James D. Silman family history

James Dean Silman was born in May about 1837 in Tennessee. He was the son of Benjamin F and Nancy Silman. Benjamin was born about 1805 in South Carolina. Nancy was born in Tennessee about 1814. B. F. and Nancy were married circa 1832. At the time of the 1850 census, they were living in Giles Co, Tennessee and had 5 children.

In the late 1850’s, the Silman family migrated to Cass Co, Texas. Benjamin and his two oldest sons, William, and James each filed on land under the preemption laws in effect at the time. Each received land located northwest of Linden near present day Carterville. Benjamin died in 1868 and James was appointed administrator of his estate.

According to the 1850 and 1860 census records, Benjamin and Nancy had the following children: 1. Mary Ann Jane Silman was born about 1833 in Tennessee. She married a Mr. Hallesup prior to 1860 and had two children, Joseph M and Sarah J. She was living in Cass Co in 1880.

2. William A. Silman was born about 1835 in Tennessee.

He married his wife, N. Ellen, in 1860 according to the census of that year. During the Civil War he was a private in Company B of the 18th Texas Infantry. He died before the 1880 census, leaving his widow and the following minor children: William, Nancy A., Jesse W., and Mary F. Silman. Jesse Silman was the first husband of Lena Belle Penny, daughter of John Warren Penny and Margarette Luella Swinford. Jesse died at age 27. He, Lena, and his mother, Ellen are all buried at Flat Creek.

3. James Dean Silman was born in May of 1835 in Tennessee according to the 1900 census. However, in the seven censuses in which he appears, his birth year ranges from 1831 to 1838. The majority would support his birth as being about 1837-38.

4. John B. Silman was born about 1844 in Tennessee. He was mentally handicapped but found work as a cook in the lumber mills in Cass Co in 1880.

5. Nancy L. Silman was born about 1848 in Tennessee.

6. Lafayette Silman was born about 1851 in Tennessee.

He never married. In his later years, he lived with his brother James and is believed to be buried on the V. A.

Brown ranch in Edwards Co, Texas where Silman family members once ranched.

7. J. Silman was born in Texas. She was 8 months old at the time of the 1860 census.

James D. Silman married Martha Ann Cook daughter of Westley B Cook and Nancy Holly. She was born in Marion Co, Mississippi on April 17th. Like her husband, her birth year is not listed consistently in all records. Her tombstone lists 1828 and the 1900 census lists 1833. Most censuses support 1835. Martha first married John Grimes about 1850. She had two daughters from this marriage.

1. Lottie was 9 years old at the time of the 1860 census.

No further record of her is found after this date.

2. Susan was born in Mississippi circa 1853. She married William Henry James Mitchell in Cass Co, Texas on March 31, 1872. They separated and she later married a widower, David Pitt Nichols. Susan had 5 children: James Franklin Mitchell, Ida Frances Mitchell, Mattie Malinda Mitchell (Tossie), Oscar Mitchell, and Annie Mae Nichols. Frank Mitchell served two terms as sheriff of Cass Co from 1912 until 1916.

James and Martha married circa 1859 in Texas. Their first child was 3 months old at the time of the 1860 census. James enlisted in Company B of the 18th Texas infantry along with William during the Civil War. He was a private and received a pension for his service in his later years. J D was a lay minister who made his primary living by farming.

In 1877, James and several other men petitioned the county for a school at Pleasant Hill, Community #7. James served as trustee of the new school along with Daniel Boon and Joseph L Porter. The Silman family farmed in Cass Co until 1879 when they moved to Coleman Co. They settled in Glen Cove where James served as postmaster from 1884 until 1891. About this time, they sold their property in Coleman Co. It is uncertain where they lived for the next few years, but by 1900, they were living in Runnels Co, Texas. Martha died in Edwards Co, Texas on May 15, 1909 and is buried in the cemetery at Rock Springs. At the time of the 1910 census, James and his brother Lafayette Silman were recorded as living in Edwards Co with his daughter Ophelia and her husband, J C Linn.

When he applied for a pension for service in the Confederate army, he was living with his daughter Julia, and her husband, Dr J E Reed in Silver, Coke Co, Texas. At the time of the 1920 census, he was living with son, Virgil in Menard, Texas. It is believed that James D Silman, Sr died in Dallas, Texas during 1926. His burial place is unknown.

James and Martha had 5 known children: 1. Benjamin F Silman was born about July 1860 in Cass Co, Texas. In 1886, he purchased land from his parents in Coleman Co. About 1893, he left for Wilbarger Co, Texas and was never heard from again.

2. James Dean Silman, Jr was born about 1864 in Cass Co, Texas. He also purchased land in Coleman Co, but by 1910, he was living in Hannibal, Missouri. He had been married to his wife Mary Eliza Elder for 20 years at that time. Since she was born in Missouri, he must have arrived there about 1890. In 1910, they had 8 children: Mabel, George W, James Virgil, Bertha, Vincent M, Clara E, Susie, and Delia M Silman.

3. Nancy Julia was born about 1868 in Cass Co, Texas.

She married Dr Joseph Easton Reed in Coleman Co, on October 15, 1885. They lived for many years in Silver, Coke Co, Texas. They had 4 children: Grace E, Bonnie, Thomas Opie, and James Isaac Reed.

4.Elliot Ophelia was born September 1, 1872 in Cass Co, Texas. She married John Gary Linn in Coleman Co, on September 5,1889. They moved to Edwards Co, Texas in 1893. She died in 1913 at Del Rio, Texas. She and Cary had 6 children, 5 of which were living in 1910: Lucille, Ira, Earl, Comer, and Rankin Linn.

5. Virgil Andrew was born in April of 1874 in Cass Co, Texas and died in 1958. He married Matilda W Bryson in Runnels Co, Texas on October 19, 1902. They are buried at Rock Springs in Edwards Co, Texas. He was a minister of the gospel in several west Texas counties. He lived his later years in Menard. He and his wife had three known children: James D, Lillian, and Virgil Andrew Silman Jr.

– Submitted by Samuel Ross Penny