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Ancestors of John Walker

Generation No. 1

       1. John Walker, born Abt. 1784 in Virginia; died 1867 in Walkerville, Green, Illinois. He was the son of 2. John Walker. He married (1) Charity Palmer February 1810. He married (2) Elizabeth Robertson 1814. She was the daughter of Robert Robertson and Elizabeth.

Notes for John Walker:
Personal record of John Edward Walker in possession of Mrs. Ada Palmer;
Will of John Walker of Walkerville, dated 29 Mar. 1866, proved sept. 1867 and probated 15 June 1872 for children no.s 1-5;
F Ill .5 pt 8 no 2573;
Marr no 1 and 5 from Carrolton, Ill through research of Alfred johnson of Carrolton;
Ill census records of 1830, 1840, 1850;
1840 Census Apple Creek Two., Greene, Ill, p.78 (GL#977.284 X2g)
1850 Census Greene County, ILL, p.104 (GL#977.384 X2g)
1830 Census Greene County, ILL, P.7 (GL#07649)
1820 Census St. Clair County, ILL, p.127 (GL#506764)

UNIVERSAL GENEALOGY CENTER
14 August 1996

       Research has been conducted on your Walker ancestry, and although difficult, some success was achieved. A very clear picture of the migratory path of John Walker and Elizabeth Robertson from Virginia and North Carolina, through Kentucky, to Illinois has been established. Their ancestry extended through an erratic research effort in county and federal records.
       This approach, which consisted of skipping around in records of the counties in which the families were thought to have resided, was specifically designed to achieve a panoramic view of how this case was developing; and to pin point those jurisdictions in which in depth research would take place to document and prove conjecture.
       The documents which provided the information upon which this research effort was predicated, i.e. James Walker's will, dated 1837, John Walker's will dated 1866, the marriage record for John Walker and Elizabeth Robinson -in 1814; and, John Walker and Charity Palmer's marriage license of 1810 have all been reviewed. Details concerning these documents, research in LDS records, and their relevance to this investigation are found within the body of this report.

LDS RECORDS
       LDS records, owing to the many record categories created as a result of the recording of temple ordinance data; and the computer base of family information submitted by both LDS members and non-members in the Ancestral File are by far more comprehensive than any records which may be kept by the RLDS Church. For this reason, research in LDS Church records was given priority over research in RLDS records.
       According to the birthplaces and baptismal dates of Edward Robertson walker's children, it appears that this family migrated to Utah between 1852 and 1854; and, that they retained their membership in the LDS church until sometime between 1864 and 1870, when they left Idaho and returned to Illinois.
       A brief check in the records of the Temple Index Bureau (TIB), which cover the years 1846 through 1964, and the Archives for family group records submitted for temple ordinances between 1942 and 1969, failed to indicate that Edward performed vicarious temple ordinances for his grandparents or other relatives while he was a member of the LDS church. His father did not die until about the time he apostatized, and his mother was still living in 1866 when John Walker wrote his will.
       Although two of his sons returned to Utah and rejoined the Church, it is not surprising that temple work for John Walker and Elizabeth Robertson was not performed on their behalf until 1967, with the exception of John's baptism in 1945, and Elizabeth's endowment in 1894, when a family record was submitted by Mrs. George Palmer of Vale, Oregon. Mrs. Palmer lists the following sources: (1) Personal record of Edward Walker in possession of Mrs. Ada Palmer, second great granddaughter; (2) will of John Walker, dated 1866 in Illinois; (3) Greene County marriage records; and (4) Illinois Census records for 1830, 1840 and 1850. Charity Palmer is named as John Walker's first wife on this sealing sheet (Doc 10).

ANCESTRAL FILE
JAMES WALKER (1811-1878)
       James was John's first child, by his first marriage to Charity Palmer in Hopkins County, Kentucky in 1810 (Doc 23a, Doc 24). James was married and had three children when he joined the LDS Church, at the age of thirty, in 1841. All of his children were born in Council Bluffs, Iowa, except Sylvester, who was born in Greene County, Illinois on 18 February 1843. Three of James' children came to Utah. James died in November 1878 in Council Bluffs, Iowa.
       James' wife, Martha Mary Ann Coon, survived her husband, came to Utah and received her endowments in the Endowment House in Salt Lake City in 1891, where she was sealed to James on the same day. The curious thing is that James was endowed three years before he died on 14 June 1875.
       All of this information on the Ancestral File was submitted by James' descendants: Norman Dean Giles of West Valley City; Donald Robert Long of Provo; Donald L. Long of Rexburg, Idaho; and Muriel Sadler Griffith of Kearny, Arizona. The Medieval Families Unit was not involved with this family as indicated on the record of changes. This is in error.

