Peyton Thomas – Early Trigg County Kentucky Pioneer

 

The following is the verbatim biographical sketch of Peyton Thomas as recorded in 1884 in the History of Trigg County, Kentucky by William Henry Perrin, published by F. A. Battey Publishing Co.  This detailed 1884 history has a large amount of historical and genealogical information about Trigg County, Kentucky from its earliest settlement up to 1884 and is an invaluable resource for those interested in the history of Trigg County, Kentucky. The volume includes are a total of 185 different Trigg County, Kentucky family biographies and family histories.

PEYTON THOMAS was born in this  [Canton] precinct April 6, 1820, and is a son of Cullen and Elizabeth (Feutrell) Thomas. The father was born in Bertie County, N. C., in 1790, and came to this county with his father, James Thomas, in 1805. The grandfather settled on the farm now occupied by Peyton Thomas, where he died in September, 1832. The father grew to manhood here, and settled on a farm to the south of his father. He first inherited seventy-five acres, and by his own exertions finally increased it to 1,000 acres; be was Magistrate of the county for a number of years under the old Constitution, and held the office of Sheriff for two years by seniority. His death occurred June 8, 1862, the mother's in 1844. Subject was the second of six children, and is the only one now living; he worked on the home farm until twenty-one and then came to his present farm; he now owns about 400 acres, of which 100 acres are in cultivation. At the age of eighteen he began blacksmithing, and worked at the trade himself for a number of years. Afterward hired hands and had the business carried on. In 1855 he sold goods for one year, and in 1858 he commenced merchandising again, engaging in it until 1862. In April, 1883, he opened his present store, and now carries a stock of about $1,500. In 1865 he began to keep the county poor, and with the exception of seven years he had charge of them up until December, 1883. Mr. Thomas was married December 2, 1841, to Miss Sallie Ethridge, a daughter of David T. Ethridge, of Davidson County, Tenn. Mrs. Thomas was born in the same county, and is the mother of ten children. Of this number nine are now living-four sons and five daughters. Subject and family are members of the Baptist Church, and he has held the office of Church Clerk for many years; he was Magistrate of the county for twelve years. From 1858 to 1860 he was Postmaster at Donelson Postoffice; he is a member of Canton Lodge, No. 242, A. F. .& A. M. Peyton Thomas had one married sister, who gave birth to two children and then died of consumption; his mother died in 1844, and about a year later his father married Drusilla Carter, who bore him two children, who died within four years. James Thomas, brother of our subject, served through the Mexican war. He was subsequently elected Major of the Kentucky State Militia, and then ranked as Colonel of Trigg County. He once ran for the Legislature on the Whig ticket, but was defeated through the machinations of the Sons of Temperance.  An incident rather unusual occurred in the deaths of James Thomas (brother of subject) and his father, Cullen Thomas, which occurred respectively at ten minutes past 12 o'clock P. M., June 8, 1881, and June 8, 1882.

History of Trigg County, by William Henry Perrin, 1884.

Peyton Thomas Tombstone in the Peyton Thomas Cemetery

Historical Marker for the Peyton Thomas Cemetery

LINEAGE: (Peyton Thomas was the third child of Cullen and Elizabeth Futrell Thomas and the grandson of James and Mary Standley Thomas)

George Silas Turner -- Victim of Steamer Ship Sinking in the Ohio River

 

George Silas Turner was born on May 2, 1866 in Trigg County, Kentucky, the son of William Franklin Turner and Elizabeth Carr Turner. On November 8, 1885, in Stewart County, Tennessee he married Louella E. Bridges, the daughter of Simco N. Bridges and Emeline Martin Bridges.

George was a farmer who lived with his family about eighteen miles south of Cadiz. On the evening of January 31, 1924, George was in Paducah, Kentucky.  He was planning to return to Trigg County by boarding the steamer ship, the “Tom C. Powell”.  The “Tom C. Powell” made regular trips cruising up the Ohio River to its junction with the Cumberland River and then following the Cumberland down to Nashville, Tennessee.  George planned to disembark the ship at Sugar Tree Landing, Kentucky, where he would return to his farm in southern Trigg County. 

When the ship was about eight miles above Paducah in the channel of the Ohio River, it struck an obstruction and within three minutes the ship sunk into the river.  George Silas Turner died in the sinking of the ship.

