This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: batchelorw Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/surnames.roper/1889/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Philip L. Roper will eventually marry Mary Oden, daughter of Peter Oden. The following is information I have collected on Peter Oden and his family. Philip L. Roper may have met Mary Oden in McMinn, TN in about 1838. He in fact married a Mary Oden. Also, there may be some historical connection between the Phillip L. Roper branch of the Roper family and the Oden family in Edgefield, SC. The Oden family was in Edgefield, SC in the 1790's and 1800. Thomas B. Oden and Alexander Oden are shown on the same page as Samuel Roper in the 1800 Edgefield, SC census. This Samuel Roper appears in the 1800 Edgefield, SC Census as follows: ROPER, Samuel 161 00100-00100-00 Samuel Roper and his wife would be 16-26 years of age, with no children. A Thomas B. Oden and Alexander Oden are shown on the same page as Samuel Roper as follows: ODEN, Alexander 161 22101-02200-01 ODEN, Thomas B. 161 01110-01010-00 Alexander Oden is residing 2 properties away from Samuel Roper and, on the other side of Samuel Roper, Thomas B. Oden is residing 3 properties away from the property of Samuel Roper. Alexander Oden would be age 45-up. He was married to Letitia Bussey, the daughter of George Bussey who owned land in Edgefield. Thomas B (Bussey) Oden is considered his son. In the Census record, he would be 26-45. Oden family researchers believe that Alexander Oden was the brother of Hezekiah Oden, who was residing in Edgefield, SC in 1790, along with his sons Peter Oden, Andrew Oden, and Thomas H. Oden. That these were Hezekiah Oden's sons is demonstrated by the following will: Edgefield District, SC: Wills, 1787-1836 "p. 133. 3 Aug 1797. I, Hezekiah ODEN, Senr, being sick of body but of sound & perfect memory. I will that all my just debts be paid out of my estate. I give to my loving wife Susaner (sic) ODEN the plantation where I now live also three cows & calves, two sows, one negro fellow named Ben, one feather bed & one horse during my wife Lolraner (?) ODEN life or her widowhood & after her decease I appoint & give all the above property with the increase to my son John ODEN. I give to my son Andrew ODEN 50 acres of land beginning on the S line then E to a Rocky Branch, up the branch to the original line. I give to my son Peter ODEN the land whereon he now lives, beginning on rocky Branch & running an E course to the old spring branch. I give to my son Thomas ODEN a tract of land beginning below the mill at a hollow & running S course up the hollow to the line joining Samuel DAGNEYS (DABNEYS?), thence along a line to the corner also two cows & calves. I give to my son Hezekiah ODEN a tract of land beginning at Peter ODENS line along S course by the upper Water Gap to the original line also one mare & colt, two cows & calves the mill & tract of land belonging with the pond & running up the Spring Branch to Peter ODEN line. I give to my dtr. Darcas ODEN two cows & calves, one horse, one woman saddle, one feather bed and the wagon and the black smith tools with the plantation tools for the family use. I appoint Alexander ODEN the sole executor. Wit: Archibald MC KAY & Nath. (X) EVANS. Signed: Hezekiah ODEN. Proved in open court by the oath of Archibald & Nath. EVANS Oct. term 1797 & ordered to be recorded. R TUTT." Peter Oden can next be found in the 1800 Greenville, SC census, living near Thomas Oden. Peter Oden is next found in an 1830 Census in McMinn, TN. Peter Oden is shown as age 60-69, which is consistent with the Peter Oden born in 1768, Blount, SC. On the preceding page of the Census, you will find a Jacob Lawson and a Richard Lawson, both ages 40-50, living next door to each other. Within Peter Oden household, the following females will be found: one female 40-49, one female 20-29, one female 15-19, one female 5-9, and one female under 5. A "Vincent" Oden is shown in the 1830 Census residing in Rhea, TN, which is next to the county of McMinn, TN. (The 1820 Rhea, TN census no longer exists.) " 1830 Rhea,TN Census MICRO FILM PAGE 384 Oden, Vincent 11011-0001001 Vincent" is shown age 20-30, consistent with a birthdate of 1792. Vinson Oden is shown by secondary sources to be the son of Peter Oden. He is shown with a female age 30-40. There is a marriage registry to be found on the Internet that shows Vinson Oden and Levicy Lawson marrying on January 1, 1822 in Rhea, TN. (Notice the name Lawson again.) This would seem to preclude Vincent from being the father of Mary Ann Oden, who states she was 31 (born abt. 1819) in the 1850 Blount, AL census. However, there is