Tombstone Tuesday: Zebulon Frisbie
Zebulon Frisbie was born July 4, 1801 in Orwell, Bradford County, Pennsylvania to parents Levi and Phebe (Gaylord) Frisbie. Phebe’s father, Aaron Gaylord, had been slain at the Battle of Wyoming on July 3, 1778. Levi was a private in the Connecticut militia and it’s uncertain as to whether he served in the Revolutionary War beyond his service in the state militia. One family history source states that Levi and his brother Abel were accused of sympathizing with the British in 1777, although both were later exonerated.
Around 1800 Levi and Phoebe and their four children moved to Bradford County, Pennsylvania where Zebulon, their sixth child (one had died), was born in 1801. His siblings were: Chauncey, Levi Randall (died at birth), Laura, Catherine and Levi, Jr. Zebulon was named after his grandfather Zebulon Frisbie.
The journey from Connecticut to Pennsylvania was arduous since much of the land at that time was untamed wilderness. The Frisbies, although of Puritan descent and Episcopalian, helped found the Orwell Hill (Presbyterian) Church in 1803. According to The History of Bradford County, Pennsylvania, Levi was the first tanner in the county and “a man of splendid physique.” Zebulon, the youngest child, learned his father’s trade, joining his brother Chauncey later to take over Levi’s business. After a time, however, they sold the tannery and farmed.
Zebulon married Polly Goodwin on December 4, 1828. Although Polly was eleven years younger than Zebulon and had been born in Connecticut, she came to Bradford County to live with her uncle James Cowles at the age of six after being orphaned. Zebulon and Polly had ten children: Addison Cowles (1829); Warren Rush (1831); William Lawson (1834); Chauncey Montgomery (1837); Eliza Maria (1839); Ruby Hannah (1843); Orrin Goodwin (1845); Emily Phebe (1847); Mary Ellen (1849) and Olin Gaylord (1852). Eliza Maria, Orrin Goodwin and Emily Phebe died in early childhood.
Zebulon farmed Levi’s property and, as evidenced by the 1840 and 1850 censuses, he cared for his elderly parents. In 1840 Levi and Phebe were living with him. By 1850 only his mother remained with his family as Levi had passed away in 1842. In addition to his work as a farmer, Zebulon participated in the civic affairs of his community, serving eighteen years as a Justice of the Peace, and from 1868-1873 serving as an Associate Judge of the Bradford County Court.
Zebulon was an elder in the Orwell Hill Church for many years, and according to one family historian, “was a man without ostentation, of exemplary life, genial and sociable and highly respected by his fellow citizens.” Politically he was a Whig and upon that party’s demise joined the Republican Party, “an ardent supporter of its principles.”
In 1860 six of their children were still living at the family farm. By 1870 only their two youngest children Mary Ellen and Olin remained at home. Chauncey and his wife Emogene were also enumerated in the same household that year. Mary Ellen may have been their only child to remain single. In 1880 at the age of twenty-nine she was living with them and perhaps caring for her aged parents, in addition to her occupation as a dress maker.
Zebulon became ill in August of 1881 and on the 29th, ten hours after being stricken, he passed away. According to The History of Bradford County, Pennsylvania, “his loss was sorely felt in all sections of the county.” Polly lived a few more years and passed away on April 17, 1887. They are buried in the Darling Cemetery in Orwell.
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Surname Saturday: Hutchins-Hutchinson-Hutchings
Even though these surnames share the same Scottish origin, the family crests are distinct and different. “Hutchins”, “Hutchings” and “Hutchinson” are variations of a name first used by Viking settlers in ancient Scotland, all derived from a diminutive form of Hugh, or “Huchon.” “Hutchinson” would, of course, mean “son of Hugh.”
According to the web site “Forbears” these surnames are distributed as follows: Hutchings is found in the south and west of England, mainly Somerset, while Hutchinson is confined to the north, especially County Durham and frequent in Northumberland, Cumberland and in North and East Ridings.
During the reign of Edward III (1327-1377) records mention John Huchoun of Somerset and Isota Huchon of Wiltshire. Willelmus Huchon was listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax of 1379. Later, similar names appear in Scotland: James Huchonsone (Glasgow, 1454); John Huchonson (Aberdeen, 1466); William Huchison (Ardmanoch, 1504). Two brothers, George and Thomas Hutcheson, founded a hospital in Glasgow in the 1600’s.1 Spelling variations include: Hutcheon, Hutchon, Houchin, MacCutcheon, MacQuestion and many more.2
Update: I received some comments on this article which shed more light on this surname, its origins and its variations. Please refer to those comments made on 05 May 2016 below. One thing I’ve found when researching surnames — everyone has an opinion as to origin and the sources I used originally may or may not have correctly represented the origins of the surname (one reason why I don’t do many Surname Saturday articles of late). I have also updated the paragraph above with two footnotes (at the time I wrote the article I did not have footnote capability). Originally, the article was written as part of a six-story arc on The Last Men of the Revolution (see William Hutchings below). Thanks to the reader who stopped by and commented to shed more light on this surname. — Sharon Hall (05 May 2016)
Following are the stories of a few American families bearing these surnames. I include a story of an early Hutchins just because of his unusual forename. Also included is the story of one of the remaining six veterans of the Revolutionary War who were photographed and interviewed for Reverend Elias Hillard’s 1864 book, The Last Men of the Revolution.
This entire article has been enhanced and published in the May 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.
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Feisty Females: Nancy Morgan Hart, War Woman
One biographer describes today’s “Feisty Female” as “a woman entirely uneducated, and ignorant of all the conventional civilities of life, but a zealous lover of liberty.” (The Women of the American Revolution, Volume 2 by Elizabeth Fries Ellet).
