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Family Letters

Letters and post cards are a wonderful source for information when doing your own family research.   Apart from the details of the letter, they can establish relationships, and they can sometimes reference a name that was previously not known.  


You are encouraged to share your letters.   Thank you



Farewell Letter from Matthew Craig before being Hanged for the Murder of Sam Coats, the husband of his sister Alice Craig.


August 12th, 1899,
Muskogee Indian Territory

Mr. Shepard Luttrell,

Kind friend. I will take pleasure of dropping you a few lines to let you know I have not forgotten you and the kindness you and Evie have shown me. You have proved to be a true friend to me. Shep, last time I was at your house I guess you did not think I would be in the condition that I am in- no when you heard of I was arrested. The second day after I left your house. Well Shep I hope you enjoy what few days you have got to live. You know I have not lived in any peace in a long time. Shep I will soon be done with troubles it looked like there was some people that begrudged my life to me. I guess the (they) will be satisfied now. I will soon be out of the way of anyone. My life has been a rough one to go through with but I was man enough to stand it allright. Shep I don't dread dying the least bit. I was near tired of living. All that bothers me any is my wife and baby. You know how you would feel to have to be taken away from your wife and baby. It is aweful hard. I hope you will never be taken as I am. Well Shep don't know much to write only I hope you good luck. Shep tell all of my friends in the county good bye for me. Tell Aunt Jane that I have thought of her many times since I have bin here in this place. Tell Lum and Joe good bye for me and of them that were friends to me.

Well Shep I will look for a letter from you. I will have time to get one from you. you get this in time, I have 12 more days. Well Shep if I don't hear from you, good bye old boy. I will soon be done forever but I can go like a man -

From Mathew Craig- answer at once.

- submitted by Jody Offen

[Note:   Matthew Craig is said to have murdered his brother-in-law, Sam Coats, married to Alice Coats.
           Matthew's wife is Thursey Neugen, and his son is Coleman Craig]



June 10 1912

"Callie has died.  She died May 31.  She talking one day and died the next night. Grandpaw never got there after she was dead.  I will see you in a few days and tell you all about it.  So bye bye."

Willie Phipps

(The postcard, stamped June 11 1912 Whitebead OK) is from William "Willie" Henry Harrison Phipps, telling of the death of their sister Caledonia Phipps Rightsell on May 31 1912 to his brother John Marion Phipps, of Maysville OK)
(letter in the possession of Donna Carter)

Wm. H.H. PhippsJohn M. Phipps
William Henry Harrison Phipps (left)
and John Marion Phipps (right)





(Written to Elmer Lee Phipps from his brother Roy Clarence Phipps)

Denton, Texas
December 23, 1969


Dear Brother, Sister and Terry:

 
Just a line to let you know that we are well and  getting ready for an enjoyable Christmas here at home. Wish we could have the joy of being with you  folks. We do hope all of you are well and that you  have a wonderful Christmas.
 
I received a Christmas card with a note in it, from Allie and I was very glad to hear from her and get her whereabouts. I have also received cards from the following, which are relatives of the Phipps side of the house. Amelia Phipps, 271 N. Villa Ave., Dinuba, Calif. - 93618, wife of Edward Phipps, son of Uncle Billy Phipps (Dads brother) and Lester Phipps and wife, 9132 Avenue 416, Dinuba, Calif. -  93618 who is Edward and Amelia Phipps son.
 
I have received cards from two of cousin Matilda Elliot's daughters, cousin Tilda was a Weldon and her mother was a sister to Uncle Kale Craig of Ft. Worth, Texas, at the Nuf Said Bar. I have had the pleasure of knowing Cousin Matilda and her brothers and their families. I have never seen any of Uncle Billy Phipps family. Fred and Edward and wife visited each other and Fred thought a lot of them so I feel sure I would also. I do not imagine you have ever had the pleasure of knowing any of those I have mentioned above but I thought I would tell you about them. Some day if and when we ever get together we will discuss the relatives that each of us know about.
 
My wife is one of a family of ten children so you can see we have lots of relatives. I have seen all of her immediate family but she has not had the pleasure of knowing all of my folks.
 
I have a little five year old name sake cousin here in Denton, that takes the place of a grand child with Ellen and I and we are very crazy about him and he is equally as crazy about us and he and his dad and mother will be here for Christmas the same as they have each year since the little Roy Craig Williams was born July 31, 1964. Roy Craig brought me a picture of a bicycle from a catalogue and told me "Uncle Roy this is the bicycle that I want you to tell Santa Clause to bring me and tell him, I will stay all night at your house the night he comes with his reindeers." Well he does not know it but the bicycle is in our neighbors garage and will be by the Christmas tree Christmas morning. Wouldn't you just like to see him when he opens the door and finds that bicycle and see the happy expression on his face. We do not go into Christmas the expensive way but we just try to have plenty to eat and try to be as happy as possible.
 
While we are enjoying Christmas and thinking of those dear to us you may be assured that you folks will be remembered many times.
 
Please excuse the haste but I have to get this and some other Christmas cards in the mail today.
 
Again we wish you and yours a very wonderful Christmas and if and when ever you get a chance to come to see us just come on down and do not wait to be invited. Oh yes, I received a card from Hazel and I have her address now.
 
Love and our very best wishes to all.
Roy and Ellen
(letter in the possession of Donna Carter)

Roy Clarence Phipps & Elmer Lee Phipps
Roy Clarence Phipps (1893-1982) and
Elmer Lee Phipps (1909-1980)





Notes From My Memory


I do not claim these statements to be factual: but things my grandmother related to me during my growing up.  - Idella Williams-Halton, Tahlequah, OK

* * * * * * *

Grandmother Mary Comer Ives was very proud of her Indian Ancestry. (Jensie Jane Craig) and often told us of the hardships and mistreatment the Indians suffered at the hand of white men as they were forced from their homes.

