January 27, 2022
Pages 4010-4018
Whole Number 159
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. The National Archives charges $10.00 for each such file; the "non-selected papers" that exist for most files may be obtained for an additional fee, the amount depending upon the number of papers involved. 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.]
THEODORE W. SPARKS (ca. 1830-1863), was born ca. 1830 in Sullivan County, New York. He married Emily A. Terwilliger on May 28, 1856, at Rochester, New York. He served in Company E, 120th Regiment New York Infantry. He died in service on April 14, 1863. His widow married (second) John Milliken. File Designations: Wid. Cert. No. 46,783; Minor Cert. No. 148,523.
On September 5, 1863, Emily A. Sparks, aged 28, a resident of Wawarsing Township, Ulster County, New York, applied for a Widow's Pension, stating that she was the widow of Theodore W. Sparks who had been a private in Company E, commanded by Capt. Daniel Gillett, of the 120th Regiment New York Volunteers in the War of 1861. Sparks had died in the Division Hospital at Falmouth, Virginia, on April 14, 1863. She and Sparks had been married at Rochester, New York, on May 28, 1856, by the Rev. C. Wycoff, M.G. Her maiden name had been Emily A. Terwilliger. At the time of his death, her husband had been 33 years of age; he had blue eyes, light complexion and light brown hair; and he was a laborer. She and Theodore W. Sparks had one child, Kate Sparks, aged 4 years. Mrs. Sparks's application was sworn to before John Lyon, Esq., a notary public. A copy of the marriage record of Theodore W. Sparks and Emily Ann Terwilliger accompanied the application. They had been married in the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church of North America in Rochester, New York, by the Rev. C. Wycoff, minister.
The Adjutant General's Office confirmed Sparks's military service on December 29, 1863. He had been enrolled on August 8, 1862, at Ellenville, New York, in Company E, 120th Regiment New York Infantry to serve for three years. On the muster roll of that company for March-April 1863, he had been reported as "Died at Division Hospital near Falmouth, Va. April 14, 1863."
On June 5, 1867, Dr. Jacob S. Freer and Sarah J. Terwilliger made a joint affidavit, in which they stated that on October 4, 1858, they had attended the birth of Kate M. Sparks, daughter of Theodore W. Sparks, deceased, and his widow, Emily A. Sparks.
Widow Certificate No. 46,783 was issued to Emily A. Sparks, and she was placed upon the pension roll along with her daughter, Kate M. Sparks.
On January 2, 1870, Emily A. Sparks married (second) John Milliken at Ellenville, New York, and on August 9, 1870, she was appointed guardian of her daughter, Kate M. Sparks, in order to obtain a pension for her child under the 1862 Act of Congress. She immediately made application for a minor's pension. The application was witnessed by John Milliken and Leonard Perry.
On April 17, 1901, Emily A. Milliken, aged 67, a resident of Walden, New York, made a declaration for the restoration of her widow's pension under the 1901 Act of Congress. She said that she had been formerly pensioned as the widow of Theodore W. Sparks under Widow Certificate No. 46,783, but that her pension had been terminated because of her marriage to John Milliken on January 2, 1870. Her husband, John Milliken, had died on April 23, 1894, and she now asked that her former pension be restored. Kate M. Scott and Fred Burns witnessed her signature. Gilbert S. Millspaugh, Henry Gray, and William Scott testified in support of her declaration.
Widow Certificate No. 46,783 was reissued to Emily A. Milliken, and she was placed again upon the pension roll. When she died on May 10, 1914, she was receiving a pension of $12.00 per month.
[Editor's Note: When the 1850 census was taken of Ulster County, New York, Theodore Sparks appeared as a resident of Shawangunk Township, aged 22. The census taker of that township included, under place of birth, not only the state, but also the county where each person had been born. He gave Sullivan County, New York, as Theodore's place of birth. Theodore was living in a household headed by a 29-year-old farmer named Green M. Masters whose place of birth had been Ulster County, New York. The only other person living in this household was Lidia Green, age 68, who had also been born in Ulster County.
