Great Migration

Ancestors of Michelle Obama in the 1940 Census

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.15.2012

Read More: Hugh Hefner, Purnell Shields, White House, Michelle Obama, Betty White, Rebecca Coleman, Johnny Cash, Marian Robinson, Obama, Census, History, Neil Armstrong, First Lady, Wpa, Nick Clooney, Chicago, Rebecca Jumper, Genealogy, Rosemary Clooney, Family History, Great Migration, 1940 Census, Celebrities, Celebrity News
Megan Smolenyak

The cost for nine relatives of the First Lady -- including her mother, grandparents and great-grandparents -- to rent these cozy quarters in 1940? $45 a month or roughly the equivalent of $737 today.

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Make History in Your Pajamas

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 03.30.2012

Read More: Greatest Generation, National Archives, Dust Bowl, Immigration, Archives.com, 1940, Census, History, Wwii, Volunteering, Who Do You Think You Are?, Rita Wilson, Genealogy, World War II, Great Migration, Ellis Island, Great Depression, 1940 Census, Familysearch, Findmypast, Culture News
Megan Smolenyak

On April 2nd, after a long wait of 72 years, the 1940 census will be released, and in a historic first, the collection will emerge online in digitized form -- a remarkable snapshot of a nation still recovering from the Great Depression and not yet aware of its approaching entry into war.

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Michelle Obama's Ancestors: The First Lady's Multicultural, Great Migration Past (VIDEO)

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.30.2012

Read More: White House, Flotus, Michelle Obama, The South, Heritage, Multicultural, Family Tree, Black History Month, History, Video, Melvinia Shields, Ancestors, First Lady, Ancestry, Chicago, Slavery, Roots, Genealogy, Family History, Great Migration, African Americans, Celebrity News
Megan Smolenyak

Several years ago, I conducted extensive genealogical research into the heritage of Michelle Obama. A few of my discoveries -- particularly those per...

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Michelle Obama's Ancestors: Purnell Shields

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.25.2012

Read More: Birmingham, White House, Purnell Shields, Dolphus Shields, Flotus, Michelle Obama, Heritage, Alabama, Marian Robinson, Georgia, Obama, Melvina Magruder, Black History Month, History, Ancestors, David Patterson, South Carolina, Slavery, Chicago, Ancestry, Roots, Desegregation, Genealogy, Melvina Shields, Marian Shields, Family History, Spartanburg, African Americans, Great Migration, Chicago News
Megan Smolenyak

D.T. lived in hopeful expectation, but even today, it's stunning to think that the life of this one-time slave overlapped with that of his great-granddaughter, Marian, who now resides in the White House.

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Michelle Obama's Ancestors: Rebecca Jumper (aka Coleman)

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.22.2012

Read More: Purnell Shields, White House, Flotus, Michelle Obama, Native American, Rebecca Coleman, Chicago, Heritage, Indian, Multicultural, Marian Robinson, Obama, Virginia, Emancipation, Ancestors, First Lady, Freedom, Ancestry, Slavery, Roots, Rebecca Jumper, Genealogy, Family History, Great Migration, African Americans, Tuscarora, North Carolina, Celebrity News
Megan Smolenyak

Michelle's maternal grandmother, Rebecca Jumper, did an admirable job of keeping her past a secret, but that's probably because she didn't know much about it herself. That's unfortunate, because hers is an intriguing history.

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Michelle Obama's Ancestors: Fraser Robinson

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.15.2012

Read More: Flotus, Michelle Obama, Heritage, LaVaughn Johnson, Cohen, Jewish, Ancestors, Wpa, First Lady, Slavery, Chicago, South Carolina, Fraser Robinson, Genealogy, Family History, African Americans, Great Migration, Great Depression, Rabbi, Funnye, Celebrity News
Megan Smolenyak

It's providential for Michelle's sake that LaVaughn ever met Fraser C. Robinson, Jr. because he would have much preferred to never leave the South.

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Michelle Obama's Ancestors: LaVaughn Johnson

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.09.2012

Read More: Flotus, Michelle Obama, St. Louis, Burr Oak Cemetery, Heritage, LaVaughn Johnson, Barack Obama, History, Bud Billiken Parade, First Lady, Pullman Porters, Chicago, Roots, Fraser Robinson, Genealogy, James Preston Johnson, Family History, Phoebe Moten, Great Migration, Celebrity News
Megan Smolenyak

Of Michelle's grandparents, LaVaughn Johnson was the most like her. A native Chicagoan, she was an early product of the mixing effect of the Great Migration with parents of radically different histories.

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Michelle Obama's Ancestors: The Great Migration

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 04.02.2012

Read More: Civil Rights Movement, Flotus, Michelle Obama, Heritage, Underground Railroad, Civil Rights, History, Jim Crow, Chicago Defender, Ancestors, Chicago, Ancestry, Roots, Genealogy, African Americans, Great Migration, Celebrity News
Megan Smolenyak

This is the second in a series about the ancestry of the First Lady. The introduction can be found here: Michelle Obama's Ancestors: Chicago Beginni...

