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Tuesday, July 10, 2018
Ancestor Birthplace Chart
I created this chart a while back and updated it as necessary over the past couple of years. It is essentially an ancestral fan chart. Each flag represents the birthplace of each respective ancestor. The chart shows 4th great grandparents and down. The tabulation at the upper left indicates what states and countries are represented and the number of times they show up. I'm represented by the big Louisiana state flag in the middle. Of course the chart is also accurate for my 4 siblings.
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Saturday, July 7, 2018
Captain Isaac Townsend and the Battle of New Orleans
While the east bank was an overwhelming victory for Andrew Jackson celebrated for decades as the "Glorious 8th of January," the simultaneous action on the west bank was a near disaster. Morgan's Kentucky units and the Louisiana units under his command were routed and nearly overrun by the advancing British army and it has been a sore point in American history ever since.
General Morgan caught a lot of heat, initially, from Andrew Jackson. The press, at the time, excoriated him; so much so, that he wrote a public letter in defense of his own honor describing, in detail, his actions, and that of his men. Morgan generally deflected the blame from himself and directed it toward the Kentuckians who fell under his command.
Gen'l Morgan's letter describes the rout, how his men, in panicked retreat, could not be convinced to stop and fight. Then he says,
In 1826, The Louisiana legislature elected Isaac Townsend "Brigadier General" of the 7th Brigade, 3rd Division of Louisiana Militia. He maintained the post for two years. (See page 13 of Official Journal of the Proceedings of House of Representatives of the State of Louisiana at the ... General Assembly ... published 1827 University of Chicago).
Gen'l Morgan's letter describes the rout, how his men, in panicked retreat, could not be convinced to stop and fight. Then he says,
"When the retreat became general, and no hopes entertained of being able to halt them, I rode forward and endeavored to make a stand at Jourdan's Canal, but without effect; and at Flood's Canal made another attempt, and succeeding in getting Capt. Townsend of the drafted militia of Louisiana with about sixty or seventy men of different corps to make a short stand."
Powell A. Casey also mentions this episode in his book, Louisiana in the War of 1812. He credits Capt. Townsend with slowing the British advance enough to allow time for the retreating American artillery men to spike the cannons before fleeing. One reason the British were on the West bank was to gain control of those American cannon positions which were fixed toward the main battle on the east bank. Ultimately, they wished to reach the opposing bank at New Orleans and from there, bombard the city into submission. This did not happen thanks primarily to the massive defeat on the east bank, but also, I believe, in small part to the men under Isaac's command on the West bank.
When an artillery unit is in danger of being overrun and there is no time to remove the guns in retreat, an order would be issued to spike the cannons. This action renders the cannons inoperable so that the enemy can't use the weapons on the retreating units. Spiking a cannon consists of blocking the vent and touch hole at the rear of the cannon so that ignition can't pass to the charge inside the bore. Generally, you would hammer a metal wire or spike into the touch hole and break it off even at the top making it very difficult to remove.
When an artillery unit is in danger of being overrun and there is no time to remove the guns in retreat, an order would be issued to spike the cannons. This action renders the cannons inoperable so that the enemy can't use the weapons on the retreating units. Spiking a cannon consists of blocking the vent and touch hole at the rear of the cannon so that ignition can't pass to the charge inside the bore. Generally, you would hammer a metal wire or spike into the touch hole and break it off even at the top making it very difficult to remove.
My impression is that Townsend's action during that chaotic retreat was significant. He provided cover to allow for the Artillery unit's timely retreat-- had they not been allowed to spike the cannons, the British would have controlled the canons intact, able to create havoc on Jackson's line across the river. Fortunately, by this time, the east bank victory was won and the advancing British on the west bank were compelled to retreat back to their suffering main body on the east bank.
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| Louisiana State Gazette (New Orleans) 2 Feb 1826 |
Isaac was born in 1786 to a Quaker household in New Castle, Delaware. The book, The Plains and the People, says he came to Louisiana in 1811 and that he was a hatter by trade. I haven't found any evidence that any other family came with him.
