See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, Mar 1992, Whole No. 157, p. 3900:

"Henry Sparks, son of Matthew and Alsey (Osburn) Sparks , was bornabout 1837. He was married twice. His first marriage was to MaryConley on November 2, 1857, in Johnson County. [See SQ p. 817.] He was22 years of age and Mary was age 16. She had been born about 1841 andwas a granddaughter of Edmund and Lydia (Jaynes) Conley, pioneersettlers of Johnson County.

"(Much of the information that we have about this couple has beenobtained from THE CONLEY CLAN OF EASTERN KENTUCKY, published in 1984by the Magoffin County (Kentucky) Historical Society. We are gratefulto the Society for permission to use this material.)

"After the death of his first wife, Mary (Conley) Sparks, Henry Sparkswas married (2nd) to Sarah A. Calvin on October 24, 1884, in JohnsonCounty. He was 48 years old, and it was his second marriage; she wasaged 35 and it was her first marriage. Henry died sometime before the1900 census was taken of Magoffin County. Sarah was listed on thatcensus with her two sons : Rufus Sparks, aged 15, and John Sparks,aged 12.

"Following is a record of the children of Henry Sparks; the first ninewere by his first wife, Mary Conley; the last two were by his secondwife, Sarah A. Calvin:
"a. Dicey A. Sparks was born on January 27, 1859. She was married toJohn Jackson on December 7, 1879, and they had
seven children: Haywood, Larkin, Mary, Virgie, Nancy, Clarence, andCynthia.
"b. James E. Sparks was born in May 1861. He was a farmer inMagoffin County. He was married to Nucarious Salyer about
1884. She had been born in August 1859 and was a daughter of John andAnna Salyer . Nucarious and James had
five children when the 1900 c ensus was taken of Magoffin County.They were: Cora, Angie , Jessie, Earl, and Daniel.
"c. Ritta Elizabeth ["Liddie"] Sparks was born about 1862. She wasmarried twice. Her first marriage was to Jacob B. Jackson
on October 4, 1882, and they had ten children. Jacob died in 1918,and Liddie was married (2nd) to James Honaker .
She died in 1944. Children by her first marriage were : James,Mahala, Elizabeth, Henry, Laura, John, Larkin, Allen ,
Polly, and Robert.
"d. Jesse H. Sparks was born about 1865.
"e. Mary A. Sparks was born about 1867. She was married to JackShaver.
"f. Daniel W. Sparks was born in December 1870. He was a coal miner. He was married to Minnie L. Crace on May 29, 1890.
She had been born in February 1872. When the 1900 census was taken ofMagoffin County, she and Daniel were
shown with three children; it is quite likely that they had otherchildren born to them later. These three children were:
Virgil, Ida, and Adam.
"g. Matthew L. Sparks was born in March 1873. He was married twice.His first marriage was to George Ann May on March 31,
1893. She had been born in January 1877. She and Matthew had eightchildren before her death, which occurred in
1913. Matthew was married (2nd) to Cindy Lemaster, and they had twochildren. Matthew died in 1926. Children by his
first marriage were Marsha ["Minnie"], Edward, Ellis, Kelly, Bunis,Bertha, Elizabeth, and Dicey. By his second m
arriage, Matthew had children named Virgil and Dona.
"h. Sarah Elizabeth Sparks was born about 1875.
"i. Josephine Sparks was born about 1878. She was married to JacksonShaver, and they had two children, Frank and James.
"j. Rufus Sparks, son of Henry and Sarah (Calvin) Sparks, was born in January, 1885.
"k. John E. Sparks was born in June, 1887."

SQ 393: "Henry Sparks, born November 25, 1841. He married Elizab eth---
and died in April, 1882

SQ p. 408:

"Henry Sparks, brother of William R. and Emerson Sparks,, who wasmentioned frequently in William's letters, was born November 25, 1841.He married Elizabeth E. Grant in Wells County, Indiana, on August 22,1867. They are known to have had at least one child, Oscar W. Sparks,born in 1869. Henry Sparks died in April, 1882.

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 3692: He was married to Floy Dobbs, and they had at least n inechildren; however, we have learned the name of only one of them ,Opal.

SQ p. 2624:

" Henry Sparks lived in Salina, Kansas. He is said to have had foursons. Isaac Sparks became a most successful businessman in Smithfield,Illinois. He was president of the telephone company, chairman of theBoaxd of Education, and mayor of the town. His photograph appears onthe following page."

.
!NOTES:
See Sparks Quarterly, March 1996, Whole No. 173, p. 4594:
"Henry Augustine Franklin Sparks was born in February 1869; he die din
March 1957. He was married to Olive Stone. Their children were named
Dillard, Verta, Erastus, and Ann D."

See note under his father, Ephriam (228), concerning a phone callreceived by Paul Sparks from Lewis Pembrook Sparks who was Henry ClaySparks's son.

!NOTES:
SQ 3872: Henry H. Sparks was married to Jennie Crance on Decembe r24, 1896,
in Lawrence County, Ohio. She had been born in March 1872 and wa s adaughter
of Jacob and Elizabeth Crance. Henry Sparks died on May 2, 1900, an dJennie
died on October 17, 1905. They had two children, Boyd and Henry Monroe.

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, September 1984, Whole No. 127, p. 2674:

"DEATH TAKES HENRY HATCIL SPARKS"

"We regret to report the death of Henry Hatcil Sparks who was agenerous
supporter of The Sparks Family Association for several years. He diedon January 17, 1984, in the Hickman County (Tennessee) Hospital. Heis survived by a daughter, Mrs. Marjorie Stephenson of Centerville,Tennessee.
"Hatcil Sparks was born on January 21, 1902, and was a son of James J.and Julia (Kelly) Sparks. James J. Sparks was a son of Jesse andElizabeth (Jones) Sparks, and a grandson of Matthew and Sarah(Thompson) Sparks." (JS: This statement is not correct. HatcilSparks was a son of James J. and Julia (Kelly) Sparks, Jr. James J.Sparks, Jr. was a son of James J. and Rhoda (Murphree) Sparks. JamesSenior was a son of Jesse and Elizabeth (Jones) Sparks. Jesse was ason of Matthew and Sarah (Thompson) Sparks.)
"See the following issues of the QUARTERLY for further details of thisfamily: September 1958, Whole No. 23; June 1961, Whole No. 34;September 1966, Whole No. 55; and June 1968, Whole No. 62."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, March 1990, Whole No. 149, for a majorarticle on the descendants of Jesse and Elizabeth (Jones) Sparks andon p. 3552 for mention of Henry Hatcil Sparks stating "Henry was ahighly successful farmer and cattle-raiser in the Only, Tennessee,community."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, December 1991, Whole No. 156, p. 3871:

"Henry J. Sparks was married to Elizabeth Rouse on September 26, 1861,in Boyd County, Kentucky. She had been born in September 1836 inGreenup County, Kentucky, and was a daughter of Samuel and Mary"Polly" (Payne) Rouse. Henry served in the 14th Regiment KentuckyInfantry during the Civil War. (See an abstract of his pension file onpage 3877 of the present issue of the QUARTERLY [reproduced below]).He died on August 27, 1905, in Lewis County, Kentucky, and Elizabethdied there on May 13, 1917. They had eight children."

CIVIL WAR PENSION APPLICATION

HENRY SPARKS, son of Thomas and Catherine (Jayne) Sparks, was born inMarch 1839 in Lawrence County, Kentucky. He was married to ElizabethRouse on September 26, 1861, in Boyd County, Kentucky. He served inCompany A, 14th Regiment Kentucky Infantry. File Designation: Inv.Cert. No. 237,155. Wid. Cert. No. 606,330.

"Henry Sparks apparently made application for an invalid pension inthe early part of 1878, for on September 21st of that year, the WarDepartment confirmed his military service to the Bureau of Pensions.Sparks had been enrolled in Company A, 14th Regiment KentuckyInfantry,as a private on April 22, 1863, at Louisa, Kentucky, for aperiod of three years. He had been present for duty until July 1863when he had been reported sick and in the hospital at Ashland,Kentucky. He had remained absent until December 31, 1863 when he hadrejoined his company. He had been present for duty until March 1864when he had been hospitalized again at Ashland. He had rejoined hisunit in December 1864 and had been mustered out with the company atCamp Dennison, Ohio, on July 10, 1865.

"The original application of Henry Sparks is apparently missing fromhis pension file, but he was issued a pension in 1878 under InvalidCertificate No. 237,155. Then, in October 1891, Sparks, age 51, and aresident of Crum, Lewis County, Kentucky, again made application forpension benefits. He said that at the time of his enlistment he hadbeen 23 years of age; he was 6 feet, 1 inch tall, and he had a lightcomplexion with dark eyes and hair. He said that because of theexposure to the cold and weather during the march from Louisa,Kentucky, to Virginia in February 1864, he had been stricken with aheavy cold which settled in his lungs and also affected his liver. Hehad been treated at Ashland, Kentucky, by Dr. McMillin during thesummer of 1864, but the disease had not cleared up and he was nowtotally disabled and unable to earn his living as a farmer. Sinceleaving the service, he had lived in Boyd and Lewis Counties,Kentucky. He was receiving a pension of $16.00 per month. E. D.Sparks and G. M. Sparks witnessed his signature. There is nothingamong the selected papers sent from his pension file by the NationalArchives to indicate the action taken by the Bureau of Pensions onthis application for increased benefits.

"On September 7, 1897, Henry Sparks responded to a questionnaire fromthe Bureau of Pensions. He stated that he had been married toElizabeth Rouse in Boyd County, Kentucky, on September 26, 1861, bythe Rev. John Crooks. It had been the first marriage for both. Tothis marriage, eight children had been born, all of whom were livingin 1897. They were:

Samuel T. Sparks, born 1862 Everett D. Sparks, born 1870
Mary C. Sparks, born 1865 Anna Laura Sparks, born 1872
Jennie E. Sparks, born 1867 Henry Sparks, born 1874
George M. Sparks, born 1868 James D. Sparks, born 1876

"When Henry Sparks died on August 27, 1905, he was receiving a pensionof $30.00 per month. His widow, Elizabeth Sparks, made applicationfor a widow's pension on September 23, 1905. She said she was 69years of age and lived at Valley, Lewis County, Kentucky. She statedthat she was without any means to support herself. She appointed S.G. Hillis of Vanceburg, Kentucky, as her attorney. T. M. Bowman andJ. M. Lee witnessed her make her mark and the application wasnotarized by 0. P. Pollitt, Lewis County Clerk. Ellis E. Laurance,Boyd County, Kentucky, Clerk, sent a copy of the marriage record ofHenry Sparks and Elizabeth Rouse. They had been married on September26, 1861, at the home of Samuel Rouse in the presence of William Craftand Richard Rouse by the Rev. John C. Crooks.

"Elizabeth Sparks was issued a widow's pension under Widow CertificateNo. 606,330. When she died on May 13, 1917, she was receiving $60 permonth.
*******************

SQ pg.1551:Sparks Marriages in Boyd County, Kentucky, Marriage Bonds(1860-1905):

Henry Sparks and Elizabeth Rouse, September 26, 1861. (Book 1a, page(124) He single, age 23, born Lawrence County, Ky., father born inNorth Carolina. She single, age 23, born Greenup County, Ky.,permission proved by Saml. Rouse. W. W. Craft, bondsman.

SQ 3865: Henry S. "Doodle" Sparks was born in March 1873. He wasmarried twice. His first marriage was to Coot Kinser. His secondmarriage was to Mrs. Lula (---) Adkins.

SQ p. 4751:

"Henry Thomas and Sara lived in Olive Hill, Kentucky, where hepracticed medicine for many years. He died on April 4, 1937. Priorto their divorce, he and Sara had three children. They were: HarmonSparks, Clarence Sparks, and Henry Thomas Sparks, Jr. Sara wasmarried, second, to William C. Daniel. She died about 1965. (Seepage 3864 of the December 1991 issue of THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, WholeNo. 156, for further details of the ancestry of Henry Thomas Sparks.)

SQ p. 4639:

"Henry Wadsworth Sparks was born on August 12, 1861. He became aphysician. He was married to Sarah Ellen Boggs in 1885 in LawrenceCounty. She had been born in March 1869 and was a daughter ofHenderson and Mary (Fields) Boggs. Henry began the practice ofmedicine at Denton, Kentucky, but about 1901, he moved to Ashland,Kentucky. He died there a short time later on February 26, 1902.Sarah Ellen died in 1909. They had three children: Belva Sparks, MaryEvelyn Sparks, and Sophia Lucille Sparks."

SQ p 3904:

"Henry Wilcox Sparks, son of Daniel and Sarah (Jayne ) Sparks, wasborn on November 11, 1836, on Hood Creek in Lawrence County, and thisis where he spent the rest of his life. He was a most successfulfarmer and owned a grist mill, sawmill, and a tannery. He was also ajustice of the peace. He was married to Diadema Bentley on August 30,18 67, in Letcher County, Kentucky.

"She had been born in Letcher County on February 10, 1848. HenrySparks brought his bride to Lawrence County where they reared twelvechildren. Diadema died on July 19, 1914, and Henry died on april 27,1923. They were buried in the family cemetery on Hood Creek.

a. Emma Cornelia Sparks was born on March 22, 1868. She was married twice. Her first marriage was to Elijah Brown by whom shehad at least one child, McGuire Brown. Her secondmarriage was to John A. White.

b. Rachel Alafair Sparks was born on September 10, 1869. She wasmarried three times.

Her first marriage was to John C. B. Barker on February 17, 1887. Hehad been born on October 16, 1858, and was a son of Peter and Marina(Fairchild) Barker. John and Rachel had seven children: Ida,William, Henry, George, Stella, Eli, and Benjamin.

Rachel's second marriage was to George A. Bayes, and they had fourchildren: John, Gusta, Frank, and Carl.

