Bartholomew County IN Archives Biographies.....Newsom, Williamson Terrell 1842 - ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/copyright.htm http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/in/infiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com January 26, 2007, 10:34 pm Author: B. F. Bowen (1904) WILLIAMSON T. NEWSOM. Representatives of the name of Newsom have been prominent and active in public affairs and their labors have contributed in large measure to the general prosperity and business activity of Bartholomew county. He whose name introduces this sketch has ever sustained the family reputation for energy, business judgment and reliability. He has also won that fair measure of success which usually crowned the labors of others of the name, and today is the owner of many acres of the county's productive land. Mr. Newsom's paternal great-grandfather, David Newsom, was a native of Wayne county, North Carolina, and was of Irish descent. The maternal great-grandmother, whose maiden name was Sarah Peele, was also a native of Wayne county, North Carolina, and was of English descent. They were the parents of eight children, five sons and three daughters, who emigrated to Orange county, Indiana, in 1818. They came by wagon and crossed the Cumberland mountains at Cumberland Gap, and then on through Kentucky to Lexington, which they then thought was a well improved town and country. They crossed the Ohio river at Louisville and came on to Orange county, Indiana. As Quakers, they were opposed to the iniquitous slavery institution of the south and determined to make their future home in a free state. They remained in Orange county two years and then came to Bartholomew county, locating in Sand Creek township. Prior to this time, however, in 1817, two of the children, Daniel and Joel Newsom, had been to this state on a prospecting trip, going first to Orange county and then to Bartholomew county, and later still to Wayne county, returning to North Carolina a few months afterward. The subject's great-grandfather, David Newsom, above referred to, married Sarah Peele, sister of Robert Peele, an Englishman of note in his time, her mother's maiden name having been Edgerton. Their eight children were as follows: Willis, the subject's grandfather, born February 25, 1775, died December 14, 1839; Elizabeth became the wife of a Mr. Waddle, there being no issue of this union; Joel, who was born March 6, 1790, and died December 22, 1848, married March 15, 1815, Penina Woodard, who was born October 2, 1795, and their children were Josey, Sarah, Matilda, Thomas, Calvin, Elizabeth, Cader (born November 26, 1827), Mahala and Melinda, all excepting Cader being deceased; Sarah, who married Ephraim Cook; David, born November 18, 1787, died August 23, 1854, married November 16, 1809, Elizabeth Woodard, who was born December 13, 1789, and died December 22, 1866, and their children were Luke, Micajah, Mary, Penina, Robert, Joel (born April 24, 1832), Isaac and Absillet, all deceased excepting Joel; Zilpha became the wife of Henry Smith, and their children were Amelia (married Francis J. Crump), Sally (married William Crump) and Celia (married Noah Sims); John married Charlotte Hollowell, and their children were Stephen, Martha (married a Mr. Edwards) and Mary (married Gid McFall); Daniel, born November 13, 1777, died March 1, 1845, was twice married, first to Celia Fulgum and secondly to Clarky Cook, who died November 1, 1848, the children by the latter union-being James, Thomas, John, William and Zilpha. Willis Newsom was twice married. His first union was with Lydia Cox, and to them were born four children, as follows: Rebecca, born February 28, 1806, married John Graves, and they became the parents of eight children, William, Isaac, Willis, Sarah Jane, Lydia, Nathan, Matilda and Alex; Mary, born January 9, 1810, became the wife of Henry Newby, and their children were William, Mildred, Nathan and Matilda; Mildred, born December 14, 1813, married Nathan Harvey, and their children were Sarah Jane, Elizabeth, James and Matilda; Nathan (father of the subject), born June 23, 1807, died November 14, 1878, married Lydia Ruddick March 8, 1827, and to them were born the following children: Willis died when seventeen years of age; Jesse, born May 5, 1830, died March 16, 1899, married Mary Cox, February 17, 1853, and they had nine children, Albert H., Emma J., Mary Ida (deceased), Nathan H., Charles Sumner, Lydia, Vida, Jesse and Joseph (deceased); John Q. A., born September 3, 1835, married Margaret Newby December 30, 1858, and their children were Lincoln, Joseph, Lydia and Amy; Nathan, born April 30, 1838, married Mary Flesher September 1, 1863, and their children were Will H., John F. and others deceased; Ma-linda, born March 2, 1845, married Eldridge Anderson, October 8, 1866, and has three children, Charles, Lydia and Margaret; Williamson Terrell is the immediate subject of this review. To Willis Newsom's second union, which was with Sarah Hall (born November 27, 1798, died September 24, 1839), were born eight children, as follows: John, born April 2, 1819, died June 6, I&47, married Martha Trueblood and had three children, Alfred, William and Sarah Ann; Smitha, born January 18, 1821, married John Thomas and had five children, Luke, Sarah, Lydia, Clarkson and John; Joseph, born May 24, 1828, married