Isaac Lester Peckham, Lighthouse Keeper - Jan 8, 1883 - 1 Jan … · 2020-02-17 · covered the...

Presentation: Finding the Peckhams, St. Simons Island Lighthouse Keepers

Isaac Lester Peckham, Lighthouse Keeper - Jan 8, 1883 - 1 Jan1893

Mariana Isadora Lasserre Peckham, Assistant Keeper - May16, 1883 - 1 Jan 1893

Author: Linda OlsenContact: [email protected]

Notes from presentation made for Coastal Georgia Genealogical Society &Marshes of Glynn Libraries on February 13, 2020

The Coastal Georgia Historical Society asked the Coastal Georgia GenealogySociety (CGGS) to research Isaac L. Peckham, the St. Simons Island Lighthouse Keeper from 1883 to 1893, along with his wife who was the Assistant Lighthouse Keeper. CGGS member Linda Olsen accepted the challenge. From the archives of the newspaper Advertiser and Appeal whichcovered the island from 1880-1886, the Historical Society knew interesting tidbits that were incorporated into the Lighthouse museum’s exhibits. Such as the Peckhams were said “to keep the lighthouse and all its surroundings as neat as a lady’s parlor.” They proudly maintained their reputation for keeping “the best light of any station in the sixth district.” Another exhibit mentions that in 1884 Keeper Peckham entered a mammoth radish’ in the eighth annual Brunswick Fair. It was 21 inches long, 11 inches round and weighed nearly 3 lbs.! Mrs. Peckham was known as the best shot on the island. She reportedly killed a huge alligator. She also shot birds for their feathers, which she sold. But beyond these fun facts, the Historical Society knew little about Isaac Peckham and his wife.

Ms. Olsen asked for the basic information to start the genealogy research. Dates of birth, marriage, death, military and parents. All that was given on Isaac Peckham was that Coast Guard records said he was born in Pennsylvania and was sometimes called J.L. Peckham. Isaac’s wife, Marianna Isadora Lasserre, was born in Georgia. She usually went by her middle name Isadora, nickname Dora and from this point on for clarity, Marianna will be referred to as Dora. Although Isaac and Dora had no

Copyright by Linda Olsen - For Personal Use Only of 25


children, descendants of Dora’s siblings still live in the Brunswick area and they gave Ms. Olsen more information on Lasserre family.

Ms. Olsen first began by going online to the genealogy site Ancestry.com, tofind Isaac and Dora living together. In 1890, they were the St. Simons Lighthouse Keepers, but the 1890 US Census was burned in 1921, so Ms. Olsen went back 10 years to the 1880 US Census and found Isaac and Dora living on Little Cumberland Island, GA. Isaac was the Assistant LighthouseKeeper there from 1875-1882. Isaac often went by his initials, I. L. Peckham but he wrote his I’s like J’ so that is why he was sometimes referred to as J.L. Peckham.

It wasn’t until 1940, that census takers noted whom had answered the question for them, however from the answers given in the 1880 census it appears that Isaac provided the information. Interestingly, Isaac says that he was born in Connecticut, not Pennsylvania, and that both his parents were born in Connecticut. The reason it seems that Isaac answered the census questions is that his age of 44 in 1880 is correct, whereas Dora, who was 10 years younger than Isaac therefore 34 was listed as 27. The census also recorded incorrectly that Dora’s mother was born in Minorca. Dora was proud of her Minorcan heritage, but she knew that her mother was born in Florida.

When deciphering genealogical documents, it is always best to consider information that was given by the individual themselves rather than informants information given after their death. No evidence was found of Isaac’s birth in Pennsylvania. However, 14-year-old Isaac Peckham is in the 1850 Census in Farmington, Connecticut. Unlike the other school age children in the household, the census shows Isaac Peckham is not attendingschool.

The 1840 Census did not ask for names of every member in the household, only the head of the household, with other members counted with a tick mark in their age group. Since Isaac’s father’s name is unknown, no recordsfor Isaac before 1850 have been found. Isaac’s mother name is unknown; however, Isaac Peckham usually used his middle initial of L. which stood for Lester. While there were many Peckham and Lester families on the



Connecticut/Rhode Island border there were none in Farmington and no church records were found of Isaac’s birth or baptism.

The Farmington’s Town Historian surmised that by 1850 Isaac L. Peckham was an orphan bound out to learn a trade. At that time, it was common for orphans from the ages of 12 -15 to be bound out, whereby the individual they apprenticed covered their room and board.

The First Church of Christ archivists found an April 6, 1851 record that Isaac L. Peckham had become a member of the church. The 1850 census showed that Isaac lived at 24 Main St. in Farmington at the large house of the wealthy merchant William Gay, who was a Deacon at the church.

