Berry Plantation Cemetery

When the Genealogical Society prepared the Coweta County Cemetery Book in the 1980's, they only knew of one grave in the cemetery. They called it the Cole Street Cemetery because no one came forward with any other information. Cynthia Rosers put some questions on the internet and we now have more info on the Burch Family.


Background on Burch family

Abner Robert Burch was born in March 1848 in Virginia. He was possibly the slave of Robert Simms Burch who lived in Coweta County in 1835. Robert. Burch is shown in the 1859 census as owning 19 slaves and in 1855 had 25. He was a lawyer and lived in Newnan, the 5th District.

Eliza E. Smith Burch was born in February 1848 in Georgia, the daughter of George and Isabella Smith. It is possible they were slaves of Dr. Ira Smith, an early Coweta County settler from Virginia who, in 1850, owned 54 slaves. George and Isabella had five children; Eliza, Ira, Walter, Fannie and Georgia.

Abner and Eliza were married in April 1866. Charlie was the second son of Abner and Eliza. According to the 1870 Census, their eldest son, George, was born in 1867. In the 1880 Census he was listed as being a railroad postal clerk. He went to Atlanta University and married Elizabeth Cox in 1893. They lived in Fulton County. Abner and Eliza raised a second child, Wilburn (Bud) Gay. In the Census of 1870, Abner was listed as a cook and Eliza as a housekeeper. In 1887 Abner established a restaurant on E. Broad Street. He later gave Bud an interest in the restaurant and it became one of Newnan's most popular eating places well into the 1930's.

Abner and Eliza owned a large piece of property between Savannah and Burch Streets in the Chalk Level community of Newnan. The house faced Burch Street and, at one time, there was a road from Burch Street to the cemetery. Abner and Eliza were respected and prominent citizens in Newnan having large property holdings and being committed church members and contributors or the community. There is no record of either Abner or Eliza's death or place of burial. A deed dated 1911 shows George to be A. R. Burch's sole heir and family history relates that Eliza died shortly after Abner.

Slave Cemetery Discovered in South

By Oliver Yates Libaw
Oct. 25
The solitary headstone of 3-month-old Charlie Burch was the only visible evidence hinting at a burial ground for more than 200 slaves hidden beneath a poison ivy-covered field on a hill in Newnan, Ga.

And it might have stayed that way if a group of African-American women and a society that takes its name from a Confederate Army hero hadn’t united to save the site when local officials proposed putting a recreational path through the field.

Prompted by the groups and encouraged by residents’ memories of the burial ground, archaeologists and researchers moved in and now believe the site is the largest known slave cemetery in the South. Shaded by trees, the hill in a residential district is now dotted with surveying markers and 249 orange flags identifying the likely locations of bodies buried in the field. “A lot people have always known about it,” says Ellen Ehrenhard, an archaeologist and director of the local historical society. But she said it took the city’s plan to build a network of walking trails, including one that would have passed through the cemetery field, to galvanize the groups to action. City officials have now shelved the plans.

“We want the young people here to grow up with a sense of pride in their community and in their culture, be they black or white,” said Diane Webb.

Webb is a member of the Order of Robert E. Lee, the ladies’ auxiliary group of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, a Southern heritage organization that holds that Confederate leaders fought to preserve “liberty and freedom” in the Civil War.

They are working with a local African-American women’s heritage group, and other organizations to preserve the site

“We’re all here together. We’re one community,” Webb stressed.

Cotton Boom Boosted Population During the 19th century, Newnan’s population was roughly 50 percent black, as the booming cotton trade increased the demand for labor. An 1828 map shows the burial grounds were adjacent to property owned by slaveowner Andrew Berry.

The grounds most likely became a cemetery for slaves working in houses and businesses, Ehrenhard believes. The graves are arranged in clusters, perhaps indicating family groups.

Bob Olmstead, a local resident who has long believed the site was a slave cemetery, led the push to preserve the site.

“There has been no black history in Newnan until now,” said Olmstead, who is white.

Olmstead hopes the site will eventually become one of the 72,000 sites listed with the National Register, and preserved as a piece of Southern history.

Slaves were commonly buried in simple pine boxes or shrouds on the plantations of their owners, said Josh Rothman, a history professor at the University of Alabama. They were often identified only by wooden markers or stones, and careful records were seldom kept.

In 1991, some 420 skeletons of slaves were found in New York City, the largest such cemetery known.

Archaeologists at the University of Tuscaloosa have agreed to exhume two graves at the Newnan cemetery and perform DNA tests to determine the origins of the remains.

Alan Wang of ABCNEWS affiliate WSB in Atlanta contributed to this report.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=95256&page=1

(The site didn't tell what year and it was before my time (I started volunteering in May 2003) Dianne Wood

Relatives of Charlie Burch visit Museum again

Burch relative visits museum again today. Beverly Franks, the great great neice of Charlie Burch (the only person of 250 in the Farmer St Cemetery who has a tombstone)comes down from Atlanta to check on the Farmer Street Cemetery.
She enjoyed a tour of the museum and told me more information about the family history. She came down five years ago to talk to Cynthia Rosers about the family. I had already read the research began by Helen Bowles but had not delved into the family history of the Burch and Cox families.
Will keep you updated when I finish reading the large file.

From Philly and back, Ancestors abound

Bernice Nicholson Crumbley grew up in South Carolina but ended up in Phily. Her father Garlington Nicholson born 1891 married Leila Adams. We found Garlington's World War One Draft Card Registration online. We also found him with his parents Hill (1870) and wife Mollie (1873) on the 1900, 1910 and 1920 Census for Edgefield County SC Census'. Then we found Hill on the 1880 Edgefield Co Census with his mother Nancy born about 1840. Mrs. Bernice was so excited to find information about her great grandparents.

Leila Adams' parents were Prince (1871) and Clara Stevens Childs (1864) on the 1900 Edgefield Co Census. Clara was born a Stevens but we could not find anymore info on her.

Then we went on to her husbands side of the family tree. Bernice married Joseph (1924)Crumbley in 1946. His parents were in Phily in 1930: Jackson (1903 Georgia) and Lenora (1906)Blount Crumbley. Jackson was one of the youngest children of Porter Crumbley and Savannah both born about 1860 in Burke County Georgia. Unfortunately Porter was a farm hand in the house of Rins Johnson in 1870 so we may never know his parents because he was not living with them. Bernice says there are not many "older generation" folks left to ask, maybe none. There was an Edward Crumley in the same county in 1870, was Edward who was born about 1820 his father, is he the son of two slaves or was Porter not born in Georgia as he stated on five different census'?

If you have any info on any of these families please email me or leave a message here.

Visitors from New Jersey research family history

Melissa Barnes and her son Jarret Brown come to Coweta for the Meriwether-Harmon Family Reunion. Cousin Celeste Ann Harmon Ogletree brought them to the Museum so they could both find more information on their family for the reunion.

Their family ties include Harmon, Meriwether, Johnson, Orr, Barnes, Geter, Prather, Thomas, Newson, Hill and Burkes.

If anyone also ties to these families please email or call me so I can help you tie into them.

"Jarett was so proud of his 'new' Museum T-shirt that he wore it for a few days!

Colored Scouts Celebrate Scouting Anniversary, 1941

A look back in the News:
The Newnan Herald Feb 27, 1941
COLORED SCOUTS SHOW INTEREST AT MEETINGS

Our last program celebrating Boy Scout Week ended Sunday, with an anniversary sermon preached by Rev. Griggs. The theme was “What Shall I Do For My Son?. The patrols had their exhibits of things made by the members of their patrol. On Friday at our program service at school we were favord with a very inspiring speech by Colonel Sanders. Last Wednesday night Scoutmaster King and the following scouts went on a trip to Senoia GA: Walker Brown, Wilbur Clay, Oliver Newell and Carlton Flemmings. They enjoyed the trip and found much pleasure in helping these boys pass their requirements. We also thank the P.T.A. for sponsoring the Valentine Party for the benifet of the Boy Scouts. Our financial campaign will end Sunday at the Savannah St High School. There will be visiting Troops from Grantville, Senoia, Moreland and Newnan at large. If there are any services we can render don’t fail to notify us as we are ready with a smile. Boys hurry and get your required fee (50cents) before March 17. Walter Williams, Troop Scribe

Matilda Evans, First African American Surgeon in South Carolina

http://www.aaregistry.com/detail.php?id=1547 
June 23rd, On this date we celebrate the birth of Matilda Arabelle Evans, in 1872. She was an African-American Surgeon.

The oldest of three children born to Harriet and Andy Evans, Matilda was from Aiken County, South Carolina. As a student at the Scholfield Normal and Industrial School, she became a protégé of the school's founder, Martha Scholfield, an outstanding educator. Evans attended Oberlin College in Ohio before enrolling at the Women's Medical College of Pennsylvania to earn a medical degree. She then returned to South Carolina to practice surgery, gynecology, and obstetrics. Evans opened her medical practice in Columbia, which, at that time, offered no hospital facilities for African-American people.

With a generosity that was typical of her, Evans took patients into her own home until she could establish a hospital for them. In 1901, she established the Taylor Lane Hospital, both a hospital and a training school for nurses. The hospital was later destroyed by fire that led to another hospital before moving to a larger facility, which was named the St. Luke's Hospital and Training School for Nurses. In 1918, she became a registered volunteer in the Medical Service Corps of the United States Army. She also founded the Good Health Association of South Carolina to help convince people that they could improve their own health by following sound health practices and safe sanitary habits Charity, compassion and a love of children were the hallmarks of Dr. Evans' career; which was earmarked as she charged only nominal fees. She rode bicycles, horses and buggies to visit the sick that were unable to go to her surgery. She provided for school physical examinations and immunizations, which saved the lives of countless young children and in 1930, operated a clinic that was free for Black children who needed medical treatment and vaccinations. Incredibly, Evans found the time to raise 11 children who needed a home.

In addition to becoming a "mother" to some of the children who were left at her practice, she brought up five children from relatives who had died. She taught the children respect, cleanliness and manners, and provided them all with the opportunity for a college education. People, both young and old, enjoyed the facilities that she shared at a recreational center which she developed on her twenty-acre farm. Evans was an active member of St. Luke's Episcopal Church and she loved to swim, dance, knit and play the piano. Richland Memorial Hospital in Columbia has named an award in her honor.

The first African-American woman to be licensed as a physician in South Carolina, Matilda Evans died in 1935.

