Richard ANDERSON ^{1 2 3}

  General Notes:

Set forth below in italics are excerpts from Dr. John Q. Anderson's unfinished family history, with my observations after each excerpt noted within brackets.

In 1946 Albert Slayton Anderson gave the following information about his family to his son, John Quincy Anderson:

Phil Anderson (1776-1858) Grandfather of A. S. Anderson, was born in Virginia. As a young man, he moved to Kentucky and then went on to Tennessee. Eventually he decided to go on to Missouri to buy some land.

[The first thing to notice is that it appears Albert Slayton Anderson merged two generations. Richard Anderson was the grandfather of Albert Slayton Anderson. Philip was the great grandfather of Albert. Philip may have been born in Virginia in 1776, but no such evidence has been found. The 1820 census for Lincoln Co., TN puts his year of birth as early as 1776, but the 1830 census raises that to 1780. Nor has any evidence of Philip being in Kentucky yet been discovered. The earliest records discovered place Philip in Wilson County, Tennessee in 1806. Richard was born in Tennessee, probably in the area of Bedford County that became Lincoln County. Richard is the one who died in Missouri in 1858. Could this merger of generations have resulted in part because Richard was also known as Phil, his full name perhaps being Richard Philip Anderson? No such evidence of this possibility has been found, although it would explain a lot. There was a Richard P. Anderson in Lawrence Co., MO, but that was Richard Price Anderson, no relation to our Richard.]

The Andersons were 'horsey' people who raised and sold race horses. Phil sold all of his racing stock before he left Kentucky [Tennessee?] for Missouri, except a mare and one horse. He received $1500 for his horses, and in March started for Missouri.

[I have been unable to verify that either Philip or Richard, individually or together, raised race horses while in Tennessee. Unfortunately, it does not appear horses were subject to tax and so are not listed in the early tax lists that I've been able to locate. It would seem that $1500 would equate to a large number of horses, requiring considerable pasturage, yet neither Philip nor Richard seemed to own more than 20 acres of land, at least until 1835. Of course, they may have rented additional land.]

With three quilts, a feather bed, and a skillet and lid, he started for Missouri with his wife, who rode one horse and he rode the other. There were no roads and very few white people along the way. The horse got sick with colic and died, and the Andersons made the remainder of the journey on the mare, riding double. The mare was with foal and a colt was born in May after they arrived in Missouri.

[Seemingly this account refers to Philip and Polly, since one would presume Richard and Martha moved with their first five children. Yet, Richard and his family are the only ones who are known to have moved to Missouri, sometime after 1836 and before 1840. Since it appears Polly may have been part of Richard's household in the 1840 census, it's possible that Philip and Polly made an independent move and that Philip died before 1840. Still, it would have been an arduous trip for an elderly couple (Richard was age 50-60 in the 1830 census) to make alone. Note that Levin McNatt, Polly's brother, also moved to Missouri about the same time and appears near Richard's family in the 1840 census. The quoted passage does not rule out the possibility that Philip and Polly, Richard and Martha and family, and the Levin McNatt family all moved together.]

Within a year Phil returned to Kentucky [Tennessee?] and bought a fine mare in foal and brought her back to Missouri. From the two mares and their colts, he started a stable of race horses and within fifteen years had a fine lot of blooded horses. He ran horses in competition and won much money with which he bought land. His son, Green (George?) [the reference to George? is Dr. Anderson's] Berry Anderson, A. S. Anderson's father, was small enough to ride jockey even after he was grown and often rode in races.

[Since Philip appears to have died before 1840, seemingly this reference is to Richard. However, no evidence supporting this degree of involvement with horses has been found; instead, the available evidence tends to suggest otherwise. First, it does not appear that Richard owned any land before the 1854 purchase. (While it is true that early Barry Co. deeds were lost in a courthouse fire, it would seem a sale of property should have shown up in Lawrence Co. records had Richard owned property before the 1854 purchase.) Second, the inventory of his estate in 1858 is more consistent with being a farmer, there being only a blind horse and a pony included in the inventory of his personal property.]

The Andersons not only raced horses but also bet on them. Phil Anderson's brother, Sam, was both a horse racer and a gambler on races. For example, he would make a $100 bet with any taker that he could ride full speed past a haystack and pull out the longest straw.

