Email from Linda Warrenburg, Nov. 14, 2008:
MYERS
CLENDENIN
HEMMINGWAY
MARY ELLEN MYERS
Mary Ellen Myers, eldest daughter of Phalby Mills and Col. David Myers , was born May 29, 1802 at the an cestral home, Ft. Marion, SC. She was a superb beauty with a wealth of dark auburn hair and large handsome black eyes as shown in an oil portrait made when she was young which is now owned by the family of a grandson, T. C. Catchings of Vicksburg, Miss. She was educated at the old Moravian School of Salem, NC. While in school, she painted several pictures in water colors, two of which are still owned by the family – one a basket of fruit and the other a basket of flowers. The family also have cards of her friends which she painted with their names ornamented with a flower, cornucopia, and other designs. About 1819 she married Robert Clendenin, an eminent lawyer and state politician of Yorkville, SC. She was a leader of fashions and elegant society. She danced at a ball given in honor of Gen. Lafayette in Columbia, SC about 1824 when he visited America, and she wore white satin slip- pers with a miniature of Lafayette painted upon each.
Hon. Robert Clendenin was born in 1784. He was admitted to the bar on June 11, 1813 and built up an extensive practice around Yorkville, SC. He died August 29, 1830, in his 47th year. Their children were:
Nancy McNess Clendenin born July 4, 1820
Catherine Clendenin born in 1822 and died young.
Phalby Clendenin born December 25, 1823 and died young.
Robert Clendenin, Jr. born December 3, 1825 and died young.
Mary Elizabeth Clendenin born 1828.
In 1834, Mary Ellen Myers Clendenin married Dr. William Hemmingway in SC. They began making preparations to move the family to Mississippi. Negroes were sent to the plantation site in Hinds County, four miles from Bolton Depot, to clear the land, build the necessary houses and make the other preparations for the building of the plantation home. This home was completed and the family moved in December 24, 1838. The trip was made overland in the family coach, a massive carriage with great wheels and high box seat for the driver. The Carriage was handsomely trimmed with broadcloth and heavy fringe. The footman, who rode behind, opened the door and let down the carpeted steps for the parties getting in or out, then replaced them and closed the door. This plantation home, built in 1838 which was the golden era of the South, was called “Fleetwood”. There was not a more beautiful nor highly cultivated grounds in the entire state. The house was very large and spacious, two storied and was elegantly furnished. On each side of the wide lawn were oaks and other forest trees. On the inner side of the carriage circle were massive cedars, trimmed sugar loaf shape. The outside of the circle had a hedge of wild peach, kept trimmed straight on the sides and flat on tip, and on the outside of this was a hedge of cape jasmines. All kinds of other flowers and roses brightened the grounds. Magnolia trees lined the avenue from the house to the gate and the flower beds on both sides of this avenue were bordered with dwarf box.
The children of Mary Ellen Myers Clendenin Hemmingway and Dr. William Hemmingway were:
William Hemmingway, Jr. who died in infancy.
David Myers Hemmingway born 1835.
MARRIAGES:
Nancy McNess Independence Clendenin was always called “Nannie.” She was born on July 4, 1820 at Yorkville, SC and because of her birthday, her father being a patriotic Whig, added “Independence” to her name. She kept these initials until her marriage. She was educated in Columbia, SC in the school of Mr. Marks and later in Baltimore, Md. She had a beautiful cultivated voice and sang with pathos and expression the popular songs of that time, such as: “The Blind Boy”, “The Irish Emigrant’s Lament”, “A Life on the Ocean Wave”, “A Poor Cracovian Maid”, etc. Being only nineteen years old when her family moved to Mississippi. she became a reigning belle in Canton, Jackson, as well as other sections of the state. She was devoted to her church and did much for it’s welfare. She was especially active in building St. Luke’s Episcopal Church at Brandon and St. Paul’s Chapel at Johnsville, Miss., as well as the parochial work. On February 4, 1843 she married Dr. Thomas Jefferson Catchings of Canton, Miss. They were married at “Fleetwood”, the plantation home in Hinds County, Miss. and then her mother presented her with the plantation where they lived until the Civil War. When the cannonading by Sherman began in Vicksburg, Dr. Catching sold “Fleetwood” to Dr. Joseph E. Davis, his brother, President Jefferson Davis buying the adjoining plantation. Dr. Catchings moved his family and Negroes to “Refuge”. his plantation in Sunflower County. Immediately after the surrender, he sold “Refuge” and bought a home in Brandon, Miss. where he resided six years and then returned to Sunflower County.
