2A-N: William Taylor Guthrie
Guthrie Family Group 2A · Branch N · Child Page
William Taylor “Bud” Guthrie
& Susie Fannie Albert
William: 1891–1966 · Susie: 1902–1988
Robertson & Sumner Counties · Goodlettsville, Tennessee
William Taylor Guthrie, known as Willie or Bud, was the eldest son of William Washington Guthrie and Savannah Mary “Vann” Wheeler. His life connected the family’s Tennessee farming communities with Army service during the First World War.
Bud and Susie Fannie Albert married in Robertson County in 1920 and raised three children: Anna Belle, William Taylor Jr. and Carl Dean. Their household also provided a home for Bud’s widowed father and younger siblings.
Bud preserved a crucial piece of the family’s earlier history. As informant on his father’s 1937 death certificate, he named his paternal grandparents as John Guthrie and Amanda Walker. Their identities remain an important Branch N research question.
The Family at a Glance
William Taylor “Bud” Guthrie
- Birth
- 8 October 1891, Tennessee; probably Robertson County, as reported in the earlier family research.
- Parents
- William Washington Guthrie and Savannah Mary “Vann” Wheeler.
- Marriage
- Reported 20 June 1920, Robertson County, Tennessee, to Susie Fannie Albert.
- Military Service
- U.S. Army, First World War. The earlier account identifies Company C, 114th Machine Gun Battalion; detailed service and award claims need original-record confirmation.
- Children
- Anna Belle, William Taylor Jr. and Carl Dean.
- Death
- 22 March 1966, at home in Goodlettsville, Tennessee. His newspaper notice gives age seventy-five; the reported birth date yields seventy-four.
- Burial
- Hillcrest Cemetery, now known as Hillcrest Municipal Cemetery, White House, Tennessee.
Susie Fannie Albert
- Birth
- Reported 17 October 1902, Tennessee.
- Parents
- William Thomas Albert and Johnnie Anna Pack, according to the earlier family research. A record naming Susie’s parents is still needed to substantiate this identification.
- Marriage
- Reported 20 June 1920, Robertson County, Tennessee, to William Taylor Guthrie.
- Family
- One daughter and two sons. Susie appears with Bud in the 1930 and 1940 Sumner County households.
- Widowhood
- Survived Bud by twenty-two years.
- Death & Burial
- Reported 15 April 1988, Goodlettsville, Davidson County, Tennessee; buried at Hillcrest Municipal Cemetery, White House.
Their Children
| Child | Life Dates | Family & Later Life |
|---|---|---|
| Anna Belle Guthrie | 14 December 1922 – 21 November 2018 | Married Russell Meadows Hudgins; later lived in Chattanooga, Tennessee. |
| William Taylor Guthrie Jr. | 6 July 1925 – 2 July 1992 | Married; four children reported. Army veteran of the Second World War; later lived in Florida. |
| Carl Dean Guthrie | 30 June 1928 – 30 August 1984 | Married Virginia Pearl Bigelow, previously Sonner; lived in Goodlettsville. |
Anna Belle Guthrie & Russell Meadows Hudgins
Anna Belle, also recorded as Annabel or Anabel, was born in Tennessee. Her detailed family profile gives 14 December 1922, although the earlier page’s brief child list says 1923. Her census ages are consistent with the 1922 date.
Her marriage to Russell Meadows Hudgins is reported as 16 September 1938. In 1940 they lived in Sumner County, where Russell worked as a brick mason. The household included his father, William H. Hudgins, a carpenter, and stepmother Sarah, described in the earlier account as a tavern or café keeper.
The couple had two sons. The 1952 death certificate of Richard Lee Hudgins (1941–1952) explicitly names his parents as Russell M. Hudgins and Anna Belle Guthrie.
Russell, born 6 May 1919, died on 1 November 1990; his notice appeared in The Tennessean the next day. Anna Belle later lived in Chattanooga and died on 21 November 2018, aged ninety-five. The earlier family account places both at Hillcrest Municipal Cemetery.
William Taylor Guthrie Jr.: Tennessee to Florida
William Jr. was born in the White House area of Sumner County on 6 July 1925. His draft-registration index records registration on his eighteenth birthday in 1943, residence at Cottontown, and employment with the Southeastern Ship Building Corporation in Savannah, Georgia. His father was named as next of kin.
