Few Hall GREGORY James HILTON James Few GREGORY Mary Elizabeth GREGORY William Richard GREGORY George Washington GREGORY Martha Georgiana GREGORY Ann Eliza GREGORY Cora Frances GREGORY Martha Lynn REYNOLDS Mini tree diagram
Susannah Virginia GREGORY

Susannah Virginia GREGORY1,7,2,3,4,5,6,8

13th May 18421,2,3,4,5,6 - 30th Jan 19212,6

Life History

13th May 1842

Born in Nashville, Davidson, Tennessee.1,2,3,4,5,6

12th Mar 1886

Death of James HILTON in Nashville, Davidson, Tennessee.2,6,7

30th Jan 1921

Died in Nashville, Davidson, Tennessee.2,6

Senile Debility

1st Feb 1921

Buried in Mt Olivet Cemetery, Nasville, Davidson County, Tennessee.2,6

Other facts

 

Married James HILTON

Notes

  • 1850 Federal Census, Roane County, Tennessee, 10 September, Subdivision 20, p 167, Hse #430, Fam #454
    Fu H Gregory 52 M Physician $14,400 Real Estate b Virginia [b abt 1798]
    Martha Gregory 26 F b Tennessee [b abt 1824]
    Susannah V Gregory 7 F b Tennessee Attended School [b abt 1843]
    James F Gregory 6 M Farmer b Tennessee Attended School [b abt 1844]
    Mary E Gregory 4 F b Tennessee Attended School [b abt 1846]
    William R Gregory 2 M Farmer b Tennessee [b abt 1848]

    1860 Federal Census, Monroe County, Tennessee, [no date] September, P O Sweetwater, page 8, Hse #50, Fam #54
    F H Gregory 68 M Married Farmer $400 Real Estate $400 Pesonal Estate b Virginia [b abt 1798]
    M L Gregory 35 F b Tennessee [b abt 1825]
    S V Gregory 17 F b Tennessee [b abt 1843]
    J F Gregory 16 M b Tennessee [b abt 1844]
    M E Gregory 13 F b Tennessee [b abt 1847]
    W R 12 M b Tennessee [b abt 1848]

    1870 Federal Census, Monroe County, Tennessee, 16 June, PO Philadelphia, District 4, page 4, Hse/Fam #23
    Gregory, F H 83 M W Phasition [Physician] $7000 Real Estate $700 Personal Estate born Virginia [b abt 1802]
    Gregory, Martha 45 F W Keeping House born Tennessee [b abt 1865]
    Gregory, Susan 27 born Tennessee [b abt 1843]
    Gregory, Mary 21 F W born Tennessee [b abt 1849]
    Gregory, Francis 9 F W born Tennessee [b abt 1861]
    Gregory, William 55 M B Farm Laborer born Tennessee [b abt 1815]
    Gregory, Adilade 14 F B born Tennessee [b abt 1856]

    Few Hall Gregory, MD -- married Martha Lynn Reynolds, June 1, 1841
    Children of F H and M L Gregory were:
    1. Susanna Virginia, b. May 13, 1842. PO 1913, Nashville
    2. Jas. Few, b. January 27, 1844; d. April 30, 1897 at Citra, Fla. Married to Georgia Dallas January 19, 1876
    3. Mary Elizabeth, b. February 1, 1846. Married to Daniel J Fogg, January 19, 1885 at Lake Gregory, PO Belleview, Marion County, Fla
    4. William Richard, b. 1848. Died November, 1870, at Ocala, Fla
    5. Geo Washington, b. January 12, 1851; d. February 3, 1855
    6. Martha Georgiana, b. January 17, 1857; d. in infancy.
    7. Ann Eliza, b. October 15, 1858; d. an infant.
    8. Cora Francis, b. January 1, 1861; d. December, 1887, at Livyville [Levyville] Fla. She married Wm. Bro???ni January 1, 1885
    --  History Of Sweetwater Valley, by W B Lenoir (Published by Presbyterian Committee Of Publication, Richmond, Va., 1916), pp 158-159, Archived on Archive.org, http://www.archive.org/stream/historyofsweetwa00leno/historyofsweetwa00leno_djvu.txt

    Susannah was involved with her two brothers in a serious incident in December 1866 when they went to a man's home and shot him in cold blood.  No one seems to know what the event was all about.

    Robert Hankins contacted me about this event, sharing the basic oral tradition of his family.

    "The foregoing were accused, but never tried nor convicted, of murdering my great, great grandfather, Edward Ezell Hankins, in Tennessee in December, 1866.  A Grand Jury brought an indictment against all three for the murder but the three had absconded and could not be found by authorities.  The prosecution elected not to pursue the case further, and court costs, curiously, were paid by the physician father of the three, Few Hall Gregory."
    --  Robert Hankins, Ancestry Messaging to Orville Boyd Jenkins, 6 April 2020

    As we began an ongoing exchange and cycle of research, commented further.

    -------------------------
    I am hoping that someone in the Gregory family can report stories, or family lore, surrounding my GGGrandfather, Edward Ezelle Hankins, who was a neighbor of the Gregory family.  Edward was shot and killed at his home after he returned from the Civil War.

    The three named children of Few Hall Gregory were indicted for the murder but left the area and were never prosecuted.  Edward's widow left afterwards and moved to NW Missouri.  It is from this line that my family comes.

    We have known of the incident but have no information about any relationship between the families, what motivated the shooting, how the families got "cross-ways" with one another, etc.  Hoping that someone might be able to provide insight and information.
    --  Robert Hankins, Ancestry Messaging to Orville Boyd Jenkins, 13 April 2020
    -------------------------

    A short cryptic line about it in the Find a Grave memorial for Edward Ezell Hankins, stated "he was in the Civil War and was shot coming home" with no further details   This could not be, since the shooting was over a year afte the end of the Civil War.  And the Hankins version of the story said Edward ws kileld at his home.  Court records indicate the shooting occurred 1 December 1866 they were indicted six wes later.

