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Farming For A Better Future, page 375
Bentley Hendley (1869-1953) is also buried with the Hendley family in Glenwood. The third generation of Hendley men, Charles V. Hendley (1892-1967), was a lawyer and Grand Master of Prince Hall Free & Accepted Masons of Alabama for 32 years. C.V. Hendley was well-educated. He first attended Huntsville public schools, then Howard University in Washington D.C., graduating in 1915 from the college and from the law school in 1918. He was principal of what would later be known as Councill High School from 1918-1922. Of his many accomplishments and services, C.V. Hendley was secretary and organizer for the North Alabama Color Fair in the early 20th century; auditor, secretary, and attorney for the Longview Gin Company; and grand attorney of the Alabama Grand Lodge of Knights of Phythias. As was his family's tradition, he was a lifetime member of Lakeside Methodist Church. The Horton Family A major family in the Pond Beat community, the Hortons that lived in the area in the early 20th century were headed by Yancy Horton, Sr. (18611943). Yancy and his three siblings, including Everett Horton, Sr., were the children of Andrew Jackson “Jack” Horton, a white slave owner, and an enslaved woman named Amanda Jacobs (born c. 1841). Yancy (Below) Groundbreaking for the Horton School. Pictured Here are the Trustees of the School: Yancy Horton, Sr. in the Middle with Frank Jacobs, Henry Lacy, Wattie Timmons, and Alva Jacobs (Curry 2006) (Above) Photograph of Everett Horton and His Family (Curry 2006) (Left) Connie Horton, Sr. (Shared on Ancestry.com) (Right) Photograph of Maureen Davis Cathey, 2018 (New South Associates) and his brother Everett (born 1876) owned extensive property in Pond Beat by 1941. Yancy Horton was one of the leaders of the Pond Beat community. His land is described as going from Pond Beat “along Farley-Triana Road by the school (Horton School), down the east side of the road (McAlpine Road) that goes south toward the river.” He lived in a big, colonial-style house with a porch that wrapped around three sides. The frame house had six rooms plus a dining room. Yancy donated the land for the Horton School, the Rosenwald-funded school for the community. He and others helped to clear the land and did the work to build the school. His farm was known to have a big tank of gasoline and a pump to fill tractors, and he shared this gas pump with his neighbors, Frank and Addie Jacobs. Like the Jacobs, Yancy Horton had many sharecroppers on his land. One of Yancy Horton, Sr.'s daughters and a granddaughter have been interviewed by Redstone Arsenal and New South Associates. His daughter, Pearl Horton Higginbotham (1919-2009), was interviewed by Redstone about the family history. His granddaughter, Maureen Horton Davis Cathey (born 1928), was interviewed by New South Associates at the 2018 Pond Beat/Mullins Flat Family Reunion. Maureen was the daughter of Yancy Horton, Sr.'s son, Connie Horton (1882-1966), and Connie's second wife, Parthenia C. Joiner Horton (1893-1974). Maureen lived in Pond Beat until the age of 11, where her parents were landowners. Her mother was an elementary school teacher with the Madison County school system for 43 years and her father farmed the land. After the family moved out of Pond Beat in 1941, they moved to Clinton Street in West Huntsville. Her parents bought a house and a parcel of land outside of town that they rented to a tenant. By the time the family moved to Huntsville, none of the younger generation had an interest in farming. According to Maureen, the children all wanted to go off to school and leave the farm. Maureen, herself, went to Councill High School and then Alabama A&M University. She graduated there and continued to work in accounts receivable for 25 years. The Jacobs Family One of the most prominent families of color from the Pond Beat community was the Jacobs family. There are several landowning members, and the Jacobs family have connections through marriage to many 375 - MADISON - (4903)