Demonstrating the Effectiveness of Cluster Genealogy

 

Hector Davis (1842-1925) & Lucy Milam Davis (1846-1927)

In genealogy research, cluster genealogy is a technique that has proven to yield great results. This technique involves researching beyond your core family or your direct ancestors. Cluster genealogy entails researching the community where they resided, especially their immediate neighbors. This is also known as researching an ancestor’s F.A.N. Club. F.A.N. stands for Friends, Associates, and Neighbors. This methodology has helped me tremendously throughout my research. I will demonstrate one of my cluster genealogy cases that involved my great great grandparents, Hector & Lucy Davis.

Let’s take a look at the 1910 Panola County, Mississippi census page (transcribed below) that contained Grandpa Hector and Grandma Lucy. Immediately, you will notice that they were not the only folks with the Davis surname on that page. Notice that their next-door neighbor was a Johnson family, headed by Wesley Johnson. Like Grandpa Hector, his birthplace was also recorded as being South Carolina. Also, the elderly Mitchells, who are white, lived in the vicinity among all of the Davises, in household no. 12. Like Grandpa Hector and Wesley, Mrs. Martha Mitchell was also born in South Carolina. The following table below shows household nos. 12 to 23 and the connection to my great great grandparents. I have called this area “Davis Village,” which comprised of 56 members of my maternal grandmother’s family when the census-taker visited the area on April 15, 1910. She was a small child at the time. Other family members lived nearby on a different road.

	Household	Relationship	Age	My Comment
12	Mitchell, Clint W.	Head	64
	“     Martha A.	Wife	73	She was born in So. Carolina.
13	Davis, Hugh	Head	25	Hector’s nephew & Lucy’s nephew
	“     Francis	Wife	20
	“     Bertha	Daughter	4
	“     Alice	Daughter	3
	“     Ada	Daughter	1
14	Davis, John	Head	39	My great grandfather
	“     Mary	Wife	40
	“     John W.	Son	17
	“     Ollie	Son	15
	“     Jesse	Son	13
	“     James	Son	11
	“     May Ella	Daughter	9
	“     Fred	Son	7
	“     Pearl	Daughter	5
	“     Rainey	Son	3
	“     Minnie	Daughter	1	My grandmother
15	Davis, John Anna	Head	21	Hector’s niece & Lucy’s niece
	“     Lilian	Cousin	15
16	Davis, Shep	Head	27	Hector’s nephew & Lucy’s nephew
	“     Mittie	Wife	25
	“     Orna	Son	7
	“     Homer	Son	5
	“     Shirley	Daughter	3
	“     Lucille	Daughter	1 mth
17	Davis, Sam	Head	37	Hector & Lucy Davis’ son
	“     Texana	Wife	34
18	Davis, Tom	Head	25	Hector & Lucy Davis’ son
	“     Henrietta	Wife	26
	“     Lucious	Son	6 mos
	Partee, Minnie	Sister-in-law	16
	“     Druella	Sister-in-law	14
	“     Edna	Sister-in-law	11
	“     Square	Brother-in-law	7
19	Davis, Zack	Head	26	Hector & Lucy Davis’ son
	“     Lizzie	Wife	26
	“     Leroy	Son	5
	“     Luberta	Daughter	1
20	(white Cook Family)
21	Davis, Hector	Head	68	My great great grandparents
	“     Lucy	Wife	64
	“     Alex	Son	20
	“     Sam	Grandson	9
	Edwards, Ben	Grandson	3
22	Johnson, Whesley	Head	56	Hector’s first cousin born in So. Carolina
	“     Evaline	Wife	55
	“     Fannie	Daughter	25
	“     Mack	Son	20
	“     Eugenia	Daughter	12
	“     Evaline	Granddaughter	9
	“     Mary J.	Granddaughter	6
23	Burton, John	Head	36
	“     Evaline	Wife	36	Cousin Wesley Johnson’s daughter
	“     Bertha	Daughter	13
	“     Hattie	Daughter	9
	“     John W.	Son	7
	“     McClinton	Son	5
	“     Oscar	Son	2

Source: Portion of 1910 U.S. Census, Beat 1, Panola County, Mississippi. Line 37-100. Year: 1910; Census Place: Beat 1, Panola, Mississippi; Roll: T624_755; Family History Film: 1374768; Page: 2A; Enumeration District: 0054. Source: Ancestry.Com.

Wesley Johnson and Grandpa Hector Davis were first cousins. I’ll first discuss how I found out about this connection. Back in 1993, when I started actively researching at the Mississippi Department of Archives and History (MDAH), I found my great grandparents’ marriage record. My maternal grandmother’s parents, John Hector Davis and Mary Danner, had married on January 7, 1892, in Panola County, Mississippi. I noticed that a man named Wesley Johnson was Grandpa John’s bondsman. John Davis and Wesley Johnson went to the Panola County courthouse, and Grandpa John took out a bond, indicating his intention to marry Grandma Mary and that the pending marriage was legal. Wesley Johnson signed his mark as Grandpa John’s security on the bond. During this time, I learned that bondsmen were often family members.