A veterans’ burial index identifies him as a Private First Class in the U.S. Army during the Second World War. The earlier family account describes his later work as an inspector for the American National Can Company and a volunteer firefighter, including twelve years as chief of the Bloomingdale Fire Department.
He died on 2 July 1992 in Brandon, Hillsborough County, Florida, shortly before his sixty-seventh birthday. His burial is recorded at Florida National Cemetery, Bushnell, Section 104, Site 1972.
Carl Dean Guthrie & Virginia Pearl Bigelow
Carl Dean was born on 30 June 1928 at White House, Tennessee. His January 1958 marriage to Virginia Pearl Bigelow is indexed in New Orleans, Orleans Parish, Louisiana.
Virginia, known as Ginnie, was born on 3 December 1922 at Rexton, Mackinac County, Michigan. The earlier family account identifies her previous married name as Sonner and describes a blended household with a son from her previous marriage and three daughters with Carl.
Carl and Virginia lived in Goodlettsville. He died on 30 August 1984, aged fifty-six; she died on 16 July 1990. Their burial is reported at Hillcrest Municipal Cemetery, White House.
Bud’s Sisters & Brothers
Historical Highlights
A Household Across Generations
Bud grew up among the farms of Robertson and Sumner Counties. In 1910, aged eighteen, he was a farm laborer in his parents’ household. Army service interrupted those familiar surroundings during the First World War; by 1920 he was again recorded at home before marrying Susie that June.
Their household became a gathering place for several generations. The 1930 census places Bud and Susie on the Louisville and Nashville Pike in Sumner County, with their children, his widowed father, and younger siblings Martin and Eva. The family connection is visible in the relationships entered on the census.
When his father died in 1937, Bud supplied the names John Guthrie and Amanda Walker for the deceased’s parents. That statement is central to the search for Branch N’s origins, although further records are needed to identify the couple securely.
Bud died at home on 22 March 1966. His funeral notice records military graveside rites and pallbearers from White House American Legion Post 206. Susie’s reported death followed in 1988. Their children’s lives extended the family story from Tennessee into Florida.
Family Timeline
Open each entry for its supporting records and remaining questions.
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1891 & 1902
Bud and Susie are born
Both are associated with Tennessee from their earliest family accounts.
Open the record & source
Bud’s reported birth is 8 October 1891, probably in Robertson County. Susie’s is 17 October 1902, Tennessee. The precise locality for Susie and independent confirmation of both dates remain useful research goals.
Sources: Guthrie Research Tree profiles; earlier Branch N family account; later census and burial information.
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1910
Farm work in Robertson County
Bud is eighteen in his parents’ household.
Open the record & source
The census identifies him as a son in the William Guthrie household, Civil District 7, Robertson County, and records farm labor on the home farm. His parents and siblings provide the household context for this identification.
Source: 1910 U.S. census, Robertson County, Tennessee, Civil District 7, ED 160, sheet 6B.
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1917–1919
First World War service
The family account records Army service before Bud’s marriage.
Open the record & source
The earlier research reports draft registration on 5 June 1917 and service as a Private, Company C, 114th Machine Gun Battalion, from 21 September 1917 to 4 April 1919. His profile cites veterans’ and military headstone records.
Army service is supported by the record context and his military funeral. The precise service dates, unit and reported decorations should be checked against the original service, discharge, headstone and award records.
Sources: earlier Branch N research; military-source citations attached to Bud’s profile; The Tennessean, 24 March 1966, p. 57.
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20 Jun 1920
Marriage to Susie Fannie Albert
The reported ceremony took place in Robertson County.
Open the record & source
Bud was still recorded as single in his parents’ household during the 1920 census. The family research gives 20 June 1920 for his marriage to Susie. Tennessee marriage records are cited in the tree; the original return is needed to confirm the ceremony details.
Sources: 1920 U.S. census, Civil District 10, Robertson County; Guthrie Research Tree, Tennessee State Marriages citations; earlier Branch N account.
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1922–1930
Three children and an extended household
Anna Belle, William Jr. and Carl Dean join the family.
