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The Elusive Ms. Fannie Pierce (1867 - 1889; 1910 - 1916)
I want to discover evidence of my great-grandmother's life prior to her marriage to my great-grandfather including her parents and whether she had any siblings. I'm also hoping to find evidence of her date of death including where she is buried.
Timeline
abt. 1867 - Fannie Henry or Henyard or White born somewhere in GA (date of birth determined from 1900 and 1910 censuses)
10 Aug 1889 - Frances White, colored, married Cornelius Pierce, colored, in Walton County, GA (Walton County, GA Marriage Index - matches years of marriage from the 1910 census)
20 Feb 1892 Claud Pierce (my g-uncle) born in Watkinsville, GA (World War I Draft Registration Card)
25 Nov 1893 Willie Felton Pierce (g-uncle) born in Watkinsville, GA (World War I Draft Registration Card)
11 May 1895 Roy Pierce born in Watkinsville (g-uncle), GA (World War I Draft Registration Card)
1900 Federal Census - living in Mountain Township, Walton County, Georgia as the wife of Cornelius "PIERCE." Fannie "PIERCE," Black, born Jan 1867, age 33, married 15 years, mother of 10 children, 9 living, born in Georgia, Father born in Georgia, Mother born in Georgia.
The following children are listed with Fannie and Cornelius
Evilela, daughter, born Apr. 1889, age 11 born, Georgia
Mary, daughter, born June 1890, age 9, born Georgia (this is my grandmother)
Claud, son, born Feb 1892, age 8, born Georgia
Effie, daughter, born Dec. 1893, age 6, born Georgia
Felton, son, born Nov. 1896, age 3, born Georgia
Roy, son, born Sept. 1898, age 1, born Georgia
1910 Federal Census - living in Militia Dist. 419, Walton County, Georgia as the wife of Cornelius "PIERCE." Fannie "PIERCE," Mulatto, age 43, married 21 years, mother of 13 children, 8 living, born in Georgia, Father born in Georgia, Mother born in Georgia.
The following children are listed with Fannie and Cornelius
Mary, daughter, age 19, born Georgia (this is my grandmother)
Clara, daughter, age 18, born Georgia
Effie, daughter, age 16, born Georgia
Felton, son, age 13, born Georgia
Carl, son, age 10, born Georgia
Ossie, daughter, age 9, born Gerogia
14 May 1910 - Cornelius Pierce dies (Cornelius' Tombstone + oral history)
1910 - 1916 - Fannie remarries (oral history handed down from my grandmother, Mary Pierce Hosch)
abt 1916 - Fannie dies (oral history handed down from my grandmother, Mary Pierce Hosch)
Additional information handed down
1. Fannie's surname handed down through her daughter Mary, my grandmother, was Henry.
2. From Fannie's daughters Evelina and Ossie, her surname was White, which is what her surname was, as indicated on the Walton County Marriage index, at the time she and Cornelius married.
3. My grandmother, Mary Pierce, always talked about her older sister Mattie, who was a half-sibling. I believe the unaccounted for child / children noted on the 1900 and 1910 censuses is Mattie. Mattie's descendants have always stated that their mother's surname was Henyard, which could be a change / variation of the name Henry or vice versa. If Mattie is Fannie's child, why didn't she live with my great grandparents?
4. My mother recalls that when one of Mattie's children, Ovella, was visiting that upon seeing the picture of Fannie, she said oh there is grandmomma Sanford. Knowing that Fannie remarried after Cornelius' death, we have always assumed that Sanford was her surname after she remarried.
5. My grandmother handed down that one of her grandmother's was 1/2 white and 1/2 indian. Based on the census records, I think I've been able to rule this out for her paternal grandmother, so that only leaves Fannie's mother. Did mtDNA on my mother through ancestry.com and it came back Haplogroup M. When I input the results into Sorenson it comes back L3e but I don't get any matches to mom.
I've searched the 1880 and 1870 census and have not come across any one that I think is a good candidate for being Fannie at a younger age. I've also searched the 1880 and 1900 censuses trying to find Mattie Henyard, but have been unable to locate a Mattie Henyard or a Mattie Henry. By 1910, aunt Mattie had married.
