52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Fathers Day

This post is part of Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks for 2018. The prompt for the week of June 11, 2018, is Fathers Day.

I know I'm late getting this post written, since Fathers Day was this past weekend on June 17, but I've been trying to get caught up with the prompts for this challenge. My how time flies!

I've written several posts about my dad, Albert S. Pendleton, Jr. (links below), so I thought I'd share some of my favorite photographs of him:

Daddy and me right after I was born. I was his first!

Daddy and me at our old house on Alden Avenue in Valdosta, Georgia. I was still an only child at this point, but not for long!

Daddy at the Lowndes County Historical Society and Museum on Central Avenue in Valdosta where he was the curator for a few years. He wrote their newsletter for several decades until Parkinson's Disease took over his body.

Daddy at one of his favorite places, Ocean Pond, at Lake Park, Georgia

All five of his children at our lake house on Long Pond in Lowndes County. From left to right: Helen, me (Catherine), Missy (Melissa), John, Andy (Albert III)

All five of us with Mama and Daddy at Jekyll Island, Georgia, in the early 1970s. From left to right: Missy, Andy, Helen in front, Mama and Daddy in back, me (Catherine, and John.

I love these old photos!

Catherine

Links to previous posts about my dad:

Military Monday - A Newly Minted World War II Army Private

Military Monday - The Dreaded Telegram

A Wounded World War II Vet: Pfc. Albert S. Pendleton, Jr. (1925-2006)

Veterans Day - Remembering Those Who Served

A Few Big House Wedding Photos

Writing About Doc Holliday

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Lucky

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Start

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - So Far Away

This post is part of Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks for 2018. The prompt for the week of May 28, 2018, is So Far Away.

I’ve been intrigued by my paternal 7th great grandfather’s, Philip Pendleton, trek so far away from Norwich, England to the colony of Virginia in America, not once but twice. I imagine it was an arduous journey across the vast ocean, on the sea for months before making landfall. Of course, back then, our ancestors thought they were so modern in their modes of travel on horses, in wagons and carriages, and on ships with sails, like we think we're so modern with cars, trains, planes and jets, motorized boats and ships, and spaceships. What would they think of us now?

The information below is from The Descendants of Philip Pendleton, A Virginia Colonist (2007, Heritage Books) by David Ellis Pendleton. David notes that “many if not most” Pendletons in America are descended either from Philip Pendleton (the Virginia Pendletons) or Brian Pendleton (the New England Pendletons). DNA has shown that these two groups aren’t related to each other, but they come from the same area of England—Manchester, their “ancestral home.” 

Philip’s great grandfather George Pendleton Jr. (b. 1553, d. 1603) moved from Manchester England (possibly from the township of Pendleton near Manchester) to Norwich where he married Elizabeth Pettingale. Their son Henry (b. 1614, d. 1682) is my paternal 9th great grandfather.

Fast forward to Philip Pendleton, son of Henry Pendleton (son of Henry, son of George Jr. above) and his second wife, Elizabeth Douglass. Philip was born in Norwich March 26, 1654. His older brother, Nathaniel, was born March 31,1650. 

Philip and Nathaniel immigrated to Virginia in 1674, both indentured to Capt. Edmund Crask. Their voyage would have taken several months in a small ship under Master Capt. John Plover. Nathaniel, a unmarried clergyman with no children, died soon after their arrival. Philip worked out his indentured contract (1674-1679) in Old Rappahannock County, Virginia, where he lived. Then he returned to England where he married his first wife. Her name hasn’t been found as far as I know. She died about a year later. Philip stayed in England until the death of his father Henry in 1682, and then he left again for Virginia. He married Isabella Hurt in 1682 and they had seven children (their son Henry is my 6th great grandfather--all these Henrys! It gets confusing.).

Google Earth image with Norwich, England and Virginia noted with yellow pin marks and a red line connecting the two locales. (Click on the image for a larger view.)

According to a deposition quoted in David's book from William and Mary College Quarterly Historical Magazine, Vol. IV (“The First Generation of the Pendleton Family in Virginia,” in Genealogies of Virginia Families, Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc. Baltimore, 1982), Philip’s mother Elizabeth sent him and his brother Nathaniel to America: 

Two reputed Brothers called & known by the name of Nathaniell [sic] Pendleton & Phillip [sic] Pendleton sent as this Depont heard by their Mother in the Ship…

A comment on the above deposition notes:  

The statement made by George Ward that he understood that the Pendletons [Philip and Nathaniel] were sent to the colony by their mother, is very interesting and one cannot but speculate as to the reasons for their being sent. Philip Pendleton evidently did not break off relations with his family in England for ‘at the end of five years servitude’ he returned to the mother country. After a brief sojourn there he came again to Virginia.

