I was about twelve years old. Pastor Davis had come from the pulpit to stand front and center of the congregation, calling on all who wished to accept Jesus as their personal savior to come on down. I rose from my seat, and side-stepped over my neighbors, finally reaching the center aisle. I walked down … Continue reading Professing Faith, Confessing Allegiance
Civil War
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How The Words Were Passed: Reappraising
I've been reading, and re-reading, Clint Smith's remarkable book, How The Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America. This series of posts is the outgrowth of my underlined pages and margin notes, inspired by Smith's stories, prompted by his questions. My words will be an attempt to reckon with the … Continue reading How The Words Were Passed: Reappraising
What I’m Reading: Troubled Refuge
When George Parker decided to risk everything and flee the bondage of a Murfreesboro (NC) plantation for the safety of the Union Army encampment in Suffolk, Virginia he didn't know how his story would end. Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation was a military order, establishing George's status as "not slave." But the proclamation came no where close … Continue reading What I’m Reading: Troubled Refuge
The Obituary of George Parker
George Parker George Parker died of grip at his home near Alfred, May 28, 1902. He was born in bondage near Murfreesboro, N. C. Slavery kept few records and the date is not known, but at his death he was probably not far from the allotted age of man. He was sold once. In 1863, … Continue reading The Obituary of George Parker
His Future Was Not Yet Written
Shortly after my father died I began to search for his ancestors, my ancestors. Within a couple of years I had masses of information about Ira Sayles, my dad's mother's grandfather, including a one-line reference in The Alfred (NY) Sun obituary of one George Parker. A little later [George Parker] was brought north by Prof. … Continue reading His Future Was Not Yet Written
Shoots, Roots, and Leaves 