Margaret B Payne

F, b. 30 November 1857, d. 18 November 1858

Parents:

Father*: Caleb Joshua Payne b. 24 May 1821, d. 18 Sep 1858
Mother*: Malinda Toney b. 24 Mar 1829, d. 28 Jan 1898

Benjamin Constant Beaman

M, b. 17 April 1848, d. 16 July 1928

Family:

Elsadie Toney b. 13 Oct 1855, d. 21 Nov 1932

Children:

Esther A Beaman b. Nov 1877
Emma Quinn Beaman b. 7 Aug 1879, d. 25 Sep 1968
Nora M Beaman b. Jul 1882
Bertha Rose Beaman b. 27 Jul 1884, d. 25 Aug 1904
Cora Beaman b. Mar 1890
Angie R Beaman b. Mar 1893

Martha Jane Wallan

F, b. 14 March 1873, d. 22 June 1940

Family:

William Marion Toney b. 21 Sep 1865, d. 29 Jan 1934

Children:

Ole Franklin Toney+ b. 9 Jun 1890, d. 24 Dec 1947
Berniece Elsie Toney b. 24 Apr 1893, d. 20 Jun 1979
Thelma Irene Toney b. 22 Sep 1895, d. 13 Apr 1987
Genevieve Gladys Toney+ b. 11 Oct 1910, d. 8 Jan 1985

Dudley H. "Dud" Kenyon

M, b. 28 February 1937, d. 21 October 2006

Henry McElwee

M, b. October 1842, d. 1916

Family:

Elizabeth Brannon Brown b. 1852, d. 1945

Children:

Tennie M McElwee b. 24 Jul 1876, d. 10 Dec 1879
Ada Z. McElwee b. 23 Sep 1878, d. 21 Oct 1878
Nora E McElwee b. Jun 1880
Charles Henry McElwee b. 31 Jul 1882, d. 1957
Baby Boy McElwee b. 28 Dec 1886, d. 28 Dec 1886
Martha Kate McElwee b. Aug 1887
Emmon Porter McElwee b. 27 Feb 1894, d. 1931

Baby Boy McElwee

M, b. 28 December 1886, d. 28 December 1886
Charts:
John Gilliam/Elizabeth Murrell Descendants
Michael Israel/Sarah Graves Descendants

Parents:

Father*: Henry McElwee b. Oct 1842, d. 1916
Mother*: Elizabeth Brannon Brown b. 1852, d. 1945

Nora E McElwee

F, b. June 1880
Charts:
John Gilliam/Elizabeth Murrell Descendants
Michael Israel/Sarah Graves Descendants

Parents:

Father*: Henry McElwee b. Oct 1842, d. 1916
Mother*: Elizabeth Brannon Brown b. 1852, d. 1945

Charles Henry McElwee

M, b. 31 July 1882, d. 1957
Charts:
John Gilliam/Elizabeth Murrell Descendants
Michael Israel/Sarah Graves Descendants

Parents:

Father*: Henry McElwee b. Oct 1842, d. 1916
Mother*: Elizabeth Brannon Brown b. 1852, d. 1945

Martha Kate McElwee

F, b. August 1887
Charts:
John Gilliam/Elizabeth Murrell Descendants
Michael Israel/Sarah Graves Descendants

Parents:

Father*: Henry McElwee b. Oct 1842, d. 1916
Mother*: Elizabeth Brannon Brown b. 1852, d. 1945

Emmon Porter McElwee

M, b. 27 February 1894, d. 1931
Charts:
John Gilliam/Elizabeth Murrell Descendants
Michael Israel/Sarah Graves Descendants

Parents:

Father*: Henry McElwee b. Oct 1842, d. 1916
Mother*: Elizabeth Brannon Brown b. 1852, d. 1945

Tennie M McElwee

F, b. 24 July 1876, d. 10 December 1879
Charts:
John Gilliam/Elizabeth Murrell Descendants
Michael Israel/Sarah Graves Descendants

Parents:

Father*: Henry McElwee b. Oct 1842, d. 1916
Mother*: Elizabeth Brannon Brown b. 1852, d. 1945

Ada Z. McElwee

F, b. 23 September 1878, d. 21 October 1878
Charts:
John Gilliam/Elizabeth Murrell Descendants
Michael Israel/Sarah Graves Descendants

