Georgia Burke in “Mamba’s Daughters.”

Actors Ethel Waters, Georgia Burke, and Fredi Washington in “Mamba’s Daughters” at Philadelphia’s Locust Street Theatre in February 1940. Georgia native Burke was among the eleven African-American teachers who walked out of Wilson Colored Graded School to protest the abuse by school principal J.D. Reid and superintendent Charles L. Coon.

Photo courtesy of George D. McDowell Philadelphia Evening Bulletin Collection, Temple University Libraries, Special Collections Research Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Update: The removal of graves from Jones-Hill-Coleman cemetery.

I’ve written about the removal of graves from “Jones-Hill-Coleman” Cemetery in 1995. I was puzzled by the name of the cemetery, its unclear location, and the location of the “Eva Coleman Cemetery” to which some of the burials were reinterred.

Jones-Hill-Coleman Cemetery is clearly the cemetery more commonly called Jones Hill. The removal of graves certificate filed in October 1995 identified 11 graves to be removed to “the new Coleman” cemetery and ten to be moved to Rest Haven Cemetery because of “road construction.” An attached map, labeled “Jones-Hill-Coleman Cemetery,” shows an orderly six-row graveyard adjacent to Old Raleigh Road. I was thrown initially because this sketch bears little resemblance to Jones Hill in its current state. Also, while 44 graves in Jones Hill have been identified, the graves on this map mostly were labeled “adult,” “baby,” or “no one found.” I assumed, in error I now see, that this meant the graves were unidentified, which puzzled me because Jones Hill contains dozens of headstones. Last, though the map is marked not to scale, the graves seemed awfully close to the road compared to the front edge of Jones Hill now.

I’m still a little confused, but with further study, I have a somewhat better understanding. A road construction project required the removal of graves from the right-of-way buffering Old Raleigh Road.

Wilson Daily Times, 25 July 1995.

The burials in the public right-of-way primarily were descendants of Henry and Mary Jane Thompson Coleman, who had owned a 68-acre tract of land just north of the cemetery.

In 1990, that tract was divided among Henry Coleman’s heirs. Daughter Eva Coleman, now deceased, received tracts 2 and 3, containing 13.7 acres, at bottom right. See Wilson County deed book 1410, page 341.

Plat book 21, page 150, Wilson County Register of Deeds Office, Wilson.

Google Maps aerial view of the area with a dotted line marking the lower boundary of the Coleman tracts and (A) at Jones Hill Cemetery.

Detail of 2013 plat map showing Jones Hill Cemetery, bottom left above “Old,” and the bottom edge of the Coleman tracts. Plat book 39, page 184.

Per the map attached to the removal of graves certificate, ten identified remains — mostly Joneses and Edmundsons — were moved to Rest Haven Cemetery in Wilson.

John Thomas Edmundson’s relocated grave in Rest Haven, courtesy of findagrave.com.

The other eleven graves — all but two unidentified — were moved to a new cemetery created on Eva Coleman’s land at a location described on a map of the cemetery attached to the certificate as:

The graves are not recorded at Findagrave.com. A zoomed-in perusal of the Eva Coleman tract on Google Maps reveals an area with housing and outbuildings surrounded by plowed fields. At the bottom corner of the tract, however, this clear area appears:

Though its location does not square easily with the description above, this would seem to be the Eva Coleman Cemetery. Can any family members confirm?

Walker defaults; Smith sells; Vick buys.

In September 1914, having borrowed money from Rev. Owen L.W. Smith, Sarah Walker secured her note with a mortgage on her property near South Goldsboro Street. Walker defaulted on the loan, and Smith put her property up at auction in May 1916. Samuel H. Vick made the high bid. 

“Beginning at a stake, Southwest corner of A.J. Townsend‘s lot on the edge of the west edge of a drainage ditch at the embankment of South Goldsboro Street South of Norfolk and Southern Railroad….” Deed book 111, page 336, Wilson County Register of Deeds Office, Wilson.

