The Mystery of Berry Grove

The title of this post sounds like a place where folks had settled and named it for a patch of will berries. This isn't the case. Berry Grove was a person. Berry Grove Hildreth. 

So it was more than fitting that on a recent trek to Wadesboro in search of information on a certain set of Hildreths, I was greatest by a sign just a short distance from Wadesboro proclaiming "Hildreths Best Muscadines".

How fitting for a trek to uncover the truth about Berry Grove Hildreth.

Anson County is steeped in antipodean elaborations. On one hand, her 'Old South' remnants are beautifully and lovingly preserved, and in other spots, she's gone to ruin.

All of history can't be saved, but a handful of Ansonians try.

I visited the Anson County History Center in order to find out more about this confusing man Berry Grove Hildreth and about the Hildreth family as a whole.

Name:	Berry Grove Hildreth
Gender:	Male
Race:	White
Age:	25
Birth Year:	abt 1825
Birthplace:	North Carolina
Home in 1850:	Dumas Shop, Anson, North Carolina, USA
Occupation:	Farmer
Industry:	Agriculture
Line Number:	4
Dwelling Number:	1011
Family Number:	1011
Household Members Age William Hildreth 61 Nancy Hildreth 54 Berry Grove Hildreth 25 William Hildreth 15 Julia A Hildreth 12 Elizabeth F Hildreth 8

Berry Grove Hildreth first appears in the 1850 census, as a 25 year old farmer, living in the home of William and Nancy Hildreth, one of the two couples from the 1840 census, who show up in the 1850 census. He quite appears to be, or could be, their son. The family is living in the Dumas Shop area of Anson County.

Name:	Berry Hildreth
Age:	27
Birth Year:	abt 1833
Gender:	Male
Race:	White
Birth Place:	North Carolina
Home in 1860:	Wadesboro, Anson, North Carolina
Post Office:	Lilesville
Dwelling Number:	1097
Family Number:	1057
Personal Estate Value:	75
Cannot Read, Write:	Y
Household Members Age Berry Hildreth 27 Coley Hildreth 26 Sarah Hildreth 7

In 1860, we find Berry Hildreth, 27, living with a wife, Coley and a 7 year old daughter, Sarah. 

They just happen to be listed below the Mary Hildreth family in Lilesville, who escaped being counted in 1850, and above  Elijah Hildreth , 21, and his wife, Ann Piltcher's family. Elijah also missed out on enumeration in 1850.

Name:	B G Hildreth
Age:	35
Birth Year:	abt 1825
Gender:	Male
Race:	White
Birth Place:	North Carolina
Home in 1860:	Wadesboro, Anson, North Carolina
Post Office:	Wadesboro
Dwelling Number:	826
Family Number:	792
Occupation:	Farmer
Household Members Age B G Hildreth 35 Ann Hildreth 24 Mary M Hildreth Perry Hildreth 1

Of note, also in the 1860 census, was the above young family. This is a 35 year old B. G. Hildreth, with wife, Ann and two small children, toddlers Mary M and Perry.

In 1870, we find Collin C. Teal Hildreth.She now has two children, Sarah and Ebben. Still living next to her, as they were in 1860, was Ann Picher Hildreth, widow of Elijah Hildreth, with one of her sons. A few houses up is Henry and Sarah Pilcher, Ann's parents. In their home is Ann and Elijah's older son, John Hildreth, not Pilcher. Also, a farm hand labeled only by his surname, Hildreth, no first name given. I believe this was Thomas Hildreth, who had been living in this spot in the 1860 census in the Mary 1810 grouping, of whom Berrygrove and Elijah had been a part of. The others had either married or had been killed in the Civil War. The exception was Elizabeth, who was at this time living with Davis, who was either her brother or brother-in-law.

We also find Ann Haire Hildreth and her children. She was the mother of 5, Mary 12, Perry 11, William A. 9, Ida, 7, and Parthenia, 1. The age difference between Ida and Parthenia will be addressed shortly.

What had happened? The Civil War.

We know Colin "Coley" Teal was married to Berry Hildreth, or living with him in 1860, but who was B. G. Hildreth who was living with  Ann Haire Hildreth in 1860?

Ann M. Haire Hildreth, aged 49 and a resident of Ansonville, in Anson County, NC, filed for a widow's pension on the 4th of July, 1885, stating that she was the widow of Berrygrove Hildreth, who enlisted in Company H, 43rd Regiment, NC State troops, on or about the 8th day  of  September, 1863 and he died of wounds recieved in battle in June or July of 1864, in Virginia.

Ann reapplied on June 18, 1901, stating that  she was 65 years old and still living in Ansonville, and that she was a widow of Berrygrove Hildreth, who enlisted in Company H, 43rd Regiment of the NC State Troops on the 8th of September, 1863 and that she was married to Berrygrove Hildreth about the year 1856. Her husband died of wounds recieved in battle on May 60, 1964. She stated that her name was on the pension rolls of Anson County.

Her pension application was signed  by the Clerk of Court of Anson County, John C. McLaughlin and approved by J. C. Allen,  W.  D. Webb, J. T. Broadway, F. Bennett and W. J. Averett (Avitt).

Berry Grove Hildreth, who served with Co H , 43 regiment, enlisted at Oranage Courthouse in 1863 and died of wounds recieved in May of 1864, a few weeks later in June of 1864.

