Part 2 of 3, containing Chapters 21 - 29
to Part 1 of 3, Chapters 1 - 20
to Part 3 0f 3, Chapters 30 - 48
Call Number: CS71.K98
Title: History of the Kuykendall Family Since Its Settlement in Dutch New York in 1646
Author: George Benson Kuykendall
This book contains the genealogy and history of the Kuykendall family of Dutch New York.
Bibliographic Information: Kuykendall, George Benson. The Kuykendall Family.
Kilham Stationery & Printing CO. Portland, Oregon. 1919.
Copyrighted 1919
History of
THE KUYKENDALL FAMILY
Since its Settlement in
Dutch New York
in 1646
WITH GENEALOGY
As Found in Early Dutch Church Records
State and Government Documents
TOGETHER WITH
Sketches of Colonial Times, Old Log Cabin Days,
Indian Wars, Pioneer Hardships, Social Customs, Dress and
Mode of Living of the Early Forefathers
WITH ILLUSTRATIONS
-by-
GEORGE BENSON KUYKENDALL, M. D.
KILHAM STATIONERY & PRINTING CO.
PORTLAND, OREGON
1919
DEDICATED
TO THE MEMORY OF MY FATHER
JOHN KUYKENDALL
Whose kindness, solicitude, watchcare and guiding hand, during the tender years of childhood and youth, whose fatherly counsels during young manhood, directed my purposes and kept me from straying. The memory of his nobility of character, his unswerving rectitude of principle and purpose, his devotion to right and splendid example, have been the guiding star of my life.
As time has sped by, as the world, times and men have changed, his character and life have towered, as a great lighthouse, above the mists of the years, and illumined the voyage of my life. To him, to whom I owe the most of all I have ever been, or ever accomplished, of worth to myself or the world, I inscribe this volume,
In grateful rememberance.
CHAPTER CONTENTS
CHAPTER I.
Introductory Considerations. Object of this work--General indifference to family history--Kuykendall history covers a long time and wide area--Author's recollections of the past--Usual dryness of genealogy--Connecting up events in family history with contemporary events.
CHAPTER II.
Story of Search After History and Genealogy of Kuykendall Family. More than genealogical facts given--Author's knowledge of the family history--Family traditions--Sending searching party to Virginia--Difficulty in getting data--Holland Society of New York--Findings of its genealogist. Mr. Versteeg--Mr. Nearpass and "Church Life"--Mr. Stickney and Mr. Van Sickle--Ancient Kuykendall Deed--Sale of first ancestor's home at Fort Orange, N. Y.
CHAPTER III.
Origin of the Name Kuykendall. Its meaning and derivation--The name is Dutch--Traditions in regard to name--Mr. Van Laer's suggestions--Roosevelt and Kuykendall names formed similarly--Given names in the Dutch records.
CHAPTER IV.
Changes in the Name Kuykendall and How They Came. Different forms found in the old records--How some of the descendants explain the changes--Autographic signatures of some of the early Kuykendalls--Conclusions drawn from the manner of spelling the name.
CHAPTER V.
Fort Orange New York, When Kuykendall Ancestor Came. Rensselaer's settlements--Description of Fort Orange at that time--Location of first ancestor's home--The old church, the bell and pulpit, at Fort Orange.
CHAPTER VI.
Dutch Reformed Church Records. What are they--Their value to Kuykendall family--Manner of keeping them--Minisink, Deerpark, and Walpack records.
CHAPTER VII.
Other Notes Connected With Early Kuykendalls. The first Dutch church of New York--Pre-American Kuykendall's home was in Gelderland, Holland--Marriage of Luur Jacobsen Van Kuykendaal--His children--The Tietsoort family--Marriage of Jacob Kuykendall.
CHAPTER VIII.
Children of Luur Jacobsen Van Kuykendaal. Record of their baptism, as found in New York Dutch Records. Comment on his family record--Facts concerning his children's lives--Jacob Kuykendall's family record--Jacob with surveying party on Susquchanna--Further history--Reminiscences of George Labar.
CHAPTER IX.
The Family of Jacob Kuykendall. Minisink Island and the country around--Dutch ox carts--Wolves, panthers, and wildcats--Old home of Ks charming yet--Johannes Kuykendall marries Elizabeth Brink--Old cabin of John K--Millrace and masonry--Excerpts from Journal of House of Burgesses--Old deeds and records--Family record of Johannes Kuykendall, The Four Brothers in Indiana--Around old Vincennes, Indiana.
CHAPTER X.
The Four Brothers, Continued From Last Chapter. Peter (5), eldest of Four Brothers--What we know of him and descendants--Daniel (5) of the Four Brothers--His descendants.
CHAPTER XI.
Descendants of Henry Kuykendall (5), Youngest of Four Brothers. Marriage--Settlement--Mill building and other activities--Family record--Henry's sons George, John, and activities--James Wesley, son of Henry--Biographic sketch.
CHAPTER XII.
Descendants of Jacob Kuykendall, Continued. Jacobus (3), (James), son of Jacob--His children's baptismal record--Benjamin (3), son of Jacob--His public activities--Connection with early Virginia courts--Benjamin's death--Will and mention of children's names.
CHAPTER XIII.
Nathaniel Kuykendall 1st and Descendants. Nathaniel's life in Virginia--His family record--Nathaniel's descendants--Dr. Jacob Kuykendall of Vincennes, Indiana--Other Nathaniel descendants--Some of later generations--Biographic sketches--Captain Isaac Kuykendall and descendants.
CHAPTER XIV.
Cornelius Van Kuykendaal, Family Record and Comments. Short recapitulation--Cornelius' family baptismal record--Analysis and comments thereon--Leur, son of Cornelius, marries Lena Consalisduk--The name Manuel--The Gunsaulus family--Descendants of Cornelius.
CHAPTER XV.
Mattheus and Arie Van Kuykendaal. Birth and marriage of Matthew--Arie--His connection with the Quick family--Thomas Quick, Sr.--His murder by the Indians--Baptismal record of Arie Kuykendall's children--His daughter marries Roelof Brink--The Brink family--Recapitulation and remarks.
CHAPTER XVI.
Pieter Van Kuykendaal and Descendants. The family record--Marriage to Femmetje Decker--The Decker family--Early times at the old Kuykendall home--Moses Coykendall and descendants--Samuel Decker Coykendall, capitalist and philanthropist--Other descendants of Pieter--Recent prominent Coykendalls.
CHAPTER XVII.
Pieter Kuykendal Descendants, Continued. Those who lived about Sussex, New Jersey--Others about Port Jervis, N. Y.--The Wilhelmus branch--About the Mamakating regions--Burial place of Wilhelmus Kuykendall and wife--Pieter's descendants in Cayuga county New York--Old deed for slave--Further Pieter Kuykendal family data.
CHAPTER XVIII.
Correspondence from Kuykendall Descendants. Regions where the first Kuykendalls lived--Letters from Western Virginia Kuykendall descendants--From John A. Kuykendall--From his daughters--Some Illinois and Indiana correspondence.
CHAPTER XIX.
Southwestern Kuykendalls and Correspondence. Remarks preceding letters--Kuykendalls in early Carolina history--Excerpts from North Carolina Colonial Records--Activities of N. C. Kuykendalls near Rock Hill and Yorkville, South Carolina--Letters from Texas, Kentucky, Mississippi, and other states--Correspondence of Judge W. L. Kuykendall, and son, John M.--Biographic sketches.
CHAPTER XX.
Southwestern Correspondence, Second Series. Letters from Tennessee--and Texas descendants--Kentucky and other correspondence--Early Kentucky settlers--Trials and hardships--Moses Kuykendall and descendants--Summary and comments.
CHAPTER XXI.
Descendants of Kuykendalls who Settled in Southern Indiana and Illinois. General considerations--Grouping of letters--Vienna and Carmi, Illinois, Kuykendalls--White River, Indiana, early settlers.
CHAPTER XXII.
Texas Kuykendalls--Captain Abner Kuykendall first of family in Texas--Early pioneer struggles--Excerpts from early Texas history--Death of Captain Abner Kuykendall--Judge William Kuykendall of Tilden, Texas--His narration of family history--Benjamin Straysner Kuykendall, sketches and incidents by himself and others.
CHAPTER XXIII.
Kikendalls and Kirkendalls. Most Kikendalls trace back to New Jersey--Kikendall letters from Michigan--Washington state--Kentucky--Illinois--and other states. Change of name from Kikendall to Kirkendall--Letters showing ancestry of the two branches--Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, Kirkendall branch and others--West Virgina and Iowa Kirkendalls and Curkendalls and others.
CHAPTER XXIV.
Cuykendalls and Correspondence. Martynus Cuykendall--His autograph signature--Cuykendalls who settled near Owasco, New York--Letters from Cuykendalls in various parts of the country.
CHAPTER XXV.
Coykendalls and Correspondence. The spelling Coykendall a more recent form--All Coykendalls are from the Pieter Branch--Michigan and New York Coykendall correspondence--Mrs. Dr. Pott's family record--Letter of M. A. Coykendall--Family history and sketch--Letter of John F. Coykendall and other correspondence.
CHAPTER XXVI.
Some Early Pennsylvania Kuykendalls. Sketches of early Allegheny and Beaver county settlers--Henry Kuykendall in Baptist Church records--Ira, James, and Christian Neff Kuykendall.
CHAPTER XXVII.
Kuykendalls in the Revolutionary War. Scantiness of Revolutionary soldier history--Difficulty of finding data--Revolutionary War Pension records obtained by author--Names and history of Kuykendall pensioners.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Early Migrations and Settlements of the Family. No nawspapers to tell of their moves--Early settlements all near the old home--Much moving after the Revolutionary war--Moved in caravans or in boats on the rivers--Crossing the Plains--Starting on the journey--Crossing Missouri--Prairie dog country, rattlesnakes, owls and Indians--A terrible thunder storm and rain--Alkali water and thirst--Night visits of coyotes--Beautiful mirages but deceptive--An experience with service berries--Crossing Snake river at Salmon Falls--"Cussing" as an aid in wading a river--Grotesque and hard ways of travelling--Down the Columbia in a barge--Death of little girl--Oregon at last.
CHAPTER XXIX.
Genealogy of the Kuykendall Family in the Order of Generations.
CHAPTER XXX.
The Rifle, Axe and Log Cabin. The axe hewed the way for civilization--The fall hunt--Yaugh houses, or bunting houses--The pioneer log cabin--The fireplace--Furniture and equipment--Dogs of the early settlers, their helpfulness to the pioneer.
CHAPTER XXXI.
Mode of Living and Home Life of our Ancestors. Women's work--Spinning, weaving, making clothes--Men's work clearing farms--Passing of the walnut tree--How our fathers obtained their shoes--Domestic wares--Cooking--Soap making--Maple sugar making--Pastimes and social amenities--Dress--Keeping time, time pieces--How our fathers made fires and lights--Corn, its uses and ways of making meal--Hominy block--Handmills or Querns--Tub mills--Makeshifts and substitutes.
CHAPTER XXXII.
Schools, Teachers and Education in Early Times. First schools of our Dutch forefathers--School discipline--Punishments and the instruments used for this purpose--Old time school books--Rusty cups and iron combs--Goose quill pens.
CHAPTER XXXIII.
Churches, Sabbath and Religious Meetings. The Early Dutch Reformed Church--Carrying guns to church--Early day singing--Sunday a day for rest and amusement--Lorenzo Dow waking people up.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
Marriage Customs and the Old Time Weddings. Forms of betrothal--Weddings great events--An old time wedding--Assembling of bride's friends--Company of the bridegroom--Run for the bottle--The wedding--Wedding dinner--The dance that came afterwards--Fiddles and fiddlers.
CHAPTER XXXV.
Sickness, Medicines and Medical Treatment. Housewives were the doctors--Herbs, barks, and roots--Spring medicine--Mustard plasters--Worms, symptoms and remedies--Rheumatism and cures--Bleeding--How it was done.
CHAPTER XXXVI.
Indian Warfare, Forts and Indian Atrocities. Stockade--Forts of the early settlers--Night flight to the forts--Boy fort soldiers--Life in the forts--Capture of white women and girls--Hard times and hunger--Going armed to farm work--Indian attack on early Virginia planters--When our fathers dreaded fine weather--Artifices and cruelties of Indians--A Kuykendall Enoch Arden.
CHAPTER XXXVII.
Pests, Outlaws and Tories. Many small insect scourges--Malaria--Milk sickness--Its work swift and fatal--Frontier renegades--Their miserable work among Indians--Tories--Their treatment by our forefathers--Branding with a hot spade--Tarring and feathering incidents.
