Spiritualism and John Alexander

 

John H. Alexander was my second great grandfather. He was born in 1842, the son of John H. and Mary Frances (Carter, Lucas) Alexander.  At the time this article was written, he was about 36 years old and married to Amanda Atkins. They had 3 children at this time, Sarah, Charles aka. Ed, and John Everett. They would go on to have 3 more children, my great grandfather being one.

I was delighted and really amused when I found this. Particularly when you know the smorgasbord that is my family.

To start with, Spiritualism has existed for thousands of years, but the modern spiritualist movement in the U.S. began in the 1840s in New York. Indiana has had a large community of spiritualists since the very early days. New Harmony, Indiana and Camp Chesterfield, Indiana are still going strong. The article below is self-explanatory. Transcription below the clipping.

Modern Spiritualism.

Our good friend, JOHN GORBET, sent us the particulars of discussions which came off at the Gorbet school house on Thursday and at the Hays school house on Friday, upon the proposition that "Spiritualism is the work of the devil." John Gorbet and other advocated the affirmative and John E. Murphy and others the negative. At the first meeting, Chris Runger presided, while George Weddle and Joseph Banks officiated as Judges. At the second meeting, John Alexander was called to the chair, and Michael Isaacs and Wm. Hays chosen as Judges. In both cases, the Judges decided unanimously for the affirmatives. Mr. Gorbet also sent numerous scriptural references upon which his arguments were based, thus showing that he was well fortified with biblical authority to sustain the affirmative proposition. 

It sounds like they were having some fun with it, at least I hope so. I would have loved to be in the debate! I love 'poking the bear'. I'd have been on the losing side, though perhaps it would not have lost if I had been there. 

Little did John know his grand-daughter would come to be very close to her father-in-law who was a Spiritualist, Medium and Table-walker, and still be a very devoted Christian.  

This is not the first time John Alexander and William Hays were mentioned in an article. They were often together. I believe they were good friends, though that can never be carved in stone. My great grandfather was born in 1880. His name was William Hays Alexander. It can never be 'set in stone' sure, but I bet I'm right.

Source: Newspapers.com; Modern Spiritualism. Jackson County Banner, Brownstown, Indiana; Thursday, February 7, 1878; Page 4.

An Explosion of Death

 

This is just another GenWeb story.  I've been trying to get new data on my newest adoption, Leslie County, Kentucky. The first thing I decided to tackle was the Leslie County Mine Fatalities. So, I always take a peek at how I did it in the other counties so that things stay uniform. First discovery of the day is: I misspelled fatalities on the other two sites. So, I was ready to begin after I fixed that dumb mistake.   

Coal was called "Black Gold". Leslie County is deep in Appalachia, real coal country. It really is "black gold" only to the mine owners. To the miners it was "black death".  If you could live to retirement age, there was the looming diagnosis of Black Lung.  At least 16% of miners suffer from that in their retirement years.  Most of the time mining was the only job around. 

I transcribe from the government list the names of the men that died in mine accidents up to about 2005 or 2006, date of death and cause of death. When I got to December 30, 1970, I just kept typing a different name, same date and same cause. Explosion. It went on for 38 entries. I could not leave that. I just googled December 30, 1970 mine explosion, not even saying where.  It was the Hurricane Creek mine disaster just outside the town of Hyden, in Leslie County, Kentucky. The mine was inspected in November and found to have so many problems it should have been shut down. But, jobs, you know. The inspector told the owner that it would be shut down if they did not have everything fixed by the December 22nd inspection. I could just imagine a wink, wink, nudge, nudge. That inspection did not happen. Not enough inspectors, of course. The men knew it was going to be a disaster at some point. They had etched their social security numbers on their belts so they could be identified. In the end, for most of the bodies, that was exactly how they were identified. In a court of law, the owner, Charles Findley, was found guilty of the deaths in the mine. He paid a fine and walked. There is a lot on the Hurricane Mine disaster online and it is easy to find, so I won't go on and on.

Sometimes, what I do is so emotionally exhausting. This was one of those days. The men are aged from 16 to 60. Several sets of brothers, including a set of twins. 

