The Terry Family

by

Denise Castro and Tye Morales

The Terry family became prominent members of the Reading community after thehead of the family Jenny first arrived in the city with her nine mulatto children: MosesJ., Johnson L., Charles L., Lee B., Frank, Andrew, Helen, Barbara, and Mary. Jennyhad been a slave in King George County, VA until her slaveowner, St. Leger LandonCarter, freed her and her children in his will. Although Mr. Carter gave Jenny $200 and$1000 to five of her nine children, it still is not known whether or not he fathered anyof those children,1 and to this day the father of the children remains unknown.

Much is known about Jenny Terry and her sons but little is known of her daughters.Jenny Terry had three daughters: Mary Montgomery Terry, Barbara Terry and HelenTerry. Since Jenny Terry came to Reading in October of 1852 with all nine of her chil-dren, her three daughters’ birth dates were before 1852. Mary is known to have diedsometime after May of 1913. Also, Mary married William H. Meyers in Reading, Penn-sylvania on December 14 of 1882. Helen Terry is believed to have been born in 1844,making her eight years old when she came to Reading. Presently, there are no otheravailable records that give any information on Barbara Terry or additional informationon Helen and Mary.2

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Lee B. Terry’s Family Branch

Jenny Terry’s son Lee B. Terry was born on October 20, 1847 in Virginia.3 He wasfive years old when Jenny and his siblings came to Reading.4 In 1868, Lee B. marriedJosephine Thompson, who was born on September 19, 1851 in Pennsylvania.5 Lee B.was a barber and owned a barbershop at 4 South 9th Street in Reading; he lived at 323Washington St. After his wife’s death on February 19, 1913, Lee B. closed down thebarbershop and moved to New Jersey, 6 where he lived until his death on April 24,1916.7

Lee B. and Josephine were active members of the Reading social scene. They oftenhosted events and meetings in their home. According to the Reading Squibs, Lee B.Terry was “a jolly host” and often entertained guests.8 He was Chairman of the ReadingSocial Club, which was formed at during a meeting at his house. The club consisted offifty members, including Charles H. Terry, Secretary. The goal of this club was to holdan annual reception; their first reception was to be held at Maennerchor Hall on Febru-ary 17, 1885.9

Lee B. Terry and Johnson L. Terry were involved in the Afro-American League ofBerks County.10 A May 1, 1898 article in the Philadelphia Inquirer revealed that bothwere delegates “elected to the state convention to be held in this city,” the city of Read-ing, “on May 31 and June 1.”11

Lee B. and Josephine Terry had eight children: Helena M. Franklin LeeEdward BrewsterClara M.William P.Paul Johnson,Josephine, and Elmer Clayton Terry.12

The gravesites of Lee B., his wife Josephine, and their sons, Paul J. and William P.,are in Charles Evans Cemetery in Reading. William P. was born on October 13, 1879and died December 18, 1912.13

Pictured in the photograph on page 30, seated from left to right, are Helen Terry,Lee B. Terry, Josie Terry, Josephine Terry, and Frank Lee Terry. Standing left to rightare Edward B. Terry, Paul Terry, Elmer Terry and Andrew Terry.14 Edward S. Terry, adescendant of Lee B. Terry, has proved that the family photograph below is accurate,15

and a photograph of the original can be found on ancestry.com. Edward B. Terry was born on November 16, 1875. He had worked with his father

in the barber trade for two years and then attended Lincoln University in Oxford, PA,where he was second in his class.16 In 1899 in Philadelphia, Edward B. married ElnoraAllen, born around 1875, in Georgia.17 Edward B. was the first black man in the city ofReading to earn a Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree, which he earned at the HowardUniversity in Washington D.C. with a graduating class of forty. Upon obtaining hisMD., Edward B. moved to Atlantic City, NJ to practice medicine.18 Edward B. and El-nora had two children Sarah Eva and Elnora, both born in Atlantic City.19

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Paul Johnson Terry was born on October 4, 1881.20 We were unable to find anyother information aside from that provided by the obituary of his death on May 5, 1908.21 According to the obituary, Paul J. worked as a porter at the outer station of the ReadingRailroad. At the age of 26, he died from intestinal problems at his parents’ home. Pre-vious to his death, he had been sick for two years due to an attack of pneumonia in thespring of 1906.

