Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Mrs Johnny Brown to donate Coach Seldon poster to Museum


Mrs Johnny Brown stopped by today and wishes to donate a poster dedicated to "Pap" Coach Henry Seldon. She will have it framed and bring it back. Thanks Mrs Brown for your thoughtfullness and she also said she has many football pictures that we may be able to come and scan for the museum also.

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Leigh family wants more info after nice reunion



The Leigh family had a nice reunion last year and want to find more info for the one next year.

Hill and Upshaw descendants come for help




Descendents of Leill Hill who married Alonzo Bell and Garfield Upshaw came to find their relatives. Their daughter Minnie Lee married Thomas Dunlap, who all in the pictures are children and grand children. Martha Dunlap takes a break to tell us a story from Rev. Robert Sutton's favorite chair.

We found Henry Upshaw born about 1840 in North Carolina married Lucy and were in Coweta in 1870 and 1880. Some of their children came back and forth from Meriwether to Coweta several times.

William Hill born about 1818 in North Carolina was in Coweta in 1860 and owned many slaves. We think one of them was Harry Hill born 1844 in Georgia. He married Charlotte and had: July 1863, Margaret 1865 and maybe more. The 1900 Census tells us that July married Rebecca Harris about 1882 and had the following children: Lilah, Harry, Charlotte, Allie Lee, Jim T, Lishary, Paton, Aurelia and Lillie May. Of coarse the names may not be the exactly the ones they were called because the census takers wrote down what they heard and maybe not what was said. Any one with more info please let us know.

Cassandra looking for Thomas and Lowe cousins





>Atlanta Author, Cassandra L. Thomas came to Coweta on January 27, 2009 to research her Thomas, Lowe, Denson, Smith, and Barnes families. Her great grandparents Abe(1876) and Willie(1882) Smith were in Henry County in 1930. Her great grandparents, John Preston Thomas, Sr. (1888) and Estelle Lowe (1896) were in Coweta earlier than 1900. Estelle died in 1932. Their son John Jr. married Annie Maude Smith, daughter of Richard and Mollie Barnes Smith of Culloden, Ga. On September 4, 1943.

We worked on the family history for and hour or so and then went to the Probate office to see if there was a marriage certificate for them. We found one and moved on to the Deed office, which is where the pic was taken. No deeds were found but we drove down to Grantville to see the approximate place where they were in early 1900's. Cassandra is ready to move down to Coweta because of its beauty, serenity and calmness. She lives downtown Atlanta now and hates traffic.

After successfully locating family members on January 27th, Cassandra returned to Newnan four days later on January 31, 2009 with her uncle Ricky and auntie Juanita to meet newfound family members that her aunts and uncles had not seen in over forty-five years.

Update: Over 100 family members showed up for the Thomas, Lowe & Bonner Family Reunion - 46 Years Later at the home of Willie Whatley in Hogansville, Ga on July 4th. Cassandra is also Founder/Chief Editor of Books Avenue Magazine in Atlanta. www.booksavenuemagazine.ning.com

Anyone that can help with this family please call or email us.

Melvin Davis searches for family from North Carolina



Mr. Melvin Davis has been coming to the museum on and off for about a year. We have been working on his family from North Carolina. He has been doing research for at least 20 years. So we are filling in Census information, deaths and finding in-laws.

His family includes the Davis family from Vance County and probably descends from or was owned by Archibald Davis a white plantation owner.
Also these families: Foster, Williams, Granger, Grissom, Malone, Peace, Yarborough, Plater, Sutton, Turner, Richardson, Hunter, and Taylor.

Harmon Brothers find fun in 1960's Central High Yearbooks



Sam and Kerry Harmon look through the Central High School yearbooks loaned to the museum by Miss Annie Clowers. A few years are available, 1962, 66, 67, 69, & 70.
Anyone wishing to loan or donate yearbook from Coweta or surrounding counties please let us know. By loaning books, they are available for a designated time and then returned to the owners.

Don't forget we have the Coach Henry Seldon exhibit available for viewing thru May 16, 2009. We are asking folks to come and tell us thier stories and rememberances of Coach Seldon to put on a dvd. We also have one of the football reel to reels put on dvd for viewing. So come on down and see if your relative was playing then.

Michelle comes to Research family



Michelle Mizell Douglas came in January to research her Mizell, Roberts, Tunsil, Tarver and Strawder families.

Some from South Georgia removed to Florida. Anyone with knowledge of them please let us know.

Grandparents Houston & Lilla Roberts, Colier & Rosa Tarver Tunsil.
Great grandparents Samuel & Emmaline Colier, William & Darnell Strawder Tarver.