The Pension File Of John Webb and Martha Belle Duggan Webb

John Webb married a younger woman. She wasn’t even born when he left the service of the B Company, 2nd Regiment of the Tennessee Vols Cavalry in 1865. They had several children. One appears to have been born before they were married, so I’m not clear if this child was born to another woman. At any rate, the mother of that child is not named.

The PDF file will follow this transcription of some of the more interesting parts of the file. Please do open the PDF and read it all, if you know how to read cursive.

ACT OF JUNE 27, 1890.

*****

DECLARATION FOR INVALID PENSION.

To be executed before a Court of Record or some officer thereof having custody of its seal.

On this 8^th day of July, A. D. one thousand eight hundred and ninety, personally appeared before me, Clerk of the County Court, a court of record within and for the County and State aforesaid, John Webb, aged 45 years, a resident of the County of Blount, State of Tennessee, who, being duly sworn according to law, declares that he is the identical John Webb, who was ENROLLED on the 15^th day of August, 1862, in Company B, 2d Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry Vols as a Private in the war of the rebellion and served at least ninety days, and was HONORABLY DISCARGED (sic) at Nashville Tennessee, on the 6^th day of July, 1865. That he is wholly unable to earn a support by reason of deafness of both ears and broken thigh (left thigh) and injury to small of his back. That said disabilities are not due to his vicious habits, and are to the best of his knowledge and belief permanent. That he has formerly applied for pension under application No. 733,733. That he makes this declaration for the purpose of being placed on the pension roll of the United States, under the provisions of the Act of June 27, 1890.

He hereby appoints, with full power of substitution and revocation, W.C. CHUMLEA, OF MARYILLE, TENN.

his true and lawful attorney to prosecute his claim. That his post-office address is Uceba, County of

Blount State of Tenn.

It is agreed that the attorney’s fee be Ten Dollars  as prescribed by law under this Act.

John (X his mark) Webb

 

(Two witnesses who write sign here.)

1. M. Webb
2. Samuel Cameron

 

*****

So. Division

Department of the Interior,

BUREAU OF PENSIONS,

Washington, D. C., Aug. 27, 1897

No. 854786

John Webb

Co. B, 2 Reg’t Tenn. Vol. Cav.

Sir:

Will you kindly answer, at your earliest convenience, the questions enumerated below? The information is requested for future use, and it may be of great value to your family.

Very respectfully,

J. L. Davenport

Actg Commissioner

Mr. John Webb, Uceba, Tenn.

No. 1. Are you a married man? If so, please state your wife’s full name, and her maiden name.

Answer: Marth Belle Duggan Webb

No 2. When, where, and by whom were you married? Answer: April 9 – 1894 at Marville, S. M. Morton

No. 3. What record of marriage exists? Answer: at Marville, Tenn.

No. 4. Were you previously married? If so, please state the name of your former wife and the date and pace of her death or divorce. Answer: No.

No. 5 Have you any children living? If so, please state their names and the dates of their birth. Answer:

Nancy Henry Etta Webb. Sept. 11 – 1892

Mitchell Dillard Webb. May 4 – 1895

George Francis Webb. Nov. 29 – 1896

Date of reply, Sept – 5, 1897.

John Webb

(Signature)

*****

 

GENERAL AFFIDAVIT

State of Tenn, County of Knox, ss:

IN THE MATTER OF Martha N. Webb wid John Webb, 2 Reg. Tenn Cavalry Vol

ON THIS 9 day of December A. D. 1918 personally appeared before me, a Notary Public in and for the aforesaid County, duly authorized to administer oaths, Leah E. Day aged 57 years, a resident of Knoxville in the County of Knox and State of Tenn

well known to me to be reputable and entitled to credit, and who, being duly sworn, declares in relation to the aforesaid case as follows:

I will say that I am a sister to Martha B. Webb. I have been personal associated with her all my life and I know from personal knowledge that they lived together as husband and wife to his deth and neither of them was divorced. who died April 7 1898 I was present and atten his funer She then married Patrick Johnson August 21, 1904 and was divorced from him March 12, 1918. he proved to be such a wicked & drunkard he would not only abuse her but he would fight her. She was afraid to live with him he would threaten her life. he would not provide anything for the support of the family. he was a man that would run after lude women. he proposed to her to get the divorce – but she did not have the money so he said he would get it himself.