Living next store in the smaller 16 Main St. house was a carpenter, Leonard Winship. Since, Isaac L. Peckham was found working for a carpenter in Macon, Georgia in the 1860 US Census. Putting 2 and 2 together, it makes sense that Isaac was an apprentice for Winship but lived next store in Gay’s larger home.

In the Farmington Public Library genealogy section, it was found that Winship was most remembered for his work on the mahogany interior of the First Church of Christ at 75 Main St., Farmington and that a man from Macon, Georgia, so much admired the work that he ordered a similar set fora church in Macon.

Timothy Porter, who was the Farmington town Joiner, worked with Leonard Winship on the Church. A joiner is someone who does the fine detail work on furniture. Although there are many connections between Connecticut and Georgia, it is Timothy Porter who was “the man from Macon” and he also most likely brough Isaac Peckham to Georgia. Timothyhad two brother in-laws, that lived in Georgia: one in Macon and another inMilledgeville.

The Connecticut State Library holds letters between Timothy Porter and hissolicitor, Horace Cowles of Farmington, CT. In January 1837, Timothy Porter writes from Macon, GA requesting the Cowles write a contract with Mr. Winship for a pulpit, pews and complete furnishings like the one in



Farmington, CT for a church in Macon. He goes one to say, “Get Mary Rootto make the curtains, same satin as used in Farmington.” with tassels and fringe.” With the help of the Middle Georgia Regional Library Reference Assistant in the Genealogical and Historical Room it was determined that Timothy Porter was working on the First Presbyterian Church of Macon; built in the New England style. Timothy Porter’s letter continued as he ordered seat cushions and tassels for the curtains. He asked that the product be shipped to Darien, GA. Georgia author and historian Buddy Sullivan confirmed that there was regular steamship service from Macon and Darien. Ships took upland cotton from middle Georgia to Darien, where it would then be shipped to the factories in New England. The ships would return with finished goods for the southern plantations.

Timothy Porter would work in Macon and Milledgeville each winter over the next 20 years, as Yankee workmanship was admired in the Antebellum South. His most famous building is what we now call the “Old Governor’s Mansion”. Milledgeville was the capital of Georgia from 1804 to 1868. According to Memories of the Mansion: The Story of Georgia’s Governor’s Mansion, upon Timothy Porter return to Georgia in October 1837, he brought with him, 12 carpenters, bricklayers, and 28 boxes of tools, molding, hardware, a Redford crown window glass from New York.

We know that Timothy Porter was ending his involvement in Georgia in 1855 because he was advertised his nearly 1000 acres of prime timber land in Appling and Lowndes County for sale in the Hartford Courant in May 1855. We also know that by 1855, Isaac would have completed his apprenticeship. Upon completion apprenticeship, a man needed to work under a master carpenter for three years and often traveled to gain experience. Timothy Porter would have brought Isaac to Macon.

What did Timothy Porter need Isaac to work on? Most likely, a new the church for First Presbyterian Church of Macon. The church would sell the New England styled church built in 1837 but wanted to keep and use its interior furnishes. It is unknown who built the new church, however for removing the interior and reinstalling it, they most likely would have turned to Timothy Porter who first installed it. After the interior was put into the newer, Timothy Porter returned to Connecticut and moved from



Farmington to Hartford to become involved in other enterprises requiring his full-time attention in Connecticut.

Without Timothy Porter in Georgia where did that leave Isaac Peckham? Isaac job prospects may have been slim, or he may have been looking for anadventure for we next find 21-year-old Isaac joining the Florida Mounted Volunteers to fight in the Third Seminole Indian War, on Dec. 20, 1856. At the end of the Second Seminole Indian War, the Seminoles who remained in Florida, had a truce with the US government that restricted the Seminoles to southwestern Florida. The Seminoles viewed the verbal agreement as a treaty however, as white settlements moved into Seminole territory, the U.S. Government said since there was nothing in writing, it was not a treaty but just a truce to provide time for the remaining 500 or so Seminoles to move to Oklahoma. The Seminoles did not want to Oklahoma resulting in a no-win situation that was bound to boil up.

Isaac Peckham’s first posting was the rich farmland around Lake Okeechobee. Isaac found that the Seminoles were hard to find, especially as they went deeper into the swamp. On February 2, 1858, Isaac’s horse was killed by an alligator. Horses and alligators don’t mix. He remounted by April.

As the Seminoles retreated deeper into the everglades, the horses could not penetrate. The military resorted to boats and destroyed all the Seminole farmland and villages they found. Isaac’s calvary unit was stationed at Fort Meade and he became an Express Rider delivering messages between the military forts. It wasn’t easy territory to cover and Peckham lost his horse while on an Express.

