#52Ancestors: WK 17: WALKER, Elsie Lee

** cross posted from Lass Chronicles **

Granny and Patricia Gayle, c1937

Elsie Lee WALKER was born 03 Jul 1880 in Atascosa, Texas.¹ She was born the fourth child (of six) to James Henry and Margaret Jane (MOSELEY) Walker.² Elsie spent her entire life in three Texas counties: Atascosa, Bexar and Dimmit.^3-7 In 1902, she married James Wheeler MOORE. They had eight children: Gracie (1904 - 1916), Elliot Elice or Elias (c1905 - 1989), Elmer Earl (1906 - 1907), Franklin Wheeler (1908 - 1909), Bertha Beatrice (1909 - 1999), Bertia Mae (1912 - 1990), Dorothy Nadine (1919 - 1974), and Winifred Lee (1924 - 2013).

I know Elsie and James as Granny and Jim Papa. Unfortunately for me, they died in 1959 and 1961, respectively. My father tells stories of Granny and Jim Papa. I've asked him to write about Granny for this post.

Elsie Lee Walker Moore, Granny as we all affectionately called her, was bigger than life as we were growing up as children in late 1940s and 50s.  Granny gave all of her grandchildren a compass to guide us through life.  Your bond was your word and you treated everyone equally.  I said she was “bigger than life” -- that is what she seemed but by the time I was 16, the year of her death (1959), I could hold out my arm, slightly elevated, so she could stand under my arm.

Sunday lunch was always at Granny’s house.  She prepared food from her yard and animals she kept such as chickens.  One of her “tricks” to entertain her grandchildren was to “wring” the chicken’s neck.  One Sunday I recall she did two at once.  Everything was prepared in her kitchen.  I recall she prepared shortbread cookies (my sister says they were tea cakes), pressing the dough in the palm of her hand just before baking.  I can still see the imprint of Granny’s hand on each cookie.

The stories she told us at night when we stayed with her were scary.  She would tell us how the Indians and Comancheros would come at night to steal the cattle and chickens.  To small children, the stories seemed real and we were frightened.  We were expected to behave in a manner that always brought honor to us including our families.

I recall Granny made all of her clothes from flour sacks and other materials she gathered for clothes.  Her “uniform of the day” was a long shirt, to her ankles, an apron, and a handmade bonnet.

I do not know if she ever cut her hair because she always had a braid down her back to below her waist.  Granny married James Wheeler Moore, son of Franklin Wheeler and Martha Deborah Moore.

I could go forever, but I will save more for later. -- James MOORE, 26 Apr 2015

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1. Ancestry.com. Texas, Death Certificates, 1903–1982 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013.

2. The Walker children were: Elmer (dates unknown), Evie (dates unknown), Cora (1878 - ?), Elsie Lee (1880 - 1959), William E. (1885 - ?), and Emily A (1897 - ?)

3. Year: 1900; Census Place: Justice Precinct 1, Atascosa, Texas; Roll: 1608; Page: 11B; Enumeration District: 0003; FHL microfilm: 1241608

4. Year: 1910; Census Place: Justice Precinct 1, Dimmit, Texas; Roll: T624_1547; Page: 2B; Enumeration District: 0036; FHL microfilm: 1375560

5. Year: 1920; Census Place: Justice Precinct 5, Dimmit, Texas; Roll: T625_1796; Page: 6A; Enumeration District: 43; Image: 587

6. Year: 1930; Census Place: San Antonio, Bexar, Texas; Roll: 2292; Page: 26A; Enumeration District: 0012; Image: 122.0; FHL microfilm: 2342026

7. Year: 1940; Census Place: San Antonio, Bexar, Texas; Roll: T627_4204; Page: 1A; Enumeration District: 259-119

#52Ancestors: WK 16: ADAMS, Benjamin Franklin

** cross posted to Lass Chronicles **
Jen from Jenealogy likes to tease me that I have a lot of "presidents" in the family. I have three.

Zachary Taylor ADAMS.
John Quincy Adams WARREN.
Andrew Jackson GUTHRIE

That's it. That is all the presidential names I have in my tree. Then I have four Benjamin Franklins (actually, I have five -- that 5th married into the family). Today, I'm talking about my great-grandfather: Benjamin Franklin ADAMS, Sr.

Benjamin Franklin, Sr (or Grandpa Adams, as I knew him) was born 11 Nov 1897 -- what would eventually be known as Armistice Day, Remembrance Day, and Veterans Day.¹ He died 27 Nov 1989.¹ His funeral was held on a miserably cold day. I'll come back to that.

