Emma A. Harrison of Hillcrest Cemetery

Photo from The Atlanta Constitution (1927)

This sketch highlights Emma A. Harrison who is buried at Hillcrest Cemetery in East Point, Fulton County, Georgia.

Emma A. Harrison, daughter of John C. Harrison and Sarah E. Miles, was born in Campbell County, Georgia on April 22, 1869. She was the seventh child of nine—Hilliard A. Harrison, Robert Lewis Harrison, Benjamin F. Harrison, William Beauregard Harrison, John W. Harrison, Sarah Francis “Fannie” Elizabeth Harrison, Emma A. Harrison, Lelia May Harrison, and Charles J. Brannon Harrison.

On August 8, 1870, Emma and her family lived in the Goodes District of Campbell County, Georgia. Her father was a farmer with real estate valued at $800 and a personal estate worth $500. Her brother Robert worked as a farm laborer. 

Emma’s mother died on October 31, 1879 at the age of 46. She was buried at the Antioch Methodist Churchyard (also known as the Antioch United Methodist Cemetery) in the Fairburn District of Campbell County (now Fulton County).

On June 1, 1880, Emma and her family lived in District 1134 of Campbell County, Georgia. Her widowed father, now raising the children alone, worked as a farmer. Emma’s brother Hilliard had moved out of the home. Brothers Robert, Benjamin, William, and John worked as laborers; Fannie and sister Emma were keeping house. 

Emma’s sister Lelia died on November 29, 1891 at the age of 20. She was buried at the Antioch Methodist Churchyard with her mother. Her father died in Fulton County on April 2, 1897 and was also buried at Antioch United Methodist Cemetery. 

By the end of the decade, Emma had moved to East Point, Fulton County, Georgia and was a member of the First Missionary Society of East Point Methodist Church.

On June 1, 1900, Emma lived in the East Point home of her brother William. Others in the home were William’s wife Jennie and daughter Jewell, Emma’s sister Fannie, and brother Benjamin. William worked as a switchman and Benjamin a grocer. None of the females in the home worked. Everyone except Jewell, who was six months old, were able to read and write. In March 1903, Emma and Fannie sold a 114x50 lot on Spring Street in Atlanta to A. C. Hemperly for $125. Her brothers filed a quit claim deed, giving up their claim to the property, to Mr. Hemperly for $10. About 1908, Emma took a job as a reporter with The Constitution in Atlanta. She often attended or hosted social events with her sister Fannie. One example was an October 1909 Woman’s Foreign Missionary Society tea they hosted together from their Church Street home in East Point. The event, attended by at least 45 guests, included a program of music and a talk about missions. Afterwards, everyone enjoyed sandwiches and tea, and took up a collection for the society.

In February 1910, Emma and Fannie hosted a social event for the Epworth League where the guests were entertained with vocal and piano solos by a variety of young women. Afterwards everyone enjoyed refreshments of ambrosia and cake. A second event took place in February 1910 when Emma attended a pre-wedding party held in honor of Mary Simmons who was to be married the following week. The party featured a presentation of “A Rural Wedding” with “the guests wearing costumes of 50 years ago” and marching to the parlor to music played by Mrs. J. C. McKenzie. Afterwards, they had a linen shower for the bride and refreshments. On April 18, 1910, Emma lived on Church Street in East Point with her brother John. Others in the home were her brother Benjamin and sister Fannie. John worked as a railroad conductor, Benjamin as a salesman for a retail grocer, and Emma was a newspaper reporter. Fannie was unemployed. Emma attended an “All Hallowe’en party” in October 1910 at the home of Rev. and Mrs. O. C. Simmons in East Point. The home was decorated in “autumn leaves and grinning pumpkin heads” and favor cards were “hand-painted, the design being an ear of corn with tiny pumpkin heads.” They spent the evening playing games, including a haunted chamber where witches escorted the blindfolded guests while singing “dismal music.”

Emma was a charter member of the East Point Woman’s Club formed in January 1911. The idea to form the club began with Mrs. W. C. Carroll who “selected a lady from each religious denomination of the town and asked them to meet in her home” to discuss. Emma represented the Southern Methodist and became the “corresponding secretary and press agent.” Each member paid dues of 10 cents per month. These charter members became officers of the club and were tasked with soliciting new members from their respective churches. By February, they had about 20 new members with the numbers growing each month. With a mission of “charity and benevolence” and the help of the men of East Point, they raised money by sponsoring plays and dinners to help feed the hungry, provide clothing for those in need, care for the sick, pay rent and drug bills where needed, and help with funeral expenses for the dead. They helped schools and hospitals, and during World War I, worked with the Red Cross by knitting sweaters and bath rags to support the “boys in the trenches.” 

Emma’s brother John died in February 1911. John, a conductor for the A. & W.P. Railroad, was buried at Hillcrest Cemetery in East Point. 

