Biography of George Coleman
[This year in 2010 additional information has been made available by Magellen Brooks, a relative we are meeting for the first time. He is the great-great-grandson of George Coleman and lives in Anaheim, California. He has new details about the Coleman family that helps to bring our history up to date. The additional information from Magellen is underlined and incorporated into the previous history of George Coleman. This data was gleaned from Larece Gilbert of Niles, Michigan who is the second cousin to Primrose Brooks and some is based on U.S. Census records. Primrose Brooks is the mother of Magellen, and great-granddaughter of George Coleman]
We believe that George Coleman lived to be at least 105 years old and maybe even up to 115 years old. George was pure African. He was born a slave, his parents and family were all sold and he was sold three times. His mother (name unknown) was a house slave and worked as the personal maid to the mistress of the plantation. She died either giving birth to George or at least when he was very young. The mistress kept him in the big house and he was somewhat of a companion to her own child. He was taught to read and write. Another relative says his mother asked the last owner not to sell him and he stayed while his family was sold, and he did not see or hear from them again. When he was sixteen years old, he ran away from Virginia to Texas where he lived (hid out) with the Indians. One relative says that he married in Little Rock, Arkansas and from there moved to Texas. Another says that he came from Mississippi to Texas and there he started his family. He married Ilie Polk who was half Cherokee Indian Ilie was known as Grandma Coleman. It was said that she had long, straight black hair that she wore in two braids. Ilie’s mother was Charity Polk who was a slave (according to Aunt Jo, Louisa Coleman Cook Woodard of Crescent, OK.) It is thought that George and Ilie had 18 children.
We are certain that he and Illie Polk settle in Navarro County, started farming and began to raise their family. He moved from Navarro County to Limestone County around Coolidge, Texas in the Sandy Community. From Coolidge, he moved to Waricka, Oklahoma. His son, Nathaniel (Mance) Coleman, was given the home at Sandy where he stayed to raise his family. From Waricka, George Coleman moved to Crescent, Oklahoma where he eventually died after a long life. George was a little, short man. He farmed on land in and around Crescent,. Illie Coleman died in 1944 at the age of 97. They were married 76 years, 3 months and 3 days when she died. George died in 1948. We do know that George and Illie Coleman had at least nine children.
(Pictures courtesy of Magellen Brooks)
[This year in 2010 additional information has been made available by Magellen Brooks, a relative we are meeting for the first time. He is the great-great-grandson of George Coleman and lives in Anaheim, California. He has new details about the Coleman family that helps to bring our history up to date. The additional information from Magellen is underlined and incorporated into the previous history of George Coleman. This data was gleaned from Larece Gilbert of Niles, Michigan who is the second cousin to Primrose Brooks and some is based on U.S. Census records. Primrose Brooks is the mother of Magellen, and great-granddaughter of George Coleman]
We believe that George Coleman lived to be at least 105 years old and maybe even up to 115 years old. George was pure African. He was born a slave, his parents and family were all sold and he was sold three times. His mother (name unknown) was a house slave and worked as the personal maid to the mistress of the plantation. She died either giving birth to George or at least when he was very young. The mistress kept him in the big house and he was somewhat of a companion to her own child. He was taught to read and write. Another relative says his mother asked the last owner not to sell him and he stayed while his family was sold, and he did not see or hear from them again. When he was sixteen years old, he ran away from Virginia to Texas where he lived (hid out) with the Indians. One relative says that he married in Little Rock, Arkansas and from there moved to Texas. Another says that he came from Mississippi to Texas and there he started his family. He married Ilie Polk who was half Cherokee Indian Ilie was known as Grandma Coleman. It was said that she had long, straight black hair that she wore in two braids. Ilie’s mother was Charity Polk who was a slave (according to Aunt Jo, Louisa Coleman Cook Woodard of Crescent, OK.) It is thought that George and Ilie had 18 children.
We are certain that he and Illie Polk settle in Navarro County, started farming and began to raise their family. He moved from Navarro County to Limestone County around Coolidge, Texas in the Sandy Community. From Coolidge, he moved to Waricka, Oklahoma. His son, Nathaniel (Mance) Coleman, was given the home at Sandy where he stayed to raise his family. From Waricka, George Coleman moved to Crescent, Oklahoma where he eventually died after a long life. George was a little, short man. He farmed on land in and around Crescent,. Illie Coleman died in 1944 at the age of 97. They were married 76 years, 3 months and 3 days when she died. George died in 1948. We do know that George and Illie Coleman had at least nine children.
(Pictures courtesy of Magellen Brooks)