Francis H. Keller (1794 - 1856)

Born 18 Nov 1794 in Burke County, NC

Ancestors

Descendants

Died 22 Sep 1856 at age 61 in Kellertown, Bedford, Tennessee, United States

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Biography

The following article was written for the Bedford County (TN) Historical Quarterly in 2020.

The Keller Family of Bedford County, TN

The Kellers of Bedford County came from Burke County, North Carolina in 1813. We are able to close in on the time because “the Widow Keller,” Charles Keller, and Francis Keller were present to buy at the sale of Jacob Keller’s estate in Burke County in June 1813 and Charles and Francis Keller enlisted in the War of 1812 troops in Bedford County, TN in January 1814.

The “Widow Keller” was Jane, the wife of Jacob Keller. Jane’s maiden name has not been proved, but may be Hodge. John M Keller, the oldest son of Jacob and Jane Keller, had already come to Middle Tennessee with the family of his wife, Elizabeth Green, the daughter of Elijah Green. Another son, Joseph Keller, must have come at that time also as he was not a purchaser at the estate sale of Jacob Keller. The fifth son in the family was also named Jacob Keller. He came with his mother, never married, and always lived with family members.

There were two daughters in the family: Ann (Nancy) Keller --who married John Davis In Burke County, NC in 1809 was the only child to remain in North Carolina-- and Rachel Keller. John and Ann Keller Davis may be in the 1810, 1820, and 1840 census of Burke Co. They can definitely be identified in the 1850 census of McDowell County, NC (formed in 1842 from Burke County): John Davis and Nancy Davis, each 65 years old, with Catherine Davis born 1827 and Lydia Davis born 1833. They likely had several older children.

A book was written about this Keller Family, begun in the 1930s, loose-leaf, updated from time to time, by Klyne Jack Keller. Klyne Jack Keller (1898-1996) was the son of Robert Isaac Keller (1876-1957), the grandson of Francis Marion Keller (1844-1900), the great-grandson of Joseph Bartley M Keller (1823-1850), the great-great-grandson of Francis H Keller (1794-1856) and the great-great-great-grandson of Jacob Keller who died in 1813 in Burke County, NC. When Jack was growing up, there were very few people named Keller living in Bedford County, TN, but Jack heard the talk of the old people regarding many kin in Illinois, Texas, and other states. His curiosity was aroused and in the 1920s he began to travel to those states and look up his kinfolks. He kept careful records, made an ever-expanding book, and made copies for those who were interested.

Jack became the owner of the Keller Family Bible which listed the birthdates of the seven children: John M Keller 26 Sept 1782 Ann Keller 5 Nov 1785 Rachel Keller 3 Oct 1787 Charles M Keller 11 May 1790 Joseph Keller 10 Oct 1792 Francis H Keller 18 Nov 1794 Jacob Keller 20 Oct 1797

Later it was discovered that there was another son, Robert C. Keller, born 1800, apparently after the birthdates were recorded in the Bible.

What Jack Keller did not discover was the Burke County origin of his ancestors. There Hannah Erwin, age 89, was buried in the McDowell Cemetery in 1813. Deeds trace the property belonging to Hannah through three husbands: Robert Erwin/Irwin, John Miller, and John Keller. Hannah is listed as the administrator of John Keller about 1760 and also listed as the daughter of Charles and Rachel McDowell in McDowell’s 1754 Anson County, NC will. Hannah was sister to “Hunting John” McDowell and aunt of General Joseph McDowell of Kings Mountain. John and Hannah McDowell Keller are believed to be the parents of Jacob Keller.

The Jacob Keller family in Bedford County, TN is like many other families—all those whose surname is Keller have moved on or they had few or no sons—“they daughtered out” some have said.

