Sunday’s Record

Land of William Alfred Lee

The Lee, Edwards, Winn, and related families arrived in Jackson Parish, Louisiana about 1903 from Elmore County, Alabama. William Alfred Lee and his wife and children left Elmore County after the enumeration of the 1900 census. The window of time when they arrived in Jackson Parish was estimated by looking at the birth dates and places of birth of the grandchildren of William A. Lee. Why did these families migrate to Jackson Parish? Were they looking for a better life? Were they running away from the law? Were they looking for cheap land? Were they job hunting? Trying to answer the question, why these families left Alabama and settled in Louisiana is like looking for a needle in a haystack. It won’t be found, unless there is a manuscript or records somewhere that hasn’t been uncovered in researching this family.

One question has been answered though, and the question was did William A. Lee own land in Jackson Parish. This question was answered because a Lee cousin thought possibly the Lee family owned land. So, this cousin recently took a road trip to the courthouse in Jackson Parish. At the courthouse a conveyance record was found for W. A. Lee, my great grandfather. Since I don’t have a copy of the actual conveyance record, I have a road trip planned to the courthouse in Jackson Parish. While I am on the road I also plan a trip to the courthouse in Ouachita Parish. It stated on the record that W. A. lived in Ouachita Parish about 1905.

April 15, 1910 William A. Lee was living in District 53, Ward 1, Jackson Parish, Louisiana near Pine Bluff and Columbia Roads. He owned forty acres described as NE ¼ of the NE ¼ Sec14, T15N R1E. Great grandfather William Alfred Lee paid seventy-five dollars for the land, and later was paid eighty-five dollars by the Tremont Lumber Company for the pine timber.

I looked for the original land owner of the property who W. A. Lee acquired the land from and found the original certificate on the U S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management in the General Land Office Records. It was originally homestead land. The land was acquired by Charles Duke through the Homestead Act.

How long did the W. A. Lee family live in Jackson Parish, Louisiana? Where did they go after leaving Jackson Parish? William Alfred Lee died 18 October 1917 in Oak Grove, West Carroll Parish and Emma died 11 November 1920 in Oak Grove, West Carroll Parish. They both are interred at the Oak Grove Cemetery in West Carroll Parish, Louisiana.

There are several unanswered questions about the William Alfred Lee family. The research is ongoing, and it may take years to find the answers. I will enjoy the hunt along the way for the answers.