Madison County, Alabama Obituary Collection 1998-1999 (From Various Funeral Homes)
Covering the towns of Big Cove, Brownsboro, Gurley, Hampton Cove, Harvest, Hazel Green,
Huntsville, Madison, Meridianville, New Hope, New Market, Normal, Owens Cross Roads,
Ryland, Toney, and Triana. Also many obits from nearby Athens (Limestone County).
Some of the funeral homes represented: Royal Funeral Home, Spry Funeral Home,
Valhalla Funeral Home, Laughlin Service Funeral Home, and Twickenham Funeral Home.
Note: These obituaries are NOT primary source. They are intended only to provide clues in
researching your family tree. Use the date at the top of each group of obituaries to determine
the date of death since this collection does not include specific dates, only the day of the week
that the death occurred. Use the handy 1998 or 1999 calendars to determine dates.
Charles C. Baites Sr.
TONEY - Charles C. Baites Sr., 85, died Thursday at his home. A graveside service will be today at 11 a.m. at Madison Cross Roads Cemetery with Revs. Jim Stringfellow and Jeff Havens officiating.
Gallant Funeral Home is in charge of burial.
Mr. Baites was a native of Madison County. He was a retired heavy machinery mechanic for the City of Huntsville and a member of Hazel Green United Methodist Church.
Survivors include his wife, Pauline T. Baites; one son, Charles C. Baites Jr. of Toney; one sister, Regina Howard of Huntsville; and two grandchildren.
Louise H. Burney
Louise Hayden Burney, 73, of Huntsville died Wednesday at her home. The funeral will be Sunday at 2 p.m. at Syler Tabernacle P.B. Church with Rev. John Clay officiating.
Burial will be in Penny Cemetery with Royal Funeral Home in charge.
Survivors include two daughters, Delean F. Hardin and Caliethea B. Dillard, both of Huntsville; one son, Clabon Burney Jr. of Augusta, Ga.; one sister, Carrie H. Matthews of Huntsville; one brother, Curtis Hayden of Huntsville; and three grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
Thomas L. Coleman
SEATTLE - Former Marshall County legislator Thomas Loyd Coleman, 51, of Arab died Friday at a local hospital. Gober Funeral Home in Arab will announce funeral arrangements.
Mr. Coleman served in the Alabama House representing Marshall County from 1983-86 and in the Alabama Senate in 1986-87. He received the Outstanding Citizen Achievement of the Year award from the Arab Chamber of Commerce in 1981 and was named legislator of the year while serving in the House.
He is survived by his wife, Sandra Coleman; one daughter, Christy Coleman.
Bessie M. Davis
Bessie Mae Davis, 86, of Huntsville died Monday at an Ardmore, Tenn., nursing home. The funeral was Thursday at 2 p.m. at Maple Hill Cemetery with Donald Ramey and Ron Williams officiating.
Spry Funeral Home was in charge of burial.
Mrs. Davis was a native of McMinnville, Tenn., and had lived in Huntsville most her life. She was a retired Huntsville Hospital licensed practical nurse and a member of Lincoln Church of Christ.
Survivors include two nieces, Betty Sue Bynum Simeon of Mechanicsburg, Pa., and Juanita Troupe Coleson of North Carolina; and one nephew, Owen Walker of Guntersville.
Jim Edmunds
MERIDIANVILLE - Rev. Jim Edmunds, 68, died Thursday at a Huntsville hospital. The funeral will be today at 2 p.m. at Gallant Funeral Home with Rev. Bobby G. Dollar and Dr. Tommy Bolan officiating.
Burial will be in Huntsville Memory Gardens.
Rev. Edmunds was a native of Georgia and was an Army sergeant. He was a retired technical editor for civil service, a minister for 20 years in the Madison County area and was a member of the Meridianville First Baptist Church.
Survivors include his wife, Jackie Edmunds; one daughter, Susan Meeks of Alexandria, Ky.; one son, Lee Edmunds of Meridianville; one sister, Peggy Spivey of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; and three grandchildren.
Visitation will be today from noon to 2 p.m. at the funeral home.
Donations may be made to Meridianville First Baptist Church.
Laurel W. Hodgdon
MONTGOMERY - Laurel Wolfe Hodgdon, 75, died Friday at a local hospital. A graveside service will be Sunday at 4 p.m. at Highland Memorial Gardens in Jackson, Tenn., with Terrell Maynard officiating and Lawrence-Sorensen Funeral Home in charge.
Mrs. Hodgdon was a native of Jackson. She was a Army Air Force veteran of North Africa in World War II. She was a member of VFW Post 2702 in Huntsville and was a retired administrative assistant with the University of Alabama in Huntsvilles Physical Plant Department.
Survivors included two daughters, Phyllis Hodgdon Beavers of Montgomery and Donna Diane Hodgdon Imam of Olympia, Wash.; one son, Robert Earl Hodgdon of Madison; one sister, Elsie Wolfe Glass of Gallatin, Tenn.; one brother, Burtial Orlie Wolfe Jr. of Bowling Green, Ky.; and four grandchildren.
Visitation will be Sunday from 2 to 3:30 p.m. at the funeral home.
Billy D. Kidd
GURLEY - Billy Don Kidd, infant, died Wednesday at a local hospital. A graveside service will be Monday at 11 a.m. at Twickenham Memory Gardens in Hampton Cove with Bro. Bill McPherson officiating.
Survivors include his parents, Chad and Clarissa Kidd; one brother, Anthony Tyler Kidd of Gurley; one sister, Melissa Danielle Kidd of Gurley; and his grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Bill McPerson, Mr. and Mrs. Michael Kidd and Mr. and Mrs. Burt Webster.
