Thomas Johnson and Ann Allen Marriage Bond, 1822

Thomas Johnson and Ann Allen were married October 11, 1822 in Johnston County, NC. 

Bondsman was Benjamin Bell.

Independence Day

I can't let Independence Day come and go without pausing a moment to brag. Not brag so much as to recognize my Patriot ancestors who personally had a hand (or gave a life) to help create a new nation:

1. CYRUS DAVIS of Granville County, NC served in Donoho's Company from April 1776 to September 1778. 

2. JONES FULLER of Granville County, NC served with the Granville Militia in Cept. Solomon Alston's Company. 

3. MESHAK FULLER served from Granville County, NC.

4. JOEL JOHNSON served from Johnston County, NC.

5. JOHN JOHNSON of Johnston County, NC was a Pvt. with the 2nd North Carolina Batt. He served under Capt. Manlore Tarrant and Col. John Patten.  

6. BENJAMIN MATTHEWS served from Bladen County, NC. He received 207 pounds 5 shillings in 1783 for some unspecified participation.

7. MATTHEW MOORE of Cumberland County, NC served with his father, WILLIAM MOORE. 

8. WILLIAM MOORE of Cumberland County, NC served in Lt. Col's Company enlisting July 20, 1778.

9. GODFREY STANCIL of Tyrrell County, NC served on the Pitt County Safety Committee during the war.

10. JOHN STANCIL of Wake County, NC served in Capt. Polk's Regiment 1776 - 1784.

11. PETER STANCIL of Tyrrell County, NC gave his life in service. He was in the 10th Reg., Capt. Bradley's Company. In his service file found at the NC Archives is this one statement:  

"I hereby certify that Peter Stancil served as a continental soldier in the North Carolina Line and dec'd in the service thereof. Given under my hand this 23rd fay of December, 1796. John Mecleara"

For his service and death, Peter's heirs were entitled to a land bounty given after the war by the State of North Carolina. The land was in Tennessee.

I am sure there are many other patriot ancestors I have not yet identified. 

It makes me quite proud that my family - both paternal and maternal - helped step us toward democracy. 

Somewhere between your first burger and your last hotdog tomorrow, be sure to pause a moment to remember why you have the day off. If not for the Peter Stancil's of the world who gave their lives in service, we would not be enjoying a beautiful celebration in the land of the free. 

Obituary of Edmund Johnson, 1818 - 1907

Death of an Aged Citizen, 
Smithfield Herald, May 17, 1907

Mr. Edmond Johnson, living about five miles west of Smithfield died Thursday, May 9th. He was 88 years old. He had been married four times and lived to see his children and grand children a great host. His youngest daughter is over 21 years old.  He was a man of remarkable strength and endurance. Last call he picked out more than three bales of cotton. He liked to smoke and usually carried his pipe with him whereever he went. "Uncle Edmond" as he was familiarly called, was liked by everybody. His friends and acquaintances will regret to hear he is dead. The burial took place on Friday of last week at a graveyard  near Mr. Josephus Johnson. Seldom does so large a crowd assemble to see a burial as was present.

Note: Name is misspelled in obit (should be Edmund) and date of death is incorrect (should be May 7, 1907).

Note:  He is buried in the Johnson Family Cemetery west of Four Oaks, NC near intersection of SR 1330 and 1350. In the north west corner of a field, all stones are broken. It was a family cemetery before Johnson Chapel Church was established. 

Working Girls

In celebration of National Women's History Month, I thought it would be interesting to take a look at what my female ancestors did for a living. 

I'll start with myself. I work for a software company. Yawn. But in past lives I've been a writer, editor, paralegal, department store detective, and skating rink DJ. I've also worked in a Waffle Shop, libraries, and a group home. 

My mother, Gladys ALLEN STANCIL, taught 6th grade special education at a time when teachers were not required to have college degrees. She loved it. She taught at Summersill Elementary School in Jacksonville, NC. She also worked in the accounting office at Sears, as a bank teller, in a Five and Dime, and the hardest job of all - homemaker and mother. My mom was a pretty smart gal.

My Aunt Lib (Grace Elizabeth ALLEN LEE) worked most of her life for the State of NC as a clerk. In her retirement years, she worked for Rex Hospital in Raleigh as a liaison between families and nurses/docs. 

My cousin Teresa is a Physician's Assistant.  Her sister Deborah works in a hospital. Both are very loving caring women, so no surprise they wound up in healthcare. Another cousin Donna is also a nurse. 

My maternal grandmother, Ethel DAVIS ALLEN, worked at Dix Hospital in Raleigh, NC for a time and at Caraleigh Cotton Mill, also in Raleigh.

