Life History

Notes

• We know that James Daniel Green's wife Eliza Arilla Bridgman died in 1914.  In the 1920 census, he is reported wife a different, younger wife named Lillie.  There is no wife named Lillie reported in family genealogy and notes provided by a descendant, Houston Green.  But Hattie Cain could have been named Lillie Hattie (and Hattie would be short for Harriet).
  
  James Daniel Green's wife, however, is reported as Lillie in his WWI Draft Registration records.
  
  U.S. World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918
  James Daniel Green
  Race White Residence Barry, Navarro County, Texas
  Age 43, born 10 May 1875 (no location reported)
  Farmer, employed by Joe Farmer, Barry, Texas
  Wife Mrs Lillie Green
  Height 5.8", Medium Build, Blue Eyes, Black Hair
  Registered 12 September 1918 (location unreadable) Navarro County
  
  There is a problem in the definite identity of the wife reported in 1920.  The Green genealogy provided by Houston Green reports that James Daniel did not marry Hattie until 29 November 1921.  Perhaps the family recorded the date wrong or misread it in transcribing it from the Family Bible, which is stated to be the source of the information.  But their daughter Mary Louise (Mollie) was not born until 1923, which matches better with a marriage in 1921.
  
  Houston Green, Genealogy Notes, James Daniel Green family
  Hattie Cain [no date or place of birth]
  d 04 Feb 1928 Weatherford, Parker, Texas
  2nd wife, Married James Daniel Green 9 Nov 1921 Weatherford, Parker, Texas
  one child Mary Louise b 8 Feb 1923.
  --  Personal Notes by email form Houston Green, via my coresearcher Marion Mixon
  
  Further confirming their earlier marriage, in his 1918 WWI Draft Registration, James reports his "nearest relative" as Mrs Lillie Green.  IN these records the normal person here is the wife.  The home address is also the same as his.  James' second wife was Lillie Harriet Cain.  This matches perfectly.  Arilla died in 1914, so if James was married, this would be Lillie Harriet Cain, his second wife.
  
  In the 1920 census, Lillie is also reported as his wife.  However, here it reports she is age 23 and married at age 23, meaning it would have been 1919.  But that is only one year different.  The date of the Draft registration is 18 September 1918.  As discussed below, the age of 23 is also 4 years younger than the date of birth on Lillie's grave.
  
  At any rate, we know they were married before 1920, so the error is in the Green family records as reported by Houston.  It may have been written down wrong originally at a later date, or remembered later as a whole list of dates and information was being written or recompiled, and perhaps miscopied.  We have to allow a date as early as at least 1918, since James himself reported he was married. I must report the earlier date of 1918, since we know they were already married by September of that year.
  
  1920 Federal Census, Parker County, Texas, 9 January, Weatherford Ward 1, District 61, page 8A, 107 Cypress St, Hse #145, Fam #167
  Green, Jim D  Head Rents  M W 44 Married OK OK OK Laborer [b abt 1876]
  Green, Lillie  Wife F W 23 Married at age 23 TX OK TX No Occupation [b abt 1897]
  Green, Andrew  son M W 21 Single TX OK TX Foreman, Oil Field [b abt 1899]
  Green, Oscar  son M W 18 Single TX OK TX Laborer At Home [b abt 1902]
  Green, Jessie J Dau F W 12 Single TX OK TX No Occupation [b abt 1902]
  
  The wife Lillie here is only 23 years old, about one year older than James' oldest son Jacob Andrew.  This would make her born about 1897.  But the gravestone of Hattie Green in Curtis Cemetery says she was born in 1893.  Lillie Green was born in Texas, her father in Oklahoma and her mother in Texas.  We do not have any information on Hattie Cain's parents' birth states.
  
  In Letter 8 extra notes Betty Hess refers to Jim Green's wife as Rillie Bridgeman:  "I remember Jim Green's wife's name.  She was Rillie Bridgeman."  I found her as well as Jim's second wife in Cemetery Records for Parker County.
  
  Rillie is Arilla, Jim's first wife, buried in City Greenwood Cemetery.  Born Dec 6, 1876, died Jun 27, 1914, noted as "wife of J D Green."  In 1910 the wife of James D Green is transcribed by Ancestry as Leya R, but this is probably meant to be Liza R.  The R would be for Rillie, a nickname for Arilla, by which Betty Jackson Hess refers to James' wife in her letters.  Birth year from the age of Liza R in the 1910 census is abt 1877, which matches the gravestone birth date of Dec 6, 1876.
  
  In the Curtis Cemetery records you sent me last October, we find Jim's second wife Hattie, which Betty refers to on p 2 of Letter 8.  "Jim Green married Hatty Lane."  (This could be Cane, in Betty's unsteady handwriting.  And in September 2008, Houston Green, a descendant of JD Green sent family information that gave Hattie's name as Hattie Cain.)
  
  The Curtis Cemetery register lists Green, Hattie Harriet (and we know Hattie is a nickname for Harriet, also).  Annotation on the grave/register gives her husband.  That might be why we did not recognize it earlier, since we did have Letter 8 with her name at that time.  No maiden name is given either, so that link was hidden.
  
  Hattie/Harriet was born on November 20, but they have no year.  She died on February 4, 1928.  [This death date matches the date given in family information from Houston Green]  This places her as the second wife of Jim Green, since Rillie died in 1914.  I have not yet found Jim/James in 1930 to confirm his widow status or other details.  We do, however, already have Andrew separately with his wife Essie (called Effie, as you note, by Betty, probably just due to absent-minded association with the phonetic similarity of her sister's name).  The picture is fairly complete.
  
  This would mean that Rillie is the wife (Leya R) in the 1910 census for James D Green.  The second wife in the 1920 census might Hatty under another name of Lillie.

Sources

• 1. Cemeteries of Texas
• 2. U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918
• 3. Houston Green, Genealogy Notes, James Daniel Green family
• 4. 1920 Federal Census, Parker County, Texas
  • 9 January, Weatherford Ward 1, District 61, page 8A, 107 Cypress St, Hse #145, Fam #167
• 5. 1930 Federal Census, Parker County, Texas
  • 4 April, Weatherford Ward 4, District 4, page 3A, 114 Eureka St, Hse #57, Fam #64
• 6. Personal Letters
  • Letter 1