The Black Line
This page is dedicated to the Black line.
Here is the book that I started years ago titled "All I Know About The Black Clan - From George to Leon" October 2013 edition. You can download the pdf it here:
all_i_know_about_the_black_clan_oct_2013.pdf | |
File Size: | 4204 kb |
File Type: |
Here are the images of the sources for the above book "All I Know About The Black Clan - From George to Leon". The file is 30 MB's. You can download this pdf file here:
images_of_source.pdf | |
File Size: | 31911 kb |
File Type: |
Here is the his the history of my Dad titled "The Life of Paul" (the history of Paul Leon Black) that I put together. Download part 2 and 3 for more photos. Note: After you unzip the zipped file, you will have one file along with one folder named "The Life of Paul_Resources".
Keep the SWF file and the resource folder together or you won't hear the
sound. Click on the SWF file. Maximize the widow. Then select "view" and click "Show All." This will maximize the view as much as possible. To
view it best, you need to have the standalone Adobe FlashPlayer 10.2 Project content debugger (EXE, 6.36MB), from here: http://www.adobe.com/support/flashplayer/downloads.html Scroll down a ways - it's under Windows, Macintosh, or Linux. Don't get the browser one - it doesn't zoom well.The two files can be downloaded here:
life_of_paul.zip | |
File Size: | 4760 kb |
File Type: | zip |
life_of_paul_part_2.zip | |
File Size: | 4032 kb |
File Type: | zip |
life_of_paul_3.zip | |
File Size: | 5078 kb |
File Type: | zip |
I thought that I would provide a floor plan and property diagram that I did by memory of our home in Arroyo Grande, California. You can view this below:
Or, for a bigger view of the diagram above, you can down load a pdf doc here:
ag_home_drawing.pdf | |
File Size: | 1632 kb |
File Type: |
Photos of Dad
Paul Leon Black
Paul Leon Black
_________________________________________________________________________________________
* This is an update on Daniel Gordon Black, who was the son of Samuel Jefferson Black and Elizabeth (Schmidt) Black, and Died January 28, 1945. I did not know where he was buried or anything about him. Daniel’s address was at his parent’s house at 810 E. 8th So. Salt Lake City when he was inducted in the army on July 21, 1943 at Ft. Douglas at the age of 18. I found out that he died in June, not January. He died June 28, 1945, at the age of 20, on Northern Luzon, Philippian Island where he was stationed during World War II. He was reported “killed”, “Died Non Battle”, with a Tec-4 grade, and in the 25 infantry Division. Daniel’s body was returned for burial on June 25, 1948 by the ship USAT Sergeant Morris E. Crain from the Pacific. He was then buried on August 4, 1948 in Sunset Lawn Memorial Park (Larkin) Cemetery where his father, Samuel Jefferson Black, is buried. His occupation is listed as a Stenographer and typist and his religion as Protestant.
Luzon, Philippians and the 25th infantry: The 25th Division received orders to land at Luzon in the Philippine Islands on January 11, 1945. Once in country, Divisional units quickly pushed from the Lingayen Gulf to the main highway through Balete Pass where they joined forces with the 32d Infantry Division. By the time the 25th captured the Balete Pass, it had suffered more combat deaths than any other U.S. Division in the Philippines. With the Battle of Luzon at a close, "Tropic Lightning" was moved to Camp Patrick to prepare for the invasion of Japan.
In 165 days of continuous active combat in the Philippines, the 25th accounted for more than 6,000 Japanese killed and set the record for combat endurance in the Pacific Theater of Operations. The record was recognized with the Philippine Presidential Unit Citation as well as six other unit citations.
So it looks like Daniel Gordon was involved in this battle and maybe hand-in hand combat. The Japanese surrendered on August 15, 1945 and Daniel died less than two months before that. However the record shows that he was not killed during battle.
