Kats Mountain

Sarah Elizabeth Ellis Carter

Posted on January 24, 2011 by katsmountain

Elizabeth was the youngest daughter of Hezekiah Ellis and Sarah/Sallie Gunnel Hurst. She was born on the 10 April probably in the year 1824 in Fayette Co. Kentucky. Her father died within the year that she was born and she was raised on the family plantation along with her 6 brothers and sisters by their mother and close family relatives. She was born on the same plantation where her fathers family had lived as early as 1796 when her grand father Thomas Ellis came over with his brothers from the state of Virginia.

Elizabeth was raised to be a lady as is shown in the 1860 census when she listed her occupation as that of a lady. Elizabeth came from a background of gentle rearing with the help no doubt of a black nanny and slaves to help with the everyday chores. Sarah was granted a part of her fathers estate when he died and her mother was granted guardianship of the children.

On the 30th of Jan, 1843 at the age of 19 she married a long time neighbor and family friend Jasper Carter. The Carters owned land nearby and we know from the various Court Records that they had been close acquaintances since as early as 1810. Sarah and Jasper had no doubt grown up as neighbors and friends.

Shortly after their marriage Elizabeth and Jasper along with at least 1 if not 2 of her brothers families moved to Missouri. There at least 3 of 5 children were born. The family apparently moved back to Kentucky about the time her mother died as the youngest son Kial was born in 1851 in Kentucky.

By 1856 the family had once again moved to a new territory and settled in Dalby Springs Bowie Texas. In 1851 Elizabeth lost her mother who also left her a small inheritance. This left very few ties in Kentucky as most of her family with the exception of a brother Peter Hurst Ellis had moved either to different areas of Kentucky or onto new frontiers.

Elizabeth and her husband were belonged to the Methodist Church in Dalby Springs. The church was established in 1839 and in 1889 a building with Cemetery were finally built. Elizabeth and her children were all buried in the Cemetery just outside of the Church.

In 1870 we find that Elizabeth is a widow with small children to raise. What happened to Jasper we can only speculate. Both Jasper and Elizabeth were from the South and had a background of owning Slaves and working the land. We can only guess as to whether or not Jasper was killed defending the Southern Cause or met an untimely death at home.

Elizabeth died in her home in Dalby Springs in 1902. She was proceeded in death by her son Joseph Thomas Carter and survived by her children Kial E. and Sallie W. Jones. She was buried next to her son Uncle Kye Carter and her daughter in law Mollie Adcock the wife of Joseph Thomas Carter. Elizabeth Ellis Carter was the great grandmother of Marie Evelyn Hollenbeck Burrow.

Posted in Family History, Genealogy, Journaling, Personal Family History, Storytelling, Uncategorized | Tagged dalby springs texas, genealogy, jasper carter, sarah elizabeth ellis | Leave a comment

Searching the Census

Posted on January 22, 2011 by katsmountain

“When doing genealogy research one of the best places to start is with a census. The census can reveal many things depending on the year you are looking for. A census can help you establish the Composition of the Family, Successive places of residence, Approximate Dates of Birth, State or Country of Birth, Approximate Marriage Dates , The Number of Children Born to a Mother and how many are already deceased, the year of Immigration and information concerning Naturalization. You can discover Names of Military Veterans, Birthplaces of Parents, Family Relationships, Whether a person can read or write, who the Neighbors are, if a person owns or rents their land, their Occupations and the value of Real and Personal Property.

Of course you need to remember that the census is just a clue and should never be used as primary documetation because you never know who actually gave the information. Just 10 years ago I was asked to give the information on my neighbor who I barely even knew. I could have said anything and it would have been written down as fact. I have always like the old addage that the most uneducated person in town was made the census taker and if your ancestors were couldn’t read or write the census taker could write down anything he wanted. So don’t assume that because it is spelled differently or the information doesn’t match what you already know it couldn’t be your ancestor.

With the world of internet it pretty easy to get a copy of a census The following websites offer either indexes, links or actual images of the Census from 1790 – 1930.

Familysearch.org (free) https://familysearch.org/
Ancestry.com (Subscription based) http://www.ancestry.com/
Heritagequest (available in some Libraries, Schools, FHC)
Stevemorse.org http://stevemorse.org/
Genealogy.com (Subscription based) http://genealogy.com/index_r.html
USGenweb. http://www.us-census.org/

When looking for your ancestor in a census don’t forget there are several different types of census besides the Population Census. Look for federal mortality schedules, slave schedules, Indian Schedules, Agriculture and manufacturers schedules, as well as the State and territorial population schedules. And of course there is the 1890 schedule of Union Veterans and Widows.

When working with a census there are a long list of do’s and don’ts that have been published by numerous people over the years. I have my own list that goes something like this:

a) Always begin with the most recent Census and work backwards

b) Always use census information to confirm things found elsewhere or as a guide to further research

c) Always search the originia census/microfilm

d) Never just rely on the work of a transcriber

e) Always consider the very real possibility of errors and variations in given names

f) Always keep a log of census searched and site your sources so you can find it again

h) Always record the information exactly as it appears don’t make it right according to you.

i) Always use the proper form to record the data. Various forms are available on line

j) Always Record everyone with the same surname in the same county or at least the same township if the name is Brown or Smith

k) Always Check for Boundary Changes in the area

l) Always Search 2- 3 pages on each side of your ancestors. (Neighbors are often related)

m) Never be fooled by names in reverse order

o) Never ever take all information as gospel truth

p) Never take ages on a census as always correct

q) Never use census information as proof of any fact or event

r) Never limit your search to direct ancestors. Search for siblings and extended family members

s) Never think census information contains all the answers.

Remember: When citing census records use both the stamped and handwritten page numbers and always compile and compare all the census data for each family before make any conclusions. Keep in mind that all census records are important even the earliest ones where only the head of the house listed. There is much to be gleaned even from the pre 1850 census. Always keep in mind that real and personal property listings can be a clue to other records. “

Posted in Beginner Advice, Classes, Genealogy, Internet Genealogy, Research Tools, Resources, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Genealogy Webinars

Posted on January 16, 2011 by katsmountain

“I am one who likes to sit in a class, soak in the environment, and learn from the experts in the room. I’ve been a little skeptical about whether or not a webinar would be as good as a live Speaker or whether I would learn as much. So this past week I listened to a webinar in the privacy of my office with just my husband at my side. Granted there wasn’t any environment to soak up but the class was informative and well presented. Thanks to Rootsmagic I now understand the software a little better. I love the new features just added and found that being able to go back and listen to it again was even greater. Not only that I could download the webinar to share with my friends at the Family History Center. And the best part I didn’t have to go anyplace and it was free. I can see that I am going to have to take a stand in favor of webinars. I have discovered one more way to improve my skills and learn something new. There is so much to learn on the internet today that we could spend all our time learning how to do genealogy and never get to the task of doing our genealogy. So if you find yourself with a problem, not knowing quite where to look find a free webinar, or check on you tube you will be surprised what you can learn.”

Posted in Beginner Advice, Classes, Computers, Genealogy, Internet Genealogy, Resources, Seminars, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Childhood Memories

