Ancestors of Loyd Scantling Jones

43 Pages·2017·0.67 MB·English

Ancestors of Loyd Scantling Jones
Generation 1
1. Loyd Scantling Jones, son of Dexter Wesley Jones and Lottie Agnes Huckaby, was born on 02
Dec 1911 in Chelsea, Nowata Co, OK. He died on 24 Aug 1998 in Locust Grove, Mayes Co, OK.
He married Vida Winnabell Lindsay on 01 Jan 1938 in Skiatook, Oklahoma. She was born on 30
Sep 1916. She died on 22 Feb 1987. He married Lois Lorene Davis on 15 Aug 1987. She was
born on 26 Sep 1935.

Notes for Loyd Scantling Jones:
Born on Bill Clark's place in the edge of Nowata County. Had typhoid fever in 1925 on the Dawes
place, according to Lottie Jones' bible.
Generation 2
2. Dexter Wesley Jones, son of Ransom Marion Jones and Susan Mary Smith, was born on 23 Apr
1879 in Near Rogers, Benton Co, AR. He died on 12 May 1961 in Sperry, Tulsa Co, OK. He
married Lottie Agnes Huckaby on 08 Dec 1909 in Chelsea, Rogers Co, OK.
3. Lottie Agnes Huckaby, daughter of Joseph Benjamin Huckaby and Sarah Lucy Fisher, was born
on 13 Oct 1889 in near Bolivar, Polk Co, MO. She died on 03 Aug 1959 in Sperry, Tulsa Co, OK.

Notes for Dexter Wesley Jones:
Dexter Wesley "Deck" Jones, son of Ransom Marion Jones (b. 1835 Blount Co., TN) and Susan
Mary Smith (b. 1850 Clinton Co., KY), was born *April 23, 1879 (in Benton County, Arkansas,
Rogers area, although the June 1880 census there lists him as 2 years old at that time). *His
mother's old bible actually lists his birth year as 1878, which fits this census record. He said in a
testimony dictated to Larry Briggs (in May 1960) that he moved with his family to a farm between
Grove and Jay in Indian Territory from Benton County at age 8. In 1899 he repented in the
Christian Union Church at Chelsea, I.T. He served as a deacon there for seven years. He married
Lottie Agnes Huckaby in Chelsea in 1909. Lottie was born near Bolivar, MO in 1889. Sixteen
children were born to this union, but three of them died as children. In 1917 Deck "saw the light"
after hearing Rev. Theodore Smith, a Pentecostal preacher who held a revival in an old blacksmith
shop in Chelsea. Deck's wife Lottie received the Holy Ghost during one of the services. Six years
later in 1923, Deck was baptized in Pryor Creek, north of Chelsea. Six months later, he received
the Holy Ghost. Deck spoke about hearing and seeing Gene Autry sing and play at the train
station in Chelsea before Autry was discovered by the famous Will Rogers who was born and
raised in nearby Oologah. Deck moved his family to several different farms in northeastern
Oklahoma, including ones near Chelsea, Vinita, Pryor, Barnsdall and Sperry. Deck's and Lottie's
first ten children were born north of Chelsea in Nowata County, between 1910 and 1923. The next
two (Rachel and Earl) were born near Vinita between 1925 and 1927. Between 1930 and 1934,
three children were born north of Chelsea in Nowata County. William, the youngest child, was born
near Pryor in 1937, just before the family moved to Barnsdall. In 1943 Deck and his family moved
from Barnsdall to Sperry, where daughters Ruth and Orpha had already found jobs. After farming
the old Spybuck place one mile east of Sperry for three years, he purchased about sixty acres of
land bordering the town of Sperry on the south side. He still owned fifteen acres of this tract when
he died.
He was always a farmer, took great pride in his ability to break mules and horses, and was a
tireless worker. He was seriously injured by a runaway team early in his marriage. He demanded
hard work from his thirteen children, but loved them dearly. He was a family man, prayed often
and always provided for his children, even during the meager Depression years. Deck was honest,
hot tempered, plain spoken, and had a great sense of humor leading to frequent pranks. His many
dozens of grandchildren were often the target of these pranks. He would sit for hours spinning
stories of his youth to wide-eyed grandsons. John C. Jones, one of his boys, recounts a time when
he was taking target practice. Unbeknownst to Johnny, Deck was inside the old out house. When
Johnny fired through the door, Deck fell out the door moaning and carrying on. Of course he was
faking it.
Deck served as deacon in 3 churches for a total of 22 years. In 1906 he had 2 major surgeries,
and testified to being healed both times, several years before converting to Pentecostal. In 1933
he testified to being healed of a severe bout of pneumonia. He was very active until his death,
often walking nearly a mile to Sperry and back, and mowing his own lawn into his eighties. He
raised hogs, cattle and row crops at the the old acreage on Osage Drive near the southwest edge
raised hogs, cattle and row crops at the the old acreage on Osage Drive near the southwest edge
of Sperry to the very last. Deck said in 1960 that he had taken no medicine of any kind after 1944.
He and his wife Lottie were faithful members of the Sperry United Pentecostal Church until their
respective deaths.
Note: Some interesting tidbits:
Will Rogers was also born in 1879 near Oologah, I.T., only 80 miles from Deck's birthplace across
the Arkansas line. Will's mother, Mary America Schrimsher, was a quarter blood Cherokee born in
Tahlequah in 1839, only a year after her father Martin Matthew Schrimsher came from Blount
County, TN, birthplace of Ransom Jones, Deck's father. Will's father Clem Vann Rogers (a
prominent Cherokee Nation councilman), his mother Mary, and some of Will's siblings are also
buried in the Chelsea cemetery.
Note: Deck's date of birth is listed in an old bible owned by his mother as 4-23-78, and is recopied
in another place in the bible as the same date. Deck always said it was 1879.

