Pinkie Yates
Birth and Family Pinkie Yates was born to Reverend John Henry “Jack” Yates and Harriet Willis Yates in Houston, Texas.…
Houston's Freedmen Uncovering Houston
Houston’s Freedmen
A deeper look into slavery and its effects on the Houston area.
This will include coverage of the federally funded “Slave Narratives” project: First-person accounts of formerly enslaved persons recorded between 1936 and 1938. At the time of these recordings, these formerly enslaved people had been free for over 70 years.
Also, we will look at freedpeople who settled in and near Houston, and their effects on the city.
Houston's Freedmen Uncovering Houston
The Covington Family
The Patriarch Dr. Benjamin Jesse Covington (1869 – 1961) was born in Marlin, Texas to formerly enslaved parents, Ben and…
Houston's Freedmen
The Gregory Institute: The Cornerstone of Houston’s Freedmen’s Town
The Gregory Institute was founded in 1870 and named after Union officer, Edgar Mantlebert Gregory. He was an outspoken abolitionist…
Houston's Freedmen
Mary Armstrong: A Freedwoman
The subject of this week’s 70 Years a Freedmen series will be Mary Armstrong, a formerly enslaved woman interviewed by…
Houston's Freedmen
Sarah Ford: A Freedwoman
For the sake of changing things up a bit and adding more variety to the blog, I have created a…
Houston's Freedmen Uncovering Houston
The Yates Family: A Testament to the Indomitable Spirit and Perseverance of the Formerly Enslaved
John Henry “Jack” Yates was born into slavery on July 11, 1828 to Robert and Rachel Yates, who were enslaved…