My Confederate Kinfolk: A Twenty-First Century Freedwoman Discovers Her Roots

by Thulani Davis

Starting with a photograph and some writings left by her grandmother, Thulani Davis goes looking for the "white folk" in her family-a Scots-Irish family of cotton planters unknown to her-and uncovers a history far richer and stranger than she had ever imagined. When Davis's grandmother died in 1971, she was writing a novel about her parents, Mississippi cotton farmers who met after the Civil Chloe Curry, a former slave from Alabama, married with several children, and Will Campbell, a white planter from Missouri who had never marriedIn this compelling intersection of genealogy, memoir, and Reconstruction history, Davis picks up where her grandmother left off. Her journey takes her from Missouri to Mississippi to Alabama, back to her home town in Virginia, and even to Sierra Leone. The Campbells lead her to locate not only their pioneer history but to find the previously unknown roots of her mother's family; to Civil War archives, where she discovers the records of the Campbells who fought with Confederate troops; to the Silver Creek plantation in Yazoo, Mississippi, where the two branches of her family history became one; and to a county near her Virginia hometown where both families started their American journey, completely unknown to each other. My Confederate Kinfolk examines the origins of some of our most deeply ingrained notions about what makes a family black or white and offers an immensely compelling, intellectually challenging alternative.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Biography, Memoir, American History

324 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Born in 1949.

Reviews

[Christina Dudley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Novelist Thulani Davis investigates her forbears, both black and white, in Virginia, Alabama and Mississippi. Knowing little about Reconstruction, the book was both eye-opening and depressing. I confess to getting pretty lost sometimes in the family trees--Davis' research was *so* thorough! The relations between masters and slaves were especially sad. Instances of genuine affection could hardly be possible in such power situations, and yet, in letters and quotes, the distorted affection is there. Respect to Davis' great-grandmother Chloe, a survivor and a smart cookie, despite illiteracy, war, separation, possible sexual exploitation, violence, fear, and discrimination. Davis is right in calling that Reconstruction generation an unsung "Greatest Generation."

[Cheri · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book online while I was searching for my family's tartan, of all things! It's a story about a black woman who is intrigued by a photo of her grandmother as a child dressed in full tartan regalia. Why would a black girl in southern Mississippi in 1887 be dressed this way? This book is her search to discover why and how she discovers it is because of the love between her great-grandmother and the wealthy white man that the worked for thus opening all the wounds between black and white pre and post Reconstruction.

[Jonny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow--Thulani Davis researched two sets of ancestors from the Civil War era--both slaves and slaveowners. As a genealogy buff, she has an amazing collection of info she was able to compile--with depth--in a period of time where it's not always easy to get info. And I really liked the way she wove the data together to create a narrative. Not always a pleasant story, as can be imagined, but gripping, and a real slice of American history.

[Sandy D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting memoir by an African-American author about her family during the Civil War and Reconstruction. Sometimes the parts about different battles got tedious, but the people involved made the narrative pick up again. The interracial relationships were fascinating, and Davis' speculations about her great-grandmother (a former slave), her great-grandfather (scion of a plantation owning family), and her grandmother were intriguing.

[Sasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome! Highly recommend!

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

The essence of the southern confusion about who's actually who, and what that might mean in today's world.

[Kerry · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great memoir that was very hard to get through at times. There are a lot of people mentioned throughout, and it was difficult to keep track of them. There was also an awful lot of information about peripheral things—cousins’ stories and battles and politics and stories of people unrelated to the author. These things were maybe not tied into the central story of her great-grandparents as well they could have been. However, the author did a great job of using historical research and sources to build a story of her family, especially her African American ancestors and their victories and hardships. She was truly blessed to have inherited the wonderful photos of her family and she did their story justice.

[Social+Diarist · Rating 5 out of 5]

This work was beyond gripping... You will read this social- and family-history of Thulani Davis with rapt attention. Between the horror and evil faced by this African American family, one can trace its strength and will to survive. It is not easy reading, but it is gripping reading ....

[Suzanne Barletto · Rating 3 out of 5]

Author traces her roots back to the confederacy. Was a little confusing trying to keep all of the people straight.

[Christa · Rating 4 out of 5]

The status of women endured years of hardships long before the South enslaved African Americans. Reserved only to men, women did not enjoy the options of true independence, universal suffrage and property ownership. To deter sovereignty, laws to stop African-American Freedwomen from truly embracing their freedom sprouted throughout the South after the Civil War. “The racial conventions of the day maintained by the same kind of force used during antebellum times, meant that she was subject to the harshest legalized oppression that could be devised outside of slavery”. With all these factors working against them, African-American Freedwomen had to find the courage and strength to overcome oppression from laws abdicating gender preference, sexual violence and economic peril.

Davis documents the genealogy of her past and finds great revelations of survival African American women after slavery. Her book enlightens us about the perils of these Freedwomen, although she was only writing about her family. There are many insightful conclusions we can draw from her book and the information she recovered.

[Cherie]

I picked up a copy of this today while I was working. It looks really good, can't wait to start reading it!

[Teresa Haywood staggs · Rating 4 out of 5]

not bad, almost like a textbook