Come All You Tender Hearted

compiled by Teresa Martin Klaiber
December 2010

By now all my readers should be aware of my love of ballads and how they can be used in genealogy and history.

My families genealogy includes the sad story of Floyd Alson McCormack [1836-1906] and wife Francis Jane Ratliff McCormack's two daughters deaths in Carter County,Kentucky..

A few years ago a family cousin, Robert McCormack, asked if I knew of a ballad sang by the Stanly Brothers. I immediately sent him the copy from Ballad Makin in the Mountains of Kentucky by Jean Thomas. What is interesting about her publication is that she says the ballad "came to Jilson Setters' ears..." It did not say that Jilson Setters aka William Day was the author.

Over the years Robert has collected several versions of the ballad and now has a web page that is a true delight. Simply titled The Fire Tragedy, I am sure my readers will enjoy it.

As the snow storm moves into Eastern Kentucky, I am scanning McCormack items in my collection and refreshing my memory concerning the ballad. Among my items is a copy of the Carter County Herald, Olive Hill, Kentucky, dated 26 October 1922. The article is titled "A Sad Recollection."

This article has a few inconsistencies and states that Mrs. Francis McCormick was a widow residing in Flat Woods, Carter County and suffered from rheumatism. After putting her little girls to bed, she went to the neighbor's house to get some liniment and while there the house caught fire and burned. This article states the the affair happened in 1867.

The newspaper version follows:

Come all ye tender hearted
Your attention I will call;
I'll tell you how it started,
Come listen one and all.
On Wednesday night there was a light
Saw shining on the hill;
A mother ran with all her might,
While everything was still.
Two little girls had gone to bed,
While mother ached with pain;
"I'll get some liniment," she said,
"And soon return again."
Don't stay too long, dear mother,
For well be lonesome here,"
And then mother might have seen
Them drop a silent tear.
She went into a neighbor's house,
Some hundred yards away,
Twas there she sat and talked with them
Bud did not mean to stay.
They hear a noise life thunder
As the flames began to roar;
Ain't it an awful wonder
They never went to the door?
Time passed on much longer,
But still she did not go;
Ain't it an amazing wonder
The mother acted so?
When she started home again
Her house was in a flame;
She cried, "My babies, you're gone,
I am the one to blame."
She burst the door asunder
The flames rolled over her head.
She cried aloud, "No wonder."
She found her babies dead.
The little ones had gone to sleep
Before their mother came.
Oh how still they slept,
Wrapped in the red hot flame.
Their little bones lay on the ground,
They both lay face to face,
Their arms they were entwined around
Each other they did embrace.
Don't grieve for them, dear mother,
For they are now at res,
Ain't it an amazing wonder
How soon they both were blessed?
If they had said with you, ma,
Till they had both grown old,
They could not have purchased what they have
Though they had a world of gold.
We know they are gone from you, ma,
It's their eternal gain;
They're beyond the curtains of the sky
Where they'll never know no pain.
We know they're gone from you, ma;
God will it so to be;
Just put your trust in him, ma;
Your babes you soon shall see.

This version published in the Carter paper states that it was composed by M. J. Williams in 1888. The version published by Jean Thomas varies in many ways and never uses the word ain't or ma.

The story has some twists. In 1870 Francis was living in Greenup County, Kentucky working as a seamstress with her children and an Elizabeth Williams age 67 born in East Virginia. The little girls vary in ages from 8 years old to 6 months. Husband Floyd is not in the household. However he reappears in 1880 in Lawrence County living with a younger wife Martha [Haney]. Thus she was not a widow in 1870. Floyd did not die until 20 June 1906.

Looking for M. J. Williams who composed the ballad in 1888, I found Montraville J. Williams, the son of Jefferson Brooks Williams living next door to John Q. A. Davis, a violin and dulcimer maker in 1880 in Olive Hill, Carter County, Kentucky. Williams is 22 years old working on his fathers farm but was certainly influenced by John Q. A. Davis and his music.

Kentucky Vital records show that Montraville J. [spelled a variety of ways] was born 24 February 1858 in Smokey Valley, Carter County to Jefferson B. and Mary Griffith Williams.

