William Joseph Parker (1904-1938): Bigamist Came to a Tragic End

Idella Scott Franklin married William Joseph Parker on 20 April 1928 in Hopewell, Virginia. They separated on 9 February 1931 and Idella was granted an absolute divorce decree on 30 March 1938 by the Richmond City Circuit Court. They had no children. The reason Idella sued for the divorce was desertion and bigamy.

The back of the divorce decree had the following handwritten information:

Idella Scott Franklin Parker and William Joseph Parker divorce decree;
courtesy of Ancestry.com

"This man was indicted in Pennsylvania on complaint from his wife for having married another woman in 1931 in Elkton, Maryland, and is also wanted in Maryland to answer charges there. This marriage took place after the desertion from the first wife."

Twelve days later William was dead. According to his death certificate, hee committed suicide by drinking ink solvent in Berks Prison.

William Joseph Parker obituary as published in
the Richmond Times-Dispatch on 14 April 1938;
courtesy of the Library of Virginia

William's parents were Joseph John Parker and Magnolia "Nolia" Melison Clayton. He was born in Belhaven, North Carolina, on 15 May 1904.

He was also married to Marian Ulshafer, daughter of Ralph Ulshafer and Rose Kirk. She was born on 3 October 1910 in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. She and William had one son. Was this the marriage that took place in Elkton, Maryland?

I have assumed he was in prison because he had been arrested for bigamy. Was that the reason he committed suicide?

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Idella Scott Franklin was my third cousin once removed. We both descend from John W. Jennings, Sr. (1776-1858). John W. Jennings, Sr. >> John William Jennings, Jr. >> John Arias Jennings >> Maude Florence Jennings >> Idella Scott Franklin

Charles Theodore Jennings, Sr. (1931-2018): Eulogy for My Father

We held the memorial service for my father on 17 November 2018 at the church Mom and Dad attended for nearly 40 years. We laughed and cried as we expressed our love and gratitude for the greatest man I have ever known.

Mom and Dad's long-time paster and good friend delivered the eulogy, which I would like to share here so those who did not have a chance to know my father may get a glimpse of the character of a wonderful man.

"Dear family and friends we have come together today to remember Charles Theodore Jennings, who was born on 14 December 1931 and who died just after Veterans' Day, early in the morning of 12 November 2018. We are here to honor a dearly loved husband, father, grandfather, brother in Christ, and friend; and I know of no one who deserves more the praise and love than we give him today. To you, the family he loved so dearly, we give our sincere condolences and love. We know these last years of his life were not only difficult for him, but very difficult for you. It is so very hard to see your hero, your mentor, your father and instructor in life become as fragile and weak as he became. He, along with your wonderful mother, was in so many ways the strength of your lives and in these last years you became that for him. I know he was so very grateful for your love and care and we commend you for it.

While he was known by his clients in his work as Charles, he was better known to all of us as Ted. I have heard each of his children say in his or her own way, "he was the smartest or greatest man I knew." That was also my impression of Ted from the very first time I met him. He, of course, was an engineer and you expect engineers to be very smart, but Ted was smart not only in technical things but in practical things as well. I did not think that there was anything he could not do, from giving good advice on how to handle some difficult issue, to building a race car -- something he loved to do -- to helping me make a BBQ grill out of an old 500-gallon drum. If I needed help with anything, Ted was the first person I thought of and I missed him dearly when he was no longer able to do the things he so naturally did.

Ted and Dot moved to eastern North Carolina in 1978 and soon became very much a part of our community. They had gone on a vacation somewhere south of here and on their return trip home to northern Virginia, they passed through New Bern. Ted loved the water and they were impressed as they crossed the Neuse River bridge with the vista of water and land. Ted's engineering job was one that he could do working out of the home and they were thinking about choosing a place for their retirement years. So they came back to this county where "the land meets the water," and with the help of a realtor they found a place on Dawson Creek to build a home. As soon as it was completed they moved here. While living here they became active members of Bethany Christian Church, where Ted served as an elder. Ted became a member of the Volunteer Fire Department and they both served their community in various ways. We were truly enriched by their presence among us.

As I mentioned earlier, Ted died just after the conclusion of Veterans' Day and it is appropriate that we should remember that he was a veteran of the Korean War. He met his future wife before he served in Korea but it was after he had served his country that he and Dot were married in 1957. Schalene writes, 'They were married in my Dad's parents' home in Arlington, Virginia, on a Friday evening, by a volunteer fireman, who was late to the wedding because he was busy putting out a fire. My Mom's parents didn't attend. They didn't like Dad; he was wild -- drank beer, raced cars, and sent a practice grenade to Mom from Korea. They didn't know if it was real or not so they stored it in the chicken coop!' Ted, of course, was none too happy that this was his in-laws impression of him and when Dot's mother would speak of his 'wild side,' he would counter with a story about when he did something good.[1] Fortunately, the 'wild side' faded away and became distant memories of the indulgences of his youth.

Mom and Dad's wedding at this parents house in Arlington, Virginia;
personal collection

Ted took seriously his role as a husband to his wife Dot, whom he loved dearly and as a father to his children. Because he worked out of the home, that gave Ted the opportunity to interact a lot with his children. He was almost always home when they got out of school. He served as their coach in many of the sports they played and he attended their school functions. John write about his Dad: 'One of my best memories was Dad as a teacher. Almost every evening, after dinner and after I completed my homework, Dad would have me sit down next to him with a pencil and pad of scratch paper. He would teach me the things HE thought I should learn, usually engineering related...I tried to keep a straight face even when things got way over my head. I tried not to give away the fact I wasn't as smart as he was."

Ted was always there for his children. His son, Ted, Jr., says of his Dad: 'One thing that never changed from my being a kid through adulthood, if I didn't know something or wasn't sure, I'd ask Dad. He always knew. From, what to do when a kid was picking on me in school, to how to fix a transmission, I really think he knew it all. He was so willing to help with anything.' Schalene tells how when she was stood up on a date in high school her father took his sad daughter out for ice cream and told her how to handle the young man if he ever called again. He did call again and she handled him just as her father had explained that she should. She was pleasant, never acted like being stood up bothered her at all, and turned him down every time he asked her out.

Ted loved fishing and being out on the water. One of Schalene's favorite pictures of her dad is the one on the front of the bulletin. It is a picture of Ted out on the Chesapeake Bay. He and Dot chose their place on the water at Dawson Creek because of his love for boats and fishing. One of Ted Jr.'s great blessings after his retirement from the Coast Guard was to move back home to be near his parents. He and his Dad were able to go fishing together on a lot of weekends. A favorite place to go was the treacherous drum Inlet in the spring where they caught flounder and speckled trout. When Ted told me about their fishing trips I became quite envious. They had good catches and bad catches, but always they had a good time.

Dad on his boat in the Chesapeake Bay; personal collection

There are some things you appreciate all your life, but even more so as the years pass by. I am sure Schalene, Ted Jr., and John have come to appreciate more and more the wonderful parents and family heritage they have been blessed to have. They have had what many others from dysfunctional and broken families have never known. They had a stable home with wise and loving parents who made them their first priority. They were gifted with a father and mother who prepared them to  become the self-sufficient, capable, mature adults they have become with families of their own. They will no doubt carry on the legacy they have received from their parents. In doing so they will be doing just what Ted and Dot hoped they would do as their children.

In 2002, just months before turning 71, Ted suffered a cerebral hemorrhage, an almost always fatal condition. Still he bounced back but with some problems remaining. He was not paralyzed but suffered the inability to process language and sometimes was not able to speak. It led to some interesting conversations when you visited with him. After months of therapy Ted got back to almost normal. He even worked on restoring a sprint race care like the ones he had raced in the early 1950s. But the hemorrhages continued and resulted in a gradual more severe mental decline. Dot became his caregiver and when things became too difficult to manage in their Quail Woods home, and also because of her own declining health, she sold their house and moved Ted and herself to an assisted living facility just outside of New Bern. In September 2014 Dorothy died, and on Thanksgiving Day 2014 Ted was in Duke Hospital fighting for his life. His condition improved minimally and he was moved to the nursing home in New Bern where he died last Monday. He lived well beyond what would normally be expected of someone who had suffered such terrible traumas. For the last few years, the time around Thanksgiving became for his family not just a time to celebrate a holiday but a day like today. It became a day to be together and remember how very blessed they were for the parents they had. It is a tradition I think will continue.

