Indiana Historical Society to tell stories of free Black settlement

The history of an early settlement of free Black and mixed-race pioneers in Indiana will have its story told. Before the end of slavery, free Black and mixed-race Native American pioneers and white indentured servants migrated north from North Carolina to areas in Virginia and Ohio before landing in Indiana around 1835. Settlers, most with the surname Roberts, lived and established homesteads in Atlanta, Indiana, farming the land, building homes and churches, and starting schools, said Bryan Glover, vice president of Roberts Settlement. “It was considered to be a place where whites will be tolerant of people of color living in their surroundings,” Glover said. “I would describe it kind of as a little village, right? People who know each other have chosen to live together, and they began to build farms.” The families in Roberts Settlement and other settlements of free people of color had more control over their destinies during a time when most Black people only found freedom either through escaping bondage or the Civil War ending, Glover said. They also had the luxury of falling back on the support of family and community and opportunities to build wealth and be successful.  However, Indiana, which became a...