deed of sale

The Taborn sisters help their mother.

In January 1894, Edward Mitchell, his wife Elma Taborn Mitchell, and her half-sister Stella Taborn completed a real estate transaction designed to “assist [Elma and Stella’s mother] Edmonia Taborn to meet the indebtedness incident to the death of her husband Lemon Taborn and further for the purpose of assisting her in the care of the infant children born unto the said Lemon Taborn….”

Deed book 35, page 426, Wilson County Register of Deeds, Wilson.

Lemon Taborn died intestate, and his property passed to his wife and children. By this deed, Elma and Stella transferred their interest in his one-quarter acre Tarboro Street property to Edmonia Taborn.

——

On 18 July 1870, Lemon Tabourne, son of Hardy Taylor and Celey Tabourn, married Edmonia Barnes, daughter of Louisa Barnes, “in church” in Wilson. 

In the 1870 census, in the town of Wilson, Wilson County: barber Lemon Taber, 28; wife Edmina, 17; and daughter Stella [by a previous wife], 5; plus domestic servant Tillman Blount, 13, and Terry Noble, 18, barber. Edmonia reported that she was born in Virginia.

In the 1880 census of Wilson, Wilson County: on Tarboro Street, barber Lemon Taborn, 45; wife Edmonia, 26; and children Stella, 16, Elma, 7, Carrie, 5, Lucy, 3, and Joshua, 1.  

On 27 January 1888, Ed Mitchell married Elma Taborn in Halifax County, North Carolina. [Edward Mitchell was a barber in Lemon Taborn’s barbershop.]

On 26 February 1894, George Thomas, 29, of Wilmington, North Carolina, son of Richard and Eliza Thomas, married Estella Taborn, 27, of Wilson, daughter of Lemon Taborn, in Wilson. Hardy Tate applied for the license, and Presbyterian minister L.J. Melton performed the ceremony in the presence of Mattie Harris, W.M. Phillips, and L.A. Moore. 

Elma Taborn Mitchell apparently died before 1900.

In the 1900 census of Wilmington, New Hanover County, North Carolina: porter George W. Thomas, 33; wife Stella, 33; children Clarence, 3, and Mena, 1; and servant Grace Tate, 15.

In the 1910 census of Wilmington, New Hanover County, N.C.: railroad porter Geo. Thomas, 45; wife Stella, 45; and children Clarence, 15, Blommie, 12, Richard, 5, and Georgia, 3.

Stella Thomas died 26 January 1918 in Wilmington, New Hanover County, N.C. Per her death certificate, she was born 1865 to L. and Julie Taboron; was married to G.W. Thomas; lived at 611 North 8th Street, Wilmington; and was buried in Pine Forest Cemetery.

William Alston buys a lot on Mercer Street.

In January 1913, William Alston purchased Lot Number 9 of the Winona subdivision from Samuel and Annie Washington Vick for $1225.

Deed book 97, page 21, Wilson County Register of Deeds Office, Wilson.

——

In the 1910 census of Wilson, Wilson County: on Winona Road, farmer William Alston, 30, and wife Annie, 23. [Apparently, the Alstons were living on Mercer Street before they bought property from the Vicks.]

In the 1920 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Alston Wm (c; Anna) farmer h 1020 Mercer

In the 1922 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Alston Wm (c; Anna) farmer h Mercer nr Five Points

In the 1925 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Alston Wm (c) farmer h Mercer nr Mill Rd

In the 1930 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Alston Wm (c) farmer h 1025 Mercer 

Walter and Sarah Hines buy a lot on Green Street.

In April 1913, painter Butler E. Jones sold Walter and Sarah Dortch Hines a lot on Green Street adjacent to Hines’ half-brother David Barnes, Wiley Barefoot, Short Barnes, and others. The Hineses invested heavily in rental property, and this was not the lot on which their “home house” stood at 617 East Green Street.

Deed book 97. page 87, Wilson County Register of Deeds Office, Wilson.

Caroline Jones buys a lot on Mercer Street.