Posted on January 16, 2011 by katsmountain

“I grew up in Idaho and I really did walk 5 miles in the snow uphill to get to school. It seemed like whenever I would complain about the cold winters or the long bus rides or the walks to school I was reminded that I never had it as bad as they did and they realy did walk 5 miles to school uphill both ways. Memories sometimes play tricks on us and I remember the oddest things, like the old truck that I fell out of when mom turned the corner and she ran over my foot, or the time my sister totally embarressed me in front of the nicest boy is school. Then there was the time my brothers told me to climb ontop of the barn and then jumped off leaving their poor frightened sister all alone with no hope of ever getting down. Of course Iwill never forget the time the firemen were summoned because the house was full of smoke only to find that mom had forgotten to take the toast out of the toaster. There was also the frogs we used to catch in the ditch out behind the house then put in a pan to see how high they would jump when you turned the stove on. And of course there was the time the boys were playing with the burn barrel and almost burned down the garage. I don’t think I ever saw my dad jump so fast. I remember as a little girl being told that the hill behind the farm was full of rattlesnakes and then having to walk by myself down a dirt road to play with the neighbor kids. Now to a kindergartner the thought of snakes was pretty scary and we all knew the sound a rattlesnake made when they were ready to strike. What nobody explained was that the telephone wires would make the same noise so to a 5 year old that walk could sometimes be pretty frightening. I look back now and can laugh at many tales of my childhood and when my kids woud complain about the walk from the bus stop across the meadow and over the occassional stream they would hear the story about the walk down rattlesnake alley or the 10 feet of snow we grew up in in Idaho or the house with the roof that caved in or numerous other scary tales of my own childhood. However among all the stories we told the best was the one that concerned the snow. It goes something like this.

“When I was a little girl we lived in a fairly new house in Heyburn Idaho. In the winter it would snow alot and quite often we didn’t have to go to school because there was just to much snow for the bus to get to our house. On those days we would have the grand opportunity of dressing up in our snow clothes and we would wobble outside because that was really all you could do with so much gear on. Our yard was a lot of fun to play in and we all new that there was a big hole in the yard for some reason which I now forget. In the summer it was easy to avoid. In the winter you couldn’t see it and therefore it didn’t exist or so we thought. On one particular snow day my brothers and I along with a few other neighbors were having a gay time romping in the snow, building snowmen and making snow angels. Until of course one of the boys found the hole. He was just running along laughing and playing and then all of a sudden he was gone. The snow was fresh, the hole was deep and he sank right into it. It reminds me of a joke by Brian Regan only this time it was who is going to tell mom that one of the boys kind of disappeared in the snow. I can only imagine the conversation in the house. Mom you know Rocky, well if you decide to go outside to get some coal for the stove you might want to look for him because he kind of disappeared over by that hole we have in the summer. You know the hole that doesn’t exist in the winter because it’s all covered up. You can find him because we can still see his head but everything else has disappeared. I’m not sure how fast mom ran outside but I do remember that getting him out of the hole was much more exciting than him disappearing into the hole.”

So today when my grandkids complain about how cold it is I remind them that we don’t have any bigs holes to fall into, the snow only stays or a short time and grandpa has a snow plow that I am sure will do a fine job of taking care of it when it does come. Memories are an important part of life. Granted they change and get clouded a little over the years. The stories become a little better each time they are told and over the generations the stories become almost myths. But there is always a seed of truth in each of them.

Stories can become the foundation for a wealth of documentation if listened to with a grain of salt and not just completely ignored. My husbands grandmother swore that her father was a merchant from Holland and had died when she was just a baby. He had lived in Oklahoma and had sold merchandise to the the Indians. He was buried somewhere on the road between Pittsburg Oklahoma and Fort Smith Arkansas.So we began looking for a merchant from Holland in Indian Territoryin the early 1900′s. We found and documented instead the following. Squire Hollenbeck was a pig farmer living in Indian Territory in the early 1880′s. He married a Caroline V who had a stepson named Joseph. He went by the name of Joseph Ainsworth until 1900 when he took the last name of his 2nd stepfather Squire Hollenbeck. Caroline had been married to a Dime Ainsworth and they had raised an adopted son by the name of Joseph. He was born in Louisiana (not Holland) and was the orphan son of some relatives. Dime had shot a man in Texas and together he and Caroline had moved (or escaped) to Indian Territory where he had picked up with another woman and disappeared. Rumor had it that Dime was eventually hung for his crimes. Joseph lived with his mother after the death of her second husband Squire and had worked in the coal mines in Lattimer Co. It was said he had a half brother Tom Hollenbeck. This was found to be true and they are buried beside each other in a small graveyard outside of Wilbur Oklahoma just off the highway between Fort Smith and Pittsburg Oklahoma. In 1907 Joseph died from lung disease probably caused from working so long in the mines. His young wife had been home visiting her family at the time of his death and because of hard feelings between Joseph’s stepmother and his wife she had never taken her daughter back to Oklahoma.

