Henry W. Birdwell

Notes:

Barbara Wright of Sabine County (email: leow@sabinenet.com) sent an excerpt from the minutes of the Little Flock Baptist Church, dated July 18, 1891. In these minutes, "The Church preferred a charge against brother Henry Birdwell for taking the life of his brother Jerry Brown. By motion and second the church with drew fellowship from Brother Henry Birdwell....DmM. Marshall, moderator, W.D. Cousins, C.C. "

Barbara emailed Melinda Strong on Saturday, July 6, 2002, that "The story is Henry Birdwell was a share crope and he was working for Brown. When the crops were ready to harvest, Brown went down in the field and told Henry that he was going to have to leave with nothing (in payment) for all of his work. Brown jumped on Henry. I am not sure what kind of a weapon that Brown had, but all Henry had was a hoe, and he killed him with a hoe, and was later cleared as it was self defense. My Aunt is 91 yr. old and this is what she said happened. And since it is in the Little Flock Church minutes, it must be true."

David Pike included the following excerpts about this family on his website:

"The Henry Birdwell family moved here from San Augustine to the Halfway House (AKA: Halfway Inn & Stagecoach Inn). They had three daughters; Clara, Christine and Mabel. Clara married a Mr. Collier and they moved to Houston and they had a sweet little girl named Lucille Collier. She grew up and was a very talented dancer. She and her mother moved to Hollywood, California, and Lucille got a role in a movie. The studio changed her name to Ann Miller. We have all seen her do some pretty fancy dancing in the movies. Ann came back to Chireno a few times to visit her grandparents after she became a movie star. Mr. Eric Green did some work on her car once while she was here visiting. Ann also visited the Chireno School while we were having a play and she came up on the stage for a few minutes."

p. 234, "Remembering Families No Longer In Chireno";
Birdwell, Henry and Alice;
The Birdwell's lived near downtown Chireno, where the Higginbothams live today. He owned a large farm west of Chireno where he engaged in large-scale farming. He and his wife had five sons, Phil, Link, Bertram, Richard and Cecil and three daughters, Clara, Mabel and Christine. They were also the grandparents of Ann Miller, the well-known Hollywood dancer and actress.

(Research):

Census Listings:

1900 Census
Texas, Nacogdoches County, Attoyac Vicinity
Enumerated 2 June 1900
SD 86 ED 44 Sheet 4B
64-64
Birdwell, Henry W Head W M Nov 1864 36 m8 Tx Ala Ga Farmer
Birdwell, Alice E Wf W F Feb 1869 31 M 9 5/3 Tx Mo Ky
Birdwell, Clara E Dtr W F Spr 1892 8 S Tx Tx Tx
Birdwell, Benton J Son W M Sept 1873 6 S Tx Tx Tx
Birdwell, Richard D Son W M Sept 1877 3 S Tx Tx Tx
Markham, James Boarder W M --- 1871 29 S Ark Ark Ark Farm Laborer

1910 Census
Texas, Nacogdoches County, JP 3
Enumerated 24 Apr 1910
SD 3 ED 99 Sheets 7B and 8A Stamped 166
(Microfilm image on Ancestry.com very faint and only partially legible)
134-137
Birdwell, Henry W Hd M W 45 M1 19 Tx Tx Tx
Birdwell, Alice L Wf F W 41 M1 19 11-- Tx Miss Ky
Birdwell, Clare L Dtr F W 18 S Tx Tx Tx
Birdwell, James B Son M W 16 S Tx Tx Tx
Birdwell, Richard Son M W 12 S Tx Tx Tx
Birdwell, Mabel Dtr F W 9 S Tx Tx Tx
Birdwell, ??? ??? M? W 8? S Tx Tx Tx
Birdwell, ??? Son M W 4? S Tx Tx Tx
Birdwell, ??? Dtr F W 2 S Tx Tx Tx
Birdwell, ??? Son M W 1/12 S Tx Tx Tx
???, ??? Servant? ??? B 25 ???

1920 Census
Texas, Nacogdoches County, JP 4
Enumerated 6 Jan 1920
SD 2 ED 429 Sheet 3A
45-46
Birdwell, Henry W Hd M W 55 M Tx Ala Ga Farmer
Birdwell, Alice Wf F W 51 M Tx Mo Ky
Birdwell, Link Son M W 12 S Tx Tx Tx
Birdwell, Christine Dtr F W 11 S Tx Tx Tx
Birdwell, Phil Son M W 9 S Tx Tx Tx

1930 Census
Texas, Nacogdoches County, JP 4, Chireno Town
Enumerated 4 Apr 1930
ED 174-12 SD 12 Sheet 3B
67-69
Birdwell, Henry W Hd O $2000 M W 65 M 25 Tx Ala Tx Farmer
Birdwell, Alice M Wf F W 61 M 20 Tx Mo Ky

Henry married Alice E. Forse on 10 Nov 1889 in Sabine County, Texas. Alice (daughter of John Smith Forse and Lucynthia Smith) was born in Feb 1869 in Sabine County, Texas; and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

She changed her last name to Miller, due to the professional name change of her daughter, actress Anne Miller.

