THE FAMILY ROOTS
The everlasting foundation of the roberts • borders • mauney • howell • briggs & Related Families
"We've come this far by faith"
The ancestors of the Roberts, Borders, Mauney, Howell, Briggs, and related families were not all kin by blood — but were united in bondage across plantations in Cleveland County, North Carolina. From these shared beginnings, a powerful family legacy was born.
We Are the Descendants of the Enslaved and the Enslavers.
Our history is rooted in truth, resilience, and unity.
OUR MATRIARCH
PHOBE MAGNESS ROBERTS
Circa 18th century
The Mother of the Seven Sisters
The matriarch of our family was an enslaved woman named Phebe Magness Roberts, owned by William Magness. Between the late 1790s and early 1800s, she gave birth to seven daughters and one son — children who would become the foundation of a remarkable lineage.
Her daughters became known as “The Seven Sisters.”
Guinea, Africa
the seven sisters
1. Sylvia Roberts - The Eldest of Seven
2. Delilah Dillingham Beam (Born 1799)
3. Fannie Briggs (Born 1803)
4. Kitty Bird Roberts (Born 1804)
5. Betsy Caroline Forney (Born 1806)
6. Pricilla Mauney (Born 1814)
7. Martha Roberts Howell (Born 1819)
the enslaved patriarchs of the plantation
Emmanual Roberts
Big George Roberts
Issac Roberts (Born 1794)
Big Bob Roberts (Born 1815)
Aaron Roberts
Simpson Roberts
Little Bob Roberts
Kitty Bird Roberts (Born 1804) - The 4th Eldest Daughter Married Big George
which of the seven sisters married?
Martha Roberts Howell (Born 1819) - The Youngest Daughter Married Simpson Roberts & Later Married Solomon Howell
- Wesley Mauney — son of Priscilla Mauney
- Eli Borders Roberts — son of Martha Roberts
- John Wesley Roberts — grandson of Big George and Kitty Bird Roberts
- Ida Roberts (wife of J.W. Roberts) — granddaughter of Emanuel Roberts
Descendants of the Seven Sisters and the Patriarchs chose unity over division.
In 1906, Wesley Mauney (b. 1846), John Wesley Roberts (b. 1862), and Eli Borders Roberts (b. 1840) organized a reunion to formally unite all descendants as one extended family.
The first reunion was held at the home of Wesley and Naomi Mauney.
For many years thereafter, reunions were hosted at the homestead of Mason and China Roberts in Cleveland County — son and daughter-in-law of Eli and Sarah Roberts.
THE FORMATION OF ONE FAMILY
The first family reunion - 1906
Legacy & Contribution
