H0046
The study's number for this person. Cite it and it will always lead here, whatever the spelling.Elijah Daniel Wilson
Born at Arkansas in 1861 and died in 1912.
born 25 Apr 1861 at Arkansas, United States died 2 Dec 1912
Life story
A Benton County boyhood
Elijah Daniel Wilson, known to his neighbours as Lige, was born on 25 April 1861 in Arkansas, in the first spring of the Civil War.1–2 He was the third son of Richard Wilson and his wife Martha, who had both come from Tennessee.3–4 By 1870 the family was farming in Flint Township, in Benton County, the far northwest corner of the state, and got its mail at Hico. Richard's land was worth $400. Elijah, nine, was growing up there with his brothers James, William and Richard.3
Ten years later the Wilsons were in Ball Township of the same county. Elijah, 19, worked on the farm with his father and his brothers James and Richard. He had been to school that year, but the census taker recorded that he could not write.4
Ella
On Wednesday, 20 July 1881, John Black, the Benton County clerk, issued a licence for the marriage of "E. D. Wilson aged 20 years" and "Ella Chandler aged 18 years". The next day, Thursday, 21 July, J. S. McIntyre, a justice of the peace, married them.5 Ella, whose full name was Sarah Ellen Chandler, was a Missouri girl. A year earlier she had been living with her widowed mother and her brothers at Joplin, across the state line.4, 6 Her brother Robert James Chandler was living under Elijah's roof in 1900, and was still there in 1910.2, 7
The Arkansas years
The young couple stayed in Arkansas through the 1880s. Their first child, James Israel, was born in June 1882. Four more followed: Nancy in February 1884, William Alfred in March 1886, Martha June, called Mattie, on 14 January 1889 in Benton County, and Bertha about 1891.2, 8 The first four were all born in Arkansas.2
On the Elk River
Sometime after Mattie's birth the Wilsons moved north across the state line into McDonald County, the hill county in the southwest corner of Missouri. Family trees place Bertha's birth at Pineville, the county seat, in 1891, which would date the move to about 1890, but no record of the move has been found. In June 1900 the census taker found the family on a rented farm in Elk River Township, which takes in the town of Noel. Eliga D., as the census taker wrote the name, was 39 and a farmer. Sarah was 37, and all five children were at home: James, nearly eighteen and already working as a farm laborer; Nancy, 16; William, 14; Mattie, 11; and Bertha, 8. Sarah's brother Robert Chandler, 43, lived with them.2 A family history recalls two of Lige's nephews riding up from Robinson, Arkansas, about this time to visit their uncle "Lige" Wilson and his family at Noel.9
The Wilsons never owned their land. In April 1910 Lige, 48, and Ella, 47, were still renting a farm in Elk River Township, which Lige worked on his own account. Mattie, 21 and unmarried, was still at home, and so was Ella's brother, now recorded as James Chandler, 53. Next door lived their youngest daughter, Bertha, with her husband, Claude Gatton.7 James had married in 1903 and was farming a place of his own in the same township (see his profile).
Last illness
Lige did not live to grow old. He fell ill with consumption, as tuberculosis was then called, and after a long illness he died at his home near Butler Creek early on Monday morning, 2 December 1912. He was fifty-one. The Pineville Herald carried the news on the following Friday in two of its country columns. The Noel correspondent wrote that "Elijah Wilson, who has been ill some time of consumption, passed away at 4 o'clock Monday morning". The Butler Creek correspondent gave the hour as about two o'clock and added: "He leaves a host of friends and relatives to mourn his death."10–11
“Elijah Wilson, who has been ill some time of consumption, passed away at 4 o'clock Monday morning”
He was buried in the Butler Creek Cemetery at Sulphur Springs, just over the state line in Benton County, Arkansas, the county where he had grown up. His upright stone reads "Eligha D. Wilson / Born Apr 25 1861 / Died Dec 2 1912".1 Ella outlived him by twenty-four years and married again, and when she died in 1937 she was brought back to Sulphur Springs to be buried in the same cemetery.6, 12 In 1941 their son James, far away in Washington State, named his father on his death certificate as "Elijah Wilson".13–14
Lige and Ella had five children, and all five were living in 1900: James Israel (1882–1941), Nancy Roxy Anna (1884), William Alfred (1886–about 1972), Martha June "Mattie" (1889–about 1960), who married an Adcock, and Bertha Ellen (about 1891), who married Claud H. Gatton.1–2, 8
What we know
Proven
- Birth at Arkansas, 1861
- Occupation at Ball Township, 1880
- Marriage to Sarah Ellen Chandler at Benton County, 1881
- Occupation at Elk River Township, 1900
- Occupation at Elk River Township, 1910
- Death, 1912
- and 1 more
- 4 homes, from the census and other records
What's still open
- Birthplace. Arkansas in every census from 1870 to 1910.
- Parents (probable). and Martha Wilson. He is identified with the E.
- Father's name (conflict). " The FamilySearch tree, a member tree and Ancestry's "potential parents" suggestion call him Richard Alfred Wilson (1834–1914), with a son Richard Alfred Jr.
- Children (conflict). In 1900 Sarah was the mother of five children, all living, and all five were at home.
- The move to Missouri. Mattie was born in Benton County, Arkansas, in January 1889.
Sources
Sources 1–2
1 Find a Grave, memorial 76413940, 1861
Find a Grave, memorial 76413940, Eligha D Wilson (25 Apr 1861 – 2 Dec 1912), Butler Creek Cemetery, Sulphur Springs, Benton County, Arkansas; created by "Laura", 12 September 2011; headstone photograph by Carolyn Hartsell (2 April 2015), an upright tablet inscribed "ELIGHA D. WILSON / BORN / APR 25 1861 / DIED / DEC 2 1912"; no biography; linked to the memorials of his wife, Sarah Ellen Chandler Phillips (1863–1937), and his children James Israel Wilson (1882–1941), William Alfred Wilson (1886–1972) and Martha June "Mattie" Wilson Adcock (1889–1960) (findagrave.com/memorial/76413940). Indexed in "U.S., Find a Grave Index," Ancestry.com.