She was born Nancy (or Nancy Ann) Morgan, date uncertain (perhaps as early as 1735 or as late as 1747), and later married Benjamin Hart, Sr. She and Benjamin migrated from North Carolina to Georgia in the early 1770’s, settling in the Broad River valley (Wilkes County). According to historical records, Nancy and Benjamin had eight children, six sons and two daughters: Morgan, John, Thomas, Benjamin, Lemuel, Mark, Sarah and Keziah (one of the daughters apparently called “Sukey”).
She is said to have regarded her husband as a “poor stick,” perhaps because he was not as fiercely patriotic. It is believed that she might have “worn the pants in the family,” so to speak. Although illiterate she well knew how to survive on the frontier, being an expert herbalist and, despite the fact she was cross-eyed, an excellent shot.
In physical appearance she was said to have “a broad, angular mouth,” a towering figure of six feet in height, red hair and a smallpox-scarred face. One account described her as having “no share of beauty – a fact she herself would have readily acknowledged had she ever enjoyed an opportunity of looking into a mirror.”
Politically, she was with the “liberty boys,” her term for the Whigs of Wilkes County. She was not a friend of the Tories of Wilkes County, who, even though intimidated by her, scarcely missed an opportunity to taunt, tease or annoy her. The local Indians referred to her as “Wahatche” which some believe meant “war woman.”
Her exploits as a patriot and spy are legendary in Georgia history. Benjamin was frequently was away serving in the Georgia militia and it was up to her to protect their home and family. She would often disguise herself as a simple-minded man and wander into Tory camps to gather information for the patriots. On February 14, 1779 the Battle of Kettle Creek was a narrow victory for the patriots and some historians believe that Nancy was present there that day.
The more legendary acts of courage occurred at the Hart cabin near the Broad River. One night a Tory crept up to their home and peeked in through a crack between the logs. One of the children noticed the eyeball and secretly informed Nancy. At the time she was making soap around the hearth – she scooped up a ladle-full and flung it in the direction of the would-be spy. Disabled, the Tory was hog-tied and turned over to the local militia.
The most famous story of Nancy Hart’s feistiness and courage occurred when a group of five or six Tories stopped by her home while looking for a Whig leader. The man had just come through Nancy’s house where she directed him to hide in the nearby swamp. When the Tories arrived she mis-directed them, and when they realized they had been duped returned and demanded a meal after shooting her prized turkey.
The Tories stacked their weapons in the corner, demanded wine, which Nancy provided, and began to become intoxicated. Meanwhile, Nancy sent her daughter Sukey to the spring for water. Not only was Sukey to fetch water but blow a conch shell which would signal to those working in the fields that Tories were nearby.
As Nancy began to serve her guests, she passed repeatedly between them and their stacked weapons, secretly passing them one by one through a chink in the wall to Sukey. The Tories began to realize what was happening and one of them jumped up and moved towards her even though she threatened to shoot. The man ignored her warning, stepped forward and was shot dead by Nancy. She grabbed another gun and sent Sukey to bring help. The other men were held off by Nancy until her husband and neighbors arrived. According to The Women of the American Revolution, Nancy demanded they surrender “their damnatory carcasses to a whig woman.” The men wanted to shake hands upon their surrender but she would have none of it.
When Mr. Hart and his neighbors arrived, they wanted to shoot the Tories, but Nancy insisted they had surrendered to her. At this point she had reached the boiling point apparently, swearing that “shooting was too good for them.” Instead of shooting them, the remaining Tories were taken outside and hung. The story was later validated in 1912 when railroad workers unearthed a row of six skeletons, buried about three feet underground in a spot near the location of the old Hart cabin.
The Harts continued to live in the Broad River area following the Revolutionary War. Sometime in the 1790’s Nancy found religion and joined the Methodists. Former Georgia governor George R. Gilmer, whose mother knew Nancy, remembered that she “went to the house of worship in search of relief. She . . . became a shouting Christian, [and] fought the Devil as manfully as she had [once] fought the Tories.” (New George Encyclopedia)
Shortly after the Harts moved to Brunswick in the late 1790’s, Benjamin died. Nancy returned to Broad River only to find a flood had washed away the cabin. She instead settled with her son John in Clarke County near Athens. John Hart migrated with his family to Henderson County, Kentucky around 1803. Nancy would remain there until her death in 1830.
The Daughters of the American Revolution later erected a replica of the Broad River cabin, using chimney stones from the original structure. She has been memorialized by Georgians in numerous ways over the years. Hart County with its county seat of Hartwell were both named for Nancy Morgan Hart. Nearby are Lake Hartwell and the Nancy Hart Highway (Georgia Route 77).
Inspired by her courage, several women in LaGrange, Georgia formed a militia named the “Nancy Harts” to defend their town from the Yankees during the Civil War. More about the Nancy Harts later . . . stay tuned.
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Tombstone Tuesday: Alexander Milliner (1760-1865)
Today’s Tombstone Tuesday subject was one of the last six Revolutionary War veterans featured in Reverend Elias Hillard’s book, The Last Men of the Revolution, published in 1864. At the time of the veterans’ interviews they were all over the age of one hundred. Previous articles of three other veterans can be found here, here and here. This week’s Surname Saturday article will feature William Hutchings and next Monday’s article will finish the series with Lemuel Cook’s story.
Alexander Milliner was born on March 14, 1760 in Quebec, Canada. In Hillard’s account, Alexander’s parents’ names aren’t mentioned. His father was an English goldsmith who came over with Major General James Wolfe as an artificer (a skilled craftsman or mechanic for the armed forces). At the Battle of Quebec on September 13, 1759, Wolfe was killed. Alexander’s father died the same day, but not from a battle wound. At the end of the battle his father laid down to drink from a spring and “never rose again; the cold water, in his heated and exhausted condition, caus[ed] instant death.”
