MOLLIE ENID POWELL 1886-1932
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Extract from Obituary:
"Mrs. W.C. Willis of Sylvester received her eternal reward on the 25th last while on a visit to her sister, Mrs. John Wilkes, of this city. She is survived by her husband, Rev. W.C. Willis of Sylvester, four brothers; J.W.E. Powell, T. W. Powell and Rev. Roy Powell, all of Nashville; J.H. Powell of Tampa, Florida and one sister, Mrs. J. A. Wilkes of Moultrie. The funeral was conducted in Nashville on the 26th inst. by J.G. Henderson Funeral Company."
Mollie Enid Powell was born Oct 16, 1886, near Nashville, GA, the last child of Rev. Thomas Wm and Allie (Whitlow) Powell.
She was named for the heroine in Alfred Lord Tennyson's epic Welsh saga, written as a tribute to faithful marriage. Her father, Rev. Powell, was a lifelong bibliophile and book agent for the National Publishing Co. starting in the late 1860's, after his Confederate service. He would often ride his ministerial circuit with saddlebags packed chock full of books to be peddled as fervently as his faith at every stop.
In a letter dated 6 June 1871, Rev. Powell explained, "I have a book agency & think I will be around to sell you all some new books I have in my inventory. One is the 'Illustrated Holy Bible' now before the public. Also, 'The Light in the East' containing the life of Christ & the Holy Apostles together with the history of the Jews from the earliest period to the present time. Also, the life of Gen. Robert E. Lee, neatly bound & in elegant type. So you see, I am getting to be some peddler myself."
Less than a year after Mollie's birth, her father died of tuberculosis, succumbing to the dread disease after a brave battle of half a dozen years. Three years later, her mother died of the same malady, at age 43, leaving Mollie doubly an orphan. Mollie was taken in by her siblings, who taught her well. She attended Nashville Academy, where her eldest brother, John W.E. Powell, was a teacher.
Fortunately, none of the Powell children contracted tuberculosis from their parents, although Mollie's brother, Alva Roy Powell, developed "lung trouble" during his tour of duty in the Army in the war with Spain. Based on medical records, this seemed to progress to pulmonary emphysema.
Her brother, John W.E. Powell, developed "bone tuberculosis" (so described by her brother, A.R. Powell, in his military pension application), resulting in surgical amputation of his right leg, about 1909. This physical impediment resulted in John's disqualification for service in World War I in 1917-8.
Mollie spent quite a bit of time with her older sister, Mrs. John A. Wilkes, who was nine years her senior. The Tifton Gazette, x21 Aug 1903, reports such a visit: "Miss Mollie 'Nid' Powell has returned from Moultrie." The Nashville Herald, x3 June 1904 reports: "Miss Nid Powell is visiting relatives in Moultrie" and x 28 Jul 1905: "Miss Nid Powell left Wednesday on an extended visit to relatives and friends at Moultrie."
Nashville Herald,
x 5 Aug 1904: "Mr. & Mrs. John Whitlow of Texas are the guests of Mr. & Mrs. Jno. W.E. Powell."
John Gholston Whitlow was the Uncle and namesake of John Whitlow Evans Powell, Mollie's brother, & her senior by fourteen years. J.G. Whitlow was the brother of Mollie's mother, Allie Whitlow Powell.
x 9 Sept 1904: "Mr. & Mrs. J.W.E. Powell accompanied Miss Nid Powell to Macon on Sunday. Miss Powell goes to enter Stanley Business College."
Mollie Enid Powell's scholarship was funded by her Uncle John Gholston Whitlow of Weatherford, TX, per letter in J.G. Whitlow's estate file. Uncle J.G. Whitlow visited the Powells in August and likely coordinated Mollie's scholarship during this trip. John W.E. Powell traveled to Weatherford, TX in 1914 to settle the estate of his Uncle John Gholston Whitlow (b. 1844 Walker Co., GA.)
x 23 Dec 1904: "Miss Nid Powell and Claude Luke, who are attending Stanley's Business College, Macon, Ga., arrived home Wednesday night to spend the holidays with home folk."
x 1 Feb 1907: "A surprise party was given at the home of Mr. & Mrs. Albert Sweat, on Davis Street, Tuesday evening. The affair was gotten up for the purpose of giving the young people of the town the opportunity to meet Miss Pack." Among those in attendance were Miss Nid Powell and Mr. Lint Turner.
See Find A Grave Memorial# 53526749, for more information about Albert Sweat, the owner and editor of the Nashville Herald newspaper.
Molly was fair complected, with long flowing red hair, as was Enid of Welsh legend. Her red hair and beauty apparently attracted the attention of many suitors during her youth. Lint Turner was the most favored among these. Linton Cleveland Turner, a promising young man with a bright future who served as the Clerk of the Berrien Court, was the son of Robert Kennedy Turner and Emily Margaret Connell.
