----- Original Message ----- From: pmwhitmore To: Frederick W. Gregg, Jr. Sent: Sunday, June 13, 2094 12:22 AM Subject: Re: Dallas Co. Look-ups - POTTER Dear Becky: Thanks so much for your prompt reply to the email that I sent Rick. He responded with some very helpful materials indeed. Inspired by what he sent, I spent a portion of my day at the local LDS center looking up Potters and this is what I found out. Thomas and Nancy Potter (my GR-GR-GR grandparents and parents of my GR-GR Grandfather William) are on the 1850 and 1860 Census for Dallas County. They were both born in Kentucky and so are their oldest daughters- Mary (who married Thomas Helderbran - a neighbor in Dallas Co.) and Martha. William came next (born 1842 in MO) then younger children with names like- George W., Thomas H., Carlelia (girl), and McDaniel. Then the family seems to vanish from Dallas Co. THEY ARE NOT ON THE 1870 Census at all. I know what became of Mary (Potter) Heldebran and my gr-gr Grandfather William - they both moved to Lawrence Co. AR in the early 1860's. Sadly, both Mary and her husband died, but one of their sons J. F. Hildebrandt went on to be a very prosperous Lawrence Co. Family. My own gr-gr grandfather fought for the Confederacy and was captured at the Battle of Little Rock in1863. He then spent a great deal of the war as a POW in St. Louis, then later Alton and Camp Douglas in Illinois. He died in mid 1870's in Lawrence Co. AR. However, what became of the rest of the family is a mystery. I have a couple possible leads that indicate that they may have gone to Kansas. I have found Thomas H. there and also Nancy - the mother. She appears to be on the AIS Mortality Schedule for the 1880 Census and died of cancer in 1879. Anyway, I would be very grateful for any information about the Potter clan in the Dallas Co. area that you can share with me. Has anyone done a family history that you know of? Clearly, they were a LARGE extended family that tended to recycle popular family names. Also, what was the impact of the Civil War on the local populace? Could my MO family have been burned out and forced to move? Also is there a complete listing of who is in the Potter cemetery? I believe that some of the younger Potter children (George W., McDaniel, and Carlelia) did not survive to adulthood - so could they be buried in the cemetery you mentioned? For the record, where precisely is that cemetery? I did notice on the 1850 Census - a William S. and Ruth Potter and he was 66 and she was 63. Is this the brother of the original Thomas? I appreciate your willingness to share information and I will be happy to do the same. I suspect that we are "cousins" many times removed. I just wish I lived closer so that I could drive to the cemetery and check for myself. Lucky you to live so close! Again, thanks for your email and I will be in touch again. Paula M. Whitmore in CA ----- Original Message ----- From: Frederick W. Gregg, Jr. To: pmwhitmore Sent: Tuesday, June 12, 2001 2:31 PM Subject: Fw: Dallas Co. Look-ups - POTTER ----- Original Message ----- From: Becky Quinn To: Frederick W. Gregg, Jr. Sent: Tuesday, June 12, 2001 5:38 PM Subject: Re: Dallas Co. Look-ups - POTTER To my knowledge there was only one Thomas Potter settled in Dallas County. He went to Dallas CO in 1829 married to Elizabeth Wilkerson. The Indians ran them off and they went back to Illinois. They returned to Greene County, Strafford MO in 1829. He died 1/24/1865. He had 7 kids and one was Rev William Watson born in Tenn in 9/24/1819 married to Frances Glover. They had a William born William Albert in 1868. Thomas J had a brother who came to Dallas County. I have not researched him. Thomas' father was a Thomas also. William could have been a brother. William is definitely a family name and there are several Mary's down the line. Thomasis my ggggreat grandfather. His son William Watson my ggg. His son is Benjamin Blackstone and my grandfather is Paul Clement Potter. I suspect somewhere we are cousins. Thomas is burried in the Potter cemetery about 10 miles south of our family farm. Becky Quinn in Springfield, MO bquinn3@mindspring.com ----- Original Message ----- From: Frederick W. Gregg, Jr. To: MODALLAS-L@rootsweb.com Sent: Monday, June 11, 2001 8:19 PM Subject: Re: Dallas Co. Look-ups - POTTER ----- Original Message ----- From: "pmwhitmore" <pmwhitmore@netzero.net> To: <Rick-Gregg@hawaii.rr.com> Sent: Wednesday, June 09, 2094 8:36 PM Subject: Dallas Co. Look-ups > Dear Rick: My name is Paula Whitmore and I live in Salinas, CA. I am doing > research on the Potter side of my family tree and my search has lead me to > you. My great-great grandfather William Potter was born in Dallas Co. around > 1842, and I believe that I have found him on the 1850 Census Records for > Dallas Co. He is 9 years old and listed with him are his parents - Thomas > (age 37) and Nancy Potter (age 31) - as well as two older siblings - Mary > (17)and Martha (15) and a younger brother George W (1). > > Given this find, I am asking you to look up three things for me. > > First, in the 1954 Hemphill book - "Early Days in Dallas Cty. - will you > look on pages 35 and 89 for the references to Thomas Potter. > > Secondly, will you look for Nancy or Thomas in the Death Notices - 1869 to > 1885. > > Thirdly, will you look for Nancy or Thomas in the Death Register -1883-1893. > > I have carefully looked through the Dallas Genweb materials and I gather > that a William and Thomas Potter came to the county in 1839. I am not clear > whether William and Thomas were brothers or father and son. I also noted > that there are references to Thomas Sr. on some of the Census Records for > Greene Cty beginning 1833. I suspect that what I am dealing with is a large > extended family unit that straddled the counties of Polk, Greene and Dallas. > However, maybe I will be lucky and able to sort out who is who and even find > the father of Thomas (who is the father of William). Three generations in > one fell swoop would be pretty wonderful! > > So, any help you can give me would be greatly appreciated. You and your > colleagues have put together a super Webpage and I am most grateful for what > I have already learned. Looking forward to hearing from you at your > convenience. > > Paula Whitmore in CA > > ================================================ Hello Paula - There are no POTTERs listed in the "Death Notices" or "Death Register". Hemphill p. 35 - "Many of the early settlers that immigrated to Dallas County were deeply religious and all through the hardships and privations of frontier life, there in their cabin homes, would gather together and preach the scriptures and point out the way of salvation. The most active of these pioneer ministers were . . . Thomas Potter of the Christian Church . . ." Hemphill p. 89 - "First Land Entries": "Township 32, Range 20 - Entries were made in 1839 by . . . Thomas Potter . . ." 1850 census: POTTER Thomas 37 Ky Farmer Nancy 31 Tn Mary A. 17 Ky Martha J. 15 Ky William 9 Mo George W. 1 Mo (next door) POTTER Mary A. 31 Ky Mathew 14 Ky John 7 Mo (not far away) POTTER Benjamin 26 Ky Elizabeth 21 Ky Levi 3 Mo Newton 1 Mo 1860 census: POTTER Thomas 47 Ky Farmer Nancy 40 Ky Martha 22 Ky William 19 Mo Thomas H. 8 Mo Carlelia 7 Mo McDaniel 1 Mo I did not find this family in the 1870 census. Off the top of my head, I think, Greene Co. was created in 1833; Polk Co. was created out of Greene Co. in 1835; Niangua Co. was created in 1841 and renamed Dallas Co. in 1844. So, if your POTTER family was in the right location, they could have been in Greene Co. in 1833, then in Polk Co. for the 1840 census, then in Dallas Co. for the 1850 census even though they lived in the same house and never moved an inch! Rick Gregg