Amaneunsis Monday - Franklin "Frank" Drayton Prince and Mary "Mollie, Molly" Cynthia Bain

Amanuensis Monday is a daily blogging prompt used by Geneabloggers.com to help them post content on their sites. An Amanuensis is a person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another. Amanuensis Monday is a daily blogging theme which encourages the family historian to transcribe family letters, journals, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin.

Franklin Drayton Prince married Mary "Mollie" Cynthia Bain and they had son named...
...Julian Rhett Prince who married Clara Marie Wilder and they had a daughter named...
......Peggy Annette Prince who married William "Billy" Clyde Harris and they had a son named...
.........STAN!

Franklin "Frank" Drayton Prince was born 7/18/1880 in Cross Keys, Union County, SC to Clarence Rhett Prince "Retty"(DOB: 1/5/1858 in Union County, SC; DOD: 2/8/1919 in Cross Keys, Union County, SC) and Alice Ella Briggs (DOB: 5/22/1858 in Union County, SC; DOD: 1/5/1912 in Union County, SC).

1900 U.S. Census of Cross Keys, Union County, South Carolina; Roll: T623_ 1544; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 67, Lines 51-57, "Rhett Prince"
Rhett Prince, Head, W(hite), M(ale), Born Jany, 1858, 42 yrs old, Married 21 yrs, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Farmer, rents farm, Can read and write
E. Alluse Prince (sic, should be Alice Ella Prince), Wife, W, F, Born May, 1858, 42 yrs old, Married 21 yrs, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Can read and write
Mattee E. Prince (sic, Martha E. Prince), Daughter, W, F, Born Aug, 1878, 21 yrs old, Single, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Farm Laborer, Can read and write
C.F. Prince (sic, should be D.F. Prince for Drayton Franklin Prince), Son, W, M, Born July, 1880, 19 yrs old, Single, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Farm Laborer, Can read and write
C. Victor Prince, Son, W, M, Born Dec, 1882, 18 yrs old, Single, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Farm Laborer, Can read and write
Meriam Briggs (sic), Mother-in-law, W, F, Born Sept, 1829, Widowed, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Can read and write
Martha Briggs, Sister-in-law, W, F, Born April, 1853, 47 yrs old, Single, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Can read and write


Frank Prince married Mary "Mollie, Molly" Cynthia Bain. Molly Bain was born 10/10/1885 in Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC to Elisha Bain (DOB: about 1856 in Fairforest, Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC; DOD: 2/2/1949 in Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC) and Mary Ellen Bogan (DOB: between 1850-1855 in Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC; DOD: 9/22/1933 in Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC). See my post on Elisha Bain and Mary Ellen Bogan.


1910 U.S. Census of Cross Keys,  Union County,  South Carolina; Roll:  T624_1474; Page:  3A; Enumeration District:  0112; Image:  659; FHL Number:  1375487, Lines 14-18, "Clarence R. Prince" and Lines 19-22, "Frank D. Prince"
Clarence R. Prince, Head, M(ale), W(hite), 52 yrs old (DOB 1858), First marriage, Married 33 yrs (DOM 1877), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Miller in grist mill, Can read and write, Rents farm
Alice E. Prince, Wife, F, W, 51 yrs old (DOB 1859), First marriage, Married 33 yrs, 3 children with 3 still living, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Can read and write
Victor C. Prince, Son, M, W, 27 yrs old (DOB 1883), Single, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Laborer on home farm, Can read and write
Nancy Burnett, Mother, F, W, 74 yrs old (DOB 1836), Widowed, 6 children with 4 still living, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Can read and write
Martha Briggs, Sister-in-law, F, W, 57 yrs old (DOB 1853), Single, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Can read and write
Frank D. Prince, Head, M(ale), W(hite), 28 yrs old (DOB 1882), First marriage, Married 7 yrs (DOM 1903), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Barber for public, Can read and write
Mollie Prince, Wife, F, W, 24 yrs old (DOB 1886), First marriage, Married 7 yrs, 3 children with 3 still living (sic), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Julian R. Prince, Son, M, W, 5 yrs old (DOB 1905), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Hubert L. Prince, Son, M, W, 3 yrs old (DOB 1907), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC

World War I Draft Registration Card
Spartanburg County, South Carolina; Roll: 1877682; Draft Board: 2, Serial #1596, Order #2988, Franke Drayton Prince (sic)
Address: Enoree, Spartanburg County, SC
Age: 38 yrs old, DOB: 7/18/1880
White
Occupation: Salesman and farming for (illegible), Enoree, Spartanburg County, SC
Nearest Relative: Mollie Prince, Enoree, Spartanburg county, SC
39-2-20-C
Height Short, Build Slender, Blue Eyes, Black Hair
Signed by him as Franklin Drayton Prince on 9/12/1918

1920 U.S. Census of Enoree to Woodruff Rd., Cross Anchor, Spartanburg County, South Carolina; Roll: T625_1710; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 87; Image: 514, Lines 73-82, "Frank Prince"
Frank Prince, Head, Rents home, M(ale), W(hite), 39 yrs old (DOB 1881), Married, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Salesman at retail store
Mollie Prince, Wife, F, W, 35 yrs old (DOB 1885), Married, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Julian Prince, Son, M, W, 15 yrs old (DOB 1905), Single, Attends school, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Farm Laborer
Hubert Prince, Son, M, W, 13 yrs old (DOB 1907), Single, Attends School, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Farm Laborer
Ralph Prince, Son, M, W, 11 yrs old (DOB 1909), Attends school, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Wilbur Prince, Son, M, W, 9 yrs old (DOB 1911), Attends school, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Harold Prince, Son, M, W, 7 yrs old (DOB 1913), Attends school, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Mary Prince, Daughter, F, W, 5 yrs old (DOB 1915), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Ruth Prince, Daughter, F, W, 3 yrs 4/12 mos old (DOB 1917), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Lewis Prince, Son, M, W, 9/12 mos old (DOB 1919), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC

1930 U.S. Census of N. Liberty St., Spartanburg, Spartanburg, South Carolina; Roll: 2213; Page: 12A; Enumeration District: 52; Image: 752.0, Lines 17-28, "Frank Prince", (Julian Rhett Prince and Wilbur Eugene Prince had married and aren't living at home any more. Their 1930 census information will appear later.)
Frank Prince, Head, Rents home for $12/mos, No radio set, M(ale), W(hite), 48 yrs old (DOB 1882), Married at age 22 yrs old, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Clerk in general store
Molly Prince, Wife, F, W, 44 yrs old (DOB 1886), Married at age 18 yrs old, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Hubert Prince, Son, M, W, 23 yrs old (DOB 1907), Married at age 21 yrs old (DOM 1928), Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Weaver at cotton mill
Ralph Prince, Son, M, W, 21 yrs old (DOB 1909), Single, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Slasher at cotton mill
Harold Prince, Son, M, W, 17 yrs old (DOB 1913), Single, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Folder in cotton mill
Mary Prince, Daughter, F, W, 15 yrs old (DOB 1915), Single, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Ruth Prince, Daughter, F, W, 13 yrs old (DOB 1917), Single, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Marvin Prince, Son, M, W, 11 yrs old (DOB 1919), Single, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Vernon Prince, Son, M, W, 9 yrs old (DOB 1921), Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Margaret Prince, Daughter, F, W, 6 yrs old (DOB 1924), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Mildred Prince, Daughter, F, W, 1 yrs 9/12 mos (DOB 1928), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Lillie Belle Prince, Daughter-in-law, F, W, 18 yrs old (DOB 1912), Married at age 16 yrs old, Born in GA, Both parents born in GA (Hubert's wife)


Frank and Molly Prince had 11 children:


1) Julian Rhett Prince (DOB: 10/5/1904 in Enoree, Spartanburg County, SC; DOD: 9/3/1935 in Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC) married Clara Marie "Nanny" Wilder (DOB: 4/27/1906 in Woodruff, Spartanburg County, SC; DOD: 4/2/1992 in Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC) in 1925 in Spartanburg, SC. Julian and Clara had 3 girls before he was killed in a car accident. They are Peggy Annette Prince Harris, Wilma Prince Robertson, Dorothy Louise Prince Newman. Occupations: In 1920 Census he was Farm Laborer; 1930 Census he was working at Beaumont Mfg Co. as Slasher; 1935 at the time of his death his death certificate lists him as Foreman in Slasher room at Beaumont Mfg Co. Both Julian and Clara are buried at Oak Grove Baptist Church, Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC.

1930 U.S. Census of Reynolds St., Spartanburg,  Spartanburg,  South Carolina; Roll:  2213; Page:  10B; Enumeration District:  52; Image:  749.0, Lines 68-71, "Julian Prince"
Julian Prince, Head, Rents house at $6/mos, No radio set, M(ale), W(hite), 26 yrs old (DOB 1904), Married at age 19 yrs old (DOM 1923), Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Slasher at cotton mill
Clara Prince, Wife, F, W, 25 yrs old (DOB 1905), Married at 18 yrs old, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Wilma Prince, Daughter, F, W, 3 yrs 9/12 mos old (DOB 1926), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Louise Prince, Daughter, F, W, 6/12 mos old (DOB 1929), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC

SC Death Certificate #14164, Registration District #40-A, Registered #417, Julian R. Prince, DOD: 9/5/1935 in Mary Black Hospital, Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC
Male, White, DOB: (blank), 31 yrs old (DOB 1904), born in SC, Married
Occupation: Textile, Foreman of slasher room
Father: D.F. Prince, born in SC
Mother: Mollie Bane, born in SC
Informant: M.E. Prince of Beaumont Mill, SC
DOD: 9/5/1935 at (blank) am/pm
Cause of death: "Fracture both legs, fracture of lower jaw, shock automobile accident"
Diagnosed by exam and x-ray, No autopsy
Accident on 9/4/1935 in road near Drayton Mill, public road
Burial: County on 9/7/1935


2) Hubert L. Prince (DOB: 1907 in Spartanburg County, SC; DOD: 3/5/1990 in Monroe, Walton County, GA) married Lilly Belle Toney (DOB: between 1912-1913 in Spartanburg, SC; DOD: ). They had Betty Jean Prince and Frances Prince.

