Independent
27 Nov 1964, Fri Page 12
(Editors Note" Virtually withdrawn from civilization, yet retaining contact through television, a mysterious group of people called the Melungeons appears headed fro extinction in the mountains of Tennessee. Historians are divided over their ancestry, tracing their origin variously to Spanish explorers, the Lost Colony of Roanoke, and to the ancient city of Carthage. A UPI reporter recently visited the Melungeons in an effort to learn more about their background.)
By JOHN GAMBLE
SNEEDVILLE, Tenn (UPI)
A narrow dirt road winding up a mountainside in east Tennessee may hold the answer to one of history's mysteries.
But the chances of such a revelation are extremely dim. For the road ends in the land of the Melungeons, a shy and clannish people who refuse to discuss their background.
Local historians say the Melungeons may be descendants of the Lost Colony of Roanoke, which disappeared soon after it was founded on the North Carolina coast by English explorer Sir Walter Raleigh.
These historians say the colony's inhabitants migrated south instead of west because of the barrier of the Great Smoky Mountains.
Other theories regarding the ancestry of the Melungeons are that they are descendants of a band which left Spanish explorer Hernando DeSoto's party to search for gold and silver in the Tennessee mountains; that they are a mixture of Indian and Negro ( the state supreme court ruled in 1959 the Melungeons were not Negro); and that they are descendants of people who lived in the ancient city of Carthage.
The latter theory is the most widely accepted and what information the Melungeons have imparted seem to support it. This theory is that after Carthage was destroyed by Roman legions in 145 BC some inhabitants fled to Morrocco, where they intermarried with the Moors, and later migrated to Gibraltar, Portugal and South Carolina. Because of their dark skin, many were sold into slavery hundreds of years later, but some escaped into the mountains of Tennessee and Virginia.
The only "true" Melungeons left, however, reside in the mountainside areas known as "Snake Hollow" and "Mulberry Gap." Comprising about a dozen families, the Melungeons live in small cabins dotted with television antennas. the dirt road to the area is impassable by car in the winter because of ice and snow.
The elder Melungeons walk the six or seven miles to Sneedville, a modern hill community of 900, on Saturdays. Melungeon youngsters seldom are allowed to make the trip.
It has been the mixing-and intermarriage - of Melungeon youths with the young people of Sneedville that has brought the "true" Melungeons to the point of extinction.
The Melungeons have few visitors, and want it that way. Their contact with the outside world is largely through television, and some are fairly well informed on world problems.
"The Russians will not stop until they take the world with bombs and fire, " one Melungeon observed to a rare visitor. Politically, the Melungeons are almost solidly Republican.
While rejection most outside contact, the Melungeons have taken to many modern gadgets. Most all of them have television sets, and many of the farmers drive tractors.
The Melungeons have retained their ancient custom of burial. They build a shacklike structure over the grave and keep it freshly painted white, even when some of their homes go unpainted. The cemeteries appear as small villages to visitors.
The older Melungeons are highly superstitious and believe the moon has extraordinary powers. One youngster said he has seen 'grannies' walk into the graveyards many times speaking a strange language.
Asked about their ancestry, most Melungeons refuse to answer, but a few respond they are "Porter-ghee."
They are more willing to talk about the younger generation, which they say is 'Lazy" and "spoiled by TV" "They are too lazy to walk seven or eight miles to a grocery store. I do it all the time," said Mrs. Bertha Bell, 58.
The Melungeons, devout Christians, are friendly to the townspeople, yet distinctly clannish. Copper-skinned, with black hair and dark eyes, they usually wear colorful clothes.
They come to town less often now. Within recent years, they have received unwanted publicity in a national magazine and scores of college sociology groups have come to "study" them.
Townspeople have become angry at the attention the Melungeons receive from "outsiders." They also refuse to impart much information. Some followed this reporter around town.
"Leave these people alone," one man said. "They ain't done nothing no other person in this valley ain't done. They just want to be left alone."
