When Claude was born his father was Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court. At the age of four - in the gallery of the Montgomery capitol - he observed his father bang a gavel and launch the Confederate States of America. Thus his early schooling was during the pressure of the war, and a father in Richmond as a Representative to the CSA Congress. His last regular school teacher was Thomas C. Bragg of Montgomery. Claude's father died in 1871, when Claude was age 14. Manhood was forced upon him.
A sincere effort was made to read law with Leonard Abercrombie, a brother-in-law in Texas, but Claude lacked real interest, discipline, and the valuable trait of competitiveness. After a period of indecision, he felt a call to the ministry. In July 1877 his formal and informal study for the ministry resulted in license to preach the Gospel for the Methodist Episcopal Church, south. He joined the East Shore circuit and in December 1878 married Mabel Cecilia Pierce, the 16 year old daughter of Dr. Dunklin & Mabel Woods Pierce. She conceived on their honeymoon, and in September 1879 her physician father delivered her of a son, Claudius Lysias Chilton, Jr.
This creative, multi-talented clergyman was a bellicose evangelist for 37 years, 26 of which were on behalf of his Methodist denomination across both Alabama and Missouri. But 11 years were freelance evangelism after resigning the denomination at Pensacola in 1903. His departure was caused by an uncompromising belief that, because musical talent was God-given, all its forms were a joyful noise welcome in the house of the Lord. He was a master of many musical instruments, as well as a master hymnodist. The resignation of Claude Sr was joined by the resignation of Claude Jr, who had been ordained in 1901.
Two sons of Claudius & Mabel founded the Paragon Press in Montgomery while they were still in high school. They gave their father an upstairs office in their printing plant and printed his religious pamphlets called "Plain Truth", plus his marvelous poetry. [Today, this old firm publishes the highest quality yearbooks for high schools & universities.]
Claudius Lysias Chilton and Mabel Pierce had ten children, one son dying in infancy. As noted elsewhere, Mabel Pierce carried the genes for polycystic kidney disease and chance passed them to 7 of her children. Claudius lived 58 years, 3 months. - Dictionary of Alabama Biography

Name: Claudius L. Chilton
Death Date: 28 Jul 1914
Death Place: Montgomery, Montgomery, Alabama
Gender: Male
Age at Death: 58y
Birth Date: 27 April 1856
Father's Name: Wm. Parish Chilton
Film Number: 1894112
Reference Number: cn 280
Collection: Alabama Deaths, 1908-1974,