BENNETT, ISSUM

Of the roughly 2,000 souls buried in Geer Cemetery, only about ten percent have headstones. Others we know through death certificates that tell only a small part of their stories. One such individual is Issum Bennett (a.k.a. Isom or Isham).

His death certificate reports him to have been an amazing 119 years old at his death in 1917, with a birth date in the eighteenth century.¹Issum Bennett death certificate: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Death Certificates, 1909-1976 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/1715788:1121 : accessed 2 Apr 2023. 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. While this figure is likely an overestimation brought about by uncertainty over his exact age (a common problem for those born enslaved), in combination with other record research it still indicates that Issum lived an extremely long life, especially given the living conditions for a man of his situation.

He was most likely born enslaved, possibly in Granville County, NC, sometime between 1814 and 1825, according to census records.²814: 1880 US Census Henderson: Year: 1880; Census Place: Henderson, Granville, North Carolina; Roll: 964; Page: 282D; Enumeration District: 098. Ancestry.com and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 1880 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010. 1880 U.S. Census Index provided by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints © Copyright 1999 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. All use is subject to the limited use license and other terms and conditions applicable to this site. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/43080515:6742 : accessed 2 Apr 2023. Original data: Tenth Census of the United States, 1880. (NARA microfilm publication T9, 1,454 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C.

1825: 1900 US Census Vance: Year: 1900; Census Place: Sandy Creek, Vance, North Carolina; Roll: 1220; Page: 3; Enumeration District: 0090; FHL microfilm: 1241220. Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/38447284:7602 : accessed 2 Apr 2023. Original data: 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. His death certificate lists his father’s name as Gabel Bennett, but mother’s name as unknown. The first record that could be located for him is a “Marriages of Freed People” record from Granville County, NC, showing his marriage to Rose Lewis from 27 August 1866.³Issum Bennett marriage certificate: “North Carolina, County Marriages, 1762-1979 ,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QP9Y-6L59 : 10 March 2021), Isom Bennett and Rose Lewis, 27 Aug 1866; citing Granville, North Carolina, United States, p. , North Carolina State Archives Division of Archives and History; FHL microfilm. Based on census records, it appears that the couple already had children together while enslaved.⁴1880 US Census Henderson. In total, the couple had 13 children, with the last born around 1870.⁵1900 US Census Sandy Creek. They could not be located in the 1870 census, but in the 1880 census Issum was farming in the area of Dabney, NC (then Granville County, today Vance County) with his wife, seven children, a grandchild and an adopted son. By the 1900 census, Issum and his wife had moved east near Cokesville in Vance County, with the census indicating that only five of the couple’s children were still living at this time.

One of their sons, Edward Bennett, had moved with his family to Durham NC as early as 1897, likely looking for better economic opportunities than those available through rural tenant farming in Granville and Vance counties.⁶Year: 1900; Census Place: Durham, Durham, North Carolina; Roll: 1193; Page: 26; Enumeration District: 0031; FHL microfilm: 1241193. Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/68146835:7602 : accessed 5 Apr 2023. Original data: 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. He worked for the railroad, first as a boiler fireman and later as a watchman.⁷Durham City Directories from 1902 through 1917. Edward’s son Clarence has his life story on this site. Issum’s daughter Mollie moved to Durham as well, where she married George Green in 1905.⁸Ancestry.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/9792915:60548 : accessed 5 Apr 2023. Original data: North Carolina County Registers of Deeds. Microfilm. Record Group 048. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC. She was widowed by 1910, and married again, in 1915, to George Malone.⁹Widowed: 1910 US Census Durham 22B: Year: 1910; Census Place: Durham Ward 3, Durham, North Carolina; Roll: T624_1108; Page: 23A; Enumeration District: 0039; FHL microfilm: 1375121. Ancestry.com. 1910 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/20480381:7884 : accessed 9 Apr 2023. Original data: 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.

Marriage to Malone: 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/1794627:60548 : accessed 9 Apr 2023. Original data: North Carolina County Registers of Deeds. Microfilm. Record Group 048. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC. The license for her first marriage listed Issum and Rose as also living in Durham, indicating they had moved sometime between 1900 and 1905, when Issum was over 80 years old. He first rented in the Brookstown neighborhood on the west side of Durham, and subsequently lived alongside his son Edward in the vibrant Hayti district.¹⁰Durham City Directories from 1902 through 1917. Rose died sometime between 1905 and the 1910 census, leaving Issum a widower.¹¹1910 US Census Durham 22B. Rose is possibly buried in Geer Cemetery, but unfortunately this can’t be confirmed as death certificates were not required until 1913, and no other corroborating information on her death could be found.

