For the last several weeks, I have been focusing on the DeHart family. The posts from May 2 and May 10 have taken a glimpse at the notebook kept by my aunt in 1988, when she and her husband went in search of the original homestead of Abraham DeHart. They traveled from Oregon to West Virginia on this adventure. The first two segments can be reviewed in A Dream Come True and This is all DeHart Land. This post called Civil War Country picks up near the end of their first day to find the DeHart Cemetery. I have also put Aunt Bonnie's journal writing in italics.
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We stopped at a gas station and wanted to fill our water tank . The man that worked there told us to go to his house and fill the tank. Also we could stay the night next to his house. We did fill the tank, but thought we'd go out on the highway on the other side of town. The road went through the town. We had spotted a cemetery upon a hill so we found the road up to it. It also was on a knob. We drove around the cemetery and stopped to look at the head stones, but we couldn't find any names we were seeking. As we were walking around we spotted a white fence and wide path leading up to a statue all fenced in so we came down and got on the main highway which lead out of town to the north. Winding through town a church was on the corner of the road and a parking spot, so we stopped and walked up to the statue. It was of General Lee. He had been to Union during the Civil War. A lot of the war was fought through this part of the country.
(Note from Margie)
Remember my 2nd great grandfather, George Jackson DeHart, and at least 5 of his brothers were Confederate Soldiers of Monroe County.
(Back to the journal)
We came back and went out north about 2 miles and there was a rest stop so we pulled in for the night. We could see the Knob's Mountain at a distance. We made our dinner and watched T.V. for a while. We started talking about our day. After being at the knobs and talking to people and everyone's story was the same. The cemetery was not far from where the house was. The first man said he had played around headstones as a kid. Ed Raddcliff said all of Knobs was DeHart land. He, himself, was born and raised near his own home. We knew we'd go back to the mountain and look around again.
After waking up and fixing our breakfast, we decided to stop back in town and go into some stores to see what we could find. We wanted some cards of Union. One little shop had cards with the
word Union printed on it, but there were no cards with pictures of the town. The drug store didn't have any but it did have a small soda fountain with 3 stools. The little gal said they didn't open it on Sat. We told them our story about why we were in Union and she told Al if he wanted stop in later she'd fix him his soda, but not to say where he'd gotten it. Like any small town everyone we would talk to seemed interested in our story. (The town of Union was there when A. Dehart got his deed of trust on his land in 1824).
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So after looking around in Union, taking some photos and talking to a few residents, they go for another try at finding the DeHart Cemetery. I bet they find it this time. How about you?
The surname DeHart has always been one of my favorite ancestral names. Who knows why or why we have these types of preferences or maybe I am the only one. I knew a few names from this family before doing much research. My understanding was that Abraham DeHart started our line in this country and fought in the Revolutionary War. It is through him that many relatives have obtained the proper documentation for membership in Daughters of the American Revolution. It has been suggested that he may have even come to the colonies with Lafayette. Family lore is such fun.
Proving or disproving is not on my current to do list. However, I am curious about the DeHart Lineage. It is generally accepted that Abraham was married to Christina Ensninger. I say generally accepted because after surfing around on the web, I found a site for the DeHart Family. I find that there might be some debate on this. I will need to continue my research. However, for now, I wish to share the information I found on a family group sheet written by the great granddaughter of George Jackson DeHart (my 2nd great grandfather. I will italicize the name of George Jackson DeHart in the rest of this writing to clarify that he is my direct ancestor.
This group sheet starts with the son of Abraham, Samuel DeHart born in 1807 in Monroe County, West Virginia. He died in 1882 after spending his whole life in the state of West Virginia where he lived close to his father, Abraham DeHart. Samuel married Sophia Spade in 1829.
Samuel and Sopia Spade DeHart had 10 children. I have added their statistics to my Legacy Database, but do not intend to detail that information in my Cousins post at this time. I will share their names and birthdates however. Isaac (1830), William Calahill (1833), Catharine (1842), George Jackson (1835), John L. (1837), Corneluis L. (1838), Michael Alexander (1840), James Robert (1843), Mary S. (1846), and Joseph (not sure of birthdate)
I found a few interesting pieces of information about these individuals. Isaac married Minerva Susan Skaggs, William C. married Elizabeth M. Skaggs, and George Jackson married Sarah Francis Skaggs. I assume these Skaggs girls were sisters, but I have yet to investigate.
All of Samuel and Sophia's children were born in Monroe County, West Virginia.
Isaac, William C. and George Jackson all moved to Iowa at some point in time. George Jackson DeHart went on to Texas eventually.
Isaac, William C., George Jackson, John L., Michael Alexander, and James Robert were all confederate soldiers in the Civil War.
James Robert DeHart and his brother, Michael Alexander DeHart enlisted on the same day, April 17, 1862. John L. DeHart enlisted April 30, 1862. William C. also joined in 1862 although I have not found the exact date. Great, Great, Great Grandma Sophia must have felt a profound sorrow with at least six of her sons gone to fight for the south.
Investigating war records is not a part of genealogy that I have researched much. I have found that each young DeHart brother took the amnesty oath when the war came to its end. I look forward to finding out more about these Civil War soldiers, the sons of Samuel and Sophia DeHart, my 3rd great grandparents.
