My Heritage
My heritage comes from the King, Edens, and Hines families from Holly Ridge, North Carolina, and the Shepard family of Haws Run.
My mother's father, James Thomas Shepard was a school teacher, store keeper, and agent for the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad. He was Postmaster of Holly Ridge during Republican administrations. My great-uncle, Cleveland Clarence Hines, Sr., was Postmaster during Democratic administrations, until the appointments were made without regard to political party affiliation. Following my grandfather's death, my grandmother, Hannah Missouri Edens Shepard became Postmaster, and held this position until her death in 1938. "Grandpa Jim" was very active in the Primitive Baptist Church.
My paternal grandfather, William Edward "Bill" King, was a deacon in Providence Baptist Church. Most of the early years of his life were spent as a farmer. In the later years, he worked as a night watchman. He had a reputation for being able to catch criminals because he was allowed to vary his scheduled rounds and move about at random. This allowed him to surprise the criminal.
