Joseph Royal Newton

Joseph Royal Newton November 3, 1927 – July 23, 2021 Joseph Royal Newton, 93, of Wilson, passed away on Friday, July 23, 2021. He was born in Wilson to the late Roy Lee Newton and Nannie Mae Newton. He is predeceased by his loving wife, Peggy Davis Newton, and brother, James Edward Newton. Joe graduated from Charles L. Coon High School and initially worked on the family farm. He enlisted as an Ensign in the United States Navy in 1945 and served on the USS Wyoming. Thereafter, he served in the United States Army Reserve for 12 years and worked at the Wilson Daily Times as a field reporter. His primary occupation was ticket marker and occasional auctioneer in the Wilson tobacco market which at the time was considered the largest in the world. He also worked in various other flue cured and burley tobacco markets throughout North Carolina, Kentucky, Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida. During the off season and after leaving the tobacco markets he obtained his real estate license and worked as a manager at J.C. Penny’s in Parkwood Mall. He met Peggy Davis at First Baptist Church in Sharpsburg, and they were married in 1957. They were married for 59 years before her passing and were known for being a very close couple. They joined the First Baptist Church of Wilson were Joe served as a deacon, sang in the adult choir, and served as Chairman of the Nominating Committee. Later he led the singing and Peggy played the piano in their adult Sunday School class and in multiple nursing homes in the Wilson area for over 12 years. He enjoyed yard work and with Peggy, his wife, won Yard of the Month and Yard of the Season on multiple occasions for both the Westwood neighborhood and the City of Wilson. Joe was a loving husband, father, grandfather, and friend to all that knew him. He had a deep faith and was known for being even keeled often saying “things are never as good as they seem and never as bad as they seem”. He will be greatly missed and remembered with memories that warm the heart. Joe is survived by son, Joseph Royal Newton, Jr., and wife, Michella; grandchildren, William Joseph Newton, Caroline Elizabeth Newton, Emily Jordan Newton, Jonathan Davis Newton, and Jonah Westwood Newton; sister, Nedra Broyhill and many cousins, nieces, and nephews. The family will receive friends Wednesday afternoon from 1 – 1:45 p.m. at First Baptist Church, 311 Nash Street N, Wilson. The funeral service will be held at 2 p.m. with Rev. Dr. Christopher Thomas officiating, followed by interment in Maplewood Cemetery, Wilson. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to First Baptist Church of Wilson, PO Box 1467, Wilson, North Carolina 27893 or Hope House Foundation, 801 Boush Street, Suite 302, Norfolk, Virginia 23510. Condolences may be registered online at www.joyners.net.