Claunch and Stewart Families

Civil War Service

Battle Unit Name: 23rd Regiment, Arkansas Infantry
Side: Confederacy
Company: K
Soldier's Rank In: Corporal
Soldier's Rank Out: Corporal
Alternate name:
Film Number:
M376 ROLL 5

https://www.nps.gov/civilwar/search-soldiers-detail.htm?soldierId=15AAC88D-DC7A-DF11-BF36-B8AC6F5D926A

Biographical Sketch

Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Craighead County Arkansas
The Goodspeed Publishing Co., 1889.

James R. Claunch, M. D., was born in Bedford County, Tenn., in 1833, and is now one of the eminently successful farmers of Lester Township, possessing a thorough and practical knowledge of medicine. His parents, James H. and Charlotte (Bearden) Claunch, were natives, respectively, of Kentucky and South Carolina. They were both greatly respected as citizens, and were members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. South. The father came with his father to Tennessee, and there grew to manhood and followed the occupation of farming. He was born in 1810, and is still living. aged seventy-nine years. The mother was born in 1815, and died in Tennessee April 7, 1882. To them bad been born nine children, six of whom are still living. Dr. Claunch was the oldest child, and was reared and educated in Tennessee, coming to Arkansas in 1856. He settled in Poinsett County. where he engaged in farming and studied medicine with Dr. Todd W. Beecher, of Harrisburg, who is a graduate from the Ohio Medical College, at Cincinnati. He began practice in that county. January 6, 1860, he was united in marriage with Miss Martha J. Crook, a native of South Carolina, and daughter of Martin Crook. She came with her father to Mississippi in 1854, and to this State in 1859. Her mother died in 1846, and her father in 1858. To Dr. and Mrs. Claunch have been born the following family of children: Thomas M., Lottie L., Anni B., Charles, William, Mahalia C., John B. and Albert M., living, and Laura and Harriet A. G., deceased. They also have with them one granddaughter, Estella Davis. In the War of the Rebellion Dr. Claunch saw much active service. He was in Col. Adams' regiment, and was assistant surgeon with Price on his raid through Missouri. At the close of the war he returned to his farm, and two years later resumed his practice. He came to his present location in Craighead County in 1872. and has since engaged in farming and the practice of medicine. He has a splendid farm of 300 acres, 100 under cultivation, and has a good residence, orchard and outbuildings. He is a member of the Masonic order, is very successful in his practice, being one of the leading physicians of the county, and greatly respected as a citizen.

p.325 - 326

Biographical Sketch

Dr. James Riley Claunch came to Arkansas in 1856 and settled in Poinsett County where he engaged in farming and studied medicine with Dr. Todd W. Beecher of Harrisburg, graduate of Ohio Medical College, Cinninati. He became a successful farmer of Lester Township, Craighead County, and possessed a thorough knowledge of medicine. January 6, 1860 he married Martha Jane Crook, who came to Arkansas with her father in 1859. Children: Lottie Lou, Annie Bettie, Charles W., John B., Albert Martin, living; Thomas M., Laura, Mahalia, Cate and Harriet deceased. Dr. Claunch joined the Confederate Army and served in Co. K. 23rd Arkansas, and as assistant surgeon with Price in Missouri. At the close of the war he returned to his farm and resumed the practice of medicine. His farm embraced more than 300 acres with 100 under cultivation. He was one of the leading physicians of the county and died May 3, 1918. Mrs. Claunch died April 5, 1927.

p. 539-540

History of Craighead County Arkansas
Harry Lee Williams
Parke-Harper Co.
Little Rock, Ark
1930

Overview - 23rd Regiment, Arkansas Infantry

Overview:
23rd (Lyles') Infantry Regiment, originally C. W. Adams' 23rd Regiment, was organized at Helena, Arkansas, during the spring of 1862. Its members were from the counties of Craighead, Phillips, St. Francis, Monroe, Cross, Poinsett, and Chicot. The unit fought in the conflicts at Corinth and Hatchie Bridge and reported 5 killed, 23 wounded, and 116 missing. Later it was assigned to General Beall's Brigade, Department of Mississippi and East Louisiana. In April, 1863, it was united with Powers' 14th and Crockett's 18th Arkansas Regiments, and in July was captured at Port Hudson. After being exchanged and mounted, the regiment served in the Trans-Mississippi Department and took an active part in Price's Missouri Expedition. It surrendered on May 16, 1865, near Memphis, Tennessee. The field officers were Colonel Oliver P. Lyles, and Lieutenant Colonels Erastus L. Black and A. H. Pennington.

