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This book begins during the reconstruction period of American history (1865 -1877) when I discovered the family record of my great, great grandparents, William and Hester Rankins, who had been enslaved in Monroe County, Alabama. This was a blessing, a rare find, made possible from records of the Freedmen's Bureau and Freedman's Bank, two important institutions of the reconstruction period (Chapter 1).
My Great Grandfather, Emanuel M Rankins, was one of William and Hester's sons. Just a pre-teen at emancipation in 1865, Emanuel became a successful landowner and preacher. He was murdered in 1910 by a tenant who owed him rent. The family was already grieving the wrongful imprisonment under "Jim Crow" of Richard (Emanuel's oldest child) on charges of assault with intent to murder. Emanuel's and Richard's stories are told in (Chapter 2).
Grandpa BC was just 17 years old when his father, Emanuel, was murdered. A hard-working farmer who had grown-up with many of the finer things in life, Grandpa BC married Grandma Alice at age 18 or 19 years. The couple and their large family of two girls and 8 boys kept the family farm going until economic down-turns in the South and higher paying jobs in cities beaconed them North. Grand Pa BC's story (Chapter 3), also includes spotlights on my family's migration North, and an entrepreneur (Grandpa BC's sister) who remained in the South.
Chapters 4 - 13 take a deep dive into the lives of Grandpa BC's ten children, devoting one chapter in the book to telling each of their stories through the lens of their children, and in one case (Chapter 6) ... a grandchild. These story tellers are predominantly of the Baby Boomer generation (born 1946 - 1964) and experienced the civil rights movement of the sixties along with their parents.
This book is especially for youth, strapped with dealing with America's dark past of slavery, today's political and social environment of white nationalism, attacks on democratic policies and voter suppression, and environmental degradation; These are the topics of Chapter 14 (Our Future). Back Matter includes a section called "Family Firsts", which is intended to encourage and motivate our young people.
