Eliza Kinard Alphin Melton

Eliza Kinard was born November 15, 1842 to Graham and Eve (Seace) Kinard. The family was living in Union County Arkansas as recorded in the 1860 census when Eliza was 16 years old.

Found in a probate document from Union Parish of Louisiana, dated January 22, 1862 the Estate of Graham Kinard, deceased, Petition for Inventory and Administrator, Eliza L. wife of Andrew J. Alphin is listed as one of the heirs of the estate. A.J. Alphin was appointed as principal of the inventory.

On Oct 25, 1863, Eliza's first child, Mary Francis Alphin was born.

As per newspaper article,Jack Alphin passed away in the early part of 1864 after suffering from smallpox in Erline, Johnson County, Illinios and was buried there.

On October 12, 1865, Eliza married Perry Melton in Union County, Arkansas.(Marriage Bonds and Ministes' Returns of Union County Arkansas 1829-1870;page 87.)Nine children were born to this union; Charlie B., Beadie Ann, Henry Clay, Joan, Morgan, Georgia Ann, Rose, Luella, and Perry.

The family can be found on the 1870 and 1880 Census living in Union Parish, Louisiana. A mixture of Perry's children from an earlier marriage to Olive Albina Muse(d.1863) and Eliza's Mary Francis Alphin (Fannie as my grandfather called her) plus Perry and Eliza's own children are all listed.

After Perry Melton's death on June 19, 1885, Eliza and her children moved to Texas and located in the Dallas area, mostly Rose Hill and/or Rowlett. Eliza's brother Jacob Kinard was living near by in Wise County, Texas as per the 1880 Census.

In the 1900 Census, Eliza can be found living with her son, Charlie Melton in Dallas County, and also as living with her son Morgan Melton and her younger children on another 1900 census in Dallas.

She passed away on October 7, 1901 in Rowlett and is interred in the Melton Plot in the Big A Cemetery in Rowlett, Texas.

This is a work in progress and not to be considered complete or 100 per cent correct. I am still searching.

Sandra Vlasin
Eliza's great-granddaughter