He died in 1864.....

Yet, on Find-A-Grave, we find this ...

CONFEDERATE SOLDIER:

Pvt. Berry Grove Hildreth
Co I "Anson Regulators", 43rd NC Infantry Regiment.

UNMARKED GRAVE: Pvt. Berry Grove Hildreth, Co I "Anson Regulators", 43rd NC Infantry Regiment. Fought with the NC 43rd at Culp's Hill at Gettysburg where the 43rd sustained twenty - six percent casualties. He was present on 9 Aug 1865 in Appomattox, Va when Gen. Lee surrendered. Husband of Annie M. Haire Hildreth. Son of Thomas and Hipsira Childress Hildreth. Father of William Harrison, Mary M., Perry, Ida, and Cook Hildreth.

Family history as told by his granddaughter, Sadie Hildreth Beachum (Find A Grave #34296770)of Ansonville, is that after Berry Grove Hildreth was paroled on 9 Aug 1865 at Appomattox when Gen. Lee surrendered, Berry then walked back to Ansonville. Berry Grove said that he had to stop and ask or beg for food as he made his way back home. Berry also said that he thought that he would never get back home and that he was so sick of walking. When he did arrived back in Ansonville, he disliked walking so much that he would always either ride his horse or hitch up the wagon even for very short trip.

The brother of Pvt. Berry Grove Hildreth is Pvt. Thomas O. Hildreth (Find A Grave #7391390)b. 1820 d. 2 May 1865. Thomas O. was in Co G, 3rd NC Reg Artillery and later the 2nd NC Artillery. He was captured at Fort Fisher, NC and was sent to Elmira Prison Camp, Elmira, NY where he died of pneumonia. Thomas O. is buried at Woodlawn National Cemetery, plot #2007, Elmira, NY.

Pvt. Berry Grove Hildreth is:
Father of William Harrison Hildreth #34985287. Buried Bethlehem Cemetery, Ansonville, NC.

Grandfather of Ollie Blanche Hildreth Cauble #34139129. Buried Bethlehem Cemetery, Ansonville, NC

Great grandfather of Vera Mae Cauble Faggart #60196709. Buried Oakwood Cemetery, Concord, NC.

Bethel Cememtery lies quietly in the sandy soil of southeastern Anson County. I recently made a visit there, along with a visit to the two Hildreth cemeteries, Bethlehem Cemetery, and several others where many Hildreths grace the ground. 

There, I found a tombstone. Private Berry Hildreth, born in 1824. The year of death given was 1870. But didn't he die in Virginia in 1864?

Next to it was this one....

And this one.... Definately a family grouping. Ebben Harrison Hildreth was the son of Colon C Teal Hildreth and Berry Grove. He had one sister, Sarah. Colon or Collin, Coley for short, seemed an unusual name for a woman, but she wasn't the only one. There was a Colon C Polk who married a Meachum, a Colon Beachum and a Colon C Boyette ( Boyt/ Boyd), whose family was very close to the Hildreths and Teals, so there may have been an original female ancestor named Colon C in common.

Caroline Hildreth was Ebb's wife, Caroline Burr. They had a large family together.  But the story didn't end there. 

1880

In 1880, we see Collon "Coley" Hildreth, now 55, with her daughter Sarah Jane, 22 and Sarah's son Frank, and Deberry Hildreth, her son, who is the same age Ebben would be, yet there's no Eben to be found. I believe Ebben and Deberry were one and the same, as Deberry was not found in any other record and Eben would have been in this one. Deberry could have been a nickname or a middle name that Ebb left behind later in life.

There's also a Frank Cox , a cousin , living with them. I'd like to discover more about how he is related.

Ann Haire Hildreth is still living in Ansonville, with her three youngest children, William, Ida and her youngest, "Cook", a nickname for Parthenia.

And then there's this guy, Berry Hildreth, about 60. He appears to be working for a Gaddy family.

It's quite clear by now that there were two Berry Grove Hildreths, very close in age. Cousins, no doubt, and both of them served in the Civil War. If it were that simple, but its not quite that simple.

The Berry Grove who shows up in 1850 in the home of William and Nancy Covington Hildreth was probably their son and was the one who married Ann Haire in 1856.

The other Berry Grove, about a year older than the other, first shows up in 1860, married to Colon C. Teal, in the Mary 1810 family grouping, a brother of Elijah, Walter, Elizabeth and Davis Hildreth, and possibly a son or stepson of Mary. The more I research, the more I agree with those who presume this to be the family of Rueben, son of David Sr. and Nancy Vickory Hildreth.

Berry Grove (William and Nancy) was in the 1860 census too, married to Ann Haire, as "B. G. Hildreth".

Name	B G Hildreth
Age	35
Birth Year	1825
Gender	Male
Race	White
Birth Place	North Carolina
Home in 1860	Wadesboro, Anson, North Carolina
Post Office	Wadesboro
Dwelling Number	826
Family Number	792
Occupation	Farmer
Household Members	Household Members Name Age B G Hildreth 35 Ann Hildreth 24 Mary M Hildreth Perry Hildreth 1

With their two oldest chldren, Mary and Perry.

Neither of them appear in the 1870 census. Ann Haire Hildreth's Berry Grove, of course, died in June of 1864, of wounds he recieved on May 20th of that year. He never made it home. The other Berry Grove? He was probably still in hiding. A look at their military records can clear things up a bit.

