See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, pp. 2945-46:

"Jonas Harris Sparks, son of Jonas and Rebecca Sparks, was born onOctober 8, 1840, in Tennessee. He was married on December 23, 1866, inArkansas County, Arkansas, to Olivia Anne Hudson. She had been born onAugust 27, 1850, in Mississippi; she died on October 20 1926, in Celina,Denton County, Texas. They moved from Arkansas to Texas after 1882.Jonas H. Sparks was a farmer, a Baptist, and he served in the Civil Waras a private in Company E, 18th Arkansas Regiment under Colonel H.Crockett. He died in Hunt County, Texas, on January 28 1887; he and hiswife are buried in the McWright Cemetery there. Following her husband'sdeath, Olivia married (2nd) David Jones Hynds in December 1888, and theyhad two daughters, Lucy Lee Hynds, born August 18, 1890, and Winnie DavisHynds, born August 7, 1893. A family record in the handwriting of D. J.Hynds, which has been copied for us by J. C. Perkins of Grand Prarie,Texas, a grandson of David Jones and Olivia Anne (Hudson) Hynds, thechildren of Jonas Harris and Olivia Anne (Hudson) Sparks [her firstmarriage] were born on the dates shown [on their family pages], all atGolden, Arkansas County, Arkansas. The information following these dateshas been provided by Mr. Perkins; his mother was Winnie Davis Hynds."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, September 1967, Whole No.59, page 1088:

Jonas J. Sparks, son of Jonas and Mary (Brown)Sparks, was born in Wilkes County,
N.C., on October 23, 1833, and died in TazewellCo., Va., on November 8, 1911. He was
married on August 19, 1851, to Polly Hankins,daughter of Joseph and Nancy (Mitchell)
Hankins. She was born in Virginia on December 25,1829, and died on February 14,
1904. Jonas J. Sparks served in the ConfederateArmy in the Civil War in Captain Elias
Harman’s Company of Rangers. Jonas J. and Polly(Hankins) Sparks were the parents of
the following children: (1) Joseph A. Sparks,married Hannah Mary Whitt; (2) Mary Sparks,
married the Rev. John Ezra Linkous; (3) Jonas R.Sparks, married Patsy Hankins and
moved to Oklahoma; (4) Robert M. Sparks, marriedMartha Maxwell; (5) Samuel B.
Sparks, married Emma Griffith; and (6) George W.Sparks, born April 27, 1868, married
Mary Elizabeth Virginia Faris.

SQ 3274:

"Jonas J. Sparks, son of William and Cynthia (Hankins) Sparks, wasborn about 1853. He married Ellen Ball about 1873, and they had threechildren when the 1880 census was taken of Tazewell County,
Virginia. There may have been other children born to this couple:

(1) Charlotte Sparks b. ca. 1875
(2) Jonathan Sparks b. ca. 1876
(3) Jonas sparks b. ca. 1879

THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, March 1964, Whole No. 45, p. 794:

JONAS SPARKS (DIED 1805]:

"Jonas Sparks, Jr. Although mentioned first in his father's will, it isdoubtful that he was the oldest son. He was married in 1796, so we mayguess that he was born in the early 1770's, perhaps while his family wasseeking a new home in Kentucky, or perhaps he was the baby brother thatElizabeth was carrying on her horse when the Indians attacked [referringto the trip on the Wilderness Trail into Kentucky with Daniel Boone in1773] . It was on October 15, 1796, that Jonas Sparks, Jr., obtained amarriage bond to marry Anna Caton (spelled Anney Katon on the marriagebond). John Hill was his bondsman; the witness was John Rogers. In18O2, Jonas Sparks, Jr., was taxed in Capt. Phillip's District of RowanCounty for 1OO acres of land. Between this date and the making of hisfather's will in May, 18O5, he died. " (Here article lists children andprovides details and issue of each)

.

!NOTES:
SQ 3276: "Jonas R. Sparks was born on July 21, 1856, in Virginia . He
m. Martha "Patsy" Hankins on May 4, 1876, in Tazewell County. She wa sborn
in April 1859 and was a daughter of James and Elizabeth (Quicksall) Hankins.
Jonas Sparks was a minister of the Christian Church. He was listed o nthe
1900 census of Tazewell County, Virginia, but about 1901 he moved t oOkla-
homa and died there in February 1912. He and Patsy had ten children:
(1) James Matthew Sparks b Apr 1879. He m. Mattie Robinson.
(2) Margaret "Maggie" Sparks b. Dec 1880. She m. Charles Johnson.
(3) Elizabeth Olivia Sparks b. Dec 1882. She m. Montgomery Johnson.
(4) Rachel R. Sparks was b. Feb 1885. She m. J. N. Dugger.
(5) Jay Gould Sparks b. Dec 1886. He m. Cora Maude Dorton on Jun e 28,
1908, in Russell Co. VA.
(6) Lucy Violet Sparks was b. in Aug 1888. She m. Thomas Woosley on
March 17, 1913, in Russell Co. VA.
(7) John Robert Sparks b. Apr 1891.
(8) Hattie May Sparks b. Jan 1894.
(9) Ernest J. Sparks b. Mar 1899. He m. Dorothy Robinson.
(10) Wilford Elmore Sparks was b. ca. 1900.

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, June, 1959, Whole No. 26, p. 386:

"JONATHAN SPARKS. Jonathan Sparks (395), fifth son of Solomon andCharity Sparks, appears to have been living at home and single when hisfather died in 1817, judging from the wording of the nuncupative will. AJonathan Sparks (383) who married Rachel Swaim in November, 1817, inSurry County, North Carolina (marriage bond dated November 26, 1817;William Sparks, bondsman) and was living in Surry County when the 1820census was taken., aged 26 to 45, with his wife who was between 16 and26, with two sons and one daughter under 10. Another Jonathan Sparks waslisted on the 1820 census of Wilkes County, North Carolina, aged 18 to26, with his wife, aged 16 to 18, and one son under 10. This Jonathanmust have married about 1819. These two Jonathan Sparkses were probablyfirst cousins. Which one was the son of Solomon and Charity is difficultto determine, although probably it was the one in Wilkes County. Whatbecame of him is not known--he was not listed on the subsequent WilkesCounty records.
"The Jonathan Sparks who married Rachel Swaim was probably a son ofJohn and Sarah (Shores) Sparks. By 1840 this Jonathan Sparks had movedto Franklin County, Tennessee and was still there in 1850. On the 1850census of Franklin County, a Solomon Sparks, aged 60, with his wifeSusan, aged 48, and family, is listed as living near Jonathan and SarahSparks. This Solomon Sparks was probably also a son of John and Sarah(Shores) Sparks; his children, as listed on the 1850 census were: MaryE., George, John, Hannah, Carroll, Peter, Jane, Alfred, and Lucinda.
"By 1860, Jonathan Sparks had moved from Franklin County, Tennessee,to Dallas County, Arkansas.. and on the census of that year gave his ageas 68 (thus born about 1792). From the census records of 1850 and 1860,it would appear that Jonathan and Rachel (Swaim) Sparks had the followingchildren born between 1828 and 1843: Jacob, Cynthia, Isabella, Jane, JohnC., Edward, and Sarah F. There were doubtless older children who had lefthome by 1850, born between 1817 and 1828."

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

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, December, 1970, Whole No. 72, for thearticle titled THE FAMILY OF JONATHAN AND RACHEL (SWAIM) SPARKS OF SURRYCOUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA, AND FRANKLIN COUNTY, TENNESSEE pp 1355-1360:

"(Editors Note: Most of the information on Jonathan Sparks and hisfamily has been compiled for us by Mr. J. W. Willis of 521 Talley Road,Chattanooga, Tenn. Mr. Willis has made a hobby of tracing the earlyfamilies of Franklin County, Tennessee. We are very grateful for hisassistance.)

"Jonathan Sparks (383) was born in North Carolina about 1792. Thereseems little doubt that he was a son of John and Sarah (Shores) Sparks(see the QUARTERLY of December 1955, Vol. III., No. 4, Whole No. 12, PP.97-104 quoted above). [This assumption is later proven WRONG; see belowarticle from the QUARTERLY of March, 1981, Whole No. 113]. John Sparks,who was born on February 25, 1753, was a son of Solomon and Sarah Sparkswho had moved from Frederick County, Maryland., to Rowan County, NorthCarolina, in 1753. John Sparks had moved with his parents to what is nowWilkes County, North Carolina (then Surry County) about 1772. JohnSparks married Sarah Shores, daughter of Reuben and Susannah Shores inSurry County, North Carolina, about 1777. John Sparks served as asoldier in the Revolutionary War and received a pension for his servicesin later years. He died in Wilkes County, North Carolina., about 1840.

"Our first official record of Jonathan Sparks is his name on the SurryCounty tax list of 1815 when he was taxed in Captain Martinis Districtfor 220 acres valued at $300,, located on Beaver Dam Creek adjoining theland of J. Edwards. He was taxed regularly for this land until 1821,when his name appears on the tax list for the last time. The owners ofland adjoining Jonathan Sparks in 1820 and 1821 were William Rose, JohnRose, Jr., Benjamin Sparks, James Parks, Sr., and John Parks. We havefound no record of Jonathan Sparks either purchasing or selling thistract of land-- perhaps he inherited it.

"Jonathan Sparks was married to Rachel Swaim in Surry County, NorthCarolina, in 1817. The marriage bond was dated November 26, 1817, andWilliam Sparks served as bondsman while James Parks served as witness.The marriage was probably performed a few days after November 26. It isbelieved that Jonathan Sparks had an older brother named William Sparks(see the article cited above., page 101).

"Another Jonathan Sparks (395), this one of Wilkes County, NorthCarolina,, can easily be confused with the subject of this sketch. ThisJonathan of Wilkes County was a son of Solomon Sparks, Jr., and his wifeCharity (see the QUARTERLY of June 1956, Vol. VII, No. 2, Whole No. 262Pp. 381-387). This latter Jonathan was a number of years younger thanthe Jonathan who was a son of John and Sarah Sparks and was unmarried atthe time that his father, Solomon (361), made his will in December 1817.

"Jonathan Sparks, son of John and Sarah (Shores) Sparks, was listed onthe 1820 census of Surry County, his age being given as between 26 and45., thus born between 1775 and 1794. His wife's age was given as 16 to26 (born between 1794 and 1804). By 1820 they had had three children,two sons and one daughter.

"Jonathan Sparks was not listed on the 1830 census of Surry County,North Carolina. Apparently he had moved away, perhaps as early as 1821,but his name did not appear on the 1830 census of Franklin County,Tennessee. He was listed there on the 1840 census, however, and from thebirth places of his children in subsequent census records it appears thathe was living somewhere in Tennessee in the late 1820's. "(Explains thatthis Jonathan (383) is not to be confused with Jonathan (395) who was theson of Solomon Jr. (361)."

"Jonathan and Rachel Sparks were still living in 1850; we have nolater record of them. From census records and other research performedby Mr. J. W. Willis, we have been able to assemble the following recordof their children and grandchildren. It is believed that Jonathan andRachel (Swaim) Sparks had ten children. (On page 1356 appearsinformation on their children for which see their family page.)

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

SPARKS QUARTERLY December 1974, No. 84, p. 1704: PARENTAGE OF RACHELSWAIM WHO MARRIED JONATHAN SPARKS:
"In the QUARTERLY of December 1970 (Vol. XVIII, No. 4, Whole No. 72,we published (pp. 1355-1361) a record of the family of Jonathan Sparkswho was born about 1792. We believe that Jonathan was a son of John andSarah (Shores) Sparks of Surry County, North Carolina. [WRONG. Seebelow.] Jonathan Sparks was married to Rachel Swaim in Surry County in1817 (marriage bond dated November 26, 1817). The last record that wehave of Jonathan Sparks is the 1840 census, at which time he was livingin Franklin County, Tennessee.
"It is believed that he died there. Mrs. Ted K. Clifton of Fort Wayne, Indiana, believes that Rachael was the Rachel Swaim born August 15,1802, to Quaker parents named Elihu and Sarah (Mills) Swaim. This familycame to Guilford County, North Carolina, about 1773 from Nantucket. Therewere also other Swaims who moved to Franklin County, Tennessee, as didJonathan and Rachel (Swaim) Sparks. Mrs. Clifton's source for thisinformation is the Hinshaw Quaker Records."

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

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, March, 1981, Whole No. 113, pp 2270 for anarticle entitled FURTHER THOUGHTS ABOUT THE FAMILY OF JOHN AND SARAH(SHORES) SPARKS:

"Jonathan Sparks. About 1821, a fairly large group of families leftthe Surry-Wilkes Counties area of North Carolina and moved to LawrenceCounty, Kentucky. Among these were the families of George Sparks, LeviSparks, Jesse Sparks, Jonathan Sparks, and Thomas Sparks. George Sparksand Levi Sparks were brothers, sons of John and Sarah (Shores) Sparks,and the other Sparkses were cousins of varying degrees of George and Levi.

"On August 21, 1826, Jonathan Sparks (395) appeared before theLawrence County Clerk and gave a power-of-attorney to his brother, GeorgeSparks, to act for him (Jonathan) in Surry County, North Carolina. Forobvious reasons, I have assumed through the years that the George Sparksreferred to in the Powerof-Attorney document was the George Sparks whowas my 2nd-great-grandfather, and thus I have spent many hoursfruitlessly attempting to reconcile my thinking with the census datawhich we had found for John and Sarah. I am now convinced that theGeorge Sparks who was a brother of Jonathan Sparks was not my 2nd-great-grandfather. I am further convinced that the powerof-attorney given byJonathan Sparks was carried to Surry County and was there given to hisbrother, George Sparks. George Sparks then used the document in settlingthe estate of his parents, Solomon and Charity Sparks. (Further detailsof the settlement of their estate can be found on page 385 of the June1959 issue of the QUARTERLY [reproduced above].

"Jonathan Sparks (395), son of Solomon and Charity Sparks, was bornabout 1797 in Wilkes County. He married Elizabeth Chappel, probablyabout 1818. She had witnessed the will of Jonathan's father, SolomonSparks, and had proved the will before the February 1818 term of theWilkes County Court. When the 1820 census was taken of Wilkes County,Jonathan and Elizabeth had one child, a son.

"As stated above, about 1821 Jonathan moved to Lawrence County,Kentucky, where he bought land on Big Blaine Creek in August 1822 andagain in 1826. He sold this land on August 15, 1828, and returned toWilkes County. There, on May 6, 1829, he and his brother, Joseph, actedas security for their brother, Samuel Sparks, who was administering theestate of their parents.

"Jonathan Sparks did not appear on the 1830 census of Wilkes County,nor have we found him on any other 1830 census record. By 1836,according to a descendant, he had moved to Tazewell County, Virginia,where he died in 1846. He left five children, three sons and twodaughters.

"Jonathan Sparks (395), son of Solomon and Charity Sparks, should notbe confused with his cousin, [THIS] Jonathan Sparks, who was probably ason of Joseph Sparks. Joseph Sparks was a son of Solomon and SarahSparks who had moved from Frederick County, Maryland, about 1755-1760 andwho had finally settled in Surry County, North Carolina. JonathanSparks, probable son of Joseph, was born about 1792 in Surry County andit was there that he married Rachel Swaim on November 26, 1817. When the1820 census was taken of that county, they had three children, two sonsand one daughter.

"Jonathan Sparks, probable son of Joseph, paid taxes on 220 acres ofland on Beaverdan Creek in Surry County from 1815 to 1822, but by 1830 hewas in Jackson County, Alabama. Four more children had now been born toJonathan and Rachel, two sons and two daughters. Sometime between 1830and 1840, Jonathan moved to Franklin County, Tennessee where he appearedon the 1840 and 1850 censuses. From census records, it appears that heand Rachel had twelve children, six sons and six daughters. for furtherdetails about this family, see pages 1355-1360 of the December, 1970issue of the QUARTERLY [duplicated above]."

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

SQ 3060: "Jonathan Sparks, probable son of Joseph Sparks, was bornabout 1792. He appeared on the 1820 census of Surry County, NorthCarolina ; on the 1830 census of Jackson County, Alabama; and on the 1840and 1850 censuses of Franklin County, Tennessee. (Here article explainsearlier confusion with the children of John and Sarah (Shores)Sparks--see brother Solomon's (900) notes for page numbers)." (JS: Weare warned that this Jonathan should not be confused with his cousinJonathan (395), son of Solomon and Charity Sparks.

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, June, 1959, Whole No. 26, p386:

"JONATHAN SPARKS. Jonathan Sparks, fifth son of Solomon and CharitySparks, appears to have been living at home and single when his fatherdied in 1817, judging from the wording of the nuncupative will. AJonathan Sparks married Rachel Swaim in November, 1817, in Surry County,North Carolina (marriage bond dated November 26, 1817; William Sparks,bondsman) and was living in Surry County when the 1820 census was taken.,aged 26 to 45, with his wife who was between 16 and 26, with two sons andone daughter under 10. Another Jonathan Sparks was listed on the 1820census of Wilkes County, North Carolina, aged 18 to 26, with his wife,aged 16 to 18, and one son under 10. This Jonathan must have marriedabout 1819. These two Jonathan Sparkses were probably first cousins.Which one was the son of Solomon and Charity is difficult to determine,although probably it was the one in Wilkes County. What became of him isnot known--he was not listed on the subsequent Wilkes County records.
"The Jonathan Sparks who married Rachel Swaim was probably a son ofJohn and Sarah (Shores) Sparks. By 1840 this Jonathan Sparks had movedto Franklin County, Tennessee and was still there in 1850. On the 1850census of Franklin County, a Solomon Sparks, aged 60, with his wifeSusan, aged 48, and family, is listed as living near Jonathan and SarahSparks. This Solomon Sparks was probably also a son of John and Sarah(Shores) Sparks; his children, as listed on the 1850 census were: MaryE., George, John, Hannah, Carroll, Peter, Jane, Alfred, and Lucinda.
"By 1860, Jonathan Sparks had moved from Franklin County, Tennessee,to Dallas County, Arkansas.. and on the census of that year gave his ageas 68 (thus born about 1792). From the census records of 1850 and 1860,it would appear that Jonathan and Rachel (Swaim) Sparks had the followingchildren born between 1828 and 1843: Jacob, Cynthia, Isabella, Jane, JohnC., Edward, and Sarah F. There were doubtless older children who had lefthome by 1850, born between 1817 and 1828."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, March, 1981, Whole No. 113, pp 2270-71:

"Jonathan Sparks. About 1821, a fairly large group of families leftthe Surry-
Wilkes Counties area of North Carolina and moved to Lawrence County,Kentucky. Among these were the families of George Sparks, Levi Sparks,Jesse Sparks, Jonathan Sparks, and Thomas Sparks. George Sparks and LeviSparks were brothers, sons of John and Sarah (Shores) Sparks, and theother Sparkses were cousins of varying degrees of George and Levi. [JS:Including the 2nd-great-grand- father of James J. Sparks (1), JamesSparks (189)].

"On August 21, 1826, Jonathan Sparks appeared before the LawrenceCounty Clerk and gave a power-of-attorney to his brother, George Sparks,to act for him (Jonathan) in Surry County, North Carolina. For obviousreasons, I have assumed through the years that the George Sparks referredto in the Power-of-Attorney document was the George Sparks who was my2nd-great-grandfather, and thus I have spent many hours fruitlesslyattempting to reconcile my thinking with the census data which we hadfound for John and Sarah. I am now convinced that the George Sparks whowas a brother of Jonathan Sparks was not my 2nd-great- grandfather. I amfurther convinced that the powerof-attorney given by Jonathan Sparks wascarried to Surry County and was there given to his brother, GeorgeSparks. George Sparks then used the document in settling the estate ofhis parents, Solomon and Charity Sparks. (Further details of thesettlement of their estate can be found on page 385 of the June 1959issue of the QUARTERLY.)

"Jonathan Sparks, son of Solomon and Charity Sparks, was born about1797 in Wilkes County. He married Elizabeth Chappel, probably about1818. She had witnessed the will of Jonathan's father, Solomon Sparks,and had proved the will before the February 1818 term of the WilkesCounty Court. When the 1820 census was taken of Wilkes County, Jonathanand Elizabeth had one child, a son.

"As stated above, about 1821 Jonathan moved to Lawrence County,Kentucky, where he bought land on Big Blaine Creek in August 1822 andagain in 1826. He sold this land on August 15, 1828, and returned toWilkes County. There, on May 6, 1829, he and his brother, Joseph, actedas security for their brother, Samuel Sparks, who was administering theestate of their parents.

"Jonathan Sparks did not appear on the 1830 census of Wilkes County,nor have we found him on any other 1830 census record. By 1836,according to a descendant, he had moved to Tazewell County, Virginia,where he died in 1846. He left five children, three sons and twodaughters.

"(Jonathan Sparks, son of Solomon and Charity Sparks, should not beconfused with his cousin, Jonathan Sparks, who was probably a son ofJoseph Sparks. Joseph Sparks was a son of Solomon and Sarah Sparks whohad moved from Frederick County, Maryland, about 1755-1760 and who hadfinally settled in Surry County, North Carolina. Jonathan Sparks,probable son of Joseph, was born about 1792 in Surry County and it wasthere that he married Rachel Swaim on November 26, 1817. When the 1820census was taken of that county, they had three children, two sons andone daughter.

"Jonathan Sparks, probable son of Joseph., paid taxes on 220 acres ofland on Beaverdam Creek in Surry County from 1815 to 1822, but by 1830 hewas in Jackson County, Alabama. Four more children had now been born toJonathan and Rachel, two sons and two daughters. Sometime between 1830and 184o, Jonathan moved to Franklin County, Tennessee, where he appearedon the 1840 and 1850 censuses. From census records, it appears that heand Rachel had twelve children, six sons and six daughters. For furtherdetails about this family, see pages 1355-1360 of the December 1970 issueof the QUARTERLY.)

SQ pp 5310-20:

Jonathan Sparks, fifth son of Solomon, Jr. and Charity Sparks, was bornabout 1797, in Wilkes County, North Carolina. At about the time that hecame Jonathan Sparks, of age, Jonathan was married in Wilkes County toElizabeth Chappel, a neighbor girl who had been a witness to thenuncupative will of Jonathan's father in 1817.

About 1821, several neighbors, including five Sparks families, moved fromtheir homes in the Wilkes and Surry Counties area in North Carolina toLawrence County, Kentucky. Among those making the move was JonathanSparks. The other four Sparks cousins were named George, Levi, Jesse, andThomas. Jonathan purchased land on Big Blaine Creek in Lawrence County inAugust 1822 and again in 1826. In the QUARTERLY of March 1981, WholeNo.113, beginning on p.2269, Paul E. Sparks, late president of ourAssociation, reported that for a number of years he had assumed thatJonathan had been a brother of Paul's 2nd- great-grandfather, GeorgeSparks. The main reason for this confusion, as explained by Paul, wasthat on August 21, 1826, Jonathan Sparks had appeared before the LawrenceCounty, Kentucky, Clerk to give a power-of-attorney to his brother GeorgeSparks to represent him in legal matters in North Carolina. Paul had longassumed that the George Sparks to whom Jonathan gave this power was theGeorge Sparks who had gone with him to Kentucky about 1821. Paul knewthat this George Sparks was his own 2nd-great-grandfather, a son of Johnand Sarah (Shores) Sparks. In reality, however, Jonathan's brother, towhom he gave the power-of-attorney, had remained in North Carolina.Paul's 2nd- great-grandfather actually had no brother named Jonathan(which is a correction to the list of children of John and Sarah (Shores)Sparks named on page 100 of the December 1955 issue of the QUARTERLY,Whole No. 12).

When Solomon Sparks, Jr. made his nuncupative will in 1817, he providedthat his widow, Charity Sparks, should have use of most of his propertyuntil she, herself, died. Charity Sparks died in 1828, so it was notuntil then that her and Solomon, Jr.'s six sons could divide theirfather's estate. It may have been in anticipation of Charity's death thatJonathan gave his brother, George, the power to act on his behalf. OnAugust 15, 1828, however, Jonathan sold his Kentucky land and returned toWilkes County. There, on May 6, 1829, he and his brother, Joseph Sparks,agreed to serve as bondsmen (i.e., security) for their brother, SamuelSparks, who was appointed by the Wilkes County Court to administer thesettlement of their father's estate.

Jonathan and Elizabeth (Chappel) Sparks continued to live in WilkesCounty, North Carolina, until Elizabeth's death there in 1836, followingthe birth of their last child. Shortly thereafter, Jonathan and his fivechildren moved to Tazewell County, Virginia, settling in Thompson Valley.It was there that Jonathan made his will on September 4, 1845, which wasprobated in 1847. According to the terms of the will, he left his 75-acrefarm in Tazewell County to be divided among his three sons, namedJonathan Sparks, Jr., William Sparks, and Joseph Sparks. He left hishousehold goods to his two daughters, Helen and Mary Alice Sparks, withthe request that Helen care for her brothers, William and Joseph, untilthey reached their eighteenth birthdays.

At a later date, we hope to provide a more detailed account of thisfamily. All three of the sons served in the Confederate Army in the CivilWar; Jonathan, Jr. and Joseph giving their lives to the Cause of theConfederacy.

SQ 3183: "Jonathan Sparks, son of Billie and Sallie (Jenkins) Sparks, wasborn on 24 April, 1831, in North Carolina. He died on 29 June, 1901. Henever Married."

SPARKS QUARTERLY, June, 1975, Whole No. 90, page 1746:

See the census for Hickman County, Tennessee for 1850, showing Jonathon,age 16, living with his father Jesse , then age 77..

SPARKS QUARTERLY, September 1990, Whole No. 151, page 3647-8:

"R. Jonathan Sparks, son of Jesse and Susan (May) Sparks, was born onNovember 25, 1834, in Hickman County,Tennessee. He had not reachedadulthood when his mother died, and when the 1850 census was taken ofHickman County, he was shown as 16 years of age and living with his77-year-old father. Apparently they continued to live together untilJesse died in 1858.

It was also about this time that Jonathan Sparks was married to JaneParalee Dickson. Paralee (as she apparently was called) had been bornabout 1836 in Tennessee, probably in Perry County. When the 1860 censuswas taken of Perry County, Jonathan and Paralee had an 11-month-old son.

When the Civil War broke out, Jonathan enlisted in Company C, 10thRegiment Tennessee Cavalry, Confederate States Army, to serve for threeyears. Apparently he served until the close of the war, and when the 1870census was taken, he and his family were still in Perry County. Fourmore children had been born to them.

