Thomas Henry "Tom" & Ethel Marie Nichols Coffey

Tom & Ethel w/grandchild
who donated the photograph

Thomas Henry "Tom" Coffey was the first son and fourth of nine children born to Robert Finley and Crettie May Ritch* Coffey.  Robert was a son of Thomas Hall and Cora Ellen Tolbert Coffey and, Crettie was the daughter of James Henry and Candace Genelie [sic] Chester Ritch.

Tom was born Sep. 2, 1925 in Yadkin Valley and died in Lenoir, Caldwell Co., on Aug. 28, 1999.

Ethel was born May 4, 1927 in North Carolina to Lennie Lee and Henrietta "Ettie" Curtis Nichols.  Ethel died May 26, 2004 at Granite Falls.  Both she and Tom are buried at the Robert Coffey Cemetery** [35.95201,-81.60796] near Lenoir.

Tom and Ethel were married Oct. 27, 1945 in Caldwell Co.***


Ethel's obituary:

Ethel Marie Nicholas [sic] Coffey, 77, of Melrose Street, Lenoir, died Wednesday, May 26, 2004 at Camelot Manor Nursing Home.

She was born May 4, 1927 in Bath Co., Va. to the late Rev. Lenny Lee Nichols and Henrietta Curtis Nichols. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Thomas Henry Coffey; a brother, Richard Nichols and a sister, Lucy Summerow.

Mrs. Coffey retired from Bernhardt #7 and was a member of Mt. View Baptist Church.

Survivors include a son, Tommy Carroll Coffey of Hudson; a daughter-in-law, Deana Coffey of Hudson; daughter and son-in-law, Brenda Marie Fox and husband Tommy of Maiden; three brothers, Eddie Nichols and George Nichols both of Lenoir and Clarence Nichols of Granite Falls; a sister, Joncie Swearingin of Lenoir and three grandchildren, Marty and Amy Coffey and Robbie Fox.

Funeral services will be Saturday, May 29, 2004 at 11 a.m. at Pendry's Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. J.B. Crouse and Rev. Jeff Hoyle officiating. Burial will be at Coffey Family Cemetery.

The family will receive friends today, May 28, 2004 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at Pendry's Funeral Home.

Memorials may be made to Caldwell County Hospice, 902 Kirkwood St. NW, Lenoir, NC 28645 or online condolences may be made at www.pendrysfuneralhome.com.

Pendry's Funeral Home and Crematory is in charge of arrangements.

Thomas' siblings and their spouses were:

Mary Belle, 1920-2012, married Lennie Edward Nichols c1943
Unnamed infant female, born/died Feb. 19, 1922
Beulah Evelyn, 1923-2009, married George Wesley Nichols, May 9, 1942
Jay Finley, 1927-2012, married Gertrude Clark, Dec. 24, 1948
Lillie May, 1930-?, married James Monroe Greene, 1930-1994
Lena Faye, 1932-?, married Homer Colfax Clark, 1927-2001.  Homer's first wife was Frances Louise Minton (1931-1991).  Faye's first husband was Joseph Cicero Greene (1928-1999).  They were married in 1948.
Beadie Oden, 1934-?, married Ralph Clark
Robert Claude, 1936-?, married Annie Ruth Watson, 1937-?

Corrections and/or additions welcomed.

Jack

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*Surname sometimes spelled Rich
**Directions to this cemetery were described in June of 2012 by Bradley Ingells:  From Hwy 90 (Collettsville Road), take Mulberry Creek Road at Mount Olivet Methodist Church. Go to top of the hill (just after 2032 Mulberry Creek Road) and turn right on Robert's Place (dirt road). Go all the way to the end of the road (you will go past a small cemetery in the woods on the left [Philyaw Cemetery]). Keep going to the end, cemetery is on the left in an open area. Well maintained.  To locate, cut and paste coordinates into google maps.
***"North Carolina, County Marriages, 1762-1979 ," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/VXTH-4FL : accessed 05 Nov 2012), Thomas Coffey and Ethel Nichols, 1945.

Odell Cletus & Thelma Edna Coffey Deal

Sylvannas Deal, born Nov. 1, 1832, died Jul. 30, 1899 in Burke Co., NC and his wife, Mary J., maiden name unknown, were the parents of Nathaniel T. "Nathan" Deal, born in Aug., 1862.

Nathan married Mary Elvira Shell on Mar. 27, 1884 in Lovelady Twp., Caldwell Co..  Mary was the daughter of John Tipton and Martha Bisanar [sic] Shell and, was born Aug. 22, 1867 in Caldwell Co., died May 14, 1953 in Hickory, Catawba Co., NC.

Odell Cletus Deal

Among their six known children was Odell Cletus, born Jun. 2, 1904 in Catawba Co., and who died there on Jan. 6, 1989.  Odell married first to Constance Eliza Chester in NC, c1929.  I know of one child, Robert Bernett, born Feb. 16, 1929 in Catawba Co.  Constance died on Aug. 19, 1957 in Hickory, Catawba Co. and was buried at Catawba Memorial Park on Aug. 21.

Odell then married Thelma Edna Coffey in 1959.  There were no known [to me] children.

