The Human Soul Is Apt to Revive, March 31, 2016

The beautiful spring came;

and when Nature resumes her loveliness,

the human soul is apt to revive also.

~Harriet Ann Jacobs

Greetings to all of you from the beautiful Yucca Valley near Palm Springs, here in Southern California, home of Joshua Tree National Park where we and our family are enjoying spring break. Springtime in the desert is remarkably beautiful, with lots of color that will gone in just a fews months. It is a place and a time where "the human soul is apt to revive."

Our trip is something of a strange hybrid of comfortable Motel stays, and some not quite so comfortable nights in the tent sleeping on the ground. At the very least it will be a memorable event for the grandkids. It reminds me of times when our dad Eugene Shepard took us camping in the mountains or near the coast, simple family experiences forming memories that will last a lifetime.

This first picture (above), taken yesterday in Black Rock Canyon, shows Cindy with Preslea and William Shepard, on the crest of a hill, waving to their parents a few hundred yards below. 

Happy Birthday Joan! Today is the birthday of my cousin Joan Shepard, the 8th of the 12 Grandchildren of William and Bura Davis Shepard. Originally from San Diego, Joan and her wife Dee Shannon live in Dixon, California.

Joan: "Spring has arrived with sunshine and rain. We actually have green foliage and bright blossoms after a long  drought. Dee and I also have a sweet grandson who is nearly four months. Calvin lives a couple hours away with his parents. We don't see him as much as we would like because of our jobs. Dee and I both work in education; she's an academic adviser at UC Davis and I'm a high-school teacher in our small town. 

In addition to our grandson, we added another member to our family -- a rescue puppy! She's making great progress after a rough start in life. Havilah and Kevin, our Utah family, are working hard yet enjoying the beautiful countryside there. I can't wait to visit with them this summer. We all are wishing everyone well!"

Joan has always been an animal lover. This last picture was probably taken sometime in the 1960s and shows Joan sitting on some steps, more than likely in San Diego, enjoying the company of two friendly critters.

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Steve Shepard

A Heritage of Great Diversity, March 26, 2016

We need to cherish and preserve

the ethnic and cultural diversity

that nourishes and strengthens

this community - and this nation.

~Cesar Chavez

Today is our Granddaughter Preslea's 6th Birthday. Born in San Francisco, she is in Kindergarten in San Diego and enjoying it thoroughly. She lives with her family in the San Carlos neighborhood of San Diego and loves swimming, drawing, monkey bars, school and church friends, Equestria Girls, and slurpies.

Preslea's heritage is an interesting one. She is, of course, one of the Great Great Grandchildren of both William and Bura Davis, as well as Leroy and Nola Shannon Gower, the two couples whose lives and descendants are the usual focus of this blog. 

But Preslea's ancestry also includes the Native American heritage of her Grandmother Cindy Shepard and her Great Grandmother Harris. (See picture of Preslea with her two American Great Grandmothers, Paula Hicks Harris and Maida Gower Shepard.) In particular Preslea's Native American heritage is the Chickasaw Indians of Oklahoma who before that were from Mississippi. Her 5X Great Grandmother was Lucy Hawkins Newberry who, born in Mississippi in 1824 was part of the historic "trail of tears" as a child that forced her people to settle in Oklahoma where she died in 1907.

Preslea's heritage also includes Cambodia, the home of her mother Chenda Sou Shepard who came to the U.S. in 2009. Preslea's Cambodian Grandfather was Sou Penh (1945-2014) whose father was Sou Shen, an immigrant to Cambodia from China. In Cambodia her Sou Grandparents suffered through the "Killing Fields" of the ruthless Khmer Rouge Government in the late 20th century.

Preslea's family heritage is amazingly diverse, far beyond the majority of us whose ancestry has been rooted primarily in this county for the last several hundred years. Best wishes to Preslea for a very happy birthday! The following is a slide show that celebrates her 6th Birthday.