Reference: African Americans and South Carolina: History, Politics and Culture Dr. Phebe Davidson, University of South Carolina-Aiken
Samuel A. Jones, Jr., Events Coordinator

http://www.aetna.com/foundation/aahcalendar/1985evans.html

http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst;jsessionid=LmZGKnDLl9k8lvQXbdJxyS6nhpQyjH7LjJrN91RM4JyvcKkmwhbt!-1469840406?docId=5005987449

https://www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/aframsurgeons/morenotable.html

All the way from England

Today Wed 21st, 2008, I enjoyed my short time with Mr & Mrs Steve Williams. They are touring parts of the South. I am so glad they ended up in Newnan and in the Museum. They told me that Liverpool and Bristol were began as port for mainly the slave trade.
We discussed lots of interesting things. But also the fact that Jamacians began to re-integrate England in the 1940's and later. They were taught that England was their motherland, but when they moved there, there were many places that had signs "No blacks allowed".
So they could not even find a place to spend the night in their HOMELAND. Also that the first Director of the museum's mother is from Jamacia and that Cynthia is now doing short films for the BBC about Jamacians who moved to England. Tracing their families now back to Jamacia is the ultimate goal.

Journalist from Denmark visit Coweta

Thanks to the jounalists for visiting the Museum on the 12th of May, 2008! Their ideas from places outside the US was very enlightening. They are here to cover the election from Coweta's point of view. As you know you do not talk politics at a non-profit place. So conversations on that point was limited. They did enjoy the tour of the museum and my stories of black history here. I told them more places to see and people to talk to including Sarah Thomas and Josephine Rush Whatley.

Miss Willie Boyd, educator, active in Coweta's communities

Picture is from the late 1950's or 1960's

Miss Willie Boyd was a member at Mount Vernon Baptist church on Pinson Street in Newnan GA. She graduated from Fort Valley State and New York State University. She was an educator who taught for 41 years in the Coweta County Schools. She was the first black person elected to the Coweta County Board of Education. She was involved with numerous civics and religious organizations. She was the past chairperson of the Program and Legislative Committees of the Coweta County Association of Retired Educators, secretary and treasurer of the Ladies Cooperative Club and a member of the Board of Directors of the Pine Valley Girl Scouts. She was a devoted member of Mount Vernon where she headed the Missionary Board, Deaconess Board, Youth Commission and Mothers Board.

I want to thank Harvey Elom for information and pictures of Miss Boyd.

HAMILTON BOHANNON, singer, musician

Bohannon, as he is known in the profession, is from Newnan GA.

He was awarded "The Man of Motown" in 2003.
From 1974 to 1983, Bohannon achieved 19 charted Billboard singles and amassed 20 albums to his credit. Hits include "Foot Stompin' Music," his first charted single. "South African Man," inspired by Bohannon's conversations with the late Marvin Gaye; international hit "Let's Start the Dance" and subsequent versions; "Keep on Dancing" and "Disco Stomp". "Bohannan's Beat" reflected his desire to creat upbeat, happy and rhythmical music that would "inspire people to have a good time." "Truck Stop" has a "funky feel," while he shops a mellow side in "Have a Good Day."
In 1975, Bohannon, was the first artist since The Beatles in the 1960s to achieve two Top 10 pop songs -- "Foot Stompin' Music" and "Disco Stomp" -- on the UK charts at the same time. Prior to achieving success on his own, the Central High School graduate earned a musical education from Clark Atlanta University and taught school at East Depot in LaGrange.

Some Hogansville History

In Hogansville around 1880, there were two blacksmith’s shops, run by two black men, Billie Martin and Oliver Phillips. There were also two wood shops, one owned by C R Phillips and the other by W. J. Prather. There was a shoe shop ran by Uncle Nat Epps.

In Hogansville around 1890, there was a black Postmaster by the name of John Clopton. He bought, from P. O. Whitaker, the building where the Hogansville Cleaners now stands now and he ran a restaurant in the back part of the building. Clopton also owned the various other properties around Hogansville, which was very rare for a black man in the area.

Willis Hatton who was the first black funeral director in Hogansville owned the land on which the first funeral home was built and also the land on which the first unit of the Masonic Building was located on West Main Street. He also owned a large farm and home near Hogansville and extensive property in the black community.

Isaac Loftin was the second black Postmaster in Hogansville; he served in the administration of William McKinley.

Seborn “Sonny” Johnson was a rock mason. Charlie Mobley, Garland Byrd and Charles Thrash were brick masons. John Wilkins, Gilbert Lakes and James Sanders were builders and carpenters. Sulay Bryant was the only plasterer in town. Many homes and building in Hogansville attest to the skill of these men.

Ed Shank was the first black undertaker in Hogansville; he also operated a barbershop in the Hatton Building.

Pearl Herndon had a restaurant famous for its soul food. Downstairs was a well-known recreation room, which served as a black nightclub, very popular with the young and the young at heart.

The next funeral home was Hatton and Thrash, John and Willis. Willis Hatton was wealthy, owning much property in West End of Hogansville and out in the county.

Buddy Green owned a grocery store on Lee Street for many years. Mr. W. D. Woodall, who had been a teacher went to California but returned to open a general store in what is part of Thrash Funeral Home now.

The earliest black school was in the vicinity of St Mary Church. Mr. M. Parks was an early superintendent in the 20’s and early 30’s. In the 30’s a four-room school was built by the WPA labor when E.R. Wilburn was principal. Later a vocational building was added and Mr. J. C. King came as Vocational-Agriculture teacher. There were three rooms and a shop in this building.

COWETA'S SCHOOL HISTORY

McClelland Academy was established by the Board of Missions of the Presbyterian Church USA about 1903 to 1936. A private Parochial school, they didn’t get support from Coweta or the state. Rev. Franklin Gregg was principal, Rev. Miller and Rev Glen were there early. The school boasted of at least 400 students from all over the county.

In approximately 1906, Pinson Street School consisted of one large wooden building heated by several pot-bellied stoves. Due to the rise in the number of students, a new two-story building was added in 1923, it was modern because it had a furnace, running water and restrooms. It had 1st through 9th until 1929 when 10th grade was added. There were only 12 teachers, not enough for the 400 students.

Howard Warner High School was named for Professor Howard Wallace Warner. It is still used today as part of the Board of Education Buildings. Mr. Warner attended Clark University in Atlanta and Fisk University of Nashville, where he received his A.B. degree. From Atlanta he received his Masters Degree in Education. He began his teaching career in Manchester, coming to Newnan in 1914. He served as principal for 30 years. He received a Distinguished Service Award for Service to the Education of Negro Children in GA in 1945. He died in September 1953. Some of the teachers were Mrs. Georgia Callaway-music, math & science; Mr. William Jones-music & math; Mr. Jackson and Mr. Cleveland who taught shop; Mrs. Louise Lee, Mrs. Ransby, Miss Margie Hine, Mr. Ralph Long, Mr. Henry Seldon, and Mrs. Katherine Dobson. In later years it changed to an elementary school, then with the construction of Central High and Fairmount schools, Howard Warner was closed.

Booker T. Washington was founded in the Roscoe-Sargent area by Professor Marvin Starr, school superintendent and helped by Mrs. Sara Fisher Brown in 1921. Some teachers were Mrs. Laura Mae Hutchinson, Mrs. Rosie Arnold, and Mrs. Sadie Dura. Mrs. Sara Brown was an advisor but the school never had a main principal. It was a one-room schoolhouse with a shingled roof, benches and a wood stove in the middle of the room. Around 1943 the school began to lose attendees and about 1946 closed all together.

Paris School in Black Jack was in existance from about 1926 to 1949. [Mrs. Josephine Rush said they went to Exie Wilson’s Corner Store with 3 eggs to trade for a brown cedar pencil and a large tablet. Mr. Wilson was a Veterinarian.]

Walter B. Hill Industrial School in Turin next to China Grove Baptist Church was started about 1927. It closed around 1953 when East Side opened. Mrs. Freddie Wortham was principal with seven teachers and 80 or 90 students. It provided some of the best education for blacks in the form of vocational classes. It is a Rosenwald School.

Brown High School was the FIRST black high school, on Pete Davis Rd in Moreland; it was founded by and named for Mrs. Sara Fisher Brown. It housed over 200 students in grades from kindergarten to 12th grade from Grantville, Moreland and the surrounding areas. Its first graduating class in 1933 had only 5 students. Mrs. Florence Hayes was Jeannes Supervisor for many years, was one of the five. Some of the principals included Mr. Lightfoot, Mrs. Florence Hayes, Mr. King, Rev. Weaver, Mrs. May Kearse Lawson and Mrs. Mary Ann Reese. The last class was 1946; they consolidated with Grantville Training. After this students attended Grantville Brown, then Central High in 1955. Some of it’s Basketball players were: Boys team: E P Jordan, Clarence Malcolm, James Davis, Johnny Smith, Glover Calhoun, Charlie Calhoun and Coach Render Bailey.
Girls team: Edith Bailey, Utes Marcus, Evella Marcus, Eleanor Bussie, Mary L Malcolm, Lessie McRae, Gladis Hill, Pecola Marcus and E P Jordan Coach.

Grantville has had several schools over the years, one was Grantville Training School where in 1927 Mrs. Belcher was the teacher and Mrs. Mae Kearns Lawson was the principal. There was also a Vocational Agriculture Shop at Grantville Training. Returning WWII Veterans were taught classes to help them get back into farming, one of the teachers was James Pinson. Grantville Brown was established in 1955 with L.D. Walden being the first principal and J Wilkins Smith was the Superintendent. Mrs. Zelda Griffin taught the first grade.

Haralson School had four teachers; one was Mrs. Freddie R. Wortham. There were about 50 students and 7 grades.

Ebenezer Baptist Church had a school from before 1938 and closed around 1948. The school had three rooms and three teachers and 1st through 12th grades. Mrs. Freddie R. Wortham was a student there.

Forksville School existed around 1938, and was located past Sprayberry’s in Forksville. It was a one story wood frame building with two rooms. There were only two teachers for grades 1st through 7th. One teacher was Miss Clema Terrel.

We can’t for get all of the Schools that were held in the churches. Mount Carmel opened in the 30’s in the White Oak community, it was two stories of one room each. In 1926 Miss Cleo Calhoun was the teacher. It was torn down and part of the timber was used for the Sunday school rooms at Mt Calvary Church.
St. Peter Elementary was built in 1925 beside the St Peter Baptist Church and closed in 1946. Some teachers were Mrs. Hellen Walker Stokes, Miss Ethel North and Mrs. Mattie Kate Robinson.

Shoal Creek school which was in Shoal Creek Baptist Church merged with Walter B. Hill.

There was also schools at Smith’s Chapel Church, Dent’s Chapel Church, Shady Grove, Wesley Chapel, Evergreen, Powell Chapel Church and I’m sure there’s a few we’re missing.

Orr’s Grove was a one room, one teacher school with about 20 students. During 1935-36 Mrs. Mae B. Prophitt was the teacher. It had 7 grades with a pot-bellied stove to heat, and one kerosene lamp lit on dark and rainy days.

Northside School also started out as an all black school. Westside School served the Arnco-Sargent, Ballard Quarters and Powers Crossroads areas. It started as early as 1947 with grades one through eight, with as many as 130 students.

