a particularly bad day at work and Dwain and Janice had come over for dinner, my dad was not in a mood for company and he chose to read the newspaper. Dwain was offended. This began a tiff that lasted over 10 years. Dwain wanted my dad to apologize but Buddy refused. I cannot remember that my dad ever apologized to anyone about anything. My mother and Janice decided that this tiff would not impact their relationship if they could avoid it. So I saw my Aunt Janice and my cousins, Bobby and Larry, from time to time during the week when my mother and aunt My Blaylock Ancestry

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would visit or sew together. In my opinion, both Dwain and Buddy were too stubborn for their own good and it impacted family get-togethers at my grandparent’s home. Eventually, Vonda and Janice managed to get both Buddy and Dwain to put the past in the past. Around 1959 my parents left me and my brothers at home and my grandmother stayed with us while they went on vacation to Arkansas. Granddad also stayed with us after work each day. The original plan was to vacation on Lake Ouachita in Arkansas with a coworker of my dad’s and his wife but they found a cabin on Lake Hamilton and spent the week there. For the next several years, my family went to the same cabin at Lake Hamilton for vacation and my grandparents came with us on one of those vacations. In 1962, my parents bought a lot on Cedar Creek Lake before the dam was completed and 5 years before there was water in the lake. This purchase had a significant impact on how we spent our weekends when the weather was good. We cleared the lot of weeds, planted grass, planted a garden each year, built a boat dock, lowered the boat dock when the water level was changed by the Corp of Engineers, poured foundations, hunted rabbits and quail, fished in stock tanks, looked for arrowheads and generally spent time outdoors. Typically, Saturday afternoon was for work and Sunday was for pleasure as long as the work was finished on Saturday otherwise Sunday became a workday too. Finally in 1967, the dam was finished and the rains came that filled the lake which allowed us to ski, boat and fish. All those weekends at the cabin reduced the time we spent with our grandparents and cousins. George’s mother, Ella died on June 21, 1967 at the age of 86. The great grandchildren were told that she had died of old age. The official cause of death listed on the death certificate was polycythemia with pulmonary emboli. This is a condition that results in an excessively high red blood cell count and can be caused by many factors such as heart and lung disease. She had been living in the Shady Oaks Rest Home in Sherman but she still owned a house there which George inherited. George’s Retirement George was approaching retirement after 30 years with Rio Grande National Life Insurance. A year before his retirement, Kentucky Central Life acquired Rio Grande National. As is the case with all corporate restructuring, there were changes in the work place. My grandfather would earn full retirement benefits after 30 years of service but he told me that the company management was doing everything that they could to get him to quit before he had 30 years of service and thereby reduce his benefit. I suspect that the corporate restructuring was compounded by a goal to reduce costs and my grandfather’s pension was one of the costs they hoped to minimize. At any rate, he completed 30 years of service before retiring and earned his full retirement benefit. George was not idle in retirement. In addition to caring for Ruby and being a landlord for 2 houses, he built and sold dog houses to provide some additional income. Jerry worked at Western Electric which was replacing wooden phone booths and had an excess of good quality used plywood from the demolished booths which George obtained and began making into book cases. My grandfather would allow us to help him make a dog house or supervise us making a book case when we visited. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Ruby was having health issues. The family was told that she was having small strokes that were affecting her mental wellness. As time passed, her mental state degraded. She was having difficulty maintaining a conversation, was forgetful and had mood swings. By the early 1970s, my grandmother’s swings in temperament were a concern when she was with the younger grandchildren and as a result they had much less contact with my grandmother than I had as a young child. Although it was not a common diagnosis then, my mother believed that Alzheimer's disease would likely have been the illness that would have been diagnosed for my grandmother today. In the Fall of 1969, I went away to college at Texas A&M University. I generally came home on holidays but had much less contact with my family than I had while I was living at home. In the summer months, I worked to earn money to stay in college. In May 1973, I completed my Bachelor’s Degree and married Lisa Jean Lorfing. We had been dating since we were freshmen in college. Rather than going home on weekends, I had been going to Nacogdoches to see Lisa. In December 1973, I completed my Master’s Degree and accepted a full time job which kept me very busy and required me to travel frequently. I was less aware of changes that were taking place as they happened but generally became informed after the fact. My grandmother’s condition continued to decline and my grandfather had some small heart attacks that resulted in short hospital stays but he returned home each time. Around 1968, Billy Joe’s enlistment expired and because his unit was preparing to deploy to Viet Nam, he decided to leave the Army after 14 years of service. He and Freedle moved back to Dallas. On May 8, 1970, Billy Joe and Freedle divorced. Billy Joe was married a fourth time on December 6, 1972 to Jacqueline J. LeMaster who had 3 children from a previous marriage. On May 20, 1974, Jerry and Eleanor divorced. Jerry was married again on May 27, 1975 to Patsy Jean Sanders Russell who was a widow with two sons. I know that alternative ways of caring for my grandmother were discussed with my grandfather and his children. My mother had encouraged him to consider a retirement home with nursing facilities where he could also reside and be with my grandmother every day. Perhaps because of the experience George had with his mother living in a retirement home, he had no interest in leaving his home and wanted to continue caring for Ruby himself. After my father died, my brothers and I tried to get my mother to consider an assisted living facility in 2007 and even though the services at these facilities have improved over the intervening years, my mother was just as resolute as my grandfather had been that she would remain in her own home. She only agreed to move to assisted living at the very end of her life in 2009. On November 1, 1976, my grandmother, Ruby, died. The cause of death recorded on her death certificate was pneumonia associated with multiple cerebrovascular accidents. She had lost interest in eating and lost a significant amount of weight. Without Ruby, my grandfather fell victim to a heart attack on February 17, 1977, just 3 ½ months after my grandmother died. He had been diagnosed with heart disease 4 years earlier and had arrhythmia and angina for about a month before his fatal heart attack. It is not unusual in situations where a couple has spent a lifetime together, for the loss of one to be soon followed by the loss of the other.

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The Estate George’s Last Will and Testament was typed in all caps except for one letter and reads: 12 JAN 1977 LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT I, GEORGE FREEMAN BLAYLOCK, BEING OF SOUND MIND AND BODY, DO HEREBY MAKE THIS LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT THAT MY FOUR CHILDREN: BILLY JOE BLAYLOCK, VONDA LaRUE GALLAGHER, JOHN GERALD BLAYLOCK, JANICE FERNE CLEERE, SHALL SHARE AND SHARE ALIKE IN ALL PROCEEDS FROM MY ESTATE. I HEREBY APPOINT MY SON, JOHN G. BLAYLOCK, EXECUTOR OF MY ESTATE. GEORGE FREEMAN BLAYLOCK WITNESS: W.A. JAMES WITNESS: MRS. W. A. JAMES The house at 10838 Hermosa Drive was sold on October 12, 1977 for $19,000 and after expenses the proceeds to the estate were $17,199.10. The house in Sherman was on a double lot at 306 and 308 South Rusk Street and was sold in February 1978 for $4,365 with proceeds to the estate after expenses being $4,000. However, there was a disagreement among the heirs with regard to selling the house at 1819 Ripley Street. There was hope that the property might appreciate because a large business complex named City Place had been planned nearby and one of the 4 towers of the development had been constructed. The activities of being the landlord for this property were complicated by the fact that the heirs were moving away from Dallas. In 1976, Buddy and Vonda had built a home on their lots at Cedar Creek Lake and started a collision repair business in Seven Points. Sometime in the late 1970s or early 1980s, Billy Joe and Jackie moved to Heidelberg, Germany where he studied theology. Jerry and Jeanie moved to Houston as the result of a transfer at Western Electric. This left Janice and Dwain as the only couple living nearby to maintain the property and collect rent. However, Dwain became too ill to teach in the mid-1980s and with Janice being his caregiver, there was no one to function as a landlord. Eventually, on June 23, 1999, the house on Ripley Street was sold for $24,573.79 but payment of delinquent taxes from 1986 to 1999 reduced the proceeds to the estate to $12,000. Two lake lots at Lake Tawakani were never developed and as a result the delinquent property taxes from 1977 to 2008 exceeded their value and resulted in a sheriff’s sale around 2008. The heirs were offered the opportunity to pay the back taxes, penalties and interest which were more than twice the value of the land in order to retain ownership of the property but because the lots belonged to the estate none of the heirs were liable for the delinquent taxes and it did not make economic sense to retain the lots.

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Although there were three houses involved in the estate, the value of each property was small and the total value distributed to the heirs was approximately $8,000 each in the end. One unexpected result of holding the house at 1819 Ripley until 1999 was that contact with Stephen Kelly and his sister Belinda occurred. Billy Joe died of heart failure on June 2, 1997 in Minden, Louisiana and his interest in the estate passed to his children. Belinda was a flight attendant for American Airlines living in Florida and was willing to accept her share of the resulting sale but had no interest in re-establishing contact with the Blaylock family. On the other hand, Stephen worked for Sam’s Club in Richland Hills and did have an interest in meeting some of the family. He came to one of the Gallagher family fish fries that was scheduled around the 4th of July and I talked with him at Sam’ Club a few times after that when I was shopping there. Not long afterwards, he was transferred to Bentonville, Arkansas as the result of a promotion within Walmart but died of a heart attack at the age of 52 on October 24, 2005.

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Afterword This is where I will conclude my Blaylock Ancestry. My own family story shifts at this point to the Gallagher family. My uncle, aunt and cousins have their own family saga to record which will be more accurate than anything I could write. I would also be interested in updating any information in this document to improve accuracy or add depth to the history of the family that my uncle, aunt or cousins would like to share with me. After the passing of my own parents, I have been very aware of the different stories that I and my brothers remember. Each person can see the same event but take away a different perception of the people involved or observe a detail another might have overlooked. I only worked for my father 2 summers but my brothers learned their trade skills under his employment and had much more interaction with him in a work environment. After my father died, my mother would call on each of us to do different things for her. Randy took care of things that she needed for her car and was the first person called if she was not feeling well and needed someone to take her to the doctor or hospital. Gary was called anytime she needed something done with regard to her yard. I was called if there was an issue with her medical insurance, her property tax evaluation or some other business related issue. This resulted in somewhat different perceptions and memories of our interactions. So I continued to learn things about my parents after they had died by talking to my brothers since we each remembered stories about events from the past in slightly different ways. I would encourage the sharing of family memories and I hope that as my relatives read this history of the family, they will share their own experiences with me and the rest of the family. It has taken me a long time to write this book and I have likely made some errors in the interpretation of some of the facts that I have found. New information may come to light that will make it possible to revise my understanding of the history of the family or resolve some of the unanswered questions that remain. I would enjoy collaborating with anyone who has additional information.

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Appendix A - The Rainey Letters In 1996 photocopies of a bundle of 33 letters sent to J. H.D. and Ann (nee Rainey) Tomson was made available to a group meeting on Rainey Research by Mary L. Roberts. The letters had been stored in a trunk owned by her great granduncle. Mary L. Roberts had transcribed the letters with the intent of publishing a book on Rainey family history. Her transcriptions were verbatim including spelling errors and lacking punctuation with the goal of being perfectly accurate and true to the original letters. She provided this information for study by others. I found the information contained in the letters to be very useful in understanding the impact of the Civil War on my ancestors, the Blalocks, Proctors and Guthries in Tippah County, Mississippi because they were neighbors to some of William and Eliza Rainey’s children who wrote some of these letters. However, I found it necessary to perform my own transcription correcting spelling errors and adding punctuation to make the letters more readable. Also, because I have studied the census and tax rolls for the area, I could better identify the names of the people in the letters when incorrect spelling or poor handwriting made that difficult. It might be said that my transcription is more of an interpretation of the letters so I have included my work here as an appendix. First I will identify the members of the Rainey family. The Rainey Family Members William Rainey married Eliza Thomas in South Carolina about 1829 and their first 3 children were born in South Carolina. They moved to Tennessee around 1835 and 9 more children were born in Hardeman County, Tennessee very near the state line with Mississippi. Several children married and lived in Tippah County, Mississippi. William and Eliza moved to Jersey County, Illinois for three years starting in 1863 because of the disruption and lawlessness of the Civil War. They returned to Hardeman County after the war but after William died around 1871, Eliza moved back to live with her son, also named William, who had served in the Union Army and had gone to Jersey County, Illinois. To help identify the writers of the letters, members of the Rainey family were: William Rainey born about 1805 married Eliza Thomas about 1829 in South Carolina. Their children were: Nancy Rainey born about 1830 married Daniel G. Guthrie January 17, 1848 and had farmland in Sections 13 and 24 in Tippah County, Mississippi. Thomas E. Rainey born December 4, 1832 married Mary Elizabeth Whitener about 1865 in Tippah County, Mississippi and owned a farm in Section 26. William M. Rainey born about 1834 married Malinda Catherine Thompson about 1856 and lived Hardeman County until the birth of their third child who was born in Tippah County. John R. Rainey born about 1836 and never married but was discharged from the Union Army because of his health and died soon after.

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Ann Elizabeth Rainey born September 11, 1838 married Rev. Josiah Henry Dockery Tomson October 16, 1855 in Hardeman County, Tennessee and saved these 33 letters. Sarah C. Rainey born December 4, 1840 married Henson G. Adams about 1857 and had 2 children born in Illinois during the Civil War but lived primarily in Hardeman County, Tennessee where their other 7 children were born. Mary J. Rainey born in May 1843 married John Nelson Guthrie February 5, 1863 and their first child was born in Illinois. They returned to Hardeman County after the war and had another child before moving to Texas where 3 more children were born. Martha Catherine Rainey born April 15, 1846 married Elijah Franklin Foster January 5, 1869 and lived in Hardeman County, Tennessee until moving to Hill County, Texas around 1877. Robert A. Rainey born about 1848 in Hardeman County, Tennessee and was listed in the 1850 and 1860 censuses. No other information found on Robert. Daniel G. Rainey born about 1850 married Lavinia M. Proctor about 1870 and lived in Tippah County, Mississippi. Frances Elvira Rainey born about 1852 in Hardeman County, Tennessee and was listed in the 1860 census. No other information found on Frances. Liza Rainey was not in any census but was mentioned as having died in a letter by Eliza Rainey when consoling Ann on the death of 2 of her children. Liza was likely born about 1855 and died before 1860. The Thompson/Tomson Family Members These 33 letters contain many references to members of the Thompson/Tomson family. The patriarch of this family was Thomas Thompson who was born in Dorchester County, Maryland on July 7, 1758. He was a Methodist Episcopal Minister and a chaplain in Eccleston’s Company, 2nd Maryland Infantry during the Revolutionary War. He married Priscilla Mace and moved to Rockingham County, North Carolina in 1794. Two of their sons were Henry and Amos Garrett Thompson. Biographies of the families of these two sons have been published in Hardeman County, Tennessee: Family History, Volume 2, page 220. Henry Thompson married Elizabeth Ann Lee on December 27, 1807 in Rockingham County, North Carolina. Nine of their fourteen children were born in Rockingham County before moving to Hardeman County, Tennessee around 1826. Henry was the first school teacher in Hardeman County but he was also a Methodist Episcopal Minister. He became dissatisfied with the Methodist Episcopal Church and he returned his credentials in 1832. He became affiliated with the Church of Christ and became a minister in that denomination. In 1842, he moved to Missouri with the younger members of his family. Henry changed the spelling of his last name to Tomson because he felt that the “h” and “p” in the traditional spelling were unnecessary. Some of his children maintained the Tomson spelling and some reverted to the traditional spelling. Henry and Elizabeth’s second child was Thomas Arrington Tomson who married Karen Happock Sellers. They were the parents of Josiah Henry Dockery Tomson who married Ann Elizabeth Rainey. Josiah was a Church of Christ Minister who became chaplain of the Missouri State Prison, was a publisher after the Civil War and collaborated with his brothers in writing hymns. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Amos Garrett Thompson married Eleanor Lee, the sister of Elizabeth Ann Lee. They moved with their eight children to Hardeman County, Tennessee about the same time that Henry and Elizabeth moved there. The names and ages of 2 of their children given in Hardeman County, Tennessee: Family History, Volume 2 does not agree with the number of children and their ages listed in the various censuses between 1820 and 1840. Their second oldest son was Robert L. Thompson whose eldest daughter was Malinda Catherine Thompson. She married William M. Rainey, the brother of Ann Elizabeth Rainey, about 1854. Amos Garrett Thompson died in 1843 before the census listed individuals by name. In the 1850 and 1860 censuses, Eleanor Thompson was listed with only her youngest children. Based on the census data, 3 additional children were born to Amos and Eleanor after moving to Hardeman County. Understanding the relationships between the members of the Thompson families made it possible to identify many of the individuals mentioned in these letters. The names in the letters may be spelled Thompson or Tomson but because of the inconsistency in spelling between writers the difference in spelling is not an indicator of which branch of the Thompson/Tomson family is being referenced. Rather than attempting to correct the spelling of this name, I have left the original spelling but I have included notes regarding the identity of the person and how they are related to others in the letters where I have been able to determine that information.

