By William B. Hastings
 

Hastings

My grandparents, William Clinton Hastings and Lillian Elizabeth Norris were married in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, on May 3, 1908.  Will, as he was called had a sister Maggie who was seventeen years older than he and he had a twin brother, Wilburn.  Maggie was born in McMinnville, Warren County, Tennessee, on March 24, 1880.  Will and Wilburn were born somewhere in White County, Tennessee, on January 15, 1887.

 At the present time and for all of the years of his life, my grandfather Will Hastings' parents' names have remained unknown. I have recently taken up the search, begun several years ago by my dad Sam Hastings, to try to learn the names of my Hastings great grandparents. I have found that on his application for a social security account number Will Hastings stated that his father's name was William Hastings and his mother was Sarah Huddleston. Where they came from, when and where they were married and where they are buried still remains a mystery.

In 1920, at age 33, Will applied for a $1000 life insurance policy.  On the policy application he stated that his father had been killed in a coal mine in the year 1896, at the age of 44 and that his mother had died of tuberculosis in 1898, at the age of 42.  He also stated that there had been a brother who died of Typhoid fever in the year 1887, at the age of six.

Will's and Wilburn's older sister Maggie had given birth to a son whom she named James, on July 15, 1895.  She was not married at the time, but later married  J. W. Howse on April 24, 1909, in Rutherford County.  After the deaths of their parents, Maggie, James, Will and Wilburn were moved into Rutherford County.  The 1900 census shows Maggie as the head of household, working as a seamstress with son James age 4 and brother Wilburn age 13, living with her. At that time Will was listed as  "lodger" with the Ambrose Crass family there in Murfreesboro.

On the insurance policy application Will also stated that he himself had had Typhoid fever and had been sick with it for a period of six weeks, but otherwise his health was good.  He stated that he had worked as a fireman on a railroad for a two year period and as a printer for about a year, but that most of his occupational work had been in farming.  At one time when they were very young men, Will, his brother Wilburn and their sister's son Jimmy all worked for Bell Brothers Lumber Company.

Will's sister Maggie died on May 12, 1909, at age 28, according to her death record and is buried somewhere in Murfreesboro.  Her death came only a month after she was married to James Howse. The 1910 census shows Jimmy, age 14,  living with James Howse, age 52, as his stepson. James' occupation was "Foreman in planing mill". Will's brother Wilburn married Mamie Spann on September 17, 1905.  The 1910 census shows Wilburn and Mamie living on Water Street in the 13th Civil District of Rutherford County, the city of Murfreesboro, and having a son William J., age 3 and a daughter Mary, age 1.  On August 22, 1910, Mildred Mogel Hastings was born to Wilburn and Mammie. Wilburn's occupation was listed as "Moulder in planing mill".  Probably being employed by the Bell Brothers Lumber Company.  Wilburn later married Sallie Yeargin and they had a son whom they named Wilburn Jr. Whatever became of Wilburn' s first family is not known.  Wilburn eventually moved to Nashville, Davidson County, Tennessee, where he raised his second family and worked in the furniture manufacturing business throughout his career.  Wilburn was the designer of the Lillian Russell Bedroom Suite.  Wilburn died in the summer of 1960 and is buried in Spring Hill cemetery at Madison, Tennessee.  Wilburn Jr. now lives in Shelbyville, Bedford County, Tennessee.  He and his wife have two daughters, one granddaughter and two grandsons.

Jimmy Hastings married Hattie (date unknown); they lived in Murfreesboro and had two children:

1. Daughter Alma Nell, born 1923.
2. Son Charles Edwin, born 1926.

Hattie died (date unknown) and after her death Jimmy married Mabel Elizabeth Newsom on September 11, 1932. They lived on Academy Street in Murfreesboro and were well known for their antique collections. All his life Jimmy enjoyed working with wood and making and refinishing furniture. Jimmy died October 26, 1975, after being hit by a car near Courthouse Square in Murfreesboro. Mabel died on February 14, 1991.They had no children. Jimmy and Mabel are buried in the Evergreen Cemetery.

