In 1973, an old composition book entitled "Early Land Records of St. Clair County" was discovered in a dusty records room at the Ashville courthouse. In this book, a William Hollingsworth was recorded in 1818. Later visits to the courthouse to further document this record showed this book to be missing.

The first recorded Hollingsworth family on the census in St. Clair County is the 1820 census. "Joeb Hollensworth" is shown with his wife, 3 boys and 4 girls. The county had only recently been formed in 1820. The Cherokee Nation bordered St. Clair as well as a good portion of east Alabama. The St. Clair County Tract Book shows a Jacob Hollingsworth buying land February 7, 1821 so "Joeb" would be Jacob Hollingsworth.

Jacob Hollingsworth, age 40 to 50 years old, appears on the 1830 St. Clair census with  his wife, age 30 to 40 years old with 5 boys and 3 girls. Jacob has been identified as Jacob Hollingsworth, Jr., who married Delphia Henderson in Union District, South Carolina. According to the Cunningham Family book, Jacob was the son of Jacob who  married Betty Trammell in Union District, South Carolina. Jacob, Jr., and his family later moved to Pickens County, Alabama where they appear on the 1850 Pickens census.

The 1850 Pickens County census lists Jacob Hollingsworth, Jr.'s family as:  Jacob, 68 years, born South Carolina, Delphia, 60 years, born South Carolina, Mary, 28 years, born Alabama, Jackson, 25 years, born Alabama and William Perry Hollingsworth, born 22 August 1828 in St. Clair County. William Perry Hollingsworth also shows up  on the 1850 Cherokee County census, occupation merchant, boarding at the household of William A. T. Tumnitine, household 12, family 12.

It is said that William Perry Hollingsworth's brothers were Thomas, born in Alabama in 1813, Abraham who died in Leon County, Texas, David, Jacob who died in Pickens County, and Daniel who also died in Pickens County.

There was a building on Broad Street in Gadsden, Alabama, in present-day Etowah County, that once was a wholesale hardware business started by Thomas and William Hollingsworth. After the Civil War, Thomas moved to Milam County, Texas where he died in 1870. Brother William continued to manage the hardware business until he died in 1879. For years afterward, people referred to the building in Gadsden as the Hollingsworth building.
 

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Between 1826 and 1843, there are at least 8 marriages of Hollingsworths recorded in St. Clair County, Alabama for which the parents are not known.

Elizabeth Hollingsworth married Iredell Cunningham 26 November 1826.
Samuel Hollingsworth married Rebecca Washington 30 December 1830.
Giles Hollingsworth married Mary "Polly" Hawkins 2 January 1836.
Susan Hollingsworth married William Mansfield 11 July 1838.
Rachel Hollingsworth married William Woodall 12 July 1836.
Sarah Hollingsworth married James Millwood 27 March 1840.
Jane Hollingsworth married Franklin Cooper 22 July 1843.
Harrison Hollingsworth married Anna Oliver 19 November 1843.

In 1840 there were only two Hollingsworth families living in St. Clair County,  William and Giles. There is a land record for Jacob Hollingsworth dated 20 April 1835 for Pickens County. Jacob and his family are also listed on the 1850 Pickens County census. So Jacob and his family apparently moved to Pickens County shortly after 1835.

All of the Hollingsworth marriages from 1836 to 1843 are likely to be children of William Hollingsworth. William is the only Hollingsworth in the county old enough to be their father. The only exception would be Harrison Hollingsworth who is known to be the son of John and Susannah Hollingsworth of Benton County, Alabama.

The marriages of Elizabeth Hollingsworth to Iredell Cunningham, 26 November 1826  and that of Samuel Hollingsworth to Rebecca Washington, 30 December 1830 are almost certainly to be the children of Jacob Hollingsworth. Jacob was the only Hollingsworth family in St. Clair County from 1820 to 1830 when the marriages took place.  It has been shown that William did not arrive in St. Clair County until after 1832 (1850 census).
 