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
The Old Mine Road and the Early Kuykendall Home. Mine road historic--Romance and mystery connected with it--Old copper mines--Tunnels--Myths and traditions--The old road connected with thrilling historic events.
CHAPTER XXXIX.
Forms of Servitude, Peculiar Customs, Witches and Old Time Superstitions. "Binding children out"--The Redemptioner--Slavery and the Kuykendalls--Witches--Signs, omens and superstitions--Testing witches--Washington Irving's Legends told by our ancestors--Amulets and charms.
CHAPTER XL.
Kuykendall Descendants in the War with Germany.
CHAPTER XLI.
More Light in Obscure Places in the History of the Kirkendalls. Correspondence of W. L. Kirkendale of Detroit, Mich.--Joseph Sargent Kirkendall--His family record--George Kirkendall, Shipping Master--Mrs. Jessie Polmeteer's letter--Tombstones of David Kirkendall and wife--Letter of Mrs. Proctor, Burlington, Ontario--Mrs. Daisy William's letter--Family record of David Kirkendall--Children of Samuel Kirkendall and Euphemia Lowry--William Kirkendall and Nancy Hess' family--Joseph S. Kirkendall of Carsonville, Mich.--Data from L. R. Kirkendall, Corning, N. Y.
CHAPTER XLII.
Additional Data Received too Late to Come in at the Proper Place. Statement of Henry J. Coykendall, Syracuse, N. Y.--Miss Harriet C. Johnson--Letter from Hiram Coykendall, Detroit, Mich.--McCage Kuykendall, letter--Family of Alfred Harden Kuykendall and Sarah L. Fort--Moses and Martha Andrews Kuykendall--McCage Kuykendall's family--Family of Garland and Belle Grattis Kuykendall--Lee and Oma Garret Kuykendall's family--Thomas and Maree Smith Kuykendall--Isaac N. Kuykendall's letter--Data from, Miss Mollie Cobb--J. M. Kuykendall, Cherokee, Tex.--Matthew Johnson Kuykendall--Wylie M. Kuykendall--Leander Kuykendall's family history.
CHAPTER XLIII.
Interesting and Curious Book Accounts and Documents, in Colonial and Ante Colonial Times. Ledger account of 1756, and 1757--Tinker's bill--Funeral expenses--Old tavern licenses--Price of bed with clean sheats--Cost of damning his royal highness--Doubling up, to cut cost of sleeping--Old time survey markings--Ancient deed of Walpack Church lot--Quotations from Minisink Valley Church records.
CHAPTER XLIV.
Genealogical Notes, Kuykendall and Stark Families. Rev. J. W. Kuykendall, biography--Early traits, education, "Boy preacher" at 18--Labors in Southern Oregon--Breakdown in health--Locates in San Jose, Calif.--His death--Rev. T. L. Jones' letter--Captain Isaac Kuykendall's family--J. Stewart Kuykendall--His public activities--Edgar Davis Kuykendall--College days--Studied law--Located in Greensboro, N. C.--Civil and military record--Capt. Isaac Kuykendall's daughters.
CHAPTER XLV.
Did More Than One Kuykendall Ancestor Come Over From Europe? Early Dutch New York documents--Powers of attorney--Accounts of Carsten and Urbanus Luursen--Church baptismal records.
CHAPTER XLVI.
Attempts to Trace the European History of the Kuykendall Family. Reference to "Willy Kukenthal" at Harvard College--Kuekenthal family history, back to 16th century--Ancestry of Maternal side of Kuykendall family--Tack family--Westphael ancestors of Jacob, Cornelius and Matthew Kuykendall's wives--Why we have no better knowledge of our ancestors.
CHAPTER XLVII.
Miscellaneous Portraits and Notes. Further sketch of Dr. William Kuykendall--Public activities as physician, in hospital, school legislation--Nathaniel Kuykendall, Gainesville, Tex.--Family sketch--Judge A. B. Kirkendall--His portrait--Family of Andrew Briggs Kuykendall--Group picture--Samuel D. Coykendall--Family record--Mrs. Harriet R. Frisbie's war work activities--Mrs. Mary K. Weaver, portrait--Charles Allen Kirkendall's portrait--Mrs. Nannie Kuykendall Collins.
CHAPTER XLVIII.
Autographs of Some of the Early Kuykendalls, Comments and Other Topics. Sundry notes and observations--Kirkendalls and Klingensmiths--H. J. Kirkendall's statement--Further account of Judge W. L. Kuykendall of Saratoga, Wyom.--His son, John M. Kuykendall--J. B. Kuykendall, Vienna, Ill.--Kuykendall family historical association--Its object, suggested plan--How to carry on--Conclusion.
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CHAPTER XXI.
DESCENDANTS OF KUYKENDALLS WHO SETTLED IN SOUTHERN
INDIANA AND ILLINOIS.
A large part of the Kuykendall descendants now living, who are from sixty-five to seventy-five years old, and who know the given names of their great grandfathers and date of birth, should be able without very great difficulty to trace their family line, so as to connect with some ancestor whose name was found on the registers of the Reformed Dutch Churches. There are, however, a good many exceptions to this rule, for the reason that there may be some whose later ancestors were not baptized, or the record of their baptism was lost.
Sometimes we are not able to easily identify an ancestor, even when we see his name on the register, for the reason that children sometimes were not baptized until they were from two to five years old. If the actual date of birth of an ancestor is known, and his baptism is found on the register a year to three years later, we are left in doubt whether we have found the ancestor sought.
This would be made more difficult if the name happened to be a very common one in the family, and baptisms of other persons of same name should be found at about the same time. Sometimes it is difficult to tell which of two or three Peters, Jacobs or Matthews or other names is the one we are searching for.
Sometimes we find something in the record itself to help us over the difficulty, as shown by examples given.
The great grandfathers of nearly all persons of sixty to seventy years of age, were born about from 1735 to 1765. During this period, particularly in the first part of this period, nearly all the Kuykendall descendants were living in the Minisink region, or not far from there, and were members and adherents of the Dutch Reformed Church and had their children baptized in the churches within their reach. These baptisms were recorded in the church registers, and the records mostly remain.
As has been shown before, the manner in which they were recorded gave data greatly assisting in the identification of the individual and his family for generations afterwards. The name of the father, the maiden name of the mother and the names of the sponsors and witnesses that entered into the baptismal record, placed the identity of the person baptized, and the branch of the family to which he belonged beyond question, in most instances.
Those Kuykendall descendants who are able to trace the fathers of their line back to one whose baptism is found in the old Dutch church registers, have their lines completed, for the registers contain data to finish out the line back to our first ancestor of this country.
There are, however, a good many of the Kuykendalls of sixty to seventy years of age, whose farthest back forefathers of which
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they have any memory or tradition, were born in Virginia or North Carolina, during the period from 1743 to 1776 or a little later.
In all such cases there would be no public record of births found, owing to the extremely pioneer condition of the country and the turbulent, changing state of society. On this account, and the Indian outbreaks and frontier wars, scant records of any kind are to be found.
A large part of the military reports and civil papers of the times, relating to public affairs, have been lost or destroyed. Those whose forefathers lived amid such conditions, now find it exceedingly difficult to go back of the time of the Revolutionary war or a little before that. The fact is, a great majority of the descendants of our early ancestors, by whatever name or variation of name they were called, seem to have lost all memory of the fact that their forefathers were baptized, and registry made of their baptisms in the Reformed Church records. It never occurred to them to think of the old church records as an aid in tracing their ancestry. This is as true of nearly all other families of Dutch, Huguenot or other extraction, as of the Kuykendalls. Our people generally had come to the conclusion that it would be impossible to ever trace the family lineage. Until quite recently there were few of the family who had any hope or expectation of ever knowing anything definite of their origin.
We shall now present letters from some of those Kuykendalls whose membership is quite large and widely scattered over the country, but who have not been able to trace their lineage definitely. Many of these are prominent people in the country where they live, are educated and have high positions in society.
A large number of these are much more nearly related to each other than they have suspected, in fact some are quite closely related that did not know the existence or whereabouts of the others.
It is very interesting as well as a great aid to one trying to trace his ancestry, to discover unexpectedly a relationship between his own family and some other branch. The discovery of even this much, narrows the field of investigation and the difficulty and labor is so much diminished. Where there are a large number of families that cannot trace their lineage, and do not know where they belong genealogically, it is obvious that any classification of them must be conditional and subject to revision when further additions have been made to our knowledge of them. After their genealogy has been definitely traced, no division of them into groups by states or localities can be helpful, especially in states like Indiana, Illinois or Texas, for instance, which contain descendants from nearly every branch of the family.
In presenting the letters in this volume it was the design to group them together in such way as to show the relationships between the families of the writers and the branches to which they belong, and where there is a similiarity of family traditions, to show that also. In this way it was hoped that correspondence and investigation
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might come about that would still further clear up the family genealogy.
The first letter to be presented represents a family that has been active in business, politics and affairs generally in sections where they have lived.
The following is an epitome of a letter from Mr. J. B. Kuykendall, of Vienna, Illinois:
"As to authentic history of the early Kuykendalls, I shall not be able to give you much. Some time previous to the war of 1776 there were three Kuykendall brothers came from Holland and settled in North Carolina. One of these was a major in the Colonial army. My great grandfather was one of these three, who emigrated to Kentucky after the war, and my grandfather came from Kentucky to Illinois in 1815. He had two brothers, James and Harrison, and one sister. There were several families of Kuykendalls in White county, Illinois, which I have never met; my father met them, and said they were relatives. Father was a member of Congress during 1865-6, and while in Washington City met a number of the Kuykendalls from New York and Pennsylvania. Some of them sprang from the descendants of the three Hollanders of North Carolina. The same year that my father left Kentucky I think his brother settled in Arkansas. My grandfather had a brother
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by the name of Matthew, who went to Arkansas about the same time grandfather came to Illinois. I know that there were quite a lot of Kuykendalls in Arkansas that sprang from my great uncle, also a number in Texas. My father had no data of the family, except of his own, and we are the only Kuykendalls in this county. I have no data to show the time of the birth of my grandfather, Joseph Kuykendall. My father, Andrew J., was born March 3, 1815, and I was born January 9, 1842. My children are Andrew Jackson Kuykendall, born July 27, 1873. Frank S., born July 27, 1881. Guy S., born February 25, 1884. Carrie, born January 23, 1887.'
A. J. Kuykendall was also in the 31st Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry, having enlisted September 8, 1861, and resigned May 1, 1862. Mr. J. B. Kuykendall was adjutant in the same regiment, enlisting February 24, 1863, and resigned June 8, 1864. Mr. J. J. Kuykendall, of Cairo, Illinois, is a near relative of the Kuykendalls at Vienna. Mr. J. B.
Kuykendall married Miss Eliza Gorham, at Carbondale, Ill., August 6, 1863. He was then a member of the 31st Illinois Infantry. After he quit the service, he returned to Vienna, Ill., which has been his home ever since. His wife died on January, 18, 1914, after a lingering illness. They had lived together happily over fifty years, always laboring for the welfare of the community in which they lived. They prospered in business and accumulated a competency for all their needs in life. Mrs. Kuykendall was a consistent member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. She was a kind and charitable neighbor, unostentatious in her benevolence.
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Mr. Kuykendall has been a prominent business man for years, having been connected with farming, milling and banking. He was for years president of the Drover's State Bank of Vienna, Ill. One of his sons, Andrew J. Kuykendall, is a prominent lawyer of their home town and county. Andrew Jackson Kuykendall, Sr., father of Mr. J. B., was for many years a leading citizen of that part of Illinois, prominent in politics. He was representative of his district in Southern Illinois, being in the State legislature from 1842 to 1846, and in the state senate every term from the fourteenth session to the twenty-second, again in the 31st, 32nd and 34th. He was elected representative to Congress from Southern Illinois, for the 39th session, a term of two years.
Mr. E. G. Kuykendall, a veterinary of Carmi, Illinois, wrote:
"I have often thought I would like to know the origin and history of the Kuykendall family. I cannot answer all the questions you ask, but will try to answer what I can from facts I have been able to learn. Had I known of your efforts a year or two sooner, no doubt I could have learned more, for several of our oldest relatives have passed away, among them my grandmother, aged 93, who could probably have given some information. My great grandfather, Peter, came to this country from near Bowling Green, Kentucky, in 1807 or 1808. He came to Kentucky from farther east, supposedly from Virginia. He stayed here a few years and went to Northern Missouri. His two sons, James and Noah, stayed here, and later James moved to Southeast Indiana, where some of his descendants still live, one or two in New Harmony. Noah lived here, I think, all his life, and had eight sons. Of these, Henry, Peter, Alfred, Daniel, Samuel and James stayed here, and Franklin went to Mulberry, Kansas, and Aaron went to Iowa. Of these, W. L. Kuykendall of Saratoga, Wyoming, is supposed to be a descendant of Franklin, and John A., of Salt Lake City, of Aaron."
