The Heath Enslaved History: Exploring the Heath Enslaved Relationships and Connection to William Heath of Surry County, Virginia

BLUF: Bottom Line Up Front
The Georgia Heath Enslaved and their descendants all have one thing in common; they named their children after each other!!! So you are connected to Benjamin Heath, well which one? How about Phelps Heath or Felts Heath, again which one? You said Samuel, oh ok, but again which one? And you thought you descended from William, Isaac, Abraham, Ransom, Foster, Peter, Daniel, Anachy, Rebecca and again, I still ask you WHICH ONE? So the theory was birthed, the Heaths must have been related to one another.


After beginning my Heath family research in 1988 and digging deeper beginning in February 1993, I only knew as far back to my 2nd Great-Grandfather, Phelps "Tug" Heath who was born in Hancock County, Georgia. I also thought his first name was spelled Phelps, but it turns out it is spelled Felts. When I first began researching the Georgia Heaths, there were many and the many were spread from east Georgia counties such as Richmond, Burke, Emanuel, Washington, Greene, Hancock, Warren, Wilkes, Jefferson, Screven, and Glascock to west Georgia counties such as Harris, Talbot, Taylor, Houston, Pulaski, Monroe (in the middle), Macon, Muscogee, and Troup counties just to name a few but all these counties had one thing in common, they were all located in central Georgia and along the Central Georgia Railroad.


As I looked at the Georgia county map in 1993, I was fascinated by the fact that there were so many Heaths, black, white, mulatto, you name it and they were all living near one another with some right next door or over in the next county and with many instances where the names appeared to mimic one another. Abraham, Henry, William, Daniel, Foster, Peter, Benjamin, Jefferson, Turner, Asberry, Dollie, Celia, Hannah, Caroline, Anachy, Ellen, Lena, Sylvia, Rachel/Rachael, and Harriett seemed to be the most popular names in the Heath families. It is because of the naming convention and county proximities with one another I capitalized on the notion and teaching point that repetition is significant in family research.


In the Beginning: Finding the Heath Enslaved and their owners
Finding the Heath Enlaved was not all that hard as the 1870 census was filled with black Heath families in all the counties named above and I'm certain, I have probably missed a few. Once again, the names repeated themselves in all the counties with Benjamin, Abraham, Peter, and William topping the list for the males and Harriett, Eliza, Ellen, Sylvia (Silvie), and Rachel/Rachael topping the list for the females. The children's names also were very repetitious and many families lived next door to one another, with some also living next door to the white Heaths which meant there was a clue to the slave and slave owner relationship. Bingo, it was time to dig deep!


My slave owner research began by tracing the white Heath families in order to establish connections as well as migration patterns. I began mapping which Heaths were present on the 1870 census and worked backwards from there. It seemed all roads lead back to a white Heath named William and his parents as well as North Carolina back to Surry County, Virginia. And it was also through William, all roads led back to his father Adam, and Adam’s African Enslaved female named Doll who was identified with seven other Enslaved.


The African Enslaved female Doll was identified as 1 of 8 Enslaved imported from Africa by the Barrow family and subsequently purchased by Adam Heath in 1695. Their purchase was associated with Adam having been granted 386 acres in Surry County on the south side of the James River. William Heath was the son of Adam and Sarah Heath of Surry County, Virginia and husband of Elizabeth Gee-Heath. William and Elizabeth had a son named Thomas Heath who was married to a Sarah. Thomas and Sarah's sons Adam Heath, Abraham Heath, and Richard Heath were the original Enslaved owners of many Heath slaves in Wilkes, Burke, and Warren counties in east central Georgia (but originally from or descendants of Enslaved from Halifax County, North Carolina) as well as our connection to the North Carolina to Georgia migration between 1782-1790. Thomas and Sarah’s Enslaved servants were the descendants of Doll, which has been confirmed through the historical documents of Adam Heath and his son, William Heath.


