MAUDIE married MELSON UNKNOWN. [Group Sheet]

1. MELSON LINDA

JOHN married OWENS DOSHA ELIZABETH on 27 Oct 1910 in Stone County, Missouri. DOSHA (daughter of OWENS DILLY FATE (DILEFATE) and DAVIS MARY ELIZABETH) was born on 4 Dec 1891 in Stone County, Missouri; died on 23 Nov 1979 in Tulsa, Tulsa County, Oklahoma. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Perhaps the name has caught your attention, and you wonder where it came from. Sorry, I can be of no help. The 1880 census runs the two names together and appears to be Dilefate. Marriage and probate records list him as D.F. But Dilly Fate is the spelling his daughters used. Maybe the name Dilly stems from the fact he was the last of 14 children and Fate because his Mother was 46 at the time of his birth. But this is another of those questions to have ready when the last trumpet sounds.
Dilly was born 24 May, 1872, in Stone Co., MO, to Wm. K. Owens and Sarah Ann McCray. We can assume he had the normal life of any young boy of that time, working on the farm, hunting and going to school. I don't know what education Dilly had but he could read and write. When his father died in January 1882, I am sure after that his life changed with more responsibilities thrust upon him. When his mother Sarah, became ill, Dilly looked for someone to live at the home and help care for Sarah. He found a young woman of the community, Mary Elizabeth Davis (b. 15 Aug., 1865, Miller Co., MO, daughter of John Thompson Davis and Nancy Jane Davis). How long the employer-employee relationship lasted I am not sure, but August 2, 1888, Mary and Dilly were married in Stone County.
To this marriage three children were born in Stone Co., MO, as follows: Sarah Naverett Bell Owens, b. 1/27/1890, d. 1/9/1971, in Pryor, OK. She was married 2/28/1909, in Stone Co., MO to John Henry Victory; Dosha Elizabeth Owens, b. 12/4/1891, d. 11/23/1979, in Tulsa, OK. She was married 10/27/1910 in Stone Co., MO, to John Franklin Graves; Charles Weaver Owens, b. 10/20/1893, d. 9/30/1961, in Fayetteville, Arkansas, was first married October 10 1927, Stone Co., MO, to Rosa Francis Strimple. His second marriage, in 1938, was to Julia Grace Shannon King.
From accounts of Dosha Owens Graves, they were a happy family with lots of aunts, uncles, and cousins to visit. The Owens School house was a center of activity--school, picnics, and preaching services.
Fortunately for many of us the traveling photographer made his way through Stone County in July 1905 and preserved on film one of the last happy days of this small family (see photograph). Only one week after the picture was taken, Mary fell victim to a common disease of that time, dysentery, and died within a week. The heading for the photo is: The Owens family: Charley, Dilly, "Nett", and Dosha, July 1905.
Dilly remained a widower till 6 Nov., 1907, when he married in Stone County, Lucy Melissia Francis Taylor, b. 24 Feb., 1883, Stone County, daughter of Geroge W. Taylor and Lonia Jordon.
Born to Dilly and Lucy, in Stone Co., MO, were five children as follows: Lee Marshal Owens, b. 5/4/1909, d. 6/4/1968, at Reeds Spring, MO. His first marriage was to Allie Mae Blankenship on 7/17/1931, at Galena, MO; his second marriage was in 1938 to Opal Gardner, and his third marriage was in April, 1953 to Edna Teague. George Farris Owens was b. 3/22/1911, and d. 10/26/1984, Springfield, MO. He was married 6/3/1934 in Barry County, MO, to Alta Mae Lewis. Trude Margaret Owens was b. 8/1/1913, (living in 1988), married Albert Franklin Tilden 3/27/1940 in Stone Co., MO. Florence Owens was b. 11/1/1915, and d. 6/6/1987 in Caldwell, Idaho. She was married 8/19/1936 at Cassville, MO, to Kirby Maxwell.
Gladys Leona Owens b. Feb. 8, 1917, d. Jan. 17, 1957, St. Joseph, MO, m. Oct. 3, 1937, Monett, MO, Harold Presley Colboch.
Lucy died Nov. 2, 1918, from complications of child birth. She was buried in the Owens Cemetery, one space from Mary David Owens (Dilly was later buried between them). Again Dilly was a widower with five children under the age of nine. Soon Dilly married Alice E. Fly, but the relationship was not long lasting; they were separated at the time of Dilly's death Oct. 2, 1920.
Dilly became very ill with stomach pains, and was aware of his impending death and made arrangements for the five children. He didn't feel that either Nett or Dosha could handle any of the chilren; Net had 5 and Dosha 3 at the time. I don't know who all the childdren were raised by, but on a whole they were well taken care of.
Dilly was a progressive type of person--he inherited his parents' land and purchased other land. He operated a store and post office at Norwalk. He understood that the way of life was changing in Stone Co. from hunting and farming. Just before his death he had purchased a herd of Jersey cows to start a dairy. After his death the herd had to be auctioned off to settle the bank debt. The land was free of debt, and the court ruled Alice Fly Owens could have use of the land until her death, then the land went to the eight children. When the Table Rock Dam was built, part of the land was covered by water and the remainder sold.
I remember the Christmas my grandparents bought me and four cousins new shoes from Sears. For each of the three children they bought a set of "good dishes." One was the Blue Willow pattern, one Roses, and my parents' was Gardenias. I have my Mother's Gardenia set, and one of my sons has already asked to inherit them. So in a way the Owens "land" is still in the family.
There are many of Dilly's descendants in the U.S., mainly settling in MO, OK, Idaho, and CA.
by Linda Melson Mulkey
From: History of Stone County, Missouri p. 532-533.
Stone County, Missouri, Historical Society

