Carlisle Lamar Buck (1887-1959)

This is the story of my grandfather, Carlisle Lamar Buck.   Much of the text was written by my father in his memoirs.

Carlisle Lamar Buck was the second son of William CalmesBuck II and Martha Elizabeth Clardy.  He was born on April 4, 1887 in Girard, Alabama (now Phenix City) in Russell County.  His parents and family moved to Decatur, Alabama about 1890.

At that time, a public school education consisted of eleven years and C. L. Buck finished high school.  He then worked a few years for his father in his construction and sawmill businesses.

Carlisle Buck played on the first high school football team in Decatur, Alabama. He played right halfback on the New Decatur team in 1905.  That team played only one game and they were beaten by the Cander school of Gurley.  Carlisle liked all sports and would take his children to both football and baseball games whenever he could.

Carlisle Lamar Buck and Susan Elizabeth Masterson were married on Nov. 2, 1910 in Decatur, Alabama.  Their marriage was performed by L. Pryor Royer and witnessed by R. K. Balch and E. E. Speer.  Both listed their place of residence as "New Decatur" and the wedding was also performed in "New Decatur".

Susan Elizabeth Masterson, the daughter of Matthew Andrew Masterson and Margeannah Martha Sandlin, was born on Mar. 16, 1885 in Lawrence Co., Alabama.  About 1908, Susan Elizabeth Masterson was a telephone operator in Decatur.

Carlisle Lamar Buck’s primary career was as a salesman.  He worked in department stores, dry goods stores, was a traveling salesman and delivery man, and in a furniture store. 

Carlisle Buck ran for the office of City Councilman in Decatur but was not elected.  Later he ran for Justice of the Peace for Beat 1 in Morgan County and was elected.

Carlisle Lamar Buck and Susan Elizabeth Masterson had seven children, all born in Decatur, Alabama:

• Carlisle Lamar Buck Jr. (1912-1991); married Esta Mae Murray, 
• Norman Masterson Buck (1914-1976); did not marry.
• Sarah Elizabeth Buck (1916-2012); married David Harris Gilley, 1938.
• Gordon Sandlin Buck Sr. (1918-2002); married Annie Ruth Hale, 1946.
• Nelson Roberts Buck (1918-2004); married Mary Hanks, 1937.
• Rachel Lois Buck (1920-2012); married Millard Brown, 1940; married Ezra (Bill) Rameth Childers, 1954.
• William Calmes Buck (1923-2011); did not marry.

In registering for the World War I draft in 1917, C. L. Buck gave his address as 916 Jackson Street in Albany. He was a “traveling salesman” for the W. H. Aycock Company.  He was described as tall, medium build with brown hair and brown eyes.  (He was about 5’ 9” tall.)

Sometime after 1917, C. L. Buck began working for William R. Moore Company, a dry goods wholesale business out of Memphis, Tennessee.  He worked for them until the Wall Street Crash in 1929 and the start of the Great Depression.  Usually on Monday morning he would take his sample cases, go by streetcar or horse and buggy to the railway station.  From there he would travel to one of the towns in his territory.  There he would rent a horse and buggy and go from store to store displaying and selling his company’s merchandize.  Normally he would be gone for several days, returning home on Friday.  About 1924 he bought a “T” model Ford to use instead of a horse and buggy. His work as a traveling salesman kept him away from home Monday through Friday, but on weekends, Saturday, that is, he would take his family to ball games, swimming, fishing and such depending on the season.  After the Depression, he started working for Shumake Furniture Company in Decatur as a salesman, buyer and delivery director. 

In the 1920 census, C. L. and Bessie Buck were living at 916 Jackson Street which was next door to Bessie’s father, Matthew Masterson.

In the 1930 census, C. L. and Bessie Buck were still living at 916 Jackson Street

In the 1950s, Carlisle Lamar Buck was a Justice of the Peace in Decatur, Alabama.

In 1952, C. L. and Bessie Buck lived at 921 Sherman Street in Decatur, Alabama. 

Based on a letter he wrote to his son, W. C. Buck, Carlisle and Bess must have moved to 1514 Jackson Street to live with Mae Masterson in 1955.  This was the house built by/for Mae and Bess's father, Matthew Masterson, but the house numbering system had changed.  The house still exists today (2019).