We have not learned when or where Jonathan Sparks died, but it was sometime prior to 1910. When the census of that year was taken, his wife,Paralee (Dickson) Sparks, was living in the household of her son inCoahoma County, Mississippi. She and Jonathan had five children, andthere may have been others born to this couple."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, Dec 1992, Whole No. 160, p. 4056:

"Jonathan Boston Sparks, son of Solomon and Catherine (Hillegas)Sparks, was born on June 10, 1817, in Adams County, Ohio, and died inMarch 1862, at Covington, Kentucky. Judge Walter Sparks, in preparinghis 25 charts on the descendants of Solomon and Catherine (Hillegas)Sparks, could find no further information on Jonathan except that he hada daughter named Ida Marie Sparks who married a man named Goff. He wasprobably the Jonathan B. Sparks shown on the 1850 census of WinchesterTownship, Adams County, Ohio, as 32 years old, born in Ohio, and acarpenter. Rebecca Sparks, doubtless his wife, was shown as 32 years oldand also born in Ohio. Eleven-year-old Cynthia A. Sparks, doubtlesstheir daughter, was shown in their household, along with Joseph Wright,age 40, who may well have been a brother of Rebecca. A history ofWinchester entitled WINCHESTER SESQUICENTENIAL, 1815-1865, by W. M.Sellman, published in 1965m, states (page 38) that Jonathan B. Sparks wasmarried to Barbara Wright, license dated January 28,m 1839, in theHighland County, Ohio, marriage records. W. M. Sellman was probablymistaken in stating that the wife of Jonathan B. Sparks had the firstname of Barbara."

!NOTES:
SQ 1359: "Jonathan (Jack) Sparks, born Oct. 18, 1859 (or Oct. 26) ;married
Martha Sells Sept 4, 1879, who was born about 1858, daughter of Jame s T.and
Frances (Shipp) Sells."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, Mar 1990, Whole No. 149, pp. 3554-3561:

"[Editor's Note: Joseph Sparks, who died in 1749 in Frederick County,Maryland, was a son of William and Mary ( ----- ) Sparks who migrated tothe Colony of Maryland from Hampshire County, England, about 1663. There,William Sparks died in Queen Annes County in 1709. His biographicalrecord was published in the QUARTERLY of March 1971, Whole No. 73, onpages 1381-1389, and included the text of his will. Named as sons in hiswill were William Sparks, Jr., John Sparks, George Sparks, and JosephSparks, the latter being described as "underage."

"Subsequent to the publication of the article about William Sparks(died 1709), an article dealing with his son, John Sparks, appeared inthe December 1974 issue of the QUARTERLY, Whole No. 88, pages 1699-1704.This was followed by an article containing information regarding WilliamSparks, Jr., eldest son of William Sparks (died 1709), which waspublished in the QUARTERLY of December 1989, Whole No. 148, pages3484-3486. Here, we present an account of the life of Joseph Sparks,youngest son of William Sparks, Sr. who died in 1709.]

"Joseph Sparks, son of William and Mary ( ----- ) Sparks, was bornabout 1690 in Talbot County, Maryland. He was not "of age" (that is, age21 years) when his father made his will on June 21, 1709, in Queen AnnesCounty. From his father, he inherited (along with his brother, WilliamSparks, Jr.) a share of two tracts of land in Queen Annes County called"Hills Adventure" and "Sparks Outlet." The inherited tracts, located onIsland Creek, were also to be shared with another brother, John Sparks,if he (John) became dispossessed of another legacy of land left to him byhis father. In addition, the will specified that in the event thatJoseph Sparks died before coming of age, his share of the land was to goto his brother, William Sparks, Jr. Joseph was also given one yearlingheifer under the terms of his father's will.

"The legacy of land (referred to in the paragraph, above) whichWilliam Sparks, Sr. had given by his will to his son, John Sparks, was a249-acre tract called "Highgate" or more completely "Harden & Highgate."William Sparks, Sr. had purchased the land on February 2, 1707, from Johnand Elizabeth Hamer for 22,000 pounds of tobacco; however, there seemedto have been doubt as to whether Hamer had the right to sell this land.In the event that it was found that Hamer had no right to sell it,William Sparks asked his heirs to return the land to Hamer and then forthem to make provision for John to share equally in the land which he(William, Sr.) had given to his sons, William, Jr. and Joseph.

"Apparently the title to "Harden & Highgate" was not clear, and onMarch 15, 1716, William Sparks, Jr. and John Sparks returned the land toHamer. It also seems apparent that in the exchange of the various tractsof land, Joseph Sparks was given a portion (100 acres) of a 250-acretract of land called "Sparks Choice" to replace his equity in the twotracts of land ("Sparks Outlet" and "Hills Adventure") willed to him andhis brother, William, Jr., by their father.

"Three years later, on March 21, 1719, Joseph Sparks (designated inthe deed as "planter") sold his share (100 acres) of "Sparks Choice" toAugustine Thompson. The consideration was 3,000 pounds of tobacco. JohnWhittington and James Earle witnessed the transaction, and Joseph Sparksconveyed the land by signing the deed by mark. Since he conveyed theland by himself, it seems obvious that he had no wife at that time.(Augustine Thompson was mentioned a number of times in land transactionsof the Sparks brothers; he was obviously a neighbor and a fellow memberof St. Lukels Parish Church in Queen Annes County. The parish registershows his marriage to Elizabeth Ball on November 17, 1729. He died thereon February 26, 1738, according to the register.)

"We have found no record pertaining to Joseph Sparks during the periodfrom 1719 to 1738. From the estimated ages of some of his children, weassume that he was married about 1725, probably when he was about 35years old. His wife's name was Mary, but we have not learned her maidenname. Apparently, she and Joseph continued to live in Queen Annes Countyafter their marriage, and it was there that a son, William Sparks, wasborn to them on April 27, 1738. He was baptized on June 4, 1738,according to an early register of St. Luke's Parish in Queen AnnesCounty. (There is a possibility that Mary was the second wife of JosephSparks. This possibility will be discussed more fully later in thisarticle.)

"Joseph Sparks had a nephew, William Sample Sparks, who was a son(probably the eldest son) of Joseph's brother, William Sparks, Jr. Therewere only a few years difference in the ages of Joseph and William SampleSparks, probably ten at the most, and there appears to have been a closepersonal friendship as well as the family relationship between them. Thisbond apparently was handed down to other members of their families whoselives also became entwined for several generations.

"One of the first indications of a close friendship between Joseph andWilliam Sample is shown by their departures from Queen Annes County.William Sample Sparks left the county prior to 1736, as related by Dr.Russell E. Bidlack on page 3487 of the December 1989 issue of theQUARTERLY. Joseph followed his nephew some time after the birth of his(Joseph's) son in 1738. He probably used a ferry at Kent Island to crossChesapeake Bay to the community of Annapolis and then moved westward,with the aid of a horse-drawn cart, to the general area of Pipe Creeks(Big and Little) where he settled near his nephew. (See the map of thisarea in Frederick County, Maryland, on page 3488 of the QUARTERLY ofDecember 1989.)

"Joseph Sparks died in the spring of 1749. He was a relatively youngman and was probably stricken suddenly since he apparently had noopportunity to make a will. He left his wife, Mary, with a household ofchildren, probably ranging in ages from a few years to adulthood.

"The Frederick County Court appointed Mary Sparks, widow of Joseph, tobe administratrix of his estate and designated two neighbors, Joseph Woodand William Carmack, to take an inventory of his property. As recordedon pages 22-23 of the Frederick County Inventory Book A, No. 1, theinventory amounted to nearly 85 pounds. It was presented to the court onJune 21, 1749, by Mary Sparks. A transcription follows:

Inventory of Joseph Sparks - Frederick County, Maryland, 1749
Liber A #1 Folio 22-23
An inventory of the Goods and Chattels Rights and Credits of JosephSparks, Late of Frederick County, Deceased, viz:
£ S d

To his Wearing Apparil @@ 1 10 0
To three old feather Beds and some bed Cloaths
and three old bed steds @@ 10 0 0
To some putor and some Earthin Ware @@ 1 10 0
To three Iron Potts and two Pott Hooks @@ 2 15 0
To one Iron Kittle and one Iron Skillet @@ 0 10 0
To one Washing Tub, three pailes and
some wooden ware @@ 0 10 0
To one old Chest and old Wooden Lumber @@ 0 15 0
To three Books, one pr Wool Cards and
one Glass Bottle @@ 0 10 0
To some wool and Two Bells @@ 2 5 0
To thirteen head of Cattle, young and old @@ 24 0 0
To two Horses, one mare and one
two-year Horse Colt @@ 18 0 0
To fifteen head of Sheep, young and old @@ 5 2 6
To fourty four head of Swine, young
and old @@ 10 0 0
To one plow, plowshares and colter
and three cleavises @@ 1 10 0
To one old Loom, one old Woollen Wheel
and two old Linnen Wheels @@ 1 15 0
To one old Saddle and Bridle and two
Green Hides @@ 1 0 0
To two old Axes, two Iron Wedges, one
frow and one iron Pott @@ 1 5 0
To a Pair of old Stilyards, two old Weeding
Hoes and some old Iron @@ 1 0 0
To a old Cart and a short Iron Chain @@ 1 0 0
==============================[markedout]===========
To Cash Received for furr belonging to
ye Deceased @@ 1 2 4

Total 84 19 10

Appraised by us the Subscribers this first day of May 1749,

Witness our hands--

[signed] Jos. Wood
11 William Carmack

Creditors Duvalt X Young Creditor to the state of
Joseph Sparks one pound and for
[signed] Osborn Sprigg

Kinn William Sample Sparks his mark +
Rachell Sparks hermark \

"On the 21st of June 1749, Mary Sparks admrx of Joseph Sparks, late ofFrederick County Deceased, made Oath on the Holy Evangelists of AlmightyGod that the within Inventory is a Just and perfect one of all andSingular the Goods and Chattels of the said Deceased that came to herhands and possession at the time of the making thereof; that what hathsince or shall hereafter come to her hands possession or knowledge, shewill return in an Additional Inventory; that she knows of no concealmentof any part or parcel thereof by any person or persons whomsoever; thatif she shall hereafter discover any concealment or suspect any to be, shewill acquaint the Commissary General for the time being or his Deputywith such discovery or Cause of Suspicion that it may be enquired into;and that she will well and Truly give an Account of all and Every Part ofthe Deceaseds Personal Estate that shall come to her hands, posession orknowledge.
Sworn before me, [signed] John Darnall, Depy Comy Fredk County.

Account of Joseph Sparks -- Frederick County, Maryland, 1749
Liber 24 Folio 214
The account of Mary Sparks admintx of Joseph Sparks, Decd. The saidAccountant chargeth herself Debtor with the amount of her Decd HusbandsEstate as pr Inventory amounting to in Current money And humbly praysallowance for the following payments & disbursements pr
Payd Mr. Dudley Digges for his father John Digges as pr acct proved& Receipt appears the acct Pounds Shill. Pence
not proved in time but she knows it to be justly due 1 8 1
Payd David Young as pr receipt appears and acct proved 1 0 4
Payd Osborn Sprigg Sheriff as pr acct proved & receipt appears Tobo563 lbs. which at 12 s 6 per
centum is at 4 shillings cash 3 14 4
Payd Robert Gorman pr receipt appears & she declares to be just due 0 8 0
Payd Daniel Brook as pr account proved & receipt appears 0 2 6
Payd Jos. Wood for appraising her husbands Estate as pr receipt 0 5 0
Payd William Carmack for Do as pr receipt 0 5 0
Payd John Hamilton as pr receipt & she declares to be justly due 0 7 0
To Drawing & stating this account 0 5 0
To my Commission on 7 pds. 15 sh. 3 pence 0 14 1

____________________
8 9 4

"Nov. 20th 1749. Came the above named Mary Sparks admintx afsd beforeme the subscriber Deputy Comsary the County afsd & made oath on the HolyEvangelist of Almighty God that the above account is just & true whichafter examination is passed & allowed pr me.
[signed] John Darnall, DeptyComy.

"The older children of the large family of Joseph Sparks had reachedmaturity
by the time of their father's death, and some of them were married andhad already begun to establish families of their own. They had alsoheard stories of the cheap, fertile lands available to setters in thewestern sections of the American colonies where no quitrents werecharged. It is obvious that they were impatient for a final settlementand distribution of their share of their father's personal estate.Apparently their impatience was expressed to the Frederick County Courtin the spring or early summer of 1750. When the Court convened at itsregular August term, the justices approved the following memorandum:

"August 1750. Page 64. Memorandum this day towit:

"The twenty-second day of August Anno Dom Seventeen Hundred and Fifty:Mary Sparks, Col. Henry Munday and Thomas Wilson (Toms Creek) ofFrederick County entered into and executed a certain writing obligatoryin One Hundred and Fifty Three Pounds, one Shilling, current money, to bepaid unto Solomon, Joseph, Charles, Jonas, Jonathan, William, George,Merum, Mary, Ann, Rebecca and Sarah Sparks on Condition that the abovebounden Mary Sparks, or some person on her behalf, shall and do well andtruly satisfy and pay unto the above named Solomon, Joseph, Charles,Jonas, Jonathan, William, George, Merum, Mary, Ann, Rebecca and SarahSparks, their executors, administrators, assigns or lawful guardian orguardians their respective parts or portions of Joseph Sparks, deceased,his estate according to Acts of Assembly in such cases made and provided.

"[It should be noted in the above document that the figure of 153pounds and one shilling current money referred to the amount of the bondagreed to by Mary Sparks, Col. Munday, and Thomas Wilson to assurecompliance with this court order; this was not the amount of JosephSparks's estate.]

"The apparent impatience of at least some of Joseph Sparks's childrento obtain their share of their father's estate may only suggest that theywere making immediate plans to leave Frederick County. On the otherhand, their action could suggest some sort of alienation between them andMary Sparks, Joseph's widow. One wonders whether, perhaps, Mary couldhave been a second wife and thus the step-mother of Joseph's oldestchildren. We know that there was a considerable spread in the ages ofJoseph's children, with the son named William (who had been baptized inQueen Annes County in 1738) only about 11 years old when his fatherdied. Might the reason Joseph had no wife to co-sign his deed in 1719have been that he was even then a widower?

"A widow left with small children was not usually required todistribute immediately her late husband's estate among his heirs ininstances where he had left no will. Furthermore, there was not a greatdeal to divide among twelve children. Joseph owned no land at the timeof his death, and the estimated value of his personal property came toonly 84 pounds, 19 shillings, and 10 pence. The payment of debts and thecosts of probating the estate (8 pounds, 9 shillings, and 4 pence)further reduced this total to 76 pounds, 10 shillings, and 6 pence. Inthe absence of a will, the law provided that a widow should receive onethird of her late husband's estate. Assuming that there had been apublic sale and that the articles inventoried brought the amountsestimated to be their value by the appraisers of the estate, this wouldwould have left slightly over 51 pounds in "current money" to be dividedby 12, resulting in 4 pounds and 5 shillings per child. When, forexample, we compare this figure with the appraised value of Joseph's mareand two-year-old colt, which was 24 pounds, we realize how relativelylittle only 4 pounds and 5 shillings could purchase. Considering, also,in what a difficult strait this distribution must have left Mary, we canfind, perhaps, the children's action to be more understandable if Marywere their stepmother rather than their mother. There is also thepossibility, of course, that the older children of Joseph Sparks expectedhis widow to marry again rather soon. We have no information regarding asecond marriage of Mary Sparks, but we are aware that youthful widows didoften marry a second time rather quickly.

"The two men appointed to prepare the inventory of the estate left byJoseph Sparks (Joseph Wood and William Carmack) were chosen from amonghis neighbors, as was the custom. To perform such service, it was notonly necessary that they be men who were known to be good judges ofproperty values, but they also had to be able to write in a clear hand.Wood and Carmack were each paid five shillings for their service on thisoccasion.

"Joseph Wood, whose wife's name was Mary, was known as "Joseph Wood ofLinganore" to distinguish him from another Frederick County residentknown as "Joseph Wood of Israells Creek." Joseph Wood of Linganore hadacquired a tract of land in 1748 which he named "Wood's Lot." It waslocated a half-mile from present day Unionville according to PIONEERS OFOLD MONOCACY, THE EARLY SETTLEMENT OF FREDERICK COUNTY, MARYLAND,1721-1743, by Grace L. Tracey and John P. Dern, published in 1987. It isnoted on page 103 of this book that "some of the buildings built by Wood[on "Wood's Lot"] were still standing in 1956, on Wilbur Baker's farm.11At a meeting of the Frederick County Court in November 1751, "Joseph Woodof Linganore was appointed overseer of the Middle
Part of the Road from Thomas Beatty's to Baltimore." (See p. 88 of THISWAS
THE LIFE, EXCERPTS FROM THE JUDGMENT RECORDS OF FREDERICK COUNTY,
MARYLAND, 1748-1765, by Millard Rice, 1979.)

"William Carmack (1716-1776), the other neighbor who helped preparethe inventory, was a son of Cornelius Carmack who had died in 1748, justa year before Joseph Sparks's death. This family had come to FrederickCounty from Cecil County, Maryland, prior to 1742. William Carmack'swife's name was Jane. They were living where the town of Liberty nowstands when he helped prepare the inventory of Joseph Sparks's propertyin 1749. (See pp. 103-04 of PIONEERS OF OLD MONOCACY.)

"It was a requirement in the Province of Maryland that the inventoryof an estate be signed not only by the men making the inventory, but alsoby the two major creditors of the estate and by two "kinn" of thedeceased. The "kinn" were supposed to be the closest relatives who werenot heirs to the estate, brothers and sisters, as well as brothers-in-lawand sisters-in-law, often performing this service. No brothers orsisters were living near Joseph Sparks when he died, however, so anephew, William Sample Sparks, signed as "kinn," as did also a RachellSparks. We believe that Rachell was the wife of William Sample Sparks.Both signed by mark. Joseph's father, William Sparks (died 1709), alwayssigned his name by mark, as did Joseph and his brothers and most of theirchildren. This does not necessarily mean, however, that they could notread. It is interesting to note that among the possessions of JosephSparks were three books, even though both he and Mary signed their namesby mark.

"The two chief creditors of Joseph Sparks who signed the inventorywere Duvalt Young and Osborn Sprigg. Young signed by mark, which meansthat someone else wrote his name. Because in the final settling of debtsowed by Joseph's estate, Young's name appears as "David Young," webelieve that David was his correct name, not "Duvalt," and that he wasthe David Young identified in PIONEERS OF OLD MONOCACY as one of theearly German settlers in Frederick County (p. 350). Why Joseph Sparksowed David Young 1 pound and 4 pence is not known.

"Osborn Sprigg, the other chief creditor, was identified as "Sheriff"when Mary Sparks paid the 3 pounds, 14 shillings, and 4 pence owed tohim. (Tobacco being the chief medium of exchange in colonial Maryland,through documents proving ownership of tobacco stored in warehouses, itis interesting to note that this amount of current money was equivalentto 563 pounds of tobacco.) Osborn Sprigg, son of Thomas, Jr. and Margaret(Mariarte) Sprigg, first acquired a land grant in 1734 in that part ofPrince Georges County that was cut off to form Frederick County in 1748.Sprigg was never a resident of Frederick County, but continued to live inthat part of Prince Georges County which remained after Frederick wascreated in 1748. In 1745, he was one of four men elected to representPrince Georges County in the General Assembly of Maryland. (See THEMARYLAND GAZETTE of April 26, 1748. ) By 1748, he had become High Sheriffof Prince Georges County, which accounts for his title as used by MarySparks in paying her husband's debt to him.

"Osborn Sprigg owned several tracts of land in Frederick County andwas thus an absentee landlord. At a meeting of the Frederick CountyCourt in November 1749, the Court contracted with Sprigg "to keep a ferryat the mouth of Monocacy until the end of next November Court." The Courtagreed to pay him 7,200 pounds of tobacco for this service. We can besure, however, that he engaged someone to operate the ferry for him. Itwas in November 1749 that Mary Sparks paid Osborn Sprigg the amount owedhim by her deceased husband, and it was then also that he agreed tooperate the ferry at the mouth of the Monocacy River. On January 5,1750, however, he died. His widow, Rachel Sprigg, was appointedadministratrix of his estate. (See THE MARYLAND GAZETTE of January 10,1750, and April 11, 1750.)

"Although Joseph Sparks owned no land in Frederick County, theinventory of his personal estate reveals that he owned a considerableamount of livestock, consisting of cattle, horses, sheep, and swine,along with some basic farming machinery. We can only conclude that heoccupied land owned by someone else, doubtless paying rent for its use.(In Colonial Maryland, all land was owned by the Lord Proprietor and,although grants were made by his office to individuals, persons obtainingsuch grants were not only required to pay "caution money" at the time ofthe acquisition, but also an annual quitrent. When the land was sold toanother party, an "alienation flne" was assessed. Such land could beinherited, but in the absence of heirs, it reverted to the LordProprietor.)

"It seems probable that Joseph Sparks had lived on and cultivated landin Frederick County which belonged to Osborn Sprigg, paying him annualrent, which would, then, explain the fact that Sprigg was one of thechief creditors of Joseph Sparks (in the amount of 563 pounds of tobacco,or 3 pounds, 14 shillings, and 4 pence).

"Perhaps there is a similar explanation for Joseph Sparks's debt toJohn Digges. As seen in her account of expenditures for the estate, MarySparks made a payment from her husband's estate in the amount of 1 pound,8 shillings, and 1 pence to "Mr. Dudley Digges for his father JohnDigges."

"John Digges was both a land investor and a land speculator in WesternMaryland. As described in PIONEERS OF OLD MONOCACY (p. 42), Digges "wasa man of somewhat doubtful honor"; he sold land on occasion to which hedid not have a legal title. As a grandson of Governor Edward Digges ofVirginia, John Digges had obtained warrants for thousands of acres ofland which he claimed entitled him to most of northern and westernMaryland. In 1732, the Maryland Assembly was informed that Diggesclaimed all the vacant land on the Monocacy and its branches. JohnDigges died not long after Mary Sparks paid his son, Dudley, the amountowed by Joseph Sparks. The legal tangles left by John Digges continuedto embroil his family in disputes, however, and "in 1752 Dudley Diggeswas killed in a battle between contesting groups."

"We have not succeeded in identifying Robert Gorman, Daniel Brook, andJohn Hamilton to whom Mary Sparks paid small amounts from Joseph'sestate. They were probably workman from the area who performed suchservices as digging Joseph's grave and providing a coffin.

"The children of Joseph Sparks were probably not named in theMemorandum reproduced on pages 3557-58 in the exact order of theirbirths, although we feel fairly certain that Solomon and Joseph wereamong the oldest of the family. We have found no further recordpertaining to any of the five daughters; however, we have been able tofollow the lives of all of the seven sons for several years after thesettlement of their father's estate. As noted earlier, no further recordhas been found of Mary Sparks, widow of Joseph.

Following are the references to Joseph's sons as recorded in THE SPARKSQUARTERLY:

1. Solomon Sparks married Sarah ------ and they went to Rowan County,North Carolina. See the December 1955 and the December 1989 issues ofthe QUARTERLY, Whole Nos. 12 and 148, respectively.

2. Joseph Sparks married Mary McDaniel, and they lived in FrederickCounty, Maryland, until about 1800 when he went to Bedford County,Pennsylvania. See the March 1955 issue of the QUARTERLY, Whole No. 9;the December 1960 issue, Whole No. 32; the September 1961 issue, WholeNo. 35; the September 1986 issue, Whole No. 135; and the December 1986issue, Whole No. 136.

3. Charles Sparks married Margaret ------ and they went to BedfordCounty, Pennsylvania, then on to Washington County. See the June 1963issue of the QUARTERLY, Whole No. 42.

4. George Sparks married Mary ------ and they went to WashingtonCounty, Pennsylvania. See the June 1963 issue of the QUARTERLY, WholeNo. 42.

5. Jonas Sparks married a woman whose name we have not learned, andthey went to Rowan County, North Carolina. See the March 1964 issue ofthe QUARTERLY, Whole No. 45.

6. Jonathan Sparks probably went to Rowan County, North Carolina, andwas probably the Jonathan Sparks who entered land there in 1761.

7. William Sparks married Martha Moore, and they went to WashingtonCounty, Pennsylvania. See the June 1963 issue of the QUARTERLY, WholeNo. 42; the March 1984 issue, Whole No. 125; and the June 1984 issue,Whole No.
126.

"Col. Henry Munday who, with Thomas Wilson, entered into the August1750 obligation of Mary Sparks to divide her husband's estate among hisheirs, had obtained his first grants of land in the Monocacy Valley in1738 near the mouth of Pipe Creek where it flows into the Monocacy River.(See the map on page 3488 of the December 1989 issue of the QUARTERLY,Whole No. 148.) When Frederick County was separated from its parent,Prince Georges County, in 1748, Munday was chosen to be one of the fivejustices to manage the legal affairs of the new county. He was also anofficer in the Maryland Militia. Munday died early in 1751. (See P. 333of PIONEERS OF OLD MONOCACY.)

"Thomas Wilson, the other individual named in 1750 to assure that eachheir of Joseph Sparks received his/her proper share of the estate, wasidentified as a resident of Tom's Creek. Tom's Creek flows into theMonocacy River a short distance above the mouth of Pipe Creek. He wasappointed one of Frederick County's 21 constables in November 1753.

SQ 3230: "Married Elizabeth Kelly on 18 Nov 1731. Children: Ann David,
Elizabeth, Joseph, Mary, Arthur, Frances and Amy."
Marriage record is found in records of St. Luke's Parish, p. 38, Queen
Annes County, MD. See notes of brother George for full citation.

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, December 1992, Whole No. 160, pg 4036-4040:

"Joseph Sparks, probable son of George and Mary (------) Sparks, wasborn about 1704. He was married to Elizabeth Kelley on November 18,1731, in Queen Annes County. He served in Capt. James Brown's Companyof Provincial Militia in 1748. He died intestate in the latter part of1758, and the Queen Annes County Court appointed his son, David Sparks,as the administrator of his estate.

"David Sparks had barely attained adulthood, having reached his 21stbirthday just a few months earlier, and his father's death was the startof a chain of unusual events, ending with David's own death in the earlypart of 1762. Apparently, several members of the family of Joseph Sparkswere victims of some kind of malady. Joseph died in 1758; his wife diedshortly afterwards; and two sons died just a few years later.

