DID my grandmother Lie...................?

Question

ok, so i grew up hearing that my Grandmother(Barbara cooper) and her father(roy allen cooper) are Native american. and they both look it, and I somewhat do. But so far I havent found anything to prove it. So im putting all the cards on the table to either smash the rummer or confirm it.

1930: District 1, Union, Tennessee; Roll: 2280; Page: 2B; Enumeration District: 2; Image: 381.0.

Charles L Cooper 47

Kizie Cooper 37

Gertie Cooper 16

Dovie Cooper 12

Roy Cooper 10

Bonnie Cooper 8

Troy Cooper 5

Ala Cooper 2

Phillip Cooper 10/12

www.ancestry.com

ROY Allen COOPER

Born: 2 JUL 1920

Died: 6 AUG 1984 ,Hancock Co. TN

Married:

EFFIE KATE TRENT

Birth: 19 MAY 1932 ,Hancock Co. TN

Death: 10 APR 1975

Their Children:

BARBARA COOPER-- F

BILLIE COOPER-- M

GARY COOPER --M

REX COOPER-- M

ROSA COOPER-- F

WILLIE MAE

Answer 1

Sometimes our ancestors make things up as they age, not to be deceptive, but to fill in gaps in their own memories. It's actually part of a process that has a name: It's called life review. Keep digging and see what you can determine. It may be something you can't prove anything, either way.

It's kind of amazing how many families say they "have some Native American blood" in their lineage, considering how few Native Americans there were compared to those of European or African descent. I just really question a lot of that. It maybe sounded romantic to say it, but unless there's something besides the story passed along orally, I wouldn't necessarily believe it. Depending on whem the Native American married into the family, it could even be that there were not birth records kept, or that the "race" was changed on a death certificate, so s/he could be buried in a family plot, which might not have been allowed had the death certificate said anything other than "white".

There are so many things that get tangled, lost, and misrepresented in family history records, oral and written. You may never be able to prove the "rummer" (rumor) or put it to rest.

Answer 2

Hancock County, Tennessee, is a place well known for many settlements of what is now called "Melungeons" or those who were considered tri-racial or mixed race with Negroes, Native Americans, and some other races, like Portuguese, Dutch, Irish, and even Turkish.  They are often listed on Federal Censuses as FPC, or free persons of color.  Google the word "Melungeons" and you might just find what you are looking for.  I have yet to find my G-g-g-grandmother's origins, but because she has a name associated with those Melungeons living in the same area where she grew up and married, I keep looking.  Good luck!

Answer 3

Here's the problem with the question. Cherokees took English names very early in the colonial era. We don't have a way of distinguishing names of Cherokee and European-types. Census records are a bad indicator because you're looking at records almost 100 years after the Trail of Tears...and by your own admission they didn't go to Oklahoma. So if their ancestors didn't espouse their tribal heritage, by the time it got to them they weren't eager to be called Indians at a time that it was a very derogatory term.

The other way you can follow natives is to find their BIA registrations. But only natives living on the reservations had to register with BIA because the registration was used to get Indian health care and IRS benefits. But if you weren't on a reservation, there was no benefit to registering because there wasn't any help for you.

I don't usually agree with the DNA suggestions, but in this case I do. You need to do a matrilineal test, so you can do it yourself if your mother was Barbara's daughter. But if your dad was Barbara's son, he'll have to do it. He didn't pass an X chromosome on to you that would have Barbara's matrilineal DNA attached to it. And if your dad won't do it, then any one of Barbara's children can do the test.

Answer 4

*gasp*  Leo.. cannot call Grandma a liar!  

What CAN have happened is that this is what SHE was told earlier, and she accepted it as fact.  Based on what you have SO FAR.. there is no proof either way.  It is not impossible that other documents (which may/ may not be online) will be further evidence.  

A comment about Melungeon.. you might want to investigate that as well, but you also need to take that with a grain of salt, since the topic itself is something that is disputed among researchers.

Leave your mind open, and make note of what is PROVEN, but put other evidence or tradition in your notes.

Answer 5

Hello

As to your Question on names. Coopers came from Coopers Creek in West Virginia to Tenn,Ky,Ohio,Kansas. these are all of Chaliawa Shawono Hathawekela Decent not Tsaligi.

The Long Familys can differ in decent I would need more info as to lock them in to our records or other decent

Paselo

Okeema Chacalawa

Answer 6

You may be looking at the wrong information. Often you need more that one source. Genealogy is like a gig saw puzzle.

All through the years many Native Americans avoided census rolls, so you may never find a connection. Your family is you best source. Find out their parents, grandparents, and great grandparents names.  

Sometimes on rolls the children's name were not listed just noted a child, female, male, or infant.

Try these sites

Native American Rolls

http://www.accessgenealogy.com/native/ro...

How Do I Trace Indian Ancestry?

http://www.doi.gov/ancestry.html

Cyndi's List of Genealogy Sites on the Internet - Native American

http://www.cyndislist.com/native.htm

Indian Health Services - Native American Resources

http://www.ihs.gov/misc/links_gateway/su...

Carolyne's Genealogy Helper

http://www.angelfire.com/tx/carolynegene...

.

Answer 7

Paper trails often fail, but there is always DNA testing.

Try:

Oh, yes!  I want it, and I want it now, and it must be free.  Does that about sum it up? (I hope so, because that is what I always want...)

You should start by asking all your living relatives about family history.  Then, armed with that information, you can go to your public library and check to see if it has a genealogy department.  Most do nowadays; also, don't forget to check at community colleges, universities, etc.  Our public library has both www.ancestry.com and www.heritagequest.com free for anyone to use (no library card required).

Another place to check out is any of the Mormon's Family History Centers.  They allow people to search for their family history (and, NO, they don't try to convert you).

A third option is one of the following websites:

http://www.searchforancestors.com/...

http://www.censusrecords.net/?o_xid=2739...

http://www.usgenweb.com/

http://www.census.gov/

http://www.rootsweb.com/

http://www.ukgenweb.com/

http://www.archives.gov/

http://www.familysearch.org/

http://www.accessgenealogy.com/...

http://www.cyndislist.com/

http://www.geni.com/

Cyndi's has the most links to genealogy websites, whether ship's passenger lists, ancestors from Africa, ancestors from the Philippines, where ever and whatever.

Of course, you may be successful by googling: "john doe, born 1620, plimouth, massachusetts" as an example.

Good luck and have fun!

Check out this article on five great free genealogy websites:

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article...

Then there is the DNA test; if you decide you want to REALLY know where your ancestors came from opt for the DNA test. Besides all the mistakes that officials commonly make, from 10% to 20% of birth certificates list the father wrong; that is, mama was doing the hanky-panky and someone else was the REAL father. That won't show up on the internet or in books; it WILL show up in DNA.

I used www.familytreedna.com which works with the National Geographics Genotype Program.