Sarah Jane Goodman 1778-1850++

Sister of Amos I. Goodman

Sarah Goodman married Obadiah Richardson May 16, 1797 in Greene Co., TN. Obadiah was a son of John Richardson. According to a descendant of Sarah, by her 2nd husband, they removed to Barren Co., KY, and Obadiah Richardson died there. Sarah Goodman Richardson then married 2nd, Mathew Harper, a close neighbor of Matthias Reynolds and Martha Goodman, and also of the Amos Goodman family, all occurring on the same page of the 1810 Barren Co. census. The story of Epharilla Thorpe, wife of the John Goodman who d. 1790 in Greene Co., TN, is from a descendant of Mathew Harper and Sarah Goodman Richardson Harper. See her EMails, following.

Related EMails from Nancy Kelsey

Subj: Sarah Jane Goodman Richardson Harper

About a month ago I learned of a Matthew Harper, of Hart/Barren, Bible record. In the Bible he recorded that his third wife was Sarah Richardson, widow of Obadiah Richardson.

Matthias Reynolds gave the bond ( I think that is what it is called) for the 2nd wife of Matthew Harper, Judah Reynolds, and for his third wife as above. I "assume" that Matthias was the father of Judah and the step father of Sarah??? Or some relative???

Matthew and Sarah's first daughter was Rachael Harper and the second daughter was Sarah Ann Goodman Harper.

According to a letter written by a granddaughter of Rachael Harper Fowler, the mother of Sarah Goodman Richardson Harper was Epharilla Thorpe 1) Goodman 2) Rice. I think she would be our common ancestor. The granddaughter also wrote that Epharilla was named for a ship that she was born on. This granddaughter lived with Rachael and she also wrote "I know this story is true as I have heard grandmother tell it many times." Several grand children were called Arilla, which I take to be a form of Epharilla. Have you heard this story?

My line:

Matthew and Sarah Harper left Hart Co. KY about 1844 for Dallas Co. MO and Matthew died there in 1845. He was born about 1770 in SC.  According to the census records of their children, Sarah Goodman Harper was born in VA.

Children of Matthew Harper and Sarah Jane Goodman Harper: Rachael, Joseph W., James Riley, Sarah Ann Goodman, and one other that at the present time I cannot think of.

Known daughter of Matthew Harper and Judah Reynolds was Frances Harper who married Jesse Reynolds. I have their line.

Matthew had a total of 16 children. Sarah Jane Goodman had five children by 1)Obediah Richardson, and 5 by 2)Matthew Harper.

James Riley Harper came to Texas in the early 1870's. His sister, Sarah Ann Goodman Harper Bethel moved from Dallas Co. MO to IL and to Hunt County TX in the 1860's. She died in 1913 in Mason Co. TX.

Rachael Harper Fowler stayed in Dallas Co. MO. She was married to Richard Fowler in Hart Co.

I printed your records so will have to study them. I am anxious to see if you have seen any Thorp records.

A Ruth Thorp married a Goodman ( I think I have this right; will need to check my info.) in Bedford Co. VA, and they were in Hart Co. She married a second time and moved to another KY county.

I need to check the 1900 and 1910 census for Sarah Ann Goodman Harper Bethel to see where she said that her parents were born. We don't have a Mason Co. census microfilm at the local library.

I hope that you receive this and to hear from you soon.. AOL persons often do not receive my e mail.

Message #2:

Subj: Goodman-Harper tidbits
Date: 97-11-24 12:09:32 EST
From: Nancy Kelsey
To: me

I'm glad that you received my e mail.

I plan on going to the local library today to look at the books we have on Green co. TN for Thorpe, Richardson, Goodman. (I already research Guinn, Shields, Waddle, Sevier of Greene Co.) I have my lap top on this morning so I can look up info and write to you at the same time and not depend on my memory of names and places. I hope that something will be a clue.

Do you have a Judah Reynolds in your records? She had three sons and two daughters by Matthew Harper. She was his second wife. The children were raised by Sarah Jane Goodman Richardson Harper. I exchange info with a descendant of Judah Reynolds Harper and Matthew Harper. According to the Matthew Harper Bible, Judah died 7 May 1815; he married Elizabeth Pierce in Spartenburg Co. SC, 21 April 1794; Elizabeth died 8 May 1807 in (Smith Co) TN.

I have been trying to find the Bible, as Matthew recorded the names and birthdates of his 16 children. In 1960, S. Floyd Bethel abstracted only part of the Bible in a book he wrote on the Bethels. Floyd Bethel died in the 1970's in east TX. I have been unable to find a descendant of his that has the Bible or knows where it is.

Joseph Harper, son of Matthew and Sarah Jane, had the middle name of Whitberger. Whitberger could be a clue. Joseph W. is in Matthew's will but the Bible gives Joseph Whitberger. Joseph was born 30 Aug 1820. Joseph was in the 1870 Bluffton, Yell co. ARK census, and the 1850 Harrison co. MO census. He was married to Serilda. Their children were Sarah Ellen, Richard, James Riley, Nancy, Ebenegan, Christina. Sarah Ellen was married to William Riley Reynolds, who was the son of Jessie Reynolds and Frances Harper Reynolds.

The names Riley and Larkin are used frequently. Could be a clue as to the first name of Unknown Thorpe. If the story of Epharilla is true, the parents were married in the old county as Epharilla was born on the ship Epharilla and was named for this ship. I have never found a ship mentioned by this name. I have written a library in Ireland that does research, which is where one source said they were from, but they did not find anything on a ship named Epharilla. I have also looked for Epharilla, and starting with "I" instead of "E" but have not found anything.

Another instance of the Thorpe name is: I wrote to a woman who lives about 60 miles from me. She is from the Rachael Harper Fowler line and this family came to Hico, TX from MO. In my letter I wrote that Epharilla's maiden name was Thorpe/Tharpe and she corrected me with Thorpe. About 3-4 years after her letter I went to see her. I wanted to find out how she knew the maiden name was Thorpe. By this time she was in the nursing home and did not remember what I was talking about. She was only interested in learning I was a cousin and maybe a way out of the nursing home. She did not have a home by then or a place that any family papers might be--or at least that she knew of. I could kick my self for waiting so long to go see her. Well, actually I did. Richard Harris Fowler, husband of Rachael Harper, was the son of Edward Fowler and Lucinda Jones.

Frances Reynolds and "my son in law Jessie Reynolds" are named in the Matthew Harper will. I have a copy of Matthew's will. Dallas co. MO is a burned Co. as is Hart Co. I have found nothing on where or when Sarah Jane Goodman Harper died. I have not found her on the 1850 census. She is not listed with my James Riley Harper in Dallas Co. In his will, Matthew gave James Riley Harper "the improvement I now live on by his maintaining of me and my wife our life times." I decide from this that Sarah had died by 1850.

Matthew Harper is on the tax records with a Goodman as the first owner. I have not added this to PAF and will have to look for the Goodman first name. I think it was Amos Goodman.

"The Dear Old Book" of Hattie Thomas 1855-1928 by James Brickley also gives the maiden name of Sarah Jane as Goodman. I ordered the book from James Brickley. He lived in Washington state and he has since died.

I hope that something is here that you can connect to with your research. It seems that you have done a lot of research.