Carra Elizabeth Stiles

Notes:

[McGown-1998] has Carra Stiles as being born before Lois, but all other sources, particulary [Stiles-1986] agree that they were in fact twins.

Buried:
Section 2, Range 3

Carra married Charles Everett Southern on 1 Jun 1933 in Thorndale, Milam County, Texas, United States. Charles was born on 21 Apr 1907 in Taylor, Williamson County, Texas, United States; died on 18 Sep 1979 in Brenham, Washington County, Texas, United States; was buried after 18 Sep 1979 in Prairie Lea Cemetery, Brenham, Washington County, Texas, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. (Living)
2. (Living)

Notes:

[Stiles-1998] has the name as “Elmo Francis Stiles” but confirms other dates and information.

Francis married Carra Isabel Vaughan on 20 Sep 1905 in Lockhart, Caldwell County, Texas, United States. Carra was born on 27 Sep 1873 in Lockhart, Caldwell County, Texas, United States; died on 10 Mar 1959 in _______, Travis County, Texas, United States; was buried after 10 Mar 1959 in Taylor City Cemetery, Taylor, Williamson County, Texas, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

This database uses the name “Carra Isabel Vaughan”, as recorded in [Stiles-1986], because it corresponds with the name of Carra’s eldest daughter.

Sources [Stiles-1998] and [Patterson-1998] have the name “Carrie Isabel Vaughn”.

[Stiles-1998] has birth year as 1874.

Other Events and Attributes:

• Occupation: Rancher
• Cause of Death: Bowel obstruction/Pnumonia
• Census: 25 Feb 1841, Pulaski County, Missouri, United States
• Census: 18 Sep 1850, Milam and Williamson District, Milam County, Texas, United States
• Census: 5 Jul 1860, Western District, Milam County, Texas, United States
• Census: 2 Jun 1900, Precinct 6, Williamson County, Texas, United States
• Census: 5 May 1910, Precinct #6, Williamson County, Texas, United States

Notes:

Every census record from 1850 though 1910 in addition to [TxDoSHS-1911a] lists an age for Francis Newton Stiles’ consistent with a birthdate in 1837 or 1838. In fact [US-1900-1f], the only US census to list the month and year of an individual’s birth, reports his birthdate as “Dec 1837”. Despite this, 15 Sep 1841 (probably derived from Francis Newton Stiles’ headstone) is widely reported to be his birthdate. But if Francis Newton Stiles is accurately enumerated with his father’s family in 1840, as suggested by [US-1840a], then he cannot have been born in 1841. Moreover, [US-1840a] is the only census record discovered for Seaborn Stiles and his family in 1840...thus far, and is only consistent with the known number of children at the time if the 1837 birthdate for Francis Newton Stiles is accurate. Consequently, this database uses a birthdate of “Dec 1837” rather than 15 Sep 1841, since the latter isn’t consistent with any of the known facts of Francis Newton Stiles’ life.

[Stiles-1998] has birth place listed as “Middle, Tennessee”, but this is contradicted by many other sources.

[US-1880-1d] has a listing for a Frank and Pomfie Stiles having two children of the correct age matching Frank Elmo Stiles and Villa Ernest Stiles. This may be Francis Newton Stiles and Marina Floyd Thomas, but numerous facts don’t match including Francis’ age in 1880, his birthplace which is listed as North Carolina, and the children’s names.

Francis married Marina Floyd Thomas on 24 Feb 1875 in Sabine, Milam County, Texas, United States. Marina (daughter of James T Thomas and Marina Clarinda Grice) was born on 29 Oct 1857 in Selma, Dallas County, Alabama, United States; died on 28 May 1898 in Thrall, Williamson County, Texas, United States; was buried after 28 May 1898 in Stiles Cemetery, near Thrall, Williamson County, Texas, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Census: 22 Jun 1860, Selma, Dallas County, Alabama, United States
• Census: 24 Aug 1870, Beat No. 4 (Benton), Lowndes County, Alabama, United States

Notes:

[Stiles-1998] has birth year as 1847, but [McCown-1998] has birth year as 1857. The latter year also corresponds to information in [Stiles-1971] stating that the girls (Eliza J, Marina Floyd, Amanda, and Miranda) where all between the ages of 13 and 17 when they undertook the trip to Texas with their grandmother, in 1872.

Other Events and Attributes:

• Census: 25 Feb 1841, Pulaski County, Missouri, United States
• Census: 18 Sep 1850, Milam and Williamson District, Milam County, Texas, United States
• Census: 5 Jul 1860, Western District, Milam County, Texas, United States
• Residence: Jul 1867, Precinct 4, Milam County, Texas, United States
• Census: 26 Aug 1870, (unnamed district), Milam County, Texas, United States

Notes:

It is not known where exactly in Milam County Seaborn Stiles and his family lived, but secondhand sources occasionally refer to “Brushy, MIlam Co.”. No such town exists in modern Milam County, Texas, but Brushy may be a reference to Brushy Creek which runs from southwest to northeast across Williamson and Milam counties and crosses the county line approximately 2 miles south of Thorndale. Given census records from 1850 through 1870 which consistently place Seaborn Stiles and family in western Milam County, it’s likely his farm was located along Brushy Creek south or just east of Thorndale.

