
Hertford County, North Carolina: The Legacy of John Melton

Recently, I came across a short news item concerning a member of the Bridgeford Family of Suffolk, Virginia. The notice was in reference to the death of the father of William McFarland Bridgeford, Sr., a successful merchant,
Following in the footsteps of my ancestors in Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia, in an attempt to experience Emancipation Day celebrations of days past as they would have known them. Most white newspaper accounts of the day focused on participants’ clothing and comportment. Beyond an annual observance of “freedom day,” the celebrations were an opportunity to strengthen the bonds of the community, through sharing history, sustaining commitments to progressive political change, and fundraising for benevolent societies and community institutions.
The obituary of Thomas Sledge