Prior to 1845, pioneers Joseph and Charlotte (Hatcher) Wilkinson and their two daughters moved from northern Alachua County to a remote area of the Territory of Florida recently vacated by the Seminole Indians. Florida became a state on March 3, 1845 and one week later, the area where Joseph and Charlotte settled became Levy County. The family homestead was located about two miles west of the present day intersection of US Alt 27 and CR 339 north of Bronson. Over the years, Joseph and Charlotte added five more daughters and a son to their family. Joseph was elected to serve as a County Commissioner in 1854 and again in 1869. Their children married the children of other pioneer families and had children of their own. When Joseph died in 1873 and Charlotte in 1884, the family laid them to rest in a graveyard located on the family homestead. Eventually, the homestead passed out of the family and was purchased by James Hollin Hudson of Hudson Farms in 1981. One descendant, great-great-grandson John A. Causey, became concerned about Levy County`s population growth and road expansion and in 1999 decided to explore the possibility of having the bodies relocated to a local cemetery. With the financial help of Mr. Hudson, the services of Tim Walker, a retired Funeral Director formerly with Carlton Funeral Services, and the vault company of HIX Industries, the bodies of Joseph and Charlotte were moved to the Ebenezer Baptist Church Cemetery. An unknown child buried with Joseph and Charlotte was identified as an infant grandson, Willie Lee Wilkinson, who died in 1910. Pastor Billy Philman of the Ebenezer Baptist Church welcomed family members who gathered at the graveside ceremony to pay their respects to Joseph and Charlotte. Pastor Philman praised the descendants for taking care of their loved ones and family members thanked Causey for his efforts and perseverence in having the bodies moved. Joseph Wilkinson was born February 12, 1815 in Georgia and died September 10, 1873. Charlotte Ann (Hatcher) Wilkinson was born March 7, 1828 in North Carolina and died April 1, 1884. Their children were Mary Jane, Harriett L., Sarah Elizabeth, Phoebe Ann, Missouri, Sophia, David Lee, and Charlotte Annie. The family name was spelled both Wilkinson and Wilkerson. If you would like more information on the Wilkinson/Wilkerson family, please contact John A. Causey, 2028 Reaney Road, Lakeland, FL 33803-2349. (Descendants of Joseph and Charlotte Wilkinson, John Causey of Lakeland and Artha (Munn) Spillane of Chiefland sit before the graves of Joseph and Charlotte at Ebenezer Baptist Church Cemetery. The bodies of Joseph and Charlotte were relocated to the church cemetery from the woods on the original family homestead.) | 
