Charity (Bennett) (Baldwin) Lucas was this writer's great great aunt, an older sister of my great grandmother, Paulina (Bennett) Thurman.
Charity was the daughter of Ezekiel Bennett, Sr. (1795-1846) who was born in Virginia and died in Schuyler County, Missouri. Who her mother was, descendants are not sure, but she was probably the daughter of Ezekiel's first wife whose last name was Tye.
Charity, however, was raised from an early age by Ezekiel's last wife, Lydia (Asbell) Bennett (1804-1882). Ezekiel's early life is a mystery to his descendants. Family lore has reported that he had one wife previous to Lydia, and that her name was Sally Tye. However, other family information has been passed down that he had two wives named Tye, Nancy and Charity Tye. Whichever is correct has been left to history.
Charity had two brothers who were also sons of the Tye wife or wives. There may have been more siblings; this writer is not sure.
John Bennett (1812-1905)
James Bennett (1823-1894)
This writer's great grandmother always referred to Charity Bennett as her sister and John and James Bennett as her half-brothers, so no one in this writer's family knew that Charity was anything but a full sister. The discovery came when the marriage record of Ezekiel Bennett, Sr. and Lydia Asbell was found by family genealogists. They were married November 8, 1827, in Madison County, Kentucky, and Charity Bennett was born prior to that in 1822. The half brother James Bennett we now know by his tombstone that he was born in 1823, which makes Charity older than him. Therefore, it seems sure that her mother was a Tye. However, Charity was 5 years old when her father married Lydia Asbell, so that is probably the only mother she really knew.
Charity spent most of her childhood in Kentucky. She was about 14 when her parents moved to Missouri. They first settled in Macon County, and later in Schuyler County, Missouri.
Ezekiel and Lydia Bennett had four children while they were living in Kentucky, and four after they came to Missouri, which would have been Charity's half-siblings:
Fielding "Dick" Bennett 1828 – 1900
Mary Polly Bennett 1830 – 1892
Maletha "May" Bennett 1833 – 1913
Amos Bennett 1834 – 1917
Joseph Bennett 1837-1837 (twin)
Nancy Bennett 1837-1837 (twin)
Paulina Bennett 1840 – 1928
Ezekiel Jr. Bennett 1843 – 1919
The Bennetts also raised another girl who is thought to be a niece of Lydia (Asbell) Bennett, but grew up as a sibling to the Bennett children:
Arvella "Orvlee" (Asbell) Winkler (1820-1877)
Charity's father, Ezekiel Bennett, Sr., died in Schuyler County, Missouri, in 1846 at the age of 51. His youngest child was only 3. Charity married a year after her father's death, and her mother and siblings soon moved to an adjoining farm.
On February 7, 1847, in Schuyler County, Missouri, when Charity was 25, she married Elisha Baldwin who was 22 years older than her. He was a Justice of the Peace, a principal member of the Schuyler County Court, and reportedly a very wealthy man. Elisha Baldwin had been married twice before and had 5 known children (most names are unknown to this writer). He and Charity had 4 sons:
William Baldwin 1848 – 1900
James Wesley "Wes" Baldwin 1849 – 1921
Jackson Douglas "Dug" Baldwin 1851 – 1932
Elisha Henry "Lan" Baldwin 1852 –
Much of Elisha's wealth was said to be in gold which he kept in a large metal box. Charity said he used to challenge his sons when they were young to see if any of them could lift the box of gold, but none could. The Baldwins lived in a large house on a farm near Glenwood and Coatsville, Missouri. But, in the early 1850's, Elisha fell ill and did not feel he would live long.
In the same community lived a widower named James Lucas who had 8 children, some of whom were grown at this time. His wife had died in about 1850. He began to visit the Baldwins, and Elisha strongly suspected that he was interested in marrying Charity after he was gone. Elisha told Charity his suspicions and said he would never let her and James Lucas use his money and would bury it where no one could find it. He gave his sons only a few gold coins to keep. Charity told family members that one day Elisha came in the house exhausted and fell across a bed. She knew that was the day he buried his gold. It was never found, though the family searched for it for many years after Elisha died. He died in 1852, leaving Charity with their 4 children who were all under the age of 5.