2 1900 U.S. Federal Census, Elk River Township, 1882
1900 U.S. Federal Census, Elk River Township, McDonald County, Missouri, E.D. 94, sheet 5A, family 98 (dwelling indexed as 88), lines 45–50 and overleaf, enumerated 5 June 1900: James Wilson (son, born June 1882, 17, single, born Arkansas, father born Arkansas, mother born Missouri; farm laborer, four months unemployed) in the household of Eligo [Eliga] D. Wilson (head, born April 1861, 39, married 18 years, born Arkansas, parents born Tennessee; farmer; rents), with Sarah E. (wife, born March 1863, 37, mother of five children, all living, born Missouri), Nancy R. (daughter, born February 1884, 16), Wm. A. (son, born March 1886, 14) and Mattie June (daughter, born June 1889, 11), all born Arkansas, and, on the next page, Burtha (daughter, 8) and Robert Chadler [Chandler] (brother-in-law, 43); NARA T623, roll 873; image 4118801_00110; database with images, Ancestry.com (the index gives James's age as 18).
Sources 3–4
3 1870 U.S. Federal Census, Flint Township
1870 U.S. Federal Census, Flint Township, Benton County, Arkansas, post office Hico, p. 233B, dwelling 175, family 180 [reading]: "Eiga" [Eliga; indexed "Eiza"] Wilson (9, male, born Arkansas) in the household of Richard Wilson (36, farmer, real estate $400, personal estate $200, born Tennessee), with Martha (34, keeping house, born Tennessee), James (12), William (11) and Richard (7), all born Arkansas; NARA M593, roll 47; image 4259242_00461; database with images, Ancestry.com.
4 1880 U.S. Federal Census, Ball Township
1880 U.S. Federal Census, Ball Township, Benton County, Arkansas, E.D. 9, p. 336A, dwelling 150, family 160, enumerated [8?] June 1880: Elija D. [indexed "Elisa D."] Wilson (son, 19, farm labor, born Arkansas, father and mother born Tennessee; attended school during the year; cannot write) in the household of Richard S. Wilson (head, 48 [index], farming, born Tennessee, parents born Tennessee), with Martha (wife, 43 [index], keeping house, born Tennessee, parents born South Carolina), James A. (son, 23) and Richard A. (son, 15), both farm laborers born Arkansas; NARA T9, roll 38; image 4239799-00679; database with images, Ancestry.com.
Source 5
5 Benton County, Arkansas, 1881
Benton County, Arkansas, marriage record, p. 190: licence issued 20 July 1881 by John Black, clerk, for the marriage of E. D. Wilson, aged 20 years, and Ella Chandler, aged 18 years; certificate of J. S. McIntyre, justice of the peace, that he married them on 21 July 1881; recorded 28 July 1881; "Arkansas, County Marriages, 1837–1957," database with images, FamilySearch, DGS 004401666, image 101 of 659 FamilySearch image S3HT-D1S7-J1H, index entries FamilySearch record N9QV-YQ2 (groom) and FamilySearch record N9QV-YQK (bride), FHL microfilm 1034661; also indexed in "Arkansas, U.S., County Marriages Index, 1837–1957," Ancestry.com.
Source 6
6 Missouri State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, 1937
Missouri State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, Certificate of Death, file no. 538 (1937), registration district 160, Sarah Ellen Phillips: died 6 January 1937 in West Dolan Township, Cass County; female; white; widow; husband Frank Phillips; born March 4, 1863, Crawford Co., Mo.; age 73 years, 10 months, 2 days; housekeeper; father John Chandler, birthplace unknown; mother's maiden name Martha Jane Whitehead, birthplace unknown; informant Alford [Alfred] Wilson, Pittsburg, Kansas; cause intestinal obstruction and toxaemia, contributory gall bladder disease (a supplemental report adds malignancy); physician E. H. Owen [reading], Harrisonville; burial Sulphur Springs, Ark., date not given; undertaker Geo. E. Myers [reading], Cleveland, Mo.; filed 7 January 1937, Mary Meador, registrar; image, Missouri State Archives, "Missouri Death Certificates, 1910–1975" (sos.mo.gov/images/archives/deathcerts/1937/1937_00000538.PDF).
Source 7
7 1910 U.S. Federal Census, Elk River Township, 1900
1910 U.S. Federal Census, Elk River Township, McDonald County, Missouri, E.D. 110, sheet 2B, dwelling 49, family 49: Lige Wilson (head, 48, first marriage, married 28 years, born Arkansas, father and mother born Tennessee; farmer, home farm, working on his own account; rents his farm; can read and write), with Ella (wife, 47, first marriage, married 28 years, mother of "3" children, "3" living [so read; five in 1900], born Missouri, parents born Missouri), Mattie (daughter, 21, single, born Arkansas) and James Chandler (brother-in-law, 53, single, born Missouri); next dwelling (50): Claude Gatton (head, 26) with his wife Bertha and a child; NARA T624, roll 797; FHL microfilm 1374810; image 31111_4330744-00128; database with images, Ancestry.com.
Source 8
8 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1889
"U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936–2007," database, Ancestry.com, Mattie Wilson Adcock, female, white, born 14 January 1889, "Bintin" [Benton], Arkansas; father Eligah Wilson; mother Ella Chandler; a number issued in Kansas; note "Jul 1941: name listed as Mattie Wilson Adcock".
Source 9
9 Wilson Chronicles, 1989
Dorothy Ware Wilson, "Wilson Chronicles" (a family compilation, 1989), typed extract "About Claud Alfred Wilson", shared as a story in an Ancestry member tree (tree 8475771) by James Smith, 17 February 2022; a derivative family history, not verified against records.
