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John Armstrong McConnell

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John Armstrong McConnell

Birth	:	22 Sep 1803 Iredell County, North Carolina, USA
Death	:	1 Sep 1860 Dardanelle, Yell County, Arkansas, USA
Burial	:	Live Oak Memorial Park, Monrovia, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate	:	34.1319500, -117.9960700
Description	:	1840 was the turn of a new decade, with North Carolina progress marked with a new state capitol building and the opening of North Carolina’s first public schools. In March, North Carolina had its first railroad from Wilmington to Raleigh and then the next month on to Gaston. In it all, life was a buzz in the concerns of the nation as in November, William Henry Harrison defeated Martin Van Buren for President of the United States. Still, for all that was going on that year and that November, not everything was public spectacle. Some things that mattered most... Read More	1840 was the turn of a new decade, with North Carolina progress marked with a new state capitol building and the opening of North Carolina’s first public schools. In March, North Carolina had its first railroad from Wilmington to Raleigh and then the next month on to Gaston. In it all, life was a buzz in the concerns of the nation as in November, William Henry Harrison defeated Martin Van Buren for President of the United States. Still, for all that was going on that year and that November, not everything was public spectacle. Some things that mattered most were very personal and private and remote. On November 17, 1840, John and Mary McConnell of Iredell County, North Carolina, announced the birth of their first child, Ruben Alexander McConnell. Ruben would be the first of 10 children of John and Mary and he would grow up in Iredell County and then move in 1858 at age eighteen with his family to Yell County, Arkansas. They settled first on Chickalah Mountain. It was at the age of twenty-one that Civil War broke out across the land. The History of Yell County Arkansas, made note of what happened to Ruben McConnell during the war: Ruben enlisted 20 Feb 1862 at Danville, Arkansas, in the Confederate Army. He was a 2nd Lt., serving in Company D and 19th and 24th Regiments of the Arkansas Infantry. His name appears on a roll of prisoners of war captured at Arkansas Post 11 Jan 1863. He was taken to Camp Chase, Ohio, and arrived there 30 Jan 1863. His description: height 5' 10", age 22, eyes dark, hair dark, complexion dark. Date of departure 10 April 1863 and transferred to Ft. Delaware. He was then forwarded to City Point, for exchange 29 April 1863 and resigned 20 Aug 1864 to return to Yell County. Such a sketch, however, was not complete. After his release as a prisoner of war, Ruben joined the Tennessee volunteers and on September 19-20, 1863, he was engaged in battle and was wounded in the Battle of Chickamauga. His official military record said the wound was slight to his right ankle. Still, whatever the injury inflicted, he was in the hospital for several months. The family notes that upon resigning his commission, Ruben came home less than a fit man. Whether this lingering illness was the tuberculosis that finally claimed his life or the tuberculosis emerged from his frail state later on, is not known. Four years after the war, September 30, 1869, Ruben married Mary Cofer in Yell County. They took up farming. In the early 1870's, the family sold their property on Chickalah Mountain and moved to the ridges near the old Pisgah Church. Rueben and Mary had five children of which daughter Lydia Lee McConnell was the first, born November 22, 1870. The other children to follow were Anna, Amos, Sarah, and finally Ruben Seth McConnell born March 5, 1878. We especially note the date of Ruben Seth’s birth because no sooner was Rueben Seth born and mother Mary was able, the McConnell family would set out on a long arduous journey to the mountains of Colorado and the healing mineral waters of Beulah Springs. Tuberculosis was closing in on Ruben Alexander McConnell. We are fortunate that late in life the daughter-in-law of Ruben ,Rebecca Jane Hatchett McConnell remembered what she was told of the McConnell sojourn to Beulah: Yes, they moved to Colorado for your grandfather’s health. Your grandmother said he gained too fast and hemorrhaged one morning about daylight and she sent Lydia to Mr. Davis (Aquila) for help but they hadn’t got up and had a large dog and she was afraid of it and went back home. She sent her back and when they came back he was dead. Lydia was just nine years old. Seth (the youngest)was born March 5, 1878, and they left (for Beulah) after your grandmother was able. They caught the boat from Garnett to Fort Smith. Then in a wagon. They departed somewhere in the Indian Territory and by train to Colorado. She came back a different route. They landed in Little Rock July 4,1878, and then on to Dardenelle by boat and Mr. Billy Cotton was down there and helped her with the children. She said she didn’t know what she would have done if he hadn’t. This account, however, does not give the full picture of the family in transit. Along with Ruben and his family was his brother, John A. McConnell Jr. and family. The two families together came to Beulah and were there for each other when Ruben died in just a few short weeks. Shortly after Ruben’s death, his wife Mary, as just mentioned, went back home to Arkansas, leaving Ruben’s brother John A. McConnell to finish up remaining business, not the least being the creation of a tombstone for his brother. All this was a matter of conversation back home as it ended up in the local newspaper that John was coming home too. The Independent Arkansian of September 29, 1879, announced that John A. McConnell was coming home and in the process gives us an interesting insight into the spiritual state of Beulah, Colorado: Mr.McConnell writes that he has a good wagon and team and is well fixed up for the road. He says they have made but little by the trip (to Beulah), but have learned a good deal. He says they have no preaching where he has been living, but, the morals of the people are very good considering. Pueblo is growing very fast. To his sister-in-law he writes that he had put up a nice grave stone over his brother's grave inscribed "R A. McConnell, born Nov. 17th, 1840, died June 14th, 1878," and had covered the grave with white pebbles. As per his request the Arkansian will be held on for him, and stop its visits to Beulah. John A. McConnell had something of a restlessness. He went back home to Arkansas, but only for a while. Ten years later John and family moved back to Colorado and settled in La Veta. There John would live out his days, dying in 1900. Ruben McConnell was not forgotten by his family. Generations later they came from Arkansas to remember. Such further respects were expressed in the Yell County Heritage, The History of Yell County Arkansas: In the 1950's, Cornie McConnell and Rube Powers, Beeca and Don Hiatt, and Jim and Pasty Powers went to the Beulah Cemetery and found the grave marked with rock and R. A. McConnell etched on the rock. 15 June 1991, sixteen descendants of R. A. McConnell returned to the cemetery and placed a new marker on the grave, and placed the old marker in concrete. Still, the story doesn’t end there. This essay bears the primary legacy of a family’s story. Indirectly, as they desperately sought healing for Ruben McConnell, they stepped into the Beulah story and the promise of its healing waters. In the end though, this essay is a family, a Beulah and a nation’s story. Ruben McConnell in 1878 was the first veteran laid to rest in the Beulah Cemetery, a Confederate soldier from Arkansas whose grave was loving covered with white pebbles by his brother who also erected the tombstone . . .a brother John who during the Civil War was a soldier in the 2 Kansas Cavalry, a soldier fighting for the Union cause. The first veteran buried in the Beulah Cemetery was a Confederate soldier laid to rest by his Union soldier brother.

