An Old Citizen of Hollywood Dies

On Tuesday, April 9 God in His infinite wisdom removed from our midst our friend and neighbor, Mrs. Sarah A. Callaway, who resided on a farm near Hollywood.

Mrs. Callaway merited the esteem and confidence of all who knew her and whereas we desire to give some feeble expression to the feelings that stir within us.

Mrs. Callaway was born in Hot Spring county, December 25th, 1860, and later moved to Clark county where she was married to John Callaway.

To this union was born four daughters and a son. Surviving are three daughters, Mrs. Marion Francis of Mena, Miss Maude Callaway who lived with her mother, Mrs. Homer Francis of Amity, and a son, Johnnie Callaway of the Mt. Olive Community.

In addition to the immediate family, she is survived by two granddaughters, a niece and several cousins.

Mrs. Callaway had been a member of the Missionary Baptist church from early girlhood, having joined the Mt. Olive Baptist church soon after it was organized.

At the age of 32 she was left a widow with four small children, the youngest being only four weeks old.

Those days, with the care and support of her little ones, were perhaps her darkest days. Mrs. Callaway labored early and late. She knew no defeat. There were times when crop failures were evident, either from overflows or from insects, many gloomy days hovering over the Callaway home, but she never gave up. She fought her battle bravely, serenely and came out victorious every year.

Her love of out-door life was evidenced by the work she performed on her farm. All of her work was performed with an inspiring quality of faith, charity and intelligence. She made an effort to view life and its conditions from the brightest angle and she was able to live comfortably in her declining years.

Mrs. Callaway was a kind hearted, clean souled woman, whose sturdy womanhood made her the example of all who in their hearts love the thing that is right.

As a neighbor she was agreeable. As a friend she possessed love to mankind and a desire to promote their prosperity and happiness. As a Christian, she remained true to her plighted faith, duty and love for her Master. As a mother she was patient, kind and devoted.

To the bereaved ones whose hearts are burdened with grief which no tongue can tell we wish to say:
"When with our loved one we're parted,
Never to meet here again,
Anguished of soul broken hearted,
Seems that we can't bear the pain,
Till we remember that Jesus
Promised us life over there,
Death is the door to release us
From earthly sorrow and care."

A friend.

Originally published in the Southern Standard, 11 Apr 1929

Note: I believe the obit is in error on the year of her birth. In the 1860 census for Greenville Twp, Clark Co., AR, she was shown as a six month old child. The census was recorded on 28 Jun 1860.

Doris Williams was my maternal grandmother.




Doris Balding Williams, born July 9, 1907 to Victor and Hattie C Balding in Little Rock, Ark., passed from this life on Jan. 18, 1998. She was preceded in death by her husband, Joe. D. Williams and her son, Joe C. Williams. She was a lifelong member of Second Presbyterian Church.

Survivors are a daughter, Judith Williams Neumann and son-in-law, Edward W. Neumann of North Little Rock; a daughter-in-law, Sue K. Williams of Houston, Texas; two sisters, Vera B. King, Peoria, Ariz. and Marian B. Fox, Fallbrook, Calif.; and one brother, Russell E. Balding, Sun City, Ariz.; six granddaughters, Ruth W. Toda, Long Island, N.Y., Leah W. Lipshultz, Los Angeles, Calif., Desha W. Hardin, Corpus Christi, Texas, Dee L. Sharp, Mabelvale, Ark. and Victoria B. Hill and Lorraine Burris both of Alexander, Ark.; 10 great-grandchildren, three nieces and three nephews; four step-grandchildren; three step-great granchildren.

She was an excellent seamstress, beginning at age six with an old lace curtain. She was also an avid gardener. She loved anything to do with needlework and enjoyed giving her friends things she had made. She was admired by many and will be missed greatly.

The family will receive visitors at her home, #5 Lombardy Lane, Little Rock, today, Jan. 20, from 4 to 6 p.m. Graveside funeral services by Ruebel Funeral Home will be held at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 21, 1998 at Roselawn Memorial Park, Dr. Karen Akin officiating. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to your favorite charity.

