NORTH TEXAS — Juneteenth is a day to celebrate the emancipation of all slaves, but for many it is also a day to remember the impact slavery had on our country.
It tore families apart and caused many African Americans to grow up confused about their origins and family history.
“This is my mother, and this is my cousin,” Jacqueline Fort said, pointing to an old photo.
Fort lives in North Texas and has always been curious about his ancestors and their roots.
“My mother always said it’s important to know your history.”
As Fort and her sisters have been digging into their family’s origin story over the past few years, they’ve discovered pieces of the past they never knew existed.
Their research led them to believe that a woman named Mary Humphreys, born in Memphis, Tennessee in 1805, was their great-great-grandmother.
According to old articles they found, Humphreys was auctioned off as a slave and brought to Tatum, Texas in 1836, where he lived until his emancipation on Juneteenth in 1865 and thereafter.
“She built a home and a church there,” Fort said.
According to family legend, Humphreys lived to be 125 years old, had six children, and has hundreds of descendants today.
“It’s nice to be able to sit down and talk to somebody about where I’m from,” Fort said.
In recent years, Fort has been in contact with relatives of Mary Humphreys who live in North Texas, including Billy Montgomery of DeSoto, a distant relative of Mary’s who has spent years gathering evidence of her life.
This weekend, they’ll be hosting the first-ever Humphreys family reunion to celebrate Juneteenth and their rich family history.
Fort emphasized the importance of this.
“Some people want to celebrate because it’s a holiday. I want to celebrate because it’s the life I’ve lived. It’s good to know where you come from. It gives them hope to know where they come from and be able to look forward. If she can do it, so can I,” Fort said.
Nicole Nielsen
