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Note: FROM LETTER WRITTEN BY JAMES BUCHANAN GARDNER:
My mother's relatives all were of the well to do. Her father owned a large plantation in Tennessee, in Riceville, named for his family where he owned the store. On the plantation, they produced about everything they needed. Raised their own corn for bread and stock feed; Tobacco for use & sale; Cotton and sheep from which they spun the yarn and wove it into cloth for their clothes; Tanned leather and made it into shoes and harness; Raised hogs for bacon and drove them to Georgia every fall for profit; Raised their fruit and vegetables, staples and filled the celler for winter use and knew no such things as want. Her father had a shooting lodge in the Cumberland Mountains of 2000 acres for pleasure.
They owned 50 negroes who with his sons did all the work in the store and plantation. Each negro family had their own house and land where they could raise anything they wished for themselves. Sarah Tabitha had 2 negro girls with her at all times which she used to say was kind of a nuisance, and yet which suited the girls as they did not have to work in the fields. And yet my mother learned to spin weave and sew so that she always said she could beat the darkies at work.
Her mother was a Dodson from Pennsylvania and interested in a large estate there from which they got nothing as they were too far away to go back to make any claim, although Jack Dodson and Isaac Rice (my uncle) started on horseback to ride 1000 miles to prove their claim. Jack got sick and died and Isaac who went along for company on account of his youth and knowing none of the facts, turned around and went back to Tennessee. Mother's aunt and uncles all belonged to the well to do plantation owners and farmers.
In the maternal line, Sarah T. Rice is of German lineage. Her mother, who was a Miss Dodson, was born in the United States and became a member of the Rice family by marriage, which was celebrated in Tennessee.
APPLICATION FOR WIDOW'S PENSION:
In 1887 Sarah applied for a pension from the government as a widow of a Mexican War Veteran. (Application # 739, Certificate #10342) She re-applied in 1896. The file is available from the National Archives. Her deposition in 1896 reads:
"I reside at Wooden Valley Napa. I am 60 years old. I am a housekeeper. I am the claimant and claim pension as the widow of G. G. Gardner who served in the U.S. Army during the Mexican War. He lived at Maysville, Arkansas when he enlisted. I did not know Mr. Gardner before his service. I was married to Mr. George Gordon Gardner the soldier, March 31, 1853, in the country near Maysville, Benton Co., Arkansas. I have furnished evidence of my marriage to the bureau. I have no certificate of marriage. I lived with Mr. Gardner from the time of our marriage to the time of his death as his wife. Mr. Gardner died January 12, 1881 at his house. We has six children, four boys and two girls. John Henry, George Frank, James Buchanan, Charles William, Maria Tabitha, and Nancy Ada Gardner were their names. They are all living. Charles William lives on the ranch with me now. I have not remarried since the death of Mr. Gardner, nor lived or inhabited with any other man.
At Mr. Gardner's death he left this ranch then containing about 1460 acres, and some stock on the ranch, about 400 sheep, and farm machinery and some cattle. I administered upon the estate. He had life insurance of $5000. I collected that and paid it on the mortgage on the ranch. He had no moneys oustanding but was in debt. The debt against the estate was something over $15,000. I sold everything I could of the personal property and paid the proceeds on doctors bills and other debts. I think I got the estate settled before 1887. The children were all of age before 1887. When the estate was settled we had the ranch left, but subject to a mortgage of about $7000. There was a will in which Mr. Gardner gave the property to me so long as I lived. After the settlement of the estate I was unable to make enough to meet the interest on the debt and the debt ran up to about $12,000. Then I sold sixty-eight and a fraction acres and paid the proceeds on the mortgage--that brought the amount of the mortgage to $7,000. That was about five years ago. Since that time I have paid every cent we have made on the interest but have not been able to keep up the interest.
In 1887 I had this ranch, I do not know what it was worth, and it was rented at that time on shares. I was to have one fourth of the crop--that share did not keep up the interest. Up to 1890 I rented the ranch on shares for the one fourth of the crop. From 1890-93 we rented it as a dairy ranch. We rented the cows and then rented the cows and ranch to Mr. Frank B. Silba for one half of the butter made. In 1890/91 we got enough to pay part of the interest. Since 1893 I have lived on the ranch. My son Charles W. Gardner has been running the ranch. He just runs the ranch and pays everything he makes on the interest on the mortgage. We never made any contract about it, I live on the ranch and do the housework for Charles W. and myself as far as I can when I get sick he has to do the work. Charles W. keeps a hired man part of the time. The man boards himself. We have no family or other persons with us now.
I have besides the ranch a blacksmith's shop at Napa. It is in the Building and Loan Association. It rents for $7 per month. The rent is received by the Loan Association and I get nothing out of it. I do not know what that blacksmith's shop is worth. I have no contract with my son Chrales W. nor any one else for my support. No one is under any obligation to support me.
I had an attack of Typhoid Pneumonia at the time Mr. Gardner died and from that time I have not been very well. I have some stomach trouble or disease. It hurts me a little all the time and I have been laid up with it several times. A little overwork and exercise gives me sick headaches. I had "the grip" six years ago and have been laid up every winter since with that--it comes back on me every time I take a cold--and I take cold more easily since having it.
William, Mariah and Ada joined wtih me and bought out George and John's interest in the estate. Charles has bought James' interest in the estate. I do not remember how long ago that we made that deal. I gave John a wagon and a tam of horses for his share. I do not remember that we set any price on the team.
Besides the property mentioned by me Mr. Gardner left a claim on a 160 acres ranch in Tulare, California. I do not know the numbers or description of that ranch or whether he entered it as a timber tract or bought out someone. I gave that 160 acre ranch to my son, George Frank, for his interest in this county. We did not set any price on his interest in this ranch or on that tract in Tulare Co. I took the blacksmiths shop from my son William. I paid him five dollars for it. It was subject to a mortgage (I think $600) to the Building and Loan Association when I took it. The rent goes to them. I do not know if the mortgage has been reduced by the rent or not.
Before I employed Dr. Hennessey our family physician was Dr. W.W. Stillwagon of this city. I think he died in 1884. Dr. Stillwagon treated me for the Typhoid Pneumonia and then he treated me for the grip which left me with bronchitis or asthma or something. My health began to fail when I was thirty-nine years of age (1875). Doctor Stillwagon was our family physician then and said that I had worked too hard and if I would rest two or three years he thought I would be all right but we had six children and we were anxious to give them an education. I thought it impossible to give up work as we were not able to hire everything done. I was sick most of the time until in 1880 in November when I was taken with typhoid fever and since that time I have't been sell atall, having to take medison most all the time.
Mary W. English Musick was deposed as a resident of Fresno County and said that she was present at the wedding of Sarah and George at Maysville. Mrs. Martha Gardner Rice was deposed as a resident of Tulare County. She confirmed she was present at the wedding and that her brother George Gordon Gardner was dead.
SARAH TABITHA RICE GARDNER DIED AUG 22, 1915 at age 79. She fell and broke her hip on July 23. According to Ruth Gardner, "she died at Uncle George's on Jefferson Street. She never was at a rest home." She is buried with her husband in the Methodist Cemetery, Suisun, IOOF 76 & 78, lot 102-5. Survived by 6 children and 22 grandchildren. Funeral at the Kyser Funeral Parlor on Thursday, Rev. H. Shropshire of the Christian Church of Napa officiating. Pallbearers: Grandsons Ernest, Cecil, Edgar and James Ewing Gardner. George, Louis, Crawford, and Howard Hill, and George and William Johnson.
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