Distractions.

I will probably be sporadic about writing for a while. Just spent another week in the hospital and will have to undergo more treatments.
But not giving up on genealogy. Just not being about to write as much for a while.

Be back soon.

Ella Lewis Jeffrey Bozarth December 14

Ella Lewis (or Louise) Jeffrey Bozarth was born 14 December 1885 in Dale, Caldwell County, Texas. Her parents were Jesse Thomas Jeffrey Jr. and Mary Elizabeth Rowe Jeffrey. Ella was my 2^nd cousin, 3 times removed.

In 1906 she married a farmer, Travis Martin “Trab” Bozarth in Caldwell County, Texas. They had two sons, Rufus and Ray.

Now I have to confess. While searching for records for Ella, I discovered that she had a sister, Frankie Jeffrey who seemed to have had another mother. That seemed strange so I had to go see what I could find. It took longer than I expected. The FindAGrave memorials are completely messed up. One has her as her own sister.

At the moment, it looks like Ella’s father, Jesse was indeed married twice. He married Maria Frankie Rice (haven’t found a marriage record yet) in 1850 and Mariah died 10 days after their daughter Frankie was born in 1870. I have to do more exploring on this.

But aside from that tantalizing distraction, I couldn’t find much on Ella herself.  Seems all the interesting stuff was about her husband or father or his first wife.

In 1920 Trab, Ella, the two boys were all living in Caldwell County with Trab’s mother Mattie living with them. Trab had draft cards for both WWI and WWII.

Ella Louise Jeffrey died on July 29, 1953, in Caldwell, Texas, when she was 67 years old and is buried in the Jeffrey Cemetery, McMahan, Caldwell County, Texas, USA

Rachel Petty Harrington December 13

Rachel Petty 

was born 13 Dec 1754 Granville District, Orange, North Carolina although another record says she was born on May 10, 1755 Union district South Carolina, later became Union county.

Her parents were James Petty (son of Thomas Petty and Catherine Garton Petty) and Martha (possibly Clanton) Petty.

She married Drury Harrington January 2, 1773 in North Carolina. They had seven children.  Drury and Rachel settled on Thickety Creek near Jonesville, South

Carolina in 1779. North Carolina records show that there were land grants to Drury in Beaufort, Halifax and Granville Counties in North Carolina.

Rachel died on December 22, 1839 in Alabama. According to FindAGrave, 

She died in Chambers Co., AL and was buried on the Harrington Farm on Thickety Creek near Jonesville, Union Co., SC.

And that's about all I could find out about Rachel. 

But Drury is another story. I could fill a small book with the files I found on him. But this is her day so I'll be brief.

Drury Harrington was born born: June 22, 1751 in Halifax County, North Carolina.

"Drury enlisted in the revolutionary Army in 1776 from Chatham county and served as a lieutenant. He fought in the battle of Moore's Creek, the  first battle of the Revolution fought in the South; was in the cavalry under Clarke and Sumpter at Ransom's Mill; served under Pickens at Cowpens against the Cherokee Indians and was in the seige and surrenderof Augusta Georgia. 

Drury and Rachel settled on Thickety Creek near Jonesville, South Carolina in 1779. North Carolina records show that there were land grants to Drury in Beaufort, Halifax and Granville Counties in North Carolina. 

In his later years, after Rachel died, he came to Chambers County, Alabama to live with his son, Jeptha. He had filed for his revolutionary War pension on October 3, 1832 in Union County, South Carolina.   

He was buried in Chambers County, Alabama on the Harrington Plantation and later reinterred in Pinewood Cemetery West Point, Georgia. Harrington Heights Cemetery is named for him."

from an archived mailing list.

Sam Houston Hooper and Aldo Sardini December 13

Sam Houston Hooper is another person in my database who it is said I am not actually related to.  But there is a connection.

Sam was born on the 12^th (some say the 9^th) of December 1857 in Texas to John Jefferson and Mahala Hooper. He married Maria Catherine Burns and they had 11 children. One died at birth and another at the age of 2.  The rest apparently had a good long life.

Sam seems to have been quite a family man since there are more pictures of him and his family than I’ve ever seen on Ancestry .com. Two of his daughters are of particular interest. They both married brothers with the last name of Myers.

Harrison Davis, Amanda Burns Wolfe and Marietta Burns Davis

Front Row: Sam Houston Hooper, Mariah Catherine Burns Hooper, Jesse Hooper, Elvira Minerva Whitton Burns, Dora Hooper and Louis Wolfe, Justine Hooper

Molly Hooper married Robert T. Myers and her sister Dora Hopper married Robert’s brother, Willie Oscar Myers. This might not seem exciting, but wait - there’s more.

Robert and Willie were both sons of Mathias Myers and wife Fannie – maiden name Welch. Fannie was the half-sister of our elusive Eliza Jane Welch, my great grandmother. This makes Robert and Willie my half-first cousins twice removed. And Mollie and Dora are the wives of my half-first cousins twice removed.

I know there are several more connections with the Hoopers, but this was the first one I found and quite by accident.