Without the stories and traditions given by Grandma about her childhood we would have never found her parents in Oklahoma. So listen to the stories, write them down and remember that each story weaves a new color into the life of your ancestors.”

Posted in Beginner Advice, Journaling, Personal Family History, Ranting and Raving, Storytelling | Leave a comment

Where Do I start?

Posted on January 14, 2011 by katsmountain

If you ever wondered how to start beginning to gather your Family History these classes are for you. A 6 – 8 week course over a two month period will cover basic genealogy skills. Learn how to use a Family History Center, How to organize your information, what to gather, who to contact for more information, how to use the internet to do your genealogy and many other basic skills will be discussed. Homework will be assigned and at the end of the course you will be able to do a basic research project on your own. It has often said that Genealogy is addictive and I personally will vouch for the fact that once you start you may find yourself visiting graveyards around the country, checking out musty courthouses and staying up till all hours of the night working on your computer. They say Genealogy is one of the fastest growing hobbies in the World. Try it and you will find out why. The class will be taught by Kathy Burrow Training Director for the Oakhurst Family History Center. For information on the class contact Kathy at the contact button on the left of the screen.

Posted in Beginner Advice, Classes, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Basic Computer Class

Posted on January 8, 2011 by katsmountain

Title: Basic Computer Class
Location: Oakhurst FHC
Description: 6 to 8 week series of Basic Computing Classes. Taught by Ron Firestine. For the Beginner and intermediate Computer User. Great introduction for people wanting to begin putting their Family History on a Computer but just aren’t sure how the Computer works.
Start Time: 10:00 A.M.
Date: 2011-01-19
End Time: 11:00 A.M.

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Starting the New Year out Right.

Posted on January 7, 2011 by katsmountain

“When our kids were smaller we would often start out the New Year at home banging pots and pans, yelling and screaming to everyones delight and then putting the kids to bed at 9:00. Yes in California you can celebrate the New Year with Fireworks straight from Times Square in New York at 9:00 P.M. Then the kids can go to bed and Mom and Dad can enjoy a nice quiet New Years Evening with a bottle of Sparkling Applecider and a good movie. The next day was often spent rounding up Teenagers from Safe Parties that lastest all night and a quick trip to the Fabric Store for those great buys.

However as time goes The Kids began to grow up and had their own friends and families to share the evening with and we would often wile the night away with a few close friends, a good dinner and some games. The next day was still usually spent shopping or just resting at home.

This year however was a little different. After a good meal at Crab Cakes the single girls of the family decided with their father that a dance was in order for everyone who wanted to go. So off we went to a Dance in Fresno by a band we listened to as young kids some 40 odd years ago. Now everyone needs to understand that I don’t dance and Dan hasn’t really danced much since we met. However when you put two pretty daughters up against poor old dad. What else could he do? And so for the first time in the girls memory Dad danced. Not to shabbily either I might add. Of course he didn’t do much the next day. But it was fun to see that he could still shake it and the girls learned something new about their dear old dad. The fact that Dad wasn’t the only one dancing but so was the sister they didn’t know knew how to dance and even mom showed that she too could participate added even more excitement to the evening.

