Volume 4, Number 8 - Summer 1972
The Taber Family of Big Creek Taney County, Missouri
By William A. Yates
The following introduction is from Fireside Stories of the Early Days of the Ozarks, by S. C. Turnbo, a copy of which is in the Christian County Library at Ozark, Missouri.
"Big Creek is a fine stream. Its clear water makes a beautiful show as it splashes and dashes over the shoals. The hills and hollows present the usual fine landscape as seen in the Ozarks. Big Creek runs through part of Taney and Ozark Counties, Missouri, and enters White River in Marion County, Ark. The creek bottoms are fertile and compare favorably with the agricultural lands of other streams in South Central Missouri. The farmers are of the pushing, go ahead class. The hills bordering on each side of the stream are dotted here and there with small farms and dwellings. The first time I saw Big Creek it was sparsely settled. This was in 1852. I was only eight years old. A voting precinct in Big Creek township was established on the west bank of the creek, about one-half of a mile above where the Protem and Lutie road now crosses it. I well recollect being present at this precinct on election day in 1854. The electors took a lively interest in working for and voting for their candidates. Russel Tabor built the first mill on this stream; it was erected at what was afterwards known as the John Pelham place. John McDonald built a mill at the upper end of the Pelham Bottom. This was on the east
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side of the creek at the mouth of a little hollow. But the mill soon washed out, and old Uncle Jimmie Jones built another mill on the same spot in 1857. This mill stood against all the freshets until war times, when it was reduced to ashes by a war party in the spring of 1862. Charley Smith built a mill above the Daniel Quick ford and below where the line between Taney and Ozark Counties crosses the creek. All the mills mentioned were small affairs; two of them, Jones’ and Smith’s, had whiskey stills in connection, and the mill owner did not fail to sell plenty of whiskey. Big Creek began to settle very early, though it was many years before any land to amount to anything was put in cultivation. The old time hunters seemed to regard it unwise to labor hard on a farm when there existed such inducements to kill game.
"Lige McAdoo was the first settler at the mouth of the creek, but not the first man to make an improvement there. Two of the Duggins men are credited with that. In the early fifties, Flemming Clark and his wife, Peggie and their sons, Ben, Richard and Jesse, opened up a good farm there and accummulated a considerable amount of property. But soon after the war broke out the family was stripped of their worldly goods and the family moved to Nemaha County, Nebraska, where in after years they owned good farms. The Clarks were Methodists, and loved their denomination. Jess Bias came to Big Creek in the early thirties and lived some time in a tent and hunted and killed the fat bucks. The Tabors and McDonalds were the next settlers. Green Hampton, Bill Brown and the Morrises are supposed to be the next earliest. The original pioneers of Big Creek have nearly all departed this life. Part of them rest in unmarked graves, not a letter nor a figure is cut on the headstones to show the name or date of their deaths. On the west side of the creek on a hillside below the Pelham land and on the Taney County side, and near where the old Peter Keessee and Hugh Jones residence stood, where the latter made hats, are two graves which contain the mortal remains of old man John McDonald and his aged wife. In my boyhood days a trail led up the hill by these graves. I have often stopped at These graves and read the figures of the year, "1846,’’ which was cut on the headstones to show the year these old settlers died. On the east bank of the creek, on a fine spot of land high above overflow is an old settler’s graveyard- The cemetery is just above where the Protem and Lutie road crosses the creek. The first body entered here was the body of Dolly Morris, daughter of Tommy Morris and a sister of John Morris. More than eighty bodies of old timers and others rest here.
"Among the pioneer settlers of Big Creek who rest here are Tommy Morris and his wife, and John Morris, Green Hampton, Jimmie Tabor and Arch Tabor. The latter was a son of the first named and a brother of Jim, Isaac, John, and Esquire Tom Tabor. The old man, Henry Tabor, and Russell Tabor, were brothers. Henry Tabor first settled on Long Creek in Carroll County, Ark., in 1833, and Russell, his brother, came to Big Creek about the same year. Another old time graveyard is on the east side of the creek, on what was once known as the Berry Morris place. The cemetery is above where the Charley Smith mill place is.
