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Was, as usual, doing family research and found a 6th Cousin on my paternal line who claimed to have 'Cherokee ancestry' (I know, I know, the old 'we're descended from a Cherokee princess!' tale), according to documents and photos in their portfolio of images, etc for relatives in their tree. So, naturally skeptical, I did some digging, as I already knew, the line we are related through, definitely does not have NA ancestry in it. I get back to my 2nd Cousin 4x Removed and that's where the fabrications begin.

Morgan Gilliam, Jr, born in 1844, in Tennessee, served in the Confederate Army, was a member of the United Confederate Veterans, and even received a pension from them. Yet, in 1896, he applied to become a citizen of the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma. The claim, according to documents, is based on 'intermarriage'- ie, he married a Cherokee woman. Her name is Eliza Cooper, born in 1855, also in Tennessee. Now, according to HER application, she is 1/8 Cherokee, via her father. There's a problem with that. Her father was born in 1824, in Alabama, to parents from coastal North Carolina (Isle of Wight area). They descend from people of 'the Virginia colonies' (ie Prince William County) and *England*. There's no evidence of Native heritage, let alone, specifically, Cherokee.

Her husband's parents hail from Tennessee, while their parents come from Virginia- Shenandoah, North Carolina, and, as I know for certain that the Riddle line is not native, which is where we connect, from England/Scotland/Ireland. He says they were not married as per 'Cherokee marriage rites', which is a requirement for citizenship applicants. She says the same in her interview. She also is claiming a niece and nephew of her deceased brother, as her wards, as blooded Cherokee as well.

So I dug further, because there is *a lot* of documentation, asserting their claims, despite them having said they had not lived within the Cherokee Nation but a mere handful of months, at various times, other times they claim to have visited or lived in the Chickasaw Nation, and once, the Creek Nation. Yet, they applied for citizenship specifically in the Cherokee Nation. He first filed in 1896, shortly after the Dawes Rolls and the Dawes Act was enacted. It was rejected by the Five Tribes Commission. She then applied August 28, 1900, claiming 1/8 ancestry. It was placed on a 'Doubtful card', requiring more investigation and information.

Now, researching into Census Records, *every single census both are listed in, with each other or their respective families, they are listed as white.* If you remember, Census takers decide your ethnicity, not you. If she was 1/8th Cherokee, as she claimed, her father would have been 1/4 and would be listed as 'I' for Indian or 'M' for Mulatto, as they were used interchangeably. He was not. Nor were his parents or grandparents- where the ancestry would, obstensively, have started. To add to the mix- her living brother, Calvin, also applied. Except he claimed to be *1/16th*, and listed his children as 1/32nd. Also says he married a white woman, and claimed her via intermarriage. His application was rejected. He does not appear to have appealed the decision.

His brother in law, Eliza's husband, Morgan, however, did appeal, both on his behalf and his wife's.

The problem with him claiming, in his first application interview that he was 1/8th Cherokee, via his father, is that it's not the least bit true. The Gilliam line can be traced all the way back to the shipbuilder Gilliams in Essex, England. His mother's line, the Pattersons, is where the Riddle line (my ancestors) married in, goes back to Surrey County, Virginia. (I haven't gone back further on that yet.)

So, Morgan appealed in 1902. He appealed to the US Court of the Southern District, which, apparently, was out of jurisdiction of the Cherokee Nation, as well as the Five Nations Commission, and as such, had no authority to over rule the Five Tribes Commission, who lodged a formal protest, citing the formal protest lodged in the case of Eddie Wheatley nee Cooper,in early 1902.

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The Eddie Wheatley nee Cooper file can be found here. (It appears that her husband's line, the Wheatley's, may be able to be traced back to a small village in Oxfordshire, England, but, as they are not relatives, I have not researched them further.)

The appeal and lodged protest- rightfully so, in my opinion- was sent to the Secretary of the Interior for final a final decision.

32313_227586-00237


In the matter of Eliza and her children, the Five Tribes Commission's decision was over turned. She and her children were admitted as citizens of the Cherokee Nation 'by blood', despite there not being a single drop of said ancestry in their lineage, Dec 10, 1902. The Five Nations Commision filed a formal protest, January 3, 1903.

