Another branch of the Joyce family
was represented in Texas
by William Ralph Joyce, the second child of William Henry Joyce and his wife,
Eunice Price. He was orphaned by the
death of his mother when he was three years old and the death of his father
when he was twelve.
The next year was spent with his
Grandfather Price and the next two years with a maternal great uncle. At the age of fifteen he undertook the
responsibility of providing for his stepmother, Mahala M. Head, November 9,
1808, two sisters, Martha Eunice and Eunice Clarissa, and a younger half
brother, John Henry. His military
service consisted of six months in the Mississippi State Militia near the close
of the Civil War.
In 1867, George Medcalf, a
brother-in-law, gave him a horse with saddle and bridle and enough money to
come to Texas. He was welcomed to Tarrant
County by the family of his uncle,
James Joyce I, who had come from Mississippi
fifteen years earlier.
His first employment was in the
Pleasant Glade community. While living
in this neighborhood, he met and married Josephine Jenetta Witten, a native of Missouri, born July 14,
1851, the daughter of Samuel Holiday Witten and his wife, Jenetta.
His first purchase of land was a
farm on Big Bear Creek. Surrounding land
was bought and sold until eventually he owned 416 acres. The buying and selling of horses provided
additional income.
Children born to William Ralph and
Josephine Jenetta Joyce are:
1)
Charles, born July 4, 1869.
2)
Annie, born May 31, 1871.
3)
Eunice J., born January 31, 1872.
4)
Samuel A., born April 6, 1873.
5)
John P., born June 3, 1874.
6)
William Walter, born February 19, 1876.
7)
George W., born January 19, 1878.
8)
Margaret, born June 9, 1880.
9)
Ralph and Arthur, born August 1, 1881.
10) Martha
Mabel, born July 31, 1882.
The mother of these children died
September 6, 1884 in the Pleasant Glade Community. She is buried in the Witten family cemetery.
William R. Joyce’s second marriage,
October 14, 1885 was to Fannie Susan Glenn of Lamar
County, the daughter of William Glenn
of Kentucky and Nancy Griffin, a native of Arkansas. She was the mother of six children as
follows:
1)
Evalin, born August 31, 1886.
2)
Pearl, born February 8, 1888.
3)
Oscar, born September 5, 1889.
4)
Aubry, born June 13, 1891.
5)
Earl, born June 17, 1895.
6)
Lota, born May 31, 1901.
In 1894, the Joyce’s bought land in
Hood County
and lived there several years before returning to Tarrant County. He took an active part in affairs of the
community and the Christian Church.
William Ralph Joyce passed away at
Bransford July 26, 1902 and was buried in the Witten Cemetery. His wife, Fannie Susan, died January 11,
1931.
Source: Interview with Mrs. James Shivers (Martha
Mabel Joyce) of Smithfield. The
Witten
Family Cemetery
is located in Bedford, Tarrant County, Texas.
