| Sources |
- [S104] Cocke County, Tennessee, and its People, Cocke County Heritage Book Committee, (Walsworth Publishing, 1992), 15.
- [S24] The Newport Plain Talk, (http://www.newportplaintalk.com), 13 Apr 2008.
There'll be a party goin' on for Joneta!
Photo by Duay O'Neil
Joneta Ball poses next to a blooming forsythia bush in the yard of her home off Arlis Road. The Cocke County native will be honored with a party Sunday, April 20, to celebrate her 90th birthday.
Author: Duay O'Neil
NEWPORT-The hills of Cocke County will resound with music next Sunday when hundreds of family and friends are expected to gather at the home of Joneta Ball in celebration of her 90th birthday.
World War I was still claiming lives when a new baby arrived in the home of Soloman Black and his wife, the former Celia Webb, on April 18, 1918. In all, the Blacks had an even dozen children, eight of whom lived to adulthood: Bell, who married Ira Ball; Leonard, who married Jeanette Jones; Lou Emma, who married Oscar Burnett; John, who married Emma Lail; Pauline, who married Leonard Crum; Cicero "S. B.", who married Tina; Rachel, who married Robert Ball, and Joneta, the birthday girl, who married Robert's brother, Arlis Ball.
Four other siblings-Walter, Ollie, Rosey, and Rossy-died in infancy.
Both sides of Joneta's family have called Cocke County home for generations. Her paternal grandparents were James Black and Frances Hunter, and her maternal grandparents were John Webb and Harriet Bright. Following her Grandpa Webb's death, Joneta's grandmother married Zeb Bruce.
The Soloman and Celia Black home stood between Bat Harbor and the Old 15th. Her dad farmed and also worked away from Cocke County for a time as a coal miner.
"We had a pretty good sized place," recalls Joneta. "We raised just about everything we needed-hogs, cattle, chickens-had our own milk and butter. We'd put up hundreds of cans of fruits and vegetables-kept the kraut in crocks."
"We had a good life," she laughs. "We didn't worry about what we ate-about all that cholesterol. And I still don't."
Ball and her siblings walked down the mountain to Bat Harbor School. Bernice Brooks was her first teacher. Also teaching at various times at the two-teacher school were Brooks' sister Josephine and Ray Pearce.
"I don't remember what time we had to leave for school, but we had to be there by 8 in the morning, so it was early," says Ball.
The family attended the old Log Church at Bat Harbor and also worshipped at Last Chance Church of God "until it burned down," says Ball. "That building stood across the road from where Lorene Hartsell lives today."
"I was about 13 when I was baptized," says Ball, "in the French Broad River. My church is my life."
It was at Shady Grove Baptist Church that Ball met her future husband. "He took me home once when I was 12 years old from church at Bat Harbor," she remembers. It would be 8 more years before the couple were married by Rev. Joe M. Brooks beside the road one Sunday morning while on their way to church.
"Arlis begged me to marry him," says Ball, "so I did. My family was alright with it, too."
On that special day, July 16, 1939, Joneta wore a pale pink dress which she had made. "I had told my family that the first time I wore it would be a special occasion," she laughs. "I tried to give them hints that I was getting married that morning. I told them that evening after church what we had done."
The newly-weds "went to housekeeping" in a home on the Charles Clark place at Edwina. "We lived there about a month, and then bought the beginnings of this place," says Ball. "There was a little building on it and we built another room onto that. Our first six children were born there. We never paid rent!"
As the Ball family grew, so did their acreage until Arlis and Joneta owned about 40 acres.
Like her mother and father, Joneta also had twelve children, eleven of whom are still living: Billy, Jack, Larue, Janell, Inez, W. L., Brady, Rady, Robert Lee, Sherman, and Dwain. Another son, Eugene, is deceased.
There are 25 grandchildren and 38 great-grandchildren. Two other grandchildren are deceased.
The Ball brothers are well-known builders in the area, and three of the brothers-Billy, Robert Lee, and Sherman-are also preachers.
Eleven of the 12 Ball children were born at home. During her deliveries, Joneta was attended by midwives, Texanna Ball, her aunt, and Dellie Raines. "I went to Mims Clinic to have Dwain," says Joneta.
With a lively household of 9 boys and 3 girls, Joneta's duties quickly extended to improvised medical care.
When Larue cut his fingers deeply, it was Joneta who sewed up the gash so perfectly that no scars were left. Later, when Brady did the same thing, he came to his mother seeking the care. When she urged him to go to a doctor, he replied, "You sewed Larue's up. You can sew mine!" And, she did. "And neither one of them made a sound while I worked," she remembers.
Her self-taught nursing skills helped later when she cared for her brother John, who was seriously injured in a tank explosion during World War II. Brother Cicero "S. B." was at Pearl Harbor.
Toughness in Joneta and Arlis's bunch appeared early when the oldest boy, Billy, was seriously hurt one morning when the school bus ran over his foot. "He was at school at Edwina, and they made him stay there all day," says Joneta. "Back then the bus just ran to just above Shady Grove Baptist Church. The bus driver carried Billy to my sister Pauline's. They sent us word and we had to go get him there, broken bones and all. Billy was 7 or 8 at the time."