Will and Lilly or Lil' as she was most often called, continued living in Rutherford County, all of the rest of their lives.  Their only son, Samuel Crass Hastings was born to them on December 26, 1911.  The 1910 census shows William and Lilly Hastings living on Cresent  Road, in the 13th Civil District of Rutherford County, the city of Murfreesboro, and Lilly's uncle Jesse Norris, age 18, was living with them.  The census indicates him to be a cousin, but he was actually the youngest brother of Lilly's father. Will was 23 and Lilly was 18 at the time.  Will's occupation was listed as "general farming ".

During the depression years Will Hastings continued supporting his family by farming. About the year 1930, he went to work in the maintenance department of the Middle Tennessee State Teachers College in Murfreesboro and became department superintendent.  He retired from the college in about the year 1958.  The college was later renamed the Middle Tennessee State University.  In about the year 1978 a new maintenance building was erected on the campus and was named the Will Hastings Building. Will Hastings served as one of the elders of the East Main Church of Christ for a number of years spanning from the late 1940's into the late 1950's. Will died on January 21, 1967; Lil died at home at 1105 Ewing Blvd. on May 5, 1971. They are buried along side each other in the Evergreen cemetery.
 

Norris

Lil' Norris was one of the two daughters of Samuel Berryman Norris and Maria Jenny Davis.  They were married on September 6, 1887, in Rutherford County, Tennessee.  They raised a family of five boys and two girls:
1. Son Walter, born about 1889, married Lela.
2. Son Thomas "Kid" born 1892, married Maud.
3. Daughter Lillian Elizabeth, born May 8, 1891, married William Clinton Hastings, May 3, 1908.
4. Son William Percy, born 1894.
5. Daughter Margaret Beulah, born 1896, married Will Dunn.
6. Son Cecil, born 1903.
7. Son Thaddeus Alonzo "Lonnie", born 1907, married Lorraine.
 

Lil's father Samuel Berryman Norris was born on October 7, 1861, in one of the northwest counties of the state of Georgia.  His parents were Isaac "Ike" Norris and Margaret "Maggie" Brooks.
The children of Ike and Maggie Norris are:
1. Son George, born 1860, in Georgia.
2. Son Samuel Berryman, born October 7, 1861, in Georgia, died 1952, married Maria Jenny Davis, September 6, 1887.
3. Daughter Kansas, born 1866, in Georgia.
4. Son Alfred, born 1868, in Tennessee.
5. Son Thaddeus Alonzo " Twister ", born July 1869, in Tennessee.
6. Son Charles Henry, born December 1870, in Tennessee.
7. Son Jesse, born 1892, in Tennessee.

Lil's mother, Maria Jenny Davis was born in 1868, in Rutherford County, Tennessee.  Her parents were William E. Davis, born 1845, and Elizabeth " Betty " Ellen Pittard, born 1846.  William E. Davis worked as a blacksmith. The children of William E. and Betty Davis are:
1.  Maria Jenny, born 1868, died 1950.
2. Son William A., born 1870, in Tennessee.
3. Daughter Sarah "Sallie" E., born 1873, in Tennessee.
4. Son Thomas J., born 1874, in Tennessee.
5. Son James A., born 1875, in Tennessee.
6. Twin son Albert
7. Twin son Almer, born September 26, 1876, in Tennessee.
8. Son John E., born 1878, in Tennessee.
9. Daughter Carrie, born 1879, in Tennessee.
All of William E.  and Betty Davis' children were born in Rutherford County, Tennessee.

Three marriages have tied these two families together down through the years. Two Norris boys married two Davis girls and one Davis boy married a Norris girl.
The pairs are:
 Samuel B. Norris married Maria Jenny Davis
 Thaddeus Alonzo "Twister" Norris married Sarah "Sallie" Davis
 William A. Davis married Kansas Norris.

According to my dad's first cousin Jane Dunn Harrison, the youngest daughter of the Davis family, Carrie actually had an unusually long name.  The 1870 census lists her as being seven months old and not named.  She was listed as "infant" Davis.  Her parents had not selected a name for her and the story is told that several young girls were visiting at the Davis' home one day playing with the baby and since the baby had not yet been named, they asked if they could name her. The girls were allowed to do so, and came up with the name: Carolyn Louise Ella Fredonia Tennessee Nancy Love Davis.  Evidently the name stuck, but she was mostly known as Carrie.

