Pick an Initial, Any Initial...

Ok, things aren't quite that extreme, but how often do you see someone with four different middle initials? The historian from the Indiana archives had never seen this before. Ordinarily, you'd assume that the Civil War enrollment cards below represented three different men...

but with a given name like Beniah, it's likely that they're all for the same man. There are no overlapping dates, and so far, these cards are the only proof that any Beniah White was ever in Randolph County, Indiana. (The bottom card is the only known evidence that Beniah was born in Randolph County, Indiana. All other sources only say Indiana.)

The initial "N" stands for "Nelson". I have no evidence showing what the other initials represent, but I do have favorite theories, like Fisher and Cochenour or maybe Christian or Christopher. Again, they're just theories. I am not a trained professional, do not attempt these theories at home!

The stage is now set for part 2...Henry County, Missouri Probate Records

Family History Library Film #946616, Henry County, Missouri Probate Records, Volume A, Page 399

The search for Christian F. White in Henry County Probate Records

Not only was the name, Christopher White, recorded at the outset of his probate proceedings (that was half-expected), in the next entry, which used just initials, he had a different middle initial as well, "N". However, in the next Court term (November 1850), he was always recorded as C. F. White. At that point, I finally felt reassured that we were dealing with Christian F. White whom we've seen in the 1840 Randolph, Indiana census and Preble, Ohio marriage records.

These name inconsistencies can be explained. In an earlier post, I mentioned a Cokonougher/Gochenour example of someone named "Christopher" who went by "Christian". Then, there's the middle initial alphabet soup shown above for Beniah White, who I believe is Christian/Christopher's son. It appears conflicting middle initials might have been a family tradition in this branch?! But  thankfully, the usual manner of recording his name in Henry County land records as C. F. White was echoed in the Henry County probate records as well.

Henry County land records show a C. F. White whose final land entry occurred 18 August  1849. Christopher N.'s probate procedings were recorded only months later in the May  1850 Court term. Christian F. was the only White besides Henry White to have a son of Beniah's age shown in the 1840 census. C. F. White wasn't found in the 1850 census, and it appears that 3 children were not living in their own families in that census, one of whom was Beniah. One possible explanation is that they were orphans, children of Christian/Christopher F./N. White.

Beniah, Mary Ann, and Oliver White of Jasper County, Missouri

In a previous post, you saw that in the 1850 census, Beniah N., Mary Ann, and Oliver P. White didn't seem to fit into the households where they were enumerated.

A sense of not meshing with other Henry White descendants continues into the 1860's. They are the only Henry White descendants I know of who lived in Jasper County, Missouri, at some distance from Henry County, Missouri. (Can their location have anything to do with their neighbors in Jasper County, the Nelson's? Since Beniah's middle name is Nelson, neighbors and associates with that name raise hopes.) 

Map of Jasper County, Missouri from Familysearch

A timeline for Beniah N., Mary A., and Oliver White shows:

• 9 August 1857--Mary Ann White married Joel Bailey in Henry County, Missouri.

• 24 November 1857--B. N. White sold land to Joel Bailey in Henry County, Missouri. 

• 25 May 1859--Beniah N. White created a bond, borrowing $250 from the Jasper County, Missouri road and canal fund, payable in one year at 10% interest. He was in partnership with Robert W. and James McFarland.

• 28 May 1860--Joel and Mary Ann Bailey created a bond, borrowing $500 from Jasper County, Missouri for the use of swamp land, payable in one year at 10% interest. They were in partnership with Robert W. and James McFarland.

• 1860--Mary A. and Joel Bailey were enumerated in North Fork Township, Jasper County, Missouri. Oliver P. White was living in their household. 

• 18 January 1867--Beniah White and the McFarland' s were notified in Jasper County's Carthage Weekly Banner that they were being sued for nonpayment of the 1859 bond.

• 21 January 1867--Jasper County filed a lawsuit against Joel and Mary Ann Bailey for nonpayment of the 1860 bond.

• 21 March 1868--Jasper County seized the Bailey's land for nonpayment of bond.

• 30 March 1874--Beniah's son, John Henry White, was born in Carthage, Jasper County, Missouri. 

Joel and Mary Ann White Bailey survived the War, but the financial impact of this judgment against them must have been catastrophic. If compounded annually, the interest alone was hundreds of dollars. I can't locate the Bailey's after this event. Hopefully, something will shed some light on their later whereabouts.

With their placement order in the 1856 lawsuit plaintiff list, their enumeration in the 1850 Henry County, Missouri Census as "strays", and their interaction later at some distance from Henry County in Jasper County, Missouri, it seems that Beniah Nelson, Mary Ann and Oliver P. White could very well have been siblings, the children of Christian/ Christopher F. White.

Weiss/White?

If Carey Bracewell had researched the White family instead of the Bracewell's, we might be traced back to Adam by now--he's a great researcher. But we have the next-best thing, a helpful clue from his ancestor, Cora White Price, who was the daughter of David Fisher White.

Carey wrote a book, The Ancestry of David Bracewell: Including the Allied Southern Families of Braswell, Brazil, Bay, Price, Passmore, Gage, Prillaman, and Allen. On page 231, it states Cora recalled that her maiden name, White, was originally Weiss.

This brings to mind a Preble County, Ohio White family, Adam White and Permelia Powers. Adam was born 10 July, 1790 in Westmoreland, Pennsylvania, the son of John White and Eve Letman. His mother, Eve, may have been the daughter of Valentine Letman and Catherine.

Valentine Ledman/Letman came from Germany. He left a will in Berkeley, Virginia, Vol. 3, dated 30 May 1802, naming his children, including a daughter, Eve, who married John Wise. I've often wondered if Wise was a variant of Weiss, which was then anglicized to White?

Some guesstimate Eve' s birth year as 1776, which works for well for the birth of Adam in 1790, but not much is truly known about her. 

So far, it looks like Carey's information might have ties to "Adam" after all!

Update: I have had the good fortune to become acquainted with Leona, a descendant of John and Rebecca Fisher White since I wrote this. According to her information, John White and Eve Letman were the parents of eleven children, including John White who married Rebecca Fisher and Henry White who married Mary Fisher.