Tombstone Tuesday: Edward Malapart

Edward Malapart, 1899-1962, St. Peter Catholic Church Cemetery, Carencro, Lafayette Parish, La., 19 Nov. 2007.

Edouard or Edward Malapart was the son of my (half-) great-aunt Marie Idalie Legere and her husband, Jean-Louis "Louis" Malapart, of Lafayette Parish, Louisiana.  He was born 25 Aug. 1899 in Lafayette Parish, La. (probably in the Ossun area near Carencro--there's still a Malapart Road there) and died in 1962, though I don't know the exact date.  I don't know if he ever married or had a family; he's listed in the census as a farmer.  Idalie (Eudalie in some records) died in 1901 when her children Edward and Irma (b. abt 1901) were still quite young.

If you're related, drop me a line at the address on my blog.  I'd love to know more about Louis & Idalie Malapart and if any photos of them exist.

Photos/text copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Hurricane Rita, five years later

 Sulphur, Louisiana, Oct. 2005, post-Hurricane Rita. (The tree fell in front of the house, thankfully, not on it.)

As a child, the solemn tones people imparted when speaking the names Audrey, Betsy, Camille no doubt formed my sense of the power of hurricanes at a very early age.  I don't remember how old I was when I learned that I should go into the hall closet and shut the door if a tornado was approaching, or into the hall at the very least, shutting all (wooden) doors behind me so as to be away from all windows.  It just seems like something I always knew, like knowing where to duck at this moment if the earth beneath my feet begins to tremble out here on the West Coast.

No doubt the collective community memory, if not the actual experience, of these storms, saved many lives when people evacuated Southwest Louisiana and Southeast Texas before Hurricane Rita in 2005.  And if stories of dead cows found 20 miles inland where they were pushed by Hurricane Audrey's 1957 storm surge wasn't enough to send residents packing, the still-fresh news footage of Katrina's aftermath to the east should have converted even nonbelievers.

Hurricane Rita hit the Louisiana/Texas border five years ago today.  I was in California worrying about my family back home in Southwest Louisiana and Southeast Texas.  I don't remember ever actually evacuating ahead of a hurricane in the 25 or so years I lived in Louisiana, only battening down the hatches and stocking up on canned goods and such.  But Mom & Dad and other relatives actually got out of town for this storm, even though they live about 40 miles from the Gulf Coast.

Staying away from home for almost 2 weeks was difficult (Calcasieu Parish, my family's home, was officially "closed" due to the lack of electricity in most areas, passable roads and potable water in some.  Cell phones, message boards, and e-mail relayed reports on local damage from those who stayed or sneaked in), though it probably paled to cleaning out the putrid freezers and fridges, everyone's least favorite chore, when they returned. 

My parents were lucky that only a few trees were downed (and fell away from the house instead of on it) and roof shingles damaged.  Many people came home to worse.  Some still have repairs left undone, and others cannot afford to return to the coastal areas due to stringent new building codes and expensive insurance premiums.

Some call this the "forgotten" hurricane, because news coverage of it was much less than for Katrina.  I suspect, however, that Rita and Ike will be the "Audrey" in the minds of my nieces & nephew and their children in the way that Audrey was the cautionary tale for my generation, told by those old enough and lucky enough to have lived through it.

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

(Not So) Wordless Wednesday: Cross Roads champions, an update

Last August, I posted a photo of the 1924 Cross Roads School male basketball team, whose names were not written on the photo.  Here is a possibly clearer version (click to enlarge) and happily, some names to go with it:

Cross Roads Basketball Team, Rural Champions, by Langdon Photo, Claiborne Parish, LA, 1924. Scan of original photograph owned by the Hall family of La., slightly edited for clarity.

Back row, L-R: unknown coach, Isaac "Floyd" McBride, Spurgeon Pate, Ernest Cardwell, unknown coach, unknown man to far right in hat.
Front row, L-R: Cullen Lary, unknown player, Joyce Cowser, Theron Harmon, Simpson Harmon.

Crossroads or Cross Roads is a community near Athens, in Northwest Louisiana.  My grandmother, Edna Maud Pate Stevenson, a teacher, was coach of the girls' team the same year. My mom found a list of names dictated to her by my grandmother many years after the photo above was taken. She had spelled Cullen's name "Leary" but it is "Lary" in the census and Social Security Death Index, and Floyd is "I. Floyd" or "Isaac" in online trees, but another photo of him online confirms that it's him.