one other female in the house, other than his presumed wife of 30-40, who is shown as age 15-20. Philip Roper first appears in the 1840 Marshall, AL Census. He is 20-30 years of age, and so is his wife. They have 2 females under 5, and one female 5-10. They are residing two houses from Israel Oden, age 20-30. A William Golden, age 30-40, is living next door to Israel Oden. Israel Oden, who married Lucinda Golden, is supposedly the son of Peter Oden. Peter Oden, b. abt 1768, SC, appears in the 1840 Blount, AL Census, shown as age 70-80, residing 3 house from Thomas H. Oden, age 70-80, probable brother of Peter Oden (there is a will of Hezekiah Oden, b. 1735, SC, d. Aug. 3, 1797, Edgefield, SC, in which he names his sons as Peter, Thomas, and John.) So both Peter and Thomas are in the area where Philip L. Roper and his wife are shown residing in 1850. Philip Roper, age 32, next appears in the 1850 Blount, AL Census. The Census record states he was born in TN, but the 1860 Panola, TX Census states he was born in KY. His wife Anna, age 31, is shown being born in TN. Neither Philip nor Anna can read or write. Vinson Oden, age 50, also appears in the 1850 Blount, AL Census, with his wife Levicy Lawson, age 44. Philip Roper next appears in the 1860 Panola, TX census as age 48. This time he states he was born in Kentucky. Philip Roper next appears in the 1870 Hunt, TX census as age 55. He states he was born in Tennessee. Philp Roper then appears in the 1880 Hopkins, TX census as age 65. He states he was born in Kentucky. He further states that his parents were born in North Carolina. Philip L. Roper, b. abt 1815, KY, married Mary Oden according to secondary sources. There is a primary source supporting this information as shown in the next three paragraphs. Philip L. Roper and his wife had a child named Charles J. Roper. Secondary sources have assumed he was named after Charles J. Roper, b. abt. 1818, Cumberland, KY, son of David Roper of Cumberland, KY. Charles J. Roper, son of Philip, in turn had a son named Andy Lawson Roper. There is a Mt. Vernon, Franklin County, Texas Death Certificate for Charles J. Roper which states that he died on December 27, 1937 at the age of 89 years, 6 months. The cause of death is a "Severed jugular Vein Self inflicted". I recall a posting from a secondary source that said Charles J. Roper killed himself because he was terminally ill. The information in the death certificate of Charles J. Roper was provided by Andy Roper, who would be his son Andy Lawson Roper. He lists the father of Charles J. Roper as Philip Roper, born in Tennessee. He lists the maiden name of Charles J. Roper's mother as Mary Oden, born in Alabama. The stated birth places of both Philip and Mary are probably wrong. Charles J. Roper is shown buried on December 27, 1937 at Friendship cemetery, Mt. Vernon, TX. When Philip L Roper moved from Blount, AL and next appeared in Panola, TX in the 1850 census, we find an Oden family member who apparently made the move with him. This has to be more than coincidence since this move from Blount, AL to Panola, TX involves crossing both the states of Mississippi and Louisiana. On page #1 of the 1850 Panola, TX census, we find Israel Owden, age 43, born abt 1817, TN, with his wife Martha and their children. This is probably Israel Oden, who was residing two houses from Philip L. Roper in Blount, AL, and who is the alleged son of Peter Oden, probable father of Vinson Oden. Israel Oden is buried in the Mt. Zion Methodist Church Cemetery in Panola, TX, along with his daughter Lucinda M. Golden, who married Richard C. Golden. Mary Ann Oden was about the same age as Israel and may have become close friends. Also, a Jeff Owden, age 21, born AL, is shown on page #3 of the 1850 Panola, TX census. This is probably Jefferson Lewis Oden, b. April 20, 1838, AL, son of Israel Oden On the same census page #7 with Philip L Roper we find a Nathan Rogers, age 30, born in GA, married to a Malinda, age 26, born in AL. Malinda is Elizabeth Malinda Roper, daughter of Philip L. Roper. Philip L. Roper and Mary Oden named their children as follows: Nancy Roper, b. 1836 Charles J. Roper, b. June 1852, AL (same name as Philip's brother) This Charles J. Roper names a son Andy Lawson Roper Thomas Roper b. abt 1859, TX Albert Roper b.abt 1857 , TX Ann E. Roper, b. abt 1853, TX Martha D. Roper, b. abt 1848, AL Henry Roper, b. abt 1844, AL Henry, who died abt. 1769, named a child Henry Lawson Roper, b. abt 1862, d. October 25, 1921, Hunt, Marion, TX Jane Roper, b. abt 1841 Elizabeth Malinda Roper, b. abt 1844, Blount, AL Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. 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