Silvestre Arjona (1891 - 1977)

Born 1 Jan 1891 in General Terán, Nuevo León, Mexico

Ancestors

Died 17 Oct 1977 at age 86 in Taft, San Patricio, Texas, United States

Biography

Silvestre Arjona was born in General Teran, Nuevo Leon, Mexico on 1 January 1891 to Jose Maria Arjona Sr. and Maria Leonarda Gonzalez. He was baptized on 23 January 1891.^[1] By 1910, the family had immigrated to Texas.^[2] A 1920 Census record for him has not been found, but the 1920 Census record for one of his sisters states that they moved in 1902.^[3] Silvestre never married.^[4] He likely was not able to read or write; his WWII draft registration states that he made his mark before a witness rather than wrote a signature.^[5] Silvestre died of a myocardial infarction on 17 October 1977 in Taft, Texas.^[4]

Military Records

WWI Draft Registration, September 1918: Silvestre is 31 years old and is living in Austwell, Texas. His closest living relative is his father, who also lives in Austwell. Silvestre works as a cotton picker. He is not a US citizen. He is described as short with a medium build, black hair, and black eyes.^[6]

WWII Draft Registration, 3 June 1942: Silvestre is 52 years old and is living in Taft, Texas. He is unemployed. His race is listed as white. Silvestre is 5'1" and weighs 115 lbs. He has brown eyes, black hair, and a dark complexion.^[5]

Obituary

TAFT — Silvestre Arjona, 75, died Monday in a local nursing home.

Surviving are two brothers, Seferino Arjona of Taft and Encarnacion Arjona of Ennis, and two sisters, Misses Maria and Josefa Arjona, both of Taft.^[7]

Research Notes

Silvestre's documents list many different birth dates. For instance, his WWI draft registrations lists his birthday as 21 June 1887^[6]; his WWII draft registration lists it as 10 March 1890^[5]; and his death certificate lists it as 10 June 1902^[4]. I went with his baptism record, which lists his birthday as 1 Jan 1891^[1]. -Melissa Arjona

Sources

• FamilySearch ID: LK6X-RMK

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} "México, Nuevo León, registros parroquiales, 1667-1981," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:6DV6-Q9VF : 11 December 2021), Silvestre Arjona González, Christening 23 de enero de 1891, General Terán, Nuevo León, México; citing , parroquias de la Iglesia Católica, Nuevo León (Catholic Church parishes, Nuevo León).; FHL microfilm.
2. ↑ "United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYBS-9VGL?cc=1727033&wc=QZZH-15K%3A133641501%2C142425201%2C133641502%2C1589091657 : 24 June 2017), Texas > Runnels > Justice Precinct 1 > ED 211 > image 14 of 30; citing NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
3. ↑ "United States Census, 1920," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MHB4-KLX : accessed 8 December 2022), Juanita Benovides in household of Jose Maria Arjona, Refugio, Texas, United States; citing , sheet , line , family , NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1992), roll ; FHL microfilm.
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2} Ancestry.com. Texas, U.S., Death Certificates, 1903-1982 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013. https://www.ancestry.com/sharing/639323?mark=e6af221f7eaf5d48e4c68280d9f936cbc80c31d139336a98fd8863161ec23908
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1 5.2} "United States World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XPNT-GMX : 25 February 2020), Silvestre Gonzales Arjona, 1942; citing NARA microfilm publication M1936, M1937, M1939, M1951, M1962, M1964, M1986, M2090, and M2097 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.). Front of the card accessed via: https://www.ancestry.com/sharing/640099?mark=f1130c663c537c0db4def8e2ed93edf9354ab67f26ac6aa83647ee0b78d4600f. Back of the card accessed via: https://www.ancestry.com/sharing/640095?mark=18a3ab49dd38c66fe58ee86f4ab7166ce433bf4e6f59748cd7d2bdb277f2dc6f
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1} "United States World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYTF-3L4W?cc=1968530&wc=9FW1-HZS%3A928338201%2C928958201 : 24 August 2019), Texas > Refugio County; A-Z > image 32 of 1183; citing NARA microfilm publication M1509 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
7. ↑ 19 October 1977. Corpus Christi Times (Corpus Christi, Texas). Page 17. Accessed via: https://www.familysearch.org/photos/artifacts/164403545?cid=mem_copy.

Acknowledgement

The profile was created by Melissa Arjona (3rd cousin 1x removed).