It's our 'Tribal Chief's' birthday! June 18

On this blog we have a page that shares all the birthdates for all of the children of James and Emma Burns. I hadn't shared many images of them and of course sadly for the younger children who died (Esther Clementine, Annas Lennie Mae, Elbert Artha, and Harvey) there are no photographs available.

Of course we have to start with the two main people for this "bloodline". Mr. James Lee Burns & Mrs. Emma Lee Hunter Burns. It seems they were meant to be together both have ties to Hinds County, Mississippi. Met at a church in Utica, Mississippi and both found their way to the Mississippi Delta where they married and raised a large family.

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Emma & James Burns

1) Lee Alice Burns Travis - for this blog she's our Tribal Griot (our Tribal History assigned her that title)

2) Walter James Burns

With his wife Leah

3)Lucyrene Burns Robinson - she's our Tribal Matriarch

4) Gurtine Burns Howard - Muh-deah my grandmother

5) Clee Dorothy Burns Taylor 

6) Vera Lee Burns Batiest

7) Virgue Lee Burns

8) Emerson Theodore Burns (his birthday just passed June 1, 1937)

9) Spencer Will Burns

As an aside for Uncle Spencer, when I (The Custodian) marked his birthday on May 4 - sadly it was also the day of his exit from this side - we learned for the first time that he sang with his cousin Cornelius Brown in the group The True Believers. A fact told to us by Cornelius' daughter.

If all goes to plan this post should be published the day of my great-grandfather's birthday which is on June 18, 1898. He lived a long life and a lot of history happened around him which blows my mind. This is what I wrote on his birthday a few years ago where I also shared his 1988 obituary.

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Our Tribal Historian shared an email years ago about how James and Emma met. One thing I must note is that both were born in Hinds County, Mississippi and for those of you who took a DNA test that part of Mississippi is proving to be a major hot spot for both sides. We may not know the exact connections but it seems we may be related to a number of families who's ancestry is from there.

Here's what our late historian wrote a few years ago via e-mail 📧

A real life Valentine’s Day story 1917-style: How did Emma Lee Hunter and James Lee Burns meet? 《♡》

Once upon a time …………… In the early 1900s

James and Emma both were from the JACKSON area in Hinds County, Mississippi (in ‘downstate' Mississippi).

[They likely met in about 1916 or 1917, since they married in 1918.]

Utica, Mississippi, the town where where they met, is about 32 miles northeast of Jackson.

They met at a Church in small town Utica, MS. During that era, the church was the primary social outlet for so many black folks. Most of them could 'sang' (still can).

They traveled to various area churches expressing their God-given talent to sing. People travelled from miles around to hear that good country gospel singing.

Emma (born 1901) was born in small town Raymond, Hinds County, MS [about 14 miles northeast of Jackson]. Raymond’s population was about 500 at that time.

James (born 1898) was born in Hattiesburg, Forrest County, MS [about 90 miles southeast of Jackson]. Hattiesburg's population, approx 12,000 at that time.

Utica, Hinds County, MS (where they met) is approx 2-1/2 hours NW of Hattiesburg (James hometown) and approx 31 minutes SW of Raymond (Emma’s hometown)

Emma & James likely went to the church in Utica for some good ole country style black folks singing, and to look for potential mates! 《♡》That’s what many black folks did doing those days: went to church searching for mates.

They found each other, and here we are: 15 children & almost 100 grandchildren later!

Apparently, James as well as Emma could sing. Per their daughter Lucyrene, James and Emma used to sing duets to entertain their children. It has been said that they were quite the singing duo:

♫ ‘Twill be glory,
Wondrous glory,
When we reach that golden shore
Singing praises ever more. ♪

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I don't want to contradict our historian since she put a lot of info on paper. She may even be with me on it as much as I showed her how much I found. I doubt that our Tribal Chief was born in Hattiesburg, MISS. I just look at the 1900 US Census enumeration out of Hinds County. I can't believe Mama Aggie and her three boys would be so quick to move 90 miles to Hattiesburg. Of course I could be wrong about that.

We do know that at some point, Mama Aggie and three of her sons Turner, Will and Arthur made their home in Hattiesburg and are buried there.

With that said, looking up the Burns side has been very challenging. Still knowing about the Hinds County town of Utica has proven to be a possible key location in addition to Learned (where Bessie Lewis Butler was born) or even Adams (which is where Turner Burns and his sister James Etta Smith) appear to originate from).

Perhaps you're visiting this blog and you know about the Hunter & Burns families from Utica, Raymond, Learned, Dry Grove/Terry or just in Hinds County in general. Feel free to send an e-mail and let us know how we may connect.

E-mail Me!

Even beyond making further family connections, I'd be very happy to hear any stories anyone will have to share of any of the people discussed in this post. This blog is as much about sharing memories as it about family history.