James Cruse (1844-1874), possible grandson of Jeremiah Cruse & Elizabeth Harland

This is a continuing series of articles on the possible grandchildren of Jeremiah Cruse and Elizabeth Harland through their son David Cruse who married Jane Jewell. James was their sixth child. Most of the information is courtesy of Marian Kay Abbott.

Early Life and the Civil War

James Cruse was born about 1844 in Vigo County, Indiana (1, 2, 3, 5), probably in the Honey Creek Towship as that is where his parents had property at the time of his birth. He was the sixth child born to his parents, David Cruse and Jane Jewell, and his father died when he was two or three years old. He continued living with his mother and older brothers on their farm in Honey Creek Township, no doubt working it under the direction of his older siblings.

James was seventeen years old when the Civil War broke out. Three years later on 16 February 1864 he enlisted at Terre Haute, Indiana. Eight days later, in Indianapolis, Indiana, he was mustered into Capt. Thompson's company, Company C, 31st Regiment of Indiana Volunteers. He was said to be 19 years old, to have had black eyes, dark hair, and a dark complexion. He was recorded as being five feet, eight and a 1/2 inches tall (5, 10). James served alongside older brothers Zachariah Cruse and John Cruse. Older brother William Cruse also served during the war in the same regiment but in a different company. Both William and James were charged with desertion at New Orleans, Louisiana, on 9 July 1865, but the charges were later removed (6). He was discharged on 9 July 1865 at Terra Haute, Indiana (10).

Marriage and Life in Vigo County

James returned to Vigo County after the war with "bad" eyes. He had trouble not only seeing at night, but he suffered intermittent bouts of diarrhea as well. He would suffer from these ailments the rest of his life (8 - deposition of Samuel S. Moore). 

On February 1866 he married Edith "Edy" Moore, daughter of Samuel Moore, Sr. and Edith Kirby, in Vigo County, Indiana (7) in the home of Samuel Moore, Sr. (8). Edy was the sister of Permelia Moore who had married James' brother, William Cruse, three years previous. 

Either before or after his marriage, James purchased two acres of land near Prairieton from Alexander Moore, Edith's brother. Living here put James and Edy within 50 yards of  her brother Samuel S. Moore, a mile from her brother Alexander Moore, a mile from James' brother William Cruse, and a mile and a half from James' childhood friend Jeremiah Hess. James and Jeremiah had gone to school together as boys, and James lived with the Hess family for several years before enlisting in the war (8 - depositions of William Cruse, Samuel S. Moore, Alexander Moore, and Jeremiah Hess).

James struggled financially to provide for his family. Whether it was due to his poor health, or whether he lacked the resources is not known. It is known that he farmed this acreage for the next several years, part of the time working for brother-in-law Alexander Moore, for his father-in-law Samuel Moore, Sr., and part of the time cropping for himself on rented land. He also worked a lot from place to place doing daily jobs for people in the community, because he had no team (i.e. of oxen) of his own (8 - depositions of William Cruse, Samuel S. Moore, Alexander Moore, and Jeremiah Hess). Animals such as those, in those days, was tantamount to owning a car today. They required capital to buy, and then there was the ever present need to feed, house, and maintain such beasts of burden. Many people worked years before saving enough to not only buy them but keep them.

On 30 September 1867, James and Edith sold to  Jeremiah Cruse (probably his brother) an undivided one-half of 27 acres off the south and west part of the southwest quarter of Section 28 as well as another undivided one-half of 13 acres in the southeast corner of the southeast quarter of Section 29. These tracts were in Township 11 N, Range 9 W in Vigo County. Jeremiah purchased them for $400 (9). 

James' poor health was not the only cross he and Edith bore in these early years of their marriage. In 1867, probably the spring, Edith gave birth to a daughter whom the couple named Alice Cruse. This child lived less than two years, dying between the ages of 1 1/2 to 2 years old. Around this time, Edith gave birth to another child who did not live through its birth. This child was not named. Both of these children were born and died before the 1870 census was taken (8 - deposition of William Cruse - it is possible the unnamed child was born between surviving children Julia and Amelia detailed below, but it seems unlikely). 

On 5 September 1868 James and Edith sold for $110 1 1/2 acres in Section 32, Township 11 N, Range 9 W in Vigo County, Indiana to Albert Wines. This tract was 30 rods east and west and 8 rods north and south (9). He may well have sold this and subsequent property in order to provide for his family.

On 2 February 1870, a third child was born to the couple. They named her Julia Cruse (8). 

Later that year, on 22 November 1870, James and Edith sold acreage in Vigo County to Stephen Lovell for $150. This property was three acres off the north side of 16 acres off the west end of 36 acres off the southwest quarter of Section 32, Township 11 N, Range 9 W. The following summer, on 5 July 1871, James and Edith again sold to Lovell an undivided half of 13 1/3 acres in Vigo County in the southeast corner of the southeast quarter of Section 29, Township 11 N, Range 9 W for $150 (9). 

On 5 March 1872, another daughter was born to James and Edith. This child was named Amelia Cruse (8). She was the fourth child born to the couple, but only one of two that survived to adulthood.

