MANGUM, CORNELIA – Friends of Geer Cemetery

October 1857– November 27, 1929

Last updated: 14 Nov 2022

What is your life like when you are the daughter of one of the strongest, most respected women in the community? Not only that, but you have 13 brothers and sisters. Do you compete with them? Are you protected by them? Do you struggle to find your independence? Are you committed to the family? One might imagine that for Cornelia Mangum, born Cornelia Faucette, daughter of William Faucette and Margaret Ruffin Faucette, founder of the White Rock Baptist Church in Durham NC, she may have struggled with these questions at one time or another during her life.

Margaret and William had their ninth child, Cornelia, in October, 1857, in Hillsboro Township, Orange County, NC. By the time she was 13, the 1870 Federal Census record for the family indicates that all her siblings had been born, and no one in the household could read or write.¹ We know this last point to be inaccurate as Cornelia’s mother, Margaret, was able to read and, with her fellow First Baptists, taught others to read and pastored to members of the community.²

Cornelia was 25 years old when she gave birth to her first child, Thomas.³ We do not know how Cornelia met William (or Luke) Johnson, Thomas’s father, or if they were ever married. On his death certificate, Thomas’ last name is Faucette, his mother is identified as Cornelia Faucette and his father as William Johnson.⁴ What we do know is that Cornelia would have two more sons. Eddie Johnson was born in 1885 and is listed in the 1900 Federal Census as 14 years old.⁵ Her third child, Will Johnson, was born in 1889.⁶ Will’s death certificate identifies Cornelia Faucette as his mother and Luke Johnson as his father.⁷ At this time, documentation is not available to confirm that William and Luke are the same man. There is also no information to help us understand whether the children’s father(s) passed away or the relationship simply ended.

Less than a year after Will’s birth, Cornelia married Alfred Mangum, 20 years her senior, on 1 February 1890.⁸ They had four children together, Winder (1895), Maggie (1897), Tessie (1899) and Lee (1904). During these years, Cornelia was working as a laundress and Alfred was employed as a gardener. For most of her life, she and Alfred resided on Fairview Street, Durham NC.⁹ Unfortunately, additional information about Cornelia’s life during this time is unavailable. Cornelia does not reappear in the historical record until her death on 27 November 1929 at the age of 72. Her cause of death is unknown as she was “not seen by a physician.” Her younger brother, Henry, was the informant, and she was buried at the “City Old Colored Cemetery.”¹⁰

Cornelia’s legacy resides in the lives and stories of her children. Her son William Johnson was a victim of the Tuberculosis epidemic in 1946 and is buried with his siblings in Durham’s Beechwood Cemetery.¹¹ At the time of his death, William was being treated for his Illness at The North Carolina Sanatorium for the Treatment of Tuberculosis in Montrose, NC. “The sanatorium opened on April 4, 1908, with capacity for thirty-two patients. A division for African Americans was established in 1923, a division for prisoners in 1925, and a division for children in 1927. Eventually the sanatorium housed 650 beds. All North Carolina citizens unable to go to a private specialist could attend the sanatorium’s diagnostic clinic. However, the waiting list for a bed often was long and it could take nine or ten months for someone to be admitted. Treatment lasted six months to two years and consisted of strict regimens of rest, medication, and in some cases surgery.” The Sanatorium was one of the last remaining hospitals in the United States that was exclusively devoted to tuberculosis treatment when it closed its doors in October, 1983.¹²

Cornelia’s son Winder married Pearl Rogers on 18 May 1916.¹³ Winder and Pearl lost their first two children to premature birth; both are buried at Geer Cemetery. One of the infants was recorded on the Cemetery Census website as Infant Mangum, and can now be identified as the grandson of Cornelia Mangum.¹⁴ Their third child, Mason Mangum, was born in 1915.¹⁵ No additional information is currently available for Mason at this time. Winder married two more times and had no additional children.¹⁶ According to the 1930 Federal Census, Winder worked as a janitor at a dry goodsstore and is listed as a retired veteran of WWI, but no corroborating evidence has yet been identified.¹⁷ As with his mother before him, the cause of Winder’s death on 6 January 1938 is uncertain, but it was supposed by the coroner that due to his history he died from cardiovascular renal disease.¹⁸

