Series I – The Betts Family

Oscar L. Betts, Jr. was born May 30, 1903 in Raleigh, North Carolina and died in Columbus, Georgia on October 8, 1998. He was the fourth of five children born to Oscar Leon Betts (born August 19, 1862 in Raleigh, North Carolina and died June 6, 1936 in Rome, Georgia) and Addie Elizabeth Barkley (born July 3, 1871 in Halifax, North Carolina and died September 30, 1962 in Rome, Georgia). At the time of his death, Oscar Betts, Sr. was the sheriff of Floyd County, Georgia. He had moved to Rome around 1911 to manage the American Cotton Oil Company's plant there.

Oscar Jr's siblings were:

Carl Leon Betts (born September 1, 1891 in Raleigh, North Carolina and died December 20, 1966 in Rome, Georgia Elizabeth (Betty) Betts Wyatt April 1, 1895 in Raleigh, North Carolina and died December 7, 1983) Robert Barkley Betts (born March 12, 1898 and died October 6, 1968 in Panama City, Florida) William Edward Betts, (died August 8, 1980 in Raleigh, North Carolina)

Oscar Betts, Jr. married Frances Louise Britt (April 24, 1905-June 24, 19098) on December 7, 1927. She was the daughter of William Oslin Britt (1865-April 21, 1954) and Elizabeth Brooks Britt of Thomaston, Georgia. Her father was a banker and peach grower. They had two children: (1) Mary Elizabeth Betts, who was born August 12, 1929 in Birmingham, Alabama and died three days later on the 15th of August. She is buried in Thomaston, Georgia, her mother's home town. (2) Oscar Leon Betts, III (known as Buster) was born December 26, 1930 and died in 2009. Buster graduated from Georgia Tech with a B.S. in I. M. in 1953. He worked with Tom's Foods in Columbus, Georgia as their Sales Service Manager. He married Sue Malone Taliaferro August 6, 1967.

Oscar Betts, Jr. prepared a detailed resume at the time of his appointment as a Vice President of the Jordan company in 1962 In it, he listed the following details about his life:

Education:

Public Schools of Rome, Georgia

Darlington School, Rome, Georgia (class of 1919)

Georgia Institute of Technology, B. S. in Civil Engineering (class of 1924)

Reserve Commission (2d Lt.), Air Service

Employments

Nov. 1924 to March 1925 -- Junior Engineer, Bridge Dept. North Carlina State Highway Commission, Raleigh, N.C.

1925-1935 Southern Ferro Concrete Company, Atlanta, Georgia

(a) -- March 1925 to Nov. 1926 -- In charge of Unit Costs and Manufacturing Details (shop drawings), as well as Material Expediting. Some of the jobs during this period: 1. Auditorium, Macon, Georgia; 2. Presbyterian Sunday School, Macon, Georgia; 3. Andrew Jackson Hotel, Nashville, Tennessee; 4. Cotton State Life Building, Nashville, Tennessee; 5. Carling (now Roosevelt) Hotel, Jacksonville, Florida; 6. Hotel Daniel Ashley, Valdosta, Georgia; 7. Archbold Memorial Hospital, Thomasville, Georgia; 8. Asheville Country Club, Asheville, North Carolina; 9. First National Bank Building, Tampa, Florida

(b) -- Nov. 1926 to Oct. 1927 -- Superintendent in Charge of Construction, Halifax District Hospital, Daytona Beach, Florida

(c) -- Oct. 1927-Apr.1929 -- Superintendent in Charge of Construction, New Medical School Buildings, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia

(d) -- Apr. 1929 to Apr. 1930 -- Superintendent in charge of Construction, Jefferson County Court House, Birmingham, Alabama

(e) -- Apr. 1930 to May 1935 -- General Superintendent in Charge of all outside or actual construcition, Southern Ferro Concrete Company, as well as all relate4d office work; unit costs, shop drawings; expediting, etc. Typical jobs during this period: 1. The C & S National Bank Building, Atlanta, Georgia, remodeling and addition; 2. William-Oliver Building, Atlanta, Georgia; 3. Doctors Building (W. W. Orr), Atlanta, Georgia; 4. The C & S National Bank, Macon, Georgia; 5. Barracks #5 and #6, Fort Benning, Georgia; 6. North Fulton High School, Atlanta, Georgia

(f) -- May 1935 to Aug. 1935 -- Acting General Superintendent, Beers Construction Company, Atlanta, Georgia. Jobs under supervision: 1. U.S. Post Office, Tuskegee, Alabama; 2. U.S. Post Office, Clanton, Alabama

(g) -- Aug. 1935 to Aug. 1962 -- Manager of Ralston Hotel, Columbus, Georgia for Charles Loridans (and the Estate of), until property was sold May 1, 1962

