**My family and I owe a debt to researcher Greg Furness for much of the information that we have about Lafayette and his family. Thank you Mr. Furness!** My 4th great-grandfather was Lafayette Mason. Born in Ellenburg in Clinton County, NY on March 20, 1827 to William Mason and Diana Robinson. In 1846, at age 19, he married Mary E. Wheeler from Willsboro in Essex … Continue reading Lafayette Mason
This is a StoryMap about my Anderson and Bostic ancestors. Both families originated in the Maryland/Delaware/Pennsylvania triangle pictured below. They made their way out of enslavement in Delaware and Maryland to freedom in Pennsylvania. Both families then moved north – ending up in Worcester, MA. Here is their story (click the photo below)- My uncle Tony told me the story of how Hattie and Walter … Continue reading Hattie and Walter
I recently did a controversial thing (at least in my communities, it is controversial) – I submitted a DAR application for my ancestor Mingo Pollock. DAR is the Daughters of the American Revolution and they have a long, long history of racism against People of Color. Which they are trying to overcome – they published some years ago the volume African American and American Indian … Continue reading My Revolutionary War Veterans
Though it doesn’t seem like we matter much today, in the mid to late 1800s, Worcester spent its time ensuring the freedoms of its Black residents. The above photo is part of another StoryMap. I hope you enjoy it. Aquene, Cher Continue reading Black Lives Really Did Matter in 19th Century Worcester
Doctress is a term once used for a female doctor. It was more commonly used when females were not encouraged to practice medicine. It was also used to describe African and Indigenous women who used their cultures’ healing methods within (and sometimes outside) their communities. A root doctress is a practitioner of African American folk medicine and spiritual practices. In Africa, medical practices tied together … Continue reading Root Doctresses & Indian Doctresses
Slavery was a deeply divisive issue in the United States in 1850, with tensions between the North and South continuing to escalate in the years leading up to the Civil War. The country was divided over the issue of slavery, with the southern states depending heavily on it for their agricultural-based economy, while the northern states increasingly viewed it as a moral wrong. The Fugitive … Continue reading Black Anti-slavery Activists in 1850 Worcester, MA
On a recent trip to Fishkill, NY, we visited the Garret Storm house. Rumor has it that our ancestor, Primus Storms, was enslaved by the Storm family. There is even a “Storm Slave Cemetery” in Fiskkill said to contain about 100 free and enslaved African-Americans connected to the Storm family and their neighbors. You can read about our visit to the cemetery here. Garrit (the … Continue reading The House in which my Enslaved Ancestors Lived – maybe.
Cheryll Toney Holley 