A Scottish Poet in the Family Tree? 52 Ancestors 2025 Prompt “Artistic”

 

Was Poet Robert Pollok the Brother of Third-Great-Grandfather John Pollok?

John Pollok: 1789-1851 (Paternal Third-Great-Grandfather)
Robert Pollok: 1798-1827 (Possible Third-Great-Uncle)
John Pollok: 1756-1831 (Possible Fourth-Great-Grandfather)

 

My in-laws, John and Laurel Aird, visited John’s Aunt Ruth MacNiven on Montserrat years ago, and Laurel took detailed notes as Ruth told them what she knew about her and John’s family history. I transcribed Laurel’s notes several years ago, and one notation caught my eye. Ruth claimed that her grandmother Jane Mary Pollok was the great-niece of Scottish poet Robert Pollok. When I saw the prompt for this week was “Artistic”, I decided to investigate this claim. Could I find any evidence backing up Ruth MacNiven’s assertion? It would be fascinating to have an acclaimed poet in the family tree.

First, I did some research on poet Robert Pollok. He was born October 19, 1798 in North Moorhouse or Muirhouse, Renfrewshire, Scotland. According to the Encyclopedia Brittanica, he was the son of a “small farmer” and was “trained as a cabinet-maker and afterwards worked on his father’s farm…” His entry on Findagrave states that he was “the son of John Pollok, tenant of the farm at North Muirhouse, and his wife Margaret (nee Dickie) of Fenwick parish.”

Poet Robert Pollok

According to that bio, he first worked for his brother-in-law David Young as a carpenter. “Not satisfied with ’mechanical employment’, he moved once again to live with his uncle, David Dickie, at Fenwick…” While there, he trained with a parish teacher, preparing himself to study at a university. Robert attended the University of Glasglow and earned a Master of Arts degree. He then entered divinity school and, after five years of study, was licensed to preach in the United Secession Church of Scotland in 1827. Earlier that year, his ten-volume, blank-verse poem, “The Course of Time”, was published by the Blackwood publishing company. The poem “describes the mortal and immortal destiny of man” and is considered the Calvinist response to Milton’s Paradise Lost.

By the time of the poem’s publication, Pollok was severely ill with tuberculosis. With the financial assistance of friends, he prepared to travel to Italy, accompanied by one of his sisters, in the hope that a warmer climate would improve his health. He died before he could set sail from England. The Rosaline Masson biographical essay noted that:

“Almost immediately after his death, [The Course of Time] became extensively read throughout the British empire, especially among the numerous and respectable classes of dissenters. It has, accordingly, passed through a considerable number of editions, and now appears likely to keep its place among the standard poems in our language.”

Title page from 1847 printing of The Course of Time on Internet Archive.

An 1847 American printing of The Course of Time is available on Internet Archive. I am printing a short passage from Book Three of the nearly 200-page poem:

Of all the trees that in Earth’s vineyard grew,

And with their clusters tempted man to pull

And eat, -- one tree, one tree alone, the true

Celestial manna bore, which filled the soul—

The tree of Holiness—of heavenly seed;

A native of the skies; though stunted much,

And dwarfed, by Time’s cold, damp, ungenial soil,

And chilling winds, yet yielding fruit so pure,

So nourishing and sweet, as, on his way,

Refreshed the pilgrim; and begot desire

Unquenchable to climb the arduous path

To where her sister plants, in their own clime,

Around the fount, and by the stream of life,

Blooming beneath the Sun that never sets,

Bear fruit of perfect relish, fully ripe.

 

A monument to the poet stands in Newton Mearns. It was erected around 1900.

 

So how does Robert Pollok’s biography match up with that of Jane Mary Pollok’s grandfather? Jane’s grandfather, John Pollok, who I shall refer to as John Pollok 2, may have also been born in Eaglesham, Renfrewshire on April 26, 1789 to a father named John Pollok (John Pollok 1). This information comes from the wikitree on FamilySearch. The wikitree shows that John Pollok 1 was father to several children, John Pollok 2 being the oldest child, and Robert Pollak the poet being the youngest surviving child, which matches the information in the poet’s brief biographies on various websites. The tree on FamilySearch included two daughters, Margaret and Janet, so one of them could have been the sister that planned to accompany Robert to Italy. However, the FamilySearch tree has a serious problem: there are no sources for the information. None.