The marriage record of John Davis and Mary Danner, Jan. 7, 1892, Panola County, Mississippi

When I saw the name Wesley Johnson, I suddenly remembered that I had seen that name before. Then, I remembered that Wesley was a next-door neighbor to Grandpa John’s parents, Hector & Lucy Davis, in the 1910 U.S. Census. So I picked up the phone and called my late grandmother’s first cousin, the late Cousin Sammie Lee Davis Hayes. She was in her 80s and was very knowledgeable about the family history. She also enjoyed talking about it. Cousin Sammie Lee revealed to me that Wesley Johnson, whom she called Cut'n Wesley (Cut’n as a southern slang for Cousin), was a first cousin to my great great grandfather, Hector Davis. She conveyed the following, “Cut’n Wesley and Grandpa Hector were very close, just like brothers, but they were first cousins. He came with them from South Carolina. I don’t know how they come to be first cousins.”

I was soon able to figure out that the last enslavers of Grandpa Hector Davis, his parents, Jack & Flora Davis, his siblings, and other family members, including Cousin Wesley Johnson, were a couple named John & Anna Johnson Burnett. “Ain’t Gonna Take Massa’s Name” is my 2012 blog post that outlines that discovery. The Burnetts had transported them to Panola County, Mississippi around 1860/61, when he and his family decided to leave Abbeville County, South Carolina. They had resided in an area that was halfway between Abbeville and Greenwood, South Carolina. John died shortly thereafter, in 1863, and Grandpa Hector, his parents, his siblings, Cousin Wesley, and others were appraised on the slave inventory of his estate (shown in the aforementioned blog post). One of his children was Martha Burnett. She married a man named Clinton Mitchell. They were the same Mitchells who lived among my Davis ancestors in 1910, approximately 45 years after slavery.

Family elders also shared with me that Grandpa Hector Davis owned his own land. My cousin recalled that he had around 80 acres. They were accurate! Column 26 of the 1910 U.S. Census recorded if the head of household owned (O) or rented (R) his home. “O” was recorded for Grandpa Hector! “O” was also recorded for Clinton Mitchell. “R” was recorded for the rest in “Davis Village.” Although I haven’t found a land record yet, I highly suspect that Grandpa Hector may have been able to purchase a piece of the Burnetts’ land, where he labored during slavery shortly after being transported to northern Mississippi from South Carolina.

Below is a map pointing to the area where they lived in 1910, based on accounts from family elders. One of those family elders was another one of my grandmother’s first cousins, the late William Davis, who lived in the vicinity when I first visited him in 1993, shortly after those first trips to the MDAH. A descendant of John Burnett had also shared with me that John Burnett’s farm was located on the Tate-Panola County line but on the Tate County side. I realized that this was in the same area where “Davis Village” was located in 1910, but on the other side of the road in Panola County. Also, notice that the name of the road is Mitchell Road, likely named after Clinton & Martha Burnett Mitchell. 

Panola County, Mississippi

Performing cluster genealogy enabled me to learn these important tidbits about Grandpa Hector Davis’ history. That 1910 census page alone tells a story. Grandpa Hector died fifteen years later, on July 7, 1925. Family elders shared that his mule named Jenny had kicked him in the head, and he died instantly. He was approximately 83 years old. Indeed, his death certificate (below) verified the cause of death. My great grandfather, John Hector Davis, was the informant.

Grandpa Hector Davis’ death certificate: The cause of death was noted as “Kicked by mule in head; died with concussion of the brain.”

Losing a Sibling

There on the Barr farm, just a mile north of Abbeville, South Carolina, Sue and her brothers, Pleasant and Glasgow, labored together, laughed together, played together, prayed together, and always looked out for each other. When Sue was allowed to come back to the slave cabin at night, after working all day in the big house, she couldn't wait to tell her brothers and their parents, Lewis and Fanny, what the "white folks" talk about. She was good at mimicking them, that it usually had everyone rolling on the floor laughing out loud.

Glasgow and Pleasant looked after their only sister Sue. When a white-looking, mulatto young man named Jacob, who was enslaved on the neighboring Leslie Plantation, wanted her hand in marriage, he had to go through her brothers first. Glasgow and Pleasant didn't make it easy for Jacob, either. Pleasant would often taunt him jokingly, often making Jacob nervous. Nonetheless, the brothers soon realized that Jacob was deeply in love with their beautiful sister, and they approved of the marriage. They felt that their late father Lewis would have approved. With every child that Sue was having (Sina, John, Luther, Edmond, Cannon, Louvenia, Clay, Jacob Jr., Lewis, Joseph, Patsy, and Susie), Glasgow and Pleasant waited with nervous Jacob as Momma Fanny delivered another grandchild into the world.

