Lionel Richie Faces His Family’s Painful Past | Season 2 Episode 5 | Who Do You Think You Are

[00:00:00]Tonight, Lionel Richie is on a search to uncover [music] his family's secrets.

[00:00:04]>> I'm on the hunt.

[00:00:05]>> Along the way, he encounters a mysterious greatgrandfather.

[00:00:09]>> Lewis Brown.

[00:00:10]>> That's powerful right here.

[00:00:11]>> Who helps him [music] understand the meaning of liberation.

[00:00:14]>> He was the national leader that helped propel [music] the modern civil rights movement.

[00:00:19]>> Are you kidding me?

[00:00:20]>> And before his hunt is over.

[00:00:21]>> So now, what happened to him?

[00:00:23]>> Lionel will [music] unearth a disturbing truth that will shake him to his core.

[00:00:27]This is about as close to a spiritual awakening as I've ever had in my entire life.

[00:00:36][music] Heat. Heat.

[00:00:50][music] [music] >> [music] >> With a successful music career [music] spanning over four decades, Oscar and Grammyinning singer and songwriter Lionel Richie has sold over 100 million albums worldwide. [music] >> Easy like Sunday morning.

[00:01:30]>> Lionel has three children and lives in Los Angeles, but was born in Tuskegee, [music] Alabama. He was raised on the campus of the Tuskegee Institute, a highly respected, historically black university where both his mother and his grandmother were teachers. The family home consisted of my grandmother, my mom, my father, my sister. I grew up knowing that everything was available and possible.

[00:01:59]Imagine [music] during the civil rights movement, every black guy I knew had access to a PhD or they were a lawyer.

[00:02:05]It was not like growing up in the rural south. And so we called [music] Tuskegee the bubble.

[00:02:12]And while we're afforded a lot of opportunity by living in that bubble, there was another aspect to that. Our parents protected us from from everything.

[00:02:24]They didn't tell us that there was segregation.

[00:02:28]They didn't tell us.

[00:02:30]If the clan was coming to protest through the streets of Tuskegee, our parents put us to bed early.

[00:02:38]Was I sheltered when I was growing up?

[00:02:40]Absolutely.

[00:02:42]But the Commodores gave me that opportunity to kind [music] of go out and see the real world because the blinders were off and I was able to understand my mother and father and the community a lot better and I could appreciate them a lot more.

[00:02:58]I didn't realize it, but I was [music] standing on the shoulders of giants, people who struggled and overcame [music] great obstacles to create the secure and nurturing environment in which I I was raised. But I have no [music] idea who the giants in my family are, who paved the way for my parents, and ultimately for me.

[00:03:19]So my goal right now in this part of my life is to find out the names and the faces and the places of those giants um so that I can pass this information on to my kids so they can rise to the occasion.

[00:03:36]>> Hey dad, >> I'm getting ready to leave town.

[00:03:38]>> Where you going?

[00:03:39]>> I think where I'm going to start out is Tuskegee uh with Auntie Deborah and we're going to find some interesting stuff on our ancestry.

[00:03:46]>> All right, daddy.

[00:03:47]>> Okay, guys. Be good. All right, baby.

[00:03:49]Love you.

[00:03:50]>> Love you.

[00:03:51]>> Byebye. You two.

[00:03:52]>> Bye.

[00:03:54]>> I'm off to Tuskegee, Alabama to meet up with my younger sister, Deborah, at our grandmother's house where we were raised.

[00:04:01]>> Deb and I spent much of our youth living with grandma Foster. And while we heard many stories about her mother, Valinda, we have absolutely no idea who our grandmother's father was. She never talked about him. Deborah is the keeper of the family photos and has been doing some research for me. So, I'm curious to see what she's been able to dig up.

[00:04:20]>> Here we go. This should be quite interesting.

[00:04:23]>> I got a lot to show you.

[00:04:24]>> Uh-oh. It don't scare me now.

[00:04:27]>> Show me what you got.

[00:04:28]>> Well, I've got a few photos for you there.

[00:04:31]>> Wow.

[00:04:32]>> You recognize that face?

[00:04:34]>> That's uh Grandma Adlay Foster, right?

