Oh George…
One of the joys of doing a blog is that, occasionally, someone will send you something that advances your research in a direction you never would have expected. Then again, one of the disconcerting aspects of doing a blog is that, occasionally, someone will send you something that advances your research in a direction you never would have expected too.
Case in point: my elusive second great grandfather George Washington Cottrell, who said he was born in Madison County, Kentucky, in 1821 (except that there’s no record of his family there), served in the Mexican War from 1846-18481 (except that there’s no record of him doing that2), then lived in Navarro (no record of him there), Tarrant,3 Parker4 and Wichita5 Counties in Texas before ultimately dying in 1891 in Wichita County.6
Our working theory is that our George Washington Cottrell is the same G.W. Cotrell who lived in Colorado County in the early 1840s, married there in 18427 and was promptly indicted for bigamy and adultery there.8 The charges were dismissed after Wharton County was created from Colorado County,9 perhaps because it was no longer Colorado County’s problem and perhaps because the woman he married in 1842 died10 and he was no longer — if he ever had been — a bigamist.
And, it turns out, if that is our G.W., that wasn’t his only brush with the law. Take a gander at this clipping from the New York Daily Tribune from 22 December 1847:
From Texas. … On the 11th ult. G. W. Cotrell of Wharton County, killed Abner Woolsey. They were living together, and Cotrell performed the diabolical deed by poking a musket through the crack of the door and shooting Woolsey while sitting at the fire. Woolsey’s wife is said to be the cause of the murder, and she is now in the custody of the law. Cotrell has fled, but as the spirited citizens of the neighborhood immediately subscribed $500 for his apprehension, it is to be hoped the murderer may yet be brought to justice. (N.O. Delta, Dec. 10.)11
Sigh… turns out Abner Woolsey’s wife was Vergilla (possibly Virgilla) Gilbert. If that last name is familiar, it should be: the woman G.W. married in 1842 was Mary Newman Gilbert, widow of Preston Gilbert — Vergilla’s brother.
Oh my.
Apparently G.W. didn’t get away cleanly. According to the Wharton County Historical Museum website, “In April of 1848 Jess Griffin arrested George Cottrell for murder.”12 That’s confirmed by a transcription of the Criminal File Docket Book I, showing George W. Cottrell charged with murder in April 1848.13
So… is this for sure not just a G.W. Cotrell but my G.W. Cottrell? I’m not yet 100% sure (we’ve long entertained the possibility that we were dealing with a father and son). But unless more research now underway shows that the killer was hung or sent to prison for a long time, it’s sure starting to look that way…
Stay tuned.
SOURCES
- Survivor’s Claim, 23 March 1887, pension application no. 7890 (Rejected), for service of George W. Cotrell of Texas; Mexican War Pension Files; Records of the Bureau of Pensions and its Predecessors 1805-1935; Department of Veterans Affairs, Record Group 15; National Archives, Washington, D.C. ↩
- Compiled Service Records of Volunteer Soldiers Who Served During the Mexican War in Organizations From the State of Texas, microfilm publication M278, 19 rolls (Washington, D.C. : National Archives & Records Service, 1959). ↩
- 1850 U.S. census, Tarrant County, Texas, Navarro District, population schedule, p. 89 (stamped), dwelling/family 3, G W Cotril in the Archie Robinson household; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 8 Jun 2012); citing National Archive microfilm publication M432, roll 910. ↩
- 1880 U.S. census, Parker County, Texas, Justice Precinct 6, population schedule, enumeration district (ED) 139, p. 458(B) (stamped), dwelling/family 10, George W Cotrell; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 8 Jun 2012); citing National Archive microfilm publication T9, roll 1232; imaged from FHL microfilm 1255323. ↩
- Survivor’s Brief, 17 February 1890, pension application no. 7890 (Rejected), for service of George W. Cotrell of Texas; Mexican War Pension Files; RG-15; NA-Washington, D.C. ↩
- Declaration of claimant, widow’s pension application no. 13773 (Rejected), for service of George W. Cottrell of Texas; Mexican War Pension Files; RG-15; NA-Washington, D.C. ↩
- Colorado County, Texas, Marriage Book B: 38, Cotrell-Gilbert; County Clerk, Columbus. ↩