Indeed, why would a mother send her sons so far away with the possibility of never seeing them again? Neither of her sons would inherit property from their father, as he had sons by his first wife Hannah (if any were still living by this time). Maybe Elizabeth thought her sons could make their fortunes in America. However, David indicates in his book (pg 10) that in the 1670s, the economic situation in Virginia wasn't looking so good. Did Philip commit some indiscretion in England, so he was sent to America under the watchful eye of his older brother? Or was something going on in Norwich that Elizabeth wanted to spare her sons from? I looked up what was happening in England in 1674, but nothing of note came up in Norwich. I suppose we’ll never know Elizabeth’s reasons for sending her sons to America.

Catherine

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Military

This post is part of Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks for 2018. The prompt for the week of May 21, 2018, is Military. I wondered who to write about for this prompt. I’ve already written about my dad’s World War II experiences and about my maternal grandfather, William Liming Redles, who retired as a Lt. Col. in the U.S. Marine Corps. I have several ancestors who fought in the American Revolution. But then I thought about James Pendleton, brother of my paternal great grandfather Alexander Shaw Pendleton. My dad had a copy of James' American Civil War diary (dated 1865), both a transcribed copy and a copy of the original, that he received from a cousin. I'd never taken the time to read the diary.

James Aubrey Pendleton was the son of my paternal 2nd great grandparents, Philip Coleman Pendleton and Catharine Sarah Melissa Tebeau. During the Civil War, he was in the Surveying Corps of Georgia under his uncle, Major John R. Tebeau, who was his mother’s brother. James was 18 years old. His sixteen-year-old brother Philip was with him during this time. James’ father Philip and older brother William Frederic were both soldiers in the Civil War. 

Since I love maps, I decided to look up the places James went with the surveying corps on Google maps. The first entry in his diary is below:

March 1 Thursday. A diary for 1865 beginning March 1st. Engineering Dept. Of Georgia in camp at Abbeville C. H. [court house] awaiting orders from Maj McCrady who left us at Edefield [sic] C. H. [court house] on our way here, to go to Columbia [South Carolina]. Weather, cloudy and wet - The finishing up of a long wet spell which I sincerely hope has left Sherman in a bog. 

I believe James is referring to Abbeville, South Carolina, as there’s also an Abbeville, Georgia, south of Warner Robins. Also, I wonder if he meant “Edgefield” rather than “Edefield.” There’s an Edgefield, South Carolina, which today is part of the metropolitan area of Augusta, Georgia, and is southeast of Abbeville, SC. 

The surveying corps left Abbeville on March 6, two weeks after they’d arrived, and headed back to Augusta, GA. On March 7, James writes, “This day we joyfully took up our line of March for Old Georgia.”

Map from Google Earth with most of the locations marked where James traveled during the American Civil War (click on the map for a larger view).

On March 11, the corps arrived at Fury’s Ferry. When I looked this up on Google maps, it shows a Furys Ferry Road (see map above), now Highway 28 South. This highway runs by Abbeville, SC, and crosses the Savannah River, the dividing line between South Carolina and Georgia, northwest of Augusta. The surveying corps crossed the ferry on March 12 and set up camp near Augusta, “the same day we left it just one month ago.” On March 17, they passed through Augusta heading east to South Carolina. They surveyed several miles of road from Bath, SC, to Graniteville, SC. 

On March 22, the corps received word they were to return to Augusta to prepare to go to Chester [sic], SC. Later, James says the town is Chesterville: “March 30th The Engineer wagon train left Augusta this day for Chesterville [sic], S.C. at two o’clock - marched about ten miles and camped for the night.” There’s both a Chester (southwest of Charlotte, NC) and a Chesterfield (southeast of Charlotte, NC) but no Chesterville that I could find.

After the corps arrived in “Chesterville” on April 4, they were told to leave on April 8 for Hillsborough, NC. They traveled to Charlotte by train and on to Hillsborough, arriving on April 10. The next day, April 11, they were sent north to Roxboro, NC. They set up camp that same day and then received word to return to Hillsborough! They wondered why such a quick change in plans and found out that General Robert E. Lee had surrendered. The surveying corps was ordered back to Charlotte, NC, “without delay.” James’ entry on April 14th states: 

On the road to Charlotte. We travel at the rate of twenty miles a day carrying our luggage on our backs. Our party consists of twenty-one men and boys, white and black, with one wagon.

On April 23rd, James writes: “All are enjoying today the rest they so much need after a steady march of nearly two hundred miles.” He doesn't say where they are. On April 24th, they prepared for “another long tramp to Augusta, Ga.” 

On May 1, 1865, James says: 

Crossed Banknights’ Ferry on the Saluda, marching a distance of 23 miles. Weather clear and mild. It is reported that peace is declared on what terms we know not.

James’ last entry: 

May 2nd Marched twenty-two miles today and camped. Slight showers during the night. It is reported today that all the country east of the Chattahoochee is surrendered and all the men to be paroled; if this is so we will all soon be home.

