I was recently taking a close look at the 1900 census for Muscadine, Cleburne County, Alabama and decided it was something worth writing about. This census was the last one to record Senia Scott, my 3x great grandmother, as she died the following year. One bit of data collected by this census was the total number of children born to a mother, and the number of those children still living at the time of the census. For Senia, it was recorded that she had twelve children total, with six still living in 1900.

Senia Scott in the household of Newman M. Albright,
1900 census for Muscadine, Cleburne County, Alabama.

Definitely Living in 1900

John Henry Scott. Then 60 years old, John had a farm of his own in Muscadine.

Mary Ann Scott. Then 58 years old. Mary was living with her husband Lewis James Anderson and their children in Utica Town, Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory.

Sarah Frances Scott. Then 55 years old. Recently widowed from Jesse F. Graham, Sarah was living in Red River Township, Searcy County, Arkansas.

James M. Scott. Then 47 years old, James was living in Shawnee, Oklahoma, though not for long.

Nancy Caroline Scott. Then 49 years old, Nancy was living with her husband Madison Albright and their children on their farm in Muscadine.

Definitely Dead in 1900

William Thomas Scott. Died in 1862 from typhoid fever. Read Broken Unions, Part Two for more information.

Willis Lee Scott. Died in 1865. Read Broken Unions, Part Four for more information.

M. J. Scott. Daughter, born circa 1838 in Caswell County, North Carolina. She was 12 years old on the 1850 Census for Benton County, Alabama. I haven’t found her in any other records. She died sometime after the 1850 census and before the 1860 census, probably unmarried and childless, since her father’s 1882 probate records did not mention M. J. nor any heirs.

S. Elizabeth Scott. Daughter, born circa 1846 in Carroll County, Georgia. On the 1850 Census for Benton County, she was recorded as S. E. Scott, age 4. On the 1860 Census for Kemp’s Creek, Calhoun County, she was recorded as Elisabett Scott, age 14. There was a marriage recorded on 29 December 1869 in Cleburne County between a Miss S. E. Scott and Newman J. Albright (uncle of the Newman M. Albright on the census at the top of this page). That could be our Elizabeth. She would’ve died within a couple of years of that marriage since Newman remarried in 1872 to Nancy Clayton. There was no mention of Elizabeth nor any heirs in Jesse’s 1882 probate records or Senia’s 1901 records.

Eliza J. Scott. Died circa 1871. Her two children with Early Andrew Jackson Pounds were mentioned in both Jesse and Senia’s probate records.

Robert B. Scott. He died sometime after the 1880 census. Robert was not mentioned among the heirs in Jesse Scott’s estate in 1882, so he likely was dead by then.

Senia Eviline Scott. The twelfth and youngest child of the Scott clan. She married James Martin Barnes circa 1878 and they had four children together, all of whom were mentioned in the elder Senia’s probate records. The younger Senia died sometime between 1884, the birth year of her youngest child, and 1886, when James married Missouri Lorren.

Conclusion

That’s twelve Scott children, but only five definitely alive in 1900. Looks like Senia was off just a little bit.

Although, grandson John Willis Lee Scott was erroneously identified as a son in the 1901 probate records. Perhaps Senia had substituted the living John for his deceased father Willis in her heart.

Folder containing estate case files of Jesse M Scott, 1901-1904.
Grandson John Willis Lee Scott was erroneously identified as a son.

Bibliography

Ancestry.com, Alabama, Wills and Probate Records, 1753-1999 (Provo, UT, USA, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015), Ancestry.com, Estate Case Files (Cleburne County, Alabama); Author: Alabama. Probate Court (Cleburne County); Probate Place: Cleburne, Alabama; Case Number: 444; Case Name: Scott, Jesse M.

Ancestry.com, 1900 United States Federal Census (Online publication – Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004. .Original data – United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Twelfth Census of the United States, 1900. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1900. T623.), Ancestry.com, Year: 1900; Census Place: Muscadine, Cleburne, Alabama; Page: 2; Enumeration District: 0136; FHL microfilm: 1240009. Record for Sene Scott.