SMITH, Victoria Francis Brooks (Biography)

Victoria Frances “Vickie” Brooks (6 Mar 1855 Fisherville, Shelby, TN – Oct 23, 1938 Memphis) was the youngest daughter of James Monroe Brooks and Mary Ann Kingston. She attended St. Agnes Academy and the State Female College while living in downtown Memphis. She later taught with her sister, Mollie, at their private school in Eads, TN near Hickory Withe, Morning Sun and the Brooks’ plantation home in Fisherville. (See Brooks)

Victoria married, ca. 1881, Joel “Joe” Henry Smith (1843-1844 Tippah Co., MS – Sep 9, 1928 Memphis) and they lived in Hickory Withe, Fayette, TN during the 1880s. Joel and his father were from the Corinth, Tippah, MS area and had come to work on the home at the Brooks’ plantation when he met Victoria. Joel served the Confederacy in the Civil War with Co. F 26^th Mississippi Infantry as a Bugler and was taken prisoner several times, including the Battles of Vicksburg and Shiloh. Joel’s parents were probably John M. Smith (b. ca. 1812 GA) and Florenthia Nabors (b. ca. 1816 SC). Joel is buried in Confederate Soldier’s Rest, Elmwood Cemetery, Memphis. Victoria is buried in Forest Hill Cemetery in the Hinson Lot with her sister, Mary Elizabeth Brooks Fletcher.

Issue of Victoria Brooks and Joel Smith

Martha “Mattie” Pearl Smith (Sep 25, 1883 Hickory Withe, Fayette Co., TN – April 29, 1965 Memphis) married Calvin Bruce Powell, comptroller at Mississippi A & M, Starkville, Oktibbeha, MS. He was born ca. 1889 in Virginia and died bef. 1930 in Kansas City, Missouri. Mattie Pearl graduated from Mississippi State College for Women in Columbus, MS and taught at Macon-Andrew Business and Mississippi Agricultural and Mechanical Colleges in Starkville. She is buried in Forest Hill.

Issue: Patricia Powell (b. 1909) joined the Marines during WWII. She became a meteorologist, was appointed Fish and Game Librarian for the State of California, and was sent to Uganda to set up that country’s Fish and Game Library. Issue: Michael (b. 1945).

Frances Brooks Powell (25 Oct 1916 Starkville, MS – 17 Nov 2001 Memphis, TN) married (1) Francis Aloysius Corley (1909-1947) of Cleveland, Ohio. He died after WWII as a result of illness contracted during his service in the Army as a communications specialist. Issue: Patricia Dayle Corley (b. 1944) Issue: Darian Cristine Corley (b. 1973). Frances married (2) Colley Burnett of Geneva, NY. Issue: Peter Bruce Burnett (b. 6 Jan 1950) Issue: Tonya Denise Burnett. Frances Powell received her B.S. from Memphis State University and her Physical Therapist’s Degree from Duke University. She was Chief of Therapy at Les Passes Developmental Center in Memphis for over 30 years.

Joel Victor Smith (1886-1978) married Addie H. Atkins and was a Yard Inspector for the IC Railroad. He is buried in Forest Hill, Memphis. No issue.

Vivian Brooks Smith (31 Dec 1887 Hickory Withe, TN – 21 Feb 1970 Memphis) married Vessie Aline Anthony (21 Sep 1889 Collierville – 1 Mar 1932 Memphis), daughter of William Anthony and Molly Bickers. Vivian worked for the railroad, as a Cotton Classer, and as a Salesman. He is buried in Fisherville Cemetery (Baptist Church). Vessie is buried in Memorial Park. Vessie came from a long line of early Virginia families who were instrumental in the development of our young county: Michie, Pleasant, Randolph, Tarlton, Winston, and Woodson.

Maj. William Walter Smith “Willie” (1889–1974) was in the National Guard in WWI and was a Major in WWII, stationed in Alaska. He was a Shelby County Trustee Officer. He married Emma Miller. No issue.

Kingston Wyatt Smith “Wyart” (b. aft. 1890) He was a carpenter and worked as a foreman at a door and window framing company in South Memphis until his retirement. He did not marry.

Issue of Vessie Anthony and Vivian Smith

Mary Victoria Smith (15 Dec 1908 Eads, TN – 27 Jul 1998 Raleigh, NC) married Verble Raymond Peeler (24 Aug 1903 Covington, Tipton Co., TN – 5 May 1964 Alexandria, VA) on 31 Dec 1931 in Memphis. Verble was the son of William Wesley Peeler (17 Mar 1870 – 4 Aug 1937) and Minnie Bell Francis (3 Nov 1873 – 30 Mar 1949) who married 14 Aug 1890 at Bride, TN. William and Minnie are buried in Covington, TN. Verble apprenticed at S.C. Toof and Co. and worked there until the beginning of WW II. He then trained to be a helicopter mechanic. The family moved to Mobile, AL where they remained throughout the War. He returned to the engraving business and the family lived in Salt Lake City, Utah and Washington, DC. Issue: Three daughters and one son.

Henry Wyatt Smith (14 May 1911 – 11 Feb 1979) married Emma Johnson and was in the Army in WWII. No issue.

Elsie Ray Smith (b. 8 May 1913) married Orville Chester Vann, Jr. (30 Oct 1912 Shelby, TN – 4 Nov 1987 Shelby, TN) on 7 Apr 1934 in Marion, AR. He worked for Memphis Transit Co. Orville Chester Vann, Sr., born in Pleasant View, Cheatham Co., TN, marriedEdna Shaw, born in Big Creek, outside of Lucy/Millington. Edna was the child of Malcolm M. Shaw and Annie Elizabeth Wynn of Big Creek. Annie was the child of Allen S. Wynne, brother of Peter Wynne of Big Creek. The Wynns and the Shaws are buried in Big Creek Baptist Church Cemetery. Issue of Elsie and Orville: One daughter and one son.

