International African American Museum ‘exceeds expectations’ in its first year

Sixty members of the White family, spanning four generations, met for their 48th annual family reunion June 22 with a mission. Gathered within the Center for Family History at the International African American Museum, staff worked with family members to weave genealogical threads and facts to paint a picture of the lives of their ancestors Anderson White and his wife Tyrah Cuthbert-White. For cousins Reginald and Patricia White, these would be their third-great grandparents. Reginald White has long sought answers, having heard stories passed on from older generations about the couple who lived during the Civil War. Because of alias names and spelling variations in paperwork, finding a paper trail was difficult — but not impossible.  Using Census documents and a 300-page military record, the family has been able to confirm family fables and pull new threads to add to the narrative they pass down. While much is still unknown about Anderson White’s life before joining the military and if he was free or enslaved, this much is clear: he served in the 21st Colored Infantry Company K, mustering at Fort Hilton Head. He joined just after the 1864 battle of Honey Hill, though he is memorialized with a misspelled...