Erman Lula Thornton Chandler (1888-1985)

Erman Lula Thornton Chandler, daughter of William James and Jane Marshall Thornton, was born August 23, 1888, in Scottsville, Allen County, Kentucky. She was the granddaughter of William Thornton Jr., one of the first generation Thorntons in southern Kentucky who was born in 1827 in North Carolina, and Martha Jane Dinkins.  In 1907 Erman married Edward Boss Chandler (1880-1944) in Webster, Kentucky, and they had three children: 1) Esker Earl Chandler (1908-1939) married Anne E. Kercher and had Jeannette, Jerome, and Earl; 2) William Boyd Chandler (1910-1995) married Bessie McRoy; and 3) Edna Loraine Chandler (1912-1995) married George Ferris McGrew and had Robert McGrew, Betty McGrew Grimes, and Thelma McGrew Normile.  Erman passed away on September 9, 1985, in Florence, South Carolina.

Honorable Jesse Willard Thornton (Part II)

 Champion Boxer Joe Louis pictured below with Colonel William Bailey, the godfather of Diane Thornton Lewis.

Thornton Cousins: The Wagoners

The Southern Kentucky Thorntons' Wagoner cousins descended through the aunt of Mary Susan Cooper Thornton, wife of Jesse Benton.  Tabitha Josephine "Jocie" Cooper was born November 26, 1859, to Francis "Frank" Marion and Tabitha Sullivan Cooper.  In approximately 1873, she married David E. Wagoner (1842-1901) and had at least ten children.  In the picture above, Jocie Wagoner is in the front row, third from the right.  In the front row, we find her sons, left to right: Robert Lucian (1896-1976); Frank Herbert (1880-1936); Walter Edmond (1875-1956); Will Marshall (1878-1948), and Ervin Samuel (1884-1953).  In the second row, we have Ruthie T. (1899-1942); Laura Bell; Beulah Josephine (1892-1970), and Bessie.  Hershel Tharston Wagoner (1882-1955) is not pictured.  Jocie died December 5, 1943, in Allen County, Kentucky. 

Tabitha Josephine Cooper Wagoner.

Beulah Josephine Wagoner was born July 28, 1892, and died November 28, 1970, in Allen County, Kentucky.  On June 27, 1907, she married Ben Wilson Rippy (1890-1932) in Sumner County, Tennessee, and they had at least eight children: Noah Matthew (1909-2002); Lawrence Albert (1912-1954); Lela Mae (1914-2004); Minnie Bell (1915-1987); Cordell Elizabeth (1918-2005); Nellie; Delbert (1923-1968), and Robert Ray (1927-1995).

Photos from the Rippy family.

Odessa McClain Thornton Wilkerson (1892-1990)

Odessa McClain was born January 31, 1892, to John and Fannie Looney McClain in Missouri.  Prior to 1913, she married James Erwin Thornton, son of Allen "Tobe" and Sallie Miller Thornton.  Allen was the son of Robert Benton and Elizabeth Smith Thornton.  James and Odessa had three daughters: Ruth Esther, born January 5, 1913; Leona Mildred, January 6, 1914; and Elsie Lee, April 14, 1918. Prior to James's death just after World War I, the family lived in Big Hill, Osage, Oklahoma.  James died in 1920; afterwards, Odessa lived in the home of her sister-in-law, Gertrude Thornton Looney who married Odessa's uncle William Walter Looney.  Odessa met Stillman Atley Wilkerson (1887-1962), and the two married and moved to Perryton, Ochiltree County, Texas.  Odessa gave birth to a son: Stillman Jr.  Before her death in 1990 in Amarillo, Texas, she was married to Delmar Rutledge.

In the above photo, she is posed with her three daughters, approximately in 1920/21.

J.C. Sloan (1913-1997)

Jay C. Sloan, grandson of Fernly Alexander and Mary Thornton Sloan, was born on January 17, 1913 in Simpson County, Kentucky, to Ben and Nannie Meador Sloan.  He married twice: first, to Eva Lois Roberts, daughter of John and Ella Stewart Roberts, and, secondly, to Eloise Shepherd.  J.C. died on October 24, 1997, in Avon Park, Florida.

Eva was born in 1914 in Simpson County, KY, and died in 1976.  J.C. and Eva had four children: Lloyd Dean (b. 1935), Barbara Elaine (b. 1937), Juandeline (b. 1939), and Eva Jean (b. 1940).

J.C. owned the Gulf Gas Station, Main Street, Franklin, Kentucky.

