Though this notice gives her birth year as 1865, Caroline Dunston‘s death certificate describes her as 47 years old, i.e. born around 1883. Though imprecise knowledge of birth years were not uncommon in 1930, it’s hard to imagine how a 47 year-old woman could be regarded as “among the oldest members” of Elks Daughters of the Ark of the Covenant No. 214.
Clare [sic] Dunston is listed in the 1920 census of Wilson, Wilson County, on Lodge Street. She is described as a 30 year-old tobacco factory worker, and her household included children Mamie, 14, servant, and Winnie, 9, and brother-in-law Charles Dunston, 20, lumber company truck driver.
Caroline Dunston appears in the 1922, 1925, 1928, and 1930 Wilson city directories with several related family members — Charles, Leroy, Mamie, Eveline, and Winnie Dunston.
Nora Whitfield died 23 July 1924 in Wilson. Per her death certificate, she was born in Wilson County [on a unstated date] to William Dunston and Caroline Thomas; and lived at 1012 Robeson Street. Charley Dunston was informant.
William Dunston died 12 February 1926 in Wilson. Per his death certificate, he was 28 years old; was born in Louisburg, N.C., to William Dunston and Carolina Branch; lived at 205 Manchester; and worked as a day laborer at a tobacco factory. Informant was Carolina Branch Dunston.
Per her death certificate, Caroline Dunston died 25 December 1930; was 47 years old; was a widow; lived at 705 East Nash Street; and was born in Franklin County, N.C., to Clancie Thomas. Informant was William Dunston.
Rev. A.G. Dunston — in the 1940 census of Wilson, Wilson County: at 707 Goldsboro Street, Mary Humphrey, 65, widow, and lodgers A.G. Dunston, 59, minister; Charlie Smith, 31, redrying tobacco factory worker, and Henrietta Smith, 28, cook. Dunston reported that he was living in Lumberton, N.C., five years previously, and the Smiths reported they were living in Atlanta, Georgia. Alfred Grifton Dunston died 18 January 1965 in Wilson. Per his death certificate, he was born 26 January 1880 in Currituck County, N.C., to Henry and Emily Dunston; lived near Stantonsburg; was married; and was a minister. Lona E. Dunston was informant. [Note Rev. Dunston’s son, A.G. Dunston Jr., was an A.M.E. Zion bishop and civil rights leader in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.]
In the 1910 census of Speights Bridge township, Greene County: farm laborer Stephen Edwards, 31; wife Charity, 29; and children Lonnie, 9, John H., 7, Charity, 4, William, 2, and Mary, 7 months.
On 14 January 1917, Thomas Alston, 22, of Greene County, son of Thomas and Peggy Alston, married Lonie Edwards, 18, of Stantonsburg, daughter of Steve and Charity Edwards, in Stantonsburg, Wilson County. Rev. W.J. Fox of “A.M.E. Zion connection,” performed the ceremony.
In the 1940 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: widow Lonie Alston, 40, farmer, and children Napoleon, 23, Willie Marie, 20, Thomas Lee, 17, J.C., 15, Stephen, 12, Jesse, 9, Mattie, 7, Lonnie, 5, and Lillian, 3.
In 1940, Napoleon Alston registered for the World War II draft in Wilson County. Per his registration card, he was born 26 August 1918 in Greene County; he lived in Stantonsburg; his contact was his mother Lonie Alston; and he was self-employed.
In 1944, J.C. Alston registered for the World War II draft in Wilson County. Per his registration card, he was born 26 October 1926 in Wilson County; his contact was his mother Lonie Alston; and he worked for John Lane, Stantonsburg, as a farmer.
Lona Edwards Alston Dunston died 1 October 2003, just weeks before her 103rd birthday.
Harry Dunston married Mary Stancil on 28 December 1897 on Oneal township, Johnston County.
In the 1910 census of Old Fields township, Wilson County: Harry Dunston, 58, his wife of 6 years Livia A., 46, and children James, 10, Pearly, 7, Percy, 7, Alparada, 3, and Ollie, 1 1/2.
In the 1920 census of Old Fields township, Wilson County: farmer Harry Duncan [sic], 59; wife Livian, 39; and children Alparato, 11, Oliver W. 9, Bettie, 8, Clara, 7, Joseph, 6, Sidney, 5, Ruby and Ruth, 3, and Pearl and Percy, 15.
Livan Dunston died 29 April 1947 in Old Fields township, Wilson County. Per her death certificate, she was born 14 May 1885 in Wilson County to Best Taborn and Clara Locus; was married to Harry Dunston; and is buried at New Vester.
Harry Dunston died 10 August 1950 in Old Fields township, Wilson County. Per his death certificate, he was born December 1859 in Wake County to Ben Dunston and Harriett Hester; was a widower; was a farmer; and was buried at New Vester. Eliza Dunstan Hayes was informant.
Ruby Dunston Jones passed away 6 March 2016, just before her 100th birthday.
