BRANN
PAGE-13
On the following pages is a letter written
by James Greenville Trimble and also an affidavit by Mr. Trimble. He was
a grandson of Michael and Elizabeth Tribbett O’Hair. The original affidavit
is in the possession of Mr. Nelson Trimble Jones of Tampa, Florida.
Mt. Sterling, August 11th, 1894
Mr. James A. Curtis,
Putnamville, Indiana.
Dear Sir: —
I have received your letter of 10th.
June inviting me to attend the reunion of the O’Hair family on the 11th
of August at which I feel much honored and for which you will accept many
thanks.
It would afford me much pleasure to
be present and participate with all of you in your festivities upon that
interesting occasion, but business engagements will prevent me doing so.
I therefore send you this communication, which I trust will be more satisfactory
than my presence, and in which I will undertake more especially to give
you the genealogy of the Trimble branch of the O’Hair family, of which
I am a humble descendant.
My mother’s name was Elenor O’Hair,
commonly called Nelley a daughter of Michael and Elizabeth O’Hair, and
was born on the 14th day of Oct. 1797. She joined the Christian Church
on the 18th. June 1835 and died a Christian on the 24th May 1855.
She was married to William Trimble by the Rev. Joseph Rice in Montgomery
County, Kentucky on the 15th day of Nov. 1814 and located at Hazel Green,
Kentucky, where they continued to reside until the time of their death.
There has been awarded to them as the fruits of their marriage 13
children, 6 sons and 7 daughters. One daughter died in infancy the others
arrived to maturity, and all were happily married, except Nelson who died
while attending college at the age of 19.
Evaline the oldest daughter married
James McGuire who died in 1888. She had 11 children, 6 of whom are now
living and all reside in this state, except one son in Texas. She
BRANN
PAGE-14
has 25 grandchildren and great grandchildren.
Caroline, the 2nd daughter married Stephen
Swango. She died in 1897. She had 11 children, and has now living two sons
and 6 daughters and 28 grand and great-grandchildren; two daughters reside
in Illinois, 2 in Missouri and the others in Kentucky. Her oldest son,
G.B. lives at Frankfort and is State Register of the Land Office, his son
James was educated at Centre College and in all the oratorical contests
in Kentucky in which 5 colleges were represented, he took first prizes;
he also took the medal at the World’s Fair at Chicago in the National Oratorical
Contest in competition with the representatives of many of the best colleges
in 27 states; as a speaker and as a natural orator he has but few equals.
Preston, the oldest son has 7 children,
2 sons and 5 daughters, all married except two daughters; he also has 20
grand and great grandchildren; Shelton has been married twice, the first
wife, nee Miss Swango having died about 35 years since; he has 18 children
and 20 grand children.
James Greenville - the writer - is the
3rd son. He has 9 children, all married, except a son and daughter, and
all reside in Kentucky except one daughter living in Kansas and one in
Texas.
Asberry was assassinated during the
war, leaving one son, who is now married and has 4 children, and lives
upon a fine blue-grass farm near Frankfort, Ky.
Emily Jane married McKinley Cockrill,
who died in 1855. She has two daughters, both married, each of whom has
a son, one of them Henry L. Godsey graduated with great honor at Centre
College and distinguished himself as an orator. He is almost an equal to
Swango, is married and has a lucrative position in the post office department
in Washington city (now deceased 1909).
Rose Ann married E. A. Hensley, both
are now dead, leaving three sons, one of whom is married and went to New
Mexico, the others went to Missouri and Nebraska.
Louisa married Preston Wilson, who died
in 1863, afterward married John Wilson. She has 5 sons and 2 daughters.
One daughter and one son living in Bates County, Missouri - a son in Nebraska
and the others reside in this state. She
BRANN
PAGE-15
has 15 grand children and one great
grandchild.
Elizabeth married James S. Turner, a
wholesale merchant in Cincinnati; she has two sons and one daughter, all
married; one grandchild - one living here and the others at Paris, Ill.
She has been a widow since 1875 (deceased 1909).