The Craig family was a prosperous farming family whose large farm was situated on the North Carolina and Georgia State line. The Indians were peaceful, many of them cultivated large tracts of land and owned slaves, at the time the government decided to remove them to the reservation. (1830’s)

They resisted and the Indian leaders took the blood oath swearing they would die before they would consent to selling their land and being removed to a strange new land.


As time dragged on, land speculators moved in creating fear among the Indians threatening them and offering to but their land. It was at this time, some of the Cherokee leaders betrayed their people, they disregarded the blood oath they had taken and sold their land to white men and moved on to Oklahoma. (This can be read about in detail in the book “Trail of Tears”)

Jim Craig and his son had gone to a fort for supplies and when they didn’t return at the appointed time, the younger son went in search of them. He found them the following day murdered near their freight wagon’s which had been looted of supplies and horses.

Since Indians had no recourse in the courts of law and were looked upon as being less than human, it was simply counted as robbery and nothing was done to find the killers and bring them to justice.

Sometime later a white man came to advise Mrs. Craig and her son to move off the land. He produced a deed dated the day of Jim Craig’s death and had (White men) witness and proof that he had bought and paid Jim Craig for the said land. The family put up much resistance, but to no avail, he had the deed and the land was his; however since it was near harvest time and the crops were good he agreed to allow them a part of the harvest which never came to pass.

Just a short while later, when the Craig family was seated for the evening meal, the sound of horses and shouting broke upon the peaceful scene, men surrounded the house beating upon the doors making demand ordering the family to march out into the yard telling them only “you are going to the reservation”. They allowed them only what belongings they would hurriedly gather up and carry on their backs. There was much chaos as the men on horseback herded the livestock down the lane ahead of them.

Before leaving, the men ransacked the house taking whatever had value, before setting fire to the house and barns.

Jensie Jane, the pretty nineteen year old daughter, shed many tears throughout her life time as she related the incidents of those horrible days to her children and grandchildren. The Trail of Tears became a lifetime of Tears for Jensie Jane.

As darkness fell they continued to march on, at last near daybreak they reach a camp where they were assigned to an overseer, a man named Jason Phelps. He was a cruel man who had no regard for the old and the sick; he put the same demands on everyone, regardless of condition.

The Cherokees were given just enough food to keep them alive and were made to sleep on the ground, many without blankets. They were kept in the camp for several days, until Mr. Phelps quota for the march was met. (Several Hundred) At last they were ready to begin the long trek to an unknown land.

On and on day after day they were herded along the trail for as many miles as they could walk. Only the very sick and old people were given horses to ride from one camp to the next.

Many of the sick, children and older people died along the trail. They were not even given a burial, only covered with bush and leaves, and left for the animals to devour. Such was the fate of Jensie Jane’s mother, who died from exposure to the cold winter. She was left along side the trail, covered with brush and leaves near the Mississippi River.

The weather was very harsh as they marched across Arkansas. By the time they reached Batesville, (Arkansas) many were sick, supplies were gone’ they were forced to make camp at Miller’s creek just outside of Batesville. Grandmother often showed me the place of the camp as we were going into Batesville. There was no bridge there until much later, only a shallow place where buggies and wagons crossed the creed, it was here at the ford the Indians camped.

At this juncture, all the cattle had been butchered and the supplies exhausted. Mr. Phelps asked the farmers for assistance in feeding and caring for the hungry sick Indians.

The Bales family, one of the most prosperous farm families who owned a large farm near what is now Weaver’s Chapel, responded.

Young Caleb was sent to deal with Mr. Phelps to solicit a man and woman to work on the Bales farm. Instead of a husband and wife, Mr. Phelps assigned a brother and sister. Jensie Jane Craig and her brother, thus Caleb and Jensie Jane met. The beautiful dark haired maiden was very happy on the Bales farm.

Soon she and young Caleb were in love. When the time came for the unscrupulous Mr. Phelps to continue the march to Oklahoma, Caleb made a deal with him and Jensie was permitted to stay on with the Bales family, where she and Caleb were married. They lived a happy life as they reared a family on the Bales homestead.

Notes:

Her brother chose to go on with the march to Oklahoma, in search of his sweetheart who had gone before them, in an earlier removal. She never again heard from him, but later his descendants were located in Tahlequah, Oklahoma.

Jensie Jane could never wear shoes; her feet were badly crippled due to marching barefoot on the hard frosty ground.

Jensie Jane Craig was an educated woman for her day in time. In her early years, she attended mission schools which the church had set up for them in earlier times. She fit into the community, taught neighboring children to read and write, since there was no school at that time.

She often said “I don’t know how much I’m worth, Caleb never told me how much or with what he bribed Mr. Phelps for my freedom.

In about 1910, my father Joshua Williams located the Craig family in Tahlequah, Oklahoma and traced back to South Carolina. My grandfather who held great contempt for Indians, refused to let my grandmother finalize her claim to the Indian rights. Rather than cause family problems, my dad dropped the whole idea and gave the papers to Dean Coleman, a lawyer in Batesville. The lawyer was assisting my dad in filing the claim.

-----------

About the AuthorIdella Williams Halton is a great great granddaughter of Cynthia Jane (Jincy) Craig and Caleb Bales through their daughter Dianna Mason Bales who married Matthew Raiford Comer, Dianna and Matthew’s daughter Mary Jane Comer who married Byron Ives, Mary Jane and Byron’s daughter Lillie Mae Ives who married Joshua F. Williams, and Idella is the daughter of Lillie and Joshua Williams.


- Submitted by Linda Tinney