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Steve Shepard

Springtime Celebrations, March 23, 2016

Spring is nature's way of saying,

"Let's party!"

~Robin Williams

Greetings to all on this first week of Spring, 2016! 

Birthday Wishes to Gary Shepard. Happy Birthday today to my brother Gary of Oak Harbor, Washington. He is the first of the 6 children who were born to Eugene and Maida Gower Shepard. Gary was born in San Diego the year after his parents were married there in 1945. He is also the first of the grandchildren of William and Bura Shepard to be born in California.

Gary and his wife Cindy enjoy the quiet life in their peaceful forested community just outside the town of Oak Harbor, which is not too far from where our mom Maida Shepard lives in Anacortes, Washington. At least their neighborhood is usually quiet. Last week their property became just a little less forested when a windstorm brought down one of the tall trees around their home. Their house was not hit but both their cars were damaged, Gary's car being a total loss. It was not the kind of birthday present he was looking for!

"It Took Only 70 Years To Get This Good Looking." The first picture was taken last Saturday at the 70th birthday celebration we had for Gary at their church in Anacortes. It was a party that included family, neighbors and church friends. In this picture is Gary flanked by his mom Maida on the right, and his sister Barbara on the left.

The second picture was taken 35 years ago today, on March 23, 1981, on the day Gary turned 35 years old. On the left is our grandmother Nola Shannon Gower, in whose San Diego home on Lynne Street this picture was taken. Grandma was not quite 80 years old, and had been a widow for about 3 years. Next to her is Gary alongside his wife Cindy. At this particular time the two of them made their home in San Diego and had not yet celebrated their second wedding anniversary. In Cindy's lap is our young son Nathan Shepard (not to be confused with his second cousin Nathan Shepard pictured below). On the right is me in the big hair, matched by the big glasses.

Birthday wishes to Kaylan Shepard. Congratulations to Kaylan Shepard. Kaylan turned 17 years old this past weekend. She is the younger child of my cousin Dane and his wife Cindy Shepard of Blanchard, Oklahoma. Kaylan is the last of the 21 Great Grandchildren of William and Bura Shepard, and is the final descendant of theirs to be born in the 20th century. Originally from Anaheim, California, Kaylan has lived in Oklahoma now for most of her life.

Kaylan: Thank you for wishing me a happy birthday! My junior year has been extremely busy with school, volleyball, art, and college (I am taking a dual enrollment course at a community college nearby). Also, I just recently won first in a volleyball tournament. My birthday this year was the best yet because I had several friends from out of town come and visit. The weekend was a great adventure! Thank you for thinking of me, and I hope you have a wonderful day.

This third image shows Kaylan with her brother Nathan Shepard, in a picture posted on Facebook by their proud mother just last weekend.
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Steve Shepard

Kiss Me I'm Irish! March 17, 2016

Kiss me and you will see how important I am.

~Sylvia Plath

Happy Saint Patrick's Day! As I have mentioned in this blog in the past, our family tree is loaded with Irish immigrants. I continue to add to the number of ancestors who came over from Ireland. Therefore this day and this post is an opportunity to celebrate our long, rich and illustrious Irish heritage.

A few weeks ago I included in this blog a post with a link to a YouTube slide show for Valentines Day. Unfortunately most of you were unable to view it, so I am including it again today in hopes that you can now view it after a few changes. The fact of the matter is that it may be as appropriate for St. Patrick's Day as it was for Valentine's Day.

Kiss Me, I'm Irish! I've titled the following slide show "Kiss Me I'm Irish" for reasons that will be obvious when you see it. You will see wedding day kisses, pecks on the cheek, baby smooches and some other crazy kisses that reflect well this diverse, oddball family to which we all belong. The pictures are of kids and adults, young parents and older lovers, wedding moments, birthday celebrations and everything in between. Each picture includes at least one member of our extended family. How many of these folks can you identify?

