Family tradition and the family bible say William Hamer was born 22 Jan 1769 in Pa. Tradition says he began his family while still in Pennsylvannia, and moved the family at least twice. In 1812, he went to the Lake Champlain area in New York state. In 1817, he moved to Ohio. He purchased 50 acres near Oxford, Butler County, Ohio. (The purchase was recorded on 30 Oct., 1829, in the courthouse, in Hamilton, Ohio}. He remained there until he died. His wife's name is not recorded, but at least one child survived.

There is a record of a sale of land by William Hamer in Ontario County, New York, in 1817. This may be our William Hamer. He sold it to Christopher Clark. He may have moved at the time of the sale.

William purchased 50 acres near Oxford, Butler County, Ohio, recorded in Hamilton, Ohio, on Oct 30, 1829. This could have been recorded after the purchase.

The following transfer paper was given by the Presbyterian Church at Chillisquaque, Pennsylvania. "These are to certify, that the bearers hereof, William Hammer & his wife, Ibby, are herefore of good character, have had the privilege of Baptism for a child with us, are free from public scandal or anything exposing to Church injure known to us & may be received into any variety of Christians where God in his Providence may order their lot. Given at Chillisquaque with advise of session the 25th day of October 1801, by John Bryson F. D. M." Rev. John Bryson was pastor from 1790 to 1840. From the Thomas L. Hamer correspondence in the Huntington Library in California.

Tombstone in Old Ebenezer Cemetery, Hanover Township, Butler County, Ohio, read, as recorded in History and Biographical Cyclopedia of Butler County Ohio, published at Cincinnati in 1882: " William Hamer, a native of Pennsylvania, who married Isabel Vanderhook, September 11, 1796, and who died May 4, 1811(?)". Since the church was not begun till 1817 and there are no other burials before the 1830's it can be assumed that the date was incorrectly read. It could be 1831 to 1839, since William was in the 1830 census and not in the 1840 census. The stone was no longer extant when the tombstones were transcribed in 1962, although a few other stones recorded in 1882 were again reported.

On February 24, 1834 the land which William Hamer owned is listed in the "Reily Township List and Valuation of Real Property made in the year 1834", as belonging to the heirs of William Hamer. 30 acres valued at $200. He died before 1834.

There is no mention of William in a letter of cousin Hugh Hamer to Thomas L. Hamer in 1835. He is likely not living. This letter is found in the Thomas L. Hamer Correspondence in the Huntington Library in California.

[Brøderbund Family Archive #313, Ed. 1, Census Index: U.S. Selected Counties, 1810, Date of Import: Feb 18, 2002, Internal Ref. #1.313.1.1799.118]

Individual: Hammer, William

County/State: Ontario Co., NY; Boyle Township

Page #: 134

Year: 1810

Age ranges in household: 11010 00010 (The ages are recorded differently in this Broderbund Archive, but a comparison with a copy of the actual census shows the above. 1 male under 10; 1 male between 10 and 15; 1 male between 26 and 44; 1 female between 26 and 44. This corresponds to Joseph V., Thomas L., William, and Isabel.

[Brøderbund Family Archive #314, Ed. 1, Census Index: U.S. Selected Counties, 1820, Date of Import: Sep 18, 1998, Internal Ref. #1.314.1.2491.149]

Individual: Hamer, William

County/State: Butler Co., OH

Location: Oxford Twp

Page #: 036

Year: 1820

01000100000001000; 1 male 10 to 16; 1 male over 45; 1 person engaged in agriculture. This corresponds to Joseph V., and William. The mark for one engaged in agriculture may have been missplaced and be actually the mark for Isabel.

[Brøderbund Family Archive #315, Ed. 1, Census Index: U.S. Selected Counties, 1830, Date of Import: Sep 15, 1998, Internal Ref. #1.315.1.3891.3]

Individual: Hamer, William

County/State: Butler Co., OH

Location: Reily Twp

Page #: 173

Year: 1830

01020000100000100001000000; 1 male between five and ten; 2 males between fifteen and twenty; 1 male between sixty and seventy; 1 female between forty and fifty. It is not clear who are the three males here with William and Isabel.

"February Term 1840

Butler Co., OH Court

Butler County ss.