"As Arch Tabor is the principal subject of this sketch, we will state that he came from Jackson County, Illinois, to Big Creek in 1835. Taney County contained plenty of fine bucks and big fat bears, and he killed all the wild meat he wanted. He said that it was the kind of country he had been looking for. When the war broke out Mr. Tabor took sides with the Union and remained true to the cause. He fought under Gen. Lyon at Wilson Creek and Gen. Curtis at Pea Ridge. Uncle Arch was a good citizen as well as soldier. He delighted to tell of the early days in Taney County. A few years before the war broke out he would visit our house where we lived on the farm opposite the Panther Bottom and relate thrilling stories of wild beasts on Big Creek in the pioneer days. We children were as interested in his narratives as our parents were and we always gave him good attention while he was telling them."
One of the first settlers of Big Creek, Taney County, Missouri, was James Taber, who was born in Virginia, and lived in Kentucky and Illinois before finally moving to the Ozarks as an early pioneer. He was born in 1780, and by the year 1800 was married and living in Kentucky, where his son, Archibald, was born. The southern and central part of Illinois was first settled by families in search of cheap land which stretched north and west from the hills of the Kentucky and Tennessee region to the plains north of the Ohio River. A good number of Tabers and their relatives had settled in Morgan, Macoupin, and Sangamon Counties in Illinois by 1830, the first coming there
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perhaps as early as 1816. James Taber lived in Morgan County in 1830, and his son, Archibald Taber, lived with his family across the line in Macoupin County. The Tabers were obviously not satisfied with Illinois, as they soon made the move south and west to find free land, plenty of game and the forested hills and clear streams of Southern Missouri and Northern Arkansas. James Taber and his clan took up claims on Big Creek in the year 1835.
The exact location of the birth of James Taber is not known. There was a William Taber who bought land in Montgomery County, Virginia, in 1782. An Archibald Taber was married there in 1792 to Nancy Shell. This William Taber had a son, Robert Taber, who died in Carter County, Kentucky, in 1855. At least one branch of the family came from North Carolina, where Tabers were established by 1790. Elijah Taber of Marion County, Arkansas was from Rutherford County, North Carolina.
Before dealing with the descendants of James Taber, what is known of his brothers and cousins will be mentioned. A William Taber, born 1770-80, was living in Macoupin County, Illinois, in 1830, and had voted in Morgan County in 1824. He became a resident of Dry Creek in Carroll County, Arkansas, in the early 1830’s. Jesse W. Taber, born 21, Dec., 1822, in Illinois, died Oct., 1905, in Carroll County, Arkansas, and married Martha Jane Matthis.
Elijah Taber, mentioned above, was an early settler of Marion County, Arkansas, arriving before 1840. He was born in 1790 in North Carolina, and married Sarah Green. Two known children are:
1. John N. Taber, born 11 Dec., 1809, in Rutherford Co., N.C., died, 26 June, 1902, in Marion Co., Ark. He married Elizabeth Magness, daughter of James Magness. Their children include, Nimrod, Anderson, Seaborn, Mary Jane, Winney, Narcissa, Elijah, David and Minerva Taber.
2. Smith Taber, born 1815, in Kentucky. His first three children were Sarah C., Mary, and Araminta Taber.
Henry Taber, who was supposed to have been a brother of our James Taber, came to Arkansas from the state of Illinois in 1833, and settled on Long Creek in Carroll County. A few years later he left Long Creek and settled on Big Creek in Taney County, Missouri. Some of the descendants of Henry Taber are found in S. C. Turn bo’s manuscripts and in the census records. Henry Taber married Rutha Pershears and lived in Ozark County, Missouri. The children of Henry Taber are:
1. Nancy Taber, born 1820, married Hiram Bias, son of Jesse Bias. Their children include, John, Jefferson, Matilda, Micajah, Gideon, and James Bias.
2. John M. Taber, born 1824 in Illinois, married Susan Janes.— He was a preacher; and lived on Lower; Turkey Creek in Ozark Co., Mo. His children were: Tabitha, Bennett who married Elizabeth Friend, William J., Manerva, Ruth Eda, Sarah, Hiram, Phoebe, John F., and Robert Taber. The grandchildren of John M. Taber include Joseph Taber, John Cleveland, Arilander Taber, William Driggins, and Edie Joe Taber (a girl).
