Our Somers Family Heritage

Taken in 1955 This photo was taken when Dad was stationed in Tripoli, Libya after joining the U.S. Air Force. He was 20 years-old. Dad was my first hero. Dad was a tough guy in his younger years and broke his hand while in the Air Force. He tells the story of going to the doctor and saying he broke it when he fell. The doctor replied that the guy he fell on was in the next room with a broken jaw. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dad has been living with my husband and me since August of 2018 and seems to be doing well considering his illnesses (Parkinson's and Alzheimer's Disease). A couple of weeks ago Dad told me he had asked the Lord to forgive his past sins. This confession of faith in Christ Jesus came out of the blue during a moment of mental clarity. Praise the Lord! May God bless those who have prayed for us or who are going through similar circumstances. In Lord Jesus Name, I pray. Amen.

Photo is from the private collection of Ralph Womack, a great grandson. Great Grandmother Cotna (Coatney) was married to Francis Henry Somers, my Great Grandfather who was known as a "circuit rider" or traveling evangelist. *Re: Native Ancestry - I have almost ruled out Great Grandmother Coatney Cole, Harris, Tidwell, Somers, Bonn as having any Native American DNA as some of her descendants from the Tidwell marriage have contacted Dad via 23andMe and they have no NA DNA. However, some of those with direct bloodlines to Great Grandfather Francis Henry Somers appear to have a trace of Native American DNA. Please also take note that it is more likely Native American DNA will show up from the mother's DNA than from the father's ancestry.

Larry Freeman Buhler was the 5th child and 3rd son of Clarence and Daisy (Somers) Buhler ; and the husband of Linda (Davis) Buhler. Larry was tragically killed in a car accident in July of 1996 at the young age of 42 years. Linda and Larry Buhler - 1985 Larry is remembered as being a gentleman with a kind heart and a noble spirit. Larry was also an outdoors man and his wife Linda shared these photos of him taken after squirrel hunting. Our Grandpa Somers was also an avid squirrel hunter and I have memories of him rising early to hunt when I was a child visiting. May the good Lord bless Larry's memory. In Lord Jesus Name, I pray, amen. Source: Find-a-Grave

Carl "Joey" Buhler  (April 1, 1956 - March 1, 1996) Carl Joey Buhler was the youngest child of Clarence and Daisy (Somers) Buhler. Clarence and Daisy Buhler's Children - Left to right: Jimmie, Henry, Clarence Everett, Paulette, Larry and Joey  I have fond memories of Joey as we were close in age, and frankly, he was quite unforgettable.  I remember him as fearless and full of adventure - he was cute and he knew it. Joey was a terrible flirt with the girls - which was part of his charm. He had a sweet enduring quality that I still remember to this day. I also remember that as young teens he wrote me a couple of love letters which my mother intercepted. She chalked it up to "puppy love," but she also kept her antennae up when it came to her nephew and daughter. Joey and Darla Buhler Joey eventually met a beautiful young woman, Darla, whom he fell head over heels in love with and married. They had one child together - a daughter, Malisa. ...

William Henry and Lillian Mae Somers oldest son "June" William H. Somers Jr. BIRTH: 22 Mar 1925 DEATH: 31 Jan 1969 William Sr. was a WWI veteran and his son William Jr served during WWII. William Henry Somers Sr . (Find a Grave) William Henry Somers Jr.  (Find a Grave)

Beloved Cousin  https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/121978365/sherilyn-g-weiler Sheri is the only child of Joyce and Harvey (Buzzy) Somers .  She was born June 24, 1958 and passed away on April 20, 2000. Sheri was married to Steve Weiler and they had one daughter, Christy. She is missed and loved by many.  Sheri had a love for adventure and life. I will always remember her beautiful brown eyes lighting up with laughter and joy when we played together as children.  I also remember sharing my Christian testimony with her a few years before her death and how she railed at me for becoming a Christian. Then when she became very ill with kidney failure due to Type I Diabetes, she graciously reassured me that she had made her peace with the Lord Jesus Christ and everything was "all right."  Sheri knew her health was failing and showed no fear of death. She had a true, saving faith and I look forward to our reunion in Heaven at the feet of ...

