Sarah Ellen Preston (1843-1927)

Sarah Eleanor 'Ellen' Preston (10/21/1843)(6/22/1927), daughter of John Fairman Preston and Jane Rhea, m. Col. David Flournoy Bailey (1/23/1845)(10/30/1922) on 2-29-1872. David Bailey was the son of Joseph Richard Bailey and Julia Ann Womack.  (The title Colonel was an honorary title only).  After David's death in 1922, Julia taught school to support herself. Sarah was born and married in Washington Co., VA. David was born in Charlotte Co. VA and died at "Alcova", in Arlington County, VA. David served in the Confederate Services during the Civil war as a private. After the war he moved to Bristol (he had been to Bristol before the war also.) and married Sarah Eleanor Preston. David learned the art of printing at the Bristol News and at one time owned and edited the paper. He studied law at Cumberland Univ. and began practicing that profession in July 1869. Represented the county in the Virginia Legislature in 1879-80 and was chairman of the Judiciary Committee. He was Senator 1881-1885. They had 6 children.

  1. Jane Rhea Bailey b.12-5-1872 d.9-9-1948 married on Sept. 30, 1896, Joseph Cloyd Byars b.12-9-1868 d.5-17-1954. Joseph was the son of James Monroe Byars and Virginia Clark Watson. Jane was educated at the Andrew Jackson Institute in Abingdon. She was Presbyterian. Joseph was born on his father's farm in 'Southern View' VA. He was educated at Pantops Academy and the Univ. of VA. He located in Bristol in 1891, admitted to the bar in 1896 and was elected City Attorney for Bristol in 1900 and then elected to the Senate from the 1st Senatorial District in the year 1901. Both Jane and Joseph died at the Old Deery Inn in Blountville and are buried at East Hill Cemetery, Washington Co., VA. Their children were:
  2. Julia Flournoy Bailey b.2-20-1874 d.5-13-1960 married on April 25, 1894 to William Thomas Tillar b.6-20-1874 d.7-9-1934. See Chart on Wm. Thomas Tillar. They had 6 children.
  3. Martha ('Mattie') Preston Bailey b.6-25-1876 d.5-4-1930 married on June 2, 1897, Judge John W. Price b.4-11-1869 d.5-30-1947. They had one son.
  4. Nannie Louise Montgomery Bailey b.abt 1872.
  5. Robert Preston Bailey b. abt 1878.
  6. David Ellar Bailey b.abt 1880.

        DATA from The Family Tree, Mary Preston Gray, Ed Foley, and Robert Coontz, Sr. (Robert Coontz, Sr. died January 2013) Robert Jr. is family historian.)


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Original 7/28/97
Last updated 5/5/2013
Page by F. L. Preston