James Montgomery Bell vs. James M. Bell

James Montgomery Bell vs. James M. Bell

I have found much research that has been done for these two gentlemen, and much of it overlaps.  Digging through the records, here is what I have discovered:

William Bell (b. 1740, Virginia) and Mary Foster (b. 1745, Virginia) had several children.  Among them, were two sons:

Judge William Bell, Sr., born in 1768, Virginia

Married about 1786 to Sarah Knight, born in 1768, Virginia

Son, James M. Bell, born in 1815, Kentucky

Married in 1845 to Mary Ann Elizabeth Hall, born 1825, Kentucky

Thomas Bell, born in 1773, Virginia

Married about 1799 to Hannah Boggess, born in 1781, Kentucky

            Son, James Montgomery Bell, born in 1812, Kentucky

            Married in 1835 to Nancy G. Boggess, born in 1814, Kentucky

Much of the research that has been done suggests that James Montgomery Bell and James M. Bell are the same person, having married Nancy G. Boggess first, and then Mary Ann Elizabeth Hall, ten years later. 

That assumption is false. 

James M. Bell and Mary Ann Elizabeth Hall appear in the 1850, 1860, 1870, and 1880 US Census records, all in McCracken County, Kentucky.

Meanwhile, James Montgomery Bell and Nancy G. Boggess are listed in the 1840 and 1850 US Census Records in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky, and 1860 in Hopkins County, Kentucky.

The information listed in the 1850 and 1860 US Census Records proves that James M. Bell and James Montgomery Bell are not the same person.

James M. Bell (1815-1899)

Note:  click here for more information regarding the research of James M. Bell

James M. Bell was born on July 2, 1815 in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky.  He was the son of Judge William Bell, Sr. and Sarah Knight.

On October 13, 1845 James married Mary Ann Elizabeth Hall in McCracken County or Muhlenberg County, Kentucky.  He was 33 years old and she was 20 years.  Mary was born December 13, 1825 in Logan County, Kentucky, the daughter of Micajah Hall and Harriet W. Duval.

James and Mary had ten children:

                        Wyley Jesse              born March 24, 1847

                        Anna Isabell               born January 15, 1849                   

                        Susan H.                    born July 27, 1850

                        John William              born January 17, 1852

                        Frank                          born February 26, 1854

                        Ella                             born in 1855            

                        Mary                           born April 4, 1857

                        Virginia                      born 1860

                        Elizabeth J.                born in 1862

                        Mallie                         born in 1871            

After their marriage, the couple settled on a farm in McCracken County, Kentucky, where they stayed to raise their family.

In 1880, James and Mary had established their family on a farm in Hays, McCracken County, Kentucky.  Their real estate was worth $8,000 and their personal estate worth $1,000.  James was working on the family farm, along with his two sons, Jesse and John. 

James M. Bell died on October 8, 1889 in McCracken County, Kentucky.  He was buried in Mount Kenton Cemetery in Paducah, McCracken County, Kentucky.  He was 84 years old at his death. 

After her husband’s death, Mary stayed on the family farm, living with her daughter, Mally.  Her son, John, and his family lived on a farm nearby.  By 1910, Mary and Mally were renting a house on Yancy Street, near the farm of her son, John.

 Mary Ann Elizabeth Bell died on January 8, 1914 in McCracken County, Kentucky.  She was just one month past her 88^th birthday.  Mary was laid to rest next to her husband in Mount Kenton Cemetery in Paducah, McCracken County, Kentucky. 

Notes for James M. Bell

Birth, Death, Burial:  Ancestry.com. U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.

Original data: Find A Grave. Find A Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi

Marriage to Mary:  Yates Publishing. U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1560-1900 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2004. Source number: 12610.000; Source type: Electronic Database; Number of Pages: 1; Submitter Code: JDM.

1850 US Census:  James M. Bell - Year: 1850; Census Place: District 2, McCracken, Kentucky; Roll: M432_211; Page: 183B; Image: 372.  Ancestry.com. 1850 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.

1860 US Census:  J M Bell - Year: 1860; Census Place: District 2, McCracken, Kentucky; Roll: M653_383; Page: 829; Image: 493; Family History Library Film: 803383.  Ancestry.com. 1860 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.

1870 US Census:  James M Bell - Year: 1870; Census Place: District 4, McCracken, Kentucky; Roll: M593_487; Page: 55A; Image: 113; Family History Library Film: 545986.  Ancestry.com. 1870 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.

1880 US Census:  James M. Bell - Year: 1880; Census Place: Hays, McCracken, Kentucky; Roll: 430; Family History Film: 1254430; Page: 190B; Enumeration District: 128; Image: 0385.  Ancestry.com and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 1880 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010.

Death:  Year: 1900; Census Place: Florence Station, McCracken, Kentucky; Roll: T623 540; Page: 13A; Enumeration District: 74.

Notes for Mary Ann Elizabeth Hall

Birth and Death:  Ancestry.com. Kentucky Death Records, 1852-1953 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2007.

Residence in 1900:  Year: 1900; Census Place: Florence Station, McCracken, Kentucky; Roll: T623 540; Page: 13A; Enumeration District: 74.

