Times and Bounds ( Part 1 )

Acts 17:26 - 27

And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times and before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;

That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us..
 
Joseph Chancey was born around 1840 in Alabama to Amos and Mary Ann ( Callaway ) Chancey. He was a Pvt. in the Confederate army and had one child with his wife Samantha. He never came to know that son due to his birth being at the time of his departure. That son was Henry Lee, who later would be known as H.L. as well as come to be my third great grandfather.

Henry Lee was known as what some might call a "colorful" man, a man who loved adventures and life! He was born in Alabama in the year 1861, and at the young age of 15, Henry ran away from home coming through Tennessee to Arkansas heading toward Indian Territory. He saw much in his travels such as seeing his first steam locomotive, and the Big Mississippi River.

In 1878 at the age of seventeen Henry fell into some trouble with some gamblers from Spiro, Indian Territory ( present day Oklahoma ). He had bet his horse and saddle in which he lost both, due to losing the race at hand.

At 21 he met and married Sarah Mainard. Sarah came from a prolific family of Scotch-Irish and Cherokee ancestry. The two began farming in Cecil, Arkansas and bringing up their children.

Henry found himself wanting out of the farming business, so in 1889 he made a big crop, sold out, and moved his family to Huntington, Arkansas to put in a grocery store. His business failed. A coal miners strike had occurred at the same time which aided in the failure of this new business venture. Henry salvaged what he could, buying and slaughtering thirty hogs to haul back to Cecil, Arkansas to sale only to have the meat spoil on the trip. Henry was broke, but he wasn't one to quit. For fifty cents a day he went to work as a hired hand... and back to farming he went. Henry knew how to trade, work hard, and make money; within a year he was back on his feet again.

Henry, Sarah, and family in tow, began farming once again; this time in Arbuckle Island, Arkansas in the Arkansas River. There they continued to farm this area until the year 1898 when the island became flooded. Henry continued to stay trying to save all he could. With a new place, and a new adventure ahead, to Webb City, Arkansas they went. There Henry and Sarah continued to farm until the winter of 1901, where they had the last of their six children.

On December 1, 1901 in covered wagon, the Chancey family headed for Indian Territory. What new adventures would lay ahead....


(Source:) Chancey, Grace H., Floy Bess. Chancey, and Aleene Chancey. Shubert. Joseph Chancey. Chauncey-Chancey. Jacksonville, AR: Order ... from A. Shubert, 1988. N. pag. Print.