52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: #9 Sarah Jane Hairston and a Challenging Census Record

The Hairston Family - 1880 U.S. Census Falls County, Texas

No Story Too Small

I first found my Hairston family in the 1880 U.S. Census of Falls County, Texas. It was a challenging record.  A black mark over some of the names left me guessing. No one is named as "head"of the family and none of the dwellings were marked so I don't know if the Hairston family lived together in one home or if there were several homes. 

Most of my Hairston family members in the 1880 census could be identified. Phillip, my great-grandfather, appeared to be the head with his wife, Lodema, and two Gilbert children (children of his sister Mary).  John L. Hairston, Phillip's father, was listed as a boarder and Permelia Noah, another sister of Phillip, was there with her two sons, Willie and Oscar. Martha (Mattie), the youngest sister, was listed with her husband, James Chisum, and children, Walter and Stella. 

The last Hairston on that page is the biggest challenge. This 34 year old was first recorded as a daughter and then son was written on top of daughter.  Gender was first F and written over as M. The name looks like James, but I believe it is Jane. 

Census records can be far from perfect. Remember that we are probably not looking at the original record. Did the transcriber have difficulty reading the census taker's handwriting.  Information can be incorrect or omitted. Who was the informant for this family? 

Some researchers surmise that it is James. AND, because the birth year is 1846, that James is actually William Hairston, the son of John L. Hairston who was born in 1846. 

I will continue to believe that this is Sarah Jane Hairston, not James.  A James is not mentioned in earlier census records. Two other census records indicate that Sarah Jane was born in 1845 while this 1880 census gives her a birth year of 1846. A difference of a year is not a deal breaker for me as I have seen far too many errors on census records to change my mind. 

Sarah Jane Hairston - 1850 U.S. Census Hinds County, Mississippi

Sarah Jane Hairston - 1860 U.S. Census Hinds County, Mississippi - Note the age indicates 1846 for year of birth. 

Sarah Jane Hairston - 1900 U.S. Census Erath County, Texas

So, what happened to Sarah Jane? I can't find a death record or record of her on later census records. She was single in 1900. Did she marry? 

I do have one clue. On a visit to Texas, in 2001, a Thompson descendant shared some photos with me. On the back of a baby picture/postcard of one of Floyd Thompson's sons, Floyd wrote to his mother (Sarah Jane's sister, Martha) about the baby and briefly about life in Baylor County. At the end of the message, he wrote something like"tell me about Aunt Jane." I know that Floyd's sons were born between 1912 and 1916 which means Sarah Jane was living after 1912. I just wish that I had taken more time to document this information during that Texas trip!  

#9 Sarah Jane Hairston

Diana

© 2014

Sources

1850 U.S. census, population schedule, Hinds County, Mississippi, family 714, J. Harston household; National Archives microfilm publication roll M432; digital image, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed 16 Feb. 2014).

1860 U.S. census, population schedule, Hinds County, Mississippi, family 616, Phillip A. Hairston household; National Archives microfilm publication roll M432; digital image, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed 27 Feb. 2014).

1880 U.S. census, population schedule, Falls County, Texas, Phil Hairston household; National Archives microfilm publication roll M432; digital image, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed 27 Feb. 2014).

1900 U.S. census, population schedule, Erath County, Texas, family 616, Phillip A. Hairston household; National Archives microfilm publication roll M432; digital image, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed 27 Feb. 2014).

Friday's Photo: Feather Girl Revisited

Left - Laura Isabel Wylie (before 1910)
Right - Laura Isabel Wylie (about 1926)

Any little doubts about last Friday's identification of Feather Girl as Laura Isabel Wylie were dispelled when Jane sent me this 1926 photo of Laura.  
Thank you, Jane!

Diana

© 2014



Sources:

Photograph of Laura Isabel Wylie (Feather Girl) from collection of Diana Bryan Quinn.

Photographs of Laura Isabel Wylie used with permission. From the collection of Jane F. Aebersold.

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: #8 William Hairston

In 1850, William Hairston, age 4, was listed on the Hinds County, Mississippi U.S. Census with his parents, John L. and Eliza Hairston. He would have been the older brother of my great-grandfather, Phillip A. Hairston, who was born in 1852. 

No Story Too Small

William was not with the family in 1860. Could he have been living with another family or just left off the census? Exhaustive searches of records, online and in print, gave no clues as to what may have happened to William. 

