JAMES HENRY and  ELIZABETH DARDEN PERSON
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This information graciously contributed by Joe George: jgeorge@northcoast.com
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The state library in Richmond, Virginia shows in its records that  James Henry Person 
of Southampton County, Virginia bought his marriage license August 22, 1842 and 
married   Ann   Elizabeth Darden on Thursday, August 25, 1842, marriage performed 
by Rev.  John W. White.  Richard Darden was the father or guardian, no ages recorded.
 
They lived at Emporia, Virginia the first few years of their married life. They moved 
to a farm home near Capron, Virginia in Southampton County. The home was in 
front of that of the Musgraves.
 
They had both money and slaves. The family was Methodist in religious faith and 
were classed socially as aristocrats. In the days of slavery, the daughters of  James and  
Ann Person ( Bertha,  Lucy and  Adelaide) had their own private maids who 
performed their every service.  Edward, a son, also had a slave boy assigned to watch 
over him. When  Edward was naughty the slave boy knew he could not strike him. 
Instead, for punishment, he took him by the hand and ran as fast as he could for 
several hundred yards.

After the war was over (1861-1865) the slaves were freed and the wealth was gone 
when the Yankee soldiers stripped the South. However, the aristocracy of the Person 
family was still practiced after they had to labor hard for a living. One custom practiced 
was a coat and tie worn by the men when they sat down to eat.
   
 James Henry Person is supposed to have been born March 7, 1819 and died on April 
20, 1867.
   
   Ann Elizabeth Darden Person is supposed to have been born July 4, 1825 and died 
December 20, 1867.
   
They were buried in a private cemetery on the family farm. Upon their death, they left 
six living children, four of which were under age.
  
Two of their daughters,   Bertha Person Gilliam and   Adelaide Person Drewry, and  a 
granddaughter,  Rose Gilliam Drewry, visited the site of the graves a short time before 
1934 and found the tombs torn down and the grounds in poor condition.

An oil painting of  James and  Ann Person still hangs in the living room of the home 
of  Charlotte DeVany, 522 Carolina Avenue in Norfolk, Virginia.
   
 Charlotte and  Rose Gilliam Drewry are granddaughters of James and Ann.
  
In 1867 when  James Henry and  Ann Elizabeth Person died, the children, lacking a  
legal guardian, broke up their home and were all placed in the home of relatives. This 
reportedly made them very unhappy.
 
 Bertha went to live with her Uncle  Jim Darden. She taught school.  Lucy and  
Adelaide were sent to live in the home of their Uncle  Junius Person.  John went away 
to New York to attend school.  Herbert went to another relative and  Edward was sent 
to Uncle  Peter's and Aunt  Ada's home.
 
 Edward is said to have remarked that his uncle and aunt were so sweet on calling 
each other 'honey' that he became disgusted and 'honeyed' away,