INTERNATIONAL GENEALOGICAL INDEX (IGI)
       Charity Palmer appeared as John Walker's first wife on the sealing sheet submitted by Mrs. George Palmer. Time did not permit a time consuming search for a sealing record for John, Charity and James, which Mrs. Palmer may have submitted. However, another Walker descendant submitted a marriage entry Record for John and Charity. He did not state his relationship to them. However, he did cite the source of their marriage "Hopkins County marriage record pp 101" (Doc 12).
       In all probability, a name by name search for each of the children of Edward R. Walker and James Walker in the IGI will reveal more information about this family.
       There are two James Walkers in question. First, the James Walker, for whom the Illinois Regional Archives Depository provided a copy of his will, dated 10 January 1837, from St. Clair County, Illinois. He is the same James Walker that Brink McDonough & Co. makes reference to in his "History of St. Clair County" (Doc 9).
       Although the names of the sons of James Walker, Presley and Gilly, are not found in your Walker family, James Walker of St. Clair County may be related to John Walker, who is also living in St. Clair County at the same time. Moreover, James Walker's will is witnessed by William B. Shorte, a neighbor. William B. Shorte's name appears, from the onset, in entries for St. Clair County in Brink's history. This is significant because William Shorte's clan is found in Hopkins County, Kentucky, contemporary, with John Walker and his father-in-law, Robert Robertson.

JAMES WALKER OF GREENE CO., ILLINOIS
       The second James Walker is enumerated at Dwelling No. 151 in the 1860 Greene County Census. He was 66 and born in South Carolina.        John Walker and Elizabeth are enumerated at Dwelling No. 740 in the same census.
       In the 1850 Greene County Census this same James Walker, age 52, born in South Carolina, is enumerated with Martha, age 33 and five children between the ages of 12 and 1 year -- all born in Kentucky. By virtue of the ages of the wife and children, this must be James' second family.
       A Robert Walker, age 39, at Dwelling No. 170, born in Kentucky, whose children are all born in Illinois, living next door, is most likely James' brother. Jeptha Walker, age 23, lives at Dwelling No. 172 with his wife and young child. He is probably James' son by his first wife.
       Although James is born in South Carolina, it is significant that he is living relatively near John and Elizabeth; and, that all of the rest of his family are born in Kentucky.

JOHN WALKER (2:2)
       According to the 1860 Greene County, Illinois Census, John Walker was born in Virginia in 1783, and his second wife, Elizabeth, was born in North Carolina in 1794.
       John first appears in Kentucky in Hopkins County in 1810 when he married Charity Palmer on 24 February, 1810. That same year John and Charity are found in the 1810 Hopkins County Census living either on her father's land, or on the adjacent farm (Doc 15) . Robert Robertson, Elizabeth's father, and his family were living nearby (Doc 15, Doc 21). By 1811 John and Charity had settled on the Duck River near Hickman, Kentucky, which was at that time in either Caldwell County or Livingston County, where their first child, James, was born.

THE ILLINOIS TERRITORY
       Presumably, Charity died before 11 October 1814, when John Walker was issued a license to marry Elizabeth Robertson in St. Clair County, Illinois (Doc 17b).
       John Walker's name is found among the first land entries for St. Clair County "John Walker ... 160 acres, it being the S.W. 1/4 Sec. 3 ... all lying in that part of T. 2S. R. 6 .... Dec 8, 1817" the same year that John and Elizabeth's son, Edward Robertson Walker, was born in Belleville in St. Clair County (Doc 9, p. 368).
       The "Poll list and return of the first election held in St. Clair County, after the admission of Illinois as a state, September 17, 1818 " lists both John and James Walker (Doc 9 pp 71, 72).

