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Note: LEE or LEIGH ???????
1860--Gloucester Co, VA--"Farmer" (supplementing his pastoral earni n g s )
First census as head of household--J. L, wife Mary, Annie and Lizzie
Information regarding Joshua comes from several years of resear c h a n d from information provided by Martha Durfey Copeland, Grandau gh te r o f Joshua's last child, Kate Hibble Garrett. The majority cre di t i s t o Martha as well as to her brother and Great Uncle, John Ha y s Garr ett , now deceased.
Joshua Leigh Garrett, Methodist Episcopal, South (M.E., South) Mini s t e r (between 1851-1877) and then farmer and part-time Minister unt i l h i s death in 1883, began attending William & Mary College in Wil li amsb ur g, Va at age 16. He graduated in 1851. Following ordinatio n a t Pet ers burg, VA in 1851, his first assignment was to Hertford a nd B erti e Coun ties NC where he met and married Mary Harrell, daught er o f Abne r Harre ll. An oral report indicates they eloped to Gate s Count y in or der to b e married by a friend.
The northern counties of NC were part of the Virginia Methodist con f e r ence and throughout the formal period of his service, he remain e d wi t h the Virginia conference, serving, in addition to those prev io usl y me ntioned, in Gloucester and Prince Edward Counties in Virgi ni a a s wel l as Hyde, Pasquotank, Perquimans, and Chowan Counties i n N C. H e wa s in Gloucester Co. by 1856 as noted by marriages he per form ed du rin g that year.
By reference to data found in The VA Regimental History Series, pub l i s hed in 1987, Joshua joined The CSA at Belle Roi, VA (Glouceste r Co un ty ) as a Captain on April 20, 1861, Commanding Company A of t he 26 t h Vir ginia. The same reference ststes he was promoted to ful l Majo r o n Ma y 10, 1861. Other source data indicates he was electe d to Ma jo r in Ne w Kent County on May 13, 1862. Regardless, he was m oved t o Reg imenta l staff and served in General Wises' Brigade. He s aw acti on i n severa l battles in Virginia and detached duty in Charl eston, S C. So me inform ation indicates he left service as early as M ay 1863 b ut Th e Regimenta l History Series states he was allowed t o resign fro m dut y October 15 , 1863 to accept a position as a Minis ter in a (Met hodist ) Episcopal ( M.E.) Church. My own research confi rms the late r date o f resignation b ecause on August 8th 1863 Joshu a was cited a s being i n command at a sk irmish at Burtons Farm on th at date (ref . The Offici al Records (Books ) Series of The War of Th e Rebellion, S eries 1, Vo l 29, page 26)
Joshua served as Minister in numerous places, starting in NC in 1 8 5 1 , Gloucester, Va 1856-1862/3, back to NC (Hyde) 1863-66, bac k t o V A 18 67-1875 (Prince Edward, Buckingham and other counties) an d th en f inall y back to NC (Pasquotank, Perquimans, and Chowan, (187 5-187 7). I t wa s while "jointly" serving Perquimans and Chowan in 18 76-187 7(as r eport ed by The Methodist Archives) that his daughter An nie me t and su bseque ntly married (in 1878) Richard Benjamin (RB) Th ach. Jo shua's la st form al assignment of record (by the same repor t from Th e Methodis t Archive s) was that of 1876-77 and he is report ed by the m to have su bsequentl y "located to NC". In view of inform ation rece ived from Mar tha Copela nd (below), "located" now suggest s to me tha t he probably r esigned ( o r was released by The Virgini a Conference ) following his f ormal assign ment to Perquimans and Cho wan Counties , NC in 1876-77, pr obably for th e reasons to be state d later. Regard less of the reason , his "location " resulted in settl ement on the wes t bank of the Chowa n River, (just n orth of Harrells ville), where h e died of a heart atta ck in 1883 at th e age of 52.
The following additional information was provided by Martha Copel a n d , some information is general in nature but all has relevance t o J os hu a and his family.
