We’ve seen a photo of the African-American men that tended Dixie Inn’s barbecue pits. Frank Parker may have been one such pitmaster, or he may have cooked in the roadhouse’s kitchen; he lived onsite.
I’ve been looking for Granite Point since 2019, and last month I finally posted a query here. Two weeks later, Lisa Winstead-Stokes responded that she absolutely knew where Granite Point is — it’s her family’s cemetery!
Yesterday I met up with Lisa and her husband Cornell Stokes on Thompson Chapel Church Road, just north of Silver Lake. We crossed into a patch of woods, and I immediately saw numerous depressions in the ground indicating sunken graves. After a few minutes, Lisa spotted an old metal funeral home marker, whose paper placard had long rotted away. She wasn’t sure there were any headstones in the cemetery, but then I spied this:
Earnest Windstead d. Apr. 17, 1953 Age 85 Yrs
The woods are bisected by an open stretch that also shows evidence of grave depressions. We realized immediately that the second section, on a slope leading down to a mill pond, was the primary location of burials in the cemetery. Several small beautifully preserved concrete headstones stand in neat rows alongside two vaults and a large granite headstone. Sadly, most mark the deaths of children within a two-year span from 1921 to 1923, when influenza and other disease struck the extended Joyner family hard.
The cemetery was established on property belonging to John S. Thompson as burial place for African-American sharecroppers and tenant farmers working his land. According to Lisa’s father, Roosevelt Winstead, who recalled attending funerals there in the 1950s, the site was open not only to family, but to anyone in the community who could not afford to be buried elsewhere. A deed search shows the land belongs to absentee Thompson heirs, but neither recent plat maps nor J.S. Thompson’s 1943 plat map mark the cemetery’s location. (Thompson owned 909 acres along both sides of Thompson Chapel Church Road stretching from Highway 58 across the Nash County border.) The cemetery lies astride the boundary of two of the five parcels making up the present day property, and the metes and bounds description of one parcel likely provides a clue as to the actual name of the cemetery. Obituaries and death certificates list is as Granite Point or Grantie Point. The Winstead family’s pronunciation of its name is something closer to Granny Pines. The parcel description notes a Moccasin Branch and Granny Branch (tributaries of Toisnot Swamp) as boundaries. The cemetery lies partially in a triangular wedge jutting out from the parcel’s eastern edge. Was the cemetery’s original name Granny Point?
Maggie Wife of Sessoms Eatmon Died Feb. 10, 1923 Age 26 Yrs. As A Wife, Devoted. As A Mother, Affectionate. As A Friend, Eternal.
Maggie Eatmon died 10 February 1923 in Jackson township, Nash County. Per her death certificate, she was 26 years old; was born in Wilson County to Henry Joyner and Margaret Winstead; was married to Sessoms Eatmon; worked in farming; and was buried in Wilson County.
Theodore Son of Henry & Margarette Joyner Born Dec. 29, 1909 Died Jan. 21, 1923. Gone But Not Forgotten.
Theordo Joyner died 2 February 1923 in Jackson township, Nash County. Per his death certificate, he was born in December 1909 in Wilson, N.C., to Wm. henry Joyner and Margret Winstead; was a school boy; and was buried in the “country.”
Martha A. Lucas Born Aug 9 1910 Died Aug 10 1921 Gone to be an angel.
Martha Lucas died 10 August 1921 in Wilson, Wilson County. Per her death certificate, she was born 8 August 1909 in Nash County to Willey Lucas of Nash County and Elizabeth Lucas of Wilson County; was a school girl; and was buried in the “country.”
Herman Son of Lem & Susie Tabron Born Dec. 29, 1920 Died May 18, 1921. Asleep in Jesus.
Infants of Sessoms & Maggie Eatmon, Born Jan. 31, 1923 Died Feb. 2, 1923. At Rest.
Infant Abert Eatmon died 2 February 1923 in Jackson township, Nash County. Per his death certificate, he was born 31 January 1923 in Nash County to Sessoms Eatmon and Maggie Joyner, both of Wilson County; and was buried in the “country.”
Infant Son of Jarmon & Lula Eatmon. Born & Died June 25, 1921. Asleep in Jesus.
Vault cover of Tempie Scott’s grave, stamped Cofield Services.
Tempie Tabron Scott died 2 December 1968 in Halifax, Halifax County, North Carolina. Per her death certificate, she was born 30 June 1886 to Larse Tabron and Elizabeth [maiden name unknown]; was widowed; and was buried in Tabron family cemetery, Nash County, by Cofield Funeral Home, Weldon, N.C.
Annie B. Tabron Dobie May 6, 1927 Dec. 6, 1952
One of perhaps a dozen funeral home metal markers found in the cemetery.
Two Lisas on a chilly, almost-spring day.
Lisa Winstead-Stokes is exploring the logistics of clearing Granny Pines/Granite Point cemetery of years of overgrowth. If you have relatives buried or simply are interested in helping, please comment here with contact information!
