Franklin Benton & Delia Robbins

Last week you met Grandma Mary's oldest daughter, Jemima Benton, and her husband, Sidney Atwell. This week we are pleased to present to you the oldest and only son of Mary Alice Godwin Benton Palmer and her first husband, Ezra Benton: Franklin Benton. This biography was written by the wonderful and talented author, Kristin Holt, one of the authors of Franklin and Delia Robbins Benton's children. 

Franklin Benton, second child of Ezra Benton and Mary Alice Godwin Benton, was born in 1831. He was an active child, curious and always investigating something...which found him in trouble more often than not. He met Delia Robbins shortly after his twenty-second birthday, when her parents purchased a farm not far from the Benton home. For Franklin, love at first sight was a sore reality. For Delia, not so much. He courted her for three years before she determined she was, also, in love with him and consented to be his wife. Franklin and Delia were wed on September 1, 1854.

Their marriage was quickly blessed (1855) by the birth of their first child, Zebulon, a vigorous baby boy. A daughter followed in 1856, named Pleasance for her mild and pleasant temperament. Not long thereafter, their third and final child, a daughter, was born in 1856.

 

 1859 Painting of Denver, Colorado

For the first few years of their marriage, Franklin supported their little family by farming just as his father had done before him. But Franklin had never enjoyed the work and found himself aching to do something else. When gold was discovered in the Pike's Peak area of the then Territory of Kansas, Franklin persuaded Delia, the newlywed couple decided to gather their belongings, three babies, and make the trek to newly founded Denver City. The journey was a difficult one, with three children under the age of four, but Delia was determined to keep their family together, and Franklin was determined to open a store in Denver and there to support his family.

16th Street, Denver, Colorado

In the years that followed, the family's Dry Goods brought in ample business, and Franklin enjoyed shop-keeping much more than he had farming. Delia raised the children in their home, through the block from the store, and as the children grew, both Franklin and Delia assumed Zebulon would follow his father into the business, but to their dismay, they learned--belatedly--that Zebulon had as little interest in shop keeping as his father had shown in farming. Delia had grand ideas for her daughters, assuming they would marry and follow the way of things, become mothers themselves and remain living nearby. But both Monica and Pleasance were strong willed young women and both brought consternation--and tremendous joy--to their parents.

And now you know more about their parents, once again, we present the three children of Franklin and Delia Benton:

Monica Benton in Monica's Mystery by Kate Cambridge:

Monica Benton has to leave home, fast. Her parents are planning to marry her off to a man who thinks women belong in the home. It would never work.

Monica is a Suffragette, an amateur sleuth — and a good one. She sees no reason why she can’t join the ranks of the local lawmen, or even become a Texas Ranger, should she choose!

What will happen when she visits her best friend in Galveston, Texas, only to find herself face-to-face with Gabriel Randall, the handsome leader of the local Texas Ranger unit, whose cases she’s been meddling in?

For the first time, she finds herself knee-deep in territory she has no idea how to navigate, and more than just her life is on the line. She has no idea what to do with an attraction that is getting harder to deny by the day.

Purchase Monica’s Mystery on Amazon by CLICKING HERE.

Pleasance Benton in Pleasance’s First Love by Kristin Holt:

Colorado, 1879

His worst mistake was letting her go.
His second-worst mistake? Bringing her home.

No one will ever know how badly Pleasance Benton's abandonment threw Jacob Gideon. He landed hard, hard enough he didn't care to find a replacement. Now that he needs a woman, he figures the safest way is to order one from a catalog.

Pleasance is back to reclaim her rightful place at Jacob's side. One way or another she'll remind him theirs is a match made in heaven...once the shock wears off. The teensy-weensy problem? Jacob doesn't know that she--his first love--is his catalog bride.

Purchase Pleasance’s First Love on Amazon by CLICKING HERE:

Zebulon Benton in Zebulon's Bride by Patricia Pacjac Carroll:

He’s vowed not to marry until he has established his ranch in Montana. Then he meets Amy, and she has other ideas.

Zebulon Benton dreams of going to Montana, but he’s the only son. His mother doesn’t want him to g, and his father needs help with the family store. Unknown to Zeb, his mother sends off for a mail order bride. After all, if Zeb marries and settles down, he won’t want to leave his home in Denver.

Enter Amy Gordon from New York. She appears to be the perfect bride for Zeb. If only ...