Twister Norris and Sallie Davis were married in about the year 1880.  The 1910 census shows him to be age 42, with occupation "general farming" and Sallie as age 39.  Their children are:
1. Daughter Margaret "Mag" E., born 1892.
2. Son Alma, born 1894.
3. Son Thomas, born 1896.
4. Daughter Jenny May, born November 1901.
5. Son Jim E., born 1906.
6. Son Clifford, born 1910.

Twister later became Constable of Rutherford County and on March 5, 1929, was shot and killed by a man named Oscar Morgan. This event is recorded in the Rutherford County Record, page 61. (Mobile, Ala. Public Library)  Twister and his wife Sallie are both buried in a Presbyterian church cemetery about five miles from Murfreesboro on the Manchester Pike, highway 41 south.

Isaac "Ike" Norris was born in 1838, in Ashe County, North Carolina.  His wife Maggie Brooks was born in 1841, also in North Carolina.  Ike was one of the sons of Samuel Norris, born March 8, 1808, in North Carolina and Melissa Curtis, born 1806, in Burke County, North Carolina.
The children of Samuel and Melissa Norris are:
1. Son Moses, born about 1831.
2. Son William S., born about 1834, married Eliza A.
3. Son Wesley, born about 1836, married Mary Ann Gappin, March 28, 1853, at Union County, Georgia.
4. Son Isaac, born 1838, died 1934, married Margaret "Maggie" Brooks.
5. Son Asberry, born about 1840.
6. Daughter Telitha, born about 1841, died about 1900 at Austin, Texas, married William Jennings Magness, about 1860.
7. Daughter Emily, born about 1844, married Moses Stephenson.
8. Son John B., born about 1846.
9. Son Madison, born about 1848.
10.Daughter Sarah A., born about 1847.
All of these children were born in North Carolina.

Four of these six boys fought for the Confederacy in the Civil War; two of them being killed in the war.

Ike enlisted in the Confederate Army on October 22, 1861, while living in Murphy, Cherokee County, North Carolina. He and his wife Maggie had two young sons, George and Samuel at the time. Ike served in Company  "C " of the 39th  Infantry Regiment of North Carolina. He became second sergeant and saw action in the battle of Murfreesboro at Stones River and at Chickamauga. In the year 1867, Ike and Maggie moved their family to Rutherford County in middle Tennessee where they lived the remainder of their lives.  Ike provided for his family by farming and by working as a "day laborer".

Ike's older brother Moses Norris served in Company "I" of the 62nd Infantry Regiment of North Carolina. He later moved to Texas and became a Methodist minister. Ike's second oldest brother, William S. Norris served in Company "I" of the 39th Infantry Regiment of North Carolina and was a Corporal. Ike's third older brother, Wesley Norris served in Company "E" of the 11th Infantry Regiment of the state of Georgia. Wesley was given a disability discharge and later drew a disabled Confederate soldier's pension. Ike's next younger brother, Asberry served in Company "I" of the 4th Infantry Regiment of the state of Arkansas. Ike's second younger brother, John B. Norris served in Company "I" of the 52nd Infantry Regiment of the state of Georgia.

As the years passed, Ike became less and less able to do physical work and in the year 1915, at age 77, he began what turned out to be a twelve year effort to obtain a Confederate soldier's pension. Numerous letters and affidavits were provided to the pension board examiners until finally on January 11, 1927, his application was approved. Ike had subsisted through his latter years by living with various ones of his children and sometimes visited in the homes of some of his grandchildren. Maggie had passed away sometime about 1920.  The story of his life is an interesting one. Ike's civil war records seemed to be incomplete and was the reason for the delay in his obtaining a Confederate soldier's pension. Ike told his story as follows in the affidavits he provided to the pension board through his attorney Mr. Jesse W. Sparks, of Murfreesboro. Ike lived to be 96 years old; he died in Murfreesboro in the year 1934.