https://www.nps.gov/civilwar/search-battle-units-detail.htm?battleUnitCode=CAR0023RI

Battle of Corinth, MS
Oct 4, 1862
https://www.battlefields.org/learn/civil-war/battles/corinth

23 Arkansas under Ltc A. A. Pennington
Moores Brigade
Maury's Division

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/23rd_Arkansas_Infantry_Regiment

Price's Raid
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Price%27s_Raid

Personal Recollection

March 17, 1976
Charles Eugene Wilbourn (b. Jan 1, 1895 d. 1989)
Son of Jame Evin and Annie Bettie (Claunch) Wilbourn

Memories of our Grandparents, "Pa" and "Ma" Claunch

Being the eldest I thought I might have some memories that you did not have...though all of you have your own remembrances of them.

My first recollection of them seems to have been soon after the family moved from Culberhouse to Jonesboro. Grandpa had a short white beard, white hair and a florid complexion. He seemed to change little over the years and neither did Ma.

Grandpa was hot tempered and I was always somewhat in awe of him, though he never treated me unkindly. As the saying went "He was not afraid of the old devil." And some of you may have heard the story about the time he thought a man was going to steal his horse. He was sitting on the porch one moonlight night when he saw a man leave the barn - so he went to the barn with only a pocket knife for protection. He waited an hour or so but the man did not return.

As a country doctor I know he fulfilled a need in the community of scattered farms where they lived, and as far as I know he was the only one for miles. Doctors those days carried the few medicines they had with them and dispensed them to the patients themselves. Mama told a story about the time he was riding through the woods to make a call on a sick patient; he happened to look up and saw a large wolf with thi's front feet on a log calmly watching him. He rode on and the wolf did not follow. He thought it might have a den nearby.

Grandpa was reared on a pioneer farm in Tenn and later he lived on one in Ark while he and Ma were raising their family. Being accustomed to hardships he and the family did not greatly change their mode of living after moving from the farm to Jonesboro. He did have water piped to the kitchen and a telephone installed - but I recall they used oil lamps until I was about 18 years old. They bought flour by the barrel, sugar in large amounts, cheese by the hoop, and Ma ground coffee and black pepper, also made soap and lye hominy. Each fall they got enough sorghum, [and] honey from their farm - which they still owned - to last them several months, also corn for the horses. One time Grandpa bought a barrel of apple cider and we children were given all we wanted when there [wasn't] any one else. So the barrel was soon empty.

Someone else in the family has described Ma as being the best of grandmothers - and I fully agree. She had little education having been reared an orphan but she had a big and generous heart and devoted her life to her family. Ma cultivated a large garden each summer and the family virtually lived from it - plus the great number of chickens she raised. One day when I was eating dinner with them the ice-man came and Ma cut him and his Negro helper a large piece of pie. Even the mail carrier was given a drink of water on a warm afternoon. The family were great ice tea drinkers in the summer and Grandpa drank it from an overside tumbler. We seldom had tea at home as Mama thought it not good for us. When young I thought that Ma's house as being one word. For some reason we never said we were going to Grandpa's house.

Grandpa liked his toddy and he usually took a good size one before the noon meal - and with water and sugar. Unlike most men of his time, he did not use tobacco. He believed in letting his women folks wait on him. And this Ma and Aunt Lottie did.

When looking at an Ark road map sometime past I was pleased to note that "Claunch" was still shown. Both Pa and Ma lived in their middle 80's and I know all of us are proud that we had these two as our grandparents.

From material collected by Mary Louise Claunch

The Lester-Claunch Community
By Hershel L. "Plug" Eaton

Craighead County Historical Quarterly (Unknown Edition)

Located on the west bank of the St. Francis river about five miles north of Lake City, on the state highway 135, in Section 4, Township 14 North, Range 6 East, the hamlet was first known as "Lester's Landing." The name later evolved into simply "Lester" then to "Claunch" then again to "Lester" as it is known today.

Both Harry L. Williams, in his "History of Craighead Count," and Charles Stuck, in his "Story of Craighead County," state that the village of Lester was named for "Phillip King Lester" who owned a plantation there prior to the Civil War. Although we are hesitant to attempt to disprove an old historic legend, we can find no evidence to indicate that Phillip K. Lester ever lived there. In fact, existing evidence indicates that he did not. We do know however, that his father, brother, and other family members once did.

