Edith (Avery) Funderburg

Ancestors

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Biography

Edith was born in Searles, Alabama. She attended The University of Alabama off and on working to receive her degree in elementary education, with a minor in home economics. She was able to obtain a teaching certificate and begin teaching before she obtained her degree. She obtained a teaching position in Pell City, Alabama where she met and married her husband, Jim Funderburg. They started a family with the birth of their oldest daughter, burg [Funderburg-259 | Betty Jane Funderburg]. They moved to Brookwood, Alabama where Jim worked with Edith's father, Joe Willand Avery, in the Avery and Sons Coal Company. Their second child, a son, was born. in Tuscaloosa in 1949. The coal company eventually failed, and Jim and Edith moved back to Pell City where their third child, [Funderburg-176 | Noah Funderburg], was born October 13, 1951. Over the next several years the family lived in or near Tuscaloosa as Edith continued working on her education degree. The family eventually moved to the East Lake community in Birmingham, Alabama where they continued to live until Edith's untimely death in 1975 from injuries sustained in a car accident while visiting with her family members in Columbus, MS. Two more daughters were born while living in East Lake. Edith finally obtained her degree and begin teaching as a substitute teacher before she eventually obtained a position at Norwood Elementary School. She started teaching younger grades, such as the third grade, and over the years was asked to teach older grades. Edith was a very good cook and with her home economics background always worked to have balanced meals for her family. She was a careful shopper and made the most out of the often limited income she and Jim had while raising five children. Edith strongly believed in the benefits of higher education and encouraged her children to seek a college degree as a means of financial security. She had a strong Christian faith. The family attended Ruhama Baptist Church while living in East Lake. Edith was an accomplished pianist and loved music. She is buried in Valley Hill Cemetery, Cropwell, AL. ^[1]

1940 census listing with parents and her two brothers. ^[2]

21 April 1945 marriage to James Thomas Funderburg in Pell City, St. Clair County, Alabama. ^{[3] [4]}

Find a Grave listing. Died 11 May 1975 in Columbus, MS. Buried in Valley Hill Cemetery, Cropwell, Alabama. ^[5]

Sources

1. ↑ * Personal knowledge of her son, Noah Funderbnurg
2. ↑ "United States Census, 1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V15D-Q8T : 5 January 2021), Edith M Avery in household of Joe W Avery, Election Precinct 11 Brookwood, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 63-15, sheet 12A, line 22, family 223, Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 - 2007, RG 29. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012, roll 84.
3. ↑ "Alabama County Marriages, 1809-1950," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q21X-5BND : 19 February 2021), James Thomas Funderburg and Edith Mae Avery, 21 Apr 1945; citing Election Precinct 29 Alabama City, Etowah, Alabama, United States, County Probate Courts, Alabama; FHL microfilm 1,892,297.
4. ↑ "Alabama County Marriages, 1809-1950," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q21X-B3Q3 : 19 February 2021), James Thomas Funderburg and Edith Mae Avery, 21 Apr 1945; citing Election Precinct 29 Alabama City, Etowah, Alabama, United States, County Probate Courts, Alabama; FHL microfilm 1,892,297.
5. ↑ Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12894983/edith-mae-funderburg : accessed 17 January 2022), memorial page for Edith Mae Avery Funderburg (22 Mar 1923–11 May 1975), Find a Grave Memorial ID 12894983, citing Valley Hill Cemetery, Pell City, St. Clair County, Alabama, USA ; Maintained by Kitty Walker Lennard (contributor 27894363) .