Eugene Smith (31 Dec 1915 – 21 Sep 1940)

William Clarence Smith “W.C.” (4 Jul 1918 – 20 Oct 2003) married Eunav Lillian Alsbrook. Issue: One son and one daughter.

Vivian Brooks Smith (13 Dec 1922 – October 1994) was presented a Bronze Star for service in the Army WW II in Korea. He married Tommy Tyler. No issue.

Patton in Europe.

Submitted by Brenda B. Watson

PEYTON, Presley Ross (Biography)

Presley Ross Peyton “P.R.,” 20 years old, lived with his 45 year old, widowed mother, Sarah Peyton, in Memphis, Shelby, Tennessee by 1850 (5^th District). (The 1840 Shelby County, Tennessee Census lists Sarah Peyton with several children.) Presley was born 14 Nov 1828 in Kentucky and died bef. 1870 Shelby County, Tennessee. He married (1) Indiana Leake and (2) Martha Brooks, both daughters of early settlers to Shelby County.

Presley Ross Peyton married (1) Indiana Herodine Leake 31 Jan 1854. She was born ca. 1823 in Goochland Co., Virginia to Richard Leake (ca. 1794 VA – July 1850 Shelby Co., TN) and Sophie T. Anderson (24 Jan 1797 – 27 Oct 1830). Richard, his second wife/sister-in-law, Mary T. Anderson, and his brother, Col. Samuel Leake, migrated to Shelby County ca. 1833. Indiana died bef. 1867 in the Morning Grove (Richard’s property) / Morning Sun area (Col. Sam’s property). Issue: Ellen S. Peyton (1857 Shelby, TN – 12/30/1931 Memphis) and India Leake Peyton (b. ca. 1859 Shelby, TN).

Indiana H. Leake married (1) James W. Lenow (25 Oct 1809 Southampton County, VA – 1850, Louisville, KY) ca. 1842. Issue: Josephine Lenow (b. ca. 1844 Shelby, TN) and James Horace Lenow (b. ca. 1850 Shelby, TN). James W. Lenow married (1) a Virginian,Elizabeth Babb, bef. 1837. Issue: Frances Louisa Lenow (b. ca. 1837 VA) and John Henry Lenow (b. ca. 1839 TN).

Presley R. Peyton married (2) Martha A. Brooks “Mattie” (6 Jan 1847 Memphis – 15 Aug 1940 Memphis) bef. Nov 1867 and died shortly after their marriage. Mattie was the oldest daughter of James Monroe Brooks and Mary Ann Kingston of Memphis and Fisherville, TN. She attended St. Agnes Academy and Calvary Episcopal Church. Widowed early in marriage, Mattie lived with her parent’s family from 1870 to 1920 and never re-married. In 1863 she witnessed the property confiscation by Union soldiers on the Brooks’ plantation and testified to the Southern Claims Commission in 1872 in Memphis. She is buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, Memphis. (See Brooks)

Issue of Martha Brooks and Presley Peyton

Walter R. Peyton (18 Nov 1867 – 22 Apr 1938 Memphis). A produce merchant for George Bloom Produce Co., he was buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, Memphis.

Dr. May L. Peyton (22 January 1869 Fisherville, Shelby, TN – 23 July 1948 in Memphis) was the 1^st woman dentist to practice in the city of Memphis (1903-1938). She married Dr. William Wyatt Brooks before 1897 in Memphis and entered dental school after their marriage. She graduated from Northwestern University in Chicago with 2^nd honors in a class of 300 men. She was a lifetime member of the State Dental Society and the American Dental Association. “Aunt May” was described small woman who always wore black. Fiercely independent, assertive, and demanding respect, those who visited her dental chair remained quiet and compliant. She and her husband, Wyatt, divorced after which time May lived at the luxurious Gayoso hotel with her parents and remained there after their deaths. They are buried in Forest Hill Cemetery.

May’s husband, Dr. William Wyatt Brooks (3 May 1859 – 18 March 1927), son of John H. Brooks and Margaret J. Wright, was the foremost pyorrhea specialist in the south. Wyatt’s step-father, Dr. Shelton Hinson, one of Memphis’ first dentists, inspired Wyatt, May and others to enter the field of dentistry. May mentored her younger cousin, Dr. Ardenne Hinson, who, in turn mentored her nephew, Dr. Robert Black, in shared dental practices. Their only child, Dr. Ruth Brooks (ca. 6 Jan 1897 Memphis – ca. 15 Dec 1971 CA), attended Randolph Macon, the University of Chicago, and the University of Tennessee to become a dentist. She met Dr. John H. A. Campbell, D.D.S., Ph.D. at the University of Chicago and married in Memphis. They moved to Los Angeles and had a daughter, Mary L. Campbell. (See Wright and Hinson)

PEYTON ANCESTRY

This line descends from Capt. Valentine Peyton of Virginia (1687-1751) and Henry Peyton of Lincoln’s Inn, London (1590-1656).

Presley Ross Peyton was the son of Craven Peyton (1794 Jefferson Co., KY – 1833) and Sarah Fleming Payne (1795 VA – 1853 Memphis) who married in Shelby County, KY in 1813. Craven Peyton’s (1794) parents were William Peyton (1753 Loudoun Co., VA – 18 Aug 1811 Bullitt Co., KY) and Mary Ross (21 Nov 1769 Loudoun Co., VA – 25 Dec 1841 Hartford, Ohio Co., KY). William Peyton’s parents were Craven Peyton (b. 1732 Aquia Creek, Stafford Co., VA) and Ann West. Mary Ross’ parents were Lawrence Ross and Susannah Oldham. Craven Peyton’s (1732) parents were Col. Valentine Peyton and Frances Linton. Sarah Fleming Payne’s parents were Dennis Payne and Nancy Combs. Dennis Payne’s parents were Cuthbert Combs and Sarah Evans.

