I honestly do not know anything "useful" about that cemetery, tho' I have become very interested in cemeteries in general, if you know what I mean? Know just where it is, now that you have "pointed it out". grin. Been there many times as a young'un. I grew up in Branson. My grandmother owned the Shepherd of the Hills Farm. She and my grandfather bought the homestead and built the Farm, the outdoor pageant and all that so am well versed in the characters of the book. grin. Will ask around about the cemetery and let you know if I find anything. There used to be several ROWLANDs in the area... don't suppose you could narrow it down a bit? Used to know some HENSLEY folks, too. Adrienne ----- Original Message ----- From: POGMOTHOIN824@aol.com To: MOTANEY-L@rootsweb.com Sent: Saturday, August 10, 2002 4:56 PM Subject: Re: [MOTANEY] My Taney County Family Groves/Rowland/Hensley Adrienne, LOL, I really don't know what I want? I would like to see if anyone knows anymore about John Iller or his parents also Laura Ellen ROWLAND groves and her parents. I have pictures of the headstones have been there several times. I don't know the address of the cemetery but it is in the old district over close to the crescent motel. If you were to take old 65 to Branson past skaggs hospital, then cross lake taneycomo it would be the first left and it would be one or two blocks. I don't know who maintains it or if there is any information I could get about it but would like to have it. I would love to know if any family of john or Ella AKA Laura were around for me to contact. As I said my great grandparents and great-great-grandparetns are buried there as well as numerous others and my Uncle who died in infancy is buried there with no marker but I know where he is supposedly buried and would like to see about putting a marker up for him. I have tales upon tales of the Branson area. My grandmother used to read the shepard of the hills to me and my siblings and tell us who the characters were in real life. my family lived in Branson till around 1955. OHH sorry the name of the cemetery is Branson Cemetery est. 1863. thank you Justine ==== MOTANEY Mailing List ==== "Life is a culmination of the past, an awareness of the present, an indication of a future beyond knowledge, the quality that gives a touch of divinity to matter."-C. Lindbergh, "Is Civilization Prgress?" Jul 1964 ============================== To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237

Wanda, I found a Bluffton, MO in Montgomery County and a Bluffton, MO in Ray County. ???? ----- Original Message ----- From: Grnd5@aol.com To: MOTANEY-L@rootsweb.com Sent: Friday, August 09, 2002 10:19 PM Subject: Re: [MOTANEY] more computer time Does anyone know the location of Bluff MO WANDA ==== MOTANEY Mailing List ==== "Life is a culmination of the past, an awareness of the present, an indication of a future beyond knowledge, the quality that gives a touch of divinity to matter."-C. Lindbergh, "Is Civilization Prgress?" Jul 1964 ============================== To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237

Wanda, I am far from an expert on all the small towns in Missouri, but are you quite certain it is Bluff, Mo? There is a Poplar Bluff and several other towns with "Bluff" as part of the name. Adrienne ----- Original Message ----- From: Grnd5@aol.com To: MOTANEY-L@rootsweb.com Sent: Friday, August 09, 2002 10:19 PM Subject: Re: [MOTANEY] more computer time Does anyone know the location of Bluff MO WANDA ==== MOTANEY Mailing List ==== "Life is a culmination of the past, an awareness of the present, an indication of a future beyond knowledge, the quality that gives a touch of divinity to matter."-C. Lindbergh, "Is Civilization Prgress?" Jul 1964 ============================== To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237

Hi, Justine. You did just fine in how you worded your post. Could you tell me just exactly what it is you would like to know? Do you want photos of the graves/headstones? Or would you rather a text of the stones? Do you need to know if the cemetery is still active? Can you tell where the cemetery is located? Will do all I can to help you with this. Adrienne ----- Original Message ----- From: POGMOTHOIN824@aol.com To: MOTANEY-L@rootsweb.com Sent: Saturday, August 10, 2002 1:08 PM Subject: [MOTANEY] My Taney County Family Groves/Rowland/Hensley I really don't know how to word this in genealogy terms so I am going to just write this out. my Grandfather was Frank Wilford Groves Born Taney County 3-10-1909 D1963 married Martha Augusta Bull born4-12-1912 D1986 Frank's parents were JOHN ILLER(SP) GROVES b9-30-1884 D9-25-1958 and LAURA ELLEN ROWLAND AKA ELLA (HER TOMBSTONE SAYS ELLA R. GROVES)B2-11-1883 D1-19-1962 They are both buried in Branson cemetery as are many of my other relatives. I am trying to find someone that knows about this cemetery because my uncle Raymond who died in infancy is buried there with no headstone I know the location her was buried because my grandmother showed my but would like to put a marker. John Iller's parents were Jacob Groves supposedly an Indian and also supposedly from TN and Eliza Cypress Church or Church cypress? she had been married before supposedly to a soldier and from VA they also had 3 daughters Laura, Susan Ellen, and Julia Laura Ellen ROWLAND parents were John ROWLAND from Taney County (Branson) and Mary Catherine (SP) Hensley they also had 3 sons and another daughter Bertie, John, Charles, and Faun Though I cannot find records on the Internet I know most of these people are buried in the Branson cemetery est. 1863. I have visited this cemetery many times and my great-grandparents home is still there. But I cannot find out who cares for the cemetery or if anyone knows anymore about it. if anyone has any information I would love to share with you anything I have. I also have relative from Brightwater and Garfield, AR Brays, Blansitts, Broams and Snyders from the other side of my family Milton Bray lived in MO somewhere till 1884 he and his wife had 14 children. I am babbling now so I will close. Thanks in advance for any help I may get, Justine ==== MOTANEY Mailing List ==== "A nation that forgets its past can function no better than an individual with amnesia."--David C. McCullough, "LA Times," 23 Apr 1978 ============================== To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237

