Bienville Families: Whitley family, Bienville Parish Louisiana Submitted by Donna Sutton ladyhawke1214@hotmail.com ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ************************************************ Whitley Family History The County of Yorkshire, in England, is divided into four sections named as East, West, North, and South. Much of North Yorkshire includes the lovely dales immortalized by James Herriott in his veterinarian books. West Yorkshire has much the same topography and has been used for grazing for centuries, ever since the vast forests were destroyed by early dwellers for shipbuilding and for charcoal. Sheep were the main commodity in West Yorkshire, and their wool was an important trading item as well as the raw material for a thriving local weaving industry. Long before the Industrial Revolution, many people made their daily living through their own cottage industries, weaving being the most widespread in England, particularly the weaving of hose. There were no knitting machines, and if one wanted warm leg coverings then one had to purchase hand loomed stockings. Competition was fierce, and the prices were kept down because there was always someone willing to sell something a little shoddier for a lesser price. As a result, weavers seldom became wealthy but managed to eke out a living of sorts. The center of the weaving industry in West Yorkshire was the town of Wakefield, located about half-way on the main north-south trading route from London to Edinburgh. Trade was brisk and the cottage industry thrived for centuries. The local church, All Saints, has recorded births, marriages, and deaths for all these years, and the name of Wheatley or Whitley is present in the lists from the earliest date. Other than for clothing, Wakefield is noted as the home of Robert Fitzooth, alias Robin Hood, who lived there in the 1200’s. One of his escapades was a battle with the Pindar (cattle pen tender) of Wakefield. Robin died there, in 1247, with the reputation of taking up for the weak and poor. The Whitley family and the name are both very ancient, dating to the earliest days of England. “Whit” comes from the Old English word for active, strong, bold, and brave; it was probably a personal name from the dark ages. Wheatley and Whitley seem to have been used interchangeabley over the years. The first family record found in All Saints is for the christening of a Thomas Wheatley in 1330. Most of the early records are gone, so it is likely that there were many more before Thomas. William Whitley was recorded in town records as a weaver in the 1500’s. However, by 1630 the cloth trade began to decline due to cheaper foreign imports. The weavers began to move away. [Source: Wilson Daily Times Online, January column 1999, by Henry Powell.] The following lineage came from Family Tree Maker, Ancestry Online, and Wilson Daily Times Online, January 1999 and May 18, 1999: Randall Whitley was born about 1600 in England. His son, John Whitley/Wheatley, Sr., was born 1628 in England, died February 21, 1669/70 in Isle of Wight Co., VA, and married Ann Moss around 1650. John arrived in Old Rappahannock Co., VA, in 1650 from England as a headright for Silvester Thatcher and Thomas Whitlock. Thatcher and Whitlock each got a parcel of land for bringing Wheatley to Virginia, while Wheatley got some land after working off his indenture (passage fare) advanced by his sponsors. The normal term of service (farm work or similar) was seven years to settle an indenture (so called because there was a contract between parties that was cut raggedly across the bottom). The headright kept the bottom, which he presented to gain freedom when his indenture term was finished, provided the cut marks (indentures) matched the top portion. By 1664, John Wheatley had moved south in Virginia to Isle of Wight County where he bought land from Anthony Fulgham on the Western Branch of the Nansemond River. This land was possibly near Joyner’s millpond. John may have been married when he arrived in Virginia at the age of 22 (he signed a statement that he had been born in 1628), as we find no marriage record in either Rappahannock or Isle of Wight Counties. Upon his death in 1670, he left his estate to his wife Ann, his sons John, Thomas (our ancestor), and William, and a daughter Elizabeth. John Jr. was listed as a weaver on a deed of sale in 1705. Thomas, born in 1658, married Mary Street, and they had five sons and three daughters. Before 1742, their son William (b. 1690) moved to