Genealogical Profile of Leroy Collins (1926–2005)

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Early Life and Census Records

Leroy Collins was born in 1926 – sources differ on the exact date and place. A Find a Grave memorial gives his birth as May 22, 1926 in South Bend, Indiana [1] (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/26572820/lee_roy-collins), while an Ancestry.com family tree lists it as April 1, 1926 in the same location [2] (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/10426006). In any case, Leroy’s family had roots in Morgan County, Tennessee, and he grew up there. He likely appears as a young child in the 1930 U.S. Census for Morgan County. One prominent Collins family in Morgan County was headed by Charles Madison Collins and wife Ethel (Land) Collins – they had children born around the 1910s–1920s in Lancing (Morgan County). Dorothy Collins Mathis (born 1920), for example, is noted as a daughter of Charles M. and Ethel Collins, and her obituary names siblings Jerry C. Collins, Eva Collins Oney, Charlene Collins Cranmore, and Ruth Collins Buxton [3] (https://tngenweb.org/morgan/m-obituaries/). It is very likely that Leroy Collins was the younger brother of these siblings, fitting into this family (the 1940 Census places Jerry Collins’ household in Morgan County’s 11th Civil District, and Leroy at age 14 may have been listed with his parents then). To confirm, you could search the 1930 and 1940 census records for Morgan County on free sites like FamilySearch or subscription sites like Ancestry using Leroy’s name, birth year (~1926), and birth state (Indiana). These census entries would reveal his parents’ names and any other siblings at home, providing a foundation for his early life.

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Marriage to Lola Bell Hale

Leroy Collins married Lola Belle Hale (sometimes spelled “Lola Bell”) of Tennessee. Their marriage likely took place in the mid-1940s, given their ages (Leroy would have been about 19–20 around 1945–1946). A statewide index on Ancestry (“Tennessee, U.S., Marriage Records, 1780–2002”) appears to have a record of this marriage (transcribed as Leroy Callins) [4] (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/10426006), which suggests an official marriage license or certificate can be found. To get the exact date and county, one could search the Tennessee County Marriages 1790–1950 database on FamilySearch or the Ancestry index. It’s likely the marriage was registered either in Morgan County or a neighboring county (Roane County) since Rockwood (where they later lived) is in Roane County.

Lola Belle Hale was born in 1925 in Tennessee. In fact, FamilySearch’s collaborative tree identifies her parents as Andrew Ernest “Jim” Hale (1900–1960) and Gelana Brewster (1907–1998) [5] (https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/LTZP-ZL2/andrew-earnest-hale-1900-1960). Lola grew up in the area (her family line can be traced in Morgan/Roane County records as well) and would have been about 20 when she married Leroy.

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Children and Family Tree Entries

Leroy and Lola Collins had at least three children, including the son you mentioned, Donald Collins. According to Lola’s obituary in the Roane County News, she was survived by “sons, Doug Collins of Hammond, IN, and Donald Collins of Rockwood” as well as a son-in-law David R. Cooper of Rockwood [6] (https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/roanecounty/name/lola-collins-obituary?id=18554891). This tells us that Leroy and Lola had two sons (Donald and Doug) and one daughter (the daughter was likely named Carolyn, married to Mr. Cooper, though she may have passed away prior to 2015 since the obit lists the son-in-law as survivor).

An Ancestry family tree provides more detail: it shows Leroy Collins with a son Jerry Donald Collins, born 25 May 1948 [2] (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/10426006). That same tree entry confirms Leroy’s own birth in South Bend in 1926 and likely includes Lola and the other children as well.

Find A Grave has entries for both Leroy and Lola which are very useful for family researchers. Leroy’s memorial confirms his death on September 5, 2005 in Rockwood, Roane County, TN, and notes he was buried in Piney Grove Cemetery (Midtown) [1] (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/26572820/lee_roy-collins). Lola Belle Hale Collins’s memorial (she died June 23, 2015 at age 90) is also on Find A Grave [7] (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/148275186/lola_belle-collins). The Find A Grave pages often list family links: for example, Lola’s page mentions her sons and likely links to Leroy as her spouse, and to her parents or other relatives.

User-contributed family trees on sites like Ancestry and MyHeritage are valuable resources. Exploring those could provide details such as exact dates, middle names, and possibly photos or stories if the tree owners have uploaded any. MyHeritage’s family tree search may likewise show entries for Leroy and his relatives.

