Veterans' Day: 100 Years Later

The Great War, now called World War I, ended with an 

armistice, or end of hostilities 

Hubert Allen Brown
My Great Uncle
Son of Jasper Pascal Brown &
Rose Ella (Brumfield) Brown 

between the Allied Nations & Germany  on the 11^th hour of the 11^th day of the 11^th month of 1918; 100 years ago.  In the following years it was known as Armistice Day.

In 1921 the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was established by Congress with a ceremony on November 11. In 1938 Armistice Day became a legal holiday dedicated to the cause of world peace. The day honored World War I veterans.

Unfortunately, we know that The Great War was not our last world war. World War II and the Korean War followed. In 1954 Congress changed the day to Veterans’ Day and it became a day to honor all veterans.

My family includes these World War I soldiers:

•  Peter Brady 1891 Ireland – 1951 NJ
•  Thomas Joseph Brady 1896 NJ – 1986 MD
•  Hubert Allen Brown 1894 MS – 1971 MS, Private US Army
•  Harry Lewis Creasy 1891 OH – 1950
•  Ernest S Gruissy b 1893 TX
•  Charles Forest Mark 1892 OH – 1967 OH
•  Eslie Guy Mark 1890 OH – 1972 OH
•  Elmer Ritter b 1887 OH
•  Frederick Isaac Ritter 1893 OH – 1975 OH

A great book to help you research your World War I hero is: 

Schaeffer, Christina K. The Great War: A Guide to the Service Records of All the World's Fighting Men and Volunteers. Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc.,1998.

The first part of this book includes research tips; what to expect to find in various records; and a time line of the war. The second part "takes the combatants, country by country, and describes each country's initial involvement in the war, the military records (and naval, if applicable), and, to the greatest extent possible, where they are located." The third part of the book "describes casualties, records for prisoners of war (POWs), and a table showing where to locate a geographic place-name before and after the war." The appendix includes a glossary of abbreviations, Internet addresses and a select bibliography. 

Anyone have another resource for World War I research? If you want to share, just leave a comment.

Today a big thank you goes out to all our veterans who have sacrificed much to guarantee our freedoms!

Read more about Veterans’ Day: The History of Veterans’ Day

Read more about my family’s Soldiers: Soldiers

Forget Me Not: Clifton Barksdale Brumfield, 1941 MS

Clifton Barksdale Brumfield

10 Dec 1862 LA - 24 Aug 1941 MS

Son of Barksdale Wade Brumfield & Mary Lucy Brown

My 2nd cousin, 3x removed

Last Rites for C. B. Brumfield

Planter, Cattle Dealer Was Well Known in Mississippi

Clifton Barksdale Brumfield, age 78, years, died in a McComb hospital Sunday evening, August 24, after an illness of some time. Mr. Brumfield, known to his friends as “Cliff,” was widely known in Mississippi and Louisiana, being a prominent planter and dealer of cattle.

Clifton Barksdale Brumfield was the son of Barksdale Wade Brumfield and Mary Lucy Brown and was born December 10, 1862. On December 16, 1885, he married Ada Selena Rollins. To this union eleven children were born, five boys and six girls. Five of these children have passed into eternity.

The children of this union surviving are: Clifton B. Brumfield, Smith Brumfield, Mrs. Lucy May, Mrs. Mary Felder, Mrs. Velma Wallace, Mrs. Audrey Lofton. Surviving the deceased are 28 grandchildren and four great grandchildren. The brother and sister of the deceased living are: Robert Huey Brumfield and Mrs. Lucy Emmaline Woods of Franklinton, La.

Mr. Brumfield knew the Lord and walked by faith, having united with Moak’s Creek Baptist Church when he was about 20 years old.

Mr. Brumfield loved his Master, his friends, his church, his family. His life was one of service, of devotion to those he loved. Truly he walked with God, and now that he has gone, we shall treasure his kind face and his devoted Christian character as one of the most precious gems in memory’s casket. Not only shall we remember his noble example in order that the Master may say to each of us, “He hath done what he could.” Were it possible for him to send a message from Paradise, perhaps it would be very much in the same words as those of the poet whose name is unknown:

What mean you by this weeping

            To break my very heart;

We both are in God’s keeping

            And therefore cannot part.

You there, I here, tho’ severed,

            We still in heart are one;

I’m only in the sunshine

            The shadows scarcely gone.

What tho’ the clouds surround you

            You cannot brightness see

‘Tis only a little way

            That leads from you to me.