What a slog for three months around parts of Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina! James writes about getting soaked to the skin marching through the rain; camping in open pine groves, in the woods, and in deserted slave houses; and marching anywhere from 10 to 23 miles a day. His brother Philip was sick part of the time. The weather was pleasant some of the time. James was able to send $100 back home; quite a sum back then.

I can't imagine what James' mother must have felt having a husband and three sons away during the war.

Catherine

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - The Old Homestead

This post is part of Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks for 2018. The prompt for the week of March 26, 2018, is The Old Homestead. I thought I’d write about the old plantation for this topic instead, because I’ve always wondered about the exact location of the land that belonged to my maternal 2nd great grandfather Remer Young, and I received some photos of some of  the people Remer owned before the Civil War.

Remer Young owned a plantation in north Lowndes County Georgia in an area called Mineola. According to a post on findagrave.com about the "Old Young Plantation" (author unknown), a portion of the land was originally part of the estate of Francis Rountree. In 1841, Michael Brady Jones bought Lots 36, 56, 82, and 83 in Land District 12 from Rountree’s estate. The following year, in 1842, Jones sold the land to Matthew Young. Young sold these lots plus two others (Lots 36, 56, 57, 81, 82, and 83) to Remer Young in 1857 (see the map below). By 1860, Remer had acquired more land, totaling 6,000 acres: Lots 36, 37, 56, 57, 81, 82, 83, 102, 103, 128, 129, and 149 (see map below). 

I don't have a citation for this map. I saw it at the South Georgia Regional Library in Valdosta laid out on a table in the genealogy room. There's no information on the map or date. I've marked the Remer Young property: yellow for the lots he bought in 1857, red for what he owned as of 1860.

The land includes a slave cemetery, noted in Church and Family Cemeteries in Lowndes County, Georgia 1825-2005 Part 2 as “Northwest of Valdosta: Approximately 1/2 mile northeast of junction of N. Valdosta Road and I-75, on what was formerly the ‘Young Plantation.’ No Markers.” The findagrave posting adds that the cemetery is about 300 yards northeast of the intersection of N. Valdosta Road and I-75 in a stand of trees, but sometime in the 2000s, the trees were cut down and a subdivision established. I wonder what happened to the cemetery?

The 1860 U.S. Slave Schedule for Lowndes County, Georgia, Districts 663 and 1200 (ancestry.com), shows that Remer Young had a total of 88 slaves in 17 “slave houses.” That's about five people per small cabin. The oldest person was 56 years old and the youngest was only two months.

In the winter of 1904 to 1905, my 2nd great aunt, Lawson Young Pendleton, came down to Valdosta from Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, to visit relatives in the Valdosta/Lowndes County area, including her sister Catherine Young Roberts (my maternal great grandmother). (Lawson and Catherine are two of Remer Young’s and Mary Wyche’s children.) Lawson brought three of her daughters, Amena, Constance, and Freda Pendleton. 

The day after Christmas in 1904, Freda and Constance visited the Young plantation in Mineola with their uncle John Young, who owned the property at the time. In Confederate Memoirs, Constance Pendleton (1958) describes the visit to Mineola:

The family house was gone, and the place was not being cultivated, but timber was being cut, and there was a sawmill, a small group of houses, and a commissary or store near the railroad station. The overseer’s old house was a little distance away, and the site of the family house at least a mile beyond…A number of old family servants [slaves], too old to work, were living on the place in small houses here and there, and were permitted to draw rations from the commissary, free of charge.

Constance and Freda met several of the people who had been owned by their grandfather, Remer Young: Judy, Easter Johnson, Mose (former foreman of the plantation), Emily Johnson (former dairy maid), William (Wilts) Johnson (Remer’s former body servant), and Nancy (who ran off to the circus after the Civil War but returned). 

Near the end of 2016, my Pendleton/Young cousins from Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, Erik Odhner and Alan Pendleton, began the laborious task of scanning old family photographs. These included some of the former Young plantation slaves taken during the 1904/1905 trip to Valdosta: 

Judy

Easter Johnson

Mose, Emily Johnson, and William (Wilts) Johnson

"Mineola hands" (former slaves)

I'm grateful to my Bryn Athyn Pendleton/Young cousins Erik and Alan for scanning and sharing these photographs (among others) and to Constance for writing about her visit to the former Young plantation. As much as I love maps, seeing photographs and reading written accounts bring the past to life, however painful. 

Catherine

----
References:

Clifton, Geraldine McLeod and Dorothy Peterson Neisen, Church and Family Cemeteries in Lowndes County, Georgia 1825-2005 Part 2. Reprinted 2007 by Genealogy Unlimited Society, Inc., Valdosta, Georgia. 


Constance Pendleton, ed., Confederate Memoirs: Early Life and Family History, William Frederic Pendleton and Mary Lawson Young Pendleton. (Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, 1958)

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Lucky

This post is part of Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks for 2018. The prompt for the week of March 12, 2018, is Lucky. 