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 July 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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Surname Saturday: Chisholm
Chisolm
The Chisholm surname is Scottish and first recorded in thirteenth-century Roxburghshire, Roxburgh, the county that borders the English counties of Cumberland and Northumberland:
John de Chesehelme (1254)
John de Chesolm (1296)
It is a border name arising from the barony of Chisholme in Roberton, Roxburghshire. Some believe that the name was originally de Chesé and later “holme” was added when a Norman ancestor married a Saxon heiress, which might explain the two earliest spellings noted above. Spelling variations include: Chisholm, Chissolm, Chisham, Chisholme, Chism, Chisolm, Chisolt, Chissum, and others.
Adam Chisholme, who immigrated to America in the eighteenth century, did not choose to make the ocean voyage, but rather was transported as an indentured Jacobite prisoner.
Adam Chisholme
According to A Dictionary of Scottish Emigrants to the U.S.A., Adam Chisholme was transported on the Elizabeth and Anne, departing from Liverpool on either June 28 or July 28, 1716, and the ship arriving in Virginia sometime in late 1716. Family historians believe Adam was born circa 1695 in Scotland. He fought in the Jacobite uprising of 1715, or the “Fifteen” as it was also called, in support of an attempt to restore the Stuart monarchy to power in England.
The Jacobites, or “trouble makers” as they were labeled, failed and their punishment was banishment to the American colonies or the Caribbean Islands where they would be indentured servants for seven years. Over six hundred prisoners were transported in 1716 (another group would follow years later after the 1745 uprising).
It is believed that Adam was possibly indentured to William Morris of Hanover County, Virginia since Adam was a beneficiary named in Morris’ will in 1745. Records indicate that the majority of Jacobite prisoners were sent to the southern colonies, with Virginia receiving the most. North and South Carolina were both in need of white settlers and also accepted many prisoners.
After his indentured service was fulfilled, Adam married in 1725 and had three sons and one daughter. He died in Hanover circa 1756. For years the descendants of Adam Chisholme spelled their names either Chisholme, Chisholm or Chisolm. Some who migrated to South Carolina changed the spelling to Chism.
Although the Chisholm surname is of Scottish origins, many Scots, Irish and English who immigrated to America intermarried with the Cherokee and other tribes. Such was the case of Jesse Chisholm.
Jesse Chisholm
Jesse Chisholm was born in either 1805 or 1806. It’s certain that his father was Ignatius Chisholm, a merchant and slave trader of Scottish descent who worked in eastern Tennessee in the 1790’s. What is uncertain is the name of Jesse’s mother, a Cherokee woman and a relative of Chief Corn Tassel who had been killed in 1788. Some believe that Jesse’s Cherokee heritage dates back to his grandfather Captain John D. Chisholm marrying a Cherokee woman. After studying various family history theories, the first theory of his father marrying a Cherokee woman seems more plausible, although Ignatius and the unknown Cherokee appear to have parted ways later (before 1810 perhaps). Nevertheless, Jesse Chisholm’s striking features seem to indicate Cherokee heritage.
It is believed that Jesse was taken by his mother to Arkansas as part of the band of Cherokee led by Chief Tahlontskee in 1810. According to the Oklahoma Historical Society, Jesse was a member of a party searching for gold along the Arkansas River in 1826. In 1830 “he helped blaze a trail from Fort Gibson to Fort Towson, and in 1834 he was a member of the Dodge-Leavenworth Expedition, which made the first official contact with the Comanche, Kiowa and Wichita near the Wichita Mountains in southwestern Oklahoma.”
In 1836 he married the fifteen year-old daughter of Indian trader James Edwards, Elizabeth, who may have been part Creek Indian. They settled in the Creek Nation in current day Hughes County, Oklahoma where Jesse established a trading post. It appears that Jesse and Elizabeth had at least two children, sons Frank and William. Elizabeth died in 1845 or 1846.
Jesse was a successful trader and fluent in English as well as fourteen Indian dialects. His work as both a trader, scout and interpreter was carried out in Indian Territory, Texas and Kansas. He was acquainted with Sam Houston (Houston married Jesse’s aunt) who commissioned Jesse to contact the Indian tribes of West Texas. He was also instrumental in bringing other Indian groups to various councils to negotiate agreements with white settlers.
By 1858 Jesse confined his work to western Oklahoma and expanded his trading operations in Oklahoma and established one post in Wichita, Kansas. His routes took him to Indian villages and U.S. army posts. During the Civil War, Jesse first worked with the Confederate Army, but by 1864 he was working as an interpreter for the Union and living in Wichita.
He continued trading and in 1865 Jesse and James Read loaded wagons in Fort Leavenworth and blazed a trail, establishing a trading post at Council Grove, near present-day Oklahoma City. The route became popular and was later named the Chisholm Trail. The trail would become especially vital to Texas cattlemen who wanted to sell their herds to eastern markets for greater profits.
In 1867 Joseph McCoy built stockyards in Abilene, Kansas, and O.W. Wheeler was the first Texas cattleman to herd steers (2,400) from Texas to Abilene. Before it was closed in 1885 more than five million cattle and a million mustangs would be herded across the Chisholm Trail. Interestingly, Jesse Chisholm never drove any cattle over the trail named after him.
Jesse continued his work as a negotiator and interpreter. On March 4, 1868 he died of food poisoning – rancid bear meat – at Left Hand Spring, near present-day Geary, Oklahoma. It appears that his grave is located in a field. The inscription on his gravestone reads: “No one left his home cold or hungry.”