Rainey Letter Letter #1 Hardeman County, Tennessee December 31, 1859 My Dear Sister; It is with great pleasure that I this evening seat myself to write you a few lines to inform you that we are all well at present and hope that this will find you in good health. The relations is a well. Aunt Polly is going to move where Sarah lives and Sarah is going to live in the house with Old Wash. Mother says that she wants to see all of you. She says kiss Jim for her. Ann, I have had a fine time this Christmas. I have had more fun than you could shake a stick at in a week. Well Ann if I could see you again I would jump so high that I would not come down in a week. Julia Ann Whitley and me has been together a week and you know that two Devils have met. Elizabeth Oze is married to Noey Duncan. Charley McCoy’s daughter is married to a man by the name of R. McEntier. Parson Sherrin is married to Sarah Harris and Julia Jordan is married John Jacobs. George Hudson is married to Susan Cox. Fife is our preacher this year. As this makes 2 letters that I wrote you, I will not write much. When you get this, write soon, write soon. I remain your loving sister. Mary J Rainey To Ann Tompson

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Notes on Letter #1: 1) Old Wash was Washington Adams, father of Henson G. Adams who married Sarah C. Rainey. 2) Jim was the first child of J. H. D. and Ann (nee Rainey) Tomson, James Franklin Tomson. 3) Julia Ann Whitley was the daughter of Rev. Jesse B. and Sarah Whitley. She and Mary J. Rainey were similar ages, both were born in Tennessee and the parents of both had been born in South Carolina. 4) Elizabeth Oze Proctor was the daughter of Thomas Osborne and Elizabeth (nee Guthrie) Proctor. 5) Noey Duncan was Noah Duncan. His first wife was Martha Guthrie, daughter of Thomas Madison and Elizabeth (nee Proctor) Guthrie. Noah Duncan married his second wife, Elizabeth Osborne Proctor, on December 21, 1859, in Tippah County, Mississippi. 6) William J. McIntyre married Emeline McCoy on December 21, 1859 in Tippah County, Mississippi. 7) G. W. Sherron age 49 married Sarah Becca Harrison age 22 on November 4, 1859 in Hardeman County, Tennessee. 8) John J. Jacobs married Julia Ann Jordan on December 15, 1859 in Hardeman County, Tennessee. 9) George W. Hudson married Susan Cox on December 15, 1859 in Hardeman County, Tennessee. 10) John Alexander Fife was a Methodist Episcopal South minister in the Memphis Conference.

Rainey Letter #2 March 17, 1860 Hardeman County, Tenn Dear Brother and Sister I take my pen in hand to let you know that I received your witness in due time and was glad to hear from you. I am well at present. I hope that when these bad wrote lines come to hand, they may find you all well. The connection is well. I am living at father’s. I tend my land to myself. I am now in the notion of planting all my crops in cotton. I am trying to sell my land. I was offered $400. I ask $450. I don’t know whether I can sell or not. If I do, I want to come and see you and your new country. I have got a Jack. If I can sell him and my mule, I can come. Whether I sell my land or not, I want you, if you please, to write me a waybill to come see you by steam, what boat to get on and how near I can land to you. I will give you the prices. Horses is high, up $200 and cows from $15--$18. Hogs high, they died last fall and winter with the cholera. I lost 13 shoats. Fran lost two of his fattening hogs besides some shoats. We have a good school. Just out. Mrs. Sullivan, she offers for another at Chapel. Our body is doing well. We get new members every meeting. We haven’t had to turn out but two yet, James Goad and John Goad. Billy Moore has sold his land and has gone to Arkansas. Mary Ann did not want to go. John Riggs is living with Thomas Rainey. I will give you a list of the marriages, if you haven’t got them, if My Blaylock Ancestry

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you have, no harm done. Judge Tomson married widow Burns. And more yet: Liz Proctor married Mr. widower Noah Duncan; George Hudson & Susan Cox; John Groves & Margaret Tomson. Deaths the widow Nelson died the last of February, her sale is tomorrow. I have been plowing today and can’t write. I am to say that I enjoy myself more this year so far. I go to see the girls every Sunday. I trot them around. I have no notion of marrying yet. I love the girls like mules a kicking, and that you know, is hard. I went last Tuesday night to the Middleton Lodge and they are getting along tolerable well. I seen some of the finest girls you have ever seen. They make my eyes water and mouth slobber. I trotted one of them home. I got a letter from H. L. Sanders. He says he is going to get ready to go with me to some new country. Cousin Bill is married again. I haven’t got more of importance to write at this time. Write to me as soon as you receive this letter. Give me the price of fine mares if you think I can get into business at a good price. What can a doctor do there? I close by requesting you to write. When this you see remember me though I am in Tennessee. This March 17, 1860 John Rainey to J H D Tomson and E Tomson

Notes on Letter #2 1) A. J. Sullivan was listed in the 1860 census as a school teacher in this area. His wife, Nancy F. Sullivan, was likely the teacher mentioned in this letter. 2) William N. Moore married Mary Ann Riggs on October 22, 1850 in Hardeman County, Tennessee. They were listed in the 1860 census in Pope County, Arkansas. 3) John Riggs was the brother of Mary Ann Riggs and they were the children of Alfred and Hannah Riggs who had lived in Giles County, Tennessee before moving to Hardeman County. 4) D. C. Thompson age 25, married Mary J. Burns age 34, a widow with 5 children, on August 5, 1859 in Hardeman County, Tennessee. Judge appears to be a nickname rather than a title since he was listed in the census as a farmer. 5) John L. Grove age 34, a widower with 7 children, married Margaret C. Thompson age 21 on January 24, 1860 in Hardeman County, Tennessee.

Rainey Letter #3 Hardeman County, Tenn This July 7th 1860 Dear Brother and Sister I take this opportunity of writing you a few lines to let you know that I haven’t forgotten you yet. This leaves me and family well hoping when these lines come to hand that they may find you all well. The reason I haven’t written to you before, I have been going to Singings and Meetings on My Blaylock Ancestry

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Sunday and in the week I have been so busy in my crops that I haven’t had time to write. I have been reading letter from you to John but that don’t do, enough of this. My crops look, as well as any I ever had. I have five acres in cotton and 10 in corn. I want to see you all very bad. Health is good. The connection is well. Crops look very well I have prepared except wheat, there was about half crops made I reckon. I will give you the prices of produce: Corn $1 per bushel, wheat $1.25 per bushel, other things in proportion. We have had a storm or two but not much damage except the fruit trees were so full of fruit that they broke about pretty bad. But I think there will be good fruit. Gee, Joe, I wish I could be at your singing. I went and heard Old Walker sing the other day. You ought to hear him. He is the best I ever heard sing. He just threw back his head and just let it roll out. Old Man Tomson has put him up a gin and a thrasher has just got to work last Saturday. There is some good cotton on his bottom land as I ever seen at this time of the year. Ann, John Fife is riding this circuit this year and our two day meeting comes on the third Sunday and the Saturday before. Come over and be at it and we can talk about singing and sing together. The camp meeting embraces the third Saturday and Sunday in August. There has been the least sickness this year I ever knew, I believe. Some deaths; Bob Hardwick’s wife died last May and Margaret Caner died last Wednesday, both of consumption. I lost my little Liza. Oh it is a hard thing but we have it to bear. Marriages: John Groves married Margaret Tomson, George Hudson married Susan Cox, Roof Gatlin married Margaret Perkins, Noah Duncan married Elizabeth Proctor. So no more, only remains your brother until Death; William Rainey To J. H. D. & Ann Tomson Write soon, you must excuse my bad writing.

Notes on Letter #3 1) Rev. John Fife and his family were recorded in Lagrange, Fayette County, Tennessee in the 1870 census which is located about 12 miles from Middleton. Based his age of 35 in the 1870 census, he would have been 25 years old at the time of this letter. 2) Robert C. Hardwick married Margaret C. Moon/Moore on February 7, 1850 and was listed as a widower with 3 children in the 1860 census in Hardeman County. 3) W. R. Gatlin married Margaret V. Perkins on November 27, 1859 in Tippah County, Mississippi.

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Rainey Letter #4 Hardeman County, Tenn July 20, 186_ Dear brother and Sister; It is a great (pleasure) to take my pen in hand to let you know that I received your letter in due time. The reason that I did not write no sooner, I have been waiting to know what I should do. I was about to go to Texas but we couldn’t get off. I am well and all the connection is well, as far as I know. I hope that when these few lines come to hand that they may find you all well. Times are dull here. It is very dry and hot. Corn and cotton looks like it will die if it don’t rain shortly. There won’t be a support made here all though it is hot and dry. It’s healthy here, there has been no sickness this season. J. H. D. and Ann, Oh I should be so glad to see you one time more. I could tell you so much that has happened since you left here. Our meeting came of last Saturday and Sunday. John Fife was sick, the reason it broke up so quick. I am going to school. We have a good school between thirty and forty students. I haven’t got nothing to write of importance but I want to hear from you. Excuse me for my short letter. Write soon. So no more, only remain you Brother until death. John Rainey To J H D and Ann Tomson

Rainey Letter #5 (On the same piece of paper as letter #4) Dear Son and Daughter It is pleasure that I address myself to you to let you know that I am well at present hoping when these few lines come to hand that they may find you all well. Times is dull. I want to see you all very bad. Tell James Franklin not to forget his grandma. James, learn to write. Frances Elvira is going to school and is writing. Daniel is going. He is writing. Enough of this. I have been in bad health but I feel better. Come and see me for I can’t come to see you. I should be glad to go to see you if could. I haven’t got much to write. Health is good but there is some sickness. Now about I shall close by requesting you to write some more. My Blaylock Ancestry

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Eliza Rainey

Notes on Letter #5 1) Daniel and Frances Elivra were the two youngest living children of William and Eliza Rainey.

Rainey Letter #6 Hardeman County, Tenn This November the 16th, 1860 Dear Brother and Sister I sit myself to let you know that I am well. The connection is well except Ma. She has a felon on her finger. She thinks she will lose the bone from the first joint. I have sold my land. I haven’t sold my stock yet. I can’t tell at this time whether I shall get there this winter or not. I am a going to start to Green County, Arkansas in a week. If I can make the trip, I will come on this winter. The reason that I am going (is) that (I) wrote John “Weeb” Banes my expression for my company. I will go with him and come across the country. I want to see the country from Green County, Arkansas to Jefferson, Missouri. I think there is a good country somewhere between the two. Please turn over on the other side. There has been several marriages; for one Charles McCommon to Ann Stricklin. Several others too many to mention with these words. I will close my epistle. I can’t tell you where to write for I want to start this day west. I remain your friend until death. John Rainey To J. H. D. and A. E. Tomson

Notes on Letter #6 1) A bone felon is an inflammation of the delicate membrane covering the bone. It can occur around any bone but in most cases develops on the last joint in the finger or thumb. 2) Charles W. McCommon married Ann C. Stricklin on October 11, 1860 in Hardeman County, Tennessee.

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Rainey Letter #7 (This letter was written on the same piece of paper as letter #6) Dear Brother and Sister I seat myself to write you a few lines to let you know that we are all well at this time. We have two children one boy and one girl. The youngest 18 months old. I still live at my old place. We would be very glad to see you by the many miles between us prevents. Write to us as soon as you get this. You have never wrote one line to us since you left here and we would be glad to hear from you often. Direct your letters to Saulsbury, Tennessee. So, nothing more at present. Only remains your Brother until death. Thomas Rainey Mr. J. H. D. Thomson & Ann E. Tomson

Notes on Letter #7 1) Thomas and Mary Elizabeth (nee Whitener) Rainey’s first 4 children died as infants. Their two living children in November 1860 were his 5th and 6th children, Sarah E. Rainey born circa 1857 and John S. Rainey born circa 1858.

Rainey Letter #8 Hardeman County. March the 3rd, 1861 Dear Brother and Sister; It is a great pleasure to me indeed to answer a address from a Brother and Sister. I received your letter in due time which gave great satisfaction to hear from you. I have not received a letter from you since Fall. I was glad indeed to hear from you one time more on Earth. This leaves us well with the exception of Daniel. He had a spell of the typhoid fever some five weeks ago and we got it broke up and it has turned to the chills. Neely has been here today. I think he will break them up. Health is generally good. I haven’t got much to write. I haven’t married yet, nor not likely, what of it. I want to see you all very bad. Tell James to not forget me. If I never am permitted to look on your faces again in life, I shall remember you. Look on this and remember me though I am in Tennessee. My Blaylock Ancestry

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So farewell for this time; M. J. Rainey Notes on Letter #8 1) M. J. Rainey was Mary Jane Rainey. 2) Neely was Dr. James Jackson Neely, a physician from Bolivar.

Rainey Letter #9 (Continued on the same piece of paper as letter #8)

Dear Brother & Sister; I take my pen to let you know that I haven’t forgotten you yet. Thinking that you had moved, I did not write. Looking for a letter every day. This leaves me at Pa’s. I have roamed over the wild plains of the west since I last addressed you. I travelled two months last winter. I found the excitement was so high I did not venture north. When I got back to Mississippi I thought I had better come home and wait until the excitement died out. I think I shall try to see you this fall. Don’t think I don’t want to come. You know it was nearly dangerous for one to travel alone. So enough of this. Times is hard here. We have corn planted and fixin for cotton. Wheat looks very nice. Stock is as before. There has been some marriages last winter. John W. Riggs and Martha Proctor locked horns. William S. Whitener and Julie Hopkins did the same and several others that you did not know. People is moving in here every winter, enough about broomsticks and soft goods. I seen several sights on my trip. I am living with Pa. I aint going to make any crop myself. I am engaged to Pa for til October at $12 per month. Our preacher is named Porter. He is a good preacher, I believe. Enough of this without it was better. H. G. Adams and Sarah is living close to where their house was burnt. Sarah has got another heir. For my life, I can’t tell now what it is, a boy or girl and so ends the chapter. Brother, I am as stout as a young man. My weight is 156 pounds. I will look at the girls just like they was pound cake. I love them like sugar and buttermilk. I just could squeeze them as tight as cotton bales. I them til I sleep of a night. If I could kiss one, I could jump as high as anybody. So no more foolishness. Ma says she wants to see you all very bad and says if she could write, she would give you a long letter. I shall close. Excuse my scribbling. Write soon. I am even willing to answer. Yours Truly My Blaylock Ancestry

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John Rainey and M. J. Rainey

Notes on Letter #9 1) John W. Riggs married Martha C. Proctor on March 6, 1861 in Tippah County, Mississippi. 2) William S. Whitener married Julia Ann Hopkins on December 27, 1860 in Tippah County, Mississippi. 3) When this letter was written in March 1861, Henson and Sarah Adams had two children, John W. Adams born circa 1858 and Jane Adams born circa 1860.

Rainey Letter #10 State of Tennessee This June the 22th, 1862 Dear Brother & Sister; It is a great pleasure to write to you again but sorry it is such a time. I am well at present. I hope these few lines may find you in the same state of health. I left home May the 11th, 1862 and volunteered May the 16th in the 1st Tennessee Regiment of Union Volunteers. When I left home, the connection was well but times very hard. I am anxious to hear from you. I haven’t got no connection in this Regiment. There is none of my connection in the Rebel Army and I thank God for it. If I knew these bad wrote lines would come to you, I would write more. Oh, if I could hear from Tess, I would be very glad. I have to close. Oh, write to me. I am in Camps at Nashville. Write soon. Direct to: Nashville, Tennessee, 1st Regiment of the Governor, Tennessee Guards in care of Captain Green, Company F. Goodbye for this time; John Rainey To J. H. D. & A. E. Thompson

Note on Letter #10 1) The name I have transcribed as Tess may be some other name. The original writing appears to be “TaS”. None of John Rainey’s other letters mention a sweetheart by name but Letter #14 mentions that he has received a letter from his sweetheart.

