I have already written about a cousin of the name William Washington Gant but this time I tell you about a different ancestor of the very same first and middle name.
William Washington Gant, our 3rd cousin 4 times removed, was born on 24 October 1844 in Tennessee. He was one of the ten children of John Isham Gant and Mary Jane Cocke.
On 7 Sept. 1850, the Census recorded William lived with his family in 9 District of Maury County, Tennessee. His father John was a merchant. The value of John's real estate was $4.400. Besides William's parents and siblings, 9 other persons lived in the household - Joseph Crawford and J. O. Griffith (described in the record as teachers), and 7 boys - students. The lodgers' surnames Crawford, Griffith, Saunders, Gates, Bowles, Pope, and Dowell occur in our family tree so very likely those men were related to the Gants. However, I manage to find a G A Pope only. He was Gustavus Adolphus Pope (b. 17 Jan. 1834 in Williamson, Tennessee). William Washington Gant and Gustavus were cousins.
William Gant
United States Census, 1850
Name: William Gant
Event Type: Census
Event Year: 1850
Event Place: Maury County, part of Maury, Tennessee, United States
Gender: Male
Age: 6
Race: White
Birth Year (Estimated): 1844
Birthplace: Tennessee, United States
House Number: 357
Household
John F Gant, Male, age 37, born Tennessee, United States
Martha Gant, Female, age 30, born Tennessee, United States
Rich Gant, M, age 10, born Tennessee, United States
Sisey Gant, F, age 8, born Tennessee, United States
William Gant, M, age 6, born Tennessee, United States
John Gant, M, age 3, born Tennessee, United States
Ella Gant, F, age 1, born Tennessee, United States
Joseph Crawford, M, age 26, (teacher), born Ireland
J O Griffith, M, age 37, born Tennessee, United States
R P Griffith, M, age 22, (student) born Tennessee, United States
D D Saunders, M, age 17, born Alabama, United States
Joseph M Gates, M, age 13, born Alabama, United States
W C McQuiston, M, 18, born Kentucky, United States
A J Bowles, M, age 11, born Mississippi, United States
G A Pope, M, age 15, born Tennessee, United States
P A Dowell, M, age 15, born Tennessee, United States
Record Source:
"United States Census, 1850," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MCD5-R2C : 12 April 2016), William Gant in household of John F Gant, Maury county, part of, Maury, Tennessee, United States; citing family 357, NARA microfilm publication M432 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
The transcription contains some errors. In the record there is John I Gant, not John F. Another thing - it is not Sisy but Lucy.
It seems John Isham Gant provided a good educational environment to his children and the sons of relatives. Gustavus Adolphus Pope became a pharmacist (1), R. P. Griffith was later a teacher (2).
D. D. Saunders could very likely Dudley Dunn Saunders - a future physician and surgeon (3).
Young William Washington was with the G Company of the 4th Mississippi Company Confederate Army during the Civil War. He was promoted to Corporal. (4)
After the war, on 28 May 1866 (5), 21-year-old William got married to 3 years younger Miss Alethia Ann Norwood. She was born on 23 October 1847 in Alabama. I do not know who her parents were however, there are other Norwood people in our family tree as well.
William and Alethia had ten children - eight sons and two daughters.
- Norwood Isham b. 25 April 1868, TN /d. 12 April 1919, Memphis, Shelby, TN (6)
- O. R. - b. 1 Sept. 1868 / d. 26 July 1935, Fort Worth, Tarrant, TX (7)
- William Irl b. 1871, Water Valley, MS/d. 16 Dec. 1935, Norwood, East Feliciana, Louisiana (8)
- Mattie Desha b. 6 August 1873, Mississippi/d. 19 Jan. 1951, Dallas, Dallas, TX (9)
- Robert Lee b. 23 Luly 1876/ d. ? (5)
- Albert S b. 14 May 1879, Panola, MS/d. 23 Oct. 1931, Crystal Spring, Copiah, MS (10)
- Nelli Mae b. 22 May 1883/d. 15 Oct. 1946, Dallas, Dallas, TX (11)
- Walter Stewart b. 1885, MS/d. 5 Jan 1936, Memphis, Shelby, TN (12)
- Charles Dewitt b. 8 Oct. 1888, Eureka Springs, MS/d. 27 Dec 1946 (13)
You can see the years 1935/36 and 1946 were quite tragic to the family. Five of William Washington's children died with quite a short time period.
Anyway, in 1880 the Gant family still lived together in Mississippi. After the death of Martha Jane, Billy's mother, his father John Isham lived in his household. William worked as a farmer.