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As to the matter of Morgan Gilliam, Eliza's husband, he was denied citizenship, by intermarriage or by blood, due to not having married Eliza as per Cherokee marriage rites. BUT! Nov 1, 1903, that decision was over ruled and he was granted citizenship, having been married to Eliza since 1869, well before the 1875 deadline. And again, Nov 30, 1906, the original decision of denial was held up, and Morgan was again denied enrollment as a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, via intermarriage. January 1907, he filed a motion for a rehearing of his case, that too, was denied by February. He appears to have given up after that.

Now, granted, in the late 1890s/early 1900s, they didn't have genealogy websites, they had Census Records, Birth, Death and Marriage Records, none of which would have been particularly easy to access, let alone obtain, though marriage certificates were a requirement for application.

This is not the first, or rather, the second time, the US government stepped in and overrode the Five Nations' sovereignity. It happened numerous times (it still happens to this day)-

Stephens v Cherokee Nation 174 US 446
Railway Co v Nesbitt 10 How. 395
Freeborn v Smith 2 Wall 160
Freeland v Williams 131 US 405
Roff v Burney 168 US 218

All of which, along with the Curtis Act, were cited in the Eddie Wheatley protest lodged by the Five Nations Commission.

This lie, this fabrication, by white settlers who moved to what was called 'Indian Territory' was allowed to occur by the US Government, who, to this day, still tries to take back land from the Native Americans, back then, it was, in my opinion, the same reasons, as well as for white settlers to obtain monetary benefits from the Nation in which they got themselves admitted.

Unfortunately, this fabrication perpetuates down through the generations, and despite all documentation, despite now having DNA evidence (that cousin this started from? Absolutely NO NA DNA whatsoever, they are more European than I am, particularly Northern European.), becomes for many families, truth. It certainly perpetuated in my father's family, and still, even with evidence that it isn't true, even with DNA testing, I get distant relatives claiming the stories as fact.

It was and remains a way of erasure of our Native peoples.


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Found a 6th cousin, so was looking through their media and photos, and noticed an interesting name.

Thought, 'wait, are they claiming we're related to William Brewster of Mayflower fame?'

20 minutes later, lo, yes, in a round about way, I am.

He is the 8th great grandfather, via his son, Love Brewster, of my 3rd cousin 3x removed,via her husband, their granddaughter is my 6th cousin.

Yeah, it's weird.

William Brewster and Mary, his wife, had 5 kids- Jonathan, Patience, Love, Fear, Wrestling and an unnamed child that died at birth(or was stillborn, sources are uncertain).

Love Brewster married Sarah Collier and had a daughter, Sarah.

Sarah Brewster married Benjamin Bartlett, and had a son, Benjamin, Jr.

Benjamin Bartlett, Jr married Ruth Pabodie and had a daughter, Ruth.

Ruth Bartlett married John Murdock and had a daughter, Janet.

Janet married Stephen Tilson and had a son, William.

William Tilson married Mary Mercy Ransom and had a son, Thomas.

Thomas Tilson married Eunice Hubbell and had a son, Lemuel.

Lemuel Tilson married Sidney Ann Crow and had a son, Stephen.

Stephen Tilson marrried Susan Ballard and had a son, Samuel.

Samuel Ballard Tilson married Edna May Magill <-- My 3rd cousin 3x Removed*. They had a daughter, Doris.

Doris Magill married Arthur Leroy Coffman, and had a daughter, Rebecca Annis.

Rebecca married Rickie J Cunningham and had 2 kids, my 6th Cousins.

*Edna May Magill is descended from my Vaught line, her great grandfather is my 4th great granduncle, his sister having married into my Milburn line, Which married into the Mickolatcher line, which then married into the Pennock line.
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First, the absurdities.

So, 3 years ago now, when my brother moved into the house he's currently renting, we thought it was too large and too old (as in, not well maintained), but he liked it, he was paying and that was that.

Every winter the pipes freeze. No matter what he does. Every winter, his electric goes up to over 300.00/month, for one person, because the house isn't well sealed, and that's with windows sealed, rooms closed off, etc.