[DNA testing has resulted in a match with the line of William Anderson of Marion Co., TN, who had a brother named Sam. See DNA discussion in the Research Note for Philip Anderson. This Sam was of Philip Anderson's generation and thus might be the Sam this passage speaks of; if so, the horse racing and gambling took place back in TN. But, there was also a Samuel M. Anderson who lived in Lawrence Co., MO at the same time as Richard, and this passage may have been speaking of Richard's brother. Per the 1820 census for Lincoln Co., TN, Richard appears to have had a younger brother then age 0-10, but that is all that is known about him. While Samuel of Lawrence Co. was born 1809-1810 and thus possibly could have been Richard's younger brother, since he was born in DE this is very unlikely. However, since our Anderson line appears to have originated in DE, Samuel could have been Richard's cousin and could have come to be thought of as his brother. However, I have found no evidence connecting Samuel and Richard of Lawrence Co. Samuel's property was located in Mt. Vernon proper and so he did not live near Richard.]

Phil Anderson died in 1858, but his wife, Jenny, who had been raised a Democrat, lived through the Civil War. She died at 96 years, about 1890, when A. S. Anderson was eight years old.

[As previously mentioned, it was Richard Anderson who died in 1858 and it was his wife who was named Martha. Albert Slayton Anderson seems to be referring to Martha as Jenny. No other such reference in the records has been found, but perhaps Jenny was a family nickname. Per census records, Martha would have been about 86 in 1890. Presumably, she lived with her oldest son, John, until her death. Unfortunately, I could find no record of them in the 1880 census for Sebastian Co., AR. They may have lived in Indian Territory in 1880.] ⁵

  Research Notes:

There were two Richard Andersons in Lawrence Co., MO, who are sometimes confused with each other. The author's ancestor appears simply as Richard Anderson in the records. The other Richard Anderson was Richard Price Anderson, who appears in the records as either Richard P. or R. P. Anderson.

The R. P. Anderson household appears in the 1850 census for Lawrence Co., MO as follows:
230/234
Anderson, R. P., 53, M, Farmer, $2,200, VA
Anderson, Margarett, 20, F, VA
Anderson, Joseph, 19, M, Farmer, VA
Anderson, William, 16, M, Farmer, VA
Anderson, Susannah, 14, F, VA
Anderson, Mary, 13, F, VA
Anderson, Elizabeth, 8, F, MO
Munsey, Miner, 52, M, B, VA
Munsey, Amy, 52, F, B, VA

He engaged in many real estate transactions, always using the name Richard P. Anderson. The Will of Richard P. Anderson, dated 15 Aug 1857, names the same children as appear in the 1850 census.

Those interested in Richard Price Anderson's line may want to contact Beverly King (jandbking@earthlink.net).

Two other Anderson families resided in Lawrence County at the same time as the two Richards: Peyton Anderson and Samuel Anderson. No evidence has been discovered linking any of these families.

  Noted events in his life were:

1. Census: 1820, Lincoln County, Tennessee. ⁶

Household of Philip Anderson: 110010-00010
Richard is presumed to be the male child in the 10-16 age range.

2. Census: 1830, Lincoln County, Tennessee. ⁷

Household of Richard Anderson: 0001-10001

3. Tax List: 1830, Lincoln County, Tennessee. ⁸

Capt. Anthony's Company: Richard Anderson, 20 acres (no location given, but Capt. Anthony's Company encompassed the area around Mulberry).

Query whether this wasn't Philip Anderson's land. See 1831 tax list. There is no other evidence that Richard Anderson owned land in Lincoln Co., TN.

4. Church Membership: 1833, Lincoln County, Tennessee. ^{9 10}

1st Sat. Aug. 1833
"Recd a petionary letter from Sugar Creek by their messengers Richard Anderson & Halasades(?) Brown, requesting the aid of our Eldership in the ordination of Brother Josiah King".

[Mrs. C. W. Morgan contributed the following rendition of the minutes: "1st Sat. Aug. 1833, Richard Anderson and [????] Br[aim?] requesting eldership." I believe mine is a more accurate transcription. Note that it establishes Richard Anderson belonged to a Sugar Creek church rather than the Mount Moriah Church on Mulberry Creek.]

5. Tax List: 1836, Lincoln County, Tennessee. ¹¹

District 2: Anderson, Richard (no land listed)

6. Deed: 1837, Lincoln County, Tennessee. ¹²

Richard Anderson was a witness to a deed dated 24 Feb 1837, between J. N. Bradshaw and others and William S. McNatt, whereby 295 acres on Mulberry Creek was conveyed to William S. McNatt for $105. This deed identifies Anderson as an abutter, but without indicating whether it was Philip or Richard.

