USA > South Carolina > Marion County > A history of Marion county, South Carolina, from its earliest times to the present, 1901 > Part 21
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MACE .- Another family will now be noticed, the Mace family. The grand-father of the late John Mace was named John Mace, who came from Maryland in the time of the Revo- lutionary War, being a widower, with one child, a son, named John, then a small boy; the old gentleman married a Widow Crawford; by her he had no offspring; he died and his widow again married a Mikell. The son, John, grew up and married, first, a Miss Franky Finklea, a sister of old "Corn-making Willis Finklea;" by this marriage he had five children, Mat- thew, Moses, Elizabeth (Betsy), Mary (Polly) and Martha (Patsy) ; his first wife died, and he married again, a sister of his first wife, named Martha (Patsy) ; by the second marriage he had Franky, John, Massey, Sallie, James and Rhoda; of all these children by both marriages, Matthew, the oldest, never married, and died with a good property, about 1853. Moses married Miss Drusilla Miles, a daughter of David Miles, the grand-father of Dr. D. F. Miles ; by this marriage he had six children, Martha Ann, John M., Verzilla, Gregory, James and Mary. Martha Ann has already been noticed in or among the Fore family, and John M. was noticed in or among the Watson family. Verzilla married William C. Bethea, and after having several children, they moved to Texas, where father and mother, and perhaps some of the children, died in an epidemic of yellow fever ; and Frank A. Miles and others of their friends made up money and sent out to that far-off State (Dallas, Texas, I believe,) and brought the surviving children back to this State and county; they have grown up, but what has become of them is not known to the writer. Dr. Gregg Mace and his brother, James, both went to the Confederate War, and both were killed or died of disease, both unmarried. Mary Mace married a man by the name of Adams, and left the State; don't know anything further of her. Elizabeth Mace married the late John H. Moody; by this marriage there was only one child, a daughter ; she grew up and married the late Major S. A. Durham ; only one child, a daughter, was the result of this latter marriage; she grew up and married a Mr. Gorham, of North Carolina, to which State they went; nothing further is known of them. Mary (Polly) married Hal Crawford, and went West; nothing further is known of them. Martha
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(Pattie) married Cary Edwards ; of her and her family notice has already been taken in or among the Edwards family. Franky, the oldest child by the second marriage of old John Mace, married Colonel John Roberts; of their family notice has already been taken in or among the Roberts family. John Mace (the late) married Verzilla Berry, of whom notice has already been taken in or among the Berry family. Massey, a daughter, married the late David Monroe; by her he had one child, a daughter, when his wife died; the daughter grew up, and married a Mr. King, in North Carolina ; nothing further is known of her. Sallie Mace married Wesley White; by this marriage was a son, James White, and several daughters. James White is still unmarried. Another son, William, older than James, was killed or died in the war. Of the daughters, one married Hugh Davis, and is a widow, with several child- ren ; another daughter, Susan, married Joseph Game, and has no children; another married Benjamin Philips, and is now a widow, with several children; another married Thomas Har- grove; they have several children ; and there are two unmarried daughters, Martha and Sallie. James Mace, brother to the late John Mace, died in 1846, when a young man, unmarried. Rhoda Mace, the youngest by old John Mace's second mar- riage, married William S. Lewis ; by this marriage five children were born and raised, Sarah, Evan, Joel, Wesley and Anne. Sarah Lewis married Robert Edwards, and has been noticed in or among the Edwards family. Evan Lewis did not marry till late in life; he married a Miss Avant, and I suppose has some children; he is one of our good citizens. Joel Lewis went West, and is said to be doing well. Wesley Lewis mar- ried Miss Addie Potter, of Marion, turned out badly, and has gone West ; his wife is now at Marion; she has three children, a son, Charles, who is in Georgia, but provides for his mother and sisters-a dutiful son; the two daughters are with their mother, living on a place in town, which her son, Charley, bought for her, and paid $300 for it, and provides for her in other ways. All the sons and daughters of old John Mace are dead. One daughter of Rhoda Lewis above forgotten; her name was Anna; a charming woman, as it was said; she married, first, Marion Avant, who was killed or died in the
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war, left one child; the widow, after the war, went to Wil- mington, and there married a Mr. Wilson, by whom she has one child, a daughter, now a grown young lady ; her son, Willie Avant, was a locomotive engineer for the Atlantic Coast Line for many years ; he died last August, leaving a widow and some children. Moses Mace died in 1836 or 1837. John Mace died in 1885. Matthew Mace died about 1854, and James Mace died about 1846. The Maces as a family are and were ener- getic and prudent managers of affairs, economical and frugal, held to what they had and added to it all they could, peaceable and quiet people, not ambitious of public favor.
