John H. Cokonougher WWI Draft Card

This is the World War I draft card of my grandfather, John Henry Cokonougher (b. 6 July1883 - d. 12 Sept. 1963).  He was 35 years old when he was required to register for the draft.  The war ended a month later.

 

The United States declared war on Germany on 6 April 1917, and Congress passed a Selective Service Act six weeks later on 18 May 1917.  Over 98% of the men in the United States born between 1872 and 1900 (approximately 24 million) completed draft registration.  Registration was accomplished in three separate registrations.  The third and last registration occurred on 12 Sept. 1918 and was for men who had recently turned 18 to 21 and for men between the ages of 31 and 45.  My grandfather was among those in the last registration.

Cokonougher log house in 1910s Ohio.

    When Zackariah and Mary (Wisecup) Cokonougher purchased their farm on Wisecup Hill in Buckskin Township, Ross County, Ohio, in 1904, this old house was already on the property.

      The house was of log construction and was covered with vertical wood siding.  Members of the Cokonougher family lived in the house until 1923, when they constructed a new house to live in.  My father was one year old when they left the old log house and moved into their new wood frame house less than 50 feet from the old log house. 
      The top of the old Smokehouse can be seen behind the house in this picture.  The Smokehouse was still there when my grandparents died on the farm four decades after the old log house was torn down.  By then, though, the building was used only for storage rather than smoking meat.
      Note also the picket fence surrounding the house.  Picket fences were much favored for yards over other fences by Middle European German immigrants and settlers.  Thus the fence gives a clue to the possible and likely background of the people who originally built the old log house.                                                                   
      The story of how Zackariah and Mary Cokonougher came to buy this house and farm is an interesting one.  I tell the story in my book "The Genealogy Of The Family of Ralph William Cokonougher", available at Amazon.com.
      For future archeologists' reference, the log house was located at Latitude N 39º 20' 4.8" and Longitude W 83º 14' 45.2".

Elizabeth Cokonougher Heirs Land Deed 1882

  This is the deed that transfers the Adams County, Ohio real estate owned by the heirs of Elizabeth (Shoemaker) Cokonougher, wife of Adtson Ellsworth Cokonougher, to a new owner. Elizabeth and Adtson Cokonougher were my great-great grandparents, and Zachariah and Mary Cokonougher were my great grandparents. The deed is recorded in Vol.60, p479, of the Adams County deed books.  I have transcripted the deed as follows:

 “Elizabeth Cokonougher heirs

            To
     George A. Thomas

    Know all men by these Presents that John Cokonougher and Mary his wife Zachariah Cokonougher and Mary his wife Rodennia Frost and Andrew Frost her husband Mary E Cokonougher Sarah A Garman and Sylvester Garman her husband of the first part in consideration Three hundred dollars to these fees by George A Thomas of Adams county Ohio the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged do hereby Grant Bargain Sell and convey to the said George A Thomas his heirs and assigns forever the following described Real Estate to wit the following Real Estate Situate in Meigs Township Adams county Ohio to wit