Sources:
a) Death Certificate of Daniel Gordon Black.
b) Ancestry.com, U.S. Rosters of World War II Dead, 1939-1945.
c) Ancestry.com, U.S. World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946.
d) Daniel G Black Military Records, from Ancestry.com, five cards shown.
In 165 days of continuous active combat in the Philippines, the 25th accounted for more than 6,000 Japanese killed and set the record for combat endurance in the Pacific Theater of Operations. The record was recognized with the Philippine Presidential Unit Citation as well as six other unit citations.
So it looks like Daniel Gordon was involved in this battle and maybe hand-in hand combat. The Japanese surrendered on August 15, 1945 and Daniel died less than two months before that. However the record shows that he was not killed during battle.
Sources:
a) Death Certificate of Daniel Gordon Black.
b) Ancestry.com, U.S. Rosters of World War II Dead, 1939-1945.
c) Ancestry.com, U.S. World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946.
d) Daniel G Black Military Records, from Ancestry.com, five cards shown.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
The Berry Line
Which includes the Maples, Berry, and Glover Lines
This is from a 45 page pdf document that I typed up so you can download it. You can download them here:
berry_maple_glover_line.pdf | |
File Size: | 1298 kb |
File Type: |
The Black Line Could Be Scottish
My son sparked an interest in looking into Scottish ancestry as a possible oversea link to our family bloodline. I know that our line ends in South Carolina. And that George Washington Black was born in South Carolina; probably in the 1820's. But, this is where our Black line abruptly comes to a halt. However, I started looking at where the name Black could have originated from. I found out that there could be several places such as Germany where the surname of Black could have been derived from the name of Schwartz. But most likely, the surname Black probably originated from Scotland; where the name was common. I found that the Black name was one of several family names that came out of the MacLean clan of Scotland. Some of these families from this "Black" line came over seas to the Americas and settled in North Carolina and South Carolina.
Black — from either Old English bla(e)c "black"; or OE bla'c "bright, white, or pale"; or from the Gaelic names M'Ille Dhuibh or Mac Gille Dhuibh, "son of the black lad". Allied with Clans Lamont, MacGregor and Maclean.
The Celtic culture began spread throughout Europe starting about 700 BC. It is said that they reached Ireland and by 500 BC. Some believe that the Celts are part of the Ten "lost" Tribes of Israel. And, that the Irish people are a mixture of Celts. That they are a mixture of Danaans, Milesians, Judah/Zarahites (of the "Red Hand" - Genesis 38:28-30), and that the (Dan-ish) Vikings and Norsemen and are all racially cousins. It is also belived by some that the Celtic culture originated from the Kurgan-culture just north of the Black Sea.
After reaching Ireland in about 500 BC, and for the next 1,000 years, these Celtic people formed kingdoms that were ruled by chieftains. One of these chieftains ruled the Dalriada kingdom in Northern Ireland; which is now Antrim County. It was probably Fergus Mor Mac Earca (Fergus the Great) that was the chieftain at the time of the expansion of the Dalriada or Dal Riada kingdom into what is known today as Scotland or the land of thee Picts. The McLeans claim lineage from the Kings of the Dalirada.
From about 55 BC to 409 AD, the Romans occupied the Caledonia region (Scotland today). This area was originally the land of the Picts. Because the Romans withdrew from Britain including the land of the Picts, in about 409 AD, this area was probably an attractive place to establish the expansion of Dalriada kingdom. No one knows exactly who the Picts were. Some say they can from the Scandinavia countries and were Viking in origin. Some say they are Basque or Celts from Spain. The earliest records of the Romans mentioned the Picts in 297 AD. The invasion into the land of the Picts by Northern Irish Celts, seem to be a peaceful one because it is said that there were intermarriages that took place between the two groups. It is said that every Scottish clan has some Pictish blood.
