THE LUTHER FAMILY
OF
KERR COUNTY, TEXAS

© Joseph Neal Luther
(Complete book available at the LDS Family History Library in Salt Lake City
as “The Family Chronicles: A Genealogy:  Book 1 - The Luther Family And Related
Lines.”    by Joseph Neal Luther
929.273 L977Lj v.1 - JSMB US/CAN Book)
(Excerpts on the Kerr County TXGenWeb page
used by permission of the author)
(**** designates a skip from the original text)

 

 

INTRODUCTION

 

Our Luther family came to America in 1759.  Official records say this family had lived in Strasbourg.  These records say Strasbourg, Germany.  But the only Strasbourg is in France - although earlier it had been in Germany.  Perhaps the family had lived on the German side of the Rhine, opposite Strasbourg, France.  That part of the city on the German side would have been Strasbourg, Germany.

 

The family probably left Strasbourg in 1758.  They most likely traveled down the Rhine to Amsterdam, then to Cowles in England and then on to America.  Our family landed in the vicinity of Alexandria, Virginia in 1759.   The Luthers lived in Alexandria for six years.  This indicates they probably served a bonded indenture in return for their ship's passage.

 

From various documents, we know the family consisted of the mother and father and at least three sons. The names of the parents are unknown.  The three Luther sons were:

 

1.  John Michael Luther. Known as Michael Luther.  Born 17 March 1751 in Strasbourg.  He was known as Michael Luther.  He arrived in America at the age of eight.  As with his forefathers, he became a blacksmith.  

 

(Notes:   Michael Luther served in the Revolutionary War in the Frederick County Militia.   For this service he received Pension # 920.   His Grandson, John Luther, son of George Luther, served in the Civil War  in Company H, 7^th Tennessee Infantry, and also 8^th Tennessee Infantry of the Union Army which, according to army records, he joined in December 1862 for a period of 3 years.

 

Prior to his service in the Tennessee Infantry of the Union Army, John Luther had been sentenced to four years in prison for “harboring runaway slaves”.   He was prisoner #1553 at the Tennessee State Penitentiary.   He was received at the prison on 3 Jul 1855 at age 37.   He was pardoned by Governor Johnson and released on 23 December 1856.)

 

  

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Michael Luther married first a woman named Elizabeth, about 1774.  By his first wife, he had four children:

 

1.   John Michael Luther, Jr.  Born circa 1775 in Frederick County, Maryland.  Married on 15 October 1807 in Randolph County, North Carolina to Polly Vinson.  Died circa 1830 in Randolph County. Issue:  George Luther, Godfrey Luther, Abraham Luther, Elizabeth Luther, Margaret Luther, and Rebecca Luther.

 

2.  Godfrey Luther.  Born 15 January 1778 in Frederick County, Maryland.  Married Elizabeth -----.  Died 3 July 1855 in Randolph County, North Carolina.  Issue:  Martin Luther, Jacob Luther, 3 daughters and another son, names unknown.

 

3.  Abraham Luther.  Born 2 December 1778 in Frederick County.  Married Mary Ann Charles.  Died 4 December 1846 in Buncombe County, North Carolina.  Issue:  George Michael Luther, John Peter Luther, Mary Luther, Henry Britton Luther, David Luther, Jesse William Luther, Solomon Luther, Massolina Luther, Andrew Allen Luther, Elizabeth Luther, and Ally Luther.

 

4.  Jonathan Luther.  Born in Frederick County.  Married Jemina ----.  Died circa 1833 in Georgia.  Issue:  Caleb Luther, Josiah Luther, Mary Ann Luther.

 

 

John Michael Luther, Sr. married secondly, on 20 December 1789 in Frederick, Maryland to Mary Kindle  (Kendall).  By this marriage, he fathered six more children:

 

            5.  George Luther.  Born October 1790 in Frederick County.  Married Mary "Polly" Bowden in

                        Randolph County, North Carolina. 

 

            6.  Deborah Luther.  Born 1790 in Randolph County.  Married Gardner Shaw on 12 November 1826 in

                        Randolph County.  Died1855 in North Carolina. 

