January 24, 2022
Pages 4674-4693
Whole Number 175
87.x STEPHEN SPARKS (Born ca.1774)
OF MARYLAND & OHIO and
HIS WIFE,
ANNA (CARMAN) SPARKS (Born 1787)
WITH SOME OF THEIR DESCENDANTS
by Russell E. Bidlack and Paul E. Sparks
Several individuals who have joined the Sparks Family Association during the past forty years have claimed descent from 87.x Stephen Sparks, who is believed to have been born in Maryland ca. 1774. His wife, according to family records kept by descendants, was Anna Carman. She was born, according to the inscription on her tombstone, on July 21, 1787.
87.x Stephen and Anna (Carman) Sparks had a number of great-grandchildren, one of whom was an historian named 87.x.2.2.1 Edwin Erle Sparks, son of 87.x.2.2 Erastus Felton and Sarah J. (Dodd) Sparks. Edwin E. Sparks was born in Licking County, Ohio, on July 16, 1859; he died on June 15, 1924, at State College, Pennsylvania. Dr. Sparks became president of Pennsylvania State College in 1908; he retired from that post in 1920. Dr. Sparks married Katherine Cotton, daughter of Dr. David B. Cotton of Portsmouth, Ohio, and they had one daughter, 87.x.2.2.1.1 Ethel Cotton Sparks, who married Carvel E. Sparks of Pedricktown, New Jersey, on January 1, 1923. He was a son of Frelin Griffith and Emma Hannah (Shoemaker) Sparks. Ethel and Carvel were not related; they only happened to share the same surname. (Ethel was a charter member of our Association, continuing her membership until her death in 1971.)
Because of Edwin E. Sparks's prominence, he was asked about his Sparks ancestry on a number of occasions by persons named Sparks who thought they might be related to him. He regularly responded, however, by saying that he had never done extensive research into the matter. A typical letter that he wrote in responding to such a query was dated January 23, 1922, it being a reply to a letter from the Rev. C. E. Sparks of Bryan, Ohio. Obviously written in haste because he was about to leave for Florida, Dr. Sparks stated in part:
You have placed me under obligation by your information concerning the location of an early branch of the Sparks family settling on the "eastern shore" of Maryland. My great-grandfather, Stephen Sparks (born probably in Caroline Co., Md., ca. 1784) [actually born ca. 1774] migrated to Ohio in unknown year, where my grandfather, William, was born [in] 1806. My father, 87.x.2.2 Erastus Sparks, was born in 1835. Stephen's father was 87. Richard Sparks, born in Caroline (?) Co., Md. ca. 1755. Back of that I have never gone....
Possibly the above is in error to the degree that my grandfather [William Sparks] was born in Caroline Co., in 1806 and was taken to Ohio in childhood ca. 1817, settling in Coshocton Co.... His brother, Eli, moved to Wisconsin ca. 1847. His other brothers, John and Carman, migrated to Illinois ca. 1855....
We have omitted a statement from the above letter in which Dr. Sparks made an obvious slip of the pen. He mistakenly referred to his grandmother, the wife of William Sparks, as Anna Carman, Anna Carman, as noted earlier, was actually Dr. Sparks's great-grandmother, the wife of Stephen Sparks. His daughter, Ethel Cotton (Sparks) Sparks, stated in correspondence with Paul E. Sparks, president of our association, forty years ago that Anna Carman had been her great-great-grandmother, wife of Stephen Sparks.
As seen above, in his 1922 letter, Edwin E. Sparks identified by name four sons of 87.x Stephen and Anna (Carman) Sparks: his own grandfather,
87.x.2 William Sparks, along with William's brothers,
87.x.5 John Sparks,
87.x.6 Eli Sparks, and
87.x.9 Carman Sparks.
Our research proves, however, that these were not the only children of Stephen and Anna (Carman) Sparks.
Edwin E. Sparks stated in his 1922 letter that Stephen Sparks had "probably" been born in Caroline County, Maryland, adding that Stephen's father was named 87. Richard Sparks and that he may have been born there as well. Dr. Sparks's lack of proof of this was indicated by his insertion of a question mark, however. We do not know Dr. Sparks's source for believing that the father of Stephen Sparks had been named Richard. We may wonder whether this identification had been based simply on the fact that the 1790 census, which had been published in 1908 and was readily available in libraries, shows a Richard Sparks in Caroline County. In fact, he was the only Sparks named Richard appearing as head of a household anywhere in Maryland in 1790. Besides this 87. Richard Sparks, there was also a Daniel Sparks shown as heading a household in Caroline County in 1790.
Caroline County, Maryland, was created in 1773 from parts of Queen Annes County and Dorchester County. It borders Queen Annes County on the north and the northwest, Talbot County on the southwest, Dorchester County on the south, and the state of Delaware on the east (Kent and Sussex Counties, Delaware). It may prove to be significant in our later research on the ancestry of 87.x Stephen Sparks that on March 5, 1805, a Stephen Sparks was appointed to administer the estate of a Margaret (Holliday) Sparks) in Kent County, Delaware, bordering Caroline County, Maryland.
Stephen Sparks first appeared as head of a household on the 1810 census of Caroline County, Maryland. From this and later census records, it appears that he had been born ca. 1774 rather than 1784 as Edwin Sparks believed. 87.x Stephen Sparks had been married by 1810 to Anna Carman, and the ages of both were recorded as between 26 and 45 (thus born between 1765 and 1784). From the enumeration of their household, it would appear that they had four children by 1810: one son and three daughters, all under ten years of age.
While more research remains to be done on the Carman family, it seems probable that Anna Carman was a granddaughter of John and Rachel (Burton) Carman who were married in St. Lukes Parish in Queen Annes County, Maryland, on January 24, 1735. Three children of this union were baptized at St. Lukes, according to the surviving register:
Burton Carman, born June 25, 1737, buried September 12, 1737;
Rebecca Carman, born November 5, 1738; and
William Burton Carman, born February 27, 1740 (baptized April 19, 1740). William Burton Carman must have died ca. 1766 according to the papers settling his estate. His widow, Elizabeth, had been married to Thomas Godwin before the estate was settled, at which time two surviving Carman children were identified as William Burton Carman, Jr., and John Carman, both of whom were "under age."
We believe that future research will prove that Anna Carman, who married Stephen Sparks, was a daughter either of William Burton Carman, Jr., or of John Carman.
Edwin E. Sparks, great-grandson of 87.x.2 Stephen Sparks, stated in his 1922 letter from which we quoted earlier, that Stephen had migrated from Caroline County, Maryland, to Ohio "in unknown year," but later in the same letter Dr. Sparks stated that his grandfather, William Sparks, son of Stephen, who had been born in Caroline County in 1806, "was taken to Ohio in childhood ca. 1817, settling in Coshocton County."
Coshocton County, Ohio, was created in 1810 from parts of Muskingum County and Tuscarawas County. (Until 1824, Coshocton County included a portion of Holmes County. Since then, Holmes County has bordered Coshocton County on the north.)
