| MARGUERITE JULE PACETTY BROWN by Marguerite Marreé Mathews Copyright 1984 (Permission from the author to Tara Fields
to place on her Camden County Web site). Born Marguerite Jule Pacetty in rural Camden County, Georgia, on November 9, 1882; she was listed as simply
"M.J." in the worn Pacetty Family Bible and known as "Rete" as a child and as "Rita Brown" for 74 years. Rete's maternal grandparents were Henry Hamilton Floyd and Mordina Jane Boog. Her paternal grandparents were John Pacetty, Sr. and Margaret Rebecca Campbell. Both sets of grandparents were long time Camden County residents. Oral family tradition places the Floyd antecedents from Wales. The Boog family
originated in Scotland. The Pacetty or Pacetti line is Italian/Minorcan. The Campbell line I have not traced. John Boog, the son of James and Christina Ross Boog, was born in Golspie, Scotland. In 1798 he left Dornoch, Scotland for America and settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A few years later he migrated down to Camden County, Georgia, where he became a planter. He married Isabella Kelly-King Turner of Kings Bay Plantation. He was a
merchant in St. Marys, a tax collector, a second lieutenant in the Georgia State Militia, a Deputy U.S. Marshal and in later years managed the Kings Bay Plantation. Their daughter, Margaret Ann Boog, married Henry Hamilton Floyd. She died one month after her first child was born; two years later Henry Hamilton Floyd married her younger sister, Mordina Jane Boog. Family legend has it that the Floyds descended from one Llewellyn Floyd from Wales and
subsequently settled in Northampton County on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. Charles Floyd was born in Northampton County, Virginia and his parents, Samuel Floyd and Susan Dixon died there when he was a young boy. An uncle promptly sent Charles off to work as a cabin boy on a large vessel. After a number of years at sea, he returned to settle in Charleston, South Carolina, where he managed an indigo plantation. During the Revolutionary War Captain Floyd allied himself
with the "Liberty Boys," his home was burned several times by the Tories, he was captured by the British and imprisoned until the end of the war. Later, Charles Floyd married Mary Fendin of Green's Island, South Carolina and they had only one child, a son named John. John Floyd married Isabella Maria Hazzard in Beaufort, South Carolina. In 1795 Charles and John Floyd moved from South Carolina to McIntosh County, Georgia. They moved to Camden
County in 1800 where they established two plantations about a mile apart from each other in an area known as Floyd's Neck. In honor of their fortunes made from ship building and from the sea, Charles Floyd built his plantation in the shape of an anchor and named it Bellevue; John Floyd called his plantation Fairfield. After Charles Floyd died, John moved into Bellevue. The ruins of the tabby "Anchor House" as Bellevue Plantation is sometimes referred, as well
as the Floyd Family Cemetery near the site of the former Fairfield Plantation, and the monument to Charles Rinaldo Floyd - are now on property owned by Union Carbide; however, access is obtained through Aventis CropScience USA (was Rhône-Poulenc Ag. Company) located outside of Woodbine off Harrietts Bluff Road. Members of the Floyd family as well as others may obtain permission to tour these areas. John Floyd was not only a civil engineer, but also a ship
builder. His company built many boats in Georgia and he was well known for constructing sleek racing boats as well as boats for travel and commerce. General John Floyd distinguished himself in the War of 1812, represented Camden County in the Georgia Legislature, became a U.S. Congressman and a Presidential Elector. Henry Hamilton Floyd was the twelfth and youngest child of John Floyd and his wife, Isabella Maria Hazzard. Henry Hamilton Floyd and his
first wife, Margaret Ann Boog, had one daughter. Henry Hamilton Floyd and his second wife, Mordina Jane Boog, had twelve children. Their first-born daughter, named for her mother's sister and for her grandmother, Margaret Isabella, was born at Bellevue Plantation and later married Lewis David Pacetti. Andrés Paxeti was among that group of Minorcans, Italians and Greeks who emigrated to Florida in 1768 from the Mediterranean. During the British Period
(1763-1783), these people were contracted by Andrew Turnbull to colonize New Smyrna, Florida and work the vast indigo plantation he had established there. The colonists were exploited, severely abused, were not allowed to leave the fields to hunt, fish or to tend their gardens so that hundreds of them starved to death. Nothing they had been promised had been granted and after nine years of deprivation and mistreatment they decided to petition the government in St. Augustine for
justice. The entire group of Minorcans, Italians and Greeks walked the King's Highway from New Smyrna to St. Augustine, toward a new beginning. Andrés Paxeti, his wife, Gertrudis Pons, and their children were an integral part of this fascinating history. Just prior to 1820, a few members of the extensive Pacetti family moved from St. Augustine, Florida to Camden County, Georgia. The Pacettis were farmers, fishermen, carpenters, ship builders,
stevedores, captains of boats. They owned their own boats and transported people as well as goods up and down the St. Marys River and across Cumberland Sound to Fernandina. John Pacetti was born in St. Marys, possibly not too long after his parents moved there from St. Augustine. His parents were Tomás Paxeti and Maria "Mary" Catalina Bonelly - both half Italian and half Minorcan blood lines. His maternal grandparents were Josef Bonelly of Italy
and Maria Moll of Ciudadela, Minorca. His paternal grandparents were Andrés Paxeti of Trápani, Sicily and Gertrudis Pons of Mahón, Minorca. John Pacetti/Pacetty and his four brothers, Andrew, Joseph, Thomas and Dennis were among those of their generation to use English as the primary means of communication, whereas prior to this time Catalan and Spanish were the predominant languages. John Pacetti married Margaret Rebecca Campbell, the daughter of Otis P.
