Biography of Solomon Wishard, Bowie County, Texas *********************************************************** Submitted by: Mary Ballard Date: Jun 2005 Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/tx/bowie/bowitoc.htm *********************************************************** SOLOMON WISHARD My great-great-grandfather, Solomon Wishard, was born April 15, 1825 at Red River Settlement, Manitoba, Canada to Thomas Wishart, a Scotchman and Barbara Spence, a Metis woman. His brothers and sisters were: Jane, b. 1821, d, May 25, 1823 and buried at St. John's; Elizabeth, b. bef. Sept. 26, 2824, d. abt. 1838; James Thomas, b. Aug. 15, 1830, m. Elizabeth Flett, Sept. 22, 1853, d. July 4, 1906 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Jane, b. Nov. 28, 1829, m. Leverette Alvord Sept. 20, 1818, d. July 25, 1879; Mary, b. Sept. 15, 1835, m. John McNab Aug. 1856; Elijah H., b. Dec. 25, 1837, served in Co. K, 2nd Iowa Inf., m. 1. Jennie Dougherty on Sept. 9, 1869 2. Emeline L. Thornley on May 3, 1887; Thomas, b. 1839, never married, d. Nov. 21, 1863 in Gayosa Hospital, Memphis, TN during the Civil War, while serving in Co. B, 26th Illinois Inf. Shortly before 1840, Thomas and family, with the exception of James Thomas and Mary, who stayed behind in Red River Settlement, migrated to Clayton County, Iowa. The 1840, Iowa Territory, First District of Clayton, Sheet No: 6A, Reel no: M704-101, Page No: 5, Enumerated by: J. W. Griffith on line 22 lists Thos Wishheart with 2 males 0-5 (Elijah H. and Thomas), 1 male 10-15 (Solomon), 1 male 30-40 (?), 1 male 40-50 (Thomas), 1 female 10-15, 1 female 15-20, and 1 female 30-40 (Barbara). Thomas, (Sr.) died at Turkey Junction, Clayton County, Iowa sometime after this census and before November 5, 1840, when his estate went through probate. The Millville Township, Clayton County, Iowa census lists Barbary Wishhart in the household of Edmund B. Lyons and the two boys Thomas, age 10 and Elijah (listed as a girl named Elisa), age 14, living in Jefferson Township, Clayton County, Iowa in the Richard Pearson household. 1. Solomon, a young adult, is found on the 1850 census living in Chippewa Township, Chippewa County, Wisconsin, pg. 112, line 30 with the Indian Trader, George Warren, working as a laborer. Apparently, sometime shortly after this census was taken, Solomon left Chippewa. By 1860, Solomon was married to Emma or Anna Last Name Unknown and living in Jasper County, Texas. The Newton Post Office, Jasper County, Texas census, Image #:241, Roll: M653_1298, enumerated on June 28, 1860 by Darrin McMahan, lists on lines 24-29 in household # 117: Solomon Wishard, age 35, male, farmer, value of personal estate-$50, born Minnesota; Anna, age 24, female, born Georgia; Thomas, male, age 6, born Texas; George, male, age 4, born Texas; Henry, male, age 2, born Texas; and David, male, age 2/12, born Texas. Compare this to the Newton Post Office, Jasper County, Texas census, Image#:240, Roll: M653_1298, enumerated on July 28, 1860 by the same Darrin McMahan which lists on lines 9-15 in household # 108: Solomon Wishard, age 36, male, farmer, value of personal estate-$50, born in Minnesota; Emma, female, age 25, born Georgia; Thomas, male, age 7, born Texas; George, male, age 5, born Texas; Seth, male, age 3, born Texas; David, male, age 3/12, born Texas, and E. A. Barker, age 27, male, farming, born Michigan. Why did Solomon choose to migrate to Texas? Was it the warmer climate? Did it have to do with the offer of free land? Perhaps the Indian trading? I don't know. I'm still trying to find the answer to this question. Perhaps I'll never know. On May 24, 1862, Solomon enlisted as a substitute for Rufus A. Winn in Company I, 13 Texas Cavalry. From his complete military file, I know Solomon was detailed duty at hospital from July 20, 1862 to August 27, 1862. Nurse at Camp Nelson since 23 November 1862 on the November Regimental Return. The Company Muster Roll for November & December 1862 shows he was detailed at Camp Nelson to take care of sick (Then there are 3 blank lines before this entry--) & nurse appears in columns of nurses pursuit cancelled. The Regimental Return for April 1865 shows Solomon was a Color Corporal. His complete file includes some kind of pay slip for commitation of rations while on detached service returning from hospital in Fayetteville, Arkansas to Austin Prison, Texas. (That is, if I'm reading it right. It is handwritten and very hard to read.) Anyway, on October 25, 1862, he received $12. His complete military record is very incomplete. The rest of it is just showing he was present at the different muster rolls. He was discharged at the end of the war with the rank of private. He appears as Soloman Wishard, Houston County on the "Confederate Indigent Families Lists of Texas 1863-1865" by Linda Mearse. Although Solomon was entitled to a pension for his military service, apparently he never filed. What happened to Solomon's first family? By the time of his listing on the "Confederate Indigent Families Lists of Texas 1863-1865" there was only a wife and child included. By 1870, he was remarried to my g-g-grandmother, Francis Little, daughter of Raliegh and Nancy Little. Fancis was born December 9, 1850 in Attala County, Mississippi. Although I've tried looking everywhere I can think of and placed numerous postings on different mailing lists, I've found no trace of either his first wife or the children. The 1870, Precinct 1, Bowie County, Texas, Boston Post Office, Roll: M 593_1576, Page: 431, Image: 163, line 37 & 38, household # 24 enumerated August 10, 1870 by Wm. L. Mabry, lists: Wishard, Solomon, age 45,white, male, Engineer of Mill, value of personal estate: $250, born N. T., father of foreign birth, male citizen of U. S. of 21 years of age and upwards; and Francis, age 19, white,female, Keeping house, born Louisiana, can't write. (Francis' family had been living in Rapides Parish, Louisiana just prior to their move to Texas--I wonder how the enumerator asked the question?) The 1880 census at Ancestry.com has the family indexed under the surname of Wishom--the enumeraters handwriting was hard to read and could have been translated that way. The 1880, Precinct 1, Bowie County, Texas, Roll: T 9_1292, Page: 7B, ED 1, enumerated on June 8, 1880 by M. Elliott, household # 86, on lines 28-34 lists: Wishard, S., white, male, age 56, married, Laborer, can't read, can't write, born Texas; Francis, white, female, age 27, wife, married, Keeps House, has a fever, can't read, can't write, born Mississippi, father born Kentucky, mother born Georgia; John, white, male, age 8, son, at school, born Texas; Jas. R., white, male, age 6, son, at school, born Texas; S. R., white, male, age 3, son, at home, born Texas; M. A., white, female, age 2/12, born March, daughter, at home, born Texas; and Watkins, Mina, mulatto, female, age 20, boards, single, Cook, can't read, can't write, born Texas, father born Georgia, mother born in U. S. The Texas Land Title Abstracts lists: Grantee: Solomon Wichard Acres: 160 District: Bowie County: Bowie File: 34 Class: Bowie Pre. Solomon and Francis had the following children: John, b. 1872 James Riley (Rollie), b. March 16, 1873 (my great-grandfather) Solomon Joseph, b. Oct. 15, 1876 M. A., girl, b. Apr. 1880 Effie, b. 1883 Carrie, b. 1886 Marion, b. Mar. 26, 1891 I haven't been able to find when or where Solomon died, but was probably before 1900 and somewhere in Bowie County, Texas