Hi, Geri. Would a digital photo sent to you via email do? If so, I will be happy to do it for you and at no cost. Let me know. Adrienne ----- Original Message ----- From: gerie To: MOTANEY-L@rootsweb.com Sent: Saturday, August 10, 2002 11:42 AM Subject: [MOTANEY] Snapshot Looking for someone willing to take a snapshot of my great-grandmothers headstone located in Old Forsyth Cemetery, Forsyth, MO. Name Alwilda JAMES wife of Rev John M James. Will gladly reimburse you for your time and film. Geri ==== MOTANEY Mailing List ==== "A nation that forgets its past can function no better than an individual with amnesia."--David C. McCullough, "LA Times," 23 Apr 1978 ============================== To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237

Geri, I've been searching for someone who would take photos of two sets of g-g-grandparents' headstones in Bradleyville Cemetery for some time now. It would mean the world to me. I would also happily reimburse for time and film. If you find someone, would you let me know? And I'll do the same for you! Nancy, researching in Taney County: JACKSON/ROBERTSON/MATTHEWS ----- Original Message ----- From: gerie <gerie@tvec.net> To: <MOTANEY-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Saturday, August 10, 2002 11:42 AM Subject: [MOTANEY] Snapshot > Looking for someone willing to take a snapshot of my great-grandmothers headstone located in Old Forsyth Cemetery, Forsyth, MO. Name Alwilda JAMES wife of Rev John M James. Will gladly reimburse you for your time and film. > Geri > > > ==== MOTANEY Mailing List ==== > "A nation that forgets its past can function no better than an individual with amnesia."--David C. McCullough, "LA Times," 23 Apr 1978 > > ============================== > To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: > http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 > >

Seeking info and other descendants of Jackson/Robertson/Matthews of Taney County. My g-g-grandfather: Aaron V. MATTHEWS, b. 1830, IL--d. 1883, MO; buried Bradleyville Cemetery My g-g-grandmother Matthews probably died in IL before Aaron and children moved to MO; Aaron married in Taney County: Martha Jane WALKER, b. 1840, TN--d. 1893, MO; Martha first married R. HIGHT; second Aaron MATTHEWS; third R. WAGGONER. My g-grandmother, Susan MATTHEWS, b. 1858, IL--d. 1891, TX My g-g-grandmother: Eliza Jackson, b. 1820, AL--d. 1881,MO; buried Bradleyville Cemetery My g-g-grandfather????: Richard Robertson, b. 1807, NC--d. 1887, MO; buried Bradleyville Cemetery My g-grandfather: Samuel L. Jackson, b. 1847, MO--d. 1892, TX Still working on the mystery of Samuel's father. I have evidence from Green Co., MO court records that Richard Robertson may have been Samuel's father; there was a charge of adultery filed against Eliza and Richard there in the 1850's. Eliza and children lived next door to Richard in Green County and in Taney County. 1870 census shows Eliza and Samuel living with Richard and his wife, Nancy. Eliza and Richard are buried next to each other in Bradleyville Cemetery......with Richard's wife buried on the other side of Richard. (It seems pretty strange to me, too.....I just can't figure it out :-) But my grandfather maintained that Richard Robertson was his grandfather. Following are some census records showing children of Eliza Jackson, Richard Robertson and Aaron Matthews. Any info very much appreciated. Nancy Brister (Census records thanks to the kindness of Don Houk!) 1860 TANEY COUNTY CENSUS: JACKSON, Eliza 40 - AL Thomas 18 - MO Elizabeth 15 - MO Christopher 13 - MO Jefferson 11 - MO William 9 - MO Mary 7 - MO Samuel 3 - MO ROBERTSON Richard 52 - NC Nancy 49 - TN John 19 - AL Minerva 21 - MO George 13 - MO JACKSON, James 20 - AL (Eliza's son) Luisa 17 - MO 1880 TANEY COUNTY CENSUS: Beaver Twp Family #21: MATTHEWS, A. V. 50-IL-TN-KY Martha 38-MO-TN-TN Sarah 20-IL-IL-IL Lucinda 14-MO-IL-MO Abraham 11-MO-IL-MO Charles 8-MO-IL-MO Allie 5-MO-IL-MO Rosa 2-MO-IL-MO

Jean: Yes I do research the Boyd line, its my husbands side of the family. Nancy Help Fight Spam http://members.hostedscripts.com/antispam.html Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.268 / Virus Database: 140 - Release Date: 8/7/2001

I really don't know how to word this in genealogy terms so I am going to just write this out. my Grandfather was Frank Wilford Groves Born Taney County 3-10-1909 D1963 married Martha Augusta Bull born4-12-1912 D1986 Frank's parents were JOHN ILLER(SP) GROVES b9-30-1884 D9-25-1958 and LAURA ELLEN ROWLAND AKA ELLA (HER TOMBSTONE SAYS ELLA R. GROVES)B2-11-1883 D1-19-1962 They are both buried in Branson cemetery as are many of my other relatives. I am trying to find someone that knows about this cemetery because my uncle Raymond who died in infancy is buried there with no headstone I know the location her was buried because my grandmother showed my but would like to put a marker. John Iller's parents were Jacob Groves supposedly an Indian and also supposedly from TN and Eliza Cypress Church or Church cypress? she had been married before supposedly to a soldier and from VA they also had 3 daughters Laura, Susan Ellen, and Julia Laura Ellen ROWLAND parents were John ROWLAND from Taney County (Branson) and Mary Catherine (SP) Hensley they also had 3 sons and another daughter Bertie, John, Charles, and Faun Though I cannot find records on the Internet I know most of these people are buried in the Branson cemetery est. 1863. I have visited this cemetery many times and my great-grandparents home is still there. But I cannot find out who cares for the cemetery or if anyone knows anymore about it. if anyone has any information I would love to share with you anything I have. I also have relative from Brightwater and Garfield, AR Brays, Blansitts, Broams and Snyders from the other side of my family Milton Bray lived in MO somewhere till 1884 he and his wife had 14 children. I am babbling now so I will close. Thanks in advance for any help I may get, Justine

