Dr. Timothy Hudson In the nineteenth century, Port Union on the Ouachita River formed an important steamboat landing and commercial conduit for Farmerville, Shiloh, Spearsville, and the interior regions of greater Union Parish. Situated just below the mouth of Bayou d’Loutre on a bend in the Ouachita River, the location perhaps had a store operated … Continue reading 1878 Ward’s Chapel Bushwhacking
Dr. Timothy Hudson
Sheriff John Martin Lee
Dr. Timothy Hudson John Martin Lee (24 July 1829–30 June 1893) was born near Snow Hill, in Wilcox County Alabama, the son of Martin Batte Lee and Levincy Albritton. He grew up at Snow Hill, surrounded by his parents’ large extended families and undoubtedly attending Bethsaida Primitive Baptist Church of which his father and uncle, … Continue reading Sheriff John Martin Lee
Eudocia Holcombe Rockett
Dr. Timothy Hudson Eudocia Holcombe was born in 1809 near Cross Keys, Union District South Carolina. She was the daughter of Rev. Hosea Holcombe (1780 - 1841) and Cassandra Jackson (1780 - 1848). Her father was a Baptist minister, who later became a staunch advocate for the cause of missions in Alabama Baptist churches. When … Continue reading Eudocia Holcombe Rockett
1888 Biography of Rev. John Pinkney Everett
Dr. Timothy Hudson From "A History of the Baptists of Louisiana From The Earliest Times to the Present", by Rev. W. E. Paxton, C. R. Barnes Publishing Co., St. Louis, 1888 ELDER JOHN PINKNEY EVERETT. — Was born in Dallas County, Ala., March 20, 1826, and removed to Perry County the same year, where the family … Continue reading 1888 Biography of Rev. John Pinkney Everett
1885 Murder of William P. Mabry of Shiloh
Submitted by: Karen Mabry Rice Submitted to USGW Archives by: Karen Mabry Rice, T. D. Hudson, and Shawn Martin HOMICIDE NEAR SHILOH From the Farmerville "Home Advocate" Issue of 24 April 1885, Page 3 We learn that Mr. W. P. Mabry, an aged gentleman residing in the vicinity of Shiloh, was ruthlessly shot and killed … Continue reading 1885 Murder of William P. Mabry of Shiloh
The Murder of Simon Stein
Written by Dr. Tim Hudson Born in Asselheim, Rhein Bavaria (now Germany) in 1842, Simon Stein arrived in the Port of Mobile in 1860 with his siblings. While his older brother, Daniel Stein, left Mobile and came to Farmerville in 1861, Simon remained in Alabama, enlisted in the Twelfth Alabama Infantry Regiment, and served throughout … Continue reading The Murder of Simon Stein
The Addison B. Maclin Saga
Written by Dr. Tim Hudson A native of Virginia, Thomas Littleton Haldane Maclin received his medical degree from the University of Louisville, Kentucky in 1843. He headed south and married Mary Ann Binford in Limestone County Alabama in 1854. They soon headed west and settled at Hillsboro, in southern Union County Arkansas, where Dr. Maclin … Continue reading The Addison B. Maclin Saga
The Carroll-Cox Shootout & Assassinations
Written by Dr. Tim Hudson Brothers James R. and Albert A. Carroll, sons of John Carroll, Sr., who died while defending Vicksburg on 23 June 1863, settled in the Cecil Community north of Marion in the 1870s and began farming. The Carroll brothers both married and raised their families there in the 1880s. In addition … Continue reading The Carroll-Cox Shootout & Assassinations
Union Parish Family Feud: The Ward-Auld-McGough-Joiner Shootouts
Written by Dr. Tim Hudson The Ward, Auld, McGough, and Joiner families all settled in the Bayou d’Loutre region east of Farmerville in the latter 1830s and 1840s. Numerous intermarriages connected the Ward, Auld, and McGough families, and they remained close throughout the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Several incidents of conflict, including two violent … Continue reading Union Parish Family Feud: The Ward-Auld-McGough-Joiner Shootouts
Jordan Gray Taylor Captain, Co. C, 17th Regiment Louisiana Infantry
Written by Dr. Tim Hudson Jordan Gray Taylor was born on 29 September 1829 in Butler County Alabama, son of Judge John Taylor and Jane Wood, and grandson of William Taylor and Catherine Gray, and Col. Matthew Wood and Hannah Payne. Jordan’s father served as the Sheriff of Butler County at his birth, but shortly … Continue reading Jordan Gray Taylor Captain, Co. C, 17th Regiment Louisiana Infantry
The Murder of William Pierce Mabry of Shiloh
