Brightwell Documents, Manuscripts, Reports, etc.

1910 SALINE COUNTY, MISSOURI HISTORY
p. 484 - 486

CLAYBOURN HILL

Although the life record of Claybourn Hill has been closed by the hand of death, his influence still prevades the lives of those who knew him best, for he was a man of exemplary character and led a model life in every respect, and few men were better known or held in higher esteem by the people of Cambridge township, Saline county, Missouri, than he.  His birth occurred in Prince Edward county, Virginia, March 7, 1801.  He grew to maturity in his native state and attended school there.  On February 1, 1831, he was married to Martha Brightwell, who was born in the same county of Virginia as that in which her husband first saw the light, her birth occurring on March 10, 1808.  She was the daughter of William and Nancy Brightwell.  Mr. and Mrs. Hill came to Saline county, Missouri, in September, 1837, making the long, arduous trip overland in a covered wagon, drawn by two horses, bringing two small children.  They located in the Good Hope neighborhood in Cambridge township, Saline county, Missouri.  Mr. Hill entering land in sections 19 and 20, township 52, range 19, and he lived there until his death.  Politically he was a Whig, later a Democrat.  He owned several slaves and raised large quantities of tobacco.  He took no part in the Civil war, but he was visited by a number of soldiers who shot him in the leg, necessitating its amputation.  The soldiers came to his smoke-house one night for the purpose of stealing his meat and he was shot when he attempted to drive them away.  He was a member of the Baptist church.

Mr. and Mrs. Claybourn Hill were the parents of five children, namely:  Mrs. Mary C. Norvell, born in Virginia, January 5, 1835, and now living in Cambridge township, Saline county, Missouri; James B., born November 19, 1836, died in California; Charles B., born December 13, 1838, is living in Grand Junction, Colorado; Mrs. Nancy M. Moss, born in 1841, is living at Reading, California; Claybourn W., born in 1847, is a druggist at Lone Jack, Missouri.  The father of these children died on March 27, 1880, and their mother passed away in December, 1849, when the children were young.  Mary C., the oldest daughter, married on August 2, 1854, Littleton Rhoades, who was born in this county in April, 1829.  He was the son of George and Ann (Hawkins) Rhoades, both natives of Virginia, the father having been born in Orange county in 1803.  They moved to Howard county, Missouri, about 1826, moving to Saline county soon afterward, locating in Cambridge township, in the Good Hope settlement where Mr. Rhoades entered land, finally becoming prosperous, owning several hundred acres of land, also a large farm in Atchison county.  Mr. Rhoades was a Democrat and he held the office od {sic s/b of} justice of the peace for a number of years, and, having shown that he was well versed in the law and possessed all the qualifications for a successful public servant, he was elected judge of the county court of Saline county for a period of two terms.  He was one of the leading citizens of the county in every respect.  He owned eighteen or twenty slaves who cultivated his extensive acres of tobacco and hemp.  Mr. Rhoades was a deacon in the Baptist church for a number of years, in fact, a pillar of the local church for many years, having been a member of the church from early youth.  Mrs. Rhoades died about 1837, leaving four children, one having died in infancy, another in childhood.  Of the four who grew to maturity, three were married; they were:  Littleton, Mrs. Sallie Ford, and Richard M., the last named living in Atchison county, Missouri, he being the only one of the children living at this writing (1909).  George Rhoades was twice married, the second time in 1838 to Jane Hall, who was born in Indiana in 1814, and to this union nine children were born, eight of whom are living at this writing, namely:  Dr. Marcus M., born in 1839, living at Graham, Missouri; George R., born December 3, 1843, lives in Cambridge township, Saline county; Mrs. Henrietta Gilliam lives in Slater, Missouri; John T., lives in Montana; Mrs. Mary C. Mead lives in Slater, Missouri; William R. also lives in that town engaged in the drug business; Ethelbert L. is living in Miami township, Saline county; Mrs. H. J. Ely, of Slater, Missouri.  The death of George Rhoades occurred in Cambridge township and that of his wife on the old homestead in 1890.

Littleton and Mary C. (Hill) Rhoades, who married August 2, 1854, soon afterwards moved to Atchison county, Missouri, locating on a farm there where they remained until Mr. Rhoades died December 8, 1857.  They were the parents of three children, namely:  John R., born in Atchison county, in July, 1855; Eugene was born December 2, 1856, and is residing in Atchison county, where he has served as judge of the county court for two years; Mrs. Mary L. Maupin, who was born on February 21, 1858, also lives in that county.

Mrs. Rhoades remained in Atchison county, Missouri, after her husband's death, until in June, 1858, when she returned to her father's home in Saline county, Missouri, where she remained until 1872.  She married a second time, her last husband being Daniel S. Norvell, who was born in Buckingham county, Virginia, February 6, 1813.  He came to Saline county, Missouri about 1838, locating in Cambridge township where he entered land, having owned about three hundred acres at the time of his death.  Previous to the Civil war he was a slave owner.  He belonged to the Baptist church.  He was a widower when he married Mrs. Rhoades, his first wife having died in September, 1871; they were the parents of ten children, four of whom are living at this writing.  Mr. Norvell and his second wife made their home on his farm until his death, June 1, 1891.  No children were born to them.

Mrs. Norvell, who received a widow's dower in the estate of her last husband, lives on the farm, occupying the old homestead, at present owning fifty-seven acres. She is a member of the Baptist church, and, although well past the meridian of life, she is active and, with the assistance of her grandson, T. Forest Rhoades, conducts the affairs of her farm. She is a kindhearted, Christian lady and one always feels better after meeting and conversing with her.  She is very fond of her children and takes a great interest in their welfare.  Her second child, Eugene Rhoades, is a progressive farmer in Atchison county, married and has four children, all boys.  Mrs. Norvell's youngest child, Mrs. Mary L. Maupin, also of Atchison county, is the mother of eleven children, all living.

Typed copy submitted by Avlyn Dodd Conley [ADC]
Online transcription by Susan Shields Sasek.

Please support and help free genealogy prosper by sharing your records and/or research - if you can't put it online, find someone who can. Click this link to view a list of the contributors to this site and those who have helped me in my research. Always be sure to give proper credit to others (you wouldn't want your work plagiarized by others would you?), and document your sources fully whenever possible -- genealogical information without sources is considered unreliable.

The majority of the information, images, etc. on this web site is not public domain, it's placed here to help other genealogists with their personal research use only. The data and images are copyrighted either by myself, the submitter or the source. NO PORTION of any of this web site (including the visitor & queries section or message board) may be copied, recopied onto any web site (or part thereof) for any purpose; redistributed, included or used in any format for any public, commercial or profitable purpose without written permission of the copyright holder for each instance.

Page Updated on: 4 Mar 2004	Page Visitors:	c. Susan Shields Sasek