Michael W. Kidd
GURLEY - Michael Wayne Kidd, infant, died Wednesday at a local hospital. A graveside service will be Monday at 11 a.m. at Twickenham Memory Gardens in Hampton Cove with Bro. Bill McPherson officiating.
Survivors include his parents, Chad and Clarissa Kidd; one brother, Anthony Tyler Kidd of Gurley; one sister, Melissa Danielle Kidd of Gurley; and his grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Bill McPerson, Mr. and Mrs. Michael Kidd and Mr. and Mrs. Burt Webster.
Toni R. Knight
Toni Renee Knight, 31, of Huntsville died Feb. 21 at a local hospital. The memorial service will be Tuesday at 12:15 p.m. at the UAB School of Medicine Huntsville Campus in the Clinical Science Center Student Lecture Hall.
Dr. Knight was a native of Tarboro, N.C., and received a medical degree from the University of North Carolina. She was a family practice resident at the UAB School of Medicine in Huntsville.
Survivors include her mother, Peggy Knight of Tarboro; her father, Willard Leroy Knight of Washington, D.C.; one brother, Andre Knight of Tarboro; one grandmother, Georgeianna Knight of Tarboro; several nieces, nephews, aunts and uncles.
Donations may be made to Sickle Cell Foundation.
Gonzalo Martinez
Gonzalo "Marty" Martinez, 58, of Huntsville died Tuesday at a local hospital. The funeral will be today at noon at Valhalla Funeral Home with Chaplain Lt. Col. Michael Travaglione officiating.
Burial will be in Valhalla Memory Gardens.
Mr. Martinez retired from the Army and had served in the Vietnam War. He worked at Redstone Arsenal, was former president of the Community Watch Association and attended Bicentennial Chapel at Redstone Arsenal.
Survivors include his wife, Jutta Martinez of Huntsville; his mother, Maria Inez Martinez of Los Angeles; four daughters, Angelique Mohandes-Tarighi of Metuchen, N.J., Silke Maria Martinez of Huntsville and Rosa Martinez and Doris Martinez, both of El Paso, Texas; two sons, Joshua Martinez of Huntsville and Gonzalo Martinez Jr. of Austin, Texas; one sister, Lucy Martinez of Los Angeles; two brothers, Aberlado Martinez and Ruben Martinez, both of Los Angeles; and four grandchildren.
Kenneth D. Selvage
NEW HOPE - Kenneth D. Selvage, 68, of 858 Albert Mann Road died Friday at his residence. The funeral will be today at 2 p.m. at New Hope Funeral Home Chapel with Bro. Don Miller officiating.
Burial will be in Free Home Cemetery in Grant.
Mr. Selvage was an Army veteran of World War II.
Survivors include his wife, Evelyn Selvage; three daughters, Rebecca Hornbuckle of New Hope, Deborah Simmons of Tullahoma, Tenn., and Barbara Terrell of Huntsville; four sons, Jamie P. Selvage of New Hope, Kenneth O. Selvage of Summerville, Ricky Selvage of Guntersville and Wayne Selvage of Huntsville; three sisters, Olivia Dabbs of Rosalie, Mary Ruth Gant of Fort Pierce, Fla., and Dorothy Sargent of Limrock; one brother, Clifton Selvage of Skyline; and nine grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
Mattie L. Townson
ARAB - Mattie Lou Townson, 99, of 235 3rd St., died Thursday in a local nursing home. The funeral will be today at 2 p.m. at Roswell Creek Baptist Church.
Burial will be in the adjoining cemetery with Arab Memorial Chapel Funeral Home in charge.
Survivors include three daughters, Eudie Murphree and Velma Kelsoe, both of Holly Pond, and Faye Netherton of Cullman; three sons, O.C. Townson, Ovis Townson and Roy Townson, all of Holly Pond; one sister, Ethel Weaver of Attalla; and 22 grandchildren, 35 great-grandchildren and 18 great-great-grandchildren.
Clezelle Word
ATHENS - Clezelle ''Potette Word, 84, of Blackburn Road died Thursday at a local hospital. The funeral will be today at 4 p.m. at Spry Funeral Home with Warren Glass officiating.
Burial will be in Roselawn Cemetery.
Mrs. Word was a homemaker.
Survivors include her husband, J.T. Word; two daughters, Edna Faughn and Patricia Derr, both of Howell, Mich.; two sisters, Ruby Skeets of Pulaski, Tenn., and Mable Poore of Woodhaven, Mich.; two stepdaughters, Shirley Jackson of Meridianville and Ann McCluskey of Minor Hill, Tenn.; eight grandchildren, seven great-grandchildren and nieces and nephews.
Avery C. Alexander
NEW ORLEANS - Avery C. Alexander, a patriarch of New Orleans civil rights movement who was arrested 20 times before he lost count, died Friday at 88.
A black Baptist minister and six-term Democratic state representative, Alexander championed anti-discrimination, voter registration, labor, closer police oversight and environmental regulation.
In the 1950s, he served as an adviser to Gov. deLesseps "Chep" Morrison, helping blacks get their first chance at political patronage in menial, janitor-level jobs. He went on to become the first black to hold seats on parish and state Democratic Party committees.
He was arrested frequently at demonstrations from 1937 to 1990.
"I stopped counting after 20," Alexander said after a 1990 arrest while protesting high gas prices in Baton Rouge.
In 1963, New Orleans police dragged him by his heels down the steps of City Hall after he led an unsuccessful effort to integrate its cafeteria.
Survivors include a sister and two brothers. His wife, Pansy Lee Garrett, died in 1984.
Funeral arrangements were incomplete.