Charity was married to James Lucas on October 6, 1856 in Schuyler County, Missouri, by John C. Bass, Justice of the Peace. They lived in the big Baldwin house, but Charity said she could never live in peace because she believed she was being haunted by Elisha Baldwin. Many stories were told through the years of these hauntings. Even one of her young sons said he saw the ghost of his father standing by the stairs, but he had white whiskers like that of a neighbor.
James and Charity Lucas had two known together:
Franklin "Frank" Lucas 1857-1871
Martha Demirus "Mat" Lucas 1860-1922
James Lucas' children who became Charity's step-children were:
Sarah Elizabeth (Lucas) Franklin 1831 – 1924
Rebecca Anna (Lucas) Spargur 1834 –
George Allen Lucas 1837 –
Jane Martha Lucas 1839 –
Samuel Jefferson Lucas 1840 –
Permelia Frances (Lucas) McCartney 1842 – 1925
Margaret Ellen (Lucas) McCartney 1844 – 1943
Susan Lucas 1846 –
In 1862 the Civil War devastated the country and Schuyler County was no exception. Henry Harrison Winkler, a teenage son of the girl who grew up as Charity's sister, Arvelee (Asbell) Winker, was killed by the Putnam County Missouri Militia when he was going to the mill.
Charity's youngest brother, Ezekiel Bennett, Jr., joined the war on the side of the south, leaving only her brother Fielding Dick Bennett to help her mother and sisters run their farm. Many stories were told by the family of hiding Fielding so soldiers who came by would not kidnap him. They would also run sheep up and down the road or take tree branches and rub out the tracks when soldiers from either side passed by or stopped at their house so the opposing side would not think they were sympathizers with that side. They lived in constant fear.
The Putnam County Militia had heard about the famous hiding of the gold by Charity's husband Elisha Baldwin, and one day they came into her house and tore boards off the wall thinking the gold might be hidden in the walls. They did not find it.
A man in the community named James Ford was found murdered in his barn, presumably by the Putnam County Militia. His body was lying over a barrel. Charity's youngest daughter, Martha Lucas, later married this man's son, George Ford.
After Charity's mother finally gave up her farm and most of her siblings were married, her mother took turns living with her and her siblings.
In about 1871 Charity and James Lucas' 14-year-old son Franklin died in an accident.
Charity died in 1874 when her youngest child, Martha, was only 14. Martha spent the next 7 years living sometimes with her maternal grandmother and then with two of her Lucas step-sisters, until she married.
Charity was buried in the Ford Cemetery which is reportedly a part of the old Elisha Baldwin property which was her own property. James Lucas married again but that marriage did not last long. At his death, he was reportedly buried beside Charity. For years the Bennett family did not know where Charity was buried, but a Lucas Family History reported the information that she and James Lucas are buried in this cemetery. Reportedly, they have no stones and if they ever did have stones, they have been destroyed by cattle who were allowed to roam through this cemetery.
- Written by Blytha (Dennis) Ellis, great great niece of Charity.
Charity was the daughter of Ezekiel Bennett, Sr. (1795-1846) who was born in Virginia and died in Schuyler County, Missouri. Who her mother was, descendants are not sure, but she was probably the daughter of Ezekiel's first wife whose last name was Tye.
Charity, however, was raised from an early age by Ezekiel's last wife, Lydia (Asbell) Bennett (1804-1882). Ezekiel's early life is a mystery to his descendants. Family lore has reported that he had one wife previous to Lydia, and that her name was Sally Tye. However, other family information has been passed down that he had two wives named Tye, Nancy and Charity Tye. Whichever is correct has been left to history.
Charity had two brothers who were also sons of the Tye wife or wives. There may have been more siblings; this writer is not sure.