FINKLEA .- Another family, once numerous and somewhat prominent, but now reduced in numbers to but a few, are the Finkleas ; they have been much reduced by emigration. There were two old Finkleas in the early times in the county-John Finklea and "Corn-making Willis." John Finklea, whose wife was a Crawford, with his numerous family, went to Ala- bama, and died there about 1850. Captain J. C. Finklea, a grand-son, now in Wahee Township, is the only representative of that branch of the family. Of "Corn-making Willis" fam- ily, the only remaining ones bearing the name are Hardy Finklea, of Latta,* who has one son, named Willis ; and Alfred Finklea, who has three sons, John, Alfred and Hugh; and a son of Thomas Finklea, deceased, named Neill. Upon these depend the perpetuation of the name in the county, and not only the name, but the reputation of it. Captain J. C. Finklea is sixty-three years of age, and has no child or children, and it is not presumable that he ever will have any.
HASELDEN .- Another family to be noticed is the Haselden family. There were three Haselden brothers, John, William and James; don't know which was the older, nor is anything known of their ancestors. John Haselden married Elizabeth Godbold, daughter of old General Thomas Godbold; by this marriage three children were born and raised, Cyrus B. Hasel- den, Hugh G. Haselden and Jane Haselden; don't know which was the older. John Haselden, the father, died, and the widow
*Hardy Finklea, since writing the above, died.
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married the late David Monroe, and by her had two sons, Col- onel James Monroe, of Confederate fame, and our respected fellow-citizen, Dr. F. M. Monroe, of Latta. Cyrus B. Hasel- den married Miss Labennon Bass, daughter of the late old Joseph Bass; by this marriage one child was born, and the mother died, and a few months afterwards the child died. The grand-father, Bass, had died before the death of Mrs. Hasel- den. Thus, by three successive deaths, Cyrus B. Haselden, the husband and father, became the heres factus, one of the heirs of the large estate of Joseph Bass, and as such received in property and money from $10,000 to $15,000. There were ten of the Bass heirs, including C. B. Haselden; he soon after married Miss Sallie Finklea, a niece of the writer's wife, and by her he had five children, Lucy, John, Maggie, Fannie and Frank. In the meantime, Cyrus B. Haselden went through with all his property, and whilst his children were all small, the youngest, Frank, about two years old, he took the train one night (not letting his family know anything about it) and left ; he went to Arkansas, and has not been seen in this country since. His wife and her children were taken by her mother, Mrs. Margaret Finklea, and the children were raised respect- ably and in good credit; they all married respectably and all doing well. The other brother, Hugh G. Haselden, volun- teered in the Confederate army, and was killed or died in the same; he married, I think, a Miss Foxworth, and had some children, one or two sons, who are among us, but whose name or names is or are unknown. Jane Haselden, a very pretty girl, married, in 1850, Hon. C. D. Evans, of the Marion bar, and has had and raised seven sons and one daughter; they have been noticed hereinbefore in or among the Evans family. Mrs. Jane Evans is now a widow, and an excellent lady she is. Of William Haselden's family, the writer can't say anything ; they are, if living, in Darlington, Florence and Williamsburg Counties. Of Major James Haselden and family, the writer can speak with some certainty. Major James Haselden mar- ried Mary Godbold, another and the youngest daughter of old General Thomas Godbold; the fruits of the marriage were Charles, Anna, Sarah, Jane, James G. and Maggie-all now dead except Charles and Anna. Charles Haselden married
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Miss Julia Ellerbe, and notice of their family has already been taken herein or among the Ellerbe family, not necessary to repeat it; and the same may be said as to Sarah's family, already spoken of among the Ellerbes. Of Jane and her fam- ily, notice has already been taken in and among the Berry family. Of James G. Haselden and his family, now here among us-he married Miss Rebecca Dudley, of Marlborough County, an excellent lady ; the fruits of the marriage are James Dudley Haselden, Carrie Haselden, Luther M. Haselden and Lawrence Benton Haselden; of these none are married except James Dudley Haselden ; he married Miss Mary Edwards, a very nice girl; they live in her patrimonial home, and have two children, sons, named J. Dudley and William E. Haselden, an infant. The grand-father, Major James Haselden, and the son, James G. Haselden, and the grand-son, J. Dudley Hasel- den, have all been honored by the people of the county with a seat in the State Legislature-the latter, or grand-son, twice. James G. Haselden died at his home on the 20th April, 1900. Major James Haselden died in 1864, at the age of fifty-nine. Major Haselden in many respects was a model man, and excel- lent farmer, a good neighbor and a very successful man; he was modest and unassuming; a man of fine sense and good humor, of good habits and genteel in demeanor and appear- ance; he accumulated a large property, wholly unencumbered at his death, and was divided among his heirs without the interposition of any Court; he was greatly missed in his com- munity. The Haselden family are not long-lived. The writer heard Charles Haselden say when he was sixty-nine, that he was the oldest Haselden he ever knew. J. G. Haselden was sixty at the time of his death.