Just as there were two Berry Grove Hildreths, there were more than one Company of the 43rd Regiment that had Hildreths enlisted.

According to Fold3, Company H, 43rd Regiment, first enlisted men in April of 1861, and most of the soldiers were from Anson County, North Carolina. The youngest soldier was Robert C. Hildreth, at age 16, a son of Robert R. Hildreth and the oldest soldier was John A. Boggan, at 54. I found that interesting because the Boggans and Hildreths have both been in my scope recently.

They fought at Gettysberg, Totopotomy Creek, Cedar Creek, the Third Battle of Winchester and the Third Battle of Gettysburg. The Hildreths in this company were BerryGrove, Robert C. and William C.

North Carolina 43rd Infantry, Company I, first started enlisting soldiers in Wadesboro in May of 1861, and most of the soldiers were also from Anson County. The youngest soldier in this company was Nathan G. Jones, at 14 and the oldest was Benjamin Hudson, 60, who served alongside his sons, Joshua and Evan. This family is also in my peripherials as Benjamin was a brother of Joshua Hudson Jr. who settled along Ugly Creek in Stanly County after moving up from Anson and spawned an enormous family of Hudsons, one of whom I married.

Private Thomas P. Devereux of the 43rd North Carolina Infantry, Co. D.

This Company was known as the Anson Regulators and fought at Gettysberg, Totopotomoy Creek, Third Battle of Winchester, Fisher's Hill, Cedar Creek and Fort Stedman. The Hildreths who fought in this company were Berry G. , Davis, James, Nelson P., and Walter L. The only ones who survived were brothers Berry Grove and Davis. They lost their younger brother, Walter L. Hildreth. Elijah's wife Ann Pilcher Hildreth would name a son after him and so would Berrygrove's son, Ebben. 

Many a person had merged the military records into one Berrygrove, who enlisted in Anson  in one Company, appears to have gone AWOL, and then reenlisted in the other company at Orange Courthouse. So had Fold3. However, if you follow and separate the H and I Companies, who can tell which Berry Grove was which.

Berry Grove must have been a name that had been passed down the Hildreth family for a few generations, at least. A Greenberry Hildreth shows up in Alabama, a descendant of Reuben Hildreth (the first), who migrated to Alabama from Anson County in its earliest days of settlement, and was a brother to David Sr. who married Ann Vickory. 

A careful look at the military records can kind of explain what happened.

One cousin enlisted in Company I, 43rd regiment.

The other cousin enlisted in Company H, 43rd regiment.

One was 37 years old at the time.

The other was 35.

One spent most of his time AWOL

The other spent most of his time sick.

One died in the summer of 1864.

The other was paroled in 1865.

Ann Haire Hildreth filed for a widow's pension. Her husband, Berry Grove, son of William and Nancy Covington Hildreth was dead.

Colon C. Teal Hildreth did not file for a widow's pension. She was not a widow, in fact, her Berry Grove Hildreth outlived her. 

Colon aka Coley, doesn't show up anymore after 1880, but Berry does. This excerpt is from the 1900 census of Courthouse Township in Chesterfield County, South Carolina, which is not very far from where the family was living in Gulledge Township, Anson County. 

Name:	Berry Hildrith[Berry Hilbert]
Age:	64
Birth Date:	Jul 1835
Birthplace:	North Carolina, USA
Home in 1900:	Court House, Chesterfield, South Carolina
Sheet Number:	6
Number of Dwelling in Order of Visitation:	102
Family Number:	102
Race:	White
Gender:	Male
Relation to Head of House:	Father
Marital Status:	Widowed
Father's Birthplace:	North Carolina, USA
Mother's Birthplace:	North Carolina, USA
Occupation:	Farm Laborer
Months Not Employed:	0
Can Read:	No
Can Write:	No
Can Speak English:	Yes
Neighbors:
Household Members Age Relationship Sally Hildrith 40 Head Frank Hildrith 23 Son Mary Hildrith 16 Daughter Berry Hildrith 64 Father Simon Tineslay 21 Servant

Both children of Colon C Teal Hildreth and her Berry Grove were living in Courthouse, Chesterfield County by 1900. Whether or not they had moved down with their mother is unclear. However, while Colly has appeared to have passed away during this time, Berry clearly didn't. Here is Sarah, "Sally" Hildreth, 40, and her two children, Frank and Mary, living in Chesterfield County, with her 64 year old widowed father, Berry Hildreth.

Sally never married and Simon was a boarder or employee on her farm.

Name:	Ebb Hildrith[Ebb H??gh]
Age:	39
Birth Date:	Aug 1860
Birthplace:	North Carolina, USA
Home in 1900:	Court House, Chesterfield, South Carolina
Sheet Number:	1
Number of Dwelling in Order of Visitation:	18
Family Number:	18
Race:	White
Gender:	Male
Relation to Head of House:	Head
Marital Status:	Married
Spouse's Name:	Caroline Hildrith
Marriage Year:	1880
Years Married:	20
Father's Birthplace:	North Carolina, USA
Mother's Birthplace:	North Carolina, USA
Occupation:	Farmer
Months Not Employed:	1
Can Read:	No
Can Write:	No
Can Speak English:	Yes
House Owned or Rented:	Rent
Farm or House:	F
Neighbors:
Household Members Age Relationship Ebb Hildrith 39 Head Caroline Hildrith 37 Wife Susanna Hildrith 14 Daughter Eddie Hildrith 12 Son E D Hildrith 10 Son Georgia Hildrith 9 Daughter Cora C Hildrith 7 Daughter Elija Hildrith 3 Son Ruth Hildrith 2/12 Daughter

Ebben Hildreth was nearby his father and sister in 1900 in Courthouse, Chesterfield County. He was renting a farm and he and wife, Carolina Burr Hildreth were busy raising a large family.

