52 Ancestors - HANDED DOWN: Two Bibles

From the time I became interested in my mother’s family history, I heard there was a family Bible SOMEWHERE. No one seemed to know who had it. Maybe it was written in German. If so, then that would be from my 3X great-grandfather Fielding Jollett and his wife Mary Ann Armentrout. She was among the first generation born in the Shenandoah Valley to German immigrants. I began to imagine all the questions that could be answered if only I could find that Bible. However, none of the Jollett descendants seemed to know anything about it. I began to think maybe a Jollett Bible just did not exist. 

Many years later, my cousin Glenn passed away. As his widow Fran went through some of his things, she decided to return family memorabilia. Glenn had been in possession of 2 old Bibles. Fran sent them to my aunt. When I asked to borrow them, she said I could just have them. Woohoo!

Davis Bibles
Mitchell Davis's Bible on the left
Walter Davis's Bible on the right

It turns out they are not written in German at all. And they are not from the Jollett side of the family. They are Davis Bibles.

MITCHELL DAVIS BIBLE

Mitchell and Martha Davis's Bible

 This is clearly the older of the two Bibles. The publication information on a torn page indicates the Bible was printed in 1846. Perhaps the Bible was a wedding gift for my 2X great-grandparents Mitchell Davis and Martha Ann Willson who settled in Beldor, Rockingham County, Virginia following their marriage in 1846.

The condition is best described as POOR. Pages are crumpled and stained with mildew. 

But here is a sweet find: a dried flower. 

Dried flower in the Davis Bible
Was it a wedding keepsake?

I wonder if it could be a flower Martha carried or wore in what appears to be a wedding portrait (IF indeed this is Mitchell and Martha – identities are not confirmed).

Is this Mitchell and Martha?

Family Bibles are usually good sources for women seeking to join a lineage society like Daughters of the American Revolution because they confirm family relationships and dates. This Bible did not have the “built-in” pages to record births, marriages, and deaths, so someone sewed loose-leaf paper into the binding.

 

Old threads and loose leaf paper

The important dates all relate to Mitchell and Martha’s children, their births, their marriages, and their deaths. When I saw the page listing the deaths of members of the Davis family, I thought, “YES – my ticket to DAR” because there they were: 2 entries for Leonard Davis, who were Mitchell’s father and grandfather. Surely this would help prove my lineage to Revolutionary War soldier Leonard Davis of Albemarle County. Or so I thought.

 

Deaths in the Mitchell Davis Bible
include Leonard Sr and Jr,
Leonard Jr's wife Frances,
Mitchell and Martha

Unfortunately, the Davis Bible did not secure my membership. The DAR genealogist pointed out that even though the pages are old and the handwriting looks of the time, there is nothing to say that one Leonard was Mitchell’s father, or that one Leonard was father of the other Leonard. I would have to find something else to connect the genealogical dots.

Still I find this Bible fascinating. Written on the inside covers are notes one does not typically associate with a Bible. There are no references to favorite books, chapters, verses. Instead there are mathematical calculations and lists. Mitchell was a carpenter by trade. Was he estimating the costs of a building project, creating a bill perhaps? Did he have no scrap paper?

Chimney, Floors, Roof, Doors, Windows,
Mantle, Stairway

Math calculation:
26 times 2 is 52
52 divided by 3 is 17 1/3

WALTER DAVIS BIBLE

Walter Davis Bible
printed before 1890

This Bible displays features of a high-quality publication. The cover is ornate tooled leather. A colorful map and gallery of illustrations of Biblical stories are printed on slick paper. The all-important fill-in-the-blank family records are included. There is even a page for family members to sign their names to the Temperance Pledge. (What does it say that no one signed?)

 

Otherwise the condition is equally poor, and the back cover is missing.

I know this Bible belonged to my great-grandparents Walter Davis and Mary Frances Jollett because the dates begin with them. Their children are included. 

Mary Frances also added pertinent dates about her parents, one grandfather, brothers and sisters, all neatly penned on loose leaf paper stapled onto the Temperance Pledge.

Mary Frances included her parents' dates of birth
and death; her grandfather's date of death,
dates of death for her father and siblings

Scraps of paper found in the Bible

The Walter Davis Bible, like that of his parents, includes some odd bits of ephemera: slice of cardboard with the name and address of one of Walter’s sisters, a scrap of paper containing incomplete addresses and phone numbers with mathematical calculations on the back. It appears someone was figuring out how old someone was at death – I recognize the dates. There is a transcription of births and deaths of the Davis children; apparently someone wanted a copy but failed to take it with them. Loose-leaf papers were inserted with “new information” as someone married or died.

