migration to New Jersey

The obituary of Isaac Kirby of Camden, New Jersey.

Courier-Post (Camden, N.J.), 2 November 1959.

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In the 1900 census of Springhill township, Wilson County: farmer Isaac S. Kirby, 58; wife Mary, 54; and sons Leroy A., 21, William, 14, and Isaac R., 13.

In the 1910 census of Springhill township, Wilson County: farmer William Kirby, 23; wife Nannie, 20; daughter Fredie M., 5 months; mother Mary, 66, widow; boarder [and brother] Leroy, 32; and brother Ransom, 23.

In 1918, Ransome Kirby registered for the World War I draft in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Per his registration card, he was born 7 April 1882; lived at “Penn RR Camp,” Butler and Sepviva Streets, Philadelphia; worked as a cook for Pennsylvania Railroad; and his nearest relative was Mary Kirby, Kenly, N.C.

In 1926, Ransome Kirby and Albert Jones married in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

In late 1926, Ransom Kirby’s barbershop was one of eleven homes and businesses raided by Camden police looking for illegal alcohol. He was later acquitted of the charge.

The Courier (Camden, N.J.), 1 December 1926.

In the 1929 Camden, New Jersey, city directory:

In the 1930 census of Lawnside, Camden County, New Jersey: Clarence [sic] Kirby, 40, barber, born in N.C.; wife Alberta, 37, born in Virginia; and son Eugene, 2, born in Pennsylvania.

In the 1940 census of Woodbury, Gloucester County, New Jersey: at 444 South Broad, barber Ramson H. Kirby, 53, and son Eugene, 2.

In 1942, Isaac Ransome Kirby registered for the World War II draft in Gloucester County, New Jersey. Per his registration card, he was born 7 April 1887 in Kenly, N.C.; lived at 438 Mantua Avenue, Woodbury, Gloucester County; his contact was William Kirby, R.F.D. #3, Kenly; and he was self-employed at 438 Mantua Avenue.

In the 1950 census of Woodbury, Gloucester County, New Jersey: widower Isaac Kirby, 60, barbershop proprietor.

Early Montclair, New Jersey, Y.M.C.A. leaders.

A retrospective on Montclair, New Jersey’s historic Washington Street Branch Y.M.C.A. featured photographs of Wilson-born pharmacist William H. Vick and his wife Carrie Dixon Vick.

W.H. Vick, seated in the wicker chair on the front row, above. Below, Carrie Vick, seated front row, left. 

Montclair Times, 26 January 1978.

 

The obituary of William H. Vick, first black pharmacist in New Jersey.

Montclair Times, 17 September 1959.

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In the 1880 census of Wilson township, Wilson County: gristmill worker Daniel Vick, 38, wife Fannie, 35, and children Samuel, 16, Nettie, 14, Earnest Linwood, 12, Henry, 10, and James O.F., 8, plus Frank O. Blount, 20, and Marcus W. Blount, 26.

William Henry Vick graduated from the Wilson Colored Graded School in 1889 and from Lincoln University in 1894 with a bachelor’s degree. He later received a master’s degree from Lincoln. In 1897, he passed the pharmacist licensing exams of North Carolina and New Jersey.

In the 1903 and 1905 Charlotte, N.C., city directories:

In the 1907 Atlantic City, N.J., city directory: Vick William H (Caroline J) druggist 1811 Arctic av

Per delayed birth record, Fannie Marene Vick was born 7 September 1908 in Mecklenburg County, N.C., to William Henry Vick and [unnamed] Dixon.

In the 1910 census of Atlantic City, Atlantic County, New Jersey: druggist William H. Vick, wife Carrie J., 32, daughter Fannie  M., 6, and William, 2.

In 1912, the Vicks migrated to Toronto, Canada, where they remained for ten years. In the 1921 census of Toronto, Ontario, Canada: at 5 Crocker Street, William H. Vick, 48; wife Carrie, 43; and children Fanny, 17, and Henry, 13. William immigrated in 1912; the rest of the family in 1913. He reported that the family was of Scotch descent and were Presbyterian, and he worked as a porter in a railroad club. [Why did Vick leave his pharmacy career to move to Canada to work as a servant for a decade? And “Scotch”? (By the way, 5 Crocker Street is a small, semi-detached house in the Trinity-Bellwoods neighborhood now valued at more than $850,000.]

In the 1930 census of Orange, Essex County, New Jersey, at 450 Orange Road: drugstore owner William Vick, 58, wife Carrie, 53, and daughter Fannie, 24, with two boarders. Vick’s home was valued at $10,000.

W.H. Vick was active in Republican Party politics in Essex County, as he had been in Wilson.

