Thought this may be of interest to some on the list. I appeared in Saturday's Bristol Herald Courier. Notice who his father was. Glenn R. Ball Mavisdale, VA---- Glenn Roosevelt Ball, 94, died Thursday, Aug 5, 1999, in a Richlands Hospital. He was born in Buchanan County, a son of the late Spencer Tunnell and Cynthia (McGraw) Ball. He was one of the Real Sons of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, a former merchant and an employee of the Virginia Department of Highways. Surviving are a son, Wayne Ball of Westville, Fla.; four daughters, Mavis Wilson of Mavisdale, Melda Hedrick of Bristol Virginia, Ella Dean Lundregun of Gambrills, Md.., and Gail Keen of Keen Mountain, VA.; a sister, Ethel Maggie Ball Tiller of Davenport, VA. 15 Grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren. Funeral services will be conducted at 1 p.m. Sunday in Buchanan Funeral Service in Keen Mountain, VA. The Rev. Ancil Childress will officiate. Burial will be in Clinch Valley Memorial Cemetery in Richlands. Mr. Ball was also preceded in death by two sons, Asher Ball and an infant son. Pallbearers will be friends and relatives. God Bless!!! Peggy C. (Fuller) Keen Website: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Valley/5049 *********************************************************** AMERICAN BY BIRTH, DAUGHTER OF THE MOUNTAINS BY THE GRACE of GOD...Diana Kinzer Heath ***********************************************************

In a message dated 8/8/00 12:02:15 AM Eastern Daylight Time, [email protected] writes: << [email protected] >> Edward is now off the air. He has been ill. Have no other e-dress for him. NancyS THE MELUNGEON HEALTH EDUCATION AND SUPPORT NETWORK: http://www.melungeonhealth.org SPARKS Genealogy: http://SparksGenealogy.net

Just checking your email address. no need to respond unless you are about to change email addresses. SW-VA Rootsweb Surname Database at http://members.fortunecity.com/fpreston/swabc.htm Fred Preston

I just got a bunch of bad email addresses...sometimes I send out email and it is returned within 5 minutes....these were sent several days ago and just now being rejected... Let me know if you know anything about them because I will be deleting their surnames if I dont hear anything... [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] and some earlier ones not yet deleted were.... [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Sometimes providers have problems and mail is rejected that shouldnt be so if you have seen these people sending messages recently, let me know. Fred Preston SW-VA Surname Database at --- http://members.fortunecity.com/fpreston/swabc.htm [email protected]

On 7 Aug 00, at 12:30, [email protected] wrote: <Betcha had a wonderful time at the reunion Eddie and glad to note the responses you got to the Melungeon story!! :-) News is really getting around. Here is a little something I have written as an intro to the Melungeons which may be of interest to this group. Ancestry from our SW_VA area is, in my opinion, tantamount to Melungeon ancestry.<> Did ya see that Melungeon on Wheel O Fortune on tonight?? I couldn't see the color of her eyes but the hair was jet black and wavey. She was from Franklin, TN. She won the first round. "Luck of the Melungeons." <lol> Is that broad nose characteristic? My cousins have it. -eddie