John Bennett (1812-1905)
James Bennett (1823-1894)
This writer's great grandmother always referred to Charity Bennett as her sister and John and James Bennett as her half-brothers, so no one in this writer's family knew that Charity was anything but a full sister. The discovery came when the marriage record of Ezekiel Bennett, Sr. and Lydia Asbell was found by family genealogists. They were married November 8, 1827, in Madison County, Kentucky, and Charity Bennett was born prior to that in 1822. The half brother James Bennett we now know by his tombstone that he was born in 1823, which makes Charity older than him. Therefore, it seems sure that her mother was a Tye. However, Charity was 5 years old when her father married Lydia Asbell, so that is probably the only mother she really knew.
Charity spent most of her childhood in Kentucky. She was about 14 when her parents moved to Missouri. They first settled in Macon County, and later in Schuyler County, Missouri.
Ezekiel and Lydia Bennett had four children while they were living in Kentucky, and four after they came to Missouri, which would have been Charity's half-siblings:
Fielding "Dick" Bennett 1828 – 1900
Mary Polly Bennett 1830 – 1892
Maletha "May" Bennett 1833 – 1913
Amos Bennett 1834 – 1917
Joseph Bennett 1837-1837 (twin)
Nancy Bennett 1837-1837 (twin)
Paulina Bennett 1840 – 1928
Ezekiel Jr. Bennett 1843 – 1919
The Bennetts also raised another girl who is thought to be a niece of Lydia (Asbell) Bennett, but grew up as a sibling to the Bennett children:
Arvella "Orvlee" (Asbell) Winkler (1820-1877)
Charity's father, Ezekiel Bennett, Sr., died in Schuyler County, Missouri, in 1846 at the age of 51. His youngest child was only 3. Charity married a year after her father's death, and her mother and siblings soon moved to an adjoining farm.
On February 7, 1847, in Schuyler County, Missouri, when Charity was 25, she married Elisha Baldwin who was 22 years older than her. He was a Justice of the Peace, a principal member of the Schuyler County Court, and reportedly a very wealthy man. Elisha Baldwin had been married twice before and had 5 known children (most names are unknown to this writer). He and Charity had 4 sons:
William Baldwin 1848 – 1900
James Wesley "Wes" Baldwin 1849 – 1921
Jackson Douglas "Dug" Baldwin 1851 – 1932
Elisha Henry "Lan" Baldwin 1852 –
Much of Elisha's wealth was said to be in gold which he kept in a large metal box. Charity said he used to challenge his sons when they were young to see if any of them could lift the box of gold, but none could. The Baldwins lived in a large house on a farm near Glenwood and Coatsville, Missouri. But, in the early 1850's, Elisha fell ill and did not feel he would live long.
In the same community lived a widower named James Lucas who had 8 children, some of whom were grown at this time. His wife had died in about 1850. He began to visit the Baldwins, and Elisha strongly suspected that he was interested in marrying Charity after he was gone. Elisha told Charity his suspicions and said he would never let her and James Lucas use his money and would bury it where no one could find it. He gave his sons only a few gold coins to keep. Charity told family members that one day Elisha came in the house exhausted and fell across a bed. She knew that was the day he buried his gold. It was never found, though the family searched for it for many years after Elisha died. He died in 1852, leaving Charity with their 4 children who were all under the age of 5.
Charity was married to James Lucas on October 6, 1856 in Schuyler County, Missouri, by John C. Bass, Justice of the Peace. They lived in the big Baldwin house, but Charity said she could never live in peace because she believed she was being haunted by Elisha Baldwin. Many stories were told through the years of these hauntings. Even one of her young sons said he saw the ghost of his father standing by the stairs, but he had white whiskers like that of a neighbor.
James and Charity Lucas had two known together:
Franklin "Frank" Lucas 1857-1871
Martha Demirus "Mat" Lucas 1860-1922
James Lucas' children who became Charity's step-children were:
Sarah Elizabeth (Lucas) Franklin 1831 – 1924
Rebecca Anna (Lucas) Spargur 1834 –
George Allen Lucas 1837 –
Jane Martha Lucas 1839 –
Samuel Jefferson Lucas 1840 –
Permelia Frances (Lucas) McCartney 1842 – 1925
Margaret Ellen (Lucas) McCartney 1844 – 1943
Susan Lucas 1846 –
In 1862 the Civil War devastated the country and Schuyler County was no exception. Henry Harrison Winkler, a teenage son of the girl who grew up as Charity's sister, Arvelee (Asbell) Winker, was killed by the Putnam County Missouri Militia when he was going to the mill.
