Lenora Adelina Ham

Lenora Adelina Ham was the second daughter born to Joel Ham and Mary Emily Montgomery.  She was born in Mississippi on 31 July 1846, probably Yalobusha County.  She came to Texas with her family some time around 1858 – and we can find her there in the 1860 census residing in Titus County.  

Blair Family – Photo from the collection of Lucy Echels Blair

(This photograph is from a book entitled, John Blair of Guilford County, North Carolina, written by Lucy Echels Blair.  It states that on the back row are:  Helen Blair, James Hester Blair, Nora (Lenora Adelina Ham).  In front are:  Effie Calidonia and Garrett Blair.  I believe the picture is mislabeled – Effie Calidonia was the older of the two girls.  Consequently, Effie is on the back row and Helen is on the front row.  The family looks very relaxed and comfortable together, don’t you think?)

On the 28^th of December 1878, when Adelina was 32 years old, she married James Hester Blair in Johnson County, Texas.  James was the son of John Dickey Blair and Clarissa Fineta Leach, born 18 Feb 1843 in Gibson County, Tennessee.  John Blair was a Confederate soldier who enlisted into the CSA on 19 Mar 1862 out of Hill County, Texas.  He served with Company H of the 12^th Texas Infantry (Young’s Regiment). 

Some time around 1903 the Blair family left Texas and relocated to Texico, Curry County, New Mexico which is about 15 miles southeast of Clovis, New Mexico.  Curry County borders the State of Texas.  We drove through Texico last year on our way to Santa Fe – and I have to ask – what were they thinking?!  It’s very un-lovely out that way 🙂

Curry County, New Mexico

James Hester Blair died there shortly after the move on 28 November 1906.  Lenora can be found living with her daughter Helen Norris and family in 1910 census and is listed as head of house and a widow.

Lenora Adelina Ham Blair was 71 years old when she died on 15 Jan 1918 in Texico, Curry County, New Mexico.  She is laid to rest in the Texico Cemetery with her husband.

Lenora Ham Blair - Texico Cemetery

 

 

 

 

 

Lenora and James had three children:

• Effie Caledonia Blair was born 6 November 1879 in Johnson County, Texas.  (I am not 100% sure of the spelling of her middle name.)  Effie was only 20 years old when she died of measles on 12 Feb 1900.  She is laid to rest in Pleasant Hill Cemetery in Franklin County, Texas.  It is unknown whether Effie married before her death.  Some members of the family maintain that she married to “Unknown” Rodgers, and had a son named “Jesse Rodgers,” the “radio singer.”   
   
• Ethan Garrett Blair was born 16 Feb 1881 in Johnson County. Texas.  In 1911 he married Nettie Ola Balch.  The couple had three children:  Doris, Joseph and Helyn.  Ethan was the vice-president of Curry County National Farm Loan Association.  Ethan Garrett Blair died 14 March 1955 in Texico, Curry County, New Mexico.  He is laid to rest there with his family in the Texico Cemetery.  
   
• Helen Blair was born in Quitman, Hill County, Texas on 11 Aug 1882.  She married John Calvin Norris on 29 Mar 1906 – he was about 24 years her senior.  This couple had two children:  James Henry Norris in 1907 and Beulah Beatrice Norris in 1910.  After the death of her husband in 1920, she married John E. Bingham in 1925.  Helen is also buried in the Texico Cemetery. 

Related Articles

• Joel Ham (curbowfamily.wordpress.com)
• Joanna Elizabeth Ham (curbowfamily.wordpress.com)
• John Montgomery Ham (curbowfamily.wordpress.com)

 

Joanna Elizabeth Ham

Joanna Elizabeth “Jo” Ham was the first daughter born to Joel Ham and his wife Mary Emily Montgomery.  She was born in Mississippi, probably in Yalobusha County, on 31 Aug. 1843.  Joanna can be found there with her parents in the 1850 census.  By 1860, the Ham family is in Texas, and we find Joanna there with them in Mount Vernon, Titus County.  There she grew up and met Benjamin Franklin (known as Bing) Edwards whom she married on 3 Jan 1862 in Hopkins County, Texas.     

Bing was born in 28 September of 1840 in Cherokee County, Alabama.  He is one of the sons of Gideon  and Jane Edwards.  Bing served the Confederacy in the Civil War.  He was a Sergeant in Company K, 19^th Texas Infantry.  His tombstone states that he was a “Badge of Courage” recipient. 

The family spent time between several different counties in Texas – 1870 they were in Hopkins County; 1880 they were in Johnson County; and in 1900 they were in Hill County.

To say that Jo and Bing had a large family would be a huge understatement.  In the census records Joanna advised the census taker that she had given birth 14 times and that 11 children survived.  Now…I don’t know about you – I barely managed to bring forth one child.  Can you image what it was like to be pregnant 14 times?!  And to give birth 14 times?!  And all this without prenatal care?  And then to lose three children – what heart-break. 

 These are the children that we know about:

1. Calidonnia “Donnie” Mansfield Edwards (1864-1939)
2. Alice Lenorah Edwards (1866-1946)
3. Mary Udora Edwards (1868-1943)
4. Sara Edwards (1871-?)
5. Joanna Elizabeth “Betty” Edwards (1872-1930)
6. Ninnie M. Edwards (1875-?)
7. Benjamin Franklin Edwards, Jr. (1877-?)
8. Lula L. Edwards (1879-?)
9. William Arthur Edwards (1880-1898)
10. Robert Eston Edwards (1882-1974)
11. Ola Etna Edwards (1885-1971)
12. Thomas E. Edwards (1886-1950)

Joanna’s husband, Benjamin Franklin Edwards died in Hill County, Texas on 4 July 1910 at the age of 69.  He is laid to rest in Derden Cemetery in the county.  That same year in the census record Joanna is living with one of her daughters, Ola Etna Edwards Mabe and her husband Clarence.  Joanna died five years later at the age of 72 on 20 Sept 1915 in Buel, Johnson County, Texas.  She is laid to rest in the Buel Cemetery.  Her death certificate below is a rare find.  Even though death records were sometimes kept as early as 1900 in Texas – it is unusual to find one this early (1915).  

Joanna Elizabeth Ham Edwards - Texas Death Certificate

This branch of the Ham family tree frankly still needs a lot of work.  We don’t have much information on any of Joanna’s children and no photographs.  For those of you that know me – you know I love the old family photographs most of all.  It helps to put a face to a name when researching a family line.  Theoretically, there should be a lot of descendants out there!  We would love to hear from any of you that are interested in exchanging information on the Ham family genealogy.  

Related Articles

• John Montgomery Ham (curbowfamily.wordpress.com)
• Joel Ham (curbowfamily.wordpress.com)