About 500 AD, a tribe of Celts from Dál Riata, in the Northern Ireland, began to establish themselves on the west coast in what we recognize today as Scotland. This new kingdom was called the Kingdom of Dalriada and they called themselves “Scoti”. The oldest or earliest formed clan was the MacLean clan. Many septs or divisions of families or branches were formed from the many established clans. The Black sept was one of the many families that branched from the MacLean Clan. Whether this Black sept were a part of the Maclean clan through blood, through marriage, or through being an ally of the clan, it is unclear. Many times a family would become an ally for protection during difficult times, so they became a family of the clan but took another name, however, they were still considered part of the clan and had the rights equally shared with them.
According to John Patterson, as stated in his book “A History of the Clan Mac Lean from Its First Settlement at Duard Castle, in...” printed in 1889, page 26, “The home of the MacLeans is the island of Mull, and here the clan originated.”
As early as the 1600’s, many of the Europeans began to immigrate to the Americas. Many of these were Scottish and Scots-Irish people that were seeking freedom and new opportunity. Many of the Scottish emigrants settled in the Carolinas and moved inland to the “Backcounty” because the coastal land was already occupied. The main emigration into South Carolina was in 1684 by the Presbyterians who were fleeing persecution from the Episcopal form of government in Scotland. Some were criminals that were exiled from Scotland. And, some were indentured because of their poverty.
Later townships formed in South Carolina from 1762 through 1764 and according to Theresa M. Hicks, the "Chester county (around the Rocky creek area) and Abbeville county (around Long Canes) became the new home of Presbyterians primarily from Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, and Ireland". Originally, Chester County, South Carolina was located within Tryon County, North Carolina. Tryon County was formed from Mecklenburg County in 1768 and abolished in 1779 to form Rutherford and Lincoln counties in North Carolina. At its formation and until the border survey of 1772, Tryon County included all or portions of the South Carolina counties of York, Chester, Union, Spartanburg and Cherokee counties. Records of early ancestors who lived in the current area of Chester County may be found in any of these counties, including the North Carolina counties of Lincoln, Rutherford and Mecklenburg and their neighbors.
The county was formed in 1785 was part of the larger Camden District but was later transferred to Pinckney District (1791-1800); it became a separate district in 1800. Scotch-Irish settlers from Pennsylvania and Virginia moved into this upstate region beginning about 1755.
The Celtic culture began spread throughout Europe starting about 700 BC. It is said that they reached Ireland and by 500 BC. Some believe that the Celts are part of the Ten "lost" Tribes of Israel. And, that the Irish people are a mixture of Celts. That they are a mixture of Danaans, Milesians, Judah/Zarahites (of the "Red Hand" - Genesis 38:28-30), and that the (Dan-ish) Vikings and Norsemen and are all racially cousins. It is also belived by some that the Celtic culture originated from the Kurgan-culture just north of the Black Sea.
After reaching Ireland in about 500 BC, and for the next 1,000 years, these Celtic people formed kingdoms that were ruled by chieftains. One of these chieftains ruled the Dalriada kingdom in Northern Ireland; which is now Antrim County. It was probably Fergus Mor Mac Earca (Fergus the Great) that was the chieftain at the time of the expansion of the Dalriada or Dal Riada kingdom into what is known today as Scotland or the land of thee Picts. The McLeans claim lineage from the Kings of the Dalirada.
From about 55 BC to 409 AD, the Romans occupied the Caledonia region (Scotland today). This area was originally the land of the Picts. Because the Romans withdrew from Britain including the land of the Picts, in about 409 AD, this area was probably an attractive place to establish the expansion of Dalriada kingdom. No one knows exactly who the Picts were. Some say they can from the Scandinavia countries and were Viking in origin. Some say they are Basque or Celts from Spain. The earliest records of the Romans mentioned the Picts in 297 AD. The invasion into the land of the Picts by Northern Irish Celts, seem to be a peaceful one because it is said that there were intermarriages that took place between the two groups. It is said that every Scottish clan has some Pictish blood.
