Richard R. Booth's birthday

My great great grandfather...who lived only a short life.  I've already posted about him here.

b. 9.23.1846, Jackson County, Indiana,
d 5.30.1879 killed by person he was prosecuting, Hempstead, TX
married 7.20.1869 (his second w.) Eugena Almetta Whitty

I think I'd like to look at his first wife, who isn't in my direct line, but I do have a cousin living who's contributed to Ancestry...her line goes back through Jemima Johnson Booth, while mine is through Richard's second wife Eguena Almeta Witty Booth.

Jemima Johnson's parents were Harvey Johnson (1810-1870?) and Sarah (Sally) Kelly Johnson (1815-1860?).  They had married in 1832 in Randolf County, Indiana. There's no death date for Jemima's father, and we don't even know who his parents were.  He probably came from Virginia, and his widow applied for veteran's benefits in 1865, which details that he was in the 3rd NY Cav.

Sally had been born in 1815 in Kanawha County, Virginia (which became West Virginia.)  The original Ancestry listing said she died between 1852-1860.  But then how could she have requested widow's pension for her husband? She isn't listed on the 1860 census when Harvey W. Johnson was living with his 4 youngest daughters, including Jemima.  Their youngest daughter, had been born in 1852.

I noticed Thomas Johnson was the next farmer listed in the 1860 census, so I thought perhaps he was related to Harvey.  But even though I found Thomas' parents, I couldn't find a Harvey in the family.

When I tried to find out more about Jemima's mother Sarah Kelly Johnson...well I just threw up my hands.  I'm pretty sure she was the daughter of a second marriage, but there are confusing lists of siblings, and dates of marriages.  Jacob Kelly was probably her father...from Virginia.

Harvey Johnson is also on an 1870 census, which was just  added to my information at Ancestry while I've been writing this.  He was living with a Jacob Johnson.  He didn't have a son by that name, and their ages were too close... Jacob was also born in Virginia and was 55, while Harvey was 61, and listed his occupation as carpenter, while Jacob was a farmer. I am not going to go back into Jacob's family.  Aren't you proud of me to not go on another wild-goose-chase? (however, I'm making a note to see if Jacob was Harvey's brother...which could possibly give me his parents' names.)

Jemima was the fifth child of 7, and had only one brother, Zachariah.  She and Richard Booth married in 1865 in Hillsboro, Hill County, Texas when they were both 18.  The Booth family had moved from Jackson County, Indiana to Whiteside Illinois then to Texas.  In 1860 Jemima had still been living in Randolf County, IN.  Richard must have gone back to Jackson County IN, since he'd moved with his family to IL when he was just 2.  He probably didn't know Jemima until he visited IN sometime when his family was moving to Texas. They were there by the time he was 7.  It is possible that he stayed with relatives as his family moved first to IL then to TX, but there's no record of that.

When he was 4, in the 1850 Census, he lived with his parents in Whiteside, IL. And when he was 14 in the 1860 Census, he also is listed with them in Texas.

So the mystery remains, how did Richard R Booth meet his future wife, Jemima Johnson?

They had 2 children, William (Willie) Lewis Booth (1866-1940) and James L. Booth who lived from May to Sept of 1868.  Jemima died at his childbirth.

Richard R. Booth married my great great grandmother, Eugenia Almeda Witty Booth in 1869, and they had 3 children, the last dying when just 7 months old, and her mother died at the same time, which sounds like an epidemic of some kind.