William must have died before 1860 was a notation in the margin of a 1992 letter from a Hairston researcher to my cousin, Jackie. A very plausible assumption as about 216 out of every 1000 white children died between the ages of 0 to 5 during that time. That the Hairston family was relatively poor and that Eliza was uneducated probably increased the risk of early death.  

I am going to assume that William Hairston died at an early age. However, that won't stop me from checking new online sources, courthouses, and libraries for any information about William. 

#8 William Hairston

Diana

© 2014

Sources

1850 U.S. census, population schedule, Hinds County, Mississippi, , family 714, J. Harston household; National Archives microfilm publication roll M432; digital image, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed 16 Feb. 2014).

Alcorn, Maxine (Houston, Texas) to "Dear Jackie" [Jacquelyn Skinner]. Letter. 4 April 1992. Jacquelyn Skinner Genealogy Papers, 1965-2002 [Manuscript]. Denver Public Library, Denver, Colorado. 

Infant mortality. (2014, February 21). Wikipedia. Retrieved February 22, 2014, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infant_mortality
 

Friday's Photo: Feather Girl

I've have had this picture, affectionately called Feather Girl, for about 15 years. Copies of her picture have been posted on several websites, my blog, and sent to countless Hairston, Criswell, and Bryan relatives with the hope of learning her identity. 

I took a copy of Feather Girl to the Southern California Genealogy Jamboree, in 2011, to show to Maureen Taylor, The Photo Detective. Could this possibly be my grandmother? Maureen didn't think so, but did include Feather Girl in a webinar she produced for the members of the Southern California Genealogy Society. 

Despite being seen by hundreds of people, Feather Girl remained unnamed.  

Well, last month, I received a picture from my not so distant cousin, Jane, who asked, This is a pic of Laura Isabel Wylie . . . . . any chance Laura could be your "feather girl?” Possibly, but it was hard to tell. HOWEVER, last week, Jane sent another picture of Laura Isabel Wylie wearing Feather Girl's dress and necklace. 

Laura Isabel Wylie was my father's first cousin. She was the daughter of Dorothy Elizabeth Harriett Bryan and Thomas Sumter Wylie. 

Laura was born in 1894. If she is a young teen, as the picture suggests, the Feather Girl photo was taken before 1910. 

These photos of Laura Isabel Wylie all point to her as my Feather Girl. 

Another photo identified! 

Diana

© 2014

Sources:

Photograph of Laura Isabel Wylie (Feather Girl) from collection of Diana Bryan Quinn.

Photographs of Laura Isabel Wylie used with permission. From the collection of Jane F. Aebersold.

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: #7 Phillip A. Hairston

Phillip A. Hairston was born in Hinds County, Mississippi on May 17, 1852. 

He was the son of John L. Hairston. His mother has been named as Liza or Eliza. 

No Story Too Small

Phillip A. Hairston, my great-grandfather, was first found as an eight year old child on the 1860 census of Hinds County, Mississippi.  At the end of the Civil War, Phillip and his family moved to Falls County, Texas. It has been said that they stopped in Arkansas prior to coming to Texas. 

Phillip's obituary stated that he was in Falls County by age 14 - about 1866. In 1868, his father married Cynthia H. Moffitt on Sept. 21, 1868 in Falls County. His mother's fate is unknown. 

Phillip Hairston and most other members of the family cannot be found on the 1870 census; however, it was reported that the home of John L. Hairston was consumed by fire on April 2, 1870.

Phillip A. Hairston married Lodema Walker Criswell on January 3 in the early 1870s. Dates on several records conflict. The names and dates are so faded that they cannot be seen on the marriage certificate. A look at the marriage index might reveal the actual year. 

A baby boy was born to Phillip and Lodema on January 9, 1878 and
died later that month. He remained unnamed. This paper was found in the Bryan family Bible. 

In 1880, Phillip, Lodema, and extended family can be found in Falls County. Family living with or near Phillip included his father, his sisters - Mattie Chisum and Permelia Noah and their families,  a James or Jane Hairston, and Phillip's niece and nephew, John and Adeline Gilbert. 

Johnie Myrtlene "Myrtie" Hairston, daughter of Phillip and Lodema, was born on July 9, 1880. 

