Tombstone Tuesday: Delilah Sixkiller Bushyhead
By her own admission before the Department of the Interior Commission to the Five Civilized Tribes on October 24, 1900, Delilah Sixkiller Bushyhead was around fifty years old, meaning she was probably born sometime between 1849-1851 in the Cherokee Nation (Oklahoma Indian Territory).
Her parents were Anderson “Peach-Eater” and E-Tse-Qua-Ni (or Ansequanah Sweetwater) Sixkiller. Peach-Eater was a brother to Redbird Sixkiller, father of legendary lawman Samuel Sixkiller and the subject of a recent article. Peach-Eater, his Cherokee name being Cha-ah-wah, was also elected to served as Councilor of the Goingsnake District in 1879.
On that day in 1900, Delilah was applying for citizenship in the Cherokee Nation as a full-blood Cherokee, although it appears she had previously been registered on the 1880 Roll as Delilah Sixkiller in the Saline District (northeastern part of Oklahoma Territory). She had also appeared as Delilah Bushyhead on the 1896 Roll living in Cooweescoowee. She had in fact lived in the Cherokee Nation her entire life. The commission was satisfied she met all requirements and was fully identified as a full-blood Cherokee Indian.
It is unclear to me whether Delilah had ever been married before marrying Joseph Bushyhead on November 19, 1889. One source indicates, however, that Joseph had more than one wife. His first wife, Elizabeth Hair, died in January of 1878 and it’s possible he married another woman by the name of Ka-ho-ga Pigeon, who perhaps died before he married Delilah.
I believe that Joseph’s father, Jacob Bushyhead, was the brother of Reverend Jesse Bushyhead (see my Surname Saturday article). Since the Bushyhead family was known to be of the Baptist faith, it would be doubtful, in my opinion, that Joseph would have been a polygamist (but, of course, I could be wrong).
Nevertheless, Delilah and Joseph were married just over two years before he passed away on January 8, 1892 at the age of forty-two. Delilah passed away on November 1, 1910 and she and Joseph share a gravestone in the Woodlawn Cemetery in Rogers County, Oklahoma, providing evidence that Delilah was his third surviving wife and the other two had preceded both Delilah and Joseph in death.
I found only one reference to her in a book entitled History of the Cherokee Indians and Their Legends and Folk Lore by Emmet Starr. I did notice, however, that apparently Delilah was a popular Cherokee name. Maybe a Sixkiller or Bushyhead family member or historian will read this and provide more information, in which case I will update the article and re-post.
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Surname Saturday: Bushyhead
Bushyhead
You won’t find today’s surname in Patronymica Britannica, nor will you find a family crest or coat of arms. I ran across the name recently, decided to research its origins and found it to be quite fascinating. The name appeared before the Revolutionary War and was first associated with a Scotsman by the name of John Stuart.
John Stuart was born in Scotland in 1718 to parents John and Christine (MacLeod) Steuart (John later dropped the “e”). In the spring of 1748 John arrived in Charles Town, South Carolina seeking economic opportunities. One source reports that he married Sarah (surname unknown) and together they had four children, three daughters and a son. He became a prominent member of Charleston society with membership in the St. Andrews Society, the Charleston Library Society, the Masons. Stuart also served in the South Carolina Militia, holding the rank of Captain.
In 1755, during the French and Indian War, Stuart was assigned to Fort Loudon in Cherokee country where he made the acquaintance of prominent Cherokees, including a leader by the name of Attakullakulla, or “The Little Carpenter” as the English called him. After Stuart was captured in 1760 his friendship with Little Carpenter was instrumental in his release following a siege by Cherokees on Fort Loudon.
In 1762 Stuart was appointed as a British Indian agent to all tribes south of the Ohio River and east of the Mississippi River, according to NCPedia. He was popular among the Cherokee, according to Revolutionary War in the Southern Back Country by James Swisher. The Cherokee gave him the title of “Beloved Father” and called him “Oonaduta” which translated means “Bushyhead” because of his curly red hair, typical of Scotsmen.
Swisher writes that Stuart took an Indian wife by the name of Sarah Henry (although another source says her name was Susannah Emory), but does not mention what became of his first wife. Nevertheless, whomever Stuart married, his wife was Cherokee and their children and descendants perpetuated the Bushyhead surname. Following are biographies of a father and son, two prominent members of the Bushyhead family and the Cherokee Nation.
Reverend Jesse Bushyhead
Jesse Bushyhead, born in eastern Tennessee in 1804, was the grandson of John Stuart and his Cherokee wife. Their son, also called Oonaduta, married Nancy Foreman, a Cherokee maiden. As a child Jesse attended a Presbyterian and Congregational school at Candy Creek (later called the Candy Creek Mission).
After the studying the Bible in regards to baptism, Jesse joined the Baptist Church. In 1830 he was baptized by a Baptist elder and joined the church in Achaia, Tennessee in 1831. Jesse received a license to preach the following year and in 1833 was ordained. After serving as a co-pastor of the church in Achaia for a time, he founded a church at Amohi in 1835, the congregation largely consisting of members of the Cherokee Nation.
Jesse was a close friend of Baptist missionary Evan Jones who would often translate Jones’ messages into the Cherokee language. The two traveled together and also worked on translating portions of the Bible and other religious texts to the Cherokee language. He married twice, although his first wife’s name is unknown. His second wife, Eliza Wilkerson (or Wilkinson) bore him nine children. His oldest son, would become a prominent member of the Cherokee Nation (see his story below).
As a result of the Indian Removal Act of 1830, thousands of Indians, including Cherokee, Muskogee, Seminole, Chickasaw and Choctaw, were removed from the southeastern areas of the United States to Indian Territory (now Oklahoma). Jesse, although opposed to the removal, led a group of several hundred of his people to Indian Territory, arriving on February 23, 1838. The place was called Pleasant Hill near present day Westville, Oklahoma and approximately seventy miles from Fort Smith, Arkansas.
In 1844, following a brief illness, Reverend Jesse Bushyhead died and was buried in the Baptist Mission Cemetery. His grave is marked by a monument and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. One side reads:
Sacred to the memory of Rev. Jesse Bushyhead, born in the old Cherokee Nation in East Tennessee, September, 1804; died in the present Cherokee Nation, July 17, 1844. “Well done, thou good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things. Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.”
