Vinyard Family, Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana Submitted to the USGenWeb Archives by Sandra McLellan, Feb. 2007 Special thanks to Jim Perrin for donating it to the archives. ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ************************************************ THE VINYARD FAMILY BY JIM PERRIN, Local Historian Among the pioneer families settling in ante-bellum Livingston Parish just west of Ponchatoula, was that the Moses W. Vinyard family. Moses Vinyard, the head of the family, had left Georgia, probably with some other family members and appeared in this area by 1834. Moses was a native of Georgia and was born about 1797. He married in 1830 to Matilda Harris, who was born 3 March 1808 in Mississippi. In late November 1834, Moses purchased five and a half acres of land from Elisha T. Murray and his wife Delilah Richardson Murray for $100. This land on the east side off the Ponchatoula River was in the area that would later be called Wadesboro, after its founder Richard Wade. The relatively high price for this land indicates that it was probably already cleared and perhaps already contained a dwelling house. Less than three years later, in April 1837, Moses purchased 100 acres of nearby land on the west bank of the Ponchatoula for $125 from Thomas McCabe. When the 1840 census was conducted the Moses W. Vineyard family {Vinyard has often been spelled with an e in many records} was listed in the same area. Besides Moses and his wife, a girl between the ages of five and ten years of age, and four boys, three under the age of five and one between five and ten years, were listed in the household. In September 1850, the census was again conducted in eastern Livingston Parish. Moses and Matilda were living in the Wadesboro area with their seven sons listed as: A. J., Moses J., Augustus, Eugene, H. H., E. M., and Charles Vinyard. Their daughter Juliana Vinyard had married William Akers during the summer of 1850 and was no longer in Moses' household. Moses Vinyard was listed as a farmer on the 1850 census, but he also had an extensive cattle ranch as indicated by his ownership of 131 stock cattle at the time of his death. He also did some logging as he owned a yoke of work oxen and an ox wagon, but this my have been of personal use on his farm since the management of his cattle required the establishment and maintenance of extensive rail fences. Moses Vinyard died at his home near Wadesboro sometime in the 1850's with a date in 1855 being most likely. Dr. Robert Malcolm presented a bill of $15 for attending Mr. Vinyard, dated 22 Nov. 1855 at Wadesboro. Since this bill was not paid until Moses' succession was opened in the summer of 1856, this was probably for services rendered during the last illness of Moses Vinyard. Matilda opened the succession of Moses Vinyard in July 1856. Matilda had by that time married again and was in July 1856 the wife of Alexander Green. An inventory of Moses estate was conducted by area residents William Wells and Philip Plitt and showed that Moses owned 280 acres of land, which was his last residence valued at $350, and another tract of 100 acres on Yellow Water Creek valued at $125. At a family meeting held at the train depot in Ponchatoula {which was the most public building in the community} later in July 1856, Matilda Vinyard Green and her husband Alexander Green were named co-tutors of her minor Vinyard children and William Akers, her son-in-law was named the under-tutor. After deducting her half of the property as the widow in community, Matilda as executrix of Moses' estate, paid each of her eight children $118.80 in the spring of 1857 as their share of their father's estate. Alexander Green, Matilda's second husband was born about 1803, and was a ship's captain, probably sailing schooners from the port of Wadesboro. When the census was again conducted in 1860, Matilda and Alexander were living on their place in the Wadesboro community. Her Vinyard children, although listed with the surname Green on the census schedule, are listed next to her on the census report, probably in a separate dwelling on the same homestead. In March 1869, Matilda sold 90 acres of the property she and Moses had developed to her son Eugene Vinyard. By 1870, Alexander Green had retired from sailing and was farming on the family residence at Wadesboro. Alexander Green seems to have died in the period 1870-1880. The widow Matilda Green, now age 72 was living in Wadesboro in 1880. She died 3 Dec. 1897 and was buried in Wetmore Cemetery, not very far from the Wadesboro community in which she had lived for decades. Moses and Matilda Vinyard had eight children: Juliana Vinyard, b. ca. 1831 in Mississippi, married 1850 to early Ponchatoula civic leader, William Akers as his second wife. Andrew Jackson Vinyard, b. 3 July 1833 in Mississippi, m. 1852 to Matilda Joiner, dau. of John Joiner and Sophia Arbuthnot Joiner. Joshua Moses Vinyard, b. ca. 1836 in LA Augustus Vinyard, b. ca. 1838 in LA Eugene N. Vinyard, b. ca. 1839 in LA, m. Amanda Joiner, moved to Hillsborough, Texas Henry Harrison Vinyard, b.ca. 1841 in LA Mathew E. Vinyard, b. 16 July 1844, m. Arvarilla Abbie Tucker and they had five children; m. 2nd Martha A. Ball and they had fourteen children. Martha was a school teacher, and Martha Vinyard Elementary is named in her honor. Charles Vinyard, b. ca. 1845 in LA. Arriving here over 170 years ago, the Vinyard family has contributed to the successful development of our community and the many descendents of this pioneer family can have justifiable pride in the legacy that has been bequeathed to them. Anyone with questions, comments, or suggestions for future articles, may contact Jim Perrin at 386-4476.