Thomas Percy Reid
(1870 - 1975)
Early Years
Thomas Percy Reid was born on November 21, 1889 in Webster, Missouri (an official birth record for Thomas is yet to be obtained). He was the second child of Idelia and Bedford Reid, with an older brother, Lonnie, about a year his senior.
In June of 1891, Percy’s sister Dovie was born.
By 1900, Percy and his family were living in Marion, Missouri, where his father was working as a farmer.
In September of 1901, news would have been circulating of the assassination of President McKinley and the induction of his successor, Theodore Roosevelt.
In 1903, when Percy was 4 years old, the Wright brothers made the first controlled, sustained flight in an airplane, something previously only dreamed about, but never thought possible.
In 1904, Percy’s brother Orville was born.
In 1909, William Howard Taft is inaugurated as the 27th President of the United States.
In 1910, the family was living in Noble, Ozark, Missouri, and 21 year old Percy was helping his father work on the farm.
On December 2, 1911, Percy married Maude Alice Johnson at her parent’s house.
In 1913, Woodrow Wilson is elected the 28th president.
Three years later, in January of 1914, their daughter, Zelma was born. The war had been escalating in Europe, and that summer, President Woodrow Wilson officially announced the United States' "neutral" stance.
In June of 1917, Percy registered for the war, claiming an exemption due to having a wife and child to support. In November, President Wilson won re-election under the slogan "He kept us out of the war", and yet that following spring the United States declared war on Germany, joining the allies in World War I and forever changing America's relationship with the world.
In January of 1918, their son, Russell, was born.
In January of 1919, the 18th Amendment is ratified, and the sale and consumption of alcohol becomes illegal. Later that same summer, WWI officially comes to and end with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles.
1920's
In January of 1920, Maude gave birth to twins, Roscoe and Roxie. That August, Maude, and millions of other women are finally granted the right to vote.
Around 1925, Percy and Maude had their 5th child, Bernie.
In 1929, their daughter, Zelma, married Fred Daniel.
On October 29, 1929, post-war prosperity came to an end with the great stock market crash. Between 1929 and 1931, losses accumulated to an estimated value of $50 billion, marking the start of the worst American depression in U.S. history.
1930's
In 1930, the family was living on a farm located on Country Road in Noble.
By 1932, unemployment in the U.S. had reached 12 million workers. In March of 1933, Congress passed the New Deal, dropping the gold standard, and that December Prohibition officially ended.
In June of 1938, their son, Russell, married Bonnie Lee Cantwell.
In the fall of 1939, WWII began, with U.S. declaring their neutrality.
1940’s
In September of 1940, the Congress enacts its first peacetime draft. By this time, Percy was working as a mail carrier; his route covered Wasola to Nottinghill.
In June of 1941, Percy’s father died of prostate cancer.
That December, Japan attacked U.S. soil at Pearl Harbor, and the very next day, the U.S. entered the war. By February of the following year, 110,000 Japanese Americans on the west coast were moved to relocation camps.
On August 6, 1945, President Truman gives approval for the bombing of Hiroshima, and three days later, Nagasaki.
In the fall of 1945, their son Bernie left for Army training in Texas.
1950's
In June of 1950, the Korean War began.
By 1951, Percy had returned to farming.
In July of 1953, the Korean War ended.
In February of 1954, the first large-scale vaccination of children against polio began.
In May of 1955, the Supreme Court ordered public schools to begin racial desegregation with “deliberate speed”.
In December of 1955, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus, beginning a boycott that would eventually inspire a national civil rights movement.
1960's
In October of 1962, the Cuban Missile Crisis began.
On November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated during a motorcade through downtown Dallas, Texas.
From 1964-1966 Percy and Maude lived in Wasola and were members of the General Baptist Church there.
LATER YEARS
In January of 1975, Percy entered the Medi-Center in Springfield, Missouri. By February he was moved to Chastain’s Nursing Home in Wasola, where he lived until his death on the night of August 3rd.
Percy was buried in Oak Grove Cemetery in Wasola, Missouri.
