The last will and testament of London Woodard.

Acclaimed Primitive Baptist preacher London Woodard made out his last will and testament on 14 November 1870.

After directing a “decent burial,” Woodard itemized the household goods and farm implements left to his “beloved wife,” Penelope Lassiter Woodard.

His three sons, William, Hardy, and Haywood Woodard, were to divide his land equally and receive one beehive and one axe each.

Daughter Treasy Woodard received the late nineteenth-century equivalent of a bedroom set.

The rest of his property was to be divided among his children Howell, Elvin, Rose, Pharibee, Sarah, Amos, Harriet, London, Treasy, and Penina Woodard.

 

Lane Street Project: even the simplest request goes unfulfilled.

Right after the May 11 public forum, the City of Wilson agreed, at my request, to deposit a copy of New South Associates’ GPR survey with Wilson County Public Library. Here’s Councilmember Gillettia Morgan‘s suggestion, sent via email attachment on May 31:

Has the City followed through with this simple request? 

No.

Today I left at the Local History Room a bound copy of my May 11 PowerPoint slide deck and notes. When the library inquired this morning, a city official said they’d drop off a copy of the GPR report “this week.” 

While we’re here: at the May 11 forum, the Mayor promised transparency and accountability from the City concerning Vick and indicated he wanted to “work together” to address its problems. None of that is happening. The last email I received from Councilmember Morgan is dated May 31. She has not responded to any I have sent since. However, she is ahead of councilmembers Johnson, Liles, Creech, Fyle, Bell, and Evans; the Mayor; the City Manager; the Assistant City Manager; and the Communications Director, who collectively have not responded to or even acknowledged receipt of a single email. (I have spoken with the Mayor by phone concerning the August 5 Vick Cemetery reconsecration. He did not initiate the call.)

I don’t vote in Wilson, and I have to abide by the Hatch Act, but I surely hope citizens will ask hard questions of candidates about their intentions for Vick Cemetery and remember both word and deed at election time.

The last will and testament of Rosetta Barnes.

Rosetta Barnes‘ undated will divided her property among her children. Daughter Wadie Barnes Rountree was to receive her mother’s “sewing machine and all … wearing clothes.” Son Henry Barnes received a bedstead and bed, as well as all her real estate, comprised of her “lots and house in ‘Grab Neck‘ a colored suburb of the town of Wilson.” Son Toby Barnes also received a bedstead and bed. Everything else was to be divided equally among her children.

——

On 18 August 1866, Short Barnes and Rosa Barnes registered their two-year cohabitation with a Wilson County justice of the peace.

In the 1870 census of Wilson township, Wilson County: farm laborer Short Barnes, 35; wife Rosa, 21; and daughter Rena, 5.

In the 1880 census of Taylors township, Wilson County: farmer Short Barnes, 50; wife Rose, 45; and children Nancy, 14, Waity, 12, Martha, 10, Toby, 8, and Joseph, 6.

On 13 January 1891, Alexander Rountree, 21, of Taylors township, son of Rose Rountree, married Waity Barnes, 20, of Wilson township, daughter of Short and Rosa Barnes, in Wilson. Nestus Bagley, Warren Ellis, and Jesse S. Barnes were witnesses.

In the 1900 census of Taylor township, Wilson County: Rose Barnes, 59, and children Renner, 29, Toba, 24, Jose, 21, James, 17, Henry, 11, Bill, 9, and Maggie, 7.

In the 1910 census of Wilson township, Wilson County: widow Rosetta Barnes, 60, and sons Tobe, 27, widower, and Henry, 21, both wagon factory laborers. Rosetta reported that five of her ten children were living.

Roseter Barnes died 29 January 1914 in Wilson. Per her death certificate, she was 70 years old; lived on Nash Street; was single [in fact, was widowed]; worked as a midwife; and was buried in Wilson [most likely, Vick Cemetery.] Henry Barnes was informant.