I racked my brain for something to write about for this prompt. I searched through my family tree. I looked up a few more ancestors, but I just couldn't come up with anything. Then my luck changed!

I consider myself very lucky that my dad, Albert S. Pendleton, Jr., loved history and family history, and he loved to write. He wrote the newsletter for the Lowndes County Historical Society for several decades and wrote a weekly column for The Valdosta Daily Times called “Way Back When.” These publications mostly centered on people from, and happenings in, Valdosta and Lowndes County, Georgia. (He was also good at staying in touch with cousins, both near and far.) He even wrote an article about my adventure at an archaeological field school in the Pribilof Islands in Alaska 

When I began cleaning up the paper explosion in my dad’s office after he died in 2006, I filed as many of his papers as I had cabinet space for, with a focus on our family history; his research for the articles and newsletters he wrote; and his stories, poems, short stories, and plays. There are still several boxes left of papers that need to be dealt with … one day.

My cousin, Gretchen Keith, contacted me yesterday and asked if my dad had written anything about her second great grandfather, Judge Richard Augustus Peeples. Gretchen and I share Philip Coleman Pendleton and Catharine Tebeau as second great grandparents. Their son, Charles Rittenhouse Pendleton, married Judge Peeples’ daughter Sally. Charles and Sally are Gretchen's great grandparents. 

I was typing a reply to Gretchen this morning when I suddenly remembered the file I’d started for my dad’s “Way Back When” articles. I had simply put the papers in the folder to read “one day.” Well, as luck would have it, because of Gretchen’s inquiry, I finally poked through this file. 

The file folder for my dad's "Way Back When" articles. I'm sure this is just the tip of the iceberg!

What fun I had going through the folder, reading the article titles (and even reading a few articles)! While I didn’t come across anything about Judge Peeples, I did find a write-up that my dad wrote in 1996 about Judge Peeples' daughter-in-law, Maude Jenkins Peeples. (Maude was the wife of Richard Alexander Peeples).

I was happy to have an opportunity to do a little genealogy research today, and in the meantime, have a topic drop in my lap for this week's prompt. How lucky!

Catherine

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Strong Woman

This post is part of Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks for 2018. The prompt for the week of March 5, 2018, is Strong Woman.

For every female ancestor I considered for this prompt, Strong Woman, I discovered I’d already written about her in previous posts, so I had a hard time coming up with someone unless I went even further back in the generations. And the further back I go, the less information I have and the harder the women are to research. 

Any of my female ancestors who survived long enough to give birth to a healthy child who became my ancestor was a strong woman indeed. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be here. In fact, any woman who survives to adulthood is a Strong Woman, whether she leaves behind children or not. 

So as I perused my family tree and looked up a few ladies, I settled on my maternal 6th great grandmother, Amy Goodwyn/Goodwin, for no other reason than I haven’t written about her before nor have I done any research. As soon as I began researching, I found that she’d been married twice and had children by each husband.

I don’t know if the dates of birth and death that I have for Amy are correct. I don’t even remember where I got them, probably from someone’s family tree on ancestry.com before I knew better than to just copy trees. She may have been born on August 31, 1732. A findagrave memorial says she married my 6th great grandfather, Thomas Mitchell, in 1747 and they had seven children: John, Henry, Thomas Goodwin (my 5th great grandfather), Tabitha, Winifred, James, and Richard. Amy’s first husband, Thomas, died about 1762 or maybe before, as she married her second husband, John Raines, that same year, on October 5, 1762. After marrying John, she gave birth to four more children: Thomas, Robert, Cadwallader, and Amy. 

Amy died February 14, 1773, in Sussex County, Virginia. 

Here’s my descent from Amy:

Amy Goodwyn/Goodwin and Thomas Mitchell (my 6th great grandparents)
Thomas Goodwin Mitchell and Ann Raines (my 5th great grandparents)
Susannah Mitchell and Littleton Wyche (my 4th great grandparents)
Thomas Clark Wyche and Catharine MacIntyre (my 3rd great grandparents)
Mary Barry Wyche and Remer Young (my 2nd great grandparents)
Catherine Young and John T. Roberts (my great grandparents)
Leona Roberts and William Redles (my grandparents)
Leona Redles and Albert Pendleton (my parents)

I also didn't find much online about Amy's first husband Thomas. Maybe one day I'll get back to this research.

Catherine

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Where There's A Will

This post is part of Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks for 2018. The prompt for the week of February 26, 2018, is Where There's A Will.

I came across a letter in my dad’s papers from my paternal great grandfather, Alexander Shaw Pendleton, written to his children and executors. The letter is dated August 11, 1923, about a year and a half before he died in 1925 in Valdosta, Georgia. The letter begins with the following:

I have this day signed my will. In addition, I now wish to give you some advise regarding the management of the Estate, and particularly regarding The A. S. Pendleton Company, the policies of which you will probably control.