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Rainey Letter Letter #11 (This letter is out of chronological sequence and should have been after Letter #20)

Vicksburg, Miss. August the 3rd 1864 Dear Brother & Sister Your letter of the 21st of July was received yesterday with gladness. I had not heard from you since last spring. I am well & getting along very well. Hoping these lines may find you & family well. I have no War news to write. Times is hard here and the weather very warm. We are camped on the bank of the Mississippi River in the low edge of the town in an open field. You may guess the sun shines hot. There is a heap of sickness. There is some Deaths. You wrote to know the news from the old Country. I do not know much from there. I have not been there in 15 months. Your Uncle Lee was there then and a Rebel at that. Bob Tomson went north. He is in Illinois. I do not know the city nor State. So I will find out and let you know in my next address. Jess Whitley went to Arkansas in the fall of ‘59. I have not heard from him since the winter of ‘61. Newton Tomson was killed in the fall of ‘62 in the fight in Maryland. Henry died at Chicago, Illinois a prisoner of war in the spring of ‘62. Dan Guthrie died the 17th of last August with the bilious fever. He had moved to Illinois. Brother John died the 17th of last September with the consumption of the boils. He served 12 months in the federal Army & then got a discharge & got home but only lived 3 months. He was buried at the chapel. Nancy Tomson had married to a man by the name of Fredrick, I guess Ann made them. She died the 28th of April last with consumption in Memphis. My children died with the typhoid fever as follows: 27th of February, 16th of March, 7th of April. Tommy was taken sick the 10th of March & is sick yet. He had the typhoid fever. It had turned to the Dropsy. I got a letter from Linda yesterday. She was well but Tom was no better. She is in Memphis. Brother Tom and Hens Adams is in Illinois. Mary married to Nat Guthrie. They are in Illinois. She had 1 child but it did not live long. Paps houses was burned by the guerillas after he left. Ann, John Riggs is dead & Isaac Guthrie. They both died with the fever in ‘62. Mrs. Whitener is dead. Betsy Mad is dead. Martha Jeff Guthrie also. They all died in Illinois. Wash Adams is dead. Caroline McDaniel & many others that you know, but I have not time to write their names now. So I will close hoping to hear from you soon. Excuse bad writing and spelling. I ever remain yours truly Brother William Rainey My Blaylock Ancestry

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To Mr. J. H. D. & Ann Tomson Direct as before

Notes on Letter #11 1) Your Uncle Lee was Willoughby Lee Thompson who remained in Hardeman County when many of the Tomson family moved to Missouri. 2) Bob Tomson was Robert L. Thompson, William Rainey’s father-in-law and the father of Newton, Henry and Nancy Thompson mentioned in this letter. Robert L. Thompson was also the first cousin once removed of Josiah H. D. Tomson. Bob Tomson had supported the Confederacy early in the Civil War according to Letter #13. Robert L. Thompson and his family were listed in the 1865 Illinois State census in Washington County, Illinois. 3) Jess Whitley was Rev. Jesse B. Whitley, a Methodist Episcopal South minister. His daughter was mentioned in letter #1. 4) Newton Thompson was Thomas G. Newton Thompson who enlisted in Company F, 2nd Mississippi Infantry Regiment, CSA, on May 1, 1861. He was named to the Confederate Roll of Honor for action at Boonsboro and was killed in action at Antietam/Sharpsburg on September 17, 1862. He was the son of Robert L. Thompson and brother-in-law of William Rainey. 5) Henry L. Thompson enlisted in Company C, 23rd Mississippi Infantry Regiment, CSA, and was taken prisoner at Fort Donelson and sent to Camp Douglas south of Chicago where he died. He was the son of Robert L. Thompson, and brother of Newton Thompson, and brother-in-law of William Rainey. 6) Dan Guthrie was Daniel G. Guthrie, the husband of Nancy Rainey. 7) Brother John was John R. Rainey. 8) Hezekiah K. Fredrick married Nancy A. Thompson on September 23, 1860 in Hardeman County, Tennessee. Nancy A. Thompson was William Rainey’s sister-in-law and daughter of Robert L. Thompson. 9) Linda was Malinda Catherine Thompson, William Rainey’s wife and the daughter of Robert L. Thompson. The three children who died were two girls, M. E. and N. C. Rainey, and a child that was born after the 1860 census. 10) Nat Guthrie was John Nelson Guthrie. The name used in the letter is Nat but based on other spelling errors the name may have been Nate. John Nelson Guthrie signed his letters as J. N. Guthrie. 11) At the end of the war, William reunited with his extended family in Jersey County, Illinois and he and Malinda were counted in the 1865 Illinois State census. Their son Tommy was not listed in that census indicating that he did not recover from this illness. 12) Mrs. Whitener was the wife of Philip B. Whitener, Nancy C. (nee Guthrie) Whitener. 13) Betsy Mad was the wife of Thomas Madison Guthrie, Elizabeth (nee Proctor) Guthrie. 14) Martha Jeff Guthrie was the wife of William Jefferson Guthrie, Martha Abigail (nee Proctor) Guthrie. 15) The last name of Caroline McDaniel could be McDonnell, Mc Donel, McDonnel or McDonald but I have not found anyone named Caroline with any of these last names in the area in the 1860 census.

Rainey Letter #12 Nashville, Tenn Camp A. Johnson September the 5th, 1862 My Blaylock Ancestry

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Dear Br. & Sister It is a great pleasure to me to write to a friend. This leaves me well. I hope these few lines may find you all well. Oh, as our destructed Country is in such a condition. There is no pleasure for me. Oh, I would be so glad to see you. I left home May the 11th, 1862. I haven’t heard a word from there since. I would be glad to hear from home. I left them all well and crying. J. H. D., I looked at the question on both sides til I thought the Union was the best. The Secesh was so bad I thought I would fight them a few. J. H. D., we have two forts nearly built here and some fifty thousand soldiers here. We will fight them if necessary. The war is raging fiercely. I stand the Camps very well. I have tried it near five months and I am in good health at the present. I reckoned you would be glad to know from the rest. All of the connection was at home and well when I left. William volunteered as I wrote to you but never went. I left all the Connection good Union. The neighborhood was all Union but Bill McDaniel. Me and R. D. Grantham & J. M. Goad & N. C. Goad all left home together and volunteered in the First Tennessee Regiment now at Nashville. We have a good Coronel and Captain. Our Captain is named James Jones of Corinth. He was run from home by the Secesh. Our regiment numbers about 7 or 8 hundred men. I can’t write much. This is a bad place to write and you must excuse my bad spelling & scribbling. Write to me as soon as you get these few lines. Direct Thus: Nashville, Tennessee Camp A. Johnson 1st Regiment of Tennessee Volunteers In the care of Capt. Jones Co. F. When this you see, remember me though I am in Tennessee. Sister Ann, I still want to come to see you all. Don’t think you are forgotten. I will close. Write soon. Good bye friends. So remains your Brother until Death John Rainey

Notes on Letter #12 1) R. D. Grantham enlisted in Company F, 1st Tennessee Volunteer Infantry Regiment, USA, on May 16, 1862. He died of disease on December 16, 1862 in Nashville. He was listed in the 1860 census at age 36 with a wife and 6 children. 2) James M. Goad enlisted in Company F, 1st Tennessee Volunteer Infantry Regiment, USA, on May 16, 1862 at Savanah, Tennessee. He was discharged for disability on May 10, 1863 at Nashville diagnosed

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with chronic diarrhea and consumption. He survived his illness and filed for a Union pension on July 13, 1891. 3) Newton C. Goad enlisted in Company F, 1st Tennessee Volunteer Infantry Regiment, USA, on May 16, 1862 in Savanah, Tennessee. The designation of the company was changed to Company G, 10th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, USA. He was promoted to Corporal on October 1, 1863 and to Sargent on March 1, 1864. He mustered out of service on June 20, 1865 in Knoxville.

Rainey Letter #13 Nashville, Tennessee December the 14th, 1862 Dear Brother and Sister, I take this opportunity of writing you a few lines to let you know that I am well and hope these few lines may find you all well. Your letter came to hand the 1st day of December but I taken a chill that morning and I was very sick several days. I have got well but my hand trembles so I can’t hardly write. I have just got a letter from Paps. They was all well the 2nd day of this month. The guerillas was playing there. While they taken 2 horses from Brother Thomas the last of November, they have taken nearly all of the horses in that country. They have pressed a good many in the service. Pap stated that they taken Valentine Treece and James Ray and Nelson Guthrie and taken them south but what they had done with them was not known. They shot at John Ray several times but with no effect. They shot Bob Rose dead in his father’s yard. John Rose and all the rest is Secesh. Lee Tomson, Patrick and Robert Tomson is all Secesh. Newton Tomson was killed in the fight in Maryland. That tall McCarter was killed in the fight at Belmont and one of the McInnis was killed in the fight at Shiloh. That was a awful fight. I saw thousands of the wounded, legs broke, arms, heads and everything else. Lee Tomson’s boy and Henry and Patrick is still in the Army. I got a letter from Brother William the 10th of this month. He was then at Jackson, Tennessee. He is in the 11th Illinois Cavalry, Company I. He stated to me that he had just taken Nancy Tomson’s old man prisoner. That is his brother-in-law. I don’t know whether you ever heard of her being married. She married Hezekiah Fedrick. Ann, I heard from Giles County last fall. Uncle Bill and his boys was all Union. H. L. Sanders had been in the Rebel Army but had deserted and gone home. Brother Thomas wrote to me that he had not slept under his own house roof for three months. You may guess how they live there now. He wrote he was a coming here as soon as the River got up. I suppose that Middleton is burned up. And so I believe I have to give you the particulars from home as far as I know. There

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is some deaths. John Riggs & Isaac Guthrie & Tom King & Wins Blalock & John Grove & Wash Adams & Caroline McDaniel all have died since I left home. Joseph, times look squally for there is a large army here and we are well fortified. Before the Army came from the north here the last time the Secesh tried to take this place but our cannons was too hot for them and they skeedadelled from here. It would take a mighty force to take it. We fare well for soldiers. We are stationed in the State House. We have a fine room to stay in. It has two fireplaces and a carpet on the floor. We have plenty to eat and wear. We are well clothed. I am going to try to go home in next month. I want to see home very bad. Home is the best place that I ever found. I wish that I could see you all. I want to see James Franklin. The opinion of some is that the war will end again Spring. I only hope so for I am tired of the war. This is a bloody sinful war, uncalled for but the ungodly Rebels would have it. Our Army is moving south slowly but there is no particular to write you about the Army. Only the General says he has the Army and he intends to go through this time. I want them to move faster and relieve our country from the tyrants. Paps stated that they was making a Company up to fight the guerillas and he said he expected they would have a hard time of it. I wish I was with them with my gun and cartridges plenty. I would take some of them down if they did not look sharp. There is a gun boat built here for the mail boat as soon as the river rises, and I hope that will be soon. I will have to close for this time for I have to go on duty. Write to me as soon as you get these lines and I will write you the news. I am looking for a letter from Tom now. If you want to write to the old folks, direct to Bolivar, Tennessee. When you address me, Direct thus: John Rainey Nashville, Tennessee 1st Tennessee Governor’s Guard Company F So, no more. Only remain your affectionate brother until death John Rainey To Mr J. H. D. and Ann E. Tomson

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Notes on Letter # 13 1) Valentine Treece was the owner of a large farm valued at $1000 in the 1860 census. He was 52 years old at the time this letter was written and a senior member of the Treece family that supported the Union. His brother, Green Treece, and a cousin served as night hawks or guides for Union patrols. Valentine Treece survived the war and was listed in Union County, Illinois in the 1870 census. 2) James Ray listed in the 1860 census was only 22 years old and appears to be unlike the others mentioned here that were taken south. There was a John M. Ray who owned a large farm valued at $3800 in the 1860 census and was about 56 years old when this letter was written. He has a similar profile to the other men taken south. John M. Ray also had a son named John Ray who was 30 years old in the 1860 census and owned a farm next door valued at $2000. 3) Nelson Guthrie was the patriarch of the Guthrie family. By the time of the 1860 census, he was 72 years old and was living in the household of his son, William Jefferson Guthrie, in Tippah County, Mississippi. It appears that the men taken south were family group leaders. Nelson Guthrie survived the war and was listed in the 1870 census in Tippah County, Mississippi. 4) Bob Rose was listed as age 23 in the 1860 census in the household of his father Benjamin Rose. 5) John Rose appears to be John R. Rose, Josiah Henry Dockery Tomson’s uncle, who was married to Sarah Martha (nee Thompson) Rose. Letters 18 and 21 were written by his children. Letter 18 was written from Washington County, Illinois where the family had gone to escape the violence against civilians. 6) Patrick and Robert Tomson were Patrick H. Thompson and Robert L. Thompson. Both were sons of Amos Garrett Thompson and first cousins once removed of Josiah Henry Dockery Tomson. 7) Newton Thompson was Thomas G. Newton Thompson who enlisted I Company F, 2nd Mississippi Infantry Regiment, CSA, on May 1, 1861. He was named to the Confederate Roll of Honor for action at Boonsboro and was killed in action at Antietam/Sharpsburg on September 17, 1862. He was the son of Robert L. Thompson. 8) Hezekiah K. Fedrick/Fredrick enlisted in Company C, 23rd Mississippi Infantry Regiment, CSA, on September 19, 1861. He was taken prisoner at Fort Donelson on February 16, 1862 and sent to Camp Douglas south of Chicago. He was sent to Vicksburg in an exchange of prisoners where he rejoined his unit around February 1863. He deserted June 30, 1863. Vicksburg surrendered 4 days later. 9) Lee Tomson’s boy was John Henry Thompson. 10) John Riggs was a widower with 1 child living in the household of Thomas Rainey at the time of the 1860 Census of Tippah County, Mississippi. His first wife was Mary Catherine Guthrie. He was married again on March 6, 1861 to Martha C. Proctor and had another child. 11) Thomas King and his family were listed next door to William Rainey’s family in the 1860 Census of Tippah County, Mississippi. 12) Wins Blalock was Winslow F. Blalock.

Rainey Letter #14 Nashville, Tenn January the 18th, 1863 Dear Brother& Sister

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I take this opportunity of sending you a few lines to inform you that yours of the 26th came to hand to day which gave me great satisfaction to hear from you that you was well. This leaves me well. In fact in better health than common. My weight is 154 pounds. I hope these few lines may find you all well. J. D. H., we had a hard fight at Murfreesboro but we gained the day by a heavy loss. On Wednesday, we left here and marched to the battlefield that night. We went to guard the ammunition to the Army. We lay on the battlefield on Wednesday night expecting to go into the fight the next morning but we was ordered back to Nashville to prevent a squad of Cavalry from running on Nashville and so we was marching all the time instead of fighting. We have just got back from a chase after N. B. Forest. We chased him in the rain and snow til we got tired and then came back the 15th instant. The snow is 4 or 5 inches deep now. The weather is very cold at present. Ann, I got a letter from sister, Mary, the 22nd day of December dated the 12th of the same. They was all well but in trouble. The guerillas was doing some mischief in the neighborhood, stealing horses and mules and other things. I will fill the request you made to me a nigh as I can Ann. I will send you my daguerreotype as soon as I can. Ann. you and Joe have yours taken and send it to me. You can get a double case. If I had yours I would not take $50 for it. So I will give you as much satisfaction from Hardeman as I can. James Rose is well, Robert was the one killed. As for Lee’s son, I can’t tell his name. He is heavy set like they are but his name I can’t tell. J. M. Goad says it is John Henry Tomson. John M. & George Tomson is both for the South. Zebadee Bailey is a Rebel. Pitser Miller is a Union man all over. D. G. Guthrie is in the Union service. H. G. Adams is for the Union. Br. Tom is also in the Union service. So I am for Victory or Death. I intend to fight the Reb til the last. J. H. D., I want you to write me as soon as you receive this letter. N. C. Goad is well and with me and J. M Goad is in tolerable health. I want to see the pretty girls in Missouri. If the war will close soon, I am coming to see you. I am going home as soon as I can to see the people. My sweetheart wrote to me the other day and I want to see her so bad that I can’t tell the saga. I will send some lines when I get my likeness taken. So I will close by requesting you write. So remains your affectionate Dear Br. Until Death. John Rainey To: Mr. J. H. D. & Ann E. Tomson When this you see remember me, John Rainey

Notes on Letter #14 1) The Second Battle of Murfreesboro also known as the Battle of Stones River took place December 31, 1862 to January 2, 1863. While Union casualties exceeded Confederate casualties in this battle, the Union prevailed.