Presley Ross Peyton’s older brothers were Dr. William Peyton (b. 1817), Dr. Craven Peyton (b. 1821), and Dr. Thomas Fleming Peyton (10 May 1823 Mount Vernon, KY – 14 Feb 1878 Shelby, TN). Thomas married Martha Custis Woolsey (1832 Brunswick County, Virginia – 1892 Shelby, TN) and lived in Shelby County. The 1860 Shelby, TN Census lists Thomas F., 37, b. in KY, Martha, 27, b. in VA, Emma, 4, b. in TN, James, 24, attorney, b. in VA, and Virginia, 20, b. in MS. By 1870 the children listed were: Emma, 12, Fanny, 9, Sally, 6, Anna, 4, and Ashby, 2. “During the Civil War when medicine was so scarce, Martha Woolsey Peyton slipped through the Yankee lines in Memphis to secure some badly needed quinine for her husband’s patients. She was able to get the medicine which she put in the hem of her petticoat but was caught by the Yankees and put in jail. Martha was forced to pledge allegiance to the U.S. Army before they would release her.”

Sources

Edna Barney, “Peytons Along the Aquia Genealogy”

Shirley Sigler Chamberlin, “A History of Cuba, Tennessee with Family Accounts and Genealogy,” Millington, TN

The Peyton Society of Virginia, “The Peytons of Virginia II”

Submitted by Brenda B. Watson

WRIGHT, James W. (Biography)

James W. Wright “J.W.” (ca. 1810 Virginia – 8 Oct 1873 Memphis) married Elizabeth J. “Eliza” Edmondson (ca. 1816 VA – aft 1880 Shelby County probably) on 3 Feb l836 in Lawrence County, Alabama. James was a brick mason and farmer. The family migrated briefly from Virginia to Mississippi where the two oldest children were born: Nancy and Margaret. By 1841 the family (J.W., 40, and Eliza, 34) moved to Memphis. (1850 City of Memphis Ward No. 6 Census and “Virginians in Tennessee in 1850″ Part 2) The younger children were all born in Memphis, Shelby, TN

Between 1848 and 1860, James paid taxes for 3 to 6 children in the Fort Pickering area, 12^th Civil District, Shelby County. (In 1798 Fort Adams, a swampy, hard-to-defend location was abandoned and Fort Pike, later named Fort Pickering, was built. On the South Bluffs, Fort Pickering became an encampment by the Confederate troops during the Civil War, the Indian mounds used as redoubts.)

The City of Memphis’ population was decimated twice during the 1870s by Yellow Fever. Residents were surprised by the first in 1873 but left the City when the second Fever hit in 1878. A male, J.W. Wright, died in Memphis on 8 Oct 1873 during the first Fever. This was probably James W. as his wife, Eliza, was widowed and lived with her son, Robert, by the 1880 Census.

Issue

Nancy Wright (b. 1837 MS)

Margaret J. Wright (18 Aug 1840 MS – 17 Aug 1904, Memphis, buried Forest Hill Cemetery) married (1) John H. Brooks. Issue: Dr. William Wyatt Brooks, Walter L. Brooks. Margaret married (2) Dr. Shelton Hinson. Issue: Shelton Hinson, Jr. (See Hinson)

John Wright (b. Jun 1841 Memphis) was a farmer and a brick mason. John married Martha (b. ca. 1846 AL) about 1864. Issue: Jesseker (Jessica) (b. ca. 1866 TN), Maggie (b. ca. 1870 MS), Johnnie (b. ca. 1872 MS), and James S. (b. July, 1877).

James Wright (b. ca. 1843 Memphis)

Thomas Wright Thomas Wright (May 1845 Memphis – 17 Oct 1908 Memphis, buried Forest Hill Cemetery) Thomas was a farmer and a brick mason. General Lee was a brick mason and a contractor who built houses. Thomas married:

(1) Unknown. Issue: Jimmie Wright (b. ca. 1866 in MS).

(2) Lizzie Neely (b. ca. 1856 TX – ca. mid-1800’s MS) on 17 Jun 1872 in Desoto Co., Mississippi. Issue: General Lee Wright (b. 28 Dec 1875 MS – 18 Sept 1949 Memphis, buried Forest Hill Cemetery)

(3) Mrs. Amelia Reddell (Nov 1850 MS – Mar 1913, buried Forest Hill Cemetery 8 Mar 1913) ca. 1889.

Samuel Wright (b. ca. 1846)

George Wright (b. ca. 1849)

Robert Richard Wright (24 Oct 1851 Memphis – 5 Apr 1936 Memphis, buried Forest Hill Cemetery) Robert was a farmer and truck farmer who specialized in raising berries. Robert married:

(1) Unknown. Issue: Lucius Wright (b. ca. 1873 MS).

(2) Litiana Augusta Daily (July, 1860 TN – 2 Nov 1915 Memphis, buried Forest Hill Cemetery) ca. 1878. Issue: Maggie (Jan 1880 Memphis), Robert Elmer (Apr 1884 Memphis), and Lena (15 Oct l885 Memphis – 2 April 1924 Memphis, buried Forest Hill Cemetery)

(3) Cambria ? (b. ca. 1870 TN)

The James W. Wright and John Brooks families may have known each other in Mississippi before moving to Memphis. They were neighbors in Memphis by 1850. John and his wife, Narcissa, were born in North Carolina. They migrated to Tennessee where their son, John H. Brooks, was born ca. 1835. Their daughter, Ellen Brooks, was born in Mississippi ca. 1837. By 1850 John H. was 15 and Ellen, 13, and lived in Memphis. The Wright and Brooks’ neighbor children, Margaret J. Wright (1840-1904) and John H. Brooks (1835) married on 28 Jan 1858 in Shelby, TN. John H. Brooks was a farmer in Fisherville, Shelby, TN in 1860. The family is listed in Memphis with their first child, William Wyatt Brooks, age 1 in 1860. Wyatt became a dentist, studying under his step-father, Shelton Hinson. John H. Brooks died bef. 1870 and Margaret (1840) married (2) Dr. Shelton Hinson, Sr. ca. 1871 in Memphis. (See Hinson)

Issue of Margaret Jane Wright and John H. Brooks

Dr. William Wyatt Brooks (3 May 1859 Shelby, TN – 18 Mar 1927 Memphis) practiced dentistry at the age of 20 in 1879 with his step-father, Dr. Shelton Hinson in Memphis. (Southern Business Guide 1879-80.) Wyatt became the foremost pyorrhea specialist in the south. He married a fellow Memphian, May L. Peyton, who became Memphis’ first female dentist after their marriage. They divorced.

