Friday's Photo: Tillman C. Bryan

I love getting unexpected surprises in my email. This photo of Tillman Capers Bryan was new to me and very unexpected. Do you have this photo of Tillman or other photos to share?

 

Tillman Bryan standing next to a posing chair with fringe.
A chair similar to this can be seen in many photos from the
Bienville area attributed to the 1860s and 1870s. According to 
Maureen Taylor, long over-large slack coats, wide trousers, and
suspenders were common between 1860 and 1870. 

Tillman Bryan (also known as Tilman and Tilmon) was the son of Reddick Bryan and Elizabeth S. Regan. He was born on September 13, 1830*, in Houston County, Georgia. Tillman was eight years old when his family left Houston County for Louisiana in the fall of 1838. 

At age 20, the 1850 census shows that Tillman was a laborer and living with his parents. Older brothers, James and Joseph, were married and living very near the family home.

 

These photos were found side by side in an album from the collection of 
Marguerite Cook Clark (1913-1989). The handwriting above the photos is attributed to Marguerite's mother, Mary Marguerite "Maggie" Martin Cook (1887-1970).

Tillman married Mildred Manning Prothro at age 26 on April 15, 1857. She was a widow with one child. A Bible transcription, found at the National Headquarters of the Daughter's of the American Revolution, indicates that Tillman and Mildred had the children listed below. 

• Mary Elizabeth Span Bryan born September 24, 1859, and died on December 19, 1866. 
• Benjamin Terrell Bryan and Tillman C. Bryan were twins and born on April 17, 1862. It is presumed Benjamin Terrell died as he is not mentioned again. 
• John Wesley Bryan was born on September 8, 1864.
• Sally Manning Bryan was born on March 5, 1866. 
• Ida Amelia Bryan was born on May 15, 1868. 
• Tommie Eta Lissinie Bryan was born on December 25, 1869.
• Benjamin Mae (or May) Bryan was born on June 23, 1871, and died on December 2, 1872.
• Mark Pomroy Bryan was born on March 6, 1873, and died the same day. 
• William Rufus Bryan was born on May 23, 1876. 
• Jewell Antonette Bryan was born on February 2, 1884. 
• Amanda Melvina Bryan might be another child. She died on August 19, 1877, but she was not listed under births.

To learn more about this family and see some of Tillman's pension documents, watch for my next Bryan family post. 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

Diana

© 2020 

*Tillman, born in 1830, has been said to be born on September 15 (cemetery stone) and on September 13 (Transcriptions of Reddick Bryan's family Bible and Tillman's family Bible along with his pension record and the record found in Joseph B. Bryan's Bible).

Sources 

Bryan, Tillman C. Photograph. No date. Photograph held by H. Forstmann [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE,] CT.

Bryan, Tillman C. Photograph. No date. Photograph in album held by M. Harrison [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE,] NC.

Clark, Mrs. Albert for the Bistineau Chapter, Louisiana DAR, “Bible Records Bryan and Related Families Bienville and Natchitoches Parishes Louisiana.” Louisiana DAR Genealogical Records Committee Report, Series 1, Volume 117: Louisiana. (1976), 57. digitized typescript, DAR Library, Washington, D.C.

Louisiana, Bienville Parish. 1850 U. S. Census, population schedule. Database with images. Ancestry. https://www.ancestry.com : 2020. 

Pharr, Mrs. John Newton for the New Iberia Chapter, Louisiana DAR, “Bible Records Bryan and Related Families Bienville and Natchitoches Parishes Louisiana.” Louisiana DAR Genealogical Records Committee Report, Series 1, Volume 25: Louisiana. (1950), 123-126. digitized typescript, DAR Library, Washington, D.C.

Taylor, Maureen A. Family Photo Detective: Learn How to Find Genealogy Clues in Old Photos and Solve Family Photo Mysteries. Cincinnati, OH: Family Tree Books, 2013.