African American Genealogy Getting Started

African American Genealogy: Getting Started

Cara GriggsReference Archivist, The Library of Virginia

February 19, 2016

Introduction Focus: Researching Virginia African Americans

from colonial times through 1870

Why just Virginia?: Every state is a little different

Why 1870?: Because of slavery, from 1619 to circa 1870, African American genealogical research can be very different from other types of genealogical research

Resources: Primarily Library of Virginia, but other important resources are also noted

(Possibly Unrealistic) Assumptions

Individuals did not leave Virginia

County boundaries never changed

All of the records that you need survive

The individuals for whom you are looking are mentioned in the surviving records

The research path that I describe will work best for you

Outline Introduction Overview of the Library of Virginia Getting back to 1870 Important dates Surnames Determining if an individual was enslaved or free Researching free African Americans Researching enslaved African Americans until 1865 Researching African Americans after 1865 Civil War records Conclusion

The Library of Virginia Created in 1823

Mission: As the Commonwealth's library and archives, the Library of Virginia is a trusted educational institution. We acquire, preserve, and promote access to unique collections of Virginia’s history and culture and advance the development of library and records management services statewide.

Government RecordsState Government Records Governors’ papers and

records of state government Bureau of Vital Statistics

o Births: 1853-1896 (indexed)o Marriages: 1853-1935

(indexed)o Deaths: 1853-1896 (partially

indexed); 1912-1939 (indexed) Auditor of Public Accounts

o Land and personal property tax records beginning in 1782

Records of state institutionso Mental health facilitieso Penitentiary

Local Government Records Deeds Wills Marriage bonds and licenses Court minute and order books Judgments

Mostly prior to 1900

Lost Records Localities Digital Collection: http://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/lost

http://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/lost


Lost Records Localities Digital Collection

Private Collections Personal papers such as letters and diaries, as

well as bible records and genealogical research

Church records

Organization records

Business records

Map Collection General historical maps

Virginia county and city maps

USGS topographic maps

Have only a few land ownership maps

Copies of Records from Other Archives

National Archives and Records Administrationo Compiled military service records for Virginians in the

Revolutionary War and Civil Waro Records of the Virginia field offices of the Bureau of

Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands o Census records including special schedules for Virginia

and population schedules for several other states

And various other archives, such as:o Robert Alonzo Brock Collection from the Huntington

Library in Californiao Various archives in Europe that allowed the Virginia

Colonial Records Project to microfilm their records

Published Material County histories and abstracts of records

Newspapers

City directories

Books dedicated to the African American experience

Genealogy guide books

Federal and state publications

Special Collections Prints and Photographs

o Photographso Slideso Engravingo Sheet Musico Pamphlets

Rare Books

Fine Arts Collection of the Commonwealth

How to Approach Collections

Know:o Nameso Dateso Localities

Determine:o (1) what type of record will provide relevant information, o (2) if the Library of Virginia has that record, and then o (3) if there is an index

Remember that not every name is indexed in the Library of Virginia’s online catalog—or anywhere

Beginning a Genealogy Project

Start with yourself and work backwards

Talk with family and search for family records

Do not limit yourself to linear research

Note full names, nicknames, localities, and dates or your best guesses

Begin to confirm with other records—such as vital records and census records—what you have discovered by doing this preliminary work

Bureau of Vital Statistics Records

Records available on microfilm:o Birth Records: 1853-1896 and statewide indexo Marriage Records: 1853-1935 and statewide indexo Death Records: 1853-1896 with a partial online index (Death Index of Virginia)

that is available through our website; some partial, published indexeso Death Certificates: 1912-1939 and statewide index through 1954

Ancestry.com has indexed and digitized some vital records; the index is also available on the Virginia Department of Health website:o Birth Records: 1864-2014 (actually 1912-2014; inclusion of delayed births

extends the time period)o Marriage Records: 1936-2014o Divorce Records: 1918-2014o Death Records: 1912-2014o Digital images of the indexed records are available from Ancestry.com for birth

records that are more than 100 years old and marriage, divorce, and death records that are more than 25 years old

Copies of vital records may also be obtained from the Virginia Department of Health Birth and death records were not kept after 1896 and before 1912 by the state, but

some localities continued to keep records, such as Elizabeth City County, Lynchburg, Newport News, Norfolk, Petersburg, Portsmouth, Richmond, and Roanoke.