Issue: Dr. Ruth Brooks (ca. 6 Jan 1897 Memphis – ca. 15 Dec 1971 CA), attended Randolph Macon, the University of Chicago, and the University of Tennessee to become a dentist. She met Dr. John H. A. Campbell, D.D.S., Ph.D. at the University of Chicago and married in Memphis. They moved to Los Angeles and had a daughter, Mary L. Campbell. (See Peyton)

Walter L. Brooks (ca. 1860 – Aft. 1952)

Issue of Margaret Jane Wright and Dr. Shelton Hinson

Shelton Hinson, Jr. (19 Dec 1871 Memphis – 18 Aug 1952 Memphis) (See Hinson)

To date, no relationship has been determined between the John Brooks and the James M. Brooks families with whom they inter-married. (See Brooks, Hinson, and Peyton)

Submitted by Brenda B. Watson

PEYTON, Sarah Fleming Payne (Biography)

Sarah Fleming Payne (29 Sep 1795 VA – 14 Sep 1853 Shelby Co., TN) and Craven Peyton (20 Oct 1794 Jefferson Co., KY – 23 Jan 1833) married in Shelby County, Kentucky Dec 1813 and bore their children in that state. Issue: Emily (1815), Dr. William (1817), Mary Chichester (1819), Dr. Craven (1821), Dr. Thomas Fleming (1823), Valentine Miner (1825), Presley Ross (1828), and Volney H. By 1840 Craven Peyton had died and Sarah and seven children migrated from Kentucky to Shelby County, Tennessee. By 1850 Sarah and her son Presley lived in the 5^th District of Memphis near her daughter and son-in-law, Emily and George Y. Smith. She may have run a boarding house; there were seven unrelated residents in her home.

Dr. Thomas Fleming Peyton (10 May 1823 Mount Vernon, KY – 14 Feb 1878 Shelby Co., TN), son of Sarah and Craven, married Martha Custis Woolsey (1832 Brunswick Co., VA – 1892 Shelby Co., TN). He practiced medicine in Memphis and in north Shelby County. The 1860 Shelby, TN census lists Thomas F., 37, b. KY, Martha, 27, b. VA, Emma, 4, b. TN, James, 24, attorney, b. VA, and Virginia, 20, b. MS. By 1870 the children listed were: Emma, 12, Fanny, 9, Sally, 6, Anna, 4, and Ashby, 2. “During the Civil War when medicine was so scarce, Martha Woolsey Peyton slipped through the Yankee lines in Memphis to secure some badly needed quinine for her husband’s patients. She was able to get the medicine which she put in the hem of her petticoat but was caught by the Yankees and put in jail. Martha was forced to pledge allegiance to the U.S. Army before they would release her.” (A History of Cuba, Tennessee, Chamberlin, Millington, TN)

Presley Ross Peyton (14 Nov 1828 KY – bef. 1870 Shelby Co., TN), son of Sarah and Craven, married (1) Indiana Herodine Leake 31 Jan 1854 in Shelby County. She was born ca. 1823 in Goochland County, Virginia to Richard Leake (ca. 1794 VA – July 1850 Shelby Co., TN) and Sophie T. Anderson (24 Jan 1797 – 27 Oct 1830). Richard, his second wife and sister-in-law, Mary T. Anderson, and his brother, Col. Samuel Leake, migrated to Shelby County ca. 1833. Indiana died bef. 1867 at Morning Grove (Richard’s property) in the Morning Sun area (Col. Sam’s property). Issue: Ellen S. Peyton (1857 Shelby Co., TN – 30 Dec 1931 Memphis) and India Leake Peyton (b. ca. 1859 Shelby Co., TN).

Indiana H. Leake married (1) James W. Lenow (25 Oct 1809 Southampton Co., VA – 1850 Louisville, KY) ca. 1842. Issue: Josephine (b. ca. 1844 Shelby Co., TN) and James Horace (b. ca. 1850 Shelby Co., TN). James W. Lenow married (1) a Virginian, Elizabeth Babb, bef. 1837. Issue: Frances Louisa (b. ca. 1837 VA) and John Henry (b. ca. 1839 TN).

Presley R. Peyton married (2) Martha “Mattie” A. Brooks (6 Jan 1847 Memphis – 15 Aug 1940 Memphis) bef. Nov 1867 and died shortly after their marriage. Mattie was the daughter of James M. Brooks and Mary Ann Kingston. She attended St. Agnes Academy and Calvary Episcopal Church. Widowed early, Mattie lived with her parent’s family from 1870 to 1920. In 1863 she witnessed the property confiscation by Union soldiers on the Brooks’ plantation and testified to the Southern Claims Commission in 1872 in Memphis. She is buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, Memphis. (see Brooks)

Issue of Martha Brooks and Presley Peyton

Walter R. Peyton (18 Nov 1867 – 22 Apr 1938 Memphis), a produce merchant for George Bloom Produce Co., was buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, Memphis.

