Three NEWMAN Sisters And A Mystery.

Today is Wednesday, December 16, 2020. It's currently 32° and I'm looking out my dinning room window at a blanket of snow that fell three days ago! It's been six years since we've had a significant snowfall and I'm loving it.

But enough about that.

The reason for this post goes back to the fabulous dresser I wrote about last.

I've continued corresponding with my new cousin, Mr. SHUPE. I've had a few questions to ask regarding lineage and documentation.

I had traced his line back to our common ancestor, Jonathan NEWMAN. As I pointed out in my last post, he descends from Jonathan's daughter Delilah Jane, and I from Jonathan's daughter, Arminta. But while emailing back and forth with Mr. SHUPE he kept refrencing his father's maternal line, while my research showed that it was his father's paternal line that connected to Jonathan Newman.

I had asked him who had written the letter he sent with the dresser and who exactly it was written to. He said it was written to his father. He remembered two aunts but he felt it had to have been from his Aunt Susie Dunlap; his father's mother's sister. His exact repsonse was:

The Aunts I remember are Pete Dowsett and Susan (Susie) Dunlap. Guessing I would say Susie, since she relocated to a smaller house at some point and was very fond of my Dad. He was her first nephew. The letter was written to my Dad.

I began to research a little more. I was just about to give up when I finally looked at his great Aunt Susie's husband, Mr. Dunlap. As it turns out Mr. Dunlap was the son of Francis DUNLAP and Bessie Fair LYDA. Bessie Fair LYDA was the daughter of William Washington LYDA and Elizabeth NEWMAN. You guessed it. Elizabeth was also a daughter of Jonathan NEWMAN. If the dresser was made for Delilah Jane, we may never know why a descendant of her sister, Elizabeth, had it, but it's nice to know I can at least connect the dots. Below is a picture of four of the NEMAN sisters. My Arminta is not one of them. The order is not known but the sisters are Amanda, Elizabeth, Jane and Susan.

BUT...

There is still one more mystery as far as this dresser is concerned. It arrived at my house late at night, about half an hour past my bedtime. The next morning, I woke up eager to take it all in. I began washing it with Murphy's Oil Soap,

and then polished it with Pledge Furniture Oil.

I glued in the few pieces of trim that had fallen off

and while doing all of this, I noticed on the inside back panel of the bottome drawer in old style cursive was the name Ellen Shepherd, Henderson-ville, North Carolina

I've researched this woman and have only discovered that she at some point lived in the same community (Mud Creek) as our ancestor Jonathan NEWMAN. Ellen SHEPHERD was born 25 July 1847, the daughter of Abner SHEPHERD and Susannah BARNETT. She died 25 April 1917. Her estate records state that she was an "incompetent person" and was under the guardianship of a Mr. J. D. DAVIS. But why is her name written on the inside of one of the drawers? Also written in pencil are numbers on the side panels of each of the drawers. I assume they're measurements but I'm not certain. I'm putting this mystery out there in hopes that someone may have a clue to offer. Until then, I'll keep researching a little here and a little there. I may never get answers but the thrill is in the chase.



I am distantly related to Ellen SHEPHERD. Her father's mother was Penelope MERRILL. Penelope was the daughter of Benjamin MERRILL who was the brother of my 5th great grandfather, Jonathan MERRILL. Until next time, Becky

Oh! And Merry Christmas

Over 1500 Miles and Six Generations.

The most amazing thing has happened to me. Through a blog post I wrote about my 4th great grandfather, Jonathan NEWMAN, a distant cousin contacted me to share that he had in his possession a dresser made for his great great grandmother, Delilah Jane NEWMAN ALLEN. The dresser was made from solid walnut, around 1875 by her father, our shared ancestor, Jonathan NEWMAN.  

He wrote to ask if I wanted it. And of course I did! Though I do write a blog, I am not a great writer. And I will never have enough words to express my extreme gratitude for such a tremendous gift. Mr. Shupe, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. 

This beautiful heirloom has traveled a few miles in it's lifetime. It originated in Hendersonville, NC and is being shipped to me here in Arkansas, from the great state of Massachusetts. 