While the Bibles do not answer all my questions, it is gratifying to be able to insert an exact date of birth or death in place of a broad estimate of “before 1830,” “circa 1800,” “after 1880,” and so on and so on. What I appreciate most about this Bible is that this is where Mary Frances saved the newspaper clippings of her sister’s obituaries.

Collection of obituaries

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.

Sunday's Obituary: Mary Frances and Walter

Sunday’s Obituary is a daily prompt at Geneabloggers asking us to post obituaries along with other information about that person.

Mrs. Davis Dies;

Funeral Friday

Mrs. Mary Frances Davis, widow of Walter Beriah Davis and a resident of Harrisonburg for the past 13 years, died Wednesday afternoon at three o’clock at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Violetta Ryan, 473 South Mason Street.

Mrs. Davis suffered a cerebral hemorrhage on October 6 and was for three weeks a patient at the Rockingham Memorial Hospital.  She returned to her residence on October 27 and seemed to be improving until three weeks ago when her condition became critical.

A daughter of the [sic.] James F. and Lucy Ann Jollett, she was born in Greene County, where she spent the early part of her life and attended public schools.

                

Following her marriage on February 11, 1890 to Walter Beriah Davis, Mr. and Mrs. Davis resided at Shenandoah for forty years.  For the past 13 years, Mrs. Davis has been making her home with her daughter in Harrisonburg.

Mrs. Davis was a quiet, unassuming person with many fine qualities.  Her cheerful disposition and lovable nature endeared herself to all with whom she came in contact.

Mrs. Davis united with the church in early life and was a faithful member of the Evangelical United Brethren Church in Shenandoah where she had taken an active part in its various organizations.

The last surviving member of a family of nine children, Mrs. Davis is survived by two daughters, Mrs. Velma Woodring, Martinsburg, W. Va., and Mrs. Violetta Ryan, Harrisonburg; two sons, Millard M. Davis, Shenandoah and Orvin O. Davis, Portsmouth; two grandchildren Orvin O. Davis, Jr., Shenandoah, and Miss Mary Eleanor Davis, a student at Madison College; two great grandchildren Glenn Edward Davis and Miss Barbara Ann Davis, both of Shenandoah.  Her husband, a well known building contractor, preceded her in death on October 31, 1934.

Funeral services will be held Friday afternoon at two o’clock from the Shenandoah Evangelical United Brethren Church, with her pastor, the Rev. P. W. Fisher, in charge of the services assisted by Dr. E. E. Miller.  Burial will be in the family lot in the United Brethren Cemetery in Shenandoah.  Nephews will serve as active pallbearers.

The body now rests at the Lindsey Funeral Home on South Main Street where it will remain until twelve o’clock Friday when it will be taken to the church to lie in state from one o’clock until the hour of the services.  Relatives are asked to meet at the home of her son, Millard M. Davis, 407 Sixth Street in Shenandoah, Friday afternoon at one-forty.

WALTER B. DAVIS DIES AT SHENANDOAH

Walter B. Davis, aged 66, died at his home in Shenandoah on Thursday night after several years of declining health. The immediate cause of his death was Bright Disease and heart trouble. He is survived by his wife, who before marriage was a Miss Jollett and four children: Millard M. Davis, of Norfolk, Va.; O. O. Davis of Shenandoah; Miss Violetta Davis of Harrisonburg and Mrs. Velma Woodring of Martinsburg, W.Va., and several brothers and sisters. The deceased is a native of Greene County though has been living in Shenandoah for the past forty years. For many years, he followed the carpenter trade and later operated a grocery store in Shenandoah now run by his son O. O. Davis. Mr. Davis was quiet and unobtrusive and had many friends who regret to hear of his passing. The burial will take place Saturday at 2 p.m. preceded by short services at the U. B. Church by Rev. Lee E. Sheaffer.

from the Richmond Times Dispatch Nov 4, 1934

WALTER DAVIS

Shenandoah, Nov. 3 – Funeral services were held today for Walter Davis, 67, well-known Shenandoah merchant. Services were conducted by the Rev. Lee E. Sheaffer. Mr. Davis is survived by his widow and four children: Orvin Davis, Shenandoah; Miss Violeta Davis of the State Teachers’ College, Harrisonburg; Mrs. Woodring, Martinsburg, W.Va., and Millard Davis, Norfolk. The following brothers and sisters also survive: Mrs. Marshall, Mrs. Morris, and Lorenzo Davis, Washington, and Mrs. Bruce Davis McGaheysville.

