Geneva Simmons Thomas and Anthony Thomas -- Victims of a House Fire

 

 

Geneva Simmons was born on July 31, 1917 in Trigg County, Kentucky.  She was the daughter of Arthur and Alma Dawson Simmons, both natives of Trigg County.  The Simmons family lived in the Linton Community and Arthur worked as a farmer.  Geneva had five brothers and three sisters.

On January 1, 1939, Geneva married William Boyd Thomas.  Boyd was born on February 22, 1917 in Trigg County, the fifth child of Lucian M. and Inez B. Crews Thomas.  He had a brother, John Alex, born in 1907; Hubert, born in 1909; Homer Blane, born in 1911, Mary Julia, born in 1917 and Alton, born in 1923.  Lucian lived in the Oak Grove Community and was a farmer

Geneva and Boyd were the parents of three children.  Their first child, a daughter, Wanda Lou was born on June 29, 1940. A second daughter, Judy Nell was born on September 17, 1941.  Their only son, Anthony Boyd “Tony”, was born on December 16, 1944.

Boyd owned and operated a walk-up restaurant known as Boyd’s Dairy Dip located on Highway 68 west of Cadiz near the Pete Light Spring Restaurant.  Boyd also served as a board member of the Bank of Cadiz and Trust Company.

On the evening of Tuesday, May 28, 1946, Boyd, age 29, was building a fire in a wood stove in the living room of their home. Geneva was sitting near the stove dressing their 17-month-old child, Tony.  Boyd was apparently using kerosene to help start the fire in the stove when the kerosene can and stove exploded setting the six room house on fire.  Boyd, his clothing aflame, carried his wife and baby outside the home and dipped then in a pool of water near the Thomas house.  He then immediately took them to the Futrell Clinic, located approximately five miles away.   The explosion was heard by neighbors who lived more than a half mile away.   The two Thomas daughters, Wanda Lou and Judy, four and five years of age, managed to escape as the home burned quickly to the ground. Geneva and Tony were transported to Jennie Stuart Hospital in nearby Hopkinsville because of the seriousness of their burns.  Unfortunately, Tony died of his burns a few hours after reaching the hospital.  A few days later, on Saturday, June 1, Geneva, who was 28 years old, became the second fatally injured person of the fire when she died at the hospital as the result of her wounds.  Boyd, who was painfully burned and was also a patient in the hospital, planned to accompany the body of his wife back to Trigg County for her funeral services.

Both Geneva and Tony were buried in the Starkie Thomas Cemetery in the Oak Grove community of Trigg County.  Boyd married a second time when he married Eunice Grace Thomas on June 28, 1947.  He died on June 18, 1998 and was buried next to his first wife, Geneva.

 Tombstone of Geneva and Boyd Thomas

Tombstone of Anthony Thomas

LINEAGE:   (Anthony Boyd Thomas was the son of William Boyd Thomas and Geneva Simmons.  William Boyd was the son of Lucian M. and Inez Crews Thomas, the grandson of Jonathan Starkie and Julia Dyer Thomas and the great-grandson of William Bridges and Nancy Jane Rogers Thomas.  William Bridges Thomas was the first child of Starkie and Mary Bridges Thomas.  Starkie was the fourth child of James Thomas and Mary Standley Thomas and Mary Bridges was the seventh child of Drury Bridges and Charity Cahoon Bridges.)

Jesse Monroe Vinson -- Farmer

 

 

Jesse Monroe Vinson was born on October 21, 1874 in Lonoke County, Arkansas.  His parents, Henry Cullen Vinson and Mary Catherine Sumner had lived in Trigg County, Kentucky, but in the early 1870s had moved to Arkansas.  His father, Henry was born in Stewart County, Tennessee, but his family moved to Trigg County when he was a youngster. Mary Catherine was born in Trigg County and married Henry on November 9, 1865.