As to the supposition that W. L. Kuykendall is a descendant of Franklin, the correspondence of Judge W. L. K. will show its incorrectness.
The following letter written by D. S. Kuykendall, of the "Immigration Service" of the U. S. Department of Commerce and Labor, of Southern California, shows that he is related to the writer of the above.
"The following is a list of the Kuykendalls known to be related to me, viz: Stuart H. Kuykendall, my brother, Carmi, Ill., a court reporter. Charles D.
Kuykendall, my uncle, a farmer at Grayville, Ill. Henry, Bert and Lawrence Kuykendall, second cousins, occupation unknown, live at Crossville, Ill.
George Kuykendall, second cousin, farmer at Carmi. Mrs. William Randolph, an aunt, Grayville, Ill. Mary Dobbs, aunt, Olney, Ill. Frank Kuykendall, Liberty, Ill., farmer. Many of these have children, some of whom are grown. I met at Galveston, Texas, M. A. Coykendall. He is also an inspector in the immigration service. My grandfather's name was Daniel, and one of the uncles named above; he probably has the record kept by my grandfather, who was able to trace the family history way back."
There was during the winter of 1912-13 an old veteran of the Union Army, John Kuykendall, at the Soldiers' Home, Los Angeles, Cal., who formerly lived in Illinois. He wrote as follows:
"There were two Kuykendalls settled in White county, Illinois, in an early day; their names were Noah and Peter. Peter was my grandfather;
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my father's name was James. He had eight boys and two girls. The boys' names were Benjamin, Andrew, William, Leonard, Noah, Jesse, Peter and John (myself).
My brother Noah's sons lived in Indiana, at New Harmony; John is at Poseyville, Indiana, and brother Ben's son lives in Dubuque, Iowa. My grandfather's brother Noah had I think, six sons, Alfred, Daniel, Peter, Samuel, Frank and Henry-Alfred had only one boy, who owns the old homestead and a thousand acres of land besides. His name is George and his address is Carmi, Illinois. Write to him. I went into the army from Edwards county, Illinois, August 14, 1862, was corporal in Company H, 87th Regiment, Illinois Volunteers. Was born in White county, Illinois, October 10, 1839. I have eight children, five girls and three boys: Estella, Emma, Birtella, Grace, Daisy.
The boys, Paul Mc., and John W., live in Tucumcari, Mexico. All are married but Paul."
There are a lot of Kuykendalls whose ancestors came into White county, Illinois, in the first decade of the nineteenth century, and since then they have scattered over a wide area of country, some having reached the Pacific Coast states. These people settled on both sides of White river at Grayville and across in the section of country made into Posey county, about New Harmony, Poseyville, and neighboring villages. Carmi, the county seat of White county, is yet the location of a considerable sized settlement of Kuykendalls.
These people with all their kown relatives have been classified by me as the "Carmi Branch."
By consulting a map of the country surrounding Carmi, in the White county, White river regions, it will be seen that Carmi is only about ten miles from the Wabash river, and that the White river empties into the Wabash only about twenty miles distant by straight line. The Ohio is the line between Kentucky and Indiana, and between the lower part of Illinois and Kentucky. In early times it was very common for the emigrants from Kentucky to go down the Ohio in barges or pirogues and to land at such points as suited their destination.
It appears very likely that a good many of these Kuykendalls in the southern part of Indiana and Ohio took the water lines of travel. Many of the emigrants from Virginia and Kentucky went down the Ohio; those who embarked above where Louisville now is, had to make a portage at "The Falls of the Ohio," now Louisville, Ky. Once below, they could go down the Ohio, to the mouth of the Wabash and then go up the Wabash tributaries. White river and East White river are the main branches. Emigration found it much more convenient to travel this way, after the Indians had been subdued by Wayne and Harrison. It was easier to float down the rivers than to go through the vast forests of Kentucky and Indiana. No doubt many of the Kuykendalls who first went to Missouri, Arkansas, Southern Illinois and Indiana went the water route. At Cairo they came out into the mighty Mississippi, and then could proceed downward to any point where they might want to land.
My grandfather and uncles used to relate how people in early days used to send their produce down the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. Quite a number of the descendants of those Kuykendalls
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that first went into the White river country are now living in Kansas and Oklahoma, and regions west and south. Along about forty-five years ago (1872) the patriarch of this branch went into Osage county, Kansas, and located. Some time back Mr. LEE KUYKENDALL, of Osage City, Kansas, wrote me:
"I think my ancestors two or three generations ago came from Germany. They landed along the eastern coast somewhere, because they first settled in Pennsylvania. They came from there to Illinois (southern part) to White county, and I think settled around a town called Grayville, while some settled across the river in Indiana. My father, coming from there when but a child, could remember but little of his relatives there, his father was the youngest of the family. I think you could find out about that part of the family by writing to George Kuykendall, who lives at Carmi, White county, Illinois.
My father's father, my grandfather's name was FRANKLIN KUYKENDALL; his wife's name was MARY JANE ELLIOTT. They came from Kansas to Illinois in 1872 with their children. They are both dead now, but his second wife, Mary Jane Williams Kuykendall, is still living in Lyndon, Kansas. I give the family record as nearly as I can:
FRANKLIN KUYKENDALL, my father, was born October 17, 1834, died August 16, 1905. I, LEE KUYKENDALL, son of Franklin, was born May 18, 1857, and married Amelia Benton. Our children's names are as below:
(???) MRS. RALPH MILLER, born August 27, 1883; they have children: Esther Margaret, born May 24, 1910; Floyd Edward, born October 20, 1913; Charles Hermon, born October, 1917.
(???) MRS. ARTHUR MILLER, born May 27, 1885; children: Irene, born January, 1912; Chester Lee, born December 6, 1911; Ada Ruth, born January 23, 1916.
They live at Wichita, Kansas.
RAY KUYKENDALL, born April 25, 1887, married Alta Swan; one child, Edward Lee, born January 27, 1917.
RUTH, born April 26, 1892.
ESTHER, born August 7, 1897.
SARAH, daughter of Franklin Kuykendall, was born October 4, 1858, married William Ramsey. Their children were: Charles, born September, 1881, live at Trail, Oklahoma; George, born April 30, 1886, lives at Bakersfield, California; Grover C., born January 22, 1891, Osage City.
JAMES KUYKENDALL, son of Franklin Kuykendall, was born March 27, 1861, married Mary Jenkins. Children: Elsie, born January 14, 1889; Susie, born January 20, 1891, married Richard E. Brown, one son, Winston James, born October 10, 1917; Myrtle, born November 30, 1892; Claude, born March 30, 1897, married Isabel Morton, June 2, 1918.
ANGELINE KUYKENDALL, daughter of Franklin, was born April 12, 1865, married George Hurle. Children: Clyde Hurl, born August 22, 1890, married Marjorie Rughlie; Madge, born February 5, 1892, married Lawrence Davies; Maude, born December 19, 1894, married Thomas Davies; Clarice was born May 30, 1897.
GEORGE KUYKENDALL, son of Franklin, was born April 2, 1863, married Alice Cowdry. Children: Ethyl Kuykendall, born May 28, 1889; Hazel, born July 19, 1891, married Vernon Lister, lives at Collinsville, Oklahoma; Vernon, born October 21, 1895, is in army training camp at Fort Riley, went July 22, 1917; Lola, born May 1, 1897, married Grant Adkins; Olive, born August 16, 1900; Maude, born August 11, 1905; Stella, born March 11, 1902.
MAYME KUYKENDALL, daughter of Franklin Kuykendall, was born May 12, 1870, married Henry McGuire. Their children were:
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Percy, born May, 1894, in the army; Cecil, Elvis, Keith, Ellen, all live at Trail, Oklahoma.
FRED KUYKENDALL, son of Franklin, was born June 23, 1872, married Lottie Newport, one daughter, Bessie, born September 22, 1900.
EDGAR KUYKENDALL, son of Franklin, was born May 16, 1868, married Kate (???), no children.
CHARLES, son of Franklin K., was born October 29, 1878, married Blanche Meeker, two children, John, born December 1, 1911; Dora, born July 22, 1916.
FLORENCE, daughter of Franklin K., was born June 25, 1881, married Uriah Newport, both died leaving one child, Mabel Newport, born June 19, 1901, adopted by Mrs. Joseph Jenkins.
BELLE KUYKENDALL, daughter of Franklin, was born August 30, 1875, married Joseph Jenkins, two children; Dortha, born March 15, 1907; Fred, born January 3, 1914.
Mrs. Mayme McGuire, Fred Kuykendall, Edgar and Charles Kuykendall, Mrs.
Florence Newport, Mrs. Belle Jenkins, children of Franklin Kuykendall, all live at Osage City, Kansas. There is an nucle of Lee Kuykendall somewhere in Nebraska.
W. B. KUYKENDALL, Ridgeway, Illinois, is of the same branch, as will be seen by his letter which follows:
"I am one of the family raised about Mt. Vernon, Ind. I am the son of Jesse Kuykendall, all my father's brothers and sisters are dead. My father died at Mount Vernon, Ill. Noah died at New Harmony, Indiana, and John died in Iowa, and Peter I do not know about. I have one brother in San Francisco, Cal., and a sister at Omaha, Ill.
There is another lot of Kuykendalls that settled in the same part of the country as those who wrote the foregoing letters. Among these are Louis F.
Kuykendall of Dahlgren, Ill., and James H. Kuykendall of Cornland, same state.
They came either from Kentucky or Tennessee, but have no further information as to their earlier history.
James Kuykendall, of Cornland, wrote:
"My father's name was Abel, born in Tennessee, near Nashville; his father's name was James, born in Germany. I have only a brother and a sister living now, in Dahlgren, Ill. My sister Sophia married William Garrison and they also live at Dahlgren, Ill."
There are a great many of this same group scattered over Illinois and other parts of the west. These families are all surely rather closely related to those at Carmi and Grayville.
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CHAPTER XXII.
THE TEXAS KUYKENDALLS.
The state of Texas probably has in it people representing more branches of the Kuykendall family than any state of the Union.
The descendants of Captain Abner Kuykendall and his three brothers, Peter, Joseph and Robert, comprise a majority of those bearing the Kuykendall name in that state.
Peter Kuykendall did not remain in Texas, but returned to Arkansas and died there thirty years later. Joseph, though married twice, left no descendants.
The people of "Austin's Colony" went into Texas knowing that they would be surrounded with enemies and would almost surely have to fight the natives.
They were as brave and resourceful a band of pioneers as ever faced the dangers of the wilderness and savagery. It must not be inferred however that they were going into the Mexican territory as interlopers and without rights there.
In 1821, Moses Austin obtained from the Mexican government the right to plant a colony in Texas. Soon after obtaining this right he died and his son, Stephen, undertook the project, and after looking over the country decided to locate the colony in the lower Brazos and Trinity valleys.
The Kuykendalls and Stephen Austin became fast friends soon after meeting, and their mutual confidence lasted through their lives. When they went into the Texas country, they well understood the character of the people with whom they should have to deal, and with whom they would be surrounded. They took the precaution to secure legal rights in the country but probably thought the land should rightfully belong to those who would cultivate it and occupy it, rather than to roving wandering bands of people who settled permanently nowhere.
Whatever their views, they soon found their rights were disputed and they had to fight, and many of the pioneer settlers of Texas "bit the dust" before the country was fully occupied, and among them were several Kuykendalls.
Captain Abner Kuykendall and brothers took into Texas a few hogs, cattle and horses, from which to start in at stock raising. They desired peace, but had come prepared for defending their rights and had no thought of being driven out, and they stayed.
The first of the family went into Texas just about a hundred years ago, but since then there has been a great emigration of families of the name from the Carolinas, Tennessee, Kentucky, and the further down southern states, also from many other states west and northwest.
In early days of Texas, the inhabitants were sparse, but the people knew each other for many miles around. The Kuykendalls became generally known because of their activities in defense of
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the settlements against the warlike proclivities of the Indians, and in all projects for the betterment of the community.
