| Notes |
- William Leo Hayden (1785-1866) was the natural son of Henrietta (Cole) Hayden, by Charles Ewing.
When the Hayden family arrived in north-central Kentucky in 1785, they and the rest of their migrant party were confined for some months inside a rough-and-ready fort for their protection. It's easy to imagine that this was hard on them all, and Henrietta (Cole) Hayden had further reason to be depressed; she had lost four children on the trek from southern Maryland. Whatever her reasons, she had an affair inside the fort with a sketchy land speculator named Charles Ewing, and became pregnant as a result. She subsequently confessed the liaison to her husband, who publicly denounced her but did not divorce her. Henrietta and Basil went on to have several more children. William Leo, son of Henrietta by Charles Ewing, was raised in Basil and Henrietta's family, where his nickname was "Not Blood." Basil's will provided William Leo with half the amount he gave to each of his own surviving children.
After Basil's death in 1804, Henrietta immediately married Charles Ewing. Shortly afterward, she declared in court that she "will not take or accept the provision made for me by Will of my late husband, Basil Hayden, dec'd., or any part thereof and I do hereby renounce all Benefit which I might claim by said Will, and I hereby claim Dower as the law directs." But in 1807 Charles Ewing left her and bigamously married one Mary (or perhaps Margaret) Flint. In 1808 Henrietta managed to divorce Charles, which required an act of the Kentucky legislature.
From Littel's Laws of Kentucky, Volume 3:
[Page 446] An act concerning the marriage of HENRIETTA EWING. approved Feb. 3, 1808 This act authorised her to sue CHARLES EWING, for a divorce, in the Nelson court, and to obtain it on a jury's finding that he had seperated from her and intermarried with MARY FLINT, and continued to live in adultery with said Mary.
From John Medley (1615-1660) by Mary Louise Donnelly (citation details below):
William Leo "Little Willie" Hayden was born 12/16/1785 in Washington Co Ky, the son of Henrietta Cole Hayden. The account of William Leo Hayden's birth is told in letters written by Rev Stephen Badin to Bishop Carroll.
"The widow Hayden who had disgraced herself in marriage, has renewed her past scandals and finished by marrying heterodoxum corum heterodoxo (a protestant by a protestant - in 2/4/1805 letter). Mr Rohan who is keeping school on my land has among his school-boys a subject that might become a clergyman were not the illegitimacy of his birth an obstacle to it. I thought proper to inform you of his virtue & talents, & also that the parents are willing & in some degree able to procure him a liberal education. He belongs to Mr Hayden's family, tho he be not his father: he is twelve or thirteen years of age."
William Hayden, mentioned in Basil Hayden, Sr's will as "Henrietta's son" [sic — the actual phrase is "my wife's son" —PNH], might be the illegitimate son of Charles Ewing whom Henrietta married seven months after Basil Hayden, Sr's death. In Washington Co Ky, on 2/5/1810 William Leo Hayden married first Anna Pike (d. 1/8/1811), the daughter of John Pike. In Washington Co on 1/4/1813 he married secondly Mary Hayden the daughter of Charles Hayden and Eleanor Elliott. The information on his birth and marriages was recorded in his family Bible.
William Leo Hayden was well educated and was the teacher of his own children. In 1835 he moved with his family to Daviess Co Ky. On 11/16/1841 William Hayden purchased 1523 acres of land on the south bank of Panther Creek from William R Griffith and Philip and Eliza H. Triplett (Deed F: 554-555). For a time Court was held in his home. In 5/1866 William and Mary Hayden deeded to Charles Leo Hayden, "...who supported said William and Mary last 10 years ...," 206 acres (Deed T: 306-307). Mary died 7/14/1866 and William Leo Hayden died 12/6/1867 in Owensboro, Ky.
From The Immigration of William "Little Willie" Leo Hayden, quoting a letter written in January 1886 by Richard R. Coomes to the Hon. B.J. Webb:
[A]s some of St Raphael's congregation appear to show some dissatisfaction of the short and, in truth, unjust reference to said congregation, I feel bound to give some items concerning it.
The facts concerning its settlement are these. In 1834 a man well known about Holy Cross [Catholic Church in Calvary, Marion County, Kentucky] as "Little Willie" Hayden, son of Basil Hayden, sold his farm near the church and immigrated to Daviess County, Kentucky to look for better situations for himself and his sons. With him came his brother, Lewis Hayden. The two selected land adjoining the St. Raphael farm, with "Little Willie" agreeing to purchase 1,500 acres adjoining the 200 acres that he had selected for the church. Lewis selected a like amount adjoining that of "Little Willie"'s if William R. Griffith, the owner, would donated 200 acres to the church. Griffith willingly gave the 200 acres and, by doing so, made a sale of the 3,000 acres to the two brothers. The sale of the land that he owned in that part of he county benefited himself, the Hayden brothers, and the Catholic Church. The above purchase was made in 1833 or 1834. At the time, there was not a Catholic living nearer than ten miles from Owensboro, in Daviess County, Kentucky.