Notes for Lottie Agnes Huckaby:
Lottie Agnes Huckaby was born in Polk County, Missouri October 13, 1889. Her father
descended from the English Huckaby's who immigrated to America in the mid-1700's (see
www.lon.huckaby.com/huckaby.html for a historical summary of this specific lineage). At some
point in time, part of the family relocated to Barren County, Kentucky. In 1854 the family moved as
a group from Kentucky to Polk County in central Missouri, where members of this huge clan
established Hopewell Baptist church. They founded and lived in and around a community that was
actually known as Huckaby, located about 13 miles east of Bolivar (north of Springfield). Huckaby
and Fisher graves abound in the cemetery that is part of the church property (Lottie's mother was
Sarah Lucy Fisher). The church building itself is still standing as of 1998, and is well-maintained
by some of our Huckaby relatives. The Huckaby families were usually large with lots of children.
In 1893, Lottie moved with her family to Chelsea, I.T. from her home in Polk County. She married
Dexter Wesley Jones there in 1909. Many of Lottie's Huckaby and Fisher relatives, including her
parents, are buried in the cemetery at Big Cabin, Oklahoma.
Lottie (Deck always affectionately called her "Mammy") was a tireless worker and a talented
homemaker. She endured childbirth sixteen times, and raised thirteen of those to adulthood. She
was afflicted with a large goiter almost as large as a softball. She had tremendous faith in her
Lord, and always abstained from medication during her illnesses. She died at home in Sperry,
Oklahoma from a heart ailment on August 3, 1959.
Lottie Agnes Huckaby and Dexter Wesley Jones had the following children:
i. James Paul Jones was born on 28 Sep 1910 in Chelsea, Rogers Co, OK. He died
on 02 Jul 1911 in Chelsea, Rogers Co, OK.

Notes for James Paul Jones:
Was born on Mrs. Riggs' place in a 2 room house with attic, according to Lottie
Jones' bible.
1. ii. Loyd Scantling Jones was born on 02 Dec 1911 in Chelsea, Nowata Co, OK. He
died on 24 Aug 1998 in Locust Grove, Mayes Co, OK. He married Vida Winnabell
Lindsay on 01 Jan 1938 in Skiatook, Oklahoma. She was born on 30 Sep 1916.
She died on 22 Feb 1987. He married Lois Lorene Davis on 15 Aug 1987. She was
born on 26 Sep 1935.
iii. Joseph Marion Jones was born on 10 Jun 1913 in Chelsea, Nowata Co, OK. He
died on 03 Jun 1920 in Chelsea, OK.

Notes for Joseph Marion Jones:
Born on the Adair place, lacking 7 days being 7 years old.
iv. Emitt Dalton Jones was born on 23 Nov 1914 in Chelsea, Nowata Co, OK. He died
on 14 Jun 1999 in Barnsdall, OK. He married Wilma Stevens on 07 Jan 1941 in
on 14 Jun 1999 in Barnsdall, OK. He married Wilma Stevens on 07 Jan 1941 in
Oilton, Creek Co, OK. She was born about 1920 in Barnsdall (Bigheart), Osage Co,
OK.

Notes for Emitt Dalton Jones:
Born on the Dale place. Had typhoid fever in 1925. Notes by Lottie near his birth
record say, "We lived on T. Russell place when World War I was declared in
Germany by France. Emitt served in the U. S. Navy from 1941 till 1944. He was
employed by Petrolite in Barnsdall, from which he retired in the mid-1970's. He
attended the Methodist church, although he always acknowledged his Pentecostal
beliefs.
v. Ruth Naomi Jones was born on 07 Jun 1916 in Chelsea, Nowata Co, OK. She died
on 06 Apr 2005 in Owasso, Tulsa County, OK. She married Houston Aaron Marrs
on 09 Aug 1937 in Sperry, OK one quarter mile north of town. He was born on 25
Feb 1915 in Olive, OK. He died on 11 Apr 1995 in Skiatook, Osage County, OK.

Notes for Ruth Naomi Jones:
Born on T. Russell place in a 3 room house according to Lottie's bible.
vi. Orpha Odessa Jones was born on 04 Oct 1917 in Chelsea, Nowata Co, OK. She
died on 14 Feb 2002 in Tulsa, OK. She married Johnie Richard Briggs on 07 Jun
1941 in Abilene, TX. He was born on 10 Jul 1917 in Halls, TN. He died on 20 Nov
2005 in Tulsa, OK.

Notes for Orpha Odessa Jones:
Was born on T. Russell place in a 3 room house. Was badly burned on January 1,
1923.

