In the mid 1880's, four relatives on the Fox side of my family moved to Florida and spent several years in what is today Sumter and Lake Counties, southeast of Ocala. The eldest of the three was Ebenezer Gaston, 1820 to 1885. In addition, in Florida was Ebenezer's daughter, Mary Margaret Gaston (1856 to 1885), Mary Margaret's daughter, Margaret Gaston Love (1883 to 1954), and Mary Margaret's husband James Drennan Love (1841 to 1938). On 2 May 1885, Margaret Love passed away along with her one week old child. I have read it was a boy. A week later, 9 May 1885, Ebenezer Gaston passed away. The three are buried in "The Love Cemetery" in Center Hill, Florida.
On a trip to Florida in Jan. and Feb. of 2011, Mary and I spent several days in the Sumter and Lake Counties area researching what we could find on the above family's stay there. On our way down to Florida, 31 Dec. 2011, we stopped by the Love Cemetery in Center Hill. There was a common monument with Ebenezer's name on one side and Mary Margaret's name on the other. I saw nothing on the monument about the 1 week old child. We took pictures.
Later in February, 2011, we went back up to the area and visited the courthouses in both Bushnell and Tavares. Following is what we gleaned from records we found.
Ebenezer Gaston owned two pieces of property in the area. He owned a lot in Leesburg, FL, and 80 acres of country property in Sumter County. The Leesburg lot, about 1 acres, was bought 9 March 1885 from one John C. Love who, from the many deedbook entries in his name, appeared to be a land speculator in the area. I currently do not have record of the purchase of the 80 acres, but I have read it is recorded in the courthouse in Bushnell. In the early 1890's the above lot in Leesburg was sold back to John C. Love by the seven heirs of Ebenezer Gaston--his six sons, and his granddaughter, Margaret Gaston Love. Importantly, the names of the male heirs and their wives were given in the documentation. The six sons sold their 6/7 interest in the lot directly to J. C. Gaston for $200. However, for some reason, James D. Love as guardian of his daughter, sold her 1/7 interest by auction on the Lake Co, courthouse steps. J. c. Love bought her 1/7 interest in the lot for $50.
In 1896, the seven sons of Ebenezer Gaston sold their 6/7 interest in the 80 acres in Sumter Co. to "Maggie G. Love of Oktibbeha Co., MS", the 7th heir.
I looked in my database to see if I could easily determine who John C. Love's ancestry was and if we were kin. No luck. I do have record of some John Loves kin to my David Love but they lived too long ago to have been John C. [Note: Later, Joe Gaston of Texas told me that J. C. Love was John C. Love, brother of James Drennon Love and son of Drennan Love of South Carolina.]
James Drennan Love also owned two pieces of property in Florida, a lot (number 181) in Center Hill FL, and 40 acres of country land. Both pieces of property are in Sumter County. He didn't appear to own any land in what is now Lake County.(Lake County was formed from Sumter Co. and Orange Co. in 1887). In Bushnell, I found record of his purchase in Dec. 1885 of lot 181. However, I did not run across record of his purchase of the 40 acres.
In 1888 James D. Love deeded lot 181 to his 2nd wife, Clara Fox Love. This deed was signed in Enterprise, MS. and recorded in the Sumter Co., FL, courthouse.
In 1901, Clara Fox Love deeded the Center Hill lot to Maggie G. Hartness (Margaret G. Love had married Joe Hartness in 1900 and they had settled in Oktibbeha Co., MS.) Interestingly, Clara Fox Love signed the deed in Washington, DC.
I do not know what James D. Love did with the 40 acres of country land; and I do not know what disposition was made of the land that passed to Maggie G. Hartness. I'll have to stop by Bushnell again one day.
One point that should be made. Albert Lee Love (THE genalogist), son of James D. Love and Clara Fox Love was born 17 NOV 1886 in Leesburg, Lake Co., FL. So he was born before they got away from Florida. The county clerk and I speculated that James D. Love did not want to lose another wife and child like he did 18 mos earlier in Center Hill, so he brought Clara to a hospital in Leesburg. The clerk thought there was one in Leesburg in the late 1880's.
In the courthouse in Bushnell, I was shown an early map of Center Hill. It showed lot 181 and the cemetery. At one time I wondered if the old cemetery was named Love Cemetery because James D. Love had donated the property for that purpose. However, I saw nothing to suggest that is so. Lot 181 and the cemetery are close, but not that close. I wonder if the cemetery was named for John C. Love and not James D. Love!
I have the deed records referred to above that I can e-mail to anyone interested in that detail. It is interesting reading.
Albert H. Spinks
March 24, 2011