[00:04:36]>> Grandma Foster. [laughter] >> And there is Adley over there >> at age 100. at age 100 and she is probably here about what seven. You know the thing I remember most growing up with her was if she didn't want to talk about it you don't talk about it.

[00:04:55]>> You don't talk about it.

[00:04:56]>> The original don't ask don't tell is [laughter] Grandma Foster.

[00:05:03]>> Okay.

[00:05:04]This is Grandma Foster's social security document.

[00:05:08]>> I ordered it.

[00:05:11]I haven't seen it yet. So, we're looking at it for the first time.

[00:05:15]>> So, >> okay. So, >> oh my gosh, look at that.

[00:05:20]>> Adelaide M.

[00:05:23]>> Brown.

[00:05:25]>> Oh my gosh.

[00:05:26]>> Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.

[00:05:28]>> Father's name, Lewis Brown.

[00:05:32]>> So, this is my greatgrandfather.

[00:05:37]>> That's certainly a revelation. That's powerful right here. I love that.

[00:05:43]>> I can't believe it. After all these years, I finally know the name of Grandma Foster's father. But I still don't [music] know why she never talked about him.

[00:05:52]>> So, for grandma to fill out that card, she knew it was Brown >> and she just didn't tell anybody.

[00:06:00]>> No. Don't ask. Don't tell.

[00:06:02]>> But here's the [music] here's the kick.

[00:06:05]She was born in Nashville, Tennessee.

[00:06:08]>> Nashville? Wow. Well, my dear, I'm going to take this with me.

[00:06:13]>> Thank you very much.

[00:06:14]>> Since I know the name of my grandmother's father, I'm headed to her birthplace, Nashville, to try to find some clues regarding the man she never talked about.

[00:06:27]I'm meeting with the genealogologist Mark Low at the Nashville Public Library.

[00:06:32]>> How are you?

[00:06:34]>> All right, we have a social security application here. My grandmother was born here in Nashville in 1893. I know my great-grandmother uh Belinda. But now father's name, Lewis Brown. How do we find more about him?

[00:06:51]>> Well, with that information, this is the marriage book for this time period.

[00:06:55]>> Gosh.

[00:06:56]>> Why don't we look for a marriage maybe two to three years before >> your grandmother was born between Melinda Vertosa and Lewis Brown. 1891 under Brown, right?

[00:07:09]We have here George Brown. Nope.

[00:07:13]>> Not there in 1891. So, let's back up to 1890.

[00:07:16]>> 90. All right, let's move back. Well, here we are. Thomas Brown, JL, Valinda Vatalson. Here we are. Wow.

[00:07:27]Valinda, right here.

[00:07:28]>> This is the date the marriage was issued.

[00:07:30]>> April 6th, 1890. Is that it?

[00:07:33]>> Yes.

[00:07:34]>> Unbelievable.

[00:07:37]>> J [music] L. So, what was J?

[00:07:40]>> Well, I have another document to show you.

[00:07:43]>> What is this?

[00:07:44]>> This is what's called a complaint.

[00:07:46]>> Uh, Belinda Brown versus John Lewis Brown.

[00:07:50]>> Right.

[00:07:51]>> All right. So, now we've got that name out.

[00:07:54]>> This is 1897, >> right?

[00:07:57]>> Very good.

[00:07:58]>> Been married seven years.

[00:07:59]>> Seven years. and he's a resident of Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee.

[00:08:07]>> Chattanooga, Tennessee.

[00:08:08]>> Which means he's not currently living >> in Nashville >> where Belindver is still living.

[00:08:14]>> So this is basically a divorce.

[00:08:16]>> Yes.

[00:08:18]>> Wow.

[00:08:20]>> So perhaps the complaint will tell us more about the circumstances.

[00:08:25]>> They were married in Nashville, Tennessee. She was about 15 years old at the time of her marriage and the defendant was about 50.

[00:08:39]Wow.

[00:08:41]50 and 15.

[00:08:43]>> How could they do that in the first place? Was that legal?

[00:08:45]>> It was. At the time the the common law was in effect and she could have been as young as 12.

[00:08:50]>> That's the law at the time. Older than 12.

