Harriet Davenport

Harriet Davenport

Female 1853 - 1939  (86 years)

Personal Information    |    Media    |    Event Map    |    All    |    PDF

  • Name Harriet Davenport 
    Nickname Hattie, Hatty, Harriot 
    Born 28 Feb 1853  Jefferson County, Kentucky, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Gender Female 
    Died 11 Jun 1939  Bridgeport, Lawrence County, Illinois, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location 
    • Illinois Deaths 1916-1947: "Hattie Hunley, age 75 b. 23 Feb 1863 England [sic; actually 1853 Kentucky], father: Benjamin Davenport b. England, spouse: Thomas Hunley, housekeeper Bridgeport, Lawrence County, d. 11 Jun 1939 Bridgeport, Lawrence County, burial 13 Jun 1939 Bridgeport, Lawrence County."
    Buried 13 Jun 1939  Bridgeport Cemetery, Bridgeport, Lawrence County, Illinois, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Notes 
    • City Directories St. Louis, MO 1908: "Hattie Kerner, widow of Henry A.; John F. Kerner, teamster, residence: 1450 North 6th St."

      City Directories St. Louis, MO 1909: "Hattie Kerner, widow of Henry A.; John F. Kerner, teamster, residence: 1450 North 6th St."

      Application: 26 Jan 1920 in Illinois, for widow's pension, Thomas Hunley deceased

      Deposition: "April 20, 1921. I [Hattie] am 65, housework, Bridgeport, [Lawrence County], IL."

    • http://boards.msn.ancestry.com/surnames.hunley/112.114.1.1.1.1.2/mb.ashx

      "In a deposition about Hattie, Josie Haffely answers examiner about Hattie:

      Q. And do you think she married Kerner in St. Louis?
      A. Yes, Sir, I think so that my understanding, but I was not present.

      Q. Had she been married prior to her marriage to Kerner?
      A. I don't know but I think so. I don't know by what name she was using prior to her marriage to Kerner. No sir, there was never any question as to her having been married to Kerner, as they lived together for many years, and were recogzised as man and wife by all his people and all friends and acquaintances, and I have been at their home many a time. I knew her daughter Alma as she was with her along about the World's Fair [St. Louis, MO in 1904], and I think her name was Alma Hunley, and she had come from Okla to visit her mother. She was not married, don't know the address. I also think that Hattie had a son, but I did not see him, She had no child by Kerner. I know none of her people, not related to Hattie, and not financially interested. The last few times Hattie has written to me she signs, 'Hattie Hunley,' but she has also written me as 'Hattie Kerner,' as that was the name I knew her all the time in St. Louis, she and Kerner also worked at the shoe factories.

      Taken from lines 46 to 62. Entire statement taken 9 Aug 1922 at St. Llouis, in the State of Missouri, by the Special Examiner of the Bureau for Pensions; Contested Civil War Pension files."
    Person ID I37444  Complete
    Last Modified 17 Jan 2018 

    Father Benjamin F. Davenport,   b. Abt. 1815, Chorley, Lancashire, England Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 8 Mar 1884, Frankfurt, Clinton County, Indiana, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age ~ 69 years) 
    Mother Margaret Abel,   b. Abt. 1819, Kentucky, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. Mar 1862, Medora, Carr, Jackson County, Indiana, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age ~ 43 years) 
    Married 18 May 1843  Jefferson County, Kentucky, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location 
    • Kentucky Marriages, 1783-1865: "Margaret Abel & Benjamin Davenport, m. 18 May 1843, Jefferson County."