Census Records Virginia census records: 1810-1880, 1900-1940

Provide a snapshot of who is in a household, who the neighbors are, relationships, approximate ages, residence, and place of birth

May not be accurate except for locality, so confirm information by using other records

Available on microfilm or online through:o Ancestry (all)o HeritageQuest (all)o fold3 (1860, 1900-1930)

Special schedules (not comprehensive):o Agricultural: 1850-1880o Manufacturing/Industrial: 1820, 1850-1880o Mortality: 1850-1880o Slave: 1850-1860o Surviving Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines, and Widows, etc.: 1890

Other Records Local records (such as wills, deeds, and court order books) that

may be at the Library of Virginia or still in courthouses State land and personal property tax records Cemetery and funeral home records Bible records and personal papers Church and organization records Military records from the Library of Virginia or the National

Archives Newspapers (especially African American newspapers) Published histories of the U.S., Virginia, localities, and African

American history Genealogical newsletters and journals for your area Guides to genealogical research and African American research Other repositories, including courthouses Library catalogs and WorldCat, which combines many different

library catalogs Etc.!

Your research will dictate your next steps.

Important Dates: Colonial Era

1607: English settlement at Jamestown August 1619: A Dutch ship left 20 Africans in

Jamestown; these individuals were indentured servants and not slaves

1662: Whether a child was born enslaved or free depended on whether his or her mother was enslaved or free. This meant that those who were slaves were slaves for life.

1680: Slaves are not allowed to arm themselves or to travel without a pass.

1691: Owners who freed their slaves had to pay to have them transported out of Virginia within 6 months

Important Dates: 1778-1800

1778: Slaves could not be imported from Africa into Virginia

June 1, 1792: Kentucky becomes a state 1793: Registration of free Negroes begins in

towns (begins in counties in 1803) 1793: Free Negroes are not allowed to enter

Virginia August 30, 1800: Gabriel’s Rebellion was

planned for central Virginia, which resulted in more restrictions for slaves and free Negroes


1801-1802: Sancho planned the Easter Plot, which would have been a rebellion in central and tidewater Virginia

1806: An emancipated slave must leave Virginia within 12 months of gaining his or her freedom, or he or she will forfeit his or her freedom

1808: Federal government ends the international slave trade in the United States

August 1831: Nat Turner’s Rebellion in Southampton County

1856: Voluntary self-enslavement is permitted

Important Dates: Civil War

April 12, 1861: Civil War began in South Carolina

April 17, 1861: Virginia seceded from the Union

June 1861: fighting began in Virginia

January 1, 1863: Federal Emancipation Proclamation freed slaves who were in areas that were in rebellion against the United States.

Important Dates: Civil War

June 20, 1863: West Virginia was created

March 3, 1865: Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands (Freedmen’s Bureau) was created

April 10, 1865: Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia and the Civil War was basically over


June 1865: Freedmen’s Bureau began work in Virginia

December 6, 1865: Ratification of the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which abolished slavery

January 26, 1870: Virginia is readmitted to the Union and Reconstruction ends in Virginia

June 10, 1872: Freedmen’s Bureau is abolished by law

1877: Reconstruction ends in the United States

Surnames Even if they were not recognized by the

slaveholder, some slaves had surnames.

If a former slave did not already have a surname, they could choose one. It could be the name of the last owner, a previous owner, a family name, or whatever other name they decided to choose.

Surnames could change over time. Sometimes a former slave took the surname of his or her last owner as a form of identification or was simply given that name in records. That does not mean that that person could not change his or her name later.