Name: W W Gant
Event Type: Census
Event Date: 1880
Event Place: Eureka and Williamson, Panola, Mississippi, United States
Gender: Male
Age: 35
Marital Status: Married
Race: White
Race: W
Occupation: Farmer
Relationship to Head of Household: Self
Relationship to Head of Household: Self
Birth Year (Estimated): 1845
Birthplace: Tennessee, United States
Father's Birthplace: Tennessee, United States
Mother's Birthplace: Tennessee, United States
Sheet Letter: D
Sheet Number: 190
Person Number: 0
Volume: 1
Household
W W Gant, Self, Male, 35, born Tennessee, United States
A G Gant, Wife, Female, 32, born Alabama, United States
N I Gant, Son, Male, 12, born Mississippi, United States
O R Gant, Son, Male, 10, born Mississippi, United States
W I Gant, Son, Male, 9, born Mississippi, United States
M D Gant, Daughter, Female, 7, born Mississippi, United States
R E Gant, Son, Male, 4, born Mississippi, United States
A S Gant, Son, Male, 2, Mississippi, United States
J I Gant, Father, Male, 70, Tennessee, United States
Record Source:
"United States Census, 1880," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M4G1-3HZ : 22 August 2017), W W Gant, Eureka and Williamson, Panola, Mississippi, United States; citing enumeration district ED 158, sheet 190D, NARA microfilm publication T9 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 0661; FHL microfilm 1,254,661.
It is interesting that in the above census record, Billy's wife is listed as A G Gant - the G part is unknown as in other records Mrs. Gant appears as Alethia Ann. Also, O. R., the son, seemed to be born in 1870/69, not in 1868 as it was stated much later in his death certificate (6).
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| Liberty Hall - Crystal Spring, Mississippi |
Cousin Billy ran a private plantation for 25 years. He retired around 1905 (15). What happened to his plantation I do not know. William's wife passed on 11 October 1906. After that, he moved to Crystal Springs and lived at the house of his fourth son Robert L (Lee?).
William W Gant
United States Census, 1920
Name: William W Gant
Event Type: Census
Event Date: 1920
Event Place: Crystal Springs, Copiah, Mississippi, United States
Gender: Male
Age: 76
Marital Status: Widowed
Race: White
Race: White
Can Read: Yes
Can Write: Yes
Relationship to Head of Household: Father
Relationship to Head of Household: Father
Birth Year (Estimated): 1844
Birthplace: Mississippi
Father's Birthplace: Tennessee
Mother's Birthplace: Tennessee
Sheet Letter A
Sheet Number 7
Household
Robert L Gant, Head, Male. age 47, born Mississippi
Lillie Gant, Wife, Femle, age 36, born Mississippi
Jamie D Gant, Son, M, age 17, born Mississippi
Alethia Gant, Daughter, F, age 12, born Mississippi
William W Gant, Father, M, age 76, born Mississippi
Record Source:
"United States Census, 1920," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M4SL-JR4 : accessed 19 November 2018), William W Gant in household of Robert L Gant, Crystal Springs, Copiah, Mississippi, United States; citing ED 62, sheet 7A, line 24, family 153, NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1992), roll 874; FHL microfilm 1,820,874.
Robert L was called Bob. For over two decades he worked as a professional tracker of criminals on the run. Bob raised Bloodhounds which he used in the chasing business. Robert was quite successful in what he was doing - meaning training the animals and tracking the evildoers. Both Robert and his dogs were well-known in the Mississippi area where they lived.
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| Lake Chautauqua, Crystal Springs |
Actually, due to the amazing skills and the intelligence of the Bloodhounds (commonly known as Gant Bloodhounds), Bob became a sort of local celebrity. A series of articles which told about his "professional adventures" was published in The Monroe-News Star (a New Orleans newspaper) in the 1920s. According to the newspaper articles, Robert cared for the dogs with love, he fed them with eggs, bread and milk. They were also taught not to take the food from anybody else than their owner. (13)
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| Bloodhound puppy |
In April 1920 Bob Gant and his dogs were part of a posse led by Sheriff Nicholson which was set to track and chase the man who killed Charlie McCoy and wounded quite a few others including the murderer trackers. When approached by the Sherrif, Bob and his Bloodhounds, the culprit did not wish to surrender and started shooting again. Sheriff Nicholson was wounded in the forehead, above the right eye, our Bob got a shot in the back of his neck. They managed to catch the shooter anyway. Luckily, the wounds were not fatal and both the lawman and our cousin recovered later. (14)
Chasing the criminals was a dangerous business and Robert jeopardised his life and health doing his job. One time Bob was seriously wounded due to a dynamite explosion. He wrote a note which he fixed to the dog collar of one of his Bloodhounds and told the dog to go and get help. The animal came across two men - it grabbed the jeans of one of the passer-byes and made him go toward the place where his injured carer was. The very same man found the message written by Bob and followed the dog then.