The Family During The Twelve Years of
Reconstruction 1865-18
April 29, 1865 saw the collapse of the North Carolina State Governm e n t . President Lincoln was assassinated by John Booth, and the who l e co un try was in a state of turmoil. The citizens of the city of R al eig h fea red for their lives and property as angry Union soldier s occ upie d th e city. General Schofield and the Union Army took ove r the S tate . He o rdered the end of hostilities and the emancipatio n of th e slave s. Gove rnor Zebulon Vance escaped the union occupatio n, but t he Confe derate P resident, Jefferson Davis, was soon to be i mprisone d at For t Monroe, V a.
Only a war between fellow countrymen could have caused such a bit t e r , destructive period in our history. It transformed the once pro sp er ou s State of North Carolina into a divided, defeated and exhaus te d st ate . More than forty thousand of our men, ranging in age fro m si xtee n t o sixty, lost their lives and thousands more were crippl ed fo r lif e. O ur people in Hertford and Bertie counties were war-we ary an d hear tsick , for they had paid a tremendous price for standin g by th eir fel low so utherners.
After the assassination of President Lincoln, the Vice President, A n d r ew Johnson, who was a native of North Carolina, born in Raleig h o f p oo r parents, took office. He had moved to Tennessee and serve d i n Con gre ss and then was picked by Lincoln to be his Vice Preside nt . Afte r th e Confederate States surrendered and Lincoln's death, P res ident J ohnso n offered amnesty to all Southerners, if they woul d tak e an oat h of al legiance to the United States Constitution an d promis e to obe y the law s of Congress. The exceptions to this law , were th e high ran king milit ary officers, civilian office holder s and any ma n worth a s much as $20 ,000. These men were to be pardon ed only afte r submittin g an individua l application to the President . This mean t that most o f the leaders o f the state and county gover nments wer e disenfranchise d.
This law would affect many of our relatives, even those that ha d b e e n against secession. The old former Whig Congressman, Kennet h Rayn e r , who had served the state and the country for over thirt y years w a s t o write a letter to President Johnson, whom he had kno wn when th e y bot h served in Congress. He was asking for amnesty, te lling the P re siden t how he had paid the penalty for being a Unionis t, even at t ime s, bei ng publicly denounced as an Abolitionist. Ther e were many t ha t had ent ered into the war reluctantly, but had give n their all t o th e effort , and now had to pick up the pieces of the ir lives, tr y to ge t over th e intense sorrow they felt at the los s of their love d ones.
The economic situation was a disaster. There was a severe short a g e o f food, medicine, and clothing, and the problem of the slave s w a s eve r present. Our people were hard pressed to feed those tha t ha d s taye d on the farms with them and depended on them for thei r livin g. I t wa s also a problem to protect their families and prope rty fro m thos e tha t had left, some roaming the country-side in a la wless ma nner.
Crops needed to be planted to supply food and money, and taxe s h a d t o be paid. Many of those who had been wealthy before the war , n o w foun d themselves facing economic failure. Many farms were sol d o r s plit u p into small farms. White people and blacks alike wer e face d wi th hung er and deprivation.
The Armies of the United States had destroyed millions of dollors w o r t h of the State's bridges, schools, factories, railroads, churche s , c ou rthouses, and private homes and barns. It would take years f o r th e peo ple to recover and some of our family would not live lon g e noug h to se e this happen. Joshua had lost his first wife Mary Ha rrel l dur ing Th e War and in Sept. 1865 he married Sarah Hayes (Grea t Gra ndmoth er of t he contributor of this article).
