|
|
|
Tennessee and Madison County In 1796 Tennessee became the 16th state of the union. Madison County, Tennessee was created on November 7, 1821 from lands ceded by the Chickasaw Indians. Jackson was the County Seat. Madison County is generally level and lies at the head waters of the Forked Deer River on the plateau between the basin of the Tennessee and Mississippi Rivers. The terrain consists of gently rolling hills, plenty of water, and attractive wooded scenes. The soil is very fertile and is generally of dark color having a mixture of clay and sand - among the many staple products are cotton, corn, fruits, vegetables, livestock and soybeans. The route followed by the Early settlers into Madison County were the ancient trails of the mound-builders. It is said that the numerous mounds in Madison County indicate that this section was once the home of a large community of prehistoric people. About ten miles southeast of Jackson, near the town of Pinson, lies a prominent mound called "Mount Pinson", the base of this mound is 300 feet by 370 feet, and its flat summit is 38 by 60 feet. Later, these ancient trails were followed by the Chickasaw One trail ran from Cisco near Pinson in Madison County south to Bolivar in Hardeman County, into Mississippi and Alabama. This trail came to be known as the "West Tennessee Chickasaw Trail". Another trail of the Chickasaws was known as Glover's Trace. It crossed the Tennessee River after running down Trace Creek in Humphreys County, and turned south through Henderson and McNairy counties into Mississippi towards the towns of the tribe. There are two conflicting reports as to the "first" to navigate the waters of Madison County. According to "Historic Madison" by Emma Inman Williams, the first navigators were James Caruthers and William E. Butler, with several other men, who supposedly came on a keel-boat on a prospecting tour in 1819. According to "Tennessee Cousins" by Worth S. Ray, an early merchant of Jackson, Barney Mitchell, was said to have navigated the first boat up the Forked Deer River in about 1822. Mitchell, an industrious Irishman, landed his cargo of groceries and merchandise of all kinds from the keel boat at the mouth of Sandy Branch, about a mile west of Jackson. It is said that he located his store on LaFayette St. between Central Alley and Market Street. The Houston's arrive in Madison/Henderson Counties We believe that the Houston's arrived in Madison county about 1822. At this point we feel that John Houston led his family there along with at least the Patton and the Wilson families. The earliest land grants show that a Robert Houston was granted (#17255) 100 acres in G District in 1822 in Madison County. Robert Houston was also granted (#22896) 60 acres in Henderson County in 1824. This is the beginning of the Houston’s in the area, and how Robert is related is not known. This quote if from the Madison County Web Site: "Cotton Grove was located about eight miles from Jackson, and was the first settlement by white people in Madison County, Tennessee. It was established about 1819 by John Hargrove, Roderick and Duncan McIver, Elijah Jones, John and Thomas Brown, and William Woolfolk. Doctors Robert Fenner and McKnight came soon after. In 1834 Cotton Grove had its own post office and stagecoach stop. Also located there were Masonic Lodge Number 153 and Miss Fisbie’s school for girls. Nearby was the Old Salem Church and Cemetery (recently declared a Civil War Historic Site)." From Historic Madison, The Story of Jackson and Madison County Tennessee, by Emma Inma Williams, 1946, pg. 390, and is a quote from the Jackson Southern Statesman, May 21, 1831: "Colonel John Houston of Cotton Grove, either accidentally or on purpose, neglected to remove his spurs before an affray that took place on the porch of Dr. Fenner's store. Houston spurred his enemy 'in the flank and the rears'." Whether this is our John Houston, father of Martin is unknown at this time. If this is our John Houston, he was not living with his wife Jane (Patton) Houston in the 1830, 1840, or 1850 census, as Jane was enumerated only with her children in the next county, Henderson. There is no census record of any John Houston in the 1830 census of Madison or Henderson counties. From the early tax records of Madison County, in their Tax Book, Volume L, we find that our ancestors all arrived fairly soon after the formation of the county in 1822. Martin Huston (sic) first paid taxes in 1825, and several other Huston’s paid taxes on the same page—12 in 1828: Martin ($.50), Robert ($.50), William ($.50) and Wilson ($.50). In 1830 Robert, Richard, John and Hugh Huston (sic) all paid taxes. How all of these men are related is currently under research. We know that Martin P. Houston lived in Madison County, Tennessee with his wife Eliza Drucilla (Garnett) Houston until at least 1840. In that year there is a recorded deed of the sale of 333 acres by Louisa Houston et al and Sarah C. Houston et al. Louisa Houston is Martin’s wife, and is the name she uses instead of Eliza. About 1845 Martin died, and the family ended up in Henderson County, next to Madison. Eliza had remarried to a Mr. Walls, and then lost her husband because in the 1850 census of Henderson County the head of the household is listed as Eliza Walls (32), along with the 7 living children of her marriage to Martin. Her age was recorded incorrectly, and she was pregnant with a son from the Walls marriage. She later married again and changed her first name to Louisa. There is no record of the marriage to a Mr. Walls, but this may be due to the loss of the courthouse documents in various fires in Henderson County. What is also very interesting about this is that there were no Walls living in Madison County or Henderson County at that time. But there were a lot of Walls in Alabama. What is also curious is that the youngest son James who was born in 1845 states that he was born in Alabama. Much confusion to be researched. Henry, the oldest living son, was listed as a farmer at the age of 16 in the 1850 Tennessee census. In February of 1853 Henry married Mary A. Jordan the daughter of A. J. Jordan and Martha Ussery/Essery/Useny. A. J. Jordan owned land in Madison County, as his name appears on several deed transfers. In 1856 Henry, his wife and infant daughter Mary Laura Houston left for Texas. His younger brother Charleston (known as Uncle Charlie) also came to Texas, but it is not known at what time. He was suppose to have had two children named Clara & John. In the 1860 census of Madison County, Tennessee, Jordan Houston is married to Amanda Scarborough, age 18. I have a lot of work to do in this area.
In 1861 The War of Northern Aggression, as it was referred to in the South, began. The male children of Martin P. Houston were all involved. The oldest living son, Henry Wilson Houston, had moved to Texas and will be dealt with in the next chapter. The other 5 all served for the South in the war in Tennessee. The first to join were Theophilus (age 20) and James (age 16). They were part of the 12th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, commanded by Col. Robert Milton Russell, which was organized in May of 1861 and assembled Jackson, Madison County, TN. The regiment went into camp at Trenton, Tennessee, moved from there to Camp of Instruction at Union City, Tennessee, and was there in July of 1861 accepted into Confederate service. Theophilus most likely died during the war, and James came out a 2nd Lieutenant. Charleston and Jordan (who was married) are not recorded until May 1, 1864 when they enrolled in Newsom’s Regiment 18th Tennessee Cavalry in Jackson, Madison County, Tennessee. It is not known at this time if Jordan survived the war. Charleston did, and it is believed he moved to Texas after the war. John Houston, the last son to be mentioned is more difficult to trace because of his name. In checking the Confederate Records of Tennessee, there was only one John Houston that could have been our John. He was John W. Houston, Private B Company, Detailed Conscript. A detailed conscript was probably a soldier, drafted into the service and sent to an area, supply base or similar location to perform military duty. Most did not want to serve and when drafted, some could pay a bounty (North) for others to take their place. Many simply did not report (South) and were chased by conscription hunters. We have no further records of John at this time.
|
