Exhibit Opening at MARC

November 17, 2016
5:30 PM - 7:30 PM

November 17, 2016
5:30pm - Refreshments and viewing of photography exhibit
6:00pm - Opening remarks by Paul Johnson; screening of "melungeon voices" and Q & A.
Museum and Archives of Rockingham County (MARC)
1087 NC HWY 65, Reidsville, NC 27320

"The Melungeons of Appalachia and the Goinstown Indian School: Examining mixed-ethnic communities along the North Carolina/Virginia border"

For more than two centuries the Melungeons, a group of mixed ethnic people living throughout the Appalachians, have captured the attention of their neighbors, as well as census takers, historians, genealogists, and the media at large. Rockingham County was home to a similar community, located in the Goinstown area in the northwestern corner of the county. Its residents were variously classified as Black, White, or Indian over the course of the century. The Goinstown Indian school survived until all county schools were desegregated in the 1950s. In subsequent decades the community dispersed and many descendants remaining in the area were assimilated into either white or black identity. 

Paul Johnson's introductory remarks will discuss connections between Goinstown, and other mixed ethnic communities often found along the borders of North Carolina and Virginia, with the Melungeons of Appalachia. Julie Williams Dixon will briefly comment on the making of the award winning documentary "melungeon voices" and her current photography project entitled "People and their People: Holding Our Ancestors Close." The photographs will be on display at the MARC from November 17th through December 4, 2016. There will be plenty of time for Q & A. 

For more information please email info@themarconline.org or call 336-634-4949. Admission is free for members, $5 for adults, and $3.50 for students and seniors.