Life History

Other facts

Notes

• I heard the name pronounced "Ray-mah," the same as the biblical town Ramah.
  
  1910 Census, Stephens County, Oklahoma, 27 April, Richland Township, District 243, page 9A, No Hse/ Fam # on page
  Terry, Thomas D Head M W 52  Marriage 1 Married 29?-yrs  GA SC NC  Farmer
  Terry, Mattie W  Wife  F W 50? Marriage 2? Married 29?-yrs 7 children/7 living NC NC NC
  Terry, Rama   Son   M  W   5  Single   GA GA NC
  
  The above census says Rama was born in Georgia.  In the 1920 census, Rama is correctly reported as born in Oklahoma.
  
  1920 Census, Stephens County, Oklahoma, 20 January, Richland Township, District 262, page 6A, Farm #75
  Tery, Thomas D Head M W 63  GA SC SC  Farmer
  Tery,  Mattie  Wife  F W  62  NC NC NC
  Tery, Rama  Son   M  W  15 OK US US
  
  1930 Federal Census, Custer County, Oklahoma, 24 April, Cedar Township, District 10, page 6A, Hse/Fam #130
  Weast, Theodore J Head Owns M W 65 Widowed IL OH IL Farmer
  Terry, Rama W Son-in-law M W 26 Married at age 24 OK GA NC Farm Laborer
  Terry, Beatrice Dau F W 19 Married at age 16 OK OK OK
  Terry, Billie Jack Son M W 1 OK OK OK
  Terry, Kenneth Son M W 0 (no months given) OK OK OK
  
  The Braun family genealogy provides some details for the son Kenneth, as well as a photo.
  
  Kenneth Paul Terry
  Birth 10 Feb 1930 in Weatherford, Oklahoma
  Death 11 Dec 2010 in Farmington, San Juan, New Mexico
  Parents Rama Wall Terry 1904 - 1965, Private
  --  Braun Family Tree, http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/4905821/person/-1525004374?ssrc=&ml_rpos=1&ftm=1
  
  After finding the Braun genealogy in June or July 2014, I began to find other genealogies coming online in search indexes with these same details and other information on missing pieces in this family.  In the meantime I had found more details about Rama along the way, that indicated his migration to the west, then to Alaska.  He appeared in the Phoenix City Directory in 1936.
  
  U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989
  Phoenix, Arizona, City Directory, 1936, p 455
  Terry Rama W (Beatrice) lab Central Avenue Dairy r 113 W Jefferson
  
  Consistent with this there is also a record of marriage for Rama and Beatrice.  But this is dated 1936 also, despite the fact that the 1930 census report Rama as the son-in-law of the head of household and Beatrice as daughter.  They had 5 children before 1936, starting with the two reported in the 1930 census, Billy Jack (b about 1929, and Kenneth, born in 1930 just before the census.
  
  Arizona, County Marriage Records, 1865-1972
  Beatrice Merryman, Age 25
  (Birth Date abt 1911)
  Spouse Rama Perry, Age 32
  (Birth Date abt 1904)
  Marriage 28 May 1936 Gila County, Arizona, USA
  Ceremony by E Grice, Justice of the Peace
  Witnesses Carrie V Nelson and Laura C Casselsom
  Registered 28 April 1936 Gila County, Arizona, Marriage Book page 511
  Source Marriage Certificates and Licenses, 1924 - 1941
  
  "I ... found a birth record in Arizona for 'Baby Girl Terry' born 2 April 1937 in Maricopa Co., AZ to 'Raymond Terry' and Beatrice Merryman. They were then living at 607 N. 1st St, Phoenix. He was born in OK, salesman. She was born in OK, housewife. This might be the Shaney Matthews in Roger Lee Tripp's obit?"
  --  Linda Vixie, Ancestry Messaging to Orville Boyd Jenkins, 14 January 2014
  
  Research has not turned up birth records or other details on some of the other siblings named in Kenneth Terry and Roger Tripp's obituaries.  A family source has indicated, however, that two brothers reported as Thomas Terranova and Daniel Wood were full siblings who were also adopted out like Roger, after the divorce of Rama and Beatrice.  More research is underway to discover more details.
  
  A marriage record in Prescott, Arizona, reports that Rama married Inez L Jenkins in October 1939.  Prescott is up in the mountains north of Phoenix.
  