My great aunts Meona DAVIS, Cora DAVIS FINCH, Ovie DAVIS LOWERY, and Mary DAVIS ALLEN all worked at Dix Hospital as well. They worked in the hospital laundry and on the wards. Dix was a state mental hospital. I'm sure they had stories to tell!

My great grand aunt Sallie STANCIL worked for a newspaper in Morehead City, NC.

My other great grand aunt Mamie ALLEN worked as a seamstress. She could sew like nobody's business.

I don't know that my paternal grandmother, Ada Lou JOHNSON STANCIL, worked outside the home. But I betcha she worked her fingers to the bone INside the home.

The same can be said for all the rest of my female ancestors. In general, both sides of my family were poor and extremely hardworking people. No one ever handed us anything. If hard work builds character, then my family has it in spades. 

The Mary Jones's of the World

So of the ten most common last names in the US, 7 of them are the last names of direct line ancestors. Sigh.

A bigger sigh when you consider my 6th great grandmother is Mary Jones. Walter Johnson is my great great grandfather. Martha Williams is my 4th great grandmother.

It's harder to find information on women than men. Especially when you are Mary Jones born in 1710. 

Really makes me appreciate some of the more unique names in my line: Utoka Violet Pearce or Argyle Johnson Stancil.

Last Will and Testament of Ary Parrish Johnson

Last Will and Testament of Ary Johnson

I, Ary Johnson of Johnston County North Carolina, being of sound mind and memory, but uncertain of my earthly existence, do make this my Last Will and Testament in the following manner and form:

Item 1st.
I will and bequeath to each of my children, to wit:  Susannah ???, Walter Johnson, Margaret Johnson, Martitia Jones, Edwin Johnson, Richard Johnson, D. C. Johnson, James Johnson, Sallie Wallace, one dollar each as heirs ?? of my property. 

Item 2nd.
I will and bequeath to my beloved son Nazareth Johnson, all the property that I may own at my death except that mentioned in Item 1st of this my Last Will and Testament which I desire to he his during his natural life.

Item 3rd
It is my desire that my son, D. C. Johnson act as Executor to this my last Will and Testament and see that the same is carried out according to law and in the event the said D. C. Johnson shall die or otherwise fail to act, it is my desire that some available person shall be chosen by my children to act as Executor to this my Last Will and Testament and see that the same is duly carried out according to law.

Item 4th
If my son Nazareth Johnson shall die without any living issue, it is my desire that the portion of property herein bequeathed to him shall be equally divided among my children mentioned in Item 1st of this my Last Will and Testament after having dedicated fifty dollars from his share of my daughter Sallie Wallace, which she has already received from me.  This 27th day of January 1891.

Ary Johnson (mark)

Witness:
J.A. Jones
A.L. Coats

***********************************************************

Order for Probate issued in Johnston County, North Carolina by D.C. Johnson on July 4, 1896.  Certificate of Probate and Executors Oath issued on the same day.

Application for Letters Testamentary issued on July 4, 1896. Lists property worth about $500.00:
- 50 acres of land in Pleasants Grove Township
- 2 beds
- 5 steads
- furniture and other household kitchen furniture
- hogs and farm implements

These parties are entitled to said property:
- Susanna Coats
- Nazareth Johnson
- Walter Johnson
- Margaret Johnson
- Richard Johnson
- D.C. Johnson
- James Johnson
- Sallie Wallace
- all of full age and residents of Johnston County, North Carolina and the children of Martitia Jones (dec'd), Edwin Johnson Dec'd, Nella Jones, Sam Jones, Jimmie Jones of full age. Bettie Jones, Eddy Jones, Cassie Johns, Josephus Jones, minors. Jimmy Johnson of age, Ruffin Johnson, Edwin Johnson, Louisa Johnson minors. No guardian for any after ?? and all residents of Johnston County. 

