I'm My Own Grandpa

So, I never thought I actually find a family where a man became his own grandfather. It is a very interesting set of circumstances and I will endeavor to do the story justice.

John I. Burgess was born in December 24, 1829 in Gwinnett County, Georgia to John P. Burgess, a Methodist Episcopal Minister and his wife Clara. John I. lost his mother at a young age and then with his father moved from Gwinnett County, Georgia to Benton County, Alabama, where his father continued his ministerial work. On July 17, 1851, John married Nancy Ann Kemp, a daughter of James Kemp and Winnie Lott, who were early pioneers to Benton County, Alabama.
John I. Burgess was a very prominent man in the community where he lived. He was a Mason and held extensive amounts of land. He was know to buy and sell land when ever he knew a profit could be made. Though he owned so much land, he and his family resided in a log cabin on a farm near his father's home. John I. donated some of his vast holdings for a school and church and in 1904 the Oak Grove Baptist Church and School was built on that land.
John I. Burgess and Nancy Ann Kemp became the parents of three children: Ophelia Jane, Willis Anthony and Eliza Belzora Margaret. John I. and Nancy's only son died as an infant. John was very grieved at loosing his only son. He desperately wanted a male heir, so when his oldest daughter, Ophelia, was grown and married, he made a deal with the young couple to let him adopt their first born son. Ophelia's first child was a son, who was named John William Lafayette Pounds. John I. went and quickly had the adoption papers drew up so he could legally become the father of his first grandson. Just a few days after his birth, on July 6, 1873, John I. took his new son to his home to raise.

On June 6, 1894, Nancy Burgess passed away, as a result of the typhoid epidemic in the area. On May 8, 1895, John I. married Bettie L. Stamps, a daughter of George William Stamps and Jerusha S. Brown. John I. had made made an arrangement with Bettie to care for him in his old age and in return, she would receive a dowry of 300 acres of land. John I. liked to boast about his possessions and good fortune. He often bragged about his money and his beautiful young bride, who was almost 50 years younger than her husband. Bettie was not fond of these boastings and for a time left John I. She soon returned and fulfilled the arrangements of their marriage. John I. died on June 12, 1909 after suffering from deafness and lameness among other illnesses. John I. was buried next to his first wife and oldest daughter at Harmony Primitive Baptist Church in Cleburne County, Alabama.
John William Lafayette Pounds, the adopted son of his grandfather, John I. continued to live with his step-mother after the death of his father (grandfather). Now, John William was older than his step-mother, so to me, it would seem awkward for them to still be living together. However, less than 1 year after John I's death, his adopted son married his widowed wife. John William and Bettie L. were married on May 1, 1910. So, thus John effectively became his own step-grandfather, but since he was an adopted son of his grandfather, would be only be his own step-father?

John William and Bettie became the parents of one daughter, Lenora Aline, in 1912. Bettie died on October 8, 1935 in Edwardsville, Cleburne, Alabama. Bettie was buried at Oak Grove Church Cemetery in Helfin, Cleburne, Alabama, the same Oak Grove church whose land her first husband donated. John would go on to live until May 11, 1968. He was buried next to Bettie.

Above is a photo of Bettie L. Stamps with her parents, George William Stamps and Jerusha S. Brown and her little sister, Marion.

Ancestry Page of John I. Burgess
Ancestry Page of Bettie L. Stamps
Find A Grave Page of John I. Burgess
Find A Grave Page of Bettie L. Stamps Burgess Pounds

Sources
Census Records - 1880 Carroll County, Georgia
Census Records - 1880-1910,1930 Cleburne County, Alabama
Death Records - Bettie Pounds
Grave Stone Photos - Thanks to A Benefield and Stacey Bland!
Marriage Records - John I. Burgess and Bettie Stamps; John Pounds to Bettie Burgess May 3, 2012 - Update on this post Today I found the obituary of Bettie L. Pounds and learned that her middle name was Lenora. It was published in The Cleburne News on October 31, 1935. I also corrected her date of death from October 9, 1945 to October 8, 1935.