See the SPARKS QUARTERLY, p. 886 for the following marriage informationfrom Lawrence County, Kentucky, Marriage Bonds (1822- 1865):
Charlotte Sparks & Andrew Cain, 1837. (Box 1)

SQ 3856: Charlotte Sparks, daughter of Joseph and Martha (Edwards )Sparks, was born about 1820. She was married to Andrew Cain in 1837 inLawrence County, KY.

SQ p. 3909:

"Charlotte ["Lotte"] Sparks, daughter of Daniel and Ellender(Caudial) Sparks, was born on May 4, 1868, in Lawrence County. It wasthere that she was married to Jesse James Caudill [or Cordial] on March4, 1886. He had been born on December 16, 1857, in Lawrence County andwas a son of the Rev. Jeremiah and Jane (Holbrook) Cordial. Lottie andJesse had four children before his death which occurred on June 24, 1894,at the age of 37 years.

"After the death of her first husband, Lottie was married two moretimes. Her second husband was Morse Griffin of Lawrence County. Thismarriage ended in divorce. Her third marriage was to Enoch Green. Shedied on September 25, 1910. She had four children, all by her firstmarriage.

a. Virgil Caudill was born on February 25, 1887. On November 22 ,1919, he
was married to Lillian S. Steele. She had been born on November29,
1896, and was a daughter of John and Geneva Bell (Pack) Steele .She
and Virgil had two children, Juanita and Marcella. Virgil diedabout
1968.
b. Monte Vernon Caudill was born on May 6, 1889. He was married toRuby
Margaret Perdue on June 6, 1914, in Boyd County, Kentucky. Shehad been
born on July 13, 1895, in Boyd County and was a daughter of DewittC.
and Augusta (Miller) Perdue. She died on March 20, 1957, and Monte
died on June 22, 1966. They were the parents of four children :Fred,
c. Cora Ethel Caudill was born on June 1, 1891. She was marriedtwice.
Her first marriage was to Frank Carroll on March 11, 1914. Theyhad
two children (Helen and Frank, Jr.) before the death of Frank ,Sr. in
February 1919. Cora was married (2nd) to John Boldman, and theyhad
two children, Jack and Ruth. Cora died in 1972 at South Point ,Ohio.
d. Charles Russell Hubert Caudill was born on March 11, 1893. He was
married to Ida Marie Bishop on December 23, 1931, at Ironton ,Ohio.
He died on March 26, 1976, in Boyd County. He and Ida had nochildren."

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 3403: They had 10 children: Otis, Earl, Lester, Mary, Susie,Debra, Dorothy, Bethel, and Arthur Sparks.

See SQ p. 2974:

"Chloe Sparks, youngest daughter of Joseph and Mary (McDaniel) Sparks,was born probably about 1770 in Maryland. She apparently never marriedand became the head of the household after her father died in 1809. Shewas co-executor of his estate, along with her brother, Joseph, and underthe terms of her father's will, she inherited all of his property whichwas not specified in his will. If she had any heirs, she could pass thisproperty on to them, but if she died without issue, the property was tobe sold and the proceeds were to be divided equally among the remainingheirs of her father.

"Chloe Sparks died in 1832 without a will. Joseph Sparks and JohnSparks, probably sons of her brother, Joseph, were appointed as heradministrators. The final settlement was made in 1847."

SQ p. 2921: She was buried in the Indian Springs Cemetery near Everett,PA.

SQ pg 3905: He served in the U.S. Army in the Spanish-American Warand died in the Philippine Islands while in the service on May 3, 1901.

SQ p. 751"

"Claire Lucille Sparks, daughter of Ernest S. and Marjorie E. (Tinker)Sparks, was born Nov. 19, 1919, at Parrish, Wisc. She mas married toHoward John Faultersack on March 9., 1943, at Merrill, Wisc. He was bornAugust 24, 1919. Claire was formerly a beautician, now a loving mother.Hovard works for Oscar Mayer at Madison, Wisc. They have three children:(1) John Howard Faultersack " born Aug. 2. 1946, at Merrill, -Wise.; (2)Nanoy Lee Faultersack, born Jan. 6. 1951, at Madison, Wisc., and (3)Mark Allen Faultersack., born June 28, 1953,, at Madison.

!NOTES:
SQ 3867: Clarence Sparks was married to Nora Lewis.

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY for December, 1993, Whole No. 164, p. 4236:

DEATH CLAIMS CLARICE (SPARKS) BURRIS

We regret to report the death of a most helpful member of theAssociation, Clarice (Sparks) Burris, who passed away on March 29, 1993,at her home in Corpus Christi, Texas, at the age of eighty-four.

Clarice Sparks was born on September 11, 1908, at Sardis, Texas, and wasa daughter of Enoch Bonner and Ella (Reagan) Sparks. Her paternal grandparents were Newell Crane and Laura (Fetzer) Sparks, and her great-grandfather was Stephen Franklin Sparks, a pioneer settler of Texas who foughtthere in the Battle of San Jacinto in 1836 in the Texas-Mexican War.Clarice was predeceased by her husband. She is survived by a son, Ron A.Burns. We extend our deepest sympathy to her son and other familymembers.

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 3470: They lived in or around the general area of Parker, P aloPinto, and Falls County, Texas. We have no further information a boutthem. (Her husband's sister, Martha A. Erskine, married Clarind a'sbrother William, RIN 7304.)