Comparing church and military records for the Dunns, Callaways and Williamses...

In July 1863, Julia Ann (Wingfield) Callway and her son, Mason, joined Bethel Union Baptist Church in Clark County.

In 1865, Mary Dunn was a member of New Hope Methodist Church in Clark County.
In 1866, Mary and Martha Dunn were members of New Hope Methodist Church. (Lucinda Hitchcock, mother of David Andrew Williams, was also a member, although I didn't find David in the membership list, but it's a fragmented one.)

A M Callaway and D A Williams appeared on a muster roll dated from 31 Oct 1864 through 28 Feb 1865 in the 10th Arkansas Cavalry Regiment, commanded first by Reuben C Reed, and finally by Col. Robert C Newton.

On 8 Sep 1866, Mary Dunn and Allen Mason "Mace" Callaway were married by an itinerant Cumberland Presbyterian minister in Clark County.

In August 1867, Martha Dunn, Mary Callaway and James Dunn joined Bethel Union Baptist Church in Clark County.

On 27 Jun 1869, Martha Dunn and David Andrew Williams were married by a Methodist minister in Clark County.

On 2 Nov 1876, Martha Dunn Williams died of tuberculosis in Clark County.

On 15 Feb 1877, Mace Callaway died - we presume in Clark County.

On 13 Jul 1878, David Andrew Williams and Mary Dunn Callaway were married by Isom Langley, a clergyman, in Clark County.

And all the while, Robert James Dunn was living two farms over...

And my cousin Jason tells me...Capt Nat M Jones and Pvt. L. O. Ross are the ones that signed the proof of service forms for Mary to apply for her Civil War widow's pension.

Frankly, I was disappointed with the offerings at Ouachita Baptist University's Special Collections Section.

I did, however, make a few interesting discoveries.

A glance through the 1932 Southern Standard on microfilm did not yield an obituary I was looking for, but it did give up some interesting tidbits of local flavor about my Herrington relatives who lived in the tiny Clark County Arkansas community of DeGray.

I had never really considered it before, but what did you do for fun when you were dirt poor and the Great Depression sucked the life out of just about everything?

You went visiting...and it made the newspaper.

---

Searching through the conference minutes of the DeGray Baptist Church provided no information at all about where or how my g-g-grandfather, Mace Callaway died, or where he might be buried.

I asked for copies of all 17 pages of membership notes in the New Hope Methodist Church file for the years 1860-1869. There appear to be skips due to missing records, but they will be useful to my Williams cousin, Jason, and to a lesser degree, to me.

And while I was waiting for copies to be made, I scanned through the Clark County Historical Association's Journal index, and stumbled across a CSA Cavalry unit that seems to be unreported in the usual places, with alphabetized lists of troops who served.

Even more interesting is that it appears possible that Mace Callaway and David Andrew Williams may have served in that cavalry unit together, as shown on a muster roll covering the time from 31 Oct 1864 through 28 Feb 1865. (I'll transcribe that as a separate entry later.)

Another of the CCHA's journals provides more information about years in which Bob Dunn was mentioned in the minutes of the Red River Baptist Association.

So the CCHA made $45 off me today. I bought the 1991, 1993, and 1998 Journals.

---

Cousin Joe and I made an appalling discovery at the Clark County Courthouse.

We were looking for the letters of administration in the estate of one of our many greats grandpappies, John Callaway, who died intestate in 1834 in Clark County. Joe knew that John Callaway's estate was enumerated in an attachment to the letters of administration.

The probate clerk was able to provide us with a copy of the 6 Jan 1835 probate court order appointing John's widow, Amy, and his son, John S T, as co-administrators of the estate (they were, by the way, fined by the court in 1842 for failure to file an annual accounting of the estate - oops), but the clerk said we'd have to go to the books to look for the letters of administration.

So all three of us tromped over to the closet where the books are kept. 1840 was as far back as we could find.

So the clerk asked us if we wanted to take a look through the other books in storage.

In the attic.

IN THE ATTIC.