[There were four households shown on the 1850 census of Shawangunk Township headed by persons named Sparks: Levi Sparks, age 51; David Sparks, age 42; Charles Sparks, age 47; and Mariah Sparks, age 51; all were natives of Ulster County as were all members of their households. We can assume that Mariah Sparks was a widow--might she have been Theodore's mother? There was another Sparks living in this township in 1850 who, like Theodore, had been born in Sullivan County. This was 15-year-old Elizer C. Sparks who was living in the household of George Johnston, age 26, a native of Ulster County. (A listing of all Sparkses appearing on the 1850 census of New York was published in the Quarterly of March 1982, Whole No. 117, pp. 2378-2398.)
[The marriage of Theodore W. Sparks and Emily Ann Terwilliger on May 28, 1856, was noted in the July 31, 1856, issue of a newspaper called the Christian Intelligencer of the Reformed Dutch Church. It was stated there that their marriage had been "solemnized by the Rev. Cornelius Wycoff at the Parsonage at Rochester, NY" and that both the bride and the groom were "of Wawarsing," which is a town in Ulster County, New York.
[It would appear that Kate M. Sparks, only child of Theodore W. and Emily A. (Terwilliger) Sparks, had been married to FNU Scott by 1901; he was probably the William Scott who supported the application of Emily Ann Sparks for reinstatement as a pensioner that year.]
64.1.1 PEARL SPARKS (1843-1864), son of 64.1 Joseph and Eveline (Van Slyke) Sparks, was born July 20, 1843, in Herkimer County, New York. He died on September 28, 1864, at Andersonville, Georgia. He did not marry. He served in Company F, 2nd Regiment New York Heavy Artillery. File Designation: Father Cert. 227,389.
On February 14, 1885, 64.1 Joseph Sparks, aged 73 years, a resident of Fort Plain, New York, made a declaration for a Father's Pension. He stated that he was the father of 64.1.1 Pearl Sparks who had enlisted in December 1863 in Company F, 2nd Regiment New York Heavy Artillery, and that he had died while in the service on September 28, 1864. His son had left no widow nor children; however, he had left five brothers and sisters who were under the age of sixteen years. They were:
64.1.2 Dealia Sparks, born April 22, 1853
64.1.3 Daniel Sparks, born April 5, 1855
64.1.4 Fannie Sparks, born June 20, 1857
64.1.5 Leavy Sparks, born July 21, 1859
64.1.6 Henry Sparks, born February 14, 1862
(See below, in the Editor's Note, the complete list of children of Joseph and Eveline (Van Slyke) Sparks.)
Joseph Sparks went on to state that he was, in part, dependent upon his son, Pearl Sparks, for support. He stated that he had been married to the mother of his son at Herkimer, New York, on January 25, 1835, by the Rev. Skinner. She had died on August 4, 1867, at Fort Plain, New York. Joseph Sparks appointed L. Bingham, Washington, D.C., as his attorney. D. O. Morton and George Bunton witnessed him make his mark.
The War Department confirmed the military service of 64.1.1 Pearl Sparks on September 24, 1885. He had been enrolled on December 14, 1863, at Mendon, Monroe County, New York, in Company F, 2nd Regiment New York Heavy Artillery. He was then 18 years of age and had enlisted for a period of three years. On June 22, 1864, he had been captured at the assault siege of Petersburg, Virginia, and had been confined at Richmond, Virginia, two days later. On June 29, 1864, he had been sent to Lynchburg, Virginia. He had been admitted to the hospital at Andersonville, Georgia, on September 28, 1864, and had died there on the same day of sconbutis (?).
