SELF FAMILY OF THE WEEK

NOTE: Much of the information presented on this page represents the conclusions of several independent Self Family researchers. It is presented here for discussion purposes ONLY. This information is not proven and should not be used in your pedigree charts unless you yourSelf can verify its accuracy. Most of us have used the same documentation to arrive at similar findings; because those documents are familiar to all of us, they will not be listed here. Connections that are totally our own will be so indicated. It's our hope that you will open your old trunks and Bibles and offer new documentation to prove or disprove what is presented, and, of course, all theories and speculation will be welcome as well--they will at least give everyone a place to start.

To view all of the Self Families of the Week to date, visit
FAMILY RECORD ONLINE

Some families on "Family Record Online" have not been part of "Self Family of the Week"
A List of these families will appear during the week between the end of the Fifth Generation and the beginning of the Sixth Generation

"Self Family of the Week" is really working. In addition to presenting you with information, we also hope for corrections when we have found data that is not accurate. Cousin Marguerite has made several such amendments to our record for John Self of KY ("Self Family of the Week"--August 9, 1998). They are:

Please change your own records, as we will change ours.

IMPORTANT NOTE:

We are in the process of revising our connected files.  A great deal of new
information is being added.  Following the completion of the "Stephen Line" in the "Self
Family of the Week" Seventh Generation pages, we will go back and fill in many of the blanks from earlier days.  In the meantime, though we will still feature a new family each week, we may not be able to link back to the previous generation until we begin updating.  Please be patient.  Thank you!


THIS WEEK'S FAMILY

STEPHEN BLACK

Ancestry: Tabitha ("Doshie") Homesley, Jemima Self, William Self, John Self, "Olde" Robert Selfe

Born Feb. 3, 1800 in NC.  Died June 22, 1856/8.  He m. Aug. 21, 1821 in Lincoln County, NC., Elizabeth Brown, b. about 1805 and d. Aug. 9, 1882.

CHILDREN: 
  1. Lawson, b. Nov. 11, 1821 and d. Mar. 24, 1887
  2. Barbara, b. May 22, 1822 and d. Mar. 20, 1890
  3. Jemima, b. June 12, 1825
  4. Benaja, b. Oct. 28, 1827 and d. Dec. 19, 1917
  5. Samuel, b. Sep. 21, 1830
  6. Joseph, b. Jan. 7, 1832 and d. Apr. 30, 1923
  7. Ester, b. Feb. 16, 1836 and d. Jan. 29, 1854
  8. Robert, b. May 25, 1837
  9. Ephraim, b. June 17, 1839 and d. July 1, 1863

QUESTIONS

1. What are the full dates for these individuals?

2.  What happened to Lawson and Robert?

WHERE IS MY LINE?

Some cousins have written to say that they haven't yet seen their line presented on this page. The answer is that despite all their excellent research, we are still unable to connect them to Robert Selfe--even by a preponderance of "best evidence." Right now, we are listing Self families that we believe to have a connection back to our earliest known progenitor--and this may not be true, either, so please feel free to voice your opinions about the families we present. Some of the major lines are still missing a link somewhere, and will be presented later on with the hope that someone will be able to tie them in with the others. A few were selected for publication in our (now defunct) quarterly online Newsletter. You can also visit our Loose Ends section of our SelfSite at RootsWeb where unconnected Selfs are listed by state and county.

Families discovered after their genealogical order in our records will be shown at a later date and assimilated into the lists of previous entries.

THE CHARTS

In answer to several questions we've received regarding "The Self Family of the Week," some of our information has come from a set of charts that was sent to us a few years ago. Several of them are handwritten, several typewritten, and at least one is a mixture of the two. Whoever created them must have spent a lot of time on researching and piecing together the various early Self families in Virginia. They represent many hours of thought and logical deduction. Most unfortunately, they are unsigned and contain no sources.

If you are the author of these charts, if you know who compiled them, or if you have a copy in your possession and know exactly where they came from, please contact Webmaster.

THE IMPORTANCE OF GIVEN NAMES

The early Selfs named most of their children the common (and confusing) names popular in their day, many of them of Biblical origin. However, there were also some very unique first names that were passed on through several generations. When a name found consistently in one branch of the family suddenly appears in a seemingly unrelated line, it may serve as a clue to a link that was previously unnoticed. Most especially in cases where proper and indisputable documentation may never be unearthed, it may be possible to conduct other types of research (visits to cemeteries, interviews with family members, etc.) based on these given names. Comparing the first names in a list of children born to two identically-named fathers can sometimes pinpoint which family belongs to your specific line. One word of caution: the Selfs quite often used their middle names instead of their first names, and nineteenth-century Census takers were known to record middle names and even nicknames instead of the given names of family members.

DNA RESULTS

DNA testing has been around for a while now.  It has been used successfully to verify the relationship evidence left by a suspected criminal to that individual.  It has also been used to verify paternity.  And in recent years, it has been used to confirm relationships between people who share a surname such as "Self."  Each of several tests narrows down similar markers in the tissues of two persons to determine how closely related they are.  Something is missing, though.  We can match individuals to each other, but we cannot determine which person was their common ancestor without similar tissue from our ancestors.  Until that can be accomplished, genealogical DNA is still not an exact science--perhaps better than "best evidence" but not as conclusive as a paper trail.

Please contact Webmaster to discuss your theories or offer proof relating to this Self Family of the Week.

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This page was last updated on March 15, 2015