Nicholas NORRIS, Sr. (1787-1878) +
Nancy TUCKER (179x-183x)

Mary (~1810-187x) — m. William McKinley in 182x

Lucinda () — m. ?William? Tucker

Jane (~1813-1860) — m. Simon Dotson on 20 Mar 1836

unnamed son () — m. Elizabeth “Betsy” ???

John (~1818-1846) — m. Minerva Jane Thompson on 11 Jan 1844

Phebe (~1824-1851) — m. Daniel Lacewell on 27 Aug 1844

William “Billy” (22 Feb 1824-7 Dec 1908) — m. Lucinda Thompson on 21 Mar 1844; m. Anna ??? about 1877

Nicholas Clayton, Jr. (~1827-12 Jun 1863) — m. Martha “Tennessee” McFarlin on 15 Dec 1853

Nancy (~1827-~1859) — m. Euen S. Johns on 4 Oct 1857

Thomas B. (~1830-186x) — m. Mary Ann Holt on 4 Jul 1852

Richard “Dick” (~1832-????)

Nicholas was born in Springfield, Robertson County, Tennessee, youngest of nine children to Tennessee settlers Thomas Norris and Jane “Jenny” Barrett or Bowers. He served in the Tennessee militia during the War of 1812, from 30 Nov 1813 to 30 Apr 1814. He reportedly fought in the Battle of Horseshoe Bend in Alabama under a Captain James Haggard. Descendants described Nicholas as “Black Dutch”, a euphemism for people of mixed European-African and European-Indian ancestry.

Nancy was the daughter of John Tucker and Jane “Jenny” Harrod, early settlers in Robertson County, Tennessee. On 20 Oct 1802, Nancy was recorded as an apprentice to Joseph Philips of Robertson County.

Nicholas and Nancy married probably in Robertson County about 1810. They spent some of the 1820s in the Missouri territory, where their children Billy and Phoebe were born, although this was probably in what’s now the state of Arkansas. Nicholas was joined there by his nephew John Lowry (10 Aug 1799-7 Jan 1867). When Nicholas headed for Lawrence County, Arkansas in the late 1820s, John decided at the last minute not to go with him. John later became a Mormon and settled in Utah.

Strawberry River country
Strawberry River Country

Nicholas settled on land along the Strawberry River in the Arkansas territory, at a spot between the later towns of Evening Shade and Poughkeepsie. (The Strawberry River rises near Salem in Fulton County, runs in a very winding course south to pass west of Horseshoe Bend, bends to the east to run south of Horseshoe Bend and north of Evening Shade, Poughkeepsie, and Jesup, then turns south again to meet the Black River 20 or so miles below Black Rock.) He was one of the first settlers in this area, which was part of the hunting grounds of the Osage Indians, but they were apparently friendly to settlers. He appeared in 1828 tax records for Lawrence County.

In the 1830 census for Lawrence County, Nicholas (age 40-49) and wife (30-39) had four boys and four girls, all under age 15. Unfortunately, this census named only the heads of household. Nicholas patented land in this area in 1835, the year before Arkansas became a state.

The 1840 census for Lebanon Township, Lawrence County, which is now part of Sharp County, listed Nicholas Norris, age 50-59, with no wife. So Nancy presumably died in the 1830s. The household included two younger men (one in his thirties, one in his twenties), two girls age 15-19, and two boys and a girl age 10-14.

On 15 Aug 1844, Nicholas (57) married Temperance Gardner (1820-1849) in Lawrence County. There’s a record of one child who might have been theirs:

Elisabeth (~1844-????) — UNSURE OF PARENTAGE

Temperance died in 1849. In the 1850 census for Lebanon Township, Nicholas (63) was living with son Nicholas Jr. (23), Nancy Norris (23), and Elizabeth Norris (6). The census doesn’t list relationships. The assumption is that Nancy was an unmarried daughter by the first wife and little Elizabeth was a daughter by the second wife, Temperance. It’s possible that Nancy was a daughter-in-law, and that Elizabeth was her daughter.

On 25 Nov 1851, Nicholas married Arkansas-born Sarah “Sary” Mullens (1824-186x) in Lawrence County. Claimed children (although, as with Elisabeth, it’s possible Susan was actually a grandchild):

Rebecca (~1855-????)

James “Curly Jim” (15 Apr 1857-21 Nov 1911) — m. Margaret Malvina Graham on 22 Mar 1883

Susan (1861-????)

The 1860 census showed Nicholas (73) with Sarah (36) and their children Rebecca (5) and James (3). His sons Billy and Nicholas Jr. and their families were living nearby.

By the 1870 census, Sarah had also died. Nicholas (83) was still in Lebanon Township, now Sharp County, sharing the house with Jane Norris (34) from Georgia – probably not another wife at this point, the census just says “keeping house” – plus his son James (13), probable daughter Susan (9), and another James Norris (10). Jane was most likely a widowed daughter-in-law. That would explain the extra James Norris, making him a grandson. Where was daughter Rebecca? Numerous children and grandchildren of Nicholas were living nearby.

