Wade & Webb Family History

William Walker Walden1850–1920

Newbury · Birmingham · Shiloh Baptist Church Cemetery

William Walker Walden, called Walker in his early records, was born in Coosa County, Alabama, in 1850. His mother died when he was a small child, and his father, Westley D. Walden, a Confederate captain, died at Marietta, Georgia, in 1863. He married Emma Louise McKinney in 1875 and raised a large family in Coosa County, and he died in 1920 at Birmingham, in the household of his daughter Lila and her husband James P. Webb.

On this page
  1. Family Record
  2. Life
  3. Documents (2)
  4. Places
  5. Timeline
  6. Open questions
  7. Searches made
  8. Notes

Birth

  1. 16 Mar 1850 Newbury, Coosa, Alabama 1

Marriages

  1. 14 Jul 1875 Emma Louise McKinney, at Coosa, Alabama 9

Death and burial

  1. 1920 Burial: Shiloh Baptist Church Cemetery, Marengo, Alabama
  2. 21 Jan 1920 Death: Birmingham, Jefferson, Alabama 17

Family

Parents
Westley D Walden 1819–1863
Eliza Robbins 1828–1853
Spouse, 14 Jul 1875
Emma Louise McKinney 1854–1923
Children
Lila Walden 1877–1937
Harris Solomon Walden 1876–1934
Ida Mae Walden 1894–1915
Julius West Walden 1880–1968
Elma Irene Walden 1887–1922
Joseph Forney Walden 1900–1971
Vallie Alburn Walden 1884–1965

Line of descent Webb line

  1. William Walker Walden
  2. Lila Walden, daughter
  3. Hilda Webb, daughter
  4. William Albert Webb Wade, son

Great-grandfather of Webb Wade, from whom this history is traced. Why Webb Wade?

Life

William Walker Walden was born on 16 March 1850 at Newbury, Coosa County, Alabama, according to the FamilySearch tree, which gives no source for the date.1 He was the only child in the tree of Westley D. Walden and his first wife, Eliza Robbins, who had married in Coosa County in December 1848.2 The federal census of 1850 listed him, as Walker Walden, in his father's household in Coosa County.3 His mother died on 2 August 1853, according to the tree.4 On 8 June 1855 his father married Elizabeth Moore in Coosa County, and the tree names three children of that marriage: Alabama (born 1856), Laura (1858) and George Westley Walden (1860).5 The census of 1860 again found Walker Walden in the household of W. D. Walden, in the second subdivision of Coosa County.6

His father's death

His father served in the Confederate army, and the tree records him as captain of Company B, 60th Alabama Infantry, also recorded as the 2nd Battalion of Hilliard's Legion.7 Westley D. Walden died at Marietta, Cobb County, Georgia, on 10 October 1863, according to the tree, which gives his burial at the Nixburg United Methodist Church Cemetery, Nixburg, Coosa County.7 In 1933 his great-granddaughter Hilda Webb's wedding notice called her "a great-granddaughter of General Walden, noted Confederate general of Walden Ridge fame"; the records in the tree show him as a captain, not a general, and the claim is best read as a family story.8

Marriage and family

On 14 July 1875 W. W. Walden married E. L. McKinney, Emma Louise McKinney, in Coosa County; she was a daughter of Eli Harris McKinney and Martha Holland Willingham.9 The tree names eight children: Harris Solomon (born 1876), Lila (1877), Julius West (1880), Martha Frances Mary (1881), Vallie Alburn (1884), Elma Irene (1887), Ida Mae (1894) and Joseph Forney Walden (1900).10 The federal census of 1880 listed W. W. Walden's household at Crews, Coosa County, with Emma and their daughter Martha, as Lila was then indexed.11 In 1900 the census found W. W. Walden and E. L. Walden in Election Precinct 17, Lauderdale, Coosa County, with Lila in the household as "M E Walden."12 By the census of 1910 William W. and Emma L. Walden were living in Election Precinct 20, Red Apple, Marshall County, Alabama.13

Their daughter Ida Mae, by then Mrs. Hardeman, died on 16 August 1915; her Alabama death record names her parents as William Walker Walden and Emma Louisa Walden.14 Death records of four more of his children, Lila Walden Webb in Florida in 1937, Vallie Walden Reaves in 1965, Julius West Walden Sr. in 1968 and Joseph F. Walden in 1971, also name him as their father, as Walker W. Walden or William Walker Walden.15