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Feisty Female (or Not): The Legend of Hattie Cluck, Pioneer Woman
Today’s “Feisty Female” more than likely lived a fairly ordinary life. However, as time went on the stories of her exploits as the purported first woman to travel the Chisholm Trail, would make her an almost “larger than life” figure as a legendary Texas pioneer woman. Whether deserved or undeserved, Hattie Cluck nevertheless earned a special place in Texas history, feisty or not.
Harriet Louise Standefer was born on April 14, 1846 in Cherokee County, Alabama to parents James Stuart and Caroline (Randall) Standefer. Her paternal grandfather, Israel Standefer, had migrated to Texas in 1841, received a land grant in 1843 and represented Milam County at the Texas constitutional convention in 1845. Not long after Hattie’s birth the Standefer family made their way to Williamson County, Texas.
On October 8, 1849 Jimmie Standefer registered his cattle brand in Williamson County. By 1860 the family owned a large ranch where they raised cattle, corn and a few swine. Hattie began attending newly founded Salado College in Bell County that year. While attending a dance she met her future husband, George Washington Cluck. George was born in 1839 and came from a large family of eleven children (as did Hattie).
When the Civil War broke out, two of George’s brothers and at least one of Hattie’s brothers joined the Confederate Army. George, twenty-one years old when the war broke out, somehow avoided service in the war. On June 25, 1863 he and seventeen year-old Hattie were married. Before the end of the decade, George and Hattie were the parents of three children: Allie Annie (1864), George Emmett (1866) and Harriet Minnie (1869).
Before George met Hattie he had already established himself in the cattle business, registering his brand in Williamson County in November of 1859. The land around that area was free-range which meant there were very few, if any, costs associated with grazing or water. While there were nice profits to be made selling one’s cattle locally, those willing to herd the cattle farther away could make even more money.
In April of 1871 George and another rancher prepared to round up their cattle and drive them to Abilene, Kansas. Fourteen more men joined them, as did Hattie and their three young children, the oldest six and the youngest just over two. A trail drive could be treacherous and not considered a place where you would find a woman with young children, who was also pregnant with her fourth child. Years later she would remark that George “took all he had in the world with him, and we wanted to be together no matter what happened.”
Hattie’s granddaughter told a somewhat different story years later, indicating that it was Hattie who had been adamant about joining George on the trail. By all accounts, Hattie was not a physically imposing woman, but rather of slight and slender build. The granddaughter later remarked that never in her life did Hattie weigh more than one hundred pounds.
The cattle drive from Texas to Kansas was long and arduous, as one can imagine, and it appears that Hattie Cluck could have been the first woman to ever travel the Chisholm Trail. With her pregnancy and the care of her young children, she may not have contributed much along the way, but she did have some harrowing experiences. When they reached the Red River the water was flowing so swiftly that Hattie and the children had to cross on horseback rather than ride on the wagon. Instead, the wagons were floated across the river.
At one point they encountered a band of robbers. George and the other men gathered around Hattie’s wagon and prepared to confront the gang. The robbers demanded some of their cattle but George and his friends would defend their herd with guns if necessary. One legend says that Hattie helped the cowboys load their guns while others think that seems less likely. Nevertheless, the bandits rode away without any cattle.
They arrived in Abilene with a still-healthy herd and sold it. However, since Hattie was then closer to her due date they decided to wait for their fourth child, Euell Standefer Cluck, to be born on October 17, 1871. They remained in Kansas for a time and George engaged in various cattle transactions, which unfortunately also resulted in several lawsuits. Kansas farmers were hostile toward the Texas folks who drove cattle through their lands, damaging their crops.
That might have been the impetus for the Clucks to return to Texas. In October of 1873 George registered another cattle brand in Williamson County under Hattie’s name. In the ensuing years George made several good land deals and prospered in the cattle business. After a post office opened at Running Brushy, George donated money and land for a school. In 1874 Hattie became the postmistress until it closed in July of 1880.
When the railroads began laying track throughout the area, the Clucks made money after allowing the rail company water rights. With the railroad the new town of Cedar Park sprung up. During this period of time George and Hattie had six more children: Clarence Andy (1874), John Ollie (1876), Julie Maude (1878), David Albert (1881), Alvin Blain (1884) and Thomas Edison (1889). Hattie was forty-three years old when her last child was born. Her first child, Allie Annie, was twenty-five and had been married for eight years. George and Hattie later brought one more child into their family by informally adopting their nephew Joseph Matison Cluck, born in 1878.
HattieCluckFamilyGeorge died on August 23, 1920. According to Texas Women on the Cattle Trails:
Left a widow, Hattie Cluck lived quietly, making quilts, reading popular detective stories and Westerns, writing poetry, dreaming up plots for plays, and collecting Indian arrowheads, which she excavated from a productive site on her ranch less than two hundred yards from her home.
In 1930 Hattie was enumerated as the head of household whose occupation, at the age of eighty-three, was listed as “Run Farm”. Curiously, her son Tom lived with her and his occupation was “None”. That was also the year that the legend of Hattie Cluck was birthed. The founding of the Old Time Trail Drivers Association in 1915 had generated new interest in the history of trail drives. In 1930, and for the next several years, Hattie was interviewed for newspaper and magazine articles (and one book).
One of the first articles appeared in the April 20, 1930 issue of the Waco Sunday Tribune-Herald, in honor of Hattie’s eighty-fourth birthday. It seems, though, that the newspaper stretched their own journalistic credibility in reporting Hattie’s life history. The article included mention of her grandfather Israel, but also went on to report that at her birthday party she related stories about Indian warfare, saying: “She claims to have been the first white woman to go over the trail, made only three days behind Custer and his soldiers, who were massacred by Indians.”
