After years of learning the ins-and-outs of family history research (and still learning!), I’ve come to the conclusion that “genealogy is not for the faint-of-heart.” Just when you think you’ve busted through one “brick wall”, yet another one pops up. Genealogical research is fraught with pitfalls – from “brick walls” to missing records, mysterious disappearances and more. Then, there’s the following tale of stumbling across “hidden cousins”.
It all started with a Surname Saturday article for the Digging History blog in mid-August 2015. I hadn’t written one of those articles in awhile, and after stumbling across an interesting bit of family history I felt compelled to write about the Renfrew (variously spelled Renfro, Rentfrew, Rentfro, Rentfree and more) surname.
While researching for an interesting character for another regular column (Tombstone Tuesday), I had recently come across an unusually-named woman: June Victory “Queen Victoria” Rentfrow Parrish. While attempting to find out more about “Queen Victoria” I came across others with the Rentfrow surname who might have been related to her. I tucked away the entry for her and proceeded to write a Surname Saturday article, which turned out to be much more than the normal fare – a genealogical head-scratcher for sure!
One of my rules for selecting entries at Find-A-Grave (the most common source of Tombstone Tuesday articles) was that it couldn’t be someone I was knowingly related to. Yet, as I began looking at “Queen Victoria” and her Rentfrow family, I eventually discovered something quite startling to me — these people with the Rentfrow surname were related to me even though I have no such name in my ancestral line … anywhere. How could that be?
I came across two records, one at Ancestry.com and another the Find-A-Grave entry of Thomas Jefferson Rentfrow. When I saw the Ancestry.com record, I thought it very unusual and perhaps someone’s mistake. T.J. Rentfrow’s parents were Hickman Hensley and Elizabeth Rentfrow. But, why were their children surnamed “Rentfrow” and not “Hensley”?
The most compelling detail was the name Hickman Hensley. I have at least one ancestor, and possibly two by that name: Hickman John Hensley (1806-1872), my fourth great-grandfather, and Hickman Hensley (1759-1815 or 1816), possibly my sixth great-grandfather. Hmm. A little more digging was clearly in order. Here’s what I discovered.
According to family researchers who base their findings on the Bible records of Hickman Hensley and Elizabeth Rentfrow, Hickman was born in Virginia on April 15, 1759 to parents Benjamin and Elizabeth (Hickman) Hensley. From what I had skimmed through it appeared Hickman was first married to Agnes Fisher – sometime before 1778 perhaps. By 1790 he is enumerated in the first United States census with a large family.
While it’s unclear just how many children Hickman and Agnes had (or, for that matter, their names), one researcher believes four of their sons were Larkin, Samuel, William and James. Some believe they also had a son named George Washington Hensley, who may be my fifth great-grandfather and Hickman John Hensley’s father.
Some believe Agnes died before 1800 (perhaps sometime in the 1790s following the census). This is likely when Elizabeth Rentfrow entered the picture. Elizabeth was the daughter of John and Elizabeth (Fisher) Rentfrow – Agnes was her aunt and, by marriage, Hickman’s niece. Researchers claim records prove that Hickman and Elizabeth never married and their children listed in the family Bible were: Jesse, Rhoda, Rodice, Joseph, John, Eli, Levi, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison – all taking the surname of their mother Elizabeth Rentfrow. As someone pointed out, it seems an odd place to list children born outside of marriage. Technically, they were Hensleys, making them my kin even though none of Elizabeth’s children are part of my Hensley line.
It’s possible George Washington Hensley was not the son of Hickman and Agnes – it doesn’t appear that Hickman’s children with Agnes were enumerated in the Hickman-Rentfrow family Bible records either. Still, it seems logical and certainly possible there is a link if George Washington Hensley had a son named Hickman John and perhaps named him after his own father?
I may not be able to prove if Washington belonged to Hickman and Agnes but I found this such a fascinating story. After writing the article, I started thinking Hickman who had Rentfrow children might be a great uncle instead. However, I’ll still file this away as part of my Hensley history.
A few days after publishing the article, I received my first contact from one of my Rentfrow (really Hensley) cousins!
Thomas Jefferson Rentfrow
Thomas Jefferson Rentfrow was born to Hickman Hensley and Elizabeth Renfrow in Maury County, Tennessee on July 12, 1812. It appears for a period of time Hickman had been in and out of Tennessee before settling there sometime between the 1800 and 1810 censuses. When or where Hickman died is uncertain, but Elizabeth was later enumerated in 1850 living in Effingham, Illinois with her son T.J. Rentfro.