Sources 10–11
10 The Pineville Herald, 1912
"County Correspondence," The Pineville Herald (Pineville, McDonald County, Missouri), Friday 6 December 1912, p. 1: in the "Noel" column, "Elijah Wilson, who has been ill some time of consumption, passed away at 4 o'clock Monday morning"; in the "Butler Creek" column, "Died, at his home near Butler Creek, Monday morning at about 2 o'clock, December 2, 1912, Lige Wilson. He leaves a host of friends and relatives to mourn his death."; image 580726658, Newspapers.com, from the State Historical Society of Missouri (newspapers.com/image/580726658). Both notices, cut from the paper and mounted on a McDonald County Library obituary-file sheet headed "Wilson, Elijah / Pineville Hearld [sic] / Dec. 2, 1912", were uploaded to an Ancestry member tree by nelsoki2003 on 24 April 2017.
11 Web: McDonald County, Missouri, Obituary Index, 1912
"Web: McDonald County, Missouri, Obituary Index," database, Ancestry.com, Elijah Wilson, died 2 December 1912; publication Pineville Herald; burial place given as "Noel, Missouri"; citing the McDonald County Library's obituary index (librarymail.org/genehist/obits).
Source 12
12 Find a Grave, memorial 185825909, 1863
Find a Grave, memorial 185825909, Sarah Ellen Chandler Phillips (4 Mar 1863 – 6 Jan 1937), Butler Creek Cemetery, Sulphur Springs, Benton County, Arkansas; created by "Cinderella", 10 December 2017; no photograph; biography: "daughter of John and Martha Jane (Whitehead) Chandler"; linked to the memorials of her husband Eligha D Wilson and her children James Israel Wilson, William Alfred Wilson and Martha June "Mattie" Wilson Adcock (findagrave.com/memorial/185825909). Indexed in "U.S., Find a Grave Index," Ancestry.com, as Sarah Ellen Phillips, maiden name Chandler, born 4 March 1863, Crawford County, Missouri; died 6 January 1937, Cass County, Missouri.
Sources 13–14
13 Washington State Department of Health, Certificate of Death, 1941
Washington State Department of Health, Certificate of Death, state file no. 248 (1941), registrar's no. 258, James Israel Wilson: died 8 December 1941 at 1 p.m. at Aberdeen General Hospital, Aberdeen, Grays Harbor County (five hours in hospital; 18 years in the community); usual residence 822½ E. Wishkah St., Aberdeen; male; white; married; wife Carrie Clark, aged 62; born June 14, 1882, McDonald Co., Missouri; age 59 years, 5 months, 24 days; usual occupation edgerman worker, industry saw mill; no military service; father Elijah Wilson, born McDonald Co., Missouri; mother's maiden name Sarah Chandler, born McDonald Co., Missouri; informant Carrie Wilson, 822½ E. Wishkah; cause cerebral hemorrhage; burial 11 December 1941, Fern Hill, Aberdeen; Elerding Mortuary; filed 11 December 1941; image i2284759-01235, "Washington, U.S., Death Records, 1907–2017," database with images, Ancestry.com (indexed with birthplace McDonald Co., Missouri, and spouse Carrie Clark).
14 Washington, U.S., Select Death Index, 1941
"Washington, U.S., Select Death Index, 1907–1960," database, Ancestry.com, James Israel Wilson, male, married, age 59, died 8 December 1941, Aberdeen; father Elijah Wilson; mother Sarah Chandler; spouse Carrie Clark; reference 248; FHL film 2023901.
More sources are in the evidence below.
Life in time
25 Apr 1861
Birth , Arkansas, United States
How we know
The county is not known. His parents were in Benton County by 1870; the FamilySearch tree gives Benton County without a source. His son James's death certificate (1941) gives McDonald County, Missouri, which is wrong (see Research Notes).
The full date, 25 April 1861, is carved on his headstone, and the census of 1900 gives April 1861. His ages agree with it: 9 in June 1870, 19 in June 1880, "20 years" on his marriage licence of July 1881, 39 in June 1900 and 48 in April 1910. Every census from 1870 to 1910 gives Arkansas as his birthplace, and in 1900 and 1910 he gave Tennessee for both parents, as his father and mother had given for themselves in 1870 and 1880. The only other place, McDonald County, Missouri, comes from his son's death certificate eighty years later, whose informant, the son's wife of four months, gave the same county for the son and for his mother, both born elsewhere. Arkansas is accepted; the county is unproven.
1870
Residence , Flint Township, Benton, Arkansas, United States
How we know
Post office Hico; dwelling 175. Aged 9, in the household of his father Richard Wilson, a farmer with land worth $400, and his mother Martha, with his brothers James (12), William (11) and Richard (7).
The name ("Eiga", for Eliga, indexed "Eiza"), the age (born about 1861), the Arkansas birthplace and the parents Richard and Martha, both born in Tennessee, who are named as his parents in the 1880 census, identify him. Image read.
1880
Residence , Ball Township, Benton, Arkansas, United States
How we know
E.D. 9, dwelling 150, family 160. Son, 19, single, in the household of his parents Richard S. and Martha Wilson, with his brothers James A. (23) and Richard A. (15).
Elija D. Wilson, 19, born in Arkansas of Tennessee-born parents, living in Benton County, where he married a year later: the same man as the E. D. Wilson of the 1881 licence and the Eliga D. Wilson of 1900. Image read.
1880
Occupation , Ball Township, Benton, Arkansas, United States
How we know
Farm labor, on his father's farm; he had attended school during the year but could not write.
His own line of the 1880 census (image read).
21 Jul 1881
Marriage, with Sarah Ellen Chandler , Benton County, Arkansas, United States
How we know
By J. S. McIntyre, a justice of the peace, under a licence issued the day before (20 Jul 1881) by John Black, clerk of Benton County, to "E. D. Wilson aged 20 years" and "Ella Chandler aged 18 years"; recorded 28 Jul 1881 (Benton County marriage record, p. 190). The marriage ended with his death in December 1912. Five children, born 1882–about 1891.
