Born: 27 Jul 1901, Catawba County, NC Died: 02
Jan 1977, Hickory, Catawba County, NC
Florence "Flora" Edwards was the first child born to Moses Pinkney Edwards
and Annie Beauford Wherry. Flora was born 27 Jul 1901 in
Catawba County, NC.
Moses and Annie had at least eight children.
Children of Moses Pinkney Edwards and Annie Beauford
Wherry
Name
Birth
Death
Spouse
Flora Edwards
27 Jul 1901
02 Jan 1977
Harry Glenn Stewart
Willie Frances
Edwards
1904
Preston Wherry
Edwards
09 Dec 1905
31 Mar 1985
Fannie Naomi
Sherrill
Miles Orell Edwards
16 Aug 1908
23 Dec 1989
Sally E. Crews
Mittie Elizabeth
Edwards
23 Sep 1910
08 Dec 1975
(Never Married)
Ollie Edwards
1914
Robert Hope Edwards
10 Nov 1915
26 Nov 1991
(Never Married)
Freda Inez Edwards
22 May 1919
27 Sep 1969
Vernon Huffman
The 1900 Catawba County Census shows Flora's parents, (Moses)
Pinkney and Annie, living near her grandparents,
Miles and SarahAllenEdwards, in the Sherrills Ford Precinct.
Pinkney and
Annie had been married fore less than a year and had no
children.
1900 Catawba County Census
Last Name
First Name
Relation
Race
Sex
Birth Month
Year
Age
Yrs
Md
Kids
Occupation
Born
Living
Edwards
Miles
Head
W
M
Nov
1831
68
39
Farmer
-----
Sarah
Wife
W
F
Oct
1841
58
39
10
9
-----
Callie
Daughter
W
F
Jan
1866
34
-----
Fritchey
Son
W
M
Oct
1873
26
Farm Laborer
-----
Etter M
Daughter
W
F
Jan
1885
17
Edwards
Pinkney
Head
W
M
Sep
1875
24
0
Farm Laborer
-----
Annie
Wife
W
F
Jan
1878
22
0
0
0
By 1910, MosesPinkney and AnnieBeaufordWherryEdwards had
four children: Flora (age 8), Willie (age 6), Preston (age 4)
and Miles (age 1 year and 9 months). The census also shows
that all were born in North Carolina except for Annie - who was
born in South Carolina.
1910 Catawba County Census
Last Name
First Name
Relation
Sex
Age
Yrs
Md.
Kids
Birth
Occupation
Occupation
Born
Living
Edwards
Moses P.
Head
M
34
10
NC
Farmer
General
Farm
-----
Anna B.
Wife
F
25
10
4
4
SC
None
-----
Flora
Daughter
F
8
NC
None
-----
Willie F.
Daughter
F
6
NC
None
-----
Preston W.
Son
M
4
NC
None
-----
Miles O.
Son
M
1 9/12
NC
None
The 1920 Census shows Pinkney, Annie and the family living on
the Catawba Road of the Mountain Creek area of Catawba County
near his brother Fritch. Pinkney and Annie had eight
children: Flora, Willie, Preston, Miles,
Mitty, Ollie, RobertHope and Inez.
Flora was 18 years old.
1920 Catawba County Census
Last Name
First Name
Relation
Home
Owned
Rented
Sex
Age
Read
Write
Birth
Occupation
Edwards
Pink
Head
O
M
44
Yes
NC
Farmer
------
Annie
Wife
F
42
Yes
SC
------
Flora
(Daughter)
F
18
Yes
NC
------
Willie
(Daughter)
F
16
Yes
NC
------
Preston
(Son)
M
14
Yes
NC
------
Miles
Son
M
11
Yes
NC
------
Mitty
Daughter
F
9
NC
------
Ollie
Daughter
F
6
NC
------
Robert H.
Son
M
4
NC
------
Inez
Daughter
F
1
NC
Edwards
Fritch
O
M
46
Yes
NC
Farmer
------
Docia
F
45
Yes
NC
------
Alva
M
14
Yes
NC
------
Eva Mae
F
12
Yes
NC
------
Hary
M
9
NC
------
Georgia
F
6
NC
Flora married Harry Glenn Stewart 10 Apr 1923 in
Catawba County, NC at the home of Flora's parents. She was
21 and he was 24. Harry was born
27 Mar 1899 and was the son of JamesR.Stewart and
EvaeMayBynum. The couple had no children.
Marriage License for Harry Glenn Stewart and
Flora Edwards
Harry's World War I Draft Registration Card shows that he was
born 19 March 1899 and that he was 19 years old at the time of
his registration with brown eyes and dark hair. He was
working as a farmer for his father James R. Stewart.