Joshua called his second wife "Sally" and it is said that he spo i l e d her when ever he could afford to give her the nice things th a t h e wa nted for her. It is doubtful that he could afford to do th i s ver y ofte n, because he was to lose his property in (Gloucester ) Vi rginia , and l ike everyone else, he had lost his money during th e war . The y had tw o of Joshua's surviving children by his first wif e to c are fo r (Anni e and Willy), and Joshua and Sally had started t heir ow n famil y whic h was to number ten children of their own. Tw o of Sarah 's child ren wou ld die as infants and one died when she wa s in her te ens.The f ollowin g newspaper article tells of the death s of two of th eir childr en;
Elizabeth City, N.C. Oct. 6th
"Dear Brethren, I am deeply pained to have to say that little Jos h u a L eigh, son of Rev. J.L. and Sallie H. Garrett, breathed his la s t ab ou t 8 o'clock this morning, aged two years and three months. T h e los s o f this precious boy falls with crushing weight upon the he ar ts o f ou r dear brother and his family. He was a child of promis e an d almo st th e idol of the household. He was so well known and lo ved i n thi s commun ity that the stricken ones are not alone in thei r grief . Bu t it is wel l with the child, and no murmuring thoughts h ave aris en."F aith stand s leaning on His word who is the Resurrectio n and th e Life. "
"Died at the Parsonage, on Indian Ridge Circuit, on the 26th of J u n e 1 867, Thomas Wiley, infant son of Joshua and Sally H. Garrett , ag e d on e year and five days."
It is easy to imagine the hardships they experienced, as most chur c h e s were not able to give much support to their ministers. Becau s e o f th eir financial situation, they were not able to return to He rt for d coun ty for eight years. In 1874, Joshua wrote an article i n th e Ric hmond C hristian Advocate, telling of the joy of coming hom e (t o Hertf ord Co ) for a visit, while living at a new post in Bucki ngha m county , Va.
LETTER FROM BUCKINGHAM (Buckingham Co., VA)
Messrs, Editors, I am vain enough to think that a letter from me w o u l d interest some of your readers, perhaps only a few of them, bu t f e w t hough they may be, they are the better sort of folk, and ca n aff or d t o be few.
I have been traveling a little lately, and I want to write abou t m y t r avels. True, I didn't go far, but might have "gone farther a nd f are d w orse".
Leaving the rocks and red clay of Buckingham for a while, my wi f e a n d self put out for North Carolina to visit friends whose face s w e h a d not seen for eight years. On Wednesday, the 16th of Decemb er , we l an ded at Winton, the county seat of Hertford Co. When las t I w as ther e o nly a house or two had sprung up out of the ashes, i n whic h the pl ac e was laid in 1862 by the torch of the Federals. No w it i s being re bui lt generally, and better built than of yore.
That afternoon we went on to Union, a new and thriving village se v e n m iles from the Chowan river. Eight years ago one residence, an d o l d bar n of a church, a log school-house, and a Negro cabin or tw o, c om pose d the village. Now there are five stores in successful op erati on , seve ral residences have been built and are now occupied, a nd oth er s are i n course of erection for parties who are waiting t o occup y the m as soo n as they are completed. Nor has the old churc h been fo rgotte n in th e general improvement. It is not yet what i t should be , nor wh at I a m sure the people mean that it shall be; b ut it has pu t on bett er look s. It is to be hoped that the men of Un ion, who hav e shown the mselve s to be "diligent in business", will s ee to it tha t they cultiv ate als o a "fervent spirit;" and that th e means of cult ivating that s pirit am ong the people of their commun ity be not foun d wanting, in s o far at l east as a neat and comforta ble house of wor ship can contrib ute to tha t end. This they must d o if they would per petuate their pro sperity an d secure its highes t advantages to themse lves and their chi ldren.
From Union we went to Colerain. This village is on the beautiful Ch o w a n, about twenty miles from the Albermarle Sound. It has grow n a li tt l e since I first knew the place; but it seems now to be sat isfie d wi t h its attainments in that direction. Within the past eigh t year s ou r M ethodism has done much for many of the people of the v illag e and t he v icinity. Under the ministry of Rev. J.H. Riddic k a "tim e of refre shin g from the presence of the Lord" visited tha t peopl e a few year s ago ; and many of the best of them, in point o f intelli gence and mor al wor th, were converted and brought into ou r church. R ev. J.D.Blackw ell wa s Presiding Elder of the Murfreesbor o District a t the time, an d remain ing with Brother Riddick at the Q uarterly Meet ing at which th e great w ork began, rendered incalculab le service. Bo th these honore d minister s are gratefully remembere d by the people o f Colerain, an d will ever b e "esteemed very highly " for their own a s well as thei r "work's sake " by them all.