I was so very weary,

            Surely you could not mourn

So weep not darling,

            God wipes away all tears.

‘Tis only yet a little while,

            Tho’ you may call it years.

His funeral was attended by a large crows of sympathizing friends, in the Montgomery Baptist Church. Burial was in the cemetery adjoining the Moak’s Creek Baptist Church, where it will rest “till the resurrection morn.”

Pall bearers were his grandsons, Woodrow Brumfield, John Clifton Felder, Beachman May, Henry Harrison Brumfield, Randall Brumfield and Gordon Brumfield.

Source: Last Rites for C. B. Brumfield. (McComb, MS: McComb Daily Journal, 27 Aug. 1941) 3; digital image, Newspapers.com: accessed Sept. 2018.

Forget Me Not: Borden Hamilton Brown

Borden Hamilton Brown

23 Jan 1921 MS - 27 Feb 1995 MS

Son of Hubert Allen Brown & Freddie Smith 

My first cousin, once removed

Borden and my Dad, Delbert K. Brown, were first cousins. They did not see each other often but, when they did, they had a great time together.

My Photographs

Silver Springs Cemetery, MS

Borden Brown, 74, of McComb. Died Feb. 27, 1995 at Southwest Mississippi Regional Medical Center. Visitation is 4-9 tonight at Hartman-Hughes Funeral Home of Tylertown. Services will be at 2 pm Wednesday in the funeral home Chapel, with the Rev. Harold Gartman and the Rev. Byron Wilkinson officiating. Burial will be in Silver Springs Cemetery. Mr. Brown was born Jan. 23, 1921, in Pike County. He was the son of the late Hubert Allen Brown and Freddie Beatrice Smith Brown. He was a retired construction worker and county employee. He was a World War II veteran and a member of Silver Springs Baptist Church. He is survived by a friend and companion, Barbara Gibson of McComb; two brothers, Lynn Brown and Hugh Brown, both of Osyka; and two sisters, Thiry Fegan and Peggy Alford, both of Tylertown.

Source: Borden Brown (McComb, MS: Enterprise-Journal, 28 Feb 1995) 14; digital image, Newspapers.com: accessed February 2018.

Related Posts:

• Brown: An Old Family Tree Sketch
• Hubert Allen Brown 

Forget Me Not: Lillian Ellzey Fortenberry, 1950 MS

Lillian Ellzey Fortenberry

31 May 1883 – 20 June 1950 MS

Daughter of Oscar J L Ellzey & Elizabeth Fortenberry

Wife of Lemuel Q. Fortenberry

Progress News

The death of Mrs. Lillian Ellzey Fortenberry, last Tuesday night, came as a shock to her many friends in the county. She was one of the beloved members of the Silver Springs church and was well known throughout county as one of its most devout Christians. She was the wife of Mr. L. Q. Fortenberry and was the mother of six children: E. J. of Colorado; Devoix, New Orleans; Hendrix, U. S. Navy; Mrs. Charles Ott, Mt. Herman, La.; Mrs. Ralph Simmons of Baton Rouge, La. Ten grandchildren also survive. Internment was in the Silver Springs Cemetery Thursday fternoon, with the Rev. Clyde Jones, F. W. Gunn, Kelly Fortenberry, McGehee and J. C. Pinson fficiating.  

Photograph from Find A Grave

Memorial #22274537

Source: Progress News (McComb, MS: Enterprise-Journal, 29 June 1950) 2; digital image, Newspapers.com: accessed July 2018.

Jesse C Fortenberry in the US Census

Jesse Crawford Fortenberry

1853 – 1911

Son of Calvin Kennington Fortenberry

U S Census

This family appears to have two sons with the same name. That sometimes happens when one son dies and another is born but these two are both in the 1900 census so they lived at the same time.

1900 US Census, MS, Pike, Tylertown; digital image,Ancestry(ancestry.com: accessed July 2018) Jesse C. Fortenberry.

Jesse                             b Mar 1852 MS           m 1878            farmer

