Submitted by John P. Sartin, his Great Grandson Thanks John!

Thomas Jefferson BRAUDRICK led a varied and interesting life from being a Federal Marshal for Judge Parker in Fort Smith to finally being a farmer and builder on Mount Sherman, Arkansas.

Tom was born in upper Fourche Township, Yell County, which is near the little community of Delaware, Arkansas on 12 March 1849. This would have been a nice area to grow up with the beautiful forests nearby and the Arkansas River and Valley a short distance away. A young man could enjoy fishing and developing his hunting skills. His parents were David and Jane RANKIN BRAUDRICK or as it may have been spelled then, BREDRICK or BRO(A)DRICK. David was from Virginia and Jane was from Kentucky. Tom always told people that he was from Fort Smith, since that was a major landmark in the area and people would recognize the name. Also that was where he worked as a Federal Marshal in his early years. His primary duty was to work in the lawless Indian Territory in what is now The State of Oklahoma.

Tom had brothers, Enoch (b. abt. 1840) and William (b. abt. 1844) and a sister, Ruth (b. abt. 1842). He may have had another sister, Nancy Elizabeth (b. 1851) and other siblings.

On March 6, 1871, he married Missouri Ann UNDERWOOD Garrison in Delaware and they started raising their family near what is now The Ozark National Forest. They had three children, David Franklin (b. 8 Feb 1872), Florence Mae (b. 3 May 1878, Delaware, Logan County-26 Dec 1925, Delaware, Arkansas), and John Robert (b. 3 May 1879).

While Tom was working as a Marshal for Judge Isaac C. Parker, also known as 'The Hanging Judge', his job was to keep track of all the outlaws in Indian Territory and he knew most of them. This was particularly true of the ones that lived around the Eufaula area.

The most infamous outlaw he knew was Belle Starr, who was also known as 'The Bandit Queen'. Belle had been married to Jim Reed and then later to Sam Starr. The Starr place was known as a refuge for the lawless in the area and was visited many times by Tom for various reasons. During this time he developed a special relationship with Belle. The extent of this relationship is not known, but this and the long absences may have caused some disharmony in his marriage. During his later days he often spoke of Belle Starr and this was the subject of many conversations within his family.

In 1879, Tom and Missouri Ann divorced and Tom headed north into Newton County where he met and married Sadie Jane SPENCER (b. 9 April 1865, Evanston, Indiana-29 October 1958, Mount Sherman, Arkansas) on 24 August 1882. She was the daughter of John Samuel SPENCER, long time postmaster of Plumlee, which is now Mount Sherman. John wasn’t too happy with Tom for eloping with his 17 year old daughter, but I guess Tom thought he could get along better with a younger wife. Was he ever surprised by Sadie?

When Tom came to Newton County, he was hired as a Deputy Sheriff and he and Sadie lived on the ground floor of the old block stone jail. On the top floor there were two padded cells where he kept the local bad guys who had usually indulged in too much of the local moonshine. Sadie work as a seamstress and a midwife and her services were in strong demand.

In about 1915, they acquired forty acres on the mountain road to Mount Sherman and with the timber from the property he built them a log cabin. He lived there until his death and his family remained there until about 1980.

In the late 1920’s, he built a house for my grandmother, Mary Elizabeth 'Mollie' and Emmitt R. Barr. It was located on the top of the mountain.

When Tom and Sadie moved to the wilderness, Tom still worked part time for the Sheriff and worked on local building projects. He also farmed and their house was always filled with canned goods and the smoke house with meat. They also sold huckleberries (small blueberries) that they picked from the many wild vines that grew nearby. Sadie was known for her huckleberry cobblers. He also sold off his remaining timber and grew tomatoes.

In about 1922, Tom developed cancer (?) and his final days were spent in agony and his death was a blessing. His friend, Carroll Henderson and his family sat by his side until he was gone.

There were four children from this marriage with Sadie and they were Mary Elizabeth 'Mollie' (b. 22 July 1888, Mount Sherman-18 January 1983, Tulsa, Oklahoma) my grandmother, Dollie Pearl (b. 7 May 1897, Jasper-30 August 1986, Mount Sherman), William Corbett (b. 23 Aug 1884, Jasper-2 January 1986, Mount Sherman) and Julia Legrand (b. 21 March 1900, Mount Sherman-23 April 1991, Lufkin, Texas)

On 1 January 1924, Tom went to be with the Lord and to enjoy his rewards. He was buried in the Mount Sherman Cemetery and was joined by his wife of many years, Sadie, in 1958.

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