I, like many African American people, have limited knowledge of their ancestor’s journey to America. Also, like many African Americans, we believe our ancestors were brought over on slave ship. On my mother's side of the family, we believe my great, great, great grandfather, Thomas Polite, was born in Sierra, Leone, Africa. He married Betty Polite also from Sierra Leone but, there is no documentation to prove it. What I do know is that my maternal great-grandfather, David Nathan Smalls, was from South Carolina and my maternal great-grandmother, Lillie Mae Williams, was from Tallahassee, Florida. He was the second youngest out of eight children. She was the only girl out of four boys. In 1941, Lillie Mae moved to South Carolina where she met and married Nathan and had nine children, my grandmother being the oldest. My great-grandparents lived on St. Helena’s Island in Beaufort, SC. It was a couple of miles from the first school for free black children which is Penn Center.  They first lived in a house with no running water and had to use an outhouse.  They would have to go the pump outside and fill the basins with water. It took a while for them to get running water. My mother remembers going to visiting her grandparents when she was a young girl and helping on the farm and feeding the horse Nelly. There was also a truck that came through the streets selling candy. My great-grandparents are both deceased and almost everyone has moved out the house, but it is still there and I hope someday I get to visit and see the place that so many great memories were made. 

– XAVIERSPRIGGS

Relationship:  Great-grandchild of im/migrant or more Great-grandchild of im/migrant or more