The Brown Mountain Lights

A true ghost story is found in the hills of Burke County, NC, where the eerie Brown Mountain Lights dance along the ridgeline of a low-slung mountain in the famous Linville Gorge wilderness. On clear, moonless nights, especially in March and October, observers see orbs of light rise from the mountaintop and dance along the ridge before rising and fading into the air. The lights are of various colors, and some even change shades while they are in view.

Brown Mountain is rather nondescript. It rises 2,600 feet at the edge of the Blue Ridge Escarpment and is a long, flat ridge with few distinguishing marks. But when the sun goes down, all eyes nearby turn to its summit hoping for a glimpse of the legendary lights.

To continue reading: Click Here.

Note: Both today's and yesterday's blog entries come from Dave Tabler's always-recommended Appalachian History blog,

The Story of the Wampus Cat

In Missouri they call it a Gallywampus; in Arkansas it’s the Whistling Wampus; in Appalachia it’s the just a plain old Wampus (or Wampas) cat. A half-dog, half-cat creature that can run erect or on all fours, it’s rumored to be seen just after dark or right before dawn all throughout the Appalachians. But that’s about all everyone agrees on. In non-Native American cultures it’s a howling, evil creature, with yellow eyes that can supposedly pierce the hearts and souls of those unfortunate enough to cross its path, driving them to the edge of sanity.

Cherokee folklore, which is filled with tales of evil spirits lurking in the deep, dark forests that surrounded their villages, offers a different view of the Wampas cat.

To continue reading: Click Here.

Note: I can remember my grandfather in Arkansas talking about wampus cats (the article above not withstanding, he did not call it a whistling wampus).

Alexander Goins

Alexander Goins was the subject of a ballad written about 1844 by Gabriel Church of Wise County, according to Blue Ridge Institute who displayed the ballad on its website.

Alexander Goins, an itinerant peddler who frequented the area of Big Stone Gap, was killed in 1844 by thieves in Wise County [then Lee County]. Goins was ambushed by George Hall and his band of renegades, but he escaped to the house of Eli Boggs. Unfortunately for Goins, Boggs was in collusion with Hall. Offering to show Goins another route out of the area, Boggs led Goins into a trap, where Hall's men were hiding, and Goins was shot and killed.

V. N. "Bud" Phillips of Bristol, Virginia, a great-great grandson of Eli Boggs, wrote in June 1994 that Alexander Goins was buried on the Boggs farm located near Stonega, Virginia. He mentioned that he had searched for the grave, but was uncertain that he had found it.

John Andrew Boggs wrote February 17, 2000:

“The Virgil L. Patterson book notes that Eli was born in 1781 and died August 8, 1869 at the age of 81 years. He shows Eli living first at the mouth of Calhoun Creek in Wise County, Virginia. Then later he moved to the headwaters of the Cumberland River in Kentucky, settling on the mountain above the mouth of Franks Creek.

Jack D. Brummett wrote: ‘Eli Boggs moved across the mountain from the area where his father settled in Big Stone Gap, Virginia to near Eolia, in Letcher County, Kentucky.’

Virgil L. Patterson, compiler of the ‘Boggs Family History’ and organizer of Boggs Family Association, had this to say about Eli:

‘In his old days he was partially paralyzed and would sit on his front porch reading a large family Bible and singing Baptist hymns. He would give good advice to the young people gathered around. He died the day of the 'great sun eclipse' and was buried in the old Boggs Cemetery on top of the mountain above Eolia.

Tradition has it that Eli, while living in Wise County, was implicated in the murder of Alexander Goins, a man of the Melungeon people of southwest Virginia and east Tennessee. The murder supposedly took place on a ridge of Nine Mile Spur of Black Mountain known as Goins Ridge and about 300 yards northwest from where Mud Lick Creek empties into Callahan Creek.

There are two versions of the killing, one handed down by the Maggard family who has Boggs ancestry and one by the Church family, with Goins connections. The Maggard version is that Goins was a horse stealer and a bad man in every respect. The late John P. Craft, a respected citizen of Wise County, says Goins stopped overnight with Craft’s grandfather Maggard on Cumberland River the night before he was killed.

When Goins was getting ready to leave the next morning, he pulled down a fine deerskin from the wall, and without as much as 'by your leave' cut the skin into strips which he hung on his saddle horn and rode away. Maggard knew his reputation as a killer and let him go in peace. Mr. Craft believed Eli Boggs and his neighbors did kill Goins, but that they did it because he had previously stolen their stock and not for his money.

The Church family version is that Alexander Goins was a respectable trader dealing in fine horses which he drove from Kentucky to South Carolina to sell. On one of his trips, as he was returning home, he was ambushed for his money on Callahan Creek, near the present mining town of Stonega, Virginia.

He escaped the ambush and traveled down the stream to the home of Eli Boggs, where he had stayed on other trips through the country. Boggs was a member of the ambushing party, and the next morning he offered to show Goins a near way up the Nine Mile Spur. The robbers waited at the spot where the trails crossed.

As Goins approached, they shot him and he fell dead from his saddle near the mouth of Mud Lick Creek. No one was ever legally charged with Goin's murder. The old Boggs Cemetery referred to by Virgil is actually the Rice-Collier Cemetery and is located on the Scotia Mine property in Eolia.

Eli's headstone was erected by Dr. James Preston Boggs, and inscribed there is the statement that James L. Boggs was born in Ireland. Much of the data above appears in the Emory L Hamilton Manuscript as well.”