Tessie Mangum married his wife of 50 years, Mary Holeman, in 1923.¹⁹.Tessie and Mary worked in a tobacco factory for the majority of their lives.²⁰ To supplement their income they frequently took in boarders. Tessie died on 25 April 1975 and Mary died on 14 May 1996.²¹

Maggie Mangum would go on to marry three different men: Melvin Ward, Donald Lindsay, and Joseph Herrod.²² It was with Luther Townsend, prior to her first marriage, that she bore her only child, Marion Mangum.²³ Marion enlisted in WWII in January 1942 and served in the Army as a Staff Sergeant for Company A of the 975th QM Supply. He received an honorable discharge in July 1945.²⁴ Maggie lived to see her son return home from war before passing on 15 February 1951; she is buried in Beechwood Cemetery.²⁵ Marion died at the VA Hospital in Durham NC on 31 October 1968 and is buried at Glenview Memorial Park.²⁶

The only evidence that can be found for Lee Mangum is a 1910 Federal Census listing him as 6 years old.²⁷ As he is not listed on the 1920 Federal Census, it is possible that he died in his youth. “Although there are a few (death) certificates dated as early as 1906, it wasn’t until 1913 that the North Carolina General Assembly passed a statewide law requiring the registration of deaths. Even so, death certificates were not consistently filed until after World War II, so it is common not to find death certificates for persons who died between 1913 and 1945.”²⁸

BORN: October, 1857.³⁰

DIED: 27 November 1929.³¹

BIRTH PLACE: Orange County, NC.³²

DEATH PLACE: Durham NC.³³

SPOUSE: Alfred Mangum.³⁴

PARENTS: Margarette Ruffin Faucette and William Faucette.³⁵

CHILDREN: Maggie Mangum (1897-1951), Tessie Mangum (1900-1975), Thomas J Faucette (1882-1946), Eddie Johnson (1885-?), William Johnson (1887-1946), Winder Mangum (1835-1938), Lee Mangum (1904-?).³⁶

OTHER FAMILY: Grandson Mason Mangum (1920).³⁷

FAMILY BURIED IN GEER CEMETERY: Margarette Ruffin Faucette (mother), Infant Mangum (grandson).

