At the age of 18, on July 20, 1881, Jennie married Thomas Alexander Porter. The ceremony took place in McKinney, a town of Collin County, TX. However, on the marriage certificate, Jennie's name was recorded as Mary Jane. Thomas Alexander was a son of Richard Lewis Porter and Ann Walker. He was born on February 12, 1853 (in Virginia), so he was 10 years older than his bride.
Jennie and Thomas had four surviving children.
Macon Howard Porter who was born when Jennie was 20, on March 31, 1884, in Maury County, Tennessee.
A girl was born to Thomas and Jennie on September 13, 1889, in McKinney as well. They named her Nona Vashti.
The name seems quite unusual, so I have researched what its possible origin might be. It appears Nona is a Christian saint. Little is known about her and her life. She was one of the virgins of Brabant (which was a State of the Holy Roman Empire) who were killed. Saint Nona's feast is on February 3.
Vashti is also a Biblical name. She was a queen of Persia, the first wife of King Ahasuerus. Vashti disobeyed the king when Ahasuerus wanted her to appear naked at a drinking party organized by himself. The idea was to show everybody how beautiful his wife was. Since Vashti refused, she was dismissed by her husband and replaced with another wife. Vashti is also regarded as a symbol of feminism and the first one who stood for women's rights. Well, quite a set of given names indeed.
Three years later, on March 15, 1882 (in McKinney, TX) William G. (George?) was born to the family.
When Jennie Mae was 33, she gave birth to a son. Thomas Houston Porter was born on September 3, 1896.
Census records from 1900(1) say that Jennie had two children (before 1900) who did not survive. At that time Jennie Mae (36) and Thomas Alexander (46) lived with their children Macon (16), Nona (11), Willie (8) and Thomas (4) at Justice Precinct 1 (south of S.S.&S.r.r. & east of public rd.), Collin, Texas, United States.
In 1905, on December 17, the family celebrated the marriage of the 21-year-old Macon Houston and Vergie Bell Lain, who was born in Kentucky on October 16, 1887. According to the Census data (1900)(2), Vergie lived with her family not far from the Porters (in McKinney city at Ward 2-3, Collin, Texas).
1910 - another United States Census(3). The records inform that Jennie Porter (46) and her husband Thomas A. (56) and their three children Nona (20), Willie (18) and Thomas Houston (13) lived at McKinney Ward 3, Collin, Texas then.
Nine years later, when Jennie was 56, her 29-year-old Nona Vashti got married. The spouse was Clarence Wilbur Brooks (born on April 30, 1896, in Indiana) and the marriage knot was tied on August 30, 1919, in Denver, Colorado. Nona and Clarence had four children Clarence Wilburn Jr. (b. June 14, 1920), Edith Meredith (b. May 2, 1922), and twins Carol Jean and Clarin Patricia, both born on December 19, 1933, in Palo Alto, CA.
Although I have not found any information on the marriages of the two sons of Jennie and Thomas's, William and Thomas Houston, the Census record from 1930(4) informs that Jennie (66) and Thomas (77) lived with their daughter-in-law Inez Faires (27) in McKinney, Collin, Texas, United States.
Ten years later (US Census 1940(5)) Jennie (76) and Thomas (87) lived on their own in McKinney, at Justice Precinct 1, Collin, Texas, United States.
On December 4, 1941, Jennie's grandson Clarence Wilbur Jr. married Ann Catherine Pavlina (born September 14, 1922).
In the picture from the left: Mr. Clarence Wilbur Brooks, his son Clarence Wilbur Jr., aunt Jennie, Miss Brooks (most possibly Ann, wife of Wilbur Jr.), Miss Nona Vashti Brooks.
Jennie Mae and Thomas Alexander were married for 62 years. Thomas passed away on September 1, 1943, in McKinney, where they lived.
Four years later, on January 9, 1947, Jennie Mae Porter Brooks left this world too. The couple's eternal resting place is the Rowlett Creek Cemetery in Plano, Collin County, TX.
Credits:
Photo of the gravestone: Courtesy of Mr. Howard Case
(1)"United States Census, 1900," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M3LV-TQV : accessed 15 August 2017), Jennie Porter in household of Thomas Porter, Justice Precinct 1 (south of S.S.&S.r.r. & east of public rd.), Collin, Texas, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 2, sheet 35B, family 642, NARA microfilm publication T623 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1972.); FHL microfilm 1,241,620.
(2) "United States Census, 1900," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M3LJ-TB6 : accessed 16 August 2017), Virgie Lane in household of J C Lane, McKinney city Ward 2-3, Collin, Texas, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 6, sheet 5B, family 109, NARA microfilm publication T623 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1972.); FHL microfilm 1,241,620.
(3)"United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M2MX-YGB : accessed 15 August 2017), Jennie Porter in household of Tomas A Porter, Mckinney Ward 3, Collin, Texas, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 8, sheet 9A, family 152, NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1982), roll 1539; FHL microfilm 1,375,552.
(4)"United States Census, 1930," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:CWMW-2N2 : accessed 15 August 2017), Jennie Porter in household of Inez Faires, McKinney, Collin, Texas, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 3, sheet 32A, line 24, family 239, NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002), roll 2309; FHL microfilm 2,342,043.
(5)"United States Census, 1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KWJD-3BJ : accessed 15 August 2017), Jennie Porter in household of Thomas A Porter, McKinney, Justice Precinct 1, Collin, Texas, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 43-4, sheet 13A, line 34, family 274, Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 - 2007, RG 29. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012, roll 4008.
No comments:
Post a Comment