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Appreciating the past.............
 
             Anticipating the future.

I would like to take this opportunity to say, "Thanks" to everyone who contributed information, stories, pictures and documents; for without your help this web site would not be possible. I started researching my family history in 1996, after I retired and so far have spanned 13 generations, from my 7th great grandparents in the 1600's, to my great grandchildren. If anyone else has family history to share, please send it to me.
 
Earl Johnson

My 7th great grandparents on Wesley Thomas 'Wes Tom' Johnson's (my father) side of the family were Lucas Shalle/Scharle and Anna Catherina. Lucas was born in Thiuerwasen, Germany. They had a son named Karl Charl/Shirley born before 1700, (the lineage to me). 
 
My 6th great grandparents were Karl Charl/Shirley and Anna Ester. They had a son born named Johann Michael Shirley born December 18, 1732 in Wurzweiler, Pfalz, Germany. (The lineage to me).
 
My 5th great grandparents  were Johann Michael Shirley & Catherine "Katy" (Franz or Frantz) Shirley. Michale was born in Germany December 18, 1732. He migrated to England and later he migrated to Spain (family tradition has a Shirley being sent as an ambassador to Spain and left stranded in Spain when England's king was overthrown by a brother) before coming to America and landing at Plymouth Rock. He served as a bonded surveyor from 1761 to 1769 in Augusta County, Virginia. He enlisted in the Revolutionary War December 1, 1777 in the 3rd. Regt., and his name appears on company rolls until 1779. 
 
Catherine "Katy"  was born in Paris France in 1743. She arrived in America with her father, mother and two younger siblings. Shortly after they arrived her mother died and her father took the two children and returned to France. They were never heard from again and it is assumed they were lost at sea. Katy stayed in America and lived with her aunt and uncle (her mother's brother) in Ft. Washington, Maryland, now known as Washington D.C. Michael Shirley was in line marching by when he saw Katy and fell in love with her. They were married in Ft. Washington in 1760. They lived in Pennsylvania, Virginia and Kentucky.
 
Michael was shot by Indians; they broke both his legs and left him for dead.  He fell from the house and hid behind a log and the Indians left him to capture his horse. Michael crawled to a tree, then back and forth to a stream of water as the trail indicated. On a vine he cut with a pin-knife, how the Indians shot him and marked each day he lived. On the sixth day he said he felt death. His family found him dead there, and if he died on the sixth day it was 7/23/1784. He died at Station Camp, Ft. Boonesboro, Kentucky. The family buried him where they found him. Katy died January 23, 1825 in Madison County, Kentucky. Michael and Catherine "Katy" had eight children. One of them was a daughter born February 23, 1762, and they named her Mary Ann Shirley. (The lineage to me).
 
Mary Ann Shirley married William McGuire February 23 rd. 1878 in Shenandoah Valley, Rockingham County, Virginia. They were married by Rev. John Alderson. They were my 4th. great grandparents. They had a son and named him Michael after his grandfather.
 
William was a lieutenant in the Revolutionary War. Mary Ann accompained him and fought along side him. Many other wives also accompanied their husbands and fought with them and helped them. Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) state that Mary Ann molded bullets at the battle of Saratoga in New York.
 
William and Mary Ann, and their son Michael (called Bennie), were taken prisoner by the British soldiers May 12 th., 1780 at Charleston, Virginia and were taken to Montreal, Quebec in Canada. William was 32 years old, Mary Ann was 18 and Michael was 2. They were held there for two years by the British. August 1, 1781 while still in prison, another son was born to them and they named him Thomas McGuire. (The lineage to me).
 
On September 16, 1782, William and Mary Ann, and their two sons Michael "Bennie" and Thomas, were placed on a list to be released and returned home. Shortly afterwards they were released, or escaped, the records are not too clear. William, Mary Ann and their two sons were making their way back to Virginia on foot, enduring the brutal Canadian winter. The records state that they wandered through deep snow and faced many hardships. When they were somewhere around the Lake Champlain area they stopped at a graveyard to spend the night. With their scanty blankets they tried to prevent the two children from freezing by lying down between two graves with the children between them. Mary Ann put Thomas, the baby, inside her clothing and buttoned her coat over him. Bennie lay between his parents, but during the night he froze to death. The grieving parents scratched out a shallow grave in the frozen Canadian ground, and with broken hearts they left their little boy there.
 