Sudden Illness and Death

On 22 April 1874, James spent the day making rails for a man (i.e. probably for fencing). Apparently, the weather had been cold and rainy, and he had worked and waded in cold water over his shoe tops the whole day. Around midnight he took ill with a chill and lost consciousness. 

Brother-in-law Samuel Moore, who lived within 50 yards of James,  was sent for as was Dr. Thomas Drake. Drake diagnosed James' condition as "brain fever." James never regained his mind and about six or seven hours later, about daylight the next morning on the 23 April 1874, he died. At some point the Hess family was sent for, and around daylight Alexander Moore, Edith's brother, was also sent for. By the time Alexander arrived, James was gone. It is not stated in depositions when the Hess family was sent for nor when they arrived (8 - depositions of Alexander Moore, Samuel S. Moore, William Cruse, Jeremiah Hess, and Dr. Thomas Drake).

Both Samuel Moore and Dr. Drake believed that James' death was brought on by "over exertion" in bad weather. Dr. Thomas Drake testified in his deposition when Julia Cruse and Amelia Cruse tried to get a Civil War pension on their father's service that James Cruse was a poor man financially and that he labored beyond his physical ability in order to support his family (8 - depositions of Samuel Moore and Dr. Thomas Drake).

James was only 30 years old a the time of his death. He was buried in Hull Cemetery in Vigo County, Indiana, in an unmarked grave (8). 

Edith died a year and a month later on 31 May 1875 (8). 

The girls, Julia Cruse and Amelia Cruse, were both under the age of five at the time their parents passed away. They were subsequently separated and sent to live with other families. 

They will be the subject of the next blog posting. 

SOURCES:

(1) 1850 U. S. Federal Censuses, Jane (Jewell) Cruse household, Vigo County, Indiana.

(2) 1860 U. S. Federal Census, Jane (Jewell) Cruse household, Vigo County, Indiana. 

(3) 1870 U. S. Federal Census, his household, Vigo County, Indiana. 

(4) see David Cruse and Jane Jewell. 

(5) A file in the Indiana Archives detailing James' military service and courtesy of Marian Kay Abbott.

(6) Report of the Adjutant General of the State of Indiana, Vol. 5, 1861-1865, 1866.

(7) Vigo County, Indiana Marriage document. 

(8) Civil War Pension Records for Julia Whitesides and Amelia Dawson (James Cruse), courtesy of Marian Kay Abbott.

(9) Courtesy of Marian Kay Abbott.

(10) Ancestry.com. Web: Indiana, Civil War Soldier Database Index, 1861-1865 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. 

The Joy of . . . Soap?

Occasionally I cross post articles from my author blog to my genealogy blog and back. This is one such article. The original can be found here: https://donnahechlerporterbooks.wordpress.com/2016/12/08/the-joy-of-soap/ and was first published on December 8, 2016. 

I really should get out more. I should probably shop more. (But I probably won't.)

I know this to be true since the most exciting thing that happened this past week (except for the cat dangling by one foot from high in the Christmas tree) was finding out that The Vitamin Shoppe not only carries Dr. Brommer's Castile Soap, but that Dr. Brommer himself (is there such a person?) has rose scented liquid soap.

My heart nearly left my chest. I can not tell you how thrilled I was! This was even more exciting than finding the aisle with the soap only to realize that they had more than the overly large size which was the only size HEB carried. So, when I found the rose soap, I was already riding  a high since I was not going to be forced to shell out $10 for a bottle of soap that lasted me months.

Of course, by now I am certain you are thinking, between me and my nutty animals at the house, that I have lost my last marble.

Or, my last bar of soap.

Actually, the answer is simpler and more mundane than that. You see, my paternal grandmother, Eleanora Ressler Hechler, always had the smell of rose soap in her bathroom. Although, I must admit that I was not aware of the scent until several years ago. I was somewhere doing something (maybe a rare shopping trip?) and I smelled soap (or something) that smelled just like her bathroom.

Since then, I have been on a small quest of sorts sniffing soaps and other smelly things for the smell of a rose scent. 'Tis not been easy. For some reason, this is not a scent that is used much these days.

I do love having small reminders of my family around me - my antique hutch that belonged to my great-grandmother Lily Corinne Gray Griswold, my antique traveling trunk that belonged to a Whitehead or McQueen and probably came from Tennessee or Louisiana (or further parts unknown), the dresser that belonged to my great-grandmother Anna Lee Whitehead McQueen, as well as dishes, butter molds, and on and on.

But smells? Well, those are different, and they are very powerful for pulling forth memories and feelings of past events.And yes, for some reason when I smell the scent of rose soap, I am taken back, albeit briefly, to not only my grandmother's bathroom, but to a simpler time when I was a child with few cares and my grandparents were still around.

In the case of rose scented soap, I am reminded for just a minute, no matter how brief, of not only my grandmother's bathroom, but the glass knobs on her doors, the lace curtains that lifted and waved inside the living room as the wind caressed the house, her large rooms with wooden floors that my feet pounded on as I ran through the house. And of course, there was her voice yelling at me not to run, and then as I headed for the door her admonishment to grab a scarf to keep my ears out of the wind.

