Minnie Permelia Hanson

Minnie Permelia Hanson was born around 1859 in Morgan County, Georgia, to Robert “Bob” Hanson and Lucretia Chambers. She was the youngest of 12 siblings, growing up in a large family. Her brothers and sisters included Thomas J. Hanson, Mary Hanson, Virginia Hanson, Joel Branham Hanson, Robert Hanson, Isaac Newton Hanson, John Hanson, James O. Hanson, Amanda Hanson, George W. Hanson, and Francis “Fannie” Hanson.

Minnie was the wife of my 1st cousin, 4x removed, William A. Lankford. Although we share no common ancestors, our family lines connect through her marriage to William. He was the son of Curtis Caldwell Lankford, who was the brother of my 3rd great-grandfather, James Meriweather Lankford. 

On August 1, 1860, Minnie, listed as “Permelia” in the census, resided in the Adsboro District of Morgan County, Georgia, with her family. Her father worked as an overseer and held a personal estate valued at $200, while her mother, originally from South Carolina, managed the household. Five of the Hanson children—Robert, Isaac, James, Amanda, and George—had attended school within the past year. However, Francis, at age five, and Minnie, just one year old at the time, had not yet begun their formal education. 

Minnie was just two years old when the Civil War began in April 1861, a conflict that would shape her family’s history. In July of that year, her brother Joel enlisted as a private in Company G of the Infantry Battalion of Cobb’s Legion, Georgia Volunteers. He sustained serious wounds to his abdomen and left hip during the Battle of South Mountain at Crampton’s Gap on September 14, 1862, during the Maryland Campaign. Sent home on furlough to recover, Joel later returned to service, where he was assigned to the President’s Guard and remained in duty until the war’s end.

When Minnie was three, her brother Isaac answered the call to arms. In March 1862, he enlisted as a private in Company I, 44th Infantry of the Georgia Volunteers. Sadly, Isaac did not survive the war. He succumbed to pneumonia on January 4, 1863, while hospitalized at Chimborazo Hospital Number 1 in Richmond, Virginia. His final resting place is at Oakwood Cemetery in Richmond.

On July 1, 1870, the Hanson family was recorded as living in Madison, Morgan County, Georgia. By this time, Minnie’s father, Robert Hanson, had transitioned from working as an overseer to farming, while her mother managed the household. Her brothers, James and George, contributed as farm laborers. Census records indicate that Robert was unable to read or write, and the family’s surname was documented as “Hinson.” A notation that appears to be the word “leased” was marked in the real estate column next to Robert’s name, suggesting he did not own the land he farmed but was instead leasing it.

The 1870s proved to be a turbulent decade for the Hanson family. On October 7, 1874, tragedy struck when Robert was shot during a family dispute in Ebenezer, Morgan County, Georgia, by his son, J. O. Hanson. He sustained two gunshot wounds—one to the neck and another to the bladder—injuries deemed fatal by his physician, Dr. Pleasant Wilson. Despite efforts to save him, Robert survived for three days before passing away on October 10. That same day, Minnie’s brother, Joel, arranged for their father’s burial, purchasing a coffin for $25. The incident made headlines, not only in Georgia newspapers but also in publications as far as Memphis, Tennessee. The dispute occurred on election day, and reports suggest that alcohol—specifically whiskey—played a role. In the aftermath, James fled the area on horseback, leaving behind a family shaken by grief and scandal.

During the September 1874 term of the Morgan County Superior Court, an indictment for murder was issued against James, though he had not yet been arrested. The case remained active in the courts for several years, and while evidence suggests the charges may have been reduced to malicious mischief, I have not located official court records or newspaper accounts confirming the final outcome.

In September 1878, Shadrach Dawson was indicted for assaulting Minnie’s brother, Joel, with a club axe—a brutal attack that initially led to charges of attempted murder. However, Dawson later pleaded guilty to assault, resulting in a sentence of either a $50 fine or one year in the chain gang if the fine remained unpaid. Despite the severity of the assault, Joel survived and took legal action, ensuring the case was brought before the courts.

On June 2, 1880, 18-year-old Minnie lived in the Buckhead District of Morgan County, Georgia, alongside her widowed mother, Lucretia (65), and her sister Amanda (22). With her husband gone, Lucretia assumed the role of head of the household, managing daily affairs with the support of her two adult daughters. 

The following year, Minnie married William A. Langford, son of Curtis Caldwell Lankford and Nancy A. Elizabeth McCarty. Their wedding took place on August 15, 1881, in Morgan County, in a ceremony officiated by G.F. McCowan.