Why the newspaper would attempt to associate her life experiences with Custer’s Last Stand (which, incidentally, occurred in 1876, five years after the trail drive) is unclear. The Austin American-Statesman seems to have strayed even farther from the truth: “Aged Central Texas Woman, Once a Fighter of Indians, Reads Tales of Adventure.” Again, according to Texas Women on the Cattle Trails, American-Statesman reporter Lorraine Barnes wrote:
. . . on their trail drive, the Clucks came across ashes that were “mute testimony” that, one day earlier, in what was “clearly a forerunner of the famous Custer massacre which took place a few years later,” Indians had attacked some travelers and burned a wagon. Barnes had been drawn to Hattie Cluck’s story by a recent celebration of her birthday and obviously interviewed Cluck. She more definitely stated that Cluck was “the first white woman to ride up the famous old Chisholm Trail” but indicated that Hattie was not entirely sure when the drive occurred. Cluck was pictured holding a nineteenth-century rifle. In Barnes’s account, when the Clucks were on the trail, they had a skirmish with a group of Indians. She attributed a quote to Hattie that describes her role in the skirmish: “I had to load the guns for the men and keep handing them out.”
In 1932 another reporter employed by the Austin American-Statesman, interviewed Hattie and toned down her story somewhat. In Irma Brown Cardiff’s account, Hattie told the story of the trail drive, but the bandits were white men, not Indians. There was no attempt this time, however, to link Hattie to Custer. Still, Hattie claimed to be the first white woman to travel the Chisholm Trail.
In 1935 a reporter published yet another article for the Farm and Ranch magazine, but unable to locate Hattie he used the 1932 Cardiff article as his source. Hattie had left Cedar Park and was then living with one of her children in Waco.
In 1936 two articles, both written by Thomas Ulvan Taylor, the dean of the engineering department at the University of Texas, were published. Taylor apparently fancied himself an historian. In his articles, one entitled “The Stork Rides the Chisholm Trail” and the other “The Stork Travels the Chisholm Trail”, Hattie’s story was again sensationalized:
In Taylor’s accounts, the Clucks encountered both white bandits and Indians. Hattie loaded guns for the cowboys, who were so “nervous and white under the gills” that she offered to stand and fight in their place if, as he had her say, “any of you boys are afraid to fight.” At the Red River, Hattie Cluck is similarly dauntless, planning the crossing for the timid men in the outfit. As one can tell by his titles, Taylor devoted considerable attention to Cluck’s pregnancy, which had not been mentioned by previous writers. (Texas Women on the Cattle Trails)
Taylor’s account seems to have cemented the legend of Hattie Cluck. On March 1, 1937, Hattie was interviewed by James Britton Buchanan Boone Cranfill, a leader in the Texas Baptist church and a vice presidential nominee for the Prohibition Party in 1892. Cranfill, a journalist, once again sought to rewrite history it seems. His piece was entitled “Mind My Babies and I’ll Fight These Rustlers; That’s Cry of Texas Woman on Chisholm Trail”:
Cranfill, who stated that Cluck was “the first Texas woman to ride up the trail,” described her as a bronco-busting crack shot, compared her courage to that of Joan of Arc, declared her to be intellectually brilliant, described her bearing and appearance as regal, and called her “the queen of the Chisholm Trail.” (Texas Women on the Cattle Trails)
In Cranfill’s account the Clucks’ encounter was with white men and not Indians, but Hattie’s story was again sensationalized when he had her holding a shotgun and George declaring her one of the best shots in Texas. Taylor had mentioned a fiddle in his story and Cranfill decided to embellish that reference for his piece. Cranfill claimed that one of the Cluck cowboys, an accomplished musician, was a man by the name of Buchanan Boone, which begs incredulity since that name just happened to be part of Cranfill’s own elongated name.
Hattie died in Waco at her daughter’s home on March 2, 1938, aged ninety-two. She was buried next to George in Williamson County in the Cedar Park Cemetery. While there was no mention in her obituary of the cattle drive and her purported exploits, her story was kept alive in the ensuing years. In 1989 a state historical marker was placed in the Cedar Park Cemetery. In 2003 the city of Round Rock dedicated a park to commemorate the spirit of the Chisholm Trail. A sculpture of Hattie Cluck was created and is located on the park grounds.
HattieCluckStatueI read various accounts of Hattie’s life before writing this article. The book which I used as source material, Texas Women on the Cattle Trail, was the only one that presented a detailed, yet balanced, view of Hattie Cluck’s history and written by Bill Stein. Stein’s chapter appears to have been thoroughly sourced, and therefore the most credible. As to the claim she was the first woman to travel the Chisholm Trail, Stein provided the following summary to close out his chapter for the book:
Whether she was the first white woman to go up the Chisholm Trail or not is of little consequence. If she was, as is certainly possible, it was mere happenstance. She made no conscious effort to overcome any perceived barriers, and nothing she did induced other women to follow her example. Except for her trip up the Chisholm Trail with a cattle drive, she led a conventional life. If she had not made that journey, other women certainly would have. However, before Hattie Cluck, it seems, no woman ever had.
Feisty female, legendary pioneer woman? You be the judge.
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Wild West Wednesday: Samuel Sixkiller
Samuel Sixkiller was born circa 1842 in the Going Snake District (now Adair County, Oklahoma) of Indian Territory to parents Redbird and Permelia (Whaley) Sixkiller. Samuel was of mixed blood Cherokee heritage, his father being the son a half-breed Cherokee mother and a full-blood Cherokee father.
