Abstract of John Simmons' (c 1658-1737) Will 1737 Charles Town, Berkeley, SC

John Simmons. Charles Town, Berkeley County, bricklayer. Sons: Ebenezer, north part of house and land on Bay in said town; John deceased. Daus: Susannah Scott, south part of house and land on the Bay where Mr. Saxby now lives; Elizabeth Holmes, house where I now live which is on middle of the Bay in said town; Martha Sumnas, deceased; Elizabeth. Grandsons: John Simmons; Ebenezer Simmons; William Scott; Susannah Mason; Susannah Scott, house where Mr. Hamerton now lives west on land of Maj. Blakeway, deceased, south on land of Mr. Joseph Wragg; Rebecca Simmons; Ann Scott, under 18 years; Elizabeth Scott, under 18 years and unmarried; Ann Vanvelsen, house at north end of said town where Mr. Barsdall now lives; Ann Simmons, dau. of Ebenezer Simmons, house and land west of land formerly belonging to Maj. Blakeway, deceased, south on land of John Simmons, north of land of Isaac Holmes; Mary Scott. Son-in-law: William Scott. Mentions: to children of my son John Simmons, deceased, land in Berkeley called Beech Hill; Francis Holmes; to children of my daughter Martha Sumnas, deceased, land in Craven County; Ann Scott and her sister Elizabeth Scott; to grandsons William Scott and Thomas Simmons, house and land on west where Mr. Barksdall now lives, south by an alley leading to the Bay, north on land of Mr. Splat, deceased; £20 yearly for five years to poor of said town; £20 yearly to Trustees of Meeting House where I belong; Exors.: son, Ebenezer Simmons and dau. Susannah Scott. Wit: Jas. Vanvelson, Xtopher Smith, John Ballantine, Richd. Mason, Wm. Scott, Jr. D; 18 Apr 1733. CODICIL. Mentions: dau Susannah Scott, wife of William Scott of Charles Town, shopkeeper; oldest child of said dau. Wit: Robt. Foulis, Simon Legare’, Jr., Daniel Legare’

D: 21 Mar 1737 P: nd. R: 12 May 1740, p. 4

From Abstract of the Wills of the State of South Carolina, 1670-1740, Vol. 1, by Caroline T. Moore and Agatha Aimar Simmons,  Will Book 1740-1747

Transcribed by Teresa McVeigh 15 Mar 2015

Death notice of Ebenezer Simmons (c 1700-1763) and his daughter Anne (Simmons) Roche in the SC Gazette

Death Notice of Ebenezer Simmons
Death Notices in the South Carolina Gazette, 1732-1775, Saturday, October 15, 1763, p. 31-2

On the 6th instant, died at sea, in the 63rd year of his age (on his return from Rhode-Island, whither he lately went for the recovery of his health), Ebenezer Simmons, sen. Esq. [6 October, 1763]

And on the 11th died, Mrs. Anne Roche, the wife of Mr. Francis Roche, and the daughter of said Simmons, [11 October, 1763]

Abstract of Will of Ebenezer Simmons (1700-1763) Charleston, South Carolina

Will of Ebenezer Simmons, Charles Towne, Gent. Wife: Mary, house where I now live during her widowhood. Sons: Ebenezer, the younger, said house at death of my wife, land and wharf at E end of Broad St. purchased of Mr. Edward Bellinger and Mr. William ____, residue of estate James, 3 tracts purchased of Mr. Samuel Jones, deceased, on SW end of Johns’ Island, lots in Charlestown; John. Dau. Ann Roche. Mentions Francis Roche; maintenance and education of dau’s children from estate. Exors: 2 sons___ and James; Mr. John Savage of said town, merchant. Wit: Wm. ____II, Her. Hull, Thos. Lamboll.

D: 4 Aug 1763 P: 21 Oct 1763 R: nd. P. 247 [Part of Will in original book destroyed]

From Abstract of South Carolina Wills, 1760-1784, p. 35, Will Book QQ 1760-1767

Obituary of Adrian (Sauls) Sports (1909-1960)

Obituary of Adrian (Sauls) Sports (1909-1960)        

Obituary, Georgetown Times, Sept. 8, 1960

Mrs. L.D. Sports Died Saturday in Local Hospital

Mrs. Adrian Sauls Sports, wife of L. Dudley Sports of Ridley Heights, Georgetown died Saturday in Georgetown County Memorial Hospital.