Now, there's foundation issues. And the roof leaks in the hallway, but maintenance keeps claiming it's the gutters (the gutters are no where near the door way water is dripping from, nor does water run *uphill* here.)

It leaks *right over the circuit breaker box*. The hall light shorted out last week because of the leaks.

So this week, they had an electrician come in to rewire the light. He *didn't turn the main breaker off first and caused a short to fry the surge protector my brother's modem was plugged into*. I was flabberghasted when my brother told me- he'd even asked if it should be.

Nope, seems the breakers are mislabeled, so rather than hit the main, do the rewire, then trial and error and correctly label things, he just... rewired the light and caused a surge on another line.

At this point, dear reader, the 3 of us are in agreement- my brother needs to move.

The incompetent contractors the rental agency hires, combined with the lack of proper maintenance/upkeep, *and* the increasing rent every year, it's not worth it in any way (we didn't think it was worth what they were asking 3 years ago, but well, that's us.) So now, he's saving up to move, packing extraneous things and starting to look now. His lease is up in Sept. Hopefully he can get into one of the limited income residential places around here. Personally, he should have tried there in the first place, but well, what's done is done.

Just, ugh.


Meanwhile...

Yesterday, I set the Merlin Bird ID app to catch the birds that are active here around noon, since morning birds tend to be different and evening birds are too.

We have a lot of birds.

Screenshot_20230601_121450_Merlin Bird ID~2 Screenshot_20230601_121458_Merlin Bird ID~2


Screenshot_20230601_121508_Merlin Bird ID~2 Screenshot_20230601_121517_Merlin Bird ID~2


All those in a 31 minute period. Sheesh.

Went through my recordings, since I'd been slacking, and found, I'd had *11* new to me birds-

Green Heron (that I caught this past Sunday), Veery, Lesser Yellowlegs, Ruby Throated Hummingbird (!!! Can't believe I actually caught one!), Red Breasted Nuthatch, Savannah Sparrow, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Hairy Woodpecker, Fox Sparrow (so. many. sparrows.), Common Raven (they like to hang out in the hay field and are fun to watch), and a Blackpoll Warbler.

Several had repeated hits, so they are definitely here. Others, I hadn't had the app running and have seen them myself, before getting a hit on the app (startled a Red Headed Woodpecker yesterday when I went out to fill the large suet feeder, for example.)

Most days I just watch them at the feeders and don't run the app. For example, I can hear a Mourning Dove out there. Heh. There's a Blue Jay on the porch railing currently, and House Finches looking for seed.

Anyway, back to working on were bunnies, I have a Festival next weekend.



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(There were 3- 2 in our yard, one on the otherside of the cattle fence.)

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(Then Mayhem spotted them, when he stopped purring madly & walking back & forth.)



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Was doing some very interesting research on a 2nd cousin 2x removed line (he died at the Battle of Luzon, Phillipines, Pacific Theater, WWII, 19 April 1945), and came across a famous name that turned out to be the maiden name of his wife, with whom he had 2 sons-

Kellogg.

Yes, that Kellogg.

So I got curious and started tracing her line to see if it connected to John Harvey and W. K. Kellogg, the founders of Kellogg's Company, and lo, it does.

Her 6th great grandfather is the brother of John Harvey and W. K. Kellogg's 3rd great grandfather. Her husband is my 2nd cousin 2x removed.

I literally sat down and wrote it out, even-

20230511_182625~2


Though, technically I am only half related, as that 2nd cousin is only a half cousin- his grandfather was the son of my 5th grandfather from his 2nd marriage, my line comes via his 1st marriage.

But, writing it out, digging into it, was a fun exercise. And I found so many new ancestors who look very interesting to explore now too.

Even better, I mapped out the lineage-

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Kellogg line. Eleanor Lucile Kellogg is the half 5th cousin 2x removed of John Harvey and W. K. Kellogg.


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Pennock line. Eleanor's husband, Nyal E. Pennock is my half 2nd cousin 2x removed.


In other news-

Warblers are so very loud at 530am.

Screenshot_20230512_122258_Merlin Bird ID

This guy, or gal, woke me up this morning, a Tennessee Warbler, by singing right outside the window. They are very, very loud.



