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I met my second cousin yesterday.

He and his wife traveled from Texas for a reunion of his leg of the Burris family that will be held in Fort Smith this weekend.

He wanted to see St. Joe Cemetery, where his grandfather, Walter Monroe Burris, is buried with a whole bunch of our Burris clan. He also wanted to see the old homeplace where our ancestor, James Littleton Burris, built the cabin that housed so many Burris descendants.

We decided to rendezvous at a gas station at the Atkins exit off Interstate 40.
I called Dad as we left the gas station so he could meet us at the cemetery.

I had to call when we left, because within 10 minutes, we all lost all cell phone signals as we headed up into the modest mountains of rural Pope County.

As we gathered outside the cemetery gates, we had a discussion about how we were related.

My second cousin (sorry, guys but the family tree software says Carl is my second cousin, and Dad's first cousin, once removed) descends from James Littleton Burris and Elizabeth Adeline Ashmore like this:

James and Adeline Burris
George Washington (Sr) and Mary M (Wharton) Burris
Walter Monroe and Grace (Bowden) Burris
Cecil Blain and Arlie Ann (Fridell) Burris
Carl

For my dad, it goes like this:
James and Adeline Burris
George Washington (Sr) and Mary M (Wharton) Burris
George Washington (Jr) and Addie Louise (Herrington) Burris
Dad

G W (Jr) and Walter were brothers.
The old cabin that was the original homeplace was demolished in the mid 1960s and there is not even a footprint left. The old well, dug by hand, is still there, but covered.

We went on to Dad's house - just across the road - and this time, I was all ears as Dad and Carl started swapping the details of the stories they heard.

We used to grow our own wheat. Dad's dad told him about how they used to get the wheat ready to take into Atkins to the mill, and would load the wagon the night before and put it in the barn. Then, they'd get up before sunup the next morning and make the trip into Atkins to the mill. They got back home after dark.

Apparently, that trip got *really* old and my ancestors decided to have their own mill - in the barn. Carl's dad told him about how that mill was built - with leather bearings, no less (James Burris was a tanner) - and used a mule or a horse to go round and round to grind the wheat.

And wouldn't I love to have a photo or a piece of a millstone?
Carl hadn't realized that after the 1838 migration of our Burris and Ashmore ancestors from Lawrence Co., TN, where young James Burris and Adeline Ashmore walked most of the trip and fell in love, they had not immediately married.

They were married on 12 Nov 1840. I always figured it was because Adeline was only 15 during the trip, but something Carl told us made me wonder if it wasn't for a more practical consideration.

Carl said not long after the large ox-drawn wagon party - of not only our Burrises and Ashmores, but a whole bunch of their neighbors - got to Center Valley, 20 year old James Burris took off with a gun and an ax, to go find him some land and build a home.

By the time he had been gone for about three months with no word to the folks back in Center Valley, they began to fear he was dead.

Then, the sigh of relief - James came back. And the homeplace was built, and another move undertaken, this time to the fertile land next to Isabell Creek, where most of James and Adeline's 10 children were born. (The first died - most likely stillborn - and was buried in the first grave in Old Baptist Cemetery in Center Valley.)
We swapped photos during our visit, and Carl had a real gem.

Photobucket
Walter Monroe Burris and first wife, Grace Bowden, undated family photo


We have scant few photos of Walter, and none as a young man. To see Grace's image was very precious.
This journey through my family's history is a real delight.

To meet a cousin who shares much of my history - he at age 82, my dad at 75, and me at age 53...

Well, that's just beyond words.
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The 1838 wagon party from Lawrence County, TN to Pope County, AR was quite large.

Large enough that when all the families began to intermarry in the years after their arrival, their descendants wound up with a LOT of cousins.

That's illustrated quite well in the descendants of Steven John Matthews, whose children and grandchildren married Burrises and Ashmores, among others.


First Generation

1. Steven John Matthews was born in 1805 in Lawrence Co., TN. He died in 1880 in Pope Co., AR.

Steven married Sarah "Sally" Perkins on 6 Jul 1825 in Lawrence Co., TN. Sarah was born on 11 Feb 1809 in Kentucky. She died on 9 Jun 1882 in Pope Co., AR.

They had the following children:

+ 2 F i. Ardena Mahala Matthews was born on 14 Jun 1824. She died in 1858.

+ 3 F ii. Josinor Matthews was born on 10 Dec 1826. She died on 31 Dec 1896.

4 F iii. Elizabeth Matthews was born in Feb 1828. She died in 1904.

+ 5 M iv. Daniel Matthews was born in 1829. He died in 1880.

+ 6 M v. Leroy Matthews was born on 4 Sep 1832. He died on 3 Apr 1873.

+ 7 M vi. Andrew Mason Matthews was born on 14 Sep 1834. He died on 16 Jun 1916.

