pearl ratcliff cole
1900-1972
Life Story
Early Life in Beat 4
Pearl Ratcliff Cole was born on May 6, 1900, in Newton County, Mississippi, to Thomas (Tom) Ratcliff and Margaret Ratcliff.
She was raised in Beat 4, a rural farming district where her father worked the land and where extended family networks often shaped household structure. Census records from 1900 and 1910 show Pearl living with her parents and siblings, including her sister Deola.
Across census records, her father appears under varying names — William, Tom, and Thomas — reflecting the fluidity of naming practices common in early twentieth-century Mississippi records. Regardless of variation, the family remained rooted in the same community district.
Marriage and Household Formation
On April 20, 1919, Pearl married Tom Cole. By 1920, the couple was living on Hero Road in Newton, initially within the extended Ratcliff household before establishing their own residence.
Pearl’s educational progress is documented in census records. While she was recorded as unable to read or write in 1910, by 1920 she was listed as literate, having completed the fourth grade. This transition reflects both personal advancement and the expanding access to schooling during the early twentieth century.
Over the years, Pearl and Tom Cole established their home in the city of Newton, later residing on Bell Street and eventually off South Main Street.
They were parents to:
- Annie Mae (later Mrs. Annie Mae Brown of Detroit)
- Samuel (Sammy) Cole (adopted son of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
Church Leadership and Public Presence
Pearl was an active and visible member of Morning Star Baptist Church in Newton. She joined early in life and remained a faithful member throughout her lifetime.
Her involvement extended beyond attendance. Newspaper records document her:
- Sponsoring church rallies
- Organizing community programs
- Participating in district women’s conventions
- Serving actively in church auxiliaries
- Acting as a member of the Heroines of Jericho
Multiple “Colored News” columns list Pearl Cole among attendees and sponsors of church events throughout the 1950s and 1960s. She helped coordinate rallies featuring guest ministers from Meridian and surrounding counties and was named among women attending Third New Hope District sessions.
These records show her as a consistent presence in the spiritual and civic life of Newton’s Black community.
Her activity in public church programs reflects leadership through service — a form of influence often exercised by Black churchwomen whose work sustained congregational life.
Later Years and Death
In her later years, Pearl experienced declining health. She was hospitalized intermittently and underwent a leg amputation prior to her death.
Pearl Ratcliff Cole passed away on September 27, 1972, at Baptist Hospital in Jackson, Mississippi.
Her funeral marked a historic moment: it was the first service held in the new Morning Star Baptist Church building in Newton. Rev. D. Haywood officiated.
She was survived by:
- Her husband, Tom Cole
- One daughter, Mrs. Annie Mae Brown of Detroit, Michigan
- Nine grandchildren
- Three great-grandchildren
- Three sisters
- Her brother, Taft Hardy of Newton
- Her adopted son, Samuel Cole of Philadelphia
She was laid to rest in Newton County, within the community that had defined her life.
Legacy
Pearl Ratcliff Cole’s life spanned seventy-two years of transformation in Mississippi — from mule-powered agriculture to postwar modernization, from segregated rural districts to expanding urban neighborhoods.
She moved from Beat 4 farmland to established city residence, from childhood illiteracy to documented literacy, and from farm daughter to church leader and civic sponsor.
Her legacy is preserved not only in family lineage, but in newspaper columns, church minutes, and district convention records — places where her name appears repeatedly as participant, sponsor, and servant.
In Newton County’s historical record, Pearl Cole does not appear as a passive figure.
She appears as present.
And presence, sustained over decades, is its own form of leadership.
Resting Place
Morning Star M.B. Church Cemetery
Photos/Albums
Sources
- 1900 Federal Census
- 1910 Federal Census
- 1920 Federal Census
- 1940 Federal Census
- 1950 Federal Census
- U.S., Find a Grave® Index, 1600s-Current
- The Newton Record, Pearl R. Cole Obituary, Wed, Oct 04, 1972 ·Page 17
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