SQ 3864: Clarinda "Sis" Sparks was born on January 23, 1864. She wasmarried twice. Her first marriage was to Leander C. "Brud" Sparks onJuly 19, 1882, in Elliott County. He had been born about 1851 and was ason of Nelson and Peggy (Mauk) Sparks. (See the June 1989 issue of SQ,Whole No. 46, pg 3396, for further details about the family of Nancy andPeggy). Sis and Brud Sparks had two children, Jane and Margaret, beforethey divorced. Sis was married (2nd) to Benjamin P. Cox. [JS Note:Sis and Brud were second cousins, having the same great-grandfather,Thomas Sparks (536)].

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 3905: They had at least three children: Diadema, Daniel andNora Wheeler.

See the SPARKS QUARTERLY , March, 1966, Whole No. 53 pp. 958-9:

CLAUDE E. SPARKS

Editor andPublisher of The Franklin County Times

On the cover of this issue of the QUARTERLY we are privileged to publishthe pictures of three distinguished gentlemen, one of whom is Claude E.Sparks, Editor and Publisher of The Franklin County Times inRusseilville, Alabama. On February 11, 1966, at a meeting of the AlabamaPress Association in Birmingham, Fred LePell, Director of the PublicRelations Athninistration, of U.S. Steel, presented to Claude E. Sparksand Roswell Falkenberry (Editor and Publisher of The Selma Times-Journal)the "Journalist of the Year" Awards, This was the second time such awardshad been given. Sparks and Falkenberry were presented plaques inrecognition of their outstanding service to their communities, the state,and the nation.

A native of Jonesboro, Arkansas, Claude E. Sparks is a graduate of theUniversity of Missouri School of Journalism. He came to Russellville in1953 after working for the Jonesboro (Arkansas) Evening Sun, theBlytheville (Arkansas) Courier-News, and the Marshall (Texas)News-Messenger.

Without knowing it at the time, when Mr. Sparks came to Russellville in1953 he was actually returning to the home of his ancestors. He had knownthat his greatgrandfather had been born near Florence, Alabama, but noone in his family had maintained a family record. In 1964, Mr. Sparkslearned of the Sparks Family Association, joi.ned, and soon discoveredthat he was actually living within five miles of the spot where hisgreat-great- great-grandparents, John and Mollie Sparks, were buried. Thephotograph of the stone marking their graves in the Sparks FamilyCemetery near Russellville reproduced on page 962 was taken recently byMr. Sparks,

***************

-959-

as was also the stone of their son, William Sparks. (John and MollieSparks and their descendants are the subject of the article beginning onpage 960 of this issue of the QUARTERLY.)

Mr. Sparks's great-grandfather, Isaac Newton Sparks (called Newt), wasborn on June 17, 1848. In early boyhood he left Alabama and moved withhis widowed mother and brothers and sisters to Hardin County, Tennessee.Then in 1860, with his mother and brothers John, Jim, Joe, and Bob, hemoved to Arkansas by ox cart. Mr. Sparks has written as follows regardinghis great-grandfather:

"They stopped to live at Smithville in Lawrence County on Coopers Creekwhere they lived during the Civil War. All of the above-named brothersserved in the Confederate Army except Isaac Newton, who was too young.Bob was killed at Shiloh and Joe was shot in the shoulder atMurfreesboro, Tennessee. He returned home, developed gangrene and died atSmithville. He probably is buried at Old Bethel Cemetery near Denton,Arkansas. John was a cook in the Confederate Army.

"Left behind in Hardin County, Tennessee, was a sister who married a mannamed Hulen. His first name is not known in my family, but it is reportedthat her descendants still live near Savannah, Tennessee.

"Isaac Newton Sparks was married to Mary Street and moved to SharpCounty, Arkansas, near Poughkeepsie. They had one daughter, Mary, wholater was married to John Justice and then to W. G. Lewsaw. She hadchildren by both marriages. Mary Street Sparks died at the birth of herdaughter. Isaac Newton Sparks then married Charity Victoria Goff, who isbelieved to have been one-quarter Indian. She and Isaac Newton are buriedin the church cemetery near their home place. Photographs were baked intothe tombstones of both and the likeness is still good today.

"To Isaac Newton and Charity Victoria Sparks was born Joseph ColumbusSparks on February 16, 1880. I was the first grandson of Joseph Columbusand was born on his birthday, February 16, 1929. Joseph Columbus wasmarried to Etta Louella Miller, daughter of Henry Scott Miller of SharpCounty. They moved across the field, built a house at the communitysometimes called “Push,” and were quite active in the community asfarmers. He was a fine blacksmith and his shop was a delight to me inmy childhood.

"At one time in this community, Joseph Columbus Sparks and my fatheroperated the only repair service for automobiles in the area, sold thegasoline, served as carpenters and builders and performed a number ofservices. My father served as barber, both on occasion served as ruralundertaker in time of emergency and my grandmother operated thecommunity’s 'central' telephone system. My grandfather was known to pullteeth in this remote community, which was miles from a doctor or dentistduring many periods of time. I have witnessed my grandfather pull a toothwhile I was a child. He bid the sufferer 'be seated' in a cane-bottomchair by the fireplace, took his forceps from a small trunk and hauledout the aching tooth.

"This community is still very remote and the homeplace was sold whenJoseph Columbus died several years ago. He and my grandmother are buriednext to Isaac Newton and Charity. My grandfather acquired some hill landand cattle, but was not a particu larly good farmer. He liked saw millsand machinery. He lived his entire life in a house 500 yards from hisbirthplace."

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 4078: He was married to Linda Anderson.

