Infant Dabney, possibly named Osca, was born on April 22, 1916, to Albert “Jourrey” Dabney and Marstella Curtis. The family lived at 622 6th Avenue NW in Roanoke, Virginia, where Albert worked as a bartender and Marstella cared for their home.
She lived just over a month, passing away on June 2, 1916, from gastroenteritis, a common and often deadly illness for infants in the early twentieth century.
Though most records refer to her simply as “Infant Dabney” or “Baby Dabney,” she is remembered here as a daughter, and as a small but meaningful part of her family’s story.