Enjoy this homage to love within our family, set to the music of k.d. lang -- herself of Irish ancestry -- singing a contemporary cover of an old classic. 




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Steve Shepard

A Memory No One Can Steal, March 12, 2016

Death leaves a heartache no one can heal,

love leaves a memory no one can steal.

-From an Irish headstone

Birthday Wishes to Russ and Steve. Happy birthday this Sunday to my brother Russ Shepard and his son Steven Paul Shepard, who were both born on March 13; Russ in 1962 in San Diego, Steve in 1990 in Anacortes.

Steven P. Shepard with Maida Shepard

Russ is the 6th child of Maida and Eugene Shepard and was raised in San Diego, but moved to Anacortes in the 1970s and has lived there ever since. Steve, born in 1990, is the first child of Russ and Pam Shepard of Anacortes, Wa, where Steve has lived his whole life.

This first picture, taken just a few months ago in Anacortes, shows Steven on the left with his grandmother Maida Shepard.

Kerri Shepard Aquiningoc. Celebrating a birthday earlier this month is Kerri Shepard Aquiningoc of Weatherford, Texas. She was born in Walled Lake, Michigan on March 3 to my brother Gary Shepard and his wife at the time Jackie. Kerri came to California as a baby and was raised here before moving to Weatherford, Texas where she still lives today.

Eugene and Maida Shepard Family

This second picture is an oldie which includes two of the birthday folks mentioned above, Russell Shepard and Kerri Shepard Aquiningoc. 

Taken in 1974 this image shows a gathering of all the members at the time of the family of Eugene and Maida Shepard. The picture was taken in the backyard of the San Diego home of Hendrix and Starlene Gower. In the front on the right are 12 year old Russ Shepard (in green) and 6 year old Kerri Shepard (in the long dress), who look more like brother and sister than uncle and niece. Also pictured from left to right are Kelly, Darrell, me, Cindy, Barbara, Jackie, Gary, Maida, Eugene and Jason.

Jerry Clark

Happy Birthday Jerry. Monday, March 14 is the birthday of Jerry Clark. Born in Albuquerque in the very middle of the last century, he and his wife Cathrina live today in Lubock, Texas. They enjoy life there as grandparents to about a dozen total grandkids. 

May She Rest In Peace: Gloria Harrell Watson (1953-2016). With sadness I report the untimely death of my cousin Gloria Harrell Watson. She passed away early this week in her apartment in Knoxville, Tennessee. Her mother is Vicki Gower Johnston of Chandler, Arizona, and her siblings are Paula Tuzzolino, Michael Harrell and David Harrell.

Gloria was born and raised in San Diego. She and Bill Watson were married in San Diego in December 1972, after which they moved to Knoxville, Tennessee. She is one of the 12 grandchildren of Leroy and Nola Shannon Gower. The only other one of those 12 to have passed away is my sister Linda Shepard who died in 1971 and who at the time was the wife of Jerry Clark mentioned above.

Gloria Watson, Nola Gower, Steve Shepard

This last picture was taken in 1993 in San Diego and shows Gloria on the left with her Grandmother Nola Shannon Gower and me on the right. Gloria was visiting San Diego from Tennessee at the time, taking care of Granda Gower, who was ready to undergo knee replacement surgery (at 90 years old!).

Our prayers and best wishes go out to the family of Gloria, especially her mother Vicki and her brothers David and Michael and her sister Paula.
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Steve Shepard

Hello From Old Mexico, February 27, 2016

We are all motivated, far more than we care to admit,

by characteristics inherited from our ancestors,

which individual experiences of childhood cannot erase.

~Agnes E. Meyer

Greetings to all of you from the West Coast of Mexico where Cindy and I are cruising with our mothers, Paula Hicks Harris and Maida Gower Shepard. Paula and Maida, Cindy and I are all enjoying ourselves as we take in the sites of our various ports of call. Today we are in the city of Puerto Vallarta, a beautiful bustling town full of lovely beaches, enjoyable restaurants and endless shops. It is our first stop on this four stop journey.

