Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman and their Descendants

Earlier this year, 91 year old Bishop Holliman, the fifth child of Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman, penned some nostalgic memories of vacationing with his family in Florida in the middle 1930s.  My father mailed copies to numerous of my cousins, but with his permission, I place his words in this space in order to reach a larger audience.  Glenn N. Holliman


The Golden Summers of the 1930s, Part I
by H. Bishop Holliman 2011

Introduction -

"Several years ago, my great nephew, Clayton Herrin, suggested I
write a few words about trips my sibilings and I made to Florida with Clayton's mother, Mary Daly Herrin, and his grandparents,
Robert W. and Vena Holliman Daly in the 1930s.  He said he had heard us talk about those times, and he thought it would be good to put in writing that period of history for the benefit of his generation
and those that follow.  So that is what I have done - probably more than anyone wants to read.  But I have included many other bits of history about the family and events of those years that I think are worth recording.  Good reading!"

Above are Robert and Vena Daly, somewhere on a trip other than Florida, and most formally dressed for an outing.  In May 1932, Herbert Hoover was in the White House and the Depression was nearing its nadir.  The Democrats that summer were about to nominate the governor of New York, Franklin D. Roosevelt, as their presidential candidate.  History was about to turn again. GNH


"In the summer of 1934, I was 14 years old and had graduated from the 9th grade at Irondale school.  My sister, Virginia was 12, and Ralph, my youngest brother, was 10.  Both siblings Euhal and Loudelle were still living at home.  My oldest brother, Melton, had been married for two years, and Vena for six.  Melton worked in the drug store at Five Points in Birmingham, filling prescriptions;  Loudelle at Woolworths and Euhal for Hill Grocery Company.  Vena, Robert and their new daughter, Mary, lived next door to us, the Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman house, 2300 3rd Avenue on the hill in Irondale, Alabama.  Robert had built two brick houses in the early 1930s, and lived in the one closest to our home Daddy had constructed in 1921.

Daddy (Ulyss S. Holliman) worked at the street car company (Birmingham Electric Company) full time, having lost only six weeks of work during the Great Depression in the summer of 1933.  Robert was manager of the Woodlawn Bank, a branch of the First National in Birmingham.

This wonderful 1928 picture of young Vena and Robert showing off their catch of the day was taken in Miami on their honeymoon.  The photo hangs in their daughter's home in Irondale, Alabama.  There is a startling resemblance between young Robert Sr. and son, Robert Daly, Jr.  Vena, all of age 19, is looking very coquettish in the picture. GNH 

Vena and Robert had married in June 1928 at the Irondale Methodist Church, and went to Miami on their honeymoon, driving a four-door black Dodge automobile.  This was the first of many long trips they would take during the next thirty or so years.  Before the start of the  next summer - 1929 - Robert had traded for a used Packard roadster with a rumble seat, and they drove to Mammoth Cave, Kentucky and over to the Indian Reservation in North Carolina.

I mention these little incidents to point out that in 1929 and on through the 1930s, during the Depression years, not many people, in fact, only a very few people in Irondale, could afford the luxury of driving Packard automobiles, or taking a vacation.  Or enjoying the semblance of a comfortable life like taking long automobile trips without worrying about their next meal.

 Fate had smiled kindly on Robert and Vena, and, fortunately for Virginia, Ralph and me, we shared in their good fortune! Not only did they share their goods with we three youngest children, but also with the entire family.  Robert had been in the family as long as we could remember.  He gave us gifts at Christmas even before they were married, and he continued to shower us with love and affection and presents as long as he lived.  I don't know how or why he and Vena put up with us as they did - not only with we three youngest only, but with all the family as needs and opportunities arose."

Clayton Herrin, left , who asked his great uncle, Bishop Holliman, right, to prepare some comments on the Dalys and Hollimans in the 1930s.  Here the two stand in front of the Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman home at 2300 3rd Avenue, Irondale, Alabama in November 2010.  In 1956 with their children, Euhal and Edna Holliman moved into the house and lived in it to their passing.

Next: More Reminiscences by Bishop Holliman....

Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman and their Descendants

by Glenn N. Holliman

Virginia Ruth Holliman Cornelius, 1922

the Sixth Child of Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman

We continue from the previous post with the printed biography of my Aunt Virginia Holliman Cornelius, a pioneer for women in Alabama banking.  Virginia lives today in Austin, Texas near her children.