 

                                    1840 St. Clair County, AL, Census

Page 237                             Page 236

Giles Hollingsworth                  William Hollingsworth

1 male 30 to 40 years old (Giles)    2 males 20 to 15 years old
2 females under 5 years old          1 male 60 to 70 years old (William)
1 female 20 - 30 years old (Mary)    1 female under 5 years old
                                     3 females 5 to 10 years old
                                     2 females 10 to 15 years old
                                     1 female 15 to 20 years old
                                     1 female 40 to 50 years old (wife)

There are only two possible candidates for the parents of these 8 Hollingsworth families, Jacob and William. It is very likely that Jacob is the father of Elizabeth who married in 1826 and Samuel who married in 1830. William is very likely the father of the Hollingsworth children who married between 1835 and 1843 with the exception of Harrison Hollingsworth. Records show that Jacob bought land in Pickens County in 1835.

Since William and Giles are the only Hollingsworths in St. Clair in 1840 and they are listed on adjoining pages of the census, pages 237 for Giles and 236 for William, they are likely to be father and son. William is listed as 60 to 70 years old and Giles, who was just married in 1836, is 30 to 40 years old.

William and his family disappear from St. Clair County and Alabama after the 1840 census. Giles Hollingsworth is the only Hollingsworth family recorded on the 1850 St. Clair County, Alabama census.

Jane Hollingsworth Cooper and Franklin Cooper married July 22, 1843 in St. Clair County, Alabama. They appear on the 1850 Carroll - Chickasaw County, Mississippi census (pages 405 and 406). The family living next door to the Cooper family is almost certain to be the William Hollingsworth family without William. This Hollingsworth family is almost an exact match to the William Hollingsworth family shown on the 1840 St. Clair County, Alabama census.
 
 

                          1850 Carroll - Chickasaw County, MS Census

Elias Hollingsworth, age 25, born SC, head, (1 of 2 males 10-15 years old, 1840)
Elizabeth Hollingsworth, age 60, born SC. (female 40 to 50 on 1840 census)
Miram, age 24, born SC. (1 of 2 females 10-15 years old, 1840 census)
Mary, age 22, born SC. (2 of 2 females 10-15 years old, 1840 census)
Permilia, age 20, born SC. (1 of 3 females 5-10 years old, 1840 census)
Omia (?), age 18, born SC. ( 2 of 3 females 5-10 years old, 1840 census)
Amanda, age 15, born AL. (3 of 3 females 5-10 years old, 1840 census)
William, age 10, born AL.

Aaron Hollingsworth, age 23, born SC, is shown living with the family of Amos Davis two households away from the Elias Hollingsworth family.
(2 of 2 males 10-15 years old on the 1840 St. Clair County, Alabama census).

Comparing the 1840 and 1850 censuses, we can conclude the following:  The William Hollingsworth family left South Carolina after 1832 and arrived in St. Clair County, Alabama on or before 1835.  William died sometime between 1840 and 1850 either in Alabama or Mississippi. His family is shown living in Carroll - Chickasaw County, Mississippi in 1850.

Although the name of Giles' father is not known as a matter of record, it is said that Giles inherited land from him which he sold after the Civil War to a coal mining company by the name of Bardeleber Mining Company. A check of the Probate/Land Office in Ashville, St. Clair County shows no record of a probate on a William Hollingsworth or any record of William ever owning land in the county. The Probate/Land Office also has no record of land ownership for Giles between 1836 and 1858 for land for which he presumably farmed. The only record in the St. Clair Plat Book is of land Giles bought from the General Land Office in Tuscaloosa in 1858. An attempt was made to check the tax lists of St. Clair County but a spokesperson said those records had been burned.

Though there is no written record, a story that has been handed down to descendants of Giles Hollingsworth states that his father's land had a farm and grazing lands for his stock located by a stream of water known as the Hollingsworth Springs, north of Mt. Acmar at the foot of Ball Rock Mountain (part of the Beaver Creek Mountains belonging to the Appalachian Mountain range) and near the Coosa River.

Another clue to the name of Giles' father was the pattern to which Giles and Mary named their children. Their first born was named William. They named their second son after Mary's grandfather, Samuel Magness. The third son was named after Mary's father, Larkin Hawkins. Finally, the last son was named Giles, Jr., after his father. The first born, William, was probably named after Giles' father.