[LDS-AF-1999f] actually lists Seaborn Stiles’ birth place as merely “Laurens, S.c.” It is not known if he was actually born in the town of Laurens. This source also lists his death at Brushy, Milam County, Texas.

[US-1850-1a] has ages for Seaborn Stiles’ children (by Rebecca Fincher) that don’t correspond to the birth dates derived from sources [Stiles-1999] and [Dempster-2000].

Both [Stiles-1986] and the Williamson County Historical Commission have inaccurate locations for Lawrence Chapel Cemetery. The cemetery is actually located on County Road 473, 2.8 miles south of the junction of 473 and Texas Farm Road 112.

The given name for the individual referenced as the head-of-household in [US-1840a] is very difficult to read. It is likely to be a poor transcription of “Seaborn”, indicating that this is indeed the record for Seaborn Stiles and his family. Additional facts that lend themselves to this conclusion include the enumeration of a “William Styles”, likely to be William Stiles and his wife Piety Ellis, on the line above and the fact that the number and ages of the listed children are consistent with Seaborn Stiles’ family in the 1840s.

Despite being widely used and reported by a number of second-hand sources including [Stiles-1998] and [Stiles-1986], there are no references to the given name, “Francis”, in any first-hand sources or vital records. Consequently, Lindell-Herndon Genealogy uses “Seaborn Stiles” as this individual’s name.

A “Sibourne Stiles” is enumerated with his family in Franklin County, Tennessee in 1830. [US-1830a] lists one woman between the ages of 20 and 30 (Rebecca Fincher?) and one woman under the age of 5 (Amanda Stiles?). If this record actually refers to Seaborn Stiles, then the marriage date for Seaborn Stiles and Rebecca Fincher, derived from [Stiles-1998], is almost certainly inaccurate.

Seaborn Stiles had been a resident of Texas for 18 years and of Milam County for 17 years at the time his name was entered in the Milam County voter rolls. Consequently, he probably moved from Missouri to Texas with his family in 1849.

Census:
Millertown Post Office

Seaborn married Rebecca Fincher in 1834. Rebecca was born in 1810 in _______, _______, Tennessee, United States; died about 1843 in _______, _______, Tennessee, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Numerous sources, including [Stiles-1998] and [LDS-AF-1999f] list the name of Seaborn Stiles’ first wife as “Rebecca Fincher Newton”, but there are no first hand sources that support this assertion. Rather, [Lewis-1893a] claims that Seaborn Stiles’ first wife was Rebecca Fincher, presumably the daughter of Francis and Sarah (Flewellyn) Fincher, a family that also lived in Franklin County, Tennessee at about the time Rebecca married Seaborn.

[LDS-AF-1999f] lists Rebecca Fincher’s birthplace as South Carolina. However, in [US-1910-1d] both James Ellen Stiles and Francis Newton Stiles lists their mother’s birthplace as Tennessee. So, considering the notorious inaccuracy of the LDS Ancestral File database, this database uses the Tennessee location.

[LDS-AF-1999f] lists Rebecca Fincher Newton’s death year as 1874, but this is almost certainly not correct since Seaborn Stiles had married his second wife, Matilda Helena Moore around 1844. More likely Rebecca died in childbirth or of an illness around 1843.

Other Events and Attributes:

• Census: 18 Sep 1850, Pine Flat Beat, Dallas County, Alabama, United States

Notes:

The information on James, his parents, and siblings is based on the only matching record of a “James Thomas” in the 1850 Federal Census for Dallas County, Alabama. It is also assumed that the family was likely to have been in Dallas County in 1850 due to James’ marriage to Marina Clarinda Grice in 1853.

James Thomas does not appear in the Eighth Census of the United States for Selma Dallas County, Alabama, and his wife Clarinda, as well as his two eldest daughters, are enumerated in the household of his in-laws. Although there is no record of James Thomas having served with the Confederate States Army, and despite the fact that the start of the Civil War was still 6 months away, his enlistment is a likely explanation for his absence.

James married Marina Clarinda Grice on 3 Nov 1853 in _______, Dallas County, Alabama, United States. Marina (daughter of Lindsey Baker Grice and Elizabeth Todd) was born on 11 Dec 1834 in _______, Lowndes County, Alabama, United States; died on 27 Jun 1867 in _______, Lowndes County, Alabama, United States; was buried after 27 Jun 1867 in Bethany Baptist Church Cemetery, near Collirene, Lowndes County, Alabama, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Census: 15 Oct 1850, Lowndes District, Lowndes County, Alabama, United States
• Census: 22 Jun 1860, Selma, Dallas County, Alabama, United States