The next several paragraphs talk about running the company, etc. While that was interesting, what I read in the first paragraph on page 2 of this letter, sent me to the Internet to research:

I want you to see to it that the old negro Benjamin Franklin, who has been with me many years and who was owned by my family before the War, is not allowed to suffer for the necessities of life in his old age. Let him have the house in which he now lives free of charge. This house is owned by The Pendleton Company [sic], but you can arrange that, probably by letting the Company have use of the lot on the home place.

Page 2 of the letter Alexander Pendleton wrote to his children (this paragraph transcribed above)

I wondered if Alexander was saying "give" the house to Benjamin outright or let him live there rent-free, so I began researching online. 

I found a Ben F. Franklin, age 68, in the 1920 census at 203 Fry St. in Valdosta. His wife was Laura Jane, age 45, and their daughter was Bula Mae, age 15. 

Ben F. Franklin at 203 Fry Street, Valdosta, Georgia, in
the 1920 U.S. Census.

I looked up this address in the online Lowndes County Georgia property tax records database. A. R. Pendleton (Alexis Runette, one of Alexender's sons) is listed as grantee. There’s no date noted and no grantor, but the online records give Deed Book/page 3-X 146. Since my great uncle Alexis is listed as grantee on this property, I believe this is the correct Benjamin Franklin in the 1920 census. If the house was given to Benjamin, I wondered if it had reverted back to the Pendleton family for some reason. Maybe Benjamin Franklin had passed away.

There's a death record for a Benjamin Franklin in Valdosta, Georgia, dated November 19, 1928, but I don't know if this is the correct person. He’s not listed in the online Sunset Hill Cemetery database records, so he must be buried elsewhere in the county. Benjamin was still living at least in 1925, as I found him in the Valdosta City Directory (on ancestry.com) for that year at this same address. The notation beside his listing says “h,” which according to http://www.genealogyintime.com/dictionaries/city-directory-abbreviations.html, means “house, householder (owns the house).” But the 1921 and 1923 city directories (on ancestry.com) also say “h.” Benjamin wasn’t the owner at that time, because Alexander was still living. Maybe the “h” means “house” in this instance. I've not found Benjamin in the 1930 census.

I assume when Alexander wrote that Benjamin had been owned by his family, that he was referring to his father, Philip Coleman Pendleton, as the owner. There's an eight-year-old boy listed in the 1860 slave schedule for Philip, which indicates the child was born about 1852, the same year of birth indicated by the 1920 census for Ben F. Franklin (age 68 in 1920). 

The 1860 Ware County Georgia Slave Schedule for Philip Coleman Pendleton. Note the eight-year-old boy. (Click on the image for a larger view.) See Slaves of Philip Coleman Pendleton about my earlier search.

I wanted to go to the Lowndes County courthouse to look up the property records in person before I wrote this blog post, but the opportunity came with the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge to go ahead and publish this information for the week's topic, Where There's A Will. Plus, with being the primary care-giver of my 92-year-old mother, it’s not easy for me to get away so I can research. But one day, I’ll get to the courthouse!

Catherine

P.S. I plan to do a follow-up post about Benjamin F. Franklin as I continue my research about him.

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Heirloom

This post is part of Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks for 2018. The prompt for the week of February 19, 2018, is Heirloom.

I looked up the definition of heirloom. According to Google, an heirloom is “a valuable object that has belonged to a family for several generations.” I wonder how many generations count? And what is considered valuable? I guess most of what my family has would be considered ephemera and memorabilia. But a few items come to mind that might be considered heirlooms. At least maybe in the coming generations as they get passed down. 

My mother has her father’s (William Liming Redles) U.S. Marine Corps sword. She also has a diamond that belonged to him that she had reset into a ring for herself. 

This sword belonged to my maternal grandfather William Liming Redles

My dad had his great uncle Louis Pendleton’s gold pocket watch that was sent to my paternal grandfather Albert S. Pendleton, Sr. after Uncle Louis died in 1939. 

Uncle Louis' gold pocket watch and one of his novels, In the Okefenokee.

The note with the watch says, "Watch sent to Dad by Uncle Louis administrators." The watch still works! Yes, I wound it up to see. Couldn't help myself.

What are some of your family heirlooms?

Catherine

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Favorite Name

This post is part of Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks for 2018. The prompt for the week of February 5, 2018, is Favorite Name.

One of my favorite names is that of my paternal second great grandmother, Catharine Sarah Melissa Tebeau. I’ve always thought it was a pretty name. My parents named my sister Melissa after her. (My first name, Catherine, is from my mom’s family.)

From Confederate Memoirs: Early Life and Family History, William Frederic Pendleton, Mary Lawson Young Pendleton. Edited by Constance Pendleton, 1958. Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania.

