Welcome to the Bradley Beavers Genealogy Web Site

This web is dedicated to the genealogy of Bradley G. Beavers and Amanda Melvina Keeton. Bradley was born around 1803 in Tennessee and died between 1871 and 1880 in most likely Crawford or Texas County, Missouri. He married Amanda Melvina Keeton on November 11, 1831 in Lauderdale County, Alabama. They moved to Missouri in the 1835 to 1838 timeframe, based on the children.s birth locations as listed on the census records.

Amanda was born in September of 1815 probably in Tennessee. She died shortly after 1900 most likely in Missouri.

Children of Bradley G. Beavers & Amanda Melvina Keeton

Child	Sex	Birth	Location	Death	Location
Willis Beavers	M	1833	Alabama	4 Mar 1888	Grubville, Big River Township, MO (Pneumonia)
A. Jane Beavers	F	Dec 1835	Alabama	AFT 1900
Reeves Beavers	M	1838	Missouri	1891	Howell County, Missouri
J. Beavers	M	1843	Crawford County, Missouri	1856	Franklin County, Missouri
Martha C. Beavers	F	1846	Crawford County, Missouri
Mary Emily Beavers	F	Dec 1848	Crawford County, Missouri	AFT 1930	Washington State (probably)
Rhoda Anne Beavers	F	9 Sep 1851	Dent Co., Missouri	23 Oct 1943	Stephenville, Erath, Texas
Elizabeth Beavers	F	1856	Missouri
Phoeba Ruth Beavers]	F	Apr 1857	Missouri	AFT 1920	Washington State (probably)
Harriett Emiline Beaver	F	1 Sep 1858	Missouri	27 Jan 1911	Whidbey Island, Washington
Orlena Angeline Beavers	F	1862	Missouri	AFT 1930

• Click here for a detailed analysis of Willis Beavers
• Click here for a time line showing known (not including living) male descendants of Bradley G. Beavers

Tracing Bradley G. Beavers through time

The following information traces Bradley G. Beavers through time. I have collected most of the census information with the exception of the 1830 census and the 1860 census. If you are able to find them in 1830 or 1860, please let me know.

• 1803 Born in Tennessee according to multiple census
• 1830 I have not been able to locate Bradley in the 1830 census, but here is my analysis of the possibilities
• 1832 Married in Lauderdale County, Alabama -- I have a copy of the certificate
• 1835-8 Moved to Missouri - based on the childrens birth locations as listed in census
• 1840 Located in 1840 Census Crawford Co., Mo., p 178.
• 1850 Located in 1850 Census Crawford Co., Mo., p 531., taken Oct 16th
• 1851 Rhoda Ann born in Dent County, MO - Family stories says that she did not stay in Dent Co for long. Bradley bought land in Franklin Co.
• 1853 Bradley G. Beavers Land Grant - December 1, 1853 in Dent County, Missouri, 40 acres
• 1860 Buried a son in Franklin County, MO - Jim Eads later buried next to him. Services by a Presbyterian minister.
• 1862, March 25 - Oath of Allegiance, MO Union Provost Marshal Papers Reel F 1227, Crawford County
• 1860's Just before Civil War, Melvina's parents visited from Kentucky based on family biography of Rhoda Sechrist written in 1944.
• 1860's During the Civil War, Presbyterian Minister held services at a shelter built next to the home of Bradley.
• 1870 Located in 1870 Census Crawford Co., Mo.
• 1871 Property Deeded to E. S. Blanton
• 1880 Melvina is in the 1880 census and listed as a widow.
• 1900 Melvina in the 1900 census living in Ste Genevieve County, Union Twp, with oldest daughter Jane, now married to Andrew Kern
• 1902 Melvina dies in Cedar Bluff, MO (based on family biography of Rhoda Sechrist written in 1944)

Speculation on the parents of Bradley G. Beavers

I am currently researching Bradley Gambills daughter Rhoda who married James Beavers. Given that the 1850 census states that Bradley G. Beavers was born in TN, I started looking at Bradley Gambill. Bradley Gambill had a daughter named Rhoda that married James Beavers. The timing is right for them to be the parents of Bradley Beavers. They were married Oct 25, 1799.

We know that Bradley Beavers always used the middle initial "G". Perhaps this stood for "Gambill". Perhaps he was also named after his grandfather, a rather common thing in those days. He also had a BOY named J, which could have stood for James. We also know that he did have a daughter named Rhoda.

