My Genealogy Hound

Below is a family biography included in The History of Jasper County, Missouri published by Mills & Company in 1883.  These biographies are valuable for genealogy research in discovering missing ancestors or filling in the details of a family tree. Family biographies often include far more information than can be found in a census record or obituary.  Details will vary with each biography but will often include the date and place of birth, parent names including mothers' maiden name, name of wife including maiden name, her parents' names, name of children (including spouses if married), former places of residence, occupation details, military service, church and social organization affiliations, and more.  There are often ancestry details included that cannot be found in any other type of genealogical record.

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SAMUEL W. NEELEY was born Dec. 24, 1840, in New York City. His parents died while he was very small and he was sent to Randall’s Island to the Orphans’ Home. He remained there until he was sent with several other boys to Illinois, where he worked on a farm for Benjamin Longstreth until 1862. He then, at the age of fourteen, enlisted in Company G, Thirty-fifth Illinois Infantry as private, and remained until the war closed. He was in the battle of Pea Ridge, skirmished through Mississippi, and was at the battles of Crab Orchard, Murfreesborough, Chickamauga, and Mission Ridge, where he was wounded by a shell; was in the Atlanta campaign and fought most of the time until the battle of Rocky Fist. He was discharged in Texas and returned to Illinois where he went to work on a farm by the month until 1871, and then went to Bates county, Mo. In 1872 he came to Jasper county. He was married to Mary A. Ruddick March 1, 1876, who was born Nov. 13, 1846, and is the daughter of Jesse and Matilda Ruddick. By this union they have three children: Jesse R., Sarah A., and Matilda.

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This family biography is one of more than 1,000 biographies included in The History of Jasper County, Missouri published in 1883.  For the complete description, click here: Jasper County, Missouri History, Genealogy, and Maps

View additional Jasper County, Missouri family biographies here: Jasper County, Missouri Biographies

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