Dr. May L. Peyton (22 January 1869 Fisherville, Shelby Co., TN – 23 July 1948 Memphis) was the first woman dentist to practice in Memphis (1903-1938). She married Dr. William Wyatt Brooks before 1897 in Memphis and entered dental school after her marriage. She graduated from Northwestern University with 2^nd honors in a class of 300 men and was lifetime members of the State Dental Society and American Dental Association. “Aunt May” was described as a small woman who always wore black. Fiercely independent, assertive, and demanding respect, every patient remained quiet and compliant. She and her husband, Wyatt, divorced after which time May lived at the luxurious Gayoso Hotel until her death. May mentored her younger cousin, Dr. Ardenne Hinson, who in turn mentored her nephew, Dr. Robert Black, in shared dental practices. She is buried in Forest Hill Cemetery. May’s only child, Dr. Ruth Brooks (ca. 6 Jan 1897 Memphis – ca. 15 Dec 1971 CA), attended Randolph Macon, the University of Chicago, and the University of Tennessee and became a dentist. She met Dr. John H. A. Campbell, D.D.S., Ph.D. at the University of Chicago and married in Memphis. They moved to Los Angeles and had a daughter, Mary L.

PEYTONS and PAYNES of VIRGINIA

The Peyton Society of Virginia

“The Paynes of Virginia,” C. J. Carrier Co., Harrisonburg, VA 1990

Craven Peyton (1794) was the son of William Peyton (1753 VA – 1811 KY) and Mary Ross (1769 VA – ca. 1841 KY). William Peyton was the son of Craven Peyton (b. 1732 VA) and Ann West. Mary Ross was the daughter of Lawrence Ross and Susannah Oldham. Craven Peyton (1732) was the son of Col. Valentine Peyton of Virginia (1687-1751) and Frances Linton.

Sarah Fleming Payne was the daughter of Dennis Payne (1789 KY – bef 1825 KY) and Nancy Combs (b. ca. 1788 VA). Dennis Payne was the son of William Payne (1755 VA – 1829 KY) and Mary Grymes. Nancy was the daughter of Cuthbert Combs, Sr. and Sarah Evans.

Submitted by Brenda B. Watson

FLETCHER, Payton (Biography)

Peyton Fletcher (ca. 1800 – ca. 1855 Fisherville, Shelby, TN), a former soldier of one of the Indian Wars, arrived in Shelby County by 1836 (Tax List) after marrying in 1830 in Davidson Co., TN. He became a highly successful planter in eastern Shelby County with large land holdings. Reported to have been born in Kentucky, Tennessee was listed as his state of birth on the 1850 Census, and Georgia, in his daughter’s 1880 Census. He married Sarah W. Graves (ca. 1795 Virginia – 1853 Fisherville, Shelby, TN) on 26 Jan 1830 in Davidson County, TN. Because he was listed in the Davidson County Census in that same year (1830) with 6 children under the age of 20, Peyton and/or Sarah probably had been previously married and widowed. (Graves may not have been Sarah’s maiden name.) Peyton and Sarah lived in Fisherville May 1836 through 1850. Peyton was appointed to several positions of public service: determined term of court elected officials, made a list of taxable property, and held elections.

Issue of Sarah Graves and Peyton Fletcher

Mary Jane Fletcher (7 Feb 1831 – 27 Feb 1907) married (1) James M. Rodgers (ca. 1830-1853) on 22 Jun 1850. Issue: Sallie Peyton Rodgers (b. 12 Aug 1851) married Mr. Brittingham. Mary Jane married (2) William George Hooker (1822 Amherst Co., VA – 1861 Fayette Co., TN) on 7 Jan 1855, brother of Frederick Augustus Hooker (ca. 1816 Henrico Co., VA – 1877 Fisherville). Issue: John Hooker (b. ca. 1849), William Hooker (b. ca. 1852), Alice Hooker (b. ca. 1859) and Andrew T. Hooker (b. 1860). Alice married John A. Nolley (b. 5 Mar 1850 TN). Issue: William T. P. Nolley (b. ca. 1879 TN), Nannie Lou, Georgia, Arrie Virginia, and Alice Alabama. John A. Nolley was the son of William Norris Nolley and Sarah G. Smith of Virginia.

Virginia Adeline Fletcher (1834 Shelby, TN – bef. 1870 AR) married James A. Brown. “James A. Brown of Saline County, was born in Lincoln County, Tenn., in 1829, and is the son of John and Nancy Brown, born in NC in 1807 and in TN in 1825, respectively. The parents were married in Lincoln County, and a few years after their union, moved to Fayette County, West Tenn., where they resided until the year 1853, then coming to Arkansas. His wife died in 1853, and he followed her two years later (1855). He was a son of James Brown, of North Carolina. In 1851 he was married in Shelby County, Tenn., to Virginia, a daughter of Payton and Sarah Fletcher of Kentucky, who settled in Tennessee after their marriage, the father becoming one of the largest planters in Shelby County. Mr. Fletcher was also a soldier in one of the Indian wars. Mr. and Mrs. Brown were the parents of seven children” (continued in Biography from Goodspeed’s “History of Saline County, Arkansas”)

Caroline Fletcher (1837 Shelby, TN – aft. 1850)

Andrew Jackson Fletcher “A. J. Fletcher” (18 Sep 1842 Shelby, TN – 30 Dec 1881 Shelby, TN) was a farmer in Eads and a Mason in nearby Morning Sun. A.J. married (1) Nancy Annie Payne Hooker (ca. 1848 Fisherville, Shelby, TN – ca. 1869 Collierville, Shelby, TN) on 11 Sep 1863. She was the daughter of Frederick Augustus Hooker and Sarah Ann Payne (ca. 1817 Hopkinsville, KY – aft. 1870 in Shelby Co., TN), early settlers of eastern Shelby County. Issue of A.J. and Nancy: Andrew Peyton “Major” Fletcher (8 Jun 1866 – 10 Jan 1907 Fisherville, Shelby, TN) married Nancy Hooker (b. 1870), daughter of Joseph Stanton Hooker (1845 Fisherville, Shelby Co., TN – 1927 Fisherville, Shelby Co., TN) and Malissa Ann Pride (1849 Wilson Co., TN – 1917 Fisherville, Shelby Co., TN). Joseph was a son of Frederick A. Hooker. Issue of Major and Nancy: Llano Duette Fletcher (1904-1992) married John Bert Hooker. Andrew “Major” is buried in Bethany Christian Church Cemetery, Shelby, TN. Occupation???