Name:	Ann Hildreth
Age:	62
Birth Date:	Aug 1837
Birthplace:	North Carolina, USA
Home in 1900:	Ansonville, Anson, North Carolina
Sheet Number:	10
Number of Dwelling in Order of Visitation:	177
Family Number:	177
Race:	White
Gender:	Female
Relation to Head of House:	Head
Marital Status:	Widowed
Father's Birthplace:	North Carolina, USA
Mother's Birthplace:	North Carolina, USA
Mother: number of living children:	4
Mother: How many children:	5
Can Read:	Yes
Can Write:	Yes
Can Speak English:	Yes
House Owned or Rented:	Rent
Home Free or Mortgaged:	F
Farm or House:	H
Neighbors:
Household Members Age Relationship Ann Hildreth 62 Head

Back in Ansonville, in Anson County, NC, Ann Haire Hildreth is living alone. In a year, she will file for the new pension for widows and orphans that the Congress had came out with. Ann was the mother of 5 children, and there was something a little off - kilter with the whole of them.

1) Mary Ann Hildreth was born on July 26, 1856 in Anson County, shortly after the marriage of Ann and Berry Grove. She married Robert Treadway and passed away on March 10, 1926 and is buried at the Seago Cemetery near Wadesboro.

2) Perry Hildreth was born about 1859 in Ansonville. He married Martha Edney Tarlton on March 19,1878 and was the father of one child, Lola Irene Hildreth, born Feb. 5, 1878. Perry died young and came to a tragic end.

28 Sep 1879

Wadesboro

"The Observer" (Raleigh NC) news

On September 27, 1879, when his daughter was just a about a year and a half old, Perry Hildreth and his brother William H. Hildreth, struck up a card game with a set of three Rhine brothers. One of them, Ellis, became enraged and began slicing Perry up with a knife. Perry stood up, but then fell over dead. He was 20 years old. The account of the murder was reprinted in five newspapers across the state. Ellis Rhyne admitted to his guilt. 

3) William Harrison Hildreth was born on Oct 29, 1860 in Ansonville, where he lived his entire life and seemed to be very involved in the church. His brothers murder right in front of the teenager must have left a deep scar on his life. He married Martha Jane Cauble and had a family of 11 children. He died in Ansonville on February 12, 1939 and was buried at the Bethlehem Church Cemetery in Ansonville.

William Harrison Hildreth family

4) Nancy Jane Ida Hildreth Carpenter was born on April 16, 1864, just a month before her father incurred the wounds that would die of. She married William Atlas Carpenter and had 4 children. She died of pnuemonia at the age of 52 in 1916.

5) Cora Parthenia "Cook" Hildreth. Parthenia is a story all of her own. I can't start with her birthdate, because her birthdate is as fluid as butter in the sun, so we'll start with her obituary. Her very glowing obituary.

vbwooley originally shared this on 28 Apr 2019

Parthenia's obituary gives her a date of birth as April 6, 1872.

Name	Parthenia Hildreth
Birthplace	North Carolina
Dwelling Number	135
Home in 1870	Wadesboro, Anson, North Carolina
Race	White
Gender	Female
Post Office	Wadesboro
Occupation	At Home
Inferred Mother	Ann Hildreth

Household members

Name	Age
Ann Hildreth	32
Mary Hildreth	12
Perry Hildreth	11
William A Hildreth	9
Ida Hildreth	7
Parthenia Hildreth

Yet, she first appears as an infant in the 1870 census, born abuot 1869. She was there. She was counted. He wasn't psychic. The 1880 census has her at 14, or a birth date of about 1866. 

Name	Cora Hildreth
Gender	Female
Race	White
Age	22
Birth Year	1864
Marriage Date	3 Oct 1886
Marriage Place	Anson, North Carolina, USA
Spouse	Stephen Watson
Spouse Gender	Male
Spouse Race	White
Spouse Age	22
Event Type	Marriage

She married first to William Stephen Watson on Oct 3, 1886. Her age at that time was given as 22, with a birth year of about 1864. In the 1900 census, her age was given as 30, with a birth year of 1870. W. S. Watson died February 18, 1909, just one month after the birth of their 11th child. She is a widow in the 1910 census and her birth year is given as April of 1870.

The day after Christmas in 1917, Parthenia remarries to James L. Witherspoon. Her year of birth has now slipped to 1872.  In 1920, her birth year is given as 1871, in 1930, it's givne as 1872.

And there she is, on her death certificate, with the name of a man who died years before even the earliest estimate of her birth, being listed as her father.

 Parthenia died on February 4, 1939. At that time, her birthdate was given as April 6, 1872. So when was Parthenia really born? As a fact, she was alive and breathing by the time the 1870 census was taken. She seemed to get younger as she aged, but in any case, she was far too young to have been the biological daughter of Berry Grove Hildreth, who died in Virginia in June of 1864, at least of the Berry Grove who had married her mother. Anne Maria Hairre Hildreth was not the only Civil War widow who was visited by hte ghost of thier deceased husband years after their death. It was fairly common, in fact.  Those days were a different time.