The body of George Turner was recovered about ten thirty the following day by three survivors of the disaster.  According to the Paducah News Democrat, Turner's body was found “on the deck, wedged behind a freight box, one hand was partially out of the water.”  Water was so deep in the cabin of the sunken steamer, that no attempt was made to find the body of Joe Creamer, .19, another Trigg County citizen, who was believed to have been caught in the cabin with Turner when the Powell sank. Turner was traveling with Creamer who lived with his father on a farm owned by Turner’s brother-in-law, J. B. Downs in Sugar Tree Landing, Kentucky.

In addition, three “roustabouts” were lost on the ship. All of them were seen on the hurricane deck of the boat a few moments before she struck and careened so rapidly that her smokestacks fell into the river.  The three young men probably jumped or were thrown into the river, surviving passengers said. They had been playing cards with Turner and Creamer when the crash came which sent the Powell to the bottom. The steamer’s Second Clerk Leo Blake said soon after the wreck that he heard someone struggling to get out of the freight while he and Mrs. Mary McReynolds, the only woman aboard were caught against the outer wall of the cabin.

The Captain of the ship, who survived, found that ice had formed around the steamer soon after it sank, but he stated that he didn’t think the vessel was wrecked by the light floe of ice but had struck a much heavier obstruction in the channel.  The water that swept through the Powell carried away a small fortune in money and valuables.  The steamer’s safe, containing money and jewelry, was lost and passengers were unable to save any of the belongings in the staterooms.  One passenger from Kuttawa, had $460 in his stateroom, the proceeds of the tobacco crop he had just sold in Paducah.

Turner’s body was sent back downstream to Paducah on another steamer where it was identified by John Sumner, of Paducah, a nephew of George Turner.  The coroner ruled that the cause of death was accidental drowning. Because of the lack of communication at that time, there was difficulty in notifying his family of his death.  On February 3, Sheriff W. C. Broadbent of Trigg County announced in the city court room that Turner had drowned on the Powell and that he had sent four messengers into the “rough country” south of Cadiz to notify his wife and two of his sons, who had nearby farms of their father’s death.

According to the news article at the time, Turner’s survivors included his wife and five daughters and four sons.  They were Mrs. May Morgan, of Trigg County, Mrs. Emma Thomas of Illinois, Ethel Turner, 20, Mahala Turner, 17, and Willie Turner, 14, all of Trigg County and Alvin Turner, of Gilbertsville, Sam Turner and Julius Turner who owned farms in Trigg County, and Jesse Turner, 15, who lived at his father’s home.

Photo of the steamer "Tom C. Powell" docked at one of its ports.

LINEAGE:  (George Silas Turner was the husband of Louella E, Bridges.  Louella was the daughter of Simco N. and Emeline Martin Bridges.  Simco was the third child of William and Mary Thomas Bridges. William was the fourth child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges. Mary Thomas was the fifth child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)

James Thomas -- Thomas Family Patriarch

 

James Thomas, Sr. is the patriarch of the Thomas family of Trigg County, Kentucky, whose lineage extends back through North Carolina and Virginia to Wales where the surname originated in about 1400 A.D. His migrant ancestor, John Thomas, came to Virginia in about 1610 acquiring land near Williamsburg. One of John's descendants, Joseph Thomas, purchased land in Bertie County, North Carolina. It is through Joseph that James, Sr. and the Trigg County Thomas line descends. James grew up on his father's plantation on the Cashie River near Abemarle Sound on part of the land that his father purchased in 1729.

On May 12, 1781, James Thomas enlisted as a private with the North Carolina Line to fight the British in the Revolutionary War. He served with Captain Donoho's company of the 10th Regiment. Most of his one year of service was in skirmishes against the British in South Carolina under the overall command of General Nathaniel Greene. (James’ Revolutionary War experiences are covered in a “leaf” story published on October 23, 2020.)

On September 6, 1790, James married Mary Standley, who lived on a neighboring plantation. In the spring of 1806, he, his wife and family headed west for a new life in Kentucky. They traveled across North Carolina by covered wagon and in Tennessee, by flatboat down the Holston River to Knoxville, then again by covered wagon across that state to western Kentucky. He acquired two tracts of land in the part of Christian County, Kentucky that would later become Trigg County. One tract of 200 acres was adjacent to Donaldson Creek where today is the intersection of the Old Dover and Donaldson roads. A second tract of 400 acres was at the headwaters of Bird's Creek a few miles north.

Mary and James had seven children: Cullen, Temperance, Perry, Starkie, Mary , James, Jr. and Stanley. All of the children were born in North Carolina except Stanley. Mary died in July, 1826 and Stanley remarried. He and his second wife, Dilla Mitchell Farmer did not have any children. A number of James' children married into the family of Drury Bridges.

