Key Facts

Snapshot:	moved from South Carolina, to Georgia, and lastly to Alabama Georgia militiaman during the forced removal of Cherokee Indians from north Georgia
Parents:	unknown
Born:	circa 1810 South Carolina
Died:	3 May 1888 Marshall County, Alabama
Buried:	Rocky Mount Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery, Marshall County, Alabama Cemetery's coordinates: N34.34498 W86.45093

126Cain Waldrip was born in South Carolina1-4 circa 1810.1,5,6

126Cain married 127Joanna M. ___,1-5,7 although when and where isn't entirely clear. However, since 126Cain's daughter Sarah was born in South Carolina circa 1833,1-3 one could guess that 126Cain and 127Joanna probably married in South Carolina and lived there for several years before relocating to Georgia.

During the so-called "Cherokee War" (which wasn't a war, but rather a forced expulsion of Cherokees from Georgia), 126Cain Waldrip was a private in the Georgia militia. His unit's name is noted on his service index card, but I've been unable to find further information about the unit. (Furthermore, 126Cain apparently later received bounty land for his service. A FamilySearch user even posted a copy of the warrant, along with its source: "Military Bounty Land Warrant Vol. 570, Page 408." However, I don't understand this citation, and I haven't been able to find the warrant on my own. If you have a more complete citation, including the NARA series number, etc., please contact me.)

The header of 126Cain's Cherokee War service record index card.8

The 1840 census shows 126Cain's family in Dekalb County, Georgia. As you can see, he was married (presumably to 127Joanna) with several children.9 126Cain seems to have moved his family often, since they lived in different locations in 1840, 1850, and 1860.1,2

1840: 126Cain's family in militia district 524 (map), Dekalb County, Georgia. Full page.9

1850: 126Cain's family in Gilmer County, Georgia. Full page.1

1860: 126Cain's family in Gordon County, Georgia. Full page.2

After the Civil War, in 1867 the U.S. Congress passed several Reconstruction Acts. These Acts divided the former Confederacy into several military occupation zones, which were ruled by Union military commanders. The Acts also directed the commanding officers to register Southerners who wanted to vote in upcoming elections. One registration requirement was to swear an oath of loyalty to the United States; the obvious intent was to disfranchise any lingering Confederate resistance. 126Cain signed his oath on 25 June 1867 as a citizen of Gilmer County.10

126Cain's Reconstruction-era voter registration oath.10

Gilmer County's 1869 tax digest lists the exact land that 126Cain owned. He owned three lots, 480 acres in total,11 and I've marked two of those lots on the master map. The third lot was close (probably adjacent) to lot 155 (the southwest lot of the two that I've marked), but the tax book's ink is smeared, so I can't be sure exactly which lot it was. 126Cain undoubtably lived on one of the three lots.

The 1870 census shows that 126Cain's daughter Sarah and her children were living in his house, but that 126Cain's other children had apparently all moved away.3 126Cain's farm schedule listing shows that he had pigs and cows; grew wheat, rye, corn, oats, and tobacco; and made butter. (You can see his farm schedule entry here: pages 13 and 14.12 To help interpret it, you'll probably need this template and my transcription of the numbers.)

1870: 126Cain's family in Murray County, Georgia. Full page.3

By 1880, he and his wife had moved to Marshall County, Alabama.4 The census shows that they lived in township 8S, range 1E. You can see a copy of his agriculture schedule listing here.13

1880: 126Cain's family in Marshall County, Alabama. Full page.4

126Cain apparently joined Rocky Mount Primitive Baptist Church. A history of the church written by pastor Matt Jordan reads:14

Rocky Mount Primitive Baptist Church was organized Saturday, July 29, 1882. [...] On Sunday, the following day, the church received Cain Waldrip, his wife Annie Waldrip, [and] Sally Waldrip, [...] into their membership. The congregation originally met in a log house located just southeast of the present-day Grassy School. The name was chosen because of the rocky and hilly surroundings. At that time, the log meetinghouse was also used as the local school. Within a short time after the church was organized, the woods surrounding the log building caught fire and destroyed the meetinghouse. The congregation built a new frame building where the church is presently located, but it was later destroyed by fire also.14

126Cain died in 1888 and is buried in the cemetery at Rocky Mount Primitive Baptist Church, which is at coordinates N34.34498 W86.45093. Below is a photo of his tombstone.5

His obituary was published a week later in the local newspaper:6

Despite his tombstone, I've found no evidence that 126Cain ever joined the U.S. Army. (As discussed above, however, he was a Georgia militiaman during the Cherokee expulsion.) Furthermore, I found no mention of 126Cain's death or his estate in any of the following:

	Marshall County, Alabama County Records
		Probate Judge, Estate Records, 1836-1915, Turner Andrew - Walls John Berry; Alabama Archives LGM268/R12 order#S2004.0868
		Circuit Court, Estate Records, 1836-1900, Sturgus James - Whisenute George P.; Alabama Archives LGM275/R24 order#S2005.0746

Sources Cited:

1: 1850 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Gilmer County, Georgia. Pages 426B and 427A, dwelling 1115, family 1115, Cain Waldroop household. NARA microfilm publication M432, roll 70. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-67C9-ST8?cc=1401638&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AMZYG-VG6> et seq., accessed 16 September 2021.

