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Monday, April 16, 2012

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Located the graves of J K Vance and Burwell Chick

If anyone had told me I would finally discover and locate the graves of two former slave owners within one hour and about 5 minutes when I was scheduled to present at the Greenville Genealogical Society on Sunday, I would not have believed them.  Maybe I would have just fainted from sheer excitement of having that many things happen at once.

Well, I arrived one hour and a half before my presentation to find the Hughes (Main) Library was not open yet.  I had wanted to locate the cemetery where J. K Vance (b. 1818) and Burwell Chick (1776-1847) are buried.  James Kincaid Vance was the former slave owner and half brother to my great great grandfather Beverly Vance.  Burwell Chick is the father of Pettus Wales Chick, the slave owner of my great great grandfather, Anderson Chick.

I have traced these men and their families extensively and documented the oral history that was shared with me by family members.  It is just mind boggling that two different branches of my family from Abbeville, Laurens, Newberry, and Union Counties are linked to these two men.

Sitting in the empty parking lot of the library, I was able to search Google for J. K. Vance, a former South Carolina state representative, to find the name of the cemetery, Springwood.  I put Springwood in the GPS and discovered it was only a few blocks away.


I was so excited, and I was not prepared for how huge this cemetery is.  I knew it was really pushing it to think I could find the graves within an hour.  I had no idea what sections they were buried.  Luckily, there was a map which cited some of the more well known people buried there.  I saw that Burwell was buried in Section A which is very near the entrance.  I remembered seeing his grave online, so I knew what to look for. He is buried alongside his wife, Massey (1781-1845). 



You can hardly read the inscription for either spouse.  Hmmm... The photograph actually is much easier to read.  I did not see that it said "Doctor" while I stood there.  I will have to visit again when I have more time.


I looked around over the landscape and my husband and I decided it was fruitless to look for J. K. Vance without knowing what section.  The cemetery is huge. One photo cannot do it justice. It is divided into Sections A-V.


We headed back to the library and I ended up with a few minutes extra to run upstairs to the South Carolina Room.  I chatted with Beverly Weinstein,  Librarian Assistant.  This was the first time we had met.  The Hughes Main Branch is an affiliate of FamilySearch so when you order your microfilm, you can request to view it there.

Another point that Beverly wanted me to stress was that they have the equipment for viewing and printing from the film of course, but if you bring your flash drive, you can save right to it. Then, you do not have to pay for copies. I will share more photos of the room in an upcoming blog.

Beverly Weinstein, Librarian Assistant.  Greenville County Library System - Hughes Main Branch, South Carolina Room

I have always found the staff here very helpful, but in casual conversation, I mentioned my adventure at Springwood Cemetery, and before I knew it, Beverly had pulled up the location of the Vance plot! The database actually loaded a visual of the plot and I saw the shape of the marker.  "It's in Section B," she said.  That was music to my ears.  Here is the website Beverly used:  Springwood and Richland Cemetery Viewer.
  

After my presentation, we went back to Springwood Cemetery, and we were able to quickly locate the Vance plot and the grave of J. K. Vance.  The marker also has the names of his wife, Laurens Louisa (born abt 1822), and son, James Wister Vance inscribed.   Thank you, Beverly!  You are responsible for the huge ending to my story.  We probably would have traveled home without finding the Vance plot on this trip.  My family will be so surprised to see this:


I know some will wonder about the Confederate flag that was there, but I have more to share, and I took tons of photos, so please check back!

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

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Best to search 1940 census at night says Archives.com infographic

After reviewing this infographic shared by Archives.com, I know the evening hours are best for diving into the 1940 US Census. Website hits during peak hours have doubled (http://1940census.archives.gov), and I can only imagine that will increase, but have genealogists  ever had to measure anything in terabytes before? Oh my, take a look:

1940 census archives.com
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Six of my most favorite people on 1940 US Census

I knew my emotions would be running high when I would finally be able to gaze upon my mother's name on the 1940 US Census. She was only one then.  I am sitting right now not too far away from Manning Avenue where this census was taken.  The house has been torn down, but I drive down the street every now and then trying to imagine what it may have looked like in the empty space.

I am so glad that I made the decision to move here so that I could walk the same streets and take in the history firsthand. With tears streaming, I am going to try to make it through the rest of this post.  I feel so totally connected to the past. One principle that I was reminded of recently is that we can obtain closer relationships with family members who have passed away.  

