Honoré Lore, or Lord (1742-1818) lived an incredibly interesting life. He was born near Annapolis Royal in Nova Scotia, survived the Acadian exile, and served in the Revolutionary War at Fort Albany in New York before settling in Quebec in the late 1780s.

Honoré outlived two wives, Appoline Garceau and Suzanne Lafaille, having seven children with each. He married Marguerite Babin when he was 61 years old and brought forth eight more children with her. Marguerite was his wife at his death in 1818 at the age of 76.

After publishing Honore’s life story, two readers contacted me with additional information.

Justine and Suzanne located and transcribed Honoré’s estate inventory and other documents, each contributing different pieces of the pie. I didn’t realize Honoré had an inventory, and not speaking French or being familiar with French-Canadian documents, I was absolutely over the moon and oh so grateful to both Suzanne and Justine. I can’t thank these ladies enough.

From Suzanne Lesage:

I was curious of how Justine got to the inventories. Last fall, BAnQ totally revamped their website and have improved a lot the accessibility of the documents with genealogists in mind. Going back to the page she mentions, I did a search all “Lord” in the Montreal area and got a list of 6, with this one on top. The good news is there was indeed an inventory for Honoré who died in 1818 – the bad news is that it is not yet available on-line at BAnQ…

1 – Honoré Lord & Marguerite Babin

Notaires

Titre de l’instrument : Inventaires après décès de la région de Montréal, 1791-1840 (2003) Détails

Nom du défunt : Lord

Préonom du défunt : Honoré

Nom du conjoint : Babin

Prénom du conjoint : Marguerite

Profession :

Résidence : Saint-Luc

Nom du notaire : Dandurand, Roger-François Année de l’acte : 1818 Date de l’acte : 1818-09-22 Remarque :

Source : Archives nationales à Montréal, CN601,S107, disponible sur microfilm

But FamilySearch comes to the rescue…

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QHV-L3V7-L97Q?i=136&cat=675092

Image 137

The script is quite good, so transcription should not be too difficult. Any details you are interested in? It seems he had a will (name of notaries Edm Henry &  RF Dandurand?) where his children were the heirs, but his widow could stay put until her death.

Suzanne Lesage GFA

GFA stands for Généalogiste de filiation agréée and is the first level of formal recognition for genealogists in Quebec.

I explained to Suzanne that essentially, I can’t transcribe the documents because unless you know the language, and know what to expect, transcribing handwriting is almost impossible – at least for me.

If I had French text, as in typed out, I could do the translation using online tools. Thankfully, Suzanne took pity on me.

Poor Roberta … Ok then – let’s start with who was there.

Between Suzanne and Justine, we wound up with a reasonable transcription to contemporary French, which I then translated using Google translate. Not everything translated perfectly, of course, and I’m more than happy to make corrections.

Le 22 septembre 1818 inventaire des biens qui étaient communs entre Honoré Lord, défunt et Marguerite Babin sa veuve

Translation:

September 22, 1818 inventory of property that was common between Honoré Lord, deceased, and Marguerite Babin, his widow

Image 138

L’an 1818 le 22e jour du mois de septembre à midi à la requête de Marguerite Babin veuve de Honoré Lord demeurant en la paroisse de Saint-Luc, tant en son propre nom comme commune en biens avec son défunt mari qu’en celui comme tutrice à Rose, Augustin, Claire, Maryse (or Moyse for Moise), Catherine et Modeste Lord enfants encore mineurs issus du dit mariage.

En présence de Jean Lord, leur frère consanguin, subrogé tuteur des dits mineurs.

Plus de François Lafaye, oncle maternel et tuteur et Julien Lord frère et subrogé tuteur de Jacques Lord, enfant encore mineur issu du 2nd mariage du dit défunt Honoré Lord et défunte Suzanne Lafaye.

English translation:

The year 1818 on the 22nd day of September at noon at the request of Marguerite Babin, widow of Honoré Lord, residing in the parish of Saint-Luc, both in her own name as common property with her late husband and in that as guardian to Rose, Augustin, Claire, Maryse, Catherine and Modeste Lord, still minor children from the said marriage.

In the presence of Jean Lord, their consanguineous brother, subrogated guardian of said minors.

Plus François Lafaye, maternal uncle and guardian and Julien Lord brother and subrogated guardian of Jacques Lord, still minor child from the 2nd marriage of the said deceased Honoré Lord and the deceased Suzanne Lafaye.

Image 138 Second Half

En plus la dite veuve comme tutrice à ses dits enfants, Jean Lord comme subrogé tuteur, François Lafaye comme tuteur de Jacques Lord et Julien Lord comme son subrogé tuteur par avis de testament homologué en justice.

Pour la conservation des biens et droits des susdites parties et de tous autres qu’il appartiendra, par les notaires soussignés, va être procédé à l’inventaire exact de tous les biens demeurés après le décès dudit Honoré Lord, trouvés en

la maison où il est décédé, située en ladite

English translation:

In addition the said widow as guardian of her said children, Jean Lord as subrogated guardian, François Lafaye as guardian of Jacques Lord and Julien Lord as his subrogated guardian by notice of will approved in court.

For the conservation of property and rights of the above-mentioned parties and all others he will belong, by the undersigned notaries, an exact inventory will be carried out of all property remaining after the death of the said Honoré Lord, found in the house where he died, located in the said

Image 139

ladite paroisse et à nous montrés et enseignés par lad. Marguerite Babin, après erment par elle tout présentement entre nos mains prêté de tout montrer et enseigner, sans en cacher ni détourner aucunes choses, se soumettant où il se trouverait le contraire aux peines en tels cas introduites qui lui ont été expliquées par nous notaires qu’elle a dit bien savoir. Les biens sujets à prisée estimés par Les sieurs Victor Girouard et Denis Loupris notables de ladite paroisse St Luc, priseurs choisis par les susdites parties, lesquels à ce présents ont promis le tout priser et estimer dans sa juste valeur, suivant le meilleur de leur connaissance, eu égard au tems présent, la criée non comprise attendu que les parties sont d’accord de les faire vendre publiquement dès jeudy prochain. Fait et passé maison dudit défunt, en ladite paroisse St Luc, les jour et an que dessus et ont François Lafaye et Denis Loupris signé avec les notaires, quant aux autres parties et l’autre des priseurs ont déclaré ne savoir signer de ce enquis, ont fait leurs marques.

English Translation:

said parish and showed and taught us by lad. Marguerite Babin, after oath by her now in our hands ready to show and teach everything, without hide or divert anything, submitting where he would be contrary to the penalties in such cases introduced which were explained to him by we notaries that she said she knew well. Goods subject to price estimated by Mr. Victor Girouard and Denis Loupris notables of the said St Luc parish, auctioneers chosen by the above-mentioned parties, which at this present have promised to take it all and estimate in its fair value, following the best of their knowledge, having regard in the present tense, the auction not included whereas the parties agree to have them sold publicly as soon as next Thursday.

Made and passed in the house of the said deceased, in the said St Luc parish, the day and year above and have François Lafaye and Denis Loupris signed with the notaries, as for the others parties and the other of the auctioneers declared not know how to sign this inquiry, have made their brands.

Suzanne’s Quick translate – the widow for herself and as tutor of her minor children, and Jean Lord their brother (subrogé tuteur = deputy guardian according to Google). And François Lafaye, uncle of Jacques Lord, who was there for the interest of Jacques the minor child of the first wife – Suzanne – apparently the will had to be probated.

Image 140 Signatures

Marques lecture faite: Marguerite Babin/sa marque

Jean Lord/ sa marque                     Julien Lord/sa marque

Victor Girouard/sa marque François Lafay [signature]

Du Loupret [signature]

Dandurand [signature notaire]

This seems like a very complex situation, yet probably not that unusual. Indeed Roberta, you will beg for a computer!

You can be very glad for these inventories. Can you imagine nowadays someone going through your house listing everything down to the pillowcases and the forks, and not only listing them, but appraising their quality and pricing them?

An interesting fact is that although Quebec had been under British rule for more than 50 years, they allowed the French legal system in Quebec and Louisiana (still is to this day). Sometimes we hate the French for their lengthy papers, but this document is a goldmine to reconstruct the life of our ancestors.

I was going to suggest using “transkribus” and decided to give it a try for page 2 of the “Inventaire”

Text Recognition powered by transkribus.ai

lade srarisse a à nous montrez eten seignes par lade. Mangurité s’Dabine cepris derment parelle taut présentement entre nos mains preté de tout mantrer chenacienes, aans en cacher ni deteurner aucunes choses se commettent où il se trouverait le contraire aux feines en tels cas introduites qui lui ont été expliquées par nous snataires qu’elle a etit bien davoir Les 1 diens sujets à finisée, estimés par les Srs Victoy Girouna Denes confires, chotables de lad. Banoisse & sue presente choisis par les auso. pranties, lesquels ce ci présents ont paromes détant finiser à eatimes sans sa Luste valeur suivant le meilleur de leur Connaissance en égard au tems présent La bénüe non comprise attendu que les parties dont d’accond de les faize vendre publiquement des Veudy Brochain etait a preché maison desd. defeunt en lad paaroise dt duc, les Lour et an que depus et ent Fmançais Pafaire damis confirêt signé avec les notaires; quent aux autres parlies d l’autre des pniseurs cnt déclaré ne savoir signer, de ce onques ent fait leurs Marques

Which I correct to:

la dite paroisse à nous montre et enseigner par la dte Marguerite Babin après serment par elle tout présentement entre nos mains preté de tout montrer et enseigner, sans en cacher ni detourner aucunes choses de soummettre où il se trouverait le contraire aux peines en tels cas introduites qui lui ont été expliquées par nous notaires qu’elle a dit bien savoir Les d Biens sujets à prisés estimés par les Srs Victor Girouard & Denis Lonprêt, notables de lad. paroisse St Luc priseurs, choisis par les sudtes parties lesquels ici présents ont promis le tout priser a estimers dans sa juste valeur suivant le meilleur de leur Connaissance en égard au tems présent La Criée non comprise attendu que les parties sont d’accord de les faire vendre publiquement dès Jeudy prochain Fait a (Marché?) maison dudt défunt en lad.

paroisse StLuc, les saux etanque dessus et ont François Lafaye & Denis Lonprêt signé avec les notaires; quant aux autres Parties & l’autre priseur ont déclaré ne savoir signer, de ce enquis ont fait leurs marques.

