February 2, 2021
Pages 3873-3883
Whole Number 156
UNION SOLDIERS NAMED SPARKS WHO APPLIED
OR WHOSE HEIRS APPLIED
FOR PENSIONS FOR SERVICE IN THE CIVIL WAR
[Editor's Note: From time to time we have been publishing abstracts of pension application files for Union soldiers who served in the Civil War. (Confederate soldiers could not qualify for federal pensions, although some received pensions from their respective states.) These abstracts have been prepared by Dr. Paul E. Sparks, president of our Association. They are based on copies of the"selected" pension papers provided to us by the National Archives in Washington D.C. from the individual files. For a more detailed description of these records, the reader is referred to page 3730 of the March 1991 issue of the Quarterly, Whole No. 153.]
1.2.1.2.1.8.4.5 DANIEL SPARKS, son of 1.2.1.2.1.8.4 Allen and Elizabeth (Kozee) Sparks, was born January 13, 1829 in Lawrence County, Kentucky, and died on November 1, 1904. He married Elizabeth Sparks on June 15, 1852. He served in Company E, 40th Regiment Kentucky Infantry Volunteers. File Designation: Inv. Cert. No. 566,794, and Wid. Cert. No. 587,903.
On June 2, 1876, Daniel Sparks, age 48 years, a resident of Elliott County, Kentucky, made application for an invalid pension. He stated that he had been enrolled as a private in Company E, 40th Regiment Kentucky Mounted Infantry volunteers, commanded by Col. C. J. True, on August 31, 1863, and had been discharged at Catlettsburg, Kentucky, on December 30, 1864. He said that he was 6 feet, 3 inches tall; he had a dark complexion, brown hair, and hazel eyes at the time of his service. He was a farmer and had lived in Carter and Elliott Counties, Kentucky, all of his life.
Sparks said that on June 7, 1863, he had been hospitalized at Mt. Sterling, Kentucky, with a fever caused by measles and mumps, and before he had fully recovered, he had been taken as a prisoner by General John Morgan and forced to march barefooted for six days causing these diseases to settle to his legs and rendering him totally disabled and incapable of doing any manual labor. He said that he had been hospitalized during June, July, and August 1863 at Paris and Mt. Sterling, Kentucky. He had been hospitalized again in the fall of 1863 and 1864, but the dates were not remembered positively. He appointed Samuel V. Niles, Washington, D.C., as his attorney. He gave his post-office as Sandy Hook, Kentucky. Joel Sparks and John J. Park witnessed him make his mark.
A record of the military service of Daniel Sparks was sent to the Bureau of Pensions by the Adjutant General's Office on July 20, 1876. Daniel Sparks, according to this record, had been enrolled on August 20, 1863, at Grayson, Kentucky, in Company E, 40th Regiment Kentucky Infantry Volunteers for a term of one year. He had been mustered out on December 30, 1864. He had no record of disability. He was sick at Olive Hill, Kentucky, on December 26,1863, and a similar report was made for January 1864. He was reported absent without leave in June and July 1864.
The Adjutant General's Office made a supplemental report on the service of Daniel Sparks on February 20, 1877. This report confirmed the information contained in the earlier one, but added a note: "Said Company was not in service in June 1863." The Bureau of Pensions then requested that Prisoner of War records be searched to find the whereabouts of Sparks from May to August 1864 and received the reply: "Prisoner of War records furnish no information."
Daniel Sparks was granted a pension under Invalid Certificate No. 566,794.
On March 3, 1898, Daniel Sparks, now living at Gimlet, Kentucky, responded to a questionnaire from the Bureau of Pensions as follows: He had been married on June 15, 1852, to Elizabeth Sparks in Carter County, Kentucky, by Rufus Humphrey. It was the first marriage for both. The living children of this marriage and their dates of birth were:
A. J. Sparks born February 20, 1853
N. J. Sparks born April 22, 1855
R. B. Sparks born April 14, 1857
R. M. Sparks born August 15, 1861
Eli Sparks born June 6, 1863
S. E. Sparks born June 23, 1865
J. H. Sparks born June 30, 1867
H. S. Sparks born March 25, 1869
On November 4, 1904, Elizabeth Sparks, age 71 years, a resident of Gimlet, Kentucky, made application for a widow's pension. She declared that she was a widow of Daniel Sparks who had enlisted on August 31, 1863, in Company E, 40th Regiment Kentucky Infantry and had been discharged on December 30, 1864. She stated that Daniel had died on November 1, 1904. She and Sparks had been married on June 15, 1851, by Rufus Humphrey at Jesse Sparks's under her maiden name of Elizabeth Sparks. She appointed W. W. Dudley, Washington, D.C. as her attorney. H. S. Sparks and Minta Sparks, both of Gimlet, Kentucky, witnessed her make her mark, and the application was notarized by J. E. Sparks, a notary public of Elliott C6unty, Kentucky.
