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| David S. Cagle, Son of George W. Cagle |
The heirs of George Washington Cagle are a story of their own. The question presented is who exactly were they? Some daughters had protean names, never seen as the same incarnation twice. Others, assumed dead before 1870, are listed in estate papers dated 1887, as alive. Some children were born out of wedlock, and which of these offspring by a promiscuous paramour were his and which were not? Who were some of the mysterious heirs listed twenty years past his death. I will attempt to answer that question in this post.
What is known is that George Washington Cagle had been born along the Rocky River in what is now Stanly County to Charles R. Cage, Senior and wife, Maranda Elizabeth Springer. He was the oldest son and came into the world around 1813, or thereabouts. He married around 1830 to Elizabeth Rose Whitley, daughter of Needham Whitley and Sarah Sides, she being about a year older than he. His family was sufficiently entangled with the Whitelys, and not only the Whitelys, but the Hinsons, Huneycutt's, Thomas's and Smiths.
George W. Cagle was murdered on February 27, 1876, as a result of his nefarious and wanton ways. That shocking end does not encapsulate the life of George W. Cagle at all. He was a farmer, a businessman, a husband and father and a humanitarian as well. Things seemed an easy and steady road for him, as long as he had Elizabeth. She passed away between late 1850 and early 1852. She was fully alive when counted in the 1850 census on October 3, 1850 and passed away before George remarried on January 4, 1852. Elizabeth was still a young woman when she passed, around 39 years old. She may have passed from complications of pregnancy or childbirth. Her youngest, daughter Lucy Catherine, was born in 1848.
Elizabeth seems to have been George's imperturbable, serene influence, his Eupraxia, his muse. George lived large, he gambled high on business deals, he bought and sold real estate and tried his hand at several industries, some successful, others, not so much. He ended up fairly wealthy in terms of comparison with many of his neighbors and seems to have kept a level head, until he lost Elizabeth.
| Name | George Cagle |
|---|---|
| Gender | Male |
| Marriage Date | 4 Jan 1852 |
| Marriage Place | Stanly, North Carolina, USA |
| Spouse | Nancy Speight |
| Spouse Gender | Female |
| Event Type | Marriage |
George married Nancy Hinson Speight on January 4. 1852. Nancy was a widow and the daughter of Charles Sampson Hinson and wife, Milly, or Amelia, Clark Hinson. In the estate papers, there are mentions of "the Estate of Charles Hinson". George was an heir of Charles Hinson via his marriage to Nancy, and that inheritance comes into play in the probate.
| Name | Nancy Hinson |
|---|---|
| Gender | Female |
| Spouse | Joseph Spate |
| Spouse Gender | Male |
| Marriage Date | 7 Dec 1847 |
| Marriage County | Union |
| Marriage State | North Carolina |
Nancy did not have the same effect on George as Elizabeth had. Just the opposite, of course, she was a Hinson. If the Cagle's were fire, the Hinson's were gasoline, just a sense of things I've felt going through the old records and lives of these Big Lick citizens. Nancy had married a Joseph Speights, or 'Spates'. on December 7, 1847, in Union County.
| Name | Nancy Speight |
|---|---|
| Gender | Female |
| Race | White |
| Residence Age | 30 |
| Birth Date | abt 1820 |
| Birthplace | North Carolina |
| Residence Date | 1850 |
| Home in 1850 | Smiths, Stanly, North Carolina, USA |
| Cannot Read, Write | Yes |
| Line Number | 37 |
| Dwelling Number | 688 |
| Family Number | 693 |
| Inferred Spouse | Joseph Speight |
| Inferred Child | Martha Speight; William A Speight |
| Name | Age |
|---|---|
| Joseph Speight | 24 |
| Nancy Speight | 30 |
| Martha Speight | 2 |
| William A Speight | 0 |
Joseph and Nancy were living in Smith's District, in Stanly County, in 1850, the same as George Cagle. Joseph Speight, the son of John Speight and Martha Jane Austin Speight, would die on September 28, 1850. The couple had two children:
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| Daniel Cicero Huneycutt and Martha Jane Speight Huneycutt |
A) Martha Jane Speight, born April 10, 1848 and married Daniel Cicero Huneycutt.