I am not convinced yet…I think this is what Ancestry uses to transcribe the Canadian Census.

Suzanne’s Quick translate:

The widow swears she is not hiding anything – they hire, chosen by the heirs, two appraisers – one of whom cannot sign – and announce that there will be a public auction the following Thursday.

Public Sale

This may finish you… After the inventory, the next act is the public sale of all the goods and farm animals with the names of those who bought them! The widow got to bid on her own things to buy them back from the inheritance! If I understand correctly, two men – the local Innkeeper and a neighboring farmer were to bid on her behalf.

The actual inventory begins with image 140 and continues through image 169. The first portion is the inventory or items, and the later part details who purchased what.

This estate is quite large.

Roberta’s note – This is gold to me. I can hardly wait. I couldn’t sleep.

Image 140 Part 2

Premièrement dans la maison s’est Trouvé et a été prisé et estimé aux livres et Sols ancien cours, savoir

English translation using Google:

First in the house was found and was prized and esteemed in books and old course floors, know.

Note – the list of inventory items begins here. French is in the left column, and English is in the right. There are several items that didn’t translate well, so if anyone has any corrections or explanations, please let me know by referencing the image number.

Une petite marmitte de fonte prisée 2 livres 8 sols	A small, prized cast iron pot 2 livres 8 sols	2£ 8s
Item une moyenne ditto et Son couvercle 48 sols	Item an average ditto and Its lid 48 sols 2£ 8s	2£ 8s
Item un canard de fonte 30 sols	Item a cast iron duck 30 sols 1£ 10s	1£ 10s
Item une grande marmitte 3 livres	Item a large pot 3 pounds £3	3£
Item un fanat/favat de fer blanc 24 sols	Item a tin fanat/favat 24 sols 1£ 4s	1£ 4s
Item une paire fers à repasser 48 sols	Item a pair irons 48 sols 2£ 8s	2£ 8s
Item un antonnoir et un moule à chandelle fer blanc 15 sols	Item a funnel and a tinplate candle mold 15 sols 15s	15s
Item quatre faucilles 40s	Item four sickles 40s £2	2£
Item deux haches 40s chaque	Item two axes 40s each £4	4£
Item deux grattes 20s chaque	Item two  scrapers each £2	2£

Image 141 Page 4

Item une équerre de fer et une egolline 4£	Item an iron square and a egolline £4	4£
Item une poële à frire 3£	Item a frying pan £3	3£
Item un demi minot 4 livres	Item half a pound £4	4£
Item 6 bouteilles 20s	Item 6 bottles 20s	1£
Item 2 bouteilles et une cruche 20s	Item 2 bottles and one Jug 20s	1£
Item 10 assiettes de fayence 30s	Item 10 earthenware plates 30s	1£ 10s
Item 4 tasses et 4 cuillers à thé 15s	Item 4 cups and 4 teaspoons 15s	15s
Item une vieille theyère d’étain et 2 goblets de crystal 20 sols	Item an old tin sheera and 2 goblets of crystal 20 sols	1£
Item un chandellier de fer et un poids de plomb d’une livre 20s	Item an iron candlestick and a lead weight of one pound 20s	1£
Item 9 cuillers d’étain, 4 fourchettes et 2 couteaux avec une paire 30s	Item 9 pewter spoons, 4 forks and 2 knives with a pair 30s	1£ 10s
Item une herminette 3£	Item an adze £3	3£
Item une ferée 30s	Item a fairy 30s	1£ 10s
Item une fourche de fer 40s	Item an iron fork 40s	2£
Item 4 bizeaux 48s	Item 4 wedges 48s	2£ 8s
Item un gros sarrière/tarrière 15s	Item a big quarry / quarrier 15s	15s
Item un compas et une petite lime 20s	Item a compass and a small lime 20s	1£
Item une tinette et des ferailles 4£	Item a tin and scraps £4	4£

Image 141 Page 5

Item une paire de traits de fer 3£	Item a pair of iron bolts £3	3£
Item un lot de tuilles faulx 30s	Item a lot of faux tiles 30s	1£ 10s
Item 3 manches et 2 faulx 30s	Item 3 sleeves and 2 scythes 30s	1£ 10s
Item un vieu quart rempli de divers articles 30s	Item an old quarter filled various items 30s	1£ 10s
Item 2 paires baiches et chaines 40s chaque	Item 2 pairs of basins and chains 40s each	4£
Item un petit baril 20s	Item a small barrel 20s	1£
Item une vieille baratte et du sel 15s	Item an old churn and some salt 15s	15s
Item 2 paniers 6s chaque	Item 2 baskets 6s each	12s
Item des membres de sleigh et un morceau de bois de noyer 24s	Item members of sleigh and a piece of walnut wood 24s	1£ 4s
Item 5 poches 100s	Item 5 pockets 100s	5£
Item 6 dittos 6£	Item 6 dittos £6	6£
Item un vieu sac 5s	Item an old bag 5s	5s
Item un collier et une paire de traits 6£	Item a necklace and a pair of features £6	6£
Item un vieu harnois et un vieu collier 6£	Item an old harness and a old necklace £6	6£
Item un ditto et ditto 9£	Item one ditto and ditto £9	9£
Item 2 peaux de vau 30s	Item 2 cowhides 30s	1£ 10s
Item un petit rouet 6£	Item a small spinning wheel £6	6£
Item un dévidoir 10s	Item a dispenser 10s	10s
Item un filet à sauntes 40s	Item un filet à sauntes 40s	2£

Image 143 Page 6

Item un lot de fève en gousse 40s	Item a batch of bean pods 40s	2£
Item un vieu quart et de la plume 40s	Item an old quarter and feather 40s	2£
Item 2 manteaux 30s	Item 2 coats 30s	1£ 10s
Item un seau feré et un goblet 30s	Item a bucket and a goblet 30s	1£ 10s
Item une huche 3£	Item a hutch £3	3£
Item un coffre 3£	Item a chest £3	3£
Item 4 vieilles chaises 40s	Item 4 old chairs 40s	2£
Item un lot de 6 fioles 6s	Item a batch of 6 vials 6s	6s
Item un miroir la glasse fendue en deux 3£	Item a mirror with split glass in two £3	3£
Item une armoire 18£	Item a wardrobe £18	18£
Item un dressoir 40s	Item a 40s dresser	2£
Item un vieux poële de fonte à fourneau et 4 feuilles de tuyau 90£	Item an old cast iron stove and 4 sheets of pipe £90	90£
Item une table 30s	Item a table 30s	1£ 10s
Item une vieille ditto 10s	Item an old ditto 10s	10s
Item 2 barils 40s chaque	Item 2 barrels 40s each	4£
Item une baratte 30s	Item a churn 30s	1£ 10s
Item une chaudière et un coudoir 30s	Item a boiler and an elbow rest 30s	1£
Item une ditto seule 20s	Item a single ditto 20s	1£
Item 20 terrines 24s	Item 20 terrines 24s	1£ 4s
Item 10 ( 6 ?) plats prisés 20s	Item 10 (6?) popular dishes 20s	1£
Item un grand plat 10s	Item a large dish 10s	10s
Item 3 dittos 20s	Item 3 dittos 20s	1£

Image 144 Page 7

Item une grande charrette et une paire de roues 18£	Item a large cart and a pair of wheels £18	18£
Item une petite ditto et ses roues 36£	Item a small ditto and its wheels £36	36£
Item un vieu tombereau 30s	Item an old dumper 30s	1£ 10s
Item une charrue et ses ferrements 12£	Item a plow and its fittings £12	12£
Item un grand auge 10s	Item a large trough 10s	10s
Item 12 poteaux et une sablière 12£	Item 12 posts and a sand pit £12	12£
Item 3 herses de bois 10s chaque	Item 3 wooden harrows 10s each	1£ 10s
Item une traine et son travail 12£	Item a train and its work £12	12£
Item une vieille ditto 9£	Item an old ditto £9	9£
Item 26 bottes de lin 12£	Item 26 bales of linen £12	12£
Item une vieille calèche 24£	Item an old carriage £24	24£
Item une tasserie de pois en gousse 120£	Item a cup of peas in pods £120	120£
Item 200 gerbes d’avoine 18£ le cent	Item 200 sheaves of oats £18 per cent	36£
Item 1000 gerbes de bled 30£ le cent	Item 1000 sheaves of corn £30 per cent	300£
Item 600 bottes de foin à 18£ le cent	Item 600 bales of hay £18 per cent	108£

Les animaux et bestiaux

Animals and livestock

18 poules 9£	18 hens £9	9£
Item 9 couples de dinde 48s le couple	Item 9 pairs of turkey 48s the couple	10£ 16s
Item 6 jeunes cochons 6£ chaque	Item 6 young pigs £6 each	36£

Image 145 Page 8

Item 3 vieux cochons 18£ chaque	Item 3 old pigs £18 each	54£
Item un cochon à l’engrais 36£	Item a fattening pig £36	36£
Item 8 vieux moutons 12£ chaque	Item 8 old sheep £12 each	96£
Item 5 jeunes dittos 6£ chaque	Item 5 young dittos £6 each	30£
Item 3 chevaux dont un blanc, le second noir et le dernier gris, 108£ chaque	Item 3 horses including one white, the second black and the last grey, £108 each	324£
Item une vache, une corne cassée 60£	Item a cow, a broken horn 60£	60£
Item une brune nez noir 54£	Item a brunette black nose £54	54£
Item une ditto rouge 48£	Item a red ditto £48	48£
Item une ditto brune 48£	Item a brown ditto £48	48£
Item une ditto roux et blanc 36£	Item a red and white ditto £36	36£
Item une taure rouge 24£	Item a red heifer £24	24£
Item une taure caille 18£	Item a quail heifer £18	18£
Item 2 vaux de l’année 24£	Item 2 worth of the year £24	24£
Item une génisse 9£	Item a heifer £9	9£
Item une paire de bœufs 120£	Item a pair of oxen £120	120£

Encore dans la maison

Still in the house

Un lit de plume, une paillasse, Un traversin, 2 oreillers 2 drapes et une courtepointe Et couchette 48£

A feather bed, a pallet, A bolster, 2 pillows 2 drapes and a quilt And berth £48

48£

Image 146 Page 9

Item une boete et une paillasse et un drap, 4£	Item a box and a pallet and a sheet, £4	4£
Item un autre lit de plume 30£	Item another feather bed £30	30£
Item 4 nappes de toile du pays, 30s chaque	Item 4 canvas tablecloths of the country, 30s each	6£
Item un drap de laine et une vieille courtepointe d’indienne 3£	Item a woolen cloth and a old Indian quilt £3	3£
Item une bouteille et un verre 10s	Item a bottle and a glass 10s	10s

Ce fait ayant vaqué sans interruption jusqu’à 4h de relevée, la vacation a cessé et adjournée sine die par rapport aux dettes actives, celles passives, les immeubles et papiers – Et tout le contenu ci-dessus du consentement des parties intéressées a été laissé en la garde et possession de ladite veuve qui s’en est volontairement chargée pour le représenter toutes fois quantes et à qui il appartiendra.Fait et passé maison dudit défunt, les jour et an que dessus et ont comme ci-devant signé – lecture faite.