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2) In the original handwritten letter, the initials of General Nathan Bedford Forest are difficult to read. He led the Confederate forces at the First Battle of Murfreesboro to victory and continued to use his cavalry to harass the Union Army in Tennessee in the time period of this letter. 3) James and Robert Rose were sons of Benjamin Rose. At the time this letter was written, James was about 10 years old and Robert was about 26 years old based on the ages given in the 1860 census. 4) John M. and George Tomson were John Mace Thompson and George W. Thompson, sons of Amos Garrett Thompson. 5) Pitser Miller was a wealthy merchant in Bolivar, Tennessee. According to legend, Pitser Miller was warned by a Union officer and fellow free mason that the federal army was approaching Bolivar and the courthouse might be burned. As a result, Pitser Miller had a hand in saving the county records which were removed from the courthouse and hidden. Those records survived to the present day.

Rainey Letter #15 January the 30th, 1863 Hardeman County, Tenn Dear Son & Daughter We received you kind letter which was dated the 8th instant which gave great satisfaction. We were glad to hear that you were well but sorrow to learn from your letter which was the first time we had heard from you in 18 months that you had lost 2 of your children. But we believe they are much better off than to be in this troublesome world. These few badly written lines leave us and all the connection well except Nancy. She had another fine daughter & doing tolerably well. We are doing as well as could be expected under the exciting times of war. I hope when these few lines come to hand they will find you all well & doing well. William belongs to the federal Army. He is stationed at Bethel about 30 miles from here. He was here the 2nd of this month & was in good health. We received a letter from him a few days ago & he was still in good health & spirits. I have not much to write of great importance. The health of this Country is not good at this time. The small pox and measles is raging all around us & close to us. The Rebel guerillas are doing much mischief in this country & there is some talk of the Rebels coming back up here but I hope if they attempt it they will be driven back. I have not been molested by the guerillas as yet, but I do not know how soon they may ruin me. Produce is very scarce in this country. Corn is worth from 2 to 4 dollars per barrel. Pork $10 per hundred. Wheat $1.25 per bushel, and there is no flour selling. Molasses from 75 cents to $1 per gallon by the barrel. Sugar 20 cents per pound. I have nothing more that would interest you. I want you to write to me as soon as you get this & give me a history of the way the Rebels treated you & you will greatly oblige. Your affectionate Father-in-Law. My Blaylock Ancestry

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William Rainey

Rainey Letter #16 (On the same paper as letter #15)

My Dear Son & Daughter In filial regard I send you a few words. I would be rejoiced to see you once more on earth but if not on earth I hope we will meet in heaven where parting is no more. Ann, my dear daughter, you have no idea the trouble I have seen since his war began. I do not know when it will be any better. You sister, Mary, will be married next Thursday, the 5th of February, at 3 o’clock if nothing takes place to prevent it. We are all opposed to the marriage taking place at this time on account of the hard times & the uncertainty of Nat Guthrie, her intended husband getting to stay at home. In all probability he may have to leave her in a short time. So no more at this time but ever remains your affectionate Mother until Death. Eliza Rainey N. B., the children all send their best love & respect to you all & Mary says she wants you to be sure to write to her without fail. So good bye You will now direct your letters as follows: Mr. William Rainey Bolivar, Tenn

Notes on Letter #16 1) John Nelson Guthrie married Mary J. Rainey on February 5, 1863 in Hardeman County, Tennessee. The license was dated February 3, 1863.

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Rainey Letter #17 Hardeman County May the 22nd, 1863 Dear Son & Daughter I this day take the opportunity to answer a letter from you under your hand dated April 26 which was gratifying to us to hear that you & family was still in the land of the living & enjoying reasonable health & that you was in a county of peace & plenty for that is more than I can say. It is true that we have plenty to live on but we are not in a land of peace as yet but the time is not far ahead til we will have better times. The guerillas has been molesting us for nearly twelve months in taking horses and money, whatever they could get, til there is scarcely a good horse in the country belonging to a Union man. I had but 2 horses and they taken both of them about the last of January. I did not know what to do for I could not make a crop without horses and that was all the way I had to make a living. Til at length, I concluded to try it again and bought 2 chunk of horses that I thought would do to make a crop with. I went at it but got a late start. I got my crop planted & worked over one time but it don’t look well for the time of year. Wheat looks tolerable well. My family is in tolerable health at present hoping that this may find you & yours enjoying good health. My children has become so scattered that I cannot tell much about them. For D. G. Guthrie has gone to Illinois to get shed of the Conscript law in Mississippi and Tom is living in Bolivar, Tennessee to get shed of the same act. Mary is married & living in Bolivar. She married Nelson Guthrie, Madison Guthrie’s son. William and John both is in the Army. William is now at Chewalla in a Company called the Mississippi Rangers & was well about a week back when I heard from him last. His father-in-law, Bob Thompson, that was a strong Secesh awhile, has joined the same company & is a good Unionist now & is still at Nashville yet. I got a letter from him dated April the 29th stating that he had been very sick but was getting about again. It has been a little over twelve months since John left home & has not been back since. Sarah & Adams is living close by yet & is well & William’s family is at home and is well. I got a letter from D. G. Guthrie dated April 17th which said that there was none of them well & that he was not very well satisfied &that he expected to come back if times became peaceable here which I hope it will for the federals is getting right plenty through here. There is a Company stationed down here on Porter’s Creek at the water station & is scouting through the neighborhood every 2 or 3 days.

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But for all that, I heard of a bunch of guerillas yesterday supposed to be one hundred strong but the truth of it don’t know but it is very evident there is some through the neighborhood. There had been several men killed in the country around about. Mostly Union, there has been but 2 Secesh that I know of. The last murder that has been done was 2 fine boys by the name of Charlie Warren and William Day was taken by a Company of guerillas and hung and shot through the head. But things is changing now for the federals is making the Secesh get down now. Some is slipping off & some that thought they was rich is getting poor. I believe that I have given you a slight sketch of the time in our country & you must excuse me for not writing oftener & more of it for I am getting old & cramps my hand to write. So no more at present but ever remain Your Father til Death William Rainey To J. H. D. Thomson The family all joins in sending their best respect to you all. Farewell for this time

Rainey Letter #18 June 23, 1863 As I have rather written by for a meal… It is the 23rd of June and quite late in the evening. I want to finish writing your’s this week, time enough to send it to Ashley next Saturday. I guess that I shall not have the opportunity of answering Uncle Thomas’s letter this week but I will soon. I have a few words to Cousin Sarah in this one. I can’t tell you what your Aunt Penelope Casey is nor where she is. I think that Joel Lasor was a Union man but I do not know where he is now. Uncle Lee was on his old place the last that I heard from him and the last that I heard from John M. Thompson he was living on Barby Mashburn’s old place and Aunt Nelly and Cousin Fanny was living in a new house that Uncle Thomas G. Thompson had built on his place for Grandmother Rose and Aunt Mary Britt to live in a little bit before the war commenced. You wanted me to tell you who those ladies was that prayed for the destruction of the Union Army. One of them was Aunt Nelly and the other was Marcella Foster. I think that Chamblis Anderson is a Union man. Your Uncle Abram Sellers is a Secesh. I think he and his girls was on his old place the last that I heard from them. I have not heard anything from John W. Casey since I left there. Your Aunt Susan Sellers I think that she was a living on her old place on the other side of Hatchie River and I think that her son Newton was in the Rebel My Blaylock Ancestry

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Army a while though I think that he was home when I came from there. Old Mr. Rigden Howell, I think he was a Secesh. I don’t know what the Caraways are. John Caraway was in the Rebel Army and much talking of going though. I do not know whether he went or not. I think that I have answered all of your questions and I suppose that you will think that about all of the acquaintances there are all Secesh. Though I can tell you a good many of them are just as good Union men as ever spoke. Well Cousin Sarah, you wanted to know what Mr. William Weaver was, he was a Union man and a very good looking one too I think, don’t you and he was in Bolivar on Saturday night before Will left here on Tuesday evening. He was staying in Carroll County, Tenn. then for safety. I have not heard any news from him since. Cal wrote that a daughter of Henry married John Rose in Tennessee but don’t know which. Could be Nellie Lee, Henry’s Eliz niece married Jim Wright. So who is Elizabeth Rose? Cousin Sarah we have had some little singing here though I think that if they had a good teacher they could do a great deal better. We have preaching once a month here though. I think that it does but little good. I think that the people here in this part of the country are all very wicked though they will appear to be very kind friendly people and some of the young men are pretty good looking and if you don’t believe me come and see for yourself. I will come to a close. Give my love to all inquiring friends and accept a share for yourself. Write soon and remember me as your friend. Elizabeth J. F. Rose To her Cousin Green L. Thompson I only take thee and Sarah H. Thompson lines of filling my paper now. Cousin Green and Sarah see if you can fill as much when you write again. We have had a nice rain last night and this morning.

Notes on Letter #18 1) Ashley is a town in Washington County, Illinois where the Rose family went during the Civil War. 2) Uncle Thomas was Thomas Arrington Tomson, Josiah Henry Dockery Tomson’s father. 3) This letter was from Elizabeth Jane F. Rose who was Josiah Henry Dockery Tomson’s cousin and the daughter of John R. and Sarah Martha (nee Tomson) Rose. This letter was originally sent to Green L. Thompson and Sarah H. Thompson and appears to have been shared with their brother, Josiah, who saved the letter. 4) Your Aunt Penelope Casey was born Penelope Sellers and was the sister of Karen Happock (nee Sellers) Tomson who was Josiah Henry Dockery Tomson’s mother. I have not been able to find a marriage record for Penelope to identify her husband’s full name and she appears to be a widow by the time of the 1850 census. 5) Uncle Lee was Willoughby Lee Tomson. 6) John M. Thompson was John Mace Thompson who was married to Clarissa Elisa Norris. 7) Uncle Thomas G. Thompson was married to Sally M. Rose on November 6, 1841 in Hardeman County, Tennessee. Sally M. Rose was the sister of John R. Rose. Grandmother Rose was listed in the 1860 My Blaylock Ancestry

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census as Jerusha (nee Mc Glowhon) Rose age 76 and her daughter, Mary ( nee Rose) Britt, was living with her along with Mary’s son, Lemuel Britt. 8) Your Uncle Abram Sellers was the brother of Karen Happock Sellers. 9) John W. Casey was the son of Penelope (nee Sellers) Casey.

Rainey Letter #19 July 30, 1864 Jerseyville, Illinois Dear Son & Daughter I this evening take the opportunity to drop you a few lines in answer to a letter I received yesterday from you, it being dated July the 21st. This being the 30th of the same instant & it being the only letter that we have had from you in 2 years. We were all very glad to hear from you one time more in this troublesome world. It is not worth my while to try to describe the troubles that we have seen since this unholy war commenced but suffice me to say that a great many of the Union class had to leave their homes and seek a home in the North. Me and all my children are here in Jersey, except William and Ann, that is living. John, poor fellow, is gone from this troublesome world to a world of rest. He volunteered in the Union Army and was in the Army a little over twelve months and lost his health and was discharged and came home about the 27th of June last year and departed the 17th of September. Afterwards, with the evidence that he was a going to rest, it was hard to stand by the bedside and see a dutiful son leave this world. But we have troublesome times now at best and we have to bear them the best way we can. I believe that I hated to leave his silent grave as bad as anything that I had to leave behind me. But, I began to think that if I stayed there that I might lose my life or me and my family come to want. I thought it would be best to get away if I could and so I made the trip safe. I came to Memphis and there took water and came to Alton and then came by land to Jerseyville and is now living about 7 miles from Jerseyville on a three year lease. When that is out, I don’t know what I shall do if I should live, for land is very high here. So much so that a poor man can’t get a home here and leasing is too hard for a man of my age. It looks like there is no hope of the war coming to an end so that we could go back home to our land. For I learned that a few nights after I left, that my houses, corn cribs and stables was burnt up, but if times was peaceable like it used to be, there is timber plenty to build again. The Rebels had left me without horses a time or two besides all the other little mischiefs that they done and they seemed to get worse but murdered none of my family. They did kill several in the My Blaylock Ancestry

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neighborhood. It has broke me up to leave my home but thank God we are all alive and in reasonable health and all the rest of the connection as far as I know. I have not heard from William for about 3 weeks. He was well then. I am looking for a letter from him again. I suppose you have heard of Daniel Guthrie’s death, if not, he departed this life about twelve months back. Nancy and the children is living here close by me and is doing as well as could be expected. You wrote in your letter of the 21st instant that Ann expected to try to come here to see us this Fall. We would be very glad to see her if she comes. I will send her a kind of a waybill. I live about 25 miles from Alton and about 7 miles west of Jerseyville. If you will come up to Jersey Landing, it is only about 12 miles from here and there is a place still higher up the river called Hardin’s Landing that is still nearer. But if you get off at Alton, you will get on the stage and come to Jerseyville and then inquire for Samuel Erwin’s on the road leading to Hardin’s Landing, as I live on Erwin’s land 2 miles west of him near John Seago’s. If you come to Jersey Landing, you will inquire for a little place called Fieldon and then for the Coven neighborhood at John Seago’s. If you come to Hardin’s Landing, you will take the Jerseyville road and inquire for John Seago’s and then you are the closest to where I live. I want you to write as soon as you can and as often as you can. Let us hear how you are getting along and about the time that Ann will come, if she comes at all. You must excuse my scribbling for my fingers is stiff and my hand cramped. So no more but ever remain your Father til Death. 1864 William Rainey To J.H.D. Thompson When you write, direct to: Jerseyville, Jersey County, Illinois

Notes on Letter #19 1) The name of William’s landlord in the original letter is Samuel Ervin but census data shows his name was Samuel Erwin.

Rainey Letter #20 (On the same piece of paper as the last page of Letter #19)

Dear Brother & Sister

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I will write you a few lines to let you know that we are still alive and in tolerable health. We are living in the yard with the old folks. We have been here 13 months. I have no room to write so I must close. You must write us as soon as you get this. Excuse my short letter for I have no more room to write. So no more. We ever remain you Brother til Death. J. N. and M. J. Guthrie To J. H. D. Thompson and Ann

Rainey Letter #21 March the 3rd, 1865 Nashville, Tennessee Dear Cousin; It is with pleasure that I seat myself to drop you a few lines to let you know that I am well at present hoping when these come to hand that they may find you and the connection well and doing well. Well Cousin, it has been so long since I heard from you that I have to write like I was writing to a stranger. But we will try and look over our neglect and try to do better or no worse. Well Cousin, I have gone through the flint mills since I last saw you. I have been where the area was full of lead and smoke since I last saw you and I have suffered the hardship of prison life too. Well Cousin, it is useless to say anything about the hardship that I have undergone. Well Cousin, I can’t tell you much about the old neighborhood, only it is pretty badly destroyed. The connection is all Secessionists and their aim is to destroy all they can and then come and say the Yankees has taken all they have got. They wear (on/out) Union men and they are on suffering and the next you see of them, they are out with their gun and shoot at you from the bushes and then deny having a gun or even being out there. Well Cousin, I could tell the name of some of them but that is too dangerous. All the connection is Rebels that is there pretty much. Cousin, I received a letter from Cousin Daniel F. Tomson last week and he was well and he said that he was under marching orders. He said that he supposed he would go to Chicago. Well, I have said enough. You will please excuse my bad writing and spelling and write as soon as you get this. Direct your letter to Co. G., the 6th Tennessee Cavalry. So no more, only I remain your Cousin until Death. J. W. Rose My Blaylock Ancestry

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To J. H. D. Tompson Write soon and direct your letter to the 6th Tennessee Cavalry, Co. G

Notes on Letter #21 1) James W. Rose was the son of John R. and Sarah Martha (nee Tomson) Rose. He enlisted in Company G, 6th Tennessee Cavalry Regiment, USA, on August 18, 1862 in Bolivar, Tennessee. He was captured in Bolivar sometime between January 15 and July 11, 1863 as records contain several different dates. He was confined at Richmond, Virginia on August 15, 1863, paroled at Richmond on September 28, 1863 and returned by exchange of prisoners on July 21, 1864. While on parole there was some confusion regarding his whereabouts and he was listed as a deserter for a time but those charges were withdrawn when he reported for duty after the prisoner exchange. He mustered out of service on July 26, 1865 at Pulaski, Tennessee. 2) Josiah Henry Dockery Tomson had a younger brother named Daniel Fraser Tomson who was only 15 years old at the end of the Civil War based on his age in the 1860 census being 10 years old. He may have lied about his age and enlisted in Company B, 48th Missouri Infantry Regiment, USA, on August 18, 1864 and mustered into service on October 31, 1864 reporting to be 18 years old and born in Hardeman County, Tennessee. Daniel’s slightlty older brother, James Downing Tomson, enlisted on the same date and in the same Company and was actually 18 years old at the time. Their unit was assigned guard duty at Camp Douglas, a notorious prisoner of war camp south of Chicago. Daniel and James were honorably discharged on March 21, 1865 at Chicago.

