The Lady in Red, A Poem

A few years ago, I wrote a post on my other blog, Cemeteries of Dancing Rabbit Creek, about The Lady in Red, the body of a young woman unearthed in 1969 at Egypt Plantation near the town of Cruger, in Holmes County, Mississippi. Identification of the woman, dressed in red and encased for burial in a glass-sealed, cast iron coffin, was attempted, but was never made. Included below is a partial account of the event as it appeared in Jackson's Clarion-Ledger on August 2, 1969:

"The method of preservation used for The Lady in Red was common prior to the Civil War, when custom-made caskets, shaped to the body, were ordered as one would order a dress. The glass that sealed the coffin was placed over the body, and alcohol was poured inside until it was level full, and then sealed with a cast iron tip. When the back hoe machine hit the coffin, alcohol spilled from the casket and spots of the liquid were seen on the folds of the woman's dress."

No one knows how or why The Lady in Red was buried underneath the deep Delta silt and heavy dirt that make up Egypt Plantation's rich fields.Rumors have been rampant for years that her body may have fallen off a wagon on its way to be buried, that it had been lost in a flood, or that it had washed ashore after a steamboat that was transporting her body for burial was grounded after an accident.  Later, the young woman's remains were placed in a grave in the Odd Fellows Cemetery in Lexington, Mississippi, where they were marked with a small headstone that identifies the mystery woman simply as "The Lady in Red." In more recent years, a few people have claimed publicly and privately to either know or to be related to The Lady in Red. Certainly she must be someone's long lost ancestor, but her true identify remains a mystery still.

Recently, a distant cousin of mine, Arthur Pickett, who grew up in that area of Holmes County, told me he had written a poem in tribute to the unknown, but not forgotten, Lady in Red. I asked to read it, and I subsequently obtained permission from Arthur to reprint his work here today. So, with Arthur's permission, it is with pleasure that I introduce his beautiful and poignant poem. 

The Lady in Red, A Poem

One day workmen came to rake the earth

With backhoe; it was then they found her berth

As she patiently waited rebirth;

But not one knew her life's worth.

No marker was found to name her face;

None to tell when she went to grace.

Was a eulogy before God to make her case?

Was there a new star to mark her place?

From that time-worn home taken she was

By a coroner, an undertaker, and his entourage

Taken by them with a limosine'd barge

East to the Lexington hills in a wooden cooperage

Mourn no more for her oh ye mortal

For now she has a new heavenly portal

Amongst pauper graves with no body corporal

Given name by poets knowledgeable.

She is now known as The Lady in Red

No more is she unknown and dead

Perhaps someone, somewhere will be led

To give her an ancestral name, instead.

Rest in Peace, My Lady, you will never leave us

For yes, we have seen that new star in Cygnus.

Arthur Pickett

Copyright 2009

More About the Garrards of Holmes County, MS

Yesterday, I again reviewed U. S. Census records for Garrard family members in Mississippi. According to U. S. Census records, there were two Garrard families residing in Holmes County, Mississippi in 1860. The family of Richard N. and Annie Lyles Garrard, my maternal great-great-grandparents, lived in the Eulogy Beat area, where they were enumerated. Also present in the household was my maternal great-grandmother, Martha Elizabeth Garrard, born in Alabama, who was seven years old.

Another family, headed by John Garrard, was counted in the "Thornton Town" area of Holmes County. According to the 1860 census record, John's wife was "Loiza." Since John and Richard are fairly close in age, and each was born in Georgia, it does appear the two men could have been brothers or possibly cousins.

Family Reunion Time 1956

With the school year ended, and summer just weeks away, kinfolk from all over the country will be flocking home for family reunions. Most southern families take these reunions very seriously, and Mississippians are no different. Family members living in other states often take hard-earned vacations to make the trek home to visit with relatives they may see only during these gatherings.