Funeral services were held Monday at the First Baptist Church. Officiating was the Rev. I. C. Vassar, pastor of Screven Baptist Church. Burial was in Tabernacle Methodist Church near Evergreen in Florence County, directed by Mayer Funeral Home.

Mrs. Sauls was born in Savannah, June 30, 1909, and was a daughter of James N. Sauls and Emma Jane Rogers Sauls. She was reared in Lake City and attended Lake City High School. The family moved to Georgetown in 1937.

Mrs. Sports was a member of First Baptist Church of Georgetown, a member of the Maryville Chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star. She had been employed as an aide for the past two years by the Georgetown County Memorial Hospital.

Surviving are her husband; two sons, L. Dudley Sports, Jr. and William N. Sports, both of Georgetown; four grandchildren; four half-brothers, Robert T. Abrams and Eddie Abrams, both of Charleston, Joseph Abrams of Aiken and Oscar Kirten of Charleston; three half sisters, Mrs. R. L Truett of Wilmington, N. C., Mrs. Charles Flowers of Florence, and Mrs. David Morris of New Bern, N.C.

Photo added to Find A Grave Memorial by Patti Yourko Burns 4/14/2011
Transcription by Teresa McVeigh 24 Nov 2011

All Rights Reserved
Teresa McVeigh 2012

Jesse and Hettie

Jesse Booker Rusmisel and Hettie Elizabeth Jordan were married in Staunton, Augusta, VA 27 Aug 1902:

Marriage License of Jessie B. Rusmisel and Hettie E. Jordan
Date of Marriage: August 27, 1902 Place of Marriage: Staunton, Virginia
Husband Wife
Name: Jesse B. Rusmisel Hettie E. Jordan
Race: White White
Age: 24 26
Single, widowed, or divorced: Single Single
Birthplace: Highland County, Virginia Bath County, Virginia
Parents: Jno. H. and Eliz Rusmisel Jno. H. and Maggie Jordan
Occupation: Farmer
Ceremony performed by Wm. M. Scott
Reported by: not listed
Clerk of Circuit Court, Bath Co. Virginia, Line 26

According to his daughter Letha, Jesse had stayed at home to look after his parents. Hettie was a "nurse."  Letha (Rusmisel) McVeigh said that when he and Hettie were married he was a caretaker at a hunting club named the Pimrod Inn [sic--should be Nimrod Hall] on the Cow Pasture River and she was a nurse at a hospital in Staunton. A Rusmisel Cousin, Rick Armstrong, who has done a lot of research, found a reference to him being there in Sep 1905.  [Rick says, "The place is Nimrod Hall. In the early part of the 1900's the place was a hotel and later a summer camp for children. The old buildings are still there and seem to be in fairly good repair."- Dec. 3, 2002]

They moved to Clifton Forge around that time since Chertsey was supposedly born there 12 April 1905.  After the death of her husband, Jesse's mother Elizabeth E. Rusmisel remained on the farm. At some point, she deeded her property to her son, J. B. Rusmisel, with the understanding that he would pay her burial expenses and other debts. She later became dissatisfied, and asked for the property to be returned. J. B. Rusmisel had not recorded the deed and complied with her wish. He stated in September 1905 that his brother Harrison Rusmisel had gotten her dissatisfied and convinced her to give the property to his wife, Mary C. Rusmisel. Maybe his mother didn't like him marrying Hettie.
According to daughter Letha, between 1903 and 1905 they moved to Clifton Forge. Jesse was working as a railroad mechanic in shop repairs. Chertsey Brooks Rusmisel was born Apr 12, 1905 when they were living on Church Street and was named after a nurse who worked with Hettie. About 1907 John Rusmisel was born, but he only lived a few hours. On Feb 19, 1909 Maude Moore Rusmisel was born on Hospital Hill and was named by Hettie's father John Jordan. All of the children were baptized in the Presbyterian Church in Clifton Forge. Jesse was Lutheran until his marriage, but Hettie was Presbyterian, so they went to the Presbyterian Church. Hettie became ill with "TB or Black Lung." The children stayed a while in Millboro with their grandparents Jordan for a while, then later Hettie put them in the Presbyterian Orphanage in Lynchburg. Hettie died in Clifton Forge and was buried in Staunton.