FamilySearch should not be overlooked – its one-world Family Tree likely has an entry for Leroy Collins attached to the Collins family of Morgan County. You can also find Lola Belle Hale’s lineage there; as noted, she is recorded as a child in the Hale family of Morgan County.

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Military and Other Records

Because Leroy was born in 1926, he came of age during World War II. Even if he did not enlist in active service, he would have been required to register for the draft. In 1944, at age 18, he likely filled out a WWII draft registration card (the “Young Men’s Draft” cards for men 18–20). That draft card would list his residence (probably Morgan or Roane County at that time), his employer or school, and a “person who will always know your address” – often a parent (which could give us his father’s name). These WWII draft registration cards for Tennessee are available on Ancestry in the database “U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940–1947” and on FamilySearch.

Similarly, if he actually served in the military around the late 1940s or during the Korean War, there might be enlistment records or service records. The National Archives’ database of WWII enlistments might have a Leroy Collins born in 1926 (though one was not found in a quick search). If he served in Korea or during peacetime, those records aren’t online but could be requested from the National Personnel Records Center.

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Obituaries and Newspaper Clippings

Leroy died in 2005, so his obituary might have been published in a local paper such as the Roane County News or Morgan County News. Lola’s obituary appeared on Legacy.com via Roane County News [6] (https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/roanecounty/name/lola-collins-obituary?id=18554891), so it’s likely Leroy’s obituary ran in September 2005 in one of those papers.

The Morgan County TNGenWeb site has a collection of extracted obituaries by surname. However, their “C Obituaries” page did not list Leroy’s 2005 death, possibly because he lived in Rockwood (Roane County). It might be more fruitful to check the Roane County News archives or the Knoxville News Sentinel.

Ancestry’s Obituary Collection index had an entry for Leroy [8] (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/10426006), which could be used to request a full copy from a local library or locate it on platforms like NewspaperArchive or Newspapers.com.

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DNA Matches and Further Research

If you or other descendants of Leroy have done an AncestryDNA test, you can search your match list for connections to Collins or Hale relatives. Tools like ThruLines or shared matches may reveal connections to Leroy’s siblings or Lola’s family.

Y-DNA testing may be helpful for tracing the Collins surname. If a direct male descendant of Leroy takes a Y-DNA test through FamilyTreeDNA, they can join the Collins Surname Project [9] (https://familytreedna.com/groups/collins/about?srsltid=AfmBOoruxjBChKWH_A3n63GiD3_Zyk5xXJPjP4gXdjGf2sJgE3oytAZi). For broader research, autosomal DNA across platforms like MyHeritage, 23andMe, and GEDmatch can help locate distant cousins and verify family tree connections.

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Recommended Resources

Given the scope of this research, here’s a summary of platforms and records to utilize going forward, along with what we’ve already discovered:

FamilySearch (Free): Use the FamilySearch Family Tree to find Leroy, Lola, and their ancestors. We saw that Lola Belle Hale is listed with her parents in one entry [6] (https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/LTZP-ZL2/andrew-earnest-hale-1900-1960). You can search the Records section for census entries (e.g., 1930, 1940) and the Tennessee County Marriages collection for a marriage certificate. FamilySearch also has the Social Security Death Index (SSDI) which likely includes Leroy (SSDI would list “Leroy Collins – Sep 2005 – last residence Rockwood, TN”). SSDI can be a quick confirmation of death date and place.

Ancestry (Subscription): Helpful for detailed records like census images, military draft cards, marriage indexes, and obituary collections. We found an Ancestry-indexed marriage and obituary reference for Leroy [1] (https://www.ancestry.com/1940-census/usa/Georgia/Lerry-Collins_1shqml). Ancestry’s public member family trees provided specific details (birth date/place, children’s names) [5] (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/148275186/lola_belle-collins). With a subscription or at a library that has Ancestry Library Edition, you could view those records directly. AncestryDNA, as mentioned, is great if you’re looking for living relatives and genetic confirmation of the tree.

MyHeritage (Subscription): MyHeritage also has a large collection of user trees and some records. They might have indexed the 1940 census and newspaper obituaries as well. MyHeritage users sometimes have trees overlapping with Ancestry, so you might find additional photos or anecdotes there. They also offer DNA testing and match lists if any relatives tested with them.

