Cousins, Uncles, and Aunties

 I used to wonder why we called people uncle, auntie, or cousin when they didn’t seem to be related to us at all. Doing genealogy research I’ve learned that there is always some kind of connection in most of those relationships. 

“Cousin” Ed Renfro, for instance, always baffled me. I don’t remember anyone ever saying how or why he was our cousin. I couldn’t figure out why lived with Daddy Albert and Mama Ada Hadnot, my maternal great-grandparents (according to the census). 

It turns out that Cousin Edward “Ed” Tenola Renfro was the son of Zora Hadnot, Albert Hadnot’s sister. Ed’s father was also named Edward Tenola Renfro (I think he may have gone by his middle name, “Tenola”). Tenola and Zora got married in 1918, three years after cousin Ed was born. At some point the two moved to Foley Avenue in Port Arthur, Texas... without cousin Ed. 

I haven’t been able to find out what ever happened to Zora, but when Tenola registered for the draft in WWII his wife’s name was Emma. They, at some point, moved to California where Tenola died in Alameda in 1957. 

I’ll save Cousin Ed’s wife, Elnora’s, family connection for another day. 

Daddy Albert

Albert Hadnot
1892-1983

I’m kicking off Black History Month with some family history. This is a picture of my maternal great-grandfather, Albert Hadnot. It appears to have been taken in the 1970’s. Albert was born in October 1892 in the Bevilport community in Jasper County, Texas. His father, Walter (Walt) Hadnot was 20 and his mother, Mary Seale Hadnot, was 19. In 1917 he married Gertrude (Ada) Larkin. Together Albert and Ada had seven children during their marriage. He died on March 4, 1983 at the age of 91.

I wish I remembered more about my great-grandfather. I do recall that he grew sugar cane and made cane syrup. I also remember seeing him cooking collard greens (Hint: Add a pinch of baking soda) at his daughter, Dorothy Wright’s  home. He lived with Aunt Dot and her family the last years of his life.

In the 1900 US Census he’s listed as a child, in 1910 as a servant, 1930 and 1940 a farmer. He rented his home in 1930 and 1940.

Black Panther Mom

Thelma Traylor Seale
1908-2008

I have always known about my shared ancestry with Bobby Seale, the co-founder of the Black Panther Party. I have had a great respect for his efforts in the Civil Rights movement. However, I know where there’s a strong, successful man there is usually a equally strong and determined woman supporting him. In most cases these women are quiet and almost invisible to the public. Bobby credits his mother, Thelma Traylor Seale, for his success. 

Thelma Traylor and her identical sister, Zelma, were born March 3, 1908 in Jasper County, Texas. Their father, Alexander (Alex) Traylor, was my third cousin. Her mother, Julie McCarthy Traylor, was also a distant cousin. They owned and worked their own farm in a community in Jasper County, Texas known to me as Traylor Settlement. 

In 1930 Thelma and her twin sister were 22 years old and living with their mother, Julia. Their father had passed away in 1920. 

Thelma married George Seale in 1933. In 1935 she and George were living in Beaumont, Texas on Dickerson Street. George worked a construction job at International Creosoting Company.

The 1940 census shows Thelma and her three children back on her mother's farm in Jasper County. Her marital status is listed as "widow". However, her husband, George is recorded on the 1940 census living in Beaumont, Texas. His marital status also recorded as “widow” (Thelma and George were said to have separated and reconciled many times).

George registered for the draft in 1941 in Port Arthur, Texas. Thelma is listed as his next of kin.

That same year Thelma and George moved to San Antonio. They both worked at Kelly Air Force Base. George worked as a carpenter and Thelma as a mail carrier. In 1943 Thelma and George were living in a housing project in Berkeley, California. By 1950 they owned their own home in Oakland, California that George designed and built. It was in the kitchen of that home that Bobby Seale and other members of the budding Black Panther Party organization did some of their planning.

During the Chicago Eight trial in 1968, Thelma was interview by KPIX-TV in San Francisco. She defended her son's actions. Thelma said, "I think he's a wonderful son. He's always have been a wonderful son. And what he's fighting for today it isn't only but one thing and... that is for the rights of people." 

On January 25, 2008, thirty seven days before her 100th birthday, Thelma died in Emeryville, California. She is buried in Richmond, California.

On February 25, 2008 Representative Barbara Lee of California recognized Thelma by reading a statement of her contributions on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives.