52 Ancestors Week 1: My Genealogy Journey and My Inspiration

Thank you for visiting my blog! The year is now 2018 and Faith, Family, and Ministry remain my life's passion! Who am I and just what is this all about. Well for 2018, I have decided to join the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks blog challenge, and yes I'm already behind. 
 

Photo Credit: Amy Johnson Crow

I am Dante Eubanks, a native of Cincinnati, Ohio. My interest in family history and wanting to know more about my roots began in the spring of 1987 when my 7th grade English teacher tasked our class with our research project which was to develop a family tree. At the time I knew my maternal great-grandparents on my grandmother, Jessie Mae Heath-Eubanks' side of the family and so I began the task of asking questions. Because I saw my Grandmother and Great-Grandparents every weekend, developing a family tree was going to be easy for me and the excitement was interesting for me at the tender age of 13 years old. What questions was I going to ask? What was my Grandmother, her mother, and father going to tell me in regards to their family? And where did they migrate from and when? So many questions and so many details to discover and I was excited. 

I knew the assignment would be easy as I spent every weekend and every summer at my great-grandparents house. So I knew the family history or at least I thought I did, and learning more was something exciting and what I had looked forward to when my journey began in 1987. My grandmother's parents were Mitchell Heath and Anna Lue Barrow, and there story is told thru this blog. My true inspiration and zest for learning more and more really was gifted to me by my Great-Grandmother, Anna Lue. She was a jewel and the matriarch of my family as I knew it. And to this day, Granny, as I affectionately called her, still inspires me to do more and to share the Ancestors' journey as well as their legacy. To learn more about Granny, our Anna Lue Barrow-Heath, read  Honoring My Cincinnati Matriarch: Getting to Know Granny, My Great-Grandmother Anna Lue Barrow-Heath Part I and Honoring My Cincinnati Matriarch: Getting to Know Granny, My Great-Grandmother Anna Lue Barrow-Heath Part II.

In the beginning of my journey, knowing the names on the family tree was important, but now it's knowing the Ancestors' legacy and sharing them among the living generations today. Genealogy to me is more than just family research, but it is discovering the journey of my Ancestors, their life's story, and what they want to be shared with the generations of today. I have always felt this was my calling, and I am honored to have answered the Ancestors' call! My journey began with a then simple assignment in 1987, but my dedication to my ancestry research truly began in 1989, and I have not regretted one moment of getting to know more about my family.

On this genealogy journey, I also discovered my maternal grandfather, William Eubanks' lineage through his parents with emphasis on his mother, Henrietta Jones-Eubanks' family which is my Mississippi, Maryland, Kentucky, and South Carolina connection many times over. This journey also introduced me to more in-depth knowledge of my paternal Butler family and allied families of southern Maryland with incredible history and ties to our nations overall history. From 1987 to now, I have learned so much on all sides of my family, traced back to the mid 1600s on some lines, and have connected with cousins from all over. And because of the ever changing migration patterns, I have also learned that all sides of my family have crossed one another in more ways than one. What can I say, it's an amazing journey and I am ever more excited to learn more!!!

Thank you for sharing in my genealogy journey and for better understanding my inspiration. This is just the beginning and I'm excited to continue my journey!

Granny, thank you for inspiring me and for allowing me to listen!


Dante

Honoring My Cincinnati Matriarch: Getting to Know Granny, My Great-Grandmother Anna Lue Barrow-Heath Part I

I was pondering on the thought of why I love genealogy. What is my passion you might ask? What sparked my curiosity? What drives me to research hours upon hours? Well it all began as a simple school assignment and through time has evolved into a hobby and ultimately my purpose. Many family members from across the states call me the "walking family tree" given my wide range of knowledge of our ancestral ties to the south as well as my ability to run down the family tree backwards and forwards without looking at a single piece of paper. I call it “my purpose” in life to help bridge the gaps between our Ancestors and present generations. My journey to the online world of blogging began with my membership in the African American Genealogy & Slave Ancestry Research Facebook group and the support of the Tribe. Granny, this one's for you.