In the Texas Quarterly, Vol. VI, page 248, we read of Captain Robert Kuykendall leading a party of Austin's Colonists against the Indians, in 1822, and of his taking the oath of allegiance and being chosen Captain of a military company, in December of that year. Of the four Kuykendall brother's in Austin's colony, there were two, Abner and Robert, were for many years captains of the militia, and several of their sons were also captains in the various wars of Texas, and were frequently called upon to take positions of responsibility and danger.
L. E. Daniell, in "Personal Recollections of the Texas State Government," pages 557-8 mentions that Abner Kuykendall came to Texas in 1821, settled near San Felipe, was the father of William Kuykendall, grandfather of William Kuykendall of Tildon, Texas, who was born May 13, 1839 (mother, Eliza M.
Crothers Byrne), William K Jr. member of Texas legislature 1892, had 8 children: Ada E., Thomas R., C. W., Kate B., Annette S., Allie and Albert Sydney.
Thrall's "Pictorial History of Texas" says:
"Abner Kuykendall, son-in-law of William Gates, came to Texas to the Brazos river in 1822. He brought several head of cattle and a few hogs. In Colonial times he was captain of several expeditions against the Indians. In 1834 he was killed at San Felipe by a man named Clayton, who was convicted and hanged for murder."
Noah Southwick's "Evolutions of a State, or Recollections of Texas Days," page 77, speaks of "Old Joe Kuykendall, who lived on the river below San Felipe, as one of the original "Three Hundred."
"The old man was rather inclined to take life easy, a disposition which the superabundant energy of his thrifty helpmeet, Annie, together with his implicit reliance on her ability to manage the affairs of the house Kuykendall, gave him abundant opportunity to indulge."
From Colonel John Henry Brown's "History of Texas," Vol. 1, pp. 156-158.
"It was this affair that prompted Captain Brown to lead a second expedition into the section of the country, in which at the mouth of the San Saba, he accidentally fell into company with Captain Abner Kuykendall, in command of a hundred men, and two companies, under Captain Oliver Jones and Bartlett Sims, organized in Austin's Colony."
Then follows a full account of an expedition against a lot of robbing and stock stealing Indians. Further on he says "Kuykendall determined, if possible, by a night march, to make a daylight attack the next morning." Owing to rough ground and cedar brakes the coming of daylight found them, much to their regret, several miles short of their destination. Hoping still to surprise the Indians the next morning, they camped, concealed in a dark cedar brake, all day, but a party of the hostiles happened to catch sight of some of Kuykendall's scouts, and rushed off to give the alarm to their fellow Indians in camp. The Captain's company struck out in pursuit and reached the Indians just as they were
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fleeing to the hills. An attack was made, but most of the redskins had gotten away, but they left a lot of horses, buffalo robes and various kinds of Indian goods and supplies. Only one Indian was killed.
The policy of the settlers was to be friendly with the Indians, if they would be friendly, but in case they raided the settlements, swift punishment was visited upon them. In 1829 they attacked and robbed a traveller and ran off many horses. As soon as this robbery came to the attention of Colonel Stephen Austin, he at once issued an order to Capt. Abner Kuykendall, August 23, 1829, in which he said:
"A party of volunteers are ready at Beason's to follow the robbers and a number will go from here. It is their wish and mine, that you can take command, and I hope that you will undertake the expedition, if your health will permit. I hereby authorize you in the name of the Government and of the civil authorities, whom I have consulted, to take command of the said party of volunteers, and to pursue and kill said robbers, whether they be Indians or whites, and to recover the stolen horses, and do such other acts as in your judgment are necessary, equitable and proper, to punish the robbers and afford security to our exposed settlements, by making a striking example, which may have the effect to prevent the repetition of similar outrages by lawless bands who are moving through these unsettled lands." * * * You will keep a journal of your proceedings and report same to me on your return.
Town of Austin, Aug. 23, 1829. Stephen F. Austin, Col. of Ma.
This order was received by Captain Kuykendall, the evening of the same day it was written, and in obedience thereto, with his two sons, William and Barzillai, he left the ensuing morning for the Colorado, where he arrived the same day, and was joined by eight men, most of whom were old frontiersmen.
Fierce Fight in the Old Cabin
"Now we counted eleven," says Kuykendall, whose narration we follow, "and we resolved to pursue the Indians without losing further time to increase our force. We forded the Colorado at the crossing of the Bahia road, and proceeded 8 or 9 miles up the river, where we discovered people moving about an old cabin. Hazlitt and another man were dispatched on foot toward the cabin to ascertain the character of its visitors. The rest of us sat in our saddles concealed by a point of woods. In order to approach near the house, Hazlitt and his companions had to pass through a corn field. They had not proceeded far in the field, when an Indian shot an arrow at Hazlitt and raised a war whoop and fled to the cabin. Hazlitt shot him in the back. The instant we heard the alarm we galloped forward and saw five Indians running on foot, up the river, trying to reach a thicket on its bank, two or three hundred yards above the cabin. Spurring our horses to their best speed, we intercepted them a short distance below the thicket.
They were compelled to fight in the open prairie or leap down the precipitate bank of the river. They chose the latter alternative. Norman Woods shot one as he was in the act of leaping off the bluff. The remaining force threw away their arrows and plunged into the Colorado. As they swam to the opposite shore, we plied them with three or four rounds of rifle balls and sank two midway in the river. The remaining two reached the shore with mortal wounds, from which we could see
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distinctly blood flowing. One of them uttered a few words in a loud voice, and almost immediately our ears were assailed with terrific yells from the thicket above us, accompanied by a flight of arrows and the discharge of firearms." The report goes on to say that after this the Indians ran and were pursued, and completely routed and beaten, and "after collecting the arms of the defeated Indians, consisting of bows and arrows and one or two shotguns, we went to the field to look for the body of the Indian shot by Hazlitt. We did not find him, but picked up his belt, which had been shot in two by two rifle balls."
From Border Wars of Texas (by Matt Bradley, 1912).
Following this brilliant sortie Captain Kuykendall received the following order from Colonel Stephen Austin:
"You will muster your company and endeavor to raise volunteers to go against the Indians. If you cannot get volunteers enough to make one-fourth the number comprising your company, you will raise them by draft. You will rendezvous at this place with at least one-fourth of the number of the men comprising your company, on the 12th of September next, armed and equipped as the law directs, with provisions for forty days."
The company of one hundred men was filled as quickly as possible and organized under Captain Abner Kuykendall. His report on the expedition is a very interesting document. It would please the reader if there were space to present it in full. The description of a night march, while they were following up the Indians, is graphic and exhibits descriptive talents of a high order.
The following letter from J. R. Fenn, of Houston, Tex., to James T. De Fields, of Farmersville, Texas, in regard to the death of Captain Abner Kuykendall, explains itself:
"Yours of the fifth received and contents noted. In reply will say that Captain Abner Kuykendall was killed in 1834 at San Felipe by a man named Clayton, who was hung for the crime, his being the second of the only two legal executions for murder in Austin's Colony. Kuykendall was stabbed in the neck with a knife, which he broke off, and he died of lockjaw. Clayton was a Mississippian. He was raised by an aunt living near Natchez. He killed a cousin in Mississippi in 1832 or 1833 and ran away to Texas. His aunt heard of his last trouble and came to San Felipe in 1834, but when she found how he had killed Kuykendall she returned home without seeing him. Mrs. Clayton stayed at my father's home while here. I knew Joe Kuykendall, a brother, was a prisoner with him in 1836 and knew him many years after, until his death in Fort Bend County. He came to Texas in 1822, etc."
Bradley goes on to say the wife of Abner Kuykendall was a daughter of Owen Shannon, and a sister of Jacob Shannon.
Captain J. Hampton Kuykendall wrote "Recollections of the Campaign of San Jacinto." He had been a representative from one of the lower counties, in the "Congress of Texas," in 1840, and he became the successor of Colonel Dancey, editor of "The Monument," but his health failed and he found it necessary to resign his editorship. In his Recollections speaking of the campaign of San Jacinto, he says:
"I was in Mexico when hostilities commenced between her and Texas. I arrived home (twenty miles above San Felipe) between the 15th and 20th of February, 1836, a few days previous to which time my neighbors had organized themselves into a company, having elected Robert McNutt captain, Gibson Kuykendall and John Burleson lieutenants, etc." (Gibson Kuykendall and Burleson were cousins.)
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Quarterly of State Texas Historical Association, Vol. IV., pp. 291-306, for 1900-1901.
In the same publication, on the previously mentioned pages we find quoted, "Reminiscences of Mrs. Dilne Harris," in regard to the battle of San Jacinto, etc. In one place she says:
"Leaving the San Jacinto battle ground, we camped that night on the prairie, and could hear the howl and bark of the wolves as they devoured the dead. We met Mr. Kuykendall and family from Fort Bend, now Richmond. Their hardships had been harder than ours. They had stayed at home and had no idea that the Mexican army was near. One day the Negro ferryman was called, in English, and he carried the boat across; on the other side he found the Mexicans, who took possession of the boat and embarked as many soldiers as the boat could carry.
While they were crossing, some one said it was Captain Wiley Martin's company.
They knew he was above near San Felipe, and men and women and children ran down to the river bank to meet their friends, but just as the boat landed the Negro ferryman called out 'MEXICANS!' There were three or four families of the Kuykendalls and they ran for the river bottom. Mrs. Abe Kuykendall had a babe in her arms. She ran a short distance and then thought about her little girl, and went back, and she saw her husband take the child from the nurse, and afterwards said she was then the happiest woman in the world."
For a time there was a terrible excitement, women and children ran in every direction. Some by accident became separated from their children and friends.
A lot of them had to lie out all night in the cane brake, without food or shelter. One young woman became separated from her husband, who had their little baby, and found neither of them for a day or two. Mrs. Abe Kuykendall took care of the little baby that had been left by its mother.
A number of the Kuykendalls who went to Texas with Austin's Colony had decided literary tastes, and we find their writings still extant. J. H. Kuykendall was the son of Captain Abner. In the Texas State Historical Society's Quarterly, Vol. VII, there are a series of "Reminiscences of Early Texans," among them are the "Recollections of Captain Gibson Kuykendall, born in Kentucky, ann. 1802."
We have here revealed, undoubtedly, the earlier home of this branch of the Kuykendall family. They could not have lived very long in Kentucky prior to the birth of Captain Gibson Kuykendall ann. 1802.
Whether this family came from North Carolina to Tennessee and Kentucky or whether they came from Virginia direct cannot be determined with our present knowledge. There were a few Kuykendalls in Kentucky during the Revolutionary war. The early history of pioneer Kentucky families is far from complete.
Matthew, son of the first American born ancestor, went to North Carolina about the same time as Daniel Boone, or possibly a little earlier. The Kuykendalls of Austin's Colony probably were the descendants of this first Matthew Kuykendall. Some of the Kuykendalls and Boones were in the Dunmore's war of 1754, and as they lived near each other at the time of the Revolutionary war,
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it is not at all improbable that they were well acquainted with each other.
Judge William L. Kuykendall, late of Saratoga, Wyoming, wrote me that his great grandfather was living near Kings Mountain, when the great battle occurred there during the Revolutionary war; his great grandfather was killed in that battle, and shortly afterwards the Tories burned and destroyed the home, and his grandfather, then a child, was cared for by a neighbor who took him to Kentucky with Boone. See account elsewhere.
If we had the full story of the early Kuykendalls we should be astonished to find how intimately they were connected with the well known participants in the Revolutionary and others wars, as well as with the great historic events accompanying the settlement and making of the early colonial and state history of the southwest.
We have been giving attention more particularly to that part of the family who went into Texas with the colony of Stephen F. Austin and their descendants, but there are many others in that state that represent other branches who migrated to that region from various parts of the country.
A letter will now be presented from Judge William Kuykendall of Tilden, Texas, whose beautiful, well formed and plain writing is a pleasure to read:
"With regard to the genealogy of the Kuykendall family in America I desire to say in advance that I am unable to give you as complete a history of my own immediate family as you may desire, but cheerfully submit below such data as I possess. The interrogatories propounded by you, as far as I am able to answer them, will receive my attention in the body of this communication.
I have often regretted that I did not, during my father's life-time make more diligent inquiry with regard to the family genealogy. At his death, which occurred on the 27th of February, 1862, much information pertaining to the family history was buried with him. However, I can give a tolerably connected account of the family, or my branch of it, after they arrived in Texas, but know but little of the history prior to that event.