The application was accompanied by a copy of the marriage certificate which verified the marriage of Daniel and Elizabeth on June 15, 1852, by R. Humphreys in the presence of John Sparks and Solomon Sparks. The application of Elizabeth Sparks was approved, and she was placed on the pension rolls. When she died on November 12, 1918, she was receiving a pension of $25.00 per month.
[Editor's Note: For further information regarding Daniel and Elizabeth (Sparks) Sparks, see pp. 3864-65 of the present issue of the Quarterly.]
1.2.1.2.1.8.4.6 MATTHEW SPARKS, son of Allen and Elizabeth (Kozee) Sparks, was born ca. 1831 in Lawrence County, Kentucky. He died in 1894. He married Hannah Adkins on January 18, 1852. He served in Company K, 68th Regiment Kentucky Enrolled Militia. Inv. Application No. 868,147.
On October 24, 1892, Matthew Sparks, age 60, of Lowmansville, Lawrence County, Kentucky, made application for an invalid pension. He stated that he had been enrolled in Company K, 68th Regiment Kentucky Enrolled Militia, commanded by Col. McKinster, on May 21, 1864, and that he had been discharged at Louisa, Kentucky, on June 22, 1864. [As will be seen below, he was actually discharged on July 23, 1864.] While he was serving in this unit, he took the measles which settled in his back and chest and the disease had caused permanent damage to his health. He said that when he was enrolled, he had been 6 feet tall, with a fair complexion, light hair, and blue eyes; he was a farmer by occupation. He appointed William Conard & Co., Washington, D.C., as his attorneys. Minty Sparks and Mary Hatfield were witnesses to his making his mark.
On December 19, 1892, William Bryant, age 56, Lowmansville, Kentucky, made an affidavit to support the application of Matthew Sparks, He said that he had known Sparks for 40 years and that in the spring of 1864, before Sparks volunteered for the army, he had been a stout, robust man, but that when Sparks returned from the service, he complained about his back and lungs and walked about all stooped over with his hands crossed on his back. Calvin Stephenson, age 62, also of Lowmansville, made a similar affidavit, stating that he had known Sparks for 36 years as a near neighbor, and that before he went into the army, he (Sparks) had been physically sound, but that after he returned from the service, he had been so stiff in the back that he had to walk on crutches.
The War Department confirmed the military service of Matthew Sparks. He had been 30 years old when he entered the service on May 21, 1864. He had been mustered out with his company on July 23, 1864. He had been born in Lawrence County, Kentucky, and was a farmer by occupation.
The application of Matthew Sparks for an invalid pension was not approved and no pension certificate was issued, probably because he had not served the required 90-day minimum period.
[Editor's Note: Matthew Sparks died between May and August 1894, according to his will and probate records in Lawrence County, Kentucky. For more information on Matthew and Hannah (Adkins) Sparks, see pp. 3865-66 of the present issue of the Quarterly.
1.2.1.2.1.8.2.9 GEORGE W. SPARKS, probably a son of Joseph and Martha (Edwards) Sparks, was born ca. 1835 in Floyd County, Kentucky. He was probably the George Sparks who married Alafair (MNU) Chaffin in 1858; his 2nd wife was Rebecca C. Burchett to whom he was married in 1867 in Carter County, Kentucky. He served in Company F, 5th Regiment Virginia Infantry. File Designations: Inv. Appl. No. 236,476; Wid. Cert. No. 162,907.
On May 19, 1877, George W. Sparks, age 41, a resident of Starfield, Clinton County, Missouri, made application for an invalid pension. He stated that he had enlisted in Company F, 5th Regiment Virginia Infantry, at Ceredo, Wayne County, Virginia (now West Virginia), on August 10, 1861, and had been discharged on August 15, 1862. While in the service, he had contracted the measles which had settled in his lungs. He also had been poisoned at Parkersburg, Virginia. He said that he was 6 feet tall, that he had light hair, blue eyes, and a fair complexion. He appointed William P. Hooper as his attorney. Robert Ball and Henry Ball witnessed him make his mark, and the application was sworn to before George R. Riley, clerk of the Clinton County Court.