Lint Turner was well known to at least two of the Powell brothers, who had professional associations with him. Berrien court records show several documents filed by John W.E. Powell and witnessed by L.C. Turner. As well, depositions for the military pension of Rev. Roy Powell were notorized by L.C. Turner.
One social column entry in the Nashville Herald indicated that Mr. Turner seemed to visit Moultrie often, when Miss Nid Powell was there at the invitation of her sister, Mattie Wilkes, wife of Judge John A. Wilkes. An article of 1 Feb 1907 stated that "Lint Turner made a wild goose chase over to Moultrie on Sunday." The same edition showed that Miss Nid Powell returned from Moultrie the same day, perhaps in the company of Mr. Turner, assuming it was her goose he was chasing.
After a lengthy courtship, her hand was won by Mr. Turner. Lint and Mollie were married in a surprise secret double wedding, that astonished friends and family.
The wedding was announced in the 22 May 1908 edition of the Nashville Herald:
"Double Wedding
Mr. Linton Turner and Miss Nid Powell and Mr. J.D. Holland and Miss Mattie Sutton were married on Sunday, April 26th, at the home of Mr. and Mrs. T.H.T. Sutton. The double wedding was kept a profound secret until last Sunday night when it was announced at the close of the service at the Methodist Church by Pastor House. We have been expecting some such good news for some time, but did not think they were going to play such a joke on us. We will forgive them this time if they promise to never be guilty of such a prank again."
The two brides were childhood best friends and schoolmates. A few months before, the Nashville Herald reported that these two young ladies were in Macon, Ga. visiting relatives: x 24 Jan 1908: "Misses Nid Powell and Mattie Sutton went to Macon yesterday to spend a few days with relatives." Despite the "Gretna Green Affair" mystique of the secret wedding, the marriage was condoned and blessed by family on both sides of the aisle.
Other friends of Mollie's are noted in the following entry from the 16 Oct 1908 Nashville Herald:
"Mrs. L.C. Turner and Misses Robbie White, Ruby Connell and Lois Smith went in to Valdosta yesterday." Ruby Connell was related to Linton Turner via his mother. Robbie White was a high school friend who married early, spent all of her husband's money, divorced him and filed for bankruptcy by 1908 when she was barely twenty years old. But that did not impede the shopping forays to Valdosta with the girls.
Mr. Turner served as Clerk of the Court in Berrien Co. from 1907 until the couple moved to Moultrie about 1915, as the following entry from the Nashville Herald notes, 28 May 1909 edition notes: "County Clerk Linton C. Turner spent Wednesday in Valdosta on business."
After Mollie "Nid" Powell Turner graduated from Business School in Macon, Ga., she served as bookkeeper and accountant for several businesses in Nashville, most of whom banked with her brother, John W.E. Powell, who was Cashier and, later, President of the Nashville Bank.
L.C. Turner's WWI draft registration in 1918 Colquitt Co., GA shows that he was born 3/31/1884, was tall, of fair complexion, blue eyes, and brown hair. He stated that his nearest relative was his wife Molly N. Powell. The N. stood for "Nid", as she was affectionately referred to by friends and family.
By 1920, the census shows the couple in Americus, Sumter Co., GA. The young family was childless as a result of rheumatic fever Mollie suffered from as a child, leaving her barren.
Their ill-fated marriage did not fare well into the "Roaring Twenties." Court records demonstrate that Mr. Turner had fallen into the habit of intemperance. He was cited for drunkeness and domestic affrays on several occasions. The divorce was finalized in the March 1930 term of Tift Co. Superior Court, with the reason cited as "habitual drunkeness and cruelty."
By June 1930, the newly single Mollie Enid Powell was living with her sister, Mrs. Mattie Wilkes, in Moultrie, and working at Daniels Hospital.
It did not take long for her stunning beauty to capture the attention of eligible widowers. In Nov 1930, she applied for a license from the city of Moultrie to marry Rev. William Cleveland Willis, a colleague of her brother, Rev. A.R. Powell. The couple made their home in Sylvester, GA.
This happy marriage was destined to be short-lived. While visiting her widowed sister, Mrs. Mattie Wilkes, in Moultrie, Mollie fell ill with peritonitis on 23 Feb 1932. The infection quickly worsened and she died two days later at 9 a.m. in the morning, 25 Feb 1932. Mollie Enid Powell was buried the next day, 26 Feb 1932, in Nashville Cemetery, Nashville, Berrien Co., GA, in a service conducted by her brother, Rev. A.R. Powell.
Linton Turner died in prison in Atlanta, Ga. 1949, never having recovered from his misfortunes. Rev. Wm Cleveland Willis remarried to Jewel Mayo. He died in 1974 and is bur. at Pine Forest Bapt Church Cem. in Sylvester, Worth Co., Ga.