Hannah Stewart School for Girls in Senoia around 1915 to 1930’s. Josephine Rush’s older sisters attended there.

Ruth Hill opened around 1938 and was located just a few feet from the present day school. It was originally for grades 1st through 6th, with three teachers.

Before 1969 there were actually four school systems: white & black city schools and white and black county schools. In 1969 the city and county schools merged and formed a “separate but equal” system. The next year, 1970, a court order was issued and there was total integration. At last there was only one true system in Coweta.

If you went to one of these old schools we mentioned or we’re missing some, call and tell us about them.
We don’t want to leave anyone out.

SOME CHURCH HISTORY

1840--Newnan Chapel forebears purchased land for the church one dollar. Church members worked after their day’s work was completed dug clay from the banks of a stream on the property and made bricks of sand, clay and water to use in the building of the church.

Neriah Baptist in Senoia is said to go back to 1842.

The Mount Vernon First Baptist Church began small in 1863 as they met under a brush arbor. In 1869 a log cabin was built at the corner of Robinson & Savannah Streets.

Summer Hill Baptist Church is mentioned in court records as early as 1869.

Mount Sinai Baptist members began meeting shortly after the emancipation of the slaves under a brush arbor about 1870?

China Grove Baptist in Turin can trace it’s history back to about 1871.
Wesley Chapel Methodist on Smokey Rd in Newnan goes back to 1872.
And Great Mt Zion AME has been said to have been started around 1873.

Mt Prospect Baptist was organized in 1873. Church services and school were held in the orignial building until 1913. Mrs. Sarah Fisher Brown first taught school here. Mr Everett Lyles recalled his first year of school in 1907. The church burned in 1913.

We found an article in the Newnan Times Herald that links Powell Chapel UMC on Country Club Rd Newnan back to 1888. Rev. Welcome Sutton was pastor there for many years. He was well loved and respected in the community.

Old Mt Bethlehem on Corinth Rd goes back to 1890, and the First St Marks Methodist Episcopal Church traces back to 1901. However the community says Oak Grove Baptist on Sewell Mill Road went back to 1903.

And there are many other old church families that we need dates for the church and some history told about them.
Help us acquire the information if you know it.
Please visit this website for more churches and dates.

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~southwestcentralga/cowchu/cowetachurch.htm

MIDWIVES, memories of the past

Old times dictated that the only town or county Doctor could not be in more places than one. Hense, the person and term 'Midwife' came to be. They did the "birthing of the babies" when the doctor could not be present.

We have researched at the Georgia Archives and only could come up with some names from 1957 to 1974. What happend to the old records has not yet been determined.

Some early Coweta Midwives were Louisa Wilcoxon, Lavonia Billingslea Huling and Missie Battle among others.
Midwives in Coweta County in 1957 were: Rosa Ball Barber, Annie Bennett, Artie Mae Bowen, Annie Sue Harris, Josie Johnson, Lugenia Jones, Lollie Smith, Margaret Johnson Smith, Lille Jane Stargell, and Minnie Barber Thompson. Retired midwives were Missie Battle, Mary Cox, Lavonia Huling, Julia Rogers and Primmer Yates.
Another name that came up was Rachel Whittington….and many more, help us get a good list of Midwives.

Black Firsts in Coweta

We know we do not know all of the firsts that occured in our little county, but we will attempt to let you know about the ones we do know.

The first colored marriage recorded in Coweta Co was Issac Long and Martha Fambrough on Oct 11, 1865.
The second was James Alexander Garrison and Malinda Herring on Oct 26, 1865.

LENA HORNE'S relatives from Newnan

The first slaves mentioned in the Coweta History were slaves of Dr. A. B. Calhoun and Silas Reynolds:
Henry and Sinai Reynolds; they had six children.

According to Mrs. Gail Buckley, daughter of Lena Horn, one of Henry and Sinai’s children was sold to a Mississippi slaveholder and another who was sent to colonize Liberia. Around 1839, Sinai and her son Felix were sold to William Nimmons.

Eventually Sinai earned enough money selling items to purchase freedom for herself, Henry, and their sons. In 1859, they moved to Chicago where Sinai died in 1869. Before they left their daughter, Nellie had been sold to Dr. A.B. Calhoun.

Sinai’s son Moses moved to Atlanta after the Civil War and married Atlanta Mary Fernando. Their daughter Cora married Edwin Horn. Cora and Edwin’s son Edwin Jr. married Edna Scottron, and are the parents of Lena Horn. The Calhoun plantation was the land where the New Justice Center Complex is today (2013).

Funeral Homes

Mrs. Fannie Jenkins opened the first funeral home for blacks in 1911, on Robinson St.

In 1920 Sellers-Smith Funeral home was established by James Horrace Sellers of Baxley.
In 1930 there were 42 black schools with 48 teachers and 2,360 students.

Dr. John Henry Jordan was the first black Doctor in Newnan.

Dr Jordan organized the first Medical Aid Organization for black people in Coweta. The organization met bi-monthly and held lectures on sociology, hygiene and various diseases.
Dr. Millard McWhorter came later as the second black doctor in Newnan and also on the Pinson Street.

Dr. Brown was the first black Dentist in Newnan
Sally Willie Adams ran the colored Hospitals on Pinson Street.
She actually had four or five different houses on Pinson Street that housed sick people.
She was not a nurse, but hired nurses from Atlanta to help the sick.

Black Firsts in Occupations

U. B. Ware was the first to go to the courthouse to register to vote.

Mrs. Bernice Sutton Poythress was the first black woman to work at American Can.

Mr. James Gay was the first black to work in the Post Office.

Mr. Mitchell was instrumental in helping to de-segregate Newnan Hospital.

Moses Martin and Sonny Arnold were the First Two Black Police officers in Newnan in 1964.

Black Firsts in Politics

Wilburn Clay was the first black to serve on the Coweta County Commissioners Board.

Mr. Willie Lynch was the first black Newnan City Councilman, born 1917—died 1998.

Miss Willie Boyd, a retired schoolteacher, was the first black woman elected to a position in the county, to the Board of Education.

Black Firsts in Coweta

Mr. Frank A. Dodson was the last principal at Howard Warner High School and the first principal at Central High, a brand new school on Savannah Street, Newnan.

Jo Anne Rush was the first black teacher to teach at Elm Street. (daughter of Josephine Whatley Rush)

Josephine Rush, Mary S. Reese, Fannie Freeland, and another lady (Mrs. Rush couldn’t remember her name), all went to the “March on Washington in 1963 with keynote speaker Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Billy Reese was first black to go to Temple Avenue School. (son of Loyd & Mary S Reese)

The first black library was the Sara Fisher Brown Library. It was built on Savannah Street, it is now (2013) the Community Action For Improvement Center.

Dr. John Henry Jordan, First Black Doctor in Newnan

Dr. Jordan was the first black doctor in Newnan GA.

Born in Troup County in 1870, he received his early education in Hogansville and LaGrange. Dr. Jordan is a graduate of Clark College in Atlanta and MeHarry Medical College of Nashville in 1896.

He was the second black Doctor in Troup County, the first being his father in law Dr. Edward B. Ramsey. He was the first black doctor in Hogansville; he served there for two years before coming to Newnan. When He died in 1912 his death was mourned by both races.

The City of Newnan honored his memory by naming the first low-income housing project on West Washington Street and Boone Drive, Jordan Homes.

John Jordan was born Mar 11, 1870 and died Sep 16, 1912. He married Mollie Emma Ramsey Sep 22 1898. His father was Berry Jordan a sharecropper.

Dr. Jordan's son Edward wanted to be a doctor but it was not to be.
Edward's son Harold did become a doctor and spent most of his career at Meharry Medical College.

Berry Jordan born about 1845 was in Troup County Georgia in 1880 and 1900. The 1880 Census has Berry 35, Briney 10, and John 8. The 1900 Census tells us that Berry 50 is with Martha 49 (says they married about 1892) and children: Florence G 22, Julia 15, James 14, Samuel 13, Martha A 12, Willie 9, Tilda 8 and grandchildren: Louseal 6, Iva N 4, Johnie 2 and Mother Loueza 70 born VA.

John Henry was on the 1900 and 1910 in Coweta County. 1900 says J H 30, Mollie E 22 in Newnan. 1910 lets us know that John H was 40yrs, Mollie E 31 and Edward L was 9, they lived on Pinson St.


Great grand daughter Karen's blog
http://johnhenryjordan.blogspot.com/

One Hill Family

renda (Hill) and Adarius Hart came to see me today. Brenda wanted help with her Hill family history. She knew her parents, grandparents and great grandparents.

Andrew Hill was born about 1877 and died 1936. We found his father Daniel on the 1870 and 1880 Census. The 1880 census says Daniel Hill 27, Lizzie 25, Dan 7, Henry 4, and Andrew 3. We are still looking for Dan and Henry. Andrew married first to Iula (maybe a Hunter) and had George 1900 and James 1901 and one other child who died. Then Andrew married Emma Lambert and had Mary, Lula Mae, Oliver, Willie A, Jimmie, Oliver and others.

Oliver Hill (1918) married Cora E Jackson (1919--2001) and had at least 14 children.
One was George who married Peggy Shropshire who were Brenda's parents.

Anyone with information on any Hill family in Coweta please contact me. There were many. Also Lambert, Jackson, Shropshire, Neely, Rutledge, Strickland, Calhoun and Bohannon.

