Lucian G. Hart

My ancestor this week is my third great-grandfather, Lucian G. Hart, whose nickname was Lew and or LG and he is from my Mom’ side of the family.  Lucian G. Hart was born February 23, 1854 in Monroe County, Kentucky and was the son of Jesse Hart and Louisa Jane Lewis from Hawkins County, Tennessee.   So far I have not been able to find what Lucian’s middle initial of G stood for.  Lucian was the seventh child, and a twin, of the thirteen children born to Jesse and Louisa from 1837 to 1865 a span of 28 years. 

Lucian’s parents, Jesse and Louisa were married April 4, 1842 in Hawkins County, Tennessee but their first child was born 5 years before Jesse and Louisa ever got married.  I have often wondered if Jesse or Louisa had been married before, but so far I have not been able to find any record of one, for either of them.  Jesse and Louisa would have only been 17 and 16 years old when this child was born.   The first five children were born in Hawkins County, Tennessee the next six in Monroe County, Kentucky and the last two in Simpson County, Kentucky.

Lucian’s brothers and sisters were the following: Thomas W. Hart 1837-1903 married Margaret Ann Drane, Mary Elizabeth Hart 1843-1934 married Granville Elite Leake, Matilda C. Hart born about 1844 died after 1860, Francis Marion Hart born about 1846 died after 1860, Susan E. Hart born about 1848 died after 1860, Sarah Jane Hart born about March 1850 died after 1870, Arbell Hart was a twin to Lucian, but died a little over a year later on November 11, 1855, Seaphine Hart born about 1857 died before 1870, William N. Hart born about 1859 died after 1870, Harmon C. Hart born about 1860 died after 1880, Kamdla S. Hart born about 1863 died after 1870 and Robert Virgil Hart born about 1865 died after 1880.

Lucian’s father worked as a farmer and Lucian and his brothers worked on the farm as well.  It doesn’t look like the family ever had very much in the way of material goods, down right poor is what I would say.  I can’t really find any records for this family, other than a few marriage and death dates and the census records.  Basically they didn’t leave much of a foot print behind.  Lucian’s father Jesse died sometime after 1870 and before the 1880 census was taken, and Lucian’s mother Louisa died after 1880 and probably before 1900.  Jesse and Louisa may have died in Simpson or Warren Counties in Kentucky since that is the counties they were last found in after leaving Monroe County, Kentucky.

Sometime after 1860 and before 1870, Lucian apparently left the family home and went out on his own.  He is not with his parents on the 1870 census, nor with any of his siblings that had already married and started their own families.  The next time I find Lucian, after the 1860 census is when he gets married in Montgomery County, Tennessee on July 15, 1877.   They were married by James L. Killibrew a Justice of the Peace, and a John Young signed the marriage bond with L. G. Hart who made his mark, which means Lucian could not write and therefore probably couldn’t read either.  My third great-grandmother and Lucian’s wife was Harriet Crow who was born October 26, 1862 somewhere in Arkansas.  Harriet was the daughter of Richard Crow and Sarah Ann Hawks who were from Coffee County, Tennessee but were in Christian County, Kentucky by 1874.

I don’t have any pictures of Lucian, I wish I did, but I do have one and only one of his wife Harriet.  This picture is a five generation picture that was taken in Christian County, Kentucky in 1934 and shows Lucian’s mother-in-law Sarah Ann Hawks Crow 1830-1936, Harriet Crow Hart 1862-1941, Ida Ann Hart Fryar 1878-1961 (my 2^nd great-grandmother), Carrie Elizabeth Fryar Threlkeld 1904-2001 and Jimmie Dell Threlkeld 1930-1999.  I knew the last three, my 2^nd great-grandma, Ida, the little short one in the picture, died when I was three, but I can remember her, and Aunt Carrie I went a visited a number of times with my Mom, as well as stopping at Jimmie Dell’s in Union County, Kentucky a time or too.   Aunt Carrie sure took after her grandma, Harriet being tall and slender like she was.

