MRS MARY BUTTON PASSES AWAY

Death announcement for my paternal great grandmother from the local African American newspaper, the Buffalo Criterion.

The Buffalo Criterion., May 28, 1955, Page 1, Image 1 (New York State Historic Newspapers)

MRS MARY BUTTON PASSES AWAY   

    

      Mrs. Mary Button of 209 Walnut Street, died May 23, 1955 following about a year of illness.

       Mrs. Button was born in Macon, Ga. in 1867, the daughter of the late Acey and Henrietta Carrington.  She was married in 1888 to Henry Button and was the mother of 11 children. 

     In 1917, she and the family moved to Detroit, where she became a member of Bethel AME Church, and was ordained a deaconess in 1928 by Bishop J. A. Gregg.  She came to live with her daughter and son-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Richard Davenport in 1951 and became a devoted member of St. Paul AMEZ Church where she was a deaconess and was active until her illness in 1954.

     Funeral services were held at the Wardner H. Jones funeral Home Thursday at 1 pm and the body was shipped to Detroit where services were held Saturday.

     Surviving are two daughters, Mrs. Anna Davenport, of Buffalo, and Mrs. Elizabeth Bynum of Detroit; 9 grandchildren, and 18 great grandchildren.

               

The Buffalo Criterion., June 04, 1955, Page 5, Image 5 (New York State Historic Newspapers)

CARD OF THANKS

     The family of the late Mrs. Mary Button expresses sincere appreciation to friends for the kindness shown them during the illness and death of their beloved mother who departed this life May 23, 1955.

Mrs. Anna Davenport and Mrs. Elizabeth Bynum, daughters.

Mourning my great grandmother

My paternal great grandmother, Mary Clay Button, was 80 years old when she made transition.  Growing up and  for the longest time into my adulthood, I just thought of her dying as a result of just being old.  While I have had her death certificate for a little over a year and poured over every line, I never had her cause of death deciphered.  This weekend I had that opportunity when the Buffalo Genealogical Society of the African Diaspora had a workshop on Causes of Death from Death Certificates.  When I presented my great grandmother's death certificate, I was told that she died from breast cancer that had spread throughout her body.  For some reason, it hit me like a ton of bricks and I went into mourning.

The local African American newspaper, the Buffalo Criterion, had an article on her passing with the the first paragraph stating that she was ill for a year.  --  but no mention of cancer.  No one in the family ever mentioned cancer when they spoke of her.  But that's how it was at that time  --  cancer was almost thought of as a plague and not spoken of.  Her transition year was 1955, two years after I was born so I didn't get to know her but I've been told that she loved me.  She would bounce me on her knees and had a chant, "Jump, jump, jump, jump, jump.  You ain't jumped none today."

I jump in your honor & smile.