Giles Lyon Cobb

Narrative:

     Giles Lyon Cobb was born on 5 Dec 1820 in Kentucky.^4,5,6
     He was probably the male age 5 to 10 listed in the household of his father, Gideon Dyer Cobb, in the 1830 Federal Census of Eddyville, Caldwell Co., Kentucky.¹⁶
     His father died on 1 Mar 1834, when Giles was 13 years old.^17,18
     He was probably one of the three males age 15 to 20 listed in the household of his brother, Caleb, in the 1840 Federal Census of Caldwell Co., Kentucky.¹⁹
     Giles married Marion Catlett, daughter of Thomas Washington Catlett and Isabella Field Helm, on 15 Jan 1850 in Caldwell Co., Kentucky.^7,8,9
     Giles and Marion settled in Dycusburg after their marriage. The town had been incorporated 1844.²⁰ They appeared on the 1850 Federal Census of Crittenden Co., Kentucky, enumerated 28 Aug 1850, reporting real estate valued at $600. His late sister's son James G. Hallick, and James Redford, an 18-year-old clerk, were listed as living with them. There were also two female slaves, one aged 15 and one 45.^21,22
     It appears that Giles and Marion moved back to Eddyville by 1855.²³ They appeared on the 1860 Federal Census of Eddyville, Lyon Co., Kentucky, enumerated 11 Aug 1860, reporting $2,800 in real estate, $12,000 of personal estate. Her brother Malcom, James Murphy and Barclay Arney James, both clerks, and one female slave, age 53, were also listed in the household.^3,24

Public Service --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---

     Giles seems to have quickly established himself as a responsible citizen after he moved to Crittenden Co. At the 12 Feb 1849 session of the County Court he was appointed one of five men "to view and mark a way for a road to commence at the Salem road near I.N. Clement's residence to extend the nearest & best way to Dycusburgh."²⁵
     A post office was established in Dycusburg in 1848, and Giles was appointed its third postmaster on 11 May 1850. His replacement was appointed 22 Jul 1851.²⁶
     In the summer of 1851 Giles was appointed as clerk at Dycusburg for the upcoming election. Presumably he held similar posts in Lyon Co, after he returned there, but records there have not been examined.²⁷

Military Service --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---

     On 21 Jan 1862 President Jefferson Davis submitted nominations to the Provisional Confederate Congress which included Giles, as an assistant quartermaster, with the rank of Captain. The nomination was confirmed 28 Jan and he was commissioned in Company S, Kentucky 8th Infantry Regiment, on 10 Feb 1862.^28,29,30 The unit fought at Fort Donelson, Tennessee, on 13, 15, and 16 Feb 1862, the battles in which that fort fell to Union hands, and at Shiloh 6 Apr 1862.³¹ On 3 Apr 1862 Giles's name appeared in a list of quartermasters who have failed to give bond and on 30 Aug his name was dropped from the rolls.³²
     In the meantime, on 25 May 1862 Giles was captured with his regiment in Lyon Co., Kentucky. On 12 Sep he was transferred from Kentucky to the prison at Camp Chase, Ohio, and on 29 Sep to Cairo, Illinois.³³ On 22 Sep 1862, while a prisoner, he resigned his position. On 1 Nov 1862 he was released as part of an exchange of prisoners on board the steamer Emerald near Vicksburg, Mississippi.^34,35
     On 13 Mar 1863, from Manchester, Tennessee, he explained why his bond as quartermaster had not been not forwarded sooner (that explanation has not been found), and on 21 Apr he was reinstated.^36,37 After his return his unit fought at Vicksburg, Mississippi, on 4 Jul 1863; at Jackson Mississippi on 10 and 11 Jul; at Paducah, Kentucky on 25 Mar 1864; and at Tishomingo Creek, Mississippi on 10 and 11 Jun.³¹ On 16 Jun 1863 he was ordered to report to Major General Stewart to take charge of the division ordinance train. On 23 Aug he was relieved from duty with Cobb's Battalion, though the significance of this is unclear as he continued to serve as quartermaster in the 8th Kentucky regiment. By Aug 1864 he was with Cobb's Battalion in Atlanta, Georgia.^38,39
     Giles was part of the Army of the Department of Alabama, Mississippi and East Louisiana that was surrendered 8 May 1865 by Lt. General Richard Taylor to Maj. General Edward Canby. This was the last major Confederate force remaining east of the Mississippi River. He was paroled 16 May 1865 at Columbus, Mississippi.^40,41

The Cobb Brothers in Business --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---

