Allen H. Ray, 1859 - 1936, Wake County, NC

My 2nd great grandfather on my maternal side, Allen H. RAY was born on 11 Nov 1859 in Johnston County, North Carolina, as the fifth child of James A. RAY and Martha Sarah (Sallie) GREEN. I'm curious to know how be got from Johnston County to the north end of Wake County in New Light, NC.

He had at least six siblings:

1. Sadus/Sardi
2. John
3. Wesley G
4. James Wiley
5. William Aaron
6. Sarah A.

When he was 26, Allen married Martha Hawkins PEARCE,daughter of George Wesley PEARCE and Elizabeth Caroline PERRY, on 03 Dec 1885 in Wake County, North Carolina. Their first child, Elizabeth, was born about a year later.

Allen shows up on all the right census records:

• 1860: North Western District, Wake County, age 9 months.
• 1870: New Light, NC at age 10 
• 1880: New Light, NC at age 20. He was still single and living with his parents.  
• 1890:  Census burned. Bummer.
• 1900:  New Light, NC at age 40. This time he shows up with a wife and kids.  
• 1910: New Light, NC at age 50. 
• 1920: Apparently the family moved on down the road to Brassfield in Granville County, NC. He was 62. 
• 1930: He had moved back to New Light, age 70. 

Allen H. RAY and Martha Hawkins PEARCE had five children:

1. Elizabeth RAY, born  24 Dec 1886 in Wake County. She died on 18 Apr 1928 in New Light at age 40 in childbirth. She married Eugene Narron ALLEN on 02 Jul 1904 in Wake County. These were my great grandparents. 
2. Mary Frances RAY born 13 May 1889 in Wake County. She died 14 Dec 1939 in Youngsville, Franklin County, NC. She married Johnnie O'NEAL in 1908 at her father's home.
3. James Arthur RAY born 11 Oct 1893 in Wake County. He died on 22 Jan 1957 in Wake County.
4. Arthur I RAY born about 1895 in Granville County. He died on 22 Jan 1957 in Wake County.
5. Loretta Jessie RAY born on 30 May 1907 in Wake County. She died on 07 Feb 1992 in Wake County at the age of 84. She married William Graham O'NEAL on 11 Jan 1926. 

Grandpa Allen worked all his life as a farmer. He probably spent a life time farming someone else's land however, I can't find any record that he ever owned land in Granville or Wake County.

Allen died on 26 Oct 1936 in New Light at the age of 76 of heart failure. His wife was 64 when Allen died. She lived another 17 years without him.

Allen is buried in the Smith-Perry Cemetery (also called the Smith Family Cemetery) in Wake Forest, NC. It is located at the corner of Purnell Road (SR 1909) and Hinton Road (SR 1916).  His son James and wife Beulah are also buried there with their son Woodrow, who died in infancy in 1918. 

Eugene Narron ALLEN Gravestone

Eugene N. Allen, 1880 - 1938
In Loving Memory

Eugene Narron ALLEN - my great grandfather - was born, lived, and died in Wake County, North Carolina.  He must have been a real rough and tumble fellow. 

His official occupation was farmer, but his unofficial occupation (and likely the real source of his income) was moonshiner. His son, Atlas, "ran" his father's moonshine, which means he sold and delivered from the trunk of his Buick. My mother was also pressed into service from time to time making deliveries - way before she was really old enough to drive. 

In May of 1927, Eugene was sentenced to 6 months on a road crew (better known as a chain gang) as a result of his illegal activities. Atlas also did a little jail time around 1934 for his part in the family business. 

Eugene lost his wife, Lizzy RAY ALLEN, when she gave birth to their 8th child, Marvin Eugene ALLEN. He was left to raise and support 8 children on his own. 

Eugene died at age 58 from heart disease, likely brought on by a lifetime of smoking and hard drinking. If you've ever tasted real moonshine, you know what I mean by HARD drinking! The stuff is truly nasty and burns like the dickens going down. The reason I know this is because my aunt always kept a mason jar - complete with rusty lid -  of it under her kitchen sink, and us kids would get a little taste at Christmastime. Family values in the south can be a little twisted, huh?

Eugene is buried at New Light Baptist Church in the northernmost part of Wake County. His wife Lizzy is buried next to him. 

Even if its written in stone, it might be wrong

This belongs on the ever growing list of things that surprise me, but shouldn't. I can be a bit naive. Or maybe I'm just slow. But I'm consistently surprised when I discover dates are actually engraved on a gravestone are wrong.  

Case in point

My great great grandmother, Lucinda DAVIS HALL, died in a house fire in 1922. Her gravestone says she was born in 1844 and she died in 1923. HOWEVER, her death certificate indicates she was born in 1839 and died in 1922. 

Lucinda Davis Hall Death Certificate

The 1880, 1900 and 1920 census also lists her birth year as 1839. 

1800 Federal US Census

Family members are adamant the gravestone is correct. I'm sorry to tell them this, but in my world, hard documentation like a death certificate trumps a stone cutter who got incorrect information from grieving family members at a time in history when no one really cared if the dates of birth or death were right on the money.

Even if the date of birth on the death certificate was fudged (cause after all, it was given by one of those grieving family members mentioned above) the date of death is surely accurate, assuming the government official completing the certificate knew how to look at a calendar. Which, I admit, might be a stretch.

Lucinda Davis Hall Gravestone
Good Hope Baptist Church, Youngsville, NC

Gravestones are often not placed at a grave site until well after the fact. So even though "Grandma Cindy" died in July of 1922, it's very likely her stone was not placed until 1923...which kinda sorta explains why it shows the year of death as 1923 instead of 1922.

The moral of this story is question everything and assume nothing. That's true in all aspects of life, not just in genealogy.

Gravestones: Jonathan and Cornelia Dillard Davis

Jonathan and Cornelia DILLARD DAVIS are my GG Grandparents. I've always been very intrigued with Cornelia, whose picture is to the right. Wasn't she beautiful?

They lived where most of the rest of the family lived...in southern Granville County, NC. They are being honored on Saturday of this week when their descendants gather for a reunion.  

Jonathan and Cornelia are buried in the BAILEY-DAVIS family cemetery near Youngsville, NC. The cemetery is not well cared for and on private property, which is also home to very menacing looking dog and probably more than a few snakes.

There are a handful of well marked but faded graves. You can see plenty more unmarked graves. I've often wondered if these are slave burials or perhaps graves of those whose families could not afford a proper marker.

If you visit, be sure to say hello to Jonathan and Cornelia. I sure wish we could sit down to a cup of coffee and a biscuit. I have a lot of questions for them.

Gravestone of Jonathan and Cornelia DILLARD DAVIS
Bailey-Davis Family Cemetery, Youngsville, NC