Thomas F BUTLER Elizabeth A BUTLER Rufus A BUTLER John Benjamin BUTLER Bernard Benjamin BUTLER George Edward BUTLER Frances E SPAIN William Morgan BUTLER Ross Almyr BUTLER India G BUTLER India Lucetta SMITH Louisa J SPAIN Frances M BUTLER George Washington BUTLER Robert James BUTLER Mary Elizabeth INGRAM Mini tree diagram
William H BUTLER

William H BUTLER2,4,5,7,1

May 18341,2,3,4,5 - after 1900

Life History

May 1834

Born in Lauderdale County, Alabama.1,2,3,4,5

before 1860

Married Frances E SPAIN

Mar 1860

Birth of son Bernard Benjamin BUTLER in Panola County, Mississippi.4,9,23,6

about 1862

Birth of son George Edward BUTLER in Panola County, Mississippi.4,9,6

about 1865

Death of Frances E SPAIN in Panola County, Mississippi.6

about 1868

Married India Lucetta SMITH in Arkansas County, Arkansas.4

17th Jan 1870

Birth of son William Morgan BUTLER in Ethel, Arkansas, Arkansas.4,8,9,1,3,10,11,12,13

28th Oct 1872

Birth of son Ross Almyr BUTLER in Ethel, Arkansas, Arkansas.14,6,8,15,16,4,13

Aug 1878

Birth of daughter India G BUTLER in Arkansas.8,17,18,4,19

after 1880

Death of India Lucetta SMITH in Arkansas County, Arkansas.4

4th Aug 1885

Married Louisa J SPAIN in Panola County, Mississippi.20,21

before 1900

Death of Louisa J SPAIN

about 1900

Death of son Bernard Benjamin BUTLER in Bolivar County, Mississippi.22

after 1900

Died in Ethel, Arkansas, Arkansas

after 1900

Buried in Butler Cemetery, Ethel, Arkansas.6

Notes

  • William's father Thomas moved his family from Tennessee to Alabama between 1829 and 1834,  then between 1840 and 1843, he moved to Panola County, Mississippi.

    1850 Federal Census, Panola County, Mississippi, 24 October, District 511, p 204, Hse/Fam #1380
    Thos F Butler 48 M Farmer $2000 Real Estate b North Carolina [born abt 1802]
    Mary Butler 40  Virginia [born abt 1810]
    William H Butler 16 M b Alabama [born abt 1834]

    William married in Panola County, Mississippi. where his first two children with Frances Spain were born.  Then he moved to the area of Ethel, Arkansas County, Arkansas between 1862 and 1869.  I cannot find an 1860 census record for William.

    Family sources report that William H Butler first married Frances Spain.  In the 1870 census he is enumerated with his second wife, India Smith.  It appears that Bernard and Edward here are the sons of Frances Spain, but Morgan is the son of India.  Bernard and Edward were born in 1860 and 1862, then no other child was born (at least to survive to the 1870 census) until about January 1870, when the child of India Smith was born, Morgan.

    1870 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 7 July, Prairie Township, PO St Charles, page 26, Hse/Fam #209
    Butler, William G (sic) 36 M W Farmer $500 Real Estate $600 Personal b Alabama Cannot read or write [b abt 1834]
    Butler, India 32 F W  Keeping House  b Virginia Cannot read or write [b abt 1838]
    Butler, Bernard 10 M W b Mississippi Cannot read or write [b abt 1860]
    Butler, Edward 8 M W b Mississippi [No report on literacy] [b abt 1862]
    Butler, Morgan 6 mos M W b Mississippi b Jan 1870
    Butler, Robert 26 F W b Tennessee Cannot read or write [b abt 1844]

    William H Butler and family are reported in the Arkansas County, Arkansas Census of 1880 as resident in Prairie Township, which is around the community of Ethel.  The enumerator has reported birthplace of the children's mother as though India was the mother of all the children.  But BB (Bernard) is the son of Frances Spain.  Robert Butler in this household is William's younger brother, Robert James Butler.

    1880 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 21 June, Prairie Township, District 2, page 27, Hse #183, Fam #194
    W H Butler  W M  46    Married  Farmer  AL NC VA
    India Butler  W F  41  Wife  Married  Housekeeping   VA  VA VA
    B B Butler  W M  20  Son  Single On Farm  MS AL VA
    Ned Butler  W M  18  Son  Single On Farm  MS AL  VA
    W M Butler  W M  11 Son  Single At School  AR AL  VA
    R A Butler  W M  8 Son  Single At School  AR AL  VA
    India Butler  W F  5  Dau  Single AR AL  VA
    L W Smith   W M  28  Bro-in-Law Single On Farm MS VA  VA

    After India died, William married a third time, to Louisa J Spain, the sister of his first wife Frances Spain.  Thier marriage record has her middle initial as M.

    Mississippi Marriages, 1776-1935
    Wm H. Butler
    Spouse: Louisa M. Spain
    Marriage 4 Aug 1885, Panola County

    In the 1900 Arkansas County, Arkansas census, William H Butler is enumerated In household of son William M Butler.  There is a conflict in the report of his birth place.  The birth place of William H and his parents is reported as Virginia.  Likewise his son's report also indicates that William H was born in Virginia.  Previous reports have indicated Alabama.

    1900 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 16 June, Prairie Township, District 7, Page 11, Hse #192, Fam #195
    Butler, William M Head W M Jan 1870  30 Married 3 years AR VA MS Owns
    Butler, Ada L Wife W F Jun 1878  21 Married 3 years 2 children/2 living AR  NC NC
    Butler, Lucy Dau W F Oct 1897  2  AR AR AR
    Butler, Bernard Son W M Mar 1900  2mos AR AR AR
    Butler, William H Father W M May 1834  66 Widowed VA VA VA

    In 1910, again, (William) Morgan's father is reported as being born in Virginia.  But in 1920, the birthplace of William M's father is now Mississippi!

    Place of burial, Butler Cemetery:
    David Lee reports burial of William H Butler in "Butler Cemetery, Mt Pleasant, Arkansas."  This format appears to indicate that Butler Cemetery is in a town called Mt Pleasant, but the town of Mt Pleasant is in Izard County, in the north of Arkansas.  The Butler Cemetery, on the other hand, is referred to as being in Ethel, the community with a post office about 2 miles to the north of the cemetery.  Mt Pleasant Cemetery is a mile or less north of the Butler Cemetery, between Butler Cemetery and Ethel center, where the store and post office are located.  Many Butlers are also buried in Mt Pleasant Cemetery.  Perhaps that local area is referred to in some contexts as "Mt Pleasant," but I have never heard or read that reference.  Mt Pleasant Cemetery is always said to be in Ethel.  I have not been to the Butler Cemetery.
    --  Orville Boyd Jenkins

    Though David Lee reports that William is buried in the Butler Cemetery, a recently-discovered private paper about the family says William and his wife Lucetta (India) were buried together in Mt Pleasant Cemetery in Ethel.

    "When Grandpa Butler died he was buried beside his wife in Mount Pleasant with full masonic honors."
    --  William H Butler Family Notes, typewritten notes, scanned by Jack Dodson 29 August 2011

    William and India's were not among Butler gravestones photographed by Edith McSwain Jenkins in Mt Pleasant in 2003.  It is not certain if these graves were not there or if for some reason they were not photographed when other Butler graves were photographed.

Sources

Page created using GEDmill 1.11.0