In the midst of bearing and raising children and being a wife to Jacob, Sue was Mrs. Rebecca's prized possession, her trusted house servant. One night in 1859, after a long day of helping Ms. Rebecca polish the silver, Sue ran back to her mother's cabin in tears. Her heart was torn apart. Crying uncontrollably, she was barely able to talk, but she managed these words, “They gonna sell Pleas!”

She had overheard her "massa" William Barr Jr. tell his mother Rebecca that a man named James Giles offered him $1,400 for his slave, Pleasant, her brother. Giles was preparing for a move to Ripley, Mississippi and wanted extra laborious hands to help him build his new farm in Mississippi. William was planning to take his offer. He explained to his mother, “Mom, I really need the money to help me buy the Wilson place in Pontotoc County (Mississippi).” William Jr. was also looking to move to Mississippi. Rebecca nodded her head in approval of the transaction.

The next morning, Momma Fanny received a knock on her cabin door. William Jr. shouted, “Fanny, open the door!” She nervously went to the door and opened it.

“Where’s Pleas,” asked William Jr.

Fanny responded, “He and Isabella is out in the barn milking the cows, massa.”

Babysitting her grandson Bill, he looked up at Momma Fanny and asked, “Grandma, what does Massa want with Daddy?” She immediately grabs Bill and hugs him tightly, too hurt to tell him what was about to happen.

Entering the barn, William Jr. hollered out, “Pleas, come here boy!”

Pleas responded, “Please, massa, Please! Don’t sell me to Mr. Giles. I has a wife and two young chil’ren. Isabella, Bill, and Mary needs me! My sister needs me! Momma Fanny is getting up in age, and she needs me, massa! This is gonna break their hearts!”

William commanded, “Shut up, boy! Jim Giles just need to take care of some business in Mississippi and needs your help. He will bring you back to Abbeville!”

Pleas appeared somewhat comforted by his words, not realizing that William had just told him a bold-faced lie.

As Pleas was being placed on Giles’ wagon, Fanny, Isabella, and Sue run to the wagon! Fanny yelled, “Nooooo!! Please don’t take my Pleas! Please, massa! His young family needs him!”

Fighting back tears, Sue grabbed her brother Pleas’ hand and held it tightly. With tears streaming down her face, she looked up at Pleas and said, “Don’t worry my dear brother. We will see after Momma. I’ll help Isabella with the chil’rens. I will see you again. Yes, we all will. I love you, dear brother.”

As the wagon exited off the Barr farm, loud crying can be heard in the air. Momma Fanny’s heart was too broken, as her crying got louder and louder. Her boy was being taken way, likely forever. His two young children were standing there, in complete shock at what was happening, as they held on to their mother Isabella’s long skirt. She herself was near fainting. This was reminding Fanny of when she was taken from her own family in Virginia and brought down to Abbeville, South Carolina in chains, where the late Rev. William Barr had purchased her at an auction in downtown Abbeville in 1809. She was only 17 years old. She knew the pain of permanent family separation. She also knew that she’ll never see Pleas again.

Today, as many celebrate National Siblings Day, I was compelled to write this fictional story that is based on facts. It wasn’t even a plan. Just a sudden urge and I started typing.

My great-great-grandfather, Pleasant "Pleas" Barr, was in fact sold to a man named James Giles in 1859, and Giles transported him to Tippah County, Mississippi. His son, my mother’s paternal grandfather Bill Reed, relayed to his family years later that Pleas was never seen again. Later the same year, in 1859, Pleas’ sister Sue Barr Beckley, her husband Jacob and their children, and their mother Fanny were taken to William Barr’s new farm in Pontotoc County, Mississippi. Glasgow Barr was left back in Abbeville.

Like Pleas, many of our enslaved ancestors were sold away from their siblings, never to see them again. I can’t even imagine the pain they endured. So on this National Siblings Day, I want to pay homage to our enslaved ancestors who suffered that pain. May DNA and genealogy research bring more of the descendants back together! Factual details of this family saga can be read in “150 Years Later” at www.150yearslater.com.

One of my Barr/Beckley DNA Matches in AncestryDNA! She shares 15.1 cM with me!

Pictured above are three of Pleas Barr’s grandchildren that he never laid eyes on, Jimmy Reed (1871-1959), John Ella Reed Bobo (1882-1974), and his namesake, Pleasant “Pleas” Reed (1889-1966), of Tate County, Mississippi.