CHAPTER V

SUSAN DAVIS

 

Susan Davis, daughter of Enoch Davis, Sr. and Elizabeth Anna DeLoach, was born in 1798 in North Carolina, according to the 1850 Census of Clarke County. She was probably the second child of Enoch and Elizabeth.

Susan married John T. McCoy on September 16, 1821, Monroe Co. Her brother, Arthur Davis, was Security. John was born in South Carolina in 1798 and served in the War of 1812, according to information provided by Preston J. Brown and Ellen G. Shelton Brown, Jackson, AL. Preston is a descendant of Susan Davis McCoy.

The 1850 Census of Clarke Co., residence #117, listed the children of John and Susan as Ritter, age 24; John T., age 21; Susan, age 12; James, age 6; and John Feridry, age 1 (?).

Susan was not listed in the 1860 Census with her husband and two sons, John T., age 19 and James R., age 17. It is apparent that John T. McCoy, Jr. cannot have been 21 in 1850 and 19 in 1860. He was probably around 30 years old in 1860.

Susan died between 1850 and 1860 and is buried in an unmarked grave across the road from the Kennedy Cemetery, Chance, Clarke County, Alabama. The date of her husband's death is unknown but he is buried beside her.

John T. McCoy, Sr. may have remarried after Susan died. There is a marriage recorded in Clarke County Marriage Records for John T. McCoy and Mrs. Martha Philen on December 29, 1864. The wedding took place at the home of E. Davis, and I assume that this was Enoch Davis, Jr.'s home, as Enoch Davis, Sr. died in 1858.

The tree under which Susan Davis and John T. McCoy are buried was in the back yard of the house where I was born. My sister and I played around this tree as children, and I remember wondering whose graves those large stones marked. I suppose I asked, since I was a very curious child, but evidently forgot. It was only after Historical Sketches of Clarke County, Alabama was published by the Clarke County Historical Society in 1977, that I finally discovered whose graves Miriam and I had played around.

When Susan's brother, Arthur M. Davis, gave the statement regarding descendants of their father, Enoch Davis, Sr.'s estate, he listed the children of Susan Davis McCoy as follows:

William McCoy Arretta McCoy Susan McCoy

Jackson McCoy Rebecca McCoy James McCoy

 

 

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WILLIAM McCoy

William McCoy, may be the oldest son of Susan Davis and John T. McCoy. When his grandfather Enoch Davis, Sr.'s estate was settled in 1858-1860, he was listed as being of age. At the time of the 1850 Census, he was not in the home with his parents.

 

JACKSON McCOY

Jackson McCoy, may be the second son of Susan Davis and John T. McCoy. In 1858-1860, when his grandfather estate was settled, Arthur M. Davis said he was of age and living in Clarke County. He was not in the home of his parents at the time of the 1850 Census.

 

REBECCA McCOY

Rebecca McCoy was probably the oldest daughter of Susan Davis and John T. McCoy. When her grandfather's estate was settled in 1858-1860, her uncle Arthur M. Davis said she was married to Columbus Stewart and living in Harris County, Georgia.

Rebecca and Columbus married in Clarke County on October 3, 1849, which is why she was not listed in the home with her parents at the time of the 1850 Census in Clarke County.

Apparently Columbus and Rebecca moved back to Alabama, according to the 1870 Clarke County Census. They were living near Lower Peach Tree, Household No. 214.

Rebecca 45

Thomas 14

Walter 2

 

 

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ARRETTA McCOY

Arretta McCoy (evidently the "Ritter" listed in the 1850 Census of Clarke County), was over 21 years old when her grandfather's estate was settled, and already married to Joseph Lawson. Her uncle Arthur M. Davis said they were living in Clarke County at the time.

Joseph Lawson was the second husband of Arretta McCoy. On May 25, 1855, she was married to John L. Gillis (see attached copy of marriage record). John must have died between 1855 and 1860.

When the 1860 Census was taken in Clarke County, Arretta, age 31, and her two sons, ages five and three, were listed in Household No. 880.

On one side of Arretta was her sister, Susan E. McCoy and her husband, John A. Thomas. on the other side was her father, John T. McCoy and her brothers, John T. Jr. and James E. McCoy.