Her Post-Office address is 1407 Morres St. Knoxville Tenn

FURTHER DECLARES that no interest in said case and not concerned in its prosecution.

Leah (X her mark) E. Day

Signature of Affiant

1. Wily Lyons
2. Mattie Webb

 

*****

 

GENERAL AFFIDAIT

State of Tenn, County of Knox, ss:

IN THE MATTER OF Martha B. Webb wid John Webb, 2 Reg Tenn Cav Vol

ON THIS 9 day of December A. D. 1918, personally appeared before me, a Notary Public in and for the aforesaid County duly authorized to administer oaths, Martha B. Webb aged 51 years, a resident of Knoxville in the County of Knox and State of Tenn.

well known to me to be reputable and entitled to credit, and who, neing duly sworn, declares in relation to the aforesaid case as follows:

will say that I am the Claimant in this case – and will say my first husband John Webb and I got along peaceabley and happy during his lifetime and after his death I married Patrick Johnson August 21 1904 and was divorced from him March 12 1918 he was an awful wicked man he drank and cursed me – and he threatented diferent times to kill me – he would not provide for the family. We could not get along together So he proposed to me for me to get the divorce I told him I did not hav the money – he said he would get it – So I was afraid to live with him and I left him for feare he would kille me So he went a head and got the divorce.

Her Post-Office is 2138 Erine Av Knoxville Tenn

Marth B. Webb

Signature of Affiant

WebbJohn & WebbMartha – Pension & Widow’s Pension File

Wouldn’t want to be related to Patrick Johnson…

The Pension File of Lynch Webb

There are 33 pages to this file. I’ve transcribed several of the most interesting ones.

The first is the original application for a pension by Lynch Webb.

Declaration for an Original Invalid Pension

This must be Executed before a Court of Record or some Officer thereof having Custody of the Seal.

State of Tennessee, County of Knox, ss:

ON THIS 20th day of July A.D. one thousand eight hundred and eighty 7

personally appeared before me Clerk of a Court of Record within and for the County and State aforesaid LINCH WEBB aged 65 years, who, being duly sworn according to law, declares that he is the identical LINCH WEBB who was ENROLLED on the 15th day of Sept, 1862, in Company B of the 2nd regiment of Tenn Cav commanded by Capt Thos A. Jones and was honorably DISCHARGED at Vicksburgh Miss on the 24th day of May, 1865, That his personal description is as follows:

Age 65 years; height 5 feet 9 inches;; complexion dark; hair fair; eyes blue.

That white a member of the organization aforesaid, in the service and in the line of duty at Louisville in the State of Kentucky on or about Nov or Dec, 1862, he contracted diarrhoea and was very sick for a time and it resulted in piles, but he got some better, came on with his command to Murfreesboro Tenn and from the hard marching and exposure became so bad from piles he could not ride horseback. The same disease has continued to the present. That he was treated in hospitals as follows: treated on by Regimental Surgeon and Assisstant while in Regiment. That he has not been employed in the military or naval service otherwise than as stated above. That he has not been in the military or naval service of the United States since the 24th day of May 1865. That since leaving the service this applicant has resided in the Cos of Knox and Blount in the state of Tenn, and in Texas from 1879 to -82, and that his occupation has been that of a farmer. That prior to his entry into the service above named he was a man of good, sound, physical health, being when enrolled a farmer. That he is now greatly disabled from obtaining his subsistence by manual labor by reason of his injuries, above described, received in the service of the United States; and he therefore makes this declaration for the purpose of being placed on the invalid pension roll of the United States. He hereby appoints with full power of substitution and revocation W. H. ROBERTS of Knoxville Tenn his true and lawful attorney to prosecute his claim. That he has not received nor applied for a pension;p that his residence is in Knox Co Tenn and that his post office address is Uceba, Blount Co, Tenn.

