Charles Lewis & Emily Coffey Coffey

Charles and Emily were first cousins, once removed. Charles was the son of McCaleb and Elizabeth (Betsy) Collett Coffey while Emily was the daughter of Daniel Boone and Clarissa Estes Coffey. They were married on Jan. 5, 1853 (married 55 years in the 1910 census) and only had two children: Julia, born c1856 and Clarissa Jane E., born May 1857.

Julia married James Hezekiah. Hartley Sep. 17, 1872 in Caldwell Co. James was born in that county May 25, 1850.

Their children were:

- Ella, born 1876, died 1880 [per Miss Jane Hartley]
- Charles Lewis., born Jan., 1877, married Margaret Cowles in Caldwell Co., Oct. 25, 1898. They had at least three children:

- Ruth Mildred, born Aug., 1899

- Margaret Cowles, born Aug., 1901, died May 25, 1997, married Randolph Jones Carter, Jan. 8, 1920 in Morehead, Guilford Co., NC
- Charles Lewis Hartley, Jr., born Nov. 9, 1905

In 1877, Clarissa Jane married Haywood G. Powell, born Sep., 1857 in North Carolina, died 1935 in Caldwell Co. They were married in Caldwell Co. in 1877. According to the 1910 census, Jane was the mother of three living children:

- John Russell, born Jun. 27, 1880, married Mamie Leslie Rabb in 1900, Caldwell Co. Mamie was born in 1880 and died 1953 in Caldwell Co.

- Florence, born Apr., 1882, married Laurence Henry Coffey (later Dr.) on Apr. 12, 1898 in NC and divorced in 1905.  Laurence was the son of Henry Clay and Sophronia Tate Coffey Coffey and in c1909 he married Adah Mae Costner in NC.

- Collett C., born Apr. 1887

Jane and Haywood were residents in the home of her parents in 1910. Also present in the household was a granddaughter, Bessie Coffey, age 11. Because Charles and Emily had only two children, both daughters, it isn't yet clear who Bessie's parents were. Likely her mother was Jane by someone other than Haywood. [See explanation in update below]

Other children of James H. and Julia Ann Coffey Hartley were:

Henry Harper, born Jul. 13, 1880, died May 28, 1940 in North Wilkesboro, NC; married Ida Madeline Harris.

Franklin J., born Jan. 23, 1882, died Jul. 22, 1951 in North Wilkesboro; married Elizabeth T. Steele on Apr. 26, 1905 in Kings Creek Twp., Caldwell Co.  Elizabeth was born Feb. 23, 1884 in NC and died on Apr. 30, 1974 in Charlotte, NC.

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Update 9/17/2015

Today I received an e-mail from Miss Jane Hartley containing some extremely nice comments pertaining to the Edward Coffey blog and some corrections/additions.  The above has been edited to reflect some of the corrections as well as additional information from my files.  Her great-grandparents were James Hezekiah and Julia Ann Coffey Hartley.  Her great-great grandparents were Charles L. and Emily Coffey Coffey.

Part of the e-mail follows:

"Regarding the 1910 Census:  Census is correct in saying JANE E. COFFEY (POWELL) gave birth to three children who grew to adulthood.

"JANE and HAYWOOD POWELL'S middle child was a daughter, FLORENCE E. POWELL, who married (on 4/12/1898) her double-2nd cousin LAURENCE HENRY COFFEY(1875-1944).  (I believe it's on Pg. 37 of the latter's book "Thomas Coffey and his Descendants" where LAURENCE H. COFFEY, M.D. mentions his first wife FLORENCE POWELL and their only child together a daughter BESSIE BOONE COFFEY.

"LAURENCE filed for divorce from FLORENCE receiving a Final Decree in Nov., 1905.  Both he and FLORENCE remarried. (FLORENCE perhaps remarried more than once.)

"So, I suspect the above paragraph might explain why the 1910 CENSUS found their 11-year-old daughter BESSIE COFFEY living in the same household as her maternal grandparents the POWELLS and her maternal g-grandparents the COFFEYS:

"1910 Census Listing is INCORRECT RE: relationship of Bessie Coffey to Head of Household:

Charles L. Coffey, Head of Household

Emily Coffey, wife

Haywood Powell, son-in-law

Jane Powell, daughter

Bessie Coffey, granddaughter  [Bessie's relationship to Head of Household should have read G-Granddaughter.]"

P.S. Just FYI -  In my personal Coffey history file, I show Florence and Laurence Coffey's daughter as BESSIE ARELIA BOONE COFFEY (KING) (b. 1899 NC - d. 1978 FL) who married ARCHIE SAMUEL KING (b. Dec. 3, 1896 NC - d. Sept 15, 1971 FL).  The Kings' only child was a daughter, BEUELARESS KING (HELEM) (b. Oct. 21, 1921 FL - d.Mar 2, 2011 FL).  Beuelaress's husband was HORACE WILLIAM HELEM (b. July 7, 1918 - d. Oct. 1, 1996 FL).