Although Edwin E. Sparks thought that his great-grandfather, Stephen Sparks, had brought his family to Coshocton County, Ohio, ca. 1817, Stephen has not been found on any Ohio census taken in 1820. He may well have been living in Coshocton County when the 1820 census was taken, perhaps living with his family in someone else's household, or the census taker may simply have missed him. by the spring of 1824, Stephen may have been living in Guernsey County, Ohio, because on May 6, 1824, a daughter of Stephen and Anna (Carman) Sparks named 87.x.3 Sarah Ann Sparks was married there to John Anderson by a justice of the peace named Peter Umstott. (Record Book A, p. 212)
When the 1830 census was taken, Stephen Sparks was living in Wills Township in Guernsey County, Ohio. Like Coshocton County, Guernsey County had been created in 1810. These two counties adjoin for a short distance at Coshocton's southeast corner and Guernsey's northwest corner.
Stephen Sparks's household in Wills Township, Guernsey County, in 1830 was enumerated with Stephen, himself, shown as between 50 and 60 years of age. This is further evidence that, indeed, he had been born earlier than 1784, the year in which Edwin E. Sparks had guessed that his great-grandfather had been born. (He would have been About 56 in 1830 if he had been born in 1774.)
87.x.2 William Sparks, son of 87.x Stephen and Sarah Anna (Carman) Sparks, had been born in 1806 according to Edwin E. Sparks's 1922 letter; 1806 was also carved on William's tombstone as his year of birth. We believe that he was about 24 years old in 1830, and he was no longer living at home when the 1830 census was taken. He had married Sidney Cunningham of Guernsey County, Ohio, on May 17, 1827.
Stephen Sparks's household consisted of the following individuals in 1830 according to the census of Wills Township, Guernsey County, Ohio, that year:
1 male aged 50 to 60 (Stephen, himself)
2 males aged 15 to 20 (probably his sons, John and Eli)
1 male aged 5 to 10 (his son. Carman Sparks)
1 female aged 40 to 50 (his wife, Anna [Carman] Sparks)
2 females aged 5 to 10 (one of these five females was surely his
3 females aged under 5 daughter, Eliza)
As noted, the male in Stephen Sparks's household in 1830 who was aged between 5 and 10 was surely Carman Sparks who, according to descendants' records, had been born on March 19, 1824. He had been named, obviously, for his mother's family.
Of the two males shown in Stephen Sparks's household in 1830 as between 15 and 20 years of age, one was probably the John Sparks mentioned by Edwin E. Sparks as having gone to Illinois "ca. 1855" with his brother, Carman Sparks. The other male shown as aged between 15 and 20 in 1830 may have been Eli Sparks.
An interesting document pertaining to Stephen Sparks is found among the marriage records in Licking County, Ohio. On July 5, 1840, Stephen's daughter, Eliza Sparks, married David Anthony in Licking County. (Licking County had been created in 1808; Pike Township in the southwest corner of Coshocton County, borders Fallsburg Township in the northeast corner of Licking County.)
Because Eliza Sparks was under the age of 18 when she was married, it was necessary for her to have parental approval before the marriage could be performed. According to the record made of this marriage in Licking County (Volume 1, page 404), Stephen Sparks, father of Eliza, swore that he had "no objection" to his daughter's marriage.
When the 1840 census was taken, Stephen Sparks was shown in Pike Township, Coshocton County. Of his sons, only Carman (aged 15 to 20) was still at home, with his and Anna's two youngest daughters, aged between 10 and 15.
As was noted earlier. Pike Township in Coshocton County borders Fallsburg Township in the northeast corner of Licking County, and in 1840 a John B. Sparks was shown living there with his family. There can be little doubt that he was the son of Stephen named John whom Edwin E. Sparks recalled in 1922 as having gone to Illinois "ca. 1855."
Apparently 87.x Stephen Sparks died between 1840 and the taking of the 1850 census. In 1850, his widow, Anna (Carman) Sparks, was living with her son, William, and his family in Brownsville Township, Licking County. Her age was given as 63 on this 1850 census, placing her birth in 1787 (as noted earlier, her date of birth appears as July 21, 1787, in the inscription on her tombstone). Her place of birth was given as Maryland on the 1850 census. She died on October 6, 1868/69 in Green County, Wisconsin, according to the inscription on her tombstone in the Saucerman Cemetery in Green County.
The children of 87.x Stephen and Anna (Carman) Sparks were as follows:
87.x.1 Dau1 Sparks, born 1800-1810, perhaps ca. 1804, in Maryland.
87.x.2 William Sparks, born ca. 1806 in Maryland. He married SIdney Cunningham
87.x.3 Sarah Ann Sparks, born ca. 1808 in Maryland.
87.x.4 Dau2 Sparks, born 1800-1810, perhaps ca. 1810, in Maryland.
87.x.5 John Burton Sparks, born on July 20, 1811, in Maryland.
87.x.6 Eli Sparks, born ca. 1816, in Ohio.
87.x.7 Eliza Sparks, born ca. 1821, in Ohio.
87.x.8 Dau3 Sparks, born ca. 1823.
87.x.9 Carman Sparks, born on March 29, 1824, in Coshocton County, Ohio.
87.x.10 Dau4 Sparks, born ca.1826.
87.x.11 Dau5 Sparks, born ca.1828.
87.x.12 Dau6 Sparks, born ca. 1830.
87.x.1 Dau1 Sparks born ca. 1804 in Maryland.
87.x.2 William Sparks, whom we believe to have been the first son of Stephen and Anna (Carman) Sparks, was born in 1806, according to the inscription on his tombstone in the Cedar Hill Cemetery at Brownsville in Bowling Green Township, Licking County, Ohio. He died in December 1879 at the age of 74. As noted earlier, William's grandson. Dr. Edwin E. Sparks, stated in a letter in 1922 that his grandfather had been brought to Coshocton County, Ohio, by his parents "ca. 1817." William probably continued to live in his parents' household until 1827. On March 17, 1827, he married Sidney Cunningham of Guernsey County, Ohio. This information is preserved in Sidney (Cunningham) Sparks's obituary that appeared in the June 5, 1850, issue of the Western Christian Advocate published in Cincinnati, Ohio. (A record of this marriage, in which Sidney is spelled "Sydney," is also preserved in the courthouse of Guernsey County.) From her obituary, we also learn that Sidney had been born on March 17, 1809, in Guernsey County, a daughter of William and Frances Cunningham. The text of this obituary follows:
May 1 [1850]?[Died] at Brownsville, Licking county, Ohio, sister Sidney Sparks, the wife of our Sunday school superintendent.
Sister Sidney Sparks was a daughter of William and Frances Cunningham, and [was] born in Guernsey county, OH, March 17, 1809. Her parents were religious, her mother being a member of the Presbyterian Church. In early life she received a pious education. March 17, 1827, she married Wm. Sparks, her now bereaved husband. During the year 1834 she joined the Methodist Episcopal Church, in Mount Sterling, Muskingum county, OH. Soon after she joined the Church she made a profession of her religion of Jesus, and ever after retained an evidence of her acceptance, through faith in Christ, that she was a child of God. In the constancy of her Christian enjoyment and daily walk, in conversation, in life, and in her death, we have had portrayed before us a bright example of the happy life and triumphant death of the Christian. For the last fourteen years sister Sparks has been a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Brownsville, where she did much service. During her last illness, (which was a lingering consumption), I visited her frequently, talked and prayed with her, and I always found her deeply engaged for a brighter evidence, and for stronger faith. It was her constant prayer for victory. It had been her desire, when she died, to die shouting victory. The Lord heard her prayer; and, for several days before her death, at times, she was enabled to shout aloud the high praises of her God, who had given her the victory. And now that the cold hand of death was upon her, and she was no longer able to speak aloud, the power of speech having failed, she uttered, in a low whisper, "Glory! glory! glory!" and fell asleep in Jesus.
