Alexander Elliott |
Nancy Sylvania
Stalvey |
Alexander Elliott Chancey
Alexander Elliott Chancey, my second great grandfather, was born in 1825. At the time of his birth, it is not know if his parents were living in McIntosh or Appling County Georgia. Very little information regarding Elliott's early years is available possibly due to his father Jeremiah's quest for new lands during those years. Most likely, though, Elliott worked the family farm along side his brothers and father. In 1850 Elliott, the eldest of twelve children born to Jeremiah and Ailsy Chancey, married Miss Nancy Sylvania Stalvey of Clinch County Georgia. Later that year, Elliott became one of the first Justice of the Peace in the newly formed Clinch County along with Jesse Smith.
For the next eleven years, Elliott and Nancy remain home in the small town of Magnolia, just outside Homerville, Georgia raising the first seven of their eventual eleven children. In his book History of Clinch County, Georgia, Judge Folks Huxford describes the town of Magnolia, as;
"Never being more than a small village. It was laid out on land which was drained on either side by small ponds and branches and was situated as near the center of the county as practicable. There was a main street running through the town, east and West, and public buildings were situated on the north side of the main street. Connecting with the main street on the west was a stage road which ran by where Du Pont now is, and connected with the stage road which ran from Troupville through the Northern part of the county to Waresboro. The stage coaches in that day carried the mails and were as much a necessity then as the mail and passenger trains are to-day."
It is hard for me to imagine too many happy years for the family during this time in their lives, since these were tumultuous times for Georgia and other states south of the Mason Dixon line. Then in 1861, with the shelling of Fort Sumter in South Carolina, their lives must have changed dramatically. Elliott in October of 1862 and at the age of 37, crossed the state line into Columbia County, Florida and volunteered to join Captain Bryan's Company of Florida Volunteers of the Confederate Army. At the time he volunteered, there was a manpower shortage in the Confederate army which prompted the Congress at Richmond Virginia to enact in April of 1862, a conscription (draft) law. This law subjected most white males between the ages of 18 and 35 years old to involuntary service. In September of that same year, the age limit was increased to 45 years of age. It may be that Elliott was eager to go to war and for that reason he volunteered. Expectations of a short war were common during the weeks and months that followed succession. Volunteer infantry, artillery and Calvary companies were formed throughout the state. This company later became the 6th Battalion Florida Infantry. The 6th Florida Battalion fought at the Battle of Olustee (Ocean Pond), Florida on February 20, 1864. The unit was later ordered to Virginia, where it was reorganized as the 9th Florida Regiment and fought in the Battle of Cold Harbor.
Elliott's military records show him in November, through August of 1863, present and accounted for. In September and October of 1963 Elliott was shown as absent with leave. Then in March and April of 1964, he is shown present but sick in camp. This was immediately after the Battle of Olustee, so it may be that his sickness was in some way from the battle. From the first of May to the last day of August, 1864, Elliott is shown absent sick. Then for the months of September and October, of 64, he is once again shown present.
The last page of his service record shows Elliott as a "Private, in company D, 9 Regiment of Florida Infantry. His name appears on a roll of Prisoners of War, belonging to the Army of Northern Virginia, who have been this day surrendered by General Robert E. Lee, Confederate States of America, commanding said Army, to Lieutenant General U. S. Grant, commanding Armies of the United States. Done at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, April 9, 1865."
In September of 1907, Sylvania filed an application for her Widows Pension in Suwannee County, Florida stating that Elliott enlisted in the ninth Florida Regiment in 1862. D. T. Blanton and W. H. Cowart who were also from that part of Georgia were witnesses to Sylvania's sworn testimony and testified that "Elliott Chancey was a Soldier in the Confederate service during the War Between the States and that they were in the same Regiment as he." They also testified that "together, they fought in the Battle of Olustee or (Ocean Pond) on February 20, 1864 and that Elliott was present in Virginia when his command surrendered in April of 1865 being discharged at that time."
At the surrender, the following appears in Elliott's service record - "E. Chancey Private, Company D,
9th Regiment Florida Infantry appears on a Roll of prisoners of War, belonging to the Army of Northern Virginia, who have been this day surrendered by General Robert E. Lee, Confederate States of America, commanding said Army, to Lieutenant General U. S. Grant, commanding Armies of the United States. Done at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, April 9, 1865."