The family is also known for its musical talents, including Joneta's beautiful voice. She's a good shot, too, and can still shoot the eye out of a chicken, if need be.
"I used to love to quilt and sew," says Joneta. "I got that from Mama."
Widowed in 1989, Joneta chose to remain at the homeplace, surrounded by numerous children and grandchildren who have built nearby.
In recent years she has traveled extensively, including a trip to New York and Canada just days after the terrorist attack in September, 2001. "The Twin Towers were still burning when our bus drove by," she says.
At age 88, she got her wish to see the Statue of Liberty and, as the oldest member of the tour, was given special permission to enter the statue and climb as high as permitted.
When asked about the upcoming Presidential election, Joneta laughed and answered, "I try not to think about it. Right now I'm not for neither one."
It's not uncommon for 75-100 family members to gather at her home on Sundays after church. Joneta now attends Unity Baptist Church, pastored by her son Billy.
That number will probably triple next Sunday, April 20, when the clan gathers after church to celebrate Joneta's 90th. "Everyone's invited," said a family member. "And if you play an instrument, be sure and bring it, 'cause there will be music!"
- [S112] Census, 1920.
Name: Joenida Black
Event Type: Census
Event Year: 1920
Event Place: Civil District 7, Cocke, Tennessee, United States
Gender: Female
Age: 1
Marital Status: Single
Race: White
Race (Original): White
Relationship to Head of Household: Daughter
Relationship to Head of Household (Original): Daughter
Birth Year (Estimated): 1919
Birthplace: Tennessee
Father's Birthplace: North Carolina
Mother's Birthplace: North Carolina
Household Role Gender Age Birthplace
S B Black Head M 46 North Carolina
Celia Black Wife F 39 North Carolina
Leonard Black Son M 18 Tennessee
Louemma Black Daughter F 14 Tennessee
Robinson Black Son M 11 Tennessee
Pauline Black Daughter F 7 Virginia
Ciscero Black Son M 4 Tennessee
Joenida Black Daughter F 1 Tennessee
- [S113] Manes Funeral Home, (http://www.manesfuneralhome.com), 29 Oct 2016.
(April 18, 1918 - October 29, 2016)
Joneta B. Ball, age 98, of Newport, passed away Saturday, October 29, 2016, at her home surrounded by her family. She was preceded in death by her husband, Arlis Ball; parents, Solomon and Cealie Webb Black; sisters, Lou Emma Burnett, Belle Ball, Rachael Ball, and Pauline Crum; brothers, John Black, Leonard Black and Solomon "Cicero" Black; and son, Jimmy Eugene Ball. She is survived by her sons, Billy Ball, Jack (Jo Ann) Ball, Larue (Sharon) Ball, W. L. (Judy) Ball, Brady (Cathy) Ball, Robert Lee Ball, Sherman C. Ball, Dwain (Jane) Ball; daughters, Jannell (Kenny) Trentham, Vergi Inez (Johnny) Wallin, Rady (Johnny) Raines; daughter-in-law, Carolyn Ball; very special granddaughter, Melissia Ball; several grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren; also many other family and friends. Funeral services will be held 7:00 pm Tuesday, November 1st, 2016 in Manes Funeral Home West Chapel, with Rev. Mickey Valentine and Rev. Bill Ball officiating. Burial will be held 10:00 am Wednesday, November 2nd, 2016 in the Ball Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm Tuesday at Manes Funeral Home prior to the funeral service. Family and friends may sign the guest register on line at: www.manefuneralhome.com. Arrangements by Manes Funeral Home.
- [S147] Find a Grave, (Memorial: 172000907).
- [S58] Marriage Certificate.
Groom's Name: Solomon Black
Groom's Birth Date:
Groom's Birthplace:
Groom's Age:
Bride's Name: Celia Webb
Bride's Birth Date:
Bride's Birthplace:
Bride's Age:
Marriage Date: 16 May 1897
Marriage Place: , Cocke, Tennessee
Groom's Father's Name:
Groom's Mother's Name:
Bride's Father's Name:
Bride's Mother's Name:
Groom's Race:
Groom's Marital Status:
Groom's Previous Wife's Name:
Bride's Race:
Bride's Marital Status:
Bride's Previous Husband's Name:
Indexing Project (Batch) Number: M71023-2
System Origin: Tennessee-VR
Source Film Number: 956183
Reference Number: 2:NVVXKX
Collection: Tennessee Marriages, 1796-1950
- [S58] Marriage Certificate.
Name Arlis Ball
Event Type Marriage
Event Date 14 Jul 1939
Event Place Cocke, Tennessee, United States
Gender Male
Age 27
Birth Year (Estimated) 1912
Spouse's Name Joenita Black
Spouse's Gender Female
Spouse's Age 21
Spouse's Birth Year (Estimated) 1918
Page 1384
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