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Bell Witch of TennesseeWebsite Created By Phil Norfleet
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How to Use This Report The following report, concerning the genealogy of the family of Joshua Gardner (1800-1884), grandson of Joshua Gardner (d. 1793), consists of outlines only. Other than Joshua Gardner himself, I have not personally researched this family with respect to the primary records. Instead, I have relied upon secondary sources. Accordingly, the report should be used as a starting point only, to use in forming genealogical hypotheses. To prove these hypotheses, the reader of this report must provide his/her own supporting rationale obtained from family documents such as Bible records and/or memoranda; and from official documents such as wills, deeds, court minutes, etc. The ancestor numbering system utilized in the report is that recommended by the National Genealogical Society (NGS). Descendants of Joshua Gardner (d. 1793) Generation No. 1 1. Joshua1 Gardner died 1793. He married Ann Darden. Children of Joshua Gardner and Ann Darden are:
Generation No. 2 2. Polly Darden2 Gardner (Joshua1) died Bef. 1811. She married Daniel Webb. He died 1802. Child of Polly Gardner and Daniel Webb is:
3. John A.2 Gardner (Joshua1) was born Abt. 1775 in Southampton County VA, and died Abt. 1845 in Weakley County TN. He married Patience Whitehead 03 February 1796 in Southampton County VA. She was born Abt. 1775 in Southampton County VA, and died 1846 in Weakley County TN. Children of John Gardner and Patience Whitehead are:
Generation No. 3 4. Tembte Fisher3 Webb (Polly Darden2 Gardner, Joshua1) She married Miles Gunn 10 August 1819 in Robertson County TN, son of Reverend Gunn and Martha Graves. He was born 1797. Child of Tembte Webb and Miles Gunn is:
6. Jesse3 Gardner (John A.2, Joshua1) was born 05 September 1798 in Robertson County TN, and died 09 February 1878 in Weakley County TN. He married Priscilla Gunn 14 October 1818. Child of Jesse Gardner and Priscilla Gunn is:
7. Joshua3 Gardner (John A.2, Joshua1) was born 30 March 1800 in Robertson County TN, and died Abt. 1884 in Weakley County TN. He married (1) Sarah Caroline Donelson, daughter of James Donelson and Esther _____. She was born 1808 in Iredell County NC, and died 1873 in Weakley County TN. He married (2) Tempie Delap 1875, daughter of Hugh Delap and Lucy _____. She was born 1821 in Davidson County TN. Notes for Joshua Gardner: The following is an extract from the book "Red River Settlers" by Edythe Rucker Whitley (published 1980), page 85: " ... On 28 February 1829, Joshua Gardner married Sarah C. daughter of James and Esther Donelson. ... [Sarah] Donelson, a native of Iredell County, North Carolina, was born in 1808 and died in Tennessee in 1873. "In 1875, Joshua Gardner married his second wife, Tempie Delap, daughter of Hugh and Lucy Delap. Mrs. Tempie Delap Gardner was born in Davidson County in 1821. "Mr. Joshua Gardner was a resident of Henry County until 1840, when he moved to Weakley and purchased 228 acres of land. He is said to have owned, at one time, upwards of 1800 acres of land, but at the time of his death, he held title to only 150 acres. He was a magistrate for a number of years in Henry County. He was a Mason, and he and his family were members of the Missionary Baptist Church. ... " Children of Joshua Gardner and Sarah Donelson are:
8. Jeptha3 Gardner (John A.2, Joshua1) was born 27 September 1801 in Robertson County TN, and died 1865 in Weakley County TN. He married Emily _____. She was born in North Carolina, and died 1832 in Tennessee. Child of Jeptha Gardner and Emily _____ is:
11. John Almus3 Gardner (John A.2, Joshua1) was born 19 August 1809 in Robertson County TN, and died 05 January 1892 in Gainesville TX. He married (1) Ritty Maria Terrell 1829. She died 1848. He married (2) Agnes Hunter Cowardin 1850 in Weakley County TN. She was born 1830. Notes for John Almus Gardner: John Almus Gardner was born in Robertson County TN; he removed to Weakley County TN in about 1827 where he lived for most of his remaining life. In 1889 he moved to Gainesville TX where he died in 1892. BOOK BY VIRGINIA C. VAUGHAN The following information was extracted from the book "Weakley County" (published 1983) by Virginia C. Vaughan, pages 110-111: "The town of Gardner was founded in 1856 on land owned by Colonel John Almus Gardner, the first president of the Nashville and North Western Railroad, now the L & N. He was prominent in local and state affairs, serving in the Tennessee Legislature for six years as a senator. He was a member of the 1870 Constitutional