In 1959, he wrote to Gordon Buck, Sr:

"Forty-one years ago two little boys came to our house to stay.  We already had two boys but after talking the matter over we decided to keep them also and we have been mighty glad that we did.

"At first they were real little boys but they soon grew up to be big boys, then men, and now they have little boys of their own.

"We are proud of both of them and wish for them many more happy birthdays.  I am glad to call these boys my sons.

                                                   Dad"

Carlisle Buck was raised in the Sixteenth Avenue Baptist Church which was founded by his parents and he was a member all his life.  He was a devout Christian and held many positions in the church but he especially liked to work with young people.  At various times he was Chairman of the Board of Deacons, Sunday School Director, Director of the “BYPU” (Baptist Young Peoples Union) and Choir Director.  He loved to sing and had a beautiful voice for it.  He was always singing.  He loved to sing solos for special services at his church and at others when asked.

Carlisle Lamar Buck died September 1959 at the age of 72 in Decatur, Alabama. He was buried in Decatur, Alabama. Susan Elizabeth Masterson Buck died on January 15, 1979 at the age of 93 in Ocean Springs, Mississippi.  She was buried in Decatur, Alabama next to her husband.

William Calmes Buck II (part 3)

continued ...

Obituaries

Decatur Daily - February 4, 1924

Former Citizen Dies in Florence

Funeral services for the late W. C. Buck, formerly a city councilman of Albany and for the past five years a prominent citizen of Florence, where he was engaged as a building contractor, at the time of this death, which occurred Monday morning at his Florence home, will be held at the city cemetery and interment will be there Tuesday afternoon.

Mr. Buck is survived by his wife, four sons, C. L. Buck of Albany; M. S., T. N., and C. C. Buck of Birmingham; two daughters, Mrs. Jack Austin of Birmingham and Mrs. H. H. Masterson of Florence.  The deceased is survived by three brothers, John Buck of Tucson, Arizona; C. W. Buck and Robert D. Buck of Columbus, Ga., four sisters, Mrs. Miriam Stringer, Mrs. Belle Quarles and Miss Buck, all of Columbus, Ga., and Mrs. Ward Johnson of New York City.

W. C. Buck came here in 1888 and for eight years was a prominent local business man.  For eight years he was a member of the city council when Albany bore the name of New Decatur.  He was an active member of the Missionary Baptist church and was one of the charter members of the First Baptist church of Albany.

Decatur Daily - January 12, 1950

Beloved Woman Is Called Home

Funeral services for Mrs. Martha Buck, 91, will be held Friday at 3 p.m. at Sixteenth Avenue Baptist Church. Rev. E.N. Chandler will conduct the rites. Interment will be made in city cemetery, Mutual Service directing.

Mrs. Buck died at a local hospital, today at 2 a.m. after several weeks illness. The body will remain at Mutual Chapel until 9 a.m. Friday, when it will be carried to the residence, 921 Sherman Street, until time for service.

Mrs. Buck was the last living charter member of the Sixteenth Avenue Baptist Church. The church was founded in 1889.

Surviving are: four sons, C.L., Decatur; Murray S., Hubert N. and Charles C., Birmingham; a daughter, Mrs. H.H. Masterson, Birmingham; one brother, Edgar Clardy, Philadelphia, Penn.; 19 grandchildren, and 24 great-grandchildren.

 

William Calmes Buck II (part 2)

continued ...

Photographs and Memorabilia

Because of the house fire in the early 1920s in Florence, there are no photographs of an adult W. C. Buck and also none of Mattie Clardy Buck until her old age. 

Helen Clementine Masterson Mason had the picture below of W. C. Buck as a child and described it in her notes.  She said that she had copies made and distributed.  Many years later, Marcia Buck Cole sent me a scanned version from her father’s photo album.

William Calmes Buck II

Martha Elizabeth Clardy Buck

Family Lore

When my father was about six years old, W. C. Buck, his grandfather, visited them in Decatur, Alabama.  This would have been just before his death.  He remembered watching his grandfather shave with a straight razor when his grandfather noticed a wart on my dad’s hand.  “What’s that, boy?” his grandfather said.  “A wart.”replied my dad.”Let me see it.”  When my dad extended his hand, his grandfather used his straight razor to slice the wart off before my dad knew what was happening.   Of course, it bled a lot but it never grew back. 

Mattie Clardy Buck outlived her husband, W. C. Buck by 26 years so more is known about her than about her husband.  She was a kind and caring woman, if a bit eccentric.

