Updated January 27, 2013.
We are Gary and Heidi Montalbine. I was born in Rochester, NY. Heidi was born in Stuttgart, Germany. The Navy brought us to Norfolk. Dale Beasley brought us to KI. In the Fall of 1977 Dale invited us to a "Pig Pickin". It took a day and a half to get here. We liked the area and bought some land on the Bay in the Spring of 1978. The property was once owned by Fentress. Built a house and moved here in 1989. The picture of KI Bay used as the background for the Scrapbook was taken from our pier.
April 27, 2010.My name is Brenda Davis Twiford, I am the daughter of Charles "Jack" Davis and Ruby White Davis. My parents had nine children, Grace Estelle Davis, Doris Anne Davis, Jackie Lee Davis, Charles Seaton Davis Jr., Glenn Ray Davis, Brenda Kay Davis, Linda Sue Davis, Roger Lynn Davis and Ralph Eugene Davis. My mother was born at Knotts Island on March 11, 1922, her parents were Elswood "Pud" Roy White (1890-1963) and Essie Lena Fentress White (1895-1948), they had 12 children, Harold Lee White (1912-1914), Edmond Lee White (1916-2008), Roy Littleton White (1918-2009), Ruby Irene White Davis (1922-2005), Bertie Mae White Flannagan (1924-), Albert Ward White (1926-2006),Mary Lena White Waterfield (1928-), Peggy Joyce White Fields (1930-), Jack Dale White (1932-), Elswood Roy White Jr. (1933-1978), Mamie Frances White Sanders (1935-), Dorothy Faye White Wade (1941-). Elswood "Pud" White married Martha Louise Daw (1928-1991) after the death of his first wife Essie and he and Louise had 5 children, Curtis Lee White (1950-), Johnnie James White (1952-), Nancy Lou White Waterfield (1953-), Evelyn Marie White Warren (1955-), Julia Etta White (1957-). Elswood "Pud" was the son of Edmond Lee White (1865-1938) and Julia Etta Williams White (1860-1934) and Essie Fentress was the daughter of Littleton Rosser Fentress (1867-1935) and Alice L. Ward Fentress (1876-1947). Through marriages the White family ancestors includes known Knotts Island family names such as Fentress, Williams, Ward, Litchfield, Murden, Morse, Dudley, Waterfield, Beasley, Capps, Whitehurst, Ansell and others. My mother lived on Knotts Island until she married Jack Davis on May 27, 1939, they then moved to Norfolk, and about 1985 they retired and returned to Knotts Island to enjoy their remaining years. My mother loved being close to her family and enjoyed attending and working at the Knotts Island United Methodist Church, cooking at Barnes's Hunting Club for the hunters and being involved in the community.
April 1, 2010. My name is Sibyl White Merkle. My mother was Addie Lorraine Cason White. Her father was Jerome B. Cason. My father was Marshall Shelton White brother to Sidney, Elswood, Fred, Mildred, Roxie, Laura and Ina.
April 13, 2010. My name is Jerri Powers and I have made two scrap books on the White family and the Casons. I got my family's histories from Melinda Lukei. I'm mentioning this because I'm related to the Waterfield's, Ansel's, Smith's, Litchfield's, Fentress's, Simpson's and the Cason's. My granddaddy was in construction and built many homes on Knott's Island and Virginia Beach. His daddy was Edmund Lee White. My Granddaddy's brother was Elswood Roy White, who everyone called "Pud",who had a hunting lodge on KI in the early 1900's. Our family tree dates back to early to mid 1600's on the White side of the family and the Cason family as early as 1604. My Grandmother, Addie Loraine Cason married my Grandfather, Marshall Sheldon White. My Grandmother's father was Jerome Bonaparte Cason, Jr. who married Madora J. Waterfield. My Great Grandfather was Jerome Bonaparte Cason who married Julia Ansel.
