Thanks for your note. I’m happy to know you found the story of Sarah Rector to be an inspiring read and that you passed it on to your daughter. Indeed, so much of our history is unknown. On your own search, you may want to look through the Dawes Commission records for the Cherokee Tribe to find information on your grandfather. You can search for his name and get his allottment number and from there get his census card which will give you other detailed information about relatives. Some of these records are online and will allow you to do a simple search using his name. You can also try the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Ft. Worth Archives.

Best wishes as you discover your roots!
S. Patton

warm regards,

Lois

There were debates in the black press over Rector’s racial identity. The white press called her a Creek Indian while the black press called her a Negro. This racial categorization of course had political implications. Yes Sarah looked black, but as we all know, black skin doesn’t always connote African-American. Culturally she was an Indian. Her parents and grandparents hailed from Indian Territory, not Mississippi or Virginia or North Carolina, etc. And slavery in Indian Territory differed profoundly from the institution in the South.

I hope this makes sense and answers your question. This is a very old blog post that I wrote in the initial stages of researching Rector’s life. I have an updated piece that I wrote for The Crisis last Spring. If you’d like to get a copy I’ll be happy to send it via email. Drop me a line at spatton@naacpldf.org.

Thanks so much for reading!
S.

Thank you so much for this wonderful piece of history. I read your extended version of this story in this month’s Crisis Magazine. So much of our history is untold. Thanks for this slice of it.

The Rectors in my family are from Kansas City, MO. and Edmond, OK. I have been trying to get information about the Rectors before my Grandmother (Juanita Reeves). passed. Unfortunately when she passed all information was lost. The Rector names I know are James, Agusta, Ella, Lucy, and Fairey. I was told Sarah was my Grandmother Ella’s cousin. If you have any information you can share with me I would greatly appreciate it. We are having a Family reunion this July in California and I have been trying to put a family tree together.

You called me today at the State Historical Society of MO regarding Ms. Rector and I found your site when I googled. I found a record of Sarah’s mother’s death on the Missouri State Archives’ web site. Their database includes deaths that occurred between 1910 and 1959. Rose Rector’s death is reported as February 8, 1957. Apparently, she was a Missouri resident but died outside of the state. Their site states: To obtain a death certificate for a Missouri resident who dies out-of-state, you must contact the state where the death occurred. If you know the state where the death occurred, the National Center for Health Statistics website will provide “Where to Write.” If you do not know the state where the death occurred, or if you need additional information to request a death certificate, consult the Social Security Death Index website. I checked the SSDI and didn’t find her listed there. One service that we provide is that we do obituary searches. With a death date, our Newspaper Library can look for an obituary for Sarah’s mother. Obituaries can be a great source of information. Best of luck in your research. This is a great story.

Thanks for your comments on your aunt Sarah. While I am certain that you obviously know the correct dates on your family members births and deaths, there are many conflicting dates in newspaper accounts of not only Sarah’s birth and death, but also of her parents and her status as a ward of the state. Many of the newspaper accounts from Muskogee County, Oklahoma indicate that Sarah was an orphan and that her mother died of tuberculosis and that her father died while in jail. I would be thrilled to share these documents with you. They are part of your family history and you should have them.

Recently, I stumbled across an article printed in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram on 7-11-1922 that indicates that Joe Rector died of grief over being deceived by his friend Jim Manuel (a crook who was implicated in murdering two other wealthy black children in 1913 and convicted for swindling another freedman woman some years later). He was trying to dupe Joe Rector out of money. And many of the secondary source materials that sites your aunt’s wealth, have also circulated these same details based on primary source newspaper stories and other records from Oklahoma. My reading of the sources themselves is correct. It’s the primary source documents (written by reporters of the day) which need to be reviewed and corrected against your family’s documents. I am eager to do.

So yes, it would be very helpful if you, Sarah’s family members, can provide the correct documents and stories. I’ve been in touch with a few relatives and I think it would be great if we could all sit at the table and tell Sarah’s very important story with all the facts straight. I also read a recent article: “Descendants of Sarah Rector Thriving in K.C.” which was printed this past March in the Kansas City Call. I was surprised at how little the family knew about Sarah’s early years, the court battles over her guardianship and the attempts made not just by whites, but even a close relative, to dupe her out of money.

All this said, I think we can help each other. I invite you to email me at spatton@naacpldf.org. There is so much we can learn and so much that still needs to be uncovered.

Stacey Patton
Senior Editor