Daughter of Nathaniel Pate and Martha Jane Foxworth Smith. Mattie married Charles Lexington Pace on January 2, 1898.

MARION - "One of Marion's oldest citizens is also one of the most active and wittiest persons in town. Mrs. C.L. Pace, better known as "Momma" Pace, was 87 last August 26, but her sharp cracks of humor and a lively step belies the age.

Born in the Reedy Creek section of Marion County, she moved to town with her parents as a girl of 14 and has been living here 73 years.

She said, "Main Street here in 1887 was nothing but mud puddles and we didn't have electric lights." Her first home here was where the Marion Library now stands. She got much of her good humor from being among 12 children.

The great earthquake which struck South Carolina in 1886 scared the small population of Marion, Mrs. Pace commented. "We thought 'Judgement Day' had arrived that night when the first shock was felt. The dishes rattled and the window panes shook loose. No one knew what was wrong at the time, but everybody was scared." She said Marion escaped serious damage from the earthquake, which took a heavy toll of lives elsewhere in the state.

Her only complaint about health is failing eyesight. Otherwise "Momma" Pace says she's fit as a fiddle.

One daughter told how Mrs. Pace was always ready to go anywhere, anytime. She said her mother still went swimming. To which, the lively Mrs. Pace quipped, "What's the use to go to the beach if you can't go swimming."

Mrs. Pace is active in the Marion Baptist Church and was a member of the choir 49 years before she gave it up. She is also a charter member of the order of the Eastern Star and participates in the group's meetings.

Her husband's death in 1943 ended 46 years of marriage for Mrs. Pace. He operated a mortuary here. The business was sold to two nephews after Mr. Pace died and is still in operation.

Her father, the late N.P. Smith, operated several farms and a livery stable. Mrs. Pace said, "My father was a real horse trader. He'd go anywhere for a good swap."

Two sons of Mrs. Pace died in their thirties, but four daughters are living. They are Mrs. Goster Stanley and Mrs. W.H. Menees of Marion; Mrs. W.H. Collins of Bennettsville and Mrs. L.W. Evans of Columbia.

Two sisters, Mrs. P.A. Riddick and Mrs. J.C. Gainey, both of Marion, are also among "Momma" Pace's living relatives.

The interview was broken off when "Momma" Pace announced she had to go on an errand.

That's to be expected when someone fills their life with an active schedule."

Written by Jack Copeland for the Morning News and published on January 5, 1961

MARION - Mrs. Mattie S. Pace, 96, widow of C. L. Pace, died Monday in a local hospital. Funeral services will be Wednesday at 11 a.m. in Smith Brothers Funeral Home, with burial in Rose Hill Cemetery.

She was a daughter of the late Nathaniel Pate and Martha Foxworth Smith of Marion. She was the oldest member of Marion Baptist Church and was a charter member of the Eastern Star.

Surviving are three daughters, Mrs. Foster P. Stanley and Mrs. Julia Belle Menees of Marion and Mrs. Jo Pace Evans of Columbia.

Published in The State, January 1970