Abraham Lincoln Melungeon Research Paper
Essay 1: Abraham Lincoln
ENG 102
May 2, 2014
Abraham Lincoln Melungeon or Myth? Some historian believe that Abraham Lincoln was born an illegitimate child to Abraham Enloe and Nancy Hanks. It is possible that Abraham Lincoln could be tied to the Melungeon heritage through both of his parents? Many growing number of historians believe that Abraham Lincoln possess many qualities that distinguishes him as a Melungeon, and in fact believe that he is a direct descendant. The questioning of his parentage generates much interest and theories in regards to this great Presidents past.
Abraham Lincoln was born February 12, 1908. His father was “said to be” Thomas Lincoln and his mother Nancy Hanks. He was born in a log cabin in Sinking …show more content…
Because of their tri-racial ethnicity, they did not fit under any category listed on the Census, so for “recordkeeping” purposes, they were categorized as either melotos/white/Indian/Africa American, when in fact they were “all”. Melungeons were suggested to be descendants from “tri-racial isolates” (Los Angeles Times), a mixture of whites, blacks and American Indian who historians say interbred along Appalchia’s ridges during the 18th centuries. Old documents and stories passed down throught the generations tell a tale of “Portugese” Berbers, “sheperd-like” people who came to American in ships. They were proposed to be decendants of early Portuese, Spanish, Sephardic Jewish Mulims, Moorish, and/or Gypsy/Roma colonish in the southeastern United States (Kennedy 1997; Hirschman 2005; Price 1953), that were exiled from Spain and Portugal through a religious witch-hunt know as the “Spanish Inquisition”. Many of them settled in the hills of the Appalachian Mountians. Over time The Melugeons, were pushed off their lands, denied their rights, murdered, mistreated and became an embittered and nearly defeated people. They tried to fit in with Anglo neighbors, but lost their heritaage, their culture, their names and their …show more content…
To be legally classified as a Melungeon, meant to be “Nobody at all”. What would it have meant for Abraham Lincoln, a “self-educated”, depressed human being, born in a one room cabin to illegitmate parents to be labeled a “Melungeon”? Would the American people have voted for him? Did Lincoln’s passionate spirit to “free the slaves” come deep from within or did it come from darker place then anybody could ever have imagined? Just how different would the pages of our history books read, if people would have truly believed that Abraham Lincoln was a “Nobody”, a
ENG 102
May 2, 2014
Abraham Lincoln Melungeon or Myth? Some historian believe that Abraham Lincoln was born an illegitimate child to Abraham Enloe and Nancy Hanks. It is possible that Abraham Lincoln could be tied to the Melungeon heritage through both of his parents? Many growing number of historians believe that Abraham Lincoln possess many qualities that distinguishes him as a Melungeon, and in fact believe that he is a direct descendant. The questioning of his parentage generates much interest and theories in regards to this great Presidents past.
Abraham Lincoln was born February 12, 1908. His father was “said to be” Thomas Lincoln and his mother Nancy Hanks. He was born in a log cabin in Sinking …show more content…
Because of their tri-racial ethnicity, they did not fit under any category listed on the Census, so for “recordkeeping” purposes, they were categorized as either melotos/white/Indian/Africa American, when in fact they were “all”. Melungeons were suggested to be descendants from “tri-racial isolates” (Los Angeles Times), a mixture of whites, blacks and American Indian who historians say interbred along Appalchia’s ridges during the 18th centuries. Old documents and stories passed down throught the generations tell a tale of “Portugese” Berbers, “sheperd-like” people who came to American in ships. They were proposed to be decendants of early Portuese, Spanish, Sephardic Jewish Mulims, Moorish, and/or Gypsy/Roma colonish in the southeastern United States (Kennedy 1997; Hirschman 2005; Price 1953), that were exiled from Spain and Portugal through a religious witch-hunt know as the “Spanish Inquisition”. Many of them settled in the hills of the Appalachian Mountians. Over time The Melugeons, were pushed off their lands, denied their rights, murdered, mistreated and became an embittered and nearly defeated people. They tried to fit in with Anglo neighbors, but lost their heritaage, their culture, their names and their …show more content…
To be legally classified as a Melungeon, meant to be “Nobody at all”. What would it have meant for Abraham Lincoln, a “self-educated”, depressed human being, born in a one room cabin to illegitmate parents to be labeled a “Melungeon”? Would the American people have voted for him? Did Lincoln’s passionate spirit to “free the slaves” come deep from within or did it come from darker place then anybody could ever have imagined? Just how different would the pages of our history books read, if people would have truly believed that Abraham Lincoln was a “Nobody”, a