Wordless Wednesday - Nettie Allen Branch

Photo by Andy McCrory

Grave stone of Nettie A. Branch

Buried in Seneasha Cemetery, Attala County, MS

Born April 15, 1863 - Died July 2, 1917

Tombstone Tuesday - Rebecca Clark Baldridge Boggs

My readers never cease to amaze me. Yesterday, I received an mail from a new Baldridge cousin who lives in California. This cousin had found posts on Mississippi Memories about John Baldridge and Rebecca Clark Baldridge, my fifth great-grandparents, who were married in Colerain, Londonderry, Ireland and immigrated to Pennsylvania shortly thereafter. I am descended through John T. Baldridge, one of their grandsons, a veteran of the War of 1812 who lived and died in Carroll County, Mississippi. A photo of John Baldridge's grave stone in Enon Methodist Church Cemetery in Carroll County can be seen here.

In his email, my new cousin told me where Rebecca Clark Baldridge is buried. I already knew that John Baldridge was buried in Little Britain Township near Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, near where he had died. And I also knew that after John's death, Rebecca, who still had minor children, moved with an older son and his family to Orange County, North Carolina. Although much of my research told me that Rebecca had re-married in North Carolina and had later died there, I had been unsuccessful in finding her married name or her burial location. Thanks to this email from another Baldridge descendant, I now have both Rebecca's name after she remarried and the name of the cemetery where she is buried.

My contact wrote in his email to me that Rebecca is buried in the cemetery at Knob Creek United Methodist Church in North Carolina. With that information in hand, I soon located photos on www.findagrave.com of the grave stone (see below) that marks the final resting place of Rebecca Clark Baldridge Boggs. According to her marker, Rebecca was born in 1723 and died in 1823, having lived almost a century. By most accounts, Rebecca was perhaps the mother of 21 children.

Photo by Sharon

Grave stone of Rebecca Clark Baldridge Boggs

Knob Creek United Methodist Church Cemetery

Cleveland County, North Carolina

Photo by Sharon

A more recent grave stone placed at the foot of Rebecca's original marker shows her date of birth and date of death.

Tombstone Tuesday - C. W. Stout, Enon Cemetery, Carroll County, Mississippi

Along with his name and dates of his birth and death, the grave stone of of C. W. Stout is engraved with the words "Still Living." Mr. Stout is buried in Enon Cemetery, near Colia, in Carroll County.

Photo by Natalie Maynor

Edward Tillman Branch, Buried in Seneasha Cemetery, Attala County, Mississippi

My post on Mississippi Memories today features an excerpt from Stokes McMillan's new book, "One Night of Madness," that contains some details about the life of Edward Tillman Branch. Born on November 15, 1901, Tillman, as Branch was known, met a tragic death when he died of a gunshot wound on April 14, 1963.

Photograph by Andy McCrory

Asa Jones, Buried in Berea Cemetery

Asa Jones

"Gone too soon"

b. April 14, 1792

d. April 11, 1856

Oscar F. Hosea, Buried in Odd Fellows Cemetery, Lexington, MS

This Woodmen of the World monument marks the burial place of Oscar F. Hosea in Odd Fellows Cemetery in Lexington, Mississippi. Hosea, born on October 20, 1863, died on October 28, 1921.

Oscar F. Hosea was the son of Oscar Fitzallen Hosea, Sr. and Sarah Anne Farr.

In 1860, according to the U. S. Census recorded that same year, Oscar F. Hosea, Sr. and Sarah A. Hosea lived with their young family in Dark Corner, Beat 2, of Holmes County, Mississippi.

In 1870, the family lived in Lexington, where Oscar F. Hosea, Sr. worked as a carpenter.

Photo by Natalie Maynor

Wordless Wednesday - Grave Monument of William Oliphant McMorrough

Grave Monument of William Oliphant McMorrough

b. August 27, 1853, d. June 25, 1905

Buried in Odd Fellows Cemetery, Lexington (Holmes Co) MS

Photo by Natalie Maynor

Conner Family Cemetery, Attala County, MS

The banner photo that appears on my blog today shows Conner Cemetery located near Hesterville in Attala County, Mississippi. The historical marker pictured to the left tells the story of the establishment of this old cemetery. Yesterday, I published the first in a series of posts about the Conner family, where I will be using personal family information provided by one of my Texas readers who is a descendant of the Conner family. Also, beginning next week, I will be posting photos of Conner family members' grave stones.