Benjamin was the oldest of six children born to Welcome Adams and Mary Francis CORNSTUBLE.² I can find him in the 1900 and 1910 censuses living with his family in Arkansas.^{3, 4} On 1 Jan 1917, at 19 years old, Benjamin enlists in the Army.⁵ I cannot imagine the horror of World War I. I do know that Benjamin was injured -- family lore says mustard gas.

On 11 November 1918, the armistice [was] signed between the Allies of World War I and Germany at Compiègne, France.⁶

On 30 Nov 1918, Benjamin was released from the Army.⁵ At this point, I lose him in the public record. I have searched every permutation of his name, age, race, and gender in an effort to find him in the 1920 United States Census. If he is there, I don't know how he is enumerated.

On 22 Feb 1921, Benjamin married Sally Lou GREEN in Paris, Texas.⁷

Ben and Sally settled in Kerr County Texas where they had four children: Eulaliah Louise (1922 - 2009), Zona May (1924 - 1995), Jack Charles (1929 -2000), and Benjamin Franklin, Jr. (1934 - 1998).

Adams Family, 1936: Benjamin, Sally, Eulaliah, Zona, Jack, and Ben, Jr.

From 1925 until 1954, Benjamin worked for the Veterans Administration.⁸ Sally died (cod: Tuberculosis) in 1944.⁹ Benjamin remarried in 1945 and again in 1980. In 1958, he moved with his second wife (Bessie) to Austin, Texas.

31 July 1958, The Kerrville Times

I have a vague memory of the last house Benjamin lived in. It was on Avenue H. When I remember it, I think it's on a corner or not far from the corner. In searching the Ancestry City Directories Collection, I've found my memory to be not too shabby.¹⁰ The streetview only confuses me. I don't recognize the house or the lot at all.

House on Avenue H

As I mention above, Benjamin Franklin Adams, Sr died 27 Nov 1989. His funeral might be my clearest memory of attending a funeral. I was 14. I'd already been to my father's parents' funerals in Aug 1981 and Aug 1989. There are possibly 13 other funerals between 1975 and 1989 I might have attended.

Grandpa Adams' funeral was miserably cold. I wore a bright red wool coat with a hood. My hair was in a French Braid; and I didn't want to use my hood because it might pull my hair loose. I can remember being worried that fussing with my hood would be disrespectful; but at the same time, my ears were going numb.

I never spent much time with my great-grandfather. My family lived nearly four hours away from Austin. Looking at his obituary, I feel like I've lost some history.¹¹Benjamin was awarded a Purple Heart, he worked as a civil servant for the VA, he was active in the American Legion and his church.

Obit: Austin American-Statesman, Nov 1989

A couple weeks ago, I asked my family for memories or stories about Grandpa Adams. Over the weekend, my Aunt mentioned she remembered Grandpa Adams as meticulous. She has a clear memory of him rolling his cigarettes. I should have recorded the story; but I was distracted. Here is a paraphrasing of her story:

Grandpa Adams rolled his own cigarettes. I can remember he would get his papers out. Lay one paper down. Then he would get his tobacco and make a neat line on the paper. Then he'd roll the tobacco into the paper. He'd lick it and inevitably get a piece of tobacco stuck to his tongue. Then he'd pick off the little bit of tobacco [Here she demonstrates carefully picking the tobacco off her tongue] before checking the cigarette and smoking it. --Patricia GARRETT Fielder, 20 Apr 2015

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1. Ancestry.com. U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.

2. Benjamin's siblings were: Robert Edward (1900 - 1967), Daisy Bell (1903 - 1990), John Porter (1908 - 1939), David Welcome (1910 - 2003), and Opal Dora (1918 - 1992).

3. Year: 1900; Census Place: Benedict, Faulkner, Arkansas; Roll: 58; Page: 8A; Enumeration District: 0017; FHL microfilm: 1240058

4. Year: 1910; Census Place: Monroe, Sevier, Arkansas; Roll: T624_66; Page: 14A; Enumeration District: 0173; FHL microfilm: 1374079

5. Ancestry.com. U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.

6. Wikipedia,. 2015. 'World War I'. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_I.

7. Lamar County Genealogical Society (Lamar County, Tex.). 2008. Lamar County, Texas, marriage records, 1841-1937. Paris, Tex: Lamar County Genealogical Society.

8. Ancestry.com. 31 July 1958. The Kerrville Times (Kerrville, Texas) [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.

9. Ancestry.com. Texas, Death Certificates, 1903–1982 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013.

10. Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.