GREENE COUNTY, ILLINOIS
       It is not clear yet when John and Elizabeth moved to Walkerville in Green County, Illinois. They may have been there as early as 1832 when John's son, James, by his first marriage, was married to Martha Mary Ann Coons in Greene.
       John Walker and Elizabeth do not appear in the 1850 Illinois Census Index in Greene County. They may have been missed in the index. They are enumerated in Illinois in 1850 because Mrs. George Palmer implies that their youngest child, Ann M., was fifteen years old in 1850, by writing "15-1850" in the date of birth column on the sealing sheet she submitted to the Salt Lake Temple. Edward R. Walker married in 1849 in Greene County. The 1850 Greene County Census will have to be examined name by name to find them.
       Is it possible that John and Elizabeth were with their sons, James and Edward, in 1850? Did they join the LDS Church? These are questions that will be answered through future research in Illinois and Iowa census records, and in early baptismal records for the LDS Church.
       John and Elizabeth are enumerated at Dwelling No. 740, as previously stated in the 1860 Greene County Census. They were living next door to Joseph Cox, and two dwellings away from John Painter--both of whom witnessed John's will in 1866. John died in 1867.
       Examining all of the records available for Greene County, where John and Elizabeth spent most of their lives, and also where their children married, should yield additional information concerning John, Elizabeth and their children

JOHN WALKER (2:4)
       John Walker is one of the "adult male citizens" who is shown with "his land, blacks and horses" in the tax records of 1800 in Henderson County, Kentucky on 1 October 1800. Robert Robertson, John's future father-in-law, paid tax in the same county as well, on 1 October 1800. Hopkins County was created out of Henderson County in 1807.
       Neither John Walker, the adult male shown in the 1800 tax assessment of Henderson County, nor the John Walker, who married Charity Palmer, are listed in the 1807 Hopkins County tax records. By this time, your third great grandfather, John, was 24 and should have been taxed.

TRADEWATER RIVER
       Elizabeth Robertson's father, Robert, the elder John Robertson, and Charity Palmer's father, Jonathan Palmer, all show up on the "Tradewater River" in the 1807 Hopkins County tax assessment. Three years later, John Walker married Jonathan Palmer's daughter, Charity, in Hopkins County, and is found living on the neighboring farm.
       In 1800 John Walker paid tax on the same day, as did Robert Robertson, your fourth great grandfather. John Walker, your third great grandfather, was only 17 years old in 1800 and would not have been counted as an adult male. We believe that the elder John is, in fact, John Walker Sr., your new fourth great grandfather; and that John Walker Sr. either died or moved away between 1800 and 1807.

EVOLUTION OF HOPKINS CO. FROM CHRISTIAN CO., KY
       In order to connect family tradition to the facts at hand, and to better understand the migration of the Walker family from Virginia to Illinois, an explanation of the shifting of county boundaries and origins of each of the counties in Kentucky, in which the Walker and Robertson families resided, will be given.
       Christian County, Kentucky was established in 1797. Henderson County, Kentucky was formed from Christian County in 1799; and "the southern part of Henderson" was carved out of Henderson; and, became Hopkins County in 1807.
       Caldwell County was formed in 1809 from Livingston County. Hickman County was not formed until 1821. Hickman was created from Caldwell and Livingston Counties. The settlement of Hickman evidently existed prior to the formation of Hickman County.

HENDERSON REVOLUTIONARY WAR MILITARY GRANTS
       Major Maurice Gordon, wrote in 1931, in his "Hi-story of Hopkins County" that:

"The southern portion of Henderson County with other lands 'bounded by the Green River and southeast coast from the land thereof to the Cumberland Mountains to the Carolina line, and with the Carolina line to the Cherokee or Tennessee River, and with the said river to the Ohio, and with the Ohio to the said Green River had been reserved for soldiers of the Virginia Continental Line under Acts of General Convention of Virginia of 1777, 1779 and 1783 Henderson Grant ... land warrants were issued under these laws to soldiers graduated according to the rank of soldier, under these warrants the lands were to be located and surveyed and letters patent granting the same to be issued by the Commonwealth of Virginia."'

       Furthermore, military grants in Henderson County were chiefly laid off in adjoining surveys of one thousand acre squares with lines on the cardinal points in connection on the high land or water sheds of the various creeks. Thus the Clear Creek "connection" contains such surveys for William B. Walker.
       A future investigation of land records in Kentucky should clarify whether or not your Walker family came to Henderson County, Kentucky to claim a military grant, or simply hoping to find land when they arrived; and whether or not John Walker is related to William B. Walker.