Hi Guys! Betcha had a wonderful time at the reunion Eddie and glad to note the responses you got to the Melungeon story!! :-) News is really getting around. Here is a little something I have written as an intro to the Melungeons which may be of interest to this group. Ancestry from our SW_VA area is, in my opinion, tantamount to Melungeon ancestry. If you ask, " Who are the Melungeons?" you are like most people. If you have been researching your family in the Cumberland Plateau of Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina, West Virginia, and Tennessee, during the early migration years, you may be able to find them through a connection to this group of people who are only now being researched with unbiased eyes. The Melungeons are a people of apparent Mediterranean descent who may have settled in the Appalachian wilderness as early or possibly earlier than 1567. (The Melungeons: The Resurrection of a Proud People; N. Brent Kennedy, Mercer University Press,Macon, GA, USA, 1997; introduction, p. xiii) The Mediterrean includes areas of North Africa, southern Europe and Central Asia. According to Dr. Kennedy, the Melungeons were "a people who almost certainly intermarried with Powhatans, Pamunkeys, Creeks, Catawbas, Yuchis, and Cherokees to form what some have called, perhaps a bit FANCIFULLY, a `new race.' Dr. Kennedy does not believe that the Melungeons can be called a `race of people.' No dictionary definition of race fits with what we know of the Melungeons and recently, the American Anthropological Association, declared that `race,' was an inaccurate, artificial way of defining a people and was no longer of any value. Race is a political construct not a biological one. . Finding out about the Melungeons and my possible connection to them is the MOST fascinating thing I have EVER run into in my 20 years of genealogical research. The `so-called,' Melungeons were `discovered' in the Appalachian Mountains in 1654 by English explorers and were described as being `dark-skinned, reddish-brown complexioned people supposed to be of Moorish descent, who were neither Indian nor Negro, but had fine European features, and claimed to be Portuguese." (Louise Davis, "The Mystery of the Melungeons." Nashville Tennessean, 22 September, 1963, 16.) In April of 1673, James Needham, an Englishman and Gabriel Arthur, possibly an indentured servant came with approximately eight Indians, as explorers to the Tennessee Valley. There, Needham described finding "hairy people .... (who) have a bell which is six foot over which they ring morning and evening and at that time a great number of people “congregrate togather and talkes" in a language not English nor any Indian dialect that the accompanying Indians knew. And yet these people seemingly looked European. Needham described them as "hairy, white people which have long beards and whiskers and weares clothing." This bell seems to me to speak of a Latin influence among these people. Other, later explorers, found people who lived in log cabins with peculiar arched windows. Dr. Kennedy says that by the late 1700's they were practicing the Christian religion. These people claimed that they were descended from a group of Portugese who had been shipwrecked or abandoned on the Atlantic coast. (Byron Stinson, "The Melungeons," American History Illustrated, November, 1973:41) The term they used was `Portyghee.' In other documents, some of these peoples were also described as having red hair and others with VERY distinctive blue or blue/green eyes. This description leads me to believe that these people were not Native American Indians. Altogether they must have been a striking looking people. Most Americans have been taught in school about the Lost Colony and Jamestown in 1607, Plymouth in 1620, with a few Spaniards and a smattering of Viking thrown in for good measure. Where did these people come from? First of all, as the mixed-ancestry descendents of native Americans as well as other ethnic identities, many Melungeons will find this question to be offensive-- many of their true ancestors were ALREADY here, prior to contact with European and African in-migrants, the Official Voice of the Second Union Planning Committee says. But recent research is giving an interesting answer to that question. And from that research I am led to believe that. they are a sizable mixed-ethnic population spread throughout the southeastern United States and into southern Ohio and Indiana. While the term `Melungeon' is most commonly applied to those group members living in eastern Kentucky, southwestern Virginia, eastern Tennessee, and southern West Virginia, related mixed-ancestry populations also include the Carmel Indians of southern Ohio, the Brown People of Kentucky, the Guineas of West Virginia, the We-Sorts of Maryland, the Nanticoke-Moors of Delaware, the Cubans and Portuguese of North Carolina, the Turks and Brass Ankles of South Carolina, and the Creoles and Redbones of Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. There is also new evidence or rather old evidences re-examined without prejudice, which show a significant Spanish and Portuguese presence in sixteenth-century America, including the large South Carolina coastal colony of Santa Elena, as well as five outlying forts in what is now present day South Carolina, North Carolina, north Georgia, and east Tennessee. Additionally many of the Spanish and Portuguese newcomers were so-called `Conversos,' - that is, ethnic Jewish and Moorish people who had converted to Catholicism prior to or during the Spanish Inquisition. Evidence is also strong (see the work of English historian David Beers Quinn) that in 1586 Sir Francis Drake deposited several hundred Turkish and Moorish sailors, liberated from the Spanish, in present-day central America, on the coast of North Carolina at Roanoke Island. No trace was found of these people when later English vessels dropped anchor for re-supplying. Research is on-gong at St. Elena and at Jamestown/Williamsburg into the persons other than English who were in these areas. By the time that the first U.S. census was conducted, the admixture and cultural fusing there had been there for 200 years.. This ensured that the story would remain hidden and buried, and that no amount of the census research could ever tell the story accurately. Traditional genealogy can not be used to find these people. There are no written records, no censuses, no marriage or death notices. Dr. Kennedy's interest in the Melungeons began with an illness that took him to the emergency room in Atlanta, Georgia where he was diagnosed with erythema nodosum sarcoidosis. In researching his own illness, Dr. Kennedy found that it is a disease of primarily Middle Eastern and Mediterrean peoples, although it is not unknown among the Irish and Scandanavians. He later discovered it was equally common among the Portuguese immigrants of New England, and both southeastern Blacks and Caucasians of seemingly unrelated backgrounds. He was told that he would just have to wait to see if he lived or died. How could a southerner, of Appalachian roots, have a Mediterrean disease? It was this question that Dr. Kennedy set out to answer, by tracing his family background, and in the process he `rediscovered his heritage.' His book, mentioned earlier, is not about historical research, but his family's genealogy and theoretical problem solving. Finding out about my Melungeon ancestry may have saved my life. It certainly made it a lot easier. I found that I had the inherited illness called Familial Mediterranean Fever which is being grossly misdiagnosed as everything under the sun, but particularly as FIBROMYALGIA and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. If you have ancestry from any of these areas mentioned, and have many diagnoses or the fibro/cfs diagnosis, please write to me directly and I will send you a LOT of info, both on the Melungeons and on FMF. In the meantime, take a look at my medical website noted below, and read my experiences w/ Familial Mediterranean Fever and the overview of the other inherited illnesses, including Behcet's Syndrome, Joseph's/Machado Joseph's Disease, Sarcoidosis and Thalassemia. Here are a few URLs that I recently found with information on the Melungeons: <A HREF="http://members.aol.com/Strat43z/melung.html">Melungeon page</A> <A HREF="http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/americas/newsid_384000/384502.stm ">Melungeons: | Americas | Lost people of Appalachia</A> <A HREF="http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~mtnties/melungeon.html">Melungeon Heritage Page</A> NancyS THE MELUNGEON HEALTH EDUCATION AND SUPPORT NETWORK: http://www.melungeonhealth.org SPARKS Genealogy: http://SparksGenealogy.net