+ 8 F vii. Mary Jane Matthews was born on 20 Jan 1836. She died on 30 Sep 1875.

9 F viii. Margaret Matthews was born in 1837.

+ 10 F ix. Sarah Ann Matthews was born on 11 Aug 1839. She died on 13 Feb 1905.

11 M x. William T Matthews was born in 1840 in Pope Co., AR. He died on 14 Jun 1903 in Pope Co., AR.

+ 12 M xi. John Wesley Matthews was born in Jun 1842. He died in 1908.

Second Generation

2. Ardena Mahala Matthews (Steven John) was born on 14 Jun 1824 in Tennessee. She died in 1858 in Pope Co., AR.

Ardena married James Joshua Ashmore son of Andrew Sawyer Ashmore and Elizabeth McCarley on 7 Jan 1842 in Pope Co., AR. James was born on 16 May 1821 in Lawrence Co, Tennessee. He died on 18 Mar 1856 in Russellville, Pope Co., AR. He was buried in McCarley Cemetery, Pope Co., AR.

They had the following children:

13 M i. Stephen Robert Ashmore was born in 1842 in Pope Co., AR. He died in 1900 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Old Baptist Cemetery, Center Valley, Pope Co., AR.
Stephen married Martha Ann Keeton daughter of Zachariah Keeton and Catherine Anthony on 30 Sep 1866 in Pope Co., AR. Martha was born in 1848 in Tennessee. She died on 7 Oct 1947 in Newton Co., AR.

14 M ii. William James Ashmore was born on 22 Nov 1843 in Pope Co., AR. He died on 15 Jan 1913 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Ford Cemetery, Appleton, Pope Co., AR.
William married Mary Angeline Wilson daughter of Robert S Wilson and Elvira Gordon on 24 Jul 1867 in Pope Co., AR. Mary was born on 22 May 1848. She died on 24 Dec 1923 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Ford Cemetery, Appleton, Pope Co., AR.

15 F iii. Sarah Elizabeth Ashmore was born on 14 May 1845 in Pope Co., AR. She died on 11 Jul 1933 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Oakland Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.
Sarah married (1) William H Hall on 14 Aug 1859 in Pope Co., AR. William was born in 1843 in Pope Co., AR.
Sarah married (2) George Washington Russell son of James Calvin Russell and Nancy Attaway on 25 May 1870 in Pope Co., AR. George was born on 1 Jun 1851 in Coosa Co., AL. He died on 22 Jan 1932 in Russellville, Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Oakland Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.

16 F iv. Mary Louisa A Ashmore was born on 7 Sep 1847 in Pope Co., AR. She died on 21 Jan 1938 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Old Baptist Cemetery, Center Valley, Pope Co., AR.
Mary married James H Bowden son of John Sanders Bowden and Elizabeth Reynolds on 6 Jan 1870 in Pope Co., AR. James was born on 31 Jan 1842 in Marion Co., AR. He died on 27 Jun 1904 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Old Baptist Cemetery, Center Valley, Pope Co., AR.

17 F v. Martha Jane Ashmore was born on 12 May 1848 in Pope Co., AR.
Martha married John Wesley Stout son of William Stout and Anne Parker in 1867 in Pope Co., AR. John was born in 1833 in Blount Co., AL. He died on 23 Feb 1895 in Belleville, Yell Co., AR.

18 F vi. Joanna M Ashmore was born in Dec 1850 in Pope Co., AR. She died in 1932.
Joanna married George Henry Gideon son of William Gideon and Lucinda Matthews on 12 Oct 1868 in Pope Co., AR. George was born in Feb 1849 in Pope Co., AR.

19 F vii. Georgia Ann Ashmore was born on 21 May 1852 in Pope Co., AR. She died on 20 Feb 1941 in Russellville, Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Old Baptist Cemetery, Center Valley, Pope Co., AR.
Georgia married John Calvin Parker on 22 Feb 1871 in Pope Co., AR. John was born on 8 Apr 1846 in Arkansas. He died on 14 Jan 1926 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Old Baptist Cemetery, Center Valley, Pope Co., AR.

20 F viii. Margaret Alice Ashmore was born on 21 Jan 1853 in Pope Co., AR. She died on 23 Oct 1935 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Old Baptist Cemetery, Center Valley, Pope Co., AR.
Margaret married Charles S Lay Bowden son of John Sanders Bowden and Elizabeth Reynolds on 24 Dec 1868 in Pope Co., AR. Charles was born on 29 Jan 1850 in Arkansas. He died on 4 Jun 1933 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Old Baptist Cemetery, Center Valley, Pope Co., AR.

3. Josinor Matthews (Steven John) was born on 10 Dec 1826 in Lawrence Co., TN. She died on 31 Dec 1896 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Atkins City Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.

