Preface       Nora Mildred Shanahan Phillips, the third daughter of Michael William Shanahan and Sallie Margaret Potter, in response to a request made of her by her niece, Beulah "Billie" Shanahan Murrie, set down in letter form a tale which was recounted to her by her own Aunt "Bettie" Potter Scott. "Bettie" whose real name was Martha Elizabeth Potter, (2nd daughter of Daniel D. Potter and Mary Rebecca Smith) relayed to her niece Nora, the story of when their family migrated from Pontotoc County to DeSoto County. To read an online transcription of this letter in which this "tale" is recounted please click View Nora's Letter.       What follows is an except from the portion of Nora's letter that pertains to the story told by Aunt "Bettie": Potter Family Migration       I have heard Aunt Bettie Scott$1$ $$ tell of this move. They drove cattle, hogs, etc. she helping the boys, walking for miles. It seemed so primitive and so hard--and unbelievably far back, or so it sounded as she related it to us when she was 75 years of age$2$ $$. Dates on old letters fix it at 1865 or 1866. Well, this move from the hill country to the low country$3$ $$ was disastrous. They lost "little Sister" who was only a baby$4$ $$. Grandpa and one child died on the same day$5$ $$ and another within the week$6$ $$. Shortly before grandmother's$7$ $$ youngest child was born, Uncle Danny Potter (Y. D.)$8$ $$. All this, four deaths, within two or three years--(this has always been a nightmare to me.) Notes: $1$ $$ Martha Elizabeth "Bettie" Scott, daughter of Daniel D. Potter and Mary Rebecca Smith. Spouse of William L. Scott. $2$ $$ "Bettie" is believed to have been born in 1856/57 (based on census records) so that would mean that this tale was related to Nora in about 1931/32. $3$ $$ "Bettie's" reference here to the "hill country" is Pontotoc County, MS and the reference to the "low country" is DeSoto County, MS. $4$ $$ Little Sister Potter died on 18 Jul 1866 (aged 6 months, 7 days) and is buried in the Carolina Cemetery in DeSoto (now Tate) county, MS. I am assuming that she died shortly after the family arrived in DeSoto County. $5$ $$ Grandpa in this case is Daniel D. Potter, who died on 13 Aug 1867. His daughter Mollie E. Potter (aged only 3 years, 8 months, 26 days) also died on this same day. Both are buried in the Carolina Cemetery in DeSoto (now Tate) county, MS. $6$ $$ John R. Potter died 17 Aug 1867 (aged only 8 years, 10 months, 28 days) and again is buried in the Carolina Cemetery. $7$ $$Grandmother in this case is Mary Rebecca Smith (daughter of Sarah Teague and James Smith, Jr.). Mary buried her infant daughter in Jan 1867 and then a scant 7 months later buried her husband, daughter and son; and at the time that she had to suffer through these horrible events she was pregnant with her last child. $8$ $$Y. Daniel Potter was born on 08 Sep 1867 just one month after his father, Daniel D. Potter died. The full name for the initial "Y" has never been found in any records, but I suspect that it stood for Young. For some reason, the family didn't name their sons Junior after the father...they gave them the first name of Young instead. (For example, Dennis Potter Shanahan [son of Michael William Shanahan and Sallie M. Potter] and Ellen Wilkerson, his wife, named one of their children, Young Dennis Shanahan). Return to Shanahan Family Genealogy Home Page