It is a joy to spend nearly two weeks traveling with the two people who are together the most experience filled individuals in our entire extended family. Paula and Maida represent 184 years of family life. These two women, who have known each other for over 50 years, have had life journeys that are remarkably similar. Both of them spent most of their growing up years in Oklahoma, they both married Navy men (both of whom are gone now) in 1945, during the closing period of World War II, and they both settled in San Diego as young adults, where they raised their children. Both of them, by the way, have had a long time affiliation with the Church of Christ, including many years each at the El Cajon Boulevard Church in San Diego. And, most importantly, they had children who married each other, namely Cindy and me.

The first picture, taken here on the ship just a few days ago, shows Paula and Maida as we were on our way to dinner on our formal night.

Birthday Wishes to Darrell. Happy Birthday to my brother Darrell Shepard, the fourth of the six children born to our parents Eugene and Maida Shepard. Darrell and his wife Mary live in Bothell, Washington, not far from where their 3 children live, Christopher, Rachel and Patrick. They are the proud grandparents of 4 grandkids: Logan and Mason, Kellan, and Findley.

Darrell, like all his siblings, was born and raised in San Diego, where he graduated from Kearny High School. He then went on to Abilene Christian University where he graduated and met his wife-to-be Mary Medina. He and Mary have lived in the Northwest now for over 30 years.

This second picture shows grandpa Darrell with young Mason, son of Patrick and Nicole Shepard of Bothell, Washington. This is one of Darrell's favorite family pictures and was taken last fall. Happy Birthday to Darrell!
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Steve Shepard

A Long and Proud History, February 19, 2016

A person represents each of several of their ancestors

as if there were seven or eight of us
rolled up in each one’s skin —  

and they constitute the variety of notes 

for that new piece of music which each life is.

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Hershell Gower. Happy Birthday today to my cousin Hershell Gower. Hershell was born in San Diego, the first of the 12 grandchildren of Leroy and Nola Shannon Gower. He came along just a year or so after his parents Hendrix and Starlene Gower, and his grandparents Leroy and Nola Gower, first moved to San Diego in 1942. Though a native San Diegan, Hershell is retired and lives today with his wife Shelly in Bullhead City, Arizona. His sons are Shaun and Lloyd Gower and still live in the San Diego area.

This first picture is from 1972 and shows Hershell on the left with his Grandparents Leroy Gower and Nola Shannon Gower. It was taken in the kitchen of their home on Lynne Street in San Diego where the Gowers lived for nearly 50 years. Grandpa Gower developed very poor eye sight later in his life which helps explain the stern and expressionless look on his face in this picture.

A Long History. The Gower family line is one of the most remarkable in our entire family tree, and can be traced 9 generations before my Grandfather Leroy Gower, all the way back to Abell Gower (1640-1689), of Henrico, Virginia. He is the oldest relative of ours that I can find anywhere, who was born in the new world. 

The GGG Grandson of the aforementioned Abell Gower, was his namesake Abel Gower (1796-1870). He and wife Rachel Lay Gower (1800-1860) were Tennesseans who furthered the westward movement of the Gowers by migrating westward within Tennessee and then to Izard County (later to be renamed Stone County), Arkansas just prior to the Civil War. Stone County is, of course, where our Gower relatives lived for several generations before moving to Oklahoma and then California. Stone County, Arkansas is also where some of our Gower kinfolk still live today.

This Sunday is the 200th anniversary of Abel Gower and Rachel Lay Gower, who were married in Roane County, Tennessee on Wednesday, February 21, 1816. The "Early Land Records for North Carolina and Tennessee 1753-1931" show that Abel and Rachel Lay were land owners. In 1827 the young parents Abel and Rebecca Gower purchased 45 1/2 acres of land in Warren County, in Eastern Tennessee. The above image is the record showing the purchase of those 45 1/2 acres in Warren County. 