Georgia Deaths, 1919-1998
Name: Hubert L Prince
Death Date: 5 Mar 1990
County of Death: Walton
Gender: M (Male)
Race: White
Age: 83 years
County of Residence: Walton
Certificate: 013965
Date Filed: 16 Mar 1990

Social Security Death Index
Name: Hubert Prince
SSN: 247-03-9933
Last Residence: 30655 Monroe, Walton, Georgia, United States of America
Born: 27 Jun 1906
Died: 5 Mar 1990
State (Year) SSN issued: South Carolina (Before 1951)


3) Ralph DuPre Prince (DOB: 9/1/1908 in Laurens County, SC; DOD: 1/21/1994 in Spartanburg, SC) married Carolee (Carrie Lee) Garrett (DOB: about 1916 in Laurens County, SC; DOD: 5/16/1964 in Spartanburg, SC) and had Bobby Prince, Kenneth Prince, Larry Prince, Barbara Prince Stevens, Mary Elaine "Lanie" Prince Curry, Linda Prince Amick. Occupations: In 1930 Census he was working Beaumont Mfg Co. as Slasher; 33 years on Spartanburg police force, 17 of them City Chief of Police, then 2 terms as city councilman. Both Ralph and Carolee are buried at Greenlawn Memorial Gardens, Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC.

Social Security Death Index
Name: Ralph D. Prince
SSN: 248-10-****
Last Residence: 29303 Spartanburg, Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States of America
Born: 1 Sep 1908
Died: 21 Jan 1994
State (Year) SSN issued: South Carolina (Before 1951)

Spartanburg Herald Journal, Spartanburg, SC, 1/23/1994, Pg B4, obituary for Ralph Dupre Prince.


4) Wilbur Eugene Prince (DOB: 5/7/1910 Enoree, Spartanburg County, SC; DOD: 8/29/1981 in Spartanburg, SC) married Ruth Ansel West (DOB: 4/7/1908 in West Springs, SC; DOD: 2/12/1979 in Spartanburg, SC) and had Suzie Prince McKee, Joanna Prince Halford, Martha Prince Adair, Wilbur Eugene Prince Jr, Joseph Steven Prince. Occupation: In 1930 Census he is listed as Mortician for an undertaker; His obituary said he was retired from Floyd's Mortuary and the Railroad. They are buried at Greenlawn Memorial Gardens, Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC.

1930 U.S. Census of Sloan St., Spartanburg,  Spartanburg,  South Carolina; Roll:  2213; Page:  9A; Enumeration District:  52; Image:  746.0, Lines 28-34, "Leander West"
Leander West, Head, Rents home for $12/mos, No radio set, M(ale), W(hite), 50 yrs old (DOB 1880), Married at age 26 yrs old, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Mechanic in cotton mill
Mattie West, Wife, F, W, 47 yrs old (DOB 1883), Married at age 23 yrs old, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Ruth Prince, Daughter, F, W, 21 yrs old (DOB 1909), Married 20 yrs old (DOM 1910), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Beauty operator in her own shop
Wilbur Prince, Son-in-law, M, W, 20 yrs old (DOB 1910), Married at 19 yrs old, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Mortician at undertakers
Lois West, Daughter, F, W, 17 yrs old, Single, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Leander Prince Jr., Son, M, W, 13 yrs old, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Martha Lester, Mother-in-law, F, W, 73 yrs old, Widowed, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC

Spartanburg Herald Journal, Spartanburg, SC, 8/30/1981, Pg A6, obituary of Wilbur Eugene Prince, Sr.

Social Security Death Index
Name: Wilbur Prince
SSN: 248-10-****
Last Residence: 29301 Spartanburg, Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States of America
Born: 7 May 1910
Last Benefit: 29301 Spartanburg, Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States of America
Died: Aug 1981
State (Year) SSN issued: South Carolina (Before 1951)


5) Franklin Harold Prince (DOB: 8/22/1913 in Enoree, Spartanburg County, SC; DOD: 8/7/1952 in Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC) married Elenora "Eleanor, Elanor" Savannah Shirley (DOB: 1/1/1920 in Union County, SC; DOD: 9/29/1999 in Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC) and had Frank Donald Prince and Jerry Prince. Occupations: In 1930 Census he is listed as a Folder at Beaumont Mfg Co.; At time of death he was still working for Beaumont Mfg Co. He is buried at Greenlawn Memorial Gardens, Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC.

SC Death Certificate #011368, Registration District #4008, Registration #71-689, Birth #02835, State File #52 011368, Frank Harold Prince (Ancestry.com has him indexed as Prince Harold Frank), DOD: 8/7/1952 on Boiling Springs Hwy, Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC
Usual Residence: 533 Shirley St., Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC
Male, White, Married to Elnora Shirley, DOB: 8/22/1913 in Spartanburg, SC, 39 yrs old
Occupation: Textile, Second hand at cotton mill
Father: D. F. Prince, Mother: Molley Bain (sic)
SS# 248-10-7286, Informant: Mrs. Elnora Shirley Prince
DOD: 8/7/1952 at 10:30pm
Cause of death: "shock due to multiple injuries and brain commotion (duration few minutes) due to fractures left femur, right fibula compound, nose compound, due to laceration right leg position including post tibial artery, lacerations to forehead"
Accident Hwy 9 near Spartanburg. Time of injury 8/7/1952 10:30pm. Auto collision accident. Diagnosed "post mortem inspection only"
Signed by E.H. Law, MD
Burial: 8/9/1852 in Greenlawn, Spartanburg, SC
Funeral Home: Floyd's Mortuary

Spartanburg Herald, 8/8/1952, Pg 28
"Harold Prince Killed In Wreck On Boiling Springs Highway"
"F. Harold Prince, 39, brother of City Police Chief Ralph D. Prince, was killed in a traffic accident on Boiling Springs Highway seven miles outside the city limits at 10:30am Thursday."
"Mr. Prince, son of Mrs. Molly Bain Prince and the late D. F. Prince of Spartanburg, an employee of the Beaumont Manufacturing Co. was pronounced dead upon arrival at Spartanburg General Hospital a few minutes after the accident occurred state highway patrolmen reported."
"State Highway Patrolman Tom L. Doyle reported that the accident occurred on Highway 9 when a 1950 Chevrolet truck driven by Robert Lee Moore, Mill Springs, NC skidded and turned around in the road and started running backwards."
"Mr. Prince applied brakes to the 1950 Chevrolet which he was driving, the car turned sideways and hit the truck. He was riding alone in the car at time of accident."
"A passenger in the truck with Moore was not hurt."
"District 5 Highway Patrol Lt. G. C. Kinsey and Patrolman Charles Alverson assisted in the investigation."
"Mr. Prince's car was demolished the patrolman reported."
"Mr. Prince was born at Enoree but had been a resident of Spartanburg about 25 years."
"He is survived by his wife, Mrs. Elnora Shirley Prince; two sons, Dennis and Jerry, all of 533 Shirley Street; his mother, Mrs. D.F. Prince; three sisters, Mrs. Mildred Comer of Spartanburg, Mrs. Ruth Shepherd of Spartanburg, and Mrs. Margaret Keys of Glendale; four brothers, Robert P. of Monroe, GA, Vernon, Wilbur E. and City Police Chief Ralph D. Prince and Marvin Prince all of Spartanburg."
"Funeral services will be conducted Saturday at 4pm at the J. F. Floyd Mortuary by the Rev. Dewey S. Welchel, P. G. Smith and V. R. Richie. Burial will be in Greenlawn Memorial Garden."
"The body will remain at the mortuary until the hour of service."
"Another brother of Chief Prince was killed in an auto accident in 1935 and a sister was killed in a similar manner in 1944."
"The family is at the home of the mother, Mrs. D.F. Prince at 642 N. Liberty Street."

Spartanburg Herald Journal, Spartanburg, SC, 9/30/1999, Pg A1, obituary of Elenora Savannah Shirley Prince.


6) Mary Prince (DOB: 8/14/1914 in Enoree, Spartanburg County, SC; DOD: 10/14/1943 in Spartanburg, SC) married Lewis R. Ray (DOB: 1/31/1908 in Spartanburg, SC; DOD: 7/20/1942 in SC State Hospital, Columbia, Richland County, SC) and had no children. She is buried at Oak Grove Baptist Church, Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC.

SC Death Certificate #09370, Registration District #38-A, Registered #700, Lewis R. Ray, DOD: 7/19/1942 at SC State Hospital, Columbia, Richland County, SC (been there 7 mos, 21 days)
Usual Residence: Spartanburg, SC
Male, White, Separated, DOB: 1906 in SC, 36 yrs old
Occupation: Barber
Father: N.E. Ray, born in SC
Mother: Sarah Adair, born in SC
Informant: Claudy Ray, Spartanburg, SC
DOD: 7/19/1942 at 8:45pm
Cause of death: "Alcoholism chronic"
Removal to Woodruff, SC, 7/20/1942

SC Death Certificate #12469, Registration District #40-A, Registered #505, Mary P. Ray, DOD: 10/14/1943 in Mary Black Hospital, Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC
Usual Residence: 4642 N. Liberty St., Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC
Female, White, Widow, DOB: 8/14/1914 in SC, 28 yrs old
Occupation: Textile
Father: D.F. Prince, born in SC
Mother: Mollie Bain, born in SC
Informant: R.D Prince, Spartanburg, SC (her brother Ralph Dupre Prince)
DOD: 10/14/1943 at 7:05am
Cause of death: "automobile accident, fractured skull"
Accident occurred 10/13/1943 in Spartanburg, SC in public place
Burial: 10/15/1943 at Oak Grove

Spartanburg Herald, 10/14/1943, Pg 10 near bottom
"Two Injured In Beaumont Crash"
"A white woman, listed as Mrs. Mary Ray, was admitted to the Mary Black Memorial Hospital early last night and a man identified as Joe R. Clubb was given emergency treatment at the same hospital for injuries suffered in an automobile accident on N. Fairview Avenue in the Beamont Mill section. City police investigated the accident."

Spartanburg Herald, 10/15/1943, Pg 5
"Mrs. Mary Ray Dies of Auto Crash Injuries"
"Funeral Service Planned This Afternoon for Beaumont Victim"
"Mrs. Mary Prince Ray, 29, of 642 North Liberty Street died at 7am yesterday morning at Mary Black Hospital of injuries suffered Wednesday night in an automobile accident in the Beaumont section of the city."
"Her death was the 18th fatality of the year in the county as the result of traffic accidents."
"A report of the accident filed by investigating officers at city police headquarters said it occurred at 8:20pm Wednesday night at the intersection of North Fairview Avenue and Maywood Street. The car in which Mrs. Ray was riding was traveling south on Maywood Street, failed to make a turn at the Fairview Avenue intersection and struck a telephone pole, according to the report. Mrs. Ray was listed as the driver and Joe R. Clubb as the owner of the car in the police report."
"Clubb was given emergency treatment at Mary Black Hospital following the accident."
"Patrolmen Charley Brown and Wofford Blanton (Red Blanton) investigated the accident."
"At the hospital it was reported that Mrs. Ray suffered a fractured skull and internal injuries."
"No plans for an inquest into Mrs. Ray's death had been made yesterday afternoon, Coroner John W. Pearson said."
"Funeral services for Mrs. Ray will be conducted today at 4:30pm at Beaumont Baptist Church by the Rev. E. G. Harrison and the Rev. Carl O. Page. Interment will be in Oak Grove Baptist Church cemetery."
"Active pallbearers will be Archie West, Henry Lewis, Bill Kirby, Dewey Welchel, Bruce Justice and William Richards."
"Mrs. Ray is survived by her mother, Mrs. D. F. Prince of Beaumont; six brothers, Hubert Prince of Spartanburg; Ralph D. Prince of the detective division of the Spartanburg police department; Harold Prince of Spartanburg; Marvin Prince of the U.S. Navy; and Vernon Prince of the U.S. Army, now stationed overseas; and three sisters, Mrs. Ruth Shepherd, Miss Marguerite Prince and Miss Mildred Prince, all of Beaumont."
"The body will be at the home, 642 North Liberty Street, until the hour of the funeral."


