Going home...
Last week, after years of research, years of bumping into walls and posing questions to the universe., after years of combing through documents and spending hours on genealogy and newspaper archive websites....after receiving help from strangers, after thinking that I would never ever find the truth, after reminding myself that these things take time - after all of that I arrived in Macon, Georgia and found myself in the middle of a journey I took up nearly 20 years earlier.
I had visited Macon only once in my life and that was back in 2007 when I took my mother and grandmother on a road trip. We drove from New York down to Sandersville, Georgia where my maternal ancestors once lived. I still have a few cousins there. We spent a day in Macon with some family who live there. At the time, I had no idea that my paternal ancestors had once called Macon home.
In 2010, I received an email from the very wonderful and generous Valerie Beaudralt. She had read my novel: Nowhere is a Place.
Nowhere is a Place came directly out of my yearning to know more about my paternal lineage. At the back of the book I have a page titled: Are we related? Where I list the few ancestral names that I had discovered. Valerie took it upon herself to do a little research of her own and low and behold she found my great-grandmother Chappo's marriage record that listed the name of her parents!
This was a great discovery!!
That bit of information led to other, larger, grander pieces of info and before I knew it - I had a family tree in full bloom.
Well, last week while attending The Crossroads Writers Conference in Macon, Georgia (which was great fun and you all need to mark your calenders to attend next year!) Ms. Sherry Williamson (Professor, Screenwriter and my assigned Shepard during my time in Macon) was gracious enough to take me to the First Baptist Church of Macon - the very church that Reverend T.M. Robinson (my great-great grandfather) had erected, replacing the original board and shingle church on Cotton Avenue that was founded by slaves in 1830.
Sorry, I can't seem to get these photos to roatate left. (sigh)
When I touched the cornerstone that bears his name, I almost burst into tears...
Me - the great-great granddaughter of Rev. T.M. Robinson and Louisa White-Robinson....
Thank you Valerie...thank you ancestors......#thatwasanexceptionalday
Bernice L. McFadden
I had visited Macon only once in my life and that was back in 2007 when I took my mother and grandmother on a road trip. We drove from New York down to Sandersville, Georgia where my maternal ancestors once lived. I still have a few cousins there. We spent a day in Macon with some family who live there. At the time, I had no idea that my paternal ancestors had once called Macon home.
In 2010, I received an email from the very wonderful and generous Valerie Beaudralt. She had read my novel: Nowhere is a Place.
Nowhere is a Place came directly out of my yearning to know more about my paternal lineage. At the back of the book I have a page titled: Are we related? Where I list the few ancestral names that I had discovered. Valerie took it upon herself to do a little research of her own and low and behold she found my great-grandmother Chappo's marriage record that listed the name of her parents!
This was a great discovery!!
That bit of information led to other, larger, grander pieces of info and before I knew it - I had a family tree in full bloom.
Well, last week while attending The Crossroads Writers Conference in Macon, Georgia (which was great fun and you all need to mark your calenders to attend next year!) Ms. Sherry Williamson (Professor, Screenwriter and my assigned Shepard during my time in Macon) was gracious enough to take me to the First Baptist Church of Macon - the very church that Reverend T.M. Robinson (my great-great grandfather) had erected, replacing the original board and shingle church on Cotton Avenue that was founded by slaves in 1830.
Sorry, I can't seem to get these photos to roatate left. (sigh)
When I touched the cornerstone that bears his name, I almost burst into tears...
Me - the great-great granddaughter of Rev. T.M. Robinson and Louisa White-Robinson....Thank you Valerie...thank you ancestors......#thatwasanexceptionalday
Bernice L. McFadden
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Brown Girl Reading
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Oct 13, 2012 06:31AM
What an inspiring story!! I'm sure one day I'll want to do the same thing. Surely since I never knew my father. Thanks for the inspiration!
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Bernice, What an awesome discovery for you - I am so very delighted for you. Thank you for continuing to share your ancestral journey with us, it is quite inspirational. I attempted a trace quite a number of years ago, but only manage to get so far before running into a brick wall.
That is so awesome makes me want to do some Family Lineage research of my own ! :) ...Good for you I cant imagine how Good it mustve felt to Be There