The ninety-fourth in a series of posts highlighting buildings inEast Wilson Historic District, a national historic district located in Wilson, North Carolina. As originally approved, the district encompasses 858 contributing buildings and two contributing structures in a historically African-American section of Wilson. (A significant number have since been lost.) The district was developed between about 1890 to 1940 and includes notable examples of Queen Anne, Bungalow/American Craftsman, and Shotgun-style architecture. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.
As described in the nomination form for the East Wilson Historic District, these houses are: “ca. 1908; 1 story; saddlebag house with hip-roofed porch and updated veneers built about 1908.”
The 1908 Sanborn fire insurance map shows that these houses began life as duplexes. They were probably built as rental housing for laborers drawn to Wilson’s tobacco economy. 705 East Nash was numbered 630 and 632 East Nash; 707 was numbered 634 and 636.
705
In the 1928 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Battle Frank (c; Delphia) firemn h 705 E Nash
In the 1930 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Dunston Chas (c; Eveline) wtchman h 705 E Nash
In the 1940 census of Wilson, Wilson County: at 705 East Nash, rented for $4/month, Lonnie Hall, 52, janitor, and children Deloris, 13, Rogers, 18, Rex’s Shoe Shop delivery boy, and Kattie, private housekeeper; plus lodgers widow Evylene Dunston, 33; Lenora Whitfield, 24; Alonza Jones, 29; and Jasper Hillard, 10.
In 1942, Rogers Nathaniel Hall registered for the World War II draft in Washington, D.C. Per his registration card, he was born 22 March 1922 in Wilson; resided at 1522 – 5th Street, N.W., Washington, D.C.; his nearest relative was father Lonnie Hall, 705 East Nash Street, Wilson; and he worked for Amos Hill, 812 – 13th Street, N.W., Washington, D.C.
Lonnie Hall died 23 December 1955 at Mercy Hospital. Per his death certificate, he was born 15 March 1895 in Pender County; lived at 705 East Nash; was married; and worked as a laborer. Informant was Deloris Hall.
707
In the 1916 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Hussey Florence (c) laundress h 634 E Nash
In the 1920 census of Wilson, Wilson County: at 634 Nash, widow Florence Hussey, 34, and daughters Rosa, 13, and Elizabeth, 11.
Elizabeth Hussey died 12 June 1924 at her home at 707 East Nash. Per her death certificate, she was born 11 November 1908 in Wilson to Willie Hussey of Mount Olive, N.C., and Florence Hooks of Goldsboro, N.C.; was a single; and was a student. Of her death, Dr. A.F. Williams wrote: “On June 12th was sitting on porch & dropped dead, from some heart condition. She had lobar pneumonia in April when I treated her to complete recovery.”
In the 1930 census of Wilson, Wilson County: at 707 East Nash, widow Florence Hussy, 46, laundry worker, and daughter Rosa, 23.
In the 1940 census of Wilson, Wilson County: at 707 East Nash, widow Florence Hussey, 58, laundress at Carolina Laundry, and daughter Rosa, 33.
Florence Hussey died 20 December 1946 in Wilson. Per her death certificate, she was born 3 December 1877 in Goldsboro, Wayne County, North Carolinal was a widow; resided at 707 East Nash; and had worked as a domestic. She was buried at Rountree Cemetery; Rosa Hussey was informant.
Rosa Hussey died six months later — 13 June 1947. Per her death certificate, she was born 10 July 1904 in Wilson to Willie Hussey and Florence Hooks, both of Mount Olive, North Carolina; was single; and worked as a tobacco factory laborer. She died of natural causes and was buried in Rountree Cemetery. Frances Wynn Lane of Mount Olive was informant.
The headstones of Ausborn Dunstan and wife, Maria Dunstan, are found in Row E of Rest Haven Cemetery. Mariah Munday Dunstan died in 1896, and Osborne Dunstan in 1905. Their graves were almost certainly removed and reinterred from Rountree cemetery or the even older Oakdale cemetery.
——
In the 1850 census of North Side of the Neuse district, Wayne County: Moriah Munda, 9, listed as farmhand in the household of white farmer John G. Barnes, 33. Maria Mundy and her brother Stephen was first apprenticed to Barnes in 1848, under a law designed to attach the labor of orphaned or “illegitimate” free children of color to a (usually white) neighbor. Apprentice records filed in Wayne County Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions name their mother as Elizabeth Mundy, a white woman. For reasons not clear, the children were rebound to Barnes in 1852.
In the 1850 census of Louisburg, Franklin County, Lemuel Dunn, 60, blacksmith; Milly Dunn, 60; Jane Fog, 19; Osborn Dunstan, 14; and John Fog, 8. The household is listed among a cluster of Dunstan households, including: Osborn Dunstan, 57, sawyer, Barbary, 50, and Sarah Dunston, 18, and Osborn May, 6. (Also, in Timberlakes township, Franklin County: Osborn Dunston, 52, and Sally Dunstan, 16.) Osborne’s parentage and his relationship to the other Osborne Dunstans in Franklin County is not clear.
