McGeheeup.html

Dr William Jefferson McGehee

Dr William McGehee and his wife America or Americus BOOKER are Presumptive but unproven parents to Jabus Everett "Jabe" McGehee who married Sarah Frances "Frances" Cofield. Jabus Everett McGehee was born 16 Oct 1838 according to the family bible detailing his own and his wife's birth, their marriage and children. Jabe is the author's GG Grandfather, and he was uncovered in biographic detail only with great effort. Now, several years after uncovering him, It is the feeling of this writer thatJabe's birth family is surely found, though no record of baptism or birth have been uncovered to prove the relationship. Clues involving Jabe's dtr Ethel informing her neice Doris [nee Diggs] Osborne that Jabe's father was a phsyician who had planned to send Jabe to study art in Europe, Sally Lundy as known first cousin to Jabe's daughter Fannie [Sally Lundy taking in Fannie's orphans for a spell-including my grandfather Benjamin Patterson Howard] and the [at last!] discovery of a Lundy family proving this relationship, stregnthens the substantial naming patterns evidence allowing this writer to proclaim " Jabe's birth family has at last been found" !!!!

The following is information on the family I am actively pursuing as Jabe's possible birth family s and includes a descendant report from the possible family's previous generations
The following family under consideration presents both facts which seem to dispute its merit and positive facts related to the ascendancy seeming to reinforce it. The positive facts outweigh the negative in this author's opinion. Strongest is the family continuation of names in Jabe's children, honoring both his wife and his own assumed mother and father. These have only recently been stregnthened by the identification of a Lundy marriage which clearly identifies the probable birth family of Fannie's cousin Sally Lundy, who, among all the family members taking care of Fannie's orphaned children, was the fondest and most happily remembered among them.

Page Contents:

The report of a Great Grandson in a written allied family entry showing Dr William Jefferson McGehee, his wife and children, including a son Jabus born to the Dr and his wife. The mother of that Great Grandson appears to be living at the time this man corresponded with the author [ca 1939] providing the information in her tome, yielding strong "living history" to two generations [up to and including the level of Dr William J McGehee, grandparent of the correspondant's living mother].
Census Record 1850 Macon Alabama For Dr W J McGehee and family
Positive Facts, Negative Attributes in analysis of Census to prove or disprove our Jabe as part of this Dr William Jefferson and Americus [nee Booker] McGehee's family
Research on Dr William Jefferson McGehee and his ascendency to the links McGehees of Virginia, a long line present in America and traced further back than is here presented, limiting him to his entry as son in simple direct descendant graph

To Left: Marks-Bennett Family notation on Dr William Jefferson McGehee and America Booker McGehee Family [Found in small text footnote at bottom of page] and From Marion Dewoody Pettigrew's" Marks-Barnett families and their kin" Macon, Ga.: J.W. Burke Co., published 1939, 455 pgs.
To Right: Census for Dr W J[G?] McGehee 1850 Macon Alabama . The Census is further discussed below this intro.
America or Americus BOOKER married Dr William Jefferson McGEHEE Jan 2, 1827 in Wilkes County, Georgia

In the 1850 Macon Alabama Census is found a Dr W J? McGehee , his wife and family corresponding to the family ourlined in the text to left. The census enumeration date is hard to read, but looks to be the 6th Oct or Dec. The Census image is provided but below this is a transcription offered as the census image is exceedingly hard to read. A larger version of the census image is available in link showing the width of the census and these entries

Transcription of Census above [offered since the census is very hard to read without prior knowledge of the expected persons within it] , corresponding to the text entry family line beside above census image and detailing the wife and children of Dr William Jefferson McGehee, son of samuel McGehee and Nancy Tate's:

Macon County, Alabama, Census Entry 1850 Ennumerated 6th or 26th? Oct or Dec [date VERY hard to read-see image above]
Head of Household: MCGEHEE, W. J.?, [COULD be G] Macon County, page 273; W. G., 48, Physician, Born GA;
The marks in the columns reading 1 are for a) married within year and B) went to school within year and C) persons over 50 who...[noone marked for this family group]