In September 1883, Phillip and Lodema sold 46 acres on Brushy Creek in Falls County. On December 1, 1883, Phillip and Lodema purchased 160 acres from Robert Thompson in Erath County, Texas. Robert was the brother of Phillip's soon to be brother-in-law, John Thompson. It is not known how Phillip and Lodema obtained the land sold in Falls County.  Many assume that Phillip's father, John L. Hairston, died and his land was sold by Phillip. There is no proof. Land records need to be looked at more closely in Falls County. Lodema's mother, Mary Ann Evans Criswell, died in 1883 and her father, William M. Criswell, in 1881; both in Falls County. I think that it is very likely that they received land and money from Lodema's mother. 

About 1890 - Phillip Hairston, Myrtie Hairston, and Lodema Hairston

R. E. Bryan and Miss Myrtie Hairston were united in the holy bonds of wedlock one day this week at the home of the bride’s parents. Miss Hairston is the only daughter of Mr. Phil Hairston of near Huckabay who is one of Erath’s best citizens and most prosperous and well to do farmers. Miss Hairston is bright, beautiful and attractive and commands the love and respect of all who know her. Mr. Bryan is the son of Esq. Terrell Bryan, is educated, robust and handsome and numbers his friends as legion. He has grown up in our mist and those who know him love him the most. The Appeal joins their host of friends in wishing them a long, happy and prosperous life.  The Erath Appeal, Vol. 2, No.29, Stephenville, Texas, Feb. 8, 1900

Myrtie Hairston married Redic Eli Bryan on February 7, 1900 at the home of her parents in the Bethel Community.  She and Redic moved to Comanche County where Redic tended a bar belonging to his brother-in-law. Phillip and Lodema remained in their Bethel home and were found living there with Phillip's sister, Sarah Jane Hairston on the 1900 U.S. Census. 

On all census records found, P.A., or Phillip, is listed as a farmer. I was told that he raised sheep and sold horses. It has been said that Redic first met Myrtie when he purchased her favorite horse from her father. 

On November 11, 1905, it was reported in the Stephenville Tribune that Reddick {Redic} Bryan and P.A. Hairston, who recently disposed of their property in Erath County, are nicely located on a fine piece of property they paid $20 per acre. They bought all the corn on the farm at 25 cents. They have already taken possession of their new homes. The Tribune neglected to say that this fine property was in Baylor County, Texas. 

Baylor County Banner, November 29, 1912

In November 1916, Phillip's farm, in the Levelview community, was for sale at $45.00 per acre. 

In 1917, Phillip and Lodema moved into a new home in Seymour. The first night in their home, the doctor had to be called due to a severe pain in Phillip Hairston's side. 

Phillip's sisters, Permelia Noah and Martha "Mattie" Thompson both visited Baylor County in September 1917. I am sure that they knew it would be the last time that they would spend with their brother. Phillip is pictured above with his sister, Permelia. 

Phillip and Lodema went to Mineral Wells where it was determined that Phillip had cancer of the kidney.

Phillip Hairston died on November 9, 1917.  He is buried in an unmarked
grave in the Woodsman of the World Cemetery in Baylor County, Texas/
Click here to see his obituary. 

To help those of you  following my Hairston family in the posts 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks, I will include this family tree each week, adding each new ancestor as I post. 

Diana

© 2014

Sources:

Baylor County Banner [Seymour] 29 Nov. 1912: Microfilm.

Baylor County Banner [Seymour] 6 Sept. 1916: Microfilm.

Baylor County Banner [Seymour] 27 Sept. 1917: Microfilm.

Baylor County Banner [Seymour] 20 Sept. 1917: Microfilm.

Baylor County Banner [Seymour] 4 Oct. 1917: Microfilm.

Baylor County Banner [Seymour] 15 Nov. 1917: Microfilm.

Deed of Sale from P. A. Hairston and L. W. Hairston to Robert L. Jeeks, 5 Sept. 1883. (filed 11 Jan. 1889), Falls County, Texas, Deed Book Z, page 506. County Clerks's Office, Marlin, Texas.

Deed of Sale from R. W. Thompson and S. E. Thompson to P. A. Hairston and L. W. Hairston, 1 Dec. 1883. (filed 17 Dec. 1883), Erath County, Texas, Deed Book P, page 605. County Clerks's Office, Stephenville, Texas.

Family photographs and documents from the collection of Diana Bryan Quinn.

Hairston, P.A. and Criswell, L. W., Falls County Marriages, no 267, County Clerk's Office, Marlin, Texas.

Houston, John L. and Moffitt, Cynthia, Falls County Marriages, County Clerk's Office, Marlin, Texas.