In the 1860 census of the Town of Wilson, Wilson County: Asburn Dunstan, 23, laborer, in the household of H.L. Winton, boarding house operator.
In the 1870 census of Wilson township, Wilson County: farm laborer Osborn Dunstan, 37, wife Mariah, 45, and children Dora, 4, Cora, 2, Sarah, 2 months, John, 12, and Fanny, 6. [It appears that the latter two children were Mariah’s prior to her marriage to Osborne.]
In the 1880 census of Wilson township, Wilson County: farm worker Osbourn Dunston, 44, wife Mariah, 40, and children Dorah, 12, Corah, 11, Sarah, 9, Frances, 7, Hubbard, 5, Mary, 4, and Harriet, 3. Next door, in the household of farmer Henry Miller, was John Dunston, 20.
On 4 May 1882, John Simpson, 22, son of Dick Simpson and Mariah Dunston, married Tilder Rountree, 19, daughter of Dave and Nancy Rountree. P.E. Hines performed the ceremony at Disciples Church in the presence of Daniel Bess, Robert Rountree and Tilly Rountree.
On 3 March 1890, Cora Dunston, 19, daughter of Osborn and Moriah Dunston of Wilson township, married Haywood Becton [Beckwith], son of Pheraby Becton of Wilson. Freewill Baptist minister Solomon Arrington performed the service in the presence of Mariah Dunston, Crocket Best, and Mark Barnes.
On 17 January 1897, Dora Duntson, 25, married Joe Battle, 24, in Wilson County. Rev. Fred M. Davis performed the ceremony at the bride’s home in the presence of J.R. Bullock, L.D. Johnson and Fanny Rountree.
On 22 May 1897, Mary Dunstan, 21, married Walter Thorn, 27, in Wilson County. Missionary Baptist minister M. Strickland performed the ceremony.
In the 1900 census of Wilson township, Wilson County: teamster Haywood Beckwith, 40, wife Cora, 31, and daughter Delzel, 14, plus father [in-law] Osborn Dunson, 67, who still worked as a farm laborer. Also, wagon driver Joseph Battle, 28, and wife Dora, 22.
On 11 September 1901, Sarah Dunston, 23, of Wilson, North Carolina, daughter of Osborne and Mariah Dunston, married Marshall Bells in Norfolk, Virginia.
In the 1910 census of Wilson, Wilson County: on Lodge Street, Rebecca Beckwith, 47, a widowed laundress, and daughter Dezell, 20, a teacher. On Spring Street, ice factory laborer Joe Battle, 28, and wife Dora, 32, a cook.
On 24 December 1913, Walter Whitted, 24, of Durham, married Helen Beckwith, 22, of Wilson. Rev. M.A. Talley performed the ceremony, and A.J. Townsend and Robert Haskins were witnesses. [“Helen” was Delzelle Beckwith’s first name.]
On 5 June 1917, Walter Whitted of 516 South Lodge Street, Wilson, registered with the Wilson County draft board. He reported that he was born in Durham, North Carolina, on 3 October 1889; that he was a self-employed tailor in Wilson; and that he had a wife and two children to support. He was described as medium height and weight with dark brown eyes and black hair.
In the 1920 census of Wilson, Wilson County: at 708 Spring Street, tobacco company laborer Joe Battle, 58, wife Dora, 52, and daughter Esther, 19, a private servant.
On 14 August 1920, Cora Beckwith, 45, married William G. Reeves, 37, in Wilson. Rev. Charles T. Jones performed the ceremony at J.E. Artis‘ house in the presence of Artis, Alfred Robinson and Levi H. Jones.
Cora Beckwith died 29 October 1928 in Wilson. Per her death certificate, she was born in May 1876 in Wilson County to Osborne Duston of Louisburg, North Carolina, and Maria Moudin of Virginia, and was married to Haywood Beckwith. Dazelle Whitthead was informant.
In the 1930 census of Wilson, Wilson County: on South Lodge Street, house carpenter Walter Whitted, 38, wife Delzle H., 35, a public school teacher, and children Walter H., 14, and Cora J. Whitted, 13.
Sarah Bell died 29 December 1930 in Wilson. Per her death certificate, she was 54 years old, born in Wilson County to Osbourne Dunston and Mariah Monday. She was married to William Marshall Bell and resided at 710 East Vance. The informant was Hattie [Dunston] Wilkerson, 712 Blount Street, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania.
Dora Battle died 8 January 1943 at Mercy Hospital in Wilson. Per her death certificate, she was born about 1871 in Wilson County to Arsborn Dunston of Lewisburg, North Carolina, and Mary Mandin of Richmond, Virginia. Informant was Dezelle Whitted; Dora was buried at Rountree cemetery.
Helen Delzelle Beckwith Whitted died 15 February 1976 in Wilson.