Elmer Clayton Terry born was in June 25, 1887, and not much information couldbe found about him, except that Renee Terry knew that he moved to Washington D.C.Renee also said, “The senior Elmer took his family to New Jersey for Thanksgiving in1926. There was a tragic accident that day when his daughter Joanne (age 8) was struckand killed by a motor vehicle.” He also had a son named Elmer C. Jr. born in September19, 1919, who served in Italy during WWII.22 The 92nd Infantry Division of the 5thArmy, the Buffalo Soldiers division of the Army, was a primarily black infantry, al-though the higher officials were white. While in the army, Terry would advance behindenemy lines and radio to other artillerymen where to aim their guns. He was shot in theleg during the war and was rescued by Italian farmers, where he learned Italian andearned a Purple Heart. After the war in 1960, Terry started work at Goddard SpaceFlight Center as a computer operator. According to his obituary, “he advanced to a su-pervisory position by 1962 and was a digital computer systems administrator in theSpace and Earth Sciences Computer Center by the time of his retirement in the early1970s.” He did not have any children, or if he did, they all preceded him. His wife, An-geline Terry, died in 2004 after 63 years of marriage. He died on November 23, 2005of a stroke, sepsis, and a heart attack at Washington Hospital Center.23

Franklin Lee Terry, Sr. was born around 1873. He married Josephine Evelyn Sup-plee, born around 1875,24 in 1895 in Philadelphia.25 They eventually left Reading forPleasantville, NJ to raise their family. Renee Terry, a descendant of Lee B. Terry, statedin an email message that Franklin and Josephine had six sons:

Franklin Lee Terry Jr.Joseph Supplee Terry, Lewis Supplee Terry, Thompson Supplee Terry,Paul Supplee Terry, Sr.Edward Supplee Terry Sr.26

The eldest son, Franklin Lee, Jr., a medical doctor, was the last Terry to live inReading.27 He was born on September 1, 190028, and died on August 2, 1984.29 FranklinLee, Jr. did not have any children.30 He married twice, first to Imogene A. Harris in1929,31and then to Leota B. Lucas. He specialized in allergies and worked at 28 NorthSecond Street and 408 Franklin Street from 1928 to 1978. Like his uncle Edward B.,Franklin Lee, Jr. received his degree from the Howard University Medical School inWashington, D.C. He was the director of the Reading-Berks Tuberculosis & Health As-sociation. Dr. Terry was very active in the Reading community, actively helping youth.32

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According to Frank Gilyard, founder and Director of the Central PennsylvaniaAfrican American Museum in Reading, Pennsylvania, someone purchased a house forFranklin Lee, Jr. in Muhlenberg Township because Dr. Terry was not allowed to buildin the town of Mt. Penn because he was black. 33 Gilyard also stated that there were at-tempts to poison Franklin Lee, Jr. Franklin Lee, Jr. took many trips around the world tovisit clinics and study diseases. Gilyard also informed us that he also took tours in Africaand took pictures there to show in church. Unfortunately, the location of those slidesremains unknown.

Thompson Terry was born on June 19, 1902 and died November 14, 1971.34 He re-mained in Pleasantville.35 Although he obtained a pharmacy degree, he was small instature with kyphosis (hunchback), and because of his physical deformity, he was ad-vised that he was better suited to an “outdoor profession.” He drove a taxi in Pleas-antville, NJ until his death in 1971.36 Lewis Terry was born on September 13, 1904 anddied on March 12, 1978.37 His wife, Avis M. Spencer, was born on September 23, 1903and died in May of 1987.38 They lived in Washington, D.C. where Lewis owned a phar-macy.39

Edward S., Sr. was born on May 19, 1906 and died in November 1974.40 Althoughthe dates are unknown, Edward S. worked for the Atlantic City Post Office before re-tiring in 1965. He was a talented vaudeville musician. (Several Terry family membersare musically gifted. Dr. Franklin Lee Terry (b. September 1, 1900) played violin forthe Reading Symphony).41 He was married to Edna May Cooper,42 who was born onFebruary 22, 190343 and died on September 24, 1967. Together they had two sons, Ed-ward S. Terry, Jr. and Lewis Aaron Terry.44

Paul S., Sr. was born on April 21, 1909 and died on December 25, 1986.45 He wasmarried to Francis Elizabeth Tyson from 1909 to 1961, and together they had two chil-dren, Paul S. Terry, Jr. and Thompson Tyson Terry, Sr.46 Like his brother Joseph, PaulS., Sr. lived in Philadelphia; he owned Terry Funeral Home, still operating today.47