I haven’t found where the “Sarah” or “Melissa” in Catharine Tebeau's name might have come from. Possibly from her mother's, Hulda Lewis, side, as I've been able to match up most of Catharine's siblings' names with her father's siblings and parents (Although, some of these could also be from Hulda's family, and one of Catharine's brothers is named Lewis, obviously after Hulda's maiden name). Catharine's first name may be from her paternal grandmother, Catherine Treutlin. I’m not sure if I’m spelling either Catherine’s name correctly. I’ve seen them spelled both ways, Catharine and Catherine.

Participating in this year's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks has helped me get reacquainted with my ancestors!

Do you have a favorite ancestor name?


Catherine

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Start

I decided at the last minute to join in Amy Johnson Crow’s 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks for 2018. I participated in 2014 and had fun getting to know more about some of my ancestors and also revisiting some of my research on others. Since I haven’t written a post on this blog in over a year, I thought this would be a great way to get me writing again. I’ll write two posts this week to catch up.

For this challenge, we’ll have a topic prompt each week. For the first week of January, the prompt is “Start.” One of Amy’s suggestions for this prompt is to write about the person who got us started in genealogy. That person would be my dad, Albert S. Pendleton, Jr.

A collage I made of my dad, Albert S. Pendleton, Jr.

As far back as I can remember, my dad was interested in family history. I loved listening to the stories he would tell my siblings and me about our family, both about his and my mother’s. He wrote the Lowndes County Historical Society (LCHS) newsletter for a few decades and wrote the “Way Back When” articles for the Valdosta Daily Times that were later compiled into three volumes by the LCHS. He and Susan McKey Thomas wrote a book about Doc Holliday (Susie’s cousin), titled In Search of the Hollidays: The Story of Doc Holliday and His Holliday and McKey Families (Valdosta: Little River Press, 1973).

Dad wrote a memoir in the 1980s (I’m so glad he did!), and before he died, he asked me to look for the document. I found it scattered in a few places in his paper-strewn office. Thank goodness he’d typed his memoir, because no one can read his handwriting! And this was before computers. I retyped his memoir a few years ago so I’d have a digital copy. I intended on adding photos and having it printed to give to family members, but I haven’t done that yet. I’ve let so many other things take my attention.

My dad did a ton of research, so after he died, I began organizing his documents. It was slow going since I could only work on it when I visited from out of state. Now I live in my childhood home, taking care of my mother. There’s still tons more of my dad’s papers now sitting in boxes that need to be filed. I’ve scanned a lot to share with cousins, but there’s still more to go. Not to mention all the photographs! I’ve barely touched the surface.

Dad was good at writing cousins and staying in touch over the years. He did all of his research before the Internet and Google and ancestry.com (among other genealogy websites). He’d actually call people, visit, or write letters asking for information. I wish I could share with my dad what I’ve found out about his family lines in the past few years. He would be amazed. Thank goodness I do have the Internet at my disposal!

Catherine

"Foul Murder"

A while ago, I was looking up family surnames in Wayne and Judy Dasher’s Wiregrass Obituaries and Death Notices Volume III (copyright 1998 by the authors), and came across a transcribed article from The Valdosta Times about the murder of Herman D. Parramore. I was shocked! I’d never heard anything about this. Herman is my paternal second great uncle and the brother of my great grandmother, Susan (Susie) Catherine Parramore, wife of Alexander (Andy) Shaw Pendleton. 

Herman was the son of Susan Catherine Dasher and Noah Parramore, my paternal second great grandparents. He was born February 10, 1860, possibly in Thomas County, Georgia, as he is recorded in the 1860 census for that county as being three months old.[1] Sometime between 1866 and 1868, the family moved to Lowndes County, Georgia.[2] 

At the time of his death, Herman was employed as a salesman for The A. S. Pendleton Company in Valdosta, Georgia. According to an article in the December 19, 1891, issue of The Valdosta Times, Herman had been to Jasper, White Springs, Lake Butler, and other towns in Florida, and had finished up in Branford, Florida, on Friday, December 11, 1891, where he spent the day.[3] He’d had dinner at the hotel and had left to board the train to return to Valdosta when he was attacked. 

Valdosta, Georgia, and Live Oak and Branford, Florida, are circled in yellow
(Click on the map for a larger view. Map from Google maps)

The murderer or murderers took Herman's pocket knife, watch, keys, and a few dollars. Herman was found still alive in a pool of blood. His pockets had been turned inside out, and he had a wound under his left eye and his skull had been cracked by a “blunt iron instrument.” The motive for Herman’s murder was speculated to have been robbery and that the robbers had probably assumed he was carrying a lot of money. However, the $77 he’d collected from customers had already been wired back to Valdosta.

Word of the attack was telegraphed to Valdosta, and a party of eight men left for Branford by train. When the men reached Branford, they wired Herman's brother-in-law, Andy Pendleton, that Herman wasn't going to make it. Andy, along with W. T. Varn and S. L. Staten, took the 3 a.m. train to Branford. Herman died at 4 a.m. Saturday morning, December 12, having never regained consciousness. His body was taken back to Valdosta later that morning, and he was buried in Sunset Hill Cemetery the following day, on Sunday.