Be it remembered that on the (blank) day of (blank) in the Term of March one thousand eight hundred and thirty nine before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton comes Isaac Lindley by John B. Waller his Solicitor and exhibits here in Court his petition or bill in Chancery against Silas Misner in the words following to wit: " To the Hons. the Judges of this Court of common pleas for Butler County, Ohio in Chancery listing? your orator Isaac Lindly (sic) of the county aforesaid ? have to represent to your honors, that on the fifth day of September A.D. 1829 he became surety for one William Hamer of said county in a note payable to Henry Clem for the sum of fifty dollars two years from that date, that the said note was assigned by the said Clem to John A. Hancock on the tenth February AD 1831 that suit was instituted upon said note in the name of Henry Clem and a judgment rendered against defendant for the sum of forty-five dollars and 52/00 before John Johnston then an acting Justice of the peace in Reily township, Butler County, Ohio, al which will more fully and at large appear references being had to a transcript of said proceedings herewith files? marked. And made a part of this his bill of complaint. That the said William Hamer in the mean while died leaving his widow who has since intermarried with one William McKasson and as his heirs and representatives at law, Thomas L. Hamer, William Hamer, That the said William McKasson took possession of the personal estate of the said William Hamer and coverted the same to his own use. That a settlement was as your orator is informed afterwards made between Thomas L. Hamer, one of the heirs in his own right and as guardian for the other heir, a minor with the said William McKasson. That the said Thomas L. Hamer reliquished his claim to the property upon the agreement that the said McKasson should discharge certain debts and liabilities incured by the said William Hamer in his lifetime. That amongst others said McKasson retained property in his hands to pay off the Judgment aforesaid. That the said John A. Hancock on the fifteenth October A.D. one thousand one hundred and thirty-three assigned said Judgment to Silas Misner who as your orator verily believes purchased said Judgment with the money of the said McKasson and now holds the same for his use and benefit. Your orator further states that although nearly six years have elapsed since rendition of said Judgment yet no execution had ever been issued on the same. That said Silas Misner who now resides and has for many years past resided in this county refuses to order an execution, but refuses as to do, alledging that he will make your orators heirs pay it some day. Your orator who is now very old and infirm and then when these facts cannot be proved or the circumstances fully explained compel the heirs of your orator to pay the same. Your orator expressly charges that the said Judgment has been fully paid and satisfied out of the property of the said William Hamer. That the said McKasson is fraudulently attempting to recover the same off of your orator or his estate after his death-that the said Silas Misner holds said Judgment as a trustee merely for McKassen who has received the same as aforesaid. In tender consideration whereof and as your orator is ? at law and can only have relief in a Court of equity where matters of this sort are cognizable he prays your honor that the said William McKasson (who resides in Indiana), Silas Misner who lives in Butler county & Thomas L. Hamer who resides in Brown county may be made defendants to this his bill of complaint and that they may upon their oaths be compelled to answer the same as fully and explicitely as if again repeated by way of interrogatory and to the end that your orator may be no longer harrased (sic), and that justice may be done on the promises. he prays your honor that the said Silas Misner and William McKasson may be forever enjoined from collecting or prosecuting said Judgment, and that the same may be cancelled and anulled and satisfaction entered on the ? aforesaid. John B. Weller, Sol. for Complt. Whereupon the Sheriff of the county aforesaid is commanded that he give notice to the said Silas Misner to be before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton immediately to answer to the bill aforesaid. Afterwards now at this day to with the (blank) day of (blank) in the Term of March aforesaid before the judges aforesaid here at Hamilton comes the said Isaac Lindley by his solicitor aforesaid and the Sheriff of the county aforesaid to wit: Israel Gregg Esquire now returns that by virture of the writ aforesaid to him directed he hat given notice to the said Silas Misner to be before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton to answer to the bill aforesaid. And the said Silas Misner being called Israel D. Crosby, his solicitor, comes and answers to the said bill for the said Isaac Lindley and for cause of ? shows that the said Isaac Lindley by his said bill has not made such a case as entitles him in a Court of equity to any discovery from this defendent or relief against him, wherefore and for other good causes the said Silas Misner ? to the said bill and prays the judgment of this court whether he shall be compelled to make any other or further answers thereto and that he may be hence dismissed with his costs. But because the Court now here are not yet advised to give their judgment of and concerning the promises aforesaid, day, therefore is given to the parties aforesaid before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton until the third Monday of July next to hear their Judgment thereon because the Court nowhere thereof not yet held. On which day to wit the third Monday of July aforesaid before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton come the parties aforesaid by their solicitors aforesaid but because the Court now here are not yet advised to give their Judgment of and upon the promises aforesaid before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton until the fourth Monday of October next to hear hear (repeated) their judgment thereon because the Court now here thereof not yet. On which day to wit the fourth Monday of October aforesaid before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton come the parties aforesaid by their solicitors aforesaid, but because the Court nowhere thereof not yet, day, therefore is given to the parties aforesaid before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton until the twenty-fourth day of February next to hear their judgment thereon because the Court not yet. On which day to wit the twenty-fourth day of February AD 1840 before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton come the parties aforesaid by thier solicitors aforesaid and hereon the said Silas Lindley his bill aforesaid against the said Silas Misner ? not further prosecute but had permitted the same to be discontinued and by consent of the parties and their solicitors it is ordered and decreed by the Court that the said Isaac Lindley said costs are taxed at eight dollars and 72/00. B. Hinkson.

Burial: Aft. May 04, 1831, Butler County, Ohio (Ebenezer Cemetery, Hanover Township)

This could be the family from which Isabel Vanderhoof came:

[Brøderbund Family Archive #312, Ed. 1, Census Index: U.S. Selected Counties, 1800, Date of Import: Oct 29, 1999, Internal Ref. #1.312.1.3174.82]

Individual: Vanderhuff, Richard

County/State: Northumberland Co., PA

Page #: 802

Year: 1800

Age ranges in household: 01010-1101000

1 male under 16

1 male under 45

1 female under 10

1 female under 16

1 female under 45

"February Term 1840

Butler Co., OH Court

Butler County ss. Be it remembered that on the (blank) day of (blank) in the Term of March one thousand eight hundred and thirty nine before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton comes Isaac Lindley by John B. Waller his Solicitor and exhibits here in Court his petition or bill in Chancery against Silas Misner in the words following to wit: " To the Hons. the Judges of this Court of common pleas for Butler County, Ohio in Chancery listing? your orator Isaac Lindly (sic) of the county aforesaid ? have to represent to your honors, that on the fifth day of September A.D. 1829 he became surety for one William Hamer of said county in a note payable to Henry Clem for the sum of fifty dollars two years from that date, that the said note was assigned by the said Clem to John A. Hancock on the tenth February AD 1831 that

suit was instituted upon said note in the name of Henry Clem and a judgment rendered against defendant for the sum of forty-five dollars and 52/00 before John Johnston then an acting Justice of the peace in Reily township, Butler County, Ohio, al which will more fully and at large appear references being had to a transcript of said proceedings herewith files? marked. And made a part of this his bill of complaint. That the said William Hamer in the mean while died leaving his widow who has since intermarried with one William McKasson and as his heirs and representatives at law, Thomas L. Hamer, William Hamer, That the said William McKasson took possession of the personal estate of the said William Hamer and coverted the same to his own use. That a settlement was as your orator is informed afterwards made between Thomas L. Hamer, one of the heirs in his own right and as guardian for the other heir, a minor with the said William McKasson. That the said Thomas L. Hamer reliquished his claim to the property upon the agreement that the said McKasson should discharge certain debts and liabilities incured by the said William Hamer in his lifetime. That amongst others said McKasson retained property in his hands to pay off the Judgment aforesaid. That the said John A. Hancock on the fifteenth October A.D. one thousand one hundred and thirty-three assigned said Judgment to Silas Misner who as your orator verily believes purchased said Judgment with the money of the said McKasson and now holds the same for his use and benefit. Your orator further states that although nearly six years have elapsed since rendition of said Judgment yet no execution had ever been issued on the same. That said Silas Misner who now resides and has for many years past resided in this county refuses to order an execution, but refuses as to do, alledging that he will make your orators heirs pay it some day. Your orator who is now very old and infirm and then when these facts cannot be proved or the circumstances fully explained compel the heirs of your orator to pay the same. Your orator expressly charges that the said Judgment has been fully paid and satisfied out of the property of the said William Hamer. That the said McKasson is fraudulently attempting to recover the same of your orator or his estate after his death-that the said Silas Misner holds said Judgment as a trustee merely for McKassen who has received the same as aforesaid. In tender consideration whereof and as your orator is ? at law and can only have relief in a Court of equity where matters of this sort are cognizable he prays your honor that the said William McKasson (who resides in Indiana), Silas Misner who lives in Butler county & Thomas L. Hamer who resides in Brown county may be made defendants to this his bill of complaint and that they may upon their oaths be compelled to answer the same as fully and explicitely as if again repeated by way of interrogatory and to the end that your orator may be no longer harrased (sic), and that justice may be done on the promises. he prays your honor that the said Silas Misner and William McKasson may be forever enjoined from collecting or prosecuting said Judgment, and that the same may be cancelled and anulled and satisfaction entered on the ? aforesaid. John B. Weller, Sol. for Complt. Whereupon the Sheriff of the county aforesaid is commanded that he give notice to the said Silas Misner to be before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton immediately to answer to the bill aforesaid. Afterwards now at this day to with the (blank) day of (blank) in the Term of March aforesaid before the judges aforesaid here at Hamilton comes the said Isaac Lindley by his solicitor aforesaid and the Sheriff of the county aforesaid to wit: Israel Gregg Esquire now returns that by virture of the writ aforesaid to him directed he hat given notice to the said Silas Misner to be before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton to answer to the bill aforesaid. And the said Silas Misner being called Israel D. Crosby, his solicitor, comes and answers to the said bill for the said Isaac Lindley and for cause of ? shows that the said Isaac Lindley by his said bill has not made such a case as entitles him in a Court of equity to any discovery from this defendent or relief against him, wherefore and for other good causes the said Silas Misner ? to the said bill and prays the judgment of this court whether he shall be compelled to make any other or further answers thereto and that he may be hence dismissed with his costs. But because the Court now here are not yet advised to give their judgment of and concerning the promises aforesaid, day, therefore is given to the parties aforesaid before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton until the third Monday of July next to hear their Judgment thereon because the Court nowhere thereof not yet held. On which day to wit the third Monday of July aforesaid before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton come the parties aforesaid by their solicitors aforesaid but because the Court now here are not yet advised to give their Judgment of and upon the promises aforesaid before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton until the fourth Monday of October next to hear hear (repeated) their judgment thereon because the Court now here thereof not yet. On which day to wit the fourth Monday of October aforesaid before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton come the parties aforesaid by their solicitors aforesaid, but because the Court nowhere thereof not yet, day, therefore is given to the parties aforesaid before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton until the twenty-fourth day of February next to hear their judgment thereon because the Court not yet. On which day to wit the twenty-fourth day of February AD 1840 before the Judges aforesaid here at Hamilton come the parties aforesaid by thier solicitors aforesaid and hereon the said Silas Lindley his bill aforesaid against the said Silas Misner ? not further prosecute but had permitted the same to be discontinued and by consent of the parties and their solicitors it is ordered and decreed by the Court that the said Isaac Lindley said costs are taxed at eight dollars and 72/00. B. Hinkson.

Tombstone in Old Ebenezer Cemetery, Hanover Township, Butler County, Ohio, read, as recorded in History and Biographical Cyclopedia of Butler County Ohio, published at Cincinnati in 1882: " William Hamer, a native of Pennsylvania, who married Isabel Vanderhook, September 11, 1796, and who died May 4, 1811(?)". Since the church was not begun till 1817 and there are no other burials before the 1830's it can be assumed that the date was incorrectly read. It could be 1831 to 1839, since William was in the 1830 census and not in the 1840 census. The stone was no longer extant when the stones were transcribed in 1962, although a few other stones recorded in 1882 were again reported.

Thomas L. Hamer said he was an eye-witness of the naval action fought by the heroic McDonough on Lake Champlain in the War of 1812. This battle took place between Cumberland Head and the shoals surrounding Crab Island at the southern entrance to the bay on 11 Sept 1814 at Plattsburg, NY. It lasted more than two hours. An 1816 engraving by B. Tanner shows many people watching from land. Thomas L. must have lived in or near Plattsburg, NY, in 1814. Thomas accompanied his family to Ohio in 1817, but only as far as Clermont County, where he settled and taught school at age 17. In 1821 he was admitted to the bar and set up law practice in Georgetown, Brown County, Ohio. He also ran a newspaper, the Benefactor. He was State legislator 1825, 1828, 1829. Speaker 1829/1830. Independent Democrat. Congressman 20th thru 23rd Congress. U.S. Congress. 1833-1839. Brigadier-general in 1st Ohio Volunteers in Mexican War. His portrait hangs in the State Capitol in Columbus, Ohio. He died in Mexico and was buried; then he was buried in his final resting place in Georgetown, Ohio, in the Old Cemetery-platted in 1829. Most of the early settlers who helped build the town are buried here. The granite obelisk marks the grave of Thomas Hamer, a Congressman who appointed Ulysses Grant to West Point in 1839. While serving as a general in the mexican War he contracted yellow fever and died in Mexico in 1846.

In the Fall of 1835 Hugh Hamer made a trip East to see his family. He stopped in Georgetown, Ohio, to see his cousin, Thomas L. Hamer, son of William Hamer. He may have visited Pennsylvania and New York as well as Ohio. He wrote a letter to Thomas L. Hamer, his cousin, on returning to Indiana. He reported that his brothers were well and the government roads were terrible. His relatives had inquired about Thomas L. Hamer from Hugh when he visited them. He was sorry he was not able to return by way of Georgetown. He was also sorry that his poor grammar had not allowed him to write more often. He bewailed his Hamer pride and hoped Thomas L. had conquered this family trait. This letter is in a collection of Thomas L. Hamer correspondence in the Huntington Library in California.

Herringshaw's Encyclopedia of American Biography

HAMER, THOMAS L, soldier, lawyer, congressman, was born in Pennsylvania. He served several sessions in the state legislature, and was once elected speaker; and was a representative in congress from Ohio from 1833 to 1839. He entered the army as a private, and was promoted at once to the rank of brigadier-general. He died Dec. 2, 1846, in Mexico, while serving in the army.

Biographical Directory of the American Congress, 1774-1949

HAMER, Thomas Lyon, a Representative from Ohio; born in Northumberland County, Pa., in July 1800; attended the public schools; moved to Ohio in 1817 and taught school; studied law; was admitted to the bar in 1821 and commenced practice in Georgetown, Brown County, Ohio; member of the State house of representatives in 1825, 1828, and 1829, and served as speaker in 1829; elected as a Democrat to the Twenty-third, Twenty-fourth, and Twenty-fifth Congresses (March 4, 1833-March 3, 1839); nominated Ulysses S. Grant to be a cadet at the United States Military Academy at West Point; volunteered as a private for the Mexican War and received the next day, July 1, 1846, the commission of brigadier general; had been elected to the Thirtieth Congress, but died in the service at Monterey, Mexico, December 2, 1846; on March 2, 1847, Congress passed a resolution of sorrow and as an expression of their deep regret presented his nearest male relative [Son: Thomas Madison Hamer] with a sword; interment near Monterey, Mexico; reinterment in Georgetown Cemetery, Georgetown, Ohio.

