Tag Archives: Andrew Bandy

Bandy, Civil War Research

Peace Democrat in the Family & the Civil War

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The Peace Democrats, a splinter group of the traditional Democratic Party,  were a Civil War era political party that existed mostly in the northern states.

Although “Peace Democrats” sounds like a positive force and they opposed the Civil War, wanting the South to rejoin the Union, Republicans gave them the name by which they are remembered – Copperheads! Yes, just like the poisonous snake.

Harper’s Weekly, 1863
Source: Library of Congress

Copperheads were mostly found in the area north of the Ohio River and that is exactly where my husband’s 3X great grandfather, Andrew Bandy, lived.

Andrew Bandy was clearly and publicly identified as a Copperhead.

The Ironton Register, on 17 November 1864, published a list of those Symmes Township residents who voted in the presidential election AND noted whether they voted Republican or Copperhead.

Voters supported Abraham Lincoln in a ratio of 2 to 1. Andrew Bandy’s family, both sons and relatives by marriage, were split along the same 2:1 ratio.

The Republican voters were Allen Cauley, A.J. Cauley, William Hobble, Allen Wiseman, John Cauley, George Wiseman and George Bandy – brother of Andrew.

Copperhead voters included Norris Yates, Samuel Littlejohn, Jackson Bandy (Andrew’s son) and Andrew Bandy himself.

Why were the Peace Democrats given the name of Copperheads? Apparently, it was felt that they encouraged young men to either avoid conscription into the army or to desert if already serving. It was also felt that they lowered the morale of the people. Therefore, they deserved to be named after a venomous snake.

Although this political party is described as being made up of a faction of northerners opposed to the Civil War, a closer look at census records seems to paint a different picture.

Andrew Bandy was a Virginian, born and bred. The Bandys had been in Virginia for almost a century by the time Andrew was born c1785. I have no idea about Andrew’s beliefs regarding slavery. He did not own any enslaved people in Virginia, but whether that was due to his beliefs or the economic reality of the dollar cost may not ever be known. It is possible that he joined the Copperheads simply to stand up for a solution to save his ancestral home.

The Peace Democrats, aka Copperheads, ended up being but a blip on the history screen. When the Civil War ended, support for the party dissipated and the Copperheads were no more.

Bandy, Wooldridge

Andrew Bandy & Rebecca Wooldridge, VA & OH

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Andrew Bandy and Rebecca Wooldridge are an interesting couple for two reasons. First, highly unusual in my husband’s southern lines, the Bandys left Botetourt County, Virginia and ended up in Ohio! Everybody else from Virginia mostly went on to Kentucky and/or Tennessee before eventually settling in Missouri or Illinois. Nobody went to Ohio. They did live on the southern border in Lawrence County, so maybe they got lost along the way and instead of Kentucky settled on the other side of the state line. I don’t know, but it was unusual.

Second, Rebecca was actually indicted in the 1840s in Lawrence County. More on that in a bit.

Andrew Bandy was born about 1784, probably in Botetourt County, Virginia to John and Lucy Bandy. It is thought that Lucy’s maiden name was Christian, but I have found no proof (or disproof) of that. No marriage record has been found, but it is certain that Andrew’s wife was Rebecca Wooldridge, as they were named on a marriage record of their daughter, Mary. By the time Mary got around to her fourth marriage, parents’ names were required.

GeoFoutsMarr
George Fouts Marriage

MaryBandyMarrCrop

The clerk’s spelling wasn’t very good and his handwriting was even worse, but the parents of Mary “Bandey” were clearly Andrew “Bandey” and not so clearly “Rebecca Woolrigee,” which is close enough to “Wooldridge” for me.

As a young man, Andrew saw service in the War of 1812, serving in the 5th Regiment Virginia Militia, also known as McDowell’s Company. There is an indexed record of his service found online, but no details about battles or regimental movements have been found.

The War of 1812 ended in 1815, which is just about the time that Andrew and Rebecca married. By 1820, Andrew and Rebecca, along with two young sons, were at home in Roanoke, Botetourt County.

This census taker wasn’t much better at details than the county clerk who recorded Mary’s fourth marriage in Illinois because we have Andrew’s widowed mother, Lucy, living next door with several males in the family, but NO females recorded. Andrew’s age, likewise, is off, as his age is ticked as 16-26 when he was actually 36. Wife Rebecca was at home, along with their sons, George, who was born in 1816 and Samuel Coleman Bandy, born in 1818. (Richard Bandy, also a neighbor of Lucy’s, was Andrew’s cousin.)