——

  • Sarah Walker

In the 1910 census of Wilson, Wilson County: Robert Walker, 31, lumber mill laborer, and wife Sarah, 29.

In the 1916 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Walker Sarah (c) seamstress h 402 E Walnut

In the 1920 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Walker Sarah (c) domestic h 402 E Walnut

In the 1922 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Walker Sarah (c) tobwkr h 109 S East

In the 1928 and 1930 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Walker Sarah (c) domestic h 109 S East

In the 1930 census of Wilson, Wilson County: paying $/8 month rent, seamstress Sarah Walker, 40; also paying $8/month, Leon Crawford, 39, bricklayer; wife Mary, 37, cook; and roomers John Staden, 39, bellhop, and wife Louise, 33.

The 107th anniversary of the school boycott.

Today marks the 107th anniversary of the resignation of 11 African-American teachers in Wilson, North Carolina, in rebuke of their “high-handed” black principal and the white school superintendent who slapped one of them. In their wake, black parents pulled their children out of the public school en masse and established a private alternative in a building owned by a prominent black businessman.  Financed with 25¢-a-week tuition payments and elaborate student musical performances, the Independent School operated for nearly ten years. The school boycott, sparked by African-American women standing at the very intersection of perceived powerless in the Jim Crow South, was an astonishing act of prolonged resistance that unified Wilson’s black toilers and strivers.

Sallie Roberta Battle Johnson, one of the Graded School teachers.

The school boycott is largely forgotten in Wilson, and its heroes go unsung. In their honor, today, and every April 9 henceforth, I publish links to Black Wide-Awake posts chronicling the walk-out and its aftermath. Please read and share and speak the names of Mary C. Euell and the revolutionary teachers of the Colored Graded School.

we-tender-our-resignation-and-east-wilson-followed

the-heroic-teachers-of-principal-reids-school

The teachers.

a-continuation-of-the-bad-feelings

what-happened-when-white-perverts-threatened-to-slap-colored-school-teachers

604-606-east-vance-street

mary-euell-and-dr-du-bois

minutes-of-the-school-board

attack-on-prof-j-d-reid

lucas-delivers-retribution

lynching-going-on-and-there-are-men-trying-to-stand-in-with-the-white-folks

photos-of-the-colored-graded-and-independent-schools

new-school-open

the-program

a-big-occasion-in-the-history-of-the-race-in-this-city

womens-history-month-celebrating-the-teachers-of-the-wilson-normal-industrial-school

the-roots-of-mary-c-euell

respectful-petition-seeks-reids-removal

lucas-testifies-that-he-accomplished-his-purpose

there-has-been-an-astonishing-occurrence-in-wilson

no-armistice-in-sight

And here, my Zoom lecture, “Wilson Normal and Industrial Institute: A Community Response to Injustice,” delivered in February 2022.

The Pegueses arrive in Wilson County.

The Pegues family is most closely associated with the Elm City area, largely due to the athletic achievements of several of its members. Like many African-American families, the Pegueses migrated to Wilson County from the Sandhills area of North and South Carolina around World War I.

On 15 January 1918, for $1600, A.L.E. and Annie E. Weeks sold Aaron and Maggie Pegues a lot with a five-room house on lot 1, block 14 of the Singletary property, today’s New Bern Street.

Deed book 111, page 595, Wilson County Register of Deeds Office, Wilson.

——

In 1918, John Pegues registered for the World War I draft in Wilson County. Per his registration card, he was born 25 May 1900; lived at 11 Barnes; was a farmer “east of Wilson”; and his nearest relative was Aaron Pegues, “11 Barnes,” Wilson.

In 1918, Lott Pegues registered for the World War I draft in Wilson County. Per his registration card, he was born 12 November 1898; lived on Barnes Line; was a farmer for Babe Pridgen on Finch Mill Road; and his nearest relative was father Aaron Pegues, Barnes Line, Wilson.

In the 1920 census of Jackson township, Nash County, N.C.: farmer Aaron Pegues, 63; wife Maggie, 48; and sons Lot, 21, and John K., 20.

