Closing out 2013

To those already welcoming 2014, may you have a Happy New Year. For those still to celebrate this evening, may it be safe, festive and fun. See you in 2014.

Photo by Patrick Jones - National Botanic Garden, DC

Photo by Patrick Jones - National Botanic Garden, DC

Tennessee Supreme Court Decision in Rankin v State

It's amusing how one can find more information after stopping to look for it. I had ended my search for information on the US Supreme Court case Rankin vs State of Tennessee, but after running a simple search to make sure I had the right facts on Samuel E. Rankin, I turned up a Report of Cases Argued and Determined at the Supreme Court of Tennessee in 1867 via Google Books (see source).

The full decision runs about 15 pages. I'm looking for a way to embed a PDF so I don't have to copy & paste huge images into a blog post.

It is useful to have the full picture, from the Circuit Court to Tennessee Supreme Court and on up to the US Supreme Court in this case. There's enough information for a book based on just this case & the incidents leading up to it.

Supreme Court Case File of Rankin v State

Today I made a visit to the National Archives in DC to find and examine the case file in Rankin vs State of Tennessee (see the Timeline in case of Captain John Thornhill, posted on 3 November 2013). I am still amazed that one can go to the Archives and touch actual historical documents from over 140 years ago. Doing this brings my search for information on the case to a close. I plan to write an article on the case for the Tennessee Genealogical Society Magazine sometime in 2014, as this is useful history for other Jefferson County researchers.

The case was appealed to the US Supreme Court by Samuel E. Rankin (a bio on Rankin can be found here), who was courtmartialed then later charged and acquitted for the murder of Captain John Thornhill. The Supreme Court received the case in its December 1867 term (15 February 1868), and issued its ruling on 10 April 1871 as part of the December 1870 term.

The transcript of the case looks like it survived a fire. It consists of 84 pages handwritten on legal size paper. There are also a few other loose letters written by Samuel Rankin asking for a status update on the disposition of the case.

The transcript confirmed that my 3rd-great-grandfather Joseph Jones appeared as a witness for the state, and that he was compensated $17.20 for 10 days and 180 miles. Sarah Jane Thornhill Ryan, aunt to both John Thornhill and Joseph Thomas Jones, also appeared as a witness in the case.

There's a lot more in this file, and on the disposition of the case, which I'll cover in a subsequent post.

From Kentucky to Texas

This week I have been writing about Robert Wheatley's Texas land grant and warranty deed. With this post I'll cover the family's journey with the family from Warren County, Kentucky to Mullin, Mills County, Texas through available census records. Unless additional information becomes available on Robert, this post will also bring my research on him to a close.

Kentucky Years
I previously wrote about Robert Wheatley in my August 2012 post titled "Thomas Whitley and some on his parents." Robert Jackson Wheatley was born on 28 June 1838 in Warren County, Kentucky, and was the fourth child of Richard Wheatley and Nancy Philips. Robert's birth date is sourced from his gravestone in Mills County, Texas.

In the 1850 US Census, Robert appears in the household of Richard and Nancy Wheatley.

Robert married Melissa Catherine Grinstead on 14 September 1860 in Warren County. In the 1860 US Census, taken on 1 August 1860, Robert was living as a farm hand in the household of William McMurry in Warren County. The Grinstead family were neighbors of the Wheatley family. Melissa is living next door to Richard & Nancy Wheatley in the 1860 US Census.

Robert and Melissa had at least one child, my 2nd-great-grandfather, Thomas Whitley. He was born on 5 August 1861. Melissa died sometime prior to 1864. In the 1870 Census, Robert and Thomas were living in the household of Richard Wheatley in Smiths Grove, Warren County, Kentucky.

Robert married his second wife, Martha T. Hays, on 21 March 1872 in Warren County. The family appears in Smiths Grove, Warren County in the 1880 US Census. Robert and Martha had at least three children, two daughters survived past childhood: Laverna V. Wheatley and Donna Mary Wheatley.

The Move to Texas
Based on the Texas land grant, we know Robert & family had arrived in Mills County, Texas by December 1888. Their location between the years 1880 and 1888 are currently unknown. I've included a snapshot from Google Maps below to show one potential route of their journey from Smiths Grove, Warren County, Kentucky to Mullin, Mills County, Texas.

The journey likely took the family through Tennessee and Arkansas to Texas, but it is also possible they traveled through Missouri and Oklahoma to Texas.

By 1900, Robert & family are listed in the US Census in Mills County, Texas.

In the 1910 US Census, Robert's daughter Laverna is listed in the household as married to Joseph B. Renfro (Mills County Commissioner).

Martha Hays Wheatley died on 30 August 1916. By the 1920 US Census, Robert had retired from farming, and was now living in the household of Joseph and Laverna Renfro.

Robert Jackson Wheatley died on 12 January 1922 in Mullin, Mills County, Texas. He is buried in Oakview Cemetery. A photo from Findgrave showing his gravestone is below.

Source: Findagrave.com

Texas Land Grant for Robert Jackson Wheatley, Part 3

Yesterday, I posted the first two parts of the Texas Land Grant filed by my 3rd-great-grandfather Robert Jackson Wheatley (see Part 1 and Part 2). FamilySearch has digital copies of the Texas, Mills County Clerk Records from 1841 to 1985. In the Land Records for Mills County, I was able to find the warranty deed corresponding to the land grant & referencing Robert's preemption survey. A copy of the final pages from the land grant showing a survey of the land from 21 December 1892, along with the warranty deed from 1893.

Warranty Deed from 15 May 1893

Source: FamilySearch, Texas, Mills County Land Records