That evening I was reminded that its never to late to learn something new about a loved family member. It may not always be an important something. But it adds flavor and color to the texture of someones life. The girls of course recorded it with pictures on facebook and little notes to the rest of the kids. Look what Dad can still do. But did they write it in their journals to ever remember? That remains to be seen. So much of a persons life goes unrecorded. The fun and silly things often get lost behind facts, documents and figures. And yet its those silly little times that are remembered when the family gets together around the kitchen table. Its the stories and little events in a persons life that shows their character and demeaner. That’s what makes the difference in the world around them. Not who they are but what they have done and how they have affected the lives of others.”

Posted in Journaling, Ranting and Raving, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Genealogy Class

Posted on January 4, 2011 by katsmountain

Title: Genealogy Class
Location: FHC 49967 Rd 427 Oakhurst
Description: Learn how to use Census Records
Start Time: 1:00
Date: 2011-1-12

The first in a series of classes will be offered On Wednesday Jan. 12 at 1:00 at the Family History Center at 49967 Rd 427 located across from the High School. We will be discussing the use of Census Records, how to access them and what information is available in them. Secrets on how to make your searches most effective will be shared. The class is open to everyone interested in furthering their genealogy research and can be helpful to both beginner and intermediate genealogists.

Posted in Beginner Advice, Family History, Genealogy, Internet Genealogy, Research Tools, Resources, Seminars | Leave a comment

Kats Mountain in the News!

Posted on December 31, 2010 by katsmountain

It’s always exciting when you get a call from the newspaper asking for an interview to run a feature article. Especially when it’s on my favorite subjects Genealogy, Family History and the Family History Center. The Sierra Star has been so kind to us over the years and this article was no exception. Tiffany was kind and gracious and I hope just a little excited about finding her own family when she left. All in all it was a great experience and I was so pleased with her article. I see she caught my better side in the picture.

Kathy Burrow in Sierra Star Newspaper - "Family History can Come alive."

Source: Sierra Star Newspaper - http://www.sierrastar.com/2010/12/30/54296/family-history-can-come-alive.html

Posted in Computers, Family History, Genealogy, Internet Genealogy, Ranting and Raving, Seminars | Leave a comment

Harrison Hobbs or Hubbs of Tennessee, Mississippi and Texas

Posted on December 31, 2010 by katsmountain

James Harley Sr. Son of Harrison Hubbs

Harrison Hobbs was born about 1835 in Laurens County South Carolina. Little is known about his early childhood except for the fact that his parent John Hobbs and Isabella Madden like so many other pioneer families moved their family from the tired fields of South Carolina to more fertile land in Tennessee and in the 1840′s to Itawambi County Mississippi.

Harrison does not appear with the family in any of the census until 1860 when he is living with his brother Charles in Lamar County Texas as the age of 25.[1]

Shortly thereafter he must have returned home and married his cousin Martha also known as Maggie in most of the family records and they had their first child William Henry 25 Dec 1862.During the next 10 years they had 5 more boys. Thomas J. born 1863, Pleas born 1865, and who died abt 1879, Charles W born Jun 1866, James Harley born 9 Mar 1870 and Luther O.James reported to his family before his death that his mother had several other babies who did not live.

Family records state that Maggie died in childbirth about 1872 and sometime after that Harrison moved his family to Delta County Texas where they can be found in the 1880 census. Pleas is not listed with the family as he is reported to have died in Mississippi before their departure to Texas. James Harley could communicate with his hands and said that he had to learn sign language to communicate with his brother Pleas who was a deaf mute.

Harrison appears as age 51 in 1880 which would place his birth date at 1829 rather than 1835.[2] Living with him are 4 of his boys ranging from age 8 to 13. No records can be found of Harrison ever getting remarried although this possibility has been mentioned by some of his children. I can’t imagine what it would have been like for a single father to raise a family of boys on his own in the Frontiers of Texas so maybe he did. In 1900 Harrison can no longer be found and his children have either moved on or are still living in the area.