BASS .- The Bass family will be next noticed. The first Bass of which the writer has any information was Joseph Bass; he married a Miss Jones, sister of John Jones, Bryant and Thomas N. Jones. By the older people, her contempora- ries, she was spoken of in very high terms as an excellent lady, industrious and frugal, ever looking with a keen eye to the welfare of her household, and with all, and above all, was a pious, good woman-truly a "mother in Israel;" they settled
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on Catfish, on the road leading from Berry's Cross Roads to Harlleesville, now the property of James Berry, and is yet called the "old Bass place;" they raised a family of sons and daughters ; the sons were Joseph, Bryant and Robert, and three or four daughters, names unknown. The old people accumu- lated a good property for that day and time. Of the sons, Joseph, the oldest, married Miss Massey Crawford, and first settled just below the present town of Latta, on the place now owned by the Widow Thomas J. Bass and her four sons ; after- wards he moved to the place where the late Captain James W. Bass lately lived and died. Joseph, the second, raised five sons and six daughters. The sons were James W., Joseph R., Enos, Thomas R. and John C. Bass ; the daughters were Eliza- beth, Harriet, Laura, Helen, Adarezer and Lebanon. Of the five sons, James W. Bass married late in life Miss Lucy Moody, daughter of the late Barfield Moody ; by this marriage they had and raised to be grown, C. G. Bass, Edgar, Robert, George F., T. Leon, Lucius and Rufus. The widow, Lucy, died a few years ago, suddenly. The second son, Joseph R., married Miss Amelia Moody, a daughter of the late Eliza- beth Moody, of Buck Swamp, and settled on the land now covered in part by the town of Latta, and died there in 1866, leaving four children, two daughters and two sons- Araminta and Rosa, and Addison L. and Thomas J. Ara- minta, the oldest, married Hugh Ellis, and lived only a year or two, and died childless. Rosa married our fellow-citizen, David E. Watson, and has already been noticed in or among the Watson family. Addison L. Bass married Miss Ellen Watson, daughter of the late William Watson, resides now at Latta, and has been already noticed in or among the Watson family. Thomas J. Bass, the youngest son, married Miss Hor- tensia Watson, daughter of the late Matthew Watson, who has already been somewhat noticed herein in or among the Watson family. But his death was so tragic and unusual that I deem it proper in this place to notice it more particularly. He was a juryman in Marion, at a June term of the Court, about fifteen years ago, and was discharged from the Court on Tuesday evening ; he went home in perfect health and vigor. On the next afternoon he left home to go to the postoffice, just across
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Buck Swamp, at the Bailey Ford, and went a footpath around the plantations next to the swamp, it being a nearer way-a path that I suppose he had traveled five hundred times. He passed by a negro house by the side of the swamp and went to the well and drew some water and drank it; a negro woman saw him at the well. He left the well and went some two or three hundred yards to a point where a pine tree had, years before, fallen and lodged on the limb of another tree, over the path, and as he passed under the lodged tree, it broke loose from its moorings and fell upon him; and he was found that night, on the ground under the fallen tree, which fell upon him and crushed him to instant death. The tree where it struck was more than a foot through and was heavy-don't suppose he knew what struck him. It is supposed that he had walked under that lodged tree perhaps five hundred times. Such a thing would not happen again in perhaps a million of times. Thus was the tragic end of Thomas J. Bass, the youngest son and child of Joseph Bass, the third. He left his widow and four sons, Carl, Tracy, Luther and Thomas, now promising young men. Tracy is now the agent of the railroad at Sellers, S. C. The father was an energetic and persevering man-cut off in middle life. Again recurring to James W. Bass' family, his son, C. G. Bass, a boy scarcely grown at the death of his father, in 1876, took charge of the family and its circum- stances ; his father was much in debt at the time of his death; he had been the guardian of his infant niece, Helen Bass, who had a good property ; she had grown up and married the now Rev. Joel I. Allen, about the time of Captain James W. Bass' death. Captain Bass' widow administered upon his estate. Joel I. Allen called upon the administratrix for a settlement of his guardianship account with his ward, Helen, and which Allen estimated at near $10,000 due his ward-cash received, negro hire, &c. One item in the account was $3,315 cash re- ceived at one time from the Commissioner in Equity, in March, 1860, which, with interest, amounted to about $8,000. Allen, not wishing to break up Captain Bass' family, offered to take $3,315, without interest, and receipt in full. The then advisers of the administratrix, not being safe and good advisers, she declined Allen's proposition. He then filed a complaint,
