Bushart Branches - Foreword

Bushart Branches

The Descendants of Jacob Bushart, Sr. and Ann Fulenwider

Foreword

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Introduction

My great-great-grandmother was born Henrietta Bushart in 1859. My grandfather cannot remember her as she died when he was two years old. I began researching my family history about six years ago and found a wealth of information on the Bushart family. I traced the family as far back as I could and then I began to trace forwards in times the descendents of Jacob Bushart, Sr. and Ann Fulenwider. Much of the work had been done for me. Billie R. Bushart of Fulton, Kentucky published a book in 1969 with an enormous amount of Bushart research. Since that time, much more information has come to light and entire lost branches of the Bushart Family have been rediscovered.

One advantage of studying the Bushart family is the rarity of the name. About one third of all living Busharts in the United States are descendents of Jacob Bushart, Sr. and Ann Fulenwider. One third of Social Security records and one third of telephone listings for the name Bushart are for this particular Bushart family. That cannot be said for almost every other family I have studied.

This site will tend to focus on the living Busharts and their ancestors. This site focuses on how our Bushart ancestors lived, what they did, the wars they fought in, their movements across America, and how they lived the history of this nation.

To make this site live up to its potential, I'll need some help. Stories of Bushart ancestors, family bible records, newspaper clippings, obituaries, and copies of old photographs (I hope to add a Bushart photo gallery to this site). The Bushart family has grown considerably since Billie R. Bushart published her book in the early 1970s. That new information is needed. Also, I'm sure there are plenty of errors in my current information, from typos to more serious mistakes. Help me correct these. Contact Info.

My Bushart Ancestry
 
Robert Earl Burke, Jr. (1968) - me
Robert Earl Burke, Sr. (1945)
F. E. Burke, Jr. (1926)
Fonnie Earl Burke (1890)
Henrietta Bushart (1859), wife of Samuel Anderson Burke (1852)
Henry Bushart, Jr. (1833)
Henry Bushart, Sr. (1801)
Jacob Bushart, Sr. (1766)
John Bushart (c1720)


Introduction to Billie R. Bushart's Book

The following is the introduction to Billie R. Bushart's Book. I have inserted comment in italics where new information is known.

 

 

Genealogy

of

Jacob, Sr. and Nancy Anna Fulenweider Bushart

1763 to 1969

by

Billie R. Bushart

Published Fulton, Kentucky, July 1969

 

 

This Book Donated to

Paris-Henry County Library

In Memory of

Jacob, Sr. and Nancy Anna Fulenweider Bushart

And

Daniel Ritinghour and Louisa Bragg Bushart

And Children

By

Miss Monte Lou Bushart

Mrs. John E. Thompson

Mrs. Wilmer S. Albright

Mrs. Ray E. Roberts

Mrs. Paul L. Russell

John M. Bushart

 

 

PREFACE

This genealogy of the Bushart family begins with Jacob, Sr. and his wife, Nancy Anna Fuldweider. [The correct spelling is "Fulenwider," which Billie noted in her corrections at the end of her book. Her first name was Ann; Anna and Nancy are both old nicknames for Ann.] From census records they were both born in North Carolina. It has been said that two or three Bushart brothers came from Germany to Pennsylvania. It has also been said that four Bushart brothers left Hamburg, Germany and went to Ireland where one married, then all four came to Pennsylvania. It is not known whether one of these was Jacob, Sr.'s father or grandfather. There is no Bushart listed in the 1790 census of North Carolina, South Carolina, or Virginia. [The name was spelled "Bussard" in the 1790 Census of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. Jacob, Sr. was living with his father, John, in 1790. In 1792, the part of Mecklenburg County they lived in was broken off to form Cabarrus County. Jacob Bushart (spelled "Buzzard") is listed there in 1800.] Jacob, Sr. has no Revolutionary War papers in Washington, D.C. [Jacob, Sr. was only nine years old at the beginning of the war; his father was in his fifties.]

All of Jacob's and Nancy Anna's children were born in North Carolina according to censuses.

In 1820, the entire Bushart family moved to Henry County, Tennessee except for one married daughter who remained in North Carolina and was never seen again by her parents. It is assumed this daughter was Elizabeth as no records were found on her in Henry County, Tennessee. It is reported that when the family left North Carolina she played a trumpet until they could no longer hear her. [They actually moved in 1823 as Henry Bushart married Sarah Troutman in Cabarrus County, NC in October 1822 and their first child was born in Henry County, Tennessee in January 1824. Elizabeth Bushart, married to Daniel Davidson Ridenhour, remained in Cabarrus County, NC. One of her sons held the rank of Musician in the Confederate Army, supporting the legend of the trumpet.]

As to the children of Jacob and Nancy Anna Bushart; it is presumed that John and Henry stayed in Henry County, Tennessee. [John stayed in Henry County, but Henry moved west about 1855, first to Kansas, then Missouri, before settling in Washington County, Arkansas.] It is known that Daniel Ritinghour Bushart stayed in Henry County and owned what is known as "The Bushart House." This house was owned by his in-laws, John and Catherine Bragg and at their deaths, Daniel purchased the place and it remained in the Bushart family until the death of Daniel and his wife Louisa. It has been said that there was a "Bushart Book" in this house, but it is unknown to anyone today.

Jacob, Jr. and Caleb moved to Fulton County, Kentucky from Henry County between 1840 and 1850. Caleb's will was probated in July, 1856 in Fulton County, Kentucky. Little is known about his family.

Nothing is known about the girls Elizabeth, Sally, Ann, and Polly. [ Much more is known about all the girls. As Billie R. Bushart noted in her corrections, Polly's name was actually Mary Magdalene; Polly was an old nickname for Mary. She married James Caldwell and moved to Obion County, Tennessee. Billie R. Bushart found her Bible Record. Sally or Sarah was the wife of Asa Bacchus. Ann married first Bethel Rogers and after his death, she married Frederick Deats. The Bacchus and Deats families moved together in 1849 from Henry County, Tennessee to Ouachita County, Arkansas. Ellizabeth, wife of Daniel Ridenhour, stayed in Cabarrus County, NC.]

The death dates and burial places are unknown on all the children except Daniel Ritinghour. Caleb's information is only assumed from his will. [Death dates and burial places are known for Elizabeth, Henry, Sarah, Ann, and Daniel. The death date for Mary and Caleb are known, but it is not known where they are buried. Only John and Jacob, Jr. have no information.]

The information in this book has been gathered from members of the family, censuses, Court House Records and family Bibles. It is far from complete.

A special thanks to Miss Monte Lou Bushart who personally knew many in the second generation as well as other generations. Mr. J. Fred O'Kelley, Mr. William Floyd Bushart, Mr. J. Paul Bushart and many, many others who were such tremendous help. My family has been most patient while I worked on this and their help and understanding have been greatly appreciated.

There are gaps in this genealogy and probably mistakes, but is hoped that a start has been made and that some day a complete book will be published.

The system followed in this book is listing the oldest child first of each family and following in sequence. If a marriage is not known, that child is listed under parents only. Women are indexed by maiden named only unless the first marriage name is the only one known.

Compiler

Billie R. Bushart wife of

Glynn F. Bushart, M.D.


Some Bushart Family Trivia

Jacob Bushart, Sr. and Ann Fulenwider had a very large family. They had nine children between 1797 and 1819, and they had at least 86 grandchildren. They may have had a few more grandchildren who died in infancy. I'm still finding the great-grandchildren, but the number looks like it will be around 350.

The average lifespan of the nine children of Jacob Bushart, Sr. and Ann Fulenwider was over 73 years. Caleb died in his forties, but all the rest lived at least into their seventies. Sarah lived to be 90.

Almost every grandson and great-grandson of Jacob Bushart, Sr. who was between 18 and 40 years old at the start of the Civil War fought in the war. Every one was a Confederate. In addition, nearly every husband of Jacob Bushart, Sr.'s granddaughters fought for the Confederacy.

I have found only one placename in America named for the Bushart family. Bushart Mountain is in the Ozark Mountains in southwest Madison County, Arkansas. This mountain was almost certainly named for the family of Archibald Monroe Bushart (Branch 10). I know this family lived in the general area, and perhaps owned land on Bushart Mountain. I have not yet seen this mountain.


Credits

Thanks to the memory of Billie R. Bushart. Without the monumental effort she made, Bushart research would not be as advanced as it is today. Thanks to Jane Maxwell Bushart, Violet Bushart, and Patricia Bushart Buss for sending me lots of great info on their parts of the Bushart family. Thanks to my great-uncle Roger (a grandson of Henrietta Bushart) for letting me stay with him in Paris Tennessee during my visit there in January 1996; I was able to gather lots of family information while there and I've never thanked him properly. Thanks to many helpful librarians, particularly those at the Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library. Thanks to my immediate family for tolerating my hobby. And thanks to our German ancestors, who knew how to read and write when their English and Irish neighbors did not, and who kept excellent records.


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