Wendy

© 2016, Wendy Mathias.  All rights reserved.

Tombstone Tuesday: The Davis Plot

Tombstone Tuesday is a daily prompt at Geneabloggers that asks bloggers to include an image of a gravestone of one or more ancestors along with a brief description of the image or the ancestor.

at Coverstone Cemetery, Shenandoah, VA

Mary Frances Jollett and Walter Davis are buried in a family plot in the Coverstone Cemetery in Shenandoah, Virginia. For many years it was known as the Evangelical United Brethren Church Cemetery.

All of their children are there as well, except perhaps for Elsworth whose place of burial is unknown.

My grandparents Orvin and Lucille Rucker Davis

Wendy

© 2016, Wendy Mathias.  All rights reserved.

James Franklin Jollett's Kids: Mary Frances Davis

As part of my “Genealogy Do-Over” efforts AND to force myself to get crackin’ on my James Franklin Jollett book, Jollett Reunion, I will be researching and writing brief biographies of James Franklin, his wives, and his children.

My great-grandmother
Mary Frances Jollett Davis

Child #5 born to James Franklin Jollett and Lucy Ann Shiflett was named Mary Frances but most often went by “Mollie.” At five months of age, she made her first appearance in a federal census, having been born January 10, 1870. Like her brothers and sisters, she attended school near Swift Run and learned to read and write. She grew up surrounded by her mother’s brothers and sisters and their children. Perhaps that is how her strong love of family began and grew.

My great-grandfather
Walter Davis

With such close ties to family in Greene County, Virginia, it almost seems a surprise that Mollie met and married a boy from Rockingham County just across the mountain. Walter Beriah Sylvester Davis grew up in Beldor which is just off today’s Skyline Drive, a park that did not exist in their courting days. Mollie’s home was near Swift Run in Bacon Hollow, also just off the Drive. So while they came from two different counties, both lived near the dividing line.

Mollie was 20 and Walter 23 when they married just before Valentine’s Day, February 11, 1890. They lived for a time in Greene County, but by 1899, they had settled in the town of Shenandoah in Page County, just a few miles north of where Walter and Mollie had grown up. Shenandoah was booming with the Norfolk & Western steam railroad. As a major hub, the town boasted a large number of repair shops. However, Walter was not a railroad man; he was a carpenter like his father.

In the 1900 census, the young Davis family was living next door to two of Mollie’s sisters and their families. They all owned their homes, free and clear. Mollie and Walter had two boys, Millard and Orvin, but they had lost their first child in 1893, another boy, Elsworth who lived just over a year.

Davis and Sullivan cousins outside the Davis home
corner of Williams Ave and Third St, Shenandoah, VA
Back row: Floral Sullivan, Orvin Davis,
probably Laura Jollett Sullivan, and Mary Frances Jollett Davis
Front row: Violetta Davis, Velma Davis, Elta Sullivan, Leota Sullivan

The 1910 census reported four children living at home: Millard, Orvin, Violetta, and Velma. However, another child had been born and died. Her name was Josy, and she lived a brief two years. Two years after this census, Kenneth came into their lives only to die after eleven days from neonatal jaundice.

Mollie and Walter and their four children lived a good life. Walter built many of the homes in Shenandoah, many from Sears plans, including their own new home on Sixth Street. Mollie made sure the children were dressed well and that they had “nice things” for the home. They were not wealthy, by any means; Mollie was just a good money manager. According to one family story, she used to buy the children’s clothes too big so that they could wear them longer. One day Orvin walked downtown wearing some rather large pants; as he passed a group of men sitting outside the barbershop, one of them called out, “Pants, where are you taking that boy?” Laughter could be heard up and down Front Street.

Being frugal was just part of Mollie’s makeup. She was a devout Christian and active member of the Evangelical United Brethren Church. She enjoyed singing the hymns and being part of the Gleaners, a woman’s society dedicated to missions. In the early years of the congregation, the Gleaners raised money to buy a piano for the church. Mollie was one of the signers on the note guaranteeing payment over time.