3. Susan Taber married Simon Herrean.
4. Phoebe Taber married Paton Keesee, son of the old settler, Paton Keesee.
5. Ede Taber married Mort Herrean.
6. Menerva Taber married Cage Duggins.
7. Henry Taber, born 1839, was killed on Pond Fork in War times.
8. Robert Taber, born 1841, married Tabitha______ Children include: Robert John H. Taber and Rose Ann Taber.
9. James Taber, born 1843, married Mary______ Children include: Robert, Sarah, Eliza Jane, Samuel, George, and Manerva Taber.
10. Eliza Taber, born 1847, married Pinkey Herrean. Russell Taber, who was supposed to be a brother of our James Taber, built the first mill on Big Creek. A Russell Taber was living in Sevier County, Arkansas in 1840.
Our James Taber, born in 1780 in Virginia, had five known sons and a daughter:
1. Archibald Taber, born 1800 in Kentucky, married Elizabeth Norris, daughter of Thomas Morris. He had many descendants and will be dealt with later.
2. Thomas Taber, born 1802 in Kentucky, married Mary ____ He lived in Sangamon Co., Ill., in 1830, but moved to Taney Co., Mo., before 1845. His children include: James, who married Christiana ______. Elias Taber, who was a Universalist Preacher; Elizabeth
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Taber, and Pleasant Taber. John Taber, who married Hila, had James F. Taber and Stephen P. Taber.
3. Isaac Taber, born 1816 in Illinois, married (1st) Matilda Morris, daughter of Thomas Morris, 12 Mar., 1833, in Macoupin Co., Ill. They settledon Big Creek before 1840, and had children: Robert Taber, a preacher; John Taber, who died in Texas; Dollie Taber, who married Tom Well; Elizabeth Taber, who married (1st) Tilman Ledbetter and (2nd) John Friend; and finally Artemissa Taber, who married Isaac Herrean.
Isaac Taber married (2nd) Catherine ___ about 1851, and had children: George W. Taber, born in Tennessee; Nancy E. Taber, Louisa F. Taber, William M. Taber, and Jacob O. M. Taber.
4. John Taber, born 1820 in Morgan County, Illinois, married Susannah Youngbolld 16 Aug., 1839, in Sangamon Co., Ill. A year later they lived in Taney Co., Mo., on Big Creek and had children: Patience Taber, who married Green Hampton; Mary Taber; Lucinda Taber; Thomas Taber; Matilda Taber; Celia Taber, who married a Rogers; Martha J. Taber, and Narcissa Taber.
5. James Taber, born 1823 in Illinois, married Elizabeth Friend, daughter of James Friend. Their children were: Celia Taber, who married Mich Risley; John Taber; Dilwood Taber; Jane Taber; James Taber; Isaac Taber; Russel Taber, who married Matilda____. Rebecca Taber, and Jemima Taber. Ru’ssel Taber, who married Matilda, had Peoria, Charles, and Monroe Taber.
6. Mary Taber married John Herrean by 1841.
Archibald Taber, son of James Taber, was born 1800 in Kentucky. He died after 1870 in Taney County, Missouri, and his grave can be found on Big Creek. He married Elizabeth Morris, daughter of Thomas Morris. He is listed in the 1830 census of Macoupin County, Illinois, then he moved to Taney County, Missouri, about 1839, where he remained settling on Big Creek. Archibald Taber served in the Civil War, though at an advanced age, and his gravemarker in Rhoades Cemetery bears the inscription: "Co. F, Phelps Co., Inf." His children are:
1. Hartwell Taber, born 1826 in Illinois, married Susan Smith.
2. Isaac Taber, born 1 Jan., 1830 (?) in Macoupin County, Illinois. He died 22 Nov., 1917, in Taney County, Missouri, and is buried in Rhoades Cemetery. He married Rachel M. Hampton.