He established himself quickly in his new home. Isaac married in 1813 to 17 year old Phoebe Carl of East Baton Rouge Parish. Phoebe had been born not far from Niagara falls in Canada to an American couple that sided with the British during the American Revolution. Phoebe's father, Jonas, served as a Lieutenant in his Majesty's service under James De Lancey (The Outlaw of the Bronx) in New York during the war. He was imprisoned by the Patriots for a time and eventually escaped with his wife to Canada. After rearing four children on grant lands in Canada, the family migrated down the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, resided a short time in New Madrid, Missouri and eventually arrived at Buhler's Plains in East Baton Rouge about the same time as Isaac Townsend. While in New Madrid, Phoebe's father is found to have signed a petition, along with many of his neighbors, stating favor in Governor Wilkinson of the Louisiana and Missouri territory. In 1810, Jonas and family were buying lots in the city of Baton Rouge.
By the time Isaac participated in the Battle of New Orleans, he was established at Buhler's Plains with Phoebe and their four month old daughter, 3x great grandmother, Eliza Ann Townsend. In 1828 Isaac resigned his position as Brigadier General with the 7th Division of Louisiana Militia. He is next found as one of the incorporating members of The Plains Presbyterian Church, founded by an act of the State legislature in 1833. Isaac died two years later at age 49.
He established himself quickly in his new home. Isaac married in 1813 to 17 year old Phoebe Carl of East Baton Rouge Parish. Phoebe had been born not far from Niagara falls in Canada to an American couple that sided with the British during the American Revolution. Phoebe's father, Jonas, served as a Lieutenant in his Majesty's service under James De Lancey (The Outlaw of the Bronx) in New York during the war. He was imprisoned by the Patriots for a time and eventually escaped with his wife to Canada. After rearing four children on grant lands in Canada, the family migrated down the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, resided a short time in New Madrid, Missouri and eventually arrived at Buhler's Plains in East Baton Rouge about the same time as Isaac Townsend. While in New Madrid, Phoebe's father is found to have signed a petition, along with many of his neighbors, stating favor in Governor Wilkinson of the Louisiana and Missouri territory. In 1810, Jonas and family were buying lots in the city of Baton Rouge.
By the time Isaac participated in the Battle of New Orleans, he was established at Buhler's Plains with Phoebe and their four month old daughter, 3x great grandmother, Eliza Ann Townsend. In 1828 Isaac resigned his position as Brigadier General with the 7th Division of Louisiana Militia. He is next found as one of the incorporating members of The Plains Presbyterian Church, founded by an act of the State legislature in 1833. Isaac died two years later at age 49.
I found Isaac's gravestone in a neglected cemetery about 900 feet west-northwest of the Annison Plantation house in Zachary, Louisiana. A neighborhood is building all around the grove of woods where these graves are located. No effort has been made to maintain the graves in a very long time. Over the years, falling trees and limbs have done a number on the headstones. I have only identified three markers. Isaac's headstone is in several pieces-- some under a couple inches of dirt. After some effort, I was able to puzzle-piece it together.. The gravestone indicates Isaac's death occurred on January 28, 1835.
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| SACRED to the memory of Isaac Townsend who departed this life January 28, 1835 in the 49th year of his age |
He was survived by his wife, Phoebe who remained in the Buhler's Plains area for the remainder of her life. They had 7 children in all. The 1870 census shows Phoebe at 74 years of age living in her eldest daughter's home. She passed away the following year. The family remained active in the Plains Presbyterian Church for many years. Phoebe and Isaac's daughter, Eliza Ann wrote a history of the church in 1890.
-Lineage from Isaac Townsend-
ISAAC TOWNSEND SR (1786-1835) who married Phoebe Carl (1796-1871)
(father of)
ELIZA ANN TOWNSEND (1814-1895) who married David Young (1806-1884)
(mother of)
PATIENCE ELIZABETH YOUNG (1841-1892) who married Charles Brashear Sherburne (1841-1913)
(mother of)
ANNIE ELIZA SHERBURNE (1876-1915) who married Nathaniel William Sentell (1886-1936)
(mother of)
ANNIE LOU SENTELL (1903-1990) who married William McGinty McBride (1899-1963)
(mother of)
WILLIAM MCGINTY MCBRIDE JR. (1929-2016) who married Marjorie Catherine Keller
(father of)
JOHN SENTELL MCBRIDE
Thursday, July 5, 2018
Louisa and John McBride of Holmes County, Mississippi
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| Original Plat Map showing John's property in 1833. |
In October of 1820, Andrew Jackson and Thomas Hinds negotiated a treaty with the Choctaw Nation. It was called the Treaty of Doak's Stand as it occurred at that location along the Natchez to Nashville Road. The result provided for the settlement of a good sized chunk of land in what is now central Mississippi.
