The "Williams" Kids

Macy Alice Williams is pictured above with her second husband George Henry Hall and four of her children: Clara Belle Hall , Ruth Agnes Hall, Obie Palmer Hall and James Wesley Wicker, my grandfather. Macy had a hard life bearing two children after the deaths of her husbands (John B. Wicker and George H. Hall), and yet she is remembered as a good Christian woman. Her granddaughter Kay said, "Dad (Macy's step-son and son-in-law) said he never knew a woman as good as she was." I think her children are evidence to character.
Here are the children here, too. As you can see, Clara and Obie were more serious even as children and Ruth is almost always smiling just as she was an adult. Grandpa. . . .looks like he's not really fond of having his photo made. These photos were probably made in and around Hornersville, Missouri.
I love this photo of them---Grandpa is maybe 10 years old but driving a car. He later became a car mechanic and drove earth-movers during the Depression, so it is fitting that he's driving a car.
This next grouping of photos were made around 1948 in Memphis, based on the little girl Michelle. L-R: Clara Hall Stephens, Wesley Wicker, Ruth Hall Ezell and Ray Ezell with his daughter Michelle. Ray was actually Clara, Wes and Ruth's half brother. Macy's third marriage was to James Ezell who had a son Everette by another marriage. Ruth Hall married Everette Ezell. . . I will try to connect the dots---Ray's half-brother and half-sister were married.
Here are: Dot (Ruth and Everette's daughter), Clara, Ruth; in the front row is Georgia Hall Endicott (another sister) and my grandmother Vennie Watson Wicker, Wes's wife.
This is the only photo I have with all six siblings: Wes Wicker, Ray Ezell, Obie Hall, (they all had different fathers); Ruth Hall Ezell, Georgia Hall Endicott, Clara Hall Stephens
After my grandfather died some of them still managed to get together with my mother who was one year younger than uncle Ray, and 3 years younger than her aunt Georgia. Here are Georgia, Ray and Ruth in the Smoky Mountains near where Ray lived.
This was probably in the late 1970's. L-R Nelda Hayes Wicker Ezell, Georgia Hall Endicott, Ruth Hall Ezell, Louise Wicker Long (my mom) with my dad and Ray in the background.
They also met at my Mother and Dad's house in 1983: Ruth, Ray, Nelda and Georgia
Beginning in the left corner and going clockwise: Rachel Morgan Twenter, Ray Ezell, Georgia Hall Endicott, Ruth Hall Ezell, Nelda Hays Wicker Ezell, me, Louise Wicker Long with Leah Morgan Warren and then Rebecca Morgan Lewis. The little girls are my daughters.

Nelda, Ray's wife, was first married to my grandfather's cousin Peck Wicker, of barbecue fame. Click here for more about Peck and his barbecue stand. So, Nelda was related to my mother and grandfather twice through marriage!

Although it's hard to tell, Georgia, Wes and Ray were the giants in the family---5'4" ,and at 5'1.5" I am a true Williams!

Long Family Reunions

LeRoy Long (1918-2004) with his uncle Alfred Stewart Long ( 1881-1977)

Although the Long Family Reunion has been held for over 70 years in Jefferson County Missouri, I don't have a lot of photos. This first group of photos says "Jan 76" on the back, but the reunion is always in September and even Sept. 1975 would have been hard for me to attend---I was living in Pittsburgh. So this photo is either another year, or my parents took the photos.
This is one of Dad's favorite uncles---Curtis Andrew Long (1903-1980) with Le Roy Long.
The lady in the yellow lawn chair is Cenith Catherine Long Bruns, Aunt Katie (1891-1978).
The photo above was taken of my dad (on the left) with his cousin Clyde Long (1922-2001) at the reunion in 1981.
Although this looks like my grandfather, Roy Long, this is his nephew Clyde Long again in 1981.
I'm not sure who are in the photos above---Clyde? David? Please contact me (Jaclyn Morgan) if you know who these gentlemen are. To see photos of the 1931 reunion, click here.