Rachel was married (3rd) to Henry Lemaster; they had no children.Rachel died on March 15 , 1943.

c. Daniel J. Sparks was born on September 23, 1871. He moved toArizona
where he died at Sefford. He had no children.

d. Peter William Sparks was born on September 22, 1872. He wasmarried to Jenny Hayes on February 13, 1896. She hadbeen born on April 22, 1877, and was a daughter ofMilton and Jane (Cordle) Hayes. According torelatives, Peter and Jenny had four children: James, Nora, Goldie, andMilton. Jennie died February 12, 1912, and Peter died May 29,1941.

e. Clarinda ["Rinda"] Sparks was born on March 9, 1874. She wasmarried
to Jack ["Dock"] Wheeler about 1895, and they had at least three children: Diadema, Daniel, and Nora. They lived atMinford, Ohio.

f. John Henry Sparks was born on September 7, 1875. He was marriedto
Bertha B. Pack in 1908 in Lawrence County. She had been born on May
18, 1887, and was a daughter of Lee and Essie Pack. John Henry remained on his grandfather's home place where hebecame a most successful farmer under theguidance of his father. He and Bertha had fourchildren: William, Marjorie , Marvin, and Jewell.

(William D. Sparks, eldest child of John Henry and Bertha (Pack) Sparks, was a highly successful educator and attorney in eastern Kentucky. He was elected Lawrence County Attorney whilestill in the army in Europe during World War II . Subsequently,he was elected as Commonswealth's Attorney (State AttorneyGeneral?). In 1955, he was elected as judge of the 24thJudicial District of Kentucky, a position he held until hisretirement in 1976. He and his wife, the former Mary LouBranham, had four children: Martha, William, Janie, and Daniel. Hedied on October 16, 1988. His photograph appears in the QUARTERLY atthe top of page 3906.)

g. Angeline Mahala ["Haley"] Sparks was born on June 26, 1877. She was married to Joshua Chambers Chandler on July 18, 1893. Hehad been born in October 1874. He and Haley lived at Beaver,Ohio, where they reared three children: William, Selse, andJohn.

h. Christopher Columbus ["Lum"] Sparks was born on Septermber 20, 1878. He served in the U. S. Army in the Spanish-American War anddied in the Philippine Islands while in the service on May 3 ,1901.

i. Benjamin Franklin Sparks was born on March 28, 1881. He went to Arizona where he died on April 26, 1941. He had nochildren.

j. Della Sparks was born on October 14, 1882. She went to Arizona where she was a successful business woman. She died atSefford, Arizona, on February 1, 1955. She wasnever married. A photograph of Della Sparks appears in theQUARTERLY on page 3907.

k. Stella Sparks was born on October 14, 1882, and was a twin sisterof
Della Sparks. She was married to Stanton B. Nickell in 1901 in Law-
rence County, and they had at least one child, a son named Orie Nickell.

l. Sarah Jane Sparks was born March 8, 1885. She was married to Burnham Roberts in 1903. He had been born about 1880 andwas a son of Reed and Mary Jayne (Smith) Roberts. He and SarahJane had five children: Robert, Ardella, Mary Jane, Zona, andThelma. Sarah Jane died on September 19, 1942."

Herbert Blackman Sparks, Jr. emailed to me the names of thedescendants of Albert Sidney Sparks and the correct name of Herbert'sGrandmother. (Junior's address was (11/99) hspa@mcgriff.com]

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 3944: He was married twice. We have not learned the name o fhis first wife, who is said to have died in a fire. They had tw ochildren, Chester and Virginia. Herbert married (2nd) Sarah Sloas ,and they had four children: Marion, Donald, David, and Jenny Sparks.

SQ pg 2633:

"His mother died when he was less than four weeks old and he wasreared by Ensly and Sadie Cory (dear friends of his older sister, Nola May Sparks) as their child. He was never adopted, however, butcarried the Cory name. He did not know that his original name wasSparks until he was 14 years old when the long-held secret wasrevealed to him accidentally. Ensly Cory was a farmer and the familylived near Colfax, Indiana. Herschel Floyd Cory (i.e. Herschel FloydSparks ) was married to Lena J. Hutchison on August 22, 1906. She wasthe daughter of Ira Isiah and Easter (Dunbar) Hutchison. Floyd Cory,as he was better known, was a rural letter carrier out of Colfax,Indiana , for many years. The family owned and operated the CoryGreenhouse until their retirement and subsequent move to Frankfort,Indiana."

SQ p 4878: "Hiram Sparks, son of Reuben and Margaret (Pruitt) Sparks,was born in Kentucky about 1847. He was still living with his parents(he was then aged 22), when the 1870 census was taken of CrawfordCounty, Kansas, but by 1880 he had been married, although he was shownas a farmer living very near his parents in Sheridan Township,Crawford County. His wife's name was given as Catherine on the 1880census, and they had a two-year-old son named John W. Sparks."

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 3413: They had a son, Homer Gene Sparks.

SQ p. 1502:
Honora (or Honor) Sparks, was born about 1817, Her grandmother,Katharine Sparks, left one-third of her
farm to her while her mother also left property to her in her will of1867. She apparently never married. She was
listed as living alone on both the 1870 and 1880 censuses of NicholasCounty. She gave Kentucky as the birth
place of both of her parents on the 1880 census.

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 3363: She was married twice, first to --- Delano and secon d to
--- Huddleston.

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 3469: They had one child, Myron Sparks.

SQ p 4641:

"Hugh Sparks, son of Garrett and Betsy (Boggs) Sparks, was born about1834 in Lawrence County, Kentucky. He should not be confused with arelative, Hugh S. Sparks, who was born in 1829, also in LawrenceCounty. Hugh was a sixteen- year-old lad who was living with hisparents when the 1850 census was taken of Lawrence County, but he wasnot in the family when the 1860 census was taken. Undoubtedly, thetalk of a civil war in the United States broke many family ties andHugh's relationship with his family may have been this kind ofcasualty. [When the compiler of this article began his genealogicalinterest in the Sparkses of Lawrence County fifty years ago, he wastold that Hugh Sparks, son of Garrett Sparks, had gone to Kansas,unmarried, and had died while driving a supply wagon during the CivilWar. It was not until 1990 that he learned that Hugh Sparks had notdied during the Civil War, but had married and had a family of fivechildren]

"We have learned very little about the life of Hugh Sparks. All ofthe information that we have has been furnished by a descendant, Dr.Paul O. Madsen, of Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. According to Dr.Madsen, Hugh Sparks was married to Virginia Jane Elkins about 1863,probably in newly-formed West Virginia. She had been born about 1836in Virginia, and her parents were natives of that state. She and Hughhad five children, all born in Virginia. When the 1880 census wastaken of Arkansas, the family was in Ruddell Township of IndependenceCounty. We have learned nothing further of Hugh. Virginia died in1917 in Hunt County, Texas."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, December 1996, Whole No. 176, pp. 4758-60:

FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT HUGH SPARKS
BORN ABOUT 1834 IN LAWRENCE COUNTY, KENTUCKY
SON OF GARRETT SPARKS
By Paul O. Madsen

"[Editor's Note: The June 1996 Issue of The Sparks Quarterly, WholeNo. 174, contained an article about Levi Sparks (1778-1851) ofLawrence County, Kentucky, and some of his descendants. Levi was theeldest son of John and Sarah (Shores) Sparks and was a brother ofGeorge G. Sparks (1796-1879) whose life and descendants have beenfeatured in the present issue of the Quarterly.

"[Among Levi Sparks's grandchildren was Hugh Sparks, a son of Garrettand Betsey (Boggs) Sparks, who apparently left his home about 1860 andwas not heard of by his Lawrence County relatives until just a fewyears ago. For this reason, much of Hugh's life is still unknown;however, it is gradually being pieced together by a descendant, Dr.Paul O. Madsen. Dr. Madsen has agreed to share the story of the lifeof his great-grandfather, Hugh Sparks, as he has uncovered it so far.Dr. Madsen lives at White Horse Village, V-157, Newtown Square,Pennsylvania, 19073.]

"Hugh Sparks, my great-grandfather, was born in 1834 in LawrenceCounty, Kentucky. His parents were Garrett Sparks and Elizabeth(Boggs) Sparks. (Garrett's name was also spelled Garred, Jarrett,Jarat, Jaared, etc.)

"Little is known of Hugh's early life. He married Virginia JaneElldns who was born in 1836 in Virginia. Extensive searching over aperiod of years In various archives has provided no information onVirginia Jane Elkins and her family. It needs to be remembered thatduring the years that are missing, there was substantial friction infamilies over those who related to the Union and those who related tothe Confederacy. Records were lost and destroyed in the war years andthe aftermath. This was also the period when the state of Virginiawas being divided with the creation of the state of West Virginia.Thus, research becomes quite difficult.

"Hugh and Virginia Jane were married sometime in 1864 or perhapsearlier. Their first living child was Cynthia Anne Sparks (thegrandmother of the writer) who was born in Virginia on February 4,1865. Her brother, Hugh J. Sparks, was born January 28, 1867, also inVirginia.

"The United States census records of Virginia and Kentucky for 1860and 1870 con-tain no information on Hugh Sparks. The 1880 censusrecords prove that the family was living in Independence County,Arkansas, in that year.

"The family had moved to Kentucky sometime between 1867 and 1870 forMargaret Sparks, the third child, was born in Kentucky, April 10,1870. Sarah Sparks was born in 1874, also In Kentucky, and died in herteen years. Adelaide Sparks was born February 8, 1876, In Kentucky.She died on April 3, 1956.

"Cynthia Anne Sparks married Robert Franklin Goodman on January 3,1889. They had eight children. Hugh J. Sparks married Laura EttaBrooks on February 6, 1889. They had five children. Margaret Sparksmarried Nick Brooks on December 25, 1889. They had four children.The records In Independence County, Arkansas, indicate that eachcouple was married by D. M. Tucker, an "ordained minister of theGospel." The family home was In the general vicinity of Batesville,Arkansas. Three weddings in one year in the Hugh Sparks family musthave caused some excitement.

"Adelaide Sparks married Charles Gaston Crable, but information isscant for her and her husband. Her three children are deceased.

"The descendants of Hugh and Virginia Sparks are now widely separatedthroughout the United States. However, there Is a concentration ofdescendants in the Fort Worth, Graham, and Jean, Texas, areas.Various cousins have repeated the same basic story to the writer aboutthe exodus from Virginia, though there has been some variationconcerning details. The basic story is that Hugh Sparks was a man witha temper. He became embroiled In a dispute with a neighbor,presumably over a land issue, which ended in shooting. Two of theoral stories say that the shooting resulted in a death, but thatcannot be confirmed. According to one family member who knew "Granny"(Virginia [Elkins] Sparks), the Elkins family assisted Hugh andVirginia Jane in their leaving their home in Virginia, "on thecondition that they would sever all ties" with the families inVirginia. Virginia Jane told some of her family members in Texas thatshe always regretted that she had obeyed the family injunction tosever all ties.

"The writer searched courthouse records in Batesville, Arkansas, andfound a tax assessment levied against Hugh Sparks for the following:

one poll tax
Two neat cattle (oxen) valued at $10 One mule, valued at $60
One hog, $1. 00
One wagon, $40
All other goods at $50 for a total of $166.22

"The record further indicated that he could not pay the poll tax. Thetotal taxes due were $286.75, which included three state taxes(general fund, school and sinking fund). The county taxes were forgeneral purposes, road and bridge work, and a new courthouse.

"Vital records in Arkansas and Texas yield no information on the deathof Hugh Sparks. Nick Brooks and Margaret (Sparks) Brooks had fourchildren. After Margaret's death, Nick then married Laura Goodman.They moved in 1906 to the Graham, Texas, area. Hugh J. Sparks, son ofHugh Sparks, also moved to the area and was buried In Jean, Texas.The Goodmans (Cynthia Anne Sparks) settled in the Alvarado, Texas,area where Cynthia Anne was buried.

"Virginia Jane (Elkins) Sparks died about 1917. Again, no deathrecord has been found. However, there are records that she went toWolfe City, Texas, to be of assistance to her daughter who hadinfluenza. The daughter survived, but Virginia Jane (Elkins) Sparkscaught the flu in that epidemic and died about that time. Family lorehas it that she was buried in a cemetery there. However, the cemeteryrecords that contain the records for her daughter and her family donot yield any information on Virginia Jane.

"Genealogical research is often interesting and, more often,frustrating. The writer found in his early research that the nameLaura Brooks was in records, but in such a way that there werediscrepancies that left one completely bewildered. There was a majordifference in the recorded ages of each woman. It was also obviousthat each Laura Brooks was a part of the family, somehow, though onewas not of the direct blood line. The answer was found when themarriage records mentioned above were studied carefully. MargaretSparks, sister to Cynthia Anne, married Nick Brooks. Thus, NickBrooks was the brother-in-law of Cynthia. Nick had a sister, namedLaura Brooks, who married Hugh J. Sparks, brother of Cynthia andMargaret. Margaret died after a few years. In the meantime, CynthiaAnne had married Frank Goodman and became the step-mother to LauraGoodman. When Margaret (Sparks) Brooks died, Nick Brooks then marriedLaura Goodman, and she became Laura Brooks thus accounting for the twoLaura Brookses. Nick now had a wife and a sister each named Laura.Cynthia Anne, who had been a sister-in-law to Nick Brooks, now foundherself in the position of being the step-mother to his wife.

"Since Nick Brooks had married Margaret Sparks and Hugh J. Sparks hadmarried Laura Brooks, the children were double cousins, being relatedboth through the maternal and paternal sides of the family. When NickBrooks married Laura Goodman, their children became half-cousins tothe children of Laura (Brooks) Sparks and Hugh Sparks.

"Extensive information is available on the various branches of thefamily in the succeeding generations."

See SQ p4855:

"Hugh Sparks, son of Wes and Nancy (Kozee) Sparks, was born on April23, 1856. He was married twice. His first marriage was to Rose Anna["Lady"] Gilbert about 1874. She had been born about 1856 and was adaughter of Thomas Gilbert. She and Hugh had five children before herdeath, which occurred about 1890. Hugh was married (second) toMalinda Stephens on June 14, 1896, in Elliott County. She had beenborn in April 1873. Apparently, she and Hugh had no children."
"Hugh Sparks was shown as head of his household on the 1880 census ofElliott County, but when the 1900 census was taken, he was in BoydCounty. He was back in Elliott County in 1908, according to a schoolcensus. We have found no record of his death. By his first marriagehe had five children."