“Fleetwood” was burned by the Federal troops, who raided the homes of the two Davis’. The china, cut glass, two pianos, books, and various valuables left in the care of Mrs. Davis when the Catchings moved, were destroyed by the Yankees. It is said that these things were shipped North and apparently this was substantiated later by an advertisement appearing in a Northern newspaper of a family Bible – It just so happened that a friend saw the ad and informed Dr. Catchings. The family of Mrs. J. R. Baird own the oil portrait of both Dr. and Mrs. Catchings painted about 1 1848.
Dr. Thomas Jefferson Catchings was born September 17, 1806. He was educated as a medical doctor and practiced his profession until his death. He was quite active politically, serving frequently in both houses of the state legislature. He died May 12, 1883 in Sunflower County, Miss. Their children were:
Mary Clendenin Catchings born February 4, 1844.
Nannie Clendenin Catchings born October 14, 1845.
Thomas Clendenin Catchings born January 11, 1847.
MARRIAGES:
Mary Clendenin Catchings was born at “Fleetwood”, the family home, February 4, 1844. She was educated by private tutors and then one year at Nashville Female Academy, Nashville, Tenn., Mr. C. D. Elliott, Principal. She graduated in June 1861. She married Thomas Harding Tor rey, son of Major and Mrs. George Torrey of Fayette, Jefferson County, Miss. Mr. Torrey fought throughout the Civil War and when peace was declared, he took a commercial course in Memphis, Tenn. and then studied law. He was a representative in the legislature in 1879 and 1880 and then was treasurer of Sunflower County, Miss. He practiced law until his death on April 14, 1881. There were no children.
(NOTE: This is the Mrs. M. C. Torrey who collected most of the data of this family history.)
Nannie Clendenin Catchings was born at “Fleetwood”, the family home, October 14, 1845. She was educated by private tutors and then one year at the Nashville Female Academy, graduat- ing as did her sister in June 1861. She was the youngest of her class, being less than fifteen years old, when she received her diploma, and made a sensation by having as her essay, “Yankee Doodle.” Her father who was a life long Whig and opposed to secession, se lected the subject of her essay for her. She founded the first Episcopal Sunday School in Sunflower County in 1873 and in 1876 helped in erecting St. Paul’s Chapel in Johnsville, Miss., then the county seat. When the court house was moved to Indi- anola, she had the chapel taken on rollers to Baird, a mile distance.
On April 26, 1866, she married John Rupert Baird at the home of her parents at Brandon, Miss. He served throughout the Civil War, leaving Bethany College, Va. to enlist. He was a very successful planter and influential citizen. He was a member of the Constitutional Con- vention of Mississippi in 1890. Their children were:
twins born in 1869 and died in infancy.
Thomas Catchings Baird born August 4, 1872.
James Catchings Baird born November 12, 1877.
MARRIAGES:
Thomas C. Baird was born August 4, 1872 in Johnville, Miss. He was privately educated at home and then sent to Virginia Military Institute, Lexington, Va., graduating June 1891 and receiving the Speakership Medal. He spent one year at Yale and then studied med- cine at Sewanee, Tenn. and Atlanta, Ga. He specialized in eye, ear, nose and throat in New York City. During the Spanish-American War, he enlisted in June 1898 in the Ben Humphries Rifles, Greenwood, Miss. In Cuba, he was detached by Col. Sergeant as assistant surgeon and helped in the treatment of the yellow fever epidemic. On October 4, 1900, he married Miss Elvira Greenwod Terrell of Miss. Their children were:
Dorothy Terrell Baird born July 16, 1901.
Nancy Clendenin Baird born February 19, 1903
Thomas Catchings Baird, Jr. born November 19, 1905.
Ann Hamilton Baird born March 17, 1907.
Thomas Clendenin Catchings were born at “Fleetwood”, the family home, January 11, 1847. He was privately educated at home until September 1860 when he entered the Freshman class of the State University at Oxford. The following year he en- tered Oakland College, near Rodney, Miss. and was Sophomore Speaker in 1862, subject being “Italian Drama”. He fought throughout the Civil War and at the close, was one of President Jefferson Davis’ bodyguards or escorts. Returning home, he studied law in the office of Gen. Lee Lowey in Brandon, Miss. and later was State Senator. He was Attorney-General eight years; resigned and was elected to Congress in 1884. He was re-elected every succeeding term until he resigned in 1900. He then formed a partnership with his son, Oliver, and re- sumed the practice of law in Vicksburg, Miss.
He married Miss Florence Olivia Shearer of Raymond, Miss. on March 4, 1870. Their children were:
Thomas Clendenin Catchings, Jr. born March 6, 1871.
born March 6, 1871
Oliver Whitehead Catchings born September 20, 1878.