Army Vessel Honors Black Patriot

http://www.military.com/features/0,15240,149538,00.html?ESRC=army.nl

Army Vessel Honors Black American Hero

BALTIMORE, Md. - The logistics support vessel Major General Robert Smalls (LSV-8) - the first Army vessel named for an African American - was inducted into the Army's watercraft fleet yesterday during a commissioning ceremony at Baltimore's historic Inner Harbor.The 314-foot long, 5,412-ton vessel officially joined the Army Reserve's 203rd Transportation Detachment as more than 300 guests looked on. Smalls is the second of two improved LSVs based on the six earlier Gen. Frank S. Besson-class vessels. Her sistership, Staff Sgt. Robert T. Kuroda, LSV-7, joined the Reserve's Honolulu-based 548th Trans. Det. in October 2006.Among the dignitaries attending yesterday's commissioning were Lt. Gen. Jack C. Stultz, chief of the Army Reserve; Maj. Gen. William Monk III, commander of the Reserve's 99th Regional Readiness Sustainment Command; Brig. Gen. James E. Chambers, the Army's chief of transportation; Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, who represents Maryland's 7th Congressional District; and Rep. James E. Clyburn of South Carolina's 6th Congressional District.Built by VT Halter Marine in Moss Point, Miss., and christened in April 2004, LSV-8 is named in honor of Robert Smalls. As a 23-year-old slave during the Civil War he commandeered a Confederate transport steamer loaded with armaments and used the vessel to spirit his wife, children and 12 other slaves to freedom. Hailed as a hero by Union leaders, Robert Smalls went on to become the first African-American to captain a vessel in U.S. service and later served as a major general in the South Carolina militia, a state legislator, a five-term member of the U.S. Congress and U.S. Collector of Customs in Beaufort, S.C. That LSV-8 bears Maj. Gen. Smalls' name is due largely to the efforts of Kitt Haley Alexander, a writer and artist who spearheaded a seven-year effort to have an American military vessel named after the Civil War hero."I knew that this man deserved more recognition from this nation," she said, "and I first approached the Navy about naming a ship after him. After that didn't work out I ended up sitting near the Army's chief of military history at a social function and, after speaking with him later, he said that Robert Smalls' service in the militia might allow the Army to name a vessel after him." After a lengthy verification process, the Civil War hero was ultimately selected to give his name to the vessel. Maj. Gen. Robert Smalls and the other seven LSVs currently in Army service are designed to provide worldwide transport of general and vehicular cargo. Fitted with huge bow and stern loading ramps, the ships each boast a 10,500-square-foot central cargo deck large enough to hold up to 24 M-1 Abrams main battle tanks. The Kuroda and Smalls - launched in 2003 and 2004, respectively - are updated variants of the six earlier Besson-class LSVs and incorporate improved bow ramps, upgraded communication and navigation systems, and a host of other refinements.The vessels in the Army's watercraft fleet range in size from small workboats to the LSVs, according to U.S. Army Transportation Corps officials. Army vessels have participated in each of the nation's conflicts since the Revolutionary War, and currently play a vital role in supporting operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as participating in humanitarian-relief efforts in the Pacific and Caribbean. "This is a tremendously capable vessel, and we're very fortunate to have such an asset in the Army and the Army Reserve," said Chief Warrant Officer 4 Steven C. Brown, commander of the 203rd Trans. Det. and LSV-8's vessel master. "We've trained very hard to bring this ship into the Army's fleet, and this commissioning ceremony is a way of saying that Maj. Gen. Robert Smalls and her crew are ready to undertake their wartime missions.""This is a great day, and one I will never forget," said Freddy Meyer, great great grandson of Maj. Gen. Smalls and one of many of the former slave's descendents on hand for the ceremony. "Maj. Gen. Smalls was a renaissance man - an educator, a politician, a Soldier, a businessman and a family man, and the Army could not have picked a better person to name this ship after."Mr. Meyer and several other Smalls family members were aboard the vessel when she first arrived in Maryland, and had the opportunity to get to know many of the crewmembers."I know that these Soldiers will be an excellent crew for this great vessel," he said. "They're smart and professional, and they're very mindful of the kind of man Robert Smalls was, and what he stood for. This ship could not be in better hands."

New York Museum has Slave Exhibit

http://www.slaveryinnewyork.org/gallery_3.htm

http://in.news.yahoo.com/051007/137/60gxq.html

Saturday October 8, 02:16 AM
Museum exhibit buries myth of slave-free New York

By Richard Satran
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Slavery was something that took place "down South," most New Yorkers would say, but a museum exhibit that opened on Friday shows that Manhattan was slave territory too.
"Slavery in New York," a $5 million multimedia show at the New-York Historical Society, provides vivid evidence that slaves came with the foreigners who settled Manhattan island more than 300 years ago.
"The Dutch settlers could not have survived without the input of slaves," said Leslie Harris of Emory University in Atlanta, an historian who contributed to the project. "The Dutch were living in dugout trenches until slaves built the first houses.
"The show explodes the myths about slavery as a purely southern phenomenon and that it was not that important here in New York, or that only whites were involved in settling America," said Harris.
Museum show designer Michael Roper said he tried to depict "the humanity of the slaves in the early era, so we are looking at real people, not abstractions."
At the entry to the exhibit are eleven wire sculptures representing the first eleven black settlers, whose names are known through historical accounts but about whom nothing else is recorded. Large portions of the show consist of similarly imagined works, recordings and dramatizations of early slave life. There are no first-person accounts or even painted likenesses of New York's slaves in the pre-Revolutionary era.
But the exhibit gives ample evidence of pervasive and brutal slavery from the city's early legal records, business transactions and newspaper clippings. The records show bloody slave uprisings, attempted runaways and violence.
The stark history is tempered with more whimsical views, largely aimed at educating young people: In one display, visitors can lean over a water well and, instead of seeing their own reflection, see and hear images of slave women talking about their difficult lives. "The well puts you into their shoes, it's a way to put people inside that experience," said Roper.
To highlight the economics of slavery, a computer screen that might be seen on a New York trading room scrolls headlines on the arrival of slave ships, as well as "ticker prices" of human transactions, resembling stock quotes. The economic theme resonates since New York, even in the earliest days, was the mercantile center of the nation. Indeed, the city always had an active slave market, though it never reached the scale of other cities.
But if it never matched the huge plantation dimensions of the south, it was at least as widespread. Nearly half the residents of the affluent island city owned slaves, nearly twice the proportion of the South, and the city's shipping and trading revolved around the cash crops produced by slavery.
"Everything was touched by slavery," says one display. The exhibit draws on the renaissance of study of New York's slave past sparked by the discovery of a large slave burial ground near City Hall in 1991. It became the focus of debate over slave reparations, racial equality and the teaching of black history in schools. "Even today one approaches this exhibition with discomfort," said a New York Times reviewer.
David Dinkins, New York's first black mayor, was on hand for the show's opening. "There is a legacy of slavery in this country and a failure to acknowledge it," he said. And the show holds realities that may hit close to home. The Historical Society itself was founded in 1804, 23 years before New York's slavery ban, by slaveholder John Pitard.

http://www.hhs-newpaltz.org/library_archives/topics_of_interest/african_american/slavery.html

https://www.history.org/Foundation/journal/Winter05-06/slavery.cfm

Slavery in the North
http://www.slavenorth.com/nyemancip.htm

Getting started with your family history online

Don't forget there are numerous ways of getting your name out there on the net so others can help you with your family history. Especially if there are people you can't find.
There are also many places to place your family tree so others can contact you.

http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/ga/coweta.htm

http://wc.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi

http://www1.tribalpages.com/tribe/browse?userid=cowetafamilies&rand=65071

To find out if some one has died, check the Social Security Death Index
http://ssdi.rootsweb.com/?o_xid=0028727949&o_lid=0028727949&o_xt=28727949

At least one Buffalo Soldier was from Coweta

There was one Buffalo Soldier who was from Coweta and we are in the process of doing research on him. This is the exhibit that was on loan from Don North of Carrollton, President of the Grierson Soldiers.
The exhibit on display at the Coweta County African American Heritage Museum and Research Center includes: An authentic Saddle from the 1904 regiment; Model of a Guide on (the flag used circa 1877); A hat (circa 1870's before they switched to the brown hat's used today); A pistol belt (circa 1865) and books about the Buffalo Soldiers.

http://www.georgiainformer.com/2005-07/buffalo_soldiers_will_ride_again.htm

http://www.prnewsnow.com/PR%20News%20Releases/Art%20And%20Entertainment/Museums/Buffalo%20Soldier%20Exhibit%20Debuts%20At%20MetroAtlanta%20Museum

Museum sends partial Midwife exhibit to the Smithsonian

September 26, 2005, I Fed Ex'd to the Smithsonian via the Anacosta Museum, part of our "Coweta County Midwife Collection" for their Midwife exhibit that will be shown from Nov 13 to March 6th....Isn't it exciting!!!!

Last year Mr John Kirkland brought theselittle scraps of paper to the museum. He saw Cynthia Roserson the Newnan station and when she said bring in things thatyou think might be of intrest to us, he did.The scraps of paper belonged to his great grandmother, Louise Wilcoxon, a midwife until the 1930's or 40's. She would write on any scrap she could find, the baby's name, weight, birth time, parents names, and birth counties. Then when she got home she would fill in the birth certificate and file it properly.

The intern from the Smithsonian was just "surfing the web" for Midwife information when she got a hit from Georgia. She found the blog I do for the Museum and emailed me..... and as they say the rest is HISTORY!

I did go to the GA Archives to seek more info on Midwives, and only found data from 1957 to 72. She copied the Coweta data and mailed it to me for free, but I have emailed back and asked for Meriwether, Spalding, Heard, Fayette, and Carroll County's midwife data too.
So if any of you know anyone who was a midwife or was birthed by a midwife, please let me know. We are searching for pictures of the midwives.

From an obituary to slavery

Genealogy is not that hard, it just takes someone who wants to do some detective work if yours is not already published for you in a book somewhere.

Someone brought an obituary to the museum for Mr. George Goolsby III 1945-2004. So, we can assume that his father and grandfather were Georges' also. (even though assuming in genealogy is like thinking you can beat the train to cross the railroad tracks)....
But turns out his father and grandfather were both George's. George I, born around 1867, was in Fulton County Georgia on the 1930 Census. It was reported he was 62yrs old, wife Hattie 53, children: Jesse 23, Ola 17, Alzora 15, Nithona 13son, and a grandson George Howard 7yrs. So, George II must have already been married, will keep looking for him.
1
George III's mother a Finley. I found her father and mother on the 1930 Coweta Co GA Census Jesse 25 and Tommie 20 Fendley. Thus, we know there were at least four different ways to spell Findley on Coweta Co documents.

George III's mother remarried to a Hall, and she had several more children. Mr. Hall's father was also named George. I found him on the 1920 and 1930 Coweta Co Census: George born about 1875, Hattie born about 1880, Annie M, John A, Clinton, George W, David, Lenson, Enoch, Amos, Anderson, and Ola.
Then I found George with his father on the 1880 Troup Co GA Census. Phillip Hall born about 1831 was probably a slave and I will look in Troup to see if there were any Hall plantations to see if I can find where he was before the Civil War. Phillip's wife Susan born about 1843, Jessie? dtr, Philip Jr, Martha, Thomas, George, Lettie, and John.

Within about 10 minutes, I had found two probable slaves from one obituary someone brought to our attention, maybe because they knew the person, and felt we would do something with it. I could have just let it lie in the "In" box until someone else did something with it, maybe research, maybe throw it out.

One never knows when they go about their day, what will fall in their laps. The "powers that be" have things in store for us that we know nothing about. Things happen to us for a reason, we should be open to the many opportunities that jump in our path each day, and make the most of them.

Circles and Family History

Attempting to get people to start their family histories is sometimes like pulling teeth. They know it has to be done, but they would rather be "dead" when it happens.

In the last month or so, it seems as if everyone who comes in is related in some way.

The last visitor, who came to the Awards Banquet, and visited the Museum for the first time, is just this way. I received a call for 4 tickets to the banquet. Mr Alton Kirby said his daughter told him to call and reserve the seats. Then at the banquet, we spoke to them about the museum. They called Cynthia (the director) and set up a time for an interview with Mr Kirby, his wife and his brother.

