“Juneteenth Soldiers” is Topic For virtual meeting, May 10

NJG Newswire
HAMPTON ROADS

The Middle Peninsula African-American Genealogical and Historical Society (MPAAGHS) will hold its monthly meeting virtually on Saturday, May 10, 2025, at 11 a.m. Eastern Time. The meeting will feature a talk by Marvin Tupper Jones entitled “Juneteenth Soldiers of Northeastern North Carolina.” Jones’ presentation will take place on the eve of next month’s commemoration of the 160th anniversary of Juneteenth.

  Not only is Marvin Tupper Jones related to members of the United States Colored Troops (USCT) who served in Texas at the time of Juneteenth, he has researched them and others. These include those who marched from Norfolk to North Carolina to conduct Wild’s Raid, a sustained action that freed 2,500 enslaved people and destroyed rebel camps and supplies.

Some of these soldiers took part in the Battles of Fort Pocahontas, New Market Heights, and other battles around Richmond leading to Lee’s surrender in April of 1865. By June, thousands of USCT members were on their way to Brazos Santiago, Texas, to not only ensure emancipation but to enforce the Monroe Doctrine in the cause of Mexican independence. Jones will talk about the war-time experiences of members of the USCT as well as some of their post-war accomplishments.

From the very day that Juneteenth became a national holiday, Jones has delivered many lectures about the Juneteenth Soldiers, including in Texas itself. His research showing his family’s and local community’s involvement in Juneteenth is a model for how others might explore their own Juneteenth connections.

Jones is the director of the Chowan Discovery Group whose mission is to document, research, preserve and present primarily the history of his native Winton Triangle, a 284-year old landowning community of people of color, located in northeastern North Carolina. Visit Jones’ www.chowandiscovery.org”

To receive an invitation for this virtual meeting or to get further information about MPAAGHS, email mpaaghs.va@gmail.com or call (804) 651-8753.