There once was a young man, Robert Fleming Campbell,
who lived in the beautiful green hills of Tennessee.
(I will put in italics our GGG...Grandparents.)
The Campbell family he had relatives all across Tennessee,
Virginia, and North and South Carolina. Large groups of the
Campbell Clan had emigrated to America by sailing across the
Atlantic Ocean from Scotland and from North Ireland.
(If you wish to read that post click here.)
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The Campbells lived near the French Broad River
in Jefferson County, Tennessee.
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Both of Robert Fleming’s grandfathers and one of his great-grandfathers
served in the Revolutionary War and helped this land to become the United States of America.
Some interesting things about
Robert Fleming’s grandparents:
Revolutionary War Soldiers:
Robert Fleming’s grandparents:
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| George Washington at Valley Forge |
His Grandfather Archibald Campbell
was a Revolutionary soldier under
Colonel Campbell;
His father James Campbell was a
Private in the Revolutionary War
and a Waggoner at Valley Forge;
His father James Campbell was a
Private in the Revolutionary War
and a Waggoner at Valley Forge;
His Grandfather Robert Means
was a Revolutionary soldier
was a Revolutionary soldier
at Guilford House.
This means that you are what is
known as a Son or Daughter
of the Revolutionary War.
known as a Son or Daughter
of the Revolutionary War.
Pocahontas:
His Grandmother Betsy Robertson Means:
The legend was that Betsy was a
descendant of Pocahontas.
This means that you also could
be related to Pocahontas.
be related to Pocahontas.
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| Childhood home of Jane Means in North Carolina |
It was to Robert Fleming that their parents would leave this farm as well as “all farming utensils, to be possessed by him and his heirs forever.”
(If you wish to read their wills, each written in their own beautiful handwriting, along with a transcription click here.)
On January 25, 1832, Robert Fleming married Jane C. David in Jefferson City. They had six children and made their home on the family farm that Robert Fleming had inherited. There were some years when the crops flourished. But that is not always the case, as the many, many farmers in our family know, and as we shall soon see in this story.
The couple had been married for nine years when Jane became pregnant with their sixth child. Barely 40 years old, she died eight days after giving birth to Archibald David. We don’t know the details, but pregnancy and childbirth were times of much greater risk than today. And so on November 28, 1841, the six children found themselves without a mother; Robert Fleming began to raise the children and manage their farm as a single parent of William Lafayette (9), Lodemia Ann (8), Serepta Ellen (5), James White (4), Margaret Emma (2), and Archibald David (8 days).
He was not alone, though, in the household and field work. Children on a farm begin to help in practical ways at an early age, and now they surely took on additional chores. Some of the help came from slaves, including Jake and Aunt Aggie; we shall hear more about them in another blog.
The days would have been busy for the children. What chores might they have had? Did they have pets? Did they go to school? Listed below are some of those activities. Which ones might you enjoy?
Archibald David was 8 years old in the Spring of 1850.
Springtimes were busy on the family's farm by the
French Broad River in Jefferson County, Tennessee.
So much to do!
All the children would have helped:
William (18, an adult now), Lodemia (16),
Serepta (14), James (12), Margaret (10),
and even the youngest, Archibald David (8).
By the time a young man
was eight or nine years old
he was plowing fields with a
walking plow led by one or two mules.
The family vegetable garden had to be planted;
sheep had to be shorn;
corn had to be planted
as well as wheat and oats,
Irish potatoes and sweet potatoes.
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| This hand held garden plow belonged to your Great-great-grandmother Hattie Campbell |
How do we know that the family planted corn? It would be a good educated guess since corn is easily grown. Corn was as helpful for farmers as it had been for the Indians; it provides more nourishment per acre than most any other crop, stores well over winter months, can be used in a wide variety of tasty recipes, and can also serve as animal feed.
And we actually know that 1000 bushels of Corn were produced on the Robert Fleming Campbell farm “in the year ending June 1, 1850.” Again: How do we know that? From a special census: The 1850 United States Agricultural Census.
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| Line 34, 1850 Agricultural Census: 13th District, Jefferson County, Robert Campbell |
Can you find the column for corn? Mules? Sheep? What else?