My grandfather, Captain Abner Kuykendall, and family came to Texas from Arkansas in October, 1821, and settled at or near San Felipe in Austin County.
I infer from the fact that my father was born in Kentucky that be removed from that state to Arkansas, but at what date I am unable to say. It is probable that my grandfather was born in Virginia and migrated to Kentucky. This inference is strengthened by the fact that many of the early settlers of the latter state were from the Old Dominion, as Virginia was so aptly called.
These statements I submit as reasonable surmises, without authentication, to be accepted in that light. He commanded the militia of Austin's Colony and later served as county commissioner. With grandfather there came, besides his own family, three brothers, viz: Peter, Joseph and Robert, and one brother-in- law, Amos Gates. Both Peter and Amos Gates returned to Arkansas, the former dying there sometime between the years 1861 and 1865. Don't know whether he left any progeny or not. Joseph though twice married left no descendants. He died at his home near Richmond, Fort Bend County, Texas, in 1866 or 1867, I am not sure of the date. He was the only one of my grand uncles that I ever met.
Robert left three sons, Thomas, Gill and Benjamin. I am not advised as to the date of his death.
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Grandfather had six sons, Barzillai, Gibson, William (my father), Jonathan Hampton, Samuel and Hank, (the latter were twins), and two daughters. Gibson, who commanded a company in the Texan army, in the revolution of 1836, left four sons, Barzillai (now in his 83rd year, and a neighbor of mine), Joseph, William and John, the latter demised. These all married and left families.
Jonathan Hampton never married. He was a member of the House of Representatives of the second Texas Congress. He was a lifelong student of various accomplishments, was an accomplished scholar and translator. He died in Refugio county, in 1878. Samuel left a numerous family, but I am not in possession of the necessary information to give names. He died in Washington during the Civil War, date of his death not known. Hank was a member of the unfortunate Mier expedition to Mexico, was wounded in battle and died of his wounds. He never married.
Now as to my own family. I have had two brothers, Thomas Hampton and Talbot Chambers, both deceased, and sisters Jane E., Eliza, Levantha and Mary Ella.
Thomas left four sons, Thomas, Amos, Travis, and Arnold (latter deceased, never married), and four daughters, Jane, Cora, May and Clara, Thomas, Amos and Travis are married and have families. Talbot Chambers left one son, William Lucas, who was never married. Jane, now deceased, left a large family.
Eliza never married. Levantha married John T. Morgan, now dead, and left four sons and four daughters. Mary Ella married Albert Teal and has living four sons and two daughters.
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I was born on the 13th day of May, 1839, in Austin County, Texas, was married to Kate S. Byrne, of Lamar, Refugio County, Texas, on the 31st day of December, 1868. My wife died on the second day of January, 1905.
Eight children were born to us, to-wit: Ada Eliza, born January 8th, 1878; Thomas Richard, born December 20th, 1871; Charles W., born May 27th, 1874; Catherine Byrne, borne October 21st, 1876; Annette S., born August 27, 1879; William, born April 8, 1882; Mary Allie, born December 19, 1884; Albert Sydney, born February 5, 1888. Ada E. was married to Judge A. L. Delworth, 1888. Catherine B. was married to A. M. Delworth, 1895. Both have families.
Thomas R. is married, but has no children. William was married in 1910, has an infant son. Charles W., Sydney and Mary Allie were still single when this was written. It has always been a tradition of the family that our ancestors were from Holland.
I am quite positive that my grandfather and his brothers and their families were the first of the name who settled in this state. Prior to the settleemnt of Austin's Colony, American settlers were prohibited from settling within the confines of this state. There were no others of the name except members of Austin's first 300 families. There may have been others who came to the state before the declaration of Texas Independence, but I never heard of but one, and don't know whether he was related to my branch of the family or not. How I heard of this one was when I was a Confederate soldier returning to my command in 1864, after having been absent on a furlough. I stayed over night with an old Texan farmer, residing on Trinity river, in East Texas. Upon learning my name, and being well acquainted with my grandfather's family, he narrated the following incident.
Upon Santa Anna's invastion of the state in 1836, the families of the Colonies fled before the invading army. At the time there were freshets in all the streams of the state, in consequence of unusually heavy rains. The bottoms were submerged. Adam Kuykendall was walking through the overflowed bottom, when an alligator attacked him. He was never seen afterwards. Keep me in touch with your progress."
Judge Kuykendall has had a long, useful and eventful life. In his younger days the part of the country in which he lived was a comparative wilderness and offered but few opportunities for higher education. His last school days were spent at the Ingleside Institute, near Corpus Christi, where he took a course in English branches and in higher mathematics, and later added to his education by extensive reading, covering a wide field of literature, so that he became better informed and better educated, than many who have gone through college, but have had less application and close observation. Soon after the completion of his education, he enlisted in the Confederated army, and served until the close of the war. On reaching home, after the war, he found his home had been devasted by the vicissitudes of war, and he had to begin life over again. This he set about with energy and determination, and began stock raising, and was enthusiastic in his efforts to raise a finer grade of stock and improve the standard of the breeds in the country. He succeeded, and by his example stimulated others in the business, and incited them to follow his example.
In the meantime he was elected county judge, and served so efficiently that he was reelected repeatedly, until finally he refused to longer be a candidate for the position. He has never been an
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aspirant after office. He was married in Lamar, Refugio county, Texas, December 31, 1868. His wife died January 2, 1905. Their children were enumerated in the judge's letter that has preceded. His eldest son, Thomas R., has been for years the cashier of Sanderson State Bank, Sanderson, Texas. The judge comes of a family that has given Texas many prominent and useful citizens, who
have fought Indians, Mexicans and bandits, and have helped to organize courts, make laws and who have been legislators, educators, editors, writers, farmers and business men.
During the correspondence entailed in collecting data in regard to the Kuykendall family, a number of letters were received from a gentleman, a former Texan, who now lives in Carlsbad, New Mexico, that because of their natural, easy style, and true
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descriptions of pioneer life in Texas were very interesting to me. I had read about a peculiar mortar, with sweep pole, used by the whites and Indians, in carly colonial days, for making coarse meal for bread, and wrote to ask Mr.
Benj. Straysner Kuykendall if he had seen anything of the kind. He wrote to me, in one of his letters, saying:
"Your idea of the old mortar and sweep pole is quite correct. I have heard my mother describe how the Chocktaw Indians used them in West Tennessee. I don't remember of hearing her or father say anything about the old hand mills with stone grinders, though I have heard them speak of what were called steel mills, in which the burrs were made of steel. They had two handles, and the mill was fastened to a tree or post. We used them when I was a boy. I have turned one of them for hours grinding meal. We boys had to 'chop' the corn first, by separating and loosening the burrs, so as to crack the corn, and then after the corn had run through, tighten the mill up to make meal. We also made what we called 'lye hominy,' by putting shelled corn into a pot and then sifting wood ashes into it, then adding water and boiling
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it until the eyes and skin would wash off, then washing it thoroughly and cooking it soft, season, and mash with a hand pestle.
Speaking of his early life, he said:
"When I was a boy of twelve years old, I was a 'hand' anywhere I was needed in the field, after stock, or at the spinning wheel or loom, or at the wash tub.
I learned to be fond of night hunting for wild turkeys, and 'still hunting' for deer, and was fond of riding wild bucking horses. I learned to play the fiddle and dance, which was a very common pastime about Christmas and during the winter season. I was the black sheep of the family and the bell sheep of the settlement, in everything for fun and pastime, except gambling and drinking. These I never did, though they were very common. Brown county was full of men that had committed crimes in other counties and had run away from them. These men were often desperate when drinking, were ready for a fuss and were very quarrelsome, and often killed some one of themselves or some settler, or the settler had to kill them in self-defense. I worked with these men, lived with them, cooked, ate and played and joked with them, yet never had any trouble with them up to 1878. I worked cattle and horses, rode bronchos, scouted after Indians, roped wild mustang horses, and killed and skinned buffalo. In 1879 I married Miss Mary Ellen McCulloch, and began to raise horses, later shipped horses to Louisiana. In 1888 my wife died, and in 1890 I married Miss Lorna Jane Coffey. In 1892 I moved to New Mexico, where I engaged in farming, gardening and goat raising, and making and canning sorghum. You will see I have been 'Jack of all trades.' In 1874 I joined the Methodist church, sold my fiddle, and quit dancing and began to read the Bible, which was hard at first, owing to my neglected education, yet I stayed with it until I learned to read very well."
In another communication he gave an account of the early day amusements, in which dancing held a foremost place.
"Everybody danced, old and young; fiddlers were plentiful, we often had two fiddlers, but there was no money for them, everything was free. Men and boys danced with pistols at their belts and spurs on, if they so chose, some one held their pistols and spurs while they danced until the set was out, and then they put them on again. No difference was made between people on account of clothing; rich and poor were all alike, the hired man and the employer associated and worked together and ate at the same table, all were as if of one family, and strangers were made welcome, and helped in time of need. It was not often we had preaching, and then it was usually in some settler's dwelling, or out in an arbor. Men and boys and even the preacher carried guns, and set them down in the corner, or wore pistols in their belts. Yet people were happy and enjoyed life. They had no railroads and few mills or stores. We often had to go a hundred miles with an ox team to mill. We never thought of buying bread at a store, for they did not keep such things on sale those days.
They sold tobacco, coffee, sugar and whisky by the bottle, jug or keg. There were few men those days who would get drunk."
Mr. B. S. Kuykendall has been deeply interested in the history of the family, and wrote many very interesting accounts of Indian fighting in early days in Texas. In his correspondence with me he gave an account of a tragic event that transpired in the summer of 1867, in which the school where his brother John and sister Sarah were in attendance, was attacked by Indians, and their teacher, Miss Ann Whitney was shot to death with Indian arrows; his sister Sarah was shot in the spine, and little John was captured by the Indians and carried off. The account is here given in his own language:
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"After the Confederate war, my father moved to Hamilton County, Texas, expecting to send his children to school, as we had had no chance to go to school after the beginning of the war in 1861. Most of the neighbors were new comers, and having to fix up to live at home, and having to plant their crops, only left the smaller boys and girls to go to school. We had just got through with our crop, and I and brother Joshua and Joshua Massingill, a cousin of ours, had gone to a mill, at what is now Jonesboro, some 25 or 30 miles away, and were there when
the Indians attacked the school and killed the teacher, Miss Whitney. We heard of it the next day, when about half way home. We drove our oxen in a trot, and got to Mr. Baggett's in the night, where my father and mother and all the children were, except Isaac, and he had followed the Indians, as they had taken my brother, little John, off with them. From what I learned about the killing, the Indians must have been on a high hill at noon, watching the children play, and must have been looking out for horses. When the children first saw the Indians they were coming off the hill about half a mile away.
They exclaimed 'Indians!' Miss Whitney looked and said it must be cowboys,
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but some of the children kept saying, 'It is Indians.' She looked again and saw they were Indians and shut the door. The Indians came right on toward the schoolhouse and tried to force the door, but it was fast. They then came around to the window. My sister, Sarah Jane, had been asleep up to this time, as she was sick, and was allowed to lie down on one of the benches. As soon as she awoke, she realized the Indians were there and rolled under a bench. The Indian outside the window drew his bow and arrow to shoot Miss Ann. She begged the Indians not to shoot her, but he kept his arrow pointed at her. She then asked him not to kill the children. My sister said he held up his hands to her, as though he was taking an oath that he would not kill them. Then he raised his bow and began shooting her. If I remember right, he shot sixteen arrows into her. He then came and forced the door open and went in. My sister Sarah Jane came out from beneath the bench with a block of wood in her hands and threw it at him. He backed out of the door and she jumped out of the window and ran. He got onto his horse and headed her off, and shot an arrow at her. She threw up her arm and the arrow went through her wrist. She turned to run and he shot her in the back and she fell. The Indian thinking he had killed her, and hearing shooting where the Indians killed Mr. Stangeline, galloped off in that direction. The arrow stuck fast in my sister's backbone.
She pulled out the arrow, leaving the head or spike fast in the backbone.
