Delights at Dinner with the Dead

For a closet taphophile, I somehow spent several years missing the Dinner with the Dead events that have taken place in the surrounding areas. Fortunately, the Lexington History Museum resurrected the event this past weekend, long dead since 2009.

The event this Saturday was quite a novelty on many fronts. First, as a cemetery that is only open by appointment, just getting in was delight numero uno. From that point onward, I was just taking it all in: the stones, the falling leaves, the side events, the food, and the entertainment.

As a cemetery, the Old Episcopal Burying Ground is old for the area, 1832, but too young to be in this state. The ravages of time have not been kind. Most of the stones are either in pieces lying along the edge of the property, or weathered away, never to be read again. This fact made the scavenger hunt a tad disconcerting, but there were pockets of stones in decent enough shape to be read for the activity.

Personally, I found the size of the cemetery perfect for this type of event. It was small, yet not too small. There was plenty of acreage for folks to wander around at leisure, with plenty of space. Kids were running around, having fun, and groups had ample time to see all the stones available without getting overly tired.

Speaking of kids, there were several small activities to keep them engaged: besides the scavenger hunt, there was an eyeball (ping-pong) toss, and a cauldron-like musical walk that resulted in prizes based on the image each child stopped on....again, with plenty of room.

Probably the only awkward part of exploring was the abundance of walnuts and hedge apples on the ground. This is something one cannot control, but I found myself watching every step carefully, simply because I didn't want a twisted ankle. It made me think about liability with this type of event - should that be a concern, or am I over thinking this?

The dinner included a rather long wait due to each person being served at a time, but the choices were nice, yet simple: Pizza, mac and cheese varieties, jambalaya, chips, and a tiny cupcake dessert. As everyone was eating, the character interpretations got underway. One that was particularly educational was the Reverend London Ferrell. As the only African American buried in this cemetery, his story of pre-Civil War popularity among the white population was fascinating. He reminded everyone that he had the second largest funeral in Lexington, only Henry Clay's was larger.

It was a cloudy, and slightly drizzly evening, but that fit the somber nature of this cemetery, begun as a result of cholera that ravaged the area in the 1830s. As I took in the names and stories with reverence, the families and young people were bringing life back to the space. Ironically, the crowd had VERY few gray hairs....most were college students, young families with children, or middle-aged professionals. The families were also culturally/ethnically diverse which was representative of the urban population, but perhaps, also a reflection of the event itself. Many other cultures enjoy celebrating the dead, and others enjoy the fright of the season. Either way, the life celebrated was quite a treat - I'm sure the dead would have approved!

NGS Pre-Conference Sessions

The NGS Conference pre-sessions are well worth an extra day or two. As a brief re-cap of the activities I attended on Tuesday, I will highlight some tidbits learned.

#LibrariansDay

This yearly staple for librarians who handle genealogical collections was held in the gorgeous Library of Virginia. Our opening session featured Leslie Anderson from the Alexandria Library as she covered their transcription project: Virginia Slave Births Index, 1853-1862. The project was originally the child of the WPA back in the 1930s. However, the microfilm copies were atrocious and needed to be re-processed. As a labor of love, they re-transcribed the records and have published them in a book available throughHeritageBooks.com

We were also treated to sessions about re-thinking the contents of your genealogy vertical files, Family Search Wiki, Proquest products, and an exploration of the Civile War Legacy Project based out of the Library of Virginia. This project is focused on digitizing personal Civil War collections throughout the state. If you live in Virginia, be on the look out for a scanning date in your area! They are bringing their digitization equipment to a town near you!

Blogger Dinner Presented by Family Search:

At the NGS blogger dinner last night, Family Search let us in on a few new developments.

They have added more content to their Civil War records to their collections.

Their indexing software is moving to a browser based model, which means you will no longer have to download software in order to participate in indexing projects. 

Since mobile applications are evermore important to users, FS is developing more in-depth mobile apps for both platforms. If you would like to test their new mobile apps, just send your name and operating system (iOS or Android) to: fs-mobile@familysearch.org

The obituary indexing project is their biggest project at present. On July 21-22, they will be hosting another crowd sourcing indexing event to get 20,000 users indexing during a 24 hour period. Be on the look out for announcements about that upcoming fun.