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___________________________________________________________
Extract from Obituary:
"Mrs. W.C. Willis of Sylvester received her eternal reward on the 25th last while on a visit to her sister, Mrs. John Wilkes, of this city. She is survived by her husband, Rev. W.C. Willis of Sylvester, four brothers; J.W.E. Powell, T. W. Powell and Rev. Roy Powell, all of Nashville; J.H. Powell of Tampa, Florida and one sister, Mrs. J. A. Wilkes of Moultrie. The funeral was conducted in Nashville on the 26th inst. by J.G. Henderson Funeral Company."
Mollie Enid Powell was born Oct 16, 1886, near Nashville, GA, the last child of Rev. Thomas Wm and Allie (Whitlow) Powell.
She was named for the heroine in Alfred Lord Tennyson's epic Welsh saga, written as a tribute to faithful marriage. Her father, Rev. Powell, was a lifelong bibliophile and book agent for the National Publishing Co. starting in the late 1860's, after his Confederate service. He would often ride his ministerial circuit with saddlebags packed chock full of books to be peddled as fervently as his faith at every stop.
In a letter dated 6 June 1871, Rev. Powell explained, "I have a book agency & think I will be around to sell you all some new books I have in my inventory. One is the 'Illustrated Holy Bible' now before the public. Also, 'The Light in the East' containing the life of Christ & the Holy Apostles together with the history of the Jews from the earliest period to the present time. Also, the life of Gen. Robert E. Lee, neatly bound & in elegant type. So you see, I am getting to be some peddler myself."
Less than a year after Mollie's birth, her father died of tuberculosis, succumbing to the dread disease after a brave battle of half a dozen years. Three years later, her mother died of the same malady, at age 43, leaving Mollie doubly an orphan. Mollie was taken in by her siblings, who taught her well. She attended Nashville Academy, where her eldest brother, John W.E. Powell, was a teacher.
Fortunately, none of the Powell children contracted tuberculosis from their parents, although Mollie's brother, Alva Roy Powell, developed "lung trouble" during his tour of duty in the Army in the war with Spain. Based on medical records, this seemed to progress to pulmonary emphysema.
Her brother, John W.E. Powell, developed "bone tuberculosis" (so described by her brother, A.R. Powell, in his military pension application), resulting in surgical amputation of his right leg, about 1909. This physical impediment resulted in John's disqualification for service in World War I in 1917-8.
Mollie spent quite a bit of time with her older sister, Mrs. John A. Wilkes, who was nine years her senior. The Tifton Gazette, x21 Aug 1903, reports such a visit: "Miss Mollie 'Nid' Powell has returned from Moultrie." The Nashville Herald, x3 June 1904 reports: "Miss Nid Powell is visiting relatives in Moultrie" and x 28 Jul 1905: "Miss Nid Powell left Wednesday on an extended visit to relatives and friends at Moultrie."
Nashville Herald,
x 5 Aug 1904: "Mr. & Mrs. John Whitlow of Texas are the guests of Mr. & Mrs. Jno. W.E. Powell."
John Gholston Whitlow was the Uncle and namesake of John Whitlow Evans Powell, Mollie's brother, & her senior by fourteen years. J.G. Whitlow was the brother of Mollie's mother, Allie Whitlow Powell.
x 9 Sept 1904: "Mr. & Mrs. J.W.E. Powell accompanied Miss Nid Powell to Macon on Sunday. Miss Powell goes to enter Stanley Business College."
Mollie Enid Powell's scholarship was funded by her Uncle John Gholston Whitlow of Weatherford, TX, per letter in J.G. Whitlow's estate file. Uncle J.G. Whitlow visited the Powells in August and likely coordinated Mollie's scholarship during this trip. John W.E. Powell traveled to Weatherford, TX in 1914 to settle the estate of his Uncle John Gholston Whitlow (b. 1844 Walker Co., GA.)
x 23 Dec 1904: "Miss Nid Powell and Claude Luke, who are attending Stanley's Business College, Macon, Ga., arrived home Wednesday night to spend the holidays with home folk."
x 1 Feb 1907: "A surprise party was given at the home of Mr. & Mrs. Albert Sweat, on Davis Street, Tuesday evening. The affair was gotten up for the purpose of giving the young people of the town the opportunity to meet Miss Pack." Among those in attendance were Miss Nid Powell and Mr. Lint Turner.
See Find A Grave Memorial# 53526749, for more information about Albert Sweat, the owner and editor of the Nashville Herald newspaper.
Molly was fair complected, with long flowing red hair, as was Enid of Welsh legend. Her red hair and beauty apparently attracted the attention of many suitors during her youth. Lint Turner was the most favored among these. Linton Cleveland Turner, a promising young man with a bright future who served as the Clerk of the Berrien Court, was the son of Robert Kennedy Turner and Emily Margaret Connell.
