Southern Graves

Andrew Jackson Harrell Georgia Sgt Co D 371 Infantry World War II November 3, 1917 November 8, 1967 Goodwin Cemetery Hwy 124 Duluth, Gwinnett County, Georgia Photo © 2010-2011 S. Lincecum Sgt. Andrew Jackson Harrell was a son of Roy and Rosetta White Harrell. He was born in Georgia, and that is from where he enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1942, entering World War II. According to his enlistment record at Ancestry , Andrew had a grammar school education, and his civil occupation was in the category of "semiskilled chauffeurs and drivers, bus, taxi, truck, and tractor." Sgt. Andrew Jackson Harrell died in Los Angeles, California.

I know I've been neglecting this blog for a couple of weeks, and I'm sorry. In my defense, I have been working on a new project. Of course, it's cemetery related. :-) I decided to begin a location-based genealogy research project, and my principal subjects are the individuals interred in the Byron City Cemetery of Peach County, Georgia. Along with that comes a new blog - Byron City Cemetery . Here is the post I wrote to open and introduce the new blog. Ever since I attended Bernie Gracy's Breaking Down Brick Walls with Location Based Genealogy class at the 2010 Atlanta Family History Expo , I've been itching to put it into practice in a big way. It's no secret I have a love of cemeteries, so I of course will be starting there. And since I'm related to the PEAVYs of Byron, Georgia, what better cemetery to start with than the Byron City Cemetery. I've always had a fondness for this cemetery, and I'm not sure why. It's not huge, but n...

As I mentioned before, Hannah Dowis began giving birth to her family in 1891 at about the age of 16 years. She kept at that job for 27 years, ending with the birth and death of an infant son 27 October 1918. The first child to pass away was Susie Dowis, who was just days old, in 1894. More than 100 years later, the last child of Hannah's to reach adulthood would breathe her last breath. Photo by Jack Johnson via FindAGrave Lola Dowis Teague was born 1 January 1916, and she died 27 September 2001. Her final resting place is next to her husband in Memory Hill Cemetery at Milledgeville, Baldwin County, Georgia. Lola's obituary was carried in the Macon Telegraph as well as the Atlanta Journal Constitution . She died in Macon at the age of 85. She was a native of Gwinnett County, but had lived in Milledgeville for many years. Her husband was the late James D. Teague, Jr. Lola was a retired Health & Physical Education teacher with Baldwin County High School. Sh...

One of the nineteen children of William and Hannah Dowis buried in the family plot at Duluth Church Cemetery in Gwinnett County, Georgia is their son John Victau. He was more commonly known as Victor or Vic Dowis, and he attended the Duluth Baptist Church as a young man. Victor died at the prime of life age of 30 years. In fact, his death came just over a month before his 31st birthday. He left behind a wife and children, including a daughter born just days before his death. I first found there was an interesting story surrounding the death of Victor with a simple search at Ancestry . Several user-submitted family trees mentioned a tale of murder and revenge. Most were telling the story from the "other" side, the side of the Simpson brothers. Both were victims of a traffic stop gone bad, at the hands of Victor Dowis. In 1922 Duluth, Georgia, Victor Dowis was a deputy sheriff. An article in the Atlanta Journal Constitution (viewed online at Fold3 ) dated 21 Febru...

William Calvin Dowis (1861-1933) married Hannah Jane Burdett (1875-1927) and began their farming family in Atlanta, Georgia in the late 1800s. By the early 1900s, they had moved a short distance north to Duluth in Gwinnett County, Georgia. There they continued to farm and attended the Baptist Church in town. Upon their deaths, William and Hannah were laid to rest under the trees in the Duluth Baptist Church cemetery. In the far corner of their southern-styled, gravel covered family plot is a large marble memorial standing taller than the rest. On it is a listing of all nineteen of the Dowis children. It seems Hannah started giving birth around the age of 16 and didn't stop until she was 43. Along with the children's names, their birth and death dates, as well as their burial locations are also recorded. It's a genealogist's dream discovery. The Children of William Calvin Dowis and Hannah Jane Burdett Solomon Dowis: b. 5/19/1891, d. 11/4/1967, bur. Westv...

Infants of W. C. & H. J. Dowis All three passed away just before the age of 3 months. The first two were twins. All were laid to rest at Duluth Church Cemetery in Gwinnett County, Georgia. As a reminder, the lamb symbolizes purity, innocence, and gentleness. It is one of the most common images found on infant gravestones. Burdett, Infant son of W. C. & H. J. Dowis Aug 31, 1910 Nov 17, 1910 Bertha, Infant daughter of W. C. & H. J. Dowis Aug 31, 1910 Nov 17, 1910 Calvin Jr. Son of W. C. & H. J. Dowis Sept 25, 1914 Dec 21, 1914 Suffer little children to come unto me. Stay tuned to learn more about the rest of the DOWIS children -- there are 16 more! Photo © 2010-2011 S. Lincecum.

Julia Catherine Street is buried next to her Confederate war veteran husband J. C. New in Duluth Church Cemetery at Gwinnett County, Georgia. She has quite an epitaph etched in the arched stone she shares with her husband. It begins in a typical enough fashion: Julia Catherine Street Wife of J. C. New Born Sept 12, 1824 Married Aug 5, 1844 Died July 17, 1898 Oh there is a better day coming. Now here is where the beautiful words really flow. Even without music you can hear the rhythmic cadence in the hymn written by Charles Wesley about 1740: Jesus, lover of my soul, Let me to thy bosom fly, While the raging billows roll, While the tempest still is high, Hide me, O my Saviour, hide, Till the storm of life is past; Safe into the haven guide; O, receive my soul at last.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! I'm a bit behind in "getting back into the swing of things" around here after all the holiday happenings, so this post is a couple of days late. I want to thank all of you for continuing to follow the Southern Graves blog, and I promise to do my best to hold your interest in 2011. If you are a new follower, WELCOME! Here are some posts that might be new to you: ICYMI -- December 2010 (most viewed posts over the last 30 days) - Undertakers, Coffins, & Furniture - In Hoc Signo Vinces: the Knights Templar - Sentimental Sunday's Baby Knox - Little Fingers, Little Toes - Eugene & Virginia are Watching and Waiting (Tombstone Tuesday) - Symbolism of the Oak Leaf - A Pair of Infant Shoes, Times Two! - Maud (Henry?) Hambrick & the Railroad - Darling Anna (Today's Epitaph) - The Howells of Duluth - Southern Cross of Honor And here are the most viewed posts of 2010 (according to Google Analytics): - Southern Cross ...