Notes for Johnie Richard Briggs:
Richard came to Oklahoma from Tennessee with his parents at the age of five in
1922. They moved into a small house on land owned by Richard's uncle (brother to
his father) Robert Briggs, a wealthy oilman and cattle rancher who had left his
native Mississippi in the late 1800's to seek his fortune out west. During the
depression, Richard served in the Civilian Conservation Corps, doing duty in
Wyoming and Oklahoma. While serving, he was one of four members of the
"Harmonica Harmoneers", an inter-camp entertainment band.
During much of Richard's youth, his mother, "Tennie", was bed-ridden with
cancer, and much of his time was spent caring for her. His elderly father continued
to farm the bottom lands on the Bob Briggs ranch, raising row crops and cotton.
During a brief stint back in his native Tennessee, Richard performed as a member
of the "Western Tennessee Ramblers" band. In November 1940, he was one of the
first two men in Pawnee County to volunteer for the U. S. Army's "one year tour of
duty" program spelled out in the Selective Service Act. In early 1941, while on
furlough, he met Orpha Jones, his future wife. After a lightning courtship, they were
married in Abilene, Texas. The marriage lasted over sixty years, until Orpha's
death at age 84. Richard's tour of duty in the Army would span five years, and
include all of World War II. He served as fireman, Military Policeman, infantryman,
and with the Tenth Army headquarters in Hawaii. He ended his service in Okinawa,
and was discharged at Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas in late 1945. After spending 13
years with Spartan Aircraft Co. (manufacturing mobile homes), Richard later spent
15 years with the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers in the Land Survey Division,
retiring in 1979.
His talents include drawing and illustration, sign painting, and short story/play
writing. As a child, Richard created and maintained several comic strips for his own
amusement, one of them with a prophetic spaceship theme. A man of remarkable
character, he served as secretary/treasurer of the Sperry United Pentecostal
Church for 30 years, and was a long-time deacon and teacher. His teaching duties
involved every age group over the years, often including teaching the main Sunday
morning Bible lesson to the entire adult congregation. He made good use of his
artistic skills, teaching from complex graphic charts and diagrams. He excels at
mathematics and prides himself on quick problem solutions. He loves to play word
games, and is adept at scrabble and crossword puzzles.
Richard taught swimming and stringed instrument lessons to many young lads,
Richard taught swimming and stringed instrument lessons to many young lads,
both church acquaintances and relatives. He was a world-class amateur horseshoe
pitcher and loved to play the game. Richard has played guitar since the age of 12,
and provided accompaniment in his local church until about 2001. As a hobby and
retirement activity, Richard operated a small music store with his wife Orpha from
1970 until 2000. As of 2003 Richard still plays guitar at home, and performs at
town functions with his harmonica. Richard began his current passion for
researching the Briggs genealogy in the late 1980's, from facts recalled from
childhood conversations with relatives.
The following is an approximate chronology of the family's various moves:
Richard was born in 1917 in the family home near Halls, TN.
Moved to Crockett Co, TN near Key Corner (date unknown).
Moved back to Halls, TN by January 1, 1922.
Moved to Bob Briggs' ranch in Oklahoma via Sapulpa, January 1, 1923.
Moved to the "Kirby Place" near the ranch by January 1, 1929.
Moved to near Drumright by January 1, 1930.
Bought a small lease house (three-room shotgun style) from the Emma Coker
Lease near Oilton and moved it to the ranch by January 1, 1931.
Moved the same lease house to land located about 3 miles NE of the Briggs ranch
house, but still on ranch property by 1934. Richard's mother died there on Oct. 22,
1936. Burial was under the direction of Peck Funeral Home of Oilton.
Richard and his father moved this same house to the "Hammond Place" 3 miles SE
of Oilton by 1938.
Moved the same house once again to near Silver City by 1939. Richard's father
died there January 23, 1940. (Also Peck Funeral Home)
Richard sold the house following his father's death, and moved to a rented house
near Oilton until he entered the service on 11-26-40.

(Notes by Larry Briggs, Richard's son, December 2003)
vii. John Cliff Jones was born on 18 Jun 1919 in Chelsea, Nowata Co, OK. He died in
2012 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA. He married Kathleen W. Dobbs on 11 May 1941.
She was born on 27 Apr 1925.

Notes for John Cliff Jones:
Born on T. Russell place in a 3 room house. Lottie's Bible says our country was at
war with Germany at the time of his birth.
viii. Herbert Wesley Jones was born on 20 Aug 1920 in Chelsea, Nowata Co, OK. He
died on 17 Apr 2006 in Okmulgee, OK. He married Doris Florene Chorette on 16
Sep 1946 in Sperry, Tulsa Co, OK. She was born on 21 Oct 1924. She died on 19
Sep 1984. He married Lanora June Gilbert on 28 Sep 1985. She was born on 22
Feb 1937.

Notes for Herbert Wesley Jones:
Born on the T. Russell place. Had his arm cut almost off in a threshing accident
when he was 5 years old.
ix. Mary Madeline Jones was born on 17 May 1922 in Chelsea, Nowata Co, OK. She
died on 19 May 1992 in Tulsa, OK. She married Earl Samuel Howard on 28 Nov
1946. He was born on 28 Jun 1920 in Tahlequah, Cherokee Co, OK.

Notes for Mary Madeline Jones:
Madeline was born on the Bill Sutherlin place, 5 1/2 miles north of Chelsea in the
edge of Nowata County.
x. Sarah Juanita Jones was born on 29 Nov 1923 in Chelsea, Nowata Co, OK. She
married Thomas Alvin Cook SR. on 11 May 1944 in Gainesville, TX. He was born
on 11 Jul 1920 in ALTO PASS, IL. He died on 18 Jul 1989 in MURPHYSBORO, IL.

Notes for Sarah Juanita Jones:
Juanita was born 5 1/2 miles north of Chelsea on the Bill Sutherlin place, in the
edge of Nowata County.
xi. Rachel Mae Jones was born on 03 Sep 1925 in Craig Co, OK. She married Henry
Alexander Martens on 20 Jun 1949 in Tulsa, OK. He was born on 03 May 1927.

