Ted Thomas was born September 25, 1901 on Donaldson Creek in Trigg County, Kentucky. He was the oldest of seven children born to Dallie Brown Thomas and Willie Mae Thomas Thomas. Both of his parents were natives of Trigg County. His father was a farmer. His siblings were Elmer Rowden Thomas, born in 1904 and married Marie E. Lance; Stella Grace Thomas, born in 1906 and married Chester Allen Sumner and then married Ernest Clyde Finley; Lula Maude Thomas, born in 1908 and married James Preston Sumner and then married Charles Dell Taylor III; Edna Ruth Thomas, born in 1912 and married Lloyd Seldon Downs and then married Meredith Simmons Christian; Bessie Mae Thomas, born in 1915 and married Herman Taylor Adams; and James Amos Thomas, born in 1918 and married Virginia Frances Futrell. He had two half-brothers, Dallie Brown Thomas, Jr., born in 1923 and married Virginia Lucille Gardner and Earl Benard Thomas, born in 1925 and married Mary Ann Sumner. Their mother was Ollie Mae Downs, his father’s second wife.
Ted grew up in the Donaldson Creek community and attended the Upper Donaldson School. But he only attended school for a few years. Ted worked as a sharecropper for many years He also worked in timber along with his farming.
On November 14, 1920, Ted married Beulah Sumner in Dover, Tennessee. Beulah was also born on Donaldson Creek on September 21, 1900. She was the oldest child of Thomas “Tommie” Darnell Sumner and Lula Bell Thomas Sumner and was a descendant of Drury Bridges. Her siblings were Bessie Marie Sumner, born in 1903 and married D. B. Redd; James Preston Sumner, born in 1906 and married Lula Maude Thomas and then married Marie Eakers; Thomas Herbert Sumner, born in 1909 and married Edna Lucille Thomas; and Bayliss Hugh Sumner, born in 1914 and married Ruby Helen Calhoun. Beulah grew up on Donaldson Creek and first attended Lower Donaldson School, but later attended Upper Donaldson School.
Ted and Beulah bought a rundown farm in the Oakland community of Trigg County, where they built their home. They had to build a tobacco barn, a stock barn and all of the other outbuildings that were required to operate a farm. And at that time there were no modern conveniences. In 1945 they also built a county store which they operated until they sold it in 1963.
Ted became interested in the government of his county and in 1962, he was elected county magistrate to serve on the Trigg County Fiscal Court as the representative from the Sixth District. The Fiscal Court was the legislative body for the county. Ted ended up serving five terms on the court, stepping down in 1982, after 20 years of service. His decision not to continue to serve was because of his age and his wife’s health. Ted did not consider himself a politician even though he held one of the most influential positions in the county. He loved Trigg County and served it well by supporting the county government, the roads, the local hospital and his church.
Ted and Beulah were the parents of four children, Wilford Allen Thomas, born in 1921, who married Vonnie Lorene Wallace; Wallace Hugh Thomas, born in 1923 and died in 1925 at the age of 2; Mildred Blanche Thomas, born in 1925, who married Thomas Catlett Carney; and Geneva Gray Thomas, born in 1927 and married Raymond Jackson Futrell.
Beulah died on October 27, 1982 in Trigg County at the age of 82 as a result of a heart condition. She was buried in the East End Cemetery in Cadiz. Ted died the following year on November 4, 1983 in Cadiz at the age of 82 after a battle with cancer. He was buried in the East End Cemetery next to his wife.
Ted and Beulah Thomas tombstone
LINEAGE: (Ted Thomas was the son of Dallie Brown and Willie Mae Thomas Thomas and the grandson of Rufus King and Alvie Adeline Dunn Thomas. Rufus King was the fifth child of Perry and Elizabeth Bridges Thomas. Perry was the third child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)
(Beulah Sumner was the daughter of Thomas “Tommie” Darnell and Lula Bell Thomas Sumner and the granddaughter of James Edmond and Mary Louisa Bridges Sumner. Mary Louisa was the second child of Drewry and Peachie Ann Tart Bridges. Drewry was the fourth child of William and Mary Thomas Bridges. William was the fourth child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges.)
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