Tabitha (Hickman) Ward Heavener

Tabitha (or Tobitha) Hickman was a daughter of Samuel Hickman and Lucy. She was of 1/2 Choctaw ancestry and enrolled with the Choctaw Nation in 1896, when she and her second husband were living in Sugar Loaf County, Choctaw Nation (now Le Flore County, Oklahoma).

Per the record from her second marriage, she was born c. 1855. Per the 1900 U.S. Federal Census, she was born in Mississippi.

From the Oklahoma Historical Society:

"Located in Le Flore County, Heavener is situated on State Highway 128 and on U.S. Highway 59/270, approximately twelve miles south of Poteau, the county seat. Lying within the former Choctaw Nation, Heavener is named for Joseph H. Heavener, who arrived in 1877 and was one of the area's earliest white settlers. He and others, including Sam Wilson, farmed on Choctaw permits. In 1880 Zachary Taylor Ward and his wife, Tabitha Hickman Ward, a Choctaw Indian, moved their store at Skullyville to present Heavener. This began the settlement. Ward died in 1883, and Tabitha married Heavener. The couple owned the land on which the town was established. Prior to the town's christening as Heavener, the area was known by several different names, including Prairie of the Tall Grass, Choctaw City, Prairie View, Long Prairie, and Grand Prairie. ..."

With Zachary (or Zachariah) Taylor Ward, she had:

1. David Ward, b. c. 1880

With Joseph H. Heavener, whom she married 12 August 1884 in Sebastian, Arkansas while living there, she had:

1. Mary E. Heavener, b. c. 1885
2. Matthew J. Heavener, b. c. 1887
3. Joseph Heavener, b. c. 1889

Per her probate file, Tabitha died intestate in September 1920. She was a resident of Le Flore County, Oklahoma at the time of her death. Her estate before the court was "real estate about 160 acres of the estimated value of about $5000.00 and $300 in money on deposit in First National Bank of Heavener, Okla." Her known heirs were "Dave Ward, age 35 years, residence Heavener, Okla; Mary Manley, age 33 years, residence Reichert, Okla; J. H. Heavener, age 30 years, residence Reichert, Okla; Vicey Morris, age 45 years, residence Reichert, Okla."

In 1959, the heirs of Tabitha and Joseph were sued in Le Flore County, Oklahoma over a land ownership dispute within the city of Heavener.

Sources

• Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.
  • Year: 1900; Census Place: Township 5, Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory; Page: 42; Enumeration District: 0088; FHL microfilm: 1241851.
    • Name: Tabitha Heavener; Age: 45; Birth Date: abt 1855; Birthplace: Mississippi, USA; Home in 1900: Township 5, Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory; House Number: 8; Sheet Number: 42; Number of Dwelling in Order of Visitation: 30; Family Number: 34; Race: Indian (Native American); Relation to Head of House: Wife; Spouse's Name: Joseph Heavener; Can Read: No; Can Write: No; Can Speak English: Yes.
• Ancestry.com. Arkansas, U.S., County Marriages Index, 1837-1957 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.
  • Name: Tabithia Ward; Gender: Female; Age: 29; Birth Year: abt 1855; Residence: Sebastian, Arkansas; Spouse's Name: Joseph Heavener; Spouse's Gender: Male; Spouse's Age: 33; Spouse's Residence: Sebastian, Arkansas; Marriage Date: 12 Aug 1884; Marriage License Date: 11 Aug 1884; Marriage County: Sebastian; Event Type: Marriage; FHL Film Number: 1034074.
• Ancestry.com. Oklahoma and Indian Territory, U.S., Dawes Census Cards for Five Civilized Tribes, 1898-1914 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014.
  • The National Archives at Fort Worth; Fort Worth, Texas; Enrollment Cards, 1898-1914; NAI Number: 251747; Record Group Title: Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs; Record Group Number: 75.
    • Name: Tobitha Heavener; Gender: Female; Age: 43; Tribe: Choctaw; Father: Samuel Hickman; Mother: Lucy Hickman; Spouse: Joseph Heavener, Zachariah Ward; Child: Joseph Heavener, Mary Heavener, Matthew Heavener, David Ward; Field Number: 2213; Dawes Enrollment Number: 6413; Enrollment Category: By Blood, Duplicates.
• Ancestry.com. Oklahoma, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1801-2008 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.
  • Probate Records, 1897-1930; Probate Indexes, 1895-1935; Author: Leflore County (Oklahoma). Court Clerk; Probate Place: Oklahoma.
    • Name: Tabitha Heavener; Residence Date: Abt 1920; Residence Place: Leflore, Oklahoma; Probate Date: 13 Sep 1920; Probate Place: Oklahoma, USA; Inferred Death Date: 1920; Item Description: Probate Records, No. 1752-1827, 1920-1922.
• LeMaster, Arlene. "Heavener." The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture. < link > Accessed 27 November 2021.
• "Notice by Publication, No. 17,524." The Poteau News, published 30 July 1959, p. 4. < link > Accessed 27 November 2021.
• "Sat. Rites For Area Pioneer, Dave Ward, 78." The Heavener Ledger, published 5 June 1958, p. 1. < link > Accessed 27 November 2021.

GEDCOM Sources

• 1920 United States Federal Census. Ancestry.com. Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.
  • Year: 1920; Census Place: Heavener, Le Flore, Oklahoma; Roll: T625_1468; Page: 26A; Enumeration District: 103; Image: 270.
• U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current. Ancestry.com. Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.
• Oklahoma, Wills and Probate Records, 1801-2008. Ancestry.com. Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.
  • Probate records, 1897-1930; probate indexes, 1895-1935; Author: Leflore County (Oklahoma). Court Clerk; Probate Place: Le Flore, Oklahoma.
• Ancestry Family Trees. Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com.
  • http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/AMTCitationRedir.aspx?tid=106023819&pi...
  • http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/AMTCitationRedir.aspx?tid=106023819&pi...