Todd - Isaac S.
Source: Atlas of Montgomery County (Chicago: Beers, 1878) p 5
TODD, Isaac S, PO Browns Valley; Farmer and Stock Raiser, son
of Johnson and Ruth A. VanCleave Todd who settled in this County
1837; was born on Sec 16, this township in 1845. Married Miss
Delia J. MADDOX Jan 30, 1868.
Much of the information on this page is from Angie Todd, Todd guru :)
TODD, Mrs. Ruth A., PO Browns Valley, residence on Sec 16,
daughter of Benjamin and Mary VANCLEVE ; was born in Shelby Co,
KY July 17, 1823 and settled with her parents on Sec 21 in 1825.
Was married to Johnson Todd Feb 11, 1841 who died March 13,
1870
Children: John W, Henry T, Isaac S; George W; Sarah J (now
Mrs. T. DAVIS); America M; Paulina E; Johnson B; Mary E; and
stepson James C.
Johnson Todd (1809-1870) & Mary Hanna (1816-1838)
Johnson Todd was born October 22, 1809 in Shelby County,
Kentucky. He was the son of Andrew Todd and Mary "Polly" Clayton.
The Todds were an old Scots-Irish family who had come to America
about 80 years earlier. The Todds first settled in Virginia, as
did many Scots-Irish immigrants of the era, and, like many, later
migrated through the Cumberland Gap to Kentucky. At the time of
his birth, there were numerous members of the Todd clan living in
Shelby County, Kentucky, and in nearby Fayette County.
Mary Hanna was born on April 2, 1816 to James Hanna and Martha
Pogue in Shelby County, Kentucky. James and Martha Hanna had come
to Shelby County from Mercer County, Kentucky in the 1810s. The
Hannas and Poages (later spelled Pogue) also arrived in the wave
of Scots-Irish immigration in the 1730s, both families eventually
settling in Virginia, and later in Mercer County, Kentucky.
Mary's father, James, was a soldier under Gen. George Rogers
Clark just following the American Revolution, but Mary would have
known little of her father as he died when she was only four
years old.
On March 5, 1835, Johnson Todd and Mary Hanna were wed in
Shelby County. Robert Hanna, Mary's brother, vouched for the
newlyweds. Immediately following the wedding, the couple set out
for a new home in Montgomery County, Indiana. Johnson became one
the original land owners of Montgomery County, settling on the
soutH. W. est quarter of section 16 in Brown Township. Unlike
many other families that migrated en masse, Johnson Todd was the
only member of the Todd family to move to Montgomery County.
Mary, however, did have a number of Hanna relatives who migrated
to Indiana from Shelby County, Kentucky.
Indiana was complete wilderness in those days, a true
frontier. Unlike the open farmland it is today, Indiana was part
of a vast old growth forest covering much of North America.
Hostile Indians were still a concern, and herds of buffalo still
roamed the forests of Indiana. Making a home in this environment
would have been no easy task. Trees would have to be felled by
hand to build a log cabin just to survive the first year, and
those who were successful could later worry about building
timber-framed homes. Moreover, to truly make a life in the new
frontier, one would have to clear large tracts of woodlands to
begin the tasKnights of Pythiaslanting crops. This was likely the experience
for Johnson and Mary as well.
The summer after arriving in Montgomery County, on July 15,
1836, Mary gave birth to the couple's first child, James Clayton
Todd. Two years later, in April of 1838, a daughter arrived,
named Sallie Ann. The summer of 1838 would not be good to the
Todd family, though. The causes are unknown, and if the events
are related is unknown, but within one week Johnson Todd would
lose both his wife and daughter. Mary Hanna would die on July 29
and her daughter Sallie would die on August 6. The location of
either gravesite is unknown.
Being a single father with a two year old son was an
impossible existence in pioneer days, and the frontier was also
not a place to find a new wife. So Johnson returned to his
Kentucky home. Here Johnson, 31, courted a 17 year old woman
named Ruth Ann VanCleave. The VanCleaves were also a Kentucky
family who had immigrated to Montgomery County. It is likely that
one of Johnson's VanCleave neighbors introduced the two, and
Johnson made the trip to Kentucky in order to retrieve his new
bride. The two were wed February 11, 1841 in Waveland, Indiana,
near Johnson's homestead.