Sam died at home on his farm in Joaquin, Texas on 29 Dec 1953 at the age of 96 and was buried in the Ramah Cemetery.

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Aldo Sardini was born December 12, 1912 to Antonio and Maria Adele Elena Sardini in Verona, Italy. He married Anita Nacciareti and they had at least 3 children.

He was my great uncle, a brother to my grandmother, Gina (Sardini) Bernardi.

I did discover this photo of him and that led to some stories from his grandson, Ivano Michelangelo Malta.

“Hahaha ok cool !! My mom's name is Gabriella Sardini, born in Verona 17 of July 1944. my grandfather Aldo died in Rome 1998 ! Of dementia!! He was 84 years old my grandmother died two years later! I was very close to them! My mom always says How similar I am to my grandfather basically in everything.. Makes me laugh .. Because he was a mess ...!! …. Aldo was a very good looking man, he was a good man at the end, very generous, I was close to him and he was very close to me to, I would say I was the favourite nephew   they could see the similarity!! Haha !!

He used to be in the Army beside Mussolini, then when Mussolini got killed he lost automatically his job, according to my mother, they didn't really have a easy time after that .. Time was tough for everyone! .. He's lucky was that he was an handsome man, always well dressed , that’s why he had the opportunity to work in those amazing movies, but most of the time he worked like a waiter!! but the Sardini's Side always had a good taste.”

And from my dad

“Thanks for posting this photo of Aldo. I remember him well. He would travel from Verona to Roma each time we visited Marisa. Later he moved to Rome. He was simpatico”- J E Pettey

Aldo died in Rome in 1998.

Matthew Bishop Jeffrey - December 11, 1835

I thought at first when I saw this name on my list that it was Matthew Jeffrey, the son of Jeremiah Jeffrey, who took care of his parents in their old age. But when I checked, it actually was his nephew, Matthew BISHOP Jeffrey – the son of Matthew’s brother, Jesse Thomas Jeffrey and Anna Hellums. He’s my first cousin, four times removed.

I thought this was going to be another easy, short bio. I was so wrong. In fact, I might not get the answer I need today. I’ll post what I have and perhaps, when the answer comes, I’ll post the correct information.

This is a quote from the bio on Find a Grave .com.

“Matthew Bishop JEFFREY was born on December 11, 1835, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, the child of Jesse Thomas and Anna 'Annie' Hellums”

By 1843 the family had moved on the Tippah County, Mississippi and then on to Caldwell County, Texas.

“He married Mary Elizabeth Gilliland on August 1, 1861, in Caldwell County, Texas. On Jan. 20, 1862 he enlisted in Co.F, Calvary, Waul's Legion, C.S.A. Matthew and Mary had one child, a daughter - Anna M. Jeffrey Kirksey (1862 – 1910)- during their marriage.”

So far, so good, but then-

“Matthew died on December 24, 1883, in Caldwell County, Texas, at the age of 48, and was buried in the Jeffrey Cemetery.”

Well, that sounds OK, until you read that Matthew’s wife Mary, remarried sixteen years BEFORE Matthew died.

“Mary Elizabeth Gilliland was born 8 July 1845 in Mississippi. She was first married to Matthew B. Jeffrey on 1 August 1861 in Caldwell County, Texas. Matthew B. Jeffrey died about 1866, probably as a result of wounds or illness from the Civil War. He was a son of Jesse Jeffrey (b 1806) and Anna Hellums. Matthew Jeffrey and Mary Elizabeth Gilliland had one child, Anna Jeffrey, who was born about 1862. 

 Mary Elizabeth Gilliland was married again on 31 January 1867 to Captain Edmund Foreman. Mary Elizabeth and Cap Foreman had three children before she died in 1880 or '81. They were William, Robert, Ida "Birdie" and Hattie Foreman.”
[actually, that's four children. Ed]

And another source -

    “Mary Elizabeth was married again on January 31, 1867, to Cap E. Foreman (1851 - 1926). The Foreman family had also come to Caldwell County from Talladega County, Alabama. Mary Elizabeth and Cap Foreman had four children.

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~tory/long/janec.html

So did Matthew die in 1866 after returning from the war? That would make sense, but the other records all say he died in 1883, well after Mary remarried. Did they divorce? I can’t find any record of a divorce but it could have been. But why did the other source say 1866? Were they just guessing because of the marriage date of Mary and Cap? The only actual records I've been able to find are the marriage records. I won't even mention the Jeffrey Cemetery website that lists Matthew B Jeffrey as born 1/6/1831 and died 7/1/189.

These are the things that keep me awake at night.

December 10, Mattie and John

Mattie Pearl Willis LaGrone

Mattie is one of those elusive females. She shows up in census records and death records, but there is nothing that tells much about her life.

She was the daughter of Robert T and Elizabeth Stephenson Willis, born December 10,  1892 in Texas and is my first cousin three times removed. She first appears as an eight year old child in the 1900 Smith County census with her parents.