Open the record & source
Their reported births fall in 1922, 1925 and 1928. By 1930 Bud and Susie lived in Civil District 7, Sumner County, along the Louisville and Nashville Pike. Bud’s father William, a widower, and siblings Martin and Eva were also in the household.
The original census image is important: the automated household list omits at least one child entry and should not be treated as a complete family roster.
Sources: children’s profiles and later records; 1930 U.S. census, Civil District 7, Sumner County, William Taylor Guthrie household, original image and associated index.
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1937
Bud names his grandparents
His father’s death certificate preserves the John and Amanda identification.
Open the record & source
As informant for William Washington Guthrie’s death certificate, Bud named the deceased’s parents as John Guthrie and Amanda Walker. This is evidence of the family information Bud supplied; it does not by itself identify which John Guthrie was meant.
Source: Tennessee death certificate, William Washington Guthrie, 1937.
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1940
Family life in Sumner County
The two sons remain in the parental household.
Open the record & source
Bud and Susie appear with William Jr. and Carl Dean. Anna Belle had married and appears in a separate Hudgins household. Index variations such as “Suay” for Susie and “Carol Dean” for Carl require comparison with the family and original entry.
Sources: 1940 U.S. census, Sumner County, William Taylor Guthrie household, sheet 4B; Russell Hudgins household, sheet 3B.
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22 Mar 1966
Bud dies in Goodlettsville
The newspaper establishes the date more clearly than its automated index.
Open the record & source
The notice published on Thursday, 24 March 1966 explicitly reports death on Tuesday morning, March 22. The automated index’s March 29 date is erroneous. Funeral services were set for Thursday, with military rites at Hillcrest Cemetery.
The notice calls him seventy-five. The family’s birth date of 8 October 1891 gives an age of seventy-four; that discrepancy remains visible rather than changing the birth year to fit the obituary.
Source: The Tennessean, Nashville, Tennessee, 24 March 1966, p. 57, William Taylor Guthrie funeral notice, original newspaper image.
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15 Apr 1988
Susie’s reported death
The family account places her final years in Goodlettsville.
Open the record & source
The tree and earlier account report Susie’s death on 15 April 1988 and burial at Hillcrest Municipal Cemetery. An original death record or complete obituary would strengthen the date, locality and parentage evidence.
Sources: Susie Fannie Albert Guthrie’s family profile; earlier Branch N account and cemetery information.
Explore the Research
Guthrie Family Group 2A · Branch N
A direct paternal descendant through Bud’s brother Chester Guthrie represents this family in the Y-DNA project. That result supports the wider family’s GFG2A connection; it is not a separate test of Bud’s descendant line.
Big Y testing is a priority for Branch N. Shared downstream SNPs could refine its placement within GFG2A and identify closer connections with other tested branches.
How this line could contribute to the DNA research
Y-DNA testing through a documented father-to-son line from Bud, particularly William Jr.’s line, could provide a comparison with the existing Chester-line result. Documented descendants of any of the three children may also contribute autosomal comparisons.
The Branch N participant matches the overall GFG2A STR profile but lacks the inherited markers associated with the Branch A/E/H cluster. This does not substantiate the proposed identification of Branch N’s John Guthrie with the Branch A man. See the Family Hub’s evidence and analysis.
Big Y testing: a priority for Branch N
The existing STR comparison supports Branch N’s membership in GFG2A. Big Y testing could identify shared downstream SNPs and closer paternal connections within the group, helping distinguish older shared ancestry from more recent family branches.
A useful next step is a Big Y result for the represented Chester line, compared with existing GFG2A Big Y results. Testing independently documented father-to-son descendants through other sons of William Washington Guthrie could help identify variants shared across Branch N and distinguish those arising within individual child lines.
These comparisons may sharpen the search for John Guthrie and Amanda Walker. Documentary evidence will still be needed to connect a genetic branch to named ancestors. Big Y testing applies to the unbroken Guthrie paternal line; descendants through daughters can contribute family records and autosomal comparisons.
Background: FamilyTreeDNA’s explanation of shared variants and Y-DNA branch refinement.
