Mary Megginson married John P. Chappell on 20 Jan 1850 in Chambers Co., AL. (See attached copy of marriage record; NOTE: Mary's father, Samuel Megginson, Jr. (1785-1853), signed the marriage document giving his permission for her to marry as she was underage.)
The 09 Nov 1850 US Census of District 19, Chambers Co., AL enumerated the household of 46 Y/O Mary (Heath) Chappell (the widow of Wilkes E. Chappell). She was born in North Carolina. Also living in the household were: her 24 Y/O son, Simeon Chappell (1826-1864), a farmer, born in GA; her 20 Y/O son, John P. Chappell (1830-1862), born in GA, and John's 19 Y/O wife, Mary (Megginson) Chappell, born in N. C.; also living in the household were Mary (Heath) Chappell's other children; 17 Y/O daughter, Susan Chappell (1833 Walton Co., GA-1910 Chambers Co. AL); her 15 Y/O daughter, Sidney (Sydney) Chappell, born in GA; her 12 Y/O son, Cicero Heath Chappell (1837-1924), born in GA; and her 10 Y/O daughter, Mary A. Chappell, born in GA. Fortunately, this branch of the Chappell family frequently used family names. It wasn't a coincidence that Cicero Heath Chappell, son of Wilkes E. and Mary (Heath) Chappell, named his son, James Wilkes Chappell (1878-1949). It was to honor his father, Wilkes E. Chappell. James Wilkes Chappell was born on 21 Dec 1878 at Chambers Co., AL. This is good circumstantial evidence that Wilkes E. Chappell was the father of Cicero Heath Chappell and his brother, John P. Chappell. NOTE: The last child of Wilkes E. and Mary (Heath) Chappell was Mary A. Chappell who was born about 1840, which helps to establish her father's, Wilkes E. Chappell's, death date as about 1839. NOTE2: James Wilkes Chappell (1878-1949), mentioned above, has an error on his tombstone. His middle name "Wilkes" is misspelled as "Wilks". He signed his WWI Registration Card as James "Wilkes" Chappell. See a copy on his memorial, #144708056.
The 16 August 1860 US Census of the Milltown Post Office, Northern Division of Chambers Co., AL enumerated the household of 30 Y/O John P. Chappell, a farmer, born in GA, and his 30 Y/O wife, Mary (Megginson) Chappell, born in N.C. Also living in the household were their children: 10 Y/O William Edward Chappell; 8 Y/O Mary "Mollie" Chappell; 6 Y/O Margaret Chappell; and 4 Y/O son, Maxie (Maxey) Thomas Chappell (mis-enumerated as a female). All children born in Alabama.
The 17 August 1860 US Agricultural Survey of Milltown, Chambers Co., AL recorded that John P. Chappell owned 25 acres valued at $200.00. Four doors away was the land of his brother, Simeon Chappell; 100 acres valued at $500.00. (See attached copy)
The attached photo of Mary (Megginson) Chappell was taken in 1861 Chambers County, AL just prior to her husband, John P. Chappell, leaving for Civil War service. The original photo shows both her and her husband side by side with him wearing his Confederate uniform.
John P. Chappell was residing in Chambers County, AL when the Civil War began and he enlisted at Auburn, Lee Co., AL on 26 July 1861. He was a private in Company "D" of the 14th Alabama Infantry Regiment and was listed in his regiment's records as MIA at the Civil War Battle of Antietam at Sharpsburg, MD on 17 Sep 1862, the bloodiest day of the Civil War. (In fact, it is the bloodiest single-day battle in American military history, with a combined tally of 22,717 dead, wounded, or missing.) He probably was buried anonymously in a mass grave as his wife was never informed as to the location of his body.
Family tradition states that in the 1980s, the now deceased Mr. Jack Still, a neighbor with no kinship to the Chappells, confided that Cicero Heath Chappell (1837-1924), told him that John P. Chappell, his brother, had died in his arms on the battlefield on 17 Sep 1862 at Sharpsburg, Maryland (Battle of Antietam). It could very well have happened as both of their regiments were there and in the thick of the battle. Cicero served in Company "I" of the 47th Alabama Infantry Regiment and is buried with a Confederate tombstone in the Chappell Family Cemetery at Penton, Chambers Co., AL.
