Hillcrest Cemetery, Woodward L. and Stella B. Young

This double grave stone seen below marks the burial place of Woodward L. and Stella B. Young, my great-aunt and uncle on my father's side of the family. Woodward was born on September 30, 1896 and died on February 1, 1974. Aunt Stella was one of my paternal grandfather's four sisters, born sixteen months after my grandfather, on November 23, 1900. She was just ten months away from her 95th birthday when she died on January 24, 1995. Stella and Woodward ("Woodard," as he was often called) lived in Goodman, Mississippi most of their adult lives, and it was in Goodman that the couple raised four sons. Woodward was a World War I veteran, and at least three of their sons served in the U. S. military.



Stella and Woodward saw the early deaths of two of these young men. The first son to die was William H. ("Billy") Young, whose grave marker is pictured here. Billy Young was killed on April 22, 1943, just three weeks after his 21st birthday, while serving as an Aviation Cadet in the Army Air Force. Although Billy did leave a young widow, the couple had no children.



Pictured below is the grave marker for Charles Young, who died as the result of long-term effects of a serious brain tumor. Although Charles survived the surgery, he was not able to live again on his own. After years of hospitalization, Charles died in a long-time care facility owned and operated by the U. S. Air Force on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Charles was the father of three children.



The double grave marker shown below marks the burial site of Elton C. Young and his wife, Kathryn S. Young. Elton retired with the rank of Colonel from the U. S. Air Force, having served in a number of locations both in and outside the United States. His wife, Kathryn, died on April 3, 2000, about three years before Elton's own death on Dec. 27, 2003. They are buried near Stella and Woodward, his parents, and near his two brothers, Billy and Charles.




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

Wordless Wednesday - Hillcrest Cemetery, Goodman, MS

Identical Grave Stones of Sons of Mr. and Mrs. W. E. Nelson
Hillcrest Cemetery, Goodman (Holmes Co.) MS

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

Hillcrest Cemetery - Lelia and Clark Branch, Grandparents

Founded in the 1800s, Goodman United Methodist Church, in Goodman, Mississippi, has seen its share of christenings, weddings, and funerals. Two of those funerals were for my grandparents, Clark Commander Branch and Lelia Porter Branch, his in January of 1979, and hers in January of 1992. For more about the lives of Clark and Lelia Branch, married on December 8, 1922, please read here. That post was the first in a series of subsequent posts about rural life in the Mississippi Delta before and after the Great Depression.



This double grave stone in Hillcrest Cemetery, Goodman, Mississippi, marks the burial place of my paternal grandparents, Clark C. Branch and his wife, Lelia P. Branch. Clark was born on August 9, 1899, and died on January 20, 1979. Lelia was born on July 17, 1904, and she died twelve years later on January 25, 1992. Natives of nearby Attala County, Clark and Lelia are buried near many deceased members of both the Branch and the Porter family.

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

Wordless Wednesday - Wigley Family Grave Stone

The Grave of Six Family Members buried in Coxburg Methodist Church Cemetery, Coxburg (Holmes County) Mississippi - All of the deceased died within days of each other.

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

Ella Julia Williamson's Grave Monument - Hillcrest Cemetery, Goodman, Mississippi

Pictured here is the grave monument that marks the burial place of Ella Julia Williamson in Hillcrest Cemetery, in the Holmes County, Mississippi town of Goodman. According to her gravestone, Ella was the wife of R. D. Williamson, and was born on October 17, 1878. Mrs. Williamson died on August 20, 1903, barely two months away from her 25th birthday. There are no other graves of Williamson family members in Goodman Cemetery.

According to information found at The Donalds of Panola County, Ella Julia Williamson was the daughter of John Poole Donald and Sara Jane Elizabeth Unger. Ella Julia Donald Williamson had two brothers and two sisters. Her sister, Maggie Donald, married W. E. Grandberry. One brother, Donald, died before he was a year old. A second brother, Ira Unger Donald was born July 17, 1880, and another sister, Ruth Augusta Donald was born in Attala County on September 9, 1882. Ruth died on July 10, 1969, and is buried in the Donald family plot, also located in Hillcrest Cemetery in Goodman, Mississippi.

The unique marker for Ella Julia Donald Williamson's grave is constructed of both marble and granite, which adds contrast to its color, and its shape is that of a draped altar. A covered urn sits atop the altar-like monument, and the name "Williamson" is inscribed in large letters on the base.

A complete list of those buried in Goodman Cemetery, including other members of the Donald and Unger families can be found here.

Tombstone Tuesday - Christianna Frederikka Nelson

Located among many old graves in the Goodman Cemetery, Goodman (Holmes County) Mississippi, is the grave of Christiana Frederikka Nelson. According to her grave stone, Christiana was the wife of W. R. Nelson and is buried near her husband, who was also born in Denmark, within the wrought iron fence that surrounds the Nelson family plot. The inscription on Mrs. Nelson's grave stone states that she was born on October 30, 1833 in Levenholm Castle, Ronden, Denmark, and she died on January 25, 1917.

Source: Digital Photo Collection, privately owned by Janice Tracy

The Meriwether Family of MS and KY

Today, while searching for additional information on the Wilds and Meriwether families of Mississippi and Kentucky, I stumbled upon a cemetery listing for the Meriwether Cemetery in Kentucky. Most of the Meriwether family members who died in Kentucky and are buried in this cemetery in Todd County, once lived in Mississippi.

My great-grandmother was Margaret Susanna ("Maggie") Meriwether, and I have been searching for over ten years for information about "Wilds" Meriwether, her father. Although I have not yet solved the mystery, I am certain now of a connection between the Wilds and the Meriwether families. According to the U. S. Census recorded in Mississippi in 1850 and in 1860, the families lived near each other. And as the cemetery transcription found at the link in this post shows, members of each family are buried near each other in the Meriwether Cemetery in Kentucky.

Maybe one day I can be certain that Wilds Meriwether was my paternal great-great-grandfather.