Reed Family Tidbits
John Byron Reed was a son of William T. Reed and the younger brother of Henry S. Reed. William T. was Nancy Shaffer Reed's husband. Nancy is buried in Shaffer Cemetery, this county.
(The "John Reed" that Maurice Sanders found is the father of William T. and a 'pioneer' settler of Cass county.Maurice Sanders comments
In 1827 or 1828 John Reed moved from Logan Co. OH to Young's Prairie, where he remained until disosing of his squatter's rights to David McIntosh for $210 in the fall of 1829, when he removed to Calvin and settled on a farm now owned by Thomas Smith, where he remained for many years engaged in the arduous labor of carving out for himself a farm, but subsequently moved to Indiana, but his love for frontier life led him to the then Territory of Iowa, where the remaining years of his life were passed. History of Cass County, MI 1971 printing Page 380Likely John Byron Reed, his grandson, was named after John Reed.) Both William T. and Henry S. died in the Civil War, one while serving in the Michigan Volunteer Infantry and the other while in the Michigan Volunteer Cavalry. It is curious that John Byron did not join up himself. But his reluctance might have prompted his moving away. I have found a record of a John Byron Reed in New Mexico who appears to have married twice while there. (His birthplace was listed as Michigan.) The first marriage was to a white woman and the second was to a native American woman. There is also some indication that he might have married another native American woman in an Indian ceremony and had two children by her. (The census of the Laguna Indians list a woman an two children with the surname Reed but no husband. These are the only tribal members enumerated who have surnames.) This penchant for women of color fits in with Cass County's history as a destination for the underground railway. Perhaps John's earliest romances were with women of color while he was living there. What makes this all germane to me is that my grandfather said that his father's name was John Reed and that he was from Ohio. (My grandfather might have confused his great grandfather's origins with his father's since they shared a common first name.) My great grandmother was a woman of color, called in the vernacular of the era an 'octroon' or 'high yellow'. On the census' she is listed as either mulatto or black. However, she is listed as not being married to "John Reed" but rather to "Henry S. Reed" from Michigan. Assuming that Henry S. did actually die from his wounds while fighting in the Civil War, could his brother have assumed his name in Texas? Tracing an individual with such a common name as John Reed in the 19th century, particularly when he wandered from the states into the western territories, is daunting to say the least, particularly when he did nothing to distinguish himself enough to make him a notable character of the time or place. You can, no doubt, understand my frustration with this complex enigma. My father, out of a sense of love and loyalty to his father, will not tell me all that he knows. I believe that both he and my grandfather felt great shame about their African American roots and the possibility that my grandfather might have been "born on the wrong side of the blanket". Thus it is up to me to ferret out the facts and document everything without his help. Had he (John Byron) kept a journal or had been a diligent letter writer, his story would have made quite an adventure. In the event that any of the other Reed's should contact you regarding family history, please pass my name and e-mail address on to them. Thank you very much for your time and efforts on my behalf.
For further discussion or knowledge on these individuals, please contact Michael Reed at - tsarselo@yahoo.com