After 14 months, about 200 Seminoles agreed to move to Oklahoma. The government had no idea how many Seminoles were left in the Florida everglades, but they felt they would never find them all. Isaac was mustered out on May 22, 1858, at the age of 23. Of interesting note, since that the government had a hard time getting rations to the soldiers, therefore they put the soldiers stationed at Fort Meade on half rations and required the soldiers told to grow food for themselves and their horses. The men were so successful, that they were reimbursed for their unused half



rations. Isaac received $83.40, this experience may have made an impression on him for later in life, Isaac was a farmer.

It appears that after the war, Isaac returned to Macon, since we find him in the 1860 US Census in Macon working for a carpenter.

We next find 25-year-old Isaac L. Peckham is Brunswick, Georgia. He enrolled on August 15. 1861 in the Camden Rifles. What brought Isaac from Macon to the coast is unknown. Although, it was common for people to move from Macon to the coast, it could have been for work. In Frederick Doveton Nichols book, The Early Architecture of Georgia, he writes “There was always a shortage in coastal Georgia of good housewrights.” Whether he came to Camden or Glynn County, Georgia is unknown, but he joined the infantry unit of the Camden Rifles. Isaac remained with them until the Confederate troops re-organized. On May 21, 1862, Isaac joined the Camden Mounted Rifles. His was part of 10 companies in the 4th Georgia Volunteer Cavalry or “The Cavalry Command South of the Altamaha River” since they defended the land between the Altamaha River and the St. Mary’s River. Since it was such a large territory, Isaac company would be broken up into small picket groups to defend against the Union forces that traversed the rivers along the coast, targeting plantations and seizing property so that planters would not return to plant crops. Isaac’s Cavalry also went after deserters and watched over Union sympathizers.

The 4th Georgia Volunteer Cavalry lost several men due to illness or when they lost their horses being transferred, and Isaac found the remaining menwere unable to stop Union forces from pressing inland. When word of Union troops from Jacksonville, Florida were moving west, the Florida Confederate troops requested support and on Feb. 13, 1864, 250 men, including Isaac, were provided. The result was the Battle of Olustee on Feb. 20, 1864. The battle is reacted every year but little of the cavalry is seen for even though the Confederates won, Isaac’s Cavalry troops were positioned on the left flank by a swamp. Many horses got bogged down and were lost. Isaac with his Seminole Indian War experience knew on how to handle a horse in a swamp and had no problems.



Isaac and his fellow soldiers returned to Georgia on April 23rd. By July,1864 Isaac’s 4th Georgia Volunteer Cavalry only had 450 mounted troops, and all, including Isaac, were sent to fight in the battles for Atlanta, where Isaac stayed until General Sherman left for Savanah on November 16th. Isaac and his fellow soldiers followed Sherman but when Sherman headed towards South Carolina, Isaac and the others returned to defend thecoast below the Altamaha. By May, the 4th Georgia Cavalry only had 200 men on active duty, they all surrendered on May 10, 1865, including 29-year-old Isaac.

The next record to be found on Isaac is the 1870 US Census. Isaac is living on Little Cumberland Island, GA. Isaac living with fellow soldier of 4th Georgia Cavalry, Elias Clubb and his family. Isaac is also near another war comrade, Charles Miller. Isaac is a harbor pilot. Guiding ships through thedangerous shoals of the St. Andrew Sound as the make their voyages up anddown the Satilla River.

The Bryan-Lang Historical Archives in Woodbine, GA was a goldmine for information on Isaac’s time in Camden County, GA. In 1875, Isaac L. Peckham had become the Assistant Lighthouse Keeper for Little Cumberland Island, GA. Previous Assistant Keepers were: J.S Hunter – 1871, Robert H. Frohock -1872, Julius A. Rudolph – 1873, Olaf Anderson – 1874). While they all only stayed a year, Isaac remained until 1882, seven years.

Camden Courthouse Records show that on November 20, 1875, Peckham bought 15 acres from Elias Clubb and Luke Martin. Tax records shows that Isaac has horses and milking cows worth $260. He is producing butter, corn and potatoes. The small lighthouse keeper’s cottage could only fit the keeper’s family so Isaac as the assistant lived on his farm. Isaac’s farm was next to as Dora’s brother, Joseph Lasserre. Joseph and Isaac were good friends and Joseph was caring for Isaac the day he died. It is through Joseph that Isaac most likely meet Dora.

Isaac, 41-years-old, and Dora, 31-years-old, married on August 27, 1877 at Joseph Lasserre’s house. However, Dora is listed as Mrs. Isadora Lee. Mrs. Isadora Lee? The Coastal Georgia Historical Society had told Ms.



Olsen that Dora was born on August 1, 1846 in Georgia and that her father was John Baptiste Lasserre and mother was Margarita Andreu. She was also told that that Dora’s mother descended from Minorcans who came to Florida in the mid-1700s.

