John B Talbott

Today I introduce you to John B. Talbott. The "B" appears to stand for Bunyan though the spelling may have been Bunyion. A few researchers think the "B" could have been for Blanks, his mother's maiden name. John was also known as "Grandaddy John" by the younger generations.

John B was born 20 Nov 1836 and died at the age of 87 on 24 Jan 1924. He is buried at Harmony Methodist Church in Alton, VA with a Civil War headstone marking his grave. John B married Sarah Frances Owen (1826-AFT 1910) before 5 Sept 1860. They lived and farmed in Halifax County, VA and had four children: Joseph Merritt (1861), John Robert (1868), Sarah Elizabeth (1869), and Geneva (1873).

Of interest, John B had a step-son named William. In the 1860 census, William is listed as being 11 years old and the son of John (age 24) and Sarah Talbott (age 29). William was Sarah's son prior to marriage and appears to have been born out of wedlock. William appears to have been William Marsalis Owen (also known as Bill) and at some point moved to Kentucky where he married (several times) and raised a family. There are stories circulating in our family about both Bossy and John B travelling to Kentucky. It was while in Kentucky that John B obtained the revolver he used in the Civil War.

Barbara Elliott was one of William's descendants and researched this line of the family. She was in contact with Aunt Elma regarding the family history and I have the correspondence that Elma saved. I have tried, but have been unable to contact Barbara. I believe that she may have passed away in the early 2000's. Hopefully, I can find one of her family members and fill in the story futher.

As mentioned earlier, John B did fight in the Civil War. He was part of Wright's Co, VA Heavy Artillery unit for the Confederacy also known as Halifax Artillery. He enlisted as a private on 18 Mar 1862. According to his pension record, John B sustained a "lung injury" during the war. I'm working on getting a copy of his pension record and hope to update you more on his war experience.

Alas, I have no picture of John B, though I would definitely like to see what he looked like. Hopefully, some day I'll find someone who has a copy. Likely any pictures were handed down through the females as they tended to be the ones who held on to such things.