Timeline for James Anderson Woollen, My Paternal 3rd Great-Grandfather (22 Feb 1836 – 11 Jun 1905)

After my paternal grandmother, Elizabeth Lee Henderson Wood,
would follow my father (living) and me.

22 February 1836, Guilford County, North Carolina – James Anderson Woollen, my paternal third great-grandfather, was born in to Rebecca Heath Woollen (1798-?), and John Woollen (circa 1790-?)

25 September 1850, Guilford County, North Carolina – The 1850 U.S. Census recorded James as age 14 and living in the Northern Division of the county.

21 April 1860, North Carolina – James secured a marriage bond for his upcoming marriage to Susan Caroline Malcolm (1845-1920).

James Woollen and Susan C. Malcolm Marriage Bond from Ancestry.com's  

North Carolina, Marriage Bonds, 1741-1868, database.

 22 October 1860, Guilford County, North Carolina – James married Susan Caroline Malcolm (1845-1920), daughter of James Landreth Malcolm and Catherine “Kate” Haddox (a.k.a., Haddix).

January 1862, Guilford County, North Carolina – James and Susan’s first child and my second great-grandmother, Lillian Elizabeth “Muttie” Woollen (1862-1920), was born.

26 February 1862, Greensboro, Guilford, North Carolina – Captain James T. Morehead enrolled James into active service as a Private in Company C (Guilford Light Infantry), 45^th Regiment, North Carolina Infantry, of the Confederate Army. James enlisted voluntarily for a term of “three years or war.”

27 March 1862 – Private James Woollen entered active service at the age of 25.

09 April 1862, Raleigh, Wake, North Carolina – Private James Woollen mustered in at Camp Mangum.  This muster roll describes him as follows:

• Born in Guilford County, North Carolina
• Age 25
• Occupation: Farmer
• Height 5” 9’

30 June 1862 – Private Woollen was present for Company C, 45^th Infantry, North Carolina muster roll, and Major Edmondson paid him Confederate bounty of $50 for his service since enlisting on 26 February 1862.

26 August 1862, Petersburg, Virginia – Private Jas. A. Woollen “Appear[ed] on a Register of the Confederate States Hospital, Petersburg, Va., containing a record of clothing and accoutrements [sic].”

01 September 1862 – The July and August 1862 Company C Muster Roll indicated that Private Woollen did not muster in due to sickness and hospitalization in Petersburg, Virginia.  Captain Johnston paid him for his service through this date.

About 29 November 1862 – Private Woollen mustered in for his Company’s September and October 1862 Muster Roll.

31 December 1862 - Private Woollen mustered in for his Company’s 30 November 1862 to 31 December 1862 Muster Roll and was paid by Captain Adams.

30 April 1863 - Private Woollen mustered in for his Company’s March and April 1863 Muster Roll.

12 June 1863, Richmond, Virginia – Private James Woolen [sic] was admitted to Chimborazo Hospital No. 3 with “camp fever” (a.k.a., either typhus fever or typhoid, both of which were prevalent during the American Civil War).

Detail of an 1865 map produced by Major Nathaniel Micheler and Captain Peter S. Michie,
US Army War Department. (National Archives Record Group #77, Map G 204, #51.)

 17 June 1863, Virginia – Private Woolen [sic] was transferred from Chimborazo Hospital in Richmond to the C. S. A. General Hospital in Danville, Virginia.  Captain Scales commanded Company C on this date.  Private Woolen’s [sic] complaint upon being admitted was debilitas, which was the term used to describe soldiers who were losing weight and too exhausted to fulfill their duties.  Debilitas was often caused by being physically overworked while also suffering from chronic diarrhea. On this same date, Pirvate Woollen “Appear[ed] on a Receipt Roll 3d. Div Gen Hosp. for clothing No. 1 Danville Va.”

30 June 1863 - Private Woollen did not muster in for his Company’s May and June 1863 Muster Roll due to hospitalization in Danville, Virginia, where he was still paid on this same date.

28 July 1863 – Private Woolen [sic] returned to duty.

31 August 1863 - Private Woollen mustered in for his Company’s July and August 1863 Muster Roll and received payment from Captain Reynolds.

01 September 1863 – Private James Woollen was promoted to 2^nd Corporal, a rank immediately junior to the 1^st Corporal, and appeared on Company C’s Roll of Honor.