    1^st Tract Beginning as a Red Oak and dogwood in line of A. Eellisons Survey No 8681 thence south said line S25 E70 poles to two white Oaks thence south 118 poles to a cherry tree on the Sulphur Spring Branch thence down the Branch 48 poles to a hickory near the Branch and in line of said survey thence in a Westerly direction with original line 15 poles to a white Oak Stump thence south 62 poles to a red oak and chestnut thence S39 E24 poles to a White Oak Thence South 73 poles to the beginning containing Thirty Eight acres more or less part of Survey No. 13259.
    2^nd Tract Beginning at a Red Oak and two dogwoods in the line of Survey No 8687 corner to Jacob Shultzs Survey No 13253 thence with Said line and the line of Survey No 15164 N25 W73 poles to a white Oak in the last mentioned line thence N60 E26 poles to a Walnut thence N27 W26 poles to a cherry ashen Thence N81 E54 poles to a Stone corner of A Purless Survey No 14128 thence with the line of Said Survey S35 W 37 poles to three White Oaks thence S44 E42 poles to a chestnut and black oak thence S74 W passing three White Oaks corner of Said Shultzs Survey and with his line 5 poles to the beginning containing twenty five acres more or less part of survey No 15655  This land formerly belonged to Elizabeth Cokonougher now deceased and the grantors herein are the heirs at Law of Said Elizabeth Cokonougher deceased to whom Said lands descended upon her death and all the Estate Title and Interest of the Said parties of first part either in Law or in Equity of in and to the Said premises together with all the privileges and appurtenances to the Same belongings and all the rents issues and profits thereof To Have and to Hold the Same to the only proper use of the Said George A. Thomas his heirs and assigns forever And the Said John Cokonougher Mary Cokonougher Zachariah Cokonougher Mary Cokonougher Rodennia Frost and Andrew Frost Mary E Cokonougher and Sarah A. Garman and Sylvester Garman her husband for themselves and for their heirs executors and administrators do hereby covenant with the Said George A Thomas his heirs and assigns That are the True and Lawful owners of the Said premises and have full power to convey the same and That the title So conveyed is clean free and unencumbered and further that they will warrant and defend the same against all claims or claims of all persons whomsoever.
    In Witness Whereof the Said John Cokonougher and his wife Zachariah Cokonougher and Mary his wife hereby release their right and expectancy of Dower in the Said premises have hereunto Set their hands and Seals this 14” day of February in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and Eighty two Signed Sealed and acknowledged in presence of us 
J M Cader
Zackariah his X mark Cokonougher (Seal)
James M Aber
Mary her X mark Cokonougher (Seal)
T. J. McCune for Rodennia
Rodennia her X mark Frost (Seal)
W McWest for Andrew Andy Frost (Seal)
Jm Moorehead
Sarah A Garman (Seal)
Edm McKeehan
Sylvester Garman (Seal)
Robert Herdman
Mary E. her X mark Cokonougher (Seal)
Joseph Thurman
John Cokonougher (Seal)

    The State of Ohio Ross County ss

    Be it Remembered that on the 14^” day of February in the Year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and eighty two before me the subscriber Justice of the Peace in and for Said county and State personally came Zachariah Coukouougher (sic: Cokonougher)and Mary Cokonour (sic: Cokonougher) the grantors in the foregoing Deed and acknowledged the signing and Sealing thereof to be their voluntary act and deed for the uses and purposes therein mentioned And the Said Mary Cokonougher wife of the said Zachariah Cokonougher being examined by me Separate and apart from her Said husband and the contents of Said Deed being by made Known and explained to her as the Statute directs declared that She did voluntarily Sign Seal and acknowledge the same and that she is still Satisfied therewith as her act and deed for the uses and purposes therein mentioned
    In Testimony Whereof I have hereunto Subscribed my name and affixed my seal on the day and year aforesaid    J M Cader J.P.

    The State of Ohio Clinton county ss

    Before me the undersigned a Notary Public in and for Said county personally appeared the above named Rodennia Frost and Andrew Frost her husband and acknowledged the signing and sealing of the above conveyance to be their voluntary act and deed and the Said Andrew Frost does hereby relinquish all right and title as to consticy (sic: constancy) in Said premists (sic: premises) after being examined by me Separate and apart from each other and the contents of Said Justmentioned made Known to them by me They Then declared that did voluntarily Sign Seal and acknowledge the Same and that they are still Satisfied therewith This 15” day of February A D 1882
    Wm McWest Notary Public (notarial seal Clinton Co Ohio) In and for Said county

    The State of Ohio Highland County ss

    This day personally appeared Sarah A Garman and Sylvester Garman her husband the grantors in the above Deed Before the undersigned a Justice of the Peace in and for Said county and acknowledged the signing and Sealing of above deed to be their voluntary act and deed for the uses and purposes therein mentioned and Said Sarah A Garman wife of the Said Sylvester Being at the same time examined by me Separate and apart from her husband and the contents of Said instrument made known to her She then declared that she did voluntarily Sign Seal and acknowledge the same and that She is Still Satisfied Therewith.
    Witness my hand this the 9” day of March 1882  Edm McKeehan J.P.