The obituary indexing project is extremely large....when finished, they will be four times as large as the 1940 census! 

That's it for the moment...more to come!

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Hard Diversity Questions

Reader Warning: The following post may contain controversial thought processes. I am merely human, and trying to work through my own mental baggage when it comes to diversity in genealogy. After a little research, I am still not certain how to continue this topic appropriately: African American Research, People of Color Research, Black History....I beg forgiveness if I offend anyone. However, dialogue is a necessary step in the path to change.

In the past, I have written about serendipity in genealogy, and for some reason, the past few weeks have bombarded me with serendipitous moments. I would almost call it an onslaught. When one specific issue keeps coming at me without my seeking it out, I pay close attention.

I have always been a little fascinated by African American history. Not to the point of digging much on my own, but if a story or article presented itself, I read it....I cannot explain the draw, but it's been there. Growing up in Ohio, with family from both sides of the river, I had one foot in the north, and one in the south. As a researcher, I have not found slave owners in my family, but that is only a matter of generational reach. For those ancestors in the south without slaves, they were simply too poor to own any. When the Civil War came about, they took up arms to readily fight for the Confederacy. I am certain it is only a matter of time before I encounter enslaved individuals in my family. My point here, is that I have not had a personal family draw to this issue...the personal connection lies in the troubling existence of racism in my family on subtle, insidious levels. As with many northern families who smugly think they are not affected by racism, cue bubble and pin. Pop!

There is much more to that personal connection, but I'll leave all of that for another time. Today I just want to speak to the issue of AA, POC, BH research in the genealogy field. Let me outline some of the serendipitous moments that have hit me upside the head lately:

1. At the end of March, genealogist Valerie Hughes posted a couple of blog posts about the importance of adding slave records to your family trees. She asked a Facebook audience if this was something people should do...and the response was overwhelmingly positive.

2. Even though I did not have this in my own family to report (yet), I had come across many entries over the years regarding folks of slave descent - in various documents at the Kentucky Historical Society. Every time I encountered one, I always had a moment of excitement, seeing another name, another identity....followed by despair, because I had no earthly clue what to do with this information....and I usually just put the film away. Sigh....this happens more often than I would like to admit.

3. I watched a movie about Holocaust survivors who had lost touch after the War because they thought each other dead. Decades later, when one of them witnessed proof that the other was still alive, she called the Red Cross who accessed his "case file" to see if they should re-open it in the hopes of connecting them back to their family. I was saddened the U.S. had never made this type of effort at the end of slavery, to assist with family members connecting back to each other.

4. Number 2 made me think about Valerie's encouragement, and I began entertaining thoughts about slave mapping. Was it possible to record the name of every slave mentioned in a county's document collection? I was thinking on a county-wide level as a start. Pull every will, record the names mentioned. Pull every court doc, record the names, etc. While I was pretty sure it was possible, what about the white owners? If we recorded every slave named in wills and court docs, would that help with anything? Since white names were also duplicated in counties, wouldn't we need to map the white owners, make profiles of them and then link the recorded names to these profiles? And what if it was due to an estate dispersal? If the slaves were transported across county or state lines, did that remove the trace? My eyes were crossing already.

5. A co-worker had left a book on my desk as a review copy for Kentucky Ancestors...it was a compiled list of slaves mentioned in Kenton County, taken from the court records. OK, proof it is possible, sitting on my desk. Freaky! (I have been aware of other transcription collections produced over the decades, but a fairly comprehensive one plopped on my desk at that moment...caught my attention.)

5. After talking with said co-worker about my latest thoughts, we entertained Valerie's "tree" concept. Despite the complex emotions on both sides, should we as genealogists be pushing the family tree software designers to add a new relationship related to slavery? As we got excited, claiming we were going to change the genealogy world, our boss came in with some reason....how would you categorize this type of "relationship"? Ownership, slave of, enslaved by? Sigh....good point...so, now what? We both decided that just a "note" in the family tree was not enough. We need something more significant...more quantifiable. Still have no solution - ideas?

