The Life of James H. Turpin

Foreword

Shortly after beginning my genealogical research in my junior year of high school, I ran into the question of the parentage of my great grandfather, Cad Allard Turpen.  Cad had died when my grandmother was very young, and she and her siblings had few memories of their father.  Their mother, Charlotte, had not known Cad’s family, and apparently had only murky details of his past.  My great aunt Esther was pretty sure that Cad’s mother’s name was Melissa, as that was her own middle name.  She thought that her surname may have been something like “Shaw”.  In my online research, I came across another person seeking the same answers – Laverna Jean Wildt-Kerr.  Laverna was the daughter of James Melvin Turpen, Cad’s son from his first marriage.  She had lost contact with her father as a young woman, and knew little of the Turpen family history.  She had become stuck at the same brick wall at which Esther and I were stalled.  Who were Cad’s parents?  Where did he even come from?

After fifteen years spent scouring online databases and visiting genealogy libraries throughout the Midwest, I found a Civil War widow’s pension application for a “Malissa Turpin”.  Only the coversheet was available online; the remaining documents were kept in the National Archives in Washington, D.C.  I felt strongly that this might be the key to solving Cad’s mystery, and hired a professional genealogist to scan and e-mail me the records contained in Malissa’s folder.  On December 17, 2016, Donald Budrejko e-mailed me 43 image files that not only confirmed that this Malissa was Cad’s mother, but also named her enigmatic husband, providing a fascinating glimpse into the family’s life.  My only regret is that my fellow researchers were not alive to share in the immense joy of my discovery.  I dedicate this narrative of the life of our “brick wall” ancestor, James H. Turpin, to Esther and Laverna.

Esther Melissa Bauman, née Turpen (1933-2015)
Laverna Jean Wildt-Kerr, née Turpen (1931-2012)

James H. Turpin was born in Missouri in about 1846, the third of William and Emily Turpin’s (née Pollin) five sons [1].  In the 1850 United States Federal Census, four-year-old James is living with his parents and brothers – William, age 8, Samuel, age 7, and Solomon, age 1 – in Tom Township, Missouri, about a hundred miles southeast of Kansas City [1, 8].  Like many of their neighbors, James’ father was a farmer, and his mother likely stayed home with the children, keeping house [1].  In about 1852, the family welcomed their fifth son, John [2].  The boys’ father appears to have passed away in the following few years, as Emily went on to marry James Kirk, a widower with six children, in April 1857 [15].  By the 1860 census, the blended family was living in Dade County, Missouri, about ninety miles southwest of Tom [10].  Two half-brothers, Alexander and Hardin, had joined the family, for a total of twelve children in the household between the ages of five months and seventeen years [2].  Misfortune would strike the Turpins again, however, as James’ stepfather is not listed with the family in the 1870 census, indicating that he may have died in the interim [3].  It is possible that Kirk and Emily divorced, but I have been unable to find record of him after his appearance in the 1860 census.  Mr. Kirk’s children from his previous marriage are also not listed with the Turpins, and I have been likewise unable to track them down elsewhere.  I would presume that they went to live with biological family members after their father passed away.

Meanwhile, the United States was breaking out into civil war, prompted by the secession of seven Southern slave states in February 1861 [7].  While Missouri did permit slavery, it was considered a part of the Union at the beginning of the Civil War [7].  In September 1863, seventeen-year-old James enlisted in the Missouri State Militia Cavalry at Pilot Knob [11, 19].  The cavalry soldiers were required to provide their own horses, which were necessary to “[pursue] and [confront] fast-moving mounted guerrillas, recruiters, and raiders” from the South [18].  James would earn an average salary of $13 per month (about $245 in 2017 dollars) during his service, and could have received an enlistment bonus of up to $300 (~$5,600 in 2017) [8, 25]. He was honorably discharged after a year’s service, though he immediately re-enlisted into the 19th U.S. Infantry at Cape Girardeau in October 1864 [12, 19].  Shortly thereafter, the Missouri militia would be embroiled in two of the largest battles west of the Mississippi – the Battle of Westport and the Battle of Mine Creek, the latter involving nearly 10,000 troops [18].  Within four months of re-enlistment, James deserted his battalion while on furlough [12].  In the muster rolls, he was listed as a “deserter at large, not reported sick” [19].  It is unclear what prompted James’ desertion – perhaps the recent exposure to the brutal nature of combat, the all too real risk of death from illness while at camp, or simple homesickness [25].

