Question

John Bunch was supposed to be the first Bunch in Va. Was he a slave?

Answer 1

yes he was enslave for trying to run from indenteder servitude,but he was set free some years later.
 Jon punch (bunch)is my 15 martarual grandfather
in the in the tax records of the 1680s he was described had mulatto during his servitude he marry a white woman  name Molly or polly who was also a indentured to his former master his children went on to marry into native American and European family's

in 1991 my mother gave birth to me
I'm a mulatto white/native mom black mix father
lol funny how family trees repeat

Answer 2

John Punch/Bunch was the 1st legally bound, lifelong slave in America. It was decreed by the courts after he ran away from his servitude contract. Of interest is that he ran away with 1 or 2 white guys who did not receive the same punishment.

He remained a slave to his master & though some believe he was freed after his master died I was told there's a will that left him to a son. I'm still looking.

Though he called her wife he was not legally allowed to marry a white woman. John Bunch I did the same as did John Bunch II & John Bunch III. He however made history because he wanted to get married in the Church & they wouldn't allow a mulatto to marry a white. He petitioned the state of Va. This resulted in Va, for the next 200 years, considering a person a mulatto if they were the child, grandchild, or great grandchild of a black OR native American. (apx 1705-1905) This meant they couldn't marry white women. The family moved to South Carolina who was more lenient at that time.

They each had brothers who married Indians including a sister of Pocahontas.

I know this is more than your question but I think all of us enjoy a little bit of history. It will also cause you to investigate a census report that says mulatto to determine if the relative was black, as most assume, or actually Indian.

Happy researching!

Comments

There is nothing to connect the descendants of John Punch/Bunch with any relatives of Pocahontas, who died in 1617.  John Bunch (son of Punch) was born about 1637: the Powhatan Indians were almost completely wiped out by 1646 when he was still a child.

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I have the info somewhere & will look for it. Though the tribe was severely wiped out it was not completely wiped out. A lot of the children, my ancestors, survived. It might take me a bit to find it. Life is pretty extreme right now.

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There is no record for any descendants of Powhatan other than Pocahontas’ son, Thomas Rolfe. Other claims are unsupported stories.  Only a handful of Powhatan’s children are known, and none of them has any recorded children.

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Would love to see your research. Would you share it with me?

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Are you referring to the "tribe" of Chief Powhatan or the entire "Nation"?

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Wahunsenaca, his documented wives and  children all have profiles here on Wikitree.  Some of the tribes of the Powhatan Confederacy survive to the present day and it’s quite possible that some of their citizens are related to Wahunsenaca or one of his many wives.  There is no documentation which can  confirm a relationship, however, since the records of tribal members by name only go back to the late18th century.

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Would you share those profile ID's with me? I know the tribe has a yearly meeting & more people arrive each year with family proof of membership. All my life I've been told I'm Cherokee of Powhatan descent related to Pocahontas along with Creek. That's my maternal side. On my paternal side it's the "lost" Underwood tribe that wasn't really lost. They just escaped the death walk.

These links are some I read early on & helped lead me in the right direction. Sorry I can't send more now but it's that kind of weekend.

www.nps.gov/jame/learn/historyculture/copy-of-the-powhatan-indian-world.htm

www.powhatanmuseum.com/Powhatan_tribes.com

www.amonsoquathbandofcherokee.org

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Wahunsenaca is Powhatan-1.  His wives and children are attached,  i’m sorry, but there is absolutely no connection between the Cherokee and the Powhatan.  The Cherokee lived hundreds of miles away to the southwest, across the mountains, mostly what are now Tennessee, North and South  Carolina.  Any Powhatan connections you find on the Internet are made-up junk.  There are only three Cherokee tribes, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in North Carolina, and the United Keetoowah Band and Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma.  Sadly there are over 200 groups of unrelated, non-indian people claiming to be Cherokee “tribes.”  The Cherokee are among the best-documented tribes in the U.S., with records going back to the late 1700’s.

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I love history and especially when it is about my family. Glad you are back Lucy. I missed you.

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That is the same group of Native Americans that are in my family line as well Lucy. Would love to see those documents.

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That is where my Native American's lived in the Hills of East Tn.

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Research Nasemond tribe they were Powhatan. And so much still alive. Actually have a enrollment if you can prove lineage

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The Nansemond, Pamunkey, Chickahominy, Eastern Chickahominy, and Rappahannock tribes were all part of the Powhatan Confederacy.  All are Federally-recognized tribes in southeastern Virginia.  They still live in or near their original lands.