The other side reads:
Rev. Jesse Bushyhead was a man noble in person and noble in heart. His choice was to be a true and faithful minister of his Lord and Master rather than any high and worldly position. He loved his country and people, serving them from time to time in many important offices and missions. He united with the Baptist Church in his early manhood and died as he had lived, a devoted Christian.
Dennis Wolfe Bushyhead
Dennis Wolfe Bushyhead was born on March 18, 1826 to parents Jesse and Eliza. Like his father his early education was received at the Candy Creek Mission and later at the Valley River Mission School in North Carolina (under the tutelage of family friend Evan Jones). Although his father led a group of Cherokees to Indian Territory in 1838, Dennis remained in school and eventually attended Princeton University briefly before his father’s death in 1844.
When Jesse died, Dennis returned to Indian Territory for a time before heading to California for the gold rush in 1849. After returning to Indian Territory in 1868, he served as Treasurer of the Cherokee Nation from 1871 until 1879. In 1879 he was elected Principal Chief, serving until 1887. During his tenure as Principal Chief, Dennis Bushyhead addressed issues such as grazing rights, tribal citizenship, education and railroad right-of-way.
Dennis married Elizabeth Scrimsher and they had four children: Jesse Crary, Eliza, Catherine and Dennis, Jr. Following her death in 1882, he re-married Eloise Butler and had two more children, James Butler and Francis Taylor. Like his father, Dennis followed the Baptist faith throughout his life and died on February 4, 1898.
The community of Bushyhead, Oklahoma was named after Dennis and had a post office from 1898 until 1955. Today it is a census-designated place in Rogers County, Oklahoma, home to approximately thirteen hundred residents.
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Feudin’ and Fightin’ Friday: The Hay Meadow Massacre
It was a Kansas feud, a county seat war, but the massacre occurred in a strip of land which is now part of Oklahoma, the “panhandle” part. In 1888, however, it was called the “Neutral Strip” or “No Man’s Land”.
Stevens County, Kansas was established in southwest Kansas on August 3, 1885. The town of Hugo (later called Hugoton) was established in late 1885 and the town of Woodsdale was founded in 1886 by Colonel Samuel Newitt Woods. Hugoton and Woodsdale would later lock horns over which one would be the county seat. In that day, county seat wars were all too common – Gray, two counties northeast, was another that turned into an unfortunate bloody affair (you can read about it here).
Colonel Woods, of course, opposed the idea of Hugoton being designated the county seat from the very beginning. Hugoton’s response to Woods’ meddling was to have him arrested on a libel charge and escort him out of Kansas into No Man’s Land. The county seat election was held and not surprisingly Hugoton won, although amidst voting irregularities.
Woods was not to be deterred, however. In 1888 a referendum was ordered by the county on the question of issuing bonds for railroad construction. Apparently Woods did some wheeling and dealing and the plans called for the rail line to pass through Woodsdale and bypass Hugoton and the citizens of Hugoton rallied to defeat the measure. The two sides accused each other of fraud and violence escalated, so much so that the Kansas militia was dispatched.
The marshal of Hugoton, Sam Robinson, had whacked Jim Gerrond of Woodsdale in the head with the butt of his revolver when the two met in Voorhees. A warrant was issued for Robinson’s arrest and turned over to Ed Short, marshal of Woodsdale, to pursue. Short went to Hugoton with the intention of arresting Robinson, but instead the two exchanged shots and Short retreated.
About a month later Short learned that Robinson had gone on a hunting trip in No Man’s Land, or as Ballots and Bullets: The Bloody County Seat Wars of Kansas put it, a “hunting, fishing, plum-picking, and picnicking excursion,” wives and children included. They reached Goff Creek on Tuesday, July 24 and set up camp. Short had passed through Voorhees on Saturday the 21st and learned of the family excursion and decided to go after Robinson.
Short returned to Woodsdale to recruit some help and on the 22nd they headed for No Man’s Land. “That he had no official jurisdiction as an officer of the law in the Neutral Strip troubled him not at all; since there was no law in No Man’s Land, both outlaws and lawmen felt free to operate as they pleased.” (Ballots and Bullets, p. 148) When Short caught up to Robinson’s group he was determined to serve the warrant but didn’t want to risk injury to the women and children. Instead he sent a cowboy from the nearby Patterson Ranch to deliver his ultimatum.
Robinson was sure that Short was bluffing so he saddled up his horse and galloped away. His friends, Charles and Orrin Cook and A.M. Donald quickly took down the camp and headed back to Stevens County to alert the town about the latest attempt on Robinson by the lawmen of Woodsdale. Word had already reached Hugoton, however. As soon as Short had departed Woodsdale with his posse a “spy” alerted the citizens of Hugoton. By Tuesday the 24th Hugoton already had assembled a party of ten to fifteen men who were already headed out to rescue their marshal.
Meanwhile, Short was in hot pursuit of Robinson, who after a brief exchange of gunfire was wounded slightly. Ed Short realized, however, that he needed more help and sent Dick Wilson back to Woodsdale. During the night Robinson escaped and later one of the Hugoton posses came upon Short and Bill Housley – Short and Housley barely escaped and in the process Short dropped his gun. Taking a circuitous route they finally arrived back in Woodsdale.
The largest posse consisting of J.B. Chamberlain, the Cook brothers, J.W. Calvert, John Jackson, John A. Rutter and William Clark found their slightly-wounded marshal. Instead of returning to Hugoton, however, they decided to go deeper into No Man’s Land seeking out anyone from Woodsdale. Meanwhile, Woodsdale’s Sheriff Cross had organized his own posse to rescue Short: Robert Hubbard, Rolland T. Wilcox, Cyrus Eaton and Herbert Tonney, heading out about nine o’clock on the evening of the 24th in a pouring rainstorm.
Cross and his posse arrived in Voorhees about four hours later and ate at an all-night restaurant. Continuing on they arrived at the Goff Creek location where Ed Short had last been seen (unbeknownst to them Short and Housley were already en route back to Woodsdale). After learning that Short was no longer in the area they spent the rest of the day looking for Short, of course unsuccessfully. As night approached, Cross and his men decided to make their way back to Stevens County.