James Thomas died September 9, 1832 at the age of 70. He and Mary are buried in a cemetery about a half-mile south of his original home site.

Since the formation of Trigg County in 1820, James Thomas' descendants have been very involved in the county's public affairs. His son, Cullen served as a justice of the peace and was later appointed as one of the first sheriffs. In 1850, his son, Stanley became Trigg County's first elected sheriff. Another son, Perry served twenty-one years as county tax assessor. Later descendants have continued to serve the county in public office into the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.

In October, 1970 a Kentucky historical marker was erected on the site of James' home. In July, 2014 compatriots of the Colonel Stephen Trigg Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution procured and dedicated a veteran's grave marker honoring James Thomas' service in the American Revolution.

(biographical material from Trigg County, Kentucky: The Past 100 Years 1885-1985 and from Trigg County Veterans: Lest We Forget. Both publications by the Trigg County Historical and Preservation Society, Inc.)

LINEAGE:  (James Thomas, Sr. is the trunk of this family tree.)

Ernest Howard Sloan -- World War I Veteran

 

 

Ernest Howard Sloan was born on November 6, 1892 in Howell County.  Missouri, Howell County was the county that his grandfather, Orren Bridges, had settled when he and his family had moved from Trigg County, Kentucky in the 1890s.  Ernest was one of Orren’s 70 living grandchildren at the time of his death in 1904. 

Ernest was reared in the small farming community of Arditta being his home until he was eight years old when his father and mother, John Andrew and Jennie Bridges Sloan, moved to Brandsville, in the southeast corner of Howell County.  He was a Brandville citizen until the time of his death.

Soon after the United States entered World War I, on April 2, 1917, Ernest volunteered his service to the country he loved on June 4, 1917, in West Plains.  He was assigned to Company D, 130 M.G.B., 35th Division of the A. E. F.   He was one of company D's cooks.  Pvt. Sloan sailed for France on May 2, 1918.  He fought in the Argonne Forest battles, came out without being wounded and retired to a rest camp.  Later on October 20, he was called to the front again and was wounded on October 29, 1918.  

Several member of Company D were wounded at the same time and all went to the hospital together. Ernest remained in the hospital until February 28, when he was transferred to Northern France to a convalescent's camp at Algman-Noirs, France.  At the camp he was being prepared for sailing home to the ones he loved when suddenly he developed pneumonia and died on February 10, 1919.

Somewhere in France they buried him within a quaint, lonely grave, unknown save by his fighting mates who cheered the cause he died to save and for the sacrifice he made for the Stars and Stripes.

Ernest was 26 years old when he died and was the oldest of seven siblings, one brother and six sisters. He had married Nora Opal Rogers and they had one daughter, Geraldine Alfretta Sloan who was born in 1914.  Strangely, his wife and daughter were not mentioned in his obituary, only his parents and siblings.

Tombstone in memory of Ernest Howard Sloan in the Oaklawn Cemetery in West Plains, MO.

LINEAGE:

(Ernest Howard Sloan was the son of John Andrew and Jennie Bell Bridges Sloan and the grandson of Orren and Mary Elizabeth Hixon Bridges.  Orren was the first child of William and Mary Thomas Bridges. William was the fourth child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges.  Mary Thomas was the fifth child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)

Cordie Hugh Bridges -- Drowning Accident Victim or Murder?

 

 

Cordie Hugh Bridges was born on February 26, 1923 in Trigg County, Kentucky, the son of John Robert and Jessie Lee William Bridges.   On November 2, 1941, he married Carrie Loueva Millay in Charleston, Missouri. Carrie was born in McCracken County, Kentucky on July 9, 1926, and was the daughter of William Ernest and Zada Clark Millay.

In July of 1943, Cordie and Carrie lived in Paducah, Kentucky and she was expecting their first child. Cordie was employed in Dawson Springs, but was home in Paducah on July 27 visiting his wife and her family.

Around five o’clock on that Tuesday evening, July 27, the young Cordie, age 20, went to Island Creek near Smith Street in Paducah along with two of his brother-in-laws, William Douglas Millay, age 21 and John Lawrence Millay, age 9.  Cordie was reportedly bathing at the edge of the stream when he slipped into 12 feet of water and drowned.  His body was recovered after 30 minutes of search by the rescue squad of the Paducah Fire Department and volunteers.

Subsequently, a six-man coroner’s jury conducted an inquest to investigate Cordie’s death. The jury reported that the youth met his death by drowning and added "there are sufficient indications of foul play to require that the case be investigated by the grand jury."

