David Pitman goes to court charged with Illicit Distilling

A week ago I sent an inquiry to the National Archives in Atlanta asking about the best way to request records relating to a Federal Court case(and possibly cases) in which my 2nd Great Grandfather was involved. I was pretty sure that the case was heard in the TN Middle District Federal Court.  I heard from them this morning with a quote on the cost of scanned copies.  I made payment as soon as I could get to my desktop computer and it was delivered to my email before lunch time!  How amazing is that?

This was my listing of Newspaper clippings mentioning David Pitman court case(s)

Newspapers.com - The Tennessean - 19 Nov 1873 - Page 4 David Pitman Federal Court  Continued
Newspapers.com - Nashville Union & American - 25 Nov 1873 - Page 4 David Pitman Continued to next term
Newspapers.com - The Tennessean - 25 Oct 1874 - Page 4 David Pitman Federal Court Illicit Distilling
Newspapers.com - The Tennessean - 21 Oct 1876 - Page 3 David Pitman Federal Court Illicit Distilling no action taken

U.S. Circuit Court for the Middle District of Tennessee.

Case #1152 US vs. David Pitman 

digitized by National Archives Atlanta Georgia 

delivered as a PDF file to Marie Cooke Beckman's Gmail acct. (Nov 28th, 2023)

Below is my transcription of the affidavit from the file that tells David Pittman's account of what happened that led to him being arrested and in court for illicit distilling.  

Affidavit(from Case # 1152)

US vs David Pitmon 

The United States vs David Pitman
In this cause the defendant David Pitman makes oath that he cannot go safely to trial at the present term of the court for the following reasons he has no Witnesses in attendance for the reasons that owing to his poverty he did not have the means to procure subpoenas for his Witnesses and have them executed affiant got Deputy US Marshal J Armstrong to summons one of his Witnesses, Isaac Cantrell, and he promised to summons  CB Cantrell but he was in the South trading and has been for several months and has not yet returned.  He can prove as he believes by both of said witnesses that he is not guilty of the charge against him he can prove by both said witnesses that he has never owned or had under his controls any still or stilling apparatus or been concerned? in any still since the war nor had no intent in any still nor has not been able to own any still or interest in a still. Affiant is very poor a wife and eight children and without means of support except by his daily labor.  He can prove the same facts by William Potter and John Terry that he can by C B Cantrell and he can further prove as he believes and in part as he knows that at the time of the alleged offenses he was hired to C B Cantrell to work on his farm.  He Cantrell owning a large farm and he Cantrell was also carrying on a Distillery and Mrs. Cantrell was unwell and requested affiant  go out and kill her a squirrel he got the gun and went out in the direction of the still house Thinking that direction was the surest way to find a squirrel but found none and when he came near the Still house there was no person there the doors was shut and he set his gun down by the door opened it and went in the still house to get him a drink of beer and just as he stepped up to where the beer was, the dogs he had brought with him came barking and J Armstrong and others came up Armstrong broke his gun and arrested him this is the truth of the transaction and affiant states that C B Cantrell, Isaac Cantrell, William Potter, and John Terry are witnesses whose evidence is material to his defense and he cannot go safely to trial without them or three of them that he expects to prove the above facts by them that they are within this district and that he has not possessed of sufficient means and is actually unable to pay the fees of such Witnesses therefore affiant prays that his cause be continued until the next term of this court and that he have the aforesaid Witnesses summoned to appear at the next term of this court as provided in section 878 of the revised statutes of the United States this application is made for justice and not for delay 

David Pitmon
April 25 1876

Characters:  

Calvin Bennett Cantrell--1st Battalion Co C Colm's 2nd Lt David's Father in Law also served in Colm's

Mrs. C B Cantrell--Amanda Lee married C B(his 2nd Wife) in Dekalb Co TN on 27 Nov 1870

Isaac Cantrell--Not sure which one this is but all of the Isaac Cantrells from Dekalb Co are kin to David's wife Mary Adcock.

William Potter--kin to Cantrells thru his mother's ancestry

John Terry-as far as I can tell he is NOT related to the Cantrells or Adcocks

David Pitman(Apr 1838-11 Feb 1922)--52 Ancestors

David Pitman(Apr 1838-11 Feb 1922) is my maternal 2nd Great Grandfather. This week's 52 Ancestor prompt was "branching out" and I can think of no other ancestor of mine who fits that more than he does.  He was born near Paint Rock Alabama in 1838 to Daniel & Comfort Hatfield Pittman.  His family was in Dekalb Co TN by the 1850 Census which is where he was living when he met and married his first wife Mary D. T. Adcock(1842-1902) 22 DEC 1859.  I descend thru their daughter Nancy Florence Pittman(my Mom's Paternal Grandmother).

David's surname is spelled several different ways:  Pittman, Pitman and Pitmon.  It's also "butchered" in the 1920 census and several other documents a few times. Also, nicknamed Dave.   There are some online trees that have his name as David Harlin Pitman but I've never found anything to indicate that.  He did name one of his sons David Harlin Pittman but I've never found a record showing that name for the elder David "Dave'" Pitman.