Thomas Heath received several of his Enslaved servants from his father William and ultimately passed down either as gifts or through his last will and testament, June 13, 1772 (Halifax County, North Carolina) the same Enslaved and their descendants to his sons Adam, Abraham, and Richard. I am focusing this background story on the three sons for a reason and that is the North Carolina to Georgia migration. Thomas Heath died in Halifax County, North Carolina in 1773, Abraham Heath and Richard Heath died in 1807 in Warren County, Georgia. Many of the Virginia Heath Enslaved servants and their offspring were documented in the wills thereby providing a connection to one another as well as a connection to the white Heath enslavers. The Enslaved servants born in Virginia moved along with their children to Halifax County, North Carolina not by choice but forcibly by obligation as Enslaved servants to the white Heath families and subsequently some of the Heath Enslaved were born in Halifax County and then their offspring were born in Georgia.


Our Ancestors’ Heath Expansion in Georgia: Abraham Heath & Richard Heath's Enslaved and the Migration Westward
Abraham Heath was in three specific counties in Georgia namely Burke, Wilkes, and Warren. Abraham's trail connects many theories of slave connections and relationships as well as just how did the Enslaved get to those specific areas. One caveat to that is Warren County was formed around 1794/95 out of Wilkes County. Burke County is just southeast of both Warren and Wilkes Counties. Richard Heath's records show he was primarily in Warren County, but nonetheless both Abraham and Richard owned a great number of Enslaved servants as documented in their last will and testament, for Abraham dated November 23, 1807 and probated January 4, 1808; for Richard Heath May 26, 1807 and probated January 4, 1808.


Abraham's Enslaved were willed to his wife, Winnifred Cotton-Heath, and his children: John Heath, Sarah "Sally" Heath-Chapple (Chappell), Benjamin Heath (who was married to Nancy and relocated to Monroe County, GA; will dated September 10, 1838 and probated January 6, 1840), William Heath (who was married to Sarah Bonner-Heath; will dated December 12, 1813 and probated July 4, 1814 and Sarah's will dated February 3, 1846 and probated September 7, 1846), Adam Heath, Elizabeth Heath, Polly Heath-Barrow, Richard Heath, and Frances "Fannie" Burge Heath-Highfield, and Abraham Heath. Richard's Enslaved were willed to his wife, Rebecca Chappell-Heath, and his children Chappell Heath, Mack Heath, Elizabeth Heath-Hill, Sarah Heath-Moreland, Nancy Heath-Wright, Temperance "Tempy" Heath-Dewberry, Henry Heath (who was also willed land purchased from Burrell Searcy), Rebecca Heath, and Richard Heath.


Between brothers, Abraham Heath and Richard Heath, and other associated families such as the Hubert, Ivey, Flewellyn (Fluellen), Barksdale, Felts, Chapple/Chapel/Chappell, Dickson/Dixon, Battle, Barrow, and Wright families owned and more likely shared labor among the Heath Enslaved throughout Warren, Wilkes, Burke, and surrounding counties as well as the migration through central Georgia and into Alabama.


One notable Heath Enslaved servant who was rented was Clack Heath who was a skilled worker and worked for the Barksdale, Hubert, Ivey, Felts, Dickson, and Battle families and was described in many instances as a skilled and reliable worker. Another skilled Enslaved servant was Elisha "Lige" Heath who was a skilled wheelwright. Both Clack and Lige were owned by Henry Heath, son of William Heath and grandson of Abraham Heath, and it can be assumed as well as proven through documentation that they were willed or given to Henry by William who also most likely received their Enslaved parents from Abraham Heath and Winnifred Cotton-Heath through their wills in the early 1800s. Over in Talbot County, another Heath slave named Titus Heath worked for the railroad and bought his freedom and possibly his wife's freedom. Titus is a descendant of Celia "Celey" Heath as well as Dollie "Doll" Heath. Coupled with the fact of slave owning families migrating, the railroad expansion across central Georgia played a vital role in the migration of all Heaths and their families as well as the expansion and interaction of Heath Enslaved servants with other plantations, providing slave labor for the building of the Central Georgia Railroad, and becoming skilled and reliable workers while traveling with the enslaver(s).


Benjamin Heath, son of Abraham and Winnifred, relocated to Monroe County, Georgia with a great number of Heath slaves. Benjamin and his wife Nancy were the parents of Mary Ann Louisa Heath, Benjamin Green Heath (who relocated from Georgia to Cass County (formerly known as Davis County for a few years), Texas), Abraham Heath, William Lafayette Heath (he also relocated from Monroe County Georgia to Macon County, Alabama where he married Catherine Wilson and finally relocated to Cass County, Texas), and George Chapple (Chappell) Heath. The most interesting part about Benjamin and his family, we can clearly trace Heath Enslaved of Abraham and Winnifred that were willed to Benjamin who then passed them and their children down to his sons and daughter. The same Heath Enslaved servants migrated with the white Heaths from Warren County to Monroe County, Georgia, then over to Macon County, Alabama, and finally to Cass County, Texas. Some of the Enlaved included were Isaac, Dice, Tillman (known as Tillman Heath Dickerson), Mamie (Mymy in wills), Henry, Charles (known as as Charles Heath Richardson), Jeffery, Turner, Abraham, Fanny, Mary, Lydia, Anachy, another Fanny (girl listed in September 1838 will of Benjamin), Julius Caesar, Miles, and Jack. These Enslaved and many others appear in the 1870 Census in Davis County (as previously mentioned, Davis later reverted back to the original name, Cass County shortly after 1870 around 1872/73).

Understanding the Family Connection and Accepting the Past
For many years, I questioned just how are all these Heath families were connected and how and why did so many move west from Georgia into Alabama and onto Texas. From Texas, many also relocated to Oklahoma, Arkansas, and California. There were so many migration patterns, but the Heaths and their associated cousins from the Richardson, Dickerson, Haskins, Walker, Hubert, Barksdale, Battle, Dickson, Searcy, Harrell, Flewellyn/Fluellen, Rousseau/Russeau/Russaw/Russell and Ivey families all seemed to follow the same patterns and this is a direct correlation to the enslaved owner and Enslaved relationship as well as how Enslaved families were relocated with the slave owners. Fast forward to today, DNA testing is confirming the links related to the Virginia to North Carolina to Georgia to Alabama to Texas migration of the above families. It is an awesome feeling knowing the documented research coupled with historical documents confirming both white and black families and DNA matches is ensuring we understand the family connections and begin the process of accepting our past.


In the instance of the great migration from Georgia to Texas, many black families were still in Georgia after the Civil War and appear in the 1870 and 1880 Census in Warren, Hancock, Talbot, Taylor, Monroe, and Muscogee counties many by 1880 and most by 1900 began appearing in Texas with their families right along with the previously mentioned slave families who relocated prior to 1870 between the years of 1850-1865. This can all be verified through many Texas voter registration lists from 1866-1867 which documented the year of arrival, years living in a given state, and associated years living in a particular county. Voter registrations and agricultural documents provided key details in identifying black Heath family members and associated families. Another interesting revelation is the fact there had to be some form of communication between the Enslaved families after leaving Georgia as they were reunited after the Civil War and some years after 1870 and the 1880 Census. One thing is certain, the Enslaved and later emancipated black families remained connected not only thru naming convention but by occupation as well as the connection back to the white families who originally enslaved them. Slavery is not something to cherish, but it is something our Ancestors survived, conquered, and taught each surviving generation how to survive and advance forward. As a result of our Ancestors' strength, perseverance, and unwavering faith, we must understand, acknowledge, and accept our past.