Ike's story....
Isaac (Ike) Norris
1838 - 1934

Ike Norris was born in Ashe County, North Carolina, on July 25, 1838. He was the fourth child of Samuel Norris and Melissa Curtis Norris. There were six boys and four girls. Their names in the order of their births are as follows: Moses, William, Wesley, Isaac, Asberry, Telitha, Emily, John, Madison and Sarah.

On October 22, 1861, Ike enlisted in the Confederate Army and served in Company "C" of the 39th North Carolina Infantry and was promoted to 2nd Sergeant. At the time of his enlistment, he and his wife Margrett "Maggy" had two young sons, George and Samuel and were living in Murphy, Cherokee County, North Carolina.

Ike fought in the battle of Murfreesboro at Stone's River and at Chickamauga. Shortly following the battle at Chickamauga, Ike got word from his wife that "Yankee Bushwhackers" were robbing, pillaging, killing livestock in and around their home and that she and the children were without provisions. Since their unit was all "shot to pieces", Ike got verbal permission from Colonel Coleman to go home to the aid of his family.

In the year 1915, fifty years after the Civil War Ike, being up in age and unable to do physical work, began trying to qualify for a Confederate veteran's pension. Due to difficulties with the records regarding his dismissal from active duty, the process was prolonged and continued on until the year 1926 before his pension was granted. The following account of what had happened was submitted to the pension board in the form of an affidavit dated December 4, 1921:
 
State Of Tennessee ---- Rutherford County
In the application No. 14691 of Isaac Norris filed with the State Board of Examiners, affiant Isaac Norris being duly sworn makes affidavit to the following statements of facts touching his service in the Confederate Army; he states that he enlisted in the year 1861 and was sworn in as a member of Company "C" 39th, Infantry from the State of North Carolina, on October 22, 1861 and was elected a 2nd sergeant of said Company. He served under Captain Davidson, who was wounded at Murfreesboro and then he served under Captain Mount and went through the battle of Chickamauga and Colonel Coleman who commanded the regiment which was shot all to pieces at Chickamauga (and his Colonel being badly wounded) give said applicant permission to go to his home in Murfree, North Carolina, where he had a wife and two small children, who were in the hands of a band of bushwhackers, and after arriving at his home he found that a lot of yankee bushwhackers had organized, and they were burning houses, killing cattle, and robbing people of their possessions and clothing and stock and he joined a Company of Confederate soldiers who had organized themselves into a band of homeguards for protection and also a company of Indians, and the Captain of his Company was named Strange and they fought these bushwhackers until the fall or winter of 1864 when applicant undertook to make his way to Georgia, as he had promised his Colonel he would go back to the army if he could get back, and he found that he could not get back to the army and as threats had been made against the lives of those who joined the homeguards by these bushwhackers, he was advised by a lot of old citizens not to return to Murfree, North Carolina; that his life was in danger; that his father was then living near the Tennessee line fourteen miles from Cleveland, East Tennessee, in the State of Georgia, and he sent his father to North Carolina for his family and he remained in Georgia, and worked on a farm where they were raising provisions for the widows of two brothers of his who had been killed in the Confederate service and that he had four brothers in the Confederate Army and two of them were killed and he was at this place at work on a farm when the surrender came; that he never did take the oath of allegiance to the United States Government and he was never captured and while in the service of the homeguards in the state of North Carolina his company had the support of all of the citizens and they were furnished with rations, for which they gave voucher in the name of the Confederacy.
 Affiant is now 87 years of age and he is unable to work on account of the infirmities and he owns no property except a pony and buggy and he has no way of making a living and he has no family to help him and he lives around at different periods with his four children all of whom are married and who have families.
 Sworn to and subscribed before me, this the 9th day of December 1921.
 Signed Adam Hall, N.P.  Isaac Norris

After the war, in the year 1867, Ike moved his family from Georgia to Rutherford County, Tennessee. The 1870 census lists Ike's occupation as a "day laborer". He and his wife Maggie had four children, three boys and one girl. George and Samuel were born in Georgia, before the war in the years 1860 and 1862, respectively. Their daughter Kansas had been born in Georgia in 1866 and their son Alfred, was born in 1868 shortly after their move to Tennessee. Three other sons listed above were also born in Tennessee.