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Michelle Obama's Ancestors: Chicago Beginnings

Megan Smolenyak | Posted 03.31.2012

Read More: White House, Michelle Obama, Heritage, Multicultural, Marian Robinson, Grandparents, LaVaughn Johnson, Ancestors, First Lady, Ancestry, Chicago, Roots, Fraser Robinson, Genealogy, Family History, Great Migration, Celebrity News
Megan Smolenyak

Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama's presence in the White House is historic. A hundred years from now, scholars and school children will still be stud...

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Rest in Peace, Elzie Whittington, AKA Grandma

Jeff Kelly Lowenstein | Posted 02.19.2012

Read More: Elzie Whittington, Bill Withers, Grandma's Hands, Great Migration, Video, Chicago News
Jeff Kelly Lowenstein

A lot of times you hear about a funeral being a celebration, but it doesn't feel that way. With Elzie Whittington, grandmother of childhood friends...

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Your Weekend Random-Ass Roundup

J.D. Bell | Posted 01.11.2012

Read More: Poverty, The Onion, Hot Chicks of Occupy Wall Street, William Jelani Cobb, Redskins Racist History, David Hanson, Postbourgie, Joe Frazier, Black Cities, Washington Redskins, Adam Serwer, Great Migration, Random Ass Roundup, Penn State Controversy, Black Voices News
J.D. Bell

Commentary from the blogosphere you may have missed this week.

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Trymaine Lee

Chicago's Great Migration: Blacks Leaving Historic Neighborhoods To Return South

HuffingtonPost.com | Trymaine Lee | Posted 12.16.2011

Read More: African American Migration, The Great Return, Black Population, Reverse Migration, The-New-South, Chicago-Black-Population-Shrinking, Great Migration, Return Migration, New Great Migration, Black Voices News

This is the first installment in "The Great Return," an occasional HuffPost BlackVoices series about the shift of African Americans toward the South a...

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Chicago Changes Colors

Zack Isaacs | Posted 09.05.2011

Read More: Real Estate, News Cooperative, African-Americans, Matteson, Chicago, Great Migration, Suburbs, Chicago Racism, Chicago News
Zack Isaacs

It's the new Great Migration: black Chicagoans are "relocating" to the southern suburbs. But it's much bigger than a residential issue. Chicago is not what it used to be -- and I think I know the reason why.

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Top 10 Really Cool Expensive Gifts for the Holidays

Ramon Nuez | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Michael Jordan, African Elephant, Long Journey, Star Wars Millennium Falcon, Peanuts Snoopy, Great Migration, Creative Productions, Accurate Reproduction, Entertainment Earth, Nightmare Before Christmas, Batman 1989, T Mobile, Resin Statue, Command Chair, Black Friday, Replica 5, Earth Star, Christmas Shopping, Technology News
Ramon Nuez

The month of November signals changes in our environment. November gives birth to the great migration. Like the herds of the African elephant we ...

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Mapping Race in New York City

John Petro | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Jim Crow, New York City Demographics, Manhattan, Bedford Stuyvesant, African-Americans, Fort Greene, Chinatown, Race, Central Harlem, Great Migration, Bushwick-Brooklyn, New York News
John Petro

2010-09-24-racepull.jpgA map of New York City by race and ethnicity suggests that perhaps the place isn't quite the melting pot that it is claimed to be.

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'True Prep,' 'Freedom,' A Graphic Memoir

Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Lisa Birnbach, Chip Kidd, True Prep, Reviews, Books, Book Review, Red and Me, Nearest Exit, Bill Russell, Warth of Other Suns, Great Migration, Drinking at the Movies, Steinhauer, Memoir, Oxford Book of Parodies, Graphic Novels, Franzen, Bestsellers, Freedom, Books News

"True Prep: It's a Whole New Old World," Lisa Birnbach with Chip Kidd The New York Times This new compendium moves beyond school days to address matte...

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Protecting Animal Migrations

Isabel Cowles | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Ecology, Great Migration, Ecotourism, Biodiversity, Environment, Animal Migration, Great Migration in Africa, Animals, Migratory-Animals, Protecting Animal Migration, Green News
Isabel Cowles

If population loss among species continues, there will be devastating consequences. A regulatory body should be established to monitor the migratory success of animals that travel beyond national boundaries.

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REPORT: Chicago's African American Population Shrinking

Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Black Population, Chicago, Chicago African Americans, Illinois, Minority Population, Chicago Black Population, Great Migration, Minorities, Chicago News

In one of the greatest domestic population shifts in American history, African Americans poured out of the South in the early 20th century. The so-cal...

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Two by Earth, Three by Fire: Detroit Revisited

Lester Sloan | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Michigan State, Ford, Walter Reuther, Gran Torino, Anderson Cooper, Detroit Riot, Hybrid Cars, Woodward Avenue, Red Wings, Jim Crow, Eastern Market, Final Four, Lynching, River Rouge, White Flight, Stanley Cup, United Auto Workers Union, Detroit Institute of Art, Arson, Fred Astaire, Devil's Night, Motown, Detroit, Greek Town, St.Lawrence Seaway, Chrysler, Pall Mall, Great Migration, Detroit-Michigan, Healthy Living News
Lester Sloan

Ironically, it is still Detroit that gives the suburbs a sense of place and America a reason to hope.

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