Treasure Chest Thursday - In the Words of Rev. Joseph Smedley (my 4x great grandfather)

I wrote a few weeks back about the lovely man who contacted me regarding letters and a sermon he stumbled upon that are in the hand of my 4x maternal great-grandfather, Rev. Joseph Smedley. Let me give you a small background, Rev. Joseph was born in the United Kingdom (1790), he went to school there, went to a seminary (of sorts), became a minister, met and married his wife Mary Ann Ratcliff (1820), they soon started their family. He came to America in 1830 on the Ship the Arab via Philadelphia. His wife Mary Ann and 6 of the children came to America a few months later in 1830 on Brig Agnora via New York. They maintained a life and church family in Pennsylvania up until 1834 when he was acknowledged and commissioned not only as a teacher by the US Government (for the Native Americans being moved to Oklahoma), but also as a missionary for the Methodist faith. Rev. Joseph and Mary Ann went on to have two more children, she passed and Joseph was left to raise his children, teach, preach and live among the Native American peoples, specifically the Choctaw in what is now Le Flore County, Oklahoma and a 50 mile circuit of stops he made on horseback.

So, back to those letters I would like to share a letter and its translation. This is TRULY a family Treasure!!! P.S. There are VERY historically famous people mentioned herein.

TRANSLATION

To The Hon Choctaw Council:

I beg respectfully to present this appeal to your Hon. Body for the following Reason. The Treaty of 1864, says That all Missionaries to the Choctaws who have been such five consecutive years, shall be allowed a gr. sec. of land as as a home for themselves and families. The following facts will shew that I have been such a Missionary from the year 1844 till the commencement of the War.

"To all those it may concern. I hereby certify that the Bearer, the Rev. Joseph Smedley, this sixteenth day of Sept. 1844, was duly appointed Missionary to the red people, particularly the Choctaws West of the State of Arkansas, by the Board of Managers of the American Indian Mission Association in Louisville in the State of Kentucky. Isaac Mc Coy, Cor. Sec"

I continued my services to your people till Nov 27, 1855, and then was reappointed by the Rev. Joseph Walker, together with seven Choctaws, as Missionaries to their own people, as follows, Joseph Smedley 600 dols a year _ Peter Folsom as Interpreter 400 _ Lewis Cass 100 dols _ Shoonuby 100 dols _  Simon Hancock 100 dols _ Ishiatuby 100 dols _ Artumley 100 dols _ Atrumely's Brother 100 dols.
Apl 27, 1855, Mission Rooms, Marion, Ala. Joseph Walker Cor Sec.

The above Missionary services were independent of my employment as a Teacher in pay of the U. S. Government. I located a piece of land without interfering with any ones improvement; and all I ask of your Hon. Body is to allow me, in any way your wisdom may deem fit, to occupy the improvement I have made, till the Country becomes sectionized.

With sentiments of the highest esteem,
yours faithfully,
Joseph Smedley

P.S. I have four surviving children namely, John Ratcliff Smedley, Benjamin Bucknall Smedley, Samuel Henry Smedley, and Narcissa T Goddard_ all with families except to Samuel H.



As a side note of family history here, Benjamin was allowed to live on the land but it was eventually taken away from him by the Choctaw Nation and given to someone of Blood to the Nation.


Next week I will post and translate his sermon on the Lord's Supper, it's beautifully written.

Please note these letters are nearly 160 years old.

Happy hunting,

~ Alisha

Wacky World of Headstone Styles

As you wander among headstones there are varying types, styles, colors, fonts, shapes, sizes, and on and on and on. One thing specifically to this area, is the lack of even basic information. Now that could be for many reasons, one may have been money, then the lettering was hand chiseled, one may have been people didn't see the importance of having so much information. Now, some of the more recent headstones seem to be placing more of an emphasis of leaving information behind for others, but those 1800-mid 1900 stones it just wasn't seen as often in this area.

Now let's look at the ones from England, FULL of information not only about that person, but the person's family. How incredible is that? When the first settlers came to this country from Europe and their burials commenced, they carried on with this tradition of including these wealth's of information. Somewhere along the way as they moved west, those traditions seemed to die out. Was it because of money or the lack there of, was it because they didn't have those with the skills they were used to, as seen below, back in Europe? If you look closely, now remember this was in the 1800s, there were no lasers to complete these pieces of art. Look at the precise lettering, the scroll work, and not to mention those stones were hand carved into those shapes!