[00:08:53]>> Didn't change till 1899. about 10 years after that. But that was not uncommon for elder men to marry younger women.

[00:09:01]>> I have a 12-year-old daughter. I this would be shotgun in hand today. Are you kidding me?

[00:09:06]>> And evidently, this is the things that that she says give her grounds for divorce.

[00:09:12]>> Yeah. She said, uh, I'll let you read this. Because of the difference in their ages, she could not comply with his way of thinking until it reached a point complainant could no longer stand it.

[00:09:24]Therefore, complainant prays that the matrimony be dissolved.

[00:09:33]>> Ow.

[00:09:35]>> So, there's one more document related to this divorce.

[00:09:38]>> Okay.

[00:09:38]>> This one is called the final decree.

[00:09:40]>> And this is from the judge.

[00:09:42]>> Correct.

[00:09:42]>> All I can see here is the date. July 26, 1897 and I can't >> Okay. Well, basically the judge found that that she was abandoned for a period of more than 2 years and the divorce is granted.

[00:09:56]>> Wow.

[00:09:57]>> And remember that based on those ages, if he's 57, being born in in 1840, >> she would have been born in 1875. And that clearly are from two worlds.

[00:10:06]>> Absolutely. We know Valinda was born free after emancipation, but there's the possibility that that John Lewis could have been born as a slave free. We don't know yet.

[00:10:16]>> If he was a slave when he was born, could have been a a complete different mindset.

[00:10:21]>> So, probably there's some other records to get to that point to learn more about who John Lewis Brown was. Oh, >> I love that. Thank you, Mark. [music] >> Well, the age difference might have had something to do with my greatgrandparents divorce, but there's got to be more to this story.

[00:10:37]What kind of man leaves his wife and child?

[00:10:42]>> Lionel Richie is heading to the Metro Archives in Nashville, searching for information on his mysterious greatgrandfather, John Lewis Brown.

[00:10:50]>> I know that my great-grandfather left his wife and child. But now I want to find out why he would do such a thing.

[00:10:57]So, I'm meeting [music] with historian Don Doyle. I'm trying to find my grand greatgrandfather.

[00:11:02]>> Okay, this is a city directory from 1885.

[00:11:06]But let's see if we can't find.

[00:11:08]>> These pages are as soft as butter.

[00:11:11]Brown.

[00:11:15]Brown.

[00:11:18]J. Lewis. SGA. Knights of Wise Men.

[00:11:23]>> What is that?

[00:11:24]>> Sounds to me like some kind of a fraternal order. Some kind of an organization.

[00:11:29]>> It does like the Masons. Or if it would be a wouldn't be a fraternity.

[00:11:36]Now you know what you've done. You've only stoked my curiosity. Okay?

[00:11:40]>> Because if we can go back this far, we got to go back some more.

[00:11:46]>> We've got one more city directory. This is from 1880.

[00:11:49]>> 1880.

[00:11:50]>> And so let's let's catch him just 5 years back a little bit earlier and see what we see. Now this one is >> I'll let you >> not only falling apart, it is a part.

[00:12:00]Yes.

[00:12:00]>> So let me see if I can >> Holy cow. It is a part.

[00:12:07]John here, >> John L. Brown, editor of Knights of Wise Men. So now, whatever SGAA meant, we now know that he is an editor of something called the Knights of Wise Men. This tells you just by the the names here again that he's involved. He's he's must be literate. He's an >> editor. I was going to say I was going to say he's the editor. This is this is a schooled guy.

[00:12:33]>> Yes. the Knights of Wise Men. We got to figure out what that's all about.

[00:12:37]>> I think you need someone who's an expert more on fraternal organizations and who can help you on this more >> very good >> esoteric branch of history.

[00:12:45]>> Good.

[00:12:46]>> All right, I'm on the hunt.

[00:12:48]>> It's so thrilling to learn that my great-grandfather [music] was involved in such a mysterious organization. But just who are the Knights [music] of Wise Men? And what on earth is an SGAA?

[00:12:59]I'm meeting with an expert on African-American fraternal organizations to find out more.

[00:13:05]>> I'm in search of this SGAA, Knights of the Wise Men.

[00:13:09]>> Well, I think I can help you with that.