 

            7.   Barbara Luther. Born 1791 in Randolph County.  Married Henry Woolever.  Issue:  Mary Woolever, Michael          Woolever, Deborah Woolever, Nancy Woolever, Elizabeth Woolever, Aaron Woolever, and Disza Woolever.

 

            8.   Salome "Sara" Luther born 18 January 1839 in Randolph County.  Married 18 January 1839 in

                        Randolph County to William Stout. 

 

            9.   Ann Luther.  Did not marry.  Died circa 1836.

 

            10.   Daniel Luther.  Born 28 December 1797 in Randolph County.  Married 14 December 1823 in Randolph     County to Catherine Strider.  Issue:  Mary Luther, Margaret Luther, Sarah Luther, Dolly Luther, Allen Luther,           Elizabeth Luther, Dorothy Luther, Rebecca Luther, William Henry Luther, and Ransom Sherford Luther.

 

2.  George Luther, born 1 March 1754 in Strasbourg.  Married 16 June 1779 to Elizabeth Auman in Frederick County, Maryland. Was a tanner and shoemaker.

 

3.  Jacob Luther, born 1757 in Germany.  Married first Elizabeth ---.  Married second Sarah ----.  Revolutionary War Service.

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HORACE NORMAN LUTHER, SR.

1889 -1960

 

 

HORACE NORMAN LUTHER, SR. son of Aris Bowden Luther and Mary Eudora Thompson, was born on 24 February 1889 in White Bluff, Dickson County, Tennessee.  He married on 7 December 1907 in Dickson County to Nellie B. Jordan, daughter of Drury S. and Ella Mae (Brown) Jordan.

 

This family is shown on the 1910 Census of Dickson County, Tennessee.  At that time, they lived in the 12th District, House # 138.  Norman is 21, Nell is 19 and Leland is 7 months old.  Norman's occupation is listed as "odd jobs." Norman built their home, which was still standing in 1993, in White Bluff.  In 1993, this house was being remodeled in an office building.

 

In 1923, this family was forced to move from Tennessee to Texas because of the mother's health.  They decided to move to Comfort, Texas.  They traveled to Memphis on the Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis RR.  In Memphis they boarded the Missouri Pacific for San Antonio, Texas.  From there they took the San Antonio and Aransas Pass RR to Comfort.  At that point they decided to go all the way to the end of the line - Kerrville, Texas.  They arrived in Kerrville, Texas on 3 September 1923.

 

They rented a house at 817 Sidney Baker Street while the boys built their first home at 209 Guadalupe Street.  This home they called the "camp house" and they lived in it for a number of years.  They then moved to 208 Palmer Street where Leland lived until his death in 1993.

 

Horace Norman Luther, Sr. is described by his son as " a jack of all trades and good at all of them."  Like his forefathers dating back to Germany, H.N. Luther was a blacksmith.  As Norman Luther, Jr. describes him, "He has been many things in many trades and the earliest memory of mine is playing around his blacksmith shop.  I well remember the process of shoeing horses, making wagons, buggies, the blacksmith's ability to work hot iron, to make horse shoes from a straight piece of iron, to put tires on wagon wheels, etc.  He was also a mechanic.  He repaired cars and in those days it was something to be able to repair most of them."

 

In his later years, H.N. Luther Sr. worked as a carpenter and building contractor.  He built his son's house at 509 West Main Street.

 

H.N. Luther, Sr. died on 2 February 1960, at age 70, in Kerrville, Kerr County, Texas.  He had lived in Kerrville for 37 years.  He was buried at the Garden of Memories Cemetery in Kerrville on 4 February 1960.  His wife, Nell, survived him.  She later died on 13 March 1983 in Kerrville, Texas.

 

Norman and Nell Luther had the following children:

 

1.   Leland Freddie Luther.  Born 8 July 1909 in Whitebluff, Dickson County, Tennessee.  Did not marry.  No issue.  Lived at 208 Palmer Street in Kerrville, Texas.  Died 10 May 1993.  Buried in Garden of Memories Cemetery, Kerrville.

 

2.   Horace Norman Luther, Jr.  Born 18 September 1913.  Married 25 April 1936 in Kerrville, Texas to Marjorie Elizabeth Neal.  See the Neal group. 