Thank You Ancestors for Preserving Our Family!
I am grateful for our past even the bad parts as without all of it, many of us would not be here today. Whether we accept slavery or not, whether we accept kinship between the slave owners or the slaves, or whether we accept the fact our Ancestors worked for less than their potential and worth or not is not the issue. Our present day issue of not wanting to accept the past and realize it was reality should not be an issue at all, but instead it should be our purpose to take the "issues" and past wrongs of this country enslaving others and leap forward and preserve our Ancestors' legacy. My Ancestors had purpose and my Ancestors had worth!! Today, the next hour, the next few moments, and throughout the journey of researching the Ancestors, my purpose and our purpose should be to preserve the legacy of our Ancestors as they guide us to greater and greater depths of knowledge as we continue to break down the brick walls. I acknowledge the purchase of the Enslaved female named Doll by Adam Heath in Virginia and I am grateful for her journey, her descendants becoming my Ancestors, and for the Ancestors birthing a great family spread abroad from coast to coast.

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Humbly and Respectfully submitted in Honor of the Ancestors,

Danté Eubanks, August 24, 2017

Special Note: This writing includes over 20 years of combined research and collaboration beginning in 1988.

Roots of the Tree: Understanding the Georgia to Alabama to Texas Connection

Once again, it has been over year since I last blogged and there is much to be told. As I am connecting the dots in my own family, I all to well understand there are many others researching as well and like me are asking "How does it all connect?" and this is just a small porting on my many connections through my maternal Great-Grandparents, Mitchell Heath and Anna Lue Barrow-Heath.
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Where did the families originate? Where did the trail begin? Who are the Ancestors? And just how did they all connect over decades of southern exploration, slavery, westward expansion, and placing down roots and establishing families? There is one key indentifying factor between the Heath, Hubert, Barrow, Wright, Searcy, Flewellyn, Barksdale, Battle, Ivey, Searcy, Dickson, Lynn, Felts/Phelps, and Chappell/Chapple families, and they key remains the same through generations of bloodlines -FAMILY!

The Searcy Connection of the South
One of the early families of exploration is the Searcy family of Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, and Texas. The Searcy family is unique in nature that it is connected to the Heath, Hubert, Ivey, Dickson, Chappell/Chapple, and Theawtt families also of Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, and Texas. For more information, go to the following link: http://www.searcyfea.com/5601.html. Of special note is the Daniel Searcy family and William Searcy which both have ties and dealings with the Hiram Hubert family and Thomas Heath family, both of North Carolina and Georgia. The Searcy family connection lies within Warren, Wilkes, Talbot, Taylor, and Harris counties in Georgia. There are many marriages among the Heath and Searcy slaves with connections to the Ivey and Dickson families as well.

Let's Explore the Heaths and the Huberts
Another interesting early family explored heavily within my online family tree is the Heath and Hubert families and the clear connection with the Ivey, Barksdale, and Battle families as they all come together in old Wilkes County in towns known as Old Mill, Barnett, Warrenton, Powellton, White Plains, Mayfield, Goose Pond, Red Lick, Norwood, and Sharon Town in what are now present day Warren County, Hancock County and Taliaferro County. My Heath lineage begins with my maternal Great-Grandfather, Mitchell Heath, who was the son of Phelps Tug Heath (Phelps Heath III) and Eunice "Eunie" Frazier-Heath. Mitchell's paternal grandmother is, Jane "Jincy" Hubert-Heath, wife of Phelps Heath I and daughter of Paul Hubert and Jennie "Jincy" Hubert. I have been researching the Heath family for quite sometime to include both the white and black families from the late 1700s to present day. It has been an incredible journey. Just recently in late spring of 2014, I began the journey of unraveling a mystery with understanding who my Jane Heath was and what her connection was to the Hubert family in Hancock County as well as Warren County. This Hubert ancestral journey began to morph into something even greater than I ever imagined as well as taking a step back and really evaluating " what is my purpose" and "what do I have to offer our present generations and generations of the future" along with fully reviewing everything without leaving no stone uncovered. Thanks to my Cousins @Powell_88 and @bettyjharris53, we are on the move upward and onward making our Ancestors proud! With the help of Cousin @Powell_88 and other archived data, we have uncovered a huge ancestry find with the Heath and Hubert families of Warren County and adjacent counties. And it was all based on discovering my Jane (Jincy Hubert). The Heath and Hubert slaves at many times after the slavery were using both the Heath and Hubert names sending us family historians in a frenzy trying to find our Ancestors. After tracing back the Heath and Hubert family origins coupled with land and plantation locations, the Heath and Hubert families were side by side for several generations along with the Barksdale, Battle, Ivey, Dickson, Harrell, Felts, Johnson, and Flewellyn families. In some instances, the slaves were shared among the plantations because of the skills. For example, Clack Heath (brother to Elisha "Lige" Heath, Phelps Heath II, Hezekiah Heath, Jefferson "Jeff" Heath, and others) was a very skilled worker and often loaned out to the Barksdale, Battle, Felts, Hubert, Johnson, and Ivey plantations which were all connected or side by side with one another. His work and wages paid for his service was documented in the estate of Henry Heath in 1855 (a descendant of Abraham Heath and Winnifred Cotton-Heath).

