The Mysterious Tillman

The Wittenberg, Missouri, Summers are descended from James Jordan and Lucinda (Russell) Summers. But Lucinda had been married once before. On 23 Jan 1870 in White Co, Illinois, Lucinda had married Tillman Andrew. And Tillman left sufficient mysteries to keep a dozen Sherlock Holmeses busy.

The first mystery is Tillman’s origins. According to Illinois census data he was born c1844 in Maryland. The Illinois Roll of Honor, a secondary database maintained by the State of Illinois showing residents who served in the military, claims that Tillman “Andrews” served in the Maryland infantry during the Civil War; however, no reliable military records are found showing such service. Although the database is maintained by the State of Illinois, it was given the State by Fred Delap of Kansas, Illinois. The Civil War entries are said to have come from the Report of the Adjutant General of the State of Illinois. The name “Tillman Andrew” or a variant thereof, however, does not appear in any of the eight volumes of the adjutant general’s report. The creator of the database is now deceased.

Los Angeles death certificate for a different Tillman Andrews

And Tillman’s parentage is unknown. He is sometimes said to be Tilman (also, “Tilghman,” a known variant of the name) D. Andrew, born in Maryland c1845 to Richard and Rebecca Andrew as seen in 1850 and 1860 census records; however, Tilman D. is known to have moved to California, where he married in 1872, lived, and died in 1911. The death certificate shows his parents to be Richard and Rebecca.

The Illinois Tillman, who appears with the surname “Andrew” in earlier documents but as “Andrews” in later (mostly secondary) records, and Lucinda had six known children, all named “Andrews.” Then, around the time the last child was born, 1886, Tillman walked out the door and vanished.

Lucinda waited a couple of years or so and then, assuming that Tillman had died, she married again, with James Jordan Summers, on 30 Jan 1889 in Macedonia, Illinois. James was widowed, his wife Rosetta (“Rosie”) had died, leaving him with two young children, William and Mary Elizabeth.

James died young, around age 38, on 14 May 1890 according to Betty Jenkins Summers, the wife of James Jordan’s grandson Michael, though how she (or Michael) would know is unknown, and both are now deceased. James and Lucinda’s brief marriage produced a single child, John William Summers Sr, born 4 Sep 1889 in Macedonia.  When James died, he left a house full of children for Lucinda, two from James’s previous marriage, six from Lucinda’s first marriage, and newly-born John William Summers, who would not have remembered his father.

And then the unthinkable happened. Tillman returned! In Nov 1892, he walked in the door unannounced, claiming that two detectives were after him. And then, after a few days, on 21 Nov 1892, he put a gun to his head and pulled the trigger. The incident made newspapers across the country. Many with headlines mentioning “Enoch Arden.” (I leave it to the reader to figure out why.) Tillman is said to be buried in Macedonia Cemetery, though no marker is found.

Pension Index Card showing the alias

Following the loss of two husbands, Lucinda married a third, John H. Cozart, on 8 Sep 1894 in Franklin Co, Illinois. Lucinda’s last marriage was short and childless. She died around 1897. But before that, in 1895, John Cozart applied for a Civil War pension based on Tillman Andrew’s service to help support the many minor children John inherited when he married Tillman’s and James Jordan's widow. And this brings us to a final Tillman mystery. The National Archives Pension Index Card for John Cozart’s application states that Tillman Andrews served with the 3rd Regiment, Massachusetts Cavalry, not the Maryland infantry, which is shown in the Illinois Role of Honor. And much more mysterious is that the card states that Tillman had an alias — William W. Downes! There was a William Downes, of Delaware, who served in the 3rd Regiment of the Massachusetts Cavalry. And William's approximate year of birth, based on his enlistment age, was 1843, very near that of Tillman Andrew. Furthermore, Tillman’s children often listed Delaware, rather than Maryland, as their father's birthplace on their censuses, possibly having heard something from their mother. Lastly, it is interesting that Tillman’s first-born child was named “William” and none were named “Tillman.” But nothing else connects William Downes of Delaware and Tillman Andrew of Illinois. If only a descendant of Tillman by an all-male line would take a yDNA test, we might have an answer, or at least a clue. But that hasn’t happened yet.

Tillman leaves us with a passel of mysteries:

      

    WHO WAS TILLMAN? 

     WHY DID HE VANISH FOR SIX YEARS?

     WHO WAS WILLIAM DOWNES?

     DID AN ALIAS BRING ON THE DETECTIVES?

We may “soon" have some answers. The entire pension file for Tillman Andrews/William Downes has been ordered from National Archives. Look at this blog in a couple of months, for that is how long it takes for orders to be filled.