Third great grandfather, John McBride was one of the first white settlers to take advantage of the newly acquired lands. John and his family were poised in north Alabama when the opportunity of fresh farm land presented itself. Shortly after the treaty was signed, John and his wife, Louisa and their two infant children worked their way down the Natchez trace and settled on the south bank of Black Creek which defined the new border between the ceded lands in the young State of Mississippi and the remainder of the Choctaw Nation. The new land started out as Hinds County. In 1823 that area became Yazoo County, Mississippi. Today, this property is in Holmes County. A biography of their son, Rev. William McBride, speaks of his parents, John and Louisa. It states that they had no white neighbors within 70 miles and they soon became friendly with their Choctaw neighbors and learned to speak the language.
An early plat map drawn after the next land cession names and locates a Choctaw neighbor opposite Black Creek from John's property. In pencil, the survey describes a reserve set aside for Kubbi Chubbux. This was likely one of the many reserves set up for Choctaws wishing to remain on their already-cultivated lands instead of relocating to Oklahoma as prescribed in the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit. It's likely Kubbi Chubbux had lived on the property for some time before that 1830 treaty. Kubbi Chubbux and the McBride's were "across the creek" neighbors for many years.
Today the property originally settled by John and Louisa McBride is one mile west of Lexington in the middle of Holmes County, Mississippi.
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| Location of John McBride's 1833 property acquisition |
Third great grandfather, John McBride was one of the first white settlers to take advantage of the newly acquired lands. John and his family were poised in north Alabama when the opportunity of fresh farm land presented itself. Shortly after the treaty was signed, John and his wife, Louisa and their two infant children worked their way down the Natchez trace and settled on the south bank of Black Creek which defined the new border between the ceded lands in the young State of Mississippi and the remainder of the Choctaw Nation. The new land started out as Hinds County. In 1823 that area became Yazoo County, Mississippi. Today, this property is in Holmes County. A biography of their son, Rev. William McBride, speaks of his parents, John and Louisa. It states that they had no white neighbors within 70 miles and they soon became friendly with their Choctaw neighbors and learned to speak the language.
An early plat map drawn after the next land cession names and locates a Choctaw neighbor opposite Black Creek from John's property. In pencil, the survey describes a reserve set aside for Kubbi Chubbux. This was likely one of the many reserves set up for Choctaws wishing to remain on their already-cultivated lands instead of relocating to Oklahoma as prescribed in the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit. It's likely Kubbi Chubbux had lived on the property for some time before that 1830 treaty. Kubbi Chubbux and the McBride's were "across the creek" neighbors for many years.
Today the property originally settled by John and Louisa McBride is one mile west of Lexington in the middle of Holmes County, Mississippi.
John’s parents were James McBride and Sarah Ann Brock. They were married in Tennessee in 1798 and were living there at the time of John's birth in 1800. Sarah bore 3 other children before her passing in January of 1806 at 27 years of age. John's siblings were Sherwood (1802), William (1803) and Keziah (1805).
John's father remarried in 1808 to another Sarah. She was Sarah Jackson, a North Carolina native. The family moved to Kelly’s Creek, a tributary of the Elk River in today's Lincoln County, Tennessee not far from the Alabama line. Sarah Jackson McBride gave James another set of 3 boys and one girl. These half-siblings of John include, in order of birth-- Daniel (1809), George Jefferson (1810), Solomon (1812) and then finally a girl, Mary (Polly) who was born in 1814 and eventually married William Hartsfield.