Then, a little later, while listening (and catching on the app) all sorts of other birds- Cardinals, Carolina Wrens, Marsh Wrens, Northern Mockingbirds, Indigo Buntings and Sparrows are apparently very early risers here- I caught a new bird.

Screenshot_20230512_061458_Merlin Bird ID Screenshot_20230512_061506_Merlin Bird ID

A Worm Eating Warbler. I'll have to try to wake up at 530am to see if I catch it again to confirm.


Meanwhile, refilled the suet feeders yesterday, which is probably why they're all so cheerful at the crack of dawn.



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Welp.

May. 8th, 2023 11:12
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Upright freezer has decided to die.

I don't remember exactly when we bought it, but it's a good 15 years old, so, not surprised honestly.

But it's only a 9 cu ft one and they no longer make that size. (They were discontinuing them when we bought this one.).

Fortunately, our Lowe's has some in stock that will fit in the CR-V so we can go get a new one tonight, pick it up and replace the old. And they have ones in stock under $1,000.

Also thankfully, everything is still very frozen, so it apparently happened this morning.

Unfortunately, that means we pull from the bathroom remodel fund and that gets pushed back. Ugh.

At least I found it before everything thawed and went bad.


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Family research means finding sad things-

"From Kalamazoo Gazette; 5 Feb 1910, pg 5:

Find family in poverty: Children Live on Cake Baked from Grain Used to feed Cows & Sleep on Bed of Rags –

A case of unusual destitution was brought to the attention of the sheriff’s office & County Agent Merrell yesterday. Deputy Sheriff John Thayer went out to investigate & found Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Harrington & 3 children living in the most absolute & squalid poverty at Scotts in Climax township.

Mrs. Harrington said that for the last few days they had eaten nothing but a cake baked from grain used to feed cows. A heap of filthy rags in the corner did duty as a bed for the whole family.

The children will be turned over to County Agent Merrell & it is probably that the parents will be sent to the county home. The father is not mentally responsible & the mother lacks but little of being in the same condition."


This was my 2nd great grandaunt on my maternal line. She had 4 more kids with her 1st husband, remarried and had another daughter.



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Woo...

May. 3rd, 2023 11:56
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Plumbing issues fixed. We can do laundry and dishes again.

Laptop tried to do a Windows update Monday night into Tuesday. Managed to corrupt my profile, then *completely wipe it*.

That was more than I wanted to cope with, so I made it uninstall that latest update. Which mostly fixed the issues- my avatar pic is still gone. If I shut down, it'll try to install again, so not shutting down until Friday, when I can restart it and let Mark deal with it, as we have no classes that evening.

Meanwhile, been researching my dad's half sister's family branch of the tree.

Ye gads it's more convoluted than mine is. 6 kids, multiple marriages between them all, some with out of wedlock kids, and then most of those kids, all repeat the cycle.

Add to this, some have their mom's maiden name, some have their dad's last name, some have their step dad's last name. It gets confusing.

And why the devil do these people have multiple Facebook pages? As in, 3-4 pages for several of them. Ugh.



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Ugh.

May. 1st, 2023 11:13
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When it rains, it pours...

Tried to do a load of laundry and apparently there's a clog in the washing machine drain line that leads from the back down and out. Water poured out the top, across the floor and under the bookcases. Only good thing about these old floors is the gaps in the boards meant the water immediately drained into the cellar, where, thankfully, there's nothing that can be ruined. (and the sump pump and dehumidifier.)

So I can't finish the load that's started, which means no gis for class tonight.

Can't exactly maneuver the pipe snake on my own, because of where the washing machine drain is, so have to wait for Mark to get home. And we have no septic safe drain opener. Ugh. I knew I should have picked some drain maintenance stuff when I was at Lowe's this weekend.

Hopefully snaking the drain works. Otherwise, no idea when we can get a plumber out here, as our preferred is booked out solid.



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Mark called to cancel internet on Monday. Because of a 45 minute wait, he scheduled a call back. Exactly 45 minutes later, they called back.

Here's where it gets really absurd.

Can't cancel Dish internet because of their 'unique situation' (ie, the ransomware attack their call centers got hit with , *in February*and is still on going), when the whole reason we're canceling is because we've had no internet service since last Wednesday( April 19th) and we were done dealing with them giving us the run around.