- Colorado County, Texas, Criminal Court Minutes Book A&B, p. 217, Republic of Texas v. G.W. Cottrell, Criminal Cause File No. 251 (1843); District Court, Columbus. ↩
- Ibid. ↩
- Wharton County, Texas, Probate Court Minutes A: 2, September Term 1848; County Clerk’s Office, Wharton; FHL microfilm 1,012,393. ↩
- “From Texas,” New York Daily Tribune, 22 December 1847, p. 1, col. 4; digital images, “Old New York State Historical Newspaper Pages,” Old Fulton Post Cards (http://www.fultonhistory.com : accessed 8 Jun 2012). My thanks to Quentin McGown of Fort Worth for alerting me to this. ↩
- Janet Barrett Hobizal, “Jess Griffin, 1846 – 1848, First Wharton County Sheriff,” Wharton County, Texas Site (http://freepages.history.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~barrettbranches/whartoncountyindex.html : accessed 8 Jun 2012). ↩
- Ibid., Janet Barrett and Lauren Gansky, “Wharton County Texas, Criminal File Docket Book I, 1847 to 1960.” ↩
“Oh my” is right! Isn’t it fun to have such interesting ancestors? Whether he turns out to be “yours” or not, I sure hope you write up the research and proof argument for publication. I’d be glued to this article!!!
Oh this one will get written up for sure once the reasonably exhaustive search is complete. My nemesis, this guy. Definitely my nemesis.
OMG squared, as my grandkids say – one wonders how his various children/aunts/uncles & others in the family might have felt about this guy! He – if it is one person – certainly lived by his own rules, didn’t he? I’m with Cathi above – this will be an exceptional article. It’s got everything to make it fascinating. There’s something about a stinker that grabs us – they break all the rules and sort-of get away with it. Great post, Judy.
Celia, I suspect that — once we know for sure whether this is one George or two — it’s only going to be this generation that knows of it. If this is one guy, it’s a sure bet he never ‘fessed up after leaving town. Although there is that story about one of the Cottrells fleeing to Old Mexico after killing a man in Texas…
Oh wow! Great story Judy. It’s so much more fun to research ancestors (or possible ancestors) who were “colorful” than to just find names, dates, and locations for those who led ordinary lives (as most people do – fortunately for the family, but no fun for genealogists. 🙂 )
This guy absolutely is a ton of fun. Frustrating — to the point of pulling my hair out — but fun.
Wonderful stuff! You’ve hit genealogical gold!
One of my New England correspondents, Martin Hollick, posits that most genealogical “brick walls,” if they truly are unresolvable (and not simply the result of lack of sufficient research), result from family dysfunction of one sort or another. This guy has dysfunction written all over him!
Another great post, Judy!
Yeah, “dysfunction” is one way of saying it. “Crazy” is another!
I have a 3xgreat-grandfather who went missing in the midst of an otherwise well-recorded migration with multiple family members and others. While many of them continued west, his wife stayed in Iowa with her youngest daughter and her husband.
I’ve been unable to find any record of my ggggrandfather since Tennessee, though some church records may or may not indicate his presence in Illinois. So far I’ve found no other records of him there or any place with other family members, and no death record; other family researchers have the same experience.
I am beginning to think I should check prison and court records. From what I’ve seen of other things going on at the time, I would concur that there is likely a family dysfunction of some sort at work. I am sooooo curious about what was going on.
Don’t shoot me!!! My English major is coming out. The teacher said, “Pictures are hung, people are hanged.”
Nonetheless, I love dysfunctional ancestors, they left so many records. The ones who drive me nuts are like my guy who got his land patent in 1780, never sold any land, never bought any more land, never got sued, never sued anybody, never got arrested, wasn’t prominent enough to be one of the gentlemen of the county court, never got himself mentioned in any records except the vestry book (he made a couple of coffins for poor folks). He left a will naming his children and his father-in-law’s estate records make clear who his wife was. Otherwise, no records seem to exist which might tell me his parents or siblings. I’m sure he was a nice man and a fine neighbor. He was just so anonymous.
