The Self Family of
Meriwether County
Generation 2
Felix Columbus and Mary Fowler Self
He married Mary Susan Fowler, the daughter of John
Willis and Mary Susan James Fowler on December 6, 1866.
Mary’s family had settled in Meriwether County in the 1830’s coming from Union,
South Carolina. In 1850 Mary was the youngest of seven children, all living at
home. By 1860, all of Mary’s brothers and sisters had left home and her mother
had died in 1855, leaving just Mary and her father.
Felix’s sister Emma had given Felix her son James Garrard
on her deathbed, so Mary and Felix became instant parents on their marriage. William
Mirabeau was born on September 28, 1867, and Thomas Gazaway was born
on November 6, 1868.
The 1870 census shows Mary and Felix living in the
Chalybeate Springs district of Meriwether County. Felix was a farm hand and
Mary was keeping house.
During the 1870’s Mary and Felix had six more children: Edward Marion (July 17, 1870) Emma Sophronia (April 11, 1872), Sarah Elizabeth (Dec 3, 1874), John Howard (May 19, 1875), Mary Elizabeth (April 14, 1877) and Willis Columbus (August 19, 1879).
On April 1, 1876,
Felix bought 100 acres of land near Raliegh from Thomas A. Maddox for $600
($18,000 today). Considering the state of the economy only a little over ten
years since the Civil War, it was quite remarkable.
The 1880 census shows Felix as a farmer and landowner and
Mary keeping house. William, Thomas and Edward are working as farm hands. Albert
Daniel was born on April 3, 1871.
In 1900 most of the children had married, leaving only
Willis and Albert helping their parents run their small farm. In 1910 Felix filed for a Confederate
pension. He stated in his application that he owned 36 acres of land and only
produced one bale of cotton per year worth around $50.00 ($3,500 today). Felix
received a pension, though the amount is not stated. The average pension for a
confederate veteran was between 23 and 45 dollars per year.
By 1910, Felix and Mary had given up their tiny home
and moved in with their oldest son Will (William Mirabeau). Mary passed
away on January 13, 1924. She was buried in the Salem Baptist Church cemetery.
Salem Baptist Church was founded in 1869.
Children of Felix and Mary Fowler Self:
1) William Mirabeau Self
William and Isabel Self
William was born in Meriwether County on September 8,
1867, Thornton (William, known as “Will” was a successful businessman in Raleigh
just north of Warm Springs, GA. He married Isabel Thornton (B. September 25,
1872) on November 5, 1893. Isabel was the daughter of Seaborn and
Elizabeth Hatcher Thornton. Will ran several businesses: a grocery store, a
mill, a feed store and a blacksmith shop. He was also a farmer and built the
first water tower for running water. He was named after two uncles killed in
the Battle of Perryville in the Civil War: William Self and Mirabeau Self. They
had five children: Clytie, Mattie, Opal, Nettie, and Willie. Willie, the
couple’s only son died at age 17 of an accidental gunshot wound. He was
climbing over a fence while hunting and accidentally shot himself, dying two
days later. Eliza died of pellagra at the age of 35 on May 19, 1907, a disease
caused by a lack of niacin in her diet. Between 1906 and 1940 more than 3
million Americans were affected by pellagra with more than 100,000 deaths. In
some southern states, it was the ninth or tenth leading cause of death and had
a death rate comparable to malaria. Early observers believed pellagra was
contagious and unrelated to nutrition. John Beall, of Decatur,
Illinois, had patented the Beall degerminator in the United States in 1901.
Degerming corn reduced processing time but removed most of the nutrients,
including niacin. It was only during the late 1930s that scientists
established that the disease was caused by a niacin deficiency. Thus, an agricultural invention from the turn of the
twentieth century unintentionally hastened the spread of pellagra. Soon
after this discovery, states throughout the country began passing laws
mandating the enrichment of bread, flour, and corn products with niacin. Today
the disease is largely unknown in the United States, except among homeless
populations and others in extreme deprivation. After Isabel’s death in 1907,
Will married Ida Williams, but they had no children. Both wives were
buried beside Will at Salem Baptist Church in Raleigh. Will died February
19,1958 at the age of 91.
2)
Thomas Gazaway Self
Thomas was born on November 6, 1868 in Meriwether County. Thomas was a
salesman, he sold groceries, women’s millinery, Watkins and Stanley products at
various times in his life, He married Eula Hudson on August 15, 1890.
They were divorced around 1920. Thomas died on May 28, 1927and was buried in
the Salem Baptist Church Cemetery in Raliegh, GA.
3)
Edwin Marion Self
Edwin was born July 17,1870 in Meriwether County. He married
Maggie Thompson (b.May 11,1883) on September 8, 1901 in Meriwether
County. Edward worked at the Fish Hatchery in Warm Springs, GA. Edward and
Maggie had seven children: Roy, Edna, Thomas, Robert, Marjorie, Sarah and
Edward. Edna ran the ran gift shop at Roosevelt’s Little White House in
Warm Springs for many years. Edward died on January 2, 1937 and was buried in
the Warm Springs City Cemetery along with his wife.
4)
Emma Sofronia Self
5)
Sarah Elizabeth
6)
John Howard Self
John was born on May 19, 1875 in Meriwether County. He married
Clyster Mills on December 27, 1896 in Meriwether County. John was a
farmer. They had six children: Amy, Navella, Jackie, Mills, Robert and Fred. The
family moved to Thomaston, GA in the 1920’s where John found work as a
carpenter. John died on August 14, 1953. Both John and Clyster are buried in
the Glenwood Cemetery in Thomaston, GA.
7)
Mary Elizabeth Self
8)
Willis Columbus Self
Willis was born August 19, 1878. He married Ruby Frances
Blakeley on November 15, 1907 in Meriwether County. Willis and Ruby are my
grandparents and their story will be told in my next installment.
9)
Albert Daniel Self
Albert was born May 3, 1881. He married Ida Fowler (b. May 25, 1879) the daughter of George and Alfredonia Self Fowler in Meriwether County on September 13, 1903. (Albert and Ida were first cousins). By 1930, the family moved to Meansville, GA (Pike County) where Albert farmed. They had six children: Louise, Mildred, Mable, William, Albert and George. Albert died August 9, 1952. He and Ida are buried in the Fincher Memorial Cemetery in Meansville, GA.
Historical Account of Meriwether County 1827-1974 by Regina Pinkston, Meriwether Historical Society, 1974
James R. Young, The Georgia Historical Quarterly, Vol. 66, No. 1 (Spring, 1982), pp. 47-52
https://www.jstor.org/stable/40580853
https://www.measuringworth.com/dollarvaluetoday/
The Rise and Fall of Pellagra in the American South, Karen Clay, Ethan Schmick, Werner Troesken, National Bureau of Economic Research, May 2018, http://www.nber.org/papers/w23730
www.familysearch.org Meriwether County records
www.ancestry.com