Crittenden County, Kentucky Union Soldiers

The following post was originally published on this blog on 22 Feb 2017. 

Several years ago I came across a list of Civil War Union soldiers in the loose papers in the Crittenden  County Clerk's Office. Named were the soldiers and the regiments and companies  in which they served. The lists were arranged by district in Crittenden County. The information was published in Vol. VII, No. 1 (Winter 2000) issue of the Western Kentucky Journal. I have never seen such a list of Union soldiers in other western Kentucky counties, although it was ordered that a list be made in each county.

Resolutions for the purpose of correcting the returns of troops furnished from the different counties.  Whereas, there exists, in many counties of the State, a doubt as to whether or not the men furnished for the purpose of suppressing the present insurrection have been accurately credited to the proper counties, upon the rolls in the office of the Adjutant General of Kentucky - therefore be it Resolved by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky:

1.  That it is hereby recommended to the judges of the county courts to immediately appoint committees of two or more, in every precinct of their respective counties, who ... shall go through such precinct, carefully ascertain and report as many as possible of the following facts, viz: the name, date of enlistment, in what company and regiment, or other service, every soldier or marine entered from Kentucky, who has served in the State of Kentucky or elsewhere, under the authority of the United States, for the purpose set out in the above preamble. That all returns shall, as soon as practicable, be delivered to the judge of the county, who shall immediately transmit the same to the Adjutant General of Kentucky, and he shall, in all instances where the evidence is satisfactory, re-adjust the rolls in his office ... [1]

A later resolution stated the Adjutant General of Kentucky was required to procure descriptive rolls of every enlisted man in the service of the State or United States and include this information in his next annual report.[2]

In Crittenden County, T.L.R. Wilson (replaced by S. Hodge) was appointed to procure a descriptive list of the men who volunteered in the Federal Army which had been regularly enlisted since the first day of June last and report same to the county court so it could be certified to the Adjutant General of Kentucky. [3]  Taking lists in Crittenden County districts were W.C. Carnahan, H.C. Gilbert, J.A. Davidson, Wm. S. Williams, J.H. Travis, D.B. Cassidy and W.H. Franklin. [4]

Union soldiers from Crittenden County received a break from paying taxes. All soldiers who had been in the Federal services and had been discharged since the 10th day of January 1865, were released from paying poll tax for 1865 (laid in 1864) and, if they had already paid, the sum was to be refunded to them.   It is doubtful confederate soldiers received such a break.

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[1] Resolution No. 10, Acts of the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, (Frankfort, KY: Wm. E. Hughes, State Printer, 1864)137-138, Approved December 22, 1863.

[2] Resolution No. 38, Acts of the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, (Frankfort, KY: Wm. E. Hughes, State Printer, 1864) 159-160, Approved February 12, 1864.

[3] Crittenden County Court Order Book 3:187, 10 October 1864.

[4] Crittenden County Court Order Book 3:189, 10 October 1864.

Published  19 June 2023, Western Kentucky Genealogy Blog, http://wkygenealogy.blogspot.com

John H. Going Petition for Free Papers

This post was originally published on this blog 31 March 2008. 

Being free in Kentucky did not guarantee a person of color the same rights and privileges as a white person. Their movements were often restricted to the area where they were known. Traveling outside their immediate area and sometimes even in their own area required papers identifying them as free.

Several free men of color, all with the surname of Going settled in Livingston County prior to 1820. They lived in the part of Livingston County that would become Crittenden County in 1842. One of those men, John "Jack" Goin, was born about 1787. In 1847, Going wanted to visit Mississippi to claim his portion of his brother’s estate. The following petition was filed Wednesday, 26 May 1847 and is found in Crittenden Circuit Court Order Book A, pages 308, 312 and 322. Although called John H. Going in the circuit court sessions, he is listed as Jack Going in the order book index.

"To the Honorable Judge of the Crittenden Circuit Court ... Your Petitioner John H. Going, a man of color a resident of this County would Respectfully [say] to your Honor that he has lived where he now does & its neighbourhood for near thirty five years that he is very well Known to many persons of the County & he hopes & believes favourably Known that he is a free man & has been so since his birth altho his color is dark & might be taken as prima facie evidence that he was a slave. That his Mother was named Agnis an Indian by blood his father a free man of color. He would further represent to your Honor that he has a brother by the name of Thomas Going of the County of Claibourne & state of Mississippi - that he has been dead some years & died without children leaving him as he understands one of his heirs that the Estate is valuable & time enough has elapsed since his death for its full & entire settlement ... and he now desires to go to sd. state of Mississippi & claim his wrights But he finds some difficulty in travelling because of his collor. He therefore humbly & Respectfully petitions & asks your Honor to permit him to introduce in Court proof of his freedom & have it certified to all whom it may concern so that he shall be able to pass & attend to his business."

Two days later, John H. Going filed the depositions of Thomas S. Phillips and Ira Nunn. Phillips stated that he had been acquainted with Going for about 30 years and during that time he had resided as a free man of color and not born a slave. It was reported that he was of Indian and Negro blood or parentage [and] from information he had a brother by the name of Thomas Going who was an eminent Physician and died in Mississippi and affiant [Going] had an uncle who was a Physician who once practiced medicine in copartnership with Thos. Going.

Ira Nunn stated in his deposition that he had known Going for 30 years and that he was raised in the same county in Georgia as Going. He also stated Going had always been considered & recognized by his neighbors as a free man of color.

The following circuit court entry is dated Saturday, 29 May 1847: "It appearing from the petition and the Depositions that the petitioner has for the last 30 years been acknowledged and recognized in the community ... to be a free man of color & that he was born free considered of African & Indian blood [and] it is therefore considered that Going be recognized and considered to be a free man of color and entitled under the laws of this commonwealth to all the privileges such persons are entitled."

John H. Going is listed on the 1850 and 1860 Crittenden County census records as a wagonmaker born in Georgia. In 1867, L.J. Crabtree submitted a claim to the Crittenden County Court for "hauling Jack Goins a pauper from Bells Mines to Marion .... $5.00" The reason for this claim is unknown. We also do not know the date and place of John Goins' death.

Published  again 7 June 2023, Western Kentucky Genealogy Blog, http://wkygenealogy.blogspot.com/