Friday's Photo: Uncle Tom White

Z. Thomas White, known as "Uncle Tom White," was born on 29 October 1869, likely in Bienville Parish, Louisiana. He died on 10 July 1956 in Caddo Parish and is buried at Mount Olive Cemetery in Bienville Parish. His gravestone reads “Uncle Tom White,” matching the name on the photo.

He was one of nine children of Philemon White and Mylydia McGee White, who settled in Bienville Parish before the Civil War. The name “Uncle Tom” may have come naturally, as he had many nieces and nephews through his eight siblings. Tom never married and appears in census records living with his parents and later with his brother, David M. White.

Records list him variously as Z. Thomas White, Zae T. White, Tom Z. White, Zacarier Thomas White, Ezekiel White, Zac White, and Zackhry Thomas White. 

This photo came from Mary V. Smith's collection. She wrote that Niler [Nila] Sledge Edwards gave her mother, Anna Laura Martin, the family photo album of Henry Collin Sledge of Bienville Parish. Mary also wrote that she copied the names as found on the photos. 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

Diana

© 2025

Billie Jean Poland, History of Bienville Parish, Vol. IIhe  (Bossier City, Louisiana: Everett Companies, 1990), p. 798-799, images 808–809; digitized at Bienville Parish Library Digital Archives (https://bienville.advantage-preservation.com : accessed 22 May 2025).

"Tom/Thomas White" search, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 22 May 2025), search results for “Tom/Thomas White,” born 1869, Bienville Parish, Louisiana; results included entries from U.S. Census Records, Louisiana Statewide Death Index, 1819–1964, Find a Grave Index, and Public Member Trees.

"Uncle Tom White," photograph, n.d.; scanned image, from the privately held photo collection of Mary V. Smith, Alaska, 2004; original images photographed between 1973 and 1993.

Friday's Photo: Anna Laura Martin - Family Photos

Anna Laura Martin and her cat - 1904

These are just a few of several photos of Anna Laura Martin and her family in Bienville Parish, Louisiana. All of these were found in the collection of Mary Martin Smith. Mary was the daughter of Anna Laura Martin and her husband Joseph Martin. There are a few more in Mary's collection, and others were found in Marguerite Cook Clark's collection. I will post those next Friday. 

Anna is pictured with her parents, Mary Ann Sledge Martin and Thomas Jefferson Martin II. The photo is badly marked. I've enlarged the family, and you can see Anna Laura's sweet face and her doll. 

Below, Anna Laura Martin is pictured with her sister, Emma Alice, and their father. 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

Diana

© 2024 

Anna Laura Martin family photos, photographs, ca. 1904-1924; scanned images from the privately held photo collection of Mary V. Smith, Alaska, 2004; original images photographed between 1973 and 1993.

Friday's Photo: A School Photo in Bienville Parish, Louisiana

This photo was found in the collection of Mary Virginia Martin Smith. Anna Laura Martin, the girl under the teacher with the square collar and flowers, was her mother. 

It appears that there are 44 students and only one teacher in this photo. Ages look as if they range from age 4 or 5 to high school. Based on the ages of Emma Alice Martin and Vance Woodard, I estimate that the year was around 1911 or 1912. 

Vance Woodard was born in 1906 and was the son of John M. Woodard and Carrie Lou Murph. Anna Laura Martin, born in 1902, and Emma Alice Martin, born in 1904, were the daughters of Thomas J. Martin Jr. and Mary Anna Sledge. 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

Diana

© 2024 

Ringgold School Photo, photograph, n.d.; scanned image, from the privately held photo collection of Mary V. Smith, Alaska, 2004; original images photographed between 1973 and 1993.

YouDee20012001,"Marler Pate Corley McCoy Family Tree," private tree, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/tree/973847/family/familyview? fpid=-626224692&fpid=-626224692&usePUBJs=true: accessed 24 April 2021). 