MCGEHEE, W. J.?, [COULD be G] , Head of Household, Physician, born Georgia as were his wife and several children.
Female name starting with A, 40 years old, but hard to read, could be 46, born GA; [The name is very hard to read and must be considered in question. looks more like Annmarie than America or Americus...however Americus seems plausable ]
L______ (m), 25 [23?] , born GA; Assumed son Lawrence. Appears to have a one in column showing he Married within the year but this mark is not at the slant as other ones in column for school attendance for his siblings so may be artifact and not an entry at all. As per census he has an occupation-Farmer? the entry for profession is VERY hard to read. Without previously being aware of a Lawrence in family histories for this family, his name would be almost impossible to read as it looks like Laurina, or Laurince at best.
Elizabeth, 19, born GA; assumed the Elizabeth named in some histories as a daughter, but if L was married within the year, would this be his wife? If Elizabeth the daughter, she is Elizabeth who married unknown Lundy according to Pettigrew's
James, 17, born GA; a-Farmer? the entry for profession is VERY hard to read.
Cornealia, 13, born GA; attended school within year
Jabez?, 12 [?] , born AL;
Henry, 10, born AL;
Louisa, 7, born AL;
Wesley, 6, born AL
Sarah, 4, born AL

This group can also be found in Genforum Alabama Index Image page 1226 (Roll 9 page 273 enumerated 26th Oct 1850)]

This family above outlined in census presents a few problems in its study when considering our Jabe's inclusion as the Jabez mentioned as a 12 or 13 year old son, but also presents some tantalizing similarities:

Negative Facts causing Question of this as Birth Family for our Jabe:

No Baptismal or Birth Certificates to allow Jabus McGehees inclusion in the family have been unearther. All evidence is presumptive, but very strong.
Our Jabus McGehee gave his birthplace Georgia in his pension application related to his Civil War Service. The town appears to be Ruckenville, but is very hard to read. Ruckenville in this curly cue script of the scribe, might in a distant chance be Hawkinsville, a town in Georgia involving several of our Jabe's children's adult residency. The town of Ruckenville was very hard to discover: It is a town that prospered and then petered out particularly with the civil war and is located within Elbert County of that state. At its zenith it had 200 residents, most of them slaves, yet it was important to Georgia history. The son Jabez in Dr William Jefferson McGehee's 1850 census is given a birthplace of Alabama, like all the siblings that followed him within that census, while all before him were born Georgia therein. The census birthplace is a scribe's error [not at ALL unheard of] or our Jabe , if this is his birth family, himself was in error when naming his birthplace in his CW pension application [seems less likely given he named a town] . His elder siblings, if this is his family, were all born Georgia, and the family is known to have moved to Alabama where this census took place presumably after Jabe's birth, if Jabe is correct in his birthplace on his pension. Dr William Jefferson McGehee does not leap out in the history of Ruckenville offered in the Historical Study of Elbert County. However, he may have been a physician there, before removing to Alabama, not meriting "Longstanding Resident" "founding father" or "important family" status yielding his entry in its history.
The female eldest entry [wife to Dr William Jefferson McGehee and known to be named Americus] in Dr McGehee's 1850 census is hard to read and looks like annmarie, and not alot like America or Americus, but the script of the writer is hard to read in many places. However, the name is not clear enough to consider legible.
The years of births for the children do not offer indisputable evidence corresponding with the Jan 2 1827 marriage date of America Booker to William McGehee. First after the Head of Household and his wife is a not further legible L----- , and this L------ is assumedly the Lawrence identified as their first born son; conversely it could be a misentered brother to the eldest male entry entered right after the HOH [the Head of Household Dr McGehee] . If a son the census shows him either 25 or 23, hard to read. If 25, he is is born two years before the marriage. If 23, he is born the year OF the marriage and this is plausable and acceptable given the Jan wedding. It is assumed then, if this is the correct Dr William McGehee census, and the illegible L is the first born Lawrence, that Lawrence was born Oct-Dec 1827 and that the illegible L name is infact this Lawrence's own entry.
Jabez, son in Dr William Jefferson McGehee's 1850 census above, was 12 or MAYBE 13 [hard to read and so again making this a little difficult] in 1850 and so born ca 1837/8 per that source and the date of ennumeration appears to be 6th Oct 1850 or Perhaps 6th Dec. We know our Jabe was born 16 Oct 1838 and would have been 11 for this census, but it appears in a week or so he would be 12 if Oct 6th Ennumeration is correct.

