James Levi Crow married Rachel Amanda Rodden (his first wife), a native of Illinois, on November 17, 1864 in Union County, Illinois. Amanda died around 1881, according to vol. 3, page 24 of the Illinois State Marriage Index 1763-1900.  They had the following children: Ones in red survived till adult, and had descendants.

Grover Cleveland Crow

Grover Cleveland Crow (1893-1965) (Son of James Levi Crow)

     Grover Cleveland Crow was born on September 5, 1893 and passed away on December 28, 1965.  He was the son of James Levi and Mary Ann  (Mann) Crow.  Martha Rosa Lee McCain was born on March 30, 1897 and passed away on March 2, 1974.  She was the daughter of John Robert and Sarah  (Shelby) McCain.    

Grover and Rosie were united in marriage April 13, 1913 in the Sugar Tree Community at the home of Reverend Gus Williams, with Dave Keller and Pearl Jackson as witnesses.  Grover and Rosie lived most of their married life in the Bernie area.  Grover was 2 ½  years old when his Father died and was fourteen when his Mother died.  He was raised by relatives and friends, but was on his own at an early age.  Rosie lost her Father, when she was six years old, but her Mother lived until she was 88 years old.   As has been stated many times, it seemed that Rosie and Grover tried to make up for not having excellent memories of growing up.  They were good parents and displayed lots of forethought.  “They excelled in showing love, hope, and charity”.   Due to a large family, they all learned to share and help each other.  The advice that Grover and Rosie gave their children, as each one would marry and leave home was “always be good to each other”.

Lois Griffin used the works from the oldest daughter (Nettie Lee) as provided to her in the initial family history, to capture the true feelings, love and devotion of a great mother, mother-in-law, grandmother, and great grandmother.  Those too young to have known Rosie, missed out on meeting and appreciating, an outstanding lady.

From Nettie:  “You know as a child, I remember mom as always working, doing the cooking, washing, working on the garden, and a new baby every two years.  You know, Loreda was only two years old when I got married.  Mom was always tired, never complained, but she really had a hard life.  She cooked three hot meals a day, except on Sunday.  We went to church and Sunday School at Sugar Tree, when I was small.  I remember a rubber tired wagon to ride in and a few Sundays, when they had dinner on the church grounds and singing in the afternoon.  Mom would pinch your arm, if you didn’t sit quiet, and one pinch was enough to last quite a few Sunday’s.  She sewed after supper, made all of her clothes and mine, and all the boys’ shirts.  She also put in quilt comforters in the winter months.  We always had a large garden and were out there early in the morning while the dew was still on the ground.  I hated washing lettuce and spinach, pumping water and seems like we used a washtub.  We churned butter every night and I’ve seen the table top freeze as we washed it off, and in the summer months the midnight train would go by as we finished canning.  Dad would only make one or two trips to the orchard and would come back with five bushels of peaches and three bushels of apples.  We would can and everybody would help peel; small containers were half-gallon jars.

     When they would kill hogs, it was at least four or five and a two-day job.  They smoked and sugar-cured, canned sausage, ribs and tenderloin.  We would make kraut in wooden barrels, and also put pickles up the same way.  Mom would make sheets and pillowcases out of unbleached muslin.  She would make baby clothes and hide them, while we were at school.  I knew we were going to have a new baby, but she never once told me.

      She made me three new dresses every fall for the new school year; at 25 cents a yard, but nice material and then a new dress for Easter.  We got shoes when we had to have them and it seems as if Dad was carrying someone a pair home quite often.  I don’t know how Mom kept going and I’m sure we never appreciated her and told her that we loved, her half as much as we should have.  You know I remember going to Grandma Elsworth’s very seldom.  I was afraid of her when I was small and never wanted to stay over.  I did one time and cried and begged to go home.  I can’t ever remember staying again, until I was in high school.  She too had a very hard life.

 After I married I only went home one week out of a year, I’m sorry to say, until we moved to Chester, Illinois in 1970 and then I tried to come every time I possibly could.” After the three oldest children (Shelby, Denzil, and Wenzil) were born, Grover moved to Arkansas and worked for a while as a logger in timber.  He also logged in the Bernie area for E.B. Shelby, who was a large landowner.  During this time the bottomland East of Bernie was swampy and there was a lot of timberland throughout the surrounding area.

James Levi Jr. Family (Son of James Levi Crow Sr.)

James Levi Crow Jr. (1896-1978) (Son of James Levi Crow Sr.)

     James Levi (Lee) Crow Jr., was the youngest son of James Levi and Mary A (Mann) Crow.  Lee was born February 15, 1896 and died August 16, 1979.  “Uncle Lee”, as he was known, had been a foreman in a shoe factory in Neosho, Missouri, when work ran out, he then moved to California and found a job in Brea, California, as a welder.  One of his projects was to weld the big ironworks sign across Brea Boulevard, which is still across the road and one can still see it as they pass along the roadway.  Lee was married to Eunice Cocksen on April 22, 1916 as recorded on Page 508, Book 12 of the Marriage Records located at Bloomfield, Missouri.  Eunice was born September 28, 1897 and died August 23, 1979.  They had four children: Vivian, Imogene, Jim and Walter.

Kate & Wesley Teel

       Arcadia Alice Kate Crow was born July 5, 1891 in Sikeston, Missouri. She was the only daughter of James Levi and Mary Ann “Mann” Crow. She had four brothers, Elbert Evan (Obe), Ebert, Grover and Lee Crow; two half sisters, Sammie January and Ona Mae Keller, three half brothers, Charles Augustus Crow, Robert Green Crow and Christopher Columbus Crow, four step brothers and sisters, Sam, Estel, Dave and Flora Keller.

