THE SECOND GENERATION

From the book "The Linkous Family History Expanded" by Clovis E. Linkous

(*Note text added in Dark Blue are from my own personal research)


1. John Linkous m. Elizabeth Trolinger

11. Adam (1806-1892) m.1825 Nancy Long (1809-1889)
12. Henry (1801-1885) m.1825 Margaret Elizabeth Shell (1804-1889)
13. John M. (1804-1883) m.1827 Hannah Jane Whitt (1808-1882)
14. Abraham (1811-1883) m.1838 Emeline Simpson Surface (1819-1885)
15. Betsy (1819-1885) m.1837 James Peter Hite (1818- )
16. Eliza (1814- ) m.1842 Joseph Roberts (1793-1854)
17. Mary (1809-1868)

John and Betty lived their entire life in Montgomery Co.,Virginia. John was left with his father's blacksmith tools upon his father's death implying that this was a major activity of the family. John died the same year as his father, but the way the bequestis made in the will for the blachsmith tools suggests John was in good health at the time of his father's death. In 1813, John was commissioned as Ensign in the 75th Regiment, 19th Brigade & 30th Division. In 1815, he was recommended to the Governor to be appointed Lieutenant in the Light Infantry Co., 75th Reg., 2nd Bat. (court order book 18, Montgomery Co., VA). Betty (Elizabeth) Trolinger was of the Trolinger family of Alamance Co., North Carolina and later of Pulaski Co. VA. The names of the daughters, "Betsy" & "Eliza" suggests that their mother shared her "Elizabeth" name with both; one got the "Eliza" part and the other got the "Beth" part.


2. George Linkous m. Mary ____________

21. Jacob (1800- )m.____________
22. son
23. son
24. daughter
25. daughter
26. son
27. son

George moved from Montgomery Co. VA to Dubois Co. IN sometime between 1800 and 1820. Dubois Co. was purchased from the Indians on June 7, 1803 and was put on sale by the US Government in 1804-5. The county was organized in 1817. The 1820 census list Geroge Linlous in Dubois Co. as a framer with wife plus 3 males & 2 females. The 1830 census list George with wife plus 4males & 2 females plus Jacob Linkous, apparently the oldest son of George. The 1840 census list Mary Linkous (without George who is apparently dead) plus 4 males & 1 female. The 1850 census list Mary Linkous, age 73 and born in Virginia, with James Linkous (1835- ), born in Indiana. The 1850 census also list Jacob Linkous, born 1800, without a wife, plus 1 male & 2 females and that Jacob was born in Virginia. The name is regularly spelled "LINCUS" in these census records. A book, "History of Pike & Dubois Counties: says that Jacob Lincus was among the early settlers. The will of Henry Linkous (George's father) ststes that George is in Indiana.


3. Thomas Linkous m. Susanna ___________

31. Benjamin R. (1825-1887) m. (1st) Susan F. Beckley (1834-__) m. (2nd) Augusta Bessie Browning (1847-1922)
32. daughter
33. daughter
34. son

Thomas Linkous is listed in the 1820, 1830, & 1840 censuses. The 1820 census indicated Thomas had 2 daughter born between 1810 & 1820. The 1830 census indicates a second son born between 1820 & 1830. Benjamin is the only child whose name has been discovered. The 1830 census also states that he owned 2 female slaves. Thomas apparently got into financial difficulties in later life. Deed book M-688 of Montgomery Co. records that he mortgaged his house & two lots in the year 1841. Then, in 1842, there is added to the list of mortagaged items the following: 1 sorrel horse, 1 roan colt, 2 head of milk cows, 10 sheep, 20 hogs, 1 bureau, 2 looms, 4 tables, 1 cupboard & sofa, 3 candle stances, 7 chairs, 1 kettle, 1 large pot, 1 copper kettle, 3 ovens, 2 small pots, 2 skillets, 4 candle stocks, 2 pair hand irons, 4 beds & furniture, 1 trunk, 1 wagon & gears, 1 clock & 1 stove. The mortgages of 1842 were to John A. Stanger, his sister's son, to raise money for him to pay his debt to Adam Wall & others. Deed book N-4 records that he declared bankruptcy and the mortgage is foreclosed. Thomas was involved in buying & selling land as early as 1811. (see deed book E-114 & E-96)


