Mind Right Monday...and it's Juneteenth!
Juneteenth is a Federal Holiday and I think my great, grandfather would be proud.
Borg Felton was a runaway slave—considered to be lost property. Truth is, he was brave and strong—refusing to be oppressed and enslaved, and risking his life just to be a free man.
Integrating among the Suma Indian tribe in West Texas, he later took a wife and started a family. Having difficulty pronouncing her Suma-given name, he simply called her India.
Even though President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, Texas didn't get the word that slaves had been freed until June 19, 1865. Later, Borg returned home (with India) to the family he’d left behind at the tender age of 11.
I'm the youngest great grandchild of Borg and India Felton, parents of Denetter Felton Herring Walker, mother of Paulanner Herring Reed Rivers. Though most of my mother’s ancestors are buried in the Salem Baptist Church Cemetery in Stampley, Mississippi, we're not sure where Great-Grandfather Borg’s body rests.
As for Great Grandmother India, the Suma Indian tribe is said to be extinct after migrating to the Apache tribe. But Inda's blood runs warmly through my viens and so does the blood Borg Felton.
I'm the youngest great grandchild of Borg and India Felton, parents of Denetter Felton Herring Walker, mother of Paulanner Herring Reed Rivers. Though most of my mother’s ancestors are buried in the Salem Baptist Church Cemetery in Stampley, Mississippi, we're not sure where Great-Grandfather Borg’s body rests.
Today, we celebrate Juneteenth in honor of our Great-Grandfather Borg's return home.
Welcome Home Borg!
Challenge:
- Learn your family's history
- Teach it to your children
- Celebrate your family's freedom