The Family of William Taylor Hale(1820-1861) of Bledsoe, Warren and Van Buren Counties, Tennessee

I found an entry for a case listed as State of TN vs. John Bishop in the Warren Co Tennessee Minute Book(June 1860-Feb 1867) The pages are numbered in the book(viewed on FamilySearch which has digitized the microfilmed records) and this entry begins on page 476 and carries over to the next page.  There are no dates mentioned in this listing itself that would tell when it was recorded.  However, it is recorded in between pages that are headed as Feb 6 1866 and Feb 12 1866 which would put it as some time in early February of 1866.  

By that time, my Wm Taylor Hale had died from drowning.  His daughter, Caroline Lucinda Hale had married John Bishop August 8th 1865 in Van Buren Co TN and was at the time of this document, about 4 months pregnant with their son, James Monroe Bishop(born June 1866)

Information on the Hale family is hard to find for the period 1860-1880,  If I am being honest, it doesn't get much easier during the 1880 to 1930 timeframe either as there are many same names to sort thru. For this article I will focus on the 1860 to 1880 time period.

William Taylor Hale Family Timeline

1820 BIRTH: of Wm Taylor Hale

1825 BIRTH:  of brother Frances A. Hale.

1832 DEATH:  of father, John Nathaniel Hale, in Warren County, Tennessee.

1841 TAX: (Dist. 8), Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1842 TAX: (Dist. 8) as "Taylor Hails", Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1843 MARRIAGE: Wm T Hale and Adaline Elzie in Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1843 TAX: (Dist. 8) as "William T Hail", Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1844 BIRTH: Lucinda C  Hale, in Van Buren County, Tennessee.(April)

1844 TAX: (Dist. 8) as "Taylor Hails", Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1845 TAX: (Dist. 8) as "William T Hail", Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1846 TAX: NOT LISTED in the Van Buren County Tax List (Dist. 8), his brother Francis was listed.

1847 TAX: (Dist. 8) alongside Francis Hale, Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1848 BIRTH: of son, James A. Hale, in Tennessee.(July)

1848 TAX: (Dist. 8) alongside Francis Hail, Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1849 BIRTH: of son, William P. Hale, in Van Buren County, Tennessee.(May)

1849 TAX: (Dist. 8) alongside Francis Hale, Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1850 CENSUS: Van Buren Co TN Dist. 6 HH #239 Wm T, Adaline & 3 oldest children

1850 CENSUS:  Van Buren Co TN Dist. 8 HH #344 Francis Hale, wife, infant dau & Mom Catherine

1850 TAX:  (Dist. 8), Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1851 TAX: (Dist. 6), Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1852 TAX: (Dist. 6), Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1853 TAX: (Dist. 6), Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1854 TAX: (Dist. 6), Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1855 BIRTH: of daughter, Mary Hale, in Tennessee.

1855 TAX: (Dist. 10), Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1856 TAX: (Dist. 10), Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1857 TAX: (Dist. 6), Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1858 TAX: (Dist. 6), Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1859 TAX: (Dist. 6), Van Buren County, Tennessee.

1860 CENSUS: (None of the Hale Family Located)

1861 DEATH:  drowned in Collins River, Warren Co., TN (Spring)

1861 BURIED:  at Shellsford Cemetery in McMinnville, TN.

Continuation of the Timeline of the Hale Family up to their reappearance in Census Records

1861  BIRTH: of son, John Nathaniel Hale.(July)

1865  MARRIAGE: of Lucinda C Hale to John Bishop(Van Buren Co. TN Aug 8)

1866 COURT: State of TN vs John Bishop assault w/ intent to commit robbery(bond Francis Hale)

1866  BIRTH: of Lucinda & John's son--James Monroe Bishop

1870  CENSUS: None of the Wm T Hale Family located on Census

1870  CENSUS:  Francis Hale Family Warren Co TN Dist 4 Dwelling & Family 37 

1874  MARRIAGE:  of James A Hale to Mary Polly Hillis

1876  BIRTH: of Lucinda & Mr. Davis' son--Luther Davis

1880  CENSUS: Adaline & Lucinda living same household (Van Buren Co. TN Dist. 8) 

1880  CENSUS: James A. Hale & Family(Van Buren Co. TN Dist. 8)

1880  CENSUS: Wm P. Hale & Family(Bledsoe Co. TN Dist. 1)

1880  CENSUS: Mary Hale Johnson & Family(Bledsoe Co. TN Dist. 1)

Transcription of the Warren Co TN Court Minutes:

page 476

State of Tennessee vs. John Bishop
No 167 Assault to commit Robbery  Rile B Thomas? prosecutor

came the defendant and Francis Hale
and Hardy Patterson into open court and acknowledged
themselfs to owe and stand indebted to the state of Tennessee in the
sum of One thousand five hundred dollars that is to say the
the defendants in the sum of one thousand dollars and the
said Francis Hale and Hardy Patterson in the sum of Five
hundred dollars jointly and severally to be levied of them respective
good and Chattels lands and tenements to the use of the state but
to be void on condition that the said Defendant makes his person
al appearance before the judge of our next circuit court to be held
for the county of Warren in the court house in the town of McMinnville

Page 477
On the first Tuesday after the first Monday in June Next
to answer the state of TN on a charge of assault to commit
Robery(sic) and does not depart without leave of the court
Circuit Court Clerks Office Warren Co TN

This appears to be Wm T Hale's brother Francis putting up a security for John Bishop, husband of his niece Lucinda Hale Bishop.  There is another court entry dated June 5th of 1866 that shows that John Bishop did not show, nor did Francis Hale or Hardy Patterson.  

Ten years later Lucinda gives birth to another son that carries the surname Davis though I have never been able to find that marriage or a divorce from John Bishop. 

Oddly enough I found a divorce that was filed by a female Frances Hale(maiden name Clark) against a Wm T Hale.  This was June 1st of 1886 in Warren Co TN.  Name is the same but the people are not.

I've not found much on this family until recent years and I've yet to find an account of Wm Taylor Hale's drowning.  The main sources I have for this family outside of the 1850 census and marriage is a letter written by Phoebe Hale McCormick(younger daughter of the youngest son of Wm Taylor Hale) to my cousin  Margie Hale, a Hale and Acuff researcher.  I'm writing more about that and examining it in another blog post. Lots of work yet to be done on this line.

Source
Warren County TN Minute book June 1860-Feb 1867, p 476 & 477, State of Tennessee vs John Bishop; image, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C39N-N954-R : accessed 30 September 2026), IGN 8478322, Image 242 of 344

William Taylor Hale Tax Records 1841-1859

Worked on the Van Buren County Tennessee Tax Records  for my 3rd Great Grandfather William Taylor Hale(1820-1861) He drowned in the Collins River in the spring of 1861.  I've not found any records detailing his death other than a letter written from one Phoebe Hale McCormick to Oleta Cope detailing the family story( I've looked for newspaper accounts for many years and have not yet found one) The Hale family is missing from the 1860 US Federal Census and 1870.  The tax records for 1851-1859 are the only records I have found so far let us know that he was still in the area up until about 1860. I believe Francis Hale is Wm T Hale's younger brother as I do find him in the census with an older lady that I believe is their mother in 1850.

Van Buren Co. TN Tax Records 1840-1862   

IGN 008264049 (Item 1 of 2)

