Melungeon Portraits: Lived Experience and Identity

262 Pages·2016·1.01 MB·English

Antioch University
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Dissertations & Teses
2013
Melungeon Portraits: Lived Experience and
Identity
Tamara L. Stachowicz
Antioch University - PhD Program in Leadership and Change
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Stachowicz, Tamara L., "Melungeon Portraits: Lived Experience and Identity" (2013). Dissertations & Teses. 64.
htp://aura.antioch.edu/etds/64
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MELUNGEON PORTRAITS: LIVED EXPERIENCE AND IDENTITY

TAMARA L. STACHOWICZ

A DISSERTATION

Submitted to the Ph.D. in Leadership and Change Program
of Antioch University
in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy

July, 2013
This is to certify that the Dissertation entitled:
MELUNGEON PORTRAITS: LIVED EXPERIENCE AND IDENTITY
prepared by
Tamara Stachowicz

is approved in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in
Leadership and Change.

Approved by:

Carolyn Keny, Ph.D., Chair date

Lize Boysen, DBL, Commite Member date

Katherine Vande Brake, Ph.D., Committee Member date

Dara Culhane, Ph.D., External Reader date
Copyright 2013 Tamara L. Stachowicz
All rights reserved
Acknowledgements
I am very grateful for the advice and support of my advisor and dissertation chair, Dr.
Carolyn Kenny for pushing me to do my best work, cheering me on when the challenges were
great, and encouraging me to remain true to my research interests. I could not have completed
the project without the additional resources provided by Dr. Lize Booysen and Dr. Katherine
Vande Brake. Without their individual expertise in leadership and Melungeon scholarship, this
dissertation would not have contributed to a body of knowledge that is practical and empowering
to so many.
Of course, all of my co-researchers helped research, write, and explain, their own stories.
You have allowed me the privilege of examining and comparing our collective experiences and
validated my personal journey toward identity and family heritage. Angela, you have always
been there for me, I could never have completed the enormity of the project without your help.
Joanne, your inside knowledge and willingness to debate and discuss the merits of various
Melungeon theories and writings helped me understand context and passion in the journey of
discovery. William, I hope I have earned your trust. You have modeled how true leadership and
activism can be effective by the actions of even one person. Arlene, my sister, my friend—you
have come with me on research trips for over 15 years. You help me believe in myself and
understand the real priorities in life. It was you that took the brunt of my frustrations during this
past few years and I’m grateful. To my mother, Sylvia, and my daughter Kateri, you are the
roots and wings of my study. You give me purpose, and keep me grounded. Thanks for your
willingness to be my guinea pigs. To Katie, Wilma, Anna, Keith, Connie, Logan, and Rachel,
you opened your hearts and your homes to me. I am grateful for your time and input, and for
your willingness to share such intimate pains and joys with me for this project. Special thanks to
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my father and step mother, James and Judy Campbell, for your support and encouragement. I
appreciate your efforts to understand why I would work so diligently for so long just to figure
out who I am! To my son Josef, thanks for listening to me read papers out loud, sharing in the
pride of professor comments, and for finding me additional resources on feminist writings. It has
been a joy to share my scholarly progress with you as a peer and colleague.
The depth of these findings and my growth as a scholar have been profoundly impacted
by Darlene Wilson. Darlene opened her heart and home to my family and me, baking fresh
cookies, sharing books, and making the best damned sweet tea I’ve ever had. Darlene, thank you
for challenging me, confronting me, forgiving me, and accepting me. I am forever in your debt.
The entire point of “going to the people” was spurred by Dr. Anita Puckett. She
challenged me and insisted I go back to my anthropological roots and speak to the people.
Thank you for your mentoring and kindness as I pursued this topic.
I must also acknowledge the discourse, friendship, and comraderie of my study buddy,
Dr. Kimberly Yost. Thank you for the late night discussions and willingness to share lodging at
residencies and dispelling the imposter syndrome for me.
Most of all, I need to thank my best friend, my other half, the man who has taken this
journey with me for over 30 years—my husband Dr. David Stachowicz. You have not only
given encouragement, but listened to me cry as stress mounted, and picked up the slack at home
and with our family while I spent time (and money) traveling and researching. Because of you, I
am at my best. I love you more than you will ever know. Thanks for knowing how important
this research is to me and encouraging me to follow my dreams.
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Lastly, I want to dedicate this project to my brother, James Michael Campbell, who died
before he could see me finish. He was always proud of his big sisters, and will always be
remembered fondly as my “favorite brother.” I wish you were here Jimmy.

