My Grandmother's Brothers

How do siblings just disappear and none of the descendants know what happened to them?

My grandmother had three younger brothers, Claud Pierce, Willie Felton Pierce, and Roy (JD) Pierce. Two of the three, Claud and Willie Felton, just seemed to disappear with no clues left behind.

Claud, born abt 1892, is the one absolutely no one in the family seems to know anything about. The next child after my grandmother Mary, on the 1900 census, he's listed as Claud and on the 1910 census he's listed as Clara, daughter. Other than the census, the only other information available on Uncle Claud is his World War I Draft Registration card. He was born in Watkinsville, GA and in 1917, he was single, and worked for George Tuggle. Given that during her life, my grandmother handed down a lot of information to her inquisitive daughter, also known as my mother, it's strange that no mention was ever made of Claud. Grandmom didn't name any of her children or grandchildren after him. Was uncle Claud the black sheep of the Pierce family? Did he die a tragic death, perhaps lynched, and it was too painful for my grandmother or her sisters to be reminded of him? Will I ever find out more about him?

Willie Felton, the second of my grandmother's brothers and the third child after grandmom, was born abt 1896. Like his brother Claud, the only documentation I've been able to find of Uncle Felton is the 1900 and 1910 censuses and his World War I Draft Registration card. His draft card indicates that he was single in 1917, worked for J. B. Brown in Monroe, GA and that he was short, medium build, and light brown with red hair. Unlike Claud, Willie Felton has left a legacy, at least in my grandmother's branch of the family. First my mother remembers at some point in time seeing pics of Willie Felton in his war uniform. While mom was attending college at Morris Brown, she remembers being contacted by Willie Felton's wife/ex wife/widow. But his greatest legacy is that grandmom named my uncle, Willie Felton Hosch, after him and I have a couple of first cousins that carry his middle name, Felton. I think my grandmom did a good job of giving us some insight into her family; however, the genealogist / family historian inside me is always wishing for more. Did uncle Felton die during the war? Did he have any children and if so, what became of them?

As I sit here, I'm wondering if George Tuggle and J. B. Brown had any type of records that would include my great uncles working for them? So many questions to ponder. Perhaps as I continue to search for my great-grandmother, my great-great uncles will be ever so kind and drop a few hints about their lives and what happened to them.

Till next time!