ALEXANDER SELKIRK WOMACK

ALEXANDER SELKIRK WOMACK
Mar. 26, 1936 – Nov. 19, 1916
Family History

Served in the Union, joining the militia of Missouri in 1862. He joined the Army of Tennessee in 1864, and served until the close in 1865. He received a pension in 1900.

"All Along the River", Nellie Ireton Mills; Privately Printed, 1963; pp 74,75

The following is some of the information in the write-up, "THE WOMACKS": The article states that Alex Womack, the blacksmith was "one of the most useful and needed men in Emmett (Idaho). He was a Democrat and was also a Union soldier in the Civil War. He left Missouri shortly after the War and arrived in Idaho in 1870. After placer-mining enough gold from gravel of Anderson Creek, he sent for his wife and her children. They had a large family - sixteen children in all. Alex filed on land at Emmett, opened a blacksmith shop and lived in Emmett. The legal description of the property is given, as was a description of the types of smithy work Alex performed.

HISTORY OF IDAHO--VOL II

ISAAC WOMACK.

Isaac Womack, a pioneer of the Upper Payette valley living in the vicinity of Emmett, arrived in the territory of Idaho in 1870 A half century has since come and gone and great changes have been wrought. Mr. Womack bearing his part in the work of general development and progress. He removed to the northwest from Quincy, Illinois. being at that time. a youth of thirteen years, and traveled to Idaho

in company with his parents, Alexander and Phoebe (Perkins) Womack, and his brother, Asa Womack, who is fourteen months his senior. and five sisters. Matilda, Alice, Nora Nellie and Nancy. The five sisters are all yet living but the brother passed away In Nevada. The father was born In Shelby county Illinois. March 26, 1836. and was of Welsh descent on the paternal side. his father being Green Womack, the son of a coming to Idaho (something missing here doesnt fit in with next line) established a smithy In Emmett, then called Emmettsville, this- being the first shop of the kind In the town and the only one for many years. The father thus early became identified with the I\industrial development of the region and his smithy was patronized by all the early-pioneers of the district. Mr. Womack reached the advanced age of eighty-one years, his death occurring November 19, 1916, while his wife died March 4, 1914.

Isaac Womack has lived In Emmett or vicinity from the age of thirteen and early learned the blacksmith's trade under the direction of his father. He and a younger brother, William Womack, who now resides in Cascade, conducted the blacksmith shop at Emmett for many years, but finally Isaac Womack ceased work at the forge and turned his attention to other interests. For the past quarter of a century he has been ditch rider on the Last Chance ditch, which is the best and cheapest irrigation property in Idaho. It is believed, furnishing water to patrons for fifteen cents per acre. Mr. Womack has lived at various places in and near Emmett and his present home on a ten-acre fruit ranch two miles east of Emmett at the east end of Main street and right in the foothills. It is known as the Fair View Fruit Ranch and is located. on the slope, where frosts seldom come.

When a young man of twenty years Mr. Womack was married. His birth had occurred in Clark county, Missouri, April 30, 1857, and on the 1st of August, 1977, he wedded Miss Purlia Cordelia Bradford who was born in Darke County, Ohio, June 30, 1862, and is a daughter of Ezra and Elizabeth (Beckelhammer) Bradford. She came to Idaho territory with her parents in 1871 and was then but nine years of age. Mr. and Mrs. Womack have now traveled life's journey happily together for forty-three years. They became the parents of two children: Ada, who passed away at the age of twelve; and Walter, who is living in Gem county. There are now two grandchildren, Elmer and Alfred Womack, who are the sons of Walter Womack and reside with their grandparents. They are now fifteen and twelve years of age respectively, Elmer having been born May 7, 1905, and Alfred, February 16, 1908. The Bradford family settled first on Eagle Island, in the Boise valley, but later removed to Emmettsville and Ezra Bradford passed away February 18, 1909, at the age of eighty-two years, while his wife died October 24, 1911, when but fifty-two years of age.

Mr. Womack Is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and his political allegiance is given to the democratic party, but the honors and emoluments of office have had no attraction for him. Business interests and activities have-claimed his attention and the thoroughness which became a habit of his youth when he was working in his father's blacksmith shop has been a dominant feature in his career and in the course of time has made him one of the men of affluence in his community. His Fair View Fruit Ranch is an excellent property and he also has an excellent income as a ditch rider. He is well acquainted with the history of this section of the state and his reminiscences of pioneer times are most interesting.