When the interview was happening, I couldn't help but hear it, it's a small place. And every name I heard, I had already researched for someone else.
So I bided my time, and when there was a lul in the air, I placed my notes on the table in front of his daughter.
-I had researched the Kirby and Huling for the Sutton family.
-I had researched the Cook family for the Wesley Chapel Church Cemetery info.
-I had researched the Stegall family for the Ballard Family Cemetery and then for 3 other families that tied in.

This day was exciting and wierd. We got back to slavery on three different sides, but I already had the research done. The "Powers That Be" work in very mysterious ways indeed.

Obituaries can be a goldmine in family research!

Obituaries are very helpful in family history research.
We would hope that they would include full birth name and all married names.
Full names of parents (including mother's maiden name);
Children and siblings are usually listed in birth order.
Full names of brothers and sisters (siblings); (not just Mrs. John Brown, this tells us who she married, but not her name);
Full names of the children/grandchildren, usually done in order of birth.
If they are to be buried somewhere other than the family church cemetery in which the funeral is taking place, please tell the name of the church they were a member of and the name of the cemetery with city and state.   (buried at Ebenezer Cemetery...does not tell us what city or state).

I know newspapers charge for obituaries now, but please pay a little more and help your future descendants find more information about you and your family.

"Uncle John Brown's celebration of life will be March 8, with burial in the family cemetery"
This does not tell us where the family cemetery is, or what day that Uncle John died.
When someone starts to look for Uncle John it will be easier with a little more information.

Nathan Arnold lives to be 107 years old

Nathan Arnold's tombstone says he lived to be 107 years old, his wife Adelaide's tombstone says she lived to be 105 years old, and both are buried in Grantville City Cemetery, Grantville Georgia.
--The 1870 Coweta Census reports that Nathan was born around 1840 in North Carolina, and Adline his wife was born about 1844 in Virginia. Nothing else is known about their life before they came to Georgia or even how they got here. It also says that Adline was mulatto, and they had Malinda 7yrs, Joshua 5yrs, Frances 3yrs, and Nathan 2yrs.
--The 1880 Coweta Census reports that Nathan and Adlaid (name was different on each census) were 40 and 37, and children Joshua 15, Nora 9, Laura 7, John A 6, Robert L 4, Pearley 2, and Clauda 4 months.
--The 1890 Census burned in the Nations Capital not many sheets from Georgia survived.
--The 1900 Coweta Census reports Nathan 60 yrs born NC, Adlade 57 born VA, Otis 20, Ben F 17, Leona 14, and Eddy R West a 10yr old grandaughter living with them, Res#72-75.
--1900 Coweta Census Winney Arnold is next door, Res#76, born GA in 1870Apr widowed, Elizabeth 1889, Eli? 1890Dec, Morgan 1892May, Jake? 1894Nov, Asbury1898July, Josh 1900Apr.
--1900 CowetaCensus John Arnold 27, Kate 28 (md 5y 4/4), Eula 3, Marshall 2, Jessie 3mo, Clessie 3mo; Res#78-84 Cedar Creek.
--1900 Coweta Census Nora Arnold 30yr widow, born GA in 1870Apr, had 2 children 1 living; Res#342-364 Grantville.
--1900 Coweta Census Frank Arnold 30Ga, Carrie29 (md7y 6/5), Joe 12, Norman 8, Rozella 6, Emily 5mo; Res#28-30 CedarCreek. (is this Frances?)
--1900 Coweta Census Emily born 1862, widow 8children 4living, Frances 17fe, Beulah 12; Res#29-31 Cedar Creek (is this Malinda?)
--1900 Coweta Census Minnie Arnold 22, widow 3 children, George 4, Selima 2, Etta 8mo; Res#29-23 CedarCreek (is this Pearlie or Malinda?)
--The 1910 Coweta Census reports Nathan 69, Adlaide 67, they have been married for 40 years and had 14 children and 9 are living in 1910, also Wiliam 26 son, Ama Stinson 24(m1 11y 3/3), Laura10, Beola 8, Jennie 6 all granddaughters, & Edward Cleveland 5 grson.. Res#9-9 Grantville
--1910 Coweta Census Jno Arnold 37, Kate 28 (m1 14yrs 4/3), Eula M 13, Marshall 11, Jesse 10; Res#62-62 CedarCreek (everyone but John mulatto).
--1910 Coweta Census Emily Arnold 65? mother in law, Bula 20 sil, Willie C 7mo nephew of Aaron Echols 22 & wife Francis 28 (m1 7y 8/6); Res#143-145 Cedar Creek. (Emily is getting older and older?? why?).
--1910 Coweta Census Frank Arnold 34, Carrie 40 (m1 15yrs 8/6), Rosetta 15, Emily 11, Norman 17, James 8; Res#264-268 Dist 645.
--1910 Coweta Census Joshua Arnold 40, Minnie 38 (md 22y 12/9), Elizabeth 20, Sarah 18, Morgan 17, Jacob 15, Asbury 11, Eddie 8, Berther 4, Early 2, Ona 1; Res#111-112 MD755 (is this Joshua from 1870 census?).
--1910 Coweta Census Otis Arnold 30, Minnie 28, Hugh E 8, Myrtie M 7; Res#120-121 MD755.
--the 1920 Coweta Census reports Nathan 85NC, Adlaide 77VA, Annie Butler, a 40yr old widowed dtr; Laura Brown a 21yr old grand dtr; Josephine Brown 2yr2mo great-great gdtr; and Jimmie L Stinson a 19 yr old grand dtr living with them; Res#85-85 St Charles.
--1920 Lee Arnold 47, Julia 46, Cora Newell 25neice, James3y3m nephew, Annie 5mo neice; REs#86-86 St Charles.
--1920 Coweta Census Josh Arnold 60, Winnie 54, Eddie 19, Berthula 14, Earlie 12, Ora11, Elizabeth Redan? 29dtr; Res#59-59 St Charles.
--1920 Coweta Census William P Arnold 40, Annie M 30, William C 13, Syl V 11son, Annie 9, MildredL7, Cora O 5, Millard W 3y3m, Levi 10 & L M 7 COUCH stepsons; Res#80-80 St Charles (is this Pearly from 1880 Census?).

-Son Joshua married Winnie Watkins on Jan 23 1887; and by the 1900 Census he may have died, because Winnie was alone 30yrs, with Elizabeth 10yr, Salie M 9yr, Morgan 8yr, Jake 5yr, Asbury 1yr and Josh 1 month. By the 1920 Census, Josh 60yr, Willine 54, Eddie B 19, Burthula 12, Earlie 12y, Ora 11, and Elizabeth Redin 29yr old dtr living with them.

-Daughter Frances may have married William Elder on Dec 24 1904 in Coweta Co.

-Daughter Nora married Robert West on Oct 02 1887 in Coweta. And by 1910 She was widowed, living alone and had had one child. Up the street was Robert West 20yr with wife Arbele 21y, married 3yrs, (Arbelle had 2 children and 2 living). Robert and Arabelle married on May 26 1907 in Coweta Co.

-Son Otis married Winnie Harris on Dec 24 1901 in Coweta Co. On the 1910 Census, Otis was 31y, Minnie 28y (married 8y, 2children, 2living), Hugh E 8yr, and Myrtis M 7yr.

-Did daughter Annie marry a Butler?

-Daughter Leona married John Jennings on May 23 1915 in Coweta Co.

Three Generations of Rowe/Redwine Family visit Museum

Hilda Rowe, Renee Hathman Cook, & Renee's dtr.

Descended from Hillard Rowe who married Nancy Redwine.
Nancy is connected to the Redwine Family Plantation

World Warn One Draft Cards Available

Marion Washington Couch was my great grandfather (1884-1970).
The Draft Card tells their name, birthday, address, occupation, employer, race, height, weight, eye color, hair color, next of kin, and has their signature on it.

Marion's father was John Andrew Couch (1858-1937), his grandfatherWilliam Washington Couch born about 1816, his gg gdad, Levi born about 1791, and his ggg dad Benjamin Couch ca 1753 SC. I wonder what life was like back then. How they would feel with all the inventions we have now. Why they came to Gwinnett and Coweta Counties GA from South Carolina. And how they would feel knowing 'we' (everyone in general) don't know that much about their families. And if they would be mad at us for watching tv or being in front of the computer all day long, instead of visiting relatives.....

We have had a family reunion for as long as I could remember, and always thought it was for my great
granddaddy's family Marion (Mern) Washington & Effie Hubbard Couch. They had 13 children, 12 lived.
So with so many people there, I was satisfied knowing that.

But now to find out it was a reunion for his father, John Andrew & Marietta {9 children (& later Hattie {2 children) Couch, and their 11children. NOW we're cooking with gas! When you're younger, you can't conceive who belongs to who, you just play.

I just wish when I stayed under the adults feet, and they would tell me to go play, I could have remembered more! I played asleep so many times so I could hear what was said. But I get my nosiness the old fashion way, from my grandma. She knew every thing about everyone from here to yon. I just wish my dad would not have thrown out her obituary collection. If I had only known.......

We also used to have Easter dinner and an Easter egg hunt at Mama & Papa Couch's house (Mern & Effie). This one was just their grandchildren and great grandchildren. I don't know why I didn't notice
there weren't so many people. But we had some of the best 'cousin' times there at Papa Couchs. They always had a hog in the pen, pecans on the ground, and we just loved to run around in the pecan orchard.
We would chase the cow, and probably would have played with the hog if they would have let us get dirty.

One of my favorite great uncles, was Luke. He had been in Korea, and would tell us stories (I think were more like fabrications) but we didn't know the difference. He would always help me find a prize egg when I was smaller. I used his uniform for a project in school, and I don't remember what happened to it. But he had about 6 different kinds of medals on it, but I didn't know what they were for.

We lived next to Papa and Mama Couch for a year or so when I was little (1968-70). It was in a small 4 room house with no running water. We had to go out to the outhouse, which was the scaryist place in the world!!! Especially at night when you couldn't see the bugs. We did have a 'slop jar', but I didn't like it either. It was always as cold as an Alaskan's igloo.

My dad met my mom when stationed in Alaska in the Air Force. She was born in Iowa, but grew up in Nebraska. He always called her "A flat footed yankee". I didn't know he was serious, until the Dr told me
I was flat footed. I thought it was a term of endearment. And I know Nebraska is not yankee, but her family
was originally from PA-CT- area…

Anyway, Mama Couch would watch us when Mom went to work. She always had biscuits, and didn’t mind if we ‘rambled’ around, long as we ‘didn’t migrate it’. Her words for take it home. She had the neatest stuff.

We would always take her to the cemeteries to clean the graves. We have a couple of pictures of us with
her at Papa’s grave. She still talked to him as if he was still alive.