Arretta Gillis and Joseph Lawson married on October 15, 1860. The only way I can explain the time discrepancy is that even though Enoch Davis, Sr. died in 1858, the estate was not settled and distributed until 1860 or later, by which time Arretta was married to Joseph Lawson.

 

JOHN T. McCOY, JR.

John T. McCoy, Jr. was not named by his uncle Arthur M. Davis as being one of Susan Davis McCoy's children in 1858, even though he was still living in 1860. That year he was in the home of his father, John T. McCoy, Sr.

There is an age discrepancy for John T. Jr. in the 1850 and 1860 Census. In 1850 his age was given as 21 and in 1860 as 17. obviously, he should have been 31 in 1860.

Civil War Pension Records in the Clarke County Court House in Grove Hill, Alabama show that i.T. McCoy, Pvt., Co. D, 32nd Rgt. enlisted March 10, 1862 and was discharged May 8, 1865. He applied for a pension at age 58, due to old age, and gave his address as P. 0. Coffeeville, AL. This could be John T. McCoy, Jr., son of Susan Davis and John T. McCoy, Sr.

John T. McCoy, Jr. married Littie Williams, according to the book Historical Sketches of Clarke County, Alabama and they

 

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had at least two children: John Lee McCoy and Susie McCoy. John died November 20, 1920 and is buried in an unmarked grave in the Kennedy Cemetery in Chance. Littie McCoy died on September 17, 1966. She was one of the last persons receiving a Confederate Veteran's widow's pension in Clarke County. Littie Williams was a sister to Isham Jefferson Williams, father of Jefferson Taylor Williams and Charlie Williams who married Mamie Kennedy and Zeola Kennedy, respectively(see attached copy of Lydia Jane McCoy's obituary).

 

JAMES R. McCOY

James R. McCoy, probably the youngest child of Susan Davis and John T. McCoy, was listed in the home of his parents, age 6, at the time of the 1850 Census. In 1860, his age was given as 17.

When Enoch Davis, Sr.'s estate was settled around 1860, Arthur M. Davis said that James McCoy was about 18 years old, living in Clarke County.

There is a Clarke County Marriage Record for a James R. McCoy and Rachel Elisses (?) on August 10, 1865. James J. Cobb was the officiant.

 

 

SUSAN E. McCOY

Susan E. McCoy, born March 27, 1837, was not the last child of Susan Davis and John T. McCoy, Sr., but is listed last because of the wealth of information on her and her many descendants, all of whom are on the following pages.

 

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SUSAN E. McCOY

 

Susan E. McCoy, daughter of Susan Davis and John T. McCoy, born March 27, 1837, according to records of Preston Brown, Jackson, Al. It is very likely that her middle name was "Elizabeth". as her son James Henry Thomas would later name one of his daughters "Susan Elizabeth Thomas".

Susan's first husband was John Augusta Thomas. He was the second son of Martha Thomas, according to the 1850 Census Record, Clarke County, in which she was named as head of the household, with the following children: Joseph, age 23; John A., age 21; William, age 19; and Emily, age 17. This census shows that Martha Thomas was born in South Carolina and the children were born in Conecuh County, Alabama.

The name of John Augusta Thomas' father is unknown, but it was probably one of the men listed in the following two Census Records in Conecuh County, Alabama.

 

1830: James, John, Joseph or Mabry. 1840: Alfred, Joseph, William, Mabry, or Phillip.

Joseph Augusta Thomas was born in Conecuh County, AL July 4. 1829. He married Susan McCoy November 14, 1855 (P.213, Clarke County Marriage Records). John served in the Confederate States Army and was killed during the Battle of Petersburg, VA on July 3, 1863, one day before his 34th birthday.

The 1860 Census of Clarke County lists the family as follows:

John Augusta Thomas, farmer age 27 B. Conecuh Co.

Susan 22 B. Clarke Co.