Another version of the incident, according to Blue Ridge Institute is that Goins himself was an evil man and was shot by defrauded settlers.

For another take on this story and the lyrics of the "Poor Goins" ballad: Click Here.

AfriGeneas

African Ancestored Genealogy

AfriGeneas is a site devoted to African American genealogy, to researching African Ancestry in the Americas in particular and to genealogical research and resources in general. It is also an African Ancestry research community featuring the AfriGeneas mail list, the AfriGeneas message boards and daily and weekly genealogy chats.

To visit this award-winning site: Click Here.

Free African Americans

Of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina
Maryland and Delaware

By Paul Heinegg

The history of the free African American community as told through the family history of most African Americans who were free in the Southeast during the colonial period

Winner: The American Society of Genealogists' Donald Lines Jacobus Award

Winner: The North Carolina Genealogical Society Award of Excellence in Publishing

Two books you can read on-line containing about 2,000 pages of family histories based on all colonial court order and minute books on microfilm at the state archives of Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina and Delaware (over 1000 volumes), 1790-1810 census records, tax lists, wills, deeds, free Negro registers, marriage bonds, parish registers, Revolutionary War pension files, etc. There are also another 5,000 pages of abstracted colonial tax lists, Virginia personal property tax lists, census records, etc., under "Colonial Tax Lists..."

To explore this extensive and important research: Click Here.

For more on Paul Heinegg and his work: Click Here.

Washington County, Virginia Notes

Washington County was organized in 1776-77 with land taken from Montgomery County and Fincastle County.

On December 9, 1785, 307 men of Washington County signed a petition addressed to the Virginia House of Burgesses reqesting the formation of a new county from the western area of Washington County. The petition suggested a line be "fixed along Clinch Mountain and Montgomery line to the Carolina line" to separate them from Washington County. These inhabitants include those in settlements of Clinch River, Mocason Creek, Powells Valley, north branch of Holstein River, and "others." Russell County, Virginia was created in that year. No Gowens [or spelling variations] appeared on the petition.

The list of petitioners, transcribed by Rhonda S. Robertson was published in "The Southwest Virginian," Vol. 1, No. 3 in Wise, Virginia:

“H. SMITH, David WARD, Alexr. Barnett, Andw. COWAN, Sam'l ROBINSON, Charles BICKLEY, James LEITH, James BUSH, James WHARTON, David COX, Ben GRAVES, John McFERRAN, Moses DAMRON, Lazarus DAMRON, John DAMRON, Edw. STAPLETON, Isaiah STILLS, James OSBURN, James McKENNEY, Wm. BOWLAND, Abrm. HAYTER, Jos. CARTER, James GIBSON, John MCCULOCK, Thomas PRICE, Jr., James HARRIS, John BAKER, Joel GALLAHER, Thos. PRATER, Wm. GILMORE, Charles HAYS, Wm. VAUGHN, Wm. SMITH, Shadrick MONTZ, Edward SMOTE, James ALLEY, Sr., James ALLEY, Jr, Samuel ALLEY, Peter ALLEY, John ALLEY, Hosea ALLEY, David ALLEY, Patrick PORTER

Saml. PORTER, John PORTER, Richd. PORTER, John MONTGOMERY, Stephen OSBURN, Jeremiah HERRIL, Christopher COOPER, Sammuel STALLARD, Alexr. RITCHIE, Thos. CARTER, John CARTER, Norris CARTER, John CARTER, Jr, Daniel YOUNG, Ambrose FLETCHER, Richard FLETCHER, Jos. BLACKMORE, Wm. Cen. DUNCAN, Alexr. RITCHIE, Jr, Wm. McDUEL, Hamelton CROCKETT, Jos. BLACKMORE, Townsend DUNCAN, Namrod HADDON, James DUNCAN, Peter NICHOLSON, Benj. NICHOLSON, Alexr. CROCKETT, Edwd. YOUNG, John WRIGHT, John JACKSON, James ELKINS, Drury ELKINS, James JONES, David MUSICK, Electius MUSICK, Henry SKAGGS, David SKAGGS, Simon COCKRELL, Henry DICKSSON, Jr, John KINKEAD, Arthur BOWEN, Wm. HAMOND, Robert BENHER, Archalus BREMLY, Jonathan CUNNINGHAM.

Wm. GILMORE, Charles HAYS, Wm. SMITH, Jonathan LANGDON, Henry DICKINSON, Edmund PENDLETON, Amos ALLARD, John FRAYOR?, James DAVISSON, Saml. WHITE, Peter MACKINTAVISH, Patrick RIGHLEY, Champ FARIS, Jams. DAVISSON, Wm. DAVISSON, Daniel DAVISSON, John WHITE, Jacob CASSTLES, Jonathan WOODS, James OSBORNE, Joseph CASTLES, Wm. HUSTON, James OVELTON, Zachariah FUGATES, Wm. FUGATE, Coleby FUGATE, Charles DEVER, Samuel HADDON, Siles ENYART, George ROBERTS, John ENYART, Alexr. KIRK, George GIBSON, Adam HOP___, Allen BRAKING?, Edom JONES, Thomas GREEN, John CAMPBELL, David CAIN, Saml. FLEMING, Joseph HENSLEY, John LATHIM, Robt. CARR.

