Sophia Jane "Jin" Powell
 Grandmother
Sophie was born in 1900 and was found living in her parents household
in 1900, 1910 and 1920. Sometime between 1920 and 1925 she met an
married William R. Douglas AKA
Willie Thomas. Willie was of the very large Douglas and Clemons
families of Anson, Richmond and Scotland counties NC. His Douglas
grandmother (Mourning Meachum-Douglas) had nineteen children, almost
two hundred grandchildren and well over a thousand great grandchildren
at the time of her death. She died shortly after 1920, living to be
almost 100 years of age.
Does anyone who's ancestors are from the south remember anything
about the photos below? I do because I have seen my grandmother
Sophie, her daughters Virginia and Willie Mae and others in the
fields picking cotten more than one day. The only difference was
that in my days of the cotten field each picker picked in what they
called a tow sack. I think these are actually real photos of African
American slaves picking cotten. The photos were found in the NYPL
Digital Gallery.
My grandmother was the only person that I have ever seen in my
entire lifetime to carry three watermelons at one time. One in each
arm and the other on her head.
I have seen my grandmother carry what is called a foot tub filled
with blueberries on her head for miles with her arms at her side.
A true African trait!
Willie and Sophia |
Willie and Sophie continued to live and raise their children
in the house that Gabe built. I think my mother (Catherine Autry)
who is the youngest child was in mid school when Willie made
his move to the present day location of his daughter Geraldine
Melvin's home. I have heard many story's from my mother about
the long cold walks from way back in the woods to the school
bus stop. My aunt Virginia has also told me stories about her
walks to the different schools that were scattered about in
the community of her times. Sophie and Willie's children are
listed below. |
The Children of Sophia and Willie
Note: Three of their daughters married grandson's of Ned
Edmund and Mary Johnson-Autry.
Johnny Elbert Thomas was their only son who died as an infant.
The Grandchildren of Sophia and Willie
Me and several of my first cousins (in the photo at the bottom)
were partly raised by my grandparents Willie and Sophie. My aunts
Virginia and Willie Mae and their families were very frequent visitors
to the old home place. From growing up around them and my grandparents
I have had the pleasure to learn how to feed and raise hogs and
chickens, milk cows, make butter, crop, string and hang tobacco,
pick blueberries, strawberries and a variety of other things that
I could have never learned being raised in New York. I also remember
my aunts and grandparents helping with their yearly hog killings
which included making liver pudding, preparing hams to cure, making
cracklings from hog fat and sometimes pork skins. I enjoyed everything
about hog killing time except the actual killing of the hog and
the cleaning of the intestines (chittlings) which I have always
found to be very good and tasty to eat. Here
is a photo of one of the hog killings at my grandparents home.
The two men in the picture are my uncles Leroy Autry (Willie Mae's
husband) and his father James L. Autry. I remember that day just
like it was yesterday.
Note: In the background of the picture is the building that is now
on display at the old slave plantation called Harmony Hall. This
building was used by my grandparents as a storage building, a store
and a playing place for me and other grandchildren that lived in
the Thomas home. The building was originally a school for the Caucasians
of the Colly township back in the early 1900's. My grandparents
purchased the building from the Russ family of Colly and kept it
in their possession until their deaths (over 40 years). My Aunt
Elizabeth Autry who is very elderly has even told me that during
her early childhood the building was used as a home for her and
her family after an earlier home had burned to the ground. Now,
some of the visitors to Harmony Hall probably thinks it is one of
the original Harmony Hall buildings.
Grandmother worked and raised children most of her adult life.
Besides her children there were nieces, nephews and grandchildren
raised by her. God bless her and all her efforts.
The descendants of Willie and Sophie Thomas came together and had
a lovely Thanksgiving Day dinner. The dinner was held 11-25-04 in
the cafeteria of the St. Peter's AME Zion church of Colly. It was
quite enjoying to meet and speak with cousins that I grew up with
as a youth. Below is a picture of Willie and Sophie's grandchildren
that were born from the early fifties until the mid sixties. Most
of us and our parents were able to attend. Who would have ever had
any idea that this small but happy group of grandchildren would
multiply this family ten fold.
It was amazing, most of us in the picture on the right and most
of our children dined together for this Thanksgiving feast. Time
has passed so fast, I hardly knew any of my first cousin's children.
I met some that has finished school and is working, some that is
still attending college and some that is still in high school. It's
just like the old saying, "my my, look how time flys".
I hope each and every member of this family will be blessed to live
and attend many more of these joyous family events whether it be
home or away.
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