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My parents moved from the north part
of Bradley County, near Charleston, to
the southern part of the county and
rented a farm from J.K. Boyd, a wagon
maker, previously mentioned. It
was there, I first met Miss Sarah
Frances Gillian, whom I
afterwards married. We lived on
Mr. Bord’s farm only one year.
My father moved
from the Boyd farm to Whitfield County,
Georgia, a distance of about two miles
and rented a farm from Mr. William
Pulley, a Methodist minister. We
remained on the Pulley farm two years
and then moved back to Bradley County,
Tennessee, living on the farm owned by
M. Arch Hambright, a Cumberland
Presbyterian minister. It was
during this year that I was married to
Miss Sarah Frances Gillian, October 4th,
1857. We had been sweethearts from
the time we first met, four years
previous to our marriage. She was
born at Spring Place, Georgia, September
12th, 1841. Her parents moved from
Spring Place to Bradley County,
Tennessee, when she was three years of
age. She and I were school mates
for several years. She taught me
the “Seven Syllable Notation” as
published in M.L. Sawns “New Harp” of
Columbia,published at Nashville,
Tennessee. We never had any love
quarrels during our long courtship.
She was a devoted and loyal member of
the Methodist Episcopal church, South,
when I became acquainted with her in
1852 and was a member of said church
until her death which occurred June 15,
1916. She was a true woman, a
devoted wife and mother: unselfish, and
always ready to do everything in her
power for the benefit and comfort for
her children and those in need or
distress. After our marriage, when
I was working hard to make a living –
making ten foot rails at $.50 per
hundred, and doing other work at $.50
per day, she would go into the forest
and gather pine knots to make light for
me to study my arithmetic, grammar,
history, etc. She helped me in
every way possible with my studies, and
whatever success I have made in life, I
am, in a great measure, indebted to her
for that success. Thirteen children were born in our family, ten of whom are living, viz; Mrs. Theresa Bounds, Miss Ella Miller, Mrs. Viola Walthall, Mrs. Fannis Johnson, Mrs. Minnie Nash, Mrs. Anna Byers, J.E. Miller, Miss Beula Miller, Floyd Oscar Miller, and Miss Mabel Clair Miller. We buried two boy in Tennessee, who died in infancy before the Civil War. They are lying in the Sugar Creek cemetery in Bradley County, Tennessee, awaiting the call of the last Trumpet. Our last little boy that died is buried at Cryer Creek, in Navarro County, Texas, where he died in 1873. We have not had a death in our immediate family for 43 years until we lost dear Mrs. Miller, June 15, 1916. It is remarkable that we have ten living children, 34 grandchildren, and 9 great-grandchildren all living at the present time. “Truly, I have been young, now I am old. Yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken nor His Seed begging bread.” At this writing, I am 79 years, on this month and 4 days old. When we take a retrospective view of our lives we are lost in admiration, wonder, love, praise, and meditation upon the goodness of God who has preserved our loves during our infancy, childhood, youth, manhood and old age. We wonder what good we have accomplished, still we are here awaiting the call of the Master. |