Josinor married William Reynolds about 1844 in Pope Co., AR. William was born on 26 Oct 1823 in Tennessee. He died on 14 Mar 1897 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Atkins City Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.

They had the following children:

21 M i. Thomas J Reynolds was born in 1845 in Pope Co., AR.

22 M ii. William J Reynolds was born on 9 Oct 1846 in Pope Co., AR. He died on 6 Feb 1908 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Oakland Cemetery, Russellville, Pope Co., AR.
William married Sallie R Lewis on 18 Apr 1871 in Pope Co., AR. Sallie was born on 17 Oct 1848. She died in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Oakland Cemetery, Russellville, Pope Co., AR.

23 F iii. Mary Jane "Mollie" Reynolds was born in 1849 in Pope Co., AR. She died in Aug 1879 in Pope Co., AR. The cause of death was heart disease, per 1880 mortality schedule. She was buried in Atkins City Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.

Mary married Fletcher W Thompson on 24 Feb 1870 in Pope Co., AR. Fletcher was born in 1845 in North Carolina. He died in 1891 in Atkins, Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Atkins City Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.

24 F iv. Sallie Reynolds was born in 1853 in Pope Co., AR.
Sallie married Halledger . Halledger died before 1880.

25 M v. Albert D Reynolds was born in 1858 in Pope Co., AR.

26 F vi. Julia Reynolds was born in 1862 in Pope Co., AR.

27 F vii. Virginia Reynolds was born in 1865 in Pope Co., AR.

5. Daniel Matthews (Steven John) was born in 1829 in Tennessee. He died in 1880.

Daniel married (1) Eliza Jane Strickland daughter of Zachariah Matthew Strickland and Savel G (Sable) Vick on 8 Sep 1853 in Pope Co., AR. Eliza was born in 1831 in Tennessee. She died before 1860 in Pope Co., AR.

They had the following children:

28 M i. William S Matthews was born in 1855 in Pope Co., AR.

29 F ii. Margaret Jane Matthews was born on 5 Apr 1857 in Pope Co., AR. She died on 15 Apr 1901 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Old Baptist Cemetery, Center Valley, Pope Co., AR.
Margaret married William Greenberry "George" Fridell on 25 Jul 1880 in Pope Co., AR. William was born on 5 Feb 1856 in Tennessee. He died on 5 Feb 1948 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Oakland Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.


Daniel married (2) Sarah Winfred. Sarah was born in 1831. She died in 1912 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Atkins City Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.

They had the following children:

30 M iii. Peter Warren Matthews was born on 8 Apr 1867 in Pope Co., AR. He died on 15 May 1934 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Atkins City Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.
Peter married Sammie Jane Stallings in Nov 1888 in Pope Co., AR. Sammie was born on 25 Mar 1866 in Lewisburg, Conway Co., AR. She died on 17 Jan 1899 in San Antonio, Bexar Co., TX.

6. Leroy Matthews (Steven John) was born on 4 Sep 1832 in Tennessee. He died on 3 Apr 1873 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Old Baptist Cemetery, Center Valley, Pope Co., AR.

Leroy married (1) Lavena Jane Harrelson daughter of Claiborne C Harrelson and Phebe Unknown on 16 Mar 1854 in Pope Co., AR. Lavena was born on 21 Jan 1834 in Tennessee. She died on 15 Aug 1863 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Old Baptist Cemetery, Center Valley, Pope Co., AR.

They had the following children:

31 M i. John Henry Matthews was born on 25 Dec 1854 in Arkansas. He died on 15 Nov 1941 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Oakland Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.
John married Catherine Tocoa Murdoch daughter of James William Murdoch and Gracie Ophelia Plunkett on 5 Jan 1881 in Pope Co., AR. Catherine was born on 10 Jan 1855 in Rome, Floyd Co., GA. She died on 8 Apr 1928 in Atkins, Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Oakland Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.

32 M ii. William James Matthews was born on 10 Feb 1856 in Arkansas. He died on 21 Jun 1936 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Atkins City Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.
William married Mary Frances Cochran on 7 Mar 1878 in Pope Co., AR. Mary was born on 10 Feb 1863. She died on 25 Feb 1942 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Atkins City Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.

33 F iii. Arabella Matthews was born in 1859 in Arkansas.


Leroy married (2) Mahala Elizabeth Turner.

7. Andrew Mason Matthews (Steven John) was born on 14 Sep 1834 in Tennessee. He died on 16 Jun 1916 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Atkins City Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.

Andrew married Mary E Strickland in 1853. Mary was born in 1837 in Tennessee.

They had the following children:

34 F i. Sarah E Matthews was born in 1855 in Pope Co., AR. She died in 1941 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Owens Cemetery, Waldo, Pope Co., AR.
Sarah married John Marion Waldo . John was born in 1852. He died in 1912 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Owens Cemetery, Waldo, Pope Co., AR.