Joseph S. was born on November 16, 1910 and died on August 24, 1974.48 JosephS. married Bernice Payne in Philadelphia in 1934, and he was remarried in 1952 toEdna Clark.49 Edna passed away August 26, 2011 at the age of 99.50 Joseph S. lived inPhiladelphia where he was a funeral director.51 His brother, Paul, was also a funeral di-rector at a different funeral home.52

William L. Terry Family Branch

William L. Terry, son of Charles L. Terry and Martha Jane Ginn and grandson ofJenny Terry, was born on April 14, 1866 and died on April 16, 1885 at the age of 20.53

William L. Terry in 1884 was the first black graduate from the Reading High School,where he graduated at the head of his class and received the honor of valedictorian. Hethen entered Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in September of that yearand remained at the top of his class. William L. earned the highest score of all freshmenon Lehigh’s winter examinations in January 1885. The freshmen class consisted ofWilliam L. and 115 white students.54

William L. was so well-known to the community that his death was the topic of

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several articles. There were several rumors as to how William L. died, including in-flammation of the bladder, hazing, and over-exertion during a gymnasium exercise.55

The article says that his death was an accident, but considering that William L. was theonly black student at a white college, hazing may have been the cause of his “over-ex-ertion.”56

Bibliography

1910 United States Federal Census [database on-line] in Ancestry.com (Provo, UT, USA: Ances-try.com Operations Inc, 2006).

1920 United States Federal Census [database on-line] in Ancestry.com (Provo, UT, USA: Ances-try.com Operations Inc, 2010).

“Afro-American League Adopts Strong Resolutions.” Philadelphia Inquirer, 138, no. 121 (1898):16.

Cho, Nancy. “National Afro American League (1887-1893).” Blackpast.org. http://www.black-past.org/?q=aah/national-afro-american-league-1887-1893

“Death of WM. L. Terry: The End of a Bright Promising Life Yesterday” found at the Berks His-torical Society. April 17, 1885.

“Dr. F. Lee Terry dies; specialized in allergies.” Reading Eagle, August 4, 1984.Find A Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi. Homan, Wayne E. “Jenny’s Children.” Heritage of Berks. 1971.“Memorial Obituary: Edna M. Cooper.” The Atlantic City Press (Atlantic City, NJ). Sept. 25, 1967.ew Jersey, Births and Christenings Index, 1660-1931 [database on-line] in Ancestry.com. Provo,

UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc.“Paul J. Terry- Death.” Reading Telegram. May 1908.Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Marriage [database on-line] in Ancestry.com. Provo, UT, USA: An-

cestry.com Operations Inc.Reading, Pennsylvania Birth [database on-line] in Ancestry.com. Provo, UT, USA: The Genera-

tions Network Inc.“Reading Squibs.” State Journal (Harrisburg, PA).“Renee Family Tree” [private family tree] in Ancestry.com. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Opera-

tions Inc.Renee Terry, email message to the Denise Castro, November 21, 2012. Social Security Death Index [database on-line] in Ancestry.com. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com

Operations Inc.“Student Terry’s Injuries: Investigating Various Reports as to the Cause of His Death,” found at the

Berks Historical Society.“The Terry Family 1895.” Terry Family Historian. http://www.terry-family-historian.com/King_

George_County_VA/Family_of_Moses_J_Terry_1838_.htmUnited States Federal Census [database on-line] in Ancestry.com. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com

Operations Inc.U.S. Public Records Index, Volume 1 [database on-line] in Ancestry.com. Provo, UT, USA: Ances-

try.com Operations Inc.

otes

1. Wayne E.Homan , “Jenny’s Children,” Heritage of Berks, 1971. 2. “Renee Family Tree” [private online tree] in Ancestry.com (Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations

Inc.). 3. Find A Grave, “Lee B. Terry,” Find A Grave, http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi.

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4. Homan , “Jenny’s Children.” 5. 1900 United States Federal Census [database on-line] in Ancestry.com (Provo, UT, USA:

Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004). 6. Homan, “Jenny’s Children.”7. Find A Grace (sp.), “Lee B. Terry.”8. “Reading Squibs: News and Notes From Our Own Correspondent,” State Journal (Harrisburg, PA),

Jan. 10, 1885. 9. “Reading Squibs: The Social Club of Reading on Deck,” State Journal (Harrisburg, PA), Jan. 24, 1885. 10. The Afro-American League (AAL) was established in 1887; its name was changed in 1889 to the Na-

tional Afro-American League (NAAL). The primary goal of the league was “to obtain full citizenship andequality for African-Americans.” Nancy Cho, “National Afro American League (1887-1893),” Blackpast.org,http://www.blackpast.org/?q=aah/national-afro-american-league-1887-1893