1. "Russell M. Reid Services Held Monday," The Douglas County Herald (Ava, Missouri), 12 February 1987, page 3, column 3; digital images, www.newspapers.com (: viewed 26 December 2021). 2. 1930 US Census, Ozark, Missouri, population schedule, Noble, enumeration district (ED) 77-11, sheet 1B, household 22, Perce T. Reid household; digital images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed 27 December 2021); United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records. 3. 1920 US Census, Ozark, Missouri, population schedule, Noble Township, enumeration district (ED) 154, sheet 48A, dwelling 60, Thomas P. Reid household; digital images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed 27 December 2021); Fourteenth Census of the United States, 1920. (NARA microfilm publication T625, 2076 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C. For details on the contents of the film numbers, visit the following NARA web page: NARA.. 4. 1930 US Census, Ozark, Missouri, population schedule, Noble, enumeration district (ED) 11, page 4A, dwelling 72, Fred L. Daniels household; digital images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed 2 December 2022); United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records. 5. 1940 US Census, Ozark, Missouri, population schedule, Noble, enumeration district (ED) 77-12, 3B, household 61, T.P. Reid household; digital images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : downloaded 3 December 2022); United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records. 6. 1950 US Census, Ozark, Missouri, population schedule, Noble, enumeration district (ED) 77-14, sheet 11, dwelling 99, Thomas P. Reid household; digital images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : downloaded 4 December 2022); Department of Commerce. Bureau of the Census. 1913-1/1/1972. Population Schedules for the 1950 Census, 1950 - 1950. Washington, DC: National Archives at Washington, DC. Population Schedules for the 1950 Census, 1950 - 1950. NAID: 43290879. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 - 2007, Record Group 29. National Archives at Washington, DC., Washington, DC.. 7. Social Security Administration | SSA, Social Security Death Index, Master File (Washington D.C., USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014), Thomas Reid, 488-56-8920. 8. Find A Grave, "Find A Grave," database, Find A Grave, Find A Grave (www.findagrave.com: viewed 4 December 2022), https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/75458493. 9. "U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947," digital image, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed 4 December 2022), Percy Thomas Reid, serial no. 726; citing U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947, The National Archives At St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; World War Ii Draft Cards (Fourth Registration) For the State of Missouri; Record Group Title: Records of the Selective Service System; Record Group Number: 147; Box or Roll Number: 1057. 10. "Thomas Purce Reid Services Conducted," The Douglas County Herald (Ava, Missouri), 7 August 1975, p. 7; digital images, www.newspapers.com (: viewed 4 December 2022); https://www.newspapers.com/image/611237184. 11. "U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918," digital image, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed 4 December 2022), Percy Thomas Reid, form 610, no. 13; citing U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918, Registration State: Missouri; Registration County: Ozark County. 12. 1900 US Census, Ozark, Missouri, population schedule, Marion, enumeration district (ED) 96, 3, dwelling 27, Bedford Reid household; digital images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed 23 July 2023); National Archives and Records Administration, 1900. T623, FHL microfilm: 1240872. 13. Ibid. 14. 1910 US Census, Ozark, Missouri, population schedule, Noble, enumeration district (ED) 138, 6A, dwelling 85, Bedford N. Reid household; digital images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed 23 July 2023); Thirteenth Census of the United States, 1910 (NARA microfilm publication T624, 1,178 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C.. 15. Ibid. 16. "U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918," digital image, Ancestry.com, Percy Thomas Reid, form 610, no. 13. 17. "U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947," digital image, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed 27 December 2021), Russell Marcus Reid, serial no. 23, order no. 212; citing U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947, Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 268. 18. 1940 US Census, Ozark, Missouri, population schedule, Noble, ED 77-12, 3B, household 61, T.P. Reid household. 19. Ibid. 20. "U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947," digital image, Ancestry.com, Percy Thomas Reid, serial no. 726. 21. Ibid. 22. 1950 US Census, Ozark, Missouri, population schedule, Noble, ED 77-14, sheet 11, dwelling 99, Thomas P. Reid household. 23. "T.P. Reid," obituary, The Springfield News-Leader (Springfield, Missouri), 5 August 1975, p. 7; digital images, www.newspapers.com (: viewed 4 December 2022); https://www.newspapers.com/image/311102112. 24. "T.P. Reid has been taken...," The Douglas County Herald (Ava, Missouri), 9 January 1975, p. 20; digital images, www.newspapers.com (: viewed 4 December 2022); https://www.newspapers.com/image/611227536. 25. "T.P. Reid," p. 7. 26. Ibid. 27. Grave, Find A Grave, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/75458493. 28. "Thomas Purce Reid Services Conducted," p. 7. 29. Ancestry.com, Missouri, U.S., Death Records, 1968-2015 (Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2021), Thomas P Reid, d. 3 Aug 1975. 30. "Services Wednesday for Maude Reid, 86," Deaths, The Douglas County Herald (Ava, Missouri), 13 January 1977, p. 3; digital images, www.newspapers.com (: downloaded 5 December 2022); https://www.newspapers.com/image/611238250. 31. "T.P. Reid," p. 7. 32. SSA, Social Security Death Index, Master File, Thomas Reid, 488-56-8920. 33. Grave, Find A Grave, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/75458493. 34. "Thomas Purce Reid Services Conducted," p. 7. 35. "T.P. Reid," p. 7. 36. "Thomas Purce Reid Services Conducted," p. 7. 37. SSA, Social Security Death Index, Master File, Thomas Reid, 488-56-8920.