Wadie Rountree died 7 July 1926 in Wilson township, Wilson County. Per her death certificate, she was born 8 February 1873 in Wilson to Short Barnes and Rosa Barnes; was married to Alex Rountree; and was buried in Wilson [probably, Vick Cemetery.]

Joe Barnes died 29 September 1933 in Wilson township, Wilson County. Per his death certificate, he was 53 years old; was born in Wilson County to Short Barnes and Rosa Etta Barnes; was a widower; worked as a farmer; and was buried in Wilson [probably Vick Cemetery.] Informant was James Barnes.

Tobe Barnes died 5 January 1955 at Mercy Hospital, Wilson. Per his death certificate, he was born 3 February 1881 in Wilson County to Short Barnes and Rosa Farmer; was married to Hannah Barnes; and worked as a farmer. He was buried in Rest Haven Cemetery, Wilson.

Will of Rozetta Barnes (undated), North Carolina Wills and Probate Records 1665-1998, http://www.ancestry.com.

The last will and testament of Henry Cotton.

We have already examined the wills of Henry Cotton and his wife Temperance Moore Cotton as transcribed in Wilson County will books. Now, however, we see a copy of Henry Cotton’s original will, drafted on post office letterhead by Samuel H. Vick (who was in between stints as postmaster) and witnessed by mail carrier John H. Clark.

Will of Henry Cotten (1895), North Carolina, U.S. Wills and Probate Records, 1665-1998, http://www.ancestry.com.

Lane Street Project: kudos to Elizabeth City.

Another city doing it better than Wilson — Elizabeth City, North Carolina.

Thirteen-acre Oak Grove cemetery was founded about 1886 as a burial ground for African-Americans. The City of Elizabeth City took ownership of the cemetery in 1964, and its newer sections are still open for burials.

In 2021, Elizabeth City officials agreed to help fund an archaeological survey to identify marked and unmarked graves at Old Oak Grove. The $50,800 survey was funded by a $30,480 grant from the state’s Historic Preservation Fund with the remaining $20,320 supplied by the city. [Here’s a takeaway, City of Wilson — there’s grant money out there!]

The first phase of the project included a land survey to mark and record the boundaries of the cemetery. [In other words, unlike Wilson, Elizabeth City had a survey map prepared and recorded.] Industry leaders New South Associates then performed a ground-penetrating radar survey of Old Oak Grove, finding evidence of 5,418 graves, of which 2,331 are unmarked (including some found under dirt paths in the cemetery). New South’s report recommended that Elizabeth City nominate Old Oak Grove for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places.

Though I have no doubt the road to enlightened treatment of Old Oak Grove was a stony one to tread, Elizabeth City now understands its value as a selling point for the city. The City’s tourism website devotes a whole page to the site, touting its significance to local history as well as national events. [Looking at you, Wilson County Tourism Development Authority.]

And you, Barton College. Per Visit Elizabeth City:

“In 2021, Elizabeth City State University and the Museum of the Albemarle partnered with the NC African American Heritage Commission (NC AAHC) and the Office of State Archaeology (OSA) to teach preservation techniques focused on Elizabeth City African American cemeteries. At Old Oak Grove Cemetery, techniques and best practices were shared with current ESCU history students on how to photograph and survey the grounds. Proper cleaning methods of gravestones were demonstrated and the ECSU students and professors cleaned six historic markers. These headstones memorialized Civil War veterans who were enlisted in the United States Colored Troops (USCT) Heavy Artillery Regiment.

…

“Cemetery Hours of Operation: Year-round. The cemetery is maintained by the Elizabeth City Department of Parks and Recreation and is open from dawn to dusk. Street parking is available. Please be respectful of these hallowed grounds.”

There are lots of models out here for progressive public-private partnerships and community engagement around neglected and abused African-American cemeteries. The City of Wilson has not chosen one.

Photos courtesy of visitelizabethcity.com.

Wills and estates.

