Andrew Alexander Crawford would have been the husband of my 3rd Great Grandmother’s older sister Rachel.

Andrew Alexander Crawford was born November 11, 1812 in Lincoln County, Tennessee. He was the son of John Crawford and his first wife, Margaret Buchanan. See decendants of Alexander and Mary McPheeters Crawford by Forbes and Sammis and Decendants of the Buchanan Families of Washington County by Allan S. Humphries. Both his grandfathers were Revolutionary War patriots. His paternal grandfather William Crawford served as Private and patriot manufacturing and supplying arms to the Continental Army, Augusta County, Virginia. His maternal grandfather, Andrew Buchanan, also from Augusta County, Virginia served in the Continental Army and attained the rank of Captain.

Andrew first married Minerva Buchanan. It’s thought she was the daughter of Moses Buchanan. They had one child, Robert who later became a lawyer in Spearfish, South Dakota. Minerva was murdered by a negro slave named Caroline. Robert was just a small child. See an account of this murder and trial written by Mrs. Maurice Cruse in Flashback, Vol VII, #4 Jul 1957.

Andrew then married Rachel Tinnin, the daughter of Hugh and Betsy (Rutherford) Tinnin. In April of 1849, Andrew, in the company of 85 men from Washington and surrounding counties left for the gold fields of California. Lewis Evans was captain of this group of “Fourty Niners”. Andrew suffered from scurvy on the trip. Some men were never heard from, but Andrew made the trip home safely. He managed to bring each child a gold nuggett. In the year of 1859, he was serving as Justice of the Peace in Washington County, performing marriages, etc. Then in the first part of the Civil War, he was serving as County Judge. He then enlisted in the Confederate Army and fought in the battle of Pea Ridge and other western battles. He died at Rienzi, near Corinth, Mississippi from heat exposure during the Battle of Shiloh, May 23, 1862.

In the memoirs of Col., J.P. Neal, who was married to Lucy Tinnin, Rachel’s sister, Col. Neal mentions a house raising in the Prairie Grove valley in 1839. The house was on the east side of Cane Hill and belonged to Andy Crawford. He also mentions that the morning after the battle of Prairie Grove he was climbing a hill and met 200 Federal prisoners under guard on Andy Crawford’s farm. It was later the Mike Nail place. We don’t know how Rachel managed after the war, but she had lost her husband and oldest son, Hugh when it was over. She may have been homeless after it’s destruction. It was with the aid of the Catholic Sisters that she was given a milk cow to help provide for her children. Later in the 1870 Federal Census, she was living with her children in the home of William D. Crawford, Andrew’s brother and his family.

The only child of Andrew and Minerva was Robert, born about 1838. Rachel Tinnin was born in Mississippi January 15, 1826 and died 1903 or 1904 according to her widow’s pension records. The children of Andrew and Rachel were: Hugh, born about 1845 and died unmarried in the Civil War. Margaret, born about 1847 and married John “Lum” Henson. Susan “Sug” born about 1853 and married first: Isham House and second: H. Covey. Martha Halbert (Mattie) Crawford, born Feburary 11, 1854 – died January 16, 1899 in Floyd County, Texas, married John Washington Smith November 11, 1877 in Washington County, Arkansas (See J.W. Smith Family). Andrew Neal Crawford, born March 13, 1856 – died in Florida, married Laura Baird, children: Mrs. C.M. Garrett, Mrs. P.W. Wybrecht, Mrs. S.K. Booth and Alvin A. Crawford from his obituary. Lucy Crawford, born August 30, 1856 – died December 10, 1938, married Alexander Cruse, January 13, 1878 see To Kimberly, with Love by Lillian Cruse Woods and Buell Beverly Woods. Emily (Emma) Crawford, married first: George McKinzie on September 9, 1880, second: Huff, this family moved to Belton, in Bell County, Texas. Alice Crawford married Frank Parkhurst on January 25, 1880, she died leaving at least one daughter.

Source: Ruth Lee, History of Washington County Arkansas, Shiloh Museum, Springdale, Arkansas, 1989 – Family History Library – US/CAN 976.714 D3n

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