Proverbs 4:1-4 instructs us with this parental advice: 'Listen, children, to a father's instruction, and be attentive, that you may gain insight; for I give you good precepts: do not forsake my teaching. When I was a son with my father, tender, and my mother's favorite, he taught me, and said to me, Let your heart hold fast my words; keep my commandments, and live.'

Ted was a teacher of his children. His instructions, however, were not so much a quoting of the Bible as they were a matter of being a living example and giving practical advice. Ted was a genuine person -- a husband and father who lived as be believed a husband and father should. Did he ever make mistakes? I am sure he did even as I am sure his mistakes became learning experiences for himself and for his family. While I am confident he was guided by his faith in God, he would never be the one to say, 'Look at me and be as I am.' I think rather that he would hope that you would look to God and become the very best you can be.

Last photograph of Mom and Dad together, April 2014;
personal collection

Dear friends, we see or we don't see God in the people who are close to us and in the lives they live. I am glad that today we remember and honor a man, a father, grandfather, and friend in whom we saw the presence of the Spirit of God. And today, with full hearts and with settled minds we commit the care and keeping of his life to the God in whom we believe. God will surely hold him safe in his arms until that day we will meet again."

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[1] Actually, this story is about Dad's Mom, not his mother-in-law. Mom's parents changed their mind about Dad soon after I, the eldest, was born. They saw the loving care Dad gave to his family and thought Mom had chosen her life's partner wisely. I told the story about Grandma Jennings' Dad stories in A Tribute to My Father.

Did James Jennings (c1770-1838) Marry Twice?

For years all I have known about the James Jennings, son of Benjamin Jennings (c1740-1815), my four times great grandfather, is that James was mentioned in his father's will and he married Rebecca Waldron.

Snippet of the last will and testament of Benjamin Jennings, dated 27 March
1815; courtesy of Ancestry.com

Rebecca Waldron was the sister of Anna Mariah Waldron, the wife of James' brother, John:

• John W. Jennings married Anna Mariah Waldron on 19 January 1805 in Bedford County, Virginia
• James Jennings married Rebecca Waldron on 8 April 1816 in Bedford County

Most researchers of the Waldron family state Rebecca (Waldron) Jennings died in 1883 in Pittsylvania County, Virginia, but I have not found a document that supports the death date or location. And that death date is causing me no little confusion.

Recently, I found a 52-page pension file on Fold3 for a Mary (Hawkins) Jennings. In the application she states that her husband served as a private during the War of 1812 with Captain William Flood's Company, which was formed in Buckingham County, Virginia. The company was formed on 29 December 1813 and marched to Norfolk, Virginia, where it was organized into the 5th Virginia Militia. Soldiers in the unit were part of the defense of Norfolk during the war. They were mustered out on 11 April 1814. This is the same unit in which John W. Jennings, Sr., served during the exact same time period. So I believe the two brothers -- James and John -- served together during the War of 1812.

Mary applied for her pension in April 1878 and was approved to receive a monthly payment of $8.00 on 20 December 1878. In the application was new information if I have the correct James Jennings:

• James married Mary Hawkins in 1831 in Lynchburg
• Mary grew up in Bedford County
• James and Mary had at least one daughter named Martha Jane Jennings (born in 1833)
• James drowned in 1838 in Lynchburg
• Mary never remarried
• Mary died in 1884 in Lynchburg

Page 9 of Mary (Hawkins) Jennings' widow's pension
application; courtesy of Fold3.com

All of this fits together quite nicely except for the 1883 death date for Rebecca Waldron. If she died before 1831, I would be sure I have the service information for the correct James Jennings. Thoughts?

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Fort Norfolk
John W. Jennings, Sr. (1776-1858): War of 1812 Veteran

Last Will and Testament of Powhatan Perrow Jennings

Last April my husband and I visited the Amherst County, Virginia, courthouse and photographed several records related to my Jennings family.

Amherst County, Virginia, court house; personal collection

This is a transcription of the last will and testament of Powhatan Perrow Jennings, who was my great great grandfather. He died of dysentery on 20 August 1858.

I, Powhatan P. Jennings, being now sick but having the full possession of my mental faculties do make, publish and declare this to be my last will and testament.

In the first place I desire all my just debts to be paid.

It is my will that my estate be kept together until my youngest child shall become twenty-one years of age and managed by one of my sons as superintendent, or if my sons should not be willing to undertake the management of the estate as above directed, then the best arrangement must be made that can be to keep up my estate so that it may be kept together and managed for the mutual benefit of my wife and children and from its profits all to receive a comfortable support as the nature of the case and the means of the estate will permit.

It is my will that my younger children shall receive from my estate as good an education as my older children have received. I earnestly desire that my wife Elizabeth P. and my children shall live together in peace and harmony, but if anything should occur to render this impracticable and they should prefer to separate, I then give to my wife Elizabeth P. Jennings for and during her natural life, the Office Standem in the yard and the spring field as it is now enclosed, a negro boy named Tiny, a mare named [illegible], and a sufficiency of provisions for her support for one year.

Upon the death of my wife, the estate given to her to revert back to my estate and to be divided like the balance of my estate. In the event of my wife choosing to live to herself, in addition to the property above mentioned, I will that she shall have enough household and kitchen furniture to make her comfortable.

My executor herein after appointed is directed if deemed advisable to sell forty or fifty acres of my land at the lower end of the tract to enable him the sooner to pay all of my debts as it is my desire as soon as convenient to extricate my estate from debt so as to leave as much of its profits as possible to the comfortable support of wife and children and the education of my younger children as above directed.

If my older sons who may consent to live upon my land and aid in its cultivation and the management of my estate should desire it and it should be thought property they are to have a reasonable compensation for their labor and services but I hope they will be willing to give their aid and assistance for the common good of all and for [illegible] in the raising and educating of their younger brothers and sisters.

It is my will that when my youngest child shall arrive at the age of 21 years that my estate be then equally divided among all my children.

If my wife should die before my youngest child shall arrive at the age of 21 years, then the estate devised to him shall revert to the rest of my estate and managed as before directed. And if the division of my estate shall take place before her death, then at her death that portion which I have willed to her shall be divided like the residue.

I appoint my friend Sam M. Garland executor of my last will and testament.

Witnessed my hand and seal this 18th day of August 1858

Powhatan P. Jennings (his mark)

Signed, sealed and acknowledged in our presence who in the of each other witnessed the same:

A. C. Harrison
Hiram C. Kyle
Taliaferro Stinnett
Uriah Burley

At a Court of monthly sessions begun and held for the County of Amherst at the court house on Monday the 20th day of September 1858.

A paper purporting to be the last will and testament of Powhatan P. Jennings, deceased, was produced in court and proved by the oaths of A. C. Harrison and U. Burley, two subscribing witnesses thereto and the same was ordered to be recorded as the last will and testament of P. P. Jennings, deceased.

Teste

Sam M. Garland, Clerk

Know all men by these presents that we John W. Jennings and D. W. Jennings are held and firmly bound unto the Commonwealth of Virginia in the sum of four thousand dollars lawful money of Virginia to be paid to the said Commonwealth for the payment whereof well and truly to be made. We bind ourselves and each of us our and each of our heirs, executors, and administrators jointly and severally firmly by the presents sealed with our seals and dated this 18 day April 1859 and in the 83rd year of the Commonwealth.

The condition of the above obligation is that if the above bound John W. Jennings, Administrator with the will annexed of P. P. Jennings, deceased, shall faithfully discharge the duties of his office as administrator aforesaid then this obligation to be void or else to remain in full force.

John W. Jennings (seal)
Daniel W. Jennings (seal)

Guardian Bond for Catherine (Jewell) Jennings (1813-1854)

Catherine Jewell married Powhatan Perrow Jennings on 23 February 1836 in Amherst County, Virginia, and was the daughter of Thomas Jewell and Sarah Downs. She was also my great great grandmother. She was born in 1813 and her parents died before she was 21 years old. As a result her eldest brother, Jesse, signed a bond promising to pay Catherine her share of her father's estate when she became an adult.

The bond was abstracted in a book entitled The Wills of Amherst County, Virginia, 1761-1865:

CATH. JEWELL -- Book 8, Page 355 -- Guardian Bond -- October 21, 1833. JESSE JEWELL, JAS. JEWELL, and TERISHA JEWELL for JESSE as guardian of CATH. JEWELL, orphan of THOS. JEWELL, deceased

Earlier this year, we stopped in Amherst County on our way to North Carolina and visited the courthouse. I photographed several documents related to the Jewell and Jennings families in will, marriage, and deed books.

