World War I Registration Cards

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall:  Where did I get my blue eyes?  My auburn hair was not a mystery.  When my Haney granddaddy saw me for the first time, he commented that I inherited his mother’s auburn hair.  Did she also have blue eyes with her Irish ancestry?  My mother has green eyes, but her daddy had blue eyes and her mother had brown eyes.  My blue eyes were inherited from my Maness granddaddy and from my daddy.  Where did Daddy get his blue eyes?  That was my mystery.

Daddy looked so much like my granddaddy that I thought they both had blue eyes.  A few years ago, I discovered a painted portrait of my granddaddy in my parents’ closet and his eyes were painted brown.  I told my parents that I thought the artist painted him incorrectly.  Since he died in 1970, my parents could not remember his eye color.

I was on a mission.  Whenever a genealogist is on a mission, the first contact should be the oldest living relative.  Aunt Lee said that my grandmother had blue eyes.  She remembered that she and her sisters would polish my grandmother’s fingernails, style her hair, and get clothes to make her blue eyes look pretty.  Aunt Lee said that my granddaddy had brown eyes.

I was not completely convinced until I discovered my granddaddy’s World War I registration card online.  Elvin Earnest Haney (listed as Hayney on the card) had personal traits listed as short height, medium build, brown eyes, and light hair.  Particularly interesting was the spelling of the family surname which had been Haynie and eventually changed to Haney.  I also found registration cards for his three brothers.  Earnest and his brothers, Roy Lester Haney and Rufus Solomon Haney, signed their cards on 5 June 1917 in Scotts Hill, Henderson County, Tennessee.  Uncle Sol (listed as Rubin Soloman Hayney) was listed as medium height, medium build, grey eyes, and dark hair.  Uncle Roy was listed as tall, slender, dark brown eyes, and light hair.  Uncle Roy served in the US Army during World War I.  Their older brother, William Wylie Haney, signed his card on 12 September 1918.  Uncle Bill was listed as medium height, medium build, blue eyes, and light hair.  Only one of four Haney brothers had blue eyes.

Since Daddy inherited his blue eyes from his mother, Bessie Eason Haney, I then had to wonder where she got her blue eyes.  My mission continued.  I found the 12 September 1918 registration card signed by my great-granddaddy, Robert Sampson Eason, in Henderson County, TN.  He was medium height, stout build, black eyes, and black hair.  Robert’s brothers registered the same day.  Noah Sims Eason was listed as tall, stout build, light grey eyes, and black hair.  Jessie Walter Eason was described as tall, medium build, grey eyes and a deformed foot.  Asa Woodard Eason was tall and slender with brown eyes and brown hair.  None of the Eason brothers had blue eyes.

Should I now assume that my grandmother’s blue eyes were inherited from her mother, Bertha Idora Clenney Eason?  After a little more research on Ancestry.com, I found the draft registration cards for my great-grandmother’s four brothers.  Alvy Woodward Clenney had medium height, medium build, dark brown eyes, and black hair.  William Franklin Clenney had tall height, medium build, blue eyes, and dark hair.  John Murphy Clenney had medium height, slender build, blue eyes, and dark hair.  Joseph Laurel Clenney medium height, medium height, light brown eyes, and black hair.  Two of four Clenney brothers had blue eyes.

The United States entered World War I on 6 April 1917 by declaring war on Germany.  Three draft registrations were held in the United States.  In the first registration, men aged twenty-one to thirty-one (born between 6 June 1886 and 5 June 1896) registered on 5 June 1917.  In the second registration, men who had turned twenty-one since the first registration (born between 6 June 1896 and 5 June 1897) registered on 5 June 1918.  Registration was also held on 24 August 1918 for men who turned 21 years old since 5 June 1918.  In the third registration, men aged eighteen to twenty-one and thirty-one to forty-five (born between 11 September 1872 and 12 September 1900) registered on 12 September 1918.  Not all men who registered served in the armed forces.  Some men enlisted and served and did not register for the draft.

Registration cards included full name, home address, date and place of birth, age, race, and country of citizenship, occupation and employer, marital status, physical description (hair color, eye color, height, build, disabilities), nearest relative, dependent relatives, marital status, father’s birthplace, and signature.

While trying to solve the blue-eyes mystery, I found several other mysteries to explore.  As an armchair genealogist, I search several websites to solve genealogy mysteries.  A few of my favorite websites are Ancestry.com, FindAGrave.com, FamilySearch.org, and register.shelby.tn.us.  Ancestry.com requires an annual fee, but it can be accessed free in many public libraries.

If you do not have a magic mirror to answer your genealogy questions, start your mission today to discover your past.  World War I registration cards give us an interesting description of our ancestors with a glimpse into our past to tell us a little about ourselves.