Campbell and Patience "Patsy" Martha J. Smith. Martha's (Patsy's) father was James Smith, who, according to the James B. Bliss Family Papers, was born in Northborough, Massachusetts. He was a volunteer soldier during the Revolutionary War. He and his wife, whose name is unknown, had eight children. The four girls, and at least two of the four boys, were born in the Carolinas. Patience "Patsy" Martha J. Smith was born between 1798 and 1800 in North
Carolina (listed as NC on certain census schedules and was confused with Nassau County in FL! Although, a few of these Smiths later lived in Nassau Co., FL). Her brothers and sisters were as follows: James G. Smith; Abraham B. Smith, born ca. 1798 (married Eliza/Elizabeth Lowe); Cochney Smith, born ca. 1801 in North Carolina; Ransom C. Smith, born ca. 1803 in North Carolina; Margaret Harriett Smith, born 1806 in North Carolina (married Capt. Peter Corb); Eliza J. Smith, born 1808
in Pee Dee, South Carolina (married James B. Bliss); Charlotte Smith, birth date and place unknown (married Andrew Pacetti, brother of John Pacetti). John Pacetti (known as John Pacetti, Sr.) and Margaret Rebecca Campbell had seven children, all of whom were born in St. Marys in Camden County, Georgia. Their second child, Lewis David Pacetti, married Margaret Isabella Floyd. John Pacetti owned two lots in the small town of St. Marys. On
various census schedules, he listed his occupation as carpenter, a mechanic and as a farmer. He purchased land on Cherry Point in Camden County. The area surrounding his property - Marianna River, Crooked River, Big Creek, Kings Bay, the salt marshes and the contrasting wooded high lands - make up the region where John Pacetti and his family later resided. They fished, farmed and earned their living here. When Margaret Isabella Floyd eloped
with Lewis David Pacetti she had no idea that life would be so difficult. This lovely lady of a prominent family fell in love with a tall, dark, handsome man. According to James Boog Floyd Russell of White Oak, Georgia, who is an authority on Floyd family history: "Certain members of the Floyd family considered him to be beneath their class in society. Margaret refused to let her family's objections toward him dissuade her from being with the man she loved and
they had to run off to get married." The Civil War had considerably narrowed the choices of eligible males in the county and Margaret Isabella was already twenty-three years old. Lewis David had been injured as well as imprisoned during the Civil War but at age twenty-seven, he remained a powerfully robust, striking man. They were married in St. Marys, Georgia, on February 19, 1866. Lewis David Pacetti and Margaret Isabella Floyd set up housekeeping
on Cherry Point. They were married just over a year and a half before their first child was born on Cherry Point on November 2, 1867. He was named Marion Floyd Pacetti. Samuel Augustus, the next son, was born on October 10, 1870. According to the census that same year, Lewis David's father, John Pacetti Sr., his grandmother Martha Campbell, and his youngest brother Frank, were living with them - a house full. John Pacetti Sr.'s wife,
Margaret Rebecca Campbell, died in 1860, leaving him a very lonely man. His mother-in-law, Martha "Patsy" Campbell, came to live with him to care for John's three younger children. At one time his property out on Cherry Point consisted of nearly 369 acres of high land combined with numerous acres of salt marsh. Over the years, John Pacetti parceled out his property among his offspring. When he died in 1890, his six living children inherited about 32 acres each
of his remaining Cherry Point property. "Old John Pacetti" was an affectionate yet respectful term given to this elderly gentleman. Census schedules show both Martha Campbell and John Pacetti living in the various households of John Pacetti's grown children on Cherry Point. When the third son was born, Margaret Isabella Floyd Pacetti's beloved sister, Augusta Gallie Floyd wrote in her diary, "Bridge (Margaret's nickname) has another son, born on
the 4th of January, 1873, and named Thomas Bourke. It is a great misfortune that she has children, for their father is so trifling that he never will make anything out of them." In the Pacetty Family Bible the birth date for Thomas Bourke is listed as January 5, 1872. The fair Margaret Isabella had large, pensive brown eyes lined by a pretty arched brow. She wore her brown hair pulled lightly back away from her face. For years, her beautiful
photograph, housed in an exquisite old-fashioned oval frame, hung in a place of honor in the dining room of her youngest daughter, Rita Brown. Her character was portrayed by both daughters as dear and sweet, but references to her health describe her as being "infirmed" most of the time. A daughter was born on March 2, 1875. They called her Maud, shortened from Martha Mordina. Following this birth there were no more children for four years. In Augusta Gallie Floyd's diary there is an entry for August 31, 1879 stating, "Jule (another Floyd sister) and I have been making some little garments for Bridge's expected baby. We have a number of articles made and expect to send her a box before long. Her girl is nearly five years old and we were all in hopes she would never have another." On November 17, 1879, John was born. On the 1880 Camden County census this
Pacetti household still had many occupants: Louis [sic] Pacetti, age 40; Marguerite [sic], age 38; Marion, age 12; Samuel A., age 9; Tom Burke [sic], age 7; Martha M., age 5; R. C. Smith, age 77. Little John must have died in infancy because his name was excluded. R. C. (Ransom C.) Smith was the brother of Martha "Patsy" J. Smith Campbell. Again at the age of 39, Margaret resigned herself to yet another unplanned pregnancy and on November 9,
1882, a daughter named Marguerite "Rete" Jule was born. Her initials "M.J." were hastily inscribed in the Pacetty Family Bible. Life was not easy for the Pacetti household on Cherry Point. There was no electricity, no running water, no indoor plumbing, no screens on the windows, no refrigeration. There was a wood cook stove and the wash was done entirely by hand. They grew most of the produce they needed and purchased the
remaining necessary items from stores in St. Marys. Even though he was poor, Lewis David did have a family to support and it seems he was able to feed, clothe, and house them. Lewis David and Margaret purchased goods from John Bachlott's store in St. Marys. An old store ledger found in historic Orange Hall reads: Lewis Pacetty April-Dec. 1886 & Jan-May 1887 - Sugar 10 cents, Flour $1.00, Soda 5 cents, Salt 10 cents,