So I hope this guy was only hung and not hanged! And trust me: I have plenty of anonymous relatives. Sigh…
I agree with previous posters…a fascinating story to follow…I’m new to this blog so my question may not be original, but I’m interested in what to do when you know of a person’s less than exemplary life style and others are researching that person…I have several now deceased relatives that I knew when I was younger and to say they were “colorful characters” is putting it mildly…I find them interesting; others may find them appalling…so what’s the tactful way to approach inquiries about them? Jerri
Jerri, there are so many possibilities on how to approach someone about this sort of thing. You may find that once people know that you know, the floodgates will open. I have a seventh or eighth cousin now in prison in Mississippi for an extremely disturbing and “celebrated” murder. I had three or four researchers who emailed me privately once they realized I connected to that line. So that’s one possible response.
Then again people may be appalled, as you say.
So just proceed carefully and with the understanding that you may need to pull back, and you’ll be fine.
My 2nd great grandfather was George Washington Cottrell. I’m sure I could check this if I had to but… He was born in Kentucky in 1840, moved to Iowa and went off to the civil war as an Iowan. Made it as far as Chattanooga with the Union forces, was taken prisoner and spent a month or two in Andersonville.
There were probably a lot of Cottrells in Kentucky at the time. My understanding is that they probably moved from Edinborough to Ulster in the late 1500’s or early 1600’s with a lot of Scots… to become Scots/Irish. There was a major influx of the same group into the Virginia River valley in the early 1700’s which apparently included John Cottrell, who begat John Cottrell Sr. (figure that out) who move to Kentucky and begat George Washington Cottrell… who’s son was probably Willis Cottrell. I can try to look it up if you think it might be of help, but my guess is a bunch of Cottrells moved to the Virginia River Valley in the 1700’s and, since the first son always got the property in those days, the second son’s kept going west.
Frank, I would love to see what you have on your Cottrells. And yes, there were Cottrells in Kentucky (mostly in the Shelby County area) and in West Virginia and in Virginia. Just none that I can definitively link as the parents of my George. Our Cottrells have been YDNA tested (we are in Group C at the FTDNA Cottrell Surname Project) and I’d love to know if yours have.
My oh my! I just saw your blog. I am also a descendant of an elusive 4th gr.grandfather George W. Cottrell Sr (sometimes spelled Cotrell). Not sure if there is a connection. But there is little or no information for this relative; his parents may have been Edward Cottrell and Sally Deheart (maybe from England). He did have a son, George W. Cottrell Jr., allegedly born in VA who married Lavina Collins on April 6, 1832 in KY. George Jr. allegedly died in 1840, Hickman, Fulton County, Kentucky. After George Jr’s death his wife and 4 kids moved to Crawford County, Missouri.
Please tell me that (a) you’ve taken a DNA test and (b) you match me…
Sorry – haven’t yet! Will keep in touch.
Please do! (Test — AND keep in touch!)
I just found this. Looks like there is a Mexican War Pension application that’s 30 pages long. Unfortunately the posting is from 1999. I sent him an email but message was returned. Bummer – hate it when that happens.
http://newsfeed.rootsweb.com/th/read/COTTRELL/1999-07/0932766091
Thanks, Jan, but I’ve got that pension application (even if almost nothing George says in it turns out to be the truth!). I’ve also been been in touch with Sam — he’s a DNA match to my uncles.
Test results are in and posted on two different sites! Please email me if you are interested. Thanks, Jan
Would love to get someone from your line out of Hickman Co., KY and Crawford County, MO in the DNA test.
Darel – I have DNA on Ancestry, Gedmatch and Family Tree DNA, but don’t know any direct male Cottrell descendants. Let me know how I can help.
Correction – should be Hickman County, KY – not Hickman, Fulton County, KY