Under her excitement she got to the river bank, and under its cover, went nearly one-half mile to Mr. Baggett's
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house. On that day Mr. Stangeline was moving, with his two oldest girls on horseback. He had oxen hitched to his wagon. The Indians came up to the little girls, shot an arrow through the eldest one, Mary Stangeline, and pushed her off the horse. At the same moment Mr. Stangeline sprang from his wagon, came nearer the Indians and shot one of them. Then all of the Indians began shooting at him. He went for another gun in the wagon, but just as he got up in the wagon front, he fell dead. One of the Indians mounted the wagon and stabbed him three or four times. His wife and little boy were both slightly wounded; they were in the wagon. They all recovered. At the time of the Indian raid, there were two ladies riding through the valley, Sallie and Mandy Howard. They first thought it was some one playing with the school children on horseback, but they soon saw they were Indians. They ran for Mr. Baggett's, who lived in his field. Seeing them coming, he ran out to meet them with his gun. Sallie left her horse and the Indians got him, but Mandy jumped her mare over the fence. As soon as the Indians got off a little, she made a run down the river to spread the news. They tried to cut her off, but she outran them.
The school children all ran off except the three little boys. Brother John was one of them. They took him and tied him on a little mule they had stolen from Eli Howard. This is what John says, and the marks of the ropes with which he was bound were plain around his thighs as long as he lived. John was eight years old when he was captured. The doctor got the arrowhead out of my sister's back but it was about eighteen months before she could sit up."
Besides this interesting narrative Mr. B. S. Kuykendall wrote several accounts of stirring Indian affrays and chases, all of which illustrate what the early Texas Kuykendalls had to pass through. It may be added that after keeping John for nearly a year, the Indians sold him to the whites at Fort Buckle, telling the story that they had bought him from the Commanches. While they had him, they taught him to sing Indian war songs and go through their war dances, but his mother did not appreciate his Indian accomplishments, and "broke up his singing and dancing."
Rev. William Hull Kuykendall, who recently lived at Cleburne, Texas, belongs to a family some of whom were very early pioneers of that state. He has had a varied and eventful life, some of the events of which were given me in this correspondence. He wrote from Cleburne, Tex.:
"I was born in Rienza, Mississippi, May 23, 1855, married Miss Sallie Elizabeth Rogers, at Salado, Bell County, Texas, 1870. I have five children, two boys and three girls, all married but two. I joined the Baptist church and was ordained to preach the gospel at Dallas, Texas, in 1881. Was associate editor of the 'Texas Baptist Herald' at Dallas, Texas, for a number of years.
Was editor of the Baptist Signal at Ardmore, Oklahoma, for six years. I edited 'The Orphan's Friend' in the interest of our Orphan's Home at Oklahoma City in 1906. Went to old Mexico, under appointment as foreign missionary. I started at work at Tampico, where I labored two years and turned the work over to another man and located at Tuxpam, a city of nine or ten thousand people, in the state of Vera Cruz, where I labored for five years. I am still pastor of the church there, but came to the United States on account of the insurrection there and the many bandits in that section. My daughter Vessie has been helping me in my work there. She teaches the English school at one of my mission points; she also runs a Sunday school. We are now staying with my son, Wayland H. Kuykendall,
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who owns and runs a store in this city, but we will return to our work in Mexico as soon as the trouble will admit.
One of my uncles told me the name Kuykendall was of American origin, that a very noted circumstance happened to two brothers, during the little French War, before the Revolutionary War with England. These two brothers were placed on a mountain to watch a valley. The aforesaid circumstance caused them to adopt the name, which is German, and means 'Look over the valley.'"
This old warped tradition that perhaps contains a figment of truth, is somewhat interesting, when taken in connection with what was written by Mr.
Van Laer, state archivist of New York, and Mr. L. P. de Boer, as quoted in the chapter on the name Kuykendall and its origin. Rev. Wm. Hull Kuykendall's grandfather was James Houston Kuykendall, born 1799, and his great grandfather
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was Simon, born in North Carolina, about 1760, probably near Salisbury. James Houston Kuykendall and Nancy L. Scalley had seven children:
Henrietta, born 1849, married Wm. Hogan, lives in Rienza, Miss.
John L., born 1851, lives in Ardmore, Okla.
Pryor, born 1853, died in infancy.
William Hull, born 1855, married Sallie Elizabeth Rogers, who died 1896.
James Webster, born 1857, lives in Rienza, Miss.
Benjamin, born 1859, no further data concerning him.
Simon Lee, born 1861, died in infancy.
Rev. William Hull Kuykendall's family consists of:
Ida Ethel, born(???), married Arlie E. Morgan, lives at Cleburne, Texas.
Calvin Hull, born February 22, 1885, single, is railroad man.
Wayland Hoyt, born October 15, 1889, married Annie Cummings, live at Cleburne.
Josie Lee, born October 27, 1892, married Jesse Kinney, live Holdensville, Oklahoma.
Vessie May, born September 26, 1895. She married, Nov., 1914, a young man in business in Dallas, Texas, and will probably not return to the missionary work in Mexico. While waiting for the Mexican troubles to subside, Rev. W. H.
Kuykendall has been preaching for Baptist churches in the states of the southwest. For a year and a half previous to January, 1919, he has had a pastorate in the little city of Magnolia, Arkansas, a place of probably twenty-five hundred inhabitants. After living a widower for several years, Mr.
Kuykendall married the second time, soon after he returned from Mexico. His second wife being the widow of Dr. J. N. Hall, of Fulton, Kentucky.
The father of Rev. W. H. Kuykendall had two sisters, Susan and Sallie Kuykendall; Susan married a Dr. Davis and Sallie married a Mr. Hutton.
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CHAPTER XXIII.
KIKENDALLS AND KIRKENDALLS, WITH CORRESPONDENCE.
Researches into the family history of the Kuykendall ancestors has clearly shown that a considerable number of those who now spell their names Kirkendall, are the descendants of ancestors who, not very far back spelled it Kikendall. This has been found so commonly the case, that it leads to the conclusion that the change from Kuykendall, the earlier form of the name, was made because it was a more easy and natural way to spell it. Among all the Kikendalls with whom the author has had correspondence, there has been a common agreement that their ancestors came from New Jersey. Whether all the Kikendalls of today sprang from one son of an early Kuykendall family, or from two or more sons is not definitely known. However that may be, it would seem that the first syllable of the name Kuykendall was pronounced as if it had the long sound of i.
We shall now let some of the living Kikendall descendants speak for themselves in their letters.
There are in Michigan two old gentlemen Kikendalls, James P. of Eaton Rapids and John S. of Albion, both very old. Writing to me some time back James P.
said:
"My father was born May 3, 1806, near Lyons, Wayne county, N. Y., and died at Au Sable, Michigan, September 10, 1886, a little over 80 years of age. I was born in Steuben County, N. Y., October 2, 1829. I have one brother living in Albion, Michigan, whose name is John S. Kikendall. My father came from the state of New York to Michigan in the spring of 1838 and settled in Eaton county, where he lived until 1867, when he moved to Au Sable, where he died in 1886. My father's only brother lived in Steuben County, N. Y. He spelled his name with an r in it. He said every one called him Kirkendall, and he would make it so. I had a brother who lived in your state, Washington, he died leaving two girls and a son named William, who has lately died. I have a nephew named James E. Kikendall. There is a Peter Walling Coykendall living in Charlotte, Michigan, who is now (1912) 89 years of age. I think our forefathers came from Holland about 1640 or '45."
John S. Kikendall, of Albion, Mich., brother of the writer of the foregoing, wrote me:
"My grandfather lived to be about 82 years old. He came from New Jersey and settled in Wayne County, N. Y. There were four children in his family, two of which were boys, John and Joseph, my father, John, being the oldest. Father had four boys and two girls. William P., born November 27, 1827; James P., born October 7, 1829; Charles M., born January 15, 1837, and John S., born October 21, 1841. My brother Charles was in the Civil War, enlisting 1861, in Company 6, Michigan Heavy Artillery, served nearly three years. He came home in very poor health and died at Snohomish, Wash. He left three children: Hattie, of Dewey, Wash.; Lillie, of Snohomish, and William A., who died last fall at Winthrop, Wash. He was in the Spanish-American war. My brother Charles saw some very hard service in the Union army, he being in the fight at Baton Rouge, La., and in the siege at Port Hudson. My brother William has two sons, James E., who lives in Southwestern Missouri, and John A., who lives near Charlesworth. Mich. Brother James P. has a family of four, Richard and Charles, of
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Charlesworth, Mich.; George, of Hillsdale, Mich., and Laura, still at home with her father. As for myself, John S. Kikendall, I was in the Union army, enlisted in Company A, Eleventh Michigan Cavalry, in 1863, and was in fourteen engagements. I was captured in December, 1864, and was in Libby Prison, at Richmond, Va., until March 2, 1865. I have two children, Alice M., of Chicago, and Edith, of Parma, Mich. My father's brother lived and died in Steuben County, N. Y. I never saw him or any of his family. I understand that he and his sons were in the army during the Civil War, and that he always spelled his name Kirkendall. Father had three cousins that came to Michigan about the same time that he did. Their names were John, James Matthew and Cornelius. They all spelled their names Coykendall. I think James M.
had two sons, one named Marvin, of Parma, Mich., and Wierst B. Coykendall, of Conrad, Mich. I am well acquainted with James M., the other two sons I never saw.
My grandfather on mother's side, for whom I was named, was in the war of 1812, as was also my grandfather, Cornelius Kikendall, the latter was at the siege of Fort Erie, near Buffalo, N. Y. I think my great grandfather lived near either Wilkesbarre or Scranton. I remember my father speaking of an uncle Manuel a great deal."
We certainly have in these letters from the two Kikendall brothers of Michigan a number of very interesting and valuable clues given, which if followed up would lead to very valuable discoveries, and the clearing up of the early history and genealogy of many Kikendalls, Coykendalls and Kirkendalls. Further on in this chapter, Mr. W. H. D. Kirkendall says his great grandfather was
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Emanuel Kikendall, who had sons Joseph, Levi, Cornelius and Leonard. Here we have the same family name, both families had an Emanuel ancestor living at the same time in Pennsylvania not far from Wilkesbarre, Pa. Both families came from New Jersey, both at first spelled their name Kikendall, both changed the name to Kirkendall. Then we see further that John, the father of James P., and John Solomon Kikendall, of Michigan, had three cousins Coykendall, John, Matthew and Cornelius. Another letter from Mrs. Lillie Maddox, Snohomish, Wash., is here given:
"My maiden name was Kikendall. My father was the third son of John Kikendall, who was born somewhere in Pennsylvania, January 15, 1837, but they moved to Michigan when Charles, my father, was young. Grandfather John Kikendall died some time in the fall of 1886. His wife's name was Hannah Whipple, and there were four sons and one daughter of this union, viz: William, James, Charles and John and Mary. William is dead. James is living with his married daughter, Mrs. Laura Harshy, at Eaton Rapids, Mich. Charles M. Kikendall was married to Zilpha Anna Willis, of Eaton Rapids, 1867, and they moved to Kansas and lived there until about 1873. They came to Snohomish in October, 1875. He died at this home December 30, 1886. I have heard my father say there was a 'Van' before the name some time in the past."
As a further illustration of the wide dispersion of the K family and as offering a clue to the relationship of another Kikendall branch, excerpts are here given from a letter written to me by John Isaac Kikendall, Bowling Green, Ky.:
"I do not know where my earlier ancestors came from, but they were of Dutch descent. My grandfather's name was John. He had four sons, Samuel, John, George and William. My grandfather at one time lived in New Jersey. My father, George M. Kikendall, was born in New Jersey in 1809, and came to Indiana when a boy, then went to Barren County, Ky., when a young man, and married Miss Emily Wren in August, 1835. He died August 20, 1883. He had six children, as follows: Ann M., who married P. P. Shirley; Eliza Catherine, who married P. B.
Miller; W. C., who married a Miss Whitlow; John Isaac (myself), who married Miss Laura Creasy, 1886; Enola W. Kirkendall, who married H. P. Gardner, of Wichita, Kan. I, John Isaac, reside in Bowling Green, Ky., at present am deputy sheriff of this county and am in the livery business. As to my father's brothers, they were Samuel, who lived to be an old man, in Washington county, Kentucky. John Kikendall lived in Springfield, Ill., and has two sons, Joseph and John, I think still live there (in Springfield, Ill.) William Kikendall, when last heard from, was in Iowa. Jane married Asahel Douglas and lived at Ashland, Ill. She had relatives that could give you information. Bettie married Dr. Simpkins, of Lebanon, Indiana, and died several years ago."
A letter from Miss L. S. Gentry, Knoxville, Tenn., shows distinctly other relationships to this same Kikendall family, that will be interesting. She says:
"My mother was Esther Kikendall, who lived years ago at Mackville, Ky. My grandfather's family were the only Kikendalls who lived there, to my knowledge. My grandfather moved away from there before his death, which took place at Perryville, Ky., 1888. He was born in Trenton, N. J. All the family are now dead, my mother being the last to pass away. She died July 22, 1912, aged 83 years. Esther Kikendall, my mother, married Charles Walker Gentry.