Purchase Zebulon’s Bride on Amazon by CLICKING HERE:

You may purchase all of the books in the Grandma’s Wedding Quilts series by CLICKING HERE.

 

Jemima Benton & Sidney Atwell

You’ve heard about Grandma Mary Alice Godwin Benton Palmer, the grandmother who made the beautiful wedding quilts for each of her grandchildren. You’ve heard how she made an extra block from each of the quilts in order to put them together to become a sampler quilt for her. And, you’ve read about each of Mary’s eleven grandchildren and how the quilt for each came about.

What about the parents? What about Mary’s sons and daughters who brought these grandchildren into the world and gave them their start in life? What do we know about that missing generation?

For the next four weeks, you will have the opportunity to find out. This week, let’s start with Grandma Mary’s oldest child, her daughter Jemima Benton Atwell.

Ohio Star

It’s hard to tell Jemima’s story without telling a little bit of her parents’ story. For Mary’s story, we owe a debt of gratitude to one of our series authors, P.A. Estelle, who wrote a synopsis of her life for the rest of us to use as a guideline.

In 1829, Jemima was born on small farm outside of Marietta, Ohio, just off the Ohio River, the same farm  her mother Mary and her father, Ezra Benton bought after they married the year before. However, her father contracted consumption and his health soon deteriorated to the point he found it difficult to continue farming. In 1843, her parents sold their Ohio farm and prepared to move south to a warmer and drier climate in hopes the change would help her father overcome his disease. However, the family only made it as far as Boonville, Missouri where Jemima’s father died. Jemima was fourteen years old at the time.

Map of Boonville, Missoure

Mary Benton was left a widow with three children to care for and no means of support. She chose to stay in Boonville. Always a sober and responsible child, Jemima helped watch her younger brother and sister after her mother found an old cabin for them to live in and found work with Edward Palmer, a widower with a young son. Jemima was still living at home when her mother married Edward Palmer a year and a half later.

Almost two years later, Jemima met Sidney Atwell in Boonville. He and his family were originally from Pennsylvania which is where his older brother, Jefferson, met his wife. Shortly after the Atwells had settled on their Boonville farm, they had gravitated towards associating with the Palmers and other families originally from northern states that did not approve of slavery and did not support the efforts of their pro-slavery neighbors to preserve and spread that practice. An attraction quickly grew between level-headed Jemima and gregarious, easily distracted Sidney. In 1847, when Jemima was the age of eighteen, she and Sidney married.

The young couple lived for a time in the Atwell home where Sidney helped his parents and brother farm. They eventually were able to buy a small farm with a two room cabin of their own nearby. It was there that Jemima’s three children, Kizzie, Jesse and Meredith, were born. After Meredith’s birth, Jemima developed a problem with miscarriages which prevented her from having more children.

Sidney & Jemima Atwell family in Salina, Kansas

However, in their community of Boonville, the tension and conflicts between those for and against slavery grew to the point that Jemima’s mother and stepfather decided to move to Kansas. They had heard there was good farm land with plenty of water for livestock in the west. Once Sidney and his brother learned of the Palmers’ plans, they decided to go with them so they could establish larger farms of their own.

In 1859, Jemima and her family moved to Salina, Kansas. She and Sidney settled on land east of the Smoky Hill River close to where it joined the Saline River. The next farm to the south belonged to Jemima’s mother and stepfather. On the other side of the Palmer farm was the farm of Jefferson Atwell and his family.  They started their farm from scratch, first living out of a wagon box until they built a fine two story house with three bedrooms, a barn and corrals. They planted wheat and silage crops for their livestock. They kept a herd of about thirty to forty head of cattle.

At the time, the small community of Salina was on the western edge of the Kansas frontier of what the Cheyenne considered their buffalo hunting territory. Tribal members were hostile to the whites moving onto the land. Jemima lived through fleeing from the Indian massacre scare 1862 while recuperating from another miscarriage and a bout of pneumonia. She helped her daughters escape when they were attacked by a knife- and gun-wielding bullwhacker. She was the one most proficient in home doctoring. She was often called upon to provide the right herbs and treatments for sickness and infections. If someone needed to be stitched up, they called upon Jemima to do it.

