John Francis Guthrie 1873TN – 1953TN & Jalia Alberta Baldwin
of Meigs County, Tennessee, USA

JOHN FRANCIS GUTHRIE
Parents: Joseph Guthrie 1825IRE-1909TN and Julia J McCarthy 1841IRE-1924TN
Birth: 3 January 1873
Birth Location: Tennessee, USA
Occupation: Farmer (Agriculture)
Marriage: 25 August 1908 in Meigs County, Tennessee, USA
Death: 1 February 1953 (aged 80)
Death Location: Ten Mile, Meigs, Tennessee, USA
Burial Location: Buttram Cemetery, Dayton, Rhea, Tennessee, USA – Section 19, Lot 19

JALIA ALBERTA ‘BERTA’ BALDWIN
Parents: Sideon Stephen Baldwin and Sason Ellen Boggen
Birth: 19 April 1881
Birth Location: Meigs County, Tennessee, USA
Children: Julia Sue, Jane Baldwin, Joseph Gideon, Thomas Franklin
Death: 12 May 1950 (aged 69)
Death Location: Meigs County, Tennessee, USA
Burial Location: Baldwin Cemetery, Meigs County, Tennessee

NOTES:
John Francis Guthrie was the youngest of the family, born on 3 January 1873. His marriage to Bertie Baldwin took place in 1908 and they lived in Sweetwater, Meigs, Tennessee. He was a farmer. He also served for a time as the Postmaster. In 1918, John registered for the WWI Draft. He was 45 at the time, his description indicating that he was tall and slender with black hair and brown eyes. They were parents to 4 children. Bertie died on 13 May 1850. During the last 6 months of his life John moved to Ten Mile in Meigs living with his son Thomas. No cause of death is given on his death certificate, but John was 80 years old at the time.

CHILDREN: 4

JULIA SUE GUTHRIE
1910 TN – 1975 TN

Julia was born on 15 February 1910 and grew up in Meigs, Tennessee. Prior to her marriage she was a student nurse. Julia married at 23 years of age to farmer Lee Midas Powell on 20 Dec 1933 in Monroe County, Tennessee. They had three sons: William Guthrie Powell (1935), Wayne Lee Powell (1937), and Joseph Thomas Powell (1939). Julia died on 4 December 1975 and Lee on 15 April 1988. They are buried at the West View Cemetery in Sweetwater, Monroe, Tennessee.

Y-DNA Project Participants: N/A – Female Guthrie
Autosomal DNA Participants: No

JANE BALDWIN GUTHRIE
1911 TN – 1988 TN

Jane was born on 13 August 1911. She was enumerated in her family home up to the 1930 census when she was 18 years of age. She completed 3 years of high school. During the 1940 census Jane was still single and living as an inmate (patient) in Knox County, TN at the Eastern State Hospital for the Insane. No notations on the census record to indicate a reason for her admission. The census allows for location designations for 1935, but there is no record listed. The 1950 census shows that Jane was still a resident (patient) at the Eastern State Hospital (State Mental Institution). She appears to have remained single. No known children. Jane died in September of 1988 at the age of 77. She is buried at Baldwin Cemetery.

Y-DNA Project Participants: N/A – Female Guthrie
Autosomal DNA Participants: N/A – No Known Descendants

JOSEPH GIDEON GUTHRIE
1913 TN – 1962 TN

Joseph Gideon Guthrie, more commonly known as Joe, was born on 23 January 1913. He completed one year of high school education. He performed odd jobs and later got into the retail sales business. He enlisted in the army on 13 April 1942 during World War II. Before the 1950 census he had married Bessie Parker. She worked as a bank teller. They lived in Harriman, Roane County, Tennessee on Morgan Street. Joe died on 3 April 1962 while Bessie lived another 23 years. She died on 20 Nov 1985. They are buried at Willard Park Cemetery in Harriman.
Children: Unknown.

Y-DNA Project Participants: N0
Autosomal DNA Participants: N0

THOMAS FRANKLIN GUTHRIE
1914 TN – 1989 TN

The youngest child of the family, Thomas was born on 30 Dec 1914 in Meigs County, TN. After high school, he attended Hiwassee College, Lincoln Memorial University, and University of Tennessee Law School at Knoxville. He was a teacher, attorney, and Rhea County School Superintendent. In 1943, Thomas married Dorothy May Shaver, who had attended Chattanooga Business School after graduating from Rhea Central High School. She worked as a secretary, sales representative for World Book Encyclopedias, and opened the first Merle Norman Cosmetics store in Dayton. The couple had two children: Joy and Joe. Dorothy died on 1 Oct 1984. Thomas’ death came five years later on 17 Oct 1989. They are buried at Buttram Cemetery in Dayton, Rhea County, Tennessee.
Children: 2

Y-DNA Project Participants: NO
Autosomal DNA Participants: NO

Primary Sources

(original records created near the time of events by officials, eyewitnesses, or the individuals themselves; these provide the foundational evidence for dates, relationships, residences, and life events. Many Tennessee vital records from this era are held by the Tennessee State Library and Archives or digitized on platforms like Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org. Note that official birth certificates were not routinely issued in Tennessee until later; birth dates here derive from later self-reported or official records. Name variations like “Jalia,” “Julia,” “Berta/Alberta,” and occasional spelling “Gutherie” appear across documents.)