English Translation:

This fact having continued without interruption up to 4 hours off, the session ceased and adjourned sine die in relation to active debts, passive debts, buildings and papers – And all the above contents of the consent of interested parties was left in the custody and possession of the said widow who voluntarily took charge to represent it all times as and to who it will belong to. Made and passed in the house of the said deceased, the days and year that above and have as above signed – reading done.

Jean Lord (sa marque)                    Marguerite Babin (sa marque)

Victor Girouard (sa marque)           Julien Lord (sa marque

François Lafay [signature]  Du Loupret [signature]

Dandurand [signature notaire]

Image 147 Page 10

L’an 1818, le 26 du mois de septembre à 10 heures du matin, à la requête de Marguerite Babin veuve d’Honoré Lord et tutrice aux 6 enfants issus de sondit mariage, en présence de Jean Lord subrogé tuteur desdits mineurs, plus de François Lafaye comme tuteur et Julien Lord comme subrogé tuteur de Jacques Lord, enfant encore mineur issu du mariage dudit Honoré Lord et défunte Suzanne Lafaye, par les notaires soussignés va être procédé à la continuation de l’inventaire ci-dessus conformément à l’adjournement donnée le 22 du mois courant, au bas du procès-verbal de la précédente vacation – comme suit, savoir

Les dettes actives

Ladite veuve déclare qu’il est du à ladite communauté par Joseph Boudreau pour reliquat du prix de vente d’une terre que ledit défunt lui a vendue 300£ ancien cours de cette province

English Translation:

The year 1818, the 26th of month of September at 10 a.m., at the request of widow Marguerite Babin of Honoré Lord and guardian of the 6 children born of his said marriage, in the presence of Jean Lord subrogated guardian of said minors, more of François Lafaye as tutor and Julien Lord as substitute guardian of Jacques Lord, still a minor child born of the marriage of the said Honoré Lord and late Suzanne Lafaye, by the undersigned notaries will be carried out to the continuation of the inventory above in accordance with the adjournment given the 22nd of the current month, at the bottom of the minutes of the previous vacation – as follows, know

Active debts

The said widow declares that it is due to the said community by Joseph Boudreau for remainder of the sale price of land that the said deceased sold to him 300£ old price of this province

300£

Ensuivent les dettes passives

Passive debts follow

Ladite veuve déclare que ladite communauté doit, savoir A M. Richard Wheeler par compte

The said widow declares that the said community must, know To Mr. Richard Wheeler by account

30£ 19s

 

Item au docteur Léonard Pour médicaments durant La maladie du défunt et par Compte

Item to Doctor Leonard For medications during The illness of the deceased and Account

39£

Image 148 Page 11

Item à M. JM Raymond marchand pour ballance de compte de marchandises	Item to Mr. JM Raymond merchant for balance of merchandise account	88£ 13s
Item à la fabrique de la paroisse St Luc pour reliquat de vente d’un banc dans l’église	Item at the parish factory St Luc for remaining sales from a bench in the church	2£ 8s
Item au Docteur Doucet par compte de médicaments durant la maladie du défunt cent trente trois [sic] livres 8s	Item to Doctor Doucet per medication count during the illness of the deceased one hundred and thirty three [sic] pounds 8s	153£ 8s [sic]
Item à Jean Lord	Item to Jean Lord	24£ 2s
Item encore à la fabrique de la paroisse St Luc pour enterrement et frais funéraires dudit défunt	Item still in the factory St Luc parish for burial and funeral expenses of said deceased	27£
Item à M. Jourdain LaBrosse Par compte de marchandises	Item to Mr. Jourdain LaBrosse By merchandise account	19£
		384£ 10s

Ensuivent les immeubles

Seulement une seixième partie indivise [ajout en marge : dans la moitié aussi indivise] d’une terre de 3 arpents de front sur 30 arpents de profondeur, située dans la seigneurie de la Prairie La Madeleine, tenant par devant au chemin qui conduit à St Jean, en profondeur en représentant Pierre Noël Terrien, d’un côté à la veuve François Brosseau et d’autre côté à Victor Girouard, et une pareille partie des bâtiments dessus construits Quant au restant de la terre [en marge: et bâtiments une moitié desdits bâtiments et cinq sixèmes d’iceux], un arpent et demi de large sur sa profondeur est propre audit défunt, ainsi que 5 sixièmes de l’autre arpent et demi sur sa profondeur

Se trouvent conquets de la seconde communauté

English Translation

Next are the buildings

Only an undivided sixth part [marginal addition: in the equally undivided half] of a land of 3 acres of frontage out of 30 acres of depth, located in the lordship de la Prairie La Madeleine, holding from the front to the path which leads to St Jean, in depth by representing Pierre Noël Terrien, on one side to the widow François Brosseau and on the other hand to Victor Girouard, and a similar part of the buildings built on it As for the rest of the land [in the margin: and buildings one half of the said buildings and five sixths of them], one acre and a half wide by its depth is own deceased audit, as well as 5 sixths of the other acre and a half on its depth. They find themselves conquered by the second community.

I’d love to know where this land was located.

Image 149 Page 12

de biens dudit défunt Honoré Lord et Suzanne Lafaye – les bâtiments désignés en l’inventaire des biens de la communauté dudit Honoré Lord et Suzanne Lafaye

Il y a encore une terre conquit de la communauté de biens dudit Honoré Lord et ladit Suzanne Lafaye située audit lieu de la paroisse St Luc, à l’Est du chemin qui conduit à St Jean, y tenant par devant, par derrière et d’un côté à Denis Laupret et d’autre côté à

[blanc] sur laquelle se trouve une grange construite – et laquelle grange a été construite par amême et des deniers de la communauté dudit défunt Honoré Lord et sa présente veuve – même qu’il a été mis et fait de plus sur ladite terre durant ladite dernière communauté 200 perches et les piquets pour les employer et 4 arpents de fossé. Pour constater la valeur du tout, les susdites parties ont choisi et nommé les sieurs Victor Girard et Denis Louprit personnes expertes qui ont évalué,

Savoir

English Transation:

property of the said deceased Honoré Lord and Suzanne Lafaye – the buildings designated in the inventory of the property of the community of the said Honoré Lord and Suzanne Lafaye. There is still a land conquered by the community property of the said Honoré Lord and the said Suzanne Lafaye located at the said place of the parish of St Luc, to the East of the path which leads to St Jean, holding there from the front, from behind and on one side to Denis Laupret and on the other side to [white] on which there is a barn built – and which barn was built by himself and with money from the community of the said deceased Honoré Lord and his present widow – even though he was put and made more on said land during said last community 200 poles and the stakes to use them and 4 acres of ditch. To see the value of the whole, the above-mentioned parties have chosen and named the gentlemen Victor Girard and Denis Louprit expert people who evaluated,

Know

La grange 600£	The barn £600	600£
Item les perches et piquets	Item poles and stakes	36£
Item les 4 arpents de fossés 12£	Item the 4 acres of ditches £12	12£
		648£

Il faut encore observer que pendant cette dernière communauté audit Honoré Lord et sa présente veuve [en marge : il a été paié] savoir à Henry Lord pour ses droits mobiliers au chef de feue Suzanne Lafaye sa mère de principal 515£ 18s 9 deniers, et d’intérêt sur cette somme 135£ fesant 650£ 18s 9d – 650 £ 18s 9d

English Translation

It must also be observed that during this last community audit Honoré Lord and his present widow [in the margin: it was paid] know to Henry Lord for his movable rights to the head of the fire Suzanne Lafaye, her principal’s mother 515£ 18s 9 pence, and interest on this sum 135£ costing £650 18s 9d – £650 18s 9d

1298£ 18s 9d

Image 150 Page 13

Rapport des sommes à rembourser à ladite Dernière communauté ci

English Translation

Report of the sums to be reimbursed to the said

Last community here

1298£ 18s 9d

 

Item à Louise Lord femme de Pierre Babin pour ses droits du chef de Suzanne Lafaille sa mère, de capital Pareille somme de 515£ 18s 9 deniers, Et d’intérêt durant 11 années 340£ 9s 10 deniers, fesant 856£ 8s 9d	Item to Louise Lord, wife of Pierre Babin for his rights as head of Suzanne Lafaille her mother, capital Same sum of £515 18s 9 pence, And interest for 11 years £340 9s 10 pence, weighing £856 8s 9d		856£ 8s 9d
Item à Julien Lord ses droits Mobiliers aussi échus du chef De feue Suzanne Lafaye sa Mère, de capital même somme De 515£ 18s 9d, et l’intérêt à constater	Item to Julien Lord his rights Furniture also from the chef From the late Suzanne Lafaye Mother, same capital Of £515 18s 9d, and the interest to be noted		515£ 18s 9d
Item enfin à Charles Hissiau et [blanc] Lorde sa femme Du chef de ladite Suzanne Lafaye Mère de ladite [blanc] Lord en Acompte des droits mobiliers Qu’elle a recevoir	Item finally to Charles Hissiau and [blank] Lorde his wife From the head of the said Suzanne Lafaye Mother of the said [blank] Lord in Deposit of movable rights That she received		240£
Il faudra encore observer En partage que durant cette communauté Ledit défunt Honoré Lord a vendu Une terre qui lui étoit propre à Jean Baptiste Sire pour la somme de 1800£ de 20s cours ancien	It will still be necessary to observe Sharing only during this community The said  deceased Honoré Lord sold A land that was his own Jean Baptiste Sire for the sum of 1800£ of 20s old course	2 955£ 6s 1d

