Why Many African Americans Should Do the Genetic DNA Testing

 

My great-great-grandparents, Hector Davis & Lucy Milam Davis of Panola County, Mississippi

Since I started researching my family history in 1993, I have seen the interest in genealogy leapfrog! Many African Americans are actively researching to document the history of their ancestors. An attest to this rapid growth can be witnessed by the large number of people who are members of Black genealogy groups on Facebook like Our Black Ancestry, which currently has over 20,000 subscribers, like AfriGeneas, which currently has over 6,000 subscribers, and like the African-American Genealogy Forum, which currently has over 3,000 subscribers. There are more, and they all are growing.

Reading the genealogical accomplishments in these groups often leaves me in awe! I am often fascinated by what many have uncovered about their ancestors. Contrary to those “impossibility declarations” that Dr. Henry Louis Gates makes on Finding Your Roots on PBS, a number of people have successfully traced their families back to the first African ancestor to touch American soil.  Although many researchers and I have traced back five or more generations, we are looking to autosomal DNA to take us further or to help us prove if certain people were our ancestors. The more people that get tested with 23andMe, AncestryDNA, or other DNA companies, the more that connections can be proven and more ancestors can be unearthed.

DNA technology is especially beneficial for documenting our enslaved ancestors. Slave ancestral research is not an easy task. However, finding and utilizing the right records and the correct methodologies for slave ancestral research, many people are able to trace back to enslaved ancestors who were born in the 1700s. DNA can and has assisted greatly in these quests. These documented histories are a great legacy to the generations after us. Therefore, one’s willingness to participate in genetic DNA testing not only helps the individual to understand his ancestral background, but it’s conducive to the many active researchers who desire to leave that great legacy.

For this blog post, I am presenting another case in which I really need DNA to help to confirm potential enslaved ancestors. The last enslaver of my great-great-great-grandparents, Wade Milam (born c. 1825 in AL) and Peggy Warren Milam (born c. 1829 in TN), was Joseph R. Milam of present-day Tate County, Mississippi. After years of research, I was finally able to figure out how Joseph acquired Grandma Peggy, since she was not from Alabama. A DNA match from Arkansas even helped to confirm Grandma Peggy’s family from whom she was separated! You can read it HERE. Joseph Milam was born in Madison County, Alabama in 1811. He, his wife, his parents, and most of his siblings moved to Marshall County, Mississippi around 1835. The censuses confirmed that they brought slaves with them. Only one brother, James W. Milam, remained in Alabama and settled in Talladega County. (Remember that.) Once they landed in Mississippi, Joseph Milam decided to go about 8 miles further west, into present-day Tate County, where he established his plantation on the Tate-Panola County line by 1840.  

Since Grandpa Wade Milam was also from Alabama, I theorized that perhaps the white Milams transported him to Mississippi. So I decided to place some focus on Joseph’s father, Jarvis Jackson Milam, just to see if I can find out anything about his origins. Thankfully, the Milam Family is a well-researched family, and I learned that Jarvis died on July 4, 1849 in Marshall County, Mississippi. To my fortune, FamilySearch.org has digitized Marshall County Probate Records for the time period 1839 to 1871. You can access them HERE. I fortunately found an inventory of Jarvis Milam’s estate, dated March 30, 1850, and it listed 26 enslaved people by name, age, and value.

The slave inventory of Jarvis Milam’s Estate, March 30, 1850

Marshall County, Mississippi

(Source: See original scanned document here.)

I didn’t expect Grandpa Wade to be a part of Jarvis’s estate because he was enslaved on Joseph Milam’s plantation by 1846. That’s the approximate year when his first-born, my great-great-grandmother Lucy Milam Davis (1846-1927), was born. However, “Little Spencer, age 11” on the inventory caught my attention. This was likely Spencer Milam, who lived right next door to my great-great-grandparents, Hector & Lucy Davis, in 1870. Spencer and his first wife, Huldah (Hector’s sister), married on the same day as Grandpa Hector and Grandma Lucy; both couples married on July 7, 1866. It appears that they traveled together to the courthouse to get married.  I immediately wondered and suspected that Spencer Milam was somehow related to Grandma Lucy. But was he?

Spencer & Huldah Milam lived adjacent to Hector & Lucy Davis in 1870, DeSoto (now Tate) Co., MS.