Head stone for Herman D. Parramore in Sunset Hill Cemetery, Valdosta, Georgia

The marshal of Branford, Florida, and a posse went in search of the murderer or murderers. Two African Americans, Brady Young and Alfred Jones, were accused and arrested for the murder. Alfred was shot during the arrest, though not fatally, by a Mr. Wilkinson, who Alfred and Brady had been harassing earlier. Brady and Alfred were interrogated separately, apparently telling conflicting stories. According to the newspaper article, Alfred ultimately confessed, but then later said his confession wasn't true. Another black man, a Mr. Williams, was arrested on suspicion but was found not guilty and released.[4]

Alfred Jones and Brady Young were held in separate jail houses in Live Oak, Florida. A week after Herman’s murder, a group of armed men came in on the train from Branford. They overpowered the sheriff and deputies and took the two accused men from their separate jails. Brady and Alfred were taken to the woods by the mob, tied to a pine tree, and shot multiple times. A jury was convened, and after examining witnesses, they concluded that a large group of unknown men had killed Alfred and Brady.[5]  

This story is tragic from beginning to end, with the murder of Herman Parramore and the lynching of the accused, Brady Young and Alfred Jones. Why was Herman's life deemed less valuable than money by the attackers? Did he struggle with the attackers over his few possessions, so they hit him? Did they mean to kill him or just stun him or knock him out? Would Brady Young and Alfred Jones have been lynched if they'd been white? Was anyone from Valdosta or from Herman's family involved in the lynching? Questions that will probably never be answered.

Catherine

---
[1] 1860 U.S. Census, Thomas, Georgia; Roll M653_138, Page 30, digital image www.ancestry.com

[2] U.S. IRS Tax Assessment Lists, 1862-1918 for Noah Parramore, 1866, digital image, www.ancestry.com; Georgia, Returns of Qualified Voters and Reconstruction Oath Books, 1867-1869, digital image, www.ancestry.com.

[3] "Foul Murder: H. D. Parramore the Victim." The Valdosta Times, 19 December 1891, Page 1, microfilm image; 

[4] See Footnote 3.

[5] "Lynched!" The Valdosta Times, 19 December 1891, Page 1, microfilm image; "The Live Oak Lynching." The Valdosta Times, 26 December 1891, microfilm image.

The Roberts Family, Christmas Day 1915

I’m so thankful that my maternal Roberts family was fond of taking photographs, especially group photos on holidays. I was looking through digitized copies of my mom’s photos this morning and came across this one taken of the Roberts family on December 25, 1915, on the front steps of the Big House (Known locally as the J.T. Roberts house. Click on the photo for a larger view). Luckily, my mom wrote their names on the back. I would have been able to pick out a few of the people, like my grandmother Leona, most of her sisters, her brother Leland, and her parents, because I knew them (except for her parents, of course) when I was growing up.

The numbers in the list below correspond to the numbers in the photograph:

4th row: 1-Edmund Pendleton (my cousin on my dad’s side) and wife 2-Stella (Roberts) Pendleton, 3-Kathleen (Roberts) Winn (for whom I named my daughter) and husband 4-Abial Winn, 5-Mary (Converse) Roberts and husband 6-John Young Roberts.

3rd row: 7-Maie Dell (Roberts) Covington, 8-Margaret Roberts (later Graham).

2nd row: 9-Henry L. Covington, Jr. (husband of Maie Dell Roberts), 10-Leona Roberts (later Redles, my grandmother), 11-Dinah Roberts (later Parramore, on my dad's side), 12-Edwina Roberts, 13-W. Leland Roberts.

1st row: 14-Henry L. Covington III (son of Maie Dell Roberts and Henry Covington Jr.), 15-John Taylor Roberts holding babies 16-William Edmund Pendleton (son of Stella Roberts and Edmund Pendleton) and 17-John Roberts Covington (son of Maie Dell Roberts and Henry Covington Jr.), 18-Kathleen Winn (later Knight, daughter of Kathleen Roberts and Abial Winn), 19-baby Mary Young Roberts (later Oliver, daughter of John Young Roberts and Mary Converse), 20-Kate (Catherine Young) Roberts, and 21-John Winn (son of Kathleen Roberts and Abial Winn).

Compare this photo to the ones I posted previously: The Roberts Family Circa 1900 and The J. T. Roberts Family—A Group Photo ca. 1936 and see how much this family grew. What a difference a few decades make!

Catherine

Two Parramore Boys Drown, August 4, 1900

A while ago, on one of my many visits to Sunset Hill Cemetery in Valdosta, Georgia, I visited the graves of my paternal 2nd great grandparents, Susan Dasher and Noah Parramore. While there, I photographed all of the headstones on the Parramore lot. 

