The Family of
Benjamin Patton Fletcher
Benjamin
Patton Fletcher was
about 1850 in Virginia. He died
1889 in Rosser, Kaufman County, Texas due to Pneumonia. He
married 27 March 1872 in Dickson County, Tennessee, Mary
Virginia 'Jennie' Dodson.
Mary
Virginia 'Jennie' Dodson was born about 1852 in Dickson
County, Tennessee. She died about May 1890 in Rosser,
Kaufman County, Texas. She is the daughter of John Dempsey Dodson
and Susan Willey.
The children of Benjamin and Jennie Fletcher:
Lucien
Beauregard Fletcher
was born 17 May 1873 in McEwen,
Humphrey's County, Tennessee. He died 23 January 1849 in Rosser,
Kaufman County, Texas. He is buried in Cottonwood Cemetery. He
married 22 February 1899 in Scurry, Kaufman County, Texas,
Susan 'Susie' Ann Smith.
Ida
Jane Fletcher was born March 1875 in McEwen, Humphrey's
County, Tennessee. She died 1914 in Jumbo, Pushmataha County,
Oklahoma and is buried in Jumbo Cemetery. She married
01 October 1889 in Kaufman County, Texas, John Henry Klutts.
Charles
P. Fletcher was
born about 1877 in McEwen, Humphrey's
County, Tennessee. He died July 1883 in Rosser, Kaufman County,
Texas at the age of 9 years. He is buried in the small grave
next to his parents.
Benjamin
Franklin Fletcher was born 21 June 1879 in McEwen,
Humphrey's County, Tennessee. He died 01 April 1955 in Melrose,
Curry County, New Mexico and is buried in Melrose Cemetery.
He married 08 November 1899 in Lampasas, Lampasas County,
Texas, Alzada Foley.
George
A. Fletcher was
born March 1880 in McEwen, Humphrey's
County, Tennessee. He died August 1882 in Ennis, Ellis County,
Texas at the age of 2 years.
Henry
Clay Fletcher
was born 10 August 1882 in Ennis, Ellis County,
Texas. He died 13 August 1951 in Loma Linda, San Bernardino
County,
California and is buried in Montecito Memorial Park Cemetery. He
married 09 October 1904 in Hamilton, Hamilton County, Texas,
Effie Lillian Lawrence.
Lydia
Mae Fletcher was
born 21 March 1886 in Crandall, Kaufman
County, Texas. She died 10 July 1961 in Clovis, Curry County, New
Mexico and is buried in Floyd Cemetery in Floyd, Rooseverlt
County,
New Mexico. She married 14 August 1907 in Gentry's Mill, Hamilton
County, Texas, U. G. Lawrence.
Winnie
Lee Fletcher
was born April 1890 in Crandall, Kaufman County,
Texas. It is not known to me when she died or where. She married
first
#1 William Henry 'Harry' Self #2 Dr. James Henry Buff #3 J. W.
Lambert.
Benjamin Franklin Fletcher Documentation
Marriage
Record:
Dickson
County, Tennessee
Benjamin
Fletcher and Mary V. Dodson
1860
Scott Co, VA Estillville P.O. pg 68
HH#638-638
Sarah Fletcher 50 f Spinster b. VA
Fletcher, Craig " 15 m Farm Hand b. VA
Fletcher,
Patton " 10 m b. VA
Fletcher, Ortha " 6 f b. VA
1870
Scott Co, VA Johnston Township p. 46
HH#317-31
Fletcher, Sarah 63 f w
Keeping House b. Virginia
Fletcher, Orpha E 15 f w Keeping House
"
Fletcher,
Benjamine P 19 m w Farm Labor "
Fletcher, Mary F 5 f w At Home "
1880
5th Civil District, Humphreys County, Tennessee
ED 99 Sheet 23 A Line 7 Page 112 HH#180-1801
Fletcher,
Ben w m 30 Farmer b. VA - VA - VA
Fletcher, Mary V w f 28 wife Keeping
house b. TN - TN - TN
Fletcher, Loution B w m 7 son At home
TN - VA - TN
Fletcher, Ida J w f 5 dau At home TN -
VA - TN
Fletcher, Chas P w m 3 son At home TN -
VA - TN
Fletcher, Ben F w m 1 son At home TN -
VA - TN
Fletcher, Geo A w m 3 mos son At home
TN - VA - TN
Death
Records:
Benjamin
Patton Fletcher
Died of Pnuemonia 1889 in Rosser, Kaufman County, Texas
Mary
Virginia 'Jennie' Dodson Fletcher
Died of Yellow Jaundice May 1890 in Rosser, Kaufman Co, TX
The
Story Behind Benjamin Patton Fletcher
My great great grandfather, Benjamin Patton Fletcher, who was
born in the State of Virginia about 1850. We know atleast 1860 to
1870,
he is found in Scott County, Virignia living with a spinster
female,
named Sarah Fletcher. It was after 1870 and before 1872 that
Benjamin
left Virginia and moved to Tennessee.
He met Mary Virginia 'Jennie' Dodson, fell in love and married
her
the 27th day of March, 1872. Jennie was voted the most beautiful
woman
in Humphrey's County, Tennessee during her time of living there.