Looking for someone willing to take a snapshot of my great-grandmothers headstone located in Old Forsyth Cemetery, Forsyth, MO. Name Alwilda JAMES wife of Rev John M James. Will gladly reimburse you for your time and film. Geri

Nancy, are you also researching the BOYD line? Jean ----- Original Message ----- From: Nancy Boyd Sent: Friday, August 09, 2002 2:29 PM To: MOTANEY-L@rootsweb.com Subject: [MOTANEY] My Family Thomas Morris b.1786 GA Dora/Dollie/Dorothy Morris b.1787 GA Had the following children: I have been told that there was a sister Francis who married in Wayne Co. Ky. have not been able to document that yet. Elizabeth Morris b. Ga. m. Archibald Taber/Tabor Matilda Morris b. Tnn m. Isaac Taber/Tabor brother to Archibald John Morris m. Nancy? Possibly a sister Dollie who died young and is buried in Taney Co. Missouri. Thomas Morris b. Ill. 1825/26 m Sarah/Sally Brown ? Thomas and Sally Morris had the following children: John W. Morris born July 6, 1847 Taney Co. Mo. P. J.(according to census for Taney Co. 1850)age 1 month, died before 1860 Census. Amanda M. (Manda) b. 1853 Nancy J. born in 1857 most likely Ozark Co. Nancy would have been 13 in 1870 and is not found on the census with her mother, brother, or sister in Webster Co. Mo. so I am assuming she died young as well. Thomas Morris and family is found on the 1860 Ozark Co. Missouri census with his wife and three children. When the county lines were redrawn the younger Thomas Morris family was then in Ozark County in 1860. I do not know when or where Thomas Morris died, but I believe that his wife is found with the John W. Morris family in 1870 Webster Co. Missouri and she has the last name of Conner. The age of the Sarah Conner is 39 which closely coincides with the age of John Morris's mother. She was approximately 16 years old when John was born. The Nancy Morris who is found on the 1870 census in his household, I believe is his Aunt, wife of John Morris, his uncle. I have found no trace of Sarah Conner after the 1870 census. John Morris had a sister Amanda M. (Manda) who lived two doors away from him in Webster County in 1870 and she had married Joseph Cannefax, they had a child, Sarah, about 5 months of age.. Amanda died before 1887 when her daughter Sarah married Enoch Garrison. Sarah, according to Garrison Family history died along with an infant child. It is not known if she died in childbirth. John Morris and Martha Embry had the following children: Mary Jane Morris b. 1867 married William Deckard Sarah Morris b. 1869 married Joseph (Babe) Walker Rebecca Morris b. 1871 m. William Washington Marler William Franklin Morris. b. 1873 married Martha Malissa Spurlock (these are my Gr. Grandparents) According to my fathers bible there was a daughter named Alice Morris that was born unknown when or where, but apparently did not survive. Martha Embry Morris apparently died in Taney County (somewhere) John Morris married the second time to Caroline Honeycutt(e) to which nine children were born. The older Thomas Morris and his wife Dora and daughter Dollie are supposedly buried in the Rhodes Cemetery in Taney County. There are five unmarked graves the other two are supposed to belong to James and Celia Hall Tabor, the parents of Archibald and Isaac Tabor. That is my Morris Family Tree. Nancy M. Boyd Help Fight Spam http://members.hostedscripts.com/antispam.html Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.268 / Virus Database: 140 - Release Date: 8/7/2001 ==== MOTANEY Mailing List ==== "An invasion of armies can be resisted, but not an idea whose time has come."--Victor Hugo ============================== To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237Get more from the Web. FREE MSN Explorer download : http://explorer.msn.com

Does anyone know the location of Bluff MO WANDA

I would like to get some information on Dr. G.W. Gloyd, and his wife Nancy Watt Gloyd, or get in contact with some off the remaining family.Get more from the Web. FREE MSN Explorer download : http://explorer.msn.com

My Taney Co families: PULLEY, Daniel, his son, Linus and his sons, Irvin, Raymond and Gene. (Pulleys came from VA, TN, IL to MO) BRYANT, John A., dau Mary Catherine/Caroline (?) who md Daniel Pulley. (Bryants from VA, NC, OH, IN) PIERSON, Jonathan, dau Patta md John A. Bryant. (Pierson/Pearsons were Quakers from NC, IN) O'Neal - not direct but Daniel Pulley's mother, Sarah Baker, md (2) James O'Neal and his sister, Caroline md James' son William M. O'Neal KENYON, also KINYON. Charles H. Kenyon from Clinton Co MO. His father was Joseph N/M (?) Kinyon and his mother was Sarah (Sally) Edwards. Charles' dau, Mary (Bertie) md Linus F. Pulley and son Joseph Kenyon and his family lived in Branson. FELKINS, Wiley Ward from Carroll Co MO. His dau, Hattie md Charles Kenyon. Son John Felkins and family also lived Taney Co before moving to Butler, Bates Co, MO I would especially like to correspond with anyone with knowledge of the Kenyon and Edwards families. Will gladly share any of my info on any of the above families. Betty J. Pulley