James MONTGOMERY, Robt. LARGE, John CAMPBELL, Jos. BLACK, Henry DICKENSON, James CRAIG, George CLARK, Hugh? BRUCOM?, _____ HENSLEY, Wm. LONG, Thos. BELSHER, Henry MAUK, Wm. PRATER, Jonathan PRATER, Daniel NELSON, Johnson NELSON, Lylis DOLSBERRY, Ramey BATY, Thos. CALDWELL, James WRIGHT, Robert MONTGOMERY, Matthew KINCANNON, Saml VANCE, Aber. DONELSON, John FOWLER, James BRADLEY, John KENNDAY, Wm. NALL, Alexr. MONTGOMERY, John SMITH, Edwd. SMITH, John BOWEN, Henry DAVIS, Saml YOUNG, Josiah FUGATE, James DANIEL, Wm. ONEY, George BELSHER, Nat. KENDRICK, Jesse GRAY, George LARK, Henry HAMLIN.

Will. ROGERS, John SKAGGS, Jesse ELKINS, Archd. PRATER, Solomon SKAGGS, Jeffery HILDRITH, Robt. HIGGANBOTHAM, Adam LARK, John ASBERRY, James BROWN, Wyatt DANIEL, James YOUNG, Samuel VANHOOK, Wm. GARRISON, Shade WHITE, Dudley YOUNG, John GREEN, Isaac BRISTOW, Wm. ASBERRY, James PRATT, Francis BROWNING, Thomas PRICE, Thomas FRANCE, Jecilia PRICE?, James QUILLIN, Thomas LANDRIX, Benjamin JONES, Anyer PRICE, John LEWIS, George HATFIELD, Masheck STACY, Tom STACY, Thos. CONWAY, Moses HIGGONBOTHAM, Jared BOWLAND, George ASBERRY, Henry ASBERRY, John WELLS, Thos. GREEN, Joseph HATFIELD, Enius SMITH, Eli SMITH.

Jno. HATFIELD, George HATFIELD, Evens SMITH, Jr, Thomas CONWAY, John LEWIS, Charles NIEL, Harris WILLSON, Richd WILLSON, Jno. WILLSON, Joseph MEREDITH, Benj. ONEY, Richd ONEY, Jno. DESKINS, James FUGATE, John FULTON, John VANDYETHE, John HEANY, Abrm. MILLARD, Charles RAINY, Mathew RAINY, James ROGERS, Wm. FRANCE, Jesse JACKSON, Jesse VERMILION, John WELLS, James SHEWMAKER, John GIBSON, John SHOEMAKER, George ROBINSON, Wm. HEARELSON, John RANEY, John THOMSON, Abraham CHILDERS, John WELLS, Ritchard FIELDS, Joseph PERRIN, Wm. BRUSTER, Micahel BRUSTER, Thomas TATE, David YOUNG, John THOMPSON, Wm. ELAM.

James LANDRIX, John GIBSON, Wm. PRICE, George PUCKETT, Zachariah KINDERIK, David PREES, Daniel PRICE, Thos. JOHNSTON, Richard PRICE, Alexander SEAL, Henry HAMBLEN, John BRISTER, Michal LORD, Abrm. BEAVERS, Wm. ROBERTSON, Robt. McFARLAND, Absolom ROBERTSON, Jacob ROBERSON, George McCOY, Robt. McCOY, John WAGG, David CALHOOLN, Joseph McFARLAND, Robert MCFARLAND, Jr, John ENGLISH, Robt. CRAIG, Thos. BIRD, Wm. BIRD, Wm. McPIKE, Voluntine CHOAT, Thos. WALLIN, Stephen WALLIN, Robert TATE, Jr, Rober TATE, Sr., Frederick FRILEY, Martin FRILEY, John FRILEY, Wm. OSBORN, Lewis WALTER, Yeah STILS?, Josh WHITELY, Wm. BLANTON, Thos. M. MAHEN, Thos. HOBBS, Ephraim HATFIELD, Zachariah PRICE, Isaac ELAM, John COWEN, F. J. COLVILL.

Allden WILLIAMSON, Wm. EVANS, John SHORT, Benj. ALDERSSON, Thos. SHORT, Wm. RUMMEN, John HATFIELD, Christopher HAINS, Wm. THOMPSON, Richd. THOMPSON, Wm. JOHNSON, Edward KELLEY, Joseph KISER, James CRAIG, Elijah SMITH, Wm. EDMISTON, James GILMORE, Jeremiah COLES, Abraham HAYTER, Jr, James MC FARLAND, Soloin LITTEN, James FULLEN, Alexander MCFARLAND, Wm. PREECE, Josel BARKER, Drury PUCKETT, Doles BARGE, Mechel ELLIS, James PRICE, Simeon RICHON?, John BORUM, Saml. RITCHIE, Wm. CRABTREE, John GARRISON, James FRILEY, Calip FRILEY, Wm. FRILEY, Thomas OSBORN, Edward STAPLETON, Wm. DORTEN, John TATE, Edward GIVENS, Richd. HENDERSON, Jeremiah PUCKETT, Jas. JACKSON, Meshack STACY, Alexr. MARTIN, Wm. GILMORE, And. COLVILL.

Butler Goins, “colored” died May 15, 1889 from flux at age 1 year, according to Washington County Death Records. His parents were Alec Goins & Esther Goins.

Clementine Goins, “colored” died April 1889 from “old age” according to Washington County Death Records. She was 75 years old.

Eliza Goins,”colored” died March 30, 1896 from consumption, according to Washington County Death Records. Her parents were Frank Goins and R. Goins. She was 17 years old.

George W. Goins and Mary C. Goins of Washington County were applicants for Confederate pensions, according to Sheila Steele Hunt, genealogist of Kingsport, Tennessee who compiled “Confederate Pension Applicants of Washington County, Virginia.”

