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Archiver > GEN-AFRICAN > 1996-09 > 0842812984


From: Michael Emery <>
Subject: FAQ soc.genealogy.african v1.2 Special One
Date: 15 Sep 1996 11:43:04 -0700


FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS for soc.genealogy.african
----------------------------------------------------
FAQ v1.2 Special Interest Part One

SPECIAL INTEREST QUESTIONS
--------------------------

1. How can I trace my family roots through the slavery times
in the USA?
-----------

One of the most effective approaches to identify enslaved
ancestors is to identify the plantation at which the ancestor
worked and the holder of the enslaved family. Research then
focuses upon the slaveholder's family and the records it
produced as slaveholders, as well as on the enslaved family
itself.

Here are some basic steps in determining the slaveholder(s):

A. Look at the records of your family in the Federal 1870
Census (your state) or any special census conducted by
the state.

B. Pay attention to the county, township, post office,
and surrounding families. The composition of African
American households in 1870 have closely reflected the
composition of African American families prior to 1865.

C. Check the 1850 or 1860 Slave Census for the
slaveholder's name. Sometimes the surnames of ex-slaves
recorded in the censuses are the surnames of former
slaveholders. You may have to check the Agriculture
Census to determine land ownership of the slaveholder.

D. Compare the 1850 or 1860 Population Census with your
findings in the Slave Census.

E. Once you have established the owner(s) of an enslaved
ancestor, begin to research the owning family in the
public and historical records. Some of the records by
which slaveholders kept an accounting of their property
identified slaves. Estate records are among the most
valuable of such accounts. Wills, inventories,
appraisements, and annual returns named slaves,
gave their ages and sex, sometimes described physical
characteristics, and may have indicated occupations,
and blood and marriage ties.

F. If the slaveholder died before 1865, look at the
clusters of first names found in the owners/holders
estate records. First names can often be linked
together from the population censuses.

G. If the slave holder is still living after the Civil War
(1865), begin to look at the owner's annual returns,
account books, business receipts, medical notes, birth
registers, diaries, letters, and bills of sale. Many
ex-enslaved became tenant farmers or sharecroppers after
the war.

NOTE: If the family owned land, deed records are helpful in
tracing the original owner. Any legal transactions concerning
the land would be recorded. [Frazine Taylor]

2. What are some Afro-American genealogy societies in the USA?
-----------------------------------------------------------

For those who are just beginning their search for
Afro-American family history, you are encouraged to establish
contact with other genealogists in your area. Listed here are
several African American organizations devoted to genealogy:

Afro-American Historical & Genealogical Society
National Chapters (AAHGS)

AAHGS-Tucson
Gloria Smith, President
<>
PO Box 58272
Tucson AZ 77062

AAHGS-Bay Area
Contact Online:
Electra Kimble Price <>

AAHGS-Central Florida
Mary J. Fears, President
722 Mercedes Ave
Daytona Beach FL 32114-1623

AAHGS-Little Egypt IL
Julius E. Thompson, President
703 South Wall St #5
Carbondale IL 62901

AAHGS-Chicago, Patricia Liddell Researchers
Thelma Strong Eldridge, President
PO Box 438652
Chicago IL 60643
Contact Online:
Saundra Brown,
Past Vice-President of Genealogy and
Founder of the PLR NEWS JOURNAL
<>
<>
Betty Craft <>

AAHGS-Baltimore
Louis S. Diggs, President <>

AAHGS-Central Maryland
Sylvia C. Groce, President
PO Box 2774
Columbia MD 21045

AAHGS-Prince George's County
Carolyn C. Rowe, President
<>
PO Box 44722
Ft. Washington MD 20744-9998

AAHGS-MAGIC
Joan B. Fletcher, President
3700 Blue Pkwy
Kansas City MO 64130

AAHGS-Landon Cheek
Ivory Spiller, President
PO Box 23804
St. Louis MO 63121-0804
Contact Online:
Margaret Durham <>

AAHGS-Charlotte
Alvin A. Ricks, President
PO Box 32664
Charlotte NC 28232
Contact Online:
<>

AAHGS-New Jersey
Lucius Bowser, President
758 Stirling Dr East
South Orange NJ 07079-2425

AAHGS-Jean Sampson Scott Greater New York
Elvin Montgomery, Jr., President
PO Box 022340
Brooklyn, NY 11202
Contact Online:
<>

AAHGS-Cleveland
PO Box 200382
Cleveland OH 44120

AAHGS-Western Pennsylvania
Gladys L. Nesbit, President
PO Box 5707
Pittsburgh PA 15208