Poll Tax of one for each name listed.  No land unless noted.
Dist No 8 1841 Image 20 of 428 William T Hale
Dist No 8 1842 Image 28 of 428 Taylor Hails
Dist No 8 1843 Image 37 of 428 William T Hail
Dist No 8 1844 Image 44 of 428 Taylor Hails
Dist No 8 1845 Image 52 of 428 William T Hail
Dist No 8 1846 Image 60 of 428 Francis Hale(600 acres value $50--Wm T Hale not located)
Dist No 8 1847 Image 72 of 428 Wm T Hale(& Francis Hale-- 600 acres value $50)
Dist No 8 1848 Image 84 of 428 William T Hail (& Francis Hail 600 acres value $100)
Dist No 8 1849 Image 92 of 428 William T Hale(& Francis Hale 600 acres value $30)
Dist No 8 1850 Image 101 of 428 Wm T Hail (Francis Hail no land)
Dist No 6 1851 Image 108 of 428 William T Hale
Dist No 6 1852 Image 116 of 428 William T Hail
Dist No 6 1853 Image 126 of 428 William T Hail
Dist No 6 1854 Image 137 of 428 William T Hail (& Francis A Hail no land)
Dist No 10 1855 Image 155 of 428 W T Hail
Dist No 10 1856 Image 167 of 428 Wm T Hail
Dist No 6 1857 Image 178 of 428 W T Hail
Dist No 6 1858 Image 188 of 428 Wm T Hale
Dist No 6 1859 Image 200 of 428 William Hale

Notes of Interest from Pine Bluff(Aug 1934)

NOTES OF INTEREST FROM PINE BLUFF

Andrew Hillis spent Tuesday afternoon with Will Rowland.

Ray Slatten visited Haze Miller one evening last week.

Rev. W. J. McElroy and family are spending a few days with relatives in this part.

Jo Acuff visited Fannie Barlow Sunday night.

John Bluford Witt spent Sunday with Elbert Acuff.

Leighton Hash and wife, Gladys, spent Saturday with his sister, Mrs. Bascom Chandler.

Mrs. Charlie Lee Acuff visited Mrs. Richard Moore Sunday.

J. Walter Davis and family of Chillicothe, Texas, spent last week with his sister, Mrs. L. D. Chandler.

Mrs. Ida Breedlove and daughter spent Sunday with Jim Breedlove.

Walter Davis and son, James, spent Monday morning with Andy Acuff.

Mr. and Mrs. Ivy Sparkman spent last Saturday with her mother, Mrs. Daisy Johnson.

Mr. and Mrs. Jim Deaton spent a few days last week with his father, Squire Deaton.

Notes:  A lot of Van Buren County connections in this article. Elbert Acuff and Charlie Lee Acuff are 1st cousins of my maternal grandmother Minnie Acuff Luna. I'm not sure if Jo Acuff was Sarah Josephine Acuff(Daughter of Andrew "Andy" J Acuff and Hannah Hash) or Margie Josephine Acuff(daughter of Wm H Acuff and Minnie Hash Witt.)  Both were named after their maternal grandmother, Josephine Potter Hash.

Source:

"Notes of Interest From Pine Bluff," Southern Standard(McMinnville, Tenn) 23 Aug 1934, Vol LV, No. 26, p 5, col 4; image, FamilySearch(https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QHV-13RM-16D7 : accessed 26 Mar 2025) IGN 8964042, image 1121 of 1152.

J.P. Acuff Estate--Van Buren Co. TN(1940)

James P Acuff died in November 1939, about 2 and a half months after his wife's death. They were both living in Madison County, Alabama, at the time they died but still owned land in Van Buren County, Tennessee.  Minnie Acuff Luna was living in Lincoln County, Tennessee.  Mildred Acuff is Ernest Acuff's daughter and the only grandchild listed presumably because Ernest had passed 5 years earlier. I'm not sure why Ovena's name is spelled Evena, but this is not the only case where her name has not been spelled as one would have expected.  

This notice was ordered to be published in the Southern Standard for 4 consecutive weeks.

Dates of publication were:

May 24, 1940
May 31, 1940
Jun 7, 1940
Jun 14, 1940

ORDER OF PUBLICATION

To Evena Sharp, Emma Sanders, Er-

nest Acuff, Mildred Acuff, Sarah 

Thomas and W.E. Acuff
------
W.E. Acuff, Administrator
vs
Minnie Luna et al

In the County Court of Van Buren
County, Tenn.