Joseph Milam’s widow, Eunice Milam, was next-door.

Grandma Lucy’s mother Peggy was two households above Eunice.

“Spencer, 50” and “Lucy, 45” on the slave inventory also caught my attention. Interestingly, sleuthing through the 1850 Marshall County slave schedule, I discovered that the three older males, Spencer, Anthony, and Abraham, were all reported as 52, rather than 50 that was reported on the slave inventory. Lucy was reported as 54, instead of 45 that was reported on the slave inventory. Like any researcher would likely ask, were Spencer and Lucy the parents of Grandpa Wade? Had Grandma Lucy Davis been named after her paternal grandmother? Also, many researchers would understandably theorize that “Little Spencer” was probably their son. But was he?

I decided to scroll through the Marshall County Probate Records images on FamilySearch.org to see if I will discover more on other pages. I am so glad that I did that! I am also happy that I checked to see if there were probate records on FamilySearch.org for Talladega County, Alabama. Again, I hit pay dirt! You will see why the Alabama records were important. The following three important documents were found:

ESTATE DOCUMENT 1: The following slaves were sold from Jarvis Milam’s estate, April 29, 1851. This document verified that Spencer and Lucy were husband and wife. “Spencer and wife Lucy” were acquired by Joseph R. Milam. “Little Spencer” and Ann were acquired by Jarvis’ son, Benjamin L. Milam.

ESTATE DOCUMENT 2: Jarvis’ widowed son, James W. Milam, died in Talladega County, Alabama in Nov. 1841. In another estate document, Jarvis was named the guardian of James’ only child, James Clayton Milam. Shortly after little orphaned James moved to Marshall County, Mississippi to live with his grandparents, he died at a young age in 1844. Little James’ estate record was also found, and it included his slave inheritance from his father. The inventory was made on April 19, 1844. I discovered that “Little Spencer” and “Little Ann,” who were inventoried in Jarvis’ 1850 estate, had come from Jarvis’ son James, who was in Alabama! Therefore, “Little Spencer” was NOT the son of Spencer and Lucy.

James Clayton Milam’s Estate, April 19, 1844, Marshall County, Mississippi

Mariah and four children, Ann, Spencer, Amanda, Anderson

Lizzy and three children, Amelia, Fanny, Hampton

Riah and two children, Alfred, Edmund

ESTATE DOCUMENT 3: After finding document 2, I was also fortunate to discover that some of Talladega County, Alabama probate records had been digitized and uploaded to FamilySearch.org. I found James W. Milam’s will that he wrote on November 1, 1841. This will named the same slaves, and James desired for his father Jarvis to take them to Mississippi. See the following:

“Second. I give and devise and bequeath to my son  James Clayton Milam three Negro women and there children viz Mariah and three children, Ariah & two children, also Liz a yellow girl & two children, the above named Negroes I wish removed by my father Jarvis Milam to the state of Mississippi. Third, a Negro man Stephen and a woman named Sylvia with all my personal and real estate I wish sold on a credit of 12 months….”

(Source: See original scanned will here.)

If I had not found those estate documents, I would have continually theorized that “Little Spencer” (Spencer Milam) may have been Spencer and Lucy’s son. Now, I am asking the following questions: (1) Was Spencer Milam’s mother, Mariah, a daughter of Spencer and Lucy who Jarvis had given or sold to his son, James W.? I feel that it is more than coincidental that there’s an Elder Spencer and a child Spencer. (2) Again, was Grandpa Wade also a child of Elder Spencer and Lucy? (3) Were Mariah and Grandpa Wade siblings? If so, Spencer Milam in 1870 and Grandma Lucy were first cousins.

DNA would certainly help to determine if there’s a connection to Jarvis Milam’s slaves. I am in contact with a great-grandson of Spencer Milam and his second wife, Mollie. Some years ago, one of my elderly relatives (a granddaughter of Hector & Lucy Davis) stated that she thinks that Spencer and his family were a “different set” and weren’t related to Grandma Lucy. However, Spencer Milam’s great-grandson, who was born and raised in the area, knew my Davis Family as being his cousins, according to his family elders. Therefore, we are confused.

