Times of mourning

Half of Hardin and Nancy Jane Cox's 16 children would die before reaching adulthood.

Nancy Jane had two sets of twin boys. The first, born in 1849, lived only days. The second set was born stillborn in 1865.

In October 1862, fearing exposure to small pox, Hardin called the local doctor to administer a new vaccine to the children. Three of the Reynolds children died due to the vaccine: 6-year old John Gilmore, 22-month-old Ernest C., and 3-year old Nancy-Bill. The older children scrubbed their itchy injection site at the spring and survived.