Banner photo and photo of marker by Natalie Maynor

Drane Family of French Camp, Mississippi

The original grave monuments that once marked the grave sites of Colonel James Drane and his wife, Matilda, can be seen at French Camp, Mississippi. The monuments and the Drane family residence were moved to French Camp on the Natchez Trace about 1981 from their original locations nearby.

(Photo provided by unidentified Drane family descendant)

Wordless Wednesday - Hooker Plot in Odd Fellows Cemetery, Lexington, Mississippi

Photo by Natalie Maynor

Tombstone Tuesday - Seneasha Cemetery, Attala County, MS

Grave stone of Henry Clay Branch, son of Nettie A. and E. T. Branch. Buried in Seneasha Cemetery, Attala County, Mississippi.

Born Sept. 2, 1886, d. Sept. 29, 1889

Photo by Andy McCrory

Seneasha Cemetery, Attala County, Mississippi

Branch family members who lived and died in Attala County are buried in several cemeteries, including Good Hope Cemetery in Madison County and Hillcrest Cemetery in Goodman (Holmes County.) But Seneasha Cemetery in rural Attala County seems to have been the burial place for more Branch family members than any other cemetery in the three-county area that includes Attala, Holmes, and Madison Counties.



Entrance to Seneasha Cemetery
Attala County, Mississippi

(Photo by Natalie Maynor)

Recently, one of my blog readers who is also a distant cousin, began taking photos of grave stones in Seneasha Cemetery and uploading them onto the website known as Find-A-Grave.com. Please visit again soon to see some of these new photos and read stories about members of the Branch family.



Attala County, Mississippi
Seneasha United Methodist Church

(Photo by Natalie Maynor)

E. L. and Harriett Mabry, Shiloh Cemetery, Madison County, Mississippi

Pictured here is the double grave stone that marks the final resting place of E. L. Mabry and his wife, Harriet Mabry, in Shiloh Cemetery in Madison County, Mississippi. As the engraving on the marker shows, E. L. Mabry was born on February 2, 1843, slightly over a year before Harriett was born on March 11, 1844. Harriett died on May 20, 1923, just weeks after her husband died on April 3, 1923.

Photograph by Natalie Maynor

Wordless Wednesday - Nancy Mabry, Suqualena Cemetery, Lauderdale County, MS

Photograph by Natalie Maynor

Nancy Mabry
b. May 24, 1838
d. Jan 24, 1917
Buried in Suqualena Cemetery
Lauderdale County, Mississippi

Tombstone Tuesday - E. M. Mabry, Suqualena Cemetery, Lauderdale County, Mississippi

The inscription on this old grave stone in Suqualena Cemetery in Lauderdale County, Mississippi, includes the name "E. M. Mabry" along with the dates of birth and death of the deceased.

Apparently an error was made by the stone mason, since the date of death for E. M. Mabry is shown as February 30th.

February 30th?

What was E. M. Mabry's actual date of death? Perhaps it was February 20th, or maybe February 3rd. But it could not have been February 30th.



Photograph by Natalie Maynor

Wordless Wednesday - John H. Waugh

Monument of John H. Waugh, Hillcrest Cemetery
Born in Portadown, County Armagh, Ireland in 1829
Died in Goodman, Miss.
January 31, 1896



Source: Digital Photography Collection (2009) - Privately owned by Janice Tracy

Tombstone Tuesday - John M. Terry, Spanish American War Veteran

This old and weathered grave stone in Harland's Creek Cemetery marks the burial place of John M. Terry, a veteran of the Spanish-American War. According to the inscription on the marker, Mr. Terry served in "CO. A, 5 U.S. VOL., INF, SP. AM. WAR. Although his date of birth is shown on the stone as Mar 31 1871, his date of death is not shown. Harland's Creek Cemetery is located in the Coxburg community of Holmes County, Mississippi.



Photograph by Natalie Maynor

Tombstone Tuesday - A Sunken Gravestone

Grave stone of Claude Mabry, son of T. G. and M. E. Mabry
Hillcrest Cemetery, Goodman (Holmes County) Mississippi

Wordless Wednesday - Shrock Plot at Shiloh Cemetery, Madison County, Mississippi

Photo by Natalie Maynor

Tombstone Tuesday - Joseph K. and Caroline Fitler Shrock - Shiloh Cemetery, Madison County, MS

Joseph Kilpatrick Shrock and his wife Caroline Fitler Shrock are buried in Shiloh Cemetery in Madison County near the community of Cameron, Mississippi. Photographs of their grave stones appear below. More about the families of Joseph K. and Caroline Shrock can be read here.