Last weeks

The census of 1920 enumerated "Walla W Walden" and "Emma S Walden" in the household of James P. Webb in Birmingham, Jefferson County, the husband of their daughter Lila.16 William Walker Walden died at Birmingham on 21 January 1920, according to the tree, and his death is entered in the Alabama death index for that year.17 Inference The census of 1920 was taken as of 1 January, so the couple were very probably living with Lila's family during his last weeks, though no record says why.16 The tree places his burial at "Shiloh Baptist Church Cemetery, Marengo, Alabama"; but the Find a Grave index places a Shiloh Baptist Church Cemetery in Coosa County, as the burial place of his wife Emma, who died in 1923.18 Inference Marengo County lies far from Coosa, and a cemetery of that name in Coosa County, where the family lived and his widow was buried, is the more likely place; his Find a Grave entries should settle it.18

Documents

  1. 1942 History of Coosa County: W. D. Walden, merchant, legislator and captain George E. Brewer, "History of Coosa County, Alabama," The Alabama Historical Quarterly, vol. 4, nos. 1–2 (Montgomery, Alabama, Spring and Summer 1942) · book
  2. 9 June 2025 Find a Grave memorial: William Walker Walden Find a Grave · memorial

Places

  1. 1850–1875Coosa
  2. 1920Birmingham
  3. 1920Shiloh Baptist Church Cemetery

Timeline

  1. 1850ResidenceCoosa, Alabama
  2. 16 Mar 1850BirthNewbury, Coosa, Alabama
  3. 1860Residence2nd Subdivision, Coosa, Alabama
  4. 14 Jul 1875Marriage, Emma Louise McKinneyCoosa, Alabama
  5. 1920ResidenceBirmingham, Jefferson, Alabama
  6. 1920BurialShiloh Baptist Church Cemetery, Marengo, Alabama
  7. 21 Jan 1920DeathBirmingham, Jefferson, Alabama

Open questions

None recorded yet.