OCCUPATION: Laundress.³⁸

CHURCH: N/A

AFFILIATIONS: N/A

ADDRESS: 1013 Fairview Street, Durham NC.³⁹

MILITARY SERVICE: N/A

Notes

1
Federal Census: Year: 1870; Census Place: Hillsborough, Orange, North Carolina; Roll: M593_1153; Page: 241A. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/35042240:7163 : accessed on 15 Dec 2019. 1870 U.S. census, population schedules. NARA microfilm publication M593, 1,761 rolls. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d. Minnesota census schedules for 1870. NARA microfilm publication T132, 13 rolls. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.
2
Margaret Ruffin Faucette: André D. Vann, African Americans of Durham County (Arcadia Publishing, 2017). https://www.google.com/books/edition/African_Americans_of_Durham_County/QnIuDwAAQBAJ.
3
Thomas Faucette: Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/11079678:60901; accessed on 26 January 2020. Social Security Applications and Claims, 1936-2007.
4
Thomas Faucette death certificate: North Carolina State Archives; Raleigh, North Carolina; North Carolina Death Certificates. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/1362371:1121; accessed on 26 January 2020. North Carolina State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics. North Carolina Death Certificates. Microfilm S.123. Rolls 19-242, 280, 313-682, 1040-1297. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, North Carolina.
5
Federal Census: Year: 1900; Census Place: Durham, Durham, North Carolina; Roll: 1193; Page: 10; Enumeration District: 0026; FHL microfilm: 1241193. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/68133056:7602; accessed on 15 December 2019. United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Twelfth Census of the United States, 1900. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1900. T623, 1854 rolls.
6
Will Johnson: Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/9972256:60901; accessed on 1 February 2020. Social Security Applications and Claims, 1936-2007.
7
Will Johnson death certificate: North Carolina State Archives; Raleigh, North Carolina; North Carolina Death Certificates. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/600561487:1121; accessed on 1 February 2020. North Carolina State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics. North Carolina Death Certificates. Microfilm S.123. Rolls 19-242, 280, 313-682, 1040-1297. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, North Carolina.
8
Cornelia Mangum marriage registry: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Marriage Records, 1741-2011 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/60548/images/42091_338503-00034; accessed on 18 January 2020. North Carolina County Registers of Deeds. Microfilm. Record Group 048. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.
9
Federal Census: Year: 1910; Census Place: Durham, Durham, North Carolina; Roll: T624_1108; Page: 22A; Enumeration District: 0033; FHL microfilm: 1375121. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/152548067:7884; accessed on 15 December 2019. Thirteenth Census of the United States, 1910 (NARA microfilm publication T624, 1,178 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C. For details on the contents of the film numbers, visit the following NARA web page: https://www.archives.gov/research/census.
10
Cornelia Mangum death certificate: North Carolina State Archives; Raleigh, North Carolina; North Carolina Death Certificates. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/98824:1121; accessed on 15 December 2019. North Carolina State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics. North Carolina Death Certificates. Microfilm S.123. Rolls 19-242, 280, 313-682, 1040-1297. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, North Carolina.
11
Will Johnson death certificate.
12
Brooks, JE. n.d. “Marker: I-47.” NC Highway Historical Marker Program. Accessed 2 February 2022. http://www.ncmarkers.com/Markers.aspx?MarkerId=I-47.
13
Winder Mangum: Marriage Registry: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Marriage Records, 1741-2011 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/1286305:60548; accessed on 8 January 2020. North Carolina County Registers of Deeds. Microfilm. Record Group 048. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.
14
Infant Mangum death certificate: North Carolina Deaths, 1906-1930,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F36L-9PY : 20 February 2021), Winder Mangum in entry for Mangum, 10 Aug 1920; citing Durham, Durham, North Carolina, reference CN 20671, State Department of Archives and History, Raleigh; FHL microfilm 1,892,712. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F36L-9PY; accessed on 25 January 2020.
15
Federal Census: Year: 1920; Census Place: Durham, Durham, North Carolina; Roll: T625_1292; Page: 13B; Enumeration District: 44. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/27170818:6061; accessed on 25 January 2020. Fourteenth Census of the United States, 1920. (NARA microfilm publication T625, 2076 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C. For details on the contents of the film numbers, visit the following NARA web page: https://www.archives.gov/research/census. Note: Enumeration Districts 819-839 are on roll 323 (Chicago City).
16
Mangum-Mebane marriage: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Marriage Records, 1741-2011 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/5045654:60548; accessed on 18 January 2020. North Carolina County Registers of Deeds. Microfilm. Record Group 048. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.

Mangum-Morehead marriage: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Marriage Records, 1741-2011 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/1292452:60548; accessed on 18 January 2020. North Carolina County Registers of Deeds. Microfilm. Record Group 048. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.
17
https://www.fold3.com/image/151019398?rec=151019429 : accessed 30 Jul 2022.
18
Winder Mangum death certificate: North Carolina State Archives; Raleigh, North Carolina; North Carolina Death Certificates. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/1662786:1121; accessed on 18 January 2020. North Carolina State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics. North Carolina Death Certificates. Microfilm S.123. Rolls 19-242, 280, 313-682, 1040-1297. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, North Carolina.
19
Tessie Mangum: Marriage License: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Marriage Records, 1741-2011 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/1796933:60548: accessed on 12 Nov 2022. Original data: North Carolina County Registers of Deeds. Microfilm. Record Group 048. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.
20
Federal Census: Year: 1950: United States of America, Bureau of the Census; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790-2007; Record Group Number: 29; Residence Date: 1950; Home in 1950: Durham, Durham, North Carolina; Roll: 5668; Sheet Number: 21; Enumeration District: 103-35. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/147954168:62308?tid=&pid=&queryId=1d3c0d2731a5e0ccb669bda81d98a847&_phsrc=tyO3043&_phstart=successSource : accessed on 12 Nov 2022.
21
Tessie Mangum Death Certificate: North Carolina State Archives; Raleigh, North Carolina; North Carolina Death Certificates. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/2085634:1121?tid=&pid=&queryId=73a41d0cc15c1d97fe489a47fb54dba4&_phsrc=tyO3049&_phstart=successSource: accessed on 12 Nov 2022. North Carolina State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics. North Carolina Death Certificates. Microfilm S.123. Rolls 19-242, 280, 313-682, 1040-1297. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, North Carolina.

