An Ozarks Minute The Other Real Story

Can you have too many stories passed down in a family? That seems to be the case in the genealogy of my Martin family branch. When there are two versions of the same event it’s hard to know which to believe and pass on. I have an extensive history of these ancestors tracing back to 1602. I know when the Martins came to America and how they journeyed down the Great Wagon Road, settling in North Carolina and fighting in the Revolutionary War. Judge Samuel Martin (b. 1776) and wife, Elizabeth (b. 1779) by all accounts were the first to arrive in Missouri in 1828. They left North Carolina and settled near Springfield, Missouri. Those facts are not in dispute. But the manner of their journey then turns into two different stories. Both were written by Martin descendants, and both were published in books. The first account, by Blunt Martin, describes a scouting party from Kentucky and a confrontation at Fulbright Springs. By Blunt’s account, the land around the spring that provides part of Springfield, Missouri’s, drinking water was the rightful claim of Judge Samuel since he had staked the area first. However, it seemed a Mr. Fulbright was there also claiming the land. But, as possession was nine-tenths of the law (as the saying goes) Mr. Fulbright won, kept the claim, and now has a well-known Greenway Trail, school, and housing development named after him. The second story, recorded in a book by Glain Martin, also tells of Samuel’s arrival in 1828 but omits mention of a spring or a Fulbright. In Glain’s well documented version, Samuel and wife, Elizabeth, were living in North Carolina in 1827 when he wrote to his sister and brother-in-law that in the next year he was going to “sell up and move to the Missouri- I am determined to go- and I wish you could go with us.” He also reminded them to be sure to vote for him in an upcoming county election being held. Judge Samuel made good on his promise and made the journey of approximately 1,100 miles with a whole community made of all his children, some who were already grown, and his many grandchildren. They traveled in carts or wagons pulled by three teams of oxen. They made a brief stop in Maury County, Tennessee, and joined former North Carolia neighbors, the Campbell and Polk families. It is recorded that when they left in the fall of 1828, they had as many as sixteen oxcarts and wagons and a large group of people, livestock, and supplies. At the end of the journey, Judge Samuel settled in Missouri on the James River in what would become Section 24 of Taylor Township. Two of his sons made their homes nearby. On the land that they settled in 1828, a new county was formed in 1833 by a special act of the legislature and named after Nathaniel Greene who was a Revolutionary War hero from North Carolina. The first session of the county court was held in the home of John P. Campbell. The new county charter called for three justices to be selected and Judge Samuel, due to having had some experience back in North Carolina politics, was first elected to serve. So, the move to Missouri was a success until 1835 when cholera hit Springfield and killed Judge Samuel’s son, Richard. It seems that Richard had amassed a large estate due to his running of the community whiskey still. It was noted that many prominent citizens were good customers of the still and several owed money at the time of Richard’s death. Judge Samuel was made administrator of the estate. Since the death was both unexpected and premature at Richard’s age of only 35, there was no will. Some sort of disagreement broke