Does anyone have any information on a Whitley family who came to Sonora area about 1851. There was two sisters, one of which married William Riley Gilbert and had two childdren born in Sonora. Arbella born in 1853 who married and moved back east and Minerva who married Jim Smith of Georgetown. She died in Georgetown in 1912. She is buried next to her husband Jim Smith and 1/2 brother Granville J Gilbert who died in 1909. I have been working on William Riley Gilbert since about 1958. Most of the early information came from comments made by my mother Beulah Minerva (Osborne) Murray, my grandmother Lotta May (Gilbert) Osborne and a interview with my great uncle William Elmer Gilbert in 1962. Also Mrs Sunny Faye of Georgetown in 1979 and her sister Mrs. Bell in Fresno in 1980. William R. Gilbert was born in Tenn. on 7-16-1816. The census of Clark township, Johnson Co. Ark. of 1850 shows W. R. Gilbert, his wife Mary C, four sons, James W Gilbert born 4-24-1837, Granville J Gilbert born 3-13-1839, Robert M Gilbert born 5-2-1840 all three in Tenn.. The fourth son Licurgus Gilbert was born 7-4-1847 in Ark.. According to an interview with William E. Gilbert, (grandson of William R. Gilbert taken in 1962), William R. Gilbert ran a store in Snellings and later in Sonora. He gave out too much credit staking miners and went broke. William R. Gilbert moved to the area around Chinese Camp, married one of the Whitley sisters. That his first wife (who he thought was a Woodside), lived around Oakdale. William R. Gilbert had two daughters by the Whitley sister. Arbella born 1-10-1857 and Minerva born 1-16-1857 probably in Sonora. Arbella married and went back east. Minerva married Jim Smith of Georgetown. She died in 1912 in Georgetown and is buried there along side her husband and 1/2 brother Granville Gilbert who died in 1909. William R. Gilbert married two more times and one of his later sons is my great grandfather Jefferson Davis Gilbert born at Crimea House in 1861. I have many pictures, quite a few stories and facts that I would be happy to share with other cousins. Hope this is of interest to someone, Chuck Murray "chuckmury@hotmail.com" _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com