The recommendation was made on the basis of conflicting testimony by the only two witnesses of the accident and of evidence that the victim's brother-in-law, William Douglas Millay had told neighbors a few days before that he going to "bump Bridges off."

William Douglas Millay testified that he had finished swimming and was dressing on the bank while Bridges who could not swim was standing on a log in some shallow water finishing his bath.  Millay said that he turned around facing the creek and Bridges was gone.  He then saw some bubbles and dived into the creek in an attempt to bring Bridges up, but was unable to, he testified.

However, the younger John Lawrence Millay testified that his brother was in the water with Bridges and they were attempting to move the log on which the latter was standing. 

Two other witnesses, Mr. W. H. Atkins and his daughter testified at the inquest that on Saturday, July 24, Douglas Millay came to their house and said he was "going to slap his sister's pretty face." Mr. Atkins said that he warned Millay against such action and that the youth added that when Bridges went back to Cleveland, Ohio, he was going up there "if he had to hobo his way and rub Bridges out."

Although the inquest’s jury had recommended that the grand jury further investigate Cordie’s death, there was no record if the grand jury investigated.  No charges were brought against William Douglas Millay, so it can be assumed that no action was taken.  William Douglas Millay did serve time in the LaGrange Correctional facility in 1947 on other unrelated criminal charges.

Cordie was buried in the Rosebower Cemetery in Paducah on Friday July 30, 1943. Cordie’s only descendant, a son, Cordie Hugh Bridges, Jr. was born in Paducah on October 29, 1943.

LINEAGE:  (Cordie Hugh Bridges was the son of John Robert and Jessie Williams Bridges and the grandson of Starkie and Elizabeth Lawrence Bridges.  Starkie is the second child of William and Mary Thomas Bridges. William was the fourth child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges.  Mary Thomas was the fifth child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)

James Waymon Lawrence -- One of Trigg County's Oldest Citizens

 

James W “Jim” Lawrence lived to the age of 107 and was one of the oldest citizens of Trigg County Kentucky.  He was born on July 27, 1882 and died on September 21, 1989.  He was the son of the late John Labon Lawrence and Martha Frances Bridges Lawrence. He was a retired farmer at the time of his death.

Lawrence’ lengthy life-span had defied "modern science, or even common sense," because of several factors which would seem to have predicted a much shorter life. Lawrence had smoked and chewed tobacco since he was 6 or 7 and, for other reasons, was told by doctors that he would never see his 21st birthday. Also, his father died when he was very young. However, another doctor later told him that if he had been smoking for that long, he might as well keep it up. During the later years of his life he had heart trouble, an ailment that kept him in the hospital often, a place he didn’t like to stay for very long periods at a time. One time he had double pneumonia, and the doctors knowing his aversion to hospitals, allowed him to stay at home.

Lawrence also attributed his longevity to hard work. He said that his doctor, the late John Futrell told him that hard work was what had kept him here so long. He worked for other people until 1907, when he got married at the age of 25, and then he began sharecropping. “There’s a big change in the way they work now and the way I worked. We had nothing but old mules to work with,” says Lawrence, adding, “You worked hard and didn’t get nothing for your work.” He said he would work from sunup to sundown for 75 cents a day, “And you didn’t have time to play”

Jim Lawrence lived during the administrations of half of this country’s 40 presidents, beginning with Chester Arthur. On his 100th birthday, he received a congratulatory letter from another president, Ronald Reagan

Lawrence was known for his outstanding whittling abilities. He spent hours carving wooden canes or "walking sticks" as most would call them. Even in his 100-plus years he could still "crack" the hand-made whips that were also a product of his craftsmanship

One aspect of his long life made Lawrence particularly proud. He had never been arrested, never been in jail and never had to pay a fine.

Jim married his wife, Adelia “Delia” Hite on December 14, 1908. They had three children, a daughter, Irene, who married Obie Banion Barnett and two sons, Robert Lee, who married Icie Drew Sholar and Prentice Edward who married Annie Louise Wilson.  Adelia died on February 17, 1969, twenty years before Jim’s death.  She and Jim were buried in the Robertson Hite Cemetery in Trigg County Kentucky.