World War I Draft Registration Card for Harry
Glenn Stewart
The 1930 Iredell County Census shows Flora and Harry living in
the Shiloh Township of Iredell County, North Carolina. He was 31 and working as an
electrician for Duke Power and she was 28.
1930 Iredell County Census
Last Name
First Name
Relation
Home
Own
Rent
Home
Value
Sex
Age
Age
Md.
Birth
Occupation
Industry
Stewart
Harry G.
Head
R
5
M
31
24
NC
Electrician
Power
House
------
Flora
Wife
F
28
22
NC
None
Harry registered for the Draft during World War II at the age of
42. He was working at Duke Power Co at the Lookout Dam
Location in Catawba County, NC.
World War II Draft Registration Card for Harry
Glenn Stewart
Flora and Harry traveled all over the United States. She
collected miniature glass shoes (similar to the ones in the
photo below) from the various places they visited and displayed
many of them in a curio cabinet in the living room. She
even had a full-sized set of wooden Dutch shoes.
The 1940 Census shows that Harry and Flora are living on Sharon
School Road in the Shiloh Township of Iredell County, NC.
He was 41 and she was 38. They were renting their home and
he was working as an "Operator" at the "Power House" (or Duke
Power). Harry had completed 7 years of school, while
Flora
had completed 3 years of high school.
1940 Iredell County, NC, Census
Home
O/R
Last Name
First Name
Relation
Sex
Race
Age
S/Md
School
Birth
Occupation
Industry
R
Stewart
Harry G.
Head
M
W
41
M
7
NC
Operator
Power
House
------
Flora
Wife
F
W
38
M
H3
NC
None
Harry died on 19 Dec 1954 at the age of 55. His Death
Certificate lists the cause of death as "Increased Intracranial
Pressure" caused by a "Cerebral Tumor".
Death Certificate for Harry Glenn Stewart
The Stewart home on
Hudson Chapel Road in Catawba County, NC
The quaint, one-story frame cottage stands at the corner of of
the intersection of NC Highway 10 and Hudson Chapel Road.
It is three bays wide, weather-boarded and built with a
front-gable L-plan. A rear addition was made sometime
after the original circa-1900 construction. A gable roof
dormer balances the gable front and both gables feature circular
ventilators. The front porch roof is supported by turned
posts, with sawn brackets. The house was built by a local
carpenter, AlexanderGabriel, and shortly thereafter sold to
Mr.
James R. Stewart.
Layout of the Stewart House
Storage Shed and Grainery on the Stewart
Property
At one time, the property had a barn as well as a well-house
that was built over old well. Flora would can fruit and
vegetables and store them in the cool well house for later use.
The front view of the house shows a window from the main bedroom
(on the left) -
door to the front hallway (middle) - and window (on the right)
to the guest bedroom
The back view of the house shows the add-on kitchen (left) and
dining room (right)
Flora with Curtis Loftin in 1964 on his 11th birthday
Flora with Beverly Loftin (daughter of Billy Ray Loftin & Diane
Self)
In 1974 when Curtis Loftin was home from college visiting with
his family, they decided to go to Connor's Park & the Bunker
Hill Covered Bridge for a cookout and picnic. Flora was a
second "Mama" to Curtis so she was there, too.
(Left)
Billy Ray Loftin, Curtis holding Crystal Loftin, Sam Loftin
holding Eric Loftin and Flora Stewart
(Right) Diane Loftin, Sam holding Eric, Flora, and Curtis
holding Crystal
Flora waits as the hamburgers are grilled and everything is prepared
Flora made birthday, wedding and anniversary cake for many
people in the community. When CurtisLoftin and
CarolynWeeks got married in 1975, she was ready to make a cake for
them, too.
Flora posing with the cake she made for Curtis & Carolyn Loftin
when they got married
To See Video of Flora Stewart,
CLICK HERE,
or Below
These photos of Mrs. Stewart's house were made in November of
2012
The Fall foliage is amazing
The tree-lined road into the house
February 2014 Snow Storm
Flora went into the Catawba Hospital at the age of 76 to have
her bladder "tacked up" and died 02 Jan 1977 of complications
associated with the surgery. She is buried at Smyrna
Reformed Church in the Sherrills Ford area of Catawba County,
NC.
Harry & Flora's grave marker in the Smyrna Church Cemetery
My Personal Memories
of Flora Edwards Stewart
By Curtis Loftin
To my knowledge, there is no
blood relationship between Flora Edwards Stewart and the
Loftins,
Setzers,
Gobles or
Johnsons. Then why did I create this
page for her, you may ask? Well, that's simple. I loved
her and she had no children of her own. This is simply a "Tribute Page" to her
memory and
her family.