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against her as administratrix and her children for an account of the guardian's transactions, and after two or three years' stiff litigation, a decree was rendered in favor of the ward for about $8,000. Defendant threatened an appeal and neglected to prosecute it till it was too late, submitted to the decree. Allen, then, in the magnanimity of his heart, not desiring to break up and beggar Captain Bass' family, offered to take the $3,315 as at first offered, without interest-notwithstanding the hot litigation and the hundreds paid out in counsel fees, loss of time and so forth, much to Allen's credit. Defendants agreed to pay the compromise. There were other debts of Captain J. W. Bass-one to F. W. Kerchner, of Wilmington, N. C., in judgment, I think, for about $1,400, compromised for $800. C. G. Bass, then hardly grown, took charge of the farm, and by his untiring energy and good management in three years' time paid up the indebtedness of his father's estate, and saved his valuable plantation, lands and other property for his mother, himself and younger brothers. These things are men- tioned herein to the everlasting credit of Rev. Joel I. Allen and Cornelius G. Bass. Notwithstanding this sacrifice on the part of these two gentlemen, they both have prospered, and are among our best citizens. C. G. Bass married his cousin, Miss Lula Deer; the result of their marriage is one son, yet a little boy. Enos Bass, the third son of Joseph the second, died a young man, unmarried, before his father. Thomas R. Bass, the fourth son of Joseph the second, grew up and studied med- icine, and located in West Marion (now Florence County), on Lynch's River ; married a Miss Carter, raised a nice family of sons and daughters, and accumulated a large property, educated his children, was a good citizen and useful man ; was a Repre- sentative from Marion County in the Legislature of 1870; died some years ago, much respected and largely regretted by his people ; his family is scattered-don't know enough about them to particularize. John C. Bass, the fifth and youngest son and child of Joseph the second, born in March, 1835, yet survives, and lives near Latta ; he is the only survivor of that large fam- ily, male or female; he married, first, Miss Hannah Jane Bethea, daughter of the late Levi Bethea; they lived together for many years, when she died, childless ; he married, a second
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time, a lady whose name is not now remembered; she died at her first accouchement, neither she nor the child surviving; John has not married again-apparently the name will die out or disappear, so far as he, John C. Bass, is concerned. Of the daughters of Joseph the second, the oldest, Elizabeth A., mar- ried Rev. S. J. Bethea, his second wife; only one child to live, was the fruit of this marriage, born October 7th, 1857, now the Rev. S. J. Bethea, of the South Carolina Conference of the M. E. Church, South; she was a most excellent woman, died a year or two ago. Harriet, the second daughter, married the late John R: Bethea, 2d February, 1842. The writer was one of the guests at the marriage. The results of this mar- riage were two daughters, Almira, now the wife of Joseph Allen, of Latta, and Addie, now the wife of Ed. B. Watson; and five sons, Joseph J. Bethea, our well known and much re- spected fellow-citizen of Latta, who married his distant cousin, Carrie Bethea; they have no children. Lewis S. Bethea, whose first wife was a Miss McPherson, of West Marion, and who died some years ago, leaving five or six children; Lewis married, a second time, Miss Roberta Floyd, a daughter of Mrs. Zilpha Floyd, near Campbell's Bridge; there are two or three children from this last marriage. Harris C. Bethea, a third son, became a Methodist traveling preacher, and after traveling for several years, by some means or other, unknown to the writer, he quit the Methodist Church and ministry, joined the Baptist Church, and became and is now a minister in that denomination ; he married some lady in Sumter County, and there now resides ; know nothing of his family. Another son, Walter E. Bethea, now a citizen of Latta, married a Miss Rouse, of Williamsburg County, an excellent woman; they have no children. Thomas C., the fifth and youngest son of the late John R. Bethea, sickened and died when about twenty- one years of age. Laura Bass, the third daughter of Joseph the second, married her first cousin, David S. Bass; she had and left one child only, Helen, when she died; that child from early girlhood was raised by her guardian, Captain James W. Bass, and became the first wife of Rev. Joel I. Allen, as hereinabove mentioned; she left five children. David S. Bass afterwards married a Miss Powers, and went off to George-
