Tennessee Confederate Civil War Pension Applications

 If you have any ancestors who served during the Civil War from Tennessee you really need to check out Tennessee Confederate Pension Applications, Soldiers and Widows, 1891-1965 on FamilySearch.  I found some records listed for men who enlisted in Alabama and Georgia but who applied in Tennessee for pensions also.

This collection has digital images of pension applications filed by Confederate veterans and their widows. Tennessee began granting pensions to resident Confederate veterans in 1891 and to their widows in 1905.  When you access this group of records it will show you application numbers only.  But don't be discouraged I have located an index to these records at the Tennessee State Library and Archives.

The index is listed by counties and then by surname.  It will give you the Soldiers Name, County, Pension # and Unit or Widow.  Once you find the name and have the Pension# all you need to do is go to that number set in the Tennessee Confederate Pension Applications and begin your search.  Because it is by number group it may take a few tries to locate that file within the group but don't give up it's really worth it!

The file for William Miller was 24 pages in length and it took from 1905 to 1911 to finally receive his pension.  Reading this file you can only imagine how frustrating it must have been for him.  Listed as deserting but he was really captured and sent to prison at Camp Morgan in Indianapolis, Indiana.

William Miller was born 15 Aug 1836 in Madison County, Tennessee and married Octavia Ralph on 2 Oct 1870 in Lauderdale County, Tennessee.  He died 13 Oct 1913 in Lauderdale County, Tennessee two years after finally receiving his pension.

Where Are Catherine and her father Peter Kaiser?

Catherine was the daughter of Peter Kaiser/Keiser/Kiser and Elizabeth. She was born 17 Feb 1824 in Northampton County, Pennsylvania. Peter and Catherine are listed in the household of William Kaiser/Kiser in Woodville, Sandusky, Ohio 1850 Census. William Kaiser is the son of Peter and Elizabeth Kaiser.

Peter Kaiser died 25 Oct. 1862 and is buried in Hessville Cemetery, Sandusky Co, Ohio. I can not locate him on the 1860 Census in Ohio. He is not listed with his son Williams Kiser in Washington, Sandusky, Ohio. No death record has been found for him in Sandusky, Ohio. Did he die somewhere else and was brought back to be buried next to his wife?  I do have photos of his headstone and his wife's Elizabeth.  I can not locate a marriage record for Catherine Kaiser in Sandusky and I am wondering if she died prior to 1860 or did she move somewhere else? Did her father Peter go with her? My hope is to locate some kind of a record on Catherine in hopes of finding out what her mother Elizabeth's last name was. There is reference that her mother's last name was Uharcum but I cannot prove or disprove it.

When Will I Be Blessed By The Luck of the Irish?

Friday, March 16, 2012

Little is known of Michael Hunter who was born in Ireland about 1837.  For over 30 years off and on  I have searched in vain to find some clues to this man. From family stories we know that Michael worked for the Railroad and latter in life he ran a saloon.

I located a Michael Hunter on the 1870 U.S. Census in Richmond Twp. Nemaha Co. Kansas, pg 58A Line#34  Hunter, Michael, 33, m, w, RR Laborer, B: Ireland, Parents foreign birth. I feel pretty good that this is my Michael Hunter but there is no real proof that it is.

Michael Hunter married Mary Adeline Spinks on 21 April 1871 in Gallatin, Daviess, Missiouri by a traveling Catholic Priest J.J. Kennedy.  This marriage changed what religion my family would be from Methodist to Catholic and many of the family are still practicing Catholics.

The marriage record for Michael and Mary Adeline Spinks was located in the records for the Catholic Church. Immaculate Conception (St. Joseph, Missouri) FHL Film # 980544

"Hunter - Spinks  April 21st, 1871.  In Matrimony Michael Hunter of Ireland and Adeline Spinks of Ohio. Witenesses Joannes O'Leary . J.J. Kennedy."  [Note: Michael listed his birth as Ireland, but all the other marriages listed on that page told where in Ireland they came from.  WHY wasn't my Michael kind of enough to share that information?]

On that same roll of microfilm FHL #980544 there were also Baptismal records included.The first entry is for Mary Adeline Spinks Hunter. She was Baptized six months before the birth of their first child. The next two entries are for two daughters that did not live very long because they do not show up on the 1880 Census with the family in Waterville, Marshall, Kansas.

1872 BAPTISM:  MO, Daviess Co, Gallatin (Catholic Church).  FHC# 980,544 pg.17.

Spinks-Hunter.  Mary Adeline Born - Baptised June 16, 1872.  Parents Isaac
Spinks from Ohio and Mary Spinks from Ohio. Sponsors. Michael Hunter.  Rev.
J.J. Kennedy.

1872 BIRTH: MO, Daviess Co, Gallatin (Catholic Church). FHC# 980,544

Hunter, Mary Ellen  Born Dec 21, 1872, Baptised Dec 31, 1872. Parents Michael
Hunter from Ireland and Mary Spinks  America, Sponsors, Thomas Curly and
Catherine Mulligan.  Rev. J.J. Kennedy.