J. K. Shrock, b. May 6, 1821
d. May 31, 1897, buried in
Shiloh Cemetery, near Cameron
Madison County, MS



Caroline Fitler, wife of J. K. Shrock
d. Oct. 25, 1882, buried in
Shiloh Cemetery near Cameron
Madison County, Mississippi

Source: Photographs by Natalie Maynor

Henry and Sarah Shrock, Camden Cemetery, Camden, Mississippi

Today, on Mississippi Memories, I began writing the first in a series of posts about the Shrock Family of Attala County, beginning with the family of Joseph K. Shrock and his wife, Caroline Fitler Shrock. Posted here today are photos of the grave stones of Henry Shrock and Sarah Shrock, Joseph's parents.



Sarah Shrock, Joseph Shrock's mother
b. May 6, 1817, d. Sept. 16, 1836
Buried in Camden Cemetery
Madison County, Mississippi

Henry Shrock, Joseph's Father
b. October 9, 1780, d. April 11, 1858
Buried in Camden Cemetery
Camden, Madison County, Mississippi

Shrock Family Plot Marker - Hillcrest Cemetery, Goodman, Mississippi

This large monument stands in the shadow of a century-old magnolia tree and marks the Shrock family plot in Hillcrest Cemetery. Although deceased members of this family are buried in other cemeteries in Attala and Madison Counties, this cemetery in Goodman in Holmes County appears to have been a more common burial place for family members who died during the 1900's.



During the next several days, I plan to write a series of posts on Mississippi Memories about this well-known Attala County family and its Madison and Holmes County connections. Be sure to check back here on Cemeteries of Dancing Rabbit Creek for photographs of grave stones of some of the Shrock family members.

Source: Digital Photo Collection (2009) - privately held by Janice Tracy

Grave Stone Inscription - United Fire Sides of America

Recently, while reviewing some of the photos I took last May of grave stones of Killebrew family members buried in Coxburg Cemetery, I found this one. According to its inscription, R. S. Killebrew was born on June 23, 1846, and died on November 11, 1915. His grave is among a number of other graves of Killebrew family members who have been buried in the cemetery for more than a century.



In addition to the usual name and dates of birth and death, the top portion of Mr. Killebrew's grave stone also bears the words "United Fire Sides of America," along with an emblem that resembles a fireplace that contains burning logs.

During a quick search using Google, I found a reference to a Mississippi Supreme Court decision around the turn of the century that involved this entity. Full details of the case were not provided in this reference, but the attorney for the company had a Houston, Texas address.

Was "United Firesides of America" an insurance company, possibly one that provided burial coverage, or was it a dues-paying fraternal organization something similar to Woodmen of the World?

I still don't know, but maybe one of my readers will.

Wordless Wednesday - Mississippi Delta Cemetery

Cemetery at Anguilla, Mississippi in Sharkey County
Photo by Natalie Maynor

Tombstone Tuesday - Evelyn and Evander Grantham

The double grave stone pictured here marks the burial place of Evander Grantham and his wife, Evelyn, in Bluff Springs Cemetery in Carroll County, Mississippi. Evander was born in North Carolina in November 1846, one of ten sons of Thomas Grantham, a farmer, and his wife, Lydia Alice Woodberry. The family of Thomas and Lydia, born in North and South Carolina, respectively, also included two daughters, as well as Elizabeth Grantham, Evander's North Carolina-born grandmother. Although Elizabeth Grantham is buried in Bluff Springs Cemetery, Thomas and Lydia Grantham are buried in Old Plank Cemetery near Vaiden, Mississippi.

Photograph by Sally Bennett

Coxburg M. P. Church Cemetery, Holmes County, Mississippi

Coxburg M. P. Church is located in the Holmes County community of Coxburg. My mother always told me that almost all my ancestors on her side of the family are buried in the cemetery beside this church. And she was so right. The cemetery is filled with the graves of Netherland and Trigleth family members, as well as inter-related families with the names of Hoover, Killebrew, Payne, Thomas, and Wallis. To read more about the Netherland and Trigleth families, visit Mississippi Memories.