Russill Gowan was appointed, along with John King, William McBroom and Abraham Rice, to appraise the estate of William Cole, deceased August 17, 1779 in Washington County.

Occaneechi-Saponi Descendants in the Texas Community of the North Carolina Piedmont

By Forest Hazel

In the past, archaeological research in eastern North Carolina and Virginia has tended to concentrate on bits and pieces of history, telling only parts of the whole story. Seldom has an effort been made to connect the information gleaned from the ground, revealing a picture of Indian life in the past, with groups of Indian people in the state today. Often this is because of the uncertainty of the actual tribal origins of many of the Indian groups presently living in North Carolina. The Meherrin of Hertford and Bertie counties, for example, are almost certainly a mixture of Nottoway, Chowan, and Coastal Algonquin, as well as Meherrin, ancestry. In many cases, archaeologists have not been aware of the existence of Indian descendants in the areas where archaeological work has been done, or have not taken the time to investigate whether or not a connection exists between the living Indians and the sites being studied.

Map showing selected Native American communities in North Carolina and southern Virginia.

In 1983, when the Research Laboratories of Anthropology at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill began work at the Occaneechi village on the banks of the Eno River near Hillsborough, North Carolina, archaeologists were not aware that there might still be descendants of these villagers living in the area. Yet, within 15 miles of the site are two distinct communities of Indian descendants, both of which conceivably could have had connections with the Occaneechi village. Over the past six years the author has made an in-depth study of the history of one, the Texas community, and a cursory examination of the other, the Burnette's Chapel community. This is a summary of the information dealing with the Texas community (more commonly known as Pleasant Grove). This information strongly suggests that these families were Saponi who did not die off or wander away into oblivion, but who remained in their old homelands. Gradually, they were deprived of their lands and, ultimately, were deprived of their very identity as Indian people.

To continue reading: Click Here.

The Bottle Tree

Are your premises safe against haints, furies and other such ornery spirits? Have you painted your front door blue? Has the neighborhood seen a sudden upsurge of bottles dangling upside down in the trees?

She knew that there could be a spell put in trees, and she was familiar from the time she was born with the way bottle trees kept evil spirits from coming into the house — by luring them inside the colored bottles, where they cannot get out again.

—Livvie, by Eudora Welty

To continue reading about bottles trees on Dave Tabler's ever-excellent Appalachian History blog: Click Here.

Tennessee Civil War Vacations

Join us in commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Civil War. Explore our rich history that tells of the division between Tennessee's Unionists and Confederates that shaped the war experience. Our location, river and rail paths, industries and farmlands all combined to make Tennessee a crucial state for either side. More than 1,462 battles, at least one fought in each of our 95 counties, brought destruction to the landscape.

Yet, out of the ashes of war, Tennesseans black and white built a new society where slavery was abolished and citizenship redefined. As such, Congress has designated the state as the Tennessee Civil War National Heritage Area. Tennessee's landscape contains many powerful reminders of the Civil War from battlefields and monuments in places such as Shiloh and Chattanooga, to the sites along the Civil War Trails stretching from Memphis to the Tri-Cities. See the maps of the time, the flags that led the regiments, and the timeline of events that forever changed the physical, social, and economic face of Tennessee.

To explore Tenessee Civil War tourist attractions: Click Here.

Preserving Your Family History Records Digitally

By Gary T. Wright

October 2010

While gathering family history records over the years, you’ve probably been preserving them physically. So why consider preserving them digitally now?

This paper discusses the benefits and challenges of using digital preservation to both augment and enhance the preservation of your family history records. It also explores solutions to the challenges, identifies what types of family history records are suitable for digital preservation, and summarizes what is required to get started archiving digital records.

To read: Click Here.

There is NO UniqueTurkish DNA

By MHS Board Member Janet Crain

It is now quoted widely on the Internet that certain groups (American Indians and Melungeons) in the USA have "Turkish DNA". The article below from PubMed does not bear out that possibility. The suggestion is disingenuous at best.

To read: Click Here.

See also Genetic Origins of the Turkish People: Click Here.

Saponi Town

This web site is for those seeking to research Native American ancestry deriving from the Piedmont of Virginia and North Carolina. These are Siouan people, commonly referred to generically as the Saponi, Tutelo. Occoneechee, Eno, Cheraw. Many families connected to these bloodlines have carried the identification of " Blackfoot ." Virginia and North Carolina, especially Southside Va, has thousands of the descendents of these people. Some of these people are in state recognized tribes but the vast majority of these people are not formally organized in tribes. Also we have found migration trails into all of Appalachia -- West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee; on into Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa. Some are even known to have settled in Alberta, Canada. There are historical records and family genealogies involving New York, while the historical records notes the main body, referred to at that point as Tutelo, being adopted into the Six Nations in Ontario. It is believed that many descendants survive Tutelo adoptees into some of those Six Nations. There are also migration patterns into South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Texas.

To visit Saponi Town: Click Here.

The Saponi Town web site contains a section called "Appalachian Mountain Families" originally created and maintained by the late Melungeon researcher Brenda Collins Dillon.

To go to it directly: Click Here.

Note: Dr. Richard Carlson, the subject of a recent MHS Blog entry, in his dissertation, showed a link between the Saponi and some Melungeon families. For more information: Click Here.

A Glossary of Genealogical Terms

And Other Goodies

For a glossary of genealogical terms: Click Here.