 

1800£

Image 151 Page 14

S’ensuivent les titres Primo, l’expédition du contrat de mariage entre Honoré Lord et Marguerite Babin devant Maître Pinsonant/Pinsonaut et son confrère notaires le 11 du mois de février 1804 Inventorié et cotté – 1

Secondement l’inventaire des biens qui ont été communs entre Honoré Lord et Suzanne Lafaye sa défunte femme fait par les mêmes notaires le 3 de février 1804 – inventorié et cotté 2

Troisièmement le procès-verbal de la vente publique des effets mobiliers communs

entre Honoré Laure et feue Suzanne Lafaye dressé par les mêmes notaires le 10 février 1804 Inventorié et cotté trois – 3

Quatrièmement partage d’une terre entre Honoré Lord et ses enfants, devant Maître

Décoigne notaire le 7 de août 1810 inventorié et cotté – 4

Cinquièmement vente de droits successifs immobiliers maternels par Jean Baptiste

Lord à Honoré Lord son père devant Maître Demetot notaire, le 2 janvier 1815 inventorié – 5

Sixièmement vente de portion de terre par Marie Charlotte Laure à Honoré Lord son père devant Maître Pinsonaut notaire le 1er juillet 1802 Inventorié et cotté – 6

Septièmement vente par Pierre Dussault et Marguerite Laure son épouse à Honoré

Laure frère (ou père ???) et beau-frère (ou beau-père ???) devant Maître

English Translation:

The titles follow

First, sending the marriage contract between Honoré Lord and Marguerite Babin

in front of Maître Pinsonant/Pinsonaut and his fellow notary on February 11, 1804

Inventoried and listed – 1

Secondly, the inventory of goods which were common between Honoré Lord and Suzanne Lafaye his late wife made by the same notaries on the 3rd of February 1804 – inventoried and side 2

(RJE – Can we find this document and the following two?)

Thirdly the minutes of the public sale of common movable effects between Honoré Laure and the late Suzanne Lafaye drawn up by the same notaries February 10, 1804

Inventoried and rated three – 3

Fourth division of land between Honore Lord and his children, before Master Discoigne notary on August 7, 1810 inventoried and quoted – 4

Fifth sale of successive rights maternal real estate by Jean Baptiste Lord to Honoré Lord his father before Maître Demetot, notary, on 2 January 1815 inventoried – 5

Sixth sale of portion of land by Marie Charlotte Laure to Honoré Lord his father before Master Pinsonaut notary July 1, 1802 Inventoried and listed – 6

Seventh sale by Pierre Dussault and Marguerite Laure his wife to Honoré Laure brother (or father???) and brother-in-law (or father-in-law???) in front of Master

Image 152 Page 15

Maître Baussa notaire le 14 juin 1800

Inventorié et cotté – 8

Neuvièmement vente par Gabriel Christie écuyer d’une terre de 3 arpents

de front sur 30 arpents de profondeur à Thomas Donets devant Maître Lublin ( ?) notaire

le 28 septembre 1792 inventorié – 9

Vente par Ed. W. Gray écuyer Sheriff du district de Montreal au Général Christie, en date du 29 Juillet 1789, inventorié et cotté – 10

Ce fait ayant vaqué sans interruption jusqu’à 5h de relevée, ne s’étant plus rien trouvé à inventorier, la vacation a cessé et tout le contenu au présent, du consentement des parties, a été laissé en la garde et possession de ladite veuve qui s’en est volontairement chargée pour le représenter toutes fois, quantes et à qui il appartiendra Et attendu que par le testament solemnel dudit défunt Honoré Lord reçu par Edme Henry et R. H. Dandurand

notaires le [blanc] ,

ledit Honoré Lord auroit légué [en marge : la propriété de tous ses biens] aux enfants issus de son mariage avec sa présente veuve mais la jouissance et usufruit à sadite veuve durant sa viduité seulement, pour plus grande sûreté

English Translation

Maître Baussa notary on June 14, 1800

Inventoried and listed – 8

Ninth sale by Gabriel Christie Squire of a land of 3 acres front on 30 acres of depth to Thomas Donets before Master Lublin (?) notary September 28, 1792 inventoried – 9

Sale by Ed. W. Gray Esquire Sheriff of the Montreal district General Christie, dated 29

July 1789, inventoried and quoted – 10

This fact having passed without interruption up to 5 a.m. raised, having found nothing to be inventoried, the sale has ceased and all content in the present tense, from consent of the parties, was left in the custody and possession of the said widow who voluntarily took care of it to represent it all times, quantes and who it will belong to.

And expected that by the will solemn memorial of the said deceased Honoré Lord received by Edme Henry and R. H. Dandurand

notaries on [blank],

the said Honoré Lord would have bequeathed [in the margin: the ownership of all his property] to the children from his marriage to his present widow but enjoyment and usufruct to said widow during her viduality only, for greater safety

Image 153 Page 16

Sûreté de la conservation et entretien d’iceux, sont intervenus et furent présents devant les notaires soussignés les sieurs Richard Wheeler aubergiste, et Antoine Wheeler Brosseau cultivateur tous deux de la paroisse St Luc dans le comté de Huntingdon, dans le district de Montréal, lesquels se sont volontairement rendus pleiges et cautions pour ladite Marguerite Babin veuve, envers et au profit de sesdits auxquels ils ont conjointement et solidairement les uns pour les autres et un d’eux seuls pour tous, sans division, discussion ni fidéjussion à quoi ils renoncent, promis de bailler, payer et livrer quand dus seront tous et chacun les droits successifs, mobiliers et immobiliers afférants auxdits enfants du chef de leurdit défunt père et dont ladite veuve a droit de jouir durant sa viduité comme [en marge : dit est ci-devant] à titre d’usufruit et précaire par et en vertu du testament de leurdit défunt père sus-cité à peine etc.

Et pour sûreté lesdites cautions ainsi Que ladite veuve affectent et hipothèquent

Dis ce jour tous leurs biens immeubles présents et à venir.

Et pour l’exécution des présentes ont élu leurs domiciles irrévocables en leurs présentes demeures auxquels lieux veulent et consentent etc. Nonobstant etc. car ainsi etc. promettant etc.

English Translation

Safety of conservation and maintenance of these, intervened and were present before the undersigned notaries Richard Wheeler innkeeper, and Antoine Wheeler Brosseau cultivator both of the parish of St Luc in the county of Huntingdon, in the district of Montreal, who voluntarily surrendered pledges and deposits for the said Marguerite Babin widow, to and for the benefit of these to whom they jointly and in solidarity for each other and one of them alone for all, without division, discussion or discontent with what they give up, promise to yawn, pay and deliver when due everyone will have the rights successive, movable and immovable relating to the said children of the chief of their said late father and of whom the said widow has the right to enjoy during his widowhood as [in the margin: said is above] as usufruct and precarious by and under the will of their said late father mentioned above etc. And for safety the said sureties as well That the said widow affects and mortgages Tell this day all their real estate present and future.

And for the execution of these have elected their irrevocable domicile in their present homes to which places want and consent etc. Notwithstanding etc. because so etc. promising etc.

Image 154 Page 17

obligeant etc. renonçant etc.

Fait et passé maison dudit défunt en la paroisse St Luc les jour et an que dessus, et a ledit sieur Wheeler signé avec les notaires, quant audit Antoine Brosseau et ladite veuve, ainsi que ledit Jean Lord subrogé tuteur à ce présent, ont déclaré ne savoir signer de ce enquis ont fait leurs marques lecture faite.

Jean Lord (sa marque)        Marguerite Babin (sa marque)

Antoine Brosseau (sa marque)

Richard Wheeler [signature]

Dandurand [signature]

English Translation:

Page 17 (view 154)

obliging etc. renouncing etc.

Made and passed in the house of the said deceased in the parish of St Luc on the day and year that above, and has the said Mr. Wheeler signed with the notaries, as for audit Antoine Brosseau and the said widow, as well as the said John Lord subrogated guardian of this present, have declared not knowing how to sign this inquiry have made their mark reading done.

Jean Lord (his brand) Marguerite Babin (his brand)

Antoine Brosseau (his brand)

Richard Wheeler [signature]

Dandurand [signature]

The Sale

Image 155 

Le 24 et 25 septembre 1818

Vente publique des biens meubles de la communauté d’entre Marguerite Babin et Honoré Lords, son défunt mari

English Translation

September 24 and 25, 1818

Public sale of goods community furniture of among Marguerite Babin and Honoré Lords, her late husband.

Roberta’s note: What follows are the images of the record of the sale. Honore’s son, Honore, is my ancestor, and he apparently purchased three things. One is a box of « compiled items and two old sheep. Of course, based on the earlier information, it appears that he also wound up with either all of or part of the farm.

I can’t help but wonder if Marguerite remained there or exactly how that worked out. She purchased a great number of things from his estate. At that time, a man’s entire estate was put up for sale.

I remember my Dad’s sale, and even though we really didn’t want all that “stuff,” it was still an extremely emotional day, watching his life be disassembled in pieces and partitioned out to the highest bidder.

Thankfully, my Mom didn’t have to buy her things back, but there were still a significant number of hard feelings over events surrounding that sale.

Image 156

I do not speak fluent French anymore, but the text above states that this is the sale of Honoré Lord’s estate and that Jean Lord, son of Honoré is the brother of the six minor children.

Something about Francois Lafaye and Jacques Lord, minor child of Honore Lord and Suzanne Lafaye, also Julien Lord, his brother. I believe this means that Francois is essentially the guardian of these children. Francois is the uncle of Honoré’s children with Suzanne. In 1818, Jacques turned 19 in July, and Julien turned 23 in March.

At the end of this page, it says something about the door of the church.

Image 157

In various places in this document, Francoise Lafaye, free (brother), purchases items for the minor son. I don’t know why some names are struck through.

The word “veuve” means widow. She clearly bid on several items, but some items apparently were purchased by others whose names are struck through and veuve written in.

This must have been traumatic for Honoré’s wife and children.

Image 158

Image 159

Image 160

Image 161

Image 162

Image 163

Image 164

Image 165 

Total: 1838£ 5s

Image 166 :

Avenant le 25 septembre

Animaux

Animals

Image 167

Image 168

Image 169 :

Total : 1821£ 6s

I scanned through the names on these images, and one thing I found remarkable is that few, if any, of Honoré’s adult children purchased items from his estate. There are a couple of people with the Lafaye surname, his second wife’s family, also the family of his daughter-in-law, but not nearly as many as I would have expected.

This causes me to wonder if most people, those whose names were lined out, purchased on behalf of the widow to keep the items from the homestead within the family, for her use.

My friend, Justine, who is a native-French speaker took a look at the translations performed by Suzanne and attempted to find the referenced land records. I would LOVE to know where Honoré lived.

From Justine:

Since I had the time, I had a closer look at Honoré Lord’s inventory in 1818, especially the papers listed at the end.

I misspelled some of the notaries’ names and can’t find them on the BanQ website so I am afraid it is a dead end.

Here are my notes :

– Theophile Pinsonnault from La Prairie (Montreal) is not online on BanQ, but I have not checked FamilySearch. Those acts would be the most interesting for you: if you find them, do not hesitate to ask me for a transcription.

– several deeds are relating to a land in the « prairie de la Madeleine » :

7/08/1810 (notary Louis Decoigne, Lacadie district of Iberville): land sharing between the children and their father : https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QHV-53LJ-Z9L3-M?cat=1215614 (several children mentioned)

28/09/1792 (notary Peter LUKIN, not Lublin, Montreal): sale of the same land by Gabriel Christie to Thomas Donets

https://numerique.banq.qc.ca/patrimoine/details/52327/4171362?docref=P7YPvKx5TbfhTdGJyzu8jA

Weirdly enough, the sale from Donets to Honoré is not mentioned.

The Deed

Honoré’s second wife, Suzanne Lafay (Lafaille) died on August 7, 1803 leaving children ranging in age from 12 to 4 years of age. Her two youngest children died in the last two years of her life.

Her children were Henri, Louise Marie married Peter Babin in 1803, Julien, Suzanne married Charles Ficiault in 1814, and Jacques Lord.

Honoré had five living children with his first wife, Appoline Garceau, who died in 1788. Those children are Honoré, Marie Anne who married Antoine Brousseau 1788, Francois, Charlotte “Marguerite” who married Pierre-Victor Dussault 1797, and Jean-Baptiste Lore (Lord).

On July 10, 1810, Honoré would have been 68 years old. He remarried Marguerite Babin in 1804, so this deed was not in response to his marriage.

And of course, I wonder how the children from his first marriage were provided for. When their mother died, Honoré was still getting settled in Canada after years of exile in the States and serving in the Revolutionary War in New York.

He wouldn’t have been terribly well off in the 1780s. I’m guessing he slowly amassed farm animals and perhaps property too, over the years.

I can’t help but wonder if his eldest son, Honoré, his namesake, wound up with his land. Someplace, there’s probably a clue.

On one hand, his eldest son, who was born in 1768, was not included in the deed above and was 50 years old by the time his father died. He was clearly already well established, had been married for 29 years, and had 15 children. It’s unlikely that he needed his father’s farm.

On the other hand, the eldest son traditionally inherited the land.

However, If Honoré’s son, Honoré, was provided for, what about the other 4 or 5 children from that marriage who were still living when their father died in 1818?

Image 1792 #777 page 1

Very rough translation limited to the names of the individuals involved:

Honoré Lord of St. Luc parish, father of Henry, Louise, Julien, Susanne, and Jaques Lord his minor children from his marriage with Susanne Lafaille, his deceased wife.

Image 1793, page 2

Image 1794, page 3

This document includes a bonus – the signature of Honoré. Apparently Honoré could not sign his name, so signed with a mark. In fact, only one of three men could, including Honoré’s brother-in-law, Francois Lafay.

Until this deed, we didn’t know if Honoré could sign his name or not. Honoré was born in Acadia, Nova Scotia, a dozen years before the removal. The Lord family lived upriver, so he probably spent his days working on the farm, not learning to read and write from the priest. Of course, that’s assuming any children were learning to read and write in that time and place – and I’m not sure that’s true.

The families were horrifically rounded up, forced onto ships, and deported to shores unknown in the winter of 1755. Clearly, all Honoré’s family could do was to survive. He never learned to read or write as an adult, but by then, he probably didn’t need to. The priests read the Bible and interpreted the results for their parishioners, notaries took care of anything legal, and Honoré spent his life working on his farm after he and Appoline arrived in Ste. Marguerite de Blairfindie with their children about 1787.

Inventory Provides Silent Testimony to a Successful Life

Honoré lived a long life and didn’t die suddenly, based on the sizeable medical bills owed to the local doctor. It’s remarkable that his youngest child was just two years and three weeks old at his death.

Based on the lengthy inventory of his estate, plus some telling items, Honoré was anything but poor. To his credit, in addition to the normally expected farm tools and pots and pans, he had a pair of oxen, an old carriage, 3 horses, 18 cows including one with a broken horn, sheep, pigs, hens, pairs of turkeys, tables, chairs, two feather beds, iron candlesticks, pewter silverware, 4 chairs, a hutch, chest, wardrobe, 11 dishes and a “small, prized cast iron stove.”

Items noted as still in the house, aside from the beds and barest of furniture included a spinning wheel, 2 coats, a pen and plume, a bolster, 2 pillows, quilt, 2 drapes (for the bed), a sheet, a mirror, a bottle, tablecloth, a quilt and lastly, specifically noted, “an old Indian quilt.”

What I wouldn’t give to know the story of that old quilt. Where did it come from?
What did it look like? Is there any possibility that it belonged to Honoré’s grandmother, Francoise d’Azy Mius, the daughter of an unnamed Mi’kmaq woman? Could it possibly have survived the Grand Dérangement?

All told, Honoré’s inventory tells the tale of a man who started with nothing and built a relatively comfortable life for the time and place in which he lived. He owned land and livestock and left an inheritance for his many children. Not bad for a man who was forcibly deported with his family at the age of 13 with nothing except their lives.

_____________________________________________________________

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As a genealogist, we are always cautious when we hear reports of someone who lives to be over 100 years old. Sometimes we find “evidence,” but the “go to” is always that we’re actually looking at something else. Either two people by the same name or perhaps misremembered. In other words, we actually presume that the story is incorrect or maybe embellished, and we have to work to prove that the person actually did reach that age.

Especially before the days of modern medicine, without medications like antibiotics, living to be a centenarian required an incredible amount of luck many times over. Winning both the genetic and lady luck lottery.

By way of example, the story that “Grandpappy Estes lived to be 109” turned out to have grown after his death. Based on George Estes’s Revolutionary War pension application and the reporting of his death, we actually have been able to reconstruct his age. Grandpappy Estes was born in 1763 and died in 1859 at the age of 96.

His son, John R. Estes also “lived to be over 100,” except he was actually 98 when he died. Many of his grandchildren lived into their 90s too, with a few approaching 100.

Longevity certainly does run in this family line. Two of John R.’s great-great-granddaughters, my aunts, lived to be 99.

Of course, today, ages are much easier to confirm with birth and death records. Even before that, census data helped a lot, but was nonspecific and often didn’t exactly correlate from one census to another.

I truly believe that sometimes people didn’t know what year, or day, they were born. Reading old depositions, sometimes birth and age information wasn’t specific and didn’t seem to be important.

Of course, the older one gets, the more often one needs to do math to determine their age, so someone’s age sometimes becomes “fuzzy” as memory fades. It’s easy to see how people began to simply remember someone as achieving that century milestone. All in all, it was remarkable to become anyplace near that aged – so family members could be forgiven for remembering their revered elder in the most favorable or remarkable of circumstances.

Enter William Claxton.

William isn’t my ancestor, but he’s the son of my ancestors, Fairwick/Fairwix Clarkson/Claxton and Agnes Muncy, on my paternal grandmother’s side of the tree.

William, it appears, was quite a colorful character.

Uncle William

Years ago, one of my cousins, Daryl, was chasing information about William Claxton and his first wife, Martha Patsy Gillus Walker.

Things get complicated and confusing quickly.

Martha’s first husband was not William Claxton, but was Henry Claxton, the son of James Lee Claxton and Sarah Cook. Henry died in August of 1838 at age 23.

Martha then married her second husband, William Claxton in July of 1843. William is the son of Fairwix/Fairwick Claxton, the son of James Lee Clarkson or Claxton. William Claxton was Henry Claxton’s nephew, so Martha married her deceased husband’s nephew.

Both Claxton men that Martha married were born in 1815. Fairwix was the oldest child of James Lee Clarkson, and Henry was the youngest, born the same year as Fairwick’s oldest child, William. Did you get all that?

Adding to the confusion just a bit is that Martha and Henry had three children, Edward Hilton, Angeline, and Flora Jane Claxton/Clarkson who later appear on the census with Martha and William after they married. Given that the children’s surnames were Claxton or Clarkson, it’s very easy and even normal without contradictory evidence to presume they were William’s children, but they weren’t.

That was only revealed in the pension re-application after the Civil War for James Lee Clarkson’s widow Sarah’s benefits that had been suspended during that war. Afterward, as her executor, Fairwick, her son, applied for her back benefits and had to include a statement of loyalty from all of her descendants.

Initially, there wasn’t any reason to think this was a banyan tree version of genealogy, but slowly, in trickles, the truth started seeping out, tidbit by tidbit, here and there.

It took years, and I mean decades, of unraveling to sort through this, and some of the findings are rather remarkable, seemingly more related to a tall tale than the truth. Seriously, though, who could make something this convoluted up?

The Census

William Claxton/Clarkson was recorded in several censuses during his lifetime.

In 1850, William, 29, was living in Hancock County, TN, with his wife, Martha, and all of their combined children. He was born about 1831, according to the census taker, and can read and write.

I should probably have mentioned that the Claxton surname is consistently butchered, too. We don’t even know what it “should” be. Y-DNA testing shows us that we match other men in other counties by the surname spelling of Claxton, but James Lee’s War of 1812 documents are filed under Clarkson. It’s also spelled Clarkston from time to time, and in the 1850 census, it’s spelled Caxton.

In 1850, William was living beside his brother, Samuel Claxton, my ancestor, who was living beside their widowed grandmother, Sarah Cook Claxton.

