Nancy Sutherland Boswell

Boswell
Family Notes

A Collection of Information about Our Family Before Us

Nancy Elizabeth Sutherland Boswell

Daughter of Silver Lake and Iron Mountain

1925 - 1995

My Mother was a special person, and there are few like her in my eyes, but I am of course a bit prejudiced. Let me tell you a little about her while I can ....

Nancy

Nancy was born at Silver Lake, Tennessee near Mountain City, to Wiely Sutherland and Irene Donnelly Sutherland. Her younger brother was Joseph. Many of the old folk were still around then so she knew many of the clan very well before the family moved to Montgomery, Alabama around 1939. She was 14 years old and probably quite happy to be leaving the remote and rugged mountain community for a new life near the capitol city of Alabama. But she was the product of an aristocratic blend of the best the Scotch-Irish had created with their transported families who arrived in the 1700's. Her roots ran deep and she was close to her elders and family. She was Sutherland/Wright and she was Donnelly/Rhea/McQueen. The families had been there for generations.

Nancy and her girl cousins from Mountain City were alike in that they were blessed with dignity and grace, with intelligence and determination. They were like their mothers also.

Silver Lake was the site of the Sutherland homestead, between Mountain City and Damascus. This was the result of business dealings between Wiely's father J.A. and Nat Wills. The home was in the middle of a large and rare flat valley with Laurel Creek meandering through the valley nearby. Silver Lake was the large alpine lake up in the mountain which later became the water supply for Mountain City. The Donnelly's had also owned large portions of the area.

The Iron Mountain traverses Johnson County from northeast to southwest, just north of Mountain City and has Laurel Creek on it's southern side.

Nancy

My Mother was born near the end of 1925 (December 16) in Johnson County near Mountain City, Tennessee in the neighboring community of Silver Lake on Laurel Creek. Her father was R. Wiely Sutherland and her mother was Irene Donnelly, married in 1924. Their families had lived in the neighborhood for over 100 years, so a strong family tradition was actively in place, enhanced from their respective Scotch-Irish histories. No doubt the concept of stubborn was much stronger then than now...

My uncle Joe was born in 1926 (December 29) on the same homestead built by Joseph Alexander Sutherland, a well known farmer and Sheriff of the County. J.A. Sutherland was the son of Joseph, who was the son of Alexander. Apparently the family name creativity was only encouraged through the large number of children each had. It would seem that Wiely was on the same track for a large family but for reasons unknown limited his seed to two good ones.

Irene was grandaughter of Samuel E. McQueen who was well known for his role with the Home Guard during the Civil War. Her uncles were doctors for the Confederacy. Wiely was the son of Joseph Alexander who rode with the Federal Sherman on his Georgia campaign only 60 years before their marriage.

My Mother was named for her Grandmother, Nannie Wright who was a descendant of Jacob Wright (see D.A.R. records). Nannie Wright Sutherland is considered the chief matron of all that is good in our family although the Donnelly/Rhea side also contributed an equal share. In other words, we have a strong concentration of significant family genetic value cultivated in north east Tennessee and south west Virginia heritage.

When Nannie passed away in 1931 (J.A. drowned years before while crossing a creek in winter 1904), management of the large family farm was on the shoulders of my grandfather on behalf of his two sisters Will and Ruth, and two brothers Daley and Ferdinand. Another sister, Virginia passed away too young in 1930.

My grandfather Wiely was about 40 when he became sole manager of a sizable holding of prime mountain farm land in Johnson County, as well as distant plantation land in Alabama. At that time green beans were becoming a dominant and easy crop to be profitable with. However, he was a Black Aberdeen Angus cattleman and had invested in significant bloodlines and pedigrees to produce a high quality herd. This breed was well suited to the rugged terrain and climate of Johnson County.

The Donnelly holdings through Irene were also significant in the County, creating a tremendous potential for an agricultural empire run from the beautiful Silver Lake homestead.

However, family pressure was strong to invest in the trendy bean market, and dissension rose to move in that direction rather than cattle. This internal conflict over the joint family holdings peaked out, and Wiely moved his family and his herd to Alabama in 1939. In this exodus he abandoned his claim to what was perhaps his, to his siblings. A similar episode occurred amongst the Donnellys, and these brave folks went to Alabama where father J.A. had plantation land obtained through speculation (?) or chance. Wiely's sister Ruth had married and gone to Montgomery a few years earlier where her husband J.D. Moore ran a dairy business.

Please consider that these family histories have existed only through mouth to ear, and this author's 50 year old gray jelly may not recall correct details, hence the importance to transcribe the recalled story.

Some Tennessee Family Background

My grandfather was Wiely Sutherland from Mountain City in Johnson County Tennessee. Actually the homestead was called The Laurel near Silver Lake north of Mt. City half way to Damacus. He was born Sept 23, 1890 and died July 13, 1966. He married Irene Donnelly in 1924. Two children were born in Mountain City: Nancy Elizabeth (Dec 16, 1925 - March 15, 1995) and Joseph Clayton (1926-1968).

Wiely was the youngest child of Joseph Asberry Sutherland and Nancy “Nannie” Florence Wright. This was J.A.’s second family. Wiely was a cattleman breeding Angus cattle.

J.A. was son of Joseph Sutherland, second family. Joseph was son of Alexander Sutherland. It is estimated that Alexander was born around 1758 in Scotland.