For a list of common and not so common abbreviations: Click Here.

For a list of useful Latin words and phrases: Click Here.

For a glossary of medical terms useful in genealogy: Click Here.

For a list of notable US epidemics: Click Here.

For a glossary of bygone occupation names: Click Here.

The Revolution in Virginia

By H. J. Eckenrode, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Economics and History, In Richmond College

Published by Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston and New York, 1916

THE American Revolution was a movement with two distinct aspects. On one side it was marked by the union of hitherto independent communities and the beginning of common institutions and of a common life. The other phase witnessed the progress of the revolt within the colonies themselves and the creation of their individual governments. The method of historians in treating of the Revolution generally has been to take the most striking incidents in the history of the colonies in the years immediately preceding 1776 and join them to an account of the workings of the Continental Congress and the campaigns of the Continental army. The internal growth of the newmade States is almost entirely ignored, probably because in some instances it is not well known. But in this stage of American history, when the national life was so feeble, the progress of events in Massachusetts and Virginia was more important than the deliberations of Congress. No adequate account has been given of the spiritual change which came over Massachusetts and Virginia in the Revolutionary epoch and which had such great influence on the development of the nation. Because the early history of the individual States has not been well worked out, there are certain hiatuses in our histories, such, for instance, as the lack of an account of the origin of the Democratic Party. Historians give us the impression that it sprang full-grown from the head of Jefferson, that he was its creator. But the Democratic Party had come into existence in an undefined way before the great political genius of Jefferson laid hold of it and moulded it to his purposes. Jefferson was a Virginian and the Democratic Party as a political movement with real purposes was likewise a Virginia product; the story of its rise is one of the most interesting chapters of Revolutionary history.

To continue reading: Click Here.

Note: This link takes you to the work's table of contents listing its twelve chapters. Each chapter must be opened separately, either in separate tabs or using your browser's back button because the chapters are not linked together.

Is Knoxville Appalachian?

And what does it mean to be "Appalachian" in the first place?

How you answer reveals more than you might think.

By Frank N. Carlson

March 10, 2010

A little more than a year ago, ABC’s long-running newsmagazine 20/20 aired a documentary called A Hidden America: Children of the Mountains.

Hosted by Diane Sawyer, a native of Glasgow, Ky., the show focused on a collection of impoverished communities in Central Appalachia, each suffering from one or more particularly deplorable circumstances: rampant methamphetamine and prescription drug addiction; teenage pregnancies the result of incest, because, as one shotgun-wielding young man put it, “the closer the kin, the deeper in”; chronic toothlessness, brought on by poor dental care and too many soft drinks (at one point a man poured Pepsi into his two-year-old niece’s sippy cup); and an overall sense of grinding poverty that seemed as intractable as it was apparent.

To much of the nation and many Knoxvillians, this represents one version of Appalachia.

The other—the one that celebrates Appalachians as independent, resourceful frontiersmen, deeply connected to the land in a way we modern city dwellers aren’t and perhaps never were—is far more palatable and accessible. Drive 20 miles north from Knoxville to the Museum of Appalachia, just off I-75, and it’s there seven days a week for anyone with $15 and a passing interest in handicrafts, wood cabins, and other icons of America’s pioneer days.

To continue reading: Click Here.

The Battle of Jonesville

Also Known as the Frozen Fight

The year of 1864 was in its infancy being only three days old. A blanket of wintry weather covered the area with a frozen glaze and the hearts of men were frozen by the war as well as the cold. War at any time is a terribly hard experience but to fight in the extremely freezing weather during January of 1864 is inconceivable. During the Civil War there were no special winter clothing such as Gore-Tex lined coats or boots. Neither were there any waterproof gloves or thermal knit underwear. Both armies were usually scantily clothed with the boys in blue slightly better off than their brothers in gray. Rubber coated blankets were a luxury very few soldiers had and good boots even less available. Horror stories of soldiers marching without shoes or socks were common among the whisperers of tales. Winter was dreaded and as the temperature fell below the 0 mark to 6 below all became chilled to the bone. With all that suffering came the added worry that someone was trying to kill you. Unfortunately for some of the troops in the Powell River Valley, a fierce frozen fight was in store for them. The battle would be fought on one of the coldest January mornings of the war. On January 3, 1864, a battle in Jonesville, Virginia would be remembered by the men who fought there as The Frozen Fight.

Jonesville is a small town located in the Powell River Valley in Lee County, Virginia. The valley is known for its fertile and productive fields. Unfortunately for the farmers and citizens in this area, both union and confederate armies were well aware of that fact. Both would need to forage the area to maintain the existence of their men, as supplies were hard to transport into the area. The area was totally enclosed on the north and south by mountain ranges. Jonesville was uniquely located. It was less than four miles south of Harlan County, Kentucky and six miles north of Hancock County, Tennessee. The Union stronghold of Cumberland Gap and Tazewell, Tennessee was not very far to the west. The Confederate stronghold of Rogersville, Tennessee was just to the south of the sprawling little town. The roads to all of these areas connected at Jonesville, such as spokes of a wheel with the town being the hub. There exists a similarity to Gettysburg in terms of both being the hub of action and that destiny would meet both parties when both parties found each other at that location.

To continue reading: Click Here.

World Clock 2010

It isn't exactly genealogy but there is much tangentially related information, and a much food for thought, in the many statistical displays presented by this clock.

To view: Click Here.

Harlan County Research

This Harlan County, Kentucky genealogy and history web site on Rootsweb has expanded considerably since the last time I checked it.