James H. 3 "

John T. (blank) "

William 5 mos. "

Susan and John had five children in all, the last two born born after 1860:

 

 

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JAMES HENRY THOMAS

 James (Jim) Henry Thomas, oldest child of Susan E. McCoy and John Augusta Thomas, was born at Damon, Clarke County, AL October 10, 1856. Damon was small community not too far from Chance, but no longer exists today. Uncle Jim married Ellen John Davis on November 21, 1881, according to Clarke County, Alabama Marriage Records, Book G, Page 411. Aunt Ellen the daughter of Arthur M. Davis and Susannah Anthony Hawkins, Arthur being a brother of Susan Davis who was married to John T. McCoy.

Uncle Jim and Aunt Ellen had ten children, and as far as I know, lived all of their married life in a log house in Chance, AL. An account of Aunt Ellen's 83rd birthday (see attached copy) states that she was born and reared in this same house, which means it was built by her father, Arthur M. Davis.

Aunt Ellen was born in 1860 and not her father's oldest child so when the old Davis/Thomas home burned to the ground in 1989, it was over 150 years old. It was a landmark in the Chance community, and those of us who had spent many memorable hours visiting in the home, mourned its loss. I am glad I made pictures of this place before it was gone.

Log houses are becoming more and more scarce, with only two original Davis houses left standing in the community, pictures of which are attached elsewhere in this book.

A complete account of Aunt Ellen and Uncle Jim's descendants will be found in the Arthur M. Davis chapter. Their ten children are listed as follows:

  1. Alice Willard Thomas 6. Susan Elizabeth Thomas

  2. Annie Pearl Thomas 7. John Davis Thomas

  3. Carrie John Thomas 8. Howard Fletcher Thomas

  4. Ruby Lee Thomas 9. Mary Eula Thomas

  5. Emma Adelle Thomas 10. Lucy Dee Thomas

Uncle Jim died July 24, 1954 and is buried in the Kennedy Cemetery, Chance, as is Aunt Ellen, who died April 3, 1946.

 

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JOHN THOMAS 

John T. Thomas, son of Susan E. McCoy and John Augusta Thomas, was born in Clarke County, Al. The 1860 Census of that county listed him after James Henry Thomas, first child of Susan and John Augusta Thomas, but his age is not recorded.

The newspaper account (see attached copy) of the Thomas boys' reunion - James Henry, Enoch and William Russin Thomas, on the occasion of Jim's 91st birthday (in 1947), stated that their brother John went to Florida "65 years ago". He was evidently in his early twenties when he migrated to Florida. The article stated further that he returned to Alabama but gave no date. He was later killed in an accident.

 

ENOCH THOMAS

 Enoch Thomas was the son of Susan E. McCoy and John Augusta Thomas. He was born after the 1860 Census of Clarke County.

Enoch left Alabama and moved to Florida, where he lived for the rest of his life. He was a veterinarian in Tampa.

Ruby Pearl Thomas Smith, great niece of Enoch Thomas, told me that he married and had one daughter named Ruby, who married a man by the name of Nipper. Ruby and Mr. Nipper had one child, a daughter named Helen, who married but had no issue.

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WILLIAM RUSSIN THOMAS

William "Billy" Russin Thomas, third child of Susan McCoy and John Augustus Thomas, was born at Damon, Clarke County, Alabama on February 15, 1860. He died July 28, 1958, and is buried at Lower Peach Tree Cemetery, Wilcox County, Alabma. He married on January 1, 1880, Alabama Virginia Vickers, daughter of Nancy Talbert Hicks and George Vickers (see chapter on Willis Bishop Hicks in Hicks Section of this book). Bama was born December 1, 1860 and died October 15, 1941. She is buried beside her husband.

 

Billy and Bama had the following eleven children:

  1. James Russin Thomas

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JAMES RUSSIN THOMAS

James Russin Thomas, oldest child of William Russin Thomas and Alabama Virginia Vickers, was born in Clarke County January 17, 1881, where he lived all of his life. He died March 12, 1973 and is buried at Choctaw Corner Cemetery near Thomasville, AL.

Russin married Renna F. Haskew, born November 27, 1881; died June 5, 1949, and is buried beside her husband. They had four children:

After the death of her first husband, Annie Marshall married William Vince Dooley. She died January 17, 1990 and is buried in Mobile beside her second husband. No issue by either husband.

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NANCY ANN THOMAS

Nancy Ann Thomas, second child of William Russin Thomas and Alabama Virginia Vickers, was born June 18, 1883; died August 25, 1952. She is buried in Old Salem Cemetery, Scyrene, AL. Nancy married Thomas Arthur Larrimore, born December 20, 1872; died April 9, 1939; also buried at Old Salem. Thomas Arthur Larrimore was married first to Nancy Leona Vickers, daughter of William Vickers, who died at age 24.

There were twelve children born to Nancy Ann Thomas and Thomas Arthur Larrimore.

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Myrtle and Hiram had four children:

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GEORGE WILLIS THOMAS

 George Willis Thomas, third child of William Russin Thomas and Alabama Virginia Vickers, lived only a few days. He was born February 28, 1885 and died March 2, 1885.

  

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ADA ADELLA THOMAS

 Ada Adella Thomas, fourth child of William Russin Thomas and Alabama Virginia Vickers, was born at Cane Creek, AL February 26, 1886; died March 26, 1945. Buried in Bethel Cemetery,Old Line Road, Whatley, Clarke County, AL. Married Henry Marvin Haskew, first cousin to John Wesley Haskew and Hiram General Haskew. Henry, the son of Sallie M. and John Haskew, was born August 29, 1877 and died May 21, 1965. He is buried in Bethel Cemetery also.

Ada and Henry Haskew had six children.

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ROBERT LEE THOMAS

Robert Lee Thomas, fifth child of William Russin Thomas and Alabama Virginia Vickers, was born December 4, 1887, Clarke Co.; died January 29, 1971; buried in Kennedy Cemetery, Chance, AL. Lee married Ruby Pearl Green, daughter of Leslie Green and Jane Rhodes. Ruby Pearl was born November 7, 1890 and died on January 26, 1919, in Mobile, following the birth of her last child. She was buried in the Gates Cemetery, Packers Bend, near Lower Peach Tree. Three children:

Dutch died September 9, 1976, at Maxwell Air Force Base Hospital and was buried in Greenwood Cemetery, Montgomery Alabama.

There were four children born to Ruby Pearl Thomas and Dutch Smith.

 

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WILLIE DALTON THOMAS

Willie Dalton Thomas, sixth child of William Russin Thomas and Alabama Virginia Vickers, was born February 12, 1890 and died on December 28, 1967. Married Myrtle Davis of Paris, Texas, born October 22, 1896; died September 14, 1983. Five children:

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James Arnold Thomas married second, Eileen Zak, born in Lawton, OK on November 8, 1927, the daughter of Mayer Zak and Minnie Weinstein. Second marriage took place on September 7, 1 9 6 3 .

 

 

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NINNIE MAE THOMAS

Ninnie Mae Thomas, seventh child of William Russin Thomas and Alabama Virginia Vickers, was born in Clarke County near Lower Peach Tree on January 17, 1892. She died February 19, 1969 in Tuscaloosa. Ninnie Mae married June 2, 1912, Wilson Monroe Brown who was born in Pickens County, AL on August 29, 1887. He died in Tuscaloosa on September 20, 1971 and is buried in Pickens Co. AL between Carrollton and Gordo, AL, as is his wife. The name of the cemetery is Marvin Chapel.

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  H. Janice Irene Brown (twin), born at Fairhope, May 24, 1948. She married Hayes Latham on June 9, 1965 and they have four children.

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LORENZO NOBLE THOMAS

Lorenzo Noble Thomas, eighth child of William Russin Thomas and Alabama Virginia Vickers, was born February 5, 1884; died July 28 1958. He married Louella Virginia Green, born March 5, 1892; died February 7, 1969. Louella was a first cousin to Ruby Pearl Green who married Robert Lee Thomas, Noble's brother.

Noble and Louella had the following five children, all born Texas.

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WILLIAM COMER THOMAS

William Comer Thomas, ninth child of William Russin Thomas and Alabama Virginia Vickers, was born January 28, 1896 and died November 10, 1981. He was married to Carrie McElyea on November 15, 1923. She was born May 19, 1905 and died February 26, 1982. Both are buried in Paris, Texas.