  Arizona, County Marriage Records, 1865-1972
  Rama W Terry, Age 35 (born abt 1904)
  Spouse Inez L Jenkins, Age 28 (born abt 1911)
  Marriage 24 Oct 1939 Yavapai County, Arizona
  Ceremony by Howard Hayes (role or title not reported)
  Witnesses Frances Foster and S H Henard Jr
  Recorded 28 October 1939 Yavapai County Marriage Book 18, p 228
  Return document to Mr Rama W Terry, c/o Claud's Cafe, Pheonix, Arizona
  
  However, this marriage record was a few months before the census date in 1940, when he was enumerated alone but married in the Los Angeles hotel.  Perhaps he was arranging for housing while working before his new wife joined him   Meanwhile no further word about Beatrice.  And I have found no further information or reference to Inez.
  
  According to the 1940 census, Rama moved to Arizona before 1935.  In the 1940 census, he is living in Los Angeles, California, and is reported as having lived in Maricopa County (Phoenix area) in 1935 (matching the City Directory listing above).  He is living in a hotel without a wife, but listed as married.  He may have been in Los Angeles with his wife, but only the head of household renting the room was reported.  No later record of residence for Rama and Inez has been found, nor any later record of Inez at all.
  
  1940 Federal Census, Los Angeles County, California, 8 April, Los Angeles, District 60-746, page 81A, Spring Hotel, 245 1/2 Spring Street
  Terry, Rama Wall Head M W 38 Grade C2 b Oklahoma Phoenix, Maricopa County AZ in 1935 Cafe Cook
  
  Rama was living in Los Angeles when he registered for the WWII draft in 1942.
  
  U.S. WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947
  Rama Wall Terry
  Age 37
  Birth 10 Jun 1904 Marlow [Stephens County], Oklahoma, USA
  Residence Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
  Employer Stephen Burke, 104 N Cole St, Los Angeles (Los Aangeles County), California
  5'10" 150, Brown Eyes, Brown Hair, Ruddy Complexion
  Next of Kin Arthur Terry, Oklahoma
  Registration 14 Feb 1942
  Signed with full name
  
  By 1943, Rama has another new wife.  There is a City Directory record in San Francisco that matches Rama, in the name of Rama W Terry, unusual enough for us to accept this as our Rama.  His wife there is named Jean, otherwise unknown in any other record.  I have not found a matching marriage record for Rama and Jean.
  
  U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989
  San Francisco, California, City Directory, 1943, p 1381
  Terry Rama (Jean) shipydwkr h 835 Octavia
  
  "Jeanne Aurora Terry was the mention in 1943 as Jean.  I found your website to be very helpful in finding previously lost information."
  --  Paula Juarez, Comment on Our family Tree Facebook Page about Ram Terry information from OBJ, 21 January 2019
  
  ------------------------------
  I have a baptism record in San Francisco in 1951 for me with my fathers name Rama Terry and my mother Jeanne Aurora Terry. The only problem is that I was adopted, so my birth certificate shows Rama and Jeanne as my godparents and my adopted parents as my parents.
  
  The fact was never hidden from me that I was adopted, but nobody would talk of my father, not even my mother “Jeanne.”  I met her when I was 20, and went to live with her for a time, but she would only make reference to him ever so often.  I knew I had two ½ brothers: Kenneth Paul and Billy Jack.
  
  I was born on my brothers Kenneth Paul’s birthday Feb. 10th, but never met them. That there was an aunt Quida, then I found an old photo of my mom taken in Oklahoma in 1951 (you see the car license plates, but she couldn’t tell me about I found it after she died.) I was born in Seattle Washington in 1949 and my mother mentioned one time that we lived in Seattle, Queen Hill.
  
  My mother has since died in 2005 but stayed with the last name “Terry.”
  --  Paula Juarez, Email to Ray Gurganus and Orville Boyd Jenkins, 21 January 2019
  ------------------------------
  
  Rama was reported on the voter registration roll for Long Beach, California, in 1946.
  
  California, Voter Registrations, 1900-1968
  Rama W Terry
  Residence 25 Chestnut Ave, Long Beach City, Precinct 366, Los Angeles, California, USA
  1946, Party Affiliation Democrat
  
  Rama was again married in 1959, this time  to Lottie Anderson from Seattle.  They went to Colorado Springs, where his son Kenneth was living, to get married.
  