Now you know more about Grandma Mary’s oldest child, Jemima Benton, and the man she married, Sidney Atwell, let’s once again review the stories of their three children:

Kizzie Atwell in Kizzie’s Kisses by Zina Abbott:

Running from hostile Indians attacking Salina, Kansas in 1862, feisty Kizzie Atwell, Grandma Mary’s oldest grandchild, runs into freighter Leander Jones traveling the Smoky Hill Trail. He is as interested in her as his stallion is in her mare. The two join forces to prevent the Fort Riley Army captain from requisitioning their beloved horses for the cavalry. Avoiding bushwhackers and fighting off a thieving bullwhacker binds their bargain.

In 1865, at the victory dance held at Fort Riley to celebrate the end of the Civil War, Kizzie is asked to participate in a fund-raiser to aid the Sanitary Commission helping injured and sick soldiers. It involves chaste sweetheart kisses in exchange for tickets purchased by officers and guests. As a contract freighter for the Army, Leander is invited. Much to Leander’s chagrin, before his chance to claim his kiss, Kizzie’s uncle steps in and puts an end to the kissing game.

Is Leander out of luck, or will the bargain Kizzie and Leander made three years earlier to save their horses lead to a more romantic bargain sealed with a kiss?

You may purchase Kizzie’s Kisses on Amazon by CLICKING HERE.

Jesse Atwell in Jesse’s Bargain by Kay P. Dawson:

Cora left England for a new life in America as a mail order bride - only to find the man she’s come to marry has been killed in a gunfight. She has a sister in Kansas, but how can she get there?

Jesse needs this job driving cattle to Kansas so he can marry the woman who’s given him an ultimatum - buy land and settle down, or she’ll marry someone who will.

But, his cook’s been killed in the same gunfight, leaving him without anyone to drive the chuckwagon. His right hand man, an old cowboy with a soft heart, has a solution for both Cora and Jesse - one he might not like.

Dressed as a boy, Cora heads off with a team of cowboys, led by a man who isn’t happy about her being there. Kansas is a long way away…and a lot can happen before they get there.

You may purchase Jesse’s Bargain by CLICKING HERE.

Meredith Atwell in Meredith’s Mistake by Amelia C. Adams:

The summer Meredith turned eighteen was filled with romance and laughter - two young men sought her hand, and she chose the one she thought would make her the happiest. He certainly was the most handsome, and the wealthiest, and could offer her the most pleasant life. But that turned out to be a mistake . . . one she would regret for a very long time.

In a strange twist of fate, now she's being given a chance to set things right. Will she be able to live down her past, or will her foolishness keep coming back to haunt her and keep her from ever being happy with the man she loves?

You may purchase Meredith’s Mistake  by CLICKING HERE.

You may purchase all of the books in the Grandma’s Wedding Quilts series by CLICKING HERE.

Kizzie's Kisses: From Character and Setting to Plot

In my last post on the development of my novel, Kizzie’sKisses, in the Grandma’s Wedding Quilts series, I wrote how I used the descendant chart the Sweet Americana Sweethearts authors put together to develop my characters and setting. You may access the first two blog posts. 

• The first one about developing the descendant chart you may read by CLICKING HERE. 
• The post about developing my main characters and setting you may read by CLICKING HERE.

I described a bit of the setting that was established by one of our other authors. We knew Mary and Ezra Benton would plan to go to Oregon, but he would get sick and die, leaving Mary with her three children far from their former home in Ohio. One of the authors in our group, P. A. Estelle, accepted the challenge to write up a scenario so we would know where the family ended up when Ezra died, how she would meet Edward Palmer, and where the family would be living at the time our stories begin. She is the one who put Edward and Mary (Grandma Mary, the quilt-maker) Palmer in Salina, Kansas.

My character, Kizzie Atwell, is the oldest grandchild. She marries in 1865, the last year of the Civil War. When I started Kizzie’s Kisses, I was just sure I was writing a Civil War novel. After all, in many ways, the Civil War started in Kansas almost from the time the territory was opened to white settlement in 1854. The fighting between the free-soil movement and abolitionists against the pro-slavery advocates who moved to Kansas from Missouri led to the famous expression, “Bleeding Kansas.”

 

Territory Map of Kansas

Ha-ha! Did I get fooled. Those characters of mine had minds of their own. Put together with the setting, the plot went a different direction than my original plan. All my research into the Kansas cavalry regiments of the time will have to wait for another book.