A sign on the fence contains contact information for the cemetery. Click on the photo to enlarge it for viewing names and phone numbers of contacts.














A view of Coxburg M. (Methodist) P. (Protestant) Cemetery from outside the fence that surrounds it.

Source: Digital Photo Collection (2009) - privately held by Janice Tracy

Tombstone Tuesday - Confederate Marker and Graves in Hillcrest Cemetery

Confederate Marker - Hillcrest Cemetery
Goodman (Holmes County) Mississippi

Source: Digital Photo Collection (2009) - Privately Held by Janice Tracy





Confederate Graves - Hillcrest Cemetery
Goodman (Holmes County) Mississippi

Source: Digital Photo Collection (2009) - Privately held by Janice Tracy

Rosa Lee Killebrew, Coxburg Cemetery, Coxburg, MS

Rosa Lee Killebrew and her brother, Raiford, were born during the marriage of my maternal great-great-grandmother, Susan Elizabeth Coggins Trigleth, to her second husband, Isaac Garrett ("Ike") Killebrew. Interestingly, my maternal grandmother, Rosa Mae Pettus, born to Susan's daughter, Lucy Lula Trigleth, during her first marriage to William Elza Pettus, was named for Lula's half-sister, Rosa Killebrew.

Rosa Lee Killebrew, b. Jan. 8, 1889, d. July 7, 1958

Lucy Lula Trigleth, March 15, 1881 - April 7, 1951

Lucy Lula Trigleth Payne Pettus Bass was my maternal great-grandmother. Buried in Coxburg Cemetery near many of her relatives and allied family members, the engraving on her grave stone reflects her last marriage to Mr. Bass. For more about Lula Trigleth's family, read here.

Wordless Wednesday - William Bailey Netherland, Red's Co, Mississippi State Troops, C.S.A.

William Bailey (W.B.) Netherland, My Great-grandfather
Veteran of Red's Co., Miss. State Troops, C.S.A.
Buried in Coxburg Cemetery, Holmes Co., MS

Source: Digital Photo Collection (2009), privately held by Janice Tracy

Tombstone Tuesday - John Baldridge, Veteran of the War of 1812

John Baldridge, my paternal great-great-greatgrandfather, was born in North Carolina and died in Carroll County, Mississippi. Buried in Enon Cemetery in Carroll County, John's grave stone states that he served in McMath's Company of New York during the War of 1812.

Atwood Family Cemetery, Seminary, Mississippi

In Covington County, near Seminary, Mississippi, is the Atwood Family Cemetery. Among the older family members buried in the cemetery are the Rev. J. W. Atwood and his wife Ellen. Rev. Atwood was born on May 22, 1865, and he died August 31, 1942. Ellen Atwood was born on January 21, 1868 and preceeded her husband in death on May 2, 1920.

In addition to the Atwood family, members of the Aultman, Boleware, Brunt, Davis, Fairchild, Jones, and Trigg families are buried in this family cemetery.

Tombstone Tuesday - W.O.W. Monument of Charles Whitehead

This grave monument is similar to others erected in Mississippi by the Woodmen of the World society around the turn of the century. Standing taller than most of the markers in Coxburg Cemetery of Holmes County, Mississippi, this monument marks the grave of Charles Whitehead. Like other Woodmen of the World monuments, it is fashioned in the likeness of a cut tree and is stamped with the W.O.W. seal.

Charles Whitehead's Woodmen of the World Grave Monument

Coxburg Cemetery, Coxburg (Holmes County) Mississippi

Born February 28, 1863, Died July 25, 1903

Source: Digital Photo Collection (2009) - Photo by Janice Tracy

Tombstone Tuesday - David A. Edwards, Coxburg Cemetery - Coxburg, Mississippi

The inscription on the base of the monument that marks the grave of David A. Edwards states "His many virtues form the noblest monument to his memory."

Standing in a shaded part of Coxburg Cemetery in a rural portion of Holmes County, Mississippi, the grave stone bears two symbols that give some insight into the life of the deceased. Located underneath a crown of feathers that adorns the top of the grave stone, a symbol on the right indicates Mr. Edwards was a member of a Masonic Order. Another emblem to the left of the Masonic Emblem appears to be one of the earlier symbols that denoted membership in the Woodmen of the World organization.