Stephenville Tribune [Stephenville] 11 Nov. 1905: Microfilm

"Texas Items." Galveston Tri-Weekly News.  13 Apr. 1870, 97 ed.: 1. GenealogyBank.com.

The Erath Appeal [Stephenville] Vol. 2, No.29, Stephenville, Texas, Feb. 8, 1900: Print

Year: 1860; Census Place: Hinds, Mississippi; Roll: M653_582; Page: 674; Image: 206; Family History Library Film: 803582.

Year: 1880; Census Place: Falls, Texas; Roll: 1302; Family History Film: 1255302; 
Page: 190B; Enumeration District: 038.

Year: 1900; Census Place: Justice Precinct 1, Erath, Texas; Roll: 1631; Page: 36A; Enumeration District: 0064; FHL microfilm: 1241631.

Year: 1900; Census Place: De Leon, Comanche, Texas; Roll: 1623; Page: 8A; Enumeration District: 0034; FHL microfilm: 1241623.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Up until the age of nine or ten, my mother put all cards that my brother and I received into scrapbooks. We each had our own "cardbook" and when we were sick and confined to bed, Mom let us read our cardbooks. These are a few of the Valentines found in my book. 

Thank you, Mom!

Diana

© 2014

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: #6 Hairston Albritton Bryan

I have taken Amy Crow's challenge to write about  52 ancestors in 52 weeks. Each of these posts will be about my father's Hairston family. This is week #6 and I have learned new facts about each person while putting together these posts. I love this challenge as not only does this give me an outlet for my research, but helps it me organize as well. 

For those of you who saw my earlier post today (I mistakenly clicked on "Publish" when this was far from ready to be posted.), I hope that you find this a big improvement. And if anyone using Blogger knows how to repair that situation, I would be happy to have some instructions. 

Hairston Albritton "Buster" Bryan was my father's older brother. Hairston was his mother's maiden name and Albritton was the maiden name of his father's mother. This is Buster's story.

Hairston Albritton "Buster" Bryan was born to Redic and Myrtie Hairston Bryan on January 24, 1906 in Baylor County, Texas.  He was probably born in the Levelview community as both his parents and mother's parents lived in that community. Buster was the third child and the first son born to Redic and Myrtie. 

Buster is the child on the bike, between his grandfather, Phillip Hairston and sister, DeRay Bryan. This is a copy of a photo shared with me by a Thompson/Hairston cousin. I have the identical picture but it is torn on the right and Buster is not visible. Floyd Thompson, nephew of Phillip Hairston, is behind the plowing team. 

Buster lived in Baylor County for almost all of his childhood. In June of 1907, the Bryan family moved to Big Spring in Howard County, Texas. Redic sold a farm of 140 acres in the Levelview community, known as the Cap Carter Place, to J. C. Arden for $33.00 an acre. Before he left, he also sold farm tools, four mules, two milch cows, hogs, chickens, turkeys, and guineas. It can be assumed that he did not purchase a farm in Big Spring. 

By November of 1909, the Bryan family returned to Baylor County and it was reported in the Baylor County Banner that they were looking for a home in Levelview near Buster's grandparents, Phillip and Lodema Criswell Hairston. The home pictured above is the Hairston home in the Levelview community. 

By the time that Buster entered high school, the family lived in Seymour, Baylor County, Texas. These are Buster's school pictures. The first was taken in 1919 and the second in 1920. 

The following was written under this picture of Buster in the 1923 Jackrabbit, his school yearbook:  If someone quietly slips up behind you and pinches you with the expression as innocent as a babe's - that's Buster. Doesn't study enough to mar what is called a "joy forever," but manages to get by with margin. Has a monthly attack of good intentions wherein he seeks to be worthy of our "glorious" nation. We don't know how he got by the Math. Prof., but we're glad that he did.

Buster sang in the glee club and played football at Seymour High. The 1923 Jackrabbit Class Poem states this about Buster - There are many things about Buster that one might say. One is that he is growing taller every day; On different tasks he never gives in, For he has the determination to win. 

Buster's graduation announcement - Seymour High School. Thank you to Carla's family for keeping this for so many years!

In 1924 and 1925, Buster was attending Simmons College where he belonged to the Philosophy Club and the Seymour Club. 

Juanita still had my
grandmother"s
oak side-by-side when
I visited her in 2001.

Buster's mother passed away in 1927 and his father in 1929. Buster was the administrator of his father's estate. At that time of his father's death, he was living in Wichita Falls, Texas, working at  Kemp-Kort Drug Company. My 2nd cousin once removed, Juanita Thompson Gleghorn, wrote the following about Buster.