31 October 1863 – 2^nd Corp^l. James Woollen mustered in for Company C’s September and October 1863 Muster Roll and again received payment from Captain Reynolds on this date.

31 December 1863 – 2^nd Corp^l. Jas. Woollen was mustered in for his Company’s November and December 1863 Muster Roll and received payment from Captain Reynolds on this date.  The Muster Roll’s Remarks section states: “ Name appears in col of names present as James Woollen.”

About 28 February 1864 – 2^nd Corp^l. James Woollen mustered in for Company C’s Muster Roll.  The Muster Roll’s Remarks section noted: “ Name appears in col of names present as James Woollen.”

21 April 1864 – James A. Wollen [sic] (with “Woollen” written above “Wollen”), Co. C, 45 NC Inf. was issued clothing based on his appearance “…on a Receipt Roll for clothing, for Apr 21 26, 1864.”

02 May 1864 – J. A. Woollen, Co. C, 45 NC Inf., “Appear[ed] on a Receipt Roll for clothing, for 2 Apr, 1864.  (Note: The date of issue originally recorded was 21 June 1864, and that date was crossed out and replaced with 02 May 1864.)

12 June 1864 – Clothing was issued to J. A. Woollen, Co. C, 45 NC Inf. who “Appear[ed] on a Receipt Roll for clothing, for 02 Apr, 1864.”

01 September 1864 – James Woollen mustered in for Company C’s Muster Roll dated 30 April 1864 to 31 August 1864, and – for the first time – his rank is shown as 1^st Corporal. As 1st Corporal, he was the senior Corporal in Company C and always would have stood in the first rank in or near to the middle of the Company. Note that the muster roll showed his last time being paid as 31 December 1863, eight months earlier.  The Remarks section of this Muster Roll indicates:  “Name appears in col of names present as J. A. Woollen.”

About 01 November 1864 – Company C’s Muster Roll lists 1^st Corp^l. J. A. Woollen as mustered in for the period of September and October 1864 and indicates that Captain Reynolds last paid him on 01 September 1865.

04 November 1864, Guilford County, North Carolina – James and Susan’s second child, Margaret “Maggie” Irene Woollen was born.

15 November 1864, Venus Point, Georgia – 1^st Corp^l. Woollen was exchanged.

About 31 December 1864 – 1^st Corp^l. J. A. Woollen mustered in for his Company’s Muster Roll and had last received compensation on 01 September 1864.

16 May 1865, Greensboro, North Carolina – Sergeant Jas. A. Woollen, Company C, 45^th North Carolina Infantry, signed a “Parole of Prisoners of War belonging to the Army of Northern Virginia, and surrendered by General Robt. E. Lee, C. S. A., commanding said army, to Lieutenant-General U. S. Grant, commanding armies U. S.”  This is the first documentation of his promotion to Sergeant.

Between 1870 and 1899 – After returning to home to post-war Winston-Salem*, James worked as primarily as a carpenter and briefly as a janitor.
*In the 1880s, the US Post Office began referring to the North Carolina towns of Winston and Salem as “Winston-Salem.” In 1899, the Winston-Salem post office in was established in the former town of Winston, with the former town of Salem’s post office becoming as a branch. After a referendum, the towns were officially incorporated as "Winston-Salem" in 1913.

02 August 1871 – James and Susan welcomed their first son, John William Woollen.

18 November 1878 – Another son, Charles “Charlie” Thomas Woollen, was born to James and Susan.

21 December 1879 – Susan and James celebrated the birth of another daughter, Pearl Beatrice Forest Woollen.

20 January 1883 – James and Susan’s son, Glenn Lacy Woollen, was born.

06 February 1884 – Another daughter, Ruby Valerie (“Tee” or “T”) Woollen, was born to James and Susan.

09 June 1901, Winston, North Carolina – James A. Woollen suffered a stroke while at Brown’s Warehouse.  The stroke paralyzed the right side of his body.

1902, Winston, North Carolina – By 1902, James had fully retired.

11 September 1903, Winston, North Carolina – James and Susan’s 9-year-old granddaughter, Lillian Virginia Lee, passed away at their home.  Lillian was the daughter of Lillian Elizabeth “Muttie” Woollen Lee, and she died from rheumatism and scarlet fever.

