Joshua and Louisa (Boulton) Ballard

Joshua ("Josh") Ballard was born in about the year 1826 in Madison County, Alabama. He was the son of Daniel and Hannah Ballard. Daniel Ballard was born in about the year 1782 in Onslow County, North Carolina, and Hannah was born in about 1796.

During the 1830's, Daniel Ballard and his family moved south to St. Clair County, Alabama. Joshua, who was a young boy at the time, spent the remainder of his child�hood years in St. Clair County.

At the age of 17, Joshua Ballard married Louisa ("Lou") Boulton, also 17, on Wednesday, September 20, 1843 in St. Clair County, Alabama. Louisa (sometimes spelled Louiza) Boulton was a daughter of John Boulton (sometimes spelled Bolton). Lou was born in about the year 1826 in Alabama.

Josh and Lou Ballard started their family in St. Clair County, Alabama, probably near Ashville, and lived next door to John Boulton and his family. Four of their children were born there.

Between 1852 and 1855, Joshua, Louisa and their four children moved to Texas. Joshua's brother, Daniel Ballard, and his family are said to have moved to Lamar County, near Paris, Texas. Joshua and his family settled in the southern part of Van Zandt County, near Martins Mill. There Joshua worked as a farmer, and according to the 1860 Van Zandt County, Texas census, he was also a mechanic.

Joshua Ballard's name first appeared on the Van Zandt County Tax List in 1857, showing that he owned 80 acres of land on Kickapoo Creek, a tributary of the Neches River. Joshua obtained the land from John W. Head, taken from tract no. 320. Joshua's land was the southeastern corner of the original survey of land patented to David Herring by the State of Texas. Texas Farm Road 1861 now runs through what was once their property. The land was valued at $120.00, according to the 1857 Tax List, and Joshua paid $1.18 in taxes that year. He owned no horses or cattle. In 1858 the records show that he only owned 53 1/2 acres of land, but the value of it was $200.00. That year he paid $1.25 in taxes. It wasn't until 1861 that Joshua was listed as owning any farm animals. He owned one horse ($40.00) and 20 cattle ($176.00). That year his 53 1/2 acres of land was valued at $265.00, bringing his total value of possessions up to $481.00, so he paid a total of $1.60 in taxes.

Joshua paid off the land and received the deed for the land on May 9, 1862. The deed states that John W. and Nancy E. Head sold 53 acres of land to Joshua Ballard for $65.00. Joshua was apparently first going to buy 80 acres from J. W. Head, but wound up buying only 53 acres.

Julia Ann Ballard was born to Joshua and Lou on February 9, 1860, at Martins Mill, Van Zandt County, Texas.

It was in 1861 that the Civil War began and in August of that year, at the age of 35, Joshua enlisted in the military service of the Confederate States. He voluntarily enlisted as a private in Company K, Braxton Bragg Cavalry, 19th Texas Brigade at Fairfield (Freestone County), Texas, some 50 or 60 miles southwest of where they lived. In March of 1863, he was apparently transferred to the 37th Regiment Texas Cavalry and later his company was transferred to the 35th Regiment Texas Cavalry. The few war papers that he is listed on state that his occupation in the war was a teamster, and he was paid 25 cents per day in August of 1863. In September of 1863, he was paid one dollar per day. Joshua fought in the war until it ended in 1865. Then he returned to Van Zandt County to his family.

In September of 1865, Joshua and Louisa sold their 53 acres of land to Solomon Y. Carter for $100.00. For a few years, the Ballards apparently farmed on someone else's land, for they owned none of their own.

Sometime during the year 1866, Joshua was said to have gone north to Paris, Texas to visit his brother, Daniel Ballard, and while there contracted pneumonia and died. It is said that Joshua was buried there in Lamar County, Texas. He was only 40 years old, and Lou was left with a houseful of children.

The following story was passed down through the years and recounted by Julia's grandson, E. Clifford Heddins (son of John Ivan Heddins). It is not known whether this occurred before or after Joshua Ballard's death, but it was probably during the mid to late 1860's. When Julia was a young girl, one day she and one of her brothers were out playing in a ditch on their land when suddenly they noticed a large panther a few feet away from them, watching them closely. His tail was moving back and forth in a manner in which they often do before attacking. Julia and her brother ran back to their house unharmed, yet quite frightened. That very night while the family slept, a noise in the nearby barn awoke them suddenly. The panther broke into the barn and killed a mare colt, and scratched the mare as well. Later they heard a violent scratching sound at the door of their house. The next morning they discovered that the towel which had been placed at the threshold of the doorway to keep cold wind out, had been ripped to pieces by the panther as he tried to enter the house. It was a miracle that the panther didn't attack Julia and her brother the day before.