In 1913, Caroline Jones purchased Lot Number 12 of the Winona subdivision from Samuel and Annie Washington Vick. Winona, essentially, covered the 900 and 1000 blocks of present-day Mercer Street. As we learn below, Jones’ house was at 1009.

Deed book 97, page 20, Wilson County Register of Deeds Office, Wilson.

——

In the 1920 census of Wilson, Wilson County: at 404 Mercer Street, Noel Jones, 50; wife Caroline, 51; and children Noel Jr., 21, Sarah, 18, Christine, 16, Elmer, 14, and Francis, 9.

In the 1925 Wilson, N.C., city directory: Jones Christine, laundress h 1009 Mercer

In the 1930 census of Wilson, Wilson County: at 1009 South Mercer Street, owned and valued at $15,000 [sic], farm helper Noel Jones, 60; wife Caroline, 60; children Sarah Hines, 29, and Christine, 26, and Frances Jones, 18; and granddaughter Mildred P. Jones, 7.

In the 1940 census of Wilson, Wilson County: at 1009 Mercer Street, widow Caroline Jones, 74, laundry worker, and daughter Sarah Jones, 38.

Sarah Hines died 22 September 1940 in Wilson. Per her death certificate, she was 36 years old and was born in Wilson County to Noel Jones and Caroline Bynum. Almira Jones Wilkins, Richmond, Virginia, was informant.

In 1942, Noel Jones Jr. registered for the World War II draft in Wilson County. Per his registration card, he was born 17 September 1899 in Wilson County; lived at 411 Bank Street, Wilson; his contact was Carolina Jones, 1009 Mercer Street, Wilson; and he worked for R.P. Watson Tobacco Company, South Street.

In the 1950 census of Wilson, Wilson County: at 1009 Mercer Street, widow Caroline B. Jones, 82; daughter Christine Jones, 43; daughter Alma Wilkins, 40, widow, and her children Mildred, 24, and William Jr., 14.

Noel Anderson Jones died 30 June 1952 in Wilson. Per his death certificate, he was born 12 July 1879 in Wilson County to Noel and Sarah Jones; lived at 525 Church Street; was married; and worked as a laborer. He was buried at Jones Hill Cemetery. Informant was Carolina Jones, 1009 Mercer Street, Wilson.

Caroline Jones died 3 June 1957 at her home at 1009 Mercer Street, Wilson. Per her death certificate, she was born 1 January 1885 in Wilson County to Jack Bynum; was a widow; and was buried in Rest Haven. Amira Shelly, Rocky Mount, N.C., was informant.

J.L. Tabron purchases a lot.

Deed book 68, page 105, Wilson County Register of Deeds Office, Wilson.

On 3 May 1904, barber Joshua L. Tabron purchased at auction a parcel of land “on the road leading from the Wilson and Tarboro road [Herring Avenue/N.C. 42?] to the Old Plank road [Nash Street/Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway] via Mrs. S.B. Lipscomb‘s place.” (Pender Street? Why not name it, if so?) The land had belonged formerly to Tabron’s mother, Edmonia Taborn, and others.

The Battles sell a parcel.

On 15 July 1897, Charles and Leah Hargrove Battle sold Jerusha Peace Woodard a lot in Wilson for fifty dollars. The transaction piqued my interest because sales of East Wilson property from African-Americans to white people were unusual during that time. By the 1890s, the east side of the tracks, south of Crowell Street, was developing into a solidly Black residential area as white landowners divided up farms and other large parcels and moved to west of downtown. (See, for example, Anthony Nadal’s estate, Rountree place, and the Singletary subdivision.)

Deed book 45, page 125, Wilson County Register of Deeds, Wilson.

I do not know the precise location of this irregularly-shaped lot, but, for what they’re worth, the metes and bounds offer context clues:

  • “John Boykins line, near Pender Street”
  • “132 feet to the line of the lot of the Masonic Lodge (colored)”
  • “then down the line of the Charles Darden lot”
  • “to Henry Rountree‘s line”
  • “to the line of Clarissa Taylor“

In 1897, Pender Street did not extend south of Nash Street. (Below Nash, it was Stantonsburg Street, then Road.) The Masonic lodge is at the corner of Smith and Pender Streets. At the time, it shared a property line with the lot on which Charles H. Darden’s house stood. This would seem to establish one lot line.

