Sports Center Saturday - Soapbox Derby

Two sets of cousins are in this picture, getting ready for the Soapbox derby.  Warren Hendrix Garner is driving the car.  Cheering him on are (l-r) Charlie Garner, Bill Floyd, Ed Floyd, Bobby Garner and Jim Garner.  The photo will have been taken about July 1938.  Warren won the regional competition in Athens, GA and competed in the State-level races at the end of that month. 

Tombstone Tuesday - Washington Horne

 

The tombstone in the top photo and the grave in the picture below are about all that is left in the Horne family cemetery.  The tombstone is reportedly not the original one but was put up during an effort to commemorate Confederate veterans.  Unfortunately, a road now goes right through that area and these are practically in the ditch.  There is the sign, the one tombstone, and one grave slab.  I was only able to find it because an elderly relative showed me where it was.  

A New Beginning

As of this month, the University of Georgia system is taking over the Georgia Archives.  This has seemed like a good decision since it was announced, but today they verified it.  As of 31 July, the Archives will be open 4 days per week rather than 2. 

I checked out their new website today as well.  They apologized for broken links but in my brief look at it, I didn't find any.  So far it is pretty well just capturing all the previous links, but hopefully the university system will bring some innovation to it as they get settled in.  I'm optimistic about a bright future for Georgia research. 

The Confusion of Family Connections

Almost every line of my mother's family have been in Crawford County, GA since the 1830s.  This of course means that over the years, different members of the family have interacted with each other in good and bad ways.  One of the challenges for me is to remember that these exchanges are not always anything more than neighbors interacting with each other, and that it is purely coincidental that their great-grandchildren married.  On the other hand, sometimes it really does indicate a connection between the families. It's hard when the names are so familiar to you to sometimes recognize the difference.

For example:  In November 1843 - Thomas S. Estis brought a case against John Perry, Abel Daniel & Thomas Stripling.  The verdict was listed as "debt & confession for plaintiff for $94.46".  The defendant (John Perry) being dissatisfied with the confession, paid all costs and demanded a stay of execution & brought Nimrod Lewis & tendered him as security.   John Perry's great grandson Frank Becham married Lewis's great-great-granddaughter Viola Wade.  Since I spend so much time on both men, I had to remind myself that this 1843 connection was that of neighbors, not family. 

On the other hand, In January 1900, M. T. (Moses Thomas) Wade accused Emanuel Horne of stealing $140 from him.  Horne was arrested and offered to return the money if charges were not pressed.  Wade agreed, but the court did not and ordered that the case proceed anyway.  The newspaper did not give the final verdict.   I had at first put this one down to coincidence, but then remembered that Wade's son Ed Wade was married to Horne's sister Carrie.  While this probably didn't affect the original robbery, it may well have been a factor in Wade's willingness to drop the charges.

Fate Becham and his Sons

The men of the Fate Becham family got together for this photo about 1918.  The photo was taken as part of a Baptist Men's association, so Fate's wife Delia (Sarah Lodelia Mathews Becham) and his daughter Lucile were not included.

Franklin Lafayette "Fate" Becham, 1871-1958, is in the center.  Fate was a potter and farmer in Crawford County, GA.  One of his pots is in the Smithsonian American Art Museum as part of the folk art collection.  None of his sons followed him into the pottery business, but several of them were involved in construction.

On the far left is Edgar, 1908-1936, who died young of cancer.  In 1930, he is listed as a house painter, but not working.    Edgar married Verlin Hutto in April 1936, just prior to his death in September of the same year.  He had no children.

In the middle of the front row is Walker Becham, 1910-1987.  Walker served in the army from 1943-1945.  Prior to that he had been working as an "attendant" in Montgomery, Alabama, where he met and married Gladys Johnson.  Shortly after the war, they returned to Macon, GA where they remained and where he worked as a carpenter.  They had no children.

The man in the sailor uniform is Frank Jones Becham, 1897-1985.  The fact that he is in uniform dates the picture to 1918-1920.  He enlisted at the very tail end of WWI, serving out of Charleston.  After getting out, he married Ola Pauline Bryant, mother of his 5 oldest children.  They lived briefly in Charleston before settling back into Crawford County.  Ola died with the birth of the youngest child in 1929 and in 1932 he married Viola Elizabeth "Vicky" Wade, by whom he had three more children. He worked in construction his entire life.

