Georgia Virtual Vault & Edward Lamb McAllister

By Don Taylor

I’m taking a genealogy course with the Cobb County Genealogical Society, with whom I am a member. Although I’ve done many webinars, I’ve never taken an official class in genealogy.  I have been asked on a couple of occasions to give classes. I suppose I’ve been reluctant because I’ve not seen classes of this type put on by regular folks, only videos of professionals.  So, I thought I’d take the class mainly because I had never taken one before, and I thought I would pick up a few tidbits.  I am also new to the CCGC, so I thought it’d be an excellent opportunity to meet some people there. This class would be my first activity with the CCGC folks.

The first of two classes yesterday was on Census Records. It was an excellent class.  The instructor reminded me of the mortality schedules and the agriculture schedules.  I never looked at them, and I was reminded that I really should.  She did a short bit on Soundex codes and how they work. It was helpful and put it together more clearly for me. (See my frustration in a previous posting.) Beneficial was one of her Internet Resources Links that she suggested was the Soundex Calculator on the Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter site. I bookmarked the calculator and put the bookmark in my Genealogy Tools folder.  I feel bookmarks are much more manageable than remembering where I put the paper instructions.  

During the class, I was reminded of the Georgia Virtual Vault, and due to funding cuts, the Georgia Archives is only open two days a week, the least of any state archive facility.  (Note: Contact your state legislators and ask they improve funding for the State Archives. 

None of my ancestors are from Georgia, nor are my wife’s, so I’ve never done much with the Georgia Virtual Vault. I was reminded of it, so I thought I’d refresh my memory of some of the site’s things.  My wife’s great-granduncle, Edward “Ted” McAllister, died in Georgia.  Family oral history said he had “bedded a married woman and was killed by a jealous husband.”  I wondered if the story was true. A quick search and there was his death certificate.  Cause of Death: Murder.  Wow.  Maybe the story is true. Another part of the story is that Harold, the husband of my wife’s Great-Grand Aunt, went down to take care of business and have his body returned to Pennsylvania for burial.  The death certificate shows who the informant was, not Ted’s brother-in-law, as oral tradition would indicate, but Ted’s youngest brother.  The death certificate also says he was widowed.  Interestingly, I had no information on a wife or other family.  It also indicated he was buried in Laurel Grove Cemetery in Savannah.  I guess they didn’t ship the body back. 

He also worked as a car inspector for the “A. C. L. Ry.”  Not being from Georgia, I didn’t know what that was.  After a quick check at Wikipedia, I learned it’s the Atlantic Coast Line Railway (Railroad).

I searched for McAllister in Laurel Grove Cemetery on Find-A-Grave (FAG) (one of my favorite sites) and quickly located a memorial for him.  The memorial spoke of his first wife, three children, and a second wife who died and was also buried in the cemetery.

Sadly, the memorial indicated that “A Find-a-Grave volunteer reports that he is buried in an unmarked grave in Strangers Ground…- this is where county-paid burials are located. “  His wife is likewise in Strangers Ground, so they must have been extremely poor. 

The FAG memorial also mentioned his immigration in 1886 aboard the ship, “British King.”  In genealogy, one bit of information found leads to another and another. 

I knew he came across with his mother and three siblings in 1886, but I didn’t know the date, port, or ship. I’d quickly look at Ancestry and see if they had the record.  Sure enough, he was with his mother “Marg t” (instead of Margaret), and siblings. They arrived on 23 June 1886 aboard the steamship “British King” from Liverpool to Philadelphia. Surprisingly, Ancestry didn’t have a photo of the British King, but I found several elsewhere.

So hours pass as I thoroughly document all these findings.  But,  so much more to research.  Can I confirm his two marriages?  What happened to his first wife, divorce or death?  Can I find the names of his three children? Did he have other children?  Can I find a newspaper article that speaks of his murder?  Did a jealous husband really murder him?  

UPDATE

I did confirm his wife Violet died in 1910. They had three children, Edward L., Albert W., and Paul Y. McAllister.  The Savannah Press, 13 January 1925, has a multipage article regarding his murder.  The article uses four headlines to really grab your attention.

Headlines:

• Edward L. McAllister is Found Murdered in Home
• Railroad man had been dead since Saturday
• Beaten in head with hatchet; body on kitchen floor
• Lived Alone since wife died last year

Edward L. McAllister, employed at the Atlantic Coast Line Railway shops, was discovered murdered at this home on Thirty-ninth street near Ash by H. B. Brown…..

Now the question is, who did it?  Was it a jealous husband, as oral history indicated?  Oral history was wrong because he hadn’t been shot, but rather a hatchet to the head.  Much more personal than a shooting.  The article also mentions that his wife, who died the previous November, was under the care of a physician at the jail.  Why???  Always more questions.

Gently edited and reposted on 13 January 2023.