The Matriarch

By 1870, Ezra's grandmother and her first husband, George, were living in Milton, Florida with their two children, Octavia and Frank. Both children were born just after the end of the war. Not many records from the Reconstruction Era survived to present, and there is no evidence to explain if Georgianna’s first marriage ended in divorce or if she was widowed.

Georgianna married her second husband, Lewis Payne, on November 15, 1877, in Santa Rosa County, Florida. Fate soon intervened, and she was a widow by 1885. However, Georgianna was not alone. She shared her home in Santa Rosa County with both of her adult children. Furthermore, her daughter, Octavia, had two young sons, Ezra and Charlie Garey.

Sometime before 1900, Georgianna and her family moved to 121 A Street in Pensacola. In addition to the change of residence, there were changes in household members as well as a career change. Georgianna began her career as a seamstress upon her move to Pensacola. Georgianna’s son Frank did not make the move to Pensacola and Octavia had given birth to another son. Another change annotated on the record was that Georgianna had dropped her married name and reverted to the use of her maiden name of Goodlow.

Over the three decades following her initial move to Pensacola, Georgianna's household members would change many times because her daughter would move out, but then always move back home. Georgianna often had at least one of her grandsons living with her. Only one census record records Georgianna as living alone. She died in 1927 in Escambia, Florida, at the age of 79.