Methodist church women signers on 1918 quilt
Mrs. J. R. Ryon — was Mrs. Rosalyn Taylor Ryon. Their home was where the Methodist church is now. They had four daughters. She died in 1951.
Mrs. Gainey — was Miss Ellender Caswell, daughter of Martin McElevain and Ellender Darsey Caswell who had the Caswell Hotel. This hotel was on the northwest corner of South Street and Main Street. The Caswells raised 11 children in Hinesville.
Mrs. Riviere — must have been Mrs. Marshal Riviere.
Mrs. Ben Way — Miss Mattie, daughter of Mrs. McCroan. Had one son, Payton Way, who with his wife adopted a boy, Raleigh and a girl, Cynthia. Miss Mattie was a Sunday school teacher for years.
Mrs. Brewton — was the wife of Judge S.B. Brewton. They raised five children.
Mrs. Rufus Ryon — was named Hines after her mother’s family. She was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Stafford who was Liberty County sheriff for several years.
Mrs. Floyd Miller — was Bertha Waite before she married Floyd Miller Jr. They had one daughter named Carrie Brooks.
Mrs. B. C. McCall — was first married to Mr. Donald Fraser and they had four children. After his death she married Mr. Bruce McCall. In the early 1930’s she was postmistress.
Mrs. Dawson — was married to Mr. D.I. Dawson who was clerk of court for Liberty County.
Mrs. R. M. Martin — was Birdie Darsey and married Robert Martin who ran the Liberty County Herald, the local newspaper for several years. They had three children.
Mrs. W. R. Hancock — was the daughter of Mrs. McCroan and sister of Miss Mattie Way.
Mrs. E. C. Miller — was the wife of Ernest C. Miller, the owner of a large mercantile business which after many years was sold to Mr. Hiram Saunders.
Mrs. J. R. Bagley — was Clara Darsey and married Mr. Bagley in 1905. They had five children.
Mrs. S. E. McCroan — was mother of Mrs. Mattie Way and Miss Eunice Ashmore.
Mrs. J. R. Ryon — was Annie Belle Darsey, daughter of John Miller and Carrie Daniel Darsey. Her youngest brother was Oliver C. Darsey (Ollie Darsey Sunday School Class). They had nine children.
Mrs. J.J. Martin — could have been second wife of J.J. Her name was Sallie Fraser Martin Mims. She died in 1932.
Mrs. E. H. Caswell — was Miss Ellen Caswell and married Mr. Carlos Laing in 1886.
Mrs. Hines — could have been Miss Ola Hines who ran the Hines Hotel until her death in the 1930s. They had two children, Sara and J. C. Hines.
Mrs. Layton — was Leila Layton, wife of Dr. Thomas Layton. They built what was known as the Mingledorff House, which is where The Heritage Bank is now. The house was ordered from Sears & Roebuck.
Mrs. Janie Ryon — cannot find a Mrs. Janie Ryon. There was a Miss Janie Ryon who was Mr. J. R. Ryon’s sister.
Mudder — was Mary Rebecca Butler Hines, married to Robert Hines, son of Charlton Hines. They were parents of Bessie, Sallie, Beulah and Robert Hines.
Mrs. M. R. McCall —
Lucille Tyler —
Mrs. Bobton —
*Information was provided by Mrs. Ethelda Lee.
“Oh, look, that’s my aunt, Mrs. J. R. (Rosalyn Taylor) Ryon. Their home was where the Hinesville Methodist Church is located now. There’s Mrs. Ellender Caswell Gainey. Her parents owned the old Caswell Hotel on the northwest corner of South and Main Street and raised 11 children in Hinesville. My goodness, that lady, Mrs. Leila Layton, was the wife of Dr. Thomas Layton who was mayor of the town for two different terms. They built what was known as the Mingledorff house which was where The Heritage Bank is now. The house was ordered from Sears and Roebuck. That name, Mudder, is Mary Rebecca Butler Hines who was Charlton Hines’ daughter-in-law. Hinesville was named for Charlton Hines.”
On and on went the comments by the Methodist senior citizens’ groups in Hinesville and Midway. What caused these comments?
I was showing them a quilt that I had received for the Liberty County Historical Society.
The very colorful 81.5 by 80-inch woolen crazy quilt with cotton backing was made in 1918 as a wedding gift for Lolla Smith and Wilbur Harrison by 25 women of the Hinesville Methodist Church. Each lady’s signature was embroidered with gold silk thread in handwriting script. The 16-inch squares are held together and decorated with fancy embroidery stitches of the same silk thread.
Lolla Aseneth Smith (1883-1968) married Wilbur Harrison in 1918. She was a teacher at Bradwell Institute. Later, she and two sisters ran the Magnolia Hotel which was at that time on the corner of Main and South Street. The Heritage Bank and parking lot and part of city hall are located on the property now. Her father, Olin Carlise Smith, was the sheriff of Liberty County. Her mother was Ida Hughes Farmer Smith. Lolla was Olan Fraser’s aunt.
Wilbur Harrison (1888-1929) was also a teacher at Bradwell. Later, he became the first secretary of the American Society of Certified Public Accountants after moving to Washington, D.C. Both Lolla and Wilbur are buried in the Flemington Presbyterian Cemetery.
They had no children but gave a niece, Berta, a home and education. The quilt was given to Berta who later gave it to her cousin Kathy Titterton in New York. Kathy contacted Olan Fraser who asked the Historical Society if we wanted it. They felt the old quilt should be sent back to where it originated.