Ancestor Callings: Georgia and Mississippi Roots

Tuesday, July 28, 2026

NOT climbing the wrong tree: William Turner Williams

William Turner Williams, 1858-1954

from the personal collection of Sandra Williams Bush,

obtained 2011 (Willis B. Williams collection)

William Turner Williams is my paternal great-grandfather. To learn about his life, I initially looked at U.S. census records -- records that are easily accessible though sites such as the National Archives, FamilySearch.org, Ancestry.com.

As I worked backward from the 1940 census, which was the latest one available at the time, I saw a slight variation on how his name was recorded. In 1940, he was Turner Williams; in 1930 and 1920, he was W. T. Williams; in 1910, 1900, and 1870 he was Turner Williams. His county and state of residence was consistently listed as Jones County, Georgia in the 1870 census and then from 1900-1930 -- even when the specific town may have been different. The first county change was in 1940, when he, his wife, Mary Jane and other family members were living in Howard, Bibb County, Georgia. When the 1950 census was released, my great-grandfather was one of the first Ancestors I looked for -- he was listed as William T. Williams, widowed, living in Howard, Bibb County. Georgia with his married daughter, Daisy, and her husband, Steven Hudson.

1880 U. S. Census

Where is William Turner Williams? Who is he living with? What is he doing?

1870 U.S. Census

The 1870 census was the first census that formally enslaved persons were named with both first and last names.

The form did not ask for a person's relationship to the head of the household (such as "wife" or "son"). That column did not start until 1880. The head of the household was listed first, typically followed by the spouse, and then children in order of their age (oldest to youngest), followed by any boarders, lodgers, or servants. This instruction was given in the 1850 census and carried forward.

Of course, I analyzed every census record, but the 1870 gave me pause. Dwelling 868, Family 870 lists in order: Jackson Williams, 35; Lucy Williams. 30; William, 13; Thomas, 11; Jackson, 9; Oliver, 7; Peter, 3; Turner Williams, 13; and Hannah Clemens, 65.

Every family tree "hint" I get on Ancestry.com has Jackson Williams as Turner's father. I was not satisfied with that assumption. I had questions.

Why was Turner Williams, 13, listed after the age progression of the other children who were grouped together? Was Turner taken in as an orphan, a family member? I also noted that there was a William Williams who was also 13 years old. Why was William a farm laborer and Turner "at home"?

Yes, William Williams and William Turner Williams are two different people. I did a deep dive and fell down many rabbit holes.

1870; Census Place: Popes, Jones, Georgia; Roll: M593_160; Page: 240A; Image: 487; Family History Library Film: 545659

It is recommended that a person look at least five pages forward and five pages back when finding their family member on a census record. I went through several pages and found ten other families -- both Black and White -- with the Williams surname.

1870 U.S census (surname: Williams)

Inhabitants in Popes District, Jones County, Georgia (pp 86-117)

Post Office: Clinton, Jones County, Georgia

Page	Dwelling	Family	Head of household		Color	Family members
101	794	800	Idam Williams, 46	Farm laborer	B	F: 53, 80
102	801	807	Agnes Williams, 18	Farm laborer	B	F: 16,14,12; M: 9, 1
107	840	846	Benjamin Williams, 63	Farm laborer	B	F:21, 2 mos; M 4
109	855	861	Joseph Williams, 34	Farm laborer	B	F: 36, 14,13,12,3 M:15,11,7
110	858	864	Eli Williams, 22	Farm laborer	B	F: 20,3 M: 1
	859	865	John W Williams, 60	Farmer, Landowner	W	F: 48, 90 Servants F: 37,15 M:13
	860	866	John Williams, 19	Farm laborer	W	F: 20 Servant M: 13
			Charles Williams, 40	Farm laborer	B	F: 35,14,11,9 M: 2
	868	870	Jackson Williams	Farm laborer	M
111	859	865	Thomas Williams, 52	Farmer	W	Includes: Catherine Williams, 12, farm laborer Mary Williams, 19, servant
	861	867	Stephen Williams, 24	Farm laborer	B	M: 22,11

It is also recommended that when you find a Black person on the 1870 census, look at nearby White people (1) who have the same surname; (2) have money and/or property. The reason for this is that the White person may have been a possible enslaver. I saw the possibility to research two families headed by White men that had land and money -- John W. Williams, age 60 and Thomas Williams, age 52. In my research I found that the two men were brothers who inherited their land and enslaved from their father.

Census records are just the tip of family history and genealogy research. The records are easily accessible at various sites and most often the information is free to view. They should be used as a jumping off point -- analyze and question EVERYTHING. I really enjoy the thrill of the discoveries and piecing stories together to get a fuller picture.

In a previous blog entry on William Turner Williams and Mary Jane Williams, I wrote about how I contacted a Georgia funeral home for information. Fortunately, they responded with the record they had from 1954 when they handled his funeral. The record is one of two that I have which gives his father's name as John Williams. The other record is his death certificate from the Georgia Department of Public Health, #14510. The informant was Mrs. Rufus Hudson, aka Fannie, one of his daughters.