Signed by D.C. Johnson



Johnston County Will Abstracts
Ary Johnson, January 27, 1891, Probated July 4, 1896
Children:  Susanna C. Coats, Walter Johnson, Margaret Johnson, Martitia Jones, Edwin Johnson, Richard Johnson, D.C.  Johnson, James Johnson, Sallie Wallace - $1.00 each as their portion. Son Nazarath Johnson - all of the property I may own at my death. If son Nazarath Johnson should die without heirs, that portion of property to be equally divided among my children. $50.00 to come from share of Daughter Sallie Wallace, she has already received. 
Executor: D.C. Johnson, son
WitnessesL  J.A. T. Coats, A.L. Coats
Ary (x) Johnson

Mary Ann Flowers Harper, 1798 - 1850ish, Johnston County, NC

My 4th great grandmother, Mary Ann FLOWERS,  was born just before the turn of the century -  about 1798 - in Johnston County, NC. She was the 7th of 15 children of Jacob FLOWERS and Pheriba JOHNSON. Her siblings were: 

1. Winifred
2. Edney
3. John
4. Michael
5. Emily
6. Winnie
7. Sally
8. Pherebe
9. Emily
10. Harriett
11. Tempy
12. Martha
13. Jacob
14. Elizabeth

That's a lot of kids! It's little wonder then that she married at age 14 Reddick HARPER on 01 Mar 1812 in Johnston County North Carolina. They had nine children:

1. Ammy who married Aaron W. MASSENGILL on 12 Aug 1851 in Johnston County.
2. Bryant. Don't know much about him.
3. Wilsie HARPER, born in 1819 and died about 1881. She married Aaron MASSENGILL on 25 Mar 1846 in Johnston County. These are my 3rd great grandparents. 
4. Elizabeth Emily born in 1827. Elizabeth may have been named for Mary Ann's youngest sister.
5. Susan Maria born in 1829 and died in 1907 - both events in Johnston County. Her mother, Mary Ann, was living with her on the 1850 census. 
6. Nancy Wiley born in 1835 and died on 24 Feb 1910 in Johnston County. She married Aaron W. MASSENGILL on 18 Mar 1855 in Johnston County.
7. Jacob was born in 1837. He married Willy Jane ATKINSON on 15 Jan 1861 in Johnston County.  Jacob may have been named for Mary Ann's youngest brother.
8. William was born in 1841 in Johnston County.
9. George Robert was born in 1844. He died on 23 Feb 1916 in Raleigh, Wake County, North Carolina. He married Phereby SMITH on 10 Dec 1866 in Johnston County.  His mother Mary Ann was in her mid-40s when George was born. She had her 9 children over a 25 year range!

1850 was the first US census to enumerate women, so Mary Ann shows up then living in District 3 of Johnston County at age 52 living with her daughter Susan. She does not show up on the 1860 census, so she may have died within the decade. 

You should note that some of these facts are documented but others are not. I won't list all the sources here, but if you want to know if I have a source for a particular fact, feel free to drop a note!  Otherwise...do your own research. 

Will of Issac Johnson, ~1770-1822

Last Will and Testament

In the name of God, Amen. I Isaac Johnson of the County of Johnston and State of North Carolina, being of sound mind and memory do hereby make, publish, and declare this instrument of writing to be my last Will and Testament, in manner and form following, that is to say, first I give and devise to my son Stephen, all the land which I own on the north side of the north prong of the Beaver Dam branch, including the house and plantation whereon I now live to him and his heirs forever, reserving to my wife the use of the same during her natural life.

2d. All the rest of my land I give and devise to my son Frederick to him and his heirs forever. 

3d. I give and bequeath to my son Stephen, one sorrel filly, one feather bed and furniture, 1 shot gun, and one half of my plantation tools.

I give and bequeath to my said son Frederick one mare and colt, one feather bed and furniture, one half of my plantation tools, and all the hogs that are commonly called his.

I give and bequeath to my daughter Bethany on feather bed and furniture, one cow and two yearlings, one loom and gear, half a dozen pewter plates, half a dozen pewter basons, one iron pot, and one spider and bed and one clothes chest.  All the balance of my household and kitchen furniture, I give to my wife.

The residue of my property, I wish to be sold by my Executor hereinafter to be named, and the money arising therefrom, after paying all my just debts to be equally divided between my three daughters Sally, Betsy, and Bethany.

I do hereby nominate and appoint my son Barny Johnson Executor to this my last will and testament. In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal this 24th day of December, 1822.

Isaac Johnson (seal)

Signed, sealed, and acknowledged in the presence of E. Smith and W. Senton

State of North Carolina, November term 1823, Johnston County
Herein as the executor of this will duly proven in open court by the oaths of Edwin Smith and W. Senton and as directed to be recorded.

R.M. Saunders, Clerk

Recorded in the clerks office of said County in Book No. 11 page 58.  R. M. Saunders, Clerk.

Sister Mary Lourdes Johnson - Her memories, My memories

Sister Mary Lourdes JOHNSON was an unlikely family member, in many ways. We affectionately called her SML, for short. She was a very distant relation, but she was raised by my great grand father's brother, George Robert STANCIL and his wife Annie Valeria BROWNING. SML's birth mother was Annie's cousin. 