Parents:

Father*: Henry McElwee b. Oct 1842, d. 1916
Mother*: Elizabeth Brannon Brown b. 1852, d. 1945

Martha Adeline Smith

F, b. March 1860, d. 1909
Charts:
John Gilliam/Elizabeth Murrell Descendants
Michael Israel/Sarah Graves Descendants

Parents:

Father*: William Jackson Smith b. 20 Sep 1832, d. 18 Apr 1911
Mother*: Deborah D. Wiley b. 12 Nov 1832, d. 6 Jul 1916

James William Thornton

M, b. 8 August 1839, d. 27 July 1925

Parents:

Father*: Simeon Thornton b. 29 Jun 1818, d. 17 May 1917
Mother*: Elizabeth Ann "Betsy" Adams b. 7 Sep 1818, d. 9 Sep 1852

Family:

Mary Adaline Scott b. 13 Jan 1848, d. 23 Aug 1919

Children:

Ellen O. Thornton b. 1866
Malinda Jane Thornton+ b. 30 Mar 1867, d. 26 Jul 1943
William Price Thornton+ b. 18 Jun 1869, d. 15 Sep 1936
Lorenzo L. Thornton b. 1871
Susan S Thornton b. 1873
Benjamin O Thornton b. 1875
Charles E. Thornton b. 1878
Annie L. Thornton b. 1879

Ann Elizabeth Thornton

F, b. 15 May 1842, d. 28 November 1925
  • (Witness) Census: She appeared on the census of 25 October 1850 in the household of Simeon Thornton at DeKalb County, Missouri.
  • (Witness) Emigration: Ann Elizabeth Thornton emigrated with Simeon Thornton in 1852.
  • Married Name: As of 12 April 1857,her married name was Stephens.

Parents:

Father*: Simeon Thornton b. 29 Jun 1818, d. 17 May 1917
Mother*: Elizabeth Ann "Betsy" Adams b. 7 Sep 1818, d. 9 Sep 1852

Family:

Thomas Prigmore Stephens b. 17 Jan 1830, d. 16 Apr 1910

Children:

James Phillip Stephens b. 20 Aug 1858, d. 11 May 1896
Elizabeth Ann "Lizzy" Stephens b. 13 May 1860, d. 8 Jul 1877
Cordilia Agee Stephens b. 3 Jun 1862, d. 29 Jun 1883
Fannie Lee Stephens b. 29 Nov 1864, d. 18 Jan 1920
Martha Sirrelda Stephens b. 22 Apr 1867, d. 15 Jan 1893
Sarrah Jane "Jennie" Stephens b. 12 Nov 1869, d. 9 Sep 1948
Thomas Perry Stephens b. 16 May 1872, d. 1 Jun 1872
Tirzah Olive Stephens+ b. 23 Jun 1873, d. 28 Apr 1967
Ida Chriselda Stephens+ b. 31 Mar 1875, d. 11 Jun 1954
George Franklin Stephens b. 12 Oct 1880, d. 2 Nov 1969
Charles Irvin Stephens+ b. 15 Sep 1883, d. 7 Dec 1950

Isaac Agee Thornton

M, b. 30 October 1844, d. 28 February 1922

Parents:

Father*: Simeon Thornton b. 29 Jun 1818, d. 17 May 1917
Mother*: Elizabeth Ann "Betsy" Adams b. 7 Sep 1818, d. 9 Sep 1852

Family:

Susan Jane Mitchell b. Nov 1854, d. Jun 1919

Children:

Walter H Thornton b. Dec 1875
Cora Thornton+ b. Jul 1888
Charles Thornton b. Jul 1899

John Thornton

M, b. 1847
  • Birth*: John Thornton was born in 1847 at Missouri.