The identity of John Helloms, who was living with Sarah, has never been figured out, although there has been lots of speculation that he was her brother. The problem is that in a deposition, she says her father is Joel Cook, so John can’t be her brother since he’s five years younger than Sarah and her father, Joel Cook, was still alive past 1805.

In 1858, according to the Rob Camp Baptist Church notes, William Claxton was baptized in August, along with his brother Samuel and William’s stepson who was also his first cousin, Edward Hilton Clarkson.

In 1860, William is living in the same place and is listed as age 37, so born about 1823 and has apparently only aged eight years in a decade. He can read and write.

Of course, the Civil War disrupted everything, and families were cleaved cleanly in two. Martha Gillis Walker was the “adopted” daughter of Edward “Ned” Walker Jr., who died in 1860. His descendant, Phillip Walker, reports that in the lawsuits regarding Edward’s estate, there’s a mention of William Clarkson by Henry Walker, Ned’s oldest son and estate administrator. Henry said that William had gone bankrupt during the war and had been loaned some money from the estate that he felt William would never be able to repay. The general sense was that Bill was broke and would always be broke. Perhaps this was part of why he moved away.

By 1870, William had moved to Claiborne County, the adjacent county to the west. He’s 49 in the census, so born about 1821 and living with Martha and their children. He doesn’t own real estate, has some personal property, and cannot read or write.

We know from other records that he probably lived near Cave Springs, some 15 miles from where he was born and lived in 1850 and 1860. That’s 15 miles through the mountains on dirt roads. By today’s standards, not far away, but times were different back then. In essence, he had moved away and wasn’t really part of the nuclear family anymore.

The Lawsuit

According to the lawsuit, William wasn’t there to help when needed during the last seven years of his father, Fairwick’s life, when the rest of the family was tending his farm for him as best they could. Fairwick died in 1874.

William was Fairwick’s eldest child. His two younger brothers had died prior to and during the Civil War. Brother Samuel was the next eldest, and he was gravely ill and incapacitated due to his Civil War service and died in 1876 as a result.

Samuel was followed by two sisters, then John, who also died in the war. Their youngest sibling was a sister who had died, probably in the 1860s.

Feeling completely betrayed and abandoned by William, his only remaining, healthy son, in his hour of need, Fairwick wrote William and the rest of his family, other than Samuel and two grandchildren who did help him, entirely out of his will.

In 1874, Fairwick died, and in 1875, William, then living in Union County, TN, some 45 miles away, filed suit against Samuel contesting Fairwick’s will. That suit made it all the way to the Tennessee Supreme Court in 1878, which is the only reason we have this information. The Hancock County records no longer exist.

To say this lawsuit succeeded in destroying what was left of the family is an understatement.

My heart aches for William and Samuel’s mother, Agnes Muncy, who had to testify about what happened in Fairwick’s last years, as well as about the death of her son Samuel and the deaths of her other children.

She also testified in a deposition about what Fairwick told her about the division of his land:

He and my self were alone and he said he wanted his business wound up that he intended to make three deeds one to Samuel Clarkson, one to Rebecca Wolf and one to Nancy Ferry (was then). I asked him what he intended to do with his other children and he said he would do by them as they had done by him they had left him in a bad condition and he had nothing for them. I persuaded him to leave some land for them and he said I need not talk to him for he would not.

Essentially, Agnes lost all five of her sons, four to death and William to distance, both physical and that imposed by his choices and the resulting heartache.

Union County

In 1880, William was still living in Union County, TN, and is listed as age 57.

We know he lives near Maynardville, in part because Martha, who died in 1884, is buried in the Campbell-Clarkston cemetery there.

In 1880, William was living beside his son, Jonathan Clarkson, and George Campbell from Claiborne County, who had married his daughter, Matilda, in 1869. William’s age, 57, suggests his birth about 1823.

My cousin, Daryl, was given this picture of Matilda Clarkson Campbell, who we originally thought was the person marked with the X – but it isn’t. Daryl later figured out, with assistance, that the people are, left to right in the rear, Dora Campbell (with the X), born 1890, and Matilda Haynes Campbell, born 1873. Front row, left to right: Broda Campbell born 1898, George Campbell born 1845, Matilda Clarkson/Claxton born 1846, Jesse Campbell, born 1875, and William McTeer Campbell born 1872. This photo would have been taken about 1899, given that Broda was born in January of 1898.

Broda and Jesse are the children of Matilda Haynes and William McTeer Campbell. William Campbell is the son of George Campbell and Matilda Claxton, the older seated couple, whose youngest daughter, Dora is standing behind them with the X. In other words, this is a three-generation photo. William Claxton would have still been living, but is not in the picture, but Martha Patsy Gillus Walker had already died.

According to the census, Martha Gillis Walker was older than William Claxton. She died in 1884. Today, the Campbell-Clarkston cemetery outside of Maynardville has been destroyed. When Cousin Daryl was researching, it was reported that only three stones remained and that the rest were either gone or broken. The top is broken and lost from hers, but the dates remain.

Mar. 8, 1815 – Feb. 15, 1884

In addition to Martha, others buried in that cemetery are reported to be:

• Harvey Clarkston, July 16, 1826 – Nov 26, 1886. Noted as the son of A. P. and M. Clarkston. I have no idea who this might be, but that early date seems like he’s important to unraveling this family.
• Jonathan McTeer “Mack” Clarkston, July 3, 1849 – August 23, 1928 – the son of William Clarkson and Martha Walker.
• William Campbell, 1807-1870 – the identity of William and his wife, Martha, below, are unknown.
• Martha Campbell, 1820 – ? – Noted as “wife of William Campbell, Mother of George Campbell. This may be true, but Martha Nevils and James Campbell were the parents of the George Campbell who married Matilda Clarkson/Claxton, so it’s not this couple.
• E. Clarkston, March 15, 1819 – October 3, 1895 – I have no idea who this is, but the early date seems important.

Who are these people? The oldest ones died before the days of death certificates, which began after 1900. Sorting out these connections seems important and might lead to answers in earlier generations. If anyone knows, please clue me in.

William Remarries into the Manning Family

On August 17, 1888, in Claiborne County, William Clarkston married Lizer (probably Elizabeth) Jane Manning, born in 1837 to William Mannon. Hancock County had yet to split from Claiborne, which would occur in the 1840s.

Even though disowned, William was apparently still somehow connected with the Hancock County Clarkson family, because in 1884, a transaction took place between William’s step-son, Edward Hilton Clarkson, and William Mannon.

1884, Feb 21 – E.H. Clarkson and Mary his wife of Hancock Co. to William Mannon of the same for $12 land in the 14th civil district of Hancock on the N side of Powell’s River bounded by Herel’s corner, Yearys and E.H. Clarkson’s conditional line, containing 2 acres more or less.  E.H. and Mary sign with their marks. Witness J.N. Thomas and R.D. Green

This is a piece of the original family land where Fairwick Claxton lived on the Powell River and adjoins the Herrell land. I have absolutely no idea how E. H. Clarkson obtained these 2 acres of land, especially given that he had been living in Union County with William and his mother. 

This could have been Edward’s inheritance from his father, Henry, that finally trickled down to him.

Henry did have a land claim adjacent Fairwix and Sarah’s grants. We do know that the earliest Mannon was living in fairly close proximity to Sarah, the widow of James Lee Clarkson – but that’s a story for another day.

The Hancock County courthouse burned, twice, so remaining records are sporadic.

Two Hancock County Clarkson Cemeteries

Not that it’s confusing, but the original Claxton/Clarkson Cemetery is located on the land owned by Fairwick, where James had originally settled with Sarah, and a second Clarkson Cemetery is located further north, near the Mannon/Manning land.

Due to Edward’s involvement in this transaction, for a long time I thought this was the land where the northern Clarkson Cemetery is located, which is near the Manning Cemetery. However, given the land description and location, it’s clearly not. The confusing factor is that William Mannon is involved with and lived near the northern Clarkson Cemetery and purchased the two acres of E. H.’s land that was the original Claxton family land claim several miles away.

However, E. H. Clarkson IS buried in the newer, northern Clarkson Cemetery near the Manning Cemetery, which is very probably where he lived. I told you this was confusing.

We will visit that cemetery in a few minutes. Let’s get back to William who is now married to Liza Manning, and missing from the census.

Twenty Year Gap

The 1890 census is missing, and I can’t find William Claxton anyplace in 1900. He would have been someplace around 77 by that time, so it would have been reasonable to think he had died.

But nope, he didn’t. He was just AWOL.

In 1910, William is still in Union County living with his son, Mack, whose name is really Jonathan McTeer Clarkson. William’s age is given as 85, so born in about 1825, and he’s listed as a widower again. This suggests that his second wife, Liza Manning, is probably buried in the Campbell-Clarkston Cemetery in Union County.

The Newspaper Article

Whoever would have thought William Claxton would have wound up in the newspaper.

Travis Chumley, a native of Claiborne County posts the most interesting photos and historical tidbits in his Facebook feed.

I searched his feed by surname and came up with this gem.

In the Sunday Telegram on April 23, 1916, in Clarksburg, WV, they marveled that “Uncle William” Claxton was 103 years old and had never worn a coat nor called a doctor. I’m here to tell you, it gets cold in those hills and hollers. It snows.

But that wasn’t the only place William’s story was published. William went viral, at least for that time, and the story was picked up in Atlanta, Georgia, Laramie, Wyoming, and probably more locations. Ironically, I’m not sure which of the local papers originated this story, but surely one of them did. Uncle William was famous!

For those who aren’t “southern,” Uncle and Aunt are terms of respect and affection for an older person. For example, my “Uncle George” was a term of endearment for an elderly second cousin once removed (2C1R) who helped me immensely when I first began my genealogy journey. Yea, “Uncle” is much simpler, and everyone “down home” understands. So Uncle and Aunt may or may not be your actual uncle and aunt, or they might be. Is it any wonder our genealogy is confused?

Newspaper articles are full of gold nuggets. William walked 10 miles a day with no or little fatigue. First, why? I can’t even do that today. I don’t know, of course, but based on the culture in the hills at the time, I’d bet he smoked unfiltered cigarettes, too.

Albert is indeed his son, so that’s accurate, although William did live in Union County for some years – from about 1874 through at least 1910. However, he may have gone back and forth between Union and Claiborne.

This article is definitely about the right William Claxton/Clarkson. It’s interesting to note that the old man was deaf.

