Individual Details
Medline Meriah Williamson
(January 11, 1857 - January 4, 1941)
"John Calvin Williamson, "Col. Henry," Medline's father, died when she was 8 months old. Jerusia Frances, her mother, died when whe was 12 years old. Their father's were brothers ... they thought this marriage of John Calvin and Jerusia Frances (cousins) would keep the wealth in the family. They had cotton, worked the blacks, hid their food out so the Yankee soldiers wouldn't find it, buried their jewelry deep in the garden. One black stayed on to help when Brother Bob decided to bring them to Texas.
"Medline married Giles Sylvester Sumrall in Meridian, Bosque County, Texas. In the 1960's I called the courthouse there to get the date of their marriage. They replied by telling when the courthouse was built and when it burned. The date I go by is from the genealogy booklet written by Fulton Sumrall. Medline was fourteen years of age. Their first child, a girl died in infancy. I also have this information from Medline's own words.
"The couple moved to Eastland County in 1873 and settled near McGough Springs. Merriman was the county seat at that time. They held court in a log house covered with buffalo hides. It was twenty four miles to the nearest doctor at Stephenville, Texas. After the death of their daughter, the Sumralls moved back to Bosque County. Soon after they had left Eastland County, there was an Indian raid near McGough Springs. Some people were killed. This was one of the last Indian raids in the county.
"A son, Calvin Ellis, was born 1875 (died 1949) in Bosque County. Giles Sumrall had written relatives in Eastland County and with the report of no more Indian raids, the Sumralls moved back to Eastland County in 1876. Another son, Jess Sumrall, was born in July 1878 (died 1941).
"On 8 December 1878, Giles Sumrall died of pneumonia and over-exposure from a hunting trip with C. L. Perkins. He is buried south of Merriman Church. A fence around several graves was erected to keep the cattle out.
"Medline agreed to marry C. L. Perkins if he would not spank her two little boys. Medline and C. L. (Calvin Lee) were married on the 25 September 1881 in Eastland County. They had six children." (Mildred Wilhem, 1989)
"C. L. and Medline lived in Eastland County until 1918, when they moved to Abilene. After the youngest son, Alvin passed away in 1925, Grandmother Perkins broke up housekeeping and took turns living with her children. She lived with Nevada (Perkins) Morton in Morton Valley. Grandmother Perkins was the only one of my grandparents to live until I was grown. What a joy it was to have known her. She always brought her Flinch Cards and her feather bed; would put the feather mattress on top of the innerspring matttress. She taught us children how to play Flinch. She was always agreeable and ready to join in anything the family was doing. She told us about her life in Mississippi during and after the Civil War." (Folia Mae Jarrett, EASTLAND COUNTY HISTORY)
Most of the information on Medline's family came from Mildred Wilhelm's notes, which were from interviews with Medline and Celia Perkins prior to 1941; additional information from her tombstone. Photograph of tombstone in Terry Archives, taken 1993. Medline Meriah was not located on the 1860 census with her mother.
"Medline married Giles Sylvester Sumrall in Meridian, Bosque County, Texas. In the 1960's I called the courthouse there to get the date of their marriage. They replied by telling when the courthouse was built and when it burned. The date I go by is from the genealogy booklet written by Fulton Sumrall. Medline was fourteen years of age. Their first child, a girl died in infancy. I also have this information from Medline's own words.
"The couple moved to Eastland County in 1873 and settled near McGough Springs. Merriman was the county seat at that time. They held court in a log house covered with buffalo hides. It was twenty four miles to the nearest doctor at Stephenville, Texas. After the death of their daughter, the Sumralls moved back to Bosque County. Soon after they had left Eastland County, there was an Indian raid near McGough Springs. Some people were killed. This was one of the last Indian raids in the county.
"A son, Calvin Ellis, was born 1875 (died 1949) in Bosque County. Giles Sumrall had written relatives in Eastland County and with the report of no more Indian raids, the Sumralls moved back to Eastland County in 1876. Another son, Jess Sumrall, was born in July 1878 (died 1941).
"On 8 December 1878, Giles Sumrall died of pneumonia and over-exposure from a hunting trip with C. L. Perkins. He is buried south of Merriman Church. A fence around several graves was erected to keep the cattle out.
"Medline agreed to marry C. L. Perkins if he would not spank her two little boys. Medline and C. L. (Calvin Lee) were married on the 25 September 1881 in Eastland County. They had six children." (Mildred Wilhem, 1989)
"C. L. and Medline lived in Eastland County until 1918, when they moved to Abilene. After the youngest son, Alvin passed away in 1925, Grandmother Perkins broke up housekeeping and took turns living with her children. She lived with Nevada (Perkins) Morton in Morton Valley. Grandmother Perkins was the only one of my grandparents to live until I was grown. What a joy it was to have known her. She always brought her Flinch Cards and her feather bed; would put the feather mattress on top of the innerspring matttress. She taught us children how to play Flinch. She was always agreeable and ready to join in anything the family was doing. She told us about her life in Mississippi during and after the Civil War." (Folia Mae Jarrett, EASTLAND COUNTY HISTORY)
Most of the information on Medline's family came from Mildred Wilhelm's notes, which were from interviews with Medline and Celia Perkins prior to 1941; additional information from her tombstone. Photograph of tombstone in Terry Archives, taken 1993. Medline Meriah was not located on the 1860 census with her mother.
Events
| Birth | January 11, 1857 | Meridian, Lauderdale County, Mississippi | |||
| Marriage | November 24, 1871 | Bosque County, Texas - Giles Sylvester Sumrall | |||
| Marriage | September 25, 1881 | Eastland County, Texas - Calvin Lee Perkins | |||
| Death | January 4, 1941 | Eastland County, Texas | |||
| Burial | January 5, 1941 | Masonic Cemetery, Abilene, Taylor County, Texas |
Families
| Spouse | Calvin Lee Perkins (1853 - 1920) |
| Child | Marvin Henry Perkins (1882 - 1961) |
| Child | Nevada Ollie "Vade" Perkins (1886 - 1950) |
| Child | Eli Linton Perkins (1888 - 1933) |
| Child | Celia Jerusha Perkins (1891 - 1971) |
| Child | Florence Beulah Perkins (1894 - 1988) |
| Child | Alvin Lee Perkins (1899 - 1925) |
| Spouse | Giles Sylvester Sumrall (1850 - 1878) |
| Child | Infant Sumrall ( - ) |
| Child | Calvin Ellis Sumrall (1875 - 1949) |
| Child | Jesse Sylvester Sumrall (1878 - 1941) |
| Father | John Calvin Williamson (1811 - 1857) |
| Mother | Jerucia Francis Williamson (1814 - 1866) |
| Sibling | Mary "Millie" Williamson (1831 - 1877) |
| Sibling | Susanah "Susan" Williamson (1833 - ) |
| Sibling | John Calvin Williamson Jr. (1835 - 1875) |
| Sibling | Charles Cogland Williamson (1839 - 1861) |
| Sibling | David Crockett Williamson (1842 - ) |
| Sibling | Thursa Catherine "Sarah" Williamson (1846 - 1871) |
| Sibling | Harriet Williamson (1848 - 1871) |
| Sibling | Robert Henry "Uncle Bob" Williamson (1851 - 1914) |
| Sibling | Ethelia Elizabeth Williamson (1852 - 1877) |
| Sibling | Nancy Williamson (1854 - ) |
| Sibling | Isabelle Williamson ( - ) |