Amherst County, Virginia courthouse; personal collection

The complete text of the bond abstracted above is as follows:[1]

Amherst County, Virginia
Will Book 8, Page 355

Know all men by these presents that we, Jesse Jewell, James Jewell, and Terisha Jewell are held and firmly bound unto Ambrose Rucker, William M. Waller, Jonas Pierce, Zacharias Drummond, Gentlemen Justices of the County Court of Amherst, in the sum of two thousand dollars current money of Virginia, for the payment of which well and truly to be made, we bind ourselves, our heirs, executors and administrators, jointly and severally, firmly by these presents.

Sealed with our seals and dated this 21st day of October, one thousand eight hundred and thirty three and in the 58th year of the Commonwealth.

The condition of the above obligation is such that if the above bound Jesse Jewell shall well and truly pay and deliver, or cause to be paid and delivered unto Catherine Jewell, orphan of Thomas Jewell, deceased, all such Estate of Estates as is now, or shall hereafter appear to be due to the said Catherine Jewell, when she shall attain to lawful age to demand the same, or when thereto, required by the Justices of the Court, for the time being, do also save harmless and indemnify the first above mentioned Justices from all trouble or damage that shall or may arise about the said Estate or Estates, then this obligation to be void, else to remain in full force and virtue.

Jesse Jewell (signed and sealed)
James Jewell (sealed)
Terisha Jewell (sealed)

At a court held for Amherst County on the 21st day of October 1833.

This bond was acknowledged in open Court by the parties thereto, and ordered to be recorded.

Teste,

Robert Tinsley, Clerk

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[1] Transcribe by Schalene Jennings Dagutis, 1 May 2018

Powhatan Perrow Jennings and Catherine Jewell Marriage Bond

During a trip to North Carolina from our temporary home in upstate New York, Pete and I stopped at the Amherst County Court House to photograph and transcribe documents about my Jennings ancestors. One of the gems we found was the marriage bond for the union of my two times great grandparents, Powhatan Perrow Jennings and Catherine Jewell.

Marriage bond between Powhatan Jennings and Terisha Jewell, Catherine
Jewell's brother; personal collection

KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS, That we Powhatan Jennings and Terisha Jewell are held and firmly bound unto Littleton Waller Tazwell, Esq. Governor or Chief Magistrate of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the just and full sum of one hundred and fifty dollars, current money of Virginia, to be paid to the said Governor and his successors, for the use of said Commonwealth; for the payment whereof, well and truly to be made, we bind ourselves, and each of us, and each of our heirs, executors, and administrators, jointly and severally, firmly by these presents. Sealed with our seals, and dated this 23rd day of February 1836 and in the [illegible] year of the Commonwealth.

The condition of the above obligation is such, that whereas a marriage is shortly intended to be had and solemnized between the above bound Powhatan Jennings and Catherine Jewell of the county of Amherst. -- Now if there is no lawful cause to obstruct the said marriage, then this obligation to be void; otherwise to remain in full force and virtue.

Powhatan Jennings (signed and sealed)
Terry Jewell (signed and sealed)

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NOTE: Jennings researchers this marriage bond may be found on my Ancestry tree and the transcription may also be found there. If you do not have a subscription to Ancestry but would like a copy of this document, please leave a comment with your contact information on this post.

Thomas Jewell (after 1776-1833): Mystery Man
Powhatan Perrow Jennings (1812-1858): A Life Cut Short
DNA Discoveries: Jewell Progress

52 Ancestors #31: Alice (Muir) Jennings (1906-1993): Grandma Jennings

Ancestor: Alice (Muir) Jennings, grandmother

Alice Muir was born on 16 March 1906 in Novinger, Missouri, to Robert Muir and Ida Mae Riggin. She was their second and last child as her mother died of tuberculosis in 1909. Alice was born blind in her left eye, having a detached retina. In 1910 newly widowed Robert Muir lived in Nineveh, Missouri, with his two young children -- Henry and Alice. The children's paternal grandmother, Margaret (Semple) Muir and her youngest daughter, lived next door.

Alice's father remarried in 1911 and Alice and Henry were sent to live with their grandmother, Margaret Muir, while their father raised a new family in East St. Louis, Illinois, and he worked in nearby coal mines. Robert Muir moved his family to West Virginia some time before 1920 as one of his daughters was born there that year.

When the 1920 census was enumerated, Alice continued to live with her grandmother in Nineveh, but her brother had left and joined his father in West Virginia. Grandmother Muir died on 31 May 1920 three days after an operation. At the age of 14 Alice Muir was on her own. She lived for brief periods of time with various Muir aunts and uncles.

According to an article in the Troy Call, she attended the fifth annual Riggin family reunion held at her maternal grandmother, Clementine (Wells) Riggin Collins' home on 19 August 1921 in Troy, Illinois. Eventually, she made her way to West Virginia, and worked with a family as a maid/governess in War. There she met Marvin Edward Jennings, a clerk with the Norfolk & Western Railroad. They met at a silent movie. Alice was reading the movie to her employer's young son and Marvin and his friends sat behind Alice and mimicked her during the movie.

Marvin and Alice dated for a few months but eventually Alice moved back to East St. Louis. When she discovered she was pregnant, Marvin quit his job with the railroad, traveled to Illinois, and married her on 13 May 1924 in East St. Louis.

Alice Muir standing on the station platform of the East St. and Suburban
Railway, which was an electric commuter train, circa 1925; personal
collection

Their daughter Pearl was born on 19 September 1924 but died a few months later on 30 December 1924. The coupled lived at 870 North 80th Street in East St. Louis, just a few houses away from a house her father owned. Her husband worked for the Illinois Central Railroad Company.

Marvin and Alice's oldest son was born in 1927. Alice, my grandmother, used to say after Uncle Marvin was born, she was unable to get pregnant and went to a doctor in St. Louis. He told her that her womb was twisted. So she went every week for 26 treatments, which apparently consisted of untwisting her womb a little bit at a time. Two months after her last treatment, she was pregnant. Their youngest son was born in 1931.

Marvin and Alice (Muir) Jennings with their sons; personal
collection

When the Depression struck, Marvin Jennings lost his job with the railroad. He did odd jobs to make a little money but the family was on Relief for a period of time. In 1941, Marvin took a job with the federal government and the family moved to Washington, DC, where they lived for a year before buying a house in Arlington County, Virginia.

Marvin Jennings died in 1961. Alice was left with a mortgage and a $1,000 in the bank. She got a job as an accounting clerk with the U.S. Navy and worked on expense reports submitted by Naval officers. However, to get to work, she had to buy a car and learn to drive. My father, her youngest son, always said teaching her was quite an experience.

Alice sold the family home and lived in a series of apartments until she retired. She and Marvin had bought a fishing shack on a tidal creek of the Chesapeake Bay in Deale Beach, Maryland, just before his death. Her youngest son, winterized it and built an addition, and she retired there.  She also began wintering in Saint Petersburg, Florida. When her sons moved to North Carolina, building homes next door to each other, Alice bought a mobile home and had it placed on their property, living there until her death.

Alice (Muir) Jennings died on 14 December 1993 of a cerebrovascular accident in Pamilco County at Britt Haven Nursing Home, where she had been treated for two months prior to her death. She was interred beside her husband at National Memorial Park in Falls Church, Virginia.

Alice and her husband were active in the Odd Fellows and the Daughters of Rebekah lodge organizations and both held offices in their local chapters. After her retirement, Alice indulged her love of travel visiting Europe several times, the Middle East, Hawaii, and took several cruises.

This is my entry for Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. The theme for this week was "Oldest," which I did not follow.

Using the Ancestral Reference Numbering System, Alice (Muir) Jennings, is Ancestor number 5 on my family tree:

5 Alice Muir was born on 16 March 1906 in Novinger, Missouri, to Robert Muir and Ida Mae Riggin; died on 14 December 1993 in Alliance, North Carolina; married Marvin Edward Jennings on 13 May 1924 in East St. Louis, Illinois.

5.1 Pearl Marie Jennings born 19 September 1924 in East St. Louis, Missouri; died 30 December 1924 in East St. Louis.

5.2 Marvin Edward Jennings, Jr. born 23 July 1927 in East St. Louis, Missouri; married Rachel Mildred Lange, daughter of Gustav Lange and Wilhelmina Schalin, on 5 April 1952 in Arlington County, Virginia.

2 Charles Theodore Jennings born 14 December 1931 in Centreville, Illinois; married Dorothy Ailein Lange, daughter of Gustav Lange and Wilhelmina Schalin, on 15 November 1957 in Arlington County, Virginia.