09 June 1905, Winston-Salem, North Carolina – At the age of 69, James Anderson Woollen passed away from paralysis.

James A. Woollen's North Carolina Death Certificate from
Ancestry.com's North Carolina, Deaths, 1906-1930 database.

11 June 1905, Winston-Salem, North Carolina – James was buried in the non-Moravian section of Salem Cemetery, located at the intersection of Cemetery Street and Old Salem Avenue. His headstone features a Confederate flag and is inscribed as follows:

James A. Woollen

Greensboro, N.C.

February 22, 1836

June 9, 1905

Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee.  Ps. 65:4

©Amy Wood Kelly, 2015 - I am happy to share my genealogical research and writing with others, as well as to help others with their research efforts.  However, please do not reprint this post in full or in part or use excerpts from this post without giving full credit to me, Amy Wood Kelly, as the researcher and author as well as providing the permalink to this post.  Thank you, in advance, for showing respect for my request and the work I put into creating this post.

Yandell Wood (1826-1906), 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week 18, "Where There's a Will"

"Where There's a Will" is Week 18's prompt for the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge hosted by +Amy Johnson Crow and her blog, NoStoryTooSmall.com, I selected my paternal third great-grandfather, Yandell Wood, for this week's post.  In reading his short will, I learned about something completely new to me at the time - Civil War compensation claims (a.k.a., "war claims").  Without his mention of this in his will, I may not have learned about:

• The legal action war claims allowed
• Yandell's occupation
• Yandell's business partnership with his brother, J. L. Wood

How I descend from Yandell Wood, my paternal 3rd great-grandfather. My father (living) 
and I would be listed below my paternal grandfather, John Egbert Wood, above.

15 March 1906 Davidson County, Tennessee, Will of Yandell Wood.
(Probated on 14 June 1906).

Using FamilySearch.org's Historical Records Collection, I located a digital copy of Yandell's will (directly above) in the Tennessee, Probate Court Books, 1795-1927, Davidson County Wills, 1902-1908, Vol. 36, Images 209 and 210.  The second and third sentences of his will read:

"I will and bequeath to my wife Fannie Wood* all of my personal property, which includes all the interest I have in a war claim I have against the Government of the United States of America, amounting to several hundred dollars and now pending before Congress.  Said claim is for flour taken from the Mill of J. L. Wood & Co. Millers at Alexandria Tenn, of which Company I was a member - being equal partner with my brother, said J. L. Wood, and al so [sic] for damages resulting from breaking our mill and stopping the use of , [sic] or operating the same for about a year - all by order of General Reynold & Col. J. T. Wilder, officers in the Federal Army - in 1863 - As to the amount and dates I refer to said claim as present ed [sic] to Congress by Senator Frazier in 1906."

*Note:  Fannie was Yandell's second wife and is not my paternal third great-grandmother.  He first married Harriet Sneed (circa 1835-1896), and she is my third great-grandmother.

The Archives of Appalachia website, hosted by East Tennessee State University, indicates the following regarding Civil War compensation claims:

"In 1873, Congress established the Committee on War Claims. This committee expanded on the former Committee on Revolutionary Claims to include 'claims arising from any war in which the United States has been engaged.' The Committee on War Claims provided an avenue for individuals who lost property during the Civil War (1861-1865) to file for compensation from the federal government...According to the Fourth General Report of the Commissioners of Claims (1874), Tennessee had the highest amount of claims filed at 554 with Virginia following at 475."

After gaining a better understanding of what my third great-grandfather was pursuing, I did more research into his particular claim and learned that it was presented to the Court of Claims on 10 July 1912.

Excerpt from page 2002 of Catalogue of the Public Documents of the Sixty-Second Congress
and of All Departments of the Government of the United States for the Period from July 1, 1911, to June 30, 1913,
Volume 11 by the United States Superintendent of Documents.
(Publisher: Johnson Reprint Corporation, 1915.)

I also discovered that, during the Court of Claims' December 1914 term, a motion to dismiss almost all war claims for "Want of Jurisdiction under Act of March 4, 1915, sec. 5 (the Crawford Amendment)" was made and that Yandell's claim was #1716 on the list of approximately eight-five percent of Congressional claims then dismissed.