Fraternities, Clubs and Other Affiliations: Member: Sigma Nu Fraternity; Rotary Club of Columbus, Georgia; Columbus Chapter, G. S. P. E. [Georgia Society of Professional Engineers]; Register Professional Engineer, Georgia #1607; Green Island Country club, Columbus, Georgia

Director: Fourth National Bank, Columbus, Georgia (Chairman of Executive Committee); Gas Light Company of Columbus, Georgia; Tom Huston Peanut Company [later Tom's Foods], Columbus, Georgia; The Jordan Company, Columbus, Georgia

Vice President and Trustee: The Walter Alan Richards Foundation, Ind., Columbus, Georgia

Secretary and Treasurer and Director: Columbus Plumbing & Mill Supply Company, Columbus, Georgia/ Twin City Supply Company, Opelika, Alabama

Trustee: Darlington School, Rome, Georgia

Member: City Democratic Executive Committee for 20 years

National Trustee: Association of the United State Army (President, Columbus-Phenix City-Fort Benning Chapter - 1965-1966) (President, Third Army Region -- 1965-1966) (Member, National Advisory Committee -- 1967-1968)

Director: Columbus Chamber of Commerce

Chairman: Muscogee County Airport Commission

Member: National Citizens' Committee for Community Relations

Past Offices Held, Civic Affiliations, etc.:

President, Georgia Hotel Association, 1939

President, Columbus Chapter, Georgia Society of Professional Engineers;Director, Country Club of Columbus

Director, Columbus Merchants Association

Honorary Director, Phenix City, Alabama, Chamber of Commerce, 1960-1961

Director, Columbus Rock Company, Columbus, Georgia; Director, Moss Construction Company, Columbus, Georgia

Member, Advisory Committee, Georgia Safety Fire Commissioner, State Capital, Atlanta, Ga.

Commander, Citizens Defense Corps, 1943-44-45

Member, Board of Public Safety, city of Columbus, 1948-1950 (Chairman 1949)

Recipient, Engineer of Year Award, by Columbus Chapter, Georgia Engineering Soc., 1961

Director, Georgia State Chamber of Commerce, 1954-55

Director and Treasurer, U.S. Highway 27 Association of Georgia, Inc. 1946-62, incl. (President 1948-50, incl.)

President, Columbus, Georgia Tech Alumni Club; Director, Columbus Museum of Arts and Crafts, Inc.

Chairman, The Citizens Advisory Committee for Community Improvement, 1965-67, incl.

President, Tri-State Interstate highway Association of Mississippii-Alabama-Georgia



Series II – The Taliaferro Family R. H. Taliaferro served as the principal of Jordan Vocational High School in Columbus, Georgia from 1945 to 1967. He was the son of Columbus merchant Charles Francis Taliaferro (1864-1912) and Efie Malone (1867-1929), both buried in Linwood Cemetery. C. F. Taliaferro was the partner of W. C. Grey in the cotton brokerage and warehouse firm of Gray and Taliaferro in Columbus, Georgia. R. H. (Dick) Taliaferro was born June 19, 1897 . He had two sisters, Emily Taliaferro Hadley (July 10, 1891-February 17, 1980) and Alma (Tots) Taliaferro (1893-1993), who married attorney Theo McGee and taught piano in Columbus for 70 years.

Dick graduated from Georgia Tech in 1917 with a degree in mechanical engineering. He served as an artillery lieutenant for 17 months in World War I . He received his B.A. in education at Oglethorpe University after leaving the Army and his Master's in secondary education from the University of Georgia in Athens. After teaching in several schools around the state, he became the principal of St. Elmo elementary school in Columbus in 1935. He became first the vice-principal and two years later the principal of Jordan Vocational High School . In 1938 he married Harriet Crawford (1915-1970) of Lincolnton, Georgia who was also a teacher. They had one child, Sue Malone Taliaferro (1943-2014), who married Oscar L. Betts III on August 6, 1967. Sue and Buster had three children, all born at St. Francis Hospital in Columbus, Georgia: Frances Crawford Betts, born September 7, 1968; Richard Taliaferro Betts (July 31, 1970-July 7, 2014), and Elizabeth Barkley Betts, born December 15, 1976.

Series III – Crawford Family R. H. Taliaferro was married to Harriet Crawford (1915-1970) of Lincolnton, Georgia. Their only child was Sue Malone Taliaferro Betts, who developed an interest in genealogy and collected material related to both her families and her husband's. Harriet had three siblings, Rebecca (Bec), Joseph and William. Their parents were Dr. William B. Crawford (1866-1927) and Sue Tom Hogan Crawford (b. 1888). Dr. Crawford was a pharmacist in Lincolnton. He had at least two siblings, Thomas Remsen (Uncle Rem) Crawford (1868-1932) and Mary.