The licence and the justice's certificate of the marriage, recorded in Benton County on 28 July 1881, were read on the FamilySearch image; Ancestry's index of the same record agrees. The ages on the licence, 20 and 18, fit his birth in April 1861 and hers in March 1863, and their first child was born eleven months later, in June 1882. The censuses of 1900 ("married 18 years") and 1910 ("28 years") point to 1882, but they are round answers given twenty and thirty years later; the contemporary licence and return govern.
1900
Residence , Elk River Township, McDonald, Missouri, United States
How we know
E.D. 94, sheet 5A, family 98; a rented farm; enumerated 5 Jun 1900. Head, 39, married 18 years; with his wife Sarah E., their children James, Nancy R., William A., Mattie June and Bertha, and his brother-in-law Robert Chandler.
His birth month and year (April 1861), his Arkansas birthplace and Tennessee-born parents, his wife Sarah E. and the five children, whose names and ages fit the family's other records, identify the household. Image read.
1900
Occupation , Elk River Township, McDonald, Missouri, United States
How we know
Farmer, renting his farm.
His own line of the 1900 census (image read).
1910
Residence , Elk River Township, McDonald, Missouri, United States
How we know
E.D. 110, sheet 2B, dwelling 49. "Lige" Wilson, head, 48, married 28 years; with his wife Ella, their daughter Mattie (21) and his brother-in-law James Chandler (53). Their daughter Bertha and her husband Claude Gatton lived next door.
The name Lige (as in his death notice), his age and Arkansas birth, his Tennessee-born parents, his wife Ella, his daughter Mattie and Ella's brother identify him. Image read.
1910
Occupation , Elk River Township, McDonald, Missouri, United States
How we know
Farmer, "home farm", working on his own account; the farm rented.
His own line of the 1910 census (image read).
2 Dec 1912
Death
How we know
At his home "near Butler Creek", early on Monday morning (about 2 a.m. by one report, 4 a.m. by another), of consumption [tuberculosis], after a long illness; aged 51. Butler Creek is the border neighbourhood that gives its name to the cemetery at Sulphur Springs, Arkansas, just south of Noel, Missouri. Whether the house stood in McDonald County, Missouri, or Benton County, Arkansas, is not known, so no place is recorded (see Research Notes). The Ancestry tree's "Noel" is the town of the news column that reported the death.
Two death notices in the Pineville Herald of Friday, 6 December 1912, written by the correspondents for Noel and for Butler Creek, both report his death on "Monday morning", which was 2 December; the Butler Creek item gives the date in full and places the death at his home near Butler Creek, and the Noel item gives the cause. His headstone and the McDonald County obituary index give 2 December 1912. No Missouri death certificate was found in a statewide search of Wilson deaths for November and December 1912, and Arkansas had no state registration of deaths until 1914, so the notices are the best evidence for the place.
after 2 Dec 1912
Burial , Sulphur Springs, Benton, Arkansas, United States
How we know
Butler Creek Cemetery, Sulphur Springs (Find a Grave memorial 76413940); an upright stone inscribed "Eligha D. Wilson / Born / Apr 25 1861 / Died / Dec 2 1912". His widow was buried at Sulphur Springs in 1937. The burial date is not recorded. The McDonald County obituary index's "Noel, Missouri" is not supported.
The Find a Grave memorial, with a photograph of his headstone giving his full name and dates, places the grave in the Butler Creek Cemetery at Sulphur Springs, Benton County, Arkansas. His wife's death certificate of 1937 gives her burial at Sulphur Springs, and her memorial is in the same cemetery. The obituary index's burial place, Noel, was evidently taken from the heading of the Noel news column and is outweighed by the stone.
-
1861 Birth
The county is not known. His parents were in Benton County by 1870; the FamilySearch tree gives Benton County without a source. His son James's death certificate (1941) gives McDonald County, Missouri, which is wrong (see Research Notes).
The full date, 25 April 1861, is carved on his headstone, and the census of 1900 gives April 1861. His ages agree with it: 9 in June 1870, 19 in June 1880, "20 years" on his marriage licence of July 1881, 39 in June 1900 and 48 in April 1910. Every census from 1870 to 1910 gives Arkansas as his birthplace, and in 1900 and 1910 he gave Tennessee for both parents, as his father and mother had given for themselves in 1870 and 1880. The only other place, McDonald County, Missouri, comes from his son's death certificate eighty years later, whose informant, the son's wife of four months, gave the same county for the son and for his mother, both born elsewhere. Arkansas is accepted; the county is unproven.
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1870 Residence
Post office Hico; dwelling 175. Aged 9, in the household of his father Richard Wilson, a farmer with land worth $400, and his mother Martha, with his brothers James (12), William (11) and Richard (7).
The name ("Eiga", for Eliga, indexed "Eiza"), the age (born about 1861), the Arkansas birthplace and the parents Richard and Martha, both born in Tennessee, who are named as his parents in the 1880 census, identify him. Image read.
Source 3
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1880 Residence
E.D. 9, dwelling 150, family 160. Son, 19, single, in the household of his parents Richard S. and Martha Wilson, with his brothers James A. (23) and Richard A. (15).
Elija D. Wilson, 19, born in Arkansas of Tennessee-born parents, living in Benton County, where he married a year later: the same man as the E. D. Wilson of the 1881 licence and the Eliga D. Wilson of 1900. Image read.
Source 4
-
1880 Occupation
Farm labor, on his father's farm; he had attended school during the year but could not write.
His own line of the 1880 census (image read).
Source 4
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1881 Marriage, with Sarah Ellen Chandler
By J. S. McIntyre, a justice of the peace, under a licence issued the day before (20 Jul 1881) by John Black, clerk of Benton County, to "E. D. Wilson aged 20 years" and "Ella Chandler aged 18 years"; recorded 28 Jul 1881 (Benton County marriage record, p. 190). The marriage ended with his death in December 1912. Five children, born 1882–about 1891.