  Colorado Marriage Licenses
  Rama W Terry of Juneau, AK
  Lottie Anderson of Seattle, Washington
  Marriage 2 Oct 1959
  Address to return the License and Certificate after recording:
  4554 34th West, Seattle Washington, address of both parties
  --  Clerk & Recorder’s Office, Colorado Springs, El Paso County, CO, courtesy of Linda Vixie
  
  They may have divorced before long, or Lottie died.  The Clark-Gibbens genealogy reports that Rama married Ruth Elizabeth Hopkins in Tulsa, Oklahoma, 24 Apr 1961.  I have not seen documentation or any other reference to this or Rama's presence in Okla at this stage.  He must have gone back to Oklahoma to marry her.I have found no other reference or records of a marriage date.  This seems odd, since they were both already out west.  She was born in Utah, and he had been living in Phoenix or Los Angeles since before 1935.
  
  Rama Wall Terry
  Birth 10 Jun 1904 in Marlow, Stephens, Oklahoma
  Death July 1965 in  Juneau, Juneau, Alaska
  Marriage to Ruth Elizabeth Hopkins 24 Apr 1961 Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma
  --  Clark-Gibbens, http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/8221108/person/667654233?ssrc=&ml_rpos=11&ftm=1
  
  The record of their marriage was found only on 22 May 2017.  Her name in the record is Ruth H Bost, her prevcious married name.
  
  Oklahoma, County Marriages, 1890-1995
  Rama W Terry
  Age 56
  Birth Date abt 1905
  Spouse Ruth H Bost, age 43
  Both residents of Juneau, Alaska
  Marriage 24 Apr 1961 Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA
  Ceremony by Thomas Fleming Shaw, Minister of the Gospel, Christian Church
  Witnesses Dan Ernie Hanes of Juneau, Alaska and Joe A Turley of Tulsa, Oklahoma
  Registered Tulsa County Marriage Book #165, page 207
  
  Just 6 days before Rama and Ruth married, Rama had bought land on the Mendenhall Peninsula in Alaska on 18 April 1961.
  
  U.S. General Land Office Records, 1776-2015
  Rama Wall Terry
  18 Apr 1961 Juneau, Alaska, USA
  Mendenhall Peninsula
  Copper River Meridian, Township 041s, Range 066E, Aliquots Lot/Trct 21, Section 4
  Accession #1218856, Document #011528
  --  US Bureau of Land Management, http://glorecords.blm.gov/details/patent/default.aspx?accession=1218856&docClass=SER&sid=5rzr0e2m.nut
  
  Rama died in July 1965.
  
  U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-Current
  Rama Terry
  Born 10 Jun 1904
  Died Jul 1965
  Last Residence Juneau, Juneau, Alaska 99801
  SSN 527-10-6499 issued Arizona (Before 1951)
  
  From my sources I provided updates to Rama's memorial on Find a Grave.  Here is the updated memorial as of Janaury 2015.
  
  Rama W Terry
  Birth Jun 10, 1904 Marlow, Stephens County, Oklahoma
  Death Jul 1965 Juneau, Juneau Borough, Alaska
  Parents:
  Thomas Duncan Terry (1857 - 1935)
  Martha Wiley Wall Terry (1859 - 1932)
  Spouses:
  Beatrice A Lebbs (1911 - 1995)
  Ruth E Terry (1918 - 2005)
  Siblings:
  Julia Virginia Terry Jenkins (1880 - 1966)
  Thomas Everett Terry (1882 - 1888)
  Carrie Lee Terry (1886 - 1888)
  William Ernest Terry (1887 - 1888)
  Arthur W Terry (1889 - 1968)
  Jeffie M. Wagnon (1892 - 1967)
  Clarice M Terry Lewis (1895 - 1982)
  Ouida M Terry Hill (1899 - 1986)
  Burial Evergreen Cemetery, Juneau, Juneau Borough, Alaska
  Maintained by Orville Jenkins, Originally Created by TVFTH Mar 10, 2010
  --  Find A Grave Memorial #49517172, http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=49517172
  
  Listed with the same plot number is Rama's wife, Ruth E.  When entering the Find-a-Grave information in 2014, at that time I had not found any marriage record or reference in any genealogy to either of these possible wives.  In July 2014, I found the Clark-Gibbens genealogy that had very full information on the Terry Wall family, with a full name for Rama's last wife Ruth Elizabeth Hopkins.  There was no documentation or discussion about Ruth and no reference to any Inez from the Arizona marriage record above.  The actual marriage record was found on FamilySearch's ever-expanding record library, on 22 May 2017.
  
  Cemetery records have only the month and year of Rama's death, even the memorial on Find a Grave.  But I found Rama's date of burial on an online burial register for Evergreen Cemetery, which has no date of birth or death.  We know his birth date of 10 July 1904 from his sister, Julia Virginia Terry Jenkins, grandmother of this genealogist..
  
