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Note: In 1975, I went to the West Bethel Meth Church, north of St. Matthews, S. C. I found a Bethel Sunday School Record Book -dated 1886.
Officers & Teachers: W. W. Staley July 1886, J.E. Jones, and Martha Staley
Biblers Class: July 1886 Samuel Jones, Susan Staley, Florence Staley
There were entries made each year showing the Staley family members.
Bethel Sunday School was reorganized on April 9, 1893. John T. Staley was elected Secretary of the school. Aug. 13, 1893, Sunday school minutes were signed by W. W. Staley, Sec.Pro.Tem. and J. T. Staley, Sec.
Oct. 15, 1893 was the last recorded entry in the ledger. John was first married to: Alvilda Callihan from Columbia, S.C. -they had one child that we know of: Lucretia Staley (married: Barrs)-of Hayesville, N.C.
Marriage announcement for John Thomas and Alvilla -South.Christ. Adv.-issue of 2-13-1896:
Married: John Staley.....at Woodford..9th of Jan. 1896.. and Miss Alvilla, daughter of M. S. Callihan....
In Aug. 1900,when father William W. Staley's will was probated, John was living at 5 Pearl Ave., Augusta, Ga. I do not know if he was still living with his first wife, Alvilla Callihan Staley, or it they had by that time separated and/or
divorced.
John and Mae's marriage announcement was in the Times and Democrat, Orangeburg, SC on Oct. 17, 1916.
"Married, Miss Mae Lane of this city and Mr. John T. Staley of Meggetts...on last Sunday afternoon by Rev.. D. D. Dantzler..
Several relatives and interested friends were present.
John was a blacksmith by occupation and a very good one.
We know very little about the early lives of John Thomas Staley and Letha Mae Lane Staley. My mother was only 12 yrs. old when her father, John Thomas, died.
When the children were small, they lived in Lone Star, SC. There were two barn-like buildings; they lived in one and John used the other one for his shop. There were horses kept in the back of the building in which they lived. Momma remembers
that a horse once stepped on her momma's foot. John was very strict with his children. Mae was very beautiful and it is said that John was extremely jealous. Mae was a very quiet, timid person. She rarely went out.
Momma and I went to Lone Star in 1977 and talked to Julian Carson-he runs a small store there. He was 54 yrs. old at that time and has lived there all of his life. He remembered Momma when he saw her. He played with her when they were small.
She last saw him when she was six years old. Mrs. Copeland was Momma's first grade teacher. Julian remembered all of Momma's brothers and sisters; playing with them and going to school together.
We saw Mrs. Hattie Vice, an old neighbor, (also in 1977). She remembered the Staleys, and recalled several incidents in their lives. Once, the principal at school had all the boys whitewashing the trees. Bill refused to do it and the principal
whipped him. When Bill told his father, John, about it: John went after the principal with a shotgun-he had a hot temper- the sherrif intercepted him and locked him up before he got to the school..
Another time, John shot Mrs. Hattie Vice's dog for getting after his chickens. Mrs. Vice said that they patched the dog up and kept him in their barn for a couple of weeks until he was well. John thought he had killed the dog and was right
surprised to see him again. He told Hattie that he thought he was well rid of that damn dog.
Mrs. Vice remembered that one time Richard swallowed a key when he was very small. Mae was scared to tell John about it, but the baby passed it alright.
She also said that all the Staley children had the Whooping cough at one time. Her son mimicked them-she told him he was going to have his turn if he didn't stop.
Momma recalls that all her brothers and sisters had the mumps at one time.
The children used to wait in front of the house for their daddy to come home. When they could see him coming down the road, they would yell to see if they could run to meet him. If he nodded yes, they would race to see who could get there
first. If he shook his head no, they made themselves scarce.
Once, when they were running to meet him, Letha (nicknamed Leaky) ran into a post with a nail on it. It left a scar on her forehead.