FAMILY TRADITION
       In 1944, Alexander Walker, the ninth child of Edward Robertson Walker and Ann Marie Cox, who was born in 1861, spins an elaborate tale about his great grandfather "Jabe Walker" who was born in Bedford, England... before 1776 ... aid to Cornwalls ... deserted the English army... joined the American army ... and was given a large tract of land where Baltimore now -is..." (Doc 16a).
       Some of the information Alexander gave to his granddaughter, in 1944, about other branches of the family was erroneous. Nonetheless, there should be an element of truth in his story about his great grandfather. Walker is a surname found, frequently, in the British Isles -- typically English or Scotch; and, his great grandfather would have been in that generation, most of whom, fought in the Revolutionary War. Future research should include an investigation of Revolutionary Pension Files.

ROBERTSON
       Your fourth great grandfather, Robert Robertson, was a swash buckling, raucous, colorful character, who is probably quite typical of many of the early Kentucky frontiersman. Intemperate at times, fined for profanity, Robert was not without virtue; and, exhibited real courage when he joined a posse of his neighbors in hot pursuit of the infamous, murderous "Big Harpe", who had brutally murdered the wife and child of Leeper, one of his fellow citizens; and, when he joined "Samuel Hopkins' little army of 2,000 Kentucky young volunteers" to march against the Kickapoo villages (Doc 22).
       Robert is in Henderson County, at least as early as 1799, when the Harpe incident occurred, and paid tax on the same day as John Walker in 1800 in Henderson. Moreover, in 1807 Robert is living very close to John Robertson. In the 1810 Hopkins County Census, Robert was 25-45; John Robertson was also 25-45; and the elder John Robertson was 45 plus. This looks like the elder John was the father of both Robert and John. They all live in close proximity to each other on the Tradewater River.

ROBERT & JOHN ROBERTSON IN EARLY HOPKINS CO. COURT RECORDS
       Major Gordon's, colorful, historic account of the history of Hopkins County, penned in 1831, which draws heavily on early Hopkins court records, is replete with references to both John and Robert Robertson. The inclusion of first hand accounts, from journals, old timers; and, the contemporary account of George Walker, "one of the volunteers" from the Draper Collection, provide vivid details about General Hopkins expedition against the Kickapoos, an extraordinary upheaval, "the earthquake" which occurred "on December 16, 1811, at 2:00 a.m." shortly before Christmas, and, the Harpe murder -- in all of which, either John or Robert Robertson played a role.
       Following John Robertson's appearance on the tax roles in Hopkins in 1807, he witnessed a deed in 1808 (p. 3 0) , was appointed a constable in 1813 (p. 360), and entered a written apology into the court records on 19 August 1818 stating that he had " . . charged Logan with being a thief in the heat of passion" recounting his allegation, John goes on to say, that his statement was "entirely without grounds at all. (p. 90) (Doc 22).
       Robert Robertson witnessed William Whitehead's will in 1807, and in 1807 Robert was appointed along with several others, as "viewers of various roads" (p. 69). Sometime around 1808, Capt. Robert Robertson was among a group of "like offenders" who were prosecuted as "profane swearers" by the Grand Jury (p. 114), and he "Captain Robert Robertson", along with four other men, "paid fines" in 1812 (p. 312) (Doc 22).
       In 1808, on application of Eleazar Givens, William Stewart, William Owens, Robert Robertson, and John Robertson were directed to view a way for a road to be constructed from Anderson Ferry to the road from the
Red Banks to Centreville at, or near Harpe's Head and report to this court. . . " This not only links Robert and John together, but identifies other men who probably lived in the same neighborhood; and gives more precise location in the neighborhood. Harpe's head refers back to the place where Big Harpe's head was placed on a pole.

PATSY AND JAMES DAVIS -- TWO NEW GENERATIONS
       John Robertson and Patsy, his wife, were co-defendants in a court suit involving property held by James Davis, ancestor of the defendants (Doc 222, pp 331-336). This John is probably the elder John Robertson, who we believe was Robert's father, but could have been Robert's brother. Probably, he was the elder John, and if so, then Patsy Davis would be your fifth great grandmother. More time is needed to be spent to add to this evidence. There is insufficient information to settle the question at this time.

CONCLUSION
       Although logistical problems in using the FHL in lieu of original records in the courthouses have, temporarily, prevented the verification of John Walker's will and his marriage to Charity Palmer, this has not impeded research, and more has been accomplished in this initial research session than was expected.
       Additional data has been uncovered for John arid Elizabeth's children. Detailed information is now on hand for John and Charity's son, James, his children and their descendants. Furthermore a number of living relatives in Utah, Idaho and Arizona have been identified.
       Moreover, John and Elizabeths' places of birth in Virginia and North Carolina are now known. We are quite certain of one additional generation on your Walker line and probably have two additional generations on your Robertson line.
       Of equal importance is that most, if not all, of the jurisdictions in Kentucky, where these two families resided, have been clarified so that a full scale investigation can now take place to document and substantiate that which we believe to be true and can be proven.