Yea, I am strange. Who could get that much from the smell of rose scented soap?

Maybe my animals are not the only nutty ones around here.

Maybe it's a good thing I'm a writer, so I can put that over active imagination, er memories, to good use.

John Cruse (1842-1864), possible grandson of Jeremiah Cruse and Elizabeth Harland

A continuing series on the possible children and grandchildren of Jeremiah Cruse of Madison County, Kentucky, and Vigo Couty, Indiana, and his wife Elizabeth Harland. This information courtesy of Marian Kay Abbott.

John Cruse was born about 1842 (1, 2) in Vigo County, Indiana (3) to David Cruse and Jane Jewell. He was the fifth child of seven known children of David and Jane. 

When John was about four or five years old, his father died. His mother continued living on their farm in Honey Creek Township. 

John was nineteen years old when the Civil War broke out. Three years later, on 16 February 1864 at Terra Haute he enlisted as a private in Company C, 31st Regiment of Indiana Volunteers under the command of Captain Thompson. He was mustered into service a week later on 24 February in Indianapolis, Indiana. He is recorded to have had black eyes, black hair, and a dark complexion. He was 5 feet 11 inches tall (3). Older brother Zachariah Cruse was mustered into the same company on the same day also under the command of Captain Thompson (3). Older brother William Cruse also served in Company C, 31st Regiment of Indiana Volunteers, but under Lt. Conover. William also did not enlist until March of 1865 (4). 

John died on 5 August 1864 of fever at Chattanooga, Tennessee. He is buried in the National Cemetery there (4). 

In 1866, John's mother, Jane (Jewell) Cruse, applied for a pension on behalf of her son John's Civil War service. Her son Jeremiah Cruse and her neighbors, S. S. Moore and Mrs. Eliza Jane Evans, provided written testimony in support of her request. They stated that John Cruse died leaving no widow or child, and that for the five years before John's death he worked as a farm hand and regularly supplied 1/2 of his widowed mother's support. He was seen on a number of occasions taking home various articles and groceries for her use. After he enlisted and received his pay, Mrs. Evans saw him give his other $50 for her support. At the time of the application, Jane owned 40 acres of land, a few household items, and one cow. The general consensus was that without his help, his mother would not live comfortably. In May of 1867, Jane Cruse was awarded a pension of $8 per month (5). 

Sources:

(1) 1850 U. S. Federal Census, Jane (Jewell) Cruse's household, Honey Creek Township, Vigo Co IN.

(2) 1860 U. S Federal Census, Jane (Jewell) Cruse's household, Honey Creek Township, Vigo Co IN. 

(3) File in Indiana State Archives regarding Federal Enlistment, transcribed and provided by Marian Kay Abbott.

(4) Report of the Adjutant General of the State of Indiana, Vol 5, 1861-1865, 1866. 

(5) Civil War Pension Records for Jane Cruse (John Cruse). 

.

William Cruse (1840-1909), possible grandson of Jeremiah Cruse & Elizabeth Harland

A continuing series on the possible children and grandchildren of Jeremiah Cruse of Madison County, Kentucky, and Vigo Couty, Indiana, and his wife Elizabeth Harland. This information courtesy of Marian Kay Abbott, with a bit of extra information based on my research.

William Cruse was born on 8 April 1840 (1) in either Sullivan County, Indiana (2) or Vigo County, Indiana (1), to David Cruse and Jane Jewell (13).  David Cruse was believed to be the son of Jeremiah Cruse and Elizabeth Harland. William was preceded into the family by three brothers - Josiah Cruse, Jeremiah Cruse, and Zachariah Cruse. While his Civil War pension records give his birthplace as Vigo County, his father is living in Sullivan County in 1840 (1). Shortly after 1840, however, his parents moved from Sullivan County to the Honey Creek Township in Vigo County. His father died about 1845, when William was about five, and he is found living in his mother's household in Vigo County in the Honey Creek Township in 1850 (3). He was still living with his mother when the 1860 census was taken as well. That year his age was given as 20 and he and his mother were still living in the Honey Creek Township in Vigo County, Indiana (5).

On 5 February 1863, during the Civil War and at the age of 23, William married Permelia Moore in Vigo County, Indiana. The Rev. Samuel Hayworth officiated the ceremony (4).

Permelia was the daughter of Samuel Moore and Eddy Kirby (14, 15, 16, 17) and the  sister of Edith Moore who by this time was the wife of William's younger brother, James Cruse. 1870 and 1880 census records (9, 10)  indicate that Permelia was a year older than William, with a birth year of 1839 and a birthplace of Indiana. The 1900 census (11), however, gives a birth year of 1848, with a birth month of February. This is an error in light of  the census records as well as Permelia's death certificate which gives a birth date of 18 Feb 1839 (17). 

Permelia was born in Vigo County,  Indiana (17).  Her mother is absent from both the 1850 and 1860 census, so it appears she probably died after 1845 and the birth of Permelia's youngest sister and sibling Edith Moore (15, 16) and before the census was taken in 1850.