first Elizabeth Hollowell and secondly Martha Parker; the children by the first union were Emma and Ulysses and by the second, two boys; Millicent, born October 13, 1825, became the wife of John R. Davis, and they had five children, Albert, Esther, Nora, Lewis and Sarah Emma; Sarah never married; James married Margaret Bradfield and they had three children, Roland, Lulu and Hettie May; Anna became the wife of Ezekiel Davis, and their children were Almeda, Willis, Emery and others; David T. married for his first wife Lydia Newsom, and their children are all deceased; for his second wife he married Ruth Woodard, and they have two daughters, Eva and Mabel. Lydia (Ruddick) Newsom, mother of the subject, was born June 13, 1806, near Chillicothe, Ross county Ohio, and. died July 5, 1881. Her grandfather, Solomon Ruddick, was a native of Virginia and came to Ohio about 1800. In 1782 he married Ann _____, and to them were born three sons, as follows: William, whose wife's given name was Rachel, settled in Jackson county, three miles south of Seymour, and had children, Solomon, William, Jesse and several daughters; Elisha, whose wife's given name was Tamar, located near Brownstown, Indiana, and had no children; Jesse, maternal grandfather of the subject of this sketch, born in Grayson county, Virginia, May 4, 1784, died in Bartholomew county April 23, 1870; he married in 1801 Catherine Baker, the daughter of Murphra and Mary Baker, of Randolph county, North Carolina, but who, about 1800, emigrated to Ross county, Ohio, and they had the following children: Nancy, born December 1, 1803, married Lewis Marr, the names of their children being Mary, William, James, Catherine, Jesse, John, Malinda and Margaret; Polly, born December 1, 1803, married John Singleton, and their children were named Matilda, Harriet, Calvin and Lovie; Catherine married Luke Aikin, and their children were Jesse, Daniel, Baker and other sons; Lovey became the wife of Isaac Le-masters, and they had one son, William; Sarah became the wife of Jesse Swisher, * and their children were Jane, Kate, Lovie, Emma, Alice and Anthony; Jane became the wife of Anthony Swisher, a union without issue; Jesse married Eliza Swisher, and they had children, Robert, Kate, Amy and other daughters; William, born August 25, 1821, and who died in his eighty-first year, married Dorcas Corn for his first wife and for his second Martha Crump; by the first union there was one son, Oscar, and by the second there were five children, Baker S., Elizabeth, Charles A., Albert J. and Inez; Amy became the wife of Stephen. Stewart, and their children are Robert, William, Kate, Jane, Amy, Anthony and John; Lydia is mentioned elsewhere. Jesse Ruddick, the subject's maternal grandfather, represented Bartholomew county in the state legislature during several terms, between 1824 and 1834. He and his brother William were members of the first board of commissioners of this county, their first meeting being held February 15, 1821. Williamson Terrell Newsom was born in Sand Creek township, Bartholomew county, Indiana, August 13, 1842. He was reared on the home farm and throughout his life has been devoted to agriculture and stock raising. He has attained a wide and enviable reputation as a breeder of fine horses, in fact, is one of the state's recognized leaders in this line. He owns over two sections in Wayne and Flat Rock townships, of which twelve hundred acres are under cultivation. Besides dealing extensively in mules, general purpose horses, shorthorn cattle and Poland China hogs, Mr. Newsom has owned some of the best of Indiana's roadsters, including Terrel S., 2:08 1-4, the swiftest son of Strathmore; Tom Edison, 2:13; Bartholomew Wilkes, Artemus Herald and Jack Wilkes. He has forty head of fine brood mares, representing such celebrated sires as Harold, Doctor Herr, Conductor, Artemas, Ajax, Anteros, Bartholomew Wilkes and Strathmore. In February, 1903, he purchased of J. R. Murphy, of Woodstock, New Brunswick, Allendorf, son of Onward, dam Alma Mater, by Membrino Patchen, 58. Alma Mater is one- of the world's greatest brood mares, being also the dam of Alcyone and Alcantara, two of the most renowned stallions. Allendorf himself is one of the greatest living sires of trotters, being equalled by only two other stallions as a sire of producing sons. In his political views Mr. Newsom is a Republican. On the 6th day of April, 1881, W. T. Newsom was united in marriage to Miss Sophia E. Parker, a brief resume of whose genealogical record is as follows: Isaac Parker, her paternal great-grandfather, born in 1770, was a native of North Carolina and was of sturdy Quaker stock. Because of the blightening effects of slavery they left their native state early in the nineteenth century and came to Sand Creek township, Bartholomew county, Indiana. He was the first school teacher in the township, teaching the first school in 1819. As early as 1824 Isaac Parker, with others holding similar views, organized a Friends Society in Sand Creek township, Bartholomew county, and soon afterward they erected a rude, but substantial, log house, which was used for both religions and educational purposes. He died in 1852. He was married to Elizabeth Woodard, and to them were born five children, William, Benjamin, Phineas, Millicent and Zilpha. Of these children William was Mrs. Newsom's