In 1843, Giles and Mary Hollingsworth apparently moved to Jefferson County. They are shown in the minutes of the old Hebron Baptist Church established in 1819. In the minutes of the church, it describes that the church was in Shelby County but now is in Jefferson County. The church is located 5 miles below Leeds on what is now Highway 119 but in 1843, it was the old stage coach line between Montevallo and Ashville. The Hebron Baptist Church is only 10 miles from Branchville. While in Jefferson County, Giles and Mary had a son, Samuel Hawkins Hollingsworth born in 1844. Church records show that Giles and Mary asked for a letter of dismissal from the church in the "February Term 1847". They apparently moved back to St. Clair County where they are the only Hollingsworth family listed on the 1850 census.

In July 1862 as the Civil War began to intensify and Federal troops began to invade the South in earnest, William and his brother Samuel enlisted in the Confederate Army, Company G, 3rd Alabama Cavalry in Captain Forney's company at Jacksonville, Alabama. William continued in service until he was assigned to act as part of General Withers' body guard and was transferred. William re-enlisted as a Private at Murphreesboro, Tennessee in Wheeler's Command under Colonel Higgins.  William was captured at Resacea, Georgia, May 6, 1864, during the battle of Atlanta, part of Sherman's March to the Sea. He was held as a prisoner of war at Camp Martin, Indiana until released on May 6, 1865.

The Alabama 3rd Cavalry Regiment was organized at Tupelo, Mississippi on July 1, 1862. It was surrendered by General Joseph E. Johnson at Durham Station, Orange County, North Carolina, on April 26, 1865.

Though Giles Hollingsworth was too old to enlist, he and his wife Mary did not escape the ravages of war. In August 1862, Union troops raided the Giles Hollingsworth farm  after Mary had just given birth to Giles, Jr., a few days earlier. They looted the farm taking all of the livestock, grain and anything else they could carry before burning the house. Before the troops burned the house, Giles and Mary were allowed to take a feather bed out and away from the house for Mary and the infant.

William and Samuel Hollingsworth survived the war and returned to Branchville, St. Clair County from where they were living when they enlisted. William shows up in the minutes of the Old Bethel Baptist Church in Odenville in 1866 for "drinking and card playing".

Confederate Army records show that Samuel was assigned to the Provost, a unit that rounds up deserters. A story handed down from Andrew Jackson Hollingworth to his son, Andrew Jackson Hollingsworth, Jr., tells that Samuel's Confederate unit was camped on one side of the Tennessee River and the Union Army was camped on the other, maybe near the horseshoe bend.
 
 

One of the Confederates received word that his family needed him. The man's child had died of measles. They gave him a three-day pass but would not let the man take a horse due to the upcoming battle of Chickamauga (September 18 - 20, 1863 near Chattanooga). The man had to catch rides on wagons when he could and walk the rest of the way. It took him all day and night to get home and he stayed up all the next day and night with his family. The third day and night was  spent returning to camp. He was placed on guard duty upon his arrival that night. He begged them to let him sleep since he had not rested in 3 days. They told him they would shoot him if he went to sleep. He was caught sleeping. Samuel was placed as a guard over the man that was to be shot the next morning. Samuel asked the man "Friend, how would you like to escape?" The man said, "Of course, but they will shoot you in my place". Samuel replied, "Can you swim?" The man said yes and they swam the river together. It is said that they hid out in a cave near Ruby Falls and later joined the Union Cavalry.

Samuel's friend may have been Andrew Jackson Chennault. Another story puts Samuel and Andrew together in the war. It is told that they were very cold and sleeping on the ground under an army blanket under 3 to 4 inches of snow. Andrew Jackson Chennault  and Samuel Hawkins Hollingsworth are listed together in Co. H of the 1st TN and AL  Vidette Cavalry (Union) in 1864.

There is a book entitled 1st Tennessee and Alabama Independent Vidette Cavalry, USA  that contains a roster and regimental history. It lists "Hollingsworth, Samuel H., Private,  Company H, Jefferson County, Alabama, age 20. This unit was only in existence for less than a year from September 10, 1863 until April 14, 1864 before they were disbanded. Some of them later joined the 1st Alabama Cavalry, USA. There was no enlistment date  for Samuel but it would seem to account for part of his whereabouts between the time he  deserted the Confederate Army, sometime after December 1863, and his later enlistment record, April 1865, with a Union cavalry unit.