"An inventory was taken of the estate of Joseph Sparks by BenjaminGould and Abner Dudley which was presented to the Queen Annes CountyCourt on February 6, 1759. Arthur Sparks and Joseph Sparks signed theinventory as the "next of kin", and David Sparks, administrator, swore tothe accuracy of its contents. The total value of the estate was slightlyover 17 pounds.

"As indicated above, David Sparks, son of Joseph and administrator ofhis father's estate, did not live to complete the settlement of theestate, whereupon, the Queen Annes County Court appointed John Pinder asthe administrator of the estate of Joseph Sparks as well as the estate ofDavid Sparks.

"On June 10, 1762, John Pinder gave the Queen Annes County Court anaccounting of the estate of David Sparks. On February 9, 1764, he gavethe court a final accounting of the estate of Joseph Sparks. Thesettlement, which included the earlier inventory by David Sparks,amounted to 23 pounds.
In the accounting of the estate of Joseph Sparks, the representatives ofhis family were recorded as follows:

Wife: Elizabeth Sinnett, his widow since remarried, but nowdeceased.
Daughter: Anne, wife of David Reed.
Son: David Sparks, the former administrator, now deceased.
Daughter: Mary Sparks
Daughter: Elizabeth Sparks ) all "of age."
Son: Joseph Sparks
Son: Arthur Sparks, 20 years old on February 17th.
Daughter: Frances Sparks, 12 years old in May.
Daughter: Amey Sparks, 10 years old on July 28th.

"From the Accounts and Inventories cited above, it seems quiteapparent that Joseph and Elizabeth (Kelly) Sparks had eight children (forwhich see their family pages).

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, September 1986, Whole No. 135, pp. 2914-2928for

JOSEPH SPARKS (ca.1730-1809) OF FREDERICK COUNTY, MARYLAND
& BEDFORD COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA

by Paul E. Sparks.

[That article covers four of the children of Joseph and Mary (McDaniel)Sparks and their descendants, i.e. Joseph Jr., James, Mary, and Sarah.Also see the December 1986 issue, Whole No. 136, pp. 2958-2974 whichcovers the remaining children and their descendants, i.e. Solomon,Rebecca, Susannah, Elizabeth, and Chloe.]

Joseph is featured in the above articles which trace his ancestry tohis grandfather William (204), and his father Joseph (344) (See also SQ2914) where it states in part: "Joseph Sparks (428), the patriarch ofthe Sparkses of Bedford County, Pennsylvania, was born about 1730,probably in Queen Anne's County, Maryland, and was a son of Joseph (344)and Mary (585) Sparks. Joseph Sparks, Sr. died intestate in the springof 1749 in Frederick County, Maryland, and his wife, Mary Sparks, wasappointed his administratrix An inventory of his personal property wasrecorded on May 1, 1749, by Joseph Wood and William Carmack. WilliamSample Sparks and Rachel Sparks attested to the inventory as "kinn" ofthe deceased. (John Frederick dorman, an authority of MarylandGenealogy, has noted (p. 275) in GENEALOGICAL RESEARCH: METHODS ANDSOURCES, published in 1980, that : "Maryland colonial inventories areunique in that they were signed by the two nearest of kin and twogreatest creditors. The relatives frequently were brothers orbrothers-in-law, rather than children, and it is sometimes possible toestablish family connections through these signatures when other recordsfail to identify the family of the deceased.") On June 21, 1749, MarySparks presented the inventory of her husband's property to the FrederickCounty Court as a "just and perfect" one. Later that year, on November20th, she made a final settlement of the estate.

"In addition to his property, Joseph Sparks (344) left a large familyconsisting of seven sons and five daughters, and the following year(1750) the children apparently asked for their share of his estate. Thisaction may have been prompted by the large size of the family and thenecessity for some of the children, especially the boys, to move awayfrom Frederick County to look for larger and perhaps more fertile farmingland. Shortly after the death of Joseph Sparks, Sr., at least two of theolder sons were married, and others were making plans to get married,thus it is easy to conclude that the children became impatient to gettheir share of their father's estate. (Unlike today, in colonial timesheirs living at a distance from the deceased had a very difficult timecollecting their share of an estate.) Whatever the reason, it probablybecame necessary for the children of Joseph Sparks to ask the FrederickCounty Court to intervene on their behalf.

The following memorandum was adopted by the Frederick County Court at itsAugust term of 1750:

Memorandum this day towit: The twenty second day of August Anno Domseventeen hundred and fifty. Mary Sparks, Col. Henry Munday and ThomasWilson (Toms Creek) of Frederick County entered into and executed acertain writing obligatory in one hundred and fifty three pounds, oneshilling, current money, to be paid unto Solomon, Joseph, Charles, Jonas,Jonathan, William, George, Merum, Mary, Ann, Rebecka and Sarah Sparks oncondition that the above bounden Mary Sparks, or some person on herbehalf, shall and do well satisfie and pay unto the above named Solomon,Joseph, Charles, Jonas, Jonathan, William, George, Merum, Mary, Ann,Rebecka and Sarah Sparks, their executors, administrators, assigns orlawful guardian or guardians, their respective parts or portions ofJoseph Sparks, deceased, his estate according to Act of Assembly in suchcases made and provided.

"Shortly after the apportionment of the estate of Joseph Sparks (344),three of his sons, Solomon (356), Jonas (354) and probably Jonathan(357), went southward to western North Carolina where they settled inRowan County. (See Whole Nos. 12 and 45 for further accounts of Solomonand Jonas). Three other sons of Joseph Sparks (344), George (427),Charles (426) and William (433), went to Pennsylvania where they settledin what ultimately became Washington County. (See Whole No. 42 for afurther account of these three men). [JS note: Reference numbers added.]

"The remaining son Joseph Sparks, Junior (428), who is the subject ofthis article (SQ 2914-2928) was one of the oldest if not the oldest ofthe children of Joseph and Mary Sparks and, because of his position asthe head of the family, he very likely remained with his mother in thearea where the family had settled in Frederick County (Maryland). Hereit was that he married Mary McDaniel, apparently about 1752. She wasprobably born in the 1730's and was a daughter of James and RebeccaMcDaniel. (When James McDaniel died in 1775 in Frederick County, he namedas one of his daughters, Mary Sparks.)

"On November 21, 1752, Joseph Sparks patented fifty acres of landwhich he named "Sparks Delight" and which was located on the east side ofBeaver Dam Branch. (In the colony of Maryland, each patentee had theright to choose a name for his tract of land, and this name became partof the official record.) The land was a part of the holdings of LordBaltimore, and Joseph Sparks agreed to pay a rent of two shillings twiceeach year to Baltimore's agent, Benjamin Tasker. The rent was to be paidat the City of St. Marys on the feast day of the Annunciation of theVirgin Mary (March 25) and the feast-day of St. Michael, the Archangel(September 29). Ten years later, on February 8, 1762, Joseph Sparks andhis wife, Mary, relinquished their claim to this land to Hugh Evans fortwenty pounds.

"("Sparks Delight," which was bought and sold by Joseph Sparks, shouldnot be confused with another tract of land, also called "Sparks Delight"and also located in Frederick County which was patented by William Sparkson July 11, 1749. Both patents called for fifty acres. Their deeddescriptions have been platted and measured carefully by a moderncomputing technique. In the case of the "Sparks Delight" patented byJoseph Sparks, the grant actually measures 52.7 acres, while "SparksDelight" patented by William Sparks actually measures 47.8 acres. Thetracts have different descriptions and when drawn to scale have quitedissimilar configurations.)

"In the fall of 1760, Joseph Sparks decided to move northward fromBeaver Dam Branch to the waters of Big Pipe Creek, and on November 19thhe purchased 100 acres of land from Raphael and Elenor Taney of St.Mary's County, Maryland, for 45 pounds. The land was originally patentedin 1743 by John Digges who had named it "Brothers Agreement." (Thispatent was originally a fairly large tract of land, but had been dividedinto many smaller tracts. In District No. 6 of Frederick County in 1798,nearly one-third of the land owners paid taxes on land which had been apart of "Brothers Agreement.") Joseph's land was located on the "southside of a branch of Piney Creek commonly called Joseph Sparks Branch andabout twenty rods west of said Sparks's spring which emties itself intothe said branch." It was further described as the "parcell of land laidout for Charles Sparks, being part of the re-survey of 'BrothersAgreement'." A year later, Sparks added an adjoining 50 acres to his farmwhich he bought from Taney for 21 pounds.

"Minutes of the early Frederick County Court give some insight intothe community activities of Joseph Sparks. He was a witness to the willof Thomas Harris on October 2, 1757. He was a member of the Grand Juryat the August term of court in 1763. At the November 1769 term, he wasappointed by the court as overseer of the road from Big Pipe Creek toTaneytown. The following year, he made an affidavit that he had attendeda trial as a witness for the court for two days. The March 1779 term ofcourt appointed him as overseer of the main road from Big Pipe Creek tothe "temporary line of the boundary between Maryland and Pennsylvania."
"About 1774, Joseph Sparks, Jr., son of Joseph and Mary (McDaniel)Sparks, and now about twenty years of age, went to Pennsylvania where hepurchased land in Providence Township in Bedford County. The land waslocated south of the Juniata River. He was probably accompanied by hisbrothers, James Sparks and Solomon Sparks, for all three brothers were inBedford County during the Revolutionary War, and both Joseph and Solomonserved in a military unit known as the Rangers. This unit had theresponsibility of guarding the frontier from hostile Indians who wereallies of Great Britain. Many years later, Solomon Sparks recalled thathis company remained in Bedford County during 1782 and that, after thewar ended, he went back to Maryland and lived there about two yearsbefore returning to Bedford County. (See pages 59-61 of the March 1955issue of the QUARTERLY, Whole No. 9, for an abstract of his pension file.)

"Joseph Sparks, Sr. apparently did not accompany his sons toPennsylvania, or, if he did, he did not stay there very long beforereturning to Frederick County in Maryland. When the 1790 census wastaken of Frederick County, he was listed as head of a householdconsisting of himself, a male under the age of sixteen, and threefemales. In 1798, he paid taxes on 146 acres of land described as "Partof The Re-Survey of Brothers Agreement" and which was valued at 200pounds.

"On April 30, 1800, Joseph Sparks sold his land in Frederick County toJames Fisher. Both men were identified as "of Frederick County." The landwas composed of two adjoining tracts located on the Joseph Sparks Branchwhich was a tributary of Piney Creek. Joseph signed the deed by makinghis mark. There was no dower release to the document; undoubtedlyJoseph's wife, Mary (McDaniel) Sparks, was dead by this time. Perhaps itwas her death that prompted the sale.

"After the sale of the land, Sparks went to Bedford County,Pennsylvania, arriving there in time to be listed on the 1800 census.Living in his household was one female, aged 26 to 45. This was, in allprobability, his daughter, Chloe Sparks.

"In the winter of 1808/09, Joseph Sparks became ill, and he made hiswill on March 13, 1809. To his oldest son, Joseph, Jr., he left his bed,bed-clothing, etc. To his sons, James and Solomon, and to his daughters,Mary, Rebeckah, Susannah, Elizabeth, and Sarah, he left three poundseach. To his youngest daughter, Chloe, and her heirs, if any, he leftthe rest of his personal and real property. If she should die withoutheirs, the property was to be sold (providing a majority of the remainingheirs agreed) and the estate to be divided among the remaining heirs. Henamed as his executors, his son, Joseph Sparks, Jr., and his daughter,Chloe Sparks. Amos McDaniel, Peter McDaniel, and Joseph O'Neal witnessedthe will which was probated on April 3, 1809.

"Joseph and Mary (McDaniel) Sparks had nine children, three sons andsix daughters. Joseph, Jr., the eldest, was born in 1754. Chloe, theyoungest child, was probably born about 1770. The other children havebeen arranged below in the probable order of their births, but there maybe need to rearrange these as additional data are found." (Here appearsthe names of the children of Joseph and Mary (McDaniel) Sparks for whichinformation see their Family Pages.)

SQ p. 4042:

"Joseph Sparks, Jr., son of Joseph and Elizabeth (Kelley) Sparks, wasborn about 1740. He was "of age" in 1764.

SQ p. 4958: A Joseph Sparks (ca.1740) from Queen Annes County took theOath of Fidelity in 1778 which qualified him as a Sparks who served inthe American Revolution. This Joseph was mentioned in the QUARTERLY onp. 4042.

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See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, June 1987, Whole No. 138, p. 3O57:

"JOSEPH SPARKS (born ca. 1751, died 182O-3O) SON OFSOLOMON AND
SARAHSPARKS:

"Joseph Sparks was a son of Solomon (356) and Sarah (358) Sparks, andhe was probably born about 1751. His father, Solomon Sparks, had beenborn about 1727 and had been a resident of Queen Anne's County, Maryland,during his youth. It may have been in Queen Anne's County that SolomonSparks had married Sarah --- in the late 174O's. By 1749, however,Solomon was in Frederick County Maryland , when his father, Joseph Sparks(344) had died. The Joseph Sparks who is the subject of this sketch wasdoubtless named for his grandfather.

"In August 175O, the justices of Frederick County, Maryland, approveda memorandum which required Mary Sparks (585) widow of Joseph Sparks(344), to make a distribution of the estate of her late husband among hisheirs . The children of Joseph and Mary Sparks were identified in thismemorandum as Solomon Sparks (356), Joseph Sparks (428), Charles Sparks(426), Jonas Sparks (354), Jonathan Sparks (357), William Sparks (433),George Sparks (427), Merum Sparks (43O), Mary Sparks (429), Ann Sparks(425), Rebecca Sparks (431), and Sarah Sparks (432). Of the seven sonsof Joseph and Mary, three eventually migrated to North Carolina: Solomon,Jonas, and Jonathan.

"In March 175O, Solomon Sparks, son of Joseph and Mary, bought a tractof land in Frederick County, Maryland, called "Cold Friday." (It was thecustom in Maryland for the first owner of a tract of land to give it aname which was then usually retained by future owners.) Solomon sold"Cold Friday" in 1753, and shortly thereafter he moved to Rowan County,North Carolina. He settled first, as did his brothers, Jonas andJonathan, in an area called "The Forks of the Yadkin" located less thanten miles from what was then the village of Salisbury. The area is nowpart of Davie County, though Salisbury remains in Rowan County and is theseat of justice for that county.

"Solomon Sparks moved his family from the Forks of the Yadkin in 1772,settling in the part of Surry County that was cut off to form WilkesCounty in 1778. This section of Wilkes county eventually became part ofYadkin County when Yadkin was formed in 185O. Solomon Sparks died theresometime before 18OO. We believe that his widow, Sarah, lived a numberof years longer and that she may have accompanied her son, Abel Sparks,when he moved to Georgia about 18O3.

"In the article on John Sparks (SQ 92, 1371) we noted a record foundin the Wilkes County, North Carolina, Court Minutes of August 4, 1 8O1,by which John Sparks, Reuben Sparks, Solomon Sparks, Jr., Mary Jacks,Hannah Denny, Susannah Johnson, and Joseph Sparks gave a power ofattorney to Abel Sparks dated July 31, 18O1. We are quite convinced thatthese were the children of Solomon and Sarah Sparks; it is this courtrecord that constitutes one of our bases for stating that Joseph Sparks,subject of this sketch, was a son of Solomon and Sarah.

"Joseph Sparks was probably born in Fredick County, Maryland, beforehis parents moved to "The Forks of the Yadkin" and was probably carriedas a baby to their new home. The first official record we have of himwas made in 1774 when he and his brother, John Sparks, were listed as"taxable polls " in Surry County, North Carolina, along with theirfather, Solomon Sparks. (The family had moved from Rowan County to SurryCounty in 1772, according to as tatement made by John Sparks in hispension application.) A white male was subject to paying a poll tax inNorth Carolina when he reached the age of 21, and he was required tocontinue paying this tax until age 6O. In 18O1, however, the terminalage was lowered to 5O and in 1817 to 45.

"Joseph Sparks was probably married about 1775; however, the name ofhis wife has not been discovered. When the 179O census was taken ofSurry County, the enumeration of his family indicates that he and hiswife were the parents of four boys and three girls. Assuming a normalpattern of births of these seven children, we can speculate that theywere probably born in about the following sequence: 1777, 1779, 1781,1783, 1785, 1787, and 1789. When the 18OO census was taken of SurryCounty, three more children had been added, two more males and one morefemale. On that census, Joseph was enumerated as having been born priorto 1755; his wife was born between 1755 and 1774.

"Early records of the collection of taxes, property as well as poll,are scant in this section of North Carolina. In addition to being listedas a "taxable poll" in 1774 in Surry County, Joseph Sparks paid taxesthere in 1775 according to an extant tax list. A record has also beenfound of a tax payment by Joseph Sparks in Surry County in 1784. He paidtaxes there regularly from 179O to 18OO, but no tax records have beenfound for Surry County between 18OO and 18O5.

"Joseph Sparks apparently lived near the home of his parents, whichwas located quite close to the dividing line between Wilkes and SurryCounties. On October 23, 1782, he purchased 1OO acres of land on the"headwaters of Swan Creek" from the state of North Carolina. The deedwas recorded in Wilkes County, but the land was probably located on theboundary line. In 1785, Benjamin and Elizabeth Johnson of Surry Countysold land described in the deed as being adjacent to the land of JosephSparks in Wilkes County. In 1787, Joseph Sparks of Surry sold 3O acresof land on the North Fork of Hunting Creek on the Wilkes-Surry line toWilliam Jackson for 12 pounds. This deed was recorded in Wilkes County.

"On May 3, 1788, Joseph Sparks witnessed the signatures of hisparents, Solomon and Sarah Sparks, when they sold their remainingproperty in Rowan County (now Davie County), North Carolina, to JonasSparks, a brother of Solomon. The land was located on the south side ofthe Yadkin River near the mouth of Muddy Creek. Solomon and Sarah weredescribed as "of Surry, " while Jonas Sparks was described as "of RowanCounty."

"When the 18OO census was taken of Surry County, the household ofJoseph Sparks was enumerated as including two males born between 1774 and1784. One of these was probably his son Abel, and it is our belief thatAbel continued to live in his father's household until 18O4.

"Joseph Sparks again purchased land from the state of North Carolinaon September 29, 18O6. He paid 5O shillings per 1OO acres for a total of2OO acres of land on the Wilke-Surry boundary line, apparently on thewaters of Hunting Creek.

"Joseph Sparks was listed on the 18O2 tax list of Capt. Wilburn' sDistrict in Surry County, North Carolina. He was excused from paying apoll tax that year...He was taxed for 1OO acres of land, however. Taxedin the same district in 18O2 were Abel Sparks (1 poll, no land); ThomasSparks (1 poll, 7OO acres); and George Sparks (1 poll, 3OO acres).

"Joseph Sparks did not appear on the 181O census of Surry County , norhave we found any record of the disposition of his property, but, priorto 182O, probably about 1812, he moved to Franklin County, Tennessee,where he appeared on the 182O census. With him was his wife and a male,probably a son, who had been born between 1775 and 1794. Both Joseph andhis wife were enumerated as having been born prior to 1775. We havefound no record of Joseph Sparks as heading a household on any 183Ocensus. He and his wife probably died between 182O and 183O.

"Joseph Sparks left no will, nor have we found any record of theadministration of his estate. In spite of this lack of documentation ,however, we believe that we can name his six sons, all of whom appear onsome record of Franklin County, Tennessee.

See also SQ pg 3355 for statement that he died in Franklin County , TN.

SQ pg 721 for Marriage Records of Bourbon Co., KY, Book I, page 35.

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, June 1970, Whole No. 70, pp 1315-1321:

"Joseph Sparks was born about 1777 in Virginia and died in 1838 inConcord, Lewis County, Kentucky. He was probably the Joseph Sparks whomarried Anne Wilson on January 19, 1797, in Bourbon County, Kentucky.Joseph paid taxes in Bourbon Co., Kentucky, from 1796 to 1804; however,he paid taxes in Lewis County, Kentucky, in 1809 and is listed in thatcounty on the census for 1810, 1820, and 1830."

"Records and letters from descendants indicate that Joseph Sparks hadthe following children:" (see child's individual sheet.)

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, March 1999, Whole No. 185, pp. 5106-5115:

"JOHN SPARKS (1816-1899) OF LEWIS COUNTY, KENTUCKY, HIS LIFE ANDDESCENDANTS"
By Paul E.Sparks

"[Editor's Note: The parents of John Sparks were Joseph and Anne(Wilson) Sparks of Lewis County, Kentucky. This couple was the subjectof an article that was published on pages 1315-18 of the June 1970 issueof THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, Whole No. 70. At that time we conjectured(correctly) that Joseph and Anne (Wilson) Sparks were the parents ofseven children; however, we were then unable to name the two youngestchildren (sons). (See page 1318 of that issue.) Since the publication ofthe June 1970 article, we have found proof that the two sons who wereunnamed in the article were John Sparks and Joseph Sparks. Here wepresent information regarding the son of Joseph and Anne named John, witha record of his children and grandchildren, when known.

"[Joseph Sparks, father of John Sparks (1816-1899), was married toAnne Wilson on January 19, 1797, in Bourbon County, Kentucky. He died inLewis County, Kentucky, in 1838. Shortly after his death, his son, JamesSparks, was awarded by the Lewis County Circuit Court a fifty-acre tractof land formerly owned by his father. The deed, dated June 27, 1842,named all of the persons who had an interest in the transaction. Morethan two dozen persons were named. Among them were six children ofJoseph Sparks. They were: James Sparks, Harriet (Sparks) Truesdell,Katherine (Sparks) Dickson, William Sparks, John Sparks, and JosephSparks. Not included was another child of Joseph Sparks, Sidney (Sparks)Tolle, who was either deceased or whose whereabouts was unknown.Following is the text of this deed as it was recorded on page 351 of DeedBook I, on June 27, 1842, Property Deeds of Lewis County, Kentucky.

"Indenture between William G. Wilson; William Sparks; John Sparks;Joseph Sparks; Isaac Dickson & Katherine, his wife; Jesse Trusdell &Harriet, his wife; James Wilson; Andrew Wilson; George Wilson; SamuelWilson, the lst; Mason Wilson; Amos Wilson; John G. Wilson; WilliamHerbert & Nancy his wife; George Burns and Eliza, his wife; Granville Dye& Mary Anne, his wife; Susan Wilson; Lucinda Wilson; Samuel Wilson, the2nd; and James Wilson, all represented by Socrates Holbrook, aCommissioner duly appointed by the Lewis County, Circuit Court at theMarch term 1842, all of the lst part and James Sparks of the 2nd part;

WHEREAS, the Lewis County Circuit Court rendered a decree in favorof the said James Sparks against the above named grantors, therefore thegrantors give to James Sparks for $1.00 a tract of land binding on atract of land owned by the late Samuel Wilson, deceased, known as hisMill tract and on the lower corner and upper line known as the divisionline between William G. Wilson and the said Samuel Wilson, deceased. Theland to be conveyed in such manner as to include the house andimprovements of the late Joseph Sparks, deceased, being the same tract ofland sold by the said Samuel Wilson, deceased, and William G. Wilson tothe said Joseph Sparks, deceased, in his lifetime and containing fiftyacres.

[The following article contains information about John Sparks(1816-1899), son of Joseph and Anne (Wilson) Sparks, and some of hisdescendants. For the sake of uniformity, we are using the samealphanumeric outline used in the earlier article. ] [JS: For theremainder of the article see the notes for their son John and those ofhis descendants.]

See also SQ p 5129:

"Joseph Sparks, born ca. 1776, died 1838. He was married to AnneWilson in 1797. For information on this family see the QUARTERLY of June1970, Whole No. 70, p. 1315; December 1970, Whole No. 72, p. 1366; andDecember 1984, Whole No. 128, p. 2679." (Here names children.)

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In the December 1999 issue of THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, Whole No. 188appeared the following article at pp 5261-63

A SMALL SPARKSMYSTERY -- BOURBON COUNTY, KENTUCKY

DIDJOSEPH SPARKS MARRY ANNE WILSON IN 1797

OR AMY WILSON IN 1798?

[Here appears aphotograph (see scrapbook) beneath which is the following caption:]

A marriage Bond from Bourbon County, Kentucky

In the QUARTERLY of March 1963, Whole No. 41, p. 721, we published a listof marriages of men and women named Sparks between 1790 and 1866 found byPaul E. Sparks, late President of our Association, from among the earlyrecords of Bourbon County, Kentucky. One of the marriages listed there,in the county's Marriage Book 1, page 35, was that of Joseph Sparks andAnne Wilson on January 19, 1797.
In 1985, Paul prepared a second report of Sparks marriages in BourbonCounty that appeared in the December 1985 issue of the QUARTERLY, WholeNo. 132, pp.2824-26, with the same reference to Book 1, page 35, againshowing Joseph Sparks having been married to Anne Wilson, but with thedate January 1, 1797, rather than January 19. This record also showedtheir marriage having been performed by J. Whitaker. Our latest referenceto this marriage appeared in the QUARTERLY of March 1999, Whole No. 185,p.5129, where we gave only the year of this marriage as 1797. This latterreference was part of an article entitled "Where Did the Sparkses ofEarly Lewis County, Kentucky, Come From," in which we presented theevidence for our belief that the Joseph Sparks under discussion here wasone of
13 children of William Sparks who had been born on April 27, 1738, inQueen Annes County, Maryland.

Recently, Marilyn Steber of San Diego, California, has shared with us aphotocopy she had obtained of a marriage bond from Bourbon County,Kentucky, for Joseph Sparks to be married to Amy Wilson, dated "19th dayof January 1798."

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In the photocopy on the previous page, the "19th" could be the "17th,"but the month and year were clearly written as January 1798.) We believethat the Joseph Sparks named in this marriage bond was the same JosephSparks shown earlier as having been married to Anne Wilson in 1797. Itwas this marriage bond, we believe, that had been the source for theentry in "Marriage Book 1" copied by Paul E. Sparks in 1983 and again in1985, Because this bond was surely the original document pertaining toJoseph's marriage, we believe that his wife's name had been Amy Wilsonand that both her name and the year had been copied incorrectly inMarriage Book 1. In no later record of Joseph Sparks have we found hiswife's name mentioned.