Following the tragic death of her husband on 17 Sep 1862 at Sharpsburg, MD in the Battle of Antietam, Mary (Megginson) Chappell, the mother of Mary "Mollie" Chappell Smith, applied for a pension on 30 Nov 1863 which was granted. At the time, 1863 at Milltown, Chambers Co., AL, 33 Y/O Mary (Megginson) Chappell, then a widowed farmer born in N.C. was living with her children: 13 Y/O William Edward Chappell, born in AL; 11 Y/O Mary "Mollie" Chappell, born in AL; 9 Y/O Margaret Chappell, born in AL; 7 Y/O Maxie Thomas Chappell, born in AL and 2 Y/O Johnnie Martha Chappell who was born on 14 Mar 1861 just before her father, John P. Chappell, left for Civil War duty.
The 1870 US Census of New Harmony, Chambers Co., AL enumerated the household of the widowed 40 Y/O Mary (Megginson) Chappell, a farmer born in N. C. Her husband, John P. Chappell, was MIA at the Civil War Battle of Antietam at Sharpsburg, MD on 17 Sep 1862. Also residing in her 1870 household were her children: 20 Y/O William Edward Chappell; 18 Y/O Mary "Mollie" Chappell; 16 Y/O Margaret Chappell; 14 Y/O son, Mackey Chappell who was erroneously enumerated as a female: it should read 14 Y/O male, Maxie [Maxey] Thomas Chappell); and daughter, 10 Y/O Johnnie Martha Chappell.
In the late 1870s, Mary (Megginson) Chappell and her family migrated from Chambers Co., AL to Cherokee Co., AL near Leesburg, AL.
The 1880 US Census of Cherokee County, Alabama enumerated the household of 23 Y/O unmarried Maxey Thomas Chappell, a farmer born in AL. Living with him were his 50 Y/O widowed mother, Mary (Megginson) Chappell, and his 19 Y/O unmarried sister, Johnnie Martha Chappell.
A 25 April 1984 census of the Cedar Hill Methodist Cemetery, Leesburg, AL taken by the Gadsden Alabama Branch, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, recorded that there was a tombstone present for Mary M. Chappell. Sometime later the tombstone unfortunately became misplaced.
The children of John P. and Mary (Megginson) Chappell were:
1) William Edward Chappell, b. 07 Oct 1850 Penton, Chambers Co., AL, d. 22 Nov 1920 Turkeytown, Etowah Co., AL, m. 1) Nancy C. McDonald in 1872 at Turkeytown, Etowah Co., AL, m. 2) Julia Simpson on 24 Dec 1896 at Etowah Co., AL, bur. White's Chapel Cemetery near Gadsden-Leesburg, AL.
2) Mary (Mollie) Chappell, b. 11 Jan 1852 Penton, Chambers Co., AL, d. 15 Jun 1924 Cherokee Co., AL, m. Chambers Co., AL on 14 Feb 1871 to John McDaniel Smith of Ephesus/New Site, Tallapoosa Co., AL, bur. Smith Chapel Cemetery Leesburg Cherokee Co., AL. (This family moved to Leesburg, Cherokee Co., AL in the 1870s and operated a ferry on the Coosa River).
3) Margaret Chappell, b. 02 Dec 1854 Penton, Chambers Co., AL, d. 08 Jul 1921 Camp Co., TX, m. Francis Marion Reeves in Chambers Co., AL, bur. Reeves Chapel Cemetery near Pittsburg, Camp Co, TX.
4) Maxey (Maxie) Thomas Chappell, b. 12 Feb 1857 Chambers Co., Alabama (See below).
5) Johnnie Martha Chappell, b. 1861 Chambers Co., Alabama (Born just before her father left for Civil War duty, never to return, m. She married Paul J. Pollard from Pollard's Bend, AL and is buried in the Smith Chapel Cemetery near Leesburg, AL.
Mary (Megginson) Chappell was the 2nd cousin 3 times removed through her father, Samuel Megginson, Jr., of POTUS Thomas Jefferson. (See Find A Grave Memorial #544).
