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Submitted: 11/12/10 • Approved: 11/12/10 • Last Updated: 9/6/12 • R408070-G408069-S3
December 17, 1878 - June 26, 1907
The Forrest City Times. July 5, 1907. Death of Mrs. Rosa Lee Wilson. Mrs. Rosa Lee Wilson died June 26, 1907 at 8:30 o'clock p. m. after an illness of fourteen days from premature childbirth and malarial complications, having been in bad health since last September. At times she seemed to be much better and able to be up, and a part of the time do her housework. But as time wore on she gradually grew weaker until she was confined to her bed, but by close attention from physicians and nurses, rallied and was able to be up part of the time. She visited her sister, Mrs. Belle Beck, at Caldwell, where she seemed to improve more rapidly, when she decided that a visit to Forrest City and also the home of her brother-in-law, Mr. H. J. Jordan, of Palestine, might add to the improvement of her health, and after having been there only three days, she suddenly relapsed and continued to grow worse until she fell asleep in Jesus for this separation of a soul from its temporal abode was like one falling asleep without a frown or a trace of pain. Deceased was a devoted member of the Missionary Baptist Church, a conscientious member of the Knights and Ladies of Honor and lived a model Christian life, ministering to the sick and afflicted regardless of race or color when it was in her power to do so. She was a daughter of William J. and Pat.. A. Higgins, and was born near Pine Tree, Ark., Dec. 17, 1878, and died June 26, 1907, aged 28 years, 6 months and 9 days. Her mother died when she was quite an infant, and her training, as she grew up, was left to her older sisters and to two stepmothers, one of whom still survives her, and well did she profit by their instructions and at an early day she sought the pardoning powers of Christ and became a Christian, uniting with the church above mentioned. She was greatly devoted to her father, looking upon him as her closest earthly friend, and regarding his word as law. Her devotion being such that she never entirely recovered from the shock befashoned by his death. At the age of nineteen she married Prof. James M. Wilson. Their union was blest with happiness, and God gave them two sweet baby girls, Willie Marie and Rosa Ernestine. But it was not God's will that they keep Willie Marie, so He took her from them at the age of four years thus giving her mother a cup of sorrow to which she never became reconciled, and during her last days she would point to Marie as her guiding star, telling her heartbroken husband that she was beckoning her to come up higher, and then she would insist that she would be with her soon. After the death of Marie, Mrs. Wilson suffered great anxiety, fearing that God would call Ernestine, too, and that she would be left childless and this dread remained with her to her death. While her greatest hope seemed to be to get well, she bore her sufferings with the utmost patience, ever trusting in God, but when she realized that the Saviour was in need of her, she seemed to be perfectly willing and ready to go, giving the keeping of her child over to its father and her aunt, Mrs. Belle Beck. Mrs. Wilson was buried by the Knights and Ladies of Honor. An escort of the Palestine lodge accompanyning the corpse from the home of Mr. Jordan to the depot and an escort of two, Messrs. Joe Stayton and Will Coffee escorted it to its destination. The remains were interred in the family burying ground at the Hughes cemetery, there being the ritualistie services of the Knights and Ladies of Honor, and Elder Newman of Forrest City Baptist church, conducting the religious exercises. She leaves a heartbroken husband, a little girl, four years old, five sisters and a host of other relatives and friends to mourn their loss. But, sad relatives and friends, console yourselves with the thought that Jesus does all things well and look to God, the giver of all that is good, for a more perfect consolation, as He has taken Rosa to live with Him and be one of the heavenly host. She is sleeping, sweetly sleeping in a new made grave today. We are weeping, sadly weeping. For our darlin's gone away. She is blooming, brightly blooming With the fairest flowers of light, In the garden of sweet Eden, Where flowers never blight.
Contributed on 11/12/10 by pam_don202
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Record #: 408070