Pension File of Pleasant Sparks of Webster County KY, as abstracted by Paul E. Sparks, former president and founder of the Sparks Family Association. PLEASANT SPARKS, son of Noah and Lucinda (Newton) Sparks, was born on Feb. 11, 1843 in Henderson County, Ky. He died on Sept. 14, 1924. He married (first) Arga C. Grayson in 1865 and (second) Mattie (Mason) Berry in 1906. He served in Company C, 35th Regiment of Kentucky Infantry. Files Designations: Inv. Cert. No. 921,798: Minor Cert. No. 959,400. Pleasant Sparks enlisted in Company C, 35th Regiment Kentucky Mounted Infantry on 12 Aug 1863 at Owensboro, Kentucky and was discharged at Louisville 29 Dec 1864. The military records we received from the National Archives were incomplete, but they do show that he was present for duty during that period of time except when he was taken prisoner on Dec. 14, 1863, near Fort Donelson, Tennessee. The Bureau of Pensions acted favorably on his application for a pension and he was issued Invalid Certificate No. 921, 798 on or about Aug. 5, 1890. On March 11, 1907, Pleasant Sparks made application for increased pension benefits under the 1907 Act of Congress. He stated that he was 64 years of age and lived near Sebree, Kentucky. At the time of his enlistment he was 5 ft. 8 in. tall; he had a fair complexion, blue eyes and dark hair; he was a farmer. S. M. Stinnett and O. C. Cates, both residents of Sebree, attested to the application which was notarized by B. M. Sutton. We received nothing to denote the action taken on this request. On April 12, 1815, Sparks responded to a questionnaire from the Bureau of Pensions. He stated that he was born in Webster County, Ky., (at that time a part of Henderson County) on Feb. 11, 1843. On Feb. 23, 1865, he married Arga C. Grayson in Webster County, Ky., and they had eleven children. They were: Louisa M. Sparks, born Jan. 11, 1866 Edmon C. Sparks, born Feb. 3, 1867 Henry O. Sparks, born Sept. 11, 1868 George L. Sparks, born Dec. 18, 1869 L. Ellen Sparks, born Dec. 17, 1871 William R. Sparks, born Aug. 27, 1873 J. F. Sparks, born June 1, 1875 David S. Sparks, born Jan. 6, 1877 P. L. Sparks, born Feb. 11, 1881 C. A. Sparks, born Feb. 7, 1883 N. W. Sparks, born July 4, 1887 (The sex of the children identified only by initials is not given) Pleasant Sparks went on to state on this questionnaire that his wife, Arga, had died in Webster County on Feb. 7, 1900. On Sept. 27, 1906, he had married Mattie (Mason) Berry, widow of M. V. Berry, who had died on Feb. 25, 1902 at Henderson, Ky. To this second marriage one child, Lillian Sparks, was born on Jan. 25, 1911. Pleasant Sparks was 81 years of age when he died on Sept. 14, 1924, at 504 Letcher St., Henderson, Ky., of general debility. W. R. Sparks, probably his son, completed the death certificate. He said that Pleasant Sparks was a son of Noah and Lucinda (Newton) Sparks. Noah Sparks was a native of North Carolina, but the birthplace of Lucinda Newton was given as "unknown". Dr. Peyton Ligon of Henderson was the attending physician; F. L. Tapp & Co. of Dixon, Ky., was the undertaker; and the burial was at the Mt. Lebanon Church. On Oct. 6, 1924, Mattie Sparks, widow of Pleasant, made application for a Minor Pension for her daughter, Lillian Sparks, now thirteen years of age. Henry Powell and J. D. Morehead witnessed the application which was notarized by R. H. Royster. The application was accompanied by an affidavit from Cora Burton, age 35, of Sebree, which stated she was at the home of Mattie Sparks on the day of the birth of her daughter, Lillian, on Jan. 25, 1911. The reason she remembered the date so well was that her own daughter was born just two months later on March 20, 1911. Minor's Certificate No. 959,400 was issued on Oct. 11, 1924. Lillian Sparks continued to receive a pension until Jan. 24, 1927, when she was dropped from the pension rolls because of legal limitation. At that time she was receiving $30 per month.