Left to right: Mamie Somers Shepherd, Lillian Mae Weaver Somers (mother), Daisy Somers Buhler, and Minnie Lorene Somers Pickard

This is our petite, but feisty Great Grandmother Maggie Leona (Wright) Weaver with Great Grandfather William Izear Weaver. He could very well be our "Blackfoot" connection - he looks native! Family folklore is he was such a good ball player that he was recruited to play professional baseball, but Great Grandmother wasn't going to have him off traveling the country while she farmed alone, so he wisely chose to stay in Arkansas with the lovely Maggie. Find a Grave Memorials: William Izear Weaver Maggie Lenoa Wright Weaver

Son of William Henry and Lillian Mae Somers. Taken from Jesse Somers private family photo collection. Wm. Henry Somers Sr. with son Clyde Freeman Somers Image Source: Find A Grave Memorial BIRTH  6 Mar 1931 DEATH  4 May 1962 (aged 31) BURIAL Williams Cemetery Corning, Clay County, Arkansas, USA Source:  https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/100169851/clyde-freeman-somers Spouse: Beatrice Brown Somers Married  October 19, 1956 BIRTH  6 Aug 1932 DEATH  9 May 2007 (aged 74) BURIAL Williams Cemetery Corning, Clay County, Arkansas, USA Source:  https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/19499292/beatrice-somers *As recorded in Lillian Somers Family Bible ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Aunt Bea, Uncle Clyde and Bea's younger sister Geraldine Here's a cute story about Uncle Clyde and Aunt Bea as told to me by Wallace Somers: Before Aunt Bea and Uncle Clyde married she worked at a resta...

Great, Great Grandparents George and Nancy Wright Source: Great Grandson Jess Somers' collection of family photos. Wiki Family Tree Links: George Washington Wright Jr. (1857 - 1937) Nancy Elizabeth Jones (1860 - 1934) Somers Family Tree For additional information, please see: George Washington Wright Jr. (RootsWeb) Obituary for George Washington Wright Jr.: PIONEER PASSED AWAY HERE LAST WEDNESDAY - 30 Apr 1937 George W. Wright, aged 79, highly respected pioneer citizen of Clay Co., passed away here last Wednesday at 6:20 p.m., at the home of his daugher, Mrs. W. F. Barnes. Mr. Wright was born on 22 June 1857 near Paragould, and removed to Randolph county when he was two years of age. He had resided in Clay county during the past 35 years. His funeral services were held Wednesday afternoon by Rev. R. L. Powell and internment was made in Williams cemetery. Mr. Wright was devout christian & a member of the Methodist church. Surviving are six ...

Photo of my parents, Jess and Marsha (Lawson) Somers, with brothers Terry, Kenny and me (Taken in approximately 1958 or 1959). I don't remember ever seeing this family photo before, but after receiving it in the mail from my cousin yesterday, many fond memories have been going through my mind... I remember as a child thinking my father was the most handsome man in the world and my mother the kindest woman on earth. I also remember crawling over pillows my mother had placed around me (as a barricade?) to get to my brothers who were playing with toy army men. Sadly, they didn't appreciate my company as I remember knocking over their battle scene. :) I love my parents - mom went to be with the Lord in 1995 and Dad is suffering from Alzheimer's Disease. A few months ago he told me I worried about him too much and that he has lived a good life. He then assured me he is in the Lord's care... I truly hope so. Thank You, dear Lord, for the family I was born into. Pleas...

My aunts - Minnie Lorene (Somers) Pickard, (11.07.1926 - 4.28.2006) and Mamie Irene (Somers) Shepherd, (10.30.1921 - 2.14.2011) - Photo taken 10.29.2000 One of my most recent memories of Aunt Lorene is attending Worship with her at a Baptist Church in Poplar Bluff, Mo., while she sang this Baptist Hymn solo:

Grandfather William Henry Somers (43 yrs. old) with my father, Jesse Cecil, (2 yrs. old) riding his horse named "Sunday." This photo was taken in May or June of 1937 at their farm in Neelyville, Missouri.

I know very little of my Grandmother Somers family, except what she recorded in her Family Bible and the tidbits of information I've found scouring the internet. But, I am curious to learn more as I believe there might be a Scots Irish connection through the Wright family. From what I've been able to discern, my GG Grandfather is the son of George Washington Wright as documented at:  http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~ajobebrown/wright/phil/gw.html George Washington Wright Jr.  --b. June 22, 1857 Paragould, Greene Co., AR --d. April 29, 1937 Corning, Clay Co., AR ----buried Williams Cemetery, Corning, Clay Co., Arkansas -- m. Nancy Elizabeth JONES --February 18, 1875 Little Black Twp, Randolph Co., AR ----b. February 7, 1860 Mill Spring, Wayne Co., MO ----d. August 18, 1934 Corning, Clay Co., AR ------buried Williams Cemetery, Corning, Clay Co., Arkansas This is their headstone where they are buried at Williams Cemetery (image courtesy of...

Image is from the Clay County Courier, Corning, Arkansas, March 28, 1968 * The article states that a strong family resemblance is noted, and the strong family resemblance continues today in 2015 (90+ yrs. since this photo was taken) for the descendants of these lovely women. ** This article states the mother of Nancy (Jones) Wright as Nancy Jones, but the Somers Family Bible, as recorded by Lillian Mae (Weaver) Somers, states Mary Ann Jones as the mother of Nancy Wright.  I have found that Lillian's records in the Family Bible are accurate in other matters and believe the name used in this article for the 85 year old Mrs. Jones may be a misprint.

