The Guion Miller Roll

The 1906 to 1909 "Roll of the Eastern Cherokees" is better known as The Guion Miller Roll. It was created as a result of a successful lawsuit filed by three groups of Cherokees who had not been paid all of the money due them as a result of the 1835 Treaty of New Echota which resulted in the forcible removal of the Cherokees and the infamous Trail of Tears.

The Guion Miller Roll is the most important source of Cherokee genealogical research of any of the rolls, because the application required extensive information to be supplied by the applicant. Between August 27, 1906 and May 18, 1909 there were 45,940 applications filed from the United States, Canada, Mexico and even Syria. It listed an estimated 90,000 individual applicants. Each qualifying applicant received a warrant worth $133.33 for their share of the one-time payment due to them. In order for an application to be accepted on this roll, the applicant had to prove descent from a person who was shown on the 1835 roll of Eastern Cherokees (also known as The Henderson Roll), which listed the citizenship of the tribe at that time.

Most applicants were rejected (and acceptance in and of itself does not prove Cherokee ancestry), but accepted or not, these applications provide a wealth of genealogical data.

For a searchable, and easy to use, version of the Index: Click Here.

Take note of the page and application numbers. With these numbers, copies of the applications themselves can be ordered from the National Archives.

To begin the ordering process: Click Here.

Note: Navigating the National Archives site is not easy and the ordering process is not easy and registration will be required.

Hawkins County History and Genealogy

Hawkins County History and Genealogy

The records of Hawkins County, Tennessee, from which Hancock County was created, are vital to Melungeon studies.

To visit its excellent GenWeb site: Click Here.

To visit the Hawkins County Genealogical and Historical Society: Click Here.

Note: Yesterday's cautions about the Melungeon information presented or linked to applies to these sites as well.

Hancock County History and Genealogy

Hancock County Tennessee is, of course, crucial to Melungeon studies. Many of its records have been lost and many early records are in Hawkins County, of which it was originally a part. Its GenWeb site is a bit limited but should not be overlooked.

To view: Click Here.

To visit the Hancock County Historical and Genealogical Society: Click Here.

Note: Both of these sites contain or link to web pages which reflect fanciful Melungeon origin theories unsupported by research and documentation. For better Melungeon history, consult the MHS's Melungeon FAQ and the Melungeon section of the MHS Blog's "Links of Interest" page, which can be reached by links to your right on the blog's sidebar.

Geographical Location Of The Melungeons

By Joanne Pezzullo

Beginning in 1849 and to this very day the researchers have headed to Newman's Ridge to find the Melungeons.

To continue reading this extensive review of the literature: Click Here.

Note: This is a re-blogging of an important MHS Blog entry made over a year ago. The next two MHS Blog entries will present genealogical and historical resources for Hancock County, home of Newman's Ridge, and Hawkins County, from which Hancock County was created and where many older Melungeon-related public records still reside.

Weekly Appalachian HIstory Podcasts

Every Sunday Dave Tabler's outstanding Appalachian History blog (To view: Click Here.) features an Appalachian history podcast, which is really just an MP3 file, meaning you don't need an Apple iPod to listen to it, just an MP3 player on your computer.

To check out today's podcast: Click Here.

You can locate old issues by searching backward through the blog, but the easy way is to simply: Click Here.

Note: A broadband connection is highly recommended and virtually a necessity.

Poor Ellen Smith

The 19th century popular murder ballad, Poor Ellen Smith, recounts the tale of a woman named Ellen Smith, who was shot through the heart by a former lover. When Ellen was found, her ragged clothes were scattered all about the ground around her body. A group of townspeople got together and began a murder hunt which led to the apprehension of the murderer, Peter DeGraff, who was captured while he was loafing around the area.

As is the case with many Appalachian Mountain Ballads, "Poor Ellen Smith" is based on real events. In this case, the locale was Mount Airy, North Carolina.

For more of the story and two versions of the ballad: Click Here.

Mount Airy has, unfortunately, just recently been the scene of a contemporary murder tragedy.

Historical Society of Southwest Virginia

Founded in 1961, the Historical Society of Southwest Virginia has published seventeen pamphlets composed mostly of speeches made at the regular meetings by area historians. They include episodes of history that are, in many cases, not found elsewhere and should definitely be preserved in the form of a large, permanently bound, book.

Furthermore, the society has contributed to a number of projects in the preservation of Southwest Virginia Heritage. Among these are donations to the Southwest Virginia Museum at Big Stone Gap, the society s archives at Clinch Valley College, Wise, Va., and the Fort Houston Marker on Clinch River near Nickelsville in Scott County. The organization has also acquired a large volume of historical material for its archives in the John Cook Wylie Library at Clinch Valley College, including the James Taylor Adams Papers, reams of material collected by E. J. Sutherland as well as hundreds of published volumes from his library.

The area covered by the society consists of Buchanan, Dickenson, Lee, Russell, Scott and Wise Counties, Virginia, but it has members in many other counties and states. Interested visitors are always welcome to it s meetings held three times a year on the last Saturdays of March, June and September.

To visit the Society's web site: Click Here.