As you might imagine, the Sixkiller surname is unique and believed to have its origins during a time when the Cherokee and Creek nations were at war. A man, possibly a great grandfather to Samuel, was said to have killed six men before being killed himself. He was thereafter called Sixkiller and the name was passed down to his descendants. Sam’s ancestors had been among those Native Americans removed from the southeastern part of the nation to reservations in the 1830’s.
Did you enjoy this article snippet? Yes? Check out Digging History Magazine. This article has been updated with new research and published in the January-February 2020 issue of the magazine. The magazine is on sale in the Digging History Magazine store and features these stories (140+ pages of stories, no ads):
This issue of Digging History Magazine is PACKED with stories! Generally, the main theme is the U.S. Census, but there are articles for both genealogists and history buffs to enjoy:
Since It’s a Census Year – What better way to launch 2020 than with an article on this important decennial event. You might be expecting a rather dry recitation of data gathered by the United States government, dating back to the first one conducted in 1790. You would be wrong! I’ve seen the data and accompanying documentation which the government used, and heaven knows only they must understand exactly what it meant!
Census data is vital to genealogical research, yet it’s more than just tick marks (up until the 1850 census), name, age, marital status, occupation and so on. There are literally thousands (more like MILLIONS) of stories to be gleaned – not that I will attempt that feat here, however. This extensive article will look at each decennial census beginning with the first in 1790, through the 1940 census.
Mining the 1880 Census Mother Lode – Family Search refers to the 1880 census as the “mother lode of questions pertaining to physical condition, criminal status, and poverty.” Talk about stories! It took the better part of the 1880s decade to process, but was it ever worth it, all courtesy of the “Supplemental Schedules for Defective, Dependent, and Delinquent Classes” (sometimes referred to simply as the “Defective Schedules”).
Up in Smoke: 1890 and Genealogy’s “Black Hole” (or is it?) – Put on your thinking caps. What event which took place ninety-nine years ago has since become an ever-present challenging obstacle to genealogists? On January 10, 1921 most of the 1890 census went up in smoke – “most” being the operative word. A March 1896 fire had already destroyed a number of these records.
Anyone who has been researching for any length of time likely realizes finding one’s ancestors involves trying many “keys” to unlock hidden caches of records, photos, and so on. Genealogists love census records because they are fairly easy to both access and assess, making the missing 1890 census a discouraging “black hole” for some who haven’t yet tried a little creativity. Why guess (or fudge) when you can do a little extra digging and maybe find a really interesting story! This article is filled with information about this genealogical “black hole” and how to find substitute records utilizing some “research adventure” stories.
The So-Called Calendar Riots and Modern-Day Genealogical Research – Most of us don’t think about time and its measurement in terms of historical context. It’s just time – something we never seem to have enough of in our “gotta-have-it-now” world. Twice each year our internal time clocks (for the majority of Americans) are re-set because we observe what is called “Daylight Savings Time”. We “lose” an hour of sleep in the Spring, only to “gain” it back in the Fall – “spring forward” and “fall back”. World travelers jet around the world every day, losing a day or gaining one by crossing the International Date Line.
We typically grumble about the loss of zzz’s but our bodies (eventually) adapt fairly well. We certainly aren’t particularly exercised over the loss are we? An hour here, or even a day, is not of much concern. But what if it were eleven days? In the mid-eighteenth century a stir rippled throughout England (although less so in its American colonies) as Parliament enacted calendar reforms in 1751. This calendar-altering event affects genealogical research to this day, yet not as dramatically as it seems to have stirred up the rural populace of England at the time – or perhaps we should say as much as political satirists of the time made of the change and (supposed) uproar.
It all seems to involve a bit of revisionist history. In 21st century vernacular let’s call it “fake news”. While researching this article which was to focus on the differences between the Julian and Gregorian calendar systems (sometimes called, respectively, “Old Style” and “New Style”) and how it affects genealogical research, I came across the phrase: “Give us our eleven days!”
Subsequent references to the phrase implied there had been “calendar riots” circa 1752 when England decided to join the rest of continental Europe and adopt the Gregorian calendar which had been around since the 1580s. Attempts to locate the phrase “give us our eleven days” or “give us back our eleven days” in the eighteenth century yielded a big goose egg, although simply using “eleven days” yielded a few references in both England and America around the time of the calendar shift. . . Plus, the story of “setting standard time” in the late nineteenth century (to avoid “fifty-three kinds of time”).
What in the Blue Blazes . . . happened to my ancestor’s (fill-in-the-blank) record? – Family Tree Magazine (May/June 2018) called them “Holes in History” – destructive fires throughout United States history with far-reaching effects on modern-day genealogical research. It might have been the deed to your third great-grandfather’s land in Mississippi, your grandfather’s World War II service record, or the missing 1890 census records. This article will take a look at the stories behind these devastating events and provide tips for finding substitutes.
Here’s something we can all agree on: nineteenth and early twentieth century courthouse fires are the bane of genealogists everywhere. Have you ever wondered why so many courthouse fires occurred in the latter half of the nineteenth century? Would it surprise you to find that many of them were set nefariously? (It shouldn’t.)
Getting Knocked Up (a Queer English Custom) – Once upon a time everyday working folks paid someone to “knock them up”. This, of course, elicits winks and giggles amongst 21st century denizens as “knocked up” often refers to what Merriam-Webster calls “sometimes vulgar: to make pregnant”. There was nothing vulgar intended or implied as this quaint and curious English and Irish custom, begun during the Industrial Revolution and carried forward into the early twentieth century (and beyond for some locales), was an honorable occupation. Before alarm clocks were available and affordable, “getting knocked up” was essential to ensure working men and women avoided fines for arriving late to work.