The 1868 Van Zandt County tax list shows "Mrs. Louisa Ballard" owning 160 acres of land valued at $300.00 (abstract no. 450). They owned two horses ($75.00) and 7 cattle ($28.00). The total value of their possessions that year was $548.00, for which Louisa paid $2.05 in taxes. Lou was in the process of buying the land on which they were living from John T. McWilliams. The land was in Martins Mill and adjoined the land that Joshua and Louisa had previously owned, just to the south of it. On February 16, 1872, the land was legally deeded to Louisa for she had completed paying for it.

The following story was recounted by Roma Dean Heddin, a son of John Ivan Heddins, the way it was told to him by his grandmother Julia Ann (Ballard) Heddins: Sometime during the mid to late 1870s, Julia was being courted by a young man named Gideon ("Gid") Douglas. One evening, Gid and Julia had gone out in his horse and buggy to a local dance, where they came upon a bully, or "desperado" as Julia called him, whose name was Stucky. Stucky began harassing them, and attempted to take Julia away from Gid. The two men got into a fight over Julia, which came to a halt when Stucky "whipped" Gid with his pistol. When Gid came to, he and Julia got into the buggy and started toward home. As they were leaving the scene, Stucky made some provoking remark to Gid. When they were about 100 yards down the road, Gid told Julia to wait there with the horse, and he began walking toward the dance house. Gid remembered that at the house where the dance was taking place, there was a double-barrel shotgun in the back room, so he went around the house and went in through the back door. He picked up the shotgun and opened up the dance room door. Stucky saw him, and quickly reached for his pistol, but before he had a chance to use it, Gid shot him nearly in half with the shotgun. Gid had killed a man, defending Julia's honor. (See Gid's FindAGrave memorial)

The Ballards were apparently Methodists, and probably attended Holly Springs Methodist Church just north of Martins Mill.In 1881, Julia Ballard and Isaiah Heddins were married by Rev. Asa B. Dowell, a Methodist Minister. Julia (Ballard) Heddins' obituary states that she gave her life to the Lord at an early age and joined the church at Martins Mill.

On May 24, 1883, Louisa Ballard sold 50 acres of her land at Martins Mill to her son, James B. Ballard, for $93.75. On October 29, 1883, Louisa sold the remaining 110 acres of her land to Watson Head for $650.00.

Also on October 29, 1883, Louisa bought 100 acres of land from B. C. Hobbs for $600.00. The land was located about five miles northwest of Canton, Texas, on Crooked Creek. This land was part of the original survey of land patented to Joseph Saligna by the State of Texas. About six years later, on Octo�ber 19, 1889, Lou "sold" 50 acres of that land to her young�est son, William C. Ballard, for $1.00. Lou later sold the remaining 50 acres of that land to J. S. Sanders for $500.00.

In September of the year 1900, Louisa Ballard applied for a soldier's widow pension from the State of Texas because her late husband had fought in the Civil War. Louisa stated in the application that she was 74 years old and very feeble. She stated that she owned no personal property other than 60 acres of land. She was not living on the land, but was leasing it for $20.00 per year. Louisa signed the applica�tion with her mark "X", signifying that she could not write. In March of 1901, the application was approved and Louisa received a pension from the State of Texas.

The following article was published in the "Old Timer's Forum" in the Canton, Texas newspaper in about 1908 or 1909 about Louisa Ballard. There were some inaccuracies, including her age:

   Grandma Ballard was in town Monday morning. She is another of the old, old timers of this county, her husband, Joshua Ballard, having settled before the war, in the big, deer and coon range just south of where the town of Martins Mill is now located. Like all pioneer citizens, Joshua Ballard was a useful man--in fact next to indispensible. He was a wheelright. Do young folks know what we mean? "Josh" Ballard, as all called him, made the old fashioned spinning wheel and in war days many a mother (our own included) spun in tears beside those old time hummers as they made their lonely, mournful tune, perhaps at mid-night's hour. Those mothers were spinning thread to make the cloth to clothe their sons who were far away on battle fields.
   Joshua Ballard was also a chair maker and when he would go out and chop down a tough hickory, season the timber and make a chair it was a chair until the posts were worn off up to first "rounds." It is possible that there are old chairs yet in existence which Josh Ballard made, 48 years ago.
   Think of what, Grandma Ballard experienced those trying days: Her husband would make the loom, grow the cotton, raise or buy the wool and then with her own hands she would card into rolls the cotton or wool, spin the thread, weave the cloth, dye it with shoe-make berries or walnut bark, cut the garments and make the clothing with her own fingers. A sewing machine had not, at that time, been thought of. And, after all this was done, Grandma Ballard, like so many other wives and mothers, saw her husband, clad in garments made after the order above cited, go away to the field of blood and battle, never to return again.
   Who that ponders--if he comprehends--those days of trials and sorrows, can repel the unbid tear or refrain from thanking a great and merciful God for the blessings upon our sunny land, today?
   Grandma Ballard is in her 85th year, but peart for one who has lived four, and nearly one fourth scores of years.
   Many long years ago Grandma broke up house keeping and has since lived with her children, Mrs. I. L. Heddin, north of town and Jim and W. C. Ballard of Henderson County.
   W. C., Bill, is Grandma's baby boy (being himself in his 45 yr.). He was carrying his mother down home, Monday, to stay with himself and Jim, a while. (See original newspaper clipping)

Louisa Ballard died in the year 1909 at the age of 83. She was buried at Payne Cemetery off of Hwy. 2329, between Eustice and Athens, in Henderson County, Texas.

1. MARY JANE BALLARD, born in 1845, St. Clair County, Ala�bama. She first married JOHN T. McWILLIAMS (born July 1865, died Feb. 1872/3) in about 1862 in Van Zandt Coun�ty, Texas. After John's death, Mary Jane married A. R. SCALES (born about 1827) in Aug. 1872/3, Van Zandt County, Texas.

2. JOHN WESLEY BALLARD, born in 1847, St. Clair County, Alabama. He married AMERICA ANN "ELIZABETH" McCASKILL (born 1850, died 1934) on 27 Sept. 1874 in Van Zandt County, Texas. He died in 1901 and was buried at Col�lege Mound Cemetery, College Mound, Kaufman County, Texas.

3. DANIEL E. BALLARD, born in 1850, St. Clair County, Ala�bama. He married ANN ("ANNIE") SCALES on 24 Nov. 1872 in Van Zandt County, Texas.

4. JAMES ("JIM") B. BALLARD, born April 1852, St. Clair County, Alabama. He married MARGARET "ELIZABETH" PARSON (born 29 April 1853, died 14 May 1906) on 15 Sept. 1878 in Van Zandt County, Texas. He died in 1934 and was buried at Payne Ceme�tery in Henderson County, Texas.

5. HANNAH FRANCIS BALLARD, born in 1855, Martins Mill, Van Zandt County, Texas. She married JAMES L. McADAMS (born in about 1852) on 7 Oct. 1873 in Henderson County, Texas.

6. SARAH ("SACKY") ELIZABETH BALLARD, born 10 April 1858, Martins Mill, Van Zandt County, Texas. She married ZACHARIA ("ZACK") TAYLOR CHANEY (born 21 April 1848, died 31 July 1939) on 22 Dec. 1874 in Van Zandt County, Texas. She died 24 Feb. 1886 and was probably buried at Canton, Texas.

7. JULIA ANN BALLARD, born 9 Feb. 1860, Martins Mill, Van Zandt County, Texas. She married ISAIAH LAFAYETTE HEDDINS (born 25 Dec. 1857, died 18 April 1918) on 6 March 1881 in Van Zandt County, Texas (marriage license issued in Henderson County). She died 28 Jan. 1937 and was buried at Myrtle Springs Ceme�tery in Myrtle Springs, Van Zandt County, Texas.

8. LOUIZA BALLARD, born in 1862, Martins Mill, Van Zandt County, Texas. She married B. M. CHANEY (born about 1860) on 3 Oct. 1878.

9. WILLIAM ("WILLIE", "BILL") CRAWFORD BALLARD, born 22 April 1865, Martins Mill, Van Zandt County, Texas. He first married OLA TENNESSEE DAVIDSON (born 26 Oct. 1870, died 20 April 1904) on 1 Jan. 1890 in Van Zandt County, Texas. After she died, Willie married VIOLA E. FOR�RESTER (born 6 Dec. 1875, died 9 April 1911). Willie died 25 May 1946 in Mabank, Texas, and was buried at Payne Ceme�tery in Henderson County, Texas. (During his life he was the mayor and city marshall of Mabank, Texas, and the deputy sheriff of Kaufman County, as well as a farmer).