She married Charles Franklin "Bob" LaGrone in 1910 and their daughter Juanita LaGrone was born 2 Oct 1917 in Decatur, Texas.On the 1930 census for Wise County, she’s listed as 37 years of age. She’s living with her husband Bob and daughter Juanita living on their own farm.

In 1940 Mattie and Bob are still on their farm in Decatur but daughter Juanita has married and moved with her husband into her own home also in Decatur.

This is the last census available to the public. The 1950 census records will be released in April 2022 so that trail ends here. Bob has draft cards from WWI and WWII (old man’s draft).

Bob died in 1965 and was buried in Oaklawn Cemetery in Decatur. Mattie died in 1980 and was buried next to him.

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John Hewing Petty

John was born in either north or South Carolina (records vary) in 10 Dec 1795. He was one of 13 children born to George and Lydia Harrington Petty. John's father, George was the great grandson of Hubert Petty, our original emigrant Petty ancestor. John is my second cousin, six times removed. (He also was an older brother to Elijah P. Petty who I mentioned on our FaceBook page, but I’ll be getting to him later. His birthday is coming up in a few weeks)

Sometime before 1825 the family moved to Stewart County, Tennessee. John met and married Tamara Bruton May 19, 1825. (I’ve seen her name given as Tamara Theora Lesy “Terry” Bruton and several versions of that in different records.)

Their first child, the first of seven, was born a year later.

John worked as an innkeeper while in Tennessee. He might have taken over his father’s tavern before they left for greener pastures.

Between 1850 and 1860 the family migrated to Texas. They next are recorded on the 1860 census for Seguin, Guadalupe, Texas and John is farming. Three years later on July 26, 1863 John signed his will leaving the property to his wife, Terry, and some money to his children. He died a month later on August 23. He is buried at KingFamily Cemetery, Seguin, Guadalupe County, Texas.

December 7 - Cousin Mae and Uncle Robert

Mae Pettey Durrett

I couldn’t find a lot of information on Mae Pettey Durrett. I thought it was a case of another shadowy female hiding in the corners. But the truth finally dawned on me. Her life was cut short.

Mae was born 7 Dec 1883 or 84 in Texas, possibly in Nacogdoches to Samuel Albert and Margaret Alice Pettey, and the granddaughter of William Howard and Sarah Power Pettey (my second great grandparents). Mae was my first cousin twice removed.

 She was on the 1900 census for Nacogdoches with her parents and was listed as 15 years old. She also appears on the 1910 census still living with her parents but her last name is now Durrett and there is a three-year-old daughter named Willie Mae Durrett. So where is the father and Mae’s husband? In 1920 Mae is gone, but the daughter is still living with her grandparents. Even more mysterious.

Finally I realized that W A Durrett and Mae were married in 1905. (Have yet to find out what the W A stands for.) Willie Mae was born the next year in 1906. W A, the husband and father died in 1907 at age 32. I haven’t found a death certificate or anything to give a clue as to why he died so young.

Mae died suddenly in 1913 at age of 29. I found an obituary but it is almost unreadable.

DEATH OF MRS. [DARRET]T [SIC]

Mrs. Mae Darrett., who has for the past several months lived at the home of Mrs. ............North Fredonia street died Monday morning at the home of her parents Mr. and Mrs. Albert Pettey near Mahl. Funeral services will be held at North church Tuesday morning.
Mrs. Darrett was....... sick about two weeks although it was thought not serious and her death was quite unexpected. She leaves a little daughter…. seven years of age, a father and mother and other relatives ….  to mourn her loss.

 [Italics are mine]

Source: The Redland Herald, Nacogdoches, Texas, Thursday, May 22, 1913; Pg. 1, Column 2

Both are buried in the Old North Church in Nacogdoches, Texas.
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Robert Thomas Willis

Robert was my second, great-great uncle. He was the son of my third great grandparents, William Franklin and Ann Jane Willis. And brother to Martha J Willis, mother of Eliza Jane Welch.

He was born in Lawrence County, Alabama on December 7, 1851.  I’ve written about the Willis family and their travels so I’ll just give a brief outline here.

In 1860 the family was in the McMillan Community of Panola County, Texas. Brother Wesley was married and living next door. By 1870 the two families had moved to Marlin, Falls County, Texas and were farming. Robert was 19.

In 28 Feb 1878 at age 26 Robert married Elizabeth Rachel Stephenson in De Soto Parish, La. one of three sisters who married a Willis relative. In 1880 they had moved to Cherokee county where they lived with one son and one “hireling” to help with the farming.

We have to skip 1890 since the census was destroyed by fire, but in 1900 the family was in Smith County, Texas with five children. Robert is 49 and still farming. We also learn on this census that he could read and write.

In 1910 the family is in Wise County with two remaining children and still farming. Now we learn that he owned the home and held a mortgage. In 1920 they are still in Wise County with one daughter still living at home. Robert is now 68, still farming

In 1930 all the children are gone and it is just Robert and Elizabeth. Robert is 78, still farming and they do not own a radio set. He was not a veteran.

Robert died in 1932 He was buried at CottonwoodCemetery  in Wise County.