A. John M Keller and Elizabeth Green became the parents of 1. Willis Green Keller married Margaret Hodge, 2. John Keller married Mary Ann Neece, 3. Jacob Adams Keller married Lauriet Walker, 4. Lige (Elijah) Keller, 5. Joseph Keller married Margaret Ellis, 6. Tyra Melvina Keller married Pleasant Moore Ellis, 7. Jane Keller married Clisby Ellis, 8. Talitha Keller married James Ellis, 9. Emeline Keller married John Dodds, 10.Caroline Keller born 1815. All of this family moved to Illinois before 1850.

B. Rachel Keller who married James McClure was the second daughter. Rachel Keller was born in 1787 in North Carolina, probably in Burke County, where her father, Jacob Keller, was chainbearer for a 1786 survey for Francis Hodge (Heritage of Burke Co, NC, 1981, p 237) and was on the 1790 census. In 1994 the Burke Co. Genealogical Society Journal published a road order: “pray that a jury be appointed to astablish the New Road leading ......from the head of Crooked Creek to Cain Creek....James Clark, Thos Lytle, John Mann, Jacob Keller, Robt Hodge, ...” This shows that the area where Jacob Keller lived in 1790 is now in southern McDowell County, around Old Fort, North Carolina. We know that Rachel married James McClure and came to Bedford County, Tennessee because Jack Keller interviewed some of her descendants in the early 1930s. Rachel Keller and James McClure had eight daughters and one son:

1. Daughter born 1800/1810 2. Jane McClure b. about 1813, likely married Colby C. Brown, a chair maker and carpenter 3. Jacob Keller McClure b. 25 May 1810 (or 1816) married 1. Julia A ____ born about 1820 and married 2. Eliza Jane Swearingen b. 1 Oct 1846. Jacob went to Missouri and settled in Dade County. 4. Mary McClure possibly married a Smothers 5. Elizabeth McClure b. 1823 married Joseph Morris born 1822. 6. Priscilla McClure, the second wife of Colby C. Brown. 7. Catherine (Kittie McClure), born about 1825, married John W. Green, went to Missouri. 8. Sarah Elvira McClure, born about 1831, married Daniel Stephens.

Of this family, Elizabeth McClure and Joseph Morris have descendants in Bedford County and Middle Tennessee. Their son James Waxter Morris (1848-1927) married Eliza Jane Meadows, and their children included Walter Henderson Morris (1882-1966) who married Ella Millie Foster (also a Keller descendant), Joe Keller Morris (1889-1973) who married Pearl Dye, and Ben Morris married Mary Segroves.

The daughters of Walter Henderson Morris, Waddie Mae Morris married Owen Wiser; Katherine Morris married Winston Wiser, in the walking horse industry with children Bobby and Judy Wiser; and Adeline Virginia Morris married James Ernest Ferguson. Virginia’s son Morris Dean Ferguson was a physician in Nashville and her daughter, Rachel Ferguson, married Dr. James O. Miller, who with their son Dr. James O. Miller, Jr. operated Miller’s Clinic in Madison, TN. Sons of Walter H. Morris were Ernest, Bill, Jimmy and Milton Morris. Milton Morris married Mildred McBride and their son Jim married Beth Moulder of Shelbyville.

Children of Joe Keller Morris and Pearl Dye were Lucille Morris who married Horace A Powell, Waite Morris who married Minerva Lawson, and Margaret Morris who married Robert A. Brown. Marc Majors, Society member, is a great grandson of Joe Keller Morris.

Thelma Morris Teal, the daughter of Charlie Ben Morris, preserved the pictures of Eliza Jane Meadows and James Waxter Morris.

The descendants of Colby Brown, who certainly married Priscilla McClure and perhaps married Jane McClure, remained in Tennessee, but moved frequently. Son Wm. H. H. Brown b. 1834 married Nancy McClure (whose parents are not known) and was the father of grandsons James Carter Brown died in 1919 in Claiborne Co, TN and John Thomas Brown died in 1930 in White County, TN. Son Marion Winchester Brown born 1860, died 1938 in Campbell County, TN, in the far northeast corner of Tennessee, on the Kentucky border.