In his initial correspondence, Mr. Shupe shared a picture of the dresser as well as a picture of a short note explaining the genealogical connection to the dresser. 

Later he told me his knowledge of the dresser.

"My father’s mother was Clara Siegel. My mom and Dad were at some type of family get together and my Dad was offered the chest from someone ( I was like 14 I’m 56 now and don’t remember the details) Dad accepted and mentioned it to Mom. One dark winter night there was a knock on the door and 2 guys with a truck showed up to deliver the chest. Mom had frankly forgotten about it told them to just put it in the dining room. They said “lady have you seen this chest” our dining room was pretty ornate so it ended up in the second floor laundry room for linens. We moved to a new house and there was no place for the chest so it ended up in the attic where it sat for 30 years. Today the chest is in my warehouse looking for a home. We could spruce it up with new knobs and sell it. However I would prefer it to stay with a member of the family if possible. In researching it I found your blog and thought you might be able to help me find a family member who would like it and appreciate its heritage. The intent is not to get compensation it is just to see if there’s an ancestor of Jonathans who wants it."

This prompted me to plot out his family line connecting him to Jonathan and then to dig once again a little deeper into this branch of my family. Specifically estate records. I had hoped there might be some mention of a dresser. Considering  the dresser was made for Jane around 1875 and Jonathan died in 1901 the dresser would've most likely already been in her possession and not necessarily mentioned in his estate papers. Regardless, I thought you might like to learn a bit more about our miser's estate; what he possessed and who purchased those items.

If you would like to see these records yourself,  all you need to do is create a free account on Family Search and then click below to "flip" trough the images:

Jonathan NEWMAN Estate Records

As previously mentioned in my last blog post about Jonathan, he had several children/heirs. His son, Andrew Johnson NEWMAN was made the administrator of his father's estate.  As administrator, he petitioned the court to allow him to auction/sell off his father's property for cash in order to settle debts as well as split among heirs. He also signed an affidavit stating that his father left no Will and Testament and that at the time of the filing the value of his father's estate was about $3,220.00 He then goes on to list the entitled heirs as ( I will do my best as the handwriting is very hard to make out):

• Arminta STEPP (my ancestor)
• Amanda CASE
• Delilah J ALLEN (Mr. Shupe's ancestor)
• Thomas NEWMAN
• A J NEWMAN
• G W NEWMAN
• Elizabeth LYDA
• Susan BAGWELL
• The heirs of Wm NEWMAN deceased to wit John NEWMAN, Coats NEWMAN, Fisher NEWMAN, Dock NEWMAN, Fred NEWMAN and Brithia (sic) NEWMAN, and Carrie NEWMAN the only living heirs of Jacob NEWMAN deceased.

This affidavit goes on to state where each of the heirs of living: 

....all reside in Henderson County except Arminta STEPP who resides at Fallsville Arkansas. Thomas NEWMAN who resides at Fallsville Arkansas. George W NEWMAN who resides at McDemol (sic) Georgia and Carrie NEWMAN whose residence after due inquiry cannot be ascertained and are all of full age except Dock NEWMAN, Fisher NEWMAN, Fred NEWMAN and Bertha NEWMAN who are under twenty one years of age are without -illegible-. 

The above was signed and dated the 12th day of Sept 1901.  

If you're wondering what happened to siblings Wm and Jacob Newman. 

                                        The Goldsboro headlight. January 09, 1896

The Charlotte Observer Thur Nov 17 1887

Several receipts for taxes and various things as well as scraps of paper are included in this file. One is a ledger/receipt from J. L. EGERTON, M.D. from Aug of 1897 where it's listed that he visited Mrs. NEWMAN. The cost was $2.50 per visit. Susan LANKFORD NEWMAN died Sept of that same year.  On the same record was a visit to Mr. NEWMAN on May 18th 1901. Jonathan NEWMAN died in August of that year. The total bill was $15.00 and it was paid in full July 27th.