Written by Dr. Timothy D. Hudson Born in Georgia in 1825, William Pierce Mabry married Catherine H. Cook in Chambers County Alabama in 1847. About 1855, they moved to Louisiana and settled near Shiloh. Initially, they lived in Claiborne Parish, where he built carriages and wagons, but in the latter 1860s, they moved closer to … Continue reading The Murder of William Pierce Mabry of Shiloh
Nineteenth Century Union Parish Economy
Written by Dr. Timothy D. Hudson Villages routinely formed and dissolved as European settlement expanded across the continent, causing many county and parish seats to occasionally change locations. Farmerville’s crowning jewel that cemented her position as the permanent parish seat and evolution into the regional economic center lay in her geographical location, more specifically, the … Continue reading Nineteenth Century Union Parish Economy
Deadly Confrontation in Spearsville
Written by Dr. Timothy D. Hudson In the 1840s, William and Mary Ward Jacobs moved from Lauderdale County Mississippi to Spearsville, where he worked as a farmer and mechanic in the 1850s and 1860s. By 1880, William and Mary Jacobs lived in Spearsville, where he operated a blacksmith shop. William Pinckney and Elsey Caroline Adcock … Continue reading Deadly Confrontation in Spearsville
Dandridge & Eliza Claiborne
Written by Dr. Timothy D. Hudson The earliest European settlers of modern Union Parish, John Honeycutt, Sr. and his son, John Honeycutt, Jr., made their way from Natchez, Mississippi to the Poste d’Ouachita in 1792. Then a tiny, insignificant outpost in the unsettled hinterlands of Spain’s Luisiana Colony, the region remained a backwoods locale until … Continue reading Dandridge & Eliza Claiborne
The Execution of Jesse Walker
Written by Dr. Timothy D. Hudson No execution had occurred in Union Parish for two decades prior to 1878. Unfortunately, a particularly vicious and bloody murder occurred near Oakland in late 1877 that would end that trend. The aftermath of these events created sensational headlines across Louisiana and the nation. Late one night in the … Continue reading The Execution of Jesse Walker
Deadly Confrontation at a Farmerville Saloon
Written by Dr. Timothy D. Hudson Fate brought two single young men to a Farmerville saloon on the evening of Monday, 7 November 1853: James McBride and Alonzo S. Lewis. We know little about the men’s backgrounds, although it appears neither had families or close connections in Union Parish. Born in about 1832, McBride worked … Continue reading Deadly Confrontation at a Farmerville Saloon
The 1879 Lynching of Jackson Overstreet
Written by Dr. Timothy D. Hudson W. Jackson Overstreet’s arrival in the fall of 1879 briefly shattered the peaceful calm that typically prevailed throughout nineteenth century Union Parish. He was a fugitive, a wanted man on the run from the authorities in Alabama, lured to the Union Parish countryside by the possibility of finding a … Continue reading The 1879 Lynching of Jackson Overstreet
Judge James E. Trimble & U.S. Army Officers
Written by Dr. Timothy D. Hudson James Etherington Trimble played a pivotal role in Union Parish and the surrounding region during the two decades following the War. Born in Bridgewater, Pennsylvania in 1834, at the age of fifteen Trimble was appointed as a midshipman and ordered to Annapolis, Maryland, where he passed his examinations and … Continue reading Judge James E. Trimble & U.S. Army Officers
Farmerville’s Tragedies
Written by Dr. Timothy D. Hudson During the nineteenth century across the South, most men built wooden homes and businesses, frame structures with wood shingles. Since lighting after sunset required oil lamps and heating during the winter necessitated a wood stove, devastating and deadly fires remained common throughout the nineteenth century. Like most towns of … Continue reading Farmerville’s Tragedies
Berserk Weather of 1874
Written by Dr. Timothy D. Hudson Fate had already branded 1874 as a momentous year long before Louisiana residents rang in the New Year. November would bring the fourth major election of the Reconstruction Era, and the Democrats had determined to finally break the Radical Republican’s use of their despised Returning Boards to form a … Continue reading Berserk Weather of 1874
Shiloh