Northampton Co., NC, on the Meherrin River just south of the Virginia line. His neighbors were John Dew and John Barnes. William died in 1751, leaving his estate to wife Julian, sons Jacob, James, William Jr., Arthur (our ancestor), Joseph, Nathan, and daughters Elizabeth (married Joseph Barnes), Julian (married Jacob Barnes), Susannah, Bridget, and Mourning. Arthur Whitley married Sarah Barnes and moved to Edgecomb (Wilson) County where his descendants still live, many around Gardner’s School and Holden’s Crossroads. Arthur was born about 1730 in Northampton County, NC. His wife Sarah was also born in Northampton County. They moved to Edgecomb County after 1750 and settled in what is now the Gardner’s Township area of Wilson County, SC. Arthur and Sarah had several children: 1.Sion (the Welsh form of the Irish Sean, pronounced “shon”) was our ancestor. Sion’s wife’s name was Prudence. Their children were: David (marrid Nancy Johnston), Josiah (married Lucy Wilson), Susan, Charlotte, Sion Jr., Littleberry (our ancestor), Lawrence N.B. (lived in Natchitoches, LA), and Charity. Sion died November 1840 in Edgecomb, SC 2. Jonas (see story on next page) 3. Josiah, married Rachel Taylor 4. Mary Ann 4. Benjamin 5. Lucretia 6. Mildred A Whitley Family Story, Straight From the Old West Jonas’ son, William Taylor Whitley, married Elizabeth Henry. William had given all his resources in support of the Confederate effort, and he moved his family to Texas after the signing at Appamattox to make a new start. They seemed to prosper, and life returned to a more normal state. William’s son, William Henry, known to all as Bill, busied himself as an industrious teen with several jobs and a liking for games and entertainment. However, Bill made some critical errors in judgment that caused his name to become part of a legend of the Old West. The problems began when he related a tale to his brother, Jasper, of an insult made by Jasper’s friend. In anger, Jasper confronted the friend and killed him. Bill helped to hide Jasper from the law and kept him supplied with food and clothing. A sheriff’s deputy followed Bill to Jasper’s hiding place and killed Jasper. Bill swore revenge but went on with his life. He took a job in south Texas driving a stagecoach from Cuero to Gonzales and later took a vacation to visit his parents at their home in Mahomet, Texas. There he met Cordelia Cox, and they married and settled down. Eventually, the deputy was killed and Bill was accused, but no proof was found. In fact, many think that Jasper’s widow was the culprit. Bill went into hiding with a bounty on his head. Cordelia protected him and sent him food until Bill left the area and drifted into contact with some bad characters – a gang of robbers in Williamson County lead by Captain Dick Cornett. Bill met with the gang in Karnes County in 1887 where they planned a train robbery of the Southern Pacific at Flatonia. They actually made the holdup at McNeil Junction, a few miles away. Passengers later commented on how polite the robbers were. About $14,000 was taken, along with watches and jewelry. the gang divided the money and disappeared into the sagebrush. A month later they met again and decided to go ahead with the Flatonia train robbery. The holdup netted about $35,000 and valuables. Several of the gang members were caught, but Bill remained free. A deputy sheriff was killed while searching for Bill, and Bill became a suspect again, accused of the murder. There was now a large bounty on his head, and he was a popular target for bounty hunters. All the while, Cordelia was supplying Bill with food, clothing, love, and support, while artfully dodging those who wanted the reward money for bringing in Bill. Early in 1888, Bill and another outlaw went to Cisco and planned a bank robbery, which they pulled off and escaped. The rewards grew. Bill disappeared, dressed in woman’s clothes, some say to San Francisco, others say to England, but he returned in the autumn to visit his wife and children. He planned another train robbery, this time in Harwood. One of the gang was captured and offered to sell information on Bill to gain his own freedom. An ambush was set and U.S. Marshall Rankin lay in wait. When Bill arrived at his hideaway, Rankin took no chances and shot Bill in the back of the head with both barrels of his shotgun. Bill died instantly. His body was taken to San Antonio and placed on public display where one observer noted that he was a handsome, gentle young man. Bill was 24 years old when he