Copy of an article in a Masonic paper of several years ago entitled: "The Mason Who Changed General Grant's Name" The cost of Democracy has often been great. Unsung and unpraised are many men and women who might have changed the course of American history had they lived. Such a person was General Thomas L. Hamer, citizen of Ohio, for whom the town of Hamersville in Brown County is named. His claim to fame? He directed the troops of the American Army before Monterrey, Mexico, September 23, 1846; won the victory and caused the American flag to fly at Fort Diablo-the first time over a captured foreign city. Both the flag and the man are revered in the little southern county from which they sprang. Both the man and the flag are still to be found there. The grave of Thomas L. Hamer is distinguished by a tall monument in the old cemetery just west of the Brown County fairgrounds in Georgetown, the county seat. The flag, tattered and partially destroyed by the ravages of time, is displayed in the lodge hall of Georgetown Lodge No 72 F.& A.M. But neither battle nor flag are important, perhaps, as the fact that it was Thomas L. Hamer, then a member of Congress, who appointed another obsecure country boy , Hiram Ulysses Grant (who always went by the name Ulysses), to attend the U.S. Military Aacademy at West Point. And is was his lapse of memory that is credited with the changing of the boy's name to the now familiar Ulysses S. Grant. A busy man, important in the affairs of Ohio's early history; a man of whom U.S.Grant in his Memoirs, opined that had he lived, he would have been president of the United States; a man plagues with the affairs of office submitted the appointee's name as "Ulysses Simpson Grant" remembering only that his first name and the maiden name of his mother. But history has strange ways of crossing the paths of our lives. With the Mexican War calling for action, Hamer allowed himself to be reacivated, raised a company of Brown County volunteers, and as a general served under General W.O. Butler. His apppointee, U.S. Grant, was in charge of ordnance in the same war. A few months after Monterrey, Hamer contracted a sickness in the field and died December 2, 1846. His body was shipped under military guard back to Georgetown, where a vast crowd of mourners gathered for his funeral. Services were conducted February 15, 1847. The Georgetown Lodge conducted Masonic rites and Hamer's flag, still bearing an unrecorded legend from the citizens of Brown County, was removed from the coffin and delivered into the keeping of the Lodge. There it remained, used for a while, then furled in a netting for safekeeping. An old photograph of the lodge assembled at the U.S. Grant Homestead about 1909 shows a large crowd of Masons of all ages, one of which holds the staff and flag, still wrapped for protection. Passing years continued to take their toll of the old flag's fabric and the gilt particles of the legend, like little saws cut weakening threads until it became necessary to encase the flag and severed pole in a wooden box, which had a small window in its side through which the relic could be seen. When the State of Ohio decided to restore the old battle flags in the rotunda of the capitol building, the lodge sent its flag to Columbus to see if it could be saved. Trained technicians, under the supervision of Lieutenant Colonel William B. Haines, painstakingly removed the flag and unfurled it on a nylon matrix, carefully preserving every possible shred. Alas, time had taken its toll. The silken fabric was well worn and much of the starry field was destroyed and lay in powder with the gilt dust of the legend, which will never be read again. From what can be seen, it is believed that it was addressed to the young politician, soldier, friend, and sent to him in appreciation from the citizens of Brown County. History does not record that the flag was carried to General Hamer by his son-in-law, Captain Sanders Johnson, Co. G., First Ohio volunteers. Now, all that remains is a marked grave, lonesome in the old cemetery, its tall obelisk pointing to the sky; and a tattered flag. Forgotten? No, a lovely little community bears his name and his banner is laid up in the archives of the Masonic Lodge over which he presided as Master in 1826.

PERSONAL MEMOIRS OF U. S. GRANT. MOUNT MACGREGOR, NEW YORK, 1885. pp. 33-34; 103.

CHAPTER II. WEST POINT--GRADUATION. The Honorable Thomas L. Hamer, one of the ablest men Ohio ever produced, was our member of Congress at the time, and had the right of nomination. He and my father had been members of the same debating society (where they were generally pitted on opposite sides), and intimate personal friends from their early manhood up to a few years before. In politics they differed. Hamer was a life-long Democrat, while my father was a Whig. They had a warm discussion, which finally became angry--over some act of President Jackson, the removal of the deposit of public moneys, I think--after which they never spoke until after my appointment. I know both of them felt badly over this estrangement, and would have been glad at any time to come to a reconciliation; but neither would make the advance. Under these circumstances my father would not write to Hamer for the appointment, but he wrote to Thomas Morris, United States Senator from Ohio, informing him that there was a vacancy at West Point from our district, and that he would be glad if I could be appointed to fill it. This letter, I presume, was turned over to Mr. Hamer, and, as there was no other applicant, he cheerfully appointed me. This healed the breach between the two, never after reopened.

CHAPTER VII. THE MEXICAN WAR--THE BATTLE OF PALO ALTO--THE BATTLE OF RESACA DE LA PALMA--ARMY OF INVASION--GENERAL TAYLOR--MOVEMENT ON CAMARGO.

Among the troops that joined us at Matamoras was an Ohio regiment, of which Thomas L. Hamer, the Member of Congress who had given me my appointment to West Point, was major. He told me then that he could have had the colonelcy, but that as he knew he was to be appointed a brigadier-general, he preferred at first to take the lower grade. I have said before that Hamer was one of the ablest men Ohio ever produced. At that time he was in the prime of life, being less than fifty years of age, and possessed an admirable physique, promising long life. But he was taken sick before Monterey, and died within a few days. I have always believed that had his life been spared, he would have been President of the United States during the term filled by President Pierce. Had Hamer filled that office his partiality for me was such, there is but little doubt I should have been appointed to one of the staff corps of the army--the Pay Department probably--and would therefore now be preparing to retire. Neither of these speculations is unreasonable, and they are mentioned to show how little men control their own destiny.

Donald J. Ratcliffe. In: American National Biography. vol. 15. Oxford University Press (1999).

