robert “bob” simmons
1880-1979
Life Story
Robert “Bob” Simmons spent nearly a century cultivating the land his family called home in Newton County, Mississippi. Born only a few years after Reconstruction, he witnessed the transformation of rural Mississippi from the horse-and-buggy era to the modern age while remaining firmly rooted in the Lawrence community. Through decades of farming, landownership, and family life, Robert became part of a generation of African American landowners whose perseverance provided stability for future generations.
Early Life in Newton County
Robert Simmons was born on March 24, 1880, in Newton County, Mississippi, to Morris Simmons and Mary Thompson Chapman Simmons. He entered the world during a period of profound transition for African American families, only a generation removed from slavery and during the early years of Jim Crow segregation.
The 1880 federal census recorded Robert as a six-month-old infant living with his parents and his older sister, Millie, in Beat 4, a rural farming community closely associated with Lawrence and the surrounding countryside.
Growing up on his family’s farm, Robert learned the discipline of agricultural work from an early age. Like many children raised in rural Mississippi, his education was balanced with the daily responsibilities of planting, harvesting, and caring for livestock. Despite the limited educational opportunities available to African Americans at the time, Robert became literate, a skill that would serve him throughout his life as an independent farmer.
Building a Home and Family
Around 1904, Robert married his first wife, Ada. By the time of the 1910 United States Census, the young couple had established themselves on a farm in Beat 4 that they owned free of mortgage, an impressive accomplishment for an African American family during the early twentieth century.
Following the end of that marriage, Robert married Bessie Amos on September 27, 1918, in Newton County. That marriage was brief, and on July 3, 1922, he married Zola Houston Robinson.
Zola’s name appeared under several variations in official records—including Essie, Iola, and Zala—while later family records identified her as Evie L. Although the records differ in spelling, they clearly document the same woman who became Robert’s lifelong companion.
Together, Robert and Zola established their home along the Lawrence–Conehatta Road, where they raised their children:
- Cleonetine (“Clemmie Teen”)
- Albertine
- Clarence
A Lifetime of Farming
Agriculture remained the foundation of Robert’s life for more than half a century.
The federal censuses of 1930, 1940, and 1950 consistently portray him as an independent farmer who remained committed to working his own land.
In 1930, Robert owned his farm free of debt, reflecting years of careful stewardship and financial stability.
By 1940, he continued operating his farm along the Lawrence Camp and Conehatta Road. The census valued his property at $750, a meaningful investment during the lingering years of the Great Depression.
Remarkably, the 1950 census found Robert, then seventy years old, still working approximately forty hours each week on his own farm along the Conehatta–Lawrence Road. His continued labor testified to both his physical endurance and his lifelong dedication to agriculture.
In 1954, Robert applied for a Social Security number, documenting decades of self-employment and agricultural labor. Even as federal programs expanded to include more Americans, Robert remained what he had always been—a hardworking farmer whose livelihood depended upon the land.
Later Years
Robert spent nearly his entire life in the Lawrence community, watching generations of his family grow while remaining on the land that had sustained him since childhood.
He passed away in February 1979 at the remarkable age of ninety-eight, having witnessed almost a century of extraordinary change in both Mississippi and the nation.
Legacy
Robert Simmons belonged to a generation that quietly reshaped African American life in rural Mississippi.
While many families were forced from the land through debt or economic hardship, Robert remained an independent farmer and landowner for decades. His success reflected determination, careful stewardship, and an unwavering commitment to providing for his family.
His life also illustrates the broader story of African American perseverance after Reconstruction. Through years of labor, Robert transformed land into security, stability, and opportunity for the generations that followed. His nearly century-long presence in the Lawrence community made him not simply a witness to history but an active participant in building it.
Today, Robert “Bob” Simmons is remembered as a devoted husband, father, farmer, and landowner whose deep roots in Newton County continue to shape the history of the Simmons family and the Lawrence community.
Research Note
Robert Simmons is well documented through federal census records spanning seven decades, marriage records, Social Security records, and vital records. His marriages are supported by documentary evidence, while census records consistently document his occupation as a self-employed farmer and his long-term residence in Beat 4 of Newton County. The varying names recorded for his third wife—Essie, Iola, Zala, and Evie L.—reflect common inconsistencies in historical records rather than separate individuals. His nearly one hundred years of life provide an exceptional documentary record of an African American landowner who remained rooted in the Lawrence community across multiple generations.
Resting Place
Unknown
Photos/Albums
Sources
- 1880 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi, Beat 4, Enumeration District (ED) ___, sheet ___, dwelling ___, family ___, Morris Simmons household, including Robert Simmons, age six months.
- 1910 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi, Beat 4, Enumeration District (ED) ___, sheet ___, dwelling ___, family ___, Robert Simmons household. The census records Robert and his wife Ada as owners of their farm free of mortgage and identifies Robert as a literate farmer.
- Newton County, Mississippi, Marriage Book ___, page ___, Robert Simmons and Bessie Amos, marriage license issued September 27, 1918.
- 1920 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi, Beat 4, Enumeration District (ED) ___, sheet ___, dwelling ___, family ___, Robert Simmons household. The census records Robert as a general farmer residing in Beat 4.
- Newton County, Mississippi, Marriage Book ___, page ___, Robert Simmons and Zola Houston Robinson, marriage license issued July 3, 1922.
- 1930 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi, Beat 4, Enumeration District (ED) ___, sheet ___, dwelling 170, family ___, Robert Simmons household. The census records Robert as owner of his farm free of mortgage.
- 1940 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi, Beat 4, Lawrence Camp and Conehatta Road, Enumeration District (ED) ___, sheet ___, Robert Simmons household. The census values his farm at $750 and identifies him as a self-employed farmer.
- 1950 U.S. Census, Newton County, Mississippi, Conehatta–Lawrence Road, Enumeration District (ED) ___, sheet ___, Robert Simmons household. The census records Robert, age seventy, working approximately forty hours per week on his own farm.
- U.S. Social Security Administration, Application for Social Security Account Number (Form SS-5), Robert Simmons, 1954.
- Mississippi Death Index Robert Simmons, February 1979; and Social Security Death Index, Robert Simmons, documenting his death in Newton County, Mississippi.
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