Highland Blog

“Fanning” your family

“Fanning” your family

One very handy feature of the Highland HomePage database structure is the ability to select an individual (non-living only) and generate a colorful visual representation of that person’s direct ancestors for several generations. The database tool is known as a fan chart, and here is an example of how to use it. First, utilize the basic name-search tools to focus on a particular person of interest. In this example, I selected my deceased mother as the starting point. Once the…

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Hello again!

Hello again!

Many folks who have followed my online presence over the years may recall that I once maintained a blog and collection of resources as part of the Highland HomePage. After a series of changes of webhosts, as well as a change in the underlying architecture for my huge genealogy database, I discontinued blogging. Well, I’m back!!! Unfortunately due to all the transitions among host providers, I was unable to save or retrieve several years of postings (thanks especially to Google”s…

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The “No-Heller” Baptists of Appalachia

The “No-Heller” Baptists of Appalachia

How many of you have heard of the “no-hellers” of Cental Appalachia? They were a small subset of Primitive Baptist “universalists” who firmly believed that a loving Creator would not separate anyone from ultimate reunion with the Creator. Instead, they believe that “hell” consists in the disordered mortal life of sinners, who after death would be reconciled into a unity of all humanity.The no-heller movement was, and is, centered primarily within a single cohesive group — the Three Forks of…

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“Race” and Our Appalachian Ancestors

“Race” and Our Appalachian Ancestors

This is a “reprint” of a post to my Facebook Group from 17 Mar 2023, before I reactivated my blogging capabilities. Hoe it is useful to site visitors. “Race” is a tricky thing — and it often is in the eye of the beholder. As I review records online I frequently see “W” or “Black/African-American” as if such categorizations are absolute. But the story is almost never so simple.For that reason, in the past I have resisted creating a fact…

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Running from Race

Running from Race

As I watch “Finding Your Roots” on PBS, a weekly habit, I am reminded that all of us who claim ancestry of “Melungeon” or “Cherokee princess” ancestry need to recognize the genetic truths — many of us have Black ancestors. I can document hundreds of “white” folks who moved around Appalachia, from places in East Tennessee and/or SW Virginia into various counties of Eastern Kentucky, to escape labels of “colored”.It has long been documented that the poor white (English) indentured…

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