See SQ p4855:
"Hugh Sparks was born on July 20, 1874. He was married to CynthiaAlafair Fannin on January 1, 1894, in Elliott County. She had beenborn in August 1877 and was a daughter of Alfred Fannin. Alafair (asshe was called) and Hugh lived near Hurricane, Kentucky. He diedthere in 1949, and Alafair died there in 1961. They were buried inthe Hugh Sparks Cemetery on Wallowhole Creek. They had nine children. They were: Malinda Jane Sparks, Emily S. Sparks, Greenville Sparks,James Sparks, John Wesley Sparks, Bird Sparks"

SQ p. 4639:

"Hugh H. Sparks was born on September 17, 1867. A relative statesthat he became a minister; however, no proof has been found that thisis true. He was shot and killed by a cousin while he was a young man. As the incident is remembered, Hugh and his cousin, Nathan Gambill,were riding home at night when they met Milton Caudill, a close friendof Hugh. An argument ensued and lasted until the trio reachedGambill's house, where Gambill went in and got his gun. He was readyto shoot Caudill when Sparks interposed himself in an effort to shieldhis friend and was shot by Gambill. Sparks died on June 28, 1892."

Hugh Henry Sparks was born in June 1882. He was married to Lyon. Hewas killed in a mining accident.

SQ p. 4736:

"Hugh Stokes Sparks, son of Hugh and Nancy (Curnutte) Sparks, was bornon April 4, 1862, in Carter County, Kentucky, but he grew to manhoodin Lawrence County. He owned a steam engine with which he ground grainand sawed lumber for a living. He was married three times. His firstmarriage was on April 19, 1883, just after he had reached his 21stbirthday, to Rhoda Burchett in Lawrence County. She had been born in1867 and was a daughter of Calvin and Sarah Ann (Adams) Burchett. Shedied in 1886 when their second child was born.

Hugh Stokes Sparks's second marriage was to Virginia ["Jennie"]Chaffin on October 18, 1888, in Lawrence County, Kentucky. She hadbeen born in August 1867 and was a daughter of John and Harriet(Goins) Chaffin. She died in 1910, shortly after the birth of theirninth child. The third marriage of Hugh Sparks was to Jemima [ "Mimi"](Carroll) Leadingham, a widow, in 1924. He died on November 25, 1951,at his home on Twin Branches in Lawrence County. He was the father ofeleven children, two by his first marriage and nine by his second.

See SQ p 4857:

"Hugh "Hewey" Thadius Sparks was born on March 1, 1901. He wasmarried to Emma Lee Skaggs on April 28, 1927. She had been born onJune 20, 1907, and was a daughter of Phillip and Lizzie Ann (Coffee)Skaggs. Hewey was an oil-well-pumper. He and Emma were members of theBig Blaine United Baptist Church. He died on November 30, 1971. Emmadied on May 13, 1985. They were buried in the Morton Sparks Cemeteryat Blaine, Kentucky. They had one child, Lucille Ruth Sparks."

THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, Dec 1991, Whole No. 156, pps 3850-53:

FURTHER THOUGHTS ON THE FATE OF HUGH S. SPARKS
by Paul E. Sparks.

[Editor's note: A number of years ago, Dr. Paul E. Sparks, presidentof our association, prepared a record pertaining to hisgreat-grandfather, Hugh S. Sparks. Paul wrote this for members of hisimmediate family, but your editor has obtained his permission topublish it here and thus share the story with a larger audience. Notonly does this provide a fascinating glimpse of the horrors of theCivil War but it also illustrates how persistent research into thelives of our ancestors can sometimes solve family mysteries of longago.

[Paul learned part of this story from his grandfather, Colby Sparks,who was born on September 22, 1857, at Mount Savage, Carter County ,Kentucky, and who died on June 3, 1951, at Louisa, Kentucky, at theage of 93. He was a son of Hugh S. Sparks and Nancy (Curnutte)Sparks. A photograph of Colby and his wife, Martha (Chaffin) Sparks,with their son, James William Sparks (born January 18, 1880), appearson the cover of this issue of the SQ.

[Paul believes that neither his grandfather, Colby Sparks, nor any onein his immediate family, ever knew what had become of his father .Paul has written: "Many years ago, a person not related to theSparkses told me that he well remembered how Colby (my grandfather)and Hugh Sparks (Grandpa's brother) went to West Virginia once to'track down' a rumor that their father was alive and living in aremote section of that state."

[A brief autobiography of Dr. Paul E. Sparks appeared in the QUARTERLYof December 1956, Whole No. 16, pp. 183-84. A record of his branch ofthe Sparks family appeared in the QUARTERLY of December 1955 , WholeNo. 12. Hugh S. Sparks, Paul's great-grandfather, and the subject ofthe following account, is noted there on page 102; he was born on May21, 1829, and was a son of George and Nancy (Short) Sparks.]

"Most of you who will receive this paper will remember that ourgrandfather, Colby Sparks, told us many times about his experiences asa small boy during the Civil War. What some of you may not know,however, is that prior to his death, Grandpa and Aunt Rose wrote hismemories down. A copy of her notes, typed by our cousin, MargaretGraham Thomas, was sent to me recently. After doing some research, Ihave changed my mind about the fate of our great-grandfather, Hugh S.Sparks.

"Our great-grandfather, Hugh S. Sparks, participated in the Civil W aras a soldier in the Confederate States Army. Grandpa was fond ofrecalling incidents that happened when his father would come home fromthe war. His last remembrance of his father was when he rode away inFebruary before peace was made, and never returned. Grandpa died in1951 without knowing what had happened to his father.

"After grandpa's death, I wrote to the National Archives to see if anymilitary records could be found of Hugh S. Sparks who had served inthe 5th Regiment Kentucky Mounted Infantry, Confederate States Army.I received the following information, most of which I have shared withyou previously:

Hugh S. Sparks was present for duty in Company C, commanded by Capt.Hiram Hawkins, from October 19, 1861, to June 30, 1862. On February4, 1862, he was promoted to First Sergeant. He was captured by Unionforces on September 1, 1862, in Lawrence County, and sent to CampChase, Ohio. Three weeks later he was transferred to Cairo, Illinois,where he was put aboard the river steamer, The Emerald, and taken toVicksburg, Mississippi. He was exchanged there on November 1, 1862.No further records of him have been found.

"At this point in my search, I concluded that Hugh Sparks never didreturn to his family, nor to Lawrence or Carter Counties. Thisconclusion, I am now convinced, was incorrect. New evidence has beenfound that proves that he did, in fact, return to his family and that, in all probability, he was killed in the guerrilla warfare thatmarked the Civil War in eastern Kentucky. I have tried to fit thisnew information into a proper sequence to share with you. I have alsotried to fit in the recollections that Grandpa dictated to Aunt Rose.

"On or about December 15, 1862, a party of Rebels, possibly members ofField's Company of Partisan Rangers, captured four Union soldiers (ormore probably Union sympathizers) at Sink Roberts' farm on Cat Fork ofBlaine Creek. As Grandpa described the incident, those men "were fourmore noted characters, viz., Hi Huff, Wash Shelton, James Ross, andMint Ball, who were not Union soldiers, but claimed the Union side.They (the Rebels) took them by way of Dry Fork to Bruin, a tributaryof Little Sandy. Those boys never came back."

"Grandpa continued his tale: "Shortly after this, father and I werepassing where they were buried. Father sang, `Ha! Ha! Ha! Don' tyou see me now crying to free the niggers, when the Rebels pulled thetriggers, and sent you on your way to the happy land of Canaan. 'While father sang, he had me dance on their graves."

"Official records confirm Grandpa's story. These men were capturedand taken to the head of Wells branch, a narrow hollow near the placewhere Lawrence, Carter, and Elliott Counties come together. Therethey were shot to death and stripped naked. Their bodies were placedin a shallow mass grave and covered with flat rocks. Several dayslater, on December 30, 1862, the bodies were discovered. After thediscovery, Ross's body was taken away and reburied in the BoggsCemetery on Caines Creek in Lawrence County. The other bodies werereburied on Wells Branch in unmarked graves.

"Note that this incident took place on or about December 15, 1862 .This was about six weeks after Hugh S. Sparks had been exchanged as aprisoner-of-war at Vicksburg. For this reason, I am now convincedthat he did return to his family in Carter County.

"Why were these four men killed? The primary reason, of course, wasthe enmity and hard-feelings caused by the Civil War. It was alsosaid that these men were responsible for the arrest and imprisonmentof some of their neighbors. At least one of the men was known as athief and for his "general cussidness." Al four, according toGrandpa, were "noted characters."

"Hiram Huff had enlisted in the Union Army, but had been dischargedbecause of poor eyesight. He had returned home and had joined anorganization called the Home Guards. He was wanted for counterfeitingin Johnson County, Kentucky. Wash Shelton was a constant companion ofHuff from the outbreak of the war until their deaths. James Rosslived at Fielden, Kentucky. He and James Minton Ball were said tohave been on their way to enlist in the army when they were killed.

"We can only guess about the role that Hugh Sparks played in thesekillings. Quite certainly, he knew of the killings and where thebodies had been buried. We have no way of knowing whether heparticipated in the killings or not. We can be sure that he felt abitter hatred towards these men, as Grandpa's memories show, or hewould not have treated their deaths so callously.

"On March 16, 1863, Hugh Sparks joined Field's Company of PartisanRangers in Lawrence County. Three months later, at the June 1863 termof the Carter County Circuit Court, he and his brother, John W.Sparks, along with ten other men, were indicted by the grand jury forstealing a horse from H. Easterling which was valued at $4.00. Ofcourse, there was no trial. That fall, on October 16, 1863, hisbrother John W. Sparks, was captured in Magoffin County and sent tothe prisoner-of-war camp at Johnson's Island, Ohio, where he was keptuntil the end of the war.

"In January 1865, Field's Company of Partisan Rangers was reorganizedas Company M, 10th Regiment Kentucky Cavalry, Confederate States Army.The regiment was furloughed at the same time and many of the menreturned to their homes. It seems quite likely that Hugh Sparks washome in February 1865, just before peace was made, as Grandparemembered.

"The final piece of evidence pertaining to the fate of Hugh S. Sparkscomes from Dr. Nelson T. Rice of Blaine, Kentucky, and a Union soldierduring the Civil War. A short time before his death, Dr. Rice told amember of the Ross family that David Ross, a Union soldier and a sonof James Ross who was killed on Wells Branch, had shot and killed aRebel soldier named Sparks. Although the killing may have been forrevenge, it was also an official act, for in early 1865, Union troopsin Kentucky were ordered to kill Rebel Guerrillas on sight withoutmercy. It is estimated that Federal forces in eastern Kentuckyexterminated three or more guerrillas per month in this way.

"We have searched the military records of the persons named Sparks inthis section of Kentucky who fought on either side in the Civil War.To the best of our knowledge, Hugh S. Sparks was the only Sparks whoserved in this conflict whose whereabouts we cannot account for afterthe war ended. Little wonder that Grandpa and his brothers neverfound their father nor learned what had happened to him."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, December 1996, Whole No. 176, pp. 4725-6:

"Hugh S. Sparks, son of George G. and Nancy (Short) Sparks, was bornon May 21, 1829, in Lawrence County, Kentucky. Some descendants saythat the Initial "S" stood for Stokes, but no record has been found toconfirm this statement. A relative also said that he went toMississippi when he was a teen-age lad and spent a few years there,returning to Kentucky about 1850.

"Most of the information that we have of Hugh Sparks has come from hisson, Colby Sparks, by word of mouth. Colby was almost eight years oldwhen his father left home to return to his unit in February 1865, justa short time before the end of the Civil War. Colby remembered thathe was a handsome man with black hair and mustache, a fair complexion,and a ready smile.

"Hugh Sparks was married to Nancy Curnutte on April 10, 1852, inCarter County, Kentucky, by Daniel Carroll, a Baptist minister. Shehad been born on October 7, 1834, and was a daughter of William andPolly (Berry) Curnutte. Hugh and Nancy began housekeeping near thevillage of Mount Savage in Carter County where he worked in the ironindustry as a collier. When the 1860 census was taken, they had fourchildren.

"Hugh acquired a Bible, printed in 1857 by the American Bible Society,in which he recorded the births and deaths of members of the family.The last entry he made in the Bible was the birth of his son, HughSparks, Jr. in 1862. The Bible is now in the possession of agreat-great-grandson, Colby Sparks.

"The first child of Hugh and Nancy was born in 1853. The birth leftNancy feeling poorly, and a younger sister, Elizabeth Curnutte, cameto help with the baby and take care of the house. She was afifteen-year-old girl and promptly fell In love with herbrother-in-law and became pregnant. She gave birth to a son in 1855,an event that Hugh recorded in the Bible. She and her son were livingin the Sparks household when the 1860 census was taken. (See Item E,7, below.)

"The activities of Hugh Sparks during the Civil War have been told Inan earlier issue of The Sparks Quarterly and will not be retold here.Evidence points strongly to his death in the spring of 1865 as aguerilla in eastern Kentucky, probably in Lawrence County. After hissons were grown, they made a trip to West Virginia to try to find him,but they found nothing. (See the December 1991 issue of the Quarterly,Whole No. 156.) [JJS: Reproduced above]

"Nancy (Curnutte) Sparks made some effort to keep her family togetherafter the war ended and her husband did not return. When the 1870census was taken of Lawrence County, she was shown as head of herhousehold in the lst Precinct. She was 35 years old and was describedas "housekeeper." With her were her children: Elizabeth Sparks, 17;James Sparks, 14; Colby Sparks, 12; George Sparks, 10; and HughSparks, 8.

"Shortly after the 1870 census was taken of Lawrence County, Nancy(Curnutte) Sparks gave birth on September 7, 1870, to her seventhchild, a son whom she named William.

"Billy Sparks, as he was called, grew to maturity in Lawrence Countyand was married there to Elizabeth ["Lizzie"] Sammons in 1888. Shehad been born on March 11, 1868, and was a daughter of Joel and Anna(Copley) Sammons. Billy and Lizzie lived on Yellow Creek insoutheastern Lawrence County where Billy was a farmer and a Baptistpreacher. They had twelve children: Nora, Gertrude, Effie, Joel,George, Rosa Bell, Charlie, Lindsey, Bennett, Blanche, Maud, and Ella. Billie died on April 7, 1947, and Lizzie died on November 6, 1963.

"Nancy (Curnutte) Sparks was married to Bobby Stewart about 1877, andthey moved to Iowa where they stayed about three years. Bobby becameill and Nancy brought him back to Kentucky. They apparently separatedshortly after their return, and Nancy then made her living byhousekeeping for others. She also stayed one time or another with oneof her children. She was taking care of an elderly couple on MorgansCreek in Lawrence County when she died on June 19, 1913. She wasburied in the Colby Sparks Cemetery."