Earlier, on January 30, 1885, H. E. Aarmon, as auditor of the Treasury Department, had advised the Bureau of Pensions as follows: "In the case of Pearl Sparks, late private Co. F, 2nd NY Artillery, $200 bounty per Joint Resolution, January 13, 1864, and arrears of pay to include September 15, 1864, were allowed Joseph Sparks and Eveline Sparks, parents, by certificates dated January 11, 1867, and September 21, 1868, respectively. For his claim, executed August 14, 1865, Joseph Sparks declared that he is the father of the soldier and that the soldier left neither widow nor child surviving him. John Abbott and Henry C. Wieting identify claimant as father of the soldier and swear to the latter's celibacy. February 5, 1867, Joseph and Eveline Sparks file a claim in which they declare themselves as father and mother of the soldier. Claimants are identified and statements are corroborated by Freeman Phillips and William E. Bleeker.'
On December 5, 1885, Joseph Sparks made an affidavit to support his applica tion for a father's pension. He stated that he was the father of Pearl Sparks, and that he had been married to the mother of his son, Eveline Van Slyke, at Herkimer, New York, on January 25, 1825, by the Rev. Skinner. His son, Pearl Sparks, had been born July 20, 1843; had always had good health; and had contributed largely to the support of his parents. A. J. Wagner and Henry Casler witnessed him make his mark.
On July 24, 1886, Joseph Sparks again made an affidavit to support his claim. He said he had always been a laborer, but being uneducated, he had never kept accounts of his earnings, which had been quite small. He had had to mortgage his home for support and had now lost it. He had lost the sight in one eye, and the other eye was greatly impaired. He was so infirm and feeble that he was obliged to have help in putting on his coat. A. J. Wagner and Henry Casler witnessed him make his mark, and his statement was sworn to before G. E. Phillips, a notary public.
During August and September 1886, six affidavits were made in Montgomery County, New York, to support the claim of Joseph Sparks. J. H. P. Wagner and John Abbott vouched for his physical disability which prevented him from doing any work. In addition, Abbott stated that he had purchased Sparks's house and lot at a mortgage sale in 1877. A. J. Wagner swore that Pearl Sparks had worked as a day laborer on a driving team on the Erie Canal for two years before going into the military service, and had given most of his wages to his parents. Charles E. Wick, town clerk of Fort Plain, said that Joseph Sparks had no assessable property. Cornelious Garlock and Henry Casler stated that the income of Joseph Sparks would not amount to $100 per year.
Father's Certificate No. 227,389 was issued to Joseph Sparks, and he was placed upon the pension roll.
[Editor's Note: 64.1.8.3 Pearl Sparks (1843-1864) was a great-grandson, and doubtless a namesake, of 64. Pearl Sparks (1750-1826) who had served in the American Revolution. In a volume entitled New York in the Revolution compiled by James A. Roberts, published in 1898, Pearl Sparks was identified as a member of the 1st Regiment of the Tryon County, New York, Militia. (Tryon County had been created in 1772 from Albany County; in 1784 its name was changed from Tryon to Montgomery County.) According to his pension application, he was a member of Capt. Henry Dufendoffs Company in the Regiment commanded by Col. Clyde. Pearl Sparks (1750-1826), was first placed on the pension roll of wounded soldiers of the Revolution on September 23, 1786, when he was described as 36 years of age. His pension was set then at $5.00 per month; it was later increased to $8.00 per month. On April 30, 1824, Pearl Sparks applied for a renewal of his pension, stating that he had received a wound on August 6, 1777, during the Battle of Oriskany on the Mohawk River, from which he had never fully recovered. (The papers for his earlier application have not survived.) We published Pearl Sparks' 1824 pension application in the Quarterly of September 1957, Whole No. 19, pp. 231-33.
[Although we have not discovered the parentage of 64. Pearl Sparks (1750-1826), nor his place of birth, we have a record of his death which includes his age at that time. On the basis of this, we are able to determine that he had been born on or about February 17, 1750. His death occurred on November 26, 1826, at which time he was 76 years, 9 months, and 3 days old. This record is found among those of the Reformed Dutch Church at Fort Plains in the town of Minden in Montgomery County, New York. These records were collected and edited by Royden Woodward Vosburgh along with many other church records in New York. Called the "Vosburgh Collection," five copies were made, one of which is in the Library of Congress. There is no index, but the late Carrie Grant Heppen searched for and copied for us many items pertaining to persons named Sparks.