John's father remarried in 1808 to another Sarah. She was Sarah Jackson, a North Carolina native. The family moved to Kelly’s Creek, a tributary of the Elk River in today's Lincoln County, Tennessee not far from the Alabama line. Sarah Jackson McBride gave James another set of 3 boys and one girl. These half-siblings of John include, in order of birth-- Daniel (1809), George Jefferson (1810), Solomon (1812) and then finally a girl, Mary (Polly) who was born in 1814 and eventually married William Hartsfield.
The 1850 census indicates that John's father, James, was born in Virginia in 1773. We know very little about James' father. What we do know comes from a letter written by John's oldest son, James Louis McBride (a grandson of James).
My great grandfather and granmother came from Ireland sometime between 17 hundred and twenty five and fifty before they married and granfather serves at prentiship as a blacksmith trade and then he married and settled in Virginia. They lived there till after the Revolution war and they then moved to Tennessee. I don't know how many children he raised. They raised several sons I never saw but 2 of them that was my granfather James and Uncle Daniel. James was my granfather. His first wife was a Brock. She had 4 children before she died, 3 sons and 1 daughter, John was the oldest, was my father, next Sharword then William next Kisey (Kesiah).
My granfather second wife was a Jackson. She had 4 children 3 boys and 1 girl, Daniel, Jefferson and Solomon and Polly (Mary).
My granfather fout threw the Revolutionary war. Great granfather and granmother lived till they was 93.
The letter indicates James had at least 3 brothers including one named Daniel. Unfortunately, James' father is not named. The letter also states James fought through the Revolutionary War but we know that James was born in Virginia in 1773 and would have been only 10 years old at the tail end of the war. I can only assume it was James' father, possibly the immigrant from Ireland, that fought through the war.
John grew up along the Elk River in south Tennessee. In September of 1814 all eligible men in the area were gearing up for war (as defacto members of the local militia)-- but John was just a couple months shy of 14 years old. His father James served and his future father-in-law served and died on the return trip from the Battle of New Orleans. The McBride farm was about 14 miles from Camp Blount in Fayetteville, Tennessee. This camp was a major mustering ground for that part of Tennessee during the War of 1812. This is where the famous Tennessee Volunteers came into being.
John grew up along the Elk River in south Tennessee. In September of 1814 all eligible men in the area were gearing up for war (as defacto members of the local militia)-- but John was just a couple months shy of 14 years old. His father James served and his future father-in-law served and died on the return trip from the Battle of New Orleans. The McBride farm was about 14 miles from Camp Blount in Fayetteville, Tennessee. This camp was a major mustering ground for that part of Tennessee during the War of 1812. This is where the famous Tennessee Volunteers came into being.
As John was only 14 years old, it was a surprise to find a general index card for a John McBride in the 2nd Reg't West Tennessee Militia. This unit raised troops from John's district. I believe this is our John as the card classifies him as "drummer." It was very common at that time for what we would consider under-age boys to serve as drummers in military units. I have yet to find specific service dates for John so I can't be certain what action, if any, he saw.
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Likely, John would have been less familiar with military life and most familiar with farm life, growing up where and when he did. The family had few neighbors around the farm at Kelly's Creek, but one family of consequence was the Joseph Street family. They had settled on Coldwater Creek within 5 miles of the McBride farm.
In 1819, John married Louisa Street, daughter of Lucinda “Nancy” Key and Joseph Street. Nancy was widowed at the time of her daughter's wedding. Joseph had died of illness three years earlier while serving with the Tennessee Militia at the Battle of New Orleans. John's in-laws had not been in Tennessee long, migrating from Georgia about 1810. A few years after John and Louisa's wedding, John's sister, Keziah, married a brother of Louisa.
About the same time as John and Louisa's wedding, much of the McBride family moved to the Florence and Muscle Shoals area of Lauderdale County Alabama. John's brother Sherwood patented land there in 1833 but had undoubtedly been there for several years as a number of the family's children claim Alabama births as early as 1820. John Louis McBride, the writer of the above letter, claimed to be born in 1821 in Alabama. It is likely John and Louisa lived near Sherwood and John's father during that time. The first child of John and Louisa to claim a Mississippi birth is Elizabeth McBride born in 1824 so we can assume the family moved to Mississippi between 1820 and 1824.
