Robert C "Bob" Carter and
Mary Arvilla "Mollie" Bays

Robert C "Bob" Carter b 20 Mar 1866 Fulkerson, Scott Co VA d 4 Oct 1941; buried Mount Vernon Baptist Church Cemetery, Maces Spring, Scott Co VA; s/o Lilborun Hensley or James Knox Bays and Nancy Carter (Nancy Carter d/o Delaney Carter and Rebecca Smith). Robert C Carter m. 12 Mar 1890 Maces Spring, Scott Co VA to Mary Arvilla "Mollie" Bays b 29 Sept 1872 Maces Spring, Scott Co VA d 17 Nov 1944 Maces Spring, Scott Co VA; buried Mount Vernon Baptist Church Cemetery, Maces Spring, Scott Co VA; d/o Nathaniel Martin Bays and Louvisa Nickels. Children of Robert C "Bob" Carter and Mary Arvilla "Mollie" Bays.

1. Alva Pleasant "A P" Carter b 15 Dec 1891 Maces Springs VA d 7 Nov 1960 Holston Valley Community Hospital, Kingsport, Sullivan Co TN; occupation, singer, songwriter, musician, member of the "Original Carter Family"; m. 18 Jun 1915 (divorced 1938) to Sarah Elizabeth Dougherty b 21 Jul 1898 d 8 Jan 1979; occupation, singer, musician, songwriter, member of the "Original Carter Family"; d/o William Sevier Dougherty and Nancy Elizabeth Kilgore. Sarah Elizabeth Dougherty m. 1939 to (2) Coy Washintgon Bayes b 9 Jan 1905 Washington VA d 20 Dec 1985 Murphys, Calaveras Co CA; s/o Charles Malvin Bays and Mary Elizabeth Head Smith. Coy Washington Bayes m. 12 Aug 1979 San Joaquin, CA to Gladys M Nickerson b 21 Apr 1912 San Francisco CA d 31 Oct 2006 Murphys, Calaveras CA.

2. James Merlin "Jim" Carter b 12 Jul 1893 Maces Spring, Scott Co VA d 3 Sept 1968 Hiltons, Scott Co VA; buried Mount Vernon Baptist Church Cemetery, Maces Spring, Scott Co VA; m. 12 Apr 1916 to Myrtle Evangeline Laughlin b 20 Jan 1895 Hiltons, Scott Co VA d 29 Sept 1963 Hiltons, Scott Co VA; buried Mount Vernon Baptist Church Cemetery, Maces Spring, Scott Co VA.

3. Ezra J "Eck" Carter b  21 Oct 1898 Scott Co VA d 22 Jan 1975 Davidson Co TN occupation, minister; m. 13 Mar 1926 to Maybelle "Mother Maybelle" Addington b 10 May 1909 Nickelsville, VA d 23 Oct 1978; buried Hendersonville Memorial Gardens, Hendersonville, TN; occupation, singer, musician, songwriter, member of the "Original Carter Family"; d/o Hugh Jackson Addington and Margaret Elizabeth Kilgore.

4. Virgie Gertrude Carter b 21 Oct 1898 (twin to Ezra) d 9 Nov 1973 Pasco, FL; m. 25 Apr 19161 to Roy Martin Hobbs Sr b 18 Aug 1898 VA d 10 Jul 1982 Pasco FL.

5. Etta Carter b 22 Mar 1901 Maces Spring, Scott Co VA d 18 Jun 1914 Maces Spring, Scott Co VA; buried Mt Vernon Cemetery.

6. Grant H Carter b 3 Sept 1904 Maces Spring, Scott Co VA d 3 Apr 1964 Kingsport, Sullivan Co TN; buried Holston View Cemetery, Kingsport, Sullivan Co TN; m. 19 Sept 1936 to Theda Clark b 1920; d/o Charley M Clark and Laura Unknown. Theda Clark m. 26 Mar 1973 Holston Valley Methodist Church, (by Rev Bob Copeland) to Robert L Bowling.

7. Ermine Leonard Carter b 3 Jun 1906 Hiltons, Scott Co VA d 1 Apr 1985 Hiltons, Scott Co VA; occupation, farmer; m. 23 Apr 1927 to Ora Lee Harper b 7 Apr 1906 Scott Co VA d 25 Aug 1996; d/o William E Harper and Ellie M Myers.

8. Sylvia Ella Carter (aka Susie?); b 19 Jun 1908 Maces Spring, Scott Co VA d 8 Jan 1991 Cadiz, Trigg Co KY; m. 1944 to James Howell "Hal" Edwards b 2 Sept 1904 VA d 15 Sept 1988 Trigg Co KY. Children of James Howell "Hal" Edwards and Sylvia Ella Carter;

I. Robert "Bob" Edwards (twin); m. Female Stallons or Ziegler

II. James "Jim" Edwards (twin); m. Female Stallons or Ziegler

(Source). June Carter Cash, wife of Johnny Cash and daughter of Ezra Carter and Mother Maybelle Addington Carter, wrote the following about her Grandfather, Robert "Bob" Carter and Grandmother, Mary Arvilla Mollie Bayes Carter.

To Bob and Mollie Carter were born eight children. The eldest of these, Alvin Pleasant, "Uncle Doc" as he was known to us. He was a tall dominant man, he walked a lot, he sang when he took the notion, he ran sawmills, he collected songs, he gave you candy, he drove a car that always had flat tires, he was a Aunt Sara;s [sic] husband, he was kind, he laughed to himself a lot, walked the railroad track (defying everything my mother said) carried patchin' in his pockets and he wrote songs. Today behing Mount Vernon Church, there is a simple rose marble stone, in the center a gold record reads "A.P. Carter...Keep On The Sunny Side."

The Carter children, Jim, Grant, Ermine, Ezra J., my father, twin Virgie, Etta and Aunt Sylvia were indeed some of the kindest gentlest people who have ever lived in or near Maces Springs, Virginia. There were all born in a log cabin in what is known as Little Valley. This valley is now the home of my Uncle Ermine and Aunt Ora. There's always country ham there, pork tenderloin, sorghum molasses, and all the good things that raised the Carter Family.

*Doesn't belong here in this family: James Lloyd Carter b 27 May 1883 Green Co TN d 12 Jul 1924 Milford, Iroquois Co IL buried Sugar Creek Cemetery, Stockland, Iroquois Co IL; m. 20 Feb 1900 to Dola Morrison b 9 Jan 1883 Greenville, Green Co TN d 8 Aug 1937 Chicago, Cook Co IL; buried Sugar Creek Cemetery, Stockland, Iroquois IL; d/o George Morrison and Kate Morrison. (Note: person is in the wrong family, but I'll leave him here until I figure out what to do with him).

(Source 2: Terry Mendenhall: terrymendenhall1@comcast.net).