Madness Monday - He drives me crazy!

I posted about this brick wall last February.  I keep hoping new records will magically pop up.

I decided today to re-visit original documents that I can find online for Hiram B. Louthan.

1. Marriage record: February 27, 1834  Elkrun, Columbiana County, Ohio

    2. 1836 Tax List  Hanover Twp, Columbiana County, Ohio.

   3. 1837 Tax List Hanover Twp., Columbiana County, Ohio.

   4. 1838 Tax List Hanover Twp., Columbiana County, Ohio.

    5. 1840 Federal Census Hanover Twp., Columbiana County, Ohio.

He has lived in Guilford, Hanover Twp., Columbiana County, Ohio for at least four years.  He has three sons; Oliver Perry Louthan b. 30 November 1834, John Cope Louthan b. 28 May 1836 and James Fife Louthan b. 3 July 1838.

Family tradition is he was a blacksmith and was born in Louthan Valley Virginia.  Ok, it is actually Loudon Valley in Virginia and there was a Civil War Battle fought in that area.  There were Louthan's in Virginia but I cannot connect to them.  You will notice there is Moses Louthan next to Hiram in the tax lists.  These two men married sisters, Harriet Matilda Hayes and Catherine Hayes, daughters of Edmund Hayes and Sarah Whitacre.  The big question being tossed around, "Are these men brothers?"  I have seen family trees online that tie them as brothers, but I have not seen proof.  

I decided to look into the middle names of  Hiram's children to see if they connected to him.  Oliver Perry was named after Harriet's brother, William Oliver Perry Hayes who died 8 Sept 1830.  John Cope Louthan may have been named after John Cope who married Phebe Heald in Columbiana County, Ohio in 1833.  In the 1850 Federal Census, Oliver Louthan is residing with John and Pheobe Cope in Wesley, Washington County, Ohio.  James Fife Louthan, I have never found a connection to the Fife family.  

So, that was no help at all.  

In 1841, according to a Bible record, reported to have been owned by Harriet, they had a daughter, Sarah.

Then in 1844, Margaret was born.  Sarah died in 1845, burial place is either Columbiana or Washington County, Ohio.  Hiram is supposed to have died about this same time and place.  I haven't been able to find this information to confirm.

Harriet married William Ormiston 16 Mar 1847 in Washington County, Ohio.  Below is the Intent to Marry image from Marriage Record 1845 - 1851 book microfilmed by FHL.

Harriet's parents had also moved to Washington County.  It is not know if she moved before Hiram's death or after.  Moses Louthan moved on to Illinois and then Kansas.  They settled in Mitchell County, Kansas.  

Hiram's three sons served in the Civil War as did Margaret's husband, Alexander M. Ellis.  Following the Civil War these families, with the exception of Margaret,  migrated to Linn County, Missouri.  Harriet died in Purdin, Linn County, Missouri in 1884.  

I have a lot of information on Hiram's descendants, wish I could solve the mystery of who, what, when and where for Hiram himself.   Moses was born in Pennsylvania and his family is documented in a county history book.  No mention is made of a brother named Hiram.  There are probate record images on FamilySearch.org that I haven't read through completely. https://familysearch.org/search/image/index#uri=https%3A//familysearch.org/records/collection/1992421/waypoints

There isn't an index to the images so it will take a while to browse the thousands of images available for Columbiana and Washington Counties.   Until I have proof of who Hiram's parents were, I will not connect him to Moses.  

This is driving me mad and has been for 30 years!  Somewhere in a dark corner is a file box that holds the key!  If only I could say " Beam me up, Scotty!" and magically land in that corner!