The Gleaners of the Evangelical United Brethren Church

In addition to building houses, Walter opened a grocery store on the corner of Sixth Street and Pennsylvania Avenue. He put his sons to work there, Millard for just a while before he went to work for the railroad, and then Orvin. Orvin owned a car repair business too, so his wife Lucille took care of day to day business at the store.

The Davis store 

Standing: Thelma Hockman, Velma Davis
Sitting: Addie Hockman, Mollie Davis

While the sons were put to work, Walter and Mollie sent the girls to college. The girls often brought friends home for weekends and holidays. Walter and Mollie seemed to enjoy having their young friends around.

Walter was a dapper dresser and
he loved the girls!
Velma Davis, Violetta Davis, Walter,
Thelma Hockman, Leta LaVow

It is easy to see why Mollie and Walter were so loved by their children and grandchildren.

Mary Frances on the porch at Violetta's

Shortly after Walter died in 1934, Mollie went to live with Violetta in Harrisonburg. Mollie died in 1950. She and Walter are buried in the Coverstone Cemetery in Shenandoah, Virginia.

This photo of Mary Frances
was always on a dresser
in my grandparents' home

Mary Frances JOLLETT (10 Jun 1870 Greene Co, VA – 22 Feb 1950 Harrisonburg, VA) and Walter Beriah Sylvester DAVIS (12 Sep 1867 Rockingham Co, VA – 31 Oct 1934 Shenandoah, VA) married 11 Feb 1890 Greene Co, VA

1. Ellsworth O. DAVIS (27 Mar 1892 – 28 Sep 1893)
2. Millard Mitchell DAVIS (19 Oct 1894 Greene Co, VA – 27 Dec 1951 Shenandoah, VA) and Edith Irene KITE (7 May 1895 Page Co, VA – 24 Feb 1985 Shenandoah, VA) married about 1914
3. Orvin Owen DAVIS (12 Dec 1899 Shenandoah, VA – 16 Oct 1963 Portsmouth, VA) and Lucille Mary RUCKER (9 Oct 1904 Shenandoah, VA – 1 Nov 1990 Chesapeake, VA) married 17 Sep 1923 Hagerstown, MD
4. Josy DAVIS (1 Aug 1901 Shenandoah, VA – 15 Dec 1903 Shenandoah, VA)
5. Violetta Lorane DAVIS (Jan 1904 Shenandoah, VA – 21 Dec 1989 Harrisonburg, VA) and Virgil Franklin RYAN (20 Aug 1898 Rockingham Co, VA – 2 Jul 1941 Harrisonburg, VA) married 16 Jun 1936 Harrisonburg, VA
6. Velma Hilda DAVIS (15 Feb 1908 Shenandoah, VA – 5 Jun 1968 Harrisonburg, VA) and Arthur Henry “Woody” WOODRING (13 Jun 1903 Pennsylvania – 21 Jan 1951 Martinsburg, WV) married 15 Jan 1927 Shenandoah, VA
7. Kenneth Leland DAVIS (25 Jul 1912 Shenandoah, VA – 6 Aug 1912 Shenandoah, VA)

Wendy

© 2016, Wendy Mathias.  All rights reserved.

Sunday's Obituary: Millard M. Davis

Sunday’s Obituary is a daily prompt at Geneabloggers asking bloggers to post obituaries along with other information about that person.

Millard Mitchell Davis
19 Oct 1894 - 27 Dec 1951

Millard Davis

Dies Suddenly

Heart Attack Fatal

To Popular Railroad

Man at Shenandoah

Shenandoah Dec. 27 – Millard M. Davis, 57, a Norfolk and Western storekeeper at that railroad’s Shenandoah shops, died suddenly of a heart attack 4:30 this morning at his home here.

                Mr. Davis had a serious heart condition for several years, yet he continued to work as storekeeper for the railroad up to his death.  He was one of the most popular men in Shenandoah and this part of Page County, and also had friends up and down the Norfolk and Western Railroad.

                He had been with the Railroad for the past 25 years, starting work in Shenandoah, and working at various places on the N. and W.’s Shenandoah Division until eight years ago, when he returned home to take the position of storekeeper.