The result of my research of my great-grandfather, William Turner Williams is that his father was John W. Williams, Jr. who was an enslaver. This was further verified by dna results that connect me to descendants of John and his family.

While I did climb Jackson Williams' tree, I am still unclear on his relationship to my great-grandfather. I can surmise that William Turner was in his household because he certainly couldn't live with his biological father, John.

So, I join the chorus of other family researchers who plead with those searching for their roots, (1) DO THE RESEARCH, (2) DO NOT COPY information from the trees of others.

Wednesday, July 15, 2026

Genealogy Disconnect (of sorts)

Anna Mae (Button) Davenport

Willis B. Williams with Richard Lee Davenport

Biologically Anna Mae (Button) Davenport and Richard Lee Davenport are my great aunt and great uncle. Emotionally they are my grandparents, and I have fond memories of them.

Back Story

Anna Mae Button Davenport, born about 1897 is one of the younger sisters of my biological grandmother, Florence Clay Button, born about 1889. All the sisters were born in Georgia to the parents of Henry Clay Button and Mary Lane. The other Button sisters include Ida Belle, born 1896; Bessie, born 1904, and Verna Elizabeth, born 1909.

My grandmother, Florence had seven children that included my father, Willis B. Williams. She passed away on August 28, 1941, in Detroit Michigan just two days before my father's 12th birthday. My father was born in Detroit and had lived there up until that point. Unfortunately, I never asked and he never mentioned exactly when he came to Buffalo, New York but he did speak of going to elementary school in Buffalo.

Of his four maternal aunts, Ida Belle had passed away in 1940, Bessie had passed away in 1937, Verna Elizabeth had two children, and Anna Mae had no children. That Anaa Mae was childless, probably led to the decision that my father and his sister, Joan live with her and her husband even though it meant moving them to another city and state.

He lived with his Aunt Mae (as she was called) and Uncle Richard until shortly after he married. As a young struggling couple, my parents lived with them for a while when I was a baby.

Moving Forward

From my earliest memories, my great aunt Anna Mae and great uncle Richard Lee were my grandparents. That is how I introduced them. That is how they introduced me and my four brothers. They filled us with their grandparent love on a regular basis -- and then there were holidays and our birthdays that they always made extra special.

We called them Deety and Pop-poo. Their home was always had food stuff that we didn't regularly have at home, like fresh fruit and a candy bowl always filled with candy. We always thought of them as rich because of where they lived -- the Cold Springs/Hamlin Park area of Buffalo, New York. Although we didn't realize it at the time, it was a section of the city with a significant number of Black professionals.

I remember Sunday rides in Pop-poo's station wagon that had the "wood" on the side. We would go to the waterfront and sometimes to Canada. It was so much easier to cross the border at that time. Eastertime, Deety took us to Sears and Robuck for Easter outfits. Before the holiday, she would make chocolate eggs with a coconut filling -- and she would let me help. As the oldest and only girl, I often spent the night at house on the weekend or school vacations. I remember watching the Ed Sullivan Shoow and the Lawrence Welk Show. Much more that stuff, their home was safety, acceptance, and above all, love.

And then there were parts of my summers when I stayed with them in Idlewild, Michigan that I wrote about in another blog post.

Deety's obituary lists five grandchildren -- myself and my four brothers. Deety and Pop-poo are forever my grandparents and always in my heart.

So, my genealogy disconnect is looking at my pedigree chart and looking at family unit charts that list Deety and Pop-poo as anything other as my grandparents.

Tuesday, March 31, 2026

(A) Marshall's Sale of Enslaved: Raymond, Hinds, Mississippi, 1841

I came across this article from a local newspaper in Raymond, Mississippi when researching a family surname of STAMPS. In addition to the surname catching my eye, the location is an area where my Ancestors have lived -- to date I have documented ancestral family from Holmes, Rankin, and Simpson counties in Mississippi.

The city of Raymond is in Hinds County, Mississippi and it is one of two county seats, the other being Jackson, Mississippi. Directly to the east of Hinds County is Rankin County where my STAMPS family is from and it seems they continue to live.

At this point I don't know if I am connected to the enslaver(s) or the enslaved. Named are 36 men, women, and children who are being publicly sold in 1841.This is a time period when enslaved people were most often only named as property being bought, sold, or given in Wills,

A Marshall's Sale was a public auction held by a court-appointed Marshall to settle debts, legal judgments, or estates.

From the article . . . the following named negroes to wit: Rachael, Louisa, Rindah, Charles, Fanny, and one child (Ann,) George, Sally and one child Hubbard, Tom, Abram, Clarisa, and three children (William, Amorica and Manual,) Ben, Harriet, Anderson, Diannah, Anthony, Patrick, Phil, Isaac, Calvin, Melton, Shack, Aberdeen, Gilpin, Milly, Rosanna, John, Robert, Peter, Franky and two children (July and Peter,) . . .

I call their names and keep them in my heart.

South-Western Farmer, The Raymond Times

Raymond, Mississippi, February 12. 1841, page 2