The Bucher/Booker Family, 1686-1990: Chapter III, Part 2

The James Baxter Booker Family

of Moultrie Co., Illinois

The following information was sent to me from Mabel M. Booker of Sullivan, Moultrie Co., Illinois. She received some of her information from her cousin, Dorothy Booker Kious, daughter of Samuel Arthur Booker. As mentioned earlier in this chapter, Mrs. Kious has James Baxter Booker’s family Bible. The entries in the Bible were first made in 1822. James B. Booker lists his birthplace as Tennessee on the 1850 Census of Sullivan Co., Indiana. James is not on the 1855 Census of Illinois, but since his son, John Davis Booker, was married in Moultrie Co., Illinois in September of 1855, I believe that James B. Booker and family moved to Moultrie County just after the 1855 Census. On the 1860 Census of Moultrie Co., Illinois, James B. Booker lists his birthplace as Kentucky. Interestingly, James spells his name Bucker on the 1860 Census. The Shelby County, Illinois History, published in 1881, in the list of patrons, T. J. Booker (Thomas Jefferson Booker – son of James B. Booker) is found, living in Lovington, Illinois, Section 33 (Moultrie Co.), farmer and house builder, born in Sullivan Co., Indiana, and settled in Shelby county in 1857.

From the Western Sun, dated June 14, 1834 in Sullivan Co., Indiana:

“At a numerous and respectable meeting held in the Academy…for the purpose to celebrate the ensuing Nation anniversary….Resolved that a committee of fourteen persons….The committee heretofore appointing Capt. H. Eaton’s Company of Cavalry consisting…and the Committee heretofore appointed on the part of Capt. McConnell’s Rifle Company, voz: Messers. Price, Davidson, and Booker, all being present, retired with the committee…

Because of the relationship between the Davidsons and the Bookers, the Booker referred to here is most likely James B. Booker. Notice in Chapter III – Part 1, all of James B. Booker’s children were born in Sullivan Co., Indiana except for Mary and George D. Booker who were born in Jefferson Co., Kentucky. I can’t but wonder about the nature of James trip back to Kentucky; most likely to visit relatives there. Almeda Jane, James and Elizabeth’s first child, is found on the 1880 Census of Moultrie Co., Illinois living with her brother, John D. Booker. She is listed as Alminda J. Howard, sister of head of household.

Nancy Ann, James and Elizabeth Booker’s second daughter, married John Wesley Ingle in 1845 in Sullivan Co., Indiana. John was Nancy’s first cousin, the son of Catherine M. Booker and John Ingle. Nancy and John’s family is listed on the 1870 Census of Moultrie Co., Illinois. (See descendants in Chapter III – Part 1.)

The John Davis Booker and Susannah Hastings Family

John Davis Booker, son James B. and Elizabeth Booker, married Susannah Hastings on 4 September 1855 in Moultrie Co., Illinois. Susannah was born 27 February 1838 in Pickaway Co., Ohio, and came to Illinois in 1847. John D. Booker and Susannah Hastings had nine children:

All of the above family, with the exception of John Wesley Booker, are buried in Keller Cemetery, south of Lovington, Illinois. One of the homes where the family lived was immediately west of Keller Cemetery. In the 1940’s the log cabin was still standing. The then owner of the farm promised Charles Dexter Booker it would be left there as long as he, Charles, lived, since it was his birthplace. It was not until several years later (after Charles’s death) that it was torn down.