Rainey Letter #22 April the 20th 1865 Memphis, Tennessee Dear Brother and Sister Your letter of the 4th instant came to hand in due time. I was very glad to hear from you and learn you was well but sorry to hear you was drafted. I am well as common this morning hoping this note will find you and family. The death of the President caused great excitement here. Various opinions, some thinks it will prolong the war, others believe different. As to my part, I can’t tell. There is something I do know and that is I regret that our noble President fell a victim to the hands of traitors just as the bright morning star of Liberty was beginning to dawn in the horizon. But we must submit to the will of God and trust to the Honorable Andrew Johnson for leader of this great Republic. I think the war will close within 8 months. Mobile is ours and it is reported here in the papers that General Johnston had surrendered to Sherman. If that be true, the war will close soon.

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There is a few Rebels around here. The cars is running to the Wolf River. I just don’t know whether they will go any further or not. I have no news from the old country worth relating. I received a letter from R. L. Tomson. He and family was well. If you want to write to him, direct Ashley Station, Washington County, Illinois. I haven’t heard from Linda since the 5th of this instant. She was well then and all of the connection. I have written all particulars to you so I will close. Hope you will excuse this uninteresting letter and write soon and give the news. My Love and Respects to you and family. I remain your til Death. William Rainey J. H. D. Tomson When this you see, remember me.

Notes on Letter #22 1) Josiah Henry Dockery Tomson was listed in the 1860 census in Cole County, Missouri as Joseph Thompson with Ann and their two children. All were living in the household of his father, Thomas A. Thompson. I have not found any record to confirm that Josiah was actually inducted into the Army. The only record I have found is for a Joseph D. Thompson mustered into Company K, 48th Missouri Infantry Regiment, USA, on September 1, 1864. He was 44 years old and born in White Camp, Tennessee which was about 15 years older than Josiah and not Josiah’s place of birth. It is possible that Josiah was drafted so near the war’s end that he did not get inducted or he may have hired a substitute.

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Rainey Letter #23 Hardeman County, Tennessee November the 25th, 1867 Dear Brother & Sister I seat myself to drop you a few lines to let you know that we are all up. Mother is not very well. She has been sick for some time but she is getting better. We got a letter from you a short time ago. Pap has not had the chance to answer it so I thought I would write you a few lines to let you know that we was not all dead. We are not done gathering our crop yet. We made three bales of cotton and plenty of corn to do us. We have sowed 10 acres of wheat. It looks fine now. We have hogs to make our meat. So I reckon we won’t starve yet. Everything is high here but cotton. It is selling for 12 ½ cents per pound, bacon 20 cents, corn is worth 65 cents per bushel, wheat $2.50 per bushel. Joe, I would like to see you all very much. If I was able, I would come to see you this winter but I am not able. You had better come down and stay all night with us some Saturday night. I will tell you about my June bug. She is so nice I can’t tell you about her in writing. The rest of the family all joins me in sending you all their love, best respects and says they would like to see you all. I will send you my photograph enclosed in this letter. You can stick it up on the gate post to scare the hawks. I would like to have all of yours. I have wrote all I know. Excuse short letter and bad writing and spelling. I will close hoping to hear from you soon. Please write soon. I ever remain you Brother til Death R. E. Rainey To J. H. D. Tomson & family

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Rainey Letter #24 (On the same piece of paper as Letter #23)

Dear Brother and Sister I will write a few lines in answer to the letter that I have been expecting from you for some time. I hope I did not write anything insulting in my letter. If I did, it was not intentional. We are well. I hope that you are the same. I have nothing more to add. I would like to get a letter from you if it is consistent with your feelings. J. N. Guthrie

Rainey Letter #25 December the 22nd, 1867 Jersey County, Illinois Dear Brother-in-Law & Sister Your ever welcome letter of the 7th instant came to hand in due time. We was very glad to hear from you one time more in Life. It has been 18 or 20 months since we heard from you. Before I have written time and again and got no reply. So, I came to the conclusion you had all died or moved to parts unknown to me. This leaves us well and in fine spirits. As to the pecuniary circumstances, we are getting along very well considering however chance. We sincerely hope this note may find you and family in good health and spending this life in gay and gladness. Times is hard here and more scarce provisions. High corn is worth from 90 cents to $1.00-$1.10 per bushel, pork 5 cents to 8 cents per pound, wheat $2.40 to $2.60 per bushel, other things in proportion. The prospects for another crop of wheat is very gloomy. The Fall was so dry the wheat did not come up. There has been some scarce snow and the ground is partly covered now with snow. So the wheat may come up yet and do well. As for a singing class here, I hardly know what to say. Though I think it would pay very well from the fact the people like music very well in this country. I spoke to some of my neighbors concerning the matter and they thought you could do well here and wished me to request you to come. So I want you to come and we will try the subject to perfection. The dire aspersion is the My Blaylock Ancestry

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book, mostly yours here in singing classes. Now please come and don’t disappoint me. Write me when and I will meet you in Jerseyville with my team. R. L. Tomson is living in Washington County, Illinois, Ashley Post Office. You have heard from the South since I have, so it isn’t necessary to relate the last news. When you write me, address: William Rainey, Old Kane, Green County, Illinois Truly Yours W. & M. C. Rainey To: J. H. D. & A. E. Tomson

Rainey Letter #26 Hardeman County, Tennessee December the 30th, 1867 Dear Brother I resume my seat to attend to the pleasant task of writing you a few lines & as much as this leaves us it may find you all enjoying the same blessings of health. This leaves the connection all in good health. I have no news worth drawing your attention. Times is very hard here. Ma says tell you she wants to see you all very bad, James Franklin in particular. I would like to see you all & converse with you awhile. I am the most cheeky girl you ever saw in your life. Just come down and see my potential beau. He is dressed in red & trimmed with green. He is the prettiest fellow you ever saw and I will tell you that I am going to marry the first time Sunday comes in the middle of the week. Then you must come over. I enclose in this my own & Brother’s photograph, though not good ones. My health was very bad when I had it taken. We will send those others picture soon. Please forward yours soon. I will close by saying the family all joins in with me in sending their love to you all. Please reply to my address soon. Good Bye. M. C. Rainey To her Brother and Sister My Blaylock Ancestry

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Joseph H. D. & Ann E. Thompson Excuse my short letter

Notes on Letter #27 1) I have used the words “most cheeky” for two words that appear to be spelled “mos chiekeious” or “mos chicleious” in the original handwriting. This is my best guess at the meaning the writer intended based on my conclusion that she intended to write “most cheekiest”. Another possibility would be the word mischievous. 2) M. C. Rainey is Martha Catherine Rainey who married Elijah Franklin Foster on January 5, 1869, 12 months after writing this letter.

Rainey Letter #27 Hardeman County, Tenn July the 17th, 1868 Dear Brother& Sister I once more set myself to drop you a few lines to let you know we have not forgotten you. Although it has been a long time since I received your letter, you must excuse me for not writing sooner. We are all well at this time. Times is dull here. There has not been any rain for 8 or 9 weeks to do any good. Corn is gone up, that is forward corn. Cotton is small but looks tolerable well. I don’t think I will make corn enough for bread. I want you to write immediately and give the prices of everything in that country and how crops look and what chance there would be to get a home there either by renting or buying. Is that country very thickly settled? I want to know all about it for it looks like a man can’t make a living in this country. The connection is all in tolerable good health. We have a girl at our house born in the last day of January last. She is the prettiest thing you ever saw. Her name is Margaret Ellen. We have just children enough now, a girl and a boy. I believe I have wrote all I know so I will close for this time to hear from you soon. We ever remain your Brother & Sister until Death. J. N. Guthrie & M. J. Guthrie My Blaylock Ancestry

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To: J. H. D. Thomson & Ann At Home Hardeman County, Tenn

Notes on Letter #27 1) John Nelson and Mary J. Guthrie’s first child died as mentioned in Letter #11. The two children living at the time this letter was written were; Charles W. Guthrie born in Illinois in 1865 and Margaret Ellen Guthrie born January 31, 1868 in Hardeman County, Tennessee.

Rainey Letter #28 Hardeman County, Tenn July the 15th 1869 Dear Brother & Sister I seat myself this day to drop you a few lines to let you know that we are not all dead yet. We are all up at present but not very well. Mary has been down in the back and legs but she is at work now. The rest of the family is well. Joe, I have wrote to you since but got no answer. I can’t tell what is the reason. I hope you will answer this letter soon. I sent enclosed in my last letter, Daniel’s and Fanny’s photographs. I would like to know if you got them and if you have, what is the reason you have not wrote? Joe you ought to be here now. There is a protracted meeting in one mile of us tomorrow week & a camp meeting at the same time at Mt. Pleasant. Father Rainey and family is going to it. John Tomson sung at Chapel last Sunday. He has three grown daughters and one son. They are all good singers. Crops look very well now. I am not done laying by yet. I have 3 or 4 days work to do yet. I will tell you about Kit marrying. She married the 5th day of January last. Her man is named Foster. He is a hard working young man. Joe, we would like to be with you, all the family. Just come over to Chapel some Sunday and bring the family and have a singing. Joe, I have had a very bad bone felon on my finger. It drawed my finger down very bad. It has been four months since it come and I have not turned it loose yet. Joe, I will close hoping to hear from you soon. My Blaylock Ancestry

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We remain Yours Truly J. N. Guthrie & family

Notes on Letter #28 1) The photographs of Daniel and Fanny were Daniel G. Rainey and Frances Elvira Rainey. 2) Kit was Martha Catherine Rainey who married Elijah Franklin Foster on January 5, 1869. 3) A bone felon is an inflammation of the delicate membrane covering the bone. It can occur around any bone but in most cases develops on the last joint in the finger or thumb.

Rainey Letter #29 Hardeman County, Tenn November the 7th 1870 Dear Brother & Sister I seat myself this day to drop you a few lines to inform you that I am well at present hoping when these few lines comes to hand they may find you all well. I have not much news to write. Times is hard here. Everything is high here & money scarce. For money, horses is from $30 to $150, cows from $25 to $50, hogs high, bacon 25 cents, wheat $1.60, flour from $8 to $10 per barrel. Everything else is about the same, cotton 23 cents, corn 80 cents. Wages is from $12 to $15 per month. Joe, I would like to know how wages is there & what horses is worth & the prices generally. Joe, give me a waybill to that country. I don’t know but what I will come to that country this Winter & if I do, I want to know how to come. There is a great many moving from this country this Fall going to Texas. There will be 5 families start in about a week. The connection is all well so far as I know. I will close hoping to hear from you soon. Give my love to all the children. I ever remain Brother Cousin til Death R. E. Rainey

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Notes on Letter #29 1) R. E. Rainey was Robert Ellis Rainey.

Rainey Letter #30 (On the same paper as letter 29) Dear Brother-in-law & Sister I will drop you a few lines to let you know that we are not gone by the board yet but very near it. We are all well at this time. You must excuse me for not writing. I will try and do better here after. Joe, Ellis has wrote the news so I have nothing to write. I would be very glad to see you all. I could tell you more than I can write & I would like to hear you tell over some of your ups and downs. Come over and stay all night with us and we can talk just as much as we please. I will close for this time. Write soon & give me all the news. We ever remain you brother and sister until Death J. N. & M. J. Guthrie Hardeman County, Tenn

Rainey Letter #31 Hardeman County, Tenn January the 15th 1871 Dear brother & sister; I have been waiting a long time for a letter from you. I never received one so I will write again. The reason you don’t write, I can’t tell. This leaves us all well. I have nothing to write of importance. Health is good here now. There is a great deal of marrying in this part of the world. I guess it will be my turn after a while. My girl is not grown yet. She only weighs forty to the quarter. So I will wait til she grows a while.

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Joe, I want you to write & let me know what you think a young man can do in that country as I think of coming out there next Fall. Write how everything is & how you think I could do there. Produce is falling some here though its high enough yet. Cotton is very low here this season. Corn is worth $1.00 per bushel, pork 10 cents a pound. I will not write much now as I think I will get a letter from you soon. Write in your next letter how I would come, that is give me a waybill. As Fanny wants to write some, I will close for this time. Write soon & often. Yours Truly; Daniel G. Rainey

Rainey Letter #32 (On the same page as letter #31)

Dear Sister; I seat myself to drop you a few lines for the first time in life. Ann, I scarcely can remember anything at all about you. I only remember seeing you once. You may think I don’t care anything about you but if you do you are mistaken. I can’t tell you how glad I would be to see you all. I think you might come to see us this Summer. We is well as common. Mother is never to say well but she still works very hard. The connection is all well as far as I know. There is nothing carried on here, only parties and weddings. There is no school in this neighborhood at the present. The majority of people here don’t seem to care much for preaching or singing. The Christian order seems to be doing as well as the best of any now. Ann, you can’t imagine how lonesome we are since Pap was taken. If you would come, we could tell you more than we can write. Mother says she wants to see you all very bad and James Franklin especially. I will close for the present. Write soon and often. Excuse bad writing and spelling and bad composed letter for my pen is bad and my hand is cold. Answer this immediately for I am anxious to hear from you. So good bye; F. E. Rainey To Mr. J. H. D. and Ann Tomson

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Notes on Letter #32 1) F. E. Rainey was Frances Elvira Rainey.

Rainey Letter #33 Hardeman County, Tenn February the 9th, 1871 Dear brother & sister; It is with profound gratitude that I seat myself to respond to your kind favor which I received two days ago. I was glad to hear from you for I was beginning to think you was not going to write. This leaves us all well as common. Health is generally good in this country. You wanted to know the reason the connection don’t write to you, I can’t tell. I guess it is neglect. Brother Will is in Illinois. He went back there last Summer to run a thrashing machine & is there yet. R. L. Tompson is in Illinois. There is a great deal of talk about dividing this county. They have run the line three miles north of the M & C RR & is going to call this Bell County. The decision is left to majority of the people on 22nd of this instant. You said Ann was talking of coming to see us. All of you come and I will go home with you next Fall. I aim to come out there then. When you write to me, direct to U bet on the M & C RR. They have got a office at sixty four siding by the name of U bet & it is closer to us than Middleton. Tell Joanna I would like to see her and hear her sing “Maybe I Will Before Long”. So I will close for this time hoping to hear from you soon. Yours Truly; Daniel G. Rainey

Notes on Letter #33 1) Robert L. Thompson and family were living in Richview in Washington County, Illinois at the time of the 1870 census.