Lint Turner was well known to at least two of the Powell brothers, who had professional associations with him. Berrien court records show several documents filed by John W.E. Powell and witnessed by L.C. Turner. As well, depositions for the military pension of Rev. Roy Powell were notorized by L.C. Turner.
One social column entry in the Nashville Herald indicated that Mr. Turner seemed to visit Moultrie often, when Miss Nid Powell was there at the invitation of her sister, Mattie Wilkes, wife of Judge John A. Wilkes. An article of 1 Feb 1907 stated that "Lint Turner made a wild goose chase over to Moultrie on Sunday." The same edition showed that Miss Nid Powell returned from Moultrie the same day, perhaps in the company of Mr. Turner, assuming it was her goose he was chasing.
After a lengthy courtship, her hand was won by Mr. Turner. Lint and Mollie were married in a surprise secret double wedding, that astonished friends and family.
The wedding was announced in the 22 May 1908 edition of the Nashville Herald:
"Double Wedding
Mr. Linton Turner and Miss Nid Powell and Mr. J.D. Holland and Miss Mattie Sutton were married on Sunday, April 26th, at the home of Mr. and Mrs. T.H.T. Sutton. The double wedding was kept a profound secret until last Sunday night when it was announced at the close of the service at the Methodist Church by Pastor House. We have been expecting some such good news for some time, but did not think they were going to play such a joke on us. We will forgive them this time if they promise to never be guilty of such a prank again."
The two brides were childhood best friends and schoolmates. A few months before, the Nashville Herald reported that these two young ladies were in Macon, Ga. visiting relatives: x 24 Jan 1908: "Misses Nid Powell and Mattie Sutton went to Macon yesterday to spend a few days with relatives." Despite the "Gretna Green Affair" mystique of the secret wedding, the marriage was condoned and blessed by family on both sides of the aisle.
Other friends of Mollie's are noted in the following entry from the 16 Oct 1908 Nashville Herald:
"Mrs. L.C. Turner and Misses Robbie White, Ruby Connell and Lois Smith went in to Valdosta yesterday." Ruby Connell was related to Linton Turner via his mother. Robbie White was a high school friend who married early, spent all of her husband's money, divorced him and filed for bankruptcy by 1908 when she was barely twenty years old. But that did not impede the shopping forays to Valdosta with the girls.
Mr. Turner served as Clerk of the Court in Berrien Co. from 1907 until the couple moved to Moultrie about 1915, as the following entry from the Nashville Herald notes, 28 May 1909 edition notes: "County Clerk Linton C. Turner spent Wednesday in Valdosta on business."
After Mollie "Nid" Powell Turner graduated from Business School in Macon, Ga., she served as bookkeeper and accountant for several businesses in Nashville, most of whom banked with her brother, John W.E. Powell, who was Cashier and, later, President of the Nashville Bank.
L.C. Turner's WWI draft registration in 1918 Colquitt Co., GA shows that he was born 3/31/1884, was tall, of fair complexion, blue eyes, and brown hair. He stated that his nearest relative was his wife Molly N. Powell. The N. stood for "Nid", as she was affectionately referred to by friends and family.
By 1920, the census shows the couple in Americus, Sumter Co., GA. The young family was childless as a result of rheumatic fever Mollie suffered from as a child, leaving her barren.
Their ill-fated marriage did not fare well into the "Roaring Twenties." Court records demonstrate that Mr. Turner had fallen into the habit of intemperance. He was cited for drunkeness and domestic affrays on several occasions. The divorce was finalized in the March 1930 term of Tift Co. Superior Court, with the reason cited as "habitual drunkeness and cruelty."
By June 1930, the newly single Mollie Enid Powell was living with her sister, Mrs. Mattie Wilkes, in Moultrie, and working at Daniels Hospital.
It did not take long for her stunning beauty to capture the attention of eligible widowers. In Nov 1930, she applied for a license from the city of Moultrie to marry Rev. William Cleveland Willis, a colleague of her brother, Rev. A.R. Powell. The couple made their home in Sylvester, GA.
This happy marriage was destined to be short-lived. While visiting her widowed sister, Mrs. Mattie Wilkes, in Moultrie, Mollie fell ill with peritonitis on 23 Feb 1932. The infection quickly worsened and she died two days later at 9 a.m. in the morning, 25 Feb 1932. Mollie Enid Powell was buried the next day, 26 Feb 1932, in Nashville Cemetery, Nashville, Berrien Co., GA, in a service conducted by her brother, Rev. A.R. Powell.
Linton Turner died in prison in Atlanta, Ga. 1949, never having recovered from his misfortunes. Rev. Wm Cleveland Willis remarried to Jewel Mayo. He died in 1974 and is bur. at Pine Forest Bapt Church Cem. in Sylvester, Worth Co., Ga.
