and more to come……
Whitetop Tribe of Band of Native Indians
Midnight Lily
Midnight Lily
Lily blooming in the dead of night,
Dreaming of the sky, the sun, and its rise,
Know that you glitter in the absence of light,
Because it’s you who truly shines,
And dream of the honey bees, and breezes, and rains,
And the warmth, and life, and light of day,
And let the cicadas sing to you,
And twilight bless you with morning dew,
And remember while the sun’s has gone,
That the moon, and dark, and stars above love you too.
Midnight Lily – 2nd revision
Lily blooming in the dead of night,
Dreaming of the sky, the sun, and its rise,
Know that you glitter in the absence of light,
Because it’s you who truly shines,
And dream of the honey bees, and breezes, and rains,
And the warmth, and life, and light of day,
And let the cicadas sing to you,
And twilight bless you with morning dew,
But remember while the sun’s has gone,
That the moon, and dark, and stars above love you too.
3rd revision
Midnight Lily
Lily blooming in the dead of night,
Dreaming of the sky, the sun, and its rise,
Know that you glitter in the absence of light,
Because it’s you who truly shines,
And dream of the honey bees, butterflies, breezes, and rains,
And the warmth, and life, and light of day,
And let the cicadas sing to you,
And twilight bless you with morning dew,
But remember when the sun’s has gone,
And you sit in a somber silence,
That the moon, and dark, and stars above love you too.
Final Final
Midnight Lily
Lily blooming in the dead of night,
Dreaming of the sky, the sun, and its rise,
Know that you glitter in the absence of light,
Because it’s _you_ who truly shines,
And dream of the honey bees, butterflies, breezes, and rains,
And the warmth, and life, and light of day,
And let the cicadas sing to you,
And twilight bless you with morning dew,
But remember when the sun’s has gone,
And you sit in a somber silence,
That the moon, and dark, and stars above _love you too._
for a Soft Copy, Click here
For Hard Copy, Click here
I’m thrilled to share the news:
My book has been named a WINNER in the 2018 International AAHGS Book Awards Contest (IABA).
Our Dewitty is my second book referencing family, friends, and neighbors who established the longest-lasting Black Settlement in Nebraska.
In this book, I’ve focused on the Women and what they had to say since, primarily, their voice has not been heard in almost all accountings of the Homesteaders.
I hope you enjoy reading about these strong women who were the backbone of the town and the families. Learn about their struggles, dreams, successes, and legacies.
Thank you,
JaGray
This time at the Jefferson County museum in Charles Town.
Website Narratives of Four Descendants of Jefferson County Enslaved and Free African-Americans On the iPad to the left, you can access genealogical research and family stories by several descendants of enslaved and free black Jefferson Countians.
Monique Crippen-Hopkins, a certified paralegal, blogger, family historian, and genealogist, is a descendant of the Thompson family of Jefferson County. Influenced as a young person by the importance her mother placed on genealogy and later in life by the loss of relatives who had been the repositories of family history, she began researching her family’s origins in 2006 and in 2013. Ms. Crippen-Hopkins’s blogging has led to exciting journeys and discoveries. She is writing a book on her family’s history.
Joyceann Gray, a U.S. Army retiree, author,family historian, and genealogist, is a descendant of the Hatter and McCord families of Jefferson County. Her historical and genealogical research is primarily focused on her family’s movements from Virginia to Liberia, Canada, Kentucky, and several other states. Mrs. Gray’s novel, Yes We Remember, is based on historical records and family stories of her ancestors. She is a contributor to the online encyclopedia Blackpast.org/contributor/gray-joyceann and has presented her research in several venues in the mid-Atlantic states.