My McBrides are from South Louisiana, so I doubt Floyd's a relative.  Spurgeon, however, is a distant cousin of mine through the Pates.  Ernest Cardwell may be a cousin to Georgia Cardwell of the girls' team photo I posted last week, and Joyce Cowser is probably a relative of Sula Cowser on the girls' team.  Theron Harmon is the brother of Winnie Harmon of the girls' team, and also Janie Harmon, a "special friend" (as my mom would say) of my grandfather Alvin Stevenson before my grandmother came along.  Simpson Harmon may be their cousin; he could be the "Harvey S." Harmon in Claiborne Parish in the 1920 census, but I'm not sure.  The other female Harmons are probably cousins as well.

If you have young men or teachers who lived in Ward 6 of Claiborne Parish in the 1920 census, you might check the photo to see if your relative is here.  Let me know if you can add any names to the photo or clarify the relationships.  You can contact me at: hallroots **at** sbcglobal **dot** net.

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Surname Saturday: COTTER, Ga. to La.

Cotter/Pate/Young home, Bienville Parish, La., c. 1959.  Photo by M. Hall, privately held by the Hall family, La.  Built in the mid-1800s, with an addition built c. 1904, it was the home to three generations of Cotter descendants.  The house was located on Hwy. 7, about 3-4 miles south of Ringgold, La., but sadly, no longer exists.

Today we have my COTTER line from my maternal great-grandmother. Corrections, additions, and questions welcomed; this is a work in progress. Numbers refer to ahnentafel (pedigree chart) numbering. Sources available; see my blog for contact info.

(My direct line is in bold; spouses are in bold italic.)

1. Liz HALL (m. MORGAN) - me
3. (living) STEVENSON - Mom
7. Edna Maud PATE (1896-1986)

15. Etta Orisca COTTER.  Born on 19 Mar 1859 in Ringgold, Bienville, LA.  Etta Orisca died in Ringgold, Bienville, LA, on 27 Jun 1937.  Buried in Ringgold, Bienville, LA (Pleasant Grove Cemetery).  On 2 Sep 1886, in Bienville Parish, LA, she married:

14. Newton King Brady or Bradie PATE.  Born on 30 Dec 1852 in Sparta, Bienville, LA (to Anthony William Pate and Emily Lena Smith).  Newton King Bradie ("Newt") died in Ringgold, Bienville, LA, on 15 Mar 1932.  Buried in Ringgold, Bienville, LA (Pleasant Grove Cemetery).  Etta was his third wife (previous marriages were to Mary Elizabeth Jones and Mary E. McGraw).
Children:  Lucy Elizabeth Pate Corley, Minnie Lee Pate Wimberly, Emily Lena Pate Scott, James Weaver Pate, Zella Estella Pate Young Giddens, Edna Maud Pate Stevenson, Ora Adell Pate Woodard, Jasper Brady Pate.

30. William Hadden COTTER.  Born 26 Aug. 1825 in Jefferson County, GA.  William died 23 June 1901 in Ringgold, Bienville, LA.  Buried in Ringgold, Bienville, LA (Providence Cemetery).  On 19 June 1856, in Bienville Parish, LA, he married: 
31. Elizabeth Ann FARISS (or FARESS, FARRIS, etc.), a.k.a. "Queen Ann Elizabeth Fariss" (on her probate record).  Born 5 Mar 1837 (to David Farris and Lucy Davis), "Lizzie" was from Catahoula Parish, LA (possibly her birthplace) and died 22 Feb 1870, in Ringgold, Bienville, LA.  Buried in Ringgold, Bienville, LA (Providence Cemetery).
Children:  William Gordon Cotter, Etta Orisca Cotter Pate, David Augusta Cotter, Lucy Elizabeth Salenah Cotter Tullis.
(William's 2nd marriage was to Sophronia or Saphronia Ann Nix Perkins Simmons, on 6 Apr 1873.)

60. David COTTER.  Born about 1790-1794.  David died before 2 Dec. 1833 in Jefferson County, GA.  Probably between 1810-1820 (2 children were younger than 10 years old in the 1820 census), he married:
61. Mary HADDEN.  Born about 1792 in Louisville, Jefferson, GA (to William Hadden and Mary Gordon).  Mary died after 23 Feb. 1840, possibly in Stewart County, GA (date/place of her 2nd marriage).
Children:  Isaac Cotter, Sarah Jane Cotter Scott, William Hadden Cotter, James Augustus Cotter, Mary David Susan Cotter Crumpton.
(Mary's 2nd marriage was to Samuel Garrett, on 23 Feb 1840 in Stewart County, GA.)

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

"Friend of Friends" Friday: LEGER and other "LE" surnames, SW La.

"A friend of friends" was a password used on the Underground Railroad.  My "Friend of Friends" series was inspired by the essay posted by Sandra Taliaferro here.  I am posting slavery-related records occasionally as I come across them, in the hope that it might help other researchers find their ancestors. For more in the series, click here.

