Dadda

My paternal grand father ‘Dadda’ was the Davis of the Davis’. You only have to look at him to know where we all came from; medium height, lithe frame, spindly legs, high forehead with deep furrows, bushy eyebrows, straight nose, big ears and light complexion. These were the physical attributes he passed on to all of us, some more than others, but we all share some of it to some degree. In a family gathering I was always fascinated by all the hues of colors and mixtures of features. But select an individual and you will see some of these tell tale Davis features in some degree; he or she might not be fair but will have those skinny calves, another might not have as straight a nose but notice those big ears and deep furrows in the forehead, and so it would go that you can always tell a Davis.

Dadda was obviously of caucasian ancestry and the name Davis suggest Scottish or Welsh heritage. Beyond that I have not been able to unearth his family history. He was born Theophilous Dixon Davis in February of 1881 in the village of Endeavour in the parish of St. Mary, Jamaica West Indies. We know that he had a brother, Alfred and a sister, Florence; and that he grew up in the Endeavour/Lodge/Cascade area of St. Mary. Beyond that little is known about the family history. I keep digging but as yet, I have not been able to find anything about his parents or where they came from.
His first marriage was to Alberta Adina Goldsmith of St. Elizabeth. Not much is also know about Alberta’s family. It seems she was considered illegitimate and not considered a full Goldsmith. She had three siblings, John, George and Lena. Little is known of how she grew up or how she met Dadda but they got married sometime before Frank (the first child) was born and they first lived in Rose Street (Hall) in St Elizabeth. Then they moved back to St. Mary and most of the children were born in Lucky Hill, St. Mary. For him she bore 13 children plus 2 miscarriages:

‘Dadda’ Theophilous Dixon Davis (1881 - 1965) - Alberta Adina Goldsmith (1890 - 1942):

Frank
Louise
TT
Joyce
Charles (Bullion)
Violet
Vivian
John
Leslie
Lilla
Harold
Archie
Florence (Little)

She died in 1942 at the early age of 52. Unfortunately she became blind (probably from diabetes) before she died.

Dadda started out working in the schools (as a teacher or headmaster) and he was also a deacon in a local church. Later he teamed up with the Pottinger family and became a cultivator but gave that up for a job as a Head Man on a property in Three Hills, St. Mary. Later he became the ‘Busha’ of Shaw Park Estate. He apparently started in some other position at Shaw Park but the prior ‘Busha’ had to leave Jamaica unexpectedly and he got the position which came with the house in Kellington.

At Shaw Park he married Mertella Beckford in 1945. She was 22 and he was 65. Mertella (Sista Mert) was originally from Lucky Hill and had known Dadda there but she grew up in Three Hills, St Mary. Not much is known about Sista Mert’s parents too as she was raised by her grandmother. In fact, when Dadda wanted to marry her he had to get the consent from her grandmother as there were no parents to go to. Apparently Sista Mert was already working at Shaw Park Hotel when Dadda asked her to marry him. Her memory was that he was pretty lonely at that time as his first wife had been dead for a while and most of his children had married and moved away. Together they had seven children:

Dadda - Murtella Beckford (1923 - ) Married in 1945:
Lloyd (Dixon)
Hugh
Annette
Lee
Fred
Hayden
Micah

With such a populous beginning it is no wonder the Davis family became so large. But, however many generations removed we are, Dadda is still the focal point of our lineage and for now the oldest source of our Davis lineage. Dadda died in 1965.

Read more!