 

3.   Doyle Sidney Luther.  Born 23 April 1919 in Whitebluff, Dickson County, Tennessee.  Married on 8 March 1941 in Houston, Harris County, Texas to Margaret Garland Woodruff.  He was an office manager for Codera Inc., a subsidiary of the Sperry Gyroscope Company in California.  He died 2 January 1956 in Menlo Park, San Mateo County, California.  Buried in Garden of Memories Cemetery in Kerrville, Texas on 5 January 1956.  Issue: 

            3a.  Martha Nell Luther.  Born 21 September 1942 in Houston, Harris County, Texas.  Married 24 May 1964 in Houston to Jay Byron Nichols.

            3b.  Mildred Paulette Luther.  Born 25 April 1946 in Houston, Texas.  Married 6 August 1973 in Houston, Texas to Francis Jesse Williams.

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HORACE NORMAN LUTHER, JR.

1913-1989

 

 

HORACE NORMAN LUTHER, JR. was born in White Bluff, Dickson County, Tennessee on 18 September 1913.  Norman Luther, Jr. was married 25 April 1936 in Kerrville, Kerr County, Texas to Marjorie Elizabeth Neal, daughter of Benjamin C. and Marjorie (Ramsey) Neal of Kerrville.  See the Neal group.

 

He was a World War II veteran, serving in the Pacific theater aboard the U.S.S. McGowan, a destroyer.

 

He worked for the U.S. Post Office for 32 years where he advanced from letter carrier to Superintendent of Mails before retiring on 1 July 1970.

 

He had been a ham radio operator most of his adult life and was proud to have a very early call sign:  W5TH.

 

They lived at 311 Washington Street in Kerrville in 1943.  In 1947, Norman Luther and his father built a new home at 509 West Main Street.  Father and son did most of the construction.  About 1956, the family bought a new home at 1142 Jackson Road. They lived here until about 1960.  The family bought another new home at 421 Bluebonnet Lane where they lived until about 1970 when they moved into a new home 513 Tomahawk Trail.  They lastly moved into a home in the country at 414 Indian Creek Road near Ingram, Texas, around 1977.  At the time of Marjorie Luther's death, the family had just bought and were in the process of moving into a new lakeside home at Trinity, Texas. She died in a hospital in San Antonio, Texas on 12 March 1984.

 

Norman Luther, Jr. died, at age 75, on 15 March 1989 at Kerrville, Kerr County, Texas.  At that time he was living with his daughter, Beverly, at 105 Highway 27 West in Ingram, Texas.  He was buried at Fairmont Cemetery on 20 March 1989, beside his wife, in San Angelo, Texas.

 

Also see “The 1931 Earthquake in Kerrville” found in another section of Kerr Photos & More

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THE NEAL FAMILY

OF 

KERR COUNTY, TEXAS

© Joseph Neal Luther
(Complete book available at the LDS Family History Library in Salt Lake City
as “The Family Chronicles: A Genealogy:  Book 1 - The Luther Family And Related
Lines.”    by Joseph Neal Luther
929.273 L977Lj v.1 - JSMB US/CAN Book)
(Excerpts on the Kerr County TXGenWeb page
used by permission of the author)
(**** designates a skip from the original text)

 

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The Neal family had been Quakers since their traditional ancestor, William Neal, joined the Society of Friends in Leicestershire, England in the mid 1600s.  This family was forced from England by religious persecution and moved to Ireland with many of their fellow Quakers.  In Ireland, the Neal family lived in Rosenallis in Queen's County. 

 

Later, this Neal family and their relations moved from Ireland to Chester County, Pennsylvania with other Quakers.  William Penn, who joined the Religious Society of Friends in 1666, obtained the Charter of Pennsylvania from Charles II in 1681 in payment of a debt of £16,000 owed to his father.  Pennsylvania was established in 1682 as a "holy experiment" on religious principles.  Each congregation is known as a Monthly Meeting, from the practice of holding business meetings one a month.  The first Friends Meeting in Pennsylvania was in Chester County.  The nearby Meeting House at New Garden was built in 1713.  West of there was the Meeting House at Sadsbury.  This is the area where Henry Neal was located.

