Friday, September 27, 2013

On The Trail of a Welcome Stranger: Finding Orville Bean



Mr. and Mrs. Orville Bean
Orville Bean was the man whose dispute with Vernon Presley, Elvis Presley's father, sent Presley to the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman Farm (a chain gang, run with unpaid prison labor), in a dispute over the price of a hog. Bean is quite a mystery man, but as you will see, some of that mystery is beginning to unravel. After intensive research, which is ongoing, some details of his background and family history have emerged, and are presented here. The search is vital to an understanding of how a small farmer in a little "townlett" that only lasted a little longer than a decade, amassed so much local power. (And it should be emphasized that this power was localized to East Tupelo.)
Wiley Hopkins Bean (nee "Beene")
(1831-1902)

Bean was born in 1888, in Mississippi, to Wiley Hopkins Bean (1831-1902) and Mary Wood (1854-1922) . Wiley Hopkins Bean (nee "Beene") was born in Georgia, but his family moved to Mississippi when he was young, and settled in Itawamba County to farm. By "farm," it is clear from Wiley Bean's Last Will and Testament, this means to own land. The following is at the end of his Will:

To my beloved wife Mary Roena Beene and our children, Dewitt Beene, Orville Stone Beene, Archie Tracey Beene, Nolia Roena Beene and Wiley Holder Beene, after all my just debts are paid I give and bequeath all the remainder or balance of my property, including all livestock of every kind and description, all crops and provisions, tools, vehicles, money notes, accounts and debts that may be due me.
Twelveth- to my beloved wife Mary Roena Beene and our five children named in the eleventh article just above, I give and bequeathe the following real property, viz, The North half (N 1/2) of Section Thirteen (13), Township nine (9) of range seven (7) in Itawamba County, Mississippi.
Thirteenth I hereby nominate and appoint Mary Roena Beene my executrix and my son Lonnie Hopkins Beene my executor of this my Last Will and Testament.
Witness this my signature this day of Feb 20 1900 1899  (In the original, 1900 is marked through and 1899 written above)
Signed  Wiley H Beene
Witnessed by
W. B. Brown, J. Y. Cunningham and Harlem Beene.
 (The name "Orville Stone Beene" is emphasized by me in bold typeface.)

Wiley H. Bean Last Will and Testament
Page 1


It is clear that Bean inherited significant property and land, and like his father, was indeed a powerful man in Northeast Mississippi. Since they were farmers, they owned significant plots of farmland in Itawamba County, Mississippi.

Wiley H. Bean Last Will and Testament
Page 2



















After his sophomore year in high school, Orville Bean did not further his education. According the 1940 census, he was a "farm operator," and was entirely self-employed. Although he told the census he worked 40 hours per week, he listed his income as "0." Bean lived in Lee County, Mississippi with his wife Agnes, ten years his junior.They had a daughter named Oleta. Bean had also been married to Nannie Mae Sheffield. 

Orville Stone Bean, circa 1935
Back Row, Right
The year Elvis Presley was born
Bean apparently owned much of the land on which East Tupeloeans lived in the 1930s and '40s, when East Tupelo was a distinct town. According to Elaine Dundy's interview with Aaron Kennedy, Bean was a "politician," through he doesn't appear to have held an office. Kennedy: Page 118: "Orville Bean was a politician. He made his money by taking advantage of people and keeping them indebted--quite a few other people besides Vernon." (Dundy, 1985, p. 118) He owned the land (we will determine exactly how much, in this ongoing investigation), and he owned a dairy farm, but nothing so grand as the famed Ruff Dairy in Tupelo proper. He appeared to own significant bottom-land for cotton as well, judging by his inheritance from Wiley Beene. The problem, for now, is precision. As soon as I know you how much of East Tupelo Bean actually owned, I can then explain the details of why he had the power to change the Presleys's lives forever, and in what capacity he was "a politician" in the area.

As for his family, he came from "solid" yet rural roots. When married with his own family, he lived in the humble circumstances of many Mississippi landowners. His daughter became a school teacher, ironically later helping the Presleys' only child with his singing career, early on. Oleta (Bean) Grimes appears to have been a lovely person, based on much available evidence. 

It is her father, though, who still remains something of a mystery. Land was power in the Mississippi of the early 20th century, and I am following, not the money, but the dirt. The dirt he owned, and upon which poor people both lived and worked.

Don't touch that dial; we'll be back with the full story of East Tupelo, Orville Bean's history of power over some of the weakest people in Lee County, and why he was able to change Elvis Presley's very young life forever.

