• General Notes

  Burial: Geer Family Cemetery, Geer Cove near Sparta, White Co., TN
  Occupation: Carpenter & Machinist
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  Ransom Geer and his wife, Mary (Hargess) Geer sold their farm in the Cherry Creek Community and started making specific preparations for joining the trek of the forty-niners. One thing prevented a widespread epidemic of typhoid fever. Three or four of the Geer children were victims.
  This made it necessary for Ransom to purchase another farm and to reestablish his family in what was to become known as the Ransom (Geer) Cove not so very for [sic] from the original site. All the children had been born before the removal since Ransom was born September 1, 1802, and Mary, November 12, 1802. They were to live respectively until April 5, 1885, and June 7, 1880, after raising twelve or fourteen children. The family burying ground is in the head of Ransom Cove.
  The original house was built by Ransom and his son, Robert, grandfather to Judge C. C. Geer of Sparta. The house was put together with wooden pegs, there not being a single nail in the entire structure. Lumber was handdressed. One interesting feature of construction in this house was the clock which was "built in" upon the roof (cupolo style) so that it would strike and give the time to neighbors. It is thought that the clock was his own invention. They also helped to build the first courthouse in Sparta, likely after the fire.
  They were also the best machinists and woodworkers to be found anywhere. They built the first wheel to operate Taylor's Mill at Cave in the southern part of the county. Since they operated a large workshop and forge, they did extensive repair of the equipment of the Confederacy during the War.
  Ransom worked for years on some idea for perpetual motion as a sort of ingenious inventor. He passed the plan along to Robert who never followed through.
  The two oldest boys, William and Robert, attended college, Southwestern Presbyterian College in Lexington, Kentucky. Robert was married to Sara (Sally) Bradley. Those were the grandparents of Judge Geer whose father was Flavius Aristotle Geer.
  Robert taught at Cumberland Institute and later at Big Spring.
  William was religiously inclined. In addition to being personally very well trained, he acquired one of the most significant libraries of religious books and treatises upon religious subjects to be found. Among these were found some of the best Commentaries.
  William made a point of supplying such helps to young preachers and others who would share his interests.
  The children of Ransom which have been recalled are William, Robert, John, Jane, Polly Ann (whose husband died of typhoid), Sam who was a cripple, Cynthia, Lina, Betsy (Elizabeth) Ann, Vica, Lucy, and perhaps two or three others -- these perhaps died.
  The children of Robert were Gustarus Adolphus, Tiberias Alexander (called Ty), Flavius (father of Judge Geer, Cassius M. Clay, Robert Lee, Ida Jane and Beecher Hunter.
  The Ransom Geer place was later known as the Mitchell place, the Shugart place and now the Carter home. Much of this information was assembled by Mrs. George Bradley and Miss Mabel Geer.
  
  Sources:
  
  Lore and Legend of the Cumberalnds: Ransom Geer Meant To Join Forty-Niners
  by E. G. Rogers
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  from: The Sparta Expositor & News-Pictorial, Sparta, Tennessee, Thursday, January 14, 1965, p. 9:
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  2009 Geer Family Master File
  
  http://worldconnect.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=geer_family_tree&id=I393564

Details of Ransom Erastus' family with Mary "Polly"  HARGIS