As for Ancestry, I was able to find a birth record for John Pollak 1. He was born December 17, 1756 in Mearns, Renfrewshire and baptized December 31, 1756, according to church records from Mearns. His parents were John and Jean Gilmour Pollok. I also located his Church of Scotland marriage record, which shows he married Margaret Dickie on May 9 1780 in Fenwick, Ayrshire. That location is only forty miles or so from Mearns, so it seems likely it is the same man. He appears to have died in 1831. A photo of his gravestone, referencing Eaglesham, is below.

 

John Pollok 1 headstone in Renfrewshire.

The first real Scotland census occurred in 1841, after his death, so without that type of information it is difficult to verify how many children John Pollok 1 and Margaret Dickie Pollok had. Since they married in 1780, John Pollok 2’s 1789 birthdate matches up well. However, I have been unable to find parish birth records for either John Pollok 2 or Robert Pollok, or any of the other supposed children of John Pollok 1 listed on FamilySearch.

 

So what can we conclude about Ruth MacNiven’s story about poet Robet Pollok being an ancestor? Ruth’s grandmother, Jane Pollok Shields, the source of the family tale, would have heard about her great-uncle Robert from her father, John Pollok 3, born in 1813. John Pollok 3 would have been fourteen years old when poet Robert Pollok died. He would have met his uncle and been intimate with other family members of the poet. Jane herself was born only forty years after the poet’s death, so she would also have known his contemporaries and family members. Assuming Jane was truthful, I find her story credible.

 

Jane Mary Pollok Shields

However, until I have some actual documentation to verify that Robert Pollok and John Pollok 2 were brothers, I will continue to note that the relationship is merely an unverified hypothesis. As my research skills with respect to Scotland's records improve, I hope to be able to provide a definitive answer in the future.

 

Sources:

1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Vol. 22. Pollok, Robert. https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/1911_Encyclop%C3%A6dia_Britannica/Pollok,_Robert

Significant Scots. Pollok and Ayton. By Rosaline Masson for the Famous Scots Series (1898) (pdf). https://www.electricscotland.com/history/other/pollok_robert.htm

East Renfrewshire Culture & Leisure. Robert Pollak. https://www.ercultureandleisure.org/libraries/heritage/portal-to-the-past/people/art-literature/robert-pollok/

Robert Pollok. Findagrave Entry. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/228792895/robert-pollok?_

The Course of Time. Robert Pollok. Edward Kearny, pub. New York, NY. 1847. https://archive.org/details/courseoftimepoem00pol/page/n7/mode/2up

 

Death of Rev. Smith Leads to Reunion Five Years Later: 52 Ancestors 2025 Prompt “Reunion”

 

Rev. Smith’s Family and Church Family Gather in His Honor in 1933

Willis D. Smith: 1853-1928 (Maternal Great-Grandfather)

 

I ran across an interesting news article from the August 2, 1933, issue of the Owensboro Messenger newspaper, describing a large reunion held at the Pleasant Ridge Presbyterian Church near Owensboro, Kentucky honoring Rev. Willis Smith and his family. Rev. Smith had died five years earlier, so it was a surprising discovery. The event was not a traditional family reunion; it was more of a community celebration of Rev. Smith’s life and his legacy as a minister of the church.  

Willis Smith had died on March 21, 1928 at the age of seventy-five. According to the article, he was the second pastor of the Pleasant Ridge church, which was built in 1875, while the congregation was established in 1850. The first pastor served nearly thirty years, so Rev. Smith took over around 1880. The article states he served as pastor for twenty-three years, which would mean he left the church around 1900. He had recently married Cora Leachman, and he chose to move his family to the Oklahoma Territory and eventually New Mexico to serve as a missionary and church founder. His final child, Cora’s only child, Lorene Edith Smith, was born in Oklahoma Territory in 1903.

The Smiths eventually returned to Kentucky, and Willis served other churches there as pastor. However, his family still had strong ties to Pleasant Ridge Presbyterian Church, and the congregation obviously had great respect and fondness for Rev. Smith, leading to the 1933 gathering.