"Little Willie"'s family came in 1835 as the first settlers in St. Alphonso's congregation, his house being the first and only station for church until the first log church was built in 1844. He was the principal head of Catholic affairs so long as he was able to get about. He died on December 6, 1867, aged 82 years. There was another William Hayden who settled near St Raphaels but moved within the bounds of St Alfonsus before 1840.
In 1841 when I moved within the bounds of the then St Raphael's, now St Martin's, there was living in the St Raphael's congregation Randall Blandford, William Sims, Reson Cravens, John Livers, Charles Clayton, John Hayden, John Mattingly, Sylvester Hayden, James M Hayden, Phillip Hayden's widow and family, Thadius Coomes, and others whose names I can't now recall. But this I can say, that after 1845, by marriages and imigration the county filled up very fast so that it was soon necessary to build the church of St Alfonso within seven miles of St Raphael's and a few years thereafter that of St Martin's both principally within the original boundry of St Raphael's all of which may be said to be a fairly prosperous farming country so that the Hayden purchase gave to the Catholics of Kentucky a chance for homes without having to go so far west, and as a general thing, to do better nearer home, not that I am opposed to going West by any means, some of my own brothers & a sister went and did better.
I hope this will give you a better idea of the St Raphael country.
Will of William Leo Hayden, written 21 Dec 1866, probated 6 Jan 1868:
In the name of God. Amen. I WILLIAM HAYDEN, of Daviess County, Kentucky, being of extreme old age but of sound mind and disposing memory and calling to mind that all men must die and wishing to arrange my temporal concerns before I am imposed by the call to appear before my God and Judge to determine my lot through all Eternity hereby revoking and annulling all other wills which I may have made heretofore do make and establish this as my last Will and Testament to wit.
Item 1. I bequeath my soul to God who gave it me and my Body to the Earth from which it was taken to be decently interred in an ordinary and plain manner.
Item 2. I will and bequeath unto my granddaughter, HELEN MARION PIKE, one bed and furniture, the same that she now uses, it being in the possession of my daughter-in-law (Melissa Hayden) who is entitled to use of the same until my granddaughter may find it to be her interest, or necessary to leave her Aunt Melissa in that event it is to be given up to her demand.
Item 3. I will and bequeath unto my son, CHARLES L. HAYDEN an equal share with all my other heirs not named of all money or cash notes or other estate of which I die possessed first paying or settling all just dues or demands against me out of the sd. money and before distribution is made. I further bequeath to my sd son, CHARLES L, HAYDEN trundle bed stead and bedding attached thereof. Also other articles of household and kitchen furniture and farming implements as also my large Duoay bible all of which last mentioned articles I now deliver into his possession as being his own right and I further bequeath to my son CHARLES L. HAYDEN the right of a roadway one rod wide leading from his farm along the lines of a sixty acre tract which I formerly sold to James Eubank so as to enter at the south of the land dividing between Alvin Hayden's farm and the farm which I have sold to URBAN HAYDEN which road and land shall be one rod wide thru from end to end and unobstructed by any gates or fence also on other land intersecting the land by or at the southeast corner of the orchard on the sd. farm and running through the sd. farm passing by URBAN HAYDEN's farm in the direction of the Glenn Bridge as so called this lane shall be one rod wide from end to end with gates there planted, this described road and lanes are reserved in the contract and sale of the land and premises to URBAN HAYDEN unto the afsd CHARLES L. HAYDEN and his heirs forever.
Item 4. I will and bequeath unto whichever of my children I may be living with at the time of my demise my bed and all its furniture attached, my wearing apparel, my big arm chair, and small chair also any articles of furniture which I term side board, a large demijohn or glass bottle, a few other small bottles and convenient articles unnecessary to mention.
And lastly, I hereby nominate and appoint my son WILLIAM C. HAYDEN the executor of this my last will and Testament. Given under my hand this 21 st day of Dec. 1866 in my own writing.
[Signed in the presence of James Hayden, Edwin C. Hayden and James S. Hayden; the latter presumably his grandson-in-law James S. Hayden, husband of his granddaughter Mary Drucilla Hayden.]
*****
The family bible of William Leo Hayden is supposedly now at St. Joseph's, Maple Mount, Daviess, Kentucky. Its transcription, "Bible records of Basil Hayden (Basil Robert Hayden, 1774-1833)", in Kentucky Genealogical Records Book, GRC Book Series 1, volume 319, pp. 84-87, lists, among the children of Basil and Henrietta (Cole) Hayden, "Milly Hayden 12/16/1785." William Leo Hayden was born 16 Dec 1785; "Milly" is very likely a mistranscription of "Willy".
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1785 - 1867 (81 years)
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