Below:
Photograph taken in 1895 of the John
Edwin McCorkle Home,
Built circa 1868,
Newbern-Yorkville Highway (now Tennessee Highway 77)
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Frontispiece
۞ Letter from
Bowden
Cason
(Casey) McCorkle
in
We can begin only with proper
attribution to the honored memory of our cousin
Casey McCorkle,
late of
FRONTISPIECE
1983
Dear Miss Marsha:
I enclose herewith a sampling of the
Roach-McCorkle letters.
There are many more as it seems there was an extensive correspondence
carried on for several generations. I have no idea how these originals were
preserved and came to my branch of the family. They are now collected in a
display folder. Some of them are fairly delicate but in general well
preserved. Copying has been haphazard or what remains is the residue from
extensive copying the disposition of which is unknown to me.
Obviously
these papers
should not be the exclusive property of any branch of the McCorkle family.
I should think complete copies should be made and the originals preserved
and made available to all.
So far many have expressed agreement but no one has expressed interest in
doing the job. Perhaps you may have some ideas along these lines.
I realize there may be much similar
material in existence and available to you. I will be interested in hearing
from you and your reaction to the letters.
It was a pleasant surprise to hear
from you and I will be looking forward to hearing from you again. [It was
tedious work, back then before the Internet, but I dialed so many telephone
numbers in
We will be out of town for a month
but will return early in October. I hope this finds you and yours well and
happy.
Kindest
personal regards,
B.C. McCorkle
[
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Casey” McCorkle was a son of Homer McCorkle (who moved from Newbern, Tennessee, to Center Point near San Antonio, Texas, and finally to California). Casey was a paternal grandson of Finis Alexander McCorkle of Dyer Co, Tenn., & of Finis’ 1st wife Sarah “Sallie” Josephine “Jo” Jackson (McCorkle). Casey McCorkle was a great-grandson of Edwin Alexander McCorkle & wife Jane Maxwell Thomas McCorkle; and a g-g-grandson of Margaret Morrison McCorkle (died 1848) & Robert McCorkle (died 1828). --A photograph I possess of Homer McCorkle in his last years bears a remarkable resemblance to Homer's 1st cousin, my father's maternal uncle Errett Cotton McCorkle, 1888-1976. Homer McCorkle and Gentry Purviance McCorkle, brothers, married as their first wives two CASON sisters from the area of Henderson, a town south of Jackson, Tennessee.
Casey McCorkle’s 1st wife was Floy Disney (mother of Carter McCorkle, male; and of Lynn McCorkle, female) and his 2nd wife was Lois Miller. His children: Carter McCorkle, son; Lynn McCorkle, daughter; and Kathleen McCorkle Brudno.
One of Casey's aunts, Jennie McCorkle Carter, upon her father Finis A. McCorkle's remarriage, chose to live with her uncle, my great-grandfather John Edwin McCorkle & wife Mary Elizabeth Cotton McCorkle. Jennie married Dr. E. E. Carter of Arkansas and, I think, died in 1902 in Hot Springs, way too young. In the 1895 photograph below, she sits on the porch holding a musical instrument. Jennie sits beside her special friend and first cousin, my grandmother Sophie King McCorkle (Huie).
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Below:
Photograph taken in 1895 of the John
Edwin McCorkle Home,
Built circa 1868,
Newbern-Yorkville Highway (now Tennessee Highway 77)
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Solicitation of funds for keeping up the McCorkle Cemetery east of Newbern, Tennessee:
These old papers reveal that all these California emigrants from West Tennessee continued to contribute to, and correspond with, trustees of the Dyer County, Tennessee, McCorkle Cemetery. Please note the crafty way in which I here solicit funds for our cemetery from all whose ancestors lie therein.
Dear McCorkle Cemetery Family, As your McCorkle cemetery trustees, we have authorized and enthusiastically endorsed the fund raising effort of Dr. Max E. Gregory and his sister Mrs. Anna Lois Gregory Kuykendall. We have tried to be good stewards in the maintenance of McCorkle Cemetery. We believe this fund raising project is a unique opportunity for McCorkle Cemetery to establish a firm financial base into the future. If you have questions regarding this program, please get in touch.
It has been a number of years since we have asked our McCorkle families to contribute to the up-keep and maintenance of the final resting place of our ancestors and loved ones.
Max Gregory and sister Anna Lois Gregory Kuykendall have volunteered to match all gifts and contributions up to $10,000 from any family/friends of the McCorkle Cemetery. Marsha Huie has promised to give $5,000. Presently, there are over 400 individuals buried in our beloved cemetery and we hope we will get a positive response to the Gregory/Kuykendall matching gift program.