After Lucian and Harriet’s marriage they settled down in Christian County, Kentucky where Lucian took up farming and the family lived here until around 1893, when they moved over to Webster County, Kentucky living in the Blackford area of that county.   They soon left Kentucky after 1895 and moved to Illinois where their last child was born and by 1900 they were living in Madison County, Illinois where they spent the rest of their lives.  They became the parents of at least nine children, the first seven being born in Christian County, the next in Webster County and the last being born in Randolph County, Illinois.  There may have been other children but I only have records of these nine and the 1910 census says Harriet was the mother of eleven children, but I don’t know who the other three were.  They may have been babies who died young.

The nine children that I do know about were the following: Ida Ann Hart 1878-1961 married William Lonzo ‘Lonnie’ Fryar 1874-1960 (My 2^nd great-grandparents, I remember both of them, though I was 2 and 3 years old when they died.), Margaret A. Hart 1880-1983 married William A. Murphy, Carrie L. Hart 1882-1963 married William Elvis Watson, Lulu Annis Hart 1884-before 1920 married Ellis L. Barnes, Virgil Hart 1886-before 1936 (Family stories say he ran off and no one ever knew what happen to him, but he was still with the family in 1900 though.), Jesse Hart about 1889-before 1900, Gracie Hart about 1892-before 1900, Mary Hart 1895-1924 married Marion ‘Bud’ Griffin and James K. Hart 1904-1970 married Alberetta Schultze. 

I wish I had pictures of all of these children, but unfortunately I don’t.  I do however have one of Ida and her husband Lonnie that I just cherish, since it was probably taken shortly before 1960, when Lonnie died.  It is the following:

In Illinois, Lucian was still farming, but by 1920 he was working as a janitor at a public school and Harriet was taking in laundry.  Their youngest child, James, who was only 15 in 1920, was working as a trapper in the coal mines.  It looks like they were still struggling to make ends meet if a 15 year old boy had to go to work in a coal mine.

I was lucky to be able to find an obituary for Lucian G. Hart.  I was assuming since they were so poor, from everything I had ever found, that there probably would not have been one, but thankfully there was.  From the Edwardsville Intelligencer in Edwardsville, Illinois and the issue dated Friday, November 20, 1936 we read: “Lucian G. Hart expired at his home in Pin Oak Township Monday evening.  Mr. Hart was 87 years, 8 months and 22 days old.  Funerals services were held at the Kueker Funeral Parlors and interment was at Friedens Evangelical Cemetery, Thursday afternoon.  Mr. Hart is survived by his wife, and four children, James Hart of Troy, Mrs. Margaret Murphy of East St. Louis, Mrs. Ida Friar of Providence, Kentucky and Mrs. Carrie Watson of Clay, Kentucky.”

Lucian’s wife Harriet Crow Hart survived not quite five more years, dying on June 7, 1941 and was laid to rest beside Lucian at Friedens United Church of Christ Cemetery which is located off State Road 162 southeast of Troy, Illinois.  The newspaper said it was Friedens Evangelical Cemetery, but it was really Friedens United Church of Christ Cemetery.  Following is a picture of the entrance to the graveyard as well as of their tombstone, which looks to be newer then what you would expect from a 1936 or 1941 stone, also a picture of their son James’ tombstone who is also buried here.   Harriet’s tombstone says her birth year was 1859, but it was really 1862, her brother John Crow was born in 1859.  Thanks to the great people who post pictures on www.findagrave.com so that if we can’t get to these cemeteries ourselves, there is someone who can.

Another ancestor story is now told, not a lot is known about Lucian G. Hart, but hopefully others will see this and maybe there will be someone out there that knows more about him, and maybe they will have some pictures to share.  Since I have started writing these little bios about my ancestors, cousins some as close as second cousins have gotten in touch with me and pictures have been shared.  It has been so cool to reconnect, because of these bios, with some that I haven’t seen since I was just a little kid.  I thought this would be hard to do, to write a bio every week, but so far I haven’t had a hard time doing it at all and the year is half over now.  This is the 29^th ancestor I have written about, so only 23 more to go, to finish out my 52 ancestors for the year 2015.  I want to think everyone for the comments and stories they have shared with me through all of these so far, it’s been wonderful.