Spencer Milam’s great-grandson also took the 23andMe DNA test recently. He did not match me and my mother. Speculating that Mariah, his great-great-grandmother, may have been a sister of Grandpa Wade Milam, Mom’s great-great-grandfather, that theory would make them as possibly being 4th cousins. With 4th cousins, there's only a 45% chance that DNA will detect a kinship. This link explains the probabilities. Therefore, because of the higher probability of a non-match (55%), I am not ready to conclude that Grandpa Wade was not related to Mariah, Little Spencer, Elder Spencer and Lucy. Also, while he doesn't match my mother, he may match other family members. I am awaiting my aunt's 23andMe DNA results to see if he matches her. My mother and her sister likely inherited different chromosome segments from the same common ancestors. That's the nature of DNA transmission.

I found a number of those enslaved by Jarvis Milam in the 1870 and 1880 Marshall County censuses, including Dudley (who was also born in AL) and his family. They retained the Milam surname. To add, Jarvis Milam’s will, which can be read here on FamilySearch, identified Ann, who was the first slave on his 1850 inventory, as Dudley’s wife. The enslaved children inventoried after her and before Dudley were their children. Were Dudley, James, and Morgan Milam, who were all born in Alabama too, the sons of Elder Spencer and Lucy? Were they Grandpa Wade Milam’s brothers? Were they Mariah’s brothers, too? There were and are many black Milam descendants in Marshall County, Mississippi and elsewhere. It would be wonderful if some of them took the 23andMe DNA test (or others) to help determine if Elder Spencer and Lucy were our direct ancestors and my 4th-great-grandparents. I will maintain hope!

DNA Note: If you decide to take the AncestryDNA test, I highly recommend that after you get your results, please upload your raw data file to GEDmatch. See www.gedmatch.com. GEDmatch is a great online DNA program that allows you to further analyze your DNA results with their great analysis tools. It is also free. AncestryDNA does not offer any analysis tools. GEDmatch's analysis tools are essential if you desire to compare people in your relative list to figure out ancestral connections, which is known as DNA triangulation. The meaning of DNA triangulation is further explained HERE. 23andMe offers great analysis tools as well. However, I would also recommend that 23andMe users (and others) upload to GEDmatch as well. You will gain more matches in GEDmatch. 

Research Note: To date, I have been unable to find any court records showing Jarvis Milam deeding slaves to his children before they left Madison County, Alabama or after they arrived in Marshall County, Mississippi.

Am I Seeing Double?

 

1777

John Bass of Northampton County, North Carolina wrote out his will on June 14, 1777. He left 19 slaves to his children and grandchildren (Northampton Co. Will Book 1, p. 292). Let’s take a look at the names of those 19 enslaved people.

  To son Jacob Bass à one negro girl, BECK

  To son Isaac Bass à two negro women, Rose and Moll

  To grandson John Bass à one negro girl, Fanny

  To son Abraham Bass à one negro girl, Phillis

  To grandson Job Bass à one negro girl, Queen

  To grandson Council Bass à negro fellow SHARPER and negro boy Scotland

  To grandson Uriah Bass à one negro woman Hannah and negro boy Ben

  To daughter Alice Earp à one negro woman Peg and one negro boy Pompey

  To daughter Euridice Council à one negro woman, Dinah

  To grandson Jesse Bittle à one negro girl, Jane

  To granddaughter Winnifred Bittle à one negro boy, Davy

  To grandson John Bittle à one negro girl, Patt

  To granddaughter Margaret Bittle à one negro girl, Rachel

  To grandson Drury Bittle à one negro boy, Isham

  To daughter Elizabeth Bittle à one negro woman, Judith

Let’s jump back 9 years to 1768. There’s a Northampton Co., N.C. deed, dated Dec. 1, 1768, in which John Bass gives to his "well-esteemed friend," Margaret Murfree, widow, one negro boy Cesar and a negro girl Nan after his death (Northampton Co. Deed Book 4, p. 851).

