Who: Freeman Boyd.

From the previous post you will know that I have been doing a considerable amount of reading on 19th century history.  Mostly to get a better perspective on what specific reasons for my ancestors' migration across the American South.  All the while trying to hunt down clues on the life of Freeman Boyd, my ggggggrandfather (oh don't hold me to the g's).  Until now, I've been using the Boyd name as the focus of my search.  But upon looking at the census records from Macon Co AL 1850, I noticed the two households following Freeman and family were Smiths whose children's names corresponded with children's names in the Boyd household.  I was told at one time that Freeman's wife's maiden name was Smith, but didn't really go into looking at the line because males are usually easier to track through historical record.  

Taking another look at the Smith relations in the 1850 Macon Co AL census,  I took Redick Smith (age 60) to be Emily Smith Boyd's father and John R Smith (age 32) to be her brother.  Looking on Ancestry's family trees, I found Reddick Smith, but neither Emily or John are listed at children.  Probably because the researcher is using the census of 1850 as their main source and doesn't have any "proof" of other children.  

Using the information from the census, I took a visit to the graveyard in Montrose Mississippi where Freeman and Emaley Boyd are buried.  There I found more Smiths that I expected.  Mostly among them, Mary Clarke Smith b 1805 d 1884.  Next to her was a confederate headstone for Reddick Smith Company A 7th MS Infantry.  Likely her son, since her husband would have been a bit long in the tooth for military service.  Many of the gravesites were unmarked, but this was enough for me to have something to continue on.  The most curious thing about going to Palestine Cemetery was that I discovered the grave of a friend's mother who died of cancer when we were both in the first grade.  Ms Louise had hair that extended down to her knees and she kept it tightly wound in a bun.  

I digress...

From just the information on the 1850 census, I can deduce that Reddick was born in Virginia but by at least 1818 had migrated to Georgia because that was the year John R Smith was born.  Checking the marriage records in GA, I found Reddick Smith marrying Polly Hall on Dec 11, 1811 in Green County GA.  Also, in the records, Reddick is shown marrying Mary Clarke on Jan 11 1816.  This leads me to believe that Polly must have died and Reddick remarried.  Since I'm only making deductions from my limited resources, I can't speculate on if Reddick and Polly Hall had any children.  

Checking back on my files of early Jasper County MS, I haven't seen any evidence of any relative Boyd travelling from Alabama to Mississippi with Freeman.  It is clear to me that he came with his wife's family, the Smiths, and settled near Montrose.  According to my Aunt Dee, the area around Palestine Church was called Smithtown when she was growing up.  This was also verified in a posting attached to Redding Smith on one of the member trees.  It sites a source that I don't quite understand its validity, but looks worth investigating:  The Smiths of Cork, Ireland.  

Clearly, the Smith line is better documented and hopefully, following their line may eventually lead to a break in the Boyd wall.  

Historical Readings: If anyone is following my posts, I'm trying to keep up to date on my genealogical findings. Lately, I've given to reading works by people who lived and traveled through the American South. My first book which I highly recommend to any curious about the southern experience during the antebellum years is Cotton Kingdom by Fredrick Law Olmsted. I wrote about it last month in detail. Although, I think he is a bit wordy at points, readers acquainted with Victorian era prose will find him rather succinct.

On the subject of 19th c travel writing, I checked out a book called The Very Worst Road: Traveller's Accounts of Crossing Alabama's Old Creek Territory, 1820-1847. Not judging a book by its cover or even its ill thought reference name, I found the experiences included to be varied and informative. Lots of touring entertainers like P T Barnum and Tyrone Power give their two cents on life in Alabama. For those of you who don't know... I'm a theatre person, so I give a bit of cred to my peeps from the past.

Another interesting 19th c text is Journey into Wilderness: An Army Surgeon's Account of Life in Camp and Field during the Creek and Seminole Wars 1836-1838 by Jacob Rhett Motte. My ancestor, Freeman W Boyd was a participant in this particular conflict in the on going struggle between the Native American tribes who resisted the forced migration west. I found Motte's experience to be pedestrian, his observations of the various militia companies from Alabama to be somewhat informative. Regardless how you view some of his writings (I find a recollection of a story of a Creek brave slitting his own throat with a dull knife rather that being taken west a rather romantic thought, but probably not the whole truth) they are the best first person perspective known concerning this time.

Going back in time a few years, I've almost finished The Journal of John Harrower: An Indentured Servant in the Colony of Virginia 1773 - 1776. John was a Scottish laddie from the Shetland Islands who left his wife and family to travel south to London in 1773 in search of work. John, a former merchant, was unable to find employment and was unable to procure funds to sail abroad to the continental mainland. Instead, in a moment of weakness, he sold himself into indenture as a tutor in the colony of Virginia. His account of life crossing the Atlantic ocean is brief, but poignant. While he didn't experience the nastiness that lesser placed people did, you get a good view of colonial life through his employer.

Finally, I must confess the book that made me put all my musty dusties away for at least a couple of days Confederacy of Silence: A True Tale of the New Old South by Richard Rubin. I was drawn to the book by the title which is so near a favored book A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole. The first few pages instantly hooked me. Having grown up in the "New Old South" especially having come of age during the time that the beginning of the book was written (late 1980's) and being of a mind that wasn't a part of the --ok, I have to take a break here because even twenty years distant, I can't bring my self to acquiesce to the sidelines of southern experiences. Let's just say that my life didn't include much football, animal hunting, and husband luring. To this day I get miffed by people from my past who call me "different".---Back to the book: The message of privilege by birth was one that I found to be authentic and I admire Mr. Rubin for pursuing the story of Handy Campbell. In the book, the author speaks about his fascination with the Emmit Till Case--another side note: I didn't EVEN know this had happened until about 8 years ago when I stumbled upon it when researching the song " Strange Fruit" sung by Billie Holliday. Upon learning this, I asked my father if he knew of anyone in our area that was lynched or murdered wrongly. He just bowed his head a said that one guy they thought was murdered, but had escaped to New Jersey. A likely story, but one that I'm sure was "passed" as truth to appease the religious sorts. Let's hope that his grand children are well and happy-- which is why he probably pursued this case with such fervor. I haven't finished the book, but I already relate to the late night drives into no where trying to get AM stations from all over. Chicago's WBBM and Atlanta's WSB ruled late night.

Already gone longer than expected...