On July 30, 1933, some four hundred people gathered at the Pleasant Ridge Church to remember Rev. Smith and to visit with the members of his family who attended. 

Rev. Willis Smith and second wife Cora Leachman Smith

In addition to Willis’ widow, Cora Smith, several Smith children and grandchildren were in attendance, including:

Rev. Willis Smith Jr., wife and daughter, all of New Hampshire.

Dr. Lucius E. Smith and wife of Louisville

Othilde Smith, widow of Albert E. Smith, and the entire family of their daughter Frances Smith Baldwin.

Lorene Smith Jandy, husband Ed Jandy, and daughter Laurel.

In addition, there were many Smith family cousins in attendance, including Moseley relatives, Benton family relations, and Leachman family members. The remaining attendees were families that had attended the church while Rev. Willis Smith was the minister.

The event lasted all day on Sunday, July 30. A church service began at 11 a.m., with Rev. Willis Smith Jr. preaching (even though he was a minister for the Congregational Church). The service included a baptism for the baby daughter of a local family.

Dinner followed the service; I expect it was a potluck sort of affair with plenty of wonderful dishes. This feast was followed by an afternoon church service, with the sermon delivered by another of Willis Smith’s sons, former missionary Dr. Lucius E. Smith. Music was provided by more family members: a solo by Mrs. Frances Baldwin, Rev. Smith’s granddaughter, and a duet by his daughter-in-law Mrs. Albert Smith and her granddaughter Frances Baldwin.

The event sounds like it was a marvelous combination of a family reunion and a church anniversary picnic. I’m sure Willis Smith’s family was delighted to return to a place and people that had been so important in their early lives.

The Pleasant Ridge Cumberland Presbyterian Church in 1955.

The church was used less and less over the years. Most congregants chose to attend another Presbyterian church in Owensboro. The building was vandalized several times. It no longer seems to exist, so it was probably decommissioned and may have been razed.

Sources:

“Family Reunion of Smiths Held”. Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer. Owensboro, Kentucky. August 2, 1933.

“Church Which Founded First Sabbath School May Reopen.” Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer. Owensboro, Kentucky. Sept. 11, 1955.

Tragedy Leads to Homefront Letters: 52 Ancestors 2025 Prompt “Wartime”

 

John Aird’s Correspondence with the Parents of a Young Man Killed in Action

John Aird: 1919-2005 (Father)

 

Following my mother-in-law’s death, my husband and I brought home a box of family letters from the 1930s and 1940s from her house. Most were letters between John and Laurel, my in-laws, along with copies of letters Laurel sent to her parents and other relatives. One letter was different. It was addressed to John Aird at his parents’ Detroit home. The postmark read Goshen, Indiana, and it was sent in October of 1945. The return address listed a name that was unfamiliar—Mr. and Mrs. F. E. Priser. Curious, I read the letter, and realized it was an amazing window into wartime and the bonds that formed between young men facing danger far from home.

I did a quick Newspapers.com search on the Priser family, and discovered that Mr. and Mrs. Fred Priser’s only son, Robert Priser, had been killed in 1944 in Italy. He had been in John Aird’s army unit. The newspaper in Wakarusa, Indiana, wrote a brief article on his death. It read as follows:

“Mr. and Mrs. Fred E Priser of Goshen were notified October 31^st by the war department that their only son, Pvt. Robert Priser, 21, serving in the field artillery with Lt. Gen. Mark Clark’s Fifth army in Italy, was killed in action on October 20.

The message was delivered only a few hours after the parents had received a letter from their son, written on October 17, in which he described conditions as ‘terrible’ on the battle front in Bologna. Pvt. Priser inducted into the army May 26, 1943, while a junior at Indiana University, went overseas in January of this year, landing in North Africa on January 19. He saw his first combat duty in the march on Rome in April.”