About nine o’clock that evening (the 25th) they came upon a camp of four men who had been cutting hay around the nearby dry lake bed (Wild Horse Lake). It was a good place to stop since both they and their horses were in need of rest. While the horses grazed they moved off about fifty yards from the haymakers’ camp to eat, stretch out and sleep for awhile before continuing on. Cross, Hubbard and Tonney laid down near two haystacks while Eaton and Wilcox chose a hay wagon.
Not long afterwards Robinson and his friends surprised them and killed the sheriff and three of his deputies. After feigning death, Tonney, though seriously wounded, was able to make his way back to Voorhees. After details of the massacre became known to residents of Stevens County, the whole county was on edge and armed to the teeth. The mayor of Woodsdale implored Kansas Governor John Martin to act. Martin sent Attorney General S.B. Bradford to the scene of the crime.
Bradford observed the pools of blood where the men had been shot and verified witness statements, including Tonney’s. Bradford was also convinced that the situation was indeed volatile. When asked if there was danger of further trouble he replied, “Yes; immediate danger. If one man from either town goes to the other, he will be killed, and this will precipitate a fight. Both towns are armed and patrolled, there being about 150 armed men at each place. They have rifle pits and pickets day and night.” (Topeka State Journal, August 2, 1888)
Even though it was obvious that an act of cold-blooded murder had been committed, astonishingly no one was arrested – No Man’s Land was out of Kansas state jurisdiction. Colonel Woods, however, worked for two years to find a way to bring the murderers to justice. Twelve men from Hugoton were indicted and tried in a Federal Court in Paris, Texas. Five were convicted of murder but the United States Supreme Court ordered a new trial, which never occurred.
In June of 1891, Colonel Woods was gunned down, shot and killed from behind by Jim Brennan, a deputy sheriff of a neighboring county. Brennan, a witness for the defendants in the Federal trial, surrendered himself to authorities in Liberal, Kansas but was never tried – the reason being the jury pool of Stevens County was so contaminated with partisans of both factions that it was impossible to seat an unbiased jury.
After Woods died, Woodsdale declined; the post office closed in 1910 and the townsite was sold off for taxes. By 1934 even the remains of Sheriff Cross and his men were moved to other locations. To this day, Hugoton remains the county seat.
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Tombstone Tuesday: Measles Memorial Cemetery
This cemetery was apparently a family cemetery on a plot of land owned by John W. Measles of Lavaca, Sebastian County, Arkansas since the first person buried there was John’s son Emil who died in 1891 at the age of twenty-two. How long it remained a private cemetery is unclear since there are several other people buried there who may or may not be related to the Measles family.
At the entrance is a sign which reads “Measles Memorial Public Cemetery.” The First Baptist Church of Lavaca is nearby and it appears that some of those interred in the cemetery were members of that congregation. What caught my eye, of course, was the somewhat unusual cemetery name, specifically the surname “Measles.”
After a bit of research, I’ve concluded that “Measles” was not the original spelling of this family name, nor am I certain how the name was originally spelled, although I’m leaning toward “Mizell”. As the article unfolds you’ll see the various spellings, but first some information about John W. Measles and his family.
John W. Measles
His tombstone indicates he was born in 1841 and 1850 census records show he was born in Lauderdale County, Tennessee to Miles and Elizabeth Mizells. In 1860 John was still residing with his parents, but for the census their names are spelled “Measles”. Whether or not the spelling “evolved” to “Measles” over those ten years is unclear.
On November 11, 1861, J.W. Meazles enlisted in the Confederate Army for one year service in Company E of the 1st Confederate Cavalry, recruited by Captain C.H. Conner. For the muster roll dated April 30, 1862, he was listed as absent – “captured by the enemy near Paris, Tenn. 11 March 62 with horse & equipments.”
The Paris courthouse lawn was the staging area for several Confederate units. On March 11, 1862 General Ulysses S. Grant brought the Civil War to Paris, his troops numbering five hundred while the Confederates had four hundred on that day. The two sides battled for about thirty-five minutes until the Union troops retreated back to Paris Landing. Union casualties were four killed and five wounded and the Confederates sustained twenty casualties.
A record dated March 12, 1864 indicates that John resigned on October 1, 1862, perhaps following his release from captivity, but apparently returning to duty soon afterwards because from October 30, 1862 to April 30, 1863 John Measley had been reassigned away from his company – “absent at wagon train.” Records indicate that John served as a teamster for the remainder of the war. He (“Jno Measels”) was mustered out “in accordance with the terms of a Military Convention entered into on the 26th day of April, 1865,” although the roll is undated. John had last been paid on November 1, 1863.
On May 29, 1867 J.W. Measells married Martha Caroline Norman in Lauderdale County. John was a farmer and by 1870 their first child Emil was two years old, born on March 18, 1868. John and Martha lived in Civil District 10 of Lauderdale County, his parents Miles and Elizabeth Mizells lived close by, according to the census six residences down the road.
Between the 1870 and 1880 censuses the family migrated to Sebastian County, Arkansas. In 1880 J.W. and Martha Measels had four children: Emil A., Emma Dora, John Doniven and Sarah Anne. In 1884, their son Merritt Monroe was born. Emil married Lula Seward on December 19, 1888 and on January 14, 1891 he died – one family historian believes he fell from a horse. Shortly after his death, Lula discovered she was pregnant and named the baby “Emil A.” after his father. Emil was the first person buried in the cemetery located on John’s land in Lavaca.
John and Martha Measles were enumerated in Lauderdale County, Tennessee for the 1900 census, probably visiting Martha’s eighty-two year old father F.T. [sp?] Morman [Norman]. Interestingly, a granddaughter (of Martha’s father) named Thursday (sp?) Measles is listed as well, thirty-six years old and born in October of 1863. Whose child she was is unclear since John was away serving in the Civil War at that time and he and Martha didn’t marry until 1867.