6. Just in from mowing the lawn Sunday and passing the time while my Dad looked at my heating/cooling system (on the blink again), I picked up the iPad and clicked on Twitter. At that moment, True Lewis had posted a link about an ongoing podcast/live call-in show from AAGSAR (African American Genealogy and Slave Ancestry Research). I re-tweeted it and then tuned in...wow, amazing issues being brought forth about how the genealogy profession treats AA records and research. Also, how engaged are we? How do we actively help families re-connect? As a field, are we diverse? Conclusion, not really, and change is long overdue.

So....what does all of this mean, and what are the next steps?

Questions I have for myself AND the genealogy community:

1. As genealogists, what can we do to help? Even though we all seem to have tons of projects on our plate, I don't believe this is a project issue, but rather a support issue. What changes do we need to make in mindset and attitude to effect lasting change and inclusion across the board?

2. A push for more diversity in the genealogy field is about to take place from the AAGSAR crowd, particularly in the national conference arena. How do we support this? What can we do to make sure this issue comes to the forefront of dialogue?

3. Is some of the diversity vacuum in our field a result of terrible, yet comfortable racist habits, or are they amplified by the silo nature of genealogical research? When we host AA speakers for our genealogy programs, they are more attended by the AA community, and much less attended by our white members....However, this is also true of specific ethnic research. We hosted a speaker with heavy Swedish roots and the numbers were VERY low because many dismissed this as a session that did not apply to their research. It is a natural excuse to not attend one session if you do not feel it will cover your area of research - even though MOST have reported that every session teaches them some methodology that has proven helpful in their own journey. NOT making any excuses, but how to we dig deep into the motivation behind behaviors?

4. As an area of research, I have encountered several labels for African American research...as I mentioned in the intro warning...is there a preferred term I should be using when talking about this branch of research? Looking for all of them in Twitter is enlightening. Would a unified consistency help in this area... not only for discussion but for written works and websites, etc?

5. The goal of AAGSAR is to encourage more sharing of AA stories and research. I love the concept that lurkers are not welcome - you have to PARTICIPATE in order to belong. They ask members to create a  social media account of some kind for the express purpose of sharing their research and family stories - hopefully blogs. As mentioned on the podcast, how to we include, encourage, and promote these blogs throughout the community?

6. OK, recording names of those enslaved....I have seen several attempts from various state or regional organizations. All are wonderful databases. But....if we simply record names without enough context, without the family connections (both white and black) are we keeping the chains of bondage in place? Are we locking the information away? Here's what I mean...how does a researcher access their family roots? Without the traditional paper trail that white families are privileged to have access to, how would slave descendants find their family? Do they go back to the 1870 census, find a location and then try to mine the local records for more clues? Death record clues of birth and parentage? I always teach my session attendees to include the local history in your research to put your family history into context. If slave descendants are not allowed to place their ancestor in family/local context, is it almost a blind, disconnected search? If we pushed for more family context in the family tree software, would it help more families connect to each other? Would that lead to more information, and additional links in the family chain?

7. A few years ago, the African American Genealogy Group of Kentucky got started. The first statewide AA genealogy group in Kentucky. That too was a serendipitous moment. I had gotten up early on a Saturday morning (I don't get up early on my days off EVER if I can help it.) after reading about a lost AA community that was being resurrected in my county by Shirl Marks. I had stumbled upon it in the paper the evening before while out to dinner with the parents. My Dad had picked up the local paper, which he NEVER does. I read the notice about the talk at the local library, and went because it sounded fascinating. The following program was the second meeting of AAGGKY. I met people there that day that I have remained involved with and admire greatly! A few have even become good friends. That day as I volunteered to help them with start-up activities (web site, blog, etc) their President Sharyn Mitchell looked at me and thanked me for my help, and then said "Are you going to be there for us?" For a minute I was confused....I had just volunteered to help....but I quickly understood. Was I there to pay lip service, or was I going to come through with my promises of help? I think that is a question we can ask ourselves. Are we going to pay lip service, or are we ready to change things? I would love to see new chains of friendship and family forged to overcome the ugly chains forged in our history.