Next in our route was Harrellsville. This has long been a place o f c o n siderable trade for a village. It is still thriving, but has n ot f ul fi lled its early promise. One new and elegant store has recen tly b ee n bu ilt and occupied; one long closed is again opened; sever al res ide nce s have assumed larger proportions and brightened-up app earance s; o ther s wear the looks of sombre sadness; while one larg e dwellin g wa s a fe w months ago humbled to the dust by the devourin g elements .
The old church looked most solemn, and I felt as solemn as that lo o k e d as I stood beside it, one of the few remaining links between t h e p as t, and present worshipers at her altar; and gazed on her weat he r-be ate n walls and thought on her history and that of the peopl e wh o ha d freq uented her court for more than a score of years past . On t he fo urth Sa bbath of December of 1851 I entered that church f or th e firs t time. Tw enty-three years had passed, and the fourth Sa bbat h of Dece mber of 187 4 had come, and I was again at the same chu rch . The appear ance of th e old house told me plainly that it was th e "B ethel" of oth er days (Be thel was the original name of Harrellsv ille , founded in 18 27. It becam e Harrellsville in 1847) ; but wher e wer e the worshiper s of those days ? I saw around me young men an d maiden s whom I did no t know, thoug h I heard them called by famili ar names . Only here and t here in the cr owd was one whom I knew.
I entered the sanctuary and stood in the pulpit. A glance was al l t h a t was needed to tell me that the places vacated since 1851 out numb er e d far those that were still filled by their former occupants . Ind ee d , not a dozen of that vast audience that sat before me in 1 851 we r e pr esent in 1874. The prophet's question, "Our fathers, whe re ar e th ey? " forced itself upon me. Some, I had been told, had rem oved t o dis tan t lands, but I knew that the greater part were "sleep ing the ir las t sl eep". Many of these last, sleep sweetly in Jesus , and of t hem a " sure r word of Prophecy" says; "He will bring the m with Him" w hen "H e come s a second time, without sin, unto salvati on".
I preached to the people of "Jesus and the resurrection," and w e s a n g together-
"One family we dwell in him
One church, above, beneath;
Though now divided by the stream
The narrow stream of death.
One army of the living God
To his command we bow,
Part of his host have crossed the flood
And part are crossing now
And we separated to meet no more on earth perhaps. Oh, may we m e e t i n heaven."
The time at my disposal had well-nigh run out before I could ge t t o M u rfressboro. But I did get there for a short while, and gla d a m I th a t I did. Murfreessboro has been a place of great interes t t o me sin c e I first knew it. There I made my debut as an itineran t, a nd the n I f ormed friendships with many of her noble people, fri endsh ips tha t hav e grown stronger and dearer with the lapse of year s.
The old town has enough of vigor yet to grow, and she is growin g . O u r house of worship has been considerably enlarged and much imp ro ved . T he Baptists have improved their church and school. Some ele gan t re side nces are going up and quite a number of less important b uild ing s wil l soon be completed.
The success of Wesleyan Female College is marvelous. About eighte e n m o nths ago one of the most sanguine friends of the College sai d t o me; - - "The united efforts of the friends of our College can se cur e it ei gh ty pupils; that done, success is sure". A few may hav e thou ght o f a hi gher number, but only a few, if any at all. Not on e, I a m ver y sure, e ver thought that there would now be one hundre d and se vent y pupils act ually within the walls. But such is the cas e. And mo re th an this is tr ue: Arrangements are now being made fo r accommodat ing th irty more, wh o are expected to enter in February . The Colleg e has fou nd her lucky s tar. May He guide her to still g reater prospe rity and u sefulness.
Fraternally,
Joshua L. Garrett.
Gravel Hill, (VA) Jan. 8, 1875
(The Baptist school mentioned, is still standing and now is the ce n t e r piece of the beautiful Chowan College campus.)
Following their visit "home in 1874, Joshua and "Sally" return e d t o G ravel Hill, Virginia in 1874, (from whence the above lette r wa s wr itte n). They didn't know that their lives would soon be dis rupte d b y mor e pain and sorrow.
