Cheesy Grits: And the Thornes just keep on coming....

Since my last post—which was indeed some time ago—I've been on the trail of some other of Philip and Elizabeth Weston Thorne's descendants. Regarding the ones who moved to New York City. I've been prompted in part by a series of exchanges with a reader who calls himself "Mr. Robinson." What I've been doing is documenting the hints and clues he gave me.


As a refresher, Philip (1813-1883) and Elizabeth Weston (1821-1885) Thorne had a large family in Charleston. Here they are in their birth order: John S., W(illiam) Miller, Philip M. Jr., Francis, Weston, Rebecca, Harriett, and Thomas.

I've only written at any length about two of these families here: John S., and Rebecca, Jane's great-great-grandmother, who moved to New York City around 1905-06. But I've done some other tracings of various grandchildren, plus "Mr. Robinson" put me on the trail of two more.

But here is a brief recap of some of Philip and Elizabeth's descendants and their achievements. Not all, of course: but sure that in most cases, the paucity of stories reflects the state of my research rather than any lack of accomplishment.

John S. Thorne (ca.1840 - 1904), one of the Two Black Kings of Edisto:

John's daughters, Rhea and Sadie, were minors when their parents died, so they moved from Edisto to Charleston to live with their aunt and uncle, Susan and Philip M. Thorne. Sadie graduated from Avery Normal and went on to teach math at what would become FAMU. She contracted tuberculosis and died at a sanitorium in North Carolina while she was still in her twenties. Rhea ended up in Washington DC, where she died in 1989 having walked this earth for almost a century.

William Miller Thorne (ca. 1844 - ????):

W. Miller Thorne's second of three sons, William Miller Thorne, Jr., went to Yale and then on to medical school at the University of Michigan, where he was a founding member and secretary of the Epsilon chapter of the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity. After an internship at the Freedmen's Hospital in Washington, DC, Dr. Thorne returned to Charleston to practice medicine, where he did so until his death in 1942. He was also, among many other things, the first secretary of Charleston chapter of the NAACP. The Avery Research Center archive has a photo of him with W.E.B. Du Bois and a group of other Charleston dignitaries, which meeting was the catalyst for forming Charleston's NAACP Chapter.

W. Miller Thorne's third son, Norwood, went to dental school at Starling/Ohio Medical College and move on to set up his dental practice in Chicago, where he was also a founding member of the Lincoln Dental Society.

I have not yet tracked William Miller Thorne's two older children.

Philip M.Thorne, Jr. (ca. 1846 - 1913):

Philip M. Jr., stayed in Charleston. While various occupations are listed for him, including carpenter, real estate investor, and saloon-keeper, altogether he must have done well enough to get by and then some, as the marble steps to the altar at St. Mark's Episcopal in Charleston have his wife's name engraved on them as a memorial: "Susan E. Thorne." St. Mark's Episcopal is after all, high church, and a marble memorial on the steps of a high-church altar is, um, a memorable memorial.

Philip M. Jr.'s son, also named Philip M., graduated from Avery Institute and the Boys' High School in the Bed-Stuy section of Brooklyn, and went on to Yale Law School, graduating in 1909. He was, like his cousin William Miller Thorne, an early member of Alpha Phi Alpha at Yale. After graduation, he moved to New York City where he set up his own law practice and served briefly on the NAACP Legal Committee. as well as being an officer of NYC's Alpha Phi Alumni chapter. He just disappears from the records after about 1917 and I don't know what happened. Did the great Spanish influenza epidemic get him or what?

I don't know of any other children in this branch.

Francis/Frank  (ca. 1847 - 1866?):

Francis seems to have stayed around Charleston. One census lists him as living with his brother John down on Edisto, but otherwise, I haven't found much for him yet.

Weston Thorne (1850 - 1905):

Weston and his wife Letitia  were the first of the Thornes to move from Charleston to New York City, doing so around 1876-77.  Weston's oldest son, John Tully Thorne, graduated from Dartmouth in 1897, did graduate work at Columbia University. He spent his professional life as a teacher in the New York City public school system, rising to the position of principal. Another son, Philip Evon, was a charter if not a founding member of the famous Brooklyn social club, the Comus Club. I haven't traced the other children very far at all.

Rebecca Thorne Howard (1852 - 1916):

Rebecca is of course Jane's great-great-grandmother. She married Robert Howard, Jr., and he passed away in 1886, when he was just 43, leaving Rebecca and their two daughters, Cecelia and Valeria. Rebecca subsequently moved to NYC sometime around 1905-6 and may even have moved at the same time as her daughter, Valeria, who was Jane's great-grandmother. As it turns out, and thanks to the promptings of my reader, "Mr. Robinson," I've now been able to document Rebecca's other daughter/Valeria's sister, Cecelia, who was also known as Lily and who moved to New York City around 1902 or so. More about Lily in a future post.

Harriet Thorne Desverney (1854 - 1925):

Harriet was also known as "Hattie." In 1881, she married Arthur Desverney from Charleston and they moved to New York City sometime before 1900. She died in NYC in 1925. I haven't got her death certificate yet, so I don't know where she is buried. I'll be writing about her soon, too.

Thomas Thorne (1856 - ????):

He's as much a mystery as Francis/Frank. One census has him living on Edisto with his brother, John, but that's pretty much as far as I've gotten with him.


And that's the current state of play for Philip and Elizabeth Weston Thorne's children. I'll leave you with a few pictures of St. Mark's Episcopal in Charleston that I took during a visit this past fall. A number of Thornes attended here: Jane's great-grandmother Valeria and her older sister Cecelia were baptized and confirmed here, and, as I mentioned, Valeria's Aunt Susan's name is carved into the marble altar steps.

St. Mark's Episcopal Church, Charleston, SC

Altar at St. Mark's Episcopal

Valeria's Aunt Susan's name carved as a memorial in the step
of the altar at St. Mark's Episcopal.

And finally, here is a screen shot of the Robert Howard Jr. family as recorded in the St. Mark's parish register. Some of the story of Valeria's older sister, Cecelia, will be told in the next post.

Howard family in the St. Mark's parish register. Valeria's age suggests that the record is dated around 1876.
Note the address at 7 Henrietta St.: they were living with Rebecca's parents, Philip and Elizabeth Weston Thorne.