Charity's youngest brother, Ezekiel Bennett, Jr., joined the war on the side of the south, leaving only her brother Fielding Dick Bennett to help her mother and sisters run their farm. Many stories were told by the family of hiding Fielding so soldiers who came by would not kidnap him. They would also run sheep up and down the road or take tree branches and rub out the tracks when soldiers from either side passed by or stopped at their house so the opposing side would not think they were sympathizers with that side. They lived in constant fear.
The Putnam County Militia had heard about the famous hiding of the gold by Charity's husband Elisha Baldwin, and one day they came into her house and tore boards off the wall thinking the gold might be hidden in the walls. They did not find it.
A man in the community named James Ford was found murdered in his barn, presumably by the Putnam County Militia. His body was lying over a barrel. Charity's youngest daughter, Martha Lucas, later married this man's son, George Ford.
After Charity's mother finally gave up her farm and most of her siblings were married, her mother took turns living with her and her siblings.
In about 1871 Charity and James Lucas' 14-year-old son Franklin died in an accident.
Charity died in 1874 when her youngest child, Martha, was only 14. Martha spent the next 7 years living sometimes with her maternal grandmother and then with two of her Lucas step-sisters, until she married.
Charity was buried in the Ford Cemetery which is reportedly a part of the old Elisha Baldwin property which was her own property. James Lucas married again but that marriage did not last long. At his death, he was reportedly buried beside Charity. For years the Bennett family did not know where Charity was buried, but a Lucas Family History reported the information that she and James Lucas are buried in this cemetery. Reportedly, they have no stones and if they ever did have stones, they have been destroyed by cattle who were allowed to roam through this cemetery.
- Written by Blytha (Dennis) Ellis, great great niece of Charity.
Charity (Bennett) (Baldwin) Lucas was this writer's great great aunt, an older sister of my great grandmother, Paulina (Bennett) Thurman.
Charity was the daughter of Ezekiel Bennett, Sr. (1795-1846) who was born in Virginia and died in Schuyler County, Missouri. Who her mother was, descendants are not sure, but she was probably the daughter of Ezekiel's first wife whose last name was Tye.
Charity, however, was raised from an early age by Ezekiel's last wife, Lydia (Asbell) Bennett (1804-1882). Ezekiel's early life is a mystery to his descendants. Family lore has reported that he had one wife previous to Lydia, and that her name was Sally Tye. However, other family information has been passed down that he had two wives named Tye, Nancy and Charity Tye. Whichever is correct has been left to history.
Charity had two brothers who were also sons of the Tye wife or wives. There may have been more siblings; this writer is not sure.
John Bennett (1812-1905)
James Bennett (1823-1894)
This writer's great grandmother always referred to Charity Bennett as her sister and John and James Bennett as her half-brothers, so no one in this writer's family knew that Charity was anything but a full sister. The discovery came when the marriage record of Ezekiel Bennett, Sr. and Lydia Asbell was found by family genealogists. They were married November 8, 1827, in Madison County, Kentucky, and Charity Bennett was born prior to that in 1822. The half brother James Bennett we now know by his tombstone that he was born in 1823, which makes Charity older than him. Therefore, it seems sure that her mother was a Tye. However, Charity was 5 years old when her father married Lydia Asbell, so that is probably the only mother she really knew.
Charity spent most of her childhood in Kentucky. She was about 14 when her parents moved to Missouri. They first settled in Macon County, and later in Schuyler County, Missouri.
