| Lydia Lorena------ | | | | | John McDannald I | ||||
| 1876-1923 | | | | | John McDannald II | ----------------| | 1785-1848 | ||
| Rita Beryl------- | | | | | 1817-1890 | | | Margaret McMickell | ||
| 1878-1966 | | | David W McDannald | ------------| | | | 1788-1857 | ||
| John S.----------- | | | 1851-1926 | | | | | John Henry Cull | ||
| 1880-1966 | | | | | | | Margaret Cull | ----------------| | 1794-1821 | |
| Eugene------------ | | | | | 1817-1887 | | | Mary Ann McDannald | ||
| 1884-? | |-------- | -------------| | 1783-1834 | ||||
| Mary Malinda------ | | | | | | | Tho. C. Reeves | |||
| 1887-1985 | | | | | | | Samuel Reeves | ----------------| | 1808-c.1880 | |
| Rex R.------------ | | | | | | | 1827-1899 | | | Mary Ann McDannald | |
| 1890-1953 | | | Lucetta Reeves | ------------| | 1783-1834 | |||
| Gladys Lucetta | | | 1859-1931 | | | | | John Cleminson | ||
| 1892-1967 | | | | | Lydia Cleminson | ----------------| | 1799-1879 | ||
| Lynn-------------- | | | 1836-1925 | | | Lydia Lightner | |||
| 1893-1986 | | | 1800-1873 |
Thomas C. Reeves was born about 1808 in Kentucky[1]. There is much speculation as to who his parents were, however there is no deed, will, bible, obituary or any historical document to prove one way or the other. Asa and Elijah Reeves were with some of the earliest pioneers of Kentucky from Virginia and Thomas is probably related to these families in some way[2]. Reeves family lore believes Thomas had a brother Elijah Spencer Reeves who was born in 1818. [3]. Both boys would marry McDannalds. Thomas married Mary Ann McDannald Cull, a widow with three children, in 1825, when he was 17 and she was 42. [4] Elijah married Margaret McDannald in 1840. It is unknown how many children Thomas and Mary Ann had. Some family trees count as many as nine children, others six. Again, there is no deed, will, bible, obituary or any historical document to prove one way or the other. In the 1830 census, Thomas was the head of household for a ten person family: Thomas, wife Mary Ann McDannald-Cull-Reeves, her three children from the Cull marriage (or possibly four children), their own children Nancy, Malinda and Samuel, and two others[5]. In the 1830's there was a mass migration of Reeves, McDannalds and many other inter-related families from Kentucky to Brown County, Illinois. Thomas C. Reeves was one of the first of the Kentuckians to enter Brown County. He was a pioneer hunter and trapper who built the first hewn log house to be built in the county. In 1882, a book was written, "The History of Schuyler and Brown Counties, Illinois", which interviewed many of the original settlers and their families. Here are references to Thomas C Reeves: "Thomas Reeves came to the county and purchased one hundred and twenty acres of laud in section sixteen of Elkhorn township in October, 1830. He built in those days what was considered a palatial residence of hewed logs, in the bottom near the bluffs. Scarcely had he finished his house, when the deep snow submerged the whole country, and caused severe suffering. His nearest neighbors were Moses Stinson, living one and a-half miles east, and Joseph Groves, two miles southwest. Hiram Jacques may properly be classed as one of the old settlers of the country. He was a millwright by trade, and now lives in Elkhoru township enjoying in company with his wife the fruits of his industry and enterprise. The McDonnald brothers, John, James, and William, are deserving of mention and also the Mc- Coys, all pioneers. Following the settlement of. James C. Reid, came Thomas Reeves, a native of Ohio, and at the time of his m gration a resident of Kentucky, where he had been taken when a child. He married in Kentucky, and with his family came to Illinois, first stopping in Versailles township, and then removing to this township, in the fall of 1830. He purchased one hundred and twenty acres of land in the school section sixteen, and built a cabin in the bottom, near the creek. His cabin was one of the fine dwellings in this county at that time, as it was constructed of hewn logs. He had just finished it, and moved his family within its hospitable walls, when the "deep snow" came, and covered the ground to a depth of from four to five feet, and caused untold suffering to man and beast, who were wholly unprepared, as no such snow-fall was ever known before or since. His nearest neighbors were Moses Stinson, who had been living one and a half miles east, on the creek, about one year, and had a small clearing made, and Joseph Groves, Jr., who lived about two miles