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William Lawrance Thomas
Born June 10, 1842 in xxxx, Ga
Married to Nancy Marilla Barnett July 8 1861 13 Children
Died April 12, 1912 Buried in Waco, Ga
NANCY MARILLA BARNETT,THOMAS
was born 31 August 1843 in Henry County, Georgia,
Died 11 April 1926 in Holly Pond, Cullman County, Alabama.
She married WILLIAM LAWRENCE THOMAS 8 July 1861 in Henry County, Georgia.
Children of William Lawrance Thomas
LONNIE THOMAS,
Born. About. 1862, Henry County, Georgia;
Died in infancy Henry County, Georgia.
JOSEPH ROBERT THOMAS,
Born. 16 November 1865, Henry County, Georgia;
Died 28 January 1951.
Born 5/3/1867 in Henry County, Ga
Married to Martha Leak 5 Children
Martha died in 1894 and he Married her sister Nancy
Married to Nancy Leak 11 Children
Died 4/5/1954 Buried in Brooklyn, Ala
JOHN IDUS THOMAS,
Born 5 December 1868, Henry County, Georgia;
Died October 5, 1936.
WILLIAM THOMAS,
Born About 1870, Henry County, Georgia;
Died About. 1937, in West Point and
Believed to be buried in Barnsville, Georgia.
JANE THOMAS,
Born About. 1873;
Died About. 1967.
EUZEBE BELLE THOMAS,
Born 14 April 1875, Henry County, Georga;
Died 18 June 1964, Holy Pond, Ala.
ELLA ADELLA THOMAS,
Born About. 1877, Henry County, Georgia;
Died About. 1944.
RUBY THOMAS,
Born 1877;
died 1895.
CHARLES THOMAS,
Born About. 1879, Henry County, Georgia;
Died 1976.
NATHAN CLIFFORD THOMAS,
Born 8 December 1880, Henry County, Georgia;
Died 15 May 1965, Reynolds Memorial Hospital,
Stuart, Patrick County, Virginia.
He married (1) ANNIE BELL BETHEA 8 February 1900
in Griffin, Spalding County, Georgia,
daughter of JOSIAH BETHEA and MOLLEY SHATTLES.
He married (2) MARY TAYLOR 9 September 1944 in Griffin, Spalding County, Georgia.
NANNIE THOMAS,
Born About. 1882, Henry County, Georgia;
Died About. 1897.
MARTHA MARILLA THOMAS,
Born 6 May 1885;
Died 15 January 1961.
Notes for WILLIAM LAWRENCE THOMAS:
At a Memorial Service for William Lawrence Thomas, 19 June 1993
Charles M.Thomas, Son of Charles Mitchell, Grandson of James Jefferson,
and Great Grandson of William Lawrence gave the following Keynote Speech.
Good Morning Dear Ones.
I borrowed the term "term one" from my Grandmother Thomas who used it as a
greeting in her letters to my family. Like to think of all members of the
Thomas Clan as dear ones.
We are here today to honor and help perpetuate the memory of our beloved
family patriarch, WILLIAM LAWRENCE THOMAS.
Since this is a memorial service just after Memorial Day perhaps we should
consider how this meaningful observance really started.
It began in 1867 when a group of southern women placed flowers on graves of
their civil war dead in Columbus, Miss. While at the cemetery they noticed
nearby graves of Union Soldiers laying bare and forgotten. So they decorated
those with flowers, as well. Soon, there little distinguish between the
confederate and Union Graves.
A correspondent of NEW YORK TRIBUNE said their gesture was evidence that
the deep wounds on both sides of the civil war could be healed and wrote
a story that was printed in papers throughout the country.
Public reaction was so great that in 1868, one year later, Gen. John Logan,
National Commander of a Veteran's group called the Grand Army of the
Republic, ordered his members to observe May 30 as a special day
"For Decorating The Graves of the comrades who died in defense of their
country and whose bodies life in almost every city, villages, or hamlets
church yard in the land." >From then on, decoration day cemeteries
were held throughout the Nation, and various states began making
that day a legal holiday.
In 1882, Decoration Day was redesignated Memorial Day, Saluting not only
our civil war dead, but the fallen warriors of all conflicts. We now
celebrate it on the last Monday in May.
I find it comforting and reassuring that one thoughtful, compassionate
deed by group of southern ladies could have such a powerful and
positive influence on feeling of their recent enemies, and thereby
and a measure of civility to the aftermath of a very uncivil war.
I thank Horace Brown for giving ne encouragement. And permission to
use some of his excellent essay about the experience of soldier
William Lawrence Thomas during the civil war. William was born on
the tenth of June, 1842, on a farm in Spalding County, Georgia, near
the city of Griffin and lived seventy colorful years. Christened
William Lawrence. He was one of six children in the Robert Thomas household.
Little is known of the early life of young William, except that he
grew up and worked on the farm and attended public school in or
near Griffin.
Although it is known just how far he went in school, his later
writings demonstrate an unusual degree of literacy for a person of
his time who had only a primary education.
While still a young man in his teens, he left the farm and began work
in a textile factory in Griffin.
The times were difficult enough without war clouds looming, but
William grew up in one of the most stressful and disturbing periods
of our nation's history. As the men of his age approached manhood,
their minds were bombarded with the controversial issues of secession
and slavery, and the threat of an impending war. In April 1861, two
months before his nineteenth Birthday, the was became a reality.