To visit: Click Here.

For the Harland County USGenWeb site: Click Here.

Surviving Indian Groups of the Eastern United States

By William Harlen Gilbert, Jr.

Library of Congress, Washington, DC

From the Smithsonian Report for 1948, pages 407-438

Introduction

The following paper was prepared for the purpose of indicating the extent to which Indian blood still remains noticeable in our eastern States population in spite of the depletions arising from over 300 years of war, invasions by disease and white men from Europe and black men from Africa. Any attempt to estimate the total amount of this Indian and mixed population must be based on an arbitrary classification as mixed-bloods as Indians who may frequently be more white or Negro in appearance. Anywhere from 75,000 to 100,000 persons may be included in the groups described in the following pages.

To read this paper in its entirety: Click Here.

Note: This paper was originally put online by Melungeon descendant Don Collins.

A Military Journal During the American Revolutionary War From 1775 to 1783"

By James Thatcher, MD

Published in 1823

"A Military Journal during the American Revolutionary War, from 1775 to 1783, describing Interesting Events and Transactions of this period, with numerous Historical Facts and Anecdotes, from the original Manuscript. To which is added, an Appendix, containing Biographical Sketches of several General Officers. By James Thacher, M. D. late Surgeon in the American army." As Americans we hail with delight any attempt to rescue from oblivion the words or actions of those whose names we have been taught to revere."

To read this lengthy, 620 page journal in its entirety online, or download it in a variety of formats: Click Here.

Colonial Naming Patterns

"The trend of History is often reflected in the very names borne by the men and women who played a part in it", according to Donald Lines Jacobus, often considered the father of American genealogy.

The history of given (first) names in early America offers a glimpse at our forebears and their customs, as well as clues to their origins.

New England's first settlers bore names of three different types: those of English origin, those of Hebrew derivation, and those intended to have a moral significance.

Old English names, connected with the Church of England, were not often favored by the Puritans. Puritans named their children somewhat differently than other English-speaking settlers, preferring Biblical names. Evidently, some parents shut their eyes, opened the Bible, and pointed to a word at random--what else could account for a child being named Notwithstanding or Maybe?

The early Massachusetts Brewster family had two sons, Love and Wrestling, and two daughters named Patience and Fear. The names Humility, Desire, Hate-evil, and Faint-not also appeared in the region.

To continue reading: Click Here.

Oven Fork Baptist Church

From the September 1993 Issue of the Letcher Heritage News

Oven Fork Church org. 1820 Harlan [now Letcher] Co., KY.

One hundred sixty eight plus years ago, a small band of Baptists who had settled in the headwaters of the Cumberland River met at the home of Mathias Kelly and there organized themselves into a church. It took the name of Oven Fork from the nearby Oven Fork of the Poor Fork of the Cumberland River.

These were settlers who had built cabins, cleared land had come to stay. Some of these families had come from North Carolina where they had been members of churches established under the preaching of Daniel Marshall, Shubal Stearns, John Garrad and others who had come from the Keocton and Philadelphia Associations. Others came from the Holstein River and Lee County, Virginia. Those from the Holstein River knew John Flannery as a visiting minister and he was also well known by the people from Lee County, this is probably the reason he was called the first preacher from Deep Springs Church in Lee County Virginia.

In 1821 Oven Fork lettered the Burning Springs Association. In 1825 it lettered to a new Association, The New Saltlick [Sandlick] Association, which later became the Indian Bottom Association. Though initially organized in what was then Harlan County, this location is now at Mayking in Letcher County, KY.

Minutes of the first meeting of Oven Fork Church

"The Ovenfork members were constituted a church on Oct. 21 1820 by the following persons to wit: Elders John Flannery, William Wells and Daniel Duff. Then the church set before us Brother James Webb for a lay elder, and from examination we received him and then set before us William Caudill and William Pennington for deacons and after the examination we received them and appointed to ordain them tomorrow, Sunday being agreeable to appointment we ordained James Webb, Elder and William Pennington and William Caudill Deacons, and appointed our church to be held at the home of Mathias Kelly on the fourth Saturday in November and the church to be called Oven Fork Church."

The charter members that were constituted were James Webb Elder, William Pennington and William Caudill Deacons, Abigail Pennington, Nancy Caudill and Rebecca Pennington as Deaconesses.

Members: Jeremiah Boling, Zachariah Morgan, Samuel Maggard, David Maggard, Sarah Boling, James Caudill, Davis Fields, Mathias Kelly, Henry Back, Henry Maggard. From the time the church was constituted in 1820 to 1823 the records are indistinct and cannot be read.

Members in 1823: Samuel Back, Elizabeth Back, Mealy Back, Henry Back, Katy Back, John Back, Easter Blair, Jessie Jenkins, Effie Fields, Jennie Fields, William Fields, Benjamin Holbrook, Nancy Holbrook, Rachel Hays, Lisha Day, Elizabeth Pennington, Henry Maggard, Suzanna Maggard, David Maggard, Sarah Maggard, Rebecca Maggard, Rudolph Maggard, John Maggard, Jesse Morgan, Nancy Morgan, Louisa Morgan, Elizabeth Morgan.

Some Clerks of Oven Fork Church have been: James Webb, Nathan Hays, W. R. Collier, John Mullins, John R. Boggs, W. R. Boggs, E. H. Stidham, I. N. Lewis, W. C. Mullins, Silas Fouts, H. L. Raleigh.