For reasons unknown to us, they didn't do much with that land purchase. By 1830 the Gowers had moved even farther westward, and were settled in Wayne County in Western Tennessee. Eventually they migrated out of Tennessee and into Northern Arkansas.

The marriage of Abel and Rachel witnessed the birth of 8 children between 1819 and 1840. Their 4th child was Jackson William Gower who fought for the south in the Civil War, and survived to live into the 20th Century. He is the one from whom we are descended.

This quick summary is just one slice of the proud heritage of our Gower ancestors, whose history is rich and varied, and as lengthy as America itself.
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Steve Shepard

Happy Valentine's Day Tomorrow! February 13, 2016

Love doesn't make the world go round.

Love is what makes the ride worthwhile.

~Franklin Jones

Gloria Harrell Watson. Today is the birthday of my cousin Gloria Harrell Watson of Knoxville, Tennessee. She is the second daughter of my aunt Vicki Gower Johnston of Chandler, Arizona and is the sister of Paula Tuzzolino and Michael and David Harrell. Gloria was born and raised in San Diego, but has lived most of her life now in Tennessee. Happy Birthday on this Valentine's Weekend to Gloria!

This picture, taken last year in Oak Harbor, Washington, shows Gloria on the left with her mom Vicki and her sister Paula.

Happy Valentines Day! Tomorrow is Valentine's Day, an opportunity to celebrate love, especially within our family. The following slide show includes images of various members of our family, all of whom are kissing, one of the most common expressions of love. You will see wedding day kisses, pecks on the cheek, baby smooches and some other crazy kisses that reflect well this diverse, oddball family to which we all belong. The pictures are of kids and adults, young parents and older lovers, wedding moments, birthday celebrations and everything in between. Each picture includes at least one member of our extended family. How many of these folks can you identify?

"Kiss Me." Enjoy this homage to love within our family, to the music of the 90s band Sixpence None the Richer. 

Show-Me-The-Love Award. Each Valentine's Day I give a "Show-Me-The-Love Award" to a person in our family tree who exhibited extraordinary love in their life. This year the award goes to my 5X Great Grandmother Elizabeth Van Hook Warford (1746-1805).

Elizabeth Warford was a genuine American pioneer, whose life was intertwined with the history of our country and whose loving sacrifice was remarkable as she gave herself for her family and her expanding nation.

She was born in 1746 to Benjamin and Lydia Van Hook, of Monmouth County, New Jersey just 50 miles south of New York City. By the time Elizabeth was 18 she had made her way half way across Pennsylvania to Fulton County where she married Henry Warford, who had served in the Revolutionary War, as did Henry's brother Joseph Warford. Wikipedia says that as a result of their military service, George Washington deeded to Joseph 100 acres of land in southern Pennsylvania that the Warfords turned into a village which later was named Warfordsburg, an historic town that exists to this day.

Much of Elizabeth and Henry's married life was occupied with the Revolutionary war, but Henry spent enough time at home so that he and Elizabeth brought into the world 9 children in the 20 years they were together. Just about the time the Revolutionary War ended husband Henry died, perhaps from war wounds. In any case it created a real problem for Elizabeth who now had 8 mouths to feed and no husband to help.

Elizabeth was a genuine frontier woman. We don't know the details of how she did it, we just know that sometime after her husband Henry died in 1784, she packed up the kids -- who ranged in age from 2 and 18 -- and with help from family and friends, made her way westward across some 500 miles of rugged American landscape. She journeyed through Maryland, West Virginia, Ohio and into Kentucky where she and her family settled. They may have traveled by steamboat down the Ohio River which was something of a "superhighway" for pioneers making their way across the western frontier.