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Abstract
The desire to claim an ethnicity may be in response to an institutional and systemic political
movement towards multiculturalism where ethnic difference is something to be recognized and
celebrated (Jimenez, 2010; Tatum, 1997). Those who were a member of a dominant or
advantaged group took that element of their identity for granted (Tatum, 1997). Identity work
has included reflections and congruence between how individuals see themselves and how they
perceive others to see them, including Optimal Distinctiveness Theory where one determines the
optimal amount of individual distinctiveness needed to feel a healthy group and personal identity
(Brewer, 2012). When most of the people one is surrounded by can verify and support an
accepted identity construction, the process is less complicated, and attention is not drawn to the
differences because there are very few, if any. As the dominant culture becomes increasingly
bombarded with the celebratory aspects of an ethnic identity, it is likely that one will begin
searching for one’s own (Jimenez, 2010; Tatum, 1997). This study will present portraits of
individuals who are considering an ethnic identity as they are searching for belonging and
inclusion from the group with which they desire to identify. In short, through the use of
portraiture, I intend to privilege the voices and experiences of several co-researchers as they
describe their lives, explain whether or not they have accepted or rejected a Melungeon identity,
how they came to that decision, and what it means in their lived experience. This dissertation is
accompanied by the author’s MP4 video introduction, as well as 15 MP4 videos of the co-
researchers who participated in this study (see the List of Supplemental Media Files).
The electronic version of this Dissertation is at OhioLink ETD Center,
www.ohiolink.edu/etd

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Table of Contents
Acknowledgements .......................................................................................................................... i
Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... iii
List of Figures ................................................................................................................................ ix
List of Supplemental Media Files ....................................................................................................x
Chapter I: Introduction .....................................................................................................................1
Position of Researcher ...............................................................................................................1
The Purpose of This Dissertation ...............................................................................................2
The Melungeon Identity Movement ..........................................................................................3
Racial Identification and Politics .........................................................................................4
Social Influence on Melungeon Ethnicity ............................................................................8
Melungeon Identity ............................................................................................................11
Discussion ..........................................................................................................................17
Philosophical and Theoretical Framework ..............................................................................19
Ontology ............................................................................................................................19
Epistemology .....................................................................................................................20
Social Construction of Meaning and Identity ....................................................................20
Portraiture ..........................................................................................................................21
Gap in Literature ......................................................................................................................22
The Dissertation Questions ......................................................................................................23
Dissertation Structure by Chapter ............................................................................................24
Scope and Limitations..............................................................................................................25
Ethical Considerations .............................................................................................................26
Chapter II: Literature and Research Review ..................................................................................27
Historical Context ....................................................................................................................28
Social Construction ..................................................................................................................33
Ontology: Perceptions of Being ...............................................................................................39
Epistemological Influence .......................................................................................................42
Identity Development and Belonging ......................................................................................48
Assessment of the Literature and Research Review ................................................................52
Chapter III: Methodology ..............................................................................................................54
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Social Construction ..................................................................................................................55
Portraiture ................................................................................................................................56
Voice as Witness ................................................................................................................59
Voice as Interpretation .......................................................................................................59
Voice as Preoccupation ......................................................................................................59
Voice as Autobiography ....................................................................................................59
Voice Discerning Other Voices or Listening for Voice.....................................................60
Voice in Dialogue ..............................................................................................................60
Voice Interaction ................................................................................................................61
The Role of Context ...........................................................................................................61
The Challenge ....................................................................................................................61
Ethnography .............................................................................................................................63
Phenomenology........................................................................................................................65
Multimedia Ethnography .........................................................................................................67
Co-researcher Selection ...........................................................................................................69
Conclusions ..............................................................................................................................70
Chapter IV: Findings......................................................................................................................71
Gibson Family ..........................................................................................................................72
Sylvia Virginia Ray ..................................................................................................................73
Arlene Campbell Walsh ...........................................................................................................84
Kateri Virginia Irene Stachowicz .............................................................................................90
Gibson Family ..........................................................................................................................93
Gibson Girls .............................................................................................................................96
Katie Hillison .....................................................................................................................94
Wilma King ......................................................................................................................105
Anna Reed Partin .............................................................................................................114
William Isom .........................................................................................................................123
Johnson Family ......................................................................................................................133
Angela Johnson Blankenship .133
Connie Smith Johnson .....................................................................................................149
Keith Johnson...................................................................................................................156
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