With donations from readers like you, we were able recently to engage Foster Stone and Cemetery Care to clean and reset markers in the Mincey family plot at Odd Fellows cemetery.
We’ve seen the nearly buried white marble headstones of Prince Mincey and Oscar Mincey, standing a few feet from Benjamin Mincey‘s fire hydrant. Prince Mincey was Ben Mincey’s father, and Oscar, his brother.
Marble headstones are both heavy and fragile, and Foster uses site-built equipment to safely lift them.
Voilà!
The style of Oscar Mincey’s headstone suggests that it was placed shortly after his death in 1906. Prince Mincey’s engraving, however, appears to be machine-cut, suggesting manufacture and placement well after he died in 1902.
Though their grave markers have not yet been found, it seems likely that Prince Mincey’s wife Susan Mincey and Ben Mincey’s wife Mattie Barnes Mincey are buried in the family plot as well.
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In the 1900 census of Wilson town, Wilson township, Wilson County: farmer Prince Mensey, 60; wife Susan, 52; children Ben, 19, Emma, 19, and Oscar, 12; and niece Rosetta Mensey, 7.
Photos courtesy of Billy Foster.
Wilson Daily Times, 3 March 1928.
Josiah Vick died in Nash County circa 1846. This detail from an “acct. of sale & Hire of Negroes” prepared by Vick’s administrator Benjamin H. Blount shows that Joshua Barnes purchased several enslaved people — Simeon; Lettice, her children Hines and Madison; and Jane — from Vick’s estate.
The connections between large slaveowners in Nash, Edgecombe, and (later) Wilson Counties formed a dense web, with surprising echoes decades later among Wilson’s African-American elite:
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On 9 September 1868, Madison Barnes, son of Ephraim Booses and Lettice Parker, married Mariah Strickland, daughter of Henry Strickland and Frances Strickland, at the Wilson County Courthouse.
In the 1870 census of Wilson township, Wilson County: Hines Barnes, 30, farm laborer.
Ben Mincey, 21, of Wilson, son of P. Mincey, and Mattie Barnes, 20, of Wilson, daughter of M. and Mariah Barnes, were married on 12 January 1904. Berry Williams applied for the license, and Baptist minister Fred M. Davis performed the ceremony in his home in the presence of Harry Mercer, W. Aken, and E.M. Davis.
On 6 June 1907, Madison Barnes, 50, son of Eaton Booze and Lettice Harper, married Caroline Stewart, 40, in Wilson. A.M.E. Zion minister N.D. King performed the ceremony in the presence of Charles Thomas, Alfred Dew, and Eugene Canady.
On 7 September 1908, Lula Barnes, 17, of Wilson, daughter of Madison Barnes and a deceased mother, married William Donnell, 22, of Stantonsburg, son of Hamp Donnell, at the bride’s residence.
On 24 December 1919, Madison Barnes, 64, applied for a license to marry Dollie Barnes, 54.
In the 1920 census of Wilson township, Wilson County: on Saratoga Road, farm laborer Madison Barnes, 70; wife Dollie Ann, 53; and granddaughter Annie V. Vick, 8.
Madison Barnes died 18 September 1934 in Wilson. Per his death certificate, he was 90 years old; was born in Nash County to unknown parents; was a widower; and had worked as a laborer. Lillie Mitchell was informant.
Lillie Mitchell died 11 January 1936 in Wilson township. Per her death certificate, she was 42 years old; was born in Wilson to Madison Barnes and Mariah Barnes; was married to Henry Mitchell; and worked as a farmer.
Edward Barnes died 20 February 1945 in Wilson township. Per his death certificate, he was 49 years old; was born in Wilson County to Madison Barnes and Mariah Strickland; was married to Lula Barnes; was engaged in farming; and was buried din Roundtree cemetery.
Mattie Barnes Mincey died 9 February 1960 in Wilson. Per her death certificate, she was born 15 December 1886 in Wilson to Madison Barnes and Mariah [maiden name unknown]; was a widow; lived at 706 Wiggins Street; and was buried at Rountree Cemetery. [If she is buried with her husband and his family, Mattie Barnes Mincey is actually buried in Odd Fellows.]
Josiah Vick Estate File (1846), Nash County, North Carolina Estate Files 1663-1979, http://www.familysearch.org.
The counties in which these Wilson County natives died are all in south Georgia and suggest migration to work in the naval stores industry after North Carolina’s longleaf pines were tapped out.
Mary E Lively Day of Laura Coley 1880-1919. Photo of her Greenwood Cemetery headstone courtesy of http://www.findagrave.com.
In the 1900 census of Brunswick, Glynn County, Georgia: at 718 Stonewall Street, Laura Coley, 42, widow, laundress, born in N.C.; daughter Mary May, 21, laundress, born in N.C.; and boarder Abram Smith, 78, widower, day laborer.
