These biographies have been filed alphabetically.

[A] [B] [C] [D] [F] [G] [H] [I] [J] [K] [L] [M] [Mc] [N] [O] [P] [Q] [R] [S] [T] [U] [V] [W] [Y] [Z]

• Biography submittal form.

Biographies on this page
Allison, John
Bailey, James
Bailey, James Spencer
Best, Barry
Best, Lafayette
Brooks, Jesse Alonzo
Chapman, Taylor Richardson
Collins, Crawford
Collins, Elvira White
Fonda, Anthony C.
Gadberry, Charles
Gentry, Jacob Levi
Hamilton, Corene
Hawkins, Felix
Hawkins, John Davis
Herndon, Squire
Hohnes, Dona Pride
Kerr, Mortimer

Allison, John
Born: December 29, 1869, Tippo, Mississippi
Married: 1896,
Spouse: Minnie Holland
Date of Death: November 25, 1942, Tippo, Mississippi
Burial: November 27, 1942, Needmore Cemetery, Tallahatchie County

Biography: John Robert Allison, a planter of Tippo, where he was born December 29, 1869, is a son of James Allison and a grandson of J. P. Allison, the latter a native of Virginia whence he came to Mississippi in young manhood, settling in Attala County, where he was married. He responded to the call for troops by the Confederate government when the country became involved in war in 1861. Other than that, he devoted his life to planting. His first wife bore the maiden name Sarah Overstreet and their children were seven in number, namely: James, Tobe, Joseph William, Thomas, Amanda, the wife of John Md[?], and Elizabeth. The wife and mother passed away and John Allison afterward married Laura Cimes. They had five children, as follows: Harvey, Arch, Lucy, the wife of Ezra Cox; Daisy, who became the wife of Sidney Wolfe; and Annie, the wife of Dock A. Little. James Allison, the father of John Robert Allison, was born in Attala County, Mississippi, in 1849, removed to the Delta in 1857 and for many years was a planter of Tallahatchie County. He married Martha Word, who was born in Alabama in 1845 and who died in 1887.

They were parents of nine children: Ellen, who is the widow of Henry Medlin and resides in Tippo, Mississippi; John Robert whose name introduces this record; James, deceased; Janie, deceased, who was the wife of Walter Dean; Mattie, who has passed away; Ben, also deceased; Joe, and Thomas, who died in childhood; Daisy, whose death likewise occurred in early life. Following the death of his first wife, James Allison married her sister Marjorie Word, and their children were Oscar and Walter, both deceased. His third wife was Ada Turner and they had two sons, Michael, who died in childhood, and Clifton, living in St. Louis, Missouri. The father passed away in 1905. Robert A. Word, grandfather of John R. Allison in the maternal line, was born in Alabama and removed to Mississippi prior to the War Between the States, in which he served as a supporter of the Confederate cause. He was a planter and he married Jane Brownee[?], by whom he had seven children: Martha, Viola, Mollie, Marjorie, Robert Joseph, [and] William. Following the death of his first wife, Robert A. Word married Annie Mounce by whom he had one child, Annabelle, and after the demise of his second wife he wedded Mary Fedric.