3. Celia Taber, born 1826, married William Clark.
4. Melinda Taber, born 1832 in Illinois.
5. Jeremiah Taber, born 30 Sept., 1835, in Sangamon County, Illinois. In Civil War. Married Patsey______ and (2nd) Martha_______ c 1874.
6. Carell Taber (male), born 1837 in Illinois.
7. Matilda Taber, born 1840 in Taney County, Missouri.
8. John A. Taber, born 10 Feb., 1843, in Taney County, Missouri. Died 12 Feb., 1921, and buried in Rhoades Cemetery. Never married.
9. Dorothea Taber, born 1845, in Taney County, Missouri.
10. Elizabeth Taber, born 1849 in Taney County, Missouri.
11. Nancy Taber, born 1852, in Taney County, Missouri, married Benjamin Tenneyson.
12. Mary Taber, born 1854, in Taney County, Missouri.
Hartwell Taber, son of Archibald Taber, was born 1826 and died about 1854, in Taney County, Missouri. In 1850 he lived in Big Creek Township. His wife, Susan Smith, was a daughter of Charles Smith. She married (2nd) William Brown. Children of Hartwell Taber and Susan Smith:
1. Aaron Taber, born 16 Nov., 1847, in Taney County, Missouri. Died 23 Mar., 1918, and is buried by his wife in Walnut Grove Cemetery, Douglas County, Missouri. He married c1866 Rebecca Josephine Hill.
2. Melinda Taber, born 1849, in Taney Cou nty, Missouri, married Thomas George Washington Hampton.
3. Sarah Taber, born 1853, in Taney County, Missouri, married John Brown.
Arron Taber, son of Hartwell Taber, owned land in Section 29, Spring Creek Township, Douglas County, Missouri. He was an overseer of the road during the 1890’s. Children of Aaron Taber and Rebecca Hill:
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1. Nancy Cordelia Jane Taber, born 17 June, 1867, in Dallas County, Missouri. She died 16 Aug., 1928. Married Jeremiah Kester 14 Feb., 1901.
2. William Allen Taber, born 18 Dec., 1861, in Dallas County, Missouri. Died 30 Aug., 1913, in Douglas County, Missouri. He married Ida May Sherrodd 14 Feb., 1897.
3. Charles Heyward Taber, born 24 July, 1873, in Taney County, Missouri; died 16 Oct., 1966 in Douglas County, Missouri. He married Maude E. Osborne 4 Sept., 1903.
4. Susannah M. Taber, born 1 May, 1876, in Taney County, Missouri; died 1933. She married Jesse Nance 23 Apr., 1899.
5. George Washington Taber, born 4 Feb., 1880, in Douglas County, Missouri; died 26 Oct., 1938, in Salem, Oregon. He married Lora May Cantrell 10 Jan., 1909.
6. Dora Eleanor Taber, born 1 Jan., 1884, in Douglas County, Missouri. She married John Chesterfield Hunt 14 Feb., 1906. She was living near Garrison, Missouri, and gave much Taber information in an interview on 19 July, 1965.
7. Etcyl C. Taber, born 16 Aug., 1886, in Douglas County, Missouri, and died 25 Feb., 1887.
William Allen Taber, son of Aaron Taber, lived in Douglas County, Missoori, and is buried in the Sherrodd Cemetery, near Brown Branch, Taney County, Missouri. The children of William A. Taber and Ida May Sherrodd are:
1. Eulah Taber, born 5 Feb., 1898, in Douglas County, Missouri; married Jessee Wright Siler 8 July, 1917, and lives between Ava and Brown Branch, Missouri.
2. Argie Agness Taber, born 28 April, 1900, in Taney County, Missouri; died 30 Aug., 1970, in Pico Rivera, California. She married Charles Lesley Yates 25 Dec., 1917. These are the grandparents of the writer.
3. Freeman Estle Taber, born 10 April, 1903, in Douglas County, Missouri; married Gladys Catherine Parcels 28 June, 1927. They live between Ava and Brown Branch, Missouri.
4. Boise Virgil Taber, born 2 April, 1905, in Douglas County, Missouri; married (1st) Dessie Fry 9 Dec., 1933, and divorced; (2nd) Vera Dalton and divorced; and (3rd) Gladys Anderson, who runs the Post Office at Keltner, Missouri.
