Jan & David Faulkner wrote: > > Patricia, > > What an interesting post. My mother has done research on the Melungeons and > has given some programs on them at the library where she works. She became > interested in them when she was researching the Appalachain area of eastern > KY. They lived mainly in the mountains from VA to GA. The doctor's > statement about anemia indicating Melungeon blood is interesting. I asked > mother what she thought, and she said the anemia might have been a type > associated with ethnic groups around the Mediterreanean Sea. Based on what > she has read, she guessed your niece's ancestors have been around this > country for several generations and that some lived in the Appalachain > area. When the blood test indicated a kind of anemia associated with the > mid-Easterners (Turkey, in particular) or southern Europeans, the doctor > could make a pretty good guess about who some of her ancestors might have > been. Mother is basing her speculation on a book she read which was written > by someone who discovered his Melungeon heritage after he was diagnosed with > a lung ailment peculiar to those in the Mediterreanean area. > > If you are descended from the Melungeons, you may have a difficult time > proving it without a DNA test. I read in KY Explorer that a University in > Turkey is now doing those very tests to see if known descendants have DNA in > common with the Turkish people. I guess you know they are said to be quite a > mix, supposedly originating with various nationalities of sailors dropped > off on the Carolina coast by a Spanish ship (or ships) blown off course when > returning to Spain from Cartegena in South America. The sailors, who were > Portuguese and Turkish as well as other ethnicities, gradually moved west > from the coast and integrated with others on the fringes of society, > including the Indians and Anglo-Indians. According to old stories (some > fact, mostly legend), the Melungeons were so different from other races, > they were scorned by all, including the African American slaves. Those with > Melungeon heritage often tried to hide it. It is not likely you will find > that ethnic identity on any census. The article I read in KY Explorer told > of how those of Melungeon descent sometimes have children who look very > different from each other with one having the nose and complexion of a > Turkish native, another looking blond and northern-European, another > appearing Hispanic, and a fourth perhaps having red hair and fair skin > typical of the Irish--all parts of the mix in the mountains. > > One name for Melungeons in KY was Carmelites (or -lights, probably in > reference to the color of their skin). That term has become confused with > Campbellites in some families who were told they were Carmelites. The > Campbellites were a religious group following Alexander Campbell and the > teachings of the Disciples of Christ order (Christian Church today). The > Melungeons were called by many other names, including Turks in the SC > mountains. > > Much is being written about them today, and people are trying to reclaim > their Melungeon heritage (it's amazing how many people in KY are now saying > they think they have Melungeon heritage). Several books have been written > about them, and I understand that information is available on the internet. > > As to possible Cherokee heritage, it too was often hidden in records, > particularly after the removal of the Cherokee to MO and OK. I have > personally found one case of a person known to have been Cherokee who is > listed as white on the census. Have you tried doing research in Native > American records to see if you could find a Sutton-Nevils connection? > > Sorry I can't give you any specifics about your original question about > Mary's heritage. We have had some other list members who were connected with > your George Washington Nevils line. I will be glad to check their e-mail > addresses and send them to you. Have you seen the Nevils history in The > People's History of Claiborne Co., TN. It has some information in it that > seems to be based more on assumptions than facts, but it gives a good idea > of those who may be associated with your group. > > Jan > > > > >A cousin told me Mary Sutton, first wife of George Washington Nevils b. > >1810, and her parents were fullblooded Cherokee. I don't have info to > >support this. I'll ask him where he got the info. He also said we were > >descendants of the Melungeons, but I don't know where or how. Cousin > >seems to have a lot of material, but I doubt if I'll ever see it. He > >had a typed document, probably from handwritten copy, about my > >grgrandfather, George Washington Nevils. Parts of it didn't agree with > >my information, and I really believe mine is correct. My dad visited > >his grandfather, GW Nevils, as a child. He inherited $100 from him when > >his grandfather died in 1913. There are descendants of this Nevils > >family that I believe would never admit to being part Cherokee Indian. > >Thru the years, comments have been made that there was Indian blood in > >my family. > > Melungeons: A doctor asked my niece once if she was a descendant of > >the Melungeons. Her traces of anemia indicated this, so the doctor > >said. Does that tell you anything? > > Pat O'Neal > > > > > >==== NEVILLE Mailing List ==== > >Have you tried GenConnect? > >http://cgi.rootsweb.com/~genbbs/index.html > > > > > > ==== NEVILLE Mailing List ==== > You may contact the Neville list manager at: > mailto:[email protected] Jan, I appreciate your response re the Melungeons. I have a copy of the Ky Explorer, Sept. 1996, that contains a story about the KY Early Melungeon Settlers. The article said the findings of a 30-member research committee were so compelling that a Turkish TV crew was making visits to families in the mtns. along the KY/VA border in search of Melungeons. The article continues to read: "They were reported to have been here when the first "white" settlers came and were living in cabins, speaking broken Elizabethan English and saying they were Portyghee." Right now the term Melungeon seems to be most strongly associated with the area around Hancock Co, TN, but there are Melungeons and their descendants all over the region" It just happens that my maternal grandfather came from Hancock, TN. Article continues: "...The general area these folks are found in is east Tennessee, southeastern Kentucky, western Virginia and western North Carolina...." (The areas cover both sides of my family.) Reference is made to a book by Dr. N. Brent Kennedy, "The Melungeons, The Resurrection of a Proud People, A Story of Ethnic Cleansing in America." This is my first experience dealing with the Melungeons. I see there's lots to learn. I'm going to quote a portion of an email I received recently from Darrell Rowlett, TX. "...I was in East Tennessee for a week or so during this summer writing, producing, and hosting a documentary titled "Mysterious Melungeons" which will appear on PBS affiliates sometime this spring. It is being presented to the system by WLJT-TV in West Tennessee, but I'm sure that WSJK/WKOP will carry it." Others interested in the Melungeons may take interest in this documentary. Although my mother's family is not the one I felt were descendants of Melungeons, the facts about the variations of characteristics among siblings holds true with her family. My mother was very fair with dark hair, blue eyes, another sister was freckled with red hair, very Irish-looking, and still another always looked to me like she was part Indian. I found this very interesting: "...there are things you can look for. One is "shovel teeth," a curving of the inner surface of the front teeth in a shovel shape. It's a trait common to Native Americans and shows up in many Melungeons." BTW, Dr. Kennedy did this research primarily because of a strange disease that nearly killed him, 'erythema nodosum sarcoidosis.' Symptoms mimic those of arthritis, lupus, glaucoma, Hodgkins disease, and others. The KY Explorer article ends with a long list of names that are the most common Melungeon surnames. This info should be of interest to researchers who think they may have Melungeon heritage. How do you like this: "A government is the only vessel that leaks from the top." Pat O'Neal