When I started researching, and finding Papa’s 1st cousins' children, they always said, “Oh yeah, Uncle Mern would come to eat with us on Tuesday”, or “Cousin Mern would eat with us every Friday on his way home from work”.
You would have thought Papa was 500 lbs, from as much as he ate around town. But he looked like a stick man. He said it was because he worked hard all day long. I wish that was true, cause I work all the time too, but am not a stick lady!!!!

P.S. I polled about 20 people (10 male & 10 female)in a local restaurant.
45% could not tell me their grandparents names,or could only remember one name.
75% could not tell me their great grandparents names.
90% could not tell me the maiden names.
Lots of them said "They were dead when I was born".
Or "their name was Granny, or Mema Lastname".

Retired Foreign Service Officers Visit

During our Anniversary July 10th, Mr. & Mrs Timothy Edwards (wife Bennie) and two of their friends visited. Mr. Edwards is a descendant of a slave named Adam Nelson.
As far as he knows they were from Dooly County Georgia.
Adam was born 1834 and died 1896. He married Harriet, she was born 1843 and died in 1917.
To this union there was birthed: Bartow, Lee, William, Johnson, Isaiah, Lank, James A, Gilbert, Emma, Clara, Anna, Mary Lou, Amanda, Elizah, Susan and Rosa.
Mary Lou lived to be 96 years old, and was the longest living survivor.
Mr. Edwards is the grandson of Bartow born 1862. Bartow married Lodusta Moore. Their daughter Christine married Joseph Edwards, thence Timothy was born.

Mr. Edwards served in foreign service for 30 years. Part of that time was spent in Africa.
I will get all the details the next time I speak with him, and let you all know how many countries he served in. I do believe he said he speaks at least 5 different languages.

He is an amazing man. I hope we get the time in the near future to fully interview him about his foreign service.

There were many other interesting people at our First Anniversary Celebration, I just felt Mr Edwards was very interesting, and spent a few more minutes speaking to him. But unfortunately I only speak "southern English".

Col. M. L. Chadler Visits

August 2, 2004

Colonel M L Chalder visited the museum the other day.
He talks so fast, I didn't get all of it, but I assume he was Air Force, cause he loves Newnan High School, and they have AF ROTC.
He said he volunteers with them some. He is also very interesting.
I enjoyed the time he was here, and hope he brings his wife up too.
He said he used to own an antique shop in North GA, but it burned down.

And of coarse, we had taken our military exhibit down to change everything out for our Anniversary. But he said he would come back on military holidays. Hopefully he will come and tell us some stories about his adventures in life.

Thompson Story and dog make an appearance

 

If you have never spent a few minutes with Thompson Story, you have been slighted.
This elderly gentleman is a delight and full of knowledge of Coweta Co history.
He was a carpenter in his heyday, and worked on houses in and around Coweta. He worked a lot for Mrs Banks in Grantville.
He never stops talking, I needed my tape recorder bad!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He talks so fast I can't even write hardly anything down. I can type 100wpm, but I can't listen and write much of anything. Especially around him cause he is cracking jokes too. His memories jump around so fast too, that I have to say wait a minute tell me that again...... He is one character I wish I would have known when he was younger. I've known him about 4 years, thru his daughter's family whom I'm in Boy Scouts with.

Thompson Story is a desendant of the Banks family of Fayette Co, his ancestors traced out in the book by Frances Banks Story of Newnan GA. (book is "Grandpa's Family")
He is the son of Calvin C & Lonnie Mae Lyle Story'; grandson of John Addison Storey who served with the 13th GA Volunteer Calvary Reg, Co F, and Susan Elizabeth 'Betty' Kidd; great grandson of George & Mary Legg Storey; gg grandson of John Storey (1750-1920); ggg grandson of George (1725-1805) and Nancy Cantor Storey.

He also said he dated Miss Caldwell. The lady who owned and lived in the house the museum is in now. Well Miss Caldwell, you let a good one slip through your fingers when you let Mr. Story go....

Mr. Rosser & his 60 year shoe repairing career

While Cynthia is still in Jamaca for her family reunion, Eve Hutchison called and reminded me that Mr. Rosser is going to close his Dixie Shoe Repair Shop here in Newnan, which he opened in 1978. Before that the shop had been a Laundry Mat.

He has known how to repair shoes for more than 60 years.
He grew up in Meriwether and Coweta Counties.
His aunt was Verona Rosser, who the Verona Rosser Recreation Center was named after.
She was a teacher in Meriwether, and upon moving to Coweta, began to entertain children who would otherwise be on the streets during their parents working hours. She had a building on Pinson St, and eventually the City understood there was a need for programs for children, to keep them occupied and out of trouble.

Mr. William E Rosser went to Newnan Chapel Methodist Church when he was younger, and now attends St Paul CME Church in Newnan.  He attended Howard Warner High School, graduating in 1938. 
He married first to Ella B Woodruff and next to Elnora Amey.

He was in World War II and Korea. He was rear eschalon support for foward troops on the front lines, making sure they had clothes and other items to be able to fight. He also taught classes as a NCO.

Some of his career as a shoe repairman was spent in Denver Colorado.  He loves his home land, and will be buried in Meriwether County when the time comes.

Mr. W E Rosser's parents were Horace & Mary Rosser.

We hope he stayes in the shop for another decade or two. But for his eye sight, he probably would.

Mary M Scott lived to be at least 130 years old in Mississippi

One of the members (name withheld) of our Museum, is a desendent of Mary M Scott.
Mary was moved to Mississippi as a slave, 7 years before the town was developed and named.
It eventually was called Kascinsko, in Yazoo County.
She died in 1945 or 46 in Yazoo, she was at least 130 yrs old.
Her desendents moved all over the nation, but some ended up in Newnan GA.
Ms. Emma daughter of Wesley & Emma Scott Dodd,
grand daughter of Niles & Bobbie Hall Dodd and Fletcher & Lizzie Franklin Scott.

We find Mary Scott in Hale Co AL, town of Laneville 117 years old in 1930.

We are sure there was an article in the Yazoo County MS Newspaper,
and also in the "Defender" in Chicago IL, because relatives came from there for the funeral
and went back and put it in the paper.
Anyone with access to these newspapers and willing to send us the article will receive more jewels in your crown, and our 'kudos'.

Any help on this matter will be greatly appreciated.

Newnan's budget in 1962

The budgets back in the 1960's were very simple.
But they did tell all the office holders of the county, elected and appointed.
For example, the Board of Commissioners Chairman was Dr. T. W. Sewell.
And the Public Works Camp Warden was J. Wendell Whitlock.
(he was the warden when my husband worked there in 1986).
The County Police were George A Massey and W. Fred Smith....that's all...two of them!!!!

The total receipts for year 1962 were estimated to be $1,010,212.46
The total expenditures for the year were estimated to be $438,262.46
The total expenditures of the Board of Commissioners, Roads and Revenue $571,950.00

The whole Commissioner budget was $19,980
The County Attorney was paid $2400
The County Treasurer was paid $300
The City Court Judge was paid $8000

What a treasure this little booklet is.
There is much more in here, come on over to the museum to see it.

Midwife records

Mr John W Kirkland Jr came to the museum with an old bag.
Out came these scraps of paper, dotted with birth records.
Names, birthdays, parents etc., a treasure trove!

He was about to throw them out, when...
he remembered talking to Cynthia Rosers at her shop.

Somehow this midwife is a relative of his.
Because his dad, who passed one and a half years ago,
became in possession of this bag.

He remembered her saying we need to preserve the
history of Coweta County.

We will research the names on the 20 plus scraps of paper,
and report back to you what a heavenly bounus we received!

Letters, envelopes and history

Letters, envelopes, and other papers including some of the following names:

1927;Hutchinson & McGahee General Merchandise, farm supplies from Haralson GA
1926;The Lumbermans Co, Atlanta GA
1925;Finn - Weddington Inc. Lincoln-Ford-Fordson Newnan, GA
1924;Motor Inventions Company from LaCrosse Wis. USA
1926;W.B. Disbro Lumber Co, ..Lumber Mill Work, Interior Finish Sash & Doors, Atlanta
1926;The US Dept of Agriculture, Bureau of Agricultural Economics, Wash DC
1924;The Georgia Childrens Home Society
1925;Law Office, Charles Murphey Candler, Atlanta GA
1925;Westbrook's Dept Store, Newnan GA
1923;Corley Manufacturing Co, Chattanooga TN
1924;McKenzie, Lewis & Co Exporters-Importers, High Grade Fertizier& Materials
1921;J Carlisle Postell Wholesale Plants & Seed, Tifton GA
1923;First National Bank Deposit Slip & Postmarked envelope, Newnan GA
1919;Dominick Merchantile Co, Wholesale & Retail Merchants, Dry Goods, Groceries & Farm supplies, Turin GA
1923;B M Drake, County Agent for the Extension Office, Coweta Co GA
1921;Catarrh of the Nose Head & Ears, Dr W O Coffee, Davenport Iowa
1921;George F Jones & Son, Cotton Brokers & Commission Merchants, NY
1918;Woman's National Magazine, Washington DC
1919;The Georgia Ginner's Association, Atlanta GA
1918;Continental Gin Co, Manuf of Cotton Ginning Machinery, Atlanta GA
1909;Letter to Dominick Merchantile about his hand's accounts, Turin GA
1945;Booklet of Constitution & By-Laws of the WMU of the Second Presbyterial
1958;Booklet of Notary Public Law, published by the Sec of State Ben W Fortson Jr
1902;A R Burdett & Co, Cotton sent to H G Bailey
1927;Flowers Lumber Co, Manuf & Wholesale of Yellow Pine Lumber, Atlanta GA
1917;H C Arnall Merchandise Co, Wholesale & Retail Dry Goods & Groceries, Buggies, Wagons, & Harness
1908;H W Camp Co, Merchants & Bankers, Moreland GA
1925;W D Boyce Co Publisher, Chicago IL
1938;US Dept of Agriculture, Washington DC
1914;H C Glover Co, Dealer in Groceries, Wholesale and Retail
1918;Cureton-Cole Co, Dealers in General Merchandise, Moreland GA
1914;I N Orr Co, Newnan GA
1902;G R Bradley Druggist, Greenville St, Newnan GA
1928;Central of Georgia Railway

Moving post from old blog to the new blog

Please be patient with us while we move our posts to this new blog for the Museum.

June 2003
-The 151st Anniversary of Grantville has come around fast. Met with some old residents, and tried to talk to them about genealogy. Some are interested, some not.
-Started photographing the Grantville City Cemetery. It is large, maybe 2000 stones. Will have to wait til it cools off some. Darn those Georgia summers.