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MOLLIE ENID POWELL 1886-1932
___________________________________________________________
Extract from Obituary:
"Mrs. W.C. Willis of Sylvester received her eternal reward on the 25th last while on a visit to her sister, Mrs. John Wilkes, of this city. She is survived by her husband, Rev. W.C. Willis of Sylvester, four brothers; J.W.E. Powell, T. W. Powell and Rev. Roy Powell, all of Nashville; J.H. Powell of Tampa, Florida and one sister, Mrs. J. A. Wilkes of Moultrie. The funeral was conducted in Nashville on the 26th inst. by J.G. Henderson Funeral Company."
Mollie Enid Powell was born Oct 16, 1886, near Nashville, GA, the last child of Rev. Thomas Wm and Allie (Whitlow) Powell.
She was named for the heroine in Alfred Lord Tennyson's epic Welsh saga, written as a tribute to faithful marriage. Her father, Rev. Powell, was a lifelong bibliophile and book agent for the National Publishing Co. starting in the late 1860's, after his Confederate service. He would often ride his ministerial circuit with saddlebags packed chock full of books to be peddled as fervently as his faith at every stop.
In a letter dated 6 June 1871, Rev. Powell explained, "I have a book agency & think I will be around to sell you all some new books I have in my inventory. One is the 'Illustrated Holy Bible' now before the public. Also, 'The Light in the East' containing the life of Christ & the Holy Apostles together with the history of the Jews from the earliest period to the present time. Also, the life of Gen. Robert E. Lee, neatly bound & in elegant type. So you see, I am getting to be some peddler myself."
Less than a year after Mollie's birth, her father died of tuberculosis, succumbing to the dread disease after a brave battle of half a dozen years. Three years later, her mother died of the same malady, at age 43, leaving Mollie doubly an orphan. Mollie was taken in by her siblings, who taught her well. She attended Nashville Academy, where her eldest brother, John W.E. Powell, was a teacher.
Fortunately, none of the Powell children contracted tuberculosis from their parents, although Mollie's brother, Alva Roy Powell, developed "lung trouble" during his tour of duty in the Army in the war with Spain. Based on medical records, this seemed to progress to pulmonary emphysema.
Her brother, John W.E. Powell, developed "bone tuberculosis" (so described by her brother, A.R. Powell, in his military pension application), resulting in surgical amputation of his right leg, about 1909. This physical impediment resulted in John's disqualification for service in World War I in 1917-8.
Mollie spent quite a bit of time with her older sister, Mrs. John A. Wilkes, who was nine years her senior. The Tifton Gazette, x21 Aug 1903, reports such a visit: "Miss Mollie 'Nid' Powell has returned from Moultrie." The Nashville Herald, x3 June 1904 reports: "Miss Nid Powell is visiting relatives in Moultrie" and x 28 Jul 1905: "Miss Nid Powell left Wednesday on an extended visit to relatives and friends at Moultrie."
Nashville Herald,
x 5 Aug 1904: "Mr. & Mrs. John Whitlow of Texas are the guests of Mr. & Mrs. Jno. W.E. Powell."
John Gholston Whitlow was the Uncle and namesake of John Whitlow Evans Powell, Mollie's brother, & her senior by fourteen years. J.G. Whitlow was the brother of Mollie's mother, Allie Whitlow Powell.
x 9 Sept 1904: "Mr. & Mrs. J.W.E. Powell accompanied Miss Nid Powell to Macon on Sunday. Miss Powell goes to enter Stanley Business College."
Mollie Enid Powell's scholarship was funded by her Uncle John Gholston Whitlow of Weatherford, TX, per letter in J.G. Whitlow's estate file. Uncle J.G. Whitlow visited the Powells in August and likely coordinated Mollie's scholarship during this trip. John W.E. Powell traveled to Weatherford, TX in 1914 to settle the estate of his Uncle John Gholston Whitlow (b. 1844 Walker Co., GA.)
x 23 Dec 1904: "Miss Nid Powell and Claude Luke, who are attending Stanley's Business College, Macon, Ga., arrived home Wednesday night to spend the holidays with home folk."
x 1 Feb 1907: "A surprise party was given at the home of Mr. & Mrs. Albert Sweat, on Davis Street, Tuesday evening. The affair was gotten up for the purpose of giving the young people of the town the opportunity to meet Miss Pack." Among those in attendance were Miss Nid Powell and Mr. Lint Turner.
See Find A Grave Memorial# 53526749, for more information about Albert Sweat, the owner and editor of the Nashville Herald newspaper.
Molly was fair complected, with long flowing red hair, as was Enid of Welsh legend. Her red hair and beauty apparently attracted the attention of many suitors during her youth. Lint Turner was the most favored among these. Linton Cleveland Turner, a promising young man with a bright future who served as the Clerk of the Berrien Court, was the son of Robert Kennedy Turner and Emily Margaret Connell.
