From Alabama to Texas and back again, No. 2 - Smith County, TX Contributed by Rex Kirby July 11, 2002 Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm ********************************************************************** Subject: From Alabama to Texas and back again Rex, 'Tis a very pleasant surprise to receive a missive from you and Smith County, Texas, especially on this weekend. Our branch of the Clan Elliott, under the leadership of John Elbert Elliott, Sr., moved back and forth between Alabama and Texas beginning in 1875 and did so until the late 1880s. They settled in the old "Bacon Community" and "Murph School District" along with the Sharon Missionary Baptist Church and all of the Clan Elliott elders and those who died much too young, are buried in the Williams Cemetery on Texas State Highway 64 to Henderson. In fact, take a left in front of the Williams Cemetery and you will pass the old location of the "Murph School" across the road of Sharon Church. At the dead end turn right on FMRD 850 (The Old Overton Road) and not far up the road you will see an older 19th century home that was on of the Elliott Homes. A little further and on the left you will see the beautiful old home of Cousin Jace Jones then a sign to the "Bacon Cemetery". Not far, in a bottom in the road before crossing Mud Creek, you turn on FMRD757 that takes you toward Gladewater and to I-20 and the way "back home to Alabama." The two ends of the 800 miles that separated the Clan Elliot were held together with telegraph messages and the train in the 19th Century. With the advent of the automobile, hundreds of trips were made from 1930 through 1967 causing many "small reunions" held by the families visiting "back home in Alabama." During the East Texas Oil Boom, oil was found on Cousin Jimmy Elliott's homeplace, and that of his father, John Elbert Elliott, Sr. who crossed over in 1926. (my late father was John Elbert Elliott, III [1930-1994], the first Elliott male to be born on either end and thusly was named in memory of John Elbert Elliott, Sr., just as Dad's grandfather was named in the "memory of John Elbert Elliott, Sr. in 1865 that was changed to "in honor of" in June 1866--for John E. Elliott, Sr. was paroled from Camp Case, Ohio in July 1865 with a fellow Rebel compatriot whose name had been lost to the ages. Starving, the two old farm boys, Uncle Elbert now 20, joining the 46th Alabama Infantry in May 1862. The men slew the swine, ate happily and went about happily selling portions of the pork to Yankee housewives. The new sheriff of the county, a Union Veteran, arrested the two and they were i mprisoned 8 month with no way of making connection which was useless for the telegraph system and mail service had been broken during the War. When my Great-grandpa, John Elbert Elliott, II was born December 31, 1865, he was named for John Elbert Elliott, Sr. who had not returned from the war. Now, nearly nine months after the surrender he had not shown up and was thought to be dead. What a surprise it was when he reappeared in May 1866!--another story for another time.) With the new riches from the East Texas Oil Boom, Cousin Jimmy came "back home to Henry County " a total of 12 times or about once a month. On one trip, the car locked up in Mississippi, Cousin Jimmy had the old car towed to the Buick Place, bought a new one with cash and came on. In 1938, 14 of the "Alabama Crowd" went to visit the "Texas Folks" on my Granddaddy John Jason "Buck" Elliott's pickup. "Daddy Buck," as he was known my most, placed benches around the grain box (back body) of the pickup with a covering shed over the pickup's bed. The toll across the Mississippi River was by the head, so the smallest children were put under the benches with Aunt Ouida, who was a very small little woman, to be able to afford the trip, or just saving all money possible any time possible. Three were in the front cab, Daddy Buck, a large rotund man, my eldest uncle, Harnage Elliott age 18-- his name the last name of J. W. Bacon's first Cherokee wife a granddaughter of Ambrose Harnage, an Englishmen that actually sat on the Cherokee Nation Council in North George prior to 1832. The "Alabama Crowd" stayed two weeks in the many homes all being build on James Warren "Cousin Jimmy" Elliott's homeplace full of all the people that could not fit in the 5 big bedrooms on the east portion of the home place in Texas. Each room was large enough