What did Ms. Olsen find out about Dora? Dora’s father, John, was a French sea captain and before his marriage to Dora’s mother, but John was previously married. According to family letters which they have made available on Ancestry.com, John met his first wife, Carletta, on his third voyage from France and America and they fell in love. They married and moved to St. Augustine, Florida where Carletta died on November 6, 1839.

Carletta and John had one daughter, Mary. Mary was two when her motherdied and according to the Lasserre family descendants who still live in Brunswick, Dora’s mother was Mary’s babysitter and that is how John and Margarita Andreu, meet and fell in love. John and Margarita had 12 children together, 8 of whom lived into adulthood. Dora would remain close to all her family but was particularly close with her older brother, Joseph, who as previous mentions was good friend with Isaac. Dora was also close with her two years younger sister, Selina.

As was mentioned, Dora’s mother was of Minorcan descent and Ms. Olsen learned that Dora’s 3X’s Great-Grandmother was Maria Andreu, born in 1722 in Minorca, Spain. After the French and Indian War, Spain forfeited Minorca in the Mediterranean and Florida in the Americas to England. In Florida, Dr. Andrew Trumbull bought 20,000 acres of land some 70 miles below St. Augustine. Dr. Trumbull named thearea “New Smyrna” after his wife’s birthplacein Smyrna, Greece. Trumbull’s plan was tohave Greek indentured servants farm the land,since he thought they would be used to itstypical climate. His recruiters found someGreeks that were interested, but the responsefrom the people in Minorca was overwhelming.Dora’s 3X’s Great-Grandmother, MariaAndreu, was among them and she came to NewSmyrna in 1768. After nine years of disease



and ill-treatment, approximately 600 of the surviving settlers walked to St. Augustine and asked for asylum. The Minorcans settled in St. Augustine, living amongst themselves and intermarrying. So much so, that Dora’s maternal grandparents, Joseph J. Andreu and Maria Mestre were distant cousins.

Joseph was the St. Augustine Lighthouse Keeper until he fell to his death in 1859 while painting the lighthouse tower. See obituary from St. Augustine Examiner, December 10, 1859. Joseph’s wife became the Keeper and was the first Hispanic American woman to serve in the Lighthouse Service. Dora’s family was not living in St. Augustine, FL at the time, since they moved to Brunswick, GA @1853.

Dora’s sister, Selina lived to be 99 years and before she died her granddaughter asked her to write down why the Lasserre family come to Georgia. Selina’s family put the letter on Ancestry.com. Quotes have been edited for clarity and length.

Dora’s sister, Selina wrote “Mr. John DuBignon advised father to build a home on Jekyll Island. DuBignon gave him the land to build on.” The Dubignon’s owned Jekyll Island. Selina’s story is backed up with facts since we find the Lasserre’s in the 1850 US Census living close to John DuBignon and in 1860 US Census, the family is just two doors away from John Dubignon. Also, in 1917, The Brunswick News reported that Dora’s father built a square rigger for DuBignon in 1854 and he went on to build three more schooners.

Along with Dora family letters, Isaac’s Civil War Muster Role Records found on Fold 3, Dora’s father Georgia Reconstruction Oath in 1867 on Ancestry.com, Dora’s 1920 US Civil War Remarried Widow Pension from the National Archives in Washington, D.C., and Dora’s 1925 FL ConfederateWidows Pension on Family Search; a clear picture of Dora’s life during the Civil War can be drawn.

Dora’s stepsister, Mary, married Joseph Dangaix in Brunswick in 1856. Dora’s father and Joseph Dangaix were 10 years apart in age and both became naturalized citizens in 1840’s, but they and others viewed them as French. In 1871, The Southern Claims Commission was set up to



compensate people from whom the Federal Government took possessions from during the Civil War. Joseph Dangaix filed a 65+ page claim, in which he states that he was loyal to the Union and property of his was taken by theUnion Navy.

The Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion also provide details of the Dora’s family during the Civil War.

Ms. Olsen pulled all these documents together and they tell an interesting story. When the war was spoken of Dora’s family moved to Brunswick. Most likely they moved in with Dora’s stepsister, Mary Dangaix, her husband, Joseph and their two children since they already lived in Brunswick. The 1860 US Census shows that Dora’s sister, Mary owned a grocery store valued at $2,000 and her husband, Joseph was its merchant.

The Southern Claims Commission process required testimony by the claimants and in Dora’s brother in-law, Joseph Dangaix was asked 56 questions.

#17 was: Were you ever arrested by the Confederate Government? His response was: I was arrested by Confederate authorities on the charge of selling liquor to soldiers.

#18. Was any of your property ever taken by the Confederate authorities? The Confederate authorities took and destroyed about $1500 worth of liquors and fixtures in 1861. -- This is a considerable amount since in the 1860 Census Dora’s stepsister’s grocery store was valued at $2,000.