In 1910 John and Martha lived next door to Merritt in Lavaca and John was still farming at the age of sixty-nine. In 1911 Martha passed away, and according to Sebastian County death records John W. Measels died on November 14, 1914. Their daughter Emma Dora Kidd passed away on August 21, 1923 and is buried with her family in Measles Memorial Cemetery. Her husband Benjamin is buried there as are twin daughters Dorris and Dorothy who died in 1926 and 1928 respectively (born in 1925). Find-A-Grave notes that these are Emma’s children, but according to Sebastian County death records she passed away in 1923, so perhaps Benjamin remarried (he died in 1939).
John and Martha’s children John, Sarah and Merritt lived into their eighties and nineties, and with the exception of Merritt, were buried in the family cemetery (he is buried in Fort Smith). Merritt’s infant son was born and died on January 12, 1910 and buried in Measles Memorial. The spouses of Sarah and John are buried there as well, but no sign of the mysterious “Thursday Measles” from the 1900 census.
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Surname Saturday: Boaz
Boaz
There are several theories about the origins and meaning of the Boaz surname. First of all, Boaz appears in scripture as a forename, the kinsman redeemer for Ruth, who later became her husband. Thus it is possible that Christians in England took Boaz as a surname at some point.
The name, with various spellings such as Boas, Boase, Bost, Boasie, may have been a name given to someone who was boastful or vain. If derived from the Old English word “bost” it would carry the meaning of “vaunt” or “brag”.
The earliest records include Walter Bost of County Oxford in 1279, Walterus dictus Bost of County Oxford in 1300, Walter Boost of County Sussex in 1327 and Richard de Boste listed on the Yorkshire Poll Tax in 1379. According to House of Names, the name was first seen in Cornwall where a family seat had been held long before the Norman Conquest of 1066.
One of the earliest Boaz immigrants to America was Thomas Boaz. However, family historians disagree as to when he was born, when he immigrated and when he died. I’ll discuss those differences below, including a biography of the family historian, Hiram Abiff Boaz, whose research has most recently been disputed.
Thomas Boaz
Many descendants of Thomas Boaz have apparently relied heavily on the research conducted and published by family historian Bishop Hiram Abiff Boaz, entitled Thomas Boaz Family in American with Related Families.
In his research, Hiram believed that Thomas was born in Scotland on September 21, 1721, migrated to Ireland where he applied to the government for land in Virginia in 1737. He married Agnes in 1742 in Northern Ireland and in 1747 or 1748 settled in Pittsylvania County, Virginia where he owned 2800 acres. According to Hiram, Thomas and Agnes had four children before immigrating to America and he died in Pittsylvania County in 1791.
More recently, family historian Robert V. Boaz concluded from his findings (The Boaz Family: Ancestors and Descendants) that Thomas was born around 1714 in Virginia and died in 1780 in Buckingham County, Virginia. Robert believes that Thomas married Elenor Archdeacon in 1736, she having been born about 1718 in County Kilkenny, Ireland and immigrating with her parents in the 1730’s. The two historians seem to agree on the children’s names, just not entirely as to where and when they were born:
- Thomas – ca. 1737 in Goochland County, Virginia (Hiram: 1743 in Ireland)
- Archibald – ca. 1739 in Goochland (Hiram: 1744 in Ireland)
- Edmond – ca. 1741 in Goochland (Hiram: 1745 in Ireland)
- Daniel – ca. 1743 in Goochland (Hiram: 1746 in Ireland)
- Gemima – ca. 1745 in Albemarle County (Hiram: 1747 in Ireland)
- Polly – ca. 1747 in Albermarle (Hiram: 1753 in Albermarle)
- James – May 20, 1749 in Albermarle (Hiram: same)
- Shadrach – ca. 1751 in Albermarle (Hiram: same)
- Meshack – ca. 1753 in Albermarle (Hiram: 1753 in Albermarle)
- Agnes – ca. 1755 in Albermarle (Hiram: same)
- Eleanor – ca. 1757 in Albermarle (Hiram: same)
- Abednego – February 6, 1760 in Albermarle (Hiram: same)
Robert’s research seems to adequately dispute previously published research, although I didn’t have access to Hiram’s book. The most recent research findings indicate that Thomas received land grants in Goochland County at various times. Records show that Thomas deeded land to his son Thomas, Jr. in Albermarle County and kept back 500 acres for himself. When Thomas’ land became part of Buckingham County in 1761 his name appeared in the 1764 List of Tithes.
Although Thomas was too old to fight in the Revolutionary War he had been appointed Surveyor of Roads, in addition to taking the Oath of Allegiance. These two historical facts entitle his descendants to membership in the D.A.R.
Another family historian found a record of Archibald Boas being tried and acquitted for murder in April 1785 session of the General Court in Buckingham County. Whether this was Thomas’ son is not entirely clear, however.
I found it interesting that Thomas named three of his sons Shadrach, Meshack and Abednego, which reminds me of one of the most popular Tombstone Tuesday articles about Shadrack, Meshack and Abednego Pierson (triplets). In case you missed it, you can read it here.
I also wrote a Tombstone Tuesday article on another Shadrach, a Boaz, who was Thomas’ great grandson. You can read that one here.
Bishop Hiram Abiff Boaz
Hiram Abiff Boaz was born on December 18, 1866 in Murray, Kentucky to parents Peter Maddox and Louisa Ann (Ryan) Boaz. The family moved to Tarrant County, Texas in 1873 where Hiram received his education. After graduating from Sam Houston Normal Institute in 1887 he taught school in Fort Worth.
At the age of twenty-three Hiram was licensed to preach and ordained in the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1891. That year he also enrolled in Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1893 and a Master of Arts degree in 1895. He married Carrie Brown, daughter of a Methodist preacher, in 1894 and together they had three daughters.
Until 1902 he pastored churches in Fort Worth, Abilene and Dublin. In 1902, at the age of thirty-six, he was elected President of Polytechnic College (now Texas Wesleyan University), serving until 1911. While serving at Polytechnic College, Hiram and some of his fellow Methodists began to ponder the establishment of a major Methodist university, intending it to be the finest Methodist university west of the Mississippi. At that time, Southwestern University, his alma mater, was the oldest Methodist university in Texas, having been established in the 1870’s.
Hiram proposed that Southwestern be moved to Fort Worth and transformed into his vision of renowned Methodist university and located in a major metropolitan area. Southwestern and Polytechnic could be merged into a Methodist university and be located in Georgetown. The proposal was not favorable to Georgetown residents, however. With that rebuff from Southwestern and Georgetown, a new proposal led to the founding of Southern Methodist University in 1911.
