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From AAFA files: John Quincy Adams Alford, son of Cullen and Pherebe (Wooten) Alford, born 7 Sept 1814 in Greene (now Tolliver) Co., Georgia. J.Q.A. was a well known lawyer, politician, and lay Baptist preacher. He married 13 Feb 1838 Clementine Butler, who was born 22 Jun 1819 in Morgan County, Georgia, the daughter of James Butler. She died 10 June 1881. John died 2 July 1899, Cooper, Delta Co., Texas, buried in Cooper, Delta Co., Texas.

Children:


1. Oliver Hannibal Alford born about 1841 in Georgia; married Erie Foster, occupation minister. Oliver died 30 Dec 1882 in Guntersville, Marshall County, Alabama.
   
   
2. Emily Alford born 16 Mar 1844 in Henry County, Georgia; married 1867, Joseph David Boyd, born 2 Feb 1842 in Meriwether County, Georgia, the son of Milton Boyd and Jane Douglass. Joseph was a banker, a businessman with cotton warehouses, and the mayor of Griffin. He died 23 Jan 1898 in Griffin, Spaulding County, Georgia. Emily died at the age of 77 on 14 Apr 1921, also in Griffin, where she is buried in the Old Cemetery.
   
   Emily and Joseph had four children: sons Douglas and Jose (who attended Oxford), and daughters Ora and Olive who were the toast of society in Griffin. Jean Holzapfel, AAFA #0121,says: "From all I have heard and read about my great grand-mother, she was a true lady, and a wonderful wife and mother."
   
   
3. Alley A. Alford born 1845; married William A. Fuller. He became famous in the Civil War in connection with the locomotive chase of the "General" which was stolen by Andrews Raiders.
   
   
4. Susan C. Alford born 1847; married M.G. Dobbins.
   
   
5. James B. Alford born 1851.
   
   
6. John Quincy Adams Alford, Jr. born 1857; died 1880, buried Old Griffin Cemetery, Griffin, GA.
   
   

Memories of a Great-Great-Granddaughter
By Jean Mangham Holzapfel, AAFA #0121

J.Q.A. Alford, my great-great grandfather, was born in Green County, now Tolliver County, Georgia, on 7 September l814. His parents were Cullen and Phereba Wooten Alford, who were born in North Carolina. At the age of 22, he entered service in the Indian Wars and served as a 2nd Lt. for a period of three months. At that time his occupation was listed as Attorney at Law. He was 5 feet, 8 inches tall and had gray eyes, light hair, and a fair complexion.

He married Clementine Butler, daughter of James Butler of Griffin, on 13 February 1838. They had five children, listed in the 1860 census as: Hannibal - 18, Emily (my great­grandmother) - 17, Alley - 15, Susan ­ 13, James - 10, and John Jr. - 3. In 1860, J.Q.A. was 46 and his wife was 41. They lived in Griffin, Spaulding County, Georgia and owned real estate valued at $4,500 with a personal estate valued at $17,500 - which was quite a lot in those days. J.Q.A. was a prominent lawyer in partnership with a Col. Doyle and their firm was one of the most successful in the city. He was also a politician and a lay preacher in the Baptist Church. He was described in an obituary as "a splendid type of the high minded and courageous southern gentleman."

His daughter Susan Clementine married Capt. William A. Fuller of Civil War fame for his connection with the locomotive chase of the "General" which was stolen by Andrews Raiders. One of Susan's daught«s, Annie Laurie, was married to the famous artist, Wilbur J. Kurtz, who worked on the famous Cyclorama of the Civil War in Atlanta. Kurtz familY members also served as advisors for "Gone with the Wind."

J.Q.A.'s wife, Clementine, passed away 18 June 1881 at the age of 62. His son, J.Q.A. Jr., preceded her in death at the age of 20 in 1880. They are buried in the old Cemetery at Griffin. J.Q.A.lived in Griffin about 30 years. After his son and wife died, he moved to Guntersville, Alabama, near his son, Oliver Hannibal (who was married to Erie Foster whose father was General Ira A. Foster), and was the pastor of a Baptist Church for four years. He went back to Griffin for 4 years, and then back to Guntersville for about 3 years (son Oliver Hannibal died in 1884 at the age of 42 leaving a wife and six children).

His final move was to Cooper, Delta County,Texas, to be with his son, James B. (probably Butler, his mother's maiden name). He applied for a government peosion of $8.00 a month commencing on July 27, 1892 at the age of 78. He was last paid on May 4, 1899 so it is believed that he passed away about July 1, 1899 at the age of 85. His remains were intened at Enloe, Texas. His obituary in the Atlanta Constitution July 4, 1899 states "Few men pass through the various stages of life that Col. Alford saw and reach his age with a vitality such as he possessed, up to a few months before his death." (He had traveled all the way back to Griffin for a visit at age 84).

