Growing up Deep in the Heart of East Texas "FREEDOM COLONIES" Series #1

  Growing up in the "Heart of The Piney Woods"of East Texas,little did I know the places my Elders talked about were actually "Freedom Colonies".Well,that's what the Modern Historians call them_"Freedom Colonies". I can only imagine what these hard working people of color may have called them. Authors James Conrad and Thad Sitton explore these communities,created in the 1860s by clusters of newly freed black slaves,usually in the unincorporated areas of the agrarian counties where they were previously enslaved.

I lived in the County Seat of Houston County:Crockett. We were surrounded by small cities like Grapeland, Kennard, Latexo and Lovelady.BUT,the unincorporated areas included Wheeler Springs,Halls Bluff,Cedar Branch,Hopewell,Germany,Cut & Shoot and Pennington. To this day there are some 29 "Unincorporated Communities" in Houston County today. (NOTE:In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not governed by a local municipal corporation; similarly an unincorporated community is a region of land that is not governed by its own local municipal corporation, but rather is administered as part of larger administrative divisions,such as a township,parish,borough,county,city,canton,state,province or country.) 

"Freedom Colonies" where freed blacks made their homes and learned how to make their Communities work for the whole.These Colonies developed in various ways during the Reconstruction Era_Post Civil War. (1)communities just sprang up as a freed slaves families looked to escape plantations creating their own Homesteads.(2)Philanthropic whites who had gotten RICH from slave labor donated land.(3) Some White Opportunist sold land to ex-slaves. NOTE: In (#1) the communities created by ex-slaves on parcels of land had very little interaction with Whites.

From  this_

To this_ 

I often listened while pretending to read or play a game,etc... of the "Goings On" in these Communities during the 1950's.Either around the Dinner Table,Sitting on the Front Porch Swing,at Church Gatherings,while gathering Vegetables in the Garden,picking Blackberries or Figs,feeding the Chickens & Pigs,Backyard Family & Friends Gatherings,Quilting Sessions,Canning Food Sessions,etc. I'd listen in on the Older folks while they played Cards or Dominoes... 

Or at the "Annual Summer Dinner on the Ground Services" at 
Church... 

"Pastors Anniversary or Homecoming Events...

There were many chances to listen in.I remember my Father speaking of Pennington.He still had many relatives that lived there.Then there was the Wheeler Springs Community..red-clay dirt roads with Pine trees towering over the mature Oaks,blue skies and morning glories in bloom.Native Texas Limestone with Quartz Fossils and cream to orange colors dotted the landscape of old buildings.

The Halls Bluff Community Church as in the old days served both Spiritual and Social purposes. 

Cedar Branch Community was created in 1860s,when John and Anna Smith gave their former slaves the land that would become this Freedom Colony.They also gave them a bell for the Church they helped them build.Of which the original bell sits in the tower of the Church constructed in 1924 today.Before phones became common in the 60's BELLS were the primary mode of communication in these colonies.Each bell had its own distinctive sound to announce emergencies and deaths! 

Preserving the Legacy.... of these enterprising people of color can be viewed as stories that need to be told to this GENERATION . 

Buried deep inside the Southern Countryside of America lies a goldmine of  the RESILIENCE of a people who lived in turbulent times~Jim Crow Laws,KKK,~ marching toward FREEDOM.They must NOT be forgotten as "UNFORTUNATELY" those times are still here...as in "A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing" ....

NEXT UP: Series #2 Grant's Colony,Huntsville,Texas. 

 Series#3 The 1910 Slocum Massacre:An Act of Genocide in East Texas