And no, you can't cancel service via their website, you *have* to call to cancel.

It's so ridiculous.

He flat out told them we don't want to be charged starting last Wednesday, since we have no service.

All they said was,'keep an eye on the website for updates', and 'when the yellow bar goes away, call back and we'll help you with your service'.

Uh... 🤔

Yes, I know we can access it via our phone, and yes, I've been using my phone hotspot for internet. That's not the point.

Long story short- do not use Dish for internet if you have any other options.

And of course, to add insult, our internet came back yesterday afternoon.


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Dish is having system issues. Going on 36 hours now.

So I have limited to no internet, which means, I'm using my phone's hotspot. Ugh.

Shentel cannot expand fast enough (August 2024).

In other news...

Oh damn.

My cousin on my dad's birth father's line, found my dad's half sister.

He contacted her on Facebook and was promptly blocked.

Described her profile pic to me, gave me pertinent info and, lo, I found her.

And I found So. Many. Other. Relatives. as a result.

I am unsure as to how to feel about this.
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Had a hit on the Merlin BirdID app on Monday that I thought for sure was a mistake, or maybe the Mockingbirds imitating as they often do.

But now, apparently Ruby Throated Hummingbirds *are* now in our area already.

They mentioned them on the local news, that there'd been sightings already that evening.

Huh. I would have thought it was early for them, but I guess not.

Feeders are now up.


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2nd cousin 3x removed-

"Sylvia was left on the doorstep of an orphanage where she grew up. Her father, Byron, left her there but stayed loosely in touch with his daughter. It is told that her mother was a white woman while her father was Indian (possibly Pennock tribe) and the tribe would not accept Sylvia into the community.

Sylvia grew up at the orphanage and had the particulary daily chore of sweeping the front steps. Across the street, a young man named Samuel also had the priviledge of sweeping the steps of the hardware store where he worked. These two ended up eloping and giving birth to Frank Harrison Detwiler, our grandfather.

Sylvia's mother remains unknown."

Not a bit of that is true.

There is no Native American in the Pennock line. I am a direct Pennock descendant. Her mother is Rosa Russell Rought. There are birth documents, marriage certificates, death certificates that all contain that information.

There is no such thing as the Pennock tribe.

There's the Pennacook Tribe, but they are not in Michigan. (They are also called the Merrimack and Pawtucket.) They are in New England, closely related to the Abenaki.

My head hurts.



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Northern Mockingbird and RedWinged Blackbird


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Brownheaded Cowbird, a protected species




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Poor Mayhem.

I *swear* I looked before shutting the door to the back porch last night.

I *swear* I looked again before I went to bed.

But somehow ninja kitty had found a new hiding spot and thus, spent the night on the back porch, trying to get back inside.

Found him at 530am, when I, on a hunch because he hadn't slept with us, checked the back porch a third time.

He's now avoiding me because he's sick of the attention I was giving him.

He also needs to have a chat with Mischief, who never informed us he was out there, unlike he did when she was stuck out there.



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Aside from a really exhuberant, over active immune system reacting to the Covid booster shot (Moderna Bivalent booster) this last weekend (and a tooth deciding to go on me), recovery has been spent sleeping or camped on the couch, researching.

And I found what I was looking for.

My 4th great grandfather, on my paternal great grandmother's line, her own great grandfather and 2nd great granfather. Winborns, that line. Originating in Halifax and Northhampton Counties of North Carolina,in the Free Colored Persons communities since early Colonial days, mid 1700s.