In later years, Samuel would take his son, Andrew Jackson, Sr., to the area around Chattanooga to show him the area he fought during the battle of Chickamauga, a Confederate victory. Samuel apparently fought on the Confederate side since he was listed on the 3rd Alabama Cavalry muster roll until December 1863. The battle of Chickamauga took place in September 1863.

Samuel's grandson, Andrew Jackson, Jr., related a story about Samuel. Samuel was riding across a battlefield on his horse trying to shoot a Confederate but his rifle kept misfiring. The Confederate shot holes in Samuel's raincoat, shot his boot heel off and finally shot Samuel's horse out from under him. By this time, the two men were only steps apart.
 
 

The soldier told Samuel, "you are the hardest man to kill that I have ever seen!" Samuel told him, "that is the first time my rifle has ever misfired, you were almost a dead man!" The soldier told Samuel that he did not have to worry about being shot by him and they walked away.

Samuel's son, Andrew Jackson Hollingsworth, kept his father's sword and coat for many years. Andrew Jackson's family was poor and the large family survived as sharecroppers. They moved a lot and eventually moved off and left the sword and coat with a newspaper entitled "The War Is Over" rolled up in the pocket hanging in a closet.

Samuel Hollingsworth is shown on the 1870 St. Clair census with his wife and son.

Giles and Mary "Polly" Hawkins Hollingsworth went on to have nine children:

Nancy Elizabeth Hollingsworth, born 14 February 1837.
Married Andrew Jackson Chennault, St. Clair County, 24 March 1856.

William Henry Hollingsworth, born Branchville, St. Clair County, 28 March 1838.
Married Hulda C. Garner, St. Clair County, 24 October 1861.

Mary Jane Hollingsworth, born 1839. She married William Adkins, St. Clair County
22 December 1855.

Samuel Hawkins Hollingsworth, born St. Clair County, 17 January 1844.
Married Temperance Jane Chennault, Jefferson County, 22 February 1868.

Larkin Hollingsworth, born Jefferson County 1846.
Married Mary Amanda McGuire, Jefferson County, 10 June 1868.

Charlotte Ann Hollingsworth, born 1850.

Isadora Hollingsworth, born 1854.

Marvilla Emily Hollingsworth, born 1859. Married J. H. Creel, St. Clair County,
17 February 1877.

Giles Hollingsworth, Jr., born August 1862.
Married Mary L. Pate, Blount County, 23 May 1889.
 
 

Giles and Mary "Polly" Hollingsworth are said to be buried at the Old Bethel Baptist Church cemetery in Odenville in St. Clair County though there are no written records.  Mary died 16 December 1899 at 83 years of age. She had been a member of the Old Bethel Baptist Church for years up until 1898 when she is shown in the minutes of the church as having joined the Presbyterian Church.

Both Giles and Mary stated on the census that they were born in South Carolina. Minutes of the Old Bethel Baptist Church in Odenville show Mary and her father Larkin Hawkins on a committee in April 1870. So Mary apparently arrived in St. Clair County with her parents from South Carolina. Larkin Hawkins and his wife, Annis Magness both were born in Greenville County, S.C.

To date, research continues to find a documented link between the Giles and William Hollingsworth family and the parents of the 8 Hollingsworth children married between 1826 and 1843 in St. Clair County, Alabama.

Note: The "Bardelber" Mining Company was not found but there is a well known coal mining company by the name of Debardeleben in St. Clair County, Alabama.

Note: A Hollingsworth descendant, the former Lillian Hollingsworth, reports that William Henry Hollingsworth and Samuel Hawkins Hollingsworth had a photograph made together during the Civil War in Confederate uniforms. This photograph is known to have survived until the mid-1970s when Lillian's father died. Lillian's mother is said to have taken it with her to the Sylvester Hollingsworth family.
 
 

Written by:

Verbon E. Swann
2325 Schirra Way
Mesquite, Texas 75150

Copyright 1999
All Rights Reserved