Hardy A. and Joshua L. Brewington were the sons of Raiford Brewington (b.1812) and his wife, Bashaba Manuel (b.1818). They hailed from Sampson County, North Carolina and descended from free people of color who identified as Indian (Indigenous—-Native American).

In fact, as I have shared HERE, there is a bio-sketch of the Brewington family featured in the booklet, “A Plea for Separate Schools,” by George Edwin Butler.

The entire focus and point of the document was to prove how there was no Negro blood in this collective group of people and as such they were entitled to have their own schools.

I’ll leave that right there.

Within the booklet, there appears the image of the elder Brewington brother, Hardy A. Brewington.

Excerpt:

“The Brewington family is the largest family of Croatans living in Sampson County. Hardy is the son of Raiford Brewington, and the grandson of Hannah Brewington, who lived in Sampson County from 1775 to 1850. The records in the office of Register of Deeds in Sampson County show that she purchased lands in the county in 1807 on Coharee. She is well remembered by Jonathan Goodman, James Strickland and other old men now living. They describe her as being a copper-reddish hue, high cheek bones, straight black hair and a good specimen of the Cherokee Indian. She married “White Simon,” so called because he had no surname, and was half Indian and half white. After the marriage he took her name and was known as Simon Brewington. Raiford Brewington was their son and married Bashaby Manuel. They owned nearly a thousand acres of land on Coharie prior to the Civil War. Hardy A. Brewington, their son, married Francis Harding, daughter of Amos Harding. They have several sons and daughters. One son, Rev. M. L. Brewington, is a minister and affiliated with the Eastern Carolina Association, which is composed principally of the Indians of Robeson County. Another son, J. Arthur Brewington, married Polly Ann Jacobs, daughter of Jno. R. Jacobs and grandson of Jesse Jacobs.”

This goes on…

“The Brewington family for seven generations with one or two exceptions, have not intermarried with persons of negro blood, and have retained their racial status to a remarkable degree.”

There’s a lot to unpack here; however, for now let’s just say that Hardy Brewington married within the circle of community that had similar beliefs about identity. His brother, Joshua, did not.

On March 25, 1877, Joshua Brewington married Amelia Aldridge (1855-1895), who was known to have Black ancestry. Her parents were Robert Aldridge (1819-1899) and his wife, Mary Eliza Balkcum Aldridge (1829-1924). Both of Amelia’s grandmothers may have been white women. Her maternal grandmother, Nancy Balkcum (whom I have discussed HERE), certainly was.

Joshua and Amelia are my 2nd great-grandparents.

Through the years, many descendants of Joshua’s brother, Hardy, identify as Coharie or Lumbee Indian and are recognized as such.

Not so much for Joshua’s descendants.

Still, even though a type of divergence occurred between families, there is a binding court record for both Hardy and Joshua. The record from their parents illustrates that these brothers, whatever their chosen identity, were beloved enough to leave a legacy of land.

On the 30th of March in the year 1871, the parents of Joshua and Hardy Brewington offered gifts of land to their beloved sons:

These records appear side by side in the deed book:

Joshua and Hardy’s parents, Raiford and Bashaba Brewington, would also deed land to other children in that general timeframe, looking at the deed book index.

Still, there is something poetic about Joshua’s and Hardy’s deeds being placed so.

Less than a year later-on 22 Mar 1872, Joshua sold his land share to his brother, Hardy. Joshua was to settle further south in Wayne County, North Carolina—where he would marry and raise a family. He would acquire land again and in turn, deed it to his beloved sons and daughters.

Historical court records are extremely important examples of primary source materials. Whether dusting off the physical artifacts themselves in courthouses untold or whether in a library using microfilm/microfiche or elsewhere scrolling for online access, be sure to check them out and pore over them.

You just may find an origin story or two and in the process, find your beloved people.

We have a situation. We need to find our people…

The Genealogy Situation Room