Notes for Rachel Mae Jones:
Rachel was born on the Rum Davis place in the edge of Craig County, near
Chelsea, OK. Her name is listed as May in her mother's bible. She had 104
degrees fever when 2 days old.
xii. Earl Thomas Jones was born on 23 Apr 1927 in Craig Co, OK. He died on 01 Sep
1999 in Tulsa, OK. He married Frankie Lee Sixkiller on 13 Jul 1951 in Sperry, OK.
She was born on 28 Jan 1933.

Notes for Earl Thomas Jones:
Earl was born on the Rum Davis place in the edge of Craig County, 7 miles north of
Chelsea.
xiii. Leo Critenton Jones was born on 28 Apr 1930 in Chelsea, Nowata Co, OK. He died
on 30 Dec 1930 in Chelsea, Nowata Co, OK.

Notes for Leo Critenton Jones:
Leo was born on the Chickasaw Smith place in the edge of Nowata Co, OK near
Chelsea.
xiv. Frank Vernon Jones was born on 30 Dec 1931 in Chelsea, Nowata Co, OK. He
married Doris Louise Griffith on 19 Feb 1955. She was born on 26 Jan 1934.

Notes for Frank Vernon Jones:
Frank was born 2 days before the family moved to the Sturdivant place, 6 miles
east of Vinita in Craig Co, OK. This means he was born on the Chickasaw Smith
place in the edge of Nowata Co, OK.
xv. Lois Irene Jones was born on 07 Jan 1934 in Chelsea, Rogers Co, OK. She died on
05 Oct 1980 in Sperry, Osage Co, OK, 3 Miles SW of town.. She married Alex
Junior Thulin on 10 Jan 1952. He was born on 22 Mar 1929.

Notes for Lois Irene Jones:
Lois was born on the old Tam Woods place in Chelsea. She died of breast cancer.
xvi. William Edward Jones was born on 14 Jul 1937 in Pryor, Mayes Co, OK. He
married Dorothy Mae Hines on 07 Jul 1961 in Oklahoma. She was born on 25 Aug
1938.

Notes for William Edward Jones:
Bill was born on the Hawkins place near Pryor.
Generation 3
4. Ransom Marion Jones, son of Johnson David Jones and Sarah J. Boring, was born on 20 Oct
1835 in Unitia, Blount Co, TN. He died on 07 Feb 1920 in N. of Chelsea but in Nowata Co. OK. He
married Susan Mary Smith on 30 Aug 1868 in Jamestown, Fentress Co, TN.
5. Susan Mary Smith, daughter of Robert Smith and Nancy P Smith Smith, was born on 30 Jan
1850 in Albany, Clinton Co, KY. She died on 11 Dec 1928 in N. of Chelsea but in Nowata Co. OK.