SQ 2568:

"Clinton C. Sparks, son of Elijah Sparks, was born abou t 1820 atChurch HIll. He married Susan Nabb on November 18, 1847, in Queen AnnesCounty, Maryland. He died on May 4, 1901, and Susan died on September12, 1905. Clinton and Susan moved west to Indiana where they settled inOrange County. They had at least one child, a son, Charles R. Sparks,born about 1864. Clinton served in the 49th Regiment Indiana Infantryduring the Civil War and received a pension for his service. See SQ pg2056, Whole No. 104 for an abstract of his pension file." (Reproducedbelow)

SQ 2056:

"CIVIL WAR PENSION APPLICATION OF CLINTON C.SPARKS

"CLINTON C. SPARKS, son of Elijah and Elizabeth (Davis) Sparks, wasborn about 1818. He died on May 4, 1901. He was married to Susan A.Nabb on November 18, 1847, in Queen Anne's County, Maryland. He servedin Co. G,཭th Regt. Indiana Infantry Volunteers. File Designation:Inv. Cert. No. 255,275 and Wid. Cert. No. 518,350.

"On April 4, 1877, Clinton C. Sparks, age 58 years, a resident ofOrange County, Indiana, made application for an invalid pension. Hestated that he had enlisted in Company G, 49th Regiment Infantry underthe command of Capt. John A. Ritter on November 8, 1861, and had serveduntil his discharge on November 29, 1864, at Indianapolis, Indiana. Atthe time of his enlistment he was 28 years of age; 5 feet, 5 inches tall;and he had dark hair, a dark complexion, and blue eyes. He was abridge-builder by occupation.

"Sparks said that in the latter part of December 1863 he washospitalized at Jefferson Barracks, St. Louis, Missouri, for erysipelaswhich had left him permanently disabled so that he could not make aliving as a farmer. Joseph Duncan and William A. J. Jones witnessed hissignature and John R. Simpson, Orange County Circuit Court Clerk.,certified the application.

"The Adjutant General's Office confirmed the military service ofClinton C. Sparks on May 15, 1877. He had enlisted at Jeffersonville,Indiana, on November 8, 1861, to serve for three years. He was presentfor duty until March 9, 1863, when he was hospitalized at Milliken'sBend. He remained in the hospital until February 29, 1864. He wasmustered out with his company on November 29, 1864.

"Clinton C. Sparks was placed on the pension rolls. On November 4,1897, he was living at Huron, Lawrence County, Indiana, where heresponded to a questionnaire from the Bureau of Pensions as follows: Hewas married to Susan Nabb on November 18, 1847, at Centreville, QueenAnne's County, Maryland. They had no living children.

"On May 23, 1901, Susan A. Sparks, age 81 years, a resident ofMitchell, Lawrence County, Indiana, made application for a widow'spension. She said that she was the widow of Clinton C. Sparks, a CivilWar veteran, who had died on May 4, 1901. Joseph Duncan and Alford T.McCoy, both residents of Mitchell, Indiana, attested to her statementswhich were notarized by James H. Crawford.

"Susan A. Sparks was issued a pension under Widow's Certificate No.518,350. When she died on September 12, 1905, she was receiving $8.00per month."

SQ p 2869: He lived at Callihan, Texas.

See SQ p.104: "Colby Sparks, son of John and Sarah (Shores) Sparks,was born about 1801, in Wilkes Co., N. C.; he died about 1869 in WilkesCounty. He went to Kentucky in the 1820's but returned to NorthCarolina. He was married in Wilkes County in 1822 (marriage bond datedDec. 28, 1822 ) to Sarah Pruitt, daughter of John Pruitt; she was bornabout 1804 in North Carolina. Colby Sparks was a Baptist preacher oflocal reputation.
Children of Colby and Sarah (Pruitt) Sparks:
a. Mahala ("Hulda") Sparks, born about 1824; married WillifordPrivett,
Jr. in 1848.
b. Irena R. ("Rena") Sparks, born about 1826; married James H.Billings
in 1860.
c. Christena Sparks; born about 1828.
d. Sarah ("Sallie") Sparks, born about 1830; married John Durhamin 1851.
e. Nancy Sparks, born about 1833.
f. Leah Sparks, born about 1836.
g. Ruth Sparks, born about 1839.
h. Julia Sparks, born about 1842.
i. Naomi Sparks, born about 1846.
There was a son who died young."

See SQ p. 607, Whole No. 36, for this family in the census of 1850 forWilkes County, N.C. at p. 329, number 1169-1169.

SQ p. 4754:

"Colby Sparks, son of George G. and Nancy (Short) Sparks, was bornabout 1842 in Lawrence County, Kentucky. He is undoubtedly named for hisfather's brother, Colby Sparks, who lived in Wilkes County, NorthCarolina. Young Colby was about sixteen years old when he wasaccidentally cut by an axe. The wound became infected, and he was takento a hospital in Cincinnati, Ohio. He died there on February 27, 1858."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, December 1996, Whole No. 176, p. 4729:

"Colby Sparks, son of Hugh and Nancy (Curnutte) Sparks, was born onSeptember 22, 1857, at Mount Savage, Kentucky. Many years later, hedictated an account of his boyhood, and from it most of what we knowabout him and his siblings has been learned. After his father failed toreturn home from the Civil War, he and his brothers and sister wentthrough the usual problems faced by orphaned children in that era. (Seepp. 3849-3853 of the September 1991 issue of the Quarterly, Whole No.156, for references to his boyhood and also a photograph of him and hiswife.) [JJS: For the article in its entirety, see notes for Colby'sfather, Hugh S. Sparks, written by Colby's grandson, Paul E. Sparks,President of the Sparks Family Association.]

"Cobe," as he was called, was a young man when he was hired to carrythe mail between the villages of Cannonsburg and Blaine in LawrenceCounty, a distance of about 25 miles. One of his stops was at Fallsburg,Kentucky, and this is probably where he met Martha Chaffin, asixteen-year-old daughter of George Washington ["Wash"] and Margaret(Short) Chaffin. Martha had been born near Fallsburg on February 24,1862. She and Colby were married on March 16, 1879, by her uncle, JimmyShort. Witnesses were George Short and Samuel Short, who were also heruncles.