One last note about timing and relationships: In Summer 2012, Pam Brinegar wrote an amazing article for the NGS Magazine.1 It was about a female slave owner in Lexington who had made provisions for her slaves to not only be freed upon her death, but to inherit her entire farm as a means of allowing them to build a community and financial security in the 1850s. At the time this article was published, the KHS library was actively researching a new acquisition of letters written by enslaved and free African Americans during the 1840s ans 50s. The family connections ran from Lexington, through Hopkinsville, to Mississippi. We had just obtained the letters the month before...and as I read Pam's account, I caught a Hopkinsville connection to the woman in the article. It turns out, that one of the letters in our collection, addressed to his family in Hopkinsville, was written by a former slave announcing his newly obtained freedom in Lexington after the death of his owner. That owner was the woman Pam had been researching. Through Pam's research, we were able to pinpoint the women in Ferdinand's lineage and even found him in a Fayette County court document listed as a toddler years earlier. Talk about serendipity, or something greater....Not only was he declaring his freedom, but the research proved that despite the ugliness of slavery, we are all family. In many cases, by blood, and in others simply by sharing nationality and history. The more we learn about how we are connected, the more we can build strong family ties. Which means, the responsibility lies with all of us to make this change happen.

"Dear Uncles, I am Free.." Ferdinand Robertson [Robinson], Lexington KY, 1850

1. Researching nineteenth-century African American women, by Pamela Lyons Brinegar, CG; NGS Magazine, Vol. 38, #3; July-September, 2012.

Saving Ridgeway

Over the years I have watched many historical places whither and die due to neglect, bureaucracy or perceived progress. Last year I was made aware of a local struggle to save a historic plantation in the heart of the Bluegrass. In fact, the more I learned about this house, the more I wanted to back the effort. Its historic value goes beyond Kentucky and reaches to the national level. Unfortunately, despite its addition to the National Register of Historic Places in 2005, the closer we get to saving it, the harder the struggle becomes.

During the NGS Conference in Cincinnati I took a friend down to Cynthiana in Harrison County to see the house for the first time. He was one of the only known descendants of the house's builder: U.S. Congressman and War of 1812 veteran, Colonel William Brown. The house has been protected from demolition by a decade's worth of efforts from a few local angels. Over that decade, the land around the house has been beautifully re-developed into a community park. The Flat Run Veterans Park has provided much needed space for a farmers' market and several new sports fields for the local teams. Appropriately, the house stands as a beautiful sentinel at the top of the ridge, overlooking the entire park and Licking River valley. Absolutely one of the most beautiful views of the area that I have ever seen.

Built in 1817 (per a local tax increase seen in 1818), the home's builder was quite a historic gentleman. He was a noted local attorney and friend of Henry Clay. He served in the House of Representatives during the Missouri Compromise. His family connections became significant with is marriage to Harriette Warfield, the sister of Dr. Elisha Warfield - prominent Lexington Doctor who delivered Mary Todd Lincoln. This friendship with the Todd family would later influence many others known to the journey towards an end to slavery.

Ridgeway was built to be a large plantation worked by enslaved individuals. According to records, the Brown family enslaved almost 40 slaves, which was modest based on the size of acreage. By the late 1820s, something changed with the Colonel. He became unsettled with the concept of slavery. By 1830, with land grants in hand for the Illinois territory, due to his 1812 service, he made plans to relocate his family and slaves to Illinois as a means of freeing them. This process was not instantaneous. In 1831, the Colonel and his son-in-law relocated the majority of their slaves to Illinois, securing their freedom. A few slaves were left behind in Kentucky with the Colonel's son as they prepared to move the entire family to Illinois. Unfortunately, in 1832, tragedy struck. The Colonel became ill and died in Illinois.

Within the following decade, the Brown family had to recoup, but had not given up on their plan to move the entire family north. The Colonel's son, James N. Brown stayed for a few more years and tried to secure the beginnings of his new family - which resulted in the death of at least two children that we know of....their gravestones still exist, but have been vandalized and removed from their original resting place. The gravestones hope to be restored to their original location, or incorporated into a children's diversity garden in the back of the house - depending on the funding and plans approved. At the present, they lie in the foyer of Ridgeway.

