William H. (22 Jan 1867-10 Dec 1945) — m. Mary Ida Norris on 26 Jan 1888
Calvin Joseph (11 Sep 1869-28 Jun 1949) — m. C. Dora Simpson on 31 Dec 1893; m. Mary Francis Winkler on 6 May 1900
Sarah Rosetta (31 Mar 1872-19 Nov 1898) — m. Luther Lee Ford on 22 Nov 1888
Lewis was the son of John William Kelley from North Carolina and Sarah “Sallie” Carter from Greene County in eastern Tennessee. They moved to Missouri in probably 1844, which is when many of the Carter family moved there. Most records say Lewis was born in Missouri, after the move. The 1850 census showed the Kelley and Carter families in Franklin County, Missouri; it didn’t list Lewis, but did list a girl named Ann Kelley of the same age for whom there’s no other evidence.
Mary was the daughter of Thomas H. Watson from Virginia and Margaret Davis from Ohio. She was born in Hartford, Adams County, Indiana, where the 1850 census showed her with her family. Her mother died in 1853, and her father remarried in 1855 to the widowed sister of his late wife.
The 1860 census for Bolling Green Township, Pettis County, Missouri, showed Mary Watson (12) with her father Thomas (46) and aunt/stepmother Ann (34), plus children William (17), Robert (14), Lewis (12), Samuel (9), Margaret (3), and Martha (1).
The same census showed Lewis Kelley (16) in Town 38, Range 11 of Pulaski County, which overlaps the territory of the modern Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. He was with parents John (56, farmer) and Sarah (Sallie, 39), and siblings William (20), Levi (18), John (9), Francis (6), Decater (5), Sarah (2), and Andrew (1). Lewis and his siblings were all listed as born in Tennessee, which was just laziness on the part of the census-taker, or perhaps carelessness on the part of whomever he was speaking to. They were next door to Sallie’s brother John Carter (37), and not far from the Rollins family, which included Sallie’s recently widowed mother Elizabeth Howard Carter (63).
Lewis’s father John Kelley died later that year, as did Mary’s aunt/stepmother Ann Davis Watson.
Lewis might have fought for the Confederacy during the war. His brother Levi definitely did, but I have no clear evidence for Lewis.
In probably the mid-1860s, Lewis and Mary married. A genealogy site claims this was in Webster County, Missouri, but offers no documentation.
The 1870 census found railroad laborer Lewis Kelly (24) living in Union Township, Webster County, Missouri with wife Mary (20) and sons William H. (3) and Joseph C. (8 months). Mary’s brother Samuel Watson (19) was staying with them. Union Township was north of Marshfield and south of Conway. The nearest post office was in Waldo.
In the early 1870s, after Rosetta’s birth, the family moved south to Sharp County, Arkansas. Mary died there in February 1875. Her date of death is supposedly recorded in the Watson family bible. Although there’s a findagrave.com memorial for her, her actual burial place is unknown.
Lewis remarried in the years 1875-1878, to Mary Eliza Lanier (~1848-????). The one record in which she appears indicates she was born about 1848 in Louisiana to parents from Georgia, although her findagrave.com page claims birth in 1851 as well as specifying Hammond, Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana. Her and Lewis’s children:
Georgia Ella (6 May 1878-30 Dec 1948) — m. Peter Corbin Buckelew
Lewis Milton/Melton (~1880-6 Oct 1937) — m. Irma Amanda Abraham in 191x
Mattie Maude (1885-1913) — m. Henry Theodore Gray in 1903
Marvin Enoch (20 Nov 1886-21 Mar 1966) — m. May Wainwright in 190x
Byron Luther “Luther” (12 Feb 1889-9 Jul 1977) — m. Bertha Jane Plaster on 13 Dec 1911
In the 1880 census, Lewis (34), farmer and preacher, and wife Mary E. (32) were in Richwoods Township, Sharp County, Arkansas, the area around and just south of Ash Flat. Lewis claimed his father was from Kentucky, for some reason. Children listed were William H. (13), Joseph C. (11), Rosetta (8), Lewis M. (supposedly 4), and Georgia E. (2). The older three children were born in Missouri and the two youngest in Arkansas. They also had a boarder named William Porter (20) from Missouri.