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| William Alexander Speight |
B) William Alexander Speight, born October 15, 1849, married Sarah Rebecca Harkey.
George Cagle does not appear to have taken the Speight children in after the marriage to their mother. The why's and ways to this fact may not have anything to do with the character of George or Nancy. Women didn't have the rights they do at present. Children without a father were considered orphans and were normally appointed a guardian by the court. The guardian could be family or not.
| Name | William A Spight | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age | 11 | ||||||||||||
| Birth Year | 1849 | ||||||||||||
| Gender | Male | ||||||||||||
| Race | White | ||||||||||||
| Home in 1860 | Stanly, North Carolina | ||||||||||||
| Post Office | Albemarle | ||||||||||||
| Dwelling Number | 1002 | ||||||||||||
| Family Number | 1017 | ||||||||||||
| Household Members |
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In 1860, William is found in the home of Alexander McLester.
| Name | Elizabeth Spight |
|---|---|
| Age | 43 |
| Birth Year | 1817 |
| Gender | Female |
| Race | White |
| Birth Place | North Carolina |
| Home in 1860 | Stanly, North Carolina |
| Post Office | Albemarle |
| Dwelling Number | 969 |
| Family Number | 984 |
| Real Estate Value | 75 |
| Cannot Read, Write | Y |
| Inferred Child | Martha Spight |
Martha is found in the home of her Aunt, Joseph's unmarried sister, Elizabeth. This may have been due to Joseph dying insolvent, and Elizabeth in possession of property.
Nancy Hinson Speight Cagle would have two daughters with George Cagle, Anna Jane in 1854 and Frances Laura in 1857. All three of them would be among those who moved to Iredell County after George's death, with Anna Janes husband, Joseph "Joe" Hartsell in the lead.
| Name | Nancy Cagle |
|---|---|
| Age | 60 |
| Birth Date | Abt 1820 |
| Birthplace | North Carolina |
| Home in 1880 | Coddle Creek, Iredell, North Carolina, USA |
| Dwelling Number | 170 |
| Race | White |
| Gender | Female |
| Relation to Head of House | Mother-in-law |
| Marital Status | Widowed |
| Father's Birthplace | North Carolina |
| Mother's Birthplace | North Carolina |
| Occupation | Housekeeper |
| Maimed, Crippled, or Bedridden | Y |
| Cannot Write | Y |
| Neighbors | View others on page |
| Name | Age |
|---|---|
| Joe Hartsell | 33 |
| A. J. Hartsell | 23 |
| Geo. B. Hartsell | 9 |
| W. H. Hartsell | 7 |
| Etta Hartsell | 5 |
| E. F. Hartsell | 3 |
| May Hartsell | 9/12 |
| Laura Cagle | 22 |
| Nancy Cagle | 60 |
Nancy Hinson Cagle died March 5, 1892 in Coddle Creek, Iredell County, NC, at the age of 74.
She was buried at Pleasant Hill Primitive Baptist Church. Several members of this family are buried there, along with others from Stanly County, primarily the Big Lick area who moved there. Some of them would move on to Mecklenburg County, NC.
| Name | Nancy Caroline Cagle |
|---|---|
| Maiden Name | Hinson |
| Gender | Female |
| Birth Date | 15 Mar 1817 |
| Birth Place | Montgomery County, North Carolina, United States of America |
| Death Date | 5 Mar 1892 |
| Death Place | Iredell County, North Carolina, United States of America |
| Cemetery | Pleasant Hill Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery |
| Burial or Cremation Place | Statesville, Iredell County, North Carolina, United States of America |
| Has Bio? | Y |
| Father | Charles Sampson Hinson |
| Mother | Milly Hinson |
| Children | Annie Jane Hartsell; Sion Speight; Martha Jane Honeycutt; William Alexander Speight |
In the Find-A-Grave profile for Nancy Hinson Cagle, I discovered an error. Sion Speight is included as a child of Nancy and Joseph. He was not. Sion "Bud" Speight (1851-1922), was the son of Alexander Speight (1824-1851) and Winny Hinson. They also married in 1847 in Union County. Winny was the daughter of Sampson Hinson and Sarah Cagle. Sarah was the daughter of Benjamin Franklin Cagle and Susannah Rebecca Lowder Cagle. Alexander Speight was he son of John Speight and Martha Austin and a brother of Joseph Speight who married Nancy Hinson. So, they were all related in a multitude of ways but were different people.
