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Descendants of Alexander Cobb
Generation No. 1
1. ALEXANDER2 COBB (UNKNOWN1) was born 1772 in Edgefield Co. SC, and died 1855 in Bibb Co. AL. He married (1) ELIZABETH RUTH BANKS about 1804 in SC. She was born Unknown, and died 1825. He married (2) MARIAN CAMPBELL December 23, 1826 in Bibb Co. AL by Eliah Jones, J.P.1,2. She died Unknown.
Notes for ALEXANDER COBB:
From Family Tree Maker, Vol 9, Pedigree #913:
Alexander Cobb Was among the early settlers on Mulberry Creek. He and his family came to the area before the year 1820. He and most members of his family were natives of SC. Among his neighbors here were Edmund Beaird, John Giles, Thomas Tucker, James Page, Stephen Dunn, Littleton Riggins, Joseph W. Jones, John Goodgame, Basil Woolley and others. He had a large family and engaged in a successful farm operation. He created a sizeable estate that permitted a distribution of about thirty thousand dollars to his heirs when the estate was settled after his death.
More About ALEXANDER COBB:
Address : about 1816, Moved to Mulberry Creek, Cahawba Co. AL about 1816
Census: 1850, Bibb Co. AL, Household #914, age 78, born in SC, cannot read or write, eleven year old Rebecca is living with him3
Information 1: Aft. 1831, Alexander befriended a widow, Lavina Perminter to whom he gave two slaves. Alexander's children disapproved of this friendship and brought legal action against him.
Information 2: August 1844, However, in August 1844, the court found him to be sane and free to do with his property as he saw fit.
More About ALEXANDER COBB and ELIZABETH BANKS:
Marriage: about 1804, SC
More About MARIAN CAMPBELL:
Information: Marian was a destitute widow with one son when Alexander married her
More About ALEXANDER COBB and MARIAN CAMPBELL:
Divorce: Divorce granted to Alexander October 1831
Marriage: December 23, 1826, Bibb Co. AL by Eliah Jones, J.P.4,5
Children of ALEXANDER COBB and ELIZABETH BANKS are:
2. i. RUTHA BANKS3 COBB, b. December 10, 1804, SC; d. April 06, 1885, Jemison, Chilton Co. AL.
3. ii. BETHANY/BARTHENA ELIZABETH COBB, b. April 16, 1806, NC; d. October 16, 1902, Chilton Co. AL.
4. iii. TABITHA 'TELITHA' COBB, b. October 25, 1808, SC; d. March 10, 1897, Coosa Co. AL.
5. iv. JOHN ALLEN S. COBB, b. 1811, SC; d. Unknown.
6. v. MARY R. 'POLLY' COBB, b. January 12, 1812, SC; d. September 17, 1892, Collin Co. TX.
7. vi. WILLIAM P. COBB, b. 1813, SC; d. Aft. 1880, Henderson, Rusk Co. TX
8. vii. JAMES JACKSON ALEXANDER 'JIM' COBB, CAPT., b. February 08, 1815, SC; d. June 04, 1865, Rocky Mount, Shelby Co. now Chilton Co. AL.
9. viii. MARTHA ELIZABETH COBB, b. about 1816; d. 1848.
10. ix. PRISCILLA ROSELLA COBB, b. 1817; d. 1858.
11. x. CHARLES BANKS 'CHARLIE' COBB, b. 1818, SC; d. February 10, 1865.
12. xi. LEVI BANKS COBB, b. February 17, 1819, Bibb Co. AL; d. May 10, 1883, Sadie, Union Parish, LA.
13. xii. REBECCA UNDERWOOD COBB, b. May 15, 1839, Bibb Co. AL; d. June 08, 1915, Helena, Shelby Co. AL; Adopted child.
Generation No. 2
2. RUTHA BANKS3 COBB (ALEXANDER2, UNKNOWN1) was born December 10, 1804 in SC, and died April 06, 1885 in Jemison, Chilton Co. AL6. She married JOHN THAMES December 18, 1820 in Bibb Co. AL7. He was born 1800 in NC, and died January 1865.
More About RUTHA BANKS COBB:
Burial: Rocky Mount Methodist Cemetery, Chilton Co. AL
Occupation: Mid-wife
Information: She gave the land that the Rocky Mount Cemetery is on.
More About JOHN THAMES:
Burial: Old Rocky Mount Methodist Cemetery, Chilton Co. AL, unmarked grave
Occupation: Farmer
More About JOHN THAMES and RUTHA COBB:
Marriage: December 18, 1820, Bibb Co. AL7
Children of RUTHA COBB and JOHN THAMES are:
14. i. ELIZABETH 'BETSY'4 THAMES, b. 1821, AL; d. Unknown.
