And when it finally did ten days later, the marriage of Eunice and Charlie was thrust upon the front page of newspapers across the nation. When the press interviewed Eunice in 1976, she said that she had no regrets over marrying so young. There was talk of making the couple the feature attraction of a traveling show, but that never materialized. Standing at a curve in the roadway, the Reverend asked the two to join hands and performed what he later described as a “Baptist ceremony.” “And what God hath joined together let no man put asunder.” He then pronounced them man and wife and the brief ceremony was over. As they say, never say never. And if this case has stirred up enough excitement to bring about a new marriage law for Tennessee, then it has served its purpose. In fact, I am quite certain that it is far more remote than where I grew up. In early August, it was time for Eunice to go back to school, which she had stopped attending after her January marriage. Tennessee, Marriage Records, 1780-2002 Name: Charlie Johns Gender: Male Age: 22 Birth Date: abt 1915 Marriage Date: 14 Jan 1937 Marriage Place: Hancock, Tennessee, USA Spouse: Eunice Winstead U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014 Name: Charlie Johns Social Security Number: 408 … We have set your language to If they want to live together and be happy, then people should leave them alone.” She added, “Eunice can’t sleep, she’s so nervous. Instead, she met up with her fiancé and the two walked several miles to ask Reverend Lamb to marry them. The girl’ll lose her mind if strangers don’t stop coming to see her.”. We’ve updated the security on the site. This flower has been reported and will not be visible while under review. GREAT NEWS! The press ran stories of similar child brides, but none were as young as Eunice. A Tennessee law enacted in 1927 required that girls under the age of 18 and boys under 21 give five days notice prior to the granting of a marriage license, unless they had their parents’ approval. × Flowers added to the memorial appear on the bottom of the memorial or here on the Flowers tab. Eunice Blanche Winstead Johns would live another nine years without her husband. Chancellor A. T. Stewart agreed that there had been a violation of the 16-year age minimum, but wrote that an annulment would only serve to put “Geneva out of house and home with no place to go.”. The first would make marriage involving anyone under the age of fourteen “null and void,” even if the parents approved. He quickly looked over their marriage license and everything seemed to be in order. Share this memorial using social media sites or email. He was twenty-four. ). He was released on a $1,000 bond. Try again later. Some were as much as $500 (approximately $9,000 today), but they were nearly all turned down. February 2, 1937. Mrs. Ben Jacobs of Port Byron, Illinois gave birth to her first son in 1933, nine days before she had turned twelve. “I went every whichaway I could think of to throw him off the track. It was now up to the Tennessee House to review and approve. “A girl of 12 or 13 or even 14 has no idea of love or marriage. Verify and try again. After the ceremony was completed, Eunice stopped at her sister’s to pick up the doll and then went home. “When I’m around the hill people I brag that I was married at 13, and a grandmother at 30. Because the couple had lied on their marriage application. She is survived by her sister, Dorothy Wolfe of Bean Station; children, Gene Johns, Lee Johns, Ralph Johns, Ronnie Johns and Dennis Johns, all of Thorn Hill, Dorothy Newman of Russellville, Carolyn Stanley of Bean Station; several grandchildren and great-grandchildren; several nieces, nephews and a host of other relatives and friends.The family will receive friends from 6-9 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 31. Nine’s a little early, but they had a license and Eunice didn’t seem so young.”, What is most shocking was that there was nothing that public officials could do about the marriage. Should the girl be under eighteen years of age, the new law required a three day waiting period before a license could be issued. When teacher Wade Ferguson gave her a switching for supposed “general mischievousness,” her husband decided to withdraw her from school. based on information from your browser. Try again. Which leaves me with one last little surprise. Your account has been locked for 30 minutes due to too many failed sign in attempts. She gave her age as eighteen when they applied for their marriage license. Are you sure that you want to remove this flower? It turns out that Geneva had been placed in an orphanage two years prior and had little contact with her mother since. Previously sponsored memorials or famous memorials will not have this option. Mrs. Russell Frazell of