SQ pg 3409: They had five daughters: Virgie, Clemmie, Ruby, Sue ,and Ruth Barker. She was raised by her aunt, Sarah Margaret (Sparks)Bair (7024) and uncle George W. Bair.

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 4459: They had three children: May, Roy, and William H. Jr.

See the SQ, p. 2550:

IDA B. SPARKS

Ida B. Sparks, oldest daughter of Frederick B. and Mary E. Sparks, wasborn on February 25, 1857, in
Oldham County, Kentucky. She married Lewis A. B. White, who was bornon April 7, 1858, in Lovington,
Illinois, on February 10, 1878. Soon thereafter they moved to EdwardsCounty, Kansas, where he
located a homestead. They accumulated considerable property and builta nice home. He had been
born in Illinois. He was a farmer and stock trader and was an activeman. From the farm, they moved to
Kinsley, Kansas, the county seat, in order to give their children abetter education. From there they
moved to Butler County where they lived for several years.

I do not remember Uncle Lou, as we all called him; if I ever saw himat all, I must have been very young.
But I do remember Aunt Ida. She was slender built, and I know she kepthouse for her son, Earl, when he
was farming down at Elkart, Kansas. Aunt Ida lived to be 99 years and6 months of age. She died at her
home in Kansas City, Missouri, in August 1956. She was buried in Mt.Washington Cemetery, in
Kansas City, Missouri.

The names of the children of Lewis A. B. and Ida B. (Sparks) Whitewere: (See their family sheets)

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, September 1964, Whole No. 47, pp. 830-34:

"THIS IS MY LIFE
by
IDA SPARKS VENTER (1867-1964)

"(Editor's note: In the September, 1959, issue of The SparksQuarterly, we published two letters written in 1867 by William H.Sparks from Missouri to his brother back in Indiana [See notes forWilliam H. Sparks]. A few months after the second letter was written,William H. Sparks and his wife, Mary Jane, had their fourth child,whom they named Ida Elizabeth. She grew to womanhood, marriedFrederick William Venter, and lived to be ninety-six years of age.Not long before her death on March 16, 1964, Mrs. Venter wrote asketch of her life. Her daughter, Mrs. Jewell Venter Frieze, haskindly consented to our publishing it here. Mrs. Frieze also loaned usher parent's wedding picture to use on the cover. Speaking of hermother in a recent letter, Mrs. Frieze wrote: "Mother remarked a yearor so ago that she had lived during the walking stage to the spacestage. She adjusted nicely to the many changes and always took theattitude that things happen for the best.")

"I was born December 18, 1867, the 4th child of a family of fourteen.My parents, William Henderson Sparks and Mary Jane Sale Sparks, incompany with my grandparents, Hiram and Margaret Mitchell Sale, cameto Missouri in the fall of 1866--one year after the close of the CivilWar. They settled on a farm in the edge of a wood about three milesnorth of Osceola, in St. Clair County, near Caliniper Creek.

"The living quarters consisted of two large log rooms and a lean-tokitchen. Each room had a big fireplace. My parents occupied one ofthese rooms, in which I was
born. When I was about four years old, my father bought a small farmon the prairie three miles away to which he moved his family, nownumbering six. I attended my first year of school at High Hill,one-half mile away. I well remember my first day in school. Myteacher, Mrs. Cynthia White, called the beginners to her desk to teachthem the A B C's in Webster's blue back speller. I refused to go, andlay down on the slab bench and cried. She came and petted me, showedme her little pearl handled knife. We became good friends and Ilearned the alphabet quite rapidly. I went to school at High Hill forsix years, and have fond recollections of my school daysthere--playing games at recess and noon hours and gathering bigbouquets of Johnny-jump-ups,of which the school grounds were thicklycarpeted. During these eight years, the family had grown to nine.

"Mother and Daddy had a hard time to keep the wolf from our door.Daddy collapsed while fighting a prairie fire and was never a well managain. He had a shoe cobbler's set of tools and made us shoes out ofthe tops of old boots given to him. (I was ten before I had a pair ofstore shoes.) Mother spun the wool into rolls of yarn and knitstockings until midnight many a time. I learned to knit, too. Shewove blankets and linsey for our dresses. I sometimes wound shuttlesfor the loom and would stand at one end to catch the shuttle whenmother was weaving. She later bought brown domestic and colored itwith sumac berries and walnut hulls for school dresses. The seam downthe back was bias. I complained that it sagged. Daddy said,, "Youought to be glad for something to hide your nakedness."

"As there was only one boy to six girls, I helped in the field a lot,planting and gathering corn, shocking wheat and hay, planting anddigging potatoes, harrowing, etc. One happy occasion was in the fallafter a hard frost when Daddy would hitch up to the wagon and we wouldgo about five miles to Horshoe Bend on the Osage River where groves ofhickory trees grew. We would gather a wagon bed almost full of nuts.They were large nuts, and we enjoyed eating them along with applesaround the fireplace on cold winter nights. When the meal barrel gotempty, Daddy would pick out the nicest white ears of corn and pilethem on a blanket in the middle of the floor around which we allgathered and shelled corn for the grist mill. A biscuit for breakfastwas a rare treat. Some of us slept in the attic which we reached byclimbing a ladder. Sometimes when it snowed, it sifted through theroof on our beds. We were thrilled at Christmas time to get an orangeor a stick of red striped candy.

"When I was six or seven, I would go down to stay several weeks withGranny Sale and Uncle Bub during the summer. She would give me lumpsof brown sugar as candy, which was scarce in those days. I can yetrecall the odor of her wooden cupboard. Grandpa died when I was ayear old. There was a Negro family near her house, and she often hadAunt Hannah to work for her. She baked the best pound cakes I everate. She would take Granny's laundry home with her and bring it back. I would watch for her coming up through the woods with a bundle ofclothes on her head. She would take me on her lap and call me"Honey." I don't know what became of her. My Granny was the tiniest,sweetest old lady! She died when I was fourteen, at the age ofseventy-seven,and was buried in the Landaker Cemetery. One of myhappiest remembrances was at Christmas time when Daddy would put thewagon box on the big horse sleigh, fill it with clean straw, overwhich Mother spread a comforter, load us all in, and then "over thehills and through the woods to Grandmother's house we'd go!"

"When I was twelve, Father sold our little home and rented a farm fortwo years. I would baby-sit and help with household chores at fiftycents a week for neighbors and go to school. After two years, Fatherbought another farm where we lived until I was around twenty. Ijoined the New Light Christian Church and was baptized in the OsageRiver on October 16, 1886, with fourteen other young people. Some ofmy happiest recollections are associated with this period of mygirlhood. We had spelling matches, Sunday night singings, apple andpeach cuttings, and play parties.

"We would peel and out fruit until the baskets were empty, then clearthe floor for Old Dan Tucker, Skip-to-my-Lou, Old Jim Lane, etc.,games of forfeit, button and snap. Happy, carefree days of yore!

"When I was twenty, Father sold our farm, had a sale of all ourpossessions and moved to Bay Center in Washington Territory--it becamea state while we were there. Brother Harrison was a school teacher andhad a school out there. Sister Allie (Alice) was married, so thatleft eleven of us children to go with our parents to that frontiercountry which was so different from "Old Missou" but the change was aninspiration to me. Oh! what a task it was for Mother to prepare forthe move.

"I got work at five dollars a week soon after we landed, so did Rosa,Ella, Ettie, and Laura, earning enough to pay our fare. I worked formy room and board while I attended high school at Oysterville. I tookthe teacher's examination and got a certificate, taught two terms withonly five in the district. I also taught twelve Indian children atBay Center. I formed some very dear friendships during our staythere, and two proposals of marriage, but refused (they were fineboys); I loved the West, such a lovely climate, energetic people! BayCenter was an oyster shipping center.

"Father couldn't adjust himself to the western country with no kind ofconveyance but by water, and the climate, so in a year and a half wecame back to Missouri. He insisted on my coming back. The trip onthe Columbia River was a delightful one. It called to mind a passagefrom Bryant's Thanatopsis: "Where rolls the Oregon and hears no soundsave its own dashing."

"When we returned to Missouri, I immediately entered WeaubleauChristian College for one year, passed the teachers' examination, andrated a first grade certificate. I taught one term at the DermySchool House, then returned for a spring term at Weaubleau. I heardof a school in the Cole District, so one hot day in July, BrotherCharlie and I went on horseback to see about it, making the trip oftwenty miles in one day. I rode on a side saddle the entire journey.They hired me. Here is where I first saw my future husband. As Istood in the school house door ringing the bells a gay young guy camedashing up in a buggy and deposited two fine looking school girls whomhe had overtaken on his road home from Cobb. I did not meet him thatwinter as he left for college at Weaubleau.

"I taught at Cole School the next winter and boarded with Mrs. Venter(F. W.'s mother). Then our romance began. One evening in October wewere standing under a lilac bush tree when, on gazing up, I spied alilac bloom. He broke it off and handed it to me--ever since, thelilac has been my favorite flower. Our courtship lasted a year and ahalf. I lived at Lowery City at that time, and he came to see meoften. Once he rode a mule. A little boy seeing him pass said, "Hesat up so straight that he looked like he had a board at his back." Itaught two more terms of school, then on March 14., 1895, we weremarried.

"Fred began building our little yellow house near the Venter Bluff thewinter before we were married. The neighbors asked what he wasbuilding and he said a hen house. Our wedding day was a cold, bleakday. Conrad and J. T. (Tayo) came up with Fred to attend the weddingas the only guests. Brother Shackleford read the ceremony at 3:30p.m. Several of the young came that night and brought musicalinstruments. The next day was Friday, the 15th, and it was a bright,sunny day as we drove in a buggy to my future home. I taught thatspring at Cole School and took the path over the bluff that was strewnwith flowers. I taught at Hard Scrabble (Green Valley) the nextwinter and drove old Baldy for two miles hitched to a two-wheel cartand most froze on the cold days.

"The next winter, I taught at Black Jack about two miles south. SaoRiver was between our place and the school house. I walked to theriver, got in a small boat, rowed across, tied up the boat and walkedone-half mile to the school house. I enjoyed that school more thanany other. But it was very hard on me to teach, keep up my house work,do my laundry, etc. The doctor advised me to quit teaching and I did.

"After we were married five years, our first baby was born on March28, 1900. We named her Jewell Fern and we thought her a jewellindeed. When I helped her daddy at the sorghum mill, I would put herin the big clothes basket under a shade tree. She would sleep or sitfor hours at a time, guarded by our dog, Major. Poor kid! On March14, 1902, our springtime fairy made her debut. She was so like alittle spring bloom that we named her Vernal Fay (which meant"Springtime Fairy") . Her daddy had counted on a boy. When Jewell wasfour years old and Vernal two, their Grandmotber Venter died at theage of sixty-nine. Their Grandpa Venter had died in 1888. They areboth buried up on the hill, back of our old home. Two weeks aftertheir Grandmother Venter died., their Grandfather Sparks died, so theyremember only their Grandmother Sparks, who passed away three yearslater.

"Often we would stroll along the Venter Bluff on Sunday afternoons. Wewould go also up on the hill to gather flowers where an old Indianpath could be seen. There was a spring called the Prairie Spring atthe foot of the bluff. A drainage ditch made by Negro slaves could beseen here, too. We had preaching once a month and Sunday School everySunday at River View where to took them. I was a charter member ofthe Union Church which was quite active. The girls attended RiverView School until they were fifteen and thirteen. During the year of1911-12 Daddy and John Stauffer made a large wooden clock with a dial10 feet across. They placed it in the big red barn and painted theface on the gable end of the barn. Two weights weighed 75 pounds andthe gong could he heard to ring a mile away. It burned when the barnburned in 1917.

"In 1915, having lived twenty years in the little yellow house "underthe bluff" we sold off our stock, implements, household goods, andwent to Roswell, New Mexico, where we lived for nearly two years. Wedrove down there in a Maxwell car, camping out at night. Roswell wasa beautiful city, situated in the heart of a vast desert. It had goodschools and churches. The girls both entered high school. Daddy ranhis Maxwell car as a taxi. The night before we got to Roswell, therecame the worst hail and wind storm I ever experienced. The windraised the back of the tent, left one pole standing. The hail piledin on the hay bed we had made. We cleared enough dry hay for thegirls (to have) a bed. Dad and I sat up, fearful of another cloudburst. We drove into Roswell the next morning and rented an apartmentat 305 North Kentucky. There were some Bottomless Lakes three or fourmiles east where we would go for picnics. Our little black dog, Nero,was poisoned and was buried out in the flower- covered desert.

"We had rented our farm to Freddy Venter, and they kept writing for usto come back and look after it. So on a bright morning in June, 1917,we set out in our new Dodge for Missouri. The trail led through avast desert with no habitation in sight. The desert was carpeted withflowers. Cactus of all hues met our eyes. Reminds me of ThomasGrayts Elegy in a Country Churchyard: "Full many a flower is born toblush unseen and waste its sweetness on the desert air." We arrivedhome in June. We rented an apartment in El Dorado Springs and startedthe girls to school where they graduated, went on to Columbia to theUniversity and graduated from there four years later. I think theirgirlhood days were very happy. Mean-while, Daddy built and ran agarage. The girls both taught school and Jewell did office work, too. They were baptized and united with the El Dorado Christian Church in1917.

"The first break in our family circle was made in 1930, when KennethMcCall, a fine young fellow, asked for the hand of our daughter,Vernal, whom he met while both were teaching in Portales, New Mexico.They were married in August, 1930. Our lives were made fuller whenour three darling grandchildren were born. Some eight years later,Jewell met her future husband in the refined and respected person ofZola Frieze, whom she was fortunate to marry in 1938. Though theirhome has been childless, she has spent much of her time caring forothers. Two better sons-in-law were never known.

"In July, 1945, after we celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary,Daddy decided he could no longer carry on his beloved business, whichhe had run for over thirty years. He sold out the garage, equipment,and rented the building to Mr. Price. The next February, he becamebedfast. We took him to Springfield to St. John's Hospital where hedied on March 6, 1946. This was the darkest day of my life. Onlythose who have lost a beloved companion can ever know how empty lifecan be. That was my "Gethsemane." But one has to go on, and I wasblessed with two dear, devoted daughters and grand, understandingsons-in-law, who have cared for me ever since and have made lifefuller and happier than most women enjoy who have been bereft of theone who shared their joys and sorrows of their declining years. oursunset days together are but pleasant memories. "God gave us memoriesthat we might have roses in December." It is true, some of the rosesof memory have sharp thorns, but time and age, to some extent, blunttheir sharpness."