Tea said that they had a pony named Nat in Lone Star. John made a sulkie and they all went for rides in it.
Once John made rocking chairs for all the Wiles children.
He planted wheat one year. They threshed it at home, and had loads of flour that year. They also had peanut gardens.
The family moved to Megget when Momma was about 7 yrs. old. (1929) She remembers going to the third grade in Megget; several weeks later, they moved her back to the second grade and it really upset her. Leaky and Tea were acrobats for Field Day
at school in Megget-fifth grade(1929) John wouldn't let them wear shorts as they were too immodest, so Mae put elastic around the legs of their shorts so that they could participate. There were all kinds of games and races for Field Day-potato
races. Mae made all the children bathing suits just alike. They would take a little rowboat out to the fishing pond. John Thomas Jr. once caught a fishhook in his hand. Richard got bit on the toe by a crab. There was an Oyster factory in
Megget; They got fresh oysters from it.
John hunted a great deal: for doves and marsh hens.Mae made bird pies.
1935 Richard put a firecracker in his mouth when he was about nine years old and blew his mouth up..
Tea lived with Aunt Rose and Uncle Sam Wainwright from the time that she was about six years old until she was 14 or 15 yrs. old. She came home to visit several times a year.
Several years later, the Staley family moved to Orangeburg and lived in the house with Grandfather Lane that he had built. They lived with him until after John died in 1934. Mae's father also died in 1934. The family stayed in Grandfather
Lane's house until 1941 when Rosanne married Clifford Owens. Then Letha Mae Staley and Letha moved to John's Island, Charleston, S.C. Richard stayed with Rosanne and Clifford until he finished out the school year and he then joined the Navy.
John was sick for a long time before his death. He spent a great deal of time alone in his room. He had a stroke, high blood pressure, and eventually a heart attack. He died at home March 21, 1934
SC Archives death cert: #4421 cause of death: angina prectoris
age 59 years, blacksmith, parents: William Staley, Orangeburg SC, Martha Smoak,Orangeburg, SC
. Funeral arrangements were handled by Dukes-Harley Funeral Home in Orangeburg, SC. He is buried at East Bethel Meth . Church Cemetery, Lone Star, SC Funeral expenses were $35.00, $25.00 of which were paid by the city.
Feb. 2006 - I just found the following post it message at the Rootsweb Database: anderson-owens
Individual: I81 Post it message. I replied immediately to the email address for Katherine but it is no longer valid. I am so disappointed; I have searched for years for more info on John's first wife and family.
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KATHERINE M. EAGERTON 2003-08-27 19:32:01
I AM A GREAT GRANDDAUGHTER OF JOHN THOMAS STALEY AND ALVILDIA ANN RACHEL CALLIHAN - THEIR DAUGHTER, ALTHEA LUCRETIA ALVILDIA STALEY MARRIED MARSHALL LEON BARRS - THEIR DAUGHTER, JENNIE DELANE BARRS MARRIED JOHN WILLIAM MITCHUM, SR - I AM THE
4TH CHILD OF JOHN AND JENNIE MITCHUM AND HAVE RECENTLY LOCATED THE FAMILY BIBLE OF M.S."CROOK" CALLIHAN AND MERVELLE JEFFCOAT (PARENTS OF ALVILDIA) IN THIS BIBLE, THE BIRTHDATE OF JOHN THOMAS STALEY IS RECORDED AS OCTOBER 16, 1874. I WANT TO
THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH FOR THE INFORMATION YOU HAVE MADE AVAILABLE ON ROOTSWEB CONCERNING JOHN THOMAS STALEY. IT IS THE ONLY INFORMATION I HAVE BEEN ABLE TO LOCATE ON MY MOM'S STALEY FAMILY ROOTS. I HOPE THIS BIRTHDATE IS CORRECT - ALL THE
OTHER RECORDED DATES HAVE TURNED OUT TO BE CORRECT. AGAIN, THANK YOU!
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