Pontotoc Needs Graveyard Preservation

The city of Pontotoc's cemetery has many stones in need of a helping hand. They are in various states of disrepair.

Cemetery Visit Inspires Novel

Tom Wiley visited a cemetery near Meridian which inspired him to write The Angels of Lockhart. The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal has an article/review talking about the author's inspiration and giving a brief summary of the book. It sounds like a "must read" for family historians.

Monroe County Grave Hunter

You'll want to read this article about Emory Morgan who has success in locating unmarked graves. The article ran in the Amory Advertiser and Aberdeen Examiner.

Amory's Masonic Cemetery

I wanted to share a couple of interesting items related to Amory's Masonic Cemetery. First of all, there is a clean-up of the Southern section of the cemetery set for December 1 at 11 a.m. Second (and a matter of great excitement for genealogists) is the announcement of a database of burials that will be available at the Amory Municipal Library, the Amory Regional Museum, and at the Gilmore Foundation. This is Amory's oldest cemetery. The historic part of the cemetery was the original Cotton Gin Port cemetery. The Daily Journal also has an article about a recent facelift (straightening stones, etc.) that the cemetery received.

Joshua T. Hardy Cemetery in Siloam

There are many personal pages on the Internet which contain useful information for genealogical researchers. One such page is a listing and photographs of Joshua T. Hardy Cemetery in the community of Siloam in Clay County. Greg Lasley is the author of the page.

Collins Cemetery in Jayess, MS - Update

Patsy Lambert Jones sent this update:

Saturday, March 31, 2007, the Nathaniel Everette Collins Cemetery, located in Jayess, MS, was cleaned for the first time in approximately 50 years. The newest marker was that of Mrs Addie Partheny Mullins Collins, also known as "Aunt Duck", who passed away December 25, 1936. She was buried next to her husband, Everette Milton Collins, born June 23, 1854, died July 17, 1907, and their son, Hershell Collins. While cleaning, the marker of Nathaniel Everette Collins, born Jan 28, 1818, died Jan 6, 1879, was uncovered in the dirt. It has been broken into two pieces, and his descendents have hopes of restoring it. Buried beside Nathaniel was his wife, Nancy Hathorn Collins, born Feb. 12, 1822, died Nov. 21, 1888.

Nathaniel and Nancy had thirteen children, and two of their sons are buried with them in the cemetery, Everette Milton Collins, and Thomas Jefferson Collins born Oct 28, 1860, died Oct 15, 1919, and his wife Elizabeth Alford Collins, born March 14, 1859 died Oct 14, 1927. Also Thomas Jefferson's adult son,Wirt Collins, who died in 1930, is buried there, plus at least six infants of Thomas and Elizabeth. More graves are suspected of being in the cemetery, but no additional markers were found.

The cleanup could not have been accomplished without the help of brothers, Renick (Nick) Allen Carney and Randy Todd Carney, who traveled from Lucedale and Gulfport, MS to help. They had just discovered the week before that they were descended from Nathaniel Everette Collins through his son, John Richmond Collins. They are also very interested in the Carney line in SW Mississippi.

Also assisting with the cleanup were Patsy Lambert Jones and her husband, Wesley Jones, and Sharon Lambert. Pat and Sharon are sisters, and are descended from Nathaniel Everette Collins, through his daughter, Ann Saphronia Collins Magee.

Two local men, David Allen and Wayne Stephens, the son-in-law of Mrs. Joyce Lambert, and whose children are Collins' descendants, worked very hard during the cleanup. David even went out to the site earlier in the week, and cut a trail through the woods to the cemetery, which allowed the cleanup crew to start work immediately on Saturday when they arrived at the site. Christina Stephens took pictures while Mrs. Joyce Lambert helped with refreshments at the site.

