John WORD was my 3rd Great Grandfather

Cynthia "Nettie" Faynetta Word, daughter of John Word and Margaret Prewitt.


John WORD was born 1780 in Charlotte Co., VA, came from Ky. to Center Point, Hempstead Co., Ark. about 1820. He brought his family of nine children and several slaves. His children were: John, Matt, Jim, Tom, Orville Crawford, Elizabeth "Betsie", Peggy, Polly and Martha. His first wife died in 1821, and he returned to Ky. in 1823 and married a widow named Margaret (Peggy) Prewitt LATIMER. Their children were Nettie and Sam. John Word died in Center Point, Ark. in 1843. His widow Peggy died in Center Point, Ark, in 1864. (This information from Lloyd M. Rice Jr., Uncle Jack)

Hempstead County, AR, Will Book B, Pages 45-46; will written 20 Oct 1836; filed 27 April 1844 and settled.

WILL OF JOHN WORD
In the name of God, amen: I, John Word, of the county of Hempstead and State of Arkansas, being in good bodily health and of sound and siposing mind, calling to mind the frailty and uncertainty of human life, and being desirous of settling my worldly affairs, do make this my last will and testament herby revoking and making null all other last will and testaments by me heretofore made. First, I give and bequeath to my beloved son Orvil Word one hundred dollars. Second, I give and bequeath unto William Henry, my Son in law, One cow and calf. Third, it is my will that my beloved wife Peggy A. Word shall possess and hold all the remainder of my estates, real, personal, and mixed during her natural life after paying my funeral expenses and other past debts I may owe at and after the time of my decease. Fourth: It is my will that from and after the decease of my said wife, that the said remainder of all my estates, real, personal and mixed shall be equally divided between my beloved daughter Cynthia Finnetta Word and my beloved son Samuel H. Word. In testimony whereof, I, the said John Word have here subscribed my name to this, my last will and testament, this 20th day of October 1836. Signed, sealed in the presence of J.W. Finely / Andrew C. Roberts
/s/ John Word (seal)


[I was told by descendents of Cynthia Faynetta Word, Orvilles step sister, that they could not find any evidence of the rest of the Word family, other than Orville. Our family notes say John Word had children from his first marriage. Thomas, John, Mathew, James, Elizabeth, Polly or Mary, and Peggy. None of these children were in the will of John Word, which is somewhat puzzling. The will only mentions Orville, and his son-in-law William M. Henry, and leaves the rest of his estate and affairs to Margaret. This may make since if some of the children are still living with Margaret, and the rest of the children had married and moved away.

The search for John Word has been exhausting and quite complicated. In family research, everyone has their brickwalls. John Word happens to be mine, and I have spent many, many hours researching him.

I have found new information, which I find very interesting. It seems that the Henry's intermarried with the Word family. They also migrated together. Martha Ann Word b 1817 in Mo., married William M. Henry. Wiliams father, John William Henry, first married Ann Alexander, then married second Elizabeth "Betsie" Word. Elizabeth was the sister of Martha Ann Word. John Word married Margaret Latimer (Prewitt or Pruitt in later years). She was the widow of John Latimer. Margaret and John had a son Isham P. Latimer, who married Mary Caroline Henry. I have found on a 1840 census in Pike Couny, Ar, in the Brewer Township, Thomas Word, John Word, James Henry, and Isham P. Latimer. They all live within five houses of each other. The census shows John Word 30 to 40 years old, another female 20 to 30 years old, and a female 60 to 70 years old. I suspect this to be Margaret Word. The family records show John Word died in 1844, if this is true then he should have been on the 1840 census, which tells me that he died much earlier, before 1840. I suspect that John and Thomas are the sons of our John Word and brothers to Orville Crawford Word. James Henry is the brother of our William M. Henry who married Martha Ann Word. I have found some information where I believe John Henry and John Word may have lived in Missouri, and then migrated together to Arkansas. The following are land certificates issued to John Ward and John Henry. In all of my research, the Word family has been documented as Ward Family. It shows John Henry widowed, this would explain the death of his first wife, Ann Alexander. I do not know if these are French or Spanish land certificates. It is one or the other, because Federal Land Patents were not issued until after 1812. Here is why. Those lands of Missouri were either owned by France or by Spain. After the Louisiana Purchase of 1804, it took the Federal Government many years to survey the land they had bought. These surveys were not fully completed until the early 1820's. These lands that were bought from France or Spain between these years were fully recognized by the US Government, once they had completed their surveys.

John Henry and John Word's families intermarried. John Henry eventually married John Words oldest daughter, Elizabeth. It seems quite clear that John word and John Henry were traveling companions. First in Kentucky, then Missouri, and then to Arkansas. John Henry was a famous "Methodist Circuit Rider". He traveled a lot of territory in the early 1800's, and preached the word of God.

The real question is, what was John Word doing in Missouri before 1804, prior to the Louisiana Purchase. These lands were owned by the French. Was he a "Longhunter", like Daniel Boone? Was he traveling with the Prewitts, or Henry family? There are several Word families for which our John Word may descend from, but I have no proof of who his father was, or which family he descends from.