frequently asked questions (FAQ):

Where is John Armstrong McConnell's memorial?
John Armstrong McConnell's memorial is located at: Live Oak Memorial Park, Monrovia, Los Angeles County, USA.
When did John Armstrong McConnell death?
John Armstrong McConnell death on 1 Sep 1860 in Dardanelle, Yell County, Arkansas, USA
Where are the coordinates of the John Armstrong McConnell's memorial?
Latitude: 34.1319500
Longitude: -117.9960700

Family Members:

Parent

Spouse

Margaret M. Morris McConnell

(1816 - 1891)

Siblings

Children

Ruben Alexander McConnell

(1840 - 1878)

James Harvey McConnell

(1842 - 1886)

Amy E. McConnell Adney

(1851 - 1873)

George Washington McConnell

(1856 - 1928)

Flowers:

Merry Christmas to my Great Great Grandfather.

Left by Anonymous on 23 Dec 2013

Left by Anonymous on 01 Mar 2015

Left by Anonymous on 04 Jun 2017

Left by Anonymous on 19 Dec 2018

Visited as part of genealogical research for Spero Gene McConnell of Abingdon, Va. and Miami, Florida.

Left by Anonymous on 07 Apr 2019

Nearby Cemetories:

1. Live Oak Memorial Park
Monrovia, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.1319500, -117.9960700

2. Sierra Madre Pioneer Cemetery
Sierra Madre, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.1620290, -118.0417850

3. Episcopal Church of the Ascension Memorial Garden
Sierra Madre, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.1659355, -118.0518723

4. Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center Cemetery
Sierra Madre, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.1709633, -118.0647049

5. Savannah Memorial Park Cemetery
Rosemead, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.0811768, -118.0678177

6. Fairmount Cemetery
Glendora, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.1407661, -117.8892365

7. Saint Marthas Episcopal Church Columbarium
Covina, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.0655300, -117.9165200

8. San Gabriel Cemetery
San Gabriel, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.1113014, -118.1086273

9. Holy Trinity Episcopal Church Memorial Garden
Covina, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.0865900, -117.8922300

10. Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens Mausoleum
San Marino, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.1289902, -118.1135712

11. San Gabriel Mission Cemetery
San Gabriel, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.0974998, -118.1062012

12. Oakdale Memorial Park
Glendora, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.1121330, -117.8758698

13. Grace Episcopal Church Columbarium
Glendora, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.1382900, -117.8576000

14. El Campo Santo Cemetery
Industry, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.0182300, -117.9630500

15. Rubel Castle
Glendora, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.1503340, -117.8546380

16. Rose Hills Memorial Park
Whittier, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.0139900, -118.0253400

17. Chapel of Saint Nektarios Reliquary
Covina, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.0991400, -117.8554100

18. All Saints Episcopal Church Columbarium
Pasadena, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.1480293, -118.1428070

19. Resurrection Cemetery
Montebello, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.0429993, -118.1007004

20. Lippincott Torrey and Eaton Mausoleum
Pasadena, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.1444984, -118.1504677

21. Saint James Episcopal Church Memorial Garden
South Pasadena, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.1116500, -118.1535400

22. Mountain View Cemetery and Mausoleum
Altadena, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.1861000, -118.1481018

23. Forest Lawn Memorial Park
Covina, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.0628014, -117.8368988

24. Church of the Angels Mausoleum
Pasadena, Los Angeles County, USA
Coordinate: 34.1255600, -118.1761400