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| Trisha A. Mays-Cummings |
Where are you from?
I grew up
in Newport, Arkansas; Jackson County.
That is in northeast Arkansas about 45 miles south of Jonesboro,
Arkansas. But I have lived in northwest
Arkansas (Fayetteville, Rogers, and Bentonville) for the past 20 years.
When and why did you
begin researching?
I
originally started my genealogy research in 1998. I was taking a human disease class while in
college. And one of our assignments that
semester was to complete a family health tree.
We basically had to go back at least three generations and list the
cause of death for any deceased grand and great grandparents and also list any
illness that our parents currently had.
And that way we could find out our family health history. But I didn’t start seriously researching my
family’s ancestry until 2011 when I was going through some old pictures with my
son, Wesley Cummings. And he asked me
about the people in the pictures. I
wanted to be able to tell my son more than just their names. I wanted to tell him about their lives, and I
couldn’t at that time. So I decided to
learn as much as I could about our family, so I could answer his questions.
What inspired you to
research?
I was
inspired by my grandmother (my father’s mother), Gladys Denson Mays. We read Alex Haley’s Roots the summer before
my 6th grade year. We sat in
the kitchen together, and I would read while she cooked. And sometimes she would read to me. I realized later when I reread the book while
in high school, that she had picked out certain parts for me to read. And that
we didn’t read the entire book that summer because of some of the more
serious/adult topics in the book. I
remember she told me when we started the book, this is a book about family,
tradition, and America. Although this
isn’t our family, they are an important part of our history, a history that I
might not learn about in school. And
anytime I get frustrated with my research, or I hit yet another ‘Brick Wall’, I
always go back to Roots. I either reread
the book or watch the movie, and somehow something always clicks, and I usually
can get a new idea for a research plan.
Are experiences
based on someone you know, or events in your own life?
I want my
book to be based on my experiences researching my family. I also want include points of views from my
husband, mother, nephew, and others who have been with me during some of my
research. Although I have read many
books on genealogy, my research has been by trial and error. I didn’t follow the typical rules of research
during my genealogy journey. I knew the
basics and I jumped in my research with no expectations of getting as far as I
have. I want to show the good and the
bad; the excitement and the frustration.
What book are you
reading now?
I am
currently reading two books: The Citizen:
An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine and Black Roots: A Beginners Guide to Tracing the African
American Family Tree.
What are your
current projects?
I am
currently working on a research plan for my father’s father, Booker Mays. He is the only one of my grandparents that
wasn’t born in Newport, Arkansas. He was
born in Mississippi and didn’t move to Arkansas until he was in his 30s.
I am also
working on organizing my research both electronically and my paper
documents/photos. The further I go back
in time with my research the more paper I accumulate. So organization is really important as your
family tree continues to grow.
Who are your biggest
supporters?
My biggest
supporters are my husband, Phillip Cummings, my mother, Patricia Hatchett Mays,
my nephew, Eric Mays, and a lady I met at work, Kristen King. Phillip helps me with the technology side of
my research and organization, helps plan and drives me to my genealogy road
trips, and is my sounding board when I need to talk through a new research
plan. Kristen has been my handwriting
expert. She has hand written all of my
family group sheets and family trees that I have put together. She has also hand writes letters to my relatives
when I need to request information from them and thank you notes after I have
received help from them as well. And my
mother has made endless phone calls to relatives on my behalf and has freely
given her memory when I needed information about Newport and relatives on both
sides of my tree. My nephew was a huge
help in me receiving death records. In
Arkansas, there is only a period of time 1928-1943 that death records can be
ordered online. All the other times
1914-1927 and 1944-present have to be ordered in person at the state health
department in Little Rock, Arkansas, Monday-Friday only. As I would find death dates, I would fill out
death record requests, and he would take the request to the vital records
office in Little Rock for me. It was easier for him to get to the vital records
office since he lived in Little Rock. So
thanks to him I was able to obtain these records of which many had additional
information that I needed such as, parents names and the city they were born
in. And he would drive me around Little
Rock when I needed to get documents or photos from family members.
