Old Man of Turkeycock Mountain

 Turkeycock Mountain is twelve miles long and straddles the Franklin-Pittsylvania line. I can see it from where I live. We own 167 acres on the Franklin County side, just below the mountain's "notch" (to the right of the tree in the above picture). When we bought the land in the 1970s, I didn't know much about it—only that our land was  part of the old Reynolds plantation, a horse track was once on it, and Confederate deserters used to hide farther up the mountain. But I didn't know anything about folks who had once lived on the mountain.

Recently, I acquired a booklet  about a resident of the Pittsylvania County side of the Mountain, Owen Adkins, who was supposedly born there in 1786 and died there in May 1885 when he was 99 years and 6 months old. He'd wanted to live to be a hundred, but didn't quite make it.

The booklet is a transcription of a story written by a reporter for the New York Herald and originally printed in March 1878.

Owen Adkins was apparently quite a character. As a young man, he excelled at foot-racing, and his father used to make money wagering on him when he raced men or—on some occasions—horses.  Apparently he never lost. When he as fourteen, he fought a bear on the mountain and finally managed to kill it with his knife. From a young age, he enjoyed fox-hunting, card-playing, foot-racing, and horse racing. He apparently owned a racetrack as noted in an article, "Miss Effie is Fondly Remembered," (from The Quill Pen—Pittsylvania Historical Society, by Robert c. Vaden, Jr, February 1986):

"The tobacco factory for making plug tobacco, owned and operated by Christopher Lawson Carter (1834-1901) was the principal industry of the community. Mr. [Algie] Davis recalled that there had been a racetrack "beyond Piney Mountain" owned by Owen Adkins before the Civil War. He said that plug tobacco was hauled to Pennsylvania from this area, and the wagons returned loaded with salt. The Davis family has been located here since 1790, and Col. Christopher Davis, great-uncle of Mr. Davis, was in the Civil War."

Owen was officially married twice; his first wife died in 1830 after having borne 19 children, all of whom were still living in 1878. Four months after her death, he remarried, but this wife only bore 5 children before she died in 1839. While married to his first wife, he also had 4 concubines. Near his own dwelling, he built a separate house for each one, and each produced several children. During his second marriage, he took an additional concubine. All told, he had 70 children, 66 of whom were still living when the reporter interviewed him. It was likely, given the large families his offspring produced, that he had nearly 550 descendants at the time of the interview. Because of the number of Adkins familie, that area of Pittsylvania County was know as Adkintown.

Owen Adkins witnessed much of history, albeit from a distance. He didn't believe in going to war so he paid a substitute $160 to take his place in the War of 1812. The substitute became ill a few months after enlisting and died. When enrolling officers then tried to get Owen to join the Home Guards, Owen hid out on Turkeycock Mountain. During the Civil War, he was a Union sympathizer and tried to talk his sons out of joining the Confederate army, but two of them did and were killed at the Battle of the Wilderness.

I tried to find out more about Owen Adkins online, but couldn't find much. Ancetry.com didn't have a lot. Apparently, there was another Owen Atkins, a Baptist minister who died in Tennessee in 1853, and the Turkeycock Owen was confused with him on numerous family trees. Another source of confusion: sometimes the name Adkins was Adkinson, Atkinson, or Atkins,

However, a Rootsweb site yielded a bit of info about his family: Owen's father was William Adkins III, born 21 September 1760 and died 22 Oct 1848. A picture of William and Mary was on the website. Note how much William looks like his son Owen:

Owen's parents, William and Mary Hartman Adkins

The Rootsweb site also lists the names and probable marriages of William's children:

From Knorr, Catherine. Marriage Bonds and Ministers  returns of Pittsylvania County, Virginia; 1767-1805. 1956
 

1. 7 October 1799. Henry Adkerson (Adkins) and Elizabeth Rossett dau. Of Sam Rossett who consents.  Sur. William Reynolds. p. 2 (26 of marr. register)

2. 18 July 1803. Nathan Carter and Elizabeth Atkins. Sur. Henry Atkins. Married by Richard Elliott. p. 15  (p. 34 in original register)

3. 9 December 1805. William Adkins and Betsy Thacker. Sur  Joseph Thacker. Married by Rev. Willis Hopwood. p. 2 (p. 38 of marr. register)

From Williams, Kathleen.  Marriages of Pittsylvania County, Virginia; 1806-1830. 1980