In the 30s, William Washington Gant moved to Texas where two of his children Oscar and Mattie lived. Maybe the move was related to Oscar's death who passed in 1935.
William stayed in Dallas at the house of Mattie Desha and her husband Sampson Jackson. As I mentioned before, in the year 1935 and 1936 there were three deaths in the family. William's sons William Irl, Oscar, and Walter Stewart died one by one which probably influenced our Cousin Billy's health as well. He passed on 21 July 1939 at Mattie and Sampson's house which was situated at Cabell Drive in Dallas. The reason of his death was hypostatic pneumonia which means he had been staying in bed for a long time not being able to move from one side to another. Maybe he had suffered from a stroke and paralysis?
William Washington Gant was buried in Crystal Springs, Mississippi, a day later. (16)
Sources:
- (1) "United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MGFG-HNM : accessed 16 November 2018), Gustavus A Pope, Civil District 7, Giles, Tennessee, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 21, sheet 8B, family 157, NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1982), roll 1500; FHL microfilm 1,375,513.
- (2) "United States Census, 1860", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M8TV-VXW : 12 December 2017), R P Griffith, 1860.
- (3) "United States Census, 1880," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MDW8-4XD : 15 July 2017), D D Sanders, Memphis, Shelby, Tennessee, United States; citing enumeration district ED 144, sheet 183C, NARA microfilm publication T9 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 1279; FHL microfilm 1,255,279.
- (4)"United States Headstone Applications for U.S. Military Veterans, 1925-1949", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VHZC-WHQ : 12 March 2018), William Washington Gant.
- (5) The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, "Ancestral File," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/2:1:M473-41H : accessed 15 November 2018), entry for Robert Lee GANT (1L3R-FC8); submitted by bgantt3511831
- (6) "Tennessee Deaths, 1914-1966," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NSLJ-1TB : 15 October 2018), N.Isom Gant, 12 Apr 1919; Death, Memphis, Shelby, Tennessee, United States, Tennessee State Library and Archives, Nashville.
- (7) "Texas Deaths, 1890-1976," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K3MM-TH8 : 13 March 2018), O R Gant, 26 Jul 1935; citing certificate number 35366, State Registrar Office, Austin; FHL microfilm 2,116,623.
- (8) "Louisiana Deaths, 1850-1875, 1894-1960," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FSBR-GTG : 10 March 2018), W W Gant in entry for William Irl Gant, 16 Dec 1935; citing Norwood, East Feliciana, Louisiana, certificate number 14764, State Archives, Baton Rouge; FHL microfilm 2,203,526.
- (9) "Texas Deaths, 1890-1976," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K3CN-6KR : 13 March 2018), W W Gant in entry for Mattie Desha Johnson, 19 Jan 1951; citing certificate number 1339, State Registrar Office, Austin; FHL microfilm 2,074,651.
- (10) "Find A Grave Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVVY-QD6K : 13 December 2015), Albert S Gant, 1901; Burial, Crystal Springs, Copiah, Mississippi, United States of America, Crystal Springs Cemetery; citing record ID 27159820, Find a Grave, http://www.findagrave.com.
- (11) "Texas Deaths, 1890-1976," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K7DZ-DG6 : 13 March 2018), Alethia Anna Norwood in entry for Nellie Mae Puryear, 15 Oct 1946; citing certificate number 44593, State Registrar Office, Austin; FHL microfilm 2,218,424.
- (12) "Tennessee Deaths, 1914-1966," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NSH4-6S9 : 15 October 2018), Walter Stewart Gant, 5 Jan 1936; Death, Memphis, Shelby, Tennessee, United States, Tennessee State Library and Archives, Nashville.
- (13) "Texas Deaths, 1890-1976," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K39F-KRL : 13 March 2018), Charles Dewitt Gant, 27 Dec 1946; citing certificate number 55895, State Registrar Office, Austin; FHL microfilm 2,218,504.
- (14) The Monroe-News Star, 16 August 1924, Sat., Page 1
- (15) The Columbian, 22 April 1920, Columbia, Marion Co., MS
- (16) "Texas Deaths, 1890-1976," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K3M2-DC4 : 13 March 2018), W W Gant, 21 Jul 1939; citing certificate number 32269, State Registrar Office, Austin; FHL microfilm 2,118,256.
- Photo of the gravestone: Natalie Maynor
- Liberty Hall: GilbertThompson [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons
- Lake Chautauqua Crystal Springs: Mississippi Department of Archives and History [No restrictions], via Wikimedia Commons
- Bloodhound: By Gilliamhome's Olympus E3 and Evolt 500 Page - Flickr: Hoss, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=21292208
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