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mary ann whitehead adkins – curry

1872-aft. 1941

Life Story

A Daughter of Newton County Who Extended the Whitehead Legacy into the Delta — and the Black Press

Mary Ann Whitehead was the eldest known child of Andrew Dowel Whitehead and Sena Nelson Whitehead. Born in the early 1870s in Newton County, Mississippi, she belonged to the first generation born after Emancipation to build stability in freedom.

Her life reflects movement, adaptation, independence, and leadership — stretching from the wooded hills of Newton County to the rich agricultural lands of the Mississippi Delta, and eventually into the pages of the Black press.

Early Years and First Marriage

Raised in Beat 4 of Newton County, Mary Ann grew up in a household grounded in land, labor, and resilience. Unlike her mother Sena, who was recorded as unable to read or write, Mary Ann belonged to a rising generation shaped by literacy and opportunity.

On September 9, 1893, she married Alfred L. Adkins, becoming the first of three Whitehead sisters to marry into the Adkins family. During their marriage, they farmed in Beat 4 and had two children:

  • Maggie Adkins
  • Jay Adkins

By 1903, the marriage had ended in divorce — an uncommon and courageous transition for a Black woman in rural Mississippi. Divorce in that era required resolve. Mary Ann rebuilt her life rather than remain in a dissolved union.

A New Chapter in the Delta

Around 1904, Mary Ann married William I. Curry. The couple relocated to Sunflower County in the Mississippi Delta — part of a broader internal migration of Black families seeking agricultural opportunity.

While her siblings remained in Newton County, Mary Ann expanded the Whitehead family’s geographic footprint.

The 1920 census incorrectly recorded the Curry household as “White,” a clear enumerator error. However, the death certificate of her son, William Swanson Curry, firmly reconnects Mary Ann to her Whitehead lineage in Newton County.

In Sunflower County, she presided over a large blended household that included:

  • William Swanson Curry
  • Janetta Curry
  • Ruth Curry
  • Annie L. Curry
  • Edith Curry
  • Jack Curry
  • Pattie Curry

Her life in the Delta was not retreat — it was expansion.

Reporter for The Echo (1941)

A remarkable new dimension of Mary Ann’s life emerges in June 1941.

A clipping from The Echo, a Black newspaper based in Meridian, Mississippi, lists:

“Mrs. M. E. Curry — Reporter.”

The article places her within the Curry family network and identifies her as serving in an official reporting role.

This confirms:

  • She was alive in June 1941
  • She was literate and publicly active
  • She served as a community correspondent for a Black newspaper

For a woman born in the early 1870s in post-Reconstruction Mississippi, this is extraordinary.

The Black press was a powerful institution in African American life — documenting local events, uplifting community voices, and preserving history. Mary Ann’s role as a reporter suggests she was not only a matriarch, but also a communicator and public voice.

Reconsidering the “7 Born / 6 Living” Census Puzzle

Mary Ann’s confirmed migration to the Delta and later appearance in 1941 helps clarify the long-standing question from Sena’s 1910 census.

By 1910, the known living Whitehead children were:

That equals seven.

If Sena reported fewer living children, possible explanations include:

  • An undocumented child who died young
  • Census reporting error
  • Temporary loss of contact after Mary Ann’s relocation

What Mary Ann’s story confirms is that the Whitehead family was not static — it was mobile, adaptive, and statewide in reach.

The Whitehead Sisters

Three sisters shaped distinct spheres of influence:

  • Mary Ann — Delta matriarch and Black newspaper reporter
  • Janie — pastor’s wife and community leader in Newton County
  • Ada — schoolteacher and wife of Willie Adkins, reinforcing landholding ties

Together, they represent the generational shift from post-slavery survival to structured community leadership.

Legacy

Mary Ann Whitehead Adkins Curry was:

  • A divorced woman who rebuilt her life
  • A migrant within Mississippi’s agricultural expansion
  • A mother of a blended household
  • A Delta matriarch
  • A reporter for the Black press

She did not merely leave Newton County.

She carried it with her.

And through land, literacy, migration, and media, she ensured that the Whitehead name would not remain confined to one place — but would stretch across Mississippi soil and into its printed history.

Resting Place

Unknown

Photos/Albums

Sources

  • 1880 Federal Census
  • 1900 Federal Census
  • 1920 Federal Census
  • The Echo, Lightening Shocked, Fri, Jun 20, 1941 ·Page 4

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