Notes for Ransom Marion Jones:
December 27, 2010

According to census records, Ransom's father, Johnson Jones, was born in Tennessee in 1807,
but I have not established the county of his birth. Ransom's mother Sarah Boring, was born in
1810 and was most likely a native of Blount County. Johnson Jones married Sarah in 1830,
1810 and was most likely a native of Blount County. Johnson Jones married Sarah in 1830,
probably in Blount County, since 19 year old Sarah is shown living at home in the 1830 Blount
census, and their first child, Bartley Rufus was born in September 1830. It is speculated that
Joshua Boring, Sarah's father, came to Blount County, Tennessee in the early 1800's from
Washington County, in far upper-eastern Tennessee. Some of the Borings in Blount County were
Quakers, and others were not. Joshua and wife Mary Heartsell were buried in the United
Methodist Church cemetery in nearby Middlesettlements, TN, Mary in 1841 and Joshua in 1853.
Some of their children (siblings of Ransom's mother Sarah) later appear in the minutes of the
Newberry MM (Quaker congregation) in Friendsville.
Ransom, the third oldest of eleven children, was born October 20, 1835 in Blount County, two
miles east of Unitia and 3 miles west of Friendsville. According to "The History of Blount County
and its People", Unitia was founded by Quakers in 1791 at the mouth of Cloyd's Creek. The post
office was established in 1824, and in 1833, two years before Ransom's birth, the population was
only 70. The businesses consisted of a store, barber shop, hatter, a doctor, a tanyard, a wool
carding mill and cotton gin, a saw and grist mill, as well as a church. Even though the Jones
Quakers from North Carolina had formed a congregation 12 miles west of Maryville on Gallaher
Creek in the late 1790's, the Friendsville post office, about 5 miles east of Unitia, was not
established until 1850, well after Johnson Jones and his family left for Knox County. It is
speculated that Ransom's older sister Isabelle and two of his younger sisters were also born in the
home near Unitia. If by chance Johnson Jones was of the Quaker faith, Ransom may have
attended school at the nearby Friendsville Academy. The boys' school was built in 1838 after a
survey taken that year showed that "46 Quaker children are not attending school, and only 1 of 5
schools in the area is being taught by a Quaker". *Many of the area Quakers migrated to Illinois
and Iowa in the late 1850's because of the slavery issue.
Around 1844, when Ransom was just "eight or nine years old", his parents moved him, along
with his older brother Bartley and three sisters, north to historic Campbell's Station, just beyond the
Tennessee River in Knox County, a distance of about 15 miles (per Ransom's pension application).
Ransom appears on the census there in 1850, along with his parents, and siblings Bartley,
Isabelle, Ruth, Nancy Ann, Delilah Jane, Hannah E., Martha Orlena and Joshua.
Some time prior to the 1860 census Johnson moved his family again, this time to Sagefield,
Morgan County, Tennessee about 55 miles northwest of Campbell's Station. The 1860 census
shows Ransom, listed as "Marian" age 24, in the household, with Bartley and Isabelle already gone
from home. Also shown on the family member list are new siblings Isaac Heartsell Jones and Mary
Sarah Temperance Jones. *Interesting facts: Sarah's mother's name was Heartsell, the middle
name given to her son Isaac. She had a sister named Temperance, the middle name given to her
daughter Mary. She also had a sister named Ruth, a sister named Delilah and a brother named
Isaac, all names given to her children. Lastly, Sarah's father was Joshua, the name given by her to
a son.
It is likely that Ransom left from this Morgan County home to join his original Civil War unit in
Kentucky. According to his pension application, Ransom said he traveled in early October 1861 to
Somerset, Kentucky, where Captain Langley was forming up the 2nd Tennessee Infantry USA unit
there with volunteers from Tennessee. On January 19, 1862, three months after Ransom joined
the unit, he participated in the battle of Mill Springs, Kentucky, a Union victory. The battle was
fought in a rainstorm on the banks of the rain-swollen Cumberland River. The Tennessee
volunteers were part of a force serving under General George H. Thomas. Rebel general Felix
Zollicoffer had entrenched his army on the banks of the Cumberland to prevent the Federal
advance into East Tennessee by way of the Cumberland Gap. He had underestimated the
strength of the Federal troops and was soundly defeated. Zollicoffer was killed in the battle, and
the Confederates retreated, totally demoralized. The battle lasted only three hours.
Ransom said in his pension application that he "never received pay or bounty" from the infantry
unit. From later documents we learn that the War Department never credited him with the time he
served in the 2nd TN Infantry.
Shortly after the battle at Mill Springs, (still quoting from his pension application), he was
persuaded by Lt. Meshack Stephens to return to Tennessee and join Co A 4th Tennessee Cavalry,
under Stephens' command. Ransom's war records show that he enlisted in Montgomery, about 30
miles east of his home, on October 15, 1862. Ransom says that he was part of an "incomplete
regiment" until his unit was designated Co A 4th Reg't East Tenn Cav Volunteers. During the trip
with Lt. Stephens, he was captured and taken briefly to Confederate General Bragg's headquarters
in Murfreesboro and" tried as a spy". After failing to produce enough evidence to convict him, the
rebels released him. He met back up with Lt. Stephens and proceeded to "scout through" to
Louisville, Kentucky, where he joined his new cavalry unit on December 13, 1862.
Ransom's brother-in-law John Letsinger (husband of Isabelle) also served in Ransom's unit of
Co A. Three other Morgan county men were in Ransom's unit, as well as six from Knox County,
five from Blount, and two from Roane, all areas where Ransom had relatives. Most members of
his unit were from other nearby counties.
Ransom's unit was stationed at various Tennessee locations including Nashville, Murfreesboro,