#19. Were you ever threatened on account of your Union sentiments? I was threatened and driven from my house with pistols pointed at me.

His answer to #33 sums up how he and most likely Dora’s father felt at the time. Do you solemnly declare that, from the beginning of hostilities to theend, your sympathies were with the cause of the United States? My feelings were always in favor of the Union. Was a foreigner and did not wishto excite anymore opposition than I could help.



By the Fall of 1861, Union blockade ships had arrived on the coast and by December, citizens were ordered to evacuate. However, even though a great many people left, but many, like Dora’s family, had no place to go. Plantation owners left for the inland and offered their farms to those who had no place to go. Dora’s father was offered a farm at Satilla Neck, on the Satilla River, with a large house. They were one of the last to leave on March 9, 1862.

Also, on March 9th, two Union gunboats arrived at Jekyll and St. Simons tofind them abandoned, then sailed on to Brunswick.

Dora’s father left Brunswick first in his sailboat with Dora’s younger brother, Thomas. Although Dora’s family letter doesn’t say, one can presume that Dora’s father also took Dora’s brother-law-in, Joseph Dangaixfamily him, since, since Joseph Dangaix did not know how to sail. The letterdoes say that Dora’s father had gotten a large lighter (a boat) and a man to take Dora’s mother, 15-year-old Dora and the four children to the farm, with all the belongs they had. With such a large load they had to wait for thetide to come up.

It appears that, Dora’s father skirted by the Union gunboats on his earlier trip, by while Dora’s family waited for high tide, they saw the Union gunboats coming up the river to Brunswick. Obviously, a Plan B had been made, for Dora’s mother rushed everyone to train. The train arrived in Waynesville after dark and Dora’s mother left her with the other children while she tried to find a place to stay. Instead, Dora’s mother was offered a tent.

Ms. Olsen visited The Waynesville Historical and Preservation Society looking for where the refugee camp where the family would have set up their tent stayed in Waynesville. However, Ms. Olsen was informed that there was no camp. Instead, what happened is that people came inland for safety and were offered places with families or friends, but most often, as was the case with the Dora’s family, all that could be provided was a tent.

The next morning, Dora’s mother found an ox team, that was used to haul logs. It had no seat. Dora’s poor mother and her baby climbed behind the oxen and sit as best they could. The ox driver, Dora and the younger



children walked along side for some 15 miles. A meet up place most have been planned for they family found Dora’s father with his boat and found a shack to spend the night.

The family arrived at the farm at Satilla Neck on March 11, 1862. Interestingly, Isaac Peckham’s Civil War records show that on March 12th, his Company B was ordered by Col. Styles to march to Hopewell on the Satilla River. (Hopewell is just north of Woodbine.) Isaac’s infantry troop arrived on April 4, 1862.

Not surprising since part of Isaac’s infantry troops mission was to go after disaffected citizens, they would check up on Dora’s family as they know of her brother-law’s pro-union sentiments. In fact, in the claim Dora’s brother-in-law was asked: #20 Were you molested on account of your Union sentiments? He responded, “In the spring of 1862, Confederate soldiers insulted my wife, knocked me down and threatened to shoot me.” One can also assume that even if Isaac Peckham didn’t witness this altercation, he at least knew of the Dora’s family and where their sympathies lie, amusing that Dora’s father was also seen as pro-union.

After the harvest, in October 1862, Dora’s family moved to Waynesville. Dora’s brother-in-law was a merchant and Dora’s father started to build a boat. In July 1863, Dora’s family moved to Cabbage Bluff, which is on Fancy Bluff Creek less than 20 miles from Brunswick.

In the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion is a report from Acting Master W.T. Gillespie, of the US BARK BRAZILLIERA, which was the Union ship blockading Brunswick, it says that Dora’s father had told the Captain Gillespie of his plans to build a boat. With the intention of putting Dora’s family and cotton in her, and the delivering the boat into Union hands. Dora’s father was building a 75’ Sloopwhich he called the Buffalo and will buy 20 bales of cotton. In Dora’s brother-in-law 1871 Claim, he says the sloop and cotton were valued at $4650. And since he financed the boat and helped the Union capture it, the government owes him that money.

The Union Captain further reported that, Dora’s father kept him constantly notified of the sloop’s progress. Dora’s father took the oath of allegiance on



October 16, 1863, when the rebels divined his intention, he was compelled to seek refuge and lived on the Union blockade ship Braziliera.

So, from the beginning the middle of October 1863 it was left up to Dora’s brother-in-law, Joseph Dangaix, to finish the job. He sailed out to Braziliera, five times to report on what is going on. He also found men to finish the sloop, a captain to sail it and purchased 20 bales of cotton. He was under pressure to sail by February 1864 since the Confederate government passed a new conscription act which extended the draft from 18 – 45 to 17 – 50-years-old. The new conscription act was to go into effect in February, which meant that Dora’s brother-in-law would be forced to join the Confederate army, leaving Dora’s family alone.

