Anita,
I am working here from memory but I think that a VA code of the 1680s or
1690s defined a mulatto as anyone who had 1/2, 1/4, or 1/8 African heritage
or 1/2 American Indian heritage. Thus, the conflation of Indian with
African-American was not only done by custom but by law.
Look at any picture book of the people on the streets of Israel and it
will convince you that Jewish people can have many different appearances.
I'll warrant the same is true for Indians in the South and in New England.
When people who look African-American to me say that they are Indians, I
just acknowledge that they like anyone else gets to determine their own
identity.
I had a student many years ago from Nebraska. He was in the military
and thus taking classes at my college in California. One day he just got up
and said "now I know why I could never figure out my Nebraska born
grandmother. She was brown so I justfigured she was black but why did she
have all those strange corn cob dolls in her kitchen. She was an Indian all
the time." (not exact quotation but an approximation.)
History is really complicated: thank Heavens.
Harold S. Forsythe
----- Original Message -----
From: "Anita Wills" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Friday, February 16, 2007 4:59 PM
Subject: Re: SLAVE OWNERSHIP BY NATIVE AMERICANS IN VIRGINIA
> My reference is to my ancestors who lived in Virginia in the 16-1800's. I
> traced several lines of my ancestors (who were referred to as Mulatto), to
> several Virginia tribes. I did not include the dates I was referring to,
> and apologize for that.
>
> Anita
>
>>From: Melinda Skinner <[log in to unmask]>
>>Reply-To: Discussion of research and writing about Virginia history
>><[log in to unmask]>
>>To: [log in to unmask]
>>Subject: Re: SLAVE OWNERSHIP BY NATIVE AMERICANS IN VIRGINIA
>>Date: Fri, 16 Feb 2007 15:14:05 +0000
>>
>>While the term "mulatto" may be used to describe "Natives" by some,
>>I believe it technically refers to a person whose ancestry is Negro and
>>Caucasian.
>>That's the meaning it had when I was growing up in Virginia.
>>--
>>Melinda C. P. Skinner
>>Richmond, VA
>>
>>
>> -------------- Original message ----------------------
>>From: Anita Wills <[log in to unmask]>
>> > While researching for my book, I found instances of Free Blacks &
>>Mulattoes
>> > (another name for Native), who owned slaves. One of my ancestors owned,
>>and
>> > freed slaves, (including a female who married his brother). Since
>>Natives
>> > and Free Blacks were under siege, it is highly unlikely they would have
>>held
>> > large amounts of slaves. Slavery was an international business with
>>ships
>> > leaving slave states headed for European Markets. That meant a
>>requirement
>> > for a shipping industry, and connections that Free Blacks and Natives
>>did
>> > not have.
>> >
>> > Anita
>> >
>> >
>> > >From: Debra Jackson/Harold Forsythe <[log in to unmask]>
>> > >Reply-To: Discussion of research and writing about Virginia history
>> > > <[log in to unmask]>
>> > >To: [log in to unmask]
>> > >Subject: Re: SLAVE OWNERSHIP BY NATIVE AMERICANS IN VIRGINIA
>> > >Date: Thu, 15 Feb 2007 09:29:05 -0500
>> > >
>> > >By statute, blacks and Native Americans were barred from buying and
>>owning
>> > >white servants in 17th century Virginia. Indian slave ownership
>>existed in
>> > >the deep South but not apparently in the upper South.
>> > >
>> > >Harold S. Forsythe
>> > >----- Original Message ----- From: "Basil Forest"
>> > ><[log in to unmask]>
>> > >To: <[log in to unmask]>
>> > >Sent: Thursday, February 15, 2007 9:24 AM
>> > >Subject: SLAVE OWNERSHIP BY NATIVE AMERICANS IN VIRGINIA
>> > >
>> > >
>> > >>Does anyone know of any research or articles on the ownership of
>>slaves by
>> > >>Native Americans in Virginia?
>> > >>
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