[When the 1790 census was taken, Pearl Sparks (1750-1826) was shown as the head of a household in the town of Canajoharie in Montgomery County, New York. No one else named Sparks appears on the 1790 census of Montgomery County From the enumeration of his household, it appears that Pearl, himself, was the male over 16 while the only female enumerated must have been his wife; we assume that the two males enumerated as under 16 were their sons.
[Likewise, on the 1800 census of Montgomery County, Pearl was the only Sparks listed. He was surely the male enumerated as over 45, and his wife was doubtless the female also over 45. Living with them were 2 males under 10, 1 male between 10 and 16, another male between 16 and 26, and one female between 16 and 26. Pearl Sparks has not been found on the 1820 census. Among the papers in his pension file is a letter of inquiry dated January 1, 1909, from Mrs. Graham Billinger, 302 Prospect St., Herkimer, New York, who stated that she was a descendant of Pearl Sparks and was attempting to discover the name of his wife. His wife's name did not appear in his pension papers, however.
[64.1 Joseph Sparks (1775-1840) was the grandfather of the 64.1.8.3 Pearl Sparks (1843-1864) who died as a Union soldier in the Civil War, and we feel certain that Joseph was a son of 64. Pearl Sparks. This 64.1 Joseph Sparks was born March 16, 1775. His birth date is based on his age (65 years, 8 months, and 7 days) when he died "in the poorhouse" in the town of Minden, Montgomery County, New York, on November 23, 1840. He had been married to Margaret Castler, who had been born on October 7, 1777, and who died on May 23, 1829, at the age of 51 years, 7 months, and 16 days. These records, along with those pertaining to the births and baptisms of their children, appear in the records of the Lutheran St. Paul's Church at Minden (once known as the Geisenberg Church). They are part of the "Vosburgh Collection" described earlier. The children of Joseph and Margaret (Castler) Sparks were:
64.1.1 Maria Sparks, born March 20, 1797, baptized May 21, 1797
64.1.2 Elizabeth Sparks, born July 29, 1799, baptized September 22, 1799
64.1.3 Isaac Sparks, born July 23, 1801, baptized August 30, 1801
64.1.4 Jacob Sparks, born December 1, 1803, baptized January 1, 1804
64.1.5 Catharina Sparks, born August 5, 1805, baptized September 29, 1805
64.1.6 Abraham Sparks, born March 1, 1808, baptized April 18, 1808
64.1.7 Anna Sparks, born May 18, 1810, baptized July 1, 1810
64.1.8 Joseph J. Sparks, born July 10, 1812, baptized August 2, 1812
64.1.9 Peggy Sparks, born August 19, 1814, baptized September 11, 1814
64.1.10 Delia Sparks, born May 25, 1816, baptized July 7, 1816
[64.1.8 Joseph J. Sparks, the eighth child of Joseph and Margaret (Castler) Sparks, became the father of 64.1.8.3 Pearl Sparks (1843-1864). He was married on January 20, 1837, to Eveline Van Slyke by the Rev. Joseph Peter Spinner, minister of the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church in the town of Herkimer in Herkimer County, New York. (Herkimer County and Montgomery County adjoin; the Van Slayk family lived in Herkimer County.) Mr. Spinner, in recording this marriage, wrote that he performed it "in my mansion in the Village of Herkimer in the presence of both my daughters, Delia Emily & Marianna Spinner." He identified the groom's parents as Joseph and Margareth (Castler) Sparks, "farmers," and the bride's parents as John and Jane S. (Coutin) Van Slayk, "blacksmiths by trade." (In his application for a father's pension, Joseph Sparks gave his date of marriage as January 25, 1837.)
