Well, I've had a bit of a dilema on who to write about this week. Originally, I thought I would alternate each week from my maternal side of the family to my paternal side. However, I think I'm going to stick to one side for a while. This way I can just keep researching the same line as I go instead of jumping back and forth.
With that said, we'll continue the
52 Ancestors Challenge that was proposed by Amy Johnson Crow. Last week, I wrote about
William Francis Gibson. This week, we'll take a look at his father,
Herod Gibson.
Herod was born October 10, 1836 in
Gibson County, Tennessee. He was the son of
Alexander Gibson and
Melinda (unknown). Both of his parents are believed to be from South Carolina. It is my guess that they may be from
Union, South Carolina, but that is speculation at this point. We believe his possible siblings were:
- William H. - b.1832 in South Carolina
- Margaret (or Martha) - b. 1834 in Tennessee
- John A. - b. 1839 in Tennessee
- James J. - b. 1841 in Tennessee
- Green B.J. (or Jefferson) - b. 1843 in Tennessee
In 1840, we can find the family of
Alexander Gibson living in
Gibson County, Tennessee (at this time, I do not know if they are related to
Col. John H. Gibson, who the county was named after). There are 2 boys under the age of 5, one age 5-10, one girl age 5-10, one adult male age 20-30 and one adult female age 20-30.
The 1850 census has the family living in
District 2, Carroll County, Tennesee. Here we see
Alexander and
William working as farmers.
By 1858 we know the family moved to Missouri. There is a marriage record for
Herod Gibson and
Sarah Jane Patterson. They were married on August 15, 1858 in
Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri. We aren't sure who
Sarah's parents were, however, there is a
James Patterson and a
Sarah A. Patterson living in
Madison County, Missouri (Madison is near Ste. Genevieve). This
James and
Sarah A. have a daughter named
Sarah J M Patterson, and she is the same age as the
Sarah who married
Herod.
In 1860, we find
Herod and wife
Sarah living in the household of
Alexander Gibson in
Ste. Genevieve Township, Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri. We also see their first child,
William Francis, living with them at the age of six months.
In 1861, we can see
Herod enlisted for the Confederacy, as a private in Company C, of the 5th Regimental Infantry, 1st Division, Missouri State Guard. He enlisted for the term of 3 months and 21 days. His brother
John also enlisted in the State Guard. On
Fold3.com, there is a "Union citizen File" on
John A. Gibson. Apparently,
John was
"arrested upon the charge of giving aid and comfort to the enemies of the United States, and of other acts of disloyalty." This was signed by
John, Herod, and
William (
Herod's older brother) on June 25, 1862 in Ste. Genevieve.
Herod and
William were acting as security for the sum of $1,000, and
John was instructed not to leave the county of Ste. Genevieve. We can see by the signatures that
Herod and
John signed with a mark, while
William signed his name.
Herod could not read or write.
Also found on Fold3.com, we find
Herod was drafted into the Union Army on September 22, 1864. He is shown in Company H of the 18th Missouri Infantry. They describe him as having a dark complextion, brown hair, brown eyes, and 6 feet 1/2 inch. He was enlisted in
Ironton, Missouri for the term of 1 year. We also see he filed for pention on July 15, 1890. According to his obituary, he was in
"Sherman's march to the sea. He served until the close of the war and was honorably discharged from the service." According to
The Civil War Archive, online, the 18th MO Inf. was mustered out July 18, 1865 from
Louisville, Kentucky.
Between his time in service with the Confederacy and Union Armies,
Herod and
Sarah had 2 more children:
Ida Ann born December 17, 1863, and
Mary Emma born March 20, 1864. Unfortunately,
Ida Ann died on July 5, 1865, just prior to
Herod's discharge. After he returned, the couple had one more child,
Sarah Jane born October 9, 1866. However, just after the birth of their daughter
Sarah Jane,
Herod's wife
Sarah passed away (possibly due to complications of the birth), on October 19, 1866. Now
Herod, just back from war and ready to carry on with his life, was left widowed with 3 small children.
In 1980, in
De Soto, Missouri, there was a Gibson family reunion. There was a wall with different stories posted, the following was one of those posts, by
Olive Gibson (
Herod's granddaughter):
"Great Grandfather Herod Gibson was in the fields a working and one of the little Gibson children (a girl) was left to watch the baby. She was sitting before the fireplace, holding the baby, and it tumbled from her lap and rolled into the fireplace and it died."
The infant that died was the youngest,
Sarah Jane. She died November 5, 1867. She would have been just over one year. The girl watching her might have been
Mary Emma, however, it could have been a
Gibson cousin, we just aren't sure.
Mary Emma would have only been 3 years old, so I hesitate to believe she would have been watching her younger sister.
1870, we find
Herod,
William Francis, and
Mary Emma living in
Central Township, Jefferson County, Missouri. They're living next door to
William,
Herod's brother, and his family. Both
Herod and
William are shown working on the railroad.
By 1880, we see
Herod and his 2 children living on
Lewis Street in De Soto, Jefferson County, Missouri. This time,
Herod's mother,
Melinda, is shown living with the family.
Herod is listed as working as a laborer.
Melinda died just nine years later on November 12, 1889.
By 1900 both
William Francis and
Mary Emma married and had children of their own. On the 1900 federal census, we see
Herod living in the household of
William Francis on
Cedar, in Valle Township, City of De Soto, Jefferson County, Missouri. I'm not sure how big the house was, but I'm guessing it would have been busy. The census shows 14 people living in the house:
William Francis, his wife, their 9 children,
Herod,
Mary Emma (
Herod's daughter), and
Mary Emma's two daughters.
Mary Emma was widowed by this time. Her husband,
William H. Brown, died in a caboose accident.
Herod was shown working as a day laborer in 1900.
If you recall my previous post on
William Francis Gibson, then you know he and his wife died of "consumption" (tuberculosis) in 1904, leaving behind 9 children. By 1910, we see
Herod living on
East Main Street in De Soto, Jefferson County, Missouri with his daughter
Mary Emma Brown and her two daughters
Cleo and
Ethel. He was working as a laborer for the railroad. The family was still living on the same street (possibly the same house) in 1920, but
Herod was not working anymore. He could have retired, he was 83 years old at this time.
The picture to the right is of
Herod. The 3 women in the photo are unknown to me, but I'm guessing it is
Mary Emma and her two daughters.
Mary Emma Gibson Brown died in 1923. She is buried in the
City Cemetery in De Soto, MO.
According to notes that were given to me from other family members,
Herod was living with
Ethel and
Homer Milhouser (
Ethel was
Herod's granddaughter), at
1906 Missouri Avenue in St. Louis, MO, when he died July 13, 1926. Cause of death was chronic bronchitus, non-tubercular, brought on by old age. The note said he was 87 years 9 months and 3 days (but that does not match with the birthdate we have in our family records).
Herod is buried next to his mother,
Melinda, in the
City Cemetery, De Soto, MO.
Herod did indeed live a very long life. He outlived his parents, his wife, all four of his children, and 2 grandchildren.