Jesse had two siblings who were born in Trigg County before the family moved to Arkansas, a brother, Alfred Thomas Vinson who was born in 1866 and a sister, Alice Lula Vinson who was born in 1869. Jesse’s second brother, John Robert Vinson, was born in Arkansas in 1874. His third brother, Clyde Herman Vinson, was born in 1882 after the family had returned to Kentucky.

When Jesse was three years old, his family after spending seven years in Arkansas, returned to Trigg County, Kentucky and eventually settled on a farm located about three miles west of Cadiz.  Jesse grew up on his father’s farm.

On November 13, 1895, at the age of 21, Jesse married Forrest May Thomas. Forrest was native of Trigg County having been born on December 27, 1876, the daughter of Jonathan Starkie Thomas and Julia Dyer.  Jesse and Forrest were the parents of four children, but only one of their children grew to adulthood.  Their first son, Clifton B., born on September 2, 1896 died the following day.  Their second child, Carey Thomas Vinson was born on June 1, 1898 and grew to adulthood.  Their third child, Mary Julia Vinson was born July 20, 1907 and died two months later on September 18.  Their fourth child, Lula Vinson, born November 20, 1908 died at the age of 1½ on May 2, 1910.

Jesse and Forrest lived in the home of Jesse’s parents for about two years and then purchased an adjacent farm. Jesse continued to pursue a career as a farmer and was considered one of the most successful farmers in the community.  He was also in the horse-trading business which he was also very successful.  Jesse was known as a very compassionate man who was always willing to help his friends and neighbors.  He was always the first to offer kindly assistance and loved to bring joy and relief to those in distress.

Forrest was a woman with an independent personality. She liked to visit her many relatives and would make her visits driving her own horse and buggy and often rode side saddle on her horses.  She bought one of the first Model T Fords and learned to drive it on her own.

During the late winter and early spring months of 1916, Jesse complained of stomach problems.  He consulted with local physicians and they referred him to a specialist in Nashville.  It was determined that he was suffering from a form of cancer of the stomach.  At that time, there were little treatments for his medical condition so Jesse returned to his family farm to continue about his business. As his life drew to a close, he arranged his business affairs and made plans for the welfare of his wife and son, who was only 18 at the time.  Jesse died at his home at 5:30 a.m., on Friday, November 10, 1916.  He was only 42 years old at his death.

His burial took place the following Saturday afternoon at the family cemetery located near his home. It was said that one of the largest crowds ever seen in the community was present to pay respects to one of the county’s foremost citizens.

His wife, Forrest, lived to the age of 76 and died on February 18, 1953 in Cadiz, Kentucky.  She was buried next to her husband in the Vinson Cemetery near their home.

Jesse and Forrest Vinson Tombstone

(LINEAGE:  Jesse Monroe Vinson was the son of Henry Cullen and Mary Catherine Sumner Vinson and the grandson of Thomas Allison and Emeline Thomas Vinson.  Emeline was the fifth child of Cullen and Elizabeth Futrell Thomas.  Cullen was the first child of James Thomas and Mary Standley Thomas.)

Ora Agnes Bridges Thomas -- Accomplished Early Family Member

 

 

 

 

 

Ora Agnes Bridges Thomas was born on June 15, 1869 in the Maple Grove Community of Trigg County, Kentucky.   She was the fourth child of Civil war veteran Cullen Thomas Bridges and his wife, Martha Ann Virginia Thomas.  Her siblings were the well known Bridges Brothers who made a name for themselves in the early 1900s in the Trigg County community.  Those brothers were Ghent, Mark Dale, John Trice, Cleveland and Jesse Clyde.  In addition, Ora had three sisters,   Rosa Lee, Mollie May and a sister, Sallie who died as an infant.

Around 1900, Ora married Robert Henry “Bob” Thomas, a widower whose first wife, Lillie Belle Thomas had died in 1899.  Ora and Bob were the parents of three children, Ruby Virginia Thomas, born May 11, 1902, Henry Cullen Thomas, born November 24, 1903 and Edison Hugh Thomas, born June 5, 1912.  Ora also raised Robert Peyton Thomas, Bob’s son by his first wife, Lillie.