No record of Richard Anderson has been found in Lincoln Co., TN after this date.

7. Census: 1840, Barry County, Missouri. ²

Household of Richard Anderson: 020001-12000101

The FHC census index identifies this listing as being for Whart Anderson. The film of this census is of poor quality and the names are very difficult to read, but this appears to me to be a listing for Richard Anderson. Also, the number and gender of the children matches that of Richard's family at this time, and the age ranges are accurate for all, except perhaps John. Also, Levin McNatt, Richard's uncle, and three of his sons are also listed as heads of household on the same page. Note that Richard's mother, Polly (McNatt) Anderson, may be the older women in Richard's household.

Note that Lawrence Co. was formed from Barry Co. in 1845.

8. Census: 1850, Lawrence County, Missouri. ³

Richard Anderson, 44, M, Farmer (no land), TN
Martha, 46, F, VA
Mary, 23, F, TN
John, 20, M, Farmer, TN
Sarah, 18, F, TN
Greenberry, 16, M, TN
Elizabeth, 14, F, TN
Philip, 7, M, MO
Sophia, 5, F, MO
Taylor, 2, M, MO

9. Deed: 1854, Lawrence County, Missouri. ¹³

By Deed dated 26 Oct 1854, Richard and Martha Anderson conveyed 80 acres (E1/2 of NE1/4 of Sec. 17, Range 25, Twp 27) to John Anderson for $100.

10. Deed: 1854, Lawrence County, Missouri. ¹⁴

Richard Anderson was issued land patent Certificate 15258 from the United States on 15 Dec 1854. The patent was for 160 acres comprising the NE1/4 of Section 17, Township 27-N, Range 25-W.

Note that the sale of 80 acres of this land patent to John Anderson occurred prior to the issuance of the land patent ceritificate. It was not uncommon for the issuance of the land patent certificate to occur after the patentee had obtained occupancy rights. Thus, it is reasonable to presume that Richard Anderson had occupied this land for some period of time before the partial sale to John.

11. Deed: 1855, Lawrence County, Missouri. ¹⁵

By Deed dated 21 Feb 1855, Richard and Marthia Anderson conveyed 80 acres (W1/2 of NE1/4 of Sec. !7, Township 27, Range 25) to Henry Smith for $400.

12. Estate Administration: 1858, Lawrence County, Missouri. ^{4 16 17}

By instrument dated 9 Jan 1858, Martha Anderson, as principal, and John Anderson and William Shipman, as securities, made bond in the amount of $800 to secure her performance as administratrix of the estate of Richard Anderson, deceased. Signatures were made by mark.

By an Affidavit dated 9 Jan 1858, Martha Anderson identified the heirs of Richard Anderson, deceased, all of whom resided in Lawrence Co., MO, as follows: Polly Shipman formerly Polly Anderson, John Anderson, Sarah J. Shipman formerly Sarah J. Anderson, Green Berry Anderson, Elizabeth Shipman formerly Elizabeth Anderson, Sophia Anderson and Taylor Anderson. She also stated Richard Anderson had died without a will. Signature was made by mark.

An Inventory, Appraisal and Bill of Sale was filed 23 Feb 1858. The inventory included a Note on John Anderson for $76, with an existing balance of $45. It did not include property reserved as the absolute property of Martha, as widow, which may explain why the inventory did not include household effects. Significant items of tangible personal property were a horse pony, a blind horse, four yokes of steers, and a wagon. The blind horse was sold to John Anderson for $22. John Anderson also purchased the yoke of red steers for $45. Other purchasers were Neal McNeal (a lot of scrap iron), Bingman L. Reynolds (a bell), A. Gilbert (a brindle yoke of steers for $65). Not all the appraised property was indicated as sold. The total appraisal was for $305. Assets sold brought in $133. Unsold items included two yokes of steers, a brindle cow, a wagon, a plow, two sheep, two fattening hogs, two sows, four pigs, a man's saddle and assorted farm implements.

Debts allowed in the course of administration included three debts allowed 23 Feb 1858 to Hight Wilson totaling $95.37. On 28 Feb 1859, a debt to James Gammill for $18 was allowed, a debt to John Black for $2 was allowed and a debt to A(?) B Hocker for $29.75 was allowed.

Richard married Martha. (Martha was born in 1804 in Virginia ³ and died about 1890 ¹⁸.)