leila mae anderson mcgowan
1934-2000
Life Story
.Early Life in Newton County
Leila Mae Anderson was born around 1934 in Newton County, Mississippi, to John L. “Selby” Anderson and Beddie Hardy Anderson.
In the 1940 census, she appears as “Lula Anderson,” age four, residing in Newton with her parents and siblings: Thomas and Flora. Variations in spelling were common in census records, particularly in rural communities where names were recorded phonetically.
By 1950, she is listed correctly as Leila Mae Anderson, age sixteen, living with her parents along the road proceeding east from Bethel Road toward Lawrence-Bethel Road. At that time, she was recorded as “keeping house,” reflecting the domestic responsibilities often carried by teenage daughters in mid-twentieth-century rural Mississippi households.
Family and Migration
Leila grew up in a blended household shaped by agricultural labor, church life, and economic perseverance. Her father worked between farming and timber labor, while her mother maintained the household and raised the children.
Like many young adults of her generation, Leila eventually left Newton County in search of broader opportunity. She married Fred McGowan, and together they established their life in Akron, Ohio — part of the larger mid-century migration of Southern Black families to Northern industrial cities.
Her move represents a continuation of a family pattern: rural Mississippi roots giving way to urban reinvention.
Motherhood and Naming Legacy
Leila and Fred raised a large family. According to her obituary, she was survived by:
- Sons: Selby (Cassie) McGowan, Robert McGowan, Felix (Loretta) McGowan McKnight, and Andre McGowan
- Daughters: Beddie McGowan and Shirley (Darrell) Butler Sr.
Her naming choices reflect generational continuity. She named one daughter Beddie, honoring her mother. A son’s name also appears as Selby to preserve the name of her father, continuing the Anderson legacy into the next generation.
Through these choices, Leila carried Newton County forward into Ohio — not just through migration, but through memory embedded in names.
Faith and Community in Ohio
Though born in Newton, Mississippi, Leila lived approximately thirty years in her adopted community of Akron, Ohio. She was a member of the House of Prayer for All People, where she maintained her connection to church life — a constant thread linking her upbringing in Mississippi to her later years in Ohio.
Her life reflects the continuity of Southern Black church traditions carried north during the Great Migration.
Death and Burial
Leila Mae McGowan passed away on February 14, 2000, at the Hospice Care Center after a long illness. She was sixty-six years old.
Funeral services were held at the House of Prayer for All People, officiated by Elder Robert Bell. She was laid to rest at Mount Peace Cemetery.
At the time of her passing, she left behind 21 grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren, and numerous relatives and friends — a living extension of both the Anderson and McGowan family lines.
Legacy
Born along the dusty roads east of Bethel Road in Newton County, Leila Mae Anderson McGowan’s life traced the broader arc of twentieth-century African American migration.
From rural Mississippi to industrial Ohio, from “Lula” in the 1940 census to matriarch in Akron, her life bridged generations.
She carried forward her parents’ endurance, honored her mother through naming, and embedded her father’s memory in the next generation.
Though her burial rests in Ohio soil, her story remains rooted in Newton County.
Resting Place
Mount Peace Cemetery, Ohio
Photos/Albums
Sources
- 1940 Federal Census
- 1950 Federal Census
- U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014
- U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007
- U.S., Phone and Address Directories, 1993-2002
- U.S., Index to Public Records, 1994-2019
- U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995
- Summit County, Ohio, U.S., Marriage Records, 1840-1980
- Ohio, U.S., Death Records, 1908-1932, 1938-2022
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