Horrible things happened in horrible times, people took desperate measures. They did what they must to survive. I wonder if any descendants of Parthenia have taken a DNA test? Do they match up with any Hildreths not descended from Ann Haire Hildreth? Do they have matches within the last four generations they can't place a relationship to? Was Parthenias' father another member of the family or another member of the community, or some Yankee Carpetbagger? Only DNA would know.

On the other Berrygroves side, his and Colon Teal Hildreths' children remained in Chesterfield County, SC.

Sarah died first, and suddenly, of apoplexy, in 1918. Her son, Frank, gave the name of her father, but couldn't remember his grandmother's name. Her age was off by at least a decade, as she was born before 1860. 

Ebben followed his sister in 1934, at the age of 73. He left a large family, although several of his dozen or more children died young. 

There were a few of his children merged into one, or lost by the wayside, as it may have been.  His sons Edward D.  or Eddie and E. D., no real name, just the initials E D. , were the most confusing pair. As you can see by the 1910 census, they were two separate children, born 2 years apart. On top of that, they died the same year, 1962, but in different months and places. Edward D. hildreth, was born on October 6, 1887 and was married twice, frist to Eliza Culley, by whom he had two children, Viola and Redmond and to Hattie Rainwater, by whom he also had two chidren, Willie Beatrice and James Thomas. Eddie, as he was called, died on August 2, 1962, in Lumberton, Robeson County, NC.

E. D. or Edd D Hildreth, was born on August 5, 1888. The two brothers could have been what was referred to as "Irish Twins." He also married twice, to Mary Carpenter Lear, who had her own children, but none with E. D. and to Letha Sellars, by whom he had two daughters, Avis and Myrtle. E. D., a military man, died July 30, 1962 in Virginia.

Why two brothers so close in age would have names so close in context, I do not know. Then there was the whole Tom, who was a girl and Ruth, who was a boy. 

The known children of Ebben Harrison Hildreth and wife, Caroline Burr HIldreth were:

1) Susanna Ada Hildreth (1884 - 1924) Married William Albert Morris, 2 children, remained in Chesterfield County, SC. Died at 40 of uterine cancer.

2) Edward D. (Possibly David) Hildreth (1887-1962).

     Married 1st) Eliza Culley, two children. 

     Married 2nd) Hattie Rainwater, two children.

     Lived mainly in Chesterfield, later in Wadesboro and lastly in Robeson County, NC.

3) E. D. (or Edd D.) Hildreth (1887-1962)

     Married 1st) Mary Carpenter Lear, no children.

     Married 2nd) Letha Sellars, two children.

     Spent most of his adult life in Wadesboro, Anson County, NC when not in the military. Died in Danville, VA

4) Tomsie Virginia Hildreth (1892- 1925) Seen as Tommise in one census, Georgia as another, causing some to count her as 2 differnt people, and nothing at all of her adult life. She married Calvin C. Culley, a brother of Eddie's wife, Eliza and was the mother of  7 children: Elsie Mae, Hattie, Grace Beatrice, Leroy P., Helen, Mary Jane and Thetis Irene. She died at 38 of heart disease and her two youngest daughters were raised by two of her younger sisters. Lived for awhile in Marlboro County, SC, died back in Chesterfield.

5) Cora C. Hildreth, born around 1892, no further information. Yet.

6) Elijah Frank 'Lidge" Hildreth (1894-1950) Seen as Lidge half the time and Frank the other half.  Married twice, 1st to Essie (unknown), 2nd to Anna Bissett Wessinger, no children. Moved around a bit between Marlboro, Chesterfield and Florence counties in South Carolina and Anson in North Carolina. Died in Florence.

7) Rufus Carl "Ruth" Hildreth (1898-1985) Some folks have added a sister named Ruth, born the same year, but as they are not shown at the same time, and all future refernces to Ruth is to Ruth, the man, I believe their was only one, Ruth/Rufe. Married Lillian Norris, no children. After leaving Chesterfield, lived in Anson, Red Springs in Robeson County, NC, died in Pinehurst, Moore County, NC.

8) Thetis Irene "Thete" Hildreth (1901-1950) Married Greek restauranteur, Peter John Zounis, who ran 'The Busy Bee", in Chesterfield, at 17. Later moved to Plymouth, Massachusetts, died in Florence, South Carolina and buried in Chesterfield. No children, but raised niece Thetis Irene Virginia Culley Powell, daughter of Virginia.

9) Lannie Bell Hildreth (1907-1949) Married Sidney F. Terry Jr. Divorced. One son, Early Terry/ Hildreth. Lived in Chesterfield and Wadesboro.

10) Thurston Wagoner Hildreth (1909-1984) Married Margaret Lee Brower, four children. Lived in Wadesboro.

Ann Marie Haire Hildreth died in August of 1908

She had a nice, small obituary in the local newspaper, noting her long life. 

The only mystery left is the that of the story told by Sadie Hildreth Beachum mentioned in the Find-A-Grave memorial. 