Ora and Bob settled in the Donaldson Creek Community where Bob was a farmer.  The farm was not far from where James Thomas, Sr. had settled in 1806.   Except for a short time when they lived in Paducah, Kentucky, she and Bob lived their entire married life on the Donaldson Creek farm. 

Ora was an accomplished musician.  She played the organ and guitar and sang.  She had a keen interest in current events and was “well read” for a woman of her time.  In addition, Ora was an excellent cook.  Photography was another one of her talents, using a small box camera with roll film.

Ora was also before her time a feminist, a word that she never heard during her lifetime.  She was appointed as an assistant clerk in the Donaldson Creek Baptist Church at a time when women were not even permitted to speak pertaining to business matters of the church.  After the ratification of the 19th Amendment in 1920, she was one of the first women to vote in the Donaldson Precinct.

Ora was a humanitarian, who helped her friends, neighbors and relatives when they were in need and during an illness. But most of all, Ora was a devoted mother and grandmother.

Ora died on October 28, 1933 in Trigg County at the age of 64.  She was buried in the Drury Bridges Cemetery in the Maple Grove Community near the site where she was born.  Her husband, Bob, died on January 27, 1948, at the age of 80.  He was buried in the Peyton Thomas Cemetery on Donaldson Creek next to his first wife, Lille Belle Thomas.

 

Ora Bridges Thomas Tombstone

LINEAGE:  (Ora Agnes Bridges was the daughter of Cullen T. Bridges and Martha Virginia Thomas Bridges and the granddaughter of William Bridges and Mary Thomas Bridges and Peyton Thomas and Sarah Ethridge Thomas.  She was the great-granddaughter of Cullen Thomas and Elizabeth Futrell Bridges and Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges.  She was the great-great granddaughter of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)

James Irving Harrison, Jr. -- Pharmacist and Philanthropist

 

Jimmy Harrison, Jr.

James Irving "Jimmy" Harrison, Jr., was born on July 11, 1932 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, the son of James I. Harrison, Sr. and Elizabeth Doherty Harrison.  Jimmy graduated from St. John the Baptist Catholic High School in Tuscaloosa and Baylor Prep School in Chattanooga before accepting a basketball scholarship to the University of Alabama. He went on to Howard College (now Samford University) in 1952 to study pharmacy, graduating with honors.

At Howard College he met Peggy Joyce Thomas, and they were married on May 30, 1954. Peggy was the daughter of Keidell Thomas, a native of Trigg County, Kentucky and Phyllis Rebecca McGee Thomas, a native of Christian County, Kentucky. They became the parents of five children, three sons, James, III, Ronald Patrick and Kei Anthony and two daughters, Rebecca and Cheri.

After college, Jimmy returned to Tuscaloosa to work with his father at the family's Central Drug Store in downtown Tuscaloosa.  He later managed their popular new campus location, Druid Drug. In 1967 Jimmy went on to found Harco Drug, which became one of America's most respected business chains with 156 stores in three states. Under his leadership, Harco Drug merged with the Rite Aid Corporation in 1997.

In addition to founding Harco Drugs, Jimmy found Carport, an auto products retailer, which he established in 1983 and grew to 53 stores in Alabama and Mississippi.  In 2001 Carport merged with Advance Auto Parts, Inc.   Recognized throughout the national retail industry for personal integrity and business savvy, Jimmy received top honors on behalf of Harco and for personal achievement, including Outstanding Small Drug Chain in the U.S. 1996; Retailer of the Decade 1990 and the National Association of Chain Drug Stores Sheldon W. Fantle Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998.

