DESCENDANTS OF GEORGE MACE JR.
They descended from greatness.
The death of their parents and their young sibling brought the Mace children together. The older siblings raised the younger ones and they all worked together to maintain the family estate. The sisters, Velma, Clara, and Luevester eventually left to marry and start their families elsewhere. Stanford, Roscoe, and Huey Paul never left. A familiar pattern in the Mace Family. The generation before them had offered a model of virtuous and fruitful living and George Jr.’s children followed suit. Everyone agreed on the importance of education. The younger girls, Queen Esther, Mynetta, Allien, Ethel, and Stanford’s twin girls Mary and Martha, also known affectionately as “plus two,” were meant to follow in the footsteps of their aunts by attending Southern Christian Institute. Robert Earl was something like his uncle Beau. He took his family off to Chicago and set roots there.
The Mace children would have to borrow more money from the federal government to cover the debts their father had incurred, but they would get their heads above water. Eventually, the surviving children would split the estate among them.
CLICK TO HEAR THE STORY
Stanford B. Mace
(1909-1992)
When Stanford B. Mace was born on February 28, 1909, in Mississippi, his father, George Jr., was 25 and his mother, Queen Esther, was 19. He was their eldest child and known for his love of God and family. He was a clean sharp dresser. When he would dress casually, it was in either a thin dress shirt with slacks or a polo style shirt with slacks. When he would dress up, he was suited and booted as they would say. He always wore a complete suit with hat and tie and handkerchief to match the tie. Every now and then he would wear overalls. He did not care for how the overalls looked or fit.
Stanford’s had specific favorites. His favorite colors were purple and scarlet red (burgundy as we would call it.). His favorite athletic sport was boxing. He loved basketball, baseball, and boxing. He himself was a boxer as a young man. He said often, he was good at it. He developed a working strategy to knock out his opponents. His favorite vegetables were turnip greens and yellow squash. His favorite fruits were tomatoes, blueberries, and pears. He loved his blueberry cobbler and pear preserves. He made the best pickled chow-chow preserves known. It was his own secret recipe. He would show you how to make it, but never exactly told you how in written form. Therefore, no one ever got the recipe. His homemade buttermilk biscuits were fluffy and delicious, and his homemade molasses was stomach rubbing full tasty.
Stanford B. Mace
Source: Pattie M. Mace
Velma Mace Burks
Source: Armetta Jones
Velma Mace Burks
(1911-1982)
Trees are gifts from God and are essential elements in the cycle of life. Despite what goes on in this world, trees maintain their position of power, lifting up their limbs in humble submission to the Father who has created us all. In doing so, they point our eyes to heaven where the light beams down on all of us, giving us hope, peace and love. On June 3, 1911, a seed of faith was planted on a plantation, by a river, in Panther Burn, (Sharkey County) Mississippi. Through the many days, months and years, this seed would develop into a sapling of service in the form of Velma Mace. Velma was the second child of the late George and Esther Lowe Mace. A leap of faith propelled her family to relocate from Sharkey County, to the Newman community in Edwards, (Hinds County) Mississippi, at the tender age of nine. Her presence in this family ushered forth so much joy and delight and she began to spread her roots and blossom from a sapling of service into a tree. Through the years, her siblings grew closer and closer to her light and love. Velma loved unconditionally and served unselfishly. It was always her aim to enhance the lives of others through patience, perseverance and peace. Her early educational pursuits were achieved in Sharkey and Hinds Counties. Through admiration and prayer, Velma accepted Christ as her personal Savior, at a very early age through the New Oak Ridge M.B. Church. She faithfully served as a member and laborer for Christ, in all facets of her church home and many relied on her resounding resilience, even in the face of adversity.
Clara Mace Winston
(1913-2002)
Clara Mace Winston, the third child of George and Esther Mace, was born October 17, 1913 in Panther Burn MS, in Washington County. Clara was one who had a mind of her own. She wanted the better things in life and decided to go out and pursue them.