The licence and the justice's certificate of the marriage, recorded in Benton County on 28 July 1881, were read on the FamilySearch image; Ancestry's index of the same record agrees. The ages on the licence, 20 and 18, fit his birth in April 1861 and hers in March 1863, and their first child was born eleven months later, in June 1882. The censuses of 1900 ("married 18 years") and 1910 ("28 years") point to 1882, but they are round answers given twenty and thirty years later; the contemporary licence and return govern.
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1882 Son born: James Israel Wilson
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1884 Daughter born: Nancy Roxy Anna Wilson
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1886 Son born: William Alfred Wilson
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1889 Daughter born: Martha June Wilson
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1891 Daughter born: Bertha Ellen Wilson
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1900 Residence
E.D. 94, sheet 5A, family 98; a rented farm; enumerated 5 Jun 1900. Head, 39, married 18 years; with his wife Sarah E., their children James, Nancy R., William A., Mattie June and Bertha, and his brother-in-law Robert Chandler.
His birth month and year (April 1861), his Arkansas birthplace and Tennessee-born parents, his wife Sarah E. and the five children, whose names and ages fit the family's other records, identify the household. Image read.
Source 2
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1900 Occupation
-
1910 Residence
E.D. 110, sheet 2B, dwelling 49. "Lige" Wilson, head, 48, married 28 years; with his wife Ella, their daughter Mattie (21) and his brother-in-law James Chandler (53). Their daughter Bertha and her husband Claude Gatton lived next door.
The name Lige (as in his death notice), his age and Arkansas birth, his Tennessee-born parents, his wife Ella, his daughter Mattie and Ella's brother identify him. Image read.
Source 7
-
1910 Occupation
Farmer, "home farm", working on his own account; the farm rented.
His own line of the 1910 census (image read).
Source 7
-
1912 Death
At his home "near Butler Creek", early on Monday morning (about 2 a.m. by one report, 4 a.m. by another), of consumption [tuberculosis], after a long illness; aged 51. Butler Creek is the border neighbourhood that gives its name to the cemetery at Sulphur Springs, Arkansas, just south of Noel, Missouri. Whether the house stood in McDonald County, Missouri, or Benton County, Arkansas, is not known, so no place is recorded (see Research Notes). The Ancestry tree's "Noel" is the town of the news column that reported the death.
Two death notices in the Pineville Herald of Friday, 6 December 1912, written by the correspondents for Noel and for Butler Creek, both report his death on "Monday morning", which was 2 December; the Butler Creek item gives the date in full and places the death at his home near Butler Creek, and the Noel item gives the cause. His headstone and the McDonald County obituary index give 2 December 1912. No Missouri death certificate was found in a statewide search of Wilson deaths for November and December 1912, and Arkansas had no state registration of deaths until 1914, so the notices are the best evidence for the place.
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1912 Burial
Butler Creek Cemetery, Sulphur Springs (Find a Grave memorial 76413940); an upright stone inscribed "Eligha D. Wilson / Born / Apr 25 1861 / Died / Dec 2 1912". His widow was buried at Sulphur Springs in 1937. The burial date is not recorded. The McDonald County obituary index's "Noel, Missouri" is not supported.
The Find a Grave memorial, with a photograph of his headstone giving his full name and dates, places the grave in the Butler Creek Cemetery at Sulphur Springs, Benton County, Arkansas. His wife's death certificate of 1937 gives her burial at Sulphur Springs, and her memorial is in the same cemetery. The obituary index's burial place, Noel, was evidently taken from the heading of the Noel news column and is outweighed by the stone.
- proven
- family event
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Places in this life
6 places, in order- 1 Arkansas, United States Birth 25 Apr 1861
- 2 Flint Township, Benton County Residence 1870
- 3 Ball Township, Benton County Residence 1880 · Occupation 1880
- 4 Benton County, Arkansas Marriage 21 Jul 1881
- 5 Elk River Township, McDonald County Residence 1900 · Occupation 1900 · Residence 1910 · 1 more
- 6 Sulphur Springs, Benton County Burial after 2 Dec 1912
Hollow markers are placed approximately, at the town, county or region.
Family
Records
Search the archive →Deaths and burials
- 6 Dec 1912 confirmed Death notice (correspondents' columns) “Elijah; Lige Wilson” Pineville, McDonald County Newspapers.com · O06303
The evidence 11 facts with their grades, 14 sources, and the research notes
Facts
| Fact | Date | Place | Grade | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birth | 25 Apr 1861 | Arkansas, United States | proven | 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 7 |
| Residence | 1870 | Flint Township, Benton, Arkansas, United States | proven | 3 |
| Residence | 1880 | Ball Township, Benton, Arkansas, United States | proven | 4 |
| Occupation | 1880 | Ball Township, Benton, Arkansas, United States | proven | 4 |
| Marriage with Sarah Ellen Chandler | 21 Jul 1881 | Benton County, Arkansas, United States | proven | 2 , 5 , 7 |
| Residence | 1900 | Elk River Township, McDonald, Missouri, United States | proven | 2 |
| Occupation | 1900 | Elk River Township, McDonald, Missouri, United States | proven | 2 |
| Residence | 1910 | Elk River Township, McDonald, Missouri, United States | proven | 7 |
| Occupation | 1910 | Elk River Township, McDonald, Missouri, United States | proven | 7 |
| Death | 2 Dec 1912 | proven | 1 , 10 , 11 | |
| Burial | after 2 Dec 1912 | Sulphur Springs, Benton, Arkansas, United States | proven | 1 , 6 , 12 |
Research notes
- Sources: The facts above come from records viewed on screen in the Ancestry survey of 26 September 2026. The images were read for the censuses of 1870, 1880, 1900 and 1910, for the Benton County marriage record (on FamilySearch), for the Pineville Herald page and for the headstone photograph. The obituary index, the Social Security claims index and the Washington death index were seen as index entries only.
