Don Ubben has been researching the life and ... - Oregon Pioneers

CHAPTER X(183) William Stokes was born in 1810 in Cabell Co. (present Wayne Co.), Virginia and died in 1859. He marriedLaura Ann Selover on May 20, 1852 in Oregon Territory. Laura Ann Selover, the daughter of Peter Selover &Elizabeth ‘Betsey Meade, was born Jan. 11, 1823 Trumansburg, Tompkins Co., New York, and died in ForestGrove, Oregon: Children: (1860 Washington Co., OR Census): Alice A. born c. 1853 O.T.; Ella born c. 1855 O.T.;Charles born c. 1856 O.T.; Laura born c. 1857 O.T.Ref: Stephenie Flora e-mail: “William Stokes is an elusive individual. Part of the problem is he died so early that hedidn’t establish himself long enough to earn a place in one of the early biographies. Some of the notes I have statethat he married first to Tabitha Brown and may have had a couple of children by her. Since he was in his 40s whenhe married Laura it is easy to assume there was a prior family. His donation land claim states he arrived in OregonTerritory in 1851. He shows up on the Washington Tax Rolls in 1849 but there are no records of him in OregonTerritory that I have found, prior to that. I am assuming he may have gone down into California. It appears he wasback in Washington County for a brief time in 1849. He died in 1859 and his (second?) wife, Laura, remarriedseveral years later. According to the census it appears he had 4 living children by Laura. I have also seen Laura’smaiden name as Selover.” *Laura had infantile paralysis during childhood & was lame the rest of her life. Laura hadgone out west to the Oregon Territory by covered wagon in 1851 with her sister Esther and brother-in-law FreemanLockhart After the death of William, in about 1861, Laura married Robert M. Porter.”Ref: History of Oregon by H.K. Hines – p.264: Robert Porter went to Oregon Territory in 1850 and took up adonation claim near Forest Grove. In 1852, he was married to Caroline Brown of Missouri and had three children.Caroline died in 1859, after which he married Laura (Selover) Stokes. Children: (1870 Washington Co., ORCensus): Ebenezer born 1854 OR, O.T.; Mary born 1856 OR, O.T.; Tabitha born 1858 OR, O.T.; Estella born 1863OR.(184) Ref: The Black Rock Desert Landscape – Friends of Black Rock HIgh Rock: refers to a faultblockmountain range consisting of dark Permian volcanic rock, the highest peak being known as Black Rock whichrises to 4,240 feet in height. The Black Rock Desert in northern Nevada is bounded on the east by the Black Rockrange and on the west by the Granite range.(185) Elam Brown & Isaac Allen traveled in close company. According to Dale Morgan, Elam Brown had a sonThomas J. Brown “…. a young man about twenty-five years…. He had gone to Oregon the year before, and was onhis way to meet his father….” Morgan also says; according to a biographical sketch of Elam Brown printed in theSan Jose Pioneer, January 26, 1878, that at Ft. Bridger, Elam, “had to leave his son Warren who had been sick for20 days with typhoid fever. George March and Wm. Scott was kind enough to remain with young Warren andaccompany him afterwards to Oregon…. which country he reached that fall.”Ref: Elam Brown (1797 – 1889 – Find A Grave Memorial: A son of Scottish parents, Thomas & Elizabeth (Lyons)Brown, Elam married Sarah Allen on January 10, 1823 in Madison Co. IL. Elam and Sarah had 4 children; Thomas,Warren, Lawrence Myers, and Margelene. In 1845 Sarah passed away and Elam sold the farm and moved west.With himself as Captain, he began the long journey to the Pacific Ocean by wagon train along with 16 familiesleaving St. Joseph, MO, May 1st, 1846. Assisting Elam in the captain duties was Isaac Allen accompanied by hiswife, Margaret, and their children. Isaac’s oldest son, William, brought his wife, Albina and their children andAlbina’s brother Overton Harris Foster…. Several members of the party took ill with “plains fever”, later discoveredto be caused from drinking the milk of the oxen and cattle. Some of them died including Isaac Allen. He was buriedon the banks of the Humbolt River in what is now Nevada…. After arriving at the Rancheria de John Sutter, theyrested for several days