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Linda Barnette was surprised when she ran across an article by the late Miss Flossie Martin.
Barnette was reading an article on the North Carolina Civil War and Reconstruction site when she ran across the article by her former ninth grade science teacher at Mocksville High School. Miss Martin was also largely responsible for starting the history collection at the Davie County Public Library, which now has its own room.
Following is that article, written in 1962.

By Flossie Martin
Isaac Holeman, born June 16, 1800, died May 28, 1868, was considered to be the founder of a small settlement about five miles northwest of Mocksville located where the old “Mocksville to Wilkesboro Road” crossed the “Salem to Statesville Road”.
The first member of the Holeman (Holman) family to settle in what is now Davie County was Isaac, who bought 700 acres of land in the extreme northwest section. He built his house on a road called Holman Road in early deeds, which was a part of the Wilkesboro Road.
Jacob Holman, son of Isaac, married Lydia Pinchback, daughter of John and Isabella Pinchback who operated a tavern on the Georgia Road near the junction with Holman Road.
It was Isaac, son of Jacob and Lydia, who gave the name to Holman’s Cross Roads. This Isaac married first Mary Neely and second Mary Crenshaw. He had at least five daughters and one son. Mollie J. Holman married Dr. Leon Cash in 1861. They settled at Smith Grove where he practiced medicine for many years. Margaret J. Holman married W.F. McMahan. Lula Holman married a Fitzgerald. Camilla Holman married Berry Steelman. Emma F. Holman married Dr. DeWitt Clement of Mocksville. The son, Henry C. Holman, married Sarah Ward in 1861 and lived across the road from his father.
In Davie County Deed Book 1 are recorded deeds to Isaac Holman for slaves and for several hundred acres of land. A grandson, D.C. Clement, who lives at Holman’s, says his grandfather (Isaac) owned at one time 2,500 acres of land and 50 slaves, but that when the slaves were freed, Isaac Holman was ruined financially. Mr. Clement also said his grandfather lived first down the road next to Tennison Cheshire, but moved up near Holman’s Crossroad in about 1850.
During the war between the states, Union soldiers came by the Holman place.As they went through the gate into the yard, they shot a dog, then got corn from the crib and fed their horses on the front porch of the house.
Upon learning that Isaac Holman was a Mason, they did no further damage, and after the war an officer returned, hired a “hack” in Mocksville and went out to visit the Holmans. Mr. Clement has an autographed photograph taken by that officer of Mrs. Holman going to the well.
After the death of her husband, Mrs. Holman took “boarders” to help the family income. “Boarders” it seems, were horse traders bringing droves of 50 or 60 horses from Virginia to Mocksville. Other “boarders” were Mr. Pink Cornatzor from the Baltimore section of Davie County, who came with his sons to buy up timber.
Berry Steelman, a son-in-law, bought the Isaac Holman place, tore down the old log house and built a large frame house on the site.
Across the road Henry C. Holman also had a store and in it the Post Office of “Holman’s” was established, March 19, 1878. A service station now stands on the lot on which the store was located.
The next postmaster was Jimmie B. Smoot. This post office was discontinued April 30, 1906.
Blackwelder’s Garment factory was built on the store lot in 1956, and the Blackwelder home stands on the location of the Henry C. Holman house, which had been torn down.
The Holman house differed from many other two story frame houses of that period by having a small upstairs porch above the front door. One branch of Elisha Creek heads back of the Blackwelder house and factory.
Mr. Dewitt Clement, son of Emma Holman and Dr. Dewitt Clement, lives on a tract of his grandfather’s land, and on the south side of Highway 601, formerly called the Wilkesboro Road, immediately north of the house is the old road bed of that Salem-Statesville road referred to so frequently in early deeds of that section.
Mr. Clement traced this road as he knew it as follows: Crossed the Iredell-Davie line at County Line, to Calahaln, to Ijames’s Cross Roads, down Liberty Hill, to Holman’s, on Cana Road to the present Woodward Road, past the old Isaac Holman place, Tennison Cheshire’s, McMahan’s, McDaniel and Henry Angell to the bridge at Dutchman’s Creek, crossed the Farmington-Mocksville Road, by the “Red House”, crossed Cedar Creek, then by Mumph Call’s, Smith Grove, Frank Williams, etc, and on to Hall’s ferry at the Yadkin River road further south. Now the name Holman’s Cross Roads is forgotten, for Holmans no longer own the land, and the roads do not cross.
The Holman’s public school house was south of the community, and it has been replaced by the William R. Davie Elementary School, built when the schools of that area were consolidated.
Major L.W. Duckisney of Boston, Mass., who took that picture [of Mrs. Holman going to the well] after the Civil War, would not recognize Holman’s now. Roads are paved, old log houses long since torn down, replaced by the large brick factory buildings, a busy service station, and all up and down the highway small, shining new homes and a few more elaborate places with extensive grounds.
On May 11, 1792, the Rowan County Court ordered Vachel Ijames, William Clark, Thomas Hughey, Isaac Eaton, John Pinchback, William Hodox, Richard Peaks, Peter Glasscock, John Beaman, George Steelman, William Steelman and Solomon Jones be summoned a jury to lay off a road leading out of the main road to go by Joppa Meeting House the best way to the Surry line. John Pinchback was overseer of said road from Riddle’s road to Captain Foxes and John Beaman from thence to Surry line.
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The “main” road from which the new road was to lead by Joppa Meeting House was probably the “Shallowford Road” or “Huntsville-to-Salisbury road” through Mock’s Old Field (Mocksville).
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Deeds and overseer assignments seem to indicate that the Riddle Road was the road later known as the Salem-to-Statesville Road.
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The August, 1838 Court of Davie County ordered Wilburn Stonestreet to be overseer of road from Isaac Holman’s to the branch at the foot of Liberty Hill with hands of Isaac Holman, W. Stonestreet, Tennison Cheshire, Thomas B. Owins, George Coon and Bren Booe.
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The “main” road from which the new road was to lead by Joppa Meeting House was probably the “Shallowford Road” or “Huntsville-to-Salisbury road” through Mock’s Old Field (Mocksville).
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Deeds and overseer assignments seem to indicate that the Riddle Road was the road later known as the Salem-to-Statesville Road.
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The August, 1838 Court of Davie County ordered Wilburn Stonestreet to be overseer of road from Isaac Holman’s to the branch at the foot of Liberty Hill with hands of Isaac Holman, W. Stonestreet, Tennison Cheshire, Thomas B. Owins, George Coon and Bren Booe.

Flossie Martin
January 24,