Senate Resolution 2

(As Adopted by Senate)

A RESOLUTION RECOGNIZING AND CONGRATULATING MRS. MARY ROSALEE JOHNSON BOUNDS AS A "REAL DAUGHTER" OF THE CONFEDERACY RESIDING IN MISSISSIPPI.

WHEREAS, Mary Rosalee Johnson Bounds is an alert, outgoing 89-year-old lady born on March 7, 1918. She is a "Real Daughter" of the Confederacy, meaning she is the daughter of a Confederate soldier who fought in The War Between the States; and

WHEREAS, her father was Daniel Johnson. Mary was born when her father was 77 years old; and

WHEREAS, Daniel Johnson was born in 1841 and on July 15, 1861, at the age of 19, he enlisted in Company H, 14th Mississippi Infantry Regiment of the Confederate States of America at Newton County, Mississippi. Like the majority of other soldiers in this war, Daniel did not own slaves, nor did his family. He was fighting, not to keep or hold slaves, but to preserve his southern culture. He was captured at Fort Donaldson, Tennessee, when it fell to Union Commander Ulysses S. Grant on February 16, 1862. After enduring several months as a prisoner at Camp Douglas, Illinois, in September of the same year, his unit boarded the steamer John H. Done and was taken to Vicksburg where they were exchanged and, immediately afterwards, reorganized. Under the command of Major G.R. Gerald, the same regiment surrendered on May 4, 1865, at Citronelle, Alabama, and were paroled at Meridian, Mississippi, on May 9, 1865; and

WHEREAS, after the war, Daniel Johnson remained in Mississippi, living most of his life in Lamar County in the Bellevue Community where he farmed to support his family. He died in 1926 and is buried at the Rawls Cemetery in Sumrall, Mississippi. After the war, he lived peacefully as a well-respected member of the community. He served faithfully in war and was just as true and faithful as a citizen; and

WHEREAS, he married his third wife, Miss Mary Josephine Ainsworth, July 11, 1902, in Marion County, Mississippi. She died September 17, 1951, and is buried in the Rawls Cemetery in Lamar County, Mississippi. To this union, four children were born, one boy and three girls, including Mary, who is now 89 years old and the last surviving child of the couple; and

WHEREAS, Mary married Columbus Rankin Bounds on November 14, 1931, in Lamar County, Mississippi. Columbus died on June 8, 1994, and is buried at the Rawls Cemetery in Lamar County, Mississippi. Eight children were born to this union, five sons and three daughters. Of these, four are deceased, Laverne Columbus Bounds, Carl D. Bounds, Danny Bounds and Beverly Bounds Collins. Gerald Bounds resides in Ocean Side, California; Burnell Bounds lives in Northport, Florida; Lesia Bounds Jordan lives in Petal, Mississippi; and Judy Bounds Carter makes her home in the Richburg Community in Lamar County, Mississippi; and

WHEREAS, to place Mrs. Bounds' life in perspective, only a few months after she was born on March 7, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson declared war and the American Quartet was singing Goodbye Broadway, Hello France. During the span of her 89 years, she has lived through two World Wars, seen 16 U.S. Presidents elected, and experienced the Great Depression. She has witnessed the introduction of the automobile, television and computer technology, and recalls listening to The Grand Ole Opry on Saturday night radio; and

WHEREAS, April is "Confederate Heritage Month" in Mississippi and across the nation, and it is appropriate that we acknowledge that The War Between the States was an important crossroads in our history; and

WHEREAS, Mary is a member of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, Mary Ann Randolph Custis Lee, Chapter #2583, Purvis, Mississippi, and it is with pride that we join them in recognizing and honoring Mrs. Mary Rosalee Johnson Bounds and the service of her father, Daniel Johnson, who fought to defend his homeland and contributed to the rebuilding of the country as a model citizen of the State of Mississippi:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby recognize and commend Mrs. Mary Rosalee Johnson Bounds of Moselle, Mississippi, as a "Real Daughter" of the Confederacy residing in the State of Mississippi, on the occasion of her presentation by the United Daughters of the Confederacy, and extend to her the best wishes of the Senate in her future endeavors.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to Mrs. Bounds and appropriate officers in the United Daughters of the Confederacy and be made available to the Capitol Press Corps.