Post by Brian on Jun 6, 2009 8:23:45 GMT -5
01/16/07 at 01:30 PM
MrCoachS
As a boy growing up in Rockingham County (next door to Stokes) I heard folks talk about the Lawson Family tragedy many times. Since my Grandmother was Delia Lawson before she married I asked if we were related to "those" Lawsons. I was always told that we were not. With all the recent articles, books, DVD's, Web site etc. my sister in law, who knew I was interested in genealogy, asked at Christmas if I was related to "those Lawsons". I told her, no, I don't think so. Charlie's father was Augustus and that is a different Lawson line. I will admit that in over 30 years in teaching I have let the story slip as a warning to kids in my classes that they needed to be careful and not cause me to "flip out" considering that I may have had an ancestor who went crazy. (I know that's not very sensitive...I am much more careful now what I tell students and I am a much more warm and fuzzy person in my old age). To make a long story short, I checked Charlie's family tree again. Nobody told me that Charlie's mother was Nancy Lawson! Charlie and my Greatgrandfather were first cousins. Now I am ready to learn more about these Lawsons since I am now one of those "other Lawsons". Has anyone looked at Nancy's family, I'm not so sure now that some of Charlie's mental health was not inherited from "my Lawsons"!
MrCoachS
01/16/07 at 01:33 PM
Maria
Hello Coach and welcome to our message forum. I have some info on Nancy Lawson's line, though not much. All I have is that Nancy was the daughter of Flynt Lawson and Sarah/Sally Hill and that she had a brother also named Flynt who in 1881 married M.S. Wilson. That is all I know about her which you probably already know that much. I have a copy of her marriage and death certificate and that's it. If anyone knows more about Nancy Lawson, mother of Charlie Lawson please let us know as I too would like to know more about her.
Maria
01/16/07 at 03:00 PM
MrCoachS
Maria, I would need to pull some files to come up with the entire line (as I have researched it). I do notice that several lines on the Rootsweb world Connect project are getting the Flynts confused, however, the point is that there may have been some history of tragedy in this family over the years! Thomas Lawson several generations back from Nancy, became intoxicated around New Years and fell off his horse in the snow and died. William Wesley, one of the first Flynt Lawson's sons did something so bad that family legend says he left Stokes County, his wife and children, under "suspicious circumstances", my great grandfather (whom my Grandmother labled "a mean man") was dead at a very young age according to my Grandmother's birth certificate. So, if the sins of the fathers are visited upon the children, even unto the third and fourth generation as I have paraphrased the Bible, and since I have some of this "other Lawson" DNA, I would be interested in finding out the true story about William Wesley Lawson, Charlie's uncle and what really happened to William T. Lawson, Charlie's first cousin. Do you think there are any old timers out there who have heard family legends or lore?
MrCoachS
01/16/07 at 03:22 PM
Maria
I'll be glad to ask around for you Coach, Check your e-mail. I sent you something, okay.
Maria
01/16/07 at 06:30 PM
ecalhoun
We've seen over and over how the sins of the father are passed down, and not thru DNA, but with children growing up in broken homes.
But I'm really interested in the idea that Charlie was in his own way a victim as well, he learned to deal with his problems and stress through violence from somewhere. I think it's too simple to say that he snapped and went crazy. I'd be very interested to hear any stories about other generations.
Break of Dawn Productions
"Bringing Light to the Darkest Night"
ecalhoun
MrCoachS
As a boy growing up in Rockingham County (next door to Stokes) I heard folks talk about the Lawson Family tragedy many times. Since my Grandmother was Delia Lawson before she married I asked if we were related to "those" Lawsons. I was always told that we were not. With all the recent articles, books, DVD's, Web site etc. my sister in law, who knew I was interested in genealogy, asked at Christmas if I was related to "those Lawsons". I told her, no, I don't think so. Charlie's father was Augustus and that is a different Lawson line. I will admit that in over 30 years in teaching I have let the story slip as a warning to kids in my classes that they needed to be careful and not cause me to "flip out" considering that I may have had an ancestor who went crazy. (I know that's not very sensitive...I am much more careful now what I tell students and I am a much more warm and fuzzy person in my old age). To make a long story short, I checked Charlie's family tree again. Nobody told me that Charlie's mother was Nancy Lawson! Charlie and my Greatgrandfather were first cousins. Now I am ready to learn more about these Lawsons since I am now one of those "other Lawsons". Has anyone looked at Nancy's family, I'm not so sure now that some of Charlie's mental health was not inherited from "my Lawsons"!
MrCoachS
01/16/07 at 01:33 PM
Maria
Hello Coach and welcome to our message forum. I have some info on Nancy Lawson's line, though not much. All I have is that Nancy was the daughter of Flynt Lawson and Sarah/Sally Hill and that she had a brother also named Flynt who in 1881 married M.S. Wilson. That is all I know about her which you probably already know that much. I have a copy of her marriage and death certificate and that's it. If anyone knows more about Nancy Lawson, mother of Charlie Lawson please let us know as I too would like to know more about her.
Maria
01/16/07 at 03:00 PM
MrCoachS
Maria, I would need to pull some files to come up with the entire line (as I have researched it). I do notice that several lines on the Rootsweb world Connect project are getting the Flynts confused, however, the point is that there may have been some history of tragedy in this family over the years! Thomas Lawson several generations back from Nancy, became intoxicated around New Years and fell off his horse in the snow and died. William Wesley, one of the first Flynt Lawson's sons did something so bad that family legend says he left Stokes County, his wife and children, under "suspicious circumstances", my great grandfather (whom my Grandmother labled "a mean man") was dead at a very young age according to my Grandmother's birth certificate. So, if the sins of the fathers are visited upon the children, even unto the third and fourth generation as I have paraphrased the Bible, and since I have some of this "other Lawson" DNA, I would be interested in finding out the true story about William Wesley Lawson, Charlie's uncle and what really happened to William T. Lawson, Charlie's first cousin. Do you think there are any old timers out there who have heard family legends or lore?
MrCoachS
01/16/07 at 03:22 PM
Maria
I'll be glad to ask around for you Coach, Check your e-mail. I sent you something, okay.
Maria
01/16/07 at 06:30 PM
ecalhoun
We've seen over and over how the sins of the father are passed down, and not thru DNA, but with children growing up in broken homes.
But I'm really interested in the idea that Charlie was in his own way a victim as well, he learned to deal with his problems and stress through violence from somewhere. I think it's too simple to say that he snapped and went crazy. I'd be very interested to hear any stories about other generations.
Break of Dawn Productions
"Bringing Light to the Darkest Night"
ecalhoun