Sarah Elvira McClure (abt 1831-1863), another daughter of Rachel Keller and James McClure, was the third wife of Daniel Stephens and had a daughter, Elizabeth Stephens (1861-1938) who married John L. Throneberry. Their children included *** 1. Thomas Throneberry married Mary Keeling 2. Cyrus Cooper Throneberry married Betty Anderson 3. Jerline Throneberry (1889-1979) married John William Roberts and had a large family who attended school in Wartrace, but then moved to Nashville. 4. Sylvester H. Throneberry married Bertha Wiser. Their son Guy Throneberry (1936-1993) married Patsy Morton, the parents of our member Laura Throneberry, with her husband James Phillip Pruitt.

C. Charles McDowell Keller b. 1790 Burke Co, NC, d. 1849 in St. Clair Co, Illinois. He married Sarah Chaffin, the daughter of Amos and Elizabeth Porter Chaffin. They had seven children, all of whom moved to Illinois. 1. Francis Franklin Keller b. 25 Jan 1817, married Elizabeth Norton 2. John Porter Keller b.2 Sept 1818, married Eliza Sarah Marlen 3. Elizabeth Keller b. ca 1822 married John Wesley Norton 4. S. C. Squire Keller b. 17 Sept 1821, married Martha Norton and Prudence Brooks 5. Mary Jane Keller b. 1825, married George W. Farris 6. Robert M. Keller b. 1 June 1828, married Elizabeth Bevert 7. Andrew Mitchell Keller b. 9 Feb 1830, married 1. Molly Lee and 2. Mrs. Margaret Wilson Goode and lived in Texas.

D. Joseph Keller married Ann Kelley, the daughter of Rev. Reuben Kelley and his wife, Lavisa (Lovicy). Their children were:

1. John M Keller (1813-about 1863) married Elizabeth Green. This was the nephew and niece of the earlier couple of exactly the same names. They always lived and farmed in Kellertown and were the parents of seven children. Both John and Elizabeth died during the Civil War and their youngest three children followed other kin, first to Kentucky and then to Illinois. a.James A Keller (1835-1913) married Mary Jane Gallegly, the daughter of Stephen Gallegly and Winnie Cummings. Among their children was Winnie Eliza Keller who married William Thomas Foster. Winnie and Tom were the parents of Millie Ella foster who married Walter Henderson Morris, Mary Tommie Foster who married Charles W. Stewart, and Bervia Ola Foster who married Thomas Wiley Helton. b.Willis Green Keller (1837-1887) married Nancy Catherine Stephens, daughter of Daniel Stephens. c.Joseph F Keller married Virginia Robinson and lived in Caldwell Co, KY. d.Nancy C Keller married William Howard Barger, had five daughters and lived in Ohio. e.William David Keller married Nancy McGaw f.Robert Hosea Keller married Adella Evaline P’Pool g.Rebecca Ann Keller married David Allen P’Pool.

2. Francis Alexander Keller (1820-1889) married Catherine Green, lived in Webster Co, MO. 3. Nathan J Calvin Keller (1821-1876) married 1. Jane Keller who was first married to Daniel Cortner; Nathan and Jane had two children. 4. Joseph William Carroll Keller (1822-1876) married 1. Nancy Couch and 2. Elizabeth Couch. Joseph and Nancy had three children, Neely Keller who married Fannie Morris (daughter of Elizabeth McClure Morris), Buddy Keller married Mary Terry, and William Thomas Keller. William Thomas Keller (1848-1920) married Mary Lou Stephens and owned a farm on Kellertown Road outside of Wartrace. Thomas was one of the first rural delivery postal carriers. Their children were a. Dr. Joseph Pearl Keller of Nashville b. Eudocia Keller married Ruben C. Couch, lived at Bell Buckle. Their children included Joseph Herman Couch, Howard Couch, Reuben C. Couch III, Clay Couch, Mary R. Couch, and Robert E. Couch. c. William H. Keller married Sadie Scruggs d. Ruben Keller married Emma White e. Herbert E Keller married Lillie Shofner—their daughter Catherine Keller who died at age 27 married Albert Shofner. The daughters of Catherine and Albert were Patricia Shofner and Mary Catherine Shofner, raised at Haley, TN.