Her son, Hubert Nelson Buck, wrote that his mother was “An unreconstructed rebel until the day of her death (in her 92nd year). The misrule, fears, and chaos of reconstruction days having left searing and indelible marks in her memory.”

Family lore is that Mattie Buck was such a staunch rebel that she refused to travel down Grant or Sherman streets in Decatur.   However, she actually lived on Grant Street and then later on Sherman Street.  Another story is that Mattie Buck disowned her brother, George, when he moved to Pennsylvania in the 1920s. 

Helen Clementine Masterson, a granddaughter of Mattie Clardy Buck, wrote that “Granny” was Episcopalian before her marriage.  Mattie “wore her wedding slippers out dancing on her wedding day because she knew she would never be allowed to dance again -- Southern Baptists didn’t dance.”  Helen was a favored grandchild until she married a “damn yankee” at which time her grandmother reclaimed some jewelry that she had given to Helen.

Her grandson, Gordon S. Buck Sr. remembered “She was very tall, perhaps 5-9" or more; taller than her husband.  Her brothers were all big men -- more than six feet tall.”

Daddy told me a story of how his brother “Buddy” once almost got kicked out of the church because there was a rumor (which was probably true) that he had had a few drinks before going to a party.  A disciplinary committee was formed and, to their surprise, Grandma Buck showed up at their meeting.  She looked each of the members in the eye and reminded them that she was aware of problems they had had while growing up.  No action was taken.  

My dad always said (and his brothers and sisters agreed) that, on the death of her husband, his Grandma Buck forgave many debts that were owed him as a building contractor.  In particular, there were many debts from small churches that he had built or helped to build.  This caused some of her children to be greatly upset.  It is said that these debts were valued at approximately two hundred thousand dollars and that she either wrote “Paid in Full” on them or tore them up.  

Being named after my dad, I’d always heard how he and Nelson were named using maternal surnames.  When Daddy and I began our genealogy studies, I asked about the details of those ancestors.  Of course, he knew the Sandlin family and we quickly found the Roberts family but have never found any information on a Gordon or a Nelson family.  

Another grandson, Nelson R. Buck remembered that his Grandma Buck always said that she wasn't pretty and knew that she wasn't.  But she had a little poem that she often quoted:

"I know how ugly I are
I know my face ain't no star
But I don't mind it
for I'm behind it
the fellow in front gets the jar."

William Calmes Buck II

William Calmes Buck II, my great grandfather, was born on March 3, 1861 in Newbern, Alabama to Charles Willis Buck and Susan Croom Sparrow Buck.  

In the U. S. census of 1870, nine year old William is shown as living with his parents in Choctaw County, Alabama along with his brother Charles and sisters Susan, Mary and Miriam.  His father, Charles Willis Buck was a minister.  William is listed as “attending school”.

In the U. S. census of 1880, William is again shown as living with his parents but in Lee County, Brownville and Whittens, Alabama.  The family includes his brothers Charles, Robert, John and sisters Susan, Mamie, Belle, Bessie and Katie.  His father’s occupation had changed from minister to farmer and William is shown as working on the farm.

W. C. Buck and Martha Elizabeth Clardy were married on December 1, 1881 in Russell County, Alabama.  His wife’s name is given as Mattie Clarida on the marriage license – perhaps that is why she was so insistent on the proper spelling as “Clardy” in later years.  The marriage was performed by Charles Willis Buck, Sr., father of W. C. Buck II.

Martha Elizabeth Clardy was the daughter of William Clardy and Sarah W. Kelly.  She was born in November 1859 in Georgia.  In the 1880 census, she is shown as living in Beat 1, Gerard, Russell County, Alabama with her parents.  She worked in a cotton mill along with her father and brother, John.

After marriage, W. C. Buck and Mattie Clardy Buck lived in the Columbus, Georgia area for about eight years where he became a prominent businessman and city councilman.  He was an active member of the Missionary Baptist church.

W. C. Buck and Mattie Clardy Buck then moved to the New Decatur, Alabama area about 1888.  W. C. Buck came to Decatur to fulfill two general building contracts he had won.  His winning bid had beat out the two lumber yards in Decatur and the locals refused to sell to him.  He had to find a lumber supplier and found one in the Yancey family, on Brindlee Mountain, south of Huntsville on U S. 231 in eastern Morgan County.  For several years, lumber was shipped by wagon from the Yancey’s in the Union Grove community to Decatur - a trip of almost 40 miles.  His friendship continued with the Yancey’s for many years.  Two of W. C. Buck’s grandsons, Gordon and Nelson, spent several summers working there with the Yanceys.