An ongoing project has been tracking down these 21 enslaved people through wills, estate and probate records, deeds, and other records. You will see why I have taken an interest in the destiny of these 21 enslaved people. However, in this blog post, I will only show the path of BECK, who was willed to son Jacob Bass, and SHARPER, who was willed to Council Bass. You will really be cross-eyed if I presented others. lol

1794

I learned that Jacob Bass died in 1794 in Franklin County, North Carolina. Fortunately, his estate file was found on familysearch.org (North Carolina Estate Files, 1663-1979, Franklin County, Account Sales of the Negroes of Jacob Bass). BECK was still living, now an adult woman in 1794, and was listed in the inventory. She was the only adult slave and the rest were “boys” and “girls”; some of them or all of them may have been Beck’s children. Do you see any repetitive names?

  One boy, Synaker

  One negro boy, Cesar

  One wench, BECK and child

  One girl, Patt

  One girl, Rose

  One boy, Adam

  One girl, Lucy  

  One girl, Cherry

1830

Now, let’s jump ahead by 36 years. John Bass’ grandson, Council Bass, died in 1830 in Northampton County, North Carolina. SHARPER, the “negro fellow” Council had inherited from his grandfather in 1777, was among the 20 slaves he named in his will (North Carolina Estate Files, 1663-1979, Northampton County). My great-great-great-grandmother, Beady Bass, was also among the 20 enslaved people. Council made the following bequeaths on Sept. 4, 1830:

To daughter Martha Bass Mayo à Mima, Archie, Nancy, Alfred, Isaac, Goodson

To daughter Elizabeth Bass à Harry, Beady, Hezekiah, Jackson, Willie and three old Negroes, SHARPER, Rose, and Peggy

To granddaughter Susan Ann Crisp Staton à Zina, Mary Jane, Andrew

To granddaughter Eliza Coggins Hatcher à Senica

To daughter Charlotte Bass Holloman à negroe girls, Barsilla and Brittania

Look again at the 1777 and 1794 groups. Are you seeing double with some of the names?

Martha Mayo’s group were Mima (Jemima) and her children. Martha Mayo and her husband Frederick Mayo moved to Madison County, Tennessee after 1830. Madison County probate records revealed that Jemima had additional children after 1830 named Rose, Silvesta, Harry, Beady, Mary, and Willis. Jemima was reported as 61 years old in 1858, so she was born around 1797. Therefore, she was about 33 years old in 1830.

Look again at the 1830 group. Are you seeing double again?

Elizabeth Bass’ group, which included Grandma Beady and her children, were taken to Hinds County, Mississippi in 1849. Elizabeth and her husband/cousin Jesse Bass, Jr. had relocated to Mississippi. The following are verified names of six of Grandma Beady’s children: Eliza, Jemima, Hetty, Peggy, Jackson (my great-great-grandfather Jack Bass, born c. 1845), and Oscar.

Look again at the 1830 group. Are you still seeing double?

In the 1830 group, naming patterns, DNA, and census findings suggest that Mima, Harry, Beady, Seneca, and Jackson were siblings. According to Gedmatch, my father shares 18 cM of DNA with my cousin Janice, a great-great-great-granddaughter of Jemima (Mima) via her son, Archie. Archie Mayo’s granddaughter, Rosa Mayo Burton (1891-1956), was Janice’s paternal grandmother. I underlined her grandmother’s name for the obvious reason. lol

The 1830 census was taken shortly before Council Bass wrote his will. He was enumerated with 20 slaves, the same number of slaves he named in his will. Therefore, I decided to use the 1830 census to see what age range were the “three old Negroes, SHARPER, Rose, and Peggy.” The three oldest were in the following age range:

     One Male – 55 to 99: SHARPER

     One Female – 55 to 99: Peggy or Rose

     One Female – 36 to 54: Peggy or Rose

Now, let’s do a little math. In 1777, SHARPER was considered a “negro fellow,” which means that he was likely a young adult male, probably in his 20s. So let’s guesstimate that Sharper was around 21 years old in 1777. Fifty-three (53) years later, Sharper is named in Council Bass’ will and estate records. 21 + 53 = 74. Therefore, Sharper may have been around 74, give or take a few years, in 1830.

Grandma Beady Bass named one of her daughters Peggy. Her sister, Aunt Jemima “Mima” Mayo, named on her daughters Rose. In 1830, two of the “three old Negroes” were two women, Rose and Peggy. One was between 55 and 99, and the other was between 36 and 54. Was one of them their mother? Was the other their grandmother? Hmmmm…..