In some cases, and this was one, I make it a point to read aloud each name, so that for a moment they live again, and know they are not forgotten.

Walter Bentley

Billy J. Bowling

Grover Bowling, Jr.

Teddy Bush

Fred Collins

Kenople Collins

Lonnie Collins 

Alonzo Couch 

Holt Couch 

Howard Couch

Carl Ghent

Alfred Gibson

Lawrence Gray

Theo Griffin

Lester Harris

Delbert Henson

Price Henson

Walter Hibbard

George Holland

Ben Hoskins

Frank Hoskins

Kermit Hubbard

Jim Jones

Rufus Jones

James C. Minton

Lee Mitchell

Russell Morgan

Earl Phillips

Stanley Roberts

Arnold Sizemore

Wilbert Smith

Jeffie Spurlock

Albert Wagers

Armond Wagers

Arnold Wagers

Elmer White

Andrew D. Whitehead

Denver Young 

We're all family, really.

The Character of Samuel Allman

 I write this time about my fourth great grandfather, Samuel Allman. He was the son of Philip Jonas Allman and Lucinda VanDeveer. He was born in Virginia.

He first married Rebecca Ann Hatton in 1835 in Bartholomew County, Indiana. Together, they had 6 children: Mary Ann, aka. Polly Ann, John William, Minerva, Nancy Ellen, Philip and Rufus. Mary Ann is my third great-grandmother. Rebecca died in 1851. He then married Mary Jane Hall in 1852.  They had 6 children as well: Sarah, Pernette, Samuel A. Jr., William Riley, Joseph and Lucinda. I grew up and had relationships with the descendants of William Riley Allman. Oddly enough, I did not know how we were related until I began researching. My mom and dad were married by the son of William Riley, and I was first married by his grandson. I know, it's a "strange but true" thing. It was a small town. Even more strange, his grandson was a new preacher, and we were his first marriage, and of course, failure. Hope we didn't dent him. 

Any-whoooo, this is about Samuel, well, actually Sam. He was an extremely interesting man. Ancestry has his dates a mess and a photo of his grandson, Samuel Martin in place of an actual photo of Sam Allman. Sam Martin was the son of Mary Ann Allman, Sam Allman's daughter. and again, my third great-grandmother. I'd love to sit and listen to her father tell his stories. I bet he had good ones! This article will give you a sense of who he was. I have transcribed it below the clipping.

Unfortunate Sam Allman. (January 29, 1873)

The cabin of Samuel Allman, on the other side of the river, took fire one night recently, and burned to the ground, together with all the furniture and bedding in the same. with nowhere else to go, Sam turned his live stock from his rude stable, and with his family has occupied it ever since. A subscription paper was passed around last week for the relief of the distressed family, and quite a number of our citizens contributed liberally. Sam Allman is a poor man, but his character for honesty is above reproach. With his unshorn face and unkempt hair, Sam presents an uncouth appearance. "Too proud to beg and too honest to steal," "his rags and tags" he does not "try to conceal," and it may truthfully be said of him that he "belongs to the shabby genteel."

As illustrative of the character of Sam Allman, we will relate a little anecdote. One day a few years ago, before the jail on Walnut street was destroyed by fire, as Sam was passing that edifice, some of the prisoners ventured to tantalize him. Sam felt that he was insulted, and pausing, he looked up to the grated window, and thus addressed himself to his deriders: "Boys," said he, "poverty is no crime, else I expect as how I mought be peeping through iron bars myself. I tell you what it is, I'd rather be a mighty sight poorer and worse off than I am, and go to bed hungry every night, with an honest conscience to make me sleep sound, than swap places with the best one of ye - ye trifling spalpeens and dishonest vagabonds. The next time I come along this way, I shall bring my rifle, ready cocked and primed, and I'll tell you what it is, the first one of you that opens his mouth at me will drap, and the coroner's jury will give a verdict, 'shot plumb through the right eye by Sam Allman, who never misses his mark.'" Sure enough, Sam carried his trusty rifle the next time, and walked slowly past the jail, taking the middle of the street that the prisoners might have a good view and that he might have a good range; but no taunts greeted his ears, and therefore Sam was not compelled to shoot a prisoner "plumb through the right eye," which he undoubtedly would have done had he been again insulted. 