Ezekiel and Lydia Bennett had four children while they were living in Kentucky, and four after they came to Missouri, which would have been Charity's half-siblings:
Fielding "Dick" Bennett 1828 – 1900
Mary Polly Bennett 1830 – 1892
Maletha "May" Bennett 1833 – 1913
Amos Bennett 1834 – 1917
Joseph Bennett 1837-1837 (twin)
Nancy Bennett 1837-1837 (twin)
Paulina Bennett 1840 – 1928
Ezekiel Jr. Bennett 1843 – 1919
The Bennetts also raised another girl who is thought to be a niece of Lydia (Asbell) Bennett, but grew up as a sibling to the Bennett children:
Arvella "Orvlee" (Asbell) Winkler (1820-1877)
Charity's father, Ezekiel Bennett, Sr., died in Schuyler County, Missouri, in 1846 at the age of 51. His youngest child was only 3. Charity married a year after her father's death, and her mother and siblings soon moved to an adjoining farm.
On February 7, 1847, in Schuyler County, Missouri, when Charity was 25, she married Elisha Baldwin who was 22 years older than her. He was a Justice of the Peace, a principal member of the Schuyler County Court, and reportedly a very wealthy man. Elisha Baldwin had been married twice before and had 5 known children (most names are unknown to this writer). He and Charity had 4 sons:
William Baldwin 1848 – 1900
James Wesley "Wes" Baldwin 1849 – 1921
Jackson Douglas "Dug" Baldwin 1851 – 1932
Elisha Henry "Lan" Baldwin 1852 –
Much of Elisha's wealth was said to be in gold which he kept in a large metal box. Charity said he used to challenge his sons when they were young to see if any of them could lift the box of gold, but none could. The Baldwins lived in a large house on a farm near Glenwood and Coatsville, Missouri. But, in the early 1850's, Elisha fell ill and did not feel he would live long.
In the same community lived a widower named James Lucas who had 8 children, some of whom were grown at this time. His wife had died in about 1850. He began to visit the Baldwins, and Elisha strongly suspected that he was interested in marrying Charity after he was gone. Elisha told Charity his suspicions and said he would never let her and James Lucas use his money and would bury it where no one could find it. He gave his sons only a few gold coins to keep. Charity told family members that one day Elisha came in the house exhausted and fell across a bed. She knew that was the day he buried his gold. It was never found, though the family searched for it for many years after Elisha died. He died in 1852, leaving Charity with their 4 children who were all under the age of 5.
Charity was married to James Lucas on October 6, 1856 in Schuyler County, Missouri, by John C. Bass, Justice of the Peace. They lived in the big Baldwin house, but Charity said she could never live in peace because she believed she was being haunted by Elisha Baldwin. Many stories were told through the years of these hauntings. Even one of her young sons said he saw the ghost of his father standing by the stairs, but he had white whiskers like that of a neighbor.
James and Charity Lucas had two known together:
Franklin "Frank" Lucas 1857-1871
Martha Demirus "Mat" Lucas 1860-1922
James Lucas' children who became Charity's step-children were:
Sarah Elizabeth (Lucas) Franklin 1831 – 1924
Rebecca Anna (Lucas) Spargur 1834 –
George Allen Lucas 1837 –
Jane Martha Lucas 1839 –
Samuel Jefferson Lucas 1840 –
Permelia Frances (Lucas) McCartney 1842 – 1925
Margaret Ellen (Lucas) McCartney 1844 – 1943
Susan Lucas 1846 –
In 1862 the Civil War devastated the country and Schuyler County was no exception. Henry Harrison Winkler, a teenage son of the girl who grew up as Charity's sister, Arvelee (Asbell) Winker, was killed by the Putnam County Missouri Militia when he was going to the mill.
Charity's youngest brother, Ezekiel Bennett, Jr., joined the war on the side of the south, leaving only her brother Fielding Dick Bennett to help her mother and sisters run their farm. Many stories were told by the family of hiding Fielding so soldiers who came by would not kidnap him. They would also run sheep up and down the road or take tree branches and rub out the tracks when soldiers from either side passed by or stopped at their house so the opposing side would not think they were sympathizers with that side. They lived in constant fear.
The Putnam County Militia had heard about the famous hiding of the gold by Charity's husband Elisha Baldwin, and one day they came into her house and tore boards off the wall thinking the gold might be hidden in the walls. They did not find it.
