My great-great grandfather, Elijah Chambers WALKED to Connecticut from Buckingham County, VA to escape the back-breaking farm work that was his lot in life. He had secured work as a dairy hand in Granby, CT. Later, he married a mixed race woman, Gertrude Hudson, who was born in Meriden, CT to a Black mother and a German-father (last name Gruper). Mr. Chambers amassed a large amount of wealth through land ownership. He died in 1977.

I have reconnected with Elijah's brother's descendants who live in West Virginia, Ohio and New York.

But, I am left wondering. There was always talk of a Native American strain in our family, but after watching in awe at the revelation of the Cheadle family's enslavement by the Chickasaw nation, I truly wonder if there really is Native American blood in our family.

I will not stop until I unveil the truth!