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John was born to George and Nancy Boyd in 1866. The family lived in the Rock Mills area of Randolph County, Alabama.
John married Eldora Lawson McClurg in 1887. The marriage certificate shows they were married by Rev. Oliver Moon on July 28, 1887, at the residence of W. W. Green. J. W. Wood and George Boyd (father of the groom) were witnesses.
Since the 1890 Federal Census was lost to fire, there is a span of time unaccounted for. But, by 1900, we see a 33 year old John still living in the Rock Mills area of Randolph County, Alabama. He and his wife (Eldora, 34) have 4 children in the home, ages spanning 1-11 years old: Flora Elizabeth "Lizzie" Boyd, John Thomas Boyd Jr, Mary Ellis "Mollie" Boyd, and Henry Clay Boyd.
By 1910, John and Eldora had welcomed their last son, William Wallace Boyd, and John's mother-in-law, Mary A. (Banks) McClurg was residing with the family. The 1910 Census shows the family in Precinct 11 of Randolph County with 'Rock Mills town' scratched out on the right side of the paper. It is quite likely that the family was still living in the same place in the Rock Mills community. All of the children except for William (7) were helping their dad on the farm.
Between 1910 and 1920 is where we see John Boyd Sr move his family (including Eldora and son William) to Lineville, in Clay County, Alabama, which was about 35 miles from their previous home. William ("Wallace") was the only child left at home at the age of 16. John was still farming and Wallace was still attending school rather than working his father's farm.
In 1930, we find John and his wife, Eldora, both at the age of 63, living in an owned home in Lineville. John was still farming. But sadly, he lost Eldora just a year later.
In 1940, at the age of 73, John appeared to still live in the home he and Eldora were residing in back in 1930. At the very least, he was living in an owned home still in Lineville, near Youngs Mill Road. His son, Henry Clay, and his family were living with John, who appeared to have finally retired from farming.
On January 15, 1943, John Sr passed away. He was buried next to the love of his life, Eldora, at the Macedonia Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery.
Sources
"United States, Census, 1870", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MHKY-VB1 : Sun Jan 12 17:07:15 UTC 2025), Entry for George Boyd and Nancy Boyd, 1870.
"United States, Census, 1880", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M4V8-JF5 : Sun Jan 12 23:17:09 UTC 2025), Entry for George W. Boyd and Nancy E. Boyd, 1880.
"Alabama, Births and Christenings, 1881-1930", , FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:4VK5-8WPZ : 10 March 2020), John Boyd in entry for Boyd, 1898.
"United States, Census, 1900", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M9DY-4C8 : Tue Jan 21 19:32:25 UTC 2025), Entry for John T Boyd and Eldora Boyd, 1900.
"United States, Census, 1910", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MK71-GPC : Tue Jan 21 12:21:34 UTC 2025), Entry for John T Boyd and Eldora Boyd, 1910.
"United States, Census, 1920", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MXZQ-R8Q : Tue Jan 21 21:17:18 UTC 2025), Entry for John T Boyd and Dora L Boyd, 1920.
"United States, Census, 1930", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:36K7-B6Z : Mon Jan 13 02:07:15 UTC 2025), Entry for John T Boyd and Eldora Boyd, 1930.
"United States, Census, 1940", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V1LK-DHX : Sat Mar 09 17:17:30 UTC 2024), Entry for John Boyd and Clay Boyd, 1940.
"Alabama, Deaths, 1908-1974", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JD1D-FBK : Mon Jan 27 18:41:24 UTC 2025), Entry for John Thumer Boyd and George Boyd, 1943.
"Find a Grave Index," , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVKS-9KMW : 29 May 2020), John Thomas Boyd, 1943; Burial, , ; citing record ID , Find a Grave, http://www.findagrave.com.