George Edwards (Madison County)
State House: 1878-1879
Born: c. 1842 in Georgia
Farmer. According to his Civil War service claim, he was enslaved by Robert Love of Madison County. Served in Company E of the 52nd US Colored Troops.
George’s wife, Nora, was enslaved by the McWillie family at Kirkwood Plantation. The parish register of St. Philip’s Episcopal Church in Madison County includes entries for Nora’s baptism, confirmation, and marriage to George:
December 17, 1864
George, servant of Estate of ____ Edwards, & Nora, servant of Mrs. L. A. McWillie, were married at the Rectory.
George and Nora Edwards and their children are documented on the 1870 census in Madison County and on the 1880 census in Yazoo County. Nora appears on later censuses with one of their daughters in Texas and died there in 1918.
Their son, Horace F. Edwards (1866-1944), was a teacher who lived in Houston, TX, for many years and passed away in Phoenix, AZ. Horace’s daughter, Thyra J. Edwards, went on to become a famous social worker and civil rights activist.
