The Jacob Franklin Cochran family

I was greatly relieved to discover my two missing Campbell County books under a stack of papers the other night.

I was looking for copies of old photos I had decided to frame and give as Christmas presents and, lo and behold, there they were. I also bought myself a Christmas present when I was shopping at Scott's Bookstore in Newnan last week and now am the proud owner of several books on Coweta County history, including the wonderful "Coweta Chronicles," a book compiled by the local chapter of the DAR back in the 1920s. For those of you who live in the area, Scott's has a marvelous collection of Coweta County reference books and they are very reasonably priced.

So, now I'm "armed for b'ar," as the old saying goes, and ready to tackle these south side Cochran families.

Chris Wren sent me more information on his Cochran family of Campbell, Coweta and Carroll counties, so maybe we can make some connections.

Chris' information says that Jacob Franklin Cochran was born July 23, 1817 in South Carolina and made his way to Coweta County where Chris found him in the 1850 Coweta census. He married about 1846 to Elizabeth Jane Endsley, daughter of John Bluford Endsley and Ellender Miller. Research on the Internet shows that many members of this Endsley family eventually moved to Texas. Jacob and Elizabeth, however, remained in the metro Atlanta area and are both buried in Carroll County. Many of their children migrated on to Cullman County, Ala., as so many Carroll County residents did.

The reason for this mass migration to Cullman in the 1890s and early 1900s is still a mystery, but one researcher online stated that he had read somewhere that the railroad had purchased a lot of land in Cullman County and was offering it at a very inexpensive price to farmers who would move there and settle. I have no idea if that is fact, but I do know that many families from Georgia migrated to Cullman during that time frame, my own ancestors among them. If anyone has information on this particular migration, I, for one, would be very interested in knowing about it.

Jacob Franklin and Elizabeth Endsley Cochran had eight children: Martha T. Cochran, b. 10 March 1847, m. James W. Chance; Sarah Cochran, b. March 1850, m. Nathan T. Chance; Charles Crawford Cochran, b. 25 March 1853, m. Josephine Chance (Chris' ancestors); Mary Francis Cochran, b, 2 July 1855, m. George William Brock; Thomas J. Cochran, b. 7 May 1858, m. Lemma Allgood; Georgia Malinda Cochran b, March 1861, m. Jefferson D. Edwards; Elizabeth Tallulah Cochran, b, 7 July 1863, m. Andrew Jackson Allgood; and John Walter Cochran, b. 15 Dec. 1867, m. Estora C. Brown.

A reference in the Coweta Courier, Vol. 21, No. 1, Fall 2001, page 15 (the newsletter of the Coweta County Genealogical Society), gives the following information (paraphrased): Jacob F. Cochran was listed on the 1855 Campbell County tax digest in the 8th District (Dark Corner) and bought land in the 1st District, Campbellton, in September 1857. He also was drawn as a petit juror for the March 1857 term in Campbell County. In 1858, he is listed in the 730th GMD and in 1859 in the 733rd GMD, still in Campbell County. By the 1870 agricultural census, he is listed at the Draketown Post Office in Carroll County. In 1876, 1877 and 1878, he is listed in District 6, 649th GMD of Carroll County.

The 1880 Mortality Census for Carroll County lists Jacob Cochran as a 62-year-old male, born in South Carolina, occupation, farmer, who died from a wound of the knee after being ill for 21 days. The attending physician was Dr. I. Brooks. His obit in the Carroll County Times newspaper, Oct. 24, 1879 issue, mentions that he had a cut from an axe. On Dec. 23, 1879, Elizabeth Cochran applied for a year's support for herself and three minor children: Georgia, Elizabeth and John. W. Cochran. Jacob's estate records are said to be explicit and detailed in the Carroll County probate record book.

One more item from the Coweta newsletter that I considered very interesting, and I quote: "A granddaughter, Ruby McCain Wester, living 1999, remembers her grandmother 'Betsy' very vividly. She told them she was 1/4 Cherokee Indian. The picture of her shows the typical woman of the era with hair pulled back, with high cheekbones which make her seem as they imagined an Indian." The article was signed by W.L. Wester, a descendant, and submitted by June Hart Wester of Canton, Ga.

The 1880 Carroll County census shows Elizabeth J. Cochran in household 317 in the 6th District, 649th GMD of Carroll County, widowed, age 50, born in Ga., both parents born in S.C. Living with her are Thomas J., son, age 22; Georgia M., daughter, age 18; Elizabeth T., daughter, age 16; Walter J., son, age 12; Nathan Chance, son-in-law, age 32 (Sarah Cochran Chance, his wife, died Jan. 1880), Marion J., grandson, age 10; Frances V. granddaughter, age 8; Morgie, grandson, age 4, and Sallie, granddaughter, age 5 months, born Jan, 1880.

Of the eight children of Jacob and Elizabeth Cochran, five are buried in Carroll County. Georgia Malinda Cochran Edwards is buried in Cullman County, Ala., Elizabeth Tallulah Cochran Allgood is buried in Texas, and John Walter Cochran is buried in Montgomery County, Ala.

Charles Crawford Cochran, the third child of Jacob and Elizabeth Endsley Cochran, and his wife, Josephine Chance Cochran, had 15 children: Cannon Lee (1875-1971), Eliza Jane (1876-1962), Hattie V. (1878-1962), Margaret G. (1880- bef. 1971), Cape F. (1881-1906), Ola Ophelia (1883-1951), James N. (1886-1903), William Gerdis (1889-1918), Lizzie Myrtice (1889-1962), Charles Wallace (1891-1918), infant boy (1892-1892), Lula (1893-1893), Sarah (1894-1897), Emma Mae (1896-1990), and Belle (1899-1981).

Eliza Jane Cochran, second child of Charles C. and Josephine Chance Cochran, married Robert L. Wren, son of William Wren and Martha Wilson. Eliza and Robert are Chris' great-grandparents. Robert Wren is also the brother of my great-grandmother, Eliza J. Wren McWhorter.

We are attempting to find out whether this Jacob Franklin Cochran was related to the Solomon Cochran of last week's article, and how both of them fit into the other south side Cochran families. I would love to hear from anyone who has more information on either of these families. Chris Wren's e-mail address is rx4snoopy@hotmail.com.

Looking for your Georgia ancestors? Got a genealogy tip? Got a local family history to share? Write to The Citizen, Drawer 1719, Fayetteville, GA 30214; e-mail jkilgore@thecitizennews.com or jodiek444@aol.com.

Until next week, happy hunting!

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