ROBERT HUGHEY PRIEST AND MARTHA JANE ROBERTSON

Robert Hughey Priest was born in 1888. He was named after one of John and Mahala’s neighbors Robert Hughey who testified at Abner James’ trial. I don’t know when he moved to Carroll County, Arkansas or Barry County, Missouri but he was living there by 1888 when he married Martha Jane Robertson, the younger sister of his brother Monterville’s wife Eliza “Adeline” Robertson. She was 17 when they got married. They lived in Barry County, Missouri where the Robertson’s were from. They had eight children: Nellie (1889), Elnora (1891), Robert (1894), Everett (1896), Ollie (1898), Lucy (1901), John Madison (1904), and Charles Elbert (1907). Sometime between 1900 and 1907 Robert left Martha Jane and moved to Texas. In 1907 there is a document where Robert, Monterville, and Nancy sell their part of the family homestead to Minerva. Robert is living Comanche County, Texas. He lived in Comanche County sometime between the 1920 and 1930 census when he has moved to Eastland County, Texas. He was a laborer and I don’t know when he died. In the 1909 map of Barry County Robert H. is still listed on the map. This must be where Martha Jane and her children lived http://www.rootsweb.com/~mobarry/1909Plat/T21nR25w-bot.jpg. Robert’s land is about half way up the map on the left hand side. The map is of the south west corner of the county on the Missouri-Arkansas State line

Paulene Priest Spenser (Monterville’s granddaughter) grew up in Green Forest, Arkansas very close to Barry County, Missouri and remembers that she always thought Robert had died and that Martha was a widow. She had no idea they had seperated and he had stayed in Texas after they lived there as a family.   Paulene also remembers that her sons treated her very well and that Aunt “Darl” (Martha Jane) had the most beautiful hair.

According to Floyd Priest (Monterville’s grandson) all Martha’s sons have died except Ollie. He moved to Virginia in 2001 to live with his daughter. I was in contact with Sarah Carr (Elnora’s granddaughter) who lives in southern Missouri and who hopefully can help us with more information about Robert and Martha’s line.