The Junior Epworth League hosted a concert at the Southern Methodist Church in East Point mid-October 1911 where Emma sang “Love’s Old Sweet Song” with five other young women. In June 1912, Emma and Fannie attended a large reception for Miss Adelaide Hughes at the East Point home of Mrs. Erwin Wilson. In July 1912, they attended a reception for Mrs. Anna L. Kuppinger of Philadelphia at the home of Anna’s daughter. In August 1913, Emma participated in a “musical and literary” program held at the East Point city hall to raise money for the Presbyterian Aid Society’s building fund. Emma sang “Send or Go” at a Southern Methodist Church reception held at the Main Street home of Dr. and Mrs. George Trimble. In February 1914, they attended a “Martha Washington spend-the-day party” at the home of Mrs. James Greer, an “old classmate.” The home was appropriately decorated in red, white, and blue, flags, red hatchets, and cherries. 

Emma’s brother Robert died at his home in East Point in July 1915 at the age of 58. He was buried at Floral Hill Cemetery in Palmetto, Fulton County, Georgia. Emma lost her event partner in April 1917 with the death of Fannie at the age of 50. Fannie was was buried at Hillcrest Cemetery in East Point.

On January 3, 1920, Emma and her brother Benjamin lived alone in the Church Street home. Benjamin, the head of the household, worked as a railroad watchman. Emma worked as a social reporter for a newspaper. Their brother Hilliard lived seven houses away. Emma attended a spend-the-day party hosted by the Woman’s Missionary Society of East Point at the home of Mrs. J. D. Campbell in June 1920. She participated in the program by reading and singing. Emma taught Sunday school classes at the Southern Methodist Church in East Point. In June 1921, she took her class to Grant Park for a box luncheon; in April 1922 she treated her class to an Easter egg hunt. 

A strange thing happened to Emma in August 1924 when a young man showed up at her house and told her “that her brother, B. F. Harrison, had been arrested in connection with a ‘shooting scrape,’ and needed $20 at once.” She gave him a check, told him what he needed to do to cash it, and he left. When her brother came home from work that day, Emma discovered the man had seen Benjamin at the East Point depot earlier in the day and asked for his address, which he apparently provided. They called the police, Emma described what the man looked like, and then learned a man of that description had victimized several people in Atlanta in the same manner. 

Emma hosted a kitchen shower for her soon to be married niece Jewell Harrison in late May 1924. She used a white and pink color theme and decorated with Dorothy Perkins roses. Emma attended the 75th birthday party for Maggie Mixon, “a pioneer citizen of East Point” in October 1925. Emma’s brother William died in December 1926. He was buried at Hillcrest Cemetery in East Point. In August 1927, The Atlanta Constitution featured Emma in an article detailing her 20 years of writing for the newspaper. At the time, she was “the oldest female correspondent of the paper.” During her time at the newspaper, she was “the official representative of East Point” writing about social events that took place. She wrote about parties and dinners, describing the clothes the guests wore and what food was served, who visited who, until one day she was called into the editor’s office and told that was no longer news. Times had changed and “so the day of many frills in the life of Miss Emma Harrison, as social correspondence, passed away.” 

Three of the Harrison children died in 1929. The first was Benjamin, who died at the age of 60 in East Point on June 2. He was buried at Hillcrest Cemetery in East Point. The second was Hilliard, who died from acute cardiac debilitation in East Point on July 27, 1929. He was buried at Fairburn City Cemetery in Fairburn, Fulton County, Georgia. And finally, Emma died at her East Point home on November 5, 1929 from uremia, “a condition where there is abnormally high levels of waste products in the blood due to kidney failure.” At the age of 59, she was buried on November 7 at Hillcrest Cemetery following a funeral service officiated by the Revs. Venable and Weathers at the East Point Methodist Church. Emma was survived by her brother Charles, now the sole survivor of the immediate Harrison family, her sister-in-law Janie Harrison (wife of William), and several nieces and nephews.

Photo used with permission of the East Point Historical Society

Emma had been active in the East Point Methodist Church and club circles for many years. A writer, she worked for The Constitution for 21 years. In March 1930, the East Point woman’s Club planted a tree on club grounds in Emma’s memory. The “Emma Harrison Missionary Circle” continued to meet after her death. 

As I got to the end of the paper trail for Emma, I discovered a discrepancy in her birth year. The news article published by The Atlanta Constitution on November 6, 1929 and her death certificate both record her age as 59 and birth year as 1870. Her tombstone was engraved with a birth year of 1869. When you go back to the 1870 census taken in August, you see that she was enumerated as one year old. Since she was born in April, that means she was born in 1869. But then again, when she was enumerated in the 1880 census, taken in June, her age was recorded as 11. In the 1900 census, Emma’s birth was enumerated as April 1876. In the 1910 census, her age was recorded as 36, which would make her birth taking place in 1874. In 1920, the census enumerator recorded her age as 47, which would make her birth about 1873. I believe 1869 is the correct year.

