AFRICAN AMERICAN GENEALOGY: THE BEGINNING STEPS Presented by: Tamika Strong Genealogist and Librarian Griffin-Spalding County Library March 18, 2017
WORKSHIP OBJECTIVES To assist attendees in learning the first steps in tracing their genealogy and documenting their family history. To provide attendees an overview of some challenges that African American researchers face in researching their family history.
Questions for you Do you have a library card? Do you know about PINES? Do you know about GALILEO? Did you know that you can access a version of Ancestry for free?
STEP #1A: PREPARE FOR THE JOURNEY Accept History for what it is. Do not apply a 21 st century mindset to a 19 th or 20 th century situation. Try to keep things in their historical context. Be prepared for the Good, the Bad, the Ugly, and the Unbelievable.
STEP #1A: PREPARE FOR THE JOURNEY Some of the things you will learn may be hard to take, so don t be afraid to set it aside for a while until you re ready to pick it up again. Be understanding and respectful of the feelings of others. Be discerning in the sharing of information.
STEP #1B SET A GOAL KNOW WHERE YOU WANT TO GO. odetermine what you want to learn about your family. oestablish a long term and a short term goal. owrite them down the goals. Post them in your workspace. otry to stay focus on them.
Research Goals oshort Term oexample: Find census records for maternal grandmother. olong Term oexample: Trace maternal family line to 1870.
STEP #2: GETTING STARTED WRITE DOWN WHAT YOU KNOW owrite down everything you know. onames including nicknames, aliases, etc. odates Birth, Marriage, Divorce, Death oplaces where the family lived oschools attended, places worked, places where family were buried, etc.
Conduct the Self Interview
STEP #2: Getting Started Write Down what you know ouse Forms to organize information about family. opedigree Charts ofamily Group Sheet(s)
PEDIGREE CHART Captures your direct ancestors, parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, great-greatgrandparents, etc. You are #1 on the chart. Your father s line starts with #2. Your mother s line starts with #3.
PEDIGREE CHART cont. omen are even numbers 2, 4, 6, etc. owomen are odd numbers 3, 5, 7, etc. owomen are placed on the chart under the maiden name. If unknown then leave blank.
Your Turn Fill out Your Pedigree Chart
FAMILY GROUP SHEETS ocaptures the family units parents and children. ocreate a Family Group Sheet for every couple or mother-father pair.
Your Turn Fill out Your Family Group Sheet
STEP #3A: FAMILY RESOURCES COLLECT FAMILY ARTIFACTS Family Stories / Oral History Family Bibles Family Trees / Genealogies Family Papers Birth Certificates Marriage Certificates or Licenses Divorce Decrees Funeral Programs Obituaries (From Newspapers or Funeral Programs) Death Certificates Cemetery/Burial Information Newspaper Clippings
STEP #3A: FAMILY RESOURCES COLLECT FAMILY ARTIFACTS Pictures Wills Military Records Land Deeds Yearbooks Organization Memberships School Records Business Records Awards / Certificates Old Personal Phone Books Citizenship Records Court Records Church Information
STEP #3A: FAMILY RESOURCES COLLECT FAMILY ARTIFACTS olook for Genealogy in Strange places. otattoos
STEP #3A: FAMILY RESOURCES COLLECT FAMILY ARTIFACTS olook for Genealogy in Strange places. omemorial T-Shirts
STEP #3A: FAMILY RESOURCES COLLECT FAMILY ARTIFACTS Look for Genealogy in Strange places. Memorial Car Vinyls
STEP #3B: FAMILY RESOURCES COLLECT FAMILY HISTORY odetermine if your family has a family historian or someone who knows a lot of your family s history. ointerview relatives, especially the elders o Record the interview if possible, audio or video o Ask to make copies of pictures, funeral programs, obituaries, etc. o Be prepared - some people may be unwilling to share information or materials.
Mock Interview Family Traditions
STEP #4: CENSUS RESEARCH FIND YOUR FOLKS IN THE CENSUS ocensus Records ostart from the present and work backwards starting with yourself. ohappens every tens years from 1790 o1890 Census lost to water damage due to a fire; some parts survived.
STEP #4: CENSUS RESEARCH FIND YOUR FOLKS IN THE CENSUS ocensus Records oinformation recorded in the census varied from each census year. ospecial Schedules were included during certain census years, i.e. Slave Schedules in 1850 and 1860 Census.
STEP #4: CENSUS RESEARCH FIND YOUR FOLKS IN THE CENSUS ocensus Records othere are State and Federal Census Records. o For example, Alabama has a 1866 State Census. o1870 Census first time most African Americans were listed by name in the Federal Census. o1880 Census showed family relationships for the first time.
STEP #4: CENSUS RESEARCH FIND YOUR FOLKS IN THE CENSUS ocensus Records o1900 Census included birth month and date o1940 Census o Released April 2012 o Fully indexed by August of 2012 o Denotes informant with an asterisk.
