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First post! So, why am I working to reclaim our ancestors?

August 17, 2019 /

Many people doing genealogy research can easily find who they’re researching by taking a quick look at an index or thumbing through the pages for the names of the people the record belonged to. But for most of us that take up African American genealogy research, it’s usually not that simple. The names of our black ancestors, by and large, remain hidden in the archived succession records, wills, conveyance books and other old documents of towns across America. The evidence that they lived is locked away in the records of the people that enslaved them. But though our ancestors may have been enslaved in life, their memory doesn’t belong to the enslavers. They are our families and they belong to us. I want us to know them. To say their names and celebrate their lives. 

Old archives across America are filled with the forgotten names of our black ancestors.

These names are the first stitch that help to weave the tapestry of the lives that have been too long disregarded and forgotten as no more than a footnote to the American history written by others. And for us, our ancestors are the everyday heroes of the American black experience who deserve to be remembered and cherished by those of us who descend from and yearn to know them.

Names of some of my French Creole ancestors that I recently discovered in a colonial Louisiana will.

My research started as a scrapbook project for my Big Mama’s 80th birthday celebration. As I discovered more and more about the remarkable people in my maternal heritage, I knew I had to keep going. And now the continuing search has become a passion of mine. I rejoice each time I discover another thread to weave into the family tapestry. Most of what black people know of their family background comes from vague memories that evolve into myths which may or may not have much truth to them. We want so badly to know more about who and where we come from that we will accept any plausible story. But I have come to realize that the real history is always so much richer, and we owe it to our ancestors to