He married Nancy Marilia Barnett, July 28, 1861.
Two months later, in September 1861, while born North and South were
in serious preparations for battle, he along with his brother,
known only by the initials, J. R., went to the recruiting station at
Jonesboro, Clayton county, and enlisted in the Army of the of
The Confederate of America States of America.
We might wonder what went on in the minds of William, J. R. And other
young men that caused them to volunteer to fight in a war over issued
that seemed not to have concerned them directly. No one in William's
family and fewer than ten percent of the 120,000 Georgians who
served in the Confederate Army ever owned a slave. Whatever motivated
William remained strong because he re-enlisted to extend his tour of
duty, and, he continued to fight after being wounded.
The brother were separated at Jonesboro. William was sent to camp
Bailey, near Fairburn, Georgia, and assigned to company E, one of
the Ten companies that made up the 30th. Georgia Regiment. In July
1862, William was transferred from Company E. To First Battalion
Georgia Sharpshooters.
William Thomas, age 21 fought in the Battle of Chickamauga called
Chickamauga-River of death by the Cherokee Indians on September
19 & 20, 1863 William participated in some of the fiercest and
bloodiest fighting in the history of warfare, much of it hand to
hand, almost all at close range. The battle of Chickamauga was the
bloodiest two-day battle of the civil war, claiming 18,500 Confederate
casualties out of a force of 66,000, and 16,000 Union casualties out
of a force of 58,000.
An Alabama soldier described the fighting on the 19th. As "One solid,
unbroken wave of awe inspiring sound--as if all the fires of earth and
hell had been turned loose in one mighty effort to destroy each other."
The south is credited with winning that battle, but in another, two months
later the outcome was different. In late November 1863 the battle raged
again for three on Missionary Ridge, near Georgia's North border. Later in
the afternoon of the third day, an overwhelming number of Federal Troops
swept over the Ridge and took the position. In the course of this fierce and
bloody action William received a severe wound in his left foot but avoided
capture.
It was not uncommon during that terrible war soldiers to continue fighting
even after having been wounded. We are unable to determine all that
transpired between the time he was wounded and when he appeared at the
Hospital in Atlanta to get treatment for the wound, nine months later.
It is known, however, that he participated in the Battler of Kennesaw
Mountain, which indicated that he stayed with his Company through months of
heavy fighting as General Johnston's forces gradually fell back toward
Atlanta. A handwritten report by his surgeon stated that he entered the
hospital for treatment in August of 1864, nine months after the battle of
Missionary Ridge, when he received the wound. Medical treatment was sought
only after the wound became gangrenous and he was unable to stand on the
foot. Treatment of the wound to remove the infection included scraping of
foot bones. This had to be done without anesthesia since none was available.
The handwritten report ordered him sent home on a wounded furlough with the
medical opinion that he would be unable to serve again. After the war he
continued to suffer from that wound and walked with a cane the rest of his
life.
That he remained with his fighting unit after being wounded is further
substantiated by numerous given by his children. He shared with them
accounts of food and equipment shortages, Battle experiences, and events
that happened during the long months of the fall and winter of 1863- 64
William indomitable spirit is well ingrained in all of us. When our nation
needs us, we willingly serve either in uniform, or in a civilian capacity to
defend all that we hold dear.
After the war, he returned to farming. Eventually, He became a grocer,
owning and operating a grocery store in Experiment, Georgia, A suburb of
Griffin.
In the course of his long and happy life married to Nancy, He fathered 13
children. Sadly, three of them died while very young. Ten of them survived
to have families of their own, who together blessed him with ninety
Grandchildren, and generations of Great Grandchildren.
At the of 60 in very poor health and unable to work, William retired and
moved to Waco, Georgia. Here until 1912 when at age 70, he was stricken with
pneumonia and died. He was buried in the Baptist Church Cemetery in Waco,
Georgia.
William and Nancy must have been wonderful, parents because they
successfully reared a large family and inspired their children to also have
large family. If we can assume that their children were also good parents
then William and Nancy's family values were passed on for the rearing grand
children. In support of this thesis I suggest that the values that William
embraced have influenced and motivated Thomas who planned this event, those
who supported it, and all of us have today.
Several of our family members have spent considerable time and effort to
collect and process data date for genealogy of our families. Sincerest
thanks go to George MORRIS Mehaffey, Gail McLure, Rand Thomas, Horace Brown,
Corine Perkins and any others of whom I am not aware.
We should not allow these good efforts to die on the vine, instead let's
endeavor to provide names, dates, bits of family history or humor to one of
those who are collecting and processing this data. It is by weaving together
the stories of a lifetime that we make sense of the threads of our lives;
and it is though sharing these stories that families make enduring
connections. The wit and wisdom of our families are rich and varies and
should be collected, shared, enjoyed and passed on to our children for their
pleasure and enrichment.
I salute all who contributed to this memorial ceremony in any way, all of
you here today, and those who couldn't be here in body. But are here in
spirit. All of you should feel good about yourselves for taking part in this
wonderful event which means so very much to each of us.
Special recognition is due Horace Brown for planning and orchestrating this
very memorable event. Please join me in a big round of applause for Horace
and the others.
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