Charles Dexter Booker

John Davis Booker’s eldest son, Charles Dexter Booker, married Laura Boyd at the bride’s home near Gays, Moultrie Co., Illinois. Laura was born 7 March 1861 in Illinois, the daughter of Thomas M. Boyd and Catherine Cox. Charles and Laura had eight children:

At the time of Charles Dexter Booker’s death in 1944, his surviving children were living in the following locations: Elsie Booker and Harry Booker in Decatur, Illinois; Flossie Turner in Allenville, Illinois; Edith Henninger in Waterloo, Iowa; and Charles Virgil Booker in Sullivan, Illinois. Upon his death Charles Dexter Booker had seventeen grandchildren. Flossie Ellen Booker, daughter of Charles Dexter Booker and Laura Boyd, married John Allen Turner 24 February 1909. John Allen Turner, son of William Turner, was born 14 January 1886, and died of leukemia on 31 December 1950 in Moultrie Co., Illinois. They had three children:

Joseph Harry Booker, son of Charles Dexter Booker and Laura Boyd, married twice; first to Mary Virginia Sullivan in Sullivan, Illinois on 17 December 1916, and later to Mae Kathryn Heitman in 1947 in Sullivan (Mae Kathryn died in Decatur on 12 September 1983). From his first marriage, Harry and Mary had two children and one adopted daughter:

There were no children by Harry’s second marriage. Joseph Harry Booker was buried in the Fairlawn Cemetery in Decatur, Illinois. At the time of his death, he left nine grandchildren, 27 g-grandchildren, and 3 g-g-grandchildren.

Joseph Allen Booker, Sr., son of Joseph Harry Booker, married Noma Jones in Decatur in 1942. Noma was born 22 August 1924. Joseph Allen and Noma had five children:

At the time of Donald E. Booker’s death in 1985, Joseph Allen Booker’s children were living in the following cities:

Susan Catherine Booker, daughter of Charles Dexter Booker and Laura Boyd, married Henry Vernon Loy on 20 January 1916. Susan and Vernon had three children:

Henry Vernon Loy disappeared in 1920 or 1921. He simply left for work one day (just before Roy was born), and no one ever saw him again. Susan Catherine was a member of the First Christian Church in Sullivan, Illinois, and was buried in Greenhill Cemetery. Veda Laura Roy and Dale Franklin Murphy had one child:

Veda and Dale divorced, and Veda remarried to Edward Michael Poplawski on 17 November 1967 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. There are no children by Veda’s second marriage.

Roy Vernon Loy married Mildred Draheim Eaton on 12 September 1947.

This was Mildred’s second marriage. Roy was a aviation mechanic in the U.S. Navy during WWII, serving in the Pacific. Roy died of a heart attack in 1978. He and Mildred had two children:

Myrtle Edith Booker, daughter of Charles Dexter Booker and Laura Boyd, married Roy William Isaac Phillip Henninger on 31 March 1917 in Sullivan, Illinois. Roy, born on 20 May 1893 in Jasper City, Indiana, was the son of Andrew Henninger and Maggie Moad. Myrtle and Roy had four children:

At the time of her death, Myrtle was survived by her two sons, Charles W. Henninger and William R. Henninger, two daughters, Mrs. Marie Stone, and Mrs. Mauguerite Long of Ft. Atkinson, Wisconsin. Also, survived were 17 grandchildren, and 18 great-grandchildren. Her husband Roy had died in 1964, and both she and Roy were buried in the Garden of Memories at Ft. Atkinson.

Dorothy Marie Henninger married Loren Brewter Stone (nicknamed Boot) on 27 July 1934. She and Loren had six children:

Marguerite Henninger married Merle Long on 16 August 1936. Marguerite and Merle had two children:

Charles Warren Henninger married Darlene ?, and had two children:

William Roy Henninger married Mary ?, and had four children:

Both Charles Warren Henninger and William Roy Henninger, Sr. served in the military forces during WWII.

Charles Virgil Booker, the youngest child of Charles Dexter Booker and Laura Boyd, married Stella May Hughes on 28 December 1919 in Waterloo, Iowa. There children are as follows:

At the time of his death in 1980, Charles Virgil Booker was survived by his three sons, Virgil E. Booker of Sullivan, Illinois, John D. Booker of Lovington, Illinois, and George Roger Booker of Midwest City, Oklahoma, and daughter, Mabel M. Booker of Sullivan, Illinois. Charles Virgil Booker was buried in Greenhill Cemetery, in Moultrie County. Stella M. Hughes Booker, his wife, lived with her daughter, Mable, in Sullivan, Illinois until her death 11 June 1988. Stella was buried in the Greenhill Cemetery in Sullivan, Illinois.