5. Mary Malinda Keller (1822-1876) married Christopher C. Thomas. This family had a number of children born in Bedford County, but by 1859 they were in Caldwell County, KY. Their descendants are still there today, but fast forward to the 21st century and Kathy Thomas Tyson, a great-great-great-granddaughter arrives at Wartrace and is employed as town clerk.

6. Elizabeth Caroline Keller (1823-1856) married Daniel Stephens as his second wife. They lived in the Kellertown Community in Bedford County and had five sons: Robert Howell Stephens married Melvina Green, Thomas A. Stephens married Mary Jane Cawthorn, Reuben Keller Stephens married 1. Tennie M. Williams and 2. Tabitha A. Williams and lived in Crockett County, TN, Benjamin Stephens died as a teenager, and Ira Pruitt Stephens married Martha Strong and lived in Wright County, MO.

7. Robert C. T. Keller married Ellender Bramblett and moved to DuQuoin, Illinois. 8. Benjamin Henry Keller married Mary Jane Latimer and moved to Illinois. 9. Sarah Lovicy Keller married Calvin Ayres 10.James Mitchell Keller married 1. Margaret L Parker, 2. Martha B Parker, 3. Sarah Catherine Lewis, 4. Mary Ann Stroud, and 5. Emily Jane Sweet. 11.Sophia Angeline Keller married 1. Joel Parker and 2. Thomas J Jones and lived in Nashville. 12. (out of order***) Eliza Jane Keller b. 1833 married William Riley Roberts

E. Francis H Keller married Sarah Kelley, also a daughter of Reuben and Lovicy Kelley. The Kelley family came to Bedford County from Laurens County, SC by 1809. Rev. Reuben and his parents, Nelson and Elizabeth Jeffries Kelley, with a few other couples, established the New Hope Baptist Church, still holding services today at Fairfield, TN. Nelson and Elizabeth were married in 1751 in Stafford County, Virginia and Nelson contracted with George Washington to supervise one of the Washington farms near Mt. Vernon in 1762. During the Revolutionary War, the Kelley family was living in North Carolina and Nelson served in the army from there.

Joseph Keller and Francis H Keller purchased the shares of the other six children of Reuben Kelley and became the owners of the 400-acre farm on the Garrison Fork of Duck River which was originally bought by Rev. Reuben Kelley. All that is left of the Keller family in the old District 2 of Bedford County lies there today in the Keller Cemetery including Joseph Keller and Francis H Keller and their wives.

