Wilson Family History

Oct 2009

ames Wilson, a son of William and Mary Ann Wilson, is the only member of his immediate family known to have remained in Kansas after relocating there, although he was joined by a few of his siblings in the early days. After gradually moving across the state of Missouri with his parents until early adulthood, he then struck out on his own to become one of the earliest settlers of Brown County, Kansas.

Missouri

James Lee Wilson was born February 1830 in eastern Missouri. The location was probably Liberty Township in Washington County where his parents were listed as residents during the census of the same year. However, he is first found listed by name on the 1850 census of nearby Franklin County. Within the next few years, he and his family relocated again to Holt County on the western border of the state. It was here that James married Barilla Proctor on 26 Apr 1855. Their wedding was almost certainly part of a double ceremony since her brother, Washington J. Proctor, was married on the same day. Washington's bride was Malissa Decker who was well acquainted with James as well, since she was a step-daughter to one of his cousins and had lived next door to the Wilson family back in Franklin County.

Settling in Kansas

Site of original farm of
Washington J. Proctor
and second farm of
James L. Wilson, 2006 In a move somewhat typical for young men of their time, James and Washington evidently secured land in preparation for their impending marriages. They did so by crossing the Missouri River and claiming 160 acres each in recently established Kansas Territory. The exact date this occurred might be known. During the 1859 territorial census, both reported that they had settled in Brown County in May 1855. Nearly forty years later, however, a local newspaper article stated that James claimed to have settled here slightly earlier on 18 Mar 1855. In addition, he also claimed to have been the first white settler in the county.^note1 As was the norm, they didn't officially receive patents, or legal titles to public land, for their farms until several years later on 16 Jul 1860. James' land was the southwest ¼ of Section 5, Township 3, Range 18 (SW¼ S5 T3 R18) which is now located on School Street approximately one mile west of the town of Robinson.

James probably wasn't the first, but the fact that James was at least among the first settlers is substantiated by the book, History and Statistics of Brown County, Kansas, published in 1876 by Major E. N. Morrill who was an early Clerk of Court for the county and later became governor of the state. James L. Wilson is included in his listing of the county's earliest pioneers as arriving in the summer or fall of 1854, although James' owns claims dispute this. Morrill goes on to tell that James arrived in the county with William and Thomas Duncan and another man named _ Farmer. These men were part of James' extended family. James' older sister, Jane Wilson, was married to Thomas who in turn was a first cousin of William.^note2 Thomas also had a sister named Nancy Ann who at the time was married to James Farmer, probably the unnamed "_ Farmer". Since she later remarried to James B. Fitzwater, a first cousin of James Wilson, this increases the likelihood that this is correct. Others listed as early settlers include James' brothers-in-law, Washington J. and William P. Proctor, his father-in-law, Moses P. Proctor who was elected the first county treasurer in 1857, and James Bridgman who was married to Adelia Proctor, another of Moses' daughters.

Within a couple years of James' arrival, at least one of his younger brothers also acquired land nearby, Humble F. Wilson. Humble received a patent on land located between the farms of James and Washington. He officially pre-empted his land, or occupied it in order to establish a claim to it, in May 1858, but was probably living on it prior to this date. He then did not appear on the 1859 territorial census, but may have been on the 1860 Federal census as H.T. Wilson.^note3 Humble sold his land in October 1862, and has not been found afterwards.

It seems that of all the people mentioned above, with the exception of the Proctors and James Wilson, each had already moved on, or as Morrill put it, "became dissatisfied and sought other and fairer fields" by the early 1860's.

The Civil War

James was sworn into the Kansas State Militia on 15 Sep 1863 during the American Civil War and was eventually ordered into active service during a brief state of emergency. All adult males in Kansas were drafted to defend against a rebel invasion being led by General Sterling Price, called "Price's Raid", that was coming through Missouri. James served twenty days beginning 14 Oct 1864, but it is doubtful that he was involved in battle since few from northeastern Kansas were.

