Some interesting quotes. Perhaps the foundation for liaisons like these are laid in childhood:
Quote:
FORD FAMILY:We contend that George Washington did in fact know Venus and West.
Ford oral history states that Venus was a young girl when she was first asked to "comfort" George Washington. She also met George Washington on his visits to Bushfield before and after the Revolutionary War. Ford oral history further states that after Venus became pregnant with West, Washington no longer had sexual relations with her. When asked by Hannah Washington who the father of her child was, Venus replied, "The Ole General be the father, mistress."
Other references that Venus and George Washington were probably acquainted comes from correspondence dated 2/17/97 from the MVLA to Linda Bryant, "The fact that Venus' parents were also singled out in John Augustine's will might suggest that the possible link between the Washingtons and West Ford's family goes back several generations." John Augustine's June, 11, 1784 Will states, "Billey, Jenny, & Venus, I give impower my Wife to devise to such of my Children by her as she please." Certain additions were made to this will on November 19, 1785. There was no mention of West in these additions.
An interesting fact is that George Washington played with slave children - Jenny, Joe, Jeremy, Phyllis, and Steven. (Thomas Flexner's, "The Black Mount Vernon"). Jenny was Venus' mother.
Now I wonder why Ole George Washington would go and sleep with a coloured woman, having a son, recognising him unofficially, and raising this coloured son as well. During a time when many nasty things were said about AA's.
Assuming he did "go to sleep with a coloured woman" it wasn't all that uncommon in the U.S. during slavery. Even after slavery and the implementation of Jim Crow, there were staunch white supremacists that had their "second families" with black women. Senator Bilbo of Mississippi was rumored to have a black mistriss and children with her, and we all now about Strom Thurmond.
Now I wonder why Ole George Washington would go and sleep with a coloured woman, having a son, recognising him unofficially, and raising this coloured son as well. During a time when many nasty things were said about AA's.
Assuming he did "go to sleep with a coloured woman" it wasn't all that uncommon in the U.S. during slavery. Even after slavery and the implementation of Jim Crow, there were staunch white supremacists that had their "second families" with black women. Senator Bilbo of Mississippi was rumored to have a black mistriss and children with her, and we all now about Strom Thurmond.
hi. i wasn't aware of the black mistress rumor wrt Theodore Bilbo, but it wouldn't be the first time in the family. several years back, a woman named Polly Ray did a family history titled 'Bilbo and Kin'. and there it is claimed that the first Bilbo in America fathered two sons, one white, and one from a slave he owned, iirc. should be no surprise then that there is a rather heavily pigmented man named Damarius Bilbo.
This is based on the book "The Promised Land." In it the author interviews one of the earlier residents of Chicago public housing who made the claim that he lived next door to Bilbo's black mistress. The interviewee claimed that the woman had light-skinned children and kept a picture of Bilbo on the wall in her apartment.
it's a bit inconsistent, the supposed death of Jacques in 1723. who knows why Jean Pierre would be living with the Dutois, but with Jean Pierre being the only heir of Jacques, it implies that maybe Jacques' wife died young. it would hardly be surprising then that Jacques would take comfort with a slave.
Jean Pierre is listed as marrying around 1728, the year of birth of the black Jacque. maybe the child is that of Jean and fatherhood was misattributed to avoid a cancelled wedding or divorce.
or maybe i'm reading too much into it and "born to" was not meant to imply paternity at the time, but simply ownership. i'm not a historian and really have no idea. in any case, those were interesting times.
Quote:
The last account found of Jacques was 1717. In 1723, Jean Pierre Billiebeau was living in the house with Pierre Dutoi, which indicates that his parents were probably deceased. Since this 1 Jean Pierre Billiebeau is the only one found by that surname in subsequent records of Manakin, just one conclusion can be drawn - that he was the only son of Jacques from Port des Barques, France, who came to Virginia. From the fact that he was taken in by the Dutoi family, and the fact that Jean Pierre Billiebo later left a tract of land to Isaac Dutoi in his will, we might surmise that his mother was a Dutoi. This has not been proven.
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1. Only one record found of another Bilbo in Manakin Va. that could be son of Jacques. In Brock's collection from the Church records - "The 28th May 1728 was born to Jacques Billiabo a black named Jacque." This record opens up a big question as to whether Jacques Billiebo left two sons, Jacques and Jean Pierre. No further information on this Jacques.