15. ii. MARY FRANCES DAVIS 'POLLY' THAMES, b. 1822, Jemison, Shelby Co. AL; d. November 08, 1866, Jemison, Chilton Co. AL.
16. iii. WILLIAM D. THAMES, b. 1824; d. August 27, 1855, Shelby Co. AL.
17. iv. TELITHA JANE THAMES, b. November 19, 1826, Montgomery Co. AL; d. July 01, 1900.
18. v. THOMAS A. 'TOM' THAMES, b. September 18, 1828, AL; d. June 01, 1905.
19. vi. BETHANY S. 'THANY' THAMES, b. April 20, 1830, AL; d. March 10, 1910.
20. vii. BEROZA/BERTHA/BORZA KIZIAH 'KIZZIE' THAMES, b. May 15, 1831, AL; d. January 28, 1896, Jemison, Chilton Co. AL.
21. viii. SARAH A. 'SALLY' THAMES, b. 1833, AL; d. Aft. 1907, OK?.
22. ix. JAMES WOODALL/WESTLEY 'JIM' THAMES, b. April 29, 1833, Montevallo, Shelby Co. AL; d. 1917, Chilton Co. AL.
23. x. SAMUEL MONROE THAMES, REV., b. January 14, 1833, AL; d. April 11, 1918, MS.
24. xi. AMANDA REBECCA 'MANDY' THAMES, b. March 22, 1836, AL; d. October 28, 1909.
25. xii. ELVIRA FRANCES THAMES, b. 1837, AL; d. Unknown.
26. xiii. SAMANTHA CATHERINE THAMES, b. December 23, 1838, AL; d. March 13, 1895, Jemison, Chilton Co. AL.
xiv. JOHN FAUST/FOUSE THAMES, b. 1841, AL; d. Aft. October 27, 18648; m. NANCY 'SIS' ARLEDGE, October 27, 1864, Shelby Co. AL; b. Bet. 1842 - 1843; d. Unknown9.
More About JOHN FAUST/FOUSE THAMES:
Burial: Old Rocky Mount Cemetery, Chilton Co. AL
Military: CSA, Pvt, Co. D, 30th Ala. Inf. Enlisted March 6, 1862.10
Information: POW at Vicksburg, July 186310
More About NANCY 'SIS' ARLEDGE:
Burial: Archer's Chapel Cemetery, Chilton Co. AL
More About JOHN THAMES and NANCY ARLEDGE:
Marriage: October 27, 1864, Shelby Co. AL
27. xv. RUTHA BANKS THAMES, b. 1845, Shelby Co. AL; d. Unknown.
xvi. CHARLES THOMAS 'CHARLIE' THAMES, b. 1846, AL; d. May 16, 1863, Killed in Civil War.
More About CHARLES THOMAS 'CHARLIE' THAMES:
Military: CSA, Pvt, Co D, 30th Ala. Inf. Killed at Baker's Creek.10
Information: Never married
28. xvii. LEVI M. 'LEVIE' THAMES, b. March 15, 1848, AL; d. January 08, 1893.
3. BETHANY/BARTHENA ELIZABETH3 COBB (ALEXANDER2, UNKNOWN1) was born April 16, 1806 in NC11, and died October 16, 1902 in Chilton Co. AL12. She married JAMES HONEYCUTT December 22, 1823 in Bibb Co. AL13, son of THOMAS HONEYCUTT and JOSEPHINE UNKNOWN. He was born 1801 in GA, and died February 06, 1865 in AL14.
More About BETHANY/BARTHENA ELIZABETH COBB:
Burial: Providence Baptist Cemetery, Chilton Co. AL
Census: 1900, Living with son Monroe R., age 95, born Apr 1805, NC
More About JAMES HONEYCUTT:
Address : Moved from the Mulberry Community to the Providence Community in 1845.
Burial: Providence Baptist Cemetery, Chilton Co. AL
Census 1: 1830, Bibb Co. AL
Census 2: 1840, Bibb Co. AL
Census 3: 1850, Shelby Co. AL
Marriage Notes for BETHANY/BARTHENA COBB and JAMES HONEYCUTT:
From the Bibb County, AL Marriage Records:
James Honeycutt and Bethana Cobb, December 22, 1823. Bibb county, Alabama. I consent to a marage between my sone James Haycut and Bethana Cobb, 22 Dec. 1823. Signed Thomas Haycut. Bibb Co. AL. I consent to a marriage between my dau. Bethana and James Haycut, 22 Dec. 1823. Signed Alexander Cobb.