Thomas Morris b.1786 GA Dora/Dollie/Dorothy Morris b.1787 GA Had the following children: I have been told that there was a sister Francis who married in Wayne Co. Ky. have not been able to document that yet. Elizabeth Morris b. Ga. m. Archibald Taber/Tabor Matilda Morris b. Tnn m. Isaac Taber/Tabor brother to Archibald John Morris m. Nancy? Possibly a sister Dollie who died young and is buried in Taney Co. Missouri. Thomas Morris b. Ill. 1825/26 m Sarah/Sally Brown ? Thomas and Sally Morris had the following children: John W. Morris born July 6, 1847 Taney Co. Mo. P. J.(according to census for Taney Co. 1850)age 1 month, died before 1860 Census. Amanda M. (Manda) b. 1853 Nancy J. born in 1857 most likely Ozark Co. Nancy would have been 13 in 1870 and is not found on the census with her mother, brother, or sister in Webster Co. Mo. so I am assuming she died young as well. Thomas Morris and family is found on the 1860 Ozark Co. Missouri census with his wife and three children. When the county lines were redrawn the younger Thomas Morris family was then in Ozark County in 1860. I do not know when or where Thomas Morris died, but I believe that his wife is found with the John W. Morris family in 1870 Webster Co. Missouri and she has the last name of Conner. The age of the Sarah Conner is 39 which closely coincides with the age of John Morris's mother. She was approximately 16 years old when John was born. The Nancy Morris who is found on the 1870 census in his household, I believe is his Aunt, wife of John Morris, his uncle. I have found no trace of Sarah Conner after the 1870 census. John Morris had a sister Amanda M. (Manda) who lived two doors away from him in Webster County in 1870 and she had married Joseph Cannefax, they had a child, Sarah, about 5 months of age.. Amanda died before 1887 when her daughter Sarah married Enoch Garrison. Sarah, according to Garrison Family history died along with an infant child. It is not known if she died in childbirth. John Morris and Martha Embry had the following children: Mary Jane Morris b. 1867 married William Deckard Sarah Morris b. 1869 married Joseph (Babe) Walker Rebecca Morris b. 1871 m. William Washington Marler William Franklin Morris. b. 1873 married Martha Malissa Spurlock (these are my Gr. Grandparents) According to my fathers bible there was a daughter named Alice Morris that was born unknown when or where, but apparently did not survive. Martha Embry Morris apparently died in Taney County (somewhere) John Morris married the second time to Caroline Honeycutt(e) to which nine children were born. The older Thomas Morris and his wife Dora and daughter Dollie are supposedly buried in the Rhodes Cemetery in Taney County. There are five unmarked graves the other two are supposed to belong to James and Celia Hall Tabor, the parents of Archibald and Isaac Tabor. That is my Morris Family Tree. Nancy M. Boyd Help Fight Spam http://members.hostedscripts.com/antispam.html Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.268 / Virus Database: 140 - Release Date: 8/7/2001