At an early age, she moved to Vicksburg MS where she met Jim Winston, fell in love and married him. They had no biological children of their own. However, she and Jim were there to help her youngest brother with his children. Huey’s daughter Alma Jean, also known as Lynette, was sickly. Jim took a liking to this child and would bring her home with him every evening and take her back to her mother, Berdia Mae, every morning. Later, Clara and Jim adopted Lynette as their own daughter.
Clara was determined to mentor and help her siblings. She also wanted them to have a better life. It was very important to her to make sure that her siblings had whatever they needed.
Clara Mace WInston
Source: Lynette O'Neal
Clara Mace WInston
Source: Lynette O'Neal
Luevester Mace Hayes
(1916-1995)
Luevester Mace Hayes was born in Panther Burn, MS April 23, 1916. She was the 4th sibling of George and Ester Mace. Shortly after the birth of the elder children, the family moved from Panther Burn to Edwards, MS. Luevester and her older siblings helped to raise the remaining Mace children in Edwards after the parents were deceased. In 1946, Luevester subsequently met and married Wilbert Hayes a World War II Veteran and Railroad worker in Vicksburg, MS. Luevester worked as a housekeeper for the Sisters of Mercy in Vicksburg, MS. The couple resided in their home in Vicksburg, MS and raised 6 children (Ester Ruth, Wilma Jean, Pat, Velma, Wilbert Jr, and Alycia). The couple stressed education as a means of personal improvement, and took great pride in the fact all of their children graduated high school and attended college. Luevester even went back to school in her sixties and earned her GED.
During the early 1980s the couple built a second home on the Mace Estate on Canada Cross Road in Edwards and would spend summers there with their children and grandchildren. Luevester enjoyed cooking meals, singing in her church choir, working in her gardens in Vicksburg and Edwards, and Sewing Quilts with her sister Queen Ester Jackson. Luevester and Wilbert remained married until the time of Wilbert’s death in May 1994. Luevester died the following year in August of 1995. Their children and grandchildren went on to become Educators, Doctors, Engineers, Renowned Chefs, and Small Business Owners.
Luevester Mace Hayes
Source: Wilma Jean Wade
Roscoe Peter Mace
(1918-2002)
Roscoe was a lifelong member of New Oak Ridge M.B. Church. It was his family’s home church. He was a very active member until his health began to fail. Even then he mad sure he supported the church financially. He always had the church’s business interest at heart.
He held several leadership positions. He was the superintendent of Sunday school for many, many years. Whether the attendance was large or small, he would still have Sunday school faithfully every Sunday. He was Lead Deacon for several years as well. He was also the treasurer and trustee of the church.
He worked as a farmer, a land surveyor for Hinds County, a security guard for Oakley Training Center, and a building supervisor for Jackson Hinds Health Care Center. He was a Worshipful Master in the Masonic Lodge. After retirement, he worked as a security guard for Jackson Hinds Health Care Center.
Through his work, he paid all of the back taxes n the hoe place, which was almost lost to unpaid taxes. When Roscoe applied for a loan, the bank loan officer stressed to him that this was a lot of responsibility for a person of his young age. He worked and paid off the loan as he had promised. After purchasing the land and home house back, the lawyer and court advised him to put the land in his name only. He told them “No”. He wanted to keep it in his parents’ name so that he could share it equally with his siblings as he felt his parents would have appreciated.
Roscoe Mace
Source: Gloria Mace Morrison, Betty Mace Turner,
and Regina Mace Crowder
Queen Esther Mace Jackson
Source: Claretta Sullivan
Queen Esther Mace Jackson
(1921-2014)
Queen Esther Mace Jackson was born October 25, 1921 in Learned, Mississippi to George and Esther Mace. When Esther’s father, Ralph Lowe, saw this little baby, he looked at her round brown face and curious searching eyes and said to his daughter we must call this one Queen Esther, like the Queen Esther of the Bible who said, “if I perish, I perish, but I am going to see the King.” Her grandfather saw something in that face and those eyes. And so it has come to pass, Queen Esther has been a force of nature, a fountain of strength and a reservoir of determination and courage for 92 years.