More About JAMES HONEYCUTT and BETHANY/BARTHENA COBB:
Marriage: December 22, 1823, Bibb Co. AL15
Children of BETHANY/BARTHENA COBB and JAMES HONEYCUTT are:
29. i. LEM/LEVI ANDERSON4 HONEYCUTT, REV., b. December 20, 1823; d. November 04, 1860.
ii. TENNESSE 'TEMPY/TEMPA' HONEYCUTT, b. April 16, 1833; d. August 14, 191516; m. BENJAMIN GLASSCOCK, September 18, 1856, Shelby Co. AL17; b. August 25, 1834; d. February 22, 187418.
More About TENNESSE 'TEMPY/TEMPA' HONEYCUTT:
Burial: Providence Baptist Cemetery, Chilton Co. AL
More About BENJAMIN GLASSCOCK:
Burial: Old Green Cemetery, Chilton Co. AL
More About BENJAMIN GLASSCOCK and TENNESSE HONEYCUTT:
Marriage: September 18, 1856, Shelby Co. AL19
30. iii. GEORGE N. HONEYCUTT, b. July 14, 1835; d. April 1862, Selma, Dallas Co. AL.
31. iv. ANGELINE HONEYCUTT, b. Unknown, Shelby Co. AL; d. Unknown.
v. JOSEPH M. HONEYCUTT, b. Unknown; d. Unknown.
32. vi. JAMES MARION HONEYCUTT, b. October 10, 1837; d. January 25, 1913.
33. vii. RILEY MONROE HONEYCUTT, REV., b. February 13, 1845, Shelby Co. AL; d. December 18, 1937, T.C.I. Hospital, Fairfield, Jefferson Co. AL.
34. viii. AMANDA J. HONEYCUTT, b. January 14, 1849, AL; d. February 27, 1884.
ix. LUCINDA HONEYCUTT, b. Unknown; d. Unknown; m. ZACHARIAH H. CRIM, December 21, 1852, Shelby Co. AL20; b. October 30, 1830, Shelby Co. AL; d. Unknown.
More About ZACHARIAH CRIM and LUCINDA HONEYCUTT:
Marriage: December 21, 1852, Shelby Co. AL20
4. TABITHA 'TELITHA'3 COBB (ALEXANDER2, UNKNOWN1) was born October 25, 1808 in SC, and died March 10, 1897 in Coosa Co. AL. She married JAMES ALEXANDER GOODGAME December 21, 1824 in Jemison, Bibb Co. AL by T. Coker, J.P.21,22, son of JOHN GOODGAME and SARAH CROCKETT. He was born October 07, 1799 in Coweta, GA, and died December 25, 1881 in Kellyton, Coosa Co. AL.
More About JAMES GOODGAME and TABITHA COBB:
Marriage: December 21, 1824, Jemison, Bibb Co. AL by T. Coker, J.P.23,24
Children of TABITHA COBB and JAMES GOODGAME are:
i. DAVID4 GOODGAME, b. 1825, Bibb Co. AL; d. 1842, OH.
ii. JOHN ALEXANDER GOODGAME, b. January 20, 1829, Bibb Co. AL; d. March 01, 1927, Holly Springs, Dallas Co. AR; m. UNKNOWN RASBERRY; d. Unknown.
iii. JAMES GOODGAME, b. 1829; d. Unknown.
iv. AMANDA CATHERINE 'KATE' GOODGAME, b. November 30, 1834, Sylacauga, Talladega Co. AL; d. March 29, 1922; m. JOHN WESLEY GARNETT, December 03, 1866, Kellyton, Coosa Co. AL; d. April 03, 1911, Brownwood, TX.
More About AMANDA CATHERINE 'KATE' GOODGAME:
Information: May be buried in Shelby Co. AL
Military: 1919, Pension transferred from Chilton to Shelby in 1919
More About JOHN WESLEY GARNETT:
Military: CSA, Pvt, Co. A, 46th Ala. Inf. Enlisted at Hanover in Coosa Co. AL25
Information: Shot in hand, honorably discharged25
More About JOHN GARNETT and AMANDA GOODGAME:
Marriage: December 03, 1866, Kellyton, Coosa Co. AL
35. v. LUCINDA EMMALINE/ELIZABETH GOODGAME, b. March 26, 1838, AL; d. September 08, 1908, Coosa Co. AL.
vi. FLOYD CROCKETT GOODGAME, b. 1842, Coosa Co. or Talladega Co. AL; d. Unknown, Gettysburg, PA.
36. vii. TELITHA 'PUSS' GOODGAME, b. 1845, Kellytown, Coosa Co. AL; d. Unknown.
37. viii. ROBERT LAFAYETTE GOODGAME, b. March 15, 1847, Kellytown, Coosa Co. AL; d. December 27, 1927, Socapaty, Coosa Co. AL.