You sure hit the nail on the head, Jerry, in saying that Vonda's Epistle to the Corinthians captured so many of the same feelings that you have. This convinces me that what Vonda keeps saying about everyone with Taney Co. roots being related either directly or indirectly just has to be true. It seems that the more people that I correspond with others having Taney Co. connections, the more convinced I am of how absolutely true this is, even though I have to apologetically say that I've never stepped foot in any part of the Ozarks and have had to rely on books, family histories, but mostly on the Wonderful Folks who are subscribers to this List and the WRV List. With the entire Pacific Ocean separating me from all of you, I've never personally met any of the subscribers to the Lists but have come to love dozens of them, you and Vonda included, just as if we had grown up together in the same family. Therefore, the feelings which Vonda so kindly shared with all the rest of us sure hit the ole heart strings as a reminder of just how important the exchanges between all of us on these Lists really are, and I for one want to thank each and everyone of you with whom I've had the pleasure of having had exchanges during the past few years and hope we'll be able to continue helping one another for many years to come. Don Houk in Tokyo, Japan -----Original Message----- From: Gerald Johnston [mailto:gerald.h.johnston@worldnet.att.net] Sent: Friday, August 09, 2002 2:02 AM To: MOTANEY-L@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [MOTANEY] historical activism -- Kudos Again to Vonda Wow! I hope this is going to be published for others to read too!!! You captured so many of the same feelings I have ................... I just have not known how to say it!!! Jerry Johnston ----- Original Message ----- From: "Vonda Sheets" <vonda@peoplepc.com> To: <MOTANEY-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Thursday, August 08, 2002 7:25 AM Subject: [MOTANEY] historical activism It’s not enough to do my own direct ancestry for genealogical purposes. For one thing, there aren’t answers for some things that happened in my or my husband’s family that other families in the area may have answers to. For another, when I researched the descendants of every sibling of our grandparents, great-grandparents, and so on, they married into nearly every other family around, and we’re related to almost everyone (some of our collateral lines even intermarried). So that means I have to have a little bit of knowledge of these other families as well. Were they Scottish? Cherokee? English? German? Is the family story true or false, and who else witnessed the event? How come someone I went to school with turned out to be the daughter of a niece of my great-grandmother, and no one told me? How did Greg spend part of his childhood in a rural town in Wyandotte Co. KS, only two blocks from my great-grandmother, and none of us ever met until I moved back to Taney County 30 years later? I needed to learn about all these families, and in the process of discovery, found out that it was tradition in a great number of Taney County families to move to some part of the Kansas City area to make a living, and move back when it was time to come home. Someone has to care about the connections to other people. It’s not enough to know that my grandmother’s land has been in the family for 50 years. I want to know about all the places that she and Grandpa, their parents, their grandparents, and those even further back—where they lived, did they own or rent it, why this hill for a house and not that one? Who lived around them? How many rooms did the house have? Why was this house so different? Why does one church has a cemetery by it and another doesn’t? Why this school has 2 front doors? So I need to visit every cabin, house, business building, school, church, any structure that causes me travel back in time, to find out more about the places our people lived. Someone has to care about the buildings our people lived in, worked in, were educated in, and worshipped in. It’s not enough to discover that Mom’s grandparents owned a cannery. What did they can? Why did the business fail, or who bought it from them? Who worked for them? Did they live nearby? Why did they live in such an isolated area, or is it more isolated now than it was? What businesses were related or benefited? Now I need to find out about the history of the canning industry in the upper White River Valley, who owned them, who ran stores and bought the canned goods, the railroad industry that shipped them, the logging industry that built the railroads, the farms the timber came from…and the people who lived during those times. Someone has to care about the way people made a living. It’s not enough to reclaim, after years of neglect and near-destruction, a cemetery in which my great-great-great grandmother is buried. The cemetery had been hidden under downed trees and impossible brush for 40 years, surrounded by a subdivision for nearly 20 years, and not one person in that subdivision cared enough to clean it up or bring it to anyone’s attention. It took a person who had only lived in the area 2 months to call a meeting to shame us into doing something about it; now my dad spends much of the first Saturday of each month maintaining it. I can claim some ignorance, for I didn’t know of the cemetery’s existence until a year or so before it was cleaned up. Now, because I might find a burial of the family’s that I don’t know about, I have to do something about every cemetery in the county—how many are cared for or not, how many are active, what can be done to give each one a little bit of maintenance, get them mapped out and acknowledged, put signs on them. I want to research every unmarked grave, to find who might be buried there. Others have been on similar quests, and we are joining together, because it is a shame that these sacred places are not cared for. Someone has to care about the cemeteries. It’s not enough to talk to one older person who knew “so-and-so”, a relative of mine or Greg’s, and can tell me stories about the relative. I want to hear that older person’s story, for in it, I might find clues about someone else’s life, the culture, why “we didn’t speak of being Cherokee”, what they did for fun, who could play the best fiddle, how they courted. I have to talk to every older person I can, because there might be that one little clue, one little missing piece of the puzzle that makes a part of our family history suddenly make sense. I want to video them, recording the interviews for other people, in case someone else hears something which suddenly makes sense for them—for they, too, may come up with an answer to a question of their own, and in doing so, answer yet another question for me. Some of these older people will never write their memories down, so their history must be oral by necessity. Someone has to care about the oral history of our people. It’s not enough to collect old pictures, documents, family Bibles, military records, newspaper articles, and other paper records of just our family. One local author has published several books on her various family lines, and in one, there’s a picture of my great-grandmother’s sister, who died young, at her husband’s family reunion over 70 years ago. My grandmother’s family home burned in the early 1920s, sending family records up in smoke—but miraculously, collateral lines have pictures and other papers that we wouldn’t have access to, otherwise. A friend sent me a copy of her ancestor’s Civil War military records and pension application, in the hopes it will help me find a clue on my own family. I have pictures of people in my husband’s family, but only know a few of the faces well enough to identify them; luckily, his grandmother either wrote names down, or else his grandfather knows these people from either having met them or being told who they were. I know of empty buildings by the dozens, in which some paperwork of some kind might answer a question from a descendant now many miles away; and these papers lie in neglect, with mold and dust decomposing a past that is important. Someone has to care about the paper trail lying hidden in the attics, basements, and closets of abandoned homes, forgotten by descendants. It’s not enough to know that a handful of people have a collection of their own, but hoard it to themselves without allowing access to others who have a right to see it. We know these collections are being cared for now, but we don’t know if there are provisions in a will for these collections. We know some collections are extremely valuable in terms of history, but the owner wants unreasonable compensation in the name of greed. We know that some people simply want to control what they have, because it denies pleasure and satisfaction to everyone else. We also know that some descendants couldn’t care less or are ashamed of the clutter of a collector’s home, and have destroyed many items as soon as they could, items that would be emotionally or sentimentally valuable to someone else. Someone has to care about the hidden collections of artifacts, to ensure their survival, in spite of the negative emotions that might surround them. It’s not enough to drive down a single-lane dirt road to a homestead, cemetery, or other hidden treasure, and walk in the midst of echoes. These echoes are the voices, the sounds, the lives of those who have been gone for much longer than we’ve been alive. A handful of us, crowded into a four-wheel drive, spend time relishing the paths our people—related or not—traveled, marveling at the natural beauty surrounding us. We go into a trance, listening, feeling, knowing, and exploring, communicating in a manner that sits gently on our souls and eases the pressures of the mind. We try to share this feeling with others, writing and talking about this wonderful place tucked back on someone’s pasture or woods, but it’s not something we can speak lightly of. It is life in a way we will never know, for to intrude for more than a short visit would cause it to disappear, and to lose it would hurt us more than we can imagine. Someone has to care about the emotions, the life, the culture that made our people come here and stay, even if you are the first generation to live here. It’s not enough to do your genealogy, be a member of a historical society, participate in or attend a pageant, visit a museum, read a book, or simply say, “I like history.” If you truly like history, you have to live it, breathe it, let it deep into your bones, so that you can understand who you are, why you are here, and the people who made it possible. You have to protect the land, the buildings, the places, the documents…you are the guardian, the researcher, the worker, the force that sweeps in and envelops these things with your care. You can’t say “I can’t find the time,” for it simply means you aren’t going to make the time. You can’t say, “I can’t get involved,” for without your involvement, the history’s going to disappear. You can’t think, “But I’m not from this place I’m living at now,” for if you help out with the area you are living in, maybe someone else will help out in the area you are from in your place. One hour per week spent cutting weeds around tombstones will help bring that cemetery out of the brush, will make someone stop and see what you’re doing and maybe help out; will bring you immeasurable satisfaction that you are doing something to preserve your history, which in turn will preserve your ancestors’ and your descendants’ history. Everyone has a desire to make some kind of mark on the world, to leave some trace of ourselves in the memory of our descendants, to make sure that we are not forgotten. By wiping out our own or someone else’s history, either through neglect or destruction, we are ensuring that our own lives won’t leave a lasting trail for someone else to follow. By our behavior now, it will appear to future generations that we didn’t care about our history, and they are likely to follow by our example, in our footsteps…whether for the good or the bad. If we do not want to simply disappear from our world, we’d better ensure that our people’s world sticks around as well…leave some kind of trail. Forgetting to do that is likely to ensure that we ourselves will be forgotten. Historical activism—actively protecting and ensuring our collective history lives on—has so many different aspects, anyone can be involved and yet not have to be everywhere at once. Everyone has some specialty which can contribute to preserving the past, and it needn't be either expensive or time-consuming. Everyone needs to ensure the mark they make on the world is a permanent, respectful one, by protecting the marks our ancestors made on the world—it is an immortality that no one can deny. Someone has to care about the connections to other people. Someone has to care about the buildings our people lived in, worked in, were educated in, and worshipped in. Someone has to care about the way people made a living. Someone has to care about the cemeteries. Someone has to care about the oral history of our people. Someone has to care about the paper trail lying hidden in the attics, basements, and closets of abandoned homes, forgotten by descendants. Someone has to care about the hidden collections of artifacts, to ensure their survival, in spite of the negative emotions that might surround them. Someone has to care about the emotions, the life, the culture that made our people come here and stay, even if you are the first generation to do so. Do something to preserve your history, which in turn will preserve your ancestors’ and your descendants’ history. ListMom for MO-AR-WRV http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~moarwrv/ http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~gregvonda/ http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/~vondak/ ==== MOTANEY Mailing List ==== "Determine the things that can and shall be done, and then we shall find the way."--Abraham Lincoln ============================== To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 ==== MOTANEY Mailing List ==== "A society that wants to build the future must know its past, its real past, as it was."--Anatoly Rybakov, NY Times, 31 Oct 1986 ============================== To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237