Rev. Donald Hébert's Southwest Louisiana Records series compiles church (mostly, but not exclusively, Catholic) and court records for southwestern parishes of Louisiana. (For tips on using the series, read my previous posts here.)

Volume 33 of the series is a supplement containing records from 1756-1904 not included in previous volumes, corrections, and "records of blacks" [the volume's term, not mine] from 1765-1886.  Hébert says that some records are mixed into the other volumes; check the entire series if you are researching African-Americans (most churches kept separate registers for slaves, which is probably why the records are separated in this volume).  The "records of blacks" section has many records of slaves without surnames, which are alphabetized by first name only, followed by the slaveowner's name.  Entries with surnames may refer to free people of color, slaves, or post-slavery records, depending on the date and the person's status.

I copied a page including Legers from the volume; I don't think they're connected with my Legeres (whose spelling is standardized to "Leger" in these volumes), but maybe it will help someone.  These aren't technically records from slavery, but I include them as they are church records from 1865-1879 and may help those doing African-American research (spellings are as in the book):

from volume 33, p. 223:
LEGER, Alexis (Narcus & Genevieve VALERY) bt. 1866 (CP Ch.: v. 2, p. 43) [Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Church Point, La.]
LEGER, Elizabeth (Michel & Pelcile) bt. 1865 (CP Ch.: v.2, p. 36)
LEGER, Henry (Narcisse & Genevieve VALLERY) bt. 1868 (CP Ch.: v. 2, p. 49)
LEGER, Marie m. 14 April 1879 William NED (GC Ch.: v. 4, p. 313) [St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church, Grand Coteau, La.]
LEGER, Narcise Michel m. 1866 Genevieve VALERY (CP Ch.: v. 2, p. 8)

Other surnames on the page include LEDE (Amelia through Valentin), LEDET (Jean only), LEDOUX (Louis Palemon only), LEIGH (Mrs., slaveowner on Bayou Boeuf), LEJEUNE (Louis only), and LEMELLE (partial, Alphred through Félicité), in records from 1801-1876.  I'm happy to do lookups; just drop me a line w/the given name/s or places for which you're looking at the address at the right side of my blog page under "about me."

p.s.  Some of my ancestors owned slaves, unfortunately.  Fortunately, I don't mind if you see a familiar surname in my blog and want to ask me about it.  I haven't researched all my ancestors' history with (or without) slavery, and I'm a bit new to that area of research, but ask me if you like, I'll look into it.  It's weird, it's awkward, but we can be weird and awkward together, and maybe help each other along the way. 

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Treasure Chest Thursday: Dad's military personnel file, part six

I'm sharing the recently-acquired "official military personnel file" (OMPF) for my dad, a WWII U.S. Naval aviator in the Pacific, a few pages at a time.  Click here to see what I've posted so far, and click on any image to enlarge it.

After training as a U.S. Naval cadet in 1944 in Athens, Ga., St. Louis (where he trained in, among others, Boeing/Stearman biplanes like the one pictured below), and Pensacola, Fla., Dad was appointed as an Ensign in the U.S. Naval Reserve.

 

George Hall, Planes of Fame Air Museum, Chino, Calif., Oct. 2009.  Photo by J. Morgan, privately held by Liz Hall Morgan.

The memo above concerns appointment as an ensign and reporting to the commandant of the Naval Air Training Center in Pensacola, Fla., for further assignments.  Dad's cohorts at the time included Arthur Dale Gripton, Robert Watrous Guernsey, Jerauld Anthony Gunzelman and Raymond Joseph Happley.

 

Above is the acceptance and oath of office, dated June 23, 1944.  Dad's oath: "I, George Constant Hall, having been appointed an Ensign, U.S. Naval Reserve, do hereby accept such appointment and do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter: So help me God."

 

Dad's official notice of his new designation, "Naval Aviator (Heavier-than-Air)."  (Meaning he is qualified to fly airplanes, as opposed to balloons or dirigibles, at least according to Wikipedia.)

Find out more about requesting military personnel files here.
Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

(Not So) Wordless Wednesday: an update

Cross Roads Basketball Team, Rural Champions, by Langdon Photo, Claiborne Parish, LA, 1924. Photograph privately held by the Hall family, La., edited slightly.

Update:  My mom found a list of names dictated to her by Grandmother many years after the photo above was taken.  Remarkably, in searching online to verify identities, it seems correct.  Kudos to Grandmother for her keen memory & Mom for the list.  I give you the 1924 Rural Champions and their eventual husbands:

Front row, L-R: Irene Harmon (m. Justin Caskey), Bertha Harmon (m. Lamar Nicholson), Winnie Harmon (m. C. Hicks), Georgia Cardwell (m. Ike Gore), Vera Stevenson (m. Lenton P. "Pete" Frye).