The school opened its doors in the fall of 1915 with the former president of Southwestern University, Robert Hyer, serving as SMU’s first president. Although some people believed the honor of being the first president belonged to Hiram, he instead served as vice-president until 1913, in charge of raising much needed funds for the new university. By this time Polytechnic College had become Texas Wesleyan University, where he returned to serve as president.
In 1920 Hiram Boaz was elected to succeed Hyer as president of SMU. Although he served only two years in the presidency, his focus on reducing the school’s debt and building up its endowment funds was highly successful. He raised over one million dollars during his short tenure. In 1922 he was elected to the office of Methodist bishop and resigned the presidency of SMU.
His duties as bishop included church work overseas and overseeing the Arkansas and Oklahoma Conference until 1930. From 1930 until his retirement in 1938 he worked with Texas and New Mexico conferences. Even in retirement, Hiram intended to continue working to promote SMU, raising several million dollars. In 1956 a men’s dormitory, Boaz Hall, was named in his honor. The chairman of the Board of Trustees remarked at the ceremony, “If one university is ever the lengthening shadow of one man, the university would be this one and the man, Bishop Hiram A. Boaz.”
Hiram was an avid sports fan and even into his nineties attended SMU football games. In January of 1962 he died at the age of ninety-five.
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Wild West Wednesday: The Sweetwater Shootout
This event which took place on January 24, 1876 might have been just an obscure piece of American Western history if not for the fact that it involved twenty-three year-old William Barclay “Bat” Masterson. He was born on November 26 ,1853 and raised in Kansas. His first job at the age of seventeen was working a Santa Fe Railroad construction job. Bat was known to be handy with any gun he picked up, and when his employer failed to pay him he took a job as buffalo hunter.
After an Indian fight, he went to work as a civilian scout for General Nelson Appleton Miles. His first assignment took him to a place in Texas called Sweetwater (first called “Hidetown” and later officially named Mobeetie). At the time, it was a buffalo hunting camp on Sweetwater Creek, the north fork of the Red River. Nearby was an United States Army outpost (later named Fort Elliott) where troops were assigned the duty of transforming Indian hunting grounds to an area suitable for settlement.
Masterson worked as a scout and teamster, hauling supplies in and out of northwest Indian territory (now Oklahoma). He also continued to work part-time as a buffalo hunter. The camp town of Sweetwater began to grow when businesses were opened – a restaurant, a boarding house, Chinese laundry, saloons and a dance hall. There was, however, no law enforcement. Charles Goodnight once said of Sweetwater (Mobeetie):
Mobeetie was patronized by outlaws, thieves, cut-throats, and buffalo hunters, with a large per cent of prostitutes. Taking it all, I think it was the hardest place I ever saw on the frontier except Cheyenne, Wyoming.
Masterson had arrived in Sweetwater in December of 1875 while hauling for the Army. On the night of January 24, 1876 he joined a poker game at the Lady Gay Saloon, playing with Harry Fleming, Jim Duffy and Corporal Melvin A. King. Also present that night were several of the dance hall girls who were enjoying a night off. One of the women, with a reputation as a prostitute as well, was named Mollie Brennan. She worked with several other women, including Kate Elder, a.k.a. “Big Nose Kate” and sometimes thought to be Mrs. John H. “Doc” Holliday (that’s a story for another article one of these days).
Melvin King had actually been born Anthony Cook in 1845. He enlisted in the 14th New York Heavy Artillery in October of 1863 and served until his regiment was captured on March 25, 1865. He was paroled on March 31 and by August he had been discharged from military service. On July 21, 1866 he enlisted in the 16th Infantry and was assigned to Reconstruction duty in Georgia. Considered a good soldier, he was somewhat of a troublemaker. Although court-martialed for “conduct prejudicial to good order and military discipline,” he was acquitted.
He was promoted to sergeant but his penchant for rowdiness earned him a reduction in rank, one year of hard labor and a pay forfeiture (although later reduced). After developing a drinking problem he was dishonorably discharged on August 24 ,1869 in Mobile, Alabama. From there he went to New Orleans and re-enlisted on October 28 in the 4th Cavalry as “Melvin A. King.” His regiment was transferred to the Texas frontier and later fought in the Red River War which began in 1874.
After his discharge in October of 1874, details are sketchy as to his whereabouts and activities. Some say he participated in raids on cow towns in the region. On April 29, 1875, however, he re-enlisted at Fort Richardson and rejoined his old company. He had been discharged the last time as a private but was promoted to corporal after re-enlistment and placed in charge of herding Indian ponies. In June he was re-assigned as Colonel Ranald Mackenzie’s orderly until October and then on to detached service in Sweetwater.
Eyewitnesses to the shootout said that King lost the poker game and left the Lady Gay rather disgruntled. After the game ended, Masterson chatted with Mollie and around midnight they and Charlie Norton (dance hall owner) walked over to the dance hall. Norton lit a lantern and Masterson and Mollie sat near the front door and continued talking. King had observed them entering the dance hall and knocked on the door.
When Masterson rose to answer the knock, King, drunk and perhaps still angry over his poker loss, burst into the run with a revolver. The details offered by various witnesses are different as to what actually happened next. It is believed that Mollie jumped in front of Masterson who was shot in the abdomen. Then King fired again and mortally wounded Mollie, and after Mollie was shot Masterson fired and mortally wounded King.
A young boy was sent to inform the camp commander, and soldiers and a surgeon were dispatched to the scene. Mollie had already died but the two men were examined and prepared for transport back to the military hospital. King died the next morning. Mollie Brennan is thought to have been the first, or one of the first, people buried in the Mobeetie Cemetery. After recovering from his wounds, Masterson headed home to Wichita to recover and then on to Dodge City, Kansas where he worked as a lawman alongside Wyatt Earp.