The War Department confirmed Sparks's military service on July 5, 1877. He had enlisted at Camp Anthony, Ceredo, Virginia, on September 2, 1861, in Company F, 5th Regiment Virginia Volunteers, to serve for three years and had been given a Surgeon's Certificate of Disability at Fort McHenry, Baltimore, Maryland, on August 18, 1862. According to the Certificate of Disability, Sparks had been born in Floyd County, Kentucky, and was a farmer by occupation. His disability was described as "chronic pneumonia."
George W. Sparks died on March 15, 1878, before final action was taken on his application.
On August 11, 1890, his widow, Rebecca C. Burchett, age 53, of Dekalb County, Missouri, made application for a widow's pension. She stated that she and Sparks had been married in Carter County, Kentucky, on July 7, 1867, by the Rev. John Martin. She had been married under the name of Rebecca C. Burchett. She and her husband had no children under the age of sixteen at the time of her application. She appointed W. P. Hooper, Plattsburg, Missouri, as her attorney. James Gibson and Louis W. Burchett witnessed her signature. Nothing was sent by the National Archives from her pension file to indicate what action was taken on this application.
On March 20, 1895, W. H. Mocabee, clerk of the Carter County, Kentucky, Court, certified that there was a record of the marriage of George W. Sparks and Rebecca C. Burchett on July 7, 1867, in Carter County. The marriage ceremony had been performed by John Martin, M. E. C. S.
In May 1896, Aaron Fluty, age 68, and John Hobbs, age 69, both residents of Martin County, Kentucky, made a joint affidavit that George W. Sparks had never served in any war prior to his enlistment in 1861. At the same time. H. C. Ball, age 55, and Robert C. Ball, age 49, both residents of Starfield, Missouri, testified that they had known Rebecca C. Sparks all of their lives, and that she had not remarried after the death of her husband, George W. Sparks.
The Bureau of Pensions issued Widow's Certificate No. 162,907 to Rebecca C. Sparks. When she died on January 10, 1909, she was receiving a pension of $12.00 per month.
[Editor's Note: For additional information regarding George W. Sparks see pp. 3858-59 of the Quarterly.]
1.2.1.2.1.8.5.9 HENRY SPARKS, son of Thomas and Catherine (Jayne) Sparks, was born in March 1839 in Lawrence County, Kentucky. He married Elizabeth Rouse on September 26, 1861, in Boyd County, Kentucky. He served in Company A, 14th Regiment Kentucky Infantry. File Designation: Inv. Cert. No. 237,155. Wid. Cert. No. 606,330.
Henry Sparks apparently made application for an invalid pension in the early part of 1878, for on September 21st of that year, the War Department confirmed his military service to the Bureau of Pensions. Sparks had been enrolled in Company A, 14th Regiment Kentucky Infantry as a private on April 22, 1863, at Louisa, Kentucky, for a period of three years. He had been present for duty until July 1863 when he had been reported sick and in the hospital at Ashland, Kentucky. He had remained absent until December 31, 1863 when he had rejoined his company. He had been present for duty until March 1864 when he had been hospitalized again at Ashland. He had rejoined his unit in December 1864 and had been mustered out with the company at Camp Dennison, Ohio, on July 10, 1865.
The original application of Henry Sparks is apparently missing from his pension file, but he was issued a pension in 1878 under Invalid Certificate No. 237,155. Then, in October 1891, Sparks, age 51, and a resident of Crum, Lewis County, Kentucky, again made application for pension benefits. He said that at the time of his enlistment he had been 23 years of age; he was 6 feet, 1 inch tall, and he had a light complexion with dark eyes and hair. He said that because of the exposure to the cold and weather during the march from Louisa, Kentucky,to Virginia in February 1864, he had been stricken with a heavy cold which settled in his lungs and also affected his liver. He had been treated at Ashland, Kentucky, by Dr. McMillin during the summer of 1864, but the disease had not cleared up and he was now totally disabled and unable to earn his living as a farmer. Since leaving the service, he had lived in Boyd and Lewis Counties, Kentucky. He was receiving a pension of $16.00 per month. E. D. Sparks and G. M. Sparks witnessed his signature. There is nothing among the selected papers sent from his pension file by the National Archives to indicate the action taken by the Bureau of Pensions on this application for increased benefits.