John Robert Allison acquired his education in the public schools of Tallahatchie County and in young manhood he began farming on the place which is still his home and where he now lives[. His farm] has about 1200 acres. This he cultivates according to modern methods and is gaining a substantial measure of success. In 1896, Mr. Allison married Minnie Holland, a daughter of Charles Holland, and she died in 1900, leaving a son, Lacy Lee, who married Ida Clair Redding and has one son, James Lacy. In 1901, Mr. Allison married Mrs. Texana (Paul) Parker, a daughter of Wiley Paul. The children of this marriage are, Mose John, who is associated with her father in the operation of a plantation and who married Maxine Collins by whom he has a son, Mose John, Jr., and Joy, who is engaged in merchandising at Tippo. Mr. Allison lost his second wife in 1903 and in 1906 he wedded Ollie Cox, a daughter of Ezra and Lucy (Allison) Cox. Her father was born in Rosebloom, Tallahatchie County, in 1853, and was a son of George Washington Cox, a native of North Carolina, in which state he married a Miss Erquit. Soon afterward, they came to Mississippi, settling at Rosebloom, where Mr. Cox was a planter. To him and his wife were born fourteen children: George Washington, who gave his life in defense of the Confederacy in the Civil War; William Wiley, who was crippled as the result of wounds sustained as a soldier of the Confederate Army; Kit, who also fought with the Southern forces; Mack [or Mark], John Harvey, Millard, Ezra, M. D., Anne, the wife of William Rounsville; Sallie, the wife of Henry Brown; Mrs. Mattie Whitten; [and] Mollie, who became the wife of Addie Allison. Of this family, Ezra Cox, the father of Ollie (Cox) Allison, was born in Rosebloom in 1853 and died in 1903, while his wife was born in Grenada County, Mississippi, in 1872 and died in 1934. He followed farming in Tallahatchie County as his life work and thus he provided for his family, numbering five children: Frances, the wife of Walter Gressett of Meridian, Mississippi; Lucy Mae, the wife of Thomas Little of Tillatoba, Mississippi; Bessie, the wife of F. B. May of Meridian; Corrine, the wife of James Harrison of Houston, Texas; and Jack (Joseph) living in Grand Rapids, Michigan. To John Robert and Ollie (Cox) Allison were born five children: Isabelle, who died at the age of two years; Sammie, who is the wife of Morris Hey of Tippo, Mississippi, and the mother of one child, Sandra; Frances, who lives on her fathers plantation and who is the wife of Joe E. Embry and the mother of one child, Jonelle; Farris, twin of Frances, who is at home; and Johnnie, the wife of Jack Morgan of Tippo, Mississippi. Mr. Allison is a member of the Methodist Church and has taken an active interest in community welfare, serving for eight years as a member of the board of county supervisors. He filled the position from 1912 to 1916 and again from 1924 to 1928 and during the last years was president of the board. During his first term [he] installed a road grader which was first used [for] working on the roads of his district and during his second term in office he began the work of graveling the roads of the district. He has also been chairman of the school board and in other ways has done much to further progress and improvement in Tallahatchie County.

This was taken from the [fourth and final volume of] Mississippi—A History, "A Narrative Historical Edition Preserving the Record of the Growth and Development of the State Together with Genealogical and Memorial Records of Its Prominent Families and Personages." Walter Nesbit Taylor, BS, MA, Supervising Editor, Genealogical and Biographical. George H. Etheridge, Editor and Author, Historical.

Email: [email protected]
Submitted by: David Archie Dickson,
I transcribed the following from the hand-written copy that my maternal grandmother Sammie Rivers Allison Hey had made from the original. The author is unknown; the book bears no copyright information. Careful reading places the date of publication shortly after 1933. My mother, Sandra Hey Dickson, has the first three volumes of the set from which this article is taken. This piece appears in the fourth volume, which my mother unfortunately does not have. I have tried to copy faithfully what my grandmother wrote, but I have changed (and hopefully improved) some of the punctuation and wording to aid readability. In some cases, I was unable to decipher the marks on the pages—mainly due more to the age of the ink and paper than the handwriting. Having read the first three volumes, I can attest to the generally belabored style of the books. Even so, because the information is unique, it is worthwhile reading. I hope you find it interesting.

Bailey, James
Born: 1790, Fayette County, Kentucky
Married: Sept 20, 1809, Logan County, Kentucky
Spouse: Isabella Bailey
Date of Death: Nov 14. 1864, Tallahatchie County
Burial: , Old Pine Hill Cemetery