    Family ID F5776  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family 1 Unknown 
    Married Did not marry. Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Children 
    +1. Anna Elizabeth Unknown,   b. Jan 1875, Daviess County, Indiana, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location
    Last Modified 25 Feb 2012 
    Family ID F18043374  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family 2 Thomas Riley Hunley,   b. 3 Jul 1844, Union Town, Union County, Kentucky, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 26 Dec 1916, Okfuskee County, Oklahoma, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 72 years) 
    Married 29 May 1875  Vincennes, Knox County, Indiana, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location 
    • Indiana Marriage Collection, 1800-1941: "Thos Hunley & H. Davenport, m. 29 May 1875, Knox County."
    Children 
     1. Josie Hunley,   b. Abt. 1875, Daviess County, Indiana, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. Abt. 1875, Daviess County, Indiana, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age ~ 0 years)
    +2. Alma Hunley,   b. 3 Sep 1880, Daviess County, Indiana, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. Aft. 1904  (Age 24 years)
     3. Stillborn Hunley,   b. Abt. 1881, Daviess County, Indiana, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. Abt. 1881, Daviess County, Indiana, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age ~ 0 years)
    Last Modified 28 Feb 2012 
    Family ID F18043361  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family 3 Joseph Williams,   d. Kansas, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Married 29 Apr 1882  Kansas, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Divorced 23 Jun 1887  York County, Nebraska, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Children 
     1. Oscar James Williams,   b. 30 Nov 1882, Indiana, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. Abt. 1957, Finney County, Kansas, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 74 years)
    Last Modified 22 Mar 2012 
    Family ID F18043371  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family 4 Thomas Yeager,   b. 1 Jan 1852, Preble County, Ohio, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 6 Jun 1936, Washington, Daviess County, Indiana, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 84 years) 
    Married 16 Feb 1891  Daviess County, Indiana, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location 
    • LDS FamilySearch Indiana Marriages, 1811-1959: "Thomas Yeager & Hattie Williams; license & m. 16 Feb 1891, Daviess County by Henderson Mccafferty."
    Last Modified 3 Apr 2013 
    Family ID F18043372  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family 5 Henry A. Kerner,   b. Abt. 1872, Montgomery County, Iowa, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 29 Nov 1906, City Hospital, St. Louis, St. Louis County, Missouri, U.S.A. Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age ~ 34 years) 
    Married 19 Nov 1892  St. Louis, St. Louis County, Missouri, USA Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Notes 
    • Hattie Davenport & Henry Kerner evidently met while both were working at a shoe factory in St. Louis, MO. During many summers beginning in the 1890s, Hattie and Henry followed the carnival circuit. They performed, respectively, as a snake charmer & strong man on tour with the Barkoot Show, Thornton's Great Railroad Show, and Blue Grass Show.

    • One example of showmanship in early carnivals:

      http://www.archive.org/stream/newsecondhandban00unit/newsecondhandban00unit_djvu.txt

      "SNAKE CHARMER. One banner 10 ft. wide and 10 ft. high. Lettered across the top: 'Mile De Lano, Snake Charmer.' This painting represents Miss De Lano on a stage, with plenty of rich colored snakes wound around her. The background represents a floral design, and at each side of the stage are red portieres, draped in rich colors. She is attired in dress knee length. It is a very rich appearing banner."

    • An old timer's explanation of the public appeal at the end of the nineteenth century of traveling shows:

      Steve Goodson, "Public Entertainment in Atlanta, 1880-1930 (Athens, GA: Univ. of Georgia Press, 2007), Ch. II "Amusements":

      "In 1948 the Atlanta Historical Bulletin published reminiscences by Walter McElreath, lawyer, politician, and founder of the Atlanta Historical Society, remembered Atlanta as he had first encountered it in the closing decades of the nineteenth century. He fondly recalled the time when Atlanta's churches, retailers, and grocery stores, as well as the residences of its leading citizens, were all clustered near the center of what was then a small and compact city. Life seemed to move at a slower, horse-drawn pace; everybody was at home and had nowhere to go. Any queer or amusing character was in those days and object of interest which [today] would pass practically unnoticed.' . . ."
    Last Modified 4 Mar 2014 
    Family ID F18043373  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  • Event Map
    Link to Google MapsBorn - 28 Feb 1853 - Jefferson County, Kentucky, U.S.A. Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsMarried - 29 May 1875 - Vincennes, Knox County, Indiana, U.S.A. Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsMarried - 29 Apr 1882 - Kansas, U.S.A. Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsDivorced - 23 Jun 1887 - York County, Nebraska, U.S.A. Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsMarried - 16 Feb 1891 - Daviess County, Indiana, U.S.A. Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsMarried - 19 Nov 1892 - St. Louis, St. Louis County, Missouri, USA Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsDied - 11 Jun 1939 - Bridgeport, Lawrence County, Illinois, U.S.A. Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsBuried - 13 Jun 1939 - Bridgeport Cemetery, Bridgeport, Lawrence County, Illinois, U.S.A. Link to Google Earth
     = Link to Google Earth 
    Pin Legend  : Address       : Location       : City/Town       : County/Shire       : State/Province       : Country       : Not Set

