In Black and White: Cross-Cultural Genealogy

Not a resolution... I say this is not a resolution because those are made and broken each year as easily as fad dieting. Over the past thirty-five years my weight has gone up and down like a yo-yo in the hands of a competent trickster. I generally succeed for a time, only to get frustrated by the stresses of life...eventually weakening, giving in...leading to total abandonment of the resolution till the next New Year comes around. Let it be said... I resolve NOT to make or break any resolutions in 2013! Instead... I've been following several blogs written by successful genealogists, historians, writers and editors who have shared their guidelines for identifying goals and developing successful strategies for reaching them. They have shared their own personal goals for the year to come, and have encouraged their readers to do so as well. So, with that said, the following is my list of goals which I believe are attainable. Reconstructing Co. B & G 14th ...

In the spirit of discovering who each of these men were who had shared bits of Sergeant Isaac Carter's life, and who had come forth to testify on his behalf for a Civil War Pension, I began my search for Samuel Keach with a search on Ancestry.com and on Fold3. Surprisingly, only two documents surfaced: (4) U.S. Civil War Pension Index: General Index to Pension Files: 1861-1934, and (1) U.S. Colored Troops Military Service Records, 1861-1865. Search Results Provided By The No. 1 Source for Family History Data Source:  U.S., Civil War Pension Index: General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934 Tue Dec 25 2012 16:53:22 GMT-0500 (Eastern Standard Time) View Record Name Widow State Filed View Record Samuel   Keach   Louisa Keach North Carolina View Record Samuel Windley [ Samuel   Keach ]  Luvenine Reach North Carolina View Record Samuel Windley [ Samuel   Keach ]  Louisa Keach North Carolina View Record Samuel Windley [ Samuel ...

The Formation of a Civil War Artillery Regiment I had taken a break from the pension file to reassess my goals here. At first I thought of skipping over documents to post based on the criteria of whether the actual content provided additional clues to Isaac Carter's disability, and the conditions under which he acquired said disability. Also, since we moved in early November, I have not been in the frame of mind to sit down and focus on these details, and give them my undivided attention until now. The legal-sized binder which contains volume one of the pension file has sat opened on my desk next to my laptop since I first unpacked the boxes containing my genealogical binders. It has remained a constant reminder of what steps I should take next. I skipped Document #17, a two-page sworn statement by David Lawson, who was acquainted with Isaac Carter after the war. Document #18 was a one page form requesting a report from the records of the Adjutant General U.S. A. about the swo...

This morning we are making a brief departure from Civil War Pension Files and the Waterman's Song for an interlude of Blog Caroling. Started by the Footnote Maven's Tradition of Blog Caroling , she encourages all us GeneaBloggers to assist her in raising our "voices" with lyrics of the Christmas Season. Here is my offering, The Coventry Carol. Courtesy: DVIchannel, Uploaded December 20, 2008 The Coventry Carol Lully, lullay, Thou little tiny Child, By, by, lully, lullay. Lullay, thou little tiny Child. By, by, lully, lullay. O sisters too, how may we do, For to preserve this day This poor youngling for whom we do sing By, by, lully, lullay. Herod, the king, in his raging, Charged he hath this day His men of might, in his own sight, All children young to slay. Then, woe is me, poor Child for Thee! And ever mourn and sigh For they parting neither say nor sing, By, by, lully, lullay. There is an interesting his...

Since our move to the new apartment, I have been debating whether to post the next document in the pension file, or to take a step back to look at what I had. Taking a step back won out over forging ahead full steam. In exploring Document #16 , we became acquainted with Pvt. Sharper Williams through his testimony regarding his Sgt., Isaac Carter, in February 1865. His affidavit was sworn on June 3, 1890. A closer look at this comrade at arms revealed the following: Civil War Service Records Sharp[er] Williams, born in Bertie County, NC, enlisted in New Berne, NC at the age of forty years for a period of one year. He was a black farmer, five foot four inches tall on the day of his enlistment, February 17, 1865. He was Mustered-In at Morehead City, NC on April 30, 1865. He was assigned to Company G, 14th Regiment USCT Heavy Artillery, and was due $100.00 pay. He was present March & April 1865. First installment of bounty due: $33.33. Present May & June 1865. Present Jul...

The following document is an affidavit sworn by Sharper Williams of Company G, USCT 14th Heavy Artillery. I knew that our Isaac Carter had transferred from Company B to Company G; but, I began to wonder when this transpired. A careful examination of his service record revealed something interesting. May 2007: Isaac Carter's Great Grandson at Fort Macon March 12, 1864: Isaac enlisted in 1st North Carolina Heavy Artillery, later known as USCT 14th Heavy Artillery. Rank: Sergeant, Company B. He was present at company muster roll through June 1865: Sergeant. July & August 1865 Company B muster roll reveals he had been demoted to Private. Remarks: Transferred to Company G Res S.O. No. 78.... In the next page, also for July & August 1865, he appears in company muster roll for Company G as a Private with the following remarks: Free April 19, 1861. Transferred from Company "B", August 28, 1865 By S.O. No. 78 Hd Qrts 14 U.S. Promoted to Corpl (Sept. 1, 1865 By...

