Martha Angeline Gowan at 13
Assists with Amputation
Martha Angeline “Angie” Gowan, daughter of Pleasant Andrew
Gowan and Mary A. Elizabeth Harris Gowan, was born
near Jackson, Tennessee August 28, 1851. She had a firsthand
experience with the Civil War, according to Connie
LaDelle Ball Chandler, a granddaughter of McCrory,
Arkansas and author of “The H. L. Ball Family.”
“When she was 13, one of her uncles was shot in the
leg during the Battle of Shiloh. He crawled into the
woods and hid. He started for home [90 to 100 miles
away] crawling through the woods at night and hiding
in the daytime, living on berries and roots. The family
thought that he had been killed in the battle, but one
morning, she went out to milk the cows and found him
in the barn, deathly ill with gangrene in his wound. He
cautioned her not to let anyone know of his presence
because Union soldiers were still in the area. He
requested her to bring a sharp butcher knife, some
water and rags for bandages. They built a fire to sterilize
the knife and to boil some water.
They placed a tourniquet above the wound, and she
was instructed to complete the amputation in the event
that he passed out. They disjointed the leg at the knee,
cauterized it to stop the bleeding and pulled the skin
down over the stump. She bandaged the stump and
stood vigil while he slept. The war was over by the
time his wound had healed, and he could then let all
know that he had survived the Battle of Shiloh.
I have in my possession a quilt that she made when she
was a little girl. She picked the cotton, carded it, spun
the thread, wove the material, dyed it using leaves for
the green and bark for the brown dye. Then the cut the
pieces and pieced them together, carded cotton bats for
the filling, and then quilted it.”
Martha Angeline “Angie” Gowan was married January 6,
1874 to George Falcon Wood, according to Carroll County
marriage records. He was born February 14, 1854 near
Jackson, according to Gerald F. Scott, Jr, Gowan descendant
and Foundation member of Paragould, Arkansas.
Connie LaDelle Ball Chandler wrote, “She served as a
midwife to ladies in the community, riding horseback
or in a buggy to attend to the women. Once she went
on a call in the buggy, driving a mare with her young
colt following. The baby was slow in arriving, so she
returned home to fix supper for her family. When she
returned for the birthing, she tied up the colt and rode
the mare. The baby finally arrived, about daylight she
was ready to return home. When she mounted the
mare, the horse took the bit between her teeth and
raced all the way home. She was so anxious to return
to her colt, that she was uncontrolable. The rider had
great difficulty staying on the horse. She ran so fast
and recklessly that Grandmother was bleeding from the
nose and ears when they got home.”
They removed to Tipp, Arkansas in 1887 and assisted in organizing
the Friendship Methodist Church in the following
year. They removed to McCrory, Arkansas in 1903 where he
operated a livery stable. Later he and his son Edward Hermon
Wood operated a general store in McCrory.
He died April 29, 1912 at McCrory and was buried in the Odd
Fellows Cemetery there She died August 2, 1947, three weeks
short of her 96th birthday, and was buried beside her husband.
Children born to them include:
Margaret Eula Wood born December 25, 1879
Pleasant Andrew Wood born September 13, 1885
Edward Hermon Wood born February 15, 1888
Elizabeth Myrtle Wood born December 29, 1889
Martha Abi “Mattie” Wood born June 22, 1892
Woodruff County Historical Society of McCrory published in
its “Rivers and Roads” the family history research of Connie
LaDelle Ball Chandler who died there June 22, 1992. The
Foundation is indebted to Roger Smith, president of the
Society who gave approval for the Foundation to publish
excerpts from the Chandler material.
Martha Angeline Gowan at Age 13 Assisted Her Confederate Uncle with Amputation
Martha Angeline “Angie” Gowan, daughter of Pleasant An-
drew Gowan and Mary A. Elizabeth Harris Gowan, was born
near Jackson, Tennessee August 28, 1851. She had a
first-hand experience with the Civil War, according to
Connie LaDelle Ball Chandler, a granddaughter of McCrory,
Arkansas and author of “The H. L. Ball Family.”
“When she was 13, one of her uncles was shot in the leg
during the Battle of Shiloh. He crawled into the woods
and hid. He started for home [90 to 100 miles away]
crawling through the woods at night and hiding in the
daytime, living on berries and roots. The family thought
that he had been killed in the battle, but one morning,
Martha Angeline Gowan went out to milk the cows and found
him in the barn, deathly ill with gangrene in his wound.
He cautioned her not to let anyone know of his presence
because Union soldiers were still in the area.
He requested her to bring a sharp butcher knife, some wa-
ter and rags for bandages. They built a fire to steril-
ize the knife and to boil some water.
They placed a tourniquet above the wound, and she was in-
structed to complete the amputation in the event that he
passed out. They disjointed the leg at the knee, cauter-
ized it to stop the bleeding and pulled the skin down
over the stump. She bandaged the stump and stood vigil
while he slept. The war was over by the time his wound
had healed, and he could then let all know that he had
survived the Battle of Shiloh.
I have in my possession a quilt that she made when she
was a little girl. She picked the cotton, carded it, spun
the thread, wove the material, dyed it using leaves for
the green and bark for the brown dye. Then she cut the
pieces and pieced them together, carded cotton bats for
the filling, and then quilted it.”
Martha Angeline “Angie” Gowan was married January 6, 1874
to George Falcon Wood, according to Carroll County marri-
age records. He was born February 14, 1854 near Jackson,
according to Gerald F. Scott, Jr, Gowan descendant and
Foundation Member of Paragould, Arkansas.
Connie LaDelle Ball Chandler wrote, “She served as a mid-
wife to ladies in the community, riding horseback or in a
buggy to attend to the women. Once she went on a call in
the buggy, driving a mare with her young colt following.
The baby was slow in arriving, so she returned home to
fix supper for her family. When she returned for the
birthing, she tied up the colt and rode the mare. The
baby finally arrived, about daylight she was ready to re-
turn home. When she mounted the mare, the horse took the
bit between her teeth and raced all the way home. She
was so anxious to return to her colt, that she was uncon-
trolable. The rider had great difficulty staying on the
horse. She ran so fast and recklessly that Grandmother
was bleeding from the nose and ears when they got home.”
They removed to Tipp, Arkansas in 1887 and assisted in
organizing the Friendship Methodist Church in the follow-
ing year. They removed to McCrory, Arkansas in 1903
where George Falcon Wood operated a livery stable. Later
he and his son Edward Hermon Wood operated a general
store in McCrory.
He died April 29, 1912 at McCrory and was buried in the
Odd Fellows Cemetery there. She died August 2, 1947,
three weeks short of her 96th birthday, and was buried
beside her husband.
Children born to them include:
Margaret Eula Wood born December 25, 1879
Pleasant Andrew Wood born September 13, 1885
Edward Hermon Wood born February 15, 1888
Elizabeth Myrtle Wood born December 29, 1889
Martha Abi “Mattie” Wood born June 22, 1892
Woodruff County Historical Society of McCrory published
in its “Rivers and Roads” the family history research of
Connie LaDelle Ball Chandler who died there June 22,
1992. The Foundation is indebted to Roger Smith, presi-
dent of the Society who gave approval for the Foundation
to publish excerpts from the Chandler material.
Goyen Family Tree 