38. ix. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN GOODGAME, b. August 14, 1852, Kellytown, Coosa Co. AL; d. July 13, 1932, Holly Springs, Dallas Co. AR.
x. INFANT SON GOODGAME, b. January 1850, Coosa Co. AL; d. August 1850, Coosa Co. AL.
5. JOHN ALLEN S.3 COBB (ALEXANDER2, UNKNOWN1) was born 1811 in SC, and died Unknown. He married (1) MARY ELIZABETH RIGDEN May 30, 1828 in Bibb Co. AL by Robert Martin, M.G.26,27. She was born 1803 in SC, and died Unknown. He married (2) ELIZABETH MCCASKILL November 15, 1849. She was born about 1815, and died Unknown. He married (3) REBECCA GENTRY Bef. 1858. She was born about 1815, and died Unknown.
More About JOHN COBB and MARY RIGDEN:
Marriage: May 30, 1828, Bibb Co. AL by Robert Martin, M.G.28,29
More About JOHN COBB and ELIZABETH MCCASKILL:
Marriage: November 15, 1849
More About JOHN COBB and REBECCA GENTRY:
Marriage: Bef. 1858
Children of JOHN COBB and MARY RIGDEN are:
39. i. NANCY R.4 COBB, b. May 06, 1835, Shelby Co. AL; d. July 31, 1922, Bellwood, Natch Parish, LA.
ii. WILLIAM PICKNEY COBB, b. July 22, 1831.
iii. JASPER COBB, b. 1833.
iv. JAMES A. C. COBB, b. 1836.
v. LUCINDA COBB, b. 1837.
vi. FRANCES COBB, b. 1838.
vii. THOMAS COBB, b. 1841.
viii. JANE COBB, b. 1843.
ix. JOHN COBB, b. 1845.
x. CHARLES A. COBB, b. 1847.
xi. JOSEPH B. COBB, b. 1849.
Child of JOHN COBB and REBECCA GENTRY is:
xii. COLVIN D.4 COBB, b. 1858.
6. MARY R. 'POLLY'3 COBB (ALEXANDER2, UNKNOWN1) was born January 12, 1812 in SC, and died September 17, 1892 in Collin Co. TX. She married JOHNATHON 'JOHN' DESHAZO December 30, 1826 in Bibb Co. AL by Benjamin Beaird, J.P.30,31, son of ROBERT DESHAZO and MARY SAWYER. He was born 1807 in SC, and died March 1860 in LA.
More About MARY R. 'POLLY' COBB:
Burial: Liberty Co. TX
More About JOHNATHON 'JOHN' DESHAZO:
Address : Migrated to LA
More About JOHNATHON DESHAZO and MARY COBB:
Marriage: December 30, 1826, Bibb Co. AL by Benjamin Beaird, J.P.32,33
Children of MARY COBB and JOHNATHON DESHAZO are:
40. i. MARTHA A.4 DESHAZO, b. November 25, 1827, AL; d. June 28, 1868.
41. ii. WILLIAM A. DESHAZO, b. February 22, 1830, Eufaula, Barbour Co. AL; d. January 02, 1916, Clanton, Chilton Co. AL.
iii. CAROLINE DESHAZO, b. May 20, 1833; d. November 16, 1910, Union Co. AR; m. WILLIAM TAPPLEY POOLE, December 23, 1851; b. September 08, 1828; d. February 10, 1908.
More About CAROLINE DESHAZO:
Burial: Good Hope Cemetery, Union Co. AR
More About WILLIAM POOLE and CAROLINE DESHAZO:
Marriage: December 23, 1851
iv. JAMES DESHAZO, b. 1835.
v. MARY A. DESHAZO, b. 1837.
vi. SAMANTHA DESHAZO, b. 1839.
vii. AMANDA DESHAZO, b. October 29, 1841.
viii. JOHN DESHAZO, b. 1843.
ix. LUCINDA DESHAZO, b. 1846.
x. ALEXANDER ABEL DESHAZO, b. September 01, 1848.
xi. CHARLES L. DESHAZO, b. about 1849.
xii. SARAH L. 'SALLY' DESHAZO, b. November 11, 1851.
7. WILLIAM P.3 COBB (ALEXANDER2, UNKNOWN1) was born 1813 in SC, and died Aft. 1880 in Henderson, Rusk Co. TX. He married LUCINDA A. ARNOLD August 06, 1838 in Bibb Co. AL34,35. She was born about 1816 in TN, and died Unknown.