She is
the daughter of John Dempsey Dodson and Susan Willey.
Benjamin tried his hands at farming after he married in
Tennessee.
According to the 1880 census he was a farmer. To all of us who
have
heard the stories told from the children of Benjamin Franklin
Fletcher,
he was a railroad worker. Benjamin tried for 10 years to farm the
lands
of Tennessee. Farming and increasing his family. The year 1873
brought
Lucien, 1875 brought Ida, 1876 brought Charles, 1879 brought
Benjamin F.
and in 1880 comes George. These are the children that Benjamin
and
Jennie Fletcher would travel that long dusty trail from Tennessee
to Texas
with.
I imagine no cars in the year of 1882, and the Fletcher family
would
have to travel by a horse pulled covered wagon, holding 5
children and
what provisions they would need for this long journey from
Tennessee
to Texas. Finding room for those items that Jennie could not bare
to
leave behind. This journey would take several months to complete.
Arrivng in Texas, around the first days of August 1882. The
Fletcher
family paused in Ennis, Ellis County, Texas long enough for
Jennie to
give birth to Henry Clay Fletcher on the 10th day. Yet around the
same
time of Henry's birth, George A. Fletcher was taken from his
family.
Through the joys of birth, came the saddness of burying George in
Ellis County, and immediately having to move on to Kaufman County
where Benjamin would begin working for the railroads.
It is not know how or when he began working for the railroad. We
know that he left Tennessee about 1882 and headed towards Texas.
Texas
was building railroads. There was two railroads going up in Texas
in the
1880's. It was the Texas Midland Railroad that was being built in
the
Kaufman County area in 1882.
Benjamin worked in Texas for the railroad company from 1882,
until
his death in 1889. He was a very strong man, and could carry one
rail
road tie by himself. Where many of the men had to carry railroad
ties
using two men. In the winter months of 1889, Benjamin contracted
pneumonia. The illness he could not overcome, because it took his
life.
In July 1883, Charles P. Fletcher was taken from his family. He
is the
son buried next to his parents, in the cemetery they were buried
in. In the
Kaufman County History Vol 1, from a newspaper clipping, it
states " A
small child of Mr. Fletchers died last week" July 1883.
Charles would have
been about 9 years old.
In 1885, another child was born to this family, Lydia Mae
Fletcher.
She was born in Crandall, Kaufman County, Texas. Also at the time
of
Benjamin's death, Jennie was pregnant with what would become
their
last child. Winnie Lee Fletcher, was born in April of 1890,
according
to the 1900 census. It was 6 months after the death of Benjamin
that
Winnie was born, and still yet another tradegy would strike this
family,
when Jennie herself contracted Yellow Jaundice after the birth of
Winnie,
and died about 2 weeks later.
The
Dodson family in Tennessee after recieving word that Benjamin
and Jennie had both died in Texas, leaving 6 children stranded
there,
wired money to the children to purchase train tickets. Lucien was
the
receiver of that money, being only a young teenager himself, did
not
realize the concequences of what he had done before it was
probably
to late to take it all back. Lucien had spent all the money, and
the
Fletcher children never got their train tickets to go back to
Tennssee.
The Dodson family in Tennessee simply could not afford to send
any
more money to bring the other Fletcher children to live with
them.
In
October 1889, John Henry Klutts married the oldest daughter of
the
Fletcher children, Ida Jane Fletcher. Together John and Ida
Klutts took
into their home the other Fletcher children and raised them to
adulthood, or until they married and began raising their own
families.
By 1900 Lucien and Benjamin F. Fletcher had married, and only a
few
short years away, Henry Clay Fletcher would marry, followed by
the two youngest girls, Lydia and Winnie by 1910 they also were
married.
Ben F., Henry C., and Lydia were in Hamilton County, Texas. It
was
Lucien that remained there in Kaufman County for all of his life.
While the other Fletcher children moved on to other states in
search of
work to support their families. Henry, Lydia and Benjamins
families
ended up in New Mexico and then California. Ida and Winnies
families
went to Oklahoma and then some of their children went on to
California.
What these Fletcher children endured, only brought strength to
each
of them to raise their families doing whatever it took to
accomplish
just that. These Fletcher children were hard workers, and raising
their
families up in the Word of God. They struggled, but they survived
not just the good times, but they made it through even the vilest
of times. Leaving their memories to be passed down to future
generations.
Links To Other Fletcher Family Pages
The Family of Lucien Beauregard Fletcher
The Family of Ida Jane Fletcher Klutts
The Family of Benjamin Franklin Fletcher
The Family of Henry Clay Fletcher
The Family of Lydia Mae Fletcher Lawrence
The Family of Winnie Lee Fletcher Self Buff
This page was last updated 02 March 2014
The
above family has been merged between
Juanita Thinnes
and my own records to produce this families page.
Some
Documentation was found in
Rootsweb and USGenWeb
This page and all the pages contained in the Fletcher Family Web Site Domain
are property of The Fletcher Family Web Site, and may not be reproduced in
any form without the written permission of the Fletcher Family Web Site Designer.
