Albert Elliott History

Researching the family history of Albert E. Elliott has been a challenging effort. Information regarding who Albert's parents and siblings were is, so far, very limited. One land transaction, which is presented below, presents credible and legal evidence that Albert is the son of William Thomas Elliott and Lucretia Adeline Mitchell, of Hancock County, Kentucky.. The following is a presentation of the information that has been collected regarding Albert and his family.

Documentation indicates that Albert was born sometime around 1871. This is determined from the 1910 and 1920 census records. These two census records are the only census records in which Albert and his family are listed. More is discussed about the census' below. Birth and death records in the 1870's and 1880's were not kept from year to year in the Hancock County, Kentucky. Thus, records for some years during this period are not available. An actual birth record for Albert has not been found. No information has been found on what the "E" stands for in Albert's name.

Albert Elliott was married to Margaret Alice Arnold, daughter of John Marion Arnold and Elizabeth Frances White. Albert and Margaret were married October 20, 1897 in Hancock County Kentucky. Their marriage certificate states that they were married at the home of Margaret's father, John Arnold. Witnesses listed do not include any Elliott surnames. Margaret's middle name was "Alice" but on the marriage certificate it was written as "Alimer". Their marriage certificate is the only document found to date that presents Albert's name as "Albert". The remaining documents presented here list Albert's name as either "A. E. Elliott" or "Allie Elliott". Other documents not shown refer to him as Al Elliott.

A well known Elliott family of Hancock County, Kentucky in the 1800's was William T. Elliott and his wife, Lucretia Adaline "Mitchell". Census records from 1880 indicate that William and Adaline had five living children at the time: William Joshua Elliott; Elizabeth Jennie Elliott; James Elliott; Eldred J. Elliott; and Martha Addie Elliott. They had a daughter, Victoria L. Elliott, who passed away in 1863.

Lucretia Adaline Elliott (Mitchell) died in 1889. Information contained in a property transaction (deed) in September, 1899, shows that two parties were involved in the transaction. The first party was comprised of the above livingl children of William and Adaline Elliott, excluding the name: James. The second party contains A. E. Elliott (Albert) and his wife, Maggie (Margaret). The first and second parties are stated near the end of the deed as inheriting a part of land that was owned by Adaline at the time of her death. The statement on the deed is given that the two parties are "the only heirs at law" of Adaline. The definition of "heir-at-law" is "a person or persons legally entitled to inherit the property of someone who dies intestate (without a will)." The statement in the deed is an indication that Albert Elliott was related to this Elliott family. A copy of this deed is shown below. In addition to this deed, I have copies of other deed transactions between Albert and some of the other children of William T. Elliott.

My thought is that the "James" listed as a child of William T. Elliott and Lucretia Adaline "Mitchell" is actually my "Albert". Errors were prevalent in the census records of this period. Additionally, other land transactions were conducted between Albert Elliott and Eldred J. Elliot in the early 1900's prior to 1910. Albert and Eldred are listed on the same page in the 1910 census, which indicates that they lived down the road from one another. William T. Elliott also had a father and a brother named James.

Like most everyone else in the Hancock County area, Albert was a farmer, and bought and sold several acres of land between 1900 and 1920. Information indicates that he was a tobacco farmer. A review of the early 1900's deed books kept at the Hancock County Kentucky Administration Building show a number of land purchases and sales between Albert Elliott, Eldred Elliott, John Arnold (Albert's father-n-law), William T. Elliott and other people.

The United States census records are currently available for the years 1790 thru 1930 - containing household information for families at the beginning of each new decade (1850, 1860, etc.) Albert Elliott and his wife do not appear in any of the census records until the 1910 and 1920 Hancock County Kentucky censuses. It s from these two census records that Albert's birth year of approximately 1871 is determined.