Max, who is a retired professor from North Carolina State University, has agreed to head up the effort. He will be sending out letters and contacting potential contributors directly, as well as receiving responses and depositing gifts to the McCorkle Cemetery fund. He will be reporting his efforts directly to the McCorkle Cemetery Trustees.
We, your McCorkle Cemetery Trustees, ask that you consider your commitment to this fund rising project to establish what we have been needing for a long time – a solid financial base for the welfare and up-keep of the final resting place of our families that we hold in such great affection.
Sincerely yours,
McCorkle Cemetery Trustees.
John Ewing Huie, 731-627-0591 ____________________
Bobby Gregory, 731-692-4080 _____________________
Tanya Messer Sandlin, 731-627-2970 ________________
Richard Flatt, 731-643-6557 _______________________
[Parker Ditmore Cashdollar, Ph.D., Dyersburg, although not a trustee is acting as financial advisor.]
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[from Dr. Max E. Gregory:] Status report of stock certificates for McCorkle Cemetery Fund as of 11/8/2005
Errett Cotton McCorkle, 1888-1976, purchased two stocks in 1962 and 63; 117 shares of Laclede Gas, which presently represents 468 shares of Laclede Group Inc. and some unknown shares of Union Electric that merged with Cisco and later formed Ameren, which presently is 100 shares of Ameren. Both of these stocks are listed on the NY Stock Exchange. Presently, Laclede Group Inc. is selling for approximately $30/share and Ameren about $51/share. [paragraph] Laclede Group Inc. is being held by U.M.B. Bank, under shareholder relations (contact person – "Jackie"), P. O. Box 410064 Kansas City, MO 64141-0064 – Phone 816-860-7200. The dividends from Laclede Group Inc. amount to something over $600/year. Account number for Laclede Group Inc. is 00000064145. [para.] McCorkle Cemetery Trustees cannot locate the Laclede Group Inc. stock certificate, but replacement certificates can be secured from UMB Bank at a cost of 2% of stock value. Present stock value is $13,885 which requires a payment of $280 to get replacement stock certificates. However, dividend payments will not be affected, but if the McCorkle trustees wish to sell the shares; with appropriate paper work and $280, the replacement stock certificate can be obtained. The stock certificates could then be sold through a brokerage firm. [para.] In respect to the Ameren Corp., McCorkle Trustees are requesting stock certificates be forwarded to Ms Judy Gregory, Treasurer of McCorkle Cemetery Fund. A request has been mailed to "Denise," Ameren Investor Services, P. O. Box 66887, St Louis MO 63166-6887. The phone number is 1-800-255-2237.
The McCorkle Trustees have also requested the accumulated dividends since 2000, of approximately $1,500.00 be sent to Ms Judy Gregory, the McCorkle Cemetery Fund’s authorized agent. The account number of Ameren Corp. is 0000173415 and the tax number is 620992994._______________________________________________________________________________
June 29, 2006 To: Trustees of McCorkle Cemetery From: Max Gregory
I appreciate your positive response to the letters I prepared for the matching gift program. We are looking forward to a successful program to assist in our financial needs.
John Ewing Huie sent me a copy of the list of names of potential contributors. As you have noted, the list can serve as a base; however substantial work needs to be done to make it functional. For example, I have had three address changes since my listing on that document. And I know of a number of individuals who are deceased.
The key to making this matching program a success is to get an up to date mailing address and phone numbers of the families of those individuals on that list. Also, there could be others who might be interested in participating. So I am asking each of you to come up with as many names, addresses, and phone numbers as possible. We may be able to recruit other individuals who are committed to McCorkle Cemetery to assist us in this undertaking.
My plan is to send the letters you have received to interested McCorkle Cemetery individuals and follow-up personally and by phone.
I plan to be in Yorkville August 11-20 for my wife's McLeary family reunion, my class reunion and Yorkville washer pitchin’. I suggest getting together on Sunday afternoon at 4:00 P. M. on August 13th to go over our plans to initiate the matching gift program. I will have the letter from you, the trustees, to sign.
We can meet in Yorkville, at the old bank building next to the Yorkville Post Office. I will reserve the facility, which is nice and convenient to everyone. I want my brother-in-law, Lloyd Kuykendall, my sister’s husband, to also attend the meeting.
In conclusion, I am looking forward to a positive response to these potential plans. If you have problems with these plans or the date, let me know and we will try to accommodate your schedule.
It is hoped we will be able to initiate our fund raising drive near September 1, 2006. Please begin your work on getting the addresses and phone numbers. Without that we cannot be successful. Thank you for your dedication and commitment to McCorkle Cemetery.
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