One of the Harrison family's proudest moments took place in January 2015 when Jimmy was honored by the Samford University Athletic Department for holding the highest scoring record in their basketball history – hitting 48 points in a game against Chattanooga on January 6, 1956. That record still stands. Then on April 13, 2019, Samford University honored Jimmy again by inducting him into Samford University Athletics Hall of Fame. The Harrison family's legacy of service and commitment to education have been recognized in many ways, including the establishment of the James I. Harrison School of Pharmacy at Auburn University, named in honor of Jimmy's parents. The Harrison Center for Academic Excellence at Judson College was dedicated in 2001, and the James I. Harrison Family Endowed Teaching Excellence Facility Fellowship at The University of Alabama was established in 1999. Jimmy received honorary doctorate degrees from the University of Alabama and Judson College,

After the Rite Aid sale, Jimmy and Peggy devoted even more time to community service and ­philanthropy. “It already is a difficult adjustment for me. You just can’t do something 47 years intensely and all of a sudden turn the faucet off,” Harrison said in a 1997 interview with The Tuscaloosa News. Jimmy and Peggy founded the James I. Harrison Family Foundation which over the years has contributed to a long list of charitable organizations devoted to families, the arts, education and improving the lives of citizens in western Alabama and beyond. “The philanthropic work from the foundation is probably the best thing the family ever did,” he said in an interview with Tuscaloosa magazine, published in 2017.

Jimmy died in Tuscaloosa on February 24, 2020 at the age of 87.  He was buried in the Tuscaloosa Memorial Park cemetery.

LINEAGE:  (James Irving Harrison, Jr. was the husband of Peggy Joyce Thomas.  Peggy was the daughter of Keidell and Phyllis Rebecca McGee Thomas, granddaughter of Jerome Scott and Rosa Payton Marquess Thomas and great-granddaughter of Winfield Scott and Cassandra Jemima Futrell Thomas and Marion and Mary J. Thomas Marquess.  Winfield Scott was the son of Perry and Elizabeth Bridges Thomas. Perry was the third child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.  Elizabeth was the sixth child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges.  Mary J. Thomas was daughter of Peyton and Sarah Ethridge Thomas. Peyton was the third child of Cullen and Elizabeth Futrell Thomas.  Cullen was the first child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)

Fred Thomas "Tommy" Ratchford, Jr. -- Attorney and Band Leader

 

Tommy Ratchford

Fred Thomas “Tommy” Ratchford, Jr. was born on October 31, 1948 in San Diego, California, the son of Fred Thomas Ratchford Sr. and Ina Ruth McGuffee.  His father was a Chief Warrant Officer in the U.S. Navy.  His family first moved to Pensacola, Florida in the 1950s, but because of being in a military family, Tommy moved quite often spending parts of his childhood in Cairo, Egypt and Guam. His family finally settled in Pensacola in July 1964 and Tommy graduated from Escambia High School in 1967.

Tommy went on to attend the University of Mississippi and later graduated from Florida State University Law School with a law degree.  Like his father, Tommy served in the U.S. Navy, being commissioned as a Lieutenant, Junior Grade on September 5, 1971 and a full Lieutenant on July 1, 1974.  After the completion of his education and military service, he settled down in Pensacola where he became a longtime and well recognized attorney. 

On June 7, 1975, Tommy married Charleyn Palmer “Polly” Swinford in Pensacola.  Polly was a native of Pensacola and was born on February 26, 1949, the daughter of William McKinley Swinford and Eleanor Anne Jones. The couple continued to live in Pensacola and on November 14, 1978 they became the parents of a daughter, Amanda Ratchford, their only child. Tommy and Polly were divorced on April 19, 2001. Tommy went on to marry his second wife, Suzy Brumfield.

Tommy’s legal skills became well known in the Florida panhandle when he became a regular on a local Pensacola’s Blab TV’s “Justice for All” show focusing on legal issues. Blab Television is a broadcast station in Florida which reaches from the Florida panhandle to the broader Gulf Coast region including Alabama. Tommy continued his legal career until his retirement from his law practice on May 31, 2018.