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'Alice Muir at train station,' personal collection
1910 Federal Census, Census Place: O'Fallon, Saint Clair, Illinois; Roll: T624_323; Page: 4A; Enumeration District: 0155; Image: 641; FHL microfilm: 1374336
1920 Federal Census, Census Place: Nineveh, Adair, Missouri; Roll: T-625_902; Page: 6A; Enumeration District: 17; Image: 330
1930 Federal Census, Census Place: East St Louis, St Clair, Illinois; Roll: 557; Page: 13A; Enumeration District: 61; Image: 55.0; FHL microfilm: 2340292
1940 Federal Census, Census Place: Signal Hill, St Clair, Illinois; Roll: T627_879; Page: 19B; Enumeration District: 82-35
Global, Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current, 1993 Alice Jennings
Riggin Family Reunion, Troy Weekly Call, 25 August 1929
Riggin Family Reunion, Edwardsville Intelligencer, 8 August 1948
Social News Notes, Troy Call, 19 August 1921
US, City Directories, 1822-1939, 1926 East St Louis, Illinois (Alice Jennings)
US, City Directories, 1822-1939, 1928 East St Louis, Illinois (Alice Jennings)
US, City Directories, 1822-1939, 1930 East St Louis, Illinois (Alice Jennings)
US, Illinois Marriage License,  No. H-11915
US, Illinois Marriage License 1924 Jennings, Marvin - Muir, Alice
US, Missouri Delayed or Special Certificate of Birth, No. 524307
US, North Carolina, Certificate of Death 060-482
US, North Carolina, Certificate of Death, Book 26, Page 181
US, North Carolina Death Index, 1908-2004, Deaths: 1993-96
US, Public Records Index, 1950-1993, Volume I, 1993 Arapahoe, North Carolina (Alice M Jennings)
US, Public Records Index, 1950-1993, Volume II, Alice M Jennings (St Petersburg, Florida)
US, Virginia, Find A Grave Index, 1607-2012, 1993 Alice M Jennings

50th Anniversary Commemoration of Gettysburg

Today is the 155th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg, considered the most important engagement during the Civil War.

From 29 June and 4 July 1913 a 50th anniversary reunion was held at Gettysburg. There had been numerous smaller reunions previously, but 1913 was the largest ever with over 53,000 men attending from 46 of the then 48 states, including over 8,500 Confederate Army veterans. The reunion was called the Gettysburg Battlefield Encampment. The Chief Surgeon of the U.S. said at the time, "never before in the world's history [sic] so great a number of men so advanced in years been assembled under field conditions." Not only was there concern about the men's health, people were also concerned there might still be lingering "unpleasant differences."

July 2 was Military Day; July 3, Civic/Governor's Day; and July 4 was National Day and included a speech by President Woodrow Wilson in which he said:

"We have found one another again as brothers and comrades in arms, enemies no longer, generous friends rather, our battles long past, the quarrel forgotten -- except that we shall not forget the splendid valor."

Photograph of attendees of the 1913 Gettysburg Battlefield Encampment;
courtesy of the Library of Congress

On 5 May 1913, Powhatan County, Virginia, supervisors said they would defray the cost of any ex-Confederate soldier who wished to attend the fiftieth anniversary celebration of the Battle of Gettysburg. A committee was formed to determine which veterans wished to attend. Thirty-eight veterans from the county attended, including Joseph Sampson Jennings, who had served in the Powhatan Light Artillery Battery during the last year of the war. Powhatan County spent $325,000 to send their veterans to Gettysburg.

When the veterans assembled in 1919 to attend a reunion in Atlanta, only six were able or willing to go.

Burwell David Mitchell (1828-1905): Brother and Son-in-Law

Burwell David Mitchell is one of the reasons I call my blog Tangled Roots and Trees.

He was born on 5 November 1828 in Bedford County, Virginia, to Daniel Mitchell, Jr. and Sarah "Sally" Wood. Daniel and Sally's youngest child, Barbara Ann Mitchell, was one of my great great grandmothers, so her brother, Burwell, was my three times great uncle.

Burwell first married Susan Mildred Powell on 28 October 1856. When they were enumerated in the 1860 census, they had two children. Their youngest child followed in 1861.

Burwell enlisted in the 2nd Virginia Cavalry in Liberty, the county seat, on 26 March 1862 and was away from home for most of the war. Sometime during that period, his wife, Susan, died. Burwell returned home 29 June 1864 to recover from a gunshot wound in his leg, and likely found himself responsible for three small children, ranging in age from 7 to 3 years old. So he quickly found a new wife.

On 15 December 1864 Burwell married Martha Virginia Beard. She was the daughter of David Fleming Beard, Sr., and Ann Dooley. Two years later, Burwell's sister, Barbara Ann, married Burwell's father-in-law, David Fleming Beard, Sr.!

Tangled Mitchell-Beard marriages; created using Microsoft PowerPoint

So when David and Barbara (Mitchell) Beard married, Burwell became step son-in-law as well as her brother.

And if that wasn't enough of a tangle, there is one more related to Burwell. He and his first wife, Susan, had a daughter named Sarah "Sally" Mitchell, who married her first cousin, George Washington Andrews, daughter of Burwell's sister, Margaret, and Chesley Andrews. When I discovered this, I got curious about when Virginia made marriage between first cousins illegal. I was surpised to learn that first cousin marriages are legal in Virginia with no age or other restrictions.

A Shared Mother's Day Memory

Last year soon after Mother's Day my cousin, Paul, contacted me to share a story about my mother (his aunt). He had related the story on Mother's Day at his men's prayer breakfast.

Mom, Paul, and I at Quantico Marine Corps Bases, Virginia; personal
collection

Paul's father (my uncle) was in the Coast Guard and stationed in Elizabeth City, North Carolina. My family had gone to visit for a few days.  Paul was about 4 years old, I was an infant, and my brothers had not yet been born.

Paul had been outside playing with his friends when his Mom called him in for dinner. She told him to go clean up, especially behind his ears. She told Paul Aunt Dorothy (my Mom) would go with him to be sure he thoroughly cleaned up. Paul dreaded the experience because at his maternal grandparents house, cleaning behind your ears meant using a coarse wash cloth and scrubbing until a child's skin was raw. Paul hated it.

Paul and Mom went into the bathroom where Mom took the wash cloth and cleaned Paul up ever so gently. Paul was in wonderment but worried about his ears. So he reached for them, telegraphing his dread. Mom remembered they hadn't cleaned behind his ears yet and looked at them before cleaning. But she never touched them. She told Paul they looked clean to her so she didn't think it was necessary.

Paul told me whenever Mom touched him for the remainder of her life, her was touch gentle and her kindness manifested itself in that touch.

Thank you, Paul for sharing such a special memory.

52 Ancestors #17: Effie (Beard) Jennings (1871-1906): A Brief Life

Ancestor: Effie (Beard) Jennings, great grandmother

The first time I wrote about my great grandmother, Effie (Beard) Jennings, I titled the post, The Mother Nobody Knew, because she died when her children were still quite young, very few source documents referenced her, and my father had just learned her maiden name shortly before his health no longer permitted him to research his family tree.

A second cousin and friend emailed a photograph of Effie after reading that post.

Effie (Beard) Jennings; courtesy of Janie Darby

She was born on 1 October 1871 in Bedford County to David Fleming Beard, Sr., and his second wife, Barbara Ann Mitchell. She was their second child although her father had one or two surviving adult children from his first marriage. Dad believed Effie's middle name was Davis though I have not seen that name on any document.

Effie's father was nearly 30 years older than his second wife and he died when Effie was soon to turn seven years old. She and her three siblings grew up on their father, David's 210-acre farm with their widowed mother but I have not been able to find them in the 1870 or 1880 census. Her mother, Barbara Ann (Mitchell) Beard, died on 28 September 1890, two days before Effie's 19th birthday. After her death, Effie and her sister, "Berta," and brother, David, Jr., went to live with relatives.

In 1891 she and her other minor siblings became defendants in a bill of complaint filed with the Bedford County Chancery Court. The plaintiffs were Effie's half sister, Martha, and Martha's husband Burwell David Mitchell[1], and an E. M. Beard, who may have been a half-brother or perhaps her brother, Albert. The plainiffs sued them in order to force the sale of their father's farm so the proceeds could be distributed among his heirs. The land was eventually sold for $441.00. The final decree in the case was not filed with the court clerk until 1901.