About a year after their marriage, in 1864, William and Permelia's first child, Harrison Cruse, was born (9).

Two years after his marriage, on 15 March 1865, twenty-five year old William Cruse was mustered into Company C, 31st Regiment of Indiana Volunteers at Terra Haute, Indiana, by Lt. Conover. He is recorded as having dark hair, dark eyes, and a dark complexion (6). Charges of desertion at New Orleans on 9 July 1865 were later dropped (7). 

After the war, on 18 July 1866, William bought 20 acres in Section 30, township 11 N, Rrange 9 W, in the district of land formerly sold at Vincennes, Indiana. He purchased the acreage from brother-in-law Samuel Moore for $500. Five months later, on 15 November 1866, William and Permelia sold to his brother, James Crews, for $135, an  undivided one-sixth part of 27 acres off the south and west part of the southwest quarter of Section 28, and also an undivided sixth part of 12 acres in the southeast corner of the southeast quarter of Section 27, all in township 11 N, Range 9 W, Vigo County, Indiana (8). 

Two years later in 1868, a daughter, Annie Cruse, was born (9). 

In 1880, when the federal census was taken again, William and Permelia were still living in Honey Creek Township in Vigo County, Indiana. That year, son Harrison Cruse is listed with them as a sixteen year old male. Daughter Annie, who would only have been twelve years old, is not listed, so it is possible she had died by this date (12).  Nephew Joseph Crews, also sixteen, was living with them as well (10). Obviously, this Joseph was the son of one of William's brothers, but I am not certain at this time which brother.

William later received a Civil War pension for services rendered during the war because doing so resulted in a partial disability. He suffered from rheumatism, heart disease as well as a disease of the stomach, and he had an injured finger. After his death, Permelia continued to draw his pension, which was $12 a month (1). 

William died 11 September 1909 of "chronic nehpritis" in Honey Creek Township in Vigo County at the age of 69 (13). He was buried in the Hull Cemetery in Vigo County, Indiana.

In 1910, Permelia is found living with her son Harry Cruse, his wife Cora, and their four children in Linton, Vigo County, Indiana. Harry was a mail carrier.(18). 

Permelia survived William by six years, passing away of apoplexy two days before Christmas on 23 December 1913 in Linton, Vigo County, Indiana  (17).  She was buried beside William in the Hull Cemeter in Vigo County, Indiana. A shared marker stands over their grave.

photo courtesy of www.findagrave.com

(1) Civil War Pension Records for William Cruse, courtesy of Marian Kay Abbott. Month and year further supported in the 1900 census (see #11 below), and year is also supported in the 1840, 1850, 1860, and 1870 census records which are all cited below as well.

(2) 1840 U. S. Federal Census, an enumeration for a child his age is found in that census in David Cruse's household.

(3) 1850 U. S. Federal Census, Jane (Jewell) Cruse's household.

(4) Vigo County Marriage Document, courtesy of Marian Kay Abbott. Also found at ancestry.com as Vigo County, Indiana; Index to Marriage Record 1840-1920 Inclusive Volume W. P. A. Original Record Located: County Clerk's O; Book: 3; Page: 14

(5) 1860 U. S. Federal Census, Jane (Jewell) Cruse's household.

(6) File with the Indiana State Archives, courtesy of Marian Kay Abbott. 

(7) Report of the Adjutant General of the State of Indiana, Vol. 5, 1861-1865, 1866.

(8) Information courtesy of Marian Kay Abbott.

(9) 1870 U. S. Federal Census, William Cruse's household.

(10) 1880 U. S. Federal Census, William Cruse's household.

(11) 1900 U. S. Federal Census, William Cruse's household.

(12) The 1900 U. S. Federal Census supports this idea, citing that Permelia had given birth to 2 children, but that only 1 was living at that time.

(13) Ancestry.com. Indiana, Death Certificates, 1899-2011 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. Williams' death certificate  Death certificate found here is an original copy and details his parents' names, birthdate and birthplace, death date, death place, cause of death, and wife's name.

(14) Dodd, Jordan. Indiana Marriages to 1850 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 1997.

(15) 1850 U. S. Federal Census, Samuel Moore's household. 

(16) 1860 U. S. Federal Census, Samuel Moore's household.

(17) Ancestry.com. Indiana, Death Certificates, 1899-2011 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. Permelia Moore Cruse's death certificate.

(18) 1910 U. S. Federal Census, Harry Cruse's household.

Zachariah Crews (1838- ), possible grandson of Jeremiah Crews & Elizabeth Harland

This is a continuing series on the possible children and grandchildren of Jeremiah Crews & Elizabeth Harlan of Vigo County, Indiana. Jeremiah was the son of David Crews, Sr., of Madison County, Kentucky. This information is largely the courtesy of Marian Kay Abbott, a descendant of Jeremiah.