11. Austin American-Statesman, 28 Nov 1989.

#52Ancestors: WK 15: PEAL, Parina Permelia

** cross posted to Lass Chronicles **
This will be a short entry for two reasons: I'm behind in posting and I don't know much about this woman. Still, I love the name of my fourth great grandmother. Did her parents love alliteration? Is this really her name? I have seen Panina as an alternate spelling.

Parina was born about 1817 in Georgia.¹ In Aug 1832, a license was issued to Wilson Adams and Parina Peal.² In Dec 1832, she married Wilson ADAMS in Georgia.³

Parina and Wilson had at least ten children: John W., Mary M., Josiah W., Eliza Jane, Mahala A., Frances C., and Zachary Taylor (my third great grandfather), [Joanna Elizabeth]⁴, [Marcelles Trautmann]⁵, and [Kadie Ellen].⁶

There is no recorded and confirmed death date for Parina, although there are at least two trees on Ancestry.com that mention 1896.

___
1. Source number: 1156.124; Source type: Family group sheet, FGSE, listed as parents; Number of Pages: 1

2. Ancesrty.com. Georgia, Marriage Records From Select Counties, 1828-1978 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013. (Indexed as Brina Peal)

3. Ancesrty.com. Georgia, Marriage Records From Select Counties, 1828-1978 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013. (Indexed as Parena Peal)

4. Year: 1860; Census Place: Wards 2 and 3, Claiborne, Louisiana; Roll: M653_410; Page: 663; Image: 239; Family History Library Film: 803410

5. Ibid.

6. Ibid.

#52Ancestors: WK 14: Photos of the lost

** cross posted from Lass Chronicles **
I have photos. A lot of photos. Photos that range from tintypes to present day snapshots and digital files. While at RootsTech, I caught about 15 minutes of the end of a session talking about organizing files. Naming and tagging and filing anything digital in a way that anyone will recognize what the files are, who might be part of those files (especially photos), and where those files came from.

Sadly, a lot of my photos are unlabeled and the people that could have told me anything about those photos have died. In particular, I have a box of card photographs. I know the photos range, at least, from the mid-1800s to the early 1930s. I'm also fairly confident that the photos are mostly from my GARRETT and GUTTERY branches.

Here are ten from my collection.

Photo 1: Miss Fanie G...

The back of this card photo has written in faded pencil Miss Fanie G; but the G is mostly rubbed off. I'm inclined to think her full name was written there at one time.

You can see the damage to the card. Possibly mice or roaches. The card is embossed with JNO CARTER LULING, TEX.

I don't know anything about how to date photographs, but a few things stand out. The woman's outfit looks to be one dress, with a high collar and lace. Her belt has a leaf pattern on it with a (possibly silver) buckle. The man's suit is pinstriped. The jacket has two buttons and a button on the breast pocket. His shoes are worn and unpolished. They are posed in front of what looks like a painted backdrop. The couple is posed on an animal rug.

At the moment, I can only confirm one female named Fannie/Fanny in the maternal line of my tree: Fannie C. GILMORE (1891-1961). Her sister, Drusilla, married James David GARRETT. James David Garrett is the brother of my great grandfather, John Moore GARRETT, Sr. Fannie married John ZAPALAC.

Photo 2: Two photos, young men

There are no markings on this card or the photographs.  The card is embossed. The men in the left photograph are probably brothers (rather than cousins). The suits look similar; but the left suit is actually made of checked fabric and the right is solid (although, maybe finely striped). The suits look lightweight. There are three buttons on each suit. Both men are wearing the same hairstyle.

The photo on the right yields very little. The background looks painted.

Photo 3: Schoolgirls in uniform

This photograph fascinates me. Also lacking in any markings, it does have some embossing around the photo itself. The girls are dressed in uniform -- pleated pantaloons, I think. The buildings look institutional. The ground appears to be brick. Are the girls dancing? Playing? Performing? Is this a boarding school or an orphanage? Neither?

Photo 4: Baby in gown

This baby looks grumpy! Is it the sunlight or the yards of lacy gown? Absolutely no clues as to place; but the gown is probably a Christening gown.

Photo 5: Toddler in lace

More lace! Probably a girl. This card photograph is clearly embossed with CARTER and LULING, TEX. The backdrop looks painted. I'm wondering if the baby's mother is hiding behind the blanket draped over the chair. The black pin on the baby's dress says PET.

Photo 6: Family home

The back of this photo says Feb 1911. You can see there is handwriting on the photo that says "Dad" and "Mother." I'm fairly sure this is the Garrett clan. Although, it could be the Guttery clan. "Dad" is probably John Moore Garrett, Sr. and "Mother" is probably Sidney Carrie Guttery. There are several fancy ladies hats. The women are either in dresses or shirtwaists and skirts.