Once the entire family finally made it to Illinois, they were already closely intertwined with the other Central Kentucky families that had relocated to the northern territory. Two such families were the Todd and Lincoln families. In fact, in the earliest years of the Brown's attempt to secure a future on their new farm, one of their first farmhands in Illinois, was a young Abraham Lincoln. This relationship only grew stronger as the years progressed. A few facts about this relationship:

James N. Brown: Son of Colonel Brown remained friends and colleagues with Lincoln throughout his lifetime. One of Lincoln's most important letters that explained his view on slavery was written to James. After Lincoln's death, James was chosen by Mary Todd Lincoln as one of the pallbearers in Springfield for the final journey of Lincoln's body.

Senator Orville Hickman Browning: Nephew of Colonel Brown and Cynthiana native. As an aspiring attorney, while still in Kentucky, he "read the law" with the Colonel at Ridgeway. Browning later became one of Lincoln's closest friends and advisers...later being appointed Secretary of the Interior by President Johnson. It was to Browning that Lincoln penned the famous line "to lose Kentucky is to lose the whole game." (1861)

After the Browns left Kentucky, the house had a long agricultural history. Slavery was once again a sad reality under the new owner, Dr. Joel C. Frazer. As a slave-holding Union supporter, he freely allowed the Union army to camp on the plantation just north of the river during the Civil War. As a critical area during the struggles with John Hunt Morgan in relation to the two Battles of Cynthiana, history has labeled the encampment as Camp Frazer.

After the Civil War, the house changed owners a few more times, all the while maintaining its strong agricultural heritage in the tobacco and horse industries. One of its last owners of the 19th century, William Handy raised competitive Trotter horses and was known nationally for their great quality. His work was so respected that the house later became known as The Handy House.

The structure itself has already been deemed structurally sound. The flooring throughout is comprised of thick Chestnut that blanketed the Eastern U.S. prior to a blight that wiped out this native resource. The carvings enhancing the stairs and mantle pieces are beautiful examples of period workmanship. Walking the house in this state was sad, but realizing the potential before our eyes reminded us of the importance of our efforts. The historic value in combination with the beautiful architectural elements makes this place special, and very worthy of salvation.

A New Future:
Our plans include re-vitalization, not period restoration. We would enhance and restore the period elements while incorporating some modern conveniences. With these improvements, Ridgeway would secure a new future as a much needed community center and ranger station to watch over the park. Unfortunately, misinformation has inspired a small local faction that is ever determined to get rid of the house - with intentions of building a swimming pool in its place. For the record, there is ample room next to the house where the barns once stood, plus, there is no funding available for any pool construction once the house was demolished. As an added deterrent, federal assistance would be blocked for further improvements to the park if the town decided to demolish a federally recognized structure as Ridgeway was declared in 2005.

And then there are the nearby graves...
Regardless of intention regarding need for a local pool, there is also the matter of two nearby cemeteries. Some of the families that resided at Ridgeway over the decades, both free and enslaved are buried somewhere near the house. Unfortunately, this does not seem to impress upon the local opposition, despite the legal implications of digging up a couple of cemeteries.

How you can help:
We are so close....the city has given us a temporary lease to make improvements on the property for the purpose of converting into a community center. Of course, major funding is being sought to complete the work. Somewhere in the neighborhood of $300,000. Many local folks have worked for over a decade to get this far, but time is running out. If we do not secure funding to begin improvements soon, the city will take the lease away, and the house will be disposed of in short order. Please consider donating any small amount to help with the effort! Tax-deductible donations can be made through the Friendsofridgeway.org site.
We would also love some additional support via our Facebook page: Friends of Ridgeway.
Thank you all for your support!
CD
PR Chairman, Harrison County Heritage Council

Changes and Noteworthies

I have a few news bits and updates to relate, so I figured a hodgepodge post would be the best method!

