Elliott County’s Union Civil War Veterans in 1890 By John A. Stegall < johnstegall@hotmail.com One installment in a series of articles Mr. John A. Stegall prepares and publishes in The Elliott County News, this article is a continuation and was first published Oct 25, 1996 and is a continuation from Cot 4, 1996. Transcribed with permission from the author by Samone Ratcliff on Aug 18, 2000. Contiuned from Oct 4, 1996. Amos Holbrook: Pvt. Co. ___, ___ Ky., Inf. A note, probably entered by the censustaker, read, "Sol. (Conf.)." While the 1890 military census was intended primarily to list only Union veterans, some Confederate veterans were named, but only a very few. Amos Holbrook was apparently one of the few who were included. Amos stated that he entered the military in the Fall of 1863 and served to the Spring of 1864. His postoffice was Leadingham. Researchers of the Holbrook family indicate that Amos was born in March 1845 and died around 1928. He was a son of Braddock and Judith Jordan Holbrook of Russell County, VA. Family records indicate that Braddock and Judith had 15 children, the first eight of them born in VA. Amos, being their twelfth child, was obviously born in KY, probably in Morgan Co. Amos Holbrook and Rebecca Waugh were married July 6, 1864, in Carter Co. The marriage record indicates that the witnesses to the marriage were Albert Holbrook and John Waugh. They were married by Joseph Mauk. When the 1870 Elliott Co census was taken, Amos and Rebecca Holbrook were named in Precinct No. 1, Martinsburg. He was 26, and born in KY; she was 22, and also born in KY. At that time, they had 3 children: Robert, 4, Susan, 2; and Louisa, 10 months. If the names of their neighbors indicate where they lived, it is obvious that they did not live near Sandy Hook. Apparently the Martinsburg Precinct included a very large area. I am unable to locate Amos Holbrook in the 1880 Elliott Co census, whice leads me to believe that he might have been residing outside Elliott Co. Obviously, Amos was living in Elliott Co when the 1890 census was taken, but as I have previously stated, that particular report, except for the military census, was destroyed by fire. It is also revealed by the 1890 tax records that Amos was a resident of Elliott Co. At that time, he was residing in the Moccasin Precinct, and owned 30 areces of land. Wes Cornet was his nearest neighbor. When the census taker called on June 1, 1900, Amos and Rebecca Holbrook were residents of the Brown Precinct. He indicated that his age was 54 years; Rebecca was 53, having been born Sept 1846. Their ages seem to be consistent with those given in 1870. Amos and Rebecca stated that they had been married 38 years, and that they had seven children, one of which was deceased. Only one child, Sim, age 21, was still at home with them. When the 1910 census was taken, Rebecca, then 65, indicated that she had six children, and that one of them was deceased. I have not seen a complete list of children for Amos and Rebecca Holbrook, but I would think that there were more that the 4 named in the 1870 and 1900 census reports. I do not know the exact dates of death of Amos and Rebecca, niether do I know where they are buried. Amos Holbook was not the only one of Braddock's sons to serve in the Civil War. Three of Amos; brothers, John, Richard and Lewis were killed. John H. Holbrook: Apparently a brother to the above named, Amos Holbrook, he was one of the 3 brothers whe died in the Civil War. Family records indicate that he was born in 1830, most likely in Russell Co, VA, and died in 1862. He was married to Louraine Holbrook. In 1890, the former widow of John Holbrook, Louraine "Lurana" Wagoner, stated that John was a Pvt. in the 22nd Ky Inf., but his Company was apparently unknown to her. She (or the census-taker) indicated that he was in the Union Army, but that seems contrary to information given by Holbrook reserchers. Lurana gave the following information: "His whereabouts has neve been known". The 1870 Elliott Co census names Lurana as the wife of David Waggoner. She was 30 years of age; David was 23. The oldest child, Rissty?, was 14, the next two, William and Nancy, were three and one year, respectively. The wide difference in ages would indicate that Rissty (undoubtedly a misspelling) might have been a son of John H. Holbrook. Philander F. Holbrook: Pvt., Co. B, 14th Ky Inf. Philander, known by the name "Lan" was a son of D. Randleman and Mary Boggs Holbrook. He was born in 1839 on Big Blaine in Lawrence co, KY, and died in Sandy Hook on Oct 29, 1877 of smallpox. He was buried near Sandy Hook on land now owned by Jolene Lewis, widow of Emery Lee Lewis. I understand that there is no other grave nearby. At that time, smallpox was perhaps the most feared and dreaded disease in our nation, so much so that when a victim of the disease died the remains were buried in a isolated area. "Lan" Holbrook was first married to Eliza Osborn, a daughter of Walter and Sarah Edwards Osborn. "Lan" and Eliza had two sons: John Chilton, born in 1860 and died in 1949; and Will, born March 6, 1863 and died Feb 22, 1944. Chilt Holbrook married Sarah Manning, Will