[From the census records of Montgomery County, and the information in the application of Joseph Sparks for a pension based on his son's service in the Union Army, we are able to identify the twelve children of 64.1.8 Joseph and Eveline (Van Slayk) Sparks as follows:
64.1.8.1 Nicholas Sparks, born ca.1839-40.
64.1.8.2 Harriet (or Henrietta) Sparks, born ca.1840-41
64.1.8.3 Pearl Sparks, born July 20, 1843
64.1.8.4 Mariah (or Maria) Sparks, born ca.1844
64.1.8.5 Joseph J. Sparks, born ca.1845-46
64.1.8.6 Jane Sparks, born ca.1848
64.1.8.7 Polly Sparks, born ca.1849-50
64.1.8.8 Dealia (or Amelia) Sparks, born April 22, 1853
64.1.8.9 Daniel Sparks, born April 5, 1855
64.1.8.A Fannie Sparks, born June 20, 1857
64.1.8.B Leafy (or Levie) Sparks, born July 21, 1859
64.1.8.C Henry Sparks, born February 14, 1862
[Should any of our readers have further information regarding the children of Joseph and Margaret (Castler) Sparks, appearing on page 4014, or any of the above children of Joseph and Eveline (Van Slayk) Sparks, your editor would welcome your sharing of that information with him.]
CALVIN SPARKS (1822-1862), was born March 10, 1822, in Ulster County, New York, and died on November 10, 1862, in Sullivan County, New York. He married Helen Misner in Sullivan County on March 9, 1853. He enlisted in Company K, 56th Regiment New York Infantry. File Designation: Wid. Cert. No. 167,282.
Calvin Sparks received a Certificate of Disability for Discharge on September 6, 1862, at Fort Ward, New York. He had enlisted a year earlier, on September 4, 1861, at Monticello in Sullivan County, New York, in Company K, 56th Regiment New York Infantry Volunteers, commanded by Capt. E. Smith, to serve for three years. At the time of his enlistment, he was 39 years of age; he was 5 feet, 9 inches tall; he had a light complexion, black eyes and brown hair; and he was a farmer. Sparks gave his address as the town of Neversink in Sullivan County, New York.
Prior to his receiving his disability discharge, Sparks had been diagnosed by Post Surgeon Harry E. Brown, as suffering from chronic diarrhea and general debility; he stated that Sparks was unfit for performing the duties of a soldier.
Calvin Sparks died two months following his discharge, on November 10, 1862. On August 25, 1869, his widow, Helen (Misner) Sparks, aged 36 years and a resident of Ellenville in Ulster County, New York, applied for a widow's pension. She stated that she and Sparks had been married on March 9, 1853, and that they had three children, all of whom were under the age of sixteen years at the time of his death. They were:
Edwin Sparks, born January 7, 1854
Addie Sparks, born May 28, 1856
Sarah M. Sparks, born September 28, 1859
Tunis Misner and Jonathan J. Prince witnessed her signature. The War Department confirmed the military service of Calvin Sparks on December 10, 1869.
On May 11, 1874, Samuel G. Stevens, a Methodist Episcopal Church minister, made an affidavit that on March 9, 1853, he had married Calvin Sparks and Helen Misner at Neversink, New York, where he was the pastor. The witness to the marriage had been Paul E. Stevens.
The Bureau of Pensions issued Widow Certificate No. 167,282 to Helen Sparks, and she was placed upon the pension roll. On October 14, 1916, Mrs. Sparks, now 85 years of age and a resident of Liberty in Sullivan County, New York, applied for increased pension benefits under the 1916 Act of Congress. She said that she had been born on September 3, 1831, at Liberty, New York. Mina Brisco and Hazel Hulse, both residents of Liberty, witnessed her make her mark.
When Helen Sparks died on September 9, 1922, she was receiving a pension of $30.00 per month.