So one may ask, how do all the other families fit into the mix? Well, it is very interesting!!! There are numerous marriages between the Heath, Hubert, Ivey, and Searcy families within Warren, Hancock, Taliaferro, Taylor, Talbot, Harris, and Muscogee counties in Georgia. There was a great deal of migration among the family members as well along the Georgia railroad expansion which relocated several of the white and black families from east Georgia (Wilkes, Warren, Taliaferro, and Hancock counties) to west Georgia (Talbot, Taylor, Muscogee, and Harris counties). And from Georgia, we see a great deal of migration into Alabama in Russell, Lee, Chambers, Randolph, and Henry counties. Through the slave ancestry research by reviewing wills, inventories and appraisements, deeds, tax records, and census records, we are seeing a clear distinct pattern in the migratory patterns of the white families which ultimately involved our Slave Ancestors and their families in leaving Georgia for Alabama and Texas. TEXAS....oh what a connection!!!

The Texas Connection: It's Just the Beginning
The Texas connection has become very interesting to say the least as there are so many families that migrated together but seperated by county and occupation. In Texas, Camp, Morris, Cass (originally Davis County), Titus, Upshur, Sabine, and Marion counties were of interest where the families seem to have settled in the mid 1800s and later traveling to Collin, Tarrant, Harris, and Dallas counties as well. The Texas migration has brought about a great deal of discussions as we have found a significant greater picture with linkage among the white planter families and their slave workers. We are finding in the slave ancestry research a key connection within the Slave Owner (Master) and our Slave Ancestors' relationship, they were not only owner and slave but they indeed formed a bond. Another interesting piece to the puzzle is there was significant migration between the 1880s and 1900s where many families reunited with their brethren families from Georgia in Texas by relocating when the white families relocated after slavery, houston....we have proved the theory of a bonded relationship. The white Heath, Hubert, Searcy, Barrow, Wright, Lynn, and Chappell families settled many great towns in Georgia and Alabama, and subsequently Texas. It was a part of the great westward expansion movement. Were they all friends? Were there other mitigating circumstances? Was it strictly Slave Owner and Slave Ancestor relationships exemplifying no bond at all, I am sure it is all of the above. There were some good and some bad, but we the descendants of these great unions are coming into an understanding of a long history which all began in Virginia along the James River.

