Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Six Degrees of Separation


There is a theory that everyone is  separated  from each other  by only  six connections  or less. The connections of people are possibly of affiliation or kin.   This is known as six degrees of separation.  I became more cognizant of personal connections   every time I have logged onto Facebook or Linkedin.  I know someone who knows some else, who knows someone else ---who now I know.   In the process of my ancestral search, I have tried to use similar associations and links.  I have followed many family trees because of these links to my ancestral family tree. 
In the southern counties of Mississippi and adjacent northern parishes of Louisiana, clusters of the same surnames have appeared in my research.  I have made the hypothesis that 1) most of the members of the trees were slaves 2)they were connected by geography  3) lived  during the same time  4) they might know each other or the  slave holder 5) did not relocate after the Civil War  6) they did not die prematurely prior to 1870 census.   I know my hypothesis has many gaps.

In 1860 Federal census southern counties in Mississippi there were Pike, Marion, Amite, Wilkinson and Hancock. T he northern border of Louisiana in Washington Parish, St Helene, Tangipahoa, East Feliciana and West Feliciana. 


Genealogist Michael Hait  research  Mississippi had the highest number of slaveholders relative to its total population, but the number of slaveholders even in Mississippi was only 3.91% of the total population of that state. Over 55% of the total population of that state were slaves.”
MISSISSIPPI   NUMBER OF SLAVES IN 1860*

County
Slaves
Male
Female
Pike
4,935
2441
 2494
Amite
7,900
3972
 3928
Wilkinson
13,132
6541
 6591
Marion
2,185
1104
 1081
Hancock
19,241
9924
 9317


 LOUISIANA   NUMBER OF SLAVES IN 1860*

Parish

Slaves

Male

Female

Washington

1,690

845

 845

St Helene

3,711

1,906

 1805

Tangipahoa

0

0

 0

East Feliciana

10593

5162

 5431

West Feliciana

9,571

4,852

 4719

St Tammany

1,841

989

 845
*Source University of Virginia Library Census Browser
I am seaching through these counties for connections.      The Tree Gardener
                                                                             

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