Dr. Shelley Murphy, a coordinator and faculty member for the Midwest African-American Genealogy Institute, is a descendant of the Goins family of Jefferson County. She has been an avid genealogist for 30+ years, researching the Marsh, Yates, Goins, Johnson, Sims, Myers, Roper, and other families in Jefferson and Loudoun counties. She attends and presents at local and national genealogical conferences and has 20+ publications with the Charlottesville Genealogy Examiner, familytreegirl.com blog, and the Central Virginia Heritage. Jim Taylor,
Dr. Shelley Murphy, a coordinator and faculty member for the Midwest African-American Genealogy Institute, is a descendant of the Goins family of Jefferson County. She has been an avid genealogist for 30+ years, researching the Marsh, Yates, Goins, Johnson, Sims, Myers, Roper, and other families in Jefferson and Loudoun counties. She attends and presents at local and national genealogical conferences and has 20+ publications with the Charlottesville Genealogy Examiner, familytreegirl.com blog, and the Central Virginia Heritage. Jim Taylor,
Jim Taylor, life-long county resident and former high school teacher and coach, is a descendant of the Payne and Dotson families of Jefferson County. He is one of four founders and currently an officer of the Jefferson County Black History Preservation Society (JCBHPS), has written a number of books on African-American history in Jefferson County, and is a member of the board of directors of the Jefferson County Historical Society. See the JCBHPS website at http://www.jcblackhistory.org.
What a wonderful time we all enjoyed! The fellowship was just so amazing!
Last Monday, April 11, 2016, the Historical Marker was officially installed that celebrates the importance of the DeWitty African-American Settlement in a ceremony attended by close to 200 people. DeWitty was the longest lasting African-American, most successful rural settlement in all of, Nebraska.
Parked cars lined the side of the highway. Elementary and college students stood with bright eyes filled with interest and wonder. Many traveled from the various Ranches of the surrounding areas including Brownlee, Seneca, and Thedford. Valentine residents also came to learn, share and enjoy the greatness of the occasion. This occasion was a culmination of a lot of research, phone calls, fundraising and reaching out to the families of the homesteaders and the Sand Hill communities.
The great Ladies of Brownlee prepared a scrumptious midday meal to be enjoyed after the ceremony in the Brownlee Community Center. Sonny Hanna spearheaded a tour of the Sand Hills taking many of the descendants to the land their ancestors once made their homes and many were still interned there.
Rev.Khadijah Matin gave the invocation
Stew Magnuson, author of Hwy 83, “The Last American Highway”, was the master of ceremony and spearheaded The Descendants of DeWitty Team (Catherine Meehan Blount, Joyceann Gray, and Marcia Thompkins) in the making of this dream come to fruition. The great folks at the Cherry County Historical Society and the Nebraska State Historical Society quickly approved the application for the marker. And so it began, raising the money, buying plane tickets, gathering up old photographs as the excitement increased daily until 17 descendants came from all over the country to reconnect with a place that feels like home! They came representing the homesteaders who many traveled over 1700 miles from Canada and more from Kansas, Missouri, Tennessee, and Virginia to settle in the Sand Hills taking advantage of the Homesteader Act of 1862 and the amended Kinkaiders Act of 1904.
What is so important about this community is the bond between African American homesteaders of DeWitty and their white counterparts in Brownlee. The two communities were very isolated back then and despite differences of heritage and beginnings, they enjoyed a civil and caring relationship that continues up to this day. “Something the rest of America should learn from” stated local resident Shelley Christiansen. Ron Lee also voiced his opinion: “As far as race relations…I will say this..there was not one single person there at that dedication ceremony who was anything different than anyone else. We were just all people celebrating a time in the past where everyone worked together, And, though we’re not neighbors now, land-wise or ownership of the land-wise, we’re still neighbors. Lyn & Bruce Messersmith, Bree & Martin DeNaeyer, Byron & Mary Eatinger,and Ann Manning-Warren to just name a few of who open wide the doors of hospitality.
Lyn & Bruce Messersmith, Bree & Martin DeNaeyer, Byron & Mary Eatinger,and Ann Manning-Warren to just name a few of who open wide the doors of hospitality.
In the audience were some students that were taught by Goldie Walker Hayes, 
a renown teacher throughout the area. She is our maternal grandmother. They expressed their fond memories and shared so many pleasing stories of her grace, beauty, teaching ability and her kindness. This was so heartfelt and enriching for us who lost her while we were just small children.
