george wesley
1904-1964
Life Story
Birth & Family Origins
George Wesley was born on December 25, 1909, in Newton County, Mississippi, to Frank Wesley (1876–1953) and Cornelia Evans Wesley (1884–1923). He grew up within a large farming family rooted in the Wesley and Evans kinship networks that shaped the rural Black communities surrounding Saint John.
Education & Early Life
In early life, George worked as a farm laborer, contributing to agricultural work from a young age. He completed the second grade of elementary school, a level of education that reflected the limited schooling opportunities available to African Americans in rural Newton County during the early twentieth century.
Occupation & Work
Throughout his life, George engaged in manual and agricultural labor. In 1950, his occupation was recorded as repairing a building that had been destroyed by a storm, indicating the kinds of seasonal and situational work common among rural laborers. He also participated in sharecropping and small-scale agricultural production.
Marriage & Children
George Wesley married Katie Mae Frost (1912–1958). From their union, the following children were born:
- Sallie Wesley (1932–?)
- Joe F. Wesley (1935–?)
- Easter Lee Wesley (1936–1973)
- William Curtis Wesley (1938–1992)
- Charles Wesley, Jr. (1939–?)
- Katie Lou Wesley (1941–?)
- Glenn Wesley (1941–?)
- James O. Wesley (1946–?)
- Josephine Wesley (1948–?)
- Rosa Lee Wesley
Together, George and Katie Mae raised their family during an era when economic survival depended heavily on family labor, farming knowledge, and community support.
Death & Burial
George Wesley passed away on January 19, 1975. He is laid to rest at Saint John Missionary Baptist Church graveyard, joining many members of the Wesley and Evans families who are interred there.
Sidebar: Farming, Sharecropping, and Cash Crops
A local newspaper article documents George Wesley’s role as a sharecropper working land associated with W. E. Foley of Newton. The article highlights the profitability of a cucumber “side crop,” noting that more than $300 worth of cucumbers had been harvested from a one-and-a-half-acre patch, with additional picking still underway.
This account illustrates how Black farmers and sharecroppers often relied on supplemental cash crops—such as cucumbers—to generate income beyond traditional row crops. These side crops provided critical financial support, particularly during periods of drought or unstable weather, and reflect the ingenuity and labor contributions of men like George Wesley within the rural agricultural economy of Newton County.
Resting Place
Saint John Missionary Baptist Church Graveyard
Photos/Albums
Sources
- U.S., Find a Grave® Index, 1600s-Current
- 1910 Federal Census
- 1920 Federal Census
- 1940 Federal Census
- 1950 Federal Census
- The Newton Record, Thu, Mar 17, 1932 ·Page 3
- The Flint Journal, Arrington, Easter Lee Obituary, Sat, Jan 27, 1973 ·Page 7
- U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007
- U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014
- U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947
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