"WINBORN FAMILY

1. Thomas1 Winborn, born say 1750, was head of a Halifax County, North Carolina household of 3 "other free" in 1790 [NC:65], and 2 in 1800 [NC:354]. He was probably identical to Thomas Winmon who was head of a household with his wife Patience, counted as "free molattows" in the Bertie County list of Josiah Harrell for William Vann's District, adjacent to Benjamin James in 1770 and 1771 and in the list of Samuel Granberry adjacent to Benjamin James in 1774 [CR 10.702.1, box 2]. Thomas Winborn was counted in the 1790 census for Halifax County living in a household nearby Benjamin James [NC:65]. He purchased 25 acres on Little Swamp in Halifax County on 2 March 1818 for $113 and 100 acres in Halifax County from Mark Murray on 15 May 1823 for $62 [DB 24:307; 26:203]. He left a 15 March 1829 Halifax County will, proved August 1829, by which he left 148 acres to his heirs who were his wife Easter, his brother David, his grandnephew John Henry Winborn (son of Thomas, Jr.) and Willie Winborne (son of Nancy Winborne) [WB 4:52]. His children may have been

i. William, born before 1776, head of a Halifax County household of 6 "free colored" in 1820 [NC:170].

ii. Benjamin, born say 1785, married Sarah Jones, 26 May 1804 Bertie County bond, Frederick James surety, and was head of a Bertie County household of 5 "other free" in 1810 [NC:142].


2. David Winborn, born before 1776, was head of a Halifax County household of 11 "other free" in 1810 [NC:56] and 9 "free colored" in 1820 [NC:170]. He received 50 acres by the 15 November 1815 Halifax County will of (his mother-in-law?) Lucy Murray, proved in August 1816 [WB 3:587]. He may have been the father of

i. Thomas2, father of John Henry Winborne who was named in the will of Thomas1 Winborn.


The family moved to Ripley township, Rush County, Indiana, where John, Lewis, David, Hardy, and Benjamin B. Winborn were heads of "free colored" households in 1840."


- Free African Americans website

Me-->My dad--> His dad--> grandma Cora--> great grandma Jane(Winborn)--> 2nd great grandfather John Henry Winborn--> 3rd Great grandfather Thomas Winborn-->4th Great grandfather David Winborn...

Before 1840, the family relocated to Indiana with several other Free Colored Persons households of note.

1840 Census- Ripley Township, Rush County, Indiana- family listed as 'Free Colored Persons', with David Winborn as head of household

1850 Census-Thomas listed as 'mulatto', moves to Van Buren County, Michigan by 1860.

1860 Census- Thomas and son, John Henry, both listed as 'mulatto'.

1870 Census- Thomas was listed as 'mulatto'.


Here's the fun part-

1875 Census in Van Buren County, Michigan- John is listed as 'White". In 1872, his daughter, Jane, marries William Stratton, a very old, very white New England family. ( I can trace that line of my family back to England, in 1592, when they came to the US, and back further in England.)

In the 1880 Census- Thomas is listed as 'Black'. His son John Henry, is listed as 'White'.

John's daughter, Jane, is listed as 'White'. His entire family is.

Apparently, Thomas' wife's heritage (Ireland born) had finally asserted itself enough in her son and grandchildren, that Census Takers of the time, classified them as light skin enough to pass.

That's right.

Census takers at the time determined your ethnicity/race, not you. To add to this, mulatto was/is derogative, and covered anyone of mixed heritage, be it Black or Native or any other ethnicity.

Unfortunately, I have no photos of Cora. I do have photos of Carl and his second wife, Jennie. Cora died when my grandfather, Algernon, was 2 yrs old.

I do have Devall family in Michigan, that I have limited contact with. I'm going to have to reach out and see if anyone has any photos of Cora they'd be willing to share.

In the meantime, back to researching the Free Colored Person Communities of North Carolina and Virginia.


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Opened Mayhem's absolute favorite window, set up the phone with the Merlin Bird ID app going.

Got a great, long list of hits almost immediately. Come back 10 minutes later and...

Mayhem had managed to shut the app down without saving it first.

*headdesk*

Now to start over, lol.

Waiting on Chewy order with suet, seed and such, which is sorely needed as several suet feeders are empty.



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The fun- Talked to my mom yesterday. Told her about the DNA test results. She started laughing and said, 'your dad would have hated that.' Yeah, he definitely would have.

Managed to definitively connect a 1st cousin 2x removed that matched to Mark's test, in the tree. Definitely a cousin on his paternal line. That was fun.


The sad- Mark's dad called Friday. Long and short of it is, his mom is now going into in home hospice care. Not end of life hospice, but one step closer and heading that way. Mark is taking it pretty hard, which is absolutely understandable.




