Obituaries - J Surnames

Mr Lawrence L Jackson, 73, of Dothan, Alabama, died Thursday, Jan 14, 1999 at Jackson County Convalescent Center following an extended illness. He was born in Holmes County on Feb 4, 19125, moving to Dothan in 1990. He was a U S Marine Corps veteran and retired Tech Sgt with the U S Air Force following 18 years of service. He was a member of Kings Table Worship Center in Dothan,

Funeral services were held Jan 16 at the Chapel of James & Lipford Funeral Home with the Rev James Henderson and the Rev Michael Senn officiating. Burial followed in Sunset Cemetery in Dothan with full military honors, James & Lipford Funeral Home of Graceville directing.

He was preceded in death by his daughter, Linda C Pelham.

Survivors include his wife of 51 years: Peggy W Jackson of Dothan; son: Larry Jackson of Montgomery, Alabama; daughters and son-in-law: Sandy and Gene Watson of Noma and Barbara Joyne of Dothan; son-in-law: John C Pelham of Tallahassee; brother: Jim Jackson of Macon, Georgia; sisters: Sally Hatala and Eunice Tishey, both of Sun City, California, Verna Hamlin of Long Beach, California, Mae Carpenter of Tulsa, Oklahoma and Ophelia Deal of Tampa, Florida; eight grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

Source: Holmes County Advertiser/Washington County Post, Wednesday, January 20, 1999; Page 19

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4 December 1925, Headlines:

Five Meet Death in Boiler Explosion

E P Creel and four others of this city meet tragic death.

A terrific boiler explosion at the E P Creel Sawmill located on highway just west of Ponce de Leon yesterday afternoon at 2:30 o'clock took a death toll of five and wounded three others, almost completely wiped out the force of thirteen working men. The dead are:

E P Creel, 55, owner of the mill and a life-long resident of Bonifay.

Walter Redman, 55, of Ponce de Leon, mechanic at the mill, survived by a wife and four children.

William Jenkins, 35, Ponce de Leon, laborer, survived by a wife and four children.

Wesely (DeDe) Smith, 40, fireman, survived by a wife and four children.

Theodore Martin, of Ponce de Leon, 15 years of age, an orphan.

The injured are Elbert Whitehead of Ponce de Leon, Claude Redman of Bonifay, bruised about the head, Edgar McDonald, of Chipley, broken arm and foot.

Arthur Creel, son of E P Creel, was badly shocked but, otherwise unhurt, first reports were he was killed.

The exact cause of the explosion is not known, but it is believed that the boiler was out of water, and when the fireman turned water into the boiler it exploded. Arthur Creel, said the indicator had shown a gage of water just a few minutes before the explosion. But the indicator might have become clogged. None of the men think the boiler was defective.

The explosion was heard for miles around and so terrific was the force of the combustion that hardly a trace of the plant was left. Pieces of the boiler and parts of the machinery were found many feet from the mill. A large piece of the boiler was hurled several yards through the air and cut the top from an oak nearby.

The mill had been in operation about ten days. E P Creel, the owner, has been in the timber and sawmill business in this section practically all his life. He was well known throughout West Fla. He has a large circle of friends and business associates in Bonifay. Left to mourn his loss is a wife and three small sons, as well as a daughter and six sons by a former marriage. He is survived also by his aged mother, Mrs S A Creel and R W Creel, Clerk of Court.

Mr Creel was struck many times as shown by the bruises and contusions on his body. One injury in itself fatal, was a large wound in the side.

Wesely Smith, the fireman, was instantly killed, by a blow which tore off the entire top of his head. Redman was torn literally to pieces. Both Jenkins and the Martin youth were killed instantly.

The remains of both Creel and Smith were brought to their home in Bonifay last yesterday afternoon, while the other victims were taken to their homes in Ponce de Leon.

The funeral of Mr Creel will take place at his home Saturday morning at 10:00 o'clock and the internment will be at the Bonifay Cemetery.

The funeral of Mr Smith will take place this afternoon, at the St John's Church south of Bonifay.

Transcribed by Cathy Strickland Popp
Submitted by JoAnn Beagle

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Albert Jernigan Dead: The news of the death of Mr Albert Jernigan, who for about three years was one of our most valuable and highly esteemed citizen, came over the wire Wednesday afternoon as a shock barbed with pain and sorrow. When this paper last came to you the deceased was upon our streets greeting his friends with a happy "Good morning". Today all that was mortal of our friend and townsman is at peaceful rest in the silent city of the dead at Linden, Ind.

Mr Jernigan's death was caused from blood poisoning which developed from an abcess (sic) on the elbow. He was only ill bout three days and was carried to the Pensacola Sanitarium for treatment where he died in spite of the best medical aid it was possible to secure. The remains, accompanied by the heart broken wife, and other relatives, were shipped to Linden, Ind, for interment.

For the past few months Mr Jernigan and his wife have been in Indiana with the latter's parents, and where Mr Jernigan held a position in a bank. Two weeks ago they came back here for the purpose of moving their household goods to the Indiana town where they had decided to make their future home. They left Bonifay Friday night of last week, and prior to their departure a large crowd gathered at the depot to say "good bye" (sic) and wish them success and happiness in their new home. At that time Mr Jernigan was complaining of the abcess (sic) on his elbow, but he nor his friends thought little about it. On their way north they stopped at Freeport to spend a few days with Mr Jernigan's relatives, and it was while there that blood poisoning developed from the abcess (sic). He was hurried to Pensacola for treatment, but it was too late. The treatment of the best physicians availed nothing and the end came at 3:15 Wednesday afternoon.