Robert Priser, High School Graduation Photo

I went back to John Aird’s memoir about the war, and found a passage on Private Priser. John wrote as follows:

“Back at B Battery, things were not going at all well. I alluded to this fact only vaguely in a letter home, but withheld the details. The battery was suffering a series of casualties, more than all of the rest of the battalion put together. One of the casualties was the young man who had sent his fiancée a lock of his hair at Hampton Roads. His loss I felt deeply because he was an only child and such a fine young man that his death seemed especially tragic. In profound depression, I wrote an eight-page letter, which on second thought I decided was not suitable to send home and trashed it. In a later letter home, I recalled again the incident of the lock of hair. For weeks I could not stop thinking about the young man, his fiancée, and his parents. I could not accept his loss. Others in the battery evidently felt the same way. A number of officers and enlisted men, including myself, began to write to his parents, who answered every letter.”

I suspect that part of John’s profound reaction to Robert Priser’s death had to do with the similarities between Priser and John. They were both only children, and both had been young college students with a life of promise ahead of them when the United States entered the war. Both had left college before graduating, and ended up fighting together. The only differences were that John was a scant three years older than Robert Priser, and John had survived. I’m sure John could see his own parents in the Prisers; he could imagine how his own death would be devastating to them.

John with his parents, Harry and May, before he was shipped out.

John’s correspondence with the Prisers continued throughout the remainder of the war, and even after John was sent home. The Prisers’ letter mentions two other men, Jim May and Kenny Rump, who had recently written and expected to be sent home shortly. Obviously, these were two other men from Robert Priser’s unit who, like John, had continued to write to Robert’s parents.

The Priser letter also revealed that John Aird had not merely written to the Prisers, but had visited them at their home while he was on leave before he was discharged. The Prisers wrote:

“I cannot tell you how extremely sorry I was the afternoon you stopped at our home because of my having to leave to attend the funeral of our shop foreman. I am sure you understood but I really wanted to visit with you much longer. While we sincerely appreciated the letters you so graciously sent us when you were in Italy, yet personal contact and conversation gives you something more and fills the gap which distance, unfortunately cannot fill. However, we are clinging to the hope (and promise, if I remember correctly,) that at a time when it is possible and convenient, you will come to see us again soon.”

What a remarkable connection these people formed in the midst of grief! They were able to reach across an ocean to share memories of a bright, promising young man and to build a sort of friendship. And John was not the only man who did this—others in his unit became penpals with this lovely couple as well.

I found this letter to be profoundly moving and hopeful. It demonstrates that even in the worst the world can give us, there is hope for kindness, concern and comfort. We think of wartime as bringing out the worst in mankind, but it also brought out the best.

Sources:

Death of Robert Priser. Wakausa Tribune. Wakarusa, Indiana. Nov. 9, 1944 edition.

“Goshen Youth Killed In Italy”. South Bend Tribune. South Bend, Indiana. Nov. 2, 1944 edition. Accessed on Newspapers.com.

Robert Moseley’s Revolutionary War Service: 52 Ancestors 2025 Prompt “Military”

 

Lt. Moseley’s Military Service Qualified Him for a Pension

Robert Moseley: 1749-1820 (Maternal Fifth-Great-Grandfather)

 

Military service in the Revolutionary War qualified men for pensions in the 1800s. Those pension applications and records provide essential evidence of the soldier’s service in an era where records were handwritten and often hard to maintain and now nearly impossible to find. Fifth-great-grandfather Robert Moseley’s pension records help to verify that the man who lived in Kentucky in the 1800s was the man who fought in Pennsylvania’s 8^th Regiment from 1776 until 1777, rising to the rank of Lieutenant.

Robert Moseley’s parentage and birth location are a matter of some contention, but he appears to have been born in St. Mary’s County in the Maryland Colony as early as 1749 and possibly as late as 1752. The birth date I feel is most accurate is February 15, 1749. His father was also named Robert Moseley, and was married three times. Son Robert’s mother was probably Robert Senior’s second wife, whose name is unknown.

While Robert was still young, his father moved to Prince William County, Virginia, and married his third wife, the widow of one of his friends, Lucy Peake. Lucy was the mother of several children, including Sarah Peake. Robert married Sarah, his step-sister, in 1776, around the same time that he enlisted in a Pennsylvania regiment to fight the British. Some family trees indicate that the marriage took place in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, but I have found no records to confirm this.

