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Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Rice Family Papaers, 1892-1995 (Bulk 1917-1962), Ms2022-021, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Source of Acquisition

The Rice Family Papers were purchased by Special Collections and University Archives in March 2022.

Processing Information

The processing, arrangement, and description of the Rice Family Papers was completed in April 2023.

Biographical Note

Jerry Rice (born circa 1831) was possibly married to Mary E. before later marrying the widow Harriett Jennings on February 2, 1876. The 1870 census shows Jerry and Mary has having nine children: Amanda (born circa 1854), Isabella (born circa 1856), Judy (born circa 1858), Pleasant (born circa 1861), Garland (born circa 1863), Fletcher (born June 1865), McHenry (born circa 1867), and Cordelia (born 1870).

Fletcher Roland Rice (1865-1966) married Georgianna Jennings (c.1875-1928) on December 29, 1892. They lived in Roanoke, Virginia and had nine children: Fletcher, Jr. (1893-?), Nannie Mae (1895-2000), Laura B. (1897-1957), Lillie Mae (1899-1956), Elizabeth "Lizzy" (c.1903-1938), Idella (1910-1963), Virginia (1912-1973), and James Cornelius (1915-1963). He worked for the Norfolk & Western Railroad as a laborer at the end of 1919 and, by 1943, he owned and rented out property on Walker Ave, N.E. in Roanoke.

Nannie Mae (Rice) Banks (1895-2000) was a central figure within the family, remaining in Roanoke while her siblings traveled to other parts of the world. Nannie exchanged romantic letters with a soldier serving in Europe during World War I and with other suitors during the early part of the 20th century. She eventually married William Andrew Banks (1903-1945). They had no children together, but Nannie took in her sister Lizzy's son, James Lester Rogers, as her foster son after Lizzy's death. Her husband, Andrew, died in June 1945. In October of 1945, her foster son Jimmy was killed in Germany, a casualty of World War II. Nannie lived until the year 2000, reaching the age of 104.

Laura B. (Rice) Watts (1897-1957) married Wyatt Jones (c.1884-) in 1915. At some point after that, she married Patrick Henry Watts (1900-1980).

Lillie Mae (Rice) Board (1899-1956) married Richard Payne on September 8, 1937 and later married Robert Board (c.1901-) on March 16, 1953. She may have also been married to someone with the last name Jones as she uses that last name in some correspondence; however, no documentation of such a marraige has been located.

Elizabeth "Lizzy" (Rice) Rogers (c.1903-1938) bore an "illegitimate" son in 1920. She later married Charlton Beal Rogers (c.1892-) on April 30, 1931. She died in 1938.

Idella (Rice) Day (1910-1963) had married Jack Babe Housier (1901-1972) by 1930, showing up in the 1930 census with him and their daughters, Olivia L. (Housier) Matthews and Dorothy Mae (Housier) Cooper. They divorced at some point and she married Maj. C. Day.

Virginia (Rice) Booker (1912-1973) married Floyd Booker on October 25, 1938.

Naymon Eddieray Rice (1915-1955) left Roanoke just before the Great Depression. He began the 1930s staying in Camden, New Jersey with cousin Bertha Pate (c.1882). He wrote home frequently, describing his difficulty finding work and asking for the family to send money. During World War II, he served stateside in the U.S. Army. his discharge certificate lists his rank as Private First Class with the "Suppluy Detachment Supply Division Section Two". He married Rebecca Kirkland sometime around 1942 but the marriage didn't last and by 1944 he had married Gladys Virginia Watts (1915-1963). He and Gladys had at least one child: Naymon Jr.

James Cornelius Rice (1915-1963) served in the U.S. Army 156th Transportation Company in the Pacific during World War II. He survived the war and never married.

James "Jimmy" Lester Rogers (1920-1945) was the "illegitimate" son of Elizabeth "Lizzie" (Rice) Rogers. Bearing the name James Edward Rice at birth, he adopted the last name Rogers after his mother married Charlton Rogers in the 1930s. Jimmy became the foster son of his aunt Nannie when his mother died in 1938. Jimmy joined the Army in 1942 and served in England, France, and Germany as part of Company A and then Company B, 829th Engineer Aviation Battalion. He died in Frankfurt am Main, Germany in October 1945 and was buried in Lorraine American Military Cemetery near Avold, France.

