Military Thorntons: World War II

Earl S. Cassetty, son of Berttina Mae Thornton
Fred Alton Thornton
Maj. Jesse Willard Thornton
Robert D. Thornton
Jay H. Thornton
Hughie Freeman Yokley, grandson of Cassandra Thornton
Stanley Leroy Thornton
Richard Drifmeyer, grandson of Sarah Ann Thornton
Donald Lee Kinnaird, great-grandson of Mary Elizabeth Thornton
Ray Henderson Owen, grandson of Alice Jane Thornton
Richard Benjamin Gillett, great-grandson of Martha Elizabeth Thornton
Nelson Dean Wyant, grandson of Mary Ann Thornton
* Gaines Snyder, great-grandson of Sarah Ann Thornton
* Survived Bataan Death March, The Phillipines
Harry Joseph Thornton
Capt. James Worth Thornton
Lt. Col. Raymond Allen Thornton (also served in Korea and Vietnam)
Porter Milton Kitchens, son of Ruby Mae Thornton
Albert "Doc" Franklin Jones, son of Margaret Thornton
Glenn E. Wright, grandson of Cassandra Thornton
Clifton Charles Thornton
Edwin Drifmeyer, grandson of Sarah Ann Thornton
Lloyd McCown, grandson of Mary Etta Thornton
Theodore Kemp Thornton
Hal Ervin Thornton, grandson of Allen M. "Tobe" Thornton of Kay County, Oklahoma
Eugene Wendell Thornton, grandson of Allen M. "Tobe" Thornton of Kay County, Oklahoma
Robert Brown Thornton
Harry Rairdon Jr., son of Betty Lola (Lela) Thornton

Winnie Carene Thornton

Carene Thornton was born May 5, 1929, to Jesse Benton and Susie Cooper Thornton in Warren County, KY. She married Cloyd Copas and had two sons: Allen and Rodney.















A 1983 family reunion lineup, featuring Carene Thornton Copas with sons, Allen and Rodney, and grandchildren: Bryant, Chad,and Lori, standing, and Cori and Jessica held aloft.











Bob and Carene playing outside in the 1930s.

Lillie Pauline Thornton

Pauline Thornton was born April 15, 1915, Warren County, KY, to Jesse Benton and Susie Cooper Thornton. She died on Dec. 16, 1997.
















Pauline married Thomas Odell Reagan and had two children: Gloria Dean and Joe Tom.

















Pauline and Odell Reagan on the farm.



















Posing at the shipyard in San Francisco, on a visit to Jess and Pat Thornton, we see Jesse Benton and Lillie Mathias Thornton with Pauline.

Thornton Family Reunion 2005

Bonita Moore Cooper, granddaughter of Lillie Pauline Thornton Reagan, chats with Jean Overstreet Daniel, daughter-in-law of Evaline Thornton Daniel.





Juanita Meredith Thornton, wife of Robert D., Debbie, and Bryan, after being plastered with name tags...






Tony and Liz Cox Thornton; Louie Daniel White, grandson of Evaline Thornton Daniel; and Gary David Daniel, son of Evaline Thornton Daniel.








Debbie White Winebarger, granddaughter of Evaline Thornton.









The Daniels: Jeannie posing with Kim Daniel Bouchey, granddaughter of Evaline Thornton Daniel.














Lewises and Thorntons: (LtoR) Damon and Sue Franklin Lewis; Bill and Diane Thornton Lewis, with Carter; Patrick and Candis Thornton.









Tana Watts Hancock and Sharon Watts Windham, daughters of Patti Joe Thornton, add to the family potluck with a casserole.







Stephen and Denise Clements Thornton.









The spouses: Cloyd Copas, husband of Carene Thornton, discusses Thornton shenanigans with Charles Lewis, husband of Diane Thornton.

Distant Cousins: Honorable Samuel W. Thornton and Family

Hon. Samuel Thornton, son of Abner and Esther Strain Thornton, was born in 1832 (apr.)(d. before 1910). He married Sarah Larimer, daughter of Thomas Larimer and Mary Bryson. Serving during the Civil War, in Co. C, 8^th Regiment Iowa Infantry, Union Army, Samuel was taken prisoner at Shiloh, paroled, and then shot in the thigh at Memphis, after which he was hospitalized until the end of the war. Returning to Washington County, Iowa, he served as city tax collector, assessor, marshal, and one term as Deputy Sheriff. He took the 1870 Census of the county. In the mid-to-late 1870s, he moved to Buffalo County, Nebraska, where he became a prominent farmer, having excellent luck with growing a variety of grasses. In 1886 he represented the area as Representative to the Nebraska State Legislature. He was a member of the Grand Army of the Republic; Thornton Township was named in his honor.

Samuel and Sarah had eight children: Eva J, William, Charles A, Mary Etta, Harry L, Mabel C, Kate D, and Lillie B. Eva J Thornton married John Swenson and had no issue. John Swenson was a prominent farmer and businessman in Buffalo County, Nebraska, who also served two terms as superintendent of schools. He founded the town of Sartoria, opening a post office on Jan. 16, 1880, and serving as the first postmaster. The town is now a ghost town.

William Thornton was a prominent businessman, serving as President and board member of Union Valley Telephone Company. He married Fanny Borders, daughter of Gary Borders and Louisa Harlan. His son, Samuel C Thornton, served in World War I, a member of the 245^th Ambulance Company, 12^th Division. William’s grandson, Jay H Thornton, son of Harry and Olive Turley Thornton, served in World War II, winning several medals: Purple Heart, Bronze Star, Good Conduct Medal, WWII Victory Medal, American Campaign Medal, and European African Middle Eastern Campaign Medal. Jay owned Thornton Sheet Metal until 1983.

Samuel Thornton’s daughters, Mary Etta and Mabel C, married Thomas Rush Lionberger and Albert S Lionberger respectively. Prominent descendents include Mary Etta’s son, Ralph Thornton Lionberger, a noted educator and high school principal, and Mary Etta’s grandson, Colonel Hugh Wayne Randel, a flight surgeon who served in Vietnam as head of Air Force medical personnel.

Military Thorntons: The Civil War

Henry Harrison Thornton
Capt. Levi Calvin McKee Thornton
William Frank Thornton (possibly, both Union and Confederate forces)
James Johnson Thornton
Johnson Houk, son of Jane Thornton
William MaGhee Thornton
John Harvey Thornton
Hon. Samuel W. Thornton
Capt. Ethan E. Thornton
Samuel Watson Thornton
John Montgomery Thornton
Abner Scott Thornton
Henderson Crawford Thornton

Tombstones: Stevenson Cemetery, Simpson County, KY

Robert F Thornton, younger brother to my gg grandfather, John H, and family were buried in the Stevenson Cemetery, just north of Franklin, KY.





Eli Thornton died in an automobile accident, leaving his wife to manage an estate that was sued by the three injured occupants of his car. Most of his possessions had to be sold at auction to cover debt.















Lillie Frances Thornton had five children, many of whom were raised in Alabama. They were Robert, Waymon (named after Jane Kirby's father), and Bettie Qualls, as well as Willie and Nettie Goad. Her grandchildren and great grandchildren still reside primarily in Alabama.







Charles and Sadie Thornton raised six boys: Raleigh Franklin, Michael Frederick, Hank Carson, Marvin Davis, Charles Eddie, and Bobby Morris.