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Dr. Flora Bryant radiates with excitement and pride as she points to relatives in black and white photographs from the early 20th century.
“Family research can change your life,” said Bryant, a behavior science and psychology professor from Indianapolis. “Everyday my mood is lifted when I recall stories about how my family coped with the challenges they faced.”
Through genealogical and historical research, Bryant was able to uncover many interesting stories about her family. Among the discoveries is that her ancestors were among residents of Lyles Station, which is based in Princeton, Ind., and was one of 20 predominantly African-American settlements developed in the state before 1900.
According to a land deed from 1855, Levy Greer, a white land owner who moved from Alabama to Princeton, ordered that after his death 80 acres of land be given to a mulatto woman he brought with him and her children, among them Bryant’s great grandfather, Samuel Willis Greer, who later served in the Civil War.
“My mother told me fond memories of her grandfather and his financial independence during that time,” Bryant said. “Some of this land remains in the family today. Some relatives in Lyles Station found oil on and prospered.”
Bryant encourages everyone to conduct research into their own history, noting that there are significant stories of courage and success in every family.
“Genealogical research gives us a vision of our family in the process of living, surviving and thriving,” Bryant said. “We learn about relatives in the context of time and space, and how they coped and succeeded.”
Local families will have an opportunity to experience the joy of discovering their history during the annual conference of the Indiana African-American Genealogy Group (IAAGG), which will take place Oct. 8 at the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art.
Participants will learn proven methods of genealogical research and hear from noted genealogy experts. Guest speakers will include J. Mark Lowe, who recently assisted musician Lionel Richie in uncovering his family history on the series “Who Do You Think You Are?” and Dr. Deborah Abbot, past president of the African-American Genealogical Society of Cleveland.
“Our local genealogy group is giving local folks a chance to see these nationally-renowned genealogists at a fraction of the cost and without travel to a big national conference,” said Tamara Winfrey Harris, president of the IAAGG. “Plus, with the intimate setting of our conference, people interested in getting started on their research, or taking it to the next level, will have a chance to speak to and get advice from the experts.”
Abbott said research into genealogy is important because it helps anchor relatives to a time and a place. She recalled that while growing up, students had history class, but she really couldn’t see where African-Americans fit in the history of the United States.
“Now, because of the research on my family and others, I know that we have a prominent place in the country’s history, growth and security” Abbott said. “You learn that even the most common person was a true contributor to the country or their community.”
Abbott said it is good to start research by reviewing your family’s oral history, or stories told by older relatives. For example, Abbot’s grandfather, J.V. Evans, told her that he worked as a bellman at a popular hotel in North Carolina and received extra money from patrons by dancing.
“Nothing at the time told me to ask where the hotel was or how he worked there,” Abbott said. “But through research at the public library in Ashville I discovered the name of the hotel, and that it catered to upper middle class patrons, making it likely that my grandfather made a little more money than most African-Americans in the industry then.”
Abbott’s aunt had told her that Evans was a driver for a doctor, although he himself had claimed to be a bellman. At first, Abbott was confused after hearing two different accounts of his career, but research showed that both accounts were correct: Davis was a bellman first, then a chauffer for one of Ashville’s wealthiest doctors, according to a World War I registration card that indicated his profession.
“That is why, in your own family, it is important to realize that you may get different versions of the same story from relatives,” Abbott noted. “Don’t disregard any of those, even if they sound crazy, because there is going to be a thread of truth in every version.”
With names, locations and other facts shared by relatives, research can begin by using them as leads to find more information in U.S. Census records, city directories, military records and other public documents that tell where a person lived, worked, and sometimes who they worked for.
Conducting such patient, detailed research helped Bryant find more details about other relatives including her great uncle, Mathias Nolcox, who was the first principal of Crispus Attucks High School, which was opened in 1927 for African-Americans at the height of racial segregation in Indianapolis.
Bryant’s grandmother, Rev. Hester Nolcox Greer, who died in 1982 at age 102, was a minister and missionary in the Church of God denomination, and shared many stories that gave Bryant great information for her research, which she began in 1975 while teaching at the University of Chicago and Howard University.
“If you have grandparents available, you may want to begin a record of their history,” Bryant said. “Or, you may start with the oldest person you have available to you. Ask them to tell you about their life with information about dates, the place of their birth, their parents, brothers and sisters, and so on.”
Bryant added that it is helpful to begin research with a specific goal, such as a family project or class assignment, and to be patient because most answers to family mysteries will not come overnight – sometimes they can take months or years to materialize.
“It is, however, worth it to take the time to conduct our own family history,” she said. “Otherwise, we can go through life missing our self – who we really are as a family.”
Next week: Genealogy and its impact on children, the community and stereotypes in the African-American community.
Bringing the past to life
- What: IAAGG Genealogy Conference
- When: Saturday, Oct. 8, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Where: Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art
- Special guests: Genealogist J. Mark Lower and Deborah Abbott
- Registration: $45 for general admission, $35 for IAAGG members
- For more information about registration visit www.iaagg.org.
