The deep and abiding love Marshall Conyers feels for the natural world began at the age of five when he first began walking the fallow wintry fields of his home county … following along in the footsteps of his father, collecting Native American artifacts. Since then, his life-long passion for preserving the every-day stone implements left behind by these early people has never waned. Over the past 57 years, Mr. Conyers has managed to amass one of the largest collections of Native American artifacts anywhere around.

Oddly enough, that a much deeper connection to the Native American might indeed exist, was a fact entirely unsuspected by Mr. Conyers … at least, until shortly after self-publishing Sing, Nonnieweetok, Sing in late July of 2009. Only then did he discover on the internet a picture of his Great Great Grandmother. Her full name was Elizabeth Ann Robinson Matthis; born in 1833 and passed away in 1929 at the age of 96; her nickname was “Granny Betsy“.

Elizabeth Ann Robinson Matthis was married to Marshal Hooks Matthis of Sampson County, North Carolina; they had 10 children. A photograph of Elizabeth Ann Robinson Matthis in her later years is shown below:

On the sole basis of Elizabeth Ann Robinson Matthis’ physical appearance as seen in the picture above, Mr. Conyers is certain that a measure of the blood flowing in his own veins is Native American.

(Note: “Robinson” is a Native American name indigenous to Sampson County, N.C.)

As for Marshall Conyers himself ... he's at his happiest when wandering through the quiet solitude of an old growth forest with his two dogs, Pal and Spot. He is 63 years old and lives in Wilson, N.C.