When J.Q.A. was 82 years old, he wrote a letter to his daughter (my great-grandmother, Emily Alford Boyd, who was married to J.D. Boyd, Mayor of Griffin) and in it he said, "In regard to summer, warm weather suits me best, for the cold weather easily affects me and I cannot stand it like I could when I was young. It is a good thing to go to church and we should be like the Psalmist David was - glad when we have an opportunity to go to the House of God." He also said regarding a man leaving his wife, "How guarded and particular a married woman ought to be in regard to her character as it means more to her than life itself - for what is life without character, especially to a woman. Every married woman should be careful to be like Caesar's wife - above suspicion, especially with her husband - for 'trifles light as air are to the jealous mind, confirmation strong as proofs from holy writ.'" From all I have heard and read about J.Q.A. Alford, I am very proud to have him for an ancestor, and when I reach Heaven, he is one of the first angels I want to meet.

The Wardrobe of J.Q.A.'s Son, Oliver Hannibal Alford

Made in Alabama, A State Legacy, edited by E. Bryding Adams, Curator of Decorative Arts at the Birmingham Museum of Art, was published in July 1995. It is the culmination of a project Ms. Adams initiated in 1985 to locate, photograph and document the history of various items made in nineteenth century Alabama: ceramics. textiles, furniture, paintings. metals and photographs. Over 6000 artifacts have been recorded, 300 of which appear in the book. In addition, an exibition toured Alabama from October 1994 through January 1996. One piece of furniture in the book is a wardrobe that was owned and/or made by O.H. Alford. Below is the draft Ms. Adams sent AAFA for the book's article:

A second wardrobe has one door with one large drawer at the bottom. It is marked in black painted script "O.H. Alford, Guntersville, Ala" on the rear. The piece is made of poplar with pine shelves and top. It is constructed with square nails and the drawer has fine dovetails. The one panel door is centered on the front of the wardrobe with one smaller stationary panel on each side of the door. The cornice is applied. O.H. (Oliver Hannibal) Alford (1841-1883). [I would like to thank Jean M. Holzapfel and Gilbert Alford of the Alford American Family Association for their help with this research] is found in the 1870 and 1880 Marshall County population census listed as a farmer, born in Georgia, with a wife and five children by 1880, having come to Alabama in 1867 [The History of Marshall County, Alabama], their first child being born in Alabama in 1868. The inventory of the Alford's estate lists farm equipment, a set of blacksmith's tools, a chest, carpenter tools, and the following furniture: 1 calendar clock, a large mirror, 1 sewing machine, 2 feather beds and bedding, 2 bed steads, 3 mattresses and bedding, 1 extension dining table, 2 small tables, 1 brass lamp, 1 sugar box, 2 wardrobe, a desk and book case, a safe, a secretary, a bureau, a wash stand, 1/2 dox. parlor chairs, 7 chairs. and a child's crib and mattress. The wardrobe was valued at $5.00 and may be the same piece included [below] in this exhibition. Although Alford was not listed as a cabinetmaker, the existence of the carpenter's tools are an indication that he may have made this piece.

The book can be ordered for $45 plus $3 for postage from Binningham Museum of Art, 2000 Eighth Avenue North, Binningham, AL 35203.



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This photograph was sent to AAFA by Jean Mangham Holzapfel, AAFA #0121.
Standing left: Douglas Boyd. Standing right: Joseph Boyd.
Seated on the upper stairs are: Joseph David "Jack" Boyd and his wife, Emily Afford Boyd, daughter of J.Q.A. Alford.
Emily is holding her grandson, Douglas Mangham, probably the son of Joseph and Ora Mangham.
Seated on the lower stairs are: Kate Bissey, who later married Douglas Boyd;
John Woodward "Jack" Mangham holding his son, John W. Mangham; Jack's wife Olive Boyd Mangham;
Joseph Mangham, brother of Jack, holding his son Sam Mangham' and Joseph's wife Ora Boyd Mangham.

Douglas, Joseph, Olive, and Ora are the children of Jack and Emily Alford Boyd.
Jack Mangham and Olive Boyd Mangham were the grandparents of AAFA member Jean Mangham Holzapfel.

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Ms. Adams contacted a genealogist in Marshall County, Betty Taylor (344 Hill Ave., Guntersvile, AL 35976), to gather more information on O.H. Alford. Ms. Taylor's letter to Ms. Adams, dated 22 Feb 1995, says:

The Alford family was part of a group that came from Georgia in 1867 and settled that part of Brindley Mountain known today as Georgia Mountain (The History of Marshall Co, AL). J.Q.A. Alford was a Baptist Minister and the church was called Mt. Carmel. J.Q.A. died 1899 in Texas at age 86 (The Guntersville Democrat, July 20, 1899). D.H. Alford died Dec. 30, 1883 (The Democrat, Jan. 3, 1884).

After finding the above information in the Guntersville Library, I found the enclosed lists in the Final Probate Court Records in the Marshall County Courthouse. The settlement was 20 pages long, but I only copied the lists of assets. I did read through the 20 pages. My untrained eye does not see any indication of O.H. being anything except a farmer. You may decide differently.

I did find something that you need to be aware of. Albert M. Ayres was the administrator of O.H.'s estate. His wife and Erycenia P. Alford were sisters - daughters of Ira R. Foster. I don't know whether any of the furniture ended up in the Ayres family or not, but several years ago the old Ayres home was broken into and most of the furniture stolen. Nobody was ever charged with the crime, but the Ayres family members think they know who did it, and were really upset about it because a little while later the house burned. Your piece of furniture may not be connected, but I thought you needed to be aware of the situation.