Thrifty Thursday: Free research sites

As I've mentioned before, I'm still rebuilding this blog after moving it over to blogger to, of course, save a little money. So this morning I worked on putting together a new list of free genealogy and history research sites to slap up on a static page. Yeah, that's the one, up there on the navigation bar under that clutter of photos I'm using as a header image. Well, if you are viewing this on a mobile device, you may have to deal with a dropdown menu. Or just click here.

It will continue to grow as I discover (and rediscover) more. Right now I'm just focusing on the free research sites, rather than other free genealogy tools and such. Mainly because I'm not using any genealogy tools and such right now. I did download PAF, and I've used MyHeritage. But MyHeritage's free version has spacial limitations, and I'm just not interested in rebuilding a tree right now. My computer's folder and file system will suffice.

Suggestions of sites I should add (and use!) are certainly welcome.

Martha Nowell's Confederate widow's pension application

Mattie and Varie

On 15 July 1913, Martha Elizabeth "Mattie" Nowell went to Comanche County Judge J. H. McMillan to apply for a Texas State Confederate widow's pension. We learn some more interesting things from this pension application packet from the Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Widow's Application for Pension No. 21935
Martha indicates in her application that her husband died ten days prior on 5 July 1913, in Comanche County, Texas, and that they were married on 7 Feb 1867 in Winston County, Mississippi. Also that she is 69 years old, was born in Winston County, Mississippi, and has resided in Texas for about 45 years. She has lived in Comanche County for about 35 years, and her post office address is Comanche, Texas RFD 4.

At the time of submitting the application she didn't know Joseph B. Nowell's regiment during the war, but that wasn't a problem because he already had an accepted pension on file to refer them to. However, she did have to find two witnesses to verify that she was indeed the widow of J. B. Nowell, had not remarried in the ten days since he died, and had lived in Texas continuously since at least March 1, 1880. J. E. Brown and M. L. Brown vouched for her on that.

Joe and Varie Brown family

Now, J. E. Brown may well be Martha's son-in-law, Joel E. Brown, who married daughter Emily Elvira "Varie" Nowell, and lived nearby in Comanche County. I have no idea who M. L. Brown is, but likely one of Varie's in-laws.

The State and County Assessor, M. E. Hall, also had to submit a certificate indicating the assessed value of any land and personal property associated with Martha Nowell, which was, in fact, "Nothing".

So all of this information was submitted in Martha's pension application to George W. Kyser, Commissioner of Pensions. It was filed July 31st, approved September 1st, and "allowed from" December 1st, 1913.

Sam and Bettie Davis

But also on file with Martha's pension application is an Application for Mortuary Warrant submitted by her son-in-law, John S. Davis on April 1, 1926. Sometime after J. B.'s death, Martha went to live with daughter Bettie Frances (Nowell) Davis' family in Henderson County, Texas. She appears in their household on the 1920 census.

Mortuary Warrants, when approved, helped pay all or part of the funeral expenses for a pensioner. While this particular application makes no mention of the requested or approved amount, another Mortuary Warrant attached to the pension file of a different ancestor who died in 1919 indicates that the State would pay up to $30 of the burial expenses.

Mattie with a granddaughter

The mortuary warrant application indicates that Martha E. Nowell died on 15 March, 1926 in the home of J. S. Davis in Chandler, Henderson County, Texas. That he is her son-in-law, and his post office address is Chandler, Texas R 2.

Also attached to the application is a Certificate of Undertaker and Certificate of Physician. Dr. M. M. Moss of Brownsboro, Texas, was of the opinion that Mrs M. E. Nowell's last illness was influenza.