There are three sons and four daughters to revere her memory. My uncle, John Kikendall,
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married a Miss Cabell of Missouri. Both died in that state, leaving no children. My grandfather, Samuel Kikendall, had brothers and sisters, whose families lived in Indiana and Illinois, I think."
The relationship between all these families is here clearly shown, yet many of them never heard of the others.
Here is a good place to introduce excerpts from a letter received from Charles Kikendall, of Virginia, Illinois, who says:
"My father's name was William Bede Kikendall, who had three brothers, Samuel, George and Ace (Asa or Asahel?). I also have brothers George, Ace and W. B.
and John Samuel."
"My grandparents were Pennsylvania Dutch; they lived near Madison, Indiana.
Uncle Sam died at Perryville, Ky. Uncle Ace died near Oskaloosa, la. We lost track of Uncle George nearly sixty years ago, and we have never heard from him or family since. We spell our name Kikendall, and I have run across a good many Kikendalls, but they generally spell their names Kuy or Cuy. I never run across any that spell their names as we do but what were relatives. My father had a sister that married a man by the name of Douglas, I believe."
On receiving this letter of Mr. Charles Kikendall, he was sent a number of facts concerning the origin and history of the K family in general, and relating to the Kikendalls in particular, to which he made reply as follows:
"I received your letter of the 31st and I was surprised and am interested in your work. I am going to Ashland today to interview the Douglas branch of my family. I have heard father say that his grandfather was at Valley Forge with Washington's army, after his father was born. I and my brother John S. were in the Union army during the Rebellion. We served in Company O, 114th Illinois Infantry. I will write you again in a few days and give you all the information I can get."
We already have enough to show that all these Michigan, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee and Indiana Kikendalls were of the same ancestry not far removed, also that they originated in New Jersey.
The Charles Kikendall just quoted above became much interested and went on a visit of enquiry to his people at Ashland, Ill., and on his return wrote me again, as follows:
"I find there are Kikendalls scattered all over the state, but you may know more about them than I do. There is a Ben Kikendall's widow, living at Buena Vista, Ill. He served in the Mexican war, died twelve years ago. There are two Ks living at Jacksonville, Ill., one of which is alderman There are Kikendalls at Taylorville and Champaign, Ill., and a Bert Kikendall at Lewiston, Mo.
As to my own family. My grandfather's name was John Kikendall, who died near Madison, Ind., 1847. His wife was Anna Winterstein. They had eleven children as follows: Samuel, married Louisa Shrewsberry, both died in Kentucky. They had four children, one is now Mrs. Esther Gentry, living at Harrodsburg, Ky.
George's wife's name was Emma (???). James married Asahel Douglas, both died in Ashland, Ill. They have two living children left. Mehala married Amzie Douglas, a brother of Jane's husband. Mariah married a man named De Long. John married Mrs. Ann Walker, both died in Springfield, Ill. They had two sons, John N. and Joseph Amon. John N. is living in Springfield, Ill., 511 South Lincoln Avenue.
William Bede, my father, married Elizabeth M. Jobe, near Madison, Ind., April 7, 1839, and moved in a covered wagon, with his family, to
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Iowa, staying there only a short time, when he moved back cast to Ashland, Ill., where his relatives, the Douglas people, lived. He then moved to Virginia, Ill., and lived there about thirty-seven years. He was a carpenter and contractor and taught his sons and sons-in-law that trade. His wife died in Champaign, Ill., at the home of his daughter, Mary Conover, in 1897. He left eight children, as follows:
George, who died 1910. John Samuel, who resides at Red Oak, Iowa. Eliza Jane (Clifford), Charles (myself), and Asahel Orlando, reside in Virginia, Ill.
William Henry resides at Afton, Ill. Mary Conover resides at Champaign, Ill.
Virginia (Bryant), resides at Petersburg, Ill. Asahel, who was the youngest son of my grandfather, died near Oskaloosa, Iowa, leaving a son, Owen Kikendall, who also lived in Oskaloosa.
A careful study of this family record of this family and of all the Kikendalls mentioned, shows that the parent stock of all lived in New Jersey. In the case of James P. Kikendall and his brother, John S. Kikendall, of Michigan, both say that their grandfather was in the Revolutionary war. These Kentucky and Illinois Kikendalls write that their great grandfather was at Valley Forge, with George Washington, and in connection with some kind of service in that war. At this juncture a letter received from Mrs. Elizabeth Heckart, the daughter of the late Elijah B. Kirkendall, will prove to be interesting. She wrote, January 29, 1915:
"I am sure you will learn with regret of the death of my father, E. B.
Kirkendall, which occurred December 31, 1914. I just learned that my great grandfather's name was George, and he came from Virginia. He was with General William Hull when he surrendered to General Brock. George Kirkendall had charge of the supplies, or was paymaster, or something of the sort. It is thought that he and his brother were in the Revolutionary war."
It has been shown that many of the Kirkendalls had earlier spelled their name Kikendall. Reading this letter of Mrs. Heckart's one at once thinks of the letter from Mr. Charles Kikendall of Virginia, Ill., where he says his grandfather was at Valley Forge, with Washington's army.
Valley Forge is a small town or village in Chester county, Pa., about twenty miles northwest from Philadelphia. December 17, after the battle of Brandywine and Germantown, and the British had occupied Philadelphia, Washington, with his ragged and half starved little army of about 11,000 men went into winter quarters at Valley Forge. This was one year, to a day, after the battle of Springfield, where Samuel Kikendall, of Sussex county, N. J., was wounded.
There were several Kuykendalls in the war in the capacity of teamsters, wagoners and in various other ways. The family name is much confused in the Revolutionary war records, and we can have no assurance whatever, that any K name as found there is spelled as it was by the individuals themselves. The Samuel Kikendall who was pensioned, appears to have written his name Kikendall, while the court record of it in Sussex county, N. J., has it Kirkendall, and some of the Coykendalls of Sussex county, correctly claim this Samuel as their ancestor. Pieter, their further back ancestor, spelled his name Kuykendal, as shown by his own autograph elsewhere in this volume.
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These various modifications in mode of spelling add some difficulties to the study of the family genealogy, while on the other hand, they make it somewhat more fascinating.
It will be interesting here to notice a family who now write the name Kirkendall, but who clearly trace it back to where it was spelled Kikendall and was so pronounced by them. In bringing this in, it will be difficult to avoid a little repetition, but if we wish to study the subject under different aspects this is difficult to avoid. I refer now to Rev. W. H. D. Kirkendall of Wenatchee, Washington, who wrote me some time ago in reference to his family history, said:
"My father was Nathan Kirkendall, of Berwick, Columbia County, Pa. He was the son of Cornelius Kikendall, of Miflin township, near Berwick, Pa., who was the son of Emanuel Kikendall. My great grandfather, Emanuel Kikendall, migrated into that part of Pennsylvania, from New Jersey, when he was a young man, and cleared up the farm upon which I was born and raised. He had four sons, JOSEPH, LEVI, CORNELIUS and LEONARD, all of whom settled on adjoining farms, Levi and Cornelius finally dividing the old home. The place became known as "Kikendall's Hill.' There were two daughters also who left families in that community.
Emanuel Kikendall had one brother who settled near Wilkes-Barre, Pa., and left a family there, some of whom became prominent. He had also one brother who came west of the Allegheny Mountains, about the time the other two settled in their respective places. His name I don't know, but a descendant is living at Saltsburg, Pa., Thomas Kirkendall, now a good age. He has a son, H. S.
Kirkendall, in Spokane, Wash., and a daughter, Mrs. H. L. Weister, in Wenatchee, Washington.
I have two brothers living, Henry W. Kirkendall, on a farm near Williston, North Dakota, and Hiram H. Kirkendall, in Bloomsburg, Pa., a sister, Mrs. Alex Bitler, Bloomsburg, Pa., and Mrs. Daniel Baily, Berwick, Pa. My second brother, Cornelius, was accidentally shot at the age of twenty years. Myself and family have been in the state of Washington since November, 1898. I came at that time with my wife, and my son came in April, 1899.
The family name was changed from Kikendall to Kirkendall when I was a boy of about fifteen years of age. It was not by mutual consent nor by design, but other people began writing the name that way, and gradually the whole race adopted the new spelling, except Stephen K., who persisted in the old way of spelling. I believe there are some brothers and sisters, at least one brother, who remained in New Jersey. If you desire more detail, I will be at liberty from my office work in January, and will be able then to go more into detail.
EMANUEL KIKENDALL was born in 1766 and died November 10, 1849, near Nescopeck, Pa., aged 83 years, 1 month and 26 days. He came to Pennsylvania from New Jersey. I do not know the exact place, nor the date of his migration, but it was in early life, as his family was reared and all married and settled near him. He married Mary Garrison, and there were eight children born to them: JOSEPH, LEVI, CORNELIUS, LEONARD, ELIZABETH, SARAH, RACHEL and KATIE.
JOSEPH had seven children: Stephen, Hiram, Emanuel, Mahala, Caroline, Margaret and Kate.
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LEVI had ten children, viz: Emanuel, Leonard, John, Belles, Britten, Mary, Elizabeth, Anna, Rachel and Frances.
CORNELIUS had eleven children: Phebe, Lucinda, Sarah, Elias, Henry, Anna, Nathan, Mary, Stephen, Amelia and Janna.
LEONARD had three children, Paul, Mary and Emanuel.
ELIZABETH married a man by the name of Peck and had a family.
SARAH married a man named Grover, had a family.
RACHEL married a man named Belles, had no family.
KATE married John Mosteller and had one son, Abraham.
Family of CORNELIUS KIKENDALL and SUSANNAH CREASY.
PHEBE married Henry Miller, who had two children. Hiram died in young manhood, single. Amanda, who married Joseph Swank, of Nescopeck, Pa.; they have no children. LUCINDA married Simon Longenberger and had three children. Frances Longenberger married Michael Hartzel and they have two children, Lulu and Minnie, who live in Bloomsburg, Pa. Mary Longenberger married Joseph G. Swank (was his first wife) and left three children: Gertrude, Walter and Daniel.
Emerson Longenberger died single, in young manhood.
HENRY KIKENDALL, son of Cornelius, married Elizabeth Smoyer, and two children were born to them: Stephen, who married and has one son, who lives in Berwick, Pa.; Susan, who married Henry Felterman, and has one son, Roy Felterman, lives in Berwick, Pa.
ANNA KIKENDALL, daughter of Cornelius Kikendall and Susannah Creasy, married Peter Smoyer, and they had two children, Boyd and Ella. Ella died young; Boyd married and has a family. They live near Rock Glen, Pa.
NATHAN KIKENDALL, son of Cornelius, married Rebecca Reilter; they had six children: Henry W., married Harriet Kline, live at Williston, N. D., no children; Martin C. Kirkendall, who died unmarried at the age of nineteen; Harvey W. D., married Minnie L. Shannow and they have one son, William S., lives in Wenatchee, Wash.; Catherine S. Kikendall, married Alexander Bitler, lives in Bloomsburg, Pa., no children; Hiram M., married Effie Remaly, live in Bloomsburg, Pa., one daughter; Amanda E., married Daniel Bailey lives in Berwick, Pa., has seven children; Mary Kikendall, daughter of CORNELIUS, married Henry Angle, and had two children, Sarah and Hurly, of Espy, Pa.
Amelia and Janna, children of Cornelius, died young, also Elias and Stephen died unmarried. Sarah, daughter of CORNELIUS, married Charles Lewis and reared a family of three.
Birth and death dates.
Emanuel Kikendall was born 1766, died November 10, 1849, age 83.
Mary Garrison was born 1772, died June 24, 1850, age 78.
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Cornelius Kikendall was born August 11, 1796, died February 12, 1872.
Susannah Creasy was born May 8, 1798, died May 26, 1848, age 50.
Nathan Kikendall was born May 24, 1831, died September 22, 1903, age 72.
Rebecca Reilter was born March 2, 1836, died December 30, 1905, age 69.
Here the name was changed to Kirkendall.
Henry W. Kirkendall was born December 21, 1857.
Martin C. Kirkendall was born January 21, 1860, died January 1, 1879.
Harvey W. D. Kirkendall was born February 22, 1862.
Catherine S. Bitler was born June 6, 1864.
Hiram M. Bitler was born November 24, 1866.
Amanda E. Bailey was born July 21, 1869.
