Dockery Berry Giddens Jones

Our great grandfather, Dockery Berry Giddens Jones, was born March 27, 1849, in Murray County, Georgia. He was the son of Thomas F. Jones and Nancy Kilpatrick.  (Note: We believed for a long time that Berry's mother was a Giddens because that was part of Berry's name.   We have now found the marriage record which shows she was a Kilpatrick.  We believe the Giddens family is related, however......possibly Thomas' mother was a Giddens, or maybe Nancy's mother was a Giddens?)

Berry appears on the 1850 Murray County, Georgia census with his family. He was one-year old on the census.  The census shows Thomas Jones, 29, a miller, $600 real property, born in GA; Nancy, 20, born in NC; Susan, 4, born in GA; Berry, 1, born in GA; Mary Jones, 70, born in GA and Silas Jenkins, 20, a laborer, born in NC.   Mary Jones was Berry's grandmother. 

The family appears on the 1860 Floyd County, Georgia census. Berry was eleven at that time.  The census shows Thomas F. Jones, 39, a shoemaker, $400 real property; Mary, 86; Nancy, 30; Susan, 13; Berry, 11; Edward, 9; Mary, 6; Martha, 3 and John, 1 year old. 

The Jones family migrated to Arkansas prior to 1870. They appear on the 1870 Prairie County, Arkansas census, in Lonoke Township.  The census shows T. F. Jones, 49, a minister, $325 real property, $200 personal property; Nancy, 42; B. G., 21, a farm laborer; Edward, 10 and John F., 8 years old.  (Note: The ages for Edward and John are incorrect.   Edward would have been about 19 and John about 11 years old in 1870.)    Listed on the census with them are three other Jones children: William Jones, 12, born in Georgia; Martha Jones, 6, born in Tennessee and S. S. Jones (a female), 5 months old, born February 1870, in Arkansas.   We have not been able to identify these children, but believe they were close relatives.....possibly nieces and a nephew. 

In late 1870 or early 1871, Berry was living near Mountain View, in Izard County (now Stone County), Arkansas.    

Berry married (first) our great grandmother, Julia Ann Hess, on July 6, 1871, near Mountain View, in Izard County (now Stone County), Arkansas. Julia Ann Hess, born November 7, 1853, in Independence County, Arkansas, was the third of five children born to Hiram Hess and Sarah (last name unknown).

We have been told that Berry and Julia settled near Mountain View, where their two children were born.   Berry was a farmer. He was sometimes called "Saddler" Jones, which came from the fact that he worked with leather, making and repairing saddles and harness and shoes and boots.   His father also was a leather worker, making and repairing shoes and boots.

Julie died at Mountain View on March 8, 1876, in childbirth and the baby died with her.  She was only 23 when she died. Berry was left to care for a daughter less than two years old and a son little more than three years of age.

 Records indicate that Julie's mother, Sarah Hess, and Julie's sisters probably helped care for the two children for a time. We believe Julie's daughter, Eliza, may have visited often with her grandmother and aunts.

On October 25, 1876, little more than six months after the death of his wife, Berry Jones married (second) Sarah Jane Edwards at Mount Vernon, in Faulkner County, Arkansas. Sarah Edwards was born November 27, 1859, in Arkansas, the daughter of J. Edwards (b. abt 1830, TN; d. abt 1862-1868) and Mary A. (maiden name unknown) (b. 1835, AL; d. before 1900, AR).  

The Edwards family appears on the 1860 Conway County, Arkansas census, in Muddy Bayou Township.    (Note: This area became Faulkner County in 1873.)   The census shows J. Edwards, 30, a farmer, $150 personal property; Mary, 25; Parlie, 4; Elizabeth, 2 and Sarah, 6 months old. 

     Mr. Edwards died prior to 1869 (possibly during the Civil War?).   The 1870 Conway County census shows the family still residing in Muddy Bayou Township.   The census shows Mary Edwards, 37, $200 personal property; Paralee, 12; Elizabeth, 11; Sarah, 9 and Nancy, 7 years old. 

     The Edwards children included: (1) Samantha Paralee Edwards, b. Apr 10, 1857, (2) Elizabeth Edwards, b. 1858, (3) Sarah Jane Edwards, b. Nov 27, 1859 and (4) Nancy Edwards, b. about 1862.   