Convention. The town bears his name. "The first business was a steam saw and flouring mill owned by Gardner and Peeples in 1855. Robert H. Watkins, the first merchant, opened a store in the same year. The first home was built in 1856 for D. W. Scates. Dr. William E. Stone located in Gardner in 1857. Captain James M. Dean taught the first school established in 1858. "Gardnerville was the name of the first post office and was located about one mile north of the present town. Thomas H. Gardner was the first postmaster. It was later moved nearer the railroad and the name changed to Gardner. "The Methodist Church was the first church to hold services. This was in 1877. Reverend W. C. Sellars was the first pastor. At one time the Baptism had a church at Gardner, but it no longer exists. The Church of Christ has an active membership there today. "Gardner was incorporated in 1869 and William P. Caldwell was the first mayor. He was a lawyer and served in the United States Congress. His home still stands north of the railroad. "Soon after the Civil War Gardner became the business center of western Weakley County. It was the only principal town between Dresden and Union City. Some businesses at this time were Martin and Brooks Grocery; Meadows and Lovelace; Knox and Caldwell (general merchandise); Gardner Sons and Smith; Gardner-Ayers Company; Gordon and Penn; J. H. Draughan; Meadows and Hawkins Grocery; E M. Gardner, Druggist; Earl Cathon and Dr. Sawdeck, saloons. "Some of the early settlers in the community were D. P. Caldwell, William Freeman, and Joshua, Jesse, and Alfred Gardner, and some of the early families were Bomers, Cravens, Daltons, Elders, Farmers, Grays, Hesters, Malones, Pettyjohns, and Wheelings. "Many of the businesses of Gardner moved to Martin when the north-south Mississippi Railroad line was changed in 1873 from the originally planned route through Gardner to the Martin location, thus forming an intersection with the Nashville and Northwestern. Thereafter, Gardner began to decline." BOOK BY EDYTHE RUCKER WHITLEY The following biographical sketch of Colonel Gardner is taken from the book "Red River Settlers" by Edythe Rucker Whitley (published 1980), page 84: "Colonel Gardner went to Weakley County in 1826. The following year, he went to Parish, Henry County, Tennessee and established a weekly newspaper, "The West Tennessean," and was the editor for one year. He sold out and moved to Dresden where he entered into the study of law. His preceptor was the Hon. William Fitzgerald. In 1829, he was admitted to practice law before the courts of Tennessee and opened a law office in Dresden, where be practiced law for fifty years. "In 1838, be was again in the newspaper business as editor of the "Jacksonian" in Dresden, which position be held only a few months. In 1841, he was elected to the State Senate and served six years. Col. Gardner has long been remembered for a seven hour long speech he delivered before the State Senate on the manner of electing United States senators. He was called one of the "Immortal Thirteen." In 1847, Col Gardner threw his hat into the ring as a candidate for Congress on the Democratic ticket. His competitor, on the Whig ticket, was William H. Haskell. The Colonel was defeated. In 1848, he was elector for General Cass, and in 1870, he was a member of the Constitutional Convention. He was a member of the lower house of the State Legislature, 1878-1879. "In 1828, Colonel Gardner married Maria Terrell, daughter of Jeptha Terrell. Mrs. Gardner was a native of North Carolina and the mother of four children: Algenon C., Ada B. (wife of the Hon. W. P. Caldwell, ex-member of Congress), Laura (wife of James Gardner), and Lou M. (wife of M. Z. Hankins). "Mrs. Maria Gardner passed away in 1848. In 1850, Mr. Gardner married Agnes H. Cowardin of Nashville. She was born in 1830 and became the mother of five children: Almus H., Earnest M., Percy W., Fannie G. and Josiah Lee. "At one time, Colonel Gardner owned 7500 acres of land. The settlement was called Gardner's Station in 1865. In 1852, the Colonel organized the Nashville and Northwestern Railroad Company and served as its president for four years. Colonel Gardner and his family were members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. He was also a Mason." Children of John Gardner and Ritty Terrell are:
Children of John Gardner and Agnes Cowardin are:
Generation No. 4 14. Martha Caroline4 Gunn (Tembte Fisher3 Webb, Polly Darden2 Gardner, Joshua1) She married Spotswood Scott 1836. He was born 1812, and died 1884. Child of Martha Gunn and Spotswood Scott is:
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