"Cobe and Martha lived most of their lives on the farm they owned onMorgans Creek in Lawrence County. A major exception was their move toTexas in 1887. (See pp. 1242-1245 of the June 1969 issue of theQuarterly, Whole No. 66, for an account of their trip from Texas back toKentucky.) [JJS: See below] They were members of the Methodist Church.Martha died on April 4, 1929, and Cobe died on June 3, 1951. They wereburied in the family cemetery on Morgans Creek. They had seven children.

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, June 1969, Whole No. 66, pp. 1242-45:

COLBY SPARKS'S JOURNEY BY COVERED WAGON IN 1890 FROM TEXAS TOKENTUCKY
AS HE REMEMBERED THE EVENTS FIFTY YEARS LATER

"Editor's Note: The following article appeared in 1939 in The BigSandy News, a weekly newspaper of Lawrence County, Kentucky. Its author,Coby Sparks, grandfather of the President of The Sparks FamilyAssociation, Dr. Paul E. Sparks, died in 1951 at the age of 93. ColbySparks was named for a great uncle, the Rev. Colby Sparks', who was aBaptist preacher of Wilkes County, North Carolina. (See page 104 of theQUARTERLY, Vol. III, No. 4, Whole No. 12, December, 1955.)

"Colby Sparks and his father-in-law, G. W. Chaffin, and their familiesmoved from Lawrence County, Kentucky, to Forney, Texas, in 1887 to becomecotton farmers. But the Texas climate caused Mrs. Sparks's health tofail, and this, coupled with two consecutive bad crop years, convincedMr. Sparks that he should return to Kentucky. A trip from Texas toKentucky in 1890 was no novelty, but Mrs. Sparks's doctors warned herhusband that she was too weak to change climates by train--thus thedecision to return by covered wagons drawn by Texas mules.

"In recounting the trip, Mr. Sparks made several geographical errors,but this is to be understood when we recall that he was rememberingevents at age 82 which had happened almost one-half century before.

"Only two members of the group of fourteen persons who made the tripalmost 80 years ago are now living. They are daughters of Colby Sparks,Miss Rose Sparks and Mrs. Flora (Sparks) Williams. Other members of thecavalcade were: George Washington and Margaret (Short) Chaffin andchildren: Bill Jim, Charlie, Tennessee, Emma, and Minnie; Colby andMartha (Chaffin) Sparks and otler children, James and Nora; and Mr.Sparks's mother, Nancy (Curnutte) Sparks.

- - - -- - - - - - - - -

"It was the twenty-second day of November, 1890, when we started thelong trek back to Kentucky in covered wagons drawn by four Texas mules,with a lead horse, a dog and some good trusty firearms. There were twofamilies of us, seven in each family, and a happier big family could nothave been found in all the west than we were when we left the little townof Forney, with its cotton gins and flat topped houses behind.

"The first four days travel brought us to the border (or boundaryline) between Texas and the Indian Territory. We crossed Red River atColbert Ferry into the Chocktaw Nation which is now Oklahoma. We campedthat night on the banks of Red River, and next morning I bid goodby tothe Lone Star State with my views of life greatly changed since enteringit. I was now willing to work hard for just the necessities of life ifGod would spare my wife to go through life with me, and this He did, forwe lived together fifty years before she left me to go to her EternalHome, where she is waiting for me today. I have traveled far along theuneven trail of life since that morning and like David of old, I havenever once been forsaken, or had to beg bread.

"We started next morning along dim trails, through deep forests of theIndian Territory, through which we traveled for thirteen days. At noonthe following day we made camp, cooked our dinners, fed our teams andrested. Soon we were happily on our way again. B. J. Chaffin (mybrother-in-law) and I decided we would walk awhile so we hit the trailand after walking for an hour or so we were quite a distance ahead of theteam. I thought while we were waiting for the wagons to catch up withus, I'd entertain B. J. by preaching him one of Reuben Powers' sermons.So I commenced, by text being: "We shall mount up as on wings ofeagles. We shall run and not worry; walk and not faint." After soaringwith this eagle through the blue ether until I had landed him safe in hishome above, and had started to give his famous exhortation, I was rudelybrought back to earth by a gruffy voice.. saying "feeling pretty goodsaren't you, boys?" We turned to face a man with two forty-fives buckledaround his waist and a Winchester (rifle) laying across his lap. Hesaid, "Where is your whiskey, boys." We told him we didn't have any, asthe ferryman had told us we were not to bring any whiskey into theTerritory. He smiled, and said, "So long, boys." He was one of UncleSam's mounted patrolman looking for whiskey pedlers and other violatersof the law, but I never preached so loud any more while I was in theIndian's land.

"Not far from here we crossed Big Blue River. It was the first riverwe had crossed since entering the Territory. It was a deep stream andthe water was as clear as crystal. We followed this river for manymiles, going through a dense "canebrake" where we saw some "razor backed"hogs which looked like wild animals more than hogs. We then came toMuddy Boggy River. Here I bought my first feed from the Indians. It wasrather difficult to trade with them as we could not understand eachothers language., but I showed them my sack, pointing to their corn crib,then to our teams. They sold us the corn. I asked what it was worth.They smiled and said "we, no savy!" So I took a dollar bill and somechange in my hand and offered it to them. They accepted the bill, butrefused the change.

"We didn't travel many miles from this place until we made camp forthe night. Next morning we came to Pony River. The bridge across it wasmade of round logs and was covered with water, which made it verydifficult to drive over. Two of my wagon's wheels ran off the bridge andwe had to get in water waist deep to lift it back to safety. We soonmade camp and had a good lunch. With dry clothes and a full stomach wewere ready to face the unknown trail again.