Pat and Sharon have established a bank account at State Bank and Trust at Monticello, MS 39654, and are requesting donations to be used in repairing the broken markers, fencing off the old cemetery, and maintaining a cleared area. This cemetery is a piece of history that needs to be restored. Nathaniel's father, Nathaniel Madison Collins, fought in the War of 1812 in New Orleans under Andrew Jackson, and his grandfather Elisha Collins, fought in the American Revolution. Elisha also helped settle the area around Fort Boonesborough, Kentucky, and fought the Indians there along side of Daniel Boone. Donations should be made out to Sharon Lambert and mailed to Mrs Anna Cothern Durr at State Bank, for the restoration. Anna is a ggg granddaughter of Nathaniel and Nancy Hathorn Collins.

First Decoration Day in Columbus - 1862

In a Sun-Times article dealing mostly with the namesake of Cleburne County, Arkansas, we find an account of the first decoration day in Columbus, Mississippi (Lowndes County). It begins:

Honnoll related a story about the first Decoration Day in Columbus,
Mississippi, in 1862. "After the Battles of Shiloh and Corinth the ladies of
Columbus went to the cemetery where their loved ones that were killed in the
resent battles of the war were buried."

Nathaniel Everette Collins Cemetery Clean-up

Saturday, March 31, 2007, has been designated clean-up day for the Nathaniel Everette Collins Cemetery in Lawrence, County, MS. Nathaniel was born on Feb 28, 1818, and died near Jayess, MS on Jan 6, 1879. His cemetery is located on old Collins family land, near Jayess. Volunteers are needed to clean this old cemetery. You may contact Patsy Lambert Jones at her email address, patwes@sbcglobal.net, or Mrs. Joyce Lambert at her telephone number, 601-587-2209 for further information.

Nathaniel Collins father was Nathaniel Madison Collins, who is buried in Marion Co, MS. Nathaniel Madison Collins fought with Andrew Jackson in the War of 1812. Nathaniel Everette’s grandfather was Elisha Collins, who fought in the American Revolution. Elisha married Frances Madison, a cousin of James Madison, 4th President of the United States. Elisha also moved to Mississippi in his later years, and died in Lauderdale Co, MS on Sept 28, 1842.
Nathaniel Everette Collins had 13 children, all born in Lawrence Co, MS. The names and spouses are as follows:

Dr Franklin Edwin Collins, born Sept 17, 1842, married Eveline E Magee
Susan Adaline Collins, born May 2, 1845 married Nick Gunnels
Jane Frances Collins, born Feb 28, 1847, no record of marriage
John Richmond Collins, born Sept 27, 1848, married Florance Medora May
Nathaniel Monroe Collins, born Feb 26, 1850, married Mary Bridges Magee
Mary Durham “Molly” Collins, born Aug 4, 1852, married Josiah Barnes Lewis
Everette Milton Collins, born June 23, 1854, married Addie Partheny “Duck” Mullins
Lucy Margaret Collins, born Sept 11, 1856, married Needham Jasper Alford
Ann Sophronia Collins, born Sept 3, 1858, married Jesse Obed Magee
Thomas Jefferson Collins, born Oct 28, 1860, married Lizzie Alford
James Monroe Collins, born Oct 28, 1860, died 1861
William Harrison Collins, born Oct 21, 1862, married Victoria E Bush
Nancy Isabella “Id”Collins, born Dec 6, 1864, married Needham Jasper Alford.

It was Nancy’s death wish that her old maid sister Lucy, raise her six children. The family could not accept a single woman living with a single man, so Lucy was required to marry Needham Jasper Alford.

Descendants of those named above, have many of the familiar surnames now in SW Mississippi. Names like, Dunaway, Cothern, Lambert, Greer, Moak, Weir, Rushing, Thames, Mullen, Conerly, Boyd, Carney, Pittman, Stephens, Cochran, Calhoun and more.
If you think you may be descended from Nathaniel Everette Collins, please contact the telephone number or email address listed above. All descendents are eligible to join the Daughters or the American Republic (DAR), Sons of the American Republic (SAR), and the Madison Family Society. The Madison Family Society has a family reunion every 3 years at the James Madison Plantation in Virginia.

Cemetery cleaning volunteers will be provided coffee and pastries. All participants are also asked to bring a picnic lunch and a lawn chair. Drinks will be furnished throughout the day.

Gulf Coast Cemeteries

Gulf Coast cemeteries are still in states of disrepair 18 months after Katrina hit the area.