__________
Information above obtained from R.A. Brock's Hugenot Emigration to Virginia and the Settlers at Manakin; narrative received from the Manakin Episcopal Church, Route 711, Huguenot Springs, Virginia; and Virginia Magazine of History and Biography.
Quote:
JEAN PIERRE BILLIEBO,
Son of Jacques Billiebo
From the foregoing, there is little doubt but that Jean Pierre Billiebo was the son of Jacques Billiebo who came to Manakin, Virginia from France. In 1723 he was listed as a tithable in the house of Pierre Dutoi which gives a clue as to his year of birth in 1706 (tithable in 1723 at age 16). He was so listed as a tithable from 1723 until 1750 under the various French spellings. In 1725 the surname was first given as Bilbo, even though the given names continued to be shown as Jean Pierre. In 1744 he was listed with John Gory in his household along with two slaves, Sara and Will. John Gory was a descendant of one of the French Refugees and the two families lived near each other for the first 100 years in this country.
Posted: Wed 17 Dec 2008 20:59 Post subject: Re: 5 BLACK PRESIDENTS
Hello everybody, Fayetteville State University professor Joseph F. Johnson (http://faculty.uncfsu.edu/jjohnson & http://faculty.uncfsu.edu/jjohnson/bio.htm) wrote this on Fayetteville Observer Sunday newspaper on November 30, 2008 in my military hometown, Fayetteville, North Carolina... I hope all of you have a wonderful holiday!
On Nov. 4, the world witnessed the historic election of Sen. Barack Obama as president of the United States. Headlines across the country and the world continue to celebrate Sen. Obama’s becoming not only the 44th president of the most powerful country in the world, but the “first” black person elected to the highest office in the land.
The major broadcast and written media continue to embrace and present President-elect Obama as the “first,” and, within the last few weeks, I have purchased magazines and major newspapers from across the state and country featuring President-elect Obama. I am up to 52 magazines and 25 newspapers and intend to keep them and many more as keepsakes.
I have had to ask myself why I was going to such lengths to capture and preserve this moment in history. Is this my small way of stimulating our struggling economy? Is it because I am proud of this country? Or is it because of I am also viewing the election through the same lens — Sen. Obama is the “first” black elected president?
My answers to the three questions are yes, yes and no. Yes, every time I spend money, I stimulate the economy. That’s a good thing. As someone who participated in the march on Washington and went to jail in the ’60s for our civil liberties — yes, I am so proud of this country for being socially, politically and morally mature enough to do what’s right and truly in the best interest of our country.
Black heritage
But no, it is not because he was the “first” black president elected. Historians such as Leroy Vaughn and J.A. Rogers remind us that there were actually six “black” presidents elected previously. There is one qualifier. It depends on what determines whether or not someone is black or white.
Prior to the 21st century, the standard that was applied to being black (not white) was known as the “one drop theory.” This, of course, meant that one drop of black blood made you black socially and in the eyes of the law.
Here is what we all should know: There is more than ample evidence regarding Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Warren Harding, Calvin Coolidge and Dwight Eisenhower regarding their black heritage far beyond a mere “one drop.” So, for all logical and practical purposes, the idea of having elected our first black president is yesteryear’s news. The problem is that few people are aware of the black heritage of former presidents, or chose not to acknowledge it.
The significance of the election of Barack Obama is not that he is the first, but that he is much, much, more. We knowingly elected the totality of his existence, including his black heritage. Frankly, it is not about President-elect Obama, so when we acknowledge that he is black, let’s not linger there.
Scientifically, there is no such thing as race. It is a social construct unfairly imposed on disenfranchised individuals that has resulted in disparity, distrust, alienation and discrimination rooted in the insidious and pernicious practice of slavery.
Biologists, anthropologists, sociologists, paleontologists and geneticists tell us that humankind was born in the continent of Africa. This fact alone should cause us to appreciate that we are all “part of a single protein,” regardless of ethnicity, religion or national origin.
America must not romanticize this important occasion through the single lens of one’s ethnic origin or identity. We have a tendency to do that, lest we forget “Gone with the Wind,” which, in the minds of far too many, is a romance novel about Rhett Butler and Scarlett O’Hara. Margaret Mitchell’s purpose in writing the book was to provide an anthology of the complex events that occurred during the changing of an era in America.