More About WILLIAM P. COBB:
Census: 1850, Bibb Co. AL, Household #630, age 37, farmer, born in SC36
Occupation: Farmer, Justice of Peace in Bibb Co. AL
Religion: Baptist, Leader in Mulberry Baptist Church, Chilton Co. AL
More About LUCINDA A. ARNOLD:
Census: 1850, Bibb Co. AL, Household #630, age 34, born in Tenn, cannot read or write36
More About WILLIAM COBB and LUCINDA ARNOLD:
Marriage: August 06, 1838, Bibb Co. AL37,38
Children of WILLIAM COBB and LUCINDA ARNOLD are:
i. WILLIAM D.4 COBB, b. 1840, AL; d. Unknown.
More About WILLIAM D. COBB:
Census: 1850, Bibb Co. AL, Household #630, age 10, born in AL, attended school within the y
ii. MARY E. COBB, b. 1841; d. Unknown.
More About MARY E. COBB:
Census: 1850, Bibb Co. AL, Household #630, age 9, born in AL, attended school within the year39
iii. MARTHA C. COBB, b. 1843; d. Unknown.
More About MARTHA C. COBB:
Census: 1850, Bibb Co. AL, Household #630, age 7, born in AL, attended school within the year40
iv. JAMES W. 'JAMY' COBB, b. 1844, AL; d. Unknown.
More About JAMES W. 'JAMY' COBB:
Census: 1850, Bibb Co. AL, Household #630, age 6, born in AL, attended school within the year40
v. JOHN M. COBB, b. 1847, AL; d. Unknown.
More About JOHN M. COBB:
Census: 1850, Bibb Co. AL, Household #630, age 3, born in AL40
vi. JULIANN 'JULIA' COBB, b. 1849, AL; d. Unknown.
More About JULIANN 'JULIA' COBB:
Census: 1850, Bibb Co. AL, Household #630, age 1, born in AL40
vii. GEMIMA COBB.
8. JAMES JACKSON ALEXANDER 'JIM'3 COBB, CAPT. (ALEXANDER2, UNKNOWN1) was born February 08, 1815 in SC, and died June 04, 1865 in Rocky Mount, Shelby Co. now Chilton Co. AL41. He married ELIZABETH CAMPBELL October 22, 1836 in Bibb Co. AL by Wm. R. Deshazo42,43, daughter of AARON CAMPBELL and MARTHA GLASSCOCK. She was born May 13, 1820 in Bibb Co. AL, and died August 02, 190744.
More About JAMES JACKSON ALEXANDER 'JIM' COBB, CAPT.:
Burial: Cobb Confederate Cemetery, Chilton Co. AL
Information: He was hung by deserters and bummers right after the war
Military: CSA, Capt, Co E. 31st Ala. Inf.45
Occupation: Farmer, owner of store, gin, mill and tanyard
*The following article was provided by Wm. A. Cobb, Jr., Box 175, Saginaw, Al 35137 (great grandson of Charles B. Cobb)9 June 1998.
"VIOLENCE AND CONFEDERATE RECRUITING EFFORTS:
SHELBY COUNTY, ALABAMA, 1863-1865
by Alan J. Pitts
"Colonel West would soon be home. A 'faithful & energetic" officer of the 2nd Alabama Cavalry Regiment, John P. West had risen from captain to lieutenant colonel during his two year-career. West was forty-seven years old, in uniform despite being two years over the maximum age established for compulsory military service. Nothing but conscience and a strong sense of duty had kept him in the saddle these past twenty-five months. West's immediate superior endorsed his resignation with regret, but the young West Pointer at the next level of command valued leadership skills above patriotism. Without any reflection on Colonel West's 'zeal or good intentions,' he wrote, the man simply was not a first-class field officer.
"Dated March 11, 1864, Colonel West's resignation cited his family's situation in Shelby County, Alabama. 'Domestic affairs,' he wrote, 'require my personal attention at home.' Management of a modest farm near Montevallo had been left to his wife, Mariah, three slaves and two adolescent sons. The older boy had joined his father's command immediately after his eighteenth birthday. Three weeks ago he had been killed in action, and a new law calling seventeen-year olds into military service would soon take the younger son away from home. West's other children were girls, and the family urgently needed his aid and protection.
"In fact, legislation approved on February 17, 1864, bid men of West's age to enroll as well. Seeking to augment dwindling manpower resources, the Confederate Congress established two classes of reserves, one of seventeen-year olds and the other of males between the ages of forty-five and fifty. The Junior and Senior Reserves, as they were called, would serve within the confines of their home state. The bay forts guarding Mobile had fallen during August, and reserves from Shelby County went to the Alabama coast. However, John P. West did not report with the other seniors. As he had written in March, 'domestic affairs' required his 'personal attention at home.'