2: 1860 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Calhoun, Gordon County, Georgia. Page 20, dwelling 136, family 134, Cain Waldrip household. NARA microfilm publication M653, roll 124. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYBT-ZFZ?cc=1473181&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AMZMD-BCK>, accessed 16 September 2021.

3: 1870 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Militia district 972, Murray County, Georgia. Page 1, dwelling 4, family 4, Cain Waldrip household. NARA microfilm publication M593, roll 167. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-6L99-GQ5?cc=1438024&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AMC3N-5XX>, accessed 16 September 2021.

4: 1880 U.S. Federal Census (Population Schedule). Township 8 Range 1E, Marshall County, Alabama. Enumeration district 254, page 194A, dwelling 3, family 3, Cain Waldrip household. NARA microfilm publication T9, roll 24. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYBS-SSP1?cc=1417683&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AM4VS-6XM>, accessed 16 September 2021.

5: The tombstone of Cain Waldrip (1810-1888), Rocky Mount Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery, Marshall County, Alabama, cemetery's coordinates N34.34498 W86.45093. The photograph's source is unknown.

6: The Guntersville Democrat (Guntersville, Alabama), Thursday 10 May 1888, page 3, column 3, about four-fifths of the way down the page. Newspapers.com, <https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-guntersville-democrat-canaan-waldrip/15768873/>, accessed 5 May 2024.

7: The tombstone of Joanna M. Waldrip (1802 - 16 September 1892), Rocky Mount Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery, Marshall County, Alabama, cemetery's coordinates N34.34498 W86.45093. Her presence in the cemetery near 126Cain, considered alongside the abovecited censuses, strongly implies that she was 126Cain's wife, even though this isn't explicitly stated on the tombstone.

8: Index to Compiled Military Service Records of Volunteer Soldiers Who Served during Indian Wars and Disturbances, 1815–58; entry for Private Cain Waldrep of Fowler's Company, Turk's 2nd Georgia Militia. NARA series M629, roll 39. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L9Z5-53ZS?i=1270&cat=98003>, accessed 16 September 2021.

9: 1840 U.S. Federal Census. Militia district 524, Dekalb County, Georgia. Page 72, Cane Wal[dri]p household. NARA microfilm publication M704, roll 40. FamilySearch, <https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9YY5-3NS?i=4&cc=1786457&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AXHBF-1VS>, accessed 16 September 2021.

10: Georgia's 1867-1868 Voter Registration Oath Books. Volume 263 (Murray County Book 1), page 70, entry 139, Cain Waldrip. Ancestry.com ("Georgia, Returns of Qualified Voters and Reconstruction Oath Books, 1867-1869" / Oath Book / Murray / 43 / image 110 of 519), accessed 16 September 2021. Although I copied the image from Ancestry.com, the corresponding microfilm at the Georgia Archives is microfilm 297/6.

11: Murray County, Georgia. Tax digest for 1869, section for militia district 972, entry for Cain Waldrip. Ancestry.com ("Georgia, U.S., Property Tax Digests, 1793-1892" / Murray / 1869 / images 52 and 53 of 121.

12: 1870 U.S. Federal Census (Agriculture Schedule). Militia district 972, Murray County, Georgia. Pages 13 and 14, line 12, Cain Waldrip's farm. NARA microfilm publication T1137, roll 8. The NARA provides a helpful template. Because the copy is of poor quality, I've transcribed the numbers for 126Cain's entry.

13: 1880 U.S. Federal Census (Agriculture Schedule). Township 8 Range 1E, Marshall County, Alabama. Enumeration district 254, page 1, line 3, family 3, Cain Waldrip farm. NARA microfilm publication M279, roll 27. The NARA provides a helpful template.

14: Matt Jordan, "Rocky Mount Primitive Baptist Church: A Brief History," Arab Today, <http://www.arab-today.com/rocky_mount_history.htm>, accessed 9 June 2011. The website no longer exists, but I have a copy of the article, which you can read here.