After the war William was awarded 200 arces as part payment for his war efforts. (This was common at that time as many other men received land also). They lived in Virginia for a time and then moved to Kentucky. Later they moved to Bedford County, Tennessee.
 
Records:
 
Husband: William McGuire, born 3/12/1747 (or 1748) in Augusta County, Virginia. Died in 1843 in Bedford County, Tennessee. DAR revised the date of his death  in 2000 to be May 22, 1829). His father was Thomas McGuire (not documented).
 
Wife: Mary Ann (Shirley) McGuire, born 2/17/1762 in Augusta County, Virginia. Her father was Johan Michael Shirley. Her mother was Catherine "Katy" Frantz.
 
Their children:
 
1. Michael "Bennie" McGuire, born in December, 1778 in Virginia. Died after October 1782 in Canada.
 
2.  Thomas McGuire, born 8/1/1781 in Quebec, Canada. Died 7/23/1861 in Delta County, Texas.
 
3. Mary "Polly" McGuire, born 12/4/1783 in Virginia. Died ? Married 8/26/1801 in Madison County Kentucky, to Solomon West.
 
4. Sarah "Sallie" McGuire, born about 1785, probably in Virginia. Died ? Married Joseph West.
 
5. Catherine "Kate" McGuire, born in May 1789. Died ? Married 3/16/1806 in Madison County, Kentucky to Peter Lee.
 
6. William McGuire11, born 11/15/1794 in Lincoln, Kentucky. Died in October, 1837 in Nachez, Mississippi. Married 1819 in Bedford County, Tennessee to Mary Fabra Ditto.
 
7. Cornelius Butcher "Neil" McGuire-McGuyer, born 10/5/1798 in Lincoln, Kentucky. Died 3/3/1883 in Davilla, Milam County, Texas. Married (1st.) about 1815 in Tennessee to Jane. (2nd.) marriage, 3/10/1865 Izard, Arkansas to Jane Glover Felton.
 
8. John McGuire-McGuyer, born 6/29/1801 in Kentucky. Died 1866 in Springfield, Limestone County, Texas. Married 10/7/1825 in Bedford County, Tennessee to Mary Elizabeth "Molly" Yell.
 
9. Elizabeth "Bettie" McGuire, born 7/22/1803 in Shelby County, Kentucky. Died 6/15/1887 in Bedford County, Tennessee. Married 2/7/1819 in Bedford County, Tennessee to Henry Holt.   
 
Around 1813 William, Mary Ann and their children moved from Kentucky to Tennessee. They bought property and settled in Bedford County, Tennessee.

For more McGuire history click - Here

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This is the house where Mary Ann and William McGuire, and their children lived in Bedford, County, Tennessee which was still standing when this picture was taken April 22, 2002. It was a log house but the logs have been covered with siding. There were originally two rock fireplaces, one on each end of the house, that have been removed. William and Mary Ann are buried in Horse Mountain Cemetery, which is just a short distance from the house.
 
Horse Mountain, the Horse Mountain community, the church, and the cemetery all got the name "Horse Mountain" during the Revolutionary War. Many horses in the area were being confiscated (or stolen) by the military for use in the war. The men hid their horses in a mountain cave, thus the name "Horse Mountain" was born and still remains today.    

The last exhibit on the right side as you leave the Fort Boonesboro Museum is a deed that Mary's mother "Katie" Shirley signed when she bought land from Daniel Boone.

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 William & Mary Ann McGuire's gravestone. They are buried in Horse Mountain Cemetery, on Horse Moumtain Road between Shelbyville and Wartrace, Tennessee in Bedford County. 

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This is the other side of William and Mary Ann's gravestone. There are inscriptions on both sides of the same stone.

   

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This marker is by Mary Ann McGuire's grave, placed by the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Placed, 4/24/2002.

The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) have a Chapter for Mary Ann (Shirley) McGuire in Plano, Texas. To visit the web site just click on:

Mary Ann Shirley's DAR Website

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 Above are those who attended the dedication of the marker.
 
Back row, left to right: Judy Polson, Durant, OK., Toni Chambers, (DAR President) Lubbock, TX., Tommie Templeton Reagan, Charleston, TX., John C. "Jack" Bomar, Shelbyville, TN., Lucy Westbrook, Dallas, TX., Gary Paul Lewis, Hurst, TX. Dixie Fetherstone Parker, Bell Buckle, TN., Marion F. Foster, Mt. Pleasent TX., girl unknown, and J.D. McGuyer, Commerce, TX.
 