May 2003-Went to Grantville, and climbed over the gate (that said no trespassing) and took pics of all tombstones in a cemetery called Bradberry Family Cemetery. It has only about 30 or less stones, and was on the old homeplace. This family was some of the early settlers of this area of Coweta Co.
-Went to the interstate exit for Grantville, and saw a cemetery. It is for the Meadows and McCollum family. I remember when I was a kid, the interstate was coming thru. There was a big "fuss" about them wanting to move the cemetery, and a bigger "fuss" about them NOT moving it. It was not moved. The two families are also early settlers of this area. Took pics of all stones here too.
-Found the other Meadows cemetery. Took pics of this one too. Don't know exaclty why they made two cems, they are only about a mile and a half apart. Maybe a family rift????
-Found the Attaway Cem (Old Emmaus Church) in Grantville too. It was surprizingly clean so I made pictures of the few stones that are there.

April 2003-First week - had another campout, but did do a couple more rows at Oak Hill second section.
-Second week - We started Ebenezer Orignial church site, but was very "jungly", and I'm sure we didn't find all the stones. Went on down the road to the new site, where they changed the name of the church (within the last 20yrs) to New Heights Baptist, and took all tombstone pics in their small cemetery.
-Third week - Went to the black church, New Ebenezer Baptist, who broke off from the Original Ebenezer in 1867, and formed their own church. It is a large cemetery, and it was very hot today (I was dumb enough to go at lunch time). Only got the first two rows completed.

March 2003
-First week - We went to check on a black cemetery off McCollum Sharpsburg Road, they built a Waffle House, and were conserned about them destroying the cemetery. It was there and alright. It is in between a gas station and the Waffle House. It is the site of an old Episcopal-Methodist Church, St Marks. The people moved the church to another site, and the church either fell in or was destroyed. Then the Hill family began using the site to bury its relatives.
-Second week - On my lunch breaks, go to Oak Hill Cemetery and take a couple of rows in the Second section. Each section has at least 10 rows, and a row has a maximum of 47 graves. It was cold this month. Also have a Boy Scout Campout next weekend, so don't think we'll get much more done this month.

Feb 2003
First week - Borrowed a digital and went to town. We took all of the tombstones in the cemetery at a black Church called Summer Hill Baptist just south of down town Newnan.
Third week - Went to Oak Hill Cemetery, and took all stones in Section One (about 370 stones).

Nov 2002
-Finally getting cool enough to work on pictures. Did two cems this week, our relatives in Griffin City Cem and Griffin Memorial Park.
-Did a couple more, only relatives. Only have a regular camera now, wish I had a digital.

June 2002
Went to the 150th Anniversary of the founding of the town of Grantville. It was my homeplace from 1st grade to 12th grade. It used to be a big town, but died down after the closing of the old mill. And then a new mill, West Point Pepperell came to town and gave it new hope, but never fullfilling the promise.

May 2002
As summer approaches, it will be too hot soon to do any picture taking of tombstones. The summers in Georgia are blistering, with sometimes 98% humidity and 90 degree temps, it is hard to do anthing but stay in the water or the air conditioning.

But we will work as we can to take pics of tombstones. My son decided to do his eagle project on cemeteries, and then we fell into taking church pics also, cause so many of the cems are at churches. It just seemed natural to take the church also. Then as we traveled around our county, we saw barns, old buildings, silos, and antebellum homes and took pictures of them also.

May 2001
Our cemetery work began just trying to find all our relatives' graves. But then it expanded as we found more and more people buried at our local cemeteries. Our county cemetery book was published in the late 1980's, but some cemeteries were surveyed as early as 1975. That's a long time ago as deaths go. So we decided to try and update the cemeteries in our county.

Memorial to Gloria Maddox Murry Herron

Published on the Amsterdam News website:
http://www.amsterdamnews.org/News/article/article.asp?NewsID=36406&sID=34

In memoriam of Gloria Maddox Murry-Herron
by ALTON H. MADDOX JR.
Originally posted 12/18/2003

Even in her transition from the physical realm to the spiritual realm, my sister, Gloria Maddox Murry-Herron was steadfastly committed to education in the spirit of her mother, N.S. Maddox. In lieu of flowers to celebrate her life, Gloria requested donations to the Powell Chapel School Restoration Project, in memory of our mother, to preserve a critical piece of history evidencing the Black struggle in Coweta County, Georgia, for education.
Like most Black schools, Powell Chapel School started after the Civil War, in a church, the Powell Chapel Church, in the late 1890s. Fire destroyed the church in 1917 during a period of great racial strife. It was rebuilt in 1920. By 1937, the church had secured enough building materials and Black labor to construct a one-room schoolhouse during a period when Blacks were suffering from an economic holocaust.
In 1942, the church was able to add another room to the school and hire my mother as a second teacher. Local government would eventually and meagerly subsidize the Black teachers while giving white teachers full salaries. Whites preferred for Black children to pick cotton rather than to read books.
White children rode school buses to government-built, brick buildings. Black children, on the other hand, had to negotiate dirt roads and walk through wooded areas for miles to reach makeshift school buildings. The legacies of the sumptuary laws not only still continued to prohibit Blacks from owning luxury cars and fine clothing, but also from building decent school buildings, notwithstanding the “separate but equal” doctrine.
All of this history about Blacks in Coweta County is being gathered by Cynthia Rosers, an energetic and committed woman of African ancestry, who hails from Harlem and now resides in Coweta County. She has established the African American Alliance, Inc. which has oversight responsibilities over the Coweta County African American Heritage Museum and Research Center.
It was established in May 2003 and its first project is the restoration of the Powell Chapel School. The school is already registered on the Georgia and National Register of Historic Places, a first for a building built and maintained by Blacks in the county.
In pursuing this project, Rosers is losing the blouse off of her back.
Rosers asked me about the schools I attended in the county. My first school was Walter B. Hill Industrial School, in Turin, Georgia. I attended it in the first and second grades. She immediately asserted that Walter B. Hill was a “Rosenwald” school. Julius Rosenwald supported Booker T. Washington.
While I was aware of the Julius Rosenwald Fund, I never knew that my first school was funded, in part, by the Julius Rosenwald Fund, arising from the superb craftsmanship of a Black man, Alvah Roebuck of Sears Roebuck. It is reported that he was ousted from a company he established and which was destined to become a major corporation.
This building program required matching funds. With respect to the Hill School, Blacks contributed 32%; the Julius Rosenwald Fund contributed 30%; whites contributed 19%; and local government only contributed 19%, even though blacks had to pay taxes.
It was the first of six Rosenwald-inspired schools built in the county and it was, at first, and for many years, the only vocational school in the county. Only a handful of these schools are still in existence in the country. The Hill School is still standing in Turin, and any change to it is subject to Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act......
Like mine, Gloria’s formal education started in a Black-funded school. She always wanted to be a teacher like her mother. After her retirement as a school principal, she served as a consultant for the Georgia Department of Education......
Gloria will be missed and, more importantly, remembered. She was my only sibling. Although she suffered a major medical setback on December 6, she was able to hold on until I arrived at the hospital late on December 8, due to a snowstorm, to join her beloved husband, Julius, by her bedside. She made her predawn transition on December 9 and died at the same age and of the same type of cancer as her mother.

Pinson Street Tour of Homes a Success

Greetings everyone,

The tour was spectacular!!!!
The weather was simply gorgeous. We had blue skies and the sun was shinning brightly. It was little windy but that was a very small negative to such a beautiful day. The weather report earlier in the week called for rain in the morning for Saturday, but not a drop fell.

When we got to the Rosser Center to set up at 9:30 there were four people already there. They eagerly waited for us to get start. The first group consisted of students from Kennesaw State University and several people from Atlanta. As of now we can report selling 97 tickets. We have not gotten the report from one other ticket location. We had decided that 25 would have been good and 50 would be a success. That makes the 95+ a HUGH success. Among the people on the tour was Mayor Brady of Newnan, three city council members, Lynn Smith, our state representative, college students from three universities, two ladies visiting from Seattle, Washington, two interns from India and many people from as far as Athens, Georgia. Everyone was very, very impressed and even people who lived on Pinson Street said they learned at least one thing that they did not know. The hosts of the two homes and the two churches were very pleased with everything.

I would like to send out thanks to the following members and volunteers who helped to make this a great success. Without them it would not have happened.

Jessica Ruckheim:
her hard work, dependability and professionalism shows in the history booklet and her organization of the tour itself. She stayed on top of things with me to make sure that the tour happened with minimum problems.

Brenda Matthews, Bernice Cameron, and Toni Teagle, our tour guides.
They really made the tour come alive and did it with such passion. They really made our guest feel involved and they all came away with nothing but compliments.

Janice Black:
our invited tour host. She came from California to lend her personal experiences growing up on Pinson Street with the people on the tour. Her original interpretation added a very humanistic touch to the tour.

Mrs. Dorothy Jordan and Mrs. Geneva McWhorter, our home hosts
These ladies opened their beautiful homes so that people could see what the homes were like in the best of times on Pinson Street. They showed that the Pinson Street homes can be as sophisticatedly beautiful as the homes on Greenville Street and other historic district in Coweta County. They were so gracious and everyone was made comfortable, so much so they didn't want to leave their homes.

The members of Mt Vernon and Zion Hill Churches, our church hosts
The church members made themselves available to tell of their church histories and were very informative. Mt. Vernon is the oldest AA Baptist church in Coweta County, built in 1899. The Alliance will be assisting them to get the church on the National Register of Historic Places along with Newnan Chapel the oldest AA church in Coweta, built in 1848.
AAA construction VP Anthony Green
He supervised the volunteer camera crew taping the tour. As usual he did a very professional job. We will let you know when they are ready for sale. This project is very important for the future of AAA and future projects.

Synetta Williams, ITC student and CEC students
Taped the tour and will edit it for distribution.

Members Wallene Jones and Elizabeth Beers took the tour and gave constructive criticism that we used to improve the rest of the tours.

Dianne Wood
Manned the museum for the people to continue the tour by going by and seeing the museum and research center. About 20 people went there to "round off" the tour.

Brenda, Bernice, Jessica, Bishop White, and his son helped with the Friday cleanup. I thank them for answering the call for help. The residents of Pinson Street also did a great job before we got there. Also the city's clean up crew came along Friday afternoon. Our loyal Willie Boyd went through Saturday morning and did a quick walk through picking up the Friday night beer bottles, which was a great help. He was also there to help at the end of the tour.

Bernice Sutton, our in-house artist:
Her sketch of Pinson Street homes was used on the tickets and posters for the event. As usual she did a great job.

Larry Morrow, board member:
Larry is always quietly behind the scenes making things happen even without us realizing it. He orchestrated the video team. His company sponsored the printing of the flyers.

Banks Glover, webmaster:
He kept the event current on the website, along with our other news. The website is a very, very important promotional tool for the Alliance and his professionalism shows brightly. Everyone who has visited the site comments about how professional is it.

Sam Edwards, board member:
When called upon he jumped right to the need and incorporated the assistant of his staff to help with the poster.

Anton Alsobrook, member:
He put together the promotional poster and flyers.

