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Greetings!
I was wondering if anyone had any information on tribes living in Halifax county, Virginia, in the late 1800s, around 1880 and forward from that time? My g-grandfather came from that area with his family (the Brown’s) and settled here in Florida. I’m trying to find out who they were and why they left Virginia. Thanks in advance to all.
Drae
Halifax county is the home of the Haliwa Saponi. The word Haliwa is taken from combining the first syllables of the words Halifax and Warren (counties). The Indian people there are still very isolated. It was big news last month that they’re building a theme park in Roanoke Rapids. It will be the first time Haliwa people will have someplace relatively close to find good jobs.
You may want to check with them, but keep in mind, they’re going for federal recognition and the guidelines necessitate keeping rolls limited to people who still live in that locale. It’s just something they have to do.
Any of the history we discuss on this site will be relevant and the genealogy is about the same tribal mix. I know of Browns a few counties over with stories of Indian blood.
Halifax, VA is home to the VA side of the High Plains Sappony,
Person County, NC is the NC side to the same tribe.
Halifax and Warren Counties, NC are the homes of the Hali-wa
Saponi hence the name.
Saponi1
Halifax county is the home of the Haliwa Saponi. The word Haliwa is taken from combining the first syllables of the words Halifax and Warren (counties). The Indian people there are still very isolated. It was big news last month that they’re building a theme park in Roanoke Rapids. It will be the first time Haliwa people will have someplace relatively close to find good jobs.
You may want to check with them, but keep in mind, they’re going for federal recognition and the guidelines necessitate keeping rolls limited to people who still live in that locale. It’s just something they have to do.
Any of the history we discuss on this site will be relevant and the genealogy is about the same tribal mix. I know of Browns a few counties over with stories of Indian blood.
For centuries the Sappony have called home the area known as the High Plains Indian Settlement located among the rolling hills found between the waters of the Hyco River, Mayo Creek, and Blew Wing Creek. The North Carolina-Virginia border line runs through the heart of this close-knit Indian community which is part of the southeastern section of Halifax County, Virginia and the northeastern section of Person County, North Carolina. Between 1911 and 1913, both states officially recognized the Indians living in this Settlement.
Becky has gotten 2 hugs from Chief Otis Martin in less than a week…. at Golden Corral last sunday night and again at the Person County Historical Society meeting tuesday night. I’m sipping on some “Sappony” bottled water right now. For over a century, the Sappony…aka the Indians of Person Co/Indians of Halifax co, Va (when the states recognized them as ndns but not as one tribe) …..aka “Cubans” ……. have defined themselves as members of one of seven families or clans. These are MARTIN, COLEMAN, STEWART(STUART), JOHNSON, TALLY, EPPS, and SHEPARD.
Sorry, no BROWNS. For Browns, look to eastern Va roots among the Cheroenhaka and tribes in that area.
Hi,
I have not been on this site in awhile. However, I go to Halifax County VA often. I still have family there. My grandmother is 86 and knows quite a bit about the area. I went home for Christmas. It was about 60 degrees. I loved it. We are from a Clover.
It was home to the Occaneechee Indians, Cherokees, Saponi, Tuscaroras, Tutelo. The Monacan are not to far away. There cemetry from what I was told is about 40 miles away in Danville.
My great grandmother was a Coleman from Halifax County VA
Greens, Fosters, Browns, Lacks, Collins, Rice, Farrells, Grennin, Garretts, Pleasant, Mortin( not sure of the spelling) Mitchell, Jones, King. These are some of my relatives. Distant kin or names I have seen on the cemetry stones when I went to a funeral.
Nice to be back
Nativelady, good to see you back 😉
You make a good point. That being that Halifax co, VA is home to a virtual hodgepodge of eastern ndns and mixed bloods, not just the High Plains settlement……… and, yes, there are ndns with the Brown surname there.
Linda, Saponi1, Dreaminghawk, and Nativelady; thank you all for the replies and patience with my questions (and ignorance!!)
I am assuming that a lot of people do not know the exact tribe of their ancestors and may never know?
Is there any particular tribe that the Brown surname is seen most often or is it pretty spread about in the area? Are they Cheroenhaka that came to Halifax from the east?
Nativelady, it’s about 60 now with the sun headed for the horizon. I wish my blood were thicker…and that it was about 85.
I forgot the surnames, Wilborne, Cousins, King,Hunt,Palmer,Moss Carrington, Gibson, Powell, Scott.
Our folks did not always marry within the county. They could have married Browns from neighboring counties. I have family going from Halifax County VA back up towards Hanover County VA. Also the neighboring County in North Carolina could be a place to look. We are close to the boarder. There was alot of marriages between the people of Halifax County VA and NC. I guess Greensboro, Raleigh Durham are close to us. NC is about 50 miles from us.
On my dads moms side we are Browns. But the Browns of Hanover County.
Anyway, If I think of anything I will add it. Have a great day.
Does anyone know what surnames are on the Haliwa rolls? I know of Richardson, Lynch and a few others, but I don’t know if a name like Brown occurs there.
Thank you all. It is very hard to get information and I am so far away–this computer is one of the valuable things I have (I do mean materially!). A kind of portal.
Keep me posted, please! And thank you, Linda for asking if there are any Browns on the Haliwa rolls. I see that there rolls are closed now? Is admission to many of these tribes only open to people who live on the ancestral lands?
My Browns were from Hillsborough NC in the 1800’s. I don’t know if this Brown family in particular was Indian, but some of their decendents claim Indian ancestry and have Indian features. They married into my Morris family, which claimed to be from SW NC in the 1700’s. Then they all eventually ended up in north east Tennessee.
I guess I just never caught that you had Browns in your family all the time that we talked. My son-in-law had Browns in his family (his gggrandma), and they were from Alamance and Orange county. In fact, a picture of her shows very prominent features. I hope to one day find out more information about her for him. She married a Norris and lived in Person County on the borderline with Orange county. In fact, there are quite a few Browns in this cemetary.
This is the listing from her gravestone:
NORRIS (double stone)
7. Artelia B. / 3-2-1887 / 8-11-1975 / ( Cathron “Tealie” Brown. m. Apr 15, 1908 )
8. Charles / 10-29-1876 / 11-20-1968 / (s/o John & Cora Norris )
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