(Ida E. Venter passed away on March 16,, 1964, at the age ofninety-six years. She is buried in the El Dorado Springs CityCemetery beside Fred W. Venter, her husband, in the north-westernportion of the old section. Many oak trees are nearby.)

Received the following from Mrs. Kay Sloan, (jmsloan@gower.net) . Sheis the first cousin of Diane (Sparks) Arnold, daughter of Harry F.Sparks. See his notes for a full rendition of her enclosure:"children of John A. Sparks were Harry Sparks and Mrs. J. N. Martin. " It is likely that the initials were that of her husband, Mr. Martin.We have no more on this daughter now.
Later I did receive a marriage bond between J. N. Martin and IdaMaxwell Sparks, the full name of the daughter of John A. and Angha(Hancock) Sparks.
Birth estimate and other information was taken from that bond. Seemarriage notes for details.

Information on Marriage Bond of J. N. Martin and Ida Maxwell Sparks:

Principals on the bond: J. N. Martin and J. L. Lewis.
Date of Marriage: December 26, 1917
Place of Marriage: Morganfield, Ky.
Groom: John Nathaniel Martin
Bride: Ida Maxwell Sparks
Age of Husband: 39, single
Age of Wife: 26, single
Race: White
Husband's place of birth, Webster County, Ky., Residence,Morganfield, Ky.
Wife's place of birth, Morganfield, Ky. Residence, Morganfield, Ky.
Names of Parents of Husband: S. W. Martin, Union County, Ky.
Francis Hardwick, Union County, Ky.
Names of Parents of Wife: John A. Sparks, Union County, Ky.
Angie Hancock, Union County, Ky.
Occupation of Husband: Circuit Court Clerk
Occupation of Wife: Teacher

Marriage Certificate:
Date of Marriage, December 26, 1917
Place: Morganfield, Union Co. Ky.
Witnesses: John Sparks and Mrs. John Sparks.

!Marriage Bond: Issued 25 December, 1917, J. L. Lewis of Morganfield, Kentucky was surety. John's occupation was Circuit Court Clerk. Ida's occupation was teacher. His parents were S. W. Martin of Unio nCounty, Ky, and Francis Hardwick of Union County, Ky. Her parent swere John A. Sparks and Angie Hancock, both of Union County. Joh nwas born in Webster County, Ky, and Ida in Morganfield, Union Count y,KY. The witnesses to the marriage were John Sparks and Mrs. Joh nSparks, her parents.

SPARKS QUARTERLY September 1984, No. 127, pg. 2659:

"Idris Sparks, daughter of John and Sarah (Brooks) Sparks was born onDecember 7, 1815, in Georgia. She was married to Lewis Underwood inTallapoosa County, Alabama, on March 18, 1836. She apparently dieda,short time later, for Lewis Underwood married her sister, Milly, inSeptember, 1837."

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 3725: She was married to Virgil West.

SQ p. 750:

"Inez Davis Sparks, daughter of James S. and Alice M. (Davis) Sparks,was born July 24, 1894, at Goodfield, IL. She is a graduate of theUniversity of Minnesota at Minneapolis. She is a teacher ofpsychology, with the rank of full professor, at the Wisconsin StateCollege at Eau Claire, Wisconsin [as of Sept. 1963]."

See SQ pg 1972:
"Eldon Sparks, born August 10, 1848. Although he seems always to havegone by the name Eldon, he was apparently named Ira Eldon--the factthat he had an uncle named Ira Sparks perhaps accounts for his use ofhis middle name. He was married sometime after 1894 to Leona -----who was a widow with a daughter named Cora. According to an obituaryof Leona Sparks published in 1943 "she was a teacher in the Chadronschools in 1894 at the time when she attended the wedding of Mr. andMrs. T. C. Hornby. It was at the time of the wedding that she met Mr.Sparks and they were married a year or so later."

"Eldon and Leona Sparks had one child, a daughter named Eldene Sparkswho married Harold Hawkins; she died on January 16, 1964. EldonSparks died on May 20, 1943 at the age of 96, in Seattle, Washington;his wife died a week later on May 27, 1943; she was 78 years old.

"As is noted in the sketch of the life of his brother, Allen Sparks(below), Eldon Sparks was associated with Allen Sparks in business inNebraska and South Dakota and again when they moved to Seattle in1905."

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 3411: They had one child: Samuel Joel Sparks.

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 3691: He was married three times. His first marriage was t oMatilda Robinson by whom he had two children: Adolphus and Russell .His second marriage was to Bertie Cowell by whom he had seven children: Harold, Darrel, Ruby, Audrey, Erba, Ronald, and Joseph. His third marriage was to Lina Boley by whom he had two children, Erma an dEugene.

SQ 177: Article is an early summary of the family of Matthew ("theelder") (256) who is brother to William IV (199). He is called theelder to distinguish him from his son Matthew (529) ("the younger")and Matthew (334), son of William IV. Isaac is one of the youngest ofMatthew the elder' s 13 children. The article mentions Isaac asfollows: "Isaac Sparks, as was stated above, was living in CarrrollCounty, Tennessee, in 186O... (pg.178) In a letter written by hisniece, Beddie C. Smith (daughter of Bailey (538) Sparks), in 1899,appears the following statement: 'When I was a child old Uncle Mathew(529) Sparks made his home with his brother, Isaac, but spent much ofhis time with Father and Mama.' "

- - - - - - - - - -

SQ 3O64 is an article about Abel Sparks (366), a grandson of Joseph(344) who was a brother to William II (202). It states on page 3064:"Isaac Sparks and his wife Sarah were received into the Mars HillBaptist Church [located in Clarke County, Georgia] "by letter" atabout the same time as Abel--on April 14, 1804. Isaac and Sarah were"dismissed by letter" on March 15, 1806 (i.e. they were given a letterto present to another Baptist Church showing that they had been ingood standing at the Mars Hill Church.) However, on October 18, 1806,"Brother Isaac and wife Sarah [were] Excluded for disobeying Church."We feel certain that this Isaac Sparks was a son (probably next to theyoungest ) of Matthew and Sarah (Thompson) Sparks who were among thefirst members of the Sparks family to move from Frederick County,Maryland, to Rowan County, North Carolina. A sketch of the family ofMatthew and Sarah (Thompson) Sparks was published at pp.556-66...There can be little doubt that as members of the Mars HillBaptist Church, Abel Sparks and Isaac Sparks were well acquainted,even though they were rather distantly related. (Sarah, wife of IsaacSparks, was his first wife; she was a daughter of William Nutt ofClarke County who named Isaac Sparks as his son-in-law in his will of1818. After her death, Isaac married Wilmoth Noland or Knowland.")

**********

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, December 2001, Whole No. 196, pp 5605-5630,p. 5610:

"Isaac Sparks, son of Matthew and Sarah Sparks, was born on July 15,1780, in what was then Wilkes
County, North Carolina, but is now Ashe County. He died about 1869 inCarroll County, Tennessee. He had been three or four years old when heaccompanied his parents and a number of his siblings in their move toGeorgia. He was married in or about 1804 in Clarke County, Georgia, toSarah Nutt, a daughter of William Nutt. Sarah died. between 1806 and1808, and shortly thereafter Isaac was married (second) to WilmothNoland (also spelled Knowland and Knowling) , daughter of James Nolandand a sister of Martha Noland, who was married to Isaac's brother,Bailey Sparks. Isaac was the father of twelve children. See thepresent issue of the QUARTERLY, beginning on page 5621, for an articleabout Isaac Sparks and his family."

Pp 5621-5630:

Isaac Sparks (1780-ca,1767)

Son of Matthew and Sarah Sparks

"Much of the introduction to the biographical sketch of Bailey Sparks,beginning on page 5611, also pertains to his brother, Isaac Sparks,and will not be repeated here. As noted, there were only 14 months'difference in the ages of these two brothers, Bailey having been bornon May 3, 1778, and Isaac on July 15, 1780. Their oldest brother, JohnSparks, had been born 25 years before Isaac Bailey and Isaac being sonearly the same age may account for the close friendship that theyappear to have enjoyed throughout their lives; they even marriedsisters.

"Isaac Sparks was born on his parents' 400-acre tract of land in whatlater became Ashe County , North Carolina, although at his birth , theSparks home was still within the county of Wilkes . Wilkes County hadbeen created from Surry County in 1777, and it was not until 1799 thatAshe was cut off from Wilkes. At its creation, Ashe County wasdescribed as "that part of Wilkes County lying west of the extremeheight of the Appalachian mountains. " Today it borders GraysonCounty, Virginia, on the north and Johnson County, Tennessee, on thewest.

'Isaac Sparks's parents had moved from the Forks of the Yadkin, nowpart pf Davie County, North Carolina, to their 400-acre tract of landin Wilkes County in 1775, but it had not been until November 5, 1778,that Matthew Sparks had obtained an actual title to it from what wasthen still the Colony of North Carolina. In his warrant , the tractwas described as "...on the north side of New River, beginning onLittle Naked Creek. " (The text of the initial survey of Matthew'sland was included in the article devoted to him in the QUARTERLY ofJune 1961, Whole No.34.)

'Isaac Sparks was the eleventh child born to his parents , a fact thatwas even noted in a biographical sketch of his son, Isaac H. Sparks,published in 1891/2. The twelfth and last child of Matthew and SarahSparks was also a son (their tenth) , named Hardy; he was born on May23, 1783. His mother was then either 43 or 44 years of age.

'We can be sure that , as an adult , Isaac Sparks retained few if anymemories of his life in North Carolina, for he had scarcely reachedhis third birthday when the Sparks family moved south to Georgia.Sarah Sparks was doubtless thankful that there were older children ,including two daughters, to assist in caring for their youthfulsiblings during what must have been a tiresome journey . We will notrepeat here the events of Georgia's Oconee War that engulfed thefamily , even resulting in the murder of the father when Isaac wasonly 13 years old. These events were outlined in the preceding articleon Bailey Sparks. We do have, however, a reference to Isaac when hewas only five years old.

'This early incident in Isaac's life is mentioned in a letter writtenby Bettie C. Smith, a granddaughter of Isaac's brother, Nathan Sparks(1775-1844). This letter was published, with an analysis, in thearticle devoted to Nathan in the QUARTERLY of De cember 1995, WholeNo. 172, pp.4574-77. As noted there, Bettie Smith (whose maiden namehad been Elizabeth B . Sparks) , stated that she had heard the familystories contained in her letter to a nephew, from "Old Matthew Sparks"(1759-1841), who had been the second oldest of the ten sons of Matthewand Sarah Sparks . Referring to a time in Georgia when the famIly gotup one morning to discover that all but one of their horses had beenstolen by the Creek Indians , Bettie wrote : " . . . they started forthe fort, twenty-five miles bareheaded...Uncle Isaac was five yearsold, and brother & sister swung (him] by his arms all the way." IfBettie Smith's memory of "Old Matthew's" account was correct , thisincident must have happened in 1785 or 1786. It is also in BettieSmith's letter that we learn the circumstance under which Isaac'sfather, Matthew Sparks, the elder, lost his life in 1793: "He went outto kill a turkey one morning, and was shot by Indians. "

"When the Sparks family had settled in Georgia in 1783/84, their landwas located within a huge county created in 1784 called Franklin .Before 1784, it had been known as part of the "Cherokee Lands." TheSparkses lived in that part of Franklin County that was cut off tofrom Jackson County in 1796. Then, in 1801, they found themselves inClarke County when the portion of Jackson County in which they livedwas cut off to form this new county. A tax list for Clarke County isextant for the year 1802. Isaac Sparks, as well as his brothers,Jesse and William, being white males over 21, were taxed simply aspolls, but Isaac was taxed, also, for owning land. We have no recordof his acquiring this land, however. In 1875, long after the Sparkseshad left the area, the county of Oconee was created from ClarkeCounty.

"On June 1, 1799, a Baptist church was organized at what was calledMars Hill in that part of Jackson that became Clarke County and isOconee County today. The original minute book of Mars Hill BaptistChurch is still extant; it was transcribed a number of years ago byFrances West Reid and placed in the D. A . R. Library in Washington,D.C. From this minute book, we learn that on April 14, 1804, "IsaacSparks and Sarah, his wife" were received into membership "by letter ." This should mean that they had earlier been members of anotherBaptist congregation that had recommended them as being in goodstanding. The minute book does not, however , reveal the congregationto which they had formerly belonged .

"Isaac Sparks was 23 years of age when he was received into the MarsHill Church. It is obvious that he had been married to Sarah beforeApril 14, 1804. No record of their marriage has been found, however,and it is only through the will of Sarah's father, dated June 15,1818, that we can identify her as a daughter of William and Jane Nutt.William Nutt called Isaac his son-in-law in his will, although webelieve that Sarah had died before her father.

'The Mars Hill Baptist Church minute book contains another entry undermembership dated only four days after the entry for Isaac and Sarahbeing received "by letter." This entry simply reads: "March 18, 1804,Isaac Sparks, Member before this. " It would appear that, therefore,it had been only Sarah's membership that had been "by letter"following her marriage to Isaac . Then , on September 14, 1804, IsaacSparks was "Dismissed , " without explanation. A year and one halflater, on March 15, 1806, an entry in the minute book reads: "March15, 1806, Isaac Sparks & wife Sarah, Dismissed by letter. " Suchaction in the Baptist denomination normally means that the couple wasabout to move away from the Mars Hill area and were given a letter tointroduce them to another church as being in good standing. However,an entry dated October 18, 1806, reads: "Brother Isaac Sparks and wifeSarah, Excluded for disobeying Church." No later reference to Isaacor Sarah is to be found in the Mars Hill Baptist Church membershiprecords.