  Evergreen Cemetery Juneau, Alaska Burial Records
  Terry, Rama W 0009  [no birth or death date] burial 13 Jul 1965  Plot 24-O-16
  Terry, Ruth E  5921  [no birth date] death 29 Sep 2005  burial 05 Oct 2005  Plot 24-O-16
  --  Evergreen Cemetery Register, http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~akcjunea/cemeteries/evergreenBurialT.html
  
  After updates from my research in Janaury 2015, here is the memorial for Ruth on Find a Grave.  Both memorials were also transferred to me as manager in February 2015.
  
  ---------------------
  Ruth Elizabeth Hopkins Terry
  Birth Jan 26, 1918 Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah
  Death 29 Sept 2005 Juneau, Juneau Borough, Alaska
  Spouse Rama W. Terry (1904 - 1965)
  Buried in a joint grave with her husband Rama Wall Terry, in general plot 24-O-16; Evergreen Cemetery records report death occurred on 29 September 2005 and burial was on 05 Oct 2005
  Burial [5 Oct 2005] Evergreen Cemetery, Juneau, Juneau Borough, Alaska, Plot 24-O-16
  Maintained by Orville Jenkins, Originally Created by T.V.F.T.H. Mar 10, 2010
  --  Find A Grave Memorial #49517173, http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=49517172
  ---------------------
  
  The Evergreen Cemetery was begun to replace the original Chicken Ridge Cemetery before the end of the 1800s, when that cemetery was staked as a gold mining claim.  Evergreen is in the middle of town, and is said to be haunted.
  
  "The cemetery served as Juneau's main place of burial until about the 1970s when it reached near-capacity and Alaskan Memorial Park was established.  What Makes It Strange?  Multiple spirits are said to haunt the cemetery, most of which are thought to be the ghosts of those whose remains were transferred here from Chicken Ridge.  One ghost in particular is that of a young boy dressed in late 1800s-era clothing who is often seen near the cemetery entrance, looking at gravestones.  Some say that he is looking for the graves of his family.  Visitors also report seeing shadowy figures, and hearing disembodied voices and strange noises."
  --  Evergeen Cemetery, http://www.strangedestinations.com/content/pages/destinations/ak/ak-juneau-evergreencemetery.php

Sources

• 1. 1930 Federal Census, Custer County, Oklahoma
  • 24 April, Cedar Township, District 10, page 6A, Hse/Fam #130
• 2. U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014
• 3. 1910 Federal Census, Stephens County, Oklahoma
  • 29 April, Richland Township, District 243, Page 9A, No Hse/Fam Number
• 4. Julia Virginia Terry Jenkins
• 5. 1920 Federal Census, Stephens County, Oklahoma
  • 20 January, Richland Township, District 262, page 6A, Farm #75
• 6. Oklahoma, County Marriage Records, 1890-1995
• 7. Arizona, County Marriage Records, 1865-1972
• 8. U.S. WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947
• 9. Find a Grave Memorial Registry
• 10. Evergreen Cemetery Juneau, Alaska Burial Records
• 11. 1910 Federal Census, Stephens County, Oklahoma
  • 29 April, Richland Township, District 243, Page 9A, No Hse/Fam #
• 12. 1940 Federal Census, Los Angeles County, California
  • 8 April, Los Angeles, District 60-746, page 81A, Spring Hotel, 245 1/2 Spring Street
• 13. U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995
  • Phoenix, Arizona, City Directory, 1936, p 455
• 14. Ancestry Messaging
• 15. U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995
  • San Francisco, California, City Directory, 1943, p 1381
• 16. Arizona, Select Marriages, 1888-1908
• 17. U.S. General Land Office Records, 1776-2015
• 18. Orville Boyd Jenkins, Personal Knowledge
• 19. Memorial Networks
• 20. Colorado Marriage Licenses
• 21. Ancestry Trees
• 22. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007
• 23. California, Voter Registrations, 1900-1968
• 24. Paula Juarez
• 25. Obituaries from Nevada
• 26. Ancestry Trees
  • Braun Family Tree, http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/4905821/person/-1525004374?ssrc=&ml_rpos=1&ftm=1
• 27. U.S. Public Records Index, 1950-1993, Volume 1
• 28. Linda Vixie
• 29. Geneanet Messaging
• 30. Arizona, Birth Records, 1880-1935
• 31. U.S., School Yearbooks, 1880-2012
  • Date: 2010;
• 32. Obituary Daily Times Index, 1995-Current