Sunday, January 3, 2021

A Time Line for Catherine Odom

 Family Search sent me an email today with a timeline for my 2nd great-grandmother, Catherine Odom Harrell.  This is interesting information, and I thought it would make an excellent blog post.  I support any way to get my family stories out there.

This is my connection to Catherine Odom Harrell:

Liz (that's me!)

↓↓↓

Gilbert Earl Tapley, 1928-2008 (my father)

↓↓↓

Nealie Vermell Drake Tapley, 1895-1970 (my grandmother)

↓↓↓ 

Emma Vermell Harrell Drake, 1867-1935 (my great-grandmother)

↓↓↓ 

Catherine M Odom Harrell, 1841-1875 (my 2nd great-grandmother)


Time Line for the life of Catherine M. Odom Harrell  

1841

Age 0

 

Birth

26 Jul 1841

Emanuel County, Georgia

1846

Age 5

Historical Event

U.S. acquires vast tracts of Mexican territory in wake of Mexican War, including California and New Mexico.

 

1850

Age 9

 

Residence

Emanuel County, Georgia

Bet. 1858-1859

Age 17-18

Marriage

31 Dec 1857

Married Lawson Y. Riner (1837-1863)

 

1860

Age 19

  

Residence

Emanuel County, Georgia

 

1860

Age 19

Birth of Child

Roan Perry Riner was born in 1860 in Johnson County, Georgia.

 

1861

Age 20

Historical Event

Civil War: “Some 11,000 Georgians gave their lives in defense of their state - a state that suffered immense destruction. But war’s end brought about an even more dramatic figure to tell: 460,000 African-Americans were set free from the shackles of slavery to begin new lives as free people.”

 

1863

Age 21

Death of Spouse

Lawson Y. Riner died in a hospital in Richmond, Virginia on 11 Jan 1863.

 

1863

Age 21

Historical Event

The Battle at Gettysburg

01 Jul 1863 - 03 Jul 1863

The Battle of Gettysburg involved the largest number of casualties of the entire Civil war and is often described as the war's turning point. Between 46,000 and 51,000 soldiers lost their lives during the three-day Battle. To honor the fallen soldiers, President Abraham Lincoln read his historic Gettysburg Address and helped those listening by redefining the purpose of the war.

 

1864

Age 23

Historical Event

Arlington Cemetery

 “Arlington Cemetery is a military cemetery. It was originally a plantation owned by George Washington Parke Custis. This is the location of Robert E. Lee, 16,000 Civil War soldiers, William Howard Taft, John, Jackie, Robert, and Edward Kennedy. The tomb of the unknown soldier is also located here it was dedicated on November 11, 1921. It contains the remains of those soldiers unknown from WWI, WWII, Korea, and Vietnam.”

 

1865

Age 24

Marriage (2nd)

Married William Robert Harrell on 21 Dec 1865

 

1867

Age 26

Birth of Child

Emma Vermell Harrell was born 04 Sep 1867 in Emanuel County, Georgia.

 

1868

Age 27

Historical Event

The Fourteenth Amendment

“As one of the Reconstruction Amendments, the Fourteenth Amendment addresses the rights and protections that all citizens of the United States have. The amendment also limits actions of state and local officials in all states.”

 

1869

Age 28


Birth of Child

Nancy Jane Harrell was born 10 Dec 1869.

1870

Age 29

Historical Event

The Fifteenth Amendment

“Prohibits the federal government and each state from denying a citizen the right to vote based on that citizen's race, color, or previous condition of servitude. It was the last of the Reconstruction Amendments.”

 

1870

Age 29

Death of Parent

Her father, Elijah Samuel Odom (1816-1870) passed away at the age of 53.

  

1873

Age 32

Birth of Child

James Milledge Harrell was born in 1873 in Emanuel County, Georgia.

 

1875

Age 34

Historical Event

A New Civil Rights Act

“During the response to civil rights violations to African Americans, the bill was passed giving African Americans equal treatment in public accommodations, public transportation, and to prohibit exclusion from jury duty. While many in the public opposed this law, the African Americans greatly favored it.”

 

1875

Age 34

Death

Catherine M Odom Harrell passed away on 11 Sep 1875 in Emanuel County, Georgia.

 

1875

Burial

Harrell Cemetery

Norristown Junction, Emanuel County, Georgia


 Interesting stuff, right?  Thank you, Family Search, for the idea and the historical event information.  (All items in quotation marks are directly from the Family Search time line they sent me.)  Our dates didn't always align, but I worked it out.  

I do not know what took Catherine's life so young.  As her obituary says, she left 4 small children.


I cannot even imagine being 21 years old, in the middle of a civil war, with a small child, and finding out that your husband has been killed.  Then when the war finally ended, getting a second chance at happiness with a new husband and 3 more little ones, just to have it all snatched away at 34.  Obviously, she touched many people's lives during her short time on this earth.  

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