Life History
1844 |
Born in Tennessee.6 (less likely) |
about 1845 |
(most likely) |
between 1850 and 1860 |
Resident in Hardeman County, Tennessee.1,4 |
11th Nov 1886 |
Birth of daughter Lillie SEAMONS in Arkansas County, Arkansas.3,8 |
12th Dec 1888 |
Married Sallie Amanda WAKEFIELD in Arkansas County, Arkansas.20 |
19th Jul 1889 |
Birth of daughter Ethel Oral SEAMONS in Possum Waller, Arkansas, Arkansas.5,9,10,11,3,12,5,13,14 |
Dec 1892 |
Birth of daughter Tempie SEAMONS in Arkansas County, Arkansas.3 |
Feb 1894 |
Birth of daughter Loula SIMMONS in Arkansas County, Arkansas.3 |
before 1896 |
Death of Sallie Amanda WAKEFIELD in Arkansas County, Arkansas.20 |
9th Aug 1896 |
Married Jennie MILLER in Arkansas County, Arkansas.3,5 |
21st Aug 1898 |
Birth of son Arthur Edward SIMMONS in Van, Arkansas, Arkansas.3,15,16,5,17,18,19 |
1900 |
Residence2 in Prairie Township, Arkansas, Arkansas.3 |
19th Mar 1903 |
Married Isabella THOMASON in Arkansas County, Arkansas.5 |
before Apr 1907 |
Divorced from Jennie MILLER in Arkansas County, Arkansas.6,5 |
20th Apr 1907 |
Married Nancy Ann ALMOND in Arkansas County, Arkansas.6,5 |
between 1910 and 1920 |
|
before 5th May 1910 |
Death of daughter Tempie SEAMONS in Arkansas County, Arkansas |
1922 |
Death of Isabella THOMASON in Arkansas County, Arkansas.21,22 |
6th Jan 1927 |
Died in Arkansas County, Arkansas.7 |
Notes
- I first found Pleas (Ples) S Simmons as the 2nd husband of Jennie Miller Seamons in the 1900 census. Later I discovered him as a child with his parents in Hardeman County, Tennessee in 1850 and 1860.
1850 Federal Census, Hardeman County, Tennessee, 27 November, page 345 (scan p 173), Hse/Fam #1482
L D Simmons 27 M Farmer $200 Real Estate born NC
Amy Simmons 26 F b NC Pleasant Simmons 6 M born Tennessee [b abt 1844]
Williams Simmons 9 months M born Tennessee [b abt Feb 1850]
1860 Federal Census, Hardeman County, Tennessee, 6 September, Militia District 16, PO Bolivar, page 245 (scan p 270), Hse #1829, Fam #1697
Lem Simmons 35 M Farmer $1000 Real Estate $649 Personal born NC
Amy Simmons 35 F b NC
Pleasant Simmons 16 M born Tennessee [b abt 1844]
William Simmons 10 M born Tennessee [b abt Feb 1850]
Martha Simmons 7 F born Tennessee [b abt Feb 1850]
John Simmons 5 M born Tennessee [b abt Feb 1850]
Anorther genealogist contracted me in 2008 about Pleasant with information about a wife named Sally Amanda Wakefield. She had found their marriage record in the Arkanas County marriage records. Only in 2014 was I able to find the marriage record finally on Ancestry.com. Pleasant married Sally in 1888. Pleasant was married at least once before, because he had a daughter named Loula who was born in 1884, age 16, who is enumerated in the 1900 census with Pleasant and his next wife Jennie Miller Seamons.
Arkansas, County Marriages Index, 1837-1957
P S Simmons
Gender Male
Age 44, Birth Year abt 1844
Spouse's Name S A Belknap
Spouse's Gender Female
Spouse's Age 45
Marriage 5 Dec 1888 Arkansas County
Marriage License Date 4 Dec 1888
After Sally died, Pleasant married widow Jennie Miller Seamons, who had three children. They had a son named Arthur in 1897.
Arkansas, County Marriages Index, 1837-1957
P S Simmons
Gender Male
Age 51, Birth Year abt 1845
Residence St Charles, Arkansas, Arkansas
Spouse's Name Jennie Seamons
Spouse's Gender Female
Spouse's Age 30
Spouse's Residence Saint Charles, Arkansas, Arkansas
Marriage 9 Aug 1896 Arkansas County
Marriage License Date 8 Aug 1896
Arthur is reported as 2 years old in the 1900 census. The birth date of Arthur is reported as August 1897. This census is the first record we have of a daughter named Loula. She was born before the marriage of Pleasant to Sally Wakefield Davidson Belknap in 1888. The census reports her as born in 1884 but only 6 years old. It appears the record should read born in 1894 and 6 years old. She is thus Amanda's daughter.
