Wednesday, August 31, 2016

The Hairston Family Reunion 2016: Winston-Salem, NC

Tonight is the night I head for Winston-Salem, NC.  I will be attending the Hairston Family Reunion which is held yearly. This will be my first time attending. The Hairstons is possibly the largest family clan in the United States. 

I discovered at least ten years ago that my maternal 2x great grandmother Martha Hairston Wilson, was of this clan.  The Hairston surname was listed on my great grandmother's death certificate.  This little information added thousands of ancestors to my family tree.  Their placement on the tree is unknown to me, as it has been difficult for me to find Martha in any documents.  What I know of her is that she married a J.W. Wilson and that she had been enslaved.  She was possibly born between 1830-1840.  My hopes is that this information will be revealed to me once I head over to Martinsville, Henry County, Virginia.

So I am packed and have some of my reading materials for when I have some down time. I hope that you will follow my journey to the ancestral lands of my people. 


I will be in Winston-Salem for three days and then travel to Havelock, North Carolina to attend the Patriot Isaac Carter Chapter- SAR Chartering Ceremony. It is the first chapter named after an African American Patriot of the American Revolution.  I am so pleased to have the opportunity to witness history and to meet some new cousins.

So as I go for now...I will be back with an update.