The election of Sen. Obama as our next president is about the millions of Americans who responded to the powerful transformational nature of an extraordinary, authentic individual who truly understands not only how to organize the American community, but how to engage it in a way that we like who we are when we are in his presence. He clearly understands that human beings must be connected, even in disagreement.
Obama often refers to Abraham Lincoln as an individual whom he respects and tries to emulate, and we all can benefit from Lincoln’s strategies for tough times. Abraham Lincoln was our nation’s 16th president and as the third “black” president elected (unknowingly) in this country, he is credited with saving the Union.
President-elect Obama will be our 44th president, and as our seventh black president elected (knowingly), will be credited with saving the soul of our nation and restoring its respect around the world, which is our greatest currency. We must join him and do our part, because he cannot and should not be expected to do it alone.
Dr. Joseph F. Johnson is professor of educational leadership in Fayetteville State University’s School of Education.
Here is what we all should know: There is more than ample evidence regarding Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Warren Harding, Calvin Coolidge and Dwight Eisenhower regarding their black heritage far beyond a mere “one drop.” So, for all logical and practical purposes, the idea of having elected our first black president is yesteryear’s news. The problem is that few people are aware of the black heritage of former presidents, or chose not to acknowledge it.
They may have had "black heritage," but that doesn't make them black racially, ethnically, or in terms of self-identity.
I have South Asian heritage. However, I'm certainly not South Asian and don't look remotely South Asian, although I have more than one drop.
Here is what we all should know: There is more than ample evidence regarding Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Warren Harding, Calvin Coolidge and Dwight Eisenhower regarding their black heritage far beyond a mere “one drop.” So, for all logical and practical purposes, the idea of having elected our first black president is yesteryear’s news. The problem is that few people are aware of the black heritage of former presidents, or chose not to acknowledge it.
They may have had "black heritage," but that doesn't make them black racially, ethnically, or in terms of self-identity.
I have South Asian heritage. However, I'm certainly not South Asian and don't look remotely South Asian, although I have more than one drop.
Hi! G-Man, ...Yes I heard you but as a deaf light-skinned African/Multiracial-American I was first ever join a deaf red-neck North Carolina Association of the Deaf (www.ncadeaf.org) about 20 years ago and yet they called me as "minority"... However I tried to explain them about re-definition of "minority" and we are in same boat because we are deaf Americans! What is more, I also tried to explain them if I slap label them as "deaf-mute-dumb", which it is very very very offensive word in deaf world, and they understood it but they said they are raised this way by their parents or their peers to look down on African/Multiracial-Americans as "second class citizens"... I told them we, deaf Americans, are even as second class citizens in 21st century because most hearing Americans will NOT change their attitude toward us, disability (deafness) at all! G-Man, I am here to check up on America law to see if they are still allow to categorize us with old racist laws today; otherwise, they are illegally law in 21st century!
Posted: Wed 17 Dec 2008 23:46 Post subject: Re: 5 BLACK PRESIDENTS
Joseph F. Johnson wrote:
Historians such as Leroy Vaughn and J.A. Rogers remind us that there were actually six “black” presidents elected previously. There is one qualifier. It depends on what determines whether or not someone is black or white.
Not so. All humans have African ancestry, but no evidence has been found that six presidents had African slave ancestors.
Joseph F. Johnson wrote:
Prior to the 21st century, the standard that was applied to being black (not white) was known as the “one drop theory.” This, of course, meant that one drop of black blood made you black socially and in the eyes of the law.
Not so. The ODR did not become law until the Jim Crow era. The notion arose in popular culture the 1830s in the Ohio valley, but it was rejected by most states and by all laws (statues and caselaw) until the end of the 19th century.
Did Jackie Kennedy Onassis have African ancestors?
"Either Professor Hershkowitz, or Tim Beard, former head of the Genealogical Department of the New York Public Library related this incident regarding van Salee genealogy. At the time the Kennedy administration began implementing its civil rights agenda, the New York Genealogical and Historical Society approached Mrs. Kennedy hoping to discuss the opportunity her African ancestry, through the Van Salees, could have in possibly assisting her husband to realize his social goals regarding race relations. Mrs. Kennedy insisted on referring to the van Salees as 'Jewish,' and the New York Genealogical Society did not push the subject further."
'
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Roosevelt D. Odom, Jr.
Roosevelt D. Odom, Jr.