[signed] Wesley G. Montgomery.
In a letter written in 1953, Ethel Cotton Sparks, daughter of Edwin E. Sparks, called her great-grandmother "Sarah Cunningham," but she was called Sidney not only in her obituary, but on the 1850 census as well. (Although she had died on May 1, 1850, Sidney was included with her family on the 1850 census of Licking County taken on September 19, 1850; the reason was that census takers were directed to include all persons who had been living after June 1, 1849, through May 31, 1850.)
The listing of the children of 87.x.2 William and Sidney Sparks on the 1850 census of Licking County indicates that, with Sidney's death in 1850, William Sparks was left with eight children, ranging in age from three years to twenty.
Later census records indicate that 87.x.2 William Sparks was married a second time, within a few months following the death of his first wife. His second wife's name was Elizabeth Brady; she was a native of Ohio. She may have been a widow because on the 1870 census, she was shown as owning land valued at $900. Elizabeth's age was given as 34 on the 1860 census of Licking County, which would place her year of birth in or ca. 1826, Her year of birth also appears as 1826 on her tombstone, which stands beside that of William Sparks in the Cedar Hill Cemetery. She died in 1881. In the same cemetery there is a tombstone for a Dr. J. M. Brady, 1834-1888, who was probably related to Elizabeth.
Census records indicate that William Sparks was a carpenter by trade, he appears never to have owned any land. When the 1870 census of Licking County, Ohio, was taken, he was shown as "blind," and there his occupation was shown as "Carpenter Jobbing."
From census records, it appears that William and Elizabeth Sparks were the parents of nine children. These, added to the eight known children of William by his first wife, Sidney (Cunningham) Sparks, we can credit William Sparks with a total of seventeen children by his two wives.
Unfortunately, the census taker for Brownsville Township in Licking County, Ohio, in 1850 used only initials in naming the children of William Sparks, with the exception of "Wm. W. Sparks."
Following are the children of 87.x.2 William Sparks and his first wife, Sidney (Cunningham) Sparks:
87.x.2.1 Eliza J. Sparks, female, aged 20 in 1850, so born ca. 1830. This may have been Eliza J. Sparks who died in 1850, although her tombstone in the Cedar Hill Cemetery at Brownsville gives her year of birth as 1824. Because it was not until 1827 that her parents were married, we believe that this date has been mistakenly transcribed from her tombstone.
87.x.2.2 Erastus Felton Sparks, born on November 21, 1837, according to statements that he made in applying for a Civil War pension. This means that his age in 1850 would have been 13 rather than 15. An abstract of his pension papers at the National Archives appears on pages 4696-4697 of the present issue of the Quarterly.
In his application and in a questionnaire that he completed in 1915 for the Bureau of Pensions, Erastus stated that he had been born in Muskingum County, Ohio, on November 21, 1837. (Muskingum County borders Coshocton County on the latter's south side; Coshocton County had been formed, in part, from Muskingum County in 1810.) Erastus stated that he had been married to Sarah J. Dodd at Newark in Licking County, Ohio, and from a descendant's record, we know that this marriage took place on January 1, 1858. The one child born to this union was Edwin E. Sparks whose 1922 letter has been mentioned frequently in this article; he was born July 16, 1859. Sarah J. (Dodd) Sparks was a daughter of Jesse Barnett and Sarah Erie (Dean) Dodd; she died on October 16, 1880, at London, Ohio. On February 13, 1883, Erastus F. Sparks married (second) Irene S. Vesey in Franklin County, Ohio. When Irene later applied for a widow's pension, she stated that she had been "born on April 26, 1851, on a farm near Columbus, Ohio". Erastus and Irene (Vesey) Sparks had two children, according to the response of Erastus on a questionnaire that he completed for the Bureau of Pensions in 1898.
Erastus F. Sparks was a carpenter by trade. He described himself at the time of his enlistment in the Union Army as 5 feet, 7 inches tall; with a dark complexion, hazel eyes, and black hair. He died at Williamsburg, Ohio, on September 8, 1923. His widow, Irene S. (Vesey) Sparks, died on January 6, 1936, and was buried at Williamsburg. He was the father of three children:
87.x.2.2.1 Edwin Erle Sparks was born July 16, 1859, in Licking County, Ohio. He became a well-known educator and held degrees from Ohio State University and the University of Chicago. He was head of the department of history at Pennsylvania State University and at the University of Chicago before returning to Pennsylvania State University in 1908 as its president. He held that position with distinction until 1920 when failing health forced him to resign.
Dr. Sparks is best remembered as an authority on American history. He wrote several books, including The Men Who Made the Nation (1900), and The Story of the United States (two volumes, 1902). He was a well-known lecturer in many cities of the United States on topics relating to American history.
Edwin Erle Sparks married Katherine ["Kate"] Cotton on January 1, 1890. She was a daughter of David B. Cotton. She and Edwin had one child,
87.x.2.2.1.1 Ethel Cotton Sparks, born in 1898. Ethel married Carvel E. Sparks in 1923. They had no children. As far as we can learn, Ethel and her husband were not related.
Edwin Sparks died on June 15, 1924, at State College, Pennsylvania. (See also page 1892 of the March 1977 issue of the Sparks Quarterly, Whole No. 97, for further details of the life of Edwin Erie Sparks. See also the cover of the present issue of the Quarterly for his photograph.)
Children by Edwin and Irene:Children by Erastus and Irene:87.x.2.2.2 Frank V. Sparks was born August 17, 1891, at Columbus, Ohio.
87.x.2.2.3 Harry S. Sparks was born July 13, 1895, at Williamsburg, Ohio.87.x.2.3 William W. Sparks was shown as 13 years of age on the 1850 census. If his age was given correctly on this census, it would mean that he had been born ca. 1837. There can be little doubt, however, that his brother, Erastus, was born in 1837, so William W. Sparks probably was born a year or two later than 1837.
87.x.2.4 N. P. Sparks, male, was shown as 11 years of age on the 1850 census which, if accurate, would mean he was born ca. 1839.
87.x.2.5 J. R. Sparks, male, was shown as 9 years of age on the 1850 census which, if accurate, would mean he was born ca. 1841. His first name may have been Joseph. There was a Joseph Sparks, age 19, in the household of John Cutridge, age 62, in Hopewell Township, Licking County, Ohio, when the 1860 census was taken. He may have been the J. R. Sparks, son of William.
87.x.2.6 George B. Sparks, male, was shown as 7 years of age on the 1850 census. He served in the Union Army in the Civil War. He applied for a pension based on his service in 1891, at which time he gave his age as 48 which, like the 1850 census, indicates he was born ca. 1843. In responding to a questionnaire from the Bureau of Pensions in 1898, George B. Sparks stated that he had been married to Rebecca Hoagland on December 12, 1877, in Stark County, Ohio. They had had one child,
87.x.2.6.1 Charles C. Sparks, who had been born on February 14, 1879.
