My Grandfather, James Alvin Levoid Statum, was born in the house you have pictured on the Bellefonte, Alabama web page.  My Great-Aunt Ruby Statum Gaines also recalled living in that house.  She called it the Snodgrass place and she believed that the Statum family or the Cox family is related to the Snodgrass family in some way.  My Great-grandmother, Tabytha Jane Cox Statum, moved to that house in Bellefonte from Hollywood after her husband, James Thomas Statum, died of tuberculosis on February 3, 1913.  One of my Great-uncle John Statum's friends, Robert Knight of Hollywood, made the rock tombstone that still stands next to the tomb stone we placed on his grave in the Harmony Cemetery near Crow Mountain.  My Grandfather was born on March 14, 1913, about 6 weeks after his father died.  They lived there for a few years barely getting by.  Eventually, the family moved to Huntsville and went to work at the Lincoln Mill.  My Grandfather used to talk about walking to Huntsville when he was five years old with one of his older brothers to try to get a job at the cotton mill. His brother and mother got jobs in the mill, but he was too young at that time.  However, he worked for the Lincoln Mill until it closed when he was older.

 

    Unfortunately, my Great-Aunt Ruby passed away February 5, 2005.  About 3 years ago, when she was 92, she asked the man that lives in the trailer beside the old house to let her go inside and look around it.  She really put her self in danger; however knowing Aunt Ruby, I'm not surprised. 

 

    My Statum family history has a lot of holes in it, because of my Great-grandfather's untimely death.  I wish I could find the missing information, but I have hit a brick wall thus far.  My Grandfather died in 1994, before I was interested in family history and all three of his brothers and one other sister were dead before I was born. 

 

    I was able to find out a few things, though.  My Great-grandfather was listed on the 1880 Franklin County, TN Census as a step-grandson of William H. Gillispie and Mary Tipps Statum Gillispie.  Mary Melissa Tipps married William Statum March 30, 1854 in Franklin County, TN.  William died in the Civil War somewhere in Mississippi.  I do not have a date of death and I do not know where he is buried.  Mary married her neighbor William H. Gillispie January 29, 1865.  I do not know when she died. If her grave is in Franklin County, TN, it's not marked.  I believe that James Thomas Statum is the son of Thomas F. Statum.  Thomas F. is the only son of William and Mary Statum old enough to have a son James Thomas's age.  Thomas F. Statum is an elusive figure.  He is not listed on the 1880 Franklin Co, TN census.  However, I believe I found him on the 1880 Faulkner County, Arkansas census living in the household of Ezekiel Wilkerson.  Under relation it says other, so he was probably a farm hand or something of the like.  Thomas F. made it back to Winchester, TN before he died, because he is buried in the Winchester City Cemetery.  He died in 1898.  I've been to Winchester two or three times and I found a wonderful book about my Tipps ancestors, but nothing on the Statum's.  Aunt Ruby told me that James Thomas Statum came to Jackson County, Alabama from Winchester, TN to live with his uncle Lemuel Easley and Aunt Francis "Fannie" Statum Easley of Hollywood.  Uncle Lemuel and Aunt Fannie are pictured in the photo I have attached to this e-mail.  I believe that Francis Statum Easley is the sister of William Statum.  She was most likely James Thomas's Great-aunt.