The story of the Bland Family begins in eastern North Carolina with John “Johnny” Bland and Penny Elizabeth “Betty” Pugh Bland, whose lives and legacy anchor our shared history. Rooted in Swift Creek Township in Pitt County and later in Vanceboro, their journey reflects resilience, faith, and commitment to family that continues to shape generations today.
Grandpa Johnny was born May 1876 in Swift Creek Township, Pitt County, North Carolina. Grandpa Johnny is believed to have had 2 brothers and 5 sisters.
- Joseph, born May 1878
- James, born July 1880
- Maggie, born June 1882 (who later married Billy Gardner)
- Lucy, born July 1884 (who later married Ed Chapman)
- Betty (who later married Willie Cox)
- Dora (who later married John Dixon)
- Mary, born December 1886
Grandma Betty was the daughter of Sylvester Pugh (born December 1848) and Grizzie Wilson Pugh (born in 1852 in Black Jack, Pitt County). Eighteen children were born from their union, though only 10 survived into adulthood.
- James Pugh, born February 1876
- Penny Elizabeth, born April 5, 1878
- John Pugh, born December 1880
- Alonzo Pugh, born February 1882
- Richard Pugh, born March 1883
- Mary Jane Pugh, born February 1885
- Inez Pugh, born February 1887
- George Pugh, born January 1887
- Roy Pugh, born March 1894
- Viola Pugh, born June 1898
Grandpa Johnny and Grandma Betty were united in holy matrimony in 1898 in Swift Creek Township. During the first year of their marriage, Grandma Betty brought her brother, George (born 1892), then 8 years old, to live with them. They moved to Vanceboro, North Carolina, in 1910, where they purchased the farm on which our family home now sits.
Grandma Betty was a hard worker. In addition to being a homemaker, she worked on the farm with Grandpa Johnny. They grew cotton, tobacco, and corn, and raised mules, cows, hogs, chickens, turkeys, guineas, geese, and ducks. They had a vibrant vegetable garden from which they canned fruits and vegetables. She was skilled in quilting and building furniture, including constructing chair bottoms from corn shucks. She enjoyed crafting even after she went blind. Grandpa Johnny and Grandma Betty were not enslaved. They could read and write. They had 21 children (2 sets of twins). However, only 8 of their children survived into adulthood. (When the 1920 Census was taken, they also had a 4 month old son.)
- Heber, born 1899 (died in childhood)
- Rosa Bell, born September 1, 1900
- Lubia, born December 14, 1903
- Cleo, born 1904
- Jesse, born July 20, 1908
- William, born February 1, 1910
- Helen, born November 8, 1915
- Eugene, born July 29, 1916
- Gertrude, born January 6, 1918
From their early years in Pitt County to the farm they built in Vanceboro, Johnny and Betty Bland established a foundation of hard work, resourcefulness, and enduring love. Their legacy lives on through each generation gathered here, reminding us that our history is not only something we remember, but something we carry forward together.
This history was compiled by the late Margie S. Truesdale, daughter of Rosa Bell and Andrew Strong, granddaughter of Johnny Bland and Betty Pugh Bland in August 1998.
Bland Family Reunion 