Book excerpt showing dismissal of Yandell Wood's war claim.
(From page 306 of Congressional claims by United States. Court of claims.
United States. Dept. of Justice; Thompson, Huston. Published 1915.)

©Amy Wood Kelly, 2015 - I am happy to share my genealogical research and writing with others, as well as to help others with their research efforts.  However, please do not reprint this post in full or in part or use excerpts from this post without giving full credit to me, Amy Wood Kelly, as the researcher and author as well as providing the permalink to this post.  Thank you, in advance, for showing respect for my request and the work I put into creating this post.

Tombstone Tuesday - Egbert Jones Foster, June 1832 - 14 Apr 1900

Egbert Jones Foster is my paternal second great-grandfather.  I liked his tombstone from the moment I saw it, and I have yet to run across another ancestor with one like his.

Egbert was a Woodsman of the World (WOW), and their distinctive headstones - always in varying tree stump shapes - can be found nationwide in the United States.  Being able to have one of these headstones "...was an early benefit of Woodmen of the World membership."  In the late 1920s, the tombstone program became cost-prohibitive and was terminated.

In addition to being a WOW, he worked as a farmer and also fought in the American Civil War, on the side of the Union, in Captain Willis' Co. F, 11th Regiment, Kentucky.

On 14 April 1900, Egbert passed away at the age of 67 years and 10 months.  He is buried in Spring Hill Cemetery in Nashville, Davidson, Tennessee.

These photos are from FindAGrave Memorial # 6697965.
The inscription reads:
EGBERT J. FOSTER
DIED
April 14, 1900
AGED
67 Yrs. 10 Mos.

©Amy Wood Kelly, 2015 - I am happy to share my genealogical research and writing with others, as well as to help others with their research efforts.  However, please do not reprint this post in full or in part or use excerpts from this post without giving full credit to me, Amy Wood Kelly, as the researcher and author as well as providing the permalink to this post.  Thank you, in advance, for showing respect for my request and the work I put into creating this post.

Thomas Jefferson Poteet, Jr. - 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week 5, "Plowing Through"

Thomas Jefferson Poteet, Jr., is my maternal 4th great grandfather in my maternal grandmother's branch of the family tree.  I chose him for 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks' Week 5 "Plowing Through" theme, because it seems he plowed through life, no matter what it threw at him, and kept right on going.

Thomas Jefferson Poteet, Jr. and his second wife,
Sally Elizabeth Gregory Poteet

Murl Sanders Litaker, Sr., listed above, was my maternal grandmother's father.
(My grandmother and mother are both living and are not listed here for privacy reasons.)

Thomas Jefferson Poteet, Jr., son of Thomas Jefferson Poteet, Sr. and Esther A. Reid, was born in Cabarrus County, North Carolina, on 26 February 1840.  He lived in Cabarrus County throughout his childhood.

On 21 Apr 1860, in neighboring Rowan County, North Carolina, then 20-year-old Thomas married Terissa Adaline Overcash.  Adaline, always called by her middle name, was born circa 1840 in North Carolina.  On 11 June 1860, the 1860 U.S. Census showed Thomas working as a laborer on a farm and living in the western section of Cabarrus County.

Rowan and Cabarrus Counties
in North Carolina

On 22 March 1861, Thomas enlisted, in Concord, North Carolina, to be a Confederate Army soldier.  He was a Private in Company A (Cabarrus Riflemen) of the 52nd Regiment, North Carolina Infantry.  The Confederate muster roll shown below indicates that Thomas was 22 years old, 5' 11' tall, and worked as a farmer as of 28 April 1862.

Pvt. Thomas J. Poteet on the 28 April 1862 Confederate
Muster Roll for Company A, 52 Regiment NC Infantry

Three days after the Battle of Gettysburg ended, on 06 Jul 1863, Union soldiers captured Thomas in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.  He became one of the Union Army's prisoners of war.  On 16 Aug 1863, he was "sent for exchange" to the Union advance supply depot in City Point, Virginia.  Then, on 30 Oct 1863, he was sent to Point Lookout Prison in Maryland.

Information on Thomas J. Poteet as found in the
Civil War Prisoners of War Records, 1861-1865.

