Much of the information for this page was taken from The Rectors of Wayne County, Kentucky, written by Clara Rector Barnes Smart, 1975, The Wayside Press, Charlottesville, Virginia.
Jesse Rector (2), son of Samuel Rector and Rutha Simpson Rector, was born August 2, 1811. According to both the 1870 and 1880 censuses, he was born in Tennessee. He was named after his paternal grandfather, Jesse Rector (1). Mrs. Smart says he was the son who stayed and lived his life at Rector's Flat (Kentucky). He married Nancy Brammer on September 8, 1835. Jesse (2) died January 16, 1893 at Rector's Flat, Wayne County, Kentucky.
Nancy Brammer was born November 24, 1817 to William Henry Brammer and Lucy Tuggle. She died on December 11, 1875. Clara Smart says "She had a wen on her head. They cut it off and she died, singing.: A"wen" is a tumor.
Jesse Rector (2) and Nancy Brammer Rector had 8 children:
1. Lucy Caroline Rector, born March 16, 1838, and died December 25, 1905 (both at Wayne Co., KY); she married John Granville Tabor on July 26, 1860. John Tabor was born 18 Mar 1840 and he died 25 Jan 1915 in Wayne County, Kentucky to John Tabor (1806-1875) and Alice Thomas (1807-1870). They had at least the following children: Rutha Angeline Tabor (1861-1911); Nancy Nannie Tabor (1863-1880); Mary Elizabeth Tabor (1866-1935); Rebecca Clay Tabor (1869-1907); Anettie Carolyn Tabor (1873-1924); Ethel Juan Tabor (1876-1957); John Granville Tabor (1879-1905)
2. Samuel Brammer Rector, born February 26, 1840 at Wayne County, Kentucky, died November 19, 1867 at Rector's Flat, Wayne, Kentucky, married Rowena Owens (16 Sep 1852-7 aug 1930). Rowena Owens was the daughter of Martin Owens (1821-1894) and Mary Leveridge (1829-1876)
3. Rutha Ann E. Rector, born May 22, 1842, died October 29, 1867 at Rector's Flat, Kentucky.
4. William D. Rector, born October 17, 1844 at Rector's Flat, Wayne Co., KY; died there September 20, 1867, married Rebecca Owens (1844-1905). Rebecca Owens was the daughter of Martin Owens (1821-1894) and Mary Leveridge (1829-1876). They had at least the following children: Quincy Adams Rector (1864-1938); and Chloe Rector (b. abt 1867).
5. James Logan Rector, born April 6, 1847, died April 4, 1923 and is buried in Blevins-Dobbs Cemetery in Wayne County, KY. James Logan Rector married Ollie Elizabeth Guffey (1848-1913). They had at least the following children: Bertha Rector (b. abt 1866); Webster S. Rector (abt 1870); John E. Rector (b. abt 1871); Logan Dow Rector (abt 1875, m. Ada Frances Rumsey); Ephraim W. Rector (abt 1879); and Martha Ann Rector (1881-1955)
6. Mary Rector, born April 10, 1850, died April 9, 1908 in Wayne County, Kentucky. It appears that she never married. In the 1880 census she is shown as living in her younger brother's (Daniel W. C. Rector) household along with his wife (Laura), children, and Mary and Daniel's father, Jesse.
7. John Simpson Rector, born October 25, 1854, died October 17, 1867
8. Daniel Webster Clay Rector, born November 4, 1858, died January 28, 1916, married Laura Huffaker on 2/22/1876. Please click on their link for more information about their children and descendants. This is in my direct line.
You'll notice that 4 of Jesse and Nancy's children (Samuel, Rutha, William, and John) died within three months of each other during the typhoid epidemic of 1867. Mrs. Smart writes:
"1867 was the darkest year in the Rector history. In September the fever struck and Will Rector died, leaving a widow and two little orphans. In October, Johnny and Rutha passed on. In November, Samuel Brammer Rector died, leaving a widow. Typhoid had struck like a plague. Mary was thought dead three times and the pillow taken from under her head. Each time she revived. But she was never well and never married, living out her life in the family home. Uncle Jim was at the point of death but recovered. He was never a strong man able to do a hard day's work. Aunt Lucy Tabor was married and pregnant and she was not allowed to come home for fear of the sickness, so she escaped. Grandfather Daniel Webster Clay Rector was only nine years old and he did not take the fever. We who remember him as an older man, recollect that he always had his own plate and cup and glass. One wonders if, as a child, he had his own eating utensils and that was the reason he escaped.
The decade from 1860 to 1870 brought many sad changes in the Rector family. In 1860, Samuel and Ruth were surrounded by children whose families were large, with grown grandchildren and great grandchildren coming along. During the next ten years, death took a heavy toll. Samuel was gone and Joseph Beck, killed the same year. Polly Brammer and Sally Rector each lost a son in the War. Jesse lost four children in three months. Avington Simpson, Jr. was killed by "bushwhackers" in Arkansas. This was a sad time. Joseph William had gone to Arkansas and was probably fighting on the side of the Confederacy. There was division in families, division between neighbors, and the ones who did not enter into the fighting were in danger from both sides."
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Last updated January 22, 2024