35 M ii. James M Matthews was born in 1857 in Pope Co., AR. He died before 1870 in Pope Co., AR.

36 M iii. Daniel Webster Matthews was born in 1862 in Pope Co., AR.
Daniel married Eliza C MNU . Eliza was born in 1870 in Arkansas.

37 M iv. John J Matthews was born on 9 Jan 1865 in Pope Co., AR. He died on 8 Apr 1917 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Atkins City Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.

John married (1) Mattie Beckham on 6 Jan 1889 in Pope Co., AR. Mattie was born on 24 Aug 1871. She died on 30 Jan 1898 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Atkins City Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.
John married (2) Neomia Gipson in 1906 in Pope Co., AR.

38 F v. Margaret F Matthews was born in 1868 in Pope Co., AR.

39 M vi. Stephen Matthews was born in Feb 1870 in Pope Co., AR.

40 F vii. Seena Elizabeth "Bee" Matthews was born on 16 Aug 1874 in Pope Co., AR. She died on 5 Feb 1921 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Bells Chapel Cemetery, Pottsville, Pope Co., AR.
Seena married (1) R T Nelson . R T Nelson died before 1900 in Pope Co., AR.
Seena married (2) Pleasant "Plez" W Torrence in 1902 in Pope Co., AR. Pleasant was born on 16 Feb 1858 in Tennessee. He died on 23 Apr 1943 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Bells Chapel Cemetery, Pottsville, Pope Co., AR.

8. Mary Jane Matthews (Steven John) was born on 20 Jan 1836 in Tennessee. She died on 30 Sep 1875 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Old Baptist Cemetery, Center Valley, Pope Co., AR.

Mary married (1) William James Burris son of John Burris and Cynthia Ann Ashmore on 30 Mar 1854 in Pope County, AR. William was born in 1832 in Tennessee. He died on 1 Aug 1864 in Lewisburg, Conway Co., AR. He was buried in Little Rock National Cemetery, Little Rock, Pulaski Co., AR.

They had the following children:

41 M i. John James Burris was born on 20 Jan 1855 in Pope County, AR. He died on 1 Mar 1938 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Crossroads Cemetery, Appleton, Pope Co., AR.
John married (1) Mary Ann Cole daughter of James Cole and Rebecca Jane Vinson on 17 Dec 1876 in Pope County, AR. Mary was born on 5 Mar 1862 in Pope County, AR. She died on 9 Dec 1878 in Pope County, AR. She was buried in Crossroads Cemetery, Appleton, Pope Co., AR.
John married (2) Sarah L Ann Burks daughter of James Edward Burks and Nancy Mildred Patterson on 8 Jun 1879 in Griffen Flats Twnship, Pope County, AR. Sarah was born in Aug 1861 in Saline Co., IL. She died on 8 Sep 1942 in Pope County, AR. She was buried in Crossroads Cemetery, Pope Co., AR.

42 M ii. Stephen Horatio Burris was born on 12 Mar 1857 in Harmony, Pope Co., AR. He died on 29 Jul 1868 in Pope Co., AR.

43 M iii. William Hugh Davis Burris was born on 11 Dec 1860 in Pope County, AR. He died on 13 Jun 1950 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Crossroads Cemetery, Appleton, Pope Co., AR.
William married (1) Nancy Mildred Burks daughter of James Edward Burks and Nancy Mildred Patterson on 27 Jul 1879 in Pope Co., AR. Nancy was born in 1864 in Saline Co., IL. She died on 16 Aug 1886 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Crossroads Cemetery, Appleton, Pope Co., AR.
William married (2) Lucy Jane Burks daughter of James Edward Burks and Nancy Mildred Patterson on 26 Jun 1887 in Pope Co., AR. Lucy was born in 1871 in Pope Co., AR. She died on 16 Apr 1898 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Crossroads Cemetery, Appleton, Pope Co., AR.
William married (3) Frances L Burks daughter of James Edward Burks and Nancy Mildred Patterson on 11 Sep 1898 in Pope Co., AR. Frances was born in Feb 1877 in Arkansas. She died in 1970 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Crossroads Cemetery, Appleton, Pope Co., AR.

44 F iv. Sarah "Sallie" Ann Burris was born on 29 Mar 1862 in Harmony, Pope Co., AR. She died on 9 Aug 1921 in Dover, Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Old Lake Cemetery, Dover, Pope Co., AR.
Sarah married Yancey Bailey Shepard Poynter on 27 Apr 1879 in Pope Co., AR. Yancey was born in 1859 in Dover, Pope Co., AR. He died on 10 May 1937 in Dover, Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Old Lake Cemetery, Dover, Pope Co., AR.