died. Cordelia claimed his body and took it to Mahomet for burial. Some citizens protested, but she aimed a gun at them while friends buried Bill where he still lies today. This story was published in the Wilson Daily Times Online, May 18, 1999. It is also in a book about Bill Whitley that was written by his grandson who was buried beside Bill at his own request. ------------------------- Bill’s father, William, was the first cousin of our ancestor Littleberry. Littleberry Whitley was born around 1800 in North or South Carolina. Littleberry married first to Charity Stewart on October 7, 1827, in Montgomery County, AL. Charity was born between 1800 and 1810, and was the daughter of William Stewart and his wife Elizabeth Parker. He married second to Mrs. Nancy Alford Stewart Maynard on November 19, 1850 in Bienville Parish, LA. He married third to Mrs. Tempy Ann Sims Fuller on October 5, 1854 in LA. Littleberry Whitley’s children were: 1) William Asberry, 2) Mary E., 3)Jasper “Jack”, 4)Martha A., 5)Anna (may have been Littleberry and Tempy’s daughter), and 6)Berry Albert (son of Littleberry and Tempy). (Sources: History of Bienville Parish II, Bienville Parish cemetery records and courthouse dockets, family records of Eudean Griffin, Bible record of Berry Albert Whitley, and The Murphy Tray by Patsy Nickel.) Littleberry died March 25, 1862 in Mt. Lebanon, LA. His probate packed is on file in the Bienville Parish courthouse. His probate records named “slaves Mose and Julia...now set free.” Littleberry is buried in the Whitley Cemetery in Gibsland, which is said to be somewhere on the Reno property. The following information about Littleberry’s children is from the Bible of Berry Albert Whitley: 1. William Asberry Whitley, born about 1828 in Alabama, married 16 September 1849 in Alabama to Delitha Loe. 2. Jasper “Jack” Whitley (see below) 3. Mary E. Whitley, born 1851, married William J. Taylor 4. Martha A. Whitley. No further information 5. Anna Whitley, died 19 September 1857. 6. Berry Albert Whitley, son of Littleberry and Tempy, born 9 August 1857 Gibsland, LA, died 14 February 1943 Minden, LA. Married on 18 August 1887 to Della Eudora Pipes, born 20 January 1868 LA, d. 16 April 1958, daughter of Rubin Pipes. Jasper Whitley was born in 1846, probably in Lowndes Co., AL. He enlisted in Louisiana’s Partisan Rangers Confederate cavalry unit in 1862. When his father’s estate was probated in November 1865, his probate showed a bill of $11.00 for tuition at Mt. Lebanon University. This tuition was probably for Jasper, since his older brother was married and in his 30’s, his other siblings were female (the college was all male), and his younger brother was about 5 years old. Jasper married Georgiana Elizabeth J. Boddie on 14 Oct. 1867 in Bienville Parish. She was a descendant of John Boddie, Revolutionary War patriot of South Carolina, whose ancestry is detailed in Seventeenth Century Isle of Wight County, Virginia by John Bennett Boddie. Her parents were Andrew Boddie (a Civil War veteran) and Nancy Elizabeth Mitchell. Jasper and Georgiana’s children were: 1. William A. Whitley (b. October 1871), was living in 1900 in the household of his widowed mother. It is said that he committed suicide (shot himself in the head). 2. Theophilus J. Whitley (b. 17 Nov. 1874 Bienville Parish, d. 5 Dec. 1948, buried in Bear Creek Cemetery). Never married. 3. Thomas Jasper Whitley, our ancestor (born 23 Nov. 1877 Bryceland, LA, d. 22 March 1959 Bienville Parish, LA) married Martha Leona Simmons. Martha was born 16 August 1880 in AR, died 1 January 1964 in Arcadia. Her father was Thomas S. Simmons (son of William Simmons b. 1811 in NC and Mary Holland b. 1820 AL, as shown in the 1860 and 1870 AR censuses), who was born 15 February 1857 in Emerson, AR, died 26 February 1931 Bryceland, LA. Her mother was Missouri C. Moore (daughter of Elizabeth J. Moore, b. 1838 LA, shown as head of household in the 1870 AR census), born 30 November 1862 in Emerson, AR, died 17 January 1925 in Bryceland, LA. Thomas and Martha’s children were: a. Mary Leona Whitley (b. 1900), married Pick Land b. Willie May Whitley (b. 1902) married Dan Lawrence c. Prentice Jasper Whitley (b. 1904) married 1) Myrtle Skeins, 2)Mary Lou Stewart d. Gladys Whitley, our ancestor (b. 10 December 1905 Arcadia, LA, d. 2 September 1994 Ruston, LA) married Roger Hayden Stewart e. George Webster Whitley (b. 1910) f. Ira Thomas Whitley (b. 1910), died in combat in WW II. g. Audrey Adeal Whitley (b. 23 Jan. 1917, d. 7 Oct. 1922)