The Search Continues
One of the greatest mysteries, yet unsolved, is who was the mother of Dollie Curtis and her siblings.
In 1981 my mother wrote to the Kansas State Vital Records office requesting Dollie’s birth certificate, hoping the name of her mother would be on the document. Instead, that section on the death certificate was left blank. Her daughter, Charlotte, who served as the informant for the record must not have known. She did, however, know that Stephen Curtis was Dollie’s father and that he was born in Virginia. This was likely because they were contemporaries whereas, it is believed Dollie’s mother was not alive when Charlotte was born. Charlotte likely met Stephen as he lived in Chetopa, KS and then in Columbus, KS up until his death in 1893. Charlotte was born in 1877.
According to Dollie’s obituary she was survived by 3 sisters and 4 brothers. Though they are not listed by name, they may have had the same mother. She and at least one sibling, a sister named Eliza, did not share the same mother and they were born more than 40 years apart.
Perhaps the direct descendants of some of those other siblings may know the name. While we have contacted several of them, we do not have a definitive answer yet. The current working theory is that Dollie’s mother may have been a woman named Charlotte. Charlotte was listed, along with Dollie, in the will of the man who enslaved them. In addition, Dollie gave the name Charlotte to her daughter and Dollie’s great granddaughter is named Charlotte Erma Grigsby.
The Research Team is on the case and will remain so until all possibilities have been investigated.