David A. Edwards

Coxburg Cemetery

b. July 11, 1856

d. March 25, 1913

Wallis Family - Buried in Coxburg Cemetery, Coxburg (Holmes County), Mississippi

My mother has always told me that I am related to everyone buried in Coxburg Cemetery. On a recent trip to Mississippi, I photographed most of the grave stones in that cemetery, not knowing for certain what relation I am to many of those buried there. I simply took my mother's word for it. After several months now of trying to determine the relationships of these families to my Netherland, Pettus, and Trigleth relatives, also buried there, I had a stroke of luck.

On Tuesday evening, I opened my email to find a message from a reader named Jeannie Wallis Bowser. Jeannie had found my blogs and wanted to tell me that we are Netherland cousins. On Wednesday, I called Jeannie and we talked at length about our Netherland connections, her paternal grandmother Amabel Netherland Wallis and her brother, Ralph Ernest Netherland, my maternal grandfather. I plan to write about some of this Netherland family information that Jeannie was kind enough to share, in future posts on my other blog, Mississippi Memories.

Because I had taken photographs of grave stones in Coxburg Cemetery, I was able to email photos of Wallis grave markers to Jeannie, who resides in another state.

Fannie W. Wallis - b. 1873, d. 1955

J. Thomas Wallis - b. 1870, d. 1932

Grave Marker of Charles Otto Wallis, husband of Elnora Brown

Born Mar. 13, 1900; Died October 18, 1978

William C. Wallis, b. 1893, d. 1932

Amabel Netherland Wallis, b. 1894, d. 1983

Known as "Amy" to her family, Amabel was my mother's aunt, my great-aunt, and Jeannie's paternal grandmother. Buried next to Amabel is her husband, William C. ("Clarence") Wallis. The couple were parents of five children, including Jeannie's father. Although Amy lived until she was almost 90 years old, Clarence died before he was 40.

Wordless Wednesday - Grave Monument of Cora E. Weed Unger

Source: Digital Photo Collection - Janice Tracy

Tombstone Tuesday - Henry Shrock, Camden Cemetery, Madison, Mississippi

Photo by Natalie Maynor

Grave stone of Henry Shrock

Camden Cemetery, Madison County, MS

b. October 9, 1780

d. April 11, 1858

Wordless Wednesday - David Pate's Grave Stone in Broom Cemetery

Photo by Natalie Maynor

Maggie's Marker - Hillcrest Cemetery, Goodman, Mississippi

This grave monument, located in Hillcrest Cemetery on the outskirts of the small Holmes County town of Goodman, Mississippi, stands tall beside the grave of Maggie Scarbrough. According to the engraving on her marker, Maggie was the wife of W. T. Scarbrough and died on December 15, 1898, at the age of 34 years, 8 months, and 1 day.

Although the grave monument itself is now over 100 years old, it is still in remarkably good condition. The broken pieces of a covered urn, however, can be seen near where it once stood at the base of Maggie's marker.

Old St. Philip's Cemetery (Kirkwood Cemetery) near Camden, Mississippi

On Mississippi Memories today, I began a series of posts about the Hemingway family of Camden, South Carolina and Camden, Mississippi. Included in that post was a copy of a photograph of Henrietta Hemingway.

I first learned about the Hemingway family from Mitchell Sawyer, one of my readers and Henrietta's great-grandson, who contacted me and provided photos of the cleanup he organized of old St. Philips Cemetery, also known as Kirkwood Cemetery. Henrietta Hemingway is buried in this cemetery, along with former Mississippi governor William McWillie, members of McWillie's immediate family, and his long-time friend and business associate, Chapman Levy.

Henrietta Hemingway
b. April 6, 1799, d. April 8, 1860
Buried in Kirkwood Cemetery
Madison County, Mississippi



Henrietta Hemingway
(photograph courtesy of Mitchell Sawyer)

In one of his emails, Mitchell related a story about his great-grandmother: "My Hemingway ancestors left Duesbury England on the Ship Majestic and arrived in Charleston Harbor in 1829. Settled in the Camden, SC area which is how they knew Governor McWillie. In fact, the 'tale' in the family is that Catherine (Gov.'s wife) prepared my great grandmother Henrietta Hemingway's hair on her wedding day."

I hope you will join me at Mississippi Memories to read more about members of the Hemingway family who migrated to Mississippi during the mid-1800's.