Butter 25 cents, Ess. Lemon 10 cents, Vinegar 10 cents, Coffee 25 cents, Bacon 40 cents, Candy 5 cents, Crackers 10 cents, C. Oil 10 cents, Lard 25 cents, Ham $1.87, Rice 25 cents, Buttons 15 cents, Thread 5 cents, Homespon [sic] $1.00, Lawn 30 cents, Shirting 80 cents, Calico 25 cents, Stockings 10 cents, Jeans 75 cents, Buckles 5 cents, Hdkfs. 10 cents, Hat $1.75, Soop [sic] 5 cents, Table Cloth $1.00, Plates 60 cents, Tobacco 25 cents, Cigars 25 cents, Snuff 25 cents, Matches 5 cents,
Nails 50 cents, Rope 30 cents, Kerosene 10 cents, Shot 10 cents, Powders 10 cents. During October 1886, his bill amounted to $17.47 and a total bill for the months of Jan-May of 1887 was $35.77. Making use of a type of barter system, the store owner issued scrip certificates. Lewis David exchanged syrup, melons, potatoes and other commodities for necessary items in order to defray costs. The boys helped with the farming, tended to the animals
and by age seven or eight, were proficient fishermen. The girls sewed, mended and helped with housework. All of the children attended school between chores. Rete told me that when she was a very young girl she usually did a few chores to help out and she attended a little school within walking distance of their house. She said when she was not in school, mainly she played with her cousins or sometimes with her sister, sometimes "annoyed" her mother or
simply "cut the fool." She had a great sense of humor! Margaret Readdick Ryan said, "My grandfather, Judge Robert H. Frohock, built a schoolhouse as well as the Methodist Church on some of his Cherry Point property. Grandfather hired a school teacher, Miss Maggie Ross, to teach all of the children - his own, the Pacetti children and others - living on Cherry Point. They all called the one-room school `The Little Red School House' and I am
sure that my mother, Emmie Frohock, and Rete Pacetti used to go to this school together." Margaret said that she visited Miss Ross, who lived in St. Marys during her retirement years. Many Pacetti relatives lived nearby. A few included the large families of David B. and Evelina Downs Pacetti, Frank C. and Orrie Jane Carter Pacetti, Robert and Margaret Harriett Pacetti Frohock. There must have been others as well. There were those who lived in St.
Marys, for example, James and Julia Isabel Pacetti Wilson and Lewis A. and Mary Martha Pacetti Clarke. Over a period of four decades census records show that both Andrew Pacetti and his brother Dennis Pacetti repeatedly shifted their large families from St. Marys, to Fernandina and St. Augustine; reversing this cycle depending upon the job market. Andrew Pacetti owned a house (now demolished) located on Bryant Street in St. Marys. He and his second wife,
Catalina Andreu, two children from his previous marriage as well as six of their own children lived there for a while before they moved to Savannah. Dennis Pacetti and his wife, Esperanza Capo (who died sometime between 1860 and 1870), and their three children also lived on Bryant Street. A few years later he lived on Osborne Street in St. Marys. According to author James S. Silva, for several years Captain Dennis Pacetti continued to sail his sloop, the Independence,
transporting produce and other goods up and down the St. Marys River. Dennis Pacetti and his family were in St. Marys until the mid-1890's, after which time their names ceased to appear on records in Camden County. In several places throughout her diary, Augusta Gallie Floyd mentioned that some of their family visited "Bridge" or "Pat" Russell (Catherine "Pat" Sophia Floyd Russell, another of the Floyd sisters) in Camden County and
had taken them sacks of oranges from Moccasin Branch, Florida. Following the Civil War, a familiar way of life was completely disrupted. The Floyd family home of Bellevue was partially destroyed and Augusta Gallie Floyd's first residence outside of Camden County was at Moccasin Branch, Florida. The closest town was Tocoi on the east side of the St. John's River. Before her own house (called Oleander) was built she lived for a while with her brother, Hal Floyd and
his wife, Dora Jane Rogero. Augusta Gallie Floyd invited young Marion Pacetty and his cousin, Harry Russell ("Pat" Catherine Floyd Russell's son), to travel down for a visit with them at Moccasin Branch but Marion had cut his foot quite badly and Harry Russell had to go alone. Young Rete had many cousins but one of the closest was Emmie Frohock. Emily "Emmie" Rebecca Frohock, who later married John Walter Readdick, was the daughter of
Margaret Harriett Pacetti Frohock and Robert H. Frohock, who, according to Emmie, "Lived across the creek from Lewis David Pacetti out on Cherry Point." Emmie called Lewis David "Uncle L.D." and Margaret Isabella "Aunt Morgie." Rete always referred to Margaret Harriett and Robert Frohock as "Aunt Dump" (because she was short and plump) and "Uncle Bob." Rete and Emmie had many good times together. Emmie told me that it
was the custom for girls to be well-behaved, although on numerous occasions these two displayed their share of inventive, impish mischief! Not unexpected after a hard life, the beautiful but frail Margaret Isabella died the 24th of March, 1892 at the age of 49. The devastated Pacetti household would never be the same. Her absence would be greatly felt. In Maud Pacetti's diary the entry on page 36 states, "March 24, 1894. Saturday, It is
just two years ago today that my dear Mother died and left us all to do the best we could is this world. Would to God it had been me instead." According to Rete Pacetti Brown, Margaret Isabella Floyd Pacetti was buried at Oak Grove Cemetery in St. Marys. Margaret Readdick Ryan said, "Everyone who died out on this particular area of Cherry Point was taken into St. Marys for burial. No one was ever buried out there nor on the Methodist Church
grounds on Cherry Point because the land was so near the marshes and water that the ground was always too wet." Lewis David Pacetti is buried at Oak Grove Cemetery in St. Marys. His marked grave reads: "Louis Pacetty 2nd.Lt.Co.2nd Fla.Inf. C.S.A." - no dates. No Pacetti family members are buried near his grave. Camden County historian, Eloise Bailey, says that this small section of the cemetery was reserved for those who served during
the Civil War. There are many Pacettis with both marked and unmarked graves in this cemetery. Oak Grove Cemetery records do not show that there is an unmarked grave for Margaret Isabella Floyd Pacetti; however, it is believed by family members that she was buried there. At that moment in his life, Lewis David Pacetti was unable to afford a stone marker for his wife. Lewis David apparently had a great deal of difficulty in coping with Margaret Isabella's