Maggie Pegues died 2 July 1929 in Wilson township, Wilson County. Per her death certificate, she was 55 years old; was born in Rockingham, N.C.; was married to Aaron Pegues; was a tenant farmer for Sam Daniel; and was buried in Wilson [probably Vick Cemetery.]

Rev. Phillips?

We’ve met Rev. Henry C. Phillips, who arrived in Wilson from Edgecombe County in the late 1880s. This 1868 letter was written to a Freedmen’s Bureau official by a Henry C. Phillips, “a teacher of the Colored Children in the Hookerton village” in Greene County.

Was this the same man? His signature in the letter is very different than it appears on numerous marriage licenses 20 to 30 years later, when it is bold and assured and even a bit flamboyant. In 1868, however, Phillips would have been just a few years out of slavery, with relatively few chances to practice his penmanship. As an ordained A.M.E. Zion minister, Phillips, however, had daily opportunities to strengthen and polish his handwriting.

 

The challenges of tracking burials in Rountree, Odd Fellows, and Vick Cemeteries.

Tracking burials in Wilson’s African-American cemeteries is complicated by the imprecise names listed on death certificates as place of burial.

As a refresher, here’s a rough timeline of Black cemeteries operating in the city of Wilson in the 19th and 20th centuries:

Until about 30 years ago, Rountree, Odd Fellows, and Vick Cemeteries were locally known collectively as “Rountree Cemetery.” When the City of Wilson erected granite pillars at the entrance to its parking lot in the late 1990s, they were inaccurately engraved “Rountree-Vick Cemetery.” I was a few years into Black Wide-Awake before I completely understood that the three cemeteries are separate entities.

I’ve been building a database of known and likely burials in R/OF/V, based on death certificates, headstones, obituaries, and a few family stories. The death certificates detailed below show why the task is so complicated. Tentative assignments, if I can guess at all, are based on context clues like church membership, fraternal affiliation, locations of burials of close family members, and location of residence.

  • Green Mercer, 1910

The Town of Wilson began requiring death certificates in 1909; the county not until 1914. Enforcement was irregular for the first few years after the mandate. Green Mercer’s death certificate cites his place of burial as “Wilson N.C. Colored Cemetery,” which, in 1910, could have been Oakdale or Masonic or Rountree or Odd Fellows, but was probably Oakdale.

  • Bruce Adams, 1914

Undertaker C.H. Darden most often broadly designated place of burial as “Wilson” or “Wilson, N.C.” Bruce Adams, who died in 1914, could have been buried in Oakdale, Rountree, Vick, or Masonic Cemeteries.

  • infant Guest, 1918

This unnamed infant, who died in 1918, was buried in “Wilson Cemetery,” which likely was the cemetery we now know as Vick.

  • Robert Bruce Hardy, 1918

Robert Hardy, who also died in 1918, was buried in “Roundtrees Church” cemetery. Taken at face value, he was buried in the cemetery owned by Rountree Missionary Baptist Church.

  • Wesley Barnes, 1919

Wesley Barnes’ 1919 death certificate cites “Wilson Co[unty] NC.” Barnes was my great-grandmother’s brother. Though it’s possible he was buried in the county, Wes Barnes lived in town and probably was buried in Vick Cemetery.

  • Buster Ellis, 1924

His death certificate simply cites “Wilson, N.C.,” but Buster Ellis‘ headstone has been found with those of his grandmother and other family members in Rountree Cemetery.

  • Noah J. Tate, 1926

Undertaker Columbus E. Artis of Artis & Flanagan generically marked Noah Tate as buried in Wilson, though he interred him in the Tate family plot in Odd Fellows Cemetery.

  • James Edward Humphrey, 1936

On the other hand, the headstone of James Edward Humphrey, engraved “Ed Humphrey,” whose death certificate also states “Wilson, N.C.,” stands in Odd Fellows Cemetery.

