Early Autumn on the Western border of Stanly County would mean the spicy scent of rotten cotton bolls and ripe soy beans in the air, a tinge of color on the edge of the maple and dogwood trees, with the sweet gums leading the way and crisp mornings leading into warm afternoons, perfect for a young mans frolic and fun, knowing hunting season was soon to be upon him.
Phillip Lambert was no exception. Just 20, and itching to bring home venison to the family table, and rid the families fields of a few more intrusive deer, and maybe a turkey or wild boar or two, Phillip took his gun along with him as went to help his father, Leonard, down at their gin in the old community of Mission, in Stanly County, near the Cabarrus County border
I came across the following newspaper article quite accidentally, while searching for something else entirely. Reading of this Lambert family living in Mission, I instantly knew that they must have belonged somewhere in my family tree, and they certainly did.
Mission is about where family progenitor, Rev. John Lambert, landed when he first arrived in what is now Stanly County around 1820, with all but one of his children and his wife, Piety. This is my paternal family line and pretty much everyone named Lambert in Stanly and the surrounding counties are descended from Rev. John, especially if they have Western Stanly roots.
So, when I attempted to find Phillip, I didn't have to look long, as he was already there, in my family tree, and related in not one, but two ways, of course.
Phillip A. Lambert was the son of John Leonard Lambert, a Confederate Veteran born in 1842, who died in 1921. John Leonard Lambert was my 1st cousin 4 times removed, a son of Nathan Lambert and Polly Tucker Lambert. Nathan was the son of John Lambert, Jr. and a grandson of family progenitor, Rev. John. John Jr. is my line, via his son, William "Buck" Lambert, making Nathan my 3rd Great GrandUncle. Got that?
To add to this melee, Phillip's mother was Syliva Samira Honeycutt, daughter of John Timothy Honeycutt and wife, Sylvia. On her own, Sylvia was my 3rd Great GrandAunt, as I am a direct descendant of her brother, Charles McKinley Honeycutt. It's quite safe to say, Phillip was family.
Bless his short life, as Phillip only appeared in one census, 1880, as a 4 year old. Leonard Lambert had done really well for himself, success as a farmer had led him to expand his enterprises and become a businessman as well. As one of only two sons, Phillip would have had an ambitious and promising future ahead of him, a very bright future that was cut short due to the instance described in the following article:
The Urban Dictionary defines "Blind Tiger" as 'a place that sells intoxicants illegally'. The term was first used in 1857.
In this post I will examind the children of Laura Jane Simpson, the notorious 'Blind Tigress' of southern Stanly County. Laura, herself an illegitimate child, was the mother of 4 illegitimate children. She made money as a prostitute, then later a madam, by running a club, or outlet for illicit drugs and alchohol in Cottonville, NC.
Her place was supposed to be on 3 acres owned by William R. Krider of Spencer, Rowan County and located north of Cottonville and south of Rocky River Springs, which I imagine to be near old Rehobeth Church and around the intersections of Aldridge and Old Davis Road to Plank Road.
Tales of her malefaction spread far and wide.
Laura's 4 children came into her life at four disparate stages. Each has their own unique story and led their own unique lives based upon their differing circumstances. This is their tale.
Mamie, pronounced MAY-mee, was a trendy name for the time period, 1877, and Laura was 18 years old on the day Mamie, her firstborn child, entered the world. Laura's value to society was not so grand, having came into the world as a fatherless child herself. She was summoned to court on a charge of bastardy and named Richmond T. Blalock as the father of her child.
Mamie first appeared as a 2 year old in the home of her grandmother, Nancy Simpson, along with her mother, Laura, and her young Uncle, Thomas.
Mamie was born on June 12, 1877. Nearly exactly one year later, on June 6, 1878, Richmond T. Blalock, her father, married Mary E. Hathcock, the daughter of Thomas A. and Sarah Catherine Hathcock. Their only child, Lawrence Craven Blalock, was born on November 12, 1878, 5 months after the wedding. Richmond had obviously taken advantage of young Mary, too. Yet, he married her. What was the difference? Why, Mary Hathcock was a legitimate child, and had a living father, and that father may have had a shotgun.
Below is the 1880 census showing Richmond, Mary and their son, Lawrence, and of course his name was horribly mangled by the transcribers, but it was Lawrence.