Thelma was the daughter of William Leon and Marion Edna Norris Coffey.  She was born on Feb. 28, 1915 in Watauga Co to Millard Harrison and Ida Delrea Davis Norris.  She died on May 26, 1995 in Hickory and was also buried at Catawba Memorial Park.  Odell died on Jan. 6, 1989 in Catawba and is believed to also be buried at Catawba Memorial Park.

Dale Cloyd Norris

Anna Bell Coffey Norris

Two of Millard and Ida's children also married Coffey women. Lyman Paul Norris, born Jan., 1900, married Addie Lee Coffey, a daughter of Daniel Carlton "Dell" and Mary Jane Bodenhamer Coffey.   Dale Cloyd Norris, born Jan., 1910, married Anna Belle Coffey, sister to Addie Lee. Ida Delrea Davis was the daughter of Harvey Alexander and Mary Hodges Davis.  Millard was a son of Isaac and Amanda Spencer Norris.

Thelma was the second to oldest of the at least nine children born to William and Marion.  William was a son of William Luther and Mary Salome Moretz Coffey.  William Luther was a son of Jesse Calton and Nancy A. Raines Coffey.  Jesse Calton was a son of Reuben and Rachel Hayes Coffey.  Reuben was a son of Jesse and Margaret Edmisten Coffey.  Jesse was a son of Reuben and Sarah Scott Coffey.  Reuben's parents were John and Jane Graves Coffey.  John was a son of Edward and Ann Powell Coffey.*

Sylvannas Deal is buried at Abees Chapel Baptist Church Cemetery in Valdese, NC

Mary Elvira Shell Deal is buried at St. Lukes Lutheran Church Cemetery in Hickory, NC

William Leon and Marion Edna Norris Coffey; Millard Harrison and Ida Delrea Davis Norris; Daniel and Mary Jane Bodenhamer Coffey; andHarvey and Mary Hodges Davis are all buried at the Old Mount Pleasant-Bethany Lutheran Cemetery in Boone, NC.

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More on these families is available on "The Edward Coffey Project" DVD or, through limited request.
Photos of Dale and Anna Bell Norris appeared with their obituaries

William Leon & Marion Edna Norris Coffey

This couple married c1912, probably in Watauga Co., NC.  William was a son of William Luther and Mary Salome Moretz Coffey, born Jul. 19, 1892 in Watauga Co.  Marion was the daughter of Millard Harrison and Ida Delrea Davis Norris and was born Oct. 7, 1895, also in Watauga Co.

When William Leon registered for the draft in WW1, he did so on June. 5, 1917 in Watauga Co.  He was described as being tall with medium build, blue eyes and light colored hair.  He was 24 years old, born July 29, 1893 at Meat Camp in Caldwell Co.  Like those before him, he was a farmer and had a wife and two children.

The family appeared in both the 1920 and 1930 Watauga Co. census at Blowing Rock.  His death in August, 1963 at age 71 was ruled a suicide by "asphyxiation, drowning."  Reason for suicide is not known but "depression" was cited as contributing to his death.

He and Marion had nice children together, all born in Watauga Co.:

Homer Leon, born Jun. 29, 1913, married Polly Ersal Presnell, born Jan. 22, 1916.

Thelma Edna, born Feb. 28, 1915, died May 26, 1995 in Hickory Twp., Catawba Co.  Thelma married Odell Cletus Deal, a son of Nathan T. and Mary Elvira Shell.  He was born Jan. 2, 1904 in Catawba Co., and died there on Jan. 6, 1989.  Odell's first wife was Constance Eliza Chester, born 1908, died 1957 in Catawba Co.  He and Thelma were married in 1959 in Caldwell Co.  Thelma was a US Navy veteran of WWII.  Her military headstone marker reads S1 [Seaman First Class] US Navy, World War II.  What an adventure she must have had!  She had no known children.

Arthur Wade, born Jun. 29, 1917, married Dec. 20, 1945 to Annie Elizabeth Cohn, born Sep. 8, 1917, died Dec. 28, 2000 in Boone.

Ida Irene, born Feb. 23, 1919, married Vernon Stokes Woods, born Jan. 27, 1918 in NC, died Oct. 12, 196 in Mecklenburg Co., NC.  They were married Nov. 27, 1944 in Watauga Co.

Jewel Salome, born c1920, married Max R. Moody.  Max was born Mar. 25, 1919 in Watauga Co. and died there on Mar. 31, 2006.

Marion Helen, born Jun. 16, 1924, married Conor Jones Triplett on Sep. 14, 1946 in Watauga Co.  He died in June, 1976.

Rena Marie, born Jun. 21, 1926, married Ralph Junior Broyhill on Jan. 26, 1946 in Watauga Co.

Waymon Wayne, born Jan. 7, 1929 - no information.

Stanley Owen, born Apr. 26, 1931, died Oct. 4, 2005 in Blowing Rock.  Stanley married Betty Moody.

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Some of the birth years for these folks were found in the 1900 census.  In many cases when a corresponding death certificate was found the birth year was +/- 1 year off the census record.  This also occurs many times when viewing WW1 draft records.  The birth year is nearly always off by +/- 1 year from headstone, census or death certificate dates.  It is a phenomena that I have noticed many times and often wondered which is the most accurate?








No. 997