1900 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 6 June, Prairie Township, District 7, page 4A, Hse #55, Fam #56
Simmons, Pleas S Head W M Sept 1874 55 Married 3 yrs TN NC NC Farmer
Simmons, Jennie Wife W F Apr 1867 33 Married 3 yrs borne 4 children, 4 living AR MS MS Dairy Farmer
Simmons, Loula Daughter W F Feb 1884 [1894] 6 AR TN TN
Simmons, Arthur Son W M Aug 1897 2 AR TN AR
Seemons, Lillie Daughter W F Nov 1884 5 AR TN AR
Seemons, Ethel Daughter W F ? 1888 2 [?] AR TN AR
Seemons, Tempa Daughter W F Dec 1882 7 AR TN AR
In the home are Jennie's three daughters from her first marriage to Thomas Seamons. Note that the girls' name is spelled Seemons in this census, and Seamans in 1910. The name Pleas, reported as Ples in 1920, was presumed to be short for Pleasant, which was a rather popular name for men in the 1800s.
The census reports that the oldest child in the household is Loula, age 6 and born in February 1884. Thsi would be before Pleasant and Jennie married. This girl is older than Jennie's daughters from her first marriage. Loula is also born in the same year as Lillie, age 5 and born November 1884. Thus Loula appears to be the daughter of Pleas from an earlier marriage. the earliest wife I had information was Sally Amanda Wakefield, a two-time widow. They were married Pleasant married Sally on 5 Dec 1888.
Only on 10 May 2014, I discovered another wife of Pleasant that fits in here, making four wives total. This was Isabella (Belle) Thomason Horton, widow of Richard Wynn Horton. They married in 1903. He married again in 1907, so he and Belle divorced some time before that marriage date.
Arkansas, County Marriages Index, 1837-1957
P S Simmons
Gender Male
Age 57, Birth Year abt 1846
Residence St Charles, Arkansas, Arkansas
Spouse's Name Bell Horton
Spouse's Gender Female
Spouse's Age 57
Spouse's Residence Ethel, Arkansas, Arkansas
Marriage 19 Mar 1903 Arkansas County
Marriage License Date 5 Mar 1903
But in 1907, Pleasant married widow Nannie (Nancy Ann Almond) Floyd.
Arkansas, County Marriages Index, 1837-1957
Nannie Floyd, Age 47
Residence Van, Arkansas, Arkansas
P S Simmons, Age 62
Residence De Witt, Arkansas, Arkansas
Marriage License Date 20 Apr 1907 Arkansas County
No separate marriage date was reported in the Index Record
Only the Index Record is available
Jennie and Pleas divorced some time before his marriage to Nannie, but the exact date is not known.
The 1910 census reports P S Simmons married to Nannie and living in DeWitt, La Grue Township, Arkansas County. It is reported that they have been married three years. A dioscrepancy appears in the report that this is Pleas' second marriage, as well as Nannie's. This report is likely an enumerator error. Pleas had been married before he married Jennie, and we have the record of his 1903 marriage to Belle Horton. The 1900 census did not report the number of marriages, only the length of time of the present marriage. So the status of Loula Simmons is still not totally cleared up.
But based on the information in the 1900 census, she could not be the child of Jennie. The biggst part of this mystery was cleared up in October 2008, when a descendant wrote with information on Pleasant's first marraige, before Jennie Miller. His first wife is identified by Libby Beliew as Sallie Amanda Wakefield, her great-great-great-grandmother. Libby had located the marriage record for Sallie and Pleas in the Arkansas County courthouse in Arkansas County, Arkansas, reporting they were married on 5 December 1888 (presumably in DeWitt).
Even with this the number of marriages would still be wrong, since this would make 4 marriages.
Even with this information, however, Pleas could have been married even earlier, since in 1888, he would have already been 45 or 46, with birth based on census age is consistently 1843-1845. I have found a single man in 1870, Pleason Simmons, age 27 (Born about 1843), born in Tennessee, working as a Farm Hand near Jacksonport, Jackson County, Arkansas. This could be our Pleasant.