4. 18 August 1806.  George Smith and Lucky Adkins. ( Sucky? Or Suk?) Sur.  William Adkins. p.  145  (p. 42 in marr.  register)

5. 15 July 1809  Owen Adkins and Isabel Harris, dau. of John Harris who consents. Sur. James Hines. p. 3 (p.  46 of marr. reg.) Second marriage: 19 September 1825. Owen Atkinson (Adkins) and Fanny Campbell. Sur.  Jacob Zink. p.6 (p.  82 of original register) 

6.  21 May 1810. Charles Gibson and Sarah Atkinson, dau of William Atkinson. Sur Nathaniel Carter. Thomas Geo. Gibson consents. Married by the Rev. Joseph Hatchett. p.  62  ( p.  48 of marr. register)

The settlement of William Adkins estate again confirms the names of his children:

Estate Settlement of William Adkins decd (1848)
 Accounts Current vol. 18 pp. 160-162
 Date of confirmation October 20, 1851

Accounts of Executor and Legatees

1. To Susan Smith one of the legatees of William Adkins decd
November 27, 1849 paid in terms of will  $100.00
Sept. 11, 1850 paid for legacy in residuary fund $230.00
1851 to balance due Susan Smith 2.63 ½
TOTAL: 332.63 ½

2. To Nathan Carter in right of his wife Elizabeth Carter
Nov. 27, 1849 paid in terms of will  100.00
Sept. 11, 1850 paid for legacy in residuary fund 250.00
TOTAL paid by confirmation:  350.00

3. Sarah Gibson
Nov. 27, 1849 paid in terms of will 30.00
Sept. 11, 1850 paid for legacy in residuary fund 219.22
1851 balance due Sarah Gibson 13.41 ½
TOTAL:  262.63 ½

4. Henry Adkins
Sept. 11, 1850 paid for legacy in residuary fund 232.19
1851 balance due  2.63 ½
TOTAL:  232.63 ½

5. William Adkins
Sept. 11, 1850 paid for legacy in residuary fund 232.19
1851 balance due    .44 ½
TOTAL: 232.63 ½

6. Owen Adkins 
Sept. 11, 1850 paid for legacy in residuary fund 230.00
1851 balance due 2.63 ½ TOTAL:  232.63 ½

Two "What's on Your Mind" columns in The Roanoke Times provide information about Owen Adkins:

"Retired doctor shares the unusual tale of 19th century 'Owen of all'"

"The legendary Old Man Owen of Turkeycock Mountain lived a life of moderation—when it came to alcohol and tobacco, at least

Register of Deaths 1855 1896 p. 136, line 5

Owen Adkins 
white male 
Died May 15, 1885 in Pittsylvania Co., VA 
Cause: old age age: 99 yrs  6 mo (this would place birth approximately Nov. 1786) 
Parents: William and Mary Adkins 
born:  Pittsylvania Co. 
Occupation:  farmer 
Consort;  unmarried  (actually widowed) 
Informant:  Owen Adkins, Jr.  
Relationship: son

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Another Martin Mystery

Who is Bessie Martin?

For the past few years, I've been trying to fill in the gaps in my Martin genealogy. I've blogged before about my Martin mysteries: in "Martin Mystery" https://peevishpen.blogspot.com/2014/11/martin-mystery.html ,I wondered who my great-great grandmother was: and in "Martin Mystery II"  https://peevishpen.blogspot.com/2015/01/martin-mystery-ii.html, I shared what I'd discovered about Elizabeth Webb Martin, the third wife of John Reid Martin..

Meanwhile I'd been wondering about Elizabeth's daughter—my great-grandmother, I knew Mariah Lousia Martin, born in 1854 and the second wife of Henry Silas Smith, had died in 1913 at the Snith homeplace in Union Hall. I knew, from census records that she went by her nickname, Lula. I'd visited her grave several years ago and had a photo of her broken tombstone, but I had no pictures of her. 

Did any pictures of her exist? I found her death certificate on the Internet, but no pictures. She was 58 when she died of cancer. It's interesting that her husband's name on the certificate is his nickname, "Shuge."

I'd given up hope of finding a picture when a first cousin once-removed showed me the only picture of Lula that existed. She'd gotten it from her grandmother, who was Lula's grand-daughter. 

I recognize where the picture was taken—the porch of the old Smith homestead. Some pictures of the old homestead are in this 2010 blog-post: "Smith Sleuthing," http://peevishpen.blogspot.com/2010/07/smith-sleuthing.html, and some of the late Ralph Porterfields's memories of the place in the 1940s are in "Going Home to the Farm," http://peevishpen.blogspot.com/2008/10/going-home-to-farm.html. Ralph was Lula's great-grandson. 

But another Martin mystery has arisen. In the same box as Lula's picture was a photo of a Bessie Martin. The photo was taken by F. H. Brown at the Danville Art Gallery in Danville, Virginia. An ad for the business appears in the April 21, 1893, issue of the Reidsville Review in Reidsville, NC and again in May 19, 1893: "Danville Art Gallery No. 236 Main Street is the Place to get your Pictures taken Before going elsewhere. . . ." Besides Brown, there were at least two other photographers, W.E. Eutsler and a man whose last name is Blunt. (At one time, an Internet site had late 1800s-1900 photos by them and others for sale.)

Who is Bessie Martin? Did she live in Danville or just go there to have her picture taken? How is she connected to my branch of the Martin family? to Lula Martin? Is Martin her maiden name or married name? 

So many questions. . . . 

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Clement-Witcher Feud

A few miles from me as the crow flies, three brothers who all died the same day in 1860 are buried in a single grave on the family plantation—"Mountain View" on Snow Creek Road in Penhook. How did this triple death happen? Turns out a woman was involved—and she was a Smith, though I don't know if she and I descend from a common Smith ancestor.

Victoria Smith, the daughter of Albert G. Smith, was beautiful and had many beaux in the Franklin-Pittsylvania County area. She came from a good family; her grandfather was Vincent Oliver Witcher, the great-grandson son of Revolutionary War Colonel William Witcher and the son of Capt. Vincent Witcher who served in the Virginia Senate and House of Delegates prior to the Civil War.

Victoria married James Clement, the son of Dr. George W. Clement, and here's another  Smith connection: James's mother was Stella Smith, daughter of John Smith of Lewis Island (the road I live on used to be called Lewis Island Road). This John Smith was the son of John Smith of "The "Pocket," a large plantation in the bend of the Smith River.

Unfortunately, the marriage was not happy, and Victoria became so afraid of her husband that she sought divorce. The divorce proceedings were where thing turned ugly.

The story has been told in print several times. One of the oldest is from An Old Virginia Court, by Marshall Wingfield, D.D., who wrote several histories of Franklin County.

From "An Old Virginia Court" by Marshall Wingfield, D.D., Memphis, Tennessee, The West Tennessee Historical Society.

The killing of three Clement brothes---James,William and Ralph by Capt. Vincent Witcher, John A Smith, Vincent Oliver Smith, Samuel Swanson and Addison Witcher. Addison Witcher was the son of Vincent Witcher. John and Vincent Oliver Smith were his grandsons. Samuel Swanson was his son-in-law.

James Clement married Victoria Smith on March13, 1858. He was one of ten children of Dr George W Clement, born1786; married 1811; died 1867. Dr Clement was educated at Hampton-SydneyCollege and the Medical Department of the University of Pennsylvania. His mother, Stella Smith, was the daughter of Major John Smith of LewisIsland. Their Franklin County home was called "Mountain View".

Victoria Smith was the daughter of Albert G Smith and the granddaughter of Capt. Vincent Witcher. She was born in 1837. The Smith family regarded the Clement family as of inferior social station. Dr Clement was very proud of the beauty and wit of his daughter-in-law, Victoria. Two of her old sweethearts continued their attentions after her marriage(of innocent nature). They were William P Gilbert and Samuel D Berger. Her husband, James Clement, accused her of unfaithfulness and humiliated her. Fearing physical violence, Victoria Smith Clement,fled from her husband on the night of August 24, 1859, and found refuge in the home of Sherwood Y Shelton, who lived a mile distant. She left behind her six month old baby, Leila Maud, born March 1, 1859, so great was her terror., In three weeks, the taking of depositions was begun at Dickenson's Store, to be read as evidence in the suit then pending between John A Smith, next friend of Victoria Smith Clement, plantiff, against James R Clement, defendant. The taking of depositions continued until February 25, 1860, when the Clement brothers were killed. Capt.Vincent Witcher objected to having Elizabeth W Bennett make part of herstatement on Saturday "and then being left in the hands of the oppositeparty to be picked until Monday." He made the statement that shewas under control of the Clements.Ralph Clement said "that whoever saidthat was a damned lie." Capt. Vincent Witcher drew a "five shooter" and started firing at Ralph Clement. Addison Witcher conducted the examination for the plantif. (Robert Mitchell, Justice of the Peace,appeared to have forgotten everything that transpired).

The bodies of the Clements were riddled with bullets and gashed with knives. William Clement was disembowled; James Clement's throat was slit from ear to ear. Ralph Clement lived three hours and made a dying declaration: I never attempted to draw an arm. Addison Witcher caught and held me and told them to come shoot me. A damned rasccal Robert W Powell stated in his deposition that Addison Witcher held RalphClements while Vincent Oliver Smith shot him. George Finney statedin his deposition that John Anthony Smith shot and stabbed James Clement. Both James and William Clement were reclining on a bed in the Counting Room when the firing began. Some thought the early firing came from the bed. The Pistols of both James and William Clement had been fired until empty, but Ralph had not drawn a gun. The three bodies were carried from Washington Dickinson's Counting room, in a farm wagon, and buried in a simple grave near the shaded driveway to the old brick house,their boyhood home.

The defendants claimed self-defense and charges were dismissed, March 23, 1860. In June 1860, the depositions were published in book form by Dr. G W Clement, Sr.

Dr. George W Clement's mother, Stella, was the daughter of John Smith of Lewis Island, son of Mr John Smith of "The Pocket". 1700
(Clement: History of Pittsylvania County)

You can read more online about the Clement-Witcher feud at these sites: "The Clement-Witcher Case," "Allegations of Infidelity at Heart of Massacre," "The Witcher-Clement Case," and a page on Rootsweb.

Some print books about the case are also available. The late Franklin County historian A.D. Ramsey wrote about the case many decades ago. I bought his booklet at The Frankin County Historical Society several years ago. Local historian Beverly Merritt's book, The Untold Story of the Clement-Witcher Feud, is a transcript of the trial.

Victoria was in her early twenties when the picture at the top of this page was taken. Here is a picture of me when I was twenty. 

If you squint a bit, I look like her just a little around the eyes and nose Or maybe it's my imagination. But I would like to know if she and I might might somehow be kin on the Smith side.

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The F&P Railroad

From 1880 until 1932, the Franklin & Pittsylvania Railroad ran through what is now my front yard and slowed down at the Novelty Depot to grab a mailbag from a hook and toss off another. The narrow gauge railroad, which made its first run on April 16, 1880, ran thirty-one miles from Rocky Mount in Franklin County to Gretna (then called Franklin Junction and later Elba) in Pittsylvania County.

The rails probably went through this section of my lawn to the Novelty Depot in the distance.
The road at left was once the old Louis Island Road.

Nicknamed "the Fast and Perfect" by locals, it was neither neither fast nor perfect. Beset by many problems, it never even made a profit. But the stories about it are pretty interesting—and Tex D. Carter has done a commendable job documenting some of these stories, as well as giving a brief history of the railroad, in his 35-page self-published book, The Old Fast & Perfect. (He plans a larger book in the future.) Available from Carter when he does presentations and also from Amazon, the book gives an interesting glimpse into a part of local history. 

This page from his book features a photo of the locomotive:

. . . and pages 30-31 have photos from some of the depots along the line near where I live—the Glade Hill Depot, the Union Hall Depot, Novelty, and the Pen Hook (it used to be two words) Depot.

Carter relates some of the accidents that happened along the line. On page 12, he refences a January 1915 Lynchburg News article about wreck near Union Hall, in which the train "derailed and two passenger coaches rolled down a steep embankment. While the passengers were "shaken up," none was seriously hurt. Other accidents resulted in fatalities. Carter included a photo of a brief news article about this accident: "Frank Haley of Franklin Junction, hostler on the Franklin and Pittsylvania branch of the Southern Railway, was run over near Union Hall to-day, severing both his legs, from which he died in a few hours.He was thirty-five yers old and is survived by a wife and children." He briefly mentions another accident, in which conductor Nathan Rucker "was killed while inserting a coupling pin between two cars."