STEP #4: CENSUS RESEARCH FIND YOUR FOLKS IN THE CENSUS ocensus Records oancestry.com $$ oancestry Library Edition o Only available for use inside of libraries and archives ofamilysearch.org oheritagequest o Available through GALILEO; Can access from home
STEP #4: CENSUS RESEARCH FIND YOUR FOLKS IN THE CENSUS olook at the individual s birth date. That will determine which censuses the person should be included. oexample: Maggie Bell Printup (1928 2000) o Should be able to find her in the o 1940 Census o 1930 Census
STEP #4: CENSUS RESEARCH FIND YOUR FOLKS IN THE CENSUS oexample: Maggie Bell Printup (1928 2000) o 1940 Census
STEP #4: CENSUS RESEARCH FIND YOUR FOLKS IN THE CENSUS oexample: Maggie Bell Printup (1928 2000) o 1930 Census
Step #4: Census Research Find Your Folks in the Census ocensus Search Tips ostart from the latest census and work backwards. ouse multiple sites to search the census. oalways look at the original document, not just the transcription. oremember to look at the neighbors; sometimes they are family members. oages may not be accurate.
STEP #4: CENSUS RESEARCH FIND YOUR FOLKS IN THE CENSUS ocensus Search Tips (cont.) obe mindful of Nicknames or name abbreviations, i.e. Jno John, Maggie Margaret; Mag Maggie obe creative with the spellings of names, i.e. Calloway/Callaway. o Use wildcards for searching oasterisk (*) for multiple letters, i.e. Cal* oquestion mark (?) for a single letter, i.e. Call?way
STEP #5: OTHER RESOURCES RECORD TYPES o Census Records o Military Records o Vital Records (Birth, Marriage, Divorce, Death) o School Records o Yearbooks o City Directories o Cemeteries o Newspapers o County Histories o Town Histories o Funeral Programs o Land and Property Records o Business Records o Court Records o Probate
African American Genealogy
STEP #6: REMEMBER THE TIME o Gain a general understanding of the history of African Americans during the time periods you are researching. o 1619: First Africans arrived at Jamestown o 1619 1865: A Time of Enslavement and Freedom o 1865 1965: The Fight for Freedom and Civil Rights o 1965 present: The Fight Continues o This is a over simplification of the History of People of African Descent in America.
STEP #6: REMEMBER THETIME o Learn about the environment in which the ancestors lived. o County & Town Histories o Coverage in the Local Newspaper o Print and online materials about African Americans in the geographic area. o Remember! o Try to keep the information you learn in its historical context. o There is a possibility that a resource may not mention the presence of people of color, i.e. some county histories.
STEP #7: LEARN THE LINGO o Colored C; Col; * o African o Slave o Negro o Negress o Nigra o N****r o Mulatto o Black o Biracial o Mixed o Quadroon (1/4 th Black) o Octaroon (1/8 th Black) o Person of Color o Afro American o Black American o African American
STEP #8: KNOW WHERE TO LOOK Get familiar with the historical African American neighborhoods, institutions, organizations, resources and accomplishments. o Neighborhoods historic and current. o Institutions Schools, Hospitals o Individuals o Churches o Cemeteries o Funeral Homes o Organizations o Businesses / Business District
STEP #8: KNOW WHERE TO LOOK Identify the clues in the resources. Terms and Abbreviations ocolored oc ocol o* ob om oneg
STEP #8: Know Where to Look Identify the clues in the resources. ochanges to the Document oclipped Edges o World War I Draft Card (Registration Cards A and B)
Source: United States World War I Draft Records. FamilySearch Wiki. https://familysearch.org/wiki/en/united_states_world_war_i_draft_records. Link to Draft Card A - http://c.ancestry.com/pdf/trees/charts/draftcarda.pdf
STEP #7: KNOW WHERE TO LOOK Find the section of the resources that contain information about African Americans. otable of Contents ocheck Index olook for terminology used for African Americans, i.e. colored, black, negro, mulatto, slave, etc. oback of the Book
STEP #7: KNOW WHERE TO LOOK Find the section of the resources that contain information about African Americans. ocolored Section oajc Example of Colored Obits ocolored Book omarriage and Tax Books
Research Tips o Select a single surname, individual, or family unit to focus on. o Set a research goal. o Complete and update Pedigree Charts and Family Group Sheets to reflect new information. o Create and keep a research log or journal to track your progress. o Get organized and stay organized. o Make copies, either paper or electronic, of the original documents so you will have a copy.
Research Tips cont. o Evaluate and interpret the information you have collected. o Take small steps don t overwhelm yourself. Genealogy is a lifelong hobby! o Get organized and stay organized!!!! o Learn as you go using webinars, classes, attending genealogy group meetings, etc. o Remember to have fun!!!
HAVE FUN!!!!! Source: http://www.roadkilltshirts.com/assets/productimages/ps_1081_shook_tree.jpg
PRESENTER INFORMATION Tamika Maddox Strong Librarian, Genealogist, Future Archivist gagenealogy2011@gmail.com