The similarities do not end there. Alexander and Wincy or Winnie also had a daughter named Martha, also born in 1848, except theirs was Martha Elizabeth and Nancy and Joseph's was Marth Jane. I can see where confusion could ensue. To make matters even worse, both Speight brothers died young.
Alexander died July 9, 1851 at the Rocky River. Joseph would die January 28, 1850. It gets even spookier. Their brother John Speight, would marry Mary Jane Hinson on Christmas Day, 1848. He would die November 6, 1850 at 29 years old. Alexander was only 27 and Joseph only 24.
It gets worse. They had two other brothers named Manasseh and Sion who died in 1850, as young men. The three sisters lived a bit longer, but none grew old, a mysterious family kismet.
The next page is similar, but is dated Fall Term of 1887, or about 6 years earlier. Things could have changed in those six years.
It names: D.S Cagle, Sarah Jones, Malinda Crisco, Catherine Baker, Luthina Cagle, Laura Cagle, Ann J. Hartsell, William Honeycutt,
not of age - Isabell Baker, minor child of Elizabeth, who appears by their next friend William Honeycutt. This statement clarifies two things, Isabell, who was under 21, was the daughter of Elizabeth Cagle, not Catherine, whom she always seems attached to, as Catherine did raise her, and that she was represented in court by her half-brother, William. It continues: Susan Thomas, E.A. Huneycutt, M.J. Whitley, Ellen Caldwell, not of age - James Smith, George Smith and Ila Smith, the last three being minors and appear by their next friend J. A. Crisco, Adeline Hartsell and I. M. Hinson.
vs A.G. Morton admin of George Cagle, deasd., William Parker, J. C. Burris and Evan Morgan.
These were the business partners and executor of George Cagle and the heirs claimed he left a valuable estate, to which they were entitled a part. My next puzzle to solve was, who were the Seventy-sevenths?
There were two known legitimate children who were not named in the papers above, Martha and Mary. Martha was last seen in the 1870 census. at age 29, living in the home of her sister, Malinda Cagle Crisco. Unmarried, she appears to have died as a young woman, leaving no heirs. Her sister, Mary, also seen as Polly, did marry, to Alfred Smith, son of Richard and Susan. They were among those Big Lick citizens who had removed to Iredell County, where Mary died on Marh 11, 1885.
Her tombstone survives. Alfred and Polly had seven children: Susan Adeline, Elizabeth Ann, Mary Jane, Eliza Ellen, James Richard, George W. and Ila. At the time of the probate, Susan had married Jacob Thomas, the brother of David S. Cagle's wife, Sarah. Elizabeth Ann aka "Betsy" had married Calvin Arenas Honeycutt. Mary Jane had married Titus Hillman Whitley and Ellen had married James F. Caldwell, the only one, despite living in Iredell County, had married outside of the western Stanly County gene pool. The younger three were still underage and had not married. But they were not "seventy-sevenths", as the paper stated. They were seven grandchildren, heirs of one child, one of the eleven legitimate children of George W. Cagle. I stress legitimate because George had other children, born from affairs outside of marriage. By law, they had no claim, unless named in the Will, as one had been. However, the shares of Polly Cagle Smith's children should have read as seven-elevenths, as the two children of Elizabeth Cagle shared two-elevenths.
The above page, included in the George Cagle estate papers is titled "D.S. Cagle admin. of Martha Cagle dec. against George Cagle". It was stated s served against George Cagle on the 26th day of January 1876. David was the administrator of the estate of Martha Cagle, who was named in her father's will, but had predeceased him by months, it appears, and he sued their fathers' estate to cover her expenses, medical and burial.
George Cagle had his fingers in many endeavors, and when he died, folks from all around wanted a little piece of the pie, so his estate file is massive, consisting mostly of of ragged receipts and affidavits. One interesting one was dated 1876 and was for $7.52 to M. A. Honeycutt on March 27th for the work of her son. The particular son was not named. This was Maniza Honeycutt and she was a mistress of George Cagle. Her children are said to have been his, or at least some of them. Maniza went before a Justice in June of that year and made oath to it, that she was due the money. The receipt that followed was dated November of 1876 and was received by C. A. Honeycutt for Maniza.