A word about the Distinction between the marriage bond and marriagebanns in early American history may be useful here. Kentucky became astate in 1792, it having been part of Virginia prior to then, So it wasthat Virginia laws and customs pertaining to marriage were followed inKentucky for a number of years thereafter. Because in Virginia, theChurch of England Anglican) prevailed as the official church, which alltax payers were required to support, baptisms, marriages, and burialswere conducted by the ministers of the Church of England prior to theAmerican Revolution. For a couple to be married under Church of Englandrules, their intention to do so had to be announced publicly on threesuccessive Sundays "at the time of divine services." Called "marriagebanns," these announcements were to offer opportunity for anyone hearingthem to protest the proposed marriage based on a legal impediment, suchas that one of the parties was already married to a living spouse.Following the three weeks of "crying the banns," without any objection, amarriage license could be issued to the couple in the name of theGovernor, for which there was a charge of fifteen pence. The ministercould charge up to two shillings for performing the marriage ceremony.

With independence from Virginia, an alternative to marriage bannsgradually developed, although it was not codified into law until 1799.This was the "marriage bond" by which the prospective groom and hisbondsman could sign a legal instrument declaring that they were "firmlybound" to the Governor of Kentucky to pay fifty pounds should a "lawfulcause" later be found "to obstruct the said marriage." Once the bond wassigned and filed with the county court, the marriage could be performed,either by a clergyman or a government official, such as a justice of thepeace. While the "marriage bond" became a county record, the individualsperforming the actual marriage ceremony more often than not failed toreport it to the county clerk for record keeping. A few days usuallypassed between the signing of the bond and the marriage.

Because fifty pounds was a great deal of money, it was not easy for ayoung man without property to find someone willing to become a bondsman,so the "crying of banns" continued to be the most common method oflegalizing a marriage for most young people, while the "marriage bond"became the more prestigious method of the "well-to-do.'' As seen in themarriage bond for Joseph Sparks and Amy Wilson, it was Ephraim Wilson whosigned as Joseph's bondsman. We can conjecture that Ephraim was Amy'sfather. A father would surely know whether his daughter already had ahusband, and Ephraim Wilson was probably well acquainted with JosephSparks, being confident that he, himself, would never become liable forthe fifty pounds. A Bourbon County deed has been preserved (Book E,p.287) whereby, on April 2, 1800, Ephraim Wilson sold "a crop of corn" toJoseph Sparks for $100.

-5263-

It is also interesting to note that Ephraim Wilson gave his consent onOctober 19, 1805, for his daughter, Rebecca Wilson, to marry CalebSparks, she being under the legal age to marry unless a parent consentedin writing to the county court. Caleb Sparks, according to anapprenticeship document for him following the early death of his father,was born on December 3, 1786. He was a son of William Sparks, Jr. who,we believe, was a brother of Joseph Sparks. (See the QUARTERLY ofSeptember 1980, Whole No. 111, pp.2240-41.)

Should anyone have further information regarding this "small Sparksmystery,"
please let us hear from you.

THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, September 1961, Whole No. 35, SPARKSES IN THE WAR
OF 1812, BOUNTY LAND AND PENSION APPLICATIONS, pg 584,
"JOSEPH SPARKS, born about 1785, of Bedford County, Pennsylvania .Bounty
Land Warrant File No. 82 175-120-55.
"On June 14, 1851, Joseph Sparks, a resident of Bedford County,Pennsylvania, appeared before a justice of the peace named John Sparksand made application for bounty land. Joseph Sparks swore that he was 66year sold and that he had been a private in the company commanded byCapt. Solomon Sparks in the Second Regiment of Pennsylvania Volunteerscommanded by Col. William Piper in the War of 1812; that he volunteeredat Bloody Run i n Bedford County, Penna., on or about Sept. 1, 1812, for6 months; that he "was dismissed from the service at Black Rock on theNiagara River to find winter quarters some time in December 1812, beingabsent from his home about four months." He signed his name as "JosephSparks." Attached to this application is the following statement: "Junethe 14th 1851: Personally appeared before me John Sparks a Justice of thePeace within and for the County of Bedford, David Fletcher and JamesSparks and after being duly sworn doth Depose and say that the abovedeclaration is true according to the best of their knowledge and beliefthey having been volunteered in the same Company with him and that theymarched with him to Black Rock and were compeled to seek winter quartersand further saith not given under our hands and seals <signed>
David Fletcher<and> James Sparks."

"Apparently there was some question in the Pension Office regardingJoseph Sparks's statement that he had been "dismissed from the service"at Black Rock, and on Dec. 17, 1852, he again appeared before JohnSparks, Justice of the Peace, and deposed "That he was honourablydischarged at Black Rock, but never received any written or printeddischarge; that Samuel Smith and David Fletcher to whom Bounty LandWarrantes have been issued, served in the same company & returned home atthe same time."

"Joseph Sparks was issued a warrant (No. 20, 216) for 40 acres of land.

"On April 28, 1855, Joseph Sparks applied for additional bounty landunder the new Act of 1855. He stated that he was 69 years old and was aresident of West Providence Township, Bedford County, Penna. He gave noadditional information regarding his service in the war. He signed hisapplication as "Joseph Sparks" and David Fletcher and James Sparks, bothof West Providence Township, Bedford County, signed as witnesses. JohnSparks signed as Justice of the Peace. Joseph Sparks was issued awarrant for 120 additional acres of bounty land under the Act of 1855.

"(Editor's note: On the 1850 census of West Providence Township,Bedford County, Penna, Joseph Sparks was listed as a farmer aged 65 yearsand born in Penna. Living in the same household were Christiana Sparks,aged 70, Elizabeth Sparks, aged 60; and Andrew Hornlee, aged 28, all bornin Penna.)

SQ 2921 states: "Joseph Sparks, son of Joseph and Elizabeth Sparks ,was born probably about 1785. He served during the War of 1812 as aprivate in the company commanded by his uncle, Solomon Sparks (586), inthe 2nd Regiment Pennsylvania Militia. (See pgs 584-85 of Whole No. 32,for an abstract of his Bounty Land file.) After the death of his fatherin 1827, he apparently assumed the role of the head of his household andwas listed as such on the 1830, 1840 and 1850 censuses of BedfordCounty. When the latter census was taken, his sisters, Christianea andElizabeth, were living in his household.

"Joseph died sometime between March 22 and April 22, 1862. He hadmade his will on March 22nd leaving his estate to his nephews who wereall sons of his brother, John Sparks (599). Named in the will were: JohnC. Sparks , Samuel B. Sparks, Abraham Sparks, and Joseph H. H. Sparks.The will was proven on April 22, 1862, in the Bedford County Court. Namedas his executor was his nephew, Joseph H. H. Sparks."

(JS note: The Joseph S. Sparks (644) on page 585 is his cousin whosefather Solomon (586) was this man's uncle.)

SQ 3797: He was married to Martha Edwards in 1815. Bondsman RichardGentry (p. 56)

SQ 3855: Joseph Sparks, probable son of Thomas and Rebecca Sparks ,was born about 1790 in Surry County, North Carolina. It was there , inearly 1815, that he was married to Martha Edwards. The marriag bond wasdated January 28, 1815, and the marriage ceremony probably took place afew days later. Richard Gentry was Joseph's bondsman . Martha had beenborn about 1795 in North Carolina.

The couple went to housekeeping on Deep Creek where they owned 124acres of land. When the 1820 census was taken, they had a son and twodaughters. Then, about 1827, they decided to move to Lawrence County,Kentucky, to join Joseph's relatives. There they settled down on theLittle Fork of Little Sandy River, but they attended church at the BigBlaine Baptist Church, several miles away. They were listed on the 1830and 1840 censuses of Lawrence County, and, according to these censusrecords, it appears likely that they had nine children.

By 1850, Joseph Sparks had apparently died, and Martha, now a widow,had moved up the Big Sandy River to Pike County. She probably died therebetween 1860 and 1870."

SQ pg 804: "Joseph Sparks, son of David and Mary (Little) Sparks , wasborn in the 179O's in Rowan County, North Carolina. This was probablythe Joseph Sparks who married Febey Hinkle in Rowan County in 1811(marriage bond dated January 28, 1811). No further information."

SQ 386-7 for information on Joseph and his wife Sabry (Sabra) Demmitand children:

"JOSEPH SPARKS. Joseph Sparks, sixth son of Solomon and CharitySparks, was born betmen 1802 and 1804. In all likelihood, he was theJoseph Sparks who married Babry (or Sabra) Demmit in Wilkes County in1822 (the marriage bond is dated February 4. 1822; Joseph Brown,bondsman). He and his wife were in Wells County in 1838 for on February19, 1838, "Joseph Sparks, and wife, Sabary, of Wells County, Indiana"sold 40 acres of land to Albert Draper; Solomon Sparks witnessed thedeed. "In October, 1838, Joseph and "Sabra" Sparks sold 80 acres ofland in Wells County to Thomas T. Smith. By 1850 Joseph Sparks wasliving in Adams County, Indiana. His wife's name was given as "Sarae onthe 1850 census, but on the 1860 census it was given as "Sabra." The ageof Joseph Sparks was given as 47 on the 1850 census of Adams County,-which means that he was born about 1803. His birthplace was given asNorth Carolina; he was a farmer by occupation, and owned real estatevalued at $600. Sabra's age was given as 49 in 1850, her birthplace asNorth Carolina. Living with Joseph Sparks in 1850 were: Ransom Sparks.,26 years old, born in North Carolina; Hampton Sparks, 24 years old, alsoborn in North Carolina; and Mary Sparks, 14 years old, born in Indiana.Also living with the family in 1850 was an 18-year-old laborer namedBenjamin Blue, born in Ohio.

"Joseph Sparks apparently died between 1850 and 1860, because on the1860 census of Adams County, Sabra Sparks was listed as the head of thehousehold [JS: No, they were divorced (see below) and he was living inHuntington County with his sister Rachael and her family in 1860]. RansomSparks, aged 36 in 1860, was still living with his mother, his occupationbeing given as "farmer." Mary Sparks was also still at home. A RansomSparks, probably the above son of Joseph and Sabra, died in Wells County,Indiana, on December 18, 1876. He did not leave a will; Warren McBridewas appointed as his administrator. He died insolvent; no heirs werenamed in the settlement. A search of Adams County records woulddoubtless produce further data on Joseph Sparks and his descendants.

**********

See SQ p. 5311-5314:

Joseph Sparks, the youngest son of Solomon, Jr. and Charity Sparks,was born in Wilkes County, North Carolina, in or about 1803.

In the nuncupative will of his father dated December 28, 1817,Joseph and his brother, Jonathan, were referred to as Solomon's twoyoungest sons, and because each of his four oldest sons had receivedcertain gifts either when they had come of age or had been married,Solomon directed that Jonathan and Joseph each receive the following:"One horse, bridle and saddle, one cow and calf, one sow and pigs, andone feather bed and furniture." ("Furniture" in this sense meant thebedding, etc. to go with a feather bed.) As noted earlier, Solomon diedwithin a few days of his making his will.

On February 4, 1822, Joseph Sparks obtained a bond in Wilkes County,North Carolina, to marry Sabra Demmit; Joseph Brown served as hisbondsman. The marriage was probably performed a few days later. Sabra'snickname seems to have been "Sabry." When the 1830 census was taken inWilkes County, Joseph Sparks was shown in the age category of 20 to 30,and he then headed a household consisting of a female who was surely hiswife, also between 20 and 30, with four children, a male between 5 and10, another male under 5, and two females also under 5 years.

We have found few references to Joseph Sparks in Wilkes Countyrecords. He and his brother, Jonathan, served as bondsmen for theirbrother, Samuel Sparks, when he was appointed to administer thesettlement of their father's estate in 1828 following the death of theirmother, who had
held the property during her widowhood. We have found no record of JosephSparks acquiring land in Wilkes County, although his occupation was thatof farmer. We must assume that he rented the land that he tilled.

Sometime after 1830, Joseph followed his brothers, George andSolomon, to Randolph County, Indiana, which was then a huge county, partsof which would later form a dozen other counties. A deed was recorded inRandolph County dated August 19, 1835, by which Joseph and Sabra sold toJohn Shelinberger for $150 a tract of 80 acres in Section 10, Township21. (Book E, p.407) Joseph and Sabra (spelled "Sabrey") signed this deedby mark, with William Crouse and John Burroughs as their witnesses. HowJoseph Sparks had managed to acqrnre this land, as well as other tractsthat he subsequently sold, has not been discovered. He may have bought itfrom the U.S. Government or, possibly, it came to him through his wife.(A wife's property became that of her husband with marriage in thosedays.) Two years earlier, on July 25, 1833, Joseph's brother, SolomonSparks with his wife, Susannah, had also sold land in Randolph County tothe same John Shelinberger.

Wells County was created in 1835 from parts of Randolph, Allen, andDelaware Counties. (Delaware had been created from Randolph in 1827, andAllen in part from Randolph in 1824.) Joseph and his brothers probablydid not move to Wells County; it is more likely that they simply foundthemselves in the new county when its boundary lines were established.Our earliest record of Joseph Sparks found in Wells County Courtdocuments is that of his service as a juror in October 1837. In 1838, heand Sabra again sold land: on February 19, 1838, they sold 40 acres toJoseph's brother-in-law, Albert Draper, for $150 (Book A, p.38) and onOctober 29, 1838, they sold 80 acres to Thomas T. Smith and his wifeCatherine (Book A, p.103). We have no record of Joseph Sparks buying thisland.

Joseph Sparks appeared on the 1840 census of Wells County, as didhis brothers, Solomon and George, all in what would later be named RockCreek Township. Another daughter had been added to his and Sabra's familyby his time.

When the 1850 census was taken, Joseph and his family were in AdamsCounty, Indiana, in Kirkland Township; three of their children were stillliving at home, their two sons, Ransom and Hampton, and their youngestdaughter, Mary. Their two older daughters, Elizabeth and Sarah, had bothbeen married, Elizabeth to Robert Evans on September 3, 1843, and Sarahto Benoni High on February 21, 1847. Both of the marriages had takenplace in Adams County.

Kirkland Township in Adams County is separated from Rock CreekTownship in Wells County only by the township of Lancaster in WellsCounty. Adams County adjoins Wells County on the latter's east side andborders Van Wert and Mercer Counties in Ohio on its east side. Like WellsCounty, Adams had been created from parts of Randolph and AllenCounties. On December 9, 1846, Joseph and Sabra sold to Joseph's nephew,George Sparks, son of George and Delila Sparks, an80-acre tract inKirkland Township for $150. Again, we have found no record of how Josephhad acquired this land.

The 1850 census was the 7th U.S. census taken, the first having beenin 1790, and it was the first to list the name, age, and state orcountry of birth for every household member. Ransom Sparks was now 26 andHampton was 24; their sister, Mary, was 14. Joseph's age was given as 47on this 1850 census, while Sabra's was 49. (The census taker mistakenlyrecorded her name as "Sarah".)

On September 10, 1851, Joseph and Sabra sold to each of their twosons 40-acre lots in the same section, each for $300. (Adams County DeedBook G, p.322 and p.342.) The sale of this land to their sons appears tohave been in anticipation of a permanent separation of Joseph and Sabra.

There must have been a divorce because, according to a documentnoted below, Joseph was married, second, to a widow named Sarah Brady inNovember 1852 in Kosciusko County, Indiana. We know that Sabra had notdied before Joseph's remarriage because she was listed on the 1860
census of Kirkland Township in Adams County. Her age in 1860 was given as60; her real estate was valued at $400 and her personal property at$100. Living with her in 1860 was her son, Ransom Sparks, "Farmer," age36; also her daughter, Mary Sparks, now 24 years old. (Sabra's birthplacewas mistakenly recorded as South Carolina rather than North Carolina.)

Our knowledge of Joseph Sparks's second marriage comes fromdocuments preserved among Kosciuska County Court papers, includingcharges made by the second wife in 1854 when she sought a divorce fromJoseph. In this document, she stated that "in November, 1852 she waslawfully married to Joseph Sparks"... and "that she was a widow at thetime of her marriage with defendant; that her name was Sarah Brady, thatshe is about fifty five and said Joseph about fifty years old." Shestated that:

they lived together as husband and wife till about the 5th ofOctober 1855 when defendant
without any cause whatever left plaintiff & went to the houseof his son, and remained there
some two weeks, when he returned to the house of the plaintiffand packed up all his clothing &
left saying that he was off & never intended to return again.Plaintiffs son (Isaac Brady) went to
see defendant shortly after he had left and tried to persuadehim to return home again and live
with plaintiff, but defendant said it was no use of wastingwords, that he was determined on
leaving never to return again and on about the 8th of Decemberlast said defendant left for the
West, to Iowa or Illinois as the plaintiff is informed withoutInforming her of his intentions.
[Document with Kosciusco Circuit Court, March Term, 1855.]

On March 21, 1855, John Rogers, publisher of the Warsaw Republican,a weekly newspaper, testified that the following notice had beenpublished in his paper on three successive weeks (December 24th and 31stof January and February 7th) in 1855:

IN THE KOSCIUSKO CIRCUIT
COURT-MARCH TERM 1855.
STATE OF INDIANA
Kosciusko County, SS
Sarah Sparks
vs Petition forDivorce.
Joseph Sparks.
Be it remembered on the 16th day ofJan.
1855 the Plaintiff by Frazer & Co. herattorneys
filed in the Clerk's office of theKosciusko Circuit
Court, her petition in this behalf and alsothe affi-
davit of a disinterested person that thedefendant
Joseph Sparks is not a resident of thestate of In-
diana.
The said defendant is therefore herebynotified
of the pendancy of said suit and unless heappear
and answer said petition at the next termof the
Kosciusko Circuit Court, to be held at thisCourt
House in the town of Warsaw, on the 3dMonday
in March next the same will be taken asconfess-
ed. Attest S. H.Chipman Clerk.
By T.WOODS, Deputy.
Frazer Power & Frazier Plffs atty
jan 17, 1855 n22 3w

Apparently the whereabouts of Joseph Sparks was found and anattorney named George W. Frasier represented him in the Kosciusko CountyCourt proceedings. The divorce was granted with the following agreement,signed by Frasier and by A. J. Power who represented Sarah, dated
Warsaw, March 21, 1855:

It is agreed by the parties in this case as follows SaidJoseph is not to oppose the
granting of a divorce by said Court, said Joseph is todeliver to said Sarah 50
bushels of wheat now growing on the premises heretoforeoccupied by said
parties, said Sarah also agrees not to ask the Court for anyalimony.

Our last record of Joseph Sparks is found on the 1860 census of RockCreek Township in Huntington County, Indiana. He was then living in thehome of his sister and brother-in-law, Rachel and Albert Draper. His agewas given as 55, a native of North Carolina. No occupation was given
for him, and he owned no property. Sabra (Demmit) Sparks, Joseph's firstwife and the mother of his children, appears to have died in AdamsCounty, Indiana, in 1864. Joseph and Sabra (Demmit) Sparks were theparents of the following children:

**********

SQ 795: "Joseph Sparks, son of Jonas Sparks, Jr., and his wife, Anna(Caton) Sparks, was born between 1797 and 1805. On February 2, 1808, hisuncle, William Sparks, was appointed his guardian. On August 12, 1814,Samuel Jones was appointed to take William Sparks's place as guardian,since he had moved to Kentucky. Joseph Sparks inherited from hisgrandfather, Jonas Sparks , Sr., the old homestead on the Yadkin Riverand appears to have lived in Rowan County for a number of years. He mayhave been the Joseph Sparks who married Polly Call in 1814 (Rowan Countymarriage bond dated December 15, 1814). The bondsman for this marriagewas also named Joseph Sparks, and was probably the son of David Sparks, abrother of Jonas Sparks, Jr. The witness was Jesse Walker .

The last deed for land sold by Joseph Sparks in Rowan County is datedJanuary 2, 1832, by which he sold 140 acres on Brian's Mill Creek toJames Wood. One of the witnesses was named John Call (see Rowan CountyDeed Book 32, p.52) . Joseph Sparks lived in that part of Rowan Countythat was cut off and became Davie County in 1836, and he was listed thereon the 1840 census as between 40 and 50 years of age. A female in hishousehold, doubtless his wife, was listed in the same age category, andthere were also enumerated two males between 15 and 20, 1 male between 10and 15, and one male under 5 years; also a female between 5 and 10. Theonly Sparks family listed on the 1850 census of Davie County was that ofa fifty-one-year-old widow, Martha E. Sparks. She may have been thewidow of Joseph Sparks, but, if so, she was either a second wife orperhaps it was not this Joseph Sparks who married Polly Call in 1814.Living with Martha E. Sparks in 1850 were the following, all born inDavie County: (1) James Sparks, aged 22; (2) Emily Sparks, aged 19; (3)Harvey Sparks, aged 16; and (4) Charles Sparks, aged 10."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, June 1984, Whole No. 126, pps 2612-2614:

JAMES SPARKS OF WASHINGTON COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA,
AND CLINTON COUNTY, INDIANA:

"Joseph Sparks, son of James and Margaret (Ray) Sparks, was born onNovember 23, 1808, and was a young land when his parents moved fromWashington County, Pennsylvania, to Ohio, settling in that part ofRichland county that helped to form Ashland County in 1846. It was therethat he learned the trade of carpentry which enabled him to become askilled wheelwright and furniture maker. It was also probably in Ohiothat he met and courted Sarah DeFord. They were married on July 29,1830. (Their marriage record went with Ashland County when that countywas formed.) Sarah was born on September 13, 1813, probably in Maryland,although some descendants say that she was a native of Belmont County,Ohio. She was a daughter of William and Polly (Jones) DeFord.

"Joseph Sparks followed his brother, Allen, to Indiana, where, on May3, 1836, he bought a 40-acre farm from James and Catherine Dukes inClinton County. When the 1840 census was taken, he and Sarah had fivechildren, three sons and two daughters. Then in September 1844, he andSarah sold their farm and moved the following year to Young HickoryTownship (also known as Deerfield Township) in Fulton County, Illinois.There they bought an 80-acre farm, including the log cabin that was onit, from William Weaver. They set to work erecting a house, butmeanwhile they lived with Joseph Wheeler who had married Sarah's sister.The log cabin which Joseph Sparks had bought from Weaver was only 10 by30 feet; it became his workshop. In it, he and his sons began makingfurniture, for they had been able to move very little of their "old"furniture from Indiana to Illinois.

"Joseph Sparks entered into the community and governmental activitiesof Fulton County, and as early as 1854 he was a township supervisor. Healso served as a justice of the peace and as an assessor. He was amember of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and in politics he was aDemocrat.

"The first child of Joseph and Sarah Sparks to marry was theirdaughter, Sarah, who married David D. Pierce on February 10, 1853. Intheir family Bible, which was printed in 1855, they not only recorded thevital statistics for their own small family, but also those of Sarah'sparents and her sisters and brothers. The completeness of these recordshas contributed greatly to the preparation of this article. The Bible isnow in the hands of a descendant, Minnie P. Huffer. It was given toSarah's son, Edgar C. Pierce, when Sarah died in 1883 and was passed onto Edgar's son, Clarke, who owned it from 1913 until 1949, when he gaveit to Mrs. Huffer. Here are the family records just as they were writtenin the Bible.

MARRIAGES

Joseph Sparks and Sarah DeFord was married July 29th 1830
David D. Pierce and Sarah Sparks was married February the 10th 1853
William Sparks and Emily Hossleton was married November 17th 1859
Allen Sparks and Ann Jane Johnson was married December 28th 1859
Joseph Pickering and Margaret Ann Sparks was married March [sic]
James Wilson Sparks and Margaret A. Morgan was married March 21st 1866
John Sparks and Susan M. Ross was married December 31st 1868
Thomas J. Sparks and Aggie S. Patton were married March 23rd 1871
Frederic W. Hirst and Eleanor J. Sparks were married September 13th 1875
George A. Forbes and Susan Sparks were married December 1876 [sic]
Edgar C. Pierce and Ada M. Crowl were married Mar. 28, 1888
Harry Clyde Pierce and Emma C. Spurgeon were married Nov. 3, 1888
Clarke Pierce and Ann W. Pauge married April 10, 1932

DEATHS
Sarah Sparks, wife of Joseph Sparks, died Jan. 21st 1863, aged 49 years10 months
Frank Leslie Pierce, son of Sarah and David D., died June 18th 1868, aged10 years, 10 months and 5 days
Sarah Sparks, my mother, died January 21st 1863 at 8 a.m. Buried at 11a.m. January 23, 1863. Was removed from Fulton County and buried in thecemetery in Bushnell September 23rd 1870 Sarah Pierce Joseph Sparks, myfather, died July 6th 1876, aged 67 yrs 7 months 24 da.
Buried July 8th 1876 in Bushnell Cemetery Sarah Pierce
Susan Forbes died September 19th 1881
Sarah, wife of David Pierce, died April 27, 1883 4:30 a.m., aged 49 years1 month 3 days. Hymn sung was "Remember me for what I have done." Remarkson the transitory of Life

BIRTHS
Joseph Sparks was born November 23rd 1808
Sarah Sparks, his wife, was born September 13th 1813
Allen Sparks was born June 8th 1831
Sarah Sparks was born March 24th 1834
Margaret Ann Sparks was born June 28th 1836
William Sparks was born December 20th 1838
James Wilson Sparks was born March 5th 1841
John Sparks and Thomas Sparks was born August 16th 1843
Susan Sparks was born December 5th 1847
Joseph N. Sparks was born October 18th 1850
Eleanor Josephine Sparks was born December 5th 1854
David D. Pierce was born 30th of June 1831
Sarah Pierce was born 24th of March 1834
Charles Edgar Pierce was born Feb. 22nd 1854
Frank Leslie Pierce was born August 13, 1857
Harry Clyde Pierce was born November 23rd 1862
Clarke Pierce was born May 15th 1903. Christened Oct. 25, 1903.
Ada M. Crowl Pierce born Nov. 25th 1864
Emma Caroline Spurgeon Pierce born Feb. 2, 1868

"As recorded in the family Bible, Sarah (DeFord) Sparks died onJanuary 21, 1863, and was buried in Fulton County. On April 2, 1865,Joseph Sparks was married (second) to Mrs. Matilda Jane (Heller) Jenningsas Ellisville, Illinois. She had been born on June 22, 1830, in Ohio,and was the widow of Phillip Jennings; he had been killed during theCivil War, leaving her with three children: John Jennings, MarthaJennings, and Phillip Jennings, Jr.

"Joseph and Jane (Heller) Sparks (she went by the name of Jane) hathree children before his death on July 6, 1876. He was buried in theBushnell Cemetery by the side of his first wife. Jane is said to havemarried (third) a man named Cameron. She died in 1916 near Ellisville.