The photograph above was taken at one of these events. This particular gathering occurred on the occasion of my great-grandmother's 80th birthday. The place is Goodman (Holmes County) Mississippi, in the yard between my great-aunt Stella Branch Young's home and the home of her mother, Claudia Baldridge Branch, my great-grandmother. The time was a Sunday afternoon in late summer of 1956. My great-grandmother is pictured in the front, on the right, seated between two of her daughters. It appears that she is holding a wrapped birthday gift in her lap. My mother and I are pictured to the left, sitting next to each other, and my father is standing to the right in the back of the picture.

The Leflore Family of Mississippi, Part 2

In my recent post entitled "The Leflore Family of Mississippi, Part I," I included details of Louis Leflore's life as a young man. But much can be learned about Leflore and his family from the simple reading of his Last Will and Testament. Because Leflore was involved in the settlement and development of Holmes County, Mississippi, it seems appropriate that his will is recorded in Holmes County Record Book 1, page 1.

Leflore's will, dated October 28, 1833, states the following:

"Considering the uncertainty of this mortal life being of sound mind; memory (blessed by almighty God for the same), do make and publish this my last will and Testament in manner and form following that is to say, First I will to direct that all my land debts be paid out of monies to be raised by the sale of such personal property as I may leave at my death exclusion of Negroes provided the same shall be sufficiently for that purpose but if not sufficient then I direct that so much of my real estate shall be sold as may be necessary to complete the amount required for the payment of my said debts. Secondly, I give and bequeath to my son Forbis Leflore the sum of seven hundred dollars, to my two nephews Stephen Crevat; Placid Crevat each three hundred dollars to my niece Maruyayu (?) Crevat,three hundred dollars to be paid by my executioners within one year of my after my decease out of monies to be raised by the sale of such personal property, Negroes excepted as I may leave at my death if the same shall be sufficient for the purpose after the payment thereout (sic) of my just debts but if not sufficient there I direct that so much of my real Estate shall be sold as may be necessary to complete the amount requisite for the payment of my said debts the (illegible) above bequeathed. Thirdly I direct that if at the time of my decease a crop of cotton shall be growing on my plantation then my Executioners shall keep my Negroes necessary stock imployed (sic) upon the plantation until the crop shall be gathered prepared for market before any part of my personal or real estate is disposed of or until the month of February next after my decease provided the said crop shall not be soon gathered that during the said month of February my real estate shall be sold a public salevendue (sic) to the highest bidder the terms of sale to be one third part of purchase money to be paid within twenty days after said sale, one third part on the first day of January following the last payment two payments, to be secured by mortgage upon the premeses (sic) two months notice of such sale to be given by publication in two (illegible) public newspapers. Forthly (sic) , I will and direct that my executioners divide all my Negro slaves for life of which I may die prepossessed or leave at my decease unto eleven lots as parcels of (illegible) of nearly as equal a value as may be required being had to family connections. The said divisions to be made at the time of the sale of my real estate as before directed & that upon the decision of said slaves unto eleven equal parcels as aforesaid. The names of my eleven children Greenwood, Benjamin, William, Basila, Jackson, Louisa Haskins, Felicity Long wife of Samuel Long Winnia McGahy Silva Harris. Shall be writing upon separate slips of paper placed in one box then the numbers 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11, shall be written upon separate slips of paper place in another box whereupon one of my said executioners shall commence and draw from the box containing the names (illegible) said children one slip or name at a time same person to be used by my said child shall at the same time draw from the box containing the said numbers on slips as often as often as a name is drawn from the other box until all the names numbers shall be drawn when my said eleven children shall commence in the order of the numbers drawn the second names make choices of the parcels of the said Negroes sukcessfully (sic) it being my will to give the said Negroes to my said eleven children to be divided among them as nearly as possible in equal shears. Fifthly with respect to all the rest residue of my estate property of whatever kind (illegible) give bequeath the same to my said eleven children Viz. Greenwood Leflore, Jackson Leflore, Lousia Haskins, Felicity Long wife of Samuel Long, William McGaley ; Silva Harris, Clarissa Wilson, Isabel Brashers, wife of Vaughn Brashers them theirs alike to be paid over to them by my Executioners or as soon as can be done consisting with the directions herein before after paying all my just debts, funeral charges Exequines (?)of Executing this my last will and testament lastly, I appoint my Son in law Samuel Long and my friend Abraham A. Halsey my Executioners of this my last will an (sic) testament. In testimony (illegible) whereof I have herewith set my hand and seal this 11th day of April one thousand Eight hundred and thirty there.

