My Ethnic Origins

Marty and Karla Grant

[Home] [What’s New?] [Books for Sale] [Christian] [Genealogy] [Search] [Support] [About] [Contact]

My “Ethnic” Origins

[Genealogy Home] - [Origins Home] - Ethnic Origins

Who were those mysterious dark skinned ancestors of mine?

Like many, I’m of diverse ethnic origins. I am 99% White, but some of my ancestors apparently weren't. I’ve found several branches of my family who were listed in the “Free Colored” columns on the early census records, or as Mulattoes on the 1850 and more recent census records. What ethnicity were they?

First, refer to my page on “Race Codes” on the US Census records. That page explains why the census takers wrote down what they did and what it might mean. After perusing that page, return here if interested in reading about my ancestors who fell into these categories.

When the 2000 census was being designed they ran into a problem. What to do about race? In America today, “race” is a complicated issue. There are so many different types of “hyphenated” Americans, and if you could only choose one “race,” and you are multi-ethnic, which do you choose? If your mother was Black and your father Hispanic, which do you claim? What if one was White, the other half Asian, half Black? This very problem shows the fallacy of the entire race issue. There truly is no such thing as race. All people are the same species. The race issue is really just a matter of how much Melanin is in your skin, resulting in darker or lighter skin, depending on the quantity. Other so called racial features are a matter of genetics (and beyond my scientific understanding), but the point is that it isn’t always a black and white matter, pun intended.

Whatever my own ancestors turn out to have been, I'm glad they were there, otherwise, I wouldn't be here!

Some examples.

Graham/Grimes - My ancestor Jeffrey Graham (1784-1855) and his brother Lewis (1789-1855) of Buncombe Co., NC were “Free Colored” on the censuses prior to 1850. On that census they were listed as Mulatto. 50 years after his death, some of Jeffrey’s great grandchildren, who were described as blonde haired, blue eyed, were denied entry into a white school because of their “mixed” ancestry. The family sued the Board of Education and won. There was a considerable amount of testimony about whether or not the Graham family was of African origin or whether it mattered. The final verdict was that they were of Portuguese ancestry, not African, and thus the case was won. However, over 100 years later, DNA testing shows that the Grahams were indeed of African ancestry. So, did they lie about their origins? Or did they simply not know? It was common in those days, when possible, to hide such ancestry as protection against racism and prejudice. Cover stories, such as Native American ancestry, or Portuguese, etc., would be claimed instead of African. After a generation or so, no one would know the truth anymore, even the family themselves.

Waters Family - When I was young I was told that my Great Great Grandmother, Annis Dulcenia Waters (1862-1918) wife of A. A. Wright, of Cherokee Co., NC was “Black Dutch.” I thought that meant her family was dark skinned, however, I never found any records that confirmed that belief, so what did it mean? Perhaps they were darker skinned than typical whites in the region, but not so much that any census taker ever put them down as mulatto or free colored. Refer to the link above for more on what Black Dutch can mean.

Turner Family - My branch of the Turners were always listed as white on census records back to my ancestor Daniel Turner (c1796-1860s). However, as I researched further back I found that the earlier generations were listed as free colored on the census records. Daniel’s probable grandfather John Turner (1730s-c1805) was a mulatto slave belonging to Thomas Weathersbee (c1700-1774) of Halifax (now Martin) Co., NC. Thomas Weathersbee also happened to be Daniel’s father as proven by court records. Thomas sold John Turner to John’s wife Patience Turner in 1769, then the family moved to South Carolina, keeping that Bill of Sale as it would prove important to maintain his freedom.

I found stories about Native American origins for the Turners. That John Turner was a “mulatto” slave, doesn’t preclude him having any Native American ancestry, but it’s an interesting story, nonetheless.

Davis Family - My ancestor Cornelius Davis (c1805-c1890) of Brunswick and Columbus Co., NC was white on most records. The exception was the 1840 census where he was listed as Free Colored. This led me to his likely father, Richard Davis who was listed as free colored on all his census entries. Richard was the son of Grace Davis who was freed by her master, John Davis, in 1764.

Native American Ancestry - There is a tradition in my family about Cherokee ancestry, but so far nothing has been confirmed. There were definitely connections. For example, my ancestor Andrew Bryson married a Cherokee woman as his 3^rd wife. She wasn’t my ancestor though. Others in my family married Cherokees, but I’ve yet to find an ancestor who was Cherokee, or from any other tribe.

Revised: August 2, 2026

[Home] [What’s New?] [Books for Sale] [Christian] [Genealogy] [Search] [Support] [About] [Contact]