[00:13:11]The Knights of the Wise Men, this was a fraternal order that also had a benefit for its members. The organization helped build bonds of community between African-American men. It was an institution that provided financial benefits to all of its members for sickness as well as in death.

[00:13:31]>> So this is basically an insurance policy or an insurance company basically.

[00:13:36]>> So to some degree [music] >> it's the precursor of what we think of as modern insurance companies.

[00:13:42]>> You are kidding me.

[00:13:43]>> Remember at this time [music] white organizations were completely separate and did not admit African-Americans.

[00:13:49]>> Are you kidding me?

[00:13:51]The Knights of Wise Men was founded in 1879 to address the needs of the black community. [music] For a brief period after the Civil War, African-Ameans participated in southern government and implemented [music] social reform. But they were soon pushed out by a white community that reversed the progress toward racial equality.

[00:14:10]Facing the future with few resources and virtually no public help, visionary leaders like JL Brown took action and created institutions to assist African-Americans.

[00:14:20]The Knights of Wise Men became one of several national African-American fraternal orders in the 19th century.

[00:14:26]And by 1882, the organization had grown to 278 lodges.

[00:14:32]These were the prototypes of the organizations [music] that helped propel the modern civil rights movement.

[00:14:40]>> Wow.

[00:14:41]>> So what does SGAA mean?

[00:14:43]>> SGAA stands for Supreme Grand Archon. He wasn't just the member of the organization. He was the leader, the national leader of the organization.

[00:14:56]>> And he had the presence of mind to think like this on on this level.

[00:15:01]Not just locally >> but nationally.

[00:15:06]>> That was not what I was expecting.

[00:15:08][laughter] >> If you look at this will give you some hint of just how important he was.

[00:15:16]>> Knights of the wise men rules laws and regulations.

[00:15:21]JL Brown, Supreme Archon.

[00:15:25]He was not only the leader but he wrote the rules, laws [music] and regulations of the order.

[00:15:32]>> What JL Brown was at the forefront in building a significant institution to meet the needs of African-Ameans across the nation.

[00:15:42]>> Unbelievable.

[00:15:43]This is unbelievable.

[00:15:45]>> So So you have you have >> we have more >> more. Are you [clears throat] telling me from this you have more? This is coming from the Daily Times in Chattanooga, Tennessee from 1891.

[00:15:56]What this article uh informs us of is what's happened to the Knights of Wise Men.

[00:16:01]>> Ah, very good. It says here, Chattanooga has the strongest lodge of wise men outside of this city. The organization has precipitably weakened since the smallox epidemic of 1885 when the backbone of the wise men was broken by excessive drain upon the treasury.

[00:16:24]>> What happened was the or knights of wise men had to pay out of their treasury these death benefits.

[00:16:30]>> Exactly.

[00:16:30]>> So as those death benefits mounted the treasury was depleted.

[00:16:34]>> Depleted. It says the Knights of the Wise Men is in a quandry concerning the whereabouts of their Supreme Secretary treasurer SR Walker of Nashville.

[00:16:46]Walker [music] as supreme treasurer of the wise men of the United States handle considerable money but was not required to give bond or secure funds placed in his hands. So So it means now it is clear the treasurer ran off with the money.

[00:17:03]>> That's right. So, a little uh 6 years after the smallox epidemic of 1885, we have SR Walker taking what's left in the treasury and leaving Nashville.

[00:17:17]>> That was devastating.

[00:17:19]>> My great-grandfather, was he involved in this?

[00:17:22]>> Interestingly enough, the account that we have does not implicate [music] your great-grandfather.

[00:17:27]>> Very good. So, now what happened? we see that [music] the wise men, although they're still mentioned in books uh as late as 1915, [music] it's no longer a nationwide organization. It's no longer this healthy vital organization.

[00:17:44]So now [music] that explains the the marriage fell apart during this period.

[00:17:51]So it's it's it's understandable now in my head why the marriage fell apart on top of the fact that the age difference uh but also the business the business that he had established was now falling apart and he was trying to spend as much time as he could probably trying to resurrect this or to to clear it up and so I can it makes sense [music] to me what he what his mindset was at that particular time.

