This black and white photograph shows a group of African American pioneers from Graham County, Kansas. Many of the first black settlers in Graham County were part of the Exoduster movement, an effort to get southern blacks to settle on the farm land that was readily available in Kansas. Donor supplied information which indicates this is a photograph of the Wheeler, Tinsley and Schnebly families. People in the photograph are: Albert Wheeler (second from left) he was a descendant of escaped slaves who came to northeast Kansas in 1862 and lived in Brown and Nemaha Counties. Albert was a successful farmer in Logan County. Viola (Schnebly) Wheeler (third from left) is Albert's wife. The man beside Viola (4th from left top row) is Joseph Wheeler, Albert's brother, who died young. Mr. Schnebly (5th from left) is Viola's father, he lost a leg in a train accident near Hill City, KS. Anna Louise (Wheeler) Tinsley (far right holding Frank Tinsley, a baby) is Albert Wheeler's sister. Frank Tinsley was born around 1917.
Kansas Memory
Kansas Historical Society
African American pioneers in Graham County, Kansas