Friday's Photo: Six Men on Horseback

This photo is another found in the collection that once belonged to Marguerite Cook Clark of Bienville Parish, Louisiana. Her mother identified the two boys in the middle - "John Wimberly (Harriet)" and "Sledge" with no first name. Question marks can be seen under the other young men's photos. I have tried to enlarge the photo, but it became pixilated with only slight changes. 

I am unable to identify five of the young men, but John Wimberly with "Harriet" under his name reminded me of another photo labeled "John (Harriet) Wimberly." This may be John L. Wimberly, son of Andrew Lawson Wimberly and Harriet Elizabeth Knighton. Does anyone know? 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

.

Diana

© 2023

Men on Horseback and "John (Harriet) Wimberly," photographs, n.d.; digital images, from the privately held photo collection of Marguerite Cook Clark (1913-1989), Waynesville, North Carolina, 2022. Photos were accessed and scanned at the home of Marguerite Cook Clark's daughter in Alpine, Texas, on April 28, 2014, September 14, 2014, and November 9 to 11, 2016.

Vera Meeks Wimberly, Wimberly Family History, Ancestors, Relatives, and Descendants of William Wimberly, Pioneer from Georgia to Louisiana 1837 (Houston Texas: D. Anderson, 1979), pages 182-183.

Friday's Photo: Nine Unidentified Photos that Once Belonged to Henry Collin Sledge of Bienville Parish, Louisiana

Mary Virginia Martin Smith wrote that these photos came from a photo album given to her mother, Anna Laura Martin, by one of her Sledge cousins, Nila Edwards. The album belonged to Nila's father, Henry Collin Sledge (1851-1928) of Bienville Parish, Louisiana. 

To the many readers of this blog who have Bienville Parish ties, do you have identical or similar photos? If this is your family or you can identify the photos, please reply to this blog or contact me on my Facebook page or via email. 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

.

Diana

© 2023 

Sledge Photos, photographs, n.d.; scanned images, from the privately held photo collection of Mary V. Smith, Alaska, 2004. 

Friday's Photo: Benjamin Madison Sledge

Benjamin Madison Sledge
1887 - 1960

This photo is from Mary V. Smith's collection. Benjamin Madison Sledge, born in Ringgold, Bienville Parish, Louisiana, was the son of  Milton James Sledge and Nancy Loftin. He served in France in the US Army Infantry during WWI. 

Benjamin Sledge was married to Ella Watson. They lived in Red River Parish, where he was a farmer. Both Benjamin and Ella are buried in the Holly Springs Cemetery in Martin, Louisiana. 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

.

Diana

© 2022 

Sources 

Benjamin Madison Sledge, photograph, n.d.; scanned image held by D.B. Quinn, 2022, from the privately held photo collection of Mary V. Smith, Alaska, 2004; original images photographed between 1973 and 1993.

Ella Watson Sledge, The Times (Shreveport, Louisiana), 4 September 1984, p.8; database with images, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/clip/116905206/ella-watson-sledge/: accessed 19 January 2023).

"Find A Grave Index," database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVLR-HR4T : 11 January 2022), Ben, ; Burial, Martin, Red River Parish, Louisiana, United States of America, Holley Springs Cemetery; citing record ID 104818672, Find a Grave, http://www.findagrave.com. Obituary is posted on the site. 

"Louisiana Deaths, 1850-1875, 1894-1960," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QLXZ-R1HW : 2 April 2020), Ben M Sledge, 06 Sep 1960; citing Coushatta, Red River, Louisiana, United States, certificate number 14817, State Archives, Baton Rouge; FamilySearch digital folder 005052355.

"United States, Veterans Administration Master Index, 1917-1940," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:W3G1-C9T2 : 26 October 2019), Benjamin Maddison Sledge, 10 Aug 1919; citing Military Service, NARA microfilm publication 76193916 (St. Louis: National Archives and Records Administration, 1985), various roll numbers.

Friday's Photo: Edna and Mary Anne Sledge

This photo is from the collection of Mary Martin Smith. Mary's grandmother was Mary Anna Sledge who married Thomas Jefferson Martin II of Bienville Parish, Louisiana. Mary Anna was his first wife, and she passed away in 1918. 