Can you share a
little of your current work with us?
I am still
in the research phase of my genealogy journey.
So far I have been able to research my mother’s family back to 1786 and
my father’s side to 1831. But the most
exciting thing I have discovered thus far is my 3X great grandfather, Robert
Hatchett’s, emancipation papers (freedom papers) that was published in the True
Arkansas Democrat newspaper in 1862.
Is there anything
you find particularly challenging in your research or writing?
The most
challenging area of my research has been my father’s father, Booker Mays. He is the only one of my grandparents that
wasn’t born in Newport, Arkansas. He was
born in and lived in Mississippi until he was in his 30s. And he died when my father was 11, so my
father doesn’t remember much about him and his family. And although my father has two older
siblings, for whatever reason, they don’t and won’t talk about him. So the only way I will get to know him is
through my research.
But
generally speaking researching African Americans is a challenge within itself
because of our country’s history with slavery.
Researching before 1863 for African Americans can be almost nonexistence
because we weren’t documented in census reports (before 1870), birth records,
death records, marriage records. And
once slaves were freed after the civil war, many could not read or write or
changed their names, which leads most African Americans to the ‘Brick Wall’ of
their research, where their ancestor is nowhere to be found in any public
documents before 1870.
Do you have to
travel much concerning your research projects?
With all
the information on the internet these days, I could do the majority of my
research online. But I like looking at
the original records, so I probably spend more time in libraries than most
genealogists of this day and age. Luckily
I have some libraries with really good genealogy departments near where I live,
like the Fayetteville Public Library and the University of Arkansas,
Fayetteville library that are within 20 miles.
So I can pretty much find most Arkansas census records, Arkansas
newspapers, and information about slavery in Arkansas at the University of
Arkansas or Fayetteville Library. But
when we do plan vacations, I do always look for regional and state archives,
larger libraries, and vital record offices that I can visit. So far other than northwest Arkansas, I have
researched in Newport, Arkansas; Little Rock, Arkansas; Chicago, Illinois; New
York, New York; and Missouri.
As I learn
more about my ancestors that lived in different areas, I want to visit those
locations to hopefully see where they lived and walk in some of the same areas
that they did. So I plan to visit Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee when I
can research exactly where my ancestors lived in those states during the 1800s. I also want to go to the National Archives in
Washington, DC to research the Freedman’s Bureau records. Those are records of African Americans that
lived in the south. These records are
from 1862-1875 that consist of bank records, marriage records, land/share
cropping records, and newspapers articles/flyers of people looking for
relatives that might have been sold to a different plantation prior to the
Civil War.
Did you learn
anything from writing your book and what was it?
I haven’t
started my book yet. I want it to be a
combination of my research findings and my research journey. I want to capture the essence of me in the
library, the cemetery, and finding old photos that I can now put a face to the
name I have been researching. I don’t
want my book to be just dates and facts.
I want it to be more personal than that.
Do you have any
advice you would like to give to others?
My advice
to anyone starting a genealogy journey would be to read as much as you can
about basic genealogy research and techniques before you start collecting
information. Another thing I would
suggest is to talk to your relatives and let them know what you are doing, what
you are looking for, and how they can help.
Do you have anything
specific that you want to say to your readers?
Genealogy
is like any other hobby; it takes time, patience, money, and can be both very
rewarding and very frustrating. The
research aspect of genealogy won’t interest everyone, and that’s OK. But everyone can be a part of genealogy by
sharing stories, photos, and experiences.
No matter how small or insignificant you might think your story or
document is….it could be just what that genealogist has been searching for.
Interview Done By: Lukysha A. Sims-Neal
For More Information Trisha Mays-Cummings Can Be Reach At- mayscummings@yahoo.com
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