The Self Family of Meriwether County Generation 2

 

The Self Family of Meriwether County

Generation 2

Felix Columbus and Mary Fowler Self

               The home of Felix and Mary Self located in Raleigh, GA                                            (no longer standing)

 Felix Columbus Self was born on January 19, 1846, on the Harris Plantation in Meriwether County, GA, the son of Daniel and Sarah Garrett Self. At the age of 16, he joined Co. A, 4^th Georgia Regiment in December 1863. Because of his age, he was sent to Andersonville Prison in Americus as a guard. I can’t imagine the horrors he must have witnessed during the eighteen months he served there. He surrendered on May 3,1865 in Albany, GA and returned home.

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.

Felix lived until 1936. In January 1936 he celebrated his 90^th birthday and a small article appeared in the Atlanta Journal about his birthday celebration. The article mentioned that he and Robert E. Lee shared the same birthday (though actually Lee was born on January 19^th). Just seven months later he passed away in the home of his son Will(August 5, 1836). He was buried in the Salem Baptist Church cemetery in Raliegh.       

                                                   

Salem Baptist Church

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 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

  Emma was born on April 7, 1872. She married Seaborn Thornton on October 9, 1898.  He was the son of Rhodom and Martha Benson Thornton. They had four children before Seaborn enlisted in Georgia 60th Infantry Regiment. After the war Seaborn had nine more children. His wife passed away and Seaborn married Emma on October 9, 1898. (Seaborn Thornton was Isabel Thornton Self’s father and Emma’s sister-in-law) Seaborn was 67 and Emma was 26. They moved to Winter Garden, Florida, where Emma worked as a nurse and Seaborn farmed.  They had no children. When Seaborn passed away at age 83 his remains were returned to Georgia to be buried at Salem Baptist Church in Raleigh (Meriwether County). After Seaborn’s death, Emma returned to Meriwether County and lived with her sister Mary Elizabeth until her death on June 8, 1945.  She was buried in the Salem Baptist Church cemetery.

 

5)    Sarah Elizabeth

 Sarah (Sallie) was born December 3,1874 in Meriwether County. She married William Gresham on December 9, 1896. William Gresham was a farmer. They had four children: Cleo, Paul, Felix and Marcus. She died on January 30, 1963 and was buried in the Manchester City Cemetery (Meriwether Co).

 

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

  Mary Elizabeth was born on April 14, 1877. She married Edward Rollins on August 8, 1900 in Meriwether County. After their marriage, they moved into Ed’s family home with his mother and father. The Rollins family had moved into the Chalybeate Springs in the 1830’s.  Edward Rollins was a farmer. They had eight children: Jack, Mary, Eva, Henry, Audrey, Edwin Rachel and Ulyses. Their son, Jack, served in WWII and was a prisoner of war in Germany for 22 months. In an interview after his return home, he stated that he  was fed only black bread and potatoes. Sometimes he only had raw potatoes to eat. His main source of food came from the Red Cross. Mary died  June 7, 1966. She and her husband are buried in the Macedonia Church Cemetery in Manchester, GA.

     

 

8)    Willis Columbus Self

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 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.

Felix and Mary Fowler Self Family Bible

 References

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

The Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Ga, Mon. January 20, 1936, p.18

The Macon Telegraph, Macon, Georgia, August 13, 1936, p.13

The Self and Copeland Family, pdf created by Charles Copeland