I don't think you are related to my Great Grandfather, ELijah Shepard of the 14th GA. There is no Mary in our line that would match up. The James D. Shepard to Mary Shepard to Walter Bearce connection could be made without paying much attention to the dates. There was a Mary Shepard married to a Bearce and gave birth to an Edward. The dates don't match up and there is no history that we know of. Anyway, Walter Bearce was from Massachusetts and there were a lot of Shepard's in the New England area, particularly in Conneticut.