My Great-Grandmother, who I affectionately called Granny, on my maternal Grandmother's side is Anna Lue Barrow-Heath. She was the fourth of eight children born on March 8, 1913 to the union of Irvin Barrow and Annie Elizabeth Hunter Nelloms (Grand Annie). For Grand Annie See The Hunter-Nelloms Connection. Granny is my Cincinnati family matriarch, and the first family member I interviewed about our family's southern roots.


In 1988 on one of many visits to my Grandmother’s house, the family was all together which included my Mom, Joyce, her sisters Aunt Darlene and Aunt Sherry, my Great-Grandparents, Mitchell Heath and Anne Lue Barrow, and of course my Grandmother, Jessie Mae who I loved dearly and spent every weekend with listening to old Sunday worship services while sitting on the porch. To some, one may ask what teenager did that. And I would respond by saying, well I did. We were all gathered on the first floor of the house. You see, Granny and Granddaddy lived on the first floor and Grandmamma lived on the second floor. But anytime we were all together, the gathering place was on the first floor. The conversation somehow migrated from what was on television to Granny and Granddaddy’s childhood years in Georgia. Granny always talked about her Papa and Grand Annie. Granddaddy on the other hand did not like to talk much about his parents (more on the Georgia Heath lineage later). It was this conversation Granny talked about where she was born.


Granny used to say she was born in Atlanta, Ga. In fact, on her obituary my Grandmamma had written her was born in Atlanta, Georgia to Irvin and Annie Barrow. After years of searching through the soundex indexes and the census records, I learned that Granny was born in Chambers County, Alabama along with her older siblings Jennie, Amos, and Leola. I first found Papa and Grand Annie in the 1910 Census married and living on Five Points Road #1 in Fredonia, Chambers County, Alabama (Enumeration District 0022, Precinct 6) with two of their children, Jennie Lou (born 1907) and Amos (born 1909).

1910 Census of Granny's parents, Irvin "Pete" Barrow & Annie E. Hunter Nelloms-Barrow

In the 1920 Census for Fulton County, Georgia, Granny is a little girl at age 7 living with her parents in East Point, Fulton County, Georgia (Enumeration District 161, East Point District) along with her siblings Jennie, Amos, Leola, Sarah, and Ruth. In 1920, Granny's birth place is listed as Alabama along with her older siblings. But as you notice in the 1910 Census, her older siblings are listed as being born in Georgia. This has been a mystery for the family for years.


Granny lived in Georgia and grew up East Point which is a surburb of until the family relocated to Cincinnati, Ohio in 1922 when her father received employment. Moving up north as the family down south called it. There were many migrations from the south to the north all based on better jobs and increased opportunities for the family to prosper. Upon moving to Cincinnati, Granny always stated the family was very close. She said there were many gatherings with family members who had also migrated north. But one gathering Granny always enjoyed and carried forward with her own family was Sunday dinners Granny enjoyed spending time with family and she enjoyed cooking too. Granny was famous for her fried corn, oxtails, pound cakes, and her holiday meals especially those on Thanksgiving and Christmas.


Granny met the love of her life, Mitchell, and on September 16, 1928 the two were married. They only had once child, my Grandmother Jessie Mae. More to come later on Mitchell and Anna's love story and their beautiful daughter. It was my Granny who taught me about her mother, affectionately known as Grand Annie, and her father, Papa Irvin, her aunts, uncles, and cousins. She often talked about two of her favorite uncles, her Uncle Bossie and Uncle Tom, as if they lived right there in the house with her. Family meant everything to her, and I guess in a sense that has passed down through the generations to me. There are so many fond memories of Granny and I intend to pass down her legacy to family and friends alike. I learned a lot from Granny and I swear I was her favorite great-grandson. Stay tuned!