                Mr. Davis was born in Page County near Shenandoah, son of the late Walter B. Davis and Mrs. Mary F. Jollett Davis.  He is survived by his widow, Mrs. Edith Kite Davis; two sisters: Mrs. Violetta D. Ryan of Harrisonburg and Mrs. Velma Woodring of Martinsburg, W. Va.; and a brother, Orvin O. Davis of Portsmouth, Va.

                His sisters, Mrs. Ryan and Mrs. Woodring, left Friday, Dec. 21 on a motor trip to New Orleans.  Efforts are being made, through police teletype and otherwise, to reach the sisters and inform them of their brother’s death.  Until this is done, funeral arrangements will be held up with the body at the Brill Funeral Home in Elkton.

Millard and Edith
at his sister Violetta D. Ryan's home

The Page News & Courier Jan. 3, 1952, carried this report of the funeral:

Funeral services were held Sunday from the St. Peter's Lutheran Church for Millard M. Davis, 57, Norfolk & Western [Railway] storekeeper, who died at his home last Thursday morning.

The Rev. H. Edmund Pfeifer, pastor of the church, was in charge of the services and burial was in the E. U. B. Cemetery.

The large crowd of sorrowing friends and the beautiful floral designs were a tribute to the high esteem in which the deceased was held by his hundreds of friends. The funeral services were attended by one of the largest throngs ever present for final rites in the community with friends from Washington, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Roanoke attending.

Active pallbearers were: Amos Kite, Elwood Kite, Russell Coleman, Clyde Knight, Lewis Jollette, and Ben Davis.

Honorary pallbearers were: Clyde Hisey, J. L. Foltz, Clyde Koontz, Floyd Eppard, Owen M. Strickler, J. D. Hodges, V. C. Griffith, B. W. Strum, J. R. Painter, W. H. Bricker, C. C. Morrison, Jennings Meadows, J. T. Rothgeb, H. G. Burks, H. C. Bradley, W. W. Barnes, W. O Smith, Jr., Lewis Powell, Harry C. L. Pamplin, C. C. Lankford, H. L. Kiblinger, C. L. Graviet, W. T. Turner, W. T. Sink, B . H. Keith, J. B. Reynolds, John Foltz, and Pete Davis.

Advent Calendar - Christmas Happenings

Geneabloggers is once again hosting the Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories encouraging family historians to write about their holiday traditions.  Today’s theme focuses on a family member who has a December birthday.

My maternal grandfather Orvin Owen Davis was born December 12, 1899, in Shenandoah, Virginia.  If he were living today, he would have just celebrated his 112^th birthday.  I don’t think I ever knew his birth date until I read it on his funeral card in 1963.  Certainly no birthday celebration stands out.  Then again, I don’t recall ever celebrating anyone’s birthday.  Except for kids’ parties, birthdays went largely unnoticed until I was an adult when birthday parties became an excuse to get together for dinner.

But enough about that.  This is supposed to be a tribute to Granddaddy Davis.  He was the second child born to Mary Frances Jollett Davis and Walter Beriah Sylvester Davis.  (You can click on the pictures to enlarge them.)

Dec 12, 1899 - Oct 16, 1963

They lived in a two-story white house on the corner of North Third Street and Williams Avenue in Shenandoah, Virginia. 

Later on his father built a Sears Craftsman house on Sixth Street.

Orvin and Lucille Davis 1925
standing on the right side yard of the house
on Sixth Street in Shenandoah, VA

Apparently Granddaddy was a good student, but he didn’t finish school.  Great-granddaddy Davis made the boys quit school and go to work in the family store, but the girls not only finished high school, they both graduated from college as well.

Just 2 of the monthly reports in a booklet. 

Granddaddy owned a garage in Shenandoah, Virginia, but during World War II, he moved his family to Portsmouth, Virginia, to work in the shipyard.  Granddaddy died when I was 12, but a few memories are vivid:

1.       His cigar  -- You have to look closely.  Granddaddy is on the right holding my uncle Orvin, Jr.  I don't know the other father and son.

2.       His straw hat.    It's in the previous picture along with these:

Grandaddy is almost hidden by the Sullivan girls' Easter hats.

I have Grandaddy's hat.  The top is broken.

3.       Riding in his Buick to the drug store to buy penny candy and a coke after school 

My cousin Glenn on the hood of the Buick

4.       Granddaddy calling Grandma “Old Woman” which always made me mad.  I’d fuss at him saying, “She’s not Old Woman.  She’s Grandma!” 


Check Granddaddy's hair. 
It's just like his hair in his baby picture.