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Appendix B - Searching for Blaylocks in Arkansas Who Served in the Union Army in the Civil War In the 1840 census, John Blalock Sr.’s household includes a male child age 10-14 and a male child age 59, both of which would have been of military age at the time of the Civil War. In addition, David C. Blaylock’s Southern Claim #16480 filed on September 10, 1872 states, “I have two brothers in the Federal Army, both lived in Arkansas, one was a preacher and was a chaplain in the Union Army. I do not know to whose command they belonged. One was killed in that service or died there and the Chaplain lived to go home is how we got our information.” I have researched all of the Blaylock/Blalock families living in Arkansas in 1860 in an attempt to identify the brothers of David C. Blaylock. However, I have not been able to confirm that any of the persons living in Arkansas at the time of the Civil War were his brothers. Because I have learned a great deal about the Blaylocks in Arkansas in 1860, I have documented the information that I have found in the hope that this may help someone else researching the family or someone may come forward that his information that I have not been able to find. There are only 5 men named Blaylock or Blalock who are confirmed or alleged to have joined the Union Army in Arkansas Regiments according to the records that have survived. In addition, one man from Arkansas joined an Illinois Regiment. The first is Jeremiah C. Blaylock, the son of William Blaylock that moved from Walker County, Georgia who first enlisted in Co. C, 15th Arkansas Infantry Regiment Northwest, CSA, deserted on January 1, 1863, and then enlisted in Co. K, 2nd Arkansas Cavalry Regiment, USA. The second is William Matthew Blaylock, the son of Charles Blaylock, of Sebastian County, Arkansas who served in Treadway’s Company, Reed’s Battalion, Arkansas Volunteer Infantry Regiment, USA, however this information comes from a widow’s pension application that was not granted because there are no service records for a unit with this designation. William’s brother, Francis Marion Blaylock, first enlisted in Co. B, 17th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, and later was transferred to Co. A, 35th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, and then later enlisted in Co. F, 1st Arkansas Infantry Regiment, USA, as a Sergeant. William and Francis’s brother, Alfred Newton Blaylock, enlisted with Francis in Co. B, 17th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, and later enlisted in Co. A, 35th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, where he was captured by the men of Co. D, 3rd Illinois Cavalry Regiment, USA, took the Oath of Allegiance to the United States and enlisted as a bugler in that company. The last two men to enlist in the Union Army in an Arkansas Regiment were William M. Blalock and his son Joshua of Jefferson County who enlisted on August 18, 1862, in Helena, Arkansas in Co. A, 2nd Arkansas Cavalry Regiment, USA. Unfortunately, the military service records that are available to me at the present time do not include the complete record of service for units from Illinois, Indiana and Iowa. Whether or not another Blaylock from Arkansas joined one of these regiments, I am not sure because I only have access to the index of members from these units which does not include their state of residence and other details. In My Blaylock Ancestry

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addition, I have found pension application records for Union service for men who served in regiments for which no service records survive today. I have attempted to research each of the Blaylock/Blalock males of military age from the 1860 census and I have not been able to identify the brothers of David C. Blaylock who moved to Arkansas and served in the Union Army. The primary source of information is from records at the National Archives and Records Administration. Compiled Union service records consist of cards that record information about a soldier extracted by clerks in the War Department from muster rolls, regimental returns, hospital rolls, casualty lists and other records in order to verify service for pension applications. Beginning in 1890, clerks copied information from original sources onto cards and filed the cards by Company, Regiment and Soldier. This process grouped all records for the same soldier together in a file that allows a researcher to find all existing information about one man. The Compiled Service Records for Confederate soldiers were made by the United States Record and Pension Office in the War department, beginning in 1903. Many records were lost during the war and the files are not always complete but are all of the surviving information available. The Civil War Pension Index does not include all the information available in a pension application but does list the application number, soldier’s name, Company and Regiment of Service, date of application, beneficiary in the event of a widow or mother’s application and certification number if the pension was granted. William Blaylock and His Family Who Moved From Walker County, Georgia In The History of Walker County, Georgia, Sartain states that John Blalock Sr. and Mary Eaton had a son, William, living in Walker County, Georgia in 1850. Because of his age, I suspect that William was John Blalock Sr.’s son from an earlier marriage as I have explained earlier. The William Blalock listed in the 1850 census of Walker County was 48 years old and married to Mary (nee Wilson) age 49. They had the following 10 children: John E., Hugh W., Newton William, James, David, Robert S., Joseph Henry, Caroline, Jeremiah C., and Mary Jane Blaylock. William and his family moved to Pulaski County, Arkansas in 1855, and then moved to Franklin County, Arkansas in 1856 according to Goodspeed’s Biographies for Franklin County, Arkansas. In the 1860 census, William was listed as age 63 in White Oak Township, Franklin County, Arkansas and his name was spelled Blaylock. Following William’s family to White Oak in Franklin County, Arkansas reveals additional information that makes it clear that William was not one of the brothers that David Crockett Blaylock referred to in his Southern Claim. William was listed as age 63 in the 1860 census of Franklin County, Arkansas and would have been too old to join the Army himself. However, many of his children were in the military in the Civil War. His two oldest sons, John E. and Hugh W., joined the 7th Arkansas Militia Regiment, CSA which had been commissioned April 20, 1860. The various state Militias were citizen soldiers who were not fully trained for war. This unit mustered in February and March of 1862 but disbanded in mid-March to allow the members to join regular Army units. After disbanding, Hugh W. enlisted in Co. E, 7th Arkansas Cavalry Regiment, CSA, on March 8, 1863 at Ozark, Arkansas and served through the end of the war but there is no record that John E. Blaylock joined another unit. My Blaylock Ancestry

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William and Mary’s sons, Newton William (who used the name William) and James Blaylock, had moved to Arkansas but there is no record that David moved to Arkansas. They were all old enough to marry and David may have married in Georgia and remained there or he may have died prior to the 1860 census. There are no surviving military records for anyone named David Blaylock/Blalock serving in any unit In Arkansas in the Civil War. Records for Confederate service in Arkansas regiments for J. Blaylock or James L. Blaylock and William Blaylock are for other men. Based on their ages in the 1860 census, William was 32 years old, married and had 4 children at the beginning of the Civil War and James was 23 years old. Both men would have been in the prime age of those men conscripted into Confederate service. William Blaylock’s family was enumerated in 1860 and his widow and children were enumerated in 1880 in Franklin County but they were not enumerated in 1870. There is an age gap between his children for the years 1864-1869 but he and Mary Ann did have children in 1870 and 1872. James Blaylock was enumerated in his father’s household in 1860 but I have not been able to locate him in a later census. Did James or William leave Arkansas to either serve in the Confederate army in Georgia or to avoid military service all together? Because the names William and James are so numerous, I cannot say. I did research Blaylock/Blalock men serving in Georgia and found only one regiment where two men with these names enlisted in the same regiment but they were in different companies and their ranks, dates of birth and birth states were not appropriate to be these brothers. There was also a James M. Blaylock age 38 who enlisted as a 2nd Lieutenant in Co. H and a William C. Blaylock age 19 and born in Pickens County, Alabama who enlisted as a Corporal in Co. L, 1st Alabama Cavalry Regiment, USA, but the ages of these men make it clear they are not the sons of William and Mary Blaylock of Franklin County, Arkansas. While it is possible that William and James left Arkansas and joined a Union Regiment, I have been unable to locate service records in any regiment for men with these names to confirm this happened. William and Mary’s son, Joseph Henry Blaylock, enlisted in Co. K, 15th Arkansas Infantry Regiment Northwest, CSA, on February 15, 1861. His brother, Robert S. Blaylock, enlisted in the same unit exactly one year later. Both were captured in the fall of Vicksburg on July 4, 1863. The loss of Vicksburg gave the Union control of the entire Mississippi River and was considered such a massive defeat in Mississippi that the 4th of July was not celebrated in that state for more than 100 years. Joseph was paroled July 13, 1863 from the hospital and Robert was paroled July 8, 1863 from the field. The parole would require them to sign an oath that they would not take up arms against the Union until exchanged and allow them to avoid going to a prisoner of war camp. After being exchanged, the regiment was consolidated with other depleted Arkansas regiments to form the 1st Trans-Mississippi Arkansas Consolidated Infantry Regiment. Because of the lack of subsistence and forage in Arkansas, the unit was moved to camps around Marshal, Texas until the end of the war. Records for this unit are incomplete and do not include Joseph or Robert. Joseph is listed as a Minister of the Gospel in Randolph County, Illinois in 1870 and in Lawrence County, Missouri in 1880. A Confederate pension application number 1378 was made in 1892 and approved but listed his name as Joseph B. Blaylock of Franklin County. He appears to have moved to Yell County where another pension application number 14173 was made for J. B. Blalock in 1901 and My Blaylock Ancestry

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approved noting he was wounded at Vicksburg and discharged from service on July 30, 1864. He was buried at the Little Rock National Cemetery in the Confederate section upon his death on March 15, 1907. Robert returned home to Franklin County, Arkansas and had three additional children after the war but died prior to the 1870 census and his widow, Agnes, married again in 1871. William and Mary’s youngest son, Jeremiah C. Blaylock, enlisted in Co. C, 15th Arkansas Infantry Regiment Northwest, CSA, on July 28, 1861. He was listed as a deserter on January 1, 1863. In late 1863 at the age of 21, he enlisted in Co. K, 2nd Arkansas Cavalry Regiment, USA, and served the Union army until the end of the war. Many men who had joined the Confederate Army in Arkansas early in the war became disillusioned with the war effort and the suffering and changed sides in the war. Jeremiah married around 1869 and is listed in the 1870 census in Johnson County, Arkansas. William and Mary’s son-in-law, Thomas Carter Steele, Mary Jane Blaylock’s husband, enlisted in Co. D, 1st Arkansas Mounted Rifles Regiment, CSA, on October 30, 1861 at Camp Sevier, Arkansas at the age of 23. He was taken prisoner at the Battle of Chickamauga, Georgia on September 19, 1863 and arrived at Camp Douglas, Illinois as a prisoner of war on October 4, 1863 where he remained until the end of the war. Camp Douglas was located on the south side of Chicago and was known as “Forty Acres of Hell”. Prisoners went without clothing to discourage escape and some were able to cover themselves with sacks. Living conditions were inhumane and Camp Douglas is reported to have had the highest mortality rate of all the Union prisons. Thomas returned home to Arkansas where his family was listed in the 1870 census in Johnson County, Arkansas. In 1877, the families of Jeremiah C. Blaylock and Thomas Carter Steele moved to Grant County, Oregon crossing the country on the Oregon Trail in covered wagons. I have been unable to determine who Caroline Blaylock married. She was old enough to marry in Georgia before the family moved to Arkansas and the marriage records for Walker County prior to 1883 have been lost due to a fire at the courthouse in that year. She may have died, remained in Georgia with a new husband or may have moved to Arkansas but without knowing her married name, it is not possible to determine if she married or died prior to the family moving to Arkansas. At least 5 of William Blaylock’s sons served in the Confederate Army. None of them lost their life in the Civil War. None of the sons were brothers of David Crockett Blaylock but could have been his nephews. It is interesting that Joseph became a minister. In addition, at least one son-in-law served in the Confederate Army. Because of these facts which conflict with David Crockett Blaylock’s testimony that he had two brothers in the Union Army in Arkansas and never mentions a brother whose family supported the Confederacy, it is possible that Sartain has misidentified the William Blaylock in the 1850 Walker County, Georgia census as a son of John Blalock Sr. It is also possible that David Crockett Blaylock did not mention William’s family because it was not in his interest to connect himself in any way with Confederate supporters in his claim for compensation for goods taken by the Union Army in the war. In addition, William appears to have been the half-brother of David Crockett Blaylock and therefore may have been omitted from the claim because he was not a full brother.

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One other possibility is that some of the children in William Blaylock’s household were not his children but were his siblings who had lived in his household since John Sr. and Mary had gone to Walker County, Alabama. None of John Sr. and Mary’s younger children were living with them in the 1850 census. However, the only minister in William Blaylock’s household was Newton William who never served in the Union Army and only Jeremiah did serve in the Union Army but both survived the war. Neither William nor any of the males in his household fit the description given by David Crockett Blaylock for his brothers in his testimony in his Southern Claim application. The Other Blaylock Family in Franklin County, Arkansas in 1860 A second family was living in Franklin County in the 1860 census headed by J. H. Blaylock who had been born in Georgia about 1805. His wife Mary had been born in South Carolina. There were 5 children in the household who had all been born in Georgia with the youngest being 8 years old. So this family came to Arkansas sometime between 1852 and 1860. The children were David P., Joseph, Benjamin, Harriet, and Amanda. Since J. H. Blaylock was born in Georgia in 1805 and John Blalock Sr. did not move his family from North Carolina to Georgia until 1822, none of the members of this family are David C. Blalock’s brother. However, David and Joseph would have been of military age and I have not found any records of their military service. David P. Blaylock married Elizabeth Mustain on October 31, 1861 in Franklin County. On April 7, 1872, Avery Mustain, Elizabeth’s father, filed a Southern Claims Commission application #12918 and as a witness David P. Blaylock testified to his own loyalty to the Union stating he had attempted to enlist in the Union Army but had failed the required physical examination. Joseph and Benjamin were enumerated in the 1870 census with their families in 1870 in Yell County. In 1880, David and his family were in Saline County, Joseph and his family had returned to Franklin County and Benjamin and his family as well as his widowed mother were living in Pope County. The Charles Millington Blaylock Family in Sebastian County, Arkansas Charles Millington Blaylock was born in North Carolina about 1786. He married Philadelphia Kelly who was born in South Carolina. I have not found a record to determine when Charles and Philadelphia were married because marriage records in South Carolina were not considered a civil matter but were kept by local churches, if at all. They were enumerated in the 1830 census in Lancaster County, South Carolina and moved to Pickens County, Alabama around 1835. They moved to Georgia about 1841 and were enumerated in the 1850 census in Lumpkin County, Georgia with the following children; Lucinda, James Leander, Francis Marion, Parrina, Helena Elsma, Alfred Newton, John and a grandchild named Benjamin. They likely were married in the 1805-1815 timeframe and had at least 4 additional children prior to those listed in the 1850 census that had left home by 1850 but were included in the counts in the 1840 census. Philadelphia died prior to the 1860 census. The 1850 census accurately lists the State of birth of each child but all subsequent censuses, when the family was enumerated in Arkansas, listed the State of birth of every child as Georgia. One of these older children was William Matthew Blaylock who patented 80 acres of land in 1860 in Sebastian County and lived next door to James Leander Blaylock in the 1870 census and next door to Francis Marion Blaylock in the 1880 census. One of the older girls was Mary Ann (nee Blaylock) My Blaylock Ancestry

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Strickland who was living in William’s household in the 1870 census and in Francis’ household in the 1880 census. She had married Silas Stricklin in Lumpkin County, Georgia on December 20, 1846. Charles Blaylock’s family moved from Lumpkin County, Georgia to Sebastian County, Arkansas around 1856. While he was too old to be conscripted, his sons James Leander, Alfred Newton and Francis Marion Blaylock were conscripted into the 35th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA. Alfred’s twin brother John may have died prior to the war because there is no record that he was conscripted or served in any capacity on either side in the war. All three conscripted Blaylocks deserted the Confederate Army by the end of September, 1863. William Matthew Blaylock patented 80 acres of land in 1860 in Section 15, Township 6 North, Range 31 West in Sebastian County with patent numbers 3675 and 5808. The patent number 3675 for 40 acres was cancelled leaving him with 40 acres. William’s original cabin built about 1848 was restored by the Sebastian County Historical Society in 1996. Based on this information from the historical society, William moved to Sebastian County around 1848 which was about eight years before Charles arrived with the remainder of his family. His home was used as a school and as a first aid station in the Civil War. This cabin is referred to as the Vineyard Cabin named after the family that donated it to the Sebastian County Historical Society.

William Matthew Blaylock’s Restored Cabin William was listed on the roster of the Co. E, 51st Arkansas Militia Regiment, CSA, dated May 29, 1862 as a Corporal. This regiment was a State Militia unit formed in Sebastian County and mustered March 4-14, 1862 before being disbanded to allow the members to join the regular army. State Militia units often existed to provide local citizen protection and the members generally had no formal military training. My Blaylock Ancestry

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William may have been exempt from conscription at the beginning of the war because he was about 38 years old when the war began. In addition, William was one of the first teachers in Sebastian County and may have been exempt from conscription because of his occupation. However, the conscription of his three younger brothers may have encouraged him to join Treadway’s Company, Reed’s Battalion, Arkansas Volunteer Infantry, USA, where he served with the rank of Sergeant. There are no records available to me which detail the period of service for William M. Blaylock in this unit in the Civil War. However, William survived the war and died in Greenwood, Sebastian County, Arkansas on May 6, 1887. His widow, Rachel, filed a pension application number 525,080 on March 3, 1891 for his service to the Union Army in this unit however no record of this unit exists and the application was not granted. James Leander Blaylock patented 40 acres in Section 15, Township 6 North, Range 31 West and 80 acres in Section 22, Township 6 North, Range 31 West in Sebastian County with patent numbers 4140 and 6132. He was conscripted into Co. D, 35th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, on June 27, 1862 at Greenwood, Arkansas at the age of 28 and was elected 5th Sergeant. He was reported absent without leave December 26, 1862 and demoted to Private in absentia by April. After deserting from the Confederate Army, James attempted to enlist in the Union Army but was rejected due to health issues. James was a witness for Lemuel B. Howard in his Southern Claims Commission application number 13129. A portion of James’ testimony reads: “I was with him in the conscript service and claimant was always regarded as a Union man and was to my own knowledge punished for so expressing himself. I deserted the same regt. and company, going north within the Federal lines and offered to enlist as a soldier, but was rejected by the Surgeon on account of affliction of my eye and inclining to be consumptive. I worked for the government of the U.S. as a blacksmith as I was able at different times, some 8 or 9 months in all.” James L. Blaylock Sworn and subscribed to before me this 21st day of October A.D. 1872 Lemuel B. Howard provided this testimony regarding his conscription: “I was threatened before I was conscripted that if I did not go into the service I would be hung. I don't now remember who by but it was by a good many and quite frequently.” “Sometime in July 1862, one Captain McCord at that time stationed at Greenwood Ark. sent word to me to come in on a certain day and report to him. I came in and reported to him, he told me I would have to go into a company then being organized at Greenwood. I was sworn in and went with the company to Ft. Smith where we remained about a month where we were mustered into the service in King's regiment of conscripts. We went to Fayetteville and was in the Prairie Grove fight. After which when the Regt. was on the march for Helena Ark. and when in Franklin County Ark. some ten miles from Roseville, I deserted and came home.” “I went out in July and got home in Dec. 1862. When I started for the Federal lines and arrived in Fayetteville, Ark about the 8th of January, at which place I enlisted in "I" Co. 1st U.S.V. Cav. in

