Any information for Caroline Hawsey?

Question

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I, and everyone else in my family, have hit a wall in trying to find any information regarding Caroline Hawsey.  She can be found on the 1860 census of Conecuh County, Alabama along with her husband (no marriage record that I can find) John and her children.  There is also a Caroline Hausey listed in the same census with a husband, James. This is not the same person even though a few of their children have the same names as my Caroline.

    The family story is that Caroline, born circa 1822, was a "Blackfoot" (don't know whether Lakota, which is the favored thought, or Blackfoot Nation) from the Black Hills.  She was kidnapped sometime around 1847 with a group of women and was sold into slavery.  They think her sister may have been kidnapped as well.  I was told that she was released when her master died and then married a local farmer.  I have no idea who her master could have been.  The really troubling part is that she is ONLY found on the 1860 census.  There is no record of her before or after.  On the 1870 census, there is a woman named Sarah in her place.  I cannot find any information regarding Caroline before or after 1860. I would love to know if our family story is true.  I would love any and all information possible!

Answer 1

According to the 1860 census Caroline was a white woman born in South Carolina about 1822.  No one in Alabama in 1860 would mistake a Blackfoot Indian woman for a white woman and such a marriage would have been illegal.  I think you have a garbled family story of some kind.  John M Hawsey and family are on the 1840 census in Butler, Alabama.  I think that’s the same couple, probably married around 1838.

Comments

Well, I haven't been able to find a marriage certificate for them either.  There are definitely marriage certificates out there for the same area and time period, but nothing so far for them.  I wonder if they were actually married.  On the census, there is no relationship marked nor race listed.  Do you have any ideas on how to find any other information regarding these people?  Even if she wasn't Native American, I'd still like to continue with my tree.  Plus, it drives me insane when I can't figure something out lol. Unfortunately, it's not the only road block that I have.

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The race column on the census was only filled in if the person was not white. I don’t think there’s amything to suggest they weren’t married.  I’d suggest looking at their neighbors on the 1860 and 1840 censuses for clues.  People often lived near parents and siblings.

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Hi Heather,

Ive been researching the Hawsey family for several years now. James Hawsey and his wife Sarah are my ancestors. Caroline Tabler? Hawsey was married to John Moody Hawsey. I have not come across any mentions of Blackfoot indian. Alabama is pretty far from Blackfeet indian territory which is primarily Montana. The Hawsey family it seems have some intermarriage with a few folks claiming some Native American ties. Specifically the Weavers. Rebecca Ann Hawsey, daughter of John and Carolin married a Weaver. I found a few threads that discussed Ada Weaver having NA ancestry.