DNA Participation
| Child’s Line | Y-DNA Participation | Big Y Participation | Autosomal Participation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anna Belle Guthrie Hudgins | N/A | N/A | — |
| William Taylor Guthrie Jr. | — | — | — |
| Carl Dean Guthrie | — | — | — |
Questions in the Records
Susie’s parents: a legacy identification to verify
The earlier Branch N page names William Thomas Albert and Johnnie Anna Pack as Susie’s parents. Her supplied Research Tree profile leaves the parent fields blank. The absence of a tree link does not disprove the earlier identification, but neither source provides the parent-naming record needed to establish it.
A childhood household connected to adult Susie, her marriage application, death certificate, obituary or church record could test this relationship. The names remain a research lead with their source clearly identified.
Military service and the reported decorations
The earlier account attributes the Silver Star and Purple Heart to Bud and identifies his First World War unit and service dates. Those details should be checked against the original military headstone application, discharge papers, personnel records and award orders or citations.
William Jr.’s separate Second World War service is supported by the veterans’ burial index. The earlier account also attributes the European-African-Middle Eastern Service Medal with two bronze stars and the American Service Medal to him. His discharge or service record is needed to verify the exact medal wording. The two men’s service and decorations must remain distinct.
What Bud’s statement about John and Amanda establishes
Bud’s information on the 1937 certificate is a valuable family statement naming his father’s parents. It gives a focused pair of names to investigate, but it does not supply a marriage record, residence history or a connection to the Branch A John Guthrie.
William Washington Guthrie’s early census appearances and records naming John and Amanda together remain priorities. The Family Hub considers the competing identifications without merging the two Johns.
Reading & Sources
Sources for this family
- Census: 1910, Civil District 7, Robertson County, ED 160, sheet 6B; 1920, Civil District 10, Robertson County; 1930, Civil District 7, Sumner County, Louisville and Nashville Pike; 1940, Sumner County, Guthrie household, sheet 4B, and Hudgins household, sheet 3B.
- Marriage: Tennessee State Marriages entries cited for William Taylor Guthrie and Susie Fannie Albert, reported ceremony 20 June 1920. New Orleans marriage index, Carl Dean Guthrie and Virginia Pearl Bigelow, January 1958.
- Death and family relationships: William Washington Guthrie’s 1937 Tennessee death certificate; Richard Lee Hudgins’s 1952 Tennessee death certificate.
- Newspapers: The Tennessean, 24 March 1966, p. 57, William Taylor Guthrie notice; 2 November 1990, p. 19, Russell Meadows Hudgins notice. Original images support the historical summaries.
- Military: William Jr.’s 6 July 1943 draft-registration index and veterans’ burial index, Florida National Cemetery, Section 104, Site 1972. Bud’s profile cites veterans’ and military headstone records; the detailed service and decoration claims require the originals.
- Family reconstruction and cemetery information: the earlier Branch N family page, supplied profiles and records from the Guthrie Research Tree, and associated cemetery entries. The tree link opens Bud’s parents’ family profile.
Most Wanted Documents
The next records to acquire or review
- Bud and Susie’s original 1920 marriage return and application: distinguish the license and ceremony dates, and look for ages, residences, witnesses and parents.
- Susie’s 1988 death record and full obituary: substantiate the reported date and locality and test the Albert–Pack parentage.
- Bud’s original military headstone application, discharge and award evidence: verify the unit, service dates, Silver Star and Purple Heart claims.
- William Jr.’s discharge or service record: confirm the military chronology and decorations independently of the earlier family summary.
- Anna Belle and Russell’s 1938 marriage return, plus her 2018 obituary: strengthen their marriage chronology and the later Tennessee family connections.
- Family Bibles, letters and early census records: resolve Bud’s birth-date/obituary-age discrepancy and seek information about John Guthrie and Amanda Walker.
Bud’s 1966 newspaper notice, the 1930 household image and the available parent-naming death certificates are already part of the evidence. The priority is to connect and extend those records.
Help Preserve Bud & Susie’s Story
Bud and Susie’s household brought together children, siblings and an aging parent. Their story survives in census entries, military records, family accounts and the names Bud supplied when his father died.
A labeled photograph, marriage paper, military citation or family letter could add the next connection. Records from the Guthrie, Albert, Pack and Hudgins families may help explain both this household and the generations before it.
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