Biography: In 1833 James & Isabella Bailey moved to MS from Hickman TN with their family of six children. Thomas, Eliza, Emmaline, James Spencer & John M.   James Bailey settled his family in the rich Valley of Tillatoba Creek in the North East section of the newly created County of Tallahatchie. Family traditation preserves the story that James Bailey and his brood were the first family of white settlers with in Tallahatchie Co, Preceded only by a bachelor named Foster who settled there and married an Indian woman. The community which built up & around the Bailey's came to be known as Pine Hill. Pine Hill Presbyterian Church was founded & eventually a cemetery "Old Pine Hill". Isabella Bailey was a fine pioneer woman, a red head & a bright out going personality, full of IrishWit" which son Spencer is said to have inherited from her. Because James & Isabella were first cousins, several family characteristics have been very pronounced: redheads, Irish wit, a dangerious sensitivity to morphine and other drugs, and migraine headaches. Isabella Bailey lost her eyesight from cataracts several years before her death Dec, 7, 1852. She and her husband are buried in the Old Pine Hill Cemetery near the site of their home. James Bailey was very sucessful farmer, he owned large acreage & gave all the advantages of the area and sent his sons back to Kentucky for their education. James Bailey died Nov 14, 1864, at the home of his son, Spencer, at Charleston, MS
Submitted by: Patricia Lucero,
Email: [email protected]

Bailey, James Spencer
Born: Feb 18, 1819, Hickman County, Tennessee
Married: Dec 26, 1846, Jackson Mississippi
Spouse: Sarah Lea
Date of Death: March 25, 1902, Oxford Mississippi
Burial: , Old Masonic Cemetery, Charleston

Biography: James Spencer Bailey was about 13 when the family came to MS. When he was 17 he was sent back to KY to his relatives in Todd Co, for his schooling & read law. He returned & settled in Charleston, which by then was the County seat of Tallahatchie County. He began a law practice & soon turned to politics, being elected in 1843 to the MS. House of Representatives where he was seated in 1844 & served until 1846 & again from 1875 to 1881. In addition to his service in the MS. House he maintained a long list of credits in local & county politics, even through the years of Martial law, occupation and Reconstruction. During the MS Secession convention in Jan 1861, Col. Bailey lobbyed & Politicked against secession, his arguement being the agrarian Southern States would be overwhelmed by industrialized North. After the vote, he retired to his room & slept, exhausted, for about 24 hours & when he woke, he had lost forever most of the sight in his right eye. When war was declared, James Spencer Bailey was elected Colonel of the Tallahatchie County Home Guards. Deemed at 42 too old to take a more active part. He did play an important role in Tallahatchie Co, however. James Spencer & Sarah Lea raised a family of 8 children, 4 boys- 4 girls. Their home in Charleston was on the northeast corner of courthouse square, a big roomy house with porches and lots of space, Col. Bailey's law office a small frame building in a cornor of the lot. When Sarah Lea died Feb.27, 1869 leaving her little children & a bereaved husband. He never remarried, but made his home a haven for all in his family who needed its shelter. All who were in his home were pressed to have a meal, or spend the night, or make a visit for as long as they wished. Court weeks saw all lawyers and judges at his table for meals, and the table was always groaning. Col. Spencer Bailey as he grew older and retired from politics and the practice of law made his home in Oxford most of the time. It was there that he died, after only a few days of illness and because of old age- he remained active, alert, and at himself in spite of his 83 years, only deafness was a handicap. His body was brought to Charleston and buried in the Old Masonic Cemetery beside the wife who had preceded him so many years before.
Submitted by: Patricia Lucero,
Email: [email protected]

Best, Berry Ozro
Born: Aug. 6, 1826., Lauderdale county, Alabama
Married: 12-27-1848, Marshall county, Miss.
Spouse: Martha Elizabeth Narcissa Stephens
Date of Death: May 30, 1901, Near Pope, MS
Burial: unknown, Bethel Cemetery, Teasdale, MS

Biography: Berry Ozro Best was born on the sixth day of August in 1826, in northern Alabama, the County of Lauderdale. The second son of Abijah and Judie Mason Best. He was about eight when the family moved to Marshall County, MS. There he grew up to be a strong-minded and partiotic young man. When the Federal government made a call for volunteers to join the Army and fight in the Mexican-American War, Berry quickly responded. In Vicksburg, he enlisted on June 15, 1846, and was discharged in New Orleans on June 14, 1847. Upon returning home to Marshall County, he married Martha E. Narcissa Stephens. They had eight children: Adelaide, Lafayette Ozro, John Taylor, Walter Robert, Euphemia, Cecelia A., Lelia C., and Romelia.

During the Civil War, Berry enlisted in the 17th MS Infantry where he was assigned to Mozeley's Regiment, Company B. Soon after the war they moved to Teasdale, in Tallahatchie county, where they became well-known, respected members of the farming community. In May of 1901, Berry went to Memphis, TN where he attended a reunion of the United Confederate Veterans. Returning home on May 30, by train, he was killed after a fall from the train just a few miles from his destination. Narcissa, his widow died on July, 16, 1906. Both are buried at Bethel Cemetery in Teasdale.
Submitted by: Donnice Davis,
Email: [email protected]

Best, Lafayette Ozro Sr.
Born: 9-15-1856, Marshall Co. MS
Married: 2-3-1877 , Tallahatchie Co. MS
Spouse: Joanna C. Herndon
Date of Death: May 30,1921, Tallahatchie Co. MS
Burial: , Bethel Cem. in Teasdale, MS

Biography: Lafayette and his wife reared ten children in the county.
1. Lafayette Ozro Jr. 1877-1939. He is buried at Bethel cem. beside his second wife.
2. Walter Best, 1887 d. Dec. 12, 1967.
3. Lillie Best,unknown, married Joe Clarkson,
4. Della Best, unknown
5. Alma Best, d. Dec.25, 1961
6. Effie Best, unknown, married Clyde Williams
7. Otho Best, 5-18-1890, d. 9-3-1977
8. Anthony Best, b. 1896
9. Avnis Best 8-25-1896. He is buried with his wife, Eva Smith in Charleston Cemetery North East Ward.
10. Colie Gadis Best, b. abt 1898 and died abt. 1924 in a T. B. sanatorium near Magee, MS. The information is accurate to the best of my knowledge

Submitted by: Donnice Davis,
Email: [email protected]

Brooks, Jesse Alonzo
Born: September 26, 1901, Webb, Mississippi
Married: February 23, 1920, Millington, Shelby Co., Tenn.
Spouse: Dorothy Ann Katherine James
Date of Death: January 12, 1938, Pago Pago, Western Samona
Burial: at sea, at sea

Biography: Jesse was the son of Thaddeous Alexander Brooks and Susan May Stewart. His parents died when he was young and he was raised by two old-maid aunts. He completed high school and 2 years of theological seminary. He liked sports and mechanics and was musically talented. He was stationed at Millington, Tenn. and was in the Army when his daughter was born; Dorothy Mauree Brooks. He worked on the Panama Canal in 1930. He became a flight engineer for Pan Am and was on the Samoan Clipper when it crashed on January 12, 1938, killing all aboard. His body was never recovered. When Jesse died he was married for the second time and left two young sons.
Submitted by: Joan Walker Gibson,
Email: [email protected]

Chapman, Taylor Richardson
Born: 1837, Maury Co. Tenn.
Married: 12 Feb. 1867, Charleston, Talla. Miss
Spouse: Martha Alabama Roberson
Date of Death: 27 Sep. 1910, Charleston, Talla., Miss.
Burial: , Friendship Baptist Church, Talla. Miss.

Biography: Taylor R.Chapman was born in 1837 in Maury Co. Tenn. Apparently he was left an orphan before the age of 13 because by then he was living with Thompson Fleming in Maury Co. and his brothers and sisters were living nearby in other homes. In 1860, Taylor was living with Lewis D. Fleming in Maury Co. next door to Thompson Fleming. Both the Flemings were quite wealthy. By 1861, Taylor had migrated to Charleston, Tallahatchie Co. Miss and had joined the Tallahatchie Rifles. He was a Private in Co. F 21st Miss Infantry. He served June 25, 1861 to Mar.1, 1865. He was injured (shot) twice during the Civil War and lost the use of his right hand and lower arm. He also served at the Battle of Gettesburg. On the first of July 1875 Taylor purchased eighty acres of land in Talla. Co. In 1882 he was a licentiate preacher for the local Baptist Church. Taylor married Martha Alabama Roberson in 1867 and had nine children: Martha Elizabeth, 1868, Harriet A. 1869, John Abram, 1871, Richard A. (1871-1880)died as a child, Mary M., 1875, Elizabeth Azuba, 1876, Vida Mae, 1880, Ona Alabama, and Sarah Etta 1885.
Submitted by: Kathy A. Coletti,
Email: [email protected]