1. New Twitter account. Last year I wrote a post called Twittering Trees, that explored my impressions of Twitter and why my excitement was building for this communication trend - especially in the field of genealogy. Well, my feelings have not changed at all, and in fact, I spend more time on Twitter trying to keep up with current genealogy/historical news than I do with any other social media these days. In that last post I explained that it was just easier for me to tweet under @Pastology to keep things simple. While I will continue to tweet current events in genealogy/history land on the @Pastology account, I find life has become even more complicated career-wise, so I decided to end my issues of split personality, and create my own Twitter account. This new account (@Historiana) will have more personal impressions/tidbits from my research/genealogy encounters.....and probably a lot more fun! So, where did I get the name "Historiana", you ask? I've actually used this for years as an account name around the web, and always thought of it as a play on the word origin "Victoriana". Which means, it will be a playful feed on things historical/genealogical......with a spice of librarian sense....or nonsense! Plus, some things may be a bit more regional.....I am in Kentucky after all.....but I also travel and come across tidbits from all sorts of places. If I rant about anything non-historical.....be patient, it is only a momentary pause in the proceedings.

2. AAGGKY. It is official! The African American Genealogy Group of Kentucky (AAGGKY), also known as "The Group" - has their web site live, their Twitter feed live and their blog up and running! They have been in existence for almost a year, but need your support! So please consider following them and promoting their efforts! They need all the help they can get, but they are already making quite an impact, even nationally! This organization fills such a need in this area of Kentucky research! Way to go guys! Their web site is: http://www.aaggky.org/ Their blog: http://www.aaggky.blogspot.com/ and their Twitter: @aaggky

3. KHS. Ok, so, as some have caught on, I have a new connection to the Kentucky Historical Society.....but after being able to attend their genealogy programs, I wanted to make some of you locals more aware of the quality programming they regularly offer. The KHS and the KGS (Kentucky Genealogical Society) jointly host a genealogy program every second Saturday of the month. It is free and open to the public at the History Center in Frankfort.....you only need to call ahead and register so we can have a head count. They do have lunch available at $6 per person, but the lunches available are only based on those who pre-regsitered, so make sure you call ahead. Anyway, this program is in a wonderful facility, and they invite guest speakers in for an almost day-long session (~10:30-2:30). This is not your run-of-the-mill genealogy meeting. After attending so many national conferences....I can safely say this feels like attending a conference session....even the facility and speaker list feels like a mini-conference. Last month was a rep from Family Search (all day), next year we will be having other national speakers....including Dick Eastman! Last summer, for their full conference (not free), they had Elizabeth Shown Mills! Seriously! So anyone within driving distance, should mark these on their calendar.....what a great genealogy resource for the region! Here is the calendar link: http://history.ky.gov/events.php?pageid=900&sectionid=5&cat=all (Btw, they already had the 2nd Saturday event yesterday due to a Holiday event conflict, but take a look at the December offerings & follow their Twitter account for reminders: @KyHistSoc) Also, check out their Thursday night schedules: http://bit.ly/obiuRx

Tis all for now!
C

Beach Reading - Slaves in the Family

For those of you heading to the NGS annual conference in Charleston, South Carolina, an amazing experience awaits. Not only is Charleston one of the most beautiful cities on the East Coast, but the history that permeates your surroundings is a venerable feast of delights. With this year being the sesquicentennial of the Civil War, Charleston serves as the perfect place to reflect on the atmosphere and historic conditions that lead to the "Civil War", "War between the States", or "War of Northern Aggression" - whatever your preference. However you choose to romanticize or dissect this chapter in our history, it is always important to take all viewpoints into consideration in order to gain a complete understanding of our culture during that time. Since we will be in the city where the first shots rang out, I suggest reading Slaves in the Family by Edward Ball. An older book published in 1998, this is still a wonderful, and highly enjoyable read when looking to experience this unique culture. Also, for those of you conducting African American research in the area, chapter 16 has a couple of paragraphs devoted solely to the surnames adopted by the former slaves from the Ball plantations.

As a direct descendant of the Ball family, Edward Ball explores how his family made its fortune along the Cooper River, just outside Charleston, beginning as early as 1698. Their story is not exactly a typical one. They did not make their fortune through cotton, but relied on rice as their crop of choice. However, their reliance upon slave labor was very high, and quite prolific as some of the family dealt directly in the international slave trade. His thorough account runs chronologically, from the 17th to the 20th centuries, with some flash fowards to the present day descendant branches.