4. Jacob Linkous m. Mary Kipps

41. Larkin (1811-___) m.1839 Ardelia Shepherd
42. Wheeler F. (1836-___) m. 1866 Mary R. Kammitt (1840-___)
43. James Ballard (1835-1907) m. 1855 Elizabeth Jane Keister (1835-1927)
44. Crockett (1818-1889) m. 1855 Mary Catherne Kipps (1831-1915)
45. John Mitchell Hevy (1823-___) m. (1st) 1840 Jane Davis (1820-___) (2nd) Mary Alice Songer (1855-___)
46. William Ballard (___-1847)
47. Amy (1819-1901) m. 1840 Samuel Kipps
48. Harriet m. (1st) 1844 John W. Clemens (2nd) Ruben Fellers (3rd) Wood Gitt
49. Nancy m. 1845 William Songer
4(10). Elizabeth m. Gordon Songer
4(11). Mandy m. William Gitt
4(12). Doshay m. 1824 John Long
4(13). Mariah (___-1832)

Jacob is listed as head of a household in the 1810 Montgomery Co. census. He does not appear in the Deed Books of Montgomery Co. as having purchased any lands. He apparently had a go at Tennessee for his son, John Mitchell, is listed as having been born there. The 1860 census lists his worth as $90. He may have been an overseer for some of the wealthy men of the county for that was the occupation of some of his sons. He died in Montgomery Co. according to Court Order Book No. 31, page 95.


5. Elizabeth Linkous m. Jacob Stanger

51. Henry S. (1819-1867) m. 1850 Ellen J Webb (1824-___)
52. John A. (1818-1881) m. (1st) 1839 Eliza Cory (2nd) 1846 Mary Polly Davis
53. Thomas A. (1824-___) m. 1856 Edmonia Davis

Elizabeth and John Stanger mostly lived in Montgomery Co. Virginia, but spent some time in Kentucky for the 1860 census records that Henry S. Stanger was born there. The 1830 census states that Elizabeth Stanger was head of the household with her 3 sons, so apparently Jacob died before 1830. The 1880 Montgomery Co. census records that the father of John A. Stanger was born in Ireland. However, Stanger is a German surname. Elizabeth's father's will suggest she may have come into her father's disfavor, but no reason for this has been discovered. Perhaps she had received her inheritance earlier.


6. Henry Linkous Jr. m. Frances Shell

61. Burgess Riely "Bird" (1827-1902) m. 1865 Mary Elizabeth Monroe (1844-1921)
62. Josephus Price (1832-1893) m. 1870 Martha Frances Armentrout (1843-1925)
63. John Taylor (1825-1892) m. 1856 Martha Jane Creasy (1840-1906)
64. Edwin J. Amiss (1835-1908) m. 1865 Alzira Ellen Elizabeth Carper (1845-___)
65. Robert McGafic (1841-1862) um.
66. Landonia (1823-___) m. Noah Kipps
67. Mary Elizabeth (1830-1889) m. 1856 Michael Kipps (1827-1903)
68. Jaetta Hart (1838-1918) um.

Henry Linkous Jr. was the most prosperous of the 9 children of Henry Linkous. He bought out the inheritance of the other 8 children in the in the home place of his father and expanded the farm from 200 acres to 538 acres. He was known as "Big" Henry to distinguish him from his father and from "Little" Henry (12.) who was his nephew. Mary Elizabeth Kipps Creasy (6744.) told the writer that she had seen a pair of his trousers and that they reached from her shoulders to the floor. He was undoubtedly aided in his prosperity by the inheritances of his wife from her father. Henry Jr. was appointed Constable on & off over the period from 1817 to 1841. He was named Captain in the 75th Reg. of the Infantry of the line in the 19th Brigade & 3rd Division of the Virginia Militia on May 17, 1837. Frances & Henry are buried on the hill above the home place houses and their graves are the only ones of their generation which the writer has found identified.
Jacob Shell Sr. (Shulls) was born in Pennsylvania in 1720 and died in Virginia in 1820. He had 11 children, one of which was Jacob Jr. (1752-1811) married Polly Burks and had 8 children. Three of these children married into the Linkous family; namely,

John Henry Shell m. Hannah Linkous (9.)
Frances Shell m. Henry Linkous Jr. (6.)
Margaret Elizabeth Shell m. Henry Linkous (12.)

