Brooks – Shelby County, TNGenWeb

1830-1847 Will Index

FamilySearch has digitized the Works Progress Administration transcriptions of Shelby County Wills. The images are available online, but below I have typed up the name index for easy reference.

ABBOT, Jane G.	HENLY, T.B.	RIVES, George
ABERNATHY, Thomas	HERING, Joel	ROBB, James
ALEXANDER, Jesse	HORN, Mosses	ROBERTSON, Z.T.
ALLEN, Alexander	HOWISTON, Wm.	ROYSTER, David
ALLEN, Willie	HYNES, William	SANDERS, Joel B.
ALLISON, Thos.	IRBY, Gerald	SANDERS, M.L.
BALCH, Amanda	ISH, Jacob	SANDERSON, Elizabeth
BALCH, John K.	JAMES, Henry F.	SCALES, Joseph
BANGUS, Bryant	JOHNSON, Lucy	SCRUGGS, Joseph
BELL, Andrew	JOHNSON, Wm. I.	SHIELDS, E.J.
BELL, Reuben H.	JONES, Achelles	SHEPHERD, William
BENNETT, Polly	JONES, A.G.	SKINNER, Benjamin
BEST, John	JONES, Bertha	SMITH, Calvin W.
BIGGS, Benjamin	JONES, Eldredge W.	SMITH, Joseph
BLOUNT, Thomas	JONES, Lafayette	SMITH, Sarah I.
BOLTON, Chas.	KENNEDY, W.H.	SMITH, Susanna
BOSHER, Leonard	KEON, M.J.	SNOW, John
BOWEN, Abner	KIMBROUGH, Jas.	SPICER, Winfred
BOWEN, John	KIMBROUGH, Lydia	STANTON, Benjamin
BROOKS, Joseph	KIMBROUGH, Margaret (Mrs.)	STEWART, Wm. P.
BROWN, Elizabeth	KIRK, Joseph	SUGGETT, Bing
BROWN, John L.	LAWRENCE, Wm.	SUGGS, Isaacs
BRUCE, Wm. Wallace	LEWIS, Charles W.	TATE, Jesse C.
CANNON, John	LEWIS, John N.	TAYLOR, James P.
CARR, Martha Ann	MACKEY, Samuel	TAYLOR, Thos. B.
CARR, Joseph	MASON, James	THOMPSON, Wm.
CHRISTIAN, Fred	MAY, Benjamin	THURMON, F.C.
CHRISTIAN, Wyatt	McGEHEE, Fountain	TINSLEY, Ann
CLARKE, Elisha	McKEON, Nicholas	TITUS, Robert E.
COBB, Wm.	McLEAN, Archibald	TOSER, Nancy
COCHRAN, Lynch	McMAHAN, Francis	TREZVANT, James
COTTON, Joseph	McMILLAN, Murdock	TREZVANT, L.C. (M.D.)
COX, Edward	MICKLEBERRY, J.S.	TRIGG, Lucy
CROP, Shedrick	MILLER, Thos.	TURNER, John
DAUGHTRY, James	MOORE, Nath	VAUGHN, Edmond H.
DUNN, David	MOORE, Charity	WAGNON, John P.
DUNN, Samuel	MOORE, William A.	WARD, Edward (Col.)
EASON, Howell D.	MURRAY, Margaret A.	WARD, Elizabeth
EDMONDS, James L.	NUTT, Thomas	WARE, Robert
EMMEY, Frederick	OLIVER, Thomas B.	WASHBURN, Thos.
FARIS, James	PARHAM, Sion	WENDELL, Wm.
FRASIER, Jas.	PARKS, John	WHEATLY, Leonard
GATEWOOD, Jane	PATILLO, R.H.	WHERRY, Andrew
GOOLSBY, Richard	PERSONS, Benj. E.	WHITE, Joseph
GREENLAW, Gabriel	PERSONS, Richard I.	WILLIAM, James
GREGORY, William	PIRKINSON, John	WILLIAM, Lewillen
GRIFFIN, Elijah	QUENICHET, Vivant	WILSON, Jane
GRIFFIN, Pleasant	RASH, Thomas A.	WISE, Henry
HADNOT, Brice W.	RAWLINGS, Miss Juliet	WORTHAM, Robert
HARDAWAY, James P.	RAWLINGS, Isaac	WOODS, John
HARRIS, William	REID, John R.	YOUNG, Emanuel
HARKLEROAD, Danie	REMBERT, Andrew
HATCH, Durant	REMBERT, James
HAYNES, Henry	RENNOLDS, Fielding
HERRON, Isaac

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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

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