In Clifton Forge, Jesse may have worked in the coal mines according to Letha. He was also a mechanic in shop repairs and "car repair" on the railroad (1910 Census). Hettie's death certificate (1913) says he was a "House mftr, contractor and carpenter." Hettie's death certificate says she died of tuberculosis.

Certificate of Death, Hettie Rusmiselle
Place of Death: Alleghany Co., State of Virginia
Bureau of vital Statistics file No. 27956
City of Clifton Forge
Full name: Hettie Rusmiselle
Sex: Female, Race: white, Married
Date of Birth: 1865, Age: 38
Occupation: House Mfr
Birthplace: VA
Name of Father: John H. Jordan
Birthplace of Father: VA
Name of Mother: Margrette Brooks
Birthplace of Mother: VA
The above is true to the best of my Knowledge: J Rusmiselle
Address: Clifton Forge, VA
Medical Certificate of Death:
Date of Death: Nov. 23, 1913
I hereby Certify, that I attended the deceased from Nov. [20?], 1913 to Nov. 23, 1913, that I last saw her alive on Nov. 23, 1913, and that death occurred , on the date stated above, at 12-5 am, cause of death was as follows: Tuberculosis (Pulmonary). Signed: B.B. McCutcheon, MD Nov. 23, 1913, Address: Clifton Forge, VA
Place of Burial or Removal: Millboro, VA
Date of Burial: Nov. 24, 1913
Undertaker: [illegible] address: Clifton Forge, VA
Filed: Dec. Rept. Local Registrar: W. M. Revercomb?

After Hettie's death the girls were in the Orphanage in Lynchburg, VA and Jesse went to Charleston to work in the shipyards. Letha said it was cold and awful like in the book Jane Eyre [but other sources say it is actually quite nice--it is still there]. She said they had single beds but would sleep together to keep warm. They were there for about 6 years, when Letha was about 11 to 16.


Letha left the orphanage first about 1919 and went to Charleston. There she worked as a messenger and then as a file clerk. Maude and Chertsey went to Ohio to stay with Hettie's sister Carrie Jordan, who had married Joe Pearce. Chertsey met Floyd Carswell  and they were married. Maude came to Charleston.

Letha said that during World War I the spelling of the name was changed to make it less German sounding--from Rusmisel to Rusmiselle. They told people it was a French name.
Letha met Norman McVeigh in Charleston, SC, when he was stationed there during World War I. They met while dancing. He had been dating Chertsey and Letha was dating a doctor. Chertsey had a temper and the doctor was too jealous. Letha was working at the Ferscott Store, a ready-to-wear. John, Henry, and Norman McVeigh were all in the Navy together. Their sister Ora had come to Charleston to visit so Letha had also met her. Letha and Norman went for a vacation to Waynesville, GA to meet the rest of the McVeighs. Letha was 18. They were married at First Methodist Church in Brunswick, July 23, 1921.

About 1920 (after the Census on Jan. 22) Jesse married a widow, Jeanne Drucilla "Jennie"  (Oxner) Harmon, who had a child named Mary Ellaphine Harmon. 
After the war Jesse went to live in Ohio near his daughter Chertsey where he worked as a contractor and a carpenter. He also worked as a contractor in SC and GA. He came to stay with Norman and Letha McVeigh in Waynesville because he couldn't get work. Jennie and Elophine came, too. They also stayed in Charleston and Lexington, SC, where Ginnie's folks lived. Jesse and Norman McVeigh built the first McVeigh store in Waynesville.