The Certificate of Undertaker is a bit more interesting. It features several crossed out passages from the standard, typed form, replaced with handwritten corrections. If I put the handwritten text in quotation marks, it reads like this:

I, "We Blake Cade & Smith", do certify that I am undertaker "we deal in caskets" in the town of "Chandler" County of "Henderson", State of "Texas", that I had charge of the body of "we sold the casket for Mrs. M. E. Nowell", who died in "near" the town of "Chandler", County of "Henderson", State of "Texas" on the "15th" day of "March" 1926. That said body was prepared for burial by me "friends of deceased" on the "15th" day of  "March", 1926, and that I am of the opinion that warrant herein applied for should be issued to the said "J. S. Davis" who makes the foregoing application.

Well, Family, that's your family history lesson for today. To download the family photos to your computer, click on the image for the original size, right-click and save. If you are on a Mac, well, you can figure it out. ;-)

Amanuensis Monday: J. B. Nowell's Confederate pension application

Joseph Benton Nowell
and
Martha Elizabeth (Dennis) Nowell

Joseph Benton Nowell applied for a Confederate pension in Comanche County, Texas on 8 Nov 1902. It is pension application number 9443, and was approved on 16 Feb 1903 by Chief Pension Clerk E. A. Bolmes and Comptroller R. M. Love. however, the law at the time stated pensions could only begin on the first day of April or October, so he wouldn't have received his first pension until April 1903.

The Questionnaire
Someone filled in the answers on the questionnaire for him, because J. B. Nowell was illiterate according to most censuses that he appeared on. However, he did sign his own name to the form.

From his answers to the pension application questionnaire, we learn that J. B. Nowell was 60 years old, had lived in Comanche County for 16 years, and his post office address was "P. O. Comanche". Also, that he had been a "bona fida resident citizen" of Texas since at least 1 Jan 1880.

J. B. was working as a farmer, but his answer concerning his physical condition was "Health Poor unable to work but very little" - which I suppose was intended to say that he was able to work, but very little. "Indigestion, Rheumatism & Asthma" are listed as his ailments.

He served 4 years in Company F of the 14th Mississippi Infantry, enlisting in 1861, and discharged in 1865. The only personal property he owned that was of any value was a stove (at least, I think that's what it says) worth $25, and one cow, also worth $25.

Witness Testimonies
Texas Confederate pension applications required two credible witnesses to submit statements under oath to the county judge. Testimonies that appear to have been jotted down by Comanche County Judge W. C. Jackson, but were signed by M. E. Nowell (J.B.'s wife) and W. T. Dennis (his brother-in-law) on 18 Nov 1902, were submitted along with his application.

Bear with me, County Judge Jackson wasn't big on punctuation.

Evidence of W. T. Dennis
"My name is W.T. Dennis I am 64 yr old I live in Brown Co, Texas I have Known the applicant J.B. Nowell about 44 year he and I Joined the Confederate army together and served together all through the war. I Know of my own Knowledge that the statements made by him in the application are true. W. T. Dennis"

Evidence of M. E. Nowell
"I am the wife of the applicant herein I have Known him since about 3 year before commencement of the war, we were Married in Jan 1867 I went to the army camp and saw the applicant herein J.B. Nowell one time while he was in the (illegible) and got letters from him all during the war, and saw him one time during the war while he was at home on a furlow. I saw him when he went off to Join the army and Know of my own personal Knowledge and not Just from hearsay that he Joined the army and performed the duties of soldier. I am 59 year old. M E Nowell"

Affidavit of Physician
An Affidavit of Physician was also included the the pension application, also dated 18 Nov 1902. In it, Dr. J. F. McCarty swore under oath to County Judge W. C. Jackson that he had examined J. B. Nowell and found him to be suffering from "Asthma Rheumatism & dispepsia" (yes, spell check, I know it's dyspepsia, but that is how the doctor spelled it), which rendered him unable to support himself through physical labor.

On the marriage date
In her statement, Martha Elizabeth Nowell says that she married J. B. in January of 1867. In her own widow's pension application, filed after J. B.'s death (I'll be posting the data gleaned from that one probably next Monday), she states their marriage date as 7 Feb 1867. However, the index of Mississippi, Marriages, 1800-1911, at familysearch.org has the date as 06 March 1867. Just thought I'd mention that.