The Eigner family descended from the Ibu tribe in Africa. The family began back in the days of slavery when the state of Virginia was in the business of breeding slaves. The first known member of the family was a woman named Adeline. There is not much history on Adeline's life before her arrival in Virginia, however, what we do know is what followed in her life after the birth of her first child, John.
John was sold at birth to a slave buyer from South Carolina named Eigner. In those days people traveled by wagon, buggy, etc. They started from Virginia one night and made camp in the next morning. John's mother followed him to each camp to nurse him. That happened several mornings until they decided that they would never get home, and so they also bought the mother of the baby boy.
John grew to manhood and never took a whipping. He was a talented cabinet maker, shoe cobbler, basket maker, and a good field hand. He was too valuable to be killed.
John saved his money and bought his mother so that she could be a free woman. Later he married Nancy (Horsey) Suber, a part Indian girl who was a slave of the Suber Family. Her father's name was Horsey.
John and Nancy were the parents of eight children; three boys named John Riley, David and Orlando and five girls named Adeline, Annie, Idella, Mae and Ella. his children and his children's children all called him daddy.
John Eigner loved to attend church and would walk about eight miles on Sunday to attend a white Baptist church where he had to sit in the gallery along with the other slaves. The slaves did not have a church of their own and he always longed for a church for black people.
When freedom came, he was given land by the Henderson family to build a home for himself and his family. Instead, he built a church which was named Fellowship because he wanted everyone to fellowship together and worship God in their own way. Fellowship Baptist Church has come from its humble beginning as a brush arbor to the present edifice located in Pomaria, South Carolina.
Here is a photo of my 2nd Great-Grandfather Orlando Eigner. Orlando is the son of John Eigner. In the photo of my Great-Grand Uncle Asa and his family; Asa is Orlando's son.
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