5. William Dole Taber, born 15 Nov., 1908, in Douglas County, Missouri; married (1st) Fay Hodges 16 April, 1932, and (2nd) Ruby M. Hatman 22 June, 1940.
6. Zella Jewell Taber, born 3 Feb., 1911, in Douglas County, Missouri; died 27 April, 1930. Did not marry.
7. Clifford Taber, born 3 Dec., 1912, in Douglas County, Missouri; died 5 Dec., 1912.
Isaac Taber, second son of Archibald Taber, remained on Big Creek and has left many descendants on that tributary of White River in Taney and Ozark Counties, Missouri. The children of Isaac Taber and Rachael Hampton are:
1. Elizabeth Taber, born 1859, Ozark County, Missouri, and died before 1870.
2. Malinda P. Taber, born 1860 in Ozark County, Missouri; married a Bias.
3. Isaac Taber, born 1862 in Ozark County, Missouri.
4. Rachel Taber, born 1864 in Ozark County, Missouri.
5. Fielden Taber, born 1866 in Ozark County, Missouri; married Margaret Blankenship 3 April, 1892. Their children were: Flossie Jewel Taber, who married James Stehle; Martha Taber, who married B. H. Hobbes and Erna Johnson.
6. George Washington Taber, born 1869 in Ozark County, Missouri.
7. Archibald Taber, born 1872 in Ozark County, Missouri.
8. James Taber, born 1877 in Ozark County, Missouri; married Nors Crites 15 Mar., 1899. Their children were: Dorthy Hughes; Agness Cole; Billy Taber and Ethel Smith.
9. Pady Taber, married Daisy. Mrs Daisy Taber still lives on Big Creek.
Jeremiah Taber, third son of Archibald Taber and Elizabeth Morris, was in the Civil War, but afterward moved his family to McAllister, Oklahoma. The present whereabouts of his descendants is not known.
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Martha was listed as his wife in the 1880 census. Known children of Jeremiah Taber are:
1. John Taber, born 1860 in Missouri.
2. Segal Taber, born 1864 in Missouri.
3. William Taber, born 1867 in Missouri.
4. George Taber, boen 1869 in Missouri.
5. Archibald Taber, born 1875 in Missouri.
6. Benjamin F. Taber, born 1877 in Missouri.
Nance Taber, another child of Archibald Taber and Elizabeth Morris, has left descendants around Chadwick and Sparta, Missouri. Nancy Taber married Benjamin Tenneyson, and one of their children was:
1. Melinda Tenneyson, married Henry Gilbert. Their children were: Fronie Gilbert, who married Lester Robinson of Sparta, Missouri; Joe Gilbert, Oldfield, Missouri; Fay Gilbert, who marriel Earnest Hull; Mrs. GuI Wagley of Chadwick, Missouri; Paul Gilbert; and Russel Gilbert, Oldfield, Missouri.
The following two families which are related to the Taber family will be mentioned as they were early settlers of Big Creek and are of interest to the writer.
Thomas Morris was born 1786 in Georgia, and died 1858 in Taney County, Missouri, on Big Creek. In 1830 he lived near his son-in-law, Archibald Taber, in Macoupin County, Illinois. His children include:
1. Elizabeth Morris, born 1810 in Georgia, married Archibald Taber.
2. Matilda Morris, married Isaac Taber 12 Mar., 1833, in Macoupin County, Illinois.
3. John Morris.
Charles Smith had a mill on Big Creek just over the line in Ozark County, Missouri. In about 1857 he sold the mill and started to California. He and his traveling companions were caught in a flood and many of the party drowned, but he escaped. His known children are:
1. Charles Smith, Jr.
2. Susan Smith, married (1st) Hartwell Taber, and (2nd) William Brown.
3. Sarah Smith, married Wes Baker.
The information in this history of the Taber family was obtained from members of the family and from research in census, marriage, pension, and other records. Many of the years given as a birthdate are calculated from the age given in a census record and may be a little off.
William A. Yates
Sparta, Missoori 65753
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