In the final census before his death, taken on January 30, 1920, William lives with Robert and Emma Patterson. Robert is 63, and William’s relationship to him is listed as grandfather-in-law. William is noted as being 103 and widowed – so born about 1817. He can no longer read and write.

I came across this photo of the Claxton Reunion that reportedly includes William and his son, Albert, at the home of Albert’s daughter, Flora Claxton (1881-1965), who married William Richie Gray in September 1909.

“Uncle William” Claxton died in 1920. If these children at left are really Ruby and Caltha Grey who were born in 1922 and 1924, respectively, then the William in this photo is not our “Uncle William.”

Posted on Ancestry by a descendant, this photo shows Flora revisiting Albert’s homestead in Ousley Hollow, which is located on Straight Creek, probably today’s Ousley Lane, which runs through “Ousley Holler” in Claiborne County. This is where “Uncle William” lived with his son.

The old log cabin in Ousley Hollow doesn’t look terribly different than the old Clarkson Home adjacent to the northern Clarkson Cemetery in Hancock County, TN, the part that was originally Claiborne, where Edward Hilton Clarkson lived.

The Northern Clarkson Cemetery

Mary Parkey (1927-2000) and I visited this cemetery in 1992 during our great adventure. This cemetery is on private land and you can’t find it if you don’t know exactly where it is and have someone generous enough to escort you.

Both Edward Hilton Clarkson and his sister, Flora Jane Clarkson Chadwell are buried there.

Mary Parkey said that Edward’s wife, Mary Marlene Martin whom he married in 1860, is buried here in an unmarked grave as well, having died in 1893. Edward clearly maintained his connections with the Hancock County families because Mary’s parents were Anson Cook Martin and Margaret Herrell whose family lived adjacent James Clarkson’s original land.

Today, both the northern Clarkson and Manning cemeteries are under the stewardship of the Manning family. I really think this should be called the Edward Hilton Clarkson Cemetery.

William Mannon donated the land for the Mt. Zion Baptist Church, where E. H. Clarkson served as moderator, which is also located nearby.

Clarkson/Claxton Cabin in Hancock County

Edward Hilton Clarkson was the moderator of the Mt. Zion Church for many years.

This land was quite rugged and extremely remote when Boyd Manning took Mary Parkey and me back to the cemetery on his tractor back in 1992.

We climbed aboard the back of the tractor at Boyd’s barn, then he drove down a rough path part way. Towards the end, the tractor could go no further, so we trekked through the woods and overgrowth the rest of the way.

After we were finished at the cemetery, we walked down a steep incline, down a hill to the old Clarkson home, snugged into the holler. I believe this is the roof, still remaining today, but I can’t tell for sure.

No access road was available, and there’s no road to that structure today, either.

None of us knew how those abandoned vehicles managed to get there. Boyd said that once they got there, they never got out.

It was very steep up to the closest path, which wasn’t at all a road. We climbed.

The abandoned home looks like it has been enlarged at least once.

Unfortunately, the early Hancock County deeds are gone, so we may never know exactly how Edward came to own this land, assuming he did. It’s clear that he lived here.

The interior looked like someone just walked away – or died. Dishes were still sitting in the kitchen, and canned goods were eerily waiting for someone to come home and make dinner.

This house had been abandoned for years, probably decades, when we visited.

There was no running water, and one wire for electricity had been strung at some point, held up with nails. Wash tubs sat beneath a lean-to with a roof, and water was carried from the spring.

Every desirable homestead had a fresh spring or well. The Clarksons were lucky, and this spring is probably why they chose this location. Less desirable properties obtained their water from a spring or creek downstream of others, but you never knew if the water was contaminated by the time it got to you.

The cool water runs out of this small cave and pools below.

I actually considered purchasing this property many years ago, with the goal of restoring the cabin in a peaceful location that I could visit from time to time. Maybe escape to was more like it. I think the cabin was a lost cause, truthfully, but I surely wanted to own a piece of family land. I thought my ancestors had owned this land, but now I know better – although it was the land of James Claxton’s grandchild, Edward. Ironically, Edward’s wife, Mary Martin, was also the child of a different ancestor of mine, Margaret Herrell. The DNA of my ancestors is scattered and buried here.

This wasn’t where William Claxton was born, nor his father or grandfather. The original Claxton land was about five miles away.

I wouldn’t find the original Claxton/Clarkson land in the Clarkson bend of the Powell River for another 15 years. 

William’s Burial

FindaGrave suggests that William Claxton/Clarkson is buried in the Campbell-Clarkson Cemetery in Union County, but he’s not.

I would have expected him to be buried maybe someplace on Straight Creek in western Claiborne County, given that’s where he was living in 1920, but he’s not there either. Surprisingly, he’s buried at Cave Springs.

Cousin Daryl took this photo years ago and confirmed his birth and death dates on the stone in person.

The last testimony to William’s advanced age is this stone, which gives his birth day and year as September 20, 1815, and his death as June 29, 1920.

If these dates are indeed accurate, William was three months shy of his 105^th birthday, an incredible milestone. He would have actually been 104 when the census was taken earlier that year, so that’s mighty close.

William’s Trail

I mapped William Claxton’s life, as best we know. Granted, there are gaps.

William Claxton/Clarkson was born on the old Claxton homeplace, just down the road from Camp Jubilee in what was then Claiborne County, but is now Hancock.

After 1860, but before 1870, he moved to someplace near Cave Springs in Claiborne County, near where the Campbell family lived, then on to Union County, where the Campell-Claxton Cemetery is located on Rosewood Lane.

Some years later, between 1910 and 1920, he had moved back to Ousley Hollow on Straight Creek, along present-day Ousley Lane, and then, finally, was buried back at Cave Springs.

Intrigue

The Claxton family is one of suspense and intrigue.

There are people who seem to be important buried in the Clarkston-Campbell Cemetery in Union County, but we have no idea who they are.

I still can’t figure out who the father of James Lee Clarkson/Claxton is. Or where James came from before Russell County as a young adult around 1795. Daryl and I always thought the unusual middle name McTeer descended from the Campbell line, but now it looks like it may have somehow come through the Claxton/Clarkson line.

James Lee Claxton’s father-in-law, Joel Cook, disappears into thin air.

James’s widow, Sarah Cook, is found in the census with John Helloms in 1850. Who the heck is that and why is he living with her? Some widows cared for people who could not care for themselves, but this seems different.

Sarah was somehow connected with William Hulloms, who died in Claiborne County in 1820. Sarah is the administrator of his will. Why is that? That’s very unusual. Are those two men connected? If so, how? And how are they connected to Sarah?

What’s Next?

All I can say is that one tiny tidbit has finally turned up – in the most unexpected place. And it’s one juicy morsel.

Stay tuned. I have a collaborator, and we’re digging as fast as we can.

We might have a lead.

Or, perhaps, we have one more mystery on our hands.

One thing’s for sure – Uncle William, who assuredly knew those answers, isn’t telling!

_____________________________________________________________

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I really considered saying nothing this holiday season because it’s been really a difficult year

However, I’ve always been quite transparent with my readers, so I invite you to listen while I talk to myself.

Do you talk to yourself?

Sometimes I have to.

You see, 2023 has been one devil of a year.

Let me give you just a few lowlights.

• I’ve had Covid twice and RSV once. Yes, I took the vaccines, which is probably why it didn’t kill me.
• I have a very close family member with horribly debilitating long Covid, and he has had it for almost a year. Not only can he not work, he can’t even stay awake through a meal. Forget doing anything enjoyable. If anyone dares to say anything about how Covid isn’t real or long-Covid is just laziness, I’ll not only ban you from my blog, I’ll curse you with fleas to your armpits and private region for the duration of what I hope is your very long flea-ridden life.
• A young family member took her own life after being bullied at school. And yes, the school knew about the bullying and DID NOTHING. Not only do I remain furious, but the family is beyond devastated. I can’t even imagine Christmas at their home right now.

I just can’t even…

• A month later, my closest family member, other than my immediate family, died unexpectedly when I was quite ill with RSV. Cheryl, my sister-cousin.
• I can’t even begin to explain the huge hole in my heart. She’s the last of my generation. Saying goodbye was both extremely difficult and very cathartic. No mixed emotions here. Being the last one standing does a number on your psyche.
• Then, my house was struck by lightning. This is beginning to sound like a really bad country song isn’t it?
• I’m not even going to begin to list everything that got fried. Let’s just say it would be easier to list what wasn’t fried and even that list is dwindling. We’ve become good friends with the electrician, is all that I can say.

Ok, enough of that. See, I’m already talking to myself. I’ve been doing a lot of talking and swearing and muttering under my breath this year.

I truly thought that losing 22 people to Covid, including my husband’s best friend and some very close family members over the past 2-3 years, was the bottom of that barrel. Covid isn’t “over,” but not as many people are perishing now. Or maybe we aren’t counting anymore.

I also lost four very close family members in another devastating event during that time.

Anyway, I thought “everything” would be better by now. Less trying. Fewer disasters. At some point, surely, the worst would have to be behind us.

We can’t even get past one issue or challenge before the next one arrives, screaming, “Hold my beer!” Hey, at least the tornado bounced OVER my house.

We aren’t discussing the flood, though. We were spared this year, but so many weren’t. People around here are building arks.

And the floors. If anyone even mentions floors to me, I’m liable to launch either into an apoplectic fit or a sobbing breakdown. We are now on the 7^th round of packing up and moving around the house from room to room to remediate floor issues. Yes, 7. That’s not a typo.

Some days, we have multiple disasters or multiple work crews stepping over each other here while I’m trying to work.

I don’t want to leave you with the idea that everything has been bad this year because that isn’t the case, but the year has been pretty much saturated with ongoing issues and disasters.

I was glad to be just about to usher 2023 out the door with a swift goodbye, but 2023 wasn’t done with me yet.

As I watch my social media feed, I’ve realized that many other people are experiencing this same thing – which is why I’ve decided to invite you to follow along as I talk to myself.

Meet Grinch

This brings us to Grinch.

Meet grinch.

Grinch looks like this, at least at my house this year.

After electronics take a huge power surge, like a lightning strike, some electronic parts and appliances fail immediately, and others fail more slowly. It’s like they are stressed, but they don’t give up the ghost right away.

After the initial hit (while we were traveling AND had Covid), I paid to repair the heat pump, which serves as a combined heating and AC unit.