As a result of an injury during the war, Joshua's hearing was stea d i l y getting worse and he also developed a heart condition, whic h a t ti me s caused him to be short - tempered. These two infirmitie s wer e t o cau se him to become involved in a controversy over the ow nershi p o f a hor se. (We have to remember that the Carpetbaggers wer e stil l i n the Sout h and taking advantage of the people whom they d ealt wi th.)
From the records found, it seems that Joshua bought a gray hors e f r o m a man who lived some distance from him, and soon after the h ors e w a s delivered, it disappeared. After hearing from a friend tha t th e ho rs e was back at the former owner's place of business, Joshu a sen t som eon e to get it but the man refused to give it up, sayin g that t he hor se h ad not been paid for.
Joshua brought suit in court against the man and being hard of hea r i n g was unable to understand the dialogue during the hearing, bu t af t e r being told that the man had made insulting remarks agains t him , Jo sh ua threatened to take a horse whip to the disreputable m an. Th is ca use d people in the town and in his church to take side s in th e affai r an d it was reported to the Virginia Conference.
The Bishop, called for a hearing, on the subject of Joshua's behav i o r , by the Elders in the Conference. They decided, due to Joshua' s d ea fn ess and other physical conditions, that he should be retire d o r "Lo cat ed". This meant that he was no longer assigned a churc h an d woul d onl y be able to preach, as a guest speaker, when aske d by an other m iniste r, to share his pulpit. Some people thought tha t he ha d not bee n treat ed fairly, and because he could not hear th e proceed ings, he c ould no t defend himself.
It might seem strange to us, that all this trouble took place o v e r a h orse, but we have to remember that a horse in those days w a s a s valuab le as our car would be to us today.
Joshua was a proud man and his honor was being questioned, so the e x t r eme view he took of the matter is understandable. But he was ne v e r t o understand why the Bishop and the Elders made the decision t h a t the y did, and the consequences of their decision were devastati n g t o hi m and his growing family.
By years end, 1877, the Garretts, were living on a little farm b a c k i n Hertford County, just north of Harrellsville. Due to the la c k o f rec ords in Hertford, it is not clear whether Joshua bought th i s pro pert y or whether it was inherited by Sarah, since it was loca te d in t he ol d Mink Neck area where some of the Hayes' family lived .
By this time Joshua and Sarah had five young children of their o w n a n d William, who was named after his Grandfather William Leigh , o r (Wi ll ie) as he was called, and Annie, who were Joshua's childr en b y hi s fir st wife, Mary. Soon after they moved to the farm, Will ie, w ho wa s in h is late teens, left home, and in spite of all inqui ry, th ey wer e unabl e to locate him. Some thought he went to Tenness ee, bu t ther e are no r ecords to bear this out. Annie soon married ( Richard ) Benja min Thatch , and lived in Hertford, N.C. Sarah's child ren call ed (Anni e) "Big Sis ", and loved to visit her when they wer e older.
Now we have the William Hayes' family, Sarah's Uncle, with his so n s H o ratio and Elijah and the Durfey family, with my Grandfather, W il lia m F rancis, and the Garretts all living in the same area, jus t acr os s th e creek from Harrellsville. Grandfather Durfey was seven teen w he n th e Garretts came back to the farm, which was just acros s the ro a d fro m his home, and he remembered them well. The little c hurch i n Ha rrells ville was still on the decline and Joshua was onc e again t o pre ach i n the beloved church where he had stood many yea rs before . He wa s aske d to preach there, because they could not aff ord to kee p a mini ster as signed to them. He was also asked to spea k in other c hurches a nd thi s and the farm were his only means of su pporting hi s growing fa mily.
The economy in the South was improving but money was still so sca r c e , during this time, that people had to resort to all kinds of ba rt e r i n order to provide for their families. We have an account boo k w hi ch w as kept by a store in Harrellsville during this period, th at s how s ho w customers paid their bills by bringing such things a s bale s o f cotto n or bushels of apples to pay for the merchandise t hey nee de d from th e store. Joshua had an account there and paid i t in thi s way .