Mary married (2) Zachariah Keeton son of Keeton and Unknown on 22 Apr 1866 in Pope Co., AR. Zachariah was born in Feb 1816 in Tennessee. He died on 21 Jun 1908 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Old Baptist Cemetery, Center Valley, Pope Co., AR.

They had the following children:

45 M v. General Grant Keeton was born in 1867 in Arkansas.

46 F vi. Lucinda Alice Keeton was born in 1869 in Pope Co., AR. She died in 1894 in Pope Co., AR.
Lucinda married Sidney Jackson Eggleston on 5 Sep 1889 in Pope Co., AR. Sidney was born on 14 Nov 1867 in Alabama. He died on 5 Jan 1960 in Ft Worth, Tarrant Co., TX.

47 F vii. Ada M Keeton was born in 1871 in Arkansas.

48 M viii. Charles D Keeton was born in 1873 in Arkansas.

10. Sarah Ann Matthews (Steven John) was born on 11 Aug 1839 in Lawrence Co., TN. She died on 13 Feb 1905 in Adona, Perry Co., AR.

Sarah married William Henderson Stout son of James Stout and Elizabeth Rackley on 20 Jun 1858 in Pope Co., AR. William was born on 13 May 1838 in Blount Co., AL. He died on 19 Mar 1912 in Adona, Perry Co., AR.

William and Sarah had the following children:

49 M i. William Marcellus Stout was born in 1860 in Pope Co., AR. He died on 3 Apr 1909 in Adona, Perry Co., AR.

50 F ii. Sarah E Stout was born in 1864 in Pope Co., AR.

51 F iii. Mary E Stout was born in 1867 in Pope Co., AR. She died on 25 Feb 1915 in Centrahoma, Coal Co., OK.
Mary married John R Linker in 1891. John was born in 1870.

52 F iv. Margaret I Stout was born in 1869 in Pope Co., AR.

53 M v. Houston Q Stout was born in 1871.

54 M vi. Stephen J Stout was born in 1872.

55 M vii. Osie Q Stout was born in 1873. He died on 22 Feb 1911 in Ada Valley, Conway Co., AR.

56 F viii. Ona I Stout was born in 1874.

57 F ix. Orrie Belle Stout was born in 1876.

58 F x. Jennie B Stout was born in 1878.

59 F xi. McKie Stout was born in 1880.

12. John Wesley Matthews (Steven John) was born in Jun 1842 in Arkansas. He died in 1908 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Atkins City Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.

John married Margaret Katherine Gray in 1866 in Pope Co., AR. Margaret was born in May 1848 in Arkansas. She died in 1937 in Pope Co., AR. She was buried in Atkins City Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.

They had the following children:

60 F i. Mary R Matthews was born in 1867 in Pope Co., AR.

61 M ii. John T Matthews was born in 1868 in Pope Co., AR.

62 F iii. Sallie F Matthews was born in 1870 in Pope Co., AR.

63 M iv. Stephen M Matthews was born on 13 Jul 1872 in Pope Co., AR. He died on 5 Aug 1880 in Pope Co., AR. He was buried in Atkins City Cemetery, Atkins, Pope Co., AR.

64 F v. Georgiana Matthews was born in 1875 in Pope Co., AR.

65 F vi. Maggie Matthews was born in 1877 in Pope Co., AR.

66 F vii. Gertrude E Matthews was born in Aug 1882 in Arkansas.

67 M viii. Cecil A Matthews was born in Nov 1884 in Arkansas.
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John S Bowden has moved near Mountain View, at which place he will teach the winter term of school.

The Center Valley school opened Monday with Prof W S Grimstead as teacher. This is the Prof's third term there, and a successful term is assured for he always gives satisfaction.

Ashmore & Loyd, our enterprising merchants, have by courteous and honest dealings built up a good trade here.

Card of Thanks
To the undersigned persons and others whose names we have not we extend our thanks for assistance given us after the loss by fire of our home near Caglesville:
Russellville: R L Lawrence, R B Hogins, S A Henry, R B Wilson, D B Richardson, Lawrence Russell, M H Baird, Twiggs Brown, Chas Henry, Tate & Peeler, W M Hillis, John Quinn and Rans Shinn.
Dover: Jas A Webb, Ruff & Truett, W H Poynter, J R Neal, J I Simpson, John Hatley, Chas Talkington and Willis Berry.
Moreland: F M Hudson and Son.
Hector: Jas Baily and Ellis & Simpson.
Appleton: J B Turnbow, J B Cawhorn, J J Richardson, George Rankin and J W Stokes.
Cagelsville: Rufus Yow, W H Hampton, R F Rainey, J B Kyle, G W Garrigus, B F Garrigus, J E Garrigus and J R Pullen.
Atkins: R C Horton, Reynolds & Bro., Will Lemley, H Bledsoe, F P Henry and Wilson & Brooks.
The above please accept our heartfelt thanks.
J K Biffle and Family
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I will update this entry from time to time as I run across all the marriage indices I've collected over the years from various Arkansas counties. The letter and number combination at the end of each record is the marriage book volume and page number.