Columbia, Collierville and Germantown during most of 1863 and into early 1864. The first notable
event that befell Ransom after he joined the 4th TN happened in July 1863 near the town of
Winchester, Tennessee, about 100 miles southeast of Nashville. Ransom's brother, Orderly Sgt.
Bartley Jones, testified that Ransom was thrown from his horse during a charge, and that the horse
reared and fell on him, thereby causing injuries of the hip and back. One version of the incident
states that Ransom's horse was spooked by small arms fire during a charge. Ransom was sent to
a Nashville military hospital in a horse-drawn ambulance, and after recovering, rejoined his unit.
Much of Ransom's time before the Atlanta campaign was spent driving a brigade team or going for
horses as far away as Memphis.
In early February 1864, Ransom's unit was ordered to take part in General Smith's expedition to
Okolona, Mississippi. Having spent most of January in Collierville, Tennessee, near Memphis, the
route to Okolona took the men through Coldwater on February 11, Holly Springs on February 12
(some men were killed and captured during this battle), and then nearby to Okolona on February
18. From here the unit reached West Point, Mississippi on February 20, Prairie Station on
February 21, Okolona again on February 22, and the same day crossed the Tallahatchie River.
They were ordered back to Nashville on February 27, where they would remain until the legendary
Atlanta campaign began in June.
On June 18, 1864 the regiment was ordered to march from Nashville to Decatur, Alabama.
Most of the regiment left Decatur on July 10, 1864 under the command of Maj. Gen. Rousseau with
a force totalling about 2,700 men. The second morning out, "Major Meshack Stephens' 4th
Tennessee, formerly the rear guard, now took the advance. Moments later Major Stephens'
troopers had ridden into a carefully laid ambush just beyond the picket line. The Tennesseeans
returned the fire, the bushwhackers fled and the column soon moved forward again. Later on in
the same report it states, "Calling aside Major Stephens of the 4th Tennessee, General Rousseau
explained rations were running short. He directed Stephens (Ransom's unit) to take his tired
troopers to capture whatever rations the rebels had stockpiled at Asheville. Major Stephens and
his Tennesseans charged into Asheville about midnight, routing the small garrison without firing a
shot." On July 14, the raiders encountered fierce action on the Coosa River in an area known as
Ten Islands. Attempting to get his 2,700 men across the river, Gen. Rousseau picked a shallow
crossing at Woods Island, which was one-and-one half miles long and one-third mile across.
"Hearing the shots and seeing the confusion at the head of the column, Lt. Col. Patrick hurried the
4th Tennessee across the channel and deployed them on Woods Island. Moments later he
ordered Major Stephens' troopers to charge. Mounting their horses, the Tennesseans pushed
boldly into the raging current. Wet and breathless, they (Ransom's unit) struggled up the east bank
and dashed after the retreating rebels, taking a few prisoners." This encounter would later
become known as the Battle of Ten Islands. General Rousseau then started his troops in the
direction of Talladega and on to Loachapoka on the Montgomery & Nashville Railroad. The units
had two skirmishes with the rebels and assisted in destroying 30 miles of track. They then
marched via LaFayette, Alabama and Carrolton, Georgia to Marietta, Georgia, arriving on July 22.
On July 26 the units were ordered on a raid under the command of General Edward M.
McCook. Other units attached to General McCook were the 8th Indiana, the 8th Iowa Cav, and the
5th Iowa Cav. In a campaign that began on July 26, 1864, Ransom's unit marched with the others
down the Chattahoochee River, crossing it on a pontoon bridge near Riverton. Upon reaching
Palmetto Station on the Atlanta and West Point Railroad, the troops set the depot on fire, tore
down telegraph wires and tore up track for a short distance. They later captured a rebel wagon
train with 500 wagons, along with the 250 officers and men guarding it and 2,000 horses. Pushing
on toward Lovejoy's Station, they destroyed part of the Atlanta and Macon Railroad, and burned
the depot. With a huge contingent of captured horses, mules and prisoners, they reached the town
of Newnan on July 30, 1864.
Leaving Newnan on their return, General McCook found his command completely surrounded
by a greatly superior force under the command of rebel General Wheeler. In desperation,
McCook's troops attempted to cut their way through the enemy lines. They all reached the
Chattahoochee River in different places. General McCook, with the 4th TN Cav, the 8th Indiana
and the 5th Iowa arrived at Philpott's Ferry around midnight, still under hot pursuit. They
commenced crossing the river on the ferry boat, making many trips back and forth with horses and
men, finally sinking it to keep the rebels from using it. Some of the 8th Indiana escaped, as did
many in Ransom's Tennessee unit. Many others, including Ransom, were forced to dismount and
many in Ransom's Tennessee unit. Many others, including Ransom, were forced to dismount and
try to escape by swimming the river without their horses. Ransom was captured there on the
Chattahoochee in a battle that would later be called the Battle of Brown's Mill. 950 of McCooks
soldiers were captured, along with 2 artillery pieces and 1200 horses. The colors (flag) of
Ransom's unit under Major Stephens was captured by the 8th Confederate Cavalry. Ransom and
the other prisoners were first marched six miles to the town of Newnan, then taken to a cotton
warehouse on Perry Street where they were kept until they could be escorted to Andersonville
Prison. The remaining mounted troops, including General McCook, continued to retreat and
reached Marrietta five days later. Many of them took to the woods in small parties, and were also
eventually captured. Of the 116 troopers in Company A, 33 were either killed or died of disease
during the entire span of the war.