7) Ruth Prince (DOB: 10/25/1916 in SC; DOD: 12/21/2006 in Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC) married J.R. Shephard (DOB: ? , DOD: ? ) and had Gail Shephard Allen and Nancy Shephard Lee. They are buried at Greenlawn Memorial Gardens, Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC.

Social Security Death Index
Name: Ruth Irene Prince Shephard
SSN: 248-10-4322
Last Residence: 29303 Spartanburg, Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States of America
Born: 25 Oct 1916
Died: 21 Dec 2006
State (Year) SSN issued: South Carolina (Before 1951)

Spartanburg Herald Journal, Spartanburg, SC, 12/22/06, pg B2 Obituary of Ruth Prince Shepherd.


8) Marvin Lewis Prince (DOB: 3/31/1919 in South Carolina; DOD: 5/18/1994 in Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC) married Margie Hurd (DOB: 10/1/1921 in ?; DOD: ? in Spartanburg, SC). They had no children that I'm aware of. Marvin was a U.S. Navy veteran of WWII. Occupation: drove a city bus and drove for Greyhound Bus. Both are buried at Oak Grove Baptist Church, Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC.
Name: Marvin L. Prince
SSN: 248-10-3185
Last Residence: 29301 Spartanburg, Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States of America
Born: 31 Mar 1919
Died: 18 May 1994
State (Year) SSN issued: South Carolina (Before 1951)

Spartanburg Herald Journal, Spartanburg, SC, 5/19/1994, Pg B4, obituary of Marvin Lewis Prince.


9) Vernon C. Prince (DOB: 12/20/1921 in Enoree, Spartanburg County, SC; DOD: 6/13/1985 in Spartanburg, SC). He never married. He was a U.S. Army Veteran of WWII. Occupation: Retired from Beaumont Mfg Co. He is buried at Oak Grove Baptist Church, Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC.

Social Security Death Index
Name: Vernon Prince
SSN: 249-16-3810
Last Residence: 29303 Spartanburg, Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States of America
Born: 20 Dec 1921
Died: Jun 1985
State (Year) SSN issued: South Carolina (Before 1951)

Spartanburg Herald Journal, Spartanburg, SC, 6/15/1985, Pg C5, obituary of Vernon C. Prince.


10) Margarite Prince (DOB: 11/1923 in SC; DOD: ) married Jack Key (DOB: ? ; DOD: ) and had Bobby and David Key.


11) Mildred Prince (DOB: 9/8/1926 in Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC; DOD: ) married Edward "Ed" Norman Comer, Sr. (DOB: 10/3/1924 in Spartanburg, SC; DOD: 5/1/2003 in Spartanburg, SC) and had Edward Norman Comer Jr, Harold "Hal" Comer, Rebecca "Becky" Comer Sexton.



SC Death Index, 1915-1949
"Name: D.F. Prince
DOD: 5/13/1940
Age: 59
Estimated Birth Year: 1881
Gender: Male
Color: White
County of Death: Spartanburg, SC
Volume Number: 19
Certificate Number: 8576"

SC Death Certificate #8576, Registration District #40-A, Registered #320, Mr. D.F. Prince, DOD: 5/13/1940 at 740 N. Liberty St., Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC (at home)
Male, White, DOB: (blank) in SC, 59 yrs old (DOB 1881)
Occupation: Merchant
Father: Rett Prince (sic), born in SC
Mother: Briggs (sic), born in SC
Informant: Mrs. D. F. Prince, Spartanburg, SC
DOD: 5/13/1940 at 3:30am
Cause of death: "found dead in bed called in after death probably heart attack"
Burial: 5/14/1940 in County


Frank Prince worked at Beaumont Mills in the Company Store and was considered management. They lived at 740 N. Liberty Street in the big two-story shingled house above.

Frank Prince played on mill baseball teams.


He is buried at Oak Grove Baptist Church, Spartanburg, SC.

Mary "Mollie, Molly" Cynthia Bain Prince



Her granddaughter, Peggy, remembers how Molly Bain Prince made biscuits and cornbread and how kindhearted, jolly and uncomplaining she was. She was never sharp or angry. Everyone at the 2001 Prince Reunion had wonderful things to say about her. "She was always there for us." "She was happy all the time," "it was always like a party" at her house, "there was always food at her house." She made the best soup, made banana pudding, had a roast every Sunday. They said that she fed men (homeless) who rode the trains during The Depression. The railroad tracks are very close to their house. They quoted her as saying, "Don't throw that out, a hobo might stop by." Peggy said she also washed clothes for about 20-25 people. She had big iron pots in her backyard and she would boil the clothes. Peggy remembers stirring the clothes in the pot. Then she rinsed, put them through a wringer and into a blueing pot. She took care of her father, Elisha Bain who lived with her. Someone remembered her telling the children not to go down to the Beaumont Mill Pond. She would warn them, "That's where they put the dead babies." The hospital was just above the creek that fed the pond. Peggy said that she was adamant about not divorcing. She did not believe there was any reason for divorce.

Molly Bain Prince died 10/31/1974 in Spartanburg, SC. She is buried beside her husband at Oak Grove Baptist Church, Spartanburg, SC.




If you have any comments, corrections or additonal information, please email me at Mom25dogs@gmail.com.

Amanuensis Monday - Julian Rhett Prince and Clara Marie Wilder

An Amanuensis is a person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another. Amanuensis Monday, through Geneabloggers.com , is a daily blogging theme which encourages the family historian to transcribe family letters, journals, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some we never met.


Julian Rhett Prince married Clara Marie Wilder and they had a daughter named...
...Peggy Annette Prince who married William "Billy" Clyde Harris and they had a son named...
......STAN!


Julian Rhett Prince was born 10/5/1904 in Enoree, Spartanburg County, SC to Franklin Drayton Prince (DOB: 7/18/1880 in Cross Keys, Union County, SC; DOD: 5/13/1940 in Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC) and Mary "Mollie, Molly" Cynthia Bain (DOB: 10/10/1885 in Spartanburg, SC; DOD: 10/31/1974 in Spartanburg, SC).


Julian Prince portrait with his grandson, Stan Harris. Photo taken in the early 1990's.

1910 U.S. Census of Cross Keys,  Union County,  South Carolina; Roll:  T624_1474; Page:  3A; Enumeration District:  0112; Image:  659; FHL Number:  1375487, Lines 14-18, "Clarence R. Prince" and Lines 19-22, "Frank D. Prince" (Father and son living side by side)
Clarence R. Prince, Head, M(ale), W(hite), 52 yrs old (DOB 1858), First marriage, Married 33 yrs (DOM 1877), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Miller in grist mill, Can read and write, Rents farm
Alice E. Prince, Wife, F, W, 51 yrs old (DOB 1859), First marriage, Married 33 yrs, 3 children with 3 still living, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Can read and write
Victor C. Prince, Son, M, W, 27 yrs old (DOB 1883), Single, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Laborer on home farm, Can read and write
Nancy Burnett, Mother, F, W, 74 yrs old (DOB 1836), Widowed, 6 children with 4 still living, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Can read and write
Martha Briggs, Sister-in-law, F, W, 57 yrs old (DOB 1853), Single, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Can read and write
Frank D. Prince, Head, M(ale), W(hite), 28 yrs old (DOB 1882), First marriage, Married 7 yrs (DOM 1903), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Barber for public, Can read and write
Mollie Prince, Wife, F, W, 24 yrs old (DOB 1886), First marriage, Married 7 yrs, 3 children with 3 still living (sic), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Julian R. Prince, Son, M, W, 5 yrs old (DOB 1905), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Hubert L. Prince, Son, M, W, 3 yrs old (DOB 1907), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC




1920 U.S. Census of Enoree to Woodruff Rd., Cross Anchor, Spartanburg County, South Carolina; Roll: T625_1710; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 87; Image: 514, Lines 73-82, "Frank Prince"
Frank Prince, Head, Rents home, M(ale), W(hite), 39 yrs old (DOB 1881), Married, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Salesman at retail store
Mollie Prince, Wife, F, W, 35 yrs old (DOB 1885), Married, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Julian Prince, Son, M, W, 15 yrs old (DOB 1905), Single, Attends school, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Farm Laborer
Hubert Prince, Son, M, W, 13 yrs old (DOB 1907), Single, Attends School, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Farm Laborer
Ralph Prince, Son, M, W, 11 yrs old (DOB 1909), Attends school, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Wilbur Prince, Son, M, W, 9 yrs old (DOB 1911), Attends school, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Harold Prince, Son, M, W, 7 yrs old (DOB 1913), Attends school, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Mary Prince, Daughter, F, W, 5 yrs old (DOB 1915), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Ruth Prince, Daughter, F, W, 3 yrs 4/12 mos old (DOB 1917), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Lewis Prince, Son, M, W, 9/12 mos old (DOB 1919), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC




1930 U.S. Census of Reynolds St., Spartanburg, Spartanburg, South Carolina; Roll: 2213; Page: 10B; Enumeration District: 52; Image: 749.0, Lines 68-71, "Julian Prince"
Julian Prince, Head, Rents house at $6/mos, No radio set, M(ale), W(hite), 26 yrs old (DOB 1904), Married at age 19 yrs old (DOM 1923), Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC, Slasher at cotton mill
Clara Prince, Wife, F, W, 25 yrs old (DOB 1905), Married at 18 yrs old, Can read and write, Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Wilma Prince, Daughter, F, W, 3 yrs 9/12 mos old (DOB 1926), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC
Louise Prince, Daughter, F, W, 6/12 mos old (DOB 1929), Born in SC, Both parents born in SC




He married Clara Marie Wilder in 1925 in Spartanburg, SC. They had 3 daughters:


1) *Peggy Annette Prince married William "Billy" Clyde Harris. They have 6 children.



2) Wilma Prince married Johnny Robertson. They have 2 children.


3) Dorothy Louise Prince (DOB: 10/15/1930 in Spartanburg, SC; DOD: 6/10/2001 in Greer, SC) married Buzz Newman. They have 7 children.