LINCH (X his mark) WEBB

(Two witnesses who can write sign here)

F. M. WEBB

WILLIAM R. HARMON

Also personally appeared F. M. Webb residing at Uceba Tenn and Wm. R. Harmon residing at Uceba Tenn persons whom I certify to be respectable and entitled to credit, and who being by me duly sworn, say that they were present and saw LINCH WEBB, the claimant sign his name (make his mark) to the foregoing declaration; that they have every reason to believe from the appearance of the claimant and their acquaintance with him that he is the identical person he represents himself to be; and that they have no interest in the prosecution of this claim.

F. M. WEBB

WILLIAM R. HARMON

Sworn to and subscribed before me this 20th day of July A. D. 1887 and I hereby certify that the contents of the above declarations were fully made and explained to the applicant and witnesses before swearing; and I have no interest, direct or indirect, in the prosecution of this claim.

W. T. JONES, Dept Clerk of the County Court Knox Co.

(Filed in the pension office Jul 23, 1887.)

The next is the application of Lynch’s widow, Sarah Couch Webb.

WIDOW’S CLAIM FOR PENSION

State of Tennessee

County of Blount

On this 19th day of March, 1894, personally appeared before me, a Clerk of a Court of Record in and for the County and State aforesaid SARAH WEBB a resident of Uceba in the County of Blount and State of Tennessee aged 70 years, who being duly sworn, makes the following declaration, in order to obtain the Pension provided y the Act of Congress approved July 14, 1862. That she is the widow of LINCH WEBB who was a private in Company  commanded by Thomas Jones in the 2nd Regiment of Tenn. Cav. in the War of 1861; that her maiden name was SARAH COUCH and that she was married to said LINCH WEBB on or about the ? day of July, 1842, in the County of Blount and State of Tennessee by ESQ. JACKSON, and that she knows of no record evidence of said marriage.

SHE FURTHER DECLARES that the said LINCH WEBB her husband, died at Uceba, Blount County, in the State of Tennessee, on or about the 18th day of December, 1893 of Chronic Diarrhea, Liver Affliction & Kidneys & Bladder disease. She also declares that she has remained a widow ever since the death of said LINCH WEBB and that she has not in any manner been engaged in, or aided or abetted, the rebellion of the United States; and she hereby appoints W. C. CHUMLEA of Maryville Tenn as her awful attorney, with power of substitution, and authorizes him to present and prosecute this claim. That she has never applied for a pension but that the soldier her husband was a pensioner by Cert. No. 465031 and to which claim she here refers for any proof that may be applicable in her claim.

My Post Office address is Uceba, Blount County, State of Tennessee.

SARAH (X her mark) WEBB (Signature of Claimant.)

If mark is made, two witnesses who write sign here.

A. GODDARD

A. M. RULE

ALSO PERSONALLY APPEARED before me J. A. GODDARD and A. M. RULE residents of Maryville, Blount County, and State of Tennessee to me well known as credible persons, who being duly sworn, declare, that they were present and saw said SARAH WEBB, make her mark – sign her name to the foregoing declaration and that they have every reason to believe, from the appearance of said applicant, and their acquaintance with her, that she is the identical person she represents herself to be, and know that said deceased recognized said applicant as his lawful wife, and that she was so recognized by the community in which they resided; and that they have no interest, direct or indirect, in the prosecution of this claim.

J. A. GODDARD

A. M. RULE

Signature of Witnesses

Sworn and subscribed to before me, this 19th day of March 1894, and I hereby certify that I have no interest, direct or indirect, in the prosecution of this claim. And that the contents of the above were made known and explained to applicant and witnesses before signing.

BEN CUNNINGHAM

Clerk County Court

The next is from Merah Yearout, a Webb cousin, although he doesn’t mention the cousinage here. I’ve written about him before.

STATE OF TENNESSEE

COUNTY OF Blount

In the matter of pension claim No 612771 of SARAH WEBB widow of LINCH WEBB of Co “B” 2nd Regiment Tenn Cavalry Vols.

Personally came before me, a Clerk of a Court in and for said County and State, MERAH YEAROUT aged 52 years, whose postoffice address is Ellijoy, County of Blount, State of Tenn well known to me to be reputable and entitled to credit, and who being duly sworn declares in relation to the aforesaid case, as follows:
I was well acquainted with the Soldier LINCH WEBB. I have known him all my life. I served in the same Company with him. I have also been well acquainted with F. M. WEBB, son of the soldier since we were boys. I remember well about F. M. WEBB the son of Soldier coming to the Regiment where we camped at Will’s Valley Alabama; to the best of my recollection this was about the 1st of August, 1863, and at that time he took his father’s place in Company “B” 2d Tenn Cav, and served in his place, and his father the soldier was allowed to go home. I remember about the son F. M. WEBB standing picket with me the first night after he took his father’s place, and after he came to the company and took his father’s place he answered at roll call and all other calls to the name of LINCH WEBB. I know the above facts fro serving with the two above named soldiers and being personally and well acquainted with them as above stated. I have no interest in this claim for pension and I am not concerned in its prosecution.

This testimony was all written in my presence and only from my oral statements here made in Maryville, Tenn on the 30th day of September, 1895, made to W. C. CHUMLEA and reduced to writing by him and in making the same I did not use and was not aided or prompted thereto by any written or printed statement or recital prepared or dictated by any other person.

MERAH YEAROUT, Signature of Affiant

Sworn to and Subscribed before me this day by the above named Affiant; and I certify that I read said affidavit to aid Affiant and acquainted him with its contents before he executed the same. I further certify that I am in nowise interested in this case, nor am I concerned in its prosecution, and that said Affiant is personally known to me, that he is a creditable person and so reputed in the community in which he resides.

Witness my hand and official seal, this 30th day of Sept, 1895.

BEN CUNNINGHAM, Clerk County Court

(This affidavit was filed at the pension office on Jan 24, 1896.)

Lastly, James A. Jackson, the son of the minister that joined Lynch and Sarah in holy matrimony.

STATE OF TENNESSEE

COUNTY OF BLOUNT

In the matter of pension claim no. 612771 of SARAH WEBB widow of Linch Webb of
Co. “B” 2d Regt Tenn Cav Vols.

Personally came before me, a Clerk of a Court in and for said County and State, JAMES A. JACKSON aged 62 years, whose postoffice address is Maryville County of Blount, State of Tenn well known to me to be reputable and entitled to credit, and who being duly sworn, declares in relation to the aforesaid case, as follows:

I remember well the circumstance of my father SAMUEL JACKSON Esq going to perform the marriage ceremony between the soldier & the Claimant, cannot give the date of their marriage, I have seen the marriage License at my father’s with the return on there showing he married them. I can’t tell where the marriage Licenses are now, the last time I saw them they were with his old papers. My father has been dead near forty years. I know they were recognized in the community after that continually as husband & wife, up to the death of the Soldier. Neither the Claimant or the soldier had ever been previously married and the Claimant has not re-married since the death of her husband the Soldier, and they were never divorced from each other.

I have no interest in this claim and I am not concerned in it prosecution. This testimony was all written in my presence and only from my oral statements here made in Maryville, Tenn on the 9th day of March, 1896, made to W. C. CHUMLEA and reduced to writing by him and in making the same I did not use and was not aided or prompted thereto by any written or printed statement or recital prepared or dictated by any other person.

JAMES A. JACKSON (Signature of Affiant)

Sworn to and Subscribed before me this day by the above named Affiant; and I certify that I read said affidavit to aid Affiant and acquainted him with its contents before he executed the same. I further certify that I am in nowise interested in this case, nor am I concerned in its prosecution, and that said Affiant is personally known to me, that he is a creditable person and so reputed in the community in which he resides.