By 1830, the family had left Virginia for Lawrence County, Ohio, where they settled in Symmes Township.

Two daughters had joined the family by that time, Martha and Mary. The exact date that the Bandys removed there is not known, but it was likely in the late 1820s, with Martha born in Virginia in 1825 and Mary, who was born about 1828, born either in Virginia or Ohio. The first land record found for Andrew is dated 1837, but it is clear from the census record that he was in Ohio by 1830.

I mentioned that Rebecca had been indicted at one point. While reading the county court minutes, I came across this entry:

Wednesday Morning October 9th 1844 Third Day of the Term
The Court (   ) adjournment present the same Judges as yesterday

The State of Ohio
No. 1  Indict for Burglary
Rebecca Bandy

This day came Samuel M. Browning who prosecutes on behalf of
The State and the said defendant for her own proper person and (there from?) came a Jury to wit Abraham Smith, Alonzo Tolleday, Robert Hall, James Ralston, ____ of the regular  _____ and JamesBeard, Isaiah Crawford, Abraham (Miller?)John Massie, Peter Jones, Samuel Watters, Sylvester M Cown, Peter W. (    )Caleb Justice (toles?) men who being duly elected tried (   ) the truth to check

The issue joined upon their oaths do say (  ) the jury finds the defendant Not guilty as charged in the indictment as charged against her. It is therefore considered that the said defendant go hence thereof without (delay?).

The State of Ohio
No. 2 Indictment Burglary
Rebecca Bandy

This day came Samuel M. Browning who prosecutes on behalf of
The State and on his suggestion and the court concurring therein directs that a nolle prosequi be entered upon the indictment herein and the said defendant Rebecca Bandy be discharged and go hence thereof without (delay?).

Apparently, Rebecca was indicted for burglary, defined as “entry into a building illegally with intent to commit a crime, especially theft.”  However, as much as I would love to know the details, nothing further has been found regarding the accusation and she was not prosecuted.

I can’t help but wonder since daughter Mary Bandy’s marriage to Isaac Sturgell ended badly and they had married on 27 June 1844 if their marriage had anything to do with Rebecca being charged with burglary and then not prosecuted.

During the Civil War, the Bandys were divided in their loyalties, as some of the family seemed to adopt Northern attitudes, voting for Abraham Lincoln in 1864. Andrew Bandy stayed true to his Virginian roots and appeared on a list of Symmes Township “Copperheads” (Northerners who sympathized with the South) who voted against Lincoln in the 17 November 1864 issue of The Ironton Register newspaper.  His son, Jackson, was on the same list. Another son, George, appears on the list of those voting for Lincoln. With George Bandy on that list were several of his relatives by marriage.

Andrew Bandy died c1867, probably in Lawrence County. Rebecca survived him by 12 years, passing away on 28 March 1879, also in Lawrence County, Ohio.

RebeccaBandyDeath

Although her first name was omitted on this record, there is no doubt that this is Rebecca. She is the only female Bandy who was 78 years old.

Children:

  1. George, reportedly born 25 December 1816, Botetourt County, Virginia; said to be twin of Samuel Coleman; died after 1880; married Elizabeth Caulley, 28 September 1838, Lawrence County, Ohio. Elizabeth was born 25 February 1815 and died 20 November 1899, probably in Lawence County. Elizabeth is buried in Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church cememtery, but George is not. Between the 1870 and 1880 censuses, George and Elizabeth divorced. By 1880, 62 year old George had a 26 year old wife, Emma. More on this family in a future post.
  2. Samuel Coleman, reportedly born 25 December 1818, Botetourt County, Virginia; said to be twin of George; died 2 December 1893, Peoria County, Illinois; married Sidney Nelson, 15 March 1841, Lawrence County, Ohio. Sidney was born c1810, Virginia and died 13 October 1887, Peoria County, Illinois. She was the widow of William Hobble when they married. Samuel, or Coleman as he was sometimes known, was named for his maternal grandfather.
  3. Martha, born 22 June 1825, probably Botetourt County, Virginia; died 6 November 1895, Lyon County, Kansas; married Michael Hobble, 15 Mary 1841, Lawrence County, Ohio. Michael was born about 1814, Virginia and died 9 June 1876, Peoria County, Illinois.
  4. Mary, born c1828, Botetourt County, Virginia or Lawrence County, Ohio; died after 7 March 1889, the date of her fourth marriage, probably in Peoria County, Illinois; married 1) Isaac Sturgell, 27 June 1844, Lawrence County, Ohio 2) William Wade, 12 January 1869, Tazewell County, Illinois 3) Benjamin Cookman, 28 July 1877, Peoria County, Illinois and 4) George Jacob Fouts, 7 March 1889, Peoria County, Illinois. She left or divorced both Isaac and William Wade. Ben Cookman died of lupus and George Fouts died in 26 November 1894 in Fulton County, Illinois. His obituary made no mention of whether or not he was married at that time.
  5. Nancy, born c1830, probably Lawrence County, Ohio; died after 1880, possibly in Reynold County, Missouri; married Isaac Yates, 7 May 1844, Lawrence County, Ohio. Isaac was born c1825 and died after 1880. There is a widow Nancy Yates, deceased husband Isaac Yates, filing for a Civil War pension in Ohio in July 1890. This might be her.
  6. Jane, born c1831, Lawrence County, Ohio; died after 1880; married Lewis B. Campbell, 6 August 1851, Lawrence County, Ohio. He was born c1828; died after 1870, probably Lawrence County, Ohio.
  7. Elizabeth, born c1833, Lawrence County, Ohio; died after 1870, possibly Jackson County, Ohio; married George Kimble, 18 April 1852, Lawrence County, Ohio. He was born c1825; died after 1870. Ohio birth records show they are the parents of, among other children,  Lizzie, born 2 September 1877 in Lawrence County, Ohio, but none in this family can be found in 1880.
  8. Andrew Jackson, born c1835, Lawrence County, Ohio; died after 1880; married Mary P. Queen, c1868. If he is the Jackson Bandy who died in 1910 in Pike County, Ohio, then his age at death is way off – by about 14 years. Mary was born c1851 so perhaps Andrew’s informant guessed that he was a couple of years older than her.
  9. Rebecca, born c1838, Lawrence County, Ohio; died after 1850; no further record.
  10. William H., born c1839, Lawrence County, Ohio; died before 1890, probably Elliott County, Kentucky; married Sarah E. Howard, 18 May 1866, Gallia County, Ohio
  11. Lucinda, born 4 March 1842, Lawrence County, Ohio; died 8 May 1920, Peoria County, Illinois; married Hiram R. Wolgamott, 9 August 1861, Peoria County, Illinois. He was born c1840; died 1921.

As Andrew and Rebecca’s children reached adulthood, married and had their own families, they left Lawrence County for new lives.

 

 

Bandy

1844 Indictment of Rebecca Wooldridge Bandy for Burglary

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Since I have featured the criminal records of several other ancestors this month, I thought I would end April with one more discovery.

Andrew Bandy and wife, Rebecca Wooldridge, emigrated from Botetourt County, Virginia to Lawrence County, Ohio between 1825 and 1830. They were the parents of my husband’s 2x great grandmother, Mary Bandy, who married black sheep Isaac Sturgell.

While researching court records of Lawrence County for Sturgells, I checked for Bandys at the same time. I was quite amazed to come across this one page record in the October 1844 term of the  Court of Common Pleas recording the indictment of Rebecca Bandy for burglary:

The image quality isn’t very good and this film hasn’t been digitized. I think this will go on my “to do” list for Salt Lake City, but I was able to transcribe a lot of it:

Wednesday Morning October 9th 1844 Third Day of the Term
The Court ( ) adjournment present the same Judges as yesterday

The State of Ohio
vs.                                                   No. 1 Indict for Burglary
Rebecca Bandy

This day came Samuel M. Browning who prosecutes on behalf of
The State and the said defendant for her own proper person and (there from?) came a Jury to wit Abraham Smith, Alonzo Tolleday, Robert Hall, James Ralston, ____ of the regular _____ and James Beard, Isaiah Crawford, Abraham (Miller?) John Massie, Peter Jones, Samuel Watters, Sylvester M Cown, Peter W. ( ) Caleb Justice (toles?) men who being duly elected tried ( ) the truth to check
the issue joined upon their oaths do say ( ) the jury finds the defendant not guilty as charged in the indictment as charged against her. It is therefore considered that the said defendant go hence thereof without (delay?)

The State of Ohio
vs.                                                  No. 2 Indictment Burglary
Rebecca Bandy

This day came Samuel M. Browning who prosecutes on behalf of
The State and on his suggestion and the court concurring therein directs that a nolle prosequi be entered upon the indictment herein and the said defendant Rebecca Bandy be discharged and go hence thereof without (delay?)

Nowhere have I found any evidence indicating what she was accused of burglarizing.