-------
In this cause it appearing from the
petition which is sworn to, that Evena
Sharp, Emma Sanders, Ernest Acuff,
Mildred Acuff, Sarah Thomas and
W.E. Acuff, the only heirs of J.P.
Acuff, deceased, are non-residents of
the State of Tennessee, they are
therefore, hereby required to appear,
on or before the 1st Monday in July,
1940, before the County Court of Van
Buren county, Tennessee, at the Court
House, in Spencer, Tennessee, and
make defense to the petition filed
against them in said Court, by W.E.
Acuff, administratior, or otherwise the
petition will be taken for confessed as
to them.

It is further ordered that this no-
tice be published for four consecutive
weeks in the Southern Standard, a
newspaper published at McMinnville,
Tennessee, there being no paper pub
lished in Van Buren County, Tenn.
Said petition seeks to sell the lands
of J.P. Acuff, deceased, as an insol-
vent estate, to pay his indebtedness.
This May 16, 1940.

W. B. Cummings, Clerk

4t-32

Source:

"Order of Publication," Southern Standard(McMinnville, Tenn.), 14 Jun 1940, Vol LXI, No 35, p 7, col 2; image,

FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QHK-C3TC-GX1H : accessed 25 Mar 2025), IGN 8992355, Image 75 of 1194.

Finis E Plumlee--Van Buren Co. TN

I found a book available at HathiTrust Digital Library  It's written by Thomas L. Wilson and titled Sufferings endured for a free government; or,  A history of the cruelties and atrocities of the rebellion.  Complete with a table of contents, it tells the stories of many folks who lost their lives during the time period of the Civil War.

Since the text is fully searchable I was able to find an incident from a county in which many of my maternal ancestors lived.  Though there is a difference in the spelling of his name,  I believe that the story "Murder of Phileneas Plumley" is detailing the events of the death of Finis E Plumlee of Van Buren Co TN.  Finis was married to Lucinda Sparkman.  I have numerous connections to the Sparkman family thru marriages of my cousins.

The page detailing the murder says

"He left a wife and seven little children(who all witnessed his murder) to mourn the loss of a good husband and father."

I was found the census entries for 1850, 1860, and 1870 for the family.  Finis is not listed in the household for the 1870 entry and his burial information including a picture of his headstone can be found at Findagrave.com.   It should be noted that the book says this happened in the early part of 1863 while Finis' gravestone gives February 5th of 1864 as his date of death.  (image of Plumlee household from 1870 Census shown below)

I did find another incident which was claimed to have taken place in Clinton County Tennessee.  While there is a Clinton, TN, there is no Clinton County TN.  I believe the author meant Kentucky instead of Tennessee as I was able to find a record of the person he mentioned living in that county in Kentucky.

This brings to mind Robert Scott Davis' Georgia Black Book, Vol. #1: Morbid, Macabre and Disgusting Records of Genealogical Value.  Davis' work and research is far more in-depth than Wilsons but I'll take research clues wherever I can get them

Sources:
Wilson, Thomas L.(of Tennessee), Sufferings Endured for a Free Government; Or, A History of the Cruelties And Atrocities of the Rebellion ... Philadelphia: King & Baird, 1865. (Online at https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/008653811).

Tennessee, Van Buren County. 1850 U.S.Federal census, population schedule. Database with Images. Ancestry http://ancestry.com Tennessee .> Van Buren > Dist 3  > Pg 374, line 18( image 4 of 8).

Tennessee, Van Buren County. 1860 U.S.Federal census, population schedule. Database with Images. Ancestry http://ancestry.com Tennessee .> Van Buren > Not Stated > Pg 3,  Line 1(image 6 of 60).

Tennessee, Van Buren County. 1870 U.S.Federal census, population schedule. Database with Images. Ancestry http://ancestry.com Tennessee .> Van Buren > Not Stated > Pg 2,  Line 15(image 2 of 7).

Find A Grave, database, and images (https://www.findagrave.com: accessed 04 September 2018), memorial page for Finis Ewing Plumlee (5 Jun 1820–5 Feb 1864), Find A Grave Memorial no. 19885633, citing Sparkman Cemetery, Van Buren County, Tennessee, USA; Maintained by Ash Far (contributor 46913275).