"Another member of the Sparks family appears in the Mars Hill BaptistChurch membership records . This was Abel Sparks who was "Received byexperience" on March 18, 1804. Abel Sparks was a son of Solomon andSarah Sparks of Surry and Wilkes Counties, North Carolina. AbelSparks's grandfather, Joseph Sparks, who had died in Frederick County,Maryland, in 1749, was a brother of Isaac Sparks's great-grandfather,William Sparks, Jr. , who had died in Queen Annes County in the 1730s.Thus, Isaac Sparks and Abel Sparks were second cousins, once removed .Despite their rather distant relationship, Isaac and Abel obviouslyknew each other as fellow members of the Mars Hill Church, althoughAbel had not moved to Clarke County from North Carolina, before atleast 1802. (For a detai ed record of the life of Abel Sparks, see theQUARTERLY of June 1987, Whole No. 138, beginning on page 3062.)

"In 1803, a land lottery was sponsored by the state of Georgia toencourage settlement in its new counties of Baldwin, Wayne, andWilkinson. Although the final drawing of winners did not take placeuntil 1805, the rules applied to participants as of 1803. This lotteryentitled a bachelor over 21 to one draw, if he were a citizen of theU.S. and had lived in Georgia for at least one year. The sameresidency requirements applied to Others , but a married man , with orwithout children , was entitled to two draws . Women were excludedexcept widows with one or more minor children--they were also entitledto two draws. A minor orphan, or family of orphans, with father andmother dead or remarried, was entitled to one draw. In Baldwin andWilkinson Counties, the size of the lots to be won was 2O2 1/2 acres;in Wayne County, the size was 490 acres. There were five subsequentland lotteries in Georgia, but only for that dated 1803, but not drawnuntil 1805, have the names and resident counties been preserved; onlythe names of the winners of subsequent drawings have been preserved.Seven persons named Sparks were registered in Clarke County for thefirst drawing. (Note that this was the county in which the Mars HillBaptist Church was located until Oconee County was cut off in 1875.)One of the seven was
listed as "Garrot Sparks," but other records prove that this was anerror; it was intended for "Garrot Spinks." The remaining six were:

Abel Sparks 2 draws
Isaac Sparks 2 draws
Jesse Sparks 2 draws
Sarah Sparks 2 draws
Theophelus Sparks 1 draw
William Sparks 2 draws

'Abel Sparks was, as noted earlier, a second cousin, once removed,from Isaac Sparks and his brothers, Jesse and William. Sarah Sparkswas the brothers' mother, widow of Matthew , who had been killed in1793; she was entitled to 2 draws because in 1803 her youngest son ,Hardy Sparks, was still under age 21. We have not succeeded inidentifying Theophelus Sparks, obviously unmarried, since he had onlyone draw; he could have been a son of William Sparks.

"The only winner from Clarke County in the 1803/05 drawing was IsaacSparks. He won Lot #25 in District 5 of Baldwin County, 202 1/2 acres.This part of Baldwin County was included in the formation of MorganCounty, Georgia, in 1807.

"Although the purpose of the 1803/05 Lottery was to attract settlersto the three counties listed above , the winners were not requiredactually to occupy the land they received. So it was quite legal forIsaac Sparks, on November 2, 1806, to sell half of his Baldwin Countylot to a man named William Mothershead, who was described in the deed(Book B, p.369) as "of the State of South Carolina." Mothershead paidIsaac $200 for the "one hundred and one and one-fourth acres. " Thewitnesses were William Nutt and James McLeroy. William Nutt wasprobably Isaac's father-in-law, and we know that Sarah's sister wascalled Catherine McLeroy. We have not found a record of his sale ofthe other half of his lot .

"In Georgia, a wife was expected to sign the deed for selling landwith her husband , thus acknowledging her agreement for the sale andrelinquishment of her dower right to the land. The fact that Sarah(Nutt) Sparks did not sign this deed with Isaac may mean that she haddied by 1806.

"By 1810, Isaac Sparks had moved to Humphreys County, Tennessee. OnMay 29, 1810, he was
commissioned a lieutenant in the 38th Regiment of the TennesseeMilitia from Humphreys County. (See
Records of Commissions in the Tennessee Militia, 1796-1811, compiledby Mrs. John Trotwood Moore,
1947.) A Water muster roll has also been preserved showing that onJanuary 12, 1812, a company of militia was formed by a Capt. WilliamTeas comprised of settlers in the two adjoining counties, Humphreysand Hickman, "for the protection of the frontier of West Tennessee."Both Isaac and Bailey Sparks were members of Capt. Teas's company atthe time of its organization.

"We believe , but cannot be certain , that Isaac Sparks was a widowerwhen he moved to Tennessee. It was relatively soon after settling inHumphreys County that he was married to Wilmoth Noland , daughter ofJames Noland, also a resident of Humphreys County. At about the sametime, perhaps in 1807 or 1808, Bailey Sparks was married to Wilmoth'ssister, Martha Noland. From the census records of 1850, 1860, and1870, for which census takers were instructed to record the names ofall persons in every household, with their ages as of June 1st. of thecensus year and their places of birth , it appears that Wilmoth hadbeen born in or about 1790 in Tennessee. Isaac was thus ten years hersenior.

"In the biographical sketch of Bailey Sparks (page 5615 of the presentissue of the QUARTERLY), appears an abstract of a deed dated September10, 1832, proving that Wilmoth and Martha Noland were daughters ofJames Noland , who had died before the making of this deed. With thisdeed, Jesse Noland, probably a brother of Wilmoth and Martha ,purchased from them , as well as from another sister named Elizabeth,wife of Henry Epperson, these three sisters' shares of inheritance ofJames Noland's land in Humphreys County, for a total of $170 .

'The earliest census taken in Tennessee was that for 1820. Both Isaacand Bailey Sparks were shown as heads of households in HumphreysCounty . The brothers were shown in the 26 to 45 age category, as weretheir wives. Isaac was credited with five children in his household: 1male between 10 and 16; 2 males under 10 years; and 2 females alsounder 10 years.

'There is a record that on April 11, 1818, Isaac had received a grantfrom the state of Tennessee for a 10-acre tract of land in HumphreysCounty. (See "General Grants #11418, Book T, p.834.) On January 9,1822, Isaac sold these 10 acres for $60 to Thomas Epperson; both menwere Identified in the deed (Book C, p.317) as of Humphreys County .The tract was described as " on Hurricane Creek of Duck River" andadjoining land owned by James Mercer. The witnesses were BenjaminNoland and Henry Epperson. Then, on June 29, 1822, Isaac sold toWIlliam Lain, also living in Humphreys County, a tract of 100 acresalso located on the east side of Hurricane Creek. (Humphreys CountyDeed Book C, p.177.) We have not found a record of Isaac Sparksacquiring this tract. There were four men who witnessed this deed:James Teas, John Lain, Rheuben S. Harman, and Thomas Epperson. Therecan be little doubt that Isaac Sparks's reason for selling his land inHumphreys County was his intention to move west to the newly createdCarroll County, Tennessee, formerly part of the state's "WesternDistrict." (Benton County, cut off from Humphreys County in 1835, nowlies between Humphreys and Carroll Counties.)

"When the 1830 census was taken in Carroll County, Isaac's brothersBailey and Hardy, were also shown
heading households there, as was their nephew, also named IsaacSparks, a son of their much older brother, Nathan Sparks (born 1775).Nathan Sparks was then living in Wilson County, Tennessee. On the1830 census, as in most other documents of the period when the "uncleIsaac" and the "nephew Isaac" were both living in Carroll County, theywere distinguished from each other, when named in the same document,by being called "Isaac Sparks, Sr." and "Isaac Sparks , Jr . " Whilethis usage of senior and junior for other than father and son of thesame name can be confusing to the family historian , it was notunusual in the 19th century simply to use the terms to distinguishbetween an older and a younger person with the same name, regardlessof the relationship, if any.

"In this sketch of Isaac Sparks, born in 1780, we will continue torefer to him simply as Isaac, while his nephew will be called Isaac,Jr. As was noted in the sketch of Isaac, Jr. in the QUARTERLY ofDecember, 1995, pp.4542-54, he became a prominent dealer in land,resulting in many deeds Involving him being recorded in CarrollCounty, Tennessee . In these deeds, "Jr." was rarely added to his nameunless his uncle was also mentioned. The result is that one hasconsiderable difficulty identifying the relatively few deeds thatpertain to the elder Isaac, unless he was called "Sr." We do know,however, that Isaac (the elder) owned and lived on land located onGwens Creek in Carroll County , and that it bordered Marlsboro Road .

By 1830, Isaac and Wilmoth had nine living children who wereenumerated in their household by the census taker, 5 sons and 4daughters. After the 1830 census was taken, two more daughters wereadded to their family.

"From the enumeration of Isaac's household when the 1840 census wastaken, we learn that only their eldest son, William N . Sparks , hadleft home by then.

"In her 1899 letter , noted earlier in this article, Bettie Smith ,daughter of Nathan Sparks , recalled that her
grand-uncle , "old Matthew Sparks," lived with his brother , Isaac,when she was a child. This was Matthew Sparks, Jr. (1759-1841), whoappears to have been living with Isaac and Wilmoth as early as 1832,the year in which he applied for his Revolutionary War pension. ACarroll County Court record dated September 14, 1832, reads:

This day came Matthew Sparks Into open court and filed his declarationproofs, &c. in order to get
a pension as a Revolutionary Soldier according to Acts of Congress andwas qualified to same
accordingly.

"As part of the 1840 general population census, a record was made ofRevolutionary War pensioners and where they were living. MatthewSparks was listed as 79 years old and a member of the household ofIsaac Sparks in Carroll County. The 1840 census was also designed totabulate the occupations of males in each household who were 16 andover. The census taker who visited Isaac's household noted that therewere four members "engaged in Agriculture. " These four were probablyIsaac, him self, and his sons named J. H., Bailey N., and Jesse P.Sparks.

"In 1849, Isaac Sparks obtained from the state of Tennessee a grant of212 1/2 acres of land in Carroll County (Entry No. 240). We do nothave a copy of this grant, but when the son named Jesse P. Sparks soldhis share of it , an undivided 8th part , following his father's death, it was noted in the deed that it adjoined a tract of land that hadbeen granted to James Dinwiddie. (Carroll County Deed Book P,pp.539-40.)

"It was on the 1850 census of the United States that, for the firsttime, the name, age , and place of birth , were included for allmembers of every household , along with the value of any land thatthey owned , and ther occupation of males who were 16 and over. Isaacwas shown as 67 years old (he was actually 71), a native of NorthCarolina, and a farmer with real estate valued at $1,000. The censustaker, a man named C . C . Hurt, recorded Wilmoth's age as 36, and anative of Tennessee. Wilmoth was actually 60 years old in 1850; if Mr.Hurt was guessing at ages in 1850, we must assume that Wilmoth hadretained her youthful appearance after bearing eleven children. Sevenof Isaac and Wilmoth's children were still at home in 1850 , includingtheir widowed daughter, Sarah Tyson, age 28, with her 4-year-old son,Isaac S. Tyson. Their other six children at home were: Bailey N. , 33(he also owned land valued at $60); Jesse P., 27; Isaac H., 21; AnnJ., 24; Wilmoth, 19; and Mahala T., 15. The three sons were allshown as "Farming. "

The 1860 census included a bit more information regarding familiesthan did that of 1850, including the name of their post office and thevalue of personal estate as well as real estate. The post office forIsaac Sparks's family was shown as Macedonia, with his real estate nowworth $3,000, and his personal estate, $2500. (In a gazetteerpublished in 1850, Macedonia was described as a "post village , 108miles west of Nashville, and 793 miles from Washington, D.C.") Twosons of Isaac and Wilmoth were still living at home in 1860, BaileyN., 45, and Jesse H., 33, as were Ann , 35, and Sarah Tyson , 37, whowas called "in dwelling" by the census taker, with her son, IsaacTyson, now 12 years old.

"It is from the deed dated July 31, 1867, by which Isaac and Wilmoth'sson, Jesse P. Sparks, sold to J. L.
Seawright , his share of his father's land, that we know that Isaachad died prior to this date. When the 1870 census was taken, WilmothSparks, Isaac's widow, was living with her unmarried son, Jesse P.Sparks, age 45. Wilmoth's age in 1870 was given as 70 although she wasmore nearly 80; she was shown as Keeping House .

"Isaac Sparks did not leave a will, and no administrator of his estatewas appointed by the Carroll County Court until the July 1871 Courtterm, perhaps because his widow did not request a settlement. When anadministrator was finally appointed, it was Isaac Sparks, Jr., Isaac'snephew , who agreed to serve. Unfortunately, no other documentpertaining to the estate has been preserved , according to a search bythe Carroll County Court clerk a number of years ago.

"We have not discovered the date that Wilmoth (Noland) Sparks died,although there is a document preserved by the Court that her estate'sadministrator, Moses T. Sparks , a son of Isaac Sparks , Jr. ,submitted a final settlement on November 21, 1881. Among hisexpenditures, Moses Sparks noted the expenditure of $13.00 for hercoffin, paid to G. W. Rogers. Another item was $4.50 paid to "Gilbert&. Stofle, Burial Bill." The "amount In administrator's hands [on]November 21, 1881, was $246.39," in personal estate for division amongWilmoth's heirs.

"The eleven children of Isaac and Wilmoth (Noland) Sparks were thefollowing:"
[JS Note: For information concerning these children, see theirindividual sheets.]

SQ pg 4552: (For photo of Isaac and Jane Sparks, see SQ pg 4554.)

"Isaac Sparks, Son of Nathan and Nancy (Hancock) Sparks, was born onJune 25, 1805, in Georgia. He was probably named for his uncle IsaacSparks, and he has been identified incorrectly several times as hisuncle's son because he was designated as Isaac Sparks, Junior, on manyrecords. (While "junior" was/is often added to the name of a sonhaving the same name as his father, it was used frequently in the pastsimply to designate a younger person, perhaps a nephew or cousin,bearing the same name as an older person in the community.)

"Isaac was a small boy when he accompanied his parents to Tennesseeabout 1807. It was there that he grew to maturity.

"On September 30, 1824, Isaac sparks was married to Orpha (or Orphah)Thompson in Wilson County, Tennessee, by James Lester, a justice ofthe peace. The license had been issued on September 27 1824, andIsaac's bondsman was John Major. Orpha had been born on June 17, 1806, and she was a daughter of Moses and Elizabeth (Suddeth) Thompson .Shortly after their marriage, Isaac and Orpha moved westward about onehundred miles where they settled in Carroll County, probably nearIsaac's uncle, Isaac Sparks, Senior. They may have settled on the40-acre tract of land that Isaac had received as a gift from hisfather on November 5, 1829. When the 1830 census was taken, Isaac andOrpha were shown with two children, a boy and a girl, born between1825 and 1830.

