Ressie "Ray" Kennedy
(1894-1990)
Ressie
"Ray" Kennedy was born in 1894 in the Webster community of Taylor
County, WV, the son of Josiah and Ruth
Ann (Minerd) Kennedy Sr. He was of medium height and build, with
eyes and hair of brown.
Circa 1910, when the census was taken, Ray made his home with his married brother John H. Kennedy in Knottsville, Taylor County, and worked as a laborer on the home farm.
In 1917, at the age of 22, Ray registered for the military draft during World War I. He apparently did so in absentia, with his father Josiah deputized by the draft board to complete the registration card, upon which Josiah marked his son's race as "Indian." Ray indeed served in the military, and when the federal census was taken in 1920, he was stationed at Camp McAllen in Hidalgo County, TX.
Ray was married to a cousin, Cora Bell Mayle (1900-1976), the daughter of Emily Jane "Emma" (Minerd) Mayle and the granddaughter of William Minerd.
They had 12 children -- Wilma Kennedy, Beryl Eugene Kennedy, Julius M. Kennedy; Ressie "Ray" Kennedy Jr.; Virginia Belle Weaver; Melba R. Mayle; Christina R. Mayle; Sheila Mae Sheme of Grafton; Evelyn Lee Kennedy; Harry W. Kennedy; Beryl Kennedy; Catherine Kennedy; and Juanita Newman.
In 1930, they lived at Cecil; in 1942 and 1956, resided at Grafton Route 1, thought to have been Knottsville, when she was mentioned in the newspaper obituaries of a sister and brother, respectively. When Cora Bell's brother Burley Mayle was killed in a railroad accident in 1930, the funeral was held in the Kennedy home.
Ray was a coal miner, farmer and a laborer on the Tygart River Dam near Grafton. He was a veteran of World War I, serving with the U.S. Cavalry, and was a member of the VFW Memorial City Post 3081 in Grafton and Taylor County Post 12 of the American Legion.
Ray passed away on Jan. 5, 1990 in
Grafton and was buried in Mt. View Cemetery.
Daughter Wilma Kennedy (1915- ? ) is lost to history for now.
Daughter Evelyn Lee Kennedy (1923-1930) died of hepatitis at the age of seven on May 25, 1930.
Son Harry W. Kennedy (1915-1949) worked as a contractor in Canton, Ohio. He passed away at age 33, on May 15, 1949, of tuberculosis at the Pinecrest Sanitarium in Beckley, Raleigh County, WV.
Son Ressie Ray Kennedy Jr. (1926- ? ) resided in Grafton and Mt. Clemens, MI, circa 1968.
Son Julius M. Kennedy lived at East Canton, OH.
Daughter Juanita Kennedy (1920- ? ) married (?) Newman. Circa 1968, they lived in Canton, OH.
Daughter Virginia Belle Kennedy (1922- ? ) married (?) Weaver and lived in Grafton.
Daughter Christina Kennedy married (?) Mayle. They resided in Canton, OH circa 1968 and in Grafton in 1990.
Daughter Melba Kennedy (1928- ? ) married (?) Mayle. They lived in Streetsboro, OH in 1968 and in Grafton in 1990.
Daughter Sheila Kennedy married (?) Sheme. They lived in Cleveland, OH in 1968 and in Grafton in 1990.
Copyright © 2005-2008 Mark A. Miner