Even when they owned property, most African-Americans in Wilson County in the 19th and early 20th centuries, even the wealthiest and most prominent,  did not execute wills, and their estates passed informally to their descendants as “heir property.” (A major contributor to loss of land and wealth among African-American families.) Some bucked the trend, however, and this post comprises a running list of such wills and estates featured in Black Wide-Awake.

Men and women born enslaved are marked with an asterisk. Free people of color are indicated with a circumflex (^).

Last will and testament of Ella Clark Gaston Hinton, executed 15 August 1946.

Wills

Estates

Lane Street Project: in memory of Fannie Preston Allen (1885-1943).

I’ve spoken of the database I am developing of likely burials in Vick, Odd Fellows, and Rountree Cemeteries. My spreadsheet draws upon death certificates, obituaries, and other sources — most distressingly imprecise. The term “Rountree Cemetery” on these documents may refer to Vick, Odd Fellows, or Rountree. Some documents broadly refer only to burial in Wilson. However, in the absence of official burial records for any of the cemeteries, we make do.

This series honors the men, women, and children who never had grave markers, or whose stones have been lost or stolen or destroyed. Graves believed to be in Vick Cemetery, which the City of Wilson stripped of remaining markers in 1996, will be identified with a Vick Cemetery logo.

——

Fannie Preston Allen died 26 November 1943 at Mercy Hospital, Wilson. Per her death certificate, she was born 8 May 1885 in Robeson County, N.C., to Sandy Ashley; was married to Samuel Allen; lived at 706 Roberson Street; and was buried in Rountree [likely Vick] Cemetery. Creavorn Allen of Berkley, Virginia, was informant.

Lane Street Project: an appeal for N.C.O.S.A. oversight.

In September 2020, I submitted to the North Carolina Office of State Archaeology an Archaeological Site Form/Citizen Cemetery Site Form for Vick Cemetery. Per N.C.O.S.A.’s website:

“The North Carolina Citizen Cemetery Site Form is designed to allow non-professional members of the public to submit information relating to a wide variety of cemeteries across the state. Submission of this form to the NC Office of State Archaeology (OSA) is a vital step in the historic preservation process. This information will be stored confidentially at the state and accessed by researchers and contractors, descendant communities, local governments, and agencies seeking compliance with State and Federal preservation laws. In other words, recording a cemetery for OSA may help prevent it from being damaged or destroyed.

“Once your cemetery is recorded with us it will be assigned a site number, a copy of which you will be provided for your records. If the cemetery has already been recorded, OSA will add your completed form to the cemetery’s file and list the submission as a ‘revisit.’ Updates to listed cemeteries are welcomed because they are important tools for understanding how cemeteries change over time and help descendants and landowners develop responsible management plans.”

I will soon submit an update to reflect changes in Vick’s status and our understanding of the number and location of graves therein.

On 23 June 2023, I requested in writing that the Office State Archaeology oversee activity at Vick Cemetery. Here is my letter:

I followed up on 3 July 2023 to provide preliminary information about the graves marked by New South Associates when it returned to Vick on June 29 and will continue to update N.C.O.S.A. as events unfold (or don’t.)

Like many state government departments, N.C.O.S.A. is underfunded and understaffed. I do not know its criteria for intervention. However, I sought its assistance because Vick Cemetery is endangered, and I do not trust the City of Wilson, its officials, or departments to act openly or in Vick’s best interests. Stay tuned.

Lane Street Project: in acknowledgment of allies.

If by “secure” we mean acknowledge, honor, protect, and restore, yes — let’s. Wilson Times editorial cartoon, 23 May 2023.

——

Let’s take a moment to acknowledge Lane Street Project’s allies, men and women across the Wilson community who have taken vocal public stances on Vick Cemetery and related matters. Vick Cemetery is not just an East Wilson issue. The desecration of public cemeteries spreads a stench across the whole city. Thank you, Charles P. Farris Jr.