     Four of the Cobb brothers, Caleb, Robert, followed by Gideon, and later Giles, were very active in business ventures in Eddyville and the surrounding area, following in their father's footsteps. Through a series of partnerships among themselves and with others they engaged in mercantile, real estate, and iron businesses.⁴²
     Giles, and Charles M. Jackson, joined his older brothers Robert and Gideon in a new partnership in late 1850, known as Cobb Jackson & Co. This new partnership was located in Dycusburg, Crittenden Co., and was primarily a mercantile business. It appears that even though his two brothers were involved, this was primarily Giles's business.⁴³ On 15 Nov 1850 he mortgaged his interest in the firm to a long list of firms in New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, and locally, including his brothers' firm in Eddyville, and the Bank of Kentucky in Hopkinsville, to obtain $18,000 in goods and merchandise. He also mortgaged a lot in Dycusburg to secure a debt owed by the firm.⁴⁴
     About the same time as Cobb Jackson & Co. was formed, Gideon and Giles formed a separate partnership known as Giles L. Cobb & Co., apparently involving just the two of them. It too was based in Dycusburg, and again Giles seems to have been the lead partner. It was apparently formed in 1851, and dissolved by early 1857.⁴⁵
     For details about all these partnerships, please see The Cobb Brothers in Business.

Giles' Dealings Outside the Partnerships --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---

     Unlike his brothers who made many real estate transactions outside their partnerships, comparatively few such transactions by Giles has been found. It appears his interests were primarily in mercantile, rather than the iron business. Further, both the Cobb Jackson & Co. and G L Cobb & Co. firms, while partnerships, seem to have been primarily his businesses. He was involved in a few transactions after he moved back to Eddyville.^46,47
     He purchased a warrant for 119 acres of land in Crittenden Co., Kentucky. He had it surveyed on 12 Sep 1851, and a grant was issued 4 Oct 1854.⁴⁸ On 23 Nov 1853 Giles bought lot no. 7 in Dycusburg from Sinco A. G. Noel for $222. He sold that lot to Mrs. Catharine McIntire on 10 Jun 1854, for $240.⁴⁹
     Giles purchased a parcel of over 240 acres in Lyon Co., below and adjoining Eddyville, from John P Boyd and his wife Sarah, for $2,500, paying with four notes due in one, two, three, and four years. The recorded copy of the deed is dated 23 Mar 1856, but the purchase would appear to have been made several years earlier.⁵⁰ He sold 73 acres of that parcel to G. M. Huggans for $672 on 3 Jan 1855, paid by notes due 3 Feb 1856, 1857, and 1858.⁵¹
     Giles sold a portion of that tract, size unspecified, to Charles Wood for $350 on 7 Jul 1857.⁵² He sold what appears to have been the balance of the parcel on 21 Jan 1858, in four separate transactions. He sold 14 acres to Philip D. Yeiser for $335, 3¼ acres to William Cash for $575, and 10½ acres to Caleb Warfield for $500. He sold to his brother Robert a parcel that seems to have been 94 acres for $1000.⁵³
     On 8 Mar 1858 Giles received a 45 acre parcel in on the waters of Livingston Creek, in Lyon Co., as a result of a suit brought in Caldwell Circuit Court. He sold that property to John Winters for $200 on 31 May 1860.⁵⁴
     On 5 Oct 1858 Giles sold a 7-acre parcel on Lick Creek in Lyon Co. which appears to have been a part of the purchase from John Boyd, for $342 to Matthew Martin Lyon.⁵⁵ Giles was involved in a pair of dueling suits in Lyon Circuit Court, one by Robert Garrett and Wm. Henry against Giles L. Cobb, defendant, and the other T. P. Paine and Giles L. Cobb against T. Young sheriff of Lyon Co and Robert Garrett use and benefit of Henry, defendants. Under an order in the Jun 1865 term of the Court a 5-acre parcel near Eddyville was sold on 21 Dec 1865 to Thomas Washington Catlett, Gile's father-in-law, for $1,620. The land may have been part of Giles Lyon Cobb's parcel there, but that is unclear from the deed.⁵⁶

Moving to New Orleans --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---

     Giles moved to New Orleans at some point after the War. It is unclear just when, or whether Marion joined him. Presumably he moved there for business purposes, but what kind of business in unknown. He does not appear in any city directory there. The Cobb family had traded with firms in New Orleans from their earliest days in Kentucky, so he no doubt had contacts there. But the Cobb mercantile businesses, principally operated by his older brother Robert and his sons at this time, were in disarray.⁵⁷ At the time of his death he was living at the corner of Prytania and Coliseum Sts.⁵⁸
     Giles died on 4 Oct 1867 in New Orleans, Louisiana, at age 46, of yellow fever in the epidemic that had been sweeping the city for nearly two months. Seventy-five deaths from the disease were reported in the city that day, compared to an average of around 30 total deaths in early August.^10,11,12
     He was buried on 5 Oct 1867 in Girod Street Cemetery, New Orleans, Louisiana.^13,14,15 A handsome upright stone with his name and death date, inscribed "In memory of my husband," is in the Riverview Cemetery, Eddyville, Caldwell Co., Kentucky, in the plot of his wife's family. Whether his remains were moved there is unknown, so this may be only a cenotaph. The Girod Street Cemetery in New Orleans, and above-ground structure, fell into disrepair and was demolished in the mid-twentyth century. The southern quarter of the Superdome now covers part of the site. Remains still there were removed elsewhere so if his were not moved to Eddyville their location is now unknown.^59,60