Albert, her older brother got a job with Norfolk & Western Railway, moved to Roanoke and married. He became the administrator of his father's estate and sold off his father's personal property. The list of sales filed with the county stated the sale netted $52.00.

According, to my second cousin, her grandmother (and Effie's only daughter), found a marriage license for Effie and Charles Edward Jennings dated June 1895. In an echo of her mother's life, Effie married a widower with children who was 28 years her senior. He had recently moved from Amherst County, Virginia, to Roanoke and started a grocery business. I'm not really sure how Effie and Charles met. Perhaps she lived with her brother in Roanoke and shopped in Charles' grocery store?

In 1900 the population of the city was just over 21,000 and had grown 33% in 10 years. The cotton mills, railroads, and coal industries were major reasons for Roanoke's growth. When the census was enumerated Effie and Charles lived at 1203 -- 3rd Avenue NW. They told the census taker they were married in 1896. Four of Charles' children by his first wife lived with them and Effie had two children named Daisy and Leo. She had my grandfather, Marvin Edward, in 1901 or 1902[2]. In December 1905 she had a fourth child they named Clyde Graham Jennings. Effie died on 4 May 1906 at the age of 34 of heart disease in Roanoke. She was interred in Fair View Cemetery. Her infant son, Clyde died the following June and was buried beside his mother.

Graves of Charles, Effie and Clyde Jennings; photograph courtesy of John
Shuck

By 1911 Effie's widower could no longer care for their children. Daisy was sent to live with Effie's sister, Berta (Beard) Mays; Leo was sent to live with his half-sister, Leta (Jennings) Womack in Tennessee; and Marvin was placed in the Lutheran Orphanage in Salem, Virginia. In 1913 Charles Jennings joined his son Leo in Tennessee and lived with his daughter until his death in 1917. He was interred beside his wife at Fair View Cemetery in Roanoke.

This is my entry for Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. The theme for this week was "Cemetery." If not for the Find A Grave memorial and photograph, I would not know the birth or death dates of my great grandmother.

Using the Ancestral Reference Numbering System, Effie (Beard) Jennings is Ancestor number 9 on my family tree:

9 Effie Beard, born 1 October 1871 in Bedford County, Virginia, daughter of David Fleming Beard, Sr. and Barbara Ann Mitchell; died 4 May 1906 in Roanoke, Virginia; married Charles Edward Jennings about 1895 in Virginia, his second wife.

9.1 Daisy Birdelle Jennings, born 14 November 1896 in Roanoke; died 28 April 1947 in Statesville, North Carolina; married William Luckey Moore, Sr., son of Jay Luckey Moore and Jane Elisabeth Steele, on 20 September 1916 in Johnson City, Tennessee.

9.2 Leo James Jennings, born 31 October 1898 in Roanoke; died 3 October 1973 in Pacific Palisades, California; married three times: 1) Bonnie Sue Wolfe, daughter of James H. Wolfe and Mollie Jane Shell, on 27 November 1919 in Iredell County, North Carolina, 2) Kathleen O'Gorman, daughter of William and Margaret O'Gorman on 14 March 1933 in Yuma County, Arizona; and 3) Marcella G. (maiden name unknown) sometime before 1958.

4 Marvin Edward Jennings, Sr., born 16 November 1901 in Roanoke; died 1 May 1961 in Arlington County, Virginia; married Alice Muir, daughter of Robert Muir and Ida Mae Riggin, on 13 May 1924 in East St. Louis, Illinois. (See Marvin Edward Jennings, Sr. (1901-1961): A Railroad Man)

9.3 Clyde Graham Jennings, born 29 December 1905 in Roanoke; died 12 June 1906 in Roanoke.

_______________
[1] Burwell David Mitchell was the brother of Effie's mother; so he was her uncle and her half brother-in-law.
[2] Marvin Edward Jennings' delayed birth certificated listed 1902 as his birth year but he used 1901 throughout his life.

Sources:

1900 US Census (database and images), FamilySearch, Etha B Jennings in household of Charles E Jennings, Roanoke city Ward 5, Roanoke, Virginia, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 102, sheet 7B, family 135, NARA microfilm publication T623 (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1972); FHL microfilm 1241739 (accessed 17 Dec 2012).
Charles Edward Jennings (1843-1917): First to Leave the Farm, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 20 Mar 2018).
David Fleming Beard, Sr. (1812-1878): A Man of His Times, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 20 Apr 2018).
Discover Roanoke History and Heritage: 1900-1925, The Roanoke Times (accessed 25 Apr 2018).
Jennings, Daniel, Letter and application to Lutheran Orphanage, Salem, Virginia, 12 Aug 1911
Lutheran Orphanage in Salem, Virginia, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 12 Feb 2018)
Marvin Edward Jennings (1901-1961), Robert Muir Family Blog (accessed 12 Feb 2018)
My Grandfather and the Orphanage, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 12 Feb 2018)
Marvin Edward Jennings, Sr. (1901-1961): A Railroad Man, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 20 Mar 2018).
North Carolina Death Certificates, 1909-1975 (database and images), Ancestry, Effie Beard mother of Mrs. Daisy Jennings Moore, citing North Carolina State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, Registration District 49-8, Certificate 105 (accessed Mar 16 2013).
North Carolina Marriage Records, 1741-2011 (database and images), Ancestry, E B Jennings mother of Leo James Jennings groom, Iredell County, 15 Nov 1919 (accessed 3 Jun 2016).
Roanoke, Virginia, Wikipedia (accessed (25 Apr 2018).
The Court Doth Adjudge, Order and Decree, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 20 Mar 2018).
The Mother Nobody Knew, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 20 Mar 2018).
US Find A Grave (database and images), Find A Grave, Effie Beard Jennings, Memorial 55849385 (accessed 17 Dec 2012).
US Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 (database), Ancestry, Effie Beard mother of Daisy Jennings Moore (accessed 29 Nov 2015).
Virginia Birth Records, 1864-1999 (database and images), Ancestry, Effie Beard Jennings mother of Leo James Jennings; citing Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, Certificate 2793 (accessed 3 Jan 2015).
Virginia Chancery Court Records, 1761-1969, (database and images), Library of Virginia, E M Beard, B D Mitchell and wife v. Effie Beard, etc., 1901-117 (accessed 15 Nov 2014).
Virginia Death Records, 1912-2014 (database and images), Ancestry, Effie Beard mother of Marvin E Jennings Sr; citing Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, Registration Area 106, Certificate 285 (accessed 3 Jan 2015).

Did These Beard Brothers Die in the Civil War?
David Fleming Beard, Sr. (1812-1878): A Man of His Times
Peaks of Otter Presbyterian Church Land
Peaks of Otter Presbyterian Church Petition
The Elizabeth Beard First Cousins: Which Is Which?
Samuel Beard (1750-1814): Revolutionary War Veteran
The Several Elizabeth Beards
Adam Beard (c1727-1777): Constable of Bedford County
John Beard (c1705-1780): A Man of Means
Marvin Edward Jennings, Sr. (1901-1961): A Railroad Man
Who's Your Daddy, Adam Beard?
Beard and Jennings: More Interconnected than I Thought
The Court Case Regarding the Slaves of Mary (Mitchell) Beard
Proving James Harvey Beard's Father
Slaves of John Beard (1705-1780) of Bedford County, Virginia
The Court Doth Adjudge, Order and Decree
The Mother Nobody Knew
George Washington Spoke to Him
Ancestry DNA and Finding a New Cousin

John W. Jennings, Sr. (1776-1858): Bounty Land

My three times great grandfather, John W. Jennings, Sr., served for about four months in the Virginia Militia during the War of 1812, from 29 December 1813 through 11 April 1814. When his company arrived in Norfolk, they were assigned to the 5th Regiment, which was responsible for the defense of Norfolk. The regiment was stationed at Fort Norfolk, which lies across the Elizabeth River from the modern day Portsmouth Marine Terminal. His company camped in a peach orchard outside the fort.

From 1775 to 1855 the United States government granted bounty-land warrants for military service, primarily to encourage volunteer enlistments, but also to reward veterans for service during the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Mexican War, a variety of Indian wars, Indian removals, and other military actions during the 1850s. Early warrants could only be used in military districts, principally in Ohio and several other public land states in the former Northwest Territory. Eventually, Congress expanded eligibility to include service in the Regular Army and the Navy, as well as volunteer militias. Bounty-land for military service was discontinued in 1858 and in 1863 the rights to locate and possess land ceased.