I have also searched Georgia's virtual vault for a death certificate for both Fannie and Mattie. Mattie married Thomas "Tom" Martin and died sometime between 1910 and 1920.
What am I overlooking as far as other documentation?
Timeline
abt. 1867 - Fannie Henry or Henyard or White born somewhere in GA (date of birth determined from 1900 and 1910 censuses)
10 Aug 1889 - Frances White, colored, married Cornelius Pierce, colored, in Walton County, GA (Walton County, GA Marriage Index - matches years of marriage from the 1910 census)
20 Feb 1892 Claud Pierce (my g-uncle) born in Watkinsville, GA (World War I Draft Registration Card)
25 Nov 1893 Willie Felton Pierce (g-uncle) born in Watkinsville, GA (World War I Draft Registration Card)
11 May 1895 Roy Pierce born in Watkinsville (g-uncle), GA (World War I Draft Registration Card)
1900 Federal Census - living in Mountain Township, Walton County, Georgia as the wife of Cornelius "PIERCE." Fannie "PIERCE," Black, born Jan 1867, age 33, married 15 years, mother of 10 children, 9 living, born in Georgia, Father born in Georgia, Mother born in Georgia.
The following children are listed with Fannie and Cornelius
Evilela, daughter, born Apr. 1889, age 11 born, Georgia
Mary, daughter, born June 1890, age 9, born Georgia (this is my grandmother)
Claud, son, born Feb 1892, age 8, born Georgia
Effie, daughter, born Dec. 1893, age 6, born Georgia
Felton, son, born Nov. 1896, age 3, born Georgia
Roy, son, born Sept. 1898, age 1, born Georgia
1910 Federal Census - living in Militia Dist. 419, Walton County, Georgia as the wife of Cornelius "PIERCE." Fannie "PIERCE," Mulatto, age 43, married 21 years, mother of 13 children, 8 living, born in Georgia, Father born in Georgia, Mother born in Georgia.
The following children are listed with Fannie and Cornelius
Mary, daughter, age 19, born Georgia (this is my grandmother)
Clara, daughter, age 18, born Georgia
Effie, daughter, age 16, born Georgia
Felton, son, age 13, born Georgia
Carl, son, age 10, born Georgia
Ossie, daughter, age 9, born Gerogia
14 May 1910 - Cornelius Pierce dies (Cornelius' Tombstone + oral history)
1910 - 1916 - Fannie remarries (oral history handed down from my grandmother, Mary Pierce Hosch)
abt 1916 - Fannie dies (oral history handed down from my grandmother, Mary Pierce Hosch)
Additional information handed down
1. Fannie's surname handed down through her daughter Mary, my grandmother, was Henry.
2. From Fannie's daughters Evelina and Ossie, her surname was White, which is what her surname was, as indicated on the Walton County Marriage index, at the time she and Cornelius married.
3. My grandmother, Mary Pierce, always talked about her older sister Mattie, who was a half-sibling. I believe the unaccounted for child / children noted on the 1900 and 1910 censuses is Mattie. Mattie's descendants have always stated that their mother's surname was Henyard, which could be a change / variation of the name Henry or vice versa. If Mattie is Fannie's child, why didn't she live with my great grandparents?
4. My mother recalls that when one of Mattie's children, Ovella, was visiting that upon seeing the picture of Fannie, she said oh there is grandmomma Sanford. Knowing that Fannie remarried after Cornelius' death, we have always assumed that Sanford was her surname after she remarried.
5. My grandmother handed down that one of her grandmother's was 1/2 white and 1/2 indian. Based on the census records, I think I've been able to rule this out for her paternal grandmother, so that only leaves Fannie's mother. Did mtDNA on my mother through ancestry.com and it came back Haplogroup M. When I input the results into Sorenson it comes back L3e but I don't get any matches to mom.
I've searched the 1880 and 1870 census and have not come across any one that I think is a good candidate for being Fannie at a younger age. I've also searched the 1880 and 1900 censuses trying to find Mattie Henyard, but have been unable to locate a Mattie Henyard or a Mattie Henry. By 1910, aunt Mattie had married.
I have also searched Georgia's virtual vault for a death certificate for both Fannie and Mattie. Mattie married Thomas "Tom" Martin and died sometime between 1910 and 1920.
