jake curry, sr.

1846-1925

Life Story

From Slavery to Landownership in Newton County

Early Life in Mississippi

Jake Curry, whose surname appeared in some early records as “Currie,” was born in Mississippi around 1846–1848. Born before the Civil War, Jake entered a world in which most African Americans in Mississippi lived under slavery. Although surviving records do not identify where he was born or who enslaved him, he spent his earliest years during one of the most turbulent periods in American history.

As a young man, Jake witnessed the collapse of slavery, the arrival of emancipation, Reconstruction, and the difficult decades that followed. Like many formerly enslaved people, he began building a life in a society that offered freedom in law but continued to impose significant social and economic barriers.

By the late nineteenth century, Jake had established himself in Newton County, Mississippi, where he would spend the remainder of his life.

Marriage, Family, and a Growing Household

Jake’s family life unfolded in two chapters.

His first known wife was Sallie Logan, with whom he established his earliest family. Evidence for this relationship comes from the death certificate of their daughter, Betsy Curry, which identifies Sallie Logan as her mother.

Children born to Jake and Sallie Logan appear to have included:

Sylvia Curry
Virge Curry
Betsy Curry
Samuel Curry
Arthur Curry

At some point, Sallie Logan passed away, leaving Jake with several young children.

Jake later married Sarah Windham, who became stepmother to his older children and partner in raising a large blended family. Together, Jake and Sarah had numerous children of their own:

Their household reflected a common reality for many nineteenth-century families who rebuilt after loss. Through cooperation, hard work, and shared responsibility, Jake and Sarah raised both biological and stepchildren under one roof.

By 1880, Jake and Sarah were living in Beat 4 of Newton County with members of this growing family.

Working the Land

Throughout his adult life, Jake earned his living through agriculture.

The 1880 census recorded him as a farm laborer, reflecting the difficult economic circumstances facing many African American families during the decades following Reconstruction. Opportunities for Black landownership remained limited, and many families survived through tenant farming, wage labor, and sharecropping arrangements.

Despite these challenges, Jake steadily improved his circumstances.

By 1900, he was operating a farm while supporting a large household. Like many rural families, the Curry home functioned as both a residence and a workplace. Children contributed to farm labor from an early age, helping sustain the family’s livelihood.

Although neither Jake nor Sarah had the opportunity to receive a formal education and were unable to read or write, they ensured that their children grew up in a stable household rooted in family and community.

The Achievement of Landownership

By 1910, Jake had accomplished something remarkable for a Black man born before emancipation.

Federal census records show that he owned his own farm in Beat 4 of Newton County. Although the property carried a mortgage, Jake’s status had changed significantly. Rather than working solely for others, he was listed as an employer working on his own account.

For African Americans living in Mississippi during the Jim Crow era, landownership represented far more than economic success. Land offered a degree of independence, security, and self-determination that many families struggled to attain.

Jake’s journey from slavery-era Mississippi to farm ownership stands as one of the most significant achievements of his life.

Financial Challenges and the 1917 Trustee’s Sale

Success, however, did not eliminate hardship.

A public notice published in The Newton Record on June 21, 1917, reveals that Jake and Sarah had executed a deed of trust to Ruby S. Tatum in March 1911 to secure an indebtedness of $357.15.

When the debt was not satisfied, a trustee’s sale was ordered.

The notice announced that approximately thirty acres of land located in Section 26, Township 6, Range 10 East near Lawrence would be sold at public auction on June 30, 1917, in front of the Lawrence Mercantile Company store.

Such financial struggles were common among Southern farmers. Crop failures, fluctuating cotton prices, limited access to credit, and discriminatory lending practices often left Black landowners vulnerable to foreclosure.

Yet Jake’s story demonstrates remarkable resilience. Despite this setback, he remained active as a farmer and continued supporting his family.

A Multi-Generational Family Home

The 1920 census shows Jake, then approximately seventy years old, still working as a farmer on his own account.

His household had evolved into a multi-generational family home that included:

Also residing in the home were grandchildren, including:

Willie May Curry
Arthur Curry
Lola May Curry

The household reflected the strong kinship networks that characterized rural African American communities. Children, grandchildren, and extended relatives often lived together, sharing resources and supporting one another through economic and personal challenges.

Final Years and Death

After decades spent farming the land around Lawrence, Jake entered his final years surrounded by family.

On February 5, 1925, Jake Curry died in Lawrence, Newton County, Mississippi, at approximately seventy-two years of age.

His death certificate listed his occupation as farmer and recorded the cause of death as diabetes. The informant was his son, Arthur Curry.

