Clues in Epitaphs

The following post was first published 19 May 2017.

Have you wondered about the origin of an epitaph on a tombstone? Did it have special meaning to the deceased or the family?  One of the easiest ways to check on the epitaph is to ask our friend, Mr. Google. That's what I did with the epitaph on the tombstone of Martha A. Perkins, who is buried in Leeper Cemetery in Livingston County.

 Martha A.

Wife of

J.D. Perkins

Born

Sept. 24, 1827

Died

Apr. 3, 1876

Aged

48 yrs. 6 mo's, 9 da's

"Hard is it from thee to part

Tho it rend my aching heart

Since an heir to glory's gone

Let the will of God be done."

The epitaph is taken from "Psalms and Hymns Adapted to Social, Private and Public Worship of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church."  Could this be a clue to Martha A.'s religious affiliation? Or was this epitaph ordered from a tombstone catalog with little thought given as to whether it was appropriate for the decedent? If charges were made for each letter, an epitaph of four lines would have been fairly costly and certainly more expensive than a simple epitaph like Gone Home or Farewell or Gone But Not Forgotten.

To be most helpful, transcribe every word on the tombstone.

Second Time Around 23 Aug 2022, Western Genealogy Blog, http://wkygenealogy.blogspot.com/

Military Draft - Civil War

The following post was first published  on the Western Kentucky Genealogy Blog on  5 May 2011. 

Both the Confederate and Federal  governments relied  on a military draft to obtain men to serve during the Civil War. The Confederate Conscription Act was the first to enact an American military draft on 16 April 1862. It called for healthy white men between the ages of 18 and 35 to serve for a term of three years. The upper age limit was raised to age 45 in February 1864. A bit later the age limits were expanded to men between the ages of 17 and 50.

The Federal government had a similar draft law, but it didn't take effect until 3 March 1863. The Federal draft covered men between the ages of 18 and 45.

Exemptions occurred on both sides for men in certain occupations. These included river and railroad workers, miners, teachers, telegraph operators and civil officials. In addition, men of draft age for the Union army were exempt if they had physical or mental disabilities. They were also excused from service if they were the only son of a widow, the son of infirm parents or a widower with dependent children. Men of draft age living in the South were excused from service if they owned 20 or more slaves.

The Enrollment Act of 1863 allowed Union soldiers to obtain an exemption from service by paying $300 or by finding a substitute. 

The military draft was not popular and the law was often abused  in the North as well as in the South. 

Published again  12 Aug 2022, Western Kentucky Genealogy Blog, http://wkygenealogy.blogspot.com/

Happy Anniversary Reddick and Mary Ann!

I have published a couple of posts about the wedding anniversary of Reddick Smith and Mary Ann Wolstenholme in this blog. This post combines previously published material plus additional data. Both families have presented research challenges, but they remain among my favorite ancestors. Mary Ann's grandfather, the Rev. Hugh Wolstenholme, came to America from England before 1820 as a result of his political views. Reddick Smith's grandfather was John Smith, but which one? Wythe County, Virginia is thought to have been  his home. Until I find out for sure, I will continue to dig and dig and dig. In the meantime, here is my 2022 anniversary post on Reddick and Mary Ann.

Today is the 156th anniversary of the marriage of my great-grandparents, Reddick Smith and Mary Ann Wolstenholme. On the 2nd of August 1866, they stood before Henry Holt, justice of the peace in Davidson County, Tennessee, and promised to “love, honor and obey” each other for the rest of their lives.

I don’t know if they were able to fulfill that promise, but I do know they lived together until Reddick passed away in Hardin County, Illinois. Reddick and Mary Ann must have met during the Civil War when he was stationed in Tennessee. He stayed there when the war ended, they married, and had two children before moving to his family home in Hardin County about 1870.

Reddick and Mary Ann had 14 children, with only about half living to adulthood. My grandmother, Beatrice Mary, was born in 1877 and lived until 1968. When I was a child, she told me that one of her younger brothers, I believe it was Earl (1883-1896), became ill suddenly and his footsteps remained in the dusty field after his death. Several others of the children died as infants.

In 1902, my grandmother married Lycurgus Mino Joyce and had given birth to two sons when they, along with her parents and her brother Ed. decided to move to the state of Washington. Selling everything they owned, they boarded a train to an area where they hoped life would be easier. According to a story told by my father, Reddick hurt his back, didn’t like Washington, so everyone boarded the train and returned to southern Illinois. Reddick died in Hardin County in 1913 and Mary Ann in 1933. Both are buried in Central Cemetery.

Oh, the stories they could tell! I would like to know about Reddick leaving the army each spring to go home to plant crops. I would like to know about the months he spent in Libby Prison before being exchanged. I would like to ask Mary Ann what her life was like in Davidson County. Why did she not keep in touch with her family after she moved to Illinois? Family legend has it that Mary Ann’s father, Hugh Wolstenholme, died on the road between her old home in Tennessee and her new home in Illinois. I've tried for years to find out where and when he died, but I bet she could tell me exactly what I want to know.

Reddick and Mary Ann witnessed many changes during their lives. They saw the birth of the telephone and automobiles and electricity became common. My dad used to relate the story told to him by Mary Ann about the first time Reddick heard a phonograph record, which was played on a wind-up apparatus and was part of a large cabinet. Reddick circled round and round the cabinet then tried to open the back to learn who was sitting inside singing.

Mary Ann was a tall, angular woman with red hair and who smoked a pipe, using Star brand tobacco, according to my father. After Reddick's death, she stayed with her children, rotating from one to the next  until her death. 

All I have of Reddick and Mary Ann are stories originating from Mary Ann, a few documents, pictures and my prize possession, the wedding ring Reddick made for Mary Ann. A jeweler told me a silver coin was placed on a rod and hammered until a circle of the right size appeared. Apparently, this was a common way to fashion a ring when money was scarce. I wear this ring today.

On this anniversary of their marriage, I am thankful for the memories they made for their descendants.

Published 2 Aug 2022, Western Kentucky Genealogy Blog, http://wkygenealogy.blogspot.com/