  • George Rountree, 1942

George Rountree’s death certificate bears the unusual designation “Rountree Potters field.” Presumably Vick, as a public cemetery, had a potter’s field, and that’s probably where Rountree was buried.

  • Bessie Baldwin, 1944

Bessie Baldwin’s death certificate says she was buried in Rest Haven, but her obituary says Rountree Cemetery. Her funeral was held at Rountree church. If she were a member, she likely was buried there.

Wilson Daily Times, 8 December 1944.

  • Dempsey Lassiter, 1946

Dempsey Lassiter’s 1946 death certificate states that he was buried in Rountree Cemetery, as does his newspaper obituary. However, his headstone is standing in Odd Fellows Cemetery.

  • Joseph Blue, 1950

Burials attributed to “Rountree Cemetery” dropped off sharply after 1950.

  • Annie Teachey Coley, 1955

Where, in fact, what Annie Teachey Coley buried? Rountree? Odd Fellows? Vick? The 1954 aerial view of the sites shows all were fairly open well into the decade

  • Carolyn Evans, 1960

Carolyn Evans’ burial in 1960 was among the last in Rountree/Odd Fellows/Vick Cemeteries. The 1964 aerial view of the cemeteries shows clear abandonment.

Battle sister transfers land to brother.

On 1 January 1914, for $500, Ada G. Battle sold her brother Charles T. Battle a 28′ by 52′ parcel of land on Tarboro Street, “it being the identical lot on which was situated the black-smith shop of [their father] Charles Battle, deceased.”

Deed book 97, page 587, Wilson County Register of Deeds Office, Wilson.

The partition of Joseph Dawson’s lot.

We examined Joseph Dawson‘s estate file here.

The same day administrator Elijah L. Reid distributed one-tenth shares to Dawson’s widow and children, he filed suit seeking the sale of a house and lot on an alleyway north of and parallel to Green Street, i.e. Viola Street. Plaintiffs were widow Emma Artis Dawson and minors William H. Dawson and Joseph Dawson Jr. Defendants were (Emma Dawson’s step-children) W.H.O. Dawson and wife Emma Dawson; Alfred Dawson and wife Dora Dawson; William Sherrod and wife Polly A. Dawson Sherrod; Allison Dawson; Frank Dawson; Dempsey Dawson; and Fred Dawson.

Given the number of parties with interests in the property, an actual partition of the land was impractical. Division of the proceeds of a sale made more sense. Emma Dawson averred that she was 27 years old and had a life expectancy of 37.4 [additional?] years, which would factor into the calculation of her dower amount.

W.M.O. Dawson and wife Emma Dawson, Alfred Dawson and wife Dora Dawson, Frank Dawson, and Dempsey Dawson lived out-of-state, and plaintiff Emma Dawson requested their summonses be served by publication.

——

  • Emma Artis Dawson Reid

In the 1880 census of Nahunta township, Wayne County: farmer Richard Artis, 30; wife Susan A., 23; children Lucinda, 5, Emma, 3, and Ivey, 1; and brother Noah Artis, 23, farm laborer.

In the 1900 census of Black Creek township, Wilson County: Joseph Dawson, 45, farmer; wife Emma, 22; sons William H., 2 months, Frank, 19, and Fred, 17; and other relatives.

In the 1910 census of Nahunta township, Wayne County: farmer John G. Reid, 40; wife Emma, 32; and sons William H., 10, Joseph, 8, and Johnie E., 1.

In the 1920 census of Nahunta township, Wayne County: farmer John G. Reid, 50; wife Emma, 42; and children Joseph, 17, John Eddie, 11, Jesse, 9, Rosa Mae, 7, Leander, 6, and Marvin, 4.

In the 1930 census of Nahunta township, Wayne County: farmer John G. Reid, 60; wife Emma, 52; and children John E., 21, Jessie, 19, Rosa M., 17, Leanders, 15, Marvin, 14, and Hadie, 10.

In the 1940 census of Nahunta township, Wayne County: farmer John G. Reed, 70; wife Emma, 62; and children Leanders, 27, Marvin, 25, and Hadie, 20.

