After Me, What Next? Moving Up The Family Tree

Now the information is complete for the first generation (oneself).  From BC and/or DC and/or census records, we have the names of the parents.  We begin reaching out further to document the next generation.

 

William Delmar "Mack" Wilson's parents are Jesse Craft Wilson and Lena Marie Bills.  From my grandmother's photo album, we obtain the only surviving picture of Lena Marie Bills Wilson, taken with her husband Jesse and grandson Bill (my father) in 1927 in Hollis, Oklahoma.

 

 

 

We know from the federal census record in 1910 that Jesse and Lena were both born in Texas.  We know that their son Mack died in Hollis, Oklahoma, so we begin the search there for the gravesites of Lena and Jesse. 

 

Before visiting any cemetery, contact the cemetery manager or office to determine if there is a record of your ancestor being buried there.  Many cemeteries have a map of gravesites and are able to point you to the specific location of your ancestor's final resting place, whether it is marked with a gravestone or not.  If there is no office, find the caretaker of the cemetery who may have a plat of all of the graves in the cemetery, marked and unmarked ones.  Many local genealogical societies have published books on the cemeteries in their county which list gravesites found for marked graves and the information written on the gravemarkers.  These are invaluable references when searching for final resting places of ancestors.  Checking them can save hours of strolling through large cemeteries searching for an ancestor's final resting place.

 

There are two websites which provide information uploaded by researchers and family members which are helpful if (1) the information has been uploaded and (2) if the gravemarker is legible.  These are find-a-grave.com and abilliongraves.com.  Unless there is a photograph of the gravestone on the website, the information written there is second-hand.  A personal inspection of the grave marker is necessary to know exactly what information it provides.

 

There, in a cemetery in Hollis, next to his wife, Lena, near his brothers and their families, is the grave of Jesse Craft Wilson (over the years, Jesse spelled his name Jess and/or Jesse).  The gravestone only provides the years he was born and died.  Lena has a matching gravestone.  With the information on the year that each of them died, we are able to obtain death certificates for both Jesse and Lena from the State of Oklahoma.

 

 





Both death certificates provide their full birth dates and death dates, where they were born, their parents' names and where their parents were born.  It is wise to note who provided the information for the death certificate which was recorded by the county clerk.  In Lena's case, because she died first, her husband Jesse provided her vital information.  Jesse and Lena had married before her parents' deaths and Jesse knew Lena's parents personally.  Their names and places of birth are, therefore, reliably recorded on her death certificate.  In Jesse's instance, the information was provided by his daughter, Jessie, who lived near her grandparents and in the same town as her uncles her entire life.  Thus, the names of Jesse's parents and where Jesse was born is reliably recorded on his death certificate.  The death certificate also provides where Jesse and Lena are buried.  Lena's death certificate provides her father's name, which gives us Lena's maiden name.

 

Thankfully, my brother, Rob, has made it his purpose to restore our ancestors' gravemarkers, replace the ones which are not repairable or are not in existence and update the ones which do not have enough information.  Rob provided a new gravemarker for Jesse and Lena which gives their births and deaths and the names of their two children.

 

 

 

Lena Marie Bills was born in Navarro County, Texas.  This gives us a clue about where to search for her marriage certificate to Jesse Craft Wilson.  We are able to obtain the marriage record from the County Clerk in Navarro County.

 

 

 

Now we have the record of the lives of Jesse and Lena Bills Wilson.  The census records provide information about places of residence, occupations and give another link to the parents of Jesse and Lena Wilson.

 

In the 1880 Federal Census, Jesse Wilson is about 10 years old.  He lives in Limestone County, Texas with his parents, N. C. and Elizabeth C. Wilson, his brothers and sisters.  The census tells us that N.C. and Elizabeth were both born in Tennessee, as were both of their parents.  N.C. is about 50 years old.  Elizabeth is about 40 years old.  All of N.C. and Elizabeth's children were born in Texas.  N.C. is a farmer who works with his oldest son, Joseph W. on their farm.

 

 

In the 1880 Federal Census, Lena Bills is about 5 years old.  She lives in Navarro County, Texas with her parents, Robert D. and Mary Elizabeth "Mollie" Bills, and her brothers and sisters.  Robert was born in Tennessee and is about 40 years old.  Mollie was born in Texas and is about 28 years old.  Both of Mollie's parents were born in Tennessee.  Robert is a farmer.

 

 



 

In the 1930 Federal Census, Jesse and Lena have married and live in Hollis, Harmon Co., Oklahoma.  Jesse is about 59 years old and manages a filling station.  Lena is about 56 years old.  A boarder lives with them and works at the filling station.

 

 

 

From the stories told by my family, Jesse was an interesting man.  He spent many years as a working cowboy and loved to read Western novels.  He was very close to my father and was thrilled when my brother was born.  Having lost his only son, Mack, at an early age, and his wife Lena, Jesse felt a very strong tie to our family.  He loved to come visit and would stay for a few weeks at a time.

 

Bill, Jesse and Rob Wilson in Hobart, Oklahoma, in 1954

My father, great grandfather and brother.

 

As I delve farther out into the family tree for the Wilson's and Bill's, I find that my Great Grandfather Jesse and Great Grandmother Lena both have families rich in legacy, honor, pioneer spirit and military tradition, from the Civil War to the Battle of San Jacinto, to the Republic of Texas, to First Families of Texas, to the War of 1812, to First Families of Tennessee, to the American Revolutionary War, to the first arrival of the Pilgrims in America.  As I gather the pieces of the family tree, there grows a much larger historical picture.

 

Happy researching!

 

 

Carrie Anne Wilson Woolverton

 

 

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