Ada Arlileus Spence was born May 29, 1877 on a farm near the Pleasant Plains Methodist Church on the north side of the Cape Fear River southwest of Buies Creek, Harnett County, NC.  The old farmhouse still stands today even though many improvements have been made.  Ada was the second child of Pete and Nannie Spence.  Pete's real name was Warrick Erastus Spence; however, he was known as Pete all of his life.  My mother, Nancy Hall Robbins, once characterized  her Grandfather as the laziest man she had ever known.  She recalled that, in his later years, he did nothing but watch Nannie and the rest of the family work.  He sat in a rocking chair on the front porch of the homeplace "just rocking and chewing and spitting,"  she recalled.
Nannie Grizella Byrd was the daughter of William Byrd, a staunch Methodist Minister who was well known in the Cape Fear Methodist Conference area.  Miss Nannie; as she was known locally, was also well known for her fervent religious feelings and dedication to the Pleasant Plains Church.  She was one of the founders of the church and was its first Sunday School Superintendent.
Ada was a simple farm girl with long blonde hair who studied hard on her school books and worked hard to help her mother on the farm.  When she was old enough, she and two sisters, Ida and Caro Mae, along with a younger brother "Ras", attended the Buies Creek Academy which was founded by a Baptist Minister, James A. Campbell.  There she would meet  James Lennon Hall, a man four years her senior and the man who would become her loving partner for life.
During her school years, Ada was very interested in music, and as most young ladies of that era learned early, played the piano and guitar.  She and her cousin Kate Byrd Stinson sang and played in church and for local gatherings and parties.  She graduated from the Academy in 1895(?) and remained at the homeplace for several years until Jim proposed.  Jim and Ada were married on 28-Sep-1898 at the Pleasant Plains Church by Rev. J. A. Campbell. Of course, like all dutiful wives of the period, she changed her church affiliation to Baptist.
Ada?s mother Nannie had a sister named Elizabeth "Betty" Byrd who married Mr. Will Green.  Their son Paul Green became a widely known writer and, in 1927, won the Pulitzer Prize for his novel  "In Abraham's Bosom."   Paul attended the University of North Carolina  and lived in Chapel Hill for many years until his death in 1967?.  Paul was known as the father of the outdoor drama having written 16 of them during his long career. ";The Lost Colony" and "Unto These Hills"  are examples. The outdoor theater at UNC bears his name as the "Paul Green Theater."
Ada was known to all of her family as "Granny" after the grandchildren were born.  She was a wonderful cook and raised four children: Alton, Ethel, Jimmy, and Nancy in Benson, NC.  A forth child, Rupert, died after only nine days.  Rupert is buried alone in Benson.
Jim and Ada lived with their daughter Nancy and grandson Bill from 1954 until they passed away; Papa in 1957, and Grannie in 1960.  They are buried together at Montlawn Cemetery along side their son Alton and his wife Ruth, and their youngest son Jimmy.
I remember many anecdotes which happened during the time I lived with Grannie and Papa.  Grannie, in particular, was my favorite relative.  She was a warm and loving person. She loved  American Band Stand on television because, as she said "the kids love it.  She lived with me all the time I was in college and always had clean clothes for me to take back to school after a weekend at home.  My friends loved her too, and were always at home with her when they came to visit.  When she died, I was in Chapel Hill on a bank examination, and I can never forget how shocked I was when Mom called to tell me about it.  Mom was the only person in the hospital room with her when she died.