My Trails into the Past

This is my second year working on this year-long prompt, hosted by Amy Johnson Crow . I will write each week in one of my two blogs, either Mam-ma’s Southern Family or at My Trails Into the Past . I have enjoyed writing about my children’s ancestors in new and exciting ways. There are not many well-to-do ancestors in either my family nor my husband’s family. One person who could qualify would be the Thomas Nicholas Davey, who was the brother of Frederick N Davey, my husband’s great-grandfather. Thomas N. Davey was a mine owner in Carthage, Missouri. [1] He was also a vice president of the Empire Electric Power and Supply Company. [2] He built a large Queen Anne house in 1888. [3] All of those things could qualify him as a rich man to me. He had enough money to travel to England at least five times, in 1896, 1908, 1909, 1911, and 1921. [4] In the 1890s, Thomas N Davey donated land at Jefferson and First Streets in Carterville, Missouri for the building of a new scho...

I reported on some newspaper articles that described the awarding of $5000 to Fred O. Banks due to the death of his wife when his automobile collided with the Empire Electric Company's truck driven by Joe Gorrell. I inquired with both the civil court clerk and the court archives office. I heard from the archives first, who found loose paper packets about the trial, but they were in delicate condition. The volunteer tried to make some scans for me, but the images are scattered and I have not yet figured out the order of things. Weeks later, I heard from the clerk of the court, who sent a pdf file from pages of the minute book about the court case. Unfortunately, he/she did not record a complete citation. Here, I can determine more about what happened. The trial was held in Jasper County Circuit Court, Division 1 starting on October 18, 1926. This was case no. 34005, Fred O. Banks vs. Empire District Electric Co. and Joe Gorrell. The judge was S.W. Bates. Mr. Banks' attorn...