In preparation for dividing up the estate, several chores and repairs needed to be made. There's a leger dated Sept 1901 - Jan 1902 listing these and how much each person was paid. My ancestor Will STEPP is listed as having pulled fodder. He also dug potatoes.

“Pulling fodder” was a harvesting technique that provided the farmer with a source of feedstuff in an area that was often unfit for growing hay. “Depending on the season and the time of planting, the farmer went into his field around mid-August to “pull fodder,” which meant stripping the blades, while the ear, now fully grown and out of the milk, was left on the stalk. The blades were tied into bundles and saved for fodder, the only winter forage from his fields that the farmer had. Cured, the bundles of blades were usually stacked into piles, and covered with the corn tops that were cut next, while the ears were left on the now bare stalks until November or even later when “corn-gathering” began. ~ Bark Covered House

I find that interesting seeing that the STEPPs had already migrated to NW ARKANSAS. Did they go back to North Carolina? Did only Arminta, her grown children, and her brother Thomas go before hand? William is listed in the 1900 census with his family in Newton County, Arkansas. That's a long journey to travel back and forth at the turn of the century when horse and wagon was the main form of transportation. Did he take a train?

There's a pharmacy receipt to W. H. Justus; Pharmacist from 1897.




There's a typed receipt for $35.00 from W.W. LYDA, Jonathan's son-in-law, for rent he was to pay on a parcel of land he cultivated for the year 1902. The land was his brother-in-law, William Monroe NEWMAN'S (deceased) homestead but it belonged to Jonathan NEWMAN. Later, W.W. LYDA is paid $5.00 for waiting on Jonathan during his last sickness for 6 days and nights. 

There is a receipt for $25.00 to W. W. BAGWELL, another one of Jonathan's sons-in-law. It's on an piece of paper with The Continental Insurance Co. letterhead, for "services rendered to the deceased Jonathan NEWMAN in his last sickness" I think it says "as nurse" after that. You can click here to read for yourself. 

There's a receipt for $4.00 to Jonathan's grandson, Jonathan CASE to work as clerk on the sale of his personal property.

There's a written receipt to Jonathan's daughter Bessie LYDA for "8 months work at $8 per month $64.00" on the back it is witnessed by Carrie NEWMAN. Later, Bessie is also paid $12 for 10 weeks work caring for the house and household goods.

Another record states:

                                                NOTICE:

As administrator of Jonathan NEWMAN deceased and pursuant to an order of the clerk of the Superior Court of Henderson County -- I will sell for cash at the Jonathan NEWMAN house place on the Howard Gap road in Hendersonville Township on the 15th day of November 1901 all the following personal property to wit:

About 150 bushels of corn -- About 1800 bundles of fodder -- a small quantity of oats and hay -- one mule -- one cow -- two yearlings and two hogs -- one threshing machine and wind mill -- one one-horse wagon --  two two-horse wagons and some harnesses -- seven stands of bees -- some farming tools and a lot of household goods -- beds (illegible) , bed stands, cupboards, bureaus, chairs (?) and ~ 

This Oct 12th 1901

AJ NEWMAN
Admin

Following this order is a ledger of who purchased items, the items sold and the price. Here are a few names I recognized:

WW BAGWELL            2 Plow Stocks             $0.30

AJ NEWMAN                old plows & wagons   $0.10

Joseph NEWMAN         1 pitchfork                   $0.25

Wm LYDA                     1 bee hive                    $1.05

AJ NEWMAN                100 boards                  $2.00

CT ALLEN                     1 wagon                      $2.00

Dock ALLEN                400 bundles fodder      $5.40

AJ NEWMAN                 hay in barn                 $0.55

Mrs. Wm LYDA             1 bull                           $5.75

Bessie LYDA                  1 calf                           $1.75

Coats NEWMAN           1 wash pot                   $1.30

Mrs. Wm LYDA            4 cups & saucers         $0.10

Wm CASE                     sugar bowl                   $0.20

Mrs. S. BAGWELL       1 bureau                      $1.55

Wm. CASE                    1 salt box                    $0.10

Mrs. Jane ALLEN         1 counterpane*           $1.25

Mrs. Wm LYDA           1 sheep skin                $0.40

Mrs. Wm CASE           1 bed complete            $7.00

Mrs. Jane ALLEN        1 pair scissors             $0.25

* A counterpane is another word for bedcover. 

