The beginning

I have decided to start using a blog after having visited my niece's blog.

My primary purpose is to record a trip my wife and I took several years ago to discover my father's family history.  This journey took us from country stores to country churches with a fire station and cemetery thrown in as well.  Once I have it started, I plan to share it with all of the descendents of Thomas Hardy Ingram, who was my grandfather.  We will visit North Carolina and Virgina as we follow the family migration from Winston Salem through Bassett, Virgina and over to Ingramville, Virginia.  That's right, our family home place is located smack dab in the middle of Ingramville.

Join me on the journey........

My Father talks about Stokes County

As I began to think about tracing back my family history, I talked to both my mother and my father about their childhood and their memory of the family as they grew up.  Dad told me a lot more about this than my mother did so I began to focus on his history.  It all began with some conversations about Stokes County, North Carolina.  He talked about Sandy Ridge, Germantown and Walnut Cove.  And he told me his grandmother was buried at Northview Primitive Baptist Church which was somewhere in Stokes County.  So, I thought if I ever decided to go research our family history, it had to start in Stokes County.  All of these conversations took place prior to 1990 when I lost both my father, Johnnie Creed Ingram, and my mother, Mary Louise Ingram.

The pivotal event that made me act on these stories and go discover my family history was that my grandfather, Thomas Hardy Ingram, died.  I took his obituary and used it to begin the trip.

Before we begin the journey......

This trip is about finding my ancestors on my father's side beginning with my grandfather, Thomas Hardy Ingram.

Before we begin, I'd like to list the descendants of my mother and father.  They had two daughters, three sons, 8 grandchildren, and 6 great grandchildren.  Here's a view of our family:

Descendants of Johnnie Creed Ingram and Mary Louise Huckabee

Johnnie Creed Ingram  - Mary Louise Huckabee

            Peggy Ann Ingram  - Mike Tardif
                        Deborah Ann Tardif 
                                    Mary Lauren Tardif

Betty Jean Ingram - Harry S. Archer III 
                       Michael Alexander Archer

                        William Creed Archer  - Glenda Clanford 
                                    Hannah Grace Archer

                        David Lee Archer - Kimberly Dawn Hamlett

                                    Noah Wesley Archer

           Larry Creed Ingram – Wanda Boyette
                       Jeffrey Creed Ingram - Valerie Coleman 
                                  Walker Creed Ingram

                       James Patrick Ingram- Sarah Rentz
                                   Nolan Patrick Ingram

           Donald Glynn Ingram - Addie Virginia Walters

                       John Bradford Ingram - Margaret Elizabeth Parker 
                                   Caroline Elizabeth Ingram 
                                   Parker Creed Ingram
                                   John Harmon Ingram
                       Amy Elizabeth Ingram - Parker Honeycutt

           Dalton Lynn Ingram - Sandra Sue Mayer

Creed and Mary's Parents and Siblings

Before we move back in time through our ancestors, I decided to list the parents, brothers and sisters of my father and mother. 

If you are a descendant of Thomas Hardy Ingram, the rest of this family history applies to you. 

Here is Daddy's family:

Thomas Hardy Ingram 1889 - 1986 - Matilda Fountain Anders 1890 - 1924

              Dorothy Ingram
              Robert Ingram
              Luvie Ingram 1912- 1990
              Johnnie Creed Ingram 1917-1990 - Mary Louise  Huckabee 1919 - 1990
              Lillie Ingram

Granddaddy married again to Ruth Carpenter
 Thomas Hardy Ingram - Ida Ruth Carpenter
              Joe Mac Ingram
              Billy Ray Ingram
              Louise Ingram

  Here is Mama's family:

William Henry Huckabee 1887 - 1962  - Eveline Peele 1898 - 1931 (or Evelyn)
               Mary Louise Huckabee 1919 - 1990 - Johnnie Creed Ingram 1917- 1990
               Buddy Henry Huckabee,Jr.
               Annie Lee Huckabee 1924 - 1991
               Pearl Peele Huckabee - Carson Holloway
               Ethel Huckabee
               Martha Evelen Huckabee

I don't have much information on Mama's parents.  The records I have indicate that her paternal grandfather was named Eli Huckabee.  I don't have his wife's name.  Her maternal grandparents were Thad and Mary Peele.

I did not realize that I was missing so many dates, so I will try to clear that up as I go along.  Our next step will be to find Thomas Hardy Ingram's parents and siblings.

Grandaddy Tom

Grandaddy Tom died on January 24th, 1986.