Catherine, the granddaughter of Hester and Charles Meehan, spoke of the homesteaders struggles and delights and recited a poem her Dad wrote at age 17, speaking of an old footbridge across the North Loop River.
Yours truly, granddaughter of Roy and Goldie Hayes reminded the crowd: “Although the town was reclaimed by the land the legacy of the homesteaders carries on for they were a success! This town was not a failure. It wasn’t an experiment; it didn’t wither away because people couldn’t handle the weather – it was a testament to their vision. Which is to set roots down in a foundation for educating their children and giving them a chance at the American dream.”
We found our great grandfather, one of the original homesteaders
William P. Walker’s burial plot in the Brownlee Cemetery.
Charlotte Woodson (Granddaughter of Charlotte Riley Walker) with her daughter, Marcia Thompkins granddaughter of Boss Woodson, Rancher and Fernnella Walker Woodson, also a teacher in the county districts expressed her joy: “It WAS an awesome day! We, the descendants, made great connections, saw pictures we hadn’t seen before, heard more stories from the warm and welcoming people of the community that we hadn’t heard before, toured the land, found our ancestors resting places… I could go on and on! My life has been enriched beyond expectation, and I am forever positively changed!”
BackRow: Delbert DeWitty, (nephew of the Postmaster), Hershel Riley, Byron DeWitty, Artes Johnson& brother Maurice, (Grandson’s of Corena Walker- Williams) Garland Miles (Riley) Middle Row: Rev. Khadijah Matin, (Granddaughter of Roy and Goldie Hayes) Catherine Meehan-Blount, Jacob & Leah Ferrell, 3x Great grandchildren of William P. Walker, William Pegg, (Grandson of Roy and Goldie Hayes), Emerald Miles (Riley,) Phyllis Brown Denise Brown (descendants of Radford Speese, older brother of Charles Speese.) Joyceann Gray, (Hayes and Walker descendant). Seated front Row: Charlotte Woodson (Granddaughter of Charlotte Riley Walker) and her daughter Marcia Thompkins.
And so we met back up at the Brownlee Community Center and ate a delicious meal and chatted and shared while Ann Manning-Warren gave us a trip down memory lane!
Words from Lyn Messersmith, whose family opened their homes to us: 4/27/2016
The Lay of the Land
By Lyn Messersmith
Build It and They Will Come
They got it backward, but it worked. A group of Canadian-born Black families, former slaves, and their descendants came to a desolate and lonely region in the Nebraska Sandhills and built a community they called DeWitty, later renamed Audacious. Six hundred and forty acres seemed like a lot; surely enough to survive on, perhaps even prosper. Prosperity probably wasn’t a concept they dwelt on, so much as survival. That’s how it was in those days, and you didn’t have to be Black to know hard times in the hills. There were neighbors who understood that and welcomed them. The little town of Brownlee, a dozen or so miles downriver, had amenities that served the newcomers until they established businesses of their own, and interactions continued in the form of competitions at rodeos, baseball games and Independence Day celebrations. Brownlee had a community hall, and DeWitty had music makers, so there were dances too.
DeWitty residents were strong for education, which eventually contributed to the demise of the community. Young people went away to college, became doctors, teachers, ministers, and writers and the elders finally drifted away too, but memories of those years lingered around Brownlee and became the legend as I was growing up nearby. My dad and his peers spoke names like Speese, Riley, Turner, Hayes, and Woodson, with admiration and respect.
Stew Magnuson, an author with Sandhills roots, has traveled Highway 83 many times and chronicled the people and places along that route in a series of books. He became fascinated by stories about DeWitty, and recently spearheaded a project to raise funds for a historical marker about it.
On April 11, 2016, nearly two hundred people gathered at the marker for a dedication. Descendants of DeWitty came from both coasts and everywhere in between, and my family was privileged to host several of them. Sandhillers traveled more than a hundred miles to honor our common roots, and the ladies of Brownlee and surrounding communities put on a “Y’all come” feed in that old community hall. The rancher who owns much of the ground where DeWitty stood organized a tour for those who cared to see where their ancestors had settled, and others uncovered buried grave markers in the Brownlee Cemetery for family members to photograph.