After his discharge, Elliott returned home to his wife and family in Clinch County and once again began working fields and adding children to his family as he had done before his enlistment. Then ten years later and now with eleven children at home, he suddenly took ill one day while working in the field and died within the hour. Elliott’s eleventh and last child, Nancy was only 23 months old at the time.
Elliott's Obituary is a brief paragraph in the Homerville section of the Valdosta Times, May 15 1875. It reads, "We were pained to learn a few minutes ago of the death of Mr. Elliott Chancey an old citizen of this county. He only lived about one hour after he was taken sick."
Nancy Sylvania Stalvey, my great 2nd great grandmother was born in 1830 in Clinch County, Georgia.
Nancy Sylvania and Elliott live most of their live in Magnolia, a small community in Clinch County. After the death of Elliott, she and the remaining members of her family moved to Florida in 1875. The 1900 Suwannee County (Luraville) Census shows her living with her daughter and son-in-law Nancey and Jessie Tucker. Nancy eventually moved back to Clinch County, Georgia where she died in 1919; she was 89 at the time of her death.
The family of Alexander and Nancy
Name: Alexander Elliott Chancey
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Birth: 1825 Appling or Ware County, Georgia
Death: 12 May 1875 Magnolia, Clinch County, Georgia
Father: Jeremiah Chancey II (1782-1861)
Mother: Ailsy "Elsie" Osteen (1808-1891)
Marriage: 29 Mar 1850 Clinch County, Georgia
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Spouse: Nancy Sylvania Stalvey
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Birth: 1830 Clinch County, Georgia
Death: 1919 Clinch County, Georgia
Father: John Stalvey Jr. (1800-1872)
Mother: Easter Padgett (1810-)
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Children
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1 F: Lucinda Chancey
Birth: 1850 Georgia
Death: 1939 Location Unknown
Spouse: Jessie Hart
Marriage: 8 Feb 1878 Suwannee County, Florida
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2 M: Francis Marion Chancey
Birth: 7 Dec 1852 Georgia
Death: 16 Feb 1913 Suwannee County, Florida
Spouse: Mary Susanne "Molly" Williams
Marriage: 1876 Live Oak, Suwannee County, Florida
Spouse: Mary Magdalene Edenfield
Marriage: 2 Jul 1910 Live Oak FL
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3 F: Laura Sarah Ann Chancey
Birth: 18 Mar 1855 Georgia
Death: [Date Unknown] [Location Unknown]
Spouse: William Williams
Marriage: [Date Unknown] [Location Unknown]
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4 M: John J. Chancey
Birth: 25 May 1857 Georgia
Death: [Date Unknown] [Location Unknown]
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5 M: Mark Elliott Chauncey
Birth: 11 Jun 1858 Blackshere, Georgia
Death: 23 Apr 1937 Live Oak, Suwannee County, Florida
Spouse: Amelia Menervia Lee
Marriage: 9 Sep 1880 Suwannee County FL
Spouse: Doris Skinner
Marriage: [Date Unknown] [Location Unknown]
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6 M: Sampsom Samuel William Chauncey
Birth: 23 Feb 1860 Georgia
Death: 19 Aug 1932 [Location Unknown]
Spouse: Elizabeth Shiver
Marriage: 3 Jan 1881 Suwannee County FL
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7 M: James J Chancey
Birth: 26 Jun 1862 Georgia
Death: aft Jun 1880 [Location Unknown]
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8 M: Benjamin S. Chancey
Birth: 16 Mar 1866 Georgia
Death: 6 Apr 1892 Suwannee County, Florida
Spouse: Lidia Sullivan
Marriage: 5 Dec 1886 Suwannee County FL
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9 F: Mary Elsie Chancey
Birth: 21 Feb 1868 Georgia
Death: 7 Jan 1941 [Location Unknown]
Spouse: William A. Rye
Marriage: 5 Mar 1882 Suwannee County, Florida
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10 M: Nathan S. J. Chancey
Birth: 9 Jun 1870 Florida
Death: 15 Aug 1951 [Location Unknown]
Spouse: Nancy Johnson
Marriage: 27 Jun 1895 Suwannee County FL
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11 F: Nancy Sylvania Chancey
Birth: 22 Jun 1873 Georgia
Death: 17 Sep 1948 Lafayette County, Florida
Spouse: Jessie Marion Tucker
Marriage: 21 Mar 1897 Live Oak, Suwannee County, Florida