Enslaved or Free? 1850 and 1860 U.S. census population schedules

Cohabitation registers and children’s registers

Free Negro registers

Free Negro lists

Personal property tax records

U.S. Census Population Schedule

Includes: Names of free individuals Age ColorOccupationPlace of birth

Chesterfield County, 1850Source: Ancestry.com

Cohabitation RegisterIncludes: Names of husband & wife Ages of husband & wife Places of birth & residences Last owner & residence Husband’s occupation Names & ages of children Date of cohabitation

Date: February 27, 1866Culpeper County

February 27, 1866

Free Negro RegisterIncludes: Name Age Color & stature By whom & through what court emancipation was obtained If the individual was born free

Date: Beginning in 1793 for towns Beginning in 1803 for counties

Fluvanna County1851-1864

Free Negro ListIncludes: Name Gender Residence Occupation

Date:Beginning in 1801

Powhatan County1851

Personal Property TaxIncludes: Head of household’s

name Number of free males

over a certain age Number of slaves

over a certain age Livestock Household items,

such as clocks

Date: Beginning in 1782Chesterfield County

1859

Free African Americans Continue to use all of the records that were used for research to 1870,

including census records, tax records, and local records such as deeds and wills

Free Negro registers and lists or, in their absence, court order and minute books

Personal property and land tax records

Loose papers such as free papers or sworn statements and other documentation that was used to prove free status

Delinquent tax lists

County or city deed and will books may contain emancipations

Petitions to remain in Virginiao 1806 at the state level (legislative petitions; Index to Enrolled Bills

of the General Assembly of Virginia: 1776-1910 by John W. Williams and the Acts of the Assembly to determine outcome)

o 1837 at the county level (court order and minute books and loose papers)

Case Study: Lucy Jarvis Pearman Scott

Certificate of Freedom

York County

June 19, 1848


Free Negro Register

York County

June 1848


Free Negro Register

Henrico County

September 5, 1848


Court Order Book

Henrico County

September 4, 1848


William Scott’s Household

Federal Census

Henrico County

August 8, 1850

Case Study: Forest Griffith


Legislative Petition, Forest Griffith, January 18, 1849


An Act for the Relief of Forrest Griffith

Passed: March 12, 1849


Commonwealth vs. Forrest Griffith

Decree

Loudoun County

[November 11, 1850]

Source: Loudoun County Circuit Court Archives


Forest Griffith

15 ¾ acres

Land Tax

LoudounCounty

1848


Robert J. S. White and Hiram and Mary Elizabeth McVeigh to Forrest Griffith

Loudoun County Deed Book 4-YDated: July 12, 1847, Recorded: July 30, 1847

Case Study: Lott HigbyIsaac Winston to Lott

Higby, Deed of Emancipation

Henrico County

Deed Book 25

Dated: August 4, 1823

Recorded: August 4, 1823

Case Study: Lott HigbyLott Higby to Wiley Davy

Higby, Deed of Emancipation

Henrico County

Deed Book 27

Dated: August 27, 1825

Recorded: August 27, 1825

Case Study: Lott HigbyFree Negro

Register

Henrico County

December 3, 1833

Case Study: Lott HigbyLot Higby

Henrico County

Petition to remain in Virginia

No Date

Permission granted:

May 2, 1853

Identifying the Owner Bureau of Vital Statistics birth records (if you know the

name and locality of an individual who was born a slave between 1853 and 1865) or Leslie Anderson Morales and Ada Valaitis’s Virginia Slave Birth Index: 1853-1865.

Bureau of Vital Statistics death registers (if you know the name and locality of an individual who died as a slave between 1853 and 1865)

Databases of slave names may be available.o Untold Virginia: An African American Narrative:

http://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/aan/ Newspapers for descriptions of runaway slaves and the

names of the slave holder. 1850 and 1860 slave schedules for the names of

slaveholders who lived where the individual you are researching lived, especially those who have the same surname.

http://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/aan/

Researching the Owner Personal papers or bible records for slave births

and deaths and correspondence and records for other references

Church records Slave-related records noted in the Free Black and

Slave Records Guide

Chancery records for those who died intestate or for disputes involving slaves

Colonial tithable records and personal property tax records (beginning in 1782) for numbers of slaves

Chancery Records Index

Be sure to click on “availability” to determine what is included in the Chancery Records Index before you search the database.