Below is a transcription of an affidavit sworn out by Theophilus George. This could either be Isaac's brother-in-law (b. 10 Jul 1850), or his father-in-law (b. abt. 1804). Upon completion, further analysis will determine the realtionship.  North Carolina Craven County Also personally appeared before  me a clerk of Superior Court a court of record in and  for the County & State aforesaid Theophilus George age 40 yrs.  well known unto be respectable and entitled to credit & who being duly declares: I have been acquainted with Isaac Carter the soldier all my Life. When he came home from the war Dec 1865 he appeared to be quite sick from Rheumatism and was stiff in his joints of feet &  Legs and he would be unable to walk and he also complains  of diarrhea & piles and asthma soreness of throat and heart. He has suffered to a great excess each and every year to the present that he has been down for...

The next affidavit was sworn by Silas Fenner, one of Isaac Carter's comrade in arms in the USCT Heavy Artillery 14th Regiment. As I read over this document, I became aware of some colloquialisms of the era. I am hoping that by studying enough records, a pattern will emerge which will be able to assist me in writing dialog. * * * * * Department of the Interior, BUREAU OF PENSIONS, Jan. 20, 1890 Respectfully requested of the ADJUTANT GENERAL U.S.A. a report from the records of his Office as to the presence or absence, on or about Winter of 1864 & 65 of Silas Fenner of Co. G. 14 U.S.C.H Art. and the station, at that date, of the Co Invalid Claim No. 662812 Isaac Carter Co. G. 14 U.S. C. H. Art. Green B. Raum, Commissioner. War Department, Record of Pension Division, Washington, JAN 21 1890 Respectfully returned to the Commissioner of Pensions With the information that the name Silas Fenner is not born on rolls Co. G 14 U.S.C. H Arty BY AUTHORITY...

Descendants Jubilee Project If you had been following this series at its inception in August 2011, you may discover that I have skipped over documents 4-7. Perhaps one day I'll go back and fill in the missing information. Currently I am most interested in documents which help us gain an understanding of this ancestor's character and experience which affected his quality of life. Document #8 is a three and one-half page affidavit which sheds a little more light on the incidents leading to Isaac's disability. I have chosen to transcribe this one at this time because the details proved interesting to the conditions leading to his disability. State of North Carolina) County of Craven         ) In matters of original Claim No. 662872 of Isaac Carter [--ot] 2 Sergeant of Co. G 14 Regt U.S.C.H. Arty on this 17 "Day of Oct-- A.D. 1888 Personally appeared before me a Clerk of Superior Court a Court of record in and for the County of Craven and State of Nort...

You may have noticed something new on the website...a new link to The Bizzy Bee's Family History Journal . Besides following genealogy and history blogs, I also follow writer's blogs, and Mary Carrol Moore's How to Plan, Write and Develop a Book is one of my favorites! In her post, Staying in the Room with the Writing--How to keep yourself from getting blocked, distracted or stopping altogether , was just the motivation I needed to start another dimension to this blog....the family history journal. My first post, Messaging Dominique: Debunking Family Myths , was the catalyst. The previous day I had been messaging our cousin whom I had just recently met online! It is rare that I come across a descendant of Elisha Carter, my husband's grandfather's oldest brother...and she is only the fourth I have met, although I have only ever met one in person! So, Hey Dominique! So glad you found us!!! I had read Mary's post and was mulling the idea over in my...

According to author/editor C. S. Lakin, your first paragraph needs three things to hook your readers into the story: Your protagonist (Isaac Carter), A catalyst or incident (the binding out of the four orphaned Carter children at the County Courthouse), and A hint of the protagonist's core need     (to keep his siblings together, to watch over and protect them). I have researched how they might have journeyed from North Harlowe to New Bern...the route they may have taken to get to the Courthouse once arriving to the city...what the Courthouse may have looked like... ...and now, I need to recreate the emotional responses the protagonist and subordinate characters in this first scene may have had to the incident. For this I rely on personal memories of a similar event.  Going to the Courthouse Hampshire County Courthouse, Northampton, MA On November 28, 1990, nearly one month after our youngest child's death in a vehicle/pedestrian accident, my h...

Vintage Puzzle by Fel1x Following the post on composite likeness , I began giving some thought to the next step....Since I am writing about a person I've never met...a black male in a time not my own...in a world with differing social mores...I must find devices to piece together the complete man from a fourteen-year-old boy through the stages of manhood. Composite Personality Just as I had morphed the photos of four generations of Carter males to come up with a visual representation of my protagonist's physical appearance, I have overlaid the layers of our elders' comments with observations of living descendants for three generations of Carter men. Layer 1: Hezekiah Carter (son; deceased) In the summer of 2004 our family traveled from our home in New England to the Livingston Grand Reunion in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Prior to the in-gathering of the descendants of Frank Livingston, we stopped over in Whiteville, North Carolina to visit with family from th...

When we last looked at character development , we discussed the soul wounds that our protagonist-- young Isaac Carter --had experienced up till his fourteenth year of age. The succession of losses in his life most likely left him with fears of abandonment and of financial hardship, taking the form of a mask of self-reliance. All of this sounds so academic and detached. Now is the time to determine how these theoretical fears and compensation affected the behavior, thoughts and attitudes of Isaac as he matured. Gaining insights by looking backward The first step to filling in gaps in descriptive character detail, such as answering the question:  What did the fourteen year old Isaac look like? is to examine what you have and work backward. STEP ONE: While we have no personal artifacts to guide us, we must first look at what we DO have. Below is a list I compiled of all of Isaac Carter's documentation to date: 1850 U.S. Census (9, living with parents & family) 18...