 1874 BIRTH:  MO, Clinton Co, MO. Christening Record 10 Oct 1874.

"Elizabeth Hunter B: 21 Sep 1874  Chr: 10 Oct 1874 in Plattsburg, Clinton Co, MO"

My great-grandmother Anna Hunter was born 18 July 1877 in Richmond, Ray, Missouri but there was no record of her birth on the microfilm.

As mentioned above I found Michael Hunter and family in Kansas in 1880.

1880 CENSUS:  Kansas, Marshall Co, Waterville  FHL# 1254388   pg 200B  Nat Arch #T9-0388

"Hunter, Michel, married, white, 40 yrs, B:Ireland, Occ: Laborer,  Father B:Ireland, Mother B:Ireland,    Mary Hunter, wife, female, married, white, 25 yrs, B:KY, Father B:KY, Mother B:KY,  Occ: Keeping House,  Annie Hunter, dau, female, single, white, 2 yrs, B:MO, Father B:Ireland, Mother B:KY"

Through my wanderings on the internet one day I came across a random article in "The Kansas City Journal"

 1882 NEWSPAPER:  "The Kansas City Journal" (Missouri) Saturday, May 13, 1882 -  Wyandott and Vicinity.  http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/read/KSWYANDO/2002-09/1032413318

The Wyandott Amateur Dramatic club will give an entertainment at Dunning's Opera house on the 23d. Following is the play, "William Tell, and the farce of John Smith." The proceeds to go to Michael HUNTER, of Kansas City, Kas., who is sick.

Michael Hunter appears in the 1884 Kansas City Missouri City Directory. I have tried to locate a publication date for this directory without any success.

1884 DIRECTORY:  KS, City Directory - Public Library Kansas Ctiy, MO pg. 261

"Hunter, Michael, saloon 281 James, KCK"

We are not sure exactly when Michael Hunter died.  The family story continues with Michael asking his best friend Martin Franey to marry his wife and take care of his daughter Anna.  Martin is listed in the 1884 Kansas City, Missouri City Directory.

1884 DIRECTORY:  KS,  Kansas City - Public Library Kansas City, MO  pg.197

"Franey, Martin  bartdr.  M Hunter 281 James KCK"

We do know that Michael Hunter had to have died by the 21st of May 1884 when Martin Franey and Mary Hunter were married. How long did Mary wait before she remarried I have no idea.

 1884 MARR:  KS, Wyandotte Co, Marriage Licence. Marriage Book 4 pg 18.

"I, Francis M. Hayden do hereby certify that...on the 21st day of May 1884, of
Kansas City,...join and unite in Marriage the above Martin Franey of
Wyandotte, Kansas age 32, and Mary Hunter of Wyandotte, Kansas age 29"

Because Michael was listed in 1884 City Directory there is a good chance he lived until 1883 but we have no information on his death.

On several of our trips to visit family in Kansas City, Kansas we have tried to locate information on him with no success.  I contacted the City Clerks Office but sadly Kansas did not start recording birth and death records until 1911.  We went to The Diocese of Kansas City - St. Joseph to try and locate records but the records for the Armourdale area where we were told that the Catholic Church for that area records were lost in a flood.  We also contacted the Catholic Cemeteries in the area with no success.

I was able to contact Msgr. Martin Foreschl who had been transcribing the records of  J.J. Kennedy. He had put these records in a data base on a computer and he mailed me a copy of his findings. On this paper it stated the following:

 PARENTS: taken from a letter Msgr Martin Froeschl - 107 N Jefferson, PO Box 201 Oregon, MO  64473

"Husb Pars: Peter & Ellena ---- Wife Pars: Isaac & Mary ----"

I was so excited to receive this information but I have yet to locate and Peter and Ellena with a son Michael in Ireland.  Ireland is a big place you would think with the surname Hunter is wouldn't be that hard.

I do not know when he arrived in the United States. Did he travel with family?  Did he serve in the Civil War?

There are several Micheal Hunters who came over from Ireland.  I found one that is a possibility but who knows if it is really him.

1863 IMMIGRATION:  Possible match  -  1863 - April 20th arrived  - Ship Franics B. Cutting [Ancestry.com]

"Michl Hunter, 23 yrs, male, lab, Irish, Destination-New York, Sterage"  Listed next to him Michl Shannon 22 yrs, Irish, Hugh Doherty, 27, Irish, John Gaffney 24, Irish, Martin Lloyd 20 yrs, Irish.

My only thought is to try and trace the people that came over on the same ship or trace those listed on the 1870 census and 1880 census who were working on the railroad.  Or try and read a year and half of Kansas City newspapers in hopes of find an obituary for him.  All of these seem over whelming and would take a lot of time.

So for now I fear the Luck of the Irish is not within my grasp.  Happy Saint Patrick's Day