A lot of this same information can also be found at http://www.genealogy.com/genealogy/12_heing.html And on the Pace Network at http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~pace/african.htm#richard This is very interesting to me, as I am probably a product of one of these pairings between an African male and a white female. Our family oral history says our Johnsons are of Swedish origin, but the earliest family records are from Appalachian Kentucky, not an area of Swedish settlement. My Y-DNA is haplotype E3a, West African, closest matches in the Gambia-Senegal area, and a haplotype common among African-Americans. Probably the Swedish story was a cover-up, or maybe the female was Swedish, as there were Swedes in New Jersey and Delaware and some migrated out. I'm sure there are many "white" folk who have Negro ancestry. Some might not care to admit it, but I prefer the truth. Roy Johnson -----Original Message----- From: Betty A. Pace [mailto:bapace2@juno.com] Sent: Tuesday, August 23, 2005 4:02 PM To: PACE-L@rootsweb.com Subject: [PACE-L] Richard Pace, Edgecombe Co. NC 1735 From: http://www.freeafricanamericans.com/introduction.htm The slave population on the frontier was much lower than in the settled areas of Virginia, so the presence of free African Americans would not have posed a threat to most settlers. And several of these free African Americans owned slaves of their own. However, land ownership was more likely the social equalizer for them and their white neighbors. The McKinnie family, originally from Isle of Wight County, Virginia, was one of the leading white families in the area around the Roanoke River. Barnaby McKinnie, member of the General Assembly from Edgecombe County in 1735, was witness to many of the early Bass, Bunch, Chavis, and Gibson deeds. John McKinnie called Cannon Cumbo his friend when he mentioned him in his 28 February 1753 Edgecombe County will. Other leading white settlers who sold them land adjoining theirs and witnessed their deeds were Richard Washington, William and Thomas Bryant, Richard Pace, and William Whitehead. Arthur Williams, member of the General Assembly for Bertie County in 1735, and John Castellaw, (brother?) of James Castellaw, a member of the Assembly from Bertie County, had mixed-race common-law wives, Elizabeth and Martha Butler [Saunders, Colonial Records, IV:115 and the Butler history]. ==== PACE Mailing List ==== If you haven't done so within the last six months, please post a message describing your Earliest Pace Ancestor and how you descend from them. Please include dates, places, spouses, etc, if possible. Send the message to PACE-L@rootsweb.com