Jesse died 30 Jan. 1942 in Waynesville in an accident with a gun.  He is buried at Highsmith Cemetery in Waynesville. Jeanne Oxner Rusmisel  died 8 Jan. 1985 in a Claxton, GA nursing home. She is buried in St. John's Lutheran Church Cemetery in Lexington, SC.  

The Reported Difficulty at Kingstree (SC, 1866)

Newspaper article from The Anderson Intelligencer, Feb. 1, 1866, from the Library of Congress website :

http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84026965/1866-02-01/ed-1/seq-4/

Transcribed by Teresa McVeigh 26 April 2012:

The Reported Difficulty at Kingstree

From the Charleston Courier

Messrs. Editors: In your issue yesterday you made a brief editorial reference to an alleged difficulty with a freedman at Kingstree, S.C., and say that you received your information from an exchange. That exchange has received erroneous information, and he has therefore deceived you and your readers. As the report in the present shape is calculated to do injustice to the citizens of Kingstree, and to the gentlemen who were connected with the affair which I have no doubt gave origin the report in its present shape, as a citizen of Kingstree, and as one intimately acquainted with the facts of the case, I propose to give you a succinct and truthful account of the difficulty, that justice may be done all concerned.

On the evening of 21st November last [1865]. Mrs. Sarah Hanna, a widow lady and residing about fifteen miles northeast from Kingstree, intending on spending the night with her mother, also a widow and a few miles distant, left her keys and the entire charge of her plantation in the hands of Dick Singletary and Levenia Hanna, both freed laborers residing on the place. In the course of the night, the two negroes, combining and confederating with many others, both of this plantation and others adjacent, entered Mrs. Hanna's dwelling and proceeded to have a regular frolic. A large supper was furnished out of Mrs. Hanna's provisions, and one or two hogs killed for the purpose. Whiskey was also sent after to Graham's Cross Roads, a distance of some six miles, two or three times during the night, and Dick Singletary was the party sent, riding the mule, the property of Mrs. Hanna. After being fully glutted on the good things of Mrs. H's storehouse, and after imbibing to their hearts' content of the Whiskey obtained, they next proceeded to divide out amongst themselves every article of furniture, crockery, &c., in the house, except one bed and a few old chairs. In this bed several took lodging for the remainder of the night. Attending the frolic, there were also two or more white men.

Mrs. Hanna returned the next morning, and found her house in the condition of a hog pen--dirt and filth of almost every kind over the floor, and upon the clothing of the remaining bed. Riot, pillage, and plunder seemed to have reigned supreme, and the house was gutted of its contents. Mrs. Hanna now sent for her brother, Mr. Trisvan Eaddy, and other neighbors, who arrived in the course of the day. Search was made at once amongst the negro quarters, and most of the missing articles found in their possession, but in such damaged condition as to be almost worthless. Search was continued at the neighboring plantations till the evening of the 24th, when, despairing of finding the articles still missing, Dick Singletary, Lavinia Hanna, and Norris Gaskins (also a freedman,) were arrested and taken to the plantation of Mrs. Eaddy (Mrs. H's mother,) and kept under guard until the next morning. Two white men were arrested as implicated, and were similarly guarded. Some eighteen or twenty gentlemen were present, comprising some of the most intelligent and respectable people of the neighborhood, and they now took counsel together as to how to dispose of their prisoners. It was unanimously agreed that the white men should be taken to Kingstree jail, and that the negroes should be mercifully punished at once. Accordingly they were lightly punished with a stirrup leather strap, but no gagging was inflicted, nor was any blood drawn or any skin broken. Not long afterwards some or all of these freedmen reported the matter to some of the military authorities in Charleston, when orders were sent to the commanding officer of the post here to have the parties implicated arrested preparatory to a trial.

They were accordingly arrested about the last of December or first of the present month, but no court being ready for their trial, they were allowed by the gentlemanly commanding officer of the post to return to their homes on parole, to appear at such time as they might be notified of the organization of a Military Commission. The Commission was convened on the 8th instance, and every man summoned to attend promptly appeared. The trial now commenced, of such only as actually participated in the infliction of the punishment, each being represented by counsel and tried separately. As each case was disposed of, the defendant was sent for safe keeping to the headquarters at Darlington. The trial was concluded on the 11th instant. Various exceptions were taken by counsel as to the mode of conducting the trial pursued by the court. Also as to the exclusion of proper testimony, and had been laid before the proper reviewing authority, and suffice it to say that the action of the Court of the court in the matters disposed of has been disapproved, and a new trial allowed.