Front row, left to right: Bill McGuyer, Mineola, TX., Rip Templeton, Lake Creek, TX., Sallie Macky, Dallas, TX., Linda Pitts, Wartrace, TN. and Mae Ruth (Westerman) Daughterty, Kinfsland, TX. 

William and Mary Ann's son Thomas, the one who was born in a prison camp in Canada during the Revolutionary War, married Ann Talitha Lee. They were my great, great, great grandparents.

Records:
 
Husband:
 
Thomas McGuire. Born 7/1/1781 in Quebec, Canada. Died 7/23/1861 in Delta County, Texas. His father was William McGuire and his mother was Mary Ann (Shirley) McGuire.
 
Wife:
 
Ann Talitha (Lee) McGuire. Born 2/11/1790 (probably in Tennessee or Virginia). Died 7/22/1872 in Charleston, Texas, Delta County. Her father was Richard Lee and her mother was Sarah or Elizabeth.
Ann and Thomas were married in Lincoln County, Ky.
 
Their children:
 
1. Mary Ann "Polly" McGuire, born 7/5/1807. Died ? Married 12/24/1826 to Nathaniel Bryan.
 
2. Elizabeth McGuire, born 6/3/1809 in Bedford County, Tennessee. Died ? Married to John B. Coats.
 
3. Tenperance "Tempie" McGuire, born 5/27/1810 in Tennessee. Died ? Married Elisha Harmon.
 
4. Nancy McGuire, born 1/4/1802. Died ? Married Robert McFarlin.
 
5. Sarah "Sallie" Elizabeth McGuire, born 2/18/1814. Died ? Married William R. Sharp Jr.
 
6. Catherine "Katie" McGuire, born 4/18/1815 in Bedford County, Tennessee. Died 5/9/1889 in Bedford County, Tennessee. Married Bib B. Bomar.
 
7. Susan McGuire, born 11/10/1816 in Bedford County, Tennessee. Died 4/9/1905 in Bedford County, Tennessee. Married Don C. Shriver.
 
8. Cornelius "Neil" Butcher McGuire-McGuyre, born 11/18/1822 in Wartrace Community, Bedford County, Tennessee. Died 1/9/1903 in Charleston, Texas, Delta County. Married (1st.) Mary Ann Golithas, 6/3/1847 in Nashville, Tennessee. (2nd.) Salina Duke, 3/1/1860. (It is believed that Cornelius was the one who changed the spelling of the family name from McGuire to McGuyer).
 
9. Lucinda "Cyndia" McGuire, born 9/24/1823. Died 1/24/1897 in Texas. Married David Simeon "Simme" Richard George Sr. (They were my great, great grandparents).

Cornelius B. McGuyer

Cornelius B. McGuyer was the son of Thomas McGuyer and Ann Lee MyGuyer. He was a Private in Company G, 23rd Texas Cavalry. He had been wounded while serving in the Mexican War. He was born on 18 November 1822 in the Wartrace Community, in the County of Bedford

State of Tennessee. His death date is 09 January 1903. He died of: rheumatism, gouty condition, old age and had suffered from severe hemorrhage in the stomach from wounds received in the Mexican War in 1846. (as per pension Confederate application). He is buried in the Charleston Cemetery, located in the town of Charleston, Delta Co., TX.

Cornelius married first to Mary Ann Gollithan on 03 June 1847 in Bedford Co. TN. Mary Gollothan was born 04 November 1823 in the county of Bedford, TN.

He married second to Salina Dukes on 01 March 1860 in Hopkins Co., TX. Salina Dukes was born in Illinois on 26 February 1839.

Mary died on 09 July 1859 in Charleston, Delta Co., TX. Salina Dukes died 25 July 1916 in Charleston, Delta Co., TX. They are both buried in the Charleston Cemetery.

He did not receive a Texas Confederate Pension. He was denied the pension because of "too much property and draws a Mexican Pension," (Comptroller's File No. 1135, registered in the County of Delta, TX.)

Children's names from the first marriage were: Thomas Rufus, Sarah Catherine "Sally", Ann Lee, Nancy Jane, Sinthy Elizabeth "Betty" and William John McGuyer

Children's names from the second marriage were: Cornelius Henry, Clarinda Mary, James Gideon "Gid", Feraba Emma Estella, Lucinda "Lucy" Salina, Daniel Christian, Simeon, Ruth and Benjamin Franklin McGuyer.