"Joseph Sparks was the father of thirteen children. In addition, hereared two children of his brother, James Sparks, along with threestep-children. He could truly be called a "family man.""

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, September 1970, Whole No. 71, p. 1342:

"Joseph Sparks, son of Caleb and Rebecca (Wilson) Sparks, was bornabout 1813. He was married on August 18, 1834, to Isabella Ellis inLewis County, Ky. (According to the license, the guardian of IsabellaEllis was Joseph Sparks; this elder Joseph Sparks was probably the onewhose sketch appears on page 1315 of the June 1970 issue of theQUARTERLY.) [JS: He was a brother of William Sparks, the father ofCaleb Sparks and, thus, this Joseph's grand-uncle. William and the elderJoseph (above) were grandsons of Joseph Sparks of William (d.1709) ofQueen Anne's County.) Joseph and Isabella (Ellis) Sparks were listed onthe 1850 census of Lewis County, Kentucky, but not on the 1860 census.According to the 1850 census, it would appear that they were the parentsof the following children...." See the family group sheet.

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

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, September 1971, Whole No. 75, pp 1416-18:

"In the QUARTERLY for September 1970 (Vol. XVIII, No. 3, Whole No.71) we published an article on Caleb Sparks of Lewis County, Kentucky,and his descendants. Caleb Sparks was born about 1785 and died about1835 in Lewis County, Kentucky. He married Rebecca Wilson, daughter ofEphraim Wilson, on October 19, 1805, in Bourbon County, Kentucky. One ofthe sons of Caleb and Rebecca (Wilson) Sparks was Joseph Sparks, bornMarch 10, 1813. Since publishing the above article, we have receivedadditional information on this branch of the family from Mrs. Joseph V.Collins of Arvada, Colorado, a great-granddaughter of Joseph Sparks, andfrom Mrs. Doris L. Miller of Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, agreat-great-granddaughter of Joseph Sparks.

"Mrs. Collins has provided us with the exact date of birth of JosephSparks--whereas on page 1342 we were able only to speculate that he hadbeen born in 1813, we now know that he was born on March 10, 1813.According to Mrs. Collins' records, Joseph Sparks was born in HighlandCounty, Ohio. Highland County, Ohio, and Lewis County, Kentucky, arequite near each ot her, Adams County, Ohio, separating them. JosephSparks was married to Isabella Ellis in Lewis County, Kentucky, on August18, 1834. (According to the marriage license, the guardian of IsabellaEllis was Joseph Sparks; this elder Joseph Sparks was probably the onewhose sketch appears on page 1315 of the June 1970 issue of theQUARTERLY.) [JS: This elder Joseph was a granduncle of the youngerJoseph.] Joseph and Isabella Sparks were living in Lewis County,Kentucky, when the 1850 census was taken. When we prepared the sketch ontheir family for the September 1970 issue (P. 1342)., this 1850 censusrecord was the last reference we had been able to find to Joseph andIsabella Sparks. From Mrs. Collins and Mrs. Miller we have learned,however, that they moved to Scotland County, Missouri., where they werelisted on the 1860 census. Joseph and Isabella (Ellis) Sparks were theparents of the following children:" [See the family group sheet. Thebalance of this article, except the following sentence, relates toEphraim Ellis Sparks and his descendants for which see his notes.]

"Mrs. Collins reports that Joseph Sparks, his wife, and some of theirchildren, are buried in old Black Oak Cemetery north of Granger,Missouri."

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

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, June, 1972, Whole No. 78, p. 1486-87:

FURTHER NOTES ON DESCENDANTS OFJOSEPH AND ISABELLA (ELLIS) SPARKS

In the QUARTERLY of September 1971 (Vol. XIX, No. 3, Whole No, 75, pp.1416-1418) we published a list of the children of Joseph and Isabella(Ellis) Sparks who moved from Lewis County, Kentucky, to Scotland County,Missouri, between 1850 and 1860, Joseph Sparks was born on March 10,1813, a son of Caleb and Rebecca (Wilson) Sparks. He and Isabella Elliswere married in Lewis County, Kentucky, on August 18, 1834. Sincepreparing that record, we have learned that tombstones for Joseph andIsabella are to be found in the Black Oak Cemetery, near Memphis,Missouri, in Scotland County. Joseph Sparks died, according to his stone,in December 1875, at the age of 62 years, 8 months and 20 days, while hiswife, Isabella Sparks, died on March 25, 1886, at the age of 70 years, 7months, and 5 days.

In the same article, we listed John Thomson as a son of Joseph andIsabella (Ellis) Sparks, and his picture appeared on the cover of theSeptember 1971 issue with his brothers Ephraim B. Sparks and ThomasMarshall Sparks. Like his parents, John Thomson Sparks is buried in BlackOak Cemetery near Memphis, Missouri, His tombstone gives his birth dateas September 6, 1839; he died on February 20, 1905. He was married toChloe A. Calhoun on December 22, 1865. She was born, according to hertombstone beside her husband’s, on May 3, 1845, and died on June 15,1902. A correspondent whose father kept a scrapbook of obituaries fromScotland County newspapers, has copied the following obituary of JohnThomson Sparks for us:

"Another one of Scotland County's best citizens passed away at his homejust west of Granger, Feb. 20, 1905. John T, Sparks was born in LewisCounty, Kentucky, Sept, 6, 1839, moved to Missouri in October 1853, wherehe resided until his death. He was united in marriage to Chloe A, CalhounDec. 22, 1865. Two children were born to them, Bertie and Lutie, who werewith him in his last hours. He leaves besides two children to mourn hisdeath two grandchildren, one brother and four sisters and a host ofrelatives and friends. He was a good man, honored, loved and respected byall who knew him. In 1899, in October, he had a stroke of paralysis fromwhich he never recovered. For years he has been an earnest Christian anda devoted member of the Christian Church."

Another son of Joseph and Isabella (Ellis) Sparks was Thomas MarshallSparks whose picture appeared on the cover of the September 1971 issueof the QUARTERLY with his two brothers. He is also buried in the BlackOak Cemetery in Scotland County. According to his tombstone, he was bornJuly 22, 1847, and died January 17, 1912.

His wife's stone gives her name as Elizabeth J. Sparks, born December 2,1848, died March 22, 1912. Buried near them is an infant daughter, SarahSparks, who died September 2, 1877. The marriage record in ScotlandCounty of “Thomas Sparks and Lizzie Searight, February 25, 1875 wasprobably that of this couple.

A correspondent has also reported that in Ripley County, Indiana, thereis a record in the courthouse of a Sarah S. Sparks who was born inScotland County, Missouri, on March 31, 1856, and died on April 23, 1902.She was married to Alfred Harris on May 21, 1877 (he died April 25,1899), It seems probable that this Sarah L Sparks was a daughter ofJoseph and Isabella (Ellis) Sparks; on page 1417 of the QUARTLY we listeda daughter named Sarah Isabel Sparks with date of birth unknown.

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

See also the following article found in THE SPARKS QUARTERLY for March,1977, Whole No. 97, pp. 1878-9:

FURTHER INFORMATION REGARDING FAMILY OF JOSEPH AND ISABELLA (ELLIS)SPARKS

In the QUARTERLY of September 1971 (Vol. XIX, No. 3, Whole No. 75, pp.1416-1418) we published a list of the children of Joseph and Isabella(Ellis) Sparks who moved from Lewis County, Kentucky, to Scotland County,Missouri, between 1850 and 1860. In an earlier issue (September 1970,Vol. XVIII, No. 3, Whole No. 71) we published an article on Caleb Sparks(born ca. 1785, died ca. 1835), father of Joseph Sparks. In a subsequentissue (June 1972, Vol. XX, No, 2, Whole No. 78, pp. 1486-1487), wepublished further information on some of the children of Joseph andIsabella (Ellis) Sparks. We are now able to provide additional data onstill another child of Joseph and Isabella, their daughter, AmandaSparks. These data have been provided by descendants, Charles W. Steeplesand Jean Steeples Mowrer. Mr. Steeples has also provided us with a copyof the will of
Joseph Sparks.

Joseph Sparks was born on March 10, 1813, a son of Caleb and Rebecca(Wilson) Sparks. Joseph died in Scotland County, Missouri, in December,1875. He wrote his will on September 22, 1871, which was witnessed byJoseph A. Gill and Richard Lewis. He bequeathed to his wife, Isabel
Sparks, a portion of his land (about one-half section) which was to besold following her death and divided among his children. He also left herall of his "household and kitchen furniture, and one pair of work horsesto be chosen by her on the place; harness for the same, two milch cows,and enough grain & hay for one year's feed and provision; enough hogs forher support [several words blurred] one corn plow, one stubble plow, oneharrow, also all the poultry that may be on the farm at my death, also myfamily Bible and such other books as she may choose."

He directed that the rest of his land (about 230 acres) be sold and theproceeds divided among his children: Ephraim E. Sparks, John T. Sparks,Rebecca J. Miller, Mary E. Thomas, Aminta S. Sparks, Thomas M. Sparks,Jemima Johnson, and Amanda A. Sparks. Each of his eight children was toreceive one-eighth part, except that John Sparks was to receive $260 lessthan the rest and Mary E. Thomas was to receive $100 less than the rest.Later in his will, Joseph Sparks directed that two of his sons, EphraimE. Sparks and Thomas M. Sparks, serve as the executors of his estate andthat, instead of giving his daughter, Jemima Johnson, her share that theyuse $570 to purchase a tract of land to be deeded to her "for her soleuse during her life and then to revert to her heirs." This will wasprobated on December 22, 1875. (For more of this article see the notesfor Amanda America Sparks.]

SQ 1971: "Joseph Sparks, son of Cornelius and Susannah (Stevens)Sparks, was born on January 24, 1814, in Rowan County, North Carolina. Hewas nine months old when his parents moved to Wayne County, Indiana, and14 years old when the family moved from Indiana to Michigan Territory.He was married twice, first to Mary Jarvis on June 16, 1839, and,following her death on May 12 , 1851, to
Caroline Flanegin (or Flanagan) on March 1O, 1853. The second wife ,Caroline Flanegin, was born July 5, 1826, a daughter of Hugh C. and Mary(Jones)Flanegin.

"Joseph Sparks was a life-long resident of Buchanan, Berrien County,Michigan. In a newspaper account dated March 11, 19O3, at the time ofthe golden wedding anniversary of Joseph Sparks and his second wife,Joseph was described as a Republican who had "voted in sixty-five stateelections and seventeen national elections." This account continues:"Joseph Sparks is said to be the best authority on the history of thenavigation of the St . Joseph River in the lower peninsula. During histime the first boats on the river were placed afloat, the Mary Barneybeing the first steamer. Mr. Sparks piloted craft over many riffles ofthe stream, including that at Mish awaka." Joseph Sparks died on January28, 19O5.
"By his first wife, Mary (Jarvis) Sparks, Joseph Sparks was the fatherof four children: [here names]. (at page 1975:) Joseph Sparks had fourchildren by his second wife, Caroline Flanegin (or Flanagan): [herenames]."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, September, 1988, Whole No. 143, p. 3265:

"Joseph Sparks, son of Benjamin and Sarah (Jeffreys) Sparks, was bornon June 12, 1817. He was married to Martha Elvira Dimmitt in October1842, probably in Surry County, North Caroina. She had been born about1823 in North Carolina. Joseph and Martha lived at Bald Knob where theyreared eight children. He died on May 8, 1902.

Children of Joseph and Martha Elvira (Dimmitt) Sparks:
a. Benjamin Franklin Sparks b Oct 10, 1843.
b. William Russell Sparks b. Nov 18, 1844.
c. John Quincey Adams Sparks was born on March 13, 1846. He marriedMary Salmons on March 13, 1870 in Yadkin County, NC. She was a daughterof Enoch and L. Salmons.
d. Sarah Ann Sparks b. June 14, 1847.
e. James Lewis Sparks b. May 18, 1850.
f. Nancy Rosaline Sparks b. May 28, 1856.
g. George Washington Sparks was born on November 18, 1858, in YadkinCounty, NC. He was married there to Martha C. Ray on October 5, 1881.
h. Fannie Elizabeth Sparks b. Oct 26, 1860."

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

SPARKS QUARTERLY, December, 1990, Whole No. 152, pps. 3670-3673:

The cover of the referenced issue of the SQ is a photograph of thehome of Joseph Sparks (1817-1902) built between 1852 and 1858 at BaldKnob near the village of Buck Shoals in Yadkin County, North Carolina. [The photo may be seen in Joseph's scrapbook.] The article begins:

" [Editor's note: This discription of the home of Joseph Sparksprepared by Dr. Paul E. Sparks, is based upon the notes written by Dr. H. C. Salmons in 1948. He had made crude drawings of the house from hismemory of visits to his maternal grandparents when he was a young man. Heannotated the drawings with handwritten notes which are quite easy tofollow.] {The mother of Dr. Salmons was Fannie Elizabeth (Sparks)Salmons, daughter of Joseph and Martha Elvira (Dimmette) Sparks and aninset of her photo also appears on the cover page at 3669.}

"The construction of the home of Joseph Sparks, pictured on the cover,was begun in 1852 and was completed six years later. The pine timberfrom which it was built was cut from Sparks's farm and dressed there byhand. The frame was hewn, mortised, and pegged without the use ofsophisticated tools, and the roof shingles were dressed dow n by adrawing knife. The finished lumber was cut out with a sash saw, thendressed, sized, and matched by hand. Bricks for the chimneys were madeon the site. The hardware was hauled from Fayetteville by team to thesite at Bald Knob near the village of Buck Shoals, Yadkin County. [BuckShoals is four miles southeast of the small town of Cycle, nowHamptonville, where William Sparks IV and his uncle Solomon Sparkssquatted in 1771 and 1773.]

"The house faced south and was entered by a door which opened from awide, sheltered porch into a hall. To the left of the hallway was theliving room which was also used by Joseph and Martha Sparks as theirbedroom. On the right of the hallway was the parlor. Both rooms wereheated by open fireplaces.

"Immediately behind the living room was the children's room whic h wasalso used as a passageway to the dining room and the kitchen . Thedining room and kitchen were heated by two wood-burning fireplaces madeof stone and placed back-to-back with a common rock chimney . Eachfireplace had a swinging crane (or pot-hanger) so that food could becooked or boiled in pots or kettles swung over the open fire. Acookstove eventually replaced the open fires, but the Sparkses continuedto boil vegetables in a big pot saying that the food always tasted betterwhen cooked in that manner.

"A door in the dining room opened into the pantry and (as rememberedby Dr. Salmons) this is where his grandmother would take him as soon ashe arrived to snack on homemade light bread on which was spread churnedbutter and sourwood honey.

"The second story consisted of two bedrooms, also heated byfireplaces, which used the chimneys of the downstairs rooms. The girlsslept on the room on the right at the head of the stairway, and the boysslept in the room on the left. After the children grew up and movedaway, the hired man was given the boys' room and the girls' room was usedfor storage of boxes of small grain.

"Underneath the chldren's room on the first floor was the winecellar. the sides of the room were not walled-up and eventually the reddirt crumbled and caved in. Dr. Salmons recalled that "this is the placewhere Grandpa would slip me into and give me wine and then say, 'Now forthe Lord's sake, don't tell Sarah Ann.' Grandpa and Grandma were fine,but Oh, my auntie, Sarah Ann!"

"The downstairs hallway also had a back door which opened on to a backporch. This back porch could also be reached through a door in thedining room. The kitchen had two doors to the outside. The entirestructure had 29 double-sash windows, most of which were fitted withshutters."

[Editors note: H. C. Salmons was a practicing physician at Elkin ,North Carolina, and was a son of Andrew Martin and Fannie Elizabeth(Sparks) Salmons. In addition to the drawings of the house of JosephSparks, he also had copies of the family records given to him by hismother. He sent the drawings and family records to his first cousin, RoySparks of Lafayette, Oregon. Roy was a son of Benjamin Franklin andCynthia (Todd) Sparks. Here are the records sent by Dr. Salmons, withhis covering letter.]
Elkin, North Carolina
August 28, 1948
Mr. and Mrs. Roy Sparks
Lafayette, Oregon

Dear Cousins"

I am sending a copy of mother's version of what she had learned of hergrandparents, Old Bennie Sparks and wife. I thought it might interestyou and also please make a correction. I checked the stenographer'swork, but somehow overlooked Joseph Sparks's child, George WashingtonSparks birth November 18, 1858, not 1856.
Thanking you, I remain
Yours respectfully,
H. C. Salmons

Benjamin "Bennie" Sparks
Benjamin "Bennie" Sparks......................born 1784 ... died 1876
Sally Jeffries Sparks.........................born 1785 ... died 1870
Bennie Sparks and Sally Jeffries married 1802
Children
Polly Sparks.................married Connie Gray
John Sparks..................don't know (he went west)
Russell Sparks.............married Miss Martin, daughter of Alfred Martin
Hannah Sparks.............married Mr. Felts (went west)
Sally Sparks.................married Enoch Swaim
Solomon Sparks...........don't know
Martha Sparks..............single
Joseph Sparks.............married Martha Elvira Dimmmette
Benjamin Sparks..........married Miss Sale

Joseph Sparks
Joseph Sparks................born June 12, 1817; died May 8, 1902
Martha Elvira Dimmette.......born June 24, 1823; died November 26, 19 04
Joseph Sparks married Martha Elvira Dimmette October 1842
Children
Benjamin Franklin Sparks, born October 18, 1843; died November 1922 ;married Miss Cynthia Todd (Oregon)
William "Bill" Russell Sparks, born Nov 18, 1844; died June 1911; marriedMiss Jane Madison
John Q. Adams Sparks, born March 13, 1946; died September 1923; marriedMiss Ann Salmons
Sarah Ann Sparks, born June 14, 1847; died june 1915; married Robert Parks
James Lewis Sparks, born May 8, 1850; died March 1907; married EstieYeager (Washington State)
Nancy Rosaline Sparks, born May 28, 1856; died October 1887; married L.J. Salmons
George Washington Sparks, born November 18, 1858; died 1929; married MissMartha "Mattie" Ray
Fannie Elizabeth Sparks, born October 26, 1860; now living (since died)marr A. M. Salmons

"The Sparks and Jeffries families lived in the norther part ofVirginia [see Editor's correction below]. Bennie Sparks and Sallie Jeffries wanted to marry, but their families objected on the grounds thatthey were too young. They ran away and come to North Carolina in 1802and married. They settled on a large tract of land in Surry Coun ty, nowYadkin County, south of the Brushy Mountains, a low range of mountainsand hills which runs southwest and northeast about 5 or 6 miles south ofthe Yadkin River near Swan Creek Gap. They built houses near a small,clear, rippling stream, close to a large, bold spring.

"Mrs. Fannie Sparks Salmons, granddaughter of Mr. and Mrs. BennieSparks, visited her grandparents' home until she was fifteen years oldand remembered much of the place and the folks.

"Bennie Sparks Jr., youngest son of Ben[nie and Sally Sparks], heired(inherited?) the lands and home-place and built his home about one-forthof a mile north of his father's home up the stream toward the mountain.

"Carl Sparks, son of Ben[jamin] Sparks, [Jr.] heired a portion of theland where the old Bennie Sparks home stood. It had all grown up inlarge pine timber, and a saw-mill was placed near where once stood theold Bennie Sparks home.

"I (H. C. Salmons) was called to the saw-mill late one summer eveningin 1916 to attend a man that had been carved up in a fight. The cutswere many and long, but they were not deep. I put in about six dozensutures by lamp light. Then I placed the patient on his bunk in hisshack. I was through about 12:00 o'clock.

"I was invited to the eating shack where I ate a very delicious mealof cress, mustard and turnip greens boiled in plenty of fat bacon , cornbread, and strong coffee. To be nice to the doctor, I got sixhard-boiled eggs which I devoured ferociously and still lived through itall. The boy who did the cutting was the cook.

"My horse was fed and I mounted and rode back home. I again visitedmy patient who was doing very well, and I inspected the premises aboutwhere once stood the Bennie Sparks home. All that I saw was a rockfoundation of chimneys and rocks scattered about, and very few apple andwalnut trees which market the place where the house had been.

"All of the workmen at the saw-mill, including the ones who had thefight, chipped in and paid me for my services. The patient came to myoffice on the seventh day, and I removed all of the sutures. No oneprosecuted.

"[Editor's note: Dr. Salmons' mother was mistaken in one of herstatements. The Sparks families of Surry County had come to NorthCarolina from Frederick County, Maryland, not northern Virginia, about1754 . The parents of Benjamin "Bennie" Sparks, born in 1784, wereReuben and Cassie (Buttery) Sparks; Reuben Sparks was a son of Solomonand Sarah Sparks; and Solomon was a son of Joseph Sparks who died inFrederick County, Maryland, in 1749. Information on Benjamin "Bennie "Sparks first appeared in the QUARTERLY of September 1967, Whole No . 59,p. 1084, as part of an article on his father. A much more completerecord of Reuben and Cassie (Buttery) Sparks and their descendantsappeared in a article by Paul E. Sparks in the QUARTERLY of March 1988,Whole No. 141, pp. 3175-3206, and September 1988, Whole No . 143, pp.3261-3285. Information specifically devoted to Benjamin " Bennie" Sparksand his family appeared on pp. 3265-69." [See notes at top.]

.

!NOTES:
THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, March 1994, Whole No. 165, p. 4273 states "Joseph
Sparks, son of Solomon and Susan Sparks, was born about 1824 in Virgi nia.
We have no further information about him."

SQ pg 2569: "Joseph Sparks, son of Levi and ----(Simmons) Sparks, wasborn about 1825 in Maryland, and was a young lad about ten years of agewhen he went with his father to Indiana in 1835. He remained with hismaternal grandparents (the Simmonses) after his father re-married. JosephSparks married Phoebe ---, probably about 1849 in Vermillion County.When the 1860 census was taken of
that county, he and Phoebe had five children: Martha, Sarah, James,William and Charles."

.

!NOTES:
See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, March 1994, Whole No. 165, p. 4272 for:
"Joseph Sparks, son of William and Rhoda (Pennington) Sparks, was born
about 1826 in Tennessee. He was married to Mary Watson ca.1856. They
had at least one child, William D. Sparks."

SQ p. 2600:
"Joseph Sparks was born about 1830. When his father died, he went tolive with his uncle, Joseph
Sparks, and accompanied that family to Fulton County, Illinois. When the1850 census was taken, he
was 20 years of age and still living in the household of his uncle. Wehave no further information
regarding him."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, June 1970, Whole No. 70, p. 1317:

"Joseph Sparks, son of James and Elizabeth (Gilman) Sparks, was bornon Feburary 28, 1832. (This date, as well as those which follow, appearsin his family Bible owned a few years ago by Sarah Amilda Parks Sparks.)He moved to Pleasant Grove, Olmsted County, MN., with his brother, AlbertC. Sparks, and there married Sarah Amilda Parks on September 16, 1857.She was a daughter of Pleasant H. and Nancy Parks and was born on March19, 1939, in Danville, Hendricks County, IN. According to a descendant,Mrs. Harold L. Ridout, military records show that he enlisted in theUnion Army on February 24, 1864, at Rochester, MN., and died aboard theship J. S. PRINGLE on December 3, 1964. After his death, his widow Sarahmarried (second) Jabez B. Clemons, who was the administrator of Joseph'sestate. Joseph and Sarah A. (Parks) Sparks were the parents of thefollowing children as recorded in the family Bible" (for which see theirindividual sheets).

SQ 3278:

"Joseph Sparks, youngest child of Jonas and Mary (Brown ) Sparks, wasborn about 1838 in Wilkes County, North Carolina, and was a good- sizedlad when his parents moved to Tazewell County, Virginia. He was a firstcorporal of Company C, Witcher's Battalion Virginia Mounted Rifles,Confederate States Army during the Civil War and died in the service."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, March 199, Whole No. 185, pp. 5107-8:

"Joseph Sparks, son of John and Caroline ( ----- ) Sparks, was born onApril 24, 1839, in Concord, Kentucky. (He should not be confused with acousin, Joseph A. Sparks, son of William C. and Jane [Truesdell] Sparks.The latter was born on September 14, 1844; see page 1318 of the June 1970issue of the QUARTERLY, Whole No. 70.)

"Joseph Sparks became a mechanic and worked in his father's wagonshop. He was a member of the Masonic Order ]Like his father and was amember of the Vanceburg [Kentucky] Christian Church. He was also anardent Democrat in his political affiliation and was appointed postmasterof Vanceburg, Kentucky, during the administration of President GroverCleveland.

"Joseph Sparks was married twice. His first marriage was to LouisaJane Corns in 1856; the license was issued on October 29, 1856 in LewisCounty, Kentucky. She had been born about 1837 in Kentucky. She died onOctober 29, 1860, in Lewis County leaving her husband with a two-year-olddaughter, Mary E. Sparks.

"Sparks remained a widower until 1868 when he was married to Mary JaneSeaman. The license was issued on October 26, 1868, in Lewis County. Shehad been born in September 1839 in Jackson County, Virginia, and was adaughter of Thomas and Catherine (McCoy) Seaman. She was a most capable"parlor milliner" in Vanceburg. She died on July 24, 1908, and wasburied at Clarksburg, Kentucky. She and Joseph had three children. Afterher death, Joseph apparently made his home with a daughter, Margaret C.Cox in Chattanooga, Tennessee, until his death in 1917.

"Joseph Sparks had five children. Two were by his first marriage andthree were products of his second marriage."

SQ p. 964:

"Joseph Sparks, son of John and Sarah (Bowlen) Sparks, served in theConfederate Army and was shot in the shoulder at Murfreesboro,Tennessee. He returned to his mother's home at Smithville, Arkansas,where he died from gangrene."

SPARKS QUARTERLY, September 1988, Whole No. 143, p. 3288: (See photo onpage 3289)

"Joseph Sparks, son of Thomas and Martha (Loveless) Sparks, was born onJuly 23, 1850. He was married twice. His first marriage was to Laura B.Smith on January 3, 1875, in Clinton County, Indiana. She had been bornabout 1857 in Ohio. She died about 1880, probably at the birth of theirthird child, Bertie Sparks. Bertie was taken as an infant into the homeof her father's sister, Mary Ann (Sparks) Hanes, and reared by her towomanhood. (See the June 1984 issue of the QUARTERLY, page 2630.)
After the death of his first wife, Joseph Sparks married (2nd) Jennie(Hayvice) Ray on April 5, 1882. She was born on Octobr 1, 1860, and was awidow with a six-year-old son, Charles Abram Ray. She died on June 15,1927. Joseph Sparks died on March 10, 1936. He was the father of twelvechildren, three by his first marriage and nine by his second."