I am still searching for the burial sites for Richard and Elizabeth (SARVER) WORKMAN. On April 13, 1870 Richard purchased the Gayler Farm (where Branson now is) from Cassandra Parrish GAYLER after the death of her husband, Calvin Smith GAYLER. Also, Richard and Elizabeth's son, Ephram F. "Eiff" WORKMAN married Elizabeth Jane GAYLER, dau. of Calvin and Cassandra. Richard died in 1874 and Elizabeth in 1889, but we have found nothing to suggest where they might be buried. Since the Gaylers had donated a section of land for a cemetery after the death of one of their sons, we assume that at least Richard Workman is buried there with no headstone, but have not been able to find anything to verify this. Any help with this would be greatly appreciated. Judy

I really appreciate what Vonda wrote and she presented many things I had never even given thought to...I think I will frame her article. What Vonda is speaking of reminds me of Family Trees. We can look at a tree and see the scope and extent of it above the ground. I have heard that a tree has twice as many roots and also in volume underground as we see the tree above ground. We have all become familiar with the family tree. My thoughts are our roots. Think of the trees in a wooded area, and how they must tangle with the other trees around them. That is the way I see Geneaology. Family Tree's doesn't give justice to Geneaology.....What about Our Tangled Roots? Bill Blevins From: "Houk Don (KLJ.CBG)" <houk.don@jp.kline.com> Date: 2002/08/09 Fri AM 12:28:02 CDT To: MOTANEY-L@rootsweb.com Subject: RE: [MOTANEY] historical activism -- Kudos Again to Vonda You sure hit the nail on the head, Jerry, in saying that Vonda's Epistle to the Corinthians captured so many of the same feelings that you have. This convinces me that what Vonda keeps saying about everyone with Taney Co. roots being related either directly or indirectly just has to be true. It seems that the more people that I correspond with others having Taney Co. connections, the more convinced I am of how absolutely true this is, even though I have to apologetically say that I've never stepped foot in any part of the Ozarks and have had to rely on books, family histories, but mostly on the Wonderful Folks who are subscribers to this List and the WRV List. With the entire Pacific Ocean separating me from all of you, I've never personally met any of the subscribers to the Lists but have come to love dozens of them, you and Vonda included, just as if we had grown up together in the same family. Therefore, the feelings which Vonda so kindly shared with all the rest of us sure hit the ole heart strings as a reminder of just how important the exchanges between all of us on these Lists really are, and I for one want to thank each and everyone of you with whom I've had the pleasure of having had exchanges during the past few years and hope we'll be able to continue helping one another for many years to come. Don Houk in Tokyo, Japan -----Original Message----- From: Gerald Johnston [mailto:gerald.h.johnston@worldnet.att.net] Sent: Friday, August 09, 2002 2:02 AM To: MOTANEY-L@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [MOTANEY] historical activism -- Kudos Again to Vonda Wow! I hope this is going to be published for others to read too!!! You captured so many of the same feelings I have ................... I just have not known how to say it!!! Jerry Johnston ----- Original Message ----- From: "Vonda Sheets" <vonda@peoplepc.com> To: <MOTANEY-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Thursday, August 08, 2002 7:25 AM Subject: [MOTANEY] historical activism It?s not enough to do my own direct ancestry for genealogical purposes. For one thing, there aren?t answers for some things that happened in my or my husband?s family that other families in the area may have answers to. For another, when I researched the descendants of every sibling of our grandparents, great-grandparents, and so on, they married into nearly every other family around, and we?re related to almost everyone (some of our collateral lines even intermarried). So that means I have to have a little bit of knowledge of these other families as well. Were they Scottish? Cherokee? English? German? Is the family story true or false, and who else witnessed the event? How come someone I went to school with turned out to be the daughter of a niece of my great-grandmother, and no one told me? How did Greg spend part of his childhood in a rural town in Wyandotte Co. KS, only two blocks from my great-grandmother, and none of us ever met until I moved back to Taney County 30 years later? I needed to learn about all these families, and in the process of discovery, found out that it was tradition in a great number of Taney County families to move to some part of the Kansas City area to make a living, and move back when it was time to come home. Someone has to care about the connections to other people. It?s not enough to know that my grandmother?s land has been in the family for 50 years. I want to know about all the places that she and Grandpa, their parents, their grandparents, and those even further back?where they lived, did they own or rent it, why this hill for a house and not that one? Who lived around them? How many rooms did the house have? Why was this house so different? Why does one church has a cemetery by it and another doesn?t? Why this school has 2 front doors? So I need to visit every cabin, house, business building, school, church, any structure that causes me travel back in time, to find out more about the places our people lived. Someone has to care about the buildings our people lived in, worked in, were educated in, and worshipped in. It?s not enough to discover that Mom?s grandparents owned a cannery. What did they can? Why did the business fail, or who bought it from them? Who worked for them? Did they live nearby? Why did they live in such an isolated area, or is it more isolated now than it was? What businesses were related or benefited? Now I need to find out about the history of the canning industry in the upper White River Valley, who owned them, who ran stores and bought the canned goods, the railroad industry that shipped them, the logging industry that built the railroads, the farms the timber came from?and the people who lived during those times. Someone has to care about the way people made a living. It?s not enough to reclaim, after years of neglect and near-destruction, a cemetery in which my great-great-great grandmother is buried. The cemetery had been hidden under downed trees and impossible brush for 40 years, surrounded by a subdivision for nearly 20 years, and not one person in that subdivision cared enough to clean it up or bring it to anyone?s attention. It took a person who had only lived in the area 2 months to call a meeting to shame us into doing something about it; now my dad spends much of the first Saturday of each month maintaining it. I can claim some ignorance, for I didn?t know of the cemetery?s existence until a year or so before it was cleaned up. Now, because I might find a burial of the family?s that I don?t know about, I have to do something about every cemetery in the county?how many are cared for or not, how many are active, what can be done to give each one a little bit of maintenance, get them mapped out and acknowledged, put signs on them. I want to research every unmarked grave, to find who might be buried there. Others have been on similar quests, and we are joining together, because it is a shame that these sacred places are not cared for. Someone has to care about the cemeteries. It?s not enough to talk to one older person who knew ?so-and-so?, a relative of mine or Greg?s, and can tell me stories about the relative. I want to hear that older person?s story, for in it, I might find clues about someone else?s life, the culture, why ?we didn?t speak of being Cherokee?, what they did for fun, who could play the best fiddle, how they courted. I have to talk to every older person I can, because there might be that one little clue, one little missing piece of the puzzle that makes a part of our family history suddenly make sense. I want to