Collins, Crawford
Born: 1855 (est.) MS
Married: December 26, 1872, Tallahatchie County, MS
Spouse: Elvira White
Date of Death: Between 1927 to 1929 (est.), Charleston, MS
Burial: Charleston, Tallahatchie County, MS

Crawford Collins was born in Mississippi approximately five years before the start of the Civil War. \

Tallahatchie County District #1 – Colored Marriage Records, records the marriage date of Crawford Collins to Elvira White as December 26, 1872. The couple was wed for almost sixty years.

The 1880 U.S. Census, list Crawford and Elvira living on property owned by the infamous Civil War hero, Captain Benjamin Littleton (B.L.) Wynn and his wife Fannie E. (Leigh) Wynn.

Family oral tradition remembers Crawford as a loving and devoted husband to his wife and children. Crawford Collins was proud, honorable man and a hard worker. Crawford and Elvira were the proud parents of nine children. Mary Frances, John Elmore, Joseph Howard, Addie Lou, Lane Lee, Hattie, Aldolphus, Orien, (“Love”) and their youngest child, son Lacy. A couple of their sons worked for a major employer in Charleston during the early 1900’s; the Lamb-Fish Sawmill. Located on the outskirts of Charleston, and opened in 1908, the sawmill/processing plant was reported to be world’s largest producer of hardwood.

For many years, Crawford, worked as a farm laborer in Tallahatchie County. During the later part of his life he relocated his family to Charleston. The 1920 U.S. Census cites Crawford’s occupation as a laborer for a meat company. Family members recall Crawford working for the Fox Meat Co. as a butcher.

Crawford Collins died between 1927 and 1929 and is buried in Tallahatchie County, MS.

Submitted By: Judith Collins
Email: [email protected]

Fonda, Anthony C.
Born: 6 Apr 1818, Albany NY
Married: 1842 and 1854, Charleston, MS
Spouse: Mary Worley; Delilah Catherine Howard
Date of Death: 20 May 1893, near Charleston
Burial:  Rowland Cemetery

Biography:  Anthony Cornelius Fonda graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Union College in Schenectady, NY, in 1839. He practiced law in the area for a few years and then headed south to teach in Natchez. Stopping in Charleston overnight, he never left. He married Mary Worley in 1842, and after her death married Delilah Catherine Howard. He taught school in the Rocky Branch community. In 1853 he was appointed surveyor for Tallahatchie County. He enlisted in the Confederate Army in 1862, joining Company C of the 2nd Paritsan Rangers. In 1882 he became the first Superintendent of Education in the county. He had an active role in organizing three Presbyterian churches--Charleston, Pine Hill and New Hope.
Submitted by: John C. Ottinger,
Email: [email protected]

Gadberry, Charles
Born: , Spartanburg County, SC
Married: ,
Spouse:
Date of Death: ,
Burial: ,

Biography: CHARLES P. GADBERRY was in Spartanburg County, SC according to the 1820 U. S. Census. Around 1825 he came to Yazoo County, Mississippi, with an older brother, WILLIAM P. GADBERRY who was a land speculator. We have the latter's date of birth and death: 1794 in VA - November 27, 1833 Yazoo County. CHARLES P. GADBERRY was a member of the Board of Police in Tallahatchie County in 1843. It appears that he moved or died shortly after his term on the Board of Police.