Her Father died of Pneumonia, when she was five years old, and her mother passed away ten years later.  At age fifteen she found herself without a mother or father, and moved into the home of her brother Charles Augustus Crow. Kate took care of Charles wife Mary until she passed away.  At age eighteen Kate met a young man named Wesley Teel whom she married on July 25, 1909.  Wesley spent his life as a farmer and Kate was an excellent homemaker, they managed to raise nine well-adjusted children, during the depression with never enough of anything. They were very poor on material things, but very rich in the love they had for one another and others. Wesley Eli Teel was born on October 24, 1886 in Stonefort, Illinois, to Jacob and Elvira Teel.  (His parents may have lived in the Mt. Vernon area).  Wesley recalled hearing his Father talk about coming through the Cumberland Gap, having migrated from the South through Tennessee, Kentucky, etc.  At age eleven, Wesley left Illinois and moved to Bernie, Missouri, with his Mother and stepfather.  Wesley told his children, that he remembered traveling in the wagon.  They are said to have crossed into Missouri near Clarkton or Charlestown, Missouri.  This Southeastern portion of Missouri, located in the Mississippi Valley, was very marshy and swampy with thick vegetation, which was referred to as “Niggerwool swamp.”  It was thick and wooley, and was pulled up to make makeshift beds for the night.  They finally settled in Bernie, Missouri.  

Bob Greene Crow

Robert Green Crow (1883-1942) (Son of James Levi Crow)

Bob Green Crow was the son of James Levi Crow and his second wife, Mahulda Paralee Rodden.  As previously noted in this book, in October 1897 both Bob and Charles Augustus had been involved in the death of Sam January, for the mistreatment of their family members.

Robert married Ella Brown and had three children, Ruth, Bob Brown “Little Bob”, and Martin Eugene (1910-1911). According to family members, Bob went off on a business trip one day to St. Louis and never returned.  The police checked his room, but only found his clothes and wallet. After a few months the St. Louis Police Dept. closed the case and claimed it was foul play, at that time his body was never found.  Facts later proved that Bob had run off, leaving his family behind, to believe he had been murdered. Bob had always given his wife Ella white roses on her birthday, because she had a great love for them.  She continued receiving white roses on her birthday for several years after this incident.  Some time later Bob    returned to Caruthersville, we are uncertain if it was before or after the death of his wife Ella. A short time later he moved to Harlingten, Texas where he met and married a schoolteacher named Ione.  Ter’e Crow Lindsay shared a letter with me that was written in the Caruthersville, Missouri newspaper dated June 25, 1915.                                                                                          

Elbert Evan (Obe) Crow

Elbert Evan (Obe) Crow (1888-1965) (Son of James Levi Crow)

  Evan Elbert (Obe) Crow, born January 16, 1888 was the second child of James Levi and Mary Ann (Mann) Crow.  He was my father-in-law and a dearly beloved and lifelong friend.  He and my Father James Harrison Sivells grew up as neighbors in the vicinity of Bernie.  Both Obe and my Father shared the same birthday “January 16^th”.  Even though my Father was six years older, they both attended the same one room schoolhouse. They attended most of the year, except for times when they are out for farming Obe considered South East Missouri as “down home”, though he moved to St. Louis around 1925 and lived there, until his death.  Obe had worked for the postal service in Caruthersville, Missouri, with his brothers Charles and Bob as a rural carrier. He had   delivered mail by horseback, when the weather was too bad for the Model T Car. Photo on left of Robert Green Crow, Charles Augustus Crow and Obe Crow in Caruthersville Missouri. They worked together in the post office during that time.

In St. Louis he was a mail clerk and his last post was the downtown post office. After retiring from the Post Office he worked part time as a courier for a jewelry repair business in the same area. He was a very sociable sort; Obe spoke to everyone and knew all the downtown regulars.  Even though he was a small, short man he had all the festiveness of a bantam rooster. But he was generally very pleasant and very polite.  Obe always helped me across the street, though he had to reach up to take my elbow (I am fairly tall).  He was bright and kept up well on current events.  He was very fond of his family, and took excellent care of his wife Bessie, in her last months of colon cancer.

Bessie was quiet and content to be a good housewife, apparently Obe selected and bought her clothes, even brought them home to her. He liked good clothes and always dressed well. After Bessie died in July 13, 1942 After Bessie’s death, Obe moved in with my parents and lived there about a year.  Around 1943, he married Margaret Gardner, sister-in law to Emma Gardener (Charles Augustus Crow’s wife).  Margaret had worked as housekeeper/practical nurse to Obe and Bessie, during her illness.  Margaret loved to go places, was as sociable person and liked spending money, as much as Bessie had liked saving it.  She and Obe were on a train in Florida, when his heart gave out. I felt a little responsible, as I had asked him to be pallbearer, at my Father’s funeral about 10 days previously.                 

Obe rarely mentioned his own health, but had told Paul not long before his death, that he was having slight heart difficulties.  Paul thought he should not be working as hard or as many hours as he did.  Obe died on February 3, 1965 and is buried in St. Louis at Oak Hill Cemetery.  His wife, Elizabeth (Bessie) died on July 13, 1942 and is buried in Dexter Cemetery, Dexter, Missouri.  The following are their children:

1. Elbert Garrett Crow
2. Paul Evan Crow