On September 7, 1897, Henry Sparks responded to a questionnaire from the Bureau of Pensions. He stated that he had been married to Elizabeth Rouse in Boyd County, Kentucky, on September 26, 1861, by the Rev. John Crooks. It had been the first marriage for both. To this marriage, eight children had been born, all of whom were living in 1897. They were:
Samuel T. Sparks, born 1862
Everett D. Sparks, born 1870
Mary C. Sparks, born 1865
Anna Laura Sparks, born 1872
Jennie E. Sparks, born 1867
Henry Sparks, born 1874
George M. Sparks, born 1868James D. Sparks, born 1876
When Henry Sparks died on August 27, 1905, he was receiving a pension of $30.00 per month. His widow, Elizabeth Sparks, made application for a widow's pension on September 23, 1905. She said she was 69 years of age and lived at Valley, Lewis County, Kentucky. She stated that she was without any means to support herself. She appointed S. G. Hillis of Vanceburg, Kentucky, as her attorney. T. M. Bowman and J. M. Lee witnessed her make her mark and the application was notarized by O. P. Pollitt, Lewis County Clerk. Ellis E. Laurance, Boyd County, Kentucky, Clerk, sent a copy of the marriage record of Henry Sparks and Elizabeth Rouse. They had been married on September 26, 1861, at the home of Samuel Rouse in the presence of William Craft and Richard Rouse by the Rev. John C. Crooks.
Elizabeth Sparks was issued a widow's pension under Widow Certificate No.606,330. When she died on May 13, 1917, she was receiving $60 per month.
[Editor's Note: For additional information regarding Henry Sparks, whose middle initial was J, see pp. 3871-72 of the present issue of the Quarterly.]
1.2.1.2.1.8.4.9 PETER SPARKS, son of Allen and Elizabeth (Kozee) Sparks, was born March 4, 1837, in Lawrence County, Kentucky. He died on June 14, 1914. He married (first) Alafair Jordan on February 15, 1860, and (second) to Millie Bevins on November 28, 1889. He served in Company G, 14th Regiment Kentucky Infantry. File Designations: Inv. Cert. No. 515,288; Wid. Cert. No. 784,152.
On July 20, 1883, Peter Sparks, age 46, a resident of Blame, Lawrence County, Kentucky, made application for an invalid pension. He said that he had been enrolled in Company G, 14th Regiment Kentucky Infantry on April 18,1863, at Louisa, Kentucky, and had served until he had been mustered out at Louisville, Kentucky, on October 1, 1865. At the time of his enlistment, he had been 6 feet, 1 inch tall; he had a fair complexion, light hair, and blue eyes; and he was a farmer.
Sparks said that while on duty near Atlanta, Georgia, in November 1864, he had contracted a kidney disorder from exposure because of leaving the Hospital at Knoxville, Tennessee, before he had fully recovered from a severe spell of the fever. He said he had been unable to get further hospital treatment because of the march from Atlanta through Alabama and Tennessee.
He appointed A. B. Webb, Washington, D.C., as his attorney. G. V. Moore and B. F. Moore witnessed his signature.
The War Department confirmed Sparks's military service to the Bureau of Pensions on November 14, 1883. He had been enrolled on April 14, 1863, at Louisa, Kentucky, for a period of three years. He had been present for duty until May 1864 when he had been sent to the General Hospital at Knoxville, Tennessee. He had remained in the hospital until August 31, 1864, when he had rejoined his company. He had been present for duty there after until he had been mustered out with his company at Louisville, Kentucky, on September 15, 1865, as a private. The nature of his sickness was not stated, and the Regimental Hospital records were not on file.
Peter Sparks was issued a pension under Invalid Certificate No. 515,288 on July 23, 1890, at the rate of $10.00 per month. On January 21, 1897, he requested an increase in the pension because of additional disability caused by "diseases of respiratory organs of a permanent character." He was now 60 years of age and lived on Georges Creek, Lawrence County, Kentucky. S. F. Davis and Longstreet Price witnessed his signature. Nothing pertaining to the disposition of this application was included among the "selected papers"sent to us by the National Archives.