Source:
"The Heritage of Chambers County, Alabama", 1999, pp207-209.
Bio by Gresham Farrar.
The 09 Nov 1850 US Census of District 19, Chambers Co., AL enumerated the household of 46 Y/O Mary (Heath) Chappell (the widow of Wilkes E. Chappell). She was born in North Carolina. Also living in the household were: her 24 Y/O son, Simeon Chappell (1826-1864), a farmer, born in GA; her 20 Y/O son, John P. Chappell (1830-1862), born in GA, and John's 19 Y/O wife, Mary (Megginson) Chappell, born in N. C.; also living in the household were Mary (Heath) Chappell's other children; 17 Y/O daughter, Susan Chappell (1833 Walton Co., GA-1910 Chambers Co. AL); her 15 Y/O daughter, Sidney (Sydney) Chappell, born in GA; her 12 Y/O son, Cicero Heath Chappell (1837-1924), born in GA; and her 10 Y/O daughter, Mary A. Chappell, born in GA. Fortunately, this branch of the Chappell family frequently used family names. It wasn't a coincidence that Cicero Heath Chappell, son of Wilkes E. and Mary (Heath) Chappell, named his son, James Wilkes Chappell (1878-1949). It was to honor his father, Wilkes E. Chappell. James Wilkes Chappell was born on 21 Dec 1878 at Chambers Co., AL. This is good circumstantial evidence that Wilkes E. Chappell was the father of Cicero Heath Chappell and his brother, John P. Chappell. NOTE: The last child of Wilkes E. and Mary (Heath) Chappell was Mary A. Chappell who was born about 1840, which helps to establish her father's, Wilkes E. Chappell's, death date as about 1839. NOTE2: James Wilkes Chappell (1878-1949), mentioned above, has an error on his tombstone. His middle name "Wilkes" is misspelled as "Wilks". He signed his WWI Registration Card as James "Wilkes" Chappell. See a copy on his memorial, #144708056.
The 16 August 1860 US Census of the Milltown Post Office, Northern Division of Chambers Co., AL enumerated the household of 30 Y/O John P. Chappell, a farmer, born in GA, and his 30 Y/O wife, Mary (Megginson) Chappell, born in N.C. Also living in the household were their children: 10 Y/O William Edward Chappell; 8 Y/O Mary "Mollie" Chappell; 6 Y/O Margaret Chappell; and 4 Y/O son, Maxie (Maxey) Thomas Chappell (mis-enumerated as a female). All children born in Alabama.
The 17 August 1860 US Agricultural Survey of Milltown, Chambers Co., AL recorded that John P. Chappell owned 25 acres valued at $200.00. Four doors away was the land of his brother, Simeon Chappell; 100 acres valued at $500.00. (See attached copy)
The attached photo of Mary (Megginson) Chappell was taken in 1861 Chambers County, AL just prior to her husband, John P. Chappell, leaving for Civil War service. The original photo shows both her and her husband side by side with him wearing his Confederate uniform.
John P. Chappell was residing in Chambers County, AL when the Civil War began and he enlisted at Auburn, Lee Co., AL on 26 July 1861. He was a private in Company "D" of the 14th Alabama Infantry Regiment and was listed in his regiment's records as MIA at the Civil War Battle of Antietam at Sharpsburg, MD on 17 Sep 1862, the bloodiest day of the Civil War. (In fact, it is the bloodiest single-day battle in American military history, with a combined tally of 22,717 dead, wounded, or missing.) He probably was buried anonymously in a mass grave as his wife was never informed as to the location of his body.
Family tradition states that in the 1980s, the now deceased Mr. Jack Still, a neighbor with no kinship to the Chappells, confided that Cicero Heath Chappell (1837-1924), told him that John P. Chappell, his brother, had died in his arms on the battlefield on 17 Sep 1862 at Sharpsburg, Maryland (Battle of Antietam). It could very well have happened as both of their regiments were there and in the thick of the battle. Cicero served in Company "I" of the 47th Alabama Infantry Regiment and is buried with a Confederate tombstone in the Chappell Family Cemetery at Penton, Chambers Co., AL.
