Stewart, William R.

Submitted by Sue Badeaux
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William R. Stewart was born on 24 May 1844, the first child of Alexander Stewart and Nancy A. Cotterell. Alexander's parents, John and Elizabeth Stewart were both born about 1795 in South Carolina. They were married there and migrated about 1818 to Kentucky where Alexander was born in 1823. In the 1830's the Stewarts, along with many other Hart County, Kentucky families, moved to the Lawrence/Richland County area of Illinois. John and Elizabeth died there about 1855.

Nancy A. Cotterell was the daughter of John Cotterell and Mary "Polly" Utterback. Nancy's father, John was born in 1788 in South Carolina, possibly in Chester County, son of Henry Cotterell and Sarah Cox. It appears that Henry died between 1801-1805 and Sarah moved with her sons to Hardin/Hart County, Kentucky. There John married Mary "Polly" the daughter of Martin Utterback and Anne Williams on 2 July 1812. Her father, Martin, a Baptist Minister of the Salem Association, performed the marriage. The Utterback family traces its ancestry back to the First Germanna Colony of 1714 in Virginia. This colony consisted of 42 people, 12 families, that emigrated from the Nassau-Siegen area of Germany and came to Virginia under the sponsorship of Lt. Gov. Alexander Spotswood of Virginia. Spotswood planned to mine silver with the help of these Germans but instead installed them in a fort on the frontier to act as buffer against Indian attacks. These German families, Utterback, Brumbach, Fishback, and Martin, trace their ancestors back to the late 1400's in that area of Germany. Back in Kentucky, Martin and Anne Utterback moved with the Cotterells to Illinois about the same time that the Stewarts moved. The Stewart family bought property and settled next door to John Cotterell and family with the Utterbacks near-by.

Alexander Stewart and Nancy A. Cotterell, next-door neighbors, were married 23 June 1842 by her grandfather, Martin Utterback. They settled on a near by farm and produced the following children: William R. (b. 24 May 1844), John W. (b. 1845), Elizabeth (b. 1847), Moses (b. 1849-d. 1856), Albert (b. 1851), Sarah S. (b. 1854) and Matlida (b. 1856). Nancy died in June 1859 and Alexander married Polly Evans Witsman, a widow with 3 children, in Dec. 1859. Alexander Stewart died in 1880 in Richland County, Illinois.

William R. joined the Union Army in Nov. of 1861 at the beginning of the Civil War and was sent to Camp Butler, near Springfield, for basic training. While there he contracted measles, which was sweeping through the camp and stayed in the hospital for over a month. He served from Dec. 1861 until 20 Jan 1866 in Company F, 46th Illinois Infantry. From his military records and pensions files, he appeared to be in and out of the hospital many times and was even sent back to Illinois at one point to recuperate. Also in July 1862 he injured his leg at Memphis, Tenn. This wound never healed and was a health problem all his life. He en-enlisted 19 Dec 1863 at Camp Cowan in Mississippi and was described on these papers as having "blue eyes, light hair, light complexion, 5 feet 7 inches high".

At one point during the later part of the war, his unit spent some time in Winn Parish near Dodson. There William was smitten by a young girl named Elizabeth Francis Mooney, daughter of John Mooney and Mary LeGrand. They were married Oct 2 or 3, 1865 in Winn Parish. Family lore states that he was discharged in Baton Rouge and walked back to Dodson to get married. He was discharged in Jan of 1866 in Baton Rouge, so perhaps he made the walk at some point.

The first few years of his married life are not well known. It is believed that he lived in Winn Parish close to the Mooney family until about 1871 when they all moved to Columbia County, Arkansas. The motive for this move to Arkansas is unknown. It is known that William and Elizabeth had several children while still in Louisiana. They were Mary Francis (b. Aug 1867), Alma J. (b. Jan 1868) and John William (b. Mar 1870). Once in Arkansas he retained close ties to his brothers-in-law, John L. and Edward Mooney and added to their young family with the following children; Vassar Booker (b. July 1872), Joseph A. (b. Mar 1874), twins Robert William and Henry W. (b. May 1876), and Thomas Jefferson (b. Apr 1880).

In Oct of 1883 William returned to Illinois and began gathering documents in order to apply for a pension for his Civil War service. He filed many affidavits and, at some point, was finally awarded a pension. His daughter, Mary Francis, married James Buchanan Berry, son of William Jasper Berry and Ellen Campbell, in Columbia County, Arkansas on 30 June 1867. This extended family returned to Winn Parish in 1888, leaving the Mooneys in Arkansas.

In July of 1890, William and Elizabeth had a child, Albert, that lived for 2 days and was buried in New Hope Cemetery. Daughter Alma J. married Ben H. Mixon, son of Obed Z. Mixon and Mary Vieena Page, 24 Dec 1893, and on 7 Nov 1895, son John William, married Lula Missouri Walker, daughter of Flournoy Walker and Martha A. Southerland. Son Joseph A married Bertha A. Pepper, daughter of Franklin Benjamin Pepper and Elizabeth Irena Lucinda Walker in 1896. In the midst of all the weddings, William received 160 acres of Homestead land close to Dodson, in Winn Parish, La. in Jan. 1897. Another son, Vassor Booker, was married 5 April 1899 to Minnie Dean.

William was heavily involved with the New Hope Methodist Church outside of Dodson and in 1902 was one of the trustees that purchased land for the church from the railroad. Most of his family is buried in the cemetery of the church. More weddings followed swiftly. In 1902 Thomas married Lula's sister Alma J. Walker and in 1903 Henry married Bertha's sister Mary Lue Pepper. Lastly, Robert married the sister of both Bertha and Mary Lue, Etta Savanna Pepper in 1904. To complicate things further, there is evidence that Elizabeth Irena Lucinda Walker, the mother of the Pepper sisters, was the daughter of Flournoy Walker and his second wife, Hetty Waller. If this is so, then three sons of William R. married granddaughters of Flournoy and two sons married his daughters!

In 1904 William began selling his property to his sons. His daughter, Alma J., died in Aug 1908 leaving 5 children behind. Three of these grandchildren are living with him on the 1910 census. In 1911 William is mistakenly listed on the Enumeration of Ex-Confederate Soldiers, Winn Parish, La. He states at that time that he had heart trouble and was supported by his children. His beloved wife, Elizabeth Francis, died 21 Feb 1916 and was buried in New Hope Cemetery. On a pension document, dated 18 Aug 1920, he states that "on account of age not able to work, very bad eyesight".

After an illness, William R. died 23 Sept 1924 at the age of 80 and was buried beside his wife in New Hope Cemetery. According to his probate he had a small amount of money in the bank and it was used to pay his few outstanding bills. He owed Dr. S. M. Brian $38.00 and his children spent $57.75 of the money for his shroud and coffin. His marker at the cemetery reads:

W. R. Stewart
May 24, 1840 (note: this is incorrect)
Sept. 23, 1924
His Toils Are Past
His Work Is Done
He Fought The Fight
The Victory Won