In New Decatur, W.C. Buck, and his wife, Mattie, were founding members of the First Baptist Church.  This church was organized on October 3, 1889 with fourteen members.  Elder John Speer was the first pastor.  W. C. Buck was the clerk.  J. J. Sawyers and A. M. Lee were deacons.  When New Decatur became Albany, the church changed its name to First Baptist Church of Albany.  In 1923, Albany became part of Decatur and the church was again renamed to become Sixteenth Avenue Baptist Church. 

Sixteenth Avenue Baptist Church prior to 1980

W.C. Buck also was listed on the building committee of the Central Baptist Church about 1894.  In 1903, he was awarded the contract to build a house on Fourth Avenue for its pastor.

In New Decatur, W. C. Buck was primarily a building contractor but in the early 1900s he also owned retail stores.

Advertisement in New Decatur Advertiser 6/12/1903

Advertisement in New Decatur Advertiser 12/2/1904

Unfortunately, his retail businesses must not have worked out well because he declared bankruptcy in May of 1908.  After closing his retail businesses, he opened a saw mill and a lumberyard.  He also owned quite a bit of property including various lots in east Decatur, Alabama. 

In 1900, W. C. and Mattie Buck lived on Grant Street in New Decatur along with their children Carlisle, Helen, Lois, Murray, Hubert and Charles.  His occupation was described as a “house carpenter”.

Sometime before 1910, W. C. and Mattie Buck moved to Wolff, Alabama.  Wolff, now known as Union Hill, is on Brindlee Mountain where W. C. Buck was getting his lumber.  The 1910 census lists the family as including Lois, Murray, Hubert, Charles and David.  (His son, Carlisle, had married Susan Elizabeth Masterson in 1910 and remained in Decatur.  His daughter, Helen, had married Harvey Howard Masterson in 1910 and also was still in Decatur.)  William’s occupation is given as sawyer in a saw mill for which he was an employer.  His house was rented and was on a farm.  Several members of the Yancy family lived nearby.

After a few years in Wolff, W. C. and Mattie Buck moved to Birmingham.  His occupation was given as contractor/builder in his own business.  They must have moved to Birmingham before 1913 since the Birmingham City Directory for 1913 includes them as living on North 49 Street.

Sometime between 1920 and 1924, W. C. Buck moved to Florence, Alabama where he continued to be a building contractor.  In the early 1920s, the W. C. Buck house in Florence burned and all of his personal effects, records and photographs were lost.  Knowing that he was dying of cancer, he purchased an annuity for his wife, Mattie, from Metropolitan Life. This was her income during the depression.   W. C. Buck died of cancer on January 28, 1924 in Florence, Alabama.  He was buried in Decatur.

Mattie must have remained in Birmingham when W. C. Buck moved to Florence because she is included in the 1925 City Directory as the widow of W. C. Buck.  However she apparently moved to North 42 Drive.  Her name is also in the 1928 Directory. 

Sometime in the early 1930s, Mattie Buck moved in with her son, Hubert N. Buck.  According to the 1940 census, she lived with his family in 1935 and 1940.

Martha Elizabeth Clardy Buck died on January 12, 1950 in Decatur, Alabama. 

William Calmes Buck and Martha Elizabeth Clardy had the following children:

• William Calmes Buck III (1884-1888)
•  Carlisle Lamar Buck (1887 -1959) ; married Susan Elizabeth Masterson
•  Charles Clardy Buck (1900-1993) ; married Hilda C. Girten
•  Helen Dooley Buck (1891-1958); Harvey Howard Masterson
• David Edgar Buck (1902-1919); died in a boating accident
• Lois Buck (1893-1929)
• Murray Sandlin Buck (1896-1982); married Thelma Black
• Hubert Nelson Buck (1897-1974); married Vivian Eileen Watson. He drew a Buck Family Tree which is still widely used.
• Inez Buck (1890-1890)
• Two unnamed infants.

(to be continued)

William Calmes Buck's Children: Charles Willis Buck (1835-1900) (continued)

continued ...