David was in the Civil War with the Co A 16th TN Regiment(Confederate) and is listed among others that served with him in an article in the Southern Standard from 1884.  I have a copy of his 2nd wife's confederate pension application which was approved.  

There had been some tails passed down thru the family that he had made his own alcohol but I'd never found any proof until I located several Federal court case announcements at Newspapers.com.  These were spanning the years from 1873-1876.  I haven't yet been able to get copies of the cases but that is one of my top items on my to-do list in my research on him.  

In 1870 he and his wife Mary are enumerated in the Florence District of Rutherford Co Tennessee.  Next door are his Mom, Comfort(likely widowed) and several of his siblings with their children.  I have no idea what brought them to the Murfreesboro area unless it was the war.  David and Mary would go back to Dekalb County.  Several of his sister would marry in Rutherford Co TN and move on to Gibson Co TN before moving on to other parts.  I don't know if Comfort moved on to Gibson Co TN with them or died before the move because I can't locate her in the 1880 census.

David and Mary had at least 12 children together according to the records which I have found.  They also helped to raise several of their grandchildren before Mary's death in 1902.  After Mary passed,  David remarried to a much younger woman, Florence Alabama Prater(Widow of Leonidas Poss) and had 4 more children.  Avorilla Poss, a step daughter from his wife's previous marriage also lived with them until she married in 1915. David passed in 1922 at the age of 83 and is buried in Young Bend Cemetery in Dekalb Co. Tennessee.  Several branches of his descendants moved to Alabama, California and Texas and there are some who still live in Dekalb, Warren & White Co area of Tennessee.  I see many of them among my maternal DNA matches. I don't know if this is because of the shear number of them or if they are more interested in DNA testing than cousins from other of my ancestors.

Sources:

"Tennessee, County Marriages, 1790-1950," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKH3-XYL5 : 10 March 2021), David Pittman and Mary D F Adcock, 22 Dec 1859; citing DeKalb, Tennessee, United States, Marriage, p. , Tennessee State Library and Archives, Nashville and county clerk offices from various counties; FHL microfilm 593,050.

"United States Census, 1850," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MCD8-MSV : 23 December 2020), David Pitmon in household of Daniel Pitmon, DeKalb, Tennessee, United States; citing family , NARA microfilm publication (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

"United States Census, 1860", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M8TH-ZY6 : 18 February 2021), David Pittman, 1860.

"United States Census, 1870", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MD8M-DHH : 29 May 2021), David Pitman in entry for Comfort Pitman, 1870.

“The Courts,” Republican Banner, 19 Nov 1873, p. 4, col. 5 ; digital images, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 30 Jan 2022).

“The Courts,” The Tennessean, 25 Oct 1874, p. 4, col. 4; digital images, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 30 Jan 2022).

“The Courts,” The Tennessean, 21 Oct 1876, p. 3, col. 7; digital images, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 30 Jan 2022).

"United States Census, 1880," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MD79-LNM : 15 January 2022), David Pitman, Civil District 11, DeKalb, Tennessee, United States; citing enumeration district , sheet , NARA microfilm publication T9 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), FHL microfilm .

“Roll Company A 16th Tenn. Regiment.,” Southern Standard, 21 Jun 1884, p. 4, col. 4; digital images, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 30 Jan 2022).

"United States Census, 1900", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MS8Z-4V1 : 29 January 2022), Davis Pitman, 1900.

"Tennessee, U.S., Marriage Records, 1780-2002" imaged at Ancestry.com,  Dekalb > 1899 Jan-1909 Aug: Marriages Image 525 of 843 (pg 427) David Pitman to F. A. Prater: accessed 30 Jan 2022.

"United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MGFM-J8B : accessed 31 January 2022), David Pittman, Civil District 7, DeKalb, Tennessee, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 57, sheet 2A, family 21, NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1982), roll 1497; FHL microfilm 1,375,510.

"United States Census, 1920", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MNPL-G3Z : 3 February 2021), David Pinon(should be Pitman), 1920.

"Tennessee Deaths, 1914-1966," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:N9BD-BM2 : 1 March 2021), Dave Pitman, 11 Feb 1922; Death, Smithville, DeKalb, Tennessee, United States, Tennessee State Library and Archives, Nashville.

Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/93245425/david-pitman : accessed 30 January 2022), memorial page for David “Dave” Pitman (Apr 1838–22 Feb 1922), Find a Grave Memorial ID 93245425, citing Young Bend Cemetery, DeKalb County, Tennessee, USA ; Maintained by Walela (contributor 47310007) .

"Tennessee, Confederate Pension Applications, Soldiers and Widows, 1891-1965", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q571-M9LP : 31 October 2018), Florence A Pitman in entry for David Pitman, 1891-1965.