Zachariah Crews, the third son born to David Cruse and Jane Jewell, was born in 1838 in Sullivan County, Indiana (1). David, of course, is strongly believed to be a son of Jeremiah Crews & Elizabeth Harland. The 1840 Sullivan County, Indiana census shows a male Zachariah's age in the David Cruse household (2). About 1846, when Zachariah was about eight years old, his father died. Either before or after his father's death, the family moved to Honey Creek Township in Vigo County, Indiana. Jane is found here in the 1850 census with her children, including Zachariah (3).

On 14 January 1858, Zachariah married Rachel Lane in Vigo County, Indiana (4). Rachel's parents are unknown, but in the 1850 census she is found living in Honey Creek Township in Vigo County, Indiana with Thomas Meak, 30 years old, and Orpha Meak, aged 33. There are a number of other children in the household, but the relationship to Thomas and Orpha is not stated on the census (5).

Zachariah and Rachel made their home in Honey Creek Township. In 1859, their first child, a boy they named John, was born (6). 

Zachariah served as a private in the Civil War in the 31st Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company C (7). This unit saw extensive fighting and served from the beginning of the war until the end. 

During the war and afterwards more children were born - Benjamin Franklin Cruse in 1861 and Joseph Cruse in 1863, Amanda Cruse, and the couple's only daughter, born in 1865, Edward Cruse, born in 1872, Henry Harrison Cruse, born in 1847, and William Thomas Cruse, born in 1876. 

It is believed that Zachariah and Rachel died within two weeks of each other sometime between 1876 and 1880. While John may have been close to 19 when his parents died, the other children were younger, with William Thomas Cruse no older four years. 

Zachariaha and Rachel are believed to be buried in Hull Cemetery in Vigo County, Indiana, where so many other members of the Cruse family are buried. If so, their graves are unmarked.



(1) Civil War Enlistment papers according to Marian Kay Abbott. 
(2) 1840 U. S. Federal Census, Sullivan County, Indiana, David Cruse's household.
(3) 1850 U. S. Federal Census, Honey Creek Township, Jane Cruse's household.
(4) Vigo County, Indiana marriage document, courtesy of Marian Kay Abbott but also found on ancestry.com.
(5) 1850 U. S. Federal Census, Honey Creek Township, Thomas Meak household.
(6) 1860 U. S. Federal Census, Honey Creek Township, Zachariah Cruse's household.
(7) National Park Service. U. S. Civil War Soldiers 1861-1865 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007.
(8) Ancestry.com. U. S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. 

Jeremiah Cruse (1836-1918), possible grandson of Jeremiah Crews & Elizabeth Harland

I will be continuing my series on the possible grandchildren of Jeremiah Crews and Elizabeth Harland. Currently I am detailing these grandchildren through his son David Crews and Jane Jewell. Most of this information is courtesy of  Marian Kay Abbott, a descendant of Jeremiah. The rest is my added research.

Jeremiah Cruse is proven to be a son of David Cruse and Jane Jewell through his death certificate (1). He was born on 12 August of 1836 in Indiana (2) and was the second son born to David Crews and Jane Jewell, having been born two years behind older brother Josiah Cruse. While Jeremiah's parents were married in 1833 in Vigo County, they were living in Sullivan County, Indiana when the U.S. Federal Census was taken in 1840. Likely, Jeremiah was born either in Vigo before his parents moved or in Sullivan County after they moved (3). Sometime about 1845 shortly before his tenth birthday Jeremiah moved with his parents to Honey Creek Township in Vigo County. About 1846 or 1847 Jeremiah's father, David Cruse died, and Jeremiah's mother, Jane, is listed as the head of the household in the 1850 Vigo County, Indiana census. The family was still living in Honey Creek Township.

On 19 February 1860, just a year before the Civil War started, he married Paulina M. Wilson in Vigo County, Indiana (4). Her name is corrupted in the records in a variety of ways - Palonia, Pilona, Pulona, etc., but her cemetery marker indicates her name was Paulina, so I have used this spelling. Paulina was born on 2 November 1835 in Indiana (5).

I have been unable to find any records that Jeremiah served in the Civil War. That does not mean he did not, it just means in my quick research I was unable to locate anything.

Jeremiah and Paulina made their home in Vigo County, and the 1860 census shows them living in Prairieton. Living with them that year were 18 year old Benjamin Watson and 69 year old Jacob Hess. Jacob Hess is interesting. He was born in Virginia, and according to the 1880 census, Paulina's parents were both born in Virginia. Hess also was in possession of a personal estate valued at $7000 and real estate valued at $1000. So, he was not an indigent elderly person that needed a home. I think the possibility should be considered by researchers that Paulina's maiden name might be Hess, and that perhaps Wilson was a married name. Further research could clear up the matter.

Picture courtesy of www.findagrave.com.
Link in notes below.

Sometime early in 1861, Paulina gave birth to a son whom the couple named Charles D. Cruse. This child lived only three years, dying on 29 September 1864. Charles was buried in Hull Cemetery in Terra Haute in Vigo County, Indiana. According to his burial marker, he was three years, five months, and eleven days old at the time of his death. The stone also records that he was the son of "J & P Cruse" (8).

