Moon relatives of Macomb, McDonough County, Illinois

The civil war split the Moon family of Sevier County TN. 

My husband's ancestor William Mitchel Moon served in Co I 2nd TN Cavalry USA.  William Mitchel's brother John served in Co A 3rd TN Cavalry USA.  John's service was cut short when he was accidentally shot and killed when a pistol went off in camp.  His death is recounted in the book "Loyal Mountain Troopers."

Their brother James Moon, however,  served in Co B 4th TN Cavalry CSA.  After the war, James settled in McDonough County, Illinois.  Many of his descendants still live there.

James's grandson John Moon served his country in WWII and lived to be  over 100 years old.  He was interviewed in 2014 for the Library of Congress's Veteran's History project.  You can read the transcript of his interview online.  Interview with John L Moon

James's daughter-in-law Sadie Moon, wife of his son Frank, became a local hero in her community by helping those who were sick or in need.  She was known as Mother Moon.  Today she is remembered by a scholarship in her honor and a local  memorial to women who have made significant contributions to the community. Women's Memorial - Sadie Moon

Connection to the family of President Thomas Jefferson and Capt. Meriwether Lewis

The website for Monticello provides research materials and genealogical information regarding President Thomas Jefferson's family.  My husband shares ancestors with both President Jefferson and Capt. Meriwether Lewis.

My husband is descended from Judith Jefferson Farrar, Thomas Jefferson's paternal aunt.

He is also descended from Francis Meriwether, the maternal uncle of Capt. Meriwether Lewis, shown in this genealogical chart of Lucy Meriwether Marks.

Finds from Chilton Union Banner newspaper archive: Smith and Higgins

I have found Facebook to be a great resource for genealogy.  There are many pages specific to the history of  certain surnames and places.  One that I have been following is the Chilton County (Alabama) Historical Society page. My husband's maternal grandmother is from Clanton, Alabama.

A recent post was in regards to the newspaper archive of the Chilton Union Banner provided by the University of Montevallo.  It can be accessed through their website here:  W. M. "Mack" Wyatt Digital Archive and through Archive.org. 

 From this archive I came across some great finds!

The death notice of my husband's third great grandmother Josephine Smith Higgins (1845-1913).  This is from the issue dated May 8, 1913.

Also the wedding announcement of his great grandparents Milton Smith and Inez Higgins.  This is from the issue dated April 7, 1921. 

I spent a day or two trying different search methods to locate the information I wanted.   Since I already knew the death date and the wedding date, I went to the issue immediately after the event I was interested in.  Opening up that issue, I could search within that issue for the name I was looking for. 

For a more broader search, I used the Google site search of Archive.org with the name Union Banner in quotes followed by a full name or surname.   I came up with several articles that mentioned my husband's ancestors or family. 

Collier Heritage Foundation

Check out the Collier Heritage Foundation at CollierHeritage.org.  My husband's maternal grandmother is a descendant of Colliers.  She is a descendant of Elizabeth Collier who married Josiah Smith.  Elizabeth is the daughter of Isaac Collier and Ann Vines.

The Collier Heritage Foundation focuses mainly on the descendants of Vines Collier who was a brother of Elizabeth Collier Smith (my husband's 6th great grandmother).