Submitted by: Harold C. Fisher,
Email: [email protected]

Gentry, Jacob Levi "Jake"
Born: 4 January 1939 - Mississippi
Married: 15 October 1893, Tallahatchie, MS
Spouse: Mary Elizabeth "Mollie" Harbin
Date of Death: April 1939-1940, Paynes, MS
Burial: , Rice cemetery in Paynes, MS

Biography: Jake was born (I think) around 1872-74 and died April of 1939/40 also in Paynes, MS. Buried in Rice Cemetery in Paynes, MS on a hill under a tree, I was told. He married Mary Elizabeth "Mollie" Harbin on 15 October 15, 1893 in Tallahatchie County, MS. She was buried in Magnolia Gardens Cemetery in Paynes, MS.

Submitted by: Sonji Gentry,
Email: sonji [email protected]

Hamilton, Corene
Born: April 5, 1905, Charleston
Married: March 22, 1921, Charleston
Spouse: John Thomas Hamilton (John T)
Date of Death: March 23, 1994, Chicago, Illinois
Burial: March 27, 1994, Mt. Zion Cementary

Biography: Born to Emmaline and Spencer Smith, Corene Smith Hamilton was the mother of 16 children: 5 of whom preceded her in death. She was known as a hard worker and a great mother and grandmother. Upon the death of her daughter Lenell in Chicago, Illinois, she adopted and raised Lenell's two children, Derrick and Denise. Her husband, John T., died in March of 1953. Corene was a faithful member of Mt. Zion M.B. Church.

Submitted by: Derrick Hamilton,
Email: [email protected]

Hawkins, Jr., John Davis
Born: 05 Feb 1821, Franklin Co., NC
Married: 02 Jul 1845, Warren Co., NC
Spouse: Ann Olivia Clark
Date of Death: 04 Apr 1902
Burial: Oakwood Cemetery Winona, MS

John Davis Hawkins, Jr., Episcopalian, graduate of the Univ. NC, journeyed to Tallahatchie Co. with his wife Ann, four children, and 17 slaves, from his father's Spring Groove Estate in NC to purchase Swan Lake Plantation in 1852. Located in Swan Lake , the 1973.30 acres was located at T23R1W, bordered by the Tallahatchie River on the East and including a major portion of the lake � Swan Lake � on the West. The plantation main house was located on Swan Lake road at the junction of the Y & MV rail lines at Swan Lake . The rail junction and its depot were located on the plantation. The last plat was drawn by H. M. Thayer on 24 Aug 1925 and shows the slave cemetery in the Southeast quadrant of Section 9, just SSW of the artesian well and behind a barn (cemetery � 33.8745N/090.2955W per NAD83/WGS84). After the war of Northern aggression, he was a partner in Hawkins & Roberts, Cotton Factors, No. 40 Union Street , New Orleans . The plantation was sold in 1927 after flooding once again destroyed the cotton crop.
Submitted by: Herb Clark
Email: [email protected]

Herndon, Squire
Born: March 9, 1933, Bibb County, Alabama
Married: 2 marriages-see below, Monroe County, Mississippi
Spouse: 1) Sarah Hendricks 2) Nancy Francis Atkins
Date of Death: June 30, 1902, near Enid, Tallahatchie County, Mississippi
Burial: early July 1902, Bethel Cemetery

Biography: Squire Herndon (aka Esquire) was born March 9, 1833 in Bibb County, AL. His mother was Catherine Collier. She married James Herndon, Jr. on July 14, 1802, in Orange County, North Carolina. James Herndon died approx. 1826, and documented local tradition is that Catherine then entered into a liason (unmarried) with Squire Harpole, bearing him two sons, Squire and his brother Carroll Herndon. In 1850 Squire was a laborer employed by John Rotenberry of Bibb County. By 1857, he was in Monroe County, MS where he married his first wife, Sarah Hendricks, on December 20, 1857. On October 1, 1859, Squire and brother Carroll each bought 80 acres of land (next to each other)in Monroe county. Sarah Hendricks Herndon died before 1862, possibly in childbirth. Squire married his second wife, Nancy Frances Atkins on November 1, 1863 in Monroe County. Family lore says this was Nancy's second marriage and her first was to a man named Atkins. By 1880, Squire and his family were living in Tallahatchie County, MS. In 1889 and 1893, he purchased land near Enid (collectively known as "the Langston or Draper place"), where he farmed and lived with his family until his death June 30, 1902. He is buried in Bethel Cemetery, Tallahatchie County. Squire's will left his property and possesions to his widow, Nancy Frances Herndon. Children of Squire Herndon include: Frances Isabella, M. Sue, J. Rellon, Joanna C., Hattie, Ola, Nettie, H.D., John Lewis. Squire's widow, Nancy Frances, died January 14, 1903; she is buried next to her husband in Bethel Cemetery.
Submitted by: Cyndi Curran,
Email: [email protected]