    The State of Ohio Highland county

    This day personally appeared Mary E. Cokonougher one of the grantors in the above Deed before the undersigned a Justice of the Peace in and for Said county and acknowledged the signing and Sealing of the above Deed to be her voluntary act and Deed for the uses and purposes therein mentioned
    Witness my hand this the 9” day of March 1882.  Edm McKeehan J.P.

    The State of Ohio Adams county ss

    Be it remembered that on this 15” day of March A D 1882 and before me the undersigned a Justice of the Peace in and for Said county and State personally came John Cokonougher and Mary Cokonougher his wife the grantors in the forgoing Deed and acknowledged the Signing and Sealing thereof to be their voluntary act and deed for the uses and purposes therein mentioned and the Said Mary A Cokonougher wife of the Said John Cokonougher. Being examined by Separate and apart from her Said husband and the contents of Said Deed being made Known and explained to her as the Statute directs declared that she did voluntary Sign Seal and acknowledge the Same and that She is Still Satisfied as her act and deed for the use and purposes therein mentioned
      In Witness Whereof I have Set my hand on the day and year first above Written    Joseph Thurman J P (seal)

Recorded August 2” 1882

J R Stevenson  R.A.C.”

Viola COKONOUGHER Cassidy obituary. 2016.

        This is my mother, Viola, and me, in 2012.  She passed on to the afterlife day before yesterday after a long and fruitful life, mostly as a Cokonougher.  Her obituary follows:              
        "Viola Mae Cokonougher Cassidy, age 87, of Washington C. H., formerly of South Salem passed away on Friday, April 8, 2016 at home surrounded by her family.  She was born on September 21, 1928 in Fruitdale, the daughter of Harold and Nora (Spurgeon) Hester.  She previously worked as a cook, baker, and health care worker. She was known far and wide for her sewing and cooking skills, and enjoyed her family, organizing reunions, fishing, camping, country music and the Paint Valley Jamboree.  She is survived by two sons, Ralph Cokonougher and Clifford (Wanda) Cokonougher; two daughters, Judy Wical and Shirley Davis; fourteen grandchildren, Akiko Cokonougher, Amelia (Danny) Calhoun, Yasuyo (Philip) Samuels, William (Clarissa) Cokonougher, Scott (Shellie) Brill, Karen Leisure, Tina (Monte) Miller, Carletta (Steve) Garringer, Robert (Nicole) Davis, Bonnie (Michael West, Sarah (Randy) Dean, Craig, Curtis, and Tracy Cokonougher; thirty three great grandchildren; twenty two great-great grandchildren; four brothers, Lawrence (Linda) Hester, Gary (Bonnie) Hester, Warren (Pam) Hester, and Robert Hester; and four sisters, Mary Kingery, Elizabeth (Bill) Hayden, Janet Jovanovic, and Ruth Cheatwood.  She was preceded in death by her husbands, Howard “Bill” Cokonougher in 1984 and Hobert Cassidy in 2002; one great grandchild, Annelaine Davis; two brothers, Harold Hester, Jr. and Dwight Hester; five sisters, Martha Barnhart, Dorothy Watson, Barbara Hester, Fern Tapp, and Violet Stratton.  Funeral service will be 1:00 P.M. Wednesday, April 13 at the Murray-Fettro Funeral Home in Greenfield with Pastor David Wayne officiating. Burial will follow in the South Salem Cemetery.  Visitation will be Tuesday from 4:00 P.M. until 7:00 P.M at the funeral home.  Condolences may be sent to www.murrayfettro.com "

John & Charles Cokonougher school class of 1897

This is the school picture for John H. Cokonougher and Charles Cokonougher, sons of Zachariah and Mary (Wisecup) Cokonougher, at the Cunningham Pratt school in Paulding County.  The family moved to Paulding County, Ohio while looking for work.  They left after only a few years and moved to South Salem, in Ross County, Ohio, where Zachariah and Mary eventually bought a farm.  

 

This excerpt describes the school and gives the information necessary to find a copy of the history of Grover Hill and the school for yourself.