John Jennings initially applied for bounty land in 1853 and the Virginia Third Auditor's Office confirmed his service. A bounty land warrant for 40 acres was issued but was lost by an Amherst County court official and John never received it. By 1855 the bounty land laws had changed and John was entitled to 120 acres; so he applied again using a form entitled "Application of a Person Who has Had a Warrant" under the 1855 law entitled, "An act in addition to certain Acts granting Bounty Land to certain Officers and Soldiers who have been engaged in Military Service of the United States." He received his warrant certificate on 4 September 1856.

John W. Jennings, Sr.,'s bounty land warrant for 120 acres; courtesy of
the National Archives and Records Administration and retrieved by Vonnie
S. Zullo of Horse Soldier Military Research[1]

John sold and assigned his warrant to Charles W. Statham of Campbell County, Virginia, on 8 December 1856. When the 1860 census was enumerated Statham's occupation was listed as land jobber. Land jobbers were speculators who purchased bounty warrants from veterans, their widows or heirs for a fraction of their true value. On the Bureau of Land Management's General Land Office website, I have found nearly 50 patents filed by Statham's agents in land offices in Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, and Wisconsin. Since Charles W. Statham lived and died in Lynchburg, Virginia, my assumption is he later sold the land acquired under these patents.

Paperwork which assigned the land warrant to Charles W. Statham; courtesy of the
National Archive and Records Administration and retrieved by Vonnie S. Zullo of
Horse Soldier Military Research

For value received, I, John Jennings, to whom [illegible] for this warrant, No. 84,903 was issued, do hereby sell and assign unto Charles W. Statham, Campbell County, Virginia, and to his heirs and assigns forever, the said warrant and authorize him to locate the same and receive a patent therefore. Witness my hand and seal, this 8th day of December 1856.

John Jennings (seal)

Attest,

James M. Proffitt
Daniel W. Jennings

State of Virginia
County of Amherst

On this 8th day of December in the year 1856, personally appeared John Jennings to me well known, and acknowledged the foregoing assignment to be his act and deed; and I certify that this said John Jennings is the identical person to whom the within warrant issued, and who executed the foregoing assignment.

[illegible] D. Pierce, Justice of the Peace

On 10 Jun 1857, the Stevens Point, Wisconsin Land Office issued a certificate for the 120 acres Charles W. Statham located in Portage County, Wisconsin. The land was located in Township 25 North, Range 7 East in Sections 32 and 33 -- T25N R7E S32 E1/2SE1/4 and T25N R7E S33 SW1/4SW1/4.

Certificate issued for 120 acres in Portage County, Wisconsin to Charles W. Statham;
courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration and retrieved by Vonnie S. Zullo
of Horse Soldier Research

The land is just south of Lake du Bay, which looks to be close to geographical center of Wisconsin and nearly on the same latitude as Montreal, Canada.

Sections 32 and 33 in red; courtesy of the Bureau of Land Management

Thank goodness John W. Jennings, Sr., was 80 years old when he received the bounty-land warrant and was disinclined to relocate to Wisconsin! I have been to Steven's Point in February for work many years ago and it was C-O-L-D.

_______________
I highly recommend Vonnie S. Zullo if you ever need to engage someone to research military records at the National Archives and Records Administration.

Fort Norfolk
John W. Jennings, Sr. (c1776-1858): War of 1812 Veteran

Thank You, Henry Bowles! ... Sort of

As I was transcribing the Virginia Chancery Court case 1806-003, heard in Powhatan County, I began to wonder about the relationships between several of the witnesses for the defendant, Benjamin Jennings, Jr., my fourth great uncle and their relationship to each other.

Initially, as I wrote the post entitled A Horse Tale: Pankey v. Jennings, I though Mary Gates and Susanna Bowman were sisters and somehow related to Joseph Roper, another witness, because Mary Gates said in her affidavit that she had seen the horse at her father's. Another witness, Joseph Roper, said he purchased the horse from Duke McGary and then sold it to Benjamin, making it possible for daughters to have seen the horse. Two other witnesses for Benjamin Jennings, Jr., were Arthur and Henry Bowles. Benjamin's second wife was Sarah "Sally" Bowles and their marriage record indicated Sally's father was Henry.

Marriage index record for Benjamin Jennings, Jr., and Sarah "Sally" Bowles;
courtesy of FamilySearch.org

So I went looking for Henry...and learned more than I expected and yet, less.

Henry Bowles served in the French and Indian War between Great Britain and France as part of Col Byrd's Regiment of Regulars. He received a bounty land certificate on 5 May 1780 and lived in Chesterfield County, Virginia, at the time. This made sense as Arthur and Henry Bowles, Mary Gates, and Susanna Bowman were all deposed in Chesterfield County.

Will of Henry Bowles (died 1821) of Chesterfield County, Virginia; courtesy
Ancestry.com

Henry married Rachel Bailey on 1 September 1783 in Chesterfield County, and according to his will, which he wrote on 21 March 1821, he had at least six children:

• Rebecca Bowles
• Nancy Bowles
• Mary (Bowles) Gates
• Arthur Bowles
• Henry Bowles
• Susanna (Bowles) Bowman

And then there is this tantalizing sentence:

"Having heretofore given to my other children not herein named as much as I intend, they are herein omitted."

Thank you, Henry!

That sentence makes it entirely possible that Sarah "Sally" (Bowles) Jennings was his daughter but not named in his will because he had already provided for her in his lifetime. This was less than totally rewarding because Benjamin's wife was not explicitly mentioned so Arthur, Henry, Mary Gates and Susanna Bowman being siblings is only a strong likelihood.

But the more than expected was what I found when I researched the other possible siblings of Sally (Bowles) Jennings. Her brother, Henry, married Susan Fuqua, and had at least one daughter -- Susan A. Bowles. She married Daniel Oscar Jennings on 27 July 1837.

Bible record transcription for Daniel Oscar Jennings; courtesy of FamilySearch.org

Daniel Oscar Jennings was the son of John Jennings (c1774-1845), who married Lucy Duvall. John is supposedly the son of Thomas Jennings, whose will was probated in Louisa County in 1818. Is it possible that Thomas Jennings and "my" Benjamin Jennings, Sr., are brothers?

_______________
A Horse Tale: Pankey v. Jennings
Daniel Oscar Jennings, Are You Related to Benjamin?

Gen. Horatio Gates' Letter to Continental Congress Announcing Victory at Saratoga

After the battles at Saratoga, New York, General Horatio Gates, wrote a letter to John Hancock, president of the Continental Congress announcing the victories. By rights the letter should have been sent to General George Washington, Gates' commanding officer. Many historians believe Gates was playing politics and angling to replace Washington as the supreme commander of the Continental Army. What is interesting about this letter to me, as an ancestor of a private in Morgan's Riflemen, is that Col. Morgan is mentioned in the letter. That private, who interests me so much was Benjamin Jennings, my four times great grandfather.

Page 1 of Gen. Gates' letter to the Continental Congress announcing his army's
victory at Saratoga; courtesy of the Library of Congress

Camp at Saratoga, Oct. 12th 1777

Sir[1],

I have the satisfaction to acquaint your Excellency with the great successes of the arms of the United States in this department. On the 7th instant the enemy attacked our advanced Picket upon the left which drew on an action about the same hour of the day and was near the same spot of ground where that of the 19th of Sept. was fought. From three o'clock in the afternoon until almost night the conflict was very warm and bloody, when the enemy by a precipitate retreat, determined the fate of the day leaving in our hands eight pieces of brass cannon, and the tents and baggage of their fleeing[?] army, a large quantity of fixed ammunition, a considerable number of wounded and prisoners, among whom are the following principal officers -- Major Williams who commanded the artillery, Major Ackland who commanded the corps of grenadier, Capt. Money L. McGeneral[?], and Sir Francis Clark, principal aide de camp to his Excellency Gen. Burgoyne. The loss upon our side is not more than _____ killed

Pages 2 and 3 of Gen. Gates' letter to the Continental Congress announcing
his army's victory at Saratoga; courtesy of the Library of Congress

Killed and wounded, amongst the latter is the gallant Major Gen. Arnold, whose leg was fractured by a musket ball as he was forcing the enemy's breastwork. Too much praise cannot be given to the Corps commanded by Col. Morgan consisting of his rifle regiment, and the light infantry of the army under Maj. Dearborn. But it would be injustice not to say that the whole body engaged deserve the honor and applause due to such exalted [illegible]. The night after action, the enemy took position in the strong entrenched camp upon their left. Gen. Lincoln, whose division was opposite to the enemy, going in the afternoon to fired[?] a cannonade to annoy their camp, received a musket ball in his leg, which shattered the bone. This has deprived me of the assistance of one of the best officers as well as men. His loss at this time cannot be too much regretted. I am in hopes his leg may be saved.