This Pleason is reported as unable to read and write. The 1850 and 1860 censuses do not have a report on Pleasant's literacy or school attendance.
1910 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 27 April, La Grue Township, DeWitt Town, District 9, page 4B, Hse/Fam #63
Simmons, P S Head M W 66 Marriage2 3yrs TN NC NC Carpenter
Simmons, Nannie A Wife F W 50 Marriage2 3yrs AR NC MS
Perry, Sadie Boarder F W 50 M1 2 KS USA USA
Note that the boarder Sadie Perry is reported as married for 2 years, but her husband is not reported in this household or any other nearby, that I can find. Nannie A is reported as as Nancy A, the wife of Ples S Simons in 1920 census. They are now officially running a boarding house, though only one boarder is reported. And that boarder is reported as a Carpenter, the occupation of Ples (Pleas) in the 1910 census.
It is interesting that 6-year-old Loula Simmons is in her father's household, rather than her mother's. Her mother Belle Simmons is is the home of her son Richard Wynn Horton not far away.
1910 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 28 April, Prairie Township, District 12, page 6A, Hse/Fam #106
Horton, R W Head M W 25 Married 5 yrs AR GA MS Farmer Rents
Horton, Katie Wife F W 25 Married 5 yrs 3 children/3 living AR AR England
Horton, Jeff Son M W 4 Single AR AR AR Farm Laborer
Horton, Mashel Dau F W 2 Single AR AR AR
Horton, William Son M W 2 Single AR AR AR
Horton, Belle Mother F W 65 Widow MS Unknown Unknown
James, William Ward M W 15 Single AR AR AR Farm Laborer
1920 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 5 February, La Grue Township, DeWitt Town, District 12, page 17A, Hse#359, Fam #375
Simmons, Ples S Head M W 75 TN NC NC Proprietor, Boarding House
Simmons, Nancy A Wife F W 59 AR AR AR
Walker, William L Roomer M W 50 Single IL Mass Mass Carpenter
Pleasant died in 1927.
Arkansas Death Index, 1914-1950
Ples Simmons
Death 6 Jan 1927 Arkansas County
Sources
- 1. 1850 Federal Census, Hardeman County, Tennessee
- 27 November, page 345 (scan p 173), Hse/Fam #1482
- 2. 1920 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas
- 5 February, La Grue Township, DeWitt Town, District 12, page 17A, Hse#359, Fam #375
- 3. 1900 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas
- 6 June, Prairie Township, District 7, page 4A, Hse #55, Fam #56
- 4. 1860 Federal Census, Hardeman County, Tennessee
- 6 September, Militia District 16, PO Bolivar, page 245 (scan p 270), Hse #1829, Fam #1697
- 5. Arkansas, County Marriages Index, 1837-1957
- 6. 1910 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas
- 27 April, La Grue Township, DeWitt Town, District 9, page 4B, Hse/Fam #63
- 7. Arkansas Death Index, 1914-1950
- 8. 1940 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas
- 23 April, Henton Township, District 1-13 Page 7A, Road to Hwy 79, Hse #108, Rents $4
- 9. 1940 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas
- 19 April, Ethel, District 1-26, page 10A, Oak Flat Rd, Hse #152, Owns $500
- 10. 1930 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas
- 18 April, Prairie Township, District 25, page 6A, Ethel and Point Rd., Hse#106, Fam #107
- 11. Personal Letters
- 12. Gravestone of Ethel Seamon Dumond, Mt Pleasant Cemetery, Ethel, Arkansas
- 13. 1920 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas
- 1 February, Prairie Township, District 16, page 5B, LaGrue Springs and Ethel, Hse #98, Fam #101
- 14. Find a Grave Memorial Registry
- 15. 1910 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas
- 5 May, North Prairie, District 12, page 8A, Hse #144
- 16. U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918
- 17. U.S. WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947
- 18. U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014
- 19. 1940 Federal Census, Jefferson County, Arkansas
- 4 April, Humphrey, District 35-33 Page 4A, Main St, Hse #66, Owns $1000
- 20. Libby Beliew, email correspondence to Orville Boyd Jenkins, October 2008
- 21. 1910 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas
- 28 April, Prairie Township, District 12, page 6A, Hse/Fam #106
- 22. Gravestones of Mt Pleasant Cemetery