They traveled as far as Louisville, Kentucky, possibly because Louisville was the site of the Ohio River Falls, making it impossible for river boats to travel any farther. Elizabeth and her family then settled just east of Louisville in the town of Shelbyville. It was there that Elizabeth lived the last 10 or so years of her life until she died just short of her 60th birthday in 1805. She did live long enough to see her daughter Lydia Warford, in 1803, marry Kentuckian John Williams. Lydia and John are the two from whom we Shepards are descended.

It is hard to imagine the love, courage, and strength of character that it took for Elizabeth to move her family across America and begin a new life. She clearly had a strong love of the frontier, a longing to settle this new land and discover the opportunities available to those who traveled westward. Hers is a remarkable American story with great adversity as well as great accomplishment. She receives the "Show-Me-The-Love Award" for this year.

Here is Elizabeth's lineage for the last 275 years:

• Elizabeth Van Hook Warford (1742-1805) and Henry Warford (1741-1784)
• Lydia Warford Williams (1782-1829) and John Williams (1782-1813)
• John Pouty Williams (1802-1898) and Sally Richardson Williams (1801-1877)
• Margaret Williams Spear (1845-1904) and James Spear
• Caroline Spear Davis (1865-1951) and James Brooks Davis (1870-1928)
• Bura Davis Shepard (1896-1986) and William Shepard (1888-1976)
• Eugene Shepard (1921-2003) and Maida Gower Shepard (b. 1924)
• Steve Shepard (b. 1948) and Cindy Harris Shepard (b. 1948)

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Steve Shepard

"Tragedy as a Source of Strength", February 7, 2016

There is a saying in Tibetan,

'Tragedy should be utilized

as a source of strength.'

~Dalai Lama XIV

Happy Birthday Paula. Today is the birthday of my cousin Paula Harrell Tuzzolino of Sun Lakes, Arizona. Born and raised in San Diego, Paula lived most of her growing up years in Southern California. She has one daughter, Heather Robson Cotten, and two Granddaughters, Tori and Lexi, who live in Austin, Texas. Paula is one of the 12 Grandchildren of Leroy and Nola Shannon Gower.

For many years Paula lived in Oak Harbor, Washington where she met and married Frank Tuzzolino. She and Frank spend most of their time these days in Sun Lakes, Arizona, outside Phoenix, although they still go back and forth to Oak Harbor. Last summer Paula's step dad Duke Johnston passed away in Washington, and as a result Paula's mom Vicki Gower Johnston moved to the Phoenix area to be near Paula.

This first picture was taken last summer when the family gathered in Oak Harbor for Duke's funeral. In this picture are Paula, on the left, and her sister Gloria Watson of Knoxville, Tennessee on the right.

The second picture was taken in Oak Harbor some years ago and shows Paula on the left with her daughter Heather Cotten.

Remembering Phil Wilk. Tomorrow is the 81st anniversary of the birth of Phillip Wilk, the husband of my cousin Beverly Russell, and the father and grandfather of Shannon and Emma Wilk of Atchison, Kansas. Phil passed away in 2007 in his hometown of Leavenworth, Kansas. 

When Phil and Bev were married, back in the 1960s and 1970s, it was a time when most of our Shepard and Russell family members lived in San Diego and were a close knit clan. When Beverly tragically died in 1974 of a brain aneurysm at just 34 years old, she left Phil with two young children, Karl (5 years old) and Shannon (17 months old). It was obviously a very difficult time for Phil and his children, as well as for our whole family, but Phil accepted well the task of fatherhood and is remembered today for his commitment and dedication to his family. 

This third picture shows Phil on the left, next to his mother-in-law Pauline Shepard Russell. Next to them are William and Bura Shepard, with Phil's father-in-law Bill Russell on the far right. This family picture was taken in 1975 just a year after Bev died.

This story is one more reminder that tragedy strikes every family. How a family responds to it determines the quality of the family life. We can be grateful for family members in our past, like those pictured here, and their strength of character.
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Steve Shepard

"I Don't Need Google", February 2, 2016

There is something about

reviewing the lessons of the past

that prepares us to face

the challenges of the future.