video them, recording the interviews for other people, in case someone else hears something which suddenly makes sense for them?for they, too, may come up with an answer to a question of their own, and in doing so, answer yet another question for me. Some of these older people will never write their memories down, so their history must be oral by necessity. Someone has to care about the oral history of our people. It?s not enough to collect old pictures, documents, family Bibles, military records, newspaper articles, and other paper records of just our family. One local author has published several books on her various family lines, and in one, there?s a picture of my great-grandmother?s sister, who died young, at her husband?s family reunion over 70 years ago. My grandmother?s family home burned in the early 1920s, sending family records up in smoke?but miraculously, collateral lines have pictures and other papers that we wouldn?t have access to, otherwise. A friend sent me a copy of her ancestor?s Civil War military records and pension application, in the hopes it will help me find a clue on my own family. I have pictures of people in my husband?s family, but only know a few of the faces well enough to identify them; luckily, his grandmother either wrote names down, or else his grandfather knows these people from either having met them or being told who they were. I know of empty buildings by the dozens, in which some paperwork of some kind might answer a question from a descendant now many miles away; and these papers lie in neglect, with mold and dust decomposing a past that is important. Someone has to care about the paper trail lying hidden in the attics, basements, and closets of abandoned homes, forgotten by descendants. It?s not enough to know that a handful of people have a collection of their own, but hoard it to themselves without allowing access to others who have a right to see it. We know these collections are being cared for now, but we don?t know if there are provisions in a will for these collections. We know some collections are extremely valuable in terms of history, but the owner wants unreasonable compensation in the name of greed. We know that some people simply want to control what they have, because it denies pleasure and satisfaction to everyone else. We also know that some descendants couldn?t care less or are ashamed of the clutter of a collector?s home, and have destroyed many items as soon as they could, items that would be emotionally or sentimentally valuable to someone else. Someone has to care about the hidden collections of artifacts, to ensure their survival, in spite of the negative emotions that might surround them. It?s not enough to drive down a single-lane dirt road to a homestead, cemetery, or other hidden treasure, and walk in the midst of echoes. These echoes are the voices, the sounds, the lives of those who have been gone for much longer than we?ve been alive. A handful of us, crowded into a four-wheel drive, spend time relishing the paths our people?related or not?traveled, marveling at the natural beauty surrounding us. We go into a trance, listening, feeling, knowing, and exploring, communicating in a manner that sits gently on our souls and eases the pressures of the mind. We try to share this feeling with others, writing and talking about this wonderful place tucked back on someone?s pasture or woods, but it?s not something we can speak lightly of. It is life in a way we will never know, for to intrude for more than a short visit would cause it to disappear, and to lose it would hurt us more than we can imagine. Someone has to care about the emotions, the life, the culture that made our people come here and stay, even if you are the first generation to live here. It?s not enough to do your genealogy, be a member of a historical society, participate in or attend a pageant, visit a museum, read a book, or simply say, ?I like history.? If you truly like history, you have to live it, breathe it, let it deep into your bones, so that you can understand who you are, why you are here, and the people who made it possible. You have to protect the land, the buildings, the places, the documents?you are the guardian, the researcher, the worker, the force that sweeps in and envelops these things with your care. You can?t say ?I can?t find the time,? for it simply means you aren?t going to make the time. You can?t say, ?I can?t get involved,? for without your involvement, the history?s going to disappear. You can?t think, ?But I?m not from this place I?m living at now,? for if you help out with the area you are living in, maybe someone else will help out in the area you are from in your place. One hour per week spent cutting weeds around tombstones will help bring that cemetery out of the brush, will make someone stop and see what you?re doing and maybe help out; will bring you immeasurable satisfaction that you are doing something to preserve your history, which in turn will preserve your ancestors? and your descendants? history. Everyone has a desire to make some kind of mark on the world, to leave some trace of ourselves in the memory of our descendants, to make sure that we are not forgotten. By wiping out our own or someone else?s history, either through neglect or destruction, we are ensuring that our own lives won?t leave a lasting trail for someone else to follow. By our behavior now, it will appear to future generations that we didn?t care about our history, and they are likely to follow by our example, in our footsteps?whether for the good or the bad. If we do not want to simply disappear from our world, we?d better ensure that our people?s world sticks around as well?leave some kind of trail. Forgetting to do that is likely to ensure that we ourselves will be forgotten. Historical activism?actively protecting and ensuring our collective history lives on?has so many different aspects, anyone can be involved and yet not have to be everywhere at once. Everyone has some specialty which can contribute to preserving the past, and it needn't be either expensive or time-consuming. Everyone needs to ensure the mark they make on the world is a permanent, respectful one, by protecting the marks our ancestors made on the world?it is an immortality that no one can deny. Someone has to care about the connections to other people. Someone has to care about the buildings our people lived in, worked in, were educated in, and worshipped in. Someone has to care about the way people made a living. Someone has to care about the cemeteries. Someone has to care about the oral history of our people. Someone has to care about the paper trail lying hidden in the attics, basements, and closets of abandoned homes, forgotten by descendants. Someone has to care about the hidden collections of artifacts, to ensure their survival, in spite of the negative emotions that might surround them. Someone has to care about the emotions, the life, the culture that made our people come here and stay, even if you are the first generation to do so. Do something to preserve your history, which in turn will preserve your ancestors? and your descendants? history. ListMom for MO-AR-WRV http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~moarwrv/ http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~gregvonda/ http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/~vondak/ ==== MOTANEY Mailing List ==== "Determine the things that can and shall be done, and then we shall find the way."--Abraham Lincoln ============================== To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 ==== MOTANEY Mailing List ==== "A society that wants to build the future must know its past, its real past, as it was."--Anatoly Rybakov, NY Times, 31 Oct 1986 ============================== To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 ==== MOTANEY Mailing List ==== "All change represents loss of some kind; that's why some of us resist it so strongly."--Jacob M. Braude ============================== To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 "You have no true understanding as to who you are, until you know the roots from which you came."