married Naomi Lemaster. "Lan" Holbrook later married Louisa Hunter, a daughter of Benjamin and Elizabeth Drake Hunter. They had only one child, Philander "Lan" Holbrook, Jr., born Sept 27, 1871 and died Nov 16, 1952. "Lan" Holbrook, Jr., married Easter Stapleton. Louisa Hunter Holbrook later married Jeff Patrick and had two sons, Milford and Clarence. William Lyfus "Will" Holbrook, the second son of "Lan" and Eliza Osborn Holbrook has several descendants living in the Sandy Hook area at the present time. One daughter, Cleffie, was born here in Elliott Co on Aug 5, 1889. She married Roscoe Parsons, and they were probably Sandy Hook residents throughout their married years. Ollie Holbrook, a son of Will and Naomi Lemaster Holbrok, was married to Hattie Fannin. Ollie was a well known barber in Sandy Hook for many years. Philander F. Holbrook was deceased when the 1890 military census was taken, however, his former widow, Louisa Hunter Holbrook Patrick, was still living. Much of this information of Philander F. Holbrook was given to me several years ago by Lucy G. White (Thanks Lucy). Linza Holcom: Pvt. Co. H, 47th Ky Inf? No dates were given to indicate when he entered military service and when he was discharged. His address in 1890 was Fielden, which was on Little Fork. A note entered by the censustaker reads: "Of Big Harland, Pa.?" This last bit of information seems misleading, or at least, not understood. All census records I have checked indicate that Linza was born in KY. Also, the surname is spelled Halcom in these records. Wells family researchers say Lindsey (Linza, Linzy) Halcom and Sarah Wells were married Feb 9, 1867, in Letcher Co, KY. Sarah was a daughter of Ezekiel and Emeline Day Wells. Ezekiel was prone to move frequently, but eventually moved to present day Elliott Co in 1867. When the first Elliott Co census was taken in 1870, "Lindsey Halcan" was a resident of the Little Fork Precinct. At that time, he stated that he was 24 years of age, and his wife, Sarah, was 23. Two children were recorded in this record: Mary, age 3, and Susan, 1. Lindsey indicated that he was born in KY; Sarah in VA. The 1880 Elliott Co census reveals that the Lindsey Halcom family still resided int he Little Fork Precinct. Their actual residence may have been on Hurricane Creek. It was there in 1893 that a new post office was establishd by Nancy Wells and given the name Halcom in honor of Nancy's neighbors, Lindsey and Sarah Halcom. In 1880, Lindsey Halcom indicated that he was 31 years of age; Sarah was 30. Children named in this census report were: Polly, 12; Sousan, 10; Latisha, 8; Harden, 6; Nancy, 3; and Tilda, 1 year. Ages given for Lindsey and Sarah in 1880 seem to be inconsistent with their ages in 1870. Family records show that Sarah was born July 18, 1846; therefore, we can assume that the age she gave in 1870 was most likely correct. In all likelihood, Lindsey's 1870 age was correct. The 1890 Elliott County tax records show Lindsey Halcom was the owner of 50 acres of land in the Little Fork area. When the census was taken in 1900, Lenzie Halcom stated that he was 53 years of age, having been born Feb 1847. Sarah was also 53, and was born in July 1846. Children named in this report were: Mary, 30 (born Mar 1870); Green, 24 (Apr 1876); Ezekiel, 18 ( Oct 1881); Sarah, 14 (June 1885); and Linzey, 13 (Apr 1887). The Halcom name does not appear in the 1910 Elliott Co census. Wells family researchers say Linzey Halcom lived in Elliott Co for more than thirty years, then moved to the state of Washington. This same source says Sarah Wells Halcom died in that state on June 18, 1937, and is buried in Wenatchee, WA. I have seen no date of death for Lenzie. Note: I was very sorry to hear of Jack Ferguson's death. He was a faithful reader of my column, and told me that my column was the first thing he looked for when he received the paper. Jack and I never met except via the telephone, and, in fact, when he was in Elliott Co earlier in the year, he called me and we had a lenghty and pleasant conversation about some of his ancestors I had mentioned in my Civil War Veterans articles. He was a very interesting man to talk with, and the last thing he said to me when he was here was: "I'll be back next year, and I will make it a point to get with you so we can talk some more. Take care, and God bless you." Regrettably, that meeting will not take place. Monie, you and all of Jack's loved ones have my deepest sympathy. Finished USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free genealogical information on the Internet, data may be freely used for personal research and by non-commercial entities as long as this message remains on all copied material. These electronic pages may not be reproduced in any format or presentation by other organizations or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material for profit or any form of presentation, must obtain the written consent of the file submitter, or his legal representative and then contact the listed USGENWEB archivist with proof of this consent. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store this file permanently for free access.