The first appearance of Albert Elliott in a census record is in the 1910 Hancock County Kentucky census - Utility Precinct. Albert's name is written as, Allie E. Elliott, head of household age 39, born in Kentucky. It indicates that his parents were both born in Kentucky. The name "Allie" appears in several of the documents found for Albert. Albert's occupation is listed as a farmer. His wife's name is shown as Margarette, age 34. Three children a given: Guy G. age 9; Thomas A., age 5; and Albert F., age 1 and 3 mos.

Albert Elliott and his family are listed again in the 1920 Hancock County Kentucky census - Magi?? District. Albert's name is written as Allen E. Elliott. He is listed as head of household, age 49. His wife's name is listed as Maggie, age 43. His occupation continues to be a farmer. Four children are given: Gilbert, age 18; Thomas, age 14; Fielden, age 11; and Brooks, age 2.

Based on statements made in court records filed by Margaret Elliott for seperation from Albert in June 1913, it appears that Albert was an abusive husband. There is no mention on how he treated the children. The court papers also state that Albert spent time at Western State Hospital for the Insane in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. A search of the hospital records was performed by hospital admissions personnel for any records of Albert's stay. The only record found was an admissions card. A copy of the card is shown below.

It is my guess that Albert spent time at Western State because of his abusive nature. This is the only assumption that can be made at this time. After his release from the hospital, Albert and Margaret made an agreement to stay together based on a promise from Albert that he would "amend his treatment of Margaret". Her statements indicate that she returned to Albert on the urgin of one of her brothers who was a pastor.

The marriage went on for another seven years. Albert and Margaret gave birth to a daughter, Brooks Elizabeth Elliott, in June 1917. The probelms between Albert and Margaret continued over these years, and on January 1, 1921, Margaret filed for divorce citing ongoing abuse from Albert.

Some time during the same year of 1921, Albert, and the male children migrated southwest to the Hickman County and Fulton County, Kentucky area. It is unknown whether Margaret and Brooks went with them at that time. The men lived in an area of the "Upper Bottoms" along the Mississippi River norht of Hickman, Kentucky. The first indicator of this move comes from the death certificate of the youngest son, Albert Fielden Elliott. He died of "Acute Nephritis" (inflamation of the kidneys) on October 30, 1921 in Hickman County, KY. He is buried in Oakwood Cemetery just west of Clinton, Kentucky. The remaining children were married in Fulton County, Kentucky.

According to her death certificate, Margaret Elliott died of Pneumonia on February 11, 1930 in the city of Hickman, Kentucky. This would indicate that she joined her family in the Hickman area some time between 1921 and 1930. Had she died in another location and then brought to Hickman for burial, I beleive her death certificate would note the location of her passing as being outside of the Hickman area. Additionally, the obituary that appeared in the Hickman newspaper at the time of Margaret's death states that she was living in Hickman when she passed away.

The oldest son, Gilbert, died in 1934 of Pneumonia. The 1930 census shows Brooks living in Michigan with one of Margaret's brothers, Urey B. Arnold. Brooks came to the Hickman area some time before 1934, as she married my mother's oldest brother, Raymond E. Rice, in Hickman, Kentucky in 1934. Brooks died in 1938 of a heart attack which was an on-set of her having Pulmonary Tuberculosis. Their brother, Thomas, died in 1940 from Chronic Malaria. All of the family members are buried at Oakwood Cemetery outside of Clinton, Kentucky (Hickman County). A picture of the grave sites of Albert and his family is shown below. None of Albert's family had any type of markers. The only person who received a marker, was Gilbert's wife, Hattie Matheny, who passed away in 1969. That marker is seen at the right side of the picture. A new marker has been placed next to Hattie's giving memorial reference to Brooks, Thomas, and Raymond Rice, Jr.

In the end, Albert E. Elliott, out-lived his entire immediate family. According to his death certificate, Albert died on November 19, 1944 due to a concussion he received as the result of a fall. No obituary was listed in the local Hickman, Kentucky newspaper. When the Social Security Administration was created in the 1930's, Albert did not obtain a social security card, so no record exists.