Here is his obituary:

Thomas Hardy Ingram, 96, of 1018 Deluca Street, died suddenly Friday, January 24, at his home.

Funeral services were held at 2 p.m. Sunday at the McDougald Funeral Home, officiated by Rev. Lewis McLean.

Burial was in Hillside Memorial Park with his grandsons, Glynn Ingram, Lynn Ingram, Larry Ingram, Robert Ingram, Jr., Richard Ingram and Tommy Fuller serving as pallbearers.

Born November 3, 1889 in Stokes County, NC, he was a son of the late James Ingram and Minnie Gann Ingram.  He was a watchman for Morgan Mills until his retirement in 1963.

Survivors include his wife, Ida Ruth Carpenter Ingram; four sons, Robert Ingram of Ellerbe, Johnny Creed Ingram and Joe Mac Ingram of Laurinburg, and Billy Ingram of Wagram; three daughters, Luvie Morgan of Vass, Dorothy Varner of Greensboro, and Louise Hayes of Ocean Isle; two brothers, Jack Ingram and Raymond Ingram of Winston-Salem; five sisters, Maggie Dalton of Greensboro, Eunice Bowman and Idell Bowman of Walnut Cove, Mince Ingram and Pearl Ingram of Pittsburgh, PA; 18 grandchildren; 23 great. grandchildren; and 5 great great grandchildren.

Sandy and I used this obituary to start our journey to find my ancestors.  In 1986, we went to find Grandma's grave site and visit the church where Daddy grew up. 

As noted, there are references to Greensboro, Walnut Cove and Winston-Salem.  In 1998, we decided to strike out for Walnut Cove and try to find Idell Bowman, one of Granddaddy's sisters.  Along the way, we also decided to find the church where Granddaddy's father and mother were buried.  Once we found the church, we really had no idea where we would go from there but as it turned out, we worked our way all the way to Franklin County, VA where we discovered our ancestor, Alexander Ingram.  He lived near  Roanoke, VA in the 1700's.  I'll provide more information about him as we continue the journey.

Finding Grandma Anders' Grave

Based on some research from Daddy and visiting courthouses and cemeteries, and a note from Marylou Douglas (mentioned below), I pieced together this information on Granddaddy's brothers and sisters.  

Thomas Hardy Ingram 1889 - 1986 - Matilda Fountain Anders 1890 - 1924
              Johnnie Creed Ingram 1917-1990 - Mary Louise Huckabee 1919 - 1990

Charles Ramon Ingram born 1909 – 1997 - Mary Margaret Matthews Ingram 1918 - 1991
    Children - Charles Ramon Ingram, Jr. born 1940 -  Cheryl Stresky Ingram
                                Jeffrey Ingram - wife Jennifer
                                Noah Ingram
                                Michael Ingram
                                Erik Ingram - wife Jacki

  Marylou Ingram (Conn) Douglas born 1942 -
                    First husband - William Chamberlain Conn – divorced and  now deceased
                    Husband - Tracy Edward Douglas 1943 - 1992
                                William Chamberlain Conn, Jr. born 1965
                                Vicki Lynn Conn (Blackman) Ackerman born 1968 - Tyler Robert Blackman born 1992

George DeForest Ingram born 1944 –

Laura Ellen Ingram born 1898

Lana Pearl Ingram Foster 1901 -  (first name may have been Lena)
                                 Mencye Foster

Bertha Renna Ingram 1902 – 1958

 Willie Sampson Ingram 1904 - Ida
                              Willie May Ingram
                                Patsy Ingram

Mary Idell Ingram Bowman 1908 - Lindsay Bowman
                   Betty Bowman
                   Lindsey Bowman, Jr.
                   Wallace Bowman

Eunice Irene Ingram Bowman 1911 -
                   Lou Harlan Bowman
                   Jasper Talmidge (JT) – deceased

Minnie Viola Ingram (Mencye)

Della Ingram Gilbert -
                   Elizabeth Gilbert
                    James Gilbert
                    June Gilbert
                    Jerry Gilbert

Mag Ingram Dalton (just recently died at 104)
                    Ray Dalton
                    Beverly Dalton
                    Howard Dalton
                    James or John Dalton
                    Minnie Sue Dalton
                    Lena Sue Dalton
                    Lucy Dalton
                    Kathryn Dalton
                    Betty Lynn Dalton

Jack Ingram

                    Cornelia
                    Twins that died within their first year or two

     

So, in 1986, Sandy and I decided to try and find Northview Primitive Baptist Church near Walnut Cove, NC.  This is where Daddy's mother, Matilda Anders, was buried.