It is unclear why Robert enlisted in a Pennsylvania regiment. A Virginia regiment would have seemed more likely. Was he living on his father’s land in Maryland at the time? Even if he was, the Pennsylvania state line is nearly 130 miles further north. Perhaps family members or friends had connections to the man forming the regiment, leading Robert to travel far from home to fight for independence.

Record showing Robert Moseley's pension records, including date approved, amount per annum, amount paid, and the dates the pension started and ended.

Another researcher transcribed Robert’s military pension application, which detailed his service. Robert wrote, signed and swore to the following account on May 11, 1818:

“Robert Moseley Sen states to the County Court of Ohio that in the year 1776 he joined the Army of United States in the revolutionary war, that he was a Lieutenant in the 8th pennsylvania regiment in Capt Van Swearingen’s company that he commenced the service in the month of March 1776 and that he continued in the service until May 1777 that when he first entered the service the company to which he belonged was stationed at an old indian town up the Alegheny river he thinks about 25 miles above Pitsburgh called the Cattainian Town(s) where they continued seven months and then marched and Joined the General Army commanded by Genl Washington  he states that the Whole time he was in the Service of the United States was about 14 months that in May 1777 he resigned his commission & left the army he states that he is in his 67th year of age that from his age and infirmity he is unable to labour for his livelihood & that from his reduced circumstances he is need of the pension allowed by Congress at their last session to officers & soldiers that served in the revolutionary war he states that when he resigned he gave up his commission to Genl Washington and that it is not in his power to produce it.”

Handwritten pension record showing approval date

Another researcher noted that Robert had fulfilled his one-year obligation to his unit by the time he left, and was not required to sign up for additional service. He also noted that at the time Robert mustered out in May 1777, his wife was heavily pregnant with their first child. John Peake Moseley was born June 2, 1777, just weeks after his father left the army. Hopefully Robert made it home in time for the birth.

Robert and Sarah Moseley went on to have seven children. Following the deaths of his father and stepmother, Robert moved his family to Kentucky, where he farmed and worked as a surveyor. His home served as the first county court building for Ohio County, Kentucky, indicating that he was an important person in the area.

Robert Moseley on list of Kentucky Revolutionary War Pension Recipients

Robert’s request for a pension was granted in November 1818. Since he served as a lieutenant, he was granted a pension of $240.00 per annum, considerably more than privates received. He was placed on the pension roll February 15, 1819. He only received $126.36 of his pension before it was suspended due to his death. Robert died November 11, 1820 at the age of seventy-one. There are no records of his burial; the location is unknown.

Without the evidence of the pension application and pension payment records, there would have been no way to confirm that Robert Moseley served as a lieutenant in the Revolutionary War. His military record could have been lost.

 

Sources:

Pensioners of the Revolutionary War--Struck Off the Roll [database on-line]. Pensioners in Kentucky 1835. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/48145/images/RevPensionersStruck-006087-92?usePUB=true&_phsrc=Acy20015&pId=219482

U.S., The Pension Roll of 1835 for Robert Mosely. The Pension Roll of 1835, Vol ###, 10 Kentucky. Statement of Ohio County, Kentucky. https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60514/records/44471?tid=81812584&pid=262433504723&ssrc=pt

U.S., Revolutionary War Pensioners, 1801-1815, 1818-1872. 1718: 1818-1872. Oa: Revolutionary War 1818-1832. https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1116/records/58848?tid=81812584&pid=262433504723&hid=1038459796723&usePUBJs=true

Christopher Columbus Discovers—and Marries—America: 52 Ancestors 2025 Prompt “Wedding Bells”

 

A Girl Named America Meets a Boy Named Christopher Columbus

America Frances Moseley: 1848-1933 (Maternal Second Cousin 4x Removed)

I was intrigued by the name of a Moseley family daughter: America. While researching America Moseley’s life, I ran across a photo of her gravestone. The stone marked the graves of both America and her husband, C.C. Taylor. To my surprise, the photo, attached to someone else’s tree, was titled “ChristopherColumbusandAmericaFrancesMoseleyTaylor”.

The headstone that started it all...Photo by Walt Perro for Findagrave.

