Thompson "Finn" Wallace

Notes:

(Research):In looking for the first husband of Mary Etta VARDEMAN, I was found the following family that was a near perfect match. The names, ages and birthplaces for Maretta, Elizabeth and Sophia match their later census listings in Sabine County, Texas. I looked at every WALLACE and WALLIS family that was indexed in Mississippi in 1850 by Ancestry.com. They were in Lawrence County, Mississippi, which is located in the southwestern portion of the state, nearby to Pike and Amite counties.

1850 Federal Census Mississippi, Lawrence County:

29-29
Wallis, Thomson 32 M W Farmer $50 Miss
Wallis, Maretta 29 F W Miss
Wallis, Elizabeth 3 F W Miss
Wallis, Sophia 1 F W Miss

I am assuming this is the correct family for the time being. More information should be gathered to either prove or disprove this assumption.

Other Wallis's in Lawrence County in 1850 include:
30-30
Wallis, James A 27 M W Farmer Miss
Wallis, Nancy W 18 F W Miss
Wallis, Sarah M 1 F W Miss

32-32
Wallis, Thomson Sr.62 M W Farmer 350 So Car
Wallis, C?ary 62 F W Ga
Wallis, Clementina 22 F W Miss
Wallis, Martin 21 M W Miss
Collins, Centhia 18 F W La?

Thompson married Mary Etta "Polly" Vardeman before 1845. Mary (daughter of Amaziah Vardeman and Una (Eunice) Carter) was born on 22 Sep 1820 in Mississippi; died on 9 Nov 1898 in Sabine County, Texas; was buried in Spring Hill Cemetery, Hemphill, Sabine County, Texas. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Married:
"Sabine County Historical Sketches and Genealogical Records" lists Mary Etta Vardeman's first husband as Wallis "Finn" Wallace. They do not provide any documentation for this, however.

I believe Mary Etta's first husband was actually Thomson Wallace, and they can be located in Lawrence County, Mississippi at the time of the 1850 census. On that census, Thomson and Maretta Wallis were listed in the same household with a 3 year old Elizabeth and 1 year old Sophia.

Thompson apparently died prior to 1860, because at the time of that census, Mary Etta was married to Henry Strickland White, and living with him in Sabine County, Texas. Her children from her first marriage were listed as follows: Elizabeth Wallis, age 14, Mississippi; Joseph Wallis, age 12, Mississippi; and Josephine Wallis, age 9, Mississippi. Note that Joseph was not listed in 1850, nor is a Sophia listed in 1860. I believe the 1860 census may have been in error, and that Mary Etta and Thomson were the parents of only three children: Elizabeth, Sophia and Josephine. Josephine was probably born soon after the 1850 census. Maybe the census taker confused the names Sophia and Joseph. Or, perhaps they did have a son named Joseph as well.

In 1870, only 20 year old Josephine Wallace, listed as born in Texas, was still shown as living with her mother. But according to other records, a Josephine Wallace was already married to Elias Clark and living with him. I suspect it was actually Sophia Wallace who was still living at home with her mother in 1870. This suspicion can be confirmed by the fact that in 1880, 30 year old Sophie Wallace, born in Mississippi was the only child from her mother's first marriage that was listed in her mother's home. Sophia was married in 1890.

1. Elizabeth "Betty" C. Wallace was born between 1846 and 1848 in Mississippi; and died.
2. Sophie H. Wallace was born about 1849 in Mississippi; and died.
3. Mary Josephine Wallace was born on 23 Feb 1851 in Texas; died on 24 Oct 1930 in Texas; was buried in Gravel Hill Cemetery, Sabine County, Texas.