Surname Saturday - Stovall

Surname Saturday - Stovall

The Stovall surname represents the only 3rd great grandparent I’ve been able to discover.


My Stovall lineage is as follows:

1. Me
2. Mom
3. Oscar Lucillous “LC” Hosch - born abt 12 Aug 1887 in Jackson County, GA; date of death - 10 Sep 1978, Shelby, Cleveland County, NC
4. Sallie Rome – born abt 1868, Walton County, GA; date of death unknown (most likely between (1895 – 1900)
5. Wyatt Rome – born abt 1840 in Georgia; date of death unknown (between 1910 and 1920), Walton County, GA
6. Eliza Stovall – born abt 1810 in Georgia; date of death unknown (between 1880 and 1900). Grandma Eliza appears on the 1880 census in the household of my 2nd great grandfather, Wyatt Rome, but is not on the 1900 census.

In addition to Grandpa Wyatt, the 1870 Federal census points toward my 3rd great grandmother probably having at least 2 other children, Emma Stovall and Lou Stovall. I’ve tried to trace forward to find out what became of them but have been unsuccessful to this point.

WorldNames Public Profiler doesn’t provide any information on the origins of this surname. I tried a Google Search and checked out a few other sites in hopes of learning more about the origin of the surname and other than one site indicating that it was English and another indicating that it was French, there appears to be no available explanation for the surname.

Could this be a truly American name? The surname distribution leads one to believe this could be a possibility. The top three countries for this surname are United States at 53.4 FPN, Luxembourg at 8.5 FPN, and Canada at 1.6 FPN. The top three regions for the surname are Mississippi at 261.9 FPN, Texas at 209.75 FPN, and Georgia at 191.5 FPN. Finally, the top three cities for this surname are Memphis, TN; Atlanta, GA; and Chicago, IL.

I’ve not done much work on my Stovall line, so as always, I’m hoping that another descendant of Grandma Eliza Stovall will come across this blog and help me fill in the details.

Thoughtful Thursday - Watch Night Service

Watch Night Service

There was a time when I dreaded New Year’s Eve because it meant being drug to church one more time. Don’t get me wrong, I love church and my faith has gotten me through many a difficult times but to be there on New Year’s Eve, uggh!

As a child mom, who was Baptist and who more times than not I went to church with, loaded granddad and me in the car and headed to church. Even in my adult years, mom and / or dad could often guilt me into going with them, especially mom with her “There’s no other place I would rather be to bring in the new year.” Last year, I finally understood what she meant as for the first time in my life I was at Watch Night Service because that is where I wanted and needed to be.

Prior to moving to Colorado for awhile, I always thought Watch Night Service was something everyone did but during my adult life, I’ve learned that Watch Night service is truly an African-American tradition and perhaps only observed in the southern states.

The tradition of bringing in the year in church appears to have it’s origins in the Moravian community, but the significance in the African-American community can be traced back to December 31, 1862, “Freedom’s Eve.” President Abraham Lincoln in his Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, dated September 22, 1862, had indicated that the slaves would be freed on January 1, 1863.

So with new found vigor both in my research and the reflections on the history of our celebration, tonight when I go to Watch Night Service, I know I’ll think and wonder about them, my ancestors, as I’m already doing now, and about the thoughts that raced through their minds as they anticipated freedom. I’ll think about my 3rd great grandmother, Eliza Stovall, at the age of abt. 50, possibly with her children and grand children by her side, giving praise that she lived long enough to see this day.

So, in remembrance of all my known direct line and collateral ancestors that endured slavery, roll call:

Direct Line of known enslaved ancestors

Maternal Ancestors

Eliza Stoval – 3rd great grandmother, abt. 1810 – unk
(date of death bwt. 1880 and 1900)
Wyatt Rome – 2nd great grandfather, 1840 – unk
(date of death after 1910)
Alice Rome – 2nd great grandmother, 1836 – unk
(date of death bwt. 1900 and 1910)
Matilda Hosch – 2nd great grandmother, 1840 – unk
Monroe Barto Hosch – great grandfather, 1862 – unk
(date of death bwt. 1890 and 1900)
Jasper Pierce – 2nd great grandfather 1850 - unk
Jane Pierce – 2nd great grandmother, 1844 – unk

Paternal Ancestors

Issac Ewell – 2nd great grandfather, 1840 – unk
(date of death bwt 1870 and 1880)
Pennie Ewell – 2nd great grandmother, 1840 – unk