While nearly 200,000 of the estimated 1.2 million Union soldiers deserted, the act still maintained a definite stigma.  The United States’ Secretary of War at the time, Edwin McMasters Stanton, recommended the execution of deserters as a deterrent, but President Lincoln struggled with enforcing the notion on so many young men.  Some states’ laws allowed for flogging, branding the soldier with a “D”, incarceration in a stockade, and a number of other punishments designed to humiliate the defector [25].  Perhaps it was for these reasons that James chose to adopt the name of his older brother, Samuel, following his abandonment of duty.  James’ mother, Emily, reflected on her son’s pseudonym in his widow’s pension application in 1897: “The reason [he] changed his name to Samuel was [that] he was a soldier here during the war, and had been in some difficulties, and changed his name to Samuel to avoid further trouble that might arise.” [21]

I am unsure if the “real” Samuel had passed away prior to James’ name change, as I have been unable to find a record of his death.  In the 1870 U.S. Census, a 25-year-old Samuel Kirk is living in Pendleton, Missouri with Emily P. Kirk, and James’ younger brothers, John and Alexander [3].  Is this actually James, masquerading as Samuel, or the original Samuel?  The brothers were approximately three years apart in age, but census data is notoriously inexact [1].  Unless further information arises, the true identity of this “Samuel” may remain a mystery.

On March 12, 1871, in Barry County, Missouri – about 300 miles south of Pendleton – a Samuel S. Turpin is recorded marrying Nancy Elizabeth Bennett [10, 14, 16].  James’ mother made mention of this marriage in her pension testimony many years later [21].  The couple would welcome a son, Russell A. Turpin, in February 1872 [6].  Sadly, exactly one year after their marriage, Lizzie would die, leaving her young husband alone with their newborn son [21, 24].  Russell would apparently go to live with his maternal grandparents, A.J. and Mary Bennett, for the remainder of his childhood, per census records [4, 6].

Eight years after the untimely death of his first wife, James (as Samuel Turpin) would marry our ancestor, Malissa A. Short on February 26, 1880 in St. Francois County, Missouri [13, 17].  A few months after their wedding, the couple’s daughter, Edna E. Turpin was born on July 10, 1880 at James’ mother’s home [21, 22].  Per the recollection of his neighbor, Sarah Carter, James had just gone to fetch a midwife when Malissa gave birth to the child [22].  Two years later, on May 13, 1882, the couple would have a son, Cad A. Turpin [23].  According to the testimony of neighbor Andrew Clayton, the family would pack up and move to Scott County, Arkansas when Cad was about six months old [23].  Just after the child’s first birthday, on May 31, 1883, James H. Turpin died in Scott County.  He was buried in a graveyard about a quarter mile from the family’s farm in Waldron, Arkansas [20].

How Are We Related?

Relationship Calculator for James H. Turpin
Family Tree Maker® Relationship Calculator for my maternal 2nd great grandfather, James H. Turpin, and me.  I have blurred the names of living relatives, as well as my own personal information.

