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[VALLMO9]

More on soldier James Colhoun:

Reported in The Woodville Republican, July 30, 1850
"Resolved: That the thanks of Wilkinson Lodge No. 10, be tendered to the citizens of Waterproof, LA for the kindness and attention shown the committee on the occasion of the removal of the remains of our deceased brother from that place". The Lodge also thanked the Pastor of the Methodist Episcopal Church for the funeral services of James Colhoun.

Obit in The Woodville Republican, August 13, 1850
Death due to cholera - after 8 hours. Confirms he was a "native of Ireland and came to the US as a mere boy". Was a resident of Georgia for a number of years. And while residing in Columbus, GA he commenced the study of law but gave that up to become a mechanic. When he was 24, he became a resident of Woodville, MS, where he worked as a saddler. His body is interred at Woodville, MS.

The obit is quite lengthy and focuses on his military service. I skimmed over the obit and didn't see any family members mentioned. Interestingly he served alongside General (and future US President) Zachary Taylor.

So if he came to America as a "mere boy" would he still be John Colhoun's son? How did that work? Yet the Irish death notice for him states he was the son of John Colhoun, Esq of Leck. Hmm...

U.S., Compiled Military Service Records for American Volunteer Soldiers, Mexican War, 1845-1848
Name: James Calhoun
Enlistment Place: Vicksburg
Service Date: 12 Jun 1846
Service Place: Vicksburg
Residence Place: Mississippi, USA
Rank: 2nd Lieutenant
Unit: Fifth Infantry

Ancestry has record above with images.

[devonliz]

Thank you so much! I already knew quite a lot about Wilhelmina and Thomas Thompson, but had no idea of all these sisters ... two of them set up a school in Belfast, just after Mrs Kisack was married, using her experience of a dozen years as a governess. This came from a newspaper search last night, using all these new names that you have given me. The boy soldier is an interesting angle. This was a Protestant Ulster Scots family, so already prone to explore new destinations - I will try to find out more historical background to see if this is a likely link. His age certainly puts him in the same range as the girls.

BUT BUT BUT - there is a cautionary tale here, and something that we need to be aware of when using Family Search.
We know that this family lived in county (London)Derry - so why were the marriages given an 'event place' of Newry, county Down? I suppose from the perspective of Salt Lake City, they seen fairly close together, but in fact they would be rather a long way apart in 19thC Ireland.
The answer I think is that these are not register entries, they are obtained from the newspaper BMD columns, and these notices often appeared in several newspapers simultaneously.
I always imagined LDS missionaries poring over the old register books, but I suppose the Family Search research is now done online just like ours!

[VALLMO9]

I'm curious: what were the occupations of Thomas Thompson and John Colhoun? Were they clergy, merchants ??

[devonliz]

Thomas Thompson was a farmer and owned property in and around Carrickfergus, was also connected with the baking trade.

John Colhoun - no idea really - but one of the Thompson daughters married a farmer from her mother's area, Newtownlimavady, so presumably they were all farmers - educated, employers of farm workers I guess.

[jonwarrn]

The marriage(s) being said to be in Newry on FamilySearch, looking up the film number(s) in their catalogue, the source is
Histories of Newry families, prior to 1910
"These records are a collection of extracts from newspapers, diaries, and other local resources for the city of Newry and the surrounding area compiled by Francis Crosslé and then organized by his son, genealogist Philip Crosslé. These entries cover roughly the period of 1600–1919"
https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/226899