Searches made

  1. 2026-11-09Find a Grave search: William Walden, b. 1850 ±3, d. 1920 ±3: 5 resultsbest: [William Walker Walden (15 Mar 1850 – 21 Jan 1920), Shiloh Baptist Church Cemetery, Coosa County, Alabama](https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/283778144/william-walker-walden); score 17 (high, before review)
  2. 2026-11-09Find a Grave memorial recorded[memorial 283778144](https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/283778144), high confidence: [record](../documents/findagrave/283778144-william-walker-walden.md); 4 headstone photo(s)
  3. 2026-11-09Internet Archive: "William Walker Walden", Alabamano matches
  4. 2026-11-09Internet Archive: "William Walden", Alabama1358 pages; first: [The Parliamentary Debates 1897: Vol 46 Index, n.d., p. ](https://archive.org/details/sim_great-britain-parliament-parliamentary-debates_1897_46_index?q=%22William%20Walden%22); [1957 Covington County High School Yearbook, 1957, p. ](https://archive.org/details/classmates-yearbook-37259-1957-covington-county-high-school?q=%22William%20Walden%22); [The Geological Society of America Bulletin 1963: Vol 74 Index, n.d., p. ](https://archive.org/details/sim_geological-society-of-america-bulletin_1963_74_index?q=%22William%20Walden%22)
  5. 2026-11-09Internet Archive: "Walden", inside histcoosacobrew9 pages; first: [History of Coosa County, 1942, p. 107](https://archive.org/details/histcoosacobrew/page/n107/mode/1up?q=Walden); [History of Coosa County, 1942, p. 223](https://archive.org/details/histcoosacobrew/page/n223/mode/1up?q=Walden); [History of Coosa County, 1942, p. 301](https://archive.org/details/histcoosacobrew/page/n301/mode/1up?q=Walden); 4 with the given name (William, Walker)
  6. 2026-11-09Internet Archive: "Walden", inside memorialrecordof00tayl2 pages; first: [Memorial record of Alabama. A concise account of the state's political, military, professional and industrial progress, together with the personal memoirs of many of its people, 1893, p. 159](https://archive.org/details/memorialrecordof00tayl/page/n159/mode/1up?q=Walden); [Memorial record of Alabama. A concise account of the state's political, military, professional and industrial progress, together with the personal memoirs of many of its people, 1893, p. 123](https://archive.org/details/memorialrecordof00tayl/page/n123/mode/1up?q=Walden); 1 with the given name (William, Walker)
  7. 2026-11-09Internet Archive: "Walden", inside northernalabamah00birm5 pages; first: [Northern Alabama, historical and biographical.., 1888, p. 136](https://archive.org/details/northernalabamah00birm/page/n136/mode/1up?q=Walden); [Northern Alabama, historical and biographical.., 1888, p. 136](https://archive.org/details/northernalabamah00birm/page/n136/mode/1up?q=Walden); [Northern Alabama, historical and biographical.., 1888, p. 136](https://archive.org/details/northernalabamah00birm/page/n136/mode/1up?q=Walden); 1 with the given name (William, Walker)
  8. 2026-11-09Internet Archive: "Walden", inside historyofalabama01owen2 pages; first: [History of Alabama and dictionary of Alabama biography, 1921, p. 143](https://archive.org/details/historyofalabama01owen/page/n143/mode/1up?q=Walden); [History of Alabama and dictionary of Alabama biography, 1921, p. 416](https://archive.org/details/historyofalabama01owen/page/n416/mode/1up?q=Walden); 1 with the given name (William, Walker)
  9. 2026-11-09Internet Archive: "Walden", inside birminghamcitydi1914unse5 pages; first: [Birmingham city directory, 1909, p. 239](https://archive.org/details/birminghamcitydi1914unse/page/n239/mode/1up?q=Walden); [Birmingham city directory, 1909, p. 1274](https://archive.org/details/birminghamcitydi1914unse/page/n1274/mode/1up?q=Walden); [Birmingham city directory, 1909, p. 1264](https://archive.org/details/birminghamcitydi1914unse/page/n1264/mode/1up?q=Walden); 2 with the given name (William, Walker)
  10. 2026-11-09Internet Archive: "Walden", inside jeffersoncountyb00dubo1 page; first: [Jefferson County and Birmingham, Alabama; historical and biographical, 1887, p. 255](https://archive.org/details/jeffersoncountyb00dubo/page/n255/mode/1up?q=Walden); 0 with the given name (William, Walker)
  11. 2026-11-09Internet Archive: "Walden", inside storyofcoalironi00armeno matches; 0 with the given name (William, Walker)
  12. 2026-11-09Internet Archive: "Walden", inside histmarengocoandno matches; 0 with the given name (William, Walker)
  13. 2026-11-09Internet Archive assessment: "William Walden", Alabama; "William Walker Walden" (no hits)Not him: namesakes (Essex assizes 1897, geologist William Walden Rubey, a New Yorker secretary, Virginia Waldens).
  14. 2026-11-09Internet Archive assessment: "Walden" inside *History of Coosa County*, p. 233Match (high): "His first wife was a daughter of Solomon Robbins, by whom he had one son, Walker, still a citizen of Coosa." Father W. D. Walden, mother Eliza Robbins, and "Walker" as his name agree with the tree. [W. D. Walden record](../documents/1942-coosa-history-w-d-walden.md).
  15. 2026-11-09Internet Archive assessment: "Walden" inside the Birmingham directory (1909), *Memorial Record*, *Northern Alabama*, Owen, Jefferson County, Marengo historyNo William W.: other Waldens (J. W. Walden, furnace commissary manager; R. E. Walden; John Butler Walden, his uncle, in *Northern Alabama*, see [Northern Alabama record](../documents/1888-northern-alabama-john-butler-walden.md)).
  16. 2026-11-09Internet Archive hits assessed: 10 searchesOne match (Coosa history, record written).
  17. 2026-11-09DPLA: "William Walker Walden"no matches
  18. 2026-11-09DPLA: "William Walden", Alabama2 pages; first: [Jones Inferior Court -- Benjamin May versus William Walden (Hargrett Library), 1821-07, p. ](https://dlg.usg.edu/record/guan_1170_031-003-001); [Jones Inferior Court -- James Billingslea [or Billingsley] versus William Walden (Hargrett Library), 1821-07, p. ](https://dlg.usg.edu/record/guan_1170_031-003-002)
  19. 2026-11-09DPLA assessment: "William Walden", Alabama (2 items)Not him (he was born in 1850): two writs of fieri facias of the Jones County, Georgia, Inferior Court, July term 1821 (Telamon Cuyler Collection, ms 1170, Hargrett Library; read in the Digital Library of Georgia transcription), [Benjamin May v. William Walden](https://dlg.usg.edu/record/guan_1170_031-003-001) and [James Billingslea v. William Walden](https://dlg.usg.edu/record/guan_1170_031-003-002), foreclosing mortgages William Walden had given on enslaved people (the May mortgage dated 29 January 1820). They matched "Alabama" only through a subject heading ("Georgia--Boundaries--Alabama"). The man may be kin of his great-grandfather Charles Sparks Walden, who lived in neighbouring Jasper County until 1819: lead noted in K2FG-GXD's log.
  20. 2026-11-09DPLA hits assessed: 2 searchesNo match.

