John was born in 1865 in Mississippi. By 1930, he and Lyda were living in Steele. She was born in 1884 in Kentucky. They were married around 1901-1902. John died in 1944 and his obituary says that he was a farmer and that he left only Lyda as his survivor. He did have nephews who were pallbearers, but I don't know whether they were sons of his siblings or of Lyda's siblings. His funeral was at the Methodist church in Steele and he was buried at Steele cemetery. Rev. Lawrence Wood officiated at the funeral.
Lyda lived until 1967, but I don't have more information about her. I believe that her maiden name may have been May, but that may have been her middle name. She is also buried at the Steele cemetery.
Okay, longtime Steele residents, does anyone have clues about who they were? Any connections to others living in Steele?
I added an image of the 1940 census showing John and Lyda living on Crump Road near the Gentry, Barron, and McClung families.
ReplyDeleteI can't quit! Lesley Dow Byrd, father of Mary Lou O'Barr, was the census taker so the image above is a sample of his handwriting.
ReplyDeleteMary Lou Byrd O'Barr came here and read the information you had posted about the Martins. She doesn't remember them, but she did recognize her dad's handwriting.
ReplyDeleteI,too, share your interest in Steele prior to our arriving. Sadly, too much of our history is now in cemeteries. I was able to reconstruct the early years of my Dad, such that I know more about them now than he remembered. His older sister was very helpful in that effort. We had recorded interviews with her about their growing up. I know that Jane's Mom was good friends with the George Crump's daughter from photos. She often visited the Crump's when they lived where the Jack Beason home is now. There would be a lot of good stories to reconstruct but information to do so doesn't exist anymore. The best bet would be to piece together any details that families might have retained from their ancestors regarding Steele in its early years. You never know what one might find. May luck be with you as you continue to search.
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