To add to the mystery, there’s a “Negro woman” named Rose and a “Negro woman” named Peg in the 1777 group. Grandma Beady Bass’ bloodline seems to definitely flow back to that 1777 group that John Bass “owned.” Interestingly, John Bass was born around 1700 in Norfolk County, Virginia. He, his parents, and siblings had moved to the Urahaw Swamp area of Bertie County (now part of Northampton County), North Carolina by 1722. Historian Paul Heinegg noted that John Bass was a slave-owner by Aug. 1742, when he proved rights on five “Whites” and three “Blacks” in Northampton County, North Carolina (Source). Was one of them the start of Grandma Beady’s bloodline in America? Hmmmm….

A lot more research to do…… (Suggestions, thoughts, and ideas are always welcomed.)

Mending Broken Ties: The Reunion Documentary

Recently, someone asked me about the reunion video documentary that my cousin Kristina Hayes produced of our commemorative family reunion in 2009. That groundbreaking event in Atlanta, GA and Abbeville, S.C. reunited branches of our family tree after 150 years of separation. This is the reunion that culminated the book, 150 Years Later: Broken Ties Mended. As promised, I am resurrecting the YouTube links of this reunion documentary on my blog. Totaling 30 minutes, the entire documentary was divided into five short clips which are below.

In a nutshell, the following is the family that was separated in 1859 in Abbeville County, S.C. That year, William Barr Jr., the son of the late Rev. William & Rebecca Reid Barr, decided to relocate to Pontotoc County, Mississippi. He took most of the family slaves with him which split the following family tree.

What happened to the family?

LEWIS & FANNY – According to a letter that Rebecca Barr wrote to her sister in 1847, Grandpa Lewis died in Sept., 1846 at an old age, possibly around 70. Born somewhere in Virginia around 1785 and sold down South to Abbeville, S.C. by 1810, Grandma Fanny was taken to Pontotoc County, Miss. in 1859. Her nearly 75-year-old body endured William Barr's wagon train journey to northern Mississippi, which took days. According to the 1880 census, her grandson, Rev. Jacob Beckley Jr., was taking care of her. She died after 1880 at nearly 100 in Pontotoc County. Lewis and Fanny’s African roots are revealed in clip 1 below.

Glasgow Barr – He was never taken away from South Carolina. He and his wife Rosa, who had been enslaved by a neighbor Lesley Family, were found in the 1870 and 1880 censuses in Abbeville County. Children and grandchildren of Glasgow were also found in the 1900 Abbeville County, SC census. After that, I haven’t found a trace of the family. Not sure what became of his descendants.

Sue Barr Beckley – William Barr Jr. took her, her husband Jacob, a “mulatto” slave he had purchased from the Lesley Family, and their children to Pontotoc County, Miss. in 1859. After slavery, the family took the Beckley surname. Sue Beckley and four of her children, Sina, John, Susie, and Patsy, lived in Oxford, Mississippi in 1880. Her sons, Edmond, Cannon, Lewis, Clay, and Jacob Jr., and her daughter Louvenia remained in Pontotoc County. Those sons became known as “The Beckley Five”. The Beckley Family has held large family reunions every year since 1957.

Cannon Beckley (1840-1903), his wife, and his 20 children, Pontotoc County, Miss.

Picture taken in 1900; shared by Diane Beckley

Pleasant Barr – Shortly before relocating to Pontotoc County, William Barr Jr. decided to sell Pleasant, my great-great-grandfather, to a man named James Giles. Giles relocated to Tippah County (Ripley), Mississippi around 1859, taking Pleasant with him. After slavery, Pleasant retained the Barr surname, remained in Tippah County, remarried to Amanda Young, and had another son, Elijah Barr. His older children, namely William (Bill) and Mary, had been sold to Rebecca Barr’s nephew, Lemuel Reid of Abbeville. They never saw their father again, according to oral history. Bill, Mary, their first cousin Glasgow Wilson (son of Glasgow Barr), and others migrated to Panola County, Mississippi shortly after slavery in 1866. Bill Reed (1846-1937), my mother’s paternal grandfather, married Sarah Partee, had 11 children, and the family tree grew by leaps and bounds.

