Thomas Jefferson Bass - My Great Grandfather Thomas Jefferson Bass of Texas Was Never Married to Minerva Georgia Moore Busby of Arkansas!

Started by kay Bass on Wednesday, April 13, 2022
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Minerva Georgia Moore Busby of Arkansas was added as the second wife of @Thomas Jefferson Bass of Henderson County, Texas to both the GENI and FamilySearch.org sites. The sources of Thomas Jefferson dispute this fact. There are currently 26 sources for Thomas Jefferson Bass documented on FamilySearch.org where I have recently removed Minerva's relationship with my great grandfather from that site.

Based on the 26 sources, the following is why Thomas Jefferson, AKA TJ Bass, born 8 May 1851, is not the Thomas Bass, born in 1851, and who is listed on on Minerva Geogiana Moore Busby’s marriage license of 19 May 1901 in White, Arkansas.

Thomas Jefferson Bass was born in Smith Township, Dallas, Arkansas in 1851. His father, Peyton Marion Bass, moved the family from Smith, Arkansas to Athens, Henderson County, Texas some time between the census of 1860 and 1870. In 1876 ,T J Bass married Sarah Ellen Stirman on Dec. 6th of that year in Henderson County, Texas. This is confirmed by Texas marriage documents.

In 1900 Thomas Jefferson AKA T J Bass was living with his wife Sarah Ellen Stirman and his 8 children in Henderson County, Texas. In 1910 Census Thomas Jefferson, or T J, Bass, was still living in Henderson Texas with his wife Sarah Ellen Stirman Bass and 3 of his youngest children. In the 1920 Census T J Bass is still in Henderson Texas with his wife Ellen. Thomas Jefferson’s Texas death certificate in 1939 listed him as a widower in Athens, Texas. Sarah Ellen Stirman Bass died 18 Feb 1929 in Henderson County, Texas as confirmed by the Texas Death Index 1903-2000 and Find-a-Grave https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/32593165/sarah-ellen-bass.

According to the sources for Minerva Geogiana Moore, there is only one source that she married a Thomas Bass in Arkansas in 1901 after the death of her husband Busby. This would be at the time Thomas Jefferson was still living with his wife Ellen and 8 children in Athens, Texas where he owned a small store and was an active farmer. That source is an Arkansas marriage document stating Minerva married a Thomas Bass in Arkansas. The marriage License stats the groom, named Thomas Bass, was born in 1951 and from Bebe, White County, Arkansas. Note: Thomas Jefferson Bass, also was born in 1951, was from Smith Township, Dallas, Arkansas.

There are two censuses that show a Minerva Bass living in Arkansas in 1930. The strange thing is both censuses are for 1930.

The first 1930 census shows Mrs M J Bass listed as as “Mother-in-law” in the household of her daughter Lucy and her husband W.M. Glover. The 1930 The census is for Eagle, Lonoke, Arkansas.

The other 1930 census is for Goodrum, Lonoke, Arkansas. It shows a Minerva J Bass as “Mother-in-law” in the household of her daughter Pinky and her husband A A Peters.

So did both daughters claim Minerva on the 1930 census? Where is there any actual source that indicates Minerva moved to or even visited Texas where Thomas Jefferson was living with his wife, running his store, and maintained his farm?

One last thing to consider. Consider how common the name Thomas is and how often it is replicated within families. Minerva’s and Thomas Bass’ marriage license states she is marrying a “Thomas Bass of Bebe, White County, Arkansas”. Isn’t it more likely Minerva was married to another Bass named Thomas born in 1851 living in Arkansas than to Thomas Jefferson (born 1851 in Smith Township, Dallas, Arkansas) who lived in a different state with a wife, children, and had a farm and business to run.

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