- Identity: The records are linked as one man as follows. (1) "Eiga" Wilson, 9, born in Arkansas, is in Richard and Martha Wilson's household in Benton County in 1870.3 (2) In 1880 Elija D. Wilson, 19, born in Arkansas of Tennessee-born parents, is the son of Richard S. and Martha Wilson in Ball Township, Benton County.4 (3) In July 1881 E. D. Wilson, aged 20, marries Ella Chandler, aged 18, in Benton County.5 (4) In 1900 Eligo [Eliga] D. Wilson, born April 1861 in Arkansas of Tennessee-born parents, is married to Sarah E., born March 1863, "married 18 years", in McDonald County, Missouri.2 (5) In 1910 Lige Wilson, 48, of the same parentage, is married to Ella, "28 years", with his daughter Mattie and Ella's brother.7 (6) His daughter Mattie's Social Security claim names her parents Eligah Wilson and Ella Chandler.8 (7) The death notices of December 1912 call him both Elijah and Lige Wilson.10 (8) His headstone gives Eligha D. Wilson, born 25 April 1861.1 (9) His son James's death certificate names his parents Elijah Wilson and Sarah Chandler.13
- Name: The records give only the initial D.: Elija D. (1880), E. D. (1881), Eliga D. (1900) and Eligha D. (headstone).4, 5, 2, 1 "Daniel" is the middle name in the Ancestry and FamilySearch trees; no record seen spells it out. His grandson Tulla Daniel Wilson, born in 1906, may have been named for him. He was known as Lige.7, 10 The spellings Eiga (1870; indexed "Eiza"), Eliga, Eligha and Eligah are all forms of Elijah. WikiTree has him as "Eligha D Wilson".
- Birthplace: Arkansas in every census from 1870 to 1910.3, 4, 2, 7 His son James's Washington death certificate (1941) gives McDonald County, Missouri. Its informant, the son's wife of four months, gave McDonald County for the son and his mother too, and both were born elsewhere, so the family's later home was evidently given for all three.13 The county in Arkansas is unknown. The family was in Benton County by 1870, and FamilySearch gives Benton County without a source. The FamilySearch tree places his parents' marriage in 1855 at "Benton, Saline, Arkansas". Benton is the county seat of Saline County, in central Arkansas, so this may be either a real marriage there or a mistaken standardization of Benton County. If it is real, the family may have lived in central Arkansas when he was born. The 1860 census of Richard Wilson (Ancestry suggests 7667/12858297; not viewed) should settle where the family was the year before his birth. A member tree gives 21 April 1861 without a source.
- Parents (probable): The 1880 census names Elija D. as the son of Richard S. and Martha Wilson.4 He is identified with the E. D. Wilson who married in the same county a year later by his name and initial, his age, his Arkansas birth, his parents' Tennessee birthplaces (which he gave himself in 1900 and 1910) and the county.2, 7 The 1870 household of Richard and Martha, with "Eiga", 9, fits.3 A family history names Lige's brothers William Arch Wilson and Richard Wilson, which fits the William (11) of 1870 and the Richard A. (15) of 1880.9 The link is strong but rests on one census that states the relationship. No record found after 1881 names his parents. Next steps: the 1860 census; Richard Wilson's death, probate or obituary (FamilySearch and a member tree give 1914); Martha's death (1890 by a member tree); and a Benton County marriage record for the parents.
- Father's name (conflict): The 1880 image reads "Richard S." The FamilySearch tree, a member tree and Ancestry's "potential parents" suggestion call him Richard Alfred Wilson (1834–1914), with a son Richard Alfred Jr. (born 19 May 1865). The son of that name is the "Richard A." of 1880. The father's middle name is not settled, so he is recorded as Richard Wilson. His age is 36 in 1870 but 48 in the 1880 index, and Martha's is 34 in 1870 but 43 in 1880. The 1880 ages were not checked on the image. Martha's maiden name is not known. FamilySearch calls her "Martha Elam Wilson" and a member tree "Martha E. 'Tide' Wilson"; neither cites a record.
- Marriage date (conflict): 21 July 1881 by the Benton County licence and the justice's return.5 The 1900 census says married 18 years and the 1910 census 28 years, both pointing to 1882.2, 7 The contemporary record governs. The place of the ceremony within Benton County is not stated.
- Children (conflict): In 1900 Sarah was the mother of five children, all living, and all five were at home.2 In 1910 her line reads "3" children born and "3" living.7 That figure cannot be right: five had been born by 1900, and at least four were alive after 1910 (James died in 1941; William was his mother's informant in 1937; Mattie claimed Social Security in 1941; Bertha was living in 1920, as her mother's line of that census shows). Nancy has not been traced after 1900.13, 6, 8 Five children are recorded.
- The move to Missouri: Mattie was born in Benton County, Arkansas, in January 1889.8 By June 1900 the family was in Elk River Township, McDonald County.2 Family trees give Bertha's birth as 19 September 1891 at Pineville, McDonald County, which would put the move at about 1890–91. No record of her birthplace has been seen; her line in the 1900 census, on the next page, was not read.
- Place of death (conflict): The Ancestry tree and FamilySearch give Noel, McDonald County, Missouri, and WikiTree gives "Arkansas". The only record of the place is the Pineville Herald's Butler Creek column, which has him dying at his home "near Butler Creek". The Noel column reported the death but gave no place.10 Butler Creek names both a neighbourhood with its own correspondent in the McDonald County paper and the cemetery at Sulphur Springs, Benton County, Arkansas, just south of Noel. The family had lived in Elk River Township, McDonald County, in 1910.7 No Missouri death certificate was found: the state archives' index, searched for Wilson in McDonald County in 1912–1913, gave only another man (Solomon Benjamin Wilson), and a search of every county for Wilson deaths in November and December 1912 gave 25 names, none his. Missouri required death certificates from 1910 but did not always get them; Arkansas registered no deaths statewide until 1914. The house may therefore have stood on either side of the state line. No place is recorded until a record settles it. Noel is only the town of the news column. Next steps: McDonald County and Benton County land, tax or probate records for 1910–1913, and the 1911–1912 personal-property tax lists.