George B. Sparks died on October 19, 1903, at Sparta, Ohio. His widow, Rebecca (Hoagland) Sparks, then applied for a widow's pension on November 27, 1903, giving her age at that time as 53. An abstract of the pension papers for George B. Sparks appears on page 4698 of the Quarterly, Whole No. 175.
87.x.2.7 M. H. Sparks, a female, was shown on the 1850 census as five years of age, thus born ca. 1845, if her age was recorded correctly. She may have been the Mary Sparks whose tombstone in the Cedar Hill Cemetery has her birth and death dates as "1848-1852."
87.x.2.8 Benjamin F. Sparks appears to have been the last child born to William and Sidney (Cunningham) Sparks. On the 1850 census, he was shown as three years of age, but on the 1860 census his age was given as 11. When he enlisted to serve in the U.S. Veteran Volunteer Engineers at Newark, Ohio, on March 14, 1865, he gave his age as 17, which suggests that he was born ca. 1848. This regiment was the same unit in which his brother, Erastus F. Sparks, served. Because Benjamin was was only seventeen, his father, William Sparks, had to give his written consent for him to enlist, certifying that Benjamin was "over seventeen years of age." His enlistment records show him to have been 5 feet, 11 1/2 inches tall, with a fair complexion, dark hair, and gray eyes. He gave his occupation as farmer. He was mustered out of the service with his company on September 26, 1865, at Nashville, Tennessee. He died in 1867 and was buried in the Cedar Hill Cemetery.
87.x.2 William Sparks had nine children by his second wife, Elizabeth Brady. They were:
87.x.2.9 Sidney Sparks, born ca. 1851, female, was shown as nine years old on the 1860 census of Licking County, Ohio, placing her year of birth at ca. 1851. She was obviously named for William's first wife, Sidney (Cunningham) Sparks. She died in 1868. While the inscription on her tombstone in the Cedar Hill Cemetery has been copied for us giving her year of birth as 1853, we believe that this is in error by two years.
87.x.2.10 Rebecca A. Sparks was shown as seven years of age on the 1860 census. This matches the year of her birth given on her tombstone in the Cedar Hill Cemetery. She died in 1866.
87.x.2.11 Leroy Sparks, born ca. 1854, was shown as six years of age on the 1860 census. When the 1870 census of Licking County was taken, Leroy Sparks, age 18, was shown as a "Day laborer" in the household of William O'Bannen, a wealthy farmer in Madison Township, Licking County, Ohio. Leroy married FNU Holmes ca. 1874. She had been born ca. 1854 in Virginia. When the 1880 census was taken, she and Leroy were living in Perry County, Ohio. (Perry County adjoins Licking County as its southern boundary.) They had two children,
87.x.2.11.1 Eddie P. Sparks, age 5, and
87.x.2.11.2 Allie Grace Sparks, age 7 months.Also living in the household were Leroy's sister, Lillie May Sparks, age 11, and his sister-in-law, A. C. Holmes, age 19.
87.x.2.12 Levi C. Sparks was born December 4, 1855, in Bowling Green Township, near Brownsville, in Licking County, Ohio. He became a Methodist clergyman. His date of birth is found in a "Floral Birthday Book" that belonged to Nora Garnell Shafer who lived in McKean Township in Licking County. It is now preserved by the Licking County Genealogical Society in its Heisey Museum.
Levi C. Sparks married Annie Virginia Sapher on June 24, 1875, in Licking County, Ohio, and when the 1880 census was taken, they were living near Levi's brother, Leroy Sparks, in Perry County, Ohio. With them was their son. Homer Sparks, age 3.
In 1974, Elizabeth Jones of Newark, Ohio, provided us with biographical data on the Rev. Levi C. Sparks, whom she had known personally. She wrote:
The Sparks family I knew was that of Rev. Levi C. Sparks who was pastor of the First Methodist Church here for many years. It was his last pastorage, and he did not live long after he retired. He died January 25, 1946. His parents were William and Elizabeth (Brady) Sparks. He was born and raised near Brownsville, which is in Bowling Green Township in the southeast corner of Licking County. His wife, Anna Virginia Sparks, died at the age of 69 at Columbus, Ohio. She had been born in Virginia and was a daughter of Lewis and Margaret Sapher.
Elizabeth Jones went on to state that Levi C. and Ann V. (Sapher) Sparks had:
87.x.2.12.1 Virgil Sparks who died at the age of 84 at Xenia, Ohio, on April 14, 1967.
87.x.2.12.2 Kate Sparks "taught English in Newark High School until she married Fred Stimson who was a chemistry teacher."Ms. Jones stated that the Rev. and Mrs. Sparks had another son and another daughter whose names she could not recall.
87.x.2.13 Marinda Sparks, daughter of William and Elizabeth (Brady) Sparks, was shown as two years old on the 1860 census. She was probably the "Maunda Sparks," born in 1857, died in 1866, who was buried near her parents in the Cedar Hill Cemetery.
87.x.2.14 Irena Sparks was shown as two months old on the 1860 census. If the census taker calculated her age as of June 1, 1860, as directed, she must have been born in March 1860. She was not shown with her parents on the 1870 census, which probably means that she had died by then.
87.x.2.15 Albert Sparks was shown as seven years of age when the 1870 census was taken of Licking County, Ohio. The census taker noted that he was blind, as was also his father, William Sparks. Albert Sparks has not been found on the 1880 census of Licking County.
87.x.2.16 Mattie Sparks was shown as four years of age on the 1870 census. We have not found her on the 1880 census of Licking County.
87.x.2.17 Lillie Sparks was shown as one year old on the 1870 census. She was eleven years old and living in the household of her brother, Leroy Sparks, when the 1880 census was taken of Perry County, Ohio. (SeeItem 87.x.2.11 above.)
87.x.3 Sarah Ann Sparks was born in Maryland ca. 1808. Her age was given as 42 on the 1850 census. She was married in Guernsey County, Ohio, on May 6, 1824, by Peter Umstott, J.P., to John Anderson. (Guernsey County Marriage Record A, p. 212)
John Anderson had been born ca. 1800 in Pennsylvania; he died in October 1860 in Vinton County, Ohio. Sarah Ann (Sparks) Anderson died on March 30, 1887, also in Vinton County. This information about Sarah Ann Sparks was provided to us in the 1960s by Mrs. Edith McMullen Dines of Columbus, Ohio. An active member of the D.A.R., Mrs. Dines was then doing research on the ancestry of her son-in-law, who was a great-great-grandson of Sarah Ann (Sparks) Anderson through her son, Andrew Clinton Anderson. Mrs. Dines also provided the following information about the children of John and Sarah Ann (Sparks) Anderson.
87.x.3.1 Mary Anderson was born in 1832. She married John Miller.
87.x.3.2 Isaac Anderson was born in 1835.
87.x.3.3 Rebecca Jane Anderson was born in 1838. She married John Hampton.
87.x.3.4 Harriet D. Anderson was born in 1839.