Harriet Ellen Booker and Amos A. Ross

Harriet Ellen Booker, daughter of John Davis Booker and Susanna Hastings, married Amos A. Ross in 1883 or 84. Amos died 7 March 1938 in Decatur, Illinois. Their children were:

The Amos A. Ross and Harriet Ellen Booker Family lived mostly in Decatur, Illinois.

John Wesley Booker

John Wesley Booker, son of John Davis Booker and Susannah Hastings, married twice. First, to Effie Jane Jenkins on 8 September 1886, and later to Effie May Downey on 4 July 1891. From his first marriage, John Wesley Booker had two children:

From John Wesley Booker’s second marriage to Effie May Downey, there are ten known children:

On the 1900 Census of Moultrie Co., Illinois, John and Effie May (born August 1878) are found living in Jonathan Creek Township. Lewis Harvey Booker, son of John Wesley Booker and Effie Jane Jenkins, married twice – first to May Butts on 13 November 1907. May died, and Lewis remarried to Fannie E. Brown on 21 November 1909. Lewis’s only children were by his second marriage:

Myrtie Ester Booker, John Wesley Booker’s second child from his first marriage, married Charles L. Bovee on 31 October 1914. Myrtie’s only child, Dolores Geneva Booker, born 21 November 1906, took her step-father’s name (Bovee). Dolores married Virgil E. Fitch on 24 November 1928, and from this marriage four children were born:

William Loral Booker, first child of John Wesley and Effie May Downey, married Jennie Dominique on 23 February 1915. Jennie died on 30 March 1918, and William remarried to Freida Robertson on 14 June 1919. There was one child from William’s first marriage:

Jesse Oral Booker, son John Wesley Booker and Effie May Downey, had two marriages. His first to Amber Pifer ended in divorce, and he remarried to Ethel Hill on 3 November 1920. Jesse and Ethel had four children:

Florence Catherine Booker, daughter of John Wesley Booker and Effie May Downey, married Rollie Lee on 4 June 1914. Florence and Rollie had seven children, and at the time of Florence’s death, she had 11 grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren (two grandchildren had preceded her in death). Here are the Lee children:

Bessie Ethel Booker, daughter of John Wesley Booker and Effie May Downey, married 29 November 1916 to John Klocke (died 14 November 1964). Bessie and John had five children:

John Wesley Booker, Jr., son of John Wesley Booker, Sr. and Effie May Downey, married Etta Smith in August of 1926. From this marriage there were five children:

Clarence Elva Booker, next child of John Wesley Booker and Effie May Downey, married twice; first to Ola Dugan in 1925 or 1926, and then to Elsie Oliver on 16 February 1939. Clarence had two children by his first wife:

Leona Mabel Booker, John Wesley Booker’s next child, married Burdette Rawson Zimmer on 11 October 1924. Leona and Burdette had seven children:

Aca Otis Booker, John Wesley Booker’s next child, married three times; first to Lucille Nestor on 9 April 1927, then to Casimira Wojtzuk in April of 1934, and lastly to Ruby Radford on 23 March 1942. There were no children by any marriages.

Cecile Opal Booker, John Wesley Booker’s next child, married William A. Barnes on 24 October 1929. Cecile and William had one adopted child. Her name is Bonnie Louise Barnes. Finally, John Wesley Booker’s last child was Lena Pearl Booker. At this time I have no information on her.

William Ellery Booker, son of John Davis and Susannah Hastings, married Laura Bell Coward on 4 July 1889 in Lovington, Illinois. The older members of the family could remember that William and Laura had “an adopted boy” named Aubrey, but there is no record on him. There is a picture of him at about age eight, but he may not have lived far past that. According to Mabel M. Booker, Laura Bell was a smallish, thin woman. After William died in 1905, Laura remarried to Emery Newlan, but when she died in 1949, she was buried next to her first husband, William Ellery Booker, in the Keller Cemetery south of Lovington.