As a teenager, Tommy became a rock ‘n’ roll band leader.  He became part of his first band, called The Xenos, in November of 1964. Tommy wrote, “It was truly what you would call a garage band.” Friends often gathered at the Ratchfords’ home, where he had added a music room complete with stage, sound equipment and lighting, decorated with photographs from his many band performances. Music from those many parties could be heard throughout the neighborhood on weekend nights.

Ratchford was known by many Escambia County residents as lead singer and keyboard player for Gallery Night trio, The Song Byrds, with friends Jeff and Andree Byrd. Across the decades, he was a leading member of such local rock ‘n’ roll bands as Soul-7, Laymen, George Emmanuel Trio and Six T’s. He also was founder of The Pensacola Super Band, which performed at opening weekends for Pensacola Beach Bands on The Beach.

Tommy died on June 3, 2018 in Pensacola after a brief illness and he was cremated. Following his death, his former band members held a musical celebration of his life in downtown Pensacola. A traditional funeral service was held at the Olive Baptist Church.

LINEAGE:  (Fred Thomas “Tommy” Ratchford, Jr. was the son of Fred Thomas and Ina Ruth McGuffee Ratchford, Sr., grandson of William Thomas and Minnie Viola McCasland Ratchford, great-grandson of Thomas Jesse and Mary Stanley Thomas McCasland and great-great grandson of James Clark "Muck" and Mary Elizabeth Josephine Lawrence Thomas.  James Clark was the fourth child of James, Jr. and Margaret Ethridge Thomas. James Thomas, Jr. was the sixth child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)

Hugh McCorkle McElrath -- Dentist

 

Hugh McCorkle McElrath was born in Murray, Kentucky on May 21, 1888, the son of John Calvin McElrath and Fannie Nold McElrath. His father was a merchant in Murray and his mother’s father was the first principal of the Murray Male and Female Institute, which opened in 1872 and was one of the first schools in Murray. His mother was one of the first teachers of the school.

Hugh attended the Murray Male and Female Institute and in 1905 to 1908 he was a student at Bethel College in Russellville, Kentucky.  During the school years of 1909 to 1911 he attended the Louisville Dental College, now the School of Dentistry of the University of Louisville He then enrolled at Northwestern University Dental School in Chicago where he received his D.D.S degree in 1912.

After his graduation from Northwestern University, he entered the practice of dentistry in Murray in October 1913.  His thriving dental practice was interrupted from July 1918 to July 1919 because of World War I.  Hugh was in the US Army and was a member of the American Expeditionary Forces and was overseas from September 1918 until June 1919.  He was attached to the Evacuation Hospital No. 18.  Upon completion of his army service, he returned to Murray and resumed the practice of dentistry.

On October 27, 1920, Hugh married Gladys M. Thomas, who was the daughter of Monroe A. Thomas and Mary Susan Graham Thomas.  Monroe was a farmer and real estate operator in Calloway County, Kentucky.  Gladys was a graduate of Georgetown College, having been a member of the Class of 1920.

Hugh and Gladys were the parents of four children. Their first child, Hugh Thomas McElrath was born on November 13, 1921 and graduated from Murray State Teachers College in 1943. A daughter, Miriam McElrath was born July 25, 1923 and a second daughter, Mary Frances McElrath was born on August 4, 1924.  Their last child, William Nold McElrath was born on March 1, 1932.

Dr. McElrath was active in the affairs of various associations and organizations, both professional and social.  He was a member of the Kentucky State Dental Association, which elected his its president in April 1924.  He had served as the chairman of the Kentucky representatives for the program of the International Dental Congress, which met in Philadelphia in 1926.  He was made a Fellow of the American College of Dentists in 1931.

Hugh was a member of several literary, dental and honorary fraternities and was a charter member and past president of the Murray Rotary Club.  He was a deacon in Memorial Baptist Church in Murray and he and Gladys were active in the church affairs.