In addition to the nine children by his first wife, Elizabeth Rose Whitley, and two by his second wife, Nancy Caroline Hinson Speight, George W Cagle had children outside of marriage, possibly five by Maniza A. Honeycutt and maybe one by his other mistress, Mariah Myers Meggs. Only one is mentioned in his Will, shown above, and that was his son, Eli or Ely.
Eli Huneycutt, complaining says, That George Cagle died in the year 1876 and that the Defendants above named administration upon said estate and that the said George Cagle made and published his last Will and testament before his death which has been duly probated and recorded in the Office of the clerk of the Superior Court of Stanly County. That under said will this affiant is entitled as one of the legacies of said will and is not a party to said action.
II That if the proceeds of said estate which is left for distribution Viz the sum of eight hundred and seventy-three & 29/100 dollars arise from the sale of real estate? by said administration to pay debts which real estate "Vis" the home plantation was devised to this affiant Eli Huneycutt which alleges that he is entitled to .. cont.
Some of George Cagle's daughters bore unusual names, like Ithama Luthena Barthena, that evolved with time.
Ithama may have been a family name passed down the Cagle line from far back ancestors. Above is the Salisbury announcement of the marriage of Ithamey Cagle, (1826-1902), daughter of James Cagle, a son of Benjamin Franklin Cagle and semi-distant relative of George W. Cagle, who married George Sides.
In conclusinon, I've compiled a list of the definitive heirs of George Washington Cagle. His two mistresses have their own, very unique stories, and I want to give a closer look at their lives, and if there is any proof to the parentage of their children.
George Washington Cagle was born about 1813 to Charles Robert Cagle, Sr. and wife, Miranda Elizabeth Springer. He died on Februay 27, 1876. His death is a story of its own. He first married Elizabeth Rose Whitley (1812-1860), daughter of Needham Whitley and wife, Sarah Sides.
Ten children:
1) Menece Adelin Cagle, (1832 - unknown) Her father's estate records suggest she was alive until at least 1897. She is not to be found in 1900, and the locattion of her daughter suggests she may have relocated to Mecklenburg County and could possibly be found in a City Directory there in 1898.
Married: Tillman Coley (1827-1856)
Married second: Holden Hartsell (1816-1865) One son: Adam Hartsell born 1864, last seen at age 18.
Daughter, Nelie "Nealie" A. Hartsell, born in 1872, could not have been the daughter of Holden Hartsell. She married Elhannon Mack Ferrell and became the mother of six children: Alberta Lee Ferrell Beam, Addie L. Ferrell Baxter, Tillman Allen Ferrell, Lura M. Ferrell, Inez Iva Ferrell Brown, Delola Neely Ferrell Holshouser. Nealie Hartsell was born in Big Lick, where she is found in 1880 and is in Huntersville, Mecklenburg County, NC in 1900, they then move to Coddle Creek in Iredell, where many of her relatives had relocated to, then to Cleveland County, then to Lincolnton in Lincoln County, then to Hickory in Catawba County, then finally to North Kannapolis in Rowan County, where she died in 1951, and was buried in Mooresville, Iredell County.
2) Ithama Lithana Barthena Cagle (24 Oct 1833-25 March 1812)
Married William B. Hinson (1830- between 1878-1880). Eight children:
George LaFayette Hinson (1851-1897) , Nathaniel L. Hinson (1851-1908), Doctor Hinson (1857-1870), Harriett Hinson (1864-1960), John I Hinson, (1874-1923), James Alfred Hinson (1874-1950), Millie Arnette Hinson Crayton (1876-1943).
The Hinsons moved from Stanly County to Olive Branch in Union County, which was just across the river, then became one of the Big Lick area families who moved to Iredell County, living in Coddle Creek and Davidson, where Ithama was buried. Referred to as Lithana in her father's estate papers, she is seen as Barthena in 1850, Isama in 1860, Lythama in 1870, Lithania in 1880, but Ithamia, or Ithama on most of her childrens documents. As Ithama was a family name, I believe that is actually what her first name must have been.