Hamer, Thomas Lyon (July 1800-2 Dec. 1846), lawyer and congressman, was born in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, the son of a farmer of moderate means. Almost nothing is known of his parents. The family moved to upper New York near Lake Champlain in 1812 and then to a farm in southwestern Ohio in 1817. Determined to stand on his own feet, Hamer took up school teaching in Clermont County. Friendless, without means, and with only a common education, the seventeen-year-old Hamer borrowed law books from local professional men, and for some time he lived at Bethel with the family of Thomas Morris, who supervised his legal studies (Morris, pp 398-399). In the spring of 1821 he was admitted to the bar and in august opened practice at Georgetown, the new seat of justice of neighboring Brown County, where he resided for the rest of his life. He soon married Lydia Bruce Higgins, the daughter of Colonel Robert Higgins, a prominent local citizen. They had seven children. Hamer rapidly won a local reputation as a jury lawyer and an eloquent public speaker. For two years, commencing in January 1824, he edited the county's first newspaper, the Benefactor and Georgetown Advocate, supporting Andrew Jackson's bid for the presidency. In 1825 he was elected state representative and was rewarded for strenuous party efforts by nomination in 1828 as a presidential elector on the successful Jackson ticket. In 1828 and 1829 he was again elected to the general assembly, despite opposition charges that he thought more than one half of the people were damned fools anyhow (Brickman, p. 13). Unanimously chosen Speaker of the Ohio House in December 1829, he gave his own party command of only eight out of fifteen standing committees and voted against caucus nominees he thought unqualified. Stirring public controversy in Columbus by this opposition to whole hog partyism, he chose not to run for reelection in 1830 (Ohio State Bulletin, Jan.-Feb. 1830). Disapproving of President Jackson's vetoes, Hamer ran for Congress in 1832 as an independent Jacksonian, defeating the regular nominee, his former mentor Thomas Morris, by a narrow plurality. Unhappy with the party's antibank tendencies, he flirted with the movement to create a third force under John McLean in 1833-1834, but quickly recognized that his constituents were commited to the Democratic party. In 1834 and 1836 he secured reelection as a loyal party man, stumping the region in 1836 for Martin Van Buren. According to Charles Hammond, Hamer possessed a clear, strong, vigorous, discriminating mind, but for the sake of gratifying personal ambition, lends himself to base party purposes, whenever, by so doing, he can secure consideration for himself, with his party (Cincinnati Gazette, 16 Nov. 1836). Hamer's speeches in Congress showed a powerful, precise mind and a commitment to positive government unusual in a Jacksonian Democrat. By 1838 Daniel Webster thought him the man of most talent of the Democratic party (C.M. Wiltse, ed. Papers of Daniel Webster: Correspondence, vol. 4 (1984-1985), p295). In 1835 Hamer spiritedly advocated Ohio's claims in the dispute over the boundary with Michigan. In 1836, as a member of the select committee on petitions concerning slavery, he supported the gag rule and spoke eloquently in favor of Arkansas's admission as a slave state. Convinced -- in contrast to Morris -- of the need to conciliate slaveholders, he refused in 1838 to defend a local clergyman, John B. Mahan, who stood accused of assisting runaway slaves; instead, Hamer acted for the prosecution in the Kentucky courts. Advocating aid for banks that resumed specie payments afte the panic of 1837, Hamer became the state's leading conservative Democrat and was seriously considered in 1838 for nomination as governor and for the U.S. Senate. After declining reelection, partly through disillusionment with the national administration, Hamer retired from Congress in 1839 and concentrated on building up his professional reputation and a lucrative law practice. His political activity did not, however, cease. In 1840 he served as president of the state convention and, during the campaign, toured with the Democrats' gubernatorial candidate, Wilson Shannon, in order to buttress him against the superior eloquence of the Whig candidate, Thomas Corwin. In the banking crisis of the early 1840's, the pragmatic Hamer publicly insisted that Ohio's banks must be rechartered; he claimed that his hard money opponents had raked up the crude generalities of John Taylor of Caroline from the rubbish of a past generation and made them the standard for the Ohio Democracy (Columbus Daily Ohio State Journal, 2 June 1842). Facing down radical demands that he be read out of the party, Hamer opposed the renomination of Van Buren in 1844 and toured the state campaigning for James K. Polk. As reward, President Polk offered him the office of commisioner of Indian Affairs in October 1845, which he declined, and his name was again pressed for the governorship. That same year, following the death of his first wife in January, Hamer married Catharine Johnston, the daughter of Dr. William Johnston of Mason County, Kentucky. In 1846 Hamer enthusiastically stumped for the Mexican War and volunteered for service as a private. As the most conspicuous man in Ohio, he was elected major of the First Regiment of Ohio Volunteers in June and within a week was promoted by the president to brigadier general in the army. In September he distinguished himself in the attack on Monterrey, taking command when General William O. Butler was wounded. In October, while absent in Mexico, the new military hero was elected to Congress without opposition. In December he suddenly died of a fever outside Monterrey at the age of forty-six. Zachary Taylor declared that Hamer's loss to the army, at this time, cannot be supplied, while fulsome eulogies were pronounced in Congress and at Columbus as well as in Georgetown, where he was buried with Masonic honors at the state's expense. His former neighbor Ulysses S. Grant later claimed that Hamer, had he lived, would have been elected president in 1852 (Spalding, p.10; Grant, p.103). Unprepossessing in appearance, with an unwieldy mop of red hair, Hamer was infectiously vivacious, cheerful, generous and hospitable. He had many friends, including opponents like Corwin; as a congressman, he unhsitatingly nominated Grant to a cadetship at West Point, despite his political enmity with Grant's father. He remained as interested in law as in politics, advocating reform of the cumbersome Ohio court system in 1841, and encouraging Timothy Walker to start the Western Law Journal in Cincinnati in 1843. Reflective and philosophical, he read widely on religion, corresponded with Alexander Campbell, and in 1837 underwent conversion in a Methodist revival. For a politician highly regarded in his own time, the materials on Hamer are surprisingly scanty. No collection of papers survives, but material may be found scattered in the collections of his contemporaries, including Herbert Weaver et al., eds., The Papers of Jame K. Polk (1969-). His Review of the Opinion of the Attorney-General on the Michigan Boundary Question may be found in the Columbus Western Hemisphere, 20 May and 3 June 1835; his congressional speeches were reprinted as pamphlets, and copious extracts from his speech on the admission of Arkansas are reprinted in Thomas Hart Benton, Thirty Years' Review, vol. 1 (1854), pp 634-635. The most intimate biographical treatment is The History of Brown County, Ohio (1883), pp. 343-352, with a portrait on p. 115. Hamer also comes to life in Lloyd Lewis, Captain Sam Grant (1950). The fullest treatment of his political career is Franz J. Brickman, The Public Life of Thomas L. Hamer (M.A. thesis. Ohio State Univ., 1940), though greater insight is provided by James Roger Sharp, The Jacksonians versus the Banks (1970), pp. 127-137. The local memory informs Benjamin F. Morris, The Life of Thomas Morris (1856), pp. 398-399; Ulysses S. Grant, Personal Memoirs of U.S. Grant, vol. 1 (1885), pp. 33-34, 103; and Byron Williams, History of Brown and Clermont Counties, Ohio (1913), pp. 416-417. The most informative obituary is Rufus P. Spalding, Eulogy upon Gen. Thomas Hamer Pronounced before the General Assembly of Ohio, at Columbus, Jan. 18, 1847 (1847).

The United States and Mexico at War; nineteenth-century expansionism and conflict. New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 1998, p.469... WALNUT SPRINGS, MEXICO. Located on the northeast outskirts of Monterrey, Mexico, Walnut Springs was the campground for the 6,640 officers and men of the U.S. forces that captured Monterrey during 21 to 27 September 1846... This site, wooded with stately oak and pecan trees and watered by several springs, continued to be used as the principal camp for U.S. soldiers at Monterrey for the remainder of the war... The cemetery of the 3d Infantry was located at Walnut Springs. Surrounded by a wall of neatly dressed limestone blocks four feet high and adorned by a rectangular pillar surmounted by a cross, the cemetery became the final resting site of many of the officers slain in the attack on Monterrey. The remains of Maj. William W. Lear, Bvt. Maj. Lewis Nelson Morris, Capt. George P. Field, Capt. Philip Nordbourne Barbour, 1st Lieut. Douglas Simms Irwin, 2d Lieut. Robert Hazlitt of the 3d Infantry, and 2d Lieut. Rankin Dilworth of the 1st Infantry were interred within these walls. The mortal remains of Brig. Gen. Thomas L. Hamer were temporarily buried at the site and later moved to Ohio for reburial... Searches were made in 1965 by Carter L. Hilsabeck and in 1996 by Joseph E. Chance for remains of the camp at Walnut Springs and the cemetery, but the urban sprawl of modern industrial Monterrey has covered the site. A small cemetery that met the historical descriptions was located near Ojo Nogal, a Monterrey suburb, but the headstones were those of Mexicans. It was common practice, however to bury over the sites of old graves.