Thomas must have been released from or managed to escape from Point Look Prison and found his way back home before the end of 1864; because, on 16 August 1865 in Rowan County, Adaline and he welcomed their first child, a daughter named Angeline Thomas Poteet.  Angeline was my 3rd great-grandmother.  All information I have indicates that Angeline was a first child for both parents, as well as the only child they had together.

The next time Thomas shows up in records, he is marrying Sally Elizabeth Gregory (reference first photo in this story) on 25 April 1870.  Adaline and Thomas must have divorced, because she appears in the 26 June 1880 U.S. Census living in Atwell, Rowan, North Carolina.  Her employment is recorded in that census as "Hired;" and her married daughter, now named Angeline Ashby, and Angeline's one-year-old daughter are living with Adaline.  Neither Thomas nor Angeline's husband, James A. Ashby (1859-1903), are listed as part of their household.  Adaline appears again in the 1910 U.S. Census and is then living with Angeline and her family.  Interestingly, she is listed in that census with a marital status of "Widowed," though she is still using the surname "Poteet."  There is no indication in the records I have found that she was married to anyone after Thomas.

In 1871, Thomas appears in records again.  This time, he is about 775 miles west of Cabarrus County, North Carolina. That year's Little Rock, Arkansas, City Directory showed him living at 212 W. Thirteenth and working as a carpenter.

Thomas Poteet - Carpenter in Little Rock, 1871

Red pin shows the location of 213 W. Thirteenth St. in Little Rock.
(Courtesy of Google Maps)

A few years later, on 15 January 1883, the United States Land Office in Little Rock granted Thomas Homestead Certificate No. 2008, based his Application No. 7119.  The Homestead Certificate gave him 80 acres of land in Arkansas on which to homestead.  His certificated, pictured below, described his 80 acres as "south-east quarter of the north-east quarter and the north-east quarter of the south-east quarter of section twenty-seven in township one south of range thirteen west of the Fifth Principal Meridian in Arkansas containing 80 acres."

Thomas J. Poteet's Homestead Certificate No. 2008

The 1900 and 1910 US Censuses find Thomas and Sally Poteet living in Niven Township, Arkansas.  The map below shows Niven, as it exists today, outlined in red.  It is southeast of Pine Bluff, Arkansas, proper, though it is considered part of the Pine Bluff's metro area.

On 19 Apr 1915, at the age of 75, Thomas Jefferson Poteet passed away.  I was lucky enough to meet a very kind and generous fellow genealogist named Patti Robinson who lives in Pine Bluff.  She went to Thomas' gravesite and did a rubbing of his tombstone, as well as of Sally's, for me; and she went the Pine Bluff library to get a copy of his obituary to send to me.  Because of her, I am able to share his 20 April 1915 obituary from Pine Bluff Commercial newspaper, along with her transcription of what it says:

As the obituary above states, Thomas was laid to rest in Union Cemetery on 20 April 1915 alongside many other Confederate soldiers.  His headstone has the Confederate flag on it to commemorate his service in the Civil War.

Entrance to Union Cemetery in Jefferson County, Arkansas

T. J. Poteet's Headstone

Rubbing of T. J. Poteet's headstone, courtesy of 
Mrs. Patti Robinson of Pine Bluff, Arkansas.

After Thomas' death, Sally, his widow, applied for for a Confederate pension based on his service as a soldier:

Arkansas Confederate Pension Record for T.J. Poteet

So far, I have not been able to find a record indicating if Sally was granted the pension for which she applied.  If it was granted, she did not collect it for very long.  On 14 November 1915, Sally Elizabeth (Gregory) Poteet passed away.  It had been less than seven months since her husband's death, and they had been married for 45 years.  Sally was laid to rest beside her husband in Union Cemetery.

T. J. Poteet's headstone, right, and Sally Elizabeth Poteet's headstone, left

Rubbing of Mrs. S.E. Poteet's headstone,
courtesy of Mrs. Patti Robinson of Pine Bluff, Arkansas.

©Amy Wood Kelly, 2015 - I am happy to share my genealogical research and writing with others, as well as to help others with their research efforts.  However, please do not reprint this post in full or in part or use excerpts from this post without giving full credit to me, Amy Wood Kelly, as the researcher and author as well as providing the permalink to this post.  Thank you, in advance, for showing respect for my request and the work I put into creating this post.