87.x.3.5 Samantha Anderson was born in 1841. She married Isaac Ayres on August 19, 1861.87.x.3.6 Martha Anderson was born August 5, 1842, in Ohio. She married Uriah Grounds on August 25, 1858, in Scioto County, Ohio. He had been born on February 22, 1835, in Virginia; he was a son of John and Melissa (Lee) Grounds. When Uriah reached adulthood, he went to southern Ohio to work in the iron industry. Martha died on January 19, 1915, in Athens County, Ohio. Uriah died on January 2, 1917, in Kanawha County, West Virginia. They were buried in the Greenlawn Cemetery at Nelsonville, Ohio. They were the parents of eleven children.
87.x.3.6.1 Sarah Gemima Grounds was born in 1859. She married Leonard Sigler on October 2, 1898, in Hocking County, Ohio.
87.x.3.6.2 Mary Melissa Grounds was born in 1861. She married Alonzo Figgins on March 7, 1882, in Hocking County, Ohio. She died on October 14, 1914, in Athens County, Ohio, and was buried there in the Greenlawn Cemetery.
87.x.3.6.3 Jefferson Grounds was born in 1863. He married Hannah Roe. They died at St. Petersburg, Florida.
87.x.3.6.4 Mack Grounds was born in 1866. He married Esther Wiseman, a sister of Florence Wiseman. (See Item 87.x.3.6.7 below.) Mack died in Kanawha County, West Virginia.
87.x.3.6.5 Jessie Fremont Grounds was born May 11, 1868. She married Willis Elmer Davis on September 19, 1889, in Athens County, Ohio. She died on March 19, 1951, at Columbus, Ohio. She and Willis had two children:
87.x.3.6.5.1 Vernon Melissa Davis, and
87.x.3.6.5.2 Harry Anderson Davis.87.x.3.6.6 Ida Mae Grounds was born May 23, 1870. She married Charles Solomon Kontner on December 13, 1893, in Athens County, Ohio. She died there on March 21, 1948.
87.x.3.6.7 Henry Morrison Grounds was born in 1872. He married Florence Wiseman. (See Item 87.x.3.6.4 above.) He died at Inverness, Florida.
87.x.3.6.8 George Washington Grounds was born in 1874. He died from typhoid fever on February 5, 1898, at Eagle, West Virginia.
87.x.3.6.9 Clinton Jackson ["Jack"] Grounds was born in 1878. He married Lula Workman. He died on December 26, 1966, at Elkridge, West Virginia.
87.x.3.6.10 William Grounds was born June 11, 1881. He married Maude E. Murphy. He died in 1954 at Boomer, West Virginia.
87.x.3.6.11 Orin Grounds was born ca. 1885. He married a widow, Anna Craig, who had a son. Orin and Anna had no children. He died in Detroit, Michigan.
87.x.3.7 Andrew Clinton Anderson, son of John and Sarah Ann (Sparks) Anderson, was born July 20, 1845, in Vinton County, Ohio. He was a Union soldier during the Civil War. He married Alice L. Norton on May 19, 1867, in Zaieski, a village in Vinton County. She had been born on August 25, 1850, in Zaieski. She died on October 8, 1930, in Nelsonville, Athens County, Ohio. Andrew died there on February 29, 1920. He and Alice had two children.
87.x.3.7.1 Florence L. Anderson was born May 28, 1868.
87.x.3.7.2 Sarah Catherine Anderson was born July 30, 1869. She married John Stanley Mooney on December 25, 1888, in Hocking County, Ohio. He had been born June 20, 1860/62, in County Tipperary, Ireland. Sarah Catherine died in 1904 at Nelsonville, Ohio. John died there on February 15, 1944. They had at least one child,
87.x.3.7.2.1 Loretta Gladys Mooney.
87.x.3.8 James Carman Anderson, son of John and Sarah Ann (Sparks) Anderson, was born in 1848. He died during the Civil War in Libby Prison at Richmond, Virginia.
87.x.4 Dau2 Sparks was born to Stephen and Anna (Carman) Sparks ca. 1810.
87.x.5 John Burton Sparks was born in Queen Annes County, Maryland, on July 20, 1811. His name was probably chosen because of his mother's descent from the Burton family; the name Burton has been used a number of times among Anna's descendants.
John Burton Sparks was a boy of about six years when he came with his parents and older siblings to Ohio ca. 1817. He was married ca. 1835 to Susan Garner. She had been born on February 3, 1815, and was a nurse, according to the 1880 census of LaSalle County, Illinois. John Sparks appeared as head of his household on the 1840 census of Fallsburg Township in Licking County, Ohio. by 1850, however, he had moved his family to the north side of the Vermilion River in Livingston County, Illinois, where he was shown on the 1850 census as a farmer with real estate valued at $500. His and Susan's five-year-old daughter, Emeline Sparks, was shown as having been born in Ohio, whereas their one-year-old daughter, Mary J. Sparks, had been born in Illinois. This suggests that Edwin E. Sparks was probably mistaken by some ten years when he stated in 1922 that John B. Sparks and his younger brother, Carman Sparks, had moved from Ohio to Illinois "ca. 1855." This move appears to have taken place more nearly in 1845.
by the time the 1860 census was taken, John B. Sparks had moved his family north to the adjoining county of LaSalle, Illinois, in the township of Manlius, where he then owned land valued at $13,400.
Although he was well past the usual age for active military service, John Burton Sparks followed his sons into the Union Army during the Civil War. He may have misstated his age in order to join. An abstract of his military file is as follows:
John B. Sparks, Pvt. Co. K, 39th Regiment Illinois Infantry. Enlisted on February 29, 1864, to serve for three years. He stated that he had been born in Queen Annes County, Maryland; was 43 [sic] years of age, and was a carpenter by trade. On the Certificate of Discharge for Disability, his commanding officer stated that during the past two months, Sparks was unfit for duty because of diarrhea and general disability caused by exposure and active duty in the field from March 1864 until the present time. He had been most trustworthy and reliable and desirous of performing his duties to the best of his ability. The certificate was signed by Capt. E. C. Myers at Richmond, Virginia, on July 15, 1865.
John B. Sparks was discharged on July 15, 1865. He died at his home in LaSalle County, Illinois, on September 18, 1865, and was buried in the Summit View Cemetery in South Ottawa, Illinois. His wife, Susan (Garner) Sparks, died on July 9, 1889. They had the following children:
87.x.5.1 Samuel J. Sparks, son of John B. and Susan (Garner) Sparks, was born June 18, 1836, in Licking County, Ohio. He was about ten years old when he accompanied his parents to Illinois. It was there in LaSalle County that he enlisted in Company H, 53rd Regiment Illinois Infantry, on January 1, 1862. He served until he was discharged for a disability on December 15, 1862. (See pp. 4699-4700 of this issue of the Quarterly for an abstract of his pension file.)
Upon returning home from military service, Samuel Sparks married Letty Jones on September 27, 1863. She had been born in Ohio ca. 1846. She and Samuel were Baptists. He was a well driller. In his declining years, he was a victim of severe depression, and on April 8, 1913, he died by swallowing carbolic acid. He was buried in the Riverview Cemetery in LaSalle County. Letty died on October 15, 1917. She and Samuel had ten children.
87.x.5.1.1 Mary Sparks was born July 5, 1864. She married Chester Collier. She died in 1913 in Chicago, Illinois.
87.x.5.1.2 Adeline ["Addie"] Sparks was born November 4, 1868. She married FNU Monnette,and they lived in Marseilles, Illinois.