death. He was a very large man - extremely tall - about 6' 4" with broad shoulders - like a prize fighter - piercing eyes, some say blue, some say brown - and he had a long, dark, bushy beard. A portly, imposing figure of a man. He loved his liquor! The implications are that he drank to excess before and especially after Margaret's death. According to Fred Frohock, Lewis David, as a young man, had been captured in Virginia very soon after entering the
Civil War. He was kept in prison for nearly two-thirds of the four years. Could this experience have driven him to drink as well as resulted in behavior considered contemptible? Lewis David Pacetti was periodically expelled from the Methodist Church in St. Marys: "You are herein charged according to the law with afirm violation of the Discipline by drinking spirituous [sic] liquors when it was not absolutely necessary...and we feel in duty bound to protect our
beloved Church by the enforcement of her laws for the sake of the world and unsacred about us, for the sake of the Church as a holy institution, for the sake of your own soul." Signed in 1890 by three church members. His sons, Marion, Sam (also called Gus) and Bourke were allowed to remain at home, possibly because they were older and could fend for themselves. Maud was sent to live with Aunt Jule Floyd Noyes and Rete was sent to live with Aunt Estelle
Floyd Foster. The year was 1892 and Rete's father could not handle this ten-year-old independent spirit. Off to Satilla Bluff she went, to live with her dear Floyd related cousins, aunt and uncle. I frequently questioned her about this and each time I asked, her eyes would cloud over with a far away look and her voice became stilted as she explained, "My father could not take care of us after my mother died. He was very poor and unable to
manage with us so I went to live with Aunt Estelle and Uncle Jack." Though there were many children in Estelle and Jack Foster's household, Rete grew particularly close to her cousins Ruth, Kitsy, Ida and Jule. Rete and Ruth were akin to sisters and they played, ate, slept, and went to school together. They also got into trouble and were punished together. The Hilton-Dodge Lumber Company mill was not too far from the Foster
home. Jack Foster was part owner of this mill according to his daughter, Georgia Foster Fawcett. The children were warned not to be out walking through the woods when the late afternoon whistle blew. The whistle signaled the end of a shift and the mill workers filtered through the woods on their trek home. One day Rete and Ruth were wandering slowly through the woods, very near the Satilla River, when they heard the shrill sound of the whistle. They instinctively
knew they were in trouble. They rushed home to find Aunt Estelle in great consternation over their tardiness. That evening Uncle Jack whipped them both and sent them to bed without supper. When I was a child, Rete would sit in the rocking chair with me on her lap and I would beg her to tell me this story over and over again. She never did grow tired of telling of it. Rete's sister, Maud, received a scholarship to Georgia Normal College in
Milledgeville, Georgia. Maud's daughter, Marguerite Godley Reddick, said that the two year scholarship was given to her mother on the recommendation of Mr. Julius King, Camden County School Commissioner. On page nine of her journal, Maud Pacetti wrote, "Jan. 6, 1894, All late to breakfast this morning. I went down in my wrapper. Had toothache all night and did not sleep at all hardly. Gus, Mary and myself cleaned up the room. When we
got through, Mary and I got ready to go up town. Mrs. Shealy went with us. We went to the express office, there was no box. Went to the post office, there was no mail...When I got back the girls all wanted something to eat. I took the money, went over to a little store and got some sausages and crackers, we cooked them in our room in the shovel, and the girls made candy. I wore my wrapper down to supper and Mary did likewise. After supper we all went
downstairs to dance. Gus and I danced a jig. Gus had on her bloomers and me in my wrapper. There were a lot of cadets standing by the well in the yard looking at us. I went upstairs to study. After they all came upstairs we ate our supper that we had cooked in the shovel. Mary read a chapter in the Bible to me but the girls made so much fuss I could not hear it. At last we all said goodnight and went to bed." On January 9, 1894
she wrote, "After being kept awake all night (from a toothache) I got up at five o'clock and went to studying. We cleaned up the room, and went to breakfast. It was still raining and to my horror I had to wear an old gossamer and rubbers to school." The school year ended on March 31, 1894. Maud Pacetti took the train from Milledgeville to Guyton, Georgia. She stayed with her Uncle Bourke Floyd and Aunt Fannie Perkins Floyd who lived in a
picturesque place called "Pineora." Nell Noyes, Jule Floyd Noyes' daughter, explained, "Pineora was a lovely plantation located just far enough away from Savannah to escape the summer heat and mosquitoes which plagued that city! The family took the train into Savannah for supplies." During her two month stay at Pineora, Maud played croquet with the children and took them for walks in the park; played whist and casino and went fishing with Aunt Fannie and
Uncle Bourke; received letters from Gussie Russell; sewed dresses; picked strawberries and blackberries; visited cousins in Savannah where she attended dinner parties and dances. At the very end of May in 1894 Maud left Pineora. She packed her trunk and satchel and took the train back to Woodbine. On page 66 of her journal Maud wrote, "When the train stopped I saw Uncle Ned and got off as fast as I could. I met Rete, Ellie, Harry and Albert or rather
they met me. We had to go five miles in a boat, but it did not take us long, at last we reached the house. Aunt Jule met us at the door. I was truly delighted to see her. After supper I went over to Aunt Teddie's and staid a while then went back and talked to Aunt Jule a long time and went to bed. Ellie and I talked about three hours, so got to sleep about three o'clock." Not only did young Rete live in the household of Estelle
"Teddie" Floyd Foster and her husband Jack Foster, at various times she stayed with other Floyd family members. This included her Aunt Jule Floyd Noyes at Satilla Bluff and her Aunt Catherine "Aunt Kate" or "Pat" Floyd Russell at Tompkins or Silco. The head of the Russell household was Judge John Swan Russell who was married to Catherine "Pat" Sophia Floyd. This couple had children very close in ages to those of