Nine months to the day later Ruth Ann gave birth to this
couple's first child, John William Todd. Over the next 25 years,
Johnson and Ruth Ann would have another 11 children: Henry Thomas
(1843), Isaac Shelby (1845), George Washington (1847), Mary Ann
(1850), Sarah Jane (1851), Samuel R. (1854), Melissa America
(1856), Paulina D. (1858), Johnson Benjamin (1861), Andrew J.
(1864), and Mary Elizabeth (1866). Of these children, Mary Ann,
Samuel, and Andrew died in childhood, and though Paulina lived to
79, she never married. The remaining children would all marry,
live long lives, and produce numerous grandchildren.
James Clayton Todd, Johnson's eldest child and product of his
first marriage, was busy creating a family of his own. On
September 9, 1857, James married Sarah Frances Mitchell, the
daughter of a nearby farmer. James and Sarah Todd would give
Johnson his first grandchild, a girl named Mary Ann Todd on July
15, 1858. Ironically, James and Sarah would have four children
that were older than Johnson's youngest children (their aunts and
uncles). Both branches of Johnson's family would go on to be
prolific and prominent in the Montgomery County area, all
descending from the marriages of Johnson Todd.
The Mary Todd Lincoln Connection The common ancestor of our
line and of Mary Todd, wife of President Abraham Lincoln, is
Robert Todd (1697-1775). Mary Todd Lincoln was the great-great
granddaughter of Robert and first wife Jean Smith. Johnson Todd
was also a great-great grandchild of Robert, but by his second
wife, Isabella Bodley. That would have made Johnson and Mary
Lincoln third cousins (technically half-third cousins).
Jean Smith (1st wife)
- Robert Todd
- Isabella Bodley (2nd wife) | | David Todd & Hannah Owens
Samuel Todd & Anne Todd | | Levi Todd & Jane Briggs John
Todd & Mary Ruble | | Robert S. Todd & Elizabeth Parker
Andrew Todd & Mary A. Clayton | | Mary Todd Lincoln Johnson
Todd
Johnson continued to farm the old homestead, and was fairly
successful. By 1860 he had a amassed real estate valued at over
$12000. It was also in the 1860s that the US Civil War broke out.
One of Johnson's Kentucky relatives would become a central figure
of the Civil War era. Mary Todd, wife of Abraham Lincoln, was a
third cousin of Johnson's, both having descended from one Robert
Todd, immigrant from Northern Ireland. Mary descended from Robert
Todd's first wife, Jean Smith, and their son David. Johnson
descended from Robert Todd's second wife, Isabella Bodley, and
their son Samuel. Whether Johnson knew Mary Todd Lincoln in
childhood is unknown, but it is likely that he was aware of the
relation. Family lore has been passed down for generations about
our family being distantly related to Mary Todd, but it is only
recently that I have been able to uncover documentary evidence to
that effect.
Johnson Todd would die at the age of 60 on March 13, 1870. He
left his widow, Ruth Ann, to care for the six children that still
lived at home, the youngest being only four years old. Ruth Ann,
who was 14 years younger than her husband, would live another 30
years, dying October 19, 1900. Johnson is buried with his second
wife, Ruth Ann, at Union Cemetery near Waveland in Montgomery
County.
Sources: Various census and civil records Beckwith, H. W., The
History of Montgomery County, Indiana. Chicago: Hill &
Iddings, 1881. Beers, 1878 Atlas of Montgomery County, Indiana.
Chicago: J.H. Beers & Co., 1878. Bowen, A. W., History of
Montgomery County, Indiana. Indianapolis: A.W. Bowen & Co.,
1913. Chapman, Portrait & Biographical Record of Montgomery,
Parke, and Fountain Counties, Indiana. Chicago: Chapman Bros.,
1893. D.A.R., Dorothy Q. Chapter, Cemetery Directory for
Montgomery County, Brown Township. Crawfordsville, IN, 1975.