Understanding the Family Connections
The Barrow, Wright, and Chappell/Chapple family connections to one another as well as to the Heath, Hubert, Flewellyn, Ivey, and Barksdale families is another great story of "what did I just uncover" and "did I read that right", the plot thickens. Some of the white Heaths took Barrow, Wright, and Chappell family members as their spouses such as Nancy Heath-Wright (daughter of Richard Heath and Rebecca Chappell) married William D. Wright, Rebecca Heath-Barrow (another daughter of Richard and Rebecca) married William Barrow, Patsy Heath-Wright (another daughter of Richard and Rebecca) married Lewis Wright, Sally Heath-Chappell (daughter of Abraham Heath and Winnifred Cotton) married John Chappell, Polly Heath-Barrow (another daughter of Abraham and Winnifred) married Warren Barrow. Many of these marriages and further estate slave distributions are the direct links to Troup County, Georgia and Chambers, Lee, Russell, and Randolph counties in Alabama. Why is this so fascinating and important? My maternal Great-Grandmother is Anna Lue Barrow-Heath, daughter of John Erwin "Jack/Pete" Barrow, Sr. and Annie Elizabeth (Hunter) Nelloms-Barrow. Anna's paternal great-grandmother was Rena Rose Wright-Barrow (as of February 2016, I'm running to ground a Sampson family connection). And there we have a full circle of common family names associated with white planters from Georgia settling in Lee, Russell, Chambers, and Randolph counties in Alabama and Troup County, Georgia. But not only is there the possible link to my great-grandparents, the link among the Hubert, Heath, Barrow, Wright, Searcy, Hugeley/Hughley, Sibley, and Chappell families extends over into Texas immensely with ties back to the  Alabama, Georgia and ultimately back to North and South Carolina as well. There are many towns within Texas that are the same name and affiliated with the same families from Alabama.
William Barrow and his wife, Rebecca Heath-Barrow, were married in Warren County, Georgia and relocated to Putnam County, Georgia and ultimately migrated over to Chambers County, Alabama. This is a huge piece of information in the Barrow and Heath family as Granddaddy Mitchell's Ancestors were Heath slaves of Abraham Heath (Rebecca's Uncle) and Richard Heath (Rebecca's father). While my Granny Anna Lue's Ancestors were slaves of the Barrow family which is directly tied back to the Barrow families of Halifax County and Edgecombe County in North Carolina. In addtion to the North Carolina connection of the Barrow family, we also can clearly see the connections of the white families from state to state which began in the Surry and Sussex County areas of Virginia, down to through North Carolina, then to Georgia, over into Alabama, and then onto Louisianna and Texas. This is another proven fact that the white families and the black families have been tied together for centuries. Good or bad, our stories are the woven fabric of our nation.

More To Unravel: Family Connections Worth Exploring
As time passes, I will add more to this ancestry research pertaining to the Ivey, Barksdale, Battle, Dickson, and Chappell families as well as the Lynn, Harrel, Ruff, and Felts/Phelps families. The Ruff family was recorded in the 1850 Census as free blacks beginning with Julia Ruff and her children. Lucretia "Cretia" Ruff is a prominent planter with wealth and documented in the 1850 and 1860 Census' as well with all her many children with some marrying into the Barksdale, Heath, Battle, Ivey, and Hubert families in later generations. The Harrell families were intertwined with the Heath, Bacon, Norflett/Norfleet, and Ivey families in Warren County and surrounding counties. What is interesting about the black Harrell families is that there are several which seem to connect to the Heath, Ivey, Bacon, Hubert, Barksdale, Norflett/Norfleet, Brinkley, and Dickson families which all seem to lead back to the white families and possible marriage connections of the Slave Owners.

Another interesting twist to the many family puzzles is the Dickson families of Talbot and Taylor counties in east Georgia and Warren and Hancock counties in West Georgia and there subsequent connection to Texas as well. Many of the descendants of the Dickson family are using both spellings of Dickson and Dixon today. In addition to the variation in spelling, there is also Dickerson which is primarily in Texas. The Texas Dickerson family can be traced to one Tillman Heath Dickerson, who was a Heath slave descandant willed to John Heath in the 1807 will of Abraham Heath (husband of Winnifred Cotton-Heath)*. Tillman migrated with Benjamin Heath's (son of Abraham and Winnifred) family to Monroe County, Georgia and ultimately to Texas where he is found under the assumed name as Tillman Dickerson. There is indeed a great story to be told, a great genelogical mystery to unravel.