My Cokonougher - Frost Connection

          My Ohio Cokonougher ancestors hail back to Adams County, Ohio in the early 1800s.  My Frost ancestors do the same, and they were interconnected with the Cokonougher family! 

          Rodena Cokonougher (b. 31 January 1858), the daughter of my great-great grandparents, Adtson and Elizabeth Cokonougher, married Andrew Frost (b.1855), the son of John and Mary Frost.  The photos you see here are pictures of them and their family. 

          Rodena's brother, my great-grandfather, Zachariah Cokonougher (1853-1904), also married a Frost descendant.  He married Mary Elizabeth Wisecup (1856-1934), who was the daughter of Phoeba (Frost) Wisecup (1830 - 1859) and the grandaughter of Adams County, Ohio residents Jacob (1793-1870) and Proba Frost (b. abt. 1794).  Jacob and Proba's farm was located then in what is now part of the Peebles, Ohio, city limits.

          The Frosts seemed to be a colorful and rough family.  There are many stories in the local newspapers of the time, about Frost scrapes with the law, and there is even a detailed and flowery account of one criminal trial in which two Frost boys were tried and convicted of murder, and sent to prison.  Evidently, Cokonoughers weren't the only family with hard heads.

Zackriah & Mary Cokonougher 1893 family photo

     This picture was originally owned by my grandparents, John and Amelia Cokonougher, who lived on Wisecup Hill in Ross County, Ohio.  John is third from the left in the back row. 

Cocanougher Cemetery in Kentucky.

     I responded to a comment in my previous post of Mary Cokonougher's Bible about Nancy Silvertooth Cokonougher (sic).  Here is an old newspaper clipping that tells more about Nancy and the cemetery in Washington County, Kentucky, in which she is buried.  There is no date on the clipping. 
     I have heard since childhood that there was a native American "Indian" named Nancy Silvertooth somewhere way back in the family tree.  This is that person.  She was the wife of a Jacob Cokonougher (sic), but there were many Jacobs in the family tree, so if one wants to claim her as a direct line descendant, then they need to be sure that they have the right Jacob.

Mary E. Cokonougher Family Bible 1820-1904

Mary E. (Wisecup) Cokonougher began recording births, marriages, and deaths in a family Bible after she married Zackariah Cokonougher in 1873.  Like most other wives and husbands of the times, she recorded the historical data in the Family Record section of the Bible.

       These photos are of the actual Bible.  Mary was my great-grandmother, through my father, Howard William Cokonougher, and my grandfather, John Henry Cokonougher Sr. 
     When I last saw the Bible in 1977, it was in South Salem, Ohio and in the possession of Mary's daughter, Anna Cokonougher Schmidt, who died in 1978.  I lost track of the Bible after that, but I did manage to make copies of the Family Record Section before Anna died. 

      The transcription that follows is
as identical to the original Family Record section as I can record it, including the original spellings,capitalizations, and punctuations. 
    The Bible was published in New York in 1874 by the American Bible Society with the title "The Holy Bible Containing the Old and New Testaments:  Translated Out of The Original Tongues and With The Former Translations Diligently Compared and Revised”.