R ansom's prisoner of war account in his own words:
"I was captured in the rear of Atlanta on the Stoneman raid in the summer of 1864, and taken to
Andersonville, GA and kept there about four months. We were then sent 8,000 Federal prisoners
to Charleston, SC and placed in front of the Federal guns bombarding the city and kept about 16
days. We were sent to the Florence, SC stockade and kept some three months and then sent to
Goldsboro, NC. This was in February 1865. We stayed in this place until the fourth of March when
we were sent to our lines at Wilmington, NC for exchange. I was sent from Wilmington to
Baltimore, MD and received a furlough for thirty or sixty days. The furlough was probably for thirty
days and extended thirty days at the end of which time I reported to my regiment at Nashville, TN
and stayed with it until I was mustered out. At Goldsborough we were camped out in a pine woods,
without tents, blankets or adequate covering of any kind, barefooted and pants off up to my knees
and there came a cold sleety spell of weather. We started from where we were in the woods on
the road to Goldsborough on a cold night and although it was only little more than a mile to
Goldsborough I was so weak from exposure and starvation that I had to crawl most of the distance,
and in doing so got my feet and legs badly frozen. I and 300 other comrades did not get in in time
to go on the train and were kept over until the 4th of March. My legs and feet have troubled me off
and on since the freezing of them described. I could not tell that I had any feeling in them that
night crawling into Goldsborough, but the next day when I got them thawed, they became very
painful. Every winter since the freezing the least exposure to cold causes them to swell up and pain
me, and every spring since that my toe nails have come off. My toe nails have not come off this
spring but they may come off yet."
Even though Ransom's unit was actually part of General McCook's force, he later referred to his
unit's action at Brown's Mill as being part of General Stoneman's raid. Stoneman and his troops
did suffer a similar fate, but in a battle several miles away. General Stoneman arrived at Clinton,
GA, sending detachments that burned the Oconee bridge, seventeen locomotives, over 100 cars,
tore down telegraph wire, and damaged the railroad east of Macon considerably. His forces
shelled the town of Macon, but finding the enemy gathering into "a large force", turned back under
his direct order. After turning back to Clinton, they found the roads obstructed and fought until "their
ammunition was exhausted", and Gen. Stoneman surrendered along with his men. General
Sherman said in his report that, "I have no doubt that Stoneman surrendered in the manner and at
the time described by the Macon paper I sent you yesterday". Stoneman had earlier asked
General Sherman for permission to, "after fulfilling my orders, to push on and release our prisoners
to be confined at Macon and Andersonville". Commanders' reports from the Macon action show
that Stoneman never got a chance to try.
Ransom's decision to join the Union army may have been influenced by the overriding
sympathy for the slaves by the residents of Blount and other nearby counties. Many Tennessee
soldiers from other counties fought for the South. It is feasible that Ransom's father Johnson really
was in some way connected to the Quaker Jones families in Blount County, a fact we speculated in
the earlier tree. War Department documents state that Ransom's mother Sarah had given him a
bible on his twenty-third birthday in 1858, and that it was published in 1854. Ransom still owned
the bible in 1892, and furnished it to examiners to prove his birth date, since it had a pencil notation
inside reading, "R. M. Jones, borned Oct 20th, 1835".
Ransom's travels after the war can now be put into proper perspective by carefully reading the
expanded pension application file recently borrowed from Warren Jones (2008). After his
discharge in July 1865, Ransom lived for a short while in Knox County. He also said he visited
Fentress, Anderson, Morgan, Blount and Roane counties in Tennessee during 1866 and 1867
(from 1890 pension application). These are counties where much of his family had lived before he
left for the war, and which are located in a relatively small geographical area of the state. The
distance from Blount County, Tennessee to Clinton County, Kentucky is a mere 100 miles and the
other mentioned counties were located between Blount and Clinton, adjoining one another. Clinton
other mentioned counties were located between Blount and Clinton, adjoining one another. Clinton
County adjoins Pickett County, Tennessee, which is flanked by Overton and Fentress, which
adjoins Morgan, which adjoins Anderson and Roane, which adjoin Knox which adjoins Blount.
Blount is located in East Tennessee pretty much in the center of the state about 3/4 of the way
across the state. The town of Albany, Kentucky is just north of the Tennessee line about 2/3 of the
way across Tennessee from west to east.
According to his son Deck, Ransom often mentioned that he had gone back to his birth state of
Tennessee after the Civil War to "settle a score". Ransom reportedly received information during
the war that his father Johnson had been "bushwhacked" and hit over the head with the butt of a
rifle by "two renegades who never fought for the North or the South". Johnson reportedly suffered
brain damage and was "never the same" afterward. There is also speculation that the trip for
revenge might have involved a killing. This has not been substantiated, and the exact date of the
mission is not known. Part of the logic that Ransom may have gotten revenge prior to his move
west, is that the new territories were hundreds of miles from his native Tennessee where the attack
on his father, making it highly unlikely he traveled from Texas.
After these brief excursions he traveled to Clinton County, Kentucky where he lived from the fall
of 1865 to 1868 in the town of Albany, and during which time he met his future wife Susan Mary.
His sister Nancy Ann with husband Francis Pittman, and Ransom's brother Isaac lived in the house
with him. George A. Smith, Ransoms's brother-in-law, says he met Ransom in the fall of 1865, so
it is unlikely that the Joneses knew Susan and her family until about this time. It turns out that a
few of Ransom's younger siblings relocated, probably during the war, to a small geographical
radius that straddles the Kentucky/Tennessee line and encompasses the counties of Clinton,
Kentucky, and Overton, Pickett, and Fentress, Tennessee. Some of them died there in the three
county area in later years.
In August 1868 Ransom and seventeen-year-old Susan Mary Smith traveled 25 miles across
the state line to Jamestown, Fentress Co, Tennessee, where they were married. Susan's paternal
great-grandmother Emily lived there at the time. Ransom's wife Susan said in a pension document
that marriage records from the courthouse in Jamestown could not be obtained since it had burned
down many years ago. She furnished a bible notation of the marriage date. Alford Beaty, a
resident of Clinton County says that he was a witness at their wedding, and had known them both
before the marriage. He says they lived as husband and wife before they left this state.
A short while later Ransom, along with his young bride Susan and her 13 year old brother
George, started the trek westward. They first stopped in Richview, Washington County, Illinois in
the southern part of that state, where they lived for over a year with Ransom's sister Delilah Jane
and her husband Elbert Whittenberg. Delilah states in a pension affidavit that she and Ransom