"Although Isaac's father, Nathan Sparks, lived most of his life inWilson County, Isaac spent his life in Carroll County. He was quiteactive in the affairs of the county. He was appointed road overseerby the Carroll County court on March 15, 1831; on March 10 1834; andin November 1837. He was also a well-to-do farmer and was involved inthe buying and selling of land for nearly three decades. He was amember of the Masonic Lodge and of the Presbyterian Church.

"(The Shiloh Cumberland Presbyterian Church is located on Clear Creekin Carroll County, Tennessee, and as far as can be learned, wasestablished in 1825. It was a part of the Cumberland PresbyterianChurch that came into existence about 1800-1825 when its membersdisagreed on the method of ordaining its ministers. A cemetery is apart of the church grounds and a rather large number of Sparkses andtheir descendants are buried there. Several of the descendants ofNathan Sparks became Presbyterian ministers.)

"Orpha (Thompson) Sparks, wife of Isaac Sparks, died on February 6 ,1842, in Carroll County and was buried in the Shiloh CumberlandPresbyterian Church Cemetery. She left Isaac with five smallchildren. About 1843, he was married (second) to Jane L. Donnell. Shehad been born on August 25, 1817, in Tennessee, and was a daughter ofAdreck (?) Donnell. She and Isaac had one child, James Nathan Sparks,born about 1844. She had inherited a one-sixth share of her father'sestate, and on October 16, 1848, she and Isaac sold her share of a 245acre tract of land, formerly belonging to her father, to John W. Winnfor $300.

"When the 1850 census was taken of Carroll County, the census takervisited the household of Isaac Sparks on November 5, 1850. Herecorded Isaac's age as 45; his occupation was that of a farmer, andhe owned real estate valued at $4,500. Jane's age was recorded as 33. With them were Elizabeth E. Sparks, 22; Rachel E. Sparks, 19; WilliamM. Sparks, 16; Moses T. Sparks, 14; and James N. Sparks, 6. Alsoliving in the household were Isaac's nephews, Nathan L. New, age 18,and Pleasant S. New, age 16, sons of Isaac's sister, Eady (Sparks)New, who had died in 1836. Isaac Sparks had been appointed asguardian of the two boys.

"As mentioned above, throughout his life, Isaac appears to have beeninvolved in buying and selling land. It is estimated that he was aparty to a dozen or more transactions; however, the record is notclear, because of the difficulty of distinguishing him from his uncle,Isaac Sparks, Senior. The last transactions that he made wereprobably the disposals of 388 acres of land to his children. To son,William M. Sparks, he sold 120 acres; to son Matthew T. Sparks, hesold 100 acres; and to his daughter, Nancy (Sparks) Melear, he sold168 acres. Each child paid Isaac $1,500.

"All of Isaac's children had left home when the 1870 census was takenin Carroll County. He and Jane lived near the village of Huntingdon.He was then described as a farmer with real estate valued at $10,000.He died on February 27, 1878, and was buried in the Shiloh CumberlandPresbyterian Church Cemetery. His tombstone was inscribed with aMasonic emblem and the following words:

Sleep, father, dear and take thy rest,
God called thee home. He thought it best.
It was hard indeed to part with thee,
But Christ's strong arm supporteth me.

"Jane (Donnell) Sparks survived her husband for twenty years, dying onJanuary 16, 1898. she had made a will on July 3, 1893, in which shenamed the following: Her son: James N. Sparks; her sister, Bettie A.New; Her nieces: Helen L. Gordon and Mary Jane Blaylock; Heirs ofIsaac Sparks, deceased: W. M. Sparks, M. T. Sparks, Nancy Melear,Bettie smith, Elvitta Thomas, and James N. Sparks. Executor: A. C .Gordon, nephew by marriage. Witnesses: H. L. Kemp and J. W. Hamlin.

"This will was probated on February 7, 1898, at the Carroll Count yCourt. Jane (Donnell) Sparks was buried beside her husband in th eShiloh Cumberland Presbyterian Church Cemetery. See furtherreference to their tombstone inscriptions in SQ pg 4931."

See SQ pp. 4667-69 for additional photographs including the ShilohChurch, Carroll County, Tennessee; William Matthew Sparks (1833-1889)and a photo of Ella (Sparks) Gordon, Lonnie T. Sparks (1879-1944),William Edmund Curtis Sparks (1872-1948), and Samuel T. [Sammie]Sparks (1866-1947).

SQ pg 3692:
"Isaac Sparks, son of Hardy and Mary Sparks, was born about 1814 i nTennessee and was quite probably named for his father's brother of thesame name. (On several records, he was designated as "Isaac Sparks,Junior" to distinguish him from his uncle.) He had reached manhoodwhen his parents moved to Lafayette County, Mississippi. It wa sprobably there that he met and was married to Frances Ann Higginbothamabout 1838. She had been born about 1819 in Louisiana. Their firstchild was born in the spring of 1840 just prior to the taking o f the1840 census. They owned one slave when that census was taken.
"Isaac and Frances continued to live in Lafayette County where he wasa farmer and when the 1850 census was taken, they had five children.Sometime prior to 1860, however, they decided to move to Texas, andwhen the 1860 census was taken, they were in Red River County in thenortheastern part of that state. Isaac died in Wood County, Texas, onOctober 30, 1872. We have not learned anything further about Frances.They were the parents of eight children."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, June 2000, Whole No. 190, p. 5374-75:

"Isaac Sparks, son of Matthew and Sarah (Elmore) Sparks, was born inSurry County, North Carolina, on February 11, 1820, and died in GlennCounty, California, on November 1, 1867. We have no record of his havmg been married. His dates of birth and death are found on one side ofthe Sparks monument in the community of Ord Bend cemetery in GlennCounty, California, shown on page 5373. In 1856 he was one of theheirs of his father for whom his brother, Richard was responsible forlocating and conveying to him his inheritahce ($14.29)."

SPARKS QUARTERLY, March 1994, Whole No. 165, p. 4276 states: IsaacSparks, son of Jesse and Nancy Sparks, was born about 1830. He wasmarried to a widow named Nancy Jones, and they had four children:James, Eli, Moses and Amanda.

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, June 1959, Whole No. 26, p. 399:

"ISAAC B. SPARKS, son of Solomon and Isabella (Swaim) Sparks, was bornin Wilkes County, North Carolina, on April 2, 1822. The following isquoted from a sketch of the life of Isaac Sparks which appears onpages 786-787 of the History of Huntington County, Indiana (1887):

"Isaac B. Sparks was born April 2, 1822, and was only 10 years of agewhen his parents moved to Wells County. He was early taught thoselessons of industry and frugality by which his subsequent life hasbeen characterized, and grew to manhood amid the rugged duties of farmlife. He attended school for only a limited period and consequentlydid not acquire much of an education so far as books are concerned,'but by intelligent observation has since obtained a valuablepractical knowledge, which has enabled him to transact business in asafe and satisfactory manner. He early became quite expert in the useof the rifle, and at one time killed nine deer and crippled the tenthin one day.

"He made his home with his parents until his twenty-eighth year, andin 1845 purchased his first land, an eighty-acre tract, for which hepaid the sum of $240, and upon which he made a number of substantialimprovements, including a double log barn that is still [l887] doinggood service. He moved to the farm in 1853 and has since made it oneof the best places in the township. Mr. Sparks was formerly aDemocrat, but espoused the principles of the Greenback party whenGreeley ran for the Presidency, and has ever since been an earnestadvocate of said principles. He was for some years prominentlyidentified with the Grange movement, having been one of its ablestworkers in Rock Creek Tomnship. Mr. Sparks was married December 18,1851, to Miss Cynthia A. Roberts, of Kentucky, and daughter of Williamand Martha (Hultz) Roberts. Mrs. Sparks was born December 27, 1832,and is ... a member of the Christian Church, and Mr. Sparks, althougha man of strong religious convictions, is not identified with anychurch organization."

"Isaac Sparks died on January 15, 1904, and his wife died December 17,1897. Both were buried in the Sparks Cemetery in Wells County. Theirchildren were:
(1) William Sparks.
(2) Albert D. Sparks, born in February, 1855; died October 6. 1877.
(3) Robert R. Sparks, born in 1857; died in 1945; he married MaryJane McClurg, born 1862, died1934.
(4) Rachel E. Sparks, married Frank Hart.
(5) Frederick F. Sparks, born 1861; died 1948. He married Nora Rooswho was born in 1868 and died in 1953.
(6) Sarah A. Sparks, married Alvidor Roos.
(7) Maria Sparks, born in 1865; died in 1922. She married JohnDalrymple.
(8) Rebecca Jane Sparks, born November, 1868; died July 19, 1869.
(9) Susan E. Sparks, married Silas Threlkeld.
(10) Isaac H. Sparks
(11) Cynthia E. Sparks, born June 21, 1874; died June 25, 1874.
(12) Mary E. Sparks, born August 21, 1875; died September 12, 1875."

* * * * *

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, September 1975, Whole No. 91, p. 1754:

ISAAC B. SPARKS, 1822-1904

"The portrait on the cover of this issue of the QUARTERLY is that ofIsaac B. Sparks, who was born in Wilkes County, North Carolina, onApril 2, 1822, and died on January 15, 1904, in Wells County, Indiana. The original of this photograph was loaned to us for publication byIva B. Sparks Lane, 501 East Christy St., Marion, Indiana. Mrs. Laneis a great-granddaughter of Isaac B. Sparks.

"A sketch of the life of Isaac B. Sparks appeared in the June 1959issue of the QUARTERLY, (Vol. VII, No. 2, Whole No. 26, page 299 [seeabove]). He was a son of Solomon and Isabella (Swaim) Sparks whomoved with their family from North Carolina to Ohio and then on toIndiana, settling in Wells County about 1835. At the time the articleon this family was published in June 1959, we were quite certain thatSolomon (father of Isaac B.) was a son of Solomon and Charity Sparksof Wilkes County, North Carolina. Now it appears that he may havebeen a son of Reuben and Cassie (Buttery) Sparks, also of WilkesCounty, North Carolina (see the QUARTERLY of September 1967, Vol. XV,No. 3, Whole No. 59, pp. 1082-1089).

"Isaac B. Sparks was married on December 18, 1851, to Cynthia A.Roberts, daughter of William and Martha (Hultz) Roberts. She was bornDecember 27, 1832, and died on December 17, 1897. Both are buried inthe Sparks Cemetery in Wells County, Indiana. They were the parentsof the following twelve children (for which see the family groupsheet)."

**********

See also SQ p.5297:

Isaac B. Sparks, son of Solomon and Isabella (Swaim) Sparks, was bornin Wilkes County, North Carolina, on April 2, 1822, and was twelveyears old when he accompanied his parents and siblings on their moveto Indiana. He was married on December 18, 1851, in Wells County,Indiana, to Cynthia A. Roberts, daughter of William and Martha (Hultz)Roberts. Cynthia had been born on December 27, 1832, and died onDecember 17, 1897. Isaac died on January 15, 1904, in Wells County.Both were buried in the Sparks Cemetery that had once been part of thefarm of Solomon Sparks, Isaac's father.

A sketch of the life of Isaac B. Sparks appeared in the History ofHuntington County (1887), pp.786-87. We
published this in full in the QUARTERLY of June 1959, p.399. Agreat-granddaughter of Isaac and Cynthia (Iva Sparks Lane of Marion,Indiana) provided us with a photograph of Isaac which we reproduced onthe cover of the QUARTERLY for September 1975, Whole No.91. Mrs. Lanealso provided a photograph of Isaac and Cynthia with 26 grandchildrentaken about 1895, which we reproduced on page 1755 of the same issueof the QUARTERLY.

**********

See the SPARKS QUARTERLY, December 2001, Whole No. 196, pp.5629-30"

"Isaac H. Sparks, son of Isaac and Wilmoth (Noland) Sparks, was bornon September 27, 1827. He was married to Nancy ["Nan"] Porter in 1860.While we do not know the date of his or his wife's death, we have moreinformation about his life than of any other child of Isaac andWilmoth Sparks because of a biographical sketch appearing in The LoneStar State. a book published in 1891/92, p.731. He was also mentionedand described by a grand-niece, Zula Tyson, in a letter included inthe sketch devoted to his sister, Martha Sparks . The article follows:

Isaac H. Sparks) a well-known citizen of Burleson county, Texas, isranked with the early settlers of
this State. He came to Texas in 1849, landing in Galveston, where hehad a brother, William N.
Sparks, who at that time was Sheriff of his county, and under him thesubject of our sketch served as
deputy for over a year. After that he rented land in Milam county andcultivated one crop. Next we
find him at Fort Sullivan, where for ten years he was variouslyemployed, his enterprise and energy
at once shoving him to the front. He made money rapidly. For sometime he worked at the cabinet
making and carpenter trade, and for four years he served as DeputySheriff under Jefferson
Rogers. Then he engaged in the grocery business, continuing the sameuntil the opening of the late
war. Coming to Burleson county about the time the war broke out, hewas appointed by the County
Commissioners to attend to the wants of soldiers' families, and wasthus occupied up to 1863. Then
he engaged in the army service, freighting cotton, and was making atrip at the time of the surrender,
being then at San Antonio, and from there returning home. He had soldhis store and property at the
opening of the war, taking Confederate money in payment for the same,at one time having about
$30,000 in such money; this, of course, was a total loss. About allhe had left when the war closed
was a few cattle and horses; no, not all, for he still retained hispluck and energy, and with this as
capital he went to work to rebuild his wasted fortunes. Mr. Sparks hasbeen a cripple ever since he
was five years old, at that time having his right foot injured whileplaying teeter with another boy. His physical disabilility,however, has not prevented him from making a success in life.

For four or five years Mr. Sparks bought and sold cattle and alsotraded in land, buying and selling
many tracts. About 1870 he finally settled down to farming and stockraising. Now he owns a large
farm on the Brazos bottoms and has about 500 acres where he lives. Hishomestead joins the old
town of Frameville , having selected this place for the purpose ofhaving his family near good schools. He has 100 acres undercultivation. In 1892 he bought from his son, Dr. Sparks, the grocerystore at Frameville, and has been running the business ever since forhimself, having conducted it for his son some time previous tothat date .