I initially thought this was someone’s attempt at humor, and then I realized that, no, it wasn’t. C.C. Taylor’s full name was Christopher Columbus Taylor. So a man named after the explorer often credited with discovering America, married a woman named America! This was delightful! I needed to know more.

America Frances Moseley was born July 9, 1848 to parents Robert Barnes Moseley and Martha “Patsey” French Moseley. She was the eighth of their nine children. Perhaps her name, America, was inspired by the 4th of July, which occurred just five days before her birth.

America was born in Daviess County, Kentucky, but by the time of her eighteenth birthday, the family was living in adjacent Ohio County. That’s where America met a young man named Christopher Columbus Taylor. I wonder if they laughed at the combination of their names, or if their friends and family commented on the coincidence.

America and Christopher were only eighteen when they married at the Moseley home on January 2, 1868. Their marriage bond and license application form appears below.

Marriage bond and license, dated Dec. 30, 1867 for Jan. 2, 1868 wedding.

The young couple farmed in Ohio County near the community of Bell’s Run, and had eleven children between the years of 1870 and 1892. Nine survived to adulthood. While they gave some of their children unusual names, including Leamon, Myrther, Loney and Delila, they did not pass down their own charming names to the next generation.

America lost her Christopher Columbus in 1916 when he contracted typhoid fever and died at the age of sixty-seven. America lived another seventeen years, dying at her own home on October 19, 1933 at the age of eighty-five. She had still been healthy enough to attend her daughter Delila’s birthday celebration just a few months earlier.

America’s obituary noted that she was “a splendid Christian woman” and was a faithful member of the Bell’s Run Baptist church “during her long and useful life.”

Amazingly, I discovered that there was a second woman named America Taylor living in the nearby town of Owensboro. Her maiden name was Burdette, and she was a generation older than America Moseley Taylor. 

The other America Taylor

How fascinating that two women with the very unusual name of America both married men with the Taylor surname.

Sources:

“Mrs. America Taylor Summoned by Death”. Ohio County News. Hartford, Kentucky. October 20, 1933 issue. Accessed on Newspapers.com.

Findagrave Entry for America Taylor. Photo of headstone by Walt Perro. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/75042492/america-frances-taylor?_gl=1*grqnuq*_gcl_dc*R0NMLjE3NDgxODU4NjEuQ01UMnJPZnp2bzBERmJDSEF3Z2RWX1EwdVE.*_gcl_au*NDgyMTExMDQ3LjE3NDY4MjAzMzA.*_ga*OTczMjY1MzMyLjE3MDQ4NTI3MzQ.*_ga_4QT8FMEX30*czMxMWVhYmRkLWMxYzQtNGFhMi05MzBmLWI1ODQyZjhkNzA5NSRvNjg4JGcxJHQxNzQ4MjkzNDM5JGo1OSRsMCRoMCRkbmxjYVlZa1RzUWV4UDdNOWRHM3pYd2tWclM0WW4tRUdmQQ..*_ga_LMK6K2LSJH*czMxMWVhYmRkLWMxYzQtNGFhMi05MzBmLWI1ODQyZjhkNzA5NSRvNjg5JGcxJHQxNzQ4MjkzNDM5JGowJGwwJGgw

America F Mosely in the Kentucky, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1783-1965. https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61372/records/902307636?tid=81812584&pid=262579084028&ssrc=pt

“An Aged Woman: Mrs. America Taylor Dies After Long Illness.” Twice-a-Week Messenger. Owensboro, Kentucky. October 2, 1907 issue. Accessed on Newspapers.com. (Note: this article is about the other America Taylor)

 

Sweet Name, Short Life: 52 Ancestors 2021 Prompt “Favorite Name”

Bound for Utopia: The Idyllic Name, But Brutally Short Life of Eutopia Leachman

Eutopia Gilly Leachman: 1855-1860 (Maternal Great-Grandaunt)

 

As I researched Bruce’s second-great-grandfather, William Parker Leachman, I was delighted and charmed by the name of one of his daughters, Eutopia Gilly Leachman. I had to know more about this girl with such a sweet name. Unfortunately, her story was a very short one.