On January 24, 1898, Peter Sparks responded to a questionnaire from the bureau of Pensions. He said that he had been married to Millie Bevins on December 6, 1889, at Blame, Kentucky, by G. V. Moore. Prior to this marriage, he had been married to Alafair Jordan who had died on February 28,1889. He said that he had the following children who were living in 1898:
1.2.1.2.1.8.4.9.1 Mary C. Sparks, born October 22, 1861
1.2.1.2.1.8.4.9.2 Liddie Sparks, born November 2, 1865
1.2.1.2.1.8.4.9.3 Samuel T. Sparks, born August 7, 1869
1.2.1.2.1.8.4.9.5 Frances C. Sparks, born February 1, 1876
1.2.1.2.1.8.4.9.7 Jennie Sparks, born February 13, 1878
1.2.1.2.1.8.4.9.8 Recy N. Sparks, born October 6, 1880
1.2.1.2.1.8.4.9.9 Ida Sparks, born April 2, 1883
1.2.1.2.1.8.4.9.10 Carlos B. Sparks, born May 5, 1891
1.2.1.2.1.8.4.9.11 Charley Sparks, born January 1, 1892
1.2.1.2.1.8.4.9.12 Pricey J. Sparks, born April 18, 1894
1.2.1.2.1.8.4.9.13 Clarence D. Sparks, born July 20, 1896
On April 24, 1912, Peter Sparks made application for increased pension benefits under the 1907 Act of Congress. He said he was now 75 years of age and lived in Ashland, Boyd County, Kentucky. He said he had been born on March 4,1837, in Johnson County, Kentucky.
[Note: he probably intended Lawrence County; Johnson County was not formed until 1843.]
He appointed D. W. Steele, Ashland, Kentucky, as his attorney. Bertha Sparks and Artis Thompson witnessed his signature. When Peter Sparks died on June 14, 1914, he was receiving a pension of $30.00 per month.
On June 24, 1914, Milley Sparks, the widow of Peter Sparks, made application for a Widow's Pension. She said she was 54 years of age and lived on 16th Street, Route No. 2, Ashland, Kentucky. She said her husband had died because of a badly broken hip as well as from old age. She and Sparks had been married on November 28, 1889, at the home of Henry Sparks in Lawrence County, Kentucky. Her husband had been previously married, but his former wife had died. She said she and her husband had only one child under the age of sixteen years at the time of her application, viz. Cora Sparks, born on April 22, 1900. James Waller and William D. Boyd witnessed her make her mark.
On October 13, 1914, G. W. Keesee, age 65 years, a resident of Ashland, Kentucky, made an affidavit that he had been well acquainted with Peter Sparks and his second wife, Milley Sparks, and that he had been at their home when their daughter, Cora Sparks, had been born. He further stated that after the death of Peter Sparks, his widow, Milley Sparks, had not remarried. George Keesee also made an affidavit in November 1914 to support the application of Milley Sparks. He stated that he had known Alafair Jordan from her girlhood until her death and that she had been married to Peter Sparks sometime between 1860 and 1865, and that they had lived together until her death, which had occurred about 1888. He said that after the death of his first wife, Alafair Sparks, Peter Sparks had married Millie Bevins and lived with her until his death.
Milley Sparks died on October 7, 1938, at which time she was receiving a Widow's Pension under Certificate No. 784,152.
[Editor's Note: For additional information regarding Peter Sparks and his family, see pp. 3866-67.]
1.2.1.2.1.8.4.2 REUBEN M. SPARKS, son of Allen and Elizabeth (Kozee) Sparks, was born ca. 1825 in Lawrence County, Kentucky. He married (first) Elizabeth Dials (or Diles) on July 6, 1849, and (second) to Jane House on August 21, 1861. He served in Company A, 39th Regiment Kentucky Volunteer Infantry. File Designation: Wid. Cert. No. 95,991.
On September 21, 1863, Jane Sparks, age 32, a resident of Blame Creek in Johnson County, Kentucky, appeared before R. L. Vinson, Clerk of Lawrence County, Kentucky, and made application for a widow's pension. She stated that she was the widow of Reuben Sparks who had served in Company A, commanded by Capt. John B. Auxier, of the 39th Regiment Kentucky Volunteer Infantry, commanded by Col. John Dils. On May 2, 1863, her husband had died from typhoid fever while in the military service. She and Sparks had been married on August 21, 1861, by the Rev. John Hawes. Her name before her marriage had been Jane House. She had not remarried. She appointed Laban T. Moore as her attorney. Her signature was witnessed by Samuel Sparks and Thomas Segraves, both residents of Lawrence County, and the application was sworn to before Clerk Vinson.
Prior to making the application, Mrs. Sparks had obtained a statement on June10, 1863, from the Rev. John Hawes who had performed her marriage ceremony.The Rev. Hawes stated that he had performed the marriage of Reuben Sparks and Jane House on August 21, 1861, at the home of E. K. House in Johnson County, Kentucky. He signed the statement as a minister of the M. E. Church, and it was sworn to before Clabourne Hawes, a notary public.
