Joseph Abel

Our great-great grandfather Joseph Abel was born April 13, 1831, in Greene County, Tennessee.    He was the son of Jonathan Abel and Catherine Cleaver.

Joseph's mother died between 1835 and 1840.    The 1840 Greene County census shows Joseph as a male 5-10 years old.

 The 1850 Greene County census shows Joseph living at home with his widowed father, Jonathan, age 64, and his siblings Margaret, 17, and Aurelius, 14.    Joseph was listed as 19 years old at the time.    Joseph's brother Hezekiah and his family were living nearby.

Joseph married our great-great grandmother Christina Keasling on November 12, 1850, at Greenville, in Greene County, Tennessee.     She is listed as Christina Keisle on the marriage license.     (Note: The surname appears as Keesling, Kisling, Kissling, Kiesel, Keasel, Keasler and other various spellings in tax, court, marriage and census records.)       Christina Keasling was born June 11, 1830, in Greene County, Tennessee.    She was the daughter of John Keasling and Anna Maria Headrick.    

John Keasling was married three times and produced children in each marriage.   Christina was a child from his first marriage.   About 1844, John left four of his young children in various homes in Greene County, Tennessee, and moved to Indiana with his second family and one son from his first marriage.    Christina was one of those children left behind.    

In 1850, Christina and her brother Rufus were living with the Knipp family in Greene County, Tennessee.    The 1850 Greene County, Tennessee census shows Elias Knipp, 38, a farmer, born in Virginia; Christeny Knipp, 62, born in Virginia; Christeny Keasel, 18, born in Tennessee; and Rufus Keasel, 17, born in Tennessee.     An e-mail we received from Rose Barnstable, in 1999 (whose husband is a descendant of Joseph Abel and Christina Keasling) stated, The Knipps and the Keaslings have an interesting relationship ..... John Keasling bound out Rufus and Ruben at the age of 10 and one of them (I think Ruben) grew up with Christena Knipp.  

Joseph and Christina moved their family to Keokuk County, Iowa prior to 1855.    The family settled in Jackson Township where Joseph farmed.

The 1860 Keokuk County census, Jackson Township, shows Joseph Able, 31, a farmer, real property valued at $800 and personal property valued at $300; Christiann, 31; Rufus, 9; Columbus, 5; and Frances M., 2 years old.

The 1870 Keokuk County census, Jackson Township, shows Joseph, 38, a farmer, born in Tennessee; Christina, 40, born in Tennessee; Rufus, 19, born in Tennessee; Columbus, 14, born in Iowa; F. M., 12, born in Iowa; Lucretia, 7, born in Iowa; L. D., 5, born in Iowa; and Eldora, 1, born in Iowa. Joseph is shown to have real property valued at $2000 and personal property valued at $735.    Living not far from the Abel family was the John Fritz family. Living with the Fritz family in 1870 was seven year old Emeline Kirby, the future wife of Columbus Abel.

The 1880 Keokuk County census, Jackson Township, shows Joseph, 49, father born in Virginia, mother born in North Carolina; Christina, 50, father and mother both born in Virginia; Marion, 21; Anna, 16; Lorenzo, 14; Charles 9; Dora, 11; and William, 6.

Joseph died August 11, 1894, at Ollie, in Keokuk County.    He is buried in the Reed (formerly Gray) Cemetery in Keokuk County.    Christina died January 25, 1918, at Prospect, in Prince Edward County, Virginia.

Children of Joseph Abel and Christina Kiesel