southwest of him. Groves had been living there about a year. Mr. Reeves had a large family, some of whom are scattered throughout the west, and only one of whom, Nancy, wife of Hiram Jaques, is now living in the county. About 1846, Mr. Reeves traded his farm to Thomas Scanland, who now resides upon it. Mr. Reeves now lives in southern Missouri, at an advanced age. P.285 Harvey Lester was appointed county collector, and then, after having fined Robert Dawson five dollars for contempt of court, the commissioners adjourned for the day. At the next day session (May the eighteenth, 1839) the county was divided into road districts of which Reuben Smith, John Lomax, Jonathan Miller Henry Ausmus, Thomas Benton, Benoni R. Parke, John P. Hambaugh,-John Sides, Lyman Prentice, Benjamin Kendrick, Thomas Reeves, William Evens and Willian Lee were appointed supervisors. The new justices [of the peace] elected in 1849 were John Sevier, Benjamin D. Stout, Richard Mars, J. J. Pevehouse, Isaac Parker, Henry Ausmus, Bartholomew Boylan, Ichabod Perry, Alpius Brown, Thomas C. Reeves, George A. Taylor, Thomas J. Bradney, and George Windslow." It is speculated that Thomas's wife Mary Ann McDannald Cull Reeves passed away in 1834 in Brown County. Searches for her gravesite in Brown County have been in vain. It is probably because her gravemarker was made out of wood. From the History of After his wife's death, Land records show Thomas C. Reeves bought land in Elkhorn, Brown Co., IL; 120 acres on March 20, 1835. In 1845, 37 year old Thomas married 18 year old Winnie Warden. In 1850, Thomas, 42, and Winnie, 23, were living close to other Reeves, McDannald, and Linn families in Brown County. Living in their home were Levi and "Vesta" (Samuel Sylvester) from Mary Ann, and Newton and Mahala from Winnie. His son Samuel is also listed in the census living with the William Jaques family, close to all the other Kentucky people in Brown County. William and his wife were Mormon preachers who would move to Missouri along with Samuel where he would meet the Cleminson family for a long journey to California in 1851. Samuel will be a driver of one of the wagons on the Cleminson family wagon train from Illinois to California. In 1860, Thomas, 52, and Winnie, 33, were still living in Brown County, Illinois. The only one of Thomas' children still living in Brown County would be Nancy Reeves Jaques. They will spend the rest of their lives in the County and be buried in the Jaques Cemetery there. Thomas and Winnie's children living with them were Newton, Mahala, Nancy, Synida, and Washington, just born. Samual is in El Monte, California. He married Lydia Cleminson, the daughter of the wagon train leader, John Cleminson. In the 1860's, some of the Kentucky families living in Illinois will migrate again. Some traveled to Oregon, while Thomas Reeves and some other McDannalds moved to Missouri. In 1870, Thomas, 62, and Winnie, 40, were living in Linn Township, Cedar County, Missouri. Living with them were three of their children by Winnie, Washington, 10, Isabella, 2, and Dora just born. It appears that Thomas and Winnie had seven children, Newton, Mahala, Nancy, Synida, Washington, Isabella and Dora. In 1880, Thomas is listed as 71 living with wife Winnie, 53. All their children have grown up and moved on except one daughter, 13, Sybill (Isabella?). The child Dora must have died. There is no firm record of when Thomas passed away. We have not been able to find out where he is buried, but, most likely in one of the cemeteries of Linn Township, Cedar County, Missouri. Notes from "Genealogy of the McDannald & Reeves Families" compiled by John McDannald III (Samuel's grandson) - Keyes, California, April 25, 1936. "The following is a copy of what I have gathered of the family records of my Great Grandfather "Thomas C. Reeves" and his 2 brothers & 3 sisters. Thomas listed on 1850 Brown County, Illinois census, page 153B with Winnie, Vesta, Levi,Newton and Mahala: According to the recorded Genealogy of the "Scanlan" family dating back to the year 1814 and furnished to me by Guy Scanlan of Holton, Kansas. He also being a great grandchild of Thomas C. Reeves. This record says that Thomas came from an old Virginia family, who had first pioneered in Kentucky before migrating on into Brown County, Illinois. He was a pioneer hunter and trapper, built the first log house to be built by a white man in Buckhorn Township in Brown County, Illinois. His first wife Mary (McDannald) Cull was a widow. Mary was a sister of my great grandfather, John Thomas McDannald, and