Thanks for the reply.
Lewis did not get married until he was 50 years old. He married a much younger Martha Brabston. They had three children,
Amon (known as
Bud), Batchea (known as
Batch) and
Susie. Martha and
Susie died shortly after
Susie was born. They are all buried in the
Beckham family cemetery.
Lewis was a millwright and Martha's father was a "master smith". They probably worked together. I still have some of Lewis's tools. My first cousin has a copy of Lewis's diary that he kept after becoming a single father, but I have not seen it. My father spent a lot of time with
Bud, his grandfather.
Are you sure about
Elijah Junior &
Senior? My information is that
Elijah was the son of James. He and his wife, Jane, moved to
Grainger county in the early 1820's. James and two of his brothers were in the Revolutionary war. They received land in
Tennessee. I have a copy of James' pension application.
In the 1850 census there is a
Preston Beckham. Circumstantial evidence suggests that he and his wife were freed by
Elijah because of the names of their children. Elijah and Jane were still alive for the 1860 census.
Where did you get the information about Lewis being in
Granger county in 1930? Is it on the Census form?