On the afternoon of March 8, 1963, Hugh and Gladys were enroute to Nashville to have dinner with their son, the Rev. William McElrath.  They were sixteen miles south of Clarksville, Tennessee on the two lane US highway 41A when they were involved in a horrendous two-car collision.  Both Hugh and Gladys were dead on arrival at the Clarksville hospital. The accident occurred less than a mile and a half north of the site of a violent crash the previous week that claimed five lives. Dr. McElrath was the oldest practicing dentist in Murray at the time of his death.

Hugh was 74 years old and Gladys was 64 at the time of their deaths.  Both were buried in the Murray City Cemetery in Murray Kentucky.

 Tombstone of Hugh and Gladys McElrath

LINEAGE:  (Hugh McCorkle McElrath was the husband of Gladys Matia Thomas.  Gladys was the daughter of Monroe A. and Mary Susan Graham Thomas and the granddaughter of Starkie Duprey and Sarah Frances Pugh Thomas.  Starkie was the eleventh child of Perry Thomas and Elizabeth Bridges Thomas.  Perry was the third child of James Thomas and Mary Standley Thomas. Elizabeth was the sixth child of Drury Bridges and Charity Cohoon Bridges.)

Miyoko Sugano Blackford – Japanese Translator

 

Miyoko Sugano Blackford was born on March 6, 1922 in Japan.  She was the daughter of Yoshiyuki and Mitsu Sugano, descendants of the Samurai family. Miyoko was the youngest of the three children and the family lived in the southwest area of Japan.

Miyoko was educated at a finishing school where she learned the Japanese culture of tea ceremony. This quiet celebration of the service is performed with grace and beauty, skills that Miyoko acquired and illustrated throughout her life. In her young adult life, Miyoko became an accomplished ice-skater and was on the Japanese Olympic team. Her team was unable to compete due to World War II, but they ultimately did perform for an audience after the war that included General Douglas A. MacArthur.

As was her family’s custom, Miyoko first married Takashi Fukuyama in an arranged marriage. Later after immigrating to the United States, her second marriage was to Ethell Moore Blackford, Jr.  Ethell was born in Trigg County, Kentucky on December 8, 1919, the son of Ethell Moore Blackford, Sr. and Ella Mae Thomas Blackford. Ethell and Miyoko were the parents of one child, Nancy Sugano Blackford.

Miyoko and Ethell settled in Hopkinsville, Kentucky in April 1956. Miyoko worked as a seamstress for Arnold’s, a high-fashion women’s clothing store in Hopkinsville, for many years. When the store closed, she worked at The Showcase, a bridal and formalwear store.

During her many years living in Hopkinsville, Miyoko was frequently called upon to serve as a Japanese language translator by the Japanese industries that located in Hopkinsville. In addition to serving as a translator, she also assisted the wives and children of the company employees as they acclimated to the community. Further, she frequently made herself available to provide a sense of familiarity for Japanese exchange students attending local high schools.

Ethell Blackford, Jr. died on October 3, 1975 and was buried in the East End Cemetery in Cadiz, Kentucky.  Miyoko continued to live in Hopkinsville until 2016 when she moved to Kingwood, Texas to be near her daughter’s family.

Miyoko died on May 5, 2019 in Kingwood, Texas. Her remains were returned to Kentucky and she was buried in the East End Cemetery with her husband.

Tombstone of Ethell and Miyoko Blackford
 

LINEAGE:  (Miyoko Sugano Blackford was the wife of Ethell Moore Blackford, Jr.  Ethell was the son of Ethell Moore, Sr., and Ella Mae Thomas Blackford, grandson of Richard Ellis and Nannie Hendricks Thomas and great-grandson of Carroll and Margaret Jane Reid Thomas.  Carroll was the second child of James, Jr., and Margaret Ethridge Thomas. James, Jr. was the son of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)