Grandma's Photo Album Page 13 - Snyders and McNeils

Top left:  William Eugene "Will" Snyder (1890-1969) and his father, Nicholas Grindstaff "Nick" Snyder (1863-1944).  This photo was taken in the Reddies River Primitive Baptist Church graveyard, on the day of the funeral of Louise Jane Whittington Snyder (1863-1933).  She died August 23, and was buried August 25, 1933. (Note 1)  Nick and Lou were married 39 years.  They lived in Wilkes County, NC, all of their lives.

Top right:  This is the farm and house that Tom and Nora Snyder (parents of Neil in bottom left photo) bought near Winston-Salem in 1924. (Note 2)  The woman on the porch may be Nora.  They sold the house in 1925 to Mr. Bowles. (Note 3)

Bottom left: James Neil Snyder (1922-1993), son of Wiley Thomas "Tom" Snyder (1892-1988) and Nora Bessie McNeil Snyder (1900-1992). 

Bottom right:  Ila Margaret McNeil Vannoy (1898-1983), her husband Isaac Ransom Vannoy (1894-1979) and their oldest daughter, Eula May Vannoy Sharpe (1920-1993).  Ila was Nora's sister.

Notes:

1. Wilkes County, North Carolina, death certificate no. 131 (1933), Louise Snyder; digital image, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., "North Carolina Death Certificates, 1909-1975," Ancestry.com　(http://www.Ancestry.com : accessed 04 Jul 2011).
2. Forsyth County, North Carolina, deeds, 1849-1927, 230: 226, J.P. Simmons and wife to W.T. Snyder and wife, 30 Apr 1924; microfilm C.038.40099.
3. Forsyth County, North Carolina, deeds, 1849-1927, 243: 253, W.T. Snyder and wife to J.F. Bowles, 6 Apr 1925; microfilm C.038.40104.

Grandma's Photo Album Page 12 - Louise Snyder, Isaac Vannoy, Neil & Nora Snyder

The three adults on this page all lost young children.  Infant mortality was very high until the mid to late 20th century.  This infographic "In Four Coffins" dramatically shows the numbers.  North Carolinians who died Jan. 1 to Aug. 1, 1918:

• 94 killed in France (WWI)
• 172 died from typhoid
• 2,071 died from tuberculosis
• 6,077 children under two years who died from all causes

Left:  Louise Jane "Lou" Whittington Snyder (1863-1933).  This photo was probably taken on her front porch in Wilkes County, NC.  According to her granddaughter Carrie Snyder (1926-2001), Granny Lou always wore a dress up to her neck, with long sleeves.  Lou lost an infant son in 1905.  See his Find-A-Grave memorial here.  [There is no death certificate for this infant because North Carolina didn't start death certificates until 1913.]

Middle:  Isaac Ransom Vannoy (1894-1979) with his infant son Wiley Thomas Vannoy (1921-1924).  Little Wiley died of dysentery at age 2 1/2  (note 1). See his Find-A-Grave memorial here.

Right:  Nora Bessie McNeil Snyder (1900-1992) with her son James Neil Snyder (1922-1993).  This photo was taken at Waughtown Cemetery, Winston-Salem, Forsyth County, NC.  They are at the grave of Nora's first child, Wiley Thomas Snyder, Jr. who died at the age of six weeks in 1921 (note 2).  See his Find-a-Grave memorial here.  Wiley was "found dead in bed."  Nora really bonded with him and mourned him the rest of her long life, even though she had other children.

Notes:

1. Wilkes County, North Carolina, death certificate no. 281 (1924), Willie Thomas Vannoy; digital image, Ancestry.com Operations Inc, "North Carolina Death Certificates, 1909-1975," Ancestry.com　(http://www.Ancestry.com : accessed 24 Jul 2011).
2. Forsyth County,  North Carolina, death certificate no. 142 (1921), Wiley T. Snyder, Jr; digital image, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., "North Carolina Death Certificates 1909 - 1975," Ancestry.com　(http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 01 Feb 2012).

Grandma's Photo Album Page 11 - The Three Mothers of Double First Cousins (Demie, Toyce, and Nora McNeil)

On one page, we have the three McNeil sisters who married three Snyder brothers!  The three sisters were daughters of George Thomas "Tom Pick" McNeil (1870-1930) and Clara Eva Hettie Ellen Jarvis (1873-1959).  Tom Pick and Eva had eight children -- six girls first, then two boys.

Left:  Mattie Lodemia "Demie" McNeil (1908-1997).  She looks like a teenager here, so I'm guessing this photo was taken in the 1920's in Wilkes County, NC.  Demie married Donald Vance Snyder(1903-1986) two days before Christmas 1928, in Millers Creek, Wilkes County, NC.  Demie and Don had three children: 

1. Clara Louise (1930-1998)
2. Red
3. Martha 

[I only give dates for deceased people]

Middle:  Toyce Etta McNeil (1905-1969), with Nora Bessie McNeil (1900-1992) and Nora's son, James Neil Snyder (1922-1993).  They are all dressed up in their Sunday finest!  Since Neil is a toddler, I'm guessing this photo was taken in 1923 or 1924.  Toyce married John B. Snyder (1894-1969) in 1930 in Millers Creek.  Toyce and John had one child, Dorothy.

