This nearly forgotten Folk Victorian house was recently exposed when land was cleared across from the old Ashton School. I expect it will soon be razed, as the back section has already begun to collapse. It likely dates to circa 1900-1910.
Farise Taylor writes: I played on the porch of this old house when Mr. J. T. McMillan and wife Ruby lived there with their children, John Earl, Ronald, and their sister. Before the McMillans lived there Mr. Artis O. Williams (1893-1973) and his wife Nellie Lowman Williams (1892-1967), along with their five sons lived there. The boys were D., Artis, George, Frank, and Boyette, all of whom served in combat in World War II. In 1951, Mrs. Williams, an English teacher at Ashton School, wrote a book of poetry, Songs in the Night.
In her book was a poem entitled “One Five Star Mother to Another”. This poem was a tribute to another mother, Mrs. Sullivan, who lost all five of her sons in World War II. The text follows, below.
I saw your picture in the news one day,
So full of courage, Mrs. Sullivan;
Upon your desk there stood five portraits gay;
From each frame smiled a stalwart sailor-son.
Two sisters underneath the skin we are,
Five stalwart service-sons, also, had I;
They, too, went boldly forth to global war,
And crossed the deep to conquer or to die.
Alike, we say, and yet–so different!
The ship, your sons, your very heart, went down.
My sons came back, as hale as when they went;
They changed my cross into a glorious crown!
Still, I keep thinking, Oh, and could it be,
Your precious five sent five back to me!
I have a signed copy of this book somewhere, and as soon as I can locate, will scan a photo of Mrs. Williams. I don’t know if Mrs. Williams ever shared the poem with Mrs. Sullivan, but I imagine she did. It’s hard to conceive the loss suffered by many families in the wake of the war.
Note: As of early 2025, the house has been razed.
Mrs. Williams was my great grandmother. I have a copy of her book of poems somewhere.
Mrs. Artis Williams was a fine English teacher as well as poet. She was well thought of and had the patience of Job. She taught me in the 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th grades at Ashton school. Super lady.
The stories that go with these buildings are fascinating! I’m so thankful someone cares enough to document them in this way. I’m very interested in Ben Hill and Burke Counties. My Garbutt ancestors were very involved in building mills, and businesses back in the late 1800s to early 1900s.
Thank you Brian for this post and the poem by Mrs. Williams which helps to keep the memory of our nations war dead living. On board the USS Juneau when it sank during the Battle of Guadalcanal on Nov. 8, 1942 along with the 5 Sullivan boys was also U.S. Navy Ensign Shelton B. Sutton who was born in Brewton, GA (Laurens County) on Aug. 21, 1919. His body along with the Sullivans and the other 700 crewmen were never found. In the Brewton GA Cemetery on Brewton Lovett Road is a marker for “Shelton B. Sutton (in memory) 1919 – 1942.” Next to the marker is the grave of his mother Lillie Mae Sutton 1899 – 1972). If you go through the cemetery gates and turn right and follow the inside of the fence you would find the marker about halfway down the fence line. Mrs. Sutton christened the USS Sutton (DE – 771) named for her son on 22 Dec. 1944. The USS Sutton saw action in the Atlantic as part of an anti-submarine task-force in which it was directly involved in the capture of two German U-boats. It seems as though the spirit of the Ensign was with them since it was a torpedo from a Japanese submarine that sank the USS Juneau. Before joining the Navy Sutton played outstanding football in High School for Vidalia and College for Georgia Tech.
Thank you, Brian, for sharing this. I’m glad you were contacted when this house was exposed. And the poem, oh, the poem… that Mrs. Williams wrote to Mrs. Sullivan – it brought tears. I can’t imagine that lady’s grief.