Emma D. Reed died 5 December 1964 in Fremont, Wayne County. Per her death certificate, she was born 26 June 1890 [more like 1866] in Wayne County to Richard Artis and Susizanna [no maiden name]; and was buried in Turner Swamp cemetery. Rosa M. Yelverton was informant.

  • William H. Dawson

In the 1900 census of Black Creek township, Wilson County: Joseph Dawson, 45, farmer; wife Emma, 22; sons William H., 2 months, Frank, 19, and Fred, 17; and others.

In the 1910 census of Nahunta township, Wayne County: farmer John G. Reid, 40; wife Emma, 32; and sons William H., 10, Joseph, 8, and Johnie E., 1.

In 1918, William Henry Dawson registered for the World War I draft in Wayne County. Per his registration card, he was born 16 December 1899; lived near Fremont, Wayne County; farmed for John G. Reid; and his contact was Emma Reid.

On 25 January 1920, William Dawson, 24, of Nahunta township, Wayne County, son of Emma Reed, married Appie Thompson, 23, of Nahunta, daughter of Cussie Thompson, in Nahunta township, Wayne County, N.C. Joseph Dawson was one of the witnesses.

In the 1930 census of Eureka precinct, Nahunta township, Wayne County: farmer William H. Dawson, 30; wife Appie, 33; and children Hubert L., 8, William O., 5, and Bertha M., 4 months.

In the 1940 census of Nahunta township, Wayne County: farmer William H. Dawson, 40; wife Appie, 43; and children Hubert Lee, 17, William O., 14, and Bertha Mae, 10.

In 1942, William Henry Dawson registered for the World War II draft in Wilson County. Per his registration card, he was born 16 December 1899 in Wilson; lived as 625 East Viola, Wilson; his contact was William Oscar Dawson; and he worked under contract at Marine Barracks, New River, Onslow County, N.C.

William H. Dawson died 15 June 1964 and was buried in Turner Swamp Primitive Baptist Church cemetery, Eureka, Wayne County.

  • Joseph Dawson Jr.

In the 1910 census of Nahunta township, Wayne County: farmer John G. Reid, 40; wife Emma, 32; and sons William H., 10, Joseph, 8, and Johnie E., 1.

In the 1920 census of Nahunta township, Wayne County: farmer John G. Reid, 50; wife Emma, 22; and children Joseph, 17, John Eddie, 11, Jesse, 9, Rosa Mae, 7, Leander, 6, and Marvin, 4.

On 24 August 1924, Joseph Dawson, 22, of Nahunta township, son of Joe and Emma Dawson, married Corintha Rowe, 19, of Nahunta township, daughter of Julius and Sarah Rowe, at Julius Rowe’s house in Nahunta township, Wayne County.

In the 1930 census of Nahunta township, Wayne County: farmer Joseph Dawson, 28; wife Corrina, 25; and children Annie, 8, Hattie R., 7, Sarah J., 5, Joseph Jr., 3, Alfonza, 2, and Emma, 11 months.

Annie Dawson died 15 December 1930 in Nahunta township, Wayne County. Per her death certificate, she was 8 years old; was born in Wayne County to Joe Dawson and Corena Rowe, both of Wilson County; and was buried in Daniel graveyard, Wayne County.

In the 1940 census of Nahunta township, Wayne County: farmer Jospeh Dawson, 38; wife Corina, 35; and children Hattie, 17, Sara Jane, 15, Joseph Jr., 13, Alphonso, 12, Emma, 11, Irene, 9, Bula May, 7, Mary Ann, 6, Lilly Ruth, 4, and Pauline, 3 months.

Joseph Dawson Jr. and wife Corinthia Rowe Dawson. Photo courtesy of Bernard Patterson.

Joseph Dawson [Jr.] died 12 September 1958 in Black Creek township, Wilson County. Per his death certificate, he was born 12 March 1902 in Wilson County to Joseph Dawson and Emma Artis; resided in Fremont, Wayne County; was married to Corintha Dawson; and was buried in Turner Swamp cemetery.

