Hatteras Island 1704 Visitor

December 2011

Hatteras Island 1704 Visitor

By Baylus Brooks

In the North Carolina Colonial and State Records, Volume 1, Page 603, in a letter written by John Blair, we discover that John Blair visited the early colony of North Carolina in 1704.  Here's what he had to say: 

"You may also consider the distance that the new colony of Pamlico is from the rest of the inhabitants of the country, for any man that has tried it would sooner undertake a voyage from this city to Holland than that, for beside a pond of five miles broad, and nothing to carry one over but a small perryauger, there are about fifty miles desert to pass through, without any human creature inhabiting in it. I think it likewise reasonable to give you an account of a great nation of Indians that live in that government, computed to be no less than 100,000, many of which live amongst the English, and all, as I can understand, a very civilized people. 

I have often conversed with them, and have been frequently in their towns: those that can speak English among them seem to be very willing and fond of being Christians, and in my opinion there might be methods taken to bring over a great many of them. If there were no hopes of making them Christians, the advantage of having missionaries among them would redound to the advantage of the government, for if they should once be brought over to a French interest (as we have too much reason to believe there are some promoters amongst them for that end by their late actions), it would be, if not to the utter ruin, to the great prejudice of all the English plantations on the continent of America.


Cont. here:
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~molcgdrg/nl/nl12-11b.htm

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How Do You Prove You’re an Indian?

  By DAVID TREUER

Published: December 20, 2011

AMERICA’S first blood quantum law was passed in Virginia in 1705 in order to determine who had a high enough degree of Indian blood to be classified an Indian — and whose rights could be restricted as a result. You’d think, after all these years, we’d finally manage to kick the concept. But recently, casino-rich Indian tribes in California have been using it themselves to cast out members whose tribal bloodlines, they say, are not pure enough to share in the profits.


What is surprising is not that more than 2,500 tribal members have been disenfranchised for apparently base reasons. (It’s human — and American — nature to want to concentrate wealth in as few hands as possible.) What is surprising is the extent to which Indian communities have continued using a system of blood membership that was imposed upon us in a violation of our sovereignty

Cont. Here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/21/opinion/for-indian-tribes-blood-shouldnt-be-everything.html?_r=1


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18 nights of lights, seasonal and floral displays at The Elizabethan Gardens starts tomorrow!!

Come experience Holiday lights and music transforming The Elizabethan Gardens into an illuminated winter wonderland complete with peacocks, butterflies, deer and other garden creatures created with flowers, seeds, natural elements, as well as traditional holiday decorations.  Stroll through The Gardens on Roanoke Island and enjoy the spirit of the season.  Festive trees grace the Gatehouse, Reception Hall and great Lawn. 
Winter Lights is 18 nights of lights and floral displays at The Gardens!

Starts tomorrow December 3rd.



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Native American Haplogroup X

By Roberta Estes, copyright 2011

People are just thrilled to get their DNA results back when they discovered they have mitochondrial DNA haplogroup X. They e-mail me right away and tell me they are Native American. 

 

But then, I have to ask the difficult question. I become that relative that no one wants to claim, the one who always is bursting the bubbles with ugly old reality.

So I ask, "What is your subgroup?"

And they reply, "Huh?"

So then I explain that haplogroup X isn't just Native American. In fact, it's found in Asia, all of Europe and in the New World Native Americans. 

 

Most of the time, these exchanges are by e-mail, so I can't see their faces. It's probably just as well, all things considered.

At this point, people are firmly divided into two camps. Those are the "I want to believe" camp and the "I want to know" camp. The "I want to believe" camp is afraid to do further testing because they are concerned that deeper testing will reveal that they are NOT Native. So they never test and continue to claim Native descent. The "I want to know camp" is just the opposite, seeking the truth, and they order the full sequence test.

You can see the various subgroups on the haplogroup X project page at: 

http://www.familytreedna.com/public/x

Haplogroup X is the "mother haplogroup." X2 is found throughout Eurasia and North America. Native American subgroups of haplogroup X2 are X2a, X2a1, X2a1a, X2a1b and X2a2 and they are determined by the following mutations in the various mitochondrial DNA regions.

Haplogroup	HVR1 Region	HVR2 Region	Full Sequence
X2a	16213A	200G	8913G, 12397G, 14502C
X2a1	16093G	143A	3552C
X2a1a			6113G
X2a1b			8422G
X2a2	16254C	225C

This means that if you take the HVR1 region test and you are noted as being haplogroup X, if you don't have the 16213A mutation, then you're likely NOT Native American. Ouch, you say. How can we be sure? 

 

I encourage everyone to take the HVR2 and the full sequence level testing, especially if you think you MIGHT be Native. Why? Because we're still learning and I'd hate for anyone to determine they are NOT Native based on the 16213A mutation alone. There are such things as back mutations, and if you do have the HVR2 and full sequence mutations, then you may have experienced a back mutation or are maybe a haplogroup previously not found. 

 

So, your determination as haplogroup X is really just the appetizer and an invitation to the entree and dessert....HVR2 and full sequence testing!!!

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