Since the chart is difficult to read, here is a transcription (full census page at the bottom of this post):
Since the chart is difficult to read, here is a transcription (full census page at the bottom of this post):
125 Acres of Land Improved
100 Acres of Land Unimproved
$160 Cash Value of Farm
$180 Value of Farming Implements and Machinery
6 Horses
11 Asses and Mules
5 Milch Cows
2 Working Oxen
2 Other Cattle
50 Sheep
35 Swine
$1031 Value of Live Stock
100 Bushels Wheat
Rye
1000 Bushels Indian Corn
600 Bushels Oats
Rice
Tobacco
What questions do you have when exploring the census? Here are a few I had and some of what I learned.
Why so many more pigs than cows? Pigs, or swine, took little care. They were generally left loose to wander in nearby forests where they foraged roots, fruits, and nuts.
Sheep? The 30 sheep on the farm produced 60 pounds
of wool in 1849. They would be sheared again this Spring, and any wool that was not used by the family could be bartered or sold at nearby town markets or could be shipped along one of the many Tennessee rivers as trade had continued to increase in other states and even Europe.
of wool in 1849. They would be sheared again this Spring, and any wool that was not used by the family could be bartered or sold at nearby town markets or could be shipped along one of the many Tennessee rivers as trade had continued to increase in other states and even Europe.
Milch Cows? Any kind of dairy cow.
Why so many mules? Mules work better in hot weather than other draft animals: they do not overeat or over-drink, have fewer digestive problems and can eat cheaper, coarse
food. They accept hard work easily, are less nervous than horses, and do not need an experienced person to guide them.
food. They accept hard work easily, are less nervous than horses, and do not need an experienced person to guide them.
Would you enjoy guiding mules as they pull a field plow?
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| 1850 US Agricultural Census: 13th District, Jefferson County, Page 2 Line 34, Robert Campbell |
Ginned Cotton
60 lbs Wool
Peas and Beans
60 lbs Wool
Peas and Beans
100(?) Bushels Irish Potatoes
60(?) Bushels Sweet Potatoes
60(?) Bushels Sweet Potatoes
Barley
Buckwheat
Value of Orchard Products
Value of Orchard Products
Wine
Value of Market Gardens
20 lbs Butter
Cheese
Cheese
13 Tons Hay
Clover Seed
Other Grass Seeds
Hops
Hemp Dew Rotted
Hemp Water Rotted
Flax
Flaxseed
Silk Cocoons
Maple Sugar
Cane Sugar
Molasses
Beeswax
$ 20 Value of Homemade Manufactures
Other Grass Seeds
Hops
Hemp Dew Rotted
Hemp Water Rotted
Flax
Flaxseed
Silk Cocoons
Maple Sugar
Cane Sugar
Molasses
Beeswax
$ 20 Value of Homemade Manufactures
$140 Value of Animals Slaughtered
But even the family’s 11 hard working mules could not help the family farm through weather disasters. It was flooding that would destroy the family’s crops that year. Such is part of the rhythm of farming life; times would be hard, but not impossible.
That year also brought a series of family changes. Robert Fleming married Mary Ann Hoffer on June 19, 1850, and the children went home to a new mother. Just after Christmas and New Years they welcomed a seventh child; on January 2, 1851 Henry was born.
And perhaps the biggest change of all:
in late spring of 1852
the Robert Fleming Campbell family
decided to move to Texas.
1850 US Agricultural Census
13th District, Jefferson County, Tennessee
Census taken 11 November 1850
Year ending 1 June 1850
Page 1, Robert Campbell, line 34
1850 US Agricultural Census
13th District, Jefferson County, Tennessee
Census taken 11 November 1850
Year ending 1 June 1850
This is your great great grandad Dwight Campbell
(Hattie’s husband) standing in a field of their wheat.
Doris (Gigi), their daughter, recalls another such crop:
“One year when I was in elementary school I walked out
into a field with dad, so excited that the wheat was up
over my head. Even dad thought it was amazing.”
Thanks for visiting! See you next time.
(Hattie’s husband) standing in a field of their wheat.
Doris (Gigi), their daughter, recalls another such crop:
“One year when I was in elementary school I walked out
into a field with dad, so excited that the wheat was up
over my head. Even dad thought it was amazing.”
Thanks for visiting! See you next time.
© 2017 Copyright by Ginny Bettendorf, All Rights Reserved