The train never ran over twenty-five miles per hour, but still had ome problems staying on track. A quote from the back cover:

Carter has used a collection of pictures, news articles, letters, and recollections to tell this interesting story of the railroad that cut through two counties. If you're from Franklin or Pittsylvania counties, you'll enjoy reading about this regional history. Even if you ain't from around here, and you're a railroad buff, you'll enjoy the book. Since Carter is planning a much more detailed book in the future, this one will give you a good preview of what to expect.

Tex D. Carter holding the proof copy.

I have enjoyed reading my copy of The Old Fast & Perfect. I think Arlo the cat did, too.

Arlo wonders how he can use a spike from the F&P as a bookmark.

`
At $5.00 per copy, this little book is a bargain!

Note: I mentioned Tex and the F&P in my earlier blog-post about the Penhook Pottery. Clay from Pittsville was hauled to the pottery via the F&P.

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Update: Tex has published a two-volume set about the railroad: https://www.amazon.com/Railroad-Tex-D-Carter/dp/1986824241/ and https://www.amazon.com/Railroad-II-Tex-D-Carter/dp/1987525671/ 

Lilacs and Connections

My lilac bush is blooming. Brought from a slip off the bush on Smith Farm, it is an old-timey lilac with a wonderful fragrance. The original lilac bush was planted by the old kitchen house near the cabin, but what's left of the kitchen has been just a pile of rocks for nearly a century.

My Aunt Belva—who died in 2003—once told me that when she was a child, she and her younger sister Virgie—who is 99—were playing in the old kitchen when it fell in. I'd always thought of the kitchen—and lilac—as my Granny Sallie's, but now I realize the kitchen was Gillie Ann Bernard's. It's likely Gillie Ann planted the lilac. Gillie Ann died in 1897 and was the first resident of the cemetery up on the hill. 

Her husband William had a window cut in the cabin wall so he could sit by the fireplace and see her grave. This window also provided a view of the lilac bush. William joined Gillie Ann on the hill in 1907. (I blogged about that cemetery in my "Vines and Stones" post in 2011 and again in 2014 in "Special Delivery.")

Until recently, I didn't know I had a connection to Gillie Ann, but it turns out that she's my first cousin. three times removed.  Here's how: Gillie Ann Bernard is the daughter of Gwin—or Gwynn—Dudley (1810-1846) and Nancy Eliza Smith (1815-1890). Nancy Eliza is the daughter of my 3rd-great-grandfather, John Wood Smith (?-1842), who lived just down the road apiece from where Smith Farm is. John Wood Smith was married to Lucy English (1791-abt. 1850), daughter of George Lewis English and Ann (Nancy) Smith, the daughter of Col. John Smith and his wife Frances. It is likely that Col. John Smith (1735-1820) is somehow kin to John Wood Smith, so Gillie and I might be kin in another way, too. All of these folks lived within a few miles of each other in Union Hall. 

Anyhow, Gillie Ann Dudley Bernard and my great-grandfather, Henry Silas Smith (1854-1923) are both grandchildren of John Wood Smith—and that's my connection. 

In long-ago Aprils, my distant cousin must have enjoyed the smell of lilac blossoms outside her kitchen door. Over a century later, I'm enjoying them too.

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Minnie McBride Murder

Thanks to Brenda Overholt, my distant cousin a few different ways, for some additional information about Minnie.

When I posted "A Rose for Minnie" back in 2010, I didn't know many of the details about Minnie McBride's murder. From what my daddy told me as a kid—"Old woman kilt her with an ax"—I knew she was young and had been murdered. 

Minnie's stone in Bethel Church graveyard.

Later I found out that her murderer was Lucy Mitchell, a 40-something woman who lived and  worked in the household where Minnie was killed. But recently, I've found out much more about Minnie and her sad life. A search on Ancestry.com revealed that Minnie, born in 1891, was the daughter of William Davis McBride (1871-1929) and Jennie Bell Brooks (1872-1900). She had two younger brothers and a sister—Chapman (1893-1908), William Lester (1895-1985), and Grace Bell (1898-1984).

From Brenda Overholt, I learned that after Minnie's mother's death (around 1900), her father placed his two boys, Chapman and Lester, with his half-brother, John Henry Brown. John Henry and his wife Lauretta Wright had several children, but they took in the boys nonetheless. He placed Minnie and Gracie with his half-sister  Sallie Fannie Brown Crum and her husband, Joseph Robert Wesley Crum. Then William Davis McBride took off for West Virginia, where he had some relatives, and started a new life. He likely never saw Minnie again.