We definitely haven't found anything like this in Oklahoma, at least in the part that I am in, but Andrea's cemeteries in the United Kingdom are filled with them. One day I would LOVE to go visit them there and also I would love visit the Northeast portion of the US and Virginia where the settles came and started their lives and found their resting places here. I'd love to photograph those headstones and cemeteries.

We hope you enjoy the photos, Andrea's are from St. Andrew's Church, Netherton, Dudley, United Kingdom.

Happy Hunting,
~Alisha

Travel Tuesday - Hi from The Sanatorium Postcard

My recent run in with Mr. Robert from Texas, the man I previously wrote about that not only came upon but sent me original letters and a sermon from my 4 x great grandfather, he also sent these to me. I love looking at old things, old pictures, imagining what it must have been like to live in that time, those days and conditions. I treasure these new found goodies from Robert! Thank you again for your kindness and going way above and beyond!

From Alma Smedley at the State Sanatorium to Mr J H Smedley in Mansfield Arkansas.
Stamp dated Feb. 10, 1937.


  

             This is the postal side of the card.

This is the image on the opposite side of the card (it took me a minute to figure out what was going on in the image).

The bottom says "Keeping flies off the Mellon, State Sanatorium, Arkansas" 

The following images are the buildings on the Sanatorium grounds. These are the flip cards inside the actual post card itself.

Nurses Home

                    Administrative Building

                    George B Brown Building

                       Meriweather Hall

                       John Stewart Building

                         Office Building

Bird's eye view of State Sanatorium, Arkansas

Arkansas State Tuberculosis Sanatorium The Arkansas State Tuberculosis Sanatorium was established in 1909 about three miles south of Booneville (Logan County). Once fully established, the sanatorium was the relocation center for all white Arkansans with tuberculosis. By the time the facility was closed in 1973, it treated over 70,000 patients, and in time, its main hospital, the Nyberg Building, became known worldwide for its tuberculosis treatment. With the passage of Act 378 of the General Assembly, a board of trustees was created to oversee the search for land to build a sanatorium. This was a very vital start to create a facility that would, in fact, quarantine a highly pathogenic disease. Tuberculosis, which caused scarring of the lungs and led to many deaths, was spread by the fluids of the respiratory tracts of infected persons; the bacteria that caused it could become airborne when those fluids dried. Before the sanatorium, the mortality rate of the disease was eighty percent. The sanatorium helped to reduce that rate to ten percent. The search for land began in March 1909, and the site south of Booneville was selected by October. The first patient was admitted in August 1910; by year’s end, the population at the center had reached sixty-four. In 1924, the Belle Pointe Masonic Lodge in Fort Smith (Sebastian County) constructed the Mason’s Building for children, and in 1927, a school was added for the young patients. In 1938, the legislature passed the Nichols-Nyberg Act, which funded the construction of a new hospital building on the grounds. The act was promoted by Phillips County Representative Leo E. Nyberg, who had tuberculosis and lived at the sanatorium, and by Logan County Representative Lee Nichols. The hospital building, probably the most notable on the grounds, is 528 feet long and five stories tall with a full basement and housed 511 patients. The building also housed doctors’ offices, X-ray facilities, and the employee cafeteria and kitchen, and while it was not common knowledge, the sanatorium morgue was housed there also. The building was named for Nyberg, although he passed away before it was completed in 1941. The facility became known worldwide for tuberculosis treatment as it was one of the most modern and successful facilities of the day. Today, half of the first floor is used for offices, and the rest of the building is closed. Besides the Nyberg Building, the facility had many structures, including dormitories, staff entertainment buildings, a chapel, a laundry, water treatment plant, and even a fire department. Today, most of the structures are used, and in fact, the fire department still operates within the grounds, and until recently, the Benedictine monks of Subiaco Abbey and Academy (Logan County) operated the chapel. The complex was self-sustaining, housing nearly 300 staff members at the height of its use, and the total population of the center at the time was greater than that of Booneville in the valley below. In the 1950s, new drugs to treat tuberculosis had resulted in a decline in the center’s patient population. It was decided by the sanatorium administration to operate it as a children’s colony as well; this continued until the facility closed in 1973. In 1971, the General Assembly dissolved the sanatorium as an independent agency and created the Department of Health to oversee it. At the time, the health department was also left in charge of the sanatorium at Alexander (Saline County), which was the relocation center for all non-white people with tuberculosis. On February 26, 1973, the last seven patients were discharged, and on March 13, the legislature approved Act 320, authorizing the facility’s closure and the transfer of control from the Department of Health to the Board of Mental Retardation. On June 30, 1973, the Arkansas State Tuberculosis Sanatorium officially closed, and the main gates were left unlocked for the first time in more than sixty years. Today, the facility operates as the Booneville Human Development Center and is classified as a historic site. While most people who were condemned to live at the center considered it the equivalent of a death sentence, in actuality, the outdoor air on the top of the mountain benefited patients. Treatment—consisting of fresh air, bed rest, and drug therapy—usually lasted from ten months to two years, although some people did stay longer.   PAGE INFORMATION