James and his family were recorded in October on the 1865 state census for Claytonville Township, Brown County, Kansas. It shows that the two oldest children were born in Missouri, but their three younger siblings were born in Kansas. Therefore, it appears that the family, or at least Barilla, did not live full time on their new homestead during the first few years. This was probably due to the difficult conditions in Kansas at the time, both politically and practically. Barilla is last known appearing on this census, not long after having her last child. It is assumed that she passed away between this date and late 1869. The list of their children follows:

John William (c.1856) who married Martha A. Perkins c.1884 probably in Brown County before moving to Marshall County. Between 1900-05 they moved to Galt Township, Rice County, Kansas. John is last found in Perry, Noble County, Oklahoma, in 1920.
Susanah (c.1858-1955) who married Frederick William Zieber 1876 at the White Eagle School House near Robinson, Kansas.
Mary Matilda (1860-1940) who married John B. Miller 1882 at the residence of her uncle, Thurston Chase. Her family moved to Phillips County, Kansas, and finally to Dent County, Missouri.
Francis (or Franz) Seigel (1862-1936) who married Jane "Jennie" Loudice Terrill and moved to Omaha, Nebraska.
Vernetta Isabel "Nettie" (1864-1955) who first married J.H. Perkins, a younger brother of Martha, in Brown County c.1887. She second married William A. Moore 1895 and moved near her brother John near Geneseo, Rice County, Kansas. She then lived with her son for many years in Tulsa, Oklahoma, before returning to Geneseo after WWII.

It can be inferred from this list that the Wilsons supported the Union during the war. Their fourth child, Franz Seigel, was obviously named for the popular German-American general, Franz Sigel, who led the Union forces during two major Missouri battles in 1861.

Second Marriage

James remarried to Amelia "Permelia" Ridge on 24 Feb 1870 in Brown County, Kansas. She was previously married and brought three more children from her first marriage into the Wilson family, raising the total to eight at the time.

Signatures of James L. Wilson
and Children, 1876 On 27 Apr 1876, James co-signed with several others for an administrator�s bond for the probate of Moses Proctor, his former father-in-law. James� children from his first marriage were among the many heirs, and they received a total of $38.55 from their grandfather�s estate on 21 Jul 1876. (It is not clear whether this amount was to each or to be divided among them.)

On 1 Nov 1882, James purchased the land on which his former brother-in-law, Washington Proctor, had originally settled.

Tombstone of
James L. Wilson,
2006 James died on 2 May 1894, apparently after a long illness. According to his obituary he "had long been a sufferer from physical ills but was always cheerful and pleasant." During the following Spring in 1895 this was the only family in the area not to list any crops for the state agricultural census, which would have meant virtually no income for the family for the year. James Lee Wilson was buried in the Rose Hill Cemetery immediately south of the town of Robinson, Kansas.

Permelia later passed away on 16 Apr 1903 and is buried next to James. They had seven children together bringing the total number between them to fifteen. Their children were:

Henry Edwin (c.1870) who married Nora Amanda Thomas in 1892. They later divorced, and he died in the Robinson area probably in the mid 1920's.
Sarah Ellen (1871-1933) who married Barney Berg in 1900 and moved to where her husband and Thomas Smiley later co-founded the town of Smileyberg, east of Douglass, Butler County, Kansas.
Frank Gordon (1873-1949) who married Christena Mae Robb in 1905 and moved to Nemaha County, Kansas, in 1907. They moved to Cheyenne Wells, Colorado, in the Spring of 1920 where they remained.
Alice (1874) who first married W.H. Conaway in 1894, and second married Delbert Shelton c.1902. She was living in Alberta, Canada, in 1949.
Warren D. (1877-1937) who first married Cloa Ann Hamby bet. 1900-05. He second married Myrtle Mae Spicer in 1906 and moved to Nemaha County.
Charles Ervin "Charley" (1877-1958), twin of Warren, who married Dora Rutherford 1901 and moved to Atchison, Kansas, in 1923.
Hattie (1879) who married William Harrison Hamby, a brother of Cloa Hamby, in 1901 and moved to Arapahoe County, Colorado.

William Wilson & Mary Ann Varner

Tombstones of William Wilson
& Mary Ann Varner, 2008 James' parents were William Wilson and Mary Ann "Polly" Varner, a daughter of Jacob Varner and Sarah Ficklin. William was born c.13 Jan 1798 in Pennsylvania, probably Butler County. Polly was born 16 Dec 1798 in Kentucky. The two were married 26 Feb 1820 in Posey County, Indiana. It is not yet known if the couple ever lived in Indiana after marrying, since they are first found again in Liberty Township, Washington County, Missouri, during the 1830 census. They were again listed here in 1840.

