Friday, April 12, 2013

Friday’s Faces From the Past- Phelon and Beverly Clinton Tidwell

I love this blog prompt! Here is my Friday Faces From the Past. This photo was taken in Bessemer, Alabama in front of the now defunct Sullivan-Lewis Lumber Company. The business was located on a full block in Bessemer, and was a forerunner of Long-Lewis Ford, which is still located in the area.

Phelan and son Beverly Clinton Tidwell


My great grandfather Phelan Tidwell (sometimes spelled Phelon) was born September 27, 1847 in Blountsville, Blount, Alabama. He was the second of seven children born to Rowan Tidwell and Cynthia "Cincianna" Cornelius Tidwell. Just after turning 16 he ran away from home and joined the Confederate Army as a private in Co. B., 19th Alabama Regiment, later attached to Hood's Battalion. He was discharged in April, 1865.
He married Sarah Elizabeth "Bettie" McCullough September 13, 1881.

My grandfather, Beverly Clinton Tidwell was born October 8, 1888 in Perryville, Perry, Alabama. He was the fifth of nine children.  

Since I am named after Beverly, I often wondered why he was given a girl's name. Evidently he wasn't very proud of it, as he was known as B.C. or Clint. It wasn't until I started genealogy research that I discovered he was named after his great grandfather, Beverly Cornelius. That Beverly was born in 1794. I turns out Beverly was used as a man's name back then, but somehow over time it became a woman's name.





4 comments:

  1. I love the photo. Thank you for sharing. Phelan's Uncle Benton (aka B. B. & Benton Beverly) Cornelius also served with the 19th. Did you ever discover where Rowan and Cynthia were buried? Did I ever tell you I have the hand fan that belonged to Cynthia's oldest sister, Cincinnati Cornelius? - Robert

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Robert, thanks for stopping by. I've never been able to find Rowan and Cynthia's graves. They are probably lost to time, but you never know. You told me about the fan. I would love to see a picture.

      Delete
  2. This is cool. I love to see old photos and hear the story behind them. Talking about Beverly being a man's name I remember hearing about this man: George Beverly "Bev" Shea (born February 1, 1909) is a Canadian-born American gospel singer and hymn composer. Shea has often been described as "America's beloved Gospel singer"[1] and is considered "the first international singing 'star' of the gospel world," as a consequence of his solos at Billy Graham Crusades and his exposure on radio, records, and television.[2][3] According to the Guinness Book of Records Shea holds the world record for singing in person to the most people ever, with an estimated cumulative live audience of 220 million people.[4] Chris Dickey

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Chris. Thanks for reading. Interesting to know about another Beverly. Thanks!

      Delete