Tithables Used to determine the tax that needed to be paid on free

white males, slaves, and Native American servants, all age sixteen or older.

Useful for the time period prior to the late 1780s

May only include numbers, but some include names

The Tithables Guide details what records are available for each locality

TithablesTithable

List

Accomack County

1743

Slaves Owned by Churches

Briery Presbyterian Church, Prince Edward County, Treasurer’s Book, 1840-1847

Case Study: Slaves of Frederick Leonard

Frederick Leonard’s Household

Federal Census

Chesterfield County

1840


Who are the slaves in Frederick Leonard’s household?o 1 male b. ca. 1830-1840o 1 male b. ca. 1816-1830o 3 females b. ca. 1830-1840o 2 females b. ca. 1816-1830o 2 females b. ca. 1785-1804


Will of Frederick Leonard

Chesterfield County

Will Book 17

Dated: July 17, 1845

Proved: February 9,

1846


Inventory of Frederick Leonard’s

Estate

Chesterfield County

Will Book 17

Dated: February 23,

1846

Recorded: June 8, 1846


Who received slaves?o Martha Leonard: “negro girl named Maria”o Nancy Bass: “negro woman Jinny and a negro

girl Julia”o Elizabeth Leonard: “two negroes by the names

of Patty and Susan”o Archer J. Leonard: “negro boy William”o Mary Leonard: “negro girl by the name of

Martha”o Rebecca Pitchford: “negro girl by the name of

Lydia Ann”o To replace one of the other slaves if they

“should die before they come in the possession to whom they are willed”: “negro boy by the name of Nelson”


William and Nelson are both “boys”, so one was born ca. 1816-1830, and the other was born ca. 1830-1840

Jinny, Patty, and Susan are “women”, so 2 were born ca. 1785-1804, and 1 was born ca. 1816-1830

Maria, Julia, Martha, and Lydia Ann are “girls”, so 3 were born ca. 1830-1840, and 1 was born 1816-1830


Martha Leonard received a “negro girl named Maria” who was born between 1816 and 1840

Nancy Bass received a “negro woman Jinny” who was born between 1786 and 1830 (but not ca. 1805-1815) and “a negro girl Julia” who was born between 1816 and 1840

Elizabeth Leonard received “two negroes by the names of Patty and Susan” who were born ca. 1785-1804 and/or ca. 1816-1830

Archer J. Leonard received “negro boy William” who was born between 1816 and 1840

Mary Leonard received a “negro girl by the name of Martha” who was born between 1816 and 1840

Rebecca Pitchford received a “negro girl by the name of Lydia Ann” who was born between 1816 and 1840

To replace one of the other slaves if they “should die before they come in the possession to whom they are willed” was a “negro boy by the name of Nelson” who was born between 1816 and 1840


Personal Property Tax

Elizabeth Leonard

Chesterfield County

1859


Elizabeth Leonard’s Household

Federal Slave Schedule

Chesterfield County

September 26, 1850

Source: Ancestry


Will of Elizabeth Leonard

Chesterfield County

Circuit Court Will Book 2

Dated: June 4, 1860

Proved: July 9, 1860


Martha Leonard received a “negro girl named Maria” who was born between 1816 and 1840

Nancy Bass received a “negro woman Jinny” who was born between 1786 and 1830 (but not ca. 1805-1815) and “a negro girl Julia” who was born between 1816 and 1840

Elizabeth Leonard received “two negroes by the names of Patty and Susan” who were born ca. 1805 and ca. 1815

Archer J. Leonard received “negro boy William” who was born between 1816 and 1840

Mary Leonard received a “negro girl by the name of Martha” who was born between 1816 and 1840