By 1900 Montraville Williams is living with a sister's family and is selling organs. Montraville appears to have never married and is found in 1920 living as a boarder in Eagle, Carter County with no occupation, just two years prior to the writing of the article in the Carter County newspaper.

I was able to to locate the obituary of "Mont J." Williams published 17 January 1929 in the Carter Herald. With a special thanks to James Powers at the Boyd County Library, I did not have to make the drive on this snowy day to obtain the obit. We discussed what a wonderful genealogy find the obituary was because it lists when each of the siblings pre-deceased Montraville. Sadly the article does not state the one thing I had hoped - which was his occupation and involvement with music and musical instruments. According to the obituary Montraville J. Williams died 12 January 1929 and was buried at Globe, Kentucky.

Anyone with further information on any other ballads that M. J. Williams may have compiled is encouraged to contact me.


clip art by: www.clker.com

William H. Mackoy, Greenup County, KY - More to the Story

compiled by Teresa Martin Klaiber

My copy of the History of Greenup County, Kentucky was handed down to me. It is cherished and belonged to my great uncle Henri Gorath Halderman.

Uncle Henri had a knack for writing notations in books. Yes, we are taught in school not to deface or dog ear or write in books. But how wonderful that Henri still talks to me through the many books from his library. Some of his entries are humorous, many historical and a few naughty. He also glued clippings and even stuck stamps in books.

As a side bar, the back of my copy of the Greenup history includes four prepaid sales tax stamps for the state of Ohio, now collector items. In pencil under the stamps Henri wrote "I returned a book on which I paid tax evidently the clerk allowed me credit on the tax as well as the first cost. For I paid 10 cents for this book and the state tax would be 30 cents. 1951."

The history book was written by Nina Biggs and Mabel Lee Mackoy in 1951 and Uncle Henri's memory of the incident written about on page 86 was to large to include in the margins so he paper clipped a sheet of writing paper to the page. Since he presented the book to my mother I believe he was addressing her when he wrote his memories of that fatal day.

Page 86 has a sub title "Tragedies" and includes several incidences. Paragraph two:

"In 1887, William H. Mackoy, of Siloam, was killed when a gun he was carrying was accidentally discharged as he was mounting his horse."

In pencil Uncle Henri has written " Dr. S. S. Halderman, Sciotoville was called." Then attached, in ink, is the story as told by Henri Gorath Halderman. Henri was the son of Stephen Simpson Halderman, M.D. I have left all spelling and writing in Halderman's own words.

"On page 86 - it is recorded that William H. MacKoy was accidently shot while hunting. He was climbing over a fence and carelessly placed his gun over the fence and leaned upon it to climb over and the gun was discharged as I recall so it was told. Your grandfather S. S. Halderman was located at Sciotoville at the time and was called. He took me with him and while he was engaged I was amusing myself by climbing upon a stake and rider fence to see better the men working on the C&O RR bed which had but at that time was built thru to Maysville, KY. I ran a splinter in my left thumb and upon removing home father cut it out - my thumb nail yet shows a split where father cut a 'V' shaped piece out to remove the splinter. I was 11 years old and remember yet how hungry I grew waiting on the river bank for a skiff with Mrs. Davis to get across the Ohio River to home.

Apropos of all this, I was told by one of the author's of this book, Mabel Mackoy that at the time of the accident to William Mackoy the question arose "what doctor shall we call" and Mabel's father suggested Dr. S. S. Halderman just across the river and added - by the way Dr. Halderman is a DEMOCRAT, too..."

I was able locate the sale that followed William Mackoy's administration, published in the Portsmouth Times 26 November 1887. "Saturday, December 3rd, at the residence of the late W. H. Mackoy, Greenup County, Kentucky, opposite Sciotoville, Ohio at 10:00 a.m." Among the items being cited in the sale is a horse, a colt, cows and sundry items. J. B. "Macoy" was administrator.

As a child walking along Gay Street in Portsmouth, hand in hand, with my great uncle I can remember seeing the funny shape of his thumb nail. He loved his books and had a large collection on the 2nd floor of the family home. Tomorrow I am sure to open another book and find more tidbits, wisdom and wit that are scribed in his hand.

William Henry Mackoy
born 31 August 1856
died 16 November 1887
burial: Old Christian Church Cemetery at Siloam.