Again, the above are just highlights. There were many more items mentioned/sold. To view the entire list you can click here. (images 74-80). 

After sales and fees were figured, the distribution of inheritance began. It would appear that my ancestor Arminta STEPP and her brother Thomas NEWMAN hired an attorney to do their business since they were no longer living in the area. I believe the attorney was AL HOLWES. Carrie NEWMAN also  had an attorney, SMITH & VALENTINE. It was also stated that the distribution was not made to each distributee equally  --- they being paid in different ways at different times. 

It goes on to list each heir and how much they were paid "more than" and "less than" their share. It then says while it is agreed it can be made equal in the distribution of proceeds of the sale of real estate. Followed by several receipts/checks from the heirs. If you are a descendant of Jonathan Newman these are great places to see the signature of your ancestor. Unfortunately, my ancestor's signature wasn't there as her attorney signed on her behalf. But below, I will share one from Mr. Shupe's ancestor, Delilah Jane ALLEN 

Going through estate records can take some time and patience and you may even need a little help making out what is written. I always feel like its worth it, to learn all the little over looked details about a persons life. Who was their doctor? Their pharmacist? What kind of personal property did they own? Who were their neighbors and friends? Some ancestors have better records than others. I really enjoyed going through Jonathan NEWMAN's. And I hope you enjoyed it too. 

For Mr. Shupe and any of Delilah Jane NEWMAN ALLEN ancestors, below you can find her estate papers:

Mrs. D J ALLEN Estate Records

*There were 3 dressers listed in the inventory of personal property belonging to Mrs. D J ALLEN in her estate records. No further description was given. 

Until next time, 
Becky

P.S.

A few more tidbits on our ancestor:

Jonathan donated land for Columbus to be the county seat of Polk County, North Carolina. During that time he, and several others, were hired to remove timber and clear away rubbish for  the building of this town. He was paid $39.00 [ Polk County News and the Tryon Bee; May 30, 1919] Jonathan was pretty wealthy compared to his neighbors if you look at the value of his real estate and personal property values in the 1860 census; being $3,000.00 and $2,852.00 respectively. Most of his neighbors barely had values of $100. And in 1871 Jonathan NEWMAN was one of 12 trustees named in an ACT that incorporated the existing Blue Ridge Academy in the village of Blue Ridge in Henderson County. I wonder if that's where his children went to school?

Further correspondence states Mr. Shupe believes the letter was written to his father by his father's Aunt Susan Dunlap, daughter of Thomas Duffy Seagle and Fannie Susan Elliot.

When So Much Loss Leaves You Restless

This week the prompt from No Story Too Small is 'Halfway'. This left me stumped. I reached out to my SIL, who writes over at Days of Our Lives and she gave me a ton of ideas. I took a couple of them and decided to write about my 3rd great grandfather, Jesse Josiah McClung, who at the midway point in his life between the ages of 31-44  would lose his mother, wife, a son and a daughter. Two of his children would be buried at the halfway point between Georgia, where he was born, and Oklahoma where he died.

But let's start at the beginning.

Jesse Josiah McClung was they youngest son born to Solomon Reece McClung and Winey Lawson Newman. (I believe this is who my grandmother, Winnie Sue Jones was named after.) He was born 21 March 1853, in Haralson County, Georgia.

When Jesse was only 5 years old he lost his father on May 11, 1858. His mother never remarried.  At the age of 10 Jesse lost one of his older his brothers, William Jasper McClung. William served in Co. K. 40th Regt. Georgia Volunteers Infantry and was killed in Action July 25, 1863, at Vicksburg, Miss. He would later name a son after him.

On the 14th of August 1873, Jesse Josiah McClung married Martha Jane Linville. She was the daughter of Worley Daniel Lineville and Margaret Catherine Newell. Jesse and Martha were joined in matrimony by his maternal uncle, and namesake, Jesse G. Newman.