Sadie was the Daughter of William Harrison Hildreth and wife, M. J. Caudle Hildreth. William Harrison Hildreth was the son of Ann Haire Hildreth and Berry Grove who died in 1864 in Virginia. He never made it home alive. Who was she remembering who walked home and didn't want to walk anymore? It wasn't her grandfather. Not her grandfather Hildreth, at any rate. Ann Haire Hildreth knew well when and where her husband died. She said as much in two pension applications.

Colon Teal Hildreth never filed an application because her husband outlived her. He appears to have been missing for awhile, and seems to have abandoned her, but he survived the War. Yet, even his marker, at Bethel Church beside that of his son Ebben, is incorrect. He was living in Anson County in 1880, and lived until at least 1900, with his daughter, Sarah, when he moved to Chesterfield County SC, with his daughter and her children, as well as his son Ebben and his family.  I believe both markers must have been placed much later by a grandchild or further, who has no memories of Berry, just tales of his existence. 

In summary, there were two distinct Berry Grove Hildreths, first cousins in all likelihood, and both served in the Civil War. One made it home and one did not. The one tagged in Find a Grave did not.

By George

CLIPPED FROM

The Messenger and Intelligencer

Wadesboro, North Carolina

10 Jan 1901, Thu  •  Page 3

For the past several weeks now, I've been cataloguing all of the Anson County Hildreths, attempting to connect the dots, making sense of the senseless and finding people who fell from the sky. 

In the course of that, and in conjunction with my attempt to go a generation beyond my second Great Grandfather, John Falkner, has revealed not only a possible, but a probable, biological connection to the Anson County Hildreths. In the course of this search, the above small paragraph from the 1901 newspaper, The Messenger and Intelligencer, from Wadesboro, NC, helped connect a lot of dots. 

The question at the forefront of my mind was, who was Mrs. Eliza Hildreth?  Having been 60 years old, certainly she was in the experimental tree already, somewhere. 

The article gives several hints, besides her name and age. First, she lived on the property of J T Pinkston near Wadesboro. Second, "Watt" Hildreth was her nephew, who lived a quarter mile from Pinkston. 

So my first step was to go to the 1900 census and find J T Pinkston in Wadesboro.

Luckily, I found John T Pinkston and family. Eliza was not living on his property in the summer of 1900. 

Next, I attempted to find an Eliza Hildreth nearby. I did not, but I did find the W. L. Hildreth family, whom I had already catalogued, as Walter L. Hildreth.  Walter, nickname Watt, I found the nephew!

Watt was listed just 2 households away from the Pinkstons. So who was Watt? Walter L. Hildreth, born about 1863, was the son of Elijah Hildreth and wife Ann Pilcher Hildreth. 

Elijah was part of the group of Hildreths who didn't show up in the 1850 census. 

He shows up first in 1860, in a family group I have referred to as the Mary Hildreth 1810 family group.

Mary, born about 1810, is listed as "Owner of Farm".

Living with her was Elizabeth, 28, Davis (or David), 24, Walter, 21, Mary, 15 and Thomas 11. In the next household is Berry Hildreth and wife Collin C Teal Hildreth and their daughter, Sarah. Then next is Elijah, Ann, and their older son, John Henry Hildreth. Walter has not been born yet. 

Four years later, Elijah would be one of thousands of men who would lose his life the Civil War. He died in 1864, a year after Walter was born. The older Walter L. Hildreth, shown in the 1860 census with Elijah, also died in the Civil War. It seems like Watt was his namesake. 

In 1880, the younger Walter is shown living with his grandparents, Henry and Sarah Pilcher. Also listed as their grandson was Shelton Falkner, son of James Coleman Falkner and Mary Virginia Hildreth Falkner.

Finally, we have Thomas Hildreth, an young adult man, listed as "Uncle", obviously not Henry Pilchers uncle, but of the two boys. 

So we harken back to the 'Martha 1810' family group again. There's Mary Virginia at 15, and Uncle Thomas as a child. He could be an Uncle of Shelton by being a brother of Mary Virginia, and an uncle of Walter by being a brother of Elijah.

So who was Watt's Aunt Eliza? There's Elizabeth, who seems to be a single woman and possibly a daughter of Mary. Berry's wife was Collin C. "Coley" and Walter died young and unmarried. So that leaves Davis/ David, who survived the War. Who did he marry?

David/Davis Hildreth is shown under both names in the records. I refer to him as Davis to differentiate him from all of his cousins, uncles, and Grandfathers, named David. 

He married Mary Elizabeth Gaddy, and as you can see from the above excerpt, from the 1870 census, she went by Eliza. The problem with the theory that she was the Eliza, is that neither of them made it to 1900, so not 1901 either. The Elizabeth at the bottom of the list in Davis's household would be the same Elizabeth in the 1860 ' Mary 1810' group. She seemed most likely to be his sister.

So, who was alive in 1900 Wadesboro that could have been "Aunt Eliza"? There was one candidate.

A divorced George Hildreth, 47, was living with his mother, Elizabeth, 65, in Lanesboro Township. He was a farmer, and they were renting the place.