Julian Rhett Prince died 9/3/1935 in Spartanburg, SC and is buried at Oak Grove Baptist Church cemetery, Spartanburg, SC. He died in a car wreck. He and some friends were going fishing and he was riding in the rumble seat of the car. The car was hit in the rear and threw him out of the rumble seat.


SC Death Certificate #14164, Registration District #40-A, Registered #417, Julian R. Prince, DOD: 9/5/1935 in Mary Black Hospital, Spartanburg, Spartanburg County, SC
Male, White, DOB: (blank), 31 yrs old (DOB 1904), born in SC, Married
Occupation: Textile, Foreman of slasher room
Father: D.F. Prince, born in SC
Mother: Mollie Bane, born in SC
Informant: M.E. Prince of Beaumont Mill, SC
DOD: 9/5/1935 at (blank) am/pm
Cause of death: "Fracture both legs, fracture of lower jaw, shock automobile accident"
Diagnosed by exam and x-ray, No autopsy
Accident on 9/4/1935 in road near Drayton Mill, public road
Burial: County on 9/7/1935





The Spartanburg Herald Journal article:
"Julian Prince Dies Of Injuries
Succumbs to Hurts, Suffered in Automobile Accident Near Drayton
Julian Prince died early Thursday morning after having been injured at about 3:30 o'clock Wednesday afternoon in an automobile accident near Drayton. A second man suffered a broken leg in the accident and two men were being held in the county jail pending the outcome of Prince's condition.
When taken to a local hospital, Prince was found to be suffering from two broken legs, a fractured jaw and internal injuries about the chest. A blood transfusion was given at 9:30 o'clock but the young man failed to rally from the effects of his injuries.
R.J. Powell, a passenger in the car in which Prince was also riding, was taken to the General Hospital. He had a broken leg. After emergency treatment he was taken to his home at 699 Mayood Street.
Rural Officers J.P. Bolton and S.F. Moore investigated the accident which is said to have occurred about 3:30pm near Thomas store at Drayton, where the road leading to Spartanburg's Main Street and the Cannon's Camp Ground road intersect. Prince and Powell were riding in a light passenger car, and the other vehicle involved was a truck loaded with apples, it was reported.
Officers Bolton and Moore brought two men said to have been driving the automobiles to the county jail for investigation pending developments in Prince's condition. Both men received minor injuries."

The Spartanburg Herald Journal, 9/6/1935, obituary of Julian Rhett Prince
"Rites For Victim Of Crash Are Set
Julian Prince Death Termed Accident By Cornoner's Jury Yesterday
Julian Prince, who died a few hours after being thrown from the rumble seat of a light coupe Wednesday afternoon near Drayton mill, came to his death as the result of an unavoidable collision with a truck driven by Sam McAbee, a coroner's jury sitting in the case yesterday afternoon found. Prince was 36 years old.
Funeral services will be held at the Beaumont Baptist Church tomorrow after-o'clock (sic), with the Rev. Carl O. Page and the Rev. Jesse T. Gregory officiating. Interment will be in Oak Grove Baptist churchyard.
Prince and four others, were going on a fishing trip at the time of the accident, the jury was told. At the intersection of the road leading from Drayton to Hillcrest and the Cannon's Camp Ground Road, the rear end of the coupe in which the fishing party were riding was struck by a truck.
R.J. Powell, also a passenger in the car in which Mr. Prince was riding, suffered a broken leg and most of the others involved were slightly injured. Three men were riding in the truck, but all escaped with only minor hurts although it turned over.
The jury exonerated both McAbee and the driver of the coupe from blame. Jurymen were George W. Wall, J.E. Brown, H.T. Littlejohn, P.W. Devore, H.F. Brockman, and William Bobo.
Pallbearers at the funeral tomoroow will be W.E. Jett, Homer Edgens, D.W. Powell, Carl Edwards, Boyden Foster and Archie West.
Surviving Mr. Prince are his wife, Mrs. Clara Wilder Prince; three daughters, Misses Wilma, Louise and Peggy Prince; his parents, Mr. and Mrs. D.F. Prince; four sisters, Mrs. Louise (sic) Ray of this city, Misses Ruth, Margaret and Mildred Prince of Beaumont; six brothers, L.H., Ralph, W.E., Harold, Marvin and Vernon Prince, all of Beaumont."


Two of Julian's siblings also died in car accidents.
10/13/1943, Mary Prince Ray (widow of Lewis Ray) was killed in a car accident just up from her house in Beaumont. (See article in Spartanburg Herald Journal, 10/15/1943.) She was with a man and he asked her to drive. She didn't know how to drive and she ran into a telephone pole at the top of the street.

8/7/1952, Harold Prince was killed in a car accident on Hwy 9. (See article in Spartanburg Herald Journal, 8/8/1952.) A truck went out of control and spun into Harold's car.


Spartanburg Herald, 10/14/1943, Pg 10 near bottom
"Two Injured In Beaumont Crash"
"A white woman, listed as Mrs. Mary Ray, was admitted to the Mary Black Memorial Hospital early last night and a man identified as Joe R. Clubb was given emergency treatment at the same hospital for injuries suffered in an automobile accident on N. Fairview Avenue in the Beamont Mill section. City police investigated the accident."

Spartanburg Herald, 10/15/1943, Pg 5
"Mrs. Mary Ray Dies of Auto Crash Injuries"
"Funeral Service Planned This Afternoon for Beaumont Victim"
"Mrs. Mary Prince Ray, 29, of 642 North Liberty Street died at 7am yesterday morning at Mary Black Hospital of injuries suffered Wednesday night in an automobile accident in the Beaumont section of the city."
"Her death was the 18th fatality of the year in the county as the result of traffic accidents."
"A report of the accident filed by investigating officers at city police headquarters said it occurred at 8:20pm Wednesday night at the intersection of North Fairview Avenue and Maywood Street. The car in which Mrs. Ray was riding was traveling south on Maywood Street, failed to make a turn at the Fairview Avenue intersection and truck a telephone pole, according to the report. Mrs. Ray was listed as the driver and Joe R. Clubb as the owner of the car in the police report."
"Clubb was given emergency treatment at Mary Black Hospital following the accident."
"Patrolmen Charley Brown and Wofford Blanton (Red Blanton) investigated the accident."
"At the hospital it was reported that Mrs. Ray suffered a fractured skull and internal injuries."
"No plans for an inquest into Mrs. Ray's death had been made yesterday afternoon, Coroner John W. Pearson said."
"Funeral services for Mrs. Ray will be conducted today at 4:30pm at Beaumont Baptist Church by the Rev. E. G. Harrison and the Rev. Carl O. Page. Interment will be in Oak Grove Baptist Church cemetery."
"Active pallbearers will be Archie West, Henry Lewis, Bill Kirby, Dewey Welchel, Bruce Justice and William Richards."
"Mrs. Ray is survived by her mother, Mrs. D. F. Prince of Beaumont; six brothers, Hubert Prince of Spartanburg; Ralph D. Prince of the detective division of the Spartanburg police department; Harold Prince of Spartanburg; Marvin Prince of the U.S. Navy; and Vernon Prince of the U.S. Army, now stationed overseas; and three sisters, Mrs. Ruth Shepherd, Miss Marguerite Prince and Miss Mildred Prince, all of Beaumont."
"The body will be at the home, 642 North Liberty Street, until the hour of the funeral."


Spartanburg Herald, 8/8/1952, Pg 28
"Harold Prince Killed In Wreck On Boiling Springs Highway"
"F. Harold Prince, 39, brother of City Police Chief Ralph D. Prince, was killed in a traffic accident on Boiling Springs Highway seven miles outside the city limits at 10:30am Thursday."
"Mr. Prince, son of Mrs. Molly Bain Prince and the late D. F. Prince of Spartanburg, an employee of the Beaumont Manufacturing Co. was pronounced dead upon arrival at Spartanburg General Hospital a few minutes after the accident occurred state highway patrolmen reported."
"State Highway Patrolman Tom L. Doyle reported that the accident occurred on Highway 9 when a 1950 Chevrolet truck driven by Robert Lee Moore, Mill Springs, NC skidded and turned around in the road and started running backwards."
"Mr. Prince applied brakes to the 1950 Chevrolet which he was driving, the car turned sideways and hit the truck. He was riding alone in the car at time of accident."
"A passenger in the truck with Moore was not hurt."
"District 5 Highway Patrol Lt. G. C. Kinsey and Patrolman Charles Alverson assisted in the investigation."
"Mr. Prince's car was demolished the patrolman reported."
"Mr. Prince was born at Enoree but had been a resident of Spartanburg about 25 years."
"He is survived by his wife, Mrs. Elnora Shirley Prince; two sons, Dennis and Jerry, all of 533 Shirley Street; his mother, Mrs. D.F. Prince; three sisters, Mrs. Mildred Comer of Spartanburg, Mrs. Ruth Shepherd of Spartanburg, and Mrs. Margaret Keys (sic) of Glendale; four brothers, Robert P. of Monroe, GA, Vernon, Wilbur E. and City Police Chief Ralph D. Prince and Marvin Prince all of Spartanburg."
"Funeral services will be conducted Saturday at 4pm at the J. F. Floyd Mortuary by the Rev. Dewey S. Welchel, P. G. Smith and V. R. Richie. Burial will be in Greenlawn Memorial Garden."
"The body will remain at the mortuary until the hour of service."
"Another brother of Chief Prince was killed in an auto accident in 1935 and a sister was killed in a similar manner in 1944."
"The family is at the home of the mother, Mrs. D.F. Prince at 642 N. Liberty Street."


****************************************************

Clara Marie Wilder was born 4/27/1906 in Woodruff, Spartanburg County, SC to John Langdon Wilder (DOB: 1/14/1880 in Woodruff, Spartanburg County, SC; DOD: 12/20/1965 in Spartanburg, SC) and Lora Massengale (DOB: 6/19/1888 in Woodruff, Spartanburg County, SC; DOD: 3/15/1970 in Spartanburg, SC).





Here is Clara with her daughter, Peggy, grandson Ronnie and great granddaughter Jenny. This photo was taken about 1984.



After her husband died in the car accident, Clara had to go to work at Beaumont Mill. She worked there until she retired. She suffered severe depression after the death of her husband which gave her life a bitterness. But she had to keep going because she had 3 little girls. Life wasn't easy for them and her depression made a deep impression on her girls but she made sure they were taken care of. She didn't have time or energy to be much involved in their emotional health but she made sure they were physically taken care of and had what they needed. They lived in a house on Maywood Street and Clara purchased this house when Beaumont sold the mill village houses. It's still held by one of her granddaughters.