Findmypast or U.S. Archives: For vital records, Findmypast has some U.S. marriage/death collections and might not be as directly useful for this case, but the US Social Security Applications and Claims Index (available on Ancestry) could be interesting. For example, Leroy’s or Lola’s SS-5 application would list parents’ names – the Claims Index on Ancestry sometimes gives birth date and parent names for deceased individuals who had social security. If available, that could definitively confirm Leroy’s parents. (Ancestry’s Social Security Applications and Claims database might list Leroy Collins, born 1926, died 2005, with mother’s maiden name and father’s name).

Local Genealogical Societies and Newspapers: The Morgan County Genealogical & Historical Society or Roane County Historical Society might have published pedigree books or obituary books. The TNGenWeb site for Morgan County (and Roane County) has transcribed cemetery listings and obituaries. We found on the Morgan TNGenWeb an obituary for Alta Collins (wife of Guy Collins Sr.) which listed a Leroy Collins of Oakdale as a survivor – that Leroy was actually their son (a different Leroy, died 2010). This tells us there were multiple Collins branches in the area, so be careful to distinguish your Leroy from others. Still, those compiled obituaries can be extremely useful for mapping out extended Collins relatives in Morgan and Roane counties. Consider browsing the “C” Obituaries on the Morgan TNGenWeb site for any Collins entries around the 2005 timeframe, and the Roane County News archives for Leroy’s notice.

Find A Grave (Free): We have the links for Leroy’s memorial and Lola’s memorial which you should visit [5] (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/148275186/lola_belle-collins). Often volunteers post copies of the obituary in the bio section. If not, you can use the burial information (Piney Grove Cemetery, Midtown) to perhaps contact the cemetery or find a published cemetery survey. The cemetery listing might show if other family members are buried nearby (for example, sometimes a spouse’s plot or even a child who died young could be noted). Piney Grove might have other Collins or Hale graves.

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In Summary

Leroy Collins (1926–2005) can be traced through a variety of records: census entries show his childhood in Morgan County, a marriage record (circa 1940s) to Lola Belle Hale, an SSDI and obituary in 2005, and a Findagrave memorial with burial in Roane County. He appears in multiple online family trees (Ancestry, possibly FamilySearch) which connect him to his children (Donald, Doug, etc.) and to earlier generations. By leveraging those trees alongside official records, you can reconstruct his ancestry (likely tying into the Collins families of Morgan County) and his wife’s Hale lineage. Given that you’re also interested in DNA, using AncestryDNA or other tests to identify DNA matches related to Leroy will further solidify the connections – you might even find cousins who have pieces of the family story, old photographs, or documents to share. All these resources together will provide a comprehensive picture of Leroy Collins’s family tree.

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Sources

• Morgan County, TNGenWeb – obituary of Dorothy Collins Mathis (provides parents and siblings) [3] (https://tngenweb.org/morgan/m-obituaries/); Alta Jones Collins obituary (Collins family in Morgan Co.)
• Roane County News obit via Legacy.com – Lola Belle Hale Collins obituary (2015) [4] (https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/roanecounty/name/lola-collins-obituary?id=18554891)
• Find a Grave – Memorial for Lee Roy Collins (1926–2005) with birth/death and burial in Piney Grove Cemetery [2] (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/26572820/lee_roy-collins); Memorial for Lola Belle (Hale) Collins (1925–2015) with obituary excerpt and family links [5] (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/148275186/lola_belle-collins)
• Ancestry.com – Tennessee Marriage Records, 1780–2002 (index entry for marriage of Leroy Collins and Lola Hale) [1] (https://www.ancestry.com/1940-census/usa/Georgia/Lerry-Collins_1shqml); Public Member Trees (e.g. birth date/place for Leroy and son “Jerry Donald Collins” info) [5]; U.S. Obituary Collection (index confirming Leroy’s 2005 obituary exists) [8] (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60525/records/10426006)
• FamilySearch – Family Tree entries: Andrew “Jim” Hale family including Lola Belle Hale (b.1925) [6]; 1940 Census (Jerry Collins in Morgan Co., indicating Collins family residence)
• FamilyTreeDNA – Collins Surname DNA Project (for Y-DNA research on Collins line) [9] (https://familytreedna.com/groups/collins/about?srsltid=AfmBOoruxjBChKWH_A3n63GiD3_Zyk5xXJPjP4gXdjGf2sJgE3oytAZi)