Volume 3, Number 8 - Summer 1969
Our Friend Family
by Dean Wallace
Our Friend line began in America with James Friend born in Scotland in 1711. When young he came to America with two of his brothers. I can identify only one brother, Charles Friend. He settled in the New Madrid District of Missouri in 1796 in what is now Scott County, Missouri. Charles and a son, Jonas, received land grants from Spain. The United States later bought this area as a part of the Louisiana Purchase.
The Friends came first to Virginia, exact date not known. They gradually moved west ward, often among the first settlers.
Charles' sons were Alexander, John, Jonas, and Augustine, all popular names in our family. This makes tracing lineage difficult. For example, our James had sons of like names, such as Alexander, John, Augustine, Jessie, Gabriel, Andrew, James, and William. Ofter I find two men of about same name, about the same age in the same place.
To avoid confusion I will refer to our James as James One in the times I mention him in the following pages.
James One was married in Virginia and many of his children were born there before he moved to near what is now Baltimore, Maryland. He served as an orderly in the 5th Regiment of Maryland during the War of the Revolution, 1777 to 1780. After the war he moved to Ohio. The children who were married remained in Maryland for some years before coming westward. James One did not remain in Ohio for long, because he was in Scott County, Missouri in 1805. After a few years he moved to Arkansas where he died in 1821 at the age of 110 years. It is possible that he had some daughters, too, but I have been unable to trace any. He became the father of his youngest son, William, at the age of 78.
Gabriel, Jesse, and James, sons of James One, are found in 1829 in Marion County, Arkansas with other relations. I assume they remained there when the others came to Missouri.
Augustine, resided in Arkansas 1818 on the White River "five miles below the shoals", and it is possible that James One resided there at that time. A few years later Augustine lived in Christian County, Missouri, near his brother, William. It was Taney County at that time.
Andrew was one of the older sons of James One and born about 1765. He married a Nancy Harris and seemed to rove with his father and is found in the 1840 census with the family. His age was under 80 at that time. He died in Taney County in 1850. This Andrew, son of James One, was the father of our James who was the father of our Elijah Friend.
Another son of Andrew was an Alexander Friend who was born in 1795 and the 1850 Census lists his family as Elender (wife) born in 1815 in Virginia, and sons, Elijah F., age 11, Adison, age 14, Charles, age 9, all born in Missouri. The ages of the children indicate our Friends left Arkansas after 1829. I find no record of Alexander, son of James One in Arkansas so assume he remained in Scott County or moved elsewhere.
John, son of James One, I find no other record of, so he may have died young and never married.
William born 1784 in Ohio, served in the War of 1812, died at Linden, Mo., 1855. He helped plot and found Linden, first called Kenton. When William settled there his nearest white neighbor was 50 miles. There were many Indians in the area including a settlement of 500 Kickapoos with 100 wigwams at what is now Springfield. William is reported to have settled there about 1819 and about 1835 Augustine settled near him. William lived on a 300-acre farm located on both sides of the Finley River and was engaged in a number of skirmishes with the Indians, once being captured, but escaped unharmed. He married Elizabeth Grimes of Ohio who died in 1847. Their children were:
Issac, who died young; Hannah, died unmarried; James married and reared several children, d. 1858; Andrew who to manhood; Elsie, m. Joseph Murray, reared a large family; Catherine, m. John Martin, 1833, reared a large family; Reason, born 1821, in 1860 census had family of Elizabeth (wife) age 30, Isaac, age 9, and Elias, age 4. Wife and children all born in Missouri; William Jr., m. Julia Harrison 1847, reared three children, d. 1868, served as Sherrif of Christian County; Armetta, m. Robert Stubbs 1840; Hiram m., but had no children. He visited William and Edna Friend many years ago when they lived
[3]
at Theodosia; Elizabeth m. Garrett Harrison 1847. He was
a brother to Julia; Elias G., b.
1833, m. Charlotte Tyndall. In 1853 he went with a party in search of Pikes
Peak. They were unable to find it and returned home. In 1857 he went to California
to dig gold, struck a rich lode and became wealthy. He came back to Missouri
by ship to New York and then by land to home. He made 3 trips to California
between 1857 and 1861. He served in 72nd Regiment of Co. H, Missouri Volunteers
for Union forces in Civil War. He afterwards lived at Sparta.
Later Data on descendants of William Friend who settled in Linden, Mo., taken from Green County records: Matilda Friend m. Adam Entsler, 1840; John Friend m. Sarah Friend 1833; Ida Jane Friend, widow of William Friend, b. near Pansy, Mo., 1866, d. 1946. Surviors were Orion, Lester, Mrs. Ola Kissee, and Grace Walton.