"By 1864, conditions spawned by the war made life in the Alabama highlands increasingly harsh. The probate judge of Shelby County reported over forty-one hundred residents suffering for lack of food, while armed ruffians roamed the countryside, plundering helpless families. On September 9, 1864, West advised Governor Thomas H. Watts that seventy-five to one hundred and twenty deserters were gathering along the county's southern boundary. 'Daily becoming more lawless and defiant,' these marauders enjoyed the support of the local populace. 'What,' asked West, 'shall be done?'
"When his letter went unanswered, influential citizens addressed another petition to Montgomery on September 21, 1864. Livestock had been carried off, gins destroyed and loyal families abused. Could the state not check these 'organized bands of Tories & outlaws' who boldly committed 'outrages upon the defenceless (sic) people of Shelby Co.'
"The governor's office received distressing reports such as these almost daily. As the Confederacy became mired in defeat, the hill country had become a battleground in a different kind of war, one that pitted neighbors and even relatives against one another. The issue in this conflict was not slavery or secession, but how one responded to Confederate military law. Neutrality was difficult for indigent Southerners; even more so since extension to the age limits. Simply put, those in violation of the law became criminals and were treated as such by the Confederate government and its supporters.
"During 1863, the Conscript Bureau authorized a number of cavalry companies in Alabama to sweep up deserters and expedite the flow of recruits to the army. However, by the spring of 1864, most of these units had been ordered to the front. Thus, recruiting officers assigned to each county, normally captains and lieutenants disabled by wounds or disease, could not compel reluctant individuals to enroll for lack of armed force. We can easily imagine their predicament. The Confederacy desperately needed able-bodied, white men in the army, but absence of adequate police power at home made enforcement of its military statutes or even the protection of its citizenry virtually impossible.
"The failure of Confederate resources obliged Governor Watts to rely on local initiative for local defense. Home guard companies received antiquated muskets from public armories but little else. As state troops, they were guided by state regulations and restricted to service within their home county for a limited time, usually six months. However, the power vacuum at the local level afforded great latitude to home guard captains in the exercise of their duties. They might assist post commanders and enrolling officers or not, as they saw fit. They could administer summary justice to those accused of desertion, who were without recourse to civil authority. In some districts even Confederate soldiers on leave with proper passes were not secure from vigilantes. The militia, once used to patrol slave quarters and apprehend runaways, was now employed to arrest and punish fugitive whites.
"On August 22, 1864, eighty-five Shelby County citizens enrolled at Montevallo for local defense service. Thirty fit the traditional 'cradle and the grave' home guard profile, being under seventeen or over fifty years of age. However, a majority were middle-aged men, including twenty civil officers, a dozen industrial employees, and twenty-three exempt from military duty for other reasons. Among the latter, John P. West, late of the 2nd Alabama Cavalry, required official sanction to lead the home guard. Lauding West as 'loyal, energetic, and determined,' civic leaders urged Governor Watts to secure his release from the reserves, insisting that the former colonel knew how to deal with insurgents. Patriotism and zeal weighed heavily here. Based on West's 'character & feelings,' they believed he would be 'of more effective service than any other man.'
"Lower Yellow Leaf, a poor district approximating the northern half of present-day Chilton County, had become a favorite haunt of deserters. Slaveholders were rare in this rough hill country. In 1860, only two voters from Lower Yellow Leaf supported secessionists. Many soldiers recruited from this region had surrendered in 1863 at Vicksburg, Mississippi, and some interpreted their paroles as a release from further military service. Broken only by shallow creeks and small isolated farms, the wooded hills of Lower Yellow Leaf made an ideal refuge for anyone wishing to avoid enrolling officers. By the summer of 1864, deserters here had increased in number and may have included men from other states. Major William T. Walthall, post commander at Talladega, sent a squad to quell the disturbances in southern Shelby County, but his second-rate troops were easily discouraged and returned to camp without success.
"Sorely lacking in military skills, West's militiamen were better motivated. As one member recalled, they were to protect families 'on the west bank of the Coosa River' from a 'gang of robbers.' Women and children there had been mistreated by thieves who stole 'what little their husbands at the 'front' had left for them to live on.' By late September, supporters reported West's command to be 'actively engaged' in Shelby County, 'arresting Tories & breaking up their bands,' but not without mishap. West apparently attempted a night raid with his raw militia, despite the well-known perils of such an endeavor. Eager to have a shot at the enemy, members of the 'citizens crowd' fired into one another in the dark, wounding Joseph Squire, manager of the Montevallo Coal Company.
"Perhaps experiences like this convinced West to use other means of assailing 'tories.' Acting under orders of Captain Alexander C. Lemmon, post commander at Montevallo, militiamen began arresting those who supported fugitives. John Thames, a sixty-five-year old resident of Lower Yellow Leaf, was incarcerated just before the end of September, accused of 'feeding, harboring or aiding deserting soldiers.' Captain Lemmon rejected a writ of habeas corpus issued by the probate judge of Shelby County. 'Friends of Thames are apprehensive that he is not safe,' wrote Judge Napoleon B. Madris, suspecting that he might be 'cruelly punished or probably hung' by a mob or the home guard.