Lint Turner was well known to at least two of the Powell brothers, who had professional associations with him. Berrien court records show several documents filed by John W.E. Powell and witnessed by L.C. Turner. As well, depositions for the military pension of Rev. Roy Powell were notorized by L.C. Turner.
One social column entry in the Nashville Herald indicated that Mr. Turner seemed to visit Moultrie often, when Miss Nid Powell was there at the invitation of her sister, Mattie Wilkes, wife of Judge John A. Wilkes. An article of 1 Feb 1907 stated that "Lint Turner made a wild goose chase over to Moultrie on Sunday." The same edition showed that Miss Nid Powell returned from Moultrie the same day, perhaps in the company of Mr. Turner, assuming it was her goose he was chasing.
After a lengthy courtship, her hand was won by Mr. Turner. Lint and Mollie were married in a surprise secret double wedding, that astonished friends and family.
The wedding was announced in the 22 May 1908 edition of the Nashville Herald:
"Double Wedding
Mr. Linton Turner and Miss Nid Powell and Mr. J.D. Holland and Miss Mattie Sutton were married on Sunday, April 26th, at the home of Mr. and Mrs. T.H.T. Sutton. The double wedding was kept a profound secret until last Sunday night when it was announced at the close of the service at the Methodist Church by Pastor House. We have been expecting some such good news for some time, but did not think they were going to play such a joke on us. We will forgive them this time if they promise to never be guilty of such a prank again."
The two brides were childhood best friends and schoolmates. A few months before, the Nashville Herald reported that these two young ladies were in Macon, Ga. visiting relatives: x 24 Jan 1908: "Misses Nid Powell and Mattie Sutton went to Macon yesterday to spend a few days with relatives." Despite the "Gretna Green Affair" mystique of the secret wedding, the marriage was condoned and blessed by family on both sides of the aisle.
Other friends of Mollie's are noted in the following entry from the 16 Oct 1908 Nashville Herald:
"Mrs. L.C. Turner and Misses Robbie White, Ruby Connell and Lois Smith went in to Valdosta yesterday." Ruby Connell was related to Linton Turner via his mother. Robbie White was a high school friend who married early, spent all of her husband's money, divorced him and filed for bankruptcy by 1908 when she was barely twenty years old. But that did not impede the shopping forays to Valdosta with the girls.
Mr. Turner served as Clerk of the Court in Berrien Co. from 1907 until the couple moved to Moultrie about 1915, as the following entry from the Nashville Herald notes, 28 May 1909 edition notes: "County Clerk Linton C. Turner spent Wednesday in Valdosta on business."
After Mollie "Nid" Powell Turner graduated from Business School in Macon, Ga., she served as bookkeeper and accountant for several businesses in Nashville, most of whom banked with her brother, John W.E. Powell, who was Cashier and, later, President of the Nashville Bank.
L.C. Turner's WWI draft registration in 1918 Colquitt Co., GA shows that he was born 3/31/1884, was tall, of fair complexion, blue eyes, and brown hair. He stated that his nearest relative was his wife Molly N. Powell. The N. stood for "Nid", as she was affectionately referred to by friends and family.
By 1920, the census shows the couple in Americus, Sumter Co., GA. The young family was childless as a result of rheumatic fever Mollie suffered from as a child, leaving her barren.
Their ill-fated marriage did not fare well into the "Roaring Twenties." Court records demonstrate that Mr. Turner had fallen into the habit of intemperance. He was cited for drunkeness and domestic affrays on several occasions. The divorce was finalized in the March 1930 term of Tift Co. Superior Court, with the reason cited as "habitual drunkeness and cruelty."
By June 1930, the newly single Mollie Enid Powell was living with her sister, Mrs. Mattie Wilkes, in Moultrie, and working at Daniels Hospital.
It did not take long for her stunning beauty to capture the attention of eligible widowers. In Nov 1930, she applied for a license from the city of Moultrie to marry Rev. William Cleveland Willis, a colleague of her brother, Rev. A.R. Powell. The couple made their home in Sylvester, GA.
This happy marriage was destined to be short-lived. While visiting her widowed sister, Mrs. Mattie Wilkes, in Moultrie, Mollie fell ill with peritonitis on 23 Feb 1932. The infection quickly worsened and she died two days later at 9 a.m. in the morning, 25 Feb 1932. Mollie Enid Powell was buried the next day, 26 Feb 1932, in Nashville Cemetery, Nashville, Berrien Co., GA, in a service conducted by her brother, Rev. A.R. Powell.
Linton Turner died in prison in Atlanta, Ga. 1949, never having recovered from his misfortunes. Rev. Wm Cleveland Willis remarried to Jewel Mayo. He died in 1974 and is bur. at Pine Forest Bapt Church Cem. in Sylvester, Worth Co., Ga.