MARRIAGE:
Oliver Whitehead Catchings was born in Vicksburg, Miss. on September 20, 1878. He was educated in the public schools of Washington , DC; St. John’s Mili- tary School, Alexandria, Va. where he graduated in law. He practiced his profession in Washington, DC and then formed the partnership with his fa- ther in Vicksburg, Miss. On April 28, 1898 he married Miss Grayson Maupin Wendling, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. G. R. Wendling of Washington, DC. Their child was:
Josephine Elizabeth Catchings born July 13, 1899.
Mary Elizabeth Clendenin was born in Yorkville, SC in 1828. An oil portrait of her is owned by the family or her great-nephew, J. C. Baird in Baird, Miss. It shows her to have had a soft amiable expression of her black eyes, beautiful mouth and very sweet face. She had an abundance of black hair. Her father died in 1830 and her mother in 1843 so her brother-in-law, Dr. T. J. Catchings became her guardian. She attended school in Jackson, Mill., and at Mr. Chapman’s School in Vicksburg where she was crowned Queen of May. She then went to the “Institute,” Rector Smith’s School for girls in Columbia, Tenn. Here again, she was crowned Queen of May with very elabo- rate and expensive ceremonies. She graduated about 1845. She was an accomplished musician, playing the piano, harp, and guitar. She had an unusually beautifully cultivated voice. In 1846 she married Allen Jones Polk, son of Dr. William Polk of Columbia, Tenn. and a cousin of President J. K. Polk. They were married at “Fleetwood”, the home of her sister, and lived for a time in Hinds County. Then they bought in Columbia, Tenn. and then moved to their plantation near Helena, Ark. She died October 12, 1853 in her 25th year at her plantation home near Helena, Ark. She was buried in Elmwood Cemetery, Memphis, Tenn. Their children were:
William Clendenin Polk born ________ and died in infancy.
Mary Clendenin Polk born 1852.
MARRIAGE:
Mary C. Polk was called “Pet” by her family and friends. She was reared by her grandmother, Mrs. William Polk of Columbia, Tenn. She married Frank Hemphill of Tuscaloosa, Ala.
At that time, he was an editor in Columbia, Tenn. Their children were:
Miss Frankie Hemphill
Allen Polk Hemphill
Polk Hemphill
David Myers Hemmingway was born in 1835. He was the son of Mary Ellen Myers and her second husband, Dr. William Hemmingway. He was a very handsome brunette and an accomplished vio- linist. He inherited a plantation near Camden, Miss. from his Mother. In 1861 he married Miss Mary A. Catchings, a niece of his brother-in-law, Dr. T. J. Catchings. At the death of her Mother, Dr. Catchings had become her guardian and she made her home at “Fleetwood.” At the beginning of the Civil War, David M. Hemmingway left with the first troops and remained on duty through out the war. During this period, the family spent much time at the father’s home, William Hem- mingway, in Kirkwood, Miss. At the close of the war, they bought a home in Newport, Miss. near the Camden plantation. He died January 25, 1884 in Newport. Their children were:
Nannie Hemmingway
Mamie Hemmingway
Kate Hemmingway
Willie Hemmingway
Thomas Catchings Hemmingway
David Myers Hemmingway, Jr.
Catchings Hemmingway died in infancy.
MARRIAGES:
Nannie Hemmingway married a Mr. Savage. The family lived in Monicello, Ark. Their children were:
Louise Savage
Prentiss Savage
Harry Savage
Mamie Hemmingway married Mr. D. M. Albin of Memphis, Tenn. Their children were:
Evelyn Albin
Belle Albin
Robert Hemmingway Albin
Kate McWillis Hemmingway married Mr. Harry Landrum of Attala County, Miss. The family lived in Kosciusko, Miss. Their children were:
Harry Catchings Landrum
Ruth Mills Landrum
Percy Menville Landrum
Mary Niles Landrum
Thomas Catchings Hemmingway married Miss Luzetta Alexander of Harrodsburg, Ky. in 1908.
She was a highly educated and accomplished lady. They lived on their plantation near Du- rant, Miss.
MYERS
CLAIBORNE CLIFTON MYERS
Col. Claiborne Clifton Myers, son of Col. David Myers and his wife, Phalby Mills, was born at the ancestral home, Ft. Marion, SC. He was a large planter in Autauga County, Ala. near Montgomery. His planta- tion home was called “Millwood.” It was a large, colonial residence, very elegant and abundantly equipped with fine servants. His first wife was Miss Rebecca Augustine of South Carolina. Their chil- dren were:
David Rudolph Myers
Rebecca Augustine Myers
William Myers
Eliza Myers died in infancy.