Van Buren Co TN -1857 Political meeting

The A.J. McElroy mentioned is my 3rd Great Grandfather whose full name was Andrew Jackson McElroy. His Dad was Andrew McElroy who moved his family to the area from Oglethorpe County, Georgia.

Nashville Union and American (Nashville, Tennessee)12 Apr 1857, Sun  Page 2

Murder! No Murder.

The Nashville Republican(March 1843) printed news that it received from the Sparta Gazette(Sparta TN) about a murder that was said to have taken place in Van Buren Co Tennessee.  Last names were mentioned but no first names and the details about the incident and the persons involved were not very clear,but the paper did mention the confusion.

The Tennessean (Nashville, TN) Wednesday  15 March 1843 pg 2
(at that time the paper was called the Republican Banner)

In the end the story that the Gazette had printed ended up being a false report.  The Sparta Gazette printed a retraction of sorts which the Republican Banner also passed along to it's readers.  

The Tennessean (Nashville, TN) Wednesday  22 March 1843 pg 2
(at that time the paper was called the Republican Banner)

While this was a rumor, over the next 130 years in the Van Buren and Warren Co TN area there would be murders and lynchings that would make the national news. I heard my Mom talk about some of these as she knew the Bratcher, Gibbs and Yates families from having grown up in that area. Victor Hillis was married to my maternal Great Grandmother's sister.

• 1894--The murder of Carroll Martin during a robbery. 
• 1896--William and Victor Hillis(Brothers) were tried for the Martin's murder TWICE. The first trial resulted in hung jury, They were convicted and sentenced to death as a result of the 2nd trial but were lynched by a mob shortly after that.. 
• 1943--Novella Johnson Yates killed her husband with an ax. She served a number of years in a mental institution. 
• 1955--Four members of the Bratcher family were killed by Billy Gibbs. 

Andrew Jackson McElroy (1820-1900)

Looking through the ProQuest Historical Newspaper in search of some information on a Paternal great-uncle and had the urge to search for my 3rd Great Grandfather, Andrew Jackson McElroy(from my Maternal lines).  I didn't have a source document for his death date.  I knew it was some time after the Ogle Co.'s Compendium of Biography which was published in 1898.  I also knew that he had written his will November 20th of 1896 and that the will was proved September 3rd of 1900 and recorded the next day in Van Buren Co TN Records.    The first item that came up in my query led me to the answer.

Death of A.J. M'Elroy  Prominent Citizen of White County Joins the Majority---Special Dispatch in The American
SPARTA, Tenn., Aug 21-  Andrew Jackson McElroy, one of the oldest and best known men of this section, died Sunday night at his home at Bone Cave in Van Buren County after confinement to his room for some time.  Col. McElroy was 86 years of age and until the past two or three years had regularly attended the courts here, where he enjoyed a fair practice.

He had ever taken a great interest in politics and was an ardent Democrat.  Besides holding several minor offices he represented this district in the State Senate from 1885-1887.  His character was spotless and he was admired by all who knew him.  The interment took place last evening at the family burying ground before a large attendance of relatives and friends.
(Source: "Death of A.J. M'Elroy -Prominent Citizen of White County Joins the Majority";.Special Dispatch in The American; The Nashville American(1894-1910); Aug 22, 1900; Digital Collection of ProQuest Historical Newspapers:  The Nashville Tennessean pg 8. )


I did a Google search and found a site that lets you check a date to see what day of the week it was on for a given year.  August 21, 1900 was a Tuesday which puts him dying on Sunday August 19, 1900.  Problem solved!


Andrew Jackson McElroy was likely born in April of 1820 as that is the age which he lists the most consistently in census records.  For the 1870 Census he is listed as a few years younger.  I just feel fortunate that he was listed at all.  Several of my other folks aren't listed in 1870.  The 1870 census is the first census after reconstruction and is notorious for inaccurate information some of which is possibly due to census takers from the north being using in many areas of the south.  See the Census Book for more information on this and other census records.   Below are a few of  Andrew J. McElroy's Census entries.