[00:18:20]Thank you very much. You've been amazing.

[00:18:22]>> Hey, I enjoy it.

[00:18:22]>> Appreciate it. My great-grandfather went from >> from being in my mind maybe a scoundrel >> all the way to being one of the pioneers of this of the civil rights movement. I mean, I I'm extremely proud. And now I'm heading to Chattanooga. [music] It seems that JL Brown moved there after the demise of the Nashville branch of the Knights of Wisemen. I really want [music] to find out what happened to my great-grandfather.

[00:18:52]>> Mil Richie's search for the ancestral secrets that his family kept [music] from him has brought him to Chattanooga, Tennessee. After finding his great-grandfather's name on ancestry.com, listed in Chattanooga on the 1900 [music] census, Lionel is heading to the public library. He's meeting with local historian Lef Frederick [music] Thurkill, looking for information that might continue to link JL Brown to the troubled organization he founded, the Knights of Wise Men.

[00:19:17]>> I'm hoping you can help me.

[00:19:19]>> Well, you you came to the right place and and you'll be surprised that we were able to find him here. I've got him in 1929 city directory in Chattanooga.

[00:19:30]>> Oh, come on. 1929.

[00:19:33]So, born in 1840 makes him pretty much around 90 years old.

[00:19:37]>> Yes.

[00:19:38]Boy, he lived a long time. That explains a lot about my grandmother. She lived to be She lived to be 10 um three.

[00:19:46]>> Wow. Wow.

[00:19:47]>> So, I love this family. Jean.

[00:19:52]Ah, here we go. John L. He is now is that caretaker?

[00:20:00]>> Yes.

[00:20:01]>> At the Pleasant Garden Cemetery.

[00:20:03]>> Yes.

[00:20:05]To think that probably the Knights of the Wise Men [music] as the organization or as the business is no longer >> that's is somewhat unclear. But we do know that he worked for a long time.

[00:20:16]>> So I'm taking that he is now working to eat working to live basically working to to maintain his life.

[00:20:24]>> Yes.

[00:20:27]>> Caretaker at 90.

[00:20:28]>> Pleasant Gardens wasn't a small cemetery. It's 22 to 23 acres big. So, can if you can imagine, >> are you kidding me? 20 some odd acres is not a small temperature at all. And of course, to be able to >> to move around on that much property.

[00:20:44]>> Wow.

[00:20:47]Any more information?

[00:20:48]>> Just >> that's the right answer. That's what I'm talking about. Good.

[00:20:54][sighs] Biography and achievements of colored citizens in Chattanooga.

[00:21:00]Got to be kidding me.

[00:21:04]Wow.

[00:21:06]Wow. These are some pretty impressive looking guys here. JW Williams, JL Brown.

[00:21:16]So that's what he looks like.

[00:21:21]I'm noticing, you know, his forehead and my forehead and even to the point of the line, which I don't [music] like to point out the flaws in my face, but he has the same eyes and the same forehead is just unbelievable. It's uncanny.

[00:21:37]Well, I don't know whether this is a write up about him or some of his thoughts is only by our good qualities rightly set forth that [music] we are to succeed in the future.

[00:21:49]First, by education every boy and girl and teaching them from the cradle to the grave. Let us all be wise men and women.

[00:22:01]>> When I read this, I I'm thinking he wants to lift these people up. He is not about, >> you know, don't remind me that I'm poor, >> right?

[00:22:08]>> Don't remind me that I'm not doing well.

[00:22:10]>> Exactly.

[00:22:10]>> Let's talk about the good. Let's talk about going up instead of down.

[00:22:14]>> Very good.

[00:22:17]>> So now, what happened to him? I was able to find one more document.

[00:22:28]>> Wow. What is this?

[00:22:32]Ah, place. This is the death certificate, right? Yes.

[00:22:36]>> There we go. Um, Hamilton County, Chattanooga, Tennessee.

[00:22:41]JL Brown.

[00:22:43]So, now we actually know. Do we know where he was buried? Yes, it's >> Pleasant Gardens.

[00:22:51]>> Pleasant Gardens.

[00:22:52]>> Pleasant Gardens.

[00:22:55]My god. The name here. Morgan Brown.

