Last week, we looked at Ararat settlers Rodeham and Elizabeth Moore, their son William Jesse Moore, his wife, Jane Hanby Moore, and their nine children. William and Jane’s oldest child, Hardin Henry Moore was the only one of the children who remained in Patrick County.
Hardin and his wife, Anne Eliza Scales, raised eight children on the family farm in Ararat and as we learned last week, most of them remained in Patrick County. This week, we are highlighting their oldest daughter, Carolina Matilda Moore, born in 1824. Caroline married Henry Jefferson “Jeff” Moore on the 15th of August 1844 in Patrick County. Jeff Moore may be the son of Robert Anderson Moore and Nancy Chandler of Henry County, but thus far, I have been unable to prove it.
In the 1850 census, Caroline, her husband Jeff, and their two children, Jane, age four, and Joseph Henry, age one, are listed as living in the southern part of the county. In the 1860 census, Caroline and Jeff’s address was listed as Ararat post office. The couple had added six more children but unfortunately lost one. Jane is not mentioned in the 1860 census. Cora Ann was born in 1852, John Rucker Moore in 1854, William Hardin in 1855, Millard Filmore in 1857, Alexander Hamilton in 1858 and Sidney Webster in 1859.
By the 1870 census, Caroline and Jeff had added Edward Everett, born in 1860, Laura Virginia in 1862, Nathaniel Jefferson and James Robert in 1864, and Jesse in 1866. All the children were living at the home in Ararat along the Dan River, except for the oldest son, Joseph Henry, who had left home to become a doctor. According to these census records, Caroline Moore had thirteen children, including a set of twins, in twenty years!
We pick back up on oldest son Joseph Henry Moore in the 1880 census, living with his new bride, Ella Mounts and practicing medicine in Loudoun County, Virginia. In the Directory of American Physicians 1804-1929, Dr. Moore attended medical school at Missouri Medical College in St. Louis.
In the 1900 census, Dr. Joseph H. Moore, his wife, and two children, Gladys and Lionel were living on G Street in Washington, D.C. Dr. Moore died on Valentine’s Day, 1915 at the age of sixty-four; he was buried in Rock Creek cemetery in D.C.
Caroline and Jeff’s third child and second daughter, Cora Ann, married William P. Gilmer of Guilford County, North Carolina on the 15th of December 1870. Cora and William made their home in Mount Airy, NC where Cora passed away in 1937. We are going to cover John Rucker Moore, the fourth child of Caroline and Henry, next week when we can devote more time to him and his family.
Caroline and Jeff Moore’s fifth child, William Hardin Moore moved to Hot Springs, Arkansas where he married and was quite successful in the lumber industry. William and his wife owned an additional home in Manatee, Florida where they spent their winters. William Hardin Moore, like his sister Cora Ann, passed away in 1937.
Millard Fillmore Moore, the sixth child of Caroline and Jeff Moore, led quite a remarkable life too. Millard attended the Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College (Virginia Tech) in 1873, which was the first year the college opened. Millard moved to Greenwich, Connecticut where he taught at the Edgewood School. I have much admiration for Mr. Moore because he was a lifelong learner. I discovered his passport application from 1923 where he planned to go to England, France, and Switzerland to further his studies; he was sixty-six years old. Like his sister Cora Ann and his brother, William Hardin, Millard Fillmore Moore died in 1937.
Alexander Hamilton Moore, the seventh child of Caroline and Jeff Moore, moved to San Angelo, in Tom Green County, Texas where he married and was a rancher and farmer. Alexander Moore passed away in 1934. Sidney Webster Moore, child number eight, also made his way to Texas, where he married and became a cattle rancher in El Paso. Sidney passed away in 1930.
The ninth child of Caroline and Jeff, Dr. Edward Everett Moore practiced medicine in New York and New Jersey, according to his obituary. In the 1910 census, he was living in Wilmington, Delaware where he married for the second time. Like his brother William Hardin Moore, Dr. Moore purchased a home in Manatee, Florida where he and his second wife spent their winters. The couple spent their summers in the mountains of Morganton in Burke County, North Carolina. Dr. Edward Everett Moore passed away there in 1948, and his body was returned to Mount Airy, NC to be buried near his parents, brothers, and sister at Oakdale Cemetery.
Third daughter and tenth child, Laura Virginia Moore married George Patrick Martin, also of Patrick County. Laura and George raised a large family in Salisbury, Rowan County, NC. In the 1910 census, George and a son were “street and road contractors” and a couple of the daughters were schoolteachers. I suspect being a road contractor in 1910 was a good career choice as the Model A Ford came out in 1903.
Jeff and Caroline Moore’s twins, James Robert and Nathaniel Jefferson stayed close to home too. James became an orchardist and grew fruit trees. Nathaniel Jefferson Moore was a farmer in Dobson, Surry County, NC. I was unable to locate a marriage license for James or Nathaniel and census records indicated they were both single. James passed away in 1939 and Nathaniel passed in 1941; both brothers were buried in Oakdale Cemetery.
Jesse Moore, the youngest child of Jeff and Caroline Moore, moved to Hartford, Connecticut where he worked in the advertising department for a newspaper. In later census records, he found a career as a broker for an investment company. Jesse married Miss Eloise Lyon of New York. Jesse passed away in 1942 in Middletown, Connecticut.
Next week, we will look at Jeff and Caroline Moore’s fourth child, John Rucker Moore and his family, who lived in Stuart, Virginia. Woody may be reached at rockcastlecreek1@gmail.com or (276) 692-9626.