As the deadline got closer and the boat was complete, to make the story good of running the blockade with cotton. Dora’s brother-in-law was compelled to load the sloop “Buffalo” with cotton from others. The captain that was hired to sail the sloop was distrustful so much so that he had turpentine and matches on board the sloop and was prepared to set fire to the vessel if his suspicions were confirmed.

After a test run and being loaded with a total of 72 bales of cotton. As a precaution, pickets from Isaac’s Cavalry Company were set up to watch overthe sloop “Buffalo”, until it was scheduled to sail on Feb. 2, 1864. However, there was no room for Dora’s family on board the sloop! So, another plan was made by Dora’s father and brother-in-law.

On the night of Feb 1, Dora’s father piloted the Union captain up the river to Cabbage Bluff. Dora’s father proved to be invaluable throughout. Dora’s brother-in-law led the Union captain and his men to the sloop’s anchorage and gave the position of pickets who were guarding her. The Union force of28 men was divided, one, under the captain, secured the sloop and the other captured the pickets. The surprise was complete. The Union captain brought away the sloop and Dora’s families.

Dora’s brother-in-law’s claim also included testimony from Private Scott Holmes who confirmed his capture along with a corporal and 5 other privates from Isaac’s Company.



Dora’s father wrote the following letter to assure that he could keep ownership of the sloop and its 20 bales of cotton:

Captain Gillespie reported that Dora’s father’s claim to the sloop “Buffalo”, and its 20 bales of cotton, should be recognized. For without his assistance it would have been impossible for the Union attack to have succeeded and all that Dora’s father was worth was in the sloop.

Dora’s father, died in 1868, but if her had been alive in 1871 to make a Southern Claim himself and/or if the sloop had not been destroyed seven weeks after its capture perhaps the government would have honored the claim. Instead the sloop “Buffalo” and its contents were considered a prize of war and Dora’s brother-in-law claim was rejected.

However, Union Captain Gillespie wrote a letter of recommendation for Dora’s brother-in-law saying that “Joseph Dangaix helped me get the prize sloop Buffalo away and that I am anxious to help him get employment so that he could support his family.” After a brief stay on the Union blockade ship, Dora’s families where brought to Port Royal, SC after which her brother-in-law, his family and other Union sympathizers were sent to



Philadelphia. In Philadelphia, Dora’s brother-in-law gained employment ata Lager Beer Saloon.

Dora’s father got work in Hilton Head, as a pilot. Although no records havebeen found, a good guess is that he worked as a pilot for the Union Navy.

It appears that Dora, her mother and the younger children also lived on Hilton Head, except for Dora’s sister, Selina who said that she went to live with my stepsister, Mary, in Philadelphia. There, Selina met and married Joseph Ligeour, who was with the Union Navy”

When the War was over everybody wanted to go home. We find in the Georgia Reconstruction Oath Books of July 20, 1867, that Dora’s father andbrother, Joseph Lasserre, are found in Jeffersonton, Camden County, Georgia on the Satilla River. The county seat was moved from Jeffersonton in 1869 in part because of its high rate of yellow fever; it was moved to St. Mary’s. Then in 1923 the county seat of Camden County was moved from St. Marys to Woodbine, a reflection of the shift from the water transportation to railways. Jeffersonton no longer exist but it was about three miles west of Woodbine.

How Dora’s father died in Nov. 1868 is unknown, but malaria could have been the cause. At his death, Dora’s mother had his estate inventoried, he had: four pair pants @1.50 = $6.00, three coats @1.50 = $4.50, one pair boot, $1.50, one hat $0.50, one silver watch and gold chain $25.00, one trunk $2.00, one gun $10.00 one sail boat $50.00, one sail and jib $25.00.

Before Dora’s father died, his saw 21-year-old Dora marry on Nov. 27, 1867 in Jacksonville, Florida. In her 1920 US Civil War Remarried Widow



Pension Application she says:

At 28-years-old Dora was widow. Her husband, J.R. Lee died at 35 years old on November 11,1874. Dr. W.R. Dart wrote:



Since Dora’s husband went by an alias, obviously he was hiding something. How much he told Dora is unknown: there was very little information found on him. They may have been married in Jacksonville, Florida, because Dora was catholic and there was no catholic church in Brunswick atthe time also Dora’s mother had family living in the Jacksonville area.

Dora had no children with Seneca Lee nor would she have any with her future husband Isaac Peckham. This research explained why when 31-



years-old Dora and 41-years-old Isaac were married on August 27, 1877, that her name was Isadora Lee.

