Family Card 9/13/21 - Person Sheet
Family Card 9/13/21 - Person Sheet
NameEster C. Dawnbush Ledbetter
Birth27 Jan 1828
Death5 Oct 1868, Rutherford County, NC
BurialRock Springs Baptist Church Cem., Rutherford Co., North Carolina
Misc. Notes
Her headstone only contains only the initials ECL. She is buried beside Ahijah Oliver. In 1860 it appears Ester was living in the home of R.O. Ledbetter and his wife Elizabeth (Census, Rutherford Co., Broad River Dist., NC - House 966)
Ahijah’s Bible says Ester was born Dec. 27, 1828

d/o Thomas Dornbush, Pricilla Wallace - m. 16 Mar 1818, Wilkes, North Carolina

Adopted d/o Richard Overton and Elizabeth Harris Ledbetter

w/o Elder Ahijah Oliver Lynch, m. 30 Jul 1861, Rutherford, North Carolina


Children
William Rucker Lynch 1868-1946

Note: Esther's brother, Alfred M. Dornbush, was also adopted by the Ledbetters. He may have died in the Civil War. His wife is widowed by 1870, and she remarries in 1879 to Dr. Romeo Hicks. He later marries in 1894.

Living with A. M. Ledbetter, h/o Eliza J. Melton, in 1860 in Catheys Creek is H. F. Dawnbush, b. 1835 N.C. A brother? There was a Henry F. Dornbush, Confederate Soldier. And a 14 yr old Franklin Dornbush living with Lindsey F. and Sarah Fortune Melton.
Spouses
Birth27 Sep 1813, Rutherford County, NC
Death25 Jan 1885, Rutherford County, NC
BurialRock Springs Baptist Church Cem., Rutherford Co., North Carolina
OccupationBaptist Minister & Farmer
ReligionBaptist
FatherLaxton Lynch (1776-1856)
MotherElizabeth Richardson (1784-1880)
Misc. Notes
In 1865 two hundred acres of Laxton’s land was transferred to Ahijah.

From the Minutes of the Green River Baptist Association for the year 1891:
Elders C.B. Justice, Z.T. Whiteside, Elbert Jackson and brethren J.O. Price and A.F. Morgan
The report of standing committee on Obituary was read by A.L. Rucker of the committee as follows:
Obituary.- Elder Ahijah Oliver Lynch, the 5th of the ten children of Laxton and Elizabeth Lynch was born in Rutherford county, NC, Sept. 27th, 1813. His parents migrated to this county from Virginia soon after the Revolutionary War and settled on the Broad River, eleven miles west of Rutherfordton, where they spent the rest of their lives. His only education advantage were those of "old field schools" as they were then termed. The public schools were not originated until 1840,-27 years after brother Lynch's birth, and were consequently of no personal interest to him. He managed however, to learn to read very well and had some idea of Arithmetic and Grammar. He was first married to Eleanor Green, Jan'y 15th, 1835. She died on 28th of January, 1861, leaving five children. He was married a second time to Easter Ledbetter, July 30, 1861. She too died on the 5th of October,1862, bequeathing her four small children to her disconsolate husband. both of brother Lynch's wives were exceptionally good women. He was converted to Christianity on the 6th of May, 1839, and joined Bill's Creek Baptist Church on the 19th of the same month. His membership was transferred to Rock Spring Church, which was organized in 1847 or 1848. Here he was licensed to preach in 1857 and preach his initial sermon on the 5th day of January, 1858, from these words: "For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul or what shall a man gain in exchange for his soul?" Mat. 16:26. During the meeting of the Western North Carolina Baptist Convention at Rock Spring, he was ordained to full Gospel ministry on the 3rd day of September, 1860; the Presbytery consisted of Elders Thomas Standiey, Baily Buice, JC Grayson, N Bowen, Lewis McCurry, Wade Hill and others. He was a delegate to the Association from Bill's Creek in 1844-'45-'47-'50 and '51; and from Rock Spring, 1854-'56-'58-'59-'60-'61-'66-'67-'69-'71-'75-'78-'79-'81 and'83. He served on the following committees: Union meetings 1850-'51; Book concern, 1860; Arrangements, 1861; to settle difficulties existing in Columbus church, 1862; and Temperance, 1858 '69 and '71. He was corresponding messenger to Salem Association, 1858 and 1863, and a delegate to the Western Baptist Concention, 1858-'59-'63. He wrote the Circular Letter for the Green River Association at the session of1862 on the subject of Temperance, which your committee regards as the ablest document upon the subject, to be found among the archives of this body. He was the readiest and the best Scripturist in the Association. He could give upon a moments notice, book, chapter and verse of any passage. He was a living concordance, having read during the last five years of his life the Bible through consecutively thirty-five, and the New Testament thirty-seven times, besides reading in a disconnected way much more than this. Aside from his knowledge of the Bible he was well posted on ?ler's, Whitefield's, Spurgeon's and Wesley's writings and sermons ?er with those of other eminent divines and scholars.
A slight impediment in his speech rendered him non-acceptable as a preacher with many, while some doubted his ability and piety. For this and the additional trouble of a lung affection which seemed constitutional, he refused every pastorate tendered, no matter how temptingly bestowed, and contented himself in doing such work as chance or circumstance offered. In this way he was not only a great help to the regular ministers about him, but accomplished a great deal of good to the churches. Through yearly becoming more and more enfeebled by his cough, he continued his regular attendance at church up to, and including the last regular meeting before his death.
About a week before his demise, he collected together all his books and papers, and after carefully arranging them remarked that he would never need them any more. Overcome at last by a malady which he had been fighting for many long and weary years, he took his bed to rise no more. He had lived to see all his children save one happily converted.
Marriage30 Jul 1861, Rutherford County, NC
ChildrenJulia Ann Elizabeth (1862-1918)
 Julia Tryphenia (1866-1933)
 Alfred Harshie (1867-1952)
 William Rucker (1868-1946)
Last Modified 10 Mar 2018Created 13 Sep 2021 using Reunion for Macintosh
Revised September 13, 2021