Aunt Lilly Henry Petty (1886-1983

Lilly Henry Petty (1886-1983), c1982. Lilly Henry married James M. "Jim" Petty (1882-1956), 21 May 1903, in Murray County, Georgia. Jim was 21 and Lilly was 16. They lived on Jim Petty Road in Crandall, Murray County, Georgia. Jim was a farmer and when we visited them a couple of times when I was a kid. He also raised collie dogs. They had nine children. One was a doctor, Glenn Petty, in Chattanooga who lived on Lookout Mountain. Once I read an article about Glenn's daughter Gail Petty, who went to West Point and after she was to graduate she and her brother had plans ride their bikes Maine to Florida. Another son of Jim and Lilly, Carton Petty, developed a huge farm that had its own FAA registered airport to fly out its produce. Another son Cecil, is the only son I have met. He was genuine a down-to-earth nice fellow. I am also related to Cecil's wife Mildred Baxter, through the Bookout family. Mildred and I are both descended from Jesse Bookout, who was an overseer of Chief Vann's plantation slaves. By the way, then, it was against Georgia's law for a white man to work for an Native American. the Georgia Militia surrounded the plantation to put an end to Jesse's employment. Jim and Lilly are buried at Sumac Presbyterian Cemetery - Murray Co., GA. I had the pleasure of taking these pictures of Lilly in August 1978, when she was about age 92, about five years before she died. She was sharp as a tack and witty, with a wry sense of humor. One interesting story she told me was that her husband and other of his siblings had to hold down their brother Erwin Petty, while their uncle Dr. William Virgil Garrett, removed Erwin's frostbit toes without anesthesia. She was living with her son Carlton* at the time, in a big stone house on the Cleveland Highway. *I did not get to meet Carlton on that visit, he was out in the fields working... as they say, make hay in the sunshine.