Presentations
10:30-11:30
Keynote Chinquapin
Buried Treasures: Community
Identity Hidden in Folklore,
Dr. Keagan Lejeune
Imaging--Our
Families, Black or White?, Gary J. Gabehart,
This is a
presentation about a family of Free People of Color from Louisiana,
through Southeast Texas and beyond. Drakes, Goins and related families
into the unknowns of Texas, and their roles in the Texas Revolution
(Alamo/San Jacinto). Goins Texas Rangers and Oklahoma shootout. The
Goins/Choctaw dispute at the turn of the century between the Dawes
Commission and the Indian Citizenship Courts of Oklahoma. Gary J.
Gabehart is President, Inter-Tribal Council of American Indians, Inc.
A Redbone Family
Story, Sonya Davis
The story of one Redbone
family beginning in the early 1800's and extending down into the present.
Some of the surnames included in this family are: Drake, Doyle, Howard,
James, Johnson and Thompson. Sonya Davis, a member of this colorful
family, will talk about their past and present from her perspective. She
will discuss how their culture may have shaped them and directed their
course in life; and whether being "Redbone" caused them to be different
from others in the surrounding community.
Grave-houses, Don
C. Marler
Grave-houses are scattered over the south, but where did they originate?
And what was their purpose. The largest collection of these houses is in
Vernon Parish, La.
How to do Genealogy
Research by Computer, Carolyn (Dyess) Bales and Barbara Swire
The
purpose of this session will be to provide information and guidelines on
the many uses of the computer to help with genealogy research. Some of the
topics that will be covered are:
-
The different types of search engines,
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How to organize bookmarks for quick
references,
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The different genealogical computer
groups, what they do, what they cost, and the purpose of each one,
-
The difference between the genealogical
software for storing the family information,
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The purpose of genealogical email groups
-
The function of MyFamily.Com.
There will be handouts, a power point presentation, discussion and Q & A.
Last of a Breed,
Linda Bass Clark
Last of a Breed, Linda
Bass Clark will present a
historical writing
that won 2nd place and was later picked up by the Kinfolks publication put
out by Southwest Louisiana Genealogy Society.
The Bearhead Creek Redbones, Ray
“Houston” Bridges
We'll all show up in our
native costumes and sing some of our traditional songs. After which we'll
drink some firewater and, then in true Redbone style, get into some fights
then go out and start a new Baptist church the next day.
Title: Racial Ambiguity in
Nineteenth-Century Songs. Frank and Mary Lee Sweet
The Sweets entertained us at
the first conference in Alexandria with period music and dress. They will
be back again this year with more of the same made more meaningful by a
scholarly presentation to help interpret the music. See their material at
Back In
Tyme
9:00--9:45
Chinquapin
When Your Redbone Roots Find You,
Sammy Tippitt
Sammy tells an intriguing story of how his Redbone roots came searching
for him. He tells how his father grew up in Vernon Parish and he remembers
as a preschool child visiting his relatives. His father became extremely
ill when Sammy was very young; consequently, he didn’t venture back to
those roots. However, at the age of 58 and president of an international
Christian ministry, Sammy's Redbone heritage came seeking him. At a low
point in his life, a letter came from a man in Portugal saying he had
evidence that he was Sammy’s brother. He said he had done DNA testing and
it showed that they came from the same Indian background. Sammy’s response
was “Who are you, and what Indian background?” The chain of events that
followed led him to an incredible discovery.
William Goyens, Jr of Nacogdoches, TX, Cyndie Goins Hoelscher
The Man Behind the
Myths
Power point presentation and some handouts available.
Historical marker, one mile. This is an
invitation for the public to pull off the side of the road and read
interesting events in local history. The centennial marker to William
Goyens, Jr., historic citizen of the Republic of Texas, once stood on
Highway 21 West near the junction of Highway 59 in Nacogdoches, TX. It no
longer stands there, the granite marker long ago shattered by vandalism.
