Joseph Bell (abt. 1845 - 1896)

Born about 1845 in Missouri, United States

Husband of Mary Ann (Rice) Bell — married 8 Oct 1874 in St. Louis, Missouri, United States

Descendants

Died 14 May 1896 at about age 51 in Hillsdale, St. Louis, Missouri, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Jane Hoskinson [send private message]

Joseph Bell is a part of US Black heritage.

Biography

Joseph was born about 1845 in Missouri. During the Civil War, he served in Company K, 4th Missouri Colored Infantry, later the 68th Regiment Infantry U.S. Colored Troops.^[1][2]

In 1874, Joseph married Mary Ann Rice in St. Louis, Missouri.^[3] In 1937, she gave an interview to Grace E. White of the Federal Writers' Project.^[4] Mary and Joseph Bell had seven children, of whom two were living at the time of Mary's interview: Virginia Miller who lived next door to Mary, and William A. Bell, serving with the U.S. Army in the Philippines. Mary received funds from Joseph's pension.^[5]

In 1880, Mary (28) and Joseph Bell (35) and their four children, James (8), Cora (5), Willie (2), and Ernest (five months old), were living with Mary's parents, Spottswood Rice^[6] and Ara Ferguson Rice, and their family on Elliott Avenue in St. Louis, Missouri. Spottswood was listed as a clergyman. Joseph worked in a tobacco factory; Mary was a laundress.^[7]

Joseph passed away May 14, 1896.^[8] He is buried in Greenwood Cemetery, Hillsdale, St. Louis County, Missouri.^[9]

Research Note

• There are two 1880 U.S. census reports for Joseph and Mary Bell. The earlier report (June 1880) lists their son Willie as a two-year-old.^[10] The later report (November 1880) lists their son William as three years old, but in the "Sick" column, he is reported as "Dead." In Mary's "Sick" column, the report says, "Childs-Birth."^[11] Mary reported that she had borne seven children. William A. Bell, who was living at the time of her 1937 interview, may have been born in 1880 and named for a brother who died that year.

Sources

1. ↑ U.S., Civil War Pension Index: General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934, The National Archives at Washington, D.C.; Washington, D.C.; NAI Title: U.S., Civil War Pension Index: General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934; NAI Number: T288; Record Group Title: Records of the Department of Veterans Affairs, 1773-2007; Record Group N: https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/4654/images/32959_032692-00484?pId=1280909 : accessed 24 Apr 2022
2. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "List of United States Colored Troops Civil War units," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_United_States_Colored_Troops_Civil_War_units&oldid=1076543549 (accessed April 22, 2022).
3. ↑ Missouri State Archives; Jefferson City, MO, USA; Missouri Marriage Records [Microfilm] : https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1171/images/vrmmo1833_c6138-0283?pId=510178930 : accessed 20 Apr 2022
4. ↑ Federal Writers' Project: Slave Narrative Project, Vol. 10, Missouri, Abbot-Younger. 1936. Manuscript/Mixed Material. https://www.loc.gov/item/mesn100/: https://www.loc.gov/resource/mesn.100/?sp=30&st=image : accessed 20 Apr 2022
5. ↑ U.S., Civil War Pension Index: General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934: https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/4654/images/32959_032692-00484?pId=1280909 : accessed 20 Apr 2022
6. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Spottswood Rice," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Spottswood_Rice&oldid=1029738711 (accessed April 22, 2022).
7. ↑ 1880 United States Federal Census: https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6742/images/4242108-00009?pId=48839696 : accessed 20 Apr 2022
8. ↑ Missouri State Archives; Jefferson City, MO, USA; Missouri Death Records [Microfilm]: https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1172/images/vrmmo1833_c10474-0684?pId=7094526 : accessed 24 Apr 2022
9. ↑ Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/68595968/joseph-bell : accessed 24 April 2022), memorial page for Joseph Bell (unknown–14 May 1896), Find a Grave Memorial ID 68595968, citing Greenwood Cemetery, Hillsdale, St. Louis County, Missouri, USA ; Maintained by Susan Ing (contributor 47043987) .
10. ↑ 1880 United States Federal Census: https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6742/images/4242108-00009?pId=48839479 : accessed 20 Apr 2022
11. ↑ 1880 United States Federal Census: https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6742/images/4242058-00513?pId=34580133 : accessed 24 Apr 2022