SQ 5316:

Joseph ["Joda"] M. Sparks was born on November 7, 1866; he died on May11, 1943. He was married to Susie Rentfrow in January 1911. Both havegravestones in the Pleasant View Cemetery

SQ pg 2624:

"Joseph Sparks, Jr., son of Joseph and Jane (Heller) Sparks, was bornon November 7, 1866, at Fairview, Illinois. He was possessed of a keenmind and a desire to learn . When his half-brother, Wesley Sparks,returned to Illinois for a visit, he found Joseph working on theirfather's farm. Wesley persuaded Joseph to come to Nebraska and live withhim. Wesley sent Joseph to Nebraska Central College where he wasgraduated in 1890. Joseph then became school superintendant of severalcommunities in Nebraska, including Orleans, Fairmont, Greeley andAurora. He resigned from the superintendency of the Aurora schools toaccept a position in the Nebraska Department of Education, and in 1910 hewas appointed the first president of the Chadron Normal School, a postionhe held until 1916."

"On February 24, 1894, Joseph Sparks was married to Elizabeth K.Sackett at Central City, Nebraska, and when the 1900 census was taken ofFillmore County, they were living in Fairmont. With them were theirsons, Joseph Sparks and Paul Sparks. Joseph Sparks made his retirementhome in Chicago and died there on June 7, 1925, from carbon monoxidepoisoning while he was working on his automobile in his open-doorgarage. He was buried with full Masonic honors. Elizabeth, his wife,was still living in 1939."

The following email was received on Feb 12, 2002, from Okey L. King(okel@@inetone.net]:
"I have been gathering information on the Sparks family on behalf ofmyh deacon and friend Woodson P. Cox. He is the grandson of JosephSparks, 1868, who was the son of Jonas and Lucinda Harrison Sparks. Hehas given me from memory what he knows of the family of Joseph Sparks. Ifyou are interested, I can send it to you.
"Joseph Sparks settled on Big Ridge which is a section of AlleghneyMountain in Allegheny County, Virginia. Joseph was a farmer and aPrimitive Baptist Minister. He and his wife are buried at the DowdyCemetery in Monroe County, West Virginia not far from Big Ridge. Hisbrothers, William and Jonas, also settled in the area and William is alsoburied at Dowdy. Jonas is buried in an old cemetery on Cove Mountain onthe Virginia-West Virginia line. This cemetery has only fieldstones formonuments and it is not easy to find.
"At this time I have 63 individuals in this Jonas Sparks file countinghis other children that you already have. On my website, there is aphoto of Joseph Sparks officiating at a baptizing on Laurel Creek nearthe Dowdy Cemetery. I have served in this area for more than twenty yearsand have known some of the Sparks for that many years." (signed) Okey L.King.
Mr. King did not provide the address of his website.

SQ p. 3276: "Joseph A. Sparks was born in July 1852. He married MaryJ. Whitt about 1878. She was born in May 1851, and was a daughter ofArchibald Whitt. She and Joseph had four children according to the 1900census of Tazewell county.
(1) Alexander Hamilton Sparks was born about 1879. He married Martha"Mattie" Christian and they had at least four children: Mary, Virgie,Joseph, and Elba C.
(2) Jonas P. Sparks was born January 1882. He married Rebecca Smith.
(3) Samuel P. Sparks was b. in Jan 1884. He m. Lissa Baldwin.
(4) Silas W. D. Sparks was b. in Oct 1886."

See SQ p 4873:
"He may have been married twice.... He may have been married asecond time, also in Elliott County. A marriage license was issued thereon May 11, 1943, for Andy Sparks, age 67, to be married to ArmenthiaLewis, also 67. We have no further information about this man."

See the SPARKS QUARTERLY, March 1978, Whole No. 101, pg 1973:

"Allen Sparks, son of Joseph and Mary (Jarvis) Sparks, was born inBerrien County, Michigan, on November 15, 1850, and died in Valentine,Nebraska, on June 11, 1907. His full name was Joseph Allen Sparks, buthe always went by the name Allen. He married Margaret Craig, daughter ofWilliam Lawrence and Elizabeth (Shoemaker) Craig, on November 19, 1884,in St. Joseph, Missouri. She was born May 6, 1859, in Savannah,Missouri, and died on March 18, 1928, in New York City. They had onechild, a son named Leonard Craig Sparks, who was born August 27, 1885, inValentine, Nebraska, and died in April 1968; he was buried in theArlington Cemetery. He spent his life in the U.S. military service,retiring as a colonel in 1945. Colonel Sparks was a member of the SparksFamily Association and provided the following sketch of his father'slife: (See Joseph's photo in his scrapbook)

"My father [Joseph Allen Sparks] left Berrien County, Michigan, in hismidtwenties, about 1875, and joined an older sister (Helen) and brother(Eldon)in Chicago. After a time he and his brother went on fartherwest. Eldon went to Cheyenne, Wyo., I believe about this time. Myfather stayed in Omaha, Nebr., where, some months later, he went to workfor a new railroad, the Fremont, Elkhorn & Missouri Valley (now theNorthwestern), that was being built from Missouri Valley, on the MissouriRiver some twenty odd miles north of Omaha, to the Black Hills insouthwestern South Dakota. The railroad did not reach Valentine, aboutthree hundred miles northwest of Omaha, until sometime in 1884. After atime my father quit the railroad job and went to Ft. Niobrara where hehad acquired the trader-ship. In due time he went on to Valentine andopened a typical frontier general store about the time the railroadreached there. His brother, Eldon, joined him at Valentine and the firmof Sparks Brothers was formed. Later they started the Cherry CountyBank. Within the next two or three years, the two younger half-brothers,Levi and Charles, and their. sister Mary, arrived in Valentine fromBuchanan, Berrien County, Mich. In 1905, two years before my father'sdeath, we, along with his brother Eldon and his family, moved fromValentine to Seattle, Wash. They owned stores in Valentine, Cody,Thatcher, and Norton, Nebr., and on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation inSouth Dakota.

The town of Sparks, Nebraska, was named for Allen Sparks (full name,Joseph Allen Sparks), it being located on land that he owned."Initially," according to Colonel Leonard C. Sparks, "this was a stationon the Army's overland freight route from old Ft. Randall, S.D. (on theMissouri River just north of the Nebraska state line) to Ft. Niobrara,Nebr. Ft. Niobrara was established about 1879-80. It was one of thefirst Army Posts located along the southern border of the Rosebud andPine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. It was on the NiobraraRiver a few miles south of the state line and about four miles east ofValentine, Nebr., which later became the county seat of Cherry County. Myfather was one of the early, if not the first, licensed Post Trader atFt. Niobrara, in those days a concession to run a store (now called apost exchange) on an Army Post."

The town of Sparks, Nebraska, was named for Allen Sparks (full name,Joseph Allen Sparks), it being located on land that he owned."Initially," according to Colonel Leonard C. Sparks, "this was a stationon the Army's overland freight route from old Ft. Randall, S.D. (on theMissouri River just north of the Nebraska state line) to Ft. Niobrara,Nebr. Ft. Niobrara was established about 1879-80. It was one of thefirst Army Posts located along the southern border of the Rosebud andPine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. It was on the NiobraraRiver a few miles south of the state line and about four miles east ofValentine, Nebr., which later became the county seat of Cherry County. Myfather was one of the early, if not the first, licensed Post Trader atFt. Niobrara, in those days a concession to run a store (now called apost exchange) on an Army Post."

Leonard Craig Sparks, only child of Joseph Allen and Margaret (Craig)Sparks, was born in Valentine, Nebraska, on August 27, 1885. He wasmarried to Katherine Speer on June 25, 1924. She was born June 22, 1893,in Washington@@ D.C., a daughter of James Calvin and Lelia J.(Butterworth) Speer. They had no children. Leonard C. Sparks attendedOrchard Military Academy located northwest of Detroit and wascommissioned a second lieutenant in the Field Artillery in 1908. For thenext 37 years he was stationed at various army posts in the UnitedStates, the Philippines, and Hawaii. He served for 18 months in Europein World War I. He and his wife lived in Washington, D.C., after hisretirement in 1945. His wife preceded him in death by two or threeyears. He died in April 1968.

"Joseph Sparks (son of Cornelius Sparks) had four children by hissecond wife, Caroline Flanegin (or Flanigan):

(5) Levi Carlton Sparks, born March 24, 1854 (see below).
(6) Charles Flanigan Sparks, born about 1856.
(7) Mary E. Sparks, born about 1860.
(8) Netta A. Sparks, born about 1864; died young.

The following article was taken from the QUARTERLY under the notes forAllen Sparks, son of Joseph Allen Sparks, p. 1973-5:
"Colonel Sparks was a member of the Sparks Family Association andprovided the following sketch of his father's life:

"My father [Joseph Allen Sparks left Berrien County, Michigan,in his midtwenties, about 1875, and joined an older sister (Helen) andbrother (Eldon) in Chicago. After a time he and his brother went onfarther west. Eldon went to Cheyenne, Wyo., I believe about this time. Myfather stayed in Omaha, Nebr., where, some months later, he went to workfor a new railroad, the Fremont, Elkhorn & Missouri Valley (now theNorthwestern), that was being built from Missouri Valley, on the MissouriRiver some twenty odd miles north of Omaha, to the Black Hills insouthwestern South Dakota. The railroad did not reach Valentine, aboutthree hundred miles northwest of Omaha, until sometime in 1884. After atime my father quit the railroad job and went to Ft. Niobrara where hehad acquired the trader-ship. In due time he went on to Valentine andopened a typical frontier general store about the time the railroadreached there. His brother, Eldon, joined him at Valentine and the firmof Sparks Brothers was formed. Later they started the Cherry County Bank.Within the next two or three years, the two younger half-brothers, Leviand Charles,
and their sister Mary, arrived in Valentine from Buchanan, BerrienCounty, Mich. In 1905, two years
before my father's death, we, along with his brother Eldon and hisfamily, moved from Valentine to
Seattle, Wash. They owned stores in Valentine, Cody, Thatcher, andNorton, Nebr., and on the Pine
Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota.

The town of Sparks, Nebraska, was named for Allen Sparks (full name,Joseph Allen Sparks), it being located on land that he owned."Initially," according to Colonel Leonard C. Sparks, "this was a stationon the Army's overland freight route from old Ft. Randall, S.D. (on theMissouri River just north of the Nebraska state line) to Ft. Niobrara,Nebr. Ft. Niobrara was established about 1879-80. It was one of thefirst Army Posts located along the southern border of the Rosebud andPine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. It was on the NiobraraRiver a few miles south of the state line and about four miles east ofValentine, Nebr., which later became the county seat of Cherry County. Myfather was one of the early, if not the first, licensed Post Trader atFt. Niobrara, in those days a concession to run a store (now called apost exchange) on an Army Post."

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

SQ 2775:

"Joseph Fetzer Sparks was born on Septermber 19, 1881. He was marriedto Maude S. Madray on October 24, 1905, and they had four children:Irene, Willa, Jo, and Conrad. He died on May 12, 1930."

\

SQ pg 2922 states "Joseph H. H. Sparks (600), son of John and Rebecca(Wareham) Sparks was born on February 9, 1841. He served in Company K,133rd Regiment Pennsylvania Infantry during the Civil War. See SQ WholeNo . 133, pp. 2861-2, for an abstract of his pension file which isreproduced below.

"Joseph H. H. Sparks was married twice. His first marriage was toMary Bussard on January 31, 1867. They apparently had no children. Hissecond marriage was to Georgia E. Casteel on June 28, 1898. She was bornabout 1879. Joseph Sparks was superintendent of the Sweet Root ForestryReservation in Bedford County. He died on October 13, 1912, atClearville, Pennsylvania. He and Georgia, his second wife, had fourchildren. (names)"

JOSEPH H. SPARKS, CIVIL WAR PENSION APPLICATION

JOSEPH H. SPARKS, son of John and Rebecca (Wareham) Sparks, was born onFebruary 9, 1841, in Bedford County, Pennsylvania. He married (1st) MaryBrussard and (2d) Georgia Etta Casteel. He served in Company K, 133rdRegiment Pennsylvania Infantry. file Designations: Inv. Cert. NO.354,380; Wid. Cert. No. 827,430; Minor Cert. No. 792,453.

"On September 15, 1883, Joseph H. Sparks, aged 35, a resident ofEverett, Pennsylvania, applied for an invalid pension. He stated that hehad enlisted in Company K, 133rd Regiment Pennsylvania Infantry on August9, 1862, and had served until he was discharged on January 8, 1863. Onor about October 20, 1862, while marching from Virginia to Antietam,Maryland, he was taken sick and as a result he had a paralysis of hisleft leg from which he had never fully recovered. He was treated in thehospital at Frederick City, Maryland, and at Turners Lane Hospital,Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was 5 feet, 9 inches tall; he had a darkcomplexion, dark hair and hazel eyes; he was a hotel clerk. John E.Eicholt witnessed his signature.

"The War Department confirmed the military service of Joseph H. Sparkson December 9, 1886. He had been enrolled on August 9, 1862, at BloodyRun, Pennsylvania in Company K, commanded by Capt. Samuel B. Tate, ofthe 133rd Regiment Pennsylvania Infantry Volunteers to serve for ninemonths. He was reported sick on October 31, 1862, and hospitalized incamp at Sharpsburg, Maryland. He was transferred to the General Hospital,Frederick, Maryland, on November 4, 1862, and then sent to the GeneralHospital, Turners Lane, Philadelphia, with typhoid fever. He was sent toa convalescent hospital near Alexandria, Virginia, and was discharged onJanuary 8, 1863.

"Invalid Certificate No. 354,380 was issued to Sparks and he wasplaced upon the pension roll. On July 4, 1898, he replied to aquestionnaire from the Bureau of Pensions in which he stated that he hadbeen married to Georgia Etta Casteel on June 4, 1898, by the Rev. W. C.Guteline, pastor of the Reformed Church of Cumberland, Maryland. WhenJoseph Sparks died on October 13, 1912, he was receiving a pension of $50per month.

"On July 7, 1914, Georgia E. Sparks, aged 35, a resident ofClearville, Pennsylvania, applied for a widow's pension. She said thatshe had been married on June 28, 1898, at Cumberland, Maryland, under thename of Georgia Etta Casteel. It had been her first marriage. Herhusband had been previously married to Mary Bussard who had died manyyears before. She said her husband had left her with four children undersixteen years of age. They were:

John Sparks, born June 11, 1899
William Sparks, born March 17, 1901
Mary Sparks, born February 17, 1904
Bertha Sparks, born August 21, 1909

Harvey Grubb and Mary C. Stayer witnessed her signature.

"Aaron D. and Mary C. Stayer, aged 61 and 58 years, respectively, madean affidavit in February 1915 to support the application of Georgia E.Sparks. They stated that they were present at the funeral of Joseph H.Sparks who had died on October 13, 1912. He had never been married butone time prior to his marriage to Georgia E. Casteel and that was to MaryBussard who had died many years before. The children of Joseph H. andGeorgia Sparks were: John A. Sparks, William S. Sparks, Mary E. Sparks,and Bertha J. Sparks, all of whom were living. Thomas J. Tewell andSarah R. Grubb witnessed their signatures.

"Widow Certificate No. 827,430 and Minor Certificate No. 792,453 wereissued to the widow and children of Joseph H. Sparks, and they wereplaced upon the pension roll.

"(Editor's Note: Joseph H. Sparks was a son of John and Rebecca(Wareham) Sparks who appeared on the 1850 and 1870 censuses of BedfordCounty, Pennsylvania. He was a grandson of Joseph Jr. and ElizabethSparks and a greatgrandson of Joseph, Sr. and Mary (McDaniel) Sparks. Seepages 529-530 of the March 1961 issue of the QUARTERLY, Whole No. 33, andpages 585-587 of the September 1961 issue of the QUARTERLY, Whole No. 36.)

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

See also THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, Mar 1992, Whole No. 157, pp. 3916-17:

"JOSEPH H. H. SPARKS, born 1841, died 1912

"Along with his membership dues for 1992, Henry E. Smith ofWilmington, Deleware, has sent us a xerox copy of an item which he hadhappened to note in an 1894 newspaper while assisting his wife in someresearch. This pertains to a Joseph H. Sparks (or Joseph H. H. Sparks,according to his military records) and appeared within an article devotedto the New Windsor Hotel located in Clearfield, Pennsylvania, in the June20, 1894, issue of the Raftsman Journal, published in Clearfield. (Thetown of Clearfield is located in Clearfield County, Pennsylvania.)

"Typical of weekly newspapers of the time, the illustrations used weredrawings in the form of steel engravings, and we have reproduced abovethe drawing of Joe Sparks, as he was called by his friends, by an artistworking for the Raftsman Journal. (See scrapbook for Joseph Sparks.)

"As noted, the article copied for us by Mr. Smith is devoted to theNew Windsor Hotel which had just been remodeled by its proprietor, JamesMahaffey, Esq. Joe Sparks was the clerk of this hotel. This articlereads, in part, as follows:

"Everybody who sees the new Hotel Windsor, located at the corner of3rd and Market streets, pays it the compliment of being the finest hotelproperty in all this section of the country. The repairs upon it havejust been completed, and guests have the pleasure of enjoycomfortable andnewly fitted rooms, a dining room replete in all of its appointments anda hotel office as commodious and neat as is the office of the BinghamHouse, Philadelphia, after which it was patterned. The Windsor hasalways belonged to one man, Ex-Sheriff James Mahaffey, who purchased theground and a brick dwelling house in the summer of 1884, and erected thehotel property, then far in advance of any in Clearfield. It was openedto the public January 26th, 1885.

"The new bar and fixtures are handsome pieces of furniture, and aresaid to be more expensive than any others in Central Pennsylvania. Theyare known as the Colonade Bar Fixtures, made in Chicago by the AmericanSaloon Fixture Company, the leading furnishing company of America. Thebar is twenty-four feet long, made of antique oak, the bar top solidmahogany, with French plate mirrors 5 x 18, a refrigerator back bar withvault in cellar ten feet in the clear. James Dougherty, who has been thebar clerk at Windsor for the past five years, has entire control of thenew fixtures, and everything is kept clean and sparkling as a newdollar. The hotel has a livery attached, and is supplied throughout withelectric bells.

"Joseph H. Sparks, who is perhaps the best trained hotel clerk inthis section of the country, outside of the cities, has been in theemploy of Mr. Mahaffey for the past five years. Mr. Sparks's home is atClearville, Bedford county, where he is at the present time spending hissummer vacation with friends. The boarders about the Windsor (andmany of them have been there since the house was started) think "Joe"Sparks about the cleverest clerk that a good hotel could have and thecooks feel lost since they do not have him to make up the menu cards fordinner, etc. Mr. Sparks, although not as old as the proprietor of theWindsor, was a soldier, and is a member of the G.A.R. In 1890 theDemocratic County Convention of Bedford county (unfortunately he belongsto that party) placed him in nomination as its candidate for Registerand Recorder. The Republican majority in the county that year was 600,but Joe chased his Republican competitor very close, and was onlydefeated by 224 votes. He served his party as County Auditor in 1885-86,and subsequently served on Gen. D. Stewart Elliott's staff in theNational Guard as Major. Mr. Sparks was a member of the 133, Pa., Vol.,commanded by Col. Frank Speakman, of Chester county. He fought atAntietam, Chancellorsville and Fredericksburg and has a splendid militaryrecord."

"Few men have made more friends than.has Mr. Sparks during the sixyears he has been in Clearfield, because of his integrity and genialqualities.'

"As a veteran of the Civil War, Joseph H. H. Sparks applied for apension based on his service in Company K, 133rd Regiment PennsylvaniaInfantry, and an abstract of his pension papers appeared in the QUARTERLYof March 1986, pp. 2861-62. He was a son of John and Rebecca (Wareham)Sparks. A record of his branch of the Sparks family appeared in theSeptember 1986 issue of the QUARTERLY, Whole No. 135; see page 2922 [JS:and above] for specific information regarding him and his immediatefamily.

"Born on February 9, 1841, Joseph H. H. Sparks was married twice. Heand his first wife, Mary Bussard, appear to have had no children. By hissecond wife, Georgia E. Casteel, he was the father of four children:
John A. Sparks, born June 11, 1899;
William S. Sparks, born March 19, 1901;
Mary E. Sparks, born February 17, 1904; and
Bertha I. Sparks, born August 21, 1909."

Joseph H. H. Sparks died on October 13, 1912.

SQ p. 3695:

Joseph James Sparks, son of Isaac and Frances (Higginbotham) Sparks, wasborn on July 24, 1844, in Misssissippi. He served in Company D, 11thRegiment Texas Infantry, Confederate States Army, and received a pensionfrom the state of Texas for his military service. After returning fromthe army, he was married to Bernice Stephens about 1866. She had beenborn in Texas about 1848. Joseph and Bernice had five children when the1880 census was taken of Eastland County, Texas.

Bernice (Stephens) Sparks apparently died about 1887, and Joseph wasmarried, second, to Sarah Ann on January 18, 1889, in Eastland County.She had been born on May 23, 1865. Joseph died of a pulmonary embolism onOctober 13, 1922, at Morgan Mill in Erath County, Texas. According to hisdeath certificate, he was married at that time, but his wife's name wasnot given. The date of his birth as well as the place appear as givenabove. His father's name was given as Isaac Sparks, but his mother's namewas not given. He was buried in the Sapoak Cemetery. We have a record ofonly five of the children of Joseph and Bernice (Stephens) Sparks.

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

VITAL RECORDS:
BIRTH: Joseph J. Sparks was born on September 21, 1902 in Evansville,Indiana. See Indiana Cert. #21383 City-County Dept. of Health, City ofEvansville, Vanderburgh County, Evansville, IN (In possession of James J.Sparks, San Carlos, CA)

MARRIAGE: Joseph was married to Cecelia Esther Pigott in the St.Anthony's Catholic Church, Long Beach, California, on June15, 1925. SeeCA Dept. of Health Services, Cert. of Marriage No. 25-O1 5598; StateIndex No. 1236, local registered no. 6813 (In possession of James J.Sparks, San Carlos, CA)

DEATH: Joseph died in Seal Beach, Orange County, California, on February16, 1990. See CA Death Cert. Local Reg. Dist. and Cert. No.3-90-30-00218 5, Health Officer and Local Registrar of Births and Deaths,Orange County, CA. (In possession of James J. Sparks, San Carlos, CA)Buried in the Memorial Park Cemetery, Westminister, CA.

PROPERTY:
Joseph John Sparks and Cecelia E. Sparks purchased real property inthe City of Long Beach, County of Los Angeles, commonly known as 1O16East 36th Street, on 21 July, 1926. (Book 6308 of records at page 193).On 10 August, 1926, a second Trust Deed was recorded securing a balanceof $1,660 due to the sellers in Book 6328 at page 71. Sellers were A. W.& Ruby S. McLaughlin.

CENSUS:
The 1930 US Census for Long Beach, Los Angeles County, California;April 14, 1930; Roll: 131; Page:16B; Enumeration District: 1149; Image139.0:
It shows Joseph, 27, Cleaning and Pressing, Own Shop; Cecelia, 23, JamesJ.; 2 8/12, Thomas V., 2/12.

MILITARY:
Honorable Discharge from USN, original in possession of James J.Sparks, San Carlos, CA. Joseph John Sparks 336-03-82, Yeoman ThirdClass, U. S. Navy; "Honorably discharged from the battleship USS NewMexico on 14 Aug, 1923. Enlisted as apprentice seaman August 16, 1920 a tSt. Louis, MO. for three years. Born Sept 21, 1902 at Evansville, IN. 4ratings held: AS, Sea. 2c, Sea. 1c, Yeo 3c. 2 special duties for whichqualified, presser and barber. Service: NTS San Francisco, CA from Aug16, 1920 until Aug 14, 1923. Recommended for reenlistment as YeomanSecond Class. Character of Service: Excellent, final average 3.8. Height5 ft 7 in.; Weight 170 lbs; Eyes Brown; Hair Dk. Brown; Complexion Ruddy."

Joseph Sparks was the eighth of ten children born to David L. and Mary(Stone) Sparks. All except Joseph and Virgil were girls, Virgil havingdied years before the birth of Joseph. He was raised in extreme povertyin St. Louis, Missouri, his father, an itinerate carpenter, being unableto find steady employment. He was forced to quit school duringelementary school in order to obtain employment to assist his motherfinancially. When he was 18 in 1920, he joined the navy for a three yeartour of duty. (See above) He was married to Cecelia Pigott two yearsafter his release from the service and worked in a cleaning and pressingshop in Long Beach, California.

Joseph and Cecelia later became owners of the Star Cleaners which theyoperated until World War II during which time they had two sons, JamesJoseph and Thomas Virgil. During the War, they were divorced and Josephbegan to work as a postal clerk in the Long Beach Post Office.

On August 10, 1958, he married Jean Starkey who survived him. Heretired in 1965 as Senior Scheme Examiner and played golf several timeseach week until well into his eighties and organized many golftournaments. His death occurred less than three weeks before the birthof his first great-grandchild, Michelle Marie Sparks, daughter of Timothyand Karen (Seward) Sparks, son of James and Ellen (Sherriffs) Sparks.

SQ 2919-2924 for lengthy article on the father of Joseph III (494) ,and epecially on Joseph Jr.(428), his life and his children's.
The portion of the article relating to Joseph III, referred to asJoseph Jr. in the article commences on page 2919:

"Joseph Sparks, Jr., son of Joseph and Mary (McDaniel) Sparks, wasborn on March 25, 1754, in Frederick County, Maryland. He grew tomanhood on his father's farm and when he was about twenty years of age,he decided to join the ranks of those who were looking for cheap, fertileland across the Appalachian Mountains in the Province of Pennsylvania. In1774, he and his brothers, James (495) (about 19 years old) and Solomon(586) (about 15 years old), arrived in Bedford County, Pennsylvania .There they settled near present-day Everett on Clear Ridge between thestreams of Clear Creek and Greys Run, just south of a bend in the JuniataRiver . (See the map on page 2918)"

"No record has been found of the marriage of Joseph Sparks, Jr., whichprobably occurred about 1778. He may have been married in Bedford Countyor he may have returned to Frederick County and brought his teen-agebride , Elizabeth ---, to Clear Ridge. We have not learned her maidenname. Their first child was born in September 178O, and when the firstU.S. census was taken in 179O, they had six children, three boys andthree girls.

