Joseph Denton RobertsBorn: 8 Apr 1838 on Mine Lick Creek in what is now Putnam County, Tennessee Died: 10 Apr 1901 in Silver Point, Putnam County, Tennessee Company I, 5th Tennessee Cavalry, USA 24 Nov 1862-14 Aug 1865 "Uncle Dent" was the son of Joseph Roberts and Rachel Carter. He first married Lillie McGuffie daughter of Abraham McGuffie and Lillie (Last name unknown). They had two children between 1860 and 1861. They were divorced in May of 1866. Reason unknown to me. Uncle Dent then married Silvy Smith, daughter of Charles Smith Sr and Isabelle Hargett, in Sep of 1866. They had eight children between 1868 and 1883. Uncle Dent enlisted on 24 Nov 1862 with his brothers, a nephew, and other neighbors on Mine Lick Creek. Like other members of the 5th Tennessee Calvary, he was often absent from his unit. He twice had desertion charges filed but both were dismissed. In one, he was supposedly captured and in the hands of the enemy. In the second, he was sick and confined to the Regimental Hospital in Carthage, Tennessee. His petition for invalid pension cites being in the Carthage hospital with chronic diarrhea, a common affliction during the Civil War. His pension application has many affidavits citing his disability, but it appears his pension was never approved. Silvy's widow's pension application was approved. In it she cites her poverty and lack of any means of support many times. In the end, she had no land left having sold it all. The last sale allowed her to live on the homestead until her death. Uncle Dent and Silvy are buried in the Joseph Denton Roberts Family Cemetery on what is referred to as the Christian farm in Silver Point, Tennessee.
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