A.J. married (2) Mary Elizabeth “Mollie” Brooks (6 Mar 1851
Fisherville, TN – 1 Sep 1920 Memphis) on 17 Dec 1873. She was the daughter of James M. Brooks and Mary Ann Kingston. Their children were born on the Fletcher farm in Eads, eastern Shelby County. After Mollie was widowed at an early age with 5 children, she lived in their home and built and taught at her own private school (ca. 1880-1900) behind their home in Eads. Mollie moved to Memphis, ca. 1900, and lived with her daughter Maggie. Mollie was a founding member of Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, Memphis, organized in 1902. She is buried in Forest Hill. (See Brooks)

Issue of Mary Elizabeth Brooks and “A.J.” Fletcher

Kingston Fletcher (22 Nov 1874 – 24 Sep 1875)

Mattie Daisy Fletcher (13 Dec 1875 – 8 Jul 1925 Memphis) married Shelton Hinson, Jr. on 29 Aug 1893. Issue: Mary Ardenne, Henry Riner, Margaret Fleda, James Shelton, and Arlene. The family is buried in Forest Hill Cemetery. (See Hinson and Wright). Insert picture!

Maggie Coralline/Cecil Fletcher (12 Mar 1877 – 9 Apr 1950 Memphis) married (1) Henry Riner “H.R.” Eslinger (1841 Preble, OH – 1913 Memphis) in 1902. He
was the first Superintendent of Forest Hill Cemetery, Memphis.
Henry fought for Ohio in the Civil War (Private, Ohio Inf., Co. D, 184^th Reg.).
Maggie was Henry’s 3^rd wife. They lived in the home-mortuary on the
Cemetery grounds. The family is buried in the Hinson lot. Issue: Henry
Riner Eslinger Jr. (1905–1930). Maggie married (2) George William Campbell (1875 PA – 1932 Memphis) ca. 1915. Issue: Helen Jackie Campbell (1917-2000) who married J.C. Harrison from KY.

Patrick Earl Fletcher (30 Apr 1878 – 14 Nov 1910 Paducah, KY), railroad worker, married Mamie E. Issue: Earl Cleburn, Clarence, and Dorothy who moved to Texas with their mother after Earl’s death on the railroad.

Andrew Jay Fletcher (27 Nov 1880 Eads, Shelby Co., TN – 7 Aug 1943 Memphis), engine foreman with the IC Railroad, married Florence Marie Scarce (19 May 1908 Cayce, KY – 11 Jun 1989 Paris, TN). Issue: Riner Jay (b. 1936).

Submitted by Brenda B. Watson

HINSON, Shelton (Biography)

Shelton Hinson Jr. married Mattie Daisy Fletcher (13 Dec 1875 Fisherville – 8 Jul 1925) on 29 Aug 1893 in Memphis. She was the daughter of A.J. Fletcher and Mary Elizabeth Brooks. They lived in Memphis where he was a building contractor in Memphis. He also designed and built furniture as a hobby. Daisy taught her daughters intricate tatting, knitting, embroidery and crewel. They both died in Memphis and are buried in Forest Hill. Issue: Ardenne, Henry, Margaret, James, and Arlene. (See Fletcher and Brooks)

Issue of Daisy Fletcher and Shelton Hinson, Jr.

Dr. Mary Ardenne Hinson (18 Aug 1894 Memphis – 13 Dec 1979 Memphis) graduated from the Memphis Normal School (college) and became a school teacher before entering dental school. She tutored many of her fellow dental students at the University of Tennessee for which she received life-long appreciation. She initially practiced dentistry with her aunt, Dr. May Brooks (nee Peyton), and then her nephew, Dr. Robert Black. She was a charter member and president of the Memphis Zonta Club (Women Professionals), an avid photographer, an accomplished artist and hand-crafter, and traveler. She remained single and lived with her father and sister, Margaret.

Both widowed, Dr. Shelton Hinson, Sr. married (2) Margaret J. Wright (Mrs. John H. Brooks) (18 Aug 1840 MS – 17 Aug 1904 Memphis) shortly after Kate’s death in 1867. Margaret raised Shelton’s three young sons, Leon, James, and William, along with her own boys, Wyatt Brooks and Walter Brooks. Together, they had one child, Shelton, Jr. Shelton, Sr. practiced dentistry in downtown Memphis and survived Memphis’ second Yellow Fever epidemic in 1878. He was a Mason. Shelton’s obituary in 1912: “Was a resident of this city (Memphis) for 59 years, coming here before the beginning of the Civil War. He was a native of VA. Surviving him are his son, Shelton Hinson, Jr. and his stepchildren, Dr. W. W. Brooks and W. L. Brooks.” Issue: Shelton Hinson, Jr. (19 Dec 1871 Memphis – 18 Aug 1952 Memphis.) (See Wright)

Issue of Daisy Fletcher and Shelton Hinson, Jr.