References

• A Pleasant Occasion, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, February 6, 1910.
• Afternoon Reception, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, June 16, 1912.
• Afternoon Reception, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, October 26, 1913.
• Capt. J. W. Harrison, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, February 18, 1911.
• Class Picnic, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, June 19, 1921.
• Concert in East Point, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, August 10, 1913.
• East Point Family Tree, Charles W. Strickland, President, East Point Historical Society; https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/tree/30876178/person/26000786154/media/6d10d16a-7787-4fe8-abff-a705579b69eb. Photo originally shared by Kenneth Whitehead.
• East Point News of Social Interest, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, November 8, 1931.
• East Point Social News of Cordial Interest in State, The Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Georgia, March 30, 1930.
• Fannie Harrison funeral notice, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, April 18, 1917.
• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/251903233/sarah-e-harrison: accessed 26 October 2023), memorial page for Sarah E Miles Harrison (25 Jun 1833–31 Oct 1879), Find a Grave Memorial ID 251903233, citing Antioch United Methodist Cemetery, South Fulton, Fulton County, Georgia, USA; maintained by Anonymous (contributor 46960440).
• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/46120251/emma-a-harrison: accessed 26 October 2023), memorial page for Emma A. Harrison (22 Apr 1869–5 Nov 1929), Find a Grave Memorial ID 46120251, citing Hillcrest Cemetery, East Point, Fulton County, Georgia, USA; maintained by East Point Historical Soc (contributor 50779333).
• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/10288860/hilliard-a-harrison: accessed 26 October 2023), memorial page for Hilliard A Harrison (17 Feb 1851–27 Jul 1929), Find a Grave Memorial ID 10288860, citing Fairburn City Cemetery, Fairburn, Fulton County, Georgia, USA; maintained by Love in Family (contributor 48149498).
• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/46120253/benjamin-f-harrison: accessed 26 October 2023), memorial page for Benjamin F. Harrison (21 Aug 1859–2 Jun 1929), Find a Grave Memorial ID 46120253, citing Hillcrest Cemetery, East Point, Fulton County, Georgia, USA; maintained by East Point Historical Soc (contributor 50779333).
• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/46120244/william-beauregard-harrison: accessed 27 October 2023), memorial page for William Beauregard Harrison (31 Oct 1862–28 Dec 1926), Find a Grave Memorial ID 46120244, citing Hillcrest Cemetery, East Point, Fulton County, Georgia, USA; maintained by East Point Historical Soc (contributor 50779333).
• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/70127739/robert-lewis-harrison: accessed 27 October 2023), memorial page for Robert Lewis Harrison (15 Mar 1857–20 Jul 1915), Find a Grave Memorial ID 70127739, citing Floral Hill Cemetery, Palmetto, Fulton County, Georgia, USA; maintained by Love in Family (contributor 48149498).
• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12143024/john-c-harrison: accessed 28 October 2023), memorial page for John C. Harrison (2 Apr 1823–2 Apr 1897), Find a Grave Memorial ID 12143024, citing Antioch United Methodist Cemetery, South Fulton, Fulton County, Georgia, USA; maintained by J. Colin Clark (contributor 47094715).
• For Mrs. Kuppinger, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, July 10, 1912.
• Fulton and Campbell Counties, Georgia, Cemetery Records, 1857–1933.
• Hallowe’en Party, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, November 2, 1910.
• Harrison, Miss Emma, East Point Woman’s Club History Is Given by a Charter Member, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, January 13, 1929.
• Harrison-Hicks Wedding Plans and Parties of Wide Interest, The Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Georgia, May 25, 1924.
• John Harrisen and Sarah Miles, U.S., Marriage Records From Select Counties, 1828–1978.
• John W. Harrison funeral notice, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, February 19, 1911.
• Junior Concert, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, October 22, 1911.
• Kitchen Shower, The Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Georgia, June 1, 1924.
• Miss Emma Harrison Passes in East Point; Funeral on Thursday, The Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Georgia, November 6, 1929.
• Miss Emma Harrison, Certificate of Death no. 29435, Georgia State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, 1929.
• Miss Harrison Dies After Long Illness, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, November 6, 1929.
• Miss Harrison Relates Changes in Writing News for 20 Years, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, August 21, 1927.
• Misses Harrison Entertain, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, October 17, 1909.
• Missionary Tea, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, October 10, 1909.
• Mr. H. A. Harrison Certificate of Death no. 18413, George State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, 1929.
• Mrs. Greer Entertains, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, February 25, 1914.
• Mrs. Mixon Celebrates 75th Birthday, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, October 18, 1925.
• Personal Mention, The Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Georgia, December 24, 1903.
• Robert L. Harrison death notice, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, July 21, 1915.
• S.S. Class Enjoys Egg Hunt, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, April 16, 1922.
• Spend-the-Day Party, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, June 6, 1920.
• Stranger Gets $20 for Man “Arrested,” The Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Georgia, August 7, 1924.
• To Miss Simmons, The Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Georgia, February 7, 1910.
• Transfer of Property, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, March 13, 1903.
• U.S. Federal Census, District 1134, Campbell County, Georgia, 1880.
• U.S. Federal Census, East Point, Fulton County, Georgia, 1900, 1910.
• U.S. Federal Census, Goodes District, Campbell County, Georgia, 1870.
• Uremia, MSN Health, Focus Medica; https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/condition/uremia/hp-uremia?source=bing_wpt.
• W. B. Harrison’s obituary, The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, December 29, 1926.