John W. Emerson, "Grant's Life in the West and His Mississippi Valley Campaigns," Midland Monthly, VII, 1 (Jan. 1897), pp. 30-41... While waiting at Matamoras, the volunteer regiments began to arrive,--amongst others, one from Ohio; and many of its men were from the region of Grant's old home. The major of the regiment was his old friend, Hon. Thomas L. Hamer, who had secured young Grant his appointment to West Point. Though he was much Grant's senior, they became intimate and confidential friends. He understood Grant's retiring, unobtrusive and studious nature, and came to love him as a younger brother. Major Hamer did not possess a military education, but because of his great ability and influential political position in Ohio, it was understood that the President was to appoint him brigadier-general, and he was anxious to perfect himself as rapidly as possible in military knowledge. Young Grant was bright and fresh from the schools; they were confidential friends and he could be trusted. The result was that on many a night while others were slumbering, or passing the hours in amusements, Major Hamer and Lieutenant Grant were together, receiving and imparting military information. Major Hamer wrote from Camargo to a friend, saying: I have found in Lieutenant Grant a most remarkable and valuable young soldier. I anticipate for him a brilliant future, if he should have an opportunity to display his powers when they mature. Young as he is, he has been of great value and service to me. To-day, after being freed from the duty of wrestling with the problem of reducing a train of refractory mules and their drivers to submissive order, we rode into the country several miles, and taking our position upon an elevated mound, he explained to me many army evolutions; and, supposing ourselves to be generals commanding opposing armies, and a battle to be in progress, he explained suppositious maneuvers of the opposing forces in a most instructive way; and when I thought his imaginary force had my army routed, he suddenly suggested a strategic move for my forces which crowned them with triumphant victory, and himself with defeat, and he ended by gracefully offering to surrender his sword! Of course, Lieutenant Grant is too young for command, but his capacity for future military usefulness is undoubted. Grant had infinite faith in the ability and future destiny of Major Hamer. He even believed that his friend would some day be president, little dreaming that the presidency would a few years later be tendered to himself. They continued intimate as brothers. Hamer was the picture of manly health and vigor, and had every promise of long life, but, to Grant's infinite sorrow, he sickened, and in a few days died, in front of Monterey. Grant's heart was touched as never before. Every moment Grant was free from imperative duties he was with his friend in his struggle with that enemy whose eventual triumph is always certain. No kindness was omitted. His own hands ministered to his dying comrade. Grant returned from a charge through shot and shell, black and besmeared with smoke and dust and blood, and hastened to the tent and cot of the dying Hamer. The earth was trembling, and the air reverberating with the thunder of artillery, and the shriek and explosion of shells; and the moans of the wounded were sounding on every ear as men limped, or crawled, or were carried to the rear. With this music, the dirge of woe and death about them, Grant stood bent over the cot of his dying friend, holding his hand, looking into his eyes as their light slowly faded away and the pallor of death touched the parted but speechless lips. Tears came into the eyes of the young soldier; the rays of the receding sun struggled at the tent door with the smoke of battle that covered the scene, and in the dull gloom of eventide, thus surrounded, Hamer died.

Obituaries from the Texas Telegraph [Houston], 1847

Brigadier General Hamer died at Monterey on the 3rd December, of inflamation of the bowels. He had been quite ill for two or three weeks, and had so far recovered that he was supposed to be convalescent, until a day or two before his death. 1/4/1847

Memorandum of Real Estate - Thomas L. Hamer - June 26, 1846

1. Farm on which I reside - 220 acres.

2. Farm at the river - 350 acres.

3. Stock farm - 1250 acres.

4. Land in Highland County, 3 miles North of Buford, Ohio - 350 acres.

5. Land in Ottawa County, Ohio, near Lake Erie - 80 acres.

6. Land in State of Indiana - 80 acres.

7. House & lot in Terre Haute on the Wabash in Indiana.

8. House & lot in New Richmond, Clermont County, Ohio.

9. House & lot in Ripley, Brown County, Ohio.

10. House & lot in Georgetown, Ohio, my office.

11. House & lot in Georgetown, Ohio, Tomlinson's office.

12. Sundry vacant lots in Georgetown, number not recollected.

13. Undivided interest in 800 acre tract in Clark Twp, Brown County, Ohio, Partnership with H.L. Penn, Esq.

There are deeds among my papers for all the above named property, except the house and lot in Terre Haute, which fell to me as heir to my brother, Joseph, who died there and whose widow, now married again, resides on part of it. The taxes all have been paid on this property up to the present day, except on the Ottawa and Indiana land, 80 acres each. If the taxes are not paid on them this year they will be sold for taxes next fall, the fall of 1846. From the Thomas L. Hamer correspondence in the Huntington Library in California.

GEORGETOWN METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH

The Georgetown Methodist Episcopal Church was organized within a few years of the location of the county seat in Georgetown. The earliest preaching was held in a dwelling house of Abel Rees, standing on Main Cross Street, just below the C. Hurst Block. The first church, which was also the first in the village, was a small brick edifice, which stood on Water Street. It was erected about 1827. Among the prominent early members may be mentioned Abel Rees and wife, Joseph Stableton and wife, John Purdum and wife, Hugh P. Payne and wife, and Thomas H. Lynch and wife. The present commodious brick house of worship was erected in 1846, and dedicated the following year by Rev. Joseph M. Trimble. Its architect was Hubbard Baker. The cupola of the new building was considered in its day a model of symmetry and beauty. The total cost of the church was about $6,000. Thomas L. Hamer and Hanson L. Penn were the heaviest contributors to its erection. Other members and friends of the church who subscribed liberally were David G. Devore, George W. King, Benjamin Penn, John Kay, D. J. Steward, Zaccheus Kay, William Jennings and Benjamin Sells. The membership at this time was about one hundred, and the ministers in charge during the construction of the church were Revs. John W. Clark, James B. Finley, John Vaek (?), John Stewart and George W. Maley were noted preachers. The named was a peculiarly gifted divine, and about 1837, held a revival at the Georgetown Church which was remarkably successful. Some of the most prominent citizens of the vicinity, as well as many hardened sinners, were brought into the church under his effective preaching. Among the former were Thomas L. Hamer and Dr. George B. Bailey. It is supposed that 150 converts united with the church before the protracted meeting closed. Rev. John Stewart's ministerial labors were also blessed with a large ingathering of souls. Since the erection of the new church, the ministers who have built up the numerical strength of the congregation most strongly were Revs. Wesley Roe, Charles Ferguson, and the present pastor, Rev. J. Verity. The present membership exceeds two hundred, fifty-five of whom were received at one time during the summer of 1882. A prosperous and highly interesting Sabbath school is regularly maintained.