Submitted by Brenda B. Watson

LAWHORN, Leonard (Biography)

Leonard Lawhorn (1842 – 22 Jul 1929 Memphis) married Margaret L. “Maggie” Brooks (Jan 1849 Memphis – August 2, 1895 Memphis) on 12 Sep 1867 in Shelby County, TN. Margaret was the second daughter of James Monroe Brooks and Mary Ann Kingston. According to Leonard’s obituary in “The Appeal,” he “was orphaned at an early age and rose from newsboy to head of what was the largest wholesale grocery company south of the Ohio, L. Lawhorn and Co. (Estab. 1864). He enlisted in the Confederate Army during the Civil War, served 3 years, was captured at Corinth, and was taken to the Union prison at Cairo, IL. He escaped and returned to Memphis as a stowaway on a Union Troop ship. Unable to break through the Union lines, Leonard was forced to remain in Memphis during the remainder of the war. He was a Memphis Alderman and member of several sportsman’s clubs, Angerona Lodge, F and AM, St. Elmo Commandery, Knights Templar, and Loyal Order of Moose. During Memphis’ Yellow Fever epidemic Leonard was involved in rehabilitation work.” He is buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, Memphis. Margaret is buried in an marked grave at Elmwood Cemetery, Memphis. (See Brooks)

Issue of Margaret Brooks and Leonard Lawhorn

Julia Valerie Lawhorn (26 Jun 1868 Memphis, Shelby, TN – 7 Feb 1962 Memphis, Shelby, TN) married John Gray Blount (6 Aug 1866 Washington, DC – 8 Dec 1940 Memphis, Shelby, TN) on Aug 1892 in Memphis. He was the son of

John Gray Blount and Elizabeth Watkins Perry. Julia and John were buried in Forrest Hill Cemetery, Memphis. Issue:

Julia Valerie Blount (1893-1994)

Margaret Louise Blount (1895-1989) School teacher.

John Gray Blount (b. 1897)

Elizabeth Perry Blount (1900-1990)

William Augustus Blount (1909-1981) married (1) Margaret Elivira Simkins (1906 Salem, OR – 1951) in 1939 in Memphis. He married (2) Lucy Ann Tate (b. 1922 Bartlett, Shelby, TN), daughter of Lemuel Hall Tate and Lida Chester Hammontree, on 27 Feb 1954 in Memphis. Tate County, Mississippi is named after Thomas Simpson Tate, father of Lemuel. Lucy Ann Tate married (1) William Frederick Niedringhaus Randolph of St. Louis, Missouri.

May Pearl Lawhorn (1870-1953 Raleigh, Shelby, TN) married Henry Wyatt Bayliss (1863 Clarksville, TN – 1930 Memphis) in 1892, son of William G. Bayliss. Issue: Basyl Bayliss (1892- 1909) and Henry W. Bayliss.

Leonard A. Lawhorn (b. 1873) married Mr. Pigeon from Memphis.

Leon Lawhorn (1875 Memphis – 1934 Memphis) married Minerva Rogers. Issue: Margaret Louise, Lillian M., Roger, Leon, Clarence, Julian R., and Paul Geriach.

Dr. Cecil Claine Lawhorn (1878-1971 Milwaukee, WI) married Julia Elle (b. 1876) in 1898.

Brookes Lawhorn (b. 1879)

John F. Lawhorn (b. 1881) married Agnes Towers in 1900.

Julian Lawhorn married Rachel.

Submitted by Brenda B. Watson

DICKSON Sr., Charles Russell (Biography)

Charles Russell Dickson, Sr. was the son of Nannie Florence Russell Dickson and John DeWitt Dickson, Sr.

Charles Russell Dickson, Sr. was born November 5, 1901 in Chattanooga, Hamilton, TN.

Charles Russell Dickson, Sr.’s siblings were: John DeWitt Dickson, Jr., Mary Elizabeth Dickson (Massee) and Robert Fairchild Dickson.

1910 Census of Chattanooga, Hamilton, TN: John DeWitt Dickson, Sr. (48), Nannie Florence Russell Dickson (48), John DeWitt Dickson, Jr. (18), Mary Elizabeth Dickson (15), Robert Fairchild Dickson (12), Charles Russell Dickson, Sr. (8). They lived on Union Avenue.

1920 Census of Chattanooga, Hamilton, TN: John DeWitt Dickson, Sr. (56), Nannie Florence Russell Dickson (56), Charles Russell Dickson, Sr. (18) on Bailey Drive.

Charles Russell Dickson, Sr. graduated from City High School in Chattanooga, TN ca. 1920. He was a member of Kiwanis and Lions Clubs and a member of the Christian Church.

1923, March 28, Charles Russell Dickson (Sr.) married Eva R Pirtle in Chattanooga, Hamilton, TN.

1930 Census of Chattanooga, Hamilton, TN: Robert Burgher Pirtle (49), Margaret Louise Stevens Pirtle (47), Charles Russell Dickson, Sr. (28), Eva R Pirtle Dickson (27), Charles Russell Dickson, Jr. (3), Margaret Nancy Dickson (3/12). They lived at 723 South Germantown Road.

Charles Russell Dickson, Sr. died December 25, 1954 in Abingdon, Wise, VA.

He lived in St. Paul, VA and worked in Dante, VA.

From 1927-1938, Charles Russell Dickson, Sr. was a salesman for Penn-Dixie Cement Corporation, Chattanooga, TN. From 1938-1943, he was a salesman for Magnolia Masonry Mix Company, Birmingham, AL. From 1943-1946, he worked for Tennessee Eastman Corporation, Oak Ridge, TN. From 1947-1949, he operated Masonry Waterproofing Company, Bowling Green, KY. In 1950, he went to work for the Clinchfield Coal Corporation and became Purchasing Agent until his death in 1954.

The children of Charles Russell Dickson, Sr. and Eva R Pirtle Dickson were:

Charles “Dick” Russell Dickson, Jr. born June 13, 1926 in Chattanooga, Hamilton, TN and died April 15, 2003 in Nashville, Davidson, TN and was buried in Fairview Cemetery in Bowling Green, Warren, KY.
Margaret “Peggie Nan” Nancy Dickson born December 22, 1929 in Chattanooga, TN.

submitted by Peggy Rhinerson

DICKSON, Eva Pirtle (Biography)

Eva R Pirtle Dickson was the daughter of Margaret Louise Stevens Banning and Alberto Lyman Banning, Jr. (b. August 1, 1882). Eva R was named for her grandmother, Eva Ralston Banning.

