What Happened to Kate? Part 1

Thomas Probert died of cirrhosis of the liver on October 9, 1876. His widow, Kate, was only 39 years old. I have no knowledge of when Thomas recognized that he was ill and what impact this knowledge may have had on his wife and two young children still at home. However, there are a couple of records that give me a clue.

Nine months before Thomas' death, Kate and Thomas sold their billiard table and its fixtures for $150. Did they need the cash or recognize that there would no longer be any need for these items? Note that in 1876, women did not typically conduct their own business, and Thomas acted as Kate's agent for the sale. It was the end of an era.

Thomas was not able to submit his final request for reimbursement for prisoners kept in his jail. I was able to uncover an invoice submitted in Kate's name at the Kentucky archives. Based on this invoice, it seems as if Thomas only kept prisoners through July, 1876.

The invoice was submitted for reimbursement on December 23, 1876. Kate is noted in the document as the "Administratrix of T.H. Probert, deceased." So how would she support herself and his children now? There are some clues in the paperwork.

A Man of Many Talents

Transcription: Mt. Sterling Sentinel, October 30, 1875.

Mr. T. H. Probert, our efficient jailer, dug from five acres of ground two thousand bushels of Irish potatoes, and he says there are about one hundred bushels more in the ground, which he intended to dig, which will make two thousand one hundred bushels. They are in the Irish cup, and the largest we ever saw. Mr. Probert says he can select seven hundred bushels of those potatoes that will weigh one pound to the potato. If any person has beat that in raising potatoes we want to hear from him.

After finding this article, I had a lot of questions:
1) Where did Thomas find time to plant five acres of Irish potatoes?

2) Does the fact that he grew Irish potatoes support the theory that Thomas is of Irish descent? My cousin, Barbara Kaiser Pharo, has an aunt who insists that the Proberts were Irish. I have some contradictory evidence that the Proberts were Welsh. This is a question we've yet to prove.

3) Who was this man? If anything has become apparent to me, it is that Thomas was not one-dimensional. Over his lifetime he pursued so many interests.

4) I also know that almost exactly a year later, Thomas would be dead. How did he have the stamina to grow potatoes in addition to all of his other responsibilities?

We are coming close to the end of our journey to better know our ancestor. I hope to finish up with a couple of more anecdotes about T. H. Probert. And can you believe it? After all of this research, I still have no idea what the "H" stands for.

Gaming - 1860s Style

The more I know about Thomas Probert, the better I like him. On New Year's Day, 1865, Thomas and a few of his friends and neighbors were involved in "gaming!" Horror of horrors.





To quote the indictment:

The said Thos. H. Probert on the 1st day of January, 1865, in the County and Circuit aforesaid did unlawfully suffer and permit diverse persons to assemble upon his premises and in his house, therein his control and occupation, and did suffer and permit the said persons to assemble to play at diverse games of chance and hazard, at cards, such as euchre, poker, seven-up and on which said games money, property and things of value were bet, won and lost, and all of which he had due notice and permitted. 

Against the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

A little context:

• It was New Year's Day. 
• They were in the 4th year of a horrible Civil War that had devastated the town.
• They were at home, and surprisingly there was no indictment for selling spiritous liquors.

A little irony:

I went to "google" to look up the proper spelling for "euchre." This was the first thing that came up.

How things have changed in the 21st Century.

Thomas Probert Was a Good Shot

On January 17th, 1866, the Cincinnati Enquirer  reprinted this notice that had been printed in the Frankfurt Yeoman.

I don't know much about shooting, but my husband assures me that this is a pretty big accomplishment. He shot them "off hand" which according to "google" is defined as "keeping all of the shots in a space between the nipples horizontally, and keeping them between the base of the sternum and base of the collarbone vertically." So he wasn't using a "gun sight." 

But this is Thomas Probert we are talking about. He didn't just demonstrate his shooting expertise -- he took bets on it. An indictment followed.

The indictment is hard to transcribe, but here is my attempt.

The Grand Jury of Montgomery County in the name and authority of the Commonwealth of  Kentucky, accuse Thomas Probert of the offense of gameing (sic), committed as follows: The said Thomas Probert on the 10th of March, 1867 in the County and Circuit aforesaid, did unlawfully engage in a game of chance and hazard by shooting with a gun and pistol at turkeys and at which money, property and things of value were bet now and lastly by the said Probert to the amount and value of over twenty dollars.

Against the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

What does this guy have to do to catch a break? Well, at least his accomplishment was recorded in multiple newspapers.

Can anyone decipher the script that I could not? Thanks to Amy Hartman who could read the script.