Richard Jenkins was born on January 8, 1850 in Alabama. He married Melissa Cason
in May 1870 in Brown County, Texas. I believe that his family moved from Alabama to Texas sometime between
1850 and 1854 and his father died before 1870.
Richard and Melissa had eight children:
Melissa's orgins are somewhat of a mystery. I can't find any references to
Melissa Cason anywhere other than census records where she is married to Richard Jenkins. But my theory about her is that she was the daughter of Henry George Cason, whose father, John Jesse Cason, moved from Georgia
with his family to Brown County, Texas. George had a daughter Louisa M. Cason, who was born in 1853 in Georgia.
She is listed as Louisa M. Cason (age 7) in the 1860 Johnson County Texas Census. In the 1870 Brown County Texas
Census, Melissa Jenkins (age 17) is listed with her husband, Richard. Both of these women would have been born in 1853.
Although the 1870 Census lists her as being born in Texas, the 1900 Census shows her as being born in Georga in
March of 1853. In the Jenkins Springs Cemetery, there are two graves of infants of R. & L.M. Jenkins (one not dated
and one dated 1876). I believe that Louisa M. Cason is Melissa Jenkins and L.M. Jenkins. I think Richard probably
called her Melissa because he had a sister named Louisa (who I believe lived in the same household as Richard & Melissa
in 1870).
In 2005, my sister and I went to Coleman County where I had found a listing in Mount View Cemetery for L.M., wife of R. Jenkins, born March 10, 1858, died April 4, 1908
(which fits in with family lore). Thinking that 1853 could easily be misread as 1858, we visited Mount View Cemetery, found L.M. Jenkins' headstone and found that was the case.
My conclusion, this is Jim Jenkins' mother. I can't prove it without digging
her up and having DNA tests run, but I'm pretty confident.
Here's a picture of Melissa and a picture of what I believe is her tombstone.