DILLY married DAVIS MARY ELIZABETH on 2 Aug 1888 in Stone County, Missouri.. MARY (daughter of DAVIS JOHN THOMPSON and UNKNOWN NANCY JANE) was born on 15 Aug 1865 in Miller County, Missouri; died on 19 Aug 1905 in Stone County, Missouri; was buried in Owens Cemetery, Williams Township, Stone County, Missouri. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Maury County, TN Court Minutes, Bk. 9, page 67, July 18, 1825. William Owen(s) - 9 years old the 20th December last, ordered to be bound to Francis Slauter until he is 21 to be a gunsmith.
1840 MO Census, Washington Co. p. 212, line 17. William Owens2 males under 5 yrs. old; 1 male between 5 - 10 yrs. old; 1 male 20 - 30 yrs. old; 1 female 5 - 10 yrs. old.
1850 MO Census, Washington Co., Liberty Twp. p. 142B, lines 20-27, October 11, 1850. William Owens, 36, b. TN, farmer. Sarah A., 25, TN; Elias, 16, MO; Reuben, 13, MO; Anna I, 6, MO; Wm. B., 4, MO; Daniel M., 3, MO; and Mary A., 4/12, MO.
1860 MO Census, Stone County. Flat Creek Twp p. 568-569, July 3, 1860. William Owen, 45, TN, Farmer; Sarah, 35, TN; Ann, 16, MO; William, 14, MO; Daniel, 12, MO; Mary A., 10, MO; James, 8, MO; Hugh, 6, MO; John A., 4, MO; Mahala, 1, MO. Wm. Sr. could not read or write: the family is mistakenly listed as "Owen" instead of "Owens".
1870 MO Census, Stone Co., Flat Creek Twp. p. 122A, lines 1-9. William Owens, 55, TN, Farmer; Sarah, 44, GA, Keeping House; Mary A., 21, MO, at home; James C., 18, MO, Farm Laborer; Hugh J., 16, MO, Farm Laborer; John A., 14, MO, at home; Mahala A., 11, MO, at home; Drucilla, 8, MO, at home; Robert H. , 5, MO, at home. Wm. owned personal property valued at $340. Hugh and John could not write. Mahala could not read or write. Rollen is mistakenly listed as Robert.
1880 MO Census, Stone Co., Williams Twp p. 38B, lines 28-32, June 4, 1880. William Owens, 65, TN, Farmer; Sarah Ann, 54, TN/NC, keeping house; Hugh Jay, 26, MO, at home; Rolin H., 15, MO, at home; Dilafatt(?), 9, MO, at home. Hugh had already been married and widowed; four other Owens families follow, probably sons of Wm. because they all list both parents born in TN.