Below, Vena, Ralph, Virginia and Bishop, four brothers and sisters in 1978 in Birmingham, Alabama.

Above, grand daughter, Carla Sebesta, Carol Cornelius Morton, Susan Cornelius Williams, Virginia, and an Am South executive at her retirement in 1990 in Birmingham, Alabama. The clippings from Am South through the years describing Virginia's career have been many.

                                        Below, the immediate family as of 2002 of Virginia.

Next posting, before featuring the seventh child of Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman, we shall detour to the 1930s for a nostalgic look of summer vacations by Bishop Holliman, the fifth child.


Note: The information and opinions expressed in these family biographies are those of the writer alone. Comments, corrections and additions are most welcome. The purpose of these articles is to capture a period and family in American history and to pass this legacy along to future generations who share the common bond of family.

Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman and their Descendants

by Glenn N. Holliman

Virginia Ruth Holliman Cornelius, 1922
the Sixth Child of Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman

We continue to post the 2002 biography of Virginia as prepared by her family.

Continued from the previous posting...

                  Below, in 1970, Virginia, right, visits with her sister, Loudelle Holliman Ferrell.

                                                                         Photo by Glenn Holliman at Mary and E.C. Herrin's, Irondale, Alabama

                            Virginia and Walter, second from right, in happy days in the 1960s.

More Next Posting on this pioneer in Alabama business....


Note: The information and opinions expressed in these family biographies are those of the writer alone. Comments, corrections and additions are most welcome. The purpose of these articles is to capture a period and family in American history and to pass this legacy along to future generations who share the common bond of family.



Plan now to attend the Holliman and Associated Families Genealogical Round Table at the Fayette County, Alabama Civic Center, 10 am to 3 pm, Saturday, October 15, 2011. For information and reservations for lunch, contact Glenda Norris at gnorris@bcbsal.org or Glenn Holliman at Glennhistory@gmail.com.  Sessions to include Tracing the Holymans from England to Alabama, Holliman Farm Sites in Fayette County and sharing of information on Associated Families.  All invited  All invited, including the Holliman social at the Rose House Inn, Fayette, 5:30 pm to 9 pm, Friday, October 14th.

Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman and their Descendants

by Glenn N. Holliman

Virginia Ruth Holliman Cornelius, 1922

the Sixth Child of Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman

Below is a charming 1959 Christmas card of Carol and Susan Cornelius at their home in Homewood, Alabama.  Both girls now live in Texas with their own families and grandchildren.

On Virginia's 80th birthday in 2002, her daughters prepared a lovely multi-page biography of their Mother.  I can't improve on it, so I reproduce it here with their permission.  Just click on the pages and it will enlarge for reading purposes.

Here is a photo from the 2002 birthday party when this biography was presented. Left to right, Motie Holliman, who has passed away, Ralph Holliman, Virginia, Bishop Holliman and Bishop's wife, Ellen Cox Holliman. Ralph is in the insert picture in the biography above.

More of her printed biography in the next post....


Note: The information and opinions expressed in these family biographies are those of the writer alone. Comments, corrections and additions are most welcome. The purpose of these articles is to capture a period and family in American history and to pass this legacy along to future generations who share the common bond of family.


Plan now to attend the Holliman and Associated Families Genealogical Round Table at the Fayette County, Alabama Civic Center, 10 am to 3 pm, Saturday, October 15, 2011. For information and reservations for lunch, contact Glenda Norris at gnorris@bcbsal.org or Glenn Holliman at Glennhistory@gmail.com.  Sessions to include Tracing the Holymans from England to Alabama, Holliman Farm Sites in Fayette County and sharing of information on Associated Families.  All invited  All invited, including the Holliman social at the Rose House Inn, Fayette, 5:30 pm to 9 pm, Friday, October 14th.

Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman and their Descendants

by Glenn N. Holliman

Virginia Ruth Holliman Cornelius, 1922

the Sixth Child of Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman

In 1937, Robert Daly rented a house in Miami, Florida for his summer vacation in the Sunshine state. As usual his sister-in-law Virginia went along to help supervise Mary Herrin, now six years old. Here the two sit on a porch. Note Virginia's dress and shoes.

