The Life of Marcellus Pipkins, Sr. {1884-1972}

Marcellus Pipkins was born on February 17, 1884, to the late William and Ella (Parker) Pipkins in Panola County, Texas. Aunt Mary Lee, daughter of Marcellus, relayed that her father mentioned that his mother Ella was part Choctaw Indian, and she died when he was a child. Through research, I found that Ella was born in Missouri around 1857 and brought to Caddo Parish, Louisiana in the early 1860s along with her mother and stepfather, Jane and Thomas Wells. 

Marcellus told his children that his father William was the son or grandson of the slave owner. Records indicate that William was born around 1857 in Keatchie, DeSoto Parish, Louisiana to slaves John (Dark complexion) and Mary (Mulatto complexion) on the farm of Matilda Collins, widow of Moses Collins, who died on October 4, 1855. It was common for children to have different fathers during slavery if the husband was sold or through other circumstances. John, Mary, and most of their children remained intact as a family unit throughout slavery, which is why I believe that John, not a slave owner, is the father of William . Y-DNA testing of a direct male descendant (my mom's half-brother) revealed that his haplogroup is E-M2, shorthand for E1B1A, which is African. It seems that William's mother, Mary, descends from the White Collins family, who held her and her family during slavery, as her maiden name on several documents is listed as Collins. She is listed as "Mulatto" and sometimes "Griff" in the slave transactions. 

UPDATE (5/2/2016): Autosomal DNA reveals that Mary is most likely the daughter of Moses Collins as I have several DNA matches to his descendants.

1900 U.S. Census
Locality		Justice Precinct 4, Panola County, Texas
ED, Sheet, Line		Enumeration District 69, Sheet 11A, Line 09
Enum Date		14 June 1900
House	Family	Name	Birth Date	Relationship	Occupation	Birth Place
						Self	Fath	Moth
176	179	William Pipkins	Apr 1853	Head	Farmer	LA	MS	MS
		Ellen Pipkins	Mar 1855	Wife		LA	TN	TN
		Arthur Pipkins	Nov 1883	Son	Farm Laborer	TX	LA	MO
		Marcelus Pipkins	Feb 1886	Son	Farm Laborer	TX	LA	MO
		Easter Pipkins	Oct 1896	Daughter		TX	LA	LA
		Mattie Johnson	Feb 1892	Step Daughter		LA	LA	LA
		Alonzo Johnson	Aug 1894	Step Son		LA	LA	LA

According to Aunt Mary, Marcellus did not have any formal schooling, but he learned to read and write by studying the Bible. She remembers her father as "a Holy Ghost-filled man who knew the word." At the time of his death, Marcellus had been a deacon at Antioch Baptist Church for 45 years, which is accurate according to the church history. He was ordained as a deacon in 1927 under the leadership of Reverend A.R. Richardson.   

Photo of Marcellus Pipkins, Sr. that
I received in 2007 from Pastor Roger
Jackson of Antioch Baptist Church 
in De Berry, TX

On December 4, 1910, he united in holy matrimony to Roberta Perkins, daughter of Jim Perkins and Mandy Golden. Oral history states that Marcellus and Roberta briefly lived in Wagoner, Oklahoma, and  one family member told me the story about the time Marcellus went to rescue his nephew, Jim, and his niece, Lillie, from someone in the area.

After several years of marriage, Marcellus and Roberta had three children together: Tharner James Pipkins, Marcellus Pipkins, Jr, and John Pipkins, who died as an infant or a young boy. The death of the child drove Roberta into a deep depression, and some relatives have claimed that she was "crazy." According to Marcellus, she had lost her will to live and just gave up. She passed away in 1930, and her husband went on to marry Lois Allen on October 28, 1930. Lois was the daughter of Frone and Mattie (Scott) Allen and granddaughter of Bettie (Cook) Scott, who was stated to have been a full-blooded Cherokee Indian. My DNA reveals a possible family connection between Roberta Pipkins and Lois Pipkins, which I have yet to determine at this time.

Marcellus and Lois had four children together: Maggie Lee Pipkins, David Pipkins, Hosea Pipkins, and Mary Lee Pipkins. Together, they reared six children in Bethany, Louisiana—a small community on the Louisiana and Texas state line. Research indicates that Marcellus was a farmer who worked for G.N. Brummel in Bethany, Louisiana. He also owned property located near Antioch Baptist Church.

Marcellus died on March 3, 1972, at the age of 88, and he is buried at the Antioch Baptist Church Cemetery in DeBerry, Texas. He was loved by many, many people; there are several people living today who either knew him personally or heard of him from various friends and family. He was affectionately known as "Paw-Paw" by his grandchildren and "Cousin Cellus" by other relatives.

Marcellus and Lois Pipkins

Death Certificate of Marcellus Pipkins, Sr.

Terrence A. Garnett
[December 27, 2013]

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 Source Citations:

1. Succession of Moses Collins; DeSoto Parish Clerk of Court; Volume E, p. 474-499
2. Succession of Matilda Collins; DeSoto Parish Clerk of Court; Volume F, p. 242-249
3. "United States Census, 1900," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/M3PB-GG7 : accessed 28 Dec 2013), Willaim Pipkins Household, Justice Precinct 4, Panola, Texas, United States; citing sheet , family 179, NARA microfilm publication T623, FHL microfilm 1241663.
4. Oral History Interviews [2006, 2007, 2009, 2010] with Aunt Mary, Uncle David, and Uncle Hosea [deceased].
5. Pipkins, Marcellus: "Texas, Deaths, 1890-1976," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/K3FC-XPH : accessed 28 Dec 2013), Marcellus Pipkins, 03 Mar 1972; citing certificate number 22556, State Registrar Office, Austin; FHL microfilm 2223766.
6. Pipkins, Wm & Ellen Parker [February 2, 1877]: Caddo Parish Marriages; Clerk of Court, Shreveport, Louisiana.
7. Pipkin, Bill & Ellin Johnson [ September 21, 1899]: Panola County Marriages; Volume F: Page 559, County Clerk’s Office, Carthage, Texas.
8. http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~txpanola/history_of_antioch_bc_deberry.htm [History of Antioch Baptist Church in De Berry, Texas]