Alexander lived to be 101, residing in Wythe County. VA, and buried at Elk Creek. He married Margaret Bryant. His father is said to be the “Grand Duke” of Scotland. However, this can not yet be collaborated, although he did receive a large grant of land from his father after the war. If related to the Duke of Sutherland, he was perhaps illegitimate which was very common and accepted. Refer to the tragedy of the infamous Sutherland Clearances in Scotland for additional relevant content concerning this generation. After the Battle of Culloden in 1746 and defeat by England, Scotland was forced through significant changes and many were forced to leave.

Nannie Wright was the beloved mother of 3 daughters and 3 sons. She was born June 2, 1864 and died 1931. With her passing, management of the large family farm eventually became a family dispute and Wiely took his family to the southern plantation in Montgomery, ALA.

Nannie was daughter of Robert F. Wright and Sarah McQuown in Washington County VA. Nannie’s brother was William Elliot Clayton Wright (Aug 1, 1878 - 1958) who married Eleanor Campbell Rhea. This is the father of Mac Wright whose children are George and William. Robert is descended from Jacob Wright, an early settler in the area of Grayson County, VA (Damascus).

Home in Alabama

My grandparents did not own a piece of Alabama when they moved there, but Wiely's sister Ruth did. They lived in three different houses around and lastly within Montgomery. First was a rented house south of town on (?) road. Then, in the late forties they moved to another rented farm on U.S. 529 in Snowdoun, just south of town and the prime road to the Florida coast.

My mother went to Cloverdale Jr. High in town where she met and completely enamored a city boy who loved to hunt and fish, my father. This close relationship lasted through Lanier High School (also in town) and the start of college. She was a pure bred country girl who really liked living in the city.

Dick

My mother went Hollins College in Virginia, and my father went to the Japanese occupation in 1946 as an Army Sgt in the 97th Signal Corp. Long distance love grew even stronger, and they went to The University of Alabama together. She was a Kappa Delta and he was a Phi Delta Theta. Soon they married when Dick went to Dental School in Birmingham. I was born there under the shadow of Vulcan, and shared the same community as my best friend Woody Lamar for three years (not counting summers at Perdido Beach). Then we returned to live in Montgomery. Woody has continued as best friend throughout school and adulthood and is God Father to our daughter Sara.

During this time Uncle Joe went to Auburn University, and became a successful insurance salesman in Mobile after several years in Montgomery. He and wife Sarah had three children: Clayton, Leigh, and Charles.

When I was growing up in the city, I was either hunting and fishing with my father all over the State of Alabama, or delivered to the farm for weekends with the Grandparents. Until football began to dominate the fall weekends, this is how I spent a lot of time. I was truly ignorant of how good I had it back then, and how this would steer the rest of my life.

In the early '60s Wiely retired due to health and heart problems, sold his herd of prize Aberdeen Angus, and moved to town. He purchased a unique house in the Garden District of Montgomery, and comfortably enjoyed his retirement until his sudden death on July 13 in 1966. His wife Irene continued to live there and manage the property which was a large mansion subdivided into 4 apartments and a garage apartment. The rental income from the 4 units supported her until her passing on June 4,1978. My Mother took great care of her, always.

My sister Bettye was living then in Montgomery with her husband Craig Strickland. They moved into the vacancy upon Irene's death and assumed management of the property located on the corner of Hull Street and Rose Lane. Upon their divorce, our sister continued to manage the property and live there.

Woodley Den

When my father passed away in 1980 at age 53, my mother Nancy was still owner of the Hull St property but continued to live in the Woodley Road residence. Eventually, Nancy moved to the Hull St house and our sister moved to the garage apartment there. This appeared to be a happy arrangement until the management responsibility was restored totally to our Mother.

At that time the business arrangements turned sour concerning the property management and a "secret" advance inheritance scheme fell apart. Our sister moved to Orlando where brother Wiely lived with his family. Bettye had secured the deed to the property in a handshake type of deal and soon tried to evict her own Mother so that she could sell the property. The case went to court and the deed was returned to Nancy. Bettye was soon disinherited completely at the request of our mother, who failed to leave a single dollar in her will to her daughter. This was to become a big problem.

Our Mother passed away March 16, 1995 and Wiely became executor of the estate. Our sister sued both me and Wiely, and our daughters.

In compromise, our sister was granted a large sum of money from her brother(s) and has not been heard of since, and assumed to still be in Florida with no natural children.

Brother Wiely has possession of (and lives in the house on) Hull St with wife and two children. I have been in Texas since 1975 and have my mother's half interest in the property left to my grandfather Wiely by his brother Daley, known as Sugar Creek at Spring Cave, with my three cousins. I have wife and one daughter.

Nancy

Nancy died from breast cancer within months of learning of the cause. If you knew her you would have thought it would be lung cancer from all the cigarettes she smoked. Our sister never resolved her dishonor with our Mother. Wiely did a great job of taking care of her although he and his family lived in Florida. I was able to visit several times from Texas and it was difficult to say good bye. Her idea of heaven included being with the family who had passed before, all together seated at and around the grand dinner table.

Richard Boswell Jr.

Email to : Boswell Farms

Return to Boswell Farms' Family Site

This page last revised March 19, 2006