Based on later evidence, the younger Lewis’s age was supposed to say 4 months. The census-taker initially listed the children as all having a mother from Tennessee, and then crossed it out and changed it to all Louisiana, another lazy mistake.
I can’t find Lewis after 1880. Son Marvin was born in Arkansas (reportedly either Mountain View, Stone County or Milford, Sevier County) in 1886, daughter Sarah married in 1888 in Independence County, Arkansas, and son Luther was born in Arkansas in 1889, so Lewis was still there. Familysearch.org and findagrave.com both claim that Lewis died in 1898; familysearch.org says it was in Arkansas, while his findagrave.com page says it was Craig County, Oklahoma, and that he was cremated. In 1900, son Marvin was living with his married half-brother William H. Kelley, which does suggest his parents were gone. In contrast, ancestry.com information claims Lewis was a Methodist preacher in Vinita, Craig County, Oklahoma when his wife died there on 20 Jun 1894, and that Lewis himself died in 1919. Records to support these competing claims are lacking.
Lewis’s slightly older brother Levi (1842-1905), who served in a Confederate cavalry unit and was married three times, also moved to Lawrence (later Sharp) County. Some records confuse him and Lewis, to the extent of creating a composite named “Levi Lewis Kelley”. However, the 1901 records of the Arkansas Pension Board for ex-Confederates listed them both, on page 268. The board approved Levi’s pension request but, without explanation, turned down Lewis’s, leaving the question of his military career (and when he died) open.
William has his own entry in the family tree.
Joseph is variously recorded as Joseph Calvin or Calvin Joseph, but the latter has the final (tombstone) word. It appears he mostly went by Joseph. He married Caladonia Dora “Dora” Simpson (21 Nov 1872-5 Sep 1899) from Arkansas on 31 Dec 1893 in Reed Township, Sharp County. They lived in Lebanon Township, Sharp County, the same area as Joseph’s older brother William. Their children:
Eva E. (Oct 1894-190x)
William Burgess (31 Mar 1898-1942) — m. Gatha Butts on 5 May 1918
Bertha (31 Mar 1898-Sep 1973) — m. Oscar Sam Mathis on 23 Jan 1919
Dora died in 1899, and is buried in Spotts Cemetery, Sharp County as “C. D. Kelley”. On 6 May 1900 in Reed, Joseph Kelley married his second wife, Mary Francis Winkler (26 Jun 1875-13 Jul 1958). The 1900 census showed them in Lebanon Township with Calvin’s three children by Dora. His children with Francis:
Otha M. (11 May 1903-14 Oct 1994) — m. Edgar D. “Ed” Norris on 5 Nov 1922; divorced 28 Nov 1927; still together 1930, 1940
Dortha Lee (18 Mar 1905-12 Aug 1971) — m. John Riley Wells in 1928
Velo (~1908-after 1940) — m. Parke Olen Porter on 19 Oct 1924 (prob. shotgun wedding)
Lewis Milton “Milton” (30 Oct 1909-7 Nov 1993) — m. Mary A. Lloyd on 17 Oct 1928; m. Ruth Green on 6 Sep 1951
The 1910 census, which incorrectly said Joseph was from Arkansas, showed all the children except Eva, suggesting she died young (or, possibly, married young). The 1920 census for Lebanon Township showed Joseph and Mary Francis with the four younger children. By the 1930 census, it was down to just Joseph and Francis, although son Milton was nearby, as were some Norrises. In 1940, J. C. and Francis were living with Milton and family. Joseph died in 1949 and is buried with Mary Francis in Spotts Cemetery.
Sarah married Luther Lee Ford (7 Feb 1867-26 Nov 1925) on 22 Nov 1888 in Independence County, Arkansas. They had three children, all girls:
Maude Lee (19 Jan 1889-24 Jul 1933) — m. Taylor John Mitchell
Flora Ethel (31 Jul 1892-15 Jun 1978) — m. Thomas Oran Love in 1913
Mary Edna (1 Nov 1895-19 Jul 1993) — m. Fred Noble Smith on 22 May 1922; m. Forrest Bradley Carter on 31 Mar 1974
Sarah died in 1898. Familysearch.org gives exact dates of birth and death, but unsourced. Her place of burial is unknown. Luther married Georgia Ann Tate Helm (1869-1948), who came with two children, in 1900. He died in 1925 and is buried with Georgia in Barren Fork Cemetery, Mount Pleasant, Izard County, Arkansas.