In addition to this story of family relationships, we will expand more on the Lynn family connection as they definitely tie back to the Heath and Hubert families in many ways to also include the  Flewellyn/Fluellen and Dozier families. Although I have not fully explored the Dickson and Lynn families respectively, the family lines are becoming more and more clear and yet more and more intertwined with one another. The white Lynn family and their migratory patterns and marriages into the families listed in the first paragraph continues to open up new doors of information as to how some Slave Ancestors were Heath, Hubert, Ivey, and Dickson slaves throughout various time periods during their lifespan. It should also be noted that many Slave Ancestors were skilled workers which was used to benefit building of towns and communities as well as used as leverage between families during and after slavery.

Stay tuned as the Ancestors are leading the way and I am following their path in which they are lighting!! I am grateful for the Ancestors, grateful for this incredible journey, and grateful to share our rich legacy!

Dante' Eubanks

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Originally Shared via my Ancestry.com Family Tree
September 2014 (Original), October 23, 2014 (Update), March 3, 2015 (Update), April 14, 2016 (Update)

Celebrating a Year of Accomplishments & Yes, I'm Irish Too!

Hello there readers! And thank you for taking time to stop by and check out my blog! I am so excited and so grateful for the Ancestors continually opening up new doors of discovery. And I am overjoyed as well for the Ancestors allowing me opportunities to share information across channels with my family and new found cousins. Since March 2014, I can honestly say it has been a year of accomplishments! So many things have transpired, so many discoveries, so much joy, loads of information, and even relatives from various states are now on the crusade of discovery as we share our roots to all generations.

In March 2014, there were two great discoveries that not only confirmed oral history but it also opened doors to discoveries abroad and the Ancestors are leading the charge onward and upward to heights I never imagined!!!! The first discovery was finding the March 8, 1855 Inventories and Appraisement record of Henry Heath of Warren County. You see, Henry Heath was the owner of my Heath Ancestors, and there in black in white was the name I always connected with, a slave named Felts. Felts (later spelled Phelps in U.S Census and marriage records) is my 3x Great-Grandfather as well as my maternal Great-Grandfather's, Mitchell Heath, Grandfather. Phelps was the second slave listed in the inventory and valued at $900.00 which was substantial in 1855. He is one of forty slaves accounted for in the appraisement record, and of the forty slaves recorded Phelps along with 3 others are individually valued at $900.00 or greater. This was awesome to see as my Ancestors had value!!!! Although I could look at this from a negative light, I choose not to and instead look at this from the positive, they had value and they were valued according to their skill. Finding the Heath slaves owned by Henry Heath was not just a coincidence but rather a blessing as I was researching something else entirely and then decided to look at the Henry Heath reference. I knew then, the Ancestors were at work!
 

Portion of the March 8, 1855 Inventory and Appraisement record of Henry Heath
Warren County, Georgia

After looking at the Heath slave inventory over and over, I began to notice that all the slaves listed were indeed FAMILY. I had the majority of the names recorded in my family tree which was purely based on oral history and stories passed down through the generations. I could now trace all the slaves and I was blessed when other cousins abroad with whom I have had the pleasure of collaborating with through the years confirmed names as well. A shift in my research took place as family names, places, and records I had researched for years were looking different and new. I then started retracing my years of research, starting anew and yet revisiting everything again, and again removing doubt that I would not find another clue. And then "cluster genealogy" and "triangulation research" took effect! I switched from researching my families to researching the white families! Can you say JACKPOT!!! Stay tuned for the journey continues!

The second great discovery was also in March 2014 where my Ancestors blessed me by receiving my AncestryDNA results, and I could not be more proud! I am 82% African descent, 16% Eurpoean descent, 1% Asian descent, and 1% Melenesian descent. The Melenesian descent was a shocker as I am connected to those whose roots are in the Papua New Guinea, Bougainville, Fiji, Aboriginal Australia, Solomon Islands, and New Caledonia regions of the world. Oh, it's getting good y'all!!!!!! But since it's St. Patrick's Day, Kiss Me because I'm IRISH!!!! Yes, I am 1% Irish and my AncestryDNA proved the oral history of my family's Irish roots. I couldn't be more happier now to actually have concrete evidence of my Irish ancestry. As I continue on my paths to discovery, I am emphatically enthused as well as amazed at the guidance and blessings of my Ancestors as they are paving the way while lighting the path! I encourage all to celebrate your heritage and always be proud of who you are!