D.A.R., Dorothy Q. Chapter, Montgomery County, Indiana Marriages
1823-1860. Crawfordsville, IN, 1953. Davis, Benjamin Harold; Data
on the Davis, Todd, Easley, & Whittington Families.
Crawfordsville, Indiana, 1972. Hasskarl, Eula Richardson, Shelby
County, Kentucky Marraiges 1792-1833. Ada, OK, 1983. Hasskarl,
Eula Richardson, Shelby County, Kentucky Marraiges, Vol II. Ada,
OK, 1985. Hood, Virginia L.; The Family Todd. Indianapolis,
Indiana; 1987. Montgomery County Historical Society; Montgomery
County Interim Report. Crawfordsville, Indiana, 1986. Montgomery
County, Indiana Historical Society, Familiy Histories: Montgomery
County, Indiana 1823-1988. Crawfordsville, IN, 1988. Sharpe,
Virginia Banta, A History of Waveland, Indiana. 1958.
__________________________________
James Clayton Todd (1836-1915) & Sarah Frances Mitchell
(1840-1909)
James Clayton Todd was the eldest child of Johnson Todd and
Mary Hanna, and was born July 7, 1836 near the town of Waveland
in Brown Township, Montgomery County, Indiana. His parents were
wed the prior year in Shelby County, Kentucky and then moved to
Indiana. When James was two years old, in 1838, his mother gave
birth to his sister Sallie Ann. But by the summer of 1838 both
James's mother and sister would both die, leaving his father to
care for the toddler James who would never really know his
natural mother. Johnson Todd had left his family behind in
Kentucky, and though Mary had relatives in Montgomery County,
Johnson would have needed a new wife to help raise young James.
By 1841 Johnson Todd returned to Shelby County, Kentucky and
brought back a young bride. Her name was Ruth Ann VanCleave, and
she would be the only mother James would ever know, despite the
fact that she was only 13 years older (Ruth was born July 17,
1823).
Sarah Frances Mitchell was also born in Brown Township in
Montgomery County, her birth date being January 2, 1840. She was
the eldest child of Alfred Mitchell (sometimes spelled with one
"l") and Samantha Deer. The Mitchell and Deer families had
migrated from Boone County, Kentucky in 1831 and 1828,
respectively. While James Todd spent his early years with a
widower father and step-mother, Sarah had a number of aunts and
uncles, and two grandparents (Catherine Garnet Mitchell and Joel
Deer) living nearby.
Sarah was the first of ten children born to Alfred and
Samantha Mitchell. James C. Todd was the only child to survive
from Johnson Todd's first marriage, but James would have 12
half-brothers and -sisters from Johnson's marriage to Ruth
VanCleave.
The Mitchells and Todds live quite close to one another, only
a mile or so apart. The Mitchell homestead was a couple of miles
north of Waveland. The Todds lived east of there near the village
of Brown's Valley. James and Sarah surely knew each other while
growing up. The two families may have worshipped at the same
Church, and James and Sarah would likely have attended the same
school.
James Clayton Todd and Sarah Frances Mitchell were married on
September 9, 1857 in Waveland, with Rev. M. M. VanCleave (likely
a relative of James's stepmother) performing the rites. Ten
months later Frances (she appears to have gone by her middle
name) gave birth to the couple's first child, Mary Ann Todd, on
July 15, 1858. James's and Frances's parents were now
grandparents, but they were still having children of their own.
In fact, the first three of James and Frances Todd's children
would be older than some of their aunts and uncles.
1861 would be an eventful year for the Todd family. In
addition to the outbreak of the US Civil War, Frances's
grandfather, Joel Deer, died on August 18th. On November 9th,
Frances's grandmother, Catherine Garnet Mitchel, died at age 88.
Five days later (November 14), Johnson and Ruth Todd had their
tenth child (Johnson Benjamin Todd). And twelve days after that,
James and Sarah had their second child, Alfred Johnson Todd on
November 22, 1861.
James and Frances would have seven more children by the 23rd
year of their marriage: Sarah Ellen (born 1864, died 1865), Susan
"Sue" May (1866), Sophia "Sophie" Jane (1869), Harriett "Hattie"
Samantha (1874), George Franklin (1876), Joseph Lee (1879), and
Robert Earl (1881).
In 1870, Johnson Todd died at the age of 60. Johnson's estate,
administered by James C. Todd and John William Todd (eldest son
from Johnson's second marriage), was estimated at little under
$4000. Johnson had prior to death ceded some land to his son, and
James had also received land from Alfred Mitchell. In 1860,
according to census records, James owned $8000 worth of real
estate and nearly $2000 in personal property. In that day this
would be considered a respectable sum for a farmer.
In 1882, the couple's eldest daughter Mary Ann Todd married a
local farm worker named Thomas Welch Glenn, and in 1884 James and
Frances became grandparents. The first of their numerous
grandchildren was Hattie Josephine Glenn. James and Frances were
actually quite lucky. In an age when many children died before
reaching maturity, they had only one (Sarah Ellen) who died in
childhood. The rest all grew up, married, and had children of
their own. Alfred J. married Elizabeth Butcher in 1890, Sue
married Sherman G. Whittington in 1889, Sophie married Charles H.
Carter in 1896, Hattie married Fred Seybold, George Franklin
married but the woman's name is still unclear, Joseph Lee married
Edith Jarvis in 1901, and Robert Earl married Clara Smith in
1902.
James and Frances continued to work and live in Montgomery
County, and by 1890 they had at least 320 acres of land in Brown
Township. The couple also continued to be active members of their
local parish, the Primitive Baptist Church near Waveland. Yet as
the couple entered old age, they cut back on their holdings
despite new inheritance. Frances's father, Alfred Mitchell, died
in 1898, and J. C. Todd was named as one of the estate's
executors. Each of Alfred's six living children (including Sarah
Frances) received $1284. Three years after Alfred Mitchell's
death, Samantha Deer Mitchell died at the home of Frances's
sister, Lora (Mitchell) Livings, in Crawfordsville (the County
seat for Montgomery County).
In the early 1900s, James and Frances sold much of their land
to a man named Guy Fletcher and moved to a house at 912 E.
Jennison St. in Crawfordsville. This house, unfortunately, does
not stand today. It was here in Crawfordsville that they spent
most of their remaining years.
In the latter part of the first decade of the 20th century,
Sarah Frances developed cancer of the uterus. From this condition
she died on October 25, 1909 at he age of 69. She was laid to
rest in Union Cemetery, where her parents and grandparents were
also buried.
After the death of his wife, James appears to have lost
interest in life and, despite the numerous grandchildren and
great-grandchildren around him, longed only for his departed
companion. James moved into the home of his daughter Sue
Whittington in Crawfordsville at her home at 611 E. Pike.
In May of 1915, while visiting the home of his daughter, Mary
Ann (Todd) Glenn, in Terre Haute, Indiana, James suffered some
sort of episode, likely a stroke. He was returned to Sue
Whittington's home in Crawfordsville, where after months of
struggle James Clayton Todd died on September 3, 1915 at age 79.
Though James had already disposed of most of his estate prior to
death, $1941.42 remained according to probate records. James's
five living children (Mary Ann Glenn, Sue Whittington, Sophia J.
Carter, Harriett Seybold, and Robert Earl Todd) each received
$323.57. Two individuals, Ines Todd and Earl Todd, each received
$107.85. Though obviously related, who Ines or Earl are is
unknown.
James Clayton Todd and Sarah Frances Mitchell Todd are buried
together at Union Cemetery near Waveland, Indiana.
Sources: Various civil and census records Obituaries for James
and Sarah Frances in The Waveland Independent. Beckwith, H. W.,
The History of Montgomery County, Indiana. Chicago: Hill &
Iddings, 1881. Beers, 1878 Atlas of Montgomery County, Indiana.
Chicago: J.H. Beers & Co., 1878. Bowen, A. W., History of
Montgomery County, Indiana. Indianapolis: A.W. Bowen & Co.,
1913. Canon, Directory of the City of Crawfordsville 1914-15.
Louisville, 1914. Chapman, Portrait & Biographical Record of
Montgomery, Parke, and Fountain Counties, Indiana. Chicago:
Chapman Bros., 1893. Cullaton, M.; Emerson's City Directory of
Crawfordsville, Indiana, 1891-92. Richmond, Indiana: M. Cullaton
& Co., 1891. D.A.R., Dorothy Q. Chapter, Cemetery Directory
for Montgomery County, Brown Township. Crawfordsville, IN, 1975.
D.A.R., Dorothy Q. Chapter, Montgomery County, Indiana Marriages
1823-1860. Crawfordsville, IN, 1953. Davis, Benjamin Harold; Data
on the Davis, Todd, Easley, & Whittington Families.
Crawfordsville, Indiana, 1972. Montgomery County Historical
Society; Montgomery County Interim Report. Crawfordsville,
Indiana, 1986. Montgomery County, Indiana Historical Society,
Familiy Histories: Montgomery County, Indiana 1823-1988.
Crawfordsville, IN, 1988. Sharpe, Virginia Banta, A History of
Waveland, Indiana. 1958. Smith, Edgar; Smith's Directory of
Crawfordsville and The Farmers of Montgomery County for 1909-10.
Rock Island, Illinois: Edgar Smith Pub., 1909. Thank you to: Greg
Barnum for the above Todd information
History of Montgomery County, Indiana (Indianapolis: AW Bowen,
1913) p 1184
One of the worthy native sons of Brown Twp, Montgomery Co, who
has been content to spend his life in his native community is
Isaac S. TODD, one of the successful farmers and progressive
citizens of the community and a man who has so ordered his daily
life that he has kept untarnished the honored family name, for
the Todd's have been a highly respected and well known family in
this County since the days of the first settlers. Mr. Todd was
born Aug 12, 1845 in this township and County. He is a son of
Johnson and Ruth Ann (VanCleave) Todd. The father was b. in 1809
in Shelby Co, Ky and there he spent his earlier years, and his
death occurred her eon March 13, 1870. His wife, Ruth Ann
VanCleave was b. in Ky on July 17, 1823, and she came to
Montgomery Co, In with her parents when a baby and here her death
occurred Oct 10, 1901. Here she grew to womanhood and received,
like her husband, a somewhat limited education in the rural
schools. Johnson Todd devoted his life to general farming and
stock raising and he was very successful for many years ranking
among the leading tillers of the soil in the southwestern part of
the County. He was twice marr. and his family consisted of 14
children, two by his first wife and 12 by the second, our subject
being one of the 12. All this large family was well provided for
and given educational advantages. Isaac S. Todd grew to manhood
on the home farm and he received an excellent education in the
common schools of the community. On Jan 30, 1868 he marr. Delilah
MADDOX, who was b. in Shelby Co Ky Dec 27, 1846 and there she
grew to womanhood and was educated and she continued to live
there until just before her marriage when she came to Montgomery
Co. She is a daughter of Elijah and Emily (TODD) Maddox. Her
father was born Jan 11, 1812 in Ky and his death occurred Feb 3,
1865. The mother of our subject's wife was b. on Feb 14, 1814 in
Ky, and her death occurred July 17, 1853. The wife of our subject
was one of 7 children born to Elijah Maddox, five having been
born by his first wife and two by his second. The union of Isaac
S. Todd and wife has been without issue, but they raised a boy,
W. L. Todd who married Grace KELSEY and they live in
Crawfordsville. Isaac S. Todd has always followed general farming
and stock raising, and has become one of the leaders in these
lines in the southern part of the County. His well improved, well
tiled and productive farm consists of 203 acres, all well located
in Brown Township. This land is all under cultivation but about
70 acres. He has a pleasant residence and large and convenient
outbuildings. Mr.T. is a member of the Horse Thief Detective
Association. Politically, he is a Democrat. He is a member of the
Missionary Baptist Church and is a trustee in the same. Mr. T.
was elected president of the Browns Valley Grain Co, a large and
prosperous concern, which is steadily growing under the able
management of our subject. A large business is carried on all
over this section of the state. All kinds of grain, feed, coal,
salt, cement, fence posts, etc. are handled. This co. is incorp.
with a capital stock of $7500. The other officers besides Mr.
todd as Pres. are Frank WILKINSON, VP; Walter SULLIVAN, Sec. and
L. McLOED, Treasurer