John's own father's children. John Swan Russell's father was Clement Phineas Russell, a man who married for the second time late in life and when Clement and his wife died, John took care of the children from this second marriage. Catherine Melanie "Kate" Russell was one of these children. This information is verified by Georgia Foster Fawcett and by David "Dave" Richardson, Kate's son. The duplication of names becomes somewhat confusing because I
always referred to this lady as "Aunt Kate." She first married George Henry Richardson and after he died, she married Leonard Rose. When I was a young girl in Miami, Florida, she frequently stopped by Rete's house to visit. Aunt Kate used to tell me amusing stories while we walked up to the corner drugstore on Eighth Street to buy vanilla ice cream cones. Kate Russell Richardson Rose was related only through marriage, yet she and Rete Pacetti Brown were to
remain lifetime friends - perhaps because their circumstances were somewhat similar. The small community at Satilla Bluff was where Edward Prescott "Ned" Noyes and his wife, Jule Floyd Noyes lived. Their large two-story house, built with a sun parlor and two wide verandas, faced the Satilla River. According to Nell Noyes, her father, Ned Noyes, succeeded Jack A. Foster as superintendent of the Hilton-Dodge Lumber Company. Nell Noyes explained
that Satilla Bluff had two settlements - the Upper Mill where the lumber company was located and three miles away, the Lower Mill (later became Ceylon) where they lived. Georgia Foster Fawcett, who resides in Savannah and who told me many fascinating sketches regarding the Floyd, Russell and Foster families, said that during this time frame John Alexander "Jack" Foster and his wife, Estelle "Teddie" Floyd Foster lived in close proximity to Ned and Jule Noyes at
Satilla Bluff. Susan L. (Mary Rose) Floyd Graves wrote a letter to her cousin, Mary Faith Floyd McAdoo, on March 12, 1891 in which she said, "Ted and Jule have four children, each. They live right by each other at the Satilla Mills." In her journal, Maud Pacetti described a trip to Cherry Point beginning June 17, 1894 and ending several days later. A group of young people, including Maud, Marion Pacetti, Arthur, Mary and George
Frohock, Florrie Pacetti, Lula (no last name listed), and a Mr. Gowan took a boat to a beach area. They tried to sail the boat but there was no wind so the men had to use the oars. After the beach picnic, they all went back to their homes on Cherry Point. On June 18, Maud wrote that she got up early to cook breakfast and afterward, "Papa went to St. Marys to church. We all ate melon in the kitchen and after dinner Marion and Mr. Gowen went back to bed. Rete
and Bourke went to sleep. Gussie and Frank and Johnnie Pierce went off and I was left alone in my glory. Later, I went to Uncle Dave's." On June 19, Maud wrote, "I went to Uncle Bob's to see Grandma." Maud continued, "June 20: Coming back to the Bluff. Marion and Rete and myself. We stopped at Mr. Oxley's a long time. We got here about three o'clock ate dinner and Marion went to Uncle John's." This journal definitely provides confirmation that on occasion during her early teenage years, Rete visited Cherry Point. As an adult, this bit of information was something she politely declined to discuss. Rete stayed in her father's house on Cherry Point and she spent time with her Pacetti relatives. "Papa" was Lewis David Pacetti (who must have been reinstated by the church!). Gussie, Bourke and Marion were Maud's and
Rete's brothers. "Frank" was Francis C. Pacetti, Lewis David's youngest brother. "Uncle Dave" was David Bailey Pacetti, another of Lewis David's brothers. "Uncle Bob" was Robert H. Frohock, who was married to Margaret "Dump" Pacetti and Arthur, George and Mary were a few of their children. "Grandma" was Martha J. "Patsy" Smith Campbell, who was living with Robert and Margaret Frohock. Martha J.
Campbell died on October 3, 1894 at the age of ninety-five. "Florrie" was Florence Eugenia Pacetti, daughter of David Bailey and Evelina Downs Pacetti. Florrie later married her cousin, Marion Pacetti. "Uncle John" was either John "Jack" Foster or John S. Russell. I cannot accurately establish a connection as to the other names mentioned: Mr. Gowan, Lula, Johnnie Pierce, and Mr. Oxley. When Maud stayed with
her Aunt Jule and Uncle Ned Noyes at Satilla Bluff she often took one of the family's small boats to the Upper Mill to get the mail. She gave an account of one such episode which took place on July 31, 1894, "Gus and I took Ned, Hazel and Jim to the other mill to get the mail. We went in the boat and had to pull against the tide. Just as we got around the point Jim let his hat fall in the river, of course I had to go back and get it. We turned round and
started to the mill. When we got about half way, Gussie's hat fell and then we had to turn round again. I was so mad I could have cursed. Well, finally we got there, my hands were completely blistered and I had a raging headache. We came back in 20 minutes." On August 8, 1894, in her journal, Maud described a trip to a place called Black Point along the Crooked River. The day before they left, she filled the lamps, bathed the children,
washed and ironed shirtwaists, baked cakes, packed lunch baskets. Early the next morning they started off in wagons, taking fourteen children with them. They stayed near the swimming area in a very small summer house which they named, "Paradise Lost." She said that almost every day for the entire two weeks Rete and Ruth washed the breakfast dishes and they also helped clean the fish that were caught. They went swimming in the river, played games with the
children, picked grapes, "stole" melons, went on leisurely walks, sketched and read novels. Most of the time the children behaved well but at the dinner table they could "act like something wild!" At bedtime, Rete and Ruth got into a quarrel to see who would sleep on the outside. The last day of their stay at Black Point, August 17, 1894, Maud wrote, "The day was beautiful. Uncle Ned came for the boys and Aunt Ted and Uncle
Jack for us...We took the children in bathing and then we went back to finish packing...After dinner we all started home. Aunt Ted, Gus, Rete, Ruth, Kate, Alexine, Nell, Uncle Jack and I were all in the surrey. Mr. Proctor took Ellie in his buggy about 12 miles for us then we got out to walk. We got here about dark. Aunt Jule sat up all night looking for Uncle Ned." There is an 1894 photograph of Rete taken in St. Augustine when she was twelve