Mary Mangum Obituary: The News and Observer; Publication Date: 16 May 1996; Publication Place: Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; URL: https://www.newspapers.com/image/657150713/?article=6096780e-5cd5-4121-89c9-6ec6d17ba994&focus=0.50709856,0.4454313,0.6612897,0.6595408&xid=3355: accessed 12 Nov 2022.
22
Melvin Ward marriage license: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Marriage Records, 1741-2011 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/15278232:60548?tid=&pid=&queryId=c3af7500a34afd5cacb2085685ace017&_phsrc=tyO3059&_phstart=successSource: accessed 26 Jan 2020. Original data: North Carolina County Registers of Deeds. Microfilm. Record Group 048. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.

Donald Lindsay marriage license: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Marriage Records, 1741-2011 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/679283:1121?tid=&pid=&queryId=2c01e6c057e9a64d239783b7705a7b55&_phsrc=tyO3050&_phstart=successSource: accessed 12 Nov 2022. Original data: North Carolina County Registers of Deeds. Microfilm. Record Group 048. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.

Joseph Herrod marriage license: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Marriage Records, 1741-2011 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/13187336:60548?tid=&pid=&queryId=af5db3ae797c09d5f7828fbc012875d8&_phsrc=tyO3061&_phstart=successSource: accessed 26 Jan 2020. Original data: North Carolina County Registers of Deeds. Microfilm. Record Group 048. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.
23
Marion Mangum marriage registry: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Marriage Records, 1741-2011 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/5445921:60548: accessed on 12 Nov 2022. Original data: North Carolina County Registers of Deeds. Microfilm. Record Group 048. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.
24
Marion Mangum headstone application: National Archives at St. Louis, MO; St. Louis, MO, USA; Applications for Headstones, 1/1/1925 – 6/30/1970; NAID: NAID 596118; Record Group Number: 92; Record Group Title: Records of the Office of the Quartermaster General. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/2976848:2375 : accessed 12 Nov 2022.
25
Maggie (Mangum) Herrod death certificate: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Death Certificates, 1909-1976 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=1121&h=679283&tid=&pid=&usePUB=true&_phsrc=tyO240&_phstart=successSource: accessed on 26 Jan 2020. Original data: North Carolina State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics. North Carolina Death Certificates. Microfilm S.123. Rolls 19-242, 280, 313-682, 1040-1297. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, North Carolina.
26
Marion Mangum death certificate: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Death Certificates, 1909-1976 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/532733:1121?tid=&pid=&queryId=0ec85e08e1423d0acc7ce99409d4bb44&_phsrc=tyO3055&_phstart=successSource: accessed on 12 Nov 2022. Original data: North Carolina State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics. North Carolina Death Certificates. Microfilm S.123. Rolls 19-242, 280, 313-682, 1040-1297. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, North Carolina.
27
Lee Mangum: Federal Census: Year: 1910; Census Place: Durham, Durham, North Carolina; Roll: T624_1108; Page: 22A; Enumeration District: 0033; FHL microfilm: 1375121. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/152548067:7884; accessed on 15 December 2019. Thirteenth Census of the United States, 1910 (NARA microfilm publication T624, 1,178 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C. For details on the contents of the film numbers, visit the following NARA web page: https://www.archives.gov/research/census.
28
State Archives of North Carolina Store (Office of Archives and History and the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources). https://ncarchivesstore.com/nc-vital-records-death-certificates-1906-1979/: accessed 13 Nov 2022.
29
Geer Cemetery (800 Colonial St, Durham, NC), photographed by Friends of Geer Cemetery, 9 Mar 2021. Used by permission.
30
1870 US Census Hillsborough.
31
Cornelia Mangum death certificate.
32
1870 US Census Hillsborough.
33
Cornelia Mangum death certificate.
34
Cornelia Mangum marriage registry.
35
1870 US Census Hillsborough.
36
Thomas: Thomas Faucette death certificate. Eddie, Winder, Maggie Tessie: 1900 US Census Durham. Will: Will Johnson death certificate. Lee: 1910 US Census Durham.
37
1920 US Census Durham.
38
1910 US Census Durham.
39
1910 US Census Durham.