Click for long list of counties and names... )
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In 1838, the same year that US President Andrew Jackson sent federal troops to force the Cherokee on a march over the Trail of Tears, an ox drawn wagon party of what must have been a fairly good size left Lawrence County, Tennessee, and headed west into Arkansas.

Among the emigrants were 19 year-old James Littleton Burris and 15 year-old Elizabeth Adeline Ashmore. From their union would come over 400 direct Burris descendants living in Pope and other Arkansas counties, as well as Kansas, Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas.

I’ve never been able to find out why the Burrises and Ashmores (among many others), left Lawrence County to come to Arkansas. The first bank in Tennessee, the Bank of Nashville, failed in 1826, and there were financial scandals involving railroad and school funds, culminating in the the Panic of 1837, so maybe they felt the going was as good as it was likely to get.

From the original homestead established by James Littleton Burris in Pope County, it’s 381 miles to downtown Lawrenceburg, Lawrence County, Tennessee. Traveling by wagon usually only allowed a party to cover eight to ten miles a day. According to a 1937 letter written by William Andrew Burris (one of James Littleton and Adeline’s sons), the party arrived in Pope County in November, so they must have left Tennessee soon after the crops were harvested, probably in September 1838.

The “Who’s Who” of early Lawrence County

From Goodspeed’s Tennessee History and Biographies - Lawrence County:

The first settlements made in the county were on Big Buffalo River, near Pennington’s old mill site, near the crossing of that stream by the Columbia & Wayneboro Turnpike, in 1815. The settlers came chiefly from North Carolina. Among them were Jacob Pennington and sons (Moses, Absalom, William, Isaac and David), Archibald Coulert, Joshua Ashmore, Drury Chambers, John Voorhees, David Matthews, James McMillan, George Kitchen, Phillip Chromister, Absalom Murphy, Daniel Pennington, John and William Voss, Joe Reynolds, Aquila Brown, John Lockhart, Wm. Williams, Miles Parsons, Wm. Leahorn, Wm. Burlesson, John Bromley, C. Hutchinson, John Ray, Adam Chromister, Jesse Hutchinson, Daniel Simms, Daniel Smith, John Garrison, Geo. Isham, Wm. Long, Joseph Teas, James Teas, James Horton, Thomas and James Christy, John McChish, Thomas Mitchell, the Fosters, Steels, Bryants, Duckworths, Hurleys, Williamses, Bennets, Garrets, Pollocks, Perkinses, Cunninghams, Kennedys, and McBrides. At Pennington’s the first watermill in the county was built in 1816 by Moses Pennington: a distillery was also built near the mill--the first in the county. The Primitive Baptists built the first church in 1817, near where Henryville was afterward built, of which church the Rev. John Hunter was the first minister. The first school was taught in the above church in 1817. The pioneers on Beeler Fork were John Beeler, M. Duncan, Robert Hayne, Josephus Irvine, Samuel Thomas and Thomas Paine. On Middle Fork were Bailey Alford, Samuel McLean, William Thomas, John Welch, John Chambers, J.E. Edmiston, Warren Mason, David Crockett, Daniel Levi, Jacob and William Matthews, William and Nehemiah Reynolds, John, William and John (Jr.) McAnnally, Solomon, Wm., and Noble Lucas, Martin Prewett, Aaron Cheat, Moses Holliday, Stephen Holliday, Richard Cheat, George Lucas, Patterson Crockett, Abner and Gabriel Bumpass, Jacob Adair, John Poley, Ebenezer Thompson, James Joseph Halford, W.S. Dalton, John Shirley, Levi Blackard, James Bradstreet, James Birgen, George Rodgers, W., Worten, Stephen Roland, John Smith, John Sullivan, John M. Hughes, Charles, James and Nathan Armstrong, William and O. N. Green, John Henson, John Talby, Samuel Akin and Green Depoint. On Shoal Creek and vicinity were Harlan Paine, John Buchanan, George Lucas, Archibald Morrow, Green D. Priest, Samuel Armstrong, David McIntyre, Wm. Melton, A. McLaren, David Stewart, Jacob Blythe, David Atkison, Benjamin Smith, Beasley Ingraham, John Miller, James Brooks, Wiley Brown, Robert Carr, Edward Denton, John Gest, Barney Gabill, Thomas Dollane, Henry Wellington, James and William Hearlson, Robert Hillhouse, John and Daniel McIntyre, Elisha and Elijah Milton, John Null, Andrew McLaren, Andrew Pickens, Spencer Pearce, William Smith, Nathan Spear, ( Page # 750 )Thomas Spencer, Horence Strawn, Wm. Simmons, Abraham Sizemore, Jacob Turnbow, Elijah Walker, Moses Williams, Wm. Jackson (Sr.), and William Jackson (Jr.). On Sugar Creek and vicinity there settled Jacob Brashers, John Miller, John and William Brashers, George Brenn, Joseph Baldwin, and others. On Chism Fork of Shoal Creek were Wm. Tucker, Jesse Tucker and James Welch. On Knob Creek were Pollard Wisdom, Solomon Azbell, Thomas Ethridge, John Ethridge, and others. In different parts of the county there were the Alexanders, Gaswells, Higgs, Phenixes, Lindseys, McConnells, Kilburns, Cunninghams, Stringhams, McClindens, Davises, Joneses, Grays, Tutnells, Alcorns, Hills, Haynes, Gambells, McCains, Sharps, McKinneys , Mitchells, Walkers, Whartons, Campbells, Fosters, Stricklands, Morgans, Oxfords, Fallses, Allsops, Poteets and Pennicuffs.