3) David S. "Dave" Cagle (31 March, 1835 - 11 April 1915) As the only son of George Washington Cagle born within the bonds of Holy Matrimony, Dave was the de facto head of the Cagle family after the death of his father. He seemed stable and steadfast, perhaps only due to the responsibilities thrust upon him, but he was nothing like his father. The settlement of his estate was even more arguementive and expansive than that of his father. William Alfred Cagle was the Administrator of his father's estate and Dave had outlived a few of his adult children, which made involving grandchildren and their spouses neccesary.
The above and below lists are the names of the surviving children and grandchildren whose Cagle parent predeceased their grandfather.
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| Sarah Thomas Cagle |
Above is part of the distribution to heirs in the estate of David S. Cagle. Dave died on April 11, 1915. He had survived several of his own children. The first four names above are the children who survived him; William Alfred Cagle (W A), Mary Jane Cagle Teeter, Alexander A. Cagle, and Rosanna Cagle Edwards (Rose Ann Edwards). These recieved a full one seventh share of his seven children. The next group recieved one eight of one seventh, meaning they were one of eight children of one of David's chidren.
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| James David Cagle |
Those eight were the children of James David Cagle, who passed away on December 30, 1897. Sam would have been Samuel Prince Cagle, next is Emma Cagle who married Victor Widenhouse, Travis James Cagle, Ida B Cagle Cagle, who married George Franklin Cagle, a son of Robert Lindsay Cagle and wife Francis Caroline Robbins, and a great-nephew of George W. Cagle. Next is Connie Lee Cagle who married James Seabron Joyner, Daniel Webster Cagle (Dan) , William David Cagle (W.D). The one child of James David Cagle not listed was Walter L K Cagle. He traveled a bit, but would settle back in North Carolina. His obituary states when he passed, he was only survived by two brothers, Sam and Travis. This may have been in error that his name was excluded from being one of the eight.
Above, the continuation of the list shows first, three of sevens, or one third share of a child's seventh. These were the children of Margaret "Maggie" Cagle Honeycutt; Thomas Dewitt "Dee" Honeycutt, Arabella Honeycutt Thomas and Lillie Mae Huneycutt (will be Burris). The final group is one seventh of one seventh and those were the children of Elizabeth "Eliza" J. Cagle. She had married William Jacob Nance and although she had outlived her father by three years, passing away on March 1, 1918 in New Salem, Union County, by the time of this action, she was deceased. The heirs to her one seventh share were John David Nance, William Alfred Nance, Loretta Emaline "Lou Rettie" Nance Austin, Sarah Elizabeth "Bettie" Nance Austin, Callie E. Nance Mask, Lillie Maggie Nance and James Benjamin Nance.
The above shows distributions.
Actions like these could drag on for years until nothing was left, or any proceeds were held in escrow. Sometimes the government and attorneys just ate it all.
The fouth child of George Washington Cagle and first wife, Elizabeth Rose Whitley was:
4) Sarah P Cagle (13 Dec 1836 - 6 August 1905) Note: the middle initials of Sarah and her brother, David are only known by letter. It has been proposed that David's was either Stanly or Sampson and that Sarah's "P" stood for Priscilla. This could be true, but I've found no documentation for that, so I leave them as a simple initial that is documented. As I've mentioned before in other posts, Sarah married Wiley Allen Jones in Stanly County, on June 5, 1853. Three years after his marriage to Sarah, he fathered a daughter, Ellen M. Safely by Sarah Frances Safely. Sarah apparently endured that indiscretion with grace and forgiveness, and gave wily Wiley six legitimate children : James Franklin Jones (1855-1914), Tillman Allen Jones (1858-1942), Margaret Ann Jones Cashion, (1850-1960), Wiley Alexander Jones (1862-1943), Elizabeth Ellen Jones Mills (1867-1947) and Sarah L. Jones (1868-1879).
Little Sarah and her father both died of Typhoid Fever about the same time. They were buried together at Centre Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Mooresville, Iredell County, North Carolina.
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| Alfred Smith |
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| Beadie Luthenia Mathene Cagle |