Thank you for stopping by again!

Happy Hunting,
~Alisha

Withering Away ~ St. Andrews Church Cemetery Netherton United Kingdom

There are times when traversing cemeteries that you feel somehow inspired, somehow in awe and then.... there are sometimes you feel complete and utter sadness at the state of things.

As I have mentioned before my business partner slash best friend, Ward, lives in England, Netherton to be exact. These pictures are ones she took this morning and I converted to a video to share with you all. You see, it isn't just in the US that there are problems with the state of cemeteries being left in a shambles. This seems to be an international issue, one that could so easily be remedied.

This particular cemetery is at St. Andrews Church in Netherton, it is a church cemetery. "Netherton's parish church, St Andrew's, consecrated in 1830, is situated on Netherton Hill at the highest point in Netherton. It was originally just a chapel-at-ease to St Thomas's of Dudley, only becoming Netherton's parish church in 1844. The church is surrounded by the gravestones of many of the former residents of the area. The churchyard also contains the mass unmarked graves of the victims of cholera that struck Dudley in 1831 and 1832." (Wikipedia)A As you can see there are MANY fallen marble tablet headstones, brick undercarriages that are falling and breaking under the headstones, weeds that are the size of trees, just all around disrepair. 


There is so much history in that cemetery, there are so many people there who I am sure thought they would be taken care of, watched over and remembered. It seems they have been forgotten, or life is too busy or maybe it is in the churches responsibility and it has failed its parishioners? All I know is that whether in America, or England, or Timbuktu, these precious souls need looking over, their graves cleaned up and at the least some semblance of respect shown to them and the lives they had here. How sad for these people, for their memories, for their passing. 


I have come across only a few, so far, that have been in disrepair, or completely forgotten. Generally what I come across are individual stones that have been let go, grown over or just all together fallen apart. This is the first time seeing another countries cemetery and the state in which it is being left. Ward says there are a few thousand people buried here, aside from the mass cholera grave no one seems to know the exact location of there on the grounds.

All I know is that the dead as well as the living should be treated with a much greater respect than this. I am absolutely starting to join the side of the "clean these precious places". As opposed to the
people who believe they should be left to age. To me, there is nothing gracious or respectful about letting these last resting places go to ruin.


Thank you to Ward for supplying us with these images.....

Happy Hunting,

~Alisha

Thankful Thursday ~ Gift from Beyond

I am not quite sure how to start this, which is a shock cause I never have trouble talking, I think because it is SUCH an UNBELIEVABLE event that I still have yet to wrap my head around it.

Three days ago I received this contact in my Ancestry.com messages, along with a return email. ( I didn't want to get my hopes up as I have had MANY disappointments in my recent past, so I just let the chips fall where they might, BOY did they FALL!)




I have some documents written by Joseph Smedley, one is a hand written copy of his appeal that was given to the Choctaw council. And others.
I would like to get these into the family hands. Will give longer story if you are interested


THIS is my reply


Hi,

I am a direct decedent of Joseph Smedley, he is my Great x 4 Grandfather and I would ADORE anything that has to do with our family! I am very interested in the documents but also how you came to get them. I love stories about how things get around to others, vintage shop sales and the likes. I appreciate you contacting me, please let me know what you have and how or what you would like to do with them.