George Hildreth[George T Hildreth]
Age:	47
Birth Date:	Jul 1852
Birthplace:	North Carolina, USA
Home in 1900:	Lanesboro, Anson, North Carolina
House Number:	1
Sheet Number:	19
Number of Dwelling in Order of Visitation:	353
Family Number:	354
Race:	White
Gender:	Male
Relation to Head of House:	Head
Marital Status:	Divorced
Father's Birthplace:	North Carolina, USA
Mother's Name:	Elizabeth Hildreth
Mother's Birthplace:	North Carolina, USA
Occupation:	Farmer
Months Not Employed:	0
Can Read:	Yes
Can Write:	Yes
Can Speak English:	Yes
House Owned or Rented:	Rent
Farm or House:	F
Neighbors:
Household Members Age Relationship George Hildreth 47 Head Elizabeth Hildreth 65 Mother

Could Elizabeth be our Eliza? And who exactly was Elizabeth? Better yet, who was George?

George Hildreth, born around 1850, was on my list of 'Hildreths who fell from the sky'. He appears first, first, as a middle-aged man living with his mother.

Name:	George T Wilhrela[George T Hildreth]
Age in 1910:	53
Birth Date:	1857[1857]
Birthplace:	North Carolina
Home in 1910:	Lanesboro, Anson, North Carolina, USA
Race:	White
Gender:	Male
Relation to Head of House:	Watchman
Marital Status:	Married
Father's Birthplace:	North Carolina
Mother's Birthplace:	North Carolina
Native Tongue:	English
Occupation:	Watchman
Industry:	Chain Gang
Employer, Employee or Other:	Wage Earner
Home Owned or Rented:	Rent
Farm or House:	House
Years Married:	30
Out of Work:	N
Number of Weeks Out of Work:	0
Neighbors:
Household Members Age Relationship William A Gaddy 70 Head Sarah A Gaddy 67 Wife John F Riners 51 Son-in-law Eugenia E Riners 42 Daughter Floy E Riners 0 Granddaughter Charlie W Peal 20 Grandson Emeline Sturdivant 50 Servant William Bailey 22 Servant George T Wilhrela 53 Watchman Fred T Flake 25 Nurse

Then 10 years later, he is boarding with a Gaddy family and working as a Watchman over a Chain Gang. Think prison guard. That's the last I had found so far on George T. Hildreth. He fades away into oblivian, no obituary, no cemetery record, no death certificate.

The one thing about folks who seeming appear out of nowhere in the records and just as quickly disappear, is that while the disappearance could naturally be presumed as death, anytime between year of birth and year of appearance, they were definately alive, somewhere, so..how did they escape perseption?

As a second path to find out who Eliza Hildreth was, I just took her year of death and subtracted her age, and looked at who might fall in that age range in years prior, and came back with one person. Elizabeth, presumed sister of Davis Hildreth, who was in his home in 1870 and in the home of Mary Hildreth b. 1810, in 1860.

So I returned to the 1900 census in search of more clues. Elizabeth was said to be a widow who had been the mother of 3 children, with two living. Two, I thought, who was the other one besides George? Then I noticed the neighbor, just above them, Dorothea Pigg, where did I remember that name from? Then I noticed the neighbor above Dorothea, Shelton Falkner. Shelton Falkner!!!????

Then it all came together.

Shelton Falkner was the son of James Coleman Webster/ Falkner and Mary Virginia Hildreth Falkner. They were the subject of my recent post, "Falling Between The Cracks".

Fallling Between the Cracks

Shelton was living with Henry and Sarah  Pilcher in 1880, along with Walter L. Hildreth, son of Elijah and Ann Pilcher Hildreth, aka "Watt", Eliza's nephew mentioned in the leading newspaper clip, as was "Uncle" Thomas Hildreth. 

A forehead-smacking moment - George "T" Hildreth and Uncle Thomas Hildreth must have been one and the same. That must have been why Thomas disappears and George falls from the sky, when of course, he didn't.

There was something else. I have also been trying to pull apart all of the Hildreths of the same name to see if I could fit them where they belonged. This was one family who seemed to like to stick to a  small subset of names for their children.

As far as Thomases, the ones who lived in Anson County in the mid to late 1800's; I had the Thomas who lived with the Pilcher family; there was Thomas who married Ellen James; there was Thomas who married Ellen Moore, (yes, two Ellens) there was Thomas the son of an Elizabeth Carter, wife of Jackson Carter and then Thomas who married Celia Williams.

Thanks to Celia Williams application for a widow's pension, we know that her Thomas was Thomas O. Hildreth, born about 1822, who appears in the 1850 census.  At that time, he was an apprentice to Thomas M. Hamilton. He served in both the Mexican- American and Civil Wars, passing away at Elmira Prison in New York in 1865.

Thomas who married Ellen Moore lived until 1929 and had a death certificate, so we know he was the son of the above couple and his name was Thomas Hampton Hildreth.

Thomas who was the son of Elizabeth Carter appears only in one census with his mother.

Thomas who married Ellen James appears only in one census with his family.

Afterwards, it appears that she was a widow. But was she?