Following the tragic death of her husband on 17 Sep 1862 at Sharpsburg, MD in the Battle of Antietam, Mary (Megginson) Chappell, the mother of Mary "Mollie" Chappell Smith, applied for a pension on 30 Nov 1863 which was granted. At the time, 1863 at Milltown, Chambers Co., AL, 33 Y/O Mary (Megginson) Chappell, then a widowed farmer born in N.C. was living with her children: 13 Y/O William Edward Chappell, born in AL; 11 Y/O Mary "Mollie" Chappell, born in AL; 9 Y/O Margaret Chappell, born in AL; 7 Y/O Maxie Thomas Chappell, born in AL and 2 Y/O Johnnie Martha Chappell who was born on 14 Mar 1861 just before her father, John P. Chappell, left for Civil War duty.
The 1870 US Census of New Harmony, Chambers Co., AL enumerated the household of the widowed 40 Y/O Mary (Megginson) Chappell, a farmer born in N. C. Her husband, John P. Chappell, was MIA at the Civil War Battle of Antietam at Sharpsburg, MD on 17 Sep 1862. Also residing in her 1870 household were her children: 20 Y/O William Edward Chappell; 18 Y/O Mary "Mollie" Chappell; 16 Y/O Margaret Chappell; 14 Y/O son, Mackey Chappell who was erroneously enumerated as a female: it should read 14 Y/O male, Maxie [Maxey] Thomas Chappell); and daughter, 10 Y/O Johnnie Martha Chappell.
In the late 1870s, Mary (Megginson) Chappell and her family migrated from Chambers Co., AL to Cherokee Co., AL near Leesburg, AL.
The 1880 US Census of Cherokee County, Alabama enumerated the household of 23 Y/O unmarried Maxey Thomas Chappell, a farmer born in AL. Living with him were his 50 Y/O widowed mother, Mary (Megginson) Chappell, and his 19 Y/O unmarried sister, Johnnie Martha Chappell.
A 25 April 1984 census of the Cedar Hill Methodist Cemetery, Leesburg, AL taken by the Gadsden Alabama Branch, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, recorded that there was a tombstone present for Mary M. Chappell. Sometime later the tombstone unfortunately became misplaced.
The children of John P. and Mary (Megginson) Chappell were:
1) William Edward Chappell, b. 07 Oct 1850 Penton, Chambers Co., AL, d. 22 Nov 1920 Turkeytown, Etowah Co., AL, m. 1) Nancy C. McDonald in 1872 at Turkeytown, Etowah Co., AL, m. 2) Julia Simpson on 24 Dec 1896 at Etowah Co., AL, bur. White's Chapel Cemetery near Gadsden-Leesburg, AL.
2) Mary (Mollie) Chappell, b. 11 Jan 1852 Penton, Chambers Co., AL, d. 15 Jun 1924 Cherokee Co., AL, m. Chambers Co., AL on 14 Feb 1871 to John McDaniel Smith of Ephesus/New Site, Tallapoosa Co., AL, bur. Smith Chapel Cemetery Leesburg Cherokee Co., AL. (This family moved to Leesburg, Cherokee Co., AL in the 1870s and operated a ferry on the Coosa River).
3) Margaret Chappell, b. 02 Dec 1854 Penton, Chambers Co., AL, d. 08 Jul 1921 Camp Co., TX, m. Francis Marion Reeves in Chambers Co., AL, bur. Reeves Chapel Cemetery near Pittsburg, Camp Co, TX.
4) Maxey (Maxie) Thomas Chappell, b. 12 Feb 1857 Chambers Co., Alabama (See below).
5) Johnnie Martha Chappell, b. 1861 Chambers Co., Alabama (Born just before her father left for Civil War duty, never to return, m. She married Paul J. Pollard from Pollard's Bend, AL and is buried in the Smith Chapel Cemetery near Leesburg, AL.
Mary (Megginson) Chappell was the 2nd cousin 3 times removed through her father, Samuel Megginson, Jr., of POTUS Thomas Jefferson. (See Find A Grave Memorial #544).
Source:
"The Heritage of Chambers County, Alabama", 1999, pp207-209.
Bio by Gresham Farrar.