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BENJAMIN NEAL

1748-1823

 

Benjamin Neal was born circa 1748 in Sadsbury, Chester County, Pennsylvania, the son of Henry and Sarah (O'Mooney) Neal.  Family tradition states that Benjamin Neal was a Captain in the Revolutionary War, but no documentation can be found to prove this tradition.

 

Benjamin Neal apparently married Elizabeth Looney around 1772 in Virginia.  Elizabeth Looney was born in 1753 in Hagerstown, Maryland and died after  1840 in Jefferson County, Tennessee.  She is traditionally described as the daughter of Absolam and Margaret Looney of Jefferson County, Tennessee.    (See Families of Jefferson County, Tennessee., 1992)

 

Benjamin Neal moved to Hawkins County, United States Territory South of the Ohio River in November 1791.  He had a land grant for 640 acres near Mossy Creek, adjacent to Adam Peck's Mill, and by the old road leading from Mossy Creek, now the area of Jefferson City, Tennessee, to Nance's Ferry on the Holston River…….Benjamin Neal is noted as being a Captain of the 3rd Regiment of Green County, Tennessee on 3 October 1807.

 

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Benjamin Culberson  “Cub” Neal was born 31 August 1895 in Sherman, Grayson County, Texas, the son of James Thomas and Mary Elizabeth (Fuller) Neal…..He was married on Wednesday, 2 June 1915, in Paris, Lamar County, Texas to Marjorie Fern Ramsey, the daughter of Frank Whitelaw and Ada Belle (McCoy) Ramsey.  They were married at the Ramsey home, 525 Culberson, in Paris. 

 

At the time of their marriage, Ben Neal was the proprietor of a bicycle repair and supply shop.  He and Marjorie lived at the corner of Magnolia and Sherman Streets in Paris at the time of their 1915 wedding.

 

Ben and Marjorie Neal had only one child, Marjorie Elizabeth Neal, born 20 March 1916 in Paris, Lamar County, Texas.  The city of Paris, Texas caught fire and burned the night my mother was born.  She and her mother had to be evacuated to the countryside to escape the flames.

 

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Ben C. Neal is on the 1920 Census in El Paso, Texas. He was living on Brown Street.  Living with him was his wife, Marjorie, at age 22,; his daughter Marjorie, at age 3 9/12; and his brother-in-law, Frank M. Ramsey, at age 17.    At this time, Ben Neal was the owner and operator of a garage.  Frank Ramsey was his bookkeeper.  (55-ED 72- Sheet 4- Line 37)

 

His United States identity card for use on the Mexican border gives his 1921 address as 1014 Pirdras, El Paso, Texas.  It notes he was 5 ft 10 in with brown eyes and blond hair.

 

In 1923, Ben Neal filed a number of mining claims in Arizona….In Miami, Arizona, he was the proprietor of the Universal Garage.  He also owned stock in the Intermountain Building and Loan Association of Arizona.  In 1924 through 1927, Ben Neal was a member of Rotary International of Miami, Arizona, as well as the YMCA and B.P.O. Elks Lodge No. 1410 in Miami, Arizona.

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In 1936, he was proprietor of the Kerrville Motor Parts Co. at Clay and Water Street in Kerrville.  His driver's license issued 6 March 1936, gives his address as 363 Junction Road in Kerrville.  This was his address at the time of his death.

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Ben Neal died, at age 41, 24 October 1936 in Kerrville, Kerr County, Texas and was buried on 26 October at Fairmont Cemetery in San Angelo, Texas.  He is buried in the Neal family plot. 

 

Marjorie Fern Ramsey Neal died 21 October 1954 at her home at 511 West Main Street in Kerrville, Texas.  This was next door to her daughter.  She was buried with her first husband, Ben C. Neal, at Fairmont Cemetery in San Angelo, Texas.  She had married secondly, George Snelgrove, who died 21 March 1945 at the age of 48.  There were no children from this second marriage.

 

Marjorie Elizabeth Neal, daughter of Ben C. and Marjorie (Ramsey) Neal married H. Norman Luther, Jr.

 

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I trust you may find this genealogical information of value to Kerr County Researchers.

Joseph Luther, Ph.D.

Lincoln, Nebraska

 

 

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