Eutopia was the first child of eleven born to William and his wife, Susan Elizabeth Mosely Leachman. Susan and William had only been married for a year when Eutopia was born in McLean County, Kentucky on October 15, 1855. Susan was only fifteen when she married 22-year-old William, so she was just sixteen when she became a mother. Perhaps her youth and idealism prompted the choice of name for her first daughter. The middle name, Gilly, was in honor of father William’s sister Gillie Leachman, who was in turn named after her aunt Gillwater “Gilly”Robertson.  (Gillwater was a surname repurposed as a first name, and thankfully shortened to Gilly.)

While some records, including a new headstone, show the little girl’s name spelled “Utopia”, I believe the parents originally spelled it “Eutopia”. The official Kentucky record of her birth lists initials only, and her name is listed on the record as “E. G. Leachman”. The 1860 census record spells it “Utopia” but the spelling on census forms is notoriously inaccurate.

Birth record for E.G. Leachman

The census taker filled out the census form on June 23, 1860. Just eight days later, little Eutopia Gilly was dead. I have been unable to find a death record for Eutopia, so there is no known cause of death. It could have been an accident or illness.

Little Eutopia Gilly was buried in what is now known as the Robert C. Moseley Family Cemetery near Cleopatra, Kentucky. Robert Cartwright Moseley was Eutopia’s grandfather, Susan Elizabeth’s father. The Leachman family erected a lovely headstone for Eutopia, which reads: “Daughter of W.P. & S.E. Leachman. Born Oct 16, 1855. Died July 1, 1860.” The headstone, as visible today, does not include Eutopia’s name. However, a later small stone was made at a much later time, probably the 1960s or 1970s, which reads “Utopia Leachman.” That stone lays on the soil in the shadow of the original erect marker.

Both Susan and her husband William Parker Leachman are buried in this family cemetery as well. Eutopia’s siblings Henry Griffith Leachman, Willie Moseley Leachman, and Nancy Catherine Leachman McFarland are also buried there. According to the Find a Grave website, the Robert C. Moseley Family Cemetery holds 43 graves that have been identified and photographed. It is a lonely, out of the way little graveyard. Find a Grave describes it as follows:

“The Robert C. Moseley Family cemetery is on top of a hill, with no signs. The cemetery is off of HWY 140. The entrance is from State HWY 2156, you have to drive across a corn field and up a hill. The cemetery is surrounded by trees on three sides. The nearest community is Cleopatra.”

Robert C Moseley Family Cemetery where Eutopia and her parents are buried

I am glad that the memory of this little four-year-old girl with the charming and unique name is preserved in stone atop that lonely hill. And, thanks to the efforts of several people who made the trek to that tiny graveyard over the years, her memory lives on through the photographs of her resting place that have been shared online.

Sources:

E G Leachman in the Kentucky, U.S., Birth Records, 1847-1911Ancestry.com. Kentucky, U.S., Birth Records, 1847-1911 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1213/records/143729?tid=81812584&pid=260027101437&ssrc=pt

Utopia G Leachman in the 1860 United States Federal Census. Ancestry.com. 1860 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009. Images reproduced by FamilySearch. https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7667/records/39250494

Findagrave Entry for Utopia Leachman. Photo by Anita R. Austill. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/33863842/utopia-leachman?_gl=1*3gywdm*_gcl_dc*R0NMLjE3NDgxODU4NjEuQ01UMnJPZnp2bzBERmJDSEF3Z2RWX1EwdVE.*_gcl_au*NDgyMTExMDQ3LjE3NDY4MjAzMzA.*_ga*OTczMjY1MzMyLjE3MDQ4NTI3MzQ.*_ga_4QT8FMEX30*czE3MzYwN2RjLTNjN2EtNGEwYi1iZWRlLTFkMzEwYTFmMzVhYSRvNjg1JGcxJHQxNzQ4MTkwNTEzJGozNyRsMCRoMCRkbmxjYVlZa1RzUWV4UDdNOWRHM3pYd2tWclM0WW4tRUdmQQ..*_ga_LMK6K2LSJH*czE3MzYwN2RjLTNjN2EtNGEwYi1iZWRlLTFkMzEwYTFmMzVhYSRvNjg2JGcxJHQxNzQ4MTkwNTE2JGowJGwwJGgw

Bat Chit Crazy Life of Thomas Cook: 52 Ancestors 2025 Prompt “Institutions”

Tumultuous Homelife Leads to Prison and a Grim Night on an Arizona Cliff

Thomas Joseph Cook: 1929-1957 (Maternal Third Cousin 2x Removed)

 

While researching Elmer Cook for my previous post, I reviewed records for his children, including his son Thomas Joseph Cook. I discovered that Thomas’ life was cut even shorter than his father’s and was equally troubled, including a stint in an institution: a prison.