From April 2014 to September 2014, I challenged myself in many ways. As I previously stated, I started retracing my years of research, starting anew and yet revisiting everything again, and again and again!!! What was so amazing and made me tremble was my Heath Ancestors were calling me and calling me morning, noon day, and night!!! Everything during these months somehow centered around my Heath family and associated families. For years, I would occasionally look at neighbors and occasionally look at occupations, but it was not until finding the 1855 inventory and appraisement record of Henry Heath that I really paid attention to occupation. Within the estate papers of Henry Heath were another set of documents documenting my Heath Ancestors occupations as well as payments given for their service. YES, my Ancestors not only worked for Henry Heath, but they were loaned out to the neighboring plantations, community, and sometimes the state and county governments all because of their mastery skills. I mentioned my 3x Great-Grandfather, Phelps, was valued at $900. Well, his brother, Clack, was valued at $1500 and was the most valued slave owned by Henry Heath according to the 1855 record. Can you say, WOW!!!!!! Clack was a blacksmith, carpenter, and repairman for so many things on the Heath plantation as well as in the Warren County area, Richmond County, Hancock County, Taliaferro County, and Wilkes County areas of Georgia. Clack was sought out by many among the prominent members of the Heath, Hubert, Ivey, Harrell, Felts, Rabun, Barksdale, and Chapple families. Moving on from the estate documentation and discoveries, I began looking at the occupations more closely in the U.S. Census records, and realized my Ancestors proved to be valuable as well as needed in society. There is so much more to share, so again stay tuned for the journey continues!

Clack was just the beginning and the beginning is still now! After discovering more on Clack, I began to notice how my Heath Ancestors always lived near and worked for the white families whose names I saw in many estate records (family names mentioned above). I began to ask myself, is there a connection? Is there some sort of loyalty? Is there some other information I am overlooking? And then I realized I was in the middle of "cluster genealogy" and "triangulation research" at it's best as I was seeing information from all angles and no longer walking away from my brick walls, but instead knocking the brink walls down by force. As I went back and retraced years of research as far back as 1987 and came forward not just with my Ancestors but now with the owners of my Ancestors and the owners' families. The slave owners were now becoming my focus as I realized there was indeed a connection and it all began with the union of the families through marriages and as neighbors. They were among those who helped to settle Wilkes County pre 1795 era and their beginnings in Virginia and migration to the Carolinas and Georgia laid a foundation and ultimately a trail to follow. Warren County was formed out of Wilkes County, and the white Heath families were a big part of Wilkes County and Warren County. Oh, did I mention it's getting good y'all!!!!

So what have I learned through all of this? What new information have I gained? Where are my Ancestors leading me? And what will I do next? These are all valid questions each one of us dedicated to genealogy must ask ourselves daily. I can tell you this, I am on the move upward and onward. As I research now, I read through everything and I cross check everything. I no longer discount information that appears to not connect with my Ancestors, but instead I follow the trail as I've learned it all triangulates back to somewhere which can connect to my Ancestors, a place, or time in history relative to my ancestry journey. Push forward and allow the Ancestors to guide you, and you will not be disappointed!! I've been on an incredible journey of rediscovery, accomplishments, and research firsts. It's been an awesome year from March 2014 to March 2015, and my journey continues!! There is so much more to share, and one that sticks out is on my Heath-Hubert connection through my 3x Great-Grandmother, Jane Hubert-Heath. She was my Granddaddy Mitchell's Grandmother and was married to Phelps Heath. Stay tuned as the best is yet to come!

I'm celebrating a year of accomplishments! Thank you again for stopping by and sharing in my amazing year of accomplishments and discoveries. I am celebrating Collaboration, Communication, and Support! I'm proud of my heritage, and yes I'm Irish too!!! 

Danté
St. Patrick's Day 2015