[Brøderbund Family Archive #315, Ed. 1, Census Index: U.S. Selected Counties, 1830, Date of Import: Sep 18, 1998, Internal Ref. #1.315.1.3891.0]

Individual: Hamer, Thomas L.

County/State: Brown Co., OH

Location: Georgetown

Page #: 443

Year: 1830

101010000000011001001; 1 male under 5; 1 male between 10 & 15; 1 male between 20 & 30; 1 female under 5; 1 female between 5 & 10; 1 female between 20 & 30; 1 female between 50 & 60.

[Brøderbund Family Archive #316, Ed. 1, Census Index: U.S. Selected Counties, 1840, Date of Import: Apr 4, 2000, Internal Ref. #1.316.1.5729.69]

Individual: Homer, S. L. [This is T.L. Hamer.]

County/State: Brown Co., OH

Location: Pleasant Twp

Page #: 256

Year: 1840

03000100000001031100000000; 3 males between 5 & 10; 1 male between 30 & 40; 1 female under 5; 3 females from 10 to 15; 1 female from 15 to 20; 1 female from 20 to 30.

Burial: February 15, 1847, Brown County, Ohio (Georgetown Cemetery)

Clermont Courier, published weekly on Wednesdays in Batavia, Ohio.

1845 Jan 11 Died: At her residence in Georgetown, on the 3d instant, Mrs Lydia B Hamer, wife of Hon Thomas L Hamer, aged about 42 years.

Burial: January 1845, Brown County, Ohio (Georgetown Cemetery)

Thomas L Hamer to Lydia B Higgins 31 October 1822 by Robert Allen JP.

"Parents' certificate filed."

Marriage Index: Ohio, 1789-1850

Hamer, Thomas L. Sp : Higgins, Lydia B.

M : Oct 31, 1822

County : Brown Co.

Sex : M

Catharine Margaret Johnston (1823-)

Born: August 06, 1823 in Maysville, Mason Co., Kentucky

Father: William Bryant Johnston (1786-)

Mother: Asenath Craig (1797-1850)

Spouse Name: Thomas Lyons Hamer (-)

Ironton, Lawrence County, Ohio.

HAMER, MRS. CATHERINE.

Ironton Register JAN. 05, 1860

Died December 19, in Georgetown, Kentucky, of consumption, the widow of the late Hon. Thomas L. Hamer, of Brown county, Ohio.

[Broderbund Family Archive #303, Census Microfilm Records: Kentucky, 1850, Disk 2, Date of Import: Oct 5, 1999, Internal Ref. #1.303.1.20428.7]

Individual: Hamer, Catharine M.

Year: 1850

State: KY

County: Mason Co.

Location: District 1

National Archives Series Number: M432

National Archives Microfilm Number: 212

Census Page Number: 26

372-379

John L. Chiler 25 m Farmer $25,500 KY

Elizabeth " 49 f KY

Catherine M. Hamer 27 f KY

Jacob Alleker 28 m Farmhand Germany

Valentine Rochey 33 m Farmhand Germany

Ancestral File Number: K5RQ-SG

Dec 26 1845. Married: In Minerva, Ky., on the 15th inst, by Elder R.C. Pricketts, Hon Thomas L Hamer of Georgetown. O, to Miss Catharine M., eldest daughter of Dr. W. B. Johnston, of the former place.

Died on the 3d inst. in Georgetown, Brown Co., Mrs. Malvina H. Johnston, wife of Hon. Sanders W. Johnston, of Kansas, and daughter of the late Gen. Thomas L. Hamer. Mrch 22, 1860. Ironton Register. Ironton, Lawrence County, Ohio.

Sanders Walker Johnston Captain, United States Army - Judge

His private monument in Section 1 of Arlington National Cemetery reads:

"Company G, 1st Regiment Ohio volunteers, 1846.

Born at Mason County, Kentucky, December 10, 1820.

Died: Washington, D.C. January 1, 1905.

An honest man, a brave soldier, an upright judge."

His 2nd wife, Sarah Brown Hall Johnston, born in Oneida County, New York, February 18, 1832. Died: Washington, D.C. January 11, 1921) is buried with him.

History does not record that the flag was carried to General Hamer by his son-in-law, Captain Sanders Johnson, Co. G., First Ohio volunteers. Now, all that remains is Hamer's marked grave, lonesome in the old Georgetown cemetery, its tall obelisk pointing to the sky; and a tattered flag. Forgotten? No, a lovely little community bears the Hamer name and his banner is laid up in the archives of the Masonic Lodge over which he presided as Master in 1826.

International Genealogical Index North America

Sanders Walker JOHNSTON Sex: M

Event(s): Birth: 10 Dec 1820 Mason, Kentucky

Parents: Father: William Bryant JOHNSTON Mother: Margaret

Source Information: Batch number: Dates Source Call No. Type Printout Call No. Type 9035501 - 1553887 Film NONE Sheet: 29