were reared in the same house near Campbell's Station until the war broke out and they were
separated. She says she never saw Ransom until the fall of 1868. She also said she had come to
Illinois with an uncle during the war. It was during this stay with Delilah in Richview that Ransom's
and Susan's first child Oscar (Osker?) was born on May 28, 1869.
Ransom's grandson Everett Jones of Owasso, OK, has in his possession Ransom's I.O.O.F.
(Odd Fellows) membership demit from the Richview lodge, dated March 26, 1870. This document
shows that Ransom had been initiated into the lodge in August 1869, and that he had attained the
"fifth degree". Ransom's sister Delilah said in the pension affidavit that Ransom went south hoping
to get some relief from his constant pain in a milder climate. Ransom's mother Sarah Boring had a
sister named Orpha who also married a Whittenberg and ended up in this same small Illinois town.
There is a solid Jones-Boring-Whittenberg connection, probably all the way back to Blount County.
In April 1870, Ransom, Susan, Oscar and George left the Whittenberg home in Illinois and
traveled to Cane Creek, Carter County, Missouri, about 20 miles northwest of Poplar Bluff where
they are shown later that year on the 1870 census. Orlena ("Lena") was born in Van Buren, Carter
County, Missouri, on November 9, 1871.
According to his pension application, Ransom made the move south from Missouri around 1872
staying briefly in the Choctaw Nation in Indian Territory, which is located in the far southeast corner
of present day Oklahoma.
It is not known how long Ransom stayed there but his next stop would be Fannin County,
Texas, east of Sherman and west of Paris. Ransom mentions both Fannin and Lamar counties in
his pension application. Their son William Hines was probably born in Fannin County in November
1873. Ransom said in one document that he "traveled "threw the Indian Territory's Choctaw,
Chickasaw and Cherokee Nations", and from "75 to 77, I was in Fannin and Lamar County, Texas".
Son Edd was born in May 1875 and Albert was born in March 1877 near Paris. It is believed
Ransom contracted with a number of ranchers to fence their properties.
The family moved from Texas to northwest Arkansas, near Fayetteville in Washington County,
arriving in October 1877. Ransom's great-grandson Donald Marrs relates that his grandfather Sam
arriving in October 1877. Ransom's great-grandson Donald Marrs relates that his grandfather Sam
Marrs told the story of Ransom actually working for the Marrs family in that county near Marrs Hill.
Ransom did spend some time in that county, but records show that son Dexter Wesley Jones was
born April 23, 1879 in Benton County. Ransom's family is listed on the 1880 Osage, Benton
County, Arkansas census, with family members Ransom, Susan, Oscar, Orlena, William, Edgar,
Albert, and Dexter. Son John Quincy, who died at a young age, was born August 29, 1881,
Chester Alan Arthur was born July 29, 1883, and Teddy Alonzoe was born August 18, 1886, all in
Benton County.
Deck said in a verbal interview with grandson Larry Briggs in May 1960 that he moved with his
family in December 1887 at age 8, to a farm between Grove and Jay in Indian Territory. It is
believed that Marion Earl was born there December 26, 1887, as his birth is listed as I. T.
In April 1889, Ransom traveled west by team and wagon across the Cherokee Nation and on to
the eastern boundary of Oklahoma Territory (Guthrie or Oklahoma City area), a distance of some
175 miles, to take part in the famous Oklahoma Land Run. Ransom's son Dexter (Deck), who
turned ten years old the day after the run, told of accompanying his dad on the trip. Deck's fifteen
year old brother Will, thirteen year old Ed, and eleven year old Albert are also believed to have
made the trip. After staking a claim either in Guthrie or Oklahoma City, Ransom sold his land rights
on the spot to a lady who offered him enough money to make him happy. Grandson Raymoth
Jones says his father Cliff related that Ransom received a team of mules and wagon for the
property.
Cann Zadie, daughter of Ransom and Susan, was born on the Grove farm June 10, 1889,
according to the 1900 census. It is now believed that she was named after Cansadie Smith, wife
of Ransom's brother-in-law Ed. Ed's brother George Alfred C. Smith of Benton County, Arkansas
said he lived near Ransom until 1890.
The next move for the family was to Southwest City, Missouri, in the far southwest corner of the
state. On December 1, 1890, Ransom is listed as a "member in good standing" with the G.A.R.
(Grand Army of the Republic) Post No. 392 in the above town. On May 31, 1892 son Clifford Roy
was born near Southwest City, which is just across the state line from Benton County, AR, and not
far from the Indian Territory farm near Grove. Many of the pension applications submitted by
Ransom list his post office as being Southwest City.
Ransom probably spent four years or so in the Southwest City area, then moved his family back
to a farm near Grove, I. T. in the Grand River bottoms. One side note concerning this farm land in
Delaware County involves a story Deck Jones related to his sons. The Cherokee owner of the
acreage rented by Ransom had a history of waiting for the crop to be harvested by different
renters, then forcibly taking possession of the entire crop, instead of just his share. When the
ruthless land owner tried this tactic on Ransom, Mr. Jones pulled a cap-and-ball pistol from the tool
pocket of the old horse-drawn cultivator and the Indian man ran for his life. The pistol was probably
the same one given to Ransom some 35 years earlier upon his discharge from the Union Army
(from military records). Son Deck also told of repeatedly traveling the 20 or so miles to the farm
from neighboring Missouri or Arkansas as a lad of 15 or so, obviously before the family moved
there. He would camp out a week at a time by himself on the Indian farm land, doing his own
cooking, and cultivating the crop by day.
The fact that Ransom eventually ended up in Indian Territory, a haven for many people trying to
escape their pasts, gives some credence to the theory that he may have been "on the run" from his
actions in Tennessee after the war. Ransom's grandsons, Loyd S. Jones (b. 1911) and Earl T.
Jones (b. 1927), both recounted stories by their father Deck Jones, of Ransom living in fear and
being very nervous. While farming the land rented from Cherokee Indians near Jay, Cherokee
Nation, Ransom would constantly look about for intruders.
On a June 19, 1897 pension application Ransom stated that he was a resident of Grove, I.T.
They evidently lived in that area until the family pulled up stakes and traveled by train to Colorado
in early 1900.
In a Trinidad, Colorado, city directory from 1900-1901 provided by his grandson Jesse Jones,
Ransom and four of his sons are listed as laborers, sharing a common address. The family was on
a year-long working trip, the males building fence and hauling dirt for the railroad. The 1900
Colorado census for Trinidad shows Ransom (teamster), Susan, and children William (quarryman),
Albert (laborer), Dexter (laborer), Arthur, Teddy, Earl, Canzadie and Cliff. Trinidad was famous for
Bat Masterson, Doc Holliday and mining operations. It sits beneath the famed Raton Pass.
Descendants of Uncle Will (William) say he spoke of Silverton as one location the family may have
visited.
The exact year of Ransom's move to Chelsea isn't known, but he stated on a September 28,
1903 pension application that he was a resident of Chelsea, I. T. He re-applied for Civil War
pension benefits in Rogers County on June 8, 1908. The Chelsea home place was a small square