Meanwhile, I leave you with this music.



References: Elaine Dundy, Elvis and Gladys. Macmillan, 1985. First Edition. William Balfour Ruff, Oral history with Mr. Balfour William Ruff, as interviewed by Kathryn Stephens. F341.5 .M57 vol. 746, pt. 2. University of Southern Mississippi. Center for Oral History and Cultural Heritage, 1999-11-12. and University of Southern Mississippi Libraries. (electronic version), 2002-09-25 (digital reproduction). http://www.lib.usm.edu/legacy/spcol/coh/cohruffb.html Mike Freeman, "" from My Written Stuff, 24, January, 2012. http://michaelwfreem.blogspot.com/2012/01/founder-of-elvis-presley-birthplace.html Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census. 1940. Lee County, Mississippi. Beene/Bean photos made public on the Internet's World Wide Web by John Griggs39 of ancestry.com. Ancestry.com. Public Member Photos & Scanned Documents [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006. Original data: Family tree photos submitted by Ancestry members. Note: Orville Stone Bean is a public historical figure, and these public photos are reproduced here under the fair use provisions of U.S. Copyright law for educational purposes.

©Robin Markowitz, 2013. All Rights Reserved.


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12 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  2. I am the great granddaughter of Archie Tracey Beene

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    1. I forgot to reply directly, so as to keep up with responses.

      As I said, it might be great to chat! Let me know if you would like to. I am interested in the agricultural arrangements in East Tupelo, during the somewhat brief time of its existence. It doesn't seem typical, and perhaps you could she'd some light.

      Again, many thanks.
      Best,
      Robin

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  3. It would be interesting to chat, if you are willing.

    Thank you for stopping by, and for letting me know.

    All the best,
    Robin

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  4. Sure, I'd like that. I'm working right now but my email is millystegallgeorge@gmail.com and phone number is 6016222672

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  5. So sorry wrong email its millystegallgeorge@aol.com
    I apologize

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    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  6. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  7. Sorry, folks, about the confusion. It's very hard to switch accounts on Blogger now!But, I'll figure it out.

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  8. Hi! I know it's been a very long time because I have been through a series of personal travails and a tragedy. I will soon be returning to the project. I want you to know that there is nothing personal towards your uncle. This was just how things worked at the time. Agricultural landlords had power over actual politicians: the politicians were only there to basically work for those who owned and farmed land. It was important to keep the laborers in check, and Parchman was only a tool in doing so. But at the time, African American laborers were migrating north in increasing numbers. For Parchman, this was a disaster, financially. So the focus shifted to poor young white men. I think Vernon and Orville Bean were both angry: Vernon thought the hog was worth much more than he got. Not knowing how a bank worked, and that a check recipient would IMMEDIATELY know of an invalid check, Vernon did something out of ignorance and foolishness. He couldn't argue about the price; he was also Bean's employee. So he did this sad thing. He just took what he felt he was owed. And, yes, Bean was angry. But he also knew that agricultural laborers must know where they stand in terms of social status. And he did what was normal in those times: go to law enforcement and see to it that the young laborer was made aware of his place in society. This was not a personal decision, but a social decision by all the authorities involved. Parchman was a modern day slave plantion. I will remove the phrase "chain gang" after a look back at my research. It's just semantics: prisoners were whipped on bare skin for days in a row for infractions or perceived infractions. They picked cotton and were were not paid. This type of slavery is permitted under the 13th amendment to the U.S. Constitution. It was legal. The IMPORTANCE of all this is that it changed Vernon and Gladys forever. The economic system in Mississippi taught them to teach their only child submission to all perceived authority and as you will see, fully explains a future business arrangement of monumental importance in the future life of Elvis Presley. For Vernon, Bean was but a memory: he now saw others as he learned to see Bean. And made sure that his son understood this very well. There were people you "don't cross." The legacy of the plantation economy and culture lived on, even at the cusp of the new millenium. So, it's not about your at all; this is about systemic poverty and the cultural mindset of poverty and that persists even in those no longer poor. This is about history, not just some bit players in it. This is bigger than just the Presleys or your uncle. In fact, it's not about them at all. This is a case study of something much, much larger. And it has absolutely nothing to do with his descendants. He was related to many wonderful and generous people. I am doing sociology, not biography.

    And I am finally able to return to my work after 7 terrible years ending in the death of my only immediate family in a California wildfire. I wanted to make sure you understood. Thank you for every courtesy.

    All the best,
    Robin (please email at robinmarkz40@gmail.com)

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