Notes

  1. FamilySearch Family Tree, profile LY38-58X: birth 16 Mar 1850, Newbury, Coosa, Alabama, no source attached back to the text
  2. FamilySearch Family Tree, profile LY38-58X: parents Westley D Walden and Eliza Robbins FamilySearch Family Tree, profile KCR9-YLT (their page): marriage to Eliza Robbins, December 1848, Coosa, Alabama; one child, William Walker Walden "Alabama County Marriages, 1711-1992", FamilySearch, West D. Walden and Eliza Robbins, 17 Dec 1848. Record: West D. Walden, 17 Dec 1848 back to the text
  3. "United States, Census, 1850", FamilySearch, Walker Walden in entry for Westley Walden, 1850. Record: Walker Walden in entry for Westley Walden, 1850; note: his name was William Walker Walden, his father West D. Walden back to the text
  4. FamilySearch Family Tree, profile LH37-HSX (their page): Eliza Robbins, death 2 Aug 1853, Coosa, Alabama back to the text
  5. "Alabama County Marriages, 1711-1992", FamilySearch, West D. Walden and Eliza Moore, 08 Jun 1855. Record: West D. Walden, Alabama County Marriages, 08 Jun 1855 FamilySearch Family Tree, profile KCR9-YLT (their page): marriage to Elizabeth Moore, 8 Jun 1855; children Alabama (1856), Laura (1858), George Westley (1860) back to the text
  6. "United States, Census, 1860", FamilySearch, Walker Walden in entry for W D Walden, 1860. Record: Walker Walden in entry for W D Walden, 1860 FamilySearch Family Tree, profile LY38-58X: residence 1860, 2nd Subdivision, Coosa back to the text
  7. FamilySearch Family Tree, profile KCR9-YLT (their page): military service 1862: Captain Company B 60th Alabama Infantry CSA, Hilliard's Legion 2nd Battalion; death 10 Oct 1863, Marietta, Cobb, Georgia; burial Nixburg United Methodist Church Cemetery "United States, Civil War Soldiers Index, 1861-1865", FamilySearch, W.d. Walden, from 1861 to 1865. Record: W.d. Walden, Civil War Soldiers Index back to the text
  8. 1933-08-09-frank-e-wade-hilda-webb-marriage-announcement: a great-granddaughter of General Walden, noted Confederate general of Walden Ridge fame; notes: the General Walden legend Research log (their page): Was he a general? (family legend) back to the text
  9. "Alabama County Marriages, 1711-1992", FamilySearch, W. W. Walden and E. L. Mckinney, 14 Jul 1875. Record: W. W. Walden and E. L. Mckinney, 14 Jul 1875 "Alabama, Marriages, 1816-1957", FamilySearch, W. W. Walden, 14 Jul 1875. Record: W. W. Walden, 14 Jul 1875 FamilySearch Family Tree, profile LY38-58X: marriage 14 Jul 1875, Coosa, Alabama FamilySearch Family Tree, profile MDYC-8K5 (their page): parents Eli Harris McKinney Sr. and Martha Holland Willingham back to the text
  10. FamilySearch Family Tree, profile LY38-58X: children of William Walker Walden and Emma Louise McKinney back to the text
  11. "United States, Census, 1880", FamilySearch, W. W. Walden, 1880. Record: W. W. Walden, 1880 "United States, Census, 1880", FamilySearch, Emma Walden in entry for W. W. Walden, 1880. Record: Emma Walden in entry for W. W. Walden, 1880 "United States, Census, 1880", FamilySearch, Martha Walden in entry for W. W. Walden, 1880. Record: Martha Walden in entry for W. W. Walden, 1880 FamilySearch Family Tree, profile L2LX-JR1 (their page): residence 1880, Election Precinct 16 Crews, Coosa back to the text
  12. "United States, Census, 1900", FamilySearch, W W Walden, 1900. Record: W W Walden, 1900 "United States, Census, 1900", FamilySearch, E L Walden in entry for W W Walden, 1900. Record: E L Walden in entry for W W Walden, 1900 "United States, Census, 1900", FamilySearch, M E Walden in entry for W W Walden, 1900. Record: M E Walden in entry for W W Walden, 1900 FamilySearch Family Tree, profile L2LX-JR1 (their page): residence 1900, Election Precinct 17 Lauderdale, Coosa back to the text