WOMACK FAMILY HISTORY

By Alfred R. and David A. Womack

This is the story of one branch of the Womack family. All Womacks go back to William Womack, who came to Jamestown in the early to middle 1600s. Green Womack settled in Unionville, Missouri, on a land grant resulting from the War of 1812. His son Alexander came West after the Civil War and settled in Emmett, Idaho. Twice we married into the Bradford family of Plymouth Rock, so we have roots in both early English colonies. This is the family line from which we come, a family of blacksmiths, pioneers, and woodworkers who moved along the outer

fringes of America's spread to the West. Some of our family heirlooms are in the state museum in Boise, and we are written up in the official history of the State of Idaho as the first blacksmiths in the state.

Genealogy is a difficult and time-consuming task, particularly in American pioneer families who go back to the earliest settlements. Few good records were kept, and many of the Government records have been lost or destroyed. Many pioneer people couldnt read or write, and often the census-takers just wrote down what they thought they heard. This is not meant to be a complete history of our family line but is only an attempt to put together the information we have gathered over the years so that others may build from here or at least have an idea of their rich family heritage.

At the time of this writing (December 24, 1988), Dad (Alfred R. Womack, son of Walter E., son of Isaac, son of Alexander, son of Green) is 79 years old. He is a former Assemblies of God minister, a graduate of Glad Tidings Bible Institute in San Francisco, California (now Bethany Bible College, Santa Cruz). His son David also is an Assemblies of God minister, pastor of Twin Palms Assembly of God in San Jose, and author of books with Harper & Row, Publishers, and other houses. We three ministers--Dad, David, and brother Daniel--are somewhat of a novelty in this frontier family. Others may have more information than we do, but what we have is welldocumented and, we hope, helpful to the Womack Clan.

The Womack Family goes back to the early White settlement of America at Jamestown, Virginia. From there the family has spread across the country. Our family line came from the Carolinas to Illinois to Missouri to Idaho and the Western States.

There have been many guesses about the origin of the name. Some have said it was American Indian, others that it was Polish (Womachka, meaning Little Mother). Generally, it is pronounced Wah-mick or Wah-muck, but in recently times it has become Woh-mack. (Or, to put it in the family vernacular, think of an old mule named Mack and say, "Whoa, Mack!") In early Anglo-Saxon, WYFF-MAEG (a wife man, or husband) developed into WYF-MANN or WIF-MAN, from which we get the English word WOMAN. Our surname max have come from WIF-MAEG (a husband) or WIF-MACE (a mate). Or, the name might have come from one of the variations of a personal Anglo-Saxon name meaning Warrior--Wogmearc, Wihomarc, or Wimarc. The most likely source, however, are the Old English words WAM (womb or any hollow place) and AC (oak tree)--thus, Wamb-ac, or Womb-ack. The name appears to have originated in Southeast England, the Robin Hood or Sherwood Forest area, where the Hollow Oak was revered as sacred to pre-Christian Anglo-Saxons.

The first known mention of a Womack was in England, where Henry

Womack was vicar of Great Ellingham in the County of Norfolk about

1601. James Womack was recorded as having married Ann Summers at St.

George's Church in Hanover Square in 1779. After that, there apparently

have been no more Womacks in England. There is a German name there,

Womacher (meaning Where-Maker, a traveling fixit man), but Womack is

definitely Old English.

Several Womacks immigrated to Jamestown and Henrico County,

Virginia, in the early to middle 1600s. Capt. J. J. Womack claimed that

three brothers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob Womack, came to Virginia from

Wales in 1615 and that they were of Scottish origin; but there are no

records of these "patriarchs." The Womacks were some of the earliest

settlers of Jamestown.

William Womack came to Jamestown, where the Henrico County records

of 16751 noted "Abraham Womack, son of William." The report of the Womack

Association in Tennessee said he sponsored other people who were his

indentured slaves (people who worked off the cost of their trip to

America). His children were: Thomas, Richard (married to Marx), and

Abraham (who married Sarah [Somerschas?3 and died in 1733). This Abraham

had both a son and a grandson named William.