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Extract from Obituary:
"Mrs. W.C. Willis of Sylvester received her eternal reward on the 25th last while on a visit to her sister, Mrs. John Wilkes, of this city. She is survived by her husband, Rev. W.C. Willis of Sylvester, four brothers; J.W.E. Powell, T. W. Powell and Rev. Roy Powell, all of Nashville; J.H. Powell of Tampa, Florida and one sister, Mrs. J. A. Wilkes of Moultrie. The funeral was conducted in Nashville on the 26th inst. by J.G. Henderson Funeral Company."
Mollie Enid Powell was born Oct 16, 1886, near Nashville, GA, the last child of Rev. Thomas Wm and Allie (Whitlow) Powell.
She was named for the heroine in Alfred Lord Tennyson's epic Welsh saga, written as a tribute to faithful marriage. Her father, Rev. Powell, was a lifelong bibliophile and book agent for the National Publishing Co. starting in the late 1860's, after his Confederate service. He would often ride his ministerial circuit with saddlebags packed chock full of books to be peddled as fervently as his faith at every stop.
In a letter dated 6 June 1871, Rev. Powell explained, "I have a book agency & think I will be around to sell you all some new books I have in my inventory. One is the 'Illustrated Holy Bible' now before the public. Also, 'The Light in the East' containing the life of Christ & the Holy Apostles together with the history of the Jews from the earliest period to the present time. Also, the life of Gen. Robert E. Lee, neatly bound & in elegant type. So you see, I am getting to be some peddler myself."
Less than a year after Mollie's birth, her father died of tuberculosis, succumbing to the dread disease after a brave battle of half a dozen years. Three years later, her mother died of the same malady, at age 43, leaving Mollie doubly an orphan. Mollie was taken in by her siblings, who taught her well. She attended Nashville Academy, where her eldest brother, John W.E. Powell, was a teacher.
Fortunately, none of the Powell children contracted tuberculosis from their parents, although Mollie's brother, Alva Roy Powell, developed "lung trouble" during his tour of duty in the Army in the war with Spain. Based on medical records, this seemed to progress to pulmonary emphysema.
Her brother, John W.E. Powell, developed "bone tuberculosis" (so described by her brother, A.R. Powell, in his military pension application), resulting in surgical amputation of his right leg, about 1909. This physical impediment resulted in John's disqualification for service in World War I in 1917-8.
Mollie spent quite a bit of time with her older sister, Mrs. John A. Wilkes, who was nine years her senior. The Tifton Gazette, x21 Aug 1903, reports such a visit: "Miss Mollie 'Nid' Powell has returned from Moultrie." The Nashville Herald, x3 June 1904 reports: "Miss Nid Powell is visiting relatives in Moultrie" and x 28 Jul 1905: "Miss Nid Powell left Wednesday on an extended visit to relatives and friends at Moultrie."
Nashville Herald,
x 5 Aug 1904: "Mr. & Mrs. John Whitlow of Texas are the guests of Mr. & Mrs. Jno. W.E. Powell."
John Gholston Whitlow was the Uncle and namesake of John Whitlow Evans Powell, Mollie's brother, & her senior by fourteen years. J.G. Whitlow was the brother of Mollie's mother, Allie Whitlow Powell.
x 9 Sept 1904: "Mr. & Mrs. J.W.E. Powell accompanied Miss Nid Powell to Macon on Sunday. Miss Powell goes to enter Stanley Business College."
Mollie Enid Powell's scholarship was funded by her Uncle John Gholston Whitlow of Weatherford, TX, per letter in J.G. Whitlow's estate file. Uncle J.G. Whitlow visited the Powells in August and likely coordinated Mollie's scholarship during this trip. John W.E. Powell traveled to Weatherford, TX in 1914 to settle the estate of his Uncle John Gholston Whitlow (b. 1844 Walker Co., GA.)
x 23 Dec 1904: "Miss Nid Powell and Claude Luke, who are attending Stanley's Business College, Macon, Ga., arrived home Wednesday night to spend the holidays with home folk."
x 1 Feb 1907: "A surprise party was given at the home of Mr. & Mrs. Albert Sweat, on Davis Street, Tuesday evening. The affair was gotten up for the purpose of giving the young people of the town the opportunity to meet Miss Pack." Among those in attendance were Miss Nid Powell and Mr. Lint Turner.
See Find A Grave Memorial# 53526749, for more information about Albert Sweat, the owner and editor of the Nashville Herald newspaper.
Molly was fair complected, with long flowing red hair, as was Enid of Welsh legend. Her red hair and beauty apparently attracted the attention of many suitors during her youth. Lint Turner was the most favored among these. Linton Cleveland Turner, a promising young man with a bright future who served as the Clerk of the Berrien Court, was the son of Robert Kennedy Turner and Emily Margaret Connell.