In 1908, Clarissa Taylor Kearney lived a block away from the Masonic lodge at 531 Church Street, but it’s not clear where she was in 1897. Similarly, in 1908, John Boykin lived on Viola Street, near Vick, and Henry Rountree lived on Stantonsburg Road near the city limits, i.e. on the other side of Nash. None of this is very helpful. Sanborn maps do not cover Pender Street until 1908, so no aid from that corner. 

The public school lot for the colored race?

On 1 February 1912, 11 Wayne and Greene County residents — members of an extended family — sold Robert Manuel, also of Wayne County and an in-law, a parcel of land described, in part, as “Lot No. 5 in the Division of the Public School lot for colored race District No. 1” on Stantonsburg and Moyton Road just outside the town of Stantonsburg.

Deed book 97, page 574, Wilson County Register of Deeds Office, Wilson.

What was Colored District No. 1? Where are its records? (And those of any other African-American county school districts?) Where on Stantonsburg and Moyton Road  (N.C. 58?) was the public school lot in Stantonsburg? When was the lot divided?

——

  • Andrew and Ada Lewis Sauls

In the 1880 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: farmer Caleb Sauls, 35; wife Zany, 28; and children Henry, 4, Andrew, 2, and Mollie, 1.

In the 1900 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: farmer Caleb Sauls, 51; wife Zany, 45; and children Henry, 23, Andrew, 21, Mollie, 20, Sudie, 18, Emma, 16, and Pet, 12.

In the 1910 census of Nahunta township, Wayne County, N.C.: Andrew Sauls, 31; wife Ada, 20; and children James, 4, Henry, 2, and Ed Rena, 1.

In the 1920 census of Nahunta township, Wayne County: Andrew Sauls, 41; wife Ada. 32; and children James, 14, Henry B., 12, Edrena, 11, William, 8, Lila Bell, 6, Lemon, 5, and Fremon, 2.

Andrew Sauls died 15 October 1930 in Nahunta township, Wayne County. Per his death certificate, he was born in 1880 in Wilson County to Calop Sauls and Zanie Butler; was married to Ada Lewis Sauls; and worked in farming. I.W. Lee handled his burial in Yelverton graveyard.

  • Henry and Emma Artis Sauls

In the 1910 census of Nahunta township, Wayne County:

In the 1920 census of Nahunta township, Wayne County:

Henry Sauls died 17 September 1922 in Nahunta township, Wayne County. Per his death certificate, he was born 25 January 1877 in Wilson County to Caleb Sauls and Zanie [maiden name unknown] and was married to Emma Sauls. Andrew Sauls was informant.

Emma Sauls died 27 January 1924 in Stantonsburg, Wilson County. Per her death certificate, she was born 3 April 1886 in Wilson County to John Cheatam and Sarah Artis; and was the widow of Henry Sauls.

  • Oliver and Annie Woodard

In the 1900 census of Bull Head township, Greene County: Oliver Woodard, 39; wife Ellar, 33; and children Willie, 18, John, 16, Jessie, 8, and Annie, 4.

On 20 May 1905, Oliver Woodard, 43, of Greene County, son of Barton and Sena Woodard, married Annie Sutton, 45, of Wayne County, in Wayne County.

In the 1910 census of Bull Head township, Greene County: Oliver Woodard, 50; wife Annie, 47; and son Jessie, 19. Next door:

In the 1920 census of Bull Head township, Greene County: farmer Oliver Woodard, 58, and wife Annie, 56. Next door: Exum Woodard, 44; mother Senia, 90; sister Martha, 48; and niece Annie, 15.

Oliver Woodard died 14 May 1929 in Saulston township, Wayne County. Per his death certificate, he was about 75 years old and worked as a farmer.

Greensboro Daily News, 17 May 1929.

  • Robert and Smithia Manuel

In 1870 census of Snow Hill township, Greene County: Baden Woodard, 49, farm laborer; wife Serenia, 40; and children Jesse, 16, Smithy, 19, Amos, 18, Mitchel, 13, Ollin, 10, Mary, 3, Mike, 6, and John, 1.

