GRAM'S GIFT

By Joyce M. Mosley

Gram's gift tells the story of an African-American family with African, European, and Native American roots that trace to the arrival of European settlers in the 1600s. It is important to Gram that her grandchildren know the contributions their ancestors made to the history of this country. So, she gath

• Language: English
• Publisher: Scriptor House
• Release date: Feb 17, 2023
• ISBN: 9798886920871

Joyce M. Mosley

Joyce Mosley Biography Joyce assumed the role of family historian over thirty years ago. Her African-American family can trace African, European, and Native American roots to colonial Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Her family history in this country begins in 1630 when Humphrey Morrey, the first mayor of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, landed at Oyster Bay, New York, Samuel Bustill, Deputy Registrar of the Colonial Province of West New Jersey, and Cyrus Bustill born enslaved in 1732. As free men, members of Joyce's family provided bread for George Washington's troops in Valley Forge, were agents on the Underground Railroad, enlisted as soldiers in the United States Colored Troops (USCT) during the Civil War, and were leaders in the Black community in early Philadelphia. The Morrey\Bustill family was one of the founding families of Cheltenham Township just outside Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are also among the founding families of several African-American churches in Philadelphia, including the historic African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas, the first black Episcopal Church in the USA founded in 1792.Joyce is a member of the Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR), the Colonial Daughters of the 17th Century, the Society of Founding Families of New Jersey, The Society of Founding Families of Pennsylvania, African-American Genealogy Group, and the Sons and Daughters of the Middle Passage. In 2019, Joyce's family research was featured in a PBS episode of "Movers and Makers." https://video.whyy.org/video/outbound-y8big3/.

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© 2023 Joyce Mosley. All rights reserved.

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Published by Scriptor House LLC

Paperback ISBN: 979-8-88692-086-4

eBook ISBN: 979-8-88692-087-1

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For over sixty-five years, my mother's side of the family, the Millers, have gathered in the suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the first weekend in July to attend our family reunion. Besides Christmas, this is my favorite time of the year because I get to hang out with my out-of-state cousins. My aunts and their families always camp out at my house for the long weekend. All of us kids look forward to spending this time together. Gram always arrives Thursday morning so she and Mom can spend the day cooking family dishes passed down from generation to generation, specially the Mexican chili with canned corn. Then, we sit around the dinner table each evening, sharing family jokes, eating, and listening to Gram's stories. Gram writes children's books, so she tells the very best stories. But this year was different.

After dinner, Gram stood up and said, I want all of you children to follow me into the living room. It is time you learned about our family history. You must know the contributions made by your ancestors. Our family has lived on this land since before the Revolutionary War and before America was a nation. We have a long and distinguished history, and I want you to know what an awesome family you were born into.

So,