Porter Thornton's Grandchildren 2014

At the 2014 Thornton Family Reunion, twelve of Porter and Edna Gaddie Thornton's grandchildren posed on the steps of White's Chapel, Warren County, Ky.  Porter, son of Jesse Benton and Mary Susan Cooper Thornton, was born in 1908 and died in 1976.  In the mid 1970s, the family reunion was often held at his home.

Porter and Edna's fourteen grandchildren are Stephen Earl Thornton, Thomas David Thornton, Kathy Thornton Ramsey, Janet Thornton Abelein, Julie Thornton Carden, Michael Thornton, Timothy Alan Thornton (dec.), Roger Carroll Thornton (dec.), Kevin Martin Thornton, Tana Carol Watts Hancock, Sharon Watts Windham, Carmen Elise Thornton, Kenneth Matthew Thornton (not pictured), and Katie-Laine Thornton.

Frances Calvert Cline Thornton (1879 - 1950)

Frances Calvert, daughter of Samuel Burge and Martha Dowell Calvert, was born July 15, 1879.  She married James K. Cline in 1901.  After James's death in 1926, in the early 1930s, she married Thomas Benton Thornton, son of Robert Benton and Elizabeth Smith Thornton.  He had returned to Kentucky from Indiana, after the death of his wife Jeannette.  Thomas was born on December 15, 1862, and died on April 8, 1943.  Frances died on November 1, 1950.  Thomas and Fannie lived in New Roe, Allen County, Kentucky.

Fannie is pictured above with her first husband, James.

2014 Thornton Family Reunion

From as far away as Oregon and Florida, family members gathered at White's Chapel, just south of Plano, Kentucky, to interact with Jesse Benton and Susie Cooper Thornton descendants and their families. This Labor Day weekend tradition has persisted for four decades.  The last member of the first generation of Thornton children, Winnie Carene Thornton Copas, passed away on January 2, 2014.

Danijela Lewis and daughter Evelina are entertained by grandfather, Bill Lewis, husband of Diane Thornton Lewis.

Danny White, son of Evelyn Daniel White and grandson of Eva Thornton, with sons.

Bill, Damon, Carter, and Jansen Lewis (husband, son, and grandchildren of Diane Thornton Lewis)

White's Chapel, which has frequently hosted Thornton Family Reunions over the last 40 years.

Bill Lewis and Kitty Baker Sparks, widow of Jesse Willard Thornton.

Tom Reagan, son of Pauline Thornton, chatting with Kitty Baker Sparks.

Thornton Cousin Profile: Billionaire Brad Kelley

Brad Maurice Kelley, second great-grandson of Mary Jane Thornton, daughter of James and Lucy Laney Thornton, was born in 1956 to Joe Frank Kelley and Patsy Ruth Gregory.  While his early years were spent in Bowling Green, KY, Brad attended high school in Franklin, KY, near where his Thornton ancestors had originally arrived.

An enterprising youth, investing in real estate and agriculture during his teenage years, he built up a tobacco business that was later sold to Houchins Industries for $1 billion.  He has diversified his business interests into media, horses, and real estate.  It is estimated that he is the fourth largest private landowner in the United States, with valuable ranches throughout the Midwest and Texas.  In addition, he is the current operator of Calumet Farms, Lexington, KY: his horse, Oxbow, won the 2013 Preakness Stakes.  The Lonely Planet travel guides are produced by his media house, NC2.

Brad Kelley is a noted conservationist and supporter of organizations that protect endangered wildlife such as rhinos and tapirs.

He is married to Susan Bush, and they have three children.  His current net worth is estimated to be approximately $2 billion.

Thornton Cousins: Thomas Monroe Kitchens (1869 - 1945)



The Kitchens family arrived in Southern Kentucky with Jesse Kitchens and his wife, Elizabeth Lucinda Cassity.  Many of their children and grandchildren would marry Thorntons, most notably Sarah "Lizzie" Kitchens who married John H. Thornton, my 2nd Great Grandfather. 

The family, pictured above, is that of Thomas Monroe and Narcissa Mittie Huffines Kitchens and seven of their children: Clarence, Columbus "Lum," Velma, Mary, Erma Lee, George, and Ernest.  Erma Lee would later marry James Herschel Thornton, son of John and Lizzie.





Thomas Monroe and Mittie Huffines Kitchens.



Obituary: Carene Thornton Copas

Last child of Jesse Benton and Susie Cooper Thornton passes away:

Carene Copas, 84, of Bowling Green, died Jan. 2, 2014, at her residence. 