What am I overlooking as far as other documentation?
Views: 211
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Karyn Van Kainen on
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Hi Mavis!
Well, I thought I'd do some searching and see if I could find anything on your great-grandmother. I did come across this record:
1870 US Census, Subdivision 129, Walton County, Georgia
White, Celie; age 50, b. GA, (white, female), "keeping house," cannot read or write
Mary; age 28, b. GA (black, female), "farm laborer," cannot read or write
Nellie; age 2, b. GA (black, female)
Next door to Celie White:
White, Harriet; age 26, b. GA (black, female), "farm laborer," cannot read or write
Martha; age 3, b. GA (black, female)
Eddie; age 1, b. GA (black, male)
Mary; age 1, b. GA (black female)
Next door to Harriet White:
White, John; age 24, b. GA (black, listed female despite name, error?), “farm laborer,” cannot read or write
Fannie, age 2, b. GA (black, female)
I suspect this is your great-grandma, Fannie. Unfortunately, because of the disparity between “John’s” name and the fact that he/she is recorded as a woman, we can’t be sure which parent Fannie is living with…her mother, or her father. I’m willing to bet it’s her mother, whose name was mis-recorded (my best guess is “Jane,” but of course we can‘t be sure). Aside from the mother-child relationships (Mary to Nellie; Martha to Eddie & Mary; and, “John” to Fannie), there is no way to know whether these women are otherwise related. Celie is old enough to be the mother of the other women, but if the information on this record is accurate (and census-takers were notorious for making a mess of things!) Celie was a white woman. I have my doubts about this, mainly because the record also indicates that Celie could not read or write. Illiteracy among whites was unusual at this time, so it strikes me as odd to see a white woman as a head-of-household that could neither read nor write. It’s not impossible, of course, but in my opinion it draws the record into question in terms of its accuracy.
Your great-grandmother was born just two years after the end of the Civil War…a very tumultuous period, especially in Georgia. The 1870 census was the first attempt to enumerate all citizens, including the newly freed slaves, and I wondered if your great-grandmother’s surname might have been a reflection of the plantation on which her mother and/or father were held prior to the war. Perhaps you’ve already covered this avenue, but here’s what I found:
According to the 1860 US Census Slave Schedule, there is only one slave-owner of the surname White living in Walton county at that time…James R. White. According to the record, James holds the following slaves:
50 yr old female
40 yr old female (right age for Celie)
34 yr old male
20 yr old male
19 yr old female (right age for Mary)
18 yr old male
17 yr old female (right age for Harriet)
16 yr old male
14 yr old male
14 yr old female (right age for “John”)
12 yr old female
10 yr old female
8 yr old female
6 yr old female
2 yr old female
1 yr old male
About James R. White:
1860 US Census, Monroe Post Office, Northern Division, Walton County, Georgia
White, James R., age 51, b. GA (b. abt 1808)
Rhoda, age 43, b. GA (b. abt 1812)
Lucy, age 20, b. GA
William, age 18, b. GA
Andrew, age 15, b. GA
Female (illegible), age 5, b. GA
Other Walton county White’s on this census:
White, Samuel, age 70, b. GA (b. abt 1789), “farmer”
Linsey, age 45, b. NC, “domestic”
Mary, age 6, b. GA
Note: it is unclear if Linsey & Mary are white or black. Since Samuel does not appear on the Slave Schedule as an owner of slaves, they may be relatives of Samuel.
White, R., age 75, b. SC (b. abt 1784), “farmer”
Joyce, age 45, b. GA
Jackson, age 27, b. GA, “farmer”
In my opinion, either James, Samuel and R. White are all brothers, or, more likely, James is the son of one of the two older men. I went back to the 1850 census records to see if I could confirm a relationship between the men. On the 1850 Slave Schedule, the only slave owner with the surname “White” living in Walton county was Benjamin White. The schedule indicates that Benjamin White held the following slaves:
30 yr old male
18 yr old female
18 yr old male
7 yr old female (right age for Harriet, but I think this is a stretch)
5 yr old male
1 yr old male
1850 US Census, Division 88, Walton County, Georgia
Benjamin White, age 59, b. GA (b. abt 1790), “farmer”
Elinder, age 50, b. GA (b. abt 1800)
Mahaley, age 15, b. GA
Ketty, age 13, b. GA
Also living in Division 88 of Walton county are Samuel White and Robert F. White (the “R. White” from the 1860 census). This White family appears to have originated in South Carolina. They are found in Walton county on the 1840 census, on the 1830 & 1820 censuses, and on the 1810 census, it appears they are living in Kershaw, South Carolina. Perhaps, if this is indeed the family that owned your great-grandmother’s parents (perhaps, even, her grandparents), there may be some record of their purchase that might allow you to trace your family’s arrival in America. Looking back on that 1870 census, one wonders what became of the men (including your great-grandma’s father)…did they escape to the north or find refuge somewhere in the west? So many families were split apart during these years.