Queen Esther wanted to be like her mother so she learned how to cook and sew and make beautiful things. Her sisters remember her even as a young girl making gifts, a dress out of old sackcloth, a pair of shoes out of discarded material and proudly presenting them. She also loved the great outdoors and learned how to grow things, hunt, fish, kill snakes, climb trees and feed and take care of the farm animals with her father and brothers.
Allien Mace Brooks
(1927-2017)
On June 13, 1927, in the city of Learned, Mississippi located in Hinds County, George and Esther Mace welcomed Allien, the 4th youngest of their 13 children. At a young age, Allien was baptized and became a member of the new Oakridge MBC. Allien was educated in the Hinds County Public Schools system and graduated from Southern Christian Institute (Edwards Mississippi). While attending Jarvis Christian College (Hawkins, Texas), Allien pledged Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.
Allien united in Holy Matrimony to her first husband, Rev. Samuel Alfred Brooks. After he had received his orders from the U.S. Army, they relocated to the state of California. To this union, two children were born. Clarice Brooks-Bridges and Sheila Brooks-Cohen. After settling in California, Allien joined Mt. Carmel Baptist Church, where she was graciously adopted into the McIntosh-Owens family. Some years later, Allien and Samuel divorced, and Allien married her second husband Otis Moore, wo preceded her in death (September 1, 1979).
Allien continued to serve wholeheartedly, at Mt. Carmel MBC until her health no longer allowed. Allien received her certification from the Cleaning and Dye Union and remained gainfully employed in many dry cleaners until her retirement at the age of 75. During her retirement years, Allien continued her training at Laney and gained certification in upholstery and video photography. To keep herself busy, Allien would rebuild and turn unusable furniture into an upholstered piece fit for any décor. She would also film church services and community events.
Aileen Mace Brooks
Source: Unknown
Mynetta Mace Smith
Source: Brenda Jo Smith Davis
Mynetta Mace Smith
(1928-2017)
Mynetta Alicia Mace Smith was born the eighth child of George Mace Jr. and Esther Lowe Mace on November 22, 1928 in Learned , MS. Her very early years were spent being reared by her grandmother, while going back and forth to her parents’ home. She was considered a physically “poorly” baby and toddler and was strengthened with the nurture of lots of eggs and high-protein meals, nestled in love and care. She grew as a small child to have thick, long, red hair that was cut off as an adolescent because her grandmother thought it was “stunting her growth”; hence one of her nicknames, Red. She loved being with her siblings, even though it was a challenge to keep up with them in work and play. They, too, deeply cared for her.
Mynetta attended secondary school at Southern Christian Institute (SCI) in Edwards, and graduated from Jarvis Christian College in Hawkins, TX, with a B.S. degree in Elementary Education. After marrying her childhood sweetheart, Marcellus D. Smith, in 1951, she went on to engage in community interest as well as becoming an elementary teacher in the Hinds County School District. Mynetta and Marcellus had 3 children: Brenda Jo, Ronnie Renee, and Dennis O’Keith. The family lived in Edwards in a house that she, Marcellus and her father-in-law built. They went on to build six other homes for rental investment property.
Mynetta enjoyed teaching community classes in Home Economics, as well as Prenatal and Post-natal Care. As she presented seminars to the women in need of those services, she found this as a “calling” that also proved to be self-therapeutic as she navigated several miscarriages in her life. She was blessed to have family and a mother-in-law that helped take care of the children while she worked and Marcellus was away in the Army.
Ethel Elaine Mace
(1929-2020)
Life, for Ethel Elaine Mace has been very interesting and full of adventure.
God, Christian community and family has always been at the center of that adventure. Growing up in the segregated South in the 1930’s and 40’s in the hill country of Mississippi was not easy. In the words of Langston Hughes: “Life for me has been no crystal stair, It’s had tacks in it, and splinters, and boards torn up, and places with no carpet on the floor, but all the time, I’ve been climbing, and reaching landings and turning corners and sometimes going on in the dark, where there has been no light….so no turning back.”