Solomon Gomarh Payne (1895-1962) was born in Reid Island, Virginia. He served in the U.S. Army during World War I as part of Company D, 505th Engineers, holding the rank of Private First Class. His wife's name was MAry and they lived in Washington, D.C. in 1940 where he worked as a laborer for the Post Office.

Scope and Content

The Rice Family Papers include decades of letters to and from four generations of the decendents of Jerry Rice of Campbell County, Virginia. The majority of the letters were sent to Nannie Mae (Rice) Banks but there are also letters to addressed to her father, Fletcher, her mother, Georgianna, and other members of the family. These letters document the experience of this Black family from Southwest Virginia as they lived through, fought, and died in, World War I, the Great Depression, and World War II.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged into eleven series by correspondent. Some series have subseries as described below. Within each series or subseries, the items are arranged in chronological order.

Series 1: Nannie Mae (Rice) Banks Papers Contains the bulk of the material in the collection. This series incluces decades of correspondence with family, friends, and businesses. There are twenty-five subseries within this series.

Subseries 1: Pfc. Solomon Gomarh Payne Correspondence with Solomon Payne during World War I.

Subseries 2: Owen Burton Two courtship letters from Owen Burton from 1918.

Subseries 3: Pfc. Naymon Eddieray Rice Correspondence with her brother Naymon during the Great Depression and World War II. During the depression, Naymon used the aliases "Bobbie Pate" and "C.C. Rice" when writing home to Virginia.

Subseries 4: Pfc. Naymon Eddieray Rice & Rebecca (Kirkland) Rice Correspondence with her brother Naymon and his wife Rebecca during the early part of World War II.

Subseries 5: Pfc. Naymon Eddieray Rice & Gladys Virginia (Watts) Rice Correspondence with her brother Naymon and his wife Gladys during latter part of World War II and the post-war period.

Subseries 6: Pfc. James Cornelius Rice Correspondence with her brother James during World War II.

Subseries 7: Pfc. James Lester Rogers Correspondence with her nephew and foster son James "Jimmy" Rogers during World War II.

Subseries 8: Correspondence about Pfc. James Lester Rogers Correspondence and documentation about Jimmy after his death in Europe during World War II.

Subseries 9: Naymon Eddieray Rice, Jr. & Patricia E. (Thomas) Rice Correspondence with her nephew Naymon Jr. and his wife Patricia.

Subseries 10: (William) Andrew Banks correspondence and partial obituary Two letters from her husband before they were married and the second page of his obituary.

Subseries 11: Olivia L. (Housier) Matthews Correspondence with her niece Olivia and her family.

Subseries 12: Georgianna Wilson & Family Correspondence with her niece Georgianna and her family.

Subseries 13: Other family members Correspondence with other extended family members including Gracie G. Rice, Bertha Pate, Nettie Banks, Georgianna Watts, the Clark family, Hattie Watts, Mr. and Mrs. J. R. Board, and cards that indicate they are from family but do not specify who the sender was.

Subseries 14: Carlton W. Harvey & Valda Harvey Correspondence with Carlton and Valda Harvey.

Subseries 15: Geneva Evans & Family Correspondence with Geneva Evans and her family.

Subseries 16: Glaze Family Correspondence with the Glaze family.

Subseries 17: Hester Sigmon & Dell B. Sigmon Correspondence with Hester and Dell B. Sigmon.

Subseries 18: James Saunders, Ruth Saunders & Family Correspondence with the Saunders family.

Subseries 19: Janet Kednocker Correspondence with Janet Kednocker and her family.

Subseries 20: Mary Patterson & Tony Patterson Correspondence with Mary and Tony Patterson

Subseries 21: Mary B. Miller Correspondence with Mary B. Miller

Subseries 22: Miss Frances Correspondence with someone identified as "Miss Frances". No last name is given.