years old. Her long, thick, dark brown hair is pulled back in a ribbon high on her head and falls down below her shoulders. Tiny curls form slight bangs across her forehead. Her eyes are brown and her skin a light olive complexion. She looked quite "Spanish" as a young girl. In the large Satilla Bluff house near the Satilla River, on January 16, 1895, Rete's Aunt Estelle Floyd Foster died. This left a great void in her life as
she would no longer be a boarder in the Foster household. At this time it is thought that Rete went to live with her Aunt Augusta Gallie Floyd who was residing in St. Augustine. At least she lived with her during the school year. During the summer she still "visited" other family members. Augusta Gallie Floyd was a strict, no-nonsense spinster under whose charge many of the single females in this family remained until they were married or
went to live elsewhere. At this time she lived in a large, white, three-story colonial house located at 54 Water Street in St. Augustine, Florida, purchased for her in 1892 by her brothers. Augusta Floyd, a former school teacher, marked the height of the young children each time they came to visit. In 1895, on the dining room doors at the house on Water Street, Rete Pacetti had her name placed just above that of Albert Floyd. The measurements written beside Rete's name
are 4'11 1/2" and Albert's measurements are 4' 11". On April 18, 1897, in St. Augustine, Rete wrote a letter to her Uncle Jack Foster. She wrote, "Dear Uncle Jack, It was indeed very kind and thoughtful of you to send me that money and I'm much obliged to you. Auntie had my teeth fixed last week and they look real good. I went bicycle riding last Wednesday and had a real nice time. Fé can ride now and she went with me. Tell Ruth to
write to me real soon, she has been owing me a letter a long time. School won't close till the first of June, but I'm going to stop the first of May. I take drawing from Miss Amy Schmidt and I like it very much. Not very long ago we had a very bad thunder storm; it rained in torrents and hailed and the wind blew very hard. I was a little bit frightened. I wish you and Gus would come to see us soon. Albert is reading, Auntie is sitting down rocking and I'm
writing to you so I'll have to come to a close. All are well except Auntie, and she has a bad cold. I must say Goodnight. Write soon to your loving niece. Rete." Rete was not quite fifteen when she wrote this letter. "Auntie" sometimes called "Aunt Gus" was Augusta Gallie Floyd. Fé was a first cousin, Fé Hyacinth Floyd, daughter of Henry "Hal" Hamilton Floyd, Jr. and Isadora "Dora" Jane
Rogero. Albert was Fe's brother. While Rete was living with her Aunt Augusta Floyd in St. Augustine, Fé visited them frequently. They became good friends and at a later date, Rete would name her first daughter after these two ladies - her cousin and her aunt. The "Gus" she referred to in her letter was Augusta Gowan Russell, daughter of John Swan Russell and Catherine "Pat" Sophia Floyd. Augusta Gowan Russell was Jack Foster's second
wife. The "Ruth" she referred to was another first cousin and also one of her very dearest friends, Ruth Foster, daughter of Jack Foster and his first wife, Estelle Floyd Foster. Rete's fear of electrical storms never abated. With each bolt of lightening she would always cringe and with each crash of thunder she would scream. She would then declare with certainty that the world was coming to an end! All of the Floyds emphasized the value of a
good education and encouraged it in every aspect. Fortunately, Rete did have a good education which included learning French, a language in which she became proficient. At a later date, she taught French to her own students. Augusta Gallie Floyd had a piano and though she did not receive formal lessons, Rete taught herself to play. Every young girl who lived with Augusta Gallie Floyd had impeccable manners and social mores ingrained at an early age.
Somewhere along the line, Rete became an Episcopalian. She was baptized in the Cherry Point Methodist Church. The Register of Baptisms for this church shows: "Margaret Julia Pacetty baptized on June 10, 1884; infant age 3 mos.; parents Lewis & Margaret; by Rev. J.D. Anthony." This birth date differs by about two years according to the Pacetty Family Bible and by Rete's own word. Georgia Foster Fawcett said that most of the Floyds professed the
Episcopal faith. In the Floyd Volumes compiled by Alice Collar Tonge, this was the religious faith held by Jule Floyd Noyes, Georgia Estelle Floyd Foster and Augusta Gallie Floyd. Where did Rete spend this summer? It could have been with the Russells in Camden County or with her Aunt Jule Floyd Noyes whose husband, Ned Noyes, had been transferred to Savannah at this time. Jule Noyes periodically traveled to St. Augustine, to Savannah and to their home at
Satilla Bluff. According to Georgia Foster Fawcett, the Fosters did not move to Savannah until 1909. I recall Rete mentioning that as a young girl she went to Savannah and absolutely adored that city. During one visit she and her cousin, Ruth, were there together. One lovely afternoon Rete and Ruth went walking down the street taking their time, exclaiming over the beautiful flowers growing in everyone's yards when the little maid accompanying them happened to get in
front of the two young ladies. Rete always related this episode as an impertinent affront, "Can you imagine? Of all the nerve, that little hussy walked right in front of us!" Complicated social codes still prevailed and this was considered an unheard of breach of deportment. Maud Pacetty was to be married to Mr. Andrew B. Godley on November 24, 1897. The year before, Rete and Maud's eldest brother, Marion Pacetti, married his petite,
lively Florrie and both of them were now living out on Cherry Point. In September, 1897, a letter arrived for Maud from her Aunt Jule Noyes, who was in St. Augustine at the time. It was decided that the wedding was to take place at St. Clement's Episcopal Church at Satilla Bluff; the reception was to be held at Aunt Jule's and Uncle Ned's home at Satilla Bluff. They would serve cake and wine but in the months prior to the wedding, Maud must make her
trousseau. Aunt Jule is very happy about the plans for this marriage especially since Mr. Godley had told Maud that they may take Rete to live with them. Aunt Jule wrote, "Every one of us will help to dress Rete - so that she will be pleasant company for you with very little expense." Apparently Rete completed school which she attended in St. Augustine and was no longer living with her "Dear Auntie" as she always referred to Augusta