Six years later on 22 August 1866 he bought 1 1/8 acres in Vigo County, Section 25, Township 11 N, Range 10 W from Mary Hall for $60. Seven months later, he bought an additional 1 1/8 acres also in Vigo County, Section 25, Township 11 N Range 10 W from Nancy J. Gilliland and David W. Gilliland for $25 (9).

On 1 December 1870, Jeremiah and his wife, Palonia, sold for $800 4/6 of 27 acres in Section 28 and also 4/6 of 13 acres in Section 29 all in Vigo County in Township 11 N Range 9 W (9).

While the deed given above for the sale in Vigo County indicates a year of 1870, I have been unable to locate Jeremiah and Paulina in the 1870 census. It is possible they moved for a time to Illinois, but if so, they were once again living in Vigo County when the 1880 census was taken. That year they had their two sons living with them - M. Frances Cruse, aged 17, and David Cruse, aged 10. Interestingly, M. Frances is given a birth state of Illinois, while the others were all born in Indiana, including ten year old David. I looked for Jeremiah in the 1880 Illinois census, but I came up dry. The possibility should be considered that they lived for a short time here. Of course, the biggest burden of not locating them in the 1870 census is that fact that there were likely other children born to this family whose names are not known at this time.

The Terra Haute Saturday Evening Ledger reported on 24 Jan 1880 that Mrs. Jerry Cruse of Prairieton was very sick with the measles. She obviously recovered, for in June the 1880 census was taken and she is listed as still living (see paragraph above).

Picture courtesy of www.findagrave.com.
Link in notes below.

Paulina died on 1 October 1895. She was buried in Hull Cemetery in Terra Haute in Vigo County, Indiana. Jeremiah subsequently moved in with his son David, and he is found living with him six years later in Prairieton in Vigo County in 1900 when the census was taken. Also living with David that year was wife Lena and their six year old son Ira (6). Ten years later, Lena had passed away, Ira was sixteen, and Jeremiah, now 73, was still living with son David and still in Prairieton (7).

On 10 June 1918 Jeremiah Cruse died in Prairieton. His death was subsequently reported in the Terra Haute Tribune on 11 June 1918 (on page 2) and reads as follows:

Jeremiah Cruse, 81 years old, died at 3:30 o'clock Monday afternoon at the home of his son, eight miles southeast of Prairieton, Indiana. He is survived by two sons, David Cruse of southeast of Prairieton, and F. M. Cruse of Kansas; two grandsons and one granddaughter. The funeral service will be held at 3 o'clock Wednesday afternoon. Burial will be in Hull Cemetery.

It should be noted that while burial was apparently in Hull Cemetery, possibly alongside wife Paulina and son Charles, he is not found on the website www.findagrave.com. He may well have a marker, but it was not recorded for the website.

(1) Indiana, Death Certificates, 1899-2011, courtesy of Ancestry.com.

(2) Birthmonth, birthyear and birthstate given in death certificate as well as the 1900 Prairieton, Vigo Co IN (son David's household). The actual birthdate found on the death certificate. Death certificate is not specific as to a birth county.

(3) Jeremiah Crews, Possible Children, Part Six: David Cruse

(4) Indiana Marriage Index, 1800-1941.

(5) Cemetery marker found on the www.findagrave.com and seen here.

(6) 1900 U. S. Federal Census, David Cruse, household, Vigo County, Indiana.

(7) 1910 U. S. Federal Census, David Cruse, household, Vigo County, Indiana.

(8) Cemetery marker found on the www.findagrave.com and seen here. It should be noted the byline on the page in regards to the birthdate does not match with the actual picture of the marker.

(9) Land records - courtesy of Marian Kay Abbott.

A Trip to Madison County

I must apologize for my long absence this summer from my blog. I was given the wrong dosage of medicine from the local pharmacy for my thyroid, and I was basically suffering from an extreme case of hypothyroidism all summer long. I am happy to report, though, that the proper dosage has finally kicked my levels back up to normal. I should be posting on a more regular basis and getting back to posting on Jeremiah Crews' family.

This week, I am going to share a post from cousin Mary LaRue. She went to Descendant Weekend at Ft. Boonesborough, Kentucky this past summer. Many of you who follow this blog are descendants of David Crews and Annie Magee. I would like to thank Mary for sharing her trip and pics with us, and I need to apologize for being so long in getting her words put up here.

Recently, I had the chance to travel to the Richmond, Kentucky area in Madison County, Kentucky, home to David Crews and Annie (nee McGee) Crews, my Maternal 6^th Great Grandparents. Their home still stands, although it is completely enveloped by the present-day house shown here.

No part of their original house can be seen from the outside, but the land they lived on is still green and shady with large trees, the way I imagine it must have been when they lived there. Their daughter Mary, and her husband Abraham Newland, my 5^th Great Grandparents, are buried just a few miles down the road from David and Annie’s home site, on land David granted to them. David, and presumably Annie, were originally buried at the home site, but David’s granddaughter, China, had David moved into the Richmond Cemetery in the 1930s.  A photograph of his grave is below, showing the old slab China had made, and the beautiful new marker put up by some of David’s descendants a few years ago. If you go to visit the grave, it is near the front entrance, close to the office. As far as I know, Annie was left behind when David was moved, so she is still a part of their home site, although the location of her grave is unknown to us now.
 