Clara was a beautiful, petite woman and she had men interested in her but she never remarried. She was afraid of bringing a stepfather into her girls' life in case it didn't work. She had heard too many stories of bad stepfathers.

Eventually, Clara moved in with her eldest daughter, Wilma and Johnny Robertson. She lived with them until her death. When I knew her (I married her grandson in the late 1970's) she was a Christian woman filled with the Holy Spirit. She didn't seem to have the bitterness and hardness that her girls remembered when they were younger. I guess the Lord had done a work of healing on her heart. She was active, sweet tempered and well liked. She helped her daughter in keeping house, cooking, attended church regularly, kept up with her large family. She had a ready smile and laugh.

If you have any comments, corrections or additonal information, please email me at Mom25dogs@gmail.com.

Sports Center Saturday - Baseball and Softball in the Family

Baseball and Softball has played a big part in Stan's family. This photo is a photo made in 1905 of a textile mill league softball team. Stan's Mother's Grandfather, Franklin Drayton Prince, was a young man on this team. He played Centerfield.










This is Stan's Mother when she was young and she played on the textile mill's fast pitch softball team.















All 6 of her children played baseball and softball.



















Stan is the little boy in the center of the front row. Remember you can click on the photographs to enlarge them and read the names of each boy. And, yes that is the Paul Riddle who was a member of the Marshall Tucker Band.



















Stan was the coach one year for the church softball team and they won their championship. Stan is in the center of the front row next to the trophy in the shorts with the mustache.


























This is one of our nephews, Evans, who was so good at baseball that he won a baseball scholarship to Presbyterian College. Unfortunately during his first season with them he injured his shoulder and had to have surgery on it. It ended his baseball career. Fortunately he is good at any sport and can still be active in other things.





















This is Evans brother, Aaron. He also is great at every sport he has ever picked up. He loves baseball and football.


All the grandchildren are very athletic and have played sports.

Beaumont Historical Celebration

On 9/11/2010 Beaumont Mill Village had a historical celebration and the Beaumont United Methodist Church. My husband's mother, Peggy, grew up in Beaumont. Stan lived for awhile in Beaumont as a young boy so they have strong ties to the little mill village behind Beaumont cotton mill. So Stan and I took Peggy to the celebration. They had several speakers and then a free hot dog picnic behind the church. There was a representative from the Preservation Trust of Spartanburg, City Councilwoman Linda Dogan presented a plaque that names 9/11/2010 as Beamont Day, the President of the Beaumont Neighborhood Association, a speaker who gave the history of the Methodists in the upstate and especially the Beaumont UMC, and a local historian who gave the history of the mill village. The house behind the church which is owned by the church, was set up with old photos and newspaper clippings as well as old copies of the Beaumont "E" ("E" for Excellence) newsletters.








Beaumont was once a beautiful hill that was part of the Cherokee hunting grounds. It was named Beaumont from the French, "beau" meaning beautiful and "montagne" meaning mountain, "Beau" "mont". It is situated on Chinquapin Creek and was run with steam engines. It is beside one of the railroads that criss cross Spartanburg, which is also nicknamed Hub City for all the railroads that intersect in Spartanburg. We heard interesting stories about life in a mill village. There was Baptist, Presbyterian and Methodist churches in Beaumont. Stan and I met at Roselane Presbyterian Church in 1977. Beaumont used to have a park and baseball field and I watched some of the Harris' play softball games there back when Stan and his brothers and sisters played. In fact, when I was a little girl, my Dad was city engineer and he was an organic gardener. The city used to dump the leaves they picked up at the back of the Beaumont Park. We went with Dad in his old truck to get a load of leaves to mulch his garden. The truck got stuck in the leaves and the friction and heat from the muffler and tires started a fire under the truck. He got us girls out safely but the truck was completely burned up!
Peggy (with her back towards me) is a very social person and she remembers everybody! Her children are like that too. They never go anywhere without seeing someone they know.

The little church was full.












For more history on Beaumont, check out my post on Beaumont at:
Beaumont Mfg Co.

Beaumont Manufacturing Co.

Beaumont Mfg Co. in 1909

The introduction of Eli Whitney's cotton gin in 1793, James Watt's steam engine in 1776, Fulton's steamboat in 1807, Stephenson's locomotive in 1825, Cyrus McCormick's reaper in 1831, the Howe-Singer sewing machine in 1854, and Sir Henry Bessemer's converter in 1858 made essential contributions to the revolution. The new devices lowered the cost of producing cotton clothing, creating a world-wide demand for it, and in the process, freed farm workers to enter the newly created factories.

Cotton mills had abounded in the Spartanburg area since 1816. The abundant streams and rivers in the area are just beginning their descent towards the lower-lying Midlands region (called The Piedmont). In many places, these waterways descend abruptly, providing a source for plentiful waterpower. Cotton mills were built along these rivers to harness this power. By the mid-1800s, many investors flocked to Spartanburg County, SC to establish textile factories. By 1860, there were nearly 900 Spartanburg County residents employed in textile mills. Just 20 years later, that number had more than doubled, with 2,000 “operatives,” as employees were called, working in 14 mills across the county. These mills, their owners and their laborers dominated the politics and economy of the region for nearly a century but now they are closed and abandoned. Some are totally gone and others are just ruins.

According to statistics from the 1900 census and questionnaires
The Cotton Mills of South Carolina, 1907 Letters Written to the News and Courier By August Kohn, South Carolina Dept. of Agriculture: "The summary shows that there are 54,434 people in the actual employ of the cotton mills of South Carolina and that there are 126,779 practically one tenth of the total population of the State and a very much larger proportion of the white population owe their livelihood to the cotton mill industry to day The census for 1900 shows a total population of 1,340,316 for South Carolina Of this number 557 807 are whit s How many people realize that in 1907 fully one fifth of the total white population making due allowance for the increase in population since 1900 are dependent on the cotton mills for a livelihood in 1900 the white population of South Carolina was 657,807 To day 126,799 white people earn their livelihood through South Carolina's cotton mills The totals which are"

Mills were located along the waterways but the towns were sometimes a distance away so the mill owners built villages around the mills to provide nearby housing for their workers. They began to recruit workers from the rural and mountainous areas around their mills. Providing housing, company stores, community churches and schools was very appealing to hardscrabble farmers with large families. The Piedmont of SC had been farmed to death and without the knowledge or financial ability to farm responsibly by using fertilizers and terracing (to stop soil errosion) the soil became more and more depleted. It produced less and less. In the Appalachian Mountains not everyone had "good bottomland" to farm. Large farms were divided to children by inheritance and it kept getting subdivided. And more and more people living in America meant smaller and smaller farms. Land had been plentiful and cheap. But the more people who moved into an area, the less land was available, affordable or farmable. Families living in the mountains were living pretty isolated lives too. Not many schools, towns, or ways to communicate outside the area meant children were raised illiterate, dirt poor, and not knowing anything about the world around them. Thousands of people were destitute after the War of Northern Aggression. The years of Reconstruction did anything but re-construct the South. Poverty was palpable! But the Industrial Revolution brought them new hope. The mills recruited them and brought them in. These people had known more freedom and independence in their agrigultural life and were used to being outdoors. So even though these mills sounded good, they really traded one problem for another. Taking these people and placing them in rows of primitive houses, ringing the bells for start and stop of shifts, crowding them into huge buildings with horrendous noise and cotton lint flying thickly in the air was a real culture shock. Some of the mill owners were better than others. The bad ones let their greed determine the treatment of their workers. Some called it paternalistic as though these workers couldn't act or think for themselves. And that was the best of situations. Others called it industrialized totalitarianism. Owners and bosses could be tyrants and the workers had little choice but to take it. They had to provide for their families. And many times they got into debt to the company (especially through the company store) and couldn't leave. It wasn't much better than slavery had been. Conditions could be squalid and filthy and children were forced to work. All were made to follow the rules inside and outside the mill or be threatened with losing everything they had. But then, they had come from destitute poverty, squalid log cabins and children had always been forced to work in one way or another. Mill owners would point to their attempts to provide the basic necessities for their workers. For instance, in 1907, the Beaumont mill village had 1 church in which the mill contributed more than 3/4 of it's cost. The mill kept the church repaired, supplied fuel and paid the church $50/year. The mill also contributed a teacher to the village's school.

Beaumont was built in 1890 on the Chinquapin Creek within the city limits of Spartanburg, SC. J. H. Sloan (president), John B. Cleveland, Joseph Walker (the original land owner), H. A. Ligon, C.E. Fleming, Vardry McBee, and others filed for the charter and equipped with 3,072 spindles, 640 twisters, and 40 bag looms. It was originally only 1 storey and was located beside the Richmond & Danville Railroad (later Southern Railroad). They built 15 mill houses at the same time on what is North Liberty St.

In 1907 300 workers worked in Beaumont with an annual payroll of $80,000.00. It had 20,237 spindles and 253 looms and consumed 8,000 bales of cotton to produce $450,000.00 worth of cloth and yarn.

My Great Grandfather, Bailey Bright Reese, was one of those recruited from the Blue Ridge Mountains. They came to work in the Beaumont Manufacturing Company with their first child. Minnie Louesta "Estie" Reese was born 11/7/1907 in Madison County, NC.

This is Lillian Vianna Conner and Bailey Bright Reese and their first child, Estie. It may have been about this time that they moved to Spartanburg.

She was 2 years old when she died on 8/13/1909 in the Beaumont mill village in Spartanburg, SC. They were living at 148 Fairview Avenue. According to her death certificate (Great Grandpa Reese had kept a copy of the SC State Board of Health Physician's Certificate & Transportation of Corpse in his Bible and I have a copy of it.) she died of Illeocolitis which is inflammation of the mucous membrane of the ileum and the colon (we know it more as Crohn's Disease). They wanted to take her body back home to be buried so they took the train back to Hot Springs, Madison County, NC. They never came back to Spartanburg although he did work in some other mills. He ended up moving to the Clinchfield Mill in Marion, McDowell County, NC and worked as the night watchman while they lived in the mill village there. He died there.

It was a sad time for little children to be forced to work. On the other hand, the families may have been really in need of what the children could make in order to survive. Back then there was no government aid or welfare. With mouths to feed, survival might have meant they had to work. If the government passed a law that protected children from having to go to work so young, would this help the children and give the most vulnerable people in our society protection? Or, would the law mean the death of these children and their families because they wouldn't be allowed to work to make the money to put food on the table? It was a very hard question. Some families had good-for-nothing fathers. But others had disabled fathers, or their fathers couldn't make enough money to take care of all the little mouths, or their mother's were widowed, or they were orphans. Sometimes their home life was so bad that working got them safely out of it. Many little street urchins (either orphaned or runaways due to bad home situations) needed jobs to provide for themselves. If they didn't work they would be begging on the streets. Which was worse? So there are a lot of ways to look at it. I can only be thankful that my nieces and nephews have never known such want and they've never had to work in order to eat. These days we don't have a clue as to how bad things can really be. We are so blessed in this country! Thank You, God!