  • Photos
    Girls' Lunchroom in Model Shoe Factory, St. Louis, 1904
    Girls' Lunchroom in Model Shoe Factory, St. Louis, 1904

    Harriet Davenport (1853-1939) worked in a shoe manufacturing factory in St. Louis, but she probably never had such a wonderful perk as was depicted at the Peter's Shoe Company exhibit at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition.

    Dun's Review, 1904: "One interesting feature of the St. Louis Fair is the Model Shoe Factory, where every point in up-to-date methods in shoe making will be fully demonstrated," in order to sell American-made machinery to customers overseas.
    Women workers in a shoe factory, late 19th century
    Women workers in a shoe factory, late 19th century

    "Photocopies of nineteenth-century wood engravings all of which show women at work" Library of Congress

    Documents
    Harriett Davenport (1853-1939), Civil War pension claim
    Harriett Davenport (1853-1939), Civil War pension claim

    Civil War Pension Index: "Thomas Hunley, widow Amanda Hunley, relative--contested claim: Hattie Hunley"

    In support of her claim to the Civil War Pension of Thomas Riley Hunley, deceased, Harriet (Hattie) Davenport submitted, with the help of attorneys, to the federal government a number of depositions by herself and others. There are partial transcriptions of two such depositions at: http://boards.ancestry.com/thread.aspx?o=30&m=112.114.1.1.1.1.2.1.1.1&p=surnames.hunley

    "Deposition of Louisa McQuinn [sic] 76 yrs old. (Parts of the statement include:)

    'It was generally believed about here that Tom Hunley was dead after he failed to come back here. As I remember Hattie had two children by Tom Hunley, girls, but I don't remember their names. I don't know what became of the girls of Hattie's by Hunley. The children grew up, and I understand that they are married, but I don't know name of the men who married them, nor where they are. I lost all track of them, but they grew to womanhood. I believe that Hattie married a man named Williams prior to her marriage to Yeager, and while I am not sure, I think it was William Williams and they were married away from here, but I don't know where. I do not know Williams personally. But Williams did not want Hattie's children by Hunley, so she had to put them out. I did not take her child by Hunley, but it was the illegitimate child I took.

    (Louisa Quinn also lists the surnames of Hattie's husbands: Hunley, Williams, Yeager and Kerner.)

    Hunley was sent to prison and never returned and was supposed to have died and she and Williams separated and I lost track of him.'

    (In Hattie's own testimony about herself.)

    April 20, 1921. I [Hattie] am 65, housework, Bridgeport, [Lawrence County], IL.

    'I was born in England and was between three and four years of age when I came to the United States with my parents, Benjamin and Margaret Davenport. We settled in Medora IN, and my mother died there in 1866. Father went back to England and we never heard tell of him after that. I left Mendora when I was about fourteen, with a famiy named Johnson, Jim and Betty, and came to Washington, Pike County, IN and lived there until I married Mr. Hunley. I was seventeen in February and married him the 29th day of the following May. We were married in Vincennes. I couldn't say how long [I} knew Tom Hunley before we were married; perhaps a year. He lived at Washington, Pike County, IN and he worked in the mines. No, he was never married before he married me. They always told me there in Washington he had not been and I never heard of him being.

