All My Ancestors

This week at work I’ve been researching an Oklahoma family who had a family member imprisoned just prior to statehood. They said the family tradition was that he was at McAlester–site of the federal penitentiary here in Oklahoma.

However, a visit to the state’s Department of Corrections website about the establishment of “Big Mac” states it was not built until 1908. It goes on to say that inmates from Kansas were returned to Oklahoma to build the prison. I would have assumed that prisoners from that time period were sent to Fort Smith and maybe Muskogee–there was a federal court there, not sure about a prison. But this indicated to me that they were also sent to Kansas–guess that makes sense since it’s a neighbor and it did have federal prisons by then.

Materials I found on the family indicated that the man in question had served his time in Detroit prior to Oklahoma statehood in 1907. I wondered if this could be another Detroit besides Detroit, Michigan, but after a bit more digging, I believe it must have indeed been in the Motor City.

I decided to take a look at the 1900 federal census for Detroit. Sure enough, part of Ward 7 was a listing of the prisoners in the “House of Corrections.” There were probably about 350-400 male prisoners listed and 75 female–on separate pages, of course. But my estimate is that 15 or so of the male prisoners were from “Indian Territory” or Texas. I did not find the person I was seeking, but I believe he served his time a little later, about 1902 or so.

I used the “Ask a Librarian” function on the State of Michigan website and got a prompt response. Sure enough, even though the Detroit prison was not built as a federal prison, there had been a public law passed in 1899 that enabled them to contract for federal prisoners from other states.

Another lesson learned. A confirmation that there’s usually a grain of truth in family stories, but they must be confirmed. And who would have thought that persons from Indian Territory would serve time in Michigan? And, again, I’m reminded of how grateful I am to have such great access to this sort of info from the comfort of my computer chair.

One more bit of info for those of you who are interested in McAlester’s history, and we frequently get questions about ancestors who were imprisoned there–the listing for the cemetery at the prison is online. Over 300 of the graves have entries at FindAGrave. It’s listed as Department of Corrections Prison Cemetery in Pittsburg County, Oklahoma. Just so you know.

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One of the things that has emerged from family reunion are formal studio photos of most of my grandfather Osborne’s siblings. I am so happy to have copies of these photos–it’s sort of ironic that the one I don’t have is the one from whom I descend.

Here’s Aunt Becky–

…and here’s the one I knew best, Aunt Eva…

I also knew Aunt Fannie fairly well–she lived in the same town where I grew up and she was the oldest of the children of Charles W. Osborne and Gertrude Susanna Mobley Osborne. She was a character–someday soon I’ll write more about her.

Here’s Aunt Inez–she lived to be over 100. I knew her though she lived in the neighboring town of Pampa.

Here’s his brother Fountain Walton, known as F.W. or Walton.

It makes me wonder if there is one of Thad, my grandad. I’ve never seen one and it doesn’t seem like the sort of thing he would sit still for, but then again, the photos exist of him with a friend in his work clothes.

Here’s another brother, David Wilson. One of the first big Osborne family gatherings I remember is Uncle David’s funeral when I was about 8. He was one of the first city commissioners in Pampa in 1927.

Here’s Charles Woodman, known as C.W. or Wood.

and the youngest brother, Emmett. This is from his service in WW I.

This makes a photo for each of the children except Raphael who died as a toddler.

So maybe one exists of my grandfather. But where is it? He had 8 children of his own–there are only 3 now living. I’m asking around to see if anyone has seen one of him and maybe, just maybe, has one. Here’s hoping.

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This is a fun site–The Baby Name Voyager.

You can track the popularity of a first name through history.

It also pretty much confirms my theory that if your name is any iteration of Debra, I can guess your age within 5 years.

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I’m just back from family reunion. That meant a drive to the Texas panhandle, which I truly enjoyed. I forget how much I love the expansive sky and the seemingly limitless shades of green in the landscape. A turkey hen and her teen-aged brood crossed the road in front of me–she stood on the far edge of the pavement until they all scurried across. They went into a double row of trees that I suspect defined the boundaries of the old roadway–gratefully we have wider roads and wide shoulders these days.

Here’s one of the great things I found at the reunion. This is my great-grandfather, Charles Winfield Osborne. He died in 1926 so my dad, his grandson, never knew him. I’ve seen some other more informal pictures of him, in a group with his family of 10(!) children, but I think this one is great. I’m so grateful to have a copy.

And it doesn’t surprise me that he has on his hat for what is apparently a studio photo.

He was born in 1848 in Shelby County, near Memphis, Tennessee. In 1865, just after his father’s death, he moved with his mother and siblings to Grimes County, Texas. After he married Gertrude Susanna Mobley there in 1871, they proceeded to have 10 children, born in 5 different counties. In 1910, they were living in Lubbock County, Texas and by 1920, they’d moved a bit further north to Gray County, which was the site of the reunion.

This photo was taken, I’m estimating about 1911, so it was probably made in Lubbock County. (Don’t you love those sunglasses?) It includes all the surviving children, from the left, Inez, Wood, Walton, Fannie, Elizabeth, Thad, my grandfather, Eva, David, and Emmett. A 2-year-old son Raphael had died in 1877.

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