This is an interesting story. My great-grandmother was a James and the family story is that she was in some way related to Jesse and Frank James, but I've not been able to prove that. I lived in Benton County for 6 years and know the "Gemes" families well! One of my classmates was a Gemes. CheriC -----Original Message----- >From: lthank <lthank@turboisp.com> >Sent: Jan 13, 2006 2:25 PM >To: JAMES-L@rootsweb.com >Subject: [JAMES-L] history from Benton County, issouri > >1/13/2006 >This is a letter of a story in the Benton County Historical books which was sent by a links-related "cousin" who kindly sent this for research in Missouri, her home state. The letter she send is attached to the extract she did of the story. >Thanks for reading it! >Linda Thank >*************************************************************** >This is transcribed exactly as found in the History of Benton Co. don't know >if this will help you but it is a fascinating story anyway. I do have >additional information on other people with surname of James who located in >Benton. Will send in a later email. This might not be your family of James >but perhaps others also changed their names during these turbulant times in >Missouri. Velma > _____ > >As transcribed from the History of Benton County, Missouri: The People, >volume 3 written and compiled by Kathleen Kelly White and Kathleen White >Miles; published by the Printery, Clinton and Warsaw, Missouri c1971. > >Pages 1068 - 1071 as contributed by a granddaughter of L. P. Gemes, Faye >Gemes Walthall: > > IS IT "GEMES OR JAMES" > >Well, it's "Gemes" now so it's sort of a moot question. > >But Grandfather L. P. Gemes, who died in 1937 at the age of 88, believed his >father was a brother of Frank and Jesse James' father. > >He was born in 1849 and raised in Shannon County. And he was raised under >the name of Lewis Patton Phelps, since his mother remarried a Phelps when he >was two years old. > >When he himself decided to marry, he wanted to know his father's name. >After some dissention, his mother went with him to the Shannon County >courthouse and showed him the marriage records. Last name of his father was >smudged but young L. P. was sure the name was "James". His mother got very >upset when he said this and insisted the name had been "Gemes." Research a >cousin did in Washington seem to indicate the "James" was indeed correct. > >Faye Gemes Walthall gives us these bits of family information, as she can >remember her grandfather telling them. > >"Grand-Dad always claimed he was born in a cave in Arkansas," she said "and >came to Shannon County by way of "Kain-tucky," and it would make Grandma mad >when he pronounced it that way." > >Mrs. Walthall said that Grandfather L.P. Gemes' mother (Mrs. James or Gemes >and later Mrs. Phelps) was the daughter of an Indian Chief named Chief >Whitehead, whose people settled in the Eureka Springs, Arkansas vicinity >about 1850, as the chief was taking a daughter there to see if her eyes >could be healed by the water." > >"Grand-Dad Gemes' wife (Mrs. L.P. Gemes) was Elizabeth Booth from Tennessee. >They were married before they came to Benton County. > >"Some of the Gemes have woodsmen," Mrs. Walthall related, "and preferred to >work in the out-of-doors but Grandmother Elizabeth's family owned at least >50 slaves". > >"Grand-Dad told me about the wedding when I was a little girl. It was a >grand affair, with a big feast, even for the servants". > >"The next day after the wedding was called 'laying-in' day and Grand-Dad >could still describe the gowns Grandma wore.both for her wedding and for the >several days festivities which followed". > >Lemuel W. Gemes, a son of L. P. and Elizabeth Booth Gemes, was born April 3, >1883 near Edwards. He was a thresher, had a sawmill, ran a freight service >between Warsaw and Edwards, operated a store and garage. > >He also carried mail between Warsaw and Hastain. His wife was Minnie Mae >Buffon, daughter of Daniel C. and Mary E. Buffon of Iowa. She was born >January 3, 1887 and died March 3, 1970 leaving a brother, Frank, of LaMonte, >and a sister, Mrs. Vida Knapp of Red Oak, Iowa. > >They had six children: Lela died in 1906, at age of six; Mrs. Delia Cooper, >Mrs. Faye (Leland) Walthall, Clifford, Travis and Elgie Gemes. > >When Lem Gemes first carried the mail, he had a hard-rubber tired hack. >Roads were so bad, people kept a team of mules for him to use when needed. >He'd leave the car at the beginning of the bad stretch and take the team. > >The only schooling he ever had was to Myrtie Smith (an early school teacher >of Benton Co.) > >"She knew he wouldn't get to go very long," relates Mrs. Walthall, "so she >concentrated on his A.B.C.'s that winter, using wooden blocks on a string >for a teaching aid and she also taught him his numbers." > >Her father, Mrs. Walthall recalled, couldn't figure on paper to any great >extent but could do a fantastic job of figuring loads of lumber and other >involved practical problems in his head. > > >==== JAMES Mailing List ==== >Jesse and Frank have their own mailing list! >Friends, family and other MO Outlaws, the era and the area will >be the topic! Hope to see you on the list! >******************************************* >Visit Frank and Jesse James on-line! >http://www.rootsweb.com/~daisy/jamesged.htm >