"A short time after Joseph and his brothers arrived in Bedford County,the conflict between the American colonies and Great Britain broke out .The three brothers served in the American militia throughout theRevolutionary War. Joseph served in an organization which defended thefrontier from hostile Indians who were allies of Great Britain; he servedfrom 1778 to 1783 in the Rangers of the Frontier.

"After the Revolutionary War ended, Joseph began acquiring land onClear Ridge in Bedford County. On January 25, 1786, he bought 3OO acres. Another 3OO-acre tract was added in 1789, and another tract of equalsize was added in 1792. His final purchase was made on April 16, 1794,when he bought 4OO acres. He also owned a mill on Clear Creek.

"Elizabeth Sparks, wife of Joseph, died on March 16, 1803, at the ageof 39 years; their youngest child, a son, was then four years old.Apparently, the older children assumed the responsibility of running thehouse and the family stayed intact. When the 181O census was taken ofBedford County, all of the children were still living at home. Six ofthe eight children were living at home in 182O; apparently five of thechildren never married. There are scattered county records pertaining toSparks.

"In the summer of 1827, Joseph Sparks became quite ill. He hadcelebrated his 73rd birthday the previous March, thus he was an "old man"for his times. He made his will on September 15th and asked hisneighbors, Uriah Hughes and Amos McDaniel, to witness it. He died threedays later. All of his eight children were named in the will, which wasprobated on October 12, 1827, at the Bedford County courthouse. (hereare the essential provisions of that document:

Item. To my son, Solomon, all the right and title to my share orhalf of a tract of land I own with Abraham Wemmer in partnership onBrush Creek joining lands of David Buck, Hugh Gillon, George Moyers,and others.

Item. To my daughter, Christianea, my son, Joseph, my daughter,Elizabeth, and my son, John, each an equal right to the tract of land Inow live on, each to pay annually an equal share of what may becounted sufficient to maintain my daughter, Barbara, in all needfulnecessaries during her life.

Item. To each of the above named four, one feather bed and bedding;one horse creature, Joseph having the first choice, John the second andChristianea the third; one cow of their choice. To daughter, Elizabeth,one lume [sic]; To daughter, Barbara, one feather bed.

Item. To my son, James, and daughter, Mary Morris, one young cow.To son, Solomon, one feather bed.

Item. As for the goods not willed or bequeathed, all are to be soldat a public sale and used to pay my debts. If any are left, theyare to be divided among my four children, Christianea, Joseph,Elizabeth, and John.

Item. As for such other lands as I have and have not bequeathed,they shall be sold to satisfy the balance of my debts and thendivided equally among the last named four children.

Item. I appoint my sons, Joseph and John, as my executors.

Witnesses: his
Joseph O Sparks
Uriah Hughes seal
Amos McDaniel

"Joseph Sparks died on September 18, 1827. He was buried beside hiswife,
Elizabeth (591), in the Indian Springs Cemetery in West ProvidenceTownship in
Bedford County, never Everett, Pennsylvania. An inscription on hiscemetery
marker indicates that he was a soldier in the Revolutionary War.

(Indian Springs Cemetery, where many of the descendants of JosephSparks
were buried, is located in the southern part of West Providence and isabout
four miles south of the village of Everett. [See map, pg. 2918])."

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 3697: He was married to Erma ---.

.
!NOTES:
Joseph Madison Sparks was born in 1854 in Texas. He married Susa n---,
probably about 1800, and when the 1900 census was taken, they were living in
Wharton County, Texas. Madison (as he was called) rode for a wealth yrancher
named Shanghai Pierce for a number of years. Pierce owned land fro mColorado
County to the gulf of Mexico at one time, and his land holdings rival edthe
King Ranch in size. Madison and Susan Sparks had eight children.

.
!NOTES:
SQ 3270: "Joseph P. Sparks was born in January 1851. On Novembe r 7,
1871, he married Susan Pruitt in Tazewell County, Virginia. She wa sborn in
October 1848 and was a daughter of Archibald and Martha Pruitt. Jose phand
Susan had four children:
(1) Mary Sparks b. ca. 1873.
(2) Martha Sparks b. ca. 1876.
(3) Sarah "Sally" b. ca. 1877.
(4) Archibald b. ca. 1878. He married Ollie --- and according t o the
1900 and 1910 censuses of Tazewell County, they had at least f ive
children: Joseph S., Martha, Dewey, Thomas and May."

SQ pg 2923 states: "Joseph Patterson Sparks was born on November 4 ,1882. On April 8, 1908, he married Anna Pearl Beck. She was born inFebruary, 1888, and was a daughter of Chapman Beck. Joseph died onOctober 14, 1956 , and Anna died in June 1980. They had seven children:Gilbert, Evelyn, Martha, Phoebe, Richard, Fred and Eunice."

See SQ p. 2969"

"Joseph R. Sparks, son of Joseph and Elizabeth (Naill) Sparks, wasborn on December 17, 1835, in Bedford County, and accompanied his parentsto Bureau County, Illinois, in 1851. According to a publication VeteransBuried In Illinois, he served in Company A, 139th Regiment IllinoisInfantry during the Civil War. The National Archives has no record ofhis service, however; he probably served in a unit of the Illinois StateMilitia.

"After the death of his father in March 1868, Joseph R. Sparks wasappointed to complete the settlement of the estate of his uncle, AbrahamSparks . He made the final settlement on June 10, 1868. He died onJanuary 25, 1909 , and was buried in Grave 287 in the Forest HillCemetary at Wyanet, IL.

"Joseph R. Sparks may have been the Joseph Sparks who marriedElizabeth ---about 1864 and appeared on the 1870 and 1880 censuses ofBedford County, PA. According to these censuses, he and Elizabeth hadfour children: George W., Eliza J. (Jennie), Harry C. and David C.Sparks."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, September 1961, Whole No. 35; SPARKSES IN THEWAR OF 1812, BOUNTY LAND AND PENSION APPLICATIONS; pg 585:

"JOSEPH S. SPARKS, born about 1794, of Bedford County, Penna.; movedto Bureau County, Illinois, in 1851; died in 1868. Bounty Land WarrantFile No. 358-40-55. Pension File W C 27 481.

"On Feb. 1, 1851, Joseph S. Sparks appeared before a justice of thepeace named James Belford in Bedford County, Penna., and made applicationfor bounty land. He stated that he was 57 years old and a resident ofEast Providence, Bedford County, Penna.; that he was a volunteer in thecompany comanded by William Piper, afterwards commanded by Solomon Sparks(586), in the 2d Regiment of Riflemen commanded by Col. William Piper inthe War of 1812; that he was mustered at Bloody Run in Bedford County onSept. 9 ,, 1812, for the term of 6 months and continued in actual servicefor two months and "received a pass" at Black Rock, New York, in Nov.,1812. He signed his name as "Joseph S. Sparks." Attached to thisapplication is a sworn statement by Abraham Sparks that he, too, was aprivate in William Piper's company, afterwards Solomon Sparks's company,and that Joseph S. Sparks was in the same company.

"Joseph S. Sparks was issued a warrant for 40 acres of bounty land.

"On March 21, 1855, Joseph S. Sparks applied for additional bountyland under the new act. He was now a resident of Bureau County, Illinois, and gave his age as 61. His statement regarding his service in the Warof 1812 was essentially the same as that in his application in 1851,except he stated that he had been honourably discharged at Buffalo, NewYork, on or about Jan. 1, 1813, "on account of being ordered home with asick Brother then & and there in said company by order of said Captain."He signed his name as "Joseph S. Sparks" in the presence of Levi North,Justice of the Peace. The witnesses were J. Porter and Solomon Sparks.

"When the 1855 application of Joseph S. Sparks was received, thePension Office questioned whether Joseph Sparks (595) and Joseph S.Sparks (644), both of Bedford County in 1850, were not the same person.On Feb. 21, 1856, Joseph S. Sparks appeared before Joseph V. Thompson inBureau County , Illinois, and stated "that he was under the Command ofCaptain Solomon Sparks of Bloody Run, Pennsylvania in the War of 1812,that in the same company there was another Joseph Sparks, that at thetime this affiant was enrolled and during the War his (the affiant's)name was Joseph Sparks, that after the War some years, this affiantchanged his name to Joseph S. Sparks, in order that their names might bedistinguished, that this affiant is probably five or six years youngerthan the other said Joseph Sparks." He further stated that by the timehis warrant for 40 acres had been sent to him in 1851, he had moved toIllinois, and that it was forwarded to him by his brother now in BedfordCounty (he did not give his brother's name). He signed his name JosephS. Sparks."

"Joseph S. Sparks died at Wyanet, Bureau County, Illinois, on March 31,1868. On May 23, 1878, his widow, Elizabeth Sparks, applied for apension. In her application, she stated that she was 79 years of age(thus born about 1799) and that she was a resident of Wyanet, Ill. Shewas unable to give many details regarding her husband's service becauseshe stated that "she did not become acquainted with her said husbanduntil after the close of the war." She stated that she was married toJoseph S. Sparks near the town of Taneytown in Frederick County,Maryland, on March 27, 1817, by John Cropp, a minister of the Gospel, andthat before her marriage her name was Elizabeth Naill, and that "neitherherself nor her husband had been previously married."

"She stated that her husband had died at Wyanet on March 31, 1868;that from the date of their marriage to 1851 they had lived in BedfordCounty , Penna., that from 1851 to 1857 they lived in Enon, BureauCounty, Ill., and from 1857 to 1868 at Wyanet, Ill. She signed herapplication as "Elizabeth Sparks" in the presence of a notary publicnamed O. Weaver. John Latty, aged 40 , and Andrew Sapp, aged 30, both ofWyanet, Ill., swore they had known Elizabeth Sparks for 30 years and 25years respectively and were "well acquainted with said Joseph S. Sparks,and have heard him say that he was a Soldier in the War of 1812 and saiddeceased always treated and acknowledged claimant as his wife."

"As proof of her marriage, Elizabeth Sparks submitted a documentprepared May 30, 1878, in Frederick County, Maryland, by David W. Naillof Frederick County. (Since Elizabeth Sparks's maiden name was Naill,this was probably her brother.) David W. Naill made oath that he knewElizabeth Sparks and Joseph S. Sparks and "that he was present and one ofthose who waited upon them and saw claimant and said deceased husbandmarried, that claimant's maiden name was Elizabeth Naill, and that shewas married to said Joseph S. Sparks at her father's house near TaneyTown, Maryland, by the Reverend John Cropp, pastor of the Lutheran Churchin Taney Town on the 27th day of March eighteen hundred and seventeen ...that after their marriage he accompanied them to his father's residencenear Bloody Run, Bedford County, Pennsylvania."

"This statement was signed "D. W. Naill" in the presence of H.Brenneisen, Justice of the Peace.

"Also to accompany her application, Elizabeth sparks arranged for arecord to be prepared that is espeically valuable to the genealogist -- atrue copy of the family Bible record of the births of the children of herand Joseph S. Sparks. Following is the list:
Mary Ann Elizabeth Sparks was Born the 19th day of December 1818
Solomon Christian Sparks was Born the 3rd day of December 1820
Rachel Rebecca Sparks was Born the 19th day of February 1823
Maria Sparks was Born the 28th day of August 1825
Susanna N. Sparks was Born the 18th day of December 1827
Abraham Sparks was Born the 3rd day of December 1830
David W. Sparks was Born the 15th day of July 1833
Joseph R. Sparks was Born the 17th day of December 1835
John E. N. Sparks was Born the 26th day of August 1839

"In refering to this record of her children, Elizabeth Sparks statedthat "the said family Bible has always been in my possession wasPublished by M Carey No. 121 Chestnut Street Philadelphia in the year1816." Added to this declaration is a certificate signed by O. Weaver,Justice of the Peace, that he had examined the Bible record and found itto agree with the above copy, adding "I have been acquainted with JosephS. Sparks and Elizabeth Sparks and most of their living children sincethe Fall of 1851 and know their ages to correspond to the above Record."

"Another document in this file is signed by Dr. F. C. Robinson, aged42, and Jonas Peterson, aged 65, both of Wyanet, stating that Joseph S.Sparks died on March 31, 1868 --- that Dr. Robinson was his physicianduring his last illness and Peterson was the undertaker "and attended thefuneral in person."

"On Feb. 20, 1879, Elizabeth Sparks wrote to enquire about herpension, stating that the lawyer who had taken care of her papers wasunder arrest and she feared he had never submitted her application. Shestated in another document dated Aug. 26, 1879, that she was 80 years oldand that "owning to her feebleness and old age she didn't feel able toStand the Journey to a court of record."

"Elizabeth Sparks's application was approved on Oct. 21, 1879, and shewas granted a pension of $8.00 per month. Exactly when she died isunknown but on July 4, 1892, her name was dropped from the pension rollsbecause of death.

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

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, June 1965, Whole No. 50, pp. 912-13:

JOSEPH S. SPARKS,1794-1868

Proof of his Parentage

"In The Sparks Quarterly of September, 1961 (Vol. IX, No. 3, WholeNo. 35, pp. 585-87) we published abstracts of the bounty land applicationpapers of Joseph S. Sparks and the pension application papers of hiswidow, Elizabeth (Naill) Sparks. Joseph S. Sparks was born in BedfordCounty, Pennsylvania, and moved to Bureau County, Illinois in 1851 wherehe died in 1868. In the editor's note to these papers, it was suggestedthat Joseph S. Sparks was probably the son of Solomon Sparks who hadserved in the American Revolution. We lacked documentary proof of thisrelationship, however. Fortunately, one of our new members, Mrs. HowardW. Brieser, of Princeton, Illinois, has supplied the proof needed toestablish this relationship.

"Mrs. Brieser is a great-granddaughter of Rachel Sparks, born February19, 1823, who was a daughter of Joseph S. and Elizabeth (Naill) Sparks.Rachel Sparks married Isaac Lysinger. Mrs. Brieser has a letter writtento Rachel to her daughter, Hattie Harrington, in which she copied somerecords from the family Bible that had belonged to Joseph S. Sparks. Thiswas the same family Bible from which the births of the children of JosephS. and Elizabeth (Naill) Sparks were copied in 1878 to supportElizabeth's claim for a pension.

"Not only does this record owned by Mrs. Brieser prove that Joseph S.Sparks was the son of Solomon Sparks, but it also provides additionaldata on Solomon and his wife.

"Solomon Sparks, according to this Bible record, was born July 4,1760. When he made application for a pension in 1832, Solomon stated hehad been born in 1758, adding that he had "a record of my age at home."It seems apparent that he made a slight error of two years in calculatingthe year of his birth, and we can be quite sure that the Bible recordprovides the correct date.

"Solomon Sparks had been born in Frederick County, Maryland, accordingto his sworn statement of August 29, 1832. (See the Quarterly for March,1955, Vol. III, No. 1, Whole No. 9, p. 59) He was a son of Joseph Sparkswho had moved with his family from Maryland to Bedford County,Pennsylvania, about 1778. Joseph died in 1809. In 1782, Solomon Sparksenlisted in a Pennsylvania unit whose function it was to protect thefrontier against the Indians. He served some 18 months. During the Warof 1812, Solomon Sparks was captain of a company of 50 men organized inBedford County. He died, according to the Bible record found by Mrs.Brieser, on April 8, 1838. His wife's name was Rachel; she was bornSeptember 23, 1754 (this may have been intended for 1764) and diedFebruary 13, 1842.

"Joseph S. Sparks, son of Solomon and Rachel Sparks, was born inBedford County, Pennsylvania, on May 11, 1794, and died in Wyanet,Illinois, on March 319 1868. He was married to Elizabeth Naill at herfather's home near Taneytown, FrederickCounty, Maryland, on March 27,1817. She then moved to Bedford County, Penn., with her husband. Fromthis record from the family Bible, we now know that Elizabeth was bornApril 2, 1799, and that she was a daughter of Christian and Mary Naill,who were married on March 24, 1796. (Christian Naill was born March 10.,1774, and died November 26, 1820; his wife was born February 27, 1778,and died November 17, 1815.) Elizabeth (Naill) Sparks, widow of Joseph S.Sparks, died August 25., 1892, at the age of 93. Following is a list ofthe children of Joseph S. and Elizabeth (Naill) Sparks as copied fromJoseph's family Bible in 1878 to support Elizabeth's claim for a pension:

(1) Mary Ann Elizabeth Sparks, born December 19., 1818
(2) Solomon Christian Sparks, born December 3, 1820
(3) Rachel Rebecca Sparks, born February 19, 1823
(4) Maria Sparks, born August 28, 1825
(5) Susanna N. Sparks, born December 18, 1827
(6) Abraham Sparks, born December 3, 1830
(7) David W. Sparks, born July 15, 1833
(8) Joseph R. Sparks, born December 17, 1835
(9) John E. N. Sparks, born August 26, 1839

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

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, December 1986, Whole No. 136, p. 2962:

"Joseph S. Sparks, son of Solomon and Rachel Sparks, was born on May11, 1794, [JS Note: This was later determined to be 1793] in BedfordCounty. He served in the military company organized by his father duringthe War of 1812. After the war ended, he married Elizabeth Naill onMarch 27, 1817, in Taneytown, Maryland. She had been born on April 2,1799, and was a daughter of Christian and Mary Naill. Joseph andElizabeth lived in East Providence Township in Bedford County where theyappeared on the 1840 and 1850 censuses. On the latter census, Joseph waslisted as a farmer and his real estate was valued at $6,000.

"On February 1, 1851, Joseph Sparks, still a resident of EastProvidence Township, applied for bounty land based on his militaryservice during the War of 1812. (See the September 1961 issue of theQUARTERLY, Whole No. 35, for an abstract of his bounty land filereproduced below.) He was granted a tract of forty acres. Shortlythereafter, he moved his family to Bureau County, Illinois, where theysettled near the village of Wyanet. It was there, in 1855, that heapplied for additional land for his military service. This time hisapplication was challenged by the Pension Office which asked him to provethat he was the correct Joseph Sparks, since, apparently, there were twomen by that name who had served in the War of 1812 from Bedford County,Pennsylvania. (See the June 1965 issue of the QUARTERLY, Whole No. 50,for additional information about the family records of Joseph S. Sparks.

[JS Note: The other Joseph (595) was in the same company as thisJoseph (644). They were first cousins. Their grandfather Joseph J. Sparks(428) had two sons, Joseph (494) father of Joseph (595), and Solomon(586), father of this Joseph S. (644). See both apps on pgs 584-585.)]

"During the Civil War, all of the sons of Joseph and Elizabeth (Naill)Sparks served in the Union Army. Joseph died on 31 March, 1868, shortlyafter the war ended. Elizabeth survived him for nearly twenty-fiveyears, dying on August 25, 1892, at the age of 93 years. They had ninechildren."

SQ p. 4609:

"According to Margaret Sparks Singletary, writing in 1958, MaloneSparks died in Lumpkin County, Georgia, in 1863. Shortly before he died,he had received a letter (preserved later in his family Bible) informinghim that his oldest son, Archibald Wimpey Sparks, had been killed inaction as a soldier in the Confederate Army. He had enlisted unter hismiddle name Wimpey Sparks, on March 4, 1862, in Company E of the InfantryBattalion known as Phillips' Georgia Legion. A document compiled byLillian Henderson, Director of Confederate Pension and Record Department,entitled "Roster of the Confederate Soldiers of Georgia," states that theunit in which "A. W. Sparks" of Lumpkin County served was knownofficially as "Co. D, 52nd Regiment, Georgia Volunteer Infantry, Army ofTennessee, C.S.A." Beside his name in this official record appears:"Private, March 4, 1862; Missing at Atlanta, Georgia, July 22, 1864."(Page 483 of Vol. 5). Another Confederate soldier who served in the sameregiment and company from Lumpkin County has the entry: "Sparks, J. -Private, January, 1863. Sick at Knoxville, Tennessee, in 1865." This"J. Sparks" may have been Archibald Wimpey Sparks's brother, Joseph W.Sparks, who was born about 1852 according to the 1860 census.

See Sparks Quarterly, March 1996, Whole No. 173, p. 4594:
"Joseph ["Joe"] Z. Johnson Sparks was born on October 17, 1871; hedied on March 23, 1958. He was married to Mary Fannie Stewart (bornMarch 24, 1876, died April 4, 1962). They lived in Putnam County,Tennessee, near the White County line, until 1918 when they moved to nearSparta in White County. They had children named Johnnie Lester (bornAugust 6, 1895); Notie Elizabeth (born July 7, 1897); William Heston(born 1900); Pearlie Mae (born 1902); J. T. (born 1909); and Fannie Ruth(born 1920). (see photo on page 4594.)

SPARKS QUARTERLY, December 1988, Whole No. 144, JOSEPH ZACHARY TAY LOR
SPARKS, pp 3318-3326:

"Joseph Zachary Taylor Sparks was born on August 28, 1845, in NorthCarolina. He was the youngest son of George, Jr. and Fanny (Lindsay)Sparks. After the death of George, Jr.'s father (George Sparks, Sr.) in1842, but prior to 1850, George Jr. and his family moved to Union County,Georgia. It was there that Joseph Zachary Taylor Sparks was married onAugust 25, 1869, to Sara Melvina Francis Jane McClain; she had been bornon December 26, 1850, in Georgia. It was sometime after April 1878 that
Joseph and Sara Sparks moved with their famiy to Texas. They appeared onthe 1880 census of McLennan County, Texas. Joseph's brother, GeorgeWashington Sparks, was listed with his family on the same census asliving in nearby Falls County. Joseph and his family moved from McLennanCounty,
Texas, to the Indian Territory, which is now Oklahoma, sometime between1886 and 1888. By 1910, apparently all of Joseph's children had lefthome. Only he and his wife appeared on the 1910 census of their place ofresidence in Wright Township, Jefferson County, Oklahoma. Joseph died onSeptember
2, 1914, in Petersburg, Oklahoma, and was buried at the BellevilleBourland Cemetery in Courtney, Oklahoma. He left a will which we quote[here follows will and article listing descendants with information oneach, pg 3318].

In the settlement of the estate the widow of Joseph Z. T. Sparksrecorded
his heirs as follows:
Francis Jane Sparks, widow 69 Petersburg, Okla
Thomas Sparks, son 42 Darris, Texas
James Sparks, son 38 Unknown
Franklin Sparks, son 31 Unknown
Joseph Sparks, son 35 Illinois Bend, Texas
Colonel Sparks, son 28 Calumet, Montana
Lillie Harkins, granddaughter 11 Petersburg, Okla
John Harkins, grandson 7 Petersburg, Okla
Pike Harkins, grandson 9 Petersburg, Okla

The land which Joseph left to his wife had been purchased on twoseparate occasions. The west half of the northeast quarter of thesouthwest quarter of Section Thirty in Township Seven South and RangeThree West (twenty acres) was purchased from W. F. Bourland and LulaBourland on November 30, 1910, for $130.00. The northeast ten acres ofLot Three in Section Thirty in Township Seven South and Range Three Westwas purchased on August 3, 1911, from John G. Harkins, a single man ofcourtney, Jefferson County, State of Oklahoma, for $100.00. John Harkinswas Joseph Sparks's son-in-law. He had been married to Joseph'sdaughter, Dovie Sparks, in 1905. Dovie died in 1910, hence thedesignation of John G. Harkins a single man at the time of the sale ofthe land in 1911.

After the death of Joseph Z. T. Sparks, his widow, who was usuallycalled "Jane" for short, remained for a while in Oklahoma, but then movedto Stonewall County, Texas. She took her Harkins grandchildren (listedin Joseph's will) with her, and they lived near her son, Tom Sparks. Shelater returned to
Oklahoma. She died on December 25, 1931, in Tuttle, Oklahoma, and wasburied in Belleville Bourland Cemetery in Courtney, Oklahoma."

[For additional information on all of the children of Joseph Z. T. andSara (McClain) Sparks see SQ Whole No. 144, pp 3320-27.]

.
!NOTES:
SQ pg 3901: They had two children, Frank and James Shaver.

.

!NOTES:
SQ 3272: "Joshua Sparks was born in April 1847. He was married tw ice.
His first marriage was to Marinda Jolly. She and Joshua had four children
before her death in 1896. Joshua married (2nd) Martha N. ---. She w asborn
in May 1867. She and Joshua had one child. Joshua died in 1936.
(1) Malinda Sparks b.ca. 1870
(2) Timothy W. Sparks b.ca. 1872
(3) Sarah M. Sparks b.ca. 1877
(4) John A. Sparks b.ca. 1879
(5) Jonas T. Sparks b. May 1897."

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, September, 1967, Whole No. 59, p. 1088:

Joshua William Sparks, son ofJonas and Mary (Brown) Sparks, was born about
1830; he died August 4, 1903.He was married to Cynthia Hankins, daughter
of Moses and Patty Hankins,in Tazewell County, Va., on April 23, 1850. She
was born in Virginia about1830 and died on May 9, 1918. They were the
parents of at least twochildren:
(1) Jonas J. Sparkswho married Ellen Ball in 1873; and
(2) ElizabethSparks, born February 17, 1851, died December 4, 1920;
shemarried a distant cousin, John T. Sparks, son of Richmond
Sparks.

SQ p. 4896:

It was from Prince Georges County, Maryland, to Pittsylvania County,Virginia, that Matthew and Elinor Sparks brought their family in 1777,and it was there that Josiah was married to Susannah Phillips, daughterof Thomas Phillips, in 1794. (Their marriage bond was dated January 7,1794.) A major article is now being prepared by Dr. Paul E. Sparks andthe present writer presenting our evidence regarding the parentage of theRev. Josiah Sparks and that of his first cousin of the same name. Thislatter Josiah Sparks was a son of Thomas and Elizabeth Sparks, ThomasSparks being a brother, we are certain, of Matthew Sparks. Josiah Sparks,son of Thomas and Elizabeth Sparks, was nearly the same age as that ofthe Rev. Josiah Sparks, son of Matthew and Elinor Sparks. Both familiesmoved to Pittsylvania County, Virginia, from Maryland in 1777. Josiah,son of Thomas and Elizabeth, went as a young man to Spartanburg County,South Carolina, before 1790 and was married there to Lydia Tollison (orTollerson). He was a resident of Union County, South Carolina, when hemade his will on February 12, 1851. He died there either in late 1852 orearly in 1853. His will was entered for probate in Union County onJanuary 29, 1853.

