James Madison Chalk

GEDCOM Note

The town of Chalk, Texas, was named after James Madison Chalk.≤/line>≤line />≤line> Was on 1880 census Lampasas Co., TX, p. 344-C. He was 27,
wife Louisa 22, Clyde 4, Cragie 3, John 1 and Edward 6/12 b: Dec. Clinton Browning, brother in law, age 18, was living with them. Clinton was born in Tennessee.≤/line>≤line />≤line>On Ancestry.com's "Texas Land Title Abstracts":≤/line>≤line />≤line>District: Milam; Travis
County: Lampasas
Grantee: J. M. Chalk
Patentee: J. M. Bullock
Patent Date: 2 Feb 1888
Patent #: 408
Patent Volume: 20
Acres: 160
Class: Mil Pre
File: 3908≤/line>≤line />≤line>James Madison Chalk married second Bertie May Griffin Young (living in 1942). Bertie M. is on 1920 Soundex living in Nueces Co. (Corpus Christi), age 40. She is living with Bland M., son age 34 born in TX; George F., son, age 28 born in N.M.; Lena C., dau, age 22 born in N.M. and Clyde F., grandson, age 15 born in TX.≤/line>≤line />≤line>1900 Census Graham Co., AZ, Pct. #1, E. D. #21, S. D. #11, June 14, Sheet 13-A, p. 105:≤/line>≤line />≤line>Chalk, Matt, age 47, carpenter, b: Jun 1853 in TX, marr. 26 years, TN GA
Louisa, age 42, b: Dec 1858 in TN TN TN 13 children, 7 living
Bland, son, age 14, b: Dec 1884 in TX
George, son, age 8, b: Oct 1891 in N.M.
Verman, dau, age 7, b: Mar 1893 in NM
Lena, dau, age 2, b: Feb 1898 in N.M.≤/line>≤line />≤line />≤line>1910 Census San Patricio Co., TX, District #9, 26 April, p. 277, S. D. #15, E. D. #112:≤/line>≤line />≤line>Chalk, James M., 57, married 2 years, married twice, b: TX TN GA
Bertie M., wife, 30, married twice, 2 years, 0 children, b: AR TN TN
Lena, dau, 12, b: N.M.
(living next door to James Chalk's brother Martin, wife Lena and family)≤/line>≤line />≤line />≤line>James died in the Galveston, TX storm of 1919. Jodi Thompson states that her grandmother told her about the circumstances. She said, "My grandmother, Lena, was 21 at the time and had a girlfriend over at the house visiting as girls do. Bertie, her step-mother, was an LVN and was on the bluff caring for an elderly person when the storm came in. They did not have the warnings as we have now. There were strong winds and a tidal surge. Their home was built on North Beach near the water. As the water rose in their home, they made their way to the attic. My grandmother had long blond hair. Her father, James (James Madison Chalk), had been hit across the nose with something. She did not know what had hit him, but he was bleeding profusely.≤/line>≤line />≤line>She told me that she knew in her heart that she would never see her father alive gain. As the water continued to rise, it was evident that they would have to go into the water - the house was not going to hold. James persuaded my grandmother to cut off her hair, but my grandmother's friend, who also had long hair, would not cut hers. The water was at the attic level when they went into the water.≤/line>≤line />≤line>I am not sure about this, but I believe that Verne and his wife had left the baby with one of the relatives to check on some business in McAllen. At some point during the storm, whoever had the baby (my grandmother referred to the child as a baby - I do not know the actual age) was on a raft. The raft was coming apart from the pounding of the waves, so my grandmother and the other relatives (cousins I think) moved to something that floated by that was sturdier. Everything was quite chaotic in the storm. They had handed the baby to my grandmother because she was a very strong swimmer while they changed over to the other raft. Just about the time of the exchange of the baby another huge wave came and swept the baby out of my grandmother's arms.≤/line>≤line />≤line>At some time during their time in the water, she found her girlfriend who had been at her house drowned, hanging by her hair in debris. My grandmother and many others were in the water for hours. She was found unconscious the next day quite a ways from where she had started. She said she did not remember anything else or even how she got to shore. She never saw her daddy again. This is what happened to Kenneth Bland Chalk."