Our family records are primarily based on Alexander Womack's old

family Bible, from which information was copied about 1931-33 by Fanny

Purcy (McLaughlin) Womack, second wife of Walter E. Womack, at Emmett,

Idaho. The last we know of that Bible was that "somebody up North" had

it. With one exception (a statement that Alexander Womack was in the

Missouri Militia in the Civil War), the

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information has been accurate. Fanny copied the family Bible

information on a Farmer's Pocket Ledger that contained calendars for

the years 1931-33. It was in the hands of the Elmer Womack family in

Emmett when David A. Womack copied from it on July 17, 1968. Since that

time he has done other research in Illinois and Missouri and studied

the Microfilm Census Records for several locations, including the

family home at Unionville, Missouri. Alfred R. Womack, his father, has

maintained an active interest in the family history over the years.

Also, Maxine Tinkham (1612 East 2nd Street, Port Angeles, WA 98362)shares some of our ancestry and has done a lot of research.

A full copy of Alexander's family Bible record is attached.

Our earliest record is that of Green Womack, born June 17, 1788, probably in North Carolina but maybe South Carolina or Georgia. Early land records mention two Green Womacks (There couldn't have been many of them!). On October 25, 1800, John Womack surveyed 40 acres in Person County, North Carolina (Book 109, Page 415), and Green Womack was one of the chain carriers. If he was our man, he would have been 12 years old at the time.

William Perry Johnson, official genealogist for the Womack Genealogy , wrote on pp.29-30 of his book that William Womack had the following children: Mark Sanders, Green William, Dignychin, Abraham Minter, and Mary. Abraham Minter Womack went to Texas about 1837. If this is our Green Womack, he was the son of William, who probably was the grandson of Abraham, son of the first William.

Aside from this research, our only knowledge of Green Womack is from the family Bible and the U.S. Government records we have gotten. He was a soldier in the War of 1812. We have copies of his war records showing he was drafted in Illinois on September 10, 1812, and served under Captain James Trousdale until December 10 of that year, when he was discharged at the Saline Salt Works, Illinois. We have copies of his application and acceptance for a pension, which he received in the form of a land warrant of 200 acres. He first took 40 acres, which he traded for "a yoke of cattle." He took the remaining 160 acres at Unionville, Missouri, where he made his family home. He also received a pension of $8 per month until his death about 1872. His wife Agnes died one year later. We found them in the Census Records of 1860 for Jackson Township, Putnam Co., West Liberty (Unionville area) Post Office: Green Womack, 72, wheelwright; and his wife Annis, 61. The Censustakers took a lot of liberty; her name was Agnes. In the same Census were William "Wamick" and his wife Martha, Green's son by his first marriage. Their children were: Crawford, Frances, Mary B., and Sarah. Also, there was Clement "Wamick" and his wife Nancy B. He was a Methodist preacher. Maxine Tinkham told us her ancestor Green had a brother Clement who was a preacher. They found his tombstone in a pasture near Unionville just marked "Rev. Womack." She also said their father was William. (This raises a question, because there was no Clement listed in William Womack's children. Perhaps Clement was a cousin or something.)

Green Womack first was married to Polly (whose name may have been Mary "Polly" Wallace), born July 17, 1791. Their children were: Sally (May 2, 1812), William (May 4, 1817), Jacob (August 17, 1819), Lucretia (August 11, 1822), and Elizabeth (May 24, 1825). She must have died, because Green and his second wife named their first child after her in 1827. He married Agnes Cunningham, born in 1792. Our family comes from her line. There is some confusion about her name. The Census taker called her Annis; and Maxine Tinkham calls her Agness, We have seen her maiden name as Gallon or Galeon. They were married, according to Gallatin Co, Ill, records, in January of 1828, If that is true, their first child, Polly, was born four months before they married! (We're quite certain our family Bible goes back to Alexander, Agnes' son, who would have known her correct name.)

The children of Green and Agnes were: Polly (September 19, 1827), Levi (August 25, 1829), Asa (April 5, 1833), Alexander Selkirk (March 26, 1836, at Shelby Co., Ill.), Nancy (August 16, 1838), and Lutisia (August 18, 1840). We are descendants of Alexander.

Alexander Womack was a blacksmith (or wheelwright like his father) who invented and patented several useful articles. The family Bible says, "He was an honest man." He served in the Civil War and became the first blacksmith in Idaho. On May 13, 1355, he married Phebe Ann Perkins (born February 19, 1840) at Athens, Missouri. They had 15 children: Asa Lorenzo ("Ace," February 28, 1856--August 26, 1916), Isaac Perkins ("Ike," April 30, 1857, at Clark County, Missouri--March 2 (noon), 1933), Matilda Agnes (January 14, 1860), Tamson Jane (September 17, 1861-September 27, 1862), Malissa Ann (February 14, 1863--September 2, 1854), Commorrah Alice (January 29, 1865), Nora Belle (December 9, 1866), Mary Elizabeth (June 13, 1863--April 2, 1928), Nancy Ellen (August 6, 1870), George Washington (January 24, 1872), Laura Francis (December 6, 1873--June 9, 1939), Susannah Adelaide (January 4, 1875-December 30, 1890), John Wesley (December 28, 1877--July 29, 1904), William Alexander ("Uncle Bill," June 2, 1879), and Richard Ralph (February 12, 1884). John Wesley Womack may have been the one who was breaking in a horse to ride and was thrown into the river and drowned. We are descendants of Isaac.

