The early part of 2016 has been a time of tremendous advances for the B03-Barnabas McAllister line. The rule that Genealogy is a tale with no end continues to be proven. Here are the highlights.
In January of this year, through a serendipitous DNA-test connection, Herb Bennett informed me of a hitherto unknown relative, Patricia J. (McAllister) Bailey, who lives in southern California. We soon spoke on the phone. She is descended from B03-8 Hugh McAllister’s son, B03-8-5 Bennett Porter McAllister, whereas I am descended from B03-8-1 Joseph Barnabas McAllister. After more than 40 years of searching, she was only the second living person I had encountered descended from Hugh, whose parents were Barnabas and Elizabeth Moore McAllister. Like true McAllisters, we’ve shared a considerable amount of data, photos and records, resulting in a significant expansion of the B03 records and an expansion of her direct family history. As it turns out, Patricia’s father, Millard F. McAllister, had done some searching back in the early 1950s.
Family of Hugh Wilson and Harriett Stepp McAllister
Hugh Wilson McAllister (b. 17 Jul 1811 in Bedford Co.,TN, d. abt. 1884, Pickens Co., AL), m. abt, 1837 Harriett Patton Stepp (b. 17 Jul 1811 in Pickens Co., MS Territory, d. abt. 1858, Pickens Co., AL). Their children were:
- Joseph Barnabas (1838-1917)
- John Ulysses (1840-1867)
- Sarah Elizabeth (1842-1919)
- Alexis Polk (abt. 1844-1924)
- Bennett Porter (1846- )
- Thadeus Constantine (abt. 1847-1850)
On the suggestion of another, unrelated McAllister he met in the military, in early 1952 Millard McAllister had tried to communicate with Eula (McAllister) Lann c/o Land (sic) and Carter Hardware, in Aberdeen, MS. (The business is still there today.) However, Eula Lann died 50 years earlier in 1902! A short time later, on 2 Oct 1952, the letter was graciously answered by Annie L. Jordan. She opened her reply saying, "as my half-sister, Eula McAllister, who was Mrs. Walter Lann, has been dead for many years, your letter was given to me by her husband’s nephew, (also named) Walter Lann". She went on to provide some genealogy and mentions a number of relatives in a lengthy narrative. That was where things stood for many years as Millard’s relatively early death at 59, plus Patricia’s focus on children, jobs, etc., stopped further progress until this year.
As these things go, this discussion quickly wrapped in B03-4-1-5-1-1 Allie M. ("Dixie") Caster, nee Lann. We met at a Gathering about 10 or 12 years ago. She shares my enthusiasm for genealogy, and we chat with every so often. Back then; Allie informed me that she had a hefty pile of original family papers, notes, inventories, bills of sale and so forth. (The fascinating story of how she came to have those papers must be left for another time.) She also graciously offered to let me scan any and all the papers. The only catch was that I had to visit her. This invitation had been open for years as I, like Patricia and many other amateur genealogists, dealt with daily life.
Again, as these things go, Sandra Barkley McCollum, who also lives in Mississippi about an hour’s drive from Allie, pointed out some changes that were needed on one of the CMA Gravestone pages. She mentioned that there are several cemeteries near her house with B03 descendants’ graves and offered to show them to me if I ever came to the area.
Gee, with an opportunity like that, plus my recent retirement, how could I say no? So in early April I flew to Memphis, picked up a rental and drove to Blue Mountain, MS. Although once a thriving metropolis of a few hundred souls, it is only a wide spot in the road these days. Sandra and her husband Steve live right on the county line between Tippah and Union counties, in a stunningly beautiful sweep of flowering trees and grasslands. Note, as a lifelong resident of cooler and drier northern and western climes, my only visits to the deep South, mostly for Gatherings or business, were in the dead of summer. Imagine my extreme pleasure to discover cooler weather than north Idaho, flowers everywhere and very modest humidity. It was a virtual paradise and I can see why the residents love it so.
Genealogy was the topic of discussion, virtually nonstop. (I’m sure Steve got awfully tired of hearing about it, but he was a good sport.) Sandra really knows her subject and can discuss B03 ancestors for hours, often without the aid of notes, although her notebooks are measured in pounds these days.
After my arrival, we promptly visited Ebenezer Cemetery located only a few miles from their home. On the way there, we passed one of four identical houses, (the only one still standing) built by B03-1-2 Bennett Carroll Simpson McAllister (1816-1894) for each of his four daughters who survived to adulthood. By all accounts, "Simp" as he was known, was a prominent and influential person in the area, owning a sawmill and considerable acreage.
Ebenezer Cemetery is adjacent to Ebenezer Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, where we toured the graves and signed the visitor’s register. Readers can see high-resolution photos of the church, cemetery and the house mentioned above here. That evening, we had supper at a small, family-run restaurant in New Albany, right near the bridge across the Tallahatchie River. Billie Jo McAllister did not put in an appearance although I watched for him.
Bright and early the next day we went to McAllister Cemetery, which is across the road from the former home site of B03-6 Ulysses L. McAllister (1807- 1880), on land once owned by him. Photos can be viewed at here.
