Dear Mary, Donna, and all-- Okay, I've learned my lesson: When someone asks me what a clam is, I shouldn't include in my explanation all the other interesting mollusks. When someone asks about Samuel Jones HARKEY, I shouldn't discuss Samuel JONES. In my defense, I thought it would be clear which man I was talking about using the conventional FULL CAPS for surnames, and Title Caps for first and middle names. Following that convention, Samuel Jones HARKEY is Daniel David HARKEY's son, and Samuel JONES is Daniel David HARKEY's relative by marriage. (I didn't say Samuel JONES never married; I said he didn't have any children. But more of that later.) First, I'll try to clear up any muddle I created in regard to Samuel Jones HARKEY. Then, I'd like to explain who Samuel JONES was and conclude with a bit about "Aunt Sarah" HARKEY. SAMUEL JONES HARKEY (let's call him S. J.) As Donna says, S. J. HARKEY was the eldest son of Daniel David HARKEY. Here's what I have on him: S. J. HARKEY was born 1826 Pike Co. GA and died sometime after 1900 census, probably in Dunklin Co. MO. He married first (13 Feb 1845 Pike Co. GA) Sarah E. "Betty" McEACHERN, who was born 20 Aug 1824 SC and died 11 Nov 1887 Dunklin Co MO. They had about seven children, the oldest of whom was Mary Ann Amelia HARKEY. S. J. HARKEY married second (17 Jun 1888 Dunklin Co. MO) Mary Frances "Frankie" THOMPSON, b Dec 1854 MO. They had two children by 1900. S. J.'s younger brother, Wilburn David HARKEY, married a McEACHERN,too, in 1858--Sarah E.'s sister, Margaret Tabitha McEACHERN, b Sep 1838 GA, d. 1915. According to the censuses, Sarah E. McEACHERN was born in SC and her sister, Margaret, in GA, The same source gives the birthplace of their father as SC, not Scotland. I cannot say for sure who their father is. Lora Harkey Scott says it was Lewis McEACHERN, an immigrant from Scotland into SC. However, the 1850 census for Pontotoc Co. MS shows a Margaret McEACHERN, 12 [i.e., b 1838], b GA, apparently a daughter of John McEACHERN, born in SC. All the later censuses give SC as the birthplace of these two women and their father. It is very likely, however, that the girls' grandfather came from Scotland. Was S. J. HARKEY a Methodist minister? I think he was, not by ordination but by personal conviction (or whatever it's called). In the 1860 Dunklin Co. census, his profession is "clergyman M.E.," but in 1880 it is simply "farmer." He was never the pastor of Harkey's Chapel, and I can't find any record of him in the Methodist records. SAMUEL JONES Samuel JONES (for whom S. J. HARKEY is named) married first Martha SLATON. Martha's younger sister, Susannah SLATON, married Hiram BANKSTON. Susannah and Hiram BANKSTON were the parents of Mary Ann BANKSTON, who married Daniel David HARKEY. Samuel JONES was therefore the great-uncle, by marriage, of S. J. HARKEY. Did I work that out right? Neither of Samuel's two wives bore him any children (at least none that survived long), and so his parceled out his wealth to many relatives and friends and their children. "AUNT SARAH" HARKEY I didn't research this much, but I found many black HARKEYs in Dunklin Co. MO in the 1880 and 1900 censuses, among them an aged Sarah HARKEY. Lora Harkey Scott wrote quite a bit about this slave. (I think it is just a coincidence that "Aunt Sarah" has the same first name as S.J.'s wife.) Some of LHS's family's traditional anecdotes are more traditional than factual. Good grief, it's four in the morning. Donna, do you know what happened to S. J. after 1900? I can't find anything about his death date or burial place. I know that the Harkey cemetery was destroyed, but did anyone make a record of the tombstones before they disappeared? Alma Roark Johnson [email protected]