The Noah and Susan Dasher Parramore family plot in Sunset Hill Cemetery, Valdosta, Georgia

I was intrigued by the headstone for two young Parramore boys—Frank and Herman, sons of John and Martha Parramore. They have one headstone divided into two parts. The dates on the headstones are hard to read, but it appears they died the same day in 1900, and it looks like they are buried in the same grave. 

Double headstone for Frank and Herman Parramore who drowned on August 4, 1900

Later, my Parramore/Roberts cousin Lilla Kate told me Frank and Herman drowned together, and our uncle John Young Roberts, who was just a boy at the time, rushed to town to bring the sad news about his young friends. Lilla Kate said the incident was written up in the Valdosta newspaper, so I headed to the library to look it up on microfilm.

The article in The Valdosta Times is dated Tuesday, August 7, 1900, and titled, “A Double Drowning Saturday, The Sad Death of Little Frank and Herman Parramore.” On Saturday afternoon, August 4, twelve-year-old Frank and ten-year-old Herman were with a group of boys and girls headed to the branch on my paternal great grandfather A. S. Pendleton’s property north of town for a swim. Then several of the boys, including ten-year-old John Young Roberts (son of my maternal great grandparents John T. Roberts and Catherine Young), Frank and Herman Parramore, and ten-year-old Fred and twelve-year-old Albert Pendleton (sons of A. S. Pendleton and Susan Parramore; Albert was my grandfather) and some other boys decided to go to Pine Park. (Pine Park was the fair grounds at the time.) They wanted to swim in the pond there that had been used for diving horses the previous year. 

Location of Pine Park in Valdosta, northeast of the current location of Valdosta State University (Map from Google maps. Boundaries for Pine Park from Streetcars in Valdosta)

A wire had been strung across the pond, and the boys used it to hold themselves up in the water. When Frank, Herman, and Fred were holding onto the wire, it broke. Fred was able to get to shore, but Frank and Herman slipped underwater. Neither one of them could swim.

Some workmen nearby heard the screams of the group of boys and ran over. One of the men dived in to look for Frank and Herman. They had been under water about ten minutes by the time they were brought out. Men from the Edgewood Dairy hurried over and helped with resuscitation, but Frank and Herman could not be revived. They were wrapped in a sheet and loaded on a wagon from the dairy to be taken to town.

In the meantime, John Young Roberts jumped on his pony and rode to town to bring the sad news. He “was so excited that he could hardly talk,” so the family hoped what he told them wasn’t true. Frank and Herman’s father John and Dr. Ben Burton immediately headed for the pond but met the wagon carrying the boys on the way. The newspaper article said, “the grief stricken father stood mute and motionless over them. His frame shook with emotion, but the great grief which had come so unfairly upon him was too deep for tears.” Dr. Burton pronounced Frank and Herman dead, and their bodies were taken to the Parramore home on Central Avenue.

The funeral for Frank and Herman was held on Sunday, August 5, at four o’clock in the afternoon, and their two coffins were put in the same grave. The funeral procession was one of the largest “ever seen here and deep sorrow was felt by all.” The article noted that their mother Martha had had a premonition “of a great bereavement” some time before her sons drowned. She had already lost two children in the month of August (Susie in 1896 and Thompson in 1898). She had told a friend that she dreaded to see that month come. Now, two more of her children had died in August.

I can’t imagine the sorrow and pain in losing a child. John and Martha Parramore lost four children within a four-year time period.

Catherine

More Writing About Doc Holliday

A few years ago, I wrote a blog post about the book my dad and Susan (Susie) McKey Thomas wrote, In Search of the Hollidays: The story of Doc Holliday and His Holliday and McKey Families. (Susie is Doc’s cousin.) Not long after my post, author Victoria Wilcox contacted me. She’s written a trilogy about Doc Holliday, Southern Son: The Saga of Doc Holliday.

Since then, we’ve corresponded a few times, and I’ve attended her talks about Doc here in Valdosta at the Lowndes County Historical Society and Museum. I’m very impressed with the amount of research she's done about Doc.

Victoria will be in Valdosta this coming Saturday, May 23, 2015, to talk about volumes 2 and 3 of her trilogy. I’m looking forward to it. Here’s a blurb from the Lowndes County Historical Society and Museum’s newsletter (used with permission).

Blurb about Victoria Wilcox's upcoming talk about Doc Holliday in Valdosta, Georgia
(used with permission of the Lowndes County Historical Society and Museum)

I’ve read the 1st volume, Inheritance. (I have both hard copy and ebook.) I could hardly put it down once I got started, and it was great to read about Doc’s early life in my home town! I could hear the southern accents in the dialog and see the scenes in the vivid descriptions. Most of all, I’m enjoying getting to know the man behind the legend.

I’ve started reading the 2nd volume, Gone West, in ebook format. The 3rd and last volume, The Last Decision, is just being released this month, May 2015. I’ll be getting hard copies of these as well. Must have them autographed!

Catherine