[byrne.ftw]
!Nancy Pearl Welch was born June 17, 1883, the second child and first
daughter of William Maddison and Vannie Lee Wofford Welch. She went
by the name of Pearl. About 1899, when Pearl was sixteen years old,
she married Benjamin Newman and they lived on a ranch north of Del
Rio, Texas. Pearl and Ben had four children. Tressie, born July 14,
1900 and then Rosalia. Rosalia was probably born in 1902, between
Tressie and Bonnie, who was born August 18, 1904. Lloyd, the youngest
was born March 18, 1906. Tressie, Bonnie and Lloyd's births are
listed in Pearl's bible, but Rosalia is not mentioned. This
information came from Pearl's grandchildren, some of whom lived with
her and this was told to them. Rosalia died when she was quite young,
two to four years of age, with diphtheria. Also written at the bottom
of the page in the bible is "none of the children were registered on
birth. Neither the father nor the mother". Benjamin is spelled
"Benjiman" in the bible that is owned by Pearl's granddaughter. It is
also stated that all of the children were born on a ranch north of Del
Rio, Texas. About the year 1909, Ben and Pearl were engaged in a
divorce proceedings. Wiley, Ed and Alfred, Pearl's brothers, had been
in Del Rio about a week waiting on the outcome of the trial. There
was a question of custody over the children and after the trial was
over, Ben told Pearl and her brothers outside the court house that she
had won and got the children, but they would never get them back
across the Nueces river. Pearl was staying in a hotel in Del Rio and
that night Ben told his sister, Nan, that he was going down to visit
with Pearl. She begged him not to go but he went anyway. The next
morning Ben was dead and Pearl had blood on her night gown. Pearl was
accused of the crime and she was held in custody and a trial pending.
The court thought for the children's sake and for Pearl's best
interest that she be removed from The threat of harm. It is not clear
just what took place but Pearl was able to leave town and it was quite
apparent that she was never to return to Texas. Pearl was operating a
hotel in Albuquerque, New Mexico and she heard some of the Newman
family found out where she was. She quickly left New Mexico and moved
to Oregon. Her granddaughter, Jerry McKay, had trouble adjusting to
her step father after her father died and her mother Tressie,
remarried. Jerry then began living with her grandmother, Pearl. They
lived away from town on a small place. They slept on a feather bed
and Pearl always had a 45 caliber pistol under her pillow. Some times
it would come out from under the pillow and poke her granddaughter and
Jerry would wake her grandmother to move the pistol. Pearl is buried
in Bakersfield, California. Lloyd is also buried in Bakersfield.