Their home in Hertford Co. was built like those smaller homes y o u s e e in Williamsburg, Va., with two rooms across the front an d a hi gh p it ched roof with two rooms under the eaves. The kitchen w as sepa rate d fr om the house and was used for cooking and dining. O n the da y of h is de ath, soon after they had finished their mid-da y meal, Jos hua wa s sitti ng in the yard reading, when he saw the kit chen was i n flames . In th e excitement and rush to extinguish the fi re, Joshu a suffere d a hear t attack and fell dead in the yard. He wa s fifty th ree year s old.
( The book he was reading, with the leather binding, scorched b y t h e f ire, is in the ownership of Martha Copeland).
For Sarah Hays/Hayes Garrett, this was the most extreme punishmen t t h a t she could imagine. She put on black mourning clothes. It wa s th e c us tom in those days for a widow to wear black clothing fo r a yea r aft e r their husband 's death, but Joshua's "Sallie" contin ued to w ear no th ing but black for over forty years until her own de ath in 19 23. Sh e al so wore a large broach that Joshua had given her , with hi s pictur e i n it.
(The broach is in the ownership of Martha Copeland and will be gi v e n t o her Granddaughter, Garrett Brooks, when she is older.)
Many friends and other Ministers were shocked to hear of Joshua's d e a t h. A clipping from one of the Newspapers expresses one friend' s fe el in g as follows:
"With a sad heart I read a few days hence the notice of the sudde n d e p arture from this to the higher and better life beyond the las t riv e r , of my sincere friend and brother in Christ, the Rev. Joshu a L. G ar re tt.
I became acquainted with Brother Garrett in 1852. We joined the Vir g i n ia Conference at its session in Alexandria in 1851. He was assig n e d t o the Murfreesboro circuit with Rev. William Grant; I to Glouc es te r wi th the Rev. L.S.Reed. Brother Garrett visited his home duri n g th e year , and we met for the first time, and a friendship was fo rm ed wh ich rip ened into strong Christen love as the years flew by a n d we gre w older.
My friend was a man full of warm Christian impulses and no one co u l d b e with him long before seeing this. It was characteristic of t h e m an . He was a true friend, warm hearted, and carried in his man l y boso m s ympathy for all.
I wish to relate an incident that occurred in the life of this brot h e r , which gave me much joy and great relief.
In 1859 I was sent from the Amelia to the Springfield (VA) Circ u i t , a distance of nearly four hundred miles. I wished to stop in R ic hm on d in order to have my infant daughter baptized by Rev. D.D.Do gge tt , D. D. had performed the same office in reference to my eldes t chi ld.
I had but little means and did not feel able to stop in the city s i n c e it would cost much less to go directly on. But when nearing t h e ci t y on the Danville train, I told my wife "We must stop, an d I a m goi n g to the American Hotel." When we went to tea, I saw a g entlem an a n d a lady at the table. We drew near and found Joshua an d his wi fe . H e asked me where I was going. "On my way to have our d aughter b apt ized ," was my reply. I sent for Dr. Doggett, he soon ca me, and Jo shu a hel d the bowl of water, and my little one was dedica ted to God.
About 10 o'clock I went to the office to settle, as we had to lea v e e a rly the next morning. Joshua stood behind me during the time . A s w e pa rted I felt something in his hand and grasped it loosely . H e said : "He re, Billie take this." I did so, and when I reached m y ro om, fou nd tha t he had left a $20 note in my hand. But for thi s timel y aid fr om thi s generous Christian minister, I would have be en unabl e to hav e reache d my work."
Obituary of the Rev. Joshua L.Garrett
From the May 17, 1883
Richmond, Virginia Christian Advocate
Rev. Joshua Leigh Garrett died suddenly, of heart disease, Apri l 1 2 , 1 883, at his residence in Hertford Co., N.C. He was born Janu ar y 21 , 18 31 and was therefore in the fifty-third year of his age . H e was f o r a number of years a member of the Virginia Conference , an d was a n ea rnest laborer in the Master's vineyard; and in som e of hi s charge s wa s eminently successful in winning souls to Chris t. Bein g hard o f heari ng and a sensitive nature, he was often place d at a d isadvanta ge in th e company of others by misapprehending fo r what wa s spoken i n his pres ence. This misfortune, which should ha ve alway s invoked pit y and kin d indulgence, was the occasion of mis understan ding not onl y between hi mself and his brethren in the mini stry, bu t also in som e instances, be tween himself and the members o f the chu rch where he l abored. Yet thos e who knew him best formed s trong an d tender attachme nts for him, on t he account of the many re deeming v irtues that distin guished his life.
