mattie lee curry davis
1900-1967
Life Story
A Life of Faith, Family, and Quiet Strength
Early Life and Family Roots
Mattie Lee Curry was born on November 1, 1900, in the Lawrence community of Newton County, Mississippi, to Arthur Curry and Maggie Windham Curry. She grew up in Beat 4, where farming, faith, and family formed the foundation of everyday life.
As one of the younger children in a hardworking agricultural household, Mattie learned the value of responsibility from an early age. The 1910 federal census records her working as a farm laborer on the family farm while also attending school. Despite the limited educational opportunities available to African American children in rural Mississippi during the Jim Crow era, she learned to read and write, skills that reflected both her determination and her family’s commitment to education.
Motherhood, Joy, and Heartbreak
By 1920, nineteen-year-old Mattie was still living with her parents in Lawrence while caring for her infant son, A. C. McElroy, who had been born the previous year.
A few years later, she welcomed another son, Elbert Curry, born on July 3, 1922. His father was identified on the birth and death records as Robert Walker.
Tragically, Mattie’s joy was short-lived.
When Elbert was only ten months old, he became seriously ill. Despite medical care, he passed away on May 1, 1923, from colitis, a disease that claimed the lives of many infants during the early twentieth century before modern medical treatments became available.
Mattie personally served as the informant on her son’s death certificate, preserving the official record of his brief life while enduring one of the deepest sorrows a mother can experience.
A New Beginning in Jackson
In the years that followed, Mattie sought new opportunities beyond rural Newton County and eventually relocated to Jackson, Mississippi.
She made her home there for approximately three decades, becoming part of one of Mississippi’s largest African American communities during a period of tremendous social and economic change.
By 1950, federal census records identify Mattie as the head of her own household on Bloom Street in Jackson. She supported herself through domestic work, earning a living as a housekeeper while maintaining her independence.
Her move from the agricultural communities of Newton County to the state capital reflected the experiences of many African Americans who migrated within Mississippi in search of greater employment opportunities without leaving the South.
Faith and Devotion
Faith remained the constant foundation of Mattie’s life.
She accepted Christ at an early age and became a member of Jerusalem Baptist Church in Lawrence, where she began a lifelong journey of Christian service.
After relocating to Jackson, she united with Farish Street Baptist Church, one of the city’s historic African American congregations. According to her obituary, she remained a faithful and devoted member throughout her years in Jackson, finding strength, fellowship, and purpose within the church community.
A Daughter’s Devotion
Later in life, Mattie demonstrated another measure of quiet faithfulness through her care for her aging father.
According to her obituary, she devoted six years to caring for him during a prolonged period of illness. Her willingness to return home and provide that level of personal care reflected the strong family values that had shaped her throughout her life.
In an era before professional caregiving services were widely available, such responsibilities often fell to devoted family members, and Mattie embraced that role with compassion and dedication.
Death and Legacy
Mattie Lee Curry Davis passed away on July 5, 1967.
Funeral services were held on July 9 at Jerusalem Baptist Church, the church where her spiritual journey had begun many years earlier. She was laid to rest in the church cemetery among family members and lifelong friends.
She was survived by her parents, her son A. C. McElroy, her sister Tennie Moore, and numerous nieces, nephews, and extended family members whose lives she had touched.
Though she experienced profound personal loss, Mattie’s life was ultimately defined by perseverance rather than tragedy.
She overcame hardship, built an independent life, remained steadfast in her faith, lovingly cared for both her children and her aging father, and left behind a legacy of resilience, compassion, and quiet strength. Today, she is remembered as a devoted daughter, loving mother, faithful Christian, and an enduring member of the Curry family whose life reflected the courage and determination of her generation.
Resting Place
Union Chapel United Methodist Church Cemetery
Photos/Albums
Sources
- Mississippi birth records, federal census records, and her obituary identify Mattie Lee Curry Davis as having been born on November 1, 1900, in Lawrence, Newton County, Mississippi, to Arthur Curry and Maggie Curry.
- 1910 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi, Beat 4, household of Arthur Curry; documenting nine-year-old Mattie Curry living with her parents and siblings on the family farm in the Lawrence community.
- 1910 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi; recording Mattie Curry as both attending school and working as a farm laborer on the family farm.
- The ability of Mattie Curry to read and write, as reflected in later census records, illustrates the Curry family’s commitment to education despite the limited opportunities available to African Americans in rural Mississippi during the Jim Crow era.
- 1920 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi, household of Arthur Curry; documenting nineteen-year-old Mattie Curry residing with her parents and her infant son, A. C. McElroy.
- Mississippi Death Certificate of Elbert Curry (1923); identifying Elbert as the son of Robert Walker and Mattie Curry, and recording his birth on July 3, 1922.
- Mississippi Death Certificate, Elbert Curry; documenting his death on May 1, 1923, at the age of ten months from colitis.
- During the early twentieth century, gastrointestinal diseases such as colitis, enteritis, and severe diarrheal illnesses were among the leading causes of infant mortality, particularly in rural communities where access to modern medical care was limited.
- Mississippi Death Certificate, Elbert Curry; identifying Mattie Curry as the informant, preserving the official record of her son’s brief life.
- Public records and federal census records indicate that Mattie Curry later relocated to Jackson, Mississippi, where she resided for approximately three decades.
- 1950 U.S. Census, Jackson, Hinds County, Mississippi; documenting Mattie Curry as the head of her household residing on Bloom Street and employed as a housekeeper.
- Jackson, Mississippi, served as one of the state’s principal centers of African American employment, education, business, and religious life during the mid-twentieth century, attracting migrants from rural communities throughout Mississippi.
- The Newton Record (Newton, Mississippi), July 12, 1967, obituary of Mattie Lee Curry Davis; stating that she accepted Christ at an early age and united with Jerusalem Baptist Church in Lawrence before later becoming a faithful member of Farish Street Baptist Church in Jackson.
- The Newton Record, July 12, 1967; noting Mattie’s faithful service within Farish Street Baptist Church during her years in Jackson.
- The Newton Record, July 12, 1967; reporting that Mattie devoted approximately six years to caring for her father during his prolonged illness.
- The Newton Record, July 12, 1967; documenting Mattie Lee Curry Davis’s death on July 5, 1967.
- The Newton Record, July 12, 1967; recording funeral services held on July 9, 1967, at Jerusalem Baptist Church in Lawrence, Mississippi.
- Jerusalem Baptist Church Cemetery, Newton County, Mississippi; cemetery records documenting the burial of Mattie Lee Curry Davis.
- The Newton Record, July 12, 1967; identifying her survivors, including her son A. C. McElroy, her parents, her sister Tennie Moore, and numerous nieces, nephews, and extended family members.
- Family records, federal census records, Mississippi vital records, newspaper accounts, church records, cemetery records, and genealogical research collectively document the life of Mattie Lee Curry Davis as a devoted daughter, loving mother, faithful Christian, caregiver, and respected member of the Curry family of Newton County, Mississippi.
Sources Consulted
1910, 1920, and 1950 U.S. Federal Census Records; Mississippi Death Certificate of Elbert Curry (1923); The Newton Record (July 12, 1967); Jerusalem Baptist Church Cemetery Records; Mississippi Vital Records; Newton County Genealogical Research Collections; Curry Family Records and Oral Histories.
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