Walter Clark Gardner1

b. 30 October 1846, d. 17 August 1924
FatherJeremiah Caleb Gardner2 b. 1 Nov 1799, d. abt 1872
MotherMargaret Montgomery Edmiston2 b. 7 Mar 1804, d. abt 1866
Birth30 Oct 1846 Walter Clark Gardner was born on 30 Oct 1846 in Washington County, Virginia.1,3 
Name Other  Walter's brother's family Bible recorded Walter's full name as Jeremiah Walter Clark Gardner, however Walter does not appear to have used "Jeremiah" at any time past childhood (the 1950 census listed him as Jeremiah W.).1,4 
Cens-186025 Jul 1860 In 1854 or 1855 Walter's parents left Virginia and migrated to Texas, settling briefly in Lamar and County. By the summer of 1860 they were enumerated in Hunt County where Walter, at 14, was recorded as the youngest member of the family.5 
Military1863  In early 1863 Walter enlisted in the Confederate Army at Greenville (Hunt County) Texas as a member of Company A, 1st Batalion of the Texas Sharpshooters. He was wounded near Boggy Depot in Indian Territory [then part of the Choctaw Nation; now in Atoka Co., Oklahoma] in 1864 which resulted in the removal of his left arm near the shoulder, after which he was sent home. Walter's older brother Caleb served in the same company with him. 
Residence1868  In 1863 he and Caleb moved southwest to Hood County and settled in Granbury [several other family members were already living in this general area].6,7 
Cens-188012 Jun 1880  In 1880 Walter was enumerated living with his older sister Susan (Gardner) McCamant and her husband William in Somervell County, Texas, [Somervell was created from the south part of Hood Co. in 1875]. Walter was helping them on their farm.8 
Marriage1 Mar 1888 He married Caledonia West, daughter of James West and Eliza Jane Sorrey, on 1 Mar 1888 in Somervell County, Texas.9 
  He was 41 and she was 18. Walter's nephew Samuel Gardner McCamant was married to Callie's sister Florence West.10 
Cens-19008 Jun 1900 Walter and Callie lived in Granbury, Hood County at the time of the 1900 census enumeration. Walter worked as a stock grower; Callie reported that she was the mother of 4 children, all of whom were living.11 [this count does not reflect the birth of her eldest son Willie who died before 1900] 
Milit-Pens28 Oct 1909 Walter applied for a Confederate soldier's pension on Oct. 28, 1909. It was approved the following February. He made his application based on "indigent circumstances" stating that his entire personal and real property consisted of 3 hogs worth $20 and a saddle valued at $10. His wife however owned a 3 room house on 1 acre of ground valued at $250, as well as 6 cows, 1 mare and colt and 2 young mules which totaled $180 in value. A statement by Walter's brother Caleb noted that as a result of losing his arm, Walter was not able to do any farm work, but did ride a horse and drive cattle.6 
Cens-191019 Apr 1910  Walter and Callie were enumerated as the heads of separate households in 1910. Walter, still living in Granbury and working as a cattle buyer, stated that he was divorced. His sons Walter B. and Edwin lived with him.12 
22 Apr 1910 However, Callie, living in Walnut Springs in Bosque County reported that she was a widow. She was working as a seamstress and raising her 11 year old son, Toby. Callie reported that she was the mother of 6 children, but that only 4 were living.13 [Callie had given birth to a son who died at or shortly after birth in 1903] 
Cens-Sum1920  Walter was enumerated twice in 1920. On January 14th he was recorded as an employee of Marguerite Johnson [who was actually his sister]. He was working as a ranchman and was described as divorced. Two weeks later, on January 29th, he was enumerated as the head of his own household. This time he was listed as a laborer on a stock farm and was described as widowed. Other members of the household included his son Walter (who had also been enumerated as Margurete Johnson's employee), and his daughter Maggie Ker, her husband and their 5 children. The ages provided for both Walters, senior and junior, differ slightly from one record to the other, suggesting they did not personally provide the data on both census records.14,15 
  In 1920 Callie was again enumerated as the head of her own household in Walnut Springs. The record again lists her as divorced. She was working as a dressmaker and providing a home for her mother Eliza as well as for her son T.C. [Toby] who was a locomotive fireman. In addition, 5 lodgers lived in the home.16 
Death17 Aug 1924 Walter died of Bright's Disease on 17 Aug 1924 in Granbury, Hood County, Texas, at age 77.17,9,6,18 
Burial He was buried at Granbury Cemetery.19 
  Six years after Walter's death Callie applied for and was granted a Texas Confederate widow's pension based on Walter's service. However, in the spring of 1933 the pension bureau began receiving anonymous typed letters stating that Callie was not entitled to a pension because she refused to live with Walter. Details may be found on Callie's page.20 