In the fall of 1855, Cornelius Butcher McGuyer's family, David Simeon George's family, three other uncles, and a number of other families, decided to move to Texas. Thomas Rufus McGuyer recalled his father had a wagon with an iron axle, which broke several times during the trip. Rufus was seven at the time of the move. Several families were already in Charleston - such as Hemby, Vancil, Dukes, Helm, Nabors, Foster, Viser, Ripley, George, Bates, Wood, Stell, Oats, Bledsoe, Ray, Terrell, Akard and Elmore.

"Cornelius Butcher McGuyer emigrated to Lamar County (Moore's Spring) in 1855 and then moved to Charleston, Delta, Texas in 1857. He is buried in the Charleston Cemetery, Delta County, Texas."

He donated the land for Charleston Cemetery. His first wife, Mary Ann Gollithan McGuyer, was the first to be buried there.

Cornelius B. McGuyer volunteered to fight in the Mexican War in 1846. He was 24 at the time and served under General Zachary Taylor. He was wounded three times in the Battle of Monterey, Mexico, and fell some forty yards short of the Fort. He was evacuated, hospitalized and returned home. He frequently hemorrhaged because of the bullet left in his lung. He was in the 1st Tennessee Inf., Volunteer in the Mexican War and in the Civil War. (National Archives)

He and Salina Dukes were married at Henry Dukes' on March 1, 1860, in the presence of John Woods and Rebecca Woods."

The following is from the Cooper, Texas newspaper. "Cornelius Butcher McGuyer was born November 18, 1822 in Bedford County, Tennessee. He professed faith in Christ when but a child eight years of age and joined the M. E. Church, South, to which he was ever loyal.

He grew up to manhood at the place of his birth. While yet a young man, 24 years of age, he enlisted in the Mexican War under Zachary Taylor. He was shot down in the first battle, Monterey, and was within forty steps of the Fort, before he was carried from the battlefield - he was shot again. A little later he received a wound from a spent shell which entered the top of his right shoulder and lodged in his left lung where it ever remained. After being taken to a hospital and given medical treatment, he was discharged and returned home.

In 1847 he was married to Mary Ann Gollithan, who was born and reared at his native home. Six children were born to this union - five in Tennessee and one in Texas.

In the Fall of 1855, he with a host of relatives started out in the search of a new home, and landed five miles east of Paris, Lamar, Texas near Moore's Spring, where he bought a home. Two years later he sold out, purchased a home in Charleston, Delta County, to which he immediately moved his family.

He was one of the pioneers of this country. At that time little farming was done and that with oxen. There was no railroad in this country and freighting was done by means of oxen. Jefferson and Shreveport were the principal market places.

Among the hardships came the death of his companion, July 17, 1859. As there was no cemetery near by, she was buried at home. The period of her death marks the age of the present cemetery at Charleston. She was a member of the M. E. Church, South.

He was married again in 1860 to Salina Dukes, a native of Illinois. To this union were born nine children. Soon after his marriage, the Civil War broke out. He served during the latter part of the war. After the war, he returned to the old home, where both families were reared. God called him to his reward June 9, 1903. His wife survived him by several years. Death claimed her 25 July 1916. She was a member of the M. E. Church.

Twelve children still survive: six of the first union, four girls and two boys and nine of the second union, four girls and five boys.

His grandparents, Thomas and Ann Talitha (Lee) McGuire,

were captured by the British during the Revolutionary War, were taken to Quebec, Canada, and while there in prison his father, Thomas, was born. (More about them in their history above.)

During the last years of his life, his church at home had gone down so he joined the M. P. Church.

The McGuyer Reunion of July 6, was held at the old home at Charleston. 295 McGuyer relatives were present, besides a number of other friends.

Rev. Sanders of the M. Church, Cooper, rendered an interesting speech to the congregation after which dinner was served. The afternoon was spent in singing, praying, reading, and in conversation. Music was given by a string band. The occasion brought great joy to many."

Cornelius is the one who changed the spelling from McGuire to McGuyer.

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Cornelius Butcher McGuyer with wifes #1 Mary Ann Gollithan McGuyer and #2 Salina Dukes McGuyer

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