         FIRST PAGE

     Adtson Cokonougher

     Born June 28  1824

         
           Elizebeth Cokonougher

     Born October 29, 1820

     Sarah. A. Cokonougher

     Born November 17  1848

     John Cokonougher

     Born July 14  1850

     Mary E Cokonougher

     Born March 18.  1855

     Rodenea Cokonougher

     Born January 31  1858

     William. H. Cokonougher

     Born February 16. 1862

     Lieddy Cokonougher

     Born. September 22,  1863

     SECOND PAGE

     Zachriah  Cokonougher

     Born April 2nd 1853

     Mary Cokonougher

     Born February 14th   1856

     William S. Cokonougher

     Born June the 12th 1874

     Provy M. Cokonougher

     Born January 12th 1877

     Joseph E Cokonougher and

     Adson E Cokonougher

     Born February 22  1880

     John H. Cokonougher

     Born July 6th   1883

     Charles S. Cokonougher

     Born September 20th 1886

     Anna M. Cokonougher

     Born September 17th  1892

     THIRD PAGE

     Zackriah Cokonougher and

     Mary Cokonougher was

     Married August. 29. 1873

     FOURTH PAGE

     Adison Cokonougher

     Died December 21, 1882

     Elizbeth Cokonougher

     Died September 12, 1872

     William H. Cokonougher

     Died October 10  1862

     Lieddy Cokonougher

     Died March 20   1874

        FIFTH PAGE

     Dorcas Frost. B. Dec. 22. 1872

     harvie J Cokonougher

     born June the 23

     1896

     Zacriah Cokonougher

     died sep 14  1904

Rodena Cokonougher Frost family Photo 1890s

     This photo is that of Rodena Cokonougher Frost with her husband Andrew Frost and her children.  the photo was probably taken in the 1890s, based on the age of the daughter in the picture.  Only one daughter is shown in the picture, but Rodena and Andy had at least two daughters:  Gracie, born in 1878, and Eva, born in 1879.  The family lived in Adams County, Ohio.
     Rodena was born 31 January 1858 to Adtson Ellsworth Cokonougher and Elizabeth Shoemaker Cokonougher.  She was also the sister of Zackariah and John E. Cokonougher.  Andrew was born in 1855 as the son of John and Mary Frost. 
     This photo was the property of my grandparents John H. and Amelia Cokonougher, and passed to me when they died in 1963.  Rodena was my grandfather's aunt.

     There is a record of one Andrew Frost being elected to and having served in the Ohio Legislature.  I don't know if this was the same Andrew Frost. 
     My grandfather John, who lived in Ross County, Ohio, used to tell of taking horse and wagon rides with his parents and other family members from Ross County all the way to Adams County, Ohio to visit with the Frosts and other relatives in Adams County.  He said the trip would take all day to get there, so they would stay overnight, and then return on a following day.  They always stopped for a picnic lunch halfway there.

Adtson & Elizabeth Cokonougher Marriage 1848

          The parents Zachariah Cokonougher (1853-1904) and John Elwood Cokonougher  (1850 - 1906), as well as ancestors for most of the "Cokonougher" families in Ohio and Michigan, were Adtson Elsworth Cokonougher and Elizabeth (Shoemaker) Cokonougher. 
          Their marriage was recorded in Volume II of the Marriage Records of Adams County, Ohio.  The record says that Addison Cohinour was married on February 3, 1848 by Rev. Shin to Elizabeth Shoemaker. 
          A news article in the 10 February 1848 Adams County, West Union, Ohio newspaper The Democrat reads and confirms the marriage record in it's list of recent marriages, as follows, "On the 3rd inst., by Rev. A.T. Shinn, Mr. Addison Cohinour to Miss Elizabeth Shoemaker, all of this county."
          Was the spelling of the name as "Cohinour" the original spelling, or was it merely a mis-spelling?  I have found so many different spellings and mis-spellings of the name, going all the way back to the 1500s, that it is impossible to say.  Later census records confirm that this Addison Cohinour is the same person as Adtson Elsworth Cokonougher.                                                   
          My grandfather, John Henry Cokonougher, told me that an old family legend claimed that the original two Cokonoughers to come to Ohio were cousins whose intentions to get married were forbidden by their families. The disappointed couple eloped and ran off from their home state into the state of Ohio, changed their name so that they wouldn't be found for a while, and got married.  My grandfather could not confirm the accuracy of this legend since it was just a story that had been handed down to him. 

John Elwood Cokonougher bio & photo abt. 1900.