Comer and Carrie had only one child, a son:

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KOSSIE DEWEY THOMAS

Kossie Dewey Thomas, tenth child of William Russin Thomas and Alabama Virginia Vickers, was born May 8, 1898; died April 6, 1978. He married on May 2, 1920 in Tuscaloosa, Sarah Howard, born June 20, 1891; died March 12, 1985. She is buried in Mt. Herman Cemetery, Hale County, AL. It is presumed that Kossie is buried in the same cemetery. Sarah was the daughter of John Watt Howard and Minnie Ida Mansfield.

Kossie and Sarah Thomas had seven children, all born in Hale County, AL.

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MINNIE LOU THOMAS

Minnie Lou Thomas, eleventh and last child of William Russin Thomas and Alabama Virginia Vickers, was born in Clarke County, Alabama on July 27, 1900; died November 20, 1979. She married Thomas Albert Primm, born in Monroe County, AL.

Minnie Lou and Thomas had five children:

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MARY LAVINIA THOMAS

Mary Lavinia Thomas is believed to be the only daughter of Susan McCoy and her first husband, John Augusta Thomas. She was born after 1860, as she is not listed in the home of her parents and brothers in the census that year. Lavinia married James Marcellus Bradford, born in 1857, the son of James T. Bradford and Mary E. Walker.

While researching the Davis family, I was told that Lavinia and her husband had migrated to Arkansas, and had settled in the town of Banks. Preston Brown's booklet on the William Russin Thomas family listed several of the children. With this limited information on Lavinia, I wrote to the postmaster of Banks, Arkansas the last of January, 1990. Around March lst I received a letter from Lavinia's granddaughter in Houston, Texas. Since that time we have spoken on the telephone and exchanged letters and data.

Thanks to this granddaughter, Myra Loomis Mulcare, the record of Mary Lavinia Thomas is complete.

Mary Lavinia Thomas was born in 1863 in Clarke County, Al. On November 22, 1878 she married James Marcellus Bradford, born in 1857. He died April 20, 1913 and she between 1910-13. They are buried in McFarland Cemetery, Banks, Arkansas.

The family is listed as follows in the 1880 Census of Clarke Co., AL Beat #17, Cane Creek:

Lavenia and Marcellus had thirteen children, listed as follows but not necessarily in order of their birth:

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Picture: Walter and Eunice Loomis

 

 

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SUSAN McCOY THOMAS STEELE

Susan McCoy Thomas was an herb doctor. Dr. Koss Mayer, who was a physician in Lower Peach Tree and surrounding communities, is reported to have said that she was as good as a medical doctor in the treatment of childhood diseases.

After the death of her first husband, Susan married John Steele on June 26, 1864, according to Clarke County Marriage Records.

The 1870 Clarke County Census Records, Grove Hill Precinct, listed the family in Household No. 154, with the Arthur M. Davis family listed in Household No. 156. The first five children are by Susan's first husband, John A. Thomas.

John Steele, Farmer age 53 RE,$400 PP,$100

Susan Steele 32

James H. Thomas 12

John L. or T. Thomas 10

William R. Thomas 8

Enoch D. Thomas 7

Mary L. Thomas 6

Zorastus E. Steele 4

Emma J. Steele 3

Thomas E. Steele 8 mos.

John Steele also served in the Confederate States Army, as a Private with Co. C. He died March 27, 1888. According to Pension Records on file in the Clarke County Court House in Grove Hill, AL, Susan applied for a pension under his name, giving her address as P. O., Chance, AL.

Susan and John Steele had the following six children:

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Coleman and Sara Adell Myrick. He died May 10, 1982, and is also buried in Hopewell Cemetery. Sallie and her husband had five children, all born in Walker Springs.

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Susan E. McCoy Thomas Steele died November 16, 1929 and is buried in the Kennedy Cemetery in Chance, Alabama. On the occasion of her death, Lucy Dee Thomas Browne, a granddaughter, wrote a tribute to Susan (see at tached copy).

 

Note: Susan E. McCoy's second husband, John Steele, was a brother to my great grandfather, James L. Goree Steele. My mother, Leslie Elma Faile, was a daughter of Carl Steele, who was a daughter of James L. Goree Steele. James and John were sons of Elias Steele, an early settler in Clarke County. MKR

 

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