Promising Considerations of this as Birth Family for our Jabe:

Dr William Jefferson McGehee and his wife Americus are found in the 1850 Macon Alabama Census. Therein is found a Jabez McGehee son, 12 or 13 years of age [hard to read]. Although the age is not exactly correct, it is not far off from a known 1838 birth year for Jabus.
Our Jabus McGehee , his wife Sarah and two small children are found in the same county of Alabama [Macon] where Dr William Jefferson McGehee and family are found in 1850. Our Jabus 1860 and 1870 is ennumerated in the Auburn Post office district in both those censuses [Macon for 1860, and Lee county for 1870. Lee was split off from Macon]
Our Jabes first born was named Eleanor Americus McGehee. Although she would later be known as Ellie, when three, her name was given as Americus to the census taker. It appears Jabe's first born was named for both her grandmothers: Eleanor [nee White] Cofield and America [nee Booker] McGehee
The name of Jabes father [Dr William Jefferson McGehee] is revealed in our Jabe's family with his second born son [ if Orlando who died young is in fact a boy ] John William McGehee . And Just like with Eleanor America McGehee, this son would have been named for BOTH his grandfathers: John Cofield and William McGehee.
Cornealia, slightly older sister to the son Jabez found in Dr William Jefferson McGehee's 's Census, with whom he may have shared a very close relationship, may also have been the source for the name given to Jabe's fourth daughter: Cornelia ìNealieî McGehee
Doris [nee Diggs] Osborne, greatgranddaughter of Jabe McGehee [reports that her mother Mamie [nee Howard] Diggs spent part of her orphaned years [as did my grandfather Ben Howard] in the home of a Sally LUNDY, a first cousin to Jabe's daughter Fannie [nee McGehee] Howard. Sally Lundy was a teacher who "moved around alot opening schools" including in Clarksville, Texas, and married later to a "Colonel Williams" with whom she returned to her childhood home of Black Hawk Mississippi. Sally Lundy was born 1855-60. According to Doris, Sally had a brother that Doris knew as "cousin Jim" , and she feels that this cousin was named for his and Sally Lundy's father, making the father's name likely James LUNDY . It is known that Sally Lundy and her brother Jim Lundy were raised in Black Hawk Mississippi and that Sally was a little girl of 4 or 5 when the Union Troops came through that region. Although Doris had met Sally Lundy as a girl and felt Sally considered her a grandaughter, Doris was unable to inform me beyond a relationship of first cousinship regarding the kinship of Sally Lundy to Doris's grandmother Fannie [nee McGehee] Howard. This meant that Sally LUNDY was born to a sister of either Sarah Frances Cofield or Sarah's husband Jabus McGehee and that this sister , whoever's sister she was, had married a Lundy. Among the children to William Jefferson and Americus [nee Booker] McGehee is a daughter Elizabeth who married a Mr Lundy [ Pettigrew, Marion Dewoody. Title: Marks-Barnett families and their kin . 1939] This Elizabeth [nee McGehee] Lundy was Jabe's sister, and so, any children of that union would be cousins of first degree to Fannie McGehee. Research is underway to determine if Dr William Jefferson McGehee's daughter Elizabeth McGehee Lundy had children named Jim and Sally.
Americus Booker, wife to Dr William Jefferson McGehee and found in the census in which is a son named Jabez , herself had a brother named Jabez which allows continuity for Jabeís name, a name that perhaps goes further back in the family line than Jabe McGEHEE's uncle Jabez BOOKER who is at this point the earliest known to possess the name. Americus and her brother are clearly named in her father Richeson BOOKER's will, she being found there as Americus McGehee.

Research on Dr William Jefferson McGehee reveals further informtion on his ascendancy and links him to the McGehees of Virginia, a long line present in America and traced further back than is here presented, limiting him to his entry as son