If this Mary Sledge is Mary's grandmother (I could be wrong . . . ), who is Edna Sledge? 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

Diana

© 2022 

Edna and Mary Anne Sledge, photograph, n.d.; scanned image, from the privately held photo collection of Mary V. Smith, Alaska, 2004. 

Friday's Photo: Sledge Family Photo Identified as G. M. and Hixie W. Hartsfield

This photo came from Mary V. Smith's collection. She wrote that the family photo album of Henry Collin Sledge, of Bienville Parish, was given to her mother, Anna Laura Martin, by Niler [Nila] Sledge Edwards. Mary also wrote that she copied the identifications that were on the photos. 

The young boys are wearing clothes similar to boys' clothing in the 1850s and 1860s. I did not find any young boys in census records matching these names. However, I did find a G. M. [Godfry Milledge] Hartsfield and his wife, Hickey W. Sledge Hartsfield, buried in the Hartsfield Cemetery in Columbia County, Arkansas. In Biographical family histories of southwest Arkansas, volume I, Hickey was identified as Hixey Whitfield Sledge, daughter of Whitfield H. Sledge. Could these be children of G. M. and Hixey Sledge Hartsfield?

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

.

Diana

© 2022 

Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12744303/hickey-w-hartsfield: accessed 17 November 2022), memorial page for Hickey W. Sledge Hartsfield (15 Aug 1818–1 Dec 1880), Find a Grave Memorial ID 12744303, citing Hartsfield Cemetery, McNeil, Columbia County, Arkansas, USA; Maintained by Diane Gravlee (contributor 47083760).

Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12744284/godfrey-milledge-hartsfield: accessed 18 November 2022), memorial page for Godfrey Milledge Hartsfield (24 Mar 1812–20 Nov 1887), Find a Grave Memorial ID 12744284, citing Hartsfield Cemetery, McNeil, Columbia County, Arkansas, USA; Maintained by Diane Gravlee (contributor 47083760).

Sledge family photo labeled G. M. and Hixie Hartfield, photograph, n.d.; scanned image, from the privately held photo collection of Mary V. Smith, Alaska, 2004; original images photographed between 1973 and 1993.

Southwest Arkansas Genealogical Society, Biographical family histories of southwest Arkansas, volume I (Southwest Arkansas Genealogical Society, Magnolia, Arkansas: 1986), 199; digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/library/books/records/item/372461-redirection : accessed 25 October 2022).

Friday's Photo: John Sledge

This photo came from the collection of Mary Virginia Martin Smith. She wrote that this and other photos marked with "ne" were from a photo album given to her mother, Anna Laura Martin, by a Sledge cousin, Niler Edwards of Bienville Parish, Louisiana. Although Mary wrote Niler, the cousin's name was probably Nila. The album originally belonged to Nila's father, Henry Collin Sledge. 

John Sledge was the brother of Henry Collin Sledge. I have seen his name written as John A. and John Aaron. While looking for information about the community of Iverson, John Sledge was seen in some of the records. I know that he was a merchant and postmaster. According to information at Find A Grave, he was married three times. His first wife, Sarah, was the daughter of Miles L. and Sarah Lawson Bryan who may have been closely connected to my Reddick Bryan family of Bienville Parish. 

Looking at other photos in this collection, I saw two unidentified photos that looked very much like the man in the above photo. What do you think? 

John Sledge's obituary with an additional, but very fuzzy, photograph can be seen here. 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

.

Diana

© 2022 

Sources

Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/24290958/nila-edwards: accessed 22 July 2022), memorial page for Nila Sledge Edwards (22 Jun 1893–10 Jun 1969), Find a Grave Memorial ID 24290958, citing Providence Cemetery, Ringgold, Bienville Parish, Louisiana, USA; Maintained by Nancy E. Collins (contributor 47113696).

Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/97619397/john-aaron-sledge: accessed 22 July 2022), memorial page for John Aaron Sledge (12 Apr 1840–14 Apr 1924), Find a Grave Memorial ID 97619397, citing Old Castor Cemetery, Castor, Bienville Parish, Louisiana, USA; Maintained by KC (contributor 46825020).

Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/106989397/sarah-sledge: accessed 22 July 2022), memorial page for Sarah Bryan Sledge (15 Jun 1842–28 Dec 1883), Find a Grave Memorial ID 106989397; Maintained by Samuel Taylor Geer (contributor 46925792)Burial Details Unknown.

JPERSONAL, The Times (Shreveport, Louisiana), 20 August 1898, p.5; database with images, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106091932/j-a-sledge-of-iverson/: accessed 22 July 2022).

Narrative about 110A and the rest of Part 5, n.d.; scanned image, from the privately held photo collection of Mary V. Smith, Alaska, 2004. 

Sledge Photos 117, 122, and 127, photographs, n.d.; scanned image, from the privately held photo collection of Mary V. Smith, Alaska, 2004. 

Southern Postal Matters, The Times-Democrat (New Orleans), 7 March 1902, p.4; database with images, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106091792/john-a-sledge-postmaster/: accessed 22 July 2022).

Friday's Photo: Captain Joshua Sledge of Bienville Parish, Louisiana

A few weeks ago, I posted photos of the children of Captain Joshua Sledge and his sisters - Friday's Photo: Three Bienville Parish Families - Sledge, Martin, and Bryan. This week, I am posting additional photos of Captain Joshua Sledge. These are from the collection sent to me by Mary Martin Smith.[1] She is pictured in the photo below with her uncle, Captain Joshua.  

Captain Joshua Sledge, born in Van Zandt County, Texas, was the son of Milton James Sledge and Sinthia Nolan. He married Catherine Lillian Cowart of Bienville Parish in 1904. They are buried in the Springhill Cemetery in Ringgold.[2]  

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

.

Diana

© 2022 

    1. Captain Joshua Sledge photos, photographs, n.d.; scanned images held by D.B. Quinn, 2022, from the privately held photo collection of Mary V. Smith, Alaska, 2004; original images photographed between 1973 and 1993.

    2. Laura Decker, "Laura Ann Martin Decker," public tree, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/tree/114525353/family/familyview?cfpid=350132377968&dtid=100 : accessed 9 January 2022). 

Friday's Photo: Three Bienville Parish Families - Sledge, Martin, and Bryan

This photo and the photos below were found in a digitized collection sent to me by Mary V. Smith.[1] Mary labeled all of the photos with birth and death dates along with other remarks. When I post her photos, I will include the written information as well. 

Cowart James and Vera were the children of Captain Joshua Sledge and Katie Cowart. Mary, Anna, and Emma were the daughters of Mary Anna Sledge and Thomas J. Martin II. John, Pierce, and Oliver were the sons of Charles Monroe Bryan and Alice Sledge. Captain Joshua, Mary Anna, and Alice were siblings.[2] Photos of the parents of these children are seen below. 

Note: Charles Monroe Bryan was the son of James Monroe Bryan. For years I have tried to connect James Monroe Bryan to my Reddick Bryan family and have been unsuccessful.[3] 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

.

Diana

© 2022 

    1. Sledge, Martin, and Bryan families, n.d.; scanned images, from the privately held photo collection of Mary V. Smith, Alaska, 2004; original images photographed between 1973 and 1993.

    2. YouDee20012001,"Marler Pate Corley McCoy Family Tree," private tree, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/tree/973847/family/familyview? fpid=-626224692&fpid=-626224692&usePUBJs=true: accessed 13 January 2022). Also, mavidmar," M Burton Family Tree," public tree, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/tree/35562118/family/familyview?cfpid=18826543110&dtid=100: accessed 13 January 2022).

    3. mavidmar," M Burton Family Tree," public tree, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/tree/35562118/family/familyview?cfpid=18826543110&dtid=100: accessed 13 January 2022).