Sources

  1. 1850 U.S. census, Benton County, Missouri, population schedule, Tom Township, sheet 291B (stamped, 580 handwritten), dwelling 258, family 258, William Turpin; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 28 Jan 2017); citing NARA microfilm publication M432, roll 1009.
  2. 1860 U.S. census, Dade County, Missouri, population schedule, Smith Township, sheet 39 (stamped, 37 handwritten), dwelling 240, family 240, James Kirk; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 28 Jan 2017); citing NARA microfilm publication M653, roll 1438.
  3. 1870 U.S. census, St. Francois County, Missouri, population schedule, Pendleton Township, sheet 673B (stamped, 8 handwritten), dwelling 52, family 55, Emily P. Kurk; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 28 Jan 2017); citing NARA microfilm publication M593, roll 807.
  4. 1880 U.S. census, Barry County, Missouri, population schedule, Kings Prairie Township, enumeration district (ED) 002, sheet 241B (stamped, 26B handwritten), dwelling 234, family 238, A.J. Bennett; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 28 Jan 2017); citing NARA microfilm publication T9, roll 672.
  5. 1880 U.S. census, St. Francois County, Missouri, population schedule, Middle Brook Township, enumeration district (ED) 128, sheet 517B (stamped, 14B handwritten), dwelling 115, family 115, Samuel S. Turpin; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 28 Jan 2017); citing NARA microfilm publication T9, roll 715.
  6. 1900 U.S. census, Barry County, Missouri, population schedule, Jenkins Township, enumeration district (ED) 0006, sheet 9A (stamped, 9A handwritten), dwelling 162, family 166, Rusel Turpen; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 28 Jan 2017); citing NARA microfilm publication T623, roll 838.
  7. “American Civil War.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 16 July 2017. Web. 17 July 2017.
  8. “Bureau of Labor Statistics.” 1863 Dollars in 2017 | Inflation Calculator.com, n.d. Web. 16 July 2017.
  9. Dade Co., MO Marriage Records. Rootsweb.com, n.d. Web. 29 Jan. 2017.
  10. Google Maps. Google, n.d. Web. 16 July 2017.
  11. Declaration for Widow’s Pension, 29 Jun 1891, Malissa Turpin, filed with Malissa A. Turpin’s widow’s pension application no. 519.933; service of James H. Turpin (Pvt., Co. L, 3rd Regiment Missouri State Militia Cavalry, Civil War); digital images provided by Donald Budrejko, dbudrejko@yahoo.com, 17 Dec 2016, without citation of file, series, or record group; typically, such files appear in Record Group 15, National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  12. Letter from Commissioner to Adjutant General, U.S. Army, 21 Jan 1898, filed with Malissa A. Turpin’s widow’s pension application no. 519.933; service of James H. Turpin (Pvt., Co. L, 3rd Regiment Missouri State Militia Cavalry, Civil War); digital images provided by Donald Budrejko, dbudrejko@yahoo.com, 17 Dec 2016, without citation of file, series, or record group; typically, such files appear in Record Group 15, National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  13. Marriage Certificate, Samuel Turpin to Melisa A. Short, filed with Malissa A. Turpin’s widow’s pension application no. 519.933; service of James H. Turpin (Pvt., Co. L, 3rd Regiment Missouri State Militia Cavalry, Civil War); digital images provided by Donald Budrejko, dbudrejko@yahoo.com, 17 Dec 2016, without citation of file, series, or record group; typically, such files appear in Record Group 15, National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  14. “Missouri Compiled Marriages, 1851-1900,” digital images, FamilySearch.org (http://www.familysearch.org : accessed 28 Jan 2017, entry for Samuel S. Turpen, 1871; Barry County.
  15. “Missouri Marriage Records, 1805-2002,” digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 04 May 2017, entry for Emily C. Turpin, 1857; Lawrence County.
  16. “Missouri Marriage Records, 1805-2002,” digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 28 Jan 2017, entry for Samuel D. Turpen, 1871; Barry County.
  17. “Missouri Marriages, 1750-1920,” digital images, FamilySearch.org (http://www.familysearch.org : accessed 13 Jul 2017, entry for Samuel Turpin, 1880; St. Francois County.
  18. “Missouri State Militia (Union).” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 22 June 2017. Web. 17 July 2017.
  19. Widow’s Pension Form 3-128a, 07 Jun 1898, Malissa A. Turpin, filed with Malissa A. Turpin’s widow’s pension application no. 519.933; service of James H. Turpin (Pvt., Co. L, 3rd Regiment Missouri State Militia Cavalry, Civil War); digital images provided by Donald Budrejko, dbudrejko@yahoo.com, 17 Dec 2016, without citation of file, series, or record group; typically, such files appear in Record Group 15, National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  20. Witness Testimony, 10 Jul 1897, William Lyons and Ogburn McCall, filed with Malissa A. Turpin’s widow’s pension application no. 519.933; service of James H. Turpin (Pvt., Co. L, 3rd Regiment Missouri State Militia Cavalry, Civil War); digital images provided by Donald Budrejko, dbudrejko@yahoo.com, 17 Dec 2016, without citation of file, series, or record group; typically, such files appear in Record Group 15, National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  21. Witness Testimony, 14 Jul 1897, Emily P. Kirk, filed with Malissa A. Turpin’s widow’s pension application no. 519.933; service of James H. Turpin (Pvt., Co. L, 3rd Regiment Missouri State Militia Cavalry, Civil War); digital images provided by Donald Budrejko, dbudrejko@yahoo.com, 17 Dec 2016, without citation of file, series, or record group; typically, such files appear in Record Group 15, National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  22. Witness Testimony, 14 Jul 1897, Sarah Carter, filed with Malissa A. Turpin’s widow’s pension application no. 519.933; service of James H. Turpin (Pvt., Co. L, 3rd Regiment Missouri State Militia Cavalry, Civil War); digital images provided by Donald Budrejko, dbudrejko@yahoo.com, 17 Dec 2016, without citation of file, series, or record group; typically, such files appear in Record Group 15, National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  23. Witness Testimony, 28 Aug 1897, Mary Evans and Andrew J. Clayton, filed with Malissa A. Turpin’s widow’s pension application no. 519.933; service of James H. Turpin (Pvt., Co. L, 3rd Regiment Missouri State Militia Cavalry, Civil War); digital images provided by Donald Budrejko, dbudrejko@yahoo.com, 17 Dec 2016, without citation of file, series, or record group; typically, such files appear in Record Group 15, National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  24. Witness Testimony, 04 Apr 1898, Mary A. Bennett and A.A. Williams, filed with Malissa A. Turpin’s widow’s pension application no. 519.933; service of James H. Turpin (Pvt., Co. L, 3rd Regiment Missouri State Militia Cavalry, Civil War); digital images provided by Donald Budrejko, dbudrejko@yahoo.com, 17 Dec 2016, without citation of file, series, or record group; typically, such files appear in Record Group 15, National Archives, Washington, D.C.
  25. Weitz, Mark A. “Desertion, Cowardice and Punishment.” Desertion, Cowardice and Punishment – Essential Civil War Curriculum. Essential Civil War Curriculum, n.d. Web. 17 July 2017.

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