Sandra was unsure who was responsible for the care and maintenance of the cemetery, but whoever it was, the whole area was lovingly cared for. The grass was neatly trimmed and a new fence had been installed, leaving the much older (original?) posts in place. All the graves were neat and tidy except for one, at the very entrance. Sandra trimmed back some of the growth and we looked among the rubble for some sort of inscribed stone, but in vain. Sandra speculated that it might be the grave of Elizabeth (Moore) McAllister (1773-1872), relict of the line progenitor, Barnabas McAllister. Some unsourced records show her buried next to her husband in Greene County, Alabama but that seems unlikely since he died some 34 years before her. We have extensive (original) probate records showing that upon Barnabas’s death, his second son, B03-2 Robert McAllister (1799-1878), was made executor of the estate and was in charge of her care. Robert is also buried in the same McAllister Cemetery, so Sandra’s guess seems likely accurate.
Then it was on to Academy Baptist Church and right across the road, the older portion of the cemetery. This is a much larger cemetery than the previous two we visited. Color photos and additional data are here. Given their age, style and the type of stone used, several of the gravestones were broken and had fallen. Some had been repaired and some of those had fallen again. As we walked along the rows of stones, snapping photos and discussing (what else?) genealogy, we came across the stone of yet another son of the progenitor, this time B03-1 John Bell McAllister and his second wife, Martha. I was about to move on when I noticed a flat stone about the size of my palm, in a half-inch depression, and I pointed it out to Sandra and Steve. Brushing back the grass and soil a bit, Sandra discovered incised letters, "RY (space) AN" and she wondered aloud who it could be. Before I could even think, the words "Mary Ann, John’s first wife" sprang from my lips. Sandra and Steve exploded into action and in a few minutes, revealed Mary Ann McAllister’s stone. Although now broken into several pieces, it had been lovingly re-assembled flat on the ground next to her husband’s stone. Heaven knows how long it had been buried.
We left the stone as we found it, assembled and arranged next to the broken base. We all felt like Indiana Jones, lacking only a Fedora and a bullwhip.
The next day, it was on to Aberdeen via Saltillo, a pretty town recently exploding in population. We looked in vain for the Kyle Cemetery that (supposedly) contains graves of some of Sandra’s kin. We stopped at City Hall and were well received. A gentleman came in who knew the whereabouts of the Kyle Cemetery and he provided directions. Before leaving, we discovered that same man was also the mayor, and before that he had been in charge of restoring the main Saltillo Cemetery.
He had done an excellent job. The stones were in virtually like-new condition. There were no discoloration and no signs of abrasion, like from sandblasting. I had lots of questions for him but we never learned how he did it; he was called away on official business before we could ask. We photographed the few B03-related gravestones there and headed on for Aberdeen and Allie Caster.
If possible, Aberdeen was even more beautiful that the others. Allie gave us a tour of the town, especially the older portion, with no end of beautiful old homes, riots of flowering shrubs and trees, and lots of pillars and porticos. After lunch, we repaired to Allie’s house, set up a scanner and laptop, and got to work. It quickly became clear there was more to scan than possible in even several days, let alone a single afternoon. I worked as fast as the (slow) scanner would let me while Sandra and Allie kept up a continuous string of chatter, reminiscences, sidelights, and verbal excursions.
My head was spinning. I’ll save reporting on the data scanned for another article except for one item. Allie showed us a letter written to Col. Jas. D. (B03-4 James DeWitt) McAllister dated Mobile, 4 Mar 1861. The letter is from a lawyer and discusses various business matters, remittances, charges, etc. The final sentence reads, "No news – business very dull. We expect to hear tonight what Lincoln will do – or try to do." Written only about a month before the battle at Ft. Sumter, this ran shivers down our spines.
After returning home, there was still something compelling about the tone of that line, the part that reads "we expect to hear tonight" that nagged at me. A bit of searching revealed the answer. 4 Mar 1861 was Abraham Lincoln’s inauguration as president. The content of his speech would have been telegraphed shortly after he delivered it. (Lincoln’s First Inaugural address can be read here.) Mississippi had seceded from the United States on 9 Jan 1861 and Alabama had seceded on 11 Jan1861 and history was afoot.
Shortly after returning home, I learned that Patricia (McAllister) Bailey’s daughter, Laura Jane Thornhill, yet another B03 descendant, was famous!
At age 13, Laura was recruited to Logan Earth Ski by Danny Bearer after she won first place in slalom and freestyle at Steve’s South Bay Skates contest in 1975. Laura went on to become the first female skater ever to get her own signature model skateboard. After being taken under the wing of Warren Bolster, she also became the first girl to get a "Who’s Hot" in Skateboarder, eventually the first girl to get a full-feature interview in the magazine, and also had the first and only female centerfold in the Skateboarder Magazine.
Having moved to Redondo Beach from Texas in 1974, Laura arrived right as the urethane wheel was kicking off a whole new skateboard boom. Throughout the 1970s, Laura won or placed in nearly every women’s competition that was organized and sometimes even competed against, and beat the boys.
Footage of her flowing hair 360 spins is almost mandatory in any documentary from the era. Outside of contests, Laura was one of a few of the only girls charging all terrains – fearless in backyard pools, vertical parks, and full pipes, she held her own with the best and probably intimidated the rest. Laura would also be credited with discovering then nineyear- old Eric Dressen while skating a pool in Torrance and helping him get his first board sponsor through Logan Earth Ski along with his own now historic "Who’s Hot" at the age of 10. Having married in 1987, Laura continues to remain active in the world of skateboarding and has imparted some of her incredible skill to her son Sage and daughter Kylie.
This description is taken from Laura’s citation in the Skateboarding Hall of Fame and Museum following her 2013 induction. In 2015, Laura Thornhill Caswell was asked to donate her signature skateboard and several other items to the Smithsonian in Washington DC.