Identifying Allen

I began with a mistake.

I was looking for a boy named Allen.

That was the name my father used, and I had no reason to question it. Until… I could not find him. When I first worked through the 100th Anniversary Yearbook of the Tennessee School for the Deaf, I searched for “Allen” as a first name.

I did not find him.

At that point, I reconsidered the assumption. I thought of my father’s own name sign, and that of many of his friends. In American Sign Language, particularly for men, name signs are often based on the first letter of the last name. That raised the possibility that “Allen” was not a first name, but a surname.

With that in mind, I returned to the yearbook and looked again—this time for Allen as a last name.

I located one entry that aligned with what I knew:

Mayfield Allen
From Obion County, Tennessee
First attendance: 1927

This was the only individual with the surname Allen whose age and location fit the conditions of the story. My father and this student would have boarded in Union City, the rail point for Obion County.

At this stage, the identification was probable, but not yet confirmed.

To verify it, I turned to Ancestry.com and census records.

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Census Correlation

In the 1930 U.S. Census, I located Mayfield Allen in Obion County, Tennessee.

• Age: 9
• Residence: Woodland Mills area (Obion County)

This matched both the location and expected age range.

In the 1940 U.S. Census, the same individual and exact family members appear in Mississippi:

• Age: 19
• Residence: Mississippi
• Highest grade completed: H1 (first year of high school)

The 1940 census includes an additional question: Where did this person live in 1935?
The response: same house.

This indicates the family had already relocated to Mississippi by 1935,
placing the move between 1930 and 1935. Because he was still in Obion County when he traveled to Knoxville in September 1932, the move occurred between September 1932 and 1935.

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School Confirmation

Further confirmation came through a draft registration card, which identifies him as:

Franklin Mayfield Allen

The card also indicates association with the Mississippi School for the Deaf, aligning with the family’s relocation shown in the 1940 census.

This establishes a clear progression:

• Tennessee School for the Deaf (beginning 1927)
• Family relocation between 1932–1935
• Mississippi School for the Deaf (by 1940)

The registration card provides direct confirmation of his full name, birthdate, and school affiliation.
His age is recorded as 21, with a visible correction to the entry. Given his birthdate of October 4, 1920, this indicates the card was completed after his 21st birthday in 1941. At that time, he is still identified as a student at the Mississippi School for the Deaf.

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Age Alignment

The records also resolve his age at the time of the train journey.

• Birthdate: October 4, 1920
• Age in September 1932: 11 (turning 12)

My father described the boy as “about 10, maybe older.”

This is consistent with both his recorded age and my father’s description.

Additionally:

• At initial enrollment in 1927: age 6, turning 7
  This aligns with the typical starting age for students

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Conclusion and Commentary

The identification of “Allen” as Franklin Mayfield Allen is supported by:

• Yearbook entry (name, county, start year)
• 1930 census (location and age)
• 1940 census (relocation and continuity)
• Draft registration card (full name and school affiliation)

No conflicting records were found that match these same conditions.

Based on this, the individual my father referred to as “Allen” can be identified, with a high degree of confidence, as:

Franklin Mayfield Allen

What slowed the search was not the absence of records,
but how I was approaching them.

I was listening for a first name—
when the name I had been given was rooted in how it was signed.

I had followed a hearing way of thinking,
when I should have been listening with my eyes.

— Gathering the fragments, one memory at a time…