Charles Willis Buck was

A Baptist minister, like his father.  He served as chaplain to various Alabama regiments during the Civil War, and later as pastor of a number of churches in central Alabama, his eleven children being born in eight different locations.  Most of his descendants reside (or did) in Alabama and Georgia.
                                         -- notes of Hubert Nelson Buck, 1965

Susan Croom Sparrow was a reigning belle of her day.  "A very lovely woman." - (Emma Virginia Buck)                              

Family lore is that C. W. Buck was a dentist.  His tombstone reads "Dr. C. W. Buck".  My dad remembers his father (C. L. Buck) saying that his grandfather pulled teeth.  Miriam Quarles remembered hearing that C. W. Buck developed procedures for "painless" dentistry.

Charles Willis Buck

Susan Croom Sparrow Buck

A letter from Charles Willis Buck to his wife during the Civil War.

Near 2hr Stewarts Div Hospital (Marietta, GA)

June 29, 1864

My Dear Precious Wife

I write again not because I have any news but because I know that you will wish to hear from me.  I wrote on Saturday and again on Sunday but this is Wednesday.  This morning as I was walking through town I saw a man whose face seemed familiar but I could not place him.  I went up to a gentleman who seemed to be acquainted with him and inquired his name and was told that it was Lewis Craig.  I called to him and after teasing him awhile as to myself I made myself known and you may be sure it was a pleasant meeting.  Lewis is the oldest living child of my mother’s sister Ann.  He and his brother Willis, Gid and myself were raised together and our attachment for sure awhile was as strong as brother’s love.   He informed us of the death of ….

(the back of the page was not available)

I consoled several and dressed some of their wounded.  We have been blessed in the last month of fighting as have lost only those killed in the present month, several wounded but none mortally.  I hope Pa and Silas write.  I must again say farewell for the moment.  Kiss my pretty boys for me and tell them Papa says “Howdy”.  Remember me kindly to all friends.  And for yourself my Darling, I send my heart it is ever missing you.  Sleeping or waking my dreams are ever of you and my heart responses only to one sweet face and name.  I sometimes feel that I can bear our separation no longer and must return to my Darling but then duty says “stop” and I obey.  Our meeting will be but sweeter for our long separation and I look forward to the day when in the mercy of God we shall be separated no more in life.  God grant that the day may be near when this dreadful war will be over and the poor soldier be permitted to return to his home again.  My God bless and protect you and our children.  May Angels watch over our family and may your life be as happy as my absence will allow.

Your Aff. Husband,

C. W. Buck

William Calmes Buck's Children: Charles Willis Buck (1835 -1900) continued

continued from previous post ...

In the summer of 1858, C. W. Buck and others met in the Methodist Church to discuss forming a Young Men's Christian Association in Selma, Alabama.  This was the first YMCA in the state of Alabama.

In 1858, C. W. Buck and his brother Giddings attempted to open a school in Sumterville as indicated by their advertisement in the Independent of Gainesville Alabama newspaper of December 12, 1857.  Apparently, this school was not successful as no further mention of it is available.

C. W. Buck and Susan Croom Sparrow Buck must have moved from the Greene county area in late 1859 because "sister Susan Buck" was granted a letter of dismissal the Saturday before the second Sunday of October, 1859.

In the 1860 census, C. W. Buck is shown as a Baptist Minister living in Marion, Perry County, Alabama with his wife.  They appear to be living in a boarding house or hotel.

In lists of Confederate soldiers, Charles W. Buck is shown to be a Chaplain in the 42^nd regiment of the Alabama Infantry.  The 42^nd was organized at Columbus, Mississippi in May 1862.  It participated in the siege of Corinth and the garrison at Vicksburg.

In 1870, Charles and Susan Buck lived in the town of Butler in Choctaw County, Alabama with their young family. Again, he is shown as being a Minister.

An advertisement in the Livingston Journal of September 29, 1871 indicates that C. W. Buck was an agent for the Mississippi Valley Life Insurance Company.

In 1872, the "Tuscaloosa Times", listing the death of his daughter, Mary Emma, referred to Rev. and Mrs. C. W. Buck.