She was a member of Old Union Missionary Baptist Church. She was preceded in death by her husband of 66 years, Cloyd Copas, as well as four brothers and five sisters. She is survived by two sons, Allan Copas and Rodney (Debbie) Copas; two sisters-in-law, Helen Thornton and Elizabeth Moore of Burbank, Calif.; five grandchildren, Bryant (Kim), Chad, Lorri (Duke), Cori (Chris) and Jessica (Patrick); six great-grandchildren, Lauren (Anthony),  Michael, Wyatt, Dalton, Logan and Abigail; a great-great-granddaughter, Addyson; four stepgrandchildren; several nieces, nephews, great-nieces, great-nephews and a host of friends.

Funeral services will be conducted Sunday at 2:30 p.m. at the J.C. Kirby & Son Broadway Chapel, with burial in the Old Union Missionary Baptist Church Cemetery. Visitation will be from noon until 8 p.m. Saturday, and from noon until service time Sunday at the funeral home.

Class-book Photo: The Hensons

Jesse Willard Henson's children: In the third row, left to right, Larry, Ophelia, Jerry Galen, and Terry.  The first picture in the fourth row is Katherine

Jesse Willard Henson (1917 - 1981)

Jesse Willard Henson was born July 16, 1917 in Simpson County, KY, to Lee B. and Ophelia Ruth Wright Henson.  Ophelia was the daughter of Charlie Wilson and Lassie Wright, daughter of Cassandra Thornton of the Allen and Polly Ray Thornton branch.  In 1925, Ophelia Henson passed away, when Jesse was eight years old and his younger sister, Eris, was three.  Raised in Simpson County, he married Mary Sue Spears, daughter of Denver and Nellie Middleton Spears, and raised his family on the rolling farmland of southern Kentucky.  Jesse and his wife had several children: Jerry Galen, Larry Willard, Ophelia, Terry Marlin, and Katherine.  Jesse passed away in February 1981, in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

In the above picture, Jesse is with his father, Lee Henson.

The Henson family:  Top row, left to right, William Ranburger, Mary Sue Spears Henson, Jesse Willard Henson, Diane McCoy Henson, Terry Marlin Henson, Larry Willard Henson; Second row, left to right, Katherine Henson Toney, Ophelia Ranburger, with Teresa Dyer in lap, Lee Henson, Jane Lightfoot Henson, with Bonnie Henson Monroe in lap, Lorie Fisher Henson, and Sherry Henson Edmunds.

Ophelia, daughter of Jesse Willard, poses with Xavier Henson-Stevens, son of Stefanie Henson-Stevens and Timothy Stevens.

40th Wedding Anniversary: Larry, Ophelia, Willard, Sue, Terry, and Katherine

Fall Family Member Obituaries

Bradley Thomas Threlkel:

Mr. Bradley Thomas Threlkel, 21, of Woodburn, died Monday, Nov. 26, 2012, at his residence.

He was a native of Simpson County. He was preceded in death by his grandfather, Merile B. O’Bryan; and an aunt, Sue Threlkel.  

Survivors include his father, Henry Thomas Threlkel and his companion, Lisa Rue, of Franklin; his mother, Fern O’Bryan Mercer and her husband, Joe, of Woodburn; a brother, Zackary Threlkel of Franklin; paternal grandparents, Henry B. and Lois Threlkel of Morgantown; maternal grandmother, Dorothy O’Bryan of Franklin; a nephew, Zayden Bryan Threlkel of Franklin; aunts and uncles, Janice Morgan of Indianapolis, Ron and Barbara Threlkel of Plano, Betty and Jimmy Vance of Franklin, James and Anita Minton of Morgantown, Merile and Carol O’Bryan of Franklin, Roy and Barbara O’Bryan of Franklin and Leo O’Bryan of Nashville; and five cousins. 

Cloyd Copas:

Cloyd Copas, 84, of Bowling Green, died Wednesday afternoon at his residence.

Survivors include his wife Carene of 66 years; and two sons, Allan and Rodney (Debbie) and their families.

Glenn Daniel:

Glenn Daniel, 74, of Bowling Green, went to be with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on Thursday at the VA Hospital in Nashville.

The Warren County native was born March 30, 1938, and was preceded in death by his parents, Arthur and Eva Thornton Daniel; two sons, Brad and Brent Daniel; his brother, Gary Daniel; and two brothers-in-law, Louie White and Eugene Rippy.

Glenn was a member of White’s Chapel United Methodist Church, a 1956 graduate of Alvaton High School, a U. S. Army veteran and served in the Korean and Vietnam Wars. He was member of American Legion Post 23 and a former post commander. He was a van driver for disabled veterans, loved hunting and fishing and never met a stranger. He loved his wife, children, sisters and especially his grandchildren.