Mary Megginson married John P. Chappell on 20 Jan 1850 in Chambers Co., AL. (See attached copy of marriage record; NOTE: Mary's father, Samuel Megginson, Jr. (1785-1853), signed the marriage document giving his permission for her to marry as she was underage.)
The 09 Nov 1850 US Census of District 19, Chambers Co., AL enumerated the household of 46 Y/O Mary (Heath) Chappell (the widow of Wilkes E. Chappell). She was born in North Carolina. Also living in the household were: her 24 Y/O son, Simeon Chappell (1826-1864), a farmer, born in GA; her 20 Y/O son, John P. Chappell (1830-1862), born in GA, and John's 19 Y/O wife, Mary (Megginson) Chappell, born in N. C.; also living in the household were Mary (Heath) Chappell's other children; 17 Y/O daughter, Susan Chappell (1833 Walton Co., GA-1910 Chambers Co. AL); her 15 Y/O daughter, Sidney (Sydney) Chappell, born in GA; her 12 Y/O son, Cicero Heath Chappell (1837-1924), born in GA; and her 10 Y/O daughter, Mary A. Chappell, born in GA. Fortunately, this branch of the Chappell family frequently used family names. It wasn't a coincidence that Cicero Heath Chappell, son of Wilkes E. and Mary (Heath) Chappell, named his son, James Wilkes Chappell (1878-1949). It was to honor his father, Wilkes E. Chappell. James Wilkes Chappell was born on 21 Dec 1878 at Chambers Co., AL. This is good circumstantial evidence that Wilkes E. Chappell was the father of Cicero Heath Chappell and his brother, John P. Chappell. NOTE: The last child of Wilkes E. and Mary (Heath) Chappell was Mary A. Chappell who was born about 1840, which helps to establish her father's, Wilkes E. Chappell's, death date as about 1839. NOTE2: James Wilkes Chappell (1878-1949), mentioned above, has an error on his tombstone. His middle name "Wilkes" is misspelled as "Wilks". He signed his WWI Registration Card as James "Wilkes" Chappell. See a copy on his memorial, #144708056.
The 16 August 1860 US Census of the Milltown Post Office, Northern Division of Chambers Co., AL enumerated the household of 30 Y/O John P. Chappell, a farmer, born in GA, and his 30 Y/O wife, Mary (Megginson) Chappell, born in N.C. Also living in the household were their children: 10 Y/O William Edward Chappell; 8 Y/O Mary "Mollie" Chappell; 6 Y/O Margaret Chappell; and 4 Y/O son, Maxie (Maxey) Thomas Chappell (mis-enumerated as a female). All children born in Alabama.
The 17 August 1860 US Agricultural Survey of Milltown, Chambers Co., AL recorded that John P. Chappell owned 25 acres valued at $200.00. Four doors away was the land of his brother, Simeon Chappell; 100 acres valued at $500.00. (See attached copy)
The attached photo of Mary (Megginson) Chappell was taken in 1861 Chambers County, AL just prior to her husband, John P. Chappell, leaving for Civil War service. The original photo shows both her and her husband side by side with him wearing his Confederate uniform.
John P. Chappell was residing in Chambers County, AL when the Civil War began and he enlisted at Auburn, Lee Co., AL on 26 July 1861. He was a private in Company "D" of the 14th Alabama Infantry Regiment and was listed in his regiment's records as MIA at the Civil War Battle of Antietam at Sharpsburg, MD on 17 Sep 1862, the bloodiest day of the Civil War. (In fact, it is the bloodiest single-day battle in American military history, with a combined tally of 22,717 dead, wounded, or missing.) He probably was buried anonymously in a mass grave as his wife was never informed as to the location of his body.
Family tradition states that in the 1980s, the now deceased Mr. Jack Still, a neighbor with no kinship to the Chappells, confided that Cicero Heath Chappell (1837-1924), told him that John P. Chappell, his brother, had died in his arms on the battlefield on 17 Sep 1862 at Sharpsburg, Maryland (Battle of Antietam). It could very well have happened as both of their regiments were there and in the thick of the battle. Cicero served in Company "I" of the 47th Alabama Infantry Regiment and is buried with a Confederate tombstone in the Chappell Family Cemetery at Penton, Chambers Co., AL.
