Reverend John Rains

(This information was in a file on Rains at TSLA, many years ago. DOC 2014)
 

 TSLA Manuscript Section, Ac. No. 958; Moore B29, f5. 

Gen. James E. Rains, was born April 10, 1833, and

graduated from Yale Law School at the age of 21 years.  Practiced

law in Nashville and was elected in 1860 District Attorney

General for Davidson, Williamson and Sumner Counties.  Generals

in Gray by Ezra Warner, p. 250.  Apparently was not married at

the time of his death.

     Rev. John Rains was the son of John Rains Of Maysville, Ky

and grandson of Cornelius Rains and Mary Kenton Rains.  (See the

"Fauquier County, Virginia, Genealogy Homepage" web page at

http://www.future1.com/~burgess/fqva.htm), sub site List of 41

persons leaving Fauquier to go to Mason Co. KY.)  Even though his

son, General James E. Rains, was a Confederate, Rev. John Rains

remained loyal to the Union.

     Details of the Cornelius Rains family are found in the

Draper Manuscripts and have been abstracted from a section

dealing with the Simon Kenton family.  TSL&A, Accession No. 29,

Lyman Copeland Draper Papers-Wisconsin Historical Society

Microfilmed Manuscripts, Series: S, Volume: 21, #122, #126, #139,

#142, #143:

Tennesse State Library and Archives

Lyman Draper Papers

Microfilm Accession # 29

Reel 50, Series S, Vol. 19-23

Vol. 21-Frame 122

(This information is not an exact quote.  I just abstracted enough to have a better idea of  Rev. John's family.)

     Mrs. Mary Bennington, daughter (& only surviving child)

     of Cornelius & Mary Kenton Rains was born in Fauquier

     County, Virginia, May 10, 1783 and was brought the same

     year to KY.  Her mother, Mary Rains died in Fleming

     County, KY about 1803 and her father 2 or 3 years later

     at Maysville, KY.

     Vol. 21, #126

     Children of Cornelius Rains:

     1.  John Rains (8 years or more older than my informant

     Mary Bennington).  Lived at Maysville, KY.  Had a son

     John, now aged and long a Methodist preacher near

     Nashville, TN.  His son is Confederate Gen. James E.

     Rains.  Father remained devoted to the Union.

     2.  Wm Rains - his sons were Alex. & John, daughter

     Elizabeth wife of John Anderson of Ohio.  Lived

     adjoining Aberdeen, Ohio

     3.  Benj. never married

     4.  James settled near Danville, Ky

     5.  Simon another son of Cornelius

     6.  Frances married Joh Lucas

     7.  Catherine

     Vol. 21, #139

     Informant John Rains of Aberdeen, Ohio, born 30 October

     1796 near Kenton's Station, Ky.  His father Wm Rains

     was born 22 November 1763 and died adjoining Aberdeen

     Ohio, 30 January 1937.  Wm's wife was Jane Edwards born

     22 Nov 1768 and died 10 July 1859.

     Vol. 21, #142

     Wm Rains (father of John above) served under

     Washington, was at capture of Cornwallis.

     Vol. 21, #143

     Cornelius Rains was a native of Ireland.  (It appears

     John Rains, son of Wm is his informant on this.)

     Per the Nov. 14, 1964 DAR application, Nat. No. 506733, of

Mrs. Juliette Ewing Pressing, born 10/25/1893, The 800, Apt. 304,

800 South Fourth, Louisville, KY her ancestor, James Rains was

born about March 1757, served in the Virginia line as a private

in the company of Capt. Grant of the Regiment commanded by Col.

William Grayson for a term of 3 years, from 1777 -1780, died in

Boyle County on March 20, 1846.  Danville, the county seat of

Boyle County, is about 30 miles southwest of Lexington.  He

married Nancy Owens, born in 1764 in Virginia, in Lincoln County,

KY on 7/14/1784.  Lincoln County is on the southeast side of

Boyle and is pretty much due south from Lexington and its county

seat Stanford is about 35 miles south of Lexington.  He was

living in Mercer County, KY when he was granted a pension on Dec.

20, 1830.  Mercer County is the next county north of Boyle

County, county seat Harrodsburg.  She listed 10 children of James

Rains and Nancy (Owens) Rains including a Cornelius Rains, but

none of them married an Allen.