Holmes, Dona Pride
Born: 1864, Pickens County, Alabama
Married: Feb. 4, 1885, Eutaw Alabama in Greene County
Spouse: Pleas Holmes Sr.
Date of Death: November 11, 1929, Glendora Mississippi in Tallahatchie County
Burial: November 1929, Wilson Buried

Biography: Dona Pride Holmes (my great grandmother) and her husband Pleas Holmes Sr. Dona and Pleas were married on February 4, 1885. Their children’s names were Elizabeth Purse Dykes (my grandmother), Priscilla Homes White, Elnora Holmes Sinclair, Emma Holmes, Elijah (Buddy) Holmes, Oscar Holmes, Robert Holmes, Eugene Holmes, James E. Holmes, Mattie Holmes, Phillip Holmes, Nathan Holmes, Ottawa (Sane) Holmes, and Pleas Holmes Jr. (Pleas Jr. was known to play the flute). The children were born and raised in Pickens and Green County, Alabama. Later, they moved to Sumter County, Alabama in an area called Coatopa, which is located in Livingston, Alabama. Dona and Pleas Sr. later moved to Delta Mississippi in an area called Glendora Mississippi in Tallahatchie County.

Twelve of the children moved with them (Priscilla, Elnora, Robert, Mattie, Oscar, Pleas Jr., Eugene, Phillip, Nathan, James, Elijah, and Ottaway). Two of the daughters stayed in Alabama (Emma and Elizabeth).

Dona Pride - Born 1864 in Green or Pickens County, Alabama. Father’s Name - Willie Pride, Mother’s Name - Unknown, Parents came from North Carolina. Dona Pride passed away 1929 in Glendora, Mississippi. Her husband, Pleas Holmes Sr. - Born 1840 in green or Pickens County, Alabama. Parents were from Virginia. Their names are unknown.

Submitted by: Elizabeth Williams,
Email: [email protected]m

Kerr, Mortimer
Born: 1845, York County, South Carolina
Married: 1869 or 1870, Texas?
Spouse: Ruth Caroline Burleson
Date of Death: 1881, Tallahatchie County, Mississippi
Burial: New Hope Cemetery, Tallahatchie County

Biography: Mortimer Kerr was born in 1845 in York County, South Carolina. He was the son of Zenas Dodridge Kerr and Mary E. Suggs. Mortimer moved with his parents and siblings to Lafayette County, Mississippi between 1850 and 1860. Not much is known of his early years, although records indicate that his father had a large estate in Lafayette County and owned slaves. Mortimer married Ruth Caroline "Carrie" Burleson approx. 1870. The exact marriage date and location are unknown, but family researchers have suggested that the marriage took place in Texas. There is also documentation that Carrie was born in Texas, although nothing further is known of her origins at this time. Mortimer and Carrie had three children: John Z., Andrew and Maudie. By the birth of their oldest child, John Z., in 1870, they were living in Tallahatchie County, Mississippi. John's daughter Evie recalled that her father "was raised in sight of New Hope Church." New Hope Church records indicate that Mortimer and his brother Laban Suggs Kerr were Methodist circuit riders and helped to form New Hope Church. Mortimer died in 1881 at the age of 36, from tuberculosis. He is buried in an unmarked grave in new Hope Cemetery, near Tillatoba, Mississippi. Ruth Caroline Burleson Kerr remarried on March 16, 1882 to John C. Calhoun, cousin to the famous senator from South Carolina. No record of her after this second marriage has been found.
Submitted by: Cyndi Curran,
Email: [email protected]

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