SP p. 5309:

Josiah Sparks was born in 1856. His age was given as 4 on the 1860 censusand as 14 in 1870. A grandson, David Kinney Sparks of Athens, Alabama,has stated that Josiah died in the late 1920s or early 1930's, in LongBeach, California. He was married to Amanda L. Priddy, who had been bornin 1862, a daughter of John William and Juliann Elizabeth (Siling)Priddy. The marriage had taken place in Indiana on May 12, 1878. Theirchildren were:
(a) Julia Sparks, born about 1879 in Wells County, Indiana.
(b) Jefferson Sparks, born about 1881 in Wells County, Indiana; died inDecember 1938.
(c) A daughter, unnamed, born March 18, 1884, in Huntington County.
(d) Jasper Tilghman Sparks, born June 24, 1887, in Wells County; diedJune 6, 1938, in Fresno, California.

SPARKS QUARTERLY, December 1979, Whole No. 108, pp. 2152-53:

JOSIAH A. SPARKS (ca.1770-ca.1841) OF ADAIR COUNTY, KENTUCKY

By: Paul E. Sparks

Josiah A. Sparks was born about 1770, probably in Prince Georges County,Maryland and he very likely went with his parents as a small boy toPittsylvania County, about 1777. We cannot be positive regarding thenames of his parents; however, if he was a brother of William Sparks(ca.1760 - ca.1834), also of Adair County, as we believe, then he was ason of William Sparks according to a history of Jasper County, Iowa,written in 1891. Without doubt, he was a descendant of either ThomasSparks or Matthew Sparks, of Prince Georges County, Maryland. (See theMarch 1956 issue of the QUARTERLY, whole No. 13, for data about PrinceGeor(;es County, Maryland. See the March 1976 issue of the QUARTERLY,Whole No. 93, for an account of the life of William Sparks (ca. 1760 -ca.1834) of Adair County.)

On January 17, 1794, in Pittsylvania County, Virginia, Josiah A. Sparkswas married to Susannah Phillips (descendants refer to her as Susan Ann)a daughter of Thomas and Margaret (Buchanan) Phillips. Thomas Phillipsgave his consent to his daughter's marriage as follows: "Jeneiary. Igive con Sent that Jo Sier Sparkes ma be maRied to my daughter Su Anner.Thomas Pfillips." Matt Sparkes was the bondsman in the sum of 50pounds. Assuming that both of these young people were of the customaryage to marry at that time, Josiah Sparks was probably born near 1770while Susannah was probably born close to 1775.

(The above Josiah Sparks, who married Susannah Phillips, should not beconfused the Josiah Sparks who married Lydia Tollison about 1787,probably in Pittsylvania County, and who moved to the Union-SpartanburgCounties area of South Carolina about 1788, where he remained until hisdeath about 1852. (See the September 1965 issue of the QUARTERLY, WholeNo. 51, page 933.)

The first two children born to Josiah and Susannah (Phillips) Sparks weresons, John and Thomas. John was probably born about 1796 and Thomas wasborn on October 27, 1708. Both were born in Pittsylvania County, but whenthe 1800 census was taken, Josiah and his family were in Union County,South Carolina. Several families; of Sparkses from Pittsylvania Countyhad gone to South Carolina prior to 1790 and had settled in the generalarea where Laurens, Union, and Spartanburg Counties join along the EnoreeRiver. (See the March 1960 issue of the QUARTERLY, Whole No. 29, pp.450-63) Here three more sons were born to Josiah and Susannah: Samuelborn Sept. 27, 1800; Truelove, born about 1804; and Josiah, Jr. born Jan.24, 1806.

Josiah Sparks did not remain long in Union County for on August 12, 1810,a daughter, Jane Phillips Sparks, was born in Tennessee, probably inJefferson County. Unfortunately, all of the 1810 census records ofTennessee have been lost, except those of Rutherford County, and the 1820census of Jefferson County has been destroyed. We do know, however, thatit was in Jefferson County that two of the children of Josiah andSusannah were married. On March 8, 1816, Thomas Sparks married Sarah("Sally") McClister with Leonard Sparks as his security. (Leonard Sparksmarried Patsy Beard in Jefferson County on July 25, 1806; see theDecember 1961 issue of the QUARTERLY, Whole No. 36, pp. 596-8.) OnJanuary 24, 1817, Sally Sparks, daughter of Josiah and Susannah, marriedWilliam Busby in Jefferson County.

We have found no other record of Josiah Sparks in Tennessee. Apparentlyhe stayed there until about 1825 when he moved to Adair County, Kentucky.Although we have no proof, we believe the reason he went to Adair Countywas to join William Sparks who had settled there about 1798. (See theMarch 1976 and December 1976 issues of the QUARTERLY, Whole Nos. 93 and96.) We believe these men were brothers. Most certainly they both werefrom Pittsylvania County, Virginia, and they used the same given namespeculiar to the Sparkses of that county in the naming of their children,such as Truelove, Josiah, Matthew, Thomas, and William.

Josiah Sparks settled in the southeastern part of Adair County which isdrained by Cedar Creek and Glens Fork, tributaries of Russell Creek. Inall probability, he settled near his son, Thomas Sparks, who hadpurchased land on Cedar Creek in 1823. Josiah Sparks paid taxes in AdairCounty from 1827 through 1838. When the 1830 and 1840 censuses were takenin Adair County, he and his wife were living by themselves. It has beenstated by descendants that Josiah Sparks was a minister of the gospel;however, we have found no evidence to support this statement.

Josiah Sparks died about 1841, according to information given by hisdescendants. A short time after his death, his son, Josiah Sparks, Jr.and his daughter, Sarah (Sparks) Busby, decided to move to Missouri.Their mother, Susannah (Phillips) Sparks, wanted to accompany them, buther advanced age and the thought of the arduous trip caused her to decideto stay in Adair County with her other children. Apparently she diedabout two years later.

Neither Josiah nor Susannah left wills; however, from information givento us by their descendants and the official records we have found, webelieve we have information about most, if not all, of their tenchildren.

(Here follows several pages of notes regarding their descendants.)

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

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, December, 1997, Whole No. 180, p. 4896:

The Rev. Josiah Sparks, Died May 17, 1841

[Issue for June 18, 1841, p. 36, col. 1.]
Rev. Josiah Sparks died in great peace on the 17th of May, 1841, in Adairco., Ky., in the 84th year of his age. He was a native of Maryland, andwhen about 12 years old his parents moved to the state of Virginia, wherehe, about the age of 24, embraced religion and joined the MethodistEpiscopal Church, of which he ever afterwards remained a member. In a fewyears after his conversion he was licensed to preach the Gospel, afterwhich he married and moved to South Carolina, where he remained more thanten years; after which he removed to Tennessee, thence to Kentucky, andsettled in Adair co. , where he remained the last fourteen years of hislife. While he was able he was faithful and useful as a local preacher. Afew days before his death he appeared to be sensible of his near approachto death, and spoke of it as a matter of joy. On the day before hisdeath, he was heard to sing a part of two hymns, one of which was:
"I'll praise my Maker, while I've breath, And when my voice is lostin death, Praise shall employ me nobler pow'rs," &c.
and the other was,
"My suffering time will soon be o'er," &c.
He exhorted his aged companion and children to be faithful and meet himin heaven. He closed his earthly pilgrimage in full hope of immortalityand eternal life. Columbia, Ky., June 1, 1841. J. C. CROW.

[Editorial Note:] The Rev. Josiah Sparks, subject of the above obituary,was the same Josiah Sparks who, along with a record of his family, wasthe subject of an article by Dr. Paul E. Sparks that was begun in theQUARTERLY of December 1979, Whole No. 108, pp. 2152-2189. A correctionmust be made in that article, however, regarding the parentage of JosiahSparks. With the information contained in this obituary and a furtherstudy of the records that have come to light in our research on thisbranch of the family, we can now say with full confidence that the Rev.Josiah Sparks was a son of Matthew and Elinor Sparks, and that he was theJosiah Sparks shown in the parish register of Piscataway Church in PrinceGeorges County, Maryland, as born to Matthew and Elinor Sparks on August26, 1761. (The name of the Piscataway Church was changed later to St.John's.) The births of two other children of Matthew and Elinor Sparkswere also recorded in this parish register: Sarah Sparks, born May 23,1753, and Truelove (a son), born July 21, 1764.

It was from Prince Georges County, Maryland, to Pittsylvania County,Virginia, that Matthew and Elinor Sparks brought their family in 1777,and it was there that Josiah was married to Susannah Phillips, daughterof Thomas Phillips, in 1794. (Their marriage bond was dated January 7,1794.) A major article is now being prepared by Dr. Paul E. Sparks andthe present writer presenting our evidence regarding the parentage of theRev. Josiah Sparks and that of his first cousin of the same name. Thislatter Josiah Sparks was a son of Thomas and Elizabeth Sparks, ThomasSparks being a brother, we are certain, of Matthew Sparks. Josiah Sparks,son of Thomas and Elizabeth Sparks, was nearly the same age as that ofthe Rev. Josiah Sparks, son of Matthew and Elinor Sparks. Both familiesmoved to Pittsylvania County, Virginia, from Maryland in 1777. Josiah,son of Thomas and Elizabeth, went as a young man to Spartanburg County,South Carolina, before 1790 and was married there to Lydia Tollison (orTollerson). He was a resident of Union County, South Carolina, when hemade his will on February 12, 1851. He died there either in late 1852 orearly in 1853. His will was entered for probate in Union County onJanuary 29, 1853.

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

SQ pp. 2154-55:

Josiah A. Sparks, son of Thomas and Sarah (McClister) Sparks, andobviously named for his grandfather, was born about 1821 in JeffersonCounty, Tennessee, and came as an infant with his parents to AdairCounty. There, on October 8, 1846, he married Harriet Powell. Hisbondsman was Sam Simpson. Harriet was born about 1823 in CumberlandCounty, Kentucky, and was a daughter of Kelsoe and A. (Grieder) Powell.

Josiah A. Sparks, son of Thomas and Sarah (McClister) Sparks, died in thespring of 1878. He had made his will on August 29, 1877, probablyrealizing that he was in failing health. He left his estate to his wife,Harriet, to be used during her lifetime, or until her re-marriage, if'any, and then it was to be divided equally among his children. He namedhis son, James E. Sparks, as his executor. The will was probated at theApril 1878 term of the Adair County Court. Josiah A. and Harriet (Powell)Sparks lived near Glens Fork where they reared seven children:

SPARKS QUARTERLY, March 1980, Whole No. 109, pp. 2178-79:

Josiah A. Sparks, Jr., son of Josiah A. and Susannah (Phillips) Sparks,was born on January 24, 1806, in South Carolina, probably in UnionCounty. He went with his parents to Tennessee and then on to Adair Countywhere, on October 18, 1827, he married Anna Gilkey. G. W. Taylor acted ashis bondsman and Jonathan Gilkey was the witness. Anna Gilkey was born onOctober 14, 1803, in South Carolina and was a daughter of Jonathan Henryand Mary (Griggs) Gilkey. (Photographs of Josiah and Anna appear on thecover of this issue of the QUARTERLY (and here in his scrapbook) ; theoriginals are owned by Ava M. Everts.)

Josiah and Anna settled down on a 60-acre tract of land which Josiahbought from his father-in-law in 1830 and which was part of a 400-acregrant to Jonathan Gilkey. The farm was located on Trace Fork of CrocusCreek in southeastern Adair County. Josiah continued to pay taxes on thisland until 1841 when he sold the tract to his brother, Thomas Sparks, for$200.

It was about this time that Josiah A. Sparks, Sr. died and shortlythereafter Josiah and Anna moved with their growing family westward toMissouri where they settled near the Lawrence-Jasper Counties line, closeto present-day Sarcoxie. It was there that their ninth child, ElizabethJane, was born about 1843. Not all the children made the trip, however,for John R. Sparks, a son, remained in Adair County where he marriedPriscilla Reece in 1847.

Another member of the family who also decided not to make the trip wasJosiah's mother, Susannah (Phillips) Sparks. She had planned to go withthem, but her age and perhaps the thought of making another hard tripprompted her to remain with her son, Thomas Sparks. She died about twoyears later. Josiah's sister, Sarah, and her husband, William Busby, madethe trip to Missouri at the same time and settled near the same place. Itwas during this trip that the Busby family Bible was lost while crossinga river, along with some other possessions.

Josiah settled down to farming near Stotts City, Missouri. The story istold that he vowed that if he ever found a good well he would never sellit. There was such a well on the farm he bought, so when the time camefor him to make a deed for the farm to a buyer, he excluded the well fromthe deed, and thus it is "owned" by the heirs of Josiah to this day.

DELETE (Josiah was elected sheriff of Lawrence County during thetumultous days prior to and during the Civil War in Missouri.) Eventuallyhe fell a victim to the strife and was killed by guerillas. He died onOctober 18, 1864, the 42nd anniversay of his marriage to Anna. Shesurvived him by only two years. They are buried in Moore's Cemetery nearStotts City. They were the parents of eleven children.

[Scanning editor's note: For deletion see SQ p. 5395.]

!NOTES:
SQ 3855: Josiah E. Sparks was born on April 1, 1846, in Pike County. He became a mail carrier. He was married twice. His first marriagewa s to Emma Deskins on December 31, 1874, in Pike County. She had beenborn about 1853 in Pike County. She apparently died about 1875.
Josiah Sparks was married (2nd) to Louisa Jane Charles, probably in1877. She had been born in December 1856 and was a daughter of Thomas andMary Elizabeth (Cain) Charles. Josiah died on June 6, 1909, and Louisadied on March 14, 1936. They were buried in the Bent Ridge Cemetery atMeta , KY. They had ten children: Benjamin, Mary Ellen, Green, Louisa,Pricey, Arminda, Cora, David, Emma and Flora.

SQ 3199: "Isaiah S. Sparks was born on March 1851. He married Charity
Willey on January 1, 1871. She had been born on October 27, 1848, and was
a daughter of Levi and Nancy (Billings) Willey. She died on February 13,
1891. We have not learned the date of death of Isaiah Sparks. They had
five children.

See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, MARCH 1998, Whole No. 181, pg 4934-7:
The cover of this issue contains a photograph of Josiah Isaiah Spa rks.

UNUSUAL CIRCUMSTANCES SURROUNDING THE DEATH OF JOSIAH ISAIAH SPARK SOF ALLEGHANY COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA by Eula Ray (Sparks) Cook.
"[Editor's note: The March 1988 issue of The SQ, Whole No. 141, wasconcerned with some of the descendants of Reuben and Cassa (Buttery )Sparks of Wilkes County, NOrth Carolina. Among them was agreat-grandson, Isaiah Sparks. (See page 3199, Item A, 6, b.) The itemcomcluded that no date of his death had been found. Agreat-granddaughter , Eula Ray (Sparks) Cook, has now supplied us withnot only the date of her ancestor's death, but the sad and unusualcircumstances surrounding it...The above record is presented exactly aswritten by Mrs . Cook because of the sensitivity of the subject.]
"I guess we will never know the complete story of Josiah Isaiah Sparksand the reason he was charged and convicted with the stealing of thehorse from his father-in-law's pasture or why he had to die at such anearly age. Because of this we are left with a tremendous v oid that is abig part of us. The story was told many times as I grew up aboutIsaiah being charged with stealing a horse. A mare that belonged to Col.Granville Willey. Col. Granville Willey wa s the father of Levi Willeyand Charity's grandfather.
I will try to piece together the story as I have heard it over theyears, along with the facts as we now have, to create an understanding asto what happened.
Isaiah Sparks was a son of Reuben J. and Nancy (McGrady) Sparks . Hisonly brother was killed in the Civil War. The battle of Petersburg,Virginia. Reuben J. Sparks left his family and went to Russell County,Virginia in 1868. Isaiah was about 17 years of age then . Isaiahmarried Charity Willey on January 01, 1871. Charity was the daughter ofLevi Willey.
Isaiah worked at odd jobs and was a horse trader. The story goes thathe would make frequent trips to Raleigh, North Carolina. He would walk,most of the time, to Elkin, North Carolina, which is in Surry County andcatch a train to Raleigh. To my knowledge the why of these trips wasnever told. But apparently the incident where he was caught and chargedwith horse theft, his sole mission was to go to Elkin and back.
So on this early November day in 1882, he took the mare from hisfather- in-law's pasture and went to Elkin. Needing a way to Elkin,Isaiah may have asked to borrow the horse and upon being refused, tookthe horse anyway. (The validity of this is pure speculation on our partand cannot be verified.) We do know there were hard feelings towardIsaiah by the Willey family. Why this was so we may never know. ButCarroll Sparks said this was repeated throughout his growing up. Somesay that Isaiah was quick to temper and loved to fight.
The horse was reported missing right away. Col. Granville Willeyswore out an affidavit on the 11th of November, 1882, to the fact thatthe horse was taken on the night of November 8, 1882. Stating that itwas his mare and was taken from the pasture of Levi Willey.
A warrant of arrest was issued on November 11, 1882. They found thehorse in Surry County with Isaiah's overcoat, breeches and saddle on themare but Isaiah was not present. He was later arrested as he returned toAlleghany County (most probably to his home) and was held in jail forfive (5) months, prior to the Spring term of Superior Court which washeld in April of 1883.
Isaiah felt that there was no way he could get a fair and impartialtrial in Alleghany County, due to the animosity toward him. He felt thepeople had talked so much about the case, that they had alread y formedtheir opinions as to his guilt. He gave an affidavit to this fact, buthe was refused a trial in a different county and they proceeded to tryhim. Apparently he felt he had a better chance by throwing himself onthe mercy of the court, thereupon pleading guilty to the charges and hewas sentenced to five (5) years of hard labor . (Five years and fivemonths as he had already served 5 months.) This, in my opinion, was arather harsh sentencing for the borrowing (?) of a relative's horse. Butback then the stealing of a horse was a capital offense that could carrya death sentence. However, we are left with a lot of questionspertaining to this most unusual case.
You would think that the story would end here, with a far differentfinish. With Isaiah serving his sentence and returning home to hisfamily but this was not to be the case. Isaiah only lived for three (3)months after he was incarcerated at CENTRAL PRISON in Raleigh , NorthCarolina. We have never known if he became ill and died or if he waskilled. A mere 32 years of age, an age we would think would let him seehis incarceration through with relative ease. He die leaving a wife andtwo small sons, ages 10 and 8.
Charity and her family did not seek to have his body returned toAlleghany County for burial. We don't know if it was due to the costinvolved or if they just did not want him returned. So he was buriedsomewhere in Raleigh.
Charity died in 1891 at the age of 41 years. She started bleedingprofusely from the nose and they were unable to stop the bleeding . Herson, Eddie Sparks, started to go for a doctor but when he returned to thehouse from saddling the horse, he found Charity lying in a pool of bloodon the kitchen floor, dead.
Eddie and Calton were placed under guardianship of Solomon Fender ,Jr. (Solomon Fender, Jr. was the brother-in-law to Charity, havingmarried her sister Elizabeth.) He was to oversee their education andmanaging of the estate left them with the death of their mother . Theywere well schooled at the TRAPHILL ACADEMY in Traphill, North Carolina.
Oh! if we could only fill in all the missing pieces, so that we co uldhave a much clearer picture of this tragic story, we would have a morepeaceful feeling, a feeling of finality. Until then we wil l keepsearching for more facts. Maybe, just maybe, somewhere, sometime,someone will come foreward with THE REST OF THE STORY."
This was compiled by Eula Ray (Sparks) Cook from court records andfamily stories. (Article continues with information about thedescendants of Josiah and Charity (Willey) Sparks.)

SPARKS QUARTERLY, June 180, Whole No. 110, p. 2207:

Josiah P. Sparks, son of Josiah A. and Anna (Gilkey) Sparks, was born onMarch 20, 1840, in Adair County, Kentucky. He served in Company C, 15thRegiment Missouri Cavalry during the Civil War. On April 3, 1869, he wasmarried to Candace E. Gatton by William B. Landrum in Orange County,Missouri. She was born on November 27, 1843, in Wilson County, Tennessee.

After their marriage, Josiah (during the Civil War his given name waschanged from Josiah to Joseph) and Candace lived for several years inMissouri, then moved to Benton County, Arkansas. From there they went tothe Indian Territory in what is now the state of Oklahoma, and then about1900 they went to the state of Washington. It was there that Josiah diedon March 31, 1907, and Candace died on February 4, 1917. They had fivechildren

sQ 2214:

UNION SOLDIERS NAMED SPARKS WHO APPLIED, OR WHOSE HEIRS APPLIED,FOR PENSIONS FOR SERVICE IN THE CIVIL WAR

(Editor's Note: From time to time we have been publishing abstracts ofthe pension files of Union soldiers who served in the Civil War. Readersare referred to page 2110 of the June 1979 issue of the QUARTERLY, WholeNo. 106, for an explanation of these abstracts.)

JOSEPH P. SPARKS, son of Josiah and Anna (Gilkey) Sparks, was born onMarch 20, 1840, in Adair County, Kentucky. He married Candace E. Gattonon April 3, 1869, in Orange County, Missouri. He served in Company C,15th Regiment Missouri Cavalry. File Designations: Inv. Cert. No.1,059,.799; Wid. Cert. No. 633,815.

On December 13, 1892, Joseph P. Sparks, aged 62, a resident of Olympia,Washington, applied for an invalid pension under the 1890 Act ofCongress. He said he had made a previous application, but was not apensioner. He stated that he had served in Company C, 15th RegimentMissouri Cavalry from November 1, 1863, to June 30, 1865. He was nowalmost totally disabled because of an injury to his left side, varicoseveins in both legs, a catarrh of the head, and a kidney disease. PhilSkillman and Lillian Matson witnessed his signature.

The War Department confirmed Sparks's military service and he was placedupon the pension roll under Invalid Certificate No. 1,059,799.

In January 1903, Sparks, still a resident of Olympia, responded to aquestionnaire from the Bureau of Pensions. He said he was born in AdairCounty, Kentucky, on March 20, 1840. He enlisted at Bowers Mill inLawrence County, Missouri, on November 1, 1863, and was mustered out withthe rank of Sergeant with his company at Springfield, Missouri, on June30, 1865. He was 6 feet tall and weighed 217 pounds; he had a darkcomplexion, dark hair and blue eyes; he was a farmer. After leaving theservice he had lived in Lawrence County, Missouri, for 21 years; inMcDonald County, Missouri, for one year; in Benton County, Arkansas, forsix years; in the Indian Territory for six years; and in the state ofWashington for six years.

Sparks went on to say that he had been married to Candace E. Gatton onApril 3, 1869, by William B. Landrum at Mt. Vernon, Missouri. It was thefirst marriage for both. They had five living children: Albina F. Sparks,born March.20, 1870; John B. Sparks, born September 6, 1871; Anna A.Sparks, born May 14, 1873; Gertrude C. Sparks, born February 20, 1875;and Albert J. Sparks, born April 8, 1878.

Joseph P. Sparks died on March 31, 1907, and on May 24th his widow,Candace E. Sparks, applied for a widow's pension. She was 64 years of ageand a resident of Kettle Falls, Washington. She said she was withoutsufficient means of support other than her daily labor and that her netincome did not exceed $250 per year. Isaac Wagner and Mrs. W. J.Stambaugh witnessed her signature.

On August 7, 1907, John M. Scruggs, aged 43, and A. T. Scruggs, aged 37,testified that they had known Mrs. Sparks for twenty years. She had noreal estate, mortgages nor bonds, and no one was bound for her support.

Three weeks later, Mrs. Sparks also made an affidavit in which she saidthat her personal property consisted of one horse, $20; one cow, $20; onewagon, $25; an organ, $15; a sewing machine, $5; household goods, $15;harness, $10; and poultry, $20. Her husband had left no life insurance,nor did he leave a will.

The Bureau of Pensions issued Widow Certificate No. 633,815 to Candace E.Sparks and she was placed upon the pension roll. On October 31, 1916, sheapplied for and increase in her pension. She now lived in Colville,Washington. She said that she had been born on November 27, 1843, inWilson County, Tennessee, thus she was 73 years of age. When Candace E.Sparks died on February 4, 1917, she was receiving a pension of $20 permonth.

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!NOTES:
SQ pg 3701: She was married to John Reed.

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!NOTES:
SQ pg 4073: She was married to Henry Walker and they had two children: Henry Jr., and Brook.

SQ p. 743: ELLIOTT COUNTY, KENTUCKY, MARRIAGE BONDS (1869-1912):

Juda (sic) Sparks and Alfred Holbrook, April 12, 1894. (Book 2, Page 44)Married at home of Rev. L. H. Sparks (Judy's father).

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!NOTES:
SQ p. 3909: "Julia H. Sparks, daughter of Daniel and Ellender (Cordial)
Sparks, was born on May 30, 1862. She was married to James Cecil Cordial on
April 2, 1881, in Lawrence County. He had been born on December 4, 1857, and
was a son of William and Cynthia (Moody) Cordle [or Cordial or Caudill]. Julia
died on July 17, 1914. She and James had at least one child.
a. Jay Cordial was born in March 1885. He was married to Emma Lemasters,
and they had at least one child, Monnie Cordial."

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!NOTES:
SQ pg 4467: Julia and Earl had six children: Earl Sparks, Iva nLee, dorothy Lenore, Herschel G., William K., and Douglas J. Crawfo rd.

!NOTES:
SQ 8O7: "Juliana (or Julia) Sparks, daughter of David and Mary (Little)
Sparks, was probably born about 1814. She was probably the Julia Birkhead,
aged 36, a widow who was living next to David Sparks in 185O. Accord ingto
this census record of Hardeman County, Tennessee, she had the followi ng
children: A. William Birkhead, born about 1835 in North Carolina; B .Eleaser
Birkhead, born about 1836 in Tennessee; C. David Birkhead, born abou t1838 in
Tennessee; D. Mary Birkhead, born about 184O in Tennessee."

SQ 3199-3200: "Julius Edmond "Eddie" Sparks was born on April 23,1873. He married Fannie Edwards, probably about 1897. She had been bornon November 24, 1876, and was a daughter of David and Caroline Edwards .Eddie and Fannie lived at Sparta, North Carolina. He died there on April20,
1962; Fannie died on June 8, 1965. They had eight (nine) chidren: DavidGlen, Callie L., George S., Laura M., Simon E., Chelsie H., John Robert,James Woodrow, and Treva Mae."

SQ 4936 made some corrections and added Chelsie H. whom I haveinserted above.

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!NOTES:
SQ pg 3701: She was married to a man named Banks.

Kathleen Nicole Sparks weighed 8 lbs 7 oz at her birth on February 10,1997 at Long Beach Community Hospital.