Stories of J.O. Thompson and Grace Campbell

Laura got some stories from Grandma Izzy about J O and Grace Thompson, and here are some of her notes!
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Grace was engaged to a wealthy man in town for 3 years, and JO was a humble farmer. And they got married - to each other. How did this all get started?

J.O. had married his sweetheart at 17 in Newnan, Georgia. He had his farm, his sweetheart, and two beautiful children - his happily ever after was coming true.

Then, a measles epidemic came, taking his two children and his wife.

The devastated young lover took residence with his uncle John on a neighboring farm. One day, JO said to John - I can't bear this place and its memories any more. John, I need to go - far away.

So JO hopped on the train in GA and rode the rails for – who knows where?

When he got to southern Virginia, he got off; found a job farming growing food for Mary Baldwin College (they grew all their own food at that time).

Unlike most men of the day, Grace's father believed women should be educated, and he paid her tuition for Mary Baldwin’s sewing college (located in southern Virginia).

She worked in a little sewing shop for high end alterations; furs, evening gowns, suits. etc. she'd been engaged for 3 years to a man in NC.

Just a few short months after leaving Newnan, JO decided to put his grief behind him.

He took notice of Grace Campbell, working in the office.

‘You have no ring. Do you have a fella?’

‘Yes, we’ve been engaged for three years.’

‘Three years! I don't know your fella at all, but I don’t think he loves you.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘You’ve been engaged for three years, and he hasn’t married you. I'll marry you right now!'

And so, they courted, fell in love, and had 9 kids together! (She got married at 27).

Including my grandma Izzy.

Callie Ann or Anita Nolan

Parents: James R. Nolan, Nancy B. Odum
Birth: About 1868
Marriage: July 1, 1888 to James Henry Thompson. Callie was about 20 and James Henry was 21. They had three children: James Oren, Lillie Belle and Susie Ella
Death: Around 1898

I didn't find many records for Callie A, so her story will be short, unfortunately. Her mother was probably Nancy Odum and not Susan Chapman, James R's second wife and the woman who raised Callie. Nancy married Callie's father in December of 1866, and Callie was born around 1868. In the 1910 census, James R and Susan are listed as being married for 38 years (if that number is accurate, that would put their marriage around 1872) and that Susan was the mother of 5 children, all living. We know that Callie had passed on before the 1900 census was taken, so since all of Susan's children were living, Callie had to be Nancy Odum's daughter, and her younger sister Viola was most likely Nancy's daughter as well.

In 1880, Callie was 12 and lived in Clayton County, Georgia, just south of Atlanta. Her father was a farmer. She married James Henry Thompson in Coweta (pronounced Cow-ee-ta) county, two counties to the east of Clayton county, where her family was then living. Her first child (James Oren Thompson, Sr.) was born in Newnan county in 1892, so we know that she and James Henry lived there for at least a little while after they married.

When Grandma Izzy became interested in family history work, she asked her father (J.O. Thompson) about her grandmother. He did not know the exact date that she passed away, but said that he was eight years old when his mother died.

Sources: Cousin Rita, Grandma Izzy, and the records listed below:

Marriage of James R. Nolan and Nancy B. Odum

Callie Nolan's childhood family (1880 Census)

Marriage to James Henry Thompson:

James Henry Thompson

James Henry Thompson -- my great-great-grandfater -- lived in Newnan, Cowetta County and also in Carroll County, Georgia for a large portion of his life. According to Google Maps, that's less than an hour's driving time away from where I live now! This will be the first time since I started doing family history that I've lived close enough to the places my ancestors lived to actually visit them and look at records of my family members that are not online. Wooo!

Sarah Burke Thompson, probably Hoyt Thompson, James Henry Thompson

James Henry is the man on the right. The woman in the picture is his third wife, Sarah Burke. Many women died young from complications during childbirth, and I believe that is what happened to James's first two wives. It was difficult in those days to raise children as a single parent, just as it is today, so many men remarried not just for company, but also to help raise the children.