Mrs. Stewart, as I called her, played an
important part in my life - especially my early childhood.
She was my second mother, keeping me in her home when I was a baby and
toddler. My parents,
Sam William Loftin
and
Willie Aleen
Goble Loftin, moved to Rt. 2 Catawba (currently 5151 E. NC 10 Hwy) the
year after I was born. I have no recollection of Mrs.
Stewart's husband, Harry
Stewart, however. He died in 1954 prior to the time that she kept me.
Mrs. Stewart was a short woman in stature, probably only about 5 ft. 2
inches, but her love and kindness made her seem like a giant to
me. One of the ways that she supplemented her income after
Harry's death was by cooking and baking for the community. She made
wonderful homemade cakes, cookies, pies and fudge which she sold to everyone for
miles around. I was never lacking for sweets to eat
because she always trimmed the cakes so that they would be
perfectly flat before she iced them - and I always had my share
of cake scraps as well as extra cookies.
It was she who taught me my nursery rhymes as a child. I'd
sit on her lap in the big rocking chair in her living room and
hear all of the now familiar rhymes - Humpty Dumpty - Jack &
Jill - Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater - Bah Bah Black Sheep - Sing a Song of Six Pence -
and many many more as she'd rock me to sleep. She told me
how I'd sit on the steps outside the kitchen
door on Monday morning after I had been in church on Sunday -
and how I'd sing all the church songs that I was beginning to
learn in Sunday School - including "Jesus Loves Me" and "Jesus
Loves the Little Children".
I remember her laughing and telling me that when I was
little and she'd ask me what I wanted for breakfast, I'd tell
her I wanted an "agg"(egg).
When I was about 4 or 5 years old, Mrs. Stewart accepted a job
as cafeteria manager for the local
Catawba Elementary School -
and I got a new daily baby sitter, Mrs. Preston (Maggie) Brown,
who lived on
Murray's Mill Road.
Mrs. Stewart never stopped baking at home. I always had a
"free" cake for my birthday - and presents when I was a child at
Christmas. Mrs. Stewart was also the person who made my wedding cake when I married
Carolyn
Weeks in 1975.
I loved to help clean her house - and she was always willing to
let me do just about anything as I cleaned - including moving
the furniture. Did she spoil me? Most definitely!
Did she love me? Absolutely!
One of my favorite places to play was in the old barn on the
Stewart property. There were stalls for animals and a loft
with hay - but I don't ever remember her having any animals in
the barn. To me, it was a magical place where I could play
and let my imagination run wild.
Mrs. Stewart had a small garden on part of the property where
she grew vegetables and lots of flowers. She loved flowers
and had all kinds - including Iris, Zinnias, Daffodils and Lillys.
I loved to play in her yard, too. The oak trees there were
very old and very tall. One particular tree had 3 or 4
branches that flattened out horizontally about 8 feet up and
made a wonderful place for a tree house. With an old
ladder that belongs to dad and few personal belongings, I'd
spend hours up in the old tree.
Mrs. Stewart taught me how to take big leaves
from the oak trees and use small
twigs to attach them together to make a hat.
She also taught me how to look for or "doodle" for "doodle-bugs"
in the sand as well as the chant that went with it.
"Doodle-bug, doodle-bug, please come out, we're going downtown"
or "Doodle-bug, doodle-bug, please come out, your house is on
fire" (which you'd say while stirring the sand with a small twig
and looking for the doodle-bugs. Doodle-bugs were actually
*Antlions.
As I grew slightly older, she even let me sew on her electric
sewing machine - and gave me scraps of fabric to use if she had
them.
As the years passed, I eventually met and got to know many
members of her family - Robert Wherry Edwards (the nephew who
lived with her and she helped raise) - her siblings Preston (& Naomi)
Edwards, Miles (&
Sally) Edwards, Inez (& Vernon) Huffman, Willie,
Mittie, Ollie, and Robert Hope
(who also lived with her off and on).
I didn't stop spending time with her even as I grew older.
I'd go to her house and spend hours visiting, talking and
watching TV. It was on her old small black and white TV that I
first watched the original "King Kong" from 1939, most of the "Tarzan" movies
- as well as "Jungle Jim" and "Sheena". I
loved those adventure pictures when I was a kid.
Even after her death she has still remained a part of me - because I
still dream about her from time to time. She was a
wonderful blessing to me as well as a loving influence in my life.
*U.S. antlion folklore probably dates back to the
earliest days of colonization. The most common type of U.S.
antlion folklore takes the form of a charm about the colloquial
"doodlebug." Perhaps the most well-known example of a doodlebug
charm was published in 1876, when writer Mark Twain included one
in his novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer: "Doodle-bug,
doodle-bug, tell me what I want to know