April 8, 2010. My name is Joel Waterfield. I was born in the home across the main road from the new K.I. Elementary School. Son of Herman Waterfield (1896 - 1965) and Thelma Etheridge Waterfield, (1904 - 1980)
We moved to Portsmouth Va. 1939. Father was asked to serve at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth Va. during World War Two. I am kin of the Waterfields, Etehridges, Whites, Litchfields, and Watermans, and the truth be known, several other clans. In 2001 I began writing the book titled "Yards," which has one chapter about me and my family living on Knotts Island. I also have my linage from the 1700s, starting in Pungoteague on Virginia's Eastern Shore to the present. I wish I had some of the pics you have of K.I. My Father and his Father-in-law built several of the homes on the Island, when he wasn't a Guide/Waterman.
April 9, 2010. My name is Sandra McCarthy My mother is Lucille Bonney Williams, the sister of Lucy Bonney Carroll, Philip Hunter Bonney, Roy Bonney and Viola Bonney Waterman. Her parents were Nerna and Ottma Hunter Bonney. My father was Wilton Henry Williams. His mother was a Waterfield. Norwood Ansell was a cousin.
May 16, 2010. My name is Tunis Corbell. I was born on October 26, 1923 and died February 28, 2007. This article was written about 1996.
A Secret Garden - I am now almost 73 and live in Los Altos Hills, CA. I still visit Knotts Island every year or so to see relatives and to just enjoy the area.
I was raised on Knotts Island having moved there when I was six weeks old from Creeds, Va. I left to work with the Corps of Engineers in Norfolk in 1940 and on into the Navy in 1942. In 1946 I enrolled at NC State and I believe I was the first State graduate from Knotts Island. I still credit much of my success in life to the great beginning at the school on Knotts Island built and almost run in my day by Joseph P. Knapp. We had about eight teachers for 85 to 90 students and a curriculum that much of the country is still dreaming about- sex education, music, home economics, drama, etc. We also enjoyed a balanced diet thanks to the lunch program and milk and veggies from Mackay Island.
August 19, 2010. My name is John F. Carroll, Jr. My Mother, Lucy Aline Bonney CARROLL was born on Knotts Island (1915), as were her two brothers, Phillip Hunter Bonney and Elvie Roy Bonney and her two sisters, Lucille Susan Bonney WILLIAMS and Viola Jean Bonney WATERMAN. Their parents were Ottma Hunter Bonney and Nerna Aline Bowden BONNEY. Mother left the island in 1936 to marry John Floyd Carroll of Creeds - or as Dad liked to tell the story, HE brought Mom off the North Carolina island into Virginia, and made her a "citizen of the United States".
October 21, 2011. My name is Judy Fentress Jarman, originally from Knotts Island, now living in Seaford, which is very close to Yorktown, Va. My husband and I are both retired gov't employees and have lived in Seaford since the late 60's.
Sue Austin is my sister. She is actually more of the history buff than I am, probably because she has lived on K.I. for so many years. Knotts Island is such a unique place, but I'm sure that as a teenager, I only saw it as a very long distance to get to anything!! We used to spend the night with school friends in Currituck whenever there was a dance or a social event. I can't recall our parents making any time adjustments when we started dating either. It was 11PM and no later!!! We didn't have cell phones, to call and tell them if we were running late!! We tried real hard to be on time. We did not want to get grounded!!
The high school bus ride from K.I. to Moyock gave us ample opportunity to socialize. Bessie Cason was our driver, and I don't know how she put up with all of us teenagers for that long period of time! She was a very special person. There were times when she would stop the bus in order to maintain order! We knew she meant business when she stopped that bus.
I was in the first graduating class at Joseph P. Knapp, 1961. We will be celebrating our "50th Reunion" this year. I just can't believe it's been 50 years!!! I'm sure that everyone who goes to a 50th reunion, says the same thing!!!
For those of us who grew up on K.I., but moved away during our 20's, you begin to lose track of people. John Barnes and I are related. He is a cousin of mine, but is older than I am. He married Kay. I was a Fentress and my Dad and Aunt Frances were brother/sister. My dad had a large peach orchard and Aunt Frances would help pick the peaches. She was so much fun to be around and always told it like it was!! She was also an excellent cook.
January 27, 2013. My name is Elaine March. I am the daughter of Betty Capps and Granddaughter of Herman Guy Jones and Virginia White.