About 500 AD, a tribe of Celts from Dál Riata, in the Northern Ireland, began to establish themselves on the west coast in what we recognize today as Scotland. This new kingdom was called the Kingdom of Dalriada and they called themselves “Scoti”. The oldest or earliest formed clan was the MacLean clan. Many septs or divisions of families or branches were formed from the many established clans. The Black sept was one of the many families that branched from the MacLean Clan. Whether this Black sept were a part of the Maclean clan through blood, through marriage, or through being an ally of the clan, it is unclear. Many times a family would become an ally for protection during difficult times, so they became a family of the clan but took another name, however, they were still considered part of the clan and had the rights equally shared with them.
According to John Patterson, as stated in his book “A History of the Clan Mac Lean from Its First Settlement at Duard Castle, in...” printed in 1889, page 26, “The home of the MacLeans is the island of Mull, and here the clan originated.”
As early as the 1600’s, many of the Europeans began to immigrate to the Americas. Many of these were Scottish and Scots-Irish people that were seeking freedom and new opportunity. Many of the Scottish emigrants settled in the Carolinas and moved inland to the “Backcounty” because the coastal land was already occupied. The main emigration into South Carolina was in 1684 by the Presbyterians who were fleeing persecution from the Episcopal form of government in Scotland. Some were criminals that were exiled from Scotland. And, some were indentured because of their poverty.
Later townships formed in South Carolina from 1762 through 1764 and according to Theresa M. Hicks, the "Chester county (around the Rocky creek area) and Abbeville county (around Long Canes) became the new home of Presbyterians primarily from Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, and Ireland". Originally, Chester County, South Carolina was located within Tryon County, North Carolina. Tryon County was formed from Mecklenburg County in 1768 and abolished in 1779 to form Rutherford and Lincoln counties in North Carolina. At its formation and until the border survey of 1772, Tryon County included all or portions of the South Carolina counties of York, Chester, Union, Spartanburg and Cherokee counties. Records of early ancestors who lived in the current area of Chester County may be found in any of these counties, including the North Carolina counties of Lincoln, Rutherford and Mecklenburg and their neighbors.
The county was formed in 1785 was part of the larger Camden District but was later transferred to Pinckney District (1791-1800); it became a separate district in 1800. Scotch-Irish settlers from Pennsylvania and Virginia moved into this upstate region beginning about 1755.
I found the following information from http://www.angelfire.com/tn/blackfamily/. Here's what is written:
Surname/Origins
The Black surname does not have a single country of origin, being a common name in several countries. Schwartz, for instance, was a common German surname which was translated as Black when Germans settled in colonial America. In Russia, Chernoff appears to be the equivalent to the Black surname. However, most Blacks trace their origins to the British Isles where Black is relatively common as a surname. In fact, Black is among the 50 most common surnames in Scotland. It is somewhat less common in England, primarily confined to the Northern Ireland counties in Ireland, and virtually non-existent in Wales. According to one source, here in the States, it ranks 139th on a list of the most common surnames.
Dr. George Fraser Black, former director of the New York Public Library and author of "Surnames of Scotland," said the Black surname was common in St. Andrews and Prestwick, Scotland, in the 15th and 16th centuries and was very common in Edinburgh in the 17th century.
Blak, Blac, and Blake were variations of the name common to the Lanark, Scotland area in the 14th century at the time when surnames were developing and becoming more common in popular usage. According to Dr. Black, many of the Blacks of Scotland actually originated within Clan Lamont (old Norse for "lawman"), indicating possible ancestral origins prior to Scotland in Scandinavia or northern Europe.
