Recently I saw where there was some confusion regarding an Alexander CARRICO. I cannot
speak for the others, but here is some information on a specific Alexander CARRICO.
Alexander Carrico
Alexander Carrico is my great grandfather. My grandfather kept a journal listing the
names of various family members and their names, birth dates, death dates and such which
helped me to know where to look for supplemental information. This is an extract from a
book I wrote in 1983. Said book, “A Report Concerning the White-Carrico Relationship”, is
listed with OCLC 10929387.
Alexander Carrico, the child of John Conley Carrico and Elizabeth Halbert, was born April
8, 1816, in Canaan Township, Athens, Athens County, Ohio, and married Cassandra Margaret
Smith, September, 15, 1864, in Macoupin County, Illinois. It is not known that he was
married prior to this or not, but it is suspected.
We located Alexander Carrico in the 1850 census, transcribed as Alexander Carrigs, age 32,
born Ohio, on sheet 187 of the 1850 Macoupin County, Illinois, census report. His property
was valued at $1200. Alexander was living in the same dwelling as Able Crane, 59, from
Mass. His land was worth $250. Living with them was Lewis G. Loomis, 46, NY; Harriet J.
Loomis, 21, PA; Lois F. Loomis, 21, NY; taken August 21, 1850. We have no idea as to
relationships.
State Census 1855 - Macoupin County, Illinois -
The Illinois state census record taken in 1855, for Macoupin County, shows the following:
Alex Carrico 0 - 10 - 20 - 30 - 40 - 50 - 60 - 70
Males 1 1
Females 1 1 1
With the age of Alexander being 39 in 1855, we are of the opinion that this Alex Carrico
may be our Alexander Carrico, with the older people being his parents.. I have no guess
as to the identity of the two younger females, except that one could be an earlier wife,
if indeed, he had an earlier wife, and the child could be his, but we have found no trace
of her in later years. This is not hard to believe, for we don't even have a name to
look up.
One reason that we question an earlier marriage of Alexander Carrico is the story which is
common in our family that Alexander had to take care of his aged parents and therefore
could not marry until they passed away. Then after they died in 1862, he married in
1864. The 1855 census would support his caring for the older folks, except the ages are
wrong. Unfortunately, it also supports his having an earlier marriage, so we don't
really know.
Twila J. Carrico Carter sent me on January 20, 1987, a record of a marriage of Alexander
Carrico to Rachel Ann Bundy for March 20, 1853, in Clinton County, Ohio. Batch m514281
Serial 0221 Page 4506. This was from the LDS library in Fort Myers, Florida.
This is a possibility, however Alexander is in Illinois in 1850 and 1855, so we really
question the marriage in Ohio being his. We add it here until more information can be
located. It is the best clue we have at present. We do know there was a Carrico family
living in Highland County, Ohio, in 1850. Highland County is south of and bordering on
Clinton County.
The federal census record taken June 30, 1860, for Macoupin County, Illinois, shows
the following:
Township 9 range 9 Chesterfield page 32
366-349 age sex trade born
Sylvester Ransom 36 Ohio
Sarah 27 NY
Alexander Carrico 44 Ohio
Mary J. Carrico 3 ILL
In 1860, Alexander Carrico is living with the Ransom family, along with Mary J. Carrico,
who is apparently his child by an earlier marriage. My mother indicated that this could
have been the case, for there were times when her mother, Laura C. White, made comments
which indicated that there could have been a half-sister in the family. When Alexander
Carrico married Cassandra Margaret Smith in 1864, he had a child, Mary J. Carrico, born
ca. 1857, in Illinois. We can tell from the 1870 census record that for a while both Mary
J. and Laura Ann Carrico lived in the same household. No more has been located on this
person. Perhaps a search of the various records will reveal more of this person.
The federal census record taken June 11, 1870, for Macoupin County, Illinois, shows the
following:
Township 10 range 7
578-608 age sex trade born
Alexander Carrico 54 M Farmer Ohio
Cassandra 32 F Hskgp KY
Mary J. 13 F ILL
Laura Ann 4 F ILL
John Alexander 2 M ILL
According to the Carlinville Democrat for Thursday, September 10, 1874, "Mr.
Alexander Carrico, who lived three miles east of town, after returning home from town
Friday evening in getting out of his buggy stumbled over a can and fell to the ground
striking on his head and breaking his spinal column. He died in a few hours.. He was
born in 1816."
Gladys Sissom told me that Alexander Carrico stumbled over a can of beans.
There was no information available, so I thought, to tell me where Alexander Carrico was
buried, but I felt that he was in all probability buried somewhere near where he died. On
September 12, 1984, I had the opportunity of being in Carlinville, Macoupin County,
Illinois, and went to the Carlinville Public Library. There, thanks to Mrs. Iris Zemmer,
one of the librarians who has some interest in genealogy, the burial place was identified
as the Fishback Place. This immediately rang a bell, for I had read in an obit that
Grandmother Smith had been buried at the Fishback Place. I then asked Mrs. Zemmer if she
could identify the location of the Fishback cemetery. This she done with no difficulty,
and that afternoon I drove out to the location to see if there might be any headstones
visible. It took about ten minutes to get there and her directions were excellent. I
drove right to the spot, got out and walked to the first fallen headstone and it
was marked Alexander Carrico. Next to it was one for Jeremiah M. Smith, his
father-in-law. There were several other headstones, but the only ones which I could read
had the name Fishback on them. There are several stones with only portions of the stone
visible, the rest being buried. According to the headstone, Alexander Carrico died
September 4, 1874, at age 58.
The location of the Fishback cemetery is about 3 or 4 miles southeast of Carlinville,
Macoupin County, Illinois, on route 4, on the north side of the road, near Lake Williamson
Road, across from the Assembly of God camp ground. Identified as Fishback Cemetery,
section 2, Brushy Mound Township, it is located on the Joe Tostberg farm, in the front of
the side yard, about fifty yards from the highway, in a small grove of trees. All of the
stones are down. The place is presently owned by Mrs. Alice Tostberg. I took pictures of
the stones which could be identified. No one was home at the time.
For what it’s worth…
John