Breckinridge County was formed from Hardin County after it was created by the legislature on 13 Dec 1799. It was named for John Breckinridge, county legislator, U.S. Senator, US AG. The County seat is Hardinsburg, Kentucky. This is where Calvin was born, just outside of town on his parents, Zeno Hendrick and Sarah 'Jane' Lyons, farm in Cloverport, Kentucky, along the Ohio River.
The Civil War had just begun, and Kentucky was really no place to be as it was a divided state. Both presidents, north and south, were Kentuckians, so loyalty to one side or the other was dependent pretty much on the families connections. Because of this the state chose to be neutral during this time of suffering for the nation. However, that did not last long, as Kentucky was one of the largest slave states, with most farmers owning just a few slaves. Volunteers were enlisted by both sides with the Confederate forces calling themselves "State Guards" and the Unionists, the "Home Guards".[1]
By 1864, the residents of Breckinridge County were strongly pro-Confederate.[2]
No doubt, that when young Calvin was growing up on the farm near Cloverport, along the Ohio River, there was much heartache in the community. The Hendricks, the Millers, Pates, and more were all connected by marriage, or would be soon, and for this reason, and due to the war torn nation, the families all grew closer.
Calvin was born on June, 18, 1863.[3]
Calvin probably didn't recall the Civil War, as he was just a little over two years old when it ended. However, he did grow up in a community that was torn between post war black and white. There were separate schools, called 'Freedmen Schools', for those black families that were able to send their children, in Cloverport and Hardinsburg. So, Calvin grew up in a different kind of 'divided world'. In 1870, when he was six years old he was living on the farm in Cloverport. In Calvin's home was, Anderson Robinson, a black male of 19 years old, so Calvin was well aware of the dissension within the community. [4]
After finishing whatever education was available for young Calvin, we find him working on the family farm at the age of 16, along with his siblings:[5]
Ten years later, Calvin is still single, working the family farm with his father, Zeno, and younger brother, Robert. It is not clear whether he had been married and lost his wife or had just not married yet.[6]
However, just one year later, Calvin marries Henrietta Haynes, and in 1910 owns his own farm, free and clear, with two children:[7]
In 1928, on March 15, Calvin's wife, Henrietta Haynes Hendrick, passes away after a lengthy bout of Influenza.[8]
Calvin lives for another 7 years after losing Henrietta, and he dies at the age of 72, on July 18, 1935, on his farm in Hardinsburg, Breckinridge County, Kentucky.[9]
Biography researched and written by Scott Lee
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