Notes on Cotna (Cotney, Coatny, Cortny) Lisbeth (Elizabeth) Cole (Harris/Tidwell/Somers) and Henry Francis Somers Cotna was born 1854 in Jackson County, Arkansas Her father and mother are listed in the 1900 Butler Co., Mo. Census as being born in Tennessee. Cotna married Henry F. Somers in 1893. Henry’s father Abraham (Born 1820) is from Tennessee, his mother Darcus (Born 1824), is from North Carolina. Henry F. was born in Jackson County, Tennessee in 1860. According to the Jackson Co. Tennessee 1860 Census, the Summers family is listed as: Abe – 39 yrs. Male/white Aner – 16 yrs. Female/white Archibald - 10 yrs. Male/white Darcus – 36 yrs. Female/white Henry – 2 mos. Male/white John – 14 yrs. Male/white Nancy – 12 yrs. Female/white Another possible sibling is Matthew A. Summers who is listed in a Census as being born in 1866. Also, I found a John Summers in the 1840 Jackson Co., Tenn. Census who could be Abe’s father. Henry F. Somers and Cotna (or Cotney)...

Marsha Lillian (Lawson) Somers A woman of fierce family loyalty. Date of Birth: March 26, 1929 Father: Ace Levi Lawson (Feb. 1894 - Sept. 1972) Mother: Ester Anna Stone (Jan. 1908 - Dec. 1998) Marriage to Jesse C. Somers: March 26, 1957 Mother went to be with the Lord on New Year's Eve, (December 31, 1995) after a brief battle (approximately 6 months) with cancer. She was buried at Millers Chapel in Pettis County, Missouri, on January 5, 1996 during a soft snowfall which was mother's favorite seasonal event. (I can remember being ill in bed as a young child and mother taking a laundry basket outside to catch some snowflakes to bring into me; we both loved the soft snow so much.) Mom's Baby Picture Mother and me June 1958 Mom and Dad 1975 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again,...

By Angela (Somers) Wittman Lillian Mae Weaver Somers (20 yrs. old) with oldest daughter Mamie Tomorrow, September 24th, is my grandmother's birthday. She was born in 1903 in Randolph County, Arkansas, to the lovely and spirited Maggie Lenoa and the athletic William Izear Weaver*. Lillian was their first child and I can only imagine how much this first fruit of her parents was loved and cherished by both. Apparently Lillian inherited some of Maggie's spiritedness and when she met my grandfather, William Henry Somers, a WWI Veteran who was quite handsome, dashing and approximately 10 years older than her, she fell head over heels in love and could not be dissuaded from marrying him. The family story is that my grandparents requested permission from Maggie and William to be married. Their response was "Absolutely not!" Maggie and William probably thought this would end the couple's relationship. But, instead of putting a damper on the young couple's f...

(Father to George Washington Wright Jr. and Grandfather to Maggie Lenoa Wright Weaver) Chronology abt 1824 Simpson Co., Kentucky --George Washington Wright was born 1830 Henry Co. TN --would be one of the 2 sons listed with Philomen Wright 1840 Tishomingo Co. MS, #586 listed as age 15-20 with Phil Wright 1845 Tishomingo Co., MS March 4, G. W. Wright married Lucy Ann Newman 1850 Tishomingo Co., MS census Page 9, #116 George Wright       26, farmer,     TN (brother to Granville) Lucy               23,             TN Mary                 3               MS James               6 months       MS #112 Jacob Wright -- un...

My beautiful Great Grandmother Maggie Lenoa Wright Weaver   This information was found at the "George Washington Wright" genealogy Website: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/ Maggie Lenoa (Wright) Weaver Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the Lord , she shall be praised. (Proverbs 31: 30 AKJV) Born February 17, 1885 Pitman, Randolph Co., AR Died June 15, 1957 Clay Co., AR Buried at Williams Cemetery, Corning, Clay Co., Arkansas Married to William Izear WEAVER on October 19, 1902 Randolph Co., AR Maggie was the fifth child of George Washington Wright Jr. and Nancy Jones Wright. At the passing of her father, this obituary was written: PIONEER PASSED AWAY HERE LAST WEDNESDAY - 30 Apr 1937 George W. Wright, aged 79, highly respected pioneer citizen of Clay Co., passed away here last Wednesday at 6:20 p.m., at the home of his daugher, Mrs. W. F. Barnes. Mr. Wright was born on 22 June 1857 near Paragould, ...