Sawney Barr – William Barr Jr. took him to Pontotoc County in 1859. According to the Mississippi Historical Society, Sawney was a blacksmith who worked in a blacksmith shop in the town of Pontotoc, shoeing horses for both the Union and Confederate Armies during the Civil War.  After slavery, he became a prominent figure in the county during Reconstruction (1865-1876).  He was recorded in Pontotoc County’s history as the First Superintendent of Education for Pontotoc County. However, the political gains of African Americans during Reconstruction were wiped out.  The racist Klu Klux Klan increased their reign of terrorism across the South during the 1870s, and many African Americans were forcibly ousted from these important positions. I haven’t found Sawney in any censuses or records after 1870. He had married and had at least two children, Frank and Anna.

The paper trail that unearthed and documented my family’s plight and separation included but were not limited to the following:

- Census records

- Slave schedules

- Wills

- Estate records

- Slave inventories

- Old rare family letters from the slave-owning family

- Slave-owner’s diaries

- Slave-owner’s cotton-picking ledger (1860 & 1861)

- Church records (slave births, baptisms, and rare notations)

- Church histories

- Marriage records

- Death certificates

- Civil War pension files

In conjunction with oral histories from the Reed and Beckley families, 150 Years Later: Broken Ties Mended tells how all of these sources and more unearthed our family story.

CLIP 1

CLIP 2



CLIP 3



CLIP 4



CLIP 5

  Documentary produced by Kristina Hayes, great-great-granddaughter of Bill Reed, great-great-great-granddaughter of Pleasant Barr

This photo was taken on the steps of the Abbeville County, South Carolina Courthouse, August 8, 2009...150 Years Later.

A Runaway Slave in the Family Tree

Slave ad offering $100 reward for unnamed man, about 30 years old, Ripley Co., Missouri (Source)

The ancestors are working overtime! Within this past week, they have led me to two revealing court cases! The first one involved my paternal 3rd-great-grandmother Annie, the mother of Grandpa Robert “Big Bob” Ealy of Leake County, Mississippi. Last week, I found the 1832 North Carolina Supreme Court case of William Hunt vs. Edwin Bass et al, in which William Hunt, Edwin Bass and his brothers fought over the ownership of Grandma Annie, her youngest child Lazarus, and a man named Ned, all in Nash County, N.C. Elated about this genealogical discovery, I was also saddened from picturing the agony Grandma Annie faced while people fought over her and her infant child's fate. A published opinion of that case can be read HERE.

Well, two days ago, I received an e-mail from a descendant of John & Anna Burnett, the last enslavers of my maternal 3rd-great-grandparents, Jack & Flora Davis (both born c. 1815 in S.C.), and their children of Panola County (Como), Mississippi. This descendant had found my blog post, Ain’t Gonna Take Massa’s Name, and realized that her ancestors owned slaves. I hadn't researched the Burnetts in a while. Therefore, because of our e-mail exchanges, I decided to do some "googling" just to see what else is out there about the Burnetts. Around 1861, they left Abbeville County, South Carolina and settled on land located on the now Tate-Panola County line, transporting Jack, Flora, their children, and others with them.

Before I go into the “juice” of this discovery, I must first mention a man named Wesley Johnson. He was born around 1852 in Abbeville County, South Carolina. The Burnetts also brought him to Mississippi. Years ago, I found my maternal grandmother’s parents’ marriage record. Poppa John H. Davis married Grandma Mary Danner in 1892 in Panola County. I noticed the name Wesley Johnson as being the bondsman. Learning that bondsmen are often family members, I asked my maternal grandmother's first cousin, the late Cousin Sammie Lee (Davis) Hayes, about him. Immediately, Cousin Sammie Lee relayed, “Oh, that’s Cutin’ (Cousin) Wesley! He and Grandpa Hector were first cousins, but they were real close like brothers.” Obviously, Poppa John was close to him too because he named his first son John Wesley Davis, who was my grandmother's oldest brother.
 

1910 Panola County, MS census: My great-great-grandparents, Hector & Lucy Davis, lived adjacent to Wesley & Evaline Johnson, solidifying my cousin’s claim of their closeness. Neighbors were often family members.

