Joseph Warren Henson was born in Lawrence County, Tennessee, June 9, 1827. He married Virginia (Villines) Keith, widow of William B. Keith (1811-1842 Newton County) likely around 1847, basing marriage date on age of their children.
She was born Virginia Jane Villines in 1815 in Tennessee, daughter of Abraham Villines, early settler of Boxley Valley. Her two children by William B. Keith were living with the family in 1850. But by 1860, they were both gone.
Joseph was farming near Parthenon in Jackson Township. The value of his personal property had dropped to $20. His household now included two more children.
On Feb. 12, 1863, he rode to Fayetteville and enlisted in Company C, 1st Arkansas Infantry (US). When he was mustered in, he said he was 30, born in Lawrence County, Tennessee, with blue eyes, light hair, and a fair complexion. He stood five feet ten inches tall.
On Feb. 27, 1863, he was appointed fourth Sergeant. He was almost immediately put on scout duty with Capt. Vanderpool in Newton County. While on duty, he contracted smallpox and died July 20, 1863.
On June 10, 1865, his widow Virginia, filed for a pension based on his service and received it. She was living in 1880 in Van Buren Township with daughter Margaret and son Hiram. She died March 13, 1899 and was buried in Beechwood Cemetery, the same place where her first husband was laid to rest.
Three of Joseph's children lived out their lives in Newton County.
John Henson (1848-1913) married twice. His first wife was widow Nancy (Villines) Black (1852-1898) and his second was Adaline (Black) Villines.
Martha Jane Henson (1855-1890) married James Alford Keeton (1844-1938), and Margaret Elizabeth Henson (1858-1932) married Martin Van Cross.
Both of Virginia's children by William B. Keith lived out their lives in Newton County.
George Washington Keith (1840-1893) married Ira Reeves (about 1844-after 1880) and lived in Boxley. Matilda Jane Keith (1842-1917) was married twice, first to Richard Scroggins (1839-1887) and then to John Wesley Keeton (1842-1917).
Barbara LeRoy is the author of “Which Side Were They On?,” a 302 page book listing biographical sketches of the Newton Countians who were involved in the Civil War, available for sale either in the Bradley House Museum or by purchasing online at www.newtoncountyar.com. The book sells for $33.