The newlyweds lived on Isaac’s farm, since the Keeper had a family of 11 and there was barely room for them. In 1880, a contract for a new cottage similar in design to the Tybee Island Lighthouse Keepers Cottage was signed in June and it was completed seven months later. The older, smaller,brick building became the assistant lighthouse dwelling. Camilla Moore Merts book, The story of Little Cumberland Island Lighthouse (The occasional papers of Island Labs) states that by 1883, “The assistant keepers dwelling that was almost inhabitable was thoroughly repaired and painted, a new veranda was built, the roof shingle were repaired and the kitchen, fences, and the plank walk were put into good condition.” She found no contract for its renovation but based on the knowledge we gained about Isaac Peckham; he most likely had a hand in it.

Isaac was promoted to St. Simons Keeper on January 1, 1883 and Mariana Isadora Peckham became that Assistant Keeper on May 16, 1883. Husband and wife Keeper teams were not unusual in the lighthouse service. They made good money together with Isaac making $600/quarter and Dora would make $450/quarter. We know many details about their every-day lives from the archives of the newspaper Advertiser and Appeal, which was printed from 1880-1886. Often Dora was just referred to as the best shot on the island. Such as “The best shot killed 4 fine English ducks out of a gang of 5 Wednesday morning. She could have killed all 5, but 4 were enough for dinner. Mr. P. is a goodshot, when he draws a bead, he bringsgame down, 6 out of 7 times.”

There were many articles about thecouple including one about theMagnitude 7 earthquake that hitCharleston, South Carolina on August 31,1886 at 9:30 PM.

We also find out from the Advertiser andAppeal that in May 1884, Mr. P.



obtained a valuable tract of land from Capt. James Postell, which he will prepare for tillage. – The result was “Peckham has a fine garden.”

In Aug 1884: Mr. IL Peckham received for his stock farm, four fine horses.

In Oct. 1885: Isaac Peckham bought a fine residence. Will be clearing the underbrush to take advantages of the beauty a seaside residence, with the intention have a permanent home. And the 1890 Tax Records shows that Isaac owned 50 acres on St. Simons.

In December 1892, I. L. Peckham bought one of the first lots of King City onMallery St. for $225. With no children and Isaac earning $600/quarter while Dora earned $450, they were building quite a nice nest egg.

In Dec. 1893 the Savannah Morning News reported, “The Peckhams had grown tired of government work and will move to their country home on North St. Simons.” Later Dora said they retired because of Isaac’s health. Isaac retired at the age of 57.

Dora’s family were Catholics but in1896, at the age of 59, Dora had anadult Episcopal baptism and becamea member at Christ Church, whichwas near their farm at LawrencePlantation. Where they went tochurch when they lived at thelighthouse is unknown.

On Saturday, July 17, 1897 it appearsas though Isaac had stroke. TheMacon Telegraph reported that onJuly 22, 1897, Isaac was stricken withparalysis.

Isaac was unconscious and has no chance of recovery, therefore Dora decided to have Isaac be given an Adult Baptism from Christ Church on Wednesday, July 21, 1897.



The Christ Church records show:

“At Lawrence Plantation at Mr. Peckham’s home, Isaac Lester Peckham is given an Adult Baptism. In Periculo Mortis - "in danger of death.” The surprising thing is that Dora stated that Isaac was born in Columbia Co., Pennsylvania in Oct. 12, 1835. No Peckham records can be found there.

Ms. Olsen had the experts at theNew England Historical andGenealogical Society review Isaac’srecords, and they believe that Isaaclighthouse keeper informationstating he was born in PA was atypo. In fact, other lighthousekeepers birth information hadproved incorrect.

However, one expert mentioned that Columbia County area (now northeastPennsylvania) was settled with people from Connecticut in 1769. Armed bands of Pennsylvanians tried to expel the settlers and in 1778, during the American Revolution, Loyalists and their Iroquois allies massacred 300 settlers causing most of the remaining settlers returned to Connecticut.

Later a few Connecticut settlers returnedand to resettle however by 1786 theirland was considered part ofPennsylvania. This story provides aplausible explanation of Isaac’s birth in1835 in Pennsylvania, but the dates areoff by 50 years and there are noPennsylvania records to support Isaac’sbirth. Perhaps just as Isaac falselyreported in the 1880 Census that Dora’s



mother was from Minorca, Dora may have heard about Peckham family history in Pennsylvania and applied it falsely to him.

Isaac took the truth to his grave for he never regained conscience so we maynever know for sure. The Brunswick Times reported Isaac’s death on July 27, 1897. Isaac is buried at Christ Church in a two-person plot since Dora had planned to be buried there.

Dora was the executor of Isaac’s will and he left her everything. After Dora settled his estate, we find her as a boarder, in the 1900 Census living on Oglethorpe Street, downtown Brunswick, near her older brother, Joseph. We know that the lighthouse was a neat as lady’s parlor so it should come as no surprise that Dora was working as housekeeper.