My mom is the only member of  the family listed below who is still living.  This week she is visiting her brother in Virginia who was born a few years after this census was taken.  It is wonderful to see that after all these years, my family is still close.  

There were really rough times from slavery and well past the 1940's, but extended family took care of each other.  When one got educated and established, they reached back for other family members.  They had no one else, and they did pretty well with each other's help.  They gave to the community and the community gave back.  

As I look at the 1940 US Census, I remember the stories.  I remember how my grandparents met and eloped and how my grandmother left Buffalo.  My great grandfather, Lafayette, had already become established in Columbia.  Opportunities were greater here, and there was a strong community base for African Americans (church, education, employment). 


                  Columbia, Richland, South Carolina, ED 40-40, Image 10, 1940census.archives.gov
Living on Marshall Street, Rev. Lafayette Franklin Vance and his third wife, Martha, affectionately called, "Grandma Martha."  They were living near Lafayette's son, Emory W. Vance and family on Manning Ave.

Emory Wallace Vance, downtown Columbia
My grandfather, Emory, invited  my grandmother Otis' relatives to come live with them in Columbia where they attended either Benedict or Allen University.  I love my grandfather, Emory, with all my heart.  I was able to spend a great deal of time with him in my early years.  My parents worked in Illinois, and did not want to leave their children alone with babysitters, so we stayed with our grandparents after they had migrated to Ohio.  

I learned to be curious about my ancestors when I saw a hymn book dedicated to my grandfather's mother, Lula.  I had never known her.  I realized how important she must have been to my grandfather to have that hymn book dedicated to her.  I began asking questions before I was old enough to go to school.

My grandparents spent time with us taking us to church and to the state fair.  My grandfather had me choose what flavor Jello I wanted everyday.  I followed him into the garden where I learned his planting secrets.  I followed him to the yard for his daily nap where I knew his mouth would fall open, and I would stand on guard keeping the flies out. I felt a sense of dedication.  It was the one thing I felt charged to do then to show it.  I still fill the same, but I think he is on guard helping me now...for I can feel him.

My great Aunt Catherine or Cat as my grandmother affectionately called her, graduated from Booker T. Washington High School and then Benedict College.  She told me that she graduated Magna Cum Laude. I was able to find her school records at Benedict.  My Aunt Cat and other cousins and sisters of my grandmother were the most sweetest charitable ladies I have ever known.

Columbia, Richland, South Carolina, ED 40-40, Image 9, 1940census.archives.gov 
My grandfather, Emory Wallace Vance; grandmother Otis; mother, Edna, and Otis' sister, my Aunt Cat.   

The men were no less serviceable.  Still today, I hear older cousins and friends recount how my grandfather brought vegetables out to them from the farm he eventually owned.  He had so many nieces and nephews and cousins and siblings come out to stay on that farm in the summers.  I love to hear them recount the stories.

I love to see the evidence of the stories they told in these records. I love the legacy that was forged for me, and I am bound to live up to it.  I know I will have much to share about my family in the coming weeks.
I did not quite know that looking at them on the 1940 Census would stir so much within me.  I am glad I was finally able to get pages to load and then download.
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Monday, April 2, 2012

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1940 US Census: We have waited 72 years!

Well, it has not been quite that long, but it sure feels like it (I'm not that old)!  I cannot wait to dive in.  I will help index, but I am so anxious to see what the family groups look like that I have already researched in previous census years. I have so many questions:

Will I discover other family members that I could not locate in 1940?

How will it feel to see my parents for the first time on the census?

Will I find new members of the family group that I had not identified before?

I have to admit that I have been spoiled by being able to search census collections online.  I will definitely index, but I will try my hand searching enumeration districts as soon as they are available for the states I need.  I am really anxious to locate my family on my father's side who migrated between Arkansas and Tennessee. They have been particularly hard to pin down.

I have also been inspired to pay closer attention to the history and events of the 1940's.  I breezed right past all that in my haste to reach the 1870's.  This probably would explain the challenges I have faced.  Perhaps a closer look this time will help me identify more resources.

Last night, I was so excited I created a chart to record the family groups as I identify them in 1940.  I am sure I will find some of those more elusive family members who I could not track before now. Then I can follow the trail back every ten years.  I will put the name of each family member in birth order with each of their ages beneath the census year that I find them.

Census Tracker:

 


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