Marriage license

Before his marriage to Minnie, William was employed as a servant in the household of Asbury Almond, a farmer in the Martins District of Morgan County, Georgia.

Together, Minnie and William built a family, raising five children: Wade Hampton Langford, Benjamin Hill Lankford, Essie Lou Lankford, Lovie Lee Lankford, and Gertrude Elizabeth Lankford. As was common with the Lankford surname, variations in spelling appeared in records, sometimes written as “Langford” with a ‘g’ rather than a ‘k.’

In May 1890, Minnie’s husband William signed a sharecropping agreement with his landlord, W. A. Almand. A tenant farmer, William promised to pay Almand $90 for provisions that were provided to help grow crops that year, with payment due by November 1, 1890. As security for this loan, William gave Almand a legal claim on half of all cotton he grew on the land (20 acres) known as the Weaver place. The first cotton produced and ready for market would be used to settle the debt at market prices. W. A. Almand may very well have been Asbury Almond, the farmer William worked for prior to his marriage to Minnie.

While no definitive records confirm the circumstances of her passing, it is believed that Minnie died in childbirth with her daughter Gertrude. Gertrude was born in Morgan County on either September 7, 1895 or 1896. Her obituary lists her birth year as 1895 and states she was 81 at the time of her passing. However, her tombstone records the year as 1896. Given that she died in July, the 1896 birth year seems more accurate. Minnie was laid to rest at Sugar Creek Baptist Church Cemetery in Madison, though no marker stands at her grave.

Following Minnie’s death, William remarried and had four more children. Curiously, Gertrude was not living with William and his family in 1900, and no census record for her during that year has been found. By 1910, at age 14, she was residing with her sister Lovie and Lovie’s husband, Henry Taylor.

References

• Bob Hanson Sr., The Northeast Georgian, Athens, Georgia, October 21, 1874.
• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/233140902/j_newton-hanson: accessed April 19, 2025), memorial page for Pvt J. Newton Hanson (unknown–4 Jan 1863), Find a Grave Memorial ID 233140902, citing Oakwood Cemetery, Richmond, Richmond City, Virginia, USA; maintained by Dig Up (contributor 47525629).
• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/48172597/gertrude-whitley: accessed June 4, 2025), memorial page for Gertrude Lankford Whitley (7 Sep 1896–24 Jul 1977), Find a Grave Memorial ID 48172597, citing Harrell Grove Cemetery, Douglas, Coffee County, Georgia, USA; maintained by Douggie (contributor 51050912).
• Georgia Items: Tragic Affray, The Northeast Georgian, Athens, Georgia, October 14, 1874
• Georgia News, Rome Tri-weekly Courier, Rome, Georgia, October 17, 1874.
• J. (Isaac) Newton Hanson, U.S., Civil War Soldier Records and Profiles, 1861–1865.
• Joel B. Hanson, U.S., Civil War Soldiers, 1861–1865.
• Joel B. Henson, U.S., Civil War Service Records (CMSR) - Confederate - Georgia, 1861–1865.
• Latest Georgia News, The Oglethorpe Echo, Crawford, Georgia, October 30, 1874.
• Morgan County, Georgia, Court Minutes 1871–1877, image 199, FamilySearch.
• Morgan County, Georgia, Court Minutes 1871–1877, image 200, FamilySearch.
• Morgan County, Georgia, Court Minutes 1877–1881, image 48, FamilySearch.
• Morgan County, Georgia, Court Records 1858–1882, image 332, FamilySearch.
• Morgan County, Georgia, Mortgages 1890, images 289–290, FamilySearch.
• Robert Hanson, Morgan County, Georgia, Bonds 1845–1878, 1878–1912, image 223, FamliySearch.
• Robert Hanson, Morgan County, Georgia, Probate Records 1869–1878, image 459, FamilySearch.
• The Georgia Press, Georgia Weekly Telegraph and Georgia Journal and Messenger, Macon, Georgia, October 20, 1874.
• U.S. Federal Census, Adsboro District, Morgan County, Georgia, 1860.
• U.S. Federal Census, Buckhead District, Morgan County, Georgia, 1880.
• U.S. Federal Census, District 62, Morgan County, Georgia, 1850.
• U.S. Federal Census, Madison, Morgan County, Georgia, 1870.
• U.S. Federal Census, Martins District, Morgan County, Georgia, 1880.