  • W.M.O. Dawson and wife Emma Dawson
  • Alfred Dawson and wife Dora Dawson

In the 1870 census of Black Creek township, Wilson County: farm laborer Joseph Dawson, 23; wife Waity, 24; children Alfred, 5, and Rosey, 7 months; and others.

In the 1880 census of Black Creek township, Wilson County: farmer Joseph Dawson, 34; wife Waity, 38; children Alfred, 15, Roscoe, 11, Dempsey, 8, Polly Ann, 6, Mathew, 4, Alison, 2, and infant, 2 months; and others.

On 16 December 1886, Alfred S. Dawson, 22, of Wilson County, married Polly Coley, 17, of Wayne County, daughter of Raiford and Smithy Coley, at the bride’s father’s residence in Nahunta township, Wayne County.

On 25 January 1894, Alfred S. Dawson, 28, of Edgecombe County, son of Joseph and Waittie Dawson of Wilson County, married Tasandre Maclin, 27, in Rocky Mount, Edgecombe County.

  • William Sherrod and wife Polly Ann Sherrod Dawson

In the 1880 census of Black Creek township, Wilson County: farmer Joseph Dawson, 34; wife Waity, 38; children Alfred, 15, Roscoe, 11, Dempsey, 8, Polly Ann, 6, Mathew, 4, Alison, 2, and infant, 2 months; and Tobithy Sanders, 20, farmworker.

On 6 December 1892, Willie Sherwood [Sherrod], 21, of Black Creek township, son of Jack and Catherine Sherwood, married Polly Dawson, 18, of Black Creek township, daughter of Joe and Waity Dawson, in Black Creek.

  • Allison Dawson

In the 1880 census of Black Creek township, Wilson County: farmer Joseph Dawson, 34; wife Waity, 38; children Alfred, 15, Roscoe, 11, Dempsey, 8, Polly Ann, 6, Mathew, 4, Alison, 2, and infant, 2 months; and Tobithy Sanders, 20, farmworker.

Perhaps: Albert Dawson died 2 April 1918 in Durham, North Carolina. Per his death certificate, he was about 32 years old; was born in Wilson County to Joseph Dawson; was married to Bettie Dawson; worked as a foreman at Liggett & Myers; and lived at 1008 Lynchburg Street. He was buried in Violet Park cemetery.

  • Frank Dawson

In the 1900 census of Black Creek township, Wilson County: Joseph Dawson, 45, farmer; wife Emma, 22; sons William H., 2 months, Frank, 19, and Fred, 17; nieces Martha, 23, Laura A., 20, and Charity Saunders, 10; and boarder James Allen, 21.

  • Dempsey Dawson

In the 1880 census of Black Creek township, Wilson County: farmer Joseph Dawson, 34; wife Waity, 38; children Alfred, 15, Roscoe, 11, Dempsey, 8, Polly Ann, 6, Mathew, 4, Alison, 2, and infant, 2 months; and others.

On 23 June 1910, E.L. Reid in Wilson County filed for letters of administration for the estate of Dempsey Dawson. His estate was estimated at a value of $74, and his heirs were Allison Dawson, W.M.O. Dawson, Polly Ann Sherrod, Frank Dawson, and Fred Dawson.

  • Fred Dawson

In the 1900 census of Black Creek township, Wilson County: Joseph Dawson, 45, farmer; wife Emma, 22; sons William H., 2 months, Frank, 19, and Fred, 17; nieces Martha, 23, Laura A., 20, and Charity Saunders, 10; and boarder James Allen, 21.

Studio shots, no. 261: Malcolm D. Williams.

Yearbooks can be a valuable source of photographs of community members whose images were infrequently captured or retained. The 1952 edition of Charles H. Darden High School’s yearbook, The Trojan, included this photograph of Dr. Malcolm D. Williams, Supervisor of Wilson Negro Schools.