He was warm hearted, generous handed and pre-eminently social i n h i s n ature; and no one was ever more confiding and trustful in th e ci rc le o f his personal friends than Joshua L. Garrett. He wore hi s hea r t on hi s sleeve; was free and outspoken, and was therefor lia ble t o t he betra yal of himself into difficulties by confidence he r epose d i n others.
But there is no one, now that he is dead, that will not tread lig h t l y on his ashes, whatever may have been his feelings while the su bj e c t of this sketch lived. We all will think of his virtues, and r em i t t o the voltex of oblivion the personal misunderstandings tha t i n so me i nstances impaired the confidence and friendly intercours e o f life . Hi s infirmity of deafness, together with an organic dise as e of th e heart , a disease that rarely fails to produce irritabili t y of tempe r, form s more than mere apology for much that had the ef fe ct to inter fere wit h his usefulness and with his friendships in l ife .
At one time Brother Garrett was the possessor of an ample fortun e , a n d no one ever gave more liberally than he did to the instituti on s a n d enterprises of the Church, or dispensed a more generous hos pit ali t y to the visitors under his roof. He was generous to a fault .
He joined the Conference at the session of 1851 and took his wor k w i t h his brethren till the session of 1877, when he was located a nd r et ir ed to his farm. With untiring industry he labored to mak e a supp or t fo r his large and growing family; keeping up the habit , in the m ean tim e of preaching on Sunday, until God called him home . He preach ed t he S unday before his death. His death was sudden. H e leaves a de epl y berea ved widow and nine children, the youngest be ing but seve n mont hs old.
A friend who has known him intimately for several years past, wri t e s o f him as follows: "During the last two years of his life, I w a s wi th h im much, and frequently heard him preach and I never hear d h im pr eac h with more clearness and power, than during this time . On e of th e mos t profitable sermons I ever heard from him was deli vere d about t en day s before his death". The writer adds: '~I knew h im we ll and lov ed hi m much".
Personally, I esteemed Brother Garrett very highly. He was a warm f r i e nd and confided as implicitly in one whom he esteemed as his fri e n d a s any man I ever knew. His life of trouble, affliction and mis fo rt un e is over. Peace to his memory. The friend from whose lette r I h av e al ready made extracts says: "Brother Garrett was greatly r elieve d o f hi s troubles before his death, and told me two weeks bef ore , w hil e spen ding a few days with me, that he had become reconci led in h is h eart t o the Conference and to the preachers, and felt t roubles h ad th eir ori gin in a misapprehension of his motives, and i n the infi rmitie s of hi s own body, which rendered him at times irri table and i mpatien t".
John E. Edwards
Petersburg, Virginia
May 1883
Added--26th Regiment, Virginia Infantry was organized during Ma y a n d J une, 1861, with men recruited in the counties of Gloucester , Ki n g an d Queen, and Mathews. The 26th was assigned to General Wis e's B ri gad e in June, 1862, contained 31 officers and 424 men. Afte r bein g in volv ed in the Seven Days' Battles it was transferred to t he Depa rtmen t o f South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. The unit par ticipate d in t he d efense of Charleston, then during the spring of 1 864 retur ned t o Virgi nia. Here it took its place in the Petersbur g trenches a nd wa s activ e in various conflicts around Appomattox. M any were capt ured a t Sayler 's Creek and on April 9, 1865, there wer e 15 officer s and 8 1 men prese nt. The field officers were Colonel s Charles A. Cr ump an d Powhatan R . Page; Lieutenant Colonel James C . Coucill; and M ajors P atrick H. Fit zhugh, Joshua L. Garrett, Willi am K.
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