Thomas was born April 24, 1929 in McLean County, Kentucky, to parents Elmer Cook and Lula Aldrige. Following his father’s murder in 1936 when Thomas was seven, Thomas’ mother was unable to keep the children together. She separated them and sent them to live with various relatives. Thomas’ sister Lottie May was sent to live with Elmer’s cousin Otis and was eventually adopted by him and his wife. The youngest child, Mary Alice, was adopted by a family named Weatherford. Thomas was sent to live with Tennie Aldrige, his grandmother. He appears in her Owensboro household in the 1940 census, although she has reported him as her nephew rather than her grandson.

Thomas apparently moved to California at some point and ended up in prison. The 1950 census finds him as an inmate at San Quentin, a state prison near San Rafael, California. I have been unable to find any news articles that explain his crime, and it is unclear how long he was institutionalized.  

1950 Census for San Quentin Prison showing Thomas Cook of Kentucky as an inmate.

He ended up in Arizona after his release, working for a guano mine on the rim of the Grand Canyon. U.S. Guano Corp. began mining bat guano from a large cave above the canyon. Guano was used for fertilizer, and erroneous estimates claimed there were hundreds of thousands of dollars of guano in the cave. A tram was built across the Grand Canyon to transport the guano, and miners were hired to dig and sweep up the guano from the cave. The mine barely operated three or four years before closing down due to unprofitability.

Historical Marker at U.S. Guano Corp. site. Photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons.

In the wee hours of Christmas Eve 1957, Thomas somehow fell off the cliff near the tram loading area. He plunged 125 feet, landing on a ledge where fellow employees and sheriff’s department officers recovered his body.

The incident was reported in the local newspaper rather matter-of-factly, but it must have been a little murkier than the article suggested. The death certificate was not signed until January 3, ten days after Thomas’ death. The cause of death reads:

“Coroners Jury Verdict: Injuries sustained in an accidental fall off of the cliff near the upper tower at the Bat-Chit U.S. Guano Cave.”

Further down on the certificate, it notes time of death was 12:10 a.m. (after midnight) and that the death occurred “not while at work”. Thomas’ job position was listed as “mechanic” so he wasn’t one of the miners actually digging up the guano. Still, there would have been questions about why Thomas was at the cliff edge long after the workday was over, enough questions that the death was brought before a coroner’s jury to rule out foul play or even suicide.

View of cliff edge by tram area, the approximate area Thomas fell from. Photo Wikimedia Commons.

On a lighter note, I loved that the location of the death was “Bat Chit”—probably a humorous nickname for the site of a cave full of bat you-know-what. And Bat Chit Crazy sums up Thomas’ short and tragic life.

Following his death, his body was returned to Owensboro for burial, and Thomas was buried in Brushy Fork Cemetery where his grandfather George Edward “Ned” Cook is buried. Thomas’ obituary lists his mother’s address at the time of his death as Kingman, Arizona, which was the town nearest the guano mine. Perhaps he had been living with his mother after he was released from San Quentin.

 

Sources:

Photo of Guano Point Mine Ruins, Grand Canyon, AZ. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Guano_Point,_Grand_Canyon,_AZ,_USA_(9536784300).jpg

“Grand Canyon Fall Fatal to Worker”. Arizona Daily Star, Tucson, Arizona. Dec. 25, 1957.

Thomas Cook Death Certificate. Ancestry.com. Arizona, U.S., Death Records, 1887-1968 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2016.

“Former Owensboroan Killed in Fall in Arizona”. Owensboro Messenger Inquirer. Owensboro, Kentucky. Jan. 8, 1958.