Parents: John Henry Thompson, Martha V. Benford
Birth: October 3, 1866 in Heard County, Georgia
Marriages:

1. July 1 1888 to Callie Anita Nolan in Newnan, Georgia. Callie was about 20 and James was 21.
   Children: James Oren Sr., Lillie Belle, and Susie Ella
2. February 12, 1905 to Lena Lenderman. Lena was 19 and James was 38.
   Children: Siddie Odessa, Oliver Glen (Glen), and Clarence Richard
3. June 1, 1919 to Sarah Jane Burke. Sarah was about 32 and James was 52. This was Sarah's second marriage.
   Children: John B, Roy John, Elizabeth, and Harvey Hoyt

Death: February 14, 1943. James was 76 years old.

Since James, Henry, and Thompson were all pretty common names, at first all I found was the 1940 census and the record of his marriage to Callie Nolan. However, when I searched using James Henry's children's names or siblings' names, I was able to find many more records for him.

As you can see in the censuses, James Henry Thompson was listed as Henry or Henry J. This leads me to believe that he was called by his middle name, Henry. Several of his siblings also primarily used their middle names. This is probably another reason I found it so difficult to find records for J. Henry Thompson.

As I've been doing family history work, I've noticed that censuses records seem to be more of a casual record than records such as a marriage record. Census records tend to have less accurate ages and nicknames, while marriage records have more accurate ages or birth dates and names. Therefore, although I've only come across one record that lists J. Henry as James H. Thompson while the others list him as Henry J., I feel that it is more credible since it's a marriage record.

So J. Henry lived in western Georgia, really close to the Alabama border. In 1880, the area that he lived in was so far west that it was called New Mexico! New Mexico was/is located in the south west corner of Carroll county, right next to the Alabama border.

Henry is listed as living in Carroll County up until about 1930, where we see he's living in Coweta County. Coweta is closer to Atlanta and further east than Carroll County. However, Henry's marriage to Callie Nolan took place in Coweta County, and at least their first child (James Oren Thompson, Sr.) was born in Newnan, Coweta County, Georgia in 1892. It seems like Henry moved around some. I don't know how or where he met Callie, but I'm guessing that they lived in Newnan to be closer to Callie's family (She lived in Clayton County in 1880. That's east of Coweta County.)

You may have noticed that J. Henry's three oldest children were not living with him and his second wife in 1910, although his youngest from his first marriage would have been only 15 years old. I don't know where they went, but I'm guessing that J.O., Sr and his two sisters were sent to live with relatives since their widowed father didn't have the means or ability to raise his young children. I'm going to ask Grandma if she knows anything about it.

J. Henry passed away at the age of 76 years old. His youngest child Harvey Hoyt was only 14 years old.


1880 Census:
https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/M8L6-F1J

1880 Census, Carroll County, GA

Marriage to Callie A. Nolan:
https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/KXVK-G4Q


1910 Census:
https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/MLV1-WTV

1910 Census, Carroll County, Georgia

1920 Census:
https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/MJ8X-5WH

1920 Census, Carroll County, GA

1930 Census:
https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/331Q-X2M

1930 Census, Coweta County, GA

1940 Census:
https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/K7LD-WWD

1940 Census, Coweta County, Georgia

Vital information - James Oren Thompson, Sr.

James Oren "J.O." Thompson, Sr. 


He was described as "about 5'10", Dark Brown hair, blue eyes, ruddy complexion, with a darker skin tone."

Birth date: July 2, 1892

Marriages: 

1. June 30, 1912 (Three days before his 20th birthday) to Lula J. Hanson
2. July 30, 1918 (26 years old) to Grace Viola Campbell

Death date: February 5, 1968

Records of James Oren Thompson:

• In the 1920 census. It shows that he was married to Grace Thompson, had a son James under a year old, lived in Mecklenburg County, NC, was born in Georgia, and that his occupation was that of electrician.

Click image for greater detail

• Information about him on a web page dedicated to descendants of David Atticus Nolan
• Marriage information to Grace Viola Campbell at Mecklenburg County register of deeds