52 Ancestors - STRONG WOMAN: Martha Davis

In my book, any woman who could birth and rear 15 children without sticking her head in the oven is a STRONG woman. Well-done, Martha Willson Davis!

 

Martha Ann Willson Davis
1833-1905

Martha was my 2X great-grandmother. She was born in 1833 in Rockbridge County, Virginia and died in 1905 in Rockingham County at the age of 75. That was really OLD back then.

However, she was just a child of 13 when she married Mitchell Davis who was roughly 13 years older. He was a carpenter and farmer in the Beldor area of Rockingham County, which today is just off the Skyline Drive.

The 15 children were born over the span of 30 years. Sadly, 3 of the oldest children died within weeks of each other in 1863. Zedekiah, the oldest, was just 15. Ann, the 2^nd child, was 13. Jerusha, the 4^th child, was 10.  I do not know the cause of death, but it had to have been something they had in common, something like cholera or typhoid fever, injuries from a house fire, or from some other horrible accident.

Regardless of the cause, it had to have been devastating to bury a third of the children living in 1863. It took a strong woman to keep going.

Amy Johnson Crow continues to challenge genealogy bloggers and non-bloggers alike to think about our ancestors and share a story or photo about them. The challenge is “52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.”

Wendy

© 2020, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.

52 Ancestors - LARGE FAMILY: Davis of Beldor

In the days of our ancestors, VERY large families were common, probably because no one had to worry about how many seatbelts they had or how they would pay for each child’s college education. Having built-in farm labor was a bonus. If any of my families had more children than Mitchell and Martha Ann Willson Davis, I do not know about it.

Mitchell Davis 1820-1892

Martha Ann Willson Davis 1833-1905

Mitchell Davis, born 1820 in Rockingham County, Virginia, was the son of Leonard Davis Jr. and Frances “Fannie” Wyant and grandson of Leonard Davis, a Revolutionary War patriot. The Davises and Wyants lived in a community known as Beldor which today is just off Route 33 as you come off the Skyline Drive.

 

Map of the Beldor area 1885
See "F Davis" in lower left, almost center - that would be Frances Davis,
mother of Mitchell Davis. Mitchell's property was probably nearby.

Mitchell’s mother was one of 13 children herself, but Mitchell bested her by 2 with a grand total of 15 born over the course of 30 years. Coming up with names for that many children must have been a challenge, especially without the aid of a Baby Names book. Mitchell and his wife Martha have the distinction of bestowing the most unusual names to the children in my database:

1. Zedekiah DAVIS ( 14 Sep 1847 Rockingham Co, VA - 11 Jul 1863 Rockingham Co, VA )
2. Ann C. DAVIS ( 02 Sep 1849 Rockingham Co, VA  - 15 Jul 1863 Rockingham Co, VA )
3. Zephaniah Leonard DAVIS ( 28 Mar 1851 Rockingham Co, VA -  10 Jan 1929 in Louisa Co, VA ) & m1) Anne E. BELLOMY (April 1850 – 1903) 1874 ; & m2) Mary Frances CRAWFORD 1905
4. Jerusha L. DAVIS (05 Mar 1853 Rockingham Co, VA - 28 Jun 1863 Rockingham Co, VA )
5. Melvina O. DAVIS ( 25 Sep 1854 Rockingham Co, VA - 31 Dec 1925 ) & Grattan MCDANIEL (1857 –  Before 1910 )  08 Oct 1876
6. Josiah P. DAVIS ( 29 Jun 1856 Rockingham Co, VA - 28 Aug 1924 Martinsburg, Berkeley, West VA ) & Elizabeth Frances POWELL ( 25 Aug 1860 – 8 May 1944 Martinsburg, Berkeley, West VA )  30 Nov 1879 Rockingham Co, VA
7. Amaziah Nathaniel DAVIS  ( 20 Feb 1858 Rockingham Co, VA - 22 Feb 1934 ) & Ann C. LONG  (1844 - ) 20 Nov 1879
8. Helena Hester DAVIS  ( 22 May 1860 Rockingham Co, VA - 20 Nov 1902 Augusta Co, VA)   & James L. TAYLOR ( Mar 1861 - ) 15 Jul 1888 Rockingham Co, VA
9. Martha Eugenia DAVIS ( 13 Oct 1861 Rockingham Co, VA  - 16 Mar 1928 Fairfax, VA ) & William H. WYANT ( 21 Oct 1855 Rockingham Co, VA -  16 Dec 1935 Fairfax Co, VA ) 7 Feb 1881 Rockingham Co, VA
10. Zibiah Saloma DAVIS ( 19 Aug 1864 Rockingham Co, VA  - 07 Oct 1936 ) & John Lewis MARSHALL  (17 Sep 1863 – 28 Feb 1943 ) 17 May 1891 Rockingham Co, VA
11. Walter Beriah Sylvester DAVIS  ( 12 Sep 1867 Rockingham Co, VA - 31 Oct 1934 Page Co, VA ) & Mary Frances JOLLETT ( 10 Jan 1870 Greene Co, VA – 22 Feb 1950 Harrisonburg, VA ) 11 Feb 1890 Greene Co, VA
12. Ida Mary Marshall DAVIS ( 25 Jun 1869 Rockingham Co, VA - ) & William Layton MORRIS ( 1874 Greene Co, VA – 3 Feb 1895 ) 09 Dec 1890 Elkton, Rockingham Co, VA
13. Lorenza Ridell DAVIS ( 02 Sep 1871 Rockingham Co, VA - 11 Aug 1947 ) & Chillis Ann SHIFLETT  (29 Dec 1872 Greene Co, VA - ) 22 Aug 1892 Greene Co, VA
14. Justina Ruthella Frances DAVIS ( 08 Jun 1875 Rockingham Co, VA - 02 Oct 1936 ) & m1) William H. BRUCE (3 Nov 1883 Rockingham Co, VA – 13 Aug 1962 Harrisonburg, VA ) 12 Jan 1906 Rockingham  Co, VA ; & m2) Unknown WITTIG
15. Minnie B. DAVIS ( 15 Oct 1876 Rockingham Co, VA - 15 Mar 1957 Los Angeles, CA ) & Fred LEHMAN (1863 York, PA - 03 Jul 1939 Los Angeles, CA) 1902

Sadly, three of the youngest children died within weeks of each other in 1863: Zedekiah (15), Ann (13), and Jerusha (10). I do not know the cause of death, but it had to have been something they had in common whether typhoid fever, injuries from a house fire, drowning, or other horrible thing. Regardless of the cause, it had to have been devastating to bury a third of the children living in 1863.

Amy Johnson Crow continues to challenge genealogy bloggers and non-bloggers alike to think about our ancestors and share a story or photo about them. The challenge is “52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.”

Wendy

© 2019, Wendy Mathias. All rights reserved.