It is still unclear as to why King was so angry that night. Was he merely angry over his loss at the poker table? Some believe Bat and Mollie were romantically involved and King was jealous (perhaps he had at one point been romantically linked to her). Legends and theories abound but King was known to be mean, especially when he had been drinking. In 1881, Masterson would downplay the shootout by saying, “I had a little difficulty with some soldiers down there, but never mind, I dislike to talk about it.” Nevertheless, the “Sweetwater Shootout” just might have been where the legend of Bat Masterson was born (or maybe it was the television series which ran from 1958-1961).
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Tombstone Tuesday: Hiram Hezekiah Leviticus Luttrell
Hiram Hezekiah Leviticus “Hez” Luttrell was born on July 19, 1867 in Lincoln County, Tennessee to parents Newton and Juliana Howard Luttrell. Newton had served in the Civil War in the 41st Tennessee Infantry and was captured on February 16,1862 at the Battle of Fort Donelson (Tennessee), a decisive victory for the Union.
Newton and his wife and seven children moved to Washington County, Arkansas in 1872. On January 1, 1890 Hezekiah married Mary Margaret “Mollie” Roberts Luttrell, the widow of his older brother James. James had married Mollie in 1879 and in 1882 was found dead on a ranch in Grayson County, Texas. Mollie returned to her family home in Arkansas and gave birth to their son Wiley Newton Luttrell.
Hezekiah and Mollie lived for a time in Arkansas but one family historian believes that by 1895 they had moved to Oklahoma, possibly Marshall County since it appears that is where Newton lived at the time of his death (which is unknown). It is believed that Hezekiah and Mollie had perhaps as many as six or seven children; however, only two survived to adulthood (in addition to Mollie and James’ son Wiley Newton). Sarah Alabama was born on October 6, 1896 and Elmer Forest on October 19, 1899, both presumably born in Marshall County, Oklahoma.
It is unclear when Hezekiah and Mollie left Oklahoma since no records can be found of their whereabouts between 1900 and 1910. They were enumerated in Wheeler County, Texas in the 1910 census as: Hes Luttrell, Ollie, Balma and Elmo (or translated, Hez, Mollie, Sarah “Bamma” and Elmer). Apparently, Hezekiah had received little schooling because according to the 1910 census he could neither read nor write. Wiley Newton, who went by Newt, lived next door to them with his wife, two young daughters, stepson and mother-in-law.
Elmer married LeLand Priscilla Fee in 1919 and Sarah married Jesse Godwin around 1920. Wiley Newton had moved back to Oklahoma in 1912 or 1913 and he died there on January 29, 1919, buried in the same Marshall County cemetery as his grandfather Newton. Hezekiah and Mollie remained in Wheeler County until their deaths. Mollie died on September 17, 1928 and was buried in the Mobeetie Cemetery. In 1930 Hezekiah was living alone and still farming.
Sarah “Bamma” Luttrell Godwin passed away on April 16, 1934 and was also buried in the Mobeetie Cemetery. Presumably, Hezekiah continued to farm until his death in 1937. On the way to the mail box one day in January, he was tragically killed by a hit and run driver. He was buried next to Mollie in Mobeetie Cemetery.
Wheeler County
Here’s a little history bonus I discovered while researching today’s article. Wheeler County became the first county organized in the Texas Panhandle on April 12, 1879 and in 1880 Mobeetie (formerly a camp named Sweetwater) was designated as the county seat. Ranching drove the local economy until the early 1900’s when land began to be cultivated for farming. In 1910 there were over five thousand county residents and the county seat had been moved to Wheeler in 1907. Perhaps opening the county to farming was what drew Hezekiah to settle there. By 1930 cotton would become the most important crop, with over 93,000 acres planted.
In 1920 Texas sued the state of Oklahoma on the grounds that surveys conducted in 1858 and 1860 had incorrectly placed Oklahoma’s border, the 100th meridian, about one-half mile too far west. Of course, this would not just involve the border county of Wheeler, but the entire eastern Texas Panhandle strip (134 miles) which borders Oklahoma. The adjustment would require somewhere between 3,600 and 3,700 feet to make it true to the 100th meridian. According to Texas History Online, “One Oklahoma resident complained that she had not moved a foot in forty-five years but had lived in one territory, two states, and three counties.”
In 1927 the United States Supreme Court ordered Samuel S. Gannett to re-survey the meridian. It was an arduous task that took until 1929 to complete. Gannett worked at night, placing concrete markers at every two-thirds of a mile, to avoid the scorching heat of the day. In 1930 the Supreme Court was satisfied that Gannett’s survey was accurate, but apparently Oklahoma was not.
In 1931 the state of Oklahoma tried unsuccessfully to buy back the strip of land that had officially been taken away the year before. This border dispute was probably tame in comparison, however, to the other border dispute with Texas in 1931, the Red River Bridge War (read about it here), although Oklahoma claimed to have won that one.
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Military History Monday: The Nancy Harts
While their menfolk were off fighting the Union, many Southern women stepped up to defend their homes and families. One group of females in LaGrange, Georgia, however, officially banded together and formed an all-female militia. They called themselves the Nancy Harts in honor of Revolutionary War heroine and fellow Georgian Nancy Morgan Hart. In case you missed my July 4 “Feisty Female” article on Nancy Morgan Hart, you can read it here.
After the LaGrange Light Guards of the Fourth Georgia Infantry left on April 26, 1861, two wives, Nancy Hill Morgan and Mary Alford Heard, decided to form their own all-female militia. About forty women attended the first meeting which was held at a schoolhouse on the grounds of United States Senator Benjamin Hill’s home. The women, inexperienced with both firearms and military procedures, secured the assistance of Dr. A.C. Ware, a local physician who had been exempted from military service, to assist them in their training. Dr. Ware was elected their first captain, according to Atlanta’s Southern Confederacy newspaper on June 1, 1861:
We are informed that the ladies of LaGrange, to the number of about forty organized themselves on Saturday last, into a military corps for the purpose of drilling and target practice. They elected Dr. A.C. Ware as their Captain, and, we believe, resolved to meet every Saturday.
