I am in the
process of writing a book of my lineage. Finding names, dates, and places are
nice but what I really want are the stories.
What were my ancestors like? Were they good, hardworking people; what
were their beliefs; are there criminals among them?
I use a lot of
sources; Family Search, Ancestry, Wiki Tree, Find a Grave and I also simply
Google their names. I have learned that
Find a Grave is a great resource for stories and photos.
One story that
has captivated my attention is that of Martha Adeline Morgan Baker. Martha is
my third great grandmother (I don't understand that "so many times removed"
thing). To explain it a little more
clearly, my paternal grandmother, Ella Bundy Ott, is the daughter of Mary Docia
Baker Bundy. Mary Docia is the daughter of Charles Newton Baker who was the son
of Littleton Baker. Littleton Baker
married Martha Adeline Morgan. So Martha
Adeline is my Granny Ott's great grandmother.
Littleton Baker
was born May 14, 1811 in Gwinett County Georgia. Martha Adeline Morgan was born March 3, 1814
in Gwinett County Georgia. They married
on Oct. 17, 1831 in Gwinett County Georgia when Littleton was 20 and Martha was
17. Littleton was a farmer and Martha
cared for their 14 children. All the
children except the youngest, a girl named Rispy, were born in Georgia. Rispy was born in 1857 in Searcy County
Arkansas. I haven't been able to find
out why the family moved to Arkansas.
According to information
that I found on Find a Grave by Jim Evans (who is also the 3rd great grandchild
of Littleton and Martha), Martha had been arrested on Oct. 13, 1863. She was taken to Folsom Federal Prison in
Missouri and charged with disloyalty (being a Southern Sympathizer). The story goes that Martha was a "near"
relative of Brigadier General John Hunt Morgan.
According to a blog that I found by "The Buttermaker and the
Midwife" (descendants of Littleton) Brigadier General John Hunt Morgan and
over 2000 Confederate soldiers traveled from Sparta, TN to Buffington Island,
OH wreaking havoc on Union Soldiers and
penetrating deeper into Union territory than any forces ever had or would
during the Civil War. After this raid
General Morgan was forced to surrender and was placed in federal prison. Morgan soon escaped and this is where the
story involves Martha.
Though Arkansas
was a Confederate state, many in Searcy County and the surrounding area did not
support the Confederacy and suspicions ran high among the people. A rumor soon surfaced that Martha Adeline
Morgan Baker was related to Brigadier General John Hunt Morgan. Some accounts say that Martha was taken to
Folsom Prison while others say differently.
Seventeen days after Martha's arrest she was released on orders by Lt.
Col. Blair. It is thought that her
release was because Littleton showed up and promised to keep her in check. I don't know if the Baker children made this
trip or not but Littleton and Martha were told that they could not return to
Arkansas. They planned to go to Texas
where Littleton had family. They left
under army escort and Littleton and Martha were not allowed to be alone
together. By the time they reached Fort
Scott, Kansas Martha became violently ill and died. Citing Maryn Goodson, Genealogy website,
Morgan family history; " Family oral history says she was poisoned so she
could not tell anyone how badly she was treated." Citing Jim Evans, Find a Grave, "Rumor
has it that her grave was paved over."
Jim Evans goes on to say that this could be neither proved or disproved.
He learned that the cemetery was paved over and the graves were moved. It's possible that Martha is buried in an
unmarked grave.
Littleton
returned to Searcy County and soon married Abigail Brown and together they had
five children. They later divorced which
was almost unheard of at that time.
Littleton passed
away on June 24, 1892 at Wiley's Cove, Arkansas.
Was Martha a
Southern Sympathizer? I doubt it. I also researched the Morgan family and could
find no lineal link to Brigadier General John Hunt Morgan. I believe that Martha was an unfortunate victim
of the hysteria surrounding the war. She
was 49 years old.
Thank you and credits to:
The Buttermaker and the Midwife at blogspot.com; Jim Evans, Find a Grave.com;
Maryn Goodson, Genealogy.com, Morgan family history.
