My Indian blood

[CountAllVotes]

:hi:

I've been doing genealogical research for a number of years. I'm done with my father's side of the family and I have been hesitant to even begin to try to find out about my late mother.

I knew only a few things about her being she was adopted in 1925 by a white man married to a mixed-blood Indian woman in Louisiana. Her adoption records are located sealed in New Orleans. Luckily, these records were saved when Katrina hit. I wonder if they ever unseal them? Does anyone know?

I just found this link yesterday:

http://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/users/h/i/c/James-R-Hicks-VA/BOOK-0001/bookindex.html

The index has numerous surnames on it and among the names I found many that are mine. It seems that those on this list were mostly the Cherokee and Choctaw that survived the Trail of Tears.

So, now I know about who my mother really was, a descendent of the survivors of The Trail of Tears on both ends, mother and father alike (in fact possibly related to one another). It seems her great grandmother found still living in 1920 was a full-blooded Cherokee born abt. 1835 or so.

I am absolutely shocked/stunned by this finding. I had always suspected that my mother was part Indian but I never knew the story.

So now I know. I cannot begin to tell you how it makes me feel knowing this information. On one level I am happy to find out the truth at last and on another level I am infuriated knowing the history of the Indian tribes in Missouri, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Texas, Mississippi, Arkansas, Alabama, Indiana, Georgia and Arizona.

No wonder they never told my mother who she was. It was a great shame to be "Indian" in 1925 in the deep south where she was born. However, to me the shame should lie with those responsible for the horrific genocide that occurred that likely killed most of my ancestors.

Gee what a find huh? It only took me over 20 years to find this out (lots of lies, and big ones as you might guess that did a good cover-up job indeed).

Has anyone else found out anything like this about themselves that they never knew?

CountAllVotes

[sybylla]

1. Very interesting find. Congratulations!

I don't have anything quite so interesting in my family. My husband's family sounds a bit like yours, however. They have always known of their Iroquois ancestry. And like yours, it also seems that his great-grandmother was adopted into a white family. The problem is I've found her in the 1900 census at the age of 9 but haven't been able to trace her back any further. I'm not sure I'd find any adoption records for the 1890's in New York state, though when it came to the tribes the US government seemed inspired to keep rather thorough records so I'm hopeful.

It's a line I haven't pursued very hard yet - still on my list of things to do. Hopefully I'll find a load of information to match yours when I get to it.

[CountAllVotes]

2. I just found out more yesterday

It seems that the maternal line is how the names were traced back. My mother was given the middle name which was in fact the surname of her Cherokee mother. She thought it was a man's name and dropped it many years ago. However, that middle name was her real mother's way of leaving her with a piece of the truth of who she was. I just found CD's for sale on eBay that has many of the rosters from the Trail of Tears which I bought for about $20.00. I hope it provides me with more insight as to who they were and which ones survived the Trail of Tears.

I just heard from my aunt the other day (Mother's foster sister) and she told me that she remembered hearing about the Trail of Tears and the family being involved in it but she did not pay attention. This would have been likely almost 70 years ago.

It is a difficult thing for me to get a grip on because I never had any idea about this. At least I know now and I can proceed. Maybe I will find more I can only hope. In the meantime I remain shocked and rather sad too.

[sybylla]

3. Amazing stuff - and and amazing journey our genealogy takes us on

Definitely sad, but it's part of who you are. Some of your ancestors died because of the Trail of Tears. You were born because of it. I'm not saying that makes it right. But we can do nothing to change it. What we can do is honor our ancestors by learning about them and telling their tale. I say march on - face your past without fear.

You are shocked and rather sad now. But you will learn how wronged they were, how strong and determined they were. How they learned to survive in a new land. How they worked to have a life that was of their own making. And you will see how that has been handed down to you.

I've visited several websites on the Cherokee tribes and the Trail of Tears as part of my research for a non-family project. It is a terrible story but your ancestors worked hard to keep their language, their culture and their families together. Luckily, there is a great deal of information out there that should make your search a joy, even if the subject matter is not what you would prefer.

Good luck on your journey!

[CountAllVotes]

4. after reading your statements

I just called my only living ancestor and told them. They could have CARED LESS about any of this and said it was of no importance whatsoever in today's world.

I replied, "I thought you might want to know about who your ancestors were for their blood runs through your veins."

Still, nothing.

Oh well at least I know.

I'm still stuck between a rock and a hard place with this as I am quite aware of the history.

You never know what this type of research will bring you, that is for certain.

So much time lost and wasted and too many lies.

[bobbieinok]

5. a bit off topic -- my mom said her grandma said the family had

come to MO with the family of Daniel Boone.

This came up b/c an ancestor had 2 wives; his 2nd was a daughter of DBoone.

And then last summer I discovered that an ancestor had been with Boone at Boonesborough and that his family had come to MO with the Boones.

It's odd how one bit of possibility is then later found to be true.

******

Cherokee: my mother's father's family settled in the eastern part of NC (what is now Cherokee Co). He and his dad and his brother supposedly came to OK in the late 19th century and lived for a while 'with the Indians.' But almost nothing he ever said can be proved. I can't find him or his supposed parents in the NC census; my mom said that from what little she knew of the family they probably all left home when a 'government person' was in the neighborhood.