Annie Williams was the mother of Eliza Williams Allen and my 3X great grandmother. She was born into slavery about 1820 in Virginia or South Carolina. There are no death records that early for Alabama. I know that Annie Williams appeared in the 1880 census and she didn’t appear in the 1900 census. This death is in the right place, Ward 1 and I believe it to be my 3 X great grandmother. Still looking for further proof – cemetery records for instance.
Annie Williams was listed as 50 in the 1870 census. She was born in Virginia about 1820. She lived with her daughter Eliza and her family in Ward 1, Montgomery, Alabama. She was illiterate and worked as a domestic servant. She was identified as black.
Ten years later in the 1880 census, Anna Williams age was 53. Her birth date was 1827 and her birthplace listed as South Carolina. She lived with her granddaughter, Mary Allen McCall and her husband Edward. The house was next door to Ann’s daughter Eliza and her family. She was unable to read or write and worked as a cook. She was a widow.
The only thing I remember hearing about her growing up, aside from that she was Eliza’s mother, was from my Great grandmother’s sister, Aunt Abbie. She said she remembered cutting her grandmother’s toenails when she was a girl and that she had very bad arthritis.
How interesting. I also had a great great grandmother named Annie Eliza Williams. Mine lived in Texas, and was a rancher’s wife. I found the census reports abbreviated her middle name, which was Elizabeth. But I always think of her as Annie Eliza!
My Eliza had her name as Elizabeth in the 1870 census but all the rest had Eliza and all I ever heard my mother call her was Eliza. Those must have been popular names back in those days.