[Editor's Note: Calvin Sparks was included on the 1850 census of Wawarsing Township, Ulster County, New York, as a member of the household of Joseph W. Edwards, a 22-year-old farmer. Calvin was described by the census taker as a "Laborer," which probably means he was employed by Edwards to work on his farm. Sixteen-year-old Esther Edwards in this household was probably the wife of Joseph W. Edwards. Also living in the household was 18-year-old Abby Mariobe. All had been born in the state of New York.
[In her application for a pension, Helen (Misner) Sparks stated that she and Calvin had been married on March 9, 1853, and that they had three children. Calvin and Helen, with those three children, appeared on the 1860 census of Neversink Township in Sullivan County, New York. Calvin's age was 38 and Helen's was 28. He was called a "Day Laborer" with personal property valued at $150.00. He owned no land according to the census taker. Their children were listed as: Edwin Sparks, age 6; Adaline Sparks, age 4, and Sarah Sparks, age 10 months.
[There is a tombstone for Calvin Sparks in the Velie & Neversink Cemetery in Sullivan County, New York; this cemetery is now called the Falls Church and Neversink Cemetery. The inscription on this stone gives only Calvin's name and his birth and death dates: March 10, 1822 - November 10, 1862.]
1.2.5.10.2.1.2.4 EPHRAIM WILSON SPARKS, son of 1.2.5.10.2.1.2 Robert Thomas and Mary Ann (Wallingford) Sparks, was born November 8, 1846, in Lewis County, Kentucky, and died on November 5, 1926, at Dallas, Texas. He married Elizabeth A. Scott on August 25, 1878, in Brady, Texas. He served in Company G, 58th Regiment Illinois Infantry. File Designations: mv. Cert. No. 1,065,659; Wid. Cert. No. 1,568,858.
Ephraim W. Sparks applied for an invalid pension on August 9, 1901. He was a resident of Brady, Texas. He said that he had been enrolled in Company G, 58th Regiment Illinois Infantry on March 17, 1865, at Quincy, Illinois, and had served until he had been discharged at Montgomery, Alabama, on March 16, 1866. At the time of his enlistment, he had been 5 feet, 6 1/2 inches tall; he had a fair complexion, blue eyes and auburn hair; and he was a laborer. He had been born in Kentucky on November 8, 1846.
Invalid Certificate No. 1,065,659 was issued to Ephraim W. Sparks, and he was placed upon the pension roll. On November 9, 1908, he applied for increased benefits under the 1907 Act of Congress. He was now 62 years of age and a resident of Grady, New Mexico. He said that since leaving the service, he had lived in Dallas City, Illinois, from 1866 to 1873; in Bell County, Texas, from 1873 to 1875; in Liano County, Texas, from 1875 to 1877; in Brady, Texas, from 1877 to 1907; and in Grady, New Mexico, to the present (1908). J. A. McFarlin and E. W. Twaddle witnessed his signature, and the declaration was sworn to before John W. Green, a notary public.
Sparks responded to a questionnaire from the Bureau of Pensions on April 5, 1915. He said he had been married to Elizabeth Antoinette Scott on August 25, 1878, in McCulloch County, Texas, by County Judge G. L. Beatty. It had been the first marriage for both. Children born to the marriage were:
1.2.5.10.2.1.2.4.1 Anna Laura Sparks, born December 1, 1879
1.2.5.10.2.1.2.4.2 Robert Thomas Sparks, born July 12, 1882
1.2.5.10.2.1.2.4.3 Edna Naphania Sparks, born February 10, 1885
1.2.5.10.2.1.2.4.4 Charles Francis Sparks, born June 20, 1886
1.2.5.10.2.1.2.4.5 Ernest Willington Sparks, born July 10, 1889
Ephraim W. Sparks died on November 5, 1926, and on January 25, 1927, his widow, Elizabeth A. Sparks, applied for a widow's pension. She was 75 years old and a resident of Brady, Texas. She stated that she had been born July 5, 1851, at Caldwell, Texas, and had been married to Ephraim Sparks on August 25, 1878, at Brady, Texas. It had been the first marriage for both. They (in 1927) had no children under the age of sixteen. Mrs. Laura Strickland (her daughter) and B. L. Hughes witnessed her signature, and the declaration was sworn to before S. W. Hughes, a notary public.