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town County ; know nothing further of him. Helen Bass, the fourth daughter of Joseph the second, married W. H. Smith, of Buck Swamp; by him she had two children, daughters, and then died; those daughters grew up, and one married Law- rence Sessions; they raised a considerable family, now young people among us, quite respectable; the other married a Mr. Moody, son of the late Hugh Moody, whose name the writer has forgotten; know nothing further of them. Adarezer, the fifth daughter of Joseph Bass the second, married her first cou- sin, James E. Coxe, of Marlborough, and raised a family of four children, two sons and two daughters; Mrs. Coxe died in the spring of 1900; they being in Marlborough, the writer can trace the family no further. Lebanon Bass, the sixth and youngest daughter of Joseph the second, married Cyrus B. Haselden, as hereinbefore stated in and among the Haselden family, to which reference is made. Joseph Bass the second, notwithstanding his large family of eleven children, all raised to be grown, by his energy and frugality amassed a large fortune for his day and time; he died intestate, in 1854; his estate was valued at $150,000, unencumbered; his wife, Massey, preceded him to the grave, in December, 1846. The Bass family, back to Joseph the first, including all the descend- ants, as far as known, have been noted for their large hospital- ity. Joseph the second, gave away more at his table in one year than some of his equally well-to-do neighbors did in a whole lifetime; he and all his sons were close and tight on a trade, exacting to the last cent; but go to their homes, and their hospitality was most lavish. Of the eleven children, John C. Bass, now sixty-five years old, only survives. Of the other sons of Joseph the first, Bryant Bass married Miss Jane Rogers, daughter of old Eli Rogers; by her he had five child- ren, three sons and two daughters, and died before reaching middle life, well-to-do and prosperous. Of his sons, David S. has already been spoken of; the other two sons, William and Robert, emigrated West in early manhood; know nothing further of them. Of the two daughters, Louisa and Anna, the former married John S. Page, who died in first of the war, as already noticed in or among the Page family ; he left some sons and two daughters; one of the sons, William, was killed
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in Sheriff Berry's posse, twenty-five or thirty years ago, as already stated; think another son or two went to parts un- known. One daughter married Joseph Smith, from whom she was divorced in the seventies, while that law was in force; don't know where she is or what has become of her. The other daughter of John S. Page and wife married C. J. McColl, now of Mullins, a prosperous man and good citizen; has been a cotton buyer for years and is still thus engaged; they have a family of children to the writer unknown. Robert Bass, the third son of Joseph the first, married Miss Mahala Deer; by her he had four children, one son and three daughters ; he died when quite a young man ; like his brothers, he was prospering at the time of his death; the widow married again; don't re- member to whom; they removed West in the forties; know nothing of them since. Of the daughters of Joseph the first, one married old Daniel Platt, who died in 1839 or '40; she was the progenitress of all the Platts in the county, from that time until now, and there have been many and their connections, yet the name Platt is now extinct in the county, except R. B. Platt and children of Mullins. Another daughter, Nancy, married a Mr. Coxe, of Marlborough; Coxe died, leaving her a widow, well-to-do, with three sons, Edwin, James and Rob- ert; the eldest and youngest both died unmarried; Robert was a doctor; James Coxe is still living, a well-to-do citizen and highly respectable. Another daughter of old Joseph the first, Dicey, married a Tart, whose name is now forgotten; they went West. Recurring to the children of Bryant Bass: his youngest daughter, Anna, married Samuel Smith, son of old Samuel Smith, on Buck Swamp; she is still living, and has raised several children, daughters and sons; one the wife of Dr. Connelly; one the wife of R. B. McLean, of Dillon- McLean married two of them ; she has three sons, young men, unknown to the writer. Bryant Bass' widow married Salathiel Moody, and by him had two children, a son and a daughter ; the son was idiotic and died; the daughter grew up, and mar- ried Mack Martin ; think they went West-at any rate, have lost sight of them. Recurring to the family of Captain James W. Bass; his second son, Edgar, married, a few years ago, a Miss McIntyre, of Carmichael Township, and immediately I6
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