1830 White Co TN
Andrew McElroy
Males:
1 5-under 10
1 10-under 15  (Andrew J. age 10 )
1 40-under 50  
 Females:
1 under 5
1 5-under 10
1 13-under 20
1 30- under 40
(Source: 1830 White Co. Tennessee; Series: M19; Roll: 182; pg. 13; FHL Film: 0024540) 

1840 White Co TN
Andrew McElroy
 Males:
1 10 under 15
1 15 under 20
1 20-under 30 (Andrew J. age: 20)
1 40-under 50
1 50-under 60
Females:
1 10 under 15
2 15 under 20
1 40 under 50
(Source: 1840 White County, Tennessee; Roll: 536; pg. 19; FHL Film: 0024550)

1850 Van Buren Co. TN 1st Dist   pg. 367B  14/14
 A. J. McElroy 30 M Clk of Crt $5000 TN
Jane McElroy 24 F TN
Levina McElroy 4 F TN
Sarah McElroy 3 F TN
James K. P. McElroy 10/12 M TN  
(Source: 1850 Van Buren, County Tennessee, Dist 1 ;Roll: M432_897; pg. 367B)

1860 Van Buren Co. TN Spencer P.O. pg 21  273/273
A. J. McElroy 40 M Farmer $10,000 $1737 TN
Jane McElroy 32 F TN
Leviney McElroy 14 F TN
Sarah McElroy 13 F TN
J. K. P. McElroy 9 M TN
Martha McElroy 7 F TN
Eliza McElroy 5 F TN
A.J.M. McElroy 1 M TN
John O? 18 M common Laborer TN  
(Source: 1860; Van Buren, Tennessee Spencer P.O.; Roll: M653_1277; pg 21 FHL Film: 805277)


1870 Van Buren Co. TN Bone Cave 1st Civil Dist pg. 304a  15/15
A.J. McElroy 47 M W Lawyer
Martha McElroy 27 F W Keeping House
Levina McElroy 23 F W
Sarah McElroy 21 F W
Polk K McElroy 20 M W
Martha McElroy 18 F W
Eliza McElroy 15 F W
A. J. McElroy 11 M W
William McElroy 7 M W
Eveline Greer 9 F W
Elizabeth Greer 7 F W
William Greer 5 M W
Hiram C. Carter 62 M W Sadler
(Source: 1870 Van Buren County, Tennessee, Dist 1; Roll: M593_1567; Page: 304A; FHL Film: 553066)


1880 Van Buren, Tennessee Dist 1 Page 246D
A. J. McElroy Self M M W 68 TN Lawyer GA  GA
Martha McElroy Wife F M W 40 TN  Keeping House GA GA
Andrew J. McElroy Son M S W 21 TN  At Home TN  TN
Wm. McElroy Son M S W 19 TN At Home TN TN
Wm. Greer SSon M S W 16 TN  At Home TN  TN
E. Wallace Niece F S W 22 TN At Home TN TN
R. G. Waterhouse Other M S W 24 TN Minister Of Gospel  TN TN  
(Source: 1880 Van Buren County, Tennessee, Dist 1 ; Roll: 1283; FH L Film:1255283; pg: 246D; Enum Dist 127)


1900 Van Buren Co. TN Dist 1 Enum Dist 133  Page 3B  Sheet 3B  56/56
Andrew J McElroy Head W M Apr 1820 80 M 31 TN GA GA
Martha McElroy Wife W F Dec 1842 57 M 31 2 of 3 children living TN TN TN
Lizzie Zimmerman Aunt W F Nov 1854  45 wd 1 of 1 children living TN TN TN
Eva Zimmerman Cousin W F Aug 1888  11 S  Missouri Ohio TN  
(Source: 1900 Van Buren, County, Tennessee Dist 1 ; Roll: 1603; pg: 3B; Enum Dist: 0133; FHL film: 1241603)