July 21

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Barbara Lee 'Shorty' Searcy Burton 1955

I don't have a picture of Barbara Lee. But let me trace the connection of the Searcy branch of the family tree. 

The Searcy branch of our family tree is connected to the Burford side of the family. Alexander Burford's first wife was Helen Virginia Lockard. I'm not sure what disease she had, but she was sick for some time. The youngest child, Hazel, was only five years old when Helen Virginia died. Alexander married Lora Gibson about a year later, so Lora raised these three step-children along with her own ten children that she had with Alex. One of those children was my grandfather, Lester Burford.

Alex and Helen Virginia had three children: Raymond, Edith, and Hazel.

Photo, L to R: Edith, Hazel, Raymond Burford.

Edith Burford married Will Searcy in 1909. They had six children: Laura, Eleanor, Nellie Jane, Bill, Willene, and Jerry. (Barbara Lee 'Shorty' Searcy is Jerry's daughter.) I have some old photos showing some of these people. I have tagged the pictures, although the descriptions that came with the pictures didn't always make it clear which people were named (fewer names than faces in the pictures). I gave it my best shot.

Here's the note that came with this photo:

And here's the note that came with this photo:

Here is the only other photo I have of Edith Burford Searcy:

Edith is the one standing, holding a plate of food and looking at Raymond. (Raymond is her brother.)