I found these photos by Lewis Wickes Hine in May 1912. These photos are from the National Child Labor committee and are in the Library of Congress. Children weren't suppose to work if they were younger than 12 but families who needed or wanted money would lie about their children's ages in order to get them papers so they could work and bring in money. This photographer was trying to document this and he came through Spartanburg in May, 1912. He took photos of children cotton mill workers at Beaumont, Saxon, Drayton, Arkwright, Arlington and Clifton. Here are the ones from Beaumont.

Notice the little boy in the front row in the middle! As all little boys will do, he is crossing his eyes and screwing up his mouth to make a funny face.


These children were working barefooted. Poor little dirty raggamuffins look much older than their years.


Little Emmett Capps has a bandaged foot. Notice the people behind him?




Little girls were put to work too! These girls were suppose to be 12 or older. They are working barefooted and have covered their work dresses with aprons to make them last longer.


These Beaumont boys are on their way to church. The boy in fron on the left is Elish Putnam. The boy in the front middle is Bryson Emmett. The boy in the front right is George Powell. Notice some of the boys were going to church barefooted and one didn't even have a jacket to wear. The house behind them has someone who takes pride even if they don't have anything. The walk is swept and neatly lined. The porch has a railing with a row of potted flowers the fence is neat and in good repair.


The same boys with some more added are in this picture. Probably some of their father's are in the back row. On the front row left is Emmett Capps, a Doffer who had been working for a year before this photo was taken. On front row right is Bob Cook who worked in the Spinning Room making 50 cents/day. He had also been working for a year.


These two little barefoot boys are (left) Emmett Capps, a Doffer and (right) Bob Cook who worked in the Spinning Room. They certainly don't look like they are 12 or older!


This little boy with the haunting eyes and crooked smile is Bob Cook who had started working a year previous making 35 cents/day but was making 50 cents/day by the time this photo was taken.


After J. H. Sloan’s death, Dudley L. Jennings became president.

National Geographic News, Willie Drye, October 19, 2004"...But with people willing to work for very low wages, most of the mills made money anyway. Profits started booming in 1914, when World War I began and Southern textile mills landed huge military contracts.
"But things changed when the war ended and windfall profits stopped. Many mills were now in the hands of owners who weren't motivated by "social salvation." By the late 1920s their greed and mismanagement had brought hard times to the textile towns. Many mill hands lost their jobs, and those who continued to work faced ever increasing production demands.
"Flaring tempers and violence took a deadly turn in March 1929, when textile workers fed up with pay cuts and ceaseless demands for more production went on strike in Gastonia, North Carolina. A sheriff and several mill workers were shot dead.
"Mill owners often used brutal tactics to break textile strikes, and organized labor was never able to gain much of a foothold in the South.
"By the end of World War II in 1945, the industry had stabilized again, and textile towns flourished for about 25 years. No one knows exactly how many people worked in the southern mills when they were at their peak employment. But in 1960 there were 505,000 textile workers in North Carolina alone.
"The textile industry has never lost its appetite for cheap labor, and the jobs that once filled the southern mills started to be shipped outside the United States... "

By 1920 there were 142 homes in the village. Walter S. Montgomery, Sr. acquired the plant in 1941 when plant equipment was modernized for the production of heavy cotton duck fabric needed by the armed services for the impending war. It became one of the mills in the Spartan Mills conglomerate. Beaumont employees won five coveted Army-Navy “E” awards during the World War II.

Stan's Mother's Grandfather (Stan's great Grandfather) began working at Beaumont. Franklin Drayton Prince worked in the Company Store and was considered management. Peggy remembers her Prince grandparents living on 740 N. Liberty Street in the big two-story shingled house. Frank Prince was born 7/18/1880 in Union County, SC. He played baseball in textile mill leagues. He married Mary "Mollie" Cynthia Bain, daughter of Elisha Bain and Mary Bogan.

Frank Prince and Molly Prince had 11 children:

1) Julian Rhett Prince married Clara Marie Wilder and had 3 daughters, Wilma Prince, Louise Prince and Peggy Prince (my husband's Mother).

2) Hubert L. Prince married Lillie Belle Toney and they had Betty Jean Prince and Francis Prince.

3) Ralph Dupree Prince married Carolee (or Carrie Lee) Garrett and they had Bobby Prince, Kenneth Prince, Larry Prince, Barbara Prince, Mary Elaine "Lanie"Prince, Linda Prince.

4) Wilbur Eugene Prince married Ruth Ansel West and they had Suzie Prince, Joanne Prince, Martha Prince, Wilbur Eugene "Buddy"Prince, Joseph Stephen Prince.

5) Franklin Harold Prince married Elenora (aka Eleanor, Elanore) Savannah Shirley and they had Frank Donald "Donnie Prince and Jerry Prince.

6) Mary Prince married Lewis Ray. Lewis died 7/20/1942 during the War.

7) Ruth Prince married J. R. Shepherd and they had Gail Shepherd and Nancy Shepherd.

8) Marvin Lewis Prince married Margie Hurd.

9) Vernon C. Prince, never married.

10) Margarite Prince married Jack Key and they had Bobby Key and David Key.

11) Mildred Prince married Edward "Ed" Norman Comer, Sr. and they had Edward Norman Comer, Jr, Harold "Hal" Comer.

F.D. Prince died in his sleep of a massive coronary heart attack on 5/14/1940. If you think about that time...he had lived through World War I and the Great Depression, the Big Strike of '34 but died before we got involved in World War II. Mollie Prince lived until 10/31/1974. She stayed in that 2 storey house in Beaumont. Several of their children, spouses and grandchildren worked at Beaumont.

In 1930, Beaumont had 37, 320 spindles and B.L. Jennings was President.

Throughout the 1920's the mills faced an intractable problem of overproduction, as the wartime boom for cotton goods ended, while foreign competition cut into their markets. Although manufacturers tried to reduce the oversupply by forming industry associations to regulate competition, their favored solution to the crisis was to squeeze more work out of their employees through what workers called the "stretch-out": speeding up production by increasing the number of looms assigned to each factory hand, limiting break times, paying workers by piece rates, and increasing the number of supervisors to keep workers from slowing down, talking or leaving work. In the 1930s, it was trying times for many mills as the Great Depression squeezed profits. Mills, who relied on bankers in New York for financing, often lost their mills when sales did not earn enough to service the debt. Others had a group of investors take over the loans and when the mills couldn't make the payments, those investors took over the mills. Keeping the mills open during the Depression wasn't easy. At times, workers only worked a couple of days per week. In order to keep afloat or make a profit, the mills often laid off as many workers as they could but then expected the remaining workers to pick up the slack and work 'round the clock and do more than just their job. And getting paid overtime, as we understand it, wasn't done back then. Labor Unions began to move in and found overworked, underpaid, desperate, scared, angry workers in these mills. As the economy atrophied, organized labor strengthened. Mill workers found their united voice, and the result at times was bloody. There were 80 strikes in SC in 1929 alone! That year also saw the massive strikes that began in Gastonia, NC, and Elizabethton, TN, which were violently suppressed by local police and vigilantes. The election of Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the passage of the National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA) appeared to change things. The NIRA, which Roosevelt signed in June, 1933, called for cooperation among business, labor and government and established the National Recovery Act(NRA). It was to oversee the creation of codes of conduct for particular industries that would reduce overproduction, raise wages, control hours of work, guarantee the rights of workers to form unions, and stimulate an economic recovery. It didn't live up to it's promises. But the promise of the right to join a union had an electrifying effect on textile workers: the United Textile Workers, which had no more than 15,000 members in February, 1933, grew to 250,000 members by June, 1934, of whom roughly half were cotton mill workers. Textile workers also put tremendous faith in the NIRA to bring an end to the stretch-out, or at least temper its worst features. As one union organizer said, textile workers in the South saw the NIRA as something that "God has sent to them." The NIRA quickly promulgated a code for the cotton industry regulating workers' hours and establishing a minimum wage; it also established a committee to study the problem of workloads. In the meantime, however, the employers responded to the new minimum wages by increasing the pace of work. When the labor board set a forty-hour work week, mill owners required the same amount of work in those forty hours as they had in the previous fifty- to sixty-hour week. By August 1934, workers had filed nearly 4,000 complaints to the labor board protesting "code chiseling" by their employers ; the board found in favor of only one worker. Union supporters often lost their jobs and found themselves blacklisted throughout the industry. Violence was inevitable. The UTW started talking about a national strike and one started in Alabama. But it was ineffective: many employers welcomed it as a means of cutting their expenses, since they had warehouses full of unsold goods. The UTW had a convention in NY and drew up a list of demands: a thirty hour week, minimum wages ranging from $13.00 to $30.00 a week, elimination of the stretch-out, union recognition, and reinstatement of workers fired for their union activities. The mill owners didn't take them seriously and the White House ignored everything.

The Great Strike of 1934 swept through Southern cotton mills, outpacing the union organizers and employing "flying squadrons" which traveled by truck and on foot from mill to mill, calling the workers out. In Gastonia, where authorities had violently suppressed a strike led by the National Textile Workers Union in 1929, an estimated 5,000 people marched in the September 3rd Labor Day parade. The next day union organizers estimated that 20,000 out of the 25,000 textile workers in the county were out on strike. It tapped a deep bitterness in the workers. But the owners were taken by surprise. Governor Blackwood (SC) announced that he would deputize the state's "mayors, sheriffs, peace officers and every good citizen" to maintain order, then called out the National Guard with orders to shoot to kill any picketers who tried to enter the mills. Mill owners persuaded local authorities throughout the Piedmont to augment their forces by swearing in special deputies, often their own employees or local residents opposed to the strike; in other cases, they simply hired private guards to police the areas around the plant. Violence between guards and picketers broke out almost immediately. Six picketers were shot to death, many in the back as they turned to run, in Honea Path, SC. Authorities ordered out the National Guard in the second week of the strike. The strike was, in fact, already falling apart, particularly in the South, where local governments refused to provide any relief assistance to strikers and there were few sympathetic churches or unions to provide support. Although the union had pledged to feed strikers, it was wholly unable to fulfill this promise. President Roosevelt established a committee to look into it and encouraged the workers to go back to work. The strike was a total defeat for the union, particularly in the South. The union had not forced the mill owners to recognize it or obtained any of its economic demands. The employers refused, moreover, to reinstate strikers throughout the South. Anti-union sentiment in the South kept wages low for decades, but also acted as a catalyst for development later when industries moved there from the North and Midwest because of lower costs.