Research Comment:

Walter's sister Susan (Gardner) McCamant and her husband William built a stone house in the 1870s outside of the community of Glen Rose [Sommervell Co.]. This is where Walter was living at the time of the 1880 census enumeration. The house was sold to a Booker family following Susan's death in 1896 and is still standing. Written local tradition states that 3 young Gardner children were buried near the house, their resting place not recorded until the Booker family placed wood stakes after they purchased the home. If that is accurate, just who were the parents of these children? There seem to be 3 possible scenarios:

1. Walter and Callie: in 1900 Callie's census enumeration stated she was the mother of 4 children, all of whom were living. That does not appear to be an accurate statement. In a letter written by Walter and Callie's son Toby in 1972 to Mr. Robert Gardner of Santa Clara, California, Toby stated that his parent's firstborn child was named Willie. Willie died young and is reflected in Callie's 1910 census entry which states that she was the mother of 6 children with 4 living (an unnamed son was born and died in 1903). It is possible Willie was one of the children buried on the McCamant/Booker property.

2. Walter's brother Caleb and his wife Ollie: the 1900 census states that Ollie was the mother of 9 children, 6 of whom were living. Two of those who were deceased were buried in the cemetery at Acton. Walter and Ollie lived in Granbury, Hood County so it is somewhat unlikely one of their children would be buried away from the others in Somervell County

3. Susan (Gardner) and William McCamant: although the tradition refers to "Gardner children" perhaps they were actually children of Susan Gardner and William McCamant and over the years the story simply became associated with their mother and not their father's surname. Susan died before the 1900 census so we do not know how many children she gave birth to, but we do know the 1870 census lists a daughter Susan who is not listed in 1880. On the other hand, it is also known that the McCamants kept a family cemetery across the street from the house (these children's graves were believed to be next to the house). Unfortunately any record of who was buried in either location is long since gone.

Related Links and Images:

Find Lamar County on the Texas map (also accessible via the Misc. Locations link in the menu bar at the top of any page). Walter's family first settled here when they migrated to Texas. They moved on to Hunt County before 1860.
Walter and Caledonia married in Somervell County which can be located on the Texas map. Later they lived in Hood County where Walter died in 1924.

Family

Caledonia West b. 22 Sep 1869, d. 21 Feb 1940
Children
ChartsDescendants of Jeremiah Gardner and Margaret Edmiston
Last Edited8 Dec 2013