87.x.5.1.3 Lettie May Sparks was born in May 1870. She married Bert Hattes, and they lived in Chicago, Illinois.
87.x.5.1.4 Emma A. Sparks was born May 28, 1871. She married FNU Whipple.
87.x.5.1.5 Blanche Sparks was born February 27, 1874. She married FNU Chaplin.
87.x.5.1.6 John B. Sparks was born October 12, 1876. He lived in Louisville, Kentucky, where he raised eight children.
87.x.5.1.7 William Sparks was born in 1879.87.x.5.1.8 Louis L. Sparks was born March 8, 1881. He lived in LaSalle County, Illinois, all of his life. He was married there to Rose W. Worman in 1905. She had been born on February 12, 1888, near Princeton, Missouri, and was a daughter of Wallace and Susan (Williams) Worman. Louis died in 1952; Rose died on December 25, 1981. They were buried in the Riverview Cemetery in LaSalle County. They had three sons, including an unidentified son who died prior to 1981, and one daughter:
87.x.5.1.8.1 Clyde Sparks,
87.x.5.1.8.2 William Sparks, and
87.x.5.1.8.3 Aria (Sparks) Iverson.87.x.5.1.9 Maud Sparks was born April 10, 1884. She married Thomas Eide.
87.x.5.1.10 Elmer Sparks was born May 7, 1887. He was a painter and lived in Marseilles, Illinois.87.x.5.2 Eli B. Sparks was born September 17, 1838. He served in the 39th Regiment Illinois Infantry. (See page 4700 of this issue of the Quarterly for an abstract of his military file. We have no further information on him. He should not be confused with his uncle, Eli Sparks of Green County, Wisconsin.)
87.x.5.3 Anna Sparks, daughter of John B. and Susan (Garner) Sparks, was born October 7, 1840. She married Warren Bradfield ca. 1858. He had been born ca. 1832 in Ohio. When the 1860 census was taken. Warren and Anna were living in Rutland Township, LaSalle County. With them was their one-year-old son, named Burton Bradfield. Also living in the household was Anna's sister, 87.x.5.5 Emeline Sparks, shown as a "Servant." (SeeItem 87.x.5.5 below.)
87.x.5.4 Mariah Sparks was born June 10, 1845, in Ohio. She was shown on the 1860 census of Manlius Township, LaSalle County, as 17 years of age, and she was a "Servant" in the household of Lewis and Emily Long. Mariah married Louis A. Clairmont. He had been born ca. 1836; he died in 1914. Mariah died on November 11, 1928. They were buried in the Summit View Cemetery in South Ottawa, Illinois. They had at least one child,
87.x.5.4.1 Anna Mabel Clairmont, who married 87.x.9.3.1 William Carmen Tice. (See below)
87.x.5.5 Emeline [" Emily"] Sparks was born February 12, 1845, in Ohio. (See above) She married FNU Tuttle. She died on February 12,1901.
87.x.5.6 Mary Jane Sparks was born July 21, 1849, in Livingston County, Illinois. She married Alonzo A. Tice on August 10, 1865. He had been born June 2, 1844, in Wayne County, Michigan, and was a son of William A. and Elizabeth (Ellsworth) Tice. He was thus a brother of Lewis Tice who married Sarah Clementine Sparks, a cousin of Mary Jane Sparks. (See Item I, 3, below.) He died on July 8, 1917, at Marseilles, Illinois; Mary Jane died there on December 12, 1922.
87.x.5.7 Susan Sparks was born April 16, 1852. She married Lee Collier.
87.x.5.8 Sarah Sparks was born April 3, 1854. She married FNU Lear.
87.x.5.9 Hester Sparks was born May 5, 1857. She married FNU Taggert.
87.x.5.10 Warren Sparks, son, was born in April 1860.
87.x.5.11 John W. Sparks was born April 25, 1861. He died on August 31, 1873.87.x.6 Eli Sparks was born ca. 1816 in Ohio, according to information given to the 1850 and 1860 census takers of Green County, Wisconsin. He grew to manhood and learned to operate a grain mill in the Coshocton-Guernsey Counties area of Ohio, but in the middle 1830s, he went to Wayne County, Indiana. It was also about this time that he married Sarah MNU. She had been born between 1810 and 1820. When the 1840 census was taken, the little family lived in Center Township where Eli was a miller. It was there that Sarah died, apparently a short time after the census of 1840 was taken. On September 8, 1841, Eli married (second) Emily Bracklin in Wayne County, Indiana.
According to the letter written in 1922 by Edwin Erle Sparks, a grand-nephew of Eli Sparks, 87.x.6 Eli Sparks moved to Wisconsin ca. 1847 where his family was enumerated in the town of Cadiz in Green County when the 1850 census was taken. He was shown as 33 years old; a miller; a native of Ohio; and with real estate valued at $1440. His wife, Emily, was 36 years old and a native of Maine. Also living in the household were James W. Sparks, 12, born in Indiana, and Isaac Williams, 25, a native of Maryland. James W Sparks was the only child.
87.x.6.1 James William Sparks, son of Eli, was married in Green County to Elizabeth Cummins on February 28,1858. She had been born ca. 1841 in Ohio and was a daughter of John and Lucy M. Cummins. When the 1860 census was taken of Green County, the young couple was living next-door to James's father.
At the outbreak of the Civil War, James William Sparks enlisted in the 6th Battery, Wisconsin Light Artillery on September 5, 1861. He died while in the service at Murphreesboro, Tennessee, on April 1, 1863. (See page 4177 of the September 1993 issue of the Sparks Quarterly, Whole No. 163, for an abstract of his widow's pension file based on his service.)
Eli Sparks, probably grief-stricken at the death of his only child, may have sought revenge for his death, for a few months later, at the age of 48 years, he enlisted in the 4th Regiment Wisconsin Cavalry. He served until the end of the war, but died a few days after the surrender of General Lee to General Grant. He died in a military hospital at Greenville, Louisiana, on April 18, 1865. His widow received a pension for his service. (See page 4178 of the September 1993 issue of the Sparks Quarterly, Whole. No. 163, for an abstract of his pension file.)
[Note: 87.x.6 Eli Sparks has sometimes been confused with two other men who were also named Eli Sparks and who lived about the same time and in the same area of Ohio.
One Eli Sparks was born ca. 1799 in Kentucky and married Rebecca Fulton in 1818 in Coshocton County, Ohio. He ultimately lived in Greene County, Indiana.
The other 87.x.5.2 Eli Sparks was a son of 87.x.5 John Burton Sparks, the latter being a brother of the 87.x.6 Eli Sparks who is the subject of this portion of the present article. (87.x.5.2 Eli Sparks served in the Union Army during the Civil War. See page 4700 of Whole No. 175, of the Sparks Quarterly.)]
87.x.7 Eliza Sparks was born ca. 1820, probably in Ohio. When she was married on July 5, 1840, she was then under the legal age of marriage for females, unless a parent gave formal permission for the marriage to take place. According to the marriage records preserved in Licking County, Ohio, Stephen Sparks swore that he had "no objection" to his daughter, Eliza, marrying David Anthony. Anthony swore that he, himself, was of legal age to marry. The marriage was performed by a minister of the Gospel named George Gardner.