Recollections written about 1935, by Samuel Crass Hastings regarding his great grandfather Ike Norris:
(Ike Norris is the father of Samuel B. Norris, the father of Lillian Elizabeth Norris Hastings ("Lil"), the wife of William Clinton Hastings ("Will") and mother of Samuel Crass Hastings.)
 "Near the close of the Civil War a hard fought series of battles were fought for possession of Tennessee. General W. S. Rosecrans was in command of the Federal Army of the Cumberland. He began pushing the Confederates through Tennessee and met General Braxton Bragg and his Confederate forces at Murfreesboro, Tennessee, on the bank of the Stone's River. This was a bloody battle that began on December 31, 1862 and ended on January 2, 1863. Bragg and his forces were pushed back to Tullahoma, but in September he was forced to withdraw to Chickamauga where Bragg scored a victory that almost turned the tide of war. During the three day Stone's River battle Rosecrans mounted his cannon on Pilot Knobb, a hill about ten miles east of Murfreesboro and fired grape shot and cannon balls on the town."
 "My great granddad fought with Bragg's forces trying to defend Murfreesboro. During the battle food was very scarce. He told stories of stealing eggs, chickens, pigs and farm produce to provide food for the troops. He told of some even eating food that had human blood spilled on it."
 "He died in 1934 at the age of 96. His health was good, was very active and could read without glasses up until six months before he died. He sang mountain ballads in a good clear voice. Many of these are heard on the "Grand Ole Opry" today."
 "My granddad and grandmother live in Murfreesboro and when we visit them we go to the park on the site of the battle. We sit on the barrels of the cannon and look down on the winding Stone's River. Visit the park if you can, for it has markers and plaques to tell of events, location of troops and progress of the battle."

"At the age of 86, Ike was thrown from his horse drawn buggy and suffered a broken hip. Due to his age or whatever, his hip was not set for proper healing and he lived his remaining ten years with one leg shorter than the other. This caused him to require an extension block to be attached to his boot from that time forward."

"When Ike Norris was well up in years he came for a visit to our house and one night he woke us all up in the middle of the night moaning and groaning that he had swallowed his lower denture plate. Upon closer investigation his granddaughter "Lil", as she was affectionately called by everyone, discovered that his teeth had come out of his mouth during the night and that he was lying on them with the teeth side turned up. Ike really got a good laugh on himself and was relieved to know he had not swallowed his teeth."

Ike Norris and his wife Maggie Brooks Norris are buried in the Evergreen Cemetery in Murfreesboro.

Ike's father and mother lived in Polk County, Tennessee in 1860, and in the 1870 census Samuel Norris is listed as being 62 years old working as a "mine-hand". His wife Melissa was 64 years old and they had a boy William, age 13, also listed as a "mine-hand"  living with them. William was probably their grandson, the son of their oldest son Moses.

Another son of Samuel and Melissa Curtis Norris, Wesley Norris, previously mentioned is also shown living in Polk County at that time. His age was 38. Wesley's family consisted of wife Mary, age 35, son Henry, age 7, son Albert, age 5 and daughter Sarah, age 2. Wesley's occupation was "smelter hand". The mine was the Eureka Copper Mine.

Samuel Norris, Ike's father, was one of the sons of William Norris, born February 4, 1778, in Wilkes County, North Carolina, and Eunice Shinn, born January 9, 1780. Eunice is reported to have been full blood Cherokee.
The children of William and Eunice Shinn Norris are:
1. Son John, born January 12, 1806, died 1847, married Rachel Sands.
2. Son Samuel, born 1808, married Melissa Curtis.
3. Daughter Anna, born June 22, 1810, died 1877, married Michael Cook.
4. Son Levi, born July 7, 1812, died 1894, married Margaret Morphew.
5. Daughter Rebecca, born March 28, 1813, died 1906, married Sam Trivette.
6. Daughter Myra, born April 23, 1815, died April 19, 1909, married Jacob Cook, January 2, 1833.
7. Son Joel, born March 18, 1818, died 1894, married Polly Critta.
8. Son Jonathon, born November 27, 1820, died 1882, married Alice Proffit.
9. Son David, born August 29, 1823, died 1911, married Matilda Proffit.

