John and Patience Turner

John Turner's mark

This is the story of my 5th great grandfather and grandmother, John and Patience Turner.  I first discovered them while researching my Hursey family.  There were smatterings here and there on the internet about it.  John was a slave and his freedom was purchased by his wife.  What?!  Surely, I would have heard about this from my grandmother, who was the family genealogist and our connection to the Hursey family.  But I hadn't.  So I assumed I must have made a mistake and I'd have to come back later to it to prove out my connection to this man - or disprove it.  I came back it early this year when a DNA test revealed Yoruban ancestry that would, in part, be explained by this connection.

Patience's father's name and date and place of birth are unknown.  Her mother was named Rachael Smith and was from Halifax Co., NC.  Rachael was of Irish descent and died while Patience was still a child.  [1][4]

By 1769, Patience's last name was Turner. [2]  Given the evidence I have regarding her maiden name, I believe that this is because she and John married before he was freed (see below) and she took his last name.

It's at this point that I should mention that although I did find some statements about Patience's racial identity being 'mulatto' while doing this research, I was not able to confirm that.  In fact, the evidence I've seen seems to indicate that she was not multiracial.  Although I can find one court record that said "Patience Turner passed and was received as a free white woman not having more than 1/4th negro blood" [6][13], and one could surmise that wouldn't need to be said if she was clearly white, 'less than 1/4th negro blood' could technically include no African heritage and the statement may have been made simply because she was married to a man of color so someone thought it needed to be on the record, so this statement is not evidence of African descent.

Mattie Clark Sinks - My Family's Lewis and Clark Mystery

This post is one part biography and one part mystery.  Although I know some about Mattie from interviews with family, I have been unable to trace her family past her.  I've stuck with this one pretty tenaciously because there is a family story that we "are related to either Lewis or Clark of the Lewis and Clark expedition" via my great grandmother, Mattie.  I'm hoping that by posting this information, someone who has some of my missing pieces will see it.

I started at both ends... by researching Mattie and also by researching William Clark and Meriweather Lewis.  What I was hoping is that by staring at both ends, I could try to narrow down the possible relation connections and/or find a link to Mattie via the known descendants of either man.  That didn't work out as well as I'd hoped.

My great grandmother, Mattie Clark, was born 2 Jun 1878 to Jam Clark and M Parmellia Lewis Clark in Tennessee.  [2][4][8]  She does not have an official birth record or a delayed birth record with the state of Tennessee.  As of the time of her death, she had the following half brothers and sisters : Ed Clark, Nashville, Mrs Myrtle Bateman and Mrs EJ Wyatt, Erin, TN and Mrs L O Rye, Birmingham, AL. John Clark, Tennessee Ridge, TN [2].  Being that the males have the last name Clark, these half siblings are likely her father's children with a different mother and are  most likely born after the 1880 census in which James appears with Mattie's mother.

Slave v/s The Confederate - a Civil War in my Genes

Between 1861 and 1865, our country fought over whether slavery should be allowed or not.  The Union lined up on one side and the Confederacy lined up on the other and they commenced to killing each other over the disagreement.  The Union won the American Civil War and as a result, not only was slavery ended but the idea of 'human rights' or that all humans are created equal gained traction, which, I think, kept momentum behind America's path toward equal rights for all people that we still fight today, albeit, less bloody.

DNA Test Results - Neanderthals and Mitochondrial Eve

Neanderthal Child Reconstruction | KPjas |CC3

The thing that interested me in genealogy to begin with was this desire to know who I am, what I'm made of and where I came from.  I started with this really general research into the origins of humans, which ended with 'humans migrated to various places across the earth at various times'.  Then I picked up about 700 years ago in Europe with my earliest known ancestors with genealogy.  Between the two - 700 years ago and a few hundred thousand years ago was this really big gap of ... "Eh, Who Knows?!"

So, one of the most compelling reasons I wanted to get my DNA tested was to find out what my mitochondrial Haplogroup is - and, in turn, to have some idea of how my ancient ancestors migrated across the earth's surface, and in turn, what their lifestyles were like.  Its one thing to know, in general, that some male and female somewhere got together to have babies, who had babies etc and that's how our species came to be - but something else entirely to know where my ancestors specifically, fit into the advent of agriculture or the use of iron or how they helped carry their culture from one place to another.

I got my dna analyzed via 23andme.com.  They do two forms of analysis that was applicable to this particular research into myself.  They will tell you how  much of your DNA is neanderthal as well as what your maternal haplogroup is.

Neanderthals were these humanoid folks that were really closely related (although  not ancestors) to modern humans.  We are Homo Sapien Sapiens, they were Homo Sapien Neanderthalensis (or Homo Neanderthalensis). We have tons of neanderthal fossils.  And by 'we', I mean scientists that know what to do with such things.  Not too terribly long ago - only a few years - it was discovered that modern humans have a touch of neanderthal DNA in them.

I will say that there seems to be quite a bit of dissention over how that DNA got into us humans.  Some say hey maybe only the males of one species were able to mate with the females of the other and only the female offspring survived.  Some say, if it happened, it was rare.  And some insist it never happened and instead, the Neanderthal DNA that we have in us is actually the DNA from a third, common ancestor.

At any rate, only this year, the first fossils thought to be a hybrid of neanderthal and modern human was found.  Cusp of science and whatnot and 23andme is able to analyze for it.  So the first cool thing I found out is that I have 2.8% Neanderthal DNA.  By whatever means neanderthal DNA made it into my DNA, I can now reasonably explain my eating habits and my son's bedroom.

But even cooler was to discover that my mitochondrial haplogroup is T2f1.  Ta da!  Exciting, right?  Those four characters tell me how my ancient ancestors migrated across the earth so that I, Carrie, wound up here, where I am.  You know exactly what those four characters mean.  Right?  Hah.  Neither do I.  I'm still piecing together my specific history - but in the mean time, here is some stuff about Mitochondrial Haplogroup where it intersects with ancient history.

Health and Genetics Meets Genealogy

DNA Double helix | Public Domain

I have to say that although it's fascinating to find civil war soldiers, knights and kings in my family tree, medical history is one of the huge pieces of information that I get from my research.  Regardless of having both parents living, most of their siblings still alive and most of their parents having lived into my teens, I have a tremendous lack of knowledge about my family health history.  As in... I never really had a family health history at all.  All of those family history forms you fill out at a doctor's office so that they know what you are at risk for... I just never had anything to put there.

My mom raised us but after about age 8, her family was relatively far flung. I wasn't raised around my father's side of the family but even once I established a relationship with my father, we stayed relatively disconnected from his family until I later reconnected with his siblings in adulthood.  Maybe that's why family health stuff isn't common knowledge in my immediate family.  It could also be a generation thing... genetics and hereditary diseases and disorders is a relatively new generation-wise, 'common knowledge' concept.  Even 10 years ago, DNA testing wasn't something the average person had access to, let alone for under $100.  It could also be a regional thing.  Health care in the south is vastly different than health care where I am now.  Whole person (holistic) care just isn't 'a thing' there.  Medical issues are tackled completely differently.  My family is Southern and their attitudes about health have definitely been shaped by Southern culture.  But, for whatever reason, here I am with no family health history to speak of.