    The 1860 census for Few Hall Gregory's family includes both sons, James and William Richard, but neither of them can be found in the 1870 or 1880 census, in any location.  Persistent searching finally turned up a genealogy on TribalPages that had a statement of the event.  It actually cited an inscription on Edward Ezell's burial marker.

    -------------------------
    About Hankins, Edward Ezelle

    Tombstone reads Held in fondest remembrance his children'

    Murdered - Two brothers and their sister were indicted for his murder.  Could have been a property dispute.  Both the murder suspect (James F Gregory) and Edward were in the 59th Tennessee Mtd. Infantry Division (Confederate) together in Company E.  The other in Company G.  Both were Privates.  Edward was shot as he answered the door one night   He fought in the Civil War with two brothers, one of whom was killed in battle.

    --   Clevenger and Takes, TribalPages, https://takes.tribalpages.com/tribe/browse?userid=takes&view=0&pid=19632#moreinfo_
    -------------------------

    Interestingly, the gravestone story does not mention the trial or the flight from the town by the Gregory perpetrators.  But no Tennessee record of the two brothers is found after the trial record.  The Hankins story reports all three suspects fled.  The two brothers wound up in Ocala County, Florida, and so did their sister Mary.

    However, Susannah stayed there, being enumerated still in her parents' home in the 1870 census.  She lived out her life right there in Monroe County, till the last few years when she wa sin Nashville..

    All we have from the January Grand Jury proceedings is the record of the indictment, provided by Robert, received from his uncle who got a paper copy in the court house in the old days.

    -------------------------
    Wednesday January 16th, 1867

    The State vs. James F. Gregory, William R. Gregory, Susan Helton
    Murder
    Came the grand jury into court headed by their foreman and brought with an indictment for murder. . ..

    Circuit Court January term AD 1867.  The Grand Jurors for the State of Tennessee. . . present that James F. Gregory, William R. Gregory and Susan Helton late of said County, not having the fear of God before their eyes, but being moved and seduced by the instigations of the Devil on the first day of December A.D. 1866 with force and arms . . . in and upon one Edward Hankins, willfully, deliberately, premeditatedly, maliciously, feloniously and of their malice aforethought, did make an assault . . . with certain pistols and guns. . .  they held to against and upon the said Edward Hankins . . . did shoot and discharge (weapons). . . in and upon the said head, breast and body of the said Edward Hankins. . .divers mortal wounds. . . of which the said Edward Hankins, languishing did live and of which mortal wounds, he the said Edward Hankins afterwards, to wit, on the third day of the said month of December AD 1866. . . died... .
    J. M. Shernburgh, Atto., Gen.
    Witnesses: Julia Hankins, Sophia Hankins, Mat Hankins, Milly Hankins, sworn in open court and sent before the Grand Jury Jan. 16th 1867.
    -------------------------

    One puzzling aspect of the court record is that Susan is named Susan Helton in this document.  But in the 1870 census, she was still in her parents' household.  These early censuses do not report marital status, but there is no husband in the Few home and Susan is reported under the surname of Few.

    I have not found the marriage record.

    So I wonder
    (1) why was she named Susan Helton in these documents?  or on the other hand
    (2) where was her husband?, and
    (3) why was she reported under her maiden name, and in her parents' home?

    No one seems to know the reason for the shooting, though the gravestone story suggested it might been over a land dispute.  We probably can never find out.

    U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007
    William Andrew Hilton
    Birth 6 Jun 1873 Sweetwater, Monoe County,, Tennessee
    Father James Hilton
    Mother Susanna V Gregory
    SSN 704100720
    Apr 1937 Name listed as WILLIAM ANDREW HILTON

    Susannah was named in her father's will as Susannah V Helton.  In her death certificate her maried name is spelled Hilton.

    Tennessee, Wills and Probate Records, 1779-2008
    F H Gregory
    Will written 22 Mar 1871 Monroe, Tennessee, USA
    Wife Martha L Gregory nominated as Executrix
    Children mentioned:  Susannah V Helton, James F Gregory, Mary E Gregory, William R Gregory, Carra F Gregory
    (p 14)
    Witnesses C B Martin and S J Martin
    Probated September Court Term 1872. Monroe County, Tennessee, USA
    Registered Will Records, Vol 1-4, 1833-1922, pp 13-14

    Tennessee, Death Records, 1908-1958
    Mrs Susana Virginia Hilton [Mrs Susana Virginia Gregory]
    Birth 13 May 1844 [1842] Tennessee
    Widow, Age 76
    Father's name Hugh Fall [Few Hall] Gregory, born Virginia
    Mother's name Martha Reynolds, born Tennessee
    Death 30 Jan 1921 82 Washington St, Nashville Ward 15, Davidson, Tennessee
    Cause of Death Senile Debility
    Burial 1 February in Mt Olivet Cemetery by Roesch Johnson Charlton Co
    Certificate #175 filed 1 February 1921

    Her father's name was amazingly phonetically transposed, yielding Hugh Fall for Few Hall!

    Susana Virginia Hilton
    Birth unknown
    Death 30 Jan 1921 Nashville, Davidson County, Tennessee, USA
    Burial Mount Olivet Cemetery, Nashville, Davidson County, Tennessee, USA
    Created by Mary Helen Hewitt  8 Jul 2014
    --  Find a Grave Memorial 132490313, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/132490313/susana-virginia-hilton

Sources

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