Martha Ann Rankin 1827-1877
Martha Ann Rankin (1827
– 1877)
Composed and copyrighted by Linda
Sparks Starr, August 2011
Martha Ann, perhaps named for her great-grandmother Martha ( )
Rankin Stephenson or her Aunt Martha (Rankin) Poage. She was the
tenth and youngest child of George and
Mary (Rankin). Born May 27, 1827 in Anderson County, South
Carolina, she possibly died in the same house in which she was
born. We are fortunate an identified photo of her was among
those treasures found in the Calhoun, Georgia home of her nephew, W. R.
Rankin.
Martha was 27 when her father died in 1854. In the division
of his property, his
widow and four unmarried daughters received the house and 410 acres
around it. At that time the unmarried son may have taken over the
day to day operation of their farm. But George received the mill
and land of his own. Southern women at their social level were trained
from early childhood to manage households. It is not unthinkable that
one or two of the sisters had a head for business and thus managed the
farming operation. Except for the constant worry about loved ones
who were fighting for the cause, the daily life of the three women
probably didn’t change all that much until the end of the war.
Times were difficult for everyone after the spring of 1865. We
can assume their life wasn’t any worse, nor any better, than it
was for
those around them.
A glimpse into their daily life early 1870s is found in the January
1873 will of Martha’s aged mother. She speaks of the
care-taking efforts by her three daughters during the lingering illness
of their sister, Mary Jane. She then adds a comment about the
“care of and ministering to my wants for so long a
time.” Even without this testimonial, we would assume the
sisters had nursed the sick among their family and neighbors.
Indeed, rural southern culture of this era dictated that family take
care of family. Presumably Martha, the youngest, did her fair
share and probably more of the sickroom duties requiring physical
labor. After all she was twelve years younger than Eliza,
the oldest of the four unmarried daughters.
Mary Jane’s death without a will brought to light a legal problem
with property intended to be shared by five individuals. When
title to the 410 acre tract was drawn up, everyone assumed the land
would descend only to the survivors among those five ladies. But
legally, without a will saying otherwise, all Mary Jane’s
siblings (and heirs of those deceased) were entitled to share her
portion of the land. The mother, Mary (Rankin), wrote her
own will early in 1873 thereby correcting inheritance problems her own
death without a will would create. She appointed her youngest two
children, George W. and Martha A., executor and executrix. They
were duly given Letters of Administration April 17, 1873. Martha’s name as executrix
appears on some of this estate’s documents indicating she was
involved in the proceedings.
But George was the only administrator of Mary Jane’s estate and
hers was by far the more complicated. As administrator he
initiated a friendly lawsuit against his relatives to partition off and
sell her property. He was near the point of setting the date for
the sale when he unexpectedly died in September 1873.
Administration of Mary Jane’s estate came to an abrupt
halt. Four months later George’s widow applied for, and was
granted, administrator de bonus non
on Mary Jane’s
estate. (This is the legal term denoting the replacement of the
first appointed administrator by another.) Martha A. Rankin was
one of three co-signers for the required Administration
Bond.
The
amount of the bond was $125, or $75 less than the bond required for
George Rankin as administrator of the same estate. Several months
later Mary Jane's share of the 410 acre tract was sold at public
auction. Curiously, another administration bond (this one for
$257) was signed after the sale and this time around, Martha A. Rankin
was not one of the co-signers. Even more curious is the lack of
Martha’s name as one of the purchasers. Highest
bidders for
the property, at $300, were Martha’s sisters, Margaret P. Rankin
and Eliza B. Rankin.
Less than a year later the three surviving sisters signed their
respective wills. The dates, witnesses and provisions are the
same on the two extant wills and presumably Eliza’s will was the
same. Most accounts say Martha Ann Rankin died December 2, 1877;
but at least one record gives the same day, but year 1879. A
deposition
within Martha’s probate packet, signed November 24,
1879 by subscribing witness J. M. Smith, would seem to negate the later
year.
SOURCES
File #3688 from 1864-1871 L (C or E) 870 Estate of
Martha A. Rankin dec’d located South Carolina Department Archives
& History: Anderson County Estate Papers,
File #2912 from 1864-1871 L (C or E) 870 Estate of Mary
Jane Rankin dec’d located South Carolina Department Archives
& History: Anderson County Estate Papers,
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Linda Sparks Starr copyright (c) 2011