The 3 Josiah Lockes

In my recent research on Josiah Locke's roots in Chester, S.C. I have come across some confusion on various family history sites' message boards. So this post is to help eliminate this confusion & prevent further misidentification.

There are 3 Josiah Lock(e)s born in Chester, S.C. from 1830 to 1840. They are NOT the same person, as you will see below, but it is very likely that all 3 are related. It was very common for family names to get used again & bestowed on grandchildren, sons, nephews, etc. I think this will prove to be the case with these 3 Josiah Lockes. Additionally, a older Josias Lock dies in Chester, S.C. between 1820-1830 (as he is listed in 1810 & 1820 census but not after 1820), so it is very possible that all 3 were named in honor of this recently deceased relative.

Note: Click on the census images to see them larger

Josiah Lock #1
Son of Joseph & Mary Lock & grandson of the above mentioned Josias Lock. Husband of Elizabeth McClellan. Born in 1830 & dies in 1868. Moved to Meigs, TN as a teenager. This is the Josiah Lock of whom Kate Locke is a descendant. He is living in Meigs, TN in 1850 & 1860.

1850 & 1860 Meigs, TN census

Josiah Lock #2
Son of Levi Lock & Ruth Reeves. Ruth Reeves or Rives is the half-sister of Josiah #1 [see this post on Mary Culp Rives Lock]. Stepson of Malinda Shurley Lock, whom Levi married after Ruth's death. Born in 1839. He is living in York, SC in 1850 & 1860.

1850 & 1860 York, SC census

Josiah Lock #3
Son of Mary & Benjamin Lock [more to come later]. Husband of Dorothy White. Born in 1834 & killed on June 17, 1864 in VA as a Confederate soldier. He is living in Chester, SC in 1850 & 1860.

1850 & 1860 Chester, SC census: In 1850 Josiah is living with his mother, while in 1860 he is listed with his wife & daughter.

Life History of Annie Belk Parker

One of the great challenges that we have in doing family history is to get beyond the pedigree chart of names and dates to discover something of the people -- their hopes and dreams, their challenges and times of joy; their faith and determination as well as their struggles and failures. Because of the relative lack of information that we have regarding the Locke family in Tennessee, I always wished for more details about their life and the story of their conversion.  It wasn't until a family member sent me the Life History of Annie Louise Belk Parker that I really began to get a sense of  Grandma Locke's background and a better appreciation for our Southern roots. If you ever wondered what life was like for the Locke's, Parker's, and other families living in and around Jasper, Tennessee then you'll find real nuggets of insight in her story.

Annie Belk Parker (1868 - 1959) was the wife of James Columbus Parker, older brother of Elizabeth Parker Locke. It was she and James Columbus who joined the LDS church in Jasper in the early 1900's, along with Gus & Elizabeth Locke and Napoleon Turner. Napoleon's wife, Harriett Parker Turner, was never baptized due to crippling arthritis (see Kate Locke Brower's history). There are a number of references here for someone in the family who would like to find out more about the history of the LDS church in and around Jasper TN during the two decades from 1895 to 1915 when family members often hosted and housed the Elders.

Also it was James Columbus and Annie Parker who first left Tennessee for Idaho, and then wrote to have the Locke family join them. That story along with many others are told here. If you want to know more about the circumstances surrounding these families joining the Mormons, please read this history closely and you'll find a story of faith and determination in spite of hardships and persecution.

P.S. - For those who may wonder about the references to Muscadines - they are a sometimes wild grape that is grown in the South, and still prized for jams and jellies as well as for wine. The panther mentioned is probably a cougar or mountain lion and is sometimes referred to today as the endangered Florida Panther.

Growing Up in Jasper Tennessee

Gus & Elizabeth Locke Family of Jasper TN, c. 1901.
(L. to R. - Irene, Gus, Kate, Elizabeth)



Gus & Elizabeth Locke family of Jasper TN, c. 1906.
(L. to R. - Gus Thomas Leon Locke, Kate, Irene, Albert Haden, Elizabeth Caroline Parker Locke)

Certainly many family members have numerous stories to tell about the Locke family and their life in both Tennessee and Idaho. We'd certainly welcome you to share them here. But for now, here is what Kate and her sister Irene wrote about their lives. I hope that you'll enjoy learning more.

1. Kate Locke Brower Life History [pdf file]
   
2. Irene Locke Petersen Life Sketch [pdf file]
   

Family Bible?

I have been led to believe that there was a Family Bible belonging to Gus & Elizabeth Locke, or at least a written family record of births, deaths, marriages, etc.

Can anyone confirm whether such a record existed, and who has it now? Does anyone have copies of the record?

Please post a comment here if you have heard of or have seen anything regarding this record? Such a record (if it exists) would be very valuable to us all.

David

Autobiography

Kate Locke Brower:

• Born - 17 Apr 1899 near Jasper, Marion, Tennessee, United States
• Married - George Stephen Brower on 17 Sep 1919 in the LDS Temple, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake , Utah, United States
• Died - 02 Feb 1985 in Provo, Utah, Utah, United States
• Buried - 05 Feb 1985 at Blackfoot Cemetery, Blackfoot, Bingham, Idaho, United States.

She wrote an 11 page autobiographical sketch which will be posted here soon. It begins as follows:

"My father was Gus Thomas Leon Locke, born 23rd of June 1862. He was the son of Josiah Locke and Mary Elizabeth McClellan. She was born in 1832.

My mother was Elizabeth Caroline Parker, born Nov. 27, 1868 at Bledsoe Co. Tenn. She was the daughter of Joseph Lewis Parker and Elender Rebecca Cates. Joseph and Elender were married at Walker Co., Georgia at the home of the bride. Her father was Thomas J. Cates and mother Mary.

My parents had three children. My sister, Irene, was born February 8, 1897 near Jasper, Tenn. I was born April 17, 1899 near Jasper, Tenn. Our brother, Albert Haden, was born March 23, 1904."

Introduction

For many years I have wondered about, and have tried to find out more about the ancestry and family background of Grandma Kate Locke Brower. This blog is intended to be a vehicle for sharing information among family members, correcting wrong information that is present in some submissions and postings, and identifying areas for future investigation. In addition, I hope that it will help open vistas of greater appreciate of our Southern roots and the sacrifices of those who "went before".

As an introduction, there were several reasons that the roots of the Locke family were not well known, at least to the western branches of the family in Idaho and Utah.

1. Kate was raised in Jasper, Tennessee (near Chattanooga) but moved to Blackfoot, Idaho as a teenager (age 13) in 1913. Her father died only two years later, and many of her aunts and uncles died near the same time, so there was not much opportunity to learn of family relations and traditions.
2. Her Locke grandparents both died very young in 1866 and 1868, leaving four young children as orphans. They were placed into multiple homes and raised apart until the oldest sister was able to bring them back together. It is not known why the children were not placed with family members. [details to follow]
   

Well, that is enough for starters. Please invite other family members to join and contribute both answers and questions along with whatever information and experiences you'd like to share.

David Douglas Brown (grandson)

Note: please refer to the family genealogy on http://new.familysearch.org if you have access. If you do not yet have access there, you can see much of the information in the Ancestral File at http://www.familysearch.org .