Photo 7: Unknown couple

Married? Siblings? Cousins? It's hard to tell from this photo. The woman's outfit is spectacular. Look at the pleating in the bodice! The leg-o-mutton sleeves. The oversized buttons on the bodice look either Mother of Pearl or metal. It looks like she is wearing a ring on the fore-finger of her left hand. His suit is solid in probably black or dark brown. The tie has a button or pin. He is wearing a wing tip collar. It looks like he might have a pocket watch in his vest. His shoes are clean, but scuffed at the tips. They seem to be standing on a rug. There doesn't look to be a backdrop. Like several other photographs, this card photograph is clearly embossed with CARTER and LULING, TEX.

Photo 8: Kids with horse

Again, no markings. Some embossing on the card around the photo. I'm pretty sure this is my great grandmother and two of her siblings. They are outside...other than that, I can't really pick up details about the background. The children are all wearing white outfits with dark stockings.

Photo 9: Family portrait

This photo haunts me. The woman seems to have the sweetest smile one her face. The man's suit is striped. I think he is wearing a tab collar. His shoes are worn and not polished. His pants look rolled rather than cuffed.

The woman is wearing, I think, a shirtwaist and skirt. The skirt looks to have a small train on it. She looks to be wearing a loose overjacket with short sleeves. Her shoes are shiny and round toed.

The detail in the children's clothing is blown out from the exposure. The older of the two is barefoot, for sure. Both outfits are dresses, but that's no indication of gender.

The backdrop is painted. I can't tell if the floor is carpet, tile, or linoleum.

Photo 10: Wedding Portrait

The first time I saw this photo, I thought the woman was wearing a tiara. She is, sort of. It's tiara of flowers rather than jewels. Her dress (one piece tied with a sash, I think) is very lacy at the bodice and bottom. The veil is very sheer and looks to run to the ground. There might be embroidery in the veil, I can't tell.

The groom is wearing a borrowed suit, I'm pretty sure. The pants are rolleded at least four inches. Not to mention the suit hangs on him. The jacket has three buttons with narrow, notched lapels. The breast pocket is slanted. His tie has a pin in it. His shoes look to be polished

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Looking at this photos makes me want to pull all the photos out and spend time studying the details. Slowly, but surely, I am loading all my genealogy photo scans to Flickr. I'm hoping that maybe Guttery or Garrett family members will see these photos and get in touch.

#52Ancestors: WK 13: Different

** cross posted from Lass Chronicles **
Last week, I wrote about the most common names in my tree. This week, let me highlight a few of the unique names:

Eppie Allefair Guttery
I've never known the family way to spell "Allefair." I've seen it Alliefair, Allefaire, Alafare, and Alafair. Behind The Name covers it under Alafare. If you Google search it, there are about 167 hits for Allefair, 157 for Alliefair, 63 for Allefaire, 186 for Alafare, and 307 for Alafair (mostly because of the author Alafair Burke and the character Alafair Robicheaux from James Lee Burke).

Eulaliah Louise Adams
My grandmother disliked her name. Intensely. I never understood why. I think it's pretty. Hard to spell, though! Variant forms include: Eulália, Eulàlia, Eulalia, Eulalie.¹

Argent Johanna Moore
I've never understood "Argent." I guess it could be a family name. Johanna and Thomas named one of their daughters Argent Johanna, as well.

Welcome Calfy Adams
The "Calfy" part still frustrates me. Family lore says he is Welcome Corbin or Corbit. His draft card states Calfy. Calfy is a known surname. That might be an area to research.

Earle Wayne Bradberry
One might ask why I would list this name. Looks entirely common, until you realize this was my grandfather's sister-in-law. Her father's name was Earl.

Ellie Hugh Garrett
Again, this name looks fairly common. Again, there is a gender switch. This is my great grandfather's brother. Behind The Name suggests that the name Ellie was used for boys/men between 1880 and 1910 with varying popularity.

Sadie Pinkie Keene
There are two Sadies in my tree, but only one Pinkie (so far)! Where did the Pinkie come from? Is it a family name? Was there a friend with that name? Was she really Sadie Patricia, perhaps?

Younger Moore
Ah, family lore. Supposedly, Younger was named after cousins: the Younger Brothers. Yes, those Younger Brothers. The one that rode with Jesse James. I might believe Younger was named after the Younger Brothers. I don't believe the Youngers are related to us.

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1. Campbell, Mike. 2015. 'Behind The Name: Name Search'. Behindthename.Com. http://www.behindthename.com/names/search.php?terms=eulaliah&x=20&y=9&type=.