11. “Afro-American League Adopts Strong Resolutions,” Philadelphia Inquirer, 138, no. 121 (1898): 16 12. “Renee Family Tree” in Ancestry.com.13. Find A Grave, “William P. Terry,” Find A Grave, http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi. 14. “The Terry Family 1895,” Terry Family Historian, http://www.terry-family-

historian.com/King_George_County_VA/Family_of_Moses_J_Terry_1838_.htm 15. Ibid. 16. Newspaper article from an unknown source found at the Berks Historical Society. 17. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Marriage Index, 1885-1951[database on-line] in Ancestry.com (Provo,

UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2011). 18. Same newspaper article from an unknown source found at the Berks Historical Society as mentioned

above.19. “Renee Family Tree” in Ancestry.com. 20. Reading, Pennsylvania Births, 1876-1905 [database on-line] in Ancestry.com (Provo, UT, USA: The

Generations Network Inc., 1999). 21. “Paul J. Terry- Death,” Reading Telegram, May 1908. 22. Renee Terry, Email to Dr. Laurie Grobman. December 22, 2012.23. “Buffalo Soldier Elmer C. Terry.” The Washington Post, sec. Obituary, December 22, 2005.24. 1920 United States Federal Census [database on-line] in Ancestry.com (Provo, UT, USA:

Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010). 25. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Marriage Index, 1885-1951 [database on-line] in Ancestry.com (Provo,

UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2011). 26. Renee Terry, email message to the Denise Castro, November 21, 2012. 27. Frank Gilyard (President/Founder of CPAAM) presentation for the authors, November 2012. 28. ew Jersey, Births and Christenings Index, 1660-1931 [database on-line] in Ancestry.com (Provo,

UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2011). 29. “Dr. F. Lee Terry dies; specialized in allergies,” Reading Eagle, August 4, 1984. 30. Renee Terry, email message to Denise Castro, November 21, 2012. 31. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Marriage Index, 1885-1951 [database on-line] in Ancestry.com. 32. “Dr. F. Lee Terry dies; specialized in allergies,” Reading Eagle.33. Frank Gilyard (President/Founder of CPAAM) presentation for the authors, November 2012. 34. Social Security Death Index [database on-line] in Ancestry.com (Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Op-

erations Inc, 2011). 35. Renee Terry, email message to Denise Castro, November 21, 2012.36. Renee Terry, Email to Dr. Laurie Grobman. December 22, 2012.37. Social Security Death Index [database on-line] in Ancestry.com (Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Op-

erations Inc, 2011). 38. Ibid. 39. Renee Terry, email message to Denise Castro, November 21, 2012.40. Social Security Death Index [database on-line] in Ancestry.com. 41. Renee Terry, Email to Dr. Laurie Grobman. December 22, 2012.42. “Memorial Obituary: Edna M. Cooper,” The Atlantic City Press (Atlantic City, NJ), Sept. 25, 1967. 43. 1910 United States Federal Census [database on-line] in Ancestry.com (Provo, UT, USA:

Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006). 44. “Memorial Obituary: Edna M. Cooper,” The Atlantic City Press.45. Social Security Death Index [database on-line] in Ancestry.com.

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46. “Renee Family Tree” in Ancestry.com47. Renee Terry, email message to Denise Castro, November 21, 2012.48. U.S. Public Records Index, Volume 1 [database on-line] in Ancestry.com (Provo, UT, USA: Ances-

try.com Operations Inc, 2010). 49. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Marriage Index, 1885-1951 [database on-line] in Ancestry.com. 50. Renee Terry, Email to Dr. Laurie Grobman. December 22, 2012.51. Renee Terry, Email message to Denise Castro, November 21, 2012.52. Renee Terry, Email to Dr. Laurie Grobman. December 22, 2012.53. “Death of WM. L. Terry: The End of a Bright Promising Life Yesterday” found at the Berks Histori-

cal Society, April 17, 1885. William L. Terry was sometimes referred to as William H. Terry in the sources, butRenee Terry confirmed that he was William Lee Terry.

54. “Reading Squibs: The Social Club of Reading on Deck,” State Journal.55. “Student Terry’s Injuries: Investigating Various Reports as to the Cause of His Death,” found at the

Berks Historical Society.56. “Student Terry’s Injuries: Investigating Various Reports as to the Cause of His Death,” found at the

Berks Historical Society.

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