Back row left:  Washington Perry Becham (1899-1974) never married and lived in the family home his entire life.  When I asked his niece, my mother, once what he did, her response was "as little as possible."   He was named after his two grandfathers, Washington Becham and John Perry.  On his father's death, he inherited all the property with the request (not stipulation) that he look after his mother.  He did in fact do that, living together with her until her death in 1965.   He never married and never had children.

Back Center is Henry Lafayette Becham (1901-1989)  twin brother to the missing Lucile.   He married Edith Williamson and they lived their entire life in Crawford County, raising two children there.  Henry started out as a house painter, but by 1930 and into 1940 was a truck driver for a gasoline company. 

Back row right is James Alfred Becham (1904-1971).  Jim joined the Navy and was sent out to California, where he married Cecelia Laing.  They had one son.   After probably divorcing, Jim returned briefly to Crawford county, but was then called back into the service in WWII.  Afterwards he again came back to Crawford County.

It's interesting that Fate had all these boys, but only had 4 Becham grandsons (Frank's two sons, Jim's son and Henry's son), two great grandsons and so far only has one known great great grandson with the name.

Amanuensis Monday - J.G. Braswell petition

Georgia, Crawford County
To The Honorable J.N. Mathews, Ordinary of said County
     The petition of J.G. Braswell shows that he is the father of Dock Braswell of said county.  That said Dock Braswell is illegally restrained of his liberty by R. C. Aultman and petitioner shows that said imprisonment is illegal because said warrant is in possession of R. C. Aultman that copy of process is not attached.

1st Because the said R. C. Aultman is not an officer legally authorized to arrest

2nd That said Aultman has not given bond as required by the code section 355 which requires that all deputy Sheriffs shall give bond with security before they can be deputized to execute any process

Wherefore petitioner prays that writ of Habies Corpus do issue

[Signed] W. J. Wallace
R. D. Smith
Petitioners Atty

Georgia Crawford County
      Personally appeared J. G. Braswell who on oath says that the facts contained in said petition are true & he fears that the said Dock Braswell will be removed beyond the limits of the County.

                                                                                                           



                                                                                                              his
                                                                                                    J.G.  X Braswell
                                                                                                              mark
                                         Sworn to and subscribed before me this 8th day of April 
                                                                                                 J. N. Mathews, Ordy

Georgia Crawford County
    To R. C. Aultman  you are hereby commanded to produce the body of Dock Braswell alledged to be illegally restrained by you together with the cause of such detention before me at 2 oclock April 8th 1896 to be there delt with as the law directs

[signed] J. N. Mathews, Ordy


Georgia Crawford County
J. G. Braswell }
    vs                }   Habeus Corpus
R. C. Aultman}   Before Hon J.N. Mathews Ordinary
   And now comes petitioner in above stated case & for amendment says

1st That the said Dock Braswell is not Guilty of the Offense charged in the Warrant which the said Dock Braswell has been arrested

     [Signed]         A.J. Danielly
                         W. J. Wallace
                         R. D. Smith
                         Petitioners atty

J. G. Braswell }
    vs                }    Habeus Corpus                           

R. C. Aultman}    Before J.N. Mathews Ordinary

This case coming on for a hearing and the court having heard the evidence and argument of counsel & the same matter having been past on by the court & the [?]-discharged on the 8th day of April it is ordered by the court that the warrant be dismissed & the defendant discharged & the said R.C. Aultman be taxed with the cost of this proceeding this 13th day of April 1896.
        [signed] J. N. Mathews, Ordy

 Recorded this 13th day of April 1896

Sports Center Saturday - The Hendrix sisters and Women's Basketball

North Georgia Agricultural College Women's basketball team (and coach) about 1914.  The two women in front are sisters Mattie Hendrix (later Garner) and Maude Hendrix (later Floyd).  The coach was Maude's future husband, and professor at the college, Ed Floyd.  I particularly love this picture because it validates my grandmother's stories of having played basketball in college and of doing so in bloomers.