Finding Parallel Timelines: A Discovery on My Paternal Grandmother’s Side

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How do two completely different branches of a family tree survive the turbulent 1850s and 60s? Tracing a 51 cM DNA match led me to a narrative in the Benton County History book, revealing a striking parallel: while my Indigenous grandmothers were facing violent displacement and forced removal in Oregon, my 4th great-grandmother Nancy Ann Taylor was holding down their Ozark homestead alone during the Civil War—just 5 to 8 miles from the Battle of Pea Ridge. Holding the farm together with her husband and older sons away at war, she stuffed her young son inside a smokehouse salt barrel so he wouldn't be stolen by roving bushwhackers, and picked up a shovel herself to bury a fallen soldier near her spring before wild animals could reach him.

Lineage chart showing my direct paternal line from Garland and Nancy Ann Taylor down through my great-great-grandmother Lulu Belle Mitchell to my paternal grandmother.

Zelda Relethford’s narrative, published under entry F870 (Taylor – Garland) in the Benton County History book, offers a rare first-hand account of the family's migration, home-front survival during the Civil War, and the deep local roots they established in Benton County.

As someone accustomed to tracking precise historical dates, seeing the year 1854—  the birth year of my 3rd great-granduncle, William J. Taylor—and accounts of their westward movement immediately triggered a vivid mental cross-reference. I could not help but contrast this family’s journey with what was simultaneously unfolding in Oregon. The year 1854 sat right in the thick of the escalating tension and violence of the Rogue River Wars, the very period leading up to the brutal forced removal of all my Indigenous lineages to the reservations.

The entry’s references to the Civil War further bridged these parallel timelines. It recalled a crucial marker in my Indigenous ancestor's story Jennie McKay-Riggs: the period when she was almost given or bartered as a wife to then-Lieutenant Philip Sheridan. It was precisely Sheridan’s departure to fight in the Civil War that defined the boundaries of that event's timeline.

Settling near Garfield and the Journey West

My 4th great-grandparents, Garland and Nancy Ann Taylor, made the journey to Benton County from East Tennessee—where they were recorded in the 1850 federal census living in Subdivision 16, Anderson County. They traveled in a wagon train alongside a close-knit group of friends and neighbors, including the Wight, Miser, and Mitchell families (the ancestral line of my great-great-grandmother, Lulu Belle Mitchell, who was born in Garfield on October 29, 1883).

The Taylor family migration route from Anderson County, Tennessee, to Benton County, Arkansas, showing the ~50-mile mark where the wagon axle broke.

Roughly 50 miles away from their destination—around the rugged terrain of northern Madison or Carroll County—a wagon axle broke. With no way to make repairs on the trail, two households had to combine their belongings into a single remaining wagon and walk the final 50 miles into Benton County. Upon arrival, they settled on land southeast of Garfield, Arkansas, an area blessed with rich soil and good natural springs.

Home-Front Hardship and Survival in Benton County

Zelda’s record captures just how harrowing daily life was during the war years in northwest Arkansas. With Garland and his older sons away serving in Confederate regiments, Nancy Ann was left to manage the farm alongside the younger children—including my 3rd great-granduncle William J. Taylor (b. 1854) and my 3rd great-grandmother Nancy Delitha/Edna Taylor, who was born right in the midst of the conflict in 1862

Living in the Providence community near Garfield placed the Taylor farm just 5 to 8 miles from the epicenter of the Battle of Pea Ridge (March 7–8, 1862). Because their homestead sat directly in the battle's immediate staging area and travel corridors, the farm was caught right in the crosshairs of the conflict—making the presence of soldiers, artillery noise, and local raids an everyday reality for Nancy: 

Like most agrarian families in non-slaveholding areas of the Ozark frontier, Garland and his sons enlisted in local Confederate infantry regiments as community units mobilized across North Arkansas. With the adult men away in uniform, Nancy Ann was left to manage the farm alongside the younger children—including my 3rd great-granduncle William J. Taylor (b. 1854) and my 3rd great-grandmother Nancy Delitha/Edna Taylor, born in the midst of the conflict in 1862.

• Burying a Fallen Soldier: On her way to the spring during the Battle of Pea Ridge, Nancy discovered the body of a fallen soldier. With no men available to help, she and her young children dug a grave and buried him themselves while listening to the distant thunder of cannon fire.

Depiction of the Battle of Pea Ridge (March 7–8, 1862), fought just 5 to 8 miles from the Taylor family homestead in Garfield, Arkansas. Garland H. Taylor and his older sons served in local Confederate infantry regiments during the engagement. Image courtesy of Ancestry.

• Wounded at Pea Ridge and Vicksburg: Her two oldest sons fought at Pea Ridge, where James was wounded in the leg. His brother Zeke treated the bullet wound using cold clay packs until James was able to rejoin his regiment at Vicksburg, continuing through two more battles until the surrender.

Contemporary 1862 sketch illustrating the final advance of Union forces at Pea Ridge. As heavy artillery and infantry skirmishes raged across the nearby hollows, Nancy Ann Hammock Taylor managed the farm and buried a fallen soldier near their spring. Image courtesy of Ancestry.