SML was a Catholic nun. Odd, for this very southern family who had been active in the Primitive Baptist Church for generations. SML converted to Catholicism in her 40s, after having run away from Johnston County, NC in her teens to become an entertainer in New York City.  Although when we asked her what sort of "entertaining" she did in NYC, she wouldn't answer. Hmmm. She did provide an answer when we asked her why she converted to Catholism and then became a nun. Her answer was "I was tired of running from the Lord." I'm sure it was all quite the topic of conversation within the family.

I met SML when she was in her 60s. We became virtual friends when we found one another on Ancestry.com researching the same family. We became real life friends when she traveled several times to NC to visit my family and I traveled to Connecticut to stay with her at the Sisters of Charity mother house in Baltic, Connecticut. We were a sight to see when we drove to Smithfield for BBQ one day. Many southerners have never seen a nun in full habit. She was a source of great comfort to me as I experienced the trials of raising a teenage son with an aversion to authority and then later when I divorced. 

She was a very kind woman. My family and I loved her very much. She wrote a very loving and touching essay of her life with the STANCILs, which follows. Anyone related to this family will enjoy reading her memories of life with the STANCIL family.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I will tell you about my life with George Robert Stancil, b. 11/1/1878,

 d. 12/16/1966, son of William and Mary Stancil.   His wife, Annie Valeria Stancil, b. 3/6/1884, d. 5/4/1977, was the daughter of William and Nancy Browning. The Stancil’s lived in Smithfield, North Carolina.

I am Valeria Elizabeth Stancil-Johnson. I was born at the Stancil home in Smithfield on May 11, 1936. The Stancil’s had partially raised my Mother, Virginia Mae Pulley, and her brother, Debric Cade Pulley. So it was only natural that they would take me in also. My father, Derwood Belmont Johnson, died when I was 4 months old. My Mom had no money, no job and nowhere to live so she went back to the Stancils. There I was born at their home. Mom had 2 girls and one boy. The boy was placed in another home and my sister, Virginia Wynne, and I lived with the Stancils. Mom left and went into town to work. Shortly after, she went to Norfolk Va. to the shipyards as a secretary in the Navy leaving us to live with the Stancils.

I only knew George Robert Stancil as my real father until the age of 15 when I learned that I was not their child. (That broke my heart when I found out he was not my biological father).  I always called him daddy.

Daddy was my hero. He was such a kind man, gentle, soft spoken; he never spoke anything bad about another person. He never raised his voice in anger to either of us children or his wife. Daddy was a very religious man, being an Elder in the Smithfield Primitive Baptist Church. It was Daddy’s job to make the wine for Church and Mother made the bread. On our way to Church they placed these things in the back seat. I always ate the biscuits and Virginia drank the wine. We always had to go back home for more, but they never said anything to us about it. 

He was always praying. I was brought up on prayer and the Bible (where I know that I got my religious vocation from).

Daddy was tall, with reddish, light brown hair and blue eyes. He always wore kaki work pants and kaki long sleeve shirts, even in the summer. He also wore a Panama hat in the summer and felt hat in the winter. When he went to church, he wore suits with a vest. He drove a 1934 Ford until the early 50’s. He was a man of few words and lots of smiles. He was a farmer and a carpenter. He built tobacco barns for people and houses for us. He had a very large farm in Smithfield before WWII. **   He was drafted into the Army at the age of 50+ to build housing at Fort Bragg. He moved us into town while he was gone. They sold that farm to the Smithfield Country Club at Holt’s Lake and they built a golf course on the farmland. After the war, he bought another farm in Smithfield and built us a new house. We farmed while he built houses. **There are some very important memories of that farm in my mind. It was a very large farm with 3 or 4 tenant houses on it. There was one black family named Durgin. Uncle Durgin milked the cows every day and Virginia and I would go with him to milking. We had a lot of cats that also went. He would squirt milk into my mouth, into the mouth of my sister and to each cat and then into the milk bucket.  That was sheer joy to me!!  Aunt Julie, his wife, would take me when I was 3 years old and bathe me, change my clothes, and rock me in a hand-made cradle all the time singing gospel songs. There were 4 black women who lived on the farm who took care of us two girls and did the house work. They would sling me over their hip and continue their work with spontaneous prayer and singing gospels. (Is there any wonder why I became a nun, I was brought up on religion.)