/s/Louis Leflore

Signed Sealed published and declared by the same above named Lewis Leflore to be his last will and testament in the presence of the person of us who have hereunto subscribed our names as witness in the presence of the Testator.

Wm Parker
W.W. Cherry
J. M Chisum

The Little Red Schoolhouse

My mother's family has roots that date back to the 1800's in Holmes County, Mississippi, where Lexington is the county seat. And with relatives in Holmes County, as well as in neighboring Attala County, we often traveled there to see relatives during my childhood. It was during one of these trips that I first recall seeing the marker that directs travelers to "The Little Red Schoolhouse," a Mississippi landmark, just off Highway 14 near Richland, Mississippi. The cornerstone for the planned two story brick structure was laid in October of 1847, shortly after Masonic Lodges in Holmes County had raised over $3,000 for its construction. Although the original name for the school was to be the Richland Literary Institute, the name was changed to Eureka Masonic College shortly after its construction. In addition to being one of many privately endowed educational institutions that were built to address inadequate education in Mississippi during the 1800's, "The Little Red Schoolhouse" is also known as the birthplace of The Order of the Eastern Star. The historic building is now owned by the Grand Chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star in Mississippi and is maintained in the honor of Dr. Robert Morris, the school's first headmaster and the author of the Order's ritual.

Reference:

Must See Mississippi, 50 Favorite Places by Mary Carol Miller, Mary Rose Carter, Greg Iles, Published by University of Mississippi Press, 2007

Welcome to Mississippi Memories

Thank you for visiting my new blog where I plan to write about memories of my home state. Effective today, 110 posts previously published on Attala County Memories can be read here. As you may note from the new blog title, I am expanding the area about which I write.

First, I will continue posting pictures and writing stories about Attala County family history. I also plan to begin writing about families who pioneered and lived in Holmes County, Madison County, as well as a few other counties, primarily some of those formed when The Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek was signed with the Choctaw Nation in 1832.

Second, the new blog site will allow me to post pictures and write stories about other things of interest, some possibly not genealogy-related, about my home State of Mississippi.

My third goal is to have this new blog become an interactive blog, one where I can post your pictures and the family stories they tell. Please contact me if you have anything you would like to submit for publication. I look forward to hearing from you.

New Graveyard Rabbit Blog for Holmes County, MS

Today I am announcing the birth of another "Graveyard Rabbit," a new addition to a now international group or "bury" of rabbits known as "The Association of Graveyard Rabbits" founded by Terry Thornton, another Mississippian, and a fellow blogger who writes "Shades of the Departed" under the name "footNote Maven." Terry also writes his own blog, "The Graveyard Rabbit of Hill Country." The Association was formed in October of this year, and already it has bloggers who write from many states in the U.S., from Canada, and from England, Australia, New Zealand, and the Netherlands.

On the new blogspot, "The Graveyard Rabbit of Holmes County," I will be writing about old graveyards located in Holmes County, Mississippi, Attala County's neighbor to the west. I hope that you will join me on this journey in search of my ancestors. Maybe you will find some of your ancestors, too, as we travel to cemeteries located in Lexington, Tchula, Coxburg, Ebenezer, and other communities throughout Holmes County.

Welcome to the "rabbit trail!"

"The Baddest White Man in Mississippi"

David "HoneyBoy" Edwards, well-known Delta blues musician from Shaw, Mississippi, mentions Tillman Branch in his 1997 autobiography "The World Don't Owe Me Nothing." One of the references to the man simply known as "Tillman" states that he owned a "whiskey store on Highway 61." This store was actually located on Highway 51 in Goodman, Mississippi, and during the 1950's and until Tillman's death in 1963, the Goodman, Mississippi business was known as "The Long Branch."