• Hiding Food and Children from Bushwhackers: Roving bushwhackers stripped the farm of almost everything. Nancy managed to hide a small batch of cornmeal, but after three days of trying to cook without attracting attention, she baked corn dodgers on the fireplace. When bushwhackers suddenly rode up, she shoved the hot skillet underneath the fireplace just in time to save their only food. On other occasions, she hid young William Taylor inside a salt barrel in the smokehouse, fearing bushwhackers would kidnap him.

Faith, Literacy, and Local Lore

My 4th great-grandmother, Nancy Ann Hammock Taylor (1823–1898), holding the Bible she used as her primary textbook on the Ozark frontier, where she taught herself and her children to read.

Faith and the Word of God were the absolute cornerstone of Nancy Ann Taylor’s life. Despite the absence of formal schools on the frontier, she was a devout and studious student of the Bible, using Scripture as her primary textbook to teach herself to read. She instilled that same deep love for the Word in her children—passing down her literacy and faith so profoundly that three of her sons went on to become ministers of the Gospel. It was a devotion that echoed through the generations, starting with her daughter, my 3rd great-grandmother Nancy Delitha/Edna, who proudly carried forward her mother’s name.

The family traveled annually to Little Flock for multi-day camp meetings, making the arduous 12-to-15-mile trek southwest toward Rogers over rough Ozark terrain. During the Civil War, services at Little Flock Primitive Baptist Church came to a halt when Union forces occupied the sanctuary as a military hospital following the nearby Battle of Pea Ridge—a period recorded in the congregation's original minute books simply as a gap due to "national difficulties." Once peace returned, these seasonal gatherings resumed their vital purpose in frontier life, providing spiritual renewal, a sense of shared community, and connection to a broader regional network of believers.

Historic Little Flock Primitive Baptist Church (established 1843), near Rogers, Arkansas—site of the annual camp meetings attended by the Taylor family.

Around 1870, they helped establish and build a church closer to home—the Providence Primitive Baptist Church, located just a few miles southeast of Garfield along Sugar Creek Road.

Historic Providence Primitive Baptist Church along Sugar Creek Road in Garfield, Arkansas, established around 1870 with the help of the Taylor family.

Rebuilding and Final Resting Place

Following the war, my 4th great-parents Garland and Nancy Ann focused on rebuilding their homestead in Providence. They expanded their farm, raised livestock, and constructed a permanent log home that became a central gathering place for their growing family—which included sons John, Zeke, James, Garland Jr., and William, as well as daughters Mary, Jane, and  and my 3rd great Grandmother Nancy Delitha/Edna.

Rebuilding and Final Resting Place

Following the war, my 4th great-grandparents Garland and Nancy Ann focused on rebuilding their homestead in Providence. They expanded their farm, raised livestock, and constructed a permanent log home that became a central gathering place for their growing family—which included sons John, Zeke, James, Garland Jr., and William, as well as daughters Mary, Jane, and Nancy Delitha/Edna.

Today, both Garland H. Taylor and Nancy Ann Hammock Taylor lie at rest together at Walnut Hill Cemetery in Brightwater/Garfield. Just under a mile down Sugar Creek Road at Snoderly Cemetery, their daughter—my 3rd great-grandmother Nancy Delitha Taylor Mitchell (1858–1897)—was laid to rest following her passing at just 38 years old.

Upright headstone for my 4th great-grandfather, Garland H. Taylor (1818–1865), at Providence Cemetery in Garfield, Arkansas.

Headstone of my 3rd great-grandmother, Nancy Delitha Taylor Mitchell (1858–1897), at Snoderly Cemetery along Sugar Creek Road.

Discovering Zelda’s written record offers a compelling look at how two completely different strands of my family tree experienced and moved through the exact same pivotal years—the Taylor and Hammock lines navigating wagon trains, wartime disruptions, and local frontier survival in Arkansas, while my Indigenous ancestors were facing violent dislocation and forced marches to reservation life in Oregon.

I am so thankful that a fellow researcher took the time to preserve and upload these pages to Ancestry under my ancestors' names. Gaining such a vivid, personal glimpse into the everyday faith, hardships, and resilience of my family four generations back is an absolute treasure.

Sources

• Benton County History. Entry F870 ("Taylor – Garland"), authored by Zelda Relethford. Archived at the Bentonville Library Genealogy Department, Bentonville, AR.

• 1850 Federal Population Census: Subdivision 16, Anderson County, Tennessee. Record Group 29, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C.

• Ancestry Records Collection: "Taylor Family Lineage Diagram and Benton County History Records." Scanned document collection shared October 23, 2025, by Jenifer Luce.

• Historical Battle Illustrations: Kurz & Allison (Battle of Pea Ridge, 1889 color lithograph) and Harper’s Weekly (Union Forces Advancing at the Battle of Pea Ridge, 1862 wood engraving). Images courtesy of Ancestry Historical Insights.

• Local Religious and Cemetery Records: Site history and records for Little Flock Primitive Baptist Church (est. 1843, Rogers, AR), Providence Primitive Baptist Church, and Providence Cemetery (Garfield, AR).