(Research):

Census Listings:

1930 Census
Texas, Harris County, JP 1, Houston City, Block 900
Enumerated 21 April 1930
ED 101-71 SD 26 Sheet 2A Stamped 67
Main Street
86
Collier John A Head $50 R M W 42 M 26 Ga Ga Ga Lawyer General Practice
Collier, Clara Wf F W 38 M 16 Tx Tx Tx
Collier, Lucille Dtr F W 7 S Tx Ga Tx
Birdwell, Christine Sister F W 22 S Tx Tx Tx Stenographer Law Office

Family/Spouse: John Alfred Collier. John was born on 18 Mar 1888 in Moultrie, Colquitt County, Georgia; died on 15 Apr 1960 in Houston, Harris County, Texas; was buried in Forest Park (Forest Park Lawndale) Cemetery, Houston, Harris County, Texas. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Could this be the Mabel Elizabeth Birtdwell who married Elmo Murray Roberts, Jr, and was the mother of Mike Henry Roberts, born 22 Nov 1931 in Nacogdoches?

Mike Henry Roberts Date of Birth: 22 Nov 1931 Gender: Male Birth County: Nacogdoches Father's Name: Elmo Murray Roberts Jr. Mother's Name: Mabel Elizabeth Birdwell Roll Number: 1931_0006

Notes:

Name: Link Delmas Birdwell
Death Date: 31 Aug 1972
Death Place: Nederland, Jefferson, Texas, United States
Gender: Male
Race: White
Death Age: 66 years
Estimated Birth Date:
Birth Date: 17 Jun 1906
Birthplace: Texas
Marital Status:
Spouse's Name:
Father's Name: Henry Birdwell
Father's Birthplace:
Mother's Name: Alice Forse
Mother's Birthplace:
Occupation:
Place of Residence:
Cemetery:
Burial Place:
Burial Date:
Additional Relatives:
Film Number: 2223926
Digital Film Number: 4005487
Image Number: 02516
Reference Number: 60949
Collection: Texas Deaths, 1890-1976

Notes:

(Research):

Census Listings:

1930 Census
Texas, Harris County, JP 1, Houston City, Block 900
Enumerated 21 April 1930
ED 101-71 SD 26 Sheet 2A Stamped 67
Main Street
86
Collier John A Head $50 R M W 42 M 26 Ga Ga Ga Lawyer General Practice
Collier, Clara Wf F W 38 M 16 Tx Tx Tx
Collier, Lucille Dtr F W 7 S Tx Ga Tx
Birdwell, Christine Sister F W 22 S Tx Tx Tx Stenographer Law Office

Christine married Leo Roberts on 15 Feb 1933 in San Augustine County, Texas. Leo was born before 1907; and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Cecil married Wenonah Fischer on 15 Aug 1936 in San Augustine County, Texas. Wenonah was born before 1916; and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

American musical star Miller dies

US musical actress Ann Miller, famed for her impressive tap dancing, has died of lung cancer at the age of 81.

Miller starred in more than 40 Hollywood films during her long career, notably Kiss Me Kate and Easter Parade, with Fred Astaire and Judy Garland.

Working for MGM studios during the heyday of the Hollywood musical of the 40s and 50s, she continued dancing into her 60s alongside Mickey Rooney.

She died at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles on Thursday.

Miller began her showbusiness career at the age of 11, having taken up dancing to help straighten her legs after suffering rickets as a child.

She eventually claimed the record of 500 taps a minute.

At just 13 she was given a seven-year contract with RKO studios, although she had said she was 18.

Big break

Her movie debut was in New Faces of 1937, going on to appear in a number of low-budget musicals and comedies.

After eventually being signed to MGM, Miller replaced Cyd Charisse in Easter Parade after the actress broke her leg before filming.

But by the mid-1950s the popularity of the big screen musical waned and she moved into television and theatre.

One of her most successful projects was the touring show Sugar Babies with Mickey Rooney, a tribute to the burlesque era.

'Brassy showgirl'

"At MGM, I always played the second feminine lead; I was never the star in films," Miller once said.

"I was the brassy, good-hearted showgirl. I never really had my big moment on the screen.

"Sugar Babies gave me the stardom that my soul kind of yearned for."

Speaking after her death, Rooney called Miller "a great talent".

"She told me the last time I spoke to her she wasn't feeling too well, and I said, 'Keep your head up, kid.' I'm just very sad," he added.

Miller married three times but all ended in divorce.

Her last film role was in David Lynch's Oscar-nominated film Mulholland Drive in 2001.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/entertainment/3422589.stm