Georgia married Peter Corbin Buckelew (12 Sep 1873-2 Sep 1950). Their children:
Bessie Beatrice (3 Sep 1902-19 Dec 1968) — m. Robert Joseph Friday
Frances Lillian (6 Jan 1905-26 Dec 1971) — m. Hermie Katz in 1930; m. Coy Dolph Treece in 1965
Katie L. (15 May 1907-9 May 1996) — m. Albert Watson Barnes
Lois Etta (15 Feb 1910-2 Oct 1998) — m. William F. Lowery
Roy Newton (6 Jun 1912-24 Jan 1970) — m. Nellie Mae Brewer
Troy N. (1912-1979) — m. Ruth McQueen
The family settled in Alabama. Georgia died in 1948 and is buried in New Live Oak Cemetery, Selma, Dallas County, Alabama. Peter died two years later and is buried with her.
Although the 1880 census indicated that Lewis was 4 years old, making him appear to be the last child of Mary V. Watson, that was clearly a mistake. Later records showed that he was born about 1880 and that his mother was Mary E. Laneer (Lanier). There’s a claim that he married one May Bankston in 1898 in Louisiana, but no evidence. Lewis married Irma Amanda Abraham (9 Dec 1890-15 Jun 1956) from Emporia, Kansas, probably in Texas. They had two children, born in Texas and Louisiana respectively:
Ruth (6 Apr 1915-28 Aug 1963) — m. Robert Munger Trimble in 193x
Joan L. (11 Oct 1922-15 Oct 2005) — m. Donald R. Skarie in prob. 1947
In 1920, they were living in Waco, McLennan County, Texas. In 1930, they were in Shreveport, Caddo Parish, Louisiana, with Lewis listing his profession as “builder”. Lewis died in 1937 in Shreveport, and is buried in Forest Park Cemetery. The 1940 census showed the family still there, with Ruth’s husband and daughter Susan present.
Irma died of cardiovascular disease in 1956 in Seattle, Washington, where the 1950 census had shown daughter Joan residing. She was cremated, but I don’t know where she or Lewis is buried. Their daughter Ruth died in British Columbia in 1963. Joan died in Oregon in 2005.
Mattie, like most of her family, couldn’t be found in the 1900 census. She married Louisiana farmer Henry Theodore Gray (15 Aug 1879-3 Feb 1956) in 1903. He had previously been married to Mary E. Wells (1875-1901), with whom he had three children: Mertia (~1898-6 Nov 1918; m. ??? Drott), Henry Hugh (26 Nov 1898-28 Apr 1974), and Julius Leon (27 Mar 1900-20 May 1981; m. Edna Philomene Gautreaux). Mattie and Henry lived in Louisiana. Their children:
Kelly Theodore (16 Sep 1903-1992) — m. Mamie Mertie Howes
Etta Mae (14 Aug 1905-17 Mar 1983) — m. Thomas Rigby Foster II
Florice Ina “Flossie” (1908-31 Aug 2007) — m. Leslie Lethrage “Pappy” Davis
Alma Maude (16 Sep 1910-6 Jan 2007) — m. Robert Fulton Darden; m. Howard Smith Hay
The 1910 census showed them in Hammond, Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana. Mattie died in 1913, and is buried in Greenlawn Cemetery, Hammond. The 1920 census showed Henry still living in Hammond with Mattie’s four children. Henry later married Beatrice Davis (2 Aug 1899-30 Apr 1983) and had more children. He died in 1956, and is buried in Robertson Cemetery, Ponchatoula, Tangipahoa Parish, the same place as his first and third wives.
The familysearch.org site in early 2020 contained a record incorrectly claiming a different woman as Lewis’s daughter Maude: Maude Mae “Maudie” Rowan (1886-1945), lifelong resident of Calhoun County, Arkansas. She married Edd J. L. Kelly from Alabama in 1907, and married G. Elmer Jones in 1925.