And the war came....Virginia met a gregarious young student while in high school, Walter Cornelius.  He later attended Howard College (now Samford University) in Woodlawn.  By late January 1942, they were married, and by 1943, Walter (above) was in uniform.  Here he is in the yard between the Holliman and Daly houses in Irondale, a lawn where countless photographs were taken from the 1930s to the 1950s.

While Walter was in school in 1942 and 1943, Virginia began working in her brother-in-law's bank in Woodlawn.  Robert Daly had lost several men to the draft by 1942, and Virginia started working, temporarily.   Little did she know it would be a life-time career, and she would pioneer women in Alabama banking.

After World War II, Walter returned home from the Pacific, finished law school and began a career at an attorney.  For Virginia and Walter, two girls were soon born - Nancy Carol Cornelius Morton(1945) and Susan Cornelius Williams (1949).

The above clipping ran in 1950 in the Birmingham News.  It shows, of all things, Ulyss Holliman with Carol Cornelius, five years old, at a cooking school in downtown Birmingham.  Forgive this grandson of Ulyss, but it is difficult for me one to fathom my grandfather attending a cooking demonstration and second, taking a grandchild with him!  On the right of the clipping is a portion of Mary Daly and E.C. Herrin's 1951 wedding article.  My thanks to cousin Mary for the loan of the article which I scanned into my computer.


More on the sixth child of Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman in the next post....



Note: The information and opinions expressed in these family biographies are those of the writer alone. Comments, corrections and additions are most welcome. The purpose of these articles is to capture a period and family in American history and to pass this legacy along to future generations who share the common bond of family.

Plan now to attend the Holliman and Associated Families Genealogical Round Table at the Fayette County, Alabama Civic Center, 10 am to 3 pm, Saturday, October 15, 2011. For information and reservations for lunch, contact Glenda Norris at gnorris@bcbsal.org or Glenn Holliman at Glennhistory@gmail.com.  Sessions to include Tracing the Holymans from England to Alabama, Holliman Farm Sites in Fayette County and sharing of information on Associated Families.  All invited  All invited, including the Holliman social at the Rose House Inn, Fayette, 5:30 pm to 9 pm, Friday, October 14th.

Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman and their Descendants

by Glenn N. Holliman

Virginia Ruth Holliman Cornelius, 1922

the Sixth Child of Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman

Born in Irondale, Alabama, my Aunt Virginia was the third and last daughter of my grandparents.  Below in 1923 is baby Virginia on the left in the hat, with an unnamed baby on the right.

Below is a fantastic photograph from cousin Charles Halford Ferrell of four of the Holliman siblings from 1928.  Left to right is Virginia, Ralph in the wheel barrel, and his two oldest sisters, Loudelle and Vena, who are both in bib overalls!  Notice the car with the canvas top in the background.  

Below in the middle 1930s, Virginia is supervising young Mary Daly Herrin's dip in the Gulf of Mexico.  Robert Daly took his extended family every summer to Florida to enjoy sun and sand.  Paved roads and more reliable automobiles made middle class vacations possible by the third decade of the 20th Century.  As with her brother Ralph and Bishop, Virginia attended and graduated from Shades-Cahaba High School.  As with the rest of the family World War II would change her world forever.

More Next Post on the sixth Child of Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman....

The information and opinions expressed in these family biographies are those of the writer alone. Comments, corrections and additions are most welcome. The purpose of these articles is to capture a period and family in American history and to pass this legacy along to future generations who share the common bond of family.

Plan now to attend the Holliman and Associated Families Genealogical Round Table at the Fayette County, Alabama Civic Center, 10 am to 3 pm, Saturday, October 15, 2011. For information and reservations for lunch, contact Glenda Norris at gnorris@bcbsal.org or Glenn Holliman at Glennhistory@gmail.com.  Sessions to include Tracing the Holymans from England to Alabama, Holliman Farm Sites in Fayette County and sharing of information on Associated Families.  All invited  All invited, including the Holliman social at the Rose House Inn, Fayette, 5:30 pm to 9 pm, Friday, October 14th.

Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman and their Descendants

by Glenn N. Holliman

Homer Bishop Holliman, 1919

the Fifth Child of Ulyss and Pearl Caine Holliman

Of the four sons of Ulyss and Pearl, all left Irondale, Alabama for career reasons, although Euhal moved back to Birmingham from near by Gadsden, Alabama in 1955.  In that generation, we see the diaspora of the Holliman sons.  In the generation of their children and their sisters's children, of the 18 cousins living, only five remain in the Birmingham area at this writing (Charles Ferrell, Mary Herrin, Patti Holliman Hairston, Jean Holliman and Tommie Holliman Allen). 

 Granted, earlier generations of Holliman children had moved across the country from Virginia to North Carolina to Alabama (by 1836), and others then on to Texas, Arkansas and Missouri, but the 18th and 19th Century Hollimans had been looking for land to farm - new fresh, unworked soil lying fallow waiting for the plow.  There were no new farmers of the children and grand children of Ulyss and Pearl Holliman. Beginning with Ulyss's generation and his brothers, one observes the increasing diversity of American occupations as society and industry grew more complex.

The below photograph of Bishop and Gerry Stansbery Holliman was taken in 1958 in W. Columbia, South Carolina, one of the many homes of the family as Bishop climbed a career ladder.  The three children are left to right: Becky Holliman Payne, Alice Holliman Murphy and Glenn Holliman.  When this picture was taken all commercial air travel in America was by propeller and there were no Interstate Highways.  With the exception of small Volkswagens and Fiats, almost all automobiles sold in America were made in Detroit, Michigan.  The rent on the three bedroom house behind us was $80 a month, heated with oil, and cooled with one small window air conditioner.

Bishop left school teaching in January 1952 to take a position with the Social Security Administration, a government retirement and disability program born in the New Deal year of 1935.  So in the summer of 1952 Bishop moved his family from the Irondale area (where he thought he would spend his life) to East Tennessee and later to other southern towns as he climbed the managerial ladder.  By 1964, he alighted in Cookeville, Tennessee as manager of the office there.  It was a good fit.  There was a university (Tennessee Tech) where his three children went to college and met their spouses.  Gerry and Bishop became the mainstay of the local Methodist Church, and both were active in community organizations.  Bishop served as head of the United Way, Rotary Club and Red Cross during the 1960s and 1970s.

In 1990, Bishop married Anne McGauphlin of Hartsville, South Carolina, whom he had first met in 1940 when both attended Methodist youth fellowships in Lake Junaluska, North Carolina.  Unfortunately, Anne died of cancer in 1999.  Left to right are Glenn, Bishop, Anne, Alice and Becky.  Click on photos to enlarge.

In January 1983, he retired from his federal work.  The year 1988 saw the dissolving of his war time marriage (not the first or last marriage to do so).  His former Methodist youth friend, Anne McGaughlin of Hartsville, South Carolina became his new bride in 1990.  Their marriage was happy until her death due to cancer in 1998.  In 2000, he looked up a widow he had known in earlier decades in Gadsden, Alabama.  Before the year was out, Ellen Cox became the new Mrs. Holliman.  They live today near her family in Avila, Indiana.  My father continues to astound us!

In 2002, Virginia Holliman Cornelius, Bishop's only surviving sister, celebrated her 80th birthday.  Left to right are Virginia, her daughter, Carol Cornelius Morton, Bishop and wife, Ellen Cox Holliman.

Next post, we will celebrate the life of Virginia Holliman Cornelius, a pioneer in Alabama banking....

Note: The information and opinions expressed in these family biographies are those of the writer alone. Comments, corrections and additions are most welcome. The purpose of these articles is to capture a period and family in American history and to pass this legacy along to future generations who share the common bond of family.

Plan now to attend the Holliman and Associated Families Genealogical Round Table at the Fayette County, Alabama Civic Center, 10 am to 3 pm, Saturday, October 15, 2011. For information and reservations for lunch, contact Glenda Norris at gnorris@bcbsal.org or Glenn Holliman at Glennhistory@gmail.com.  Sessions to include Tracing the Holymans from England to Alabama, Holliman Farm Sites in Fayette County and sharing of information on Associated Families.  All invited  All invited, including the Holliman social at the Rose House Inn, Fayette, 5:30 pm to 9 pm, Friday, October 14th.