Dedications
This book is dedicated to:
Betty Mae Bynum Eley
The Late Richard Lee McDow
The Late Roger Gary
Jessie Vera Bynum Faison
The Late Gonzalo McDow
Gladys Mungo McDow
The Late Alma Bynum Davis
The Late Henry Wilkins Bynum
The Bracy Family
The Davis Family
The Bynum family
Rev. Mrs. Emma Elizabeth Parker Gary
Shonda Gary
Dorothy Gary Newsome
Joseph Demory, Jr.
Lamar C. Elliott
Sandra Edwards
Margie Demory McCoy
The Demaree Family
The Demory Family
The Parker Family
The Moody Family
The Gary Family
Nettie McDow Bivins
Norma Jean McDow Austin
Mildred McDow Raley
The Clyburn Family
The Mungo Family
The Huey Family
The Massey family
The McDow Family
Thomas A. Davis, Sr.
Melva Terry James
Catherine O. Harper
William Daniel Davis, Sr.
Mildred Harper Brown
Edinburgh Williams, Jr.
The Late Elizabeth Calandith Bracy Pearson
The Late Mildred Potts
The Late Elder Ellis Hancey and his wife, Dora
Milton Whann
Tauris T. Frederick
Caroline Schloss
The Staff of Tidewater Auto Auction
Mike Hockett
Dean Vassar
Phil Hairston
Donna Baker
Donna White
Charles Blackwell
John Lewis
Shelton Melton
Cornelius Coleman
Susan Baker Burden
and the staff of
Portsmouth Public Library
Dr. L. Pettis Patton
Cornelius Coleman
Esther L. Taylor
Terry, Shawn, and Kimberly Jenkins
James and Jessie Baker
Danny Lavar Neal, Jr.
Jermaine Leon Deans
The former members of High Impact,
Jermaine Deans, Jermaine Newsome,
Tony Peoples, Tonee' Oglesby,
Timothy Deans, Timothy Whaley,
Corte Ellis, and John Bellomy
The children of Jeffrey Wilson and Dale Homes
who attended the Portsmouth Recreation Centers (1993-1995),
and the children of Port Norfolk and Cradock Recreation Centers
(1999-2000)
My brothers, George, Calvin, Jackie,
Micheal, and Tony Eley
My sisters, Phetra, Luwana,
and Regina
The Blue Banner Division of
FamilyTreemaker Online
Mitchell Draper
Linda Buchholz
Ethan McCoy
All family history web site users listed in sources
The Windsor Family of England
The Hockett Family of Indiana
All Connecting Family of This Project
The host of family, friends, and
associates
Without your help, this book
wouldn't have been possible.
Thank God for the blessing.
I give God the glory.
He was the Author.
I was the messenger.
His purpose in my life has
risen beyond my dreams.
This is to the world and all
the nations of the world can unite
in one distinct family.
I present to you our family history
and the history of the world.
Acknowledgements
I would like to acknowledge the following people for their contribution to the overall success of this book:
To my mother, Betty, I would like to give the majority of the thanks to my mother. With her true diligence as a mother, she taught me how to treat people with the utmost respect. She taught how to use my mind to the best that God has given me. Her strengths are hard work, family, and someone you can lean on for help. Thanks, Mom.
To my grandmother, Vera, for helping me in more ways than one to learn about her family and the many people who came from her family lines. She is diligent and can always give a word to live by.
To the late Roger Gary, who gave me some great ancestors in his family line.
To the Late Gonzalo McDow, who gave me the desire to never give up on anything I pursue.
To my grandmother, Gladys whose lines has given me the intellect that has carried me far in my research.
To my brothers and sisters, George, Calvin, Jackie, Micheal, Tony, and Phetra for giving the honor of having the strongest group of sibling I love having in my life. They are the backbone of my background.
To my Aunt Cynthia for leaving her journal at my grandmother's house that inspired me to start my research.
To my father who gave me an up-close-and personal look at being a McDow and truly carrying the gene of a determine, McDow man.
To my Aunt Nettie Bivins, whose has always inspired me with her love and understanding that has blossomed into a relationship that is solid as a rock.
To My cousin, Walter Joseph Sykes for his extensive recollection of the history of the Bynum family as also told by his grandmother, Emma Rascoe.
