“Ma” Lillie Parker Gay (1897-1984)

On this Mother’s Day, May 13, 2018, we pause to look briefly at the genealogy of “Ma” Lillie Parker Gay, wife of Robert Bob Gay, mother of 10 children, eight of whom lived well into adulthood; grandmother of 68, great grandmother of more than a 100, a great-great grandmother, and great-great great grandmother. Presently, only her two youngest children,Robert James (aka Bishop Gay, Uncle Rob) and David Clinton (aka Deacon Gay and Uncle Dave) survive.

Happy Mother’s Day, “Ma” Lillie.

In tribute, let’s go back as far as we can to take a look at the Parker family.

According to the 1880 United States Federal Census, Dempsey Parker is married to Viney Barrett Parker. Dempsey is 26 years old, and Viney is 28. They have six children: Buck, 11; Maggie, 9; Mary, 6; Elizabeth, 4; Jenny, 3; and Buddy, 1. The family is listed as living in the Farmville, Pitt County, North Carolina area. Dempsey is described as head of the house, a farm worker, and both Dempsey and Viney were born in the 1850’s, over 10 years before slavery had ended. Both answered yes for the Cannot Read and Cannot Write questions on the 1880 Census. In this census, Lillie Parker Gay’s mother, Jenny Parker, is three years old.

Twenty years later, in the 1900 United States Federal Census, the Parker(now spelled Parken) family has faced several changes and additions. First, Dempsey Parker is deceased; Viney is now identified as a 50 year old widow. Interestingly, Viney reveals that she and Dempsey were married in 1888 and lived as a married couple for 12 years, which leads to the conclusion that Dempsey died just before the 1900 census was taken.

In the 1900 US Federal Census, Lillie Parker Gay is listed as a three-year-old granddaughter of Viney Parker, who is now the head of the household and has 10 living children.

The Viney Barrett Parker (Parken) household had 16 members. Viney’s children are Margrit, 30; Mary, 29; Jennie, 26 (Ma Lillie Parker Gay’s mother); Daniel, 21; Dunprey, 19; Julius, 17; Laura, 12, and Clara, 10.

Viney’s grandchildren who lived with her were Susan, 13; Florence, 9; Edward, 8; Blaney, 6 (Ma Lillie Parker Gay’s brother), Lillie, 3; Mary, 3, and Jarvis, 2.

“Ma” Lillie also later appeared in the 1920, 1930, and 1940 censuses as wife and mother in the Gay household headed by “Pa” Robert Bob Gay.

Mother’s Day is an excellent occasion to pause and pay homage to Ma Lillie Parker Gay, the matriarch of the Bob Gay-Lillie Parker family.