Sarah Bynum~Frontier Wife and Mother

Today we going to take a small snapshot look at William Holyfield and his wife Sarah Bynum. There a connection here but no actual blood kin to William & Sarah Bynun Holyfield. William's  uncle Moses Holyfield married my 4th great grand Aunt Emilia “Millie” Rivers.

William and Sarah Bynum were married 8 March 1858 in Jones County,¹ Mississippi where they and their kinfolk like the Rivers and Musgrove's also lived.  William was the son of John W. Holyfield and Elizabeth Smith. he was born on 29 August 1838 in Jones County, Mississippi.

Sarah Bynum was born on 18 June 1836, a daughter of Mark Bynum, b. 1801 in SC.²

On October 18, 1861, William Holyfield  was called to duty with Company K, 8th Mississippi Infantry. The Civil War muster roll show that William was 22 years old.³ 

After the war, William and Sarah Bynum settled down and in 1866 and 1868 their sons, Leroy and Hannon were born. 



On 14 February 1893, William Holyfield filed for an “Invalid” pension for his Civil War Service, Application # 1146, 240. Certificate #885464. ⁴

William Holyfield died on 15 February 1911.⁵

On 10 April 1911, Sarah Bynun Holyfield made application for a “Widow” pension based on the Civil War service of her Husband William Holyfield, deceased; Application #962468, Certificate #729015.⁶



Sarah Bynum Holyfield died 8 Jan 1918; but, she was not found in the 1920 Census. The above document, where she states that she is 80 years old indicates she was alive in September 1916.
UPDATE: Sarah Bynum Holyfield died 8 Jan 1918. 7

I’m no expert on the Bynum’s and Holyfield’s but have done quite a bit of research on the Holyfield's due to their connection to my Rivers line.

Jones County, Mississippi during the Civil War was a “haven” for deserters with talk of creating the “Free State of Jones”. If you are interested in these surnames or the activities/history surrounding many of these men and the Free State of Jones I highly recommend you subscribe to the Renegade South blog.
You might also like to read these two postings:

• http://renegadesouth.wordpress.com/tag/jasper-collins/
• http://renegadesouth.wordpress.com/2009/03/14/whats-in-a-marriage-bynums-on-both-sides-of-the-civil-war-divide/

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[Note: Holyfield, also spelled Holifield]
[1] U.S., Civil War Pension Index: General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934, microfilm publication T288, 546 rolls. (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, ), Filed in Tyler County Texas 9 Jan 1909, CSA Pension File #885464 for Sarah Bynum Holyfield, wife of William Holyfield.
[2] Ibid.
[3] Ancestry, "Civil War Service Records" database, Military Service Records (http://www.fold3.com/ : accessed 29 August 2013), entry for William HOLYFIELD, Private; Eighth Infantry; Confederate.
[4] U.S., Civil War Pension Index: General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934, microfilm publication T288, 546 rolls. (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, ), Roll #224, William Holyfield.
[5] William HOLYFIELD, death certificate  Texas Death Index, 1903-2000 (15 February 1911), Vital Records, Department of Health, Austin, Travis County, Texas.
[6] U.S., Civil War Pension Index: General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934, microfilm publication T288, 546 rolls. (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, ), Filed in Tyler County Texas 9 Jan 1909, CSA Pension File #885464 for Sarah Bynum Holyfield, wife of William Holyfield.
[7] On March 6, 1918, the Dept. of the Interior, Bureau of Pensions, listed Sarah as a "dropped pensioner" on account of her death on January 8, 1918. [Source: Vikki Bynum]