The 1840 federal census and the 1841 Mississippi census shows John and Louisa in Holmes County, Mississippi. By then, they had 9 children, 4 boys and 5 girls. They are James Louis (1820), Lucinda (1822), Elizabeth (1824), Fannie (1827), John (1828), William (1829), Selita (1832), George (1834), Daniel (1836) and Mary (1837). In 1843 they had their last child, a boy named Anderson McBride.
In December of 1855 three of John and Louisa's 10 children and their families joined a wagon train leaving Holmes County for Louisiana. They ferried across the Mississippi River on Christmas Eve. The families settled in Jackson Parish, Louisiana. John and Louisa's descendants are well represented in Mississippi and Louisiana.
Louisa passed away in 1857 on the farm in Holmes County. John, then 58 years old, married Olympia Muse Melton Walton. She was a widow originally from Georgia but had been a resident of Jackson Parish as shown in the 1850 census with one daughter, Elizabeth Walton. The census of 1850 also seems to indicate that Olympia raised her first husband's two nephews, Sidney and George McCranie. After Olympia and John's wedding, eleven year old Sidney shows up in their household enumerated in the 1860 census of Holmes County, Mississippi. George McCranie became a prominent newspaper man in northeast Louisiana and was the first mayor of Monroe (1866-67). Sidney was also a well respected citizen of Ruston.
In 1819, John married Louisa Street, daughter of Lucinda “Nancy” Key and Joseph Street. Nancy was widowed at the time of her daughter's wedding. Joseph had died of illness three years earlier while serving with the Tennessee Militia at the Battle of New Orleans. John's in-laws had not been in Tennessee long, migrating from Georgia about 1810. A few years after John and Louisa's wedding, John's sister, Keziah, married a brother of Louisa.
About the same time as John and Louisa's wedding, much of the McBride family moved to the Florence and Muscle Shoals area of Lauderdale County Alabama. John's brother Sherwood patented land there in 1833 but had undoubtedly been there for several years as a number of the family's children claim Alabama births as early as 1820. John Louis McBride, the writer of the above letter, claimed to be born in 1821 in Alabama. It is likely John and Louisa lived near Sherwood and John's father during that time. The first child of John and Louisa to claim a Mississippi birth is Elizabeth McBride born in 1824 so we can assume the family moved to Mississippi between 1820 and 1824.
The 1840 federal census and the 1841 Mississippi census shows John and Louisa in Holmes County, Mississippi. By then, they had 9 children, 4 boys and 5 girls. They are James Louis (1820), Lucinda (1822), Elizabeth (1824), Fannie (1827), John (1828), William (1829), Selita (1832), George (1834), Daniel (1836) and Mary (1837). In 1843 they had their last child, a boy named Anderson McBride.
In December of 1855 three of John and Louisa's 10 children and their families joined a wagon train leaving Holmes County for Louisiana. They ferried across the Mississippi River on Christmas Eve. The families settled in Jackson Parish, Louisiana. John and Louisa's descendants are well represented in Mississippi and Louisiana.
Louisa passed away in 1857 on the farm in Holmes County. John, then 58 years old, married Olympia Muse Melton Walton. She was a widow originally from Georgia but had been a resident of Jackson Parish as shown in the 1850 census with one daughter, Elizabeth Walton. The census of 1850 also seems to indicate that Olympia raised her first husband's two nephews, Sidney and George McCranie. After Olympia and John's wedding, eleven year old Sidney shows up in their household enumerated in the 1860 census of Holmes County, Mississippi. George McCranie became a prominent newspaper man in northeast Louisiana and was the first mayor of Monroe (1866-67). Sidney was also a well respected citizen of Ruston.
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| Obit from the 23 Oct 1868 Lexington Advertiser |
John passed away in October of 1868 in Holmes County. He was 67 years old. Mildred McBride Stinson, an early McBride family researcher, notes that John's death and that of Louisa's were attributed to pneumonia. John is likely buried on his property near Lexington, Mississippi beside his first wife, Louisa.
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| Google Earth Image of original McBride property today. |
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