Daddy plowed with a mule and I would go out with him every day for plowing. As he plowed and turned over the dirt I would eat handfuls of the fresh clean dirt (soil). It was better than dessert. I wanted to go with Daddy when he was working, he took time to show and explain everything he was doing on the farm. Every Sunday morning he went out and walked the perimeter of the farm and came back to tell us how everything was growing or what had to be replaced. He could tell you how many steps it was around the property.

He would put me on his big shoulders and we would go into the woods to pick huckleberries, or hickory nuts, and runnnnnn when a wild boar would chase us. I would put the nuts in his big hat. When we were sick with croup or bad colds, Daddy would go into the woods and bring back roots, bark and berries and cook it up and put in the vaporizer and we were well in no time. He knew the Indian medicines. Smartest man I ever knew.

On Christmas Eve, we would stay up until about 7pm, and then Daddy would go out to see if Santa was near. We would hear the footsteps on the porch and ringing the big bell and immediately we went to bed so Santa could leave our presents.

Every time Daddy went to town he would bring back the 3 colors of coconut candy. He liked hoar-hound candy. It was even used for medicine for us. He would also bring back a coca cola for each of us.

We raised chickens, and Daddy would buy chicken feed in 100% cotton bags, so we got new dresses. They were beautiful calico print, plaid or paisley prints. We were the best-dressed kids in Smithfield. We always had new pretty clothes and a smoke house full of meat.

At hog killing time, Daddy would ask us what part of the pig we wanted. I always chose a Tom Thumb and the liver. Everything else was put in the smoke house. We had access to it at any time. Daddy would take all of us fishing. We caught lots of fish, maybe small but Mother cooked them anyway. We used to get the worms off the tobacco plants and go fishing in the Neuse River.

One year Daddy planted a big plot of popcorn corn. Virginia and I were experimenting with smoking tobacco and caught the field of corn on fire. We had a popping good time until we got in the house and then bedlam broke out. We lied about how the fire started. They were mad because it also destroyed the watermelon patch. Daddy didn’t say anything but Mother sure did.     

We used to go with Daddy to the field and he would drop coins in the path. We would find them and scream with joy that we had found money. He never told us he dropped it for us.

One day Mother was very angry with me and was spanking me very badly. Daddy didn’t like that and he told her to “leave those young’uns alone.” He loved us very much. I think Mother was jealous of him. Every time he sat down on the couch, Virginia and I would sit with him and not with her.

Mother and Daddy lived as brother and sister. There was no sex in their life.  All four of us slept in the same room. Mother and Daddy both had large double beds. Virginia slept with Daddy and I slept with Mother until we became teens and then we had to have our own room.

Daddy was a very healthy man. Once he got ptomaine poisoning from eating brains and eggs. And then he had a heart attack later in life. He never stayed home from work being sick. He worked a lot outside the house maybe that is what kept him healthy, being outside. He never lost his memory or became senile. He knew everything going on around him all the time. Even at death, he knew what to expect.

As I remember Daddy, he must have been a little wealthy. Maybe his parents were also. We never lacked for anything. He owned lots of land and properties and houses. They saved their money. They had the work ethic, that, “the harder you work, the more money you had, you were blessed by the Lord.”  And, the Lord in many ways blessed them.

Daddy liked coconut cake, chocolate cake and homemade peach ice cream, which we made every Sunday in the summer.

We all took a siesta everyday between 1-2p.m. Every day after dinner (lunch) we slept on the floor on a homemade quilt. Then when we got up we would continue our work until about 7p.m.

We would help Daddy, and the farm hands, wash turkey feet. I thought that was funny but their feet would cake up with mud and they couldn’t walk unless they were washed in limewater.

Daddy would help my sister and I look for wild turkey eggs and geese eggs. We would watch to see where they went and later we would find the eggs and put them in Daddy’s hat.

Daddy sat at the end of the table on a stool that he made. We all sat on stools. He always drank his coffee out of the saucer never out of a cup. He liked Kush, molasses with biscuits, yams and salt mullet for breakfast. We also ate large birds, fried chicken and corn for breakfast. But most of the time throughout the winter it was dried fish and yams. He enjoyed sweet potato custard, egg custard and coconut custard, but his most favorite food was fried oysters.  At wheat harvest time he would take us with him to the miller. While they were milling the flour we would ride in a rowboat on the water.

Some other things Daddy did were chop wood and put on our arms and we carried it into the house since we had a wood cook stove. He sharpened saws not only his own but everybody else’s also. We would be happy when he would bring home a new bunch of biddies (baby chicks). That meant we could sleep in the hen house with the babies. If we got chilly that meant the baby chicks were cold and we turned up the lights on the brooder to keep them warm and us too.