As our guests departed for various destinations, they said the weekend had given them closure, and they felt like they had, in some sense, come home. I felt closer to my own family and more proud than ever of my heritage and neighbors.
Many people snapped pictures during that celebration, but I carry mine in my head; of women carrying more chairs to the community hall to accommodate overflow crowds, of a man with a shovel uncovering gravestones and a rancher’s plane sitting in a meadow near the marker. Of people walking half a mile back to their cars after the ceremony because of limited parking at the highway site, and children from a nearby school eating sack lunches brought along on the field trip.
DeWitty is gone, and Brownlee nearly so, but the spirit of neighborliness is not. There are memories of moments less proud in the minds of descendants on both sides, but healing is possible, and the marker celebration is proof of that.
A group of locals leaned on parked vehicles outside the Brownlee community hall and visited while waiting for the room to go in and eat. A thought came to me as we stood there, and as we drove away. It lingers now, as I look back on the event.
“If these walls could talk…”
(slightly edited by J.Gray)
 |
| Turn off for the DeWitty historical marker |
Descendants of the largest African-American settlement in Nebraska, located in the Sand Hills are expected to arrive in Cherry County on April 11 to celebrate the unveiling of a historical marker on U.S. Highway 83. DeWitty, also known as Audacious, was a series of homesteads scattered along the North Loup River west of the present-day town of Brownlee, Nebraska, and lasted from about 1906 until the last of the homesteads sold in 1956.
The Nebraska State Historical Society marker is erected on Hwy 83 just south of the Brownlee turnoff. The dedication ceremony is slated to take place at 10 a.m., Monday, April 11th at the marker site. The public is welcome to attend.
“So far, descendants are coming from as far away as California, Kansas, Florida, Delaware, and Virginia. Descendants of the town’s first postmaster, Jim DeWitty, are expected to come from Oklahoma. Other descendants of the DeWitty and Brownlee communities may attend from Valentine, Omaha, Colorado and the Minneapolis-St. Paul areas” said, Stew Magnuson, author of the book, The Last American Highway: A Journey Through Time Down U.S. Route 83, which has a chapter about the settlement. Stew has spearheaded the drive for the Historical marker and the installation ceremony.
After the ceremony, Humanities Nebraska lecturer Vicki Harris will give a presentation about DeWitty at the Brownlee Community Hall, which will be followed by a potluck lunch.
“There are not many residents left in Brownlee and the surrounding ranches, (the two communities were very tight back in the day) but they are going all out to welcome the DeWitty descendants and the other celebrants,” says Magnuson.
| |
| Brownlee Community Hall |
“I am glad that the marker mentions the close bond between the black settlers of DeWitty and the white residents of Brownlee. The two communities were both isolated and on their own in the depths of Sand Hills back then. Here we have the story of a mixed-race couple, integrated schools, neighbors helping each other when they needed it, and two communities coming together to celebrate the quintessential American holiday, Independence Day. This should be remembered,” says Magnuson.
Speakers at the ceremony will include a Cherry County Historical Society representative, Magnuson, Catherine Meehan Blount, a granddaughter of Charles and Hester Meehan – an interracial couple, who were among the early DeWitty settlers. Also, Joyceann Gray, a Granddaughter of William Roy,rancher and one of the orignial DeWitty settlers and wife Goldie Walker Hayes, legendary Principle, who remained in the county working in four-room schoolhouses long after the settlement disappeared. The Reverend Khadijah Matin, also a granddaughter of the Hayes’ will offer the invocation.
Meanwhile here’s a preview of my new book:
Is it fate or is it destiny or maybe a coincidence. Better yet, could it be our Ancestors have led us back to where our roots began to grow in this country?
Please read and make up your own mind!!