OK, I Give Up . . . What is It? (Did my ancestors ever violate intercourse(!) laws?) – First, I write an article about getting “knocked up” and now “intercourse laws”. Ahem. Lest anyone think I’m referring to the world’s oldest profession, let me explain. I run across many interesting phrases and curious terms while researching family history for my clients or research for the magazine. One phrase popped up recently and curiosity got the best of me (as it so often does!).
True Grit: Heck Thomas and Sam Sixkiller – This is a companion article to “Did my ancestors ever violate intercourse laws? The short answer — yes, if your ancestor lived near or among Indians they may have at one time or another “violated intercourse laws”. These two legendary “bad-ass” lawmen were kept plenty busy in Indian Territory back in the day.
Family History Tool Box, May I Recommend (Book Reviews) and more!
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Tombstone Tuesday: America Waldo Bogle
While researching this past weekend’s Surname Saturday article on the Waldo surname, I came across today’s subject. Her story is interesting and a bit intriguing, especially in regards to her parentage.
America Waldo was born on June 2, 1844 in Missouri. For years it was purported that Daniel Waldo was America’s father. However, it appears that couldn’t be true because Daniel and his family left for Oregon in 1843. His single brother Joseph, however, remained in Missouri (later going to Oregon in 1846). It seems more plausible that America was the child of Joseph Waldo and an unnamed slave. Also of note is the fact that the 1840 census indicates that Daniel did not possess slaves at that time, although his two brothers did.
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 January-February 2019 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.
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Surname Saturday: Waldo
There are two theories as to the origins of the Waldo surname. One source believes the surname is Low German, the name having first been seen there in the thirteenth century along the Franconian-Bavarian border. It is believed that the name is one of the oldest in Germany and also belongs to some of the wealthiest landowners of that time. The family’s ancestral castle was named Waldau. Spelling variations for this surname of Germanic origins include Waldau, Waldauer, Waldov, Waldow, Zumwalt and others.
The second theory points to a baptismal name which meant “son of Walter” and derived from the Old Norman name “Valporfr”. Early records list someone (without surname) in the Domesday Book of 1086 as “Walteif.” Later Adam Walthef was recorded in Yorkshire in 1219 and Thomas de Walthe was recorded in Sussex in the next century. Spelling variations include Walthew, Waldie, Walde, Watthey, Waddy, Wealthy and Wilthew.
Peter Waldo
One of the early historic figures bearing this surname was Peter Waldo, a merchant who later became a minister in Lyon (France). The Christian sect he founded, the “Waldensians”, adhered to a strict interpretation of scriptures as well as advocating voluntary poverty.
Another minister made his mark on American history after living to be one of only six remaining Revolutionary War veterans to be interviewed and photographed for a history book published in 1864, entitled The Last Men of the Revolution.
Daniel Waldo
Daniel Waldo was born on September 10, 1762 in Windham, Connecticut to parents Zacheus and Tabitha (Kingsbury) Waldo. He was the ninth of thirteen children. His great-great grandfather, Deacon Cornelius Waldo, was one of the earliest Waldos to arrive in America, landing at Ipswich, Massachusetts in 1654. Daniel’s great-grandmother was an Adams with direct ties to the family of Presidents John and John Quincy Adams.
In 1778, at the age of sixteen, Daniel joined the Continental Army. The following year he was taken prisoner by the Tories in Horseneck, Connecticut. He was later taken to New York along with other members of him company. There they were imprisoned in Sugar House, a sugar refinery, but released in a prisoner exchange two months later.
Around the age of twenty Daniel became a Christian and decided to devote his life to ministry. He enrolled at Yale University and graduated in 1788 with an M.A. in theology. He was licensed to preach the following year on October 13, 1789 and on May 24, 1792 was ordained. He married Nancy Hanchett and together they had five children. However, in 1805 she became insane but lived until 1855. Daniel would later remark, “I lived fifty years with a crazy wife.”
He continued serving as both a minster and missionary and in 1856, at the age of ninety-four, was appointed as Chaplain of the House of Representatives. During his tenure he officiated at the funeral of Preston Brooks who famously assaulted fellow representative Charles Sumner on the House floor over the issue of whether Kansas would be admitted as slave or free state (click here to read an article addressing the controversy). During his tenure with Congress, Daniel Waldo spent a lot of time reading, and was heard to say of congressional proceedings that he didn’t wish to hear “the quarrels in the House.”
Although he believed that the Union Army would prevail in the Civil War and he deemed President Lincoln an honest man, though not decisive enough, “he thought that the leaders of the rebellion should be dealt with in such a manner that no one would dare, in the future, to repeat the experiment.” In his closing years, Daniel lived with his eldest son while still serving as the House Chaplain. After falling down a flight of stairs, Daniel Waldo died on July 30, 1864, just a few weeks short of his 102nd birthday.
Another minister, Elias Hillard, had earlier set out to locate the last six surviving veterans of the Revolutionary War, all of them over the age of one hundred. The nation was still fighting the Civil War, but Hillard was determined to interview the six veterans and photograph them. At the time, Hillard remarked, “our own are the last eyes that will look on men who looked on Washington; our ears the last that will hear the living voices of those who heard his words.” Daniel Waldo was one of the six remaining veterans, although he never met or saw George Washington in person.
Hillard wrote of Daniel’s philosophy of life, perhaps his secret to longevity:
In his personal habits, Mr. Waldo was very careful and regular. His standing advice was to “eat little.” He drank tea and coffee. The control of the temper he deemed one of the most important conditions of health, declaring that a fit of passion does more to break down the constitution than a fever. His mental vigor he retained wonderfully to the last. His memory was excellent, differing from that of most aged people, in that he retained current events with the same clearness as the earlier incidents of his history.