On  May 18, 1875 Martha gave birth to their first child, a daughter, named after both their mothers, Winney Lawson Margaret McClung. And within the next year they would welcome their first son and name him after Jesse's brother. William J. McClung.

By the 1880 census this little family is living in DeKalb County, AL and have two more little children added to their number. Two little girls, Matilda Ann and my ancestor Ora Frances. (Ora doesn't appear in the census because Martha is pregnant with her at the time of the enumeration.) Two years later they welcomed another little girl, my great grandmother's namesake, Lurie Evelyn McClung born 12 Sept 1882.

Then on April 9, 1884 Jesse would suffer the first of many consecutive blows. His mother passes away. This blow is softened a bit by the birth of two more sons, Robert Reece and Jessie Josiah Jr. who went by Joseph or 'Joe'.

Then another blow. Jesse's wife of 14 years,  Martha Jane, died 26 Feb 1888.

There was another child born to this union. One who like my ancestor Ora Frances, never made it into a census record with her parents. The only proof I have that either of these women were the children of Jesse and Martha comes from the interview of their brother Joe by Belle Newman Allen, who wrote Family Gleanings (1965).  This little girl's name was Tilly Ann. I wonder if Martha died giving birth to her?

According to "Joe", his father became very restless after Martha died. By 1893 he loaded up all of his children, except his oldest who was now married to Vinson Ford Studdard, and headed west to Texas. The family lived in Navarro County for three years before his father felt the urge to move again. In the Fall of 1897 they headed to Arkansas where two of the hardest blows to Jesse would be dealt. In Dec of that year while searching for a place that felt like home Jesse's son William became ill and died. Then one month later in the cold of January he would bury his baby *Tilly Ann. After these two devastating loses, Jesse and the remainder of his children headed back to Texas where they rented a little place near Mt. Pleasant in Titus County, Texas. This is where my 2nd great grandmother Ora Frances would meet and marry James Walter Rutherford on Christmas Day 1898. They would file their license January 2 1999. Oct 2 of that year my great grandmother Lurie Myrtle Rutherford was born and just 5 days later, her namesake Lurie Evelyn McClung would marry M G Davis. With just his two youngest boys left at home, Jesse moves again to Indian Territory. In 1910 he is living in Carmel, Jackson County, OK with his youngest son "Joe" and poor Lurie who is listed as a widow with her 3 little ones, Orris, Norman, and Annie. In 1920 Jesse is living  in Wall, Stephens County, OK with Lurie, now remarried to a Benjamin Prater. I wonder if they had a special bond in knowing the pain of losing a spouse. Jesse lived with Lurie the remainder of his life, until he passed away 12 March 1935.


*When I was growing up and spending my weekends with my grandmother, Winnie Sue, she would tell the story of a little girl who was buried near Mena on the wagon trail
on the way to TX. Being about 8 or so I don't remember many details and I'm not sure I even asked many questions. I just remember thinking how sad for that little girl to be buried on the side of the road somewhere. I believe Tilly Ann is who my grandmother was talking about. I always thought she said it was my Grandmother Jones' sister but after researching this family, and finding the Belle Newman Allen resource, I'm certain she said it was her grandmother's sister.

Until next week,
Becky

A Dying Miser's Secret

 

 

This, I think, will be the most interesting post of the year. I just can't imagine it getting any better than this one. This week the 52 Ancestors theme is 'Prosper'... and as we will find out, someway or another my 4th great grandfather, Jonathan  Newman, did just that.

Jonathan Newman was born March 9, 1824 in Rutherford County, NC. At this point in time I do not know for certain who his parents were, but others have them to be William Newman III and Delilah Ellison. The mother for sure seems plausible as Jonathan named one of his daughters Delilah.

Jonathan married Susan Ann Lankford, daughter of Nathan and Elizabeth Lankford, sometime before 1848, the birth year of their oldest, my 3rd great grandmother, Arminta Newman. Other children born to this union, listed in birth order are, Amanda, William, (possibly a Nathan), Elizabeth, Jacob (called Jake), Delilah Jane, Thomas, Johnson (or Johnston), (possibly a Babe), Susan Ann, and George W.