FUTURE RESEARCH
       (1) Search LDS Records for James and Edward Walker's children. Search early baptismal records for James and Edward R. Walker; and, John Walker and Elizabeth Robertson

       (2) Search county records for St. Clair County, Illinois; Greene County, Illinois; Caldwell, Hopkins, Henderson and Christian Counties in Kentucky.

       (3) Search census records: 1800 Henderson County, Kentucky; 1810- 1830 Hopkins County; 1820-1850 St. Clair County and Greene County.

       (4) Search Federal Land Records for St. Clair County (Land entries in the tract books state the previous residence of the individual buying land).

       (5) Attempt to find extension of Walker ancestry into Virginia; Robertson line into North Carolina through both federal, state and county records.

ADDENDUM

NANCY WALKER
       Major Gordon makes mention of Nancy Walker on page 146 of his history of Hopkins County
       "Frederick Dorbyns came to Hopkins ... from Mason County, Kentucky, and thence from Frederick County Virginia. He married Luck Mott, daughter of Randolph Mott and his wife Nancy Walker of Northumberland County, Virginia in 1794"
       Nancy and her husband, Randolf Mott, were contemporary with the Walker family in Hopkins County. If they are related, it is conceivable that John Walker's family also came from Northumberland County, Virginia.

REV. JESSE WALKER
       The Rev. Jesse Walker was on the Illinois circuit in 1806, the Missouri circuit in 1807, returned to Illinois in 1809, 1810 and 1813. Jesse Walker pops up in St. Clair County, Illinois in 1807; and, was present at the yearly conference of 1806 at Island Bowdens in Henderson County, Kentucky (Doc 22, pp 199-201) (Doc 9, pp 173, 242).

VERIFICATION OF DOCUMENTS BY THE CLIENT
       John Walker�s name appears in the Probate Index of Administrators, Executors & Guardians for Greene County, Illinois, but only the presentation of his will to the court for probate is indexed (Doc 26). Although the date his will was written is known, it is not possible to find his will in the Will Book for the appropriate time period because the wills were not entered by date. John Walker's last will and testament will have to be obtained from the-Greene County courthouse.
       The marriage bond for John Walker and Charity Palmer was destroyed in a disaster in 1829. However, the index to the bonds for Hopkins County is extant. This film is temporarily unavailable in the FHL.
       The photocopy of the marriage license for John Walker and Elizabeth Robinson, provided by the Illinois Regional Archives Depository comes from "Marriage Certificates for Clair County Book B from 18 July 1810". A full description of the marriage records of Book B, which " consist of the licenses and certificates of St. Clair county, in the Illinois Territory, 1810 to 1827" is found on Document 25b.
       It is a pleasure to assist you with your genealogy

UNIVERSAL GENEALOGY CENTER
Mary Eckert

See John Walker's father for other research reports

       Child of John Walker and Charity Palmer is:

James Walker, born January 13, 1811 in Duck River, Hickman, Kentucky; died November 01, 1878; married Mary Coon April 20, 1832 in , Greene, IL¹.

Children of John Walker and Elizabeth Robertson are:

Edward Robertson Walker, born January 25, 1817 in West Bellville, St. Clair, Illinois; died March 18, 1877 in Lamoni, Decautur, Iowa; married Ann Maria Cox September 13, 1849 in Green, Illinois².

Notes for Edward Robertson Walker:
Family record John Edward Walker in possession of Ada Palmer
Archive records, Temple index records on endowments, #524 book B, page 24 and second card #1234 book A1 page 98

ii.

Emily Walker, born Abt. 1819 in of Walkerville, Green, Illinois; married Howell T. Dawdy July 23, 1835 in , Greene, IL³.

iii.

Mahala Walker, born Abt. 1823 in of Walkerville, Green, Illinois; married Drewry Hudson June 28, 1840 in , Greene, IL⁴.

iv.

Elizabeth Walker, born Abt. 1827; married Rosterson.

Notes for Rosterson:
There is a marriage record of an Elizabeth Walker to John L. Ray on 4/18/1850 in Greene Co. IL

Ann M. Walker, born 1835; married Garrett A. Flowers February 1854.

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