Sometimes we cannot find the family connections that our visitors to the Magoffin County Historical Society are searching for. Such was the case when Scott W. Salyers of Fairfax Station, VA came recently. He was attracted to our town because of the surname of his grandfather, George William Salyers, born in 1902 and lived in Newcastle, KY. We discovered that George was listed in the 1910 Henry Co. KY census with his mother Ollie Elliston and stepfather Shelby E. Adams. Shelby was born 1867 and died in Henry Co. KY in 1942, a son of Samuel Adams and Nannie Kitson. Ollie Elliston was b. 1880 Grant Co. KY and died in 1971 Oldham Co. KY, dau of Civil War soldier George Millard Dallas Elliston and Florence Bennett. Scott Salyers left contact info with us in the event that we could discover any other info on his Salyer(s) line.

We were a little more successful with visitors Donald and Phyllis Elam of Berea, KY who came with their daughter Angela and her husband Keith Crawford.

Donald Elam is descended from Gilbert Elam b. 1796 Russell Co. VA and his wife Catherine Cooley. Gilbert and his family came to the Morgan Co. KY area before 1850. Their named children that year were Ivel Elam, Francina Elam, John Elam, Catherine Elam, Martha Elam, Gilbert Elam, Benjamin Elam and Elizabeth Elam. Next door was another son Daniel Elam b. 17 Oct 1819 Russell Co. VA and his family.

Gilbert’s wife Catherine Cooley Elam died 8 Sep 1858 of fever at age 59 according to the Morgan Co. KY death records, she was the daughter of Daniel Cooley. In 1860 Gilbert Elam at age 66 was listed at home with three of his children, Elizabeth Elam, Benjamin Elam and Range Elam b. 1837 (his full name was Gilbert Range but he was known as "Range" in most records).

The Mortality Schedule of 1870 Morgan Co. KY lists the death of Gilbert Elam at age 85 in March of "old age and cold".

Gilbert and Catherine’s son Daniel married Nancy Lykins b. 1821 d. 1898, dau of William P. Lykins (1795-1862) and 2^nd wife Hannah Stout. Nancy was a granddaughter of William Lykins and Margaret Ritter.

Daniel and Nancy were the parents of these children (1) Joshua Elam b. 1842, (2) Sarah Elam b. 1844, (3) Perlina Elam b. 1846, (4) Emily Elam b. 1849, (5) Mary Elam b. 1853, (6) Martha Elam b. 1855, (7) William Henry Elam b. 9 Jul 1856 d. 24 Nov 1930 m. Delila Lykins and (8) John Sherman Elam b. 13 May 1865, coal miner, died 21 May 1939 Perry Co. KY.

Sometime after 1880 Nancy Lykins Elam died. In 1900 Morgan Co. KY Daniel Elam at age 80 still lived at Caney and with him was a daughter Mary Nancy "Polly Ann" Elam age 46.

The next generation of visitor Donald Elam’s family is the oldest son of Daniel and Nancy’s, Joshua Elam. Joshua married 17 Jan 1865 in Morgan County to Mahala Ann Bailey. Mahala was born 4 Mar 1849 in Missouri according to the birth record of her son Joseph in the Morgan County Vital Statistics. Mahala died 26 Aug 1925 in Morgan County.

We believe we have located Mahala’s parents in Linn County, MO. In 1850 one Samuel M. Bailey lived there with his wife Nancy whom he had married on 2 Apr 1848 in Linn County. Nancy was born in 1929 Clay County, KY, dau of Samuel Cornett.

Samuel was born in April 1814 Kentucky and died 15 Mar 1909. He is buried in the Old New Garden Cemetery in Linn Co. MO.

Apparently Samuel had a first marriage. His first three children were John Bailey b. 1841, Catherine Bailey b. 1843 and Mary Bailey b. 1845. Believed to be the children of Samuel and his 2^nd wife Nancy Cornett are Mahala Ann Bailey b. 1849, William O. Bailey b. 1850

In 1860 the Linn County, MO census records an additional child Jacob C. Bailey b. 1852. Also in the household was Gerett Cornett age 41 and Sarah J. Cornett age 8.

By 1870 Samuel M. Bailey’s daughter Mahala had married Joshua Elam and they lived on Caney in Morgan County, KY with two children of their own, William G. Elam and Sarah E. Elam.

The 1880 Caney census shows this family with the following children: William G., Sarah E., Surilda, Caroline, Joseph H., Perlina and Minerva.

Several times we have requested stories from people whose ancestors were originally from our part of Kentucky and relocated in some other state. This family genealogy suggests that there is much more that could be learned than we can glean from the extant records.

We would like to know the family that Samuel M. Bailey was born to in Kentucky. How and when did his daughter Mahala return to Kentucky to meet and marry Joshua Elam? Perhaps there are relatives who will read these comments and respond to us at Magoffin County Historical Society, PO Box 222, Salyersville, KY 41465 (email [email protected]).