grandfather; Benjamin married Asenith ___, and their children were Joshua, James, Nathan, Elisha, Aaron, Sarah and Millicent; Phineas married Zilpha ____, and their children were William, Thomas, Phineas, Mildred, Zilpha and Stephen; Millicent married Isaac Cox, and their children were Richard, Isaac, Thomas, John, Elizabeth, Benjamin, Zilpha, Mary, Willis and Joseph; Zilpha became the wife of Jesse Peele, and their children were Isaac, Isabella, Abigail, Willis and Ed. William Parker, Mrs. Newsom's grandfather, was born December 8, 1791, and his death occurred November 24, 1857. He married Elizabeth Peele, daughter of Willis and Elizabeth (Edgerton) Peele, who was born April 11, 1796, and died July 12, 1840. To William and Elizabeth Parker were born the following children: Piety, born March 23, 1816, married Nathan Newby, and their children were Sarah, Martha, Amanda, Patience, William and Benjamin; Isaac, born November 29, 1817, married Rebecca Overman, and died August 16, 1845; Esther, born September 28, 1819, died March 5, 1884, married Joshua Trueblood, and their children were Benjamin, Alpheus, William and Hannah; Benjamin, born November 25, 1822, married Sarah Newsom, and had children, Joel, Elizabeth and Elwood; Jesse, born June 12, 1826, died November 8, 1842, unmarried; Sarah, the only living member of this family, born September 1, 1832, married Foster Trueblood, and their children are Maria, Matilda, Adah and Horace; Willis, father of Mrs. Newsom, who died November 15, 1896, was born in Indiana, not far from where he always lived, November 11, 1824, married Sarah R. White February 28, 1850, and they had the following children: Martha Ellen, born December 23, 1850, died January 15, 1856; Benjamin W., born September 7, 1852, married Alma Prather, their children being all deceased; Joseph H., born November 25, 1854, married Olive Mc-Henry, their children being Corwin, Ina and one deceased; Sophia, born May 4, 1857, wife of the subject; Margaret A., born October 31, 1859, married Albert H. Morris, their children being Nettie, Alida, lone, Clara, Raymond and Glenna; William E., born March 11, 1862, married Josephine Thompson, and their children are Hazel and Gail; Cora, born March 30, 1866, married Lewis Davis, and their children are Ivah, Ruth and Alma, and Willis L, born January 20, 1873, married Bessie Bateman, a union without issue. Sarah R. (White) Parker, mother of Mrs. Newsom, was the daughter of Benjamin and Sophia White, and was born July 18, 1829. Her paternal grandparents were Thomas and Elizabeth (Sanders) White, whose children, besides Benjamin (Mrs. Newsom's maternal grandfather), were as follows: Mary married a Mr. Lamb; Milly, unmarried; Jacob married Margaret Newby; Esther married Uriah Winslow; John F. married Elizabeth Felton; Rebecca married Lemuel Moore; Obed, unmarried; Joseph, a half-brother, married Jemima Robertson. Benjamin White was three times married. To his first union, with Sophia Ruddick, daughter of ____ and Catherine Ruddick, were born Jane, who married John Winslow, and had children, Millicent, Lucy and Uriah; William, unmarried; Sarah R. married Willis Parker, heretofore referred to; Uriah married Anna Love, and their children were Horace, Hattie, Joseph, Ewing and Emma; Hudson never married; Margaret married first Willis Graves and had one daughter, Sophia, and afterwards married William Graves, brother of her first husband, by whom she had children, Sarah, Willis, Maggie and others. Benjamin White's second wife was a Mrs. Elliott, and to this union were born the following children: Sophia married Caleb Elliott; Mary Elizabeth was the second wife of Caleb Elliott; Christina became the wife of Alfred Newsom; Clara became the wife of Frank Newsom. The third marriage of Benjamin White was to Sarah Pritchard, and to them were born three children, Thomas, John and Charles. Sarah R. (White) Parker, though a native of Perquimans county, North Carolina, accompanied her parents, when quite young, to Jackson county, Indiana. Their trip was a tedious and tiresome one, as traveling accommodations at that early day were primitive. From their native county they went to Norfolk, Virginia, taking a boat from there to Baltimore, Maryland. They then drove overland to Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, going from there to Madison, Indiana, by boat, and thence by wagon to their new home, two miles south of Seymour, Indiana. Though the journey was a long and arduous one, they never desponded, but pushed on persistently to the mecca of their hopes, hopes that proved to be well founded, for they soon prospered and became influential citizens of the county. To W. T. Newsom and wife have been born six children, namely: Ora, born January 31, 1882; Nathan Chester, born October 13, 1883; Kathryn R., born July 15, 1885; Williamson Terrell, born October 14, 1887; Willis, born March 30, 1890, and Count P., born July 26, 1892. Additional Comments: Extracted from BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD OF BARTHOLOMEW COUNTY INDIANA INCLUDING BIOGRAPHIES OF THE GOVERNORS AND OTHER REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS OF INDIANA ILLUSTRATED 1904 B. F. Bowen PUBLISHER File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/in/bartholomew/bios/newsom798gbs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/infiles/ File size: 16.1 Kb