In 1873, C. W. Buck was "Editor and Proprietor" of the "Crystal Fount" a newspaper "Devoted to Temperance, Morality, Literature and General Intelligence -- Neutral in Religion and Politics".  This "Family Paper", published in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, cost two dollars per year. In the November 3 issue for 1873, C. W. Buck's column (dated October 3) was in favor of prohibition, closing with "Destroy it from the land by forbidding it made and sold; and we shall soon have no drunkards to convert and save."   His column of October 7 was "We make Ourselves" in which he said that God's works are perfect and "man made himself what he is".  This issue also noted publication of the paper would be suspended for one month due in part to "failure of subscribers to pay up" and pleaded for financial support.  "We have done wrong in sending out the paper without the money, and will hereafter strictly abide by the cash system."  The Crystal Fount was published for only about two years.

From 1879 to 1881, C. W. Buck served as pastor at the Girard Baptist Church in Russell County, Alabama.

In 1880, He lived in Brownville and Whittens in Lee County, Alabama.  In this census, Charles is shown as being a farmer.  In addition to his family, now numbering nine children, the household includes Lucy Parker as a (white) servant along with her two young children.

By 1884, C. W. Buck had changed his profession from minister to farmer and then to dentistry.  He practiced a form of “painless” dentistry which he called “Electrodentis”.  An advertisement in the Tuskegee News dated October 2, 1884 seems to indicate that he was travelling from town to town and pulling teeth.

In 1897, the Montgomery, Alabama City Directory includes Charles W. Buck as a dentist.

Charles Willis Buck died in Montgomery, Alabama on April 8, 1900 of pneumonia brought on by influenza.

In the 1900 census, Susan C. Buck is shown as a widow and living in Glennville, Russell County, Alabama with her son-in-law A. D. Quarles and his wife Belle Sparrow Buck Quarles.  A. D. Quarles is shown as being a farmer and blacksmith.

Susan Croom Sparrow Buck died in Phenix City, Alabama April 26, 1906 apparently as the result of being thrown from a carriage.

... to be continued

William Calmes Buck's Children: Charles Willis Buck (1835-1900)

Charles Willis Buck was the third son born to William CalmesBuck and his second wife Isabella Miriam Field Buck. He was born on September 26, 1835 in Woodford County, Kentucky "at 5 min. past 7 a.m." according to the memoirs of his father, William Calmes Buck (I).  He was named in honor of his grandfathers Charles Buck and Willis Field.

According to the U. S. Census of 1850, Charles Willis Buck, age 14, was living with his parents and siblings in Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky.  His father, William C. Buck, is shown as being a Baptist Minister.  Charles was attending school.

Although his father was largely self-educated (but even so, referred to as “Dr. Buck” later in his life), Charles Willis received a formal education.  His early school years were in Louisville, Kentucky.  At about age 14, Charles and his younger brother Giddings were enrolled and boarded at Georgetown College in Kentucky.  Georgetown College was chartered in 1829 and was the first Baptist college west of the Allegheny Mountains.  After a few years at Georgetown, Charles and Giddings were enrolled and boarded at Union University in Tennessee after their mother died in 1852.   In fact, they boarded at the home of the president of Union College, Dr. Joseph Eaton.  Charles and his younger brother Giddings attended Union College whereas their sister Emma attended the Female Academy.  Giddings graduated in 1857 and, perhaps, Charles did as well. 

On October 21, 1857, Charles’s sister, Emma, while visiting in Front Royal, Virginia, noted in her diary “Hope Brother Charlie will succeed in getting a situation very soon.”  He was 22 years old.  On November 21, Charles visited Front Royal and the surrounding area.  Charles and Emma left Front Royal on December 9 for Washington D.C. where they visited the Capitol, Rotunda, Library, Senate Chamber and House of Representatives.  They departed for Baltimore on December 11 to visit relatives.  On December 18, they departed for Norfolk, Virginia on the steamer George.  They used railroad and other steamers to travel to Selma, Alabama where their father was living.  In Selma, Emma noted that she met Mrs. Croom (who would become Charles' mother-in-law).

Charles Willis Buck and Susan Croom Sparrow were married on September 13, 1857 in Greene County, Alabama. Susan Croom Sparrow, daughter of Robert J. Sparrow and Nancy E. Croom, was born on July 13, 1838 in Greene County, Alabama. The Sparrows were a well-to-do farming family in Greene County, Alabama.  In the census of 1860, the Sparrow farm, run by her mother, Nancy, after the death of her father, appears to be relatively valuable and in near proximity to other valuable farms.