The Adjutant General's Office confirmed the military service of Reuben Sparks. He had entered the service on November 18, 1862, at Peach Orchard, Kentucky, as a private in Company A, 39th Regiment Kentucky Volunteers for three years, or during the war. The regimental return for May 1863 contained the following remark about him: "Private Reuben M. Sparks died May 4th at Louisa, KY." No cause of death was stated.
On July 29, 1865, the Pension Office asked 2nd Lieut. R. L. Burchett, commanding officer of Company A, 39th Regiment Kentucky Volunteers stationed at Catlettsburg, Kentucky, to complete a death certificate of Sparks. Burchett stated that, according to the records of the company, and to his own personal knowledge, Sparks had died on May 4, 1863, in the Regimental Hospital at Louisa, Kentucky, of typhoid fever contracted while in the service and in the line of duty. Burchett also stated that the man who had been captain of the company had resigned and that the 1st lieutenant was away from the command.
On June 11, 1867, the widow of Reuben Sparks appeared before Daniel Pelphrey, Clerk of Johnson County [Kentucky] Court, to make a further declaration. She said that on May 18, 1867, she had been remarried and that her name was now Jane Lyon. She and Reuben Sparks had had no children, but he had had one child by a previous marriage, named Lucy Sparks, born June 22, 1850. Mrs.Lyon said that she made the statement for the purpose of recovering the pension benefits due to her from the date of her husband's death until the date of her remarriage.
On the same day, two other records were made. The first was an affidavit from John B. Auxier who said that he had been in command of Company A, 39th Regiment Kentucky Volunteers, on May 2, 1863, when one of his stout, healthy soldiers, Reuben Sparks, had died at Louisa, Kentucky. The other record came from the Surgeon General's Office which said that the records of the Regimental Hospital of the 39th Regiment Kentucky Volunteers had been found and showed that Sparks had been admitted on March 30, 1863, with pneumonia and had died on May 4, 1863.
The last record (in chronological order) among the "selected papers" sent to us by the National Archives from this pension file is a statement from the clerk of the Johnson County [Kentucky] Court, Daniel Pelphrey, that on May 18, 1867, a marriage license had been issued to Ransom Lyon and Jane Sparks.
Widow's Certificate No. 95,991 was issued to Jane Sparks retroactive to Nov17, 1863, but there is nothing among the "selected papers" sent by the National Archives from her file to indicate the amount nor the duration of Jane Sparks's pension.
[Editor's Note: For additional information regarding Reuben M. Sparks and his family, see p. 3862 of the present issue of the Quarterly.]
1.2.1.2.1.8.4.1 SAMUEL SPARKS, son of Allen and Elizabeth (Kozee) Sparks, was born ca. 1823 in Lawrence County, Kentucky. He married Nancy Skaggs there on November 11, 1847. He served in Company B, 68th Regiment Kentucky Enrolled Militia. File Designation:Wid. Appl. No. 553,737.
On November 24, 1891, Nancy Sparks, a resident of Blame, Kentucky, filed a Declaration for Widow's Pension. She stated that she was the widow of Samuel Sparks who had enlisted as a captain in Company B, 68th Regiment Kentucky Enrolled Militia on May 21, 1864 and had served until he had been released at Louisa, Kentucky. She had been married to Samuel Sparks on December 12,1847, by Lewis Skaggs under her maiden name of Nancy Skaggs. Her husband had died on April 12, 1885, and she was without means of support except through her own manual labor. She appointed B. H. Harris of Flat Gap, Kentucky, as her attorney. H. H. Gambill and E. W. Boggs witnessed her make her mark.
The War Department confirmed the military service of Samuel Sparks on February 2, 1892. He had been enrolled on May 21, 1864, to serve as a captain of Company B, 68th Regiment Kentucky Enrolled Militia and had been mustered out on June 22, 1864.
On January 8, 1895, Robert Dixon, clerk of the Lawrence County [Kentucky] Court, stated that he was the custodian of the county's marriage records. He was unable to find a record of the marriage of Nancy Skaggs to Samuel Sparks.
On April 16, 1895, A. M. Holbrook, aged 58; Teresa Swetnam, aged 83; and William Edwards, aged 70, all residents of Blame, Kentucky, testified that they had been well acquainted with Samuel Sparks, deceased, and with Nancy Sparks, his widow. Their marriage had been the first for both of them. Nancy Sparks had not remarried since the death of her husband.