We sometimes used the cotton fields as a bathroom at night because we were afraid of the outhouse. During the summer, we would place a washtub filled with water out in the sun to get hot. After dark we would bathe in that tub of water outside.

--Sister Mary Lourdes JOHNSON

Stancil Visit in Smithfield Herald, September 7, 1923

Smithfield Herald, September 7, 1921

Johnston School News

Mrs. Jesse Stancil and son, Roland, spent Saturday night in Smithfield with Mrs. Stancil's brother, Mr. Elmond Johnson.

(This article refers to my grandmother and uncle visiting her brother in Smithfield, NC.)

Will of Bethany Johnson Johnson, ~1770-1824

Will Abstracts of Johnston County, 1746 - 1825. Vol. 1:

Thenny Johnson - died May 1, 1824. Probate Court May 1824. 

Son John:  1 skillet
Son Jacob: 1 bed cover
Son Frederick - 1 bed, 1 dutch oven
Daughter Thanny - remaining clothing
Son Stephenson - remaining property - pay just debts
Son Barney - 1 wheel
Daughter Sarah - 1 clock, clothing
Daughter Elizabeth: Household items
Exec: Stephenson Johnson
Witness:  Barnaby Jonson, David Parish

(My 4th great grandmother)

JOHNSON Surname

I've been blessed - or cursed - with a family of common surnames. Like Jones, Smith, Davis....and JOHNSON. JOHNSON is the 2nd most common surname in the US. Just my luck.

My Johnsons go waaayyy back. And they almost exclusively resided in Johnston County, NC. I descend from a couple of different lines of Johnsons. Early on, they spelled it Johnston (as in the county) and Johnstone. 

Origin of the name is largely English or Scottish, but family lore has it that the Scots are the major culprits. Which makes sense because the county was named for Gabriel Johnston, a Scotsman who gave his fellow countrymen a tax break for settling in NC during the Colonial period. Nice guy.

My grandmother was a Johnson. Ada Lou JOHNSON. And her mother-in-law was a JOHNSON. Whose mother was also a JOHNSON. JOHNSONS abound.

I know quite a lot about my JOHNSON kin, but as always, there is plenty more to know!

The Stancil Boys in World War II

On this day in 1941, the United States officially entered the fray of World War II following the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor. Several of the STANCIL brothers served in the war. One lost his life. 

I try to imagine how their mother, Ada Lou JOHNSON STANCIL, must have felt with three of her sons off at war. I'm not sure I wouldn't handled it well. My son, Cameron STANCIL HONOUR, spent last summer in Wyoming and California and you'd have thought he was gone forever, the way I carried on. But to have a son away at war and in constant danger...that's a burden no mother wants to carry. Imagine having THREE sons away at war at the same time. My heart breaks for her.

Jesse Roland Stancil

Roland enlisted in the US Army (1943 - 1944). He completed basic training at Fort Bragg, NC and landed in the Anzio Invasion. He fought up the "boot" of Italy with Co. I, 157th Reg. of the 45th Division. Jesse Roland was killed in southern France on October 21, 1944. He was awarded the Purple Heart and is buried in Montlawn Cemetery in Raleigh, NC next to his parents. 

Eric Ray STANCIL served in the US Navy (1944 - 1946) and completed boot camp at Camp Perry, VA. He served aboard the USS Shamrock Bay. He is buried in Montlawn Cemetery in Raleigh, NC next to his parents.

Cecil Braxton STANCIL served in the US Navy (1945 - 1946).He served aboard the USS Corregidor and in Trididad, British West Indies. 

Back to front and L to R:
Ada Lou Johnson Stancil, Roland, Eric,
Macon (Joe), Carl, Edith, and
Cecil Stancil

Ada Lou's sons joined the military in 1943, 1944, and 1945. I've often wondered if Roland's death prompted Eric and Cecil to join. Can you imagine Ada's horror at having her two younger sons enlist after her eldest son was killed in France?

I'm sure the family was extremely proud of their sons who served, although I can't help but think of it from a mother's perspective. 

As proud as I am of my family's military history, I hope my son never has to witness the tragedy of war.

Happy Birthday, Vivian!

Today is Vivian Leigh's 100th birthday. I've seen most of her films, but my favorite is A Streetcar Named Desire. Of course she'll always be most remembered for Gone With the Wind. 

In both films, she played a Southern lady meeting difficult life circumstances. Odd, since she was British and had probably never been in a position to experience or understand southern culture. Clearly, however, she "got it" to some extent because she won Oscars for both performances. 

Indeed, us southern girls have a certain strength of character. 