Dissatisfied workers would often move around going back to the farm or switching to other mills. Keeping a work force became a problem. Owners wanted a stable, well trained work force so they came up with different ways to attract and keep workers. Cheap and attractive ways. Recreation was important in bringing relief to the workers. Baseball became very popular and forming textile baseball teams helped bring fun and recreation to a hard lifestyle and gave a sense of community to the mills and their villages. It also taught the young men how to be team players and how to work together for a goal and provided exercise. To the mill owners this was a win/win situation! Cheap but effective. So they encouraged teams. Going to the baseball field either to play or watch became the favorite pasttime. Everyone in the village would turn out to watch their team. It fostered community pride. By the 1880's the mill teams were enthusiastically supported. The Spartanburg Mill Base Ball (sic) League began in 1913 and included Drayton, Saxon, Glendale, Whitney, Converse, Beaumont, Arkwright, Spartan Mill and Arcadia. It began to leave it's amateur beginnings behind. Men and women played and had teams. Beaumont had it's own ballfield and park.

World War II drew people back together again. When Japan attacked Hawaii on 12/7/1941, people were shocked into banding together against common enemies. No one in the world was unaffected by the Second World War! And that included the families in Beaumont. Beaumont revved up to acquire and fulfill wartime contracts. Men who were physically able, joined the military. Those family members left behind had to work the mills to supply their "boys" overseas. Everyone in Beaumont worked together, supported each other and had common goals.
Mary Prince Ray lost her husband in the War and the very next year she died in a car accident in Beaumont.
Spartanburg Herald, 10/15/1943, Pg 5
"Mrs. Mary Ray Dies of Auto Crash Injuries"
"Funeral Service Planned This Afternoon for Beaumont Victim"
"Mrs. Mary Prince Ray, 29, of 642 North Liberty Street died at 7am yesterday morning at Mary Black Hospital of injuries suffered Wednesday night in an automobile accident in the Beaumont section of the city."
"Her death was the 18th fatality of the year in the county as the result of traffic accidents."
"A report of the accident filed by investigating officers at city police headquarters said it occurred at 8:20pm Wednesday night at the intersection of North Fairview Avenue and Maywood Street. The car in which Mrs. Ray was riding was traveling south on Maywood Street, failed to make a turn at the Fairview Avenue intersection and truck a telephone pole, according to the report. Mrs. Ray was listed as the driver and Joe R. Clubb as the owner of the car in the police report."
"Clubb was given emergency treatment at Mary Black Hospital following the accident."
"Patrolment Charley Brown and Wofford Blanton (Red Blanton) investigated the accident."
"At the hospital it was reported that Mrs. Ray suffered a fractured skull and internal injuries."
"No plans for an inquest into Mrs. Ray's death had been made yesterday afternoon, Coroner John W. Pearson said."
"Funeral services for Mrs. Ray will be conducted today at 4:30pm at Beaumont Baptist Church by the Rev. E. G. Harrison and the Rev. Carl O. Page. Interment will be in Oak Grove Baptist Church cemetery."
"Active pallbearers will be Archie West, Henry Lewis, Bill Kirby, Dewey Welchel, Bruce Justice and William Richards."
"Mrs. Ray is survived by her mother, Mrs. D. F. Prince of Beaumont; six brothers, Hubert Prince of Spartanburg; Ralph D. Prince of the detective division of the Spartanburg police department; Harold Prince of Spartanburg; Marvin Prince of the U.S. Navy; and Vernon Prince of the U.S. Army, now stationed overseas; and three sisters, Mrs. Ruth Shepherd, Miss Marguerite Prince and Miss Mildred Prince, all of Beaumont."
"The body will be at the home, 642 North Liberty Street, until the hour of the funeral."

During World War II, Beaumont printed a company newsletter called The Beaumont "E". In the Kennedy Room at the Spartanburg County Public Library, they have copies of some of these newsletters.

Beaumont had a war time newsletter for their employees. I found a few copies. The Beaumont "E" newsletter dated 11/11/1942, pg ?, "Letters From the Boys", located in Kennedy Room, Spartanburg County Public Library, Pamphlet files, "Spartanburg Textile Industry-Beaumont"
"October 23, 1942.
"Dear Mrs. Phifer:
"I received your letter today and I am very glad to hear about Beaummont winning the Army-Navy E. It makes us boys in the service feel good to know that the people back home are backing us up 100 percent.
"The army life isn't as bad as some people seem to think it is. I like it out here very much. We have plenty of entertainment in our spare time, and the civilians out here treat us swell. There are some pretty large cities close by: such as Berkeley, Oakland, and San Francisco. I was down at Berkeley last Saturday to see a football game between the University of California and U.C.L.A. I will close now and I know the people of Beaumont will keep the wheels of industry rolling and I wish them the best of luck.
"Very truley yours,
"Pvt. Vernon C. Prince
"Camp Stoneman, Pittsburg, CA"

The Beaumont "E" newsletter dated 5/17/1943, pg 4, "Soldiers and Sailors of Beaumont Honored When Honor Roll Dedicated and Unveiled", located in Kennedy Room, Spartanburg County Public Library, Pamphlet files, "Spartanburg Textile Industry-Beaumont"
"The roll of those employees who have left the service of Beaumont Manufacturing Co. to join the service of the United States Army, Navy, or Marines since July 1st, 1940, in order of teh date of the leaving the mill are:
(1st column, 3/4 down) "Vernon C. Prince"

The Beaumont "E" newsletter dated 8/1944, pg ? last page, "Mrs. Prince Has Persian Cloth", located in Kennedy Room in Spartanburg County Public Library, Pamphlet files, "Spartanburg Textile Industry-Beaumont"
"Mrs. Mollie Prince of North Liberty Street has a lovely Persian cloth of which she should be, and really is, very proud. It is handwoven and the colors are soft and beautiful and the design just what you would expect a Persian design to be.
"Where did it come from? Why from her son, Vernon, who is in Iran or Iraq or Persia, or some far country where our boys are fighting for freedom.
""When Vernon was employed at Beaumont, he was in the weave room so of course, a lovely piece of weaving interested him. But, we would be willing to venture, nothing would look any prettier to him right now than good stout Duck from Beaumont unless it was seeing a roll of duck coming right off the Beaumont looms."

The Beaumont "E" newsletter dated 4/17/1943, pg 10, "Celebrates Seventh Birthday With Party", located in Kennedy Room of Spartanburg Public Library, Pamphlet files, "Spartanburg Textile Industry-Beaumont"
"Little Miss Mary Evelyn Shirley celebrated her seventh birthday on March 30 by entertaining many of her little friends at a delightful party at the home of her grandfather, Mr. R.R. McCraw, 790 Camp Street. She is the daughter of Mrs. Grace McCraw Shirley. After games had been enjoyed by the happy group, delicious refreshments were served by her mother, assisted by Miss Ocie McCraw, Miss Sybelle Lloyd and Mrs. Louise Skipper..."
Front row, seated, 4th boy from left is Donnie Prince and Second row, standing, 3 girl from left is Gail Shepherd and Third row, standing, 3rd girl from left is Nancy Shepherd and Fourth row, standing from left first boy is Jerry Prince.

The Beaumont "E" newsletter, copy located in Kennedy Room of Spartanburg County Public Library in Pamphlet files, "Spartanburg Textile Industry-Beaumont", date4/17/1943, Pg 12, $2,219.39 Raised In Red Cross Drive Gives Beaumont Third Place In Textile Groups
"Workers on the first and second shifts in the Red Cross Drive who contributed so materially to Beaumont's excellent record are (reading right to left): 6th woman is "Mrs. Elnora Prince"

The Beaumont "E" newsletter, copy located in Kennedy Room of Spartanburg County Public Library in Pamphlet files, "Spartanburg Textile Industry-Beaumont", date 8/1944, pg 2, Employees Praise Cafeteria, We Like The Showers
"'The Cafeteria is fine, really wonderful But the showers are the grandest things at Beaumont'. That's what Mrs. Thomas D. Pack, Mrs. Clara Prince and Miss Mildred Putnam told Mrs. Phifer while they were at lunch the other day. 'We really enjoy the cafeteria and such a nice place to eat our lunches, but we are crazy about the showers.'"

Also in the Beaumont "E" newsletter ("E" for "Excellence") Peggy's sister, Wilma Prince, was recognized as one of the Beaumont teens who graduated from high school. This would have probably been in 1943. I forgot to look for the date on the newsletter. Wilma is now 84 years old and still a beautiful woman.


My Mother-In-Law, Peggy Prince Harris played women's fast pitch softball on the Beaumont team. These photos were taken for the Beaumont "E" newsletter in 1949.


In this photo she is the third from left in the seated front row.


Clara Wilder Prince's husband, Julian Rhett Prince, died in 1935 in a car accident. She had to go to work at Beaumont to support their three daughters. In the 1950's the mills began selling off the mill village houses. Stan's Grandmother bought her house on Maywood St. She retired from Beaumont. Her daughter, Peggy (Stan's Mother), also worked at Beaumont and retired from there. Peggy, Billy and their 6 children lived for some time in this little house on Maywood St.

Some of the Owners of Beaumont
John Henry Montgomery (1833 - 1902)-Capt. John Henry Montgomery was born into a family distinguished in British history. His great-great grandfather moved from Northern Ireland, as did many Scotch-Irish and settled in Pennsylvania. Like many others, he followed the road south and settled in Spartanburg County, SC in 1775. His early training was in the mercantile area. At age 19, he became a clerk in a country store in the county. Later, he formed a partnership with a brother-in-law. With the death of his partner, he continued the business and added a tannery.When the War of Northern Aggression broke out in 1861, Montgomery joined the army and was soon made commissary of the brigade. He assisted with such activities throughout the Civil War and rose to the rank of Captain, CSA. After the War, he returned to the mercantile and tanning business. He added commercial fertilizers-Walker, Flemming & Company-and warehousing to his business interests. The first opportunity in textiles came with the acquisition of waterpower rights by Walker, et al., at Trough Shoals on the Pacolet River. Like many aspiring Southern entrepreneurs, Montgomery went to New York seeking backers to invest in the growing Southern textile industry. He met with Seth Milliken who put up $10,000 of the $100,000 capitalization “as a starter.” This was the beginning of a long and interesting association between the two men. A cotton mill was erected in 1881 and became the first unit of the Pacolet Manufacturing Company. Montgomery was chosen president and treasurer. The initial 10,000 spindles were increased to 20,000 in 1887 and 40,000 in 1893. Pacolet Number 2 followed in 1888. In 1889, Montgomery organized the Spartan Mills, an integrated spinning and weaving mill in Spartanburg, where he became president and treasurer. It was his own company, Spartan Mills, in downtown Spartanburg in 1890. Under the leadership of his sons and grandsons, the company grew and prospered. Walter S. Montgomery was born in Spartanburg, S.C., October 18, 1900, he was a graduate of Virginia Military Institute. He has served as manager, treasurer, president or chairman of a number of textile mills, including Spartan Mills, founded by his grandfather, Startex and Beaumont Mills. He was an organizer of South Carolina Mills, a mail order firm dealing only in items of cotton, an organizer of the Spartanburg County Foundation and a long-time director of Textile Hall Corporation. Pacolet Number 3 was built in 1891 , Spartan Number 2 in 1896. The products included print cloth, broadcloth and sheeting. Montgomery also became involved in the Gainesville Cotton Mills, Gainesville, GA; the Whitney Mills, Whitney, Spartanburg, SC; the Lockhart Mills, Lockhart, SC; The Clifton Mills, Clifton, Spartanburg, SC; and the Morgan Iron Works, Spartanburg, SC. He died after falling from a scaffold while inspecting a new Pacolet mill in Gainesville, GA.