Nicholas reportedly died in 1878. According to family lore, he’s buried somewhere along the Strawberry River, on an 80-acre parcel of land that was granted to his grandson “Big Tom” Norris in 1896, and that’s now part of the Nature Conservancy’s Strawberry River Preserve and Demonstration Ranch.

Children with Nancy Tucker

Mary Norris (~1810-187x)

There are unsourced accounts of a Mary Norris of this family who married one William McKinley. The 1850 to 1870 census records show a Mary N. McKinley, wife of William (~1800-186x) from Tennessee, born about 1810 in Missouri or Tennessee and living near Nicholas. That’s grounds enough to tentatively include her. Her children, all born in Arkansas:

Nancy Ann (2 Jan 1827-30 Sep 1916) — m. Tryan Clayton Smith on 25 Sep 1851; m. William C. Ellison on 16 Sep 1858; m. Andrew J. Wells on 3 Jul 1865

Elizabeth Jane (~1832-after 1870) — m. Samuel Rowan on 2 Sep 1857

George W. (~1836-????)

Hannah R. (~1842-????)

Martha M. (~1844-????)

Mary L. (~1847-after 1870) — m. William Thomas on 13 Jul 1867

The 1860 census for the family listed William (59), Mary (50), Hannah (16), Martha (14), and Mary (11). It also included Tryan Clayton Smith (1858-1913), daughter Nancy’s son by her first husband.

By 1870, William had died and the household was down to just Mary (60) and Evaline (27) McKinley, with three married or widowed daughters – Nancy, Elizabeth (going by Jane), and Mary Jr. – living nearby. Evaline was probably a daughter-in-law rather than Hannah or Martha using a different name. Mary probably died in the 1870s.

Lucinda Norris ()

No information about Lucinda beyond the name, and the claim that she married a Tucker, probable first name William.

Jane Norris (~1813-1860)

Jane married Simon Dotson, Sr. (~1811-1856) from Tennessee or maybe Kentucky on 20 Mar 1836 in Lawrence County. They lived in Lebanon Township, Lawrence (later Sharp) County. Children:

Elizabeth (1837-????) — poss. m. James P. Carver on 28 Nov 1858

Sally A. (1840-????) — poss. m. William C. Smith on 24 May 1863

William H. (1841-????)

Celia (1842-????)

Nicholas (1843-????)

James G. (1844-????)

Andrew Newton (Oct 1850-31 Jan 1930) — m. Sarah Elizabeth ??? in 1874

Simon Peter, Jr. (20 Oct 1853-17 May 1917) — m. Nancy May about 1874; m. Sarah A. Coke on 10 Sep 1902; m. Shellie Hudson on 25 Feb 1904

In the 1850 census, the household included an Elizabeth Norris (35) from Missouri and son Henry Norris (6), whom I believe to have been the widow and son respectively of an unidentified brother of Jane’s. Their immediate neighbors included the McFarlins and the family of Jane’s sister Phebe.

Simon died in 1856. Jane died in 1860 in Batesville, Independence County. By the 1860 census, sons Nicholas and Andrew were living with or next door to their uncle Nicholas Norris Jr. in Lebanon Township, while James and Simon Jr. were with the family of their late aunt Nancy Norris Johns. The youngest, Simon, settled in Big Creek Township, Taney County, Missouri in the late 1870s. Older brother Andrew settled in the same area in the 1890s.

Most of the children can’t be traced. James was not the James Valentine Dodson who married Mary Morris in 1875, nor the James Harvey Dodson who married Elizabeth Jane Land Wilson in 1871.

unnamed son Norris (????-184x)

This unidentified son’s existence is deduced from the presence in census records of his widow, Elizabeth “Betsy” (~1815-????) from Missouri, and their one child:

Henry C. (~1844-????)

In 1850, ages 35 and 6, they were living with Jane’s family. In 1860, reported ages 40 and 14, they were living with Nancy’s widower Euen Johns and two other orphaned Norris children. In 1870, reported ages 50 and 26, they were living next door to Nicholas Sr. Can’t find them after that.

John Norris (~1818-1846)

John married Minerva Jane Thompson (~1830-?1873?) on 11 Jan 1844, a couple of months before his brother Billy married Minerva’s sister Lucinda. He fought in the Mexican-American War, and was killed in 1846.

Phebe Norris (~1824-1851)

Phebe married Daniel Lacewell (~1825-31 May 1890) on 27 Aug 1844. Apparently it was the year for Norrises to get married. They had three children:

Calvin (~1846-????) — m. Elizabeth “Eliza” Felkins Howe about 1873

Nancy (1848) — prob. died young

Henry (1850) — prob. died young

The 1850 census showed the family near Phebe’s older sister Jane and her family in Lebanon Township. Phebe reportedly died in 1851. The 1860 census showed her husband, a new wife, and a bunch of children that didn’t include Nancy and Henry. By 1870, son Calvin was no longer there. He married around 1873, and by 1880 was living in Jobe, Oregon County, Missouri. Can’t find him after that. Daniel died in 1890 in Sharp County.

William “Billy” Norris (22 Feb 1824-7 Dec 1908)

Billy has his own entry in the family tree.