The unique depth of this book cannot be overlooked. The story told here is not just family legend and oral history. The documentation that survives from this family is very extensive and provided the foundation for Ball's chronological accounts. To supplement the family history he inherited, and the documentation already on record, Ball then explored the African families that were entwined with the Balls. He found that the heritage he inherited was also ingrained in the lives of current African American families whose ancestors had been enslaved by the Balls. In several cases, the relationships transcended the former slave/owner connection. Not only did the former slaves sometimes remain socially connected via business, etc, but in some cases, the families were related by blood, which was the impetus for the title. By talking to the modern day descendants, Ball uncovered a rich tapestry that serves to increase any complex view we may have had about how slavery affected families and communities.

My only caveat with this account is the lack of slavery era African viewpoints. This is the story of slavery written by the white descendant of a white slave owning family. He does an amazing job of not withholding the good or the bad. You will encounter moments that seemingly display affectionate ties between the slaves and their owners, but in the next chapter, you might encounter the cruelty and apparent lack of any human sympathy. It is truly fascinating to read about the early years of the slave owning dynasty, and how it developed into this affluent, yet self absorbed group of people that lived in luxury while enslaving and abusing their fellow humans. Despite this book's valuable insight from a particular historical standpoint, for a more complete view of this period of Charleston's history, you might want to add a couple of slave narratives to your beach bag.

P.S. I picked up my copy at Maia's Books' booth while in Knoxville at the FGS Conference. They are slated to have a large booth at the NGS - along with slave narratives - so head there first for a great selection of beach reading material!

Boston's Mob Massacre

Today is celebrated as the anniversary of the Boston Massacre - also known as Crispus Attucks Day in honor of the first American to fall in our fight for freedom. This day has been full of controversy since 1770 despite our nation's inclination to honor it as a patriotic event. As a historian, I have been fascinated with this event for many years - from an early age - and devoured anything I could about the subject. The reason being: smoke and blood covers many sins, and this event was the result of many sins on both sides. I also have a suggestion: If you love murder mysteries or dark intrigue - this is the historical event for you! The wealth of primary source documentation for this "massacre" is staggering: autopsy reports, various and contradictory eye witness accounts, trial transcripts, victim placement maps, crossbone propaganda adverts, plagiarized artistic handbills (yes Revere, that means you!), etc. Since there are scores of books already written about this night that almost started the Revolution, I will only list some of the fascinating and little known facts surrounding this dark night.

• Setting: Cold, cloudless night, frigid temperatures after a significant snowfall.
• Mob or riot that began and ended in the "massacre" was only one among several that had taken place in the city over the past several days. Reports of a red cloaked "instigator" were heard concerning the other riots.
• The number of bullets fired into the crowd were almost exactly double the number of guns used by the soldiers. Where did the other bullets come from? Eyewitnesses said shots from the Custom House were also seen. Some of the soldiers reported the possibility of double loading the muskets.
•  While Crispus Attucks was one of the men killed in the "massacre", his legacy as the first to die, and significance as an African American martyr was not established until 1826 at the earliest during the country's jubilee and the beginning of the abolitionist movement's momentum.
• Rioters or "patriots" were not unarmed. They were throwing ice chunks and wielding clubs/sticks at the soldiers who were forbidden from firing their weapons. The rioters knew the soldiers could not fire unless "read the riot act" which allowed them to disperse a mob via violence.
• The command to fire was reported by the rioters, but the commanding officer Preston was found not-guilty of giving this order.
• Just before the incident, church bells rang out calling the citizens to fire - but instead they were called by the words "town born turn out". It was reported that the series of riots staged throughout the city were meant to incite the emotions of the people. Rebellion was desired to get rid of the British troops stationed in Boston since 1768. It was said that the local villages already had arms hidden and ready to fight should the Rebellion begin, but in 1770, they did not act as the Sons of Liberty had hoped....they were not ready for fighting until 1775 as demonstrated at Lexington and Concord.
• Paul Revere's famous engraving of the Massacre was stolen from Henry Pelham, his local competition.
• Every year up until the first years of the Revolution, orations were given to large audiences when the anniversary of the Massacre came around.
• Despite their involvement with the Sons of Liberty, John Adams and Josiah Quincy defended the soldiers at the trial, winning their case for all except two who were charged with manslaughter and branded on the hand. The trial transcripts are widely available as published shortly afterwards.

