This could be him...or not! I found this image on Ancestry.com. It was posted by another user, Mitch Fitzgerald, along with several other wonderful images purported to be Bradbury ancestors in my own direct line. How exciting, right? So, I contacted Mr. Fitzgerald to ask where the photos came from and how he knew who they were. He kindly wrote back and informed me that these images were from a collection of his wife's family photos, they were known (identification of folks in the images) to family members as they were passed down, and these heirlooms were, sadly, sold on Ebay by another family member since Mitch scanned them. Unfortunately, the selling price was too high for the Fitzgeralds to reclaim these priceless photos, so they are now out there somewhere adrift!!
When I found this image, I already had a little information about my ancestor, William Manuel Bradbury:
1. I first found him in the 1900 US Federal Census when I was searching for my Great Grandfather, William's son, Thomas Elliott. The family looked like this:
Bradbury, Wm - Head White Male born Feb 1846 married 33 yrs. born in TN as were both parents
Indianna S. - Wife White Female born Mar 1848 married 33 yrs. born in TN, father GA, mother TN Mother of 9 children, 7 living
Wilkins N - Son White Male born Apr 1881 single born in Arkansas
Thomas E - Son White Male born Mar 1884 single born in Arkansas
Clara S - Dau White Female born Sep 1886 single born in Arkansas
Ada U - Dau White Female born Apr 1889 single born in Arkansas
John W - Son White Male born Apr 1868 single born in Arkansas
They were living in Donald Twp., Franklin County, AR at that time.
2. I then relied on the unusual name of Indianna to help me trace the family in the 1880 US Federal Census, when the family looked like this:
Bradberry, William white male age 34 married farmer TN TN TN
Indianna S. white female age 32 wife TN GA TN
John W white male age 12 son farm lab.
TX TN TN
James R white male age 10 son farm lab. AR TN TN
Stephen H white male age 7 son AR TN TN
Texanna B white female age 1 daughter AR TN TN
Mary E white female age 18 sister single
TX TN TN
They were living in Hogan Twp., Franklin County, AR at this time. The possible Texas connection is
new information (possibly) to follow up on.
3. This led me back to the 1870 US Federal Census which shows a young family:
Bradbury, William age 24 male white born in TN
Indiana age 22 female white born in TN
John W age 2 male white born in
TX
At this time the family was located in Horsehead Twp., Johnson Co., AR.
4. Now I'm really curious about the Texas connection, and any possible Civil War service records!! I (and many other Ancestry.com users) believe this entry applies to William's family:
1860 US Federal Census - Denton, TX
James Bradley age 42, male, farmer, born in TN
Mahalia " age 30, female, born in TN
William " age 14, male, born in TN
John " age 10, male, born in TX
James " age 7, male, born in TX
Charles " age 5, male, born in TX
Eliza " age 2, female, born in TX
This is where things get fuzzy. LOTS of Ancestry trees AND Mitch Fitzgerald's wonderful photos say that William's father was a James Madison Bradbury and his mother was Mahala Mary Hunt. Aside from the last name potentially spelled incorrectly, these names seem to fit the family shown above in 1860, right? But how to be sure??
Well, I've asked a number of folks on Ancestry.com how they came to the conclusion that James and Mahala were indeed this particular William Bradbury's parents, for there are a few William's of this age out there who were born in Tennessee. Sadly, I have yet to receive any actual evidence from anyone. They all point to another tree that gave the information! Sorry, folks, but that doesn't mean much.
I've since been doing what every good genealogist would do: gathering as much information as I can reliably tie to William, Indianna, and their children in search of clues about William's parents. I wrote to the state of Arkansas to obtain William's application for a Confederate Pension. He claimed to have served as a mail carrier in
Texas in the Cavalry, but his pension request was denied. I received only a single page giving this information and stating that William was old, sick and poor at the time of the application. Anyone who could corroborate his story was dead, he said. I continue to hope that I may find a death record for William which may include his parents' names, but so far all I have been able to fine are his grave (including only the year of death - 1931) and his will (written in 1920). Without a date of death I can't order a death certificate search from the state. A date of Jan 5th, 1931 is given on Ancestry.com, but that's more mystery information. His will was, however, admitted for probate in March 1931.
So, to sum up, my question/the mystery is: Who were the parents of William Bradbury/Bradberry?? I do have the more recent census records for the family, Indianna's family is relatively easy to trace (her maiden name is Weems) but I'm stuck on William. Any ideas?