The Thomas Jefferson Booker and Charlotte Ann Bell Family

Third son of James Baxter Booker and Elizabeth Davidson, was Thomas Jefferson Booker. Thomas married Charlotte Ann Bell in Lovington, Illinois on 10 April 1856. They had twelve children:

Thomas Albert Booker

Thomas Albert Booker (Bert) was married twice. His first wife’s name was Laura A. Huffman. Thomas and Laura were married on 21 March 1880. Before her death on 25 May 1886, Thomas and Laura had two children:

Thomas then married Mrs. Mary Catherine Browning (maiden name Wren), who already had four children of her own: Bertha, Etta, Frank and Olive Browning. Then Thomas and “Mrs. Browning” had three children of their own:

Ethel Charlotte Booker, from Thomas A. Booker’s first marriage, married Don Ed Kingery. Ethel and Don had the following children:

Florry Bell Booker

Florry Bell Booker, fourth child of Thomas Jefferson Booker, was a teacher. She married Frank Kanitz, and she and Frank had four children:

William Lowe Booker

William Lowe Booker, son of Thomas Jefferson Booker and Charlotte Ann Bell, married Dora Wheeler on 8 September 1889 in Lovington, Illinois. Born on 5 October 1871, Dora was the daughter of Benjamin and Dianna Wheeler. Found on the 1900 Census in Lovington Twp. in Moultrie Co., and the 1910 Census in Sullivan, Moultrie Co. (listed under Leows Booker), William and Dora M. (b. October 1872) are listed with seven children:

Bessie Mildred Booker married George E. Pierce in 1911. Bessie and George had five children all of whom died in infancy. Bessie is buried in the Monticello, Illinois Cemetery. Bessie and George’s children were:

Jessie Merle Booker married John Frederick Weaver who was born in Nebraska in 1888. John died 20 August 1977 in Sullivan, Illinois. Jessie and John had ten children:

Claudia Guy Booker, third child of William Lowe Booker and Dora Mae Wheeler, married Coral Wallace on 20 November 1920 in Sullivan, Illinois by Rev. Hopper of the First Christian Church. Coral, born 15 February 1899 in Prairie Home, Illinois, was the daughter of James Edward Wallace and Elizabeth Cazier. By occupation, Guy was a Mechanic and Car Salesman. Guy died at St. Mary’s Hospital in Decatur of a heart attack in 1968. He was buried in the Greenhill Cemetery in Sullivan, Illinois. Guy and Coral had nine children:

Willa Berniece Booker married Norris Alexander Mathey on 3 December 1942. Willa and Norris have two children:

Robert Dean Booker married Alice J. Reider on 13 May 1949. Alice is the daughter of Clyde Reider. Robert and Alice have six children:

Betty Jane Booker married twice; the first time in December 1945 to Frantz Purdue. Betty and Frantz had one child: Dennis Purdue. Betty’s second marriage was to Evert Purdue.

Richard Eugene Booker married Dorothy Hollenbeck (Sadie) on 29 August 1952. Richard and Dorothy have three children:

Dorothy Jean Booker married Don Gene Warren, and she and Don have four children:

William Lowe Booker, son of Claudia Guy Booker and Coral Wallace, married Peggy McDaniel on 13 September 1952 in the bride’s home. Peggy was born in Moultrie County on 5 June 1934. William and Peggy have five children:

Joan Elouise Booker married twice. From her first marriage to Richard Turrentine on 12 June 1954, she and Richard had two children:

Joan E. Booker Turrentine remarried to Delbert Ary, and from this marriage one child was born:

At this time I have no further information on Wallace Duane Booker.