Following the tragic death of her husband on 17 Sep 1862 at Sharpsburg, MD in the Battle of Antietam, Mary (Megginson) Chappell, the mother of Mary "Mollie" Chappell Smith, applied for a pension on 30 Nov 1863 which was granted. At the time, 1863 at Milltown, Chambers Co., AL, 33 Y/O Mary (Megginson) Chappell, then a widowed farmer born in N.C. was living with her children: 13 Y/O William Edward Chappell, born in AL; 11 Y/O Mary "Mollie" Chappell, born in AL; 9 Y/O Margaret Chappell, born in AL; 7 Y/O Maxie Thomas Chappell, born in AL and 2 Y/O Johnnie Martha Chappell who was born on 14 Mar 1861 just before her father, John P. Chappell, left for Civil War duty.
The 1870 US Census of New Harmony, Chambers Co., AL enumerated the household of the widowed 40 Y/O Mary (Megginson) Chappell, a farmer born in N. C. Her husband, John P. Chappell, was MIA at the Civil War Battle of Antietam at Sharpsburg, MD on 17 Sep 1862. Also residing in her 1870 household were her children: 20 Y/O William Edward Chappell; 18 Y/O Mary "Mollie" Chappell; 16 Y/O Margaret Chappell; 14 Y/O son, Mackey Chappell who was erroneously enumerated as a female: it should read 14 Y/O male, Maxie [Maxey] Thomas Chappell); and daughter, 10 Y/O Johnnie Martha Chappell.
In the late 1870s, Mary (Megginson) Chappell and her family migrated from Chambers Co., AL to Cherokee Co., AL near Leesburg, AL.
The 1880 US Census of Cherokee County, Alabama enumerated the household of 23 Y/O unmarried Maxey Thomas Chappell, a farmer born in AL. Living with him were his 50 Y/O widowed mother, Mary (Megginson) Chappell, and his 19 Y/O unmarried sister, Johnnie Martha Chappell.
A 25 April 1984 census of the Cedar Hill Methodist Cemetery, Leesburg, AL taken by the Gadsden Alabama Branch, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, recorded that there was a tombstone present for Mary M. Chappell. Sometime later the tombstone unfortunately became misplaced.
The children of John P. and Mary (Megginson) Chappell were:
1) William Edward Chappell, b. 07 Oct 1850 Penton, Chambers Co., AL, d. 22 Nov 1920 Turkeytown, Etowah Co., AL, m. 1) Nancy C. McDonald in 1872 at Turkeytown, Etowah Co., AL, m. 2) Julia Simpson on 24 Dec 1896 at Etowah Co., AL, bur. White's Chapel Cemetery near Gadsden-Leesburg, AL.
2) Mary (Mollie) Chappell, b. 11 Jan 1852 Penton, Chambers Co., AL, d. 15 Jun 1924 Cherokee Co., AL, m. Chambers Co., AL on 14 Feb 1871 to John McDaniel Smith of Ephesus/New Site, Tallapoosa Co., AL, bur. Smith Chapel Cemetery Leesburg Cherokee Co., AL. (This family moved to Leesburg, Cherokee Co., AL in the 1870s and operated a ferry on the Coosa River).
3) Margaret Chappell, b. 02 Dec 1854 Penton, Chambers Co., AL, d. 08 Jul 1921 Camp Co., TX, m. Francis Marion Reeves in Chambers Co., AL, bur. Reeves Chapel Cemetery near Pittsburg, Camp Co, TX.
4) Maxey (Maxie) Thomas Chappell, b. 12 Feb 1857 Chambers Co., Alabama (See below).
5) Johnnie Martha Chappell, b. 1861 Chambers Co., Alabama (Born just before her father left for Civil War duty, never to return, m. She married Paul J. Pollard from Pollard's Bend, AL and is buried in the Smith Chapel Cemetery near Leesburg, AL.
Mary (Megginson) Chappell was the 2nd cousin 3 times removed through her father, Samuel Megginson, Jr., of POTUS Thomas Jefferson. (See Find A Grave Memorial #544).