Gallie Floyd. Rete must have been living with her Aunt "Pat" Catherine (she always called her Aunt Kate) Floyd Russell and Uncle John Swan Russell in Silco. In a letter to her sister Rete wrote, "Silco, Ga. Nov. 17, 1897; My dearest Sis: You don't know how bad we all miss you, I wish you were here or I there. I'm so much obliged to you for sending the clothes. I think those two shirtwaists are so pretty. I found fifty cents
in one of them, I think Auntie sent it for my birthday. Colquitte had the chill and fever again to-day but Jim hasn't had it since you left...I think we will be with you on Saturday, Aunt Kate said she thought we would go on Saturday's boat, because the boys are going to grind cane next week. I made some potato-doogum twice and it was fine, and went like hot cakes...Has Auntie sent all my winter clothes, and does my dress I'm to wear at your wedding look good? Aunt Kate and
I are going to pick all the chrysanthemums and put them in the house so we can bring them when we come. You know the cold weather kills them. I guess you feel queer to-day, only one more week when your name, future, and life I guess will all change, but I believe you'll be the same old 'Sis' as before. Aunt Kate says if nothing happens she'll surely be at your wedding, but if Colquitt is still sick with the chill and fever she can't come, but will send me. My dear I
suppose this will be my last letter to you while you are Miss Maud Pacetty but, will address them to Mrs. G. instead. I must say Goodbye for this time. I am as ever your loving sister, Rete." Just as in every letter, journal and diary I have quoted, this letter is transcribed exactly as it was written, leaving the original spelling intact. Even though this letter had Silco written above the date on the far right-hand side of the page, the envelope
was postmarked Tomkins, Georgia and was sent to: "Miss Maud Pacetty, Satilla Bluff, Camden Co., Ga." Transportation was still rather difficult in the late eighteen nineties. Camden County is chock-full of waterways ranging from deep rivers with swift currents and steady flowing tributaries to docile creeks and quiet branches. It was very convenient to travel by boat and a lot of people used small sail boats, row boats, skiffs or bateaus for errands,
fishing or for just getting about. Marguerite Godley Reddick said that steamboats made regular trips along the Satilla River stopping at places as Satilla Bluff, Ceylon, Woodbine, Owens Ferry, Bailey's Mill and then going as far up as Burnt Fort before returning to Brunswick or to St. Simons Island. Maud Pacetti used the term "The Vessel" to describe the steamboats as they approached the landing docks along the Satilla River. Three times she mentioned: The
Passport, The Bonsall, The Viola Rippard. On January 23, 1898, Lewis David Pacetti married Julia Ann Peebles. A large reception was held in Robert and Margaret Frohock's house on Cherry Point and Emmie Frohock and Rete were there to join in the celebration. According to Emmie Frohock Readdick it was a very festive gathering with lots of friends, relatives, good food, dancing, and music. The music was played by banjo, fiddle, and a recorder type
instrument. Everyone serenaded the happy couple. Emmie Frohock Readdick said that apparently Rete disapproved of this marriage for she did not have too much to say about the entire affair. I never once remember her mentioning her father except to say he was poor and that he had no roots in Camden County and he could not be traced because he came directly to Georgia from Spain. Most of which is entirely untrue. She absolutely refused to talk about him.
Perhaps his demeanor was too painful for her to relate. Emmie also thought that Julia disapproved of the merriment because she was rather stern and solemn. She described Julia Peebles as a homely, seemingly nice, woman who owned a boarding house on Clark's Bluff on the St. Marys River. This is verified by Fred Frohock who told me that the boarding house was located just outside of Kingsland. Fred said that Lewis David went to live with Julia in the
boarding house but operated his own boat house which was situated on one of the many tributaries near the St. Marys River. On the 1900 Camden County census, Lewis David, Julia, and Thomas Bourke (Lewis David's son) were listed in one household. On the same census, in another household, were listed: Andrew Godley, head, age 35, DOB Nov. 1864; Madena, wife, age 25, DOB Mar. 1875; Floyd, son, age 1, DOB Sept. 1898; Andrew, son, age one month, DOB May 1900; Rete
Pacetty, sister, age 17, DOB Nov. 1883. The many census errors are probably due to both those recording the census as well as those giving the information. Thomas Bourke Pacetti died June 18, 1901 in his late twenties. It was another sorrowful day for Lewis David and his family. Emmie Frohock and Rete were going to attend the funeral together. For some unknown reason, Rete was staying across the creek from the Frohock house. With
Marion and Florrie? Or in her father's former house? Emmie could not recall which. She had to rig a horse and buggy and travel the long way around in order to fetch Emmie because the creek (Sandy Run) was up. The road was dusty and the ride was hot. They arrived a bit late and had to sit in the rear row of chairs. The service was held outside. Unfortunately, they were sitting behind Julia Peebles' brother, a large man with cauliflower ears. The girls
had nicknamed him "Mr. Pocketbook" because he always carried something which resembled a purse. They invariably laughed every time they saw him. During the service, Rete started to giggle. Then Emmie started to giggle and snicker. They lost complete control and began to laugh. They decided they had better get up and leave. Yet my own mother, Frances Brown, said that each time Rete spoke about poor Bourke she became very sad. When I
spoke to her about her early life, Rete never actually came out and said so but only hinted that she felt an extreme sense of loss when Maud married Andrew Godley. They lived in an area between Burnt Fort and Midriver - such an inaccessible distance from everyone and places familiar. Jack Godley said, "Before he was married, Andrew Godley built a house on property he owned located about 1 and 1/4 miles north of Burnt Fort. The house was about 1/4 mile from the Satilla
River and the little sandy beach at the curve in the river where the boats landed is still known as Godley's Landing." Over the next few years Rete's sporadic visits with Maud and Andrew Godley seemed limited to the summer months. She was listed with them on the 1900 census which had been taken in June. She helped with household chores, helped with Maud's children and according to Marguerite Godley Reddick she taught school in Midriver.