Sam was listed as a farmer in every census. The bottoms are still the most fertile area of the county. The yearly floods enrich the soil. I think he was a very rich man. His children were all devoted to him, all 12 of them. Mary Ann had 2 children with her first husband, and she named them Samuel and Rebecca. He was respected in that small town, and many of his descendants are still there, living good lives.

Transcription of his death notice.

Death of Samuel Allman. (November 16, 1876)

It is with regret we chronicle the death of SAMUEL ALLMAN, who for many years resided in the bottoms on the west side of the river. In appearance he was a perfect picture of the original back woodsman. His rifle and his dog were his inseparable companions. As a marksman he was the equal of David Crocket or Daniel Boone, and it was but seldom that his game did not drop at the pull of the trigger of his faithful gun. Throughout life, he remained a poor man, and a rude log cabin has been all the home he and his family have ever known. Yet he was happy and contented, perhaps far more so than many who fared better in this world's good. He was a strong Democrat, and it grieved him that he was not able to come to town on election day to vote for Tilden and Hendricks. He was possessed of a good disposition and was strictly honest. He was about 60 years of age.

Just for the record, I love Perry Mason. You know, the early black and white show. There is this one episode which always makes me think of Sam. I don't know the name of it, but it has a character that is like what I imagine he was. He has his rifle ready, his dog Hardtack at his side and is very honest and 'old world'.  Of course, Perry was his lawyer, so he did not do it. Just funny how sometimes a character in a movie, tv show or book reminds you of an ancestor. Well, it does me. I might be nuts, though. 

-A little explaination:

spalpeen:  Irish word, means a rascal.

Tilden and Hendricks ran against Hayes and Wheeler in 1876. Didn't go well for them. 

Sources:

Newspapers.com; Unfortunate Sam Allman: Jackson County Banner, Brownstown, Indiana; Wednesday, January 29, 1873; Page 5.

Newspapers.com; Death of Samuel Allman: Jackson County Banner, Brownstown, Indiana; Thursday, November 16, 1876; Page 5

Why Family History?

 I am the coordinator of 5 USGenWeb sites.  Basically, I am a web mom. I try to get new data up as I can. Submissions are few and far between. At least a year ago I added Find-A-Grave, Gold Star Veteran, and sometimes other links to the list of WWII casualties on one of my sites. I had started on the second county list some time ago, and I finally got back to finishing it off. 

It is harder to do right now, as my feelings are raw and painful, even full of fear, knowing how things may soon be. We are standing at the precipice. Do we continue to soar, or do we take a step off the steep cliff into chaos and darkness.  We have choices, one choice does not understand freedom or making a sacrifice for the freedom of ourselves or others, the other choice is service, respect and the fight to stay free. One wants to jail or kill those who disagree, the other is freedom to disagree and still be friends or family. Democracy in fact. But the friends and family thing has disappeared, the circles have been broken. Can we fix it?

I have several ancestors that fought (for the right side) in the Revolutionary War. You know the one? People with a dream of freedom, throwing off that suffocating kingly blanket, standing free, on their own. They did this without a standing army, having faith that their descendants would live free. They fought valiantly, not even sure that they would live to see the results of their actions. But they had faith that they were fighting for a just cause. If the dream had failed, the Revolution lost, we would never have known having choices.

All of the wars we have fought were for the same reason. In hindsight some were indeed sketchier than others. But our boys went in fighting to keep us or others free from tyranny. Today it suddenly occurred to me that if we step off that precipice, they all will have died for nothing. They just postponed the darkness, that's all. If WWII had been lost, if our boys had said, nope, not gonna fight, life would be different. The enemy would have come here. Its goal was the world.  Its darkness is slowly seeping into our bright future, it takes a little freedom here and a little there, dimming the light of freedom. 

 Every family is touched by war at some time. Being a family historian, you can see the broken branches that war caused. You know the struggle so many went through to get here, to be free to make their own choices, to bring light to the darkness of their lives. You've recorded the sacrifices families made because they believed in the dream of democracy. All people need to know their family history. It's very important, now more than ever.