The Puriefoy Family
For the time, most would say that Otis Sr. had done well for himself and his family. He was employed with Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines, out of Woodbury, NJ, as a Trackman. Annie also worked and was employed at an apple factory on Delsea Drive, located near an ice house, neither of which exists today. Mt. Zion Baptist Church, located on Academy Street, is where the family worshiped and Otis Sr. was a deacon. This church is still present today. The Puriefoy’s had three sons, Charles, Carson (Bill) and Otis Jr.
Otis Sr. was said to have taken great pride in his home and property. Michael would recall sitting on the porch with his grandfather and having people pull into the driveway to take pictures, and say how lovely it was. But to their surprise, as Otis Sr. emerged from the porch, they would find the owner to be an African American. Michael said that some would ask Otis Sr. if he thought the “owner” would mind if they took a picture, or could they speak to the owner. However, Michael didn’t say if any of them bothered to ask Otis Sr. if he was the owner. He did say that his grandfather didn’t get upset or mean, he would just ask them to leave his property. I guess that just shows the mindset of the era and the essence of the kind of man that Otis Sr. was.
As Michael reminisced about his grandparents, he shared a story about Otis Sr. placing him high in a tree and encouraging him to climb down on his own. As he thinks about it now, Michael realizes the many lessons learned from his grandfather and the faith he had in him to get down on his own. Perhaps, without knowing, it would also teach him independence and how to be self-sufficient.
As you can see in the picture to the right, Otis Sr. and Annie are next to a Pontiac, which I learned was his favorite make of car. A story shared by Denise was about the grapevines that her grandfather grew for making wine and how he would have the grandchildren help stomp grapes in the basement.
She also shared that both her grandmothers, Annie Puriefoy and Lillie Aaron, were outstanding cooks. On Thanksgiving, they would have dinner first with the Aarons’ and then with the Puriefoys’. Denise would learn how to limit herself to leave room for two dinners and looked forward to those special dishes from each of her grandmothers. Grandma Annie was an African and Native American, but neither Michael nor Denise could recall her exact native heritage. They said she knew a great deal about nature and loved to garden. Christmas time is always special for children, and it was no different for them as they arrived at the Puriefoys’, presents awaited, and those favorite dishes Grandma Annie was known for.