As the fifth generation great-grand-niece of Goyens, I visited the
centennial marker when it stood, riddled with bullets from random drive by
shootings, but still legible. The marker stated that Goyens was a runaway
slave from South Carolina. The monument also declared that he died in
1836. Most who may not be familiar with Goyens’ history may believe every
word engraved in that stone. Carved at the bottom, almost as an
afterthought were the words. “His Skin Was Black, But His Heart True
Blue”. As many gathered here today probably know, because we’ve done our
homework, Goyens was not a runaway slave from South Carolina. He was born
to free persons of color in North Carolina. Nor did he die in 1836, at
the height of his work in helping establish the Republic of Texas by
negotiating the Houston Forbes Treaty with the Cherokees. Instead, he
died in 1856, living long enough to see Texas acquire statehood in the
United States and surely long enough to witness the tides turning against
the issue of slavery. And for previous historians who wrote histories
about Goyens, they may say his heart was blue as in loyal to the cause,
but I would like to venture further, saying that Goyens’ heart was gold.
He was a peacekeeper in days of hostility. He believed in justice. He
did not believe in racial inequality. His interracial marriage with Mary
Pate Sibley, his reputation of friendship and trust with the Shawnee and
Cherokee, as well as his friendships with Sam Houston and others indicate
that the characteristics of the skin were not nearly as important as those
qualities of integrity, dignity, honesty and doing the best a person can
do to make a community, perhaps even the world, a better place.
Incredibly, he rose above the deep prejudices of the times to become an
important and respected man. The purpose of this presentation is to
dispel the many myths and misrepresentations about Bill Goyens, Jr. and to
provide an accurate portrait of the mixed-lineage man behind the myths.
I.
William Goyens Jr genealogy in North Carolina including
his parents and grandparents. Connections with Lumbee Indians of NC
II.
The Relationship between Goyens and Dr. Sibley of
Fayetteville, North Carolina
III.
The Republic of Texas – Indian Agent
IV.
Current publications about Goyens and how they mislead.
V. Appeals to
the Texas historical Commission - Process to find and preserve the
cemetery where Goyens and his wife is buried.
The Ashworth Genealogy Exchange, Leroy Aaron (Lee)
Ashworth
DNA
-- Trying to Understand DNA, Alvie Walts
Topics will include Y-DNA, Mt-DNA, BGA Ethnic Ancestry and Y-DNA
Haplogroups. PowerPoint presentation with handouts avaialble.
They Were Other,
Stacy Webb
Power Point Presentation with handouts. Mixed-blood Indians of the
Southeast and Stand owners along the Natchez Trace, Tennessee to
Louisiana. Fur Traders and Indian agents of early American
History 1600-1830's. Indian Trade Route Maps.
Natchitoches Library
Holdings of Interest,
Robert Starks
Mr. Starks is the president of
the Natchitoches Genealogical and Historical Association.
How to Search
Cemeteries,
Carolyn (Dyess) Bales and Barbara Swire
The purpose of this session will be
to provide information and guidelines on cemetery researching. Some of
the topics that will be covered are:
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Organizing your cemetery
research; records and photos,
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Using the computer for
cemetery researching,
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Hints on how to read weathered
headstones without effacing them,
-
Hints on taking cemetery
pictures.
This session
will include use of digital arts and review of different related online
programs.
Gloria Stringer, CPA, owner and manager of
Stringer &
Associates, graduated cum laude in 1975 from Stephen F.
Austin State University with a major in accounting. Accounting and
management experience includes over twenty years of public and private
accounting for small businesses, non-profits and individuals.
In addition
to her day to day work she serves as consultant and instructor for
Angelina College Community Services and Angelina College Small Business
Development Center. In 1992 she was the founding director of the Angelina
College Center for Nonprofit Management and served in that capacity until
the spring of 1997.
Banquet Speaker, Dr. Kaersten Colvin-Woodruff. Doctor Colvin-Woodruff is a
descendent of the Delaware Moors, a group very much like Melungeons and
Redbones.
Her topic is titled, The Moors Revisited: A Contemporary Look at
Forgotten Folk.