I recently learned I have a connection to Minnie: My grandmother, Sallie Lee Brown Smith (who was married to Joseph Robert Smith), and Minnie's half-aunt, Sallie Fannie Brown Crum, were second cousins. Both were the great-granddaughters of Daniel Brown and Martha Joice Snider. 

The Crums, who had no children of their own, were well off financially. Mr. Crum was a county official and was also a farmer. The Crum's house was somewhere behind the Old Salem School. According to the 1900 Union Hall census, Minnie was 9 and a member of the Crum household. Did Minnie attend Salem School? It would likely have been just a short walk for her.

Old Salem School in 2015.
The woods behind the school were likely where the Crum farm was.

My grandparents' farm was about a mile as the crow flies from Salem School. Both my grandparents and the Crums attended Bethel Church.

Minnie's little brother, Chapman McBride, died in March 1908. He'd been ill, possibly with measles earlier in the year, but was made to work out in the cold. But Minnie was getting her life together. A pretty girl, she was engaged to marry her sweetheart Walter Irving Johnson. No doubt she dreamed of living happily ever after.

A newspaper article after Lucy was convicted gives a few details about Minnie's murder.

A month earlier, Lucy Mitchell had been interviewed by an unnamed reporter while she awaited trial. The clippings are a little hard to read, so you might have to click to enlarge them:

So Lucy Mitchell had a sad life too. The daughter of Iyanation Franklin Mitchell of Union Hall, Lucy had worked hard all her life and had never known love. And she was unattractive. One story says she had a hare-lip and big feet. At any rate, Lucy was likely envious of the attractive Minnie who was going to get married to Walter Irving Johnson the next day.

Here's the story about "one of the most horrible murders" in Franklin county that was attached to the previous interview, with a mention that Lucy had a grudge against Minnie's fiancé:

So—Lucy, who had worked as the Crums' servant for seven years, struck Minnie with a piece of wood  in the kitchen, a separate building from the main house. Minnie made it outside, but Lucy finished her off with the ax. Lucy had waited for two weeks and finally had an opportunity when Mrs. Crum and Grace were at Bethel Church and Mr. Crum was in Rocky Mount.

In a 10-page collection of memories written by Esterlene Smith Brooks Kesler, a close friend of Grace McBride Perdue, Mrs. Kesler wrote that Grace told her that Lucy had been sleeping with an ax for a couple weeks because she'd said she was afraid someone would come in the night. But Grace suspected that Lucy wanted to kill her as well as Minnie.

"Grace told that Minnie was first struck with a pine knot, and a trail of blood led from the kitchen table to the yard" where Lucy finished her off with the ax. "Investigators found the pine knot, but not the ax. In 1998, an ax was found in a sack when the kitchen was torn down. The blade was rusty and the handle was only about 18" long." Also in the sack was Minnie's hairclip with several teeth broken out. While the ax and clip were given to Grace's son, no one knows where they are today.

It didn't take long for the news to spread throughout the area, and a crowd began to form with the purpose of hanging Lucy.  Four or five men (including Brenda Overholt's great grandfather Isaiah "Zar" Perdue) came to walk Lucy to the train in Union Hall to take her to the poorhouse. "The men whipped Lucy's legs to make her trot and move fast." I can't help but wonder if my grandfather was one of the men who came to the Crum house. I guess I'll never know.

Soon, Lucy was taken to the jail in Roanoke for her own safety. Perhaps "the poorhouse" she might have been taken to was the Joseph Rives home in Redwood that served as the poorhouse in the 1800s.

Front of the Poorhouse.
Pictures from Brenda Overholt

Back of Poorhouse

Anyhow, after being kept in the Roanoke jail for a few months, she was brought back to Rocky Mount for trial where he was found guilty, sentenced to eighteen years, and sent to prison in Richmond. There she died of tuberculosis in 1913. During her incarceration, she worked in the prison shoeshop as a "paster." It was probably easier work than what she'd been used to.

There are no happy endings to Minnie's and Lucy's story. 

But maybe there's a happy ending for one of Minnie's nephews. Minnie's brother Lester stayed with the Browns for years but was in Richmond in 1917 where he registered for the WWI draft. He was a clerk in Richmond in 1920 but at some point reconnected with his father and moved to West Virginia, where he married in 1923 and had several children. One of Lester's sons is John Andrew McBride, who had a long successful career as a military pilot and astronaut.

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