[00:22:58]Morgan Brown was his father.

[00:23:00]>> Morgan Brown is listed as his father.

[00:23:03]>> Whoa. Here we go. Morgan Brown.

[00:23:07]And mother.

[00:23:08]>> The mother's name is listed as don't know.

[00:23:12]>> Don't you just love records like that?

[00:23:16]But we have Morgan Brown.

[00:23:19]>> I just found out that JL Brown's father, my great greatgrandfather, was Morgan Brown. But I still don't know the name of my [music] great great grandmother.

[00:23:30]>> Pleasant Gardens is [music] still in existence.

[00:23:33]>> Wow. Would you take me there?

[00:23:35]>> Let's go.

[00:23:36]>> Let's go. Come on.

[00:23:37]>> So, I'm on my way to pay my respects to JL Brown at the Pleasant Garden Cemetery. The Frederick tells me that Pleasant Gardens was an African-Americanowned and operated cemetery founded in [music] 1890 and was the primary burial ground for black men and women in Chattanooga.

[00:24:01]This is not exactly what I expected.

[00:24:12]Man, Lionel Richie is in Chattanooga unraveling the mystery surrounding JL Brown.

[00:24:21]>> This is not [music] exactly what I expected.

[00:24:25]He has uncovered that his great-grandfather went from being an influential early civil rights [music] activist to working his last days as a caretaker at a local cemetery.

[00:24:35]Man, >> Lionel is now visiting the cemetery where JL Brown worked and [music] was laid to rest.

[00:24:42]>> Is is a great granddaddy close by?

[00:24:45]>> Yeah, I can show you the area.

[00:24:49]>> Yeah, sure like to see it.

[00:24:54]This portion of the cemetery is the popper section of the cemetery.

[00:25:04]Some do [music] have headstones, but amongst those are many that don't. And uh it is believed that with the information that we had about JL that he is buried in this section of the cemetery.

[00:25:23]I'm [snorts] going to leave you a moment to reflect.

[00:25:26]>> Thank you everybody.

[00:25:31]Appreciate that.

[00:25:37]To know that you're your greatgrandfather walked amongst this and was a part of this. [snorts] It's moving. It's extremely moving. It's just it's hard because you can't really you can't really um we we take so much for granted [snorts] um because we're not face to face with the with the real stories.

[00:26:03]This is about as close to a spiritual awakening as I've ever had in my entire life.

[00:26:11]Even though his circumstances did not work out, I'm sure his his heart was the same throughout.

[00:26:19]He wanted to see the community lifted up. And you know, I am quite proud to be one of the guys that my great-grandfather lifted up.

[00:26:30]But what about his early years? So far, I've learned that [music] JL was born before slavery was abolished and that his father's name was Morgan Brown. but that his [music] mother's name was unknown. So, the question still remains, was my great-grandfather born a slave or a free man. I know the jail was working in Nashville in the 1870s. So, I'm meeting with historian Irvin Jordan to see what else I can dig up.

[00:26:57]What did you find?

[00:26:59]>> Well, well, let's begin with this first document.

[00:27:03]>> [sighs] >> God, it says here, state of Tennessee, uh, colored man's application for pension.

[00:27:10]>> Yes.

[00:27:11]>> Filed September 19, 1924.

[00:27:15]We have a pension back then.

[00:27:17]>> Yes.

[00:27:17]>> 1920.

[00:27:18]>> He was 85.

[00:27:19]>> Wow.

[00:27:21]All right. So now, John L. Brown, uh, a native of the state of Tennessee and who was a servant in the war between the United States and the Confederate States. The Civil War. Wow.

[00:27:38]All right. It says here, "When did you go with the army?" He served May 20th, 1861.

[00:27:46]So that would make him uh 22 years old.

[00:27:49]20 22 years old. So, and here's here's one that just stands out right in front of me. It says, "Give the name of your owner, Morgan W. Brown. Give the name of your owner."

[00:28:01]>> This shows you that he was a slave and that's why the >> owner his owner.

[00:28:05]>> And on on JL Brown's death [music] certificate, the name Morgan Brown was listed as his father.

[00:28:13]>> Uh I'm only assuming that Morgan W.