• 1880 U.S. Federal Census (for John as a child): District 7, Meigs County, Tennessee. Lists John Francis Guthrie (age ~7) in the household of parents Joseph and Julia Guthrie, confirming parentage, approximate birth year (~1873), and Tennessee birthplace. Full citation: 1880 United States Federal Census, Meigs County, Tennessee, population schedule, District 7, enumeration district 083, p. 468B; NARA microfilm publication T9, roll 1272. Image available via Ancestry.com (e.g., sharing link references in collaborative profiles). Context/nuance: This is the earliest census record placing John in the family; edge case—John was not yet married, so Julia Alberta does not appear.
• U.S. Postmaster Appointments, 1832–1971: John F. Guthrie appointed Postmaster at Ten Mile Stand, Meigs County, Tennessee, on 30 December 1903. Confirms residence and occupation pre-marriage. Citation: Records of the Post Office Department, National Archives; digitized on Ancestry.com (volume 70, 1889–1930 range).Implication: Demonstrates civic role and stability in Meigs County before 1908 marriage.
• Marriage Record: John Francis Guthrie to Jalia Alberta Baldwin (or “Berta”), 25 August 1908, Meigs County, Tennessee. Primary evidence of union, ages, and residences. Citation: Tennessee County Marriages, 1790–1950 (Meigs County volumes); also referenced in state vital indexes. Nuance: Meigs County courthouse or Tennessee State Library & Archives holds originals; common for rural Tennessee couples to marry locally with minimal additional details.
• World War I Draft Registration Card (for John): September 1918 registration (3rd registration for men born 1872–1873). Lists birth date (3 January 1873), residence (Sweetwater/Meigs area), occupation (farmer), physical description (tall, slender, black hair, brown eyes), and nearest relative (wife). Citation: U.S. World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917–1918, M1509, Meigs County, Tennessee; National Archives. Edge case: John was 45 and not drafted but the card confirms identity, marriage, and family details.
• U.S. Federal Census Records (1910–1950): Multiple enumerations for the couple and children (Julia Sue, Jane Baldwin, Joseph Gideon, Thomas Franklin) in Meigs County (Sweetwater/Ten Mile areas). Examples: 1910 (post-marriage household), 1930/1940 (residences, occupations, education levels for children, e.g., Jane in Eastern State Hospital 1940/1950), 1950. Citations: NARA microfilm series T624 (1910), T625 (1920), T626 (1930), T627 (1940), T628 (1950). Nuance/related considerations: Censuses provide occupation (farmer/Postmaster for John), children’s birth years, and residence continuity; 1940/1950 note Jane’s institutionalization and education levels. These are gold-standard for verifying family structure.
• Tennessee Death Records, 1908–1958:
• John Francis Guthrie: Certificate #53-03880, died 1 February 1953, Ten Mile, Meigs County (age 80); parents Joseph Gutherie and Julia McCarthy listed; buried Buttram Cemetery. Citation: Tennessee State Library and Archives, Nashville; digitized on Ancestry.com.

• Julia Alberta (Baldwin) Guthrie: Died 12 May 1950, Meigs County (age 69). Citation: Same collection (exact certificate searchable via TSLA indexes). Implication: Death certificates are the strongest primary for exact death dates, causes (where given), parents, and spouses; John’s explicitly ties back to Irish immigrant parents.

• Cemetery/Burial Records:
  • John: Buttram Cemetery, Dayton, Rhea County, Tennessee (Section 19, Lot 19). Find A Grave Memorial #50200058 (includes headstone photo confirming 1873–1953). Citation: Find A Grave (user-submitted but tied to death record).
  • Julia: Baldwin Cemetery, Meigs County, Tennessee (per family knowledge and death record). No widely indexed memorial located in public searches, but consistent with family burial patterns. Edge case: Cross-county burial (Rhea vs. Meigs) reflects family ties; headstones often provide only years.

Secondary Sources

(compiled or interpretive works that synthesize primaries; useful for context and leads but should be verified against originals. Reliability varies—collaborative trees cite primaries well; the provided blog is narrative/family-focused.)

• WikiTree Profile: John Francis Guthrie (1873–1953), ID Guthrie-6843. Cites 1880 census, postmaster appointment, 1953 death certificate, and Find A Grave. Includes wife Jalia Alberta Baldwin and four children. Collaborative but well-sourced. Nuance: WikiTree’s “sources” section directly links images of key records; strong for verification.

• FamilySearch Ancestral File/Profile: Julia Alberta Baldwin (1881–1950), PID LYC6-386. Attaches birth details (19 April 1881, Ten Mile, Meigs Co.), marriage, census extracts (e.g., 1940), death, and spouse/children. Also covers husband John.Implication: Free access to many digitized primaries; tree format shows extended Baldwin family (parents Gideon Stephen Baldwin and Susan Ellen Boggess).

• Find A Grave Memorial for John F. Guthrie (#50200058) and cross-referenced family memorials. Links to census/death data. Related consideration: No equivalent public memorial readily found for Julia in Baldwin Cemetery searches, highlighting gaps in digitization for smaller rural cemeteries.