The Lester family moved to Arkansas from McMinnville, Tennessee in the mod 1830's and settled in present day Greene County where in 1837, John Wilson Lester, father of P. K. Lester, entered a claim on 80 acres of land near the present Lorado community. It is unknown at this time just when the Lesters moved to what is now the eastern District of Craighead County, however, there is ample evidence to indicate that they were living there in the late 1840's. The United States census records for 1850 indicate that they were living near several families whom we know were living in that area at that time.

Prior to 1860, there were very few people living in the St. Francis river bottoms; the land being swampy and subject to almost continuous overflow. Most of it was still owned by the federal government. In 1858, the United States Goverment, by the "Swamp Land Grant Act of 1858," granted to the state of Arkansas all the land now situated in the St. Francis river basin. The state then issued "patents" or deeds to plots of this land to settlers in an attempt to encourage settlement of this sparsely populated area. The few pioneers who were already living in this area were given the right of "preemption" or the first right to file claims on the land on which they lived. On August 5, 1860, a patent was issued to John Wilson Lester for 160 acres of land described as "the northeast quarter section 4, township 14 north, range 6 east." This was the land now embracing the present village of Lester. On September 10, 1860, a patent was issued to Wilson Lester, son of John W. Lester, for other lands in the south half of the same section of land.

We have learned from several sources that a "steamboat landing" was built at that location "prior to the Civil War" and because known as "Lester's Landing."

...

Some of the steamboats which operated on the St. Francis in the early days of Lester's Landing history were the "Mary Avery" owned by Isaac Mangrum and Francis Varner of the Mangrum community; the "Aurora" owned by Henry M. Stroud of Lake City, and the "Lake City," owned by Al Stout of Lake City.

...

Name Changes

The name "Lester's Landing" was first applied to the community when a steamboat landing was built there by the Lester family, probably in the late 1840's, when river traffic was very vital to commerce in northeast Arkansas. The arrival of the railraods into northeast Arkansas in the 1870's, rendered obsolete the slow, cumbersome, and expensive riverboat traffic. Goods and supplies could now be shipped much faster and more economical. With the demise of the riverboat traffic the "landing" fell into disuse and the word "landing" was gradually dropped from the name identifying the community.

The Claunch family moved into the community in 1872, and soon thereafter donated land for a building site for the community's first school building. When completed, the school was christened the "Claunch School" in honor of the generosity of the family and the entire community gradually became known as "Claunch." In 1938, the Claunch shoold consolidated with the Lake View, Deason Lake, St. Paul, and Maysville shools to create the "Dixie Consolidated School District - 8." The Claunch family had moved from the community several years previously and with the closing of the school, the name of the community changed again to "Lester," as it is known today.

...

The Claunch Family

The community secured the services of its first Physician in 1872, when Dr. J. R. Claunch moved there from Poinsett County. James Riley Claunch was born May 30, 1833, in Bedord County, Tennessee. He was the eldest of nine children born to James H. and Charlotte (Bearden) Claunch. J. R. Claunch was reared in his native county and in 1856, decided to seek his fortune in the 20 year old state of Arkansas. He first settled in Pointsett County near Harrisburg where he engaged in farming. Young Claunch soon observced that the practice of medicine was indeed a lucrative field in the rapidly developing state, and he began to studey medicine under Dr. Todd W. Beecher of Harrisburg. Dr. Beecher was a graduate of the Ohio Medical College at Cincinatti.

When his apprenticeship was ended, Dr. Claunch first "hung out his shingle" at Harrisburg.

On January 6, 1860, he was united in marriage with Miss Martha Jane Crook, a native of South Carolina. With the advent of the Civil War, Dr. Claunch enlisted in the Confederate Army. He participated in several battles and was assistant Surgeon with General Sterling Price on his raid through Missouri. With the ending of hostilities he returned to his farm and medical practice.

In 1872, Dr. Claunch moved his young family to the Lester community where he engaged in farming and continued his medical practice. He later donated land land for the community's first and only school building. It was in honor of this pioneer doctor that the name of the community was, for several years, changed from "Lester" to "Claunch."

Dr. and Mrs. Claunch were the parents of 10 children; Thomas, Lottie, Annie, Charles, William, Catherine, John, Albert, Laura, and Harriet. The Claunch family moved to Jonesboro in 1887, where Dr. Claunch continued his medical practice. His son, Charles, built and for many years operated the Claunch Hotel on Main Street in Jonesboro.

Dr. J. R. Claunch died May 3, 1918. His wife Martha, died April 6, 1927. The Doctor and most members of his family are buried at the City Cemetery in Jonesboro.