Judith Kay Booker married Harold Rich. She and Harold had three children:

William Frederick Booker, son of William Lowe Booker and Dora M. Wheeler, married Mabel Ruth Beitz 3 October 1923 in Monticello, Illinois. Mabel died 11 July 1979 in Decatur, but both are buried in Moultrie County in the Greenhill Cemetery. They had no children.

Gilbert Lowe Booker, also son of William Lowe Booker and Dora M. Wheeler, married Ruby Fultz, daughter of Jewel and Minnie Burnett Fultz. Ruby was born 19 July 1905, and died 2 December 1964 in Sullivan, Illinois. Gilbert and Ruby had five children:

At the time of Gilbert L. Booker’s death, there were eleven grandchildren. Both Gilbert and Ruby are buried in the Greenhill Cemetery.

Dale Robert Booker, son of William Lowe Booker and Dora Mae Wheeler, married Nellie Winchester, 5 September 1939 in St. Charles, Missouri. Dale and Nellie had one daughter, Joan Booker, who married a Robertson of Decatur, Illinois. At the time of his death, Dale had one grandchild. Dale was a member of the First United Methodist Church in Sullivan. His wife survives him. Dale was buried in the Greenhill Cemetery.

Samuel Arthur Booker

Samuel Arthur Booker, son of Thomas Jefferson Booker and Charlotte Ann Bell, married Odessa Pearl Everett (b. 7 April 1886) in 1905 in Lovington, Illinois. Samuel and Pearl had three children:

Samuel died in 1943, and Pearl died 16 May 1973 in Decatur, Illinois. Both Samuel and Pearl are buried in the Keller Cemetery in Moultrie County. At the time of Pearl’s death in 1973, she and Samuel had four grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren.

The James Madison Booker Family

The next son of James Baxter Booker and Elizabeth Davidson, was James Madison Booker who according to Florence Booker Lee, had fifteen sons and three daughters in two marriages. James and his first wife, Elizabeth, are on the 1860 Moultrie Co., Illinois Census (Booker spelled Bucker). Along with James and Elizabeth are son, William W. Bucker, and an un-named baby son, age 3 months (John W. Booker). Elizabeth, died in 1864, and James remarried to Martha J. ? (born in NJ) and moved to Shelby Co., Illinois, Mowequa Twp., prior to the 1870 Census. Using the 1880 and 1900 Census’, most of James Madison Booker’s children are listed:

All children were born in Illinois, the first two in Moultrie Co., the latter in Shelby County. On the 1880 Census James M. Booker states his father was from Pennsylvania. In the I.O.O.F. Cemetery at Moweaqua, Shelby Co., Illinois, James M. Booker and Martha J. are found. James’s inscription reads, “b. July 17, 1835, d. Sept. 15, 1901.” Martha’s reads, “b. May 2, 1849, d. Oct. 13, 1900.”

John W. Booker, son of James M. Booker and first wife, Elizabeth, married in 1893 to Amelia Anderson. On the 1900 Census of Decatur, Macon Co., Illinois, the following John W. Booker family is found living on 1119 E. William St.:

On the 1910 Census of Macon Co., Illinois, I found in John W. Booker’s household one other brother, Richard Booker, age 14.

The Richard Davidson Booker Family

Richard Davidson Booker, next child of James B. Booker and wife Elizabeth, married twice. First he married Harriet W. Hastings of Lovington, Illinois on 22 August 1859. She died 18 December 1862, and Richard remarried to Sarah E. Reed in Lovington, Illinois on 11 November 1863. From the 1860 Census we find one daughter from Richard’s first marriage, Melissa Booker, age 1. Two other children by Richard D. Booker’s first marriage are both buried in the Kellar Cemetery in Lovington, IL.

Also, in the Kellar Cemetery, is one of Richard D. Booker and Sarah E. Reed’s children:

On the 1870 Census of Moultrie County, Richard Booker, age 32, born in Indiana is enumerated with his wife Sarah E., age 28, also born in Indiana, and the following Booker children:

The Bucher/Booker Family, 1686-1990 © 1990 Charles Lee Booker Jr.