So who was Richmond Blalock? Just a South Stanly boy who lived a little east of the Simpsons on the road leading to Norwood. The Blalocks and the Hathcocks lived around the Mt. Zion Methodist Church area, very close to the Rocky River, and that is where they were buried.
Richmond was the son of Jordan Blalock and his wife, Catherine McSwain. Lawrence was the only son of he and Mary Hathcock. She died young, and is buried at Mt. Zion. Richmond would marry Hattie Kendall, daughter of John Franklin and Martha Cagle Kendall, and have a larger family with children Lena, Virginia, Vestor, Paul, Undine and Sadie May. Richmond died in 1927, and is buried at Mt. Zion.
Mamie's next appearance is in the 1900 census, where she is living near Spencer in Rowan County, with her brother Bud, or 'Odum Asberry' Simpson, and her cousin, Rosa Bell Simpson, daughter of Tirzy Simpson. The trio is listed as servants of one W. R. Krider, supposedly the father of Bud, and also the supplier of illicit alchohol and other items for her mother's blind tiger outfit. Laura was known as Stanly County's 'Blind Tigress'.
The next 4 years would be eventful in the life of Laura Simpson, who is not to be found in 1900. She was in and out of court, sentenced to jail, made an escape, had people writing the govenor in her behalf pleading for a pardon, while others threatened her with violence. The papers stated that 3 women ran her place, while William R. Krider was her supplier of alchohol.
In 1910, Laura Simpson is counted in the Stanly County jail. Mamie A. Simpson is living in Tyson Township, right next door to her brother,. Bud. Both had returned from Rowan County and both were now parents. Mamie was the victim of a transcription error, but looking at the actual, badly written copy, it clearly says 'Mamie A.' Simpson. She had put off motherhood until 25, but now, at 30, had three children. There are not marriage records for Mamie, and she was still a Simpson. I've not found any bastardy bonds either. However, I've not looked over court records into the 20th century, so there could possibly be some information on the father of her children in there.
Mamie was the mother of 3 children at this point, May 5, Robert 2 and Bill 1. All were living, which was a rare thing in those days. She also had a sense of humour. She stated she attended school and could read and write. Her home was rented and it was a farm. She admitted to be a wage earner and when asked her occupation, she said 'Working' and when asked where, she said "Out". I don't know which school Mamie claimed to attend, or what the Census taker thought of her Working Out replies, but it was obvious Mamie had some secrets of her own to keep.
By 1920, Mamie's family had increased to 7 children. She was 38 years old and not a husband in sight. This time she put all humour aside and claimed to be a farmer. Her mother, Laura Simpson, had passed away in 1917, and was buried at Rehobeth Methodist Church, just below Aquadale and on the Old Winfield Road, of which only a little piece still exists. Her oldest daughter, who was called Mae in the last census, is now an undecipherable scribble that starts with "C'. Robert is now Hugh, and his name was indeed Hugh Robert Simpson, and Bill is still Bill. In the last 10 years she had added Dallie Lee, Thelma Ruth, Margie Marie and Lane Benton, who was just a baby.
One of the newspapers mentioned that three women actually ran the Blind Tiger, Laura being the owner. I believe Mamie and Tirzah Simpson, a cousin, to be the other two. Both had a string of fatherless children and lived right there in the same area. It all just makes sense.
Mamie's days were numbered after that. Her children still young and Mamie. by no measure an old woman, had come to the end of her road, just one short year later. Mamie passed away on August 10, 1921 of a septic infection from an abscess on her leg. Her reported age was 44 and Laura Simpson was reported as her mother. Again, Furniture Store owner G. W. Stinson was the Undertaker and apparent informant, as he was for her mother, Laura. Mr. Stinson seemed to know the family pretty well. The death certificate reported that Maimie was to be buried at Cedar Grove, but she wasn't . She was buried at Rehobeth, just like her mother.
Also like Laura, her tombstone simply stated "At Rest", with the incorrect year of death, 1920. Her Death Certificate was dated 1921.
Mamie children were ages 15 thru 1 when she died, so what happened to them?
It appears they went to live with her sister, Daisy, where the youngest are found in 1930.