Our knowledge of the family of David and Eliza (Sparks) Anthony is quite limited; the little we have has been shared by a descendant. According to this source, they had eight children. When the 1850 census was taken, the family was enumerated in Knox County. The names of their children were as follows:
87.x.7.1 John Anthony.
87.x.7.2 William H. Anthony. He married Abigail Anna Tice in 1866 in Grundy County, Illinois, and they had seven children.
87.x.7.2.1 William A. Anthony.
87.x.7.2.2 John Carman Anthony.
87.x.7.2.3 James H. Anthony.
87.x.7.2.4 Emma Jane Anthony was born April 14, 1875. She married Thomas Michael Fox on September 26, 1895, at Custer, Nebraska. She died on July 17, 1909. She and Thomas had five children:87.x.7.2.4.1 Clarence Leroy Fox;
87.x.7.2.4.2 Earl A. Fox;
87.x.7.2.4.3 Anna L. Fox, daughter;
87.x.7.2.4.4 Amy Irene Fox, daughter; and
87.x.7.2.4.5 William Robert Fox.87.x.7.2.5 Cora Dell Anthony, daughter.
87.x.7.2.6 Edgar Lee Anthony.
87.x.7.2.7 Elizabeth ["Libby"] Anthony, daughter.87.x.7.3 James Anthony, son.
87.x.7.4 Isabella Anthony, daughter.
87.x.7.5 Eliza Anthony, daughter.
87.x.7.6 Stephen Anthony, son.
87.x.7.7 Virginia P. Anthony, daughter.
87.x.7.8 Marie [?] E. Anthony, daughter.87.x.8 Dau3 Sparks was born to Stephen and Anna (Carman) Sparks ca. 1822.
87.x.9 Carman Sparks, son, was born March 29, 1824, in Coshocton County, Ohio. He was obviously named for his mother's family. He died on August 19, 1867, in Will County, Illinois, and was buried there in the Wilton Center Cemetery.
Our information regarding Carman Sparks and his family was provided to us in 1971 by Carman's great-granddaughter, Harriet (Van Meter) Collier, of Kansas City, Missouri. Mrs. Collier's research into the family's history was aided by records that had been preserved by her mother, Alice (Sparks) Van Meter. According to Mrs. Collier, Carman Sparks married Margaret Fry, who had been born on November 3, 1826, in Pennsylvania. She died on August 16, 1907, in Wichita, Kansas. She was a daughter of Spencer Fry. Mrs. Collier believed that Margaret's mother's maiden name had been Mary Norris, born in 1793. She also believed that the father of Spencer Fry had been John Fry whose will, made on June 8, 1844, in Perry Township, Perry County, Ohio, had named Spencer Fry as one of his six sons.
Mrs. Collier provided the following information about the children of Carman and Margaret (Fry) Sparks, all of whom were born in Coshocton County, Ohio:
87.x.9.1 Stephen Spencer Sparks, son, was born November 28, 1845, and died on January 28, 1908, at Beattie in Marshall County, Kansas. He was a farmer and later ran a livery stable in Beattie. He was married on December 16, 1870, in Morris, Grundy County, Illinois, to Minerva Button, who had been born on December 31, 1853, and died on October 4, 1921. Both were buried in the Union Cemetery at Beattie, Kansas. They had the following children:
87.x.9.1.1 Lyda Ella Sparks, born on August 18, 1871, and died on August 1, 1938. She was married on August 18, 1889, to William Miles Young, who had been born in 1854; he died on October 13, 1926. Both died in San Francisco, California, and were buried there. Their children were:
87.x.9.1.1.1 Alice Bell Young, daughter;
87.x.9.1.1.2 Stephen Young;
87.x.9.1.1.3 Clara L. Young, daughter;
87.x.9.1.1.4 Clarence Orville Young;
87.x.9.1.1.5 George Young; and
87.x.9.1.1.6 Ray Young.87.x.9.1.2 Alice Sparks was born March 17, 1873, and died on September 30, 1957, in Kansas City,Missouri. She married Oliver Taylor Van Meter who had been born on November 2, 1868; he died on December 9, 1938, at Council Grove, Kansas. Both were buried in the Greenwood Cemetery at Council Grove. Alice (Sparks) Van Meter, mother of Harriet Collier, was quoted earlier regarding the names of the children of Stephen and Anna (Carman) Sparks. Oliver Taylor and Alice (Sparks) Van Meter were the parents of the following children:
87.x.9.1.2.1 Lydia Harriet Van Meter, daughter;
87.x.9.1.2.2 Ruth Agnes Van Meter, daughter;
87.x.9.1.2.3 Thomas Spencer Van Meter; and
87.x.9.1.2.4 Vivian Alice Van Meter, daughter.(Lydia Harriet Van Meter was known by her middle name, Harriet; born on April 11, 1896, at White City, Kansas, she was married twice, first to Emory Ernest Gillespie (1894-1966) and (second) to Marvin H. Collier (1884-1961); we last heard from Mrs. Collier, whom we have quoted throughout this section on Carman Sparks, in 1977, and assume that she is no longer living.)
87.x.9.1.3 George Morgan Sparks was born October 2, 1877, and died on February 3, 1947. He married Maude Winters ca. 1902. She died in Osborne, Missouri. Their children were:
87.x.9.1.3.1 Ralph Sparks;
87.x.9.1.3.2 Neil Sparks; and
87.x.9.1.3.3 Myrtle Sparks, daughter.George Morgan Sparks married (second) Nancy E. C. Musgrove in June 1925.
87.x.9.1.4 Clarence Oliver Sparks was born July 16, 1882, at Beattie, Kansas, and died on July 26, 1967. He married Teresa May Ellis on February 25, 1904. She had been born on December 16, 1881, at Stansberry, Missouri, and died on January 23, 1966. Both were buried in the Alta Vista Cemetery at Weatherby, Missouri. Their children were:
87.x.9.1.4.1 Glen Orten Sparks, born March 15, 1905, died May 14, 1910;
87.x.9.1.4.2 Steven Delph Sparks; and
87.x.9.1.4.3 Edward ["Ted"] Louis Sparks, born March 23, 1915.87.x.9.1.5 Ethel Ann Sparks was born July 8, 1887, at Beattie, Kansas, and died on January 29, 1943, at Holton, Kansas. She was married on August 19, 1905, to Frank Burns Van Meter, brother of Oliver Taylor Van Meter, husband of 87.x.9.1.2 Alice Sparks. (See above.) Frank Burns Van Meter had been born on September 14, 1878; he died on July 4, 1917, at Colorado Springs, Colorado. The children of Frank Burns and Ethel Ann (Sparks) Van Meter were:
87.x.9.1.5.1 Doris Mae Van Meter, who died young; and
87.x.9.1.5.2 Robert Burns Van Meter, born June 17, 1912.87.x.9.2 William ["Will"] Burton Sparks, son of Carman and Margaret (Fry) Sparks, was born on April 16, 1847; he died in October 1866.
87.x.9.3 Sarah Clementine Sparks, daughter of Carman and Margaret (Fry) Sparks, was born October 20, 1848. She was married on January 16, 1866, in Will County, Illinois, to Lewis Ellsworth Tice. He had been born ca. 1840 and was a son of William A. and Elizabeth (Ellsworth) Tice; thus he was a brother of Alonzo A. Tice who had been married to87.x.5.6 Mary Jane Sparks, a cousin of Sarah's. (See above.)