On June 18, 1895, Milton P. Griffith, aged 45, and R. L. Griffith, aged 42, testified that they had been present when Samuel Sparks died and had helped prepare him for burial. Prior to his death, the deceased had complained of severe pain caused by rheumatism in his legs. The attending physician stated that the disease was the cause of Sparks's death.
On February 24, 1896, the War Department again confirmed that Samuel Sparks had served in the 68th Regiment Kentucky Enrolled Militia from May 21, 1864, until June 22, 1864.
The last document (in chronological order) among the "selected papers" sent us by the National Archives from the file of Samuel Sparks is a general affidavit of his widow, Nancy Sparks, dated March 21, 1896. She was now 73 years of age and still a resident of Blame, Kentucky. She stated that she could not furnish any medical evidence of her husband's treatment while in the military service, since the regimental surgeon was now dead. Neither could she furnish a death certificate since such records were not kept in her home county. The affidavit was witnessed by Lincoln Sparks and Lewis Sparks.
[Editor's Note: No widow's pension was authorized for Nancy Sparks, probably due to the fact that her husband's military service had consisted of only 30 days. The 1890 pension law of Congress required a minimum of 90 days of military service for a widow to be eligible for a pension. For further information regarding Samuel Sparks and his family, see pp. 3861-62 of the present issue of the Quarterly.
1.2.1.2.1.8.5.8 THOMAS J. SPARKS, son of Thomas and Catherine (Jayne) Sparks, was born in December 1836 in Lawrence County, Kentucky. He married Matilda D. MNU about 1868 in Hart County, Kentucky. He served in Company E, 2nd Regiment Kentucky Cavalry. File Designation: Inv. Cert. No. 527,720.
On November 12, 1879, Thomas J. Sparks, age 43, a resident of Seymour, Hart County, Kentucky, applied for an invalid pension. He stated that he had enlisted on July 1, 1861, in Company E, 2nd Regiment Kentucky Cavalry, commanded by Col. Laveal H. Ruseau, and had served until discharged at Nashville, Tennessee, on September 26, 1864. He was then 5 feet, 11 inches tall and had a dark complexion, black hair, and hazel eyes. He said that at Lookout Mountain, Georgia, on January 1, 1864, he had contracted rheumatism because of exposure to the inclemencies of the weather. The disease had gradually grown worse until he was now able to do only two-thirds of the labor he was required to do as a blacksmith. Since leaving the service, he had resided in Boyd and Hart Counties, Kentucky. He appointed F. J. Taylor as his attorney, and A. Miller and T. G. Hazell witnessed the application.
The War Department confirmed Sparks's military service on July 6, 1881. He had been enrolled as a "private-farrier" in Company E, 2nd Regiment Kentucky Cavalry on July 14, 1861, at Camp Joe Holt, Indiana. He had been present for duty until December 1863 when he had been placed on detached duty as an escort to Gen. Geary. He had returned from that service on July 8, 1864, and had been mustered out with his detachment on September 16, 1864, at Nashville, Tennessee. He had no record of any disability.
Sparks apparently encountered some difficulty in obtaining an invalid pension. On December 15, 1890, he made an affidavit that he was the claimant under pension application No. 333,484 and that he could not furnish further evidence of his service-connected disability because he could not find the Regimental Surgeon who had treated him. On March 25, 1892, he again made an affidavit that he was unable to furnish further physician's evidence of his disability. Since leaving the service, he had been treated by Dr. S. P. Taylor of Bear Wallow, Kentucky, who had died in 1873-1874. Dr. Taylor had told Sparks that his disease was incurable and so, in the interest of his family, he had spent no more money on further treatment.
The affidavits apparently convinced the Bureau of Pensions of the worthiness of his claim, for Sparks was issued a pension under Invalid Certificate No.527,720; however, there is nothing among the "selected papers" from his file sent to us by the National Archives to indicate the date of approval or the amount of his pension.
Thomas J. Sparks responded to a questionnaire from the Bureau of Pension son May 4, 1898. He said that he had been married to Matilda D. Sparks in Hart County, Kentucky, by Edward Smith, and that she had died on September 11, 1889, at Bear Wallow, Kentucky. He had not remarried. He had four living children:
Thomas J. Sparks's four living children in 1898:
Catherine M. Sparks, born June 12, 1869
George H. Sparks, born October 2, 1870
Anna Sparks, born June 7, 1873
Nellie G. Sparks, born March 18, 1878
When Thomas J. Sparks died on March 24. 1907, he was receiving a pension of $30.00 per month.