Source:
"The Heritage of Chambers County, Alabama", 1999, pp207-209.
Bio by Gresham Farrar.
The 09 Nov 1850 US Census of District 19, Chambers Co., AL enumerated the household of 46 Y/O Mary (Heath) Chappell (the widow of Wilkes E. Chappell). She was born in North Carolina. Also living in the household were: her 24 Y/O son, Simeon Chappell (1826-1864), a farmer, born in GA; her 20 Y/O son, John P. Chappell (1830-1862), born in GA, and John's 19 Y/O wife, Mary (Megginson) Chappell, born in N. C.; also living in the household were Mary (Heath) Chappell's other children; 17 Y/O daughter, Susan Chappell (1833 Walton Co., GA-1910 Chambers Co. AL); her 15 Y/O daughter, Sidney (Sydney) Chappell, born in GA; her 12 Y/O son, Cicero Heath Chappell (1837-1924), born in GA; and her 10 Y/O daughter, Mary A. Chappell, born in GA. Fortunately, this branch of the Chappell family frequently used family names. It wasn't a coincidence that Cicero Heath Chappell, son of Wilkes E. and Mary (Heath) Chappell, named his son, James Wilkes Chappell (1878-1949). It was to honor his father, Wilkes E. Chappell. James Wilkes Chappell was born on 21 Dec 1878 at Chambers Co., AL. This is good circumstantial evidence that Wilkes E. Chappell was the father of Cicero Heath Chappell and his brother, John P. Chappell. NOTE: The last child of Wilkes E. and Mary (Heath) Chappell was Mary A. Chappell who was born about 1840, which helps to establish her father's, Wilkes E. Chappell's, death date as about 1839. NOTE2: James Wilkes Chappell (1878-1949), mentioned above, has an error on his tombstone. His middle name "Wilkes" is misspelled as "Wilks". He signed his WWI Registration Card as James "Wilkes" Chappell. See a copy on his memorial, #144708056.
The 16 August 1860 US Census of the Milltown Post Office, Northern Division of Chambers Co., AL enumerated the household of 30 Y/O John P. Chappell, a farmer, born in GA, and his 30 Y/O wife, Mary (Megginson) Chappell, born in N.C. Also living in the household were their children: 10 Y/O William Edward Chappell; 8 Y/O Mary "Mollie" Chappell; 6 Y/O Margaret Chappell; and 4 Y/O son, Maxie (Maxey) Thomas Chappell (mis-enumerated as a female). All children born in Alabama.
The 17 August 1860 US Agricultural Survey of Milltown, Chambers Co., AL recorded that John P. Chappell owned 25 acres valued at $200.00. Four doors away was the land of his brother, Simeon Chappell; 100 acres valued at $500.00. (See attached copy)
The attached photo of Mary (Megginson) Chappell was taken in 1861 Chambers County, AL just prior to her husband, John P. Chappell, leaving for Civil War service. The original photo shows both her and her husband side by side with him wearing his Confederate uniform.
John P. Chappell was residing in Chambers County, AL when the Civil War began and he enlisted at Auburn, Lee Co., AL on 26 July 1861. He was a private in Company "D" of the 14th Alabama Infantry Regiment and was listed in his regiment's records as MIA at the Civil War Battle of Antietam at Sharpsburg, MD on 17 Sep 1862, the bloodiest day of the Civil War. (In fact, it is the bloodiest single-day battle in American military history, with a combined tally of 22,717 dead, wounded, or missing.) He probably was buried anonymously in a mass grave as his wife was never informed as to the location of his body.
Family tradition states that in the 1980s, the now deceased Mr. Jack Still, a neighbor with no kinship to the Chappells, confided that Cicero Heath Chappell (1837-1924), told him that John P. Chappell, his brother, had died in his arms on the battlefield on 17 Sep 1862 at Sharpsburg, Maryland (Battle of Antietam). It could very well have happened as both of their regiments were there and in the thick of the battle. Cicero served in Company "I" of the 47th Alabama Infantry Regiment and is buried with a Confederate tombstone in the Chappell Family Cemetery at Penton, Chambers Co., AL.