Other sources indicate the Black surname was prominent in Lincolnshire, England, but that many of these Blacks migrated to Angus, Scotland (Dundee, Forfar, Firth of Tay region), and eventually lost their identity when significant numbers of the Lamont, MacGregor, and MacLean clans of the Scottish Highlands changed their names to Black (or other colors such as White or Green) after the clan names were proscribed by King James. The action by the King and Parliament was due in part to the ongoing fighting among the clans including some long-term bloody disputes between Clan Campbell and Clan MacGregor and its allies. The primary ancestral home for many Scottish "Blacks" (clan sept: Lamont, MacGregor, and MacLean), would be in Argyll, Cowal, Bute, eastward to the Renfrew, Glasgow, Lanark regions of central Scotland.
At least some Blacks were not Highlanders. They came from the Scottish Lowlands and the border country between Scotland and England and some were part of King James' Protestant settlement of Northern Ireland in the very early 1600s. These Blacks lived in Northern Ireland for a couple of generations before becoming part of the massive Ulster-Scots/Scots-Irish migration to America between 1720-1780.
Immigrants generally arrived in the Carolinas by one of three primary migration routes: (1) Germans and Scots-Irish arrived at Philadelphia, traveling down the Great Wagon Road through the Appalachian Valley, often settling for a time in Virginia before moving on into the Piedmont and Foothills of the Carolinas; (2) Highland Scots arrived at Wilmington and moved up the Cape Fear River to present-day Fayetteville NC; and (3) English, Scots and some Scotch-Irish arrived at Charleston SC, migrating inland into central and upstate South Carolina and on into the Charlotte region of NC, following the fresh water supplies along the Ashley-Cooper, Congaree, and Catawba River systems.
Overview
The Black surname has been present in the Cleveland/Rutherford/Old Tryon counties area of the Carolinas since the days of Colonial America.
As early as 1765, settlers named Black apparently lived on homesteads in what is modern day eastern Rutherford County and upper Cleveland County NC. The same land originally was considered part of Anson County 1750-1762, Mecklenburg County 1762-1769, and Tryon County 1769-1779 (Tryon encompassed segments of NC and SC prior to the settlement of a border dispute).
In 1764, when the region was still part of Mecklenburg County, a Mecklenburg schoolmaster, Peter Duncan, was granted some 640 acres of land on "both sides of Little Broad River" (i.e., the south side of First Broad River). Duncan's land was located at the mouth of a creek, known today as Duncan's Creek, on Highway 226 in Cleveland County. On that same date, Issac Hinton was granted 200 acres along another nearby creek, known today as Hinton Creek.
According to "Rutherford County 1979: A People's Bicentennial History" (Library Press, Inc., Rutherfordton NC, 1980), Duncan sold his property in two tracts in 1765. The northern portion was sold to Richard Ward (Ward's Creek/Ward's Gap in present day Cleveland County). The southern portion, on Duncan Creek, was sold to Thomas Black, a Mecklenburg farmer, who had the land re-surveyed and officially defined as a 563 acre tract. (This Thomas is not part of my direct line of ancestry but was likely related to my line.)
With the creation of Rutherford and Lincoln counties in NC about 1779, families with the Black surname were residing in the Second Regiment (eastern portion) of Old Rutherford County. By the early 1800s, the family resided in the Mt. Moriah community, near present-day Casar ("Upper Cleveland County"). From the 1780s to the 1840s this area where the Blacks lived and farmed was very near the boundary line of the old Rutherford and old Lincoln counties, from which Cleveland County was formed in 1841.
Lineage
Here is a brief listing of one line of the Blacks who resided in Cleveland-Rutherford-Old Tryon.
Amos Thomas Black - Born April 29, 1921, in Shelby, N.C. Died May 19, 1984, in Gastonia, N.C. Married Libby Brooks, Dec. 23, 1950 in York, S.C. Amos was a WWII Army veteran who served with HQ Company, 12th Armored Division ("Hellcats"), in Europe, subsequently receiving an honorable discharge on a certificate of disability in July 1945. He grew up in Cleveland County, but lived as an adult in Gaston County where he was a textile worker. Buried at Gaston Memorial Park in Gastonia. Children: Thom and John.