Nicholas Clayton Norris, Jr. (~1827-12 Jun 1863)

Nicholas, Jr. has his own entry in the family tree.

Nancy Norris (~1827-~1859~)

Nancy is the presumed daughter of Nicholas who was living with him in the 1850 census, although, as previously noted, she might have been a widowed daughter-in-law. On 4 Oct 1857, she married Euen S. Johns (~1820-????), a widower from South Carolina who had previously been married, in 1852, to Elizabeth Williams. They had one child:

John D./E. (~1858-????) — poss. m. Mary ??? about 1880

Nancy died by 1860, as the census for that year showed Euen (40) in Lebanon Township with his three Arkansas-born children, John (age 1) being the youngest, and also Nancy’s orphaned nephews James and Simon Dotson.

The 1870 census didn’t find Euen, but listed what was probably John (13) and half-sister Nancy Emma Johns (18) with the Muse family in Buckville Township, Montgomery County, Arkansas out west of Hot Springs. Can’t reliably trace John after that. There was a John D. Johns of the right age in Sugar Loaf, Marion County in the (23 June) 1880 census who was probably him. The John D. Johns who died in 1926 in Lonoke County was eight years older.

A different account claims that Nancy died in Merkel, Taylor County, Texas, but gives no date or source.

Thomas B. Norris (~1830-186x)

The 1850 census showed a Thomas Norris of the right age living with the Cohanour family in Spring River, Lawrence County. (Spring River rises in Missouri and merges with the Black River north of Black Rock, so this isn’t a precise location.) Thomas married Mary Ann Holt (11 Nov 1835-1 Jul 1911) from Alabama on 4 Jul 1852 in Strawberry Township. They had four children:

Martha Jane (?18 May 1853?-?18 Aug 1886?) — m. Robert W. Milford on 18 Oct 1871

Thomas Jefferson “Big Jeff” (Dec 1855-12 Apr 1942) — m. ???; m. Malissa E. Johnston on 31 Jul 1884

Laura Frances (13 Sep 1859-2 May 1944) — m. Andrew William Asberry McCasland on 21 Dec 1876

Sarah Alice (13 Oct 1861-21 Oct 1945) — m. Marcus Socrates Yount on 9 Nov 1879

In the late 1850s the family moved to Collin County, Texas, where the 1860 census showed them next door to a D. L. Holt from Tennessee, likely Mary Ann’s brother. Thomas died in the early 1860s, probably in Texas. Accounts claiming he died on 14 Jan 1863 in Nashville while fighting for the Union don’t fit – that Thomas Norris was five years younger and native to Tennessee, and had a different wife.

Mary Ann returned from Texas to Arkansas, and on 3 Nov 1865 married James F. Hudson (1837-16 Jun 1910) from Tennessee. The 1870 census showed her with her new husband, three new children, and Thomas’s four children in Strawberry Township. In the 1870s, at least some of the family returned to Texas. Mary Ann died there in 1911, and is buried in Lamasco Cemetery, Lamasco, Fannin County, Texas.

Some of the children remained in Arkansas. Daughter Martha, who married in 1871, was one of them. The M. J. Milliford (1853-1886) buried in Sharp County is probably her. A family story states that Big Jeff Norris owned a Studebaker, one of the first two cars in Poughkeepsie, and later moved to southern Arkansas (Clark County) and opened a car dealership.

Richard “Dick” Norris (~1832-????)

Nothing about Dick but the name.

Children with Temperance Gardner

Elisabeth Norris (~1844-????)

No information past 1850. As previously noted, it’s not certain that Elisabeth was Nicholas’s daughter.

Children with Sarah Mullens

Rebecca Norris (~1855-????)

No information past 1860.

James “Curly Jim” Norris (1857-1911)

Jim was working for the Thompkins family in Strawberry Township in the 1880 census. He married Margaret Malvina “Maggie” Graham (7 Mar 1866-12 Jul 1921) on 22 Mar 1883. Known children:

Mary Arminta (7 Sep 1886-22 Dec 1972) — m. Luther S. McGinness on 6 Nov 1902; m. James Marion Himes in 1909

Julia Louetta (3 Mar 1889-17 Apr 1958) — m. Marcus C. Steward on 27 Sep 1914; m. Charles A. Burrus on 22 Nov 1919

Virgie Gertrude (19 Nov 1890-4 Apr 1985) — m. Ruben Frank Segraves on 27 Jun 1914; m. George Franklin Hudson on 27 Oct 1920

Fanny Leona (6 Sep 1892-13 Jun 1959) — m. Arthur Marvin Stinnett on 20 Oct 1912

In 1900, they were living in Strawberry & Big Creek Townships, Sharp County. The 1910 census put them in Strawberry. Jim died in 1911, and is buried in Spotts Cemetery, Sharp County. Maggie married Thomas A. Sharp from Ohio on 27 Sep 1914. She reportedly died in 1921.

Susan Norris (~1861-????)

Susan might have been a grand-daughter rather than a daughter of Nicholas. Nothing definite about her after 1870. The Susannah Norris who married Charles Atkins in 1882 was someone else.

Links

Unverified

Something About Mary

Clearly Wrong