T.J. married Eleanor Trapp in 1843 and was a prominent citizen of Effingham County. I wouldn’t normally quote such a lengthy passage, but this one has a great deal of information about early Illinois settlers. His biography was included in the History of Effingham County, Illinois:
Thomas J. Rentfrow, farmer, P.O. Effingham, was born in Maury County, Middle Tennessee, in July, 1812. In the fall of 1829, he came to Illinois with his mother, who settled in Wayne County, near what is known as Fairfield, until the spring of 1830, when they came to Effingham county. Richard Cohea and Hickman Langford, brothers-in-law, came at the same time, and four brothers of our subject, Jesse, John, Joseph and Eli, joined the party in this county in 1860. They settled on the Little Wabash, just above Ewington, this county. At this time there were more Indians in this county than white people. Our subject states that there were only two white families within 10 miles of their home; these were John P. Farley and Samuel Bratton. The Rentfrows brought four horses and one ox team.
On their arrival, they went into a deserted Indian Camp on the Wabash bottom, near what is now known as the old Reynolds place, in the month of March, while snow was yet on the ground, making their surroundings as comfortable as possible, they began to tap the maple trees and make sugar. The old camp was made of linn puncheons pinned to trees with wooden pegs; they contented themselves as best they could in this temporary shelter, until they had time to build a house on the hill, near a spring, as the Tennesseans in those early days did not know what a well was. Joseph was the bread finder, and went as far as Paris, in Edgar County, to get corn, on horseback. In those days, the greenhead flies were so thick and ravenous that it was impossible to travel in mid-day with the additional pest of mosquitoes and gnats. They cleared off a patch in the bottom and planted corn, and also a patch of cotton, but the latter was a failure. The corn for bread was pounded in a wooden mortar, dug out of a log or stump, with a pole attached like a well sweep, with an iron wedge as a pounder. Raising early in the morning, preparing the frugal breakfast, the pounding for meal was answered by the gobbling of the wild turkeys, which were very abundant in those days.
In a few years, the convenience of the colony was improved by the erection of a horse mill on the Okaw, thirty-five miles distant, whither the subject would go with his grist, and had to wait four or five days for his turn at the grist, living on parched corn and sleeping in the mill. The journey on these occasions was made with ox teams across the prairie at night, driving into the bushes, cutting them down and building “bush harbors” for protection, the oxen feeding on the high grass so common in those days. When the grist haulers arrived and squatted around the mill, it had the appearance of a modern camp meeting. Deer, wild turkeys, and bee trees were plenty, and it took but a short time to accrue either to supply their need. A few black bears could be encountered, and wolves, big and little, were plenty, and at times dangerous.
The tables of the settlers were furnished with wild meat, wild honey and corn bread. Our subject went to school for a few months in Tennessee, but never had an arithmetic or a quire of paper, and never attended a school after settling in this county. He remained a member of his mother’s family until he was married, May 18, 1843, to Miss Eleanor Trapp, daughter of John Trapp, of this county, who was at one time Sheriff of Effingham County. He had made improvements on the first settlement of the family, and bought the interest of his mother and others, which he sold to Reynolds for $160.00 and entered 120 acres in Section 35 in 1842, afterward entering 280 acres more; he now owns 300 acres, all under cultivation, raising principally grain, with good success.
Mr. Rentfrow, is the father of ten children, six of whom are living – John C., of this county; Mary E., wife of Dennis O. Keating; William Elijah, of this county, Sarah, wife of Lee Burrell of Effingham; Stephen A. and Michael, at home. Once upon a time, Mr. Rentfrow, while hunting with Alexander McWhorter, they would lay out all night, Rentfrow placing a coon skin under his head for a pillow; the natural warmth of his head united with the heat from the log heap, melted the snow and frozen ground while he was sleeping, on awakening; he found his hair frozen to the ground, requiring skill, patience and solid pulling to get him loose. Mr. Rentfrow was elected sheriff of this county in 1843, which he held for eight years; he was nominated by the Democrats of which party he had been a lifelong member.1
Thomas Jefferson Rentfrow (actually a Hensley, and more than likely my kin) died on October 6, 1889 and was buried in the Rentfrow Cemetery in Effingham County.
Like I said, “not for the faint-of-heart!
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