The Heart Necklace

For awhile in cousin Ludora Coleman Ball's life. daughter of Smylie Coleman and Joann Benson, the heart necklace was a favorite to wear. If you look closely at the picture below, you can see it around her neck, below the pin on her blouse. Ludora's cousin Elaine also has on the same necklace.

 Ludora Coleman,  Elijah "Puddin" Smith and Elijah's sister Elaine Smith

 

Ludora has on the same necklace in her high school graduation picture of 1946

Here she is again with her husband Mozell Ball and two daughters with the heart necklace.

Ludora Coleman Ball is my 2nd cousin. We share the same great grandparents Monroe Markham and Mary Byrd.

Marilda Ann Jackson Ball 1868-1947

Lillie Mae Jackson, of Brookhaven, recognized this photo of her grandmother, Marilda Ball, who lived in the Caseville area, was born in 1863 and died March 24 1947.

Jackson recalled that the photograph was taken in 1942, because her brother, Mozell Ball, was going off to World War II and wanted a photograph of his grandmother to take with him. Apparently it bought him good luck because he was in Hawaii during the bombing of Pearl Harbor and survived to eventually retire from the military after many years of service.

Marilda had three girls, Luberta, Emma and Adelaide, who was mother to Lillie Mae Jackson. Jackson has three children of her own: Ivy Burt of Brookhaven, Anderson Burt of Milwaukee, Wisc., and Mozel Jackson of Brookhaven who called with these details and was named after his uncle.

From information gathered from census records, Marilda was the daughter of Levi Jackson and Harriet Coleman. She was found in the census records from 1870 through 1940 with the exception of the 1930 census. She married Alex Ball in 1909, Lincoln County, Mississippi.

Here s a picture of Marilda's grandson, Mozell Ball, dressed in his military uniform.

Mozell married my maternal 2nd cousin, Ludora Coleman, daughter of Smylie and Joanna Benson Coleman. Here is a picture of Mozell, Ludora and two of their daughters, Shirley and Jane.

The Ladies of Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church

First Row: Ms. Pinkie Wilson, Mrs. Gladys Winston, Mrs. Addie Mae Cameron Tillman, Mrs. Edna Pinkney, Mrs. Durr (my paternal cousin's wife), Mrs. Frances Stanton, and Mrs. Beatrice Markham Johnson (my maternal grand aunt).

Second Row: Mrs. Lisann Durr Roundtree (my paternal cousin), Mrs. Beulah Ann Williams, Mrs. Lula Mae Thomas, Mrs. Annie Mae Manson, Mrs. Martina Barton, Mrs. Willie Mae Thomas, and Mrs. Emma Jane Winston.

Third Row: Ms. Cora Bell Benson and Mrs. Edith Lee Washington

"This is a photo of the Women's Missionary Society of Bethel AME Church. The photo was taken for a Souvenir Journal to host the 1968 Annual Conference of the Mississippi Conference of the African Methodist Episcopal Church." Dexter Holloway

The church is located in Brookhaven, Mississippi.

Photo Courtsey of Dexter Holloway

Men and their Overalls

Overalls were the uniform of southern farmers, and elsewhere.

Aunt Ada Markham Spencer and her husband Ernest (1881-1971)
Ernest was a farmer in Copiah County, Mississippi.
He was the son of Lewis Spencer and Emaline/Emma Smiley.

Cousin Sam Baker (1927-2009) of Brookhaven, MS
He was the son of Gilbert Baker and Nannie Benson.

Cousin John Henry Jordan (1900-1991) and his wife Frances Davis
He was a farmer in Copiah County, MS.
He was the son of William Burl Jordan and Mariah McGrew.

Cousin James Pearly Scott, Jr (1900-1992)
Farmer in Caseyville, Lincoln County, MS
Son of James Pearly Scott and Catherine Markham

Photographs courtesy of Anita Christopher and Rance Brown
Cory Broadnax
Shawnmarie Jordan Gonzalez
and James Earl Scott

Veteran's Day - 2015

Mozell Ball
1924-1993
World War II
Son of Alex Ball and Adla Jackson
Husband of Lue Dora Coleman
Husband of Mary Elizabeth Williams

How does Mozell Ball connect to my family tree?
Lue Dora Coleman, Mozell's wife, was the daughter of Smylie Coleman and Joanna Benson.
Smylie Coleman was the son of Henry Coleman and Eudora "Dora" Markham.
Eudora Markham Coleman and my grandmother, Alice Markham Marshall, were sisters.

Find a Grave - Mozell's Headstone

Photograph courtesy of Cory Broadnax
Private Collection of Jurlean Coleman Thomas

Wordless Wednesday Charlie Benson 1878 - 1962

Son of James Benson and Laura Mae Pierce
Husband of Lula Young and Dora Henderson
Father of Joanna, Nannie, Nathaniel, Louada, R W, Laura, Charlie Ray, and Helen

How does Charlie connect to my family?
Charlie's daughter, Joanna, married Smylie Arthur Coleman.
Smylie was the son of Henry Coleman and Eudora "Dora" Markham.
Eudora and my maternal grandmother, Alice Markham Marshall, were siblings.

Photograph courtesy of Cory Broadnax
Direct Descendant of Charlie Benson

Ludora Coleman 1946 Alexander High School Graduate

Ludora Coleman
Daughter of Smiley and Joanna Benson Coleman
1946 Graduate of Alexander High School
Brookhaven, Mississippi

Ludora is my mother's 1st cousin once removed.

Photograph Courtesy of Lincoln-Lawrence-Franklin Regional Library

Cousins and Crushes

Left to right:
Ludora Coleman, b. about 1926, daughter of Smylie Coleman and Joanna Benson
Elijah "Puddin" Smith b. about 1921, son of Asimane Smith and Carrie Jackson
Believed to be a sister of Elijah

The Smith siblings and Ludora were cousins, related through their maternal lines. Elijah had a crush on Ludora's sister Dorcas and he was told he could not marry her because they were cousins. It was said that anyone you had a romantic interest in the Caseyville area was likely a cousin but that didn't stop Elijah from marrying another Caseyville cousin, Velma Scott.

Photograph courtesy of Lincoln County Public Library