Lint Turner was well known to at least two of the Powell brothers, who had professional associations with him. Berrien court records show several documents filed by John W.E. Powell and witnessed by L.C. Turner. As well, depositions for the military pension of Rev. Roy Powell were notorized by L.C. Turner.
One social column entry in the Nashville Herald indicated that Mr. Turner seemed to visit Moultrie often, when Miss Nid Powell was there at the invitation of her sister, Mattie Wilkes, wife of Judge John A. Wilkes. An article of 1 Feb 1907 stated that "Lint Turner made a wild goose chase over to Moultrie on Sunday." The same edition showed that Miss Nid Powell returned from Moultrie the same day, perhaps in the company of Mr. Turner, assuming it was her goose he was chasing.
After a lengthy courtship, her hand was won by Mr. Turner. Lint and Mollie were married in a surprise secret double wedding, that astonished friends and family.
The wedding was announced in the 22 May 1908 edition of the Nashville Herald:
"Double Wedding
Mr. Linton Turner and Miss Nid Powell and Mr. J.D. Holland and Miss Mattie Sutton were married on Sunday, April 26th, at the home of Mr. and Mrs. T.H.T. Sutton. The double wedding was kept a profound secret until last Sunday night when it was announced at the close of the service at the Methodist Church by Pastor House. We have been expecting some such good news for some time, but did not think they were going to play such a joke on us. We will forgive them this time if they promise to never be guilty of such a prank again."
The two brides were childhood best friends and schoolmates. A few months before, the Nashville Herald reported that these two young ladies were in Macon, Ga. visiting relatives: x 24 Jan 1908: "Misses Nid Powell and Mattie Sutton went to Macon yesterday to spend a few days with relatives." Despite the "Gretna Green Affair" mystique of the secret wedding, the marriage was condoned and blessed by family on both sides of the aisle.
Other friends of Mollie's are noted in the following entry from the 16 Oct 1908 Nashville Herald:
"Mrs. L.C. Turner and Misses Robbie White, Ruby Connell and Lois Smith went in to Valdosta yesterday." Ruby Connell was related to Linton Turner via his mother. Robbie White was a high school friend who married early, spent all of her husband's money, divorced him and filed for bankruptcy by 1908 when she was barely twenty years old. But that did not impede the shopping forays to Valdosta with the girls.
Mr. Turner served as Clerk of the Court in Berrien Co. from 1907 until the couple moved to Moultrie about 1915, as the following entry from the Nashville Herald notes, 28 May 1909 edition notes: "County Clerk Linton C. Turner spent Wednesday in Valdosta on business."
After Mollie "Nid" Powell Turner graduated from Business School in Macon, Ga., she served as bookkeeper and accountant for several businesses in Nashville, most of whom banked with her brother, John W.E. Powell, who was Cashier and, later, President of the Nashville Bank.
L.C. Turner's WWI draft registration in 1918 Colquitt Co., GA shows that he was born 3/31/1884, was tall, of fair complexion, blue eyes, and brown hair. He stated that his nearest relative was his wife Molly N. Powell. The N. stood for "Nid", as she was affectionately referred to by friends and family.
By 1920, the census shows the couple in Americus, Sumter Co., GA. The young family was childless as a result of rheumatic fever Mollie suffered from as a child, leaving her barren.
Their ill-fated marriage did not fare well into the "Roaring Twenties." Court records demonstrate that Mr. Turner had fallen into the habit of intemperance. He was cited for drunkeness and domestic affrays on several occasions. The divorce was finalized in the March 1930 term of Tift Co. Superior Court, with the reason cited as "habitual drunkeness and cruelty."
By June 1930, the newly single Mollie Enid Powell was living with her sister, Mrs. Mattie Wilkes, in Moultrie, and working at Daniels Hospital.
It did not take long for her stunning beauty to capture the attention of eligible widowers. In Nov 1930, she applied for a license from the city of Moultrie to marry Rev. William Cleveland Willis, a colleague of her brother, Rev. A.R. Powell. The couple made their home in Sylvester, GA.
This happy marriage was destined to be short-lived. While visiting her widowed sister, Mrs. Mattie Wilkes, in Moultrie, Mollie fell ill with peritonitis on 23 Feb 1932. The infection quickly worsened and she died two days later at 9 a.m. in the morning, 25 Feb 1932. Mollie Enid Powell was buried the next day, 26 Feb 1932, in Nashville Cemetery, Nashville, Berrien Co., GA, in a service conducted by her brother, Rev. A.R. Powell.
Linton Turner died in prison in Atlanta, Ga. 1949, never having recovered from his misfortunes. Rev. Wm Cleveland Willis remarried to Jewel Mayo. He died in 1974 and is bur. at Pine Forest Bapt Church Cem. in Sylvester, Worth Co., Ga.
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