Ethel Elaine is one of twelve children born to George and Esther Mace. She is the ninth child and youngest daughter. And one of her most prominent childhood memories is that of Poppa’s chair where he would retire in the evenings. If Poppa’s chair could talk, it could not even begin to tell the many things she would experience in her lifetime. She loved to sit on his lap admiring his face with her twin nieces, Mary and Martha sitting on the wooden arms swinging their legs on both sides. She had that chair restored some years ago and it remains in the family as one of our most cherished heirlooms.
Education has always been important for her family. Her mom and dad passed when she was incredibly young. And even as she relied on her older brothers and sisters for her care and well-being, she also developed a strong work ethic and a fierce sense of independence. She attended Southern Christian Institute (SCI) for High School and Junior College in Edwards, MS, Jarvis Christian College in Hawkins, TX, where she was Miss Jarvis, and she received her master’s degree in elementary education from Ball State University in Muncie, IN. Her passion for travel and leadership led her to become a lifetime member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.
Ethel Elaine Mace
Source: Claretta Sullivan
Robert Earl Mace
(1931-2014)
Just as life begins, it also ends. Life began with the late Robert Earl Mace on October 27th, 1931 in Edwards Mississippi where he spent much of his youth. Robert was tenth of eleven children born to George and Esther Mace.
Robert was united in holy matrimony to Mae Ethel Mims on October 22, 1953 and was drafted shortly thereafter and left Edwards MS to join the US Army. Mae Ethel moved to Chicago while Robert was serving his country. Robert was honorably discharged in June of 1955 and joined his wife in Chicago. He was a loving father to seven children, Melvin(deceased), Anthony, Glenn, Lorraine, Brenda, Tony and Tracey.
Robert worked for Clearly Construction Company in Chicago. He worked on various building projects including the Chicago McCormick Place, the largest convention center project in the US. Construction was a labor intensive and hazardous career during those times because of the lack of OSHA and other regulatory agencies. Robert was injured several times on the job and was experiencing declining health. He decided in the early 70s to leave the Construction Industry to become self employed doing home rehab projects. Robert continued his business until 2009 when he decided to retire. Robert enjoyed gardening, watching Chicago Sports and family. Holidays and family gatherings were especially important to him because it was a time to share memories, enjoy laughter and celebrate the love that he has for his family and friends.
Robert Earl Mace
Source: Anthony Mace Sr.
Huey Prince Mace
(1934-2019)
Mr. Huey Prince Mace Sr. was born November 15, 1934, in Learned Mississippi to the late Mr. George and Mrs. Esther Mace. He was the youngest of twelve children born to his parents.
Huey attended Hinds County Schools; he accepted Christ as his Personal Savior at a young age at New Oak Ridge Church. Huey worked for the Corps of Engineers, Vicksburg District, for over forty years on several of the barges as a chef.
Huey was married to his beloved wife of 55 years, the late Berdia Mae Flagg Mace. To this union, they were blessed with seven children.
Huey was an instructor at heart, teaching many his culinary arts traits. All of his family and friends reaped the fruits of his labor of love in the kitchen, especially with his famous gumbo and cinnamon rolls. His love, passion and dedication to culinary arts hep him assist others in the food industry to become renowned chefs.
Huey Prince Mace
Source: Tena Mace
Virgil Reuben Mace
(1922-1931)
Virgil Reuben Mace was a talkative, funny and confident boy. At nine years old he contracted measles and pneumonia. Virgil died of his illness in 1931.
Mary Mace Allen
(1930 - 2020)
Martha Mace Faulkner
(1930 - 2016)
.jpg)
This story began with a single woman, Harriet, and continues with two little girls, Mary and Martha. They are bridges between the 4th and 5th generations of Mace descendants. George and Esther’s eldest grandchildren. They are Stanford’s, the eldest Mace child’s, twin girls. They were born before their uncles Robert Earl and Huey Prince. Stanford was a single father so the girls were raised on the Mace Estate with their grandparents, George and Esther, and their aunts and uncles, and they remembered those days. The twins, their siblings, and their over fifty first cousins were there to bear witness to the next four generations of Mace Family history. Therefore, it is up to the 5th generation and beyond to write the next chapters of the Mace Family History.
