BIO: by Karla Todd Sherer - great granddaughter

Born in Georgia to William Earl and Mary Ann Fuller Todd, it's been told in the family that when this family came to Arkansas, they had a perilous trip. The story tells of months of travel and having to hide their money in the oxen yoke to prevent being robbed by Civil War soldiers and bandits. At night, they had to bury or cache their food to keep it safe. Strong, determined people who withstood many hardships as so many did during this time.

An Arkansas farmer, Marksey grew up in Meriweather, Georgia with several siblings. They are to my knowledge:

Minus Martin Todd 1846 – 1938
James Henry Todd 1848 – 1920
James Leander Todd 1850 – 1932
Ida Matilda Todd 1856 –
Jay Adison Todd 1862 –

This was a time when things were hard for families with no father. Mary Ann Todd and William were divorced and William married again right away and had a new family. This left Mary Ann in a difficult situation and the children had to work on other farms to earn money for food and housing. Not much value was put on education but instead it was on finding work. M.L. and his siblings had 3 half sisters but did not grow up around them. They are:

....HALF SIBLINGS......
Cancis A Todd 1867 – 1953
Canzada Zadie Todd 1874 –
Claudia Candes Todd 1874 –

In 1880, M. L. married Laura C. Crawford in Nevada Co., AR. They had one son, Richard William "Bill" Todd in 1881.
Laura died during or shortly after having Bill. The farm still had to be worked so a young neighbor girl came to help care for baby Bill. She never left. In 1883, this young girl, Ardelia McCurdy, married M. L. Todd and they raised 10 more children together besides Bill. Those children are connected below and so is Bill. Although he knew of his mother's death, he was raised knowing and loving Delia as "mama".

This man's name was Marksey Lafayette Todd as per his children who passed it on to their children and to me so that is my source - his children. His headstone shows it to be spelled as Marksy but according to my research with family, the stone is mistaken. I am told the name was pronounced as "Mark-say". Some called him Lafayette and on most documents, he was called M.L. or Marcus so I hope this helps you with your research.

From the history I've found, it looks as though M. L. worked the fields from the time he was a very young boy. He worked the farm for his family and worked as hired help for others. My cousin and I have been told many stories of this family's work ethic. A loving father, who endured the pain and suffering in losing his youngest daughter to a tragic death; Ann Arminta Todd . It is my hope that they rest peacefully and that I've shared their story correctly here and I hope I honor them in doing so. If anyone reads this and would like to contribute additional information, I will be happy to add it.

Rest well Great Grandpa Todd - we still think of you....