Amanda Melvina Griffin

Amanda Melvina Griffin

Confirmed

Mother of Thomas Walton Caffey Sr. · born 1850

Born

1 April 1850

Married

Hooper Van Caffey

Children

Thomas Walton Caffey Sr.

Sources

12

Images

1

Research status

Research status: CONFIRMED — added 24 September 2026 from the 1880 and 1900 Bastrop County censuses, which name her as the mother; entered in the family tree the same day.

Life in the order the records give it

Birth1850

Born 1 April 1850, Georgia

Death1914

🆕 She was known as Mattie. As Mrs. Mattie Caffey she applied for a Confederate widow's pension in 1914, giving her age as 63 and her arrival in Texas as December 1872 S481. In 1900 she had borne 12 children, 7 living S483. Her daughter Anna Bell Gold (5 January 1871 – 5 May 1949) is buried in Kyle Cemetery S480. added 25 September 2026.

Census1920

🆕 In 1920 she was 68 and widowed, living in Bell County with A. C. Caffey, 25, who lists her as “Mattie, mother, 68”, his wife Lorena and their children S536. added 25 September 2026.

Census1870

🆕 The 1870 census, taken 16 weeks after her marriage, has her at 20 in Pike County, Alabama, with Hooper (written “Henry V.”) and his four children S543. added 25 September 2026.

Census1860

🆕 In 1860 Amanda M. Griffin, 10, born Georgia, was in Pike County, Alabama, in the household of Major Griffin, 56, a farmer born in North Carolina, and Matilda M., 34, born Georgia, with five other children S629. Probable confirm or correct → Major and Matilda M. are probably her parents: her name, age, birthplace and county all fit. But the census does not state relationships, and no record read so far names her parents. added 26 September 2026.

Census1880

🆕 In 1880 Sarah Griffin, 55, was a widow in Macon, Georgia, with three of her children, Irvin H., Mary Ann and Emma (later Mrs Emma Barnhart), and two grandchildren Confirmed S796. Henry Griffin had died before June 1880. added 27 September 2026

Death1850

🆕 The boy Micajah B. of the 1850 household is probably the M. B. Griffin who died at Marshall, Texas, on 7 February 1936 Probable confirm or correct → S797. Evidence: his certificate gives his birth in Washington County, Georgia, and his father as Henry Griffin, his mother as “Ella Boatwright” (image re-read 27 September 2026), the first record to put the Boatwright name on one of Henry Griffin's children. What is weak: the informant, W. H. Griffin, was a generation removed; “Ella” is not the Sarah of the 1844 marriage and three censuses, so Sarah stands; and its birth date, 8 November 1841, falls before that marriage and does not fit his age of 4 in 1850, so about 1845–46 is preferred. added 27 September 2026

Record1867

🆕 A white Henry Griffin registered to vote in Washington County, Georgia, on 19 July 1867 Probable confirm or correct → S804. Evidence: it is the county of the 1844 marriage and the 1850 household. What is weak: the return gives no age or family, and Henry Griffin is a common name. added 27 September 2026

Family parents, marriages, children, siblings

Children1870

Mother of Thomas Walton Caffey Sr.; wife of Hooper Van Caffey, married 1 May 1870, Pike County, Alabama

Open questions what is probable, weak or missing — confirm or correct it

Probable

🆕 Probable confirm or correct → A second candidate household, found 26 September 2026. In 1850, Amanda M. Griffin, 4 months old, was in Washington County, Georgia, with Henry Griffin, 24, a farmer, and Sarah, 26, and two small boys, Micajah B. and Augustus, all born in Georgia S662. Evidence: her name and an age that fits her April 1850 birth in Georgia; an online family tree makes Henry and Sarah her parents. What is weak: the 1850 census names no relationships; 🆕 Sarah's maiden name is now on two originals: Henry Griffin married Sarah Boatwright in Washington County on 26 December 1844 S794, and the 1930 death certificate of Mrs Emma Barnhart, born about 1861, names her parents as Henry Griffin and Sarah Boatwright S795 (added 27 September 2026). Neither record names Amanda, so they prove the couple, not that she is their daughter; and the 1860 household above, Major and Matilda M., is not ruled out. Henry and Sarah may be her parents and the 1860 home a relative's, or the reverse. If you know more, use “Add to this record”.

