maudie mcelroy boykins
1904-1978
Life Story
Early Life and Family Roots
Maude McElroy Boykin was born in 1904 in Newton County, Mississippi, into a family deeply rooted in faith and community leadership. She was the daughter of Reverend Laban “L.B.” McElroy and Marsella Sharpe McElroy, a household shaped by both spiritual guidance and the demands of rural life. Tragically, her mother passed away in 1918 when she was just 14 years old. By 1920, she was raised by her stepmother, Sina Thompson McElroy.
Raised in Beat 4 of Newton County, Maude grew up in a large and lively family alongside her siblings—Otis, Ben, Judie, Joe Anna, Emma, and Sudie. Like many children in the rural South, her upbringing was defined by both family responsibility and labor. By the age of fifteen, she was already working on the family farm, contributing to the household’s survival and stability.
Her early life reflects a generation of young Black women who learned discipline, resilience, and responsibility long before adulthood.
Marriage and Family Life
Around 1923, at approximately nineteen years old, Maude married John Lester Boykin, beginning a partnership that would span more than four decades. Together, they built their life in the Lawrence community of Newton County, establishing their home along Highway 80.
During the difficult years of the Great Depression and into the 1940s, Maude balanced the responsibilities of homemaking with wage labor. She worked as a washerwoman for private families, a physically demanding job that many Black women undertook to help sustain their households when opportunities were limited.
Maude and John raised two children:
- Mattie Lee Boykin, later Mrs. Mattie McDowell
- Louis B. (L.B.) Boykin
Her life during these years reflects the quiet strength of women who carried both domestic and economic burdens, ensuring that their families endured.
A Life of Work and Faith
As the daughter of a minister, Maude’s life was grounded in faith. Though records may not detail her specific church roles, her upbringing within a religious household shaped her values—commitment, perseverance, and service to family and community.
Her work as a washerwoman was more than employment—it was part of a broader pattern of survival for Black women in the segregated South. Through long hours and physically taxing labor, she contributed directly to the stability and upward movement of her family.
The Move North: Joining the Great Migration
After the passing of her husband in 1966, Maude became part of a broader historical movement that reshaped Black family life in America—the Great Migration. Seeking both opportunity and family connection, she relocated to Joliet, Illinois.
There, she made her home with her daughter, Mattie McDowell, and son-in-law, Elva McDowell. Her move also reunited her with several siblings who had already migrated north:
- Sisters Jonna Watkins and Judieth Trammell, living in Joliet
- Brother Ben McElroy and sister Emma Newton, living in Detroit, Michigan
This relocation reflects a familiar pattern—elders following the paths first taken by younger generations, strengthening extended family networks across state lines.
Later Years and Passing
Maude spent her final years surrounded by family in Joliet, maintaining the same quiet strength that had defined her life in Mississippi.
She passed away on October 28, 1978, at the age of 74, at Silver Cross Hospital in Joliet, Illinois. Her funeral was held on October 31, 1978, bringing together loved ones from both Mississippi and Illinois—a testament to a life that bridged two regions and generations.
She was laid to rest at Elmhurst Cemetery in Joliet, marking her final resting place far from the red clay of Newton County, yet deeply connected to the family legacy she helped build.
Legacy
Maude McElroy Boykin’s life tells the story of a woman who stood at the crossroads of two worlds—the rural South of her birth and the industrial North of her later years. She represents a generation of Black women whose labor, faith, and sacrifice made possible the movement and advancement of their families.
From farm laborer to washerwoman, from Mississippi to Illinois, her life reflects endurance, adaptability, and devotion. Her legacy lives on not only in her children and grandchildren, but in the story of a family that stretched across regions while remaining rooted in shared history and strength.
Family Summary (c. 1978)
| Relation | Name | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Father | Rev. Laban “L.B.” McElroy | Lawrence, MS (Deceased) |
| Mother | Marcella Sharpe McElroy | Deceased – May 03, 1918 |
| Stepmother | Sina Thompson McElroy | Deceased – 1973 |
| Husband | John Lester Boykin | Deceased |
| Daughter | Mrs. Mattie McDowell | Joliet, IL |
| Son | L.B. Boykin | Joliet, IL |
| Sister | Mrs. Sudie Brown | Newton, MS |
| Sister | Mrs. Emma Newton | Detroit, MI |
| Sister | Mrs. Jonna Watkins | Joliet, IL |
| Sister | Mrs. Judieth Trammell | Joliet, IL |
| Brother | Ben McElroy | Detroit, MI |
Resting Place
Elmhurst Cemetery in Joliet, IL
Photos/Albums
Sources
- 1910 Federal Census
- 1920 Federal Census
- 1930 Federal Census
- 1940 Federal Census
- 1950 Federal Census
- U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current
- U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947
- The Newton Record, Maude McElroy Obituary, Wed, Nov 01, 1978 ·Page 14
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