Susan, Delilah, Elizabeth, & Amanda. Actual order unknown.

Several of these children have been verified by listing their parents on their death certificates, such as Delilah Jane, Susan Ann and George W. others come from family groupings in the 1850, 1860, 1870 & 1880 census records. There is also a court dispute over Jonathan's land that ran in the Western North Carolina Times in March of 1903 those listed are as follows: A. J. Newman, G. W. Newman, Thomas Newman, Arminta Stepp and Wm. Stepp, Elizabeth Lyda and W.W. Lyda, Amanda Case and W. S. Case, S.A. Bagwell and W.W. Bagwell, D. J. Allen and Carrie Newman vs. John Newman, Coatsworth Newman, Dock Newman and Fisher Newman (minor), Fred Newman (minor), and Bertha Newman (minor).

*I found it interesting that Arminta and her sisters, Elizabeth, Amanda, and Susan all married men named William.*

It would also seem that Jonathan's son Jacob murdered a man by the last name of Hoots after becoming intoxicated and looking for a fight. The year of these articles was 1884.

The Roanoke News 27 March 1884

I'm not certain if this next article is the same Jacob or not, but if it was, it would seem that karma caught up to him... His father did reside in Blue Ridge, Henderson County, North Carolina. And if he had killed Mr. Hoots and fled, it would make sense that he was now living in Tennessee. Though it is odd that they didn't mention the Hoots murder. The date of the article is 17 Nov 1887.




Given Jonathan's birth year, it would've been very likely that he would've fought during the Civil War. When I searched Fold3, I found no records for him enlisting but in the files under the Southern Claims Commision, I found a file containing 38 pages of information on Jonathan. When asked during his deposition, 'What force, compulsion, or influence was used to make you do anything against the Union cause?' his reply was, 'I was compelled to go into the services of the Confederacy or into the saltpetre business, which is the business I engaged in.' *Saltpetre was used to make gunpowder* His claim, of course, was denied. Below is an image of the final statement.





In his claim to the Southern Claims Commission there is quite a bit of information. Question #36 asks if he had any near relatives that served in the Confederacy to which he replied he had three brothers. He goes on to list them as David, James, and Thomas. He referenced the year 1863 and gave their ages as 35, 33, and 30, respectively. Thomas died while in service.  One of the witnesses for Jonathan's claim is Minerva Cornwell. In her deposition she states that she is 42 years of age and is a sister-in-law. The same source I have for the parents of Jonathan Newman does list his wife Susan Ann Lankford as having a sister named Minerva. She was born about 1836. And I have found a marriage record for Minerva Lankford marrying John B. Cornwell. She is widowed by 1864.

Other interesting tidbits from his claim is that he stated he was once arrested in Hendersonville but was released without giving bond and during the war he was threatened, published and denounced in the Newspaper. ( I have found no article - so far ) What I did find during those years was an article from Sept of 1863 where he was appointed to a committee to draft resolutions for a meeting alongside an A.J. Gibbs and Thomas Blackwell in Blue Ridge.  In his deposition for his claim he states that his farm was in Henderson County about six miles east of Hendersonville. It consisted of about five hundred acres, about one hundred in cultivation, two acres in waste, and the remainder in woods.

And now for the part that has to do with being prosperous. Within the first few days after his death on 31 Aug 1901, Jonathan Newman made all the papers. The reason you ask? Here are a few of the articles where you can read for yourself what had the community all a stir.



Just to put things in perspective... $4,000 in 1901 is equal to $108,431.90 today. I've never been able to find out if they found the bucket of gold.

Jonathon Newman's home on Howard Gap Road, Henderson Co., NC (location-across from Fellowship Baptist Church and Kingwood Hill subdivision). Jonathon Newman's sister-in-law, Minerva  Lankford Cornwell & her husband, John Cornwell lived north of this location about 1/4-1/2 mile on Howard Gap Road - just across a bridge and to the left.

Until next week,
Becky

And as always don't forget to check out these other genealogy blogs: Days of Our Lives and Untangled Family Roots.