#52Ancestors: Hallie “Hal” Corder Haley (1878-1942)

My 40th entry in Amy Johnson Crow’s “52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks family history blogging challenge.

The challenge: have one blog post each week devoted to a specific ancestor. It could be a story, a biography, a photograph, an outline of a research problem — anything that focuses on one ancestor.

My 40th ancestor is my husband’s great grandfather, Hallie “Hal” Corder Haley (1878-1942).

Hal was born 21 March 1878 in Rome (Smith County), Tennessee. He appears to have been the youngest child (of the four I have identified) of William Jerry Haley (b. 1835) and Matilda Beasley (b. 1839). He, at 3 years old, is listed with his family of five on the 1880 U.S. Census living in the 12th district of Smith County, Tennessee.

In 1897, at about the age of 19, Hallie married my husband’s great grandmother, Gedie Webster (1881-1931). I have not yet found a marriage record for them. By the 1900 U.S. Census (01 June 1900), Hallie and Gedie were living next door to Hallie’s parents, and were already the parents of two daughters under the age of two, Catherine and Margaret. Hal worked as a farmer, and the family had a 10 year old black female servant child named Monsie Taylor.

1900 U.S. Census. 12th District, Smith County, Tennessee. William Haley Family and Hallie Haley Family. Courtesy of Ancestry.com.

At the time of the 1910 U.S. Census, Hallie and Gedie lived in the 4th district of Smith County, Tennessee, next door to his brother Comer and sister-in-law. Three more children were added to the family: sons Webster and Gordon, and baby daughter Francis. An adult black “hired man” named Ulus Beasley is also living with the family. Hal and Comer both worked as farmers.

On 12 September 1918, at the age of 40, Hallie Haley registered for the WWI draft in Nashville (Davidson County), Tennessee. On the card, Hal lists Nashville as the city of residence for him and Gedie. He would live in Nashville for the rest of his life. It does not appear Hal ever went back to farming. By 1918, Hallie was working as a carpenter at a powder plant in Davidson. He is physically described as tall, of medium build, with brown eyes, grey hair, and no physical disqualifications from service.

WWI Draft Registration Card for Hallie Corder Haley, 1918. Signed by him on page 1. Courtesy of Ancestry.com. Click to view larger size.

The 1920 U.S. Census records the family still living in Nashville, with Hallie working as a carpenter, and owning his own home. He and Gedie added four more children to their large family by this time: sons Norman and Comer, daughter Eleanor, and daughter Rebecca (my husband’s grandmother). On the 1930 US Census, again in Nashville, Hal is employed as a mechanic with the telephone company. By this time, he and Gedie had their final child, a little girl named Nan.

Gedie died the following year, in 1931, leaving Hal a widow with three minor age children. Hallie remarried in 1933, at the age of 55, to Lillian Mae Manning.

Hal, wife Lillian, and youngest daughter Nan (now 18) are listed in the 1940 U.S. Census in Nashville. Hal is still employed as a mechanic with the telephone company. Hal remained in that job for the rest of his life.

On 20 September 1942, Hallie suffered some sort of accident at home that resulted in a tetanus infection. He died from the infection on 13 October 1942. I don’t know if in these last years, Hal ever got to see his daughter Rebecca again and her two oldest children, but he definitely never met her youngest child Betty (my mother-in-law), who was not yet born when her grandfather Hallie died.