Witness my hand and official seal, this 9th day of March, 1896.

BEN CUNNINGHAM, Signature of Official, Clerk County Court

WebbLynch Pension file & WebbSarah Widow’s Pension

The Service Record of Lynch Webb: A Bit More

I’ve been puzzling over something.

Like I said in an earlier post, I haven’t looked at the files for a long time. I kept them in a notebook, folded up in those plastic sleeves that are used for paper storage and protection. I saw that I had transcribed some records for Lynch Webb, but the transcriptions looked like pension records, and I didn’t have any pension records for him, right? Right?

Heh. Guess what I just found tonight? Pension records and a bit more of the service record.

So here’s the bit more, and I will make another post with the pension record of Lynch Webb.

2 Cav Tenn.

Lynch Webb

Co. B, 2 Reg’t, Tenn. Cav.

NOTATION.

Book mark: R & P 1141303

Record and Pension Office,

WAR DEPARTMENT,

Washington, Feb. 28, 1896.

has this day Feb. 28, 1896,

been determined by this

Department from records

on file and evidence sub-

mitted by the Commissioner

of Pensions, that the service

of this soldier was terminated

July 31, 1863, by being per-

mitted to leave the service

by way of favor, and that

one F. M. Webb, was ac-

cepted into the service of

the U.S. as his substitute

and took his place in the

company and regiment.

So the son, Francis Marion Webb, served as a substitute for his father, answering roll call in his name. By the time the war was over, Francis Marion Webb wasn’t even 18 years old, and was still too young to have enlisted. I’m just not sure how I feel about a father who allows his young teenage to serve in his place. I can’t know what the circumstances were at the time, so I’ll just leave it by saying that this bothers me. I wish I knew the answers and could ease my mind.

WebbLynch Service Record – 3 sheets

 

The Pension File of Francis Marion Webb

I feel so smart. I’ve figured out how to scan multiple pages to a PDF using my little home scanner. Multiple for this little machine means more than 5. It DOES mean that I have to sit and tend the machine, and removed the scanned pages from the tray, or there results a big buildup of paper waddage, thus jamming the feeder. Ask me how I know about waddage.

So. Smart.

I’m looking at files that I haven’t looked at in years. This particular file for Francis Marion Webb, and the one before for Lynch Webb, I received in 1999. This is back in the day when you requested files from NARA and received paper, not electronic, copies. So many changes. If you had told me that someday I’d be baby-sitting my little home scanner and creating PDF files, I would have said PEE DEE WHAT??

F. M. Webb declares that he was born on October 26, 1847, in Blount County, Tennessee. He is 5’8″, fair complexion, blue eyes, light hair, and his occupation is farmer.

He is removed from the rolls due to his death on September 15, 1915.

Other names mentioned in the file: James R. Coulter, attorney Allen Garner, C. E. Kidd, James M. Greer, Ben Cunningham (the clerk of county court), W. C. Chumlea, William A. Anderson, Jonathan Cogdill, W. W. O’Hara,, Carrie Gibhard, Dr. Boynton of Knoxville, and F.M.’s sister Emma Tipton and her husband Commodore Perry Tipton. The Tiptons had moved to Grandview, Johnson County, Texas. F.M.’s parents had moved there in the 1880s, but returned home to Tennessee.

The most fun for me in this file for Francis Marion Webb is that his brother, Dr. Lynch D. Webb, gave an affidavit. And Dr. Lynch is my great-grandfather.

State of Tennessee, County of Knox, ss:

IN THE MATTER OF claim for Original Pension, General Law, of Francis M. Webb, Co. “B”, 2nd Regt. Tenn, Vols. Cav., No 1.248.015.

ON THIS 13 day of Feby A.D 1900 personally appeared before me, a Notary Public in and for the aforesaid County, duly authorized to administer oaths, Dr. Lynch D. Web aged 44 years, a resident of Knoxville in the County of Knox and State of Tenn whose Post-office address is Knoxville (Grove City) Tenn, well nown to me to be reputable and entitled to credit, and who, being duly sworn, declares in relation to the aforesaid case as follows:

He remembers when Francis M. Webb came home from the Army after discharge. He has lived with a great deal of the time since the war to the present and is therefore perfectly familiar with his physical condition from that time to the present time. Has only lived away from him about 3 years, only about 16 miles away from him and would see him then every two or three months visiting back and forth. He knows by actual observation that he has had diarrhoea and disease of stomach (Dyspepsea) every year since the war to the present time because he has seen him down sick and heard him complain many times each year since discharge to the present time. He has never been able to perform more than 1/2 manual labor and for the last 25 years he has not been able to work at all.

His Post-office address is Knoxville, Tenn (Grove City.)

He further declare that he has no interest in said case and he is not concerned in its prosecution.

*Lynch D. Webb, M. D.

State of Tenn, County of Knox, ss:

Sworn to and subscribed before me this day by the above-named affiant, and I certify that I read said affidavit to said affiant including the words erased, and the words added, and acquainted him with its contents before he executed the same. I further certify that I am in nowise interested in said case, nor am I concerned in its prosecution; and that said affiant is personally known to me and that he is a credible person.

*W. R. Murphy

Notary Public

Here’s the link to the file. It’s about 17 pages in a PEE DEE EFF.

WebbFrancisMarion Pension File

 

The Service Record of Lynch Webb

Recently I received a message from a gentleman whose wife is a descendant of Francis Marion Webb.

F. M. Webb is a brother to my Dr. Lynch Delisha Webb. They were two of the sons of Lynch Webb, a Union soldier in Company B, 2nd Tennessee Cavalry. This reminded me that I have some service and pension records for Lynch Sr. and son F. M. Webb.

This further reminded me that Lynch Sr. served for a short amount of time, and after that, his son F. M. Webb served in his place and answered to his name at roll call.

I realized that I have never placed those military records on the blog. My old scanner wouldn’t accommodate an 8 1/2 x 14″ sheet of paper because the flatbed was slightly longer than 11 inches. My newish scanner has a document feeder, which hasn’t been fully utilized because the netbook stopped working over a year ago, so what good was the scanner without a laptop or netbook? And because I have been financially embarrassed for a while and couldn’t afford a new laptop/netbook, I did without the netbook and learned to use the iphone for blogging. That’s right; I’ve been blogging for over a year using only the iphone.

Then I purchased a used, identical netbook, because I like the little Gateway LT4004u so much that I decided to stick with a good thing. The hard drive melted. I figured out how to scavenge parts of the newer netbook to get the old netbook up and running. So yay me.

Just tonight I realized that I should find all those pension records, scan them using the document feeder (because the records are all on 14″ long paper and won’t fit on the flatbed), and stick them out here on the internet.

Click on the link below, y’all.

You’re welcome!

WebbLynch Service Record

The Goldmine in the Closet: William Basinger Lawton, 6/28/1905-2/16/1981

We’re back in the Goldmine in the Closet, thanks to Sugar’s CousinEmily.

Emily did a bit of sleuthing of her own, and found some Find-A-Grave memorials for Sugar’s Uncle Bill, more formally known as William Basinger Lawton.  Uncle Bill married twice, but Find-A-Grave doesn’t know about that. They only know about Uncle Bill’s wife Josephine.

There’s also an obit that Emily found.

Here’s the link, and here’s the image that I cropped out of the online image.

Josephine Besselieu Lawton, 77, of River Drive, Chimney Rock, died Thursday in a Saluda nursing center after a long illness.

She was a native of Savannah, Ga., and had lived in Rutherford County of 12 years. She was a daughter of the late William and Kate Sweat Besselieu.

Surviving are a stepdaughter, Mrs. Edward Hubbard of Coral Gables, Fla., and a sister, Virgie Hall of Statesville.

Services will be held at 2 p.m. Friday in the Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration in Saluda. The Rev. Charles C. Covell will officiate.

Memorials may be made to the church.

Thos. Shepherd & Son Funeral Directors is in charge.

There are those of you who noticed that Josephine’s mother’s maiden name was Sweat, and you will remember that I photographed a memorial for a Robert E. Sweat in the graveyard at Robertville just last week.

Right now I don’t know the link between Robert E. Sweat and Kate Sweat Besselieu, but y’all know me well enough to guess that this post will be derailed a bit away from Sugar’s Uncle Bill.

I showed Sugar the links that Emily found, and he mumbled something about his great-grandfather William Starr Basinger taking in some children named Sweat. He produced his g-grandfather’s “Reminiscences”, and made copies of two pages.

About Sept 1, 1887, we received two new inmates into the family — the daughters of my deceased friend and fellow-soldier, Francis Ripon Sweat, commonly called by his friends Rip Sweat. He was a member of the Guards when the war began — served with us all thro it — was 1st Sgt of Company C at its close — was elected 1st Lieut of his company when we re-organized after the war — was detailed by me to the post of Adjutant, and held that post for some time. He was always a staunch and devoted friend of mine. He married, after the war, a Miss Hardee, of Hardeeville, So Ca — an exceedingly nice lady, whom your mother and I respected and liked very much. They had two children, Kate H. and Arabella V. He had, at the time of his death, two policies of insurance payable, one to each of these children As Mrs. Sweat had to administer on his estate, she exhausted her credit in giving bond, and could find no one to be her surety on the bond she would have to give as guardian of the children — an office to which it was necessary that some one should be appointed in order to secure the insurance money for them. In this strait, she and some of her friends appealed to me, and volunteered to go on my bond if I would consent to be appointed. I did consent, and was appointed. This was in 1880. I received their money, and invested it and, as Mrs Sweat contrived to get on without calling on me for the income, I invested that as fast as I could. And I may say now that by the time the children came to us, their property in my hands had doubled. Mrs Sweat died in the early Summer of 1887. None of her relatives nor Rip’s were in a position to take the children, and they were in great trouble to know what to do with them. Mr W P Hardee, their uncle, wrote to me to ask my advice. It occurred to your mother and me that, as Leslie had no suitable companions of her own age in Dahlonega, and as we inferred from our knowledge of Mrs Sweat that her little girls were probably nice children, we would take them ourselves and let them attend the college. After much consultation and hesitation about it, we decided to do so, and they were sent up to us at the time above stated. Kate was sent to the College, and Belle, for a time, to a private school. These girls remained with us till Sept, 1890, or thereabouts. I then thought it best for Kate that she should go to a regular girl’s school; and, as it was not considered well to separate them, it was settled that Belle should go with her. They were sent, accordingly, as their parents had been Baptist, to quite a famous Baptist school for girls at La Grange, Ga. And then I proceeded to be dismissed from my office of guardian — Mr W P Hardee was appointed in my place, and I turned over everything to him. Kate has since been married to a young man named Besselieu, and is living in Savannah. Belle died a year or two ago. I am writing now on August 14, 1896.

He couldn’t possibly have known that his grandson – his namesake – would marry the daughter of one of the little girls that his family took in.

And I’m completely off-track about Uncle Bill and his photos in the Gold Mine…

Cool Beans: Erythrina Herbacea, the Coral Bean

A few weeks ago, when Sugar and I were at the Black Swamp Baptist graveyard, we noticed a weedy plant between the markers of George Mosse Lawton and his grandfather Joseph Lawton. It had bean-like pods, very tough and leathery and purple. 

When we returned yesterday, the pods were burst open. 

  
Clever reader Matt identified the plant as Erythrina herbacea. 

It’s poison, people! Poison! Well, most of it. I’m not going to advise which parts are poison and which aren’t. Don’t want to be held liable and all that. 

  
Interesting plant, no? Can poison people, other mammals, birds, and fish. 

  
A lone dragonfly kept lighting on a dead stalk, flying away, then returning. Was he on a suicide mission?

   

The beans were so beautiful! 

But these beans? 

Are not good for your heart.