I was also able to visit both the original site and the current reproduction site of Fort Boonesborough, near Richmond. David and Annie, Mary and Abraham, and my other set of 6^th Great Grandparents, William and Sarah (nee Callaway) Hoy, were some of the first pioneers at Boonesborough, and they are all  listed on the monument just outside the reproduction fort.
 

The original fort is long gone, but the site was marked by the D.A.R. 99 years ago with a monument. As you can see from the photograph below, David Crews’ name is inscribed upon the monument that sits inside the area which was once enclosed by the original fort. This site was also where the first Christian church service in Kentucky was held, and also where the first Legislative Session ever held in Kentucky occurred.
 

The reproduction fort is a wonderful place to visit, and I hope you are able to go see it someday. Take a few minutes to look at the website of the Fort Boonesborough Foundation, they have a lot more historical information and photographs than I could include here. (www.fortboonesboroughlivinghistory.org)

If anyone would like to post stories or pics of their ancestors on our family tree, feel free to contact me at donnahechlerporterbooks.wordpress.com. 

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The Family of Napoleon Bonaparte Barclay & Martha Isabella Boyd

Recently I was contacted by Terry McDonald Turner, who had purchased my recent genealogy work "Metes & Bounds III: John McQueen & Nancy Crews, Children & Grandchildren." I asked Terry to write a more lengthy biography on Napoleon Bonaparte Barclay than what is currently in my book. The pictures are also courtesy of Terry (with the exception of the sons of Napoleon & Mattie and the last which are both courtesy of Sandra Hargrove). Next week I will return to my postings on the grandchildren of Jeremiah Crews and Elizabeth Harland.

Napoleon Bonaparte Barclay, my second greatgrandfather, was born December 6, 1854 in Woodville, Texas to James Walter Barclay (1816-1873) and Virginia Foster Barclay (1827-1867).  He was named for his uncle, Napoleon Bonaparte Charlton, the husband of his mother’s sister, Sarah Louise Foster.  Napoleon Bonaparte Charlton (1815-1896) was a well-known political figure in Tyler County, Texas, and served in the Texas State Legislature for many years. 

Napoleon "Pole" married Martha Isabella "Mattie" Boyd on March 18, 1880 in Tyler County, Texas.  Martha was born December 27, 1848 in Many, Louisiana.  She was the daughter of James H. Boyd (1810-1859) and Sarah Ann Scott (1816-1885), and the widow of George Delaware Hignett (1849-1873). Mattie and George D. Hignett had two children, John Francis M. Hignett (1870-1918) and Sarah Eliza Hignett Boyce (1872-1964). John Francis "Frank" Hignett was a minister and officiated at the marriage of his half-sister, Viola Ida Barclay to Fredderic Ancel Williamson in April 1917.  

Napoleon Bonaparte Charlton

Martha Isabella "Mattie" Boyd

Pole and Mattie Barclay had five children, two girls and three boys.  The girls were Viola Ida Barclay Williamson (1881-1978) and Eva Virginia Barclay Kelley (1883-1960).  The boys were Bronson Cooper  Barclay (1885-1948), William Thomas Barclay (1887-1968), and Richard Boyd Barclay (1890-1969).  

Eva Virginia Barclay Kelley

Viola Ida Barclay Williamson

left to right - Richard, Will, and Bronson Barclay
(photo courtesy of Sandra Hargrove)

Viola “Ola” Williamson was my greatgrandmother.  She lived about a quarter mile from me when I was growing up, and since she lived to be 96 years old, I knew her quite well.  Many are the stories I have heard from her and my grandmother, Eva Esther Williamson McDonald (1918-2008), about the Barclays of Tyler County, Texas. 

Esther Williamson

Esther Williamson McDonald

The Barclays were Baptists in their religious beliefs, being either Primitive Baptists or Missionary Baptists.  They also voted a Democratic ticket, although as my grandmother Esther told me in a 2001 videotaped interview “the Democrats then weren’t as they are now.”  They had a great sense of humor and loved practical jokes.  Aunt Eva “Evvie” Kelley was the family historian, and she passed her love of this rich history to her niece Esther. 

Among the stories I have heard about Napoleon is that he could speak the language of the Alabama-Coushatta Indians of Tyler County, and that he always traveled with a sheepskin that he would roll out on the floor as his bed when he came for an overnight visit.  My greatgrandmother Ola told me that when she was growing up in Tyler County the Indians would leave her little corncob dolls that they made for her on the porch of their cabin which stood next to the James Walter Barclay cabin in the Harmony Community.  Napoleon was very generous to his children and grandchildren, and would offer to purchase a home for his children when they married.  (My Williamson greatgrandparents declined this ample offer.)  Another story was about the time Napoleon was hosting an important reception for Kirby Lumber Company executives and gave Ola and Eva quite a sum of money to make taffeta tablecloths.  Both daughters thought taffeta was too expensive, and when they suggested another more sensible fabric, he vehemently said no. 