Thank you,

Alisha

THIS is his reply

Alisha,

Ready for the long story, as I talk a great deal when speaking of genealogy and family history.  This week end at the annual reunion of graduates of Phillips High School. This is a school that used to exist 3 miles North of Borger, Texas in the Texas Panhandle.  After the regular meeting some of us from the class of 1960 had lunch and I went back to the motel where a classmate was staying. In the great room at the entrance of the motel were numerous tubs of stuff from an estate. The stuff was the leftovers of Ronnie H. and his wife. According to a friend, Ronnie and his wife had passed very young with only one child. The child took what she wanted and these tubs of stuff remained in Les Hargis’s possession for perhaps the last 20 years. So Les, who is married to a Phillips grad, got tired of keeping the stuff. Since the motel was full of people who knew Ronnie H., Les said “ everyone take what they want and the rest goes to an antique dealer( also a graduate) to sell for whatever.

As a collector, I thought I had died and gone to heaven( thinking what left this tub in the days before). One tub was completely full of photos, many school pictures, carte vistas, cabinet cards, one tin type. Most of the older photos and real photo postcards were not identified( as you know is the usual case). I spent over an hour looking at the tub.

MY next reply

I am in tears and have the shakes and am GIDDY all over! I can't tell you what this means to me, I am 39 a family historian and Genealogist, I blog about the things I do and the journey I am on. I ADORE this on so many levels I can't even explain! I just read it to my mother and she is tickled too. I can't tell you what this means to me, to us, to our family. I will protect them, get them scanned safely and see about getting the copies shared with our extended family and the research community. 

I sent him a reply and a link to this blog and his reply

Wow, Alisha.

After seeing your blog I realize that I have gotten the documents to the right place.

I received those PRECIOUS documents in the mail today, I am a BALL of emotions. I have in my hands something not only from 1840-1850, but it is my 4th grandfather, his writing, his words, his thoughts, his deeds, his actions. VERY seldom am I at a loss for words, but this just takes it, it takes my breath away.

Rev. Joseph Smedley, as you will see below in my quick tree to him, is my 4th great grandfather. He was also the first Smedley to come to the states from England. He was a teacher, and a missionary to the Choctaw people as they came off the Trail of Tears. He lived among them, became part of their families, and raised his 7 children with them. I am beyond excited to have such a person in my family, but equally as excited that he accomplished all the things that he did, that he passed on his love for being a missionary to his children and their spouses and children, another blog post. He was a pioneer to this area, to the Choctaw Nation and its people. I can see a Rev. Joseph Smedley blog post in my near future!

In the coming days I will be transcribing, posting, and sharing these documents with you all here on the blog and my family across the country. I have had family documents 'kept' from me and I just don't believe in it. They are precious gifts to be shared, not horded away from those who will treasure and share them.
                                                Rev. Joseph Smedley

Joseph B. Smedley Rev. (1792 - 1877)

is your 4th great grandfather

John Ratcliff Smedley (1824 - 1902)

Son of Joseph B.

William Leslie Smedley (1862 - 1946)

Son of John Ratcliff

Walter Lee Smedley (1882 - 1967)

Son of William Leslie

John B. Smedley (1905 - 1992)

Son of Walter Lee

Carol Yvonne Smedley

Daughter of John B.

Alisha Dawn 

( ME)

I had the privilege of visiting and photographing his resting place, next to several of his children, not far from me.


THANK YOU TO ROBERT ROLAND OF AMARILLO TEXAS FOR PUTTING ME WITH MY GREAT X 4 GRANDFATHER~

Happy Hunting,
~Alisha

Sentimental Sunday - Sunday Lunch at Grandma's

As a kid Sundays meant getting up, excitedly, going to my maternal grandparents for Sunday lunch. It also meant me making the mashed potatoes and sweet tea (my appointed tasks as I got older), and licking the cake bowl, can't waste that yumminess!

Let me tell you that grandma, Elsie, not only was she older, she was in her 80s when I was a young child, in my 10-12 years of age, she was an AMAAAAAAAAZING cook, baker and canning queen! Besides on Sundays, I LOVED hanging out with my grandparents. Grandpa and I spent lots of time in his garden, he carried a pocket knife in his pocket and I remember snacking on turnips, cucumbers, tomatoes off the vine! I also adored his stories, oh those precious stories. Us kids loved eating off their peach tree, the pear tree had some of the best pears in town! Grandma and I were in the kitchen, I watched with great intent as she baked and cooked. I get my love for cooking and baking from her, this I know!