Here’s a website that might help you in hunting down legal records and, hopefully, find more information on your family: http://www.afrigeneas.com/library/slaves_georgia.html
I hope this helps you in your research!
Karyn
P.S. I kept copies of the census records for you, which I'll upload here. -
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Permalink Reply by Mavis Jones on
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Karyn,
Thanks for taking a stab at it. I do remember seeing that Fannie White on the 1870 census and thought maybe that could be her. Just don't know, wish there was something else to go off of to either confirm or reject. Don't know if she was originally from Walton either. I know my great-grandfather, Cornelius, was originally from Greene county.
Seems like most of my grandmother's cousins that migrated to NC have all turned out to be connected on her dad's, Cornelius Pierce, side. (I've been trying to trace the known NC relatives to try to determine how they were related.) I've got one more set of grandmom's cousins to try to figure out to see if they may possibly be connected on Fannie's side but I don't think they were from Walton County either as I can only track them back to 1900.
Also, At some point in time, I think the Henry is probably a legitimate name. The Henry and Henyard (my grandmother's older half sister) just always seemed too similar to not be.
Once again, thanks for your efforts. -
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Mavis,
Here are the 1860 Slave Schedule, and the 1870 census records.
Karyn -
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Hi Gene
Answers to your questions and an update on what has been going on.
1) I've not checked / double checked all the death certs but here is a breakdown of actual certs plus what has been handed down (grandmom and her siblings)
a) great aunt Evelina's death certificate list her as Fannie White, born in Georgia (informant, her husband Jim Jackson)
b) my grandmother's, Mary, death certicate list her as Fannie Henry, born in Georgia (informant, my grandfather, Lucillous Hosch.
c) No death certificate, yet, for great aunt Ossie but her descendants know her as Fannie White. (the informant should be one of Aunt Ossie's children)
d) The older half sister (suspected child of Fannie), Mattie, died between the 1910 and 1920 censuses. Based on the age of the last child she probably died between 1918 and 1920. Anyway, I've not been able to locate a death certificate but I know that one of Mattie's children knew Fannie as Fannie Sanford.
So that makes 3 different surnames
e) Have requested a copy of the SSN application for great uncle Roy and will request death certificate for great aunt Effie.
f) Don't know what happened to the other two great uncles. Have not been able to locate either one after the 1920 census although my mother remembers Felton coming to NC to visit when she was either a child or young adult. My mother was born in 1928.
2) No reason other than I'm trying to plan a research trip to GA and thought I would get a copy of it then. Since the trip keeps getting postponed, I'll probably see if I can get a copy of it beforehand.
Other Activites
3) Trying to follow one of my grandmother's cousin's, Claude Durden, line to determine how they are connected. Ordered his death certificate and in the waiting mode now. I have been able to trace this cousin's paternal side back to Morgan County. They show up on the 1900 censuses in Walton County about the same time my great grandparents, Cornelius and Fannie do.
4) Looking at Oconee / Clark county, GA areas, again. On their WWI draft registration cards, the 3 great uncles (Claud, Felton, and Roy) all list Watkinsville, GA as their birthplace. Going back through info on my maternal grandfathers side made me realize that it appears folks from some of the surrounding counties came over into Walton County, GA to marry even though they didn't reside there. So, I'm thinking that Cornelius and Fannie may have actually been in the Watkinsville area, got married in Walton and resided in Watkinsville area until moving to Walton County where they show up on the 1900 census.
5) I also continue to look in Greene county as that is where my great grandfather Cornelius was from. -
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