[Editor's Note: For further information on Thomas J. Sparks and his family, see page 3871 of the present issue of the Quarterly.]
CIVIL WAR PENSION APPLICATIONS
Pages 3891-3892 (Continued from page 3883)
SAMUEL A. SPARKS, son of William and Elizabeth (Brown) Sparks, was born in Parke County, Indiana, on June 22, 1846. He married Clara F. Webb on September 28, 1873, in Monroe County Iowa. He served in Company K, 43rd Regiment Indiana Infantry. File Designations: Inv. Cert. No.409,891; Wid. Cert. No. 874,903.
Samuel A. Sparks applied for an invalid pension on June 18, 1880, but no copy of his application was sent among the "selected papers" provided by the National Archives from his pension file. The earliest document received (in chronological order) from his pension file was a report of his military service furnished to the Bureau of Pensions by the War Department on October 7, 1882. He had been enrolled on October 10, 1864, at Rockville, Indiana, in Company K, 43rd Regiment Indiana Volunteers to serve for one year. He was 5 feet, 5 inches tall, with a fair complexion, blue eyes, and light hair; and he was a farmer. He had been on detached service at Point Lookout, Maryland, as a guard in the prisoner-of-war camp there from January to April 1865, and had been mustered out with his company on June 14, 1865. Regimental hospital records were not on file.
On April 27, 1887, Samuel Sparks, a resident of Albia, Iowa, appeared before Andrew Casady, a notary public of Monroe County, Iowa, to make an affidavit about a back injury that he had received while in the service. He said that he had been treated by the regimental surgeon, whose name he had forgotten, for a severe back injury. He also remembered having been examined by a doctor in Indianapolis, Indiana, soon after his company had returned from Aiken Landing, Virginia.
On December 9, 1887, Sparks again testified that he could not find Dr. Helmer, the regimental surgeon, even though he had sent him two letters. The physicians who had treated him after he had returned home from the service had been Dr. George M. Knight and Dr. Bogard, both of whom were now (1887) dead.
Sparks made another affidavit on January 7, 1893. He was now 46 years of age and a resident of Albia, Iowa. He swore to the following: "I cannot furnish affidavits of the physicians who treated me since discharge for rheumatism and affliction of the back and head further than that already furnished, if any, for the reason that Dr. George Knight of Catlin, Indiana, is now dead. He treated me for two years first after I came home or near that. I ask leave to file affidavits of non-professional witnesses covering the period 1865 to 1872. I have used 'Gum quashum' and whiskey, polk-root and whiskey, polk-berries and whiskey, gargling oil and iodine, Wizard Oil, St. Jacob's Oil, Dr. Hoffman's Therapeutic Bath, Electric belts, The Shaker Rheumatism Remedy, Skunk Oil, Perry-Davis Pail Killer and Indian Sagwa. I cannot furnish affidavits of surgeons who treated me in the service for the reason that Surgeon Smith's books had been burned."
Samuel A. Sparks was issued Invalid Certificate No. 409,891, and he was placed upon the pension roll.
On March 26, 1915, he completed a questionnaire from the Bureau of Pensions. He said that he had been born in Rockville, Indiana, on June 22, 1846. He had been married to Clara Webb on September 28, 1873, at Albia, Iowa, by the Rev. F. M. Bruner. They had two children: Claude G. Sparks, born November 19,1875, and Candasia Roy Sparks, born July 13, 1879.
Samuel A. Sparks died on August 31, 1919, and on September 8, 1919, his widow, Clara Sparks, applied for a widow's pension. She said that she had been born on November 18, 1855, at Albia, Iowa, and had been married to Sparks on September 28, 1873. It had been the first marriage for both. Laura Colwell and Doris Taylor witnessed her make her mark.
When Clara (Webb) Sparks died on March 29, 1921, she was receiving a pension of $30.00 per month.
[Editor's Note: Samuel A. Sparks was a son of William and Elizabeth (Brown) Sparks who were listed on the 1850 and 1860 censuses of Parke County, Indiana. William Sparks was a son of Wesley Sparks, a veteran of the War of 1812, whose bounty land file was abstracted and published in the September 1964 issue of the Quarterly, Whole No. 47. Wesley Sparks was related in some way to Addison Sparks, of Parke County, Indiana, who had been married to Mary Watts in Pittsylvania County, Virginia, in 1816. See the September 1977 issue of the Quarterly, Whole No. 99, pp. 1920-24, for further details for this family.]