I do know that Rete taught school in a one-room schoolhouse just outside of Silco. She was still living with her Aunt Kate (Catherine Sophia Floyd) Russell and John Swan Russell at the time. In a letter to her sister, Maud, she wrote, "Silco, Georgia Oct. 12, 1904; Dear Sis: I do not see how I can go to the show for everybody here is sick nearly and I have sore throat, too but I will send the skirt by Andrew Sat. and if I were you I'd go. I just phoned to Lee at
Woodbine, she came last night and will stay til after the fair tomorrow. Wish I could go but I can't. I was mad all day Sunday but I sure took dinner with Maud McCarthy. Saw Miss Jessie Mizell and Bessie. Got home about 7 o'clock. Mr. Ben Dyal apologized to me at Church for hearing him curse Fri., said he didn't know I was in the buggy. I staid at Mrs. Russells last night. Got that blue flannel dress, too. But don't know how I will make
it. Have you seen Hugh since Sat.? I swear, if it wasn't for losing my rep., I'd get my cousin Lee to finish this darn school. I don't like this having sore throat so much. Little Gussie Jackson came near to having convulsions this morning, poor Mrs. Jackson is having a time. Guess I'll close. By the way please send my pocket book first chance. Goodday. Love to all, Rita." I often heard Rete say that she liked teaching
the children in her one-room schoolhouse even though it was difficult to discipline them at times. The "Cousin Lee" she referred to in this letter was Miss Rosa Lee Russell, daughter of Catherine Sophia Floyd Russell and John Swan Russell. According to James "Jim" Boog Floyd Russell of White Oak, the Russells moved into that large gray stone house on Bryant Street in St. Marys probably sometime around 1905 and for years Lee Russell taught school in St.
Marys. Being in such close proximity to all those little children increased the risk of exposure to viral illnesses. Simply because she was predisposed to certain infections, Rete did not wish to compromise her reputation by giving up her job. She stood by her established work-ethic principles and continued teaching. Maud Pacetty Godley was a lovely lady, outgoing and popular, with a grand sense of humor and amiable personality. She had numerous
talents to her credit. She sewed beautifully, wrote poetry, was an artist who liked to draw pastels of multicolored flowers, had a marvelous green thumb with great success in her garden and was known for her good cooking. Rete commented that everything she was able to do, she had learned from her sister. She said that she and Maud used to sit together cutting out and sewing their dresses as well as children's clothes. They did not use patterns.
According to Marguerite Godley Reddick, Rete had many suitors. They would come to the Godley house in a horse and buggy and take Rete out riding down the various winding lanes lined with moss-draped oaks. One man, Clyde McCarthy, was "sweet on Rete" says Elinor McCarthy Russell of White Oak. In later years, each time someone mentioned Rete's name, his face broke into a cute little smile but he would not reveal anything!
Gliding
gently down the Satilla River, the river boat carried the normal crowd of young people returning from an excursion to St. Simon's Island. There was a dancing party on board this steamer and Rete Pacetti met Frank Hopkins Brown as he was playing his guitar during a band break. After getting acquainted, they danced together. He liked her long, dark brown hair and her rather formal demeanor. She liked his jovial teasing and his charming manner. The party denoted the
beginning of a future relationship which was to last just two years shy of a golden commemoration. Frank Hopkins Brown, was the son of James David Brown and Clara Ann Gelzer. His maternal grandparents were Thomas Lining Gelzer, M.D. and Clara Anne Reid, both of South Carolina. Around 1860 Thomas L. Gelzer, his wife and children moved to Camden County were he set up a medical practice in Jefferson (the former county seat until it was changed to St.
Marys in 1872; then to Woodbine in 1923). Frank Brown's paternal grandparents were Hugh Brown, Jr. of Camden County and Elizabeth Dean, of Milledgeville in Baldwin County, Georgia. Frank H. Brown was born and reared in Midriver, Georgia, where he and his brothers, half brothers and cousins farmed many acres of land, worked on rice plantations and in timber and turpentine production. After a long and decorous courtship, Frank H. Brown and Rete Pacetti decided to
marry and set the date for August 1, 1906. The wedding took place in the old Episcopal Church of the Messiah situated on the Satilla River at Owens Ferry and was officiated by the well known Reverend D. Watson Winn. Bea Brown White said that Rete's dear Aunt Augusta Gallie Floyd could not attend the wedding but sent her orange blossoms from St. Augustine. Georgia Foster Fawcett explained that it was a custom in their family for brides to wear orange blossoms. In
the Floyd family tradition, Rete walked down the aisle with a light veil attached to garlands of fresh orange blossoms entwined into a crown on top of her hair. One of her best friends, Kate Russell, was her maid of honor and her aunt, Jule Floyd Noyes, was another witness. Bea Brown White who attended this wedding, said that Claude Brown, Frank's youngest brother, was his best man. However, according to the Episcopal Church records, Crawford Brown, Frank's half brother, was
the only witness listed for Frank. Everyone listened while Rete promised her allegiance to this proud, imperious, handsome man. At the conclusion of the official ceremony at the church, everyone was invited to attend a luncheon wedding reception which was held at the home of Rete's sister, Maud Pacetti Godley. According to Eddie Brown, Rita's youngest son, Rita Brown and her new husband set up housekeeping in a rambling wooden farm house
outside of White Oak, Georgia. The old, unpainted weathered house was one-story with a fireplace and four bedrooms and had an outside well and outhouse. They raised chickens, cows and pigs; grew their own vegetables, had fig trees, peach trees and a grape arbor. In a conversation with Eddie Brown in 1979, he said that the house was still standing near White Oak. Actually, this house belonged to William Weston Brown, another half brother of Frank H. Brown - according to
Beatrice Brown White, daughter of William Weston Brown. The house was located on Highway 252 in the Sand Hills area called Midriver and Rita and Frank spent their wedding night here then only stayed for a day or two after that. This information was from Bea Brown White who told me that as far as she knew, "Frank and Rita never did own a place in Camden County because they always had it in their minds to move south to Miami." This house, known as the Weston Brown
house, was located diagonal across Highway 252 from the entry leading to the old Jacob T. Goodbread house, and had been demolished when I saw the area as of 1984. The site marking the spot where the Weston Brown house once stood is still discernable; the empty, sandy soil is still lined with stately live oaks. NEXT |