Sadly, even as a man of 80 or 90, Issum is still listed in city directories working as a laborer, which speaks to the lack of societal care for the elderly available in the working class African American community at the time. He is listed in the 1910 census in Durham alongside his widowed daughter Mary (a.k.a. Mollie) and her eight-year-old daughter Leana.¹²1910 US Census Durham 22B. Issum died in 1917 from old age and heart trouble, and was buried in Geer Cemetery, possibly alongside his wife Rose.¹³1910 US Census Durham 22B. We know at least three of his many grandchildren are also buried in Geer Cemetery, all of them children of Edward: a stillborn daughter (1911), and sons Clarence (b. 1890) and Venis (1916–1916).¹⁴Clarence Bennett death certificate: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Death Certificates, 1909-1976 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/222940:1121 : 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.

Infant Bennett death certificate: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Death Certificates, 1909-1976 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/388421:1121 : 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.

Venis Bennett death certificate: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Deaths, 1906-1930 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/218274:60090 : Original data: North Carolina, Deaths, 1906-1930. Salt Lake City, Utah: FamilySearch, 2013. Additionally, a likely great-grandchild is buried in Geer, Rosa Bennett (daughter of Ms. Jessie A. Bennett) who died in 1910 at 5 months old.¹⁵Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Death Certificates, 1909-1976 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/229412:1121 : accessed 9 Apr 2023. 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.

After Issum’s death, his son Edward moved to Braddock, Allegheny County, PA, and is survived by numerous descendants.¹⁶Pennsylvania Historic and Museum Commission; Harrisburg, Pa; Pennsylvania (State). Death Certificates, 1906-1968; Certificate Number Range: 100051-102900. Ancestry.com. Pennsylvania, U.S., Death Certificates, 1906-1969 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/7439681:5164 : accessed 10 Apr 2023. Original data: Pennsylvania (State). Death certificates, 1906–1969. Series 11.90 (1,905 cartons). Records of the Pennsylvania Department of Health, Record Group 11. Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Issum’s daughter Mollie remained in Durham until her death in 1926, and was buried on the west side of town in Hickstown Cemetery.¹⁷Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Death Certificates, 1909-1976 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/2245954:1121 : accessed 10 Apr 2023. 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. Issum’s son Charlie died on 8 July 1940 in Vance County.¹⁸Charles Bennett death certificate: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Death Certificates, 1909-1976 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/1241766:1121 : accessed 12 Apr 2023. 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. The 1940 census lists him as 72 and living with his wife Lizzie and children Johan, George, Lewis, Vertell, and Marvin.¹⁹1940 US Census Vance: Year: 1940; Census Place: Suburban Henderson, Vance, North Carolina; Roll: m-t0627-02980; Page: 32A; Enumeration District: 91-8. Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/160785423:2442 : accessed 10 Apr 2023. Original data: United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1940. T627, 4,643 rolls. Charlie’s older brother Jessie was also last found in Vance County. He was age 60 in the 1910 census and was living with his wife Celia and children Dora, Jessie, Charlie, Josey, Mary, Louisa, and Jim.²⁰Year: 1910; Census Place: Sandy Creek, Vance, North Carolina; Roll: T624_1127; Page: 4A; Enumeration District: 0088; FHL microfilm: 1375140. Ancestry.com. 1910 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/20743059:7884 : accessed 10 Apr 2023. Original data: 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. Both families are likely to have many descendants in Vance County and beyond.

BORN: Between 1798 and 1825.²²Issum Bennett death certificate; 1900 US Census Vance.

DIED: 15 August 1917.²³Issum Bennett death certificate.

BIRTH PLACE: Granville County NC.²⁴1880 US Census Henderson.

DEATH PLACE: Durham NC.²⁵Issum Bennett death certificate.

SPOUSE: Rose Lewis.²⁶Issum Bennett marriage certificate.

PARENTS: Gabel Bennett father; mother unknown.²⁷Issum Bennett death certificate.

CHILDREN: Jessie (1856), Isham (1859), Patrick (1861), Edward (1863), Betty (1865), Charles (1866), Mollie/Mary (1870), Joe (1872).²⁸1880 US Census Henderson.

OTHER FAMILY: N/A

FAMILY BURIED IN GEER CEMETERY: Grandchildren Clarence Bennett, stillborn daughter Bennett, and Venis Bennett. Rosa Bennett is likely a great-grandchild. Wife Rose Bennett might be buried in Geer as well.

OCCUPATION: Farmer.²⁹1880 US Census Henderson.

CHURCH: N/A

AFFILIATIONS: N/A

ADDRESS: 118 Division Street, Durham NC.³⁰1910 US Census Durham 22B.

MILITARY SERVICE: N/A