Got the native Elderberry bushes and native Crab Apple Trees I ordered from Virginia Forestry yesterday. Really good root systems and most are budding out already. Hoping to get them in the ground this weekend, with deer proof protection around them. Maybe this year I can snag some native Spice Bushes before they sell out.

Taxes are done. Good amount expected as a refund, plenty to fix and redo the bathroom. Now we wait.



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There's always, as long as I can remember, been this family story, passed through my paternal line, that were had Native American ancestry. Specifically, that we were related to one of the Potawatomi chiefs, via his daughter. But no one could say who or when.

My dad would mention this occasionally, especially when I was a child , through my early teen years. I used to believe it as a child. I mean, my dad was telling me this, surely it was true.

I started questioning it as an adult, more so when I started doing our family genealogy over a decade ago. The more I researched, more the more convinced I was that, it simply wasn't true.

When I connected with my dad's birth family, via a cousin, it crystalized that, it was merely a family legend and had no merit. Those connections opened up vast branches that lead back to the founding of the US, and beyond, with no evidence of Native American heritage.

Unfortunately, often for many people, lack of evidence, lack of papertrail doesn't always mean there's no connection. I'd get messages sometimes that still claim this story was true, see I found this, and I've have to say, nope, not our family, not our ancestors, it is not true. They'd them either get angry and go away, or continue to insist they were right until I finally blocked them.

When Ancestry started their DNA testing, I told Mark, I wanted to do it. I wanted to know, beyond a resasonable doubt, whether it was true or not.

Well, it took a few years to get around to getting tests- which only served to allow time for it to be perfected to the degree that it has been- but last Christmas, we got 2 tests, one for me and one for him.

We sent in the results after the holidays, so they wouldn't get lost in the mail (except mine did for a week, ugh), and then we waited.

He got his results about a week ago- he's literally the poster boy for white people. Whiter than mayo. White as white bread. We joke about it a lot. And honestly, were not the least bit surprised. His family is *very* English and German.

Well, I got my results yesterday. And was pleasantly surprised. Not by the fact that there is absolutely no Native American ancestry, no, it was another result.

20230223_122517~2


Now, granted, anything below 5% is negligable in terms of how far back it is in my ethnicity, but it's still a significant finding, all the more so since it is on my paternal line.

How do I know this?

By looking at the connections to 2nd, 3rd, 4th and distant cousins who've taken tests and who share common dna and ancestors with me, I was able to determine which came from which parental line. It's a lot easier when you have 2nd cousins that have your mom's maiden name and share great grandparents with you, for example.


What makes this finding of that 2% Ivory Coast & Ghana (according to the results, mostly Ghana), is that my dad was racist. He would be absolutely appalled at this finding.

Because somehow, in his mind, in his family's minds, being related to Native Americans was preferable to being related to a Black person. Yeah, I don't get it either, they were/are both treated pretty horribly.


This connection would be, if I understand how it works correctly, as far back as between my 3rd and 6th great grandparents. That's nearly 200 pairs of grandparents I'd have to research to try to find the connection. Now, granted, I can go back that far on both parental lines, and I do have evidence of slave owning ancestors. Unfortunately, that evidence is on my *maternal* line. So further research on the paternal line needs to be done, especially the Strattons, Riddles and Gumaers.

Not because I'd like to be able to claim to be Black, mind- I'm not, most definitely. But because I'd like to know who, where and what happened to them in the generations since. I'd like to know their names, as I do on my maternal line.

I am rather surprised the Russian eethnicity isn't higher, considering my maternal grandmother's line is almost pure Polish through her paternal line (the range does contain Poland, and it is highest concentrated in and around Poland). I guess that's where the Germanic ethnicity comes from maybe, though that said mostly Swizterland and Austria(not surprising that there's no real Italian, though I do have Italian ancestors from Northern Italy, during periods when it was considered part of Austria.)

I am also amused that I'm more Scottish than Irish. And the Sweden and Denmark... no clue where that comes from. So little French though- everything I have from my dad's line pointed to French. Though, given that many were Huguenots, it's entirely possible they were transplanted English to France.

Overall, very interesting. And I have a few things to research more on now.



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