"These fears were not unfounded. Released after posting a $1600 bond on October 7, 1864, John Thames was arrested again a few weeks later. As an armed squad escorted him away from home, tradition relates that Mrs. Thames attempted to pass a tobacco pouch to her husband, knowing he would want it in prison. A soldier rebuffed her. 'Lady,' the man said, 'where he's going, he won't be needing that.' She never saw Mr. Thames alive again.
"At least nine other residents of Lower Yellow Leaf disappeared in similar fashion. Some accounts describe rude executions in lonely spots. Relatives of Johathan Huckabee, pastor of Rocky Mount Church, had to inquire in Montevallo about the location of his body. Armed men simply burned one deserter's home down around him. Someone shot Thames Lowery, a teenager who failed to enroll in the Junior Reserves, as he drank buttermilk at the family spring. Just before Christmas, Martha Cobb married Jackson Langston, a young man who lived on the site of present-day Jemison. On February 6, 1865, vigilantes abducted her husband and her father-in-law and hung both from the same tree. Four days later they returned to murder her father, Charles B. Cobb.
"Strangely enough, people in this area never held John P. West responsible for these deaths. The blame rested elsewhere. Tradition describes a shadowy figure known only as Blackwell, leader of a 'rough, ignorant and heartless' crew who operated in 'outlaw fashion' from Montevallo. The 'Blackwell crowd' claimed to have orders to arrest deserters and Union sympathizers, but never returned anyone to the Confederate army. Attacking isolated farms, they tormented women and children, took whatever they wanted and may have mutilated the bodies of some victims.
"The notorious Blackwell had come to Alabama from Shelbyville, Tennessee. Styling himself 'Major,' Robert B. Blackwell was a former constable with no connection to the Confederate army. He had fought his own war against Federal troops in central Tennessee and made a bloody reputation for himself as a guerilla captain. On September 28, 1864, Blackwell murdered eight Union prisoners near Fayetteville, and avoided pursuit by taking refuge south of the Tennessee River. There he and his companions shot a Confederate officer who attempted to enlist them. Records indicate that Blackwell may have arrived in Montevallo during October, just weeks before the first killings.
"How and why this murderous Tennessee guerilla became involved in West's campaign against Confederate deserters remains a mystery. Certainly Blackwell had no knowledge of Shelby County and needed a guide to operate effectively in the backwoods. That may explain the only apparent link between the 'Blackwell crowd' and West's home guard, a retired Confederate officer named James Cobb.
"A fifty-one year old pioneer of Lower Yellow Leaf, Cobb recruited a company there for the 31st Alabama Infantry Regiment. For a short time he served as captain of his company. Citing poor health, he resigned his commission and went home, an action some thought to be unfair and even deceitful. 'He has told us a damned lie to get us out here,' wrote one private from the mountains of east Tennessee, 'and left us...to shift the best we can.'
"Resentment of James Cobb and his family existed long before the war. Elsewhere he may have been an ordinary slaveholder of modest means, owning only five bondsmen and living in a plain dogtrot home. However, the yeoman of Lower Yellow Leaf regarded Cobb as a wealthy planter. He seems to have been a diligent, God-fearing Presbyterian whose habits contrasted sharply with those of his more indolent and less devout neighbors. Cobb's daughters--educated, well-dressed and rather assertive young women--shared his strong character, which clearly antagonized people in Lower Yellow Leaf. Elizabeth Cobb Shelby, the ancestor of Senator Richard Shelby, even held a mortgage on the land of a nearby farmer. Rough farm hands retaliated by making vulgar jokes about their stylish apparel. 'We know where it is,' called one of the Thames boys, referring to a V-shaped bodice worn by Elizabeth Cobb, 'you don't have to point to it.'
"If only two of one hundred and three votes from Lower Yellow Leaf went to secessionists in 1860, James Cobb probably cast one of them. Outraged that he had coaxed them into the army and then gone home, soldiers from his district insisted that family members have nothing to do with him. As the sole representative of his district in West's home guard, a district in full sympathy with the deserters, we may well imagine local animosity for James Cobb. It did not help that each victim had been a neighbor or relative. Cobb's isolation was now complete. Nocturnal raiders took his livestock, burned his gin and shot into his bedroom.