The Pastors of Oven Fork Church: James Webb, Elder, 1820; David Maggard, 1832; Samuel Maggard, 1849; Henry Caudill, 1852; John Caudill, 1860; Wilson Church, 1867; Henry Day, 1867; James Maggard, 1867; James Dixon, 1867; David M. Maggard, 1872; Elija Creech, 1874; Ira Hall, 1880; Charles Blair, 1883; William R. Boggs, 1897; Sam Boggs, 1914. Bill Sparks, 1990.

Rules and Regulations of Ovenfork Baptist Church:
1. No school shall be kept in the meeting house.
2. Don't get drunk or play cards.
3. You shall be cited for non-attendance, Excluted for 2nd offense.
4. Any man who sayeth that he will ,doeth it not to be excluded.
5. Hard speeches against the church or members, not to be permitted.
6. July 1838, we shall take up foot washing, as a practice.
7. Offense against the church is called a stumble, they may be taken up.
8. No horse racing or shooting matches permitted.
9. Frolics not permitted in the home of members of the church.
10. Pitching quoits or flipping dollars must be avoided.

Notes of interest:

John Bach and his wife moved to Quicksand, KY, Sept 1836.
David Maggard Ordained to preach 10 October 1841.
Elizabeth Bach took her letter back to Oven Fork Sept 1841.
John Bach born 19 November 17 1774 son of Henry Bach Sr. came from Madison County Virginia.
Catherine (Kathy) Robinson born 7 April 1780, Wife of John Bach.
Joseph Bach born 7 March 1802 son of John and Kathy Bach.
Permilia (Mealy) Hogg born 5 March 1803, daughter of Stephen Hogg wife of Joseph Bach.
Henry Bach born 6 February 1785 son of Henry Bach Sr. came from Madison County Virginia.
Susanna Maggard born 2 May 1798 daughter of Samuel Maggard married Henry Bach Jr.
William Caudill was the son of the pioneer James (Jimmie) Caudill.
Nancy Craft married William Caudill, Deacon of Oven Fork.
Abigail Caudill daughter of James Caudill, married William Pennington who was Deacon of Oven Fork.
Rebecca Robinson was the wife of Samuel Maggard.
Easter Robinson was the wife of Charles Blair Sr.
Catherine Robinson Bach, Rebecca Robinson Maggard and Easter Robinson Blair, were all sisters & daughters of Benjamin and Celia Robertson.
Oven Fork members who moved to Quicksand, Brethitt Co, KY, to form the Quicksand Baptist church: Joseph Bach Sr.and his wife Permelia Hogg Bach.

Note: A great many of those named above are my ancestors or other relatives! However, they were not Melungeons.

Oven Fork Mercantile

Come and Set a Spell!

Nestled between Pine and Big Black Mountains, the two highest ranges in the state, Oven Fork was named for brick ovens placed on the banks of the Poor Fork of the Cumberland River.

In 1930, the place now known as the Mercantile was a grocery store and gas station. In 1945, one side of the room became the Oven Fork Post Office. It served the community as a post office until 1988. The old building became the Oven Fork Mercantile in 1991.

Practicing the old principles of business through trade (buying and selling), barter and consignment, the mercantile features local art, books, music, crafts, antiques and homemade candies. It is located on US119.

8494 U.S. 119S, Oven Fork, KY 40861
Phone: (606) 633-8909

For pictures from the Mercantile: Click Here.

Book Review: The Genetic Strand - Exploring a Family History through DNA.

I've been waiting for over a year now for the latest book by Edward Ball, author of the best-selling Slaves in the Family, a book I much admired. I had participated in a webinar of sorts last year when he spoke of his latest project -- using genetic genealogy to explore his roots. The trigger for this exploration intrigued me -- his discovery of 9 old hair samples from his family. I was curious about this since it's fairly well known that he'd only be able to test for mtDNA on these samples, and that the odds of success were far from guaranteed. In fact, I wrote about this in July 2006.

So now [2007] the book is out: The Genetic Strand - Exploring a Family History through DNA. What surprised me was the randomness of his genetic journey. He avoided all the major genetic genealogy companies and only took a test or two from companies like DNAPrint Genomics, Trace Genetics and African Ancestry. He also almost willfully ignored common knowledge about genetic genealogy, taking a meandering course of testing that leaves one sort of baffled.

To continue reading this insightful review: Click Here.

Note: Among other things, the book under review illustrates that stereotypes concerning genealogy and those of us who pursue it die hard.

Who's Your People?

Cumulative identity among the Salyersville Indian population

Of Kentucky's Appalachia and the Midwest Muckfields, 1677--2000

By Carlson, Richard Allen Carlson, Jr., Ph.D.

Abstract

The Salyersville Indian Population is a composite of Cherokee, Saponi and "Old Virginia" Indian families that consolidated in the late colonial period to form a distinct Appalachian Indian population. The families have preserved their identity as an Indian people ever since. An analysis of this identity through time shows that Salyersville Indian identity is the product of cumulative historical actions guided by specific sociocultural processes that subvert notions regarding race, class, ethnicity, religiosity, or political affiliation. In this case, the effective operational definition of Indian identity is based on family relations that provide kinship links, social integration, cooperative efforts, sources of knowledge and emotional support. Highlighting the functional aspects of kin arrangements--articulated through and supported by interrelated family groups--over time reveals that the economic and social cooperation of kin works to maintain the size and strength of the families. The operationalization of kinship acts to focus Salyersville Indian identity on a definition of "kin" which subsumes various attitudes about race and ethnicity that are encountered at specific times and under specific circumstances. By assigning kinship a higher priority than relations based upon religious, class or political affiliation, the Salyersville Indians have managed to keep their kin affiliations and thus their Indian identity, from being obscured over time. Family is the vehicle by which this cumulative identity as "Indian" has been maintained. That is because kinship is the only constant serving to define and maintain Salyersville Indian identity through time and space.