The 9th at midnight the enemy quitted their entrenchment and retired to Saratoga. Early in the morning of the 9th I received the enclosed letter from Gen. Burgoyne acquainting me that he left his whole hospital to my protection, in which are 300 wounded officers and soldiers. Brigadier Gen. Fraser, who commanded the flying army of the enemy was killed the 7th instant. At one o'clock in the morning of the 10th I received the enclosed letter from Gen. Burgoyne with Lady Harriet Ackland. That morning as soon as the army could be properly put in motion, I marched in pursuit of the enemy and arrived on the evening, and found the enemy had taken position upon the opposite side of the Fish Kill in an entrenched camp which they occupied upon their advancing down the country. The enemy have burned all the houses before them as they retreated. The extensive buildings and mills, etc., belonging to Maj. Gen. Schuyler are also laid to ashes.

This shameful behavior occasioned my sending a Drum with the enclosed letter to Gen. Burgoyne.

I am happy to acquaint your Excellency that desertion has taken a deep root in the Royal army, particularly among the Germans who come to us in shoals.

I am so much possessed on every side with business that it is impossible for me to be more particular now, but I hope in a few days to have license to acquaint your Excellency with every circumstance at present omitted.

I am with great respect your Excellency's most obedient and humble servant,

Horatio Gates

________________
[1] Excellency John Hancock, Esq.

Van Schaick Mansion: Planning the Defense of Albany
Morgan's Rifle Corps Travel North to Saratoga
Morgan's Rifle Corps Established and the Fog of War
Benjamin Jennings (c1740-1815): A Morgan's Rifleman
British Surrender at Saratoga
Revolutionary War Soldier

52 Ancestors #8: Marvin Edward Jennings, Sr. (1901-1961): A Railroadman

Ancestor Name: Marvin Edward Jennings, Sr., grandfather
DNA Haplogroup: I-M253

Marvin Edward Jennings was born on 15 November 1901 or 1902 (though he used 1901 throughout his life) to 58-year-old Charles Edward Jennings, a Civil War veteran, and his second wife, Effie Beard, in Roanoke, Virginia, likely at their home, 1201 Loudon Avenue, NW. His father co-owned a grocery store located at the corner of Wells Avenue and 12th Street, NW. He was their third child, though his father had seven children, six still living by his first wife. A month after Marvin turned four years old, his mother had another son. She died on 4 May 1906 and her youngest son died five weeks later.

In 1910, Marvin, his father and full siblings lived at 1211 Loudon Avenue, but his father no longer owned the grocery. Instead, he worked as a carpenter for a building contractor. Family lore indicated Charles' partner in the grocery business absconded with the all the money, leaving Charles with no business and no way to support his children who still remained at home.

In 1911 he decided he could no longer care for his children. We learn from the orphanage application Marvin's half brother completed and the correspondence with the Lutheran Orphanage in Salem that his father placed Marvin's brother Leo, with a married half-sister, who lived in Erwin, Tennessee, and his sister with her maternal aunt, Sarah (Beard) Mays, who also lived in Roanoke. Her husband was also a carpenter, so perhaps he got Charles his job after he lost the grocery.

The letter Daniel Jennings wrote Superintendent Crabtree, who ran the orphanage was obtained by my father when he was still actively researching his family history:

Aug. 9th, 1911

Prof. J. T. Crabtree, Supt.,
Lutheran Orphanage
Salem, Va.

Dir Sir:

Referring to our conversation with you on last Monday concerning the admission of my brother into your institute, beg to enclose herewith formal application, his Father being well pleased with the conditions under which he will be admitted, provided, of course, your Board of Trustees consider the application favorably.

Concerning Marvin, would say his is of amiable disposition, easily controlled, and a bright and studious child. He has been attending the Roanoke public school since old enough, and has successfully passed all examinations which places him in the second "A", Primary grade at the beginning of the next school term.

You will note from application sheet that he has had most of the diseases of children, but his general health is good; his slight lameness is not a deformity, but due to the effect of measles which he had when quite a small child.[1]

He has one own brother and sister who are minors. His brother, Leo, resides with a half-sister in Tennessee, the sister with her aunt, Mrs. Mays, Roanoke. He has three half brothers residing in Roanoke, one half-sister residing in Roanoke, and, and one half-sister, above mentioned, residing in Erwin, Tenn.

His father is 68 years old, has fairly good health and was for many years engaged in the mercantile business in Roanoke, but for the past four or five years has been a building contractor.

You will also find enclosed herewith letter addressed to you from Hon. H. B. Trout concerning the application form.

The writer is especially anxious that the child be placed under your care, and sincerely trusts that the matter may receive favorable consideration by your Board of Trustees.

Yours very truly,

D. M. Jennings

Lutheran Orphanage Application for Marvin Edward Jennings; personal collection

The orphanages had been established in the 1890s when accidents and diseases like tuberculosis, diphtheria, typhoid, and malaria frequently robbed children of their parents. In those post Civil War years, according to one report, the number of orphans grew to "unthinkable levels" and "across Virginia, frightened children roamed the streets and countryside begging for handouts and mercy." The Lutheran Orphanage was originally known as the Lutheran Orphan Home of the South it moved to Salem, Virginia, in 1896, and was housed in an elegant five-story building, formerly the Hotel Salem on College Avenue. This building served as the orphanage until 1927, an imposing 80-room, red-brick structure, almost castle-like in appearance, with its tower, turrets, dormers and arched windows. Rev. John T. Crabtree became the superintendent in 1904. He was a Confederate veteran, former Salem High School principal and Roanoke College professor. He served the orphanage until 1922.

Marvin Edward Jennings at the Lutheran Orphanage, back row fourth from left;
personal collection

In 1916 Marvin's brother, Leo, enlisted in the Army. It's not known whether Marvin ever saw his brother again. Marvin's father died in 1917 at the home of his daughter, Leta Jennings Womack, in Erwin, Tennessee. By 1920 Marvin had been released from the orphanage and lived with his half-brother, Daniel Jennings, who worked as a manager at a wholesale shoe company. Marvin worked as a clerk for Norfolk & Western (N&W) in Roanoke. His duties included calculating the freight rates charged to the railroad's commercial clients. This included figuring weight of the freight, miles traveled and over which railroad company's tracks.

He was transferred to War, West Virginia, deep in coal country and met Alice Muir at a silent movie. She worked as a maid in home and had taken her employer's son to the movies. Since he was too young to read, Alice read the dialogue to him. Marvin went to the picture with some friends and sat nearby. They began "walking out," as dating was then called. Not long afterwards Alice moved back to East St. Louis, Illinois, where her father owned a home. When she learned she was pregnant, she wrote to Marvin, who quit his job, moved to Illinois and married Alice on 13 May 1924 in East St. Louis. Their daughter, Pear Marie, was born on 19 September 1924 in East St. Louis and died in the same city on 30 December of the same year.

After moving to East St. Louis, Marvin worked for the Illinois Central railroad, sometimes called the main line of mid-America, where he again worked as a rate clerk. Marvin and Alice began their marriage living in the home owned by Alice's father, a coal miner and union organizer who was then working in West Virginia. In 1927 they had a son and lived at 8305 State Street in East St. Louis. Their youngest child was born in 1931.

The Marvin Edward Jennings family; personal collection

As the Depression deepened its awful grip on the country, Marvin lost his job with the railroad. He went on relief, as government aid to needy families was then called, mowed lawns, and did whatever work he could find. When their youngest child was still an infant, Alice's aunt Janie and her husband, Herbert Beck, invited Marvin and Alice to Montana, to live on the land they had homesteaded in the 1920s near Roy, in Fergus County. When the train pulled into the station, there were several feet of snow on the ground, Alice was not impressed, and they soon returned to Illinois.

In 1941, Marvin got a job with the federal government and worked for the General Accounting Office (GAO), a legislative branch agency, established in 1921 and responsible for investigating all matters related to public funds and make recommendation for greater efficiency and economy of expenditures. He worked in the Transportation division on railroad matters. The family rented a row house in Washington, DC, before buying a home in the Spout Run area of Arlington County. This was to be their home until Marvin's death.

They also bought a 4-room fishing shack on Carrs Creek, a tidal creek of the Chesapeake Bay in Deale Beach, Maryland. Fishing was one of Marvin's greatest pastimes and he and his family enjoyed many weekends at the shores of the Chesapeake Bay. Their son, Ted, bought a fishing boat, which added to his father's enjoyment.