My research has taken me first to Liberia, Canada, then back to Charles Town West Virginia. I have uncovered the following information that draws me back to St. Philips in Brooklyn NY:
Which is still an active church to this day.
How ironic
My contributions to http://www.blackpast.org/
Brown, Gayleatha Beatrice (1947-2013)
Holloway, Anne Forrester (1941- 2006)
Stanfield, Sylvia Gaye (1943- )
Watson, Barbara Mae (1918-1983) –
See more at: http://www.blackpast.org
January
This is a busy month for birthday’s of those with us and those of us that we honor and remember!
Jan 1, 1914 – Neal (O’Neil) Page Jan 2, 1843 – Dolly Ann Irvin
1922 – Albert Riley Jr.
Jan 3, 1882 – Catherine L. Travis Jan 5 – Ibrahim Matin
Jan 6, 1876 – Sara Elizabeth Jan 7 – Clymtene M. Brooks
Jan 8 – Monique Jan 9, 1853 – George W. Hatter
1920 – Zelma F. Riley 1893 – Gordon W. Shreve
1921 – Harold Wm. Stith 1885 – Samuel H. Travis
1875 – Theodora Epps
1917 – Kenneth M. Hayes
Jan 11, 1910 – Richard L. Reed, Jr. Jan 13 – Jehan Mesidor
1934 – Leonard D. Shreve 1844 – Mary E. (Eliza) Brown
1903 – Baldwin W. Walker 1858– Charlotte B. Hatter
1866 – Jeanette Watts 1913 – Vera Mae Robbins
Jan 15, 1849 – Lewis Thompson Forte Jan 16, 1909 – William T. Carter
Jan 17, 1912 – Dwight E. Stith, Dr. 1883 – Tipton Tip Fugate
1828 – Elizabeth A. Tofflemire
Jan 18, 1872 – Felix Franklin Shreve Jan 21, 1872 – Charles W. L. Travis
1891 – Dennis E. Walker Jan 22, 1877 – Jasper R. Thompson, Dr.
Jan 19, 1878 – Ina Lizella Thomas Jan 24, 1948 – Dexter Rodney Hatter
Jan 20 – Marilyn Morton 1849 – Matilda Hatter
Thornton Hatter Jan 25 – Teddy Hayes
1867- Mary Jane Brooks Marcia T. Thompkins
1878 – Grace Dureen Fox Jan 29 – Derrick Vaughn
1873 – Wm. Nelson Searight 1867 – Lessie Mary Cason
1884 – Mollie Thompson
1866 – Elizabeth E. Watts
** Honor and remebered (With No exact day in January)
1820 – Ephriam Kersey 1879 – Mable Nixon
1832 – Sarah Ann Travis 1880 – Abraham Shreeves
1836 – Richard Page 1883 – Noomie Tillery
1854 – Mary Isabella Kersey 1888 – Austin C. Proctor
1855 – Louis McDade 1889 – Blanch Tillery
1857 – Phoebe Arlena Brooks 1890 – Henrietta McDade
1879 – Mable Nixon 1891 – Ethel Tillery
1882 – Della Jones 1892 – Maybelle Carter
1881 – John T. Mc Campbell Britton Mc Dade
1882 – Britton McDade 1896 – Annie R. Hatter
Charles B. Woodson, Sr. Mosella Brooks
1862 – Jacob Mc Intosh Herbert Staten
1898 – Eva May Carter
1899 – Harer Johnston
Genealogy and History in North Carolina and Beyond
Yes We Remember Our Ancestors
A Indian virtual home
Building Our Dream Home
Digital Magazine
Trying to put all the pieces of the Shumpert family in place.
“Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope.” — Maya Angelou
See, what had happened was...
Blog of Brass Oak Genealogy
Genealogy and History in North Carolina and Beyond
Yes We Remember Our Ancestors
A Indian virtual home
Building Our Dream Home
Digital Magazine
Trying to put all the pieces of the Shumpert family in place.
“Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope.” — Maya Angelou
See, what had happened was...
Blog of Brass Oak Genealogy
J. Gray Researching 