The children of Francis H and Sarah Kelley Keller were: 1. Elvira Ann Keller (1818-1840) married Daniel Cortner. Their son George Alexander Cortner married Mary Catherine Couch and had a large family. George served as a Captain in the Confederate forces in the Civil War, was wounded and imprisoned, but lived to become a respected and successful citizen of Bedford County. He was president of the Bedford County Bank at Wartrace. 2. Lovicy Jane Keller (1821-after 1860) married Daniel Cortner as his 2nd wife, then married Nathan J. Calvin Keller. Their son Francis M. Cortner married and raised a family in Caldwell Co, KY; Daniel Cortner Jr. married Ellender Elizabeth Throneberry and their granddaughters Lucile King Ashley and Betty King Tanner lived at Wartrace. 3. Joseph Bartley M Keller (1823-1850) married Elizabeth Ann Couch. Their son Francis M. Keller married Lucinda Ayers. They were the parents of Kittie Keller who married James W. Simpson, schoolteachers in Bedford County and the grandparents of Ed Simpson who took care of the Keller Cemetery for many years. The son of Bartley and Elizabeth, Rob Keller, was the father of Jack Keller who wrote the first Jacob Keller family history. Other children of Bartley and Elizabeth Couch Keller were Rebecca Keller who married William Foster and lived in Grundy County, TN; Isaac Thomas Keller who married Lucretia Smith and Tennie Haley and lived in Texas; and Ann Bartley Keller who married Perry O. Hawkins. Ann and Perry Hawkins had a large family including Mollie Hawkins, a school teacher, who married Will Dye and was the mother of Anna Dye Mason and Clemons Dye Shofner also Bedford County teachers. Their daughter Neelie Dye was superintendent of Bedford County Schools. 4. Rachel Caroline Keller (1826-1886) married James Bramblett. Their sons were John Bartley Bramblett, Francis Alvin Bramblett, George David Bramblett, and James Reuben Bramblett. Sarah Jane, the daughter of Rachel and James Bramblett, married a cousin, Isaac Couch, and lived in Red Oak, Texas. Francis Alvin Bramblett married Emma Simpson Morgan of Fosterville and they were the parents of four sons, including Will Bramblett who married Fannie Shofner and Percy Bramblett who married Willie Jenkins. Will and Fannie had a daughter, Frances Bramblett Crigler, and a son, Haskell Shofner Bramblett. Haskell married Dorothy Hawkins (granddaughter of Ann Bartley Keller Hawkins) and their daughter is Charlotte Bramblett Daniel. Haskell was a rural mail carrier and Dorothy was a Bedford County teacher. Percy and Willie had a son Wm. Percy Bramblett whose son John M. Bramblett is a Society member and a daughter, Jamie Bramblett Odle, mother of Carolyn Odle Smotherman and of Wm. Albert Odle, whose widow Maxine is a member of the Historical Society.

5. Sarah Emaline Keller (1835-1915) married James M Stephens and had eight children, but only three lived to grow up. Eliza Ann Stephens married Frank Overall and lived in Murfreesboro; Rachel M. Stephens married John E. Justice, who was a Wartrace business man, the grandparents of James Justice of College Grove, TN; and George Ruben Stephens married Jessie Morgan and moved to Arkansas.

6. Eliza Adeline Keller (1840-1918) married Willis Rippey. Their children were John Rippey married Sally Bell Stephens, Sarah Nancy Rippey married John Alvin Stephens, Martha Jane Rippey married Walter B. Chilton, and Rachel Ann Rippey married Henry Dean Ferguson. Rachel and Henry Dean Ferguson were the grandparents of Roy Ferguson who married Joan Crutcher, very civic-minded people, supporters of history who compiled a number of books of newspaper clippings regarding Bedford County history. Their son Roy Ferguson Jr., with his wife Dana, are members of the Historical Society. Sarah Nancy Rippey and John Alvin Stephens were the parents of Horace V Stephens. Horace Stephens married Maggie Jenkins and their daughter Margaret Jane Crockett was Home-ec teacher at Shelbyville Central High School and later State Supervisor of Home-Economics. Their daughter Mary Stephens Parks was the mother of our member, Steve Parks.

F. Robert C. Keller, the last child of Jacob and Jane Keller, married Araminta Jones, the daughter of Matthew Jones and Rachel Gallegly. They had eight children: Louisa M Keller, Rachel Jane Keller, Joseph William Bryant Keller, Matthew Francis Marion Keller, Laban Hamilton Keller, Sarah Melissa Keller, Robert G Keller, and Araminta Emeline Keller. They moved to Illinois with the Jones family and descendants have spread out from there to many points.

And thus it is, that while there are Keller descendants left in Bedford County, they do not carry the surname of Keller. I have tried to identify every member of the Bedford County Historical Society who is descended from Jacob and Jane Keller. If I overlooked you or someone you know, please let me know!

Carolyn Odle Smotherman

Sources

• WikiTree profile Keller-1441 created through the import of Mitchell.ged on Dec 21, 2012 by George Berthelson. See the Changes page for the details of edits by George and others.