Marvin was living with his married half-brother William in Lebanon Township, Sharp County, Arkansas in 1900. Like his sister Mattie, he moved to Louisiana. He married May Wainwright (24 Oct 1891-20 Feb 1987), and they had five children:
Lewis Marvin (13 Sep 1910-200x) — m. Thula Dee ??? in 193x
Gertrude May (1913-????) — m. ??? Johnson in 193x
Gladys Marie (26 Dec 1915-3 May 2003) — m. Ira B. “Pete” Brown in 193x
Ernestine (23 Aug 1918-28 Mar 2001) — m. Alfred Mitchell Hauser in 193x
Rita Jo (17 Jun 1931-21 Oct 2008) — m. ??? Herndon; m. Kenneth Elbert Goff
In 1910, they were living in Hammond, Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, and had boarders from Arkansas and Louisiana named Luther Kelly (19) and Leo Wainwright (20). Leo was May’s brother, and I’m guessing Luther was Marvin’s brother. In 1920, they were living with May’s parents in Tangipahoa Parish. By 1930, they were in Shreveport, Caddo Parish at the northwestern tip of Louisiana, the same place as Marvin’s older brother Lewis. By 1940, just daughter Rita was still at home. Marvin’s 1942 draft registration said he was working for Glassell & Taylor Construction Company. Marvin died in 1966, and is buried as Marvin E. Kelly (not Kelley) in Centuries Memorial Park, Shreveport. Records confirm his parents were from Missouri and Louisana. May died in 1987 and is buried with him.
Luther was probably with one of his older siblings, or possibly his father, in 1900. The 1910 census in Louisiana showed him living with Marvin, which says he and his parents were from Arkansas but doesn’t list relationship to Marvin. Luther married Texas-born Bertha Jane Plaster (3 Nov 1896-4 Sep 1987) in 1911 in Carter County, Oklahoma. Their children:
Bertha M. (17 Jan 1913-15 Jul 1999) — m. Alfred Edmond Lininger about 1940; m. Cecil Whitfield Hall on 27 Apr 1973
Margaret Isabelle (16 Aug 1914-30 Aug 1985) — m. ??? Fictum on ?13 Oct 1937?; m. Maurice M. Kendall on 13 Oct 1942
Etta Fay (Jun 1917-????)
Violet J. (Sep 1919-????) — m. Charles Edward Corey on 13 Oct 1934
Byron Luther, Jr. (30 Apr 1921-2 Dec 1988) — m. Sarah ???
Fern P. (1924-28 Sep 2004)
John Theodore “Jack” (19 Dec 1926-????) — m. Lorna W. Steele on 18 Aug 1952
Sydney Carl (1933-????)
Gail (18 Jun 1936-6 Jun 1963) — m. Kenrick Churchill Palmer on 26 Dec 1953; divorced; Richard L. Nelson on 22 Jun 1957
From where their children were born, it’s apparent that they lived in Albuquerque, New Mexico, then in Texas, then in Oklahoma, then New Mexico again, Oklahoma again, Texas again, and then Colorado. The 1920 census had the family in Comanche County, Oklahoma, and the 1930 census in Englewood, Arapahoe County, Colorado. By 1940, when they were in Denver, only Fern, John, Sydney, and Gail were still at home. The 1950 census found them in Clackamas, Oregon, with Sydney and Gail still at home.
Gail was fatally injured in a car crash in 1963 while in Glenn, California on her way to attend a brother’s wedding. Luther died in 1977 in Gladstone, Clackamas County, Oregon, and is buried in Mountain View Cemetery, Oregon City, Oregon. Bertha died a decade later and is buried with him.