Lewis Tice was a Civil War veteran. He and Sarah lived at Goodland, Newton County, Indiana, where they were members of the Baptist Church. Lewis died there in 1922; Sarah died there on September 27, 1944. She and Lewis had four children.
87.x.9.3.1 William Carman Tice was born ca. 1868, married 87.x.5.4.1 Anna Mabel Clairmont ca. 1890. She was a daughter of Louis A. and Mariah (Sparks) Clairmont. (See above.)
87.x.9.3.2 Emma Tice.
87.x.9.3.3 Sebeda ["Beda"] Tice married FNU Hall. They were living in Goodland, Indiana, in 1944.
87.x.9.3.4 Stephen Tice was living in Goodland, Indiana, in 1944.87.x.9.4 John Wesley Sparks, son of Carman and Margaret (Fry) Sparks, was born August 19, 1850; he died on September 5, 1938. He married Sarah Jane Brayton on February 22, 1875, in Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, and they had the following children:
87.x.9.4.1 Myra Sparks was born August 2, 1878, and died on January 10, 1906. She was never married.
87.x.9.4.2 Gertrude Edith Sparks was born October 19, 1880, at Clear Lake in Cerro Gordo County, Iowa. She married Raymond Sandry on March 17, 1902. He had been born July 25, 1881. Their children were:
87.x.9.4.2.1 Heidel Carman Sandry, born October 4, 1904;
87.x.9.4.2.2 Winifred Ray Sandry, born June 7, 1916;
87.x.9.4.2.3 Eloise Gertrude Sandry, born July 10, 1917; and
87.x.9.4.2.4 Marian Corine Sandry, born April 12, 1925.87.x.9.4.3 Winifred Sparks was born December 27, 1885. She was married in Clear Lake, Iowa, on April 16, 1913, to Francis Joseph Siessegar. He had been born on October 20, 1890, and died on December 24, 1946. They had a daughter:
87.x.9.4.3.1 Frances Jean Siessegar, born September 7, 1917.
87.x.9.5 Atha Jane Sparks was born December 19, 1851; she died on October 2, 1941. She married John W. Reeves. He had been born on December 8, 1846, in Burlington, Iowa, [or Illinois ?]; he died on August 12, 1935. Both were buried at Wichita, Kansas. Their children were:
87.x.9.5.1 Martha Loretta Reeves. She was married twice, first to George Blazer. She married (second) Eugene Carver.
87.x.9.5.1.1 Myron Blazer
87.x.9.5.2 Anna Angeline Reeves. She married Frank Hickok in February 1903 at Wichita, Kansas. No children.
87.x.9.5.3 Oscar David Reeves was born November 26, 1874. He died on December 4, 1899.
87.x.9.5.4 Edward Wesley Reeves was born September 1, 1876. He died on December 4, 1899.
87.x.9.5.5 Helen Ethel Reeves was born April 30, 1878. She died on August 28, 1878.87.x.9.5.6 Roy Reeves was born on July 3, 1880, at Clear Lake, Iowa, and died on May 30, 1970, at Wichita, Kansas. He was married on December 24, 1906, to Clara Jane Foster who had been born on February 9, 1886. They had three children:
87.x.9.5.6.1 George Reeves;
87.x.9.5.6.2 David F. Reeves; and
87.x.9.5.6.3 Helen Reeves.87.x.9.5.7 Arthur Carman Reeves was born August 7, 1882, at Clear Lake, Iowa; he died on July 23, 1966. He was married on November 24, 1909, to Ora Stokes who had been born on November 9, 1885; she died on February 28, 1966. Both were buried at Wichita, Kansas. No children.
87.x.9.5.8 Thomas Benton Reeves was born May 9, 1884, at Clear Lake, Iowa. He died on July 17, 1960, at Wichita, Kansas. He was married ca.1904 to Winnie Munn, and they had a daughter named
87.x.9.5.8.1 Ruth Reeves.
87.x.9.5.9 Sarah Margaret Reeves was born May 26, 1887, in Ness County, Kansas; she died on October 26, 1966. She was married on November 2, 1904, to Ben F. Fletcher who had been born in Sedgwick County, Kansas; he died on January 2, 1969. They had three daughters:
87.x.9.5.9.1 Alice Fletcher;
87.x.9.5.9.2 Gay Nell Fletcher; and
87.x.9.5.9.3 Wilma Fletcher.87.x.9.5.10 Elsie Edith Reeves was born October 19, 1888, in Ness County, Kansas; she was still living in 1971. She married David Smith who had been born in Reno County, Kansas, on July 13, 1889. He died on June 26, 1964. They had four children:
87.x.9.5.10.1 Don Smith;
87.x.9.5.10.2 June Smith;
87.x.9.5.10.3 Sarah Smith; and
87.x.9.5.10.4 Roy Smith.87.x.9.5.11 Ben Van Every Reeves was born July 21, 1890, in Ness County, Kansas. He died prior to 1971. He was married in May 1913, in Arkansas City, Kansas, to Ethel Sue Pittenger. They had three children:
87.x.9.5.11.1 Ethel Mae Reeves, daughter;
87.x.9.5.11.2 Don Gene Reeves; and
87.x.9.5.11.3 Janet Reeves, daughter.87.x.9.6 Ann Mariah ["Mattie"] Sparks was born March 29, 1853; she died on January 8, 1935, in Wichita, Kansas. She married Sherman J. Lord on April 28, 1872. He died in January 1911 at Beattie, Kansas. Both were buried at Beattie. No children.
87.x.9.7 Eli Washington Sparks was born October 15, 1854; he died on October 13, 1939. Washington, as he was called, was married on October 8, 1881, at Clear Lake in Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, to Lydia Shafer. She had been born on November 21, 1866, at Monroe, Wisconsin. She died in 1956. Both of their deaths took place in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They were the parents of four children.
87.x.9.7.1 Earl Sparks was born March 9, 1883; he died in 1933. He never married.
87.x.9.7.2 Frank Sparks was born in Mason City, Iowa, in 1886; he died in 1951. He was married, but Mrs. Collier, from whom we obtained much of our information on this branch of the Sparks family, had not learned the name of his spouse.
87.x.9.7.3 Anne Sparks was born in 1889 in Beattie, Kansas. She was married on September 9, 1912, to FNU Sidwell. They had two children:
87.x.9.7.3.1 Audrey Sidwell, daughter; and
87.x.9.7.3.2 Albert Sidwell.87.x.9.7.4 Agnes Sparks was born in Mason City, Iowa, on October 30, 1894; she died in 1936 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She married FNU Anderson, and they had a son:
87.x.9.7.4.1 Irving Anderson.
[Editor's Note: Harriet (Van Meter) Collier, a great-great-granddaughter of Stephen Sparks (see page 4689) has provided information on some of the later generations of the Carman Sparks descendants that we have not used here. Should any descendant of Carman Sparks wish to have a copy of Mrs. Collier's complete record given to us in 1971, your editor will be glad to provide a copy.
[As can be seen, this record of descendants of Stephen and Anna (Carman) Sparks is far from complete. We will welcome additions and corrections from our readers.]