Books with documents over 175 years old are IN THE ATTIC. With no climate control.

And not just in the attic...they were just dumped in the attic in hodge-podge, helter skelter fashion...many looking as if they were thrown in there by whomever was assigned the chore of moving them because before they had been IN THE BASEMENT - where they kept getting damp.

Joe and I kept grimacing at each other over the clerk's head as we looked, each of us righting a book here and there.

We did not find the letters of administration of the estate.

I'm hoping that book was rescued by the Arkansas History Commission and filmed.

So I'll be squinting at microfilm there tomorrow.

---

The journey is good.

And it continues...

There's no tombstone for Martha L Dunn of which I am aware. I have no idea where she is buried, and the places I would customarily look have left me empty handed.

I think Martha was the sister of my g-g-grandmother, Mary C Dunn.

As with Mary, and the man I suspect is her brother, Bob Dunn, I can't find her in the census as a child.

Martha L Dunn was married to David Andrew Williams in 1869. According to her obituary, she bore him two children, although I have been able only to account for one.


Martha L Dunn Williams' obituary as published in
The Southern Standard in Arkadelphia, Clark County, Arkansas
on 11 Nov 1876, on page 3 column 3.

Died,
At Hollywood, in this county, on the 2d inst. Mrs. Martha L., wife of Mr. David Williams, of this city, in the 28th year of her age.

She had been a severe sufferer, with that dread disease, consumption, for the past eighteen months, but bore her sufferings with that patience and fortitude known only to the truly religious, and died in the full triumphs of a well grounded faith. She leaves a husband, two children and numerous friends to mourn her loss.

Getting a generation behind these Dunns is one of my biggest brick walls.

.







Funeral Notice
The funeral service of
Cathrine Leah,
the beloved 5-year-old daughter
of Mr. and Mrs. J D Williams,
will take place at the Christian
Church at 2 o'clock this after-
noon, services to be conducted by
Eld. C C Cline and Dr G W
Harkey.
Friends of the family invited
to attend.

Russellville, Ark.., December 9, 1904






*I don't know who wrote the text for the card, but from the mis-spelling of her name, I am guessing probably it was someone at church or a family friend.

Jo Desha and Maxie Leah Williams family, Christmas Day 1900
photo by McLeod, the Wild West photographer

Every time I see this one, I just dissolve into gales of laughter.

Can't you just imagine the dinner table discussion a couple of weeks before the holiday?

"Honey, what shall we do this year for Christmas? After all, it's the first Christmas of the new century."

Oh, I don't know. . .hey, why don't we get that McLeod guy to take a picture? We could dress up and go sit outside on some rocks."

"Marvelous idea, darling! And we could put Paul and Cedric on a couple of asses. They've been acting like asses for a few days now. It would serve them right. . ."

The back of the photo has an extensive ad for "McLeod, the Wild West Photographer. . . the man who made Happy Hollow famous the world over."

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This is a Sepia Saturday post.

Just amazing the things you find when you are scouring old newspapers...

Apparently John W R Williams, my first cousin three times removed, from Franklin, KY was a ~ gasp ~ salesman. (This bunch of Williamses should not be confused with the Georgia Williamses who moved to Clark County and had no parents...I know, sometimes it's confusing to me, too...)



Frankfort Roundabout, 15 Jun 1895

Who knew that [c]onstipation causes more than half the ills of women?

I thought it was men...

Live and learn.

Far right: Doris Balding Williams
Far left: Her daughter, Judith Williams Neumann
Standing: Doris' granddaughter
Seated in middle: Doris' great-granddaughter

Photo taken in 1995.

They called her Maggie.




She was the next younger sister of Minnie Williams, and lived with her sister and brother-in-law until her marriage to James Webster Wells on 2 Jan 1885, at "the house of J H Shinn" in Russellville, Pope Co., AR.

She and James had five children I have documented.

Maggie Williams Wells died on 19 Jul 1922 in Benton Co., AR. She is buried next to her husband in Bentonville Cemetery, Bentonville, Benton Co., AR.