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which Co. and Regt. I served until the close of the war when I was mustered out of my regt. sometime in August 1865.” “After I left home the rebels robbed my father’s house and destroyed his property and frightened the women, so they left their home.” Lemuel B. Howard Sworn and subscribed to before me this day of October A.D. 1872. James also testified in the Southern Claim’s Commission case of John G. Robbins, claim #9045 regarding his own caution about discussing his Union support: “I lived about two miles from claimant and saw him as often as once a month. I don’t remember of conversing with claimant about the war. I was an adherent of the Union cause and was so regarded by claimant. I know that claimant voted the Union ticket and am satisfied that he always was a true Union man but I was always very cautious about conversing with anyone as at that time, as a man might portend to be one thing today and another tomorrow and it was very difficult to tell who to place confidence in.” James L. Blaylock Sworn and subscribed to before me this 13 day of December A.D. 1872 th

John G. Robbins described his evasion of Confederate service in his claim testimony: “I took the oath one time when I was arrested and conscripted into the rebel service. This was about the latter part of 1862 in Sebastian County, Arkansas. A party of men came to my house and arrested and took me to Greenwood, Arkansas where I was guarded in a house overnight. And in the morning, I was told to take my choice of either to be sworn in the service as a rebel conscript or be hung. And it was under these conditions that I took the oath.” “I then took the oath and the same day, making an excuse to go home for my clothes, succeeded in getting a pass to go home and when there, I lay out in the brush some 12 or 14 months and managed to escape after that so that I never did any service.” “I was threatened with damage to my person, family and property on account of my Union sentiments. When I was laying out in the brush, they came to my house and told my wife if she did not stop sending myself, and others who were laying out with me, something to eat that they would hang her. These threats were made by Captain Martindale. Then I had my house robbed of nearly everything.” “I was laying out in the woods to avoid being conscripted in the rebel service and in the year of 1863 sometime in the month of September, as soon as I heard the Federals occupied Fort Smith, I went in and was employed as a scout by the U. S. Government.” John G. Robins Sworn and subscribed to before me this 24 day of November A.D. 1872 th

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James named his first son Ulysses S. Grant Blaylock. His family was listed in the 1870 census in Sebastian County but I have not been able to locate any member of his family in any record after that date. Francis Marion Blaylock enlisted in Co. B, 17th Griffith’s Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, on October 20, 1861 at Ft. Smith, Arkansas. He was reported as a deserter west of the Mississippi River on April 25, 1862 but was returned to duty. He was transferred to Co. A, 35th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, on June 12, 1862 as a Private. On September 1, 1863 he was reported absent and deserted to the enemy. On September 10, 1863, he enlisted in Co. F, 1st Arkansas Volunteer Infantry Regiment, USA, at Ft. Smith, Arkansas with the rank of Corporal and was promoted to Sergeant May 2, 1865. He applied for an invalid pension number 707,659 in 1908 and died April 27, 1909 in Greenwood, Arkansas. His wife, Darthulia, received a pension number 689,908 until 1924. Francis also testified in the Southern Claims Commission application for Lemuel B. Howard and part of his testimony is as follows: “I joined F Co. 1st Ark U.S.V. Infty. on the 10th day of Sept. 1860, in which regt. I served until the close of the war.” F.M. Blaylock Sworn and subscribed to before me this 14th day of October A.D. 1872 Alfred Newton Blaylock enlisted in Co. B, 17th Griffith’s Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, on October 20, 1861 at Ft. Smith, Arkansas, as a Private. He was reported as a deserter west of the Mississippi River on April 25, 1862 but was returned to duty. He was transferred to Co. A, 35th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, on June 12, 1862 at Ft. Smith, Arkansas, and promoted to 3rd Lieutenant on August 12, 1862. On October 11, 1862 he was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant. He was reported deserted on September 10, 1863, at Little Rock, Arkansas. His obituary in the Greenville Advocate of February 3, 1910 states that he was captured by the Union Army and took the Oath of Allegiance rather than becoming a prisoner of war and then joined the Union Army. He enlisted in Co. D, 3rd Illinois Cavalry Regiment, USA, on October 11, 1863 in Little Rock, Arkansas with the rank of Private. He mustered out of service from Co. E, 3rd Illinois Cavalry Regiment, USA, on October 10, 1865 at Ft. Snelling, Minnesota. He served as a trumpeter. He was granted a disability pension number 204,878 on June 5, 1975, certificate number 536,279. After the war, he moved to Montgomery County, Illinois and became a farmer and a Baptist Minister. He built a church at Sorento, Illinois about 1905 and died January 22, 1910 in Bond County, Illinois. Alfred Newton Blaylock had a twin brother named John. A man named J. H. Blaylock enlisted in Co. A, 11th and 17th Consolidated Regiment, Griffith’s Arkansas Infantry, CSA, on March 16, 1863 at Benton, Arkansas in Saline County. It is possible that he was Alfred Newton Blaylock’s brother. While James Leander Blaylock stated that he was conscripted into service against his will in June 1862 and Francis Marion and Alfred Newton were conscripted in December 1862, if J. H. Blaylock was their brother John, he was able to avoid Confederate service until March 1863. While James was in Co. D, and Francis and Alfred were in Co. B, John may have been placed in Co. A because of the need for men at the time he enlisted. He was taken prisoner on June 11, 1863 on the Jackson and Clinton Road and sent to Port Hudson, Louisiana. On June 21, 1863, he was sent from Port Hudson to New Orleans. There are no My Blaylock Ancestry

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other records of his service. It is interesting that James had deserted prior to J. H. Blaylock’s enlistment but Francis deserted September 1, 1863 and Alfred deserted September 10, 1863. Perhaps if J. H. Blaylock was their brother John, his capture and being a prisoner of war impacted their decision to desert. I have not found any evidence that John survived the Civil War or was in any census after 1860. I researched the Blalock/Blaylock families living in Arkansas in the 1860 census and searched for J. H. Blaylock in Saline County because Benton where he enlisted is located in that county. The only family from Saline County listed in the 1860 census was Daniel Blalock and J. H. Blalock was not listed there. William M. and Joshua F. Blalock of Jefferson County, Arkansas William M. Blalock and his family were living in Marietta in Cobb County, Georgia in 1850 which is now a suburb of Atlanta and is only about 25 miles north of the site where John Blalock Sr. was said to be living in the 1830 census. William’s widow, Elizabeth Blalock, filed a Union pension application #152,050 on September 6, 1867, which was approved with certificate #126,109. This pension application contains information which eliminates William M. Blalock as a possible brother of David C. Blaylock. William M. Blalock was born in Haywood County, North Carolina about 1818. He married Elizabeth Weaver on February 7, 1841, near Clarksville in Habersham County, Georgia. They had five children: Mary Elizabeth, Joshua F., Margaret, Martha Malinda, and William, before moving to Arkansas. Some of the children were born in Cobb County and some were born in Habersham County. William M. Blalock and his family moved to Jefferson County, Arkansas near Pine Bluff where he purchased 200 acres of land on March 1, 1860 under patent #9353. William M. was 45 and Joshua was 18 when they enlisted in Co. A, 2nd Arkansas Cavalry Regiment, USA, on August 18, 1862, and reported for duty in Helena, Arkansas. Sanitary conditions in the camps were poor and it is said that more men died in the Civil War from illness than from combat. Both William M. and Joshua became ill and were listed in the hospital in the Fall of 1862. While Joshua recovered by March of 1863, William M. contracted chronic diarrhea and died in the hospital in Helena, Arkansas on December 14, 1862. Joshua survived the war, was discharged June 26, 1865 at Memphis, Tennessee, and was listed as a farmer on subsequent censuses in Jefferson County. He filed a pension application #1,200,165 and was granted the pension with certificate # 1,054,912 for his service in the 2nd Arkansas Cavalry Regiment, USA, and died February 22, 1916 in Jefferson County, Arkansas. The Process of Elimination Using the 1860 census, I have researched each of the Blaylock/Blalock males of military age. In some cases, individuals can be eliminated from being considered the brothers of David C. Blaylock because of information about their service in the Civil War for the Confederacy. They may have mustered out of service at the end of the war from a Confederate Regiment or may have been disabled or killed while in service.

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The Other Sebastian County Man Named Blaylock On March 1, 1860, Matthew G. Blaylock was issued land patent number 5365 for 40 acres in Section 19, Township 6 North, Range 29 West and on May 1, 1860 he was issued land patent number 5449 for an additional 40 acres in Section 20, Township 6 North, Range 29 West which adjoined his first patent. He was born in Georgia in 1838 and has no known connection to the family of Charles Millington Blaylock who were living in Pickens County, Alabama in 1838. Both families moved to Sebastian County, Arkansas independently. Matthew G. Blaylock enlisted at the age of 23 in Co. A, 2nd Arkansas Mounted Rifles Regiment, CSA, on July 18, 1861 at Bentonville, Arkansas. He was wounded in the arm at the Battle of Chustenahlah, Indian Territory on December 26, 1861 and discharged due to disability on April 28, 1862. In late 1863, Gunter’s Battalion, Arkansas Cavalry, CSA, was formed and index records indicate that Matthew served as 2nd Lieutenant in this unit and in Co. D, Woosley’s Battalion, Arkansas Cavalry, CSA, as part of Price’s Army in the failed Missouri Campaign in 1864. It appears that these two battalions were the same unit that was initially under the command of Lt. Col. Thomas M. Gunter and became Woosley’s Battalion when command was passed to Maj. James Woosley who had originally been second in command. Detail service records are not available to me to determine the specific dates of service for Matthew and information about the activities of these units is very limited. Matthew’s Arkansas Confederate pension application number 11590 was made in 1908 and approved. He died August 24, 1911 and his widow, Catherine, received a pension based on his service in the Confederate Army. Daniel Blalock of Saline County, Arkansas Daniel Blalock arrived in Arkansas in the middle of 1850 based on the birth date and birth place of his son given in the 1850 census. Because of inconsistencies in Daniel’s age between the 1850, 1860 and 1870 censuses, he was born between 1826 and 1830 in Georgia. His wife, Minerva, had been born in Georgia about 1830. They had 3 children but Minerva died before the 1860 census. His oldest child, John M., was born in Alabama in February, 1850, but by the time of the census in November, 1850, the family had moved to Saline County. Their other 2 children were born in Arkansas, William W. about 1853 and Mary E. about 1855. He married a second time on September 11, 1861, to Margaret Elizabeth Wills. Daniel and Margaret had 9 children but he died prior to the 1880 census. There is no record of any military service for Daniel even though he was in his middle 30s at the time of the Civil War. Daniel may have had an injury or disability that prevented him from serving in the military. He was living at the time of the 1870 census but died before the 1880 census. No widow’s pension application was made that would provide information about any possible military service by Daniel. There are parallels between Daniel and John Blalock Sr. in terms of where they lived at the time of each census. Daniel was born in Georgia at a time when John Blalock Sr. and his family lived in Georgia and Daniel’s son, John, was born in Alabama around the time that John Blalock was living in Walker County, Alabama. However, I have found no evidence that Daniel ever served in the military and there is no My Blaylock Ancestry

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evidence that he was ever a minister which eliminates him as a possible son of John Blalock Sr. based on David C. Blalock’s testimony. James Blalock of Conway County, Arkansas James Blalock was born in Georgia circa 1836 and married Martha Garrison in Chattooga County, Georgia on July 8, 1855. James and Martha moved from Georgia to Conway County, Arkansas by the time of the 1860 census. By 1866, James had died and Martha married Thomas Sledge on February 11, 1866. However, the fact that James moved to Conway County, Arkansas from Chattooga County, Georgia between 1855 and 1860 could be important. While his age fits with the information in the 1840 census for John Blalock Sr.’s household, I have not been able to locate James in the 1850 census and he was not living with John Sr. and Mary in Walker County, Alabama at the time the census was taken there. This information fits testimony by David C. Blaylock regarding his brothers in the Southern Claim he filed for goods taken by the Union Army except that I have not been able to find a specific record that this James Blalock served in the Union Army in the Civil War. On June 18, 1862, 115 men from Conway County organized Co. F, 36th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, at Ft. Smith, Arkansas. James was not on the original roster of this unit but enlisted at Camp Hope on September 23, 1862. He only appears on the September 1862 muster roll. A total of 151 men eventually enlisted in this company. James may have been conscripted into service since he joined the unit several months after it was organized or he may have been unable to accompany the other men from Conway County to Ft. Smith when they left and perhaps he joined the unit later as a result. Camp Hope was an assembly area for regiments from Arkansas and Texas with over 20,000 soldiers near the town of Austin, Arkansas. In the Fall of 1862, the soldiers at Camp Hope fell victim to measles, typhoid fever, mumps and other diseases that were fatal to some 1,500 men. The commander of the Camp, Brigadier General Allison Nelson, died of typhoid fever on October 7, 1862, just a few days after he was promoted and the camp was renamed in his honor. James may have died of disease at Camp Hope. The graves were located in the surrounding countryside and efforts in 1905 to establish a formal burial ground located 428 original graves that were opened and reinterred at the current cemetery location. It is also possible that James deserted before he was struck by illness. Co. F and Co. I of the 36th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, were both formed by men from Conway County and both were disbanded due to a high rate of desertion. On August 19, 1863, Captain Hamilton B. Wear, who was commander of Company I, was court martialed for encouraging desertion and plotting to steal the regiment’s payroll before deserting himself along with several others involved in the plot. The plot was discovered before it could be put into action and Captain Wear served a light sentence of 4 months confinement at Camp Bragg, Arkansas. He was discharged from the Confederate Army on December 29, 1863 and took the Oath of Allegiance to the United States three weeks later. If James did not die at Camp Hope but deserted in order to join the Union Army early in the war, he would have enlisted in a northern State. There are at least 5 men named James Blaylock/Blalock that My Blaylock Ancestry

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served in the Union Army in the Civil War, but none of them were James Blaylock from Conway County. These five men were: 1. James Blaylock who enlisted in Co. G, 66th Ohio Infantry Regiment, USA, can be eliminated from consideration because he survived the war and filed for a disability pension #378,560 on June 15, 1880 which was granted with certificate #244,140. Upon his death, his widow, Mary J. Blaylock, filed a widow’s pension application #744,518 on July 5, 1901 which was granted with certificate #540,824 and paid until her death on June 12, 1918. 2. James A. Blaylock who enlisted in Co. F, 51st Missouri Infantry Regiment, USA, can be eliminated from consideration because he was born in Owen, Indiana and survived the war. He filed for a disability pension #979,275 on September 1, 1890 which was granted with certificate #820,175. 3. James M. Blaylock enlisted as a First Sargent at the age of 38 on September 18, 1863 in Co. D. 1st Alabama Cavalry Regiment, USA, at Glendale, Mississippi. He was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant on July 1, 1864 at Rome, Georgia and his age was recorded as 30 years on the muster roll for July 27, 1864. On the September-October 1864 muster roll, he was transferred to Co. H. and in November-December 1864 he was transferred to Co. G. On April 23rd, 1865, James was ordered to join the Headquarters U. S. Forces Command at Raleigh, North Carolina. On June 21, 1865, he was granted a 20 day leave of absence to go to his family after he made his case, “I have not seen my family for nearly two years. And have it from positive authority that they have been stripped of all they had to live on and by our own Army too. (General Wilson’s Cavalry) It is absolutely necessary that I go to their relief.” Wilson’s Cavalry Corp was led by Brig. Gen. James H. Wilson who commanded a raid through Alabama and Georgia in March-April 1865 to destroy Confederate manufacturing facilities. Wilson’s Raid destroyed most of Alabama’s arms manufacturing including the arsenals at Selma and Eufaula, Alabama and ended with the capture of Columbus, Georgia. This information is evidence that James M. Blalock and his family lived in the path of Wilson’s Raid. County Road 17 in Winston County is named Yankee Trace because it was one of the routes used by Wilson’s Cavalry through Alabama. The Southern Claims Commission files contain claims from Winston County citizens for goods taken by Wilson’s Cavalry between March 24 and March 26, 1865. The only James Blalock in the 1860 census of Alabama was in Winston County, Alabama. He was born in Tennessee, had a wife and 5 children, and owned a large farm valued at $1000. These facts eliminate James M. Blalock from possibly being the James Blalock from Conway County, Arkansas. 4. James W. Blaylock enlisted in Co. D, 8th Arkansas Cavalry Regiment, USA, on July 8, 1862, mustered out of duty at Russellville, Kentucky, on September 23, 1863, then enlisted in Co. A, 12th Kentucky Cavalry Regiment, USA, and was promoted to Sergeant in Co. I, 16th Kentucky Cavalry Regiment, USA. He survived the war and mustered out of service at Louisville, Kentucky on August 23, 1865. He was born in Caldwell County, Kentucky. James returned to Caldwell County after the war and applied for a pension #538,489 on April 27, 1885 which was granted with certificate #439,559. His widow, Sarah, applied for pension benefits #796,569 and was approved with certificate # 579,299. These facts eliminate James W. Blaylock from possibly being the James Blalock from Conway County, Arkansas. My Blaylock Ancestry