*******************************

Subj:      Re: Rains query in Davidson Co., Tn

Date:      8/16/1998

To:         VUnruh@Bellsouth dot Net

In a message dated 8/16/1998 5:17:32 PM Central Daylight Time, VUnruh@****dot Net writes:

<< Debie, I am working with a Rev. John Rains, Methodist minister

 (1796-1879).  Unsure of his father, although his mother (Nancy) died in

 1848 in Cincinnati.  Rev. John married Lucinda Cartwright and had a

 large family.  Do you know if he is a descendant of one of the Rains

 brothers you mention?  He was the father of General James E. Rains,

 CSA.  Thank you. >>

As far as I know at this point Rev. John Rains and my Capt. John Rains are not related. 

I have searched through my files on the computer and have come up with a little on Rev. John.  I know I found more in the W. A. Provine papers at the TN State Library and Archives. Just never got around it typing it up.  When I have time I will dig through my Rains stuff and see if I can find more.  This should get you started.

Debie

**********

This website has information on the Rains and or Kenton family:  http://www.rootsweb.com/~daisy/trek.htm

http://www.rootsweb.com/~daisy/kenton.htm

http://www.state.ky.us/agencies/arts/sos/simonkenton.html

http://www.foryou.net/~ccpaohio/simon kenton2.html

See the W.A. Provine papers, TSL&A for more information on this family.  Also see the Lyman Draper papers concerning the Kenton and Rains families in KY. 

Provine states there werefour brothers, James Rains, b. 1757, died 1846 near Danville, Boyle County,  Ky, Will Bk I:58; Simon Kenton Rains; Benjamin Rains and John Rains, who m. Nancy Edwards.

     Rev. John Rains, a Methodist minister, was born in Maysville,

Mason County, Kentucky on May 2, 1796 (May 27 per Provine) and died

on July 4, 1879 at the age of 83 years.  Rev. Rains and his wife,

Lucinda, are both buried in the City Cemetery.  Rev. Rains married

Lucinda Cartwright Sept. 10, 1824.

     Rev. John had an obituary written by David McFerrin in the

Methodist Christian Advocate:  He had 15 children.  Was the son of

John Rains and Nancy Edwards.  His oldest son Capt. John Rains died

in Confederate service.  Another son was Dr. T. B. Rains of

Columbia, Tennessee.  Dr. Rains is buried at Rose Hill Cemetery in

Columbia, Tennessee.  His tombstone is labeled:  Dr. T. B. Rains,

Surgeon. 

 John B. McFerrin, a Biography,

(1889) by O. P. Fitzgerald.   The son of Rev. John Rains and Lucinda, James

E. Rains, became the editor of the Republican Banner:  "March 15,

1857, the paper was enlarged, and soon after James E. Raines became

connected with it as editor.  He withdrew March 12, 1858, . . ."

(Clayton's History of Davidson County, (1971 reprint), p. 472).  He

was one of the seven men born in Nashville that gained the rank of

general in the Confederate army.  He fought mostly in East

Tennessee and was killed at the Battle of Murfreesboro on January

_____, 1863. (History of Davidson County, (1971 reprint), p. 172).

His body was taken to the Harding house where General Cheatham saw

it and reportedly "wept openly."  He was buried in the Currin vault

in the Nashville City Cemetery (Nashville Union, January 8, 1863)

and removed to Mt. Olivet in 1888. 

     There is a biographical sketch of Gen. J. E. Rains in

Tennessee, the Volunteer State, Vol. 2, edited by John Trotwood

Moore, page 216:

  James Edward Rains was born in Nashville, Tennessee in

  April, 1833.  He was graduated at Yale in 1854 and then

  studied law.  In 1858 he became city attorney of

  Nashville, and in 1860 Attorney-General for his judicial

 district.  He was a Whig, but when the war began in 1861,

  he was elected Colonel of the Eleventh Tennessee

  Infantry.  The greater part of his service was in East

  Tennessee, where in the winter of 1861-62 he commanded

  the garrison at Cumberland Gap.  The efficient service

  rendered by him in the movements in East Tennessee was

  rewarded by a commission of Brigadier-General on November

  4, 1862.  He took part in the Battle of Murfreesboro

  where he was killed while gallantly leading his men

  against a Federal battery.