We received an email from Tracy Behnfeldt concerning her Risner family heritage. She is a granddaughter of Hazel Litha Risner whose parents were Garfield "Gar" Risner and Armilda Sparks. Garfield was a son of James P. Risner and Polly Poe. Armilda was a daughter of William Henry Sparks and Susan Alley.

Tracy was interested in getting a copy of our Risner family books which are still available from Magoffin County Historical Society, PO Box 222, Salyersville, KY 41465 at $65. This is a four-volume set of books containing 1,170 pages of genealogy info and pictures of descendants of Michael Risner and Sarah Howard. A separate full-name index to these volumes, prepared by Kurt Gausel for our historical society, is also available for $11.

Tracy’s grandfather Garfield was enumerated in his father’s household in the 1900 Magoffin County census. He was age 11, born 6 June 1888. His father James P. Risner gave his age as 51, born July 1848. James’ wife Polly (Poe) Risner was born in May 1845 and reported having 13 children born with 10 living. Besides son Garfield, the following were also members of the household: (1) Linden Risner age 18, (2) Frank Risner age 17, (3) Martha Risner age 9, (4) Caroline Risner age 6 and (5) Dora Risner age 4.

By the time of the 1910 Magoffin census, Garfield had been married 1 year to Armilda Sparks. In 1910 he lived next door to Nero Whitaker in the Atkinson Precinct, Magoffin Co. KY. In 1917 when he registered for the draft and gave his address as Gapville in Magoffin Co. KY. This was most likely the Puncheon Creek area as Gapville was established in the head of Puncheon Creek in 1888 by the Rev. Benjamin Holbrook. In 1932 Willie Allen, then postmaster, moved the location about two miles down the creek. By 1943 J. I. Stephens moved the post office to the location of his home and general store on Salt Lick.

In 1920 Garfield and Armilda lived on Abbott Creek in Floyd County, KY with children Armilda, Eva, Merida, Letha and Dora. By 1930 the family had moved to Big Springs, OH where Garfield worked as an onion farmer. They had added a son Forrester b. 1923 and daughters May and Cleo to the family, these three children were born in Ohio.

The 1940 Big Springs, Seneca Co. OH shows additional children Wayne Risner, Gertrude Risner and Robert Gene Risner. The daughter listed as "May" in 1930 is called "Mabel" and the daughter "Cleo" is "Cleola" in this later census.

Garfield Risner died 10 Sep 1956. His wife Armilda died 17 Jan 1971. They are buried in the Spring Grove Cemetery, Carey, OH.

James P. Risner’s ancestry is recorded in the Risner family books. His wife’s family can be found in our Civil War books. Mary "Polly" Poe was born about 1849 and died in 1927. She married in 1867 to James P. "Peter" Risner, son of James Risner and Margaret "Peggy" Adams. Polly Poe was a daughter of Civil War soldier Meredith Poe b. 1826 SC and died at Ivyton, KY on 2 Mar 1913. He was a Private in Co. F, 14^th KY Vol. Inf. (Union).

Meredith was a son of James P. Poe and his wife Sarah. Descendants tell that they came from Powell Valley, Tennessee. Some descendants remember her surname as Patrick.

Meredith married in 1847 to Angeline Bradford who died in 1904 Ivyton, KY. Meredith and Angeline had these children: (1) Nancy "Nan" Poe b. 1849 m. Andrew J. Ray, (2) Mary "Polly" Poe m. James P. Risner (see above), (3) Margaret Poe b. 1854 m. Wallace Cole, (4) Mark Poe b. 1856, (5) Violet Poe b. 1857, (6) Elizabeth Poe b. 1858, (7) Asberry Poe b. 1860, (8) Francis M. Poe b. 1864, (9) Olivia Poe b. 1867, and (10) Bethany Poe b. Apr 1870.

James P. and Polly (Poe) Risner are the ancestors of the late Bernice Dotson Moore who gave a good record of their family in the Civil War books. Bernice’s grandmother was May Belle Risner, a sister to Garfield Risner. May Belle married Logan Marshall.

We have not definitely identified Garfield’s wife’s family as of now. We believe Armilda’s father to be William Henry Sparks, Jr. b. 17 Dec 1857 Johnson Co. KY, according to the Vital Statistics records. He was a son of William Sparks (1834-1879) and Louisa Blevins (1839-1897).

William Henry’s wife was Susan Alley and she was born in 1851 Floyd Co. KY. We believe her to be the daughter of Turner Alley and Rebecca Yates. Turner was born in Tennessee in 1828 and he and Rebecca married in 1841 in Floyd Co. KY. Turner and Rebecca are listed in the 1850 Floyd census but by 1860 Rebecca, at age 33, is listed alone with children (1) David Alley, (2) Lotta Alley, (3) Susan Allen, (4) Manerva F. Alley and Emily Alley.

Rebecca Yates’ husband’s name was also established by the death record of her son David Alley. David died in 1904 at Bonanza, Floyd Co. KY at age 60 and his parent’s names are given as Turner and Rebecca Alley.

Rebecca was a daughter of War of 1812 soldier Valentine Yates and Susan Gunnells. Susan signed the marriage consent papers for her daughter Rebecca to marry Turner Alley. Valentine and Susan had several children, besides Rebecca, among them two Civil War soldiers Andrew Jackson Yates b. 1830 and Benjamin Franklin Yates b. 1836.