H. M. Kirkendall, a brother of H. W. D. Kirkendall, of Wenatchee, Wash., wrote me from Bloomsburg, Pa., giving the following:
History of the Kirkendall family as I have been able to trace it from Emanuel in 1766 to the present time.
Emanuel Kirkendall was born September 9th, 1766, and died November 10, 1849, aged 83 years, one month and 26 days. He had eight children, viz: JOSEPH, LEVI, CORNELIUS, LEONARD ELIZABETH, SARAH, RACHEL and KATIE.
LEVI had ten children, Emanuel, Leonard, John, Belles, Britten, Mary, Elizabeth, Anna and Frances.
CORNELIUS had eleven children, Phoebe, Lucinda, Sarah, Elias, Henry, Anna, Nathan, Mary, Stephen, Amelia and Janna.
LEONARD had three children, Paul, Mary and Emanuel.
Male heirs of Cornelius Kirkendall. HENRY married Elizabeth Smoyer; two children, Stephen and Susan. STEPHEN married and had one son, Percy. ELIAS died in infancy. NATHAN, my father, married Rebecca Reilter, had six children, viz: Henry, Cornelius, Harvey, Catherine, Hiram and Amanda. Henry is living in North Dakota, has no children. Cornelius died, aged 19. HARVEY is living in Washington, has one son, William. Catherine Bitler lives in Pennsylvania, has no children. Hiram lives in Pennsylvania, has one daughter. Amnada has seven children, lives in Pennsylvania.
You will see by this that my father was Nathan, my grandfather was Cornelius, my great grandfather was Emanuel. Beyond this I have thus far been unable to trace. Not having heard from the Ks at Wilkes-Barre cannot say whether we are related or not, though I believe we are. I have been trying to find if Emanuel had either brothers or sisters, and if so to trace their heirs, but as yet have no data. Anything you can give me relative to our ancestors will be appreciated."
In tracing any of the branches of the family Kuykendall we always come to a period of indefinite limits, beginning some years before the Revolutionary War and continuing some time afterwards, when many of them had not adopted any definite way of spelling their names. As stated before, along about that time and for some years previously, there was no system of spelling, either for names or ordinary words. It does not appear to have struck our colonial forefathers as anything remarkable that words
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or names should be spelled several different ways, or that even cousins or brothers wrote their surnames differently. People apparently never thought of how a word looked after it was written, or anything about its etymological meaning or derivation. The appeal in spelling was always to the ear, and if it sounded rightly, that was sufficient. It must be confessed, also, that many of the forefathers of the present generation, of all families, were not educated and could not spell, because they did not know how. This is seen in hundreds of official documents and military reports of the times.
There is another thing that has been more or less of an obstacle in the way of study of the ancestry of some of the branches of the family, that is many persons dislike to admit that the way they spell the name is not the only original and proper way. Several have written saying that their way of spelling and pronouncing the name was the first and correct way, and that the other forms are corruptions. One says the others "allowed their names to degenerate."
In the chapter on the name Kuykendall and its changes, the fact was mentioned that persons outside of the family seem always to have a tendency to spell and pronounce the name Kirkendall. When the writer was back east, on the Delaware river, in Orange county, N. Y., and Sussex county, N. J., in 1914, it was found that most people back there pronounce the name as if spelled Kirkendall, regardless of how it is spelled. Most of the family descendants themselves, who live in that region, spell the name Coykendall, while many pronounce it Kirkendall.
A correspondence was undertaken with Kirkendall people, to discover if any of them were able to trace their ancestry back to the first who came to America, for if any such could be found, it might go to show the Kirkendalls had a different origin from the Kuykendalls and others who spell their names otherwise. No one could be found who could go back to the first of the family in this country, and only a very few could be found who could trace back to the beginning of the Revolutionary War.
A great majority of the Kirkendall people of the Ohio regions, and the regions west, in writing of what they knew about their early ancestors, did not mention New York or New Jersey as the home of their forefathers. Some of them supposed their ancestors, not farther back than their grandfathers or great grandfathers, came from Holland or from Germany, as may be seen in their correspondence. I have been somewhat surprised to find that most of the Kuykendall descendants of New York and New Jersey were not able to give me more aid in the matter of their ancestry than the others, though many of them refer to Sussex county, N. J., or the regions about Port Jervis, N. Y., as the home of their ancestors. In the chapter on "Kuykendalls in the Revolution" it is seen that among the revolutionary soldiers from New Jersey there were Samuel, Benjamin, Stephen and Andrew Kirkendall, all
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except Andrew were from Sussex county, who was said to be from Hunterdon. This would not, however, be any sure proof that he actually lived there, for sometimes persons enlisted in other counties than the one in which they lived.
We must remember also that the names of our forefathers, as written in the public records, were written by parties other than the owners of the names.
The instances were rare where we find an autograph signature of any one of the family.
Mr. C. A. Kirkendall, of Louisville, Ky., was a very interested correspondent, who did valuable service in the way of research into the family history. He made several visits to localities some distance from his home in quest of data and secured valuable results. His grandfather KIRKENDALL came from Pennsylvania, located in early manhood in Licking county, Ohio, about 1820, and about 1829 or 1830 married Miss Catherine Gilmore, who was born in Ohio.
They had two daughters: Mary Elizabeth, who died when about three years old, and Martha, born 1834, who first married a man named Stephenson, and married the second time to a man named Mueller, who with his family started back to Germany on a visit, and all were lost on the ocean. James W. Kirkendall's first wife died and he married her sister, Delilah Gilmore, about 1835, and they had four children, viz:
OLIVE KIRKENDALL, born March 10, 1837, died at Eugene, Ore., 1911.
JAMES WILLIAM, born June 12, 1838, died April 13, 1909, at Columbus, Ohio.
FREEMAN P., born February 15, 1843, lives at Omaha, Neb.
FLORA, born June 16, 1846, died at Denver, Colo., 1898.
James W. Kirkendall, Jr., married Caroline Larimore, October 30, 1866. She was born (???), died January 18, 1918. Their children were:
Lowella Kirkendall, born September 18, 1867, lives with her mother at Columbus, Ohio.
James Freeman, Jr., born April 7, 1869, married Hazel Wood. They live at 3618 Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Ill.
Charles Allen, born February 24, 1871, married first Mary Baintree, September 20, 1899, who died March 26, 1910, and second Margaret Caplinger, August 21, 1911. The children by his first wife were:
1, James Stewart, born September 11, 1903.
2, Charles Allen, Jr., born November 8, 1905.
By second wife children were:
3, Dorothy Lowella, born June 6, 1913.
4, Walter M., born March 31, 1917.
Frank Emer, born November 20, 1873, married Elizabeth Fisher, no children.
They live at 1430 Neil Avenue, Columbus, Ohio.
Carl Herbert, born May 30, 1876, married Miss Minnie Clark.
Olive K., born August 17, 1878, married Archibald Rodgers,
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lives at Akron, Ohio. Two daughters, Olive Rodgers, born September 25, 1905, and Eliza Rodgers, born February 11, 1911.
Relva Don, born (???) 26, 1880, married Bessie Erasninger, September, 1903, one daughter, Harriet Don K., born November 4, 1904. Relva D. is captain at Camp Gordon, Atlanta, Ga. (September, 1918.)
FREEMAN P. KIRKENDALL, son of JAMES WILLIAM KIRKENDALL and Delilah Gilmore, was born February 15, 1843, married first Miss Medora D. Fell, who died March, 1878. He married second Julia Burgett. By his first wife he had two children, who died in infancy. His children by second wife were: Ada K., born (???), married (???) Wharton, Omaha, Neb. Burdett K., born (???). Is aviator with American forces in France. (September 1918.)
Flora Kirkendall, daughter of James William Kirkendall and Delilah Gilmore, was born June 16, 1846, died 1898, at Denver, Colo. Married Edward Buckland at Kirkersville, Ohio, her death occurring not long after marriage.
Soon after the beginning of the Civil War, JAMES WILLIAM KIRKENDALL, JR., enlisted at the first call for three-year men in Company D, First Ohio Cavalry, as a private. When the company was organized he was appointed first sergeant of his company. Was promoted to second lieutenant March 31, 1864, and to captain June 6, 1865. He had a fine military record for bravery and as an organizer and commander of ability. He was in many severe and decisive battles, and was in the great cavalry expedition of General Wilson through Alabama and Georgia, was severely wounded at the Battle of Perryville, Ky., October 8, 1862. He was recognized as an excellent commander and won his promotions by gallant and efficient service. When the war was over, he returned to his old home and soon married Miss Caroline Larimore, and they located on a farm in Newark, Ohio. He received later an appointment from Governor McKinley and moved to Columbus, Ohio. He served under both Governors Herrick and Harris on the police force at the State House.
He died at Columbus, Ohio, June 12, 1909, and was buried with military honors under auspices of the Military Order of the Union Veteran Legion. His son, Charles Allen Kirkendall, has been train dispatcher at Louisville, Ky., for the Louisville & Nashville railroad for several years, and is a competent man in this responsible position.
The next correspondence comes from Judge A. B. Kirkendall, of Creola, Ohio, who writes:
"I think you can trace my family from great grandfather down. It is claimed that great great grandfather was in the Revolutionary War, and that grandfather was in the war of 1812. My great grandfather married a raw Irish girl, and they came to Ohio, probably in 1804 or 1805. Four sons and a daughter or two came to them. DANIEL, ABRAHAM, BENJAMIN, JOHN. The daughter's name I cannot give. Daniel, my grandfather, married Lydia Margaret Price, in Jackson
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County, Ohio. Their children were: 1, Richard, my father; 2, William (F. C.
K's father); 3, Aaron; 4, Jasper; 5, Margaret; 6, Isabel; 7, Rachel; 8, Anna; 9, Sarah; 10, Alvira.
Richard, my grandfather, married Rachel M. Allen, and their children were as follows:
ASA, who married Blanche McCray. Their children were: Nellie Hewit, dead; L.
C. Kirkendall, married Bertie Oiler; Aaron C., dead; Gussie, Hazel, Gladys and Grace.
AARON B., myself, married Mattie E. Thomason, children: Rothbe, married Mary J. Burkett; Gard H., Maggie M., Mamie V., Melba G., Aaron, Jr., Merl R., and Marjorie Pearl.
WILLIAM J. KIRKENDALL married(???), and their children are: Lanson B.
Kirkendall, single, Boulder, Colo.; Charles R. S., married, Fruita, Colo.; James A. F. lives at Roosevelt, Utah, has eight children; Julia Margaret married a Mr. Campbell, residence Williams, Ind??; Eleanor married a Mr.
Hunter, has three children, Grace, Foss, Herman; Fred C. resides in Chillecothe, has two children, Dorothy, Theodore, Esther (Mrs. Esther White), Boulder, Colo., one daughter Helen.
AARON, my uncle, married Sarah M. Allen. Their children were: Frank M.
Kirkendall, married Ruth Lyons, several children; K. G. Kirkendall, married Rebecca Wilcox, no children, Vinton, Ohio; Donna (Tyler), Otta (Martin), Jessie (Braley).
JASPER, married Mary Jarvis, several sons and daughters, Wellston, Ohio.
MARGARET SHOEMAKER, died without children.
ISABEL KOONTZ has several children; can't give names and address.
RACHEL GOODLYN, daughters, Maggie Hite, Gore, Ohio; Myrtle Kauffman, Lancaster, Ohio.
ANNA POTTS, one child, Sherman, address unknown.
SARAH SHAFER, has a large family living at Glen Roy, Ohio.
ALVIRA WILLIAMS, lives at Minerton, Ohio, has one son.
ABRAHAM, son of John Kirkendall, married Lottie Phillips, their children: John, don't know his family, live at Columbus, Ohio; Isaac Kirkendall, deceased; Hiram, married Miss McManaway, large family, children and grandchildren; Zilpha, married a man named Levinston or Levering.
JOHN KIRKENDALL, son of John, Sr., had four sons: Benjamin, Stephen, George and Jacob, all living in Athens county, Ohio. Of these sons, Benjamin married Mary Frazee; their children were: Lizzie Kirkendall (Dearth), deceased; Albert, married Miss Malone, several children, Dundas, Ohio; Edins, married first Miss Salmons, second Miss Long, several children and grandchildren, they live at Dundas, Ohio.
I am told the name of my great grandfather's father was John, or Jonathan, and that he had a brother, Solomon, who traced our family tree. It is claimed we were Germans, that the name, while spelled Kuykendall by some of the offshoots of the family, was ori