Nancy Melissa Hensley was born in Lebanon in Searcy County, the daughter of John and Mary (Pryor) Hensley. She was courted by Pleasant Fowler, a farmer from Newton County. The young couple wed in Marshal Prairie (now Western Grove) May 19, 1857 and started what they hoped would be a long and prosperous life together.
Nancy was, no doubt, overjoyed when she became pregnant, and even more happy when she gave birth to a boy she named Claud Jerome Fowler, April 10, 1858.
It is unknown if the baby was sickly from the start, or if he caught a fever or some other disease, but he died Sept. 1, 1858, just a few days shy of being five months old. The little lad was laid to rest in what is now known as Western Grove Cemetery.
Barbara LeRoy is the author of “Which Side Were They On?,” a 302 page book listing biographical sketches of the Newton Countians who were involved in the Civil War, available for sale either in the Bradley House Museum or by purchasing online at www.newtoncountyar.com. The book sells for $33.