To my aunt Alma Bynum Davis for re-inspiring belief that I would be come a great genealogist by giving one of the most important interviews in my twenty-years search in the past.
To my brothers, George, Calvin, Jackie, Micheal, and Tony, I give all the respect for their different style that has come together in their baby brother. Their are so many things that you-all have done for me and I don't have to mention them all because we would have to write another book.
To my sisters, Phetra, Luwana, and Regina, I love you all for what you are to me, my three beautiful sisters and the one chance to have the beauty of my family to shine.
To Mrs. Mildred Potts, for giving me information that allowed me to meet my extended family, she is a lady of great understanding and she shall be missed.
To Thomas Davis, who gave me an wide variety of stories about the members of the Davis family as they lived and breathe through the roads of Virginia and North Carolina along with being a very special cousin who has taught me alot. With the great understanding of people, he should be remembered for his love and kindness to his people as he continues to do so today..
To Mrs. Susan Burten, the Director of the Portsmouth Public Library who gave me the first genealogy book in August 1979 that began my search into the past. She has followed my research for 24 years as I continue to climb my name count. God bless her progress to the position to she holds in the library today.
To Elder Ellis and Dora Hancey, who helped me reestablish my family search and compilation by introducing me to a program that allowed me to put the names of over 5550 names together.
To Jermaine Deans, my best friend and cousin, and the members of all the music organizations that has associated themselves to the things that I have involved myself in. He helped me fight one of the greatest battles of my life. With the best friendship I ever had in my lfe, I can move on with the friendship that he give me from day to day.
To my cousin, Brenda Deans and my good friend, James Mitchell, who gave the confidence to believe in myself after all the major problems in my life was ending. They have always stuck by me through thick and thin.
To Lamar Elliott, for taking me to North Carolina to get some very vital documents which lead to the family history of the Demaree family. He allowed to open door that were once close to me in the history of the county my family originated from in North Carolina.
To the late Melva Terry and Herbert James, who helped me get my book into book form by pushing me to the finish line. My cousin, Melva taught me the meaning of perseverance when she battled for her life. She will always be one of my favorite cousins despite some of the actions of her immediate family.
To Mr. and Mrs. James Baker, who allowed me to use their computer when I did not have one and they allowed me to get some very valuable information off the internet which direct me to France and England.
To Tauris Frederick and Caroline Schloss, for giving me a new title and a new understanding of my research. All with my co-workers: Malone Pace, Deon Morris, Jason Hall, Bob Burke, Milton Whann, Carl Van Vuren, Leon Porter, and Johnnie Wesson, who gave me the new name that will live forever in my memory "Uncle Darryl", even though I have over 20 nieces and nephews. This name has become my marquee name since November 2001. I have many friend and family who call me by that name. They listened to all the progress of my research until I finished my book. Thanks for your support.
To Dean Vassar, who helped me with some of the most important supplies for the completion of my book and gave me encouragement to finish my book. He helped me some of the most crucial supplies needed to finish this project. He will always be my friend because of his heart and his kindness.
To the love of my life, Esther, who kept me one the computer and has been my guiding force next to God. She has inspired me to chase my dream until it has been finished. To her children, Terry, Shawn, and Kimberly, I want to thank them for their help. I give a great thumbs up for not giving up on me even though I was tough on them. I only wanted the best for them and their mother. I love them all and want to best life has to offer for them because they have made my book work in the last five years.
TO ALL MY FAMILIES THROUGHOUT THE WORLD, MAY GOD BLESS YOU ALL.
To God Almighty for giving the ability to do the things to make this project come together.
Thank everyone for the hard work. May God bless you and keep you.
We are united in blood, born to serve God, and live our lives in the best way that God has for us to do. He allowed us to do the things that he see fit for us to do. Sometimes we will travel a road that will lead to everlasting peace and harmony in the world. He allowed me to give you a part of what He has to tell you through this book about our association with each other, that we are one big family. This book is a gift from God to allow me to share the past with you , so that you can know were you come from, to know where you are going., your eternal gist and where you will send your eternity. The struggle is not yours, it is the Lord Jesus Christ. He has allowed me to rise above my problems and life's hard roads to finally give you your history of one great family. Thank you for allowing me to give you a history, well worth the wait.
Thank you everyone for your help and here is my dedication to you.