This is a brief but full account of the reported difficulty at Kingstree.

The exchange from which you made your extract will please copy.

S.A.M.

Kingstree, S.C., January 18, 1866

Note: Concerns Trisvan Eaddy, his sister Sarah (Eaddy) Hanna (widow of John Hanna, who later married William Henry Singletary), and their mother Elizabeth Singletary Eaddy (wife of John D Eaddy).

Obituary of John Marion Morris

Georgetown Times, Friday, Nov 6, 1958:

John Marion Morris, 74, retired farmer of the Elim section of Williamsburg County, died Tuesday, Oct 28, 1958, at the home of his son, Ollie Morris, 2427 Poplar St., in Maryville.

Funeral services were held at 3 p.m. Thursday in Elim Methodist Church, the Pastor, the Rev. R. T. Farmer, and the Rev. W. G. Newman, pastor of Wayne Methodist Church, officiating. Burial was in the church cemetery, directed by Mayer Funeral Home.

Mr. Morris was born September 6, 1884, in the Elim Section of Williamsburg County, a son of the late Billy and Sallie Smith Morris. He attended schools of that area and engaged in farming there until his health began to fail about eight years ago. He had also worked as a guard for the Williamsburg Chaingang for a number of years. He was a member of Elim Methodist Church.

Mr. Morris was twice married, his first wife, the former Miss Mary Evans, having died a number of years ago.

Surviving are his widow, the former Miss Bessie Sports; eight sons, Seva Morris, William Morris, Eddie Morris, and Bobby Morris, all of Andrews; Marion Morris, Pine Bluff, Ark., Maylon Morris, Florence; Ollie Morris, Georgetown, and Laurie Morris, Hemingway; two daughters, Mrs. Lydia Altman, Torrance, Calif., and Mrs. Richard Altman, Georgetown; eight grandchildren; a brother, J. T. Morris, Andrews; two sisters, Mrs. Minnie Thompson, Lancaster, and Mrs. Maybelle Williams, Charleston; and a number of nieces and nephews.

Arelia Darnella TAYLOR SPORTS (1863-1950) Death Certificate

Arelia D. Taylor


Place of Death: 83 Suffolk Dr., Dorchester Terrace, Charleston, SC

Date of Death: 10 Oct 1950

Cause of death: Pyelomylitis--pneumonia, fracture of left femur

Birth: 3 Sep 1863 Florence, SC

Father: Levi Taylor

Husband: Joe E Sports (deceased)

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Teresa McVeigh 2010

Arelia Darnella TAYLOR SPORTS Obituary

Florence Morning News, Thursday Oct. 12, 1950, p. 10, Deaths and Funerals, Mrs. Joe E. Sports:

Mrs. Joe E. Sports

Mrs. Arelia Taylor Sports, 87, widow of Joe E. Sports, died Tuesday night at the home of her daughter, Mrs. W. W. Windham of Charleston, after a long illness. Mrs. Sports was a former resident of this city.

Funeral services will be held in Florence Friday afternoon. the hour and place will be announced later by Waters Funeral Home. Burial will be in the Tabernacle Methodist Church cemetery near Evergreen.

Mrs. Sports was born in Florence county, September 3, 1863, a daughter of the late Levi and Sarah Burris Taylor. She was a member of the Tabernacle Methodist Church.

She is survived by six daughters, Mrs. J. H. Eaddy and Mrs. O. N. Jeffords of Florence, Mrs. Isla Stocks of Walterboro, Mrs. John Morris and Mrs. Loley Bryan of Andrews, and Mrs. Windham of Charleston; a son, Dudley Sports of Georgetown; 37 grandchildren, 43 great grandchildren, and one great great grandchild.

All Rights Reserved
Teresa McVeigh 2010