It is hard for us to realize that our friend is dead. It was our good fortune to have known him long and well, and we only knew him to esteem him more highly as the years passed by. He did much for Bonifay during the time he resided here; ever progressive and wide-awake to the town's welfare and always doing his part towards promoting the higher interest of the community. His death has brought the bitter up of sorrow to the hips of his host of friends in Bonifay, all of wom (sic) extended deepest sympathy to the bereaved wife and other relatives.

Source: Holmes County Advertiser, Bonifay FL, Saturday, 30 Sep 1911; transcribed by Cathy Strickland Popp

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Cresko (Keck) Johns, age 60, of Lynn Haven, died March 12, 1999 in a local hospital. He was the son of the late Rev Charley Johns.

Funeral services were Monday, March 15 at the Wachob Chapel with the Rev Don Shoots and the Rev Mike Parkers, officiating. Burial followed in the Wausau Memorial Gardens with Brown Funeral Home directing.

Those asked to serve as pallbearers were Harvey Brunner, Johnny Walters, Johnny Shivers, Don Rogers, David Kelley and Donnie Harris.

Honorary pallbearers were all present and past employees of the Department of Transportation.

Survivors include his wife of 38 years, Elaine Johns; sons Ricky Johns and wife Karen, Troy Johns and wife Becky, and Daryl Johns and wife Toni; mother Corene Johns; father and mother-in-law: Leo and Eviedee Rogers; special loved one Pam Harris; brothers Eugene and wife Nita Johns, Buford and wife Voncille Johns, Lowell and wife Sandy Johns, Roscoe and wife Mary Johns, Charles Earl and wife Kay Johns, Edward and wife Judy Johns; sisters Luell and husband Henry Rogers, Lokie and husband Adolph Grissett, Gracie and husband Leo Maddox, Shelby Finch; many grandchildren and great-grandchildren; along with a host of nieces and nephews.

Source: Holmes County Advertiser, Bonifay FL, Wednesday, March 17, 1999

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A Brutal Murder

The DeFuniak Breeze publishes the following regarding the foul and brutal murder near Ponce de Leon last Sunday night:

"One of the most horribly cold blooded murders ever committed in Walton county, was that of Sunday night in front of Luther Russ's house near Ponce de Leon, where according to his own confession Mose Daniels shot and killed Rev Jesse J Jones a Methodist minister, and for which crime Mose Silas, Union, Isaac and Manuel Daniels and Luther Russ were lodged in jail.

"Monday the matter was reported to Sheriff Campbell who immediately went there to investigate the matter, and arrested Mose and Silas, Daniels and Luther Russ and lodged them in jail. Tuesday a coroner's jury consisting of J H Laird, W F Hall, H M Wadsworth, D A Gillis, W A McCallum and D J Adkinson went down from there, and from information received by them, Isaac, Union and Manuel Daniels were arrested. They then adjourned until yesterday morning when the investigation was further continued at the courthouse.

"Mose Daniels was the first witness brought before them and he without hesitation or seeming reluctance made a full confession of the crime, insisting that he, and he alone, committed the murder and that none of the others had anything what ever to do with it.

"His story was substantially as follows: "Jones had been harassing me in every way he could since last January. He had repeatedly cursed and abused me, and told false tales on my wife and I had become desperate and resolved to kill him or be killed. I had told others that I would do it. That night I had an idea that he was down the road and about 11 o'clock I took my gun and went down the road and met him near Luther Ross'. When we meet, he started towards me and I threw up the gun but it snapped the first time, and he started to run and I shot him. He fell on his knees and halloed and when I went to him, he tried to grab me, and I hit him over the head with the gun, and then dragged him out of the road. I went to Union Daniels' house and got my wagon with my oxen, went back to the body, put it in the wagon and took it to the old well where it was found, drove back home, unhitched my oxen and took my hoe and covered up the blood in the road and where the body lay while I was gone. There was no one with me did any one else know anything of it."

"During the whole recital Mose was as cool as if he were telling of killing hogs, and was the most unaffected one in the room. Luther Russ and Silas Daniels were examined but both denied any knowledge of the matter, and their stories as to other matters did not materially differ from that told my Mose.

"Mose also denied telling any one anything about it further than to say that he knew that he knew that Luther and Silas who were accused of it had nothing to do with the crime.

"Manuel and Union Daniels had told on Monday however that Mose had told them that Silas and Luther were with him but when he fired the gun they got scared and run off, and had told them where he had hid the body, and in this way it was found circumstances which indicated that either he did tell a part of this or that there were other parties concerned in the crime.

"All the parties are colored, and the Negroes in the community where the crime was committed were much wrought up and had it not been for the counsel of white men there would doubtless have been a lynching and the county saved the expensed of the hanging which seems sure to follow."

Source: Holmes County Advertiser, Bonifay FL, Saturday, Sept 19, 1908

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