Sgt. Shelley Carl Coffey, US Army

Shelley Carl Coffey
Military Marker

Shelley Carl Coffey, born c1923 in Knox Co., TN to Luther Lafayette and Jean Ruth Sands Coffey.  He enlisted in the US Army in Georgia at Fort Oglethorpe on Nov. 9, 1942 and died on Apr. 15, 1945 while serving in Europe with Co. 4, 59th Armored Infantry Battalion, 13th Armored Division.  He was buried with other Americans who lost their life during the liberation of The Netherlands at the Netherlands American Cemetery in the village of Margraten, just outside of Maastricht in the southern part of that country.

Netherlands American Cemetery, Margraten, The Netherlands

Shelley was the third of five children born to Luther and Jean. Edith was the eldest, born c1916.  She married Harold B. Jordan on Feb. 14, 1938 in Anderson Co., TN. They resided near her parents in Knoxville, Knox Co., TN at the Apr., 1940 census and had no children at the time.

Marjorie followed Edith on Jul. 25, 1919 in Knox Co.  She married Woodrow O. Chambers in Anderson Co. on Oct. 23, 1937.  In 1940 they lived with Woodrow's parents in Knoxville. Later, they had at least two children; Brenda and Gail.

The fourth child born was Nola Pearl, born Jan. 5, 1925 in Knox Co., died Sep. 10, 1981. She is said to have married Robert Hensley but I have not found a marriage record. They had at least one child, a son, Robert, Jr.

Their fifth child was Etta, born Mar. 16, 1927. She was still living with her parents in 1940 and I do not know who she married.

Shelley then was the only son,  and wasn't married when he was killed, thus leaving Luther's line daughtered out.

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The photos were provided by Brent Coffey and remain his property. Do not copy without permission.

Roby Monroe Coffey Family

Roby Monroe Coffey was a son of George Washington "Wash" and Matilda "Tilda" Coffey Coffey.  Wash and Tilda were distant cousins.  Roby was the ninth of the 11 children born to Tilda, and first saw light on Mar. 20, 1881 in Ashe Co., NC.  He died on Oct. 1, 1955 of a coronary occlusion and was buried in the Boone Fork Baptist Church Cemetery in Watauga Co., NC.

On Sep., 12, 1918, Roby registered for the draft in WW1 in Lenoir, Caldwell Co.  He was described as being 37 years old, tall with blue eyes and dark colored hair.  He was a farmer and resided at Shulls Mill in Watauga Co. with his wife.  He did not mention the number of children in his household, but by that date, should have been the father of at least six children:

Roby Monroe Coffey Family

Lena, born Dec. 13, 1903, died 1979, married George Norvell Fox Aug. 10, 1927 in Carter Co., TN.  George was born May 7, 1902 in Watauga Co., the son of John Lee and Jodie Ella Shook Fox.

Lelia Nancy, born May 20, 1906 in Caldwell Co., died May 7, 1969 in Lenoir.  She married Ralph Washington Jones on Jul. 31, 1926 in Watauga Co.  He was born Jun. 1, 1906 in Caldwell Co., and died there on Jul. 14, 1987.  Both she and Ralph are buried at Harris Chapel Baptist Church Cemetery in Hudson, Caldwell Co.  They had at least three children, all now deceased:  George Sylvester, born Jun 3, 1927, died Jun. 9, 1946; Thelma, born Jan. 29, 1930, died Dec. 14, 2006 as Mrs. Claude D. Payne, and Peggy Ann, born Dec. 4, 1948, died Apr. 5, 1960.

Bina Lee, born Jun. 29, 1909 in Caldwell Co., died Jul. 10, 1999 in High Point, Guilford Co., NC.  She married her distant cousin, Troy Talmadge Coffey, on Nov. 3, 1928 in Carter Co., TN.  Troy was the son of George Calvin and Louisa Elizabeth Curtis Coffey.  Troy and Bina had at least one child, a son Wayne Lewis, born Oct. 9, 1929, died Sep. 24, 1999.  Troy was born Mar. 4, 1906 in Watauga Co., and died Apr. 18, 1995 in Thomasville, Davidson Co., NC.

Lottie Merle, born Feb. 12, 1912 in Caldwell Co., died May 3, 1998 in Culpeper, Culpeper Co., VA.  She married Ralph James Moore on Jan. 21, 1928 in Watauga Co.  Ralph was born Apr. 4, 1908, a son of Wiley Hill and Ellen Hodges Moore.  After Ralph died, Lottie married Herbert Hensley who also preceded her in death.

Cora Lee, born Oct. 18, 1914 in Caldwell Co., and died there on Dec. 31, 1990.  She married Earl Boyd Miller, a son of Daniel Lafayette and Emma Coleman Miller, in 1932, Caldwell Co.  Earl was born Dec. 24, 1911 in Caldwell Co., and died in Hudson, NC on Oct. 15, 2006.  Earl was buried at Mt. Zion Baptist Church Cemetery in Hudson.  Cora is also presumed to be buried there.

Ruth, the sixth child, was born Dec. 31, 1916 in Caldwell Co.  she married Edward R. Cook on Aug. 29, 1936 in Watauga Co.  No further information is known.

It is not clear to me where the other children in the family were when this family-style photo was taken.  Because the first six children were only girls, the children in the photo have to be:

Frank E., on the right, born c1919

Boyd Ray, on the left, born Mar. 26, 1923.  Boyd married Mary Elizabeth Hayes.

Margaret Allena, the "babe in arms," born Apr. 7, 1926, died Feb. 10, 1990.  Margaret married John Wellington Ford on Jul. 12, 1941 in Watauga Co.  John was born in North Carolina on Jan. 8, 1925 and died in Lenoir on Sep. 7, 1980.  According to his obituary, John was buried in the Ford Cemetery in Caldwell Co., white Margaret was buried in the Bolick Family cemetery in the Globe, Caldwell Co.  There were at least two children born to them:  John, Jr., born Sep. 20, 1945, died Dec. 9, 1996; and Della Mae, born Dec. 23, 1947, died Mar. 12, 1995.

Please contact me to add to or to correct any of this information.

The headstone and church photos are courtesy of Connie Coffey Dorsey.  The Roby Coffey family photo is courtesy of Margaret Coffey Farley.