My Great, Great, Great Grandmother was Melinda Berry Blackberry who married John Nicholson in the early 1800’s somewhere in either TN/VA/NC.
Myfamily has a long geneology documentation taking the Layman’s back into theVirginia are of mid-1700. They moved to the Sevier County TN area in thelate 1700’s then eventally to Missouri.
In that documentation it shows the marriage of John Nicholson to a Melinda (or Helinda) Berry Blackberry. It also states that she was 3/4 Cherokee and 1/4 Dutch and documents the words “Trails of Tears” I assuming meaning that she was forced to do the trail….
They had a daughter: Mary Adeline Nicholson who married Absolum McIntire. They had a daughter, Melenda Jane McIntire who married Robert Newton Layman (my Great Grandparents)
Any information that you have would be greatly appreciated.
There is some persistent lore being passed on in these extended family lines (along many different branches) claiming Melinda Berry was part Cherokee. However, this is not proven and what can be found in the records seems to show a family consistently with no tribal affiliation. For example, just based on the dates of birth and places where this family lived, it can be shown that Melinda did not go on the Trail of Tears, and she doesn’t show connection to the Cherokee community in her own lifetime.
Melinda’s daguther, Mary Adeline (who married Absalom McIntyre), was born along the Tennessee/Georgia border area, in 1838. Her family had moved to Murray County, GA when Whites were taking Cherokee lands in the GA Land Lotteries and kicking Cherokees out. The family stayed in the location through the Removal era and subsequent decades. They are found there in 1850 Census in Murray County. Eventually, they moved to Missouri as standard American pioneers, having received a homestead grant in 1857 in Shannon County.
Here is one source give a bit more detail about the family…
This even mentions that John Nicholson was part of the Cherokee removal and Florida Indian Wars (e.g. Seminole removal) from 1839-1840. However, the caveat here is that I couldn’t find the pension record in Fold3, so this is second hand. Although, the detailed nature of the claim with dates may indicate the source might very well be valid (and records are missing from the online database).
http://www.familytreeheritagelibrary.com/genealogy/ntf05865.html
Martha Malinda Berry was the daughter of Hiram Berry and Sarah Shook. This couple was married in 1819, and they also do not appear to have Cherokee connections in their own lifetimes either. Hiram died when Martha Malinda was young, and it appears that they won a Cherokee Land Lottery drawing in 1832, based on this orphan status (mother Sarah was still alive).
Hiram Berry’s orphans.
Number: 219
District: EIGHTH DISTRICT, THIRD SECTION, CHEROKEE
3d Section
County: Cherokee
Bear in mind that winning the land doesn’t mean the family settled in that location permanently. Often, parcels could be traded or bought/sold.
It does appear that descendants of this family cluster have eagerly claimed “Cherokee blood” from various ancestors along different lines of descent. But, records do not seem to back these claims up. One source online is written by an individual that claims she received her “Cherokee card” through these particular lineages. This cannot be with the three recognized Cherokee tribes, but it might represent some fraudulent or questionable unrecognized or state tribes. That claim needs to be contextualized so that relatives aren’t getting the wrong impression about tribal affiliation. Martha Malinda Berry descendants were not re-admitted Cherokees citizens in the Western Bands, and they were not enrolled with the Eastern Band.
Hello~ My son in law’s 5th great grand parents were John A Nicholson and Martha Malinda Berry. I have just started searching the Berry/Nicholson line and found your post asking for any information. I haven’t seen any documents with the last name of Berry Blackberry. Do you have John A and Martha’s marriage record? I am willing to share what I have. Please contact me at: sandygage@centurylink.net