Many family stories have been passed down about this man and his family by his son James Harley Sr. before his death.   James reported that he learned to smoke when he would go to the fireplace to get his mother Maggie’s corn cob pipe for her. Apparently he would puff the pipe on the way back before giving it to her. She was always sick so he claimed to have got lots of chances to smoke it. James also talked about the trip from Mississippi to Texas and that the 4 boys had to walk all the way because the wagon was full of their possessions. This trip would have been adventurous at most for a young boy. He reported that they slept with a gun at night along the trail from fear of carpetbaggers and other scallywags plundering travelers along the Natchez Trace which is the route they traveled.

Harrison Hobbs is said to have shot a man in Delta county. The facts are not clear but the James Harley Sr or Papa Hobbs to his family would tell the story in this way. “It seems a man had threatened to kill Harrison and had climbed up in a tree where Harrison would pass. However Harrison got wind of this so he loaded his ole gun with good full load and went on down the road acting as if he didn’t know this fellow was in the tree but all the time watchin and waiting until he got close enough to hear the fellow up in the tree. So just like shooting a coon he killed that old fellow before he had a chance to shoot my pa.” This story has been recently substantiated with records from Cooper Delta County Case No 597 dated Sep 10 1886. Harrison Hobbs came into open court accompanied by David Hobbs, Madison Hobbs, and Charles Hobbs who were tendered and accepted as his securities; and thereupon the said Harrison Hobbs, as principal and the said David Hobbs, Madison Hobbs, and Charles Hobbs as securities acknowledged themselves to be indebted to the State of Texas the said principal in the sum of three thousand dollars and the said securities in the sum of three thousand dollars each to be levied of their respective goods and chattels, lands and tenements but to be void nevertheless in case the said principal shall well and truly make his personal appearance………. to answer The State of Texas upon a charge by indictment duly presented and ending in said Court wherein the said Harrison Hobbs is accused of the offense of murder. It would appear the plaintiffs in this case were a Mrs. John Wilson, M W Wilson, C B Wilson, and A J Clement who were also ordered to appear in court and who put up a bond of ten hundred dollars each. On March 11 1889 The following verdict was returned to open court which was received by the Court and entered upon the minutes of the Court to wit: We the jury find the defendant Harrison Hobbs not guilty. He was discharged by the court from all further liability upon the charge for which he had been tried and that he go hence without delay.   [3] A descendant of Madison Hobbs states that the family story passed down on her side of the family was that Harrison killed John Wilson, her grandfather’s brother in law, over Harrison’s wife. The time 1886 has all of Harrison’s children grown so the family believes that the conflict may have arose over one of his sons and a woman. But a list of marriages from Cooper shows a Harrison Hobbs married to Mrs. M E Horn 10/5/1887. So maybe the conflict did come over a woman involved with Harrison.

One can only guess as to the effects the war must have had on Harrison and his brothers as they were all of the age to have been involved in the war. We know that his brother Charles joined the Cutlass Battalion in Texas and fought in the war. We also know that Charles was a Mason and a   Baptist missionary. In Mississippi we find records of   a H Hobbs, a J Hobbs, a John Hobbs, and a M Hobbs all serving in Hams Regiment of the Mississippi Cavalry. And a H Hobbs, Madison Hubbs, L M Hobbs, and J M Hobbs all serving in E Company of the 2^nd Miss. Infantry. If any of these men were the Hobbs brothers is not known at this writing. [4]

There has been a historical marker at Amie, Texas that states that brothers, David, Harrison, Madison and Addison Hobbs left Mississippi and settled there in what was then known as Big Creed Thicket. A settlement named Hobbs Thicket emerged and in the early 1880′s a 2 room Hobbs Thicket Schoolhouse was built.

[1]1860 Census Lamar County Texas

[2]1880 census Delta County Texas.

[3]Delta County Court Records, Delta County Court House Case 597 dated Sep 10 1886.

[4]Hobbs family records in the Possession of Kathy Burrow as related by James Harley Jr. before his death. James Harley Jr. was the grandson of Harrison Hobbs.

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