"On March 4, 1865, West wrote Governor Watts to request extension of his six-month tour of duty. 'We have in the last three weeks got in from the woods over 100 deserters,' he reported. Many still remained in hiding, and the bulk of his company would reenlist. But time had run out on him. Wilson's raid destroyed the last vestiges of Confederate authority in central Alabama, and West's campaign against deserters in Shelby County came to an abrupt halt.
"On the evening of June 3, 1865, three men rode up to the gate of James Cobb's home. He had just returned from the hospital at Shelby Springs with a wounded nephew from Arkansas. Identifying themselves as ex-Confederates on their way home to Mississippi, the strangers requested shelter, which Cobb was pleased to grant. They refused his offer of food, but accepted a pitcher of buttermilk.
"Once the pitcher was empty, one of the men smashed it on the floor. The sound signaled others outside to rush in, disarm Cobb and strip the house of valuables. They wrecked furniture, broke dishes, shattered mirrors, and burned his papers. That done, they dragged the old secessionist out into the night, threatening to shoot anyone who followed. The next morning Cobb's daughters found their father's body some distance from the house, hanging from a green apple tree. They later heard that Robert R. Rushing, a planter from nearby Sawyer's Cove, had also been abducted and hung during the night.
"On June 6th, Colonel Morgan H. Chrysler of the 2nd New York Cavalry relayed news of the incident from his post at Talledaga. Chrysler reported that the masked men who killed both Cobb and 'Fox' Rushing, as he was known, came from north Alabama and had taken four thousand dollars in gold from the Cobb home. Both victims had been arresting deserters, and Federal authorities believed that poor whites were avenging themselves against slaveholders who had forced them into the Confederate army. Colonel Chrysler already had troopers in pursuit. "If they do not disperse and take refuge in the mountains,' he concluded, 'they cannot escape.' The New Yorker had not reckoned with the wiles of Southern deserters, for we have no record that Union soldiers ever captured any of this party.
"No one ever went to trial on charges arising from these matters, and people on both sides of the quarrel never quite felt vindicated. As years passed, descendants fashioned their own versions of events; leaving out some things, elaborating on others. Known in the area under the general heading of 'the killings,' this oral tradition has preserved bitterness and resentment generated during the Civil War to the present day. Older residents prefer not to discuss these stories in public, as they can and do have an adverse influence on social relations. For instance, descendants of the Lowery family repeat the admonitions of their forefathers to have nothing to do with 'those black Cobbs.' Almost in a century after Appomattox, members of the Cobb and Thames families who encountered one another in Texas refused to exchange normal social courtesies.
"Violence was an unfortunate byproduct of Confederate efforts to enroll every white man who could shoulder a musket. Men like Colonel West felt completely justified in arresting deserters and their supporters. Patriots in the American Revolution had struggled with Tories as well as King George's men, and West followed time-honored practices by suppressing disloyalty in Shelby County. Victims were labeled Unionists, Tories, Lincolnites, home-made Yankees, or simply outlaws. As such, they did not deserve the usual treatment accorded to enemies taken prisoner on the field of battle, and could be shot or hung if captured.
"No one really cared to chronicle these sad tales of anarchy and domestic violence. Grieving families must have been hard pressed to explain the loss of loved ones in these bloody events. Dying so far from famed battlefields, their story did not fit within the accepted framework of the Civil War. It had nothing to do with battles and leaders, or the prevailing themes of slavery and state's rights.
"In fact, broader issues emerge. The tragedy of Lower Yellow Leaf embraces envy, violence and retribution, the zeal and patriotism of West's home guard in conflict with individual conscience of the deserters, and the opportunity war offers men like Blackwell who revel in bloodshed. It involves the way people deal with sorrow and misfortune. Some choose to be guided by malice and hatred, while others who witness the indignity of violent death simply go about life. After burying her husband, her father and her father-in-law, Martha Langston dried her eyes and reflected on the experience. Trouble would not kill her. Having lived through this, she could weather just about anything.
"Every year descendants of Captain James Cobb gather at his homestead near Jemison, Alabama, on the third day of June, the date of his death. They renew old acquaintances, read inscriptions in the family cemetery and recall the dark days of 1865. They remember the perseverance and courage displayed by the Cobb women after the loss of their father and their home. The dogtrot house that James Cobb built is gone, but the site had been memorialized as Cobb Confederate Cemetery. The old secessionist would have liked that."[Master800.FTW]
More About ELIZABETH CAMPBELL:
Burial: Cobb Confederate Cemetery, Chilton Co. AL
More About JAMES COBB and ELIZABETH CAMPBELL:
Marriage: October 22, 1836, Bibb Co. AL by Wm. R. Deshazo46,47
Children of JAMES COBB and ELIZABETH CAMPBELL are:
42. i. MARY ANN4 COBB, b. 1838, AL; d. November 07, 1902.
ii. ELMIRA J<