Elliott County?s Union Civil War Veterans in 1890
By John A. Stegall   <  johnstegall@hotmail.com

One installment in a series of articles Mr. John A. Stegall prepares and
publishes in The Elliott County News, this article a continuation from March 14,
1997.  Transcribed with permission from the author by Samone Ratcliff. on Jan 4,
2000.

George W. Lawson: Pvt. Co. E, 40th Ky., Vol., Inf., One source I have read states that
George Lawson was in the Union Army, but another source indicates that he was in the
confederate Army.  But whichever it was, he began his military service on Sept. 3, 1862 and
served until Dec. 30, 1864.  He said in 1890 that his current illness was ?Ciatic Rheumaties?, and that his post office was Ibex. 
I am unable to locate a George W. Lawson in early records, except for a Carter Co
marriage record dated Dec 30, 1863 for G.W. Lawson and Merilda Tackett.
The 1870 Elliott Co Census does not list a George W. Lawson; neither does the 1880
report.  Because of this, I am inclined to believe he was a resident of Carter County, or perhaps some other county.
An Elliott Co birth record indicated that Cory I. Lawson, a daughter, was born on June 9,
1778, to a George W. Lawson and Sarah Lawson.  This record states that the father was born in Morgan County, the mother in Johnson County.  I questioned whether this is the veteran, George W. Lawson.  Obviously, George W. Lawson was a resident of Elliott Co when the 1890 Census was taken.  Also, the 1890 Elliott Co Tax Assessments, Moccasin Precinct, show that a George Lawson was a resident at the time, but no acreage is mentioned; neither does it list a nearest neighbor.  There were 4 children between the ages of 6 and 20 years in this household.  The 1900 Elliott Co Census indicates that George W. Lossen (Lawson) was still a
resident of the Moccasin area.  He stated that he was 55 years of age, having been born in Feb of  1845.  His wife, Marilda, was 68, and was born in Jan 1838.  One child, James P., age 34, born in Nov 1865, was at home with them.  George and Marilda stated that they had been married 36 years, which does correspond closely with the marriage date indicated above.  They also stated that they had 9 children, 2 of which were deceased.I do not find George W. Lawson in the 1910 Elliott Co Census; neither is the above-mentioned James Lawson mentioned.

John N. Lawson: Pvt., Co., K, 51st., Ky., Inf., Jan, 24, 1862 to Jan 24 1863.  He had
apparently re-enlisted on May 27, 1863, and was a Pvt., in Co., A, 5th Ky.,Cav., until Mar 27,
1864.  He indicated to the census taker that he had a ?Backset on measles.  Never was
discharged?.  (Again, I should point out that not being discharged did not necessarily mean that the soldier had deserted.  Often when a company disbanded, the men were told to just go home. 
Also, a scarcity of food was sometimes sufficient reason for sending them home.)
Carter County Kentucky marriage records show that John Lawson and Mary Sparks were
married in that county on July 13, 1864, just a short time after he returned home from the war. 
Witnesses to their marriage were Levi Sparks and H.W. Bare.  J. Mauk performed the
ceremonial rites. Mary Sparks Lawson was a daughter of George and Nancy Short Sparks.  George was a native of Wilkes Co, NC: Nancy, his second wife, was probably born in KY.  Sometime around 1820 George, Levi, Colby, Reuben and Robert Sparks, all brothers, left NC and settled in Lawrence Co, KY.  They were accompanied by Joh Casteel, a Cherokee Indian, who fled to KY with them rather than face life on a reservation.  When the Sparks family moved from Big Blaine Creek to Gimlet Creek, Jon Casteel came along with them and lived there until his death.  He is buried in the Lawson-Sparks Cemetery alongside the people with whom he had lived for many years.
By the time the 1870 Elliott Co Census was completed, John and Mary Lawson had been
married about 6 years and had, undoubtedly, established their own home; however, I am unable to locate them in that particular census report.  There is a possibility that they were living in nearby Carter County.
In 1880, we find the John Lawson family living in the Moccasin Precinct of
Elliott Co.  He indicated that he was 39 years of age, and that Mary was 35.  The following
children were listed: Levinia, 14; Nancy, 12; George, 10; Ida E., 8; Amanda L., 4; and James H., 10 months.  John?s mother, Mary a widow, aged 76, was also living in her son?s home.
The 1890 Elliott Co Tax Assessments show that John Lawson was a resident of the
Moccasin Precinct, and the owner of 100 acres of land.  The total value of all his property was
$712., a considerable amount for that time.  John indicated that L.H. Sparks was his nearest
neighbor.  (L.H. Sparks was most likely Levi Hansford, a brother to Mary Sparks Lawson).
The 1900 Elliott Co Census contains the following information: John Losson (a
misspelling by the census taker), age 59, and Mary, his wife, 52.  John stated that he was born in Jan of 1841; Mary in June of 1848.  They had been married 37 years, which corresponds to the date given in the Carter Co records.  They were the parents of 8 children, all living.  Children still at home with them were: Livinie, 34, having been born in Nov of 1865; Emma, 18, Mar 1882; Nora, 15, Jan 1885; Minnie, 13, Feb 1887; and James, 20, July 1880.  Also living John?s home was a daughter, Nancy J., 32, born in Dec 1868, and her husband, W.R. Cox.  (This was, in all likelihood, Willis Cox, named in the 1880 census as a son of Odom and Sydney Row Cox. 
The 1910 census shows Willis and Nancy J. Cox living in their own home with 7 children.)
Another daughter, Manda, age 24, June 1876, and her husband, Millard Bollen, 23, were
in the Lawson home, along with a son, John, one year of age.
The 1900 census also records that John and Mary had a daughter, Ida E., age 27, May
1873, at home with them.
John N. Lawson is not named in the 1910 Elliott Co Census, and in all likelihood, he was
deceased.  He is buried in the Sparks-Lawson Cemetery, and his military gravestone gives no
dates of death or birth.  Mary, his wife, died Apr 27, 1902 and is buried in the same cemetery.
Henry P. Leftradge: Pvt., Co., D, 7th Va., Inf. Oct 5 1861 to Apr 5, 1865.  ?Sol. Conf.?
Post office: Limestone.
In an earlier article, I mention a veteran, James Andrews, and indicated that information
regarding his service was given by his former widow, Rebecca, who was married to Henry
Leftriadge in 1890.