Stories In the Family
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LOFTIN
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SETZER
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Curtis Dean
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A Look Back
Loftin
FamilySetzer
FamilyGoble
FamilyJohnson
FamilyDo you like to read a good book? Appreciate a good story?
If you've not looked at these webpages, I recommend them because of their interesting stories.
We're not defined by the difficulties and tragedies in our lives, but they surely do help shape who we become.
Alonzo Lester Loftin (1878 - 1937)
Alonzo Loftin was my paternal grandfather, but only a few of his grandchildren ever knew him. Alonzo married Cornelia Estelle Lowrance in 1894, but when she died of pneumonia in February 1904, he was left with 5 small children and no way to take care of them. Alonzo couldn't work and care for 5 children at the same time whose ages were all less than 9 years old. His parents took the youngest daughter, but the rest of the children were sent away to an orphanage in the NC mountains. Alonzo became a modestly wealthy man, but as fate would have it, the Great Depression hit the nation in 1929, and Alonzo lost everything. Alonzo owned an operated a store in the town of Catawba, but in 2007 when I inquired where his business had been located, noone knew the exact location. Only one of Alonzo's children, Frances Cook, was still living and she wasn't sure which building. While volunteering at the Town of Catawba Museum in 2007, I was finally able to learn which building in town had been the location of Alonzo's store. Alonzo died at the age of 61, as did his son Sam, as did Sam's son Billy Ray. All had been cigarette smokers.
Curtis Dean Loftin (1953 - 2???)
To read the story of how Curtis found himself being pushed down Interstate 40 in his Miata by an 18-wheeler truck, click on this LINK.
Roy Henry Loftin (1899 - 1972)
Roy was the oldest son of Alonzo Loftin and Cornelia Lowrance. When his mother died from pneumonia in 1904, Roy (age 4) was sent away to an orphanage in the NC mountains. When Alonzo married Ida Setzer, the children from Alonzo's first marriage were able to come back home. Roy married Mae Morrow in 1925. Shortly after that he purchased a piece of property from his father, Alonzo, and built a two-storefront building in the Town of Catawba (that is still standing). The Great Depression of 1929 also hit Roy's family hard. Taking work wherever he could find it, he eventually lost his home and the storefront buildings.
W. Garland Loftin (1887 - 1912)
Garland was the fifth child born to William Alexander Loftin and Laura Cranford - and was the "baby" brother to Alonzo Lester Loftin. In Jun 1912, Garland married Rosa Wike, but the marriage was cut short when 6 weeks later Garland died from typhoid fever. To my knowledge, there were NO photos of Garland in the family (except for one of him as a little boy). 85 years later (+/-) a maternal cousin (in the Goble family) found some photos of Garland and several of his siblings in an antique store in Catawba County. They were purchased and "10" years later, given to me when I started working on the family Genealogy in 2006. For almost 100 years the photos were unseen by anyone in the Loftin family, but now they're finally home.
Setzer Family Line Jacob Lanier Setzer (1804 -1891)
According to THE CATAWBANS, Jacob was one of the largest planters in antebellum Catawba County. The 1860 Catawba County Census listed his Real Estate value at $6000 - which was rather large compared to most others in the county. Jacob was married 3 times, each time outliving each wife. A farmer's life was a hard one - up at sunrise and in bed at dusk. All seven of Jacob's son entered service during the Civil War - serving the Confederacy. All ended up in Northern (Yankee) prison camps. Two of his sons, Jacob Harvey Setzer and Marcus Elkanah Setzer, did not survive the war.
Goble Family Line Eliza Jane Goble (1891 - 1907)
At the age of 15 Eliza Jane drown in the Catawba River while returning home from a church meeting. Eliza Jane was the sister of Martin Luther Goble and daughter of Jacob Hedrick Goble and Fannie Douglas. The page offers newspaper accounts from 1907 of the family searching for the body.
Martin Luther Goble (1888 - 1979)
While volunteering at the Town of Catawba Museum in the summer of 2007, I was telling Helen Rhyne (Museum Curator) about my Grandfather Goble being a tenant-farmer most of his life in Iredell and Catawba Counties. I related to her that the oldest memory I had of Grandpa & Grandma Goble were in a tenant-house that they lived in on Lowrance Road in Catawba County. As I talked, she listened intently, then told me that I was actually standing in one of the bedrooms from that same old house. It seems that when Catawba decided to turn the Dr. Q. M. Little House into the Town Museum, they also decided to restore a separate room that had been missing for 50+ years. Rather then building the room from scratch, the decision was made to disconnect a bedroom from the old house on Lowrance Road, transport it to Catawba and attach it to the museum. Now, 50 years later, I was actually working in a room that I had played in as a child - but at a totally different location in the county. The old Lowrance house is just before falling down and isn't safe to walk in, but if you get a chance to visit the Dr. Q. M. Little house (Catawba Museum), be sure to visit the "separate" room - and remember that Martin & Nessie were the last family to occupy it.
Johnson Family Line Letters written from 1802 to1916 by various members of the Hamilton Family describe everything from the Civil War to hardship of early American frontier life. It's exciting to look back into life as it was by members of the family so long ago in North Carolina, Indiana, Kansas and Illinois. I was surprised to find out that Drury Hamilton was buried less than a mile from my house on Hwy 10 in Catawba, NC.
David Wilfong Hamilton (1838 - 1926)
David Wilfong Hamilton's family situation is especially tragic. Of his nine children, only three survived till adulthood. In April 1879 all of the children came down with diphtheria and three of them (Percy, Arthur & Rose) died from the disease. David's up-beat letters at the beginning of his marriage become heavier and more care-filled as he gets older. Through it all, he continues to trust in the Lord
Beulah Vernesta Johnson (Goble) (1887 - 1959)
Nessie Goble was the wife of Martin Luther Goble and my maternal grandmother. She died in 1959 when I was 5-years-old, but I still remember her. Her life was not an easy one. Her grandfather died in the Civil War even before she was born. When Nessie was less than two years old, her father, who was a lumberjack, died when a tree fell on him. At the age of 17/18, Nessie was working in the field when her mother committed suicide. At the age of 16, Nessie Johnson married 35-year-old neighbor, Charlie Johnson, but Charlie ran off with another woman leaving her with a small daughter to take care of.
Nancy Caroline Leslie (Johnson) (1858 - 1905)
Nancy was the mother of Beulah Vernesta Johnson (Goble) and wife of John Henry Pinkney Johnson III of Iredell County. Nancy died at the age of 46 after setting herself on fire. She had made several previous unsuccessful suicide attempts before this one. Newspaper accounts describe the 1905 death.
SOURCES
Thanks to Richard Roberts for the additional information on the Hamilton Family
as well as the Hamilton Letters rob95536@yahoo.comThis web site was created April 2007.
I'd love to hear from you!