The Luther M. Kelley, Sr. (1911-1985) buried in White’s Chapel United Methodist Church Cemetery, Augusta, St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, was no relation.
http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/ROLLINS/2001-09/0999789421 -- John & Sallie
http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/MOMARIES/2000-09/0968208695 -- Lewis’s parents
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MHVX-NSZ -- 1850 census, Mary Watson
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MHZM-8YK -- 1860 census, Lewis Kelley
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MH89-C6M -- 1860 census, Mary Watson
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M4FH-95V -- 1870 census
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/125391556 -- 1875 virtual grave of Mary
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MNW5-JK1 -- 1880 census
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NMP6-FNY -- 1888 wedding of Sarah
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/261217503/lewis_kelley -- 1898 virtual grave of Lewis
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M32B-DXN -- 1900 census, Lewis M.’s future wife Irma
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2ST-5VRS -- 1901 pension board records; go back to p. 180 to see date
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MPBK-HL6 -- 1910 census, Mattie
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MPBZ-CDP -- 1910 census, Marvin
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/94754200/maud-kelly-gray -- 1913 grave of Maude
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KZ8L-B8D -- 1917 draft registration, Mattie’s husband
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F338-85D -- 1918 death of Mattie’s stepdaughter Myrtia
https://www.ancestry.com/genealogy/records/lewis-kelley_74872751 -- 1919 claimed as year of death for Lewis
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MVW7-252 -- 1920 census, Marvin
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MHBB-L1B -- 1920 census, Lewis Jr.
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MVW7-TTR -- 1920 census, Mattie’s family
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/20375377 -- 1925 grave of Sarah Rosetta’s husband; photos!
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XMTB-HXX -- 1930 census, Marvin
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XMTB-LKX -- 1930 census, Lewis Jr.
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F397-DXT -- 1937 death of Lewis Jr.
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VYRD-L75 -- 1940 census, Marvin
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VTZD-HWM -- 1940 census, Marvin’s son Lewis
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VYRN-WNS -- 1940 census, widow & children of Lewis Jr.
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X5MD-QJC -- 1942 draft registration, Marvin
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X5MM-CJZ -- 1942 draft registration, Mattie’s husband
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/75094123/william-kelley -- 1945 grave of William
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/28702638/henry-t-gray -- 1956 grave of Mattie’s husband
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:N31Q-LF8 -- 1956 death of Lewis M.’s widow Irma
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FLB7-LDS -- 1963 death of Lewis M.’s daughter Ruth
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V3CH-V4Z -- 1966 death of Marvin
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/179004148 -- 1966 grave of Marvin
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K3X9-S37 -- 1974 death of Mattie’s stepson Hugh
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VVH6-FTT -- 1992 death of Lewis Marvin’s wife
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKR8-GVD9 -- ditto
https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-1992-08-01-9208010596-story.html -- ditto, obit
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KLHW-Y94 -- addresses for Marvin’s son Lewis
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/21362329 -- 2007 grave of Mattie’s daughter Flossie
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:N93B-Q4Z -- 1893 wedding of J. C. Kelley
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/57589340/caladonia-dora-kelley -- 1899 grave of C. Dora Kelley
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:N93B-48Z -- 1900 wedding of J. C. Kelley
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M3XZ-5G7 -- 1900 census for Joseph C. Kelley
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MKKM-Q17 -- 1910 census
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:N93B-KXQ -- 1918 wedding of son William
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:N93B-298 -- 1919 wedding of Bertha Kelley
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MDF2-BV6 -- 1920 census for Joseph Kelley
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NMGN-683 -- 1924 wedding of Velo Kelley
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XMGF-F3S -- 1930 census for Joseph C. Kelley
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XMGX-674 -- 1930 census, Otha
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KQ2D-YYV -- 1940 census for J. C. Kelley
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KQ2D-Y95 -- 1940 census, Otha
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KQ2D-YY5 -- 1940 census, Velo
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KQKW-P68 -- 1940 census, Dortha
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/153478682 -- 1942 grave of William B. Kelley
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/57589325 -- 1949 grave of C. J. Kelley
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/153478682/william-burgess-kelley -- William B. Kelley #3
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/129950754 -- 1967 grave of Bertha’s husband
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/57274217/dortha-lee-wells -- 1971 grave of Dortha
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JLHG-16G -- 1973 death of Bertha Kelly Mathis
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/57589360/lewis-milton-kelley -- 1993 grave of Milton Kelley
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MFPF-V3X -- 1860 census, a Mary Porter (13) living with Kelleys in Louisiana
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/63532748/luther-m-kelley -- 1985 grave of a Luther M. Kelley, Sr.