John Elwood Cokonougher was . . .

born 14 July 1850 to Adtson and Elizabeth (Shoemaker) Cokonougher.  He lived in Adams County, Ohio, where he married Mary Alice Purtee in 1873.  They had four children:  Icie Cokonougher, Jerry Cokonougher b. abt. 1878, Etta Mae Cokonougher b. 20 Feb. 1883, and Harley Elwood Cokonougher b.10 July 1886.  John moved to Ross County, Ohio in the 1870s, to Paulding County, Ohio, in the early 1900s, and then to Montgomery County, Kansas and possibly Michigan.  He remarried to Luella Etta Case after the death of his first wife, and had two additional children by her:  Forest Herman Cokonougher b. 15 Sept. 1896, and Goldie Faye Cokonougher b. 12 Sept. 1893.  John died 27 Sept. 1906 in Montgomery County, Kansas.  John was the brother of Sarah A. Cokonougher b. 17 Nov. 1848, Zachriah Cokonougher b. 2 Apr. 1853, Mary Elizabeth Cokonougher b. 18 March 1855, Rodena Cokonougher b. 31 Jan. 1858, William N. Cokonougher b. 16 Feb. 1862, and Lieddy Cokonougher b. 22 Sept. 1863. 
           Most of this information came from the family Bible of Mary Elizabeth (Wisecup) Cokonougher, oral history told to me by my father Howard Wm. Cokonougher, and research by Ena (Cokonougher) Mulford.  The picture of John E. Cokonougher was gifted to me by Ena (Cokonougher) Mulford.  More about John Cokonougher and the Cokonougher family can be found in the book "The Genealogy Of The Family Of Ralph William Cokonougher" by Ralph W. Cokonougher, available on Amazon.com.

Zachariah Cokonougher 1870s photo

           This picture of  Zachariah Cokonougher was likely taken in the early 1870s.  It is copied from a tin type photo.
           Zachariah was born 2 April 1853 in Ohio to Addison and Elizabeth (Shoemaker) Cokonougher.  He married Mary Elizabeth Wisecup in Adams County, Ohio on 29 August 1873.  they had eight children:  William Sylvester Cokonougher, born 12 June 1874; Provy Myrtle Cokonougher, born 12 January 1877; Addison Elsworth Cokonougher, born 22 February 1880, Joseph Elwood Cokonougher, born 22 February 1880; John Henry Cokonougher, born 6 July 1883; Charles S. Cokonougher, born 20 September 1886; Anna Mae Cokonougher, born 17 September 1892; and Harvey Jay Cokonougher, born 23 June 1896.  Zachariah and Mary moved to Ross County, Ohio after they were married, where, except for a short time in Paulding County, Ohio, they lived the remainder of their lives.  Zachariah died of cancer on 14 September 1904.       
          More about Zachariah can be learned in the book "The Genealogy Of The Family Of Ralph William Cokonougher" by Ralph W. Cokonougher, available for purchase on Amazon.com.      

Cokonougher (sic) guild house - 1529.

A guild house in the Middle Ages was . . . .

 

. . . .  similar to a cross between today's labor union headquarters and a family owned business headquarters.  You had to be a member of the guild to work a job in the profession that the guild represented.  Usually, a particular family controlled the guild, and the jobs were handed down from generation to generation.  This particular Knochenhauer Amthaus (sic Cokonougher guild house) was rebuilt from scratch from the original plans in the last century and is now a major tourist attraction, and a restaurant, in the town of Hildeshem, Germany.  You can find out more about it by doing a google search online.  It is a good example of what the Cokonougher ancestors in the "old country" were capable of.

John & Amelia Cokonougher wedding picture. 1916

This is John Henry Cokonougher and his new wife Amelia Irene "Miller" Cokonougher in 1916, shortly after they were married.

John and Amelia met at the home of his mother Mary Elizabeth "Wisecup" Cokonougher in South Salem, Ohio.  Amelia was a 16 year old orphan who had been placed in Mary's home as what was then the equivalent of today's foster child, to earn her keep as a housekeeper.  John was a bachelor farmer who was twice Amelia's age.  They were married 46 years and had five children:  Cecil Lloyd Cokonougher, born 19 April 1917, John Henry Cokonougher Jr., born 29 June 1919, Howard William "Bill" Cokonougher, born 14 August 1922, Herbert Miller Cokonougher, born 25 April 1924, and Geraldine June "Gerry" Cokonougher, born 24 November 1933.  John and Amelia lived most of their married life on the family farm on Wisecup Hill in Buckskin Township in Ross County, Ohio, originally purchased by John's father, Zachariah Cokonougher, in 1905.