I do not know who the father of fathers were of Mamie's children, but it was not that many generations ago. Her children lived and died in fairly modern times, and most of their children are still living. My advice to Mamie's descendants is to take a DNA test and familiarize yourself with the family names of those in Southern Stanly and Uppper Anson Counties during the time she lived there.
Through the process of elimination, take out those second and third cousins that you know how they connect out of the picture. Take the remainder and weed through, try to find which branch on your family tree that they connect to. Then when you get a group that just don't seem to fit anywhere, look at their trees carefully and see if there is a common thread. Do they have a common ancestry among themselves? And by that process, you might be able to figure out who was the father of the child of Mamie you descend from.
Mamie Simpsons children were:
1) C? Mae born about 1906. She was Mamie's firstborn and shows up in the 1910 and 1920 census records. I don't know any more about her at this time.
2) Hugh Robert Simpson was born on October 14, 1907. He, as with the older 3 children, were not to be found in 1930. In 1934, however, he married Mary Frone Burris, daughter of Rufus and Mollie Howell Burris. They settled around Aquadale and Hugh was the first of the known siblings to pass away. He and his wife are buried at the old Harward's Chapel Primitive Baptist Church.
3) Bill Simpson was born about 1909. Like his older sister, he only appeared in the 1910 and 1920 census records with his mother and siblings.
As both Laura, who died in 1917 and Mamie, who did in 1921, both have Death Ceritficates, and their gravesites are marked and known, I don't believe Mae or Bill died in those early years, especially since Hugh Robert, who lived until 1984, can't be found in those later census records either. I believe they probably relocated and married, perhaps, but died before Hugh did in 1984, because they aren't listed in his death certificate. It seems odd, but just because someone lived into the 20th Century, into the years of better record-keeping, doesn't mean they can be found.
4) Dallie Lee Simpson was born on September 27, 1910. In 1930, following her mother's death, she was living with Mamie's sister, Daisy Simpson Aldridge and family. In 1933, she married Aaon G. Clar, son of Titus and Rosanna Burris Clark. Their wedding announcement was even printed in the Charlotte papers.
Very odd, as she followed siblings that could not be found at all. The couple made their home in Big Lick and Dallie passed away in 2008, and is buried at Liberty Hill Primitive Baptist Church. 2008?, yes, Mamie's children lived into modern times. As I said, not that many generations ago. DNA could solve the mystery of who their father or fathers were.
5) Velma Ruth Simpson was born on August 26, 1912. Like Dallie, she was living with the Aldridges in 1930. Later that same year, on August 27, 1930, she married John Cull Preslar in Anson County, son of Elias Darling and Mary Susan "Mittie" Newton Preslar. He was a widower, a few years older than she.
Velma Ruth died on January 29, 1987 and is buried at Jerusalem Baptist Church Cemetery in Anson County, near the Union County line.
6) Margie Marie Simpson was born on July 14, 1915. She was not living with her Aunt Daisy in 1930, but instead was boarding with a John E. Love, an elderly man, near Locust.
Margie married Clifford Monk Taylor in 1938 in Chesterfield County, SC, a common wedding destination due to the lax marriage laws, and they settled in the Newsome area of Davidson County, where he was from. Newsome was a town on the Yadkin River that was mostly flooded out during the building of the dams.
Margie died in 1993 and is buried at Taylors Grove Church at the intersection of Blaine Road, Hwy 49 and Hwy 8, near the Davidson County and Montgomery County border.
7) Lane Benton Simpson was the youngest of Mamie's children. He was born on April 25, 1919. Lane served in World War II. He had also lived with the Aldridges in 1930. His draft card states he was from Oakboro, NC, but in 1940, he was living in Tarboro. The year prior, he had married Miss Emma Louise Hyde of Tarboro, Edgecomb County, and that is where he raised his family. Lane, the youngest, was also the last one living. He died in 2013 and is buried at Edgecomb Park in Tarboro. Below is his Obituray from Find-A- Grave.
Lane B. Simpson, Sr., 93, died Saturday, February 23, 2013.
Funeral service will be held Wednesday 11:00 AM at Acorn Hill Baptist Church with Pastor Sonny Simpson and Pastor James Rawls officiating. Burial will follow in Edgecombe Memorial Park.