Montclair Times, 31 July 1936.

In the spring of 1938, Vick and Leo M. Avstreih, a Russian Jewish immigrant, opened Montclair Pharmacy on a downtown corner.

Montclair Times, 25 March 1938.

In the 1947 Montclair, N.J., city directory: Vick William H (Carrie J) pharmacist r 53 Greenwood av

In the 1950 census of Montclair, Essex County, New Jersey: lodgers at 53 Greenwood Avenue, pharmacist William Vick, 78, and wife Carrie, 78.

Caroline Dixon Vick survived her husband by a decade.

Montclair Times, 25 September 1969.

The Perrys celebrate 50 years of marriage.

Passaic (N.J.) Daily Herald, 28 December 1931.

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In the 1880 census of Stantonsburg township, Wilson County: farm laborer Jack Hodge, 64; wife Gilly, 49; and children Susan, 19, Sidney, 13, and Joseph, 33. [Next door: farm laborer Handy Hodge, 20, and wife Roxy, 21.]

On 28 December 1881, John Perry, 22, married Susan Hodge, 21, in Stantonsburg township, Wilson County. Jack Hodge and Zillie Hodge were among the witnesses.

In the 1900 census of Militia District 1209, Bulloch County, Georgia: farmer John H. Perry, 39; wife Susan, 39; and children William H., 14, Martha J., 13, John H., 11, and Mary E., 10. The younger two children were born in Georgia; the rest of the family, in North Carolina.

In the 1910 census of Laston, Bulloch County, Georgia: farmer John H. Perry, 49; wife Susan, 49; son George, 14; and adopted son Luther Spells, 7. Susan reported that only 2 of her 11 children were living.

In the 1920 census of Norfolk, Virginia: at 1347 East 46th Street, railroad office boy John Perry, 60; wife Susan, 50; niece Hazel Gill, 14; and grandchildren Viola, 9, Elzie, 7, and Ida Perry, 6.

North Carolinians celebrate anniversary in New Jersey.

Journal and Guide (Norfolk, Va.), 2 November 1940.

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On 14 September 1926, Lee Joyner, 25, son of Willard and Kate Joyner, married Sarah Ray, 20, daughter of Sarah Bertha Ray, in Wilson. Presbyterian minister A.H. George performed the ceremony in the presence of Severina Mitchell, Sallie Coley, and C.L. Darden.

An unnamed male child was stillborn to Lee Joyner of Greenville, N.C., and Sarah Ray, of Fayetteville, N.C., on 20 November 1928 in Wilson. The baby was buried in Rountree Cemetery [probably Vick Cemetery.] Informant was Sarah Joyner, 1105 Atlantic Street, Wilson.

In the 1930 census of Newark, Essex County, New Jersey: plasterer Lee Joyner, 29; wife Sarah, 24; and daughter Willie-Grae, 2, all born in North Carolina.

In the 1940 census of Bloomfield, Essex County, New Jersey: mason/building conractor Lee Joiner, 39; wife Sarah, 33; and children Willie Grace, 12, and Thomas Lee, 9.

In 1942, Lee Jackson Joyner registered for the World War II draft in Essex County, New Jersey. Per his registration card, he was born 6 October 1900 in Wilson, N.C.; lived at 436 Broughton Avenue, Bloomfield, Essex County; his contact was Sarah Joyner; and he worked for Brookdale Homes, Bloomfield, N.J.

In the 1950 census of Belleville, Essex County, New Jersey: Lee J. Joyner, 49, plasterer; wife Sarah A., 41; and daughter Wil-gre, 22, department store cashier.

Seeking Eddie Rudson?

The Afro-American (Baltimore, Md.), 25 September 1948.

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I have not found parties by these names in Wilson County records. However, in the 1950 census of Elizabeth, Union County, New Jersey: George Wilson, 38, laborer at copper wire factory; wife Ethel, 30; daughter Patricia, newborn; and brother-in-law Paul Rudisill, 28. All but the baby were born in North Carolina.

Subbing Rudisill for “Rudson,” I hit pay dirt.

In 1918, Edgar Rudisill registered for the World War I draft in Wilson County. Per his registration card, he was born 20 March 1899; lived in Sims, Wilson County; worked as a tenant farmer for S.T. Pace; and his nearest relative was Inez Rudisill.

In the 1920 census of Oldfields township, Wilson County: on Neverson Stone Quarry Road, stone quarry hand Edgar Rudisill, 20, and wife Ina, 16.

Lottie Grey Rudisill was born in Wilson County in 1921 to Edgar Rudisill and Ivey Williams.