To close his sketch of Daniel Waldo, Elias Hillard quoted a friend of Daniel’s:
Mr. Waldo possessed naturally a clear, sound, well balanced mind, with little of the metaphysical or the imaginative. He was a great reader, eagerly devouring every work of interest that came within his reach. His spirit was eminently kind and genial, and this, united with his keen wit and large stores of general knowledge, made him a most agreeable companion.
He was one of the most contented of mortals. Though he experienced many severe afflictions, and had always from an early period of his ministry one of the heaviest burdens of domestic sorrow resting upon him, his calm confidence in God never forsook him, nor was he ever heard to utter a murmuring word. As a preacher, he was luminous, direct, and eminently practical; his manner was simple and earnest, and well fitted to command attention. At the close of a life of more than a hundred years, there is no passage in his history which those who loved him would wish to have erased.
Did you enjoy this article? Yes? 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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Feisty Females: Mercy Otis Warren
Tomorrow marks the 226th anniversary of the United States Constitution’s ratification when New Hampshire became the ninth state to approve. In honor of that occasion, today’s “feisty female” is a woman whose writings no doubt helped shape that historic document. Her activism both before and during the Revolutionary War served to rally the cause for liberty from British tyranny.
Mercy Otis was born on September 14, 1728 in West Barnstable (Cape Cod) to parents James and Mary (neè Allyne) Otis. Her father was an industrious and prosperous merchant, attorney and judge who fared well enough to send his sons to Harvard. While education was neither encouraged nor mandated in that day for girls, Mercy managed to receive an informal education, by accompanying her brothers who were tutored by their uncle Reverend Jonathan Russell. She was allowed to study side-by-side with her brothers all subjects except Latin and Greek.
In many ways the path that Mercy chose was an unusual one for a young woman of that day. Her education broadened her horizons beyond that of the normally expected role of wife and mother (she didn’t marry until her mid-twenties). She possessed a quick-wit and enjoyed freewheeling political discussions with her father and brothers.
In 1754 she married James Warren and moved to Plymouth. James and Mercy had five sons: James (1757), Winslow (1759), Charles (1762), Henry (1764) and George (1766). While embracing a traditional role of wife and mother, Mercy continued to further her education as an avid reader of literature.
James Warren became involved in politics after being elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives, later serving as the Speaker of the House and President of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress. Mercy supported her husband throughout his political career, becoming more active in civic and political affairs as acts of British tyranny increased. Their home was a meeting place for those of like-minded beliefs to gather and debate. At some point the Warrens made the acquaintance of John and Abigail Adams, and thereafter Mercy corresponded regularly with them. Although Mercy was sixteen years older than Abigail, the two became close friends and confidants.
When Mercy began writing and publishing around 1772, she did so anonymously. She wrote plays and published propaganda-type articles in the newspapers – her husband referred to her as a “scribbler.” The colonists were establishing de facto “shadow governments” called “Committees of Correspondence.” In November of 1772 the Massachusetts Committee of Correspondence was formed in the Warren’s home by Samuel Adams and Joseph Warren. Years later Mercy wrote that these committees were so effective that “no single step contributed so much to cement the union of the colonies.”
The only play she wrote under her own name was The Group, a satire about what would happen if the King took away Massachusetts’ charter of rights. Mercy wasn’t the only member of her family to engage in political activism. Her brother James adamantly opposed British policies and coined the phrase “taxation without representation is tyranny.”
His activism put him in danger – he was attacked and severely beaten in a Boston coffee house in 1769. He never recovered from the brain injuries, slowly slipping into insanity. While under the care of his sister Mercy in 1775, and after hearing of the Battles of Lexington and Concord, he ran away and joined the militia to fight in the Battle of Bunker Hill. After the war, he moved to Andover and died in 1783 after being struck by lightning.
James Warren was appointed as a Major General in 1776 and also served as the Paymaster General of the Continental Army from 1776 to 1781. In his absence, Mercy was in charge of family affairs back in Plymouth, where she continued to write in support of the revolution. After the war, however, Mercy and James Warren fell out of favor with their friends John and Samuel Adams. As the new government was being formed following the war, Mercy argued against the federalists in favor of self-rule.
In 1788 she published a pamphlet entitled Observations on the New Constitution which expressed her strong anti-federalist (opposed to a central government) beliefs. Although unsuccessful in preventing the ratification of the Constitution, some historians believe the pamphlet may have influenced the later inclusion of the Bill of Rights which were adopted in 1789.
In 1805 Mercy published a three-volume book entitled History of the Rise, Progress and Termination of the American Revolution. Her work is set apart as one of the most knowledgeable and comprehensive histories written about the Revolutionary War, and the only written by a woman. The book was prefaced by her still-strong patriotic sentiments: “every domestic enjoyment depends on the unimpaired possession of civil and religious liberty.” The book further widened the schism in her relationship with John Adams, resulting in heated correspondence going back and forth until 1812. Adams believed he had been slighted and passed it off with a remark aimed at his antagonist: “history is not the Providence of Ladies.”
After returning from the war, James Warren, having fallen out of favor with leaders who were forming the new government, was prevented from holding office again. He died on November 28, 1808. On October 19, 1814, Mercy Otis Warren died at the age of eighty-six. She is buried at Burial Hill in Plymouth. Her activism in support of liberty earned her a place in the National Women’s Hall of Fame, as well as a World War II liberty ship named in her honor, the SS Mercy Warren.
Did you enjoy this article? Yes? 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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