Thomas Jackson Silver (abt. 1823 - 1907)

Born about 1823 in Cherokee, North Carolina, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Mary Myra Silver — married [date unknown] in Georgia

Descendants

Died 23 Mar 1907 at about age 84 in Cisco, Murray, Georgia, United States

Problems/Questions Profile managers: Julie Silvers [send private message], John Phillips [send private message], and Carrie Silvers [send private message]

Biography

OUR SILVER FAMILY HISTORY By Carolyn Silver Sutton

Thomas Jackson Silver was the second child born to John and Mary Silver. He was born around 1825 in, or near Cherokee, North Carolina.

In 1843 at the young age of 18, Thomas's parents decided to move to Gilmer County, Georgia. Thomas, at that time, decided not to make the move with them, instead he chose to remain in North Carolina and work for his father's brother, William Griffith Silver. William was born June 14, 1800 in Frederick County, Maryland.

While staying at his uncle's house he fell in love with his uncle William's daughter, Mary Myra "Polly" Silver. She was born December 6, 1830 in North Carolina. Being first cousins was not a concern to Thomas and Polly, they wanted to get married anyway, but It did matter to Polly's parents, they forbid the union, which forced Thomas and Polly to elope. They grabbed two horses and with what clothes they had on their back, started across the rugged North Carolina mountains down into Georgia.

After they were married they settled at Cohutta Springs in Murray County, Georgia. The house was a two-room log house separated with a breeze-way. They lived there until Thomas purchased the Old Moore's Place at Cisco, Georgia on two lots of land at the foot of Doogan Mountain. They built themselves a fine house and paneled the inside with dressed lumber. The house had a picket fence around it and next to the fence they kept hives of bees. Out back of the house they had a apple orchard. Thomas also planted crops which brought in cash as well as food for his family.

During the Civil War, Thomas and several other men did not want to go to fight, so they hid out in a cave on Grassy Mountain. I was told by my Uncle Bill that beside the cave was a rock that looked like a chair with a back and seat, not man made, but natural.

Thomas would make baskets and leave them at a designated spot somewhere on the mountain for Polly to pick up. In exchange she would leave food. Polly would take the baskets and sell them for money for the family. Times were so hard during and after the Civil War that Polly would dig out the dirt from her smokehouse floor to boil for the salt it contained.

Thomas and Polly had seven children, five boys and two girls: Ervin McKinzie, William Jackson, Sadina "Demmie", Mary Jane, Samuel Thomas, Frank, and Harvey McDonald Silver.

Later in life Thomas had a stroke which put him in bed for 16 years. He suffered two more strokes and the last one killed him on March 23, 1907. He is buried at MT. Sumach Baptist Church at Cisco, GA.

After the death of Thomas, Polly went to live with her son Harvey McDonald in Tennessee. During the time she was living in Tennessee the house at Cisco burned. It is not known how the house caught fire.

While living in her son's home, Polly would make dresses and bedspreads from material woven from her loom. Polly taught her granddaughter, Dora, her ABC's by teaching her a poem. She lived almost 11 years in Harvey's house before her death on January 25, 1918. Before her death she had suffered a stroke and was ill for a long time. Polly is buried at Ball Play Baptist Church in Old Fort, Tennessee.

It is said that Polly never visited with her parents, or spoke to them until the day she died. She held a grudge against them because they did not want her to marry Thomas. At one point in her life someone was sent to her home to see if she would accept her inheritance and she refused to accept any of it.

Before Harvey's death two men from North Carolina came to his house and asked him to settle his mother’s inheritance. He refused. He said he would honor his mother's wishes also.

Name

Given Name: Thomas Jackson

Surname: Silver

Birth

Date: 1823

Place: , , North Carolina, USA

Death

Date: 3 Mar 1907

Place: Cisco, Murray, Georgia, USA

Thomas was born about 1823. He passed away in 1907.

Research Note

Thomas Jackson Silver is connected to two wives - Mary Myra Silver and Ellender McMahon. It does not appear, from his biography and Mary's biography that he would have also been married to Ellender McMahon. Ellender is connected to Thomas and also to two other husbands named Silver with no sources. Ellender should probably be removed from this Thomas Jackson Silver. Butter-100 13:15, 18 March 2023 (UTC)

Sources

See also:

• https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/L9H3-N73 FamilySearch ID L9H3-N73 Thomas Jackson Silver]

• John Phillips, firsthand knowledge.

• "United States Census, 1900," database with images, FamilySearch Thomas Silver, Militia Districts 874, 1011, 1506, Tenth, Alaculsa, Doogan, Murray, Georgia, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 70, sheet 13A, family 229, NARA microfilm publication T623 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1972.); FHL microfilm 1,240,213.

• "United States Census, 1880," database with images, FamilySearch Thomas Silver, Alaculsa, Murray, Georgia, United States; citing enumeration district ED 155, sheet 471D, NARA microfilm publication T9 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), FHL microfilm 1,254,159.

Acknowledgements

• WikiTree profile Silver-67 created through the import of Godfrey non-living.ged on Jun 14, 2011 by Jim Godfrey.
• Family recollection