Frank, the youngest, has a beautifully
and accomplished wife, but no children. He is a wealthy man and a man of
influence and resides in Memphis, Tenn.
My mother has 200 lineal descendants
now living besides the descendants of the three Hausley boys, who went
west and no information has ever been received from them for several years.
One was married and had two children when last heard from. My grand-mother
O’Hair before she left Kentucky lived within three-fourths of a mile of
my father’s; and when I was a small boy, more than sixty-five years ago,
I frequently visited her in her little log cabin, which were the only kind
of dwelling houses in the country at that time. I remember very well
the location of the house and 1st surroundings and equipments including
a little spinning wheel and big wheel, warpting bars, reel, hand loom,
winding blades, and wool cotton cords, all necessary articles every well
organized household, which were used in the manufacture of tow and flax
linen, blankets, flannel and jeans, which were converted into clothing
for the family. These necessary impliments of industry and now obsolete
having been superseded by modern improved labor saving machinery;
and perhaps none of them have been used by any of the present generation,
who will meet to celebrate your next reunion, but will be well remembered
by their paternal ancestor.
My grand-mother’s ideas about keeping
the Sabbath holy were very strict; she rarely ever had any cooking done
on that day, but usually made preparations for Sunday on the preceding
day. She left Kentucky in company with the family of Jesse Ogden and others
for Illinois. I think in the fall of 1833. She afterwards returned to Kentucky
on a visit and again she went to Illinois or Indiana in 1835 or 1836 accompanied
by her son Washington, each time going and coming traveling on horseback,
a distance of about 300 miles, a feat that none of her female descendants
would undertake to perform in these rail-road days. I remember witnessing
the separation between her and my mother, which I shall never forget. The
best blood that courses through my veins is the O’Hair stock which by crossing
and intermarriage with other
BRANN
PAGE-16
families has in a few instances duplicated
but never improved. The male members of the family are noted for their
honesty, truth, uprightness and integrity and the females for their virtue,
purity, truth and industry and for making good wifes, not one of them every
having been known to bring disgrace upon their families.
I never saw my grand-father O’Hair,
he having died in the early part of the present century, and before I was
born. My information that he was born in Ireland, and imigrated to the
United States about the beginning of the Revolutionary War, with Great
Britan, and volunteered his services in behalf of his adopted country,
and was a gallant soldier until the close of the war, and participated
in many of the hard fought battles upon southern soil under General Morgan,
Greene and Marion and other distinguished heros, including the battles
of Cow Pens, where the forces and each side was about equal and the Americans
lost but eighty men, while the British loss was over six hundred. Also
the battles Guilford Court House, Eutaw Springs and many others, and when
in marching their way might be tracked by the blood from their bare feet
and which resulted in our independence from the British Crown, and giving
to his descendants the political and religious liberties which they
now enjoy. At the close of the war he came to and settled in Kentucky to
enjoy his well earned honors and the thanks of his grateful countrymen.
He lived an honored life and his bones now rest in an unknown and unmarked
grave upon a beautiful and picturesque hill overlooking the surrounding
country in the vicinity of Hazel Green. It is to be regretted that not
even a stone marks his last resting place. I know within a few feet of
the location of his grave. Peace to his ashes. We should never forget that
we are living upon soil consecrated by the blood of our fathers and the
heroes of Eutaw, Cow Pens, and Kings Mountain. And that it is our duty
to life up our hearts in gratitude to God, that he has given to us and
to our prosperity such a great and grand Country, and we should also bear
in mind that we are all, citizens of this country and owe allegiance to
its flag under which we have been protected and prospered until we
have become the greatest nation upon the face of the globe. A flag which
is the eternal symbol of an “indivisible union of indestructible states
and our motto should be “The Federal Union Must and Shall be Preserved.”
Wishing that each of you who may be
in attendance have the pleasure of attending many reunions in the future
and that you enjoy many years of good health, prosperity and happiness.
I am,
Yours truly,
(signed) J. G. Trimble