Photos & documents 0 photos · 1 document

Documents (1)

Documents · 1 page image all documents

Retrieved from the UNT Libraries' Portal to Texas History, or — for the University of Texas Cactus yearbooks — from Texas ScholarWorks. Each thumbnail opens the full page scan, which can also be downloaded. The quoted text is the OCR that ships with the scan, copied verbatim; the page image is the authority.

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1850 United States Federal Census — Division 91, Washington Co., Georgia, p. 268a (Ancestry record 19005888) · **S662** — page p. 268a

Federal census schedule · 1850

Probable because Image read. Amanda M., 4/12, in Henry & Sarah Griffin's household in Georgia in 1850 — her death certificate gives b. 1 Apr 1850, Georgia, father's surname Griffin. 1850 records no relationships and no maiden names; Sarah's maiden name Boatwright and the 26 Dec 1844 marriage are now on originals (S794 marriage book, S795 the 1930 Barnhart death certificate), but neither names Amanda..

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In the record Generation 5 — Kristin's great-great-grandparents

1. S480Texas, U.S., Death Certificates — Anna Bell Gold, Austin, 1949 (no. 25185). Ancestry record 773924602. Image examined, read 25 September 2026. Confirmed Anna Bell Gold, born 5 January 1871, Alabama, died 5 May 1949 at Austin; father Hooper Van Caffey, mother Mattie Griffen, born Georgia; informant J. E. Gold; buried Kyle Cemetery.
2. S481Texas, U.S., Confederate Pension Applications — widow's application no. 27929, Mrs. Mattie Caffey, 1914. Ancestry record 78940. Image examined, read 25 September 2026. Confirmed Mrs. Mattie Caffey, 63, born Georgia, widow of Hooper Van Caffey, who died 30 November 1901; he served in the 10th Alabama Infantry and held Texas pension no. 204. She gives the marriage as 15 April 1869, Pike County, and says she came to Texas in December 1872; post office Elgin. Filed May 1914, allowed from 1 June 1914. The Pike County register (S482) gives the marriage as 1 May 1870, and that date stands. The county of death is overwritten, probably Caldwell.
3. S4831900 U.S. Federal Census — Hooper V. Caffey household, Justice Precinct 7, Bastrop County, Texas (ED 12). Ancestry record 70171221. Image examined, read 25 September 2026. Confirmed Hooper V., born October 1832; Amanda M., mother of 12 children, 7 living, married 31 years; John C., 1878; Arthur C., 1893; Thomas W., born October 1872, married 4 years; Emma R., daughter-in-law; and Mattie L., granddaughter, born October 1898. One page, two hints (record 70171222 for Amanda).
4. S5361920 U.S. Federal Census — A. C. Caffey household, Precinct 2, Bell County, Texas. Ancestry record 80272091. Image examined, read 25 September 2026. Confirmed A. C. Caffey, 25, farmer, father born Alabama, mother born Georgia; wife Lorena, 26; Mattie, mother, 68, widowed, born Georgia; Thelma, 5; A. C. Jr., 3. The last census sighting of Mattie before her 1933 death at Elgin. Whether A. C. was her own son or a stepson is not yet checked against the 1900 household (S483).
5. S5431870 U.S. Federal Census — “Henry V. Caffee” household, Beat 11, Pike County, Alabama. Ancestry record 13080425. Image examined, read 25 September 2026. Confirmed “Henry V.” [Hooper V.] Caffee, 38, farmer; Amanda, 20; Fanney E., 12; John W., 10; Cordelia, 8; Charles B., 5. Taken 16 weeks after his second marriage. The given name is the enumerator's; the household is his.