Seth Mellen Milliken (1836-1920), was the son of a physician in New Hampshire. Young Seth set out to begin a new career, one based on merchandising, when he became a miller, a schoolteacher and a storekeeper. In 1861, at the age of 25, he moved about 30 miles from his home in Minot to Portland, ME and invested in a retail business with his brother-in-law, Dan True. In 1865, after the Civil War, he formed a partnership with William Deering to open a general store doing business as Deering and Milliken. Later, they became textile sales agents for the Farnsworth Mill of Lisbon Center, ME. When a fire destroyed the building occupied by Deering and Milliken and all their sales inventory except for potatoes, Milliken loaded the potatoes on board a ship and headed for Boston. In Boston, he found a saturated potato market and sailed on to New York where he sold potatoes with little trouble. Having no business to return to in Maine and finding a flourishing market in New York, the partners established their business in New York. Shortly after arriving in New York, Deering had an idea to develop harvesting equipment and wished to leave for the mid west. He left for Chicago and set up the Deering Harvesting Machinery Company. Milliken so admired his friend that he kept the Deering name in his mercantile business for years. Deering Harvesting later became International Harvester. In 1916, son Gerrish Hill Milliken ( - 1947) joined the family business. He was reportedly an excellent tennis player, had studied at Yale, and more importantly, an excellent businessman. Mills that flourished during World War I often had a difficult time making the adjustment to peacetime business in the early 1920s. He acquired the Judson Mill, Greenville, SC, noted for years as a very fine combed-yarn spinning and weaving mill. Gerrish was not afraid to try new things. For those who survived the post-war transition and subsequent growth in the 1920s, the 1930s were trying times for many mills as the Great Depression squeezed profits. Mills, who relied on bankers in New York for financing, often lost their mills when sales did not earn enough to service the debt. Gerrish Milliken’s main products were woolen and worsteds, manufactured chiefly in New England. He continued to represent Southern mills as well and financed a few through the “factoring” business. Reportedly, the combination of Montgomery and Milliken controlled more textile mills in the South Carolina “Upcountry” than anyone else. When mills failed to repay debts, factors became the new owners. Pacolet Mills, Pacolet, SC, the first mill organized by John Montgomery and financed by Seth Milliken became partially owned by Deering Milliken in the 1930s and 1940s, as did Drayton, Lockhart and Gaffney Manufacturing. Pacolet was totally consolidated into the Milliken business in 1967. Drayton Mills, Spartanburg, SC, organized by Montgomery and others in 1902, was sold to Deering Milliken in 1937. The Montgomery family kept Spartan, Beaumont and Startex. Other mills joined the business: Red Springs Woolen Mill, Red Springs, NC; Hatch Woolen Mill, Columbus, NC; Darlington Manufacturing Co., Darlington, SC; Hartsville, SC; Ottaray Mill, Union, SC; Excelsior Union, Union, SC; McCormick Woolen Mill, McCormick, SC; and Johnsonville, SC. Roger Milliken (1915-still alive at this time and head of his family business) succeeded his father Gerrish H. as president upon his father’s death in 1947.

Joseph Walker was born on Fair Forest Creek within two miles of the city of Spartanburg. The mother of this family died in 1850 and subsequently the father married Miss Adaline Patterson, who bore him five children, four sons and one daughter. Men of the Time Sketches of Living Notables. A Biographical Encyclopedia of Contemporaneous South Carolina Leaders By J. C. Garlington: "WALKER JOSEPH Was born in a log cabin on Fair Forest Creek Spartanburg County April 18 1835. His father was a son of Colonel John Walker of Virginia and his mother was the daughter of John Cannon also of Virginia. Colonel Walker was reared upon the homestead farm receiving a common school education. In 1853 he accepted a position as clerk for John B. Cleveland and remained with him three years. From 1856 to 1860 he did business on his own account. In 1860 he married Miss Susan E Wingo daughter of Alexander Wingo who was once sheriff of Spartanburg County. He volunteered at the breaking out of the war and was chosen captain of Company K, Fifth South Carolina Cavalry Regiment April 1861. He was in command of that company one year. In April 1852 upon the reorganization of the South Carolina troops he was elected Lt Colonel of the Palmetto sharpshooters, a regiment composed of twelve companies. Soon after this he was made colonel of the regiment and served as such until the close of the war. At the close of the war Colonel Walker engaged in the cotton trade and that has since been his vocation. In 1871 he helped to organize the National Bank of Spartanburg and is a stockholder and director therein. In 1888 he was one of the organizers of the Merchants and Farmers Bank and has since been its president. He is a director in the Pacolet Manufacturing Company, Whitney, Beaumont, and the Produco Mills all of Spartanburg County. A director in the Columbia & Greenville and the Spartanburg Union and Columbia Railroad director and vice president of the Spartanburg and Asheville Railroad. Director in Converse College Company and Fidelity Loan and Trust Company. President and director of the Peoples Building and Loan and the Columbia Phosphate Company. He has six times been mayor of Spartanburg and served one term in the State Legislature."

John Bomar Cleveland History of South Carolina By Yates Snowden, Harry Gardner Cutler Published in 1920, "Mr Cleveland who was born at Spartanburg in 1848 is of an old and prominent family. In remote generations the Clevelands derived their name from a tract of country in the North Riding of Yorkshire, England still known to this day as Cleveland. One branch of the family went to New England and from it was descended the Moses Cleaveland founder of the City of Cleveland, Ohio and also the late President Grover Cleveland was of the same branch. In Colonial times, another member of the family was John Cleveland of Prince William County, Virginia. He had several sons among them being Gen. Benjamin Cleveland who lives in history as one of the heroes of the battle of King's Mountain for whom Cleveland County, North Carolina was named. Another son of John Cleveland was Robert Cleveland, captain of a company under his brother at King's Mountain. Two of the sons of Robert Cleveland were Jeremiah and Jesse Cleveland both of whom settled in Greenville County, South Carolina. Jesse Cleveland, grandfather of John Bomar Cleveland was born in Wilkesbarre, North Carolina, and in early days removed from Greenville to the adjoining County of Spartanburg. He became a great merchant and for many years was one of Spartanburg County's wealthiest and most prominent citizens. His wife was Mary Blassingame. Dr Robert Easley Cleveland, father of the Spartanburg business man, was born at Spartanburg, January 6, 1822. Graduating from Charleston Medical College in 1843, he began his professional work in Spartanburg the same year and soon had an extensive practice calling him to adjoining counties and also to North Carolina. After retiring from the practice of medicine in 1870, he gave his attention to his extensive private affairs. He was a man of great progressiveness and public spirit and his far vision brought him a connection with manv enterprises out of the ordinary scope of the individual. He became interested in railroad building in Upper South Carolina and was a leader in the building and successful operation of Spartanburg & Asheville Railroad and the Air Line Railroad. Doctor Cleveland married Elizabeth Bomar, daughter of John Bomar. This is another old family of Spartanburg County coming here from Virginia. John Bomar Cleveland graduated from Wofford College in the class of 1869, then studied law was admitted to the bar and for ten years was a successful lawyer of his native city. Most of his modern contemporaries however know him hardly at all as a lawyer. From the law he entered banking and the cotton mill business and his enterprises comprised a large group in commerce finance and industry in this section of the state. He was one of the organizers of the First National Bank of Spartanburg and was been first vice president for many years. This bank was organized in 1871. For twenty seven years he was president and treasurer of the Whitney Manufacturing Company Cotton Mills and for twenty five years was receiver and president of the Charleston & Western Carolina Railway. A list of the corporations and industrial and commercial enterprises of which he had been either the promoter or a heavy financial supporter would almost make a directory of the business interests of Upper South Carolina. With the wealth that fortune had favored him, Mr Cleveland was foremost in upbuilding the business and industrial resources of Spartanburg County. He served one term in the South Carolina Legislature during the session of 1880. He was a delegate to the National Democratic Convention at Chicago which nominated Cleveland for his first term in 1884. For many years he was a member of the board of trustees of Wofford College and was a chairman of the board of trustees of Converse College. Mr Cleveland was a member of the Episcopal Church. November 4, 1871 he married Miss Georgia Alden Cleveland of Bedford County, Tennessee They are the parents of seven children: Jesse F., Henry M., Van Noy Vernor., Mrs Frederick L. Screven, Mrs A.A. Towers, Mrs Alice Reynolds, and Mrs Jesse Cleveland Jr.

What is left of Beaumont Mill today

For another post on Beaumont check my post at:

Beaumont Historical Celebration

Sources:

http://www.textilehistory.org/MillikenandCo.html

National Geographic, Willie Drye, October 19, 2004 http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/10/1019_041019_textile_mills.html

Wikipedia on "Spartanburg, SC"

Cotton Mills of SC by August Kohn, 1907

History of SC Volume II, by Yates Snowden, 1930

American Social History Online http://www.dlfaquifer.org/search/item/Beaumont-Cotton-Mill-Spartanburg-SC/oai%253Alcoa1%252Eloc%252Egov%253Aloc%252Epnp%252Fpan%252E6a09719?page=5

Copyright deposit; Haines Photo Co.; April 12, 1909; DLC/PP-1909:43776

Child Labor photos Library of Congress, Hine, Lewis Wickes, 1874-1940, photographer. http://www.dlfaquifer.org/search?facet=decade&facet_browse=Spartanburg%2C+SC&facet_tag=city_state_facet&new_search=1

History of Spartanburg County by J.B.O. Landrum,

http://www.textilehistory.org/JohnHenryMontgomery.html

http://txnetwork.net/walker/military/josephw.htm

http://narvellstrickland1.tripod.com/cottonmillhistory2/index1.html

Textile Town, Spartanburg, SC by the Hub City Writer’s Project, Betsy Wakefield Teter, Editor

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Textile_workers_strike_(1934)