From the Files of Rhodes Burns Holliman, Part 1

 by Glenn N. Holliman

From the Files of Rhodes Burns Holliman, 1928-2014....

This past April 29, my second cousin, Dr. Rhodes Burns Holliman died in Dublin, Virginia.  To the left is a recent picture of Rhodes and his surviving wife, Phyllis Anne.

Rhodes was an avid collector of family materials, building on the pioneering work of his father, Cecil Rhodes Holliman (1901-1986) of Birmingham, Alabama.  Cecil was a first cousin to my father, H. Bishop Holliman, b. 1919.

At Rhodes passing, his family graciously has entrusted me with the pleasant task of reviewing and scanning the genealogy and pictures that date from the 1910s to the present.

While examining materials today, I came upon a lovely photograph of my Aunt Vena Holliman Daly (1909-1990), mother of my first cousins, Mary Daly Herrin and Dr. Robert W. Daly, Jr.

 This photograph is not in the files of family pictures I have been collecting from my many cousins. I am wondering if this is an heretofore undiscovered photograph of Vena, taken perhaps near the date of her marriage to Robert W. Daly, Sr. in 1928?  Her name is recorded on the photograph.

As other pertinent materials emerge from the boxes of materials saved by Rhodes, I shall be posting them at this site as well as at http://hollimanfamilyhistory.blogspot.com/ .

Some of you have been following a central archives that several distant cousins and I established a year or so ago at MyFamily.com.   Unfortunately, Ancestry.com, the parent company, is retiring that site.  Below is an announcement, I posted on the site which I reproduce below.  Many of the files I have collected deal with the Holliman, Blakeney, Baker and other associated families that made Fayette County, Alabama their homes in the 1830s.

 "All, as this MyFamily site disappears on Sept. 30th, I have copied all FILES to my computer. A list of these files, about 200, can be found at the PAGES section of http:hollimanfamilyhistor­y.blogspot.com /. These represent thousands of pages of genealogical materials and manuscripts.

For the time being this is the best I can do until an appropriate archive site comes along. I am happy to email by Zip file these records, and encourage you and others to have a look at the catalogue (alphabetical order by families and records) from time to time. There are many records of Holliman and associated families.

My thanks to the families of the late Cecil R. Holliman, his son, Rhodes B. Holliman and Walt O. Holliman for the use of their files to scan, save and share via the Internet, systems not available to their generations. Also others such as Maxine Wright and Joe Parker have shared with me.

As time goes on, I shall be Zipping all my records to the core group that is also archiving them, and I especially welcome younger genealogists to copy, save and distribute these files. My estate has the password(s) to my computer files, and they will be available when I am no longer in this DNA format!

I think we all have a responsibility to save and share, especially with the age of personal computers and the Internet. If you have something stored in your attic, for family's sake, scan and share. I am happy to help if you need assistance.

How fortunate we are to have Jeanette Holiman Stewart continuing to create and add to an 18,000 name family tree file. Make sure you stay connected to this massive tree after MyFamily closes. The tree lives on at Ancestry.com.

And Tina Peddie continues to maintain communications through her Facebook and designated email site. We are a fortunate as an extended family to live in these times and to have access to a growing body of genealogical information!

Now back to scanning! Glenn N. Holliman, 7th great grandson of Christopher Holyman (1618-1691)"

Next week, Back to World War II....

How a World War Changed an Alabama Family, Part 23

by Glenn N. Holliman

 The Allies Respond....

 Between May and September 1942, 14 German U-Boats prowled Gulf of Mexico waters sinking 58 ships of over 300,000 tons. - Alabama, The History of a Deep South State, University of Alabama Press, Tuscaloosa, 2004.  In the South Pacific the battles of the Solomon Islands continued with a fearful toil of the U.S. Navy.

Below, the USS Enterprise, the last U.S. carrier afloat in the eastern Solomons, takes punishment, but does not sink in the fall of 1942.
 
But the tide of war was changing....

"Between the 4th and 22nd November, 1942, the face of the war changed its entire expression.  On the 4th, (General Bernard) Montgomery won the battle of El Alamein.  On the 8th, American and British forces landed in French North Africa.  On the 22nd, the Russians closed the pincers behind the German 6th Army in Stalingrad." - Volume II of the Dairies & Letters of Harold Nicolson, Atheum, New York, 1967.

For Bishop Holliman, radio seaman from Irondale, Alabama, the war was heating up.  After 40 mm machine gun practice in Rhode Island, his destroyer, the USS Butler, began sea trials, sailing out of Philadelphia and into the North Atlantic of the New England coast.  It was October and November, and the sea was rough.  And so was the shakedown cruise.  

Below, the Butler, all of 1,000 tons in size, sailing from her commissioning port of Philadelphia in 1942.

Below, a letter to Bishop's sister, Loudelle Holliman Ferrell, and his brother-in-law, Charles.  Recently, the Rev. Charles Ferrell had taken an appointment at the United Methodist Church in Jacksonville, Alabama as the senior pastor.   Bishop describes the fatigue and intensive training necessary to prepare the crew and ship for war duty, but does not forget niece and nephews.  

Notice his reference to the second front, the Allied invasion under the command of General Dwight D. Eisenhower of North Africa. Also, the sinking of a U-boat by another destroyer on post with the Butler.

"If you see a sub, don't report it.  Maybe it will sink us."

Below, the Charles Ferrell's and 'a new nephew', John Melton Ferrell, named after his uncle, Melton Pearson Ferrell (1908-1958).  Left to right, Charles Halford, Charles, Carolyn, John and Loudelle.  Loudelle and Charles wrote often to her brothers, Bishop, Ralph and Melton Holliman, during the war.

 Next post, more stories and photographs of an Alabama family at war....

Have questions about Holliman family history? You are invited to join the Hollyman Email List at Hollyman-Subscribe@yahoogroups.com and the Hollyman Family Facebook Page located on Facebook at "Hollyman Family". Post your questions and perhaps one of the dozens Holyman cousins on the list will have an answer. For more information contact Tina Peddie at desabla1@yahoo.com, the list and Facebook manager for Hollyman (and all our various spellings!).
For additional information on Hollimans, check out http://hollimanfamilyhistory.blogspot.com/ .