A Home for Easter

 

The first book I wrote in the Apple Hill series, A Home for Easter, explores the life of my ancestor, Easter. I was surprised to have found information on her since she was born in the early 1800s. My father had asked me when I was a journalist if I would write about his family. He must have heard some hair-raising tales to ask such a question. Since, at the time, I was busy taking care of my family, I didn’t get around to it until later in life, but finally, I did. My father knew then that his family had an interesting story. Easter indeed has a compelling tale. She was probably in her 20s in 1838 when First Nations People were forced from their lands and removed west to “Indian Territory.” I asked my father many years ago why we looked like we did, and he always pointed to our First Nations ancestry. A Home for Easter also explores  how African Americans and Cherokee became culturally and genetically blended. Of course, that’s not the only story, but Easter’s story is important because it demonstrates what a family does to survive a very turbulent period. The Cherokee were being murdered for their land. But my great, great, great grandmother persisted. So did the other members of her family. Some of them I created because I did not have all the information necessary to build a better picture of what happened to African Americans and First Nations people. But I think the story is a good representation of what happens when people, especially women, put their minds to the tasks at hand – survival. I think I saw pictures of my great, great, great grandmother in my family’s possessions. She always had a hard look on her face as though she had survived terrible times. She was not smiling. But, hopefully, she is now. See her book at kateayrecampbell.com – A Home for Easter. If  you’d like to read about Cherokee history, there are some good books available. Check out: The Cherokees by Grace Steele Woodward or Cherokee Women by Theda Perdue.