Susan                           b Dec 1857 MS           mother of 9/9 living

George son                  b Sep 1878 MS            farm laborer

Easley son                    b Aug 1880 MS           farm laborer

Dixie daughter            b July 1882 MS

Crawford son               b May 1884 MS          farm laborer

John son                      b Apr 1886 MS            farm laborer

Narcissa daughter        b Oct 1888 MS

Sarah daughter           b May 1891 MS

Easley son                    b Apr 1894 MS

Willis son                    b Aug 1896 MS                       

1910 US Census, MS, Pike, Beat 2; digital image,Ancestry(ancestry.com: accessed July 2018) Jesse C. Fortenberry.

Jesse C                         58 b MS          farmer

Susan                           58 b MS          mother of 11/9 living

John son                      22 b MS

Sarah daughter             18 b MS

Easley son                    16 b MS

Willis son                    14 b MS

Ruby daughter             11 b MS

Nellie daughter             8 b MS

Albert & Dora Morrison Together for 50 Years

Albert Rowlen Morrison & Dora Rand

Married 13 October 1914 OH

Albert  14 April 1894 OH - Mar 1977 OH

Dora 26 Dec 1897 OH - 30 Dec 1971 FL

Creston – Mr. and Mrs. Albert R. Morrison will celebrate their golden wedding anniversary at an open house Sunday from 2 to 5 p.m. at the home of their son Edward, 115 Carter St. <orison, 70, was born in Seville; his wife, the former Dora Rand, 67, in Sandusky. The couple were married Oct. 13, 1914 in Sandusky. Morrison was affiliated with Morison’s Garage in Rittman for 15 years and farmed in Creston for 30 years before retiring. The couple now live in Marathon Shores, Fla. In addition to their son the Morrisons have a daughter, Mrs. Helen Hauffman of Creston, nine grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. The Morrisons are members of the Brethern Church. Friends and relatives are invited to attend the open house Sunday.

Source: Celebrate Anniversary (Akron, OH: The Akron Beacon Journal, 15 Oct 1964) 7; digital image, Newspapers.com: accessed April 2018.

Obituary: Ella Blackwell Fortenberry, 1935 MS

Ella Blackwell Fortenberry

Wife of James Calvin Fortenberry

Funeral Rites for Mrs. Fortenberry Held at Magnolia

Final Tribute is Paid to Prominent Resident of County.  A large crowd of sorrowing friends and relatives attended the funeral of Mrs. Ella Blackwell Fortenberry in Magnolia Tuesday afternoon at 4 o’clock. The services were held at the Magnolia Baptist church and internment followed in the Magnolia cemetery with the Rev. H. K. Horton, pastor of the Baptist church, assisted by the Rev. Flowers of the Presbyterian church and Rev. Carter of Fernwood, officiating.

Mrs. Fortenberry has been a resident of Pike County for a number of years and her passing was the source of much regret among her large circle of friends who admired and respected her. The beautiful floral offerings which were in evidence at the funeral, bespoke the high esteem in which he deceased was held.

She was born March 16, 1883 and was married in 1903. 

Mrs. Fortenberry died at her residence in Magnolia Tuesday morning at 5 o’clock following an illness of several months. 

Source: Funeral Rites for Mrs. Fortenberry Held at Magnolia (McComb, MS: Semi-Weekly Journal, 17 October 1935) 3; digital image, Newspapers.com: accessed July 2018.

Following Willis Fortenberry in the US Census

Willis Franklin Fortenberry

4 Feb 1887 MS – Dec 1976 LA

Son of Webster Fortenberry

It is great when we can follow a family through the years by way of the US Census records. We can confidently put together a picture of the family structure.

U S Census Records

1920 US Census, MS, Pike, Beat 1; digital image,Ancestry(ancestry.com: accessed July 2018) Willie Fortenberry.

Willie Fortenberry       32 b MS

Ivie                              24 b MS

Edith daughter             5 b MS

Clinton son                  b July MS

1930 US Census, MS, Pike, Beat 1; digital image,Ancestry(ancestry.com: accessed July 2018) Willis Fortenberry.

Willis                           43 b MS

Iva                               37 b MS

Edith daughter            16 b MS          bc1914

Clifton son                   12 b MS          bc1918

Wilden son                  10 b MS          bc 1920

Gilbert son                  8 b MS            bc 1922

Pansey daughter           6 b MS           bc 1924

Arlie daughter             4 b MS            bc 1926

Bonnie B daughter       1 b MS            bc 1929

1940 US Census, MS, Pike; digital image,Ancestry(ancestry.com: accessed July 2018) Willie Fortenberry.

Willie                          53 b MS          farmer

Ivy May                       47 b MS

Clifton son                   21 b MS          farm laborer

Wilbert son                 19 b MS          farm laborer

Gilbert son                  17 b MS

Pansey daughter           15 b MS

Aarle daughter             13 b MS

Bonnie Bee daughter    11 b MS

Locky May daughter    9 b MS

Carl L son                    7 b MS