United to remember ancestry rooted in Charles City

Descendants of Betsy Green and Watt Onley Sr., two individuals who were slaves in Charles City, and descendants of the Rev. Edward Folkes, one of the individuals who emancipated them, met in front of the library for a day long of events and tours of the county during a recent event. Sponsored by the Richard M. Bowman Center for Local History, family members came from places such as Australia, Hampton, and Boston, Massachusetts, got together to learn about the history of their family and toured historical sites throughout the locality. Folkes, who lived across from Salem Methodist Church on Barnetts Road emancipated Onley, and John Clark, who lived at Colesville on Route 5, emancipated Green and three of their children. Pictured on the left are descendants are Onley, and pictured on the right are descendants of Folkes.