Nora married Wiley Thomas "Tom" Snyder (1892-1988) in 1919 in Millers Creek.  They had seven children, but only five survived to adulthood:

1. James Neil (1922-1993)
2. Carrie Mae (1926-2001)
3. Mozelle
4. Ralph Lewis (1932-1996)
5. Bette

So these nine children are double first cousins.

Right:  Toyce.

Grandma's Photo Album Page 10 - Tom, Neil, and Nora Snyder, plus Tom and Eva McNeil

Left:  Tom Snyder (1892-1988) with his son James Neil Snyder (1922-1993).  This photo was probably taken about 1923 in Winston-Salem, NC, where the family lived from 1919 to 1925.

Center:  Nora McNeil Snyder (1900-1992) showing her looong hair!  It's hard to say when and where this photo was taken.  She looks pretty young, but not as thin as she was before she started having children, so I'd guess this photo was taken in the 1920's, either in Wilkes County or Winston-Salem.

Right: Nora's parents, George Thomas "Tom Pick" McNeil (1870-1930) and Clara Eva Hettie Ellen Jarvis McNeil (1873-1959).  This photo was probably taken at their homeplace in Millers Creek, Wilkes County, NC.

Grandma's Photo Album Page 9 - Eula May Vannoy, Betty Sue Vannoy, James Neil Snyder, Carrie Mae Snyder, in Wilkes County, NC

Top Left:  (Left to right) Eula May Vannoy (1920-1993) and her sister Betty Sue Vannoy with their first cousins James Neil Snyder (1922-1993) and his sister Carrie Mae Snyder (1926-2001).  Eula May and Betty Sue were the daughters of Isaac Vannoy (1894-1979) and his wife Ila McNeil Vannoy (1898-1983).

James and Carrie were the children of Tom Snyder (1892-1988) and his wife, Nora McNeil Snyder (1900-1992).  Ila and Nora were sisters, so their children are first cousins (but not double first cousins).  They all lived in Wilkes County at this time.

This photo was taken about 1928.  Tom and Nora owned the farmhouse in the lower right photo.  Tom owned a car, a 1924 Model-T Ford 2 seater black with cloth top.  The building or shed in the back left of the photo could be their garage or another outbuilding that was near the home.

Top Right:  This looks like the same baby -- Betty Sue Vannoy.

Lower Left:  In my notes from going through this album with my grandmother (Nora), this house is noted as their farmhouse, but it's clearly not.  Their farmhouse in in the lower right photo, and has 2 brick chimneys.  So I'm not sure which house is in the lower left.  I think this might be the home of Nora's mother, Clara Eva Jarvis McNeil (1873-1959), which was was also in Millers Creek.  This would be the back yard of that home.
 
Lower Right:  This is Tom and Nora Snyder's homeplace, on their farm on Pleasant Home Church Road, Millers Creek, Wilkes County, NC.  They bought this 86-acre farm in 1925.

Grandma's Photo Album Page 8 - Ralph, Betty, Mozelle, Nora, and James Neil Snyder

Left:  Ralph Snyder (1932-1996) with his sisters Bette and Mozelle in the front yard of their family homeplace, on Pleasant Home Church Road, in Millers Creek, Wilkes County, NC.  This snapshot was taken about 1935.  (Note: Bette and Mozelle are living, so I don't give their birth dates.)

Right:  Nora McNeil Snyder (1900-1992) with her son James Neil Snyder (1922-1993).  Neil looks to be about a year old or less, so this photo was probably taken about 1923.  This photo was probably taken in Winston-Salem, where Nora and her husband Tom lived from their marriage in 1919 until 1925 when they moved back to Wilkes County.

Nora looks rather sad in this photo.  Neil is the only one of her first three children to live to adulthood.  She lost her first son, Wiley Thomas Snyder, Jr. at six weeks of age.  He was born January 19, 1921, in Winston-Salem, Forsyth County, NC.  He died on March 6.  His death certificate says he was "found dead in bed."  Today, we'd call this SIDS - Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.  Nora really bonded with him and mourned him the rest of her life.

In 1924, she lost her 3rd child, Herman Thomas Snyder, who only lived one day.  He was born June 3 and died June 4.  He was premature. 

Both of these sons are buried in Waughtown Cemetery, Winston-Salem.  Their memorials are on Find-A-Grave:  Wiley Jr. and Herman.

Grandma's Photo Album Page 7 - Tom Snyder, old Pleasant Home Baptist Church, Lacy & Bill Vannoy in 1923

Left:  Wiley Thomas Snyder (1892-1988) all spiffed up in his Sunday best.

Center:  The old Pleasant Home Baptist Church, Millers Creek, Wilkes County, NC.

Right:  Lacy Florence McNeil Vannoy (1902-1990) and her husband William Raynor "Bill" Vannoy (1898-1947), probably in Wilkes County.   Lacy and Bill were married January 7, 1923, so they were newlyweds in this photo.  Lacy was my grandmother's sister.

All three people are buried in the cemetery at Pleasant Home Baptist Church.