Charles Willis Buck and Susan Croom Sparrow had the following children:

• William Calmes Buck II (1861-1924); married Martha Elizabeth Clardy, December 1, 1881.  As my great grandfather, he gets his own post in this blog as well as this short summary. 
•  Frances Buck (1862-1863)
•  Charles Willis Buck Jr. (1863-1883); married Martha Mahalia Clay
•  Susan Croom Buck (1866-1906); married William Thomas Quarles
•  Mary Emma Buck (1867-1872)
•  Miriam Field Buck (1869-1936); married Charles Davis Stringer
•  Robert Sparrow Buck (1870-1930); married Lenna Adams
•  John Hickman Buck (1872-1956); married Annie Zerada Johnson
•  Belle Sparrow Buck (1874-1964); married Abram David Quarles
•  Katie Steiner Buck (1878-1957); married Haywood Johnson 
• Elizabeth Davidge "Bessie" Buck (1876-1965) 

(to be continued)

William Calmes Buck's Children: Silas Calmes Buck (1847-1908)

Silas Calmes Buck and his twin brother, Paul, were sons of William Calmes Buck and Isabella Miriam Field.  They were born on November 1, 1847 in Louisville, Kentucky. Paul was born at "20 min. after 5 and Silas at half past 7" according to the notes of their father. 

Paul died on July 5, 1848 of “cholera infantum” - an acute noncontagious intestinal disturbance of infants, now relatively rare.

Silas’s sister, Emma, wrote in her diary of February 14, 1862 that Silas and his brother Field were in school at Carrolton (probably Alabama).

While only fourteen years old, Silas accompanied and assisted his father who served as a missionary to the soldiers of the Civil War. Before he was sixteen, he joined the 16th Confederate Cavalry as Color Bearer.  This group was still fighting a week after Lee's surrender. When word of the surrender reached his unit, Silas removed the flag from the staff and hid it under some leaves.  Later, Silas retrieved the flag and gave it to his commanding officer Colonel Philip B. Spence.  Many years later, Col. Spence brought it to Texas to an old soldier's reunion in Dallas.  A photograph was taken of Silas with the flag and he was allowed to keep it for a year.

Silas also served in Company D, 12th Mississippi Calvary having enlisted on October 15, 1864 at Pickensville as a private.  He was surrendered at Citronelle, Alabama on May 4, 1865 and paroled at Cainesville, Alabama on May 14, 1865.  Philip B. Spence was lieutenant colonel of the 12^th Mississippi Cavalry which was also known as the 16^th Regiment of the Confederate Cavalry.

After the war, Silas studied law at Waco University (now Baylor).  He moved to Stephenville, Texas about 1875 where he continued the practice of law and was soon elected District Attorney.  He helped to bring law and order to those fourteen counties.  One of the most notorious criminals that he prosecuted was John Wesley Hardin whom Silas Buck sent to the penitentiary.  Overwork in his office resulted in ill health for much of the later years of his life.  With his poor health came financial hard times.

His daughter, Emma Virginia Buck, wrote that some thought him severe but he was actually was not.  He was "just in his disciple and a most loving and self-sacrificing father, and a devoted husband.  He was a humble sincere Christian, taught his children the Bible, tried to train them in its precepts and to instill in them a vital faith in God."

Silas Calmes Buck and Georgia Rebecca Titus were married on July 25, 1877 in Texas.  Georgia Rebecca Titus, daughter of Peter Wright Titus and Susan Torrence Hines, was born on June 9, 1854 in Texas. Her daughter, Emma Virginia Buck wrote that "No woman ever lived in Stephenville who was more beloved than my mother."  More than twenty nieces, nephews and grandchildren were taken into her home to attend the Stephenville schools.

Silas Calmes Buck and Georgia Rebecca Titus had the following children:

•         Mary Susan Buck (1879-1966); married Harrison D. Buck, 1918.  Harrison D. Buck was the son of Giddings Judson Buck and Mary Cottingham Halbert.
•         Emma Virginia Buck (1880-1975); married Rube Hendrix.  She lived in Stephenville all her life. Emma Virginia Buck was the author of a well-used and appreciated Buck family history.  In a letter to Gordon S. Buck, Sr., Emma wrote:  "... Cousin Charlie told me that his brother, Will, was the very best man he knew."  (This would be Charles Willis Buck, Jr. speaking of William Calmes Buck, II, grandfather of Gordon S. Buck, Sr.)
•        Silas Calmes Buck Jr. (1883-1963); married Ada Williams.
•         Mattie Buck (1887-1887)
•         William E. Buck (1887-1887)
•         Georgia Buck (1893-1977); married Thomas Jewell Arnold.  Thomas Jewell Arnold applied for a Confederate Pension for Georgia Rebecca Titus Buck in 1928.  The pension was approved October 1, 1928.  Her application and the approval process included information and even some letters from Silas.