to have three full beds in them. I was usually fortunately placed on the front end bedroom where an old oil pump jack in front of beautiful old 10 room house, 11 after the enclosure of two ends of the long verandas, kept a steady rhythm to hypnotize you to sleep. All gone now, but to our surprise, the dark yellowish bricks for the steps and pillars of the homeplace had TEXAS imprinted on one side of each very large, the Elliott's bought them as a contribution to "The Elliott Heritage Association" I was blessed to establish in 1991 to handle the reunion each year and for theprinting of an 8-16 page newsletter filled with family events like marriages, births and deaths along with many of the many times told family stories of folklore now, but in print in 300 households across the U. S. A. and Germany. It was published to an awaiting membership once a quarter to get people invitations and explanation of reunion activities plus the always present quest to get the $25.00 membership fee from each household of the family. In 1967, my great-Aunt Willie Blair Elliott, widow of Robert Hope Williams, Sr., began the Alabama/Texas Clan Reunion with a huge reunion at the Alabama Family Homeplace where my cousins are cultivating the 148th crop on the land settled in 1855 by my gggrandfather James "Jim" Elliott, his Cherokee bride Mahala Coker believed to be of the Pleasant Coker family; Jim's brother Elbert and wife Elizabeth Stanford, her mother Kizziah Stanford and sister Martha Stanford, brother Ira Elliott and wife Nancy and widowed sister, Matilda St. Johns. O, how I have rambled with things you care little about. Steve Elliott Henry County, AL -------------------------------------------------------------- It is not known if all of these Elliotts are related - MLB Cemetery Records Smith County, Texas Published by the East Texas Genealogical Society, 1986 P O Box 6967, Tyler, TX Williams Cemetery - Page 166 :BACON, Jim W. - 27 Oct 1887 - 22 July 1977 :BACON, Vassie Elliott - b. 30 Nov 1892 - (no d. date) :ELLIOTT, James W. - 30 Dec 1866 - 4 July 1952 - Father :ELLIOTT, Eula McNeely - 22 July 1873 - 28 June 1954 - Mother ELLIOTT, Gladys - 18 Oct 1906 - 23 Feb 1928 "Gladys Elliott and Infant Daughter" ELLIOTT, John E. - 16 Jan 1845 - 28 Feb 1926 ELLIOTT, Mrs. Nancy - 20 Nov 1849 - 8 July 1917 :ELLIOTT, Laura Nunn - b. 29 Nov 1900 - (no d. date) - Mother :ELLIOTT, Kara (Boss) - 24 Apr 1895 - 18 Sept 1971 - Daddy ELLIOTT, Ruth B. - b. 23 Nov 1903 - (no d. date) ELLIOTT, John E. - 4 Apr 1902 - 3 Oct 1980 - Daddy :RASBERRY, Joy Elliott - 19 Dec 1914 - 17 May 1978 - Wife :RASBERRY, Phonso L. - 20 July 1915 - 25 June 1968 :ELLIOTT, Fred D. - 13 Sept 1908 - 27 May 1978 :ELLIOTT, Opal Edna - b. 3 Feb 1911 - (no d. date) :ELLIOTT, Susie D. - 7 Sept 1874 - 16 Apr 1971 - Mother :ELLIOTT, Minor H. - 11 Mar 1872 - 16 Feb 1924 - Father ELLIOTT, Johnie W. - 30 Mar 1897 - 14 Feb 1914 son of M. H. & Susie Elliott ELLIOTT, Floyd - b. & d. 20 May 1910 infant son of M. H. & Susie Elliott :YANCY, Jack B. - 1884-1964 :YANCY, Vera Elliott - b. 1894 - (no d. date Bascom East :ELLIOTT, Annie Foshee - 13 Mar 1895 - 29 Apr 1925 - Mother :ELLIOTT, Lorene - 28 Apr 1916 - 5 Dec 1917 - Daughter ELLIOTT, H. D. - 17 Nov 1838 - 30 Dec 1933 ELLIOTT, Lola - (no dates) ELLIOTT, Perry T. - 11 Dec 1888 - 21 Mar 1971 Bascom West ELLIOTT, Lavena Kay - 16 Feb 1963 - 17 Feb 1963 --------------------------------------------------------- NOTES from Steve Elliott, Henry County, GA Williams Cemetery Yancy, Verna Itaska Elliott 31 July 1910 - 23 Feb 1970 Daughter of James Warren "Buddy" or "Jimmy Elliott and Eula McNeeley. The baby of the children. They adopted an Indian Child, Professor James Doyle Yancy, in the English department at Tyler Junior College. Yancy, Doyle 1 Dec 1906 - 23 Feb 1984 Husband of Verna Itaska Elliott, who was the baby of the J. W. Elliott siblings.. Bascom Cemetery Elliott, Seabron Jackson on tomb as S. J. Elliott, 1860 - 1851 Son of Davis Andrew Jackson "Jack" Elliott and wife Mary Ann Jones who married in Randolph County circa 1842. Seabron Elliott was the first of the Elliotts of this line in Texas. He was a brother of John Elbert Elliott, II and was called "Uncle Sebe" by all who knew him. Elliott, Emily "Emma" Brown 8 Mar 1854 - 23 Jul 1935 Born in Hilton, Early County, GA; wife of Sebe Elliott. All of her Brown siblings moved from Hilton, Early County, GA except one brother that stayed in GA.