Legends, Traditions and Stories

 The following was first published here 17 Oct 2013.

Grandma said Grandpa was part Native American. He must have been, she said, as he looked Native American. Auntie said Grandpa's ancestor was Cherokee, after all Grandma said he was Indian and the Cherokees came through this area of Kentucky on the Trail of Tears. Uncle said Grandpa "fell away" from the Trail of Tears and stayed in Kentucky. Otherwise he would have gone on with the rest of the Cherokees. Dad said he didn't care if Grandpa was Indian or not. He was tired of hearing about it and changed the subject.

So, was Grandpa of Native American descent or not? How much faith do you put in family stories? What do you believe and what do you discard? And finally, where do you look for Native American records in Kentucky? 

Family legends, traditions and stories are fun, but they don't have to be true to be fun. Sometimes they are so preposterous that we are sure they are not true. But what about the stories that could be true.

One way to find out if those stories are true is to have your DNA tested and follow that with searching records going backwards from what is known to what is not known. These records should include census, vital records, deeds, mortgages, church records and anything else available for the appropriate time period.  Don't forget to ask yourself if the record you are  using makes sense to have been your ancestor.                          

I've been researching Kentucky records for a long time and have never seen  a single document or a big book marked "Native American Records" in the courthouse. Except for separate books for African American marriages, all other records are found together with no label indicating color or ethnicity.

So, record those legends, traditions and family stories and be sure to write down the date you heard them and the name of the storyteller. Then get busy researching to determine if they are true or not.

Happy researching!

Published again 13 July 2022, Western Kentucky Genealogy Blog, http://wkygenealogy.blogspot.com/