  13. "United States, Census, 1910", FamilySearch, William W Walden, 1910. Record: William W Walden, 1910 "United States, Census, 1910", FamilySearch, Emma L Walden in entry for William W Walden, 1910. Record: Emma L Walden in entry for William W Walden, 1910 FamilySearch Family Tree, profile MDYC-8K5 (their page): residence 1910, Election Precinct 20 Red Apple, Marshall, Alabama back to the text
  14. "Alabama, Deaths, 1908-1974", FamilySearch, William Walker Walden in entry for Ida Mae Hardeman, 16 Aug 1915. Record: William Walker Walden in entry for Ida Mae Hardeman, 16 Aug 1915 "Alabama, Deaths, 1908-1974", FamilySearch, Emma Louisa Walden in entry for Ida Mae Hardeman, 16 Aug 1915. Record: Emma Louisa Walden in entry for Ida Mae Hardeman, 16 Aug 1915 back to the text
  15. "Florida, Deaths, 1877-1939", FamilySearch, Walker W. Walden in entry for Lila Walden Webb, 2 October 1937. Record: Walker W. Walden in entry for Lila Walden Webb, 2 October 1937 "Alabama, Deaths, 1908-1974", FamilySearch, Walker W. Walden in entry for Vallie Walden Reaves, 1965. Record: Walker W. Walden in entry for Vallie Walden Reaves, 1965 "Alabama, Deaths, 1908-1974", FamilySearch, William Walker Walden in entry for Julius West Walden, Sr., 1968. Record: William Walker Walden in entry for Julius West Walden, Sr., 1968 "Alabama, Deaths, 1908-1974", FamilySearch, William Walker Walden in entry for Joseph F. Walden, 1971. Record: William Walker Walden in entry for Joseph F. Walden, 1971 back to the text
  16. "United States, Census, 1920", FamilySearch, Walla W Walden in entry for Jas P Webb, 1920. Record: Walla W Walden in the household of Jas P Webb, 1920 "United States, Census, 1920", FamilySearch, Emma S Walden in entry for Jas P Webb, 1920. Record: Emma S Walden in the household of Jas P Webb, 1920 FamilySearch Family Tree, profile LY3H-7ZS (their page): spouse Lila Walden back to the text
  17. FamilySearch Family Tree, profile LY38-58X: death 21 Jan 1920, Birmingham, Jefferson, Alabama "Alabama, Deaths, 1908-1974", FamilySearch, William Walker Walden, 1920. Record: William Walker Walden, Alabama Deaths, 1920 back to the text
  18. FamilySearch Family Tree, profile LY38-58X: burial 1920, Shiloh Baptist Church Cemetery, Marengo, Alabama "Find a Grave Index," database, FamilySearch, Emma McKinney Walden, ; Burial, , Coosa, Alabama, United States of America, Shiloh Baptist Church Cemetery; citing record ID 81622064, Find a Grave, http://www.findagrave.com. Record: Emma McKinney Walden, Find a Grave Index: burial, Coosa, Alabama, Shiloh Baptist Church Cemetery "Find a Grave Index", FamilySearch, William Walker Walden, 1920. Record: William Walker Walden, Find a Grave Index, 1920 "Find a Grave Index", FamilySearch, W W Walden, 1920. Record: W W Walden, Find a Grave Index, 1920 back to the text
Every FamilySearch record attached to William Walker Walden (19)
  1. 1850Walker Walden, "United States, Census, 1850"
  2. 1860Walker Walden, "United States, Census, 1860"
  3. 14 Jul 1875W. W. Walden, "Alabama County Marriages, 1711-1992"
  4. 14 Jul 1875W. W. Walden, "Alabama, Marriages, 1816-1957"
  5. 1875W. W. Walden, "Alabama, Marriages, 1816-1957"
  6. 1880W. W. Walden, "United States, Census, 1880"
  7. 1900W W Walden, "United States, Census, 1900"
  8. 1910William W Walden, "United States, Census, 1910"
  9. 1915Walker Walden in entry for Ida Mae Hardeman, "Alabama Deaths, 1908-1974"
  10. 16 Aug 1915William Walker Walden, "Alabama, Deaths, 1908-1974"
  11. 1920W W Walden, "Find a Grave Index"
  12. 1920Walla W Walden in household of Jas P Webb, "United States Census, 1920"
  13. 1920William Walker Walden, "Alabama, Deaths, 1908-1974"
  14. 1920William Walker Walden, "Find a Grave Index"
  15. 2 October 1937Walker W. Walden, "Florida, Deaths, 1877-1939"
  16. 1965Walker W. Walden, "Alabama, Deaths, 1908-1974"
  17. 1968William Walker Walden, "Alabama, Deaths, 1908-1974"
  18. 1971William Walker Walden, "Alabama, Deaths, 1908-1974"
  19. Walker W Walden, "United States, Social Security Numerical Identification Files (NUMIDENT), 1936-2007"