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5. James H. Blalock served in Co. G, 154th Illinois Infantry Regiment, USA, but the only available record to me at the present time is his service index record which provides no details of his service. The 154th Illinois Infantry Regiment, USA, was formed at Camp Butler on February 21, 1865 and mustered out of duty at Nashville, Tennessee on September 29, 1865. While this unit did not participate in any battles, there was a significant loss of life due to illness and exposure. James’ widow filed a pension application #450,750 on August 1, 1890 which was approved with certificate #397,460 but the index card for her application does not include her name. She would not have remarried after James’ death and before filing the application meaning that this James Blalock is not the James Blalock from Conway County, Arkansas whose wife did remarry. All of the men named James Blaylock/Blalock who are known to serve in the Union Army in the Civil War can be eliminated from being James Blalock of Conway County, Arkansas and as a result, I have found no evidence that he served in the Union Army. Blalocks in Carroll County, Arkansas Joseph A. Blalock was listed Carroll County, Arkansas in the 1860 census at age 37 born in Alabama and in the 1870 census at age 48 born in Kentucky. Joseph and his family were listed in Taney County, Missouri in the 1850 census. Joseph had two sons born in Arkansas. John S. Blalock was listed in the 1860 census as age 17 years old and James M. Blalock was listed as age 11. I have not found any records for military service for any member of this family in the Civil War. There is a John S. Blaylock that served in Co. C, 47th Missouri Infantry Regiment, USA, but he was born in Perry County, Missouri, reported his age as 27 when he enlisted on August 20, 1864 at Pilot Knob, Missouri and was listed in the 1860 census in Perry County, Missouri with his wife and child. James M. Blalock survived the war and married Lucy Boyd on August 25, 1870 in Carroll County. Another James Blalock was listed in the 1860 census in Carroll County, Arkansas at age 42 born in North Carolina. He was working as a hired hand for Lorenzo High. He would have been old enough to be exempted from conscription into military service. He is not any of the men named James Blalock that have available Union service records. William S. Blaylock was born in Illinois about 1831 and enlisted in Co. K, 16th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, on November 7, 1861 at Carrollton. He deserted in Benton County, Arkansas on February 17, 1862. I have not found any other records indicating any further military service for William and he appears to have died prior to the 1870 census because he is not listed in the household with his wife Elizabeth and their children in 1870. His children were too young to serve in the military during the Civil War. Jeremiah Blalock in Craighead County, Arkansas Jeremiah Blalock was listed in the 1860 census at age 30 born in Tennessee. He enlisted in Co. I, 30th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA on July 2, 1862 in Jonesboro, Arkansas but no other records exist regarding his military service. His children would not have been of age for military service in the Civil War. The family moved away from Craighead County before the 1870 census. Since he was born in Tennessee, there is no known connection to David C. Blaylock. My Blaylock Ancestry

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George Blaylock’s Family in Sevier County, Arkansas George Blaylock and his family were in the 1850 census in Carroll County, Mississippi, in the 1860 census in Sevier County, Arkansas and in the 1870 census in Yell County, Arkansas. They had lived in North Carolina prior to 1843 and had moved to Tennessee briefly before moving to Mississippi about 1848. George Blaylock was 47 years old at the time of the 1860 census and his family had been in Arkansas about 1 year when that census was taken. He was old enough to be exempt from conscription. Based on his age and the fact that he lived in North Carolina until 1843, George was not David C. Blaylock’s brother. His son’s, Garret/Jarret and Albert were of military age when the Civil War began. They had been born in North Carolina and were in the Blue Bayou Township in Sevier County on July 18, 1860 when they were enumerated in the census. Jarret Blaylock enlisted in the Davis Blues which became Co. F, 5th Arkansas Regiment State Troops, a militia unit formed in Nashville, Arkansas on June 18, 1861 for a term of 3 months. This regiment joined forces with Price’s Missouri State Guard and while encamped at Wilson’s Creek on August 10, 1861 the combined forces were attacked by a Union force under the command of Brigadier General Nathaniel Lyon. The battle lasted 6 hours and resulted in the death of Brigadier General Lyon, the first General officer killed in the Civil War, and 536 other men along with 2,000 wounded. This battle was considered a Confederate victory after which, the 5th Arkansas Regiment State Troops returned to Arkansas and disbanded when the 3 month term of enlistment expired allowing the men to join regular Army regiments. Many men from this company joined Company G, Dawson’s 19th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, but Jarret’s name is not on any of the rosters. He may have died at Wilson’s Creek or have been severely wounded preventing him from further military service but there is no casualty list to confirm this. The service record cards for Albert Blaylock in Co. B, 19th Dawson’s Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, have been listed under the name C. A. Blaylock and E. A. Blaylock and combined into one file. Albert was listed as age 18 when he enlisted. The records for C. A. Blaylock document he enlisted at Center Point on February 1, 1862. One record for E. A. Blaylock indicates he enlisted on October 18, 1861 at Center Point however a different record states that he enlisted on February 8, 1862 in Pike County, Arkansas. Center Point was located very near the county line between Sevier County and Pike County before Howard County was formed in 1873 where Center Point is now located. The record that lists the enlistment date as October 18, 1861 appears to be a clerical error where the date the regiment was initially formed was entered instead of Albert’s actual enlistment date. The service record cards in the file appear to suffer from clerks trying to interpret handwriting on lists prepared elsewhere and summarized on cards in the file. There is a card for E. L. Blalock listing him on a roster of Confederate troops captured at Fort Hindman, Arkansas Post, on January 11, 1863. There is a card for E. A. Blalern listing him on a roll of prisoners of war at Camp Douglas, Illinois on February 8, 1863 and captured at Arkansas Post on January 11, 1863. There is a card for E. A. Blulorn stating that he was captured at Arkansas Post on January 11, 1863, paroled at Camp Douglas, Illinois on April 2, 1863, and delivered to My Blaylock Ancestry

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City Point, Virginia on April 10, 1863. There is a card for the muster roll of April–June, 1863 listing C. A. Blaylock present and due commutation money for 2 months and 6 days. This appears to be money to pay expenses for him to travel from City Point, Virginia to rejoin his regiment in the field. Lastly, there is a card listing E. A. Blaylock on a casualty list in the Battle of Chickamauga for September 19-20, 1863 stating that he was mortally wounded in the thigh. Lewis/Louis Blaylock of Johnson County, Arkansas Lewis Blaylock was born in North Carolina on December 27, 1818. At the time of the 1850 census, he was married to Lucy, had two children and was living in Johnson County, Arkansas. He was listed in the 1860 census as 42 years of age and born in North Carolina. He would have been old enough to avoid conscription into military service until the very near the end of the war. However, he joined Co. B, 10th Arkansas Militia Regiment, on February 22, 1862 but the unit was disbanded on March 19, 1862 to allow the members to enlist in regular Army units. He subsequently enlisted in Co. C, Jackman’s Regiment, Arkansas Cavalry, CSA, also known as Jackman’s Regiment, Missouri Cavalry, CSA. Records for this unit are extremely incomplete but volunteers from both Arkansas and Missouri joined this regiment. The unit did engage in the Battle of Mine Creek as part of Price’s Army on October 25, 1864 but it also operated as an independent guerilla unit in Missouri for much of the war. Lewis survived the war. He was listed in the 1870 census as age 51 and in the 1880 census as age 62 still living in Johnson County Arkansas, and was age 81 living in Indian Territory (Oklahoma) at the time of the 1900 census. Lewis applied for a Confederate pension number 6076 in Johnson County for service in Co. C, Jackmans’ Regiment, Arkansas Cavalry and it was granted. He died on June 19, 1902 and was buried in Johnson County, Arkansas. His widow, Lucy, was then granted a Confederate widow’s pension in 1902. A military headstone was provided for his grave in May of 1931 which also documents his service in Co. C, Jackman’s Regiment, Arkansas Cavalry, CSA. He listed his occupation as a farmer in each census. Although he was born in North Carolina in 1818 when John Blalock Sr.’s family was still living in Lincoln County, Lewis was born only 10 months after David C. Blaylock and the 1830 and 1840 censuses for John Blalock Sr.’s family included only one male child born in this time period which was David. Based on these facts, Lewis Blalock was not David C. Blaylock’s brother. Millington/Millaton Blalock of Drew County, Arkansas Millington Blalock was issued patent #5906 for 40 acres in Township 12 South, Range 5 West, Section 1 and 40 acres in Township 12 South, Range 5 West, Section 12 in Drew County, Arkansas, on September 1, 1856. A second patent #6624 was issued to him for 40 acres in Township 12 South, Range 5 West, Section 12, on July 1, 1859. However, he and his family were not enumerated in the 1860, 1870 or 1880 censuses. On June 16, 1862, Millington Blalock enlisted in Co. E, 24th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, at Monticello in Drew County. He was present for musters until the muster roll for November 1 December 31, 1862 was taken when he was absent due to illness. As a result, he was not captured in the defeat at Arkansas Post 45 miles south of Pine Bluff on the Mississippi River on January 9-11, 1863 My Blaylock Ancestry

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when approximately 5,500 Confederate troops surrendered. The men who were taken prisoner at Arkansas Post were sent to Camp Douglas south of Chicago. Those men who avoided capture were consolidated into Co. B, Hardy’s Regiment, Arkansas Infantry, CSA. Surviving records for Hardy’s Regiment are limited but Millington Blalock was listed as deserted on August 15, 1863 but returned to duty and was present at musters into 1864. He survived the war and died in Drew County on December 14, 1914 and was buried in Selma Cemetery. Millington and his family were enumerated in the 1900 and 1910 censuses and in 1911, the State of Arkansas compiled a questionnaire to survey surviving Confederate Veterans that included the following facts: Millington Blalock was born in Henderson County, Tennessee on February 6, 1829. He was the son of William H. Blalock of North Carolina and Lucy Haliburton of Hernando, Mississippi. He married Mary Rebecca Walton in Hernando, Mississippi on June 10, 1850. He farmed until 1887, was appointed Postmaster from 1890 to 1911, and served as Justice of the Peace from 1883 until his death. He rose to the position of Orderly Sergeant in Co. E (although the Compiled Service Records list him as a Private). He fought in the Battle of Jenkins Ferry and was present when the regiment was disbanded at Marshall, Texas in May 1865. Jeptha/Joptha Blaylock of Pulaski County, Arkansas Jeptha Blaylock was not listed on the 1860 census but he was 24 years old when he married Susannah Elizabeth Couch who was 17 on November 7, 1861 in Pulaski County, Arkansas. Joptha Blaylock enlisted as a 4th Sergeant in Co. H, King’s Regiment, Arkansas Infantry, CSA, on February 26, 1862 at Little Rock. This unit was redesignated Co. I, 20th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, and was commanded by Captain G. W. King. Joptha was captured at the Battle of Champion Hill, Mississippi on May 16, 1863. He was sent to Memphis as a prisoner of war on May 25, 1863, transferred to Fort Delaware Prison on Pea Patch Island in the Delaware River on June 15, 1863 and transferred to the prison camp at Point Lookout, Maryland on September 20, 1863. He was paroled at Point Lookout on December 24, 1863 but was not exchanged until May 3, 1864. He arrived at Chimborazo Hospital No. 3 in Richmond, Virginia on May 8, 1864 and was admitted suffering from chronic diarrhea. On May 12, 1864, he was given a 30 day furlough to allow him to get well. However, he was admitted to Ocmulgee Hospital in Macon, Georgia on July 18, 1864 still ill with the same condition. On July 23, 1864 he was sent home to Pulaski County, Arkansas, to recover. Joptha and Elizabeth had a child named James after he returned home but Joptha died before the 1870 census where Elizabeth and James were enumerated in the household of Pasin B. Couch. Robert Blalock of Desha County, Arkansas Robert Blalock was born in Canada and was listed in the household of D. P. Sougsir in the 1860 census. Since he was born in Canada, there is no connection to David C. Blaylock. T. J. Blaylock I have found no other records regarding T. J. Blaylock other than military records. Most of the men that enlisted in his regiment on the date he enlisted were residents of Jackson County, Arkansas but I cannot My Blaylock Ancestry

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confirm he lived there because of the lack of civilian records. T. J. Blaylock enlisted in Co. C, 32nd Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA, on February 26, 1862 at Jacksonport in Jackson County. He died in the hospital at Mulberry, Arkansas in Crawford County on November 14, 1862. In a letter from John M. Keller M.D. to Col. Robert C. Newton dated November 27, 1862, the Chief of the Hospital at Camp Mulberry reported that medical stock of the items needed had been exhausted and of the 1,259 patients admitted to the hospital, 83 had died and 37 had deserted. He wrote, “Of the whole number of sick treated in the hospital, I find three fourths at least had pneumonia and the bad weather, bad shelters, lack of bedding and clothing, and the impossibility of procuring suitable diet for them have all acted to increase the mortality.” Edward Blalock I have not found any other records regarding Edward Blalock other than military records. His Company was first organized on July 18, 1861 at Booneville in Scott County, Arkansas and most of the men from this company resided in Scott County. However, Edward Blalock enlisted in Captain Gipson’s Company, 2nd Arkansas Mounted Rifles Regiment, CSA, on October 1, 1861 at Camp Holloway, Missouri and may not have been from Scott County. His Company became Co. A, 2nd Arkansas Mounted Rifles Regiment, CSA, and his service record shows that he provided his own horse and equipment. He was in good health until the November-December 1862 muster roll where he was reported absent due to illness and was in the hospital at London, Tennessee. He remained in the hospital for several months and returned to duty on April 20, 1863. On September 19, 1863, Edward was seriously wounded at the Battle of Chickamauga in Georgia and sent to the hospital. The muster roll for July-August reported that he was disabled for life. General Order number 64/2 dated August 10, 1864 named Edward Blalock to the Confederate Roll of Honor. In order to recognize extraordinary valor, the Congress of the Confederate States of America authorized medals or a badge of distinction to be given to all privates or noncommissioned officers conspicuous for courage and good conduct on the field of battle. Due to a lack of metal, no actual medals were produced but a Roll of Honor was created to avoid postponing the recognition until a later date. The intent of this recognition was to be on the same level as the United States Congressional Medal of Honor. The selection of honorees was by enlisted members of the Company who would elect the most deserving member in their own ranks rather than by nomination of the officers which was the procedure in the Federal Army. Unfortunately, no record survives that describes the actions of Edward Blalock at Chickamauga. J. Blaylock J. Blaylock enlisted on February 17, 1862 at Little Rock in Co. A, King’s Regiment, Arkansas Infantry, CSA. This company became Co. G, 20th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA. On the muster roll for February 17 – May 2, 1862, he was listed as absent without leave since April 1, 1862. He was reported to have left west of the Mississippi River. On the June 30 – August 31, 1862 muster roll he was listed as deserted. I have not found any other military or civilian records for this J. Blaylock.

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Summary After identifying all the Blaylock/Blalock men of military age in the 1860 census in Arkansas, researching every man whose records have survived that served in an Arkansas Regiment on either side in the Civil War, and considering every man named Blaylock/Blalock that enlisted in any regiment in the Union Army, I have been unable to identify two men that would fit the criteria to be David C. Blaylock’s brothers. It is possible that there were two brothers that served the Union Army as civilian scouts or blacksmiths and therefore did not have military records. There is evidence that a widow sometimes filed a pension for the service of her husband and the application would be rejected because her husband had been contracted to work for a regiment but had not enlisted. The family members of William Blalock that moved from Walker County, Georgia do not meet the description given by David C. Blaylock even though Sartain stated William was John Sr. and Mary (nee Eaton) Blalock’s son. Because of his age, I believe that William was John Blalock Sr.’s son from a marriage prior to his marriage to Mary Eaton. The James Blaylock of Conway County, Arkansas seems to be a likely candidate to be David Blaylock’s brother but there is no evidence he served in the Union Army or had a brother that survived the war and became a minister who also served in the Union Army. Perhaps additional records will be made public in the future that will make identification of David C. Blaylock’s brothers in Arkansas possible.

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