The Museum's First Anniversary July 10, 2004

t’s hard to believe but the African American Alliance will be hosting the first anniversary of the Coweta County African American Heritage Museum and Research Center July 10, 2004. In the year that we have been open we have had over one thousand visitors, some from as far as London, England. We serve the community by providing a repository for local artifacts and our research rooms provide books, documents and assistance in family history research. In our first year our collection of local family histories has grown from a handful to over two hundred. Strengthening our local African American history base is essential to the history of Coweta County.

The Alliance and the museum have received many awards including a special state resolution by the House of Representatives at the Capitol. The Coweta County Commissioners has also presented the organization with a county resolution for our work in the community and the Alliance is continually featured in the Newnan-Times Herald, the Atlanta Journal Constitution and local radio.

There are several projects that are being worked on which will increase the visitation attraction to the museum and the county:
• Phase one of the Powell School, to be a school museum, is completed. The completion of this project will surely draw visitors interested in the history of education.
• The reconstruction of the Storey-Buchanan slave cabin, which was located on the property of the Buena Vista plantation, is in the preliminary stage. General Wheeler spent the night at Buena Vista during his march across Georgia. The information about General Wheeler, the plantation owner, General Hugh Buchanan (a civil war officer), the slave cabin and a slave, Daniel Jackson, associated with General Hugh Buchanan are documented in the local history book, The History of Coweta County Georgia. Professor Rebecca Bailey’s Public History class at the University of West Georgia, Carrollton, used the interpretation of the cabin as their spring 2004 class project and has provided the museum with an in depth report on slave cabins and related topics such as music, religion, and family life. This information will assist us in properly presenting this otherwise negative component of African American history with a more informational point of view. Our purpose is to educate the community about African American history, even the negative parts, however do it in a way that will present the complete picture, as best as we can, so that the history may be interpreted properly. Once completed this will be the only cabin of its significance this side of Atlanta and possibly in the southwest side of the state. The visitation potential is unlimited. We are hoping to begin the reconstruction for the anniversary and have a starting exhibit in the museum, which will allow our guests a preview of what is to come.
• Plans are being reviewed to expand the museum to provide additional space for a community room where we can conduct genealogy and other informational classes, renovation of the grounds around the museum building to include walking trails, history kiosks, seating and a memorial for the Farmer Street African American Cemetery.
• A short story film of Daniel Jackson and the Story-Buchanan slave cabin will be produced.

The upcoming first anniversary celebration will be our opportunity to show the one hundred plus attendees from our grand opening our progress, to express our thanks for the support of all who have helped us this past year, sponsors such as Georgia Power, and to invite a new set of visitors to our museum and research center. We will provide food and entertainment for an expected two hundred and fifty guests. Cargill Corporation is donating pork tenderloins and several other corporations are donating chicken wings, sandwiches, breads, and drinks. We will be serving Mrs. Perry’s watermelon ice cream for desert. We have invited our community and people from Atlanta, especially the museums, to attend and share in the festivities with us. Volume Records, Inc. from Atlanta will be present to accept applications for auditions which will take place at our Freedom Day festival August 28th; sort of Newnan’s version of American Idol.

The Freedom Day Celebration is to commemorate the emancipation of Coweta County’s slaves August 26, 1865. The Alliance will sponsor a three day celebration starting with an awards banquet at the Newnan County Club where Congressman John Lewis will be awarded the Reverend Welcome Sutton Lifetime Achievement Award and the Tuskegee Airmen will receive the Legacy Award. Other recipients will include State Representative Lynn Smith and the United We Stand youth group. There will be a full day festival at Central Education Center and on Sunday we will join the class of 1954 for their 50th Warner High School class reunion at Newnan Chapel Church. There we will present the church with the Religion Award for being the first African American church in Coweta County, built in 1840.

Our final fundraiser for 2004 will be our third annual Soulful Christmas Celebration scheduled for December 11, 2004. Last year the Ballethnic Dance Troupe, the largest African American ballet troupe in Georgia, came to perform for us. This year we are hoping to bring a big name gospel artist for the program.

Some History of The Coweta County African American Heritage Museum and Research Center

The opening of 2003 found us in anticipation of a new home. We watched Donald McCarty, JW Davis, JR Rogers and Bryant Warner and a host of others as they performed “The Miracle on Farmer Street.” When they were through Coweta County had its first African American museum: the Coweta County African American Heritage Museum and Research Center. We dedicated the building along with Newnan’s 175th birthday in April. We officially began as a museum in May with contributions from members of the community: Mrs. Ernestine Bridges and other local beauticians, Reverend Smith, Henry Houzah, the Mose Martin family, Powell Chapel School, the Sutton family and the family of the original owner, Ms. Ruby Caswell. The exhibits were put together by our curators, Dorothy Pope and Wallene Jones. Many thanks to them; their professionalism has placed our museum, small as it is, in the class with many larger museums. The Alliance theme song, A Story To Tell, composed by Mathew Bailey and Jed Butler was introduced at the grand opening accompanied by Ms. Veronica Dennis. Since our opening we have had over 700 visitors, over a hundred from out of state and ten outside of the United States. Our 500th visitor, Ms. Crystal Tolbert, was presented with a gift basket worth over $300, provided by many local vendors. We thank all of sponsors for their generosity.

With the dedication of our “Aunt” Helen Bowles, the research center has expanded its history collection to over 50 of Coweta’s families. Nine out of ten of our local visitors are able to find an ancestor in one of several reference materials available; such as the census records from1850 to 1930, Coweta’s marriage book from 1827 to 1972 or the 1945 school census records. We invite you to come by and experience the excitement they felt when a grandparent or even a great grandparent’s name was discovered.

The museum is not only Coweta County’s only African American visitor’s venue; it is providing a service for students and community organizations in need of service projects. One of them is available tonight. Our promotional brochure was designed by a University of West Georgia (UWG) graduate; Jessica Ruckheim. Another exciting new project is in progress with one of Newnan’s families and UWG’s Public History class for 2004. You will hear more about it as things are finalized. Mike Furbish and Newnan’s beautification team partnered with an Eagle Scout group to provide us with beautiful plants and flowers. There will be a partnership with the Central Education Center’s horticulture students to continue the project. Things are looking up on the hill on Farmer Street. Please come by and witness all the exciting changes. We thank the City of Newnan, Mayor Brady, City Manager Danny Lewis, the City Council, all others who contributed and especially you, the taxpayers, for helping to make this dream come true.

The restoration of the Powell Chapel Schoolhouse final began in June and phase one will be completed by the end of this year. Proctor Cooper of Cooper and Sons Construction and his work crew have done an awesome job so far. The tin roof was replaced by a donation from Skendor Corporation. We are waiting on funds to complete the process with phase two. So far we have received $10,000 of the $45,000 needed with a generous donation of over $9,000 from Coweta-Fayette EMC’s Roundup Program and $1,000 from the Kiwanis Club. We are hoping that at the 2004 third annual Soulful Christmas Celebration we will be telling you about the opening of the Powell Chapel School Museum. The museum will be dedicated to our beloved Reverend Welcome Robert Sutton and will also include a museum of the Prayer Band, which provided Coweta with religious leaders for over 67 years, in his honor.

Major sponsors for Soulful Christmas Celebration 2003:
Georgia Power, Newnan Utilities, Bank of Coweta, Farmers and Merchants Bank

History of the Farmer Street Cemetery

By Helen Bowles 2001

Local resident Bobby Olmstead grew up on Murray Street. As a child, the plot of land nearby was revered and an unwritten rule placed it off limits for play. It had for years been known as a "slave cemetery." The land held no markers, no one kept the property but still the story of it being a burial ground for African Americans lingered. Early in 1999, Mr. Olmstead happened by a City of Newnan crew preparing to make walking paths through the property. He told them they couldn't do that because the site was a grave yard. He realized at that time, this bit of history had been forgotten. Mr. Olmstead went to Newnan Mayor Brady, told his tale and convinced the Mayor to cease development of the land.

The City, in the spring of that year, hired an archaeologist, Steve Webb, to do a historical land survey. Mr. Webb's work was completed in July and he outlined a cemetery of 4.4 acres on which there were 249 identified grave depressions and several other possible grave depressions. This little heretofore unknown plot of land was now possibly the largest slave cemetery known in the US. The story hit all the wire services as well as the national TV network news and magazines. Although, without further investigation, it is impossible to tell who is buried on this land, the evidence in Mr. Webb's survey as well as local legend and deeds lends credence to the possibility of it indeed being a slave cemetery. At the very least, it is almost certainly an African American cemetery.

An 1918 map shows a Negro Grave Yard on the site and in later maps was referred to as the "Cole Cemetery" or "Colored Cemetery." William B. Berry originally owned most of the land around the present site. He was one of Coweta County's earliest settlers and largest land owners. Deeds show transfer of the land near the cemetery by Mr. Berry to Newnan Cotton Mills in 1888. One of the provisions of this deed was to preserve the right of access of "colored people to and from their cemetery." In a deed dated 1900, other surrounding properties were sold to Newnan Cotton Mills and reference again was made to a "colored cemetery." In 1962 the property was acquired by the City of Newnan.

One lone marker remains: that of little Charlie Burch who died at the tender age of three months in 1869.

Background on Burch family

Abner Robert Burch was born in March 1848 in Virginia. He was possibly the slave of Robert Simms Burch who lived in Coweta County in 1835. Robert. Burch is shown in the 1859 census as owning 19 slaves and in 1855 had 25. He was a lawyer and lived in Newnan, the 5th District.

Eliza E. Smith Burch was born in February 1848 in Georgia, the daughter of George and Isabella Smith. It is possible they were slaves of Dr. Ira Smith, an early Coweta County settler from Virginia who, in 1850, owned 54 slaves. George and Isabella had five children; Eliza, Ira, Walter, Fannie and Georgia.

Abner and Eliza were married in April 1866. Charlie was the second son of Abner and Eliza. According to the 1870 Census, their eldest son, George, was born in 1867. In the 1880 Census he was listed as being a railroad postal clerk. He went to Atlanta University and married Elizabeth Cox in 1893. They lived in Fulton County. Abner and Eliza raised a second child, Wilburn (Bud) Gay. In the Census of 1870, Abner was listed as a cook and Eliza as a housekeeper. In 1887 Abner established a restaurant on E. Broad Street. He later gave Bud an interest in the restaurant and it became one of Newnan's most popular eating places well into the 1930's.

Abner and Eliza owned a large piece of property between Savannah and Burch Streets in the Chalk Level community of Newnan. The house faced Burch Street and, at one time, there was a road from Burch Street to the cemetery. Abner and Eliza were respected and prominent citizens in Newnan having large property holdings and being committed church members and contributors or the community. There is no record of either Abner or Eliza's death or place of burial. A deed dated 1911 shows George to be A. R. Burch's sole heir and family history relates that Eliza died shortly after Abner.