she was born in Scotland. After the death of Mary, Thomas married a woman by the name of Winnie and am told that there were 8 to 10 children born to this union. Winnie & Thomas listed with E. N., Mahala, Nancy, unreadable & W. on 1860 census for Elkhorn, Brown County, Illinois. Notes for Mary Ann McDannald: There is a question of where Ann was born, some family notes indicate she was born in Scotland while others have indicated Virginia or Kentucky. She was a sister of John Thomas McDannald Sr. She was married to Henry Cull in Nicholas Co., Kentucky about 1812 since the sons John and Peter Cull were born there prior to the birth of Margurett Cull, who was born in Nicholas Co., KY June 21, 1817. After the death of her first husband Henry Cull, Mary married Thomas C. Reeves, a pioneer trapper and guide. And while I haven't the exact date of her second marriage or where she was married, I do have the place and date of her first child born to her union with Thomas C. Reeves. This child was Nancy Reeves and was born in Fleming Co., KY on May 22, 1823. There were three children born to Mary and Henry Cull, and six children born to Mary Ann and Thomas C. Reeves. I do not have the place or date of the death of Mary Mc Dannald-Cull-Reeves, although I have proof that Thomas C. Reeves was living in Brown Co., Illinois from July 25, 1848 until Jan 1, 1863. And after the date of the death of Mary, Thomas C. Reeves remarried a woman whose first name was Winnie. And while there were some 10 or 12 children born to this union I am unable to contact a single one of their descendents. I have applied to every known source of information I would greatly appreciate the assistance of anyone who may know the whereabouts of any of these. And I will gladly send anyone who is interested a copy of the records that I now have. Children of John Cull and Mary McDannald are: John James Cull, born 1815 in Nicholas County, KY; died July 29, 1870 in Brown County, Illinois. Peter Cull, born September 02, 1816 in Nicholas County, KY; died September 02, 1853 in Brown County, Illinois. + 4 iii. Margaret Cull, born June 21, 1817 in Nicholas County, Kentucky; died March 08, 1887 in Milton, Oregon. Recorded by John McDannald dated April 15, 1936." References: [1] 1808 is used as roughly his birth year based on the ages he gave in in the 1850 through 1880 census years. [2] Using male child ages in the 1810 and 1820 Kentucky census records, looking for a 2 year old boy in 1810 and and 12 year old boy in 1820, and assuming that he was born and raised in Fleming County, Kentucky, the current best guess is that his parents are Elijah Reeves II and Nancy Plummer who were married in Fleming County, Kentucky in 1800. [3] John McDannald III and Guy Scanland in 1936. [4] Most McDannald family trees make 1783 the birth year of Mary Ann McDannald Cull Reeves, making her 42 in 1825, however there is no documented proof for this year. [5] U.S. Census 1830 for Eastern Division, Fleming, Kentucky Male under 5: 1 ( Samuel Sylvester "Vesta" Reeves, 1 to 3 years old) Nickname "Vesta" courtesy of Debra Carpenter Males 5 thru 9: 1 (unknown) Males 10 thru 14: 1 ( Peter Cull, 14 b. 1816) Males 15 thru 19: 2 (John James Cull, 15 and unknown, possibly another Cull boy) Males 20 thru 29: 1 (Thomas C Reeves, 22 year old step-father of four teenagers) Females Under 5: 1 ( Malinda Reeves, 3) Females 5 thru 9: 1 (Nancy Reeves, 7) Females 10 thru 14: 1 (Margaret Cull) Females - 30 thru 39: 1 (Ann McDannald Cull Reeves) Reasearch by John Sylvester McDananld in Keyes, CA, April 25, 1936: "The following is a copy of what I have gathered of the family records of my Great Grandfather "Thomas C. Reeves" and his 2 brothers & 3 sisters. According to the recorded Genealogy of the "Scanlan" family dating back to the year 1814 and furnished to me by Guy Scanlan of Holton, KS. He also being a great grandchild of Thomas C. Reeves. This record says that Thomas came from an old Virginia family, who had first pioneered in Kentucky, before migrating on into Brown Co., IL. He was a pioneer hunter and trapper, built the first log house to be built by a white man in Buckhorn Township in Brown Co. His first wife Mary (McDannald) Cull, a widow. Mary was a sister of my great grandfather, John Thomas McDannald, and she was born in Scotland. After the death of Mary, Thomas married a woman by the name of Winnie and am told that there were 8 to 10 children born to this union. This is part of a record written by John McDannald in 1936." |
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