Mary Lively died 28 March 1919 in Glennville, Tatnall County, Georgia. Per her death certificate, she was of unknown age; was born in Wilson, N.C. to Hayward Barnes and “Parker”; and the infomant was Laura Coley.
In the 1920 census of Brunswick, Glynne County, Georgia: at 912 Lee Street, Laura Coley, 48, laundress; nieces Mabel, 4, and Alice Anderson, 2; and lodgers Isah, 24, and Liza Boston, 21.
Laura Coley died 29 December 1930 in Brunswick, Glynn County, Georgia. Per her death certificate, she was 62 years old; was a widow; lived in 914 Stonewall Street; was born North Carolina to an unknown father and Riley Winston of North Carolina; worked as a laundress; and was buried in Greenwood Cemetery. Answer Anderson was informant.
Tom Pridgen died 29 December 1935 in Savannah, Chatham County, Georgia. Per his death certificate, he was 60 years old; was born in Wilson, N.C., to John Pridgen and Margaret [maiden name not known]; was single; worked as a laborer; and was buried in Laurel Grove cemetery, Savannah.
In the 1870 census of Turkey township, Sampson County, North Carolina: Annie(?) Carter, 18, farm laborer; Dennis Carroll, 16, works on farm; and Richard Chesnutt, 15, works on farm.
In the 1880 census of Turkey township, Sampson County, North Carolina: farm laborer Dennis Carroll, 25; wife Margeonna, 19; and children Osker, 4, and Walter, 2.
In the 1910 census of Montgomery County, Georgia: turpentine laborer Dennis Carroll, 52; wife Margie, 50; and daughter Lila, 24.
In the 1920 census of Montgomery County, Georgia: laborer Dennis Carroll, 50; wife Margie, 58; son Walter, 45 (sic); and Easter, 19.
Dennis Carrol died 16 November 1935 in Ailey, Montgomery County, Georgia. Per his death certificate, he was born in 1860 in Wilson, N.C.; was married; and was a farmer.
Helen Flemming died 26 July 1924 in Waycross, Ware County, Georgia. Per her death certificate, she was born in 1898 in Wilson, N.C., to Jim Hines; was married; lived at 1122 Teabur; and was buried in Redhill Cemetery. W.M. Flemming was informant.
In the 1880 census of Wilson township, Wilson County: farm worker Dallas Taylor, 30, and wife Louisa, 37.
In the 1910 census of Mullis district, Dodge County, Georgia: odd jobs laborer Paul Taylor, 24; wife Mealie, 18; and daughter Lugene, 1.
In 1918, Paul Taylor registered for the World War I draft in Dodge County, Georgia. Per his registration card, he was born 24 June 1880; worked in drawing for E.A. Mullis; and his nearest kin was Amelia Taylor. He signed his card in a firm, fine hand.
In the 1920 census of Chester, Dodge County, Georgia: railroad section laborer Paul Taylor, 39; wife Melia, 25; and children Enijen(?), 10, Orlando, 8, and Morris, 4.
In the 1930 census of Mullis district, Dodge County, Georgia: farmer Paul Taylor, 49, born in N.C.; wife Amelia, 38; children Lou G., 20, Orlando, 18, Morris, 15, and Odessa, 6; and mother-in-law Sallie Dantley, 90, widow.
Paul Taylor died 14 December 1933 in Chester, Dodge County, Georgia. Per his death certificate, he was born 3 September 1883 in Wilson, N.C., to Dallis Taylor and Louisa Taylor; was married; worked as a farmer; and was buried in Burch Cemetery, Chester. Amelia Taylor was informant.
Wilson Daily Times, 5 March 1943.
Hartford E. Bess‘ Handel’s Chorus, comprised of teens and young adults, performed to standing-room-only crowds for decades. In 1943, its members included Clara B. Taylor, Pauline Farmer, Ernestine Floyd, Mattie Ford, Eunice McCall, Devera Jackson, Eunice Cooke, Dora Dickerson, Henrietta Hines, Matteele Floyd, Inez Dickerson, Deloris Haskins, Romaine Hagans, Doris Joyner, Herman Hines, Harding Thompson, Ambrose Towe, Thomas Dawson, John W. Jones, Arthur Brodie, and Rudolph Best. Unfortunately, the accompanying photograph is not available.
Wilson Daily Times, 6 March 1942.
Like all rural Wilson County schools, Turner Colored School had an associated 4-H Club. Turner School closed in 1949 when its pupils were assigned to the newly built Frederick Douglass High School.
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Wilson Daily Times, 11 March 1933.
I had some questions about the American Legion’s circus, and I still do. However, this article shows that it was an annual event, and the white Post sponsored one, too. In 1933, the circus featured a basketball game between Wilson and Greenville’s Black high schools and a dance featuring the “reorganized” Carolina Stompers.