CHAPTER ONE "My feet they are sore, and my limbs they are weary; Long is the way, and the mountains are wild; Soon will the twilight close moonless and dreary Over the path of the poor orphan child." Lewis Hine caption: Two of the "helpers" in the Tifton Cotton Mill, … [Read more...]
Catherine Young & Family
Catherine Young & Family, Chapter Five: Georgia and Ella Young
Georgia Young In one of my early interviews, a descendant told me that Catherine's oldest child was named Georgia, but the person didn't know her last name. I found the death certificate online for a Georgia Watson, who died in Georgia and was about the right age. … [Read more...]
Catherine Young & Family, Chapter Six: Mell Young
"My mother got married when she was about 15. Daddy was much older than her. He was 5' 2'' tall, but when my mother married him, she could walk underneath his outstretched arm." -Clinton Willis, son of Mell Young Mell Diantha Young, the oldest child in the Hine photo, was … [Read more...]
Catherine Young & Family, Chapter Seven: Mattie Young
Mattie Sylvania Young was born on January 4, 1895. She and older sister Mell were the only two children in the Hine photo that did not go to the orphanage. She may have stayed a while with her mother, possibly in Ashburn. But in 1912, she married Nelson Colup Ricks. She was 17 … [Read more...]
Catherine Young & Family, Chapter Eight: Mary Young
"My parents feared God, but we couldn't go to church because we didn't have any clothes or shoes to wear. And the only way we had to travel was in … [Read more...]
Catherine Young & Family, Chapter Nine: Alex Young
Roy Alexander Young was born on May 4, 1899. He was commonly known as Alex, and occasionally as Roy. He stayed at the orphan home longer than any of his siblings, possibly by his own choice. According to several of the Young family descendants, he didn't want to leave, but the … [Read more...]
Catherine Young & Family, Chapter Ten: Eddie Lou Young
"Eddie Lou looks exactly like I would have expected her to look at that age. I love that little smile on her face. When I saw that, I cried. She was one of the happiest people I ever knew. She was also very talkative. She could tell you so many tales and stories that could keep … [Read more...]
Catherine Young & Family, Chapter Eleven: Elzy Young
Elzy P. Young was born about 1902. One undocumented source states that his middle name was Prescott. He left the orphan home on March 9, 1912, at the age of about eight, and went to live in the home of a man identified as Alex Kitchen, of Griswoldville, Georgia, which is in Jones … [Read more...]
Catherine Young & Family, Chapter Twelve: Seaborn Young
Benjamin Seaborn Young was born about 1904. He was named after Seaborn Bailey, his grandfather (Catherine's father), and was known as Seaborn. He left the orphanage on May 15, 1911, at about the age of seven, and went to live with James Walter White and his wife Pruella (Thomas) … [Read more...]
Catherine Young & Family, Chapter Thirteen: Elizabeth Young
"I always wondered where she came from, and what her life was like before she was adopted. The picture kind of helped me to understand more about why she was the way she was." -Evie Taylor, granddaughter of Elizabeth Young It took me a month to identify the youngest girl in … [Read more...]
Catherine Young & Family, Chapter Fourteen: Jesse Young
"Whenever there was anything that had to do with the church or the school, my daddy was the one sitting out there waiting for me. When my brother or I was out on an outing with the kids, we were always late coming back, and he would sit there and wait and never complain about it. … [Read more...]
Catherine Young & Family, Chapter Sixteen: The reunion of the Young family, and an exhibit of their story in a Tifton museum
“This photograph of Catherine Young and her children was taken in 1909. Three months later, they were torn apart by tragic circumstances. Today, 105 years later, in this museum, the family is finally together again.” -Joe Manning, speaking at the Georgia Museum of Agriculture and … [Read more...]
Catherine Young & Family, Chapter Four: The Story Begins
All of the information about this family is based on a combination of official government documents such as the US Census through 1930, marriage and death records, family history summaries posted on various genealogy-related websites, city and town directories, newspaper … [Read more...]
Catherine Young & Family, Chapter Fifteen: Final Thoughts
As I write the last words of this story, it has been almost 103 years since the Young family was photographed in Tifton. No doubt, it is the only picture that exists of Mrs. Young with her nine youngest children. We can thank Mr. Hine for that. With my research behind me now, and … [Read more...]