In 1929 our youngest sister was burned, and died in three weeks. It was a very sad time for us, so we were renting the farm at that time. Our landlord built a new house on the south side of her place and let us move there, the first new house we ever lived in. Buster would drive out once in a while to get some lye soap to wash his beautiful, black curly hair in. He said it kept the dandruff down.  He was a handsome young man . . . . .   As well as I remember, your grandmother and Redic had passed on. So Buster knew we were in a new house and he and Dad made some kind of trade I guess for Buster brought out some furniture to us, for we didn’t have anything pretty for our new house. 

Yesterday, I found Buster and Wanda's marriage record at Ancestry.com.
H. Buster Bryan and Wanda Land were married January 1, 1935 in Ector County, Texas.  Sometime that year, they moved to Lea, New Mexico along with Wanda's son Randall Dorman. 

In 1940, Buster was living with Wanda, his wife, and her 19 year old son, Randall Dorman in Seminole, Gaines County, Texas.  Buster had been working as a driller's helper in the oil fields in Seminole for two years, Wanda did not work, and Randall worked as an attendant at the "gasoline service station." 

 

Buster died on September 15, 1940 of Tetanus following multiple penetrating wounds suffered after an oil well blew on August 31, 1940. He was struct by gravel causing the wounds. 

Buster's grave is unmarked. Although both of his parents, grandparents, and baby brothers were said to be buried together, only his mother has a marked grave.  

Buster and his brother, Whit.

Many facts found in the obituary are incorrect. Buster was born on January 24, 1906 not December 21 - that was his brother's birthday.  Buster graduated from Seymour High school in 1923, not 1924. 

Buster did not have a step-daughter, but did have a step-son. His sister, Willie Mae (aka Willa Mae), was married to Jimmy Dudley, not Armstrong. 

As stated in the obituary, my father, Whit, was not told about the death right away. It's unknown as to when he learned of his brother's death. 

Diana

© 2014


Sources

Ancestry.com. Texas, Select County Marriage Index, 1837-1977 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014.
Original data: Texas, County Marriage Index, 1837-1977. Salt Lake City, Utah: FamilySearch, 2013.

Ancestry.com. Texas, Death Certificates, 1903–1982 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013.
Original data: Texas Department of State Health Services. Texas Death Certificates, 1903–1982. iArchives, Orem, Utah.

Family photographs and documents from the collection of Diana Bryan Quinn.


"Levelview." Baylor County Banner [Seymour] 13 Apr. 1907: Microfilm.


"Levelview." Baylor County Banner [Seymour] 19 Nov. 1909: Microfilm.


Seymour High School.  "1919 Yearbook". The Jackrabbit.


Seymour High School.  "1920 Yearbook". The Jackrabbit. 


Seymour High School.  "1921 Yearbook". The Jackrabbit.

Simmons College. The Bronco, Yearbook of Simmons College, 1924. Abilene, Texas. The Portal to Texas History. http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth38641/. Accessed February 9, 2014.

Simmons College. The Bronco, Yearbook of Simmons College, 1925. Abilene, Texas. The Portal to Texas History. http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth38641/. Accessed February 9, 2014.

Friday's Photo: Is this a Quinn?

I love her clothes, jewelry and hair. Can anyone date this picture? 

I received this scan of a photograph from a descendant of Mary Ann Quinn Meaney, daughter of William Quinn and Bridget Brannally of Kinvara, Galway, Ireland. It is suspected that this is a daughter or granddaughter of William and Bridget. 

The couple had four daughters 

• Mary Anne Quinn (born 1888) married  Lawrence Dominic Meaney who lived in Louisville, KY. 
• Margaret Mary "Peggy" Quinn (born 1892) married Edward Quinn Dawson and lived in New York. 
• Celia Agnes Quinn (born 1898) married Richard J. Houlihan and lived in NYC. 
• Bridget “Delia” Quinn (born 1901) married Joseph Stanton. Bridget remained in Ireland.  

  

And two sons 

• Peter Quinn (born 1896) remained in Ireland and never married. 
• William Joseph Quinn (born 1894) and married  Susanna Murray. They lived in NYC. 

Was this Delia Quinn who remained in Ireland or the daughter of Margaret Mary Quinn? Or, a cousin or family friend? We may never know; however, I have identified many photos by putting them on-line. Someone may have the same photograph. And, their's may have a name on the back. 

Diana

© 2014