Well, it turned out that I was throwing money away because right after Thanksgiving, we started having issues again.

So, after several service calls and a few parts, two very expensive pieces of the unit failed one after the other.

We were now facing the “fix or replace” decision.

I don’t need a stress test because receiving the quote for the repair started heart palpitations, followed by the quote for the new unit. Since I lived through that, I’ll probably live to see the century mark.

The new unit comes with a warranty. Parts and labor don’t, yet cost two-thirds as much as the new unit.

Couldn’t get parts for six weeks, best case.

And – we were freezing because we had no heat. It was a 4-quilt, 3-cat night, and I was still cold. The good news is that we had hot water, because I really needed hot showers.

So, the decision was made, and the installation of a new unit was scheduled for December 21^st. Merry Christmas. Well, those aren’t exactly the words I said.

However, the day before the installation, the experienced technician we really had confidence in quit. My anxiety level leaped right off the charts. I swear, the Grinch has secretly moved in.

The following day, the installation was on once again, staffed with other people, but everything had to be torn out first. The floor crew was here, too. Four trucks in the driveway and one on the street. I had to go sit in the car for some silence.

Regardless, I could hear my checkbook screaming.

Yes, the Grinch visited and stole the Christmas spirit for a month or so.

When the crew finished installing the new unit, they hauled the broken parts away, hopefully removing Grinch, too.

Thank goodness for multiple credit cards is all that I can say.

I’ve had to tell myself to take a deep breath and just breathe more than once.

So, now that I’ve told you about that evil Grinch, let me tell you what’s NOT wrong, and what I did to combat Grinch.

Grinch can put a huge damper on things, but Grinch CANNOT steal everything.

Holiday Spirit

Whether you celebrate Solstice, Hannukah, Christmas, or something else, the holiday season embodies a spirit of celebration, love, positivity, and generosity.

Gifts and colorful decorations remind people that others care.

Those who can, do for others who cannot.

I’ve been that single Mom with no help, so I stuck some cash in an envelope and gifted our favorite server – who is also a single young mom whose mother died.

My first thought was that I couldn’t afford it, because, you know – evil Grinch and the heat pump. But guess what? Trust me, that heat pump cost so much that the cash I put in that envelope for her isn’t going to matter one iota. Not to me. However, it did matter to her.

She exclaimed, joyfully, “Oh, now I can get my daughter a stocking.” I wished I had put more in there.

At least I HAVE a house, and I CAN replace the heat pump, and I’m NOT debilitated by Covid. I’m also NOT sleeping on the sidewalk in the cold or begging for food for my dog. (Yes, I bought the dog food and gave the guy something for himself too. Yes, I also know it might have been a scam, but it also might not have been. If it was a scam, he deserves an Oscar. I’d rather risk the $ than risk allowing another human and his dog to starve in the cold.)

There’s something else too.

My path through the valley of the Shadow of the Grinch is strewn with boulders, but so far, I’ve been able to navigate them. Alright, I have a few bruises on my shins and my credit cards have been brutalized, but I’ve survived.

This is NOT a life sentence of cold and misery. I’m not condemned.

Ancestral Life

Historian Travis Chumley posts daily photos of life in Appalachia from the first half of the 20^th century on Facebook. These photos are of common people – workers, miners, farmers, women keeping house, and children.

Their everyday lives.

These are the lives of my ancestors on my father’s side.

My ancestors were poor, and some lived in grinding poverty – the kind that never leaves your soul.

I’ve been spared and remain spared that fate.

I searched Travis’s feed for both my family surnames and their locations, by county. I also searched the UNT Library collection, here, too, along with the Library of Congress photos.

Let me share this part of the story with you.

My grandfather lived in a shack up on Black Mountain in Harlan County, Kentucky.

The shacks were numbered. They lived in shack #74 for years, as listed on their child’s death certificate and the census.

My grandfather, along with his eldest son made moonshine for the miners. Their young daughters delivered it in a wagon during Prohibition. Yes, most of this family line suffered from alcoholism, a “gift” that descended generationally.

Kerosene lamps. String beans on a thread were how beans were dried, which you can see at right, and newspapers served for wallpaper and insulation. These shacks were people’s homes but were not insulated. Snow drifted in through the cracks in the roof and windows. One family told me that their puppy froze one night, in bed with their three sons.

Mrs. Leanore Miller, widow of a miner, with a picture of her husband. She said, “there’s more widows and orphans in this holler than men at work”. Kentucky Straight Creek Coal Company, Four Mile, Bell County, Kentucky…

Source
National Archives Russell Lee photographer

Life was unrelenting, and there was no avenue of escape.

Wash day about 1920. Water was carried from the spring. Often clothes were boiled because they were worn for so long between washes. Notice the washboard. The Claxton land still had remnants of wash day down along the creek, long abandoned when we found it in the 1980s.

Everything was done wearing those long skirts, even in the heat of summer. Many women died when their skirts caught fire.

Medicine was scarce, and people were often afraid to turn to doctors. Not only was medicine unfamiliar, many women wouldn’t allow a man to treat them.

Death was common. Coffins were handmade in the barn, neighbors dug the grave, and family members were buried in cemeteries “up the hill.” My great-grandparents were buried on the same day, some say together, in the flu epidemic of 1918. They put one body in the barn to wait for the other person to die.

If you didn’t have medicine as a resource, then you were left with prayer. People went to church in wagons. The lucky ones got to ride in trucks like this lady in Springdale, TN, in 1940.

My cousin first took me “up the mountain” in the back of his truck that looked a lot like this, except without the roof.

After Tennessee and sometimes Missouri, the next frontier for many was Oklahoma and Texas. The government divided much of the tribal land and granted individual allotments to Native families. That started the next land rush of settlers who were eager to purchase land for pennies on the dollar.

Some made the journey with their entire family and belongings in a Conestoga wagon, but many of the Native people who were forced onto the Trail of Tears decades earlier, walking during the winter, didn’t make it.

A hitchhiking family waiting along the highway in Macon, Georgia, in 1937. The father repairs sewing machines, lawnmowers, etc. He is leaving Macon, where a license is required for such work (twenty-five dollars), and heading back for Alabama.

Source
Farm Security Administration Dorothea Lange photographer

Everything that family owned was in those bags.

This isn’t in the South, but many people from Appalachia went north seeking work in factories or on farms.

1937 was the year my grandfather’s youngest child starved to death up on Black Mountain.

Life was tough, and many were impoverished. This young woman is picking alongside the road for pieces of coal that fell off of trucks. Some scavenged along train tracks for the same reason. Coal and wood were both used to heat homes.

Notice that this girl is wearing a coat and hat but is barefoot. My aunt told me that they had one pair of shoes that the children shared for “good” and everyone was mad when the foot of the largest child stretched the shoes out. They went everyplace barefoot.

Clothes were shared in hand-me-down fashion from child to child until nothing was left. Scraps and remnants were often remade and repurposed.

Mother and daughter of an impoverished family of nine… FSA photographer Carl Mydans found them living in a field just off US Route 70, near the Tennessee River.

Source
Farm Security Administration

This mother’s skirt is made from a coarse feed sack, and her top appears to be a sweater in tatters. The baby doesn’t look much better. This is what hopelessness looks like.

I can’t help but wonder what happened to these people.

This boy was digging coal from mine refuse on the road side. The picture was taken December 23, 1936 on a cold day; Scott’s Run was buried in snow. The child was barefoot and seemed to be used to it. He was a quarter mile from his home.

Source
Records of the Work Projects Administration Lewis Hine photographer

This is no life to aspire to.

Many tried to leave, or did leave, but often what awaited them wasn’t any better.

“Buddy,” youngest child of migrant packinghouse worker from Tennessee, sitting on the only bed for six people, which is rolled out on the ground at night and pushed into the back during the day. Belle Glade, Florida.

Source
Farm Security Administration (Marion Post Walcott photographer

I don’t even have any commentary about this one except to say thank the Lord because there but for the grace of God and some amount of good luck goes every family.

Photograph of a wooden outhouse in an open field. A line of fence posts can be seen in the middle ground of the photo while trees are scattered throughout the background.

I grew up on a farm, and yes, we had an outhouse, but by that time, it was only used for emergencies.

In the south, everyone had outhouses. Many were still in use when I first visited Claiborne County in the 1980s.

Attitude Shift

All of this makes my first-world problems look privileged and trivial by comparison.

If my ancestors can and did survive that as routine life, I can assuredly survive this. I’m embarrassed to admit that I’ve been whining, grousing and complaining so much.

This is why I talk to myself. To remind myself that:

• My country isn’t under attack.
• My friends and family aren’t starving.
• We have clothes and food.
• There’s no outhouse outside, because there’s plumbing inside, including multiple bathrooms.
• We don’t have to find wood or pick coal from the side of the road for heat.
• I have shoes.
• My children had shoes, and they didn’t have to share them.
• I may have to pack up my belongings and shuffle them around my house to fix the floors, repeatedly, but I have more than a few suitcases of belongings.
• And I have floors – that I don’t have to sleep on.
• I’m no longer that single mother trying to figure out how to acquire the things that I know my kids asked Santa for.
• I no longer need to ration food from Friday to Friday to have enough to get to the next payday.
• I no longer have to live in terror of any “strange” noise my car makes, knowing I can’t afford to fix it.
• I have the ability to alleviate some of that suffering and those challenges for others through various means.

Grinch, I hate to tell you this, but you’re outta here. You’ve been evicted – run right out of town!

This is a Grinch-free zone now!

My Wishes for You

The best that life has to offer

Tranquility.

Kindness

Safety.

Wisdom

The wisdom to know when to walk away

Time

Time to do what you need to do

Time to do what you want to do

May your lightning bolt

Be one of awakening

Freedom from fear

Warmth

Family

Someone who loves you

Unconditionally

Loving another

Unconditionally

Fur family who loves you,

And that you love

Hope

The ability to help others,

Change lives,

Make a difference

The willingness to reach out with love

The desire to give

Motivation

Grace

Gratitude

Both given and received

The satisfaction of bringing joy to others

Great gifts,

But most of all

 I wish you peace

And Inspiration

That you may find your Calling

Or it finds you

And know that you are doing the work of the Divine

Not just for this day

Or month

But until the end of time

Happy Holidays, and no Grinch!