The Trail of Tears President

We have all heard about the, “Trail of Tears.” What many of us don’t know, is that for Native People, there were many trails of tears. As European newcomers ventured west, the United States government found more and more excuses to “remove” the Indians from their land. In 1827, the government made plans to remove all Native People from Illinois by 1830. In his new presidency, Andrew Jackson oversaw this “Removal Act,” which meant that Native people of all ages, were “removed” to new Indian Territory west of the Mississippi River. Imagine the sadness and hardship the Indians had to endure. Thousands died from sickness and harsh weather. The Indians gave Andrew Jackson the name Sharp Knife. Perhaps you have a suspicion that one of your ancestors was Indian. Knowing the dates of removals can help you piece together a timeline to try to figure it all out.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Secret Genealogy IV – Native Americans Hidden in Our Family Trees. Available here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1500756105

Indentured Servants, Slaves and Open-Minded Loving People, Were Our Ancestors

The first African Americans came to the colonies as Indentured Servants, and in the early colony of Virginia were comfortable intermarrying with Native Americans. The Portuguese, who made their way very early to the Appalachian Mountains, were also comfortable intermarrying with African Americans and Native Americans. Native Americans intermarried with Africans because they often found themselves living on the same plantation as slaves. And on occasion, the Jewish, Dutch, English, French and Spanish landowners took slave women as their wives or concubines.  Suellen Ocean is the author of the Civil War Era Historic Romance, Black Pansy.

Available Here:  http://www.amazon.com/Black-Pansy-Suellen-Ocean/dp/1484900278

Look For Jewish Ancestry Through “Converso” Slave Owners

American surnames going back to the Colonial era often have Portuguese origins.

In the 1640’s, Brazilian “Conversos” (former Jews from Portugal) played a role in the marketing of slaves. Because Spanish and Portuguese, “New Christians” or “Conversos,” became involved in slave trading and massive agricultural businesses that found their way onto American shores, someone with Southern ancestry might follow history back far enough to find Jewish ancestry. Keep in mind that it is very offensive and not historically accurate to imply that Jews were the “main” slave merchants.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Secret Genealogy – A How-to for Tracing Ancient Jewish Ancestry. Available here: http://www.amazon.com/Secret-Genealogy-Volume-Suellen-Ocean/dp/0965114082

What’s Wrong With Being Jewish?

I am not Jewish and was shocked to discover that my ancestors were. They were some of the first American colonists who settled in New Amsterdam and the forebears of many prominent and sometimes famous families. Like thousands of other Jews, they fled European persecution often going through France, Italy or Germany first, before going to Amsterdam, a city that Abba Eban says, “evokes a special intimacy and affection in Jewish hearts.”

As the identity of these ancestors becomes apparent, why is it that the mere mention of it on the genealogical message boards often brings dead silence and sometimes hostility? What’s wrong with being a Jew? Early American Jews were highly moral, hard-working virtuous families having all the qualities that Americans strive for and admire. In fact, my research has brought me to the revelation that these “silent Jews” helped form the basis for what we’ve often thought was the “Protestant work ethic” or “Christian values.” Whether you find comfort in it or not, an investigation into the origins of some of the family names woven deeply into the fabric of early American history show they were originally Jews.

Historians and genealogists will all tell you that Colonial parents gave their children Biblical names not because they were Jewish but because it was fashionable. I always accepted that but today I am not so sure. I think we should reopen our family albums and look deeper into the meanings in our family tree and coats of arms. Names such as Levi, Jacob, Rebecca, Rachel, Benjamin and Ezekiel may have been the last opportunity that Colonial American Jewish parents had to lay claim to a heritage that stems back thousands of years and has the Biblical stories to accompany it. I come from numerous generations of Christians but before that many of them were Jewish and I ask you now with an open heart, what’s wrong with that?

Suellen Ocean is the author of Secret Genealogy – A How-to for Tracing Ancient Jewish Ancestry. Available here: http://www.amazon.com/Secret-Genealogy-Volume-Suellen-Ocean/dp/0965114082

Every Ethnic Group Has Another Group Who Hates Them

Everyone belongs to a variety of “groups.” Whether it be the color of your skin group, the territory group (where your people hail from) what clothes you wear or what music you choose to listen to and especially what your spiritual beliefs are. We are all in a group (or groups) and moving in between groups. Some groups we choose, others we were born into. I say we make the best of the groups we are subjected and elected to partake in. Our eyes will see the world as a more beautiful place when we accept other’s groups.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Secret Genealogy II – Uncovering the Jewish Roots of Our Christian Ancestors. Available here:

http://www.amazon.com/Secret-Genealogy-II-Christian-Ancestors/dp/1484053222

Would Being Related to Jesus Make You Feel Special?