A man in the community named James Ford was found murdered in his barn, presumably by the Putnam County Militia. His body was lying over a barrel. Charity's youngest daughter, Martha Lucas, later married this man's son, George Ford.
After Charity's mother finally gave up her farm and most of her siblings were married, her mother took turns living with her and her siblings.
In about 1871 Charity and James Lucas' 14-year-old son Franklin died in an accident.
Charity died in 1874 when her youngest child, Martha, was only 14. Martha spent the next 7 years living sometimes with her maternal grandmother and then with two of her Lucas step-sisters, until she married.
Charity was buried in the Ford Cemetery which is reportedly a part of the old Elisha Baldwin property which was her own property. James Lucas married again but that marriage did not last long. At his death, he was reportedly buried beside Charity. For years the Bennett family did not know where Charity was buried, but a Lucas Family History reported the information that she and James Lucas are buried in this cemetery. Reportedly, they have no stones and if they ever did have stones, they have been destroyed by cattle who were allowed to roam through this cemetery.
- Written by Blytha (Dennis) Ellis, great great niece of Charity.
Charity was the daughter of Ezekiel Bennett, Sr. (1795-1846) who was born in Virginia and died in Schuyler County, Missouri. Who her mother was, descendants are not sure, but she was probably the daughter of Ezekiel's first wife whose last name was Tye.
Charity, however, was raised from an early age by Ezekiel's last wife, Lydia (Asbell) Bennett (1804-1882). Ezekiel's early life is a mystery to his descendants. Family lore has reported that he had one wife previous to Lydia, and that her name was Sally Tye. However, other family information has been passed down that he had two wives named Tye, Nancy and Charity Tye. Whichever is correct has been left to history.
Charity had two brothers who were also sons of the Tye wife or wives. There may have been more siblings; this writer is not sure.
John Bennett (1812-1905)
James Bennett (1823-1894)
This writer's great grandmother always referred to Charity Bennett as her sister and John and James Bennett as her half-brothers, so no one in this writer's family knew that Charity was anything but a full sister. The discovery came when the marriage record of Ezekiel Bennett, Sr. and Lydia Asbell was found by family genealogists. They were married November 8, 1827, in Madison County, Kentucky, and Charity Bennett was born prior to that in 1822. The half brother James Bennett we now know by his tombstone that he was born in 1823, which makes Charity older than him. Therefore, it seems sure that her mother was a Tye. However, Charity was 5 years old when her father married Lydia Asbell, so that is probably the only mother she really knew.
Charity spent most of her childhood in Kentucky. She was about 14 when her parents moved to Missouri. They first settled in Macon County, and later in Schuyler County, Missouri.
Ezekiel and Lydia Bennett had four children while they were living in Kentucky, and four after they came to Missouri, which would have been Charity's half-siblings:
Fielding "Dick" Bennett 1828 – 1900
Mary Polly Bennett 1830 – 1892
Maletha "May" Bennett 1833 – 1913
Amos Bennett 1834 – 1917
Joseph Bennett 1837-1837 (twin)
Nancy Bennett 1837-1837 (twin)
Paulina Bennett 1840 – 1928
Ezekiel Jr. Bennett 1843 – 1919
The Bennetts also raised another girl who is thought to be a niece of Lydia (Asbell) Bennett, but grew up as a sibling to the Bennett children:
Arvella "Orvlee" (Asbell) Winkler (1820-1877)
Charity's father, Ezekiel Bennett, Sr., died in Schuyler County, Missouri, in 1846 at the age of 51. His youngest child was only 3. Charity married a year after her father's death, and her mother and siblings soon moved to an adjoining farm.