Jaetta (68.-- "Aunt Jet") was engaged to George Kipps who was killed in the Civil War. He sent her a seedling as a symbol of his love. The tree livied and grows on the lawn of the Linkous-Kipps home place. She is quoted as saying, " It is better to love what you cannot have than to have what you cannot love." The writers father said she was a very kind person.


7. Adam Linkous m. (1st) Margaret "Peggy" Rader (2nd) 1834 Margaret Reeder
(no children have been found for 2nd marriage)

71. Lucinda (1817-1896) um.
72. Caroline (1820-1902) m. 1840 William Anderson Kinkead (1819-1902)
73. Davidson Bennett (1822-1896) m. 1846 Mary _________ (1820-1904)
74. Barnabas B. (1827-1871) m. 1851 Mary Grose (1832-___)
75. Catherine J. (1829-1898) um.
76. John Floyd (1832-___) m. Mary C. _________ (1820-___)

The 1820 census of Montgomery Co., Virginia list Adam with 2 daughters under the age of 10 years, so we can be almost certain that Lucinda & Caroline were born in Virginia. Montgomery Co. Deed Book K, page 310 strongly implies that Adam was living in Montgomery Co. in 1826, because George is specifically listed as living in Indiana, but Adam is listed with the other Montgomery Co. heirs of their father. Adam has not been found in the 1830 census in any state. Adams marriage to Margaret Reeder in 1834 was in Virginia, so it is probable that his first wife, Peggy Rader, had died after the birth of John Floyd 1832 and before this second marriage. The above 6 children of Adam & Peggy have all been found by name in censuses from 1850 onward in a context consistent with being Adam's children; that is, in Hawkins Co, Tennessee. The evidence that these 6 children were all that were raised in his household is from the entry in the 1840 Hawkins, Co. census with Adam as head of the household. All 6 children, which in the 1840 are only itemized by age bracket and not named, fit with the dates shown above. These birth years shown above are more or less the average of the birth years for each individual as they were listed by name in the census of 1850 & beyond. There is a variability in subsequent censuses about the state in which the children were born.

Lucinda, Davidson, Barnabas, Catherine, & John Floyd are shown in the Hawkins Co. 1850 census as being born in Tennessee. The 1860 census indicates Lucinda, Davidson, Barnabas, & Catherine were born in Virginia, but John Floyd, & Caroline as being born in Tennessee. The 1870 census shows Lucindia & Catherine as born in Virginia. The 1880 census indicates Davidson was born in Tennessee. So, unfortunately, we cannot use much "tight" logic to draw conclusions from this information. It seems to the writer that the likelihood is that Adam was shuffling back & forth between Virginia & Tennessee in the period 1816 to 1834.

Adam was a soldier in the War of 1812 as evidenced by Certificate No. 31676 allowed to Margaret (Reeder), his 2nd wife & widow, in May 1881. She was granted $8. According to the application, Reverend McMullen married Adam & Margaret (Reeder) in Virginia in 1834 & Adam died in Tennessee in 1841. No record has been found to show that Adam ever owned real estate or paid taxes in Hawkins Co. However, his widow Margaret (Reeder), was awarded land in Hawkins Co. in 1855 for his service.

There is more to the story. We have another Tennessee Linkous to connect!

What Origin for John Barnett Linkous?

John Linkous ("Lincus", in the actual records) first appears in the Marriage Records of Hawkins Co., Tennessee and then in the 1850 and 1860 census records of Grainger Co., Tennessee. In 1850, the entry is John B. Lincos, age 26, born in TN; Mary A. (wife), age 32; Margaret Housewright, age 32; and Delila [Housewright], age 19. Margaret & Delila are apparently sisters to Mary Ann. In 1860, the entry is John Lincus, age 39, born in TN; Mary (wife), age 39; and Gibson M. (son), age 10 years. Note that there is a geographical separtion in this time period between the Adam & Peggy's descendants, all in Hawkins Co., and John Barnett Linkous household in Grainger Co.