unsubscribe [email protected] wrote: > Subject: > > SW_VA-D Digest Volume 00 : Issue 173 > > Today's Topics: > #1 Re: Brooks, Richardson and Ramsey( [[email protected]] > > Administrivia: > To unsubscribe from SW_VA-D, send a message to > > [email protected] > > that contains in the body of the message the command > > unsubscribe > > and no other text. No subject line is necessary, but if your software > requires one, just use unsubscribe in the subject, too. > PLEASE DOUBLE CHECK THE SPELLING OF THE WORD: UNSUBSCRIBE > ______________________________ > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > Subject: Re: Brooks, Richardson and Ramsey(possibly) > Date: Thu, 29 Jun 2000 11:12:16 EDT > From: [email protected] > To: [email protected] > > All these names in SW_VA are common Melungeon surnames. Ramsey may be a > variation on Ramey which is also a common Melungeon surname. Anyone > researching these names, please e-mail me for some FREE general information > on this fascinating group of people who I believe had a Mediterranean > ancestry. It could be most important to your health and that of your > descendants. See my website noted below. > NancyS > > THE MELUNGEON HEALTH EDUCATION AND SUPPORT NETWORK: > http://www.melungeonhealth.org > SPARKS Genealogy: > http://SparksGenealogy.net

Volks, I attended the Fleenor reunion at the Bethany Methodist church in Collingwood, Russell Co., VA yesterday. It was nice to see the ole cousins again. I got lots of new data. We visited the site of the old Grigsby brick house built about 1830 and may have been the first brick home in Scott Co. The brick were made on site by slave labor. The site is near the site of the Fort Houston. There is an all-seasons spring just up a hollow. The house is gone but the brick are still there. There was some Melungeon discussion since our Grandmaw Cassell was near pure Melungeon. One cousin married a Melungeon from Wise Co. One cousin of that family lives near the SC coast and he says digging is going on for Spanish/Portaguese artifacts on the coast, and maybe some clue about Melungeon origins. One person had a copy of the Wash. Post front page article dated Tuesday, May 30. I was sorry to see that much of the article was about supposed oppression/discrimination. Surely Melungeon descendants have more to offer than victimhood. We talked about the Melungeon "head knot" and rubbed each other heads. <g> I have one and thought everyone had one. I don't know if that is fact or myth. Someone called it a knowledge knot. <g> I ask a cousin to get me a copy of the picture of Grandmaw Cassell so I could share it with others. We stopped by the Vencill cemetery in Belfast to see if we might get a fence rebuilt around it. Most of the stones have been knocked down. -eddie

Have corrected Sandraf 's email address. Went through D, E and F and have some more bad links as follows: [email protected] [email protected] (deactivated) [email protected] [email protected] (thought I saw something from her the other day) will try com.... [email protected] Fred P. page at http://members.fortunecity.com/fpreston/swabc.htm

