4th Great Grandfather Moses King

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 4th Great Grandfather Moses King

Rediscovering History in Western Pennsylvania

I had already visited Fallingwater, the iconic Frank Lloyd Wright house nestled in the Laurel Highlands of Western Pennsylvania, twice before. Tucked away in the lush hills of Fayette County, it had always been a peaceful escape, with modern architecture harmonizing with nature. Each visit felt like a retreat into beauty and design. But my most recent trip was different. This time, I wasn’t just … Continue reading Rediscovering History in Western Pennsylvania

Civil War Map of Isle of Wight and Nansemond Counties

Here’s a Civil War map of Isle of Wight County and part of Nansemond County. In the image, I have labeled where Jones Grove Baptist Church is as well as where Tony and Moses Allmond’s lands were 30-40 years later. Many of the roads are the same and a lot of the parcels have the same boundaries. Civil War maps are available at the Library … Continue reading Civil War Map of Isle of Wight and Nansemond Counties

Historical Black Newspapers

I wasn’t finding obituaries or any mention of my relatives prior to maybe the 1950s in the local newspapers that are available via Newspapers.com, VirginiaChronicle.com and NewsBank. Something I specifically didn’t find was an obituary for each of my Allmond great-grandparents. The only mention I found was a notice for a pressure canner clinic for Farm Security Housewives at my great-grandmother’s house in 1946. My … Continue reading Historical Black Newspapers

Slingshots Will Put Your Eye Out

I found this article from 1897 last year and put it aside. Looking at it again today the ages match up to my great-grandfather John Allmond and his brother, Moses (Lam). I initially didn’t think it was because generally when the newspapers were talking about Black folks, they made sure they specified it. But now I’m wondering. Meanwhile, I’m looking for a WWI draft card … Continue reading Slingshots Will Put Your Eye Out

Africa Allmond

Africa Allman/Allmand/Allmond/Ives When I’m searching a genealogy database, normally the first thing I do is search for Allmond. Last year I found this pension card for Africa Ives also known as Africa Allman. I found it on FamilySearch but this one from Ancestry looks better. I think what stood out most was that his name was Africa. I was going through my genealogy OneNote notebook … Continue reading Africa Allmond