Daddy went to this church as a child.  On our way to find it, we stopped at an old country store and spoke to the gentleman who ran it.  His voice and intonation was an exact copy of Granddaddy.  If I had closed my eyes, I would have thought he was speaking to me.

When we went in the church, the pews were worn from the members sitting so long on Sundays to hear the sermons.  I remember Daddy telling me that they did not have Sunday school.  Also, there were hymnals but no music - they just sang the psalms.  Up by the pulpit, we found a well-worn Bible and a pitcher for water.  We could imagine the preacher in the Spirit on Sunday.

Grandmother Anders' grave was in the cemetery behind the church.  Across the street, there was a beautiful grove of trees with a creek running through it.  I can imagine the congregation gathering here for picnics and baptisms in the creek.

Starting the trip up to Stokes County

In 1998, Sandy and I decided to drive up through Stokes County to find Granddaddy Tom's father and mother.  We had the obituary for Great Granddaddy James and we wanted to try and meet Granddaddy's sister, Idell.  Here is the obituary:

JAMES W. INGRAM 

DANBURY, Dec. 30 — James Ingram, 97, of Route 2, Walnut Cove, died today at a Winston-Salem hospital.  Surviving are seven daughters, Mrs. W. L. Bowman, Mrs. J. T. Bowman and Miss Laura Ingram of Walnut Cove, Miss Mencye Ingram, Mrs. J. P. Gilbert, Mrs. Pearl Foster, all of Pittsburgh, PA and Mrs. J. A. Dalton of Greensboro; four sons, Tom Ingram of Laurinburg, James Ingram of Winston-Salem, Raymond Ingram of Pittsburgh, and Will Ingram of Walnut Cove; one sister, Mrs. Emma Koger of Bassett, Va.; 35 grandchildren, 43 great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren. Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Monday at Pine Ridge Primitive Baptist Church by Elder V. V. Willard. Burial will be in the church cemetery.

My father told me that James ran a sawmill in Walnut Cove.  We found the land deed for his property as we did our research on this trip. 

We also got to meet Idell and that is a wonderful story.  I'll talk about that on my next post.

Getting through Stokes County

As we began our journey to Stokes County, NC to find out about my father's family, we started our research tour in Raleigh, NC at the state library and began looking for information about James Ingram.  Our first major find was the marriage record for James Ingram and Minnie Gann.  I remembered daddy talking about James and Minnie.  James Ingram’s father was listed as Isaac Ingram and his mother was listed as Jane Adams.  We also found cemetery records for James and Minnie in Walnut Cove, NC.  This information started us on our journey to find the grave sites of James and Minnie. 

So, the next day, we struck out for Walnut Cove, NC which is north of Winston-Salem.  It’s also not far from Germantown, and Sandy Ridge, which were two places daddy mentioned from his youth.    From our research at the library, we were looking for Pine Ridge Primitive Baptist Church in Walnut Cove.

We did find the church and the grave sites of James and Minnie and two of their daughters.  While we were there, I was reminded that my sister Peggy had commented that Idell Bowman, one of granddaddy Tom’s sisters, was still living in Walnut Cove.  So we decided to try and find her and stop by and say hello if possible.  Interestingly enough, Idell lived on Bowman Road, not far from the church.  So, as we drove down Bowman Road looking for her house, we noticed a woman standing in her yard and decided to stop.  I rolled down my car window and introduced myself and asked if she knew Idell Bowman.  She replied, “Why, that’s me”.  Idell asked us in and offered us cookies and cokes.  We had a wonderful chat sitting there with her and reminiscing about family.  After a nice visit and some home-made cookies, we left Idell.  She later wrote to me with a list of her family members and told me Mencye Foster has the Bible for the James Ingram's family.

As we left Idell, we decided to head to Danbury, NC which is the county seat for Stokes County.  On the way, we stopped in Walnut Cove, and went into the hardware store on Main Street.  The place seemed like it had been there for a long time.  I thought about granddaddy and daddy walking the streets of this town and maybe doing business at this hardware store.  In Danbury, we went to the courthouse and searched for family documents.  We found a copy of the marriage license for James and Minnie, along with birth records for all of their kids and a copy of the deed for the property they purchased after they had been married a couple of years.  I think Daddy told me James operated a saw mill on the property which was near Walnut Cove.