Glenn is survived by his wife, JoAnna Daniel; a son, Chris Daniel (Vicki) of Bowling Green; a daughter, Kim Bouchey (David) of Bowling Green; three stepsons, Doug Cline (Cathy) of Glasgow, and Chris Cline (Mary) and Adam Cline, both of Bowling Green; a stepdaughter, Nicki Cline of Bowling Green; two sisters, Evelyn White and Lucille Rippy, both of Bowling Green; a sister-in-law, Jeannie Reneau (Jimmy) of Bowling Green; three grandchildren, Jana Sublett, Jonathan Daniel and Bradley Bouchey; four stepgrandchildren, Randy and Andy Cline, Ashley Grisham and Charles Simmons; a special mother-in-law, Ocie Sexton of Edmonton; and several nieces and nephews.

(Bowling Green Park City Daily News, 2012)

Temporary Hiatus

Greetings from Africa,

Terribly sorry for not updating the blog as regularly; however, I recently moved to Africa and have been adjusting to my new home.  As soon as my internet is up and running, I will be posting as usual.

On a positive note, the blog has now had 8,302 page views, which is a very impressive statistic for a family blog.  Some of the other notable statistics were:

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Maude Gertrude Thornton (1887 - 1951)

Maude Gertrude Thornton was born January 14, 1887, to William Virgil and Maggie Campbell Thornton (see William Virgil Thornton entry).  She was the granddaughter of James Allen Thornton and great-granddaughter of Robert Benton Thornton, pioneering Thornton brothers who arrived in southern Kentucky in 1849.  On May 18, 1907 in Sumner County, Tennessee, Maude married Dock Jones, son of Sydney Jefferson and Margaret Thornton Jones.  They had eight children: Clarence Noel, Lucian E., Carl, Howard Burnice, Albert Franklin, Alvin Leon, Harry C. and Marvin.  Maude Jones died on January 23, 1951, in Nashville, Tennessee.  In the above photograph, courtesy of the Jones family genealogy, Maude is pictured with her daughter-in-law, Tenito Crouch Jones.

Clarence Noel Jones was born March 27, 1917.  He married Tenito Crouch (pictured above with Maude).  In the above photo, Clarence is in Burma (current, Myanmar) in 1943, during World War II.  After returning from war, Tenito and Clarence raised their family in southern Kentucky.  They had five children: Clarence, Jennifer, James, Howard, and Michael.  Clarence died on January 1, 1978.

Addie Laura Thornton Shinn (1884 - 1978)

 Addie Laura Thornton was born November 21, 1884, in southern Kentucky to Allen M. "Tobe" and Sallie Miller Thornton. In the mid-1890s, Allen and family headed westward to Missouri and, then, Oklahoma, where Addie met and married John J. Shinn, son of John and Elizabeth Autry Shinn. They had five children: Agnes Frances Shinn Kelley, John J. Shinn, Lee Roy Shinn, Raymond James Shinn, and Betty Faye Shinn Trimm (all, except Betty, pictured below). After spending several decades in Oklahoma, John and Addie moved to Sutter, California, where Addie died on December 19, 1978.

The Shinns at John and Addie's Golden Wedding Anniversary (circa mid-1950s).

Allen "Tobe" and Sallie Miller Thornton Family

Above, we have Allen M. "Tobe" Thornton who married Sally J. Miller on Dec. 4, 1879, at a dual wedding with his sister Margaret (married Sydney Jeff Jones).  Allen was the son of Robert Benton and Elizabeth Smith Thornton.  In the mid 1890s, Allen and family headed west, first moving to Butler, Missouri, and then to Indian Territory, Creek Nation (present day, Oklahoma).  Sally passed away in 1907.  Allen died in 1939 and was buried at Odd Fellow Cemetery, Ponca City, Oklahoma.

Allen and Sally with children: Maggie, born July 1881, married William Thornton Darr; Addie Laura, born November 21, 1884, married John J. Shinn; Gertrude, born 1887, married 1)William Walter Looney and 2) James Murphy; James Ervin, born 1889, married Odessa McClain; Robert Earl (see entry), born 1894; Betty Lela, born 1899, married Harry W. Rairden, a member of the Osage Nation.

 Gertrude Thornton Looney Murphy.

James Ervin Thornton in military (WWI) uniform and his draft registration card (below), showing his birthplace as Bowling Green, KY.  James married Odessa McClain on April 18, 1911, in Oklahoma.  They had three daughters: Ruth, Mildred, and Elsie L. Thornton.  Sadly, James died shortly after the war, and Odessa married Stillman A. Wilkerson.  The family moved off to Texas where the three Thornton girls were later joined by their half-brother: Stillman A. Wilkerson Jr.  Stillman and Odessa met when Stillman was a roomer in the boarding house of her sister-in-law, Gertrude Thornton Looney (see above).