A Carter County, Tennessee Certificate of Death for Gibson Linkus has been found, filed from information by J.H Linkus, [John Hiram Linkes (7721.)]. It states that Gibson Linkus father was John Linkus, born in Tennessee, and that his mother was Mary Housewright, born in Virginia. A "Burial or Removal Certificate" has also been found for Gibson Linkus. It authorizes removal of Gibson's body from Elizabethton, TN to Butler, TN for burial. This certificate is signed by C.C. Linkes as the person in charge of the cemetery [Center Copeland Linkes (7711.)].

There are several ties in the record between the Linkous name and the name "Brice". A Hawkins Co. court record pertaining to a voting district refers to "Floid Linkous alias Brice". [His adult trail has never been picked up as John Floyd Linkous, so maybe he used the name Brice in his adult life.] Also, the Hawkins Co. census shows Mary Brice, born 1822, and apparent son John Brice, born 1840, living with Adam's widow (2nd wife), Margaret. The 1881 application by Margaret for military service pension for service by Adam in the War of 1812 has a person named James Brice for a witness. Also, in this file there is a letter dated: January 10, 1882 written by John F. Brice stating that he is the grandson of (2nd wife) Margaret. There is a statement given by Margaret for her pension, witness and signed by James T. Brice on behalf of her.

The record of Hawkins Co. also shows John B. Linkus married his 2nd wife in 1873.

Adam Linkous (7.) is the only known Linkous with a Tennessee connection whose age made it possible for him to be John B. Linkous father. [Adam was 28 years old in 1821.] Possibly Adam fathered John B. Linkous, born 1821, & Mary Brice, born 1822, by an unwed Tennessean mother surnamed Brice. It is judged probable by the writer that Adam was indeed John B.'s father, but out of wedlock. (This is a probability & not a fact! Other reasons for the surname of John Barnett Linkous could be that he was sired by one of Adam's Virginia brothers; or simply that he used the surname Linkous without having a Linkous male as his biological father.)

Because of these possibilities and because we need some place to hang this family, clearly with a Linkous connection, on the family tree, the writer will show the descendants of John Barnett Linkous (77.) with the numerical code perfix "(77.)" as though they were descendants of Adam (7.). Hopefully, future research will either show this to be correct or incorrect.


8. Alexander Linkous m. Mary Polly Allen

81. William Anderson (1820-1898) m. (1st) Didana Smith (1827-1876) (2nd) 1877 Lucinda Kersey
82. Charles (1840-___) m. Eliza Jane _________
83. Juda (died in infancy)
84. Madison Adam (1834-1896) m. 1857 Narcissa C.P. Godby (1840-___)
85. George (1817-___) m. 1838 Elizabeth J. Litton (1813-___)
86. Arminta m. 1845 Elijah Turner
87. Hannah m. ______ Rankin
88. John Allen (1822-1846) m. 1852 Mary Marinda Godby (___-1922)
89. Thomas (1825-___) m. Sarah Ann Carner
8(10). Elizabeth m. 1852 William Kidd

Alexander and Polly lived their entire lives in Montgomery Co., Virginia as is evidenced by their appearance in every census from 1820 to & including 1860. Alexander purchased land in 1846, according to Deed Book O-172, from John Henry Shell. Alexander and wife, Polly, had their son George baptized on June 7, 1818 in St. Michael's Lutheran Church, which stood on a notch out of Alexander's father's farm. The record of subsequent years does not show that they continued to attend.


9. Hannah Linkous m. John Henry Shell

91. Harriett um.
92. William Pearis m. 1843 Jane Henderson
93. Floyd Crockett m. Matilda Mustard
94. Levenia Ellen (1840-___) m. 1864 Harmon Keister (1835-___)
95. Margaret (1822-___) m. 1855 Andrew Harless (1827-___)

John and Hannah apparently remained in Montgomery Co., Virginia for we find a sale of land by John to Alexander Linkous in 1846 and finally a deed of land to Harriett from John H. Shell in 1889. This last item is probably the settlement of his estate.


End of Second Generation

If you have information to share, photos to add to the photo album, or see any mistakes in the Linkous / Linkes family history, please let us know as we are human to error. Contact me by E-mail



The information used from the book, "The Linkous Family History Expanded," on this website is Copyright 1997 by Clovis E. Linkous
All rights reserved.
Permisssion to reproduce in any form must be secured from the author.
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 97-74305



The Linkes/Linkous Family History Homepage.

Third Generation of Henry Linkous.

John Barnett Linkous & descendants.