John Augustus Heilig was quite an entrepreneur and the Heilig family was known throughout Earle, Arkansas.  John owned the only hall in Earle.  He was one of the owners of the Earle Undertaking Company, one of the first undertaking services providing services for blacks.  The funeral home was also named Heilig Funeral Home and around 1929 was sold to W. H. Johnson.  It is still in existence today as the W. H. Johnson Funeral Home in Earle.  John also owned Heilig Place Bus Station and Groceries, which was located across the street from the funeral home.
John first married, Irene Walker in Woodruff County on May 1, 1890. John and Irene had a son named James.  He was born 1892 in Cache Township, Woodruff County, Arkansas.  Later John married Tennie Leola Scruggs on December 19, 1900.   John and Tennie had two children:  Roosevelt and a daughter named Bessie Elizabeth, who was born September 4, 1902.
Tennie grew up in a community called Scruggs.  Her family had settled there and built a church and a public school.  Scruggs Chapel United Methodist Church still exists today.  Many of the family members were employed at the public school in Scruggs.  Her family purchased many acres of land, built homes and created a fine, highly respected community of togetherness.  Tennie attended Scruggs School and the public school in Mariana and Philander Smith College in Little Rock, Arkansas.  She was a public school teacher for many years, teaching in Arkansas, Tennessee, and Mississippi.  (Contributed by Bettie King)

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