 

 

 

LINEAGE:

(James Waymon Lawrence was the son of John Labon and Martha Frances Bridges Lawrence and the grandson of Starkie Thomas and Pruda Minerva Hixon Bridges.  Starkie was the second child of William and Mary Thomas Bridges.  William was the fourth child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges. Mary Thomas was the fifth child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)

Three Young Family Victims of School Bus Accidents

 

 

JAMES DALE HINSON

JANUARY 24, 1964

Eleven-year-old James Dale Hinson was fatally injured Friday, January 24, 1964 when he was struck down in the Dyers Chapel Community of Trigg County, Kentucky by a school bus which passed another school bus that had stopped to let off passengers. The youngster was pronounced dead on arrival at Trigg County Hospital shortly after the accident occurred at 3.15 p. m. on U.S. 68 four miles west of Cadiz.  The school bus which Hinson was riding had stopped to let off seven youngsters. A second school bus passed the stopped bus and struck the youth who was crossing the highway. Mrs. Hinson, mother of the boy, was standing on the front porch of her home and saw the accident. Brothers and sisters of James Dale had unloaded from the same bus and had already crossed the highway. The bus driver of the second, bus told officials he thought the bus driver in the stopped bus had given him a signal to pass.  James was born on January 1, 1953 and was the son of Hoy Hollis and Opal Jean Wilson Hinson.

 

APRIL DAWN TERRELL

NOVEMBER 30, 1979

Six-year-old April Dawn Terrell of Cadiz, Kentucky was a first grade student at Trigg County Elementary School.  She was killed on Friday, November 30, 1979 when she was struck by a school bus on Cunningham Avenue in Cadiz.  April had gotten off the bus at her babysitter’s home and apparently dropped some of her school papers.  She was struck by the ' front wheel of the moving bus while trying to pick them up. The driver of the bus was said to have been watching some other youths at the back of the bus and did not see her step in front of the vehicle.  She was taken to Trigg County Hospital where she was pronounced dead on arrival. April was born July 15, 1973, the daughter of Larry Wade and Janice Marie Tyler Terrell.

 

JONATHAN LOUIS DOUTHITT

SEPTEMBER 27, 1984

Ten-year-old Jonathan Louis Douthitt was a student at Indian River Academy, a private independent school in Fort Pierce, Florida.  On the early morning of September 27, 1984 he was a passenger aboard a school bus that stalled and was struck by a train at Port St. Lucie, Florida.  Two students escaped through the front door of the bus before the trains struck it.  A fellow student, Raime Finn had left the bus, and then returned to wake Jonathan, who was asleep in the back seat of the bus.  Two other children and Cindy Douthitt, Jonathan’s mother and driver of the bus, escaped before the train struck.  A Florida highway patrol report issued after the accident blamed the accident and death on driver error and a locked emergency exit door.  The report said the children had tried to the open the locked door shortly before the train hit.  Mrs. Douthitt, the driver, was attempting to back the bus away from the track but shifted gears incorrectly, causing the bus to lurch forward onto the tracks.  Jonathan was born October 7, 1973 in Paducah, Kentucky and was the son of Stephen and Cindy Gale Burnett Douthitt.

 

 

LINEAGE:

 

(James Dale Hinson was the son of Hoy Hollis and Opal Jean Wilson Hinson, the grandson of Robert Rutherford and Johnnie Rhea Williams Hinson, the great-grandson of Robert Henry and Lucy Agnes Adams Williams, and the great-great grandson of John Wylie and Martha Jane Coleman Adams.  Martha Jane was the daughter of Alfred Boyd and Alpha Thomas Coleman.  Alpha was the second child of Perry and Elizabeth Bridges Thomas.  Perry was the third child of James and Mollie Standley Thomas.  Elizabeth was the sixth child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges.)

 

(April Dawn Terrell was the daughter of Larry Wade and Janice Tyler Terrell, the granddaughter of Robert Joe and Nellie Myrtle Peal Terrell, the great granddaughter of Robert and Emma Skaggs Bridges Terrell and the great-great granddaughter William Joseph and Sarah Wills Bridges.  William Joseph was the first child of Simco N. and Emeline Martin Bridges.  Simco was the third child of William and Mary Thomas Bridges. William was the fourth child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges. Mary Thomas was the fifth child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)

 

(Jonathan Louis Douthitt was the son of Stephen Morris and Cindy Gale Burnett Douthitt, the grandson of Louis Jesse and Reba Dean Martin Douthitt, the great grandson of William Luther and Ollie Esther Pritchard Martin and the great-great grandson of John Wesley and Dora Mae Bridges Pritchard.  Dora Mae was the third child of James C. and Mary Calhoun Bridges.  James was the sixth child of William and Mary Thomas Bridges. William was the fourth child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges. Mary Thomas was the fifth child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)