Notes |
- James A. Clark enlisted in the Civil War, Oct. 10, 1863 in E. Wiseman's Co., Rio Grande , Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He was a private in the army, Co. M, 7th Regiment, O.V.C. (CL-99) He came down with tuberculosis while in the army and wasarged on July 10, 1863. This information was from the grave registrations of persons in the military in Ohio.
However, it disagrees with the enlistment and discharge dates his family gave in the 1890 census. According to them, he enlisted on Oct. 9, 1862 and was discharged on June 29, 1863 with paralysis of his right arm. His post office address was Rio Grande, Raccoon Twp. (CL-22, 363)
A third account in "Gallia Co. Ohio Soldier Discharge Book, Vol.1" by Trowbridge gives the following: James J. Clark, Sergeant, enrolled Oct. 10 1862; discharged July 3, 1865, Nashville, Tenn.; born in Gallia Co., Ohio, age 35 years; Height: 6'1"; Complexion: light; Hair: light; Eyes: gray; Occupation: farmer, Vol.1, pg.44. According to my grandmother, he was said to be of full English descent. However, his very tightly curled hair could explain the African heritage in DNA tests that come through this line. We now know that this heritage comes from Mali. If he is the ancestor who had African blood, he would have been about 25% African with his likely grandmother having been a slave.
He lived with his son, A.J. Clark and his family after breaking his hip, around 1899 or so. He was senile at the end of his life and tried setting his son's house on fire. (CL-104) He died at his son, Andrew James Clark's farm, 2 miles from Rio Grande, in 1902. He is listed as a Tanner by trade on his death record. (CL-19)
James's wife, Eliza Jane died in Dayton, Ohio at the home of Lola (Tobin) Clarks according to my great aunt Sophie. Aunt Sophie remembers her for the pretty aprons she wore. (CL-105) One of Jim and Eliza's son's, Henry-who went by the name of Joe, married a woman with some black ancestry. They never had children- but tried to adopt a daughter whom they dearly loved. To the great grief of Uncle Joe, this daughter was taken away from them before the adoption was final. (CL-105b)
Joe was the informant on his brother James A.'s death certificate. In this document he stated that their mutual father was born near Cora, Ohio. (CL-DOC) This information led to the discovery of James A. Clark's parentage above. The only fact that is not clear is where James A. was born. His parent's 1850 Ohio census record lists him as being born in Virginia. He lists his birth place differently in every document he is in: Gallia Co., Ohio, West Virginia, and Kentucky.
He is in the 1850 non-population census for Gallia Co., Ohio. He was living in Walnut Twp. next to a William H. Clark and near a Samuel Clark. The William (H.) was likely his father and the Samuel could have been one of his brother's middle names. In 1860, he and his likely father, William, lived in Perry Twp., Gallia Co., Ohio. William owned more livestock and property in both records than James and they lived near each other. In the 1870 non-population census, he and his likely brother George lived in Walnut Twp., Gallia Co., Ohio near each other. In the 1870 population census taken at a slightly different time, he is the following. Name: James Clark Age in 1870: 42Birth Year: abt. 1828 Birthplace: Ohio, Home in 1870: Raccoon, Gallia, Ohio Race: White Gender: Male Post Office: Gallipolis Value of real estate: View image Household Members: Name: Age James Clark 42 Jane Clark: 38 Andrew Clark: 12Elsworth Clark: 9Ida Clark: 6 James Clark: 2 In this census, James Clark listed his age as 42 (which means his birth date could be off). They were all born in Ohio. His children could not read nor write. Many of the birth dates did not coincide with other firsthand records. In the 1880 U.S. Census, James Clark is 56, a farmer, born in Kentucky. His wife, Eliza J., age 50, was born in Ohio. Her father was born in Virginia and her mother in North Carolina. James Jr., age 20, was a farm laborer, 5 months unemployed while he attended school. Henry E., age 17, Ida E., age 15, Edward, age 12, and Rosa, age 9 also attended school. Jessie A., age 3 was still too young. Note that if the ages are correct, some of the birth dates I have for these children are slightly off. (CL-231) He and his son A. James were both known as A.J. in various published or family records. (CL-9) My family never knew what the A. stood for. My mother guessed that it was Andrew.
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