Marvin Edward Jennings, his son (right) and a friend on his son's boat; personal
collection

Marvin was rushed to Northern Virginia Doctors hospital in Arlington County, on 1 May 1961. He died seven hours later of an abdominal aorta aneurysm and was interred at National Memorial Park in Falls Church, Virginia. At the time of his death, I was almost three years old. My memories of Grandpa Jennings are few. Perhaps, the only real one I have is playing the "lighter game." He would stretch out on the sofa after dinner and I would sit on his chest and search his pockets for his lighter. Why this filled me with so much glee I can still remember it, I have no idea. The lighter was always in his shirt pocket.

Marvin Edward Jennings at Beverly Beach Pavillion, Maryland; personal
collection

Like all good railroad men, Grandpa owned a pocket watch. My brother, John, used it during his summer job, driving the tractor for tobacco pickers. It was important to drive the tractor slow enough so they were always picking in front of them and he used the watch to time his speed up and down the rows. My brother, Ted, owns the watch now and we all wish we knew more about it.

My grandfather's pocket watch; photograph by Ted Jennings

This is my entry for Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. The theme for this week was "Heirloom."

Using the Ancestral Reference Numbering System, Marvin Edward Jennings, Sr., is Ancestor number  4 on my family tree:

4.0 Marvin Edward Jennings, Sr., born 16 November 1901 in Roanoke, Virginia, to Charles Edward Jennings and second wife, Effie Beard. He was their youngest child, who lived to adulthood. His mother died when he was 5 years old and his 68-year-old father placed him in an orphanage in 1911 while his siblings were placed with other family members. He met Alice Muir in War, West Virginia, when he worked for Norfolk & Western (N&W) railroad. They married on 13 May 1924 in East St. Louis, Illinois, and made their residence there. Marvin worked for the Illinois Central (IC) railroad. He lost his job during the Depression and eventually was offered a job at the General Accounting Office, in Washington, DC. They moved in 1941 and lived in Washington and Arlington County, Virginia. Marvin died on 1 May 1961 at Northern Virginia Doctors' Hospital in Arlington of abdominal aorta aneurysm and was interred at National Memorial Park in Falls Church, Virginia.

4.1 Pearl Marie Jennings born 19 September 1924 in East St. Louis, Illinois; died 30 December 1924 in East St. Louis.

4.2 Marvin Edward Jennings, Sr., born 23 July 1927 in East St. Louis; married Rachel Mildred Lange, daughter of Gustav Lange and Wilhelmina Schalin, on 5 April 1952 in Arlington, Virginia. She died on 16 October 2006 in South Boston, Virginia. Two children.

4.3 Charles Theodore Jennings, born 14 December 1931 in Centreville, Illinois, married Dorothy Ailein Lange, daughter Gustav Lange and Wilhelmina Schalin on 15 November 1957 in Arlington, Virginia. She died on 9 September 2014 in New Bern, North Carolina. Three children.

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[1] According to my grandmother, Marvin Jennings did not become lame from contracting measles but rather polio. One leg was shorter than the other and he wore leg braces the remainder of his life.

Sources:
1910 US Federal Census, (database and images), FamilySearch, Marvin E Jennings in household of Charles E Jennings, Roanoke Melrose Ward, Roanoke (Independent City), Virginia, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 125, sheet 8A, family 128, NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1982); FHL Microfilm 1375659 (accessed 12 Feb 2018)
1920 US Federal Census, (database and images), Family Search, Marvin E Jennings in household of Daniel M Jiminys, Roanoke Highland War 2, Roanoke (Independent City), Virginia, United States; citing ED 31, sheet 15B, line 64, family 335, NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington: DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1992), roll 1912; FHL microfilm 1821912 (accessed 12 Feb 2018)
1930 US Federal Census, (database and images), FamilySearch, Marvin Jennings, East St Louis, St Clair, Illinois, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 61, sheet 13A, line 35, family 397, NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002) roll 557, FHL microfilm 2340292 (accessed 12 Feb 2018)
1940 US Federal Census, (database and images), FamilySearch, Marvin Jennings, Centreville Township, St Clair, Illinois, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 82-35, sheet 19B, line 74, family 164, Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790-2007, RG 29, (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012), roll 879 (accessed 18 Feb 2018
Find A Grave Index, (database), FamilySearch, Marvin Edward Jennings, 1961; Burial, Falls Church, Fairfax, Virginia, United States of America, National Memorial Park; citing record ID 17662909, Find a Grave, 
Draft Registration Card for Virginia, (database and images), Fold3, Marvin Edward Jennings, 16 Nov 1902, Virginia, Selective Service Registration Cards, World War II, NARA, 2012, No. 12-029 (accessed 30 Nov 2017)
Illinois Deaths and Stillbirths, 1916-1947, (database), FamilySearch, Marvin Jennings in entry for Pear Marie Jennings, 30 Dec 1924; Public Board of Health, Archives, Springfield; FHL microfilm 1493150 (access 27 Dec 2014)
Illinois, St Clair County, Marriage License, No. 11915, Marvin Edward Jennings and Alice Muir, 13 May 1924
International Order of Odd Fellows, Grand Encampment, Washington, DC, 8 Feb 1962
International Order of Odd Fellows, Mount Pleasant Rebekah Lodge No. 9, Resolutions and Memorial on the Death of Brother Marvin Jennings, 18 May 1961
International Order of Odd Fellows, Grand Encampment, Washington, DC, Official Bulletin No. 5, 1 May 1961
Jennings, Alice Muir, Genealogy Notebook, page 10
Jennings, Daniel, Letter and application to Lutheran Orphanage, Salem, Virginia, 12 Aug 1911
Lutheran Orphanage in Salem, Virginia, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 12 Feb 2018)
Marvin Edward Jennings (1901-1961), Robert Muir Family Blog (accessed 12 Feb 2018)
My Grandfather and the Orphanage, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 12 Feb 2018)
US City Directories, 1822-1995, (database with images), Ancestry, Marvin E Jennings, East St Louis, Illinois, 1926 (accessed 3 Jan 2015)
US City Directories, 1822-1995, (database with images), Ancestry, Marvin E Jennings, East St Louis, Illinois, 1928 (accessed 3 Jan 2015)
US City Directories, 1822-1995, (database with images), Ancestry, Marvin E Jennings, East St Louis, Illinois, 1930 (accessed 3 Jan 2015)
US World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1942-1947, (database), Ancestry, Marvin Edward Jennings, Arlington, Virginia, United States, National Archives in St. Louis, Missouri; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 387 (accessed 20 Nov 2017)
Virginia Birth Records, 1864-1999, (database and images), Ancestry, Marvin Edward Jennings, Roanoke, Virginia, 1902 (accessed 30 Jun 2016)
Virginia Death Certificate No. 106-285, Marvin E Jennings, Sr., 1961
Virginia Death Records, 1912-2014, (database and images), Ancestry, Marvin E Jennings, Sr, Arlington, Arlington, VA, 1961 (accessed 30 Jun 2016)
Virginia Marriage Records, 1936-2014, (database and images), Ancestry, Marvin E Jennings in entry for Marvin Edward Jennings, Jr and Rachel Mildred Lange, 1952 (accessed 30 Jun 2016)
Virginia Marriage Records, 1936-2014, (database and images), Ancestry, Marvin E Jennings in entry for Charles Theodore Jennings and Dorothy Ailein Lange, 1957 (accessed 30 Jun 2016)

Morgan's Rifle Corps Travel North to Saratoga
Charles Edward Jennings (1843-1917): 19th Virginia Infantry Regiment
Morgan's Rifle Corps Established and the Fog of War
Charles Edward Jennings (1843-1917): First to Leave the Farm
Powhatan Perrow Jennings (1812-1858): A Life Cut Short
John W. Jennings (1776-1858): War of 1812 Veteran
Benjamin Jennings (c1740-1815): Last Will and Testament
Benjamin Jennings (c1740-1815): Morgan's Riflemen
Benjamin Jennings (c1740-1815): Beginnings and Endings
Who Was the Original Jennings Immigrant?
Did John W. Jennings, Sr. (c1777-1858) Marry His Niece?
Discovering my Local History Center
British Surrender at Saratoga
The Great Jennens Case

Revolutionary War Soldier
There's One Born Every Minute -- Scamming the Greedy
A Forcible Act of Possession
Dicken's Bleak House Is about My Family