All the families had settled in the county previous to 1818. By actual enumerations in 1818 the enrollment shows a voting population of 458. This shows a very rapid immigration when it is considered the first permanent settlers came in 1815. The first settled mainly on the larger streams, which furnished fish for food, power to run mills, cotton gins, and other machinery, but, also, in the absence of roads, they furnished outlets to other parts of the county.
Source: Tennessee History and Biographies - Lawrence County, Goodspeed Publishing Company (1887) at pp. 1 and 2.

William Burris, father of James Littleton Burris, didn’t make Goodspeed’s “Who’s Who” list. Everything I’ve been able to find about him indicates that he was having financial trouble for quite a while before his sons left for Arkansas, as he appeared on lists of people delinquent on payment of taxes in Lawrence County as late as 1840.

William Burris was probably in Lawrence County before Joshua Ashmore (Elizabeth Adeline’s grandfather). The marriage record index for Lawrence Co., TN shows a marriage bond for William Burriss and Elizabeth Baily on January 2, 1802. (Their names were spelled on the index as I have spelled them in the previous sentence.) Elizabeth (Bailey) Burris died about 1835 in Lawrence County. William Burris also appears on a list of voters in Lawrence County in November 1818. (According to everything I’ve seen, his year of birth was about 1782, so he would have been 36 years old then.)

William Burris remarried to Catherine Davis on November 19, 1835. I lost him after the 1850 census, taken in Hardin Co., TN, in which he said he was 68 years old. In that census, he gave his year of birth as 1782 in North Carolina. I found Catherine Burris in the 1860 census, living in Hardin County, TN with her youngest child, Felix Lonzo Burris, in the home of Henry and Hannah Remp. Most Burris genealogists date William Burris’ death between 1850 and 1860.

Who came from Lawrence County to Pope County in 1838?

For the first couple of years of my research, I naively thought that only Burrises and Ashmores were in that 1838 wagon train. I knew that three Burris brothers, John (born 1804), William Carroll (born 1813) and James Littleton (born 1819), and two Ashmore brothers, Andrew Sawyer and Robert Doke Ashmore (along with their wives and children), had made the journey. Joshua Bloomer Ashmore, Sr., father of Andrew and Robert D., was not to be left behind. His pioneering spirit fully intact, at the age of 78, he climbed into a wagon and set out with the others. That would have totaled twenty-five people.

Who knows what must have been going through Cynthia Ann (Ashmore) Burris’ mind as two dozen members of her family readied for the trip. She was the sister of Andrew Sawyer and Robert D Ashmore and was married to John Burris. She was also due to deliver her sixth child, Saba Ann Burris, in February 1839, so she would have been in about her fourth month of pregnancy when the party started out.

According to Goodspeed, “…Andrew S Ashmore came to Arkansas from Tennessee in 1838, and settled in Pope County, where he bought land and made extensive improvements. In 1849 this family removed to Conway County, and settled in Gregory Township.” Source: Conway County, Arkansas - Biographical and Historical Memoirs, Goodspeed Publishing Company (1889) at page 94.

As I continued to plug people into marriages and families in the family tree software, I noticed siblings from one family marrying siblings from another, and a whole bunch of them were from Lawrence County, Tennessee. Others were from the nearby counties of Maury, Hardin and Hardeman.