I must admit that as a genealogist, I’d get a kick out of finding that Jesus was in my family tree. I’ve heard that there is a book entitled, “King Jesus,” and that its premise is that Jesus was the real King for the Royal Bloodline. There are those who believe that the Catholic Church kept the Judas story out of the Bible because the authors of that, “book of the Bible” (or shall we say non-book because it wasn’t canonized) believed you didn’t have to go through the church to get to God. Well yes, I too believe that the light of God is free, I feel closest when in nature with no one else about. I don’t have to pay a church for that. Suellen Ocean is the author of Secret Genealogy – A How-to for Tracing Ancient Jewish Ancestry. Available here: http://www.amazon.com/Secret-Genealogy-Volume-Suellen-Ocean/dp/0965114082

Having a Hard Time Tracing Ancestry? Maybe They Changed Their Name

If you are having a hard time tracing your ancestry, you should consider that they may have changed their name. A common practice of ancestors who changed their name to assimilate into their new country, was to remove some of the letters of a name, sometimes purposely and sometimes through transcription. For example, one of my own ancestors who went by “Epke,” was the son of Jacob Lion. I have found an Ancient Greek male name, “EPIKTETOS” which means newly acquired. If you look carefully, you will see that four of the letters removed, form the name “Epke.” I have no idea if this is what my ancestor intended but it is an excellent example of what many Jews did to their names. Suellen Ocean is the author of Secret Genealogy II – Uncovering the Jewish Roots of Our Christian Ancestors. Available here:

http://www.amazon.com/Secret-Genealogy-II-Christian-Ancestors/dp/1484053222

Is the British Royal Family Jewish? Millions of Us Are… Unknowingly

My understanding is that the British Royal Family, like millions of other people, have ancient Jewish ancestry. I think that’s cool. Who wouldn’t love to know the names and legends surrounding our loved ones of long ago? It appears the Royal Family is mostly silent about it, which leaves me breathless to think that a family with the wealth, power and prestige of the Royal House of Windsor, would in this day and age, be cautious of the repercussions such a discussion would bring. The world is full of people with Jewish ancestry. Even anti-Semites should take a better look at their family tree. Aren’t most of us a little bit of everything? And isn’t it time that we are pleased about that?

Suellen Ocean is the author of Secret Genealogy III – From Jewish Anglo-Saxon Tribes to New France Acadians. Available here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/148407579X

Why So Many with Cherokee Ancestry?

Not everyone says they are Cherokee Indian. Of course not. But many people when they speak about their Native American ancestry say they are Cherokee. Why is that? Certainly, there were other tribes, so why so many Cherokee? No doubt there are more reasons than the two I’m going to give. The first is that Native Americans were so often displaced, and their tribes decimated, it forced them into new territories with other Natives. The U.S. government made lists of existing Natives and many of the surviving Natives found themselves with the Cherokee. They were “counted” among the Cherokee and eventually defined themselves as such. Another reason is that European pioneers saw Cherokees as friendlier, so Natives often told the pioneers they were Cherokee, easing their transition into the changing environment.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Secret Genealogy IV – Native Americans Hidden in Our Family Trees. Available here:

http://www.amazon.com/Secret-Genealogy-IV-Native-Americans/dp/1500756105

Are We Racists If We Ask, “What’s Your Nationality?”

Are We Racists If We Ask, “What’s Your Nationality?” Good question. Is it the last nation with which you or your ancestors were citizens? And what nation is that nation? The last country that conquered it?

America’s boundaries have changed a lot through the ages, and so have countries around the world. It may seem interesting to question one who has a foreign accent, “What nationality are you?” Their answer might be a blunt, “American.” America has been a cultural melting pot since Europeans stepped upon Native American shores, disrupting their way of life. America is home to peoples from throughout the world. One thing most of us have in common is that we love our country. Whenever I travel outside of it, I am always happy to be back.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Secret Genealogy II – Uncovering the Jewish Roots of Our Christian Ancestors. Available here:

http://www.amazon.com/Secret-Genealogy-II-Christian-Ancestors/dp/1484053222