The Schoolhouse Museum

The Smithfield Schoolhouse Museum was built in 1932 as an addition to the Christian Home School, circa 1924, a historic Rosenwald School. The Christian Home School was originally on two acres of land in the Chuckatuck area in the eastern part of Isle of Wight County, Virginia. In the 1920’s, Julius Rosenwald, a former Sears, Roebuck and Company president, contributed $4.3 million to build more than 5,000 … Continue reading The Schoolhouse Museum

Chancery Lawsuit Against the Estate of Solomon Butler 1909

My 3rd great-grandfather on my Allmond side was Solomon Butler who was born free. I can see him on the 1850 census as living in the home of William Allmond who also had an enslaved black woman named Charlotte, my 3rd great-grandmother. In 1854, William Allmond died and somewhere between then and 1860, Charlotte was moved to the home of the son William J. Allmond. … Continue reading Chancery Lawsuit Against the Estate of Solomon Butler 1909

Second Cousin Once Removed On The Eley Side

I found a second cousin once removed on my Eley side on MyHeritage. I’ve not used Ancestry’s DNA tools yet but I imagine that this is similar to Thrulines. On MyHeritage this feature is called Theory of Family Relativity™. Note that they used another person’s tree to link mine to my cousin. Her grandfather and my great grandfather were brothers. Her parent is the first cousin … Continue reading Second Cousin Once Removed On The Eley Side

Slave Narratives from the Federal Writers’ Project

Some years ago I went to the Underground Railroad Museum in Philadelphia and saw these. I remember thinking that it was amazing that they had captured these words directly from those that lived it. Looking through old pictures with what I’ve learned here, I’m realizing that these are from the Slave Narratives from the Federal Writers’ Project. One thing I’ve learned recently is that even … Continue reading Slave Narratives from the Federal Writers’ Project