Note that this is pure speculation, but has been posted as fact on the internet. I have not been able to get the author to remove it from the web page and it is now spreading as people copy it into their own records.

Click here to see my collected research on James & Rhoda Beavers. According to my analysis of census data, there is at least a possibility that James may be Bradley's father.

Ancestry based on YDNA tests

My YDNA test suggest that I belong to Haplogroup I1a. The I1a lineage likely has its roots in northern France. Today it is found most frequently within Viking / Scandinavian populations in northwest Europe and has since spread down into Central and Eastern Europe, where it is found at low frequencies.

This indicates that the male line going through Bradley G. Beavers was not Indian.

However, stores persist that Bradley in particular looked Indian. This YDNA test would not have shown whether or not Bradley's mother was Indian. So there is still a possibility that he was at least partial Indian, just not from the male side.

• Click here for an analysis of YDNA matches
• Click here for a time line of YDNA matches

Family Stories

Bradley was a hunter by trade. He and another man rode horseback and trapped animals for the hides. The hides were sold and they ate the meat. He would be gone from home for very long periods of time. In 1851, they lived near St. Louis on the Merrimac River. They had to cross the river by boat to get to a store.

• STORY OF THE LIFE OF RHODA ANN SECHRIST (Beavers) by Grace Alma Burchfield (1944)
  • I strongly recommend that you read this wonderful story as it provides a huge amount of information on this early family and has been backed up by most of the facts that we have learned over the years in genealogy research.
• A letter from Mary Jane Melvina "Molly" Sechrist Jones

Photo Collection

Current photo collection consists of the following families:

• James Harvey Beaver
  • Born May 2, 1868 in Old Mines, Washington Co., Missouri
  • Died March 22, 1937 in Hillsboro, Jefferson Co., Missouri
• John William Beaver
  • Born May 24, 1901 in Ware, Jefferson County, Missouri
  • Died July 31, 1961 in Granite City, Illinois

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List of Surnames included in the Bradley Beavers database

‘Alexander’   ‘Allington’   ‘Bazoda’   ‘Beaver’   ‘Beavers’   ‘Beeler’   ‘Bena’   ‘Blanton’   ‘Boyer’   ‘Bozada’   ‘Bradshaw’   ‘Butler’   ‘Campbell’   ‘Caris’   ‘Carl’   ‘Catalani’   ‘Charboneau’   ‘Cloke’   ‘Cole’   ‘Corbell’   ‘Crope’   ‘Cunyus’   ‘Dalton’   ‘E.’   ‘Eads’   ‘Erwin’   ‘Fanning’   ‘Ferguson’   ‘Fincannon’   ‘Florence’   ‘Furman’   ‘Gordon’   ‘Hall’   ‘Hamel’   ‘Hamilton’   ‘Harris’   ‘Hatcher’   ‘Helgerson’   ‘Hestand’   ‘Hicks’   ‘Hollenbach’   ‘Holloman’   ‘Hull’   ‘Hulse’   ‘Hunt’   ‘Imes’   ‘Jack’   ‘Jackson’   ‘Johns’   ‘Johnson’   ‘Jones’   ‘Keeton’   ‘Kern’   ‘Kinman’   ‘LaMunyon’   ‘Lewis’   ‘Lipe’   ‘Little’   ‘Meeker’   ‘Miller’   ‘Monroe’   ‘Moon’   ‘Moring’   ‘Morris’   ‘Mulloy’   ‘Munden’   ‘Nelson’   ‘Norma’   ‘Olmstead’   ‘Pack’   ‘Phelps’   ‘Ray’   ‘Reynolds’   ‘Rippetoe’   ‘Rogers’   ‘Sandoval’   ‘Sechrist’   ‘Simms’   ‘Sims’   ‘Smith’   ‘Snyder’   ‘Stambaugh’   ‘Stephens’   ‘Summers’   ‘Swanner’   ‘Tarlton’   ‘Throne’   ‘Thurston’   ‘Treybig’   ‘Tucker’   ‘UNKNOWN’   ‘Varner’   ‘Venable’   ‘WALN’   ‘Waln’   ‘Waters’   ‘Waynick’   ‘Webbe’   ‘Weber’   ‘Whitehead’   ‘Whiteside’   ‘Wideman’   ‘Wilcoxen’   ‘Wofford’   ‘Young’   ‘Ziegler’   ‘Zigler’