Martha Leopard

I had the opportunity to exchange emails with a descendant of Martha Leopard, Heather Leopard.
In 1880, Clay County, Beat #4, MS, Charlott Wilkinson, 40, a mulatto, was a widow with 2 sons, William, 14, and Samuel, 12. Charlott was living with another widow, Martha Leopard, 39, white, and her son also named Samuel, 19.

Oh my, I've got a live one!

Nothing is more frustrating than to dig, dig, and dig, then come up with nothing.
But there is a lot to be said for persistence.
I'm related to Ephraim and Winnie Scaife from Arkansas. Winnie's maiden name was Jordan.
She is important because she holds the key to my 3rd ggrandmother's father side of the family. Winnie's father was possibly 75-80 years old when she was born---I don't even want to think about it---ugh. Anyway, when Winnie was six years old, she left NC and went to live with her sister (half-sister)Manurva in Arkansas.
Believe it or not, I went through three Scaifes before my trail led me to BE Scaife. I learned we are related. Winnie Jordan Scaife is his grandmother. I hope he calls me back with more information. A picture would be wonderful.

The 1st African-American History & Genealogy Society Conference.

Wow is the only thing I can say to describe the first conference. I'm not certified, but as an amateur genealogist, I learned there are more ways to get around a brick wall when researching our family tree. The seminars were enlightening. The research some presenters had done were amazing.
Please visit their website at www.stl-aahgs.com.

I know most of us depend on the census to help tell the story about our ancestors, but there is more. Did you know, in addition to the federal census, there are state censuses? I learned that Mississippi had a 1866 State Census Index! Yahoo.
In addition to Ancestry, most county libraries have free access to HeritageQuest, City Directories, and Footnote for genealogists.

Author Tim Pinnick says a person must not overlook utilizing old community newspapers online. You can visit his website for more tips at wwww.blackcoalminerheritage.net.

I'm glad I didn't miss Keynote Speaker Shamele Jordon's workshop on Freedmen Strategies: the Bank vs. the Bureau.
Her first advice was to organize and backup online. Okay, I hit OfficeMax last night and got new binders. She also spoke about using old documents to raise $$ to fund family reunions.
I can go on and on, but I would like to hear from you.