Napoleon was well-loved by his children and grandchildren.  He died on November 6, 1936 in Silsbee, Texas at the home of his son Bronson.  Mattie died August 22, 1925 in Woodville, Texas after a long battle with cancer.  They are both buried at Hart-Mill Cemetery near Woodville.  

The picture below is of some of the children (and wives and husbands) of James Barclay & Virginia Ann Foster (and brothers, sisters, and in-laws of Napoleon Bonaparte Barclay) taken at a Barclay Family Reunion dated 1910-1916 and is courtesy of Sandra Hargrove who has graciously shared it with relatives who have asked. 

Back row, left to right, Charles Bullock Barclay, Martha Isabell Boyd Barclay (Napoleon's wife), Napoleon Bonaparte Barclay, Donna Dunmon Barclay (Charles' wife), James O. Lindsey (Sarah's husband), Thomas Boston Beaty (Mary's husband)

Front row, left to right, Phoebe Arizona Barclay Bevil, Sarah Anderson Barclay Lindsey, Mary Louise Barclay Beaty, Avarilla Barclay Risinger, Jane Elizabeth Barclay Bullock

Possible Grandchildren of Jeremiah Crews: Laeticia Nelson

Laeticia Nelson was born to James Nelson and Susannah Crews, and Susannah was probably the daughter of Jeremiah Crews and Elizabeth Harland as explained here. Laeticia, therefore, would have been a granddaughter of Jeremiah Crews and a great-granddaughter of David Crews and Annie Magee of Madison County, Kentucky. 

Laeticia was born in Kentucky in 1827 (7, 8, 9) prior to her parents' move from there to Indiana where they joined the families of Crews, Nelson, and others in Vigo County by 1830. She is probably the free white female under the age of five in James Nelson's household in the 1830 Vigo County, Indiana census. In the 1840 Vigo County census, she was probably one of two white females aged 10-14 in James' household. Both the 1830 and 1840 census records show the Nelsons living in Honey Creek Township.

About 1854, Laeticia married Willis Milam (1). While the marriage record states Willis' father to be James, the 1860 Vigo County, Indiana census enumerates 68 year old John Milam as living in Willis' household. Willis and Laeticia subsequently lived in the Honey Creek Township in Vigo County, Indiana. By the time the 1860 census was taken, Laeticia had borne four children - Mary Milam, born 1855, Susanna Milam, born 1856, James Milam, born 1858, and perhaps LettiAnn or Laeticia Milam, who was only three months old at the time the census was taken in June of 1860. Willis was a carpenter, and it appears from the census that he was perhaps born in Kentucky, although the writing is not clear.

Sometime about 1863, Willis must have died, and on 8 November 1865 Laeticia married a second time to Henry Loveall in Vigo County, Indiana (3).

Henry had been born in March of 1819 in Kentucky (8). He had first married in Henry County, Indiana, on 10 August 1847. The marriage record gives her name as Judy Hays (4) but the 1860 census record, as well as notes from genealogists on Ancestry.com, indicate her name to have been Anna. I am not certain at this time if they were the same person, or if Judy died early in the marriage and Henry married a second time to Anna. 

By 1860, Henry and Anna had moved to Lost Creek Township in Vigo County, Indiana, where Anna died about 1865. At the time of her death, she was survived by not only Henry, but children Susanna Loveall, born 1848, America Loveall, born 1850, Mary E. Loveall, born 1851, James Loveall, born 1853, Naomi Loveall, born 1856, and Amanda Loveall, born 1859 (5). Another child, Noah Loveall, was born in 1862 prior to Anna's death (6).

The combined household of Henry and Laeticia (Nelson Milam) Loveall in the 1870 Vigo County, Indiana census boasted of nine children, with only James' older two daughters, Susanna and America, being absent. The only child of the nine shared by Henry and Laeticia was two year old Alice Loveall, and she would be the only child Henry and Laeticia would share in common (7). Also living with  the Lovealls that year was 73 year old James Nelson, who was probably Leticia's father.

Laeticia is last seen in the 1880 census record. When the 1900 census was taken, Henry was living in Honey Creek Township in Vigo County, Indiana as a boarder with John and Lillian Jordan's household. 

Nothing further is know of Laeticia nor Henry.

(1) Ancestry.com. Indiana, Select Marriages Index, 1748-1993 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014. Although, date is based on birth of first child, as the database offers none.
(2) Date based on birth of first child named in 1850 census.
(3) Vigo County, Indiana; Index to Marriage Record 1840-1920 Inclusive Volum, W. P. A. Original Record Located: County Clerk's O; Book: 4; Page: 106.
(4) Dodd, Jordan. Indiana Marriages to 1850 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 1997.
(5) 1860 Vigo Co IN census, Henry Loveall's household. 
(6) 1870 Vigo Co IN census, Henry Loveall's household.
(7) 1880 Vigo Co IN census, Henry Loveall's household. It shows no other surviving children beyond Alice's birth.
(8) 1900 Vigo Co IN census, John Jordan's household, giver birthmonth and birthyear. All census records, it should be noted, support Kentucky as the birthstate. 
(9) 1850 Vigo Co IN census, James Nelson's household.