Citations

  1. [S2981] Ellen Eliza (Lansdown) and Thomas Edmondson Gardner Family Bible, The New Testament (Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott & Co., 1859); held in 2012 by the Smyth-Bland Regional Library, Marion, VA. The Bible included a list of children (all in the same script and apparently copied from an earlier record) for Jeremiah Caleb Gardner and Margaret Montgomery Edmondson which contained this entry: Jeremiah Walter Clark Gardner was born Oct. 30, 1846.
  2. [S2981] Ellen Eliza (Lansdown) and Thomas Edmondson Gardner Family Bible, The New Testament (Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott & Co., 1859); held in 2012 by the Smyth-Bland Regional Library, Marion, VA. Birth data for Caleb Boudish Gardner and Elizabeth Graham, as well as for Jeremiah Caleb Gardner and Margaret Montgomery Edmondson was recorded in the 1859 Lansdown-Gardner Bible. A list of children followed under the title: "Children and grandchildren of the above". The list included (surname Gardner): Mary Elizabeth Graham, Thomas Edmondson, Margaret Jane Buchanan, Sallie Lizalier Lucinda Beach, Susan Wells Sanders, Caleb Graham, India Campbell, Hattie Virginia Montgomery and Jeremiah Walter Clark.
  3. [S1655] Question: "What is your age". Answer: "Oct. 30, 1903 will be 57", Walter C. Gardner - Texas Confederate soldier's pension application no. 17837, Texas State Archives, Austin, Texas.
  4. [S465] Jeremiah C. Gardner household, 1850 U.S. cens, Smyth Co., VA, pop. sched., District 60, p. 199 stamped (following), dwelling 573, family 580, viewed online at Ancestry.com, Sept. 2006, image 88 of 169. Enumeration reads: Jeremiah C. Gardner, 50, b. NY, farmer; Margaret, 42; Mary E., 24; Thomas E. 22; Margaret J., 20; Sallie L., 18; Susan W., 16; Caleb G., 14; India C., 11; Virginia, 9; Jeremiah W., 4; all b. VA.
  5. [S1551] Jerima C. Gardner household, 1860 U.S. census, Hunt Co., Texas, pop. sched., Beat 4, p. 315 stamped (next page after), dwelling 354, family 354, viewed online at Ancestry.com, Sept. 2006, image 28 of 35. Enumeration includes: Jerima C. Gardner, 60, b. NY, farmer, owns land val $3,000; Margaret, 58; Suasun [sic], 24; Gray, 21, farmer, owns land val at $80; Virginia, 17, Walter, 14; all b. VA.
  6. [S1655] Walter C. Gardner - Texas Confederate soldier's pension application no. 17837, Texas State Archives, Austin, Texas.
  7. [S1656] Ollie Gardner - Texas Confederate Widow's pension application no. 43538, Texas State Archives, Austin, Texas.
  8. [S1554] G. W. McCamant household, 1880 U.S. cens., Somervell Co., Texas, pop sched., Justice precinct 1, ED 146, page 351 C (stamped), dwelling 127, family 127, viewed online at Ancestry.com, Sept. 2005, image 15 of 25. Enumeration includes: G.W. McCamant, 40, marr, farmer, b. VA, father b. PA, mother b. VA; Susan W., 40, wife, b. VA, father b. NY, mother b. VA; Iola, dau, 17, b. TX, at school, parents b. VA; Margie, dau, 15, b. TX, at school, b. VA; Thomas, 8, son, b. TX, parents b. VA; Walter Gardner, 33, bros-in-law, works on farm, b. VA, father b. NY, mother b. VA.
  9. [S1646] Application dated 1 May 1930 at Bosque Co., Texas, Callie Gardner - Texas Confederate Widow's pension application no. 46481, Texas State Archives, Austin, Texas.
  10. [S1644] Mary Taylor, "Susan Wells Gardner" in History and Families of Somvervell Co., Texas, 1875-2001, p. 310-11.
  11. [S1556] Walter Gardner household, 1900 U.S. cens., Hood Co., Ohio, pop. sched., Granbury, ED 92, sheet 10A (p. 249 stamped), dwelling 179, family 179, viewed online at Ancestry.com, Sept. 2006, image 19 of 29. Enumeration includes: Walter Gardner, 51, b. Oct. 1848, marr 12 yrs, b. VA, parents b. VA, stock grower; Callie, wife, 30, b. Sept. 1869, marr 12 yrs, mother 4 children, all living, b. TX, father b. Georgia, mother b. Mississippi; Eliza M., dau, 10, b. Oct. 1889; Walter D., son, b. 8, May 1892; Edwin J., son, 5, b. Feb. 1895; Toby, son, 1, b. Jan. 1899; all children b. TX, all their father's b. VA, mothers: TX.