William Norris was one of the sons of John Norris, born October 20, 1750, in Lunenburg County, Virginia and Ann Gilbert, born about 1757.
The children of John and Ann Gilbert Norris are:
1. Daughter Mary Ann, born 1774 in Abbeville, South Carolina.
2. Son Jonathon, born about 1777 in Ashe County, North Carolina.
3. Son William, born February 4, 1778 in Wilkes County, North Carolina, died September 2, 1873.
4. Daughter Susan Ann, born 1779 in Ashe County, North Carolina.
5. Son Thomas Gilbert, born about 1780, in Wilkes County, North Carolina.
6. Son James, born about 1782 in Ashe County, North Carolina.

This family of Norris's comes from a long line originating with the Norreys family name back in the 1300' s in England.
 
Davis and Pittard Families

William E. Davis the father of my grandmother Lil's mother Maria Jenny Davis Norris, was one of the sons of A. S. Davis and Jane C. Davis. William E. Davis was a blacksmith as was his father A. S. Davis. The 1850 census shows A. S. Davis as being  30 years old and his wife Jane C., as being 25 years old. They were living in the Sulfur Spring District of Rutherford County.  In the 1860 census the family was living in Woodbury, Cannon County, Tennessee. The children of A. S. and Jane C. Davis are:
1. Son William E., born 1845.
2. Son John, born 1847.
3. Son Benjamin, born 1850.
4. Son Thomas, born 1853.
5. Daughter Martha, born 1858.

William E. Davis' wife Elizabeth "Betty" Ellen Pittard Davis was one of the daughters of William Pittard, born 1808, in Granville County, North Carolina and Mariah Weaver, born 1813, in Granville County, North Carolina.  William Pittard and Mariah Weaver were married January 11, 1832, in Granville County, North Carolina.  The 1850 census shows the family living in the 2nd Civil District of Cannon County, Tennessee.  William Pittard, age 42 was a farmer. Mariah was age 39.
The children of William and Mariah Weaver Pittard are:
 1.  Daughter Martha, born 1833.
 2.  Son James, born 1834.
 3.  Son Benjamin, born 1835.
 4.  Daughter Sarah, born 1837.
 5.  Son Robert S., born 1838.
 6.  Daughter Mary E., born 1839.
 7.  Daughter Elizabeth "Betty" Ellen, born 1840.
 8.  Son Patrick, born 1843.
 9.  Son John, born 1847.
All of these children except John were born in North Carolina, he was born in Tennessee. Another daughter, Ruth was born in 1842, but must have died before 1850 as she is not listed with the family in the census.

William E. and Betty Pittard Davis, having been raised in Cannon County, Tennessee, were married on January 17, 1867 in Rutherford County. The 1870 census shows William being age 25 and farming. Betty was age 27 and they had their daughter Maria Jenny, age 1 and son William A., age 5 months.  Living in the household next door to them was Betty's father William Pittard, age 61 and his son John, age 23 and John's wife Mary, age 16.  John and Mary had been married in September of that year, 1870.  John's occupation was "farm laborer". William was retired and was listed as "at home". Evidently, Mariah had already died.

William Pittard, the father of Betty Pittard Davis, was the son of Elijah Pittard, born about 1778 in Granville County, North Carolina, and Barshaba Hays, born about 1779 also in Granville County, North Carolina. Elijah Pittard was the son of Samuel Pittard, Jr., born about 1748 in Essex County, Virginia, and Ann Meredith Davis, born about 1757 in Granville County, North Carolina. Samuel Pittard, Jr. was the son of Samuel Pittard, Sr., born about 1710 in Somersetshire, England, and Mary Newton, born about 1720 in Essex County, Virginia. Ann Meredith Davis was the daughter of Humphery Davis, born about 1735 of Granville County, North Carolina. The wife of Humphery Davis is unknown. Mary Newton was the daughter of Henry Newton, Jr., born about 1690 in Essex County, Virginia. Mary Newton's mother is unkown. Henry Newton, Jr., was the son of Henry Newton Sr., born about 1654 in Essex County, Virginia. The mother of Henry Newton, Jr. is unknown.