Category: Family Biographies/Histories

Much of what I know about my great-great-great-grandfather, William Jones Bowling, is thanks largely to my distant cousin, Joe Bowling, who descends from an uncle of William Jones Bowling’s. Joe sent me a copy of William Jones Bowling’s Civil War records, consisting of his record as a prisoner of war and his application for a pension.

William Jones Bowling was born January 20, 1840 in Haywood County, Tennessee. W.J. Bowling himself gives this information on his pension application. He enlisted in the Confederate States Army in August 1861, according to his pension application. He was captured on March 21, 1864 in Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tennessee (the county bordering his birth county of Haywood to the south). According to his POW records, he “gave himself up.” He appears to have been sent first to Alton Military Prison. He appears on a roll of prisoners of war which indicates he was received at Alton on April 21, 1864. He was transferred to Camp Douglas, Illinois (Chicago) on August 23, 1864 and appears on a roll of prisoners of war received at Camp Douglas on August 24, 1864. Camp Douglas has been considered the Andersonville of the North — described in a History Channel documentary as “80 acres of hell.” The photograph below is dated 1863, so I know that my ggg-grandfather is not one of the many faces in the sea of prisoners, but I find the photograph poignant nonetheless. You can fully explore this photograph, including zooming in to see close detail, at the Encyclopedia of Chicago.

Bowling later appears on a roll of prisoners of war applying for an oath of allegiance dated September 24, 1864. The remarks on this record state

Claim to have been loyal. Enlisted in the Rebel Army to avoid conscription and desire to take oath of allegiance and become loyal citizen.

He apparently did take this oath of allegiance and was discharged on May 16, 1865. His discharge lists his place of residence as “Hardinmond Co., Tenn.,” which I believe to be a reference to Hardeman County. The 1860 census corroborates this evidence, citing Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tennessee as the residence of W. J. Bowling.

William Jones Bowling’s POW records all list him as a Private in Company H of the 15th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry. Other records, including his pension application, refer to him as a First Sergeant in Company K of the Fourth Confederate Infantry (1st Alabama, Tennessee, and Mississippi). Which is it? Given the volatility and frequent reorganization during the war, it could be both. I am not as troubled by the inconsistency regarding organization as I am the inconsistency regarding his rank, especially because my cousin Joe is so thorough in his research, and I don’t think he made a mistake.

According to my cousin Joe, William Jones Bowling decided to become a minister while he was imprisoned. It makes sense that a man living in such desperate conditions might turn to the Bible and religion for comfort.

In an upcoming post, I will share William Jones Bowling’s application for a Confederate pension, along with the wealth of information gleaned from it.

Technorati Tags: genealogy, Civil War, Camp Douglas, Alton Military Prison, prisoner of war

I come from a military family. My father served in the Air Force; his father was in the Army in World War II. My maternal grandfather was in the Navy in WWII and later joined the Air Force. His son, my uncle Wayne, retired a few years back after a long career in the Air Force, and my cousin Martin, Wayne’s son, is currently serving in the Air Force. My great-grandfather served in the Army in World War I, and I had several family members on both sides in the Civil War and Revolutionary War.

My family is very proud of its service to our country. My grandmother proudly displays photos of four generations of Cunningham men in their uniforms in her living room. She tells me that people always comment on those pictures. My cousin Martin has recently been sent to Qatar. While I have been assured he isn’t really in harm’s way there, the way this war has gone, you just don’t know; I have already lost a friend, so I worry. This is Martin and his youngest son Nicholas:

I think Martin is supposed to be gone for about four months. If you have a moment, think about the families left behind while their loved ones are deployed, especially to Iraq and Afghanistan. I don’t agree with this war, but I have the utmost respect for our troops and their families.

Technorati Tags: family, Iraq, military, genealogy

Dandelife might be an interesting tool for genealogy bloggers looking to create online biographies.  It looks as if it is geared toward users who want to post their own stories, but I don’t see why it can’t be adapted to ancestors.  In fact, it might be an interesting way for multiple family members to get involved with crafting a biography of a mutual family member.

Hat tip to Ed Tech in the Classroom.

Technorati Tags: Dandelife, genealogy, family history

Jasia has challenged genealogy bloggers to share the family stories that make us laugh, the ones about the jokers. Any family members of mine who happen by here might wonder where on earth Dana should begin, given the large number of cards in my family. I decided that in keeping with the nature of this blog, I should tell the one about my great-great-grandfather Amos Blakey Cunningham and the horse.

Grandpa Amos grew up in Georgia, and my grandfather (his grandson) tells me that Amos’s father was a preacher. Amos’s father (Johnson Franklin Cunningham) was staying behind after services to shake hands, and Amos ran on home. Amos used to brag that his horse would follow him anywhere or do anything he told it to. On this particular day, a friend bet Amos that his horse wouldn’t go up the stairs in his house. Well, Amos couldn’t pass that one up, so he led the horse inside and up the stairs in his house. The only trouble is he couldn’t get the horse to come back down the stairs. Amos decided that if he covered the horse’s eyes, the horse might be less afraid. I am not sure if he used actual horse blinders or something else, but once the horse’s eyes were covered, it was fine. The only trouble was that it make a god-awful racket coming down the stairs, and Amos’s parents had come home! Finally, he decided he had better figure out a way make those hooves quiet, so he tied pillows to the poor beast’s feet. I’m not sure how he got the horse down the stairs without breaking its legs.

Another time Amos went to church with his mother, Mary Anne Penelope Anthony Cunningham. He didn’t take his hat off when he entered the church, so his mother told him to take off his hat. He refused. Apparently, she jerked it off his head, only to discover he had hidden a bunch of marbles inside. They scattered and rolled quite loudly all over the wooden floorboards in the church.

My mother remembers Grandpa Amos sticking his cane out to trip her when she ran by his chair. My grandmother tells me he used to put his medication in the toilet. You can learn a little bit more about Grandpa Amos through my great-great grandmother Stella Ophelia Bowling Cunningham’s diary (pdf).

Amos is pictured below in the back row, far right.

Technorati Tags: family stories, horses, genealogy, carnival