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- Daniel Richard Felps (Phelps) was born on April 20, 1839 in Blount County, Tennessee. He was one of eleven children born to Henry Felps and Rhoda Lebow Felps who were married in Claiborne County, Tennessee in 1828. Daniel Richard's ancestors were German Protestants who migrated to America in the mid-18th century, settling first in Pennsylvania and then North Carolina before coming to Tennessee. The family name is spelled differently in different periods and locations - Volpp, Fulps, Fulp, Felps, Phelps, and other. Hereafter, "Phelps", the contemporary spelling of the name in Blount County, Tennessee will be used for the purpose of this document.
Daniel Richard Phelps' father Henry, whose middle name was Valentine, died in the late 1850s leaving mother Rhoda and seven of her children still at home. As the oldest unmarried son, Daniel Richard, at age 21 or thereabouts, assumed major responsibility for the household.
When the Civil War came to East Tennessee in the early 1860s, Daniel Richard Phelps joined the Union army. As a soldier in the ranks of the Sixth Tennessee Volunteer Infantry, he saw combat at Lookout Mountain, Resaca, Kennesaw, Atlanta, Nashville, and other lesser engagements. His unit traveled over 10,000 miles by foot, rail, and steamship. He told his oldest son that he did not sleep in a bed for over two years.
When the War ended in 1865, Daniel Richard Phelps returned home and became "man of the house". Older brother William Thompson had been killed in the war. Younger brother Henry had died. The community was destitute. Sisters Martha and Eliza and younger brother Hiram continued to live on the family farm, as did mother Rhoda until her death in 1880.
On November 23, 1882, Daniel Richard Phelps married Sarah Jane Lebow. They had nine children, six of whom survived to adulthood, married, and raised families. Those who died in childhood were Mary Beaula, Susie Cleo, and Chlora Eliza.
Daniel Richard continued to work the family farm in his later years until he was disabled from war-related wounds and illness. He died on February 12, 1910 and is buried at Middlesettlements Methodist Church in Blount County, Tennessee. His beloved wife Sarah Jane died in 1927 and was buried in another part of the cemetery due to rain and flooding at the time of her funeral. Daniel Richard's grave is marked by a military headstone which reads "Felps", the name under which he served his country. Sarah Jane's headstone reads "Phelps", the name used by all of her children and many descendants.
An extensive essay entitled "The Civil War and the Phelps Family" is located in the Media section of this site.
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1839 - 1910 (70 years)
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