Silas Calmes Buck signed his will on March 27, 1904 in Erath County, Texas.  His wife, Georgie Titus Buck, was the sole executrix of his will which was witnessed by Susie Buck (probably their daughter) and L. N. Frank.

Georgia Rebecca Titus Buck died on August 15, 1939 at the age of 85.  She was buried in West End Cemetery, Erath, Texas.  Silas Calmes Buck died in 1908 at the age of 61 in Erath County, Texas.

William Calmes Buck's Children: Willis Field Buck (1845-1888)

Willis Field Buck was a son of William Calmes Buck and Isabella Miriam Field.  He was born June 26, 1845 at “11 ½ pm” in Louisville, Kentucky according to the notes of his father.  He was usually called “Field”.

His sister, Emma, wrote in her diary of February 14, 1862 that Field and Silas were in school at Carrolton (probably Alabama).  A few days later, she wrote that Field was begging for his father’s permission to join the army which “Pa does not intend to give.”  On July 23, she wrote that Field had joined the 36^th Mississippi Regiment.  He was 17 years old.  Emma often wrote of making clothes, socks and gloves for Field.  On November 1, she wrote of Field “Poor boy, he must have suffered during his imprisonment.  I hope the Yankees won’t get him again.”  Apparently, Field was captured at the Battle of Corinth.  On December 30, she wrote that Field had been sick.  Field had applied for the rank of lieutenant but was denied because he was not yet 18 years old.  Field was stationed at Vicksburg, Mississippi in May, 1863 when it fell to the Union army.  In 1864, Emma wrote that Field had arrived on July 24^th on his way to the Parole Camp at Demopolis, Alabama.  She visited him several times at that camp.  After Field was “exchanged” he was sent to Tennessee and fought in the Battle of Missionary Ridge.  He was then hospitalized for several weeks in Montgomery before returning to his regiment just before Christmas.

After the Civil War, Field entered Louisville Medical College and graduated in 1867.   He then joined his father in Waco, Texas and began his medical practice. 

In 1868, Field and his brother Giddings visited their sister Mary and her husband Rezin Davidge in Staton Island, New York.  Apparently, they were attempting (unsuccessfully) to find a publisher for a book by their father, William Calmes Buck, and they stayed in New York for several months.  In a letter to his wife, Giddings wrote “Field is not much of a stroller and sight seer, loves to sit in the house, read and smoke.”

In Texas, Field married Anna William Harrison, daughter of Richard Harrison and Mary Ragsdale on October 27, 1872, in Waco.  She was called “Nannie”.

Sometime in 1879, Field and his family moved to Stephenville, Texas.  His brother, Silas, also lived in Stephenville.  Apparently, Field was not in good health and hoped that his health would improve in Stephenville.  He lived in Stephenville at the time of the 1880 census and gave his occupation as “M.D.”. 

Field’s health did not improve in Stephenville and he moved to Pecos in Reeves County.  Pecos was said to be truly the “wild west”.  Field built up a large practice in Pecos but was so isolated that he had to be his own druggist, surgeon, obstetrician and oculist.  He even furnished a charity ward.

Willis Field Buck and Anna William Harrison had four children:

• ·        Mary Ragsdale Buck (1874-1875)
• ·        Margaret Earle Buck (1875-1887)
• ·        Richard H. Buck (1878-1879), said to have died of croup in Comanche, Texas.
• ·        Miriam Field Buck (1881-1887).

All of their children died young.  It seems that some sort of epidemic must have been active in 1887 and into 1888.  Anna William Harrison Buck died on March 11, 1888 in Waco, Texas.  Field committed suicide a few months after the death of his wife and died August 14, 1888 in Baird, Texas.  At the time of his death, Field was said to be about 5’8” tall and weigh about 130 pounds.  He was reported to use alcohol and opiates regularly and was writing about spiritualism as he imagined that evil spirits were after him.  Both Field and Nannie are buried in the old First Street Cemetery of Waco, Texas.