Under the 1902 Pension Act, widows could get a pension for men that had served in Florida wars with Seminole Indians, 1842-1858 and Dora applied for Isaac’s pension. Before Social Security, pensions served as safety net for many men and their widows. Her pension correspondence is addressed to her at Colesburg, Camden County, where she owned property. Colesburg isnear the Satilla River and the smaller community of Seals, where other family members owned property after the war; Dora’s mother, Margarita, died in Seals in 1814. Although there is not much there today, Colesburg, three miles south of Woodbine, was a train depot stop until 1948. And according to Camden’s Challenge, A History of Camden County, compiled by Marguerite Reddick, there was a post office, turpentine stills, stores, restaurants, a grocery store, night clubs and even a place to play baseball. Upon her death, Dora’s property in Colesburg/Seals was sold to pay for her gravestone.

Dora received $8/month, which in 1913 was increased to $20/month. By the age of 70 in 1917, Dora found that most of her younger siblings had moved to Florida and she moved to Fernandina, FL and lived next store to her sister, Selina.

With the Act of May 1, 1920, all widows age 70 or more, whose husbands had served for Union at least 90 days, were entitled to $30/month. Dora at 74-years-old applied her first husband, Seneca S. Lee pension. Dora’s



sisters also applied for a Union Pension, Selina and younger sister, Theresa,who married a Union soldier, David Herring in 1868.

Dora would have to forego Peckham’s Indian Pension of $20/month for Seneca S. Lee Widows Pension of $30/month. When the government reviewed her Indian War Pension, Dora had stated she was previously married to James R. Lee, yet she was applying for Seneca S. Lee Pension. This raised the question of whether she was married once or twice.

She responded with her explanation, that James R. Lee and Seneca Lee were the same person. However, when the government reviewed Seneca’s records, they found he had enlisted at Dover, NY on August 29, 1862 and that he was third Sergeant. Dover is located on the eastern boundary of the state and west of the state of Connecticut. Seneca’s 150 NY Regiment left NY on Oct. 11, 1862 to Baltimore, Maryland and on May 20, 1863, Seneca S.Lee had deserted. This explains why Seneca changed his name to James. Dora’s pension request was rejected.

Nevertheless, Dora would apply for Isaac’s Confederate Pension. Confederate Widows Pensions were awarded by the states and in 1925, Florida offered pensions. Dora applied on August 4, 1925 and was awarded$300/year.

In 1927, Indian War Pension for widows were increased to $30/month. Dora was 81 years old and doing well for herself. She owned her own home without a mortgage and had a Ford Sedan. Dora appears as to have been in good health until July 1931 when she wrote a will, in which she gave her car and house to her sister, Christina.

She died on August 3, 1831 in Fernandina where she is buried at Bosque Bello Cemetery in Fernandina, FL surrounded by her younger siblings and their families. Although she didn’t choose to be buried with Isaac at Christ Church or with her parents and brother, Joseph, and stepsister, Mary, at Oat Grove Cemetery in Brunswick; Ms. Olsen has connected Dora with all her family members on the website Findagrave.com.

All this research could not have been possible without the help of many organizations and resources.



Middle Georgia Regional Library

Macon First Presbyterian Church

Waynesville Historical & Preservation Society

St. Augustine Genealogical Society

St. Augustine Historical Society

Amelia Island Museum of History

Fernandina Library

Bryan-Lang Historical Archives

Farmington First Congregational Church

Farmington Historical Society

Farmington Library

Connecticut State Library

Coastal Georgia Genealogy Society

National Archives

New England Historical and Genealogy Society

St. Simons Island Christ Church

Bosque Bello Cemetery

Oak Grove Cemetery Association

Lower Altamaha Historical Society

Appomattox Court House National Park



Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Seminole Indian Museum

St. Augustine, Tolomato Cemetery Preservation Society

New Smyrna Beach Historical Society

St. Augustine Historical Society

Greek Orthodox National Shrine

Marshes of Glynn Libraries

Ancestry.com / Familysearch.org

Findagrave.com

Newspapers.com

Fold3.com

Digital Library of Georgia

Glynngen.com

lighthousefriends.com

Google Books

FamilySearch.org

The Brunswick News

Archive.org

HathiTrust Digital Library

Civil War Talk Forum

Florida Times Union



United States Coast Guard

Univ. of Florida Digital Collections


Isaac Lester Peckham, Lighthouse Keeper - Jan 8, 1883 - 1 Jan … · 2020-02-17 · covered the...

Documents

Transcript of Isaac Lester Peckham, Lighthouse Keeper - Jan 8, 1883 - 1 Jan … · 2020-02-17 · covered the...