So, back to Sundays! I was there early in the kitchen, eating breakfast with them, fried eggs, toast were the norm, although on special days grandma would make chocolate gravy and biscuits. HOMEMADE, everything!!!! Oh how I MISS her cooking, their company. Grandpa would tell stories of the family, times growing up, living in California and what it was like going through the Great Depression, getting around before cars, working old farms and old living.

My Aunt who lived behind them would come in around 1030 or so to help grandma, not that she needed it but that's just what we did. My sister hid out in her room, of course I was always bugging her, cause that's what little sisters do best! Then my other aunt and her family of 6 would arrive, at this point there are about 15 people there, and this was normal. Let me point out a few things, grandma cooked on a 4 burner cook top for us, a few things, the food was ALWAYS HOT, and there were ALWAYS leftovers. 20 could show up, or 15 and there would be leftovers. A table FULL of food, then half a table of desserts. How on earth she managed it, I don't know but I saw it Sunday after Sunday. Oh the Holidays were RAMPED up and even more food and more people wandering in and out all day! Football on the TV, kids in the kitchen at the kids table, the adults in the dining room at the adult table. Grandma and grandpa sat in their respective seats in the living room and had theirs.

There were never two nicer, nor two people, aside from my father, that I miss more on this earth, than these two beautiful souls and the tradition of Sunday lunches at their house. They have left me some of the BEST memories of my childhood, they inspire me daily as I continue on this journey to bringing others pasts to their present.

Grandpa John and Grandma Elsie Smedley - You are missed and loved!

I hope your family has left you with fond memories and traditions.

Happy hunting,
~Alisha

Photographs, Paper, Pen, Clipboard and COPS, OH MY!

Well as the title eludes I am still working, in the heat of this wonderful Oklahoma summer, on photographing, documenting all the cemeteries in Le Flore County. Now, that might not seem too large a task when you visit your local cemetery, but on average cemeteries here have around 200 internment's that are identifiable. Those have to be photographed, some require a few shots to discern the writing, then there are making all the notes (thus the paper, pen and clipboard in the title of this blog) because sometimes no matter how you turn your head, stand on your tip toes, down on your knees in the ant piles, leaning down looking under leaning stones looking for clues, pressing yourself into bushes and thorns, you just cannot make out what those precious things say...sigh

As I was bending, twisting, turning, writing this very morning in a local cemetery, I hear a vehicle (Ward's favorite word I say HA, British think we use funny words here lol), behind me which isn't all too unfamiliar a sound. I normally wait and hear someone walking then make sure I am not in a place that they are trying to get to. Sometimes I am asked what I am doing, I take a minute to explain. Usually to the tune of a smile and a nod, a time or two it has been an "Oh, that's wonderful", followed by the quizzical look of, hmmmm, what is she thinking?

Today, however, I hear the vehicle, I listen for footsteps, none. So I just turn slightly to see, no matter where you live you still have to be aware of your surroundings, and there looking puzzled in a uniform, badge, GUN, is a local police officer. Now, I have no issues with police in general, as with any position (even in nursing there are people who get a big head and think they are WAY more than they are) there are some that go a bit overboard. I was greeted with a sorta smile and a "Good mornin." I returned the "Good morning" and turned back around as to get busy again and then I heard the footsteps. So, I turned again to him, and his now partner getting out. I am thinking, "ummmm, am I REALLY being talked to by the police"?

He goes on to say that apparently some neighbors were concerned as there was a car and someone with something in their hands walking around the cemetery. I smiled and explained what I was doing, then I showed him my business card, which I keep one in my pocket just in case. I showed him my papers that I had been working on and he was pleasant enough with me and said that I was doing a good service for the community and to carry on. Like I wouldn't have anyways, but hey, I suppose it made him feel alright giving me permission to do what I was going to otherwise!

I sent Ward a text about my little run in and I think we both had a great laugh! Some days it doesn't pay to get out of bed, some days interesting things happen that turn into blog material! HA

Since you all know I am doing cemetery work, I can't go a blog and not introduce you to one of our recent discoveries!

Native American Burials

Happy Hunting,
~Alisha