Mr. Simpson was preceded in death by a daughter; Sally Rose Baker, grandson, Lane B. Simpson, III and a granddaughter, Sara Louise Holloman.
He is survived by a loving family including Wife of 73 years, Emma Hyde Simpson Sons; Sonny Simpson and wife Sylvia of Tarboro Robert Daniel Simpson and wife Donna of Albemarle, NC Tom Simpson and wife Beverly of Tarboro Daughters; Mary S. Johnson and husband Sam of Hobgood Estelle S. Jones and husband James of Tarboro Wanda S. Holloman and husband Bobby of Tarboro 15 grandchildren, 32 great grandchildren and 3 great great grandchildren.
The family will receive friends at Carlisle Funeral Home Tuesday from 6:30 to 8:30 PM and other times at 286 Acorn Hill Rd. or 2400 Whitehall St., Tarboro.
If anyone reading this thinks Mae or Bill could be someone you knew, a grandparent or great-grandparent, please contact me so I can add them in the family tree.
Below the article describes "Three women of questionable character" selling whiskey. One was of course, Laur, the other two, all signs point to being Terzah, her cousin, and Mamie, her daughter.
Laura Simpson had her first child, Mamie, at age 18. Seven years later, she gave birth to her second, Daisy Lee, on January 23, 1882. Saying Daisy's life was tragic is an understatement.
Daisy was also illegitimate, but knew who her father was. He was George Washington Andrews, a married man originally from Montgomery County, who was also the father of Thomas C. Simpson, Laura's younger half-brother, who was born in 1873. This would make Thomas Daisy's half-brother, as well as her Uncle.
George Andrews claimed to be a farmer, but he moved around a bit in the general vicinity, making me wonder if he didn't have a side hustle, otherwise he was just a bit of a tumbleweed. Born in 1850 in the Zion Community, which was close to the Pee Dee River which divides Stanly and Montgomery, at 20 he is found in the New Salem community of Randolph County, east of Ashboro, near the Quaker Communities there. He returned to Montgomery County at 25, to marry Martha Ann Scarboro and is found with her in the Hickory Mountain area of Chatham County 4 years later. Two years after that, his daughter with Laura Smpson, Daisy is born in 18832, and by 1900, he has returned to the PeeDee Community of Montgomery County, where he was born. Now in his 50's, his first wife dies and he travels all the way to Buncombe County, in the NC Mountains, to marry his second wife, Beulah Burns. He returns with his bride to Pee Dee, where they are found in 1910, but they move to the Steeles Community of Richmond County and are found there in 1920 and 1930. Now in his 80's, George passes away in Albemarle, Stanly County on January 12 1934 and is buried back at Zion, where he took his first breathe.
While her older sister Mamie, and her brother, Bud are living in Rowan County with W. R. Krider, Daisy is working as a servant for Charles J. Blalock and his second wife, Louisa. What was the Blalock connection? Well, Daisy's older sister, if you recall, was the daughter of a Richmond Blalock. Charles J. Blalock, the son of Maston and Sarah McSwain Blalock, had a twin brother named Richmond, he also had a 1st cousin named Richmond Blalock, son of Maston's brother Jordan, and the all had a Grandfather named Richomond Blalock Suffice to say friends of the family.
Another connection in this household could be a clue to Daisy's marriage. Louisa Arena Davis, was the youngest daughter of James and Rowena Lee Davis. James was the brother of my ancestor, Henry Davis and had moved from the southern part of Stanly County, below Cottonville, across the Rocky River into Anson to run a mill on Richardson Creek. Lou, as she was more commonly called, married Charles Blalock after the death of his first wife, Judith Catherine McSwain, who had died childless less than a decade after the marriage.
It may have been through this Davis connection that Daisy Simpson met and married Jesse Filmore Aldridge, who was the stepson of James' nephew and Lou's 1st cousin, Horton H. Davis.
Daisy and Filmore were married the next spring, on April 10, 1901. She only gave her mother as Laura and no father, although the bond existed naming her father as well as her Death Certificate , which also names George Andrews as her father. She knew who he was.
Fillmore gave his father's name as H. H. Davis and his mother as Julina Davis. H. H. Davis and Julina Davis. They had married in 1891. H. H. Davis was his stepfather. His actual father was Ephraim Whitley.