- Hour of death (conflict): 4 a.m. by the Noel column and about 2 a.m. by the Butler Creek column.10
- Burial (conflict): The McDonald County obituary index gives "Noel, Missouri" as the burial place.11 His headstone stands in the Butler Creek Cemetery at Sulphur Springs, Benton County, Arkansas.1 The index evidently took the town from the heading of the Noel column. The stone is accepted. His widow's certificate gives her burial at Sulphur Springs.6 The burial date is not recorded.
- Photographs: The headstone photograph on Find a Grave was taken by Carolyn Hartsell (2 April 2015). Copies were uploaded to an Ancestry member tree by nelsoki2003, with a copy of the McDonald County Library's obituary-file sheet holding the two Pineville Herald notices.1, 10
- Not him: Elijah Wilson, "works", Nashville, Tennessee, in the city directory of 1882. Nothing identifies that man, and Lige was married in Benton County in July 1881 and his children were born in Arkansas in 1882 and 1884.
- WikiTree and FamilySearch: WikiTree Wilson-127402 gives the right dates but places the death in "Arkansas" and gives the marriage year only (1881). His son William Alfred (Wilson-127401) is linked to him there, but his son James (Wilson-127909) is not. FamilySearch KZYV-GSZ gives birth in Benton County, death at Noel and burial at Butler Creek Cemetery, and names the parents above.
Working notes
- AKA Lige Wilson (1910 census; 1912 death notice), Eligha D. Wilson (headstone), E. D. Wilson (1881 licence); middle name Daniel from family trees only (records give D.); b. Arkansas (1870-1910 censuses), county unknown (FS Benton unsourced; family in Benton Co. by 1870; son's 1941 WA death cert. 'McDonald Co., Mo.' wrong); parents H0200/H0201 PROBABLE (1880 census Ball Twp., Benton Co.: son of Richard S. and Martha Wilson; 1870 Flint Twp.); m. Ella Chandler (H0049) 21 Jul 1881 Benton Co., Ark. (licence 20 Jul, J.P. J. S. McIntyre; FS image read; 1900/1910 durations point to 1882); tenant farmer, Elk River Twp., McDonald Co., Mo., 1900-1910 (moved from Ark. between Jan 1889 and Jun 1900, c.1890-91 by tradition); d. of consumption at his home 'near Butler Creek' (Pineville Herald 6 Dec 1912); death place left blank: state unproven (McDonald Co., Mo., or Benton Co., Ark.; no MO death cert. found; tree's 'Noel' = news-column town); bur. Butler Creek Cemetery, Sulphur Springs, Benton Co., Ark. (Find a Grave 76413940, headstone photo; obit index 'Noel' rejected)
Sources
- 1
Find a Grave, memorial 76413940, Eligha D Wilson (25 Apr 1861 – 2 Dec 1912), Butler Creek Cemetery, Sulphur Springs, Benton County, Arkansas; created by "Laura", 12 September 2011; headstone photograph by Carolyn Hartsell (2 April 2015), an upright tablet inscribed "ELIGHA D. WILSON / BORN / APR 25 1861 / DIED / DEC 2 1912"; no biography; linked to the memorials of his wife, Sarah Ellen Chandler Phillips (1863–1937), and his children James Israel Wilson (1882–1941), William Alfred Wilson (1886–1972) and Martha June "Mattie" Wilson Adcock (1889–1960) (findagrave.com/memorial/76413940). Indexed in "U.S., Find a Grave Index," Ancestry.com.
- 2
1900 U.S. Federal Census, Elk River Township, McDonald County, Missouri, E.D. 94, sheet 5A, family 98 (dwelling indexed as 88), lines 45–50 and overleaf, enumerated 5 June 1900: James Wilson (son, born June 1882, 17, single, born Arkansas, father born Arkansas, mother born Missouri; farm laborer, four months unemployed) in the household of Eligo [Eliga] D. Wilson (head, born April 1861, 39, married 18 years, born Arkansas, parents born Tennessee; farmer; rents), with Sarah E. (wife, born March 1863, 37, mother of five children, all living, born Missouri), Nancy R. (daughter, born February 1884, 16), Wm. A. (son, born March 1886, 14) and Mattie June (daughter, born June 1889, 11), all born Arkansas, and, on the next page, Burtha (daughter, 8) and Robert Chadler [Chandler] (brother-in-law, 43); NARA T623, roll 873; image 4118801_00110; database with images, Ancestry.com (the index gives James's age as 18).
- 3
1870 U.S. Federal Census, Flint Township, Benton County, Arkansas, post office Hico, p. 233B, dwelling 175, family 180 [reading]: "Eiga" [Eliga; indexed "Eiza"] Wilson (9, male, born Arkansas) in the household of Richard Wilson (36, farmer, real estate $400, personal estate $200, born Tennessee), with Martha (34, keeping house, born Tennessee), James (12), William (11) and Richard (7), all born Arkansas; NARA M593, roll 47; image 4259242_00461; database with images, Ancestry.com.
- 4
1880 U.S. Federal Census, Ball Township, Benton County, Arkansas, E.D. 9, p. 336A, dwelling 150, family 160, enumerated [8?] June 1880: Elija D. [indexed "Elisa D."] Wilson (son, 19, farm labor, born Arkansas, father and mother born Tennessee; attended school during the year; cannot write) in the household of Richard S. Wilson (head, 48 [index], farming, born Tennessee, parents born Tennessee), with Martha (wife, 43 [index], keeping house, born Tennessee, parents born South Carolina), James A. (son, 23) and Richard A. (son, 15), both farm laborers born Arkansas; NARA T9, roll 38; image 4239799-00679; database with images, Ancestry.com.
