George Russell Street

My grandfather was John Gadys Street, Sr. His dad was George Russell Street. George Russell Street was born in Tippah County, Mississippi. On the 1870 census, he was 6 years old and lived in Tippah County, Township 3, Range 4. This area is south of the Chickasaw meridian. the Chickasaw meridian is a horizontal baseline that actually runs through Tennessee, just north of the Mississippi-Tennessee line. 

You can go to this link http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mstippah/LandPatents.htm and see the original patents for the land in this county. 

Listed on the same census - same household are:

S. W. Street (his mother) age 35 occupation "keeping house"
James Street (brother) age 16 - working the farm
John Street (brother) age 14 - working the farm
Linsey Street (brother) age 12 - working the farm
Lee Street (brother) age 10 - working the farm
George Street age 6
H. A. Street (half-sister) age 1

H. A. Street is not listed on any other documents I've been able to find, I'm assuming she either died and there is no record of it or another family adopted her. Her father couldn't have been the same as George's because his father died before George was born.

Census says that their farm was worth $780 and the personal property on the farm was valued at $400.

Family legend has it that George Russell left Mississippi when he was old enough and made his way to Texas. My Great Aunt Ima said that George Russell rode the Chisholm Trail before settling in Texas. The facts tell another story.

Back to the 1870 Census - his family lived on a farm right next to his mom's brother J. B. Taylor. According to the Taylor family, Susan came to Texas with her sons at the same time the Taylor family moved here. Documents from the time back up this information.

George Russell led his wife and children to think that his family was back in Mississippi and that he had left home at a young age and didn't know what happened to them. Well, he came to Texas with them so he had to know where they settled. They settled in Martindale, Caldwell County, Texas. In the 1900 Census, George Russell was married and living in Kosse, Limestone County, Texas. His mother and brothers were still living in Martindale, Tx. His mother, Susan W. Taylor was living with her son John. She was 62 and widowed. Her son, John was 45 and single. He was a carpenter. They owned their home and it was paid for (no mortgage). He was unemployed for 3 months during that year. He never saw his mother or brothers after he left them to begin his own life. Susan W. Taylor died in 1909 and his brothers died:

James H. died 1931 in Tarrant County, Texas
John S. died 1942 in El Paso, Texas
Linsey died 1900 in Mississippi
Leroy P. died 1948 in Tarrant County, Texas

this just to show that some of his brothers were close by and it wouldn't have been hard to stay in touch. I guess the reason or reasons why he chose not to stay in touch with them will never be known.

In 1893, George Russell married Laura Melissa Ainsworth. He was 30 years old.

In the 1900 Census, George Russell was living in Precinct 5, Kosse, Limestone County, Texas. He and Melissa had been married 7 years. His occupation was farmer. He had been out of work one month during the year. He owned his farm free of any mortgage. He was 37 years old.

Melissa (spelled Malissie on the census form) was 27
Gadys (son) was 5
Emmett (son) was 5
Ed Jordan - 25 lived with them and was listed as a boarder'

George Russell died in 1926 and he is buried in Parker Cemetery, Johnson County, Texas. He was 63.