Death of William Pounds,
Chickasaw Co., Mississippi, 1863
by Alma Inmon Williams

POUNDS, William

        The 1840 Chickasaw census lists William POUNDS as head of  household with one female between 20-30, a child under 5 and one between 15-20. William POUNDS and Elizabeth were among seventeen charter members of the Pleasant Ridge Baptist Church, Woodland, Chickasaw County, Mississippi. With them were Ben, Mary, Hannah, Eliza and Manerva, servants of William POUNDS. William POUNDS died in 1863. He was killed because of a personal conflict over a POUNDS' slave. A neighbor accused the slave of stealing chickens and was beating him. When William POUNDS intervened, the neighbor struck William and killed him. Church records indicate that at the December Conference that year letters of dismission were granted to "Sisters Mary and Manerva and Brother Peter," servants of Brother William POUNDS.
        William was buried beside his wife Elizabeth and a child. Elizabeth's tombstone records indicate she was born December 15, 1790 and died March 27, 1860, age sixty-nine years, 3 months and 12 days. Their  graves were originally a family cemetery on the POUNDS Plantation.  The land is now owned by Rev. Joe CRAWFORD. In 1981, Elon HILL, Jim H. TABB and others sought to protect the sacred graves by pouring a concrete slab 8'X12' over the graves and protecting the tombstones in the slab. A chain link fence protects the graves.

Death of William Pounds, Chickasaw County, Mississippi 1863 obtained from records in the newspaper in Chickasaw Co., Miss. Contributed  for use in USGenWeb Archives by Sara A. Rollins SRol786334@aol.com
 
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