On March 10, 1927, Mrs. Sparks made an affidavit to support her request. She said that she and Sparks lived together as man and wife until sometime in 1907 when he left McCulloch County, Texas, and went to New Mexico to take up some government land. He lived near Grady, New Mexico, from the time he left Texas until his death, nor did he ever return to McCulloch County. There was no formal separation and no suit was ever filed for divorce. Sparks had left a will, dated October 18, 1926, in which he referred to her as "my beloved wife, Elizabeth A. Sparks."
Mrs. Sparks enclosed a copy of her husband's will. In it, he had left property in Curry County, New Mexico, and in McCulloch County, Texas, to her, and, at her death, to his children. To his daughter, Laura Strickland, he left two-fifths of the residue of the property that would be left at the death of his wife because she had "bourne much of the brunt of the care of her mother." To his daughter, Edna Watters, and his sons, Robert, Ernest, and Charles Sparks, he left equal parts of the residue, after daughter, Laura, had received her two-fifths. He appointed his son, Robert, to be the executor of the will.
Mrs. Sparks was issued Widow Certificate No. 1,568,858, and she was placed upon the pension roll. She died on May 8, 1937.
1.2.5.10.2.1.2.4 Ephraim Wilson Sparks was a son of 1.2.5.10.2.1.2 Robert Thomas and Mary Ann (Wallingford) Sparks; he was born November 8, 1846, in Kentucky (probably in Fleming County). A biographical sketch of him appeared in the Quarterly of September 1970, Whole No. 71, p. 1339). Information appeared there also about two of his children, Robert T. Sparks and Edna N. Sparks. A photograph (reproduced from a badly faded tintype) of Ephraim, age 18, in his Civil War uniform, appeared on page 1340.
[This photograph had been furnished by Ephraim's granddaughter, Mrs. Eula Mae Prince of Dallas, Texas. Mrs. Prince also sent us a letter written on February 4, 1925, to Ephraim by a boyhood friend in Dallas City named Ed Fee. This was transcribed on page 1340.
[Information regarding Ephraim's parents, Robert and Mary Ann Sparks, also appeared in the September 1970 issue of the Quarterly, along with a record of their other four children:
1.2.5.10.2.1.2.1 Catherine (or Kitty) Sparks, born November 9, 1831. She married J. Noel Datin;
1.2.5.10.2.1.2.2 Lucretia Sparks, born ca. 1834;
1.2.5.10.2.1.2.3 Sarah A. Sparks, born ca. 1842. She married Henry Gilbreth; and
1.2.5.10.2.1.2.5 Rebecca Jane Sparks, born ca.1850. She married FNU Walker (see pp. 1337-41).
[The paternal grandparents of Ephraim Wilson Sparks were 1.2.5.10.2.1 Caleb and Rebecca (Wilson) Sparks of Lewis County, Kentucky. Caleb Sparks was born ca.1785 and died ca.1835. He married Rebecca Wilson, daughter of Ephraim Wilson, on October 19, 1805, in Bourbon County, Kentucky. Information about Caleb and seven of his children, including Robert Thomas Sparks, also appeared in the Quarterly of September 1970, Whole No. 71.
[Further information regarding Caleb Sparks was discovered and reported in the Quarterly of September 1980, Whole No. 111, pp. 2240-41. Court records were quoted proving that Caleb Sparks and his brother, Joseph Sparks, had been sons of a William Sparks of Fleming County, Kentucky, who had died prior to February 10, 1800. On this date, Caleb and Joseph, who were called "infant heirs" of their father, were apprenticed to William McCormick in Fleming County.]