On February 7, 1847, in Schuyler County, Missouri, when Charity was 25, she married Elisha Baldwin who was 22 years older than her. He was a Justice of the Peace, a principal member of the Schuyler County Court, and reportedly a very wealthy man. Elisha Baldwin had been married twice before and had 5 known children (most names are unknown to this writer). He and Charity had 4 sons:
William Baldwin 1848 – 1900
James Wesley "Wes" Baldwin 1849 – 1921
Jackson Douglas "Dug" Baldwin 1851 – 1932
Elisha Henry "Lan" Baldwin 1852 –
Much of Elisha's wealth was said to be in gold which he kept in a large metal box. Charity said he used to challenge his sons when they were young to see if any of them could lift the box of gold, but none could. The Baldwins lived in a large house on a farm near Glenwood and Coatsville, Missouri. But, in the early 1850's, Elisha fell ill and did not feel he would live long.
In the same community lived a widower named James Lucas who had 8 children, some of whom were grown at this time. His wife had died in about 1850. He began to visit the Baldwins, and Elisha strongly suspected that he was interested in marrying Charity after he was gone. Elisha told Charity his suspicions and said he would never let her and James Lucas use his money and would bury it where no one could find it. He gave his sons only a few gold coins to keep. Charity told family members that one day Elisha came in the house exhausted and fell across a bed. She knew that was the day he buried his gold. It was never found, though the family searched for it for many years after Elisha died. He died in 1852, leaving Charity with their 4 children who were all under the age of 5.
Charity was married to James Lucas on October 6, 1856 in Schuyler County, Missouri, by John C. Bass, Justice of the Peace. They lived in the big Baldwin house, but Charity said she could never live in peace because she believed she was being haunted by Elisha Baldwin. Many stories were told through the years of these hauntings. Even one of her young sons said he saw the ghost of his father standing by the stairs, but he had white whiskers like that of a neighbor.
James and Charity Lucas had two known together:
Franklin "Frank" Lucas 1857-1871
Martha Demirus "Mat" Lucas 1860-1922
James Lucas' children who became Charity's step-children were:
Sarah Elizabeth (Lucas) Franklin 1831 – 1924
Rebecca Anna (Lucas) Spargur 1834 –
George Allen Lucas 1837 –
Jane Martha Lucas 1839 –
Samuel Jefferson Lucas 1840 –
Permelia Frances (Lucas) McCartney 1842 – 1925
Margaret Ellen (Lucas) McCartney 1844 – 1943
Susan Lucas 1846 –
In 1862 the Civil War devastated the country and Schuyler County was no exception. Henry Harrison Winkler, a teenage son of the girl who grew up as Charity's sister, Arvelee (Asbell) Winker, was killed by the Putnam County Missouri Militia when he was going to the mill.
Charity's youngest brother, Ezekiel Bennett, Jr., joined the war on the side of the south, leaving only her brother Fielding Dick Bennett to help her mother and sisters run their farm. Many stories were told by the family of hiding Fielding so soldiers who came by would not kidnap him. They would also run sheep up and down the road or take tree branches and rub out the tracks when soldiers from either side passed by or stopped at their house so the opposing side would not think they were sympathizers with that side. They lived in constant fear.
The Putnam County Militia had heard about the famous hiding of the gold by Charity's husband Elisha Baldwin, and one day they came into her house and tore boards off the wall thinking the gold might be hidden in the walls. They did not find it.
A man in the community named James Ford was found murdered in his barn, presumably by the Putnam County Militia. His body was lying over a barrel. Charity's youngest daughter, Martha Lucas, later married this man's son, George Ford.
After Charity's mother finally gave up her farm and most of her siblings were married, her mother took turns living with her and her siblings.
In about 1871 Charity and James Lucas' 14-year-old son Franklin died in an accident.
Charity died in 1874 when her youngest child, Martha, was only 14. Martha spent the next 7 years living sometimes with her maternal grandmother and then with two of her Lucas step-sisters, until she married.
Charity was buried in the Ford Cemetery which is reportedly a part of the old Elisha Baldwin property which was her own property. James Lucas married again but that marriage did not last long. At his death, he was reportedly buried beside Charity. For years the Bennett family did not know where Charity was buried, but a Lucas Family History reported the information that she and James Lucas are buried in this cemetery. Reportedly, they have no stones and if they ever did have stones, they have been destroyed by cattle who were allowed to roam through this cemetery.
- Written by Blytha (Dennis) Ellis, great great niece of Charity.
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