~L. Tom Perry

On this Ground Hog Day, I am celebrating three different but important celebrations among people within our family tree.

Cindy Ann Shepard. Today is the birthday of Cindy Ann Dillon Shepard, the wife of my brother Gary Shepard, who lives in the town of Oak Harbor on Whidbey Island, Washington. Cindy was actually born in Rhode Island, but was raised in Southern California. She and Gary were married in Orange County in 1979, and then lived in the San Diego area until they retired to Washington in 2003 where they live today. Cindy has worked for several years in nearby Mount Vernon, Washington at Schenk Packing Company. 

Gary and Cindy Shepard

This first picture shows Gary and Cindy and was taken this past Christmas at the home of Maida Shepard in Anacortes, Washington. Happy Birthday to Cindy!

William Elmer Shepard (1862-1915). Today is the birthday of my Great Grandfather William Elmer Shepard. His is one of the more remarkable stories to be found in our entire family tree, that I have written about numerous times in this blog. His father was a Civil War soldier named William Shepard who died just 5 months after William Elmer was born.

The widow and mother Mary Elizabeth Sprague Shepard rebounded by marrying an older man in Montgomery County, Indiana who already had his own family, but was kind enough to take into his household this young widow and her two sons, 3 year old William Elmer and 4 year old Frank. This united family did not blend well and by the time William Elmer was an older teenager he struck out on his own. He hightailed it out of Montgomery County, then out of the state of Indiana, and landed in Madison County, Illinois, where he met Elvira Owens and his wandering days were over. After marrying Elvira and having two children with her, he moved to Beaver County, Oklahoma where he and Elvira lived out their days. He died in 1915, also in the month of February, at just 53 years old.

We know from the stories of his son, my Granddad William Shepard, that William Elmer died from what was diagnosed at the time as stomach cancer. He was a good father, husband and church member (South Flat Church of Christ), and made a great impact on his son. He died just 4 months before his son married Bura Davis. We remember him today for the witness that he was to his family and his church.

John and Sally After 190 Years. Today is also the anniversary of two of my GGG Grandparents, John Pouty Williams (1806-1898) and Sarah (Sally) Richardson (1801-1877). They were married on this day in 1826, 190 years ago. 

John was born in Kentucky but after his father died in 1813 when young John was a child, his mother Lydia Warford Williams took their 4 children and moved them to Indiana where their family settled for several generations. In Indiana young John met Sally Richardson and even though she was 5 years older, married her when he was 19 and she was 24. Sally was originally from Virginia but had moved as a young woman to Washington County, Indiana, where she and John tied the knot. 

Headstone of Sarah (Sally) Richardson Williams

We don't know much about the wedding of John and Sally, other than it took place in Southern Indiana, on this day, the very midpoint of winter, Ground Hog Day (although the Puxtahawny Phil tradition did not even start until some years later). Indiana was still very much frontier America at that time, the state itself was still very young, Indians were still a major challenge, and travel was very primitive and difficult through this rugged, untamed landscape. 

John and Sally's marriage lasted 51 years -- an amazing length of time in those days -- and endured the build up to, the fighting of, and the rebuilding after the Civil War. Their love resulted in 9 children and numerous grandchildren and great grandchildren, including Bura Davis Shepard, my grandmother. Sally died in 1877 while John lived until 1898. Grandmother Bura was born just 14 months before the death of her Great Grandfather John Pouty Williams, with the real possibility that the two of them may have actually spent some special moments together.

John and Sally Williams are yet another remarkable couple in our family tree whose lives are worth remembering, and whose love and devotion to one another is deserving of our gratitude. Their final resting place is in the beautiful Pleasant Grove Cemetery in the hills northwest of Spencer, Indiana.
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Steve Shepard