The 1830 census for Lawrence, Maury and Hardeman counties in Tennessee lists the following family surnames:
Lawrence County: Ashmore, Bowden, Burris, Chambers, Chronister, McAnally, Price, Strickland
Hardeman County: Chronister, McCarley
Maury County: Austin, Duvall

The 1840 census for Pope and Conway counties in Arkansas lists the following family surnames:
Pope: Ashmore, Burris, McCarley, Price, Strickland
Conway: Austin, McCarley

I think it is reasonable to conclude that the 1838 wagon party was much larger than just the two dozen Ashmores and Burrises. I believe that it is likely a community of families made the journey to begin a new adventure in Arkansas, which had become a state only two years earlier.

And families just kept coming. Later arriving families from Tennessee included more Austins, Bowdens and McAnallys, along with Chambers, Chronisters, and Duvalls. Maybe the newly transplanted Arkansans were sending some glowing letters back to Tennessee.

Goodspeed’s “Pope County, Arkansas - Biographical and Historical Memoirs,” published in 1889, lists the Bowdens as a family who arrived later. Jackson J Bowden “emigrated with his parents to Tennessee, and there remained until 1844, when he moved to Arkansas…After coming to Arkansas Mr. Bowden settled in Gum Log Valley, but afterward purchased eighty acres of land on Crow Mountain, where he resided for six years.” Source: Pope County, Arkansas - Biographical and Historical Memoirs, Goodspeed Publishing Company (1889) at page 21.

In Hoskins Cemetery in Russellville, the back of the gravestone of William Young and Frances Allen (Pollock) Austin says, “WY and Frankie came to Ark. From Lawrence Co., TN in a train of 90 wagons. Settled on Crow Mountain (Gum Log Twp) 1849 with 6 children - 8 more born here.”

The Burris Homestead

Whether the party chose Center Valley as the stopping point, or some other spot in Pope County near Center Valley, all the families immediately began the work of setting up homes and building a community.

The new settlers must have felt as if they had arrived in Eden. As late as 1889, Goodspeed’s publication stated:

The valley lands excel in the growth of corn and cotton. The clay loams are unequal for the production of wheat, beans, peas, cabbage, turnips, etc., and fruits of all kinds; the sandy loams in the production of peanuts, rye, oats, sweet and Irish potatoes, strawberries, peaches, melons and perennial pastures…There is no country that nature has done more for. It is as fine an apple, peach and grape country as can be found anywhere. Grapes grow almost spontaneously. Source: Pope County, Arkansas - Biographical and Historical Memoirs, Goodspeed Publishing Company (1889) at pages 3 and 4.

The first land patent on the Burris homestead was filed by James Littleton Burris on March 1, 1860, and was for the 40 acres on which my parents built their home seven years ago. On September 1, 1860, James filed a patent on another 80 acres. On August 1, 1861, he filed a patent on another 40 acres, and on August 20, 1884, eleven years before his death, James Littleton Burris filed a patent on 160 acres, for a total of 320 acres. (Dad thinks he may have sold a parcel of that land to one of his brothers.)

James Littleton Burris wasn’t the only family member busily filing his land patents. His father-in-law, Andrew Sawyer Ashmore, filed his first land patent on September 1, 1856 on 49.98 acres in adjacent Conway County. Today, that land may actually be in Pope County, as is illustrated by Goodspeed in an amusing narrative about the drawing and re-drawing of Pope County lines.

At the close of the year 1825, the then Territory of Arkansas consisted of the counties of Arkansas, Conway, Chicot, Crawford, Crittenden, Hempstead, Independence, Izard, Lawrence, Miller, Pulaski and Phillips. Conway had been erected as recently as October 25 of that year. Lovely County was erected October 13, 1827, and was abolished October 17, 1828. Five days later part of the Indian purchase was added to Conway County. More than a year after the wiping out of Lovely County, Pope County was formed principally from Conway…Pope County was erected November 2, 1829. In 1840, Yell County was formed out of Pope, by making the Arkansas River the line from the mouth of Petit Jean up to the crossing of Military Road at the Dardanelle Rock; thence to the point of Magazine Mountain; thence with said mountain westward; and not until 1853 did Pope County relinquish to Yell all her lands south of the river. This concession was made under an Act of the Legislature passed January 5, 1853. Part of Conway County was attached to Pope January 6, 1853. Source: Pope County, Arkansas - Biographical and Historical Memoirs, Goodspeed Publishing Company (1889) at page 5.

Robert Doke Ashmore (Andrew Sawyer’s brother) filed a land patent for 80 acres in Pope County on September 1, 1846. His name appears on the 1847 tax list for Pope County.

Andrew Sawyer Ashmore filed another land patent (in Conway County) for 120 acres on May 1, 1874. Since that was twenty-one years after his death in 1853, I think his widow, Elizabeth (McCarley) Ashmore, or one of his sons-in-law (James Littleton or Rueben Vaughn), may have filed it in his name. Elizabeth (McCarley) Ashmore died November 3, 1875, and is buried in the McCarley family cemetery not far from Dad’s house.

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Dee Burris Blakley

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