- 5
Benton County, Arkansas, marriage record, p. 190: licence issued 20 July 1881 by John Black, clerk, for the marriage of E. D. Wilson, aged 20 years, and Ella Chandler, aged 18 years; certificate of J. S. McIntyre, justice of the peace, that he married them on 21 July 1881; recorded 28 July 1881; "Arkansas, County Marriages, 1837–1957," database with images, FamilySearch, DGS 004401666, image 101 of 659 FamilySearch image S3HT-D1S7-J1H, index entries FamilySearch record N9QV-YQ2 (groom) and FamilySearch record N9QV-YQK (bride), FHL microfilm 1034661; also indexed in "Arkansas, U.S., County Marriages Index, 1837–1957," Ancestry.com.
- 6
Missouri State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, Certificate of Death, file no. 538 (1937), registration district 160, Sarah Ellen Phillips: died 6 January 1937 in West Dolan Township, Cass County; female; white; widow; husband Frank Phillips; born March 4, 1863, Crawford Co., Mo.; age 73 years, 10 months, 2 days; housekeeper; father John Chandler, birthplace unknown; mother's maiden name Martha Jane Whitehead, birthplace unknown; informant Alford [Alfred] Wilson, Pittsburg, Kansas; cause intestinal obstruction and toxaemia, contributory gall bladder disease (a supplemental report adds malignancy); physician E. H. Owen [reading], Harrisonville; burial Sulphur Springs, Ark., date not given; undertaker Geo. E. Myers [reading], Cleveland, Mo.; filed 7 January 1937, Mary Meador, registrar; image, Missouri State Archives, "Missouri Death Certificates, 1910–1975" (sos.mo.gov/images/archives/deathcerts/1937/1937_00000538.PDF).
- 7
1910 U.S. Federal Census, Elk River Township, McDonald County, Missouri, E.D. 110, sheet 2B, dwelling 49, family 49: Lige Wilson (head, 48, first marriage, married 28 years, born Arkansas, father and mother born Tennessee; farmer, home farm, working on his own account; rents his farm; can read and write), with Ella (wife, 47, first marriage, married 28 years, mother of "3" children, "3" living [so read; five in 1900], born Missouri, parents born Missouri), Mattie (daughter, 21, single, born Arkansas) and James Chandler (brother-in-law, 53, single, born Missouri); next dwelling (50): Claude Gatton (head, 26) with his wife Bertha and a child; NARA T624, roll 797; FHL microfilm 1374810; image 31111_4330744-00128; database with images, Ancestry.com.
- 8
"U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936–2007," database, Ancestry.com, Mattie Wilson Adcock, female, white, born 14 January 1889, "Bintin" [Benton], Arkansas; father Eligah Wilson; mother Ella Chandler; a number issued in Kansas; note "Jul 1941: name listed as Mattie Wilson Adcock".
- 9
Dorothy Ware Wilson, "Wilson Chronicles" (a family compilation, 1989), typed extract "About Claud Alfred Wilson", shared as a story in an Ancestry member tree (tree 8475771) by James Smith, 17 February 2022; a derivative family history, not verified against records.
- 10
"County Correspondence," The Pineville Herald (Pineville, McDonald County, Missouri), Friday 6 December 1912, p. 1: in the "Noel" column, "Elijah Wilson, who has been ill some time of consumption, passed away at 4 o'clock Monday morning"; in the "Butler Creek" column, "Died, at his home near Butler Creek, Monday morning at about 2 o'clock, December 2, 1912, Lige Wilson. He leaves a host of friends and relatives to mourn his death."; image 580726658, Newspapers.com, from the State Historical Society of Missouri (newspapers.com/image/580726658). Both notices, cut from the paper and mounted on a McDonald County Library obituary-file sheet headed "Wilson, Elijah / Pineville Hearld [sic] / Dec. 2, 1912", were uploaded to an Ancestry member tree by nelsoki2003 on 24 April 2017.
- 11
"Web: McDonald County, Missouri, Obituary Index," database, Ancestry.com, Elijah Wilson, died 2 December 1912; publication Pineville Herald; burial place given as "Noel, Missouri"; citing the McDonald County Library's obituary index (librarymail.org/genehist/obits).
- 12
Find a Grave, memorial 185825909, Sarah Ellen Chandler Phillips (4 Mar 1863 – 6 Jan 1937), Butler Creek Cemetery, Sulphur Springs, Benton County, Arkansas; created by "Cinderella", 10 December 2017; no photograph; biography: "daughter of John and Martha Jane (Whitehead) Chandler"; linked to the memorials of her husband Eligha D Wilson and her children James Israel Wilson, William Alfred Wilson and Martha June "Mattie" Wilson Adcock (findagrave.com/memorial/185825909). Indexed in "U.S., Find a Grave Index," Ancestry.com, as Sarah Ellen Phillips, maiden name Chandler, born 4 March 1863, Crawford County, Missouri; died 6 January 1937, Cass County, Missouri.
- 13
Washington State Department of Health, Certificate of Death, state file no. 248 (1941), registrar's no. 258, James Israel Wilson: died 8 December 1941 at 1 p.m. at Aberdeen General Hospital, Aberdeen, Grays Harbor County (five hours in hospital; 18 years in the community); usual residence 822½ E. Wishkah St., Aberdeen; male; white; married; wife Carrie Clark, aged 62; born June 14, 1882, McDonald Co., Missouri; age 59 years, 5 months, 24 days; usual occupation edgerman worker, industry saw mill; no military service; father Elijah Wilson, born McDonald Co., Missouri; mother's maiden name Sarah Chandler, born McDonald Co., Missouri; informant Carrie Wilson, 822½ E. Wishkah; cause cerebral hemorrhage; burial 11 December 1941, Fern Hill, Aberdeen; Elerding Mortuary; filed 11 December 1941; image i2284759-01235, "Washington, U.S., Death Records, 1907–2017," database with images, Ancestry.com (indexed with birthplace McDonald Co., Missouri, and spouse Carrie Clark).
- 14
"Washington, U.S., Select Death Index, 1907–1960," database, Ancestry.com, James Israel Wilson, male, married, age 59, died 8 December 1941, Aberdeen; father Elijah Wilson; mother Sarah Chandler; spouse Carrie Clark; reference 248; FHL film 2023901.