I’ve been working on our lines for roughly 45 years. My father’s side has been here in SW Mississippi since 1797. Mom is German, but i have a good bit of information on her lines, along with pictures that wasn't destroyed in WW2.
I guess being so involved in it has been a bonus, as several of the family has given me all sorts of originals to include original land grant deeds from the 1830s, photos, etc. Last year i found a “new” cousin. She has some interest in the family, but i sent her photos, bible records, etc etc. i was passing thru Atlanta and stopped to meet her face to face. We talked a while, then she produced a bag with an item in it for me to look at. It was the pistol our 3rd great grandfather brought home from the Civil War. It went to out 2x great grandfather, then down thru his oldest’s daughter’s line (her line) to her. Her (the cousin i met) father was career Air Force, and her mother is Japanese. So the pistol has been around the world with him, to include being stationed in Japan, England, and 2 tours in Vietnam. She said it had to go with him to Vietnam, as they were not allowed to keep it since they lived off post.
After coping down the pistol’s story and several pictures she asked me if i had a safe place at home to keep guns. Told her yes, i have 2 fireproof gun safes. She said “Good, now take it home to Mississippi, where it belongs.” As far as we know, it left here around 1910 when her line moved for work and it is the first time it has been “home” since then.
Pistol is a Remington New Model Army made in April 1863, holster is Confederate. Somewhere Micajah Wilkinson took it off a Union soldier, as he was Confederate cavalry by that time.
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