In the 1940 census of Oldfields township, Wilson County: farmer Edgar Rudisill, 40; wife Lizzie, 45; lodger Christen White, 7; and mother Mary White, 65, widow.

The Rountrees attend a party.

Asbury Park Press, 25 September 1913.

We learned in Wilson County native William Rountree‘s obituary that he was a long-time Sunday School superintendent at Mount Pisgah Baptist Church in Asbury Park, New Jersey. Here, Rountree, his wife Fannie Best Rountree, the Misses Rountree (probably daughters Viola, Ethel, and Virginia Rountree), and son William Rountree Jr. attended a going-away party for Anna Jones. Jones was on her way to Princess Anne College, which is now University of Maryland Eastern Shore.

Tribute to Dr. Frank S. Hargrave.

The New Jersey State Republican Committee commissioned E.H. McGhee of Trenton to create a hand-lettered resolution in tribute to Dr. Frank S. Hargrave upon his death on 11 March 1942. 

Below, detail of one of the illustrated letters, bright with faux gilt, that decorated each page.

Many thanks to Vicki Cowan for sharing this beautiful document.

The Rountrees sell out.

Having joined the Great Migration north, in 1903 William and Fannie Best Rountree sold the property William inherited from his father Warren Rountree. The Rountrees settled first in Philadelphia, then moved to Asbury Park, New Jersey, around 1904.

Deed Book 68, page 224, Wilson County Register of Deeds Office, Wilson, N.C.

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In the 1880 census of Wilson township, Wilson County: farmer Orren Best, 31, wife Hansey, 31, and children James, 9, Oscar, 6, George, 4, Fannie, 2, and Hattie, 3 months.

In the 1880 census of Taylors township, Wilson County: farmer Alfred Woodard, 50; wife Sarah, 45; children Florence, 28, Mary, 22, Howell, 18, Sarah E., 16, Zilly A., 17, Lundon, 13, Minnie, 12, Willie, 10, Josephine, 7, and Evvy, 4; and grandchildren Elizabeth, 7, Robt. B., 5, and John H. Bynum, 4. [Willie and Josephine were Alfred Woodard’s stepchildren. Their father Warren Rountree died in 1871, and Alfred Woodard’s wife Harriet Woodard Woodard soon after. On 13 February 1873, Alfred Woodard married Warren Rountree’s widow Sarah Woodard Rountree, who was his first wife’s sister.]

On 28 March 1900, Fannie Best, 22, married Willie Rountree, 28, at Orren Best’s house. Minister R.S. Rives performed the ceremony in the presence of Levi James, Fred Vastenable and Martha Vastenable.

In the 1900 census of Taylor township, Wilson County: farm laborer Willie Rountree, 29, and wife Fannie, 22. 

In the 1910 census of Asbury Park, Monmouth County, New Jersey: at 1310 Springwood Avenue, William Roundtree, 38, born N.C., odd jobs laborer; wife Fannie, 32, born N.C.; children Viola, 9, born N.C., Ethel, 6, born Pennsylvania, and Virginia, 5, born New Jersey; and boarders Henry Dixon, 49, and Edna Williams, 3.

In the 1915 state census of Asbury Park, Monmouth County, New Jersey: at 8 Borden Avenue, mail carrier William Roundtree, 45; wife Fanny, 37; children Viola, 14, Ethel, 11, Virginia, 10, and William Jr., 4; and boarders Richard M. Brooks, 43, and William Vance, 22.

In the 1920 census of Asbury Park, Monmouth County, New Jersey: hotel waiter William Rountree, 49; wife Fannie, 46; children Ethel, 16, Virginia, 14, and William Jr., 9; and lodgers Bertha Bess, 32, and Arthur Green, 12.

Asbury Park, New Jersey, city directory (1922).

In the 1930 census of Asbury Park, Monmouth County, New Jersey: at 8 Borden Avenue, owned and valued at $3000, city laborer William Rountree, 59; wife Fannie, 49; children Ethel, 26, maid, and William Jr., 20, chauffeur; and boarded Lulu Vann, 59, maid.

William W. Roundtree died 16 November 1932 in Asbury Park.

Asbury Park Press, 16 November 1932.

In the 1940 census of Asbury Park, Monmouth County, New Jersey: at 8 Borden Avenue, owned and valued at $2000, widow Fannie Rountree, 62, laundress, and five boarders. 

Fannie Rountree died 2 September 1953 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Per her death certificate, she was born 2 February 1876 in Wilson, North Carolina, to Oren Best and Nancy Harper; lived in Asbury Park, New Jersey; was a widow; and was buried in White Ridge Cemetery, Eatontown, New Jersey. Ethel L. Rountree was informant.