The book, History of Franklin, Jefferson, Washington, Crawford, & Gasconade Cos., MO, published by Goodspeed in 1888, lists the name of William Wilson among other families known to be related, such as Fitzwater and Duncan, as one of the original members of the Mt. Olive Methodist Episcopal Church. The church was originally called "Little Calvey" and was located in what is now Calvey Township in Franklin County. It is not clear why the Wilson family was still listed in Washington County three years after the founding of this church in 1837, unless perhaps, they were only very early members and not original ones.^note4 By 1845, they were surely living in Franklin County when their oldest known daughter married there. The rest of the family members who were still living at home were then enumerated here during the 1850 census in September.

The family again moved between the date of this census and December 1852 to Holt County, Missouri, where William and Mary Ann purchased property from her sister and brother-in-law, Jane "Jenny" and Andrew Fitzwater. In 1860, William and Mary Ann were living in Dallas Township of the same county, but only their youngest son was still with them as well as a child who must have been a granddaughter. William then died 24 Mar 1864.

In 1870, Mary Ann was now the head of household and living with three apparent grandchildren, Nancy, William, and Robert R. Wilson, who were aged 14, 10, and 6, respectively. By 1880 she had moved to Pettis Township, Platte County, Missouri, with the family of the now-married eldest of these children, Nancy J. Wilson Mullins. Mary Ann died on 10 Nov 1880. She was buried with her husband in Caton Cemetery near Mound City, Holt County, Missouri. The following is a list of their known children, however, there are definitely others who had left the home prior to the census of 1850:^note5

Jane (c.1827) who first married Thomas J. Duncan 1845 in Franklin County, Missouri. She second married Daniel Smith 1872 in Holt County, Missouri.
James Lee (1830-1894) previously discussed.
Robert (c.1831) who has been found only on the 1850 census.
Humble F. (c.1833) previously discussed.
Nancy (c.1835) who has also only been found on the 1850 census.
Andrew Jackson (c.1838) who married Rebecca Ann Williams 1858 in Holt County, Missouri.
Henry A. (c.1840), who married Sarah E. Story 1857 in Holt County, Missouri.
William A. (c.1842) who was the only member of the family still living with the parents by the 1860 census.

Lewis Wilson

Wilson Family Migration to Kansas
1. Butler County, Pennsylvania
2. Posey County, Indiana
3. Washington & Franklin Counties, Missouri
4. Holt County, Missouri
5. Brown County, Kansas The father of William Wilson was Lewis Wilson. According to the 1850 Federal Census Mortality Schedule, Lewis was born about 1767 in Maryland. He had been living in Butler County, Pennsylvania, when in 1817, Lewis moved his family of several children to Posey County, Indiana, after his eldest daughter and son-in-law had moved there two years earlier. Lewis had a wife named Mary ^note6 in 1816, but it is not known if she was the mother of all of his children. She is not known to have made it to Indiana. According to the same census schedule, Lewis died in Posey County in May 1850. He had the following children:

Elizabeth (1794-1869) who married Robert Wilson 1815 in Pennsylvania. They are not known to have been related prior to marriage.
James (c.1796) who was already deceased or missing prior his father's death in 1850.
William (1798-1864) previously discussed.
David (c.1800) who married Sabrina Stallings 1822 in Posey County, Indiana.
Robert (c.1803) who never married.
Mary "Polly" (c.1803-1881) who married Henry Stallings 1822 in Posey County.
John S.L. (1807-1875) who married Sabrina "Briney" Rogers 1835 in Posey County. As an adult, John added "S.L.", meaning "Son of Lewis", to his name to distinguish himself from another John in the area.

Note

[One reasonable explanation for the discrepancy in settlement dates is the possibility that James staked his claim in March 1855 as he said, returned home to marry in April, and came back to live with his new wife in May 1855. As for his claim to be the first white settler, he may have been the earliest settler who remained, the earliest one still living, or simply exaggerating.]
[Also according to Morrill, on 10 Sep 1855, Joanna Duncan was born. She was a daughter of William Duncan and probably the first white child born in the county.]
[1860 US Federal Census, KS, Brown Co, Claytonville Twp, Robinson PO, p.43, 7 Aug 1860: H.T. Wilson, age 26, male, farmer, $640 real estate, $300 personal property, born MO; S.E. Wilson, age 20, female, born MO; S.A. Wilson, age 1, female, born MO.]
[The distance between Liberty Township in Washington County and the location of the church is more than 35 miles, making it unlikely that the family lived in one place and travelled to the other.]
[Go to Seeking Wilson Family for more information on other possible siblings.]
[Many believe Lewis' wife was Mary Moore.]

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