This is only a small list of the fascinating facts that surround this event. Despite my use of quotation marks, I am a staunch believer in the patriotic cause. I admire all the efforts of those who conspired to acquire our freedom....but am realistic in my understanding that this was not a pretty nor honorable process. Boston was an incredibly volatile place in the years leading up to the Revolution. Those responsible risked their lives at every turn....not always out of noble intentions, but always out of a sense of dedication and the desire to make a difference. The Boston Massacre is a romantic title given to an incident that killed not-so-innocent men....or as John Adams described them: "a motley rabble of saucy boys, negroes, and molattoes, Irish teagues and outlandish jack tarrs"......ah, our patriotic ancestors.....sure sounds like heroic Revolutionaries to me!

For further reading, you must begin with the authoritative title of the event's name by Hiller Zobel. From there, I suggest reading the propaganda, the trial transcripts and other eyewitness accounts.

CD

Stonetown Haven - A New Beginning

 Kentucky's slave history is a very unique one. As a border state we had both large slaveholders and a large number of abolitionists. Harriet Beecher Stowe witnessed her first slave auction in the northern part of our state. We were so split during the Civil War that we had two governments. It is therefore no surprise that our countryside is dotted with small freed slave communities that sprung up before and after the end of slavery. The sad fact associated with these small communities is their omission from local histories and history books. Not all histories ignore their existence, but they were not preserved nor noted for future generations in the same manner as early white settlements were once they were no longer inhabited. I am delighted to see this fact change as more groups are interested in restoring these little phoenix communities that rose from the ashes.

Yesterday, the public library in my community invited a local historian to speak about recent preservation efforts within our county. The Scott County Public Library drew over 50 attendees when Shirl Marks brought to light the restoration efforts surrounding an original structure in the former community of Stonetown. According to Marks the freed slave community in the Stamping Ground area encompassed several roads: Stonetown, Locust Fork, Main St, Woodlake, etc. Some of the local surnames associated with this former community were: Samuels, Patterson, West, Thomas, Fisher, Young, Phoenix, Fishback, Dudley, Carter, and Bell. She went on to explain that it was only oral history and family legend that explained the older structures that were abandoned and falling into oblivion.

After Shirl's family inherited one of the original structures, a group effort to restore this precious piece of history was set in motion. For the past three years a devoted group of volunteers has been working to restore life to this small structure which Shirl has named "Stonetown Haven".

The efforts have reached about a 70% completion rate and they hope to finish soon by placing a museum and information center inside. Once the efforts have been completed I hope to post another notice for those of you within the state or nearby that wish to support the new center. A celebration and grand opening will be planned soon.

Ms. Marks explained that the purpose behind this project is to "preserve the history of all its citizens". For anyone who thinks that history is in the past, I wish you could have watched the people in this room. Even though the structures were almost faded completely from the countryside, many of the descendants of Stonetown, Watkinsville and Pea Ridge are still living in these areas. Their ancestors had built these communities and their children were making sure those communities did not fade from memory. It was extremely heart warming to watch the descendants reminisce about the earlier generations and remember their neighbors from long ago. It was another reminder that history and preservation is not simply about the past, but ensuring our future is complete with the knowledge of how we arrived at our current destination, and how that past journey affects where we are headed.

I will post more about the organization and its efforts as soon as we get closer to their completion date. After the meeting about the preservation of Stonetown Haven, the second meeting of the newly formed African American Genealogy Group of Kentucky took place. Once they are a little more established I will post more about how to support them and how to join. If you are interested in getting involved with this group (and also as a way to get in touch with Shirl Marks), their e-mail is: AAGGKY@gmail.com.  
CD 2/20/11