"There were very few trees missing from the great forests throughwhich we were traveling. There was plenty of game, such as turkey, deerand bear in the unexplored forest and plenty of fish in the broad deepstreams and today, I can say, I do not blame the Indians for fighting tokeep their land where they were born.

"We crossed the Caddo River and camped for the night, and next day wedrove through the country where the Little Missouri River flowed. Wecamped on the bank of the Little Missouri that night, and the next day wedrove to Atoka, an Indian village at that time.

"Here we saw the first railroad since leaving Texas. Atoka had onestore, a feed stable, a court house and a Government school building.Here we camped over the weekend. We had some repairs made on our wagonsand had our mules shod and Monday at noon we visited the school and sawone hundred Indian children, who were cared for by the Government. Theircourt house was a small boxed building. We were given permission to campin the court house yard and court was in session and all were Indiansexcept two white men. Many of the Indian men were wearing gold rings intheir ears, while the women wore all kinds of beads and flashy Jewelry.

"Our faithful old dog became very sick at this place, and we thoughtthe Indians had poisoned him, but he soon recovered and lived to be veryold. We left this Indian camp Monday afternoon and stopped about twomiles from town. It was not long after dark when a band of Indian womencame riding down the trail, and I had to lead their ponies past our campfirst, as they seemed to be afraid.

"We followed the old military trail to the town of Goodland. Herewe crossed the Kiamichi River and nearby stood the body of an oldchimney, the only sign of civilization except the dim trail we weretraveling. G. W. Chaffin remarked, "Here is where the old Indian waswhen he gave to the world that famous old fiddle tune 'the LostIndians'." A few miles from here, we came to where another dim trailcrossed the one we were traveling and where the trails crossed, there wasa large sign board. It looked to be very old, but carved in a neathand, was the picture of two hands, one pointing upward, said "To Heaven,five million miles." The other one pointed downward, said "To Hell, onehalf mile." That day we drove late wanting to get as far away from thelast named place as we could before we camped for the night.

"The next day we left the Territory and entered Arkansas at a smalltown called Whitehouse. Here we crossed Cush River by ferry, thendriving through Forest Grove to Cloteka Bay, where the Government had apublic ferry. From here we headed straight for Little Rock, Arkansas.After another hard day's driving we arrived in Little Rock. That nightwe camped in a livery stable. It was the first building that hadsheltered us since leaving Forney, Texas. Next morning we left LittleRock for Memphis, Tenn.

"We crossed the Arkansas River by bridge, and drove all day throughbeautiful virgin forests and late in the evening we crossed the EntwineRiver and camped close to the cabin of one of the early settlers. Thepeople were very friendly through this section of the country. Theylived in little log cabins with small plots of land cleared for gardensand corn. They only needed enough corn for their bread, as they hadplenty of meat and all it cost them was ammunition for their guns.

"We came to the Ouachita River which was a broad stream and very muddyat that time. We crossed it on a lumberman' s bridge. VVhen we wereabout one-third the way across, we discovered the sign "condemned" andknowing we couldn't turn back we had all these folks to walk across andwhen they were safely over, we drivers led our teams, thinking if thebridge gave way, we would try to make it to safety ourselves and when wewere safe across we must have felt like the Pilgrim Fathers did when theMayflower landed them on American soil. We drove through the rain mostof the day and that evening we pitched our tents on the banks of LancerRiver and next morning to our dismay, our trail was under water. TheMississippi River had overflowed the lowlands. Here I got the greatestscare of my life. We crossed this river on a wooden bridge, the butts ofwhich at each end were very steep with no protection on either side. Itwas still raining and the bridge was very slick. As I started on thebridge I set my brakes very light and the wagon began to slip toward theedge. I saw that it was going over and there was only one thing for meto do, so I dropped my check lines and jumped to the bridge and picked upthe hind carriage of the wagon and carried it back to safety, saving myfamily. That was the one time I was proud of my strength!

"It was Christmas day, and we walked all morning in the water guidingthe wagons in the road and about eleven o'clock we landed in Windtown,Arkansas where the Missouri Pacific and B. Knob Railroads crossed. Herewe camped in the center of the little railroad town and many big heartedArkansans, both men and women, came to visit us that evening. The nextmorning high water was all in our way. I put the folks on the train forMemphis, Tenn. It was a distance of forty miles. I had to stay inWindtown until three o'clock that afternoon before I could get a car inwhich to ship our wagons and mules, etc. I heard many big "yarns" whilestanding around the camp fire after the folks had left. I noticed oneman in his shirt sleeves who didn't have much to say. I ask him if hewould like to have a drink. He replied "I would." We walked into asaloon, I ask him what he'd have, he said, "Straight whiskey." Welistened to a few more of their jokes and I ask the fellow what he wouldhave next. "Straight whiskey," he said, so I bought a pint and told himif he would help me take the wagons apart and put them in the box car hecould have the pint. It didn't take long to load the car. When it wasdone, I gave him the pint and the last I saw of him he was going towardthe camp fire singing, 'My Highland Mary."

"I rode the local (train) with our teams to the town of Hopefield,here I ferried the Mississippi 'River in the Tom Spurlock ferry boat.From here the shifter (local engine) ran me into Memphis, Tenn. Itwasn't long until we were all waiting at the wharfboat for the MissouriPacket, which would take us to Cincinnati. We were eight days and nightsby river reaching Cincinnati. Here we transferred to the steamboat BossTony which brought us to Ashland, Ky. We camped in the suburb of Ashlandthat night and next morning we drove over to Cannonsburg. There we metJohn MeDyre, the first man we recognized after reaching Kentucky. Wecamped that night at the Hazel Schoolhouse on East Fork and next day wereached Long Branch and ate dinner with E. Dall, the first table we hadset down to since leaving Texas. We came by the way of Fallsburg(Lawrence Co., Ky.) and landed at Hardin Hulette's on January 8th, 1891,after one month and twenty days of travel. This is a true story, as Iremember and experienced it forty-nine years ago.

