Part 2B
The firstborn child of William and Charlotte Warner Morris was Wettenhall Warner Morris (1794-1849), the namesake of his mother's father. Also known as Whit, he served together with his father William Morris under his Uncle Thomas C. Warner, in the 12-13th Consolidated Louisiana Militia in the Battle of New Orleans. Having rendezvoused at the Madisonville shipyard under the command of Capt. William Bickham, he served in the military until January 31, 1815, when he was discharged.
On January 28, 1818, Wettenhall "Whit" Warner Morris wed Sally Richardson (1800-1852), with the ceremony officiated by Magistrate Benjamin Richardson who was her uncle. Whit was appointed Sheriff of Washington Parish for the year 1844 and part of the year 1845. In addition to being a politician and soldier, Whit was a farmer who amassed a sizeable estate. According to Dr. E. Russ Williams, Jr., whose book "Kinsmen All Descendants of Wettenhall Warner and Related Families" is my sole source for this series of columns, Whit's life was a "tragic" one. His life was short, and buried with his wife Sally and two grandchildren, his grave, located in the woods abutting the Bogue Chitto River near Lock #3, was unmarked. At that time, there was no stone or marker.
Dr. Williams cited several excerpts from the Whit Morris and Sally Richardson Morris's succession, a lengthy record which revealed the heirs. The couple had the following children: Charlotte Morris (1819-1875), John Edward Morris (1820-1904), Cassander Morris (1823-__), Francis (Frances) "Fanny" Morris (1827-1866), Polly Morris (1827/1828-1902), William Fount Morris (1829-__), Melissa Morris (1830-1907/1908), Nancy Morris (1831-__), Melinda Morris (1832-__), Thomas Morris (1834-__), James Morris (1837-__), and Chessley B. Morris (1839-1864).
Daughter Charlotte Morris married William H. Jones (1815-1880) around 1844 in Washington Parish. He was a Private in Co. K, 3rd Wingfield's Louisiana Cavalry, CSA. The couple resided near Enon and together had a large family. Their children included George Jones (1846-1913), who married Helena Moore, first, and Milly Cooper, second; Arcadia Jones, who born in 1848 died as an infant; William Ira Jones (1849-1896), who married Virginia D. Moore, first, and Sarah A. Steward, second; Thomas M. Jones (1851-1925), who married Josephine Moore, first, and Almira Narcissus Miller, second; Starline/Starling Jones (1855/1856-1909), who married Coriann Delphine Magee; Burrell Jones (1858-1949), who married Estelle Talley, first, and Adeline Lloyd, second; John K. Jones (1859-1942), who married Mary C. Ezell; Wettenhall Jones (1864-1941), who was known as "Whit" and who married Martha E. Mizell, first, and Amanda Corkern, second; Mary Anne Jones (1868-1931), who married Eugene Talley; and Emily M. Jones, who married Hast Ezell and died young in 1893.
As a personal note, my parents' dear friend Dr. Hollis Ancil Stafford, Jr. (1925-2011) was the son of Dr. Hollis A. Stafford and wife Lela Jones Stafford who was born in 1898 to Whit Jones and wife Amanda Corkern Jones of Enon.
Son John Edward Morris was first a farmer, residing on the farm of Whit Morris at Sun. But by 1860 he had relocated his family to Franklinton and had become the assistant Federal Marshall responsible for that year's Census. With the Civil War in the works, John Edward Morris at age forty-one enlisted with Co. I (Washington Rifles) of the 9th Louisiana Infantry, on March 8, 1862, in Franklinton. Arriving on the battlefront in Virginia, John was promoted first to 3rd Corporal and then to 1st Sergeant. After he was wounded by gunshot, he was hospitalized and returned home. Following the war, John served as tax collector from 1868-1872. He was a member of Centenary Methodist Church and a Master Mason in Lodge #101 in Franklinton. John married Jane Mizell around 1845, and they had three children. Then, after Jane's death in 1856 he married Mary McCain with whom he had more children. He and his third wife Alsayne Talley were without issue. John's offspring included Benjamin Carter Morris (1864-__), who married Mary Jane Davis; Jacob Wood Morris (1848-1893), who married Mary Isabella Bowman; Burnette Morris (1849-1918), who married James Pierce; Christopher Pompey Morris (1857-1928), who married Molly Burris, first, and Floretta Thomas, second; Jemima Morris (1851-1928), who married William Henry Harrison Welch; and Margaret Morris, who born in 1861 died at age three.
Daughter Cassander Morris married Ransifer Jones with whom she moved to Arkansas (Lafayette County). While information is scant on this family, Dr. Williams noted that the 1850 Census for Lafayette County revealed that Ransifer was a farmer and that the couple had three children - James, Hardy R., and John D. Jones. Hardy R. Jones married Mary J. Fiser.
Daughter Frances (Francis) "Fanny" Morris wed William Mizell (1820-1889) with whom she lived at Sun and had eight children. They are as follows: John G. Mizell (1843-1929), who married Margaret Muskgrove; Flora Ann Mizell, who married Benton Barber; Henry Mizell (1847-1913), who married Clarinda Muskgrove; twins Porter and Jaret Mizell, born in 1849; Melissa Mizell, who wed a Barber; James Mizell, who married Martha Morris; and Charlie Mizell (1855-1927), who married Charlott Mack. After Fanny's death in 1866, William Mizell married Merintha Melinda Perry, and together they had two children: Rosa Mizell (1867-circa 1914), who married Charles Newton Toney, and Hannah Mizell (1869-1934), who married James Erwin Toney.
Daughter Polly Morris married John Haney Talley (1822-1905) who lived on Strawberry Bluff. The owner and operator of a grist mill, he served during the Civil War as a private in Company K, 3rd Wingfield's Louisiana Cavalry. The couple's children included: Sarah Ann Talley (1847-1947), who married Ira Benton McGehee; Maria (Mariah) Talley (1847-1923), who married Emmanuel Taylor; George Talley (1852-1944), who married Eliza Jenkins; Bersheba Talley (1853-1914), who married Steven Mizell; Morgana (Margania) Talley (1856-1930), who married Joseph Evans Cooper; Louis Talley (1857-1953), who married Salina Talley; Thomas Talley (1861-1926), who married Armildra Adams; James Fletcher Talley (1865-1934), who married Theresa Magee, first, Lenora Fussell, second, Charlotte Sharp, third, and Mary Ellen Casteliano, last; Bunyan Talley (1865-1934), who married Ann Wilmuth Jones, first, and Ada Varnado, second; Estelle Talley (1866-1901), who married Burrell Jones; Caswell Talley (1868-1953), who married Mary Jane Parker; Mary Cassy Talley (1870-1921), who married John Willis Mizell; and Rancy W. Talley (1871-1924), who married Burnette Richardson.
There is little information on William Fount Morris who left Louisiana for Texas.
Stay tuned for a future column on the remaining children of Whit and Sally Richardson Morris.