Mr. Sparks was born in Carroll county, Tennessee, September 27, 1827.He was reared on a farm
and his education has been that gained chiefly in the school ofexperience. Before he reached his
majority he began doing for himself, first being employed by a slavetrader and afterward by a
dealer in horses and mules . This was before he came to Texas, asabove stated. His parents were
Isaac and Willie (Knowling) [i.e. , Wilmoth Noland]. His father wasborn in the fort at Athens,
Georgia. . . .

Isaac Sparks [his father] was the eleventh born to his father'sfamily. His death occurred at the old
homestead in Tennessee. He was one of the first settlers of theneighborhood in which he lived and
died.

The subject of our sketch was married in 1860 to Miss Porter. Theirchildren, five in number, are as follows: Beatrice, wife ofSidney Dunn, died in 1889; Jesse p. , a practicing physician ofBurleson County; and James V., Benjamin I., and Willie, at home.

Mr. Sparks is an ardent Democrat and has always taken an active partin political matters, but has
never sought official position. He has been Election Judge ever sincethe reconstruction.
Fraternally, he is a Royal Arch Mason. Mrs. Sparks is a member of theMissionary Baptist Church.

When the 1880 census was taken of Burleson County , Texas , the fivechildren of Isaac H. and
Nancy E. (Porter) Sparks were listed as follows, all born in Texas: "(See their individual sheets.)

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 2624: He lived in Rushville, Illinois, then moved to Salin a,Kansas, and worked for a telephone company. When he retired, he moved to Smithfield, Illinois, where he died in June 1949. He is sai dto have had in his possession the rifle that had belonged to his grandfather, James Sparks; it had the date "1812" inscribed on its stock.
Isaac Sparks became a most successful businessman in Smithfield, Illinois. He was president of the telephone company, chairman of th eBoard of Education, and mayor of the town.

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, September 1997, Whole No. 179, p 4866:

"Isaac Newton Sparks, son of Bill and Polly (Lyon) Sparks, was born onJuly 29, 1840. He enlisted on December 29, 1861, in Company K, 5thRegiment Kentucky Mounted Infantry of the Confederate States Army andserved until he was mustered out with his company on October 20, 1862.Two days later, he enlisted in Capt. Field's Company of PartisanRangers (later to become a part of the 10th Regiment KentuckyInfantry, C.S.A.). He served in that unit until his capture on April25, 1864. Many years later, on April 5, 1917, his widow applied for aKentucky Confederate Army pension based on his service.

"Isaac Sparks was married to Mary ["Polly"] Branham on January 17,1865, in Carter County. She had been born on June 1, 1840/41, inCarter County and was a daughter of Jonathan and Polly (Gilliam)Branham. Isaac and Polly lived near a post office called Newfoundlandwhere he paid taxes on 195 acres of land.

"Isaac Sparks died at Evergreen, Wisconsin, on January 23, 1916/17,and Poll died there on June 19, 1921. They were buried in the BentCemetery at Price, Wisconsin. They had nine children.

"[Editor's Note: Near the turn of the 19th century, word was receivedin the hills of Elliott County that timbermen were needed to work inthe forests of upper Wisconsin. To the Elliott Countians, this wasmost welcome news. They were already skilled woodsmen, but they hadrun out of timber. Accordingly, they moved to Wisconsin by thedozens, and it is said that Langlade County, Wisconsin, became aminiature Elliott County. The town of Crandon in Forest County had apopulation of 1500, and some 800 of them were Kentuckians.]"

[JS Note:] US Census 1870, North Fork, Elliott County, KY, June 1870:
#12 Isaac Sparks 30
Mary 29
John B. 4
William H. 3

**********

The following is an email from Susan Hennessey (suesuehenhen@aol.com)to Danny McBee dated Feb 21, 2002 in answer to his request forinformation about Isaac Newton Sparks's son Claude H.:

Danny,
Isaac Newton Sparks was my great-great grandfather. He was the son ofWilliam and Mary (Lyon) Sparks. Born on July 29,1840. He enlisted onDecember 29, 1861, in Company K, 5th Regiment Kentucky MountedInfantry of the Confederate States Army and served until he wasmustered out with his company on October 20,1862. Two days later, heenlisted in Capt. Field's Company of Partisan Rangers (later to becomea part of the 10th Regiment Kentucky Infantry, (C.S.A.). He served inthat unit until his capture on April 25,1864. Many years later, onApril 5,1917, his widow applied for a Kentucky Confederate Armypension based on his service.

Isaac Sparks was married to Mary (Polly) Branham on Jan.17,1865 inCarter County, KY. She had been born on June 1, 1840/41, in CarterCounty and was the daughter of Jonathan and Polly (Gilliam) Branham.Isaac and Polly lived near a post office called Newfoundland where hepaid taxes on 195 acres of land.

Isaac died at Evergreen,WI on Jan. 23,1916/17, and Polly died there onJune 19,1921. They were buried in the Bent Cemetery at Price, WI.

Near the turn of the 19th century, word was received in the hills ofElliot County that timbermen were needed to work in the forests ofupper WI. This was most welcome news. They were already skilledwoodsmen and had run out of timber. He and his brothers and theirfamilies moved to Langlade County,WI and formed what is now the townof Crandon. Crandon had a population of 1500 and 800 of them wereKentuckians.

Isaac Newton and Polly had 9 children. John Bunyan (1866); WilliamHenry (1867-1881); Ida Bell (1870-1956)My great-grandma! She died twoyears before I was born.Sarah Alice (1872-1909); Edwin Delmus(1874-1934); Alamander A.(1876-1905); Nelson W. (1878-1902); Claude H.(1880-?); and Loucina Elizabeth (1882-?).

In an interview I did last month with my mom's older cousins, I wastold that Isaac Newton was a mormon and had many wives. Polly was hisfirst and couldn't handle the situation and moved to Antigo to be withIda Belle. Later Isaac became blind and his younger wives didn't wantto take care of him so they put him on a train to Antigo,WI. He livedwith Ida Belle until he died. I haven't been able to confirm thisstroy, yet, but I'm working on it.

Also in the spring we are going to look for their graves in the BentCemetary. It is about a two hour drive for us.

My mom and her cousins have mentioned both Claude and Loucina butright now I can't remember what they remembered. I also think I have apicture of Loucina. I'm waiting to hear from another relative fromTexas for more info. and maybe some pictures.

If I can help you with anything else let me know.

Sue

**********

THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, March, 1966, Whole No. 53, at p. 964:

Isaac Newton Sparks (called ?Newt?), son of John and Sarah (Bowlen)Sparks, was born June 17, 1848, near Florence, Alabama. His fatherdied a few months before he was born. He moved with his mother andbrothers to Tennessee, then to Arkansas and spent his adult life nearPoughkeepsie in Sharp County. Isaac N. Sparks married (first) MaryStreet, who died at the birth of their only child, a daughter namedMary. He married (second) Charity Victoria Goff, who Is said to havebeen one-quarter Indian. She was born September 10, 1859, and diedJanuary 30, 1927. Isaac N. Sparks died on June 21, 1920.

By his first wife, Mary (Street) Sparks, Isaac N. Sparks had onechild, Mary Sparks, who married (first) John Justice and (second) W.G. Lewsaw. By his second wife, Charity Victoria (Goff) Sparks, IsaacN. Sparks had the following children: ..." (See Family Group Sheet)

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

The following article about Claude E. Sparks, a great-grandson ofIsaac Newton Sparks appears in THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, March, 1966,Whole No. 53, at pps. 958-9:

CLAUDE E. SPARKS

Editor and Publisher of The Franklin County Times

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

"A native of Jonesboro, Arkansas, Claude E. Sparks is a graduate ofthe University of
Missouri School of Journalism. He came to Russellville in 1953 afterworking for the
Jonesboro (Arkansas) Evening Sun, the Blytheville (Arkansas)Courier-News, and the
Marshall (Texas) News-Messenger.

"Without knowing it at the time, when Mr. Sparks came to Russellvillein 1953 he was
actually returning to the home of his ancestors. He had known that hisgreatgrandfather
had been born near Florence, Alabama, but no one in his family hadmaintained a family
record. In 1964, Mr. Sparks learned of the Sparks Family Association,joi.ned, and soon
discovered that he was actually living within five miles of the spotwhere his great-great-
great-grandparents, John and Mollie Sparks, were buried. Thephotograph of the stone
marking their graves in the Sparks Family Cemetery near Russellvillereproduced on page
962 was taken recently by Mr. 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 on page 960 ofthis issue of the
QUARTERLY.)

"Mr. Sparks?s great-grandfather, Isaac Newton Sparks (called Newt),was born on June 17,
1848. In early boyhood he left Alabama and moved with his widowedmother and brothers
and sisters to Hardin County, Tennessee. Then in 1860, with his motherand brothers
John, Jim, Joe, and Bob, he moved to Arkansas by ox cart. Mr. Sparkshas written as
follows regarding his great-grandfather:

"They stopped to live at Smithville in Lawrence County on CoopersCreek where they lived
during the Civil War. All of the above-named brothers served in theConfederate Army
except Isaac Newton, who was too young. Bob was killed at Shiloh andJoe was shot in
the shoulder at Murfreesboro, Tennessee. He returned home, developedgangrene and
died at Smithville. He probably is buried at Old Bethel Cemetery nearDenton, Arkansas.
John was a cook in the Confederate Army.

"Left behind in Hardin County, Tennessee, was a sister who married aman named Hulen.
His first name is not known in my family, but it is reported that herdescendants 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, who later was marriedto John Justice
and then to W. G. Lewsaw. She had children by both marriages. MaryStreet Sparks died
at the birth of her daughter. Isaac Newton Sparks then married CharityVictoria Goff, who
is believed to have been one-quarter Indian. She and Isaac Newton areburied in the
church cemetery near their home place. Photographs were baked into thetombstones 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 Columbus and wasborn on his
birthday, February 16, 1929. Joseph Columbus was married to EttaLouella Miller,
daughter of Henry Scott Miller of Sharp County. They moved across thefield, built a house
at the community sometimes called ?Push,? and were quite active in thecommunity as
farmers. He was a fine blacksmith and his shop was a delight to mein my childhood.

"At one time in this community, Joseph Columbus Sparks and my fatheroperated the only
repair service for automobiles in the area, sold the gasoline, servedas carpenters and
builders and performed a number of services. My father served asbarber, both on
occasion served as rural undertaker in time of emergency and mygrandmother operated
the community?s ?central? telephone system. My grandfather was knownto pull teeth in this
remote community, which was miles from a doctor or dentist during manyperiods of time. I
have witnessed my grandfather pull a tooth while I was a child. He bidthe sufferer 'be
seated' in a cane-bottom chair by the fireplace, took his forceps froma small trunk and
hauled out 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 buried next to IsaacNewton and
Charity. My grandfather acquired some hill land and cattle, but wasnot a particularly good
farmer. He liked saw mills and machinery. He lived his entire life ina house 500 yards
from his birthplace." (End of Article)

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 3703: Isaac Newton and Daniel Sparks were twins.

SQ 1359: "Isabella Sparks, born about 1832. She is probably theIsabella Sparks who married Henry F. Sells in Franklin County,Tennessee, on Sept. 25, 1852."

SQ pg 2749:

"Isabella ("Ellen") Sparks, daughter of James Hawkins and Elizabeth(McKnight) Sparks, was born about 1844. She married Mark M. Burgessand they had at least four children.
(1) Walton Burgess;
(2 ) Etta Burgess married Percy C. Townsend;
(3) Callie Burgess. She died while quite young.
(4) Roy Burgess. He died at the age of ten years."

SPARKS QUARTERLY, Whole No. 152, December, 1990, pps.3688-3689:

"Isaiah Hale sparks, son of Hardy and Mary Sparks, was born about 1806in Tennessee and was probably named for his maternal grandfather. Hewas married to Sarah Speed Clayburn, probably about 1831 in Tennessee. She had been born about 1812 in South Carolina. Hale (as he wascalled locally) and Sarah lived on Sugar Creek, a tributary of DuckRiver flowing mainly through Hickman County. He was a farmer.

"We have found only two land deeds involving Hale Sparks. On December10, 1825, he sold 100 acres of land on Tumbling Creek to JeremiahMatthews for $250. We have not learned how he acquired this land .The second deed is dated March 7, 1854, and is for a grant of 100acres by the state of Tennessee.

"Isaiah Hale Sparks was the head of a household in Hickman County whenthe 1840 census was taken. He had five children under the age of 10years. When the 1850 census was taken, he and Sarah were shown witheight children. Living nearby was his uncle, Jesse Sparks, aged 77years.

"Hale Sparks apparently went with his father to Mississippi about1835, and two of his children, Nancy and Thomas, were born there according to census records. He did not stay there, however, and hereturned to Hickman County. Sometime prior to the outbreak of theCivil War, he moved his family to Arkansas where he settled in NewtonCounty. Four of his sons served in the Union Army during the Civil Warin an Arkansas regiment. Most of his children married in NewtonCounty.

"When the 1880 census was taken of Newton County, Hale and Mary Sparkswere shown living by themselves in Union Township. He was 79 years ofage and Mary was 67. We have found no records of their deaths whichoccurred sometime after the 1880 census was taken. According toinformation furnished by descendants, they had ten children."

SQ pg 2595:

"Israel A. Sparks, son of Francis and Mary Jane (Lamb ) Sparks, wasborn on December 28, 1872. He was a carpenter and a contractor. Hemarried Minnie Blanche Akers on September 14, 1898. She was born onJanuary 1, 1880, and was a daughter of Johnson and Mary Isabel (Maloy)Akers. Israel died on July 4, 1927, and Minnie died on August 12,1956. They were buried in the Springvale Cemetery at Lafayette,Indiana.

Israel had a knack for designing building and then erecting them . Hebuilt the school house at Americus, Indiana, and the Widmer home nearMontmorenci, Indiana. In 1924, he was the chief architect for theMonon Stone at Monon, Indiana. He was a member of the Knights ofPythias and St. Paul's Methodist Episcopal Church. He and Minnie hadtwo children."

.

!NOTES:
SQ 3187: "Israel S. Sparks was born on December 9, 1867, in Missou ri.
He married Merlena Jane Goins. He died in 1948."

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 3697: Her first marriage was to Wallace Seipp by whom she h adtwo children, Faye and Joyce. Her second marriage was to James Gilmore. She died in 1985.