Residence in 1910:  Year: 1910; Census Place: District 6, McCracken, Kentucky; Roll: T624_493; Page: 9B; Enumeration District: 128; Image: 578.

Burial:  Ancestry.com. U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.

Original data: Find A Grave. Find A Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi

William P. Nichols (1829-bef 1913)

William P. Nichols was born around 1829, probably in either Caldwell County or McCracken County, Kentucky.  He was the son of Jesse Nichols and Elizabeth Wadlington.  He was raised on the family farm in McCracken County, Kentucky. 

William married Sarah A. Rice on February 16, 1854 in Paducah, McCracken County, Kentucky.  He was 24 years old and she was 18 years.  Sarah was born about 1835 in Kentucky, the daughter of Samuel Lewis Rice and Jane Morrow.  William and Sarah had at least three children:

            (Daughter)                 born December 28, 1854, died before 1860

            Mary C.                      born November 4, 1855

            William Burnet           born May 18, 1858

After their marriage, William and Sarah made their home on a farm in Paducah, McCracken County, Kentucky. 

Sarah A. Rice Nichols died around 1871 in McCracken County, Kentucky.  She was in her early 40’s at the time of her death.

William married again on September 8, 1887 in Spencer County, Kentucky.  He married Anna Isabell Bell, daughter of James Montgomery Bell and Mary Ann Elizabeth Hall.  Anna was born on January 15, 1849 in McCracken County.

Anna Isabell Bell Nichols died as a result of liver failure on March 12, 1913 in McCracken County, Kentucky, at the age of 64 years.  She was a widow at the time of her death.

Notes for William Preston Nichols

Birth:  Year: 1850; Census Place: District 2, McCracken, Kentucky; Roll: M432_211; Page: 166B; Image: 338.

Marriage:  FamilySearch.org, Kentucky Marriages, 1785-1979 for Sarah A. Rice

Residence & Occupation in 1860:  Year: 1860; Census Place: District 2, McCracken, Kentucky; Roll: M653_383; Page: 812; Image: 476; Family History Library Film: 803383.

Residence & Occupation in 1870:  Year: 1870; Census Place: District 3, McCracken, Kentucky; Roll: M593_487; Page: 15A; Image: 33; Family History Library Film: 545986.

Marriage to Ann:  FamilySearch.org, Kentucky Marriages, 1785-1979 for Annie Bell

Notes for Sarah A. Rice

Birth:  Year: 1850; Census Place: District 2, McCracken, Kentucky; Roll: M432_211; Page: 195A; Image: 395.

Children:  Kentucky Births and Christenings, 1839-1960

Death:  New.FamilySearch.org, Sarah A. Rice

Notes for Anna Isabell Bell

Birth & Death:  Ancestry.com. Kentucky Death Records, 1852-1953 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2007.

Wyley Jesse Bell (1847-1928)

Wyley Jesse Bell was born March 24, 1847 in McCracken County, Kentucky.  He was the fourth child born to James Montgomery Bell, and the first born to Mary Ann ElizabethHall.  He was raised on the family farm in McCracken County, Kentucky. 

Jesse married Elizabeth Eaker in McCracken County, in 1881.  He was 34 years old and she was 19 years.  Lizzie was born on July 30, 1862 in Jackson, Mississippi, the daughter of Mike Eaker and Lizzie Lee.

By 1920, Jesse and Lizzie had established themselves on a dairy farm in Paducah, McCracken County, Kentucky.  Jesse worked on the farm alongside his two older sons.  Jesse and Lizzie were the parents of six children:

            Clarence Knight                   born January 10, 1882

            Mayme Lee                           born March 11, 1884

            Ray Hobson                          born November 16, 1885

            Jessie Louise                       born September 1887

            Lula May                                born May 1889

            Herman Thomas                   born August 1892

Wyley Jesse Bell died on April 10, 1928 in Paducah.  Jesse died of arteriosclerosis, or heart disease.  He was 81 years old at his death.  He was buried two days later in the Mt. Kenton Cemetery in Paducah.  After her husband’s death, Lizzie moved into the Margaret Apartments in Paducah, where she rented a room for $20 a month. 

Elizabeth Eaker Bell died on July 5, 1930 in Paducah, McCracken County, Kentucky, at the age of 67.  Lizzie’s death resulted from a severe infection caused by a ruptured appendix, which had turned into gangrene.  She was buried beside her husband two days later in the Mt. Kenton Cemetery in Paducah.

Notes for Jesse Wyley Bell

Birth and Death:  Ancestry.com. Kentucky Death Records, 1852-1953 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2007.

Marriage:  Yates Publishing. U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1560-1900 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2004.  Source number: 12608.000; Source type: Electronic Database; Number of Pages: 1; Submitter Code: JDM.

Occupation and Residence in 1920:  Year: 1910; Census Place: District 6,  McCracken,  Kentucky; Roll: T624_493; Page: 11B; Enumeration District: 128; Image: 582.

Notes for Elizabeth Eaker

Birth and Death:  Ancestry.com. Kentucky Death Records, 1852-1953 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2007.

Residence in 1930:  Year: 1930; Census Place: Paducah, McCracken, Kentucky; Roll: 768; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 14; Image: 491.0.