William King Owens owned land in Sections 11 and 15. By 1860 their one room cabin buldged with 2 teenagers and 6 children. As the children married, they farmed adjacent to, or near their parents.
Owens Cemetery, Section 11; Owens School, Section 15; Fields School and Cemetery, Section 18; Jones School, Section 24; Hendrickson School, Section 28.
Info. in last 2 paragraphs from History of Stone County Missouri, p. 555 written by Leonard E. Carey

This is a rather large family, and I have the names and information on some 487 descendants as of this writing.
Leonard E. Carey 1989

The Owenses were basically farmers and they became a part of the American Dream. Wherever new land was opened for homesteading, you will find them packing up their belongings and moving on to what they hoped would be a better life. Some found their "Utopia," but others could only see the hardships.
From family statements, it is learned that William and his son Elias travelled from Tennessee into eastern Missouri looking for land that they could settled on. They found what they were looking for in Washington Co., MO, and sent word back to Tennessee that the rest of the family should follow them by wagon team.
A house was built; crops set in and there was time for increasing the family. It was here that Ann, William B., Daniel, and Mary Dosha were born. This was to be their home for the nexxt 10 years or so. The children attended school in a one-room school house that stands today. It is located at Sunnan Lake, Washington Co., MO. I was fortunate in taking a picture of this building, though it is no longer used as a school
Samuel J. Lamkey, a relative of the family, now lives on the old home place. The original house burned, as have three others that were built, so there is little remaining to indicate how it was when William lived there. We can, however, pinpoint the location as being near Ebo, MO.
Sometime between the 1850 census and 1852 William moved his family to Newton Co., MO. His son, James Clement Owens, was born at Granby, MO 18 June 1852. Elizabeth and Elias were already married by thistime, and they remained in Washington Co., as did Reuben. I am not sure what happened to Elizabeth, but I have met many of her brother's descendants in Washington Co., MO.
Hugh Jefferson Owens was born 15 June 1854, probably at Granby, MO. John Anderson Owens was born 14 April 1856 at Granby, MO, Sometime between 1856 and 1859, William moved his family to Stone Co., MO, His daughter Mahala America Josephine
Owens was born in Stone Co., 31 March 1859. It was in Stone Co. that William built their home, a large one-room log cabin. The stove was in one corner and they slept in the other.
Mildred Chism Bushnell remembers asking her grandfather, James Clement Owens, why his dad had moved down into southern Stone co. He said, "The fishing and hunting were better. They traded with Indians and the berries and grapes were plentiful. It was a very peaceful life." Daniel, John, and Dilly homesteaded close to their father. James also owned land nearby. James sold his son-in-law land adjoining the school house. As Mildred Bushnell says, "William Owens must have been a pretty nice guy, or he would not have kept his children so close."
In keeping with the thought of togetherness, William had the idea of a family cemetery, and such a plot was established in 1881 on about one acre of land that William and Sarah purchased on 5 June 1875, in the southwest corner, Section 11, Range 24W, Township 22N, Stone Co., MO. One of the stipulations in establishing this cemetery was that WJilliam would be the first buried there. He has now been dead and buried over 101 years (he died 15 Jan. 1882). I have been to the cemetery and have pictures of the stones and have the names of most of the people buried there. It is located 9-10 miles east of Hill City (on Highway #39, Barry Co., MO) on the banks of Table Rock Lake, turn right on the first road past the Owens Public Use Area and continue approximately one mile. The only road to thsi cemetery is unmarked and unpaved. The Owens cemetery was established in 1881.
Mildred writes, "I remember before Dilly tore down his father's house, Grandmother and I picked baskets of roses and went to the cemetery. She draped flowers on everyone's grave and she would call them by name. We would then visit William King and Sarah Owens' log house just across the road. It had the biggest fireplace I ever saw."
Nearby to the cemetery is what remains of the Owens School house. It has not been used for many years, but some of the relatives can tell stories about their teachers and teh lessons they learned there. James Clement Owens donated the seven acres of land, and James F. Banks, husband of Mary Dosha Owens Banks, built the Owens School house.

Leonard E. Carey

WILLIAM married MCCRAY SARAH ANN (MCRAY) in Mar 1842 in Washington County, Missouri; dom may be 1843.. SARAH (daughter of MCCRAY Daniel and ADAMS Anna) was born on 4 Jan 1826 in Scott County, Georgia; died on 11 Nov 1893 in Stone County, Missouri; dod ?11/16/1892; was buried in Owens Cemetery, Williams Township, Stone County, Missouri. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Wanda L. Gines has a picture of Sarah Ann McCray Owens in Lorene Gines' file.

http://www.gencircles.com/users/seidler/1/data/611
has her name as Sarah Ann McRae and dob as 14 Jan. 1826.

JOHN married UNKNOWN NANCY JANE. [Group Sheet]