At Quincy, Illinois, on September 29, 1864, Alexander volunteered to substitute for George Wyman in the U.S. Army and was assigned to the 45th Regiment of the Illinois Infantry. The record says, "This soldier has blue eyes, light hair, fair complexion; is 5 feet 9 inches high." He was a blacksmith, 27 years old. He never reached the 45th Illinois Volunteers, who marked him absent at Nashville and Atlanta. Rather, he joined Company C. 11th Illinois Cavalry Volunteers (no doubt because he was a blacksmith) and served with them until April 30, 1865. He was mustered out in June of that year. We have copies of many of his official papers.

The family had been divided over the Civil War, so upon returning home to Missouri he and his family joined a group going out West to Idaho. (David Womack's source for these details was Henry Clyde Kelley, son of Milton E. Kelley and Laura Francis Womack. He interviewed Kelley in Emmett, Idaho, in the early 1970s.) They first went by train to Kelton, Utah, where they had shipped their belongings. The Perkins were on the same train west. Kelley thought they left in 1865, right after the Civil War. They got

wagons in Kelton and went by wagon train to Boise and finally to Emmettsville on the Payette River. Actually, they arrived at Falk's Store, 14 miles below Emmett. He was the first blacksmith and for the years the only one. Their blacksmith shop was on Emmett's Main Street next to the canal. There was a show room up front with wagons, wheels, and other items. A door on the left led to the shop in the back.

The two sons, Ace and Ike, had a great adventure coming out West. Ike was quite a storyteller. He told of drinking from a stream and seeing the reflection of a cougar in a tree above him. He went into great detail about staring the cougar down while he reached for his muzzleloader (Old Betsy)..."and shot that cougar right between the eyes!" That gun used to hang in Ike's bedroom and now is in the state museum in Boise. In another story, he kept a bear up a tree with a hunting knife while his brother Ace loaded the gun. Old Betsy was apparently as much a part of the family as any of the people!

Alfred (born in 1909) can remember Alexander and Phebe sitting on their porch on the sunlit side of the house. She was called "Grandma Smoke" because of her corncob pipe. Kelley said, "Phebe was yakkin' all the time. Alexander was quiet. Grandmother'd yak and yak and yak at 'em, and grandfather'd say, 'Now, by God, that's enough"" He never smoked except when he'd pay his grocer bill. He'd go to pay his bill when he got his pension check. They'd give him a bag of candy for his wife and a cigar for him. He'd smoke it down to nothing before he paid his bill.

He only drank occasionally. Once, he and Civil War veterans Abe Miller and Daley got together to drink beer. Kelly said, "Aunt Elizabeth [Mary Elizabeth) was home. She sent Bill [William Alexander]

and Ralph [Richard Ralph] out looking for him. They lived on 3rd Street in Emmett. Aunt Liz and grandmother got all over him."

Kelley also told a story about Old Ace (Asa Womack, son of Green and Agnes), his grandfather's brother. They jumped a bear and had him going downwind. He took of+ after the bear and the bear turned on him. He said, "There he goes ... and by God there he comes'"

TRANSCRIPTION OF ALEXANDER WOMACK'S ARMY DISCHARGE

(as best as I an make it out!)

TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:

Know ye, that Alexander Wommack,a private of Lieut Charles W Erwins Company

E, 45th Regiment of Ill Infty Rgt Volunteers, who was enrolled on the

Twentyninth day of September one thousand eight hundred and sixty four to

serve one years or during the war, is hereby DISCHARGED from the service of

the United States this Third day of June, 1865, at Washbington DC by reason

of under telegram from War Dept May 14th 1865.

(No objection to his being re-enlisted is known to exist.)

Said Alexander Wommack was born in the State of Illinois, is Twenty-seven

yuears of age, Five foot nine iunches high, fair complexion, blue eyes.