My mother Gladys ALLEN certainly did. She grew up poor, but her family fought their way from the depression to middle class status to owning a home of their own. In spite of being raised as a moonshiner, which netted him a lil' prison time, my grandfather Atlas ALLEN found himself in hot demand during World War II as a helicopter mechanic. A skill he picked up in prison, no less. Good for him!

On the other side of the family, Grandpa STANCIL moved his family from rural Johnston County, NC to the big city of Raleigh, NC where jobs and opportunities were more plentiful. His wife, Lou Ada JOHNSON, must have been one heck of a good woman, just based on the letters my father wrote to her from Marine Corps boot camp and later from Korea. He sure loved his mama. 

Then there's me. I'm no traditional southern belle, but I was raised in the whole southern culture thing where we wore patent leather shoes to church on Sundays and had fried chicken and biscuits for dinner. That's when we weren't having fried pork chops or BBQ straight off the pig.

So while Vivian wasn't exactly a GRITS (Girl Raised in The South) kind of gal, she sure had us pegged with the attitude. My favorite Scarlett O'Hara quote is "Tomorrow is another day".

I say that often. Like, daily. 

Joseph Henry STANCIL and Fannie A. JOHNSON

My great grandparents, Joe and Fannie, married on September 14, 1892 in Johnston County, NC. 

It is documented in the Marriage Register of Johnston County, NC Vol II, 1881-1900, Ross. RNC 929.3756. The Justice of the Peace who married them was an AM SANDERS. 

Joseph Henry STANCIL was the son of William STANCIL and his wife Mary Ann Rebecca MASSENGILL. Fannie was the daughter of Walter JOHNSON and Parazadia (Zadie) JOHNSON. 

Both families were long time residents of Johnston County going back generations. 

In March of 1904 when Fannie was just 26 years old, she died at her father's home after becoming ill while visiting. She'd been hit by a falling tree a few years earlier and her obituary insinuates her death was related. She left behind three small children. Joseph and Fannie had been married 12 years when she died.

From family stories, Fannie was a very kind and gentle woman. Those Stancil women tend to be that way.

Six years after Fannie's death, Joe remarried Nellie PLEASANTS, a widow with one child of her own. He died 19 years later.

I think it's sweet that Fannie and Joe are buried side by side at Salem Primitive Baptist Church in Johnston County. 

Nellie lived another 40 years after Joe's death. She had a debilitating stroke and was in Howard's Rest Home in Morrisville, NC when she died in 1965. Her death certificate does not list either parent or her husband.

Introducing Miss Alice C BARBER

Alice C. Barber Johnson

I'd like to introduce you to Miss Alice BARBER, my paternal great grandmother. 

She was born in Feb 1868 in Johnston County, North Carolina, as the first child of Absolom BARBER and Tabitha BYRD. 

She had eight siblings: 

William R.

Banley
Ida F.

Louenza
Etta Florence
Mary Elizabeth
Major
Baldy Denny

 
When she was 17, Alice married William Jarrett JOHNSON on 03 May 1885 in Johnston, North Carolina. Incidentally  May 3 is also my parents anniversary. I just love coincidences like that!

Alice regularly shows up on the US Census:

• 1880: Lived in Elevation, Johnston, North Carolina at age 12.
• 1890:  This census was lost in a fire in 1921, but it's pretty cool that this was the first census tabulated by a machine. 
• 1900: Lived in Smithfield, Johnston County, North Carolina at age 32 married to the head of household, William JOHNSON. 
• 1910: Lived in Smithfield, Johnston County, North Carolina at age 41, married to head of household, William JOHNSON.

William Jarrett JOHNSON and Alice C. BARBER had a slew of children:

1. William Lester JOHNSON was born 06 March 1903 in Cumberland County, North Carolina. He died on 23 Aug 1971 in Washington, Beaufort County, North Carolina. My daddy used to take me to "Little Washington" to visit Lester.
2. Robert L. JOHNSON was born in Aug 1889 in Johnston County, North Carolina. He died in Apr 1910 in Johnson County, North Carolina.
3. Elmond JOHNSON was born in Feb 1892 in Johnston County, North Carolina. He died at Rex Hospital in Raleigh, North Carolina. My son was born at Rex. Both of my parents died at Rex. My breast cancer was largely treated at Rex. A lot of family connection there!
4. Almond JOHNSON was born in Dec 1893 in Johnston County, North Carolina. He died in Oct 1949. He married Ila SPENSE on 17 Oct 1915.
5. Ada Lou JOHNSON was born on 16 Nov 1894 in Johnston County, North Carolina. She died on 04 Jan 1963 in Wake County, North Carolina at age 68. She married Jesse Bernard STANCIL on 18 Nov 1917 in Johnston County, North Carolina. These are my grandparents!
6. Mattie Florence JOHNSON was born on 17 Feb 1896 in Granville County, North Carolina. She died on 21 May 1954 in Garner, Johnston County, North Carolina. I wonder what in the world Alice was doing in Granville County when she gave birth to Mattie? 
7. Sister JOHNSON was born in Apr 1900 in Johnston County, North Carolina.