Clarissa Ellen Coffey

Clarissa was the third and last child that I have found that was born to Drury Dobbins and Harriet Elizabeth Collett. She was born Sep. 24, 1868 in Lenoir, Edgefield Co., NC and died Mar. 1, 1939 in Portland, Multnomah Co., OR

She married Dr. Robert Calvin Coffey, her second cousin and a son of Patterson Vance and Nancy Martisha Estes Coffey. Robert was born Oct. 20, 1869 in Lenoir, Edgefield, Co., and died on Nov. 9, 1933 in a plane crash neat Portland, OR. He was 64 years old.

An article in Time magazine, in partnership with CNN reproduced the following article from the Nov. 1933 issue of the magazine Aeronautics:

"With fearful vengeance the Law of Averages proceeded last week to settle its score against United Air Lines. In 40 million miles of flying, no passenger had been killed in a multi-motored plane of United until last month when a ship was blown up on the New York-Chicago route (TIME, Oct. 23).* Last week near Portland, Ore. another United plane of the same new type crashed into a hillside in a fog. Pilot and three passengers were killed. Copilot, stewardess and four passengers survived.

Fog lay thick around the Portland airport, situated on an island in the Willamette River, when the ship took off for its run down the coast to San Francisco. Among the passengers was Dr. Robert Calvin Coffey, Portland surgeon famed for his work with cancer.† Across from him sat his assistant, Dr. John Straumfjord, with whom he was flying to Medford, Ore. to operate on a colleague. Leaving the airport the pilot circled gingerly up through the fog, edging perilously near the hills which rise abruptly to the west. Suddenly a wing tip gouged a tree on the hilltop. Down the ship crashed. It broke apart, caught fire. In an instant Stewardess Libby Wurgaft had the cabin door open. Four times she entered the blazing cabin, each time helped bring out an injured passenger. But nobody could save Dr. Coffey and the other two passengers on his side of the cabin. All three were killed by the crash.

* Fortnight ago Department of Justice agents said they were convinced that an underworldling had traveled in the plane several days before the crash, had concealed an explosive among the blankets in the plane's lavatory, for fear he would be searched at his destination. The explosive lay among the blankets until it fell to the floor.

† No kin of San Francisco's Dr. Walter Bernard Coffey, he addressed the American College of Surgeons last month on his method of draining the kidneys through the intestines in cases of cancerous bladder, and on his "surgical quarantine" of healthy tissue during treatment."

Robert and Clarissa had four children:

- Dr. Jay Russell Coffey, born May 31, 1896 in Idaho, died Mar. 9, 1985 in Warrenton, Clatsop Co., OR. He married Josephine Richardson c1915 in OR. She was born c1897 in TX, and died Oct. 19, 1934 in Portland, OR. They had three children: Jay, Jr., born May 31, 1915, died Jun. 1978; Thomas R., born c1917; and John Fellows, born c1919.

- Wilson Bryan Coffey, born c1898 in Idaho, died Sep. 1, 1959 in Lane Co., OR. He married Marjorie Campbell on Sep. 15, 1920 in Multnomah Co., OR. She was born Apr. 8, 1900 in Washington state, and died Nov. 2, 1995 in Pierce Co., WA. Their children were Joan C., born c1925 and Mary E., born c1927. There were probably others that I have not yet found.

- Robert Mayo, born Dec. 18, 1906, died Sep. 12, 1972

- Herbert Spencer - no other information.

Additions and/or corrections are requested.

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Update, Jan. 1, 2013:  It seems that prior to her death in 1934, Josephine Richardson Coffey gave birth c1931 to a fourth son.  That child, Joel R. Coffey, was still living in OR and was mentioned in the obituary of his brother, retired Marine Corps Lt. Col. John Fellows Coffey.  Col. Coffey died on Jul. 26, 2000 in Norfolk, VA and is buried in Chesapeake, VA at the Churchland Baptist Church Cemetery.  Joel appears as a nine-year old with his father and step-mother Martha Handley Coffey in the 1940 Portland, Multnomah Co., OR census.

According to his WW2 draft registration card, Dr. Jay Russell Coffey was born on Jun. 24, 1894 in Moscow, Latah Co., ID.  Josephine Richardson was born May. 3, 1896 in TX.

Jay Russell Coffey, Jr., was born May 31, 1915 and died Jun. 15, 1978 in Portland.  He is buried at River View Cemetery in Portland.  His military marker tells us that he was a Captain in the US Army during WW2.

Dr. Jay's second son was Thomas Richardson "Tom" Coffey, born Oct. 15, 1917, died Jun. 24, 1944.  He is buried at River View as well.  His military marker tells us that he was a First Lt. in the 4th Marine Division during WW2.  In June of 1944 the 4th Marines were engaged in taking and cleaning up the island of Saipan.  Tom was awarded the Silver Star as well as The Purple Heart medals.  He was unmarried.

Third son was John Fellows Coffey, mentioned above.  He enlisted in the US Marine Corps on Sep. 12, 1940 and retired on May 31, 1966 at Marine Corps Headquarters in Arlington, VA.  He was twice awarded the Bronze Star medal for Valor, the Navy Commendation Medal, three Presidential Unit Citations and the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with 12 stars.  Each star represents participation in a major campaign; there were 48 in the Pacific by the Navy and Marine Corps.

Jack