Not long after the training began, Nancy Morgan and Mary Heard were elected as captain and first lieutenant, respectively. They were apparently quickly learning how to organize militarily – regiment leaders, sergeants, corporals and a treasurer were added. The “Nancy Harts” or “Nancies” began meeting twice as week to drill and train using William J. Hardee’s Rifle and Light Infantry Tactics. Years later a member of the Texas United Daughters of the Confederacy, Mrs. Forrest T. Morgan, reflected on what it might have been like:
I am sure this company presented a curious, odd, and singular spectacle as it met in Harris Grove, a beautiful and picturesque spot, with its magnificent trees to shelter them from the glare of light or sultry heat of the midsummer days, where they went often for target practice or drill…They met twice a week at the grove in the day, and at night on the courthouse square, with the moon and stars looking down with their majestic and glorious illumination to light the earth with their radiancy; while the captain could be heard in clear voice giving commands: “Shoulder arms, right face, forward, march!”
Prizes were offered as incentives to become better markswomen. There were several unfortunate incidents, but eventually they became expert and accurate shots.
The Nancy Harts continued to drill and train throughout the war, but even so the services they provided were mostly those of nurses to wounded soldiers, especially in the latter half of the war when LaGrange became a treatment center. Some patients were even sent to the women’s homes to receive individual care.
The Nancy Harts weren’t the only all-female militia group to organize during the Civil War, but likely the most diligent in terms of continuously drilling weekly for four years. With the exception of Sherman’s campaign on Atlanta which sent alarms throughout the area, LaGrange had remained mostly untouched by the war.
Near the end of the war, however, the women would indeed face the enemy. On April 17, 1865, in response to word of Union troops advancing toward LaGrange, the Nancy Harts marched to the grounds of LaGrange Female College to wait for the troops to arrive. When the Union cavalry arrived, Captain Nancy Morgan ordered the women to fall into a line of battle.
Perhaps alarmed at seeing a group of women rise to defend a town, a captured Confederate major stepped in to help negotiate the surrender of LaGrange to Colonel LaGrange (a coincidence his name was the same as the town’s). In return for their peaceful surrender, Colonel LaGrange agreed to spare private homes and land, although his troops did destroy facilities that were related to the Confederate war effort, such as the tannery and railroad.
After the war the United Daughters of the Confederacy formed a LaGrange chapter, led by a former member of the Nancy Harts. As one would imagine, the Nancy Harts became a symbol of LaGrange civic pride in the ensuing years. The Ladies Home Journal published an article about them in 1904 and in 1957 a Georgia state historical marker was placed in front of the LaGrange courthouse. The Nancy Harts had but one actual encounter with the enemy on that day in April of 1865, but in the early 1900’s Mrs. Forrest T. Morgan would reflect:
Thus it was that the girl soldiers rendered the Southern cause valuable service. They were never called to field duty, it is true, but they stood ever in readiness and rendered a service equally effective as guards over the defenseless and their homes.
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Surname Saturday: Goforth
Today’s surname is another that is somewhat unique and thought to be a variant of the more common Gifford surname. It is believed to be an old French name introduced after the Norman Conquest of 1066 and found especially in the northern counties of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.
The Old French term “giffard” means “chubby-cheeked” or “round-faced person”. Another theory is that “giffard” is a derogatory form of “giffel,” which means “jaw.” One of the first instances of the surname was recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Walter Gifhard.
Modern variations of the surname include Giffard, Gifford, Jefferd, Jefford, Gofford, Gofforth, Gayforth and many more. According to The Internet Surname Database, the variations with “th” are the result of mistaken etymology from the Olde English “ford” which in Middle English was recorded as “forth.” The first recorded spelling of this surname was the christening record of Richard Gofforth on April 4, 1550 in Yorkshire.
One of the early American immigrants, William Goforth, was born in Yorkshire and believed to have been a grandson of George Tuttle Goforth of Yorkshire, according to The Goforth Genealogy. I was intrigued by Canadian Jonathan Goforth’s story as the first missionary to represent the Presbyterian Church of Canada in China – what an appropriate name for a missionary!
William Goforth
William Goforth was born in 1631 in Yorkshire to parents Miles and Mary Goforth. Many Goforth family historians believe William had two wives, the first bearing him a son named Aaron (her name is unknown) who was born in 1660. William then married Anne Skipwith in 1662.
Sometime in the 1650’s William became a Quaker, as did Anne and her widowed mother, Honora Saunders Skipwith. Notably, Honora was a Quaker martyr in 1679, dying as a prisoner in York Castle. Perhaps William and Anne met at one of the Quaker meetings held in Yorkshire.
Late in the summer of 1677 William and Anne, along with their six children, boarded the Fly-Boat “Martha” and immigrated to America, arriving on October 28, 1677. The settlers were destined for a new Quaker colony in New Jersey, later the Burlington area and about thirty miles from where William Penn founded Philadelphia in 1682.
Quakers left England because of religious persecution, but upon arrival in the colonies found that the Puritans had written laws to keep them out of New England. Thus, there were at that time few places where Quakers were welcome. The Puritans regularly persecuted people of other faiths, yet seemed to be particularly disdainful of the Quaker faith. For more background on the persecution of Quakers by Puritans, see this article.
Soon after arriving, William purchased a lot on Burlington Island, located in the Delaware River, and a small tract of farming land on the mainland. The children of William and Anne were George, William, John, Susannah, Miles, Zachariah and Thomas (believed to have been born around 1677 so perhaps soon after their arrival).
Tragically, William died in 1678 and Anne would later marry a widower by the name of William Oxley (Anne Skipwith Goforth Oxley – quite a name).
Jonathan Goforth was born on February 10, 1859 in Oxford County, Ontario to parents Francis and Jane Goforth. His parents had immigrated to Canada from England following their marriage, and Jonathan was the seventh of their eleven children. His parents were poor and their children were expected to work on the family farm six months out of each year. Nevertheless, Jonathan was able to keep up with his studies and excel. His mother taught him how to pray and memorize scriptures.
At the age of fifteen his father placed him in charge of another farm located about twenty miles from the family home. Leaving it to Jonathan’s care, his father would return later in the summer to inspect. When his father came in the fall he found fields full of ripening grain. Jonathan would later relate his father’s approval was indicated by a smile. In turn he would use the story to convey a Christian message: “That smile was all the reward I wanted. I knew my father was pleased. So will it be, dear Christians, if we are faithful to the trust our Heavenly Father has given us. His smile of approval will be our blessed reward.”