Poppa John’s father Hector Davis (1842-1925) was one of the sons of Jack and Flora. Therefore, somehow Cutin’ Wesley Johnson was Jack or Flora’s nephew. Fortunately, I had found Cutin’ Wesley’s death certificate at the Mississippi Dept. of Archives in Jackson. It reported that his father’s name was Ale Johnson. The mother’s name was not reported, but I had surmised that his mother was probably “Old Nelly,” who was inventoried in John Burnett’s 1863 estate, along with Jack, Flora, and some of their children. Cutin’ Wesley was “boy Wesley,” who was valued at $700. That slave inventory can be seen here.

What was particularly interesting about Cutin’ Wesley was that he took the surname Johnson. Since his death certificate reported Ale Johnson as his father, I realized that he chose his father’s surname. But where was Uncle Ale? He was not listed on that 1863 slave inventory. Interestingly, Johnson was also the maiden name of John Burnett’s wife, Anna. Could there be a connection here? For a while, I have theorized that either Ale Johnson or “Old Nelly” may have been Grandma Flora’s sibling. That’s why I have chosen to call him “Uncle Ale.”

Now, let's get to the “juice” of this discovery. Please remember that effective google searches can be your doorway to many genealogical clues! Yesterday while googling for more information about the Burnetts, I found the 1851 court case of Joseph M. Alexander vs John Burnet, Abbeville, South Carolina. A published opinion of this case was found here. To my surprise, the case involved the ownership of a “mulatto” slave named Ail, who was also known as Caleb. I had found Uncle Ale Johnson! The details of this court case revealed the following chronology of Uncle Ale Johnson’s eventful life during slavery, and eventful is an understatement!

1821: Uncle Ale was born the "property" of Benjamin Johnson in Abbeville County, South Carolina. He was noted as being “mulatto” in the court case.

1831: As a young boy around 10 years old, he was living on John & Anna Burnett’s farm. On June 13, Anna, with young Uncle Ale in tow, went to her brother Benjamin, and they agreed to make her his legal owner. So on that day, he wrote out a deed of gift giving Uncle Ale to her for one dollar, and he will become her legal property upon his death. Anna paid Benjamin the money that day, and then she and Uncle Ale went back to the Burnett farm. The deed of gift was never recorded in court records.

1832: Young Uncle Ale remained on the Burnett farm for another year, and then he went back to Benjamin Johnson’s place. He remained there until Benjamin’s death in December, 1836.

1836: Immediately after Benjamin’s death, his widow instructed their son, John Johnson, to take Uncle Ale and sell him. She clearly wasn’t interested in him being around. I wonder why? So at night, John clandestinely took Uncle Ale, who was now 15, and sold him to James Caldwell, who was visiting South Carolina and on his way back to Marengo County, Alabama.

1837: Shortly after arriving in Alabama with Uncle Ale, Caldwell sold him to Joseph M. Alexander on January 12. He remained with Alexander for 12 years.

1837 – 1845: Alexander took Uncle Ale with him on his many trips back to his birth home, Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, passing through South Carolina in 1837, 1841, 1844, and 1845. I wonder if Uncle Ale had been his carriage driver?

1849: On October 31, Alexander and Uncle Ale stopped off in Pendleton in Anderson County, South Carolina, on their way to North Carolina. Since Abbeville County was just south of Pendleton, Uncle Ale seized the opportunity and ran away. He made his way back to the Burnett farm. Alexander learned of his whereabouts, sent an agent to retrieve him from the Burnetts, but they refused to relinquish him. They considered themselves as Uncle Ale’s legal owner, so Alexander took them to court.

1851: Alexander initially won the case, but after an appeal to the Court of Appeals, the court overturned the decision and decided that John Burnett, husband of Anna, was the rightful owner.

Currently, I haven’t figured out what became of Uncle Ale “Caleb” Johnson, but he fathered Cutin’ Wesley (and likely more) on the Burnett place. Cutin’ Wesley and Grandpa Hector Davis grew up like brothers, were transported to northern Mississippi together shortly before the advent of the Civil War, and their descendants grew up together as blood cousins. One never knows where diligent genealogy research will take us and what stories will be unearthed. And like genealogist Nicka Smith recently expressed in her post, The Magic Door Should Not Be Televised, we all have fascinating stories in our family trees just waiting to be unearthed, not just celebrities. This one adds to the many mouth-dropping stories that I have been fortunate to capture. Thank you, ancestors!