 

Early map of Kansas Counties

When I first read the scenario where the grandparents moved to Kansas, I assumed it was soon after Mary Godwin Benton married Edward Palmer in 1845. From that, I got it in my head that most of Mary’s children plus Edward’s son, Stephen, would have gone with them. Once I started researching the history of Kansas, I realized they needed to migrate to Kansas much later. In spite of that, knowing from my study into family history research that families and communities often traveled together, I decided that the oldest daughter, Jemima Benton Atwell, and her husband, Sidney Atwell, plus their children and some Atwell cousins would go to Salina, Kansas too.

What was happening in Salina, Kansas in the 1850’s and early 1860’s?

February, 1858 – A townsite along the Saline River was located and given the name of Salina. The region was officially unorganized territory known as the Arapaho District. However, that same month and year, the Kansas Legislature passed a bill organizing and defining the boundary lines of five new counties west of the 6th principal meridian, among them Saline County. Saline County was on the edge of the frontier. To the west was Cheyenne buffalo hunting grounds. 

Cheyenne Buffalo Hunt

1858 – The first stock of goods to Saline County was brought by George Pickard. The great floods that occurred in that year, washed away all the Government bridges on the Smoky Hill, Saline and Solomon Rivers. Another road was built on the south side of the Smoky Hill River between Salina and Kansas City.

1859 – Gold was discovered at Cherry Creek in Colorado, and the The Smoky Hill Trail, which followed an ancient Indian trail along the Smoky Hill River, was traveled to reach this region. It started at Fort Leavenworth and Kansas City, followed the north side of the Kansas and Smoky Hill Rivers and passed through Salina before travelers entered Cheyenne land. This trail cut about 120 miles off when compared to traveling the Oregon/California/Mormon Trail along the Platte River. The Cheyenne were extremely hostile to whites entering their territory, even if they were only passing through.

 

Kansas Map showing Smoky Hill Trail and Santa Fe Trail

Wolf Robe, Cheyenne

April, 1862 – as described in the records of the times, "Indians" massacred white settlers and burned down their farm buildings west of Salina. They reached Salina itself.

September, 1862 – Bushwhackers invaded Salina. There was no loss of life, but they stole provisions, weapons, ammunition, horses and mules.

The closest fort to Salina was Fort Riley, established in 1853 about fifty miles to the east of Salina on the north banks of the Kansas River. The regiments stationed at the fort were not only involved in Civil War actions against the bushwhackers and Confederate soldiers in both Kansas and Arkansas, but they protected the people living on the Kansas frontier from Indian attacks. As the Indian tribes were later pushed into Indian Territory, Fort Riley became a cavalry training fort.

Fort Riley, Cavalry Training Camp, 1920's

What does all that have to do with my plot? My book starts with Kizzie fleeing east to Fort Riley where her father and uncle (Jefferson Atwell, Sidney Atwell’s older brother) had gone to sell cattle. She wants to get help for the rest of her family who find themselves fleeing from the Indians attacking white settlers around Salina. Later in the book, both the bushwhacker attack on Salina, and Fort Riley pay a part in the plot.

My book, Kizzie’s Kisses, is now on pre-order. It will be released on Monday, January 9th. Be aware: the book is currently at the pre-release sale price of $.99 which will continue through January 9th. Starting January 10th, it will go to its regular price of $2.99. The book is also available on Kindle Unlimited. You can purchase this book on pre-order by CLICKING HERE.

You will want to read all the books in the Grandma’s Wedding Quilts series. To find then all in one place, please visit and follow the series page on Amazon by CLICKING HERE.

To keep track of any games, parties, contests and special information about the Grandma's Wedding Quilts series, please "like" and follow the Grandma’s Wedding Quilts page on Facebook by CLICKING HERE.

There are two days left of a Quilt Contest Trivia Game which continues through January 8th. By playing that game, you will have a chance to win prizes including free ebooks, signed copies of print books, Amazon gift cards and a new 7" Kindle Fire. Even though you may have missed the first few days, you still may qualify to win the daily prizes or the grand prizes. CLICK HERE.

 

The Sweet Americana Sweethearts authors plan to keep writing together to create more book series. You can keep track of our progress two ways. First, please visit and follow the SweetAmericana Sweethearts blog by CLICKING HERE. 

Second, join the SweetAmericana Book Club group on Facebook by CLICKING HERE.