Vonda, Thanks so much and of course, I will give your name as the author. I will try to catch all the comments and let you know. Now I am so anxious, don't know if I can wait another week! In reading through the copy you just sent, I was reminded of a quote attributed to Ben Franklin that I got from somewhere and thought you might enjoy it -- "If you would not be forgotten As soon as you're dead and rotten Either write something worth reading Or do things worth the writing" Pleasant dreams, have a good night - Betty

Vonda, These are for records in that short era that the state started requesting the births/deaths be documented. Many of the genealogy groups have transcribed the films & they have been available, but I either didn't know or forgot they were available on-line. Unfortunately, I don't find Stone County on either list - as even available somewhere, so either they didn't do it,or the records didn't survive. Darn anyhow. Sure need some from there. Thanks for sharing your treasures! Joy Vonda Sheets wrote: >Hey, >Got this from Margie Campbell, who picked it up from another MO list. Check >it out! > >http://www.sos.state.mo.us/archives/resources/birthdeath/ > >Seems to be a database of birth and death records prior to 1910, when MO >passed laws concerning our birth and death certificates. > >Guess where I'm gonna be.... > >V >ListMom for MO-AR-WRV >http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~moarwrv/ >http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~gregvonda/ >http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/~vondak/ > > >==== MOTANEY Mailing List ==== >"A society that wants to build the future must know its past, its real past, as it was."--Anatoly Rybakov, NY Times, 31 Oct 1986 > >============================== >To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: >http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 > >