6. S6291860 U.S. census — Eastern Division, Pike County, Alabama, p. 135 (Bibb post office). Ancestry record 12482393. Image examined, read 25 September 2026. Confirmed Dwelling 930, enumerated 7 August 1860: Major Griffin, 56, farmer, born North Carolina; Matilda M., 34, born Georgia; James W., 12, born Georgia; Amanda M., 10, born Georgia; Harriet B., 8, born Georgia; Jonathan J., 5, and Elizabeth M., 3, both born Alabama. Relationships are not stated.
7. S6621850 U.S. census — Division 91, Washington County, Georgia, p. 268a, dwelling 987. Ancestry record 19005888. Image examined, read 26 September 2026. Probable Henry Griffin, 24, farmer; Sarah, 26; Micajah B., 4; Augustus, 2; Amanda M., 4/12; all born Georgia. The 1850 census names no relationships and no maiden names. Sarah's maiden name Boatwright and the 26 December 1844 marriage are now on the county register (S794) and a daughter's death certificate (S795); neither names Amanda.
8. S794Washington County, Georgia, marriage book p. 189: Henry Griffin and Sarah Boatwright, 26 December 1844. Ancestry record 21567917. Image examined in the Stage 2 reading, 26 September 2026. Confirmed Henry Griffin to Sarah Boatwright, licensed and married 26 December 1844 by John W. Tucker, J.I.C. The county register. It proves the marriage and Sarah's maiden name; it does not name Amanda. Collection: Georgia, U.S., Marriage Records From Select Counties, 1828–1978.
9. S795Georgia death certificate 30-188: Mrs Emma Barnhart, died Macon, 14 January 1930. Ancestry record 75370622. Image examined in the Stage 2 reading, 26 September 2026. Confirmed Mrs Emma Barnhart, aged 68 (born about 1861, Georgia), died 14 January 1930 at Macon; buried in Fort Hill Cemetery. Father Henry Griffin, mother Sarah Boatwright. A second original naming Sarah Boatwright as Henry Griffin's wife. That Emma is Amanda's sister is inferred from the parents' names only. Collection: Georgia, U.S., Death Records, 1914–1940.
10. S7961880 U.S. census, Macon, Bibb County, Georgia, dwelling 492: Sarah Griffin, widow. Ancestry record 7453953. Image examined in the Stage 2 reading, 27 September 2026. Confirmed Sarah Griffin, 55, widowed, with her children Irvin H., 25, Mary Ann, 23, and Emma, 20, and two grandchildren, Lola Archie, 6, and Lewis, 5. Emma is the Mrs Emma Barnhart of S795. Henry Griffin was dead by June 1880. Collection: 1880 United States Federal Census.
11. S797Texas death certificate 9001, Harrison County, 1936: M. B. Griffin. Ancestry record 24121611 (image re-read 27 September 2026). Image examined in the Stage 2 reading, 27 September 2026. Probable M. B. Griffin, farmer, died at 504 Greenwood Avenue, Marshall, on 7 February 1936; born Washington County, Georgia; father Henry Griffin, mother “Ella Boatwright”, born Washington County, Georgia; informant W. H. Griffin; buried at Greenwood 9 February 1936. Taken as Micajah B., aged 4 in the 1850 household (S662). The mother's first name “Ella” is set aside: Sarah is on the 1844 marriage and three censuses. The certificate's birth date, 8 November 1841, is three years before the marriage and does not fit his age in 1850; about 1845–46 is preferred. Collection: Texas, U.S., Death Certificates, 1903–1982.
12. S804Georgia returns of qualified voters, 1867, Washington County, 20th district, precinct 13: Henry Griffin. Ancestry record 878427. Image examined in the Stage 2 reading, 27 September 2026. Probable No. 1605, Henry Griffin, white, registered 19 July 1867, oath book B, p. 304. The county of the 1844 Griffin–Boatwright marriage (S794) and of the 1850 household; the return gives no age, and the name is common. Collection: Georgia, U.S., Returns of Qualified Voters and Reconstruction Oath Books, 1867–1869.