Louise Wicker Long Identity Crisis 1970's

In the 1970's Mom needed to "get her Social Security in order". I think she needed a new card but also knew she would need a birth certificate to claim Social Security in the future. Mother had never had a birth certificate, but had carried this affidavit (above) all of these years.
So, Mother sent off for her birth certificate. Although she went by the name Louise, her name "at birth" was "Alice Louise". (See above)The state returned her money and said it wasn't on file. She tried again driving to Jefferson City, but still they couldn't find her birth certificate. Finally, she contacted her state representative (whom she'd known since the 1940's) to see if he could "pull some strings." He was able to locate her birth certificate, but it had two problems---first, there was no name other than "Baby Girl"; second the birthdate was wrong.
Mother found out she could correct one thing on her birth certificate, but to correct two things would require a lawyer. Even to correct her name, she needed to get certain documents.
First, she needed a certified copy of the census.
Then she needed school records---check
and check.
Finally, she needed an affidavit from a relative who was alive when she was born---her aunt Ruth Williams Ezell and her uncle James Ezell. They also told her that the reason she had no name was my grandparents were fighting over her name. Grandpa wanted to name her Catherine and Grandma would not have it----that was his old girlfriend's name. The only explanation Ruth could give on the birthdate being wrong, was that the doctor was a lazy drunk who had failed to register the birth. So, to save his butt, he made the date July 20.
So, she had her birth certificate corrected with the name---she didn't think the birthdate was that important. Actually, several members of the family preferred July 20 because July 1 was too soon in the month. But, for the rest of her life, individuals referred to her inaccurate birth certificate---if a birthday card was late, "Well, no one really knows when your birthday is anyway."
It's unfortunate that someone chose to put "Alice Louise" on her birth certificate---the documents she submitted clearly indicated she went by Louise, but I think Mom wanted it to match with Social Security so there would be "no problem." Guess again---the same situation happened again after 2001!

Lowell and Garner Morgan, musicians

Lowell and Garner Morgan were the youngest of H.B.Morgan's sons. Garner's daughter Leah sent these photos to me. I think it's interesting they are the only young ones with dark jackets. I guess when you are the youngest of 6 sons, you have plenty of jackets to choose from. The photos were by Bollinger's Leston, W. Va. The recital was believed to be held in Princeton, W.Va.
Lowell Thomas Morgan played piano.
Garner Richard Morgan played violin.
We aren't sure whose musical evaluation this is, but assume it was for Garner since Leah had it. The competition was held in Bluefield, W. Va on April 17.
Here is another evaluation. I don't know about Lowell but Garner did continue in music as an adult singing in his church choir and even composing music for his church.

Nativity Set

I love my Nativity set which my mother (Louise Long) and my father (LeRoy Long) made for me in 1977. In the early 1970's, my sister and mother went to "Ceramics" where they painted "greenware" and had it fired in a kiln. My sister Jane and her husband Harry hand-painted theirs, but Mom just put a white glaze on hers. No offense to the Provost Nativity set, I LOVED the pure white. So, in 1977, Mother presented me with this set.
Dad made the manger out of barn wood which he found in their community--Lake Sherwood Estates---the barn, which was abandoned from an old farm, later burned down. I love the rustic nature and knowing that it came from a barn near their house. Also, I loved knowing this Nativity set was something which Mother and Dad created together---each with their own skills (if you knew my dad, you'd especially like the "star" light gerry-rigged together out of an assortment of wires and plugs).

As my children will attest, the Baby Jesus is not part of the scene until Christmas morning and the 3 Kings with their camels don't join the Manger scene until Epiphany. When the girls were little, I used to march the the Kings and camels around the family room, inching them closer and closer. This year, they are just on another piece of furniture.

One of the things I don't like about Christmas is all of the fan-fare is before Christmas in our culture. I am more of a purist, I guess, and prefer the 12 days of Christmas between Christmas and Epiphany as it is supposed to be.

G.D. Morgan, Sr. Christmas 1983

Dave's parents Grover and Eloise (Fry) Morgan were transferred to Arcadia, California in 1971. They loved it so much that they decided to retire out there. They tried coming East for Christmas one year, but sat huddled in front of the fireplace most of the time. After the Christmas visit of 1975 (pictured below), they encouraged (sometimes paid for) each of us to go out there for Christmas.
I loved going out there for Christmas (which we did 2 or 3 times), but we couldn't always manage (two babies were born in early February). So, they did have a few Christmases without any of us. But, they managed to establish a new holiday tradition!

Christmas Cards from George and Nell Fry

These are wonderful Christmas cards from Dave's Uncle George (Buddy) Fry and his wife Nell.

The card above must have been sent in the 1980's (judging from the note) but it is from a sketch Dave's brother Harry did in 1973 of the Alderson home in West Virginia . (Alice Alderson Fry was Dave's maternal grandmother)

Two Families, Two Traditions

[l-r Vennie Watson Wicker, LeRoy Long, Jane Long, Louise Wicker Long, James Long, James Wesley Wicker]
When Dave and I spent our first Christmas together, we realized that we came from two different cultures. Both of our families were starting Christmas at about the same time. We went to my parents, the Longs, first. As usual, it was a free-for-all, with a flurry of paper---it was all over in an hour! Pictured above (1959) was pretty typical---PJ's, wrapping paper everywhere, mom in her hairnet, grandpa in his undershirt.

After the "Long Christmas" (which was pretty short), we went to Dave's parents--the Morgans. They had just started Christmas---the gift unwrapping (one at a time!) lasted the ENTIRE DAY! Everyone was dressed up, acting all polite and adult---I was in shock!

These photos are from 1947---could the family look anymore perfect? Click here for some of Dave's memories which would NEVER have happened in my family! My dad was the biggest kid of all---he was the instigator---tossing presents right and left. I think Dave and I hit a happy medium, but I don't think Dad ever understood the concept of just two presents at a time!