Moline, Illinois already had a son when she was fourteen. Back in 1937, Hancock county was in one of the most inaccessible locations in all of Tennessee. As it is, it’s a poor commentary on our civilization and on East Tennessee.”, The Rev. Year should not be greater than current year. Together they had nine children; three girls and six boys with a nineteen year age gap between the youngest and the oldest. The email does not appear to be a valid email address. Are you sure that you want to delete this memorial? And on the new state law, too. For Edits select Suggest Edits on the memorial page. And she wouldn’t be their last. Failed to delete memorial. Upon hearing the news of the Senate approval, Charlie told the press, “I ain’t payin’ no mind to what they’re doin’ down to the legislature, nor what folks is saying. Maybe Eunice is a mite young, but what of it?”, She continued, “I guess I was married at 13, and a grandmother at 30, and there ain’t nothing wrong with me. Of course, understand I haven’t brought my children up to marry what men has got, but to marry for love.”, “She married too young but it’s too late to talk about it. This produced the desired result in that it allowed Hancock County to double its revenue from marriages, many of the couples coming from the nearby state of Virginia, which set its minimum age for marriage at twenty-one. Here is a sampling of what others had to say: Mrs. Urban Neas, president of the Central Parent-Teacher Council, stated, “I can’t imagine such a thing happening in a Christian nation. With the help of neighbors who blocked the road and stood guard outside, everything seemingly possible was done to insulate nine-year-old Eunice from the prying eyes of the curious press. Oops, we were unable to send the email. One of the most troublesome children in Tennessee is Mrs. Eunice Winstead Jones, 9. He was correct. "Shorty" Griffin. After all, every girl has a right to get married, and if Eunice wants to marry Charlie, it’s her own life.”. But the people who issued the license for the marriage made just as big a mistake. Fascinating True Stories from the Flip Side of History. Plese check the I'm not a robot checkbox.'. The effect of this law was that many couples, including those of eligible age who misunderstood the regulation, simply went to another state to marry. The sponsor of a memorial may add an additional, No animated GIFs, photos with additional graphics (borders, embellishments. Evelyn told the press that she couldn’t understand how her father could be upset with the marriage. An email has been sent to the person who requested the photo informing them that you have fulfilled their request. When her marriage last winter to a lank, 23-year-old hillbilly named Charlie Johns provoked a national scandal (TIME, Feb. 15), Tennessee hastily enacted a law prohibiting the marriage of persons under 14. To suggest a correction or addition, visit the memorial page and click Suggest Edits. Luckily, he came to his senses and dropped all of the charges. After I finished writing this story, I started gathering the documents and images to post on my website. And besides, I’ve got other more important matters to worry about at the moment.”. Are you sure that you want to report this flower to administrators as offensive or abusive? Eunice Blanche JohnsEunice Blanche Johns, age 78, of Thorn Hill, was born Sept. 26, 1927 and passed away Aug. 29, 2006 at Morristown Hamblen Healthcare System. According to the 2010 census, the population of the entire county was 6,819 in total. About one-quarter of those baby brides were concentrated in the states of Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee. This account has been disabled. I have to make a living for myself and my children. His fee was $1.00 (about $18.00 today. Also an additional 2 volunteers within fifty miles. And while both families were in approval of this union, the outside world was not as supportive. Yet, no one was more vocal in supporting the marriage that Eunice’s mom: “Let them alone. Family members linked to this person will appear here. I thought you might like to see a memorial for Eunice Blanche Winstead Johns I found on Findagrave.com. A system error has occurred. Becoming a Find a Grave member is fast, easy and FREE. English Please note: You are asking volunteers to find and take a photo of the headstone. If there isn’t a law, there should be one.”, Mrs. Louise Bussart, also of Knoxville, stated “I sincerely believe some restriction should be put on the marriage of young girls. She was preceded in death by her husband, Charlie Johns; parents, Lewis and Martha Winstead; children, Evelyn Antrican and Patsy Johns; grandsons, Michael Antrican and infant Johns; brothers, Earl, Herbert Winstead; sister, Ina Greene.
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