AAHGS-Houston
Eleanor F. Caldwell, President
PO Box 750877
Houston TX 77215-0877

AAHGS-Hampton Roads
Selma Stewart, President
PO Box 2448
Newport News VA 23609-2448
Contact Online:
Selma Stewart <>
<>
<>

AAHGS-Richmond
Timothy Wilson, President
7723 Granite Hall Ave
Richmond VA 23225

AAHGS-Tidewater
Esther Lloyd, President
2200 Crossroad Trl
Virginia Beach VA 23456

AAHGS-James Dent Walker
Cornelius L. Cooper, President
PO Box 34683
Washington DC 20043

National AAHGS
Barbara D. Walker, President
PO Box 73086
Washington DC 20056-3086
(202) 234-5330
Contact Online:
Renee Ingram <>

Other Regional Groups:

African Ancestored Family Studies
PO Box 4250
Anniston AL 36204
Contact Online:
Valencia King Nelson
<>

Afro American Genealogical Society
California Afro American Museum
600 State Drive Exposition Park
Los Angeles CA 90037

California African American Genealogical Society
(CAAGS)
Ronald Higgins, President
PO Box 8442
Los Angeles CA 90008-0442
Contact persons online:
Alva Griffith, Recording Secretary
<GFS >
Marilyn White, Historian <GFS >
Milton Hines <>

San Diego African American Genealogy Research Group
Milton Hines, President <>
9026 Three Seasons Rd
San Diego CA 92126

Black Genealogy Search Group
Oscar W. Hall, President <>
PO BOX 40674
Denver CO 80204-0674

African American Family History Association, Inc.
PO Box 115268
Atlanta GA 30310
Contact Online:
<>
<>

Afro-Americans Communicating and Preserving Legacies
PO Box 13607
Atlanta GA 30324-0607
(Publishes "Intercom")

African American Genealogical Research Institute
(AAGRI)
Lori Husband, Director
PO Box 637
Matteson IL 60443-6370
(708) 748-0349

Afro-American Genealogical & Historical Society
of Chicago, Inc. (AAGHSC, Inc.)
Dorothy Roberts, President
PO Box 37-7651
Chicago IL 60637
Contact Online:
Cristal Simmons, Past President
<>
Betty Craft <>
Jamie Harris <>
Saundra Brown <>
Belzora Cheatham <>
Bennie J. McRae, Jr. <>
Barbara Pierce <>
Joann Page <>
Roma Stewart, Past President
<>

Indiana African American
Historical & Genealogical Society
502 Clover Terrace
Bloomington IN 47404-1809

Louisiana African-Americans
University Station
PO Box 16726
Baton Rouge LA 70893
Contact Online:
<>

Harriet Tubman Afro-American Genealogical Society
6400 Baltimore National Pike
Baltimore MD 21228
Contact Online:
Angela Walton-Raji
<>

AAHS-Maryland
Afro-American Heritage Society of Charles County,
Highway 925 N Box 316
Waldorf MD 20601
(301) 843-0371

The Fred Hart Williams Genealogical Society
Burton Historical Collection
Detroit Public Library
5201 Woodward Ave
Detroit MI 48202

North Carolina Afro-American Heritage Society
PO Box 26334
Raleigh NC 27611

Afro-American Historical Association of
the Niagara Frontier, Inc. (AAHANF)
PO Box 63
Buffalo NY 14207
(AAHANF publishes "Afro-Americans in New York Life
and History" twice a year, which contains
analytical, historical, and descriptive articles
dealing with Afro-Americans in the state of
New York; edited by Monroe Fordham at the State
University College at Buffalo.)

Buffalo Genealogical Society of the African Diaspora
c/o Sonia Walker
PO Box 2534
Buffalo NY 14240-2534
Contact Online:
Robert Davis <>
Sonia Walker <>
<>

National Afro-American Museum and Cultural Center
PO Box 578
Wilberforce OH 45384

African American Genealogy Group (AAGG)
Gene Stackhouse, President
<>
PO Box 1798
Philadelphia PA 19105-1798

Rhode Island Black Heritage Society
46 Aborn St
Providence RI 02903

African American Genealogical and
Historical Society of San Antonio, Texas
PO Box 200784
San Antonio, TX 78220

Exodus III African American Family
History Journal
Marva Peavy <>
PO Box 43411
Austin TX 78745-0411
(Published quarterly)

Tarrant County Black History &

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