Table of Contents:

Chapter 1: The Saponi and Their Relations
Chapter 2: The Saponi Diaspora and the Christian Band of Saponi
Chapter 3: Family Accommodations from Flatt River to New River
Chapter 4: From New River to Stone Mountain, Greasy Rock and the Cumberland Gap
Chapter 5: Melungeon Indians and an Interloper at Vardy Springs
Chapter 6: Finding Contentment in Kentucky
Chapter 7: Burning Springs
Chapter 8: Politics, Paupers,and Civilized (self supporting) Indians
Chapter 9: Salyersville Indians, Eastern Cherokee and the US Court of Claims
Chapter 10: Enter the Melungeon Hunter;Greasy Rock, Stone Mountain and Salyersville Indian Communities
Chapter 11: Struggles with God, Coal, and Whiskey
Chapter 12: Within and Beyond Mountain Divides
Chapter 13: Tell them on the Mountain
Chapter 14: New Day Rising
Chapter 15:Salyersville Indians and Their Relations Today

Unfortunately, this dissertation is not available online; however, it may be purchased online and downloaded in PDF format for $42.00.

If interested: Click Here.

Note: In this 2003 dissertation, Dr. Carlson links the Saponi, and the Salyersville Indians, to some Melungeon families.

Liljenquist Family Collection of Civil War Portraits

At the Library of Congress

Close to 700 ambrotype and tintype photographs highlight both Union and Confederate soldiers during the American Civil War. The Liljenquist Family sought out high quality images to represent the impact of the war, especially the young enlisted men. The photographs often show hats, firearms, canteens, musical instruments, painted backdrops, and other details that enhance the research value of the collection

Among the rarest images are African Americans in uniform, sailors, a Lincoln campaign button, and portraits of soldiers with their wives and children. A few personal stories survived in notes pinned to the photo cases, but most of the people and photographers are unidentified. Tom Liljenquist donated the entire collection to the Library in 2010. An exhibition of the collection will commemorate the sesquicentennial of the American Civil War in April 2011.

To view many of these photographs online: Click Here.

Digital Library on American Slavery

Underwritten by a "We the People" grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, The Digital Library on American Slavery is a cooperative venture between the Race and Slavery Petitions Project and the Electronic Resources and Information Technology Department of University Libraries at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro. The Digital Library offers a searchable database of detailed personal information about slaves, slaveholders, and free people of color. Designed as a tool for scholars, historians, teachers, students, genealogists, and interested citizens, the site provides access to information gathered and analyzed over an eighteen-year period from petitions to southern legislatures and country courts filed between 1775 and 1867 in the fifteen slaveholding states in the United States and the District of Columbia.

To visit the library: Click Here.

Note: Contrary to the above, as of the Revolutionary War all US states had slavery, with the Northern states gradually abolishing slavery one by one in the years following the Revolution, with New Jersey at the time of the Civil War still having a handful of elderly slaves deemed too old to be emancipated. And that is to say nothing of Northern involvement in the international slave trade and Northern consumption of slave-produced cotton and other products. Slavery was a national sin, not a regional one as it is almost always portrayed as having been.

Cumberland Gap Yahoo Group

For those interested in the general history of the Cumberland Gap area and the history of families in the counties surrounding the Cumberland Gap in northeast Tennessee (Claiborne, Hawkins and Hancock), southeast Kentucky (Bell and Harlan) and southwest Virginia (Lee, Scott and Russell), or any family known to be in the general geography of East Tennessee, Southwest Virginia or Southeast Kentucky before 1820.

In particular we are focused on the history of population settlement and historic events which affect families and migration patterns.

We use genealogy and the comparison of DNA results in order to find those to whom we are related in order that we may find our common heritage. Feel free to join the DNA projects at www.familytreedna.com/public/CumberlandGap-YDNA (males only) or www.familytreedna.com/public/Cumberlandgap-mtdna (male and female testing for maternal line) if your families live or lived in this area.

This forum is for the friendly discussion and exchange of information relative to the history of the area and/or the area's families.

To go to the group's Yahoo page: Click Here.

Note: Membership approval by the group's moderators is required.

The Cumberland Mountain Fall Festival

Located in Middlesboro, Kentucky, not for from the Cumberland Gap, the Cumberland Mountain Fall Festival is this weekend.

For more information: Click Here.

Sneedville Fall Festival

The 34th annual Hancock County Fall Festival in Sneedville, Tennessee is today and tomorrow.

For more information: Click Here.

CastleGarden.org

CastleGarden.org is an educational project of The Battery Conservancy. This free site offers access to an extraordinary database of information on 11 million immigrants from 1820 through 1892, the year Ellis Island opened. Over 100 million Americans can trace their ancestors to this early immigration period.

Castle Garden, today known as Castle Clinton National Monument, is the major landmark within The Battery, the 25 acre waterfront park at the tip of Manhattan. From 1855 to 1890, the Castle was America's first official immigration center, a pioneering collaboration of New York State and New York City.

CastleGarden.org is an invaluable resource for educators, scholars, students, family historians, and the interested public. Currently the site hosts 11 million records, and support is needed to complete the complete digitization of the original ship manifests.

To visit: Click Here.