Inventoried Slaves For those of us descended from enslaved ancestors, we are taught to research probate records early in the process. They can be used to verify slaveownership. If the slaveowner died before 1865, we may find our ancestors named in their will or listed in their inventories. As we advance in our skills, however, […]
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Category: Slave Research
Records of Antebellum Southern Plantatio...
One of the best sources on enslaved families are in the records from antebellum plantations. Often stored in research libraries, historical societies, and state archives, they can be difficult to access. Slaveholding families donated personal papers, letters, account books, and many other records and ephemera. Historians have long relied on these sources to understand “the […]
Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings
I read an article recently that every genealogist should read. It is in a special issue of the National Genealogical Society Quarterly from September 2001 (Volume 89, No.3). This issue was completely devoted to discussion of the Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings relationship. If you are a member of NGS you can download this article […]
Searching For Enslaved Fathers
Giles Holt of Hardin County, Tennessee enslaved my ancestor Malinda Holt. Giles enslaved her and others, including another woman named Judy (or Judah) Holt. I will probably never know whether or not Malinda and Judy were biological sisters (Update, 2017: DNA research suggests they were not). Nevertheless, I track Judy’s children as my relatives. It […]
Ex-Slave Pension Records
Recently, Ancestry somewhat quietly rolled out the Ex-Slave Pension database which contains Correspondence and Case Files from the National Archives. I always wanted to take a look at these records but hadn’t gotten around to it yet. I first heard about these records when Mary Frances Berry wrote “My Face is Black Is True: Callie House […]
A Strategy for Researching Freedmens Bur...
Freedmen’s Bureau records are a good example of “needle in a haystack” records for those doing African-American genealogical research. They are voluminous and rich. But they are also notoriously difficult to approach. Most aren’t indexed; heck, most aren’t even paginated. That they were governed by the military, and arranged as such— is itself another obstacle. […]
What You Didn’t Know About Slavery
OK, I confess that blog title is a little sensationalized. Much of this information becomes well-known to researchers of African-American families over the years. Family research turns many of us into walking, talking, beacons of history. It is an endlessly fascinating subject: epic, tragic and but often inspiring. Points to Remember Nevertheless, here are […]
Slave Housing
I’ve been pondering lately how we need to reconsider how our enslaved ancestors lived. We need to think more about the physical dimensions of that space. Not long ago I posted a recommendation for a book called “Back of the Big House.” This book tells the stories of these homes well and encouraged me to […]
Maps Lead the Way To Better Understandin...
I’ve always known that maps are an underused but vital part of genealogy research. I think the difficulty in finding them contributes to this for most people. Recently, maps helped me to better understand connections between my enslaved ancestors. I thought I’d share it with you in the hopes that it will inspire you to […]
Slave Research: Search the Slaveowner’s
Slave and slaveowner research is not for the faint of heart, that’s for sure. You need to have intermediate/advanced genealogy skills to do it well. Additionally, there’s the emotional impact of even looking at the documents. After all these years of research, my heart still bleeds every time I see: a will that includes “negro […]