"I am 82 years old this was in 1939, and in a short time I am going onanother trip where there are no dim trails or disappointments, but wheremy mansion home is already prepared, and a host of friends waiting forme, and in all humility, I send my heartfelt thanks to Him who made allthis possible for me."

The following death notice appeared in The Sparks Quarterly for June,1966, Whole No. 54, at page 985:

DEATH TAKES COLBY SPARKS OFGATES, KENTUCKY

We regret to report that the Rev. Colby Sparks, aBaptist preacher who was born in
Elliott County, Kentucky, died at the age of 89on August 15, 1965. A son of Levi
H. and Nancy (Lawson) Sparks, Colby Sparks wasborn on February 23, 1876. His
father, Levi H. Sparks, had been born on May 31,1834, and had died on May 20, 1911.
(For a record of the Sparks ancestry of ColbySparks, see the QUARTERLY of
December, 1955, Vol. III, No. 4, Whole No. 12,pp. 97-102.)

Colby Sparks was married twice, first, onSeptember 26, 1898, to Nancy Belle Braum,
and, second, on July 1, 1905, to Julia Mauk whosurvives him. In addition to his wife,
Colby Sparks left four sons and five daughters to mourn hispassing: William Sparks of
Wheelersburg, Ohio; Levi Sparks and Andrew Sparksof Olive Hill, Kentucky, Ivan Sparks,
of Warner Robins, Georgia; Mrs. Lola Power ofMorehead, Kentucky; Mrs. Opal Gregory
of El Paso, Texas; Mrs. Bonnie Oney, of Hammond,Indiana; Mrs. Eva Oney, of Soldier,
Kentucky; and Mrs. Susan Sturgill, of Heath,Ohio. He also left 27 grandchildren and 56
great-grandchildren. Nancy Jane (Sparks) Skaggs,sister of Colby Sparks, died this
summer.

SQ p. 4747:
"...He was a farmer, a miner, and a Baptist preacher. He was crippledin a mining accident in West Virginia and walked with a noticeablelimp.....Colby Sparks died on August 15, 1965, at Gates, Kentucky, andwas buried in the New Sill Cemetery in Rowan County, Kentucky."

SQ p. 4727:

"Colby Jacob Sparks was born on October 15, 1878. He was a miner. Hewas described by a relative as a fiddler, dancer, and a good mixer. Theonly information we have about him has come from his obituary. He diedat the home of a daughter, Merlie King, in 1973. He was survived by hisdaughter and three sons, Cecil Sparks, Dewey Sparks, and Clyde Sparks."

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 4068: She was married to Leon P. Smith on July 21, 1950, a tAnderson, Indiana. He had been born on July 1, 1921, and was a so n ofEarnest and Fannie (Miller) Smith. They had six children: Susie ,Ronald, Larry, Timothy, Darrell, and Cheryl. Susie Smith has bee n mosthelpful in the preparation of this article.

Marriage recorded in Carroll County, GA., Bk 1, page 516.

See 1900 US Census for Carroll Co., GA vol 9, e.d. 8, sheet 8, line 30.

SQ p. 4635:

"Cordelia Sparks was born on October 27, 1858, in Lawrence County.She was married there in 1880 to Fleming Rice. They went toSaskatchewan, Canada, where Flem (as he was called) practiced medi-cine.Cordelia died there in 1937. She and Flem had seven children: Chester A.Rice, Mary Rice, Lilla Rice, Arba Rice, Homer Rice, Earl Rice, and ErnestRice.

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 3470: They had five children: Arthur, Bernice, Clifford, E ulaMae, and Von.

!NOTES:
SQ 1702, 3230: Married Peter Alley prior to 1739; at least two children.

See SQ p. 807: This could be Cornelius. She (or he) married a Thornton.

SPARKS QUARTERLY, March 1964, Whole No. 45, pp 790-807 commencing at803:

"Cornelius Sparks, eldest son of David and Mary (Little) Sparks, wasborn in Rowan County, North Carolina, June 11, 1789; he died in BerrienCounty, Michigan, in August, 1862. He married in December, 1812, toSuzannah Stephens, in North Carolina, probably in Rowan County. [Yes, themarriage bond is on file in Salisbury, Rowan County dated Dec. 14, 1812]She was born Oct ober 28, 1794, and died in 1861. Apparently CorneliusSparks did not accompany his parents to Tennessee; it appears that evenbefore their departure from Rowan County that he and his wife and infantson had moved to Wayne County , Indiana, in the autumn of 1814. Thus itwas that Cornelius Sparks joined the great migration to the NorthwestTerritory from whence had come glowing reports of vast, rich farm landswaiting for the plow.

"There is a family tradition that Cornelius Sparks came north at leastin part because of his opposition to slavery. One version of the storywas recorded by a descendant, Mrs. Mary Park Wille, in 1938: "Hisfather was angered at a young slave boy who had grown up with him andbeen his constant companion. He had the boy tied up by his thumbs andwipped to death. " Since even the most cruel slave owner, and therewere not many of this type , would scarcely kill a young slave valued atseveral hundred dollars, a much more plausible version was written in1903 when a Buchanan, Michigan, news paper published an article on thefamily: " 'Members of this family relate that it was the brutal acts ofslaveholders that was chiefly responsible for the removal of the pioneersfrom Rowan County, North Carolina, forty-six years prior to the secessionof the state from the union. Cornelius Sparks was an accidental witnessto the act of a member of his uncle's family. A colored woman had reareda family of white children, after their own mother had died. She wascruelly knocked down with the butt of a whip because she was unable tosuppress her grief at the sale of her own son. That was the spark thatset the abolition spirit of Cornelius Sparks aflame. He had known of theservice of the negro woman to the unfortunate white children, and heresolved to leave the country that harbored such an institution.'

