The temperatures have been what we consider "cold" here in Magoffin, dipping down to the zero mark at times. It has been good weather to sit with some census records and other research material and do some "roots gathering".
We took an ancestor chart from one of our visitors, Mark Allen and did some research on his Allen-Arnett family. Mark is the grandson of Charles Edward Allen and Jo Ann Thorpe.
Charles Edward was a son of Oliver Allen (16 Sep 1892-21 Dec 1969) and Haley Arnett (1906-1973). Apparently Oliver Allen was married twice as we found a Magoffin County marriage in 1917 to Myrtle Craft. Oliver at age 26 and his wife Myrtle at age 17 lived next door to Oliver’s parents in the 1920 Magoffin County census. By the time the 1930 Magoffin County census was taken, Oliver and his second wife Hailey were in the household of his parents, James and Mary Allen. There were three grandchildren listed in this census, Maria Allen b. 1921, Grover C. Allen b. 1924 and Hiram B. Allen b. 1925. Apparently Oliver’s first wife Myrtle Craft Allen died around 1925 and Oliver married 2nd in 1929 Magoffin Co. KY to Hailey Arnett.
When Oliver Allen registered for the draft in 1917, he gave his age as 24, born 16 Oct 1892. He lived at Hendricks and was married at the time. His physical description was tall in height, stout in body build, blue eyes and brown hair.
In 1940 the family lived on Boardtree of Middle Fork in Magoffin County. Oliver Allen was age 46, wife Hailey was age 33. They had the following children in their household: Marie Allen age 19, Grover C. Allen age 16, Harm V. Allen age 14, Haze P. Allen (son) age 8, Reva Mae Allen age 5, Louise Allen age 4, J. O. Allen (son) age 3 and Charles E. Allen age 1.
Hailey (Arnett) Allen was a daughter of Tony Arnett (1887-1959) and Willie Minix (1875-1959). Tony was the son of Stephen Arnett, Jr. and Charlotte Arnett. Willie was the daughter of Jackson Minix and Fairlena Salyer.
Oliver Allen’s parents were James D. "Big Jim" Allen and Mary Arnett. James D. was born 20 Oct 1855 in Breathitt Co. KY and died in Magoffin County, KY. He was buried in the Allen Cemetery on Boardtree at Foraker, KY.
James D. "Big Jim" Allen and Mary Arnett were the parents of nine children: (1) Stephen Allen b. 1879 d. 1954 Foraker, KY; (2) Nancy J. Allen b. 1879 m. Morgan Fletcher; (3) Dudley Allen b. 1886; (4) Wick Kendall Allen b. 1886 m. Manerva "Sissie" Minix; (5) Sherman Allen b. 1890 m. Emily -?-; (6) Farrish Allen b. 1891 m. Martha -?-; (7) Oliver Allen b. 1893 m. Myrtle Craft (see above); (8) Mollie Allen b. 1895; and (9) George Morgan Allen b. 1898.
James D. was a son of James Allen born 1823 probably in Perry Co. KY and died around the time of the Civil War. The elder James Allen was married to Nancy Louise Roberts (1825-1912), dau of John Roberts and Susan Campbell.
James Allen and Nancy Louise (Roberts) Allen were the parents of 12 children: (1) Samuel Allen b. 1843 m. Margaret Shoemaker; (2) John Allen b. 1844; (3) Granville Allen b. 1847 married Salina Bailey of Virginia; (4) Stephen Ferris Allen b. 1849 m. Lydia Ann Shoemaker; (5) Susannah Allen b. 1850 m. William A. Combs; (6) Dulcena Allen b. 1852; (7) James D. Allen b. 1855 m. Mary Arnett (see above); (8) Jefferson Allen b. 1857; (9) Elizabeth Allen b. 1859; (10) Nancy Allen b. 1859; (11) William Allen b. 1861 and (12) Martha Allen b. 1862.
Another visitor we had was Claude Stone who lives here in Magoffin County. His paternal ancestors, the Stones, have Magoffin County roots while his mother’s family is from neighboring Floyd County.
Claude’s maternal grandparents were Sam A. Stephens and his first wife Rebecca Castle. Samuel A. Stephens was born in 1870 Floyd County, KY, the son of Thomas M. Stephens and Nancy Jane Bradley.
Thomas M. Stephens was a son of Samuel Stephens and Florence Patton. Samuel was born in 1801 Russell Co. VA and died 24 Jun 1887 Floyd County, KY. He married in 1821 to Florence Patton. They lived on Stephens Branch near Langley (Maytown) in Floyd Co. KY and are buried in the Stephens Cemetery there. Our information on this family comes from Harold R. Lowder who used as one of his sources, the booklet published by C. E. Shepard of Dayton, OH on the Stephens family. The info in the booklet was originally gathered by Henry Stephens and his son of Edgar P. Stephens of Prestonsburg, KY.
Thomas M. Stephens was born in 1830 and died 30 May 1890 in Floyd County. His first wife was Nancy Jane Bradley b. 1835, the daughter of William Bradley and Elizabeth Pridemore.
The children of Thomas and Nancy Jane (Bradley) Stephens were (1) Elizabeth Stephens, (2) Florence Stephens, (3) Susannah Stephens, (4) Reuben A. Stephens, (5) William D. Stephens, (6) James P. Stephens, (7) George H. Stephens, (8) John Riley Stephens, (9) Rebecca A. Stephens, (10) Samuel A. Stephens – grandfather of Claude Stone, (11) Isaac B. Stephens, (12) Margaret Ellen Stephens, and (13) Lee Anderson Stephens.
Claude is especially interested in learning more about Samuel A. Stephens and his wife Rebecca Castle and preserving their gravesites.
Samuel was also married in 1919 to Sophia Whitaker; married 3 in 1923 to Mary Salmon and married 4th to Rosa Wireman, the widow of -?- Handshoe.
Write us at Magoffin County Historical Society, PO Box 222, Salyersville, KY 41465 or email [email protected].