Columbus Marion Black - Born April 8, 1888, at "Head of the Rivers" in Rutherford County, N.C. Died March 24, 1955, following a three-month illness, at the Gardner-Webb Clinic in Boiling Springs, N.C. "Lum," as he was called by his friends, was a farmer. He married Bertha Irene Ledford on Sept. 28, 1913. Both are buried at Pleasant Ridge Baptist Church, in Swainsville (near Shelby), where they were long-time members. Children: D.C., Clingman, Alfie, Amos. (D.C. served in the Pacific Theatre during WWII with the U.S. Army; Sgt. Clingman R. Black, U.S. Army 27th Infantry Division, "The New York Division," was killed in the battle for Saipan.)
Thomas Marion Black -Born Oct. 15, 1859, in the Moriah Community of Upper Cleveland. Died Oct. 5, 1934. Married Rebecca (Beckie) Waters of the Moriah community in 1882 or '83. Tom's obituary was a front-page item in The Cleveland Star. The article stated, "Mr. Black was born and reared in Upper Cleveland County but had lived in Shelby for 34 years where he had a host of friends." At the time of his death he lived on Hamrick Street in Shelby and was a member of Missionary Methodist Church. He and Beckie were buried at Mt. Moriah Methodist. Children: John, Lexie, Columbus, Joseph, Jamie, Chauncy, Katie, Bassie.
James Black - Born Nov. 18, 1812; died July 2, 1897. He, too, is buried at Mt. Moriah Methodist along with his wife, Jemima Ledford. They were married about 1840 and apparently farmed and lived in the Knob Creek Township for much of their adult lives. Children: John F. (CSA veteran, Company I, 48th N.C. Infantry; wounded at Fredericksburg and on parole list at Appomattox), Rebecca, Solomon, Eliza J., Rachel Jane, Dulcena, William C., Samuel, Thomas, Susan Julia, and Martha H. (In the 1880 Census, James indicated his parents were born in North Carolina whereas Jemima indicated her father, Thomas Ledford, was born in NC but her mother, Rebecca, last name unknown, was born in VA.)
Moses Black - Oral tradition and several secondary sources identify James Black's father as Moses Black of Rutherford County NC. The late Jean Brackett Easterling, Waterford MI, interviewed Thana Wortman of Lawndale NC in 1981 with Ms. Wortman identifying herself as a granddaughter of James and great-granddaughter of Moses. Mrs. Easterling's grandmother, Mary Louisa Angeline Parker, a daughter of Rachel Jane Black and Joseph Parker, also left family records and letters which indicated Moses was Mary Parker's grandfather.
Moses was born circa 1775-80 in North Carolina and apparently lived much of his life in Rutherford County. In the 1830 Rutherford Census Moses was in the 50-60 age group. Ten years prior, in 1820, he would have been 40-50. In the 1820 Rutherford Census both Moses and his wife were in the 26-45 age group. Assuming both census reports are correct, Moses could have been no younger than 40 and no older than 45 in 1820, placing his birth year between 1775 and 1780.
Moses appears in the USGenWeb Archives on the North Carolina militia muster rolls of the War of 1812 (7th Regiment, Rutherford County, Second Company, Capt. Abraham Irvin).
Some of the oral tradition and secondary sources, such as letters, within the family indicate the name of Moses' wife was Patience Condrey. She has tentatively been identified by one researcher as the granddaughter of John and Dorothy Condrey of Chesterfield VA (possibly of Irish or Manx descent). John Condrey was a Revolutionary War soldier who moved to NC sometime after 1780. In the 1850 Census, James Black indicated his father and mother were born in NC. If so, and assuming John to be Patience's grandfather, it would appear that Patience's birth was likely sometime after 1780 in NC.