1880 Census of the District of Columbia - Washington City - ED 40 - p372b

937 "K" Street - 110-141

Johnson, Sanders W. Head m m w 56 KY VA KY Lawyer

Sarah B. Wife f m w 39 NY MS NY Keeping house

Mary S. Dau f s w 22 OH KY OH At home

Elizabeth B. Sister f s w 45 KY VA KY Authoress

1900 Census of the District of Columbia - Washington City, p99

1320 Florida Avenue - 42-42 (The ages are inaccurate here, as are other items.)

Johnston, Saunders Head w m Nov 1821 48? M25 KY VA KY Lawyer

Sarah Wife w f Feb 1840 37? M25 0-0 NY NY NY Clerk

Elizabeth Mother? w f Jul 1833 70 W? 1-1? KY VA KY Clerk

Lurty, Guy S. Boarder w m Sep 1885 14 S VA VA VA Clerk

Howard, Sallie Servant b f Dec 1860 39 S MD MD MD Servant

"Early History of Leavenworth, City and County" by H. Miles Moore, published

by Sam'L Dodsworth Book Co., Leavenworth, Ks, 1906. pg 49/50 (parts) "...the 11th of October, 1854, the steamer F.X. Aubrey reached here early that morning from St. Louis bringing two of the three United States Territorial Judges for Kansas, Hon. Saunders W. Johnstone, of Cincinnati, Ohio, and Hon. Rush Elmore, of Montgomery, Alabama. In the first judicial districting of the territory which took place some time after this date, Judge Johnstone was assigned to the Third Judicial District, the extreme western portion of the territry,..." (skip part of page) "Some time after his retirement from the bench, he came to Leavenworth and followed his profession very successfully as the head of the law firm of Johnstone, Stinson & Havens." "He returned to Ohio afterwards, and the last information I had of him he was engaged in Washington practicing before the Departments" pg 214 "Lawyers Registered to Practice Law" "... S.W. Johnstone..." pg 294/5 Appendix "S.W. Johnstone, the nintieth name on the list of attorneys, came to Kansas early in 1854, as one of the United States territorial judges appointed by President Pierce. He was the Free State Judge and appointed from Ohio and was assigned to the extreme western district where there were but few settlers and little business to be done at that time. He remained as Judge of that district for some three or four years with but little judicial business to do, as the district was but sparsely settled at that time and it was during the most unsettled years in the history of the territory. He resigned his judicial position and came to Leavenworth to reside, opened a law office and in due course of time became the head of the law firm of Johnstone, Stinson & Havens, one of the leading law firms in the city and territory. A short time after the dissolution of the above firm, Judge Johnstone moved to Washington City and took up the practice before the departments and the U.S. Supreme Court. He died in the spring of 1905, having reached the ripe old age of eighty-three years, honored and respected by all who had the pleasure of his acquaintance."

In 1854 the Kansas-Nebraska Act established the Territory of Kansas. President Franklin Pierce appointed Samuel D. Lecompte, Rush Elmore, and Sanders W. Johnston as justices to a Territorial Supreme Court. With the arrival of Chief Justice Lecompte to the Kansas Territory in 1855, the court was organized at Leavenworth. In the next few years before Kansas became a state, several men served in this territorial supreme court, including Sterling G. Cato, Jerimiah M. Burrell, Thomas W. Cunningham, Joseph Williams, and John Pettit who replaced Lecompte as Chief Justice. The territorial judges flouted the law as often as they impartially determined it. President Pierce had to remove two judges from office for the illegal aquisition of Indian lands. Another judge, Chief Justice Samuel Lecompte, devoted far more time to farming and promoting slavery than to judicial duties. He, too, was removed from office. Judicial replacements also furthered the cause of slavery at the expense of legal justice. One exception was Judge Joseph Williams who was more concerned with impartial justice and with protecting settlers from marauding outlaws. Judge Williams continued to press for law and order until his term expired in 1861, when Kansas became a state and territorial judgeships ended. A dual system of state and federal courts replaced the territorial court, and Congress established the U.S. District of Court of Kansas under Article III of the Constitution.

Ancestral File Number: K5RQ-R9

Burial: Aft. January 01, 1905, Arlington National Cemetery, Virginia

Marriage Index: Ohio, 1789-1850

Hamer, A. Malvina Sp : Johnston, S. W.

M : Feb 29, 1844

County : Brown Co.

Sex : F

William Loudon who married Belle Hamer, was the brother of my great Grandfather, Henry Chapman Loudon. Their father was James Lowden who was married to Elizabeth Chapman. In family letters it is mention that James always spelled his name Lowden, but the next generation spelled it Loudon. James has 10 children, 8 of them boys, most named after presidents and famous people. His children were Dewitt Clinton, Alfred, Adeline, James and William (twins), George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, Henry Chapman, and Elizabeth. I found it was interesting that William and Belle had twin girls, Isabel and Elizabeth. Isabel married Dr Whiteside. I don't know about Elizabeth. I don't have much information on William, except that he moved to Indiana, remarried a Mary Leavenworth after the death of Isabel, and, by her, had a daughter, Esther who married J.C.E Fry, They had a daughter Mary Isabel, and last I knew were living in California. Going back of James Loudon who was born in Henry County, KY in 1796, is his father, John Loudon (Lowden?), and wife, Dorcas Masterson. There were a lot of Loudens and Mastersons in Kentucky and Tennessee at that time, and I'm having difficulty diferenciating among them. Lois Loudon Cutler 1) John, 2) James, 3Henry Chapman, 4) James Edwin, 5) Henry Allbee, 6) Lois Lois Cutler sulo@elp.rr.com El Paso, TX

LONDON, William Wife: Isabel S. HAMER

Marriage Date: 3 May 1860 Recorded in: Brown, Ohio

Source: FHL Number 384276 Dates: 1860-1866

She "was the possessor of a magnificient voice and after studying abroad for years under the famous Madame Marchesi toured the country as "Marie Decca." A book, FAMOUS WOMEN OF TODAY gave her "extravagant praise as a second Jenny Lind". "But she contracted an unfortunate marriage under romantic circumstances and left the stage," stated Anna Forman in a letter published in CRAIG-HAWKINS FAMILIES.

1880 Census of the District of Columbia - Washington City - ED 40 - p372b

937 "K" Street - 110-141

Johnson, Sanders W. Head m m w 56 KY VA KY Lawyer

Sarah B. Wife f m w 39 NY MS NY Keeping house

Mary S. Dau f s w 22 OH KY OH At home

Elizabeth B. Sister f s w 45 KY VA KY Authoress

Mrs. Mary Loudon Doerr Potter.

DAR ID Number: 108552

Born in Mt. Vernon, Ind.

Wife of George H. Potter.

Descendant of Maj. Robert Higgins, as follows:

1. William Loudon (1835-1910) m. 1859 Belle Hamer (1833-69).

2. Thomas L. Hamer (1800-46) m. Lydia Bruce Higgins (1802-45).

3. Robert Higgins m. 1797 Mary Jolliffe (1763-1806).

Robert Higgins (1740-1825) commanded a company under Lafayette and was wounded and captured at Brandywine. In 1783 was made brevet major. He was born in Orange, Va.; died in Georgetown, Ohio.

In Franklin, Indiana, in 1909.

Mrs. Mary Elizabeth Doerr Smith.

DAR ID Number: 156081

Born in Jeffersonville, Ind.

Wife of William Smith.

Descendant of Major Robert Higgins, as follows:

1. Louis P. Doerr (b. 1863) m. 1891 Mary Loudon (b. 1864).

2. William Loudon (1835-1910) m. 1859 Belle Hamer (1833-69).

[p.25] 3. Thomas L. Hamer (1800-46) m. Lydia Bruce Higgins (1802-45).

4. Robert Higgins m. 2d 1797 Mary Jolliffe (1763-1806).

Robert Higgins (1746-1825) served as lieutenant in the 8th Virginia regiment and was captain and brevet major in the Virginia Continental Line. He was born in Orange, Va.; died in Mason County, Ky.

Mary Elizabeth Doerr Smith gave a collection of Thomas L. Hamer's papers to the Huntington Library in California.