  12. [S1557] Walter C. Gardner household, 1910 U.S. cens., Hood Co., Texas, pop. sched., Granbury, ED 34, sheet 7A (p. 176 stamped), dwelling 134, family 140, viewed online at Ancestry.com, Sept. 2006, image 13 of 28. Enumeration includes: Walter C. Gardner, 63, divorced, b. VA, cattle buyer, father b. England, mother b. VA, owns home, not a farm; Walter B., son 17, laborer, odd jobs; Edwin, son, 15; both b. TX, father b. VA, mother b. TX.
  13. [S1558] Callie Gardner household, 1910 U.S. cens., Bosque Co., Texas, pop. sched., Walnut Springs, ED 6, sheet 6A (p. 65 stamped), dwelling 110, family 115, viewed online at Ancestry.com, Sept. 2006, image 11 of 28. Enumeration includes: Callie Gardner, 40, b. TX, wid, mother of 6 children, 4 living, seamstress; Toby, son, 11, b. TX; Eliza J. West, mother, 79, wid, b. Mississippi, mother of 9 children, 5 living.
  14. [S1647] Margurete Johnson household, 1920 U.S. cens., Hood Co., Texas, pop. sched., Justice Precint 6, ED 30, sheet 3B, dwelling 64, family 65, viewed online at Ancestry.com, Jan. 2006, image 6 of 12. Enumeration includes: Margurete Johnson, 78, Wid, b. VA, owns home, is mortgaged; Walter C. Gardner, employee, 74, Div, b. VA, Ranchman; Walter, employee, 25, sgl, b. TX, laborer on ranch; resid is farm.
  15. [S1647] Walter C. Gardner household, 1920 U.S. cens., Hood Co., Texas, pop. sched., Granbury, ED 24, sheet 10B, dwelling 224, family 238, viewed online at Ancestry.com, Jan. 2006, image 20 of 28. Enumeration includes: Walter C. Gardner, 73, Wd, b. VA, laborer on stock farm; Walter D., son, 27, sgl, b. TX, farmer; Maggie Ker, dau, 29, b. TX; Sidney Ker, son-in-law, 37, b. TX, laborer, oil __; resid. is a farm; enumeration continues on top of page 203 (stamped) which was overwritten as 11A and filmed PRIOR to 10B (match dwelling and family numbers): Jack Ker, grandson, 9; Marcus, grandson, 8; Lucille, granddaughter, 5; Edna Earl, granddaughter, 3 2/12; Lorraine, granddaughter, 11/12; all children b. TX.
  16. [S1648] Callie Gardner household, 1920 U.S. cens., Bosque Co., Texas, pop. sched., Walnut Springs, ED 40, sheet 3B, dwelling 59, family 62, viewed online at Ancestry.com, Jan. 2007, image 6 of 28. Enumeration includes: Callie Gardner, 49, Div, b. TX, dressmaker, T.C., son, 20, sgl, b. TX, locomotive fireman; Eliza J. West, mother, 88, Wid, b. Mississippi; also 5 lodgers; resid on 4th Street.
  17. [S2250] "Texas State Death Certificates", database with digital images, FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org : downloaded May 2012). W.C. Gardner certificate #28020/27010; family information provided by W.D. Gardner.
  18. [S16] At least 3 (as of Jan. 2007) of Walter's cousins, all descendants of Jane (Beattie) Buchanan Ryburn, also died of Bright's Disease which would describe the conditions now known as acute or chronic nephritis (kidney disease).
  19. [S1640] Mary Kate Durham, Granbury Cemetery Records, p. 37. W.C. Gardner [no dates], C. A 1 Tex SS CSA (lot 45).
  20. [S1646] Callie Gardner - Texas Confederate Widow's pension application no. 46481, Texas State Archives, Austin, Texas.
  21. [S2945] Robert Gardner research, 2881 Pruneridge Ave., Santa Clara, California, 95051, email to: e-mail address ; Mr. Gardner cites a letter from Toby Gardner dated 6 Jan. 1972 from Cleburne, Texas in which Mr. Gardner stated that his father had 5 sons and a daughter. The letter states that Willie was the first born.
  22. [S2250] "Texas State Death Certificates", database with digital images, FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org : downloaded May 2012). Mrs. Maggie Elizabeth Ker certificate #83100; family information provided by Mrs. Joseph J. Johnson.
  23. [S2250] "Texas State Death Certificates", database with digital images, FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org : downloaded May 2012). Walter Dennis Gardner certificate #10507; family information provided by Mrs. W.D. Gardner.
  24. [S1663] "Hood County [TX] Register of Births, 1903-1928", database, Hood County [Texas] (http://www.granburydepot.org/home/HCGShomepage.htm : viewed Jan. 2007), child's name not provided; parents listed as Walter Gardner and Callie (West) Gardner (cert # 150).