Biography of Evaline Allen Guthrie Ramsey

Evaline Allen Guthrie Ramsey:
A BIOGRAPHY Evaline Allen Ramsey, b 1/11/1833 in Greene County Illinois about 40 miles of present day St. Louis. Her family, (her father, mother {who immigrated from Tennessee} herself and 4 brothers) moved to Lawrence County, Missouri where her brother John Allen as a young surveyor with his assistants, laid out Mt Vernon in 1845.
Evaline was engaged to William Thomas Ray (son of William and Mary Ray) who was killed before the wedding.
She married John Guthrie (who had 6 children from first wife Missionah) in May 8, 1855 with Robert Watters, M.G. officiating the service. They had her first child 9 months later. The following year she lost her mother, had a second son and lost her husband on Aug. 5, 1858.
In 1860 she married Edmond Ramsey (who had 4 children from a previous marriage to Mary Caroline Patton) and started another family. Soon after Lily was born the nation declared Civil War. Her brother John Allen was a Colonel in the Union Army where he commanded a regiment.
Harriet was born in 1862.
Edmond Luther was born in 1864, nine months later the war ended and five days later President Lincoln was assassinated.
In the following 3 years, Evaline had 2 more children, Elbert Allen and Iretta Anice. Her second husband died when he was 56.
At age 35, Evaline had 7 children, lost both parents, seen her nation at war, heard the president was killed and a widow twice over.
Her brothers, who were living in Texas, sent word for her to bring her family to where they were and she would be provided for.
A major growth was about to occur there. Under the act of congress July 27, 1866 and under the general railroad laws of Texas, the Texas and Pacific Railroad Company was incorporated March 3, 1871. The line was to be built from the eastern boundary of Texas to San Diego, California. and follow as nearly as possible, the thirty second parallel. According to the contract with the state, the railroad was to receive sixteen sections of land for each mile of railroad constructed. Whether this was general knowledge throughout the United States business community is unknown, but the Allen brothers certainly knew it.
In the fall of 1872, Evaline Ramsey loaded three wagons in Lawrence County, Missouri, told her nine married step-children good-bye, promised to visit them in eight years, and pointed her teams toward Texas. With her were her seven own children, Thomas A. Guthrie, 16 (who was stricken with a crippling illness two years prior), Eliza Isabell Guthrie, 14, and the rest were Ramsey's, Lilly Lucretia, 12, Harriet Evaline, 10, Edmund Luther, 8, Elbert Allen, 6, Iretta Annis, 4, also Tommie Stevenson and Wesley Tarter, young men who wanted to go to Texas.
It snowed a little the first night. There were rivers to ford, no bridges, no roads, just traces through the wilderness. Many misadventures and three weeks later they arrived at the home of her oldest brother, William M. Allen, ten miles southwest of a place on Palo Pinto Creek where a town called Strawn would start eight years later. Three other brothers were building a house where they all could live six miles east of Rush Creek Springs. They moved in March. It was a two story house, two rooms upstairs with a hall between. That was where Joe's hounds chased a bear through the hall. Once Sam was on the roof building the chimney. He didn't like the way the dogs were barking. he called for the spyglass to see if there were Indians around. Once they found moccasin tracks in the yard. The men rushed out to see if the horses were gone. They were. One went down to the neighbors to borrow horses. The others got busy molding bullets. They chased the Indians to the Pecos, but thought best not to cross as that was Indian headquarters.
When Rush Creek flooded, Evaline stood in an upstairs window and watched her washtub going down the creek rocking "like a horse a loping".
As the boys got older, they lived by improving and reselling raw land. Eliza married a Thornton and moved to Mississippi. Lillie married John Long. Tommie was postmaster at Strawn. Thurber married. Mingus married and raised 2 daughters.
In 1880 Evaline sold a homestead to make her promised visit to Missouri not knowing the town of Thurber would build over it. Driving through the woods in her wagon, she saw a new store, stopped and bought hominy grits. the man said it was a commissary for the railroad. and the town would be called Strawn.
On June 26, they started the long trek to Missouri crossing the Brazos near Thorpe Springs. They camped in the wagon yard at Fort Worth. Their little dog, Trusty, left them and went back home and refused to let the new owner, Mr. Carlile, in the yard till he had to be shot. They crossed the Red at Denison. A young man, John Curtis, rode with them from Fort Worth and got off at Boggy Depot. In the Ozarks, they heard an astonishing sound. the boys tore through the timber to look. It was Roaring River pouring out of a bluff.
They spent the summer visiting. the boys worked wherever they could. When they got back, the railroad was built past Strawn. Later they moved to Strawn. Harriet married Wade Ellis. Edmund married Emma Jane Flemmons, Elbert married May Franklin, Iretta, who was blind, never married. Evaline died at New Cedarville north of Lone Camp.
Evaline had given birth to 7 children, raised 10 step children, 3 of her brothers children and cared for a number of other children....