 The 1880 Faulkner County, Arkansas census, Muddy Bayou Township, shows Mary A. Edwards, 45, widowed, a farmer and her daughter Paralee Edwards, 23 years old.   Living in the same household was Mary's daughter and son-in-law, Sarah and Dockery Jones.   The census shows Dockery Jones,37;  Sarah J., 20; Edward, 8 and Paralee S., 2 years old.  Also living with the family was Rose A. Price, 49, widowed, born in Tennessee and her children Mary F. Price, 22; Annie J. Price, 13 and William H. Price, 11 years old.    We do not know if Rose was related to Berry or Sarah, but Berry did name one of his daughter's Rose.   We believe Rose could have been a sister to Mary Edwards.   Berry's daughter, Eliza, age 4, was listed on the 1880 Stone County, Arkansas, census with her grandmother, Sarah Hess.

     Living nearby, in the Village of Mt. Vernon in 1880 Faulkner County, Muddy Bayou Township, was Berry's father, Thomas F. Jones, age 59, a shoe and boot maker, and his wife Martha A., age 50.   Boarding with them was John W. Gregory, 32, a store clerk, born in Virginia.

We are unsure how many children were born to Berry and Sarah. We have been told some of their children died as infants, or when they were very young. We have record of five children.

Sarah Edwards Jones died in Faulkner County during the time between the death of her youngest child on August 18, 1886 and about September 1887. 

     Berry married (third) Samantha Paralee Edwards, on February 15, 1888, in Faulkner County.   Samantha Edwards was born April 10, 1857, in Arkansas.  She was the daughter of J. Edwards and Mary A. (maiden name unknown) and was the older sister of Sarah Jane Edwards, Berry's second wife.   (Note: The date of birth on Samantha's headstone is shown as 1859.   We know that date is incorrect because her younger sister, Sarah Jane, was born in 1859 (Sarah Jane was 6 months old on the 1860 census) and Samantha was at least two years older than Sarah Jane.)

     Berry and Samantha moved to White County, Arkansas, soon after their marriage.   Berry assessed taxes in Marion Township of White County in 1889 and in El Paso Township of White County in 1890.

Berry's son Leonard was born at El Paso, in White County on October 16, 1892 and his daughter Eliza married in White County on August 14, 1893.

Sometime between the time of his daughter's marriage in 1893 and early 1900, Berry moved his family to Culpepper Township, in Van Buren County, Arkansas, and settled near Formosa.

The 1900 Van Buren County census, Culpepper Township, shows Berry Jones, 51, born March 1849, married 13 years, a farmer; Parrilee, wife, 43, born April 1858, had given birth to 3 children, 2 children were still living; Nora, daughter, 17, born Dec 1882; Rosie, daughter, 11, born August 1888 and Charles E., son, 8, born October 1891.   Living next to them was Berry's daughter Mattie I. Jones, 19, born June 1880, who was boarding with Jasper and Rebecca Hardin.

On October 11, 1909, a land patent was issued to Berry G. Jones on 80 acres of land in Van Buren County. The legal description was the "north one-half of the northeast quarter of Section 8, Township 10 North, Range 14 West".

The 1910 census shows Berry and Paralee in Griggs Township, near Clinton, in Van Buren County. Also listed on the census is their daughter Rosa, age 20; son Charles, age 18, and grandson, Ralph Jones, age 6 years.  Ralph was the son of their daughter Rosa. 

Sometime after 1913, Berry and Paralee moved to Oklahoma.    The 1920 Haskell County, Oklahoma census, Town of Keota, shows Berry Jones, 71, a laborer in a shoe shop and Samantha, wife, 62 years old.    They were living next to their daughter and son-in-law, Rosa and Charlie Lay and their children.  

Prior to 1930, the family moved back to Arkansas.    The 1930 Van Buren County census, Bradley Township, Stell's Chapel area, shows Berry G. Jones, 81, married at 18, born in Georgia, father and mother both born in Georgia, a shoe cobbler at his own shop and Samantha P., wife, 72, first married at 20, born in Alabama, father and mother both born in Alabama. Living nearby was Berry's son James Thomas Edward Jones and his family.

Paralee died February 29, 1936, and is buried in the Bee Branch Cemetery. Berry died eight months later on October 23, 1936, and is buried beside Paralee in the Bee Branch Cemetery.

 We do not know how many children were born to Berry and Paralee. We have record of only two children. We have been told that Berry and Paralee have a child buried in an unmarked grave near them. As the family apparently did not move to that area until after 1920, we feel it is not their child, but possibly their grandchild, who is buried there.

Children of Berry Jones and Julie Hess

Children of Berry Jones and Sarah Edwards

Children of Berry Jones and Paralee Edwards