Rebecca Pitchford received a “negro girl by the name of Lydia Ann” who was born between 1816 and 1840

To replace one of the other slaves if they “should die before they come in the possession to whom they are willed” was a “negro boy by the name of Nelson” who was born between 1816 and 1840

Case Study: Chapman Family

Will of Isham Tatum, Sr., Madison County, Written May 19, 1844


Legislative Petition of Nathaniel Tatum and Isham Tatum, Madison County, December 10, 1857


Petition of Jeptha, Thaddeus, and Timothy Chapman, Madison County, 1859


Petition of Timothy Chapman, Madison County, 1859


John W. Tatum’s Household

Federal Census

Madison County

July 12, 1870

Source: Ancestry

Buying, Selling, & Inheriting Slaves

Will books may include wills and inventories that name slaves, as could guardians’ accounts if an heir was a minor o Online Index to Wills and Administrations: 1628-1800 (incomplete)o Clayton Torrence’s Virginia Wills and Administrations: 1632-1800o Wesley Pippenger’s Index to Virginia Estates: 1800-1865

Bills of sale or receipts for a slave in local records, business records, or personal papers

Legislative petitions to request permission to transport slaves into Virginia Certificates of non-importation in county records, which state that a slave

was not being transported into Virginia from Africa Slave trade records in the form of business ledgers Slave manifests from the domestic slave trade from the National Archives’

U.S. Customs records

Slave Trader Records

Hector Davis & Company, Richmond, VA, Daybook: 1857-1865

Dickinson, Hill, & Company, Richmond, VA, Account Book: 1846-1849

Slave ManifestsIncludes: Name, gender, age,

height, and complexion of slaves

Name and residence of shipper

Name and residence of owner or consignee

Size of vessel

Source: Ancestry.comBarque Bachelor, Port of Richmond to Port of New

OrleansOctober 19, 1843

Researching an African Ancestor

Be aware that slaves may not have travelled directly from Africa to Virginia

Early records often just show numbers—not names

Virginia Slave-Trade Statistics 1698-1775, edited by Walter Minchinton, Celia King, and Peter Waite

Emory University’s Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database

Land Office records may only note that an individual paid the passage of a “Negro”o Nell Marion Nugent’s Cavaliers and Pioneers: Abstracts

of Virginia Land Patents and Grants provides and every-name index

Patrol Records Patrol accounts: provide hours of service and

expenses that were incurred by slave patrollers, and possibly the names of the patrollers

Patrol appointments: note whether someone was promoted to being a captain of the patrollers or appointed to being a patroller

Patrol reports: provide the names of patrollers and the length of their patrols

Patrol Reports

Patrol Accounts, Essex County, July-September, 1829

Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Land

Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Land (Freedmen’s Bureau) o March 3, 1865 to June 10, 1872o District of Columbia office:

• Loudoun County until August 1866• Alexandria and Fairfax counties until March 1867

o Records available on microfilm on through http://www.familysearch.org

• Virginia Freedmen’s Bureau Office Records, 1865-1872• Freedmen’s Bureau Marriages, 1815-1869 (for the

counties of Goochland, Louisa, Nelson, Rockbridge, and the City of Staunton)

http://www.familysearch.org/

Freedman’s Savings & Trust Company

Freedman’s Savings and Trust Company (Freedman’s Bank) records (1865-1874) are available on microfilm (Film 1300), CD (E185.2 .F74 2000), or through HeritageQuest

Includes:o Account numbero Name of depositoro Date of entryo Place of birth & residenceso Ageo Complexiono Name of employer or occupationo Names of spouse, children, parents, & siblingso Remarkso Signatureo Possibly name of former owner and plantation

Freedman’s Savings & Trust Company

Freedman’s Bank Records for Moses Tazewell and Joseph BeanSource: HeritageQuest

Case Study: Caesar Steptoe

Caesar Steptoe & Laura Kently

Cohabitation Register

Roanoke County

February 27, 1866

Freedmen’s Bureau

Register ofIndentures and

Contracts

Floyd County

Caesar Steptoe & 2

Daughters to G.W.