[00:28:15]Brown and Morgan Brown, the owner, it's uh it's the same guy.

[00:28:21]It's entirely possible.

[00:28:23]>> And it explains to me totally now where it also said on that other document, name of mother unknown.

[00:28:30]>> Ah, that that that touches me right there. That's crazy. [sighs] >> Um, I think the the word that stabbed me through the heart was owner.

[00:28:42]You know, those words are so far away from 2011.

[00:28:48]You know, it's just unbelievable.

[00:28:53]>> Well, thank you.

[00:28:54]>> Thank you so much, doctor.

[00:28:55]>> I'm clear on what I have to do now. I'm >> on the search now for uh Morgan W. Brown and Morgan Brown.

[00:29:03]>> Thank you, professor.

[00:29:04]>> You're very welcome.

[00:29:05]>> Good luck with your search.

[00:29:06]>> So, who is Morgan W. Brown? Owner, father. I need to find the answer.

[00:29:16]Lionel Richie is in Nashville where he's just uncovered [music] some unsettling clues about his great-grandfather.

[00:29:23]According to JL Brown's death certificate, Morgan Brown is listed as his father, but a Morgan W. Brown is listed as JL's owner on the pension application.

[00:29:33]>> Now, I'm back at the Nashville Public Library meeting with historian Jacqueline Jones. I want to find out whether or not Morgan Brown and Morgan [music] W. Brown are one and the same.

[00:29:43]Do you know this guy named Morgan Brown?

[00:29:45]>> Well, it's confusing. Dr. Morgan Brown had a son, Morgan W. Brown.

[00:29:50]>> A, there we go.

[00:29:51]>> So, to avoid confusion, I'm going to refer to the father as Dr. Brown.

[00:29:55]>> Very good.

[00:29:56]>> And the son as Morgan W. Brown.

[00:29:58]>> Very good.

[00:29:59]>> But let me go back and tell you about the doctor. He was a general physician here in Nashville. He owned a working slave plantation on the Cumberland River. So with that little introduction in mind, I have some documents here that you might find interesting. And the first is an excerpt from Dr. Brown's diary.

[00:30:22]>> We found his diary.

[00:30:24]>> Yes, [laughter] >> I love it.

[00:30:25]>> Yes. This is very small writing.

[00:30:28]>> Oh my god. What is this?

[00:30:29]>> It says 1839 here.

[00:30:34]This night at about 10 or 11:00, Mariah had a boy child born. Named him Louis.

[00:30:43]>> Mariah.

[00:30:44]>> Mariah. [music] >> We've now given a name to the mother.

[00:30:47]>> Right. Mariah was one of Dr. Morgan Brown's slaves.

[00:30:55]>> There are several remarkable things about this. It was unusual for a master to make note of the name of a baby [music] born to a slave on a plantation.

[00:31:06]>> Absolutely. He was the father obviously of that that uh that baby also.

[00:31:11]>> Well, we can only speculate, but just keep in mind that Dr. Morgan Brown was about 80 years old. It's not unheard of for an 80year-old to have a child by a woman, but it's it is unusual. Morgan W. Brown was 39.

[00:31:32]>> Wow.

[00:31:32]>> When John Lewis was born.

[00:31:35]>> Got it.

[00:31:36]>> So, we have to go on and look at other pieces of evidence.

[00:31:41]One of the most remarkable documents is >> You mean that wasn't the remarkable document? [laughter] Even more remarkable, I think, is a the will that Dr. Morgan Brown wrote. And this is the original will he wrote. This is the original will.

[00:31:56]>> This is the original. And he wrote it in August of 1839.

[00:32:01]Now, keep in mind that Mariah was pregnant.

[00:32:05]>> So, he's writing this will about the middle of her pregnancy.

[00:32:11]>> So, in his will, Dr. Morgan Brown says that Mariah should be freed from slavery.

[00:32:17]And then he goes on to say once her unborn child is born that he should be freed just like his mother.

[00:32:26]And not only does Dr. Brown leave Mariah a place for her and her son to live, but he also gives [music] my great-grandfather 2 years of schooling.

[00:32:39]Unbelievable.

[00:32:47]That is absolutely unheard of back then.