The following day, February 6, 1925, Jake was laid to rest at Union Chapel Methodist Church Cemetery in Lawrence, among family members, neighbors, and community members who had shared his journey.

Legacy

Jake Curry’s life spanned one of the most transformative periods in American history.

Born before emancipation, he witnessed freedom, Reconstruction, the rise of Jim Crow, and the beginning of the modern twentieth century. Through perseverance and hard work, he established a family, acquired land, and created opportunities for future generations.

His greatest legacy was not simply the farm he owned or the crops he cultivated, but the extensive family network that descended from both of his marriages.

Through the children of Sallie Logan and Sarah Windham, Jake became the patriarch of a large family whose descendants remained rooted in the Lawrence community and spread throughout Mississippi and beyond.

Today, his story stands as a testament to resilience, determination, and the enduring strength of families who overcame extraordinary obstacles to build a future for those who followed.

Resting Place

Union Chapel United Methodist Church Cemetery

Photos/Albums

Sources

Mississippi death records, census records, and cemetery records identify Jake Curry (sometimes recorded as “Currie”) as having been born in Mississippi between approximately 1846 and 1848.
Because Jake Curry was born in Mississippi prior to the abolition of slavery, he almost certainly spent his early years enslaved. No surviving records presently identify his enslaver or place of birth.
1880 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi, Beat 4, household of Jake Curry; documenting Jake, Sarah Curry, and members of their household following Reconstruction.
Mississippi Death Certificate of Betsy Curry; identifying her mother as Sallie Logan and providing evidence that Sallie Logan was Jake Curry’s first wife.
Family records, census records, and death records indicate that the children of Jake Curry and Sallie Logan included Sylvia Curry, Virge Curry, Betsy Curry, Samuel Curry, and Arthur Curry.
1880 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi, Beat 4; documenting Sarah Curry as Jake Curry’s wife and indicating the formation of a blended household following Jake’s first marriage.
Family records and census evidence indicate that Sarah Windham became Jake Curry’s second wife and the mother of William Curry, Carlton (Carleton) Curry, Frankie Curry, Jake Curry Jr., Lee Curry, Jack Curry, Sallie Curry, Lillie (Littie) Curry, and May Etta Curry.
1900 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi, Beat 4, household of Jake Curry; documenting the Curry family and identifying several of the children born to Jake and Sarah.
1880 and 1900 U.S. Census records document that neither Jake Curry nor Sarah Curry could read or write, reflecting educational barriers faced by many African Americans born before and immediately after emancipation.
1880 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi, Beat 4; recording Jake Curry’s occupation as a farm laborer.
1900 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi; documenting Jake Curry’s continued work in agriculture while supporting a large household.
1910 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi, Beat 4; documenting Jake Curry as a farm owner, employer, and operator of his own agricultural enterprise.
For African Americans living in the Jim Crow South, landownership represented economic independence and social stability that many formerly enslaved families struggled to attain.
The Newton Record (Newton, Mississippi), June 21, 1917, “Notice of Trustee’s Sale”; documenting a deed of trust executed by Jake Curry and Sarah Curry to Ruby S. Tatum and the proposed public sale of approximately thirty acres of land in Section 26, Township 6, Range 10 East.
The Newton Record (Newton, Mississippi), June 21, 1917; identifying the indebtedness as $357.15 and announcing the public auction scheduled for June 30, 1917, at the Lawrence Mercantile Company.
Economic challenges such as crop liens, mortgages, fluctuating crop prices, and limited access to credit commonly affected Black farmers throughout Mississippi during the early twentieth century.
1920 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi, household of Jake Curry; documenting Jake’s continued occupation as a farmer and the presence of multiple generations within the household.
1920 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi; identifying members of Jake Curry’s household, including Lee Curry, Dock (Jack) Curry, Jake Curry Jr., May Etta Curry, Sarah J. Curry, Lillie Curry, and grandchildren Willie May, Arthur, and Lola May.
Mississippi Death Certificate, Jake Curry, February 1925; documenting his death in Lawrence, Newton County, Mississippi, and identifying diabetes as the cause of death.
Mississippi Death Certificate, Jake Curry; listing Arthur Curry as the informant and recording Jake’s occupation as farmer.
Union Chapel Methodist Church Cemetery, Lawrence, Newton County, Mississippi; burial records documenting Jake Curry’s interment on February 6, 1925.
Family records, census records, death certificates, cemetery records, newspaper notices, and oral histories collectively document Jake Curry’s life as a farmer, landowner, husband, father, and patriarch of one of the longstanding African American families of the Lawrence community.

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