Sallie Myers died in infancy.
Col. Claiborne Clifton Myers’ second wife was Miss Georgiana O’Bannon of South Carolina, a cousin of John C. Calhoun, the South Carolina Statesman. She was a handsome, magnificent woman. Col. Myers died on board a ship returning from Europe, where he had gone for his health. His widow later mar- ried her cousin, a Mr. Calhoun. After the death of Col. Myers, Gov. Watts of Alabama became guard- ian of the two Myers daughters, Sallie and Mary Katherine (Kate). They were sent to New York to be educated in music. The children of Col. Claiborne Clifton Myers and his second wife were:
Laurens O’Bannon Myers
Sallie Jennings Myers
Mary Katherine (Kate) Myers
Claiborne Clifton Myers, Jr.
MARRIAGES:
David Rudolph Myers born August 31, 1835 at the plantation home, “Millwood,” near Montgomery, Ala. On December 14, 1853, he married Miss Mary Chalmers DeJarnette of Alabama. They lived for several years at Hendersonville, NC. Then prior to the Civil War, they moved to Texas and remained near Millican until the close of the war. They then returned to Ala., living at Mont- gomery and later at Birmingham. He died July 3, 1909 and was buried at Vinita, Okla. Mrs. My- ers died later and was buried by the side of her husband. Their children were:
John DeJarnette Myers born Oct. 11, 1854.
Claiborne Clifton Myers, II. May 3, 1856
Augustine Myers Dec. 12, 1857 and died Aug. 8, 1863.
Rebecca Ashe Myers Mar. 29, 1859
David Mims Myers Aug. 1, 1864
Kate Eliza Myers Apr. 13, 1867
Walter Mims Myers Apr. 6, 1869
Mary Mims Myers
David Rudolph Myers, Jr.
MARRIAGES:
John DeJarnette Myers died unmarried.
Claiborne Clifton Myers, II married his first cousin, Miss Kate DeJarnette. They lived in Bir - mingham, Ala. where he died on _______________. Their children were:
Mary Owen Myers
David DeJarnette (Dee) Myers
MARRIAGES:
Mary Owen Myers married Dr. Edgar Marion Scott. They lived in Birmingham. Ala. Their sons were:
Edgar M. Scott, Jr.
Owen Myers Scott
Dee Myers married Miss Lois Little of Birmingham, Ala. He died about 1938 and was bur- ied in Birmingham, Ala. Their daughter was:
Mary Lois Myers
Rebecca Ashe Myers married Mr. Charles J. Croninger. They lived at Vinita, Okla. There were no children.
Kate Eliza Myers (Katie) married Judge Jim B. Burkhalter of Columbia. SC but they lived most of their married life in Vinita, Okla. Their children were:
Rebecca Elizabeth Burkhalter
Adeline Belle Burkhalter
James B. Burkhalter, Jr.
Walter M. Myers was born in Millican, Texas on April 6, 1869. The family had moved to Texas prior to the Civil War and then returned to Montgomery, Ala. at the close of the war. In 1999, he returned to Texas and started working for the St. Louis & Southwestern railroad at Tyler on October 1, 1888. The following year, he entered the services of Houston & Texas Central which later became a part of the Southern Pacific Lines. After 50 years of service, he was retired in March 1939. He lived in Ennis, Texas. He married Miss Bertie McCullough of Piedmont, Md. They had seven children. She died October 1, 1926 and was buried in the cemetery at Waco, Texas. Their children were:
Walter Mims Myers, Jr. born Jan. 24, 1893
Eleanor Myers Feb. 7, 1894 died Nov. 14, 1896
Helen Myers Mar. 10, 1897
Evelyn Myers Mar. 12, 1900 died Mar. 20, 1919
George Welborn (Dick) Myers Oct. 26, 1902
Mary Frances Myers Oct. 11, 1909
Robert David Myers Sept. 11, 1912
Water M. Myers’ second wife was his first cousin Miss Eva Hutchins Neal of Ennis, Texas. They had no children. He died August 13, 1948.
MARRIAGES:
Walter M. .Myers, Jr. (Money) married Miss Gladys Hymers of Houston, Texas He was in the General Insurance business in Oklahoma, St. Louis, Mo., and Dallas, Texas. They adopted two children:
Houston Myers born May 4, 1922
Madelon Helen Myers (Bittie) Jan. 3, 1926
Helen Myers was married to Frank C. Oliver of Mexia, Texas on December 23, 1929. They lived in Mexia. They
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