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Mary Alice (Fawcett) |
Mary Alice "Allie" (Fawcett) Turnley Walls was born on March 23, 1865,
just a few weeks before the end of the Civil War, in Kingwood, Preston County, WV, the daughter of William
M. and Naomi (Fortney) Fawcett.
Her first husband was Robert "Lee" Turnley (1862-1890), the son of James Madison and Matilda B. (Thorn) Turnley of Newburg, Preston County. The newlyweds resided in Independence, Preston County, and had two children -- Frank Clifford Turnley and Bertha McClung. They were members of the Independence Baptist Church. Lee was "employed by the B. & O. R.R. Company at Newburg," said the 1913 book, A History of Preston County, by H.S. Whetsell.
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| Mary Alice with her great- grandchildren Richard A. Sherman and Linda Gipe |
Tragically, while in Newburg, Robert "contracted a deep cold early in January, 1890, which developed into typhoid," said the Preston County history. He died on Fri., Jan. 24, 1890, at the age of 30. In a short obituary, the Preston County Journal said that "he leaves a wife and two children." He was laid to rest in what is now the Damon Cemetery in Newburg. The Journal noted that Allie's brothers, Charles W. Fawcett and Daniel F. Fawcett of Kingwood "did not receive word of the death, owing to delay in the mail, till Monday."
Shattered by the loss, Mary had to begin rebuilding her life. She later married David Jerome Walls (1859-1934). He was the son of John M. and Rachel (Orr) Walls of Gladesville, Preston County. Jerome is believed to have been a notary public circa February 1900, when he witnessed a legal document signed by his mother in law.
The Wallses moved to Keyser, Mineral County, WV, where they
made their home at 163
Argyle Street. Jerome worked in Keyser as a foreman with a manufacturing
company. He retired from the position.
During the 1910s, a cancerous growth began to form on Mary's left cheek. She endured the illness for approximately four decades, until her eventual passing.
Mary's brother Daniel F. Fawcett, a Civil War veteran who was receiving a pension for his wartime disabilities, died in Pennsylvania in 1920. At that time, Mary, who was living in Morgantown, Monongalia County, WV, signed an affidavit so that Daniel's widow would begin receiving the pension payments. The original signed document is on file today at the National Archives in Washington, DC.
In 1933, Jerome began to suffer with cancer, and did not live long.
On Feb. 3, 1934, at the age of 74, he passed away from the illness. He was buried at the Knights of Pythias Cemetery (Damon Cemetery) in Newburg, Preston County.
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| Early bird's eye panorama view of Keyser |
Compounding
the heartache, married daughter Bertha McClung died at some point while Mary Alice was
still alive. The details are not known.
Circa 1942, after nine years as a second-time widow, Mary moved into the home of her son Frank in Grafton, Taylor County, WV.
She died from the effects of her facial cancer at the age of 86 on the Fourth of July 1951. She was buried at the Damon Cemetery in Newburg, beside her second husband.
Lee Turnley, whose relationship to the Wallses is unknown, was the informant for both of their certificates of death. At the time of her passing, she had two granddaughters, Ruth Sherman and Mary Gipe, who resided in Cumberland, Allegany County, MD. She also had four great grandchildren.
~ Son Frank Clifford Turnley ~
Son Frank Clifford Turnley (1886-1957) married Gertrude Amelia Frazier (1892-1981) and resided in Grafton at 661 Maple Avenue. They had two daughters, Ruth Eleanor Sherman and Mary Margaret Gipe.
He followed in his late father's
career path and was employed in 1913 as an
engineer for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. (Seen at right are the
B&O Railroad machine shops in Grafton, an image from the Library of Congress
American Memory Project.) He was promoted to supervisor of
locomotive operations for the B&O at Newburg.
Frank passed away at the age of 70, of an acute cerebral hemorrhage caused by hyper-tension and hardening of the arteries, on Feb. 23, 1957. He was laid to rest in the Woodsdale Memorial Park near Grafton.
Daughter Ruth Eleanor Turnley married (?) Sherman. They had at least one son, Richard Abraham Sherman.Daughter Mary Margaret Turnley (born 1922) married (?) Gipe.
~ Daughter Bertha May (Turnley) McClung ~
Daughter Bertha May Turnley (1889- ? ) married (?) McClung.
She moved to California at a young age.
Circa 1913, the McClungs lived in Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, CA.
Copyright © 2006, 2008-2009, 2011 Mark A. Miner