    He had a brother, Jim living there. He was a pensioner--rather, his pension was allowed after he died and his widow who remarried and who is in need now got it. Jim was the only one of the Hunley family that lived in Washington. The rest lived in Clay City, Clay County, IL. I don't know where the Hunleys lived before Jim and Tom came to Washington, but I supposed Clay City, Clay County, IL as the rest of the family lived there. I know when we used to visit Archibald Hunley at Clay City, another brother of Tom's, he used to tell us to quit rambling around and settle down. Archibald and his widow are dead. The only one of the original Hunley family living is: Mrs. A. Glud, a sister, 1120 Oak St., Oakland, Alameda County, CA.'"

    In regards to where Hattie and Tom lived according to Hattie:

    "Princeton, the vicinity of Petersburg, Washington, Pike County, IN, and Vincennes, IN, and Bridgeport and vicinity are the only places I lived from the time Tom Hunley was sent to the penitentiary. I had three children by Tom: One, Alma George, wife of John George, is living, They lived in Okino, OK when I last heard of her, but that has been several years ago. Lou Quinn, widow of Nick, an old pensioner, mixed up in the Hunley family by marriage and living in Washington, Pike County, IN last I heard of her, took care of one of the children and a Mrs. Yeager in Washington, Pike County, IN took care of Alma. Mrs. Yeager is dead."
    Hattie (Harriot) Davenport (1853-1939), Obituary
    Hattie (Harriot) Davenport (1853-1939), Obituary

    Received from Patricia Harmon.

    The inaccurate information in the obituary regarding Hattie Hunley's heritage was probably supplied to the undertaker, newspaper, and authorities by Donald Farr, her friend for whom she kept house, and reflects the public image that Hattie utilized to support her unsuccessful claim to the pension of her first husband, Thomas Riley Hunley, Union Civil War veteran.

    Roy Richard Thomas March 2012

    Census Records
    Harriey Davenport (1853-1939)
    Harriey Davenport (1853-1939)

    U.S. Census Carr, Jackson County, IN 1870:

    "Harriet Devenport, age 18 b. Abt. 1852 Kentucky, parents b. U.S.A., cannot read & write, domestic servant," in the household of "Mary McMichael, age 36 b. Abt. 1834 England parents foreign born, keeping hotel, real estate owned $2000 other property $200; one son b. Ohio: William McMichael 9."
    Harriet Davenport (1853-1939)
    Harriet Davenport (1853-1939)

    U.S. Census Washington, Pike County, IN 1880:

    "Thomas Hunley, age 33 b. Abt. 1847 Kentucky parents b. Kentucky, farmer, wife Hatty, age 22 b. Abt. 1858 Indiana [sic], father b. England mother b. Indiana [sic]
    Harriet (1853-1939)
    Harriet (1853-1939)

    U.S. Census Wabash, Wabash County, IN 1910:

    "Hattie Kerner, age 50 b. Abt. 1860 England [sic] parents b. England [sic], widow, servant-cook on farm," in household of "Daniel S. Ravatt, age 58 b. Abt. 1852 New Jersey parents b. New Jersey, farmer."
    Harriet Davenport (1853-1939)
    Harriet Davenport (1853-1939)

    U.S. Census Bridgeport, Lawrence County, IL 1930:

    "Hattie Hunley, age 66 b. Abt. 1864 England [sic] parents b. England [sic], arrived in U.S.A. 1846 [sic], widow, servant-private home," in the household of "Donald D. Farr, age 67 b. Abt. 1863 Indiana, parents b. Illinois, blacksmith-Ohio Oil Co. shops, widowed."


    [The "oil boom" in Lawrence County, IL began before World war I and continued through the 1950s. In the U.S. Census Bridgeport, Lawrence County, IL 1920, Daniel Farr lived with his wife Susie and two grown children, and worked as a "blacksmith-boiler shop." Daniel Farr, b. 21 Dec 1862 Grant County, IN, retired, died 19 Sep 1945 Lawrence County, IL.]