1902, June 8, Eva R Banning was born in Memphis, Shelby, TN. Margaret Louise Stevens Banning and Alberto Lyman Banning, Jr. divorced.

1907, July 21, Margaret Louise Stevens married Robert Burgher Pirtle in Jonesboro, Craighead, AR. Eva R Banning was legally adopted by Robert Burgher Pirtle and her name was changed to Pirtle. Eva R Pirtle had no siblings.

1910 Census, Memphis, Shelby, TN: James Wharton Stevens (51), Emma Ann Williams Stevens (53), Charles George Stevens (42) (JWS’s brother), Arrabelle Stevens (22), Robert Burgher Pirtle (29), Margaret Louise Stevens Pirtle (27), and Eva R Pirtle (7). They lived on Monroe Avenue.

1920 Census, Chattanooga, Hamilton, TN: Robert Burgher Pirtle (39), Margaret Louise Stevens Pirtle (37), Eva R Pirtle (17), Emma Ann Williams Stevens (62), James Wharton Stevens (62). They lived at 807 Dodds Avenue.

Eva R Pirtle graduated Central High School, Chattanooga, TN on May 21, 1920. She was a member of the Christian Church.

1923, March 28, Eva R Pirtle married Charles Russell Dickson (Sr.) in Chattanooga, Hamilton, TN.

1923, Eva R Pirtle worked for Chattanooga Regional Accounting Department of the American Railway Express Co.

1930 Census, Chattanooga, Hamilton, TN: Robert Pirtle (49), Margaret Louise Stevens Pirtle (47), Charles Russell Dickson, Sr. (28), Eva R Pirtle Dickson (27), Charles Russell Dickson, Jr. (3), Margaret Nancy Dickson (3/12). They lived at 723 South Germantown Road.

1966, April 2, Eva R Pirtle Dickson died in Bowling Green, KY and is buried in Fairview Cemetery there.

The children of Eva R Pirtle Dickson and Charles Russell Dickson, Sr. were:

Charles “Dick” Russell Dickson, Jr. born June 13, 1926 in Chattanooga, TN and died April 15, 2003 in Nashville, Davidson, TN and is buried in Fairview Cemetery in Bowling Green, Warren, KY.
Margaret “Peggy Nan” Nancy Dickson born December 22, 1929 in Chattanooga, TN.

submitted by Peggy Rhinerson

PIRTLE, Robert Burgher (Biography)

Robert Burgher Pirtle was the son of William Coleman Pirtle (b. March 20, 1838; d. September 25, 1905) and Mary Ellen “Kate” Robinson Pirtle (b. December 21, 1851, d. February 27, 1932), both buried Rainey Cemetery, Toone, Hardiman, TN. He was the grandson of Robert Pirtle (b. July 17, 1805; d. May 5, 1858), Elizabeth Bennett Pirtle (b. September 12, 1816; d. October 30, 1864). Both buried in Pirtle Cemetery, Toone, TN.

Robert Burgher Pirtle and Margaret Louise Stevens Pirtle

1880, December 9, Robert Burgher Pirtle was born in Toone, Hardiman, TN and his siblings were:

William Thomas Pirtle, b. May 10, 1870; d. September 7, 1932, b. Forest Hill Cemetery, Chattanooga, Hamilton, TN. (District Accountant for Railway Express Agency), wife, Ruth.
Marie Celeste “Maud” Pirtle (Mrs. Charles Leigh Taylor), b. April 1872
Alfred Austin Pirtle, b. July 15, 1875; d. November 25, 1923; b. Rainey Cemetery, Toone, TN.
Mary Allene Pirtle (Mrs. Woodrow Sammons Marsh), b. December 27, 1878, d. August 19, 1978; b. Rainey Cemetery, Toone, TN.

Daughter, Frances, married Dr. Wilburn C. Orr (owned Bolivar Drug Store), their children

Nancy & Charles “Bunny”.
Nannie Kate Pirtle (Mrs. Joseph Martin), b. March 1884; d. 1966, b. Rainey Cemetery, Toone, TN, son, Joe Martin, wife Elia Poindexter and their son, Billy.
Arthur Coleman Pirtle, b. November 22, 1886; d. July 13, 1905; b. Rainey Cemetery, Toone, TN.
Edna Lucille Pirtle (Mrs. George B. “Jack” Doyle), b. July 28, 1891; d. March 1, 1920; b. Rainey Cemetery, Toone, TN.

1880 Census, Toone, Hardiman, TN: William Coleman Pirtle (41), Mary Ellen “Kate” Robinson Pirtle (29), William Thomas Pirtle (10), Marie Celeste “Maud” Pirtle (8), Alfred Austin Pirtle (5), and Mary Allene Pirtle (2). Robert Burgher Pirtle was born in December of 1880 after the census was taken.

1890, no census available.

1902, January 4, through January 3, 1905, Robert Burgher Pirtle was enlisted in the Spanish American War, a Sargeant with 9th CAC, U.S. Army.

1907, July 21, Robert Burgher Pirtle married Margaret Louise Stevens Banning in Jonesboro, Craighead, AR. Robert Burgher Pirtle legally adopted Eva R Banning and her name was changed to Pirtle.

1923, Robert Burgher Pirtle worked Arkansas Routes for American Railway Express Co.

1930 Census, Chattanooga, Hamilton, TN: Robert Burgher Pirtle (49), Margaret Louise Stevens Pirtle (47), Charles Russell Dickson, Sr. (28), Eva R Pirtle Dickson (27), Charles Russell Dickson, Jr. (3), Margaret Nancy Dickson (3/12). They lived at 723 South Germantown Road.

1946 Robert Burgher Pirtle retired and in 1949 they moved to 3156 Lamphier Avenue, Memphis, TN.

1961, September 25, Robert Burgher Pirtle died in Memphis, TN and is buried in Memphis National Cemetery #C4175, side by side with his wife, Margaret Louise Stevens Pirtle.

submitted by Peggy Rhinerson