Carr

January 1, 1866 to

January 1, 1867

Source: FamilySearch



Caesar Steptoe’s Household

Federal Census

Roanoke County

August 18, 1870

Civil War Records: U.S. Colored Troops

African Americans could officially serve in the Union military after the Emancipation Proclamation of January 1, 1863

Compiled Military Service Records are indexed through the National Park Service’s Soldiers and Sailors Database and Janet B. Hewett’s The Roster of Union Soldiers: 1861-1865

Available through Ancestry and fold3

Originals are located at the National Archives and Records Administration

Civil War Records: U.S. Colored Troops

MosesTawsell

10th United

StatesColoredTroops,

Company B

Source: fold3

Civil War Records: 1890 Census

Proper name: Special Schedule—Surviving Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines, and Widows, etc.

Supposed to be limited to those who were associated with the Union Army

Schedules for half of Kentucky and the rest of the alphabet including Virginia and Washington, DC. exist, but the beginning of the alphabet does not

Includes:o Nameo Ranko Unito Dates & length of serviceo Post office addresso Disabilityo Remarks

Civil War Records: 1890 Census

Federal Census Special Schedule—Surviving Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines, and Widows,

etc.

Lee, Accomack County

June 1890

Civil War Records: Confederate Military

May have been a servant, cook, or teamster with the Confederate military

Compiled Military Service Records are indexed by Janet B. Hewett’s The Roster of Confederate Soldiers: 1861-1865 and the National Park Service’s Soldiers and Sailors Database

Virginia Regimental Series Index indexes the books in the Virginia Regimental Histories Serieso The authors of these books may have identified individuals who served

with Confederate units who do not have compiled military service records

Unfiled Papers and Slips Belonging to Confederate Compiled Military Service Records (M347)o Compiled military service records that were not filed with the main

collection of CMSRs or could not be filed because the unit was unclearo Includes African Americans, male civilians, and women who served in a

variety of capacities are also included in these recordso Available through the National Archives and Records Administration

and the Family History Library

Civil War Records: Confederate Pensions

Virginia General Assembly passed Confederate pension acts in 1888, 1900, and 1902

African Americans could receive pensions beginning in 1924, and most of the applications in our collections are from 1927 and 1928

African Americans can be found in the online in the Confederate Pension Rolls, Veterans and Widows database by name or by a keyword search using the word “servant”

Applicants were asked who their former owner was

Civil War Records: Confederate Pensions

Confederate Pension, Act of 1902, Application of James Hairston

Conclusion Contact Information

o Cara Griggs• Email: [email protected]

o Archives Reference Services • Email: [email protected]• Phone Number: (804) 692-3888

o Library Reference Services• Email: [email protected]• Phone Number: (804) 692-3777

o Circulation• Email: [email protected]• Phone Number: (804) 692-3547

o Interlibrary Loan• Email: [email protected] • Phone Number: (804) 692-3532

Thank you for coming, and good luck with your research!

mailto:[email protected]





Auditor of Public Accounts

Board of Colonization to transport free Blacks to Liberia, 1856-1858: APA 110

Free Negro lists: APA 339, 409, 414, 417, 614, 755, 757 Delinquent tax lists specifically for free Negroes: APA 413, 442, 629 Reports of Overseers of the Poor, 1800-1909: APA 739 Records relating to runaway slaves: APA 689, 759 Records related to African Americans who were involved in capital cases,

such as records of expulsion to another state, sale, transportation to Africa, or execution: APA 756, 757, 758

Records of voluntary enslavement because of criminality or debt, 1857-1860: APA 757

Available on microfilm or in their original format More details are available in the Free Black and Slave Records Guide

Civil War Records: Engineer’s Department Department of Military Affairs Virginia Engineer Department

