The Rowan Tree   Roan-Rowan Family Stories Page 3

Excerpt from an article by Brenda Rowan Graves

My father CHESTER NEWTON ROWAN was born Aug.31,1896 to his parents George Washington Roan and Sallie Sarah Cooper Roan. Chester's wife, my mother, Nancy Flora Oliver was born Oct.27,1902 to her parents Samaria Franklin Oliver and Mary Adaline Atwood Oliver . Chester and Nancy where married May of 1921, They where married for 53 years and they had 14 children and lived in Etowah County, Alabama.

Nancy was a housewife for all of her married life except for a short stint during WWII when she worked at DeWight's Cotton Mill in Alabama City. Chester was a carpenter and mechanic. Together in 1946 they built the house where they lived up until the time of their deaths in 1974. The house is in Rockledge Community on Interstate # 431. The rear of the house of George (the oldest son) borders the rear of their house. Within a few miles of this house, they lived in three previous houses where their children where born and raised . Some of the older children were born in a house just outside of the Rockledge community over into Marshall County. They lived there until about 1946.

Chester and Nancy and their triplet daughters & there grandson Jimmy Milburn Rowan are buried at Butler Cemetery in Rockledge, Etowah County. There are many Oliver's buried there also. The Chapel and Cemetery is located just off of Old Highway #431.

The cause of Flora's Death was heart attack, and Chester's cause of death was convulsions also possible cancer which he had in l971. Chester and Nancy's Triplets cause of death was believed to be the hives, and or that the infants of had died because of an accident that Nancy had while she was pregnant with the triplets. She was kicked in the back by a cow while she was down in the pasture. The next day she became very sick.

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