"According to this account written in 1903, which was copied for us byHelen Sparks of Los Angeles, a descendant of Cornelius, he and his familymade the journey to Indiana by ox team, camping in a tent at night anddriving their stock with them. Joseph Sparks, Cornelius' oldest son, wasa nine-month-old baby at the time (he was born January 24, 1814).According to this 1903 record: "On the way they stopped under the roofthat sheltered five generations of the babe's mother's family..."

"Cornelius Sparks remained in Wayne County, Indiana, until 1828, whenhe moved with his family to Berrien County, Michigan. There he and hiswife lived the rest of their lives."

**********

See also the SPARKS QUARTERLY, March 1978, Whole No. 101, ANCESTORSAND DESCENDANTS OF CORNELIUS SPARKS, 1789-1862, pps 1965-1984. (JS: Thisarticle is more detailed and somewhat more up to date than the above.)

"The eldest child of David and Mary (Little) Sparks was namedCornelius Sparks; he was born in Rowan County, North Carolina, on June11, 1789, and died in Berrien Springs, Michigan, in August 1862. He wasmarried in December 1812 to Susannah Stevens. The marriage bond is onfile in Salisbury, Rowan County, and is dated December 14, 1812. AbrahamMarch was the bondsman while John March, Sr., was the witness. We mayassume that the marriage took place within a few days of the date of thebond. Hannah Stevens was born October 28, 1794, and died in 1861. Herfather was named Spencer Stevens while her mother's maiden name wasElizabeth Rupert or Robard. Spencer Stevens was a son of Sampson Stevens(or Stephens) of the Dutchman's Creek area of Rowan County. The spellingof the name differed among different members of the family, but SpencerStevens seems to have settled on the spelling Stevens for himself and hischildren, while his brother, William, used the spelling Stephens.

"Cornelius Sparks left North Carolina in 1814, a year prior to hisparent's departure. He, with is wife and infant son, moved withSusannah's parents, Spencer and Elizabeth Stevens, to Wayne County,Indiana. It is believed that several of Suzannah's brothers and sistersaccompanied them. According to an account of the Sparks family thatappeared in the CHICAGO TRIBUNE on March 29, 19O3, which was based on aninterview with Mary (Sparks) Park, eldest daughter of Cornelius andSusannah, ...Joseph Sparks, eldest child of Cornelius and Susannah hadbeen born on January 24, 1814, in North Carolina. According to familytradition, little Joseph was nine months old when the family moved toIndiana, which would mean that that made the journey in the autumn of1814. [Not copied is a repeat of some of the foregoing informationconcerning the reasons Cornelius left North Carolina and the move toMichigan. Article continues in middle of page 1969.]

"In October 1828, Cornelius Sparks moved with his family to the areawhich he had explored, settling in what would become Niles Township,Berrien County, "on the bend of the river near [Stephen] Salee on Section15." Whether all nine of the explorers of the previous August alsoreturned as settlers is not known. Joseph Stephens, who had married hiscousin, Arma Stevens,sister of Susannah, in 1822 is known to havefollowed Cornelius with his family in 1829.

"When the land on which Cornelius Sparks settled was surveyed in 1831,it was found that he had chosen what was designated as a "school section"which meant that he could not obtain a legal deed. He moved across theline from Niles Township to Buchanan Township where he lived for the restof his life. His brother-in-law, Joseph Stephens, who brought his familyto Michigan Territory the following year (1829) settled on Section 7 ofNiles Township, adjoining the land owned by Cornelius Sparks.

"On April 19, 1830, Susannah (Stevens) Sparks bore her 9th child,Wilson Sparks; he was the second white child born in Berrien County.(Berrien County was not actually created until 1831; when CorneliusSparks settled there in 1828 it was part of Lenawee County.) In abiographical sketch of Levi Sparks, who was the 6th child of Corneliusand Susannah, it was stated in 1878 that there were only three or fourwhite families in that section of Michigan when the Sparks family arrivedin 1828.

"Susannah's parents, Spencer and Elizabeth Stevens, remained in WayneCounty, Indiana, and it was there that Spencer Stevens died in 1839. Hiswill, dated November 8, 1839, is recorded in Wayne County (Will Book 2,pp. 200-01). In this will, the name is spelled Stevens throughout. Oneof the provisions made by Spencer Stevens was that three of his sons,Isam, Sampson, and Robert, who were to receive all of his property whentheir mother, Elizabeth, died, were directed to "pay to Susan Sparks,wife of Cornelius Sparks, one hundred and twenty five dollars" at suchtime as her mother might die.

"Mrs. Mary Park Vogel, mentioned earlier as a great-granddaughter ofCornelius and Susannah (Stevens) Sparks, owns two articles thatoriginally belonged to her greatgrandmother. One is a "bride's kettle"-- a small iron kettle which Susannah's mother gave her when she wasmarried to Cornelius. It was called a "bride's kettle" because it wastoo small to serve a family. The other article is a large sugar bowl inwhich Susannah's mother sent her some geranium slips when Corneliusvisited her. He made the journey by horseback and the sugar bowl, thetop of which had been broken, was tied to his saddle horn. We do notknow when it was the Cornelius made the journey.