Back row, L-R: Edna Pate (m. Alvin Stevenson), Sula Cowser (m. Howard Barber), Katie Bell Craighead (m. Terry? Gamble), Myrtie White (m. Chelcy Blagg), Mrs. Dave Tarpley [née Willye Lee Kimbell], Principal.

Cross Roads is a community about 3 miles east of Athens, Louisiana.  My grandmother Edna Maud Pate, teacher and team coach, is in the hat on the left. (She knew nothing about basketball but learned the rules when she was asked to coach the girls.) My great-aunt Vera Stevenson is sitting on the right in front. I don't know the identity of the others. Edna & Vera became sisters-in-law a couple of years later, when Edna married Vera's brother Alvin Jasper Stevenson. 

See the updated boys' team photo, which includes members of the Harmon, Cardwell & Cowser families, here.

Copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Tombstone Tuesday: Anthony & Emily Lena (Smith) Pate

Headstone of Anthony W. and Emily (Smith) Pate, Bistineau Cemetery, Bienville Parish, Louisiana*, February, 2005.  Digital photo copyright 2010 by and courtesy of J. Marler, all rights reserved. (Click on the photo to enlarge it.)

Anthony William Pate and Emily Lena Smith (possibly Lena Emily Smith) are my great-great-grandparents, the grandparents of my maternal grandmother Edna Maud Pate Stevenson.

Anthony, a farmer, was born to Mr. & Mrs. Willeroy Pate (her maiden name is unknown) on 11 Jun. 1812 in Smith or Jackson County, Tenn.  Emily was born to Mr. & Mrs. [Samuel?] Smith on 25 Jan. 1824 in Arkansas.  The couple was married by 1841.  They are found in census records in Claiborne Parish, La., in 1850 (and possibly 1840, though there is another Anthony Pate family who lived in Claiborne Parish) and had moved to Bienville Parish by or before 1880.  Anthony died in Heflin, Webster, La., on 13 Jul. 1894.  Emily died in Bienville Parish, La., on 11 Apr. 1896.

Their children were: Leroy Pate, Mary Elizabeth Pate Harper, Serena Pate McFarland, Jasper Grady Pate, Margaret Josephine Pate Davis, Newton King Brady Pate (my great-grandfather), Anthony D. Pate, May R. Pate Hand, Martha G. Pate, Wilberoy S. Pate, and Jerome B. Pate.

To see my entire Pate line and a photo of siblings Newt and Serena, click here.  For more on my Pate line and other Pate families, see the late Jinks Pate Lee's website here.

Questions: Where did they live between 1850 & 1880? [No, I don't think Anthony in the census in Arkansas is "our" Anthony.]  Mr. Smith [Samuel?] and his wife were born in Maryland, according to Emily's 1880 census entry, and she was born in Arkansas.  Anyone out there have a Samuel Smith or other Smith born (roughly) about 1800 in Maryland who lived in Arkansas? What was Willeroy Pate's wife's name?  See "about me" on the right side of my blog for my e-mail address.  Thanks!

*Note: Bistineau Baptist Church & Bistineau Cemetery's address is Heflin, La. (in Webster Parish), but according to Find A Grave, the cemetery's physical location, near the parish line, is in Bienville Parish.

Text copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.

Tombstone Tuesday: James McCoy

Headstone of James McCoy (1841-1906) and half-brother Alexander McCoy (1856-1893), Wilmington and Brandywine Cemetery, Wilmington, Delaware, Nov. 2009.  Digital photo courtesy of J. Marler, all rights reserved.  (The reverse side of the stone, here, memorializes their parents.)

James McCoy was my great-great-grandfather and one of my few "Yankee" ancestors (among those born in the United States -- most are from so deep in the Deep South that Delaware seems like the frozen North in comparison).  A cabinetmaker and thread-mill worker born in Wilmington, Delaware about 1841, James moved to Louisiana between 1865 and 1871 to work as a supervisor of a cotton-thread mill in Arizona, a small community near Homer in Claiborne Parish.  (I'm fairly sure he served as a Union soldier for Delaware in the Civil War.  Wonder if he mentioned that to any of his Louisiana acquaintances?)

He married Rebecca Jane Harrell and had two children, including my great-grandmother Maggie Elizabeth McCoy Stevenson.  The family is listed in the 1880 census in Lincoln Parish, La.  Some time after Jane's death in 1881, he either returned to Delaware to live or was simply visiting family when he died there on Jan. 26, 1906.

If anyone has more info on where James lived during his life, his wife Rebecca Jane Harrell's burial place, or what happened to their son "N.," who disappears after the 1880 census (I'm guessing he died young), please e-mail me at hallroots (at) sbcglobal (dot) net.  Thanks!

Text copyright 2010 by Liz Hall Morgan, all rights reserved.