Speakers Corner » Immigration Stories with Jude Rhodes and Kyla Bayang

Many thanks to Ann Rockley, Bill Moore, Diane Burley, Linda Teather, Marian Beaman, Xanthe Hall, and so many others joining us today on Zoom and in the comments section for today’s special Speakers’ Corner program. In today’s program, Jennifer Jones of Tracking Down the Family was joined by Jude Rhodes of Yorkshire Family History, and Kyla Bayang of Rootsquad Roundup.

Your ❤️s, comments, and the ensuing conversation are a gift that helps bring this recording to the attention of others.

This series has proven itself to be full of surprises. Today, our two speakers unwound yarns that began as migration stories about inventors and bootleggers, but told a larger story about the American West during the English Industrial Revolution. In case you missed it, this shared Substack live preview from earlier this week provided some context for today’s talks:

About Jude’s Story

Jude shared the inspiring story of a young man from a coal-mining family in Yorkshire (West Riding at the time) who migrated to America, then returned a few times. After a short interlude as a mill owner, he became an inventor and ultimately a professor. To help listeners from around the world appreciate this story, we’ve included maps:

Image licensing: American states (Creative Commons, By-SA 4.0), West Riding of Yorkshire locator map (historic counties) on Wikipedia, 20 April 2013, attributed to Hogweard. (Creative Commons, By-SA 3.0).

US705926A CONTINUOUS PROCESS OF COKING COAL, HEMINGWAY JOSEPH, Earliest priority: 1901-10-21 • Earliest publication: 1902-07-29. Source: Espacenet Patent Search.

Societies that Jude belongs to:

• British Association for Local History

• Association of Genealogists and Researchers in Archives

• Society of One Place Studies

• Society of Genealogists

About Kyla’s Story

Kyla shared the story of two brothers convicted of bootlegging in Georgia after the Civil War. The story reads like a movie script with escape, recapture, and a promise. Kyla’s shared these photos to provide context:

Spoiler: In the end, he’s “gone to Texas” and marries into the Sheriff’s family.

Inset: Great-grandpa, Daniel Ogle, and two examples of Georgia moonshine stills from the 1920s and, inset, the 1940s.

From Kyla (Ogle) Bayang’s family photo collection: Front is Daniel Ogle, Kyla’s great-grandfather, and his wife, Harriet Francis Selena (Bryant). Behind him are Charley and John Ogle, brothers, who married Ollie Lena and Vera Faye Hawkins, sisters. They are the daughters of Sheriff Hawkins, who arrested Dan and sent him back to Georgia. The photo was taken in Denton, Texas, ca 1909. Ten years after the friendship between in-laws. The two littles are grandkids: one from each pair, and they are double cousins.

For a delicious example of the chain gang, Kyla directed me to this image of convict laborers in Georgia circa 1895 from the Social History for Every Classroom program at CUNY.

Societies that Kyla belongs to:

• Lone Star College-Tomball Community Library Kyla’s Library

• Daughters of the American Revolution

• West Houston Area Genealogy Society

• Montgomery County Genealogical & Historical Society

Subscribe and learn more about Jude and Kyla’s publications:

Are You Ready to Step Up?

Have you thought about a story you might like to share on the Speakers’ Corner? Although Jennifer is currently filling her speaking calendar for 2027. Do you have a story that you’re eager to share with an interested and engaged audience? If you’re interested, please complete the form to join the speakers’ queue.

Projectkin.org/speakers-queue

You can also message Jennifer to let her know you’re interested. You can always thank Jennifer and her guests, Jude Rhodes and Kyla Bayang by sharing this post with friends and family you think may be interested or inspired to tell their own stories.