Well!! Sue Cooley's answer to my query about Pearl L. MOTHERSHEAD's family really opened up some interesting questions! The Thomas MOTHERSHEAD family she describes sounds a LOT like the family described by Joanne of Jefferson County, believed to be descended from Clifton and Patsy MOTHERSHEAD! Sue's note raises a question as to whether (this??) John MOTHERSHEAD was indeed a son of Clifton. I have a vested interest in the answer, as I am 97% certain that my ggrandfather George MOTHERSHEAD is also a son of John MOTHERSHEAD (i.e., a brother of Thomas), and want to know if Clifton and Patsy are my ggggrandparents!! I am sending this message to the Franklin Co. mailing list, the Jefferson Co. list, and the Washington Co. list, hoping that between us we can figure this out. Here is the Thomas MOTHERSHEAD family(s), as shown by the two sources: -Headed by Thomas MOTHERSHEAD, whose father was John MOTHERSHEAD. John MOTHERSHEAD believed by family, per Sue Cooley note below, to have been an Osage Indian who adopted the "white" name Mothershead and therefore is unrelated to other Mothersheads in the area. But almost certainly the same Thomas is shown on JoAnne's website as the son of John MOTHERSHEAD (son of Clifton and Patsy) and Ann MURRELL. -Wife to be discussed below. -Children as shown by Sue Cooley in the message below are Nannie, Myrtle, Margie, Charlie, Elbert, and Pearl L. -Children shown on the Clifton MOTHERSHEAD website are Nancy, born March 1894 in Jeff. Co. MO; Myrtle, born March 1895 in Jeff Co., MO; Marge, born Jan 1897; and Pearl, born Feb 1900 in Jeff Co, MO. That is, they are THE SAME as listed in Sue's note, except that Sue also shows a Charlie and and Elbert. -The wife of Thomas MOTHERSHEAD is shown on the Clifton MOTHERSHEAD website as Mary --?--, born in MO. Last week I came across a marriage between a Thomas MOTHERSHEAD and Mary THURMONT in the index to 1890-94 marriages in Franklin County (haven't had a chance to do more than read the index yet). The Clifton Mothershead info may be found on the web at the following site: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com~jcat2/clifdesc.htm. Questions: For Sue--(1) Was the mother of this Thomas MOTHERSHEAD family named Mary? (2) Were Charlie and Elbert the youngest children, perhaps born after the 1900 Jeff Co. MO census, which is the source given at the Clifton MOTHERSHEAD website for the Thomas MOTHERSHEAD family? (3) Did you ever hear who Thomas MOTHERSHEAD's mother was? Does anyone have census records for the Thomas MOTHERSHEAD family for 1910 or 1920? Sounds like they might be in Franklin Co. for 1910 and PERHAPS in Washington Co. for 1920, since Lucy J. was residing there at the time of her marriage in 1920? Has anyone seen the 1880 Census records for the John MOTHERSHEAD family? (I have been TOTALLY unable to find them on the 1880 Census CD's--maybe the Mothershead name is mis-spelled??!!) I understand that "Clifton's heirs were clearly named." Does that include John MOTHERSHEAD (presumably age 6 at the time)? Is there supporting data for the idea that there was a John MOTHERSHEAD who was an Osage Indian and adopted the MOTHERSHEAD name? I tend to believe that these family stories usually have "some" basis, but is there any data to go on? Is there any indication that John MOTHERSHEAD, son of Clifton, could have died and another person taken that name? I look forward to your input!!!! Below I will show my original query and Sue's response. ********** My original query: I see a Pearl L. MOTHERSHEAD of Pea Ridge, Franklin, Mo, over 18, marrying John W. BURNETT of Pea Ridge, Franklin Co, MO, over 21, license issued 10 Dec 1920, married on 10 Dec 1920 by Rev. H.E. Koenig, MG, at Union, Franklin Co., MO. Does anyone know anything about this Pearl L. Mothershead, especially who her parents and siblings were? *********** Sue's response: Well, for starters, Pea Ridge is in Washington County. However, this marriage did take place in Franklin County. The Pearl Mothershead you are asking about was the youngest daughter of Thomas Mothershead. Her siblings were Nannie, Myrtle, Margie, Charlie, and Elbert. Pearl married Bill Burnett (perhaps it was John William) and worked at the shoe factory at Union. Their sons were Glennon and Oley. Thomas Mothershead was the son of John Mothershead, believed to have been an Osage Indian, who had to take an "American" name in order to buy property and chose the name of Mothershead. Some members of this Mothershead clan have told me they don't believe they are related to any other Mothersheads because of this. I hope this helps. Sue Cooley Franklin County Coordinator Missouri USGenWeb Project