[00:32:49]>> It's very unusual.

[00:32:50]>> The law was not to educate.

[00:32:52]>> Right. Right. There were many laws that uh outlawed uh slaves becoming literate at all.

[00:32:57]>> Well, it's it's it's pretty clear that Lewis got his education.

[00:33:02]>> Right.

[00:33:03]>> Cuz he was a sharp sharp guy.

[00:33:06]>> Well, now I mean again, this is in his will. Was Mariah freed? Well, we're not sure, but what he's intending is that Mariah and this baby should be free when he dies. And then later in the will, he says she might want to live by herself.

[00:33:25]And if she does, here on my land is where I would like her to have her own little cabin, >> right?

[00:33:31]>> But his son Morgan W.

[00:33:35]was the one who would be carrying out the will. And I think that's one of the big question marks. Did he >> follow through?

[00:33:42]>> It's ambiguous. She might still be categorized legally [music] >> as slave.

[00:33:47]>> As slave, >> but >> she might have some kind of quasi freedom.

[00:33:51]>> This is her This is her property, right?

[00:33:53]>> How about that? I mean, >> I feel so relieved for Mariah >> because, you know, there is some compassion here.

[00:34:04]>> Yes. Let me show you a picture that I have taken from a painting of Morgan W.

[00:34:13]Brown.

[00:34:20]>> She unbelievable.

[00:34:26]>> This is Morgan W. This is the son.

[00:34:27]>> This is the son. This is the son who is possibly your greatgrandfather's father or possibly your great-grandfather's half brother.

[00:34:36][music] >> Unbelievable.

[00:34:41]You know, when we [music] first started this journey, you know, I was always thinking in the back of my head, you know, that we would uncover an ancestor like this.

[00:34:53]But to be standing here face to face with the photograph is pretty uh unnerving on one respect and empowering on another. You know what I'm saying?

[00:35:04]It's um >> because it was a brutal time. It was an extremely brutal time and for Doc Morgan or for Morgan W [music] to even think for a moment to protect what was his was just the greatest gift.

[00:35:32]Doc Morgan, regardless of what the situation was, he wanted to make sure that the kid Lewis was taken care of.

[00:35:40]jail didn't really know what the true suffering was because inside of his bubble, which was the shelter that uh Doc Morgan [music] provided for him, he was able to learn and reason outside of the the pain and agony of slavery. And for me, Tuskegee uh University was my protective uh place. And of course, the same circumstance happens with with JL. You know, it was pretty remarkable.

[00:36:15]Pretty remarkable.

[00:36:20]>> Lionel Richie is back in Los Angeles [music] heading home to his family to reveal the incredible story of his inspirational great-grandfather.

[00:36:27]>> Thank you very much. You know, this amazing journey would not be complete if I didn't share with my younger sister Deborah and two of my children, Miles and Sophia.

[00:36:37]>> You are coming from the genes and the blood of very strong people who actually fought for the freedom, their freedom, and also the freedom of black America.

[00:36:58]You should be very proud to [music] know that that's in your family history.

[00:37:03]So to understand how fortunate we are now, we are here because of their struggle. When we first started this journey, it was interesting because I kept thinking for the longest time that the family was actually keeping a big secret from us because it was just things that were not pleasant. They didn't talk [music] about it. That's just that simple. Valinda married John Lewis Brown. Now that I'm at the end of the journey, I I can honestly say that I don't think that my grandmother withheld the information. Um I think she didn't know.

[00:37:44]>> Your great great great grandmother is Mariah who was a slave. I am in awe of the strength of not only my grandparents and great-grandparents, but just of the strength of black America.

[00:38:03]What this has done for me has kind of given me a sense that I'm standing on these very powerful shoulders of uh of a of a people who just will not take the word uh defeat.

[00:38:18]Um that I'm I'm very very proud very proud to be there.

[00:38:24]>> Through your adventures, was there anything that really struck you the most?

[00:38:32]>> The the the part that moved me the most was that uh JL would been so proud of us because his dream is our reality and it's >> deep breath. Deep breath.

[00:38:50]I love you.

[00:38:51]>> It's done. It's done.

[00:38:52]>> Oh my god.