Cornelia Ellen James was born about 1847 or 1850. She was the daughter of Clarrisa "Clary" Teal James, who is listed above her in the 1870 census, shown above. Her father was a Mathew James, according to some, who died in 1839. Others who descend from her brother, William Chapman James, have their father as a Henry James. Whomever Clary was the widow of, she was widowed prior to the 1850 census. Above, she is 65, with Adeline,22, living with her and Thomas 20, and Ellen, 19, living next to her, with an infant daughter, Elizabeth. Hmm, Elizabeth.

ame:	C. E. Hildreth
Age:	33
Birth Date:	Abt 1847
Birthplace:	North Carolina
Home in 1880:	Gulledges, Anson, North Carolina, USA
House Number:	57
Dwelling Number:	386
Race:	White
Gender:	Female
Relation to Head of House:	Self (Head)
Marital Status:	Widowed
Father's Birthplace:	North Carolina
Mother's Birthplace:	North Carolina
Occupation:	Keeping House
Cannot Write:	Yes
Neighbors:
Household Members Age Relationship C. E. Hildreth 33 Self (Head) Eliza Hildreth 10 Daughter William Hildreth 8 Son

In 1880, there is no Thomas, she's listed as 33 and claiming to be a widow. Her daughter is 10 and a son had been born 2 years after Eliza, William Hildreth, 8. She is living near her brother, William C. James.

Jump 20 years ahead and Ellen is now living with her adult son, William Hervey (Harvey?) Hildreth. The 1900 is one of the two censuses that tracked how many children a woman had given birth to, and how many had died, a tracking of child mortality, which was high. Ellen had given birth to 3, with only one living. Elizabeth had passed. 

In 1910, not much has changed, except William and Kate have increased their family. 

Cornelia Ellen James Hildreth died on  September 19, 1924  from chronic nephritis, a far too common ailment of the times. She was 77, and her father was named as Henry James, her mother named only by her maiden name, Teal. She was buried at Bethel United Methodist Church, near Wadesboro.

The only surviving child of Cornelia Ellen James Hildreth, William Hervey, passed away on September 27, 1931. He was only 59 and named his parents as George and Ellen Hildreth. George and Thomas, were indeed, one and the same.

From Find-a-Grave

Find-A-Grave includes a very informational obituary for W. H. Hildreth and a photo, seen above.

Mr. William H. Hildreth died on Sunday evening, September 27, 1931, at his home of long years standing on South Green Street in Wadesboro, NC. Mr. Hildreth was active and industrious until he suffered a stroke in 1927. This was followed later by a second stroke, which incapacitated him for any form of active work. In spite of this, he always did what he could at his home. Mr. Hildreth was born on February 17, 1872, near Bethel United Methodist Church, where his parents are now buried. He was the son of Thomas and Ellen James Hildreth. Mr. Hildreth was married on April 9, 1893 to Mary Katherine McQuage. Mr. Hildreth was survived by his devoted wife Mary Kate and four children: Mr. William F. Hildreth (Ruby) of Winston-Salem; George M. Hildreth (Mary) of Roanoke, Va; Mrs. J. W. Fisher of Lumberton and Mrs. J. O. Wingate of Wadesboro. Mrs. Wingate has seldom lived apart from her parents and her only child, Margaret has been the sunshine of their lives. Mr. Hildreth was long affiliated with Bethel Methodist Church in Wadesboro. The family wishes to thank the Reverend W. B. Davis, who was in charge of the burial service at the home on Monday afternoon. Many kind friends and relatives were in attendance. W. H. Carter, Frank Covington, W. B. Rose, Marvin Hendley, Hal Little and Henry Gray served as pallbearers. The interment followed on the eastern slope of our beautiful Eastview Cemetery, where his grave was covered with a profusion of autumn flowers, lavish in their color and design.

He was buried at Eastview Cemetery in Wadesboro. His obituary states that he was the son of Thomas and Ellen James Hildreth and that both of his parents were buried at Bethel United Methodist Church. No marker survives for either. 

In 1880, while living in the home of Henry Pilcher, George Thomas claimed to be married, but no wife was with him. 

In 1900, while living with his mother, he gave his marital status as Divorced.

In 1910, when asked how many times he'd been married, he answered 1, and length of first marriage was given as 30 years. 

Ellen just claimed to be a widow, too embarrassed, maybe, to answer as divorced or abandoned, whichever the case may have been. 

There was one more thing about Elizabeth, however. In her last census, she claimed to have 2 children living. Harkening back to the 1860 census, that child had to be Mary Virginia Hildreth Falkner. It did appear that Mary, at 60, was too old to be the mother of Mary, 15, and Thomas,  11. 

Mary V Hildreth Falkner lived long enough to have a death certificate.

In it, no name was given for a mother, but her father was named as "William". In Mary V's marriage record, no father was named, but her mother's name was given as ""Polly ". 

So, who, again, was Elizabeth? Was she Mary Elizabeth, called Polly when young? Instead of being a daughter of the parents in the Mary 1810 family group, was she perhaps, indeed, a daughter-in-law? Had there been a William Hildreth, son of one of the 1840 six sons of David Hildreth Sr. and wife, Ann Vickery Hildreth, who died before 1850, maybe with the group who served in the Mexican-American War? Was he mentioned, along with brothers and cousins, among the land records of the 1840's, yet I had missed him, assuming he was William, son of David, who married Nancy Covington? Only further digging will solve this mystery, if it can be solved at all. He certainly wasn't the only duplicately named Hildreth that people have gotten confused, or had  merged two people into one.

Roots and Branches

As I continue to reach further back into the roots of my family tree, in attempts to discover those who came before me and whose DNA exists in me, another phenomena is taking place. My family tree continues to grow in another direction. 

My branches are getting longer and twigs are springing from them . Thirteen years ago, I welcomed my first grandchild, and this week, I welcomed my seventh, all boys but one little girl. 

Welcome to the world little Ronan Orion! Nanny loves you so much already.