Digging Up Your Family

A Newly Found Cousin and More McQueen!

The McQueen family is something that is always on my mind, only because there is so much documented about my McQueen line, but none of it leads me back to the next generation…my 5th great-grandparents in the McQueen family.  I may, however, have gotten a new clue.  And, I have my brand-spankin’ newly found fifth cousin once removed to thank.

I was contacted the other day by J. Craven, who just happened to be researching his grandmother, and he stumbled across Digging Up Your Family.  He sent me an email, and after a bit of confusion on my part it was figured that he is the 3rd great-grandson of Ann McQueen.  Just to refresh your memory of my relationship to the McQueen family (including the unknown 5th great-grandfather):

Me

Virginia Marie Stalls (my mom)

James Paul Stalls, Jr (granddaddy)

Minnie Virginia Richards (g-grandmother)

Jerome E Richards, Sr (gg-grandfather)

Caroline McQueen (ggg-grandmother)

Peter McQueen (gggg-grandfather and Ann McQueen’s brother)

Unknown McQueen (ggggg-grandfather and father of Ann and Peter McQueen)

The great thing about his contacting me, besides gaining a new family member, is that he has pictures of his ancestors.  I was also able to add new information to my tree.  And adding that new information caused me to look into a few other people I have on my tree that I had kind of given up on after trying to contact descendants and getting nowhere.  And when I looked into one person in particular, Arthur Lemuel Hardy (who would be Ann McQueen’s great-grandson), I found that a work of fiction, apparently based on fact, had been authored by him.  And though the book was free on Google Books, I purchased it anyway (because I enjoy having paper books in hand).  I read half of the book online, so when it arrived yesterday I was able to read the rest of it (it’s only 137 pages, so a quick read).  The book is The Clutch of Circumstance by, of course, Arthur Lemuel Hardy.  Apparently there are other books out there with the same title, but you can find this book to read online here or you can purchase the book from Amazon here. 

After reading the book I learned several things:

1.  Views on racial equality in parts of the South haven’t changed that much since the close of the Civil War, which is kind of sad.

2.  Due to the dedication of the book, I assume that a large part of this “fiction” may hold more truth than would normally be thought had the dedication not been so…pointed.  The dedication says: TO MY WIFE, WHOSE PITY FOR A HELPLESS BABE, AND WHOSE INDIGNATION TOWARDS AN UNNATURAL PARENT SUGGESTED AND INSPIRED THE STORY, I DEDICATE THIS VOLUME.  Once you read the book you’ll understand.

3.  I am pretty sure the “McQuinton” characters in the story are actually representative of “McQueen”.  And because of that I am pretty confident that my McQueen line can be traced back to the Charleston, South Carolina area. 

I’m excited to learn more of what my new cousin has and to be able to share more of what I have with him.  And I am really excited to start researching the history of the McQueen families in Charleston!

Anna Mullins *UPDATE*

My relationship to Anna Mullins:

Me

Virginia Marie Stalls (mother)

James Paul Stalls, Jr (granddaddy)

Minnie Virginia Richards (g-grandmother)

Jerome E Richards (2nd g-grandfather)

Caroline McQueen (3rd g-grandmother)

Peter McQueen (4th g-grandfather)

Ann McQueen (4th great aunt, Peter’s sister)

Virginia Wood (1st cousin 5x removed, Ann’s daughter)

Anna Mullins (2nd cousin 4x removed, Virginia’s daughter)

 

 

Anna Mullins was, as far as I can tell, the first child and only daughter born to David Hill Mullins (1822-1880) and Virginia Wood (1833-1919).  She was born in June of 1854 in White Sulphur Springs, Meriwether County, Georgia.

The first census Anna appears on is the 1860 census enumerated in White Sulphur Springs, Meriwether County, Georgia.  She is shown as 5 years of age.  She is living with her father listed as HD Mullins (farmer, age 40 years) and her mother listed as Virginia Mullins (age 25 years).  She also has a little brother listed as Hilliard Mullins (age 1 year).

 

It took me a while to find Anna on the 1870 census, and then verify it was actually her, but I did it!  She appears that year on the census enumerated in Winston Township, Forsyth County, North Carolina.  She is listed as 16 years of age and a student at the Salem Female Academy.  The only information I had to go on at first was that she was from Georgia.  Once I contacted Salem Academy (which, by the way, is still open and has a loooong and rich history…and excellent record keeping!) they confirmed that Anna Mullins listed on the census was the correct Anna. 

The information they sent to me, besides photos of the catalog she appears in (catalogs were used prior to yearbooks, apparently) is:

Anna Mullins
Born 1854
Parent or Guardian: D.H. Mullins (this is David Hill Mullins, her father)
Address:   LaGrange, Troup Factory, GA (interesting….)
Came:  10/29/1869
Left: Dec.  1872

 

So, Anna left school at the end of 1872 and returned to Georgia.  The family was living in Militia District O’Neal’s Mill in Troup County, Georgia at the time, with David employed as a farmer, and very wealthy. 

On October 19, 1873 Anna married Zachariah Hardy in Troup County, Georgia.  I haven’t yet found the actual marriage record/license, but I am working on it!

In 1880 Anna and Zachariah are found living in Columbus, Muscogee County, Georgia.  Anna is listed as 24 years of age and keeping house.  Zachariah is listed as 30 years of age and a “ware house clerk”.  They also had two sons:  Arthur (age 6 years) and Winston (age 2 years).

 

There is, of course, no census for 1890 (boo!).

 

Sometime between 1880 and 1900 Zachariah died, though I don’t know where and I haven’t located his burial spot yet.

In 1900 Anna is living back in White Sulphur Springs, Meriwether County, Georgia next door to her mother Virginia.  Anna is listed as Annie, 45 years of age, having been born in June of 1854.  She is listed as a widow.  Living with her are her son Arthur (a farmer, age 25 years) and her daughter Kate (age 17 years).

 

And that is the last I can find on Anna Mullins.

 

I cannot find a death date for her.  I assume she died in White Sulphur Springs prior to 1910.  Her son Arthur was married with a child and living with another family, and her daughter Kate was living with Virginia.  I cannot find a burial spot for Anna, which really annoys me since, judging by the personal and property value of her family members, there is no reason why a headstone could not have been afforded for her.  I think that she may be buried in the Mullins Cemetery in one of the two unmarked graves.  Another place where she might be buried is in the Trinity Methodist Church cemetery down the road from Mullins Cemetery Road.  Her son Winston is buried there, so it’s a possibility that she might be there without a headstone.  One last place that she might be is in the Hamilton Cemetery in Harris County, Georgia where her son Arthur is buried.  Again, possibly without a headstone.  I cannot locate her daughter Kate after 1910, so I have no clue where she  might be buried, if she ever married, etc.

UPDATE:  I ened up finding Kate after I posted this (isn't that always how it happens?).  She married Pleasant Theodore McCutchen.  I'm still looking for her burial spot, but I'm thinking it might be in Franklin, Georgia since it seems the McCutchen family owned a newspaper there.