Moses Black appears in the 1810, 1820 and 1830 Rutherford County Census but is not listed in Rutherford or adjacent counties in 1800 or 1840. According to secondary sources within the family the children of Moses and Patience included: James (m. Jemima Ledford), Rachel Jane (m. Joseph Parker), Rhoda (m. John Randall Willis), Mary Polly (m. John Henry London), possibly one other daughter and one other son of unknown name.
The 1820 Rutherford Census indicates that Moses' neighbors included James Black, William Black, and William Condrey.
The most probable candidate as Moses' father is another James Black, who is buried at Mt. Harmony Methodist Church cemetery near the Cleveland-Rutherford County line (off Highway 226 near Duncan Creek where a state historical marker for the church is posted). The deteriorating gravestone indicates James died Sept. 27, 1827, at the age of 72, placing his birth circa 1755. He is buried next to his wife, Rachel. No dates are given for Rachel but the same gravestone indicates she was 86 at the time of her death.
James apparently did not participate in the Revolutionary War. He does not appear in any Patriot or Loyalist listing.
While there is no documentation to officially make the connection there is considerable circumstantial evidence, i.e., the timeframe of their lives, their geographic proximity to where Moses and his son, also named James, lived as adults, and the naming of Moses' first son and daughter (James and Rachel), that would suggest this James and Rachel were the parents of Moses Black.
Several other individual amateur genealogists have posted GEDcom files on Rootsweb specifically listing James and Rachel as the parents of Moses. These gedcoms also identify one sister of Moses, Lydia, who married Jacob Willis. Several of the GEDcoms also indicate that James, the apparent father of Moses Black, was born in Virginia. Some other secondary sources and oral tradition within the family suggest Moses and Lydia had an older brother, Laban, who appeared on a Rutherford County NC tax list in 1792, and reportedly migrated to Arkansas territory shortly after 1800.
James and Rachel Black's burial site at Mt. Harmony Methodist is adjacent to a number of family plots including such family names as Willis, Hunt, and Parker, names that appear again in marriages within the Black family in subsequent generations.
The Mt. Harmony cemetery, which dates back to the founding of this early Methodist congregation in 1791, includes a large section of unmarked graves. A monument on the site was dedicated to the saints who lie buried "in unmarked graves from this point north to the road and west to the property boundary" and who share in the heritage of Mt. Harmony. As a search of adjacent counties and old cemeteries in the "Old Tryon" region has failed to produce a verifiable gravesite for Moses Black and his wife Patience, it is quite possible, and even probable, that the graves of Moses and Patience are among the unmarked graves at Mt. Harmony.
Continuing along purely speculative lines, the James Black buried at Mt. Harmony may have been the son of Matthew and Mary Black. Matthew and Mary appear on a 1756 tax list in Rockingham County, VA. They relocated to a 100-acre tract of land on Clark's Fork of Bullock Creek in what is present-day York County, SC, about 1765. Their sons were named Gavin, Robert, James, John, and Joseph. Reportedly only Gavin participated in the Revolutionary War as a Patriot whereas all the other sons, including James, were said to have signed an oath of neutrality in 1775.
There were numerous Blacks who received land patents, made land purchases, or appeared on tax lists in the Old Tryon-Old Rutherford region between 1765 and 1785. These landowners and taxpayers are possibly relatives of the James/Moses Black line. Other Blacks who owned land or appeared on tax lists in the region at the approximate time of Moses' birth included James, George, John, Joseph, Patrick, Hugh, and Robert. (George, who was Hugh's father, was a justice of the peace and member of the Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions, a predecessor to today's county commissions, and was a signer of the Tryon Resolves, which predated the Declaration of Independence by nearly a full year.)
Based upon existing circumstantial evidence, I would speculate the the family's colonial-period ancestry may be Scots-Irish with earlier origins, prior to 1600, lying somewhere in the Argyll-Cowal region of Scotland. That speculation is based upon timeframes, areas of residence, indicators of apparent migration patterns, and published information on surname origins and concentrations.