Subseries 23: Wilbert Thadius Pate, Bertha Pate & Family Correspondence with Wilbert and Bertha Pater and their family.

Subseries 24: Business correspondence Correspondence and documents between Nannie and Andrew Banks and lawyers or businesses.

Subseries 25: Owls Social Club Two letters from the Owls Social Club of Roanoke, Virginia.

Series 2: Naymon Eddieray Rice Papers The majority of Naymon's correspondence in the colleciton is with Nannie and can be found in Series 1. This series includes correspondence and documents between Naymon and other people. There are two subseries.

Subseries 1: Fletcher Roland Rice, Sr. Correspondence between Naymon and his father Fletcher.

Subseries 2: Other correspondence and documents Correspondence with other people including his aunt Mahala, sister Lillie, niece Olivia, and others.

Series 3: James Lester Rogers Papers The majority of Naymon's correspondence in the colleciton is with Nannie and can be found in Series 1. This series includes correspondence and documents between Jimmy and other people including his uncle Naymon, cousin Olivia, and grandfather Fletcher.

Series 4: Fletcher Roland Rice Papers His correspondence with Nannie, Naymon, and James "Jimmy" Rogers are within those series. This series includes other correspondence and documents by or to Fletcher. There are three subseries.

Subseries 1: Business correspondence Correspondence with lawyers businesses, and tenants.

Subseries 2: Family correspondence Correspondence with family members including his wife Georgianna Jennings, his sister Cordelia Clark, his sister Julia A. Rice, Gracie G. Rice, P. L. Watts, and his daughter Virginia Booker

Subseries 3: Correspondence with others Correspondence with others including a letter from Frances Diggs and a letter of condolence from William O'Dwyer, Mayor of New York City regarding the death of James "Jimmy" Lester Rogers during World War II.

Series 5: Georgianna (Jennings) Rice Papers Correspondence and documents involving Georgianna including letters with her aunt Nannie Gills, cousin William W. Rice, mother Maria Jennings, and a ticket to ride the train for her and her daughter Virginia.

Series 6: Laura B. (Rice) Watts Correspondence and documents involving Laura including letters with her mother Georgianna, sister Nannie, father and Fletcher.

Series 7: Lillie Mae (Rice) Board Correspondence and documents involving Lillie including various Christmas, Easter, and birthday cards, a statement from a welding company, and a letter from the War Department regarding James "Jimmy" Lester Rogers' death.

Series 8: Idella (Rice) Day Correspondence and documents involving Idella including Christmas cards, a phone messagae, and a letter to her sister Nannie.

Series 9: Photographs Some photographs and negatives of unidentified people and a photo postcard cut to just the photo. One photograph shows Nannie's house in 1973.

Series 10: Other cards Various holiday and greeting cards.

Series 11: Miscellaneous documents and ephemera Various documents including a payment card from the Grand United Order of Moses, a coupon for Colgate Octagon Soap, a telegram from Franklin Kidd to Minnie Kidd, World War II Questionnaire instructions from the Office of Civilian Defense,a savings account card for an account Nannie shared with Frances E. Bush, a recipe for Mabel Phiebon's Pie, and some letters with no known sender or recipient.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• African Americans -- History
• Banks, Nannie Mae (Rice) (1895-2000)
• Board, Lillie May (Rice), 1899-1956
• Day, Idella (Rice), 1910-1963
• Depressions -- 1929
• Local/Regional History and Appalachian South
• Payne, Solomon Gomarah, Pfc., 1895-1962
• Rice family
• Rice, Fletcher Roland (1865-1966)
• Rice, Georgianna (Jennings) (c.1875-1928)
• Rice, James Cornelius, Pfc., 1915-1963
• Rice, Naymon Eddieray, Pfc. (1915-1955)
• Roanoke (Va.)
• Rogers, James (Jimmy) Lester, Pfc. (1920-1945)
• Watts, Laura B. (Rice), 1897-1957
• World War, 1914-1918
• World War, 1939-1945

Rights Statement for Archival Description

The guide to the Rice Family Papers by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 ( https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/ ).