In the 1880 census of Bull Head township, Greene County: Robert Manuel, 18, laborer, heading a household comprised of himself and Samuel and Martha A.E. Webber and their children, who were white.

On 20 March 1884, Robert Manuel, 54, of Greene County, married Smitha Woodard, 3o, of Greene County, daughter of Barden and Seney Woodard, at Barden Woodard’s in Snow Hill township, Greene County. Oliver Woodard was among the witnesses.

In the 1930 census of Bull Head township, Greene County: Mary Newal, 54, widow; grandson Arthur, 12; mother Smithy Manuel, 82; and niece Mary Woodard, 10.

Smithie Manuely died 15 March 1936 in Bull Head township, Greene County. Per her death certificate, she was born 1845 in Wilson County to Oliver Woodard of Greene County and Smithie Woodard of Wilson County and was the widow of Bob Manuel.

  • Amos and Nollan Woodard

In the 1880 census of Bull Head township, Greene County: Borton Woodard, 59; wife Smithy, 54; children Rena, 30, Amos, 25, Marshal, 18, Zacharia, 15, and Sarah, 12; and grandchildren Amos Jr., 10, Mary, 6, and Charles, 5.

  • Exum Woodard

In 1870 census of Snow Hill township, Greene County: Baden Woodard, 49, farm laborer; wife Serenia, 40; and children Jesse, 16, Smithy, 19, Amos, 18, Mitchel, 13, Ollin, 10, Mary, 3, Mike, 6, and John, 1.

In the 1880 census of Bull Head township, Greene County: Borton Woodard, 59; wife Smithy, 54; children Rena, 30, Amos, 25, Marshal, 18, Zacharia, 15, and Sarah, 12; and grandchildren Amos Jr., 10, Mary, 6, and Charles, 5.

On 8 January 1891, Exum Woodard, 23, son of Benjamin Bardner and Sena Woodard, married Emma Applewhite, 18, daughter of Dock Applewhite, in Greene County.

In the 1900 census of Bull Head township, Greene County: farmer Exum Woodard, 34; mother Thenia, 61; nephew Joe, 14; niece Lucie, 13; and stepsister Michel, 45.

In the 1910 census of Bull Head township, Greene County: farmer Exum Woodard, 44; mother Senia, 90; sister Martha, 48; and niece Annie, 15.

In the 1920 census of Bull head township, Greene County: farmer Exum Woodard, 55; sister Martha, 61; and niece Annie, 23.

Saint Stephen’s A.M.E. Zion Church of Grabneck.

Deed book 68, page 10, Wilson County Register of Deeds, Wilson, N.C.

In December 1903, Orren and Hancy Best sold, for the nominal sum of five dollars, a lot on Nash Road to William J. Moore, Henry C. Phillips, John T. Tarboro, G. Albert Wood, and Byron D. McIver, trustees of Saint Stephen’s A.M.E. Zion Church. The 1200 square-foot lot bordered parcels owned by the Bests and Orren Best’s brother, Noah Best.

The deed of sale carried a restriction that the “premises shall be kept, used, maintained and disposed of as a place of worship for the use of the ministry and membership of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church in America.” It’s not clear if a church were ever constructed on the site (or in fact, exactly where on West Nash Street the lot was, though we know it was in Grabneck and roughly in today’s 1000 or 1100 block.)

——

  • Henry C. Phillips
  • John T. Tarboro — in the 1910 census of Plant City, Hillsborough County, Florida: preacher John T. Tarbor, 50, and wife Elberta, 20, laundress. In the 1920 census of Lincolnton, Lincoln County, N.C.: clergyman John T. Tarboro, 64, and wife Alberta, 29.
  • Byron D. McIver — in the 1900 census of Hookerton township, Greene County, N.C.: clergyman Byron D. McIver, 44; wife Amanda, 29; and daughters Laura, 16, Minnie, 11, Katie, 6, Sarah, 3, and Bettie, 2. Byron David McIver died 25 September 1926 in Wilmington, N.C. and was buried in Snow Hill, Greene County.