Records Pay rolls for those who worked at defenses (Fort Boykin, Fort

Huger, Fort Lowry, Gloucester Point, Hardy's Bluff, Jamestown Island, Lowry's Point, Mulberry Island, West Point, Williamsburg, and Yorktown) and at the Engineer Department headquarters in Richmond from May to October 1861 note the occupation, time employed, rate of pay, amount of pay, deductions, and net amount of pay

Slave rolls for those who worked at defenses (Fort Boykin, Fort Huger, Fort Lowry, Gloucester Point, Hardy's Bluff, Jamestown Island, Lowry's Point, Mulberry Island, Williamsburg, and Yorktown) from May to October 1861 note the name from whom the slave was hired, time employed, rate of pay, amount for each slave, deductions, net amount, and amount received

The individuals who worked on the fortifications could come from any locality

Colonial Government Records

Most of the records of Virginia’s colonial government have been destroyed

Records that survive are cataloged individually in our Archives and Manuscripts Catalog.

Perform an advanced search by typing Virginia (Colony) in the Words in author box and type the search term (such as a name or the terms Negro or slave)

Available on microfilm: Miscellaneous Microfilm Reels 609-612.

Confederate Records: Bureau of Conscription

Register of Free Negroes Enrolled and Detailed, May 1864-January 1865 is part of the E. Renée Ingram Papers (Accession 36862)

Basic alphabetical order

Records contain name, age, physical description, place of birth, occupation, enlistment information, and assignment

Available on microfilm: Miscellaneous Microfilm Reel 2055

Governor’s Office/Executive

Papers Arranged chronologically

Most of the executive papers of governors who served prior to 1865 have online finding aids that are accessible through the Archives & Manuscripts Catalog

Available on microfilm or in their original format

R. A. Brock Miscellaneous Files, 1655-1908

Originals are located at the Huntington Library in San Marino, California

Cover a variety of topics and contains many types of records

General searches may be performed with the terms Negro, African-American, or slave may be used for searches.

Database and a finding aid that provides microfilm reel numbers may be accessed by performing a system number search for 001574602 in the Archives and Manuscripts Catalog

Available on microfilm: Miscellaneous Microfilm Reels 5056-5106

Virginia Colonial Records Project

Established in the 1950s to reconstitute the archive of Virginia's colonial history, much of which had been lost to war and fire.

Project agents visited libraries and archives in Great Britain, Ireland, and France to survey their collections for Virginia-related documents

The goal was to microfilm all of these records, but funding ran out. If a record is not available on microfilm, you will need to contact the relevant repository in Europe.

General searches may be performed with the terms free Negro or slave, slaves, or slavery

Contains many of the records that are mentioned in Virginia Slave-Trade Statistics 1698-1775, edited by Walter Minchinton, Celia King, and Peter Waite

Database and digitized images of the survey reports are available through Virginia Memory

Available on microfilm: Film 1607

Virginia Historical Inventory Database

Collection of photographs, maps, and detailed reports documenting the architectural, cultural, and family histories of thousands of 18th- and 19th-century buildings in communities across Virginia

The project was created in the late 1930s by the Virginia Writers' Project, which was part of the Works Progress Administration (WPA).

Not very useful for searching for individuals General searches may be performed with the terms free

African Americans, free Blacks, free Negroes, slave, and slavery

Database and digitized images are available through Virginia Memory

Available on microfilm

Work Projects Administration Life Histories Database

Consists of approximately 1,350 life histories, social-ethnic studies, and youth studies; more than 50 interviews with former slaves, and a small number of folklore studies between 1935 and 1943

Created by the staff of the Virginia Writers' Project, which was part of the Work Projects Administration (WPA)

This database may be searched by name, or you can perform general searches with the terms “free Blacks” or “slaves”.