"Mrs. Vogel also has a chest of drawers which Cornelius had made forhis daughter, Mary, when she was married in 1837. She also owns theoriginal daguerrotype from which the photograph of Cornelius Sparks wastaken that appears above. She also has one of Susannah, apparently takenat the same time, but it has faded to the point that her features can nolonger be seen with any degree of clarity.

"Susannah, wife of Cornelius Sparks, died in 1861, month and day notknown. Cornelius died on August 17, 1862. An obituary has been foundthat was published in a religious magazine called the Christian Record in1862. [Another reprint of this obituary is found in the QUARTERLY forMarch, 1968, Whole No. 61, p. 1134] It reads as follows:

"Died at the residence of his son Levi, Aug. 17, 1862, Bro.Cornelius Sparks, age 73 years. When over fifty years of age, under thelabors of Eld. John Martindale, Bro. Sparks embraced the Christianfaith, and for twenty years he was a faithful servant of our adorableRedeemer. He met death with composure, and closed his eyes upon thescenes of earth with a well grounded hope of a blissful immortalitybeyond the grave. His body rests in the narrow house appointed for allthe living, but his spirit in the bosom of God. Bro. Sparks left ninechildren and a large circle of friends to mourn his loss. We confidentlyexpect to meet and greet our departed brother in the fair climes ofimmortal day, where the smart of separation shall be felt and feared nomore forever.
(signed) William M. Roe, Buchanan, Mich., Aug. 26,1862.

"Cornelius Sparks was buried beside his wife in a family cemetery onhis home farm in Berrien County, near the town of Buchanan, Michigan. In1968, Loretta B. Bingham of Battle Creek talked to the present owners ofthe land, known now as the Chamberlin farm, and visited the "overgrownplot." She found Cornelius' grave stone, but it was lying flat and brokenin half. The owners of the land stated that they could recall Susannah'sstone that had stood beside that of Cornelius, but Mrs. Bingham could notfind it. The name of Cornelius Sparks below the words "Our Father" isclearly visible in a photograph which Mrs. Bingham took.

Cornelius and Susannah (Stevens) Sparks were the parents of elevenchildren:

1. Joseph Sparks, born January 24, 1814.
2. Spencer Sparks, born December 9. 1815.
3. David Sparks, born August 14, 1817.
4. Mary Sparks, born July 7, 1819.
5. Elizabeth Sparks, born July 26, 1821.
6. Levi Sparks, born October 3, 1823.
7. Anna Sparks, born September 30, 1825.
8. Ira Sparks, born October 30, 1827.
9. Wilson Sparks, born April 19, 1830.
10. Susannah Sparks (called Susan), born August 1,1832.
11. Cynthia Sparks, born August 27, 1834.

**********

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, September 2002, Whole No. 195, pp. 5563-65:

THE GRAVESTONES OF CORNELIUS AND SUSANNAH SPARKS

[Here appear two photographs, beside which isthe following caption:]

Photographs of the gravestones of
Cornelius and Susannah (Stevens)Sparks
in a burial plot on land onceowned by them in
Buchanan Township, BerrienCounty, Michigan.

In the SPARKS QUARTERLY of March 1978, Whole No.101, we publishedan article devoted to Cornelius and Susannah (Stevens) Sparks and theireleven children. Cornelius Sparks was born on June 11, 1789, the eldestchild of David and Mary (Little) Sparks, in Rowan County, North Carolina.The marriage bond for Cornelius and Susannah was issued in Rowan Countyon December 14, 1812, and we can be sure that they were married either onthat day or soon thereafter. Susannah, who had been born in Rowan Countyon October 28, 1794, was a daughter of Spencer Stevens (sometimes spelledStephens) and his wife, Elizabeth Robard (also spelled Rupert) . DavidSparks, father of Cornelius, had been born about 1768, a son of Jonas andElizabeth Sparks. Jonas Sparks, a son of Joseph and Mary Sparks ofFrederick County, Maryland, had migrated with other Sparks relatives tothe Forks of the Yadkin in North Carolina in 1754. Jonas was a grandsonof the English immigrant who died in Queen Annes County, Maryland, in1709.

Cornelius and Susannah Sparks left North Carolina by ox-cart in October1814 with their first child, nine-month-old Joseph Sparks, andaccompanied by Susannah'sparents and other Stevens family members.According to family tradition, the reason for Cornelius'migration northwas his objection to slavery . In 1828, by which time he and Susannahhad eight children, they moved again, this time to Michigan Territory,settling in what would become Niles Township in Berrien County . WhenSusannah bore her ninth child, Wilson Sparks, on April 19, 1830, he wasonly the second white child born in Berrien County.

Unfortunately, the tract of land on which Cornelius "squatted," with theexpectation that later he. could purchase It from the U. S. Government,proved to be part of a section designated as "school land," and he had tomove over the line into Buchanan Township, in 1831. It was there that heand Susannah spent the remainder of their lives .

They were the parents of eleven children, all of whom grew to adulthood,and five lived to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. They were:

1. Joseph Sparks, born January 24, 1814.
2. Spencer Sparks, born December 9, 1815.
3. David Sparks, born August 14, 1817.
4. Mary Sparks, born July 7, 1819.
5. Elizabeth Sparks, born July 26, 1821.
6. Levi Sparks, born October 3, 1823.
7. Anna Sparks, born September 30, 1825.
8. Ira Sparks, born October 30, 1827.
9. Wilson Sparks, born April 19, 1830.
10. Susannah Sparks (called Susan), born August 1, 1832.
11. Cynthia Sparks, born August 27, 1834.

Susannah (Stevens) Sparks died in 1861. A great-great-granddaughter, JeanE. Sparks Ducey, has shared with us a short obituary of S