Parents:

Father*: Simeon Thornton b. 29 Jun 1818, d. 17 May 1917
Mother*: Elizabeth Ann "Betsy" Adams b. 7 Sep 1818, d. 9 Sep 1852

Surrilda J Thornton

F, b. 25 March 1849, d. 4 June 1935
  • Biography*: She A Pioneer Mother's Story
    The year 1852. An immigrant train on its way to the West paused enroute somewhere near Willow Creek in the John Day Country, Eastern Oregon. Why this delay when there was always need to press on as expeditioiusly as possible even though no Indian trouble had as yet interrupted its westward trek? Draw near, you who would turn back the pages of hisotry, and stand by the open grave that holds one more of life's tragedies on the Oregon trail. A young mother, too frail to withstand the rigors of the long trek from Missouri to Oregon--the land of Promise--is being lowered into a lonely unmarked grave. A grief-striken husband and six wide-eyed wondering children stand by while friendly hands of other members of the party perform the last sad rites. The clods fall on the rude coffin. The earth is smoothed over. No stone is raised to mark the spot. In fact every precaution is taken to obliterate any indication of an interment there. A hymn is sung. A prayer is said. The train moves on. Young Mr. Thornton must now accept the role of both Father and Mother to his little brood, the eldest of whom is thirteen -- the youngest, a year and a half. Several days more of slow travel brought the party, after five months' weary plodding, to its destination--the Willamette Valley in Yamhill County, Oregon. How their very souls were gladdened as they viewed this beautiful valley bathed in the golden September sunshine, and realized that it was now to be their home. To induce worthy settlers to come to the Willamette Valley, the Federal Government had promised a section of land here to every man and wife. Mr. Thornton, being now a widower, was allotted only half a section. Bereft of his helpmate, and burdened with the physical and spiritual development of his six children, a less Spartan soul might have given up in despair. But the blood of Revolutionary forebears (one of whom-Matthew Thornton, was a signer of the Declaration of Independence flowed in young Thornton's veins, and he accepted the Challenge of Adversity. [note written on the side says "apparently incorrect"]
    Each family must raise the food for it's own sustenance. So the ground was plowed, and the grain sowed. The harvest foods were supplemented with plenty of wild game--deer, grouse, pheasants, quail, ducks and goose. When the second Spring had come, the pioneer settlers, assured of the permanency of their settlement, began to plan for their children's educational advantages. A Subscription School was organized, costing five dollars per child. To increase the attendance and to make it worthwhile for some competent person to teach the school, Mr. Thornton sent five-year-old Surrilda, the heroine of this story, along with her four older brothers and sisters. The teacher was a young man, who wile not regularly licensed to teach, led his pupils through the rudiments of Readin', Ritin', and Rithmetic. Social events were few and far between, but Husking Bees, Quilting Parties, and Cider-making gatherings served to draw the growing boys and girls together and gave opportunities for choosing their life partners. In those far-off days girls married young. Surrilda was fourteen when she married James Lemuel Ballard. For a young couple, they were content to make their home near where they were reared, for a couple of years, but after the first child was born they decided to move to California. Leaving Oregon in 1868, Surrilda, together with her husband and one small child, Perry, came to Montgomery Creek near Millville in Shasta County. Two years later they moved up on Pit River, where they built and operated a toll bridge about four miles below the present site of the P.G. & E. Power Plant Pit One. Here a second tragedy came into Surrilda's life when the waters of Pit River claimed the life of her first-born, five year-old Perry. Perry and his younger brother, Simeon, were playing by the river bank. Simeon complained of being thirsty. Perry, who had been trained to look out for his little brother, got a can and reached over the bank of the trugid river to get water to satisfy Simeon's thirst. He lost his balance and fell into the swirling whirlpool. Little brother's screams brought his parents running to the spot but they could see no trace of Perry. For several days Indian divers assisted the frantic father in vain attempt to recover the little body. It was never recovered. Surrilda's grief was so great that she could no longer endure the scene so fraught with tragic memories. Once more she and her husband and family sought a new location. 1872 found them in lower Goose Lake Valley. In this valley and the surrounding country, the grass grew thick and tall while the upper Sacramento Valley was suffering a drought. Stockmen drove their cattle to the mountain valleys to get pasture and hay. Surrilda's husband got a job feeding a band of cattle through the winter. He moved his family to Joseph Creek so he might live near his work. In 1873, lumber was needed to meet new settler's demands for homes. Capitalizing on this demand the Ballard family moved to Canyon Creek twenty miles south-west of the present site of Alturas, and built the first saw-mill in that part of the valley. During the summer the family lived in a tent and cheerfully put up with the many discomforts of camp life, dispensing hospitality to any chance wayfarer. But when a rattle-snake attempted to make himself at home behind the cook stove, they felt this was presuming too much on even pioneer hospitality. By September enough lumber had been cut to provide for the erection of a house near the mill.
    When winter storms necessitated the closing of the milling operations it seemed advisable to move to the small village of Centerville about eight miles down in the valley. There a hastily constructed house proved inadequate to keep out the winter storms. Many a morning the family, now growing numerically as well as physically, awoke to find their beds blanketed with snow that had sifted through the cracks. Old timers still tell that the winter of 1873-74 was the coldest and stormiest ever experienced in this mountain country. Wood fires were kept burning night and day and still the houses were cold. Winter lasted from November through March. Snow fell three feet deep on the level and the drifts were much deeper. There was not much hay on hand. A scourge of grass-hoppers destroyed the hay crop the preceding summer, so there was very little to feed the starving frozen livestock. Many cattle and nearly all sheep in the area perished. For three years Mr. Ballard operated a General Merchandise Store in Centerville, but eventually went back to milling, a business which occupied his attention until his death, October 7, 1902. After her husbands death Surrilda lived on with her unmarried daughter. She was the mother of ten children. With the exception of Perry, she lived to see all of her children grow to manhood and womanhood and, with one exception, become parents of another generation, all worthy citizens of the community their parents helped to establish.
    Surrilda, a deeply religious mother, had brought her family up in the fear and love of God. She was a devoted Christian woman, whose friends found comfort in her presence, and when death called her on June 4, 1935, there were many to mourn the passing of this typical Pioneer Mother. By Dorothy V. Gloster, Alturas Parlor #159, Alturas, California
    (typed document in Thornton/Toney Family File at YCHS
    Handwritten note: Story of Surrilda Ballard - Dorothy V. Gloster interviewed Grandma before her death for the Daughters of Calif. From Opal Larson (Mrs Ruben R) Klamath Falls.
  • (Witness) Census: She appeared on the census of 25 October 1850 in the household of Simeon Thornton at DeKalb County, Missouri.
  • (Witness) Emigration: Surrilda J Thornton emigrated with Simeon Thornton in 1852.
  • (Witness) Census: Surrilda J Thornton appeared on the census of 11 August 1860 in the household of Simeon Thornton at South Fork, Yamhill County, Oregon.
  • Married Name: As of 5 July 1863,her married name was Ballard.

