Obituary Sunday: Jesse Caswell Smith

Jesse C. Smith -  May 3, 1917, page 1, col. 6: Mr. Jesse C. Smith, one of Chesterfield county's best known and most respected farmers, died at his home in the Pine Grove community at 2:17 o'clock Wednesday morning. Death was not unexpected, as Mr. Smith had suffered for a long time from paralysis and lately had grown steadily worse. He was a member of the Pine Grove Baptist Church and a Mason. He was 72 years of age. The funeral services will be conducted at the Pine Grove cemetery by the Rev. B.S. Funderburg <sic> for the church and Mr. B.F. Teal, W.M., for the Masons. Mr. Smith is survived by two daughters, Miss Lilon Smith and Mrs. Linnie Allen; one son, Mr. Henry C. Smith; three brothers, Andrew, Albert and Elisha; two sisters, Mrs. Joe Brock and Mrs. Rusha Horn, of Rockingham. The death of Mr. Smith will be mourned by a host of friends in the county.¹ [The Chesterfield Advertiser, May 3, 1917, page 1, col. 6:]

Jesse C. Smith, born 13 Oct 1844 and died 2 May 1917, He was the first born child of Elisha Brown Smith and Delilah M. Wallace. 

Jesse C. Smith and his wife Sarah Smith are buried at Pine Grove Baptist Church Cemetery,² Chesterfield, Chesterfield County, South Carolina. His parents are buried in the old Smith Cemetery.
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[1] James C. Pigg, Obituaries from the Chesterfield Advertiser 1892-1926; Self-Published, 2001, Page 22. Obituary of Jesse C. Smith;The Chesterfield Advertiser, 3 May 1917, page 1, col. 6:, Chesterfield, Chesterfield County, South Carolina.
[2] Jim Tipton, Find A Grave, digital image, http://www.findagrave.com; Headstone for Jesse Caswell Smith; (13 October 1844–2 May 1917); Memorial # 18959615; Record of the Pine Grove Baptist Church Cemetery; Chesterfield County, South Carolina, USA; Accessed on 2 January 2010.

W. Thomas Graves, A Mystery

William Thomas Graves is the brother of my 2nd great grandmother Sarah Jane Graves Purvis. William Thomas Graves is in some ways a mystery man even though we know he was married twice. Only two known children were born to these unions and one of those children is presumed to have died young since no records could be found for her.

William Thomas Graves was born in May 1838 in Chesterfield, Chesterfield, South Carolina. ¹ His father is believed to be David W. Graves; his mother is unknown. He appeared in the census in 1860 in Chesterfield County, South Carolina.²

William Thomas Graves and Mary Gilley Lassiter were married on 26 Jul 1857 in Chesterfield, Chesterfield, South Carolina.³ Mary Gilley Lassiter, daughter of Eli Lassiter and Mary, was born in 1839 in Chesterfield, Chesterfield, South Carolina. ⁴ She died about 1862 at the age of 23 in Chesterfield, Chesterfield, South Carolina.

William Thomas Graves and Mary Gilley Lassiter had the following children:

i. Clarinda G. Graves, born 23 Oct 1859, Chesterfield, Chesterfield, South Carolina; married Christopher Wesley Teal, 25 Nov 1878, Chesterfield, Chesterfield, South Carolina; died 1 Aug 1933, Chesterfield, Chesterfield, South Carolina.
ii. Nancy Jane Graves was born in 1862. (Presumed to have died young)


If you have any information on the parents and families of William Thomas Graves please contact me.






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1. 1850 U. S. Census, Chesterfield County, South Carolina, population schedule, Chesterfield County, South Carolina, Page 106A, Line 8, Dwelling 110, Family 110, Household of Mary GRAVES; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed 20 November 2011); citing National Archives Microfilm M432 Roll 851.
2. 1860 U. S. Census, Chesterfield County, South Carolina, population schedule, Chesterfield County, South Carolina, Page: 171; Line 3, Dwelling 1082, Family 1080, Household of [William] Thomas GRAVES; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed 20 November 2011); citing National Archives Microfilm M653_1217.
3. Brent H. Holcomb C.A.L.S., St. David's Parish, South Carolina Minutes of the Vestry 1768-1832,: Parish Register 1819-1924 (Greenville, South Carolina: Southern Historical Press, 1991), page 105. MARRIAGE: St. David's Parish, South Carolina; Minutes of the Vestry 1768-1832; Parish register 1819-1924, Page 105, by Brent H. Holcomb, C.A.L.S., Southern Historical Press, Greenville, SC 1991. July 26, 1857 at the residence of James Hewitt, William Graves and Mary G. Lassiter, both of the districts.
4. 1860 U. S. Census, Chesterfield County, South Carolina, Population Schedule, Chesterfield County, South Carolina, Page: 171; Line 3, Dwelling 1082, Family 1080, Household of [William] Thomas GRAVES