Following the tragic death of her husband on 17 Sep 1862 at Sharpsburg, MD in the Battle of Antietam, Mary (Megginson) Chappell, the mother of Mary "Mollie" Chappell Smith, applied for a pension on 30 Nov 1863 which was granted. At the time, 1863 at Milltown, Chambers Co., AL, 33 Y/O Mary (Megginson) Chappell, then a widowed farmer born in N.C. was living with her children: 13 Y/O William Edward Chappell, born in AL; 11 Y/O Mary "Mollie" Chappell, born in AL; 9 Y/O Margaret Chappell, born in AL; 7 Y/O Maxie Thomas Chappell, born in AL and 2 Y/O Johnnie Martha Chappell who was born on 14 Mar 1861 just before her father, John P. Chappell, left for Civil War duty.
The 1870 US Census of New Harmony, Chambers Co., AL enumerated the household of the widowed 40 Y/O Mary (Megginson) Chappell, a farmer born in N. C. Her husband, John P. Chappell, was MIA at the Civil War Battle of Antietam at Sharpsburg, MD on 17 Sep 1862. Also residing in her 1870 household were her children: 20 Y/O William Edward Chappell; 18 Y/O Mary "Mollie" Chappell; 16 Y/O Margaret Chappell; 14 Y/O son, Mackey Chappell who was erroneously enumerated as a female: it should read 14 Y/O male, Maxie [Maxey] Thomas Chappell); and daughter, 10 Y/O Johnnie Martha Chappell.
In the late 1870s, Mary (Megginson) Chappell and her family migrated from Chambers Co., AL to Cherokee Co., AL near Leesburg, AL.
The 1880 US Census of Cherokee County, Alabama enumerated the household of 23 Y/O unmarried Maxey Thomas Chappell, a farmer born in AL. Living with him were his 50 Y/O widowed mother, Mary (Megginson) Chappell, and his 19 Y/O unmarried sister, Johnnie Martha Chappell.
A 25 April 1984 census of the Cedar Hill Methodist Cemetery, Leesburg, AL taken by the Gadsden Alabama Branch, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, recorded that there was a tombstone present for Mary M. Chappell. Sometime later the tombstone unfortunately became misplaced.
The children of John P. and Mary (Megginson) Chappell were:
1) William Edward Chappell, b. 07 Oct 1850 Penton, Chambers Co., AL, d. 22 Nov 1920 Turkeytown, Etowah Co., AL, m. 1) Nancy C. McDonald in 1872 at Turkeytown, Etowah Co., AL, m. 2) Julia Simpson on 24 Dec 1896 at Etowah Co., AL, bur. White's Chapel Cemetery near Gadsden-Leesburg, AL.
2) Mary (Mollie) Chappell, b. 11 Jan 1852 Penton, Chambers Co., AL, d. 15 Jun 1924 Cherokee Co., AL, m. Chambers Co., AL on 14 Feb 1871 to John McDaniel Smith of Ephesus/New Site, Tallapoosa Co., AL, bur. Smith Chapel Cemetery Leesburg Cherokee Co., AL. (This family moved to Leesburg, Cherokee Co., AL in the 1870s and operated a ferry on the Coosa River).
3) Margaret Chappell, b. 02 Dec 1854 Penton, Chambers Co., AL, d. 08 Jul 1921 Camp Co., TX, m. Francis Marion Reeves in Chambers Co., AL, bur. Reeves Chapel Cemetery near Pittsburg, Camp Co, TX.
4) Maxey (Maxie) Thomas Chappell, b. 12 Feb 1857 Chambers Co., Alabama (See below).
5) Johnnie Martha Chappell, b. 1861 Chambers Co., Alabama (Born just before her father left for Civil War duty, never to return, m. She married Paul J. Pollard from Pollard's Bend, AL and is buried in the Smith Chapel Cemetery near Leesburg, AL.
Mary (Megginson) Chappell was the 2nd cousin 3 times removed through her father, Samuel Megginson, Jr., of POTUS Thomas Jefferson. (See Find A Grave Memorial #544).
Source:
"The Heritage of Chambers County, Alabama", 1999, pp207-209.
Bio by Gresham Farrar.
Family Members
Siblings
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