Database and digitized images are available through Virginia Memory

Available on microfilm: Miscellaneous Microfilm Reels 1846-1853

Published version: Weevils in the Wheat: Interviews with Virginia Ex-slaves, edited by Charles L. Perdue, Jr., Thomas E. Barden, and Robert K. Phillips

Useful Links Chancery Records Index:

http://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/chancery/

Chronicling America: http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/

Cohabitation Registers: http://digitool1.lva.lib.va.us:8881/R/XE4XGFN8QRULNPQ9D411255J6H8SA5SH2I5I7GY6UARMB344VV-02129?func=collections-result&collection_id=1522&pds_handle=GUEST

Confederate Pension Rolls, Veterans and Widows:

http://lva1.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/F/?func=file&file_name=find-b-clas10&local_base=CLAS10

County and City Records on Microfilm: http://www.lva.virginia.gov/public/local/

Databases and Ebooks (Remote Access Databases): http://www.lva.virginia.gov/public/using_collections.asp#_research

http://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/chancery/

http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/

http://digitool1.lva.lib.va.us:8881/R/XE4XGFN8QRULNPQ9D411255J6H8SA5SH2I5I7GY6UARMB344VV-02129?func=collections-result&collection_id=1522&pds_handle=GUEST






http://www.lva.virginia.gov/public/local/

http://www.lva.virginia.gov/public/local/

http://www.lva.virginia.gov/public/using_collections.asp

Useful Links Death Index of Virginia, 1853-1896 (Incomplete):

http://lva1.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/F/?func=file&file_name=find-b-clas29&local_base=clas29

Digital Collections: http://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/

Emory University’s Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database: http://hutchinscenter.fas.harvard.edu/research-projects/projects/trans-atlantic-slave-trade-database

Guides and Indexes: http://www.lva.virginia.gov/public/using_collections.asp#_guides

Index of Wills and Administrations (Incomplete): http://lva1.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/F/?func=file&file_name=find-b-clas08&local_base=CLAS08



http://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/

http://hutchinscenter.fas.harvard.edu/research-projects/projects/trans-atlantic-slave-trade-database




http://www.lva.virginia.gov/public/using_collections.asp



Useful Links Land Tax Records: http://www.lva.virginia.gov/public/guides/landtax.asp

Legislative Petitions Digital Collection: http://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/petitions

LVA Catalog: http://lva1.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/F

Lost Records Localities Digital Collection: http://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/lost

National Park Service’s Soldiers and Sailors Database: http://www.nps.gov/civilwar/soldiers-and-sailors-database.htm

Newspapers in Virginia Bibliography: http://www.lva.virginia.gov/public/vnp/

http://www.lva.virginia.gov/public/guides/landtax.asp

http://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/petitions

http://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/petitions

http://lva1.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/F


http://www.nps.gov/civilwar/soldiers-and-sailors-database.htm

http://www.lva.virginia.gov/public/vnp/

Useful Links Personal Property Tax Records:

http://www.lva.virginia.gov/public/guides/pptax.htm

Virginia Chronicle: http://virginiachronicle.com

Virginia Colonial Records Project: http://lva1.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/F/?func=file&file_name=find-b-clas27&local_base=CLAS27

Virginia Department of Health: http://www.vdh.state.va.us/Vital_Records/

Virginia Historical Inventory: http://lva1.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/F/?func=file&file_name=find-b-clas15&local_base=CLAS15

Virginia Heritage: http://vaheritage.org/

http://www.lva.virginia.gov/public/guides/pptax.htm

http://virginiachronicle.com/



http://www.vdh.state.va.us/Vital_Records/



http://vaheritage.org/

Useful Links Virginia Historical Society’s Unknown No Longer database:

http://unknownnolonger.vahistorical.org

Virginia Land Office Patents and Grants/Northern Neck Grants and Surveys: http://lva1.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/F/?func=file&file_name=find-b-clas30&local_base=CLAS30

Virginia Untold: The African American Narrative database: http://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/aan/

Works Projects Administration Life Histories Database: http://lva1.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/F/?func=file&file_name=find-b-clas06&local_base=CLAS06

WorldCat: http://www.worldcat.org

http://unknownnolonger.vahistorical.org/







http://www.worldcat.org/

African American Genealogy Getting Started

Education

Transcript of African American Genealogy Getting Started