John Ward
LAND CERTIFICATE FOR MISSOURI BETWEEN 1808 AND 1812
03/18/1809 CERTIFICATE NUMBER 206
John Henry
LAND CERTIFICATE FOR MISSOURI BETWEEN 1808 AND 1812
05/29/1811 CERTIFICATE NUMBER 668
WIDOW

The records show that Orville and Martha Ann Word were born in Mo, or KY. There are no records to prove for sure. But John Henry had a son James who was born in Belleview, Iron County, Mo., in 1803. There is some indication that they may have came from Howard County Mo. The following excerpt is from the History of Howard County. We find a trading post owned by none other than a man named Prewitt. I believe this to be Isham Prewitt Sr., Margaret Prewitt's grandfather. I also believe that this is where the Henry's and the Word's are also from in Missouri. Isham P. Prewitt II, was Margarets father, they were from Harrodsburg Ky. I believe this is also where John Word and John Henry's roots were from, both families migrating from Virginia to Kentucky first. This would also explain why John Word went from Mo to Ky to marry Margaret Prewitt, and then took her and her kids onto Arkansas and settled around the mid 1820's. By the way, the prewitt family in America of which Margaret descends, dates back to 1624, Cape henry, and the first settlements at Jamestown.

The following history of Howard County, Mo., is from The History of Howard and Cooper Counties, St. Louis: National Historical Company, 1883, pp. 88-99.

The French settled Canada and the northwestern part of the United States, as well as the country about the mouths of the Mississippi river. They came into the upper Mississippi and Missouri valleys in 1764, under the lead of Pierre Laclede Liguest, who held a charter from the French government, giving him the exclusive right of trade with the Indians in all the country as far north as St. Peter's river. Laclede established his colony in St. Louis in 1764, and from this point they immediately began their trading and trapping excursions into the unbroken wilderness. Their method of proceeding was to penetrate into the interior and establish small local posts for trading with the Indians, whence the trappers and hunters were outfitted and sent out into the adjacent woods. In this way, the country west and northwest of St. Louis was traversed and explored at a very early day, as far west as the Rocky mountains. But of the extent of their operations, but little has been recorded; hence, but little is known of the posts established by them.
That these daring Frenchmen had explored that portion of Howard county lying contiguous to the Missouri river, even prior to the year 1800, there can be no doubt; that there existed within the present limits of the county a trading post, for several years before its settlement proper, there can be no doubt. The names of the streams, such as Bonne Femme, Moniteau, etc., attest the fact that they were of French origin, and had been seen and named by the French pioneers.
Levens and Drake, in their condensed but carefully prepared history of Cooper county, say: "While Nash and his companions were in Howard county (1804), they visited Barclay's and Boone's Licks, also a trading post situated about two miles northwest of Old Franklin, kept by a white man by the name of PREWITT. The existence of this trading post, and the fact that 'Barclay's and Boone's Licks' had already received their names from the white persons who visited them, show conclusively that this portion of the country had been explored, even before this, by Americans. But no history mentions this trading post, nor does any give the name of Prewitt; hence, we are unable to determine when he came to the Boone's Lick country, how long he remained, and where he went; he evidently left before the year 1808, as Benjamin Cooper, who moved to Howard county in that year, said there was then no settlement in this part of the state." Boone's Lick, from which this region of country took its name, is situated about eight miles northwest of New Franklin, in Boone's Lick township, on section 4, T. 49, R. 17, on land owned by William N. Marshall. This place was visited by Daniel Boone at an early date, - the time not known. Here he found several salt springs, and as such places were frequented by deer and other game, he not only often hunted in the neighborhood, but, according to John M. Peck, who visited the old hunter at his home in St. Charles county, a few years prior to his death, pitched his camp there for one winter and put up a cabin. Mr. Peck does not give the date. The presumption is that he got his information from the lips of the old hunter himself, and he would further suppose that he camped there between the years 1795 and 1807.


Ok........keep in mind that Daniel Boone did not go to MO. until 1799. I suspect the Henry's, Word's, and the Prewitt's were right there with him. Later they migrated to Arkansas. The Federal Land Records show John Henry and John Word buying land in 1827, Hempstead County, believe it or not, only 10 days apart in the month of August. John Henry led a large Methodist congregation from Missouri to Arkansas, and settled in Centerpoint, AR. I'm sure John Word was right with him. The story I read of this migration, says they crossed the river at Little Rock, when the town of Little Rock had not been built yet.

It might be interesting to note that William M. Henry who married Martha Ann Word was a first cousin to Patrick Henry. Patrick Henry was the 4 time elected Governor of the independent State of Virginia. William M. Henry's Great Grandfather was Hugh Henry, and his brother John Henries Henry was the father of Patrick Henry. Patrick Henry first married Sarah Shelton and second married Dorothy Dandridge. Dorothy was a first cousin to Martha Washington. Between the two marriages, Patrick Henry had seventeen children. Patrick was named after his Uncle, Rev. Patrick Henry. He was outspoken in his opposition to British policy towards the colonies, particularly on the subject of the Stamp act(1765), and he made the first speech in the Continental Congress (1774). You can read his most famous speech "give me liberty or give me death" at this website.
Daniel Rice]


HEMPSTEAD CO., ARK., FEDERAL LAND RECORDS
Bureau of Land Management land records and includes Homestead and Cash Entry Patents before 1908 for what is now Hempstead Co, AR.

WORD JOHN 8 11S 25W 80 1827/05/10
WORD JOHN 12 11S 26W 0 1837/08/01
WORD JOHN 12 11S 26W 0 1843/03/01
WORD SAMUEL H 5 10S 26W 161.23 1857/12/01

Song of the Week
You have heard of the one hit wonders. This song, by Jay Ferguson was a big hit, "Thunder Island".