Written by Dr. Timothy D. Hudson During the latter half of the nineteenth century, Shiloh formed the commercial center of the western portion of Union Parish, attracting extensive business from not only the surrounding countryside of southwestern Union, but also from portions of Claiborne, Jackson, and Lincoln Parishes due to Shiloh’s role as a gateway … Continue reading Shiloh
Captain John Mercer Rabun
Dr. Timothy D. Hudson John Mercer Rabun’s business skill and acumen significantly influenced Farmerville’s development as a leading center of north Louisiana commerce during the postwar era of the nineteenth century. In a variety of occupations, including his work as a farmer, newspaper publisher/editor, steamboat pilot and captain, steamboat landing operator, steamboat designer, transportation company … Continue reading Captain John Mercer Rabun
The Assassination of Shiloh Constable John Nimrod Ferguson
Dr. Timothy D. Hudson John Nimrod Ferguson was born in Butts County Georgia on 2 October 1838, the son of Thomas Jefferson Ferguson and Hannah McCallum. The family moved to Spalding County Georgia in the 1840s, and John married there in 1862 to Martha Rebecca Weldon. After service in the Confederate Army during the War, … Continue reading The Assassination of Shiloh Constable John Nimrod Ferguson
Antebellum Politics and Newspapers
Dr. Timothy D. Hudson General Andrew Jackson's election as president in December 1828 ushered in the Second Party System and the emergence of the Jacksonian Democrats as a major party in American politics. Jackson's heavy-handed policies during his first term caused his opponents, led by Senator Henry Clay, to coalesce into the Whig Party during … Continue reading Antebellum Politics and Newspapers
Lt. Elijah Hubbard Ward
Written by Dr. Timothy D. Hudson Submitted by Jon R. McKinnie The birth of David Ward and Cynthia Seale’s eldest son Elijah Hubbard Ward occurred on 13 July 1830, just a few months after the January 20th creation of Lowndes County Alabama from the northern portion of Butler. When he was about seven years old, Hubbard … Continue reading Lt. Elijah Hubbard Ward
George Washington Albritton & Sarah Ann Fowler
Dr. Timothy Hudson George Washington Albritton was born in Wilkinson County, Georgia in 1810, the son of Enoch Albritton and Penelope Frizzle. Enoch and Penelope had both been born in Pitt County, North Carolina in 1771 and 1772, respectively. They married there about 1792 or 1793, but left North Carolina in 1806 or 1807 and moved to Georgia. … Continue reading George Washington Albritton & Sarah Ann Fowler
The Bachelorette
Dr. Timothy Hudson A nineteenth century version of today’s hit reality show, “The Bachelorette,” played out in Farmerville in the 1890s. The young maiden searching for love was Miss Emma Bradley, a native of Old Fort, North Carolina. Described as a blonde, “symmetrical in form and beautiful in feature,” and “a thing of beauty,” Miss … Continue reading The Bachelorette
A Downsville Lovesick Tragedy
Dr. Tim Hudson George Golden moved to Downsville about 1878. An Englishman described as "above the average in intellect and education", Golden had traveled extensively "upon the high seas" and across the United States. Neighbors described him as "industrious and inoffensive...by all who knew him he was well liked...but sometimes drank to intoxication." In 1880, … Continue reading A Downsville Lovesick Tragedy
Extraordinary Events 1873 Union Parish Louisiana
Dr. Tim Hudson In 1873, several unusual events occurred across Union Parish, beginning in the early fall. Although newspapers in Louisiana and across the Deep South viewed the topic as too indecent to print, Northern newspapers gleefully reported that "Another wild woman with nothing to wear frequents the forest" outside Farmerville. A Connecticut editor wryly … Continue reading Extraordinary Events 1873 Union Parish Louisiana
Murder, Amputation and Brutal Lynching
Written by Dr. Timothy Hudson Authorities described Ira D. Robbins, alias Commodore D. Lattineer, as a "noted desperado," a violent and dangerous criminal accused of killing men in both Mississippi and Texarkana, Texas, an unspecified number of women, plus a host of other crimes. On the run from a Texas posse in February 1877, he … Continue reading Murder, Amputation and Brutal Lynching
Shiloh to Canaan 
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