Tillman Branch's family had deep roots in Attala County, Mississippi. His ancestors were respected pioneers, descended from old, well-known colonial families of Virginia, but Tillman's business operations were quite different from those who came before him. His businesses existed in the form of "juke joints" located near Tchula in Holmes County and other outlying areas around Attala County. Tchula's location in the place where the "Hills" meet the "Delta" made it the perfect place for these clubs that became peformance venues for blues musicians, such as Elmore James, Sonny Boy Williamson, and HoneyBoy Edwards, who later became very well-known in their field. Some blues afficianados, such as Junior Dougherty who writes at www.deltablues.net, even believe that Tillman Branch played a crucial, even vital, role in the development of the music form that later became known as the "Mississippi Delta Blues."

Tillman's operation of "juke joints" or "night clubs" was the outgrowth of his alleged reputation as a fairly successful "bootlegger" during the days when local law enforcement seemed to be tolerant of that illegal activity. According to the book written by HoneyBoy Edwards, Tillman also had a reputation for being a womanizer and a "bad man.." and "...all the white folks was scared of him." Rumored reports of Tillman's relationships with women during those years indicate that he routinely ignored local society's racial boundaries that existed at that time and in that place, much to the chagrin of his legal wife and others who knew him.

Although label-bearing hard liquor was not legal in most counties in Mississippi until the late 1960's, it was still easy to find it for sale throughout the state if one knew where to look. And moonshine or "white lightning" was even more available, particularly behind the closed doors of the juke joints. Not only were Tillman's clubs frequented by many blacks who came to drink and to listen to the blues music that reflected events in their own lives, but they were also frequented by white locals who were seeking a lively Saturday night far away from the ever-vigilant eyes of their God-fearing neighbors. It goes without saying that Tillman's businesses existed outside mainstream society of either Attala County, Holmes County, or for that matter, anywhere in the State of Mississippi at that time.

But times were changing, although not favorably for Tillman and "juke joints" in general. And one of those changes involved cracking down on "liquor racketeers," according to an article that appeared in Time magazine. The voice of Hazel Brannon Smith, longtime editor of the Lexington Advertiser and Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, became instrumental in forcing law enforcement to take a second look at illegal activities previously "overlooked" by local authorities. According to the article, sixty-four indictments were handed down in 1946 alone.

I have found no written proof that Tillman was among those indicted on charges of illegal activities involving liquor, but the end to an era of uncontrolled proliferation of juke joints and the illegal activities that went on inside their doors was coming to an end. Another period in Mississippi, however, was beginning, the era of desegretation, with events, changes, and even human casualties that would alter the course of history in the state and in the country. Tillman Branch, the man called by some as "The Baddest White Man in Mississippi" would become one of those casualties, perhaps even a casualty of his own making, when he was died in 1963 from a gunshot allegedly fired by a black man who reportedly disagreed with his actions toward a woman they both knew.

Family Cars of Yesteryear

The picture here is of my father and my grandfather taken shortly after my father got his first job and purchased his first automobile. The picture is dated October 1941. My father had driven my grandparents, who didn't own a car at the time, from the Mississippi Delta, where they were living then, to Holmes County and Attala County to visit relatives. I can tell from the picture that his father was very proud of him, and my father must have been proud to be able to show off his new wheels.

My father was about three when this picture was taken of him standing on the running board of a Model T owned by his maternal grandfather, J. J. Porter. He seems to be rather happy posing for the camera from this position, and it may have been from this experience and this moment that he developed his lifelong love for all things cars

To the left, you will see my paternal great-grandmother, Margaret Meriwether Porter, posing in front of a Model A, owned by her husband, J. J. Porter. The snapshot was taken around 1920, and the small child pictured smiling in the right rear is one of her four young sons.

Cars seem to appear often in old pictures, frequently serving as the backdrop for the entire photograph. They were something new and different, and our ancestors were quite proud of them. Not only did they represent a large investment of money at the time, but they represented a significant change in lifestyle, since ownership of a car must have been a "step up the social ladder."

Little did our ancestors know how this new form of transportation would go on to alter the world.