Alonzo Friend, b. 1833, m. Florence Upshaw, had: Pearl, deceased, Grant Walter, m. Fern Wilson; Clarence m. Ruby Waltrip; Ralph Alonzo, Jr. James Friend, son of Andrew, grandson of James one, and father of our Elijah.
James b. Maryland, 1793, m. Mary Jane Millwood or Millward, in Scott County Missouri. They moved to Arkansas with the rest of the clan and later to Ozark County, Missouri. James was a member of the Missionary Baptist Church, but in later years changed to a General Baptist. It is written that he was a devout Christian.
He first settled in Ozark County at what was the old site of Theodosia. After a few years there he moved a few miles west to what was then known as Lutie (The old site of Theodosia was inundated by Bull Shoals Lake and the name of Lutie was changed to Theodosia). James d. there in 1883. Mary Jane d. 1867, both are buried in the Lutie Cemetery. This cemetery is located on what was the farm of James, later donated by James in 1875 as a burial plot for the community. Many of the Friend relatives were relocated there from other cemeteries when Bull Shoals dam was built.
Mary Jane's parents were natives of Maryland and her father was reported to have served in the Revolution, but I can find no record, likely because their name was really Millward instead of Millwood. Mary Jane was born in Tennessee and her parents died in Scott County, Mo.
The children of James and Jane were:
Charlie who died as a boy; Sallie m. David Jones; Elizabeth m. James Tabor; they lived in Arkansas and Taney County. Elizabet d. in Taney County 1860's. James later remarried, d. 1895; Louie or Louise (f) m. Alva Graham, d. in Ozark County; Susan d. early age; Rusha (known as Rish) was never married, she died in a fire at Harrison, Ark., in 1880's. She had a daughter, Anna, m. Jerry Turner and lived north of the Tom Mahan farm north of Theodosia and west of Shiloh school house. Rish served as mid-wife at birth of her brother, Thomas' children: Elias, b. 1837 m. Elizabeth b. 1837. One dau. Polly Ann, b. 1859; John b. 1830 in Arkansas m No. 1 Polly Brown who died shortly thereafter. John served in 46 Reg. in the Civil War for the Union. In 1888 John m. Rebecca Tabor, daughter of Jimmie Tabor of Big Creek near Ocie, Mo. at the home John, by L.D. Hanskins, County Judge. Rebecca was born in Needmore, Ark. She had been married before her marriage to John and was the mother of James and Margaret Ledbetter. Margaret later was the No. 1 wife of John's nephew, Jesse Friend, son of Elijah. John d. 1894 and Rebecca died before. They left two sons, Harrison b. 1889 and Elijah, "Lige" 1893. They were made wards of the court with Benton M. Risley, an uncle, as their guardian. They received $14.00 a month until they reached age of 16 from the Federal Government under the survivor act of deceased soldiers.
Harrison and "Lige" both raised large families and I was unable to get much data on either of these.
"Liege" had one daughter, Veda, m. Herbert Ingram. They lived at Isabella, Mo; Vernie, who married No. 1 Alfred Herd had several children. Divorced, she married No. 2 _________; Terry, and they live in Kansas City, Kan.; Tesley m. Lola Long. Billie d. in auto accident while a young man. Three other daughters of "Lige" married Chism men and one of these was Everett Chism. All of the Chism men were brothers. Lige lives in Ozark County.
Harrison m. Maude Muncy or Cutbirth the first time and she d. young after giving birth to several children. These are: Efton who married Juanita Lawson his step-sister and daughter of Harrison's wife No. 2. Efton lives at Gainesville, Mo. They have some children: Verdie, her 1st marriage was short-
[4]
lived. He died of a broken neck when he fell from a tree. I do not know the name of her children. She later m. Chide Trent, a widower of Thornfield, Mo. and son of George Trent. Chide died and Verdie lives at Thornfield, Mo.; Elma, m. Olis Lawson of Thornfield and lives in Sapulpa, Okla. They are parents of at least two sons, Olis is a brother to Ivy, wife No. 2 of Harrison; Erma m. Loyd Cooper of Hammond, Mo., the son of Jack and Mae Shaull Cooper. They live at Hammond on a farm.
This volume: Next Article | Table of Contents | Other Issues
Other Volumes | Keyword Search | White River Valley Quarterly Home | Local History Home
Copyright © White River Valley Historical Quarterly