Parents:

Father*: Simeon Thornton b. 29 Jun 1818, d. 17 May 1917
Mother*: Elizabeth Ann "Betsy" Adams b. 7 Sep 1818, d. 9 Sep 1852

Family:

James Lemuel Ballard b. 17 Oct 1838, d. 7 Oct 1902

Benjamin Franklin Thornton

M, b. 1851
  • Birth*: Benjamin Franklin Thornton was born in 1851 at Missouri.

Parents:

Father*: Simeon Thornton b. 29 Jun 1818, d. 17 May 1917
Mother*: Elizabeth Ann "Betsy" Adams b. 7 Sep 1818, d. 9 Sep 1852

James Lemuel Ballard

M, b. 17 October 1838, d. 7 October 1902

Family:

Surrilda J Thornton b. 25 Mar 1849, d. 4 Jun 1935

Mary Adaline Scott

F, b. 13 January 1848, d. 23 August 1919
  • PARENTS*: She was the child of Margaret Payne (1822-1862) James Scott (1815-1899.)
  • Married Name: As of 27 November 1864,her married name was Thornton.
  • (Witness) Census: She appeared on the census of 1880 in the household of James William Thornton at Looking Glass, Douglas County, Oregon.

Family:

James William Thornton b. 8 Aug 1839, d. 27 Jul 1925

Children:

Ellen O. Thornton b. 1866
Malinda Jane Thornton+ b. 30 Mar 1867, d. 26 Jul 1943
William Price Thornton+ b. 18 Jun 1869, d. 15 Sep 1936
Lorenzo L. Thornton b. 1871
Susan S Thornton b. 1873
Benjamin O Thornton b. 1875
Charles E. Thornton b. 1878
Annie L. Thornton b. 1879

William Deshazer

M, b. 1807
  • Birth*: William Deshazer was born in 1807 at Kentucky.

Parents:

Mother*: Sarah "Sally" Thornton b. 1789, d. bt 1850 - 1854