I believe I have added all of the new names that were requested. Also, I have changed email addresses as requested and added URL's as requested. So if I missed anything or deleted something I shouldn't have, please let me know. The email addresses on pages for A, B and C should be good, if not let me know. I will now start checking email addresses on pages D, E, etc. Have one additional bad email link, [email protected] which I assume is Virginia Tech, surname is COOPER. Fred Preston http://members.fortunecity.com/fpreston/swabc.htm

Starting tonight I am going to remove all surname entries with the following email addresses. These only represent those found under A, B and C but of course will be deleted for all surnames. After this is done I will start checking again with D, E and so on. Hopefully I wont send messages to the same people more than once but it could happen. [email protected] or [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] If you know anything about any of these please let me know. Thanks Fred P.

I am getting email telling me of a change in email address but not mentioning surnames...I don't have a master list which means I would have to search through each letter of the alphabet and about 2000 surnames looking for your old email address....please tell me as many as you can remember and also, if you want me to change ALL from the old address to the new. Secondly, have received several emails recently that have under SUBJECT a name and that is all there is. If you want me to add s name(s) to the list, please say so...I get a lot of email other than from the SW Va List group. You dont have to write a long explaination of where they are from or your connection but please just say "Would you add this/these names to the SW_VA surname list." Thanks, Fred Preston

Is there a list of who is buried there? I have been to Appalachia, VA went into the cemetery. So many of the stones are broke. Any help would be appreicated. I have been told by a aunt, my great grandfather Joseph Fawbush b. 1856 is buried there. sandy ----- Original Message ----- From: <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Thursday, August 03, 2000 2:29 AM Subject: Re: Appalachia Cemetery > The cemetery you were asking about is in the old bottom out next to the road > going to the water reservoir for the town of Appalachia. > > > ==== SW_VA Mailing List ==== > #9 As of 3/22/2000 we have 550 members. Traffic can get heavy so check your > mailbox often. We should regulate traffic so it don't get out of hand. > There is an average of ten members coming and going each week. > -sysop > > > ============================== > Join the RootsWeb WorldConnect Project: > Linking the world, one GEDCOM at a time. > http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/ > >

There is a Cemetary in Appalachia called the Sargent Cemetary and I heard it was falling off a cliff due to Mining.I guess no one is maintaining it. as some of my Sargent ancestors are there.My sister found it a few years back. Does anyone know of it? Elizabeth

The cemetery you were asking about is in the old bottom out next to the road going to the water reservoir for the town of Appalachia.

Have found some more bad email addresses... [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] doesnt anyone recognize the address [email protected] they just added names to list in July this year?? Fred Preston

From "King's Mountain and Its Heroes," by Lyman C. Draper, c. 1881, p. 417: "James Elliott was an early settler on Holston. From an Ensign in 1777, he rose by good service to the rank of Captain, commanding his company at King's Mountain; and while serving on Colonel Arthur Campbell's Cherokee expedition, he was killed at Tellico, December twenty-eighth, 1780, by a concealed Indian -- Colonel Campbell denominating him `a gallant young officer.' " Regards, Beverly Reach Perry Huntsville, Ala.

The USGS lists 213 cemeteries in Wise Co., but none called the Appalachia Cemetery. Below are the names of cemeteries listed that are in Appalachia. Sometimes what the USGS calls a place and the folks that live in the area call the same place aren't anything alike! Andover Cemetery Kilbourn Cemetery Oak View Cemetery Maybe somebody has been to these cemeteries and knows if any of them, or all of them ;) are on a hill? Good Luck, pat At 09:09 PM 8/1/00 -0400, [email protected] wrote: > Can anyone tell me how to find the Appalachia Cemetery? It is supposed to >be an old cemetery on a hill in Appalachia Virginia.. >Thanks, >Debbie > > >==== SW_VA Mailing List ==== >#8 Anyone interested and researching SW VA and Appalachian history might >be interested in the Fincastle History Forum list. Contact Edgar at > [email protected] for a copy of the rules. > > >============================== >Personalized Mailing Lists: never miss a connection again. >http://pml.rootsweb.com/ >Brought to you by RootsWeb.com.

Still have not heard from the following people regarding the wrong email address. If I don't get a new address by Saturday, I am going to delete all entries in the Surname Database with the following email addresses: [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] http://members.fortunecity.com/fpreston/swabc.htm Fred Preston

Can anyone tell me how to find the Appalachia Cemetery? It is supposed to be an old cemetery on a hill in Appalachia Virginia.. Thanks, Debbie