Jonathan became a Christian at the age of eighteen as a result of the ministry of Reverend Lachlan Cameron. Although his goal in life had been to become a lawyer, he instead became involved in his church. After hearing Dr. George McKay, a missionary to Formosa, Jonathan answered the call to missionary service. To prepare he enrolled at Knox College in Toronto, a theological institution later affiliated with the Presbyterian Church of Canada.
Jonathan the poor farm boy was ridiculed for his handmade clothing. To remedy the situation he purchased fabric for a local seamstress to create a more fashionable wardrobe. His classmates learned of his plan and one night forced him to parade up and down the hallway while they mocked him. He prayed for strength to endure and years later would still lament that such a thing could happen at a Christian college.
During his time at Knox he evangelized in the slums of Toronto and it was there he learned to trust God for his every need, for often he would be down to his last penny. God was faithful, however. During his mission work Jonathan met Rosalind Bell-Smith, she of a cultured and well-to-do Toronto family. Her first impression may have been the shabbiness of his dress, but a few days later she would find reason to look beyond the outward appearance. While attending a meeting she picked up Jonathan’s heavily marked-up Bible, almost in shreds from heavy use. At that point, she decided that he was the man she wanted to marry.
A few months later Rosalind accepted Jonathan’s marriage proposal with no stipulations except that she made him promise that he would always put the Master’s work ahead of her. Little did she know what that meant – instead of spending money on an engagement ring, Jonathan decided to purchase Christian tracts for China. The couple married on October 25, 1887 and on February 4, 1888 sailed to China for their first missionary assignment under the auspices of the Presbyterian Church of Canada. Their commission was to pioneer work in the North Honan Province.
Not long after their arrival, their hut burned down along with all their possessions, even their wedding gifts and photographs. Before they had reached the province, Jonathan received a message from Hudson Taylor, another (famed) missionary to China, warning him of great obstacles ahead and the need for divine help. The burning of their home was the first of many trials the Goforths would endure.
As with any missionary endeavor the Goforths experienced difficulties adapting to the culture, often separated from one another for long periods of time. Five of their eleven children were buried in China. Another struggle was learning the Chinese language. Although he studied diligently Jonathan seemed to make little progress, yet he was undeterred.
His attempts at preaching weren’t well received by the Chinese – they couldn’t understand him. Yet Jonathan believed he had been called to reach the Chinese people for Christ. One day he picked up his Chinese Bible, went to the chapel and began to preach in fluent Chinese, astounding his audience. Jonathan had expected God to provide a miracle and He did! He discovered two months later that Knox College students held a special prayer meeting “just for Goforth” – it was at the precise time he was able to suddenly master the Chinese language!
Jonathan and Rosalind opened their home to the Chinese and ministered to them there. During one period of time some twenty-five thousand men and women passed through their home and he was able to preach to them. Jonathan would speak to the men and Rosalind would meet with the women in the courtyard. It was a unique approach for they had no plans to build schools or hospitals as was the practice of many missions.
Jonathan was also an itinerant minister, traveling to villages and away from his family for weeks at a time. In 1900 their daughter Florence was stricken with meningitis and died. Soon after her death they were forced to flee the Boxer Rebellion. They made their way to Shanghai by cart and then boat. One of the children fell ill and along the way they heard cries of “kill these foreign devils.” At one point they were attacked with a barrage of stones, and as Jonathan stepped forward to reason with his attackers, he was struck with a sword and wounded severely but managed to escape. After reaching Shanghai they returned to Canada until the rebellion subsided.
The Goforths returned to Honan in 1901, but Jonathan’s ministry, inspired by accounts of revival in Wales, would evolve into that of evangelist and revivalist. His firebrand-style ministry in Korea and later in Manchuria was well received. He continued ministering in Manchuria until departing China in 1934.
Although blind and in failing health when he left China, Jonathan continued his ministry in Canada for the next two years until he passed away on October 8, 1936. On the last Sunday before he died Jonathan Goforth preached four times. Congregants gave the following impression:
As Mr. McPherson led Dr. Goforth into the pulpit he walked with firm step, head erect, and face aglow with the joy of Christ, the sightless eyes were turned upward as if he could see. The congregation listened with marked attention and stillness as with radiant joy, as seeing the Lord he loved, he delivered his address in the power of the Spirit.
Rosalind passed away in 1942 and both are buried in the Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Toronto. Their joint tombstone reads: “They glorified God and loved man.”
Often criticized for his fiery delivery and “emotionalism”, Jonathan would say, “I love those that thunder out the Word. The Christian world is in a dead sleep. Nothing but a loud voice can awake them out of it.”
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Wild West Wednesday: Jefferson Randolph “Soapy” Smith, Con Artist Extraordinaire
July 8, 1898 was an eventful day in Skagway, Alaska. A scoundrel by the name of Jefferson Randolph “Soapy” Smith met his untimely demise. Soapy had been making a name (and not a good one) for himself for years from Texas to Colorado to Alaska. Conduct a search at the Library of Congress’ Chronicling America web site or at Newspapers.com and you will find hundreds of references to “Soapy Smith” from the early 1870’s through the early 1920’s. To say he was notorious might be an understatement.
Jefferson Randolph Smith II was born in Coweta County, Georgia on November 2, 1860 to parents Jefferson Randolph and Emily (Edmundson) Smith, Sr. His family was prosperous; his great-grandfather had owned one of the largest plantations in the area and his father was a lawyer. As with so many Southern families their fortunes were depleted by the Civil War, so Jeff (as he liked to be called) and his family moved to Round Rock, Texas in 1876.
This article is no longer available for free at this site. It was re-written and enhanced, complete with footnotes and sources and has been published in the August 2018 issue of Digging History Magazine. Should you prefer to purchase the article only, contact me for more information.
I invite you to check out Digging History Magazine. Since January 2018 new articles are published in a digital magazine (PDF) available by individual issue purchase or subscription (with three options). Most issues run between 70-85 pages, filled with articles of interest to history-lovers and genealogists — it’s all history, right? 🙂 No ads — just carefully-researched, well-written stories, complete with footnotes and sources.
Want to know more or try out a free issue? You can download either (or both) of the January-February 2019 and March-April 2019 issues here: https://digging-history.com/free-samples/
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