What was Alice and William thinking when they named two of their sons Elmond and Almond? I can't find a family connection to those two names. 

Alice died on 10 Aug 1920 in Johnston County, North Carolina of uremia - the old term for kidney failure. I've always wondered what caused her kidney failure. She was 52 years old. One year younger than me. 

Baldness is Golden

I realize this may seem a bit of a stretch, but I thought we'd celebrate Be Bald and Free Day here on Diggin' for Clues. Walk with me, and I'll explain.

This time last year I was totally bald. I'd just finished treatment for breast cancer and I was marching toward a bi-lateral mastectomy. I can personally attest that baldness is freeing in many ways. Now, a year down the road, I'm recovering quickly and putting the ugliness behind me.

However, I've been struck by how many of my ancestors died from cancer. Talk about running in the family!  If simply having a family history of cancer of any sort put me line for breast AND ovarian cancer, then I came by it honestly.

• My mom, Ann Gladys ALLEN STANCIL, had stomach, lung, liver, and kidney cancer. 
• Her sister, Grace Elizabeth ALLEN LEE, had breast cancer.
• My first cousin, Brenda GLOVER MARCOM, died from ovarian cancer.
• My maternal grandmother, Ethel DAVIS ALLEN, died from pancreatic cancer.
• My paternal grandmother, Ada Lou JOHNSON STANCIL, died from ovarian cancer. 
• My great aunt, Meona DAVIS, died from thyroid cancer.

I am sure there were many more, perhaps undiagnosed or misdiagnosed in the time before modern medical practices. 

An important point here is around genetic testing. BRCA1 gene mutation points toward a ridiculously high opportunity for breast and ovarian cancer. BINGO!  Along with my grandmother's silk nightcap and my dad's Purple Heart, I inherited my breast and ovarian cancer. Gee, thanks, mom and dad.

Along with memories and quirky personality traits, our families can leave us with very serious health issues that - luckily - can be discovered via genetic testing and early diagnosis. I'm sitting here this morning writing this blog post thanks to both. That's genetic testing and early diagnosis, of course. Certainly no quirky personality traits here! Right.

If you have a family history of ANY SORT of cancer, please please consider getting the test to diagnose BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutations. A BRCA1 mutation leaves you with a whopping 75% chance of developing breast cancer in your lifetime. And a 50% chance of ovarian cancer. If you have a family history, it's likely your insurance company will pay for the test. It's a simple blood test. Better to know than not know to make informed decisions. 

Unlike my great aunt Meona. She could not have known she would develop thyroid cancer in 1964. Good thing we live in the 21st century where we can document our family's story on a computer AND discover if we are next in line for cancer.

So while we are busy doing our DNA tests to determine our ancestry, be sure to do the test that could ensure your future. Your great grandchildren will thank you.

Jesse and Lou Ada Johnson Stancil

Jesse Bernard STANCIL and Lou Ada JOHNSON married on November 17, 1917 at the home of her brother, Almond JOHNSON, in Smithfield, NC. 

I've often wondered if Jesse and Lou Ada married when they did knowing the war was coming and he would be called to serve. 

His draft registration card is dated June 5, 1917, just 2 months after the US entered the war and 5 months before he married. He was drafted July 22, 1918, a year after his draft form was completed and 9 months after he married.

At a time when most married in their late teens and immediately started a family, Jesse and Lou Ada waited. Ada married just two days after her 22nd birthday. Jesse was also 22. Their first child, Jesse Roland STANCIL, wasn't born for another 5 1/2 years, when Lou Ada was 27 years old. That was OLD in those days to have your first child. She was 36 when her youngest child was born, my father Carl Donald STANCIL. So once she started having children, they came quickly. She had 6 children in 9 years! Whew...that makes me tired!

Jesse and Lou Ada were married 46 years when she died of ovarian cancer in 1964. 

Among some of the more unflattering things my mother would say to me was the comment "you are ALLEN coming and STANCIL going", meaning that the back of my head was pointy and my behind "generous"...just like my grandmother Lou Ada. Thanks, mom.