Jesse Filmore Aldridge was my Great Grandfather's half-brother. Obviously named for Julina's Grandfather, Jesse Murray, he was born in 1879. Daisy and Filmore had something in common, both were grass orphans, children of the dust, illegitimate. I've seen this sort of situation before. Fatherless children were placed among the lowest shelves of society, belittled and ostracized their entire lives. Parents of 'proper', intact families, no matter the social class, often would not let their children socialize with, neverthe less marry, them. So it was common for one illegitimate child to marry another, either that or move away and lie. Sometimes, just to the next county would do that's where also these nonexistent "Johns" came from. Actual orphans and half-orphans were common and respectable, so the fathers name on documents became John (insert persons last name here). A few people got creative, using another name, and that name might have been the actul first name of their actual father, if they knew who he was, but the surname would be theri own, wihich actually came from their mother. Thats why the child of Docie Springer and David McSwain might name their father on their marriage certificate as 'David Springer'.
As with the children of Laura Simpson's cousin, Tirzah, one named their father as John Simpson, another as Ben Simpson and yet another as George Simpson, while most of the time, father was left blank, or labeled 'Unknown'. As tumbleweed George W. Andrews had such a long relationship with Laura Simpson and her mother Nancy, fathering a child with each of them, I wonder if he might aslo be the "George" for one of Tirzy's children. Shrug, but back to Filmore.
In the above photo of the H. H and Julina Davis family, Jesse Filmore Aldridge is the tallest boy (man) in the back. To the right of Fillmore are George, Titus, Rebecca "Becky", Martha "Mattie", Carrie, William "Will", Tom (leaning on his father's knee, H. H., Julina holding Cora and Ritchie beside of her. Ritchie would die at age 3 and is buried at Rehobeth, all of the others grew up and had families of their own. The only one missing is Mollie, Julina's oldest daughter, who was married by then.
Julina's story was sad, but typical of female Civil War orphans in the South. Her father, Henry Garner Aldridge, died from disease while surving as a substitute. Some of her teenaged sisters were married off, nearly immediately to old men. The younger children were placed around with 'intact' families, families with fathers. Her younger brother , John Adam Aldridge, was fortunate in that he was placed with his Uncle Josiah Aldridge, Garner's younger brother. But Julina was not so fortunate. Julina, and perhaps her sister Rosetta, were placed with the Benjamin Lindsay Whitley family, a large family with lots of teenaged sons.
Her sister, at 17, married George Lindsay Whitley in a short-lived marriage and died within two years later. Julina ended up having at least four children, with probably the same father, George's brother Ephraim Whitley.
My mother remembered her "Uncle Fillmore", actually a Great Uncle. Filmore told of a small gravesite off of Adridge Road, between Aquadale and Cottonville, that Julina had buried two daughters, Sarah and Elizabeth, who had died as infants. Not knowing who came first, that leaves Molly as being the oldest child of Julina to survive to adulthood, and Filmore second.
Mollie listed Ephraim Whitley as her father on her marriage License to John Frank Boone in 1895. Around the same time, Filmore listed Benjamin L. Whitley, his grandfather, as his ancestor in the Permanent Voting records. A part of the John Crow Laws inacted to prevent African American men from voting, it was required of voters to be able to read, however, a grandfather clause was included if a man, or his father or grandfather, had been a 'permanent voter' , proir to a certain date. It was a listing of all of the men of the area over 21 who had been a permanent voter themsleves, or was the son or grandson of one. In genealogy, it can lend an aid in determining who was the father of someone, especially if there were multiple men in the same area with the same name. So Filmore was the Grandson of Benjmain L. Whitley, probably through Ephraim, like his sister, but not necessarily.
But back to Daisy. So Daisy Simpson, 19, married Filmore Aldridge, 22, on April 10, 1901. Filmore was said to be a big handsome guy, with a reknowned mean streak, that he likely inherited from his Murray blood, as every generation seemed to produce a rather evil or angry man in the Murray bloodlines. This 'bad blood' was fueled. no doubt, by his status as a 'bastard;' , a status I am sure he was chided about his entire life.
He got in trouble often, mostly for fighting, and quickly gained a reputaiton for it in the Aquadale area. There were rumours that he even beat his wife and children. Yet, the rumours do not hold out within the records of the times. If he was a 'bad' man, he was not all bad. My mother only remembered a very old man when she was a very young girl, quiet and smiling.
The first census of the couple as a married family shows them with 5 children and a 20 year old Servant named Ginnie Simpson. So, they rented a farm, but were wealthy enough to have a servant? No, notice that the last name was Simpson. Ginnie (aka Jenny) was actually Daisy's half-sister. So, why did they call her a servant to the census taker? Probably beccause Ginnie was not white, she was racially mixed. Still a daughter of Laura Simpson, Filmore and Daisy had taken her in , but were probably embarrassed about the relationship. It was 1910, 2021's colorblind mindset did not exist. A white woman having a mixed child in the late 1800's, early 1900's just did not happen, except that it did. It just was not socially acceptable to the point of ostracization. To avoid an unpleasant explantion to the census taker, they just called her a servant, and I am sure she helped take care of the children, household chores and gardening.
The 1920 census shows a steady stream of children, begining shortly after their marriage, until the birth of a new baby boy that year, Victor. Although their names were quite destroyed by the transcriptionist, they were, so far, Beulah, Horace, Marvin, Nisson, Lillian, Joe Claude, Edna, Jesse Filmore II "Junior" and Victor. And the family was not complete, not just yet. One big improvement I noticed was that Filmore was no longer renting his farm, but owned it.
Not only had the couple taken in Jenny, When she was young. but the 1930 census also shows Filmore in a more positive light. The birth of their youngest daughter, Mildred, had given them a total of 10 children, and the older three had already flown the nest. But having a full house of 9 people already did not deter them from taking in the children of Mamie Simpson after her death. Ruth, Dallie and Lane were Mamie's children, and shown living with Filmore and Daisy in 1930, despite them having had 10 children of their own. To add to that, if it was not enough, Horace, the oldest son had married, and his wife, Bronnie and their two children were living with the family for a total of 15 people in the home. I hope it was a large house.
Unfortunately, just 4 short years later, Daisy's life would end tragically. On October 16, 1934, the Aldridge home caught fire and Daisy was caught in it. Her Death Certificate stated that she was burned from the hips up, with practically all skin burned from the hips up. She was 53 years old. The informant on the certificate was her husband, Filmore. He gave her father as George Andrews and her mother as Laura Simpson. Daisy was buried at Rehobeth Church below Aquadale.
Five years later, Filmore, now 60, would remarry to Martha Hudson Huneycutt, a widow. There would be no children of this marriage, as both were mature. Six years later, Filmore would join Daisy in the cold ground at Rehobeth and lie beside her forever.
The 10 children of Daisy Simpson Aldridge were:
1902-1979 Beulah Lee Aldridge. Married twice; Thomas Lee Broadway & Torrence Homer Almond;
2 children.
1913-1943 Horace Augustus Aldridge, Married Bronnie Smith, 4 children. Horace was the first of the four children to pass away.
1911-1977 Joe Claude Aldridge, Married Estelle Huneycutt, 1 child.
1913-1997 Edna Rosetta Aldridge, Married John P. Hamman, 2 children.
1916-2002 Jesse Filmore Aldridge, Jr. Married Bertie M. Morton, 2 children, lived in Charlotte.
1919-2015 Thomas Victor Aldridge, married Joan Purnell; 3 children, Married Franicis Morgan, 1 stepchild. Vic was the last living child of Daisy. He settled in Siler City, NC.
1922-2003 Mildred Louise Aldridge, Married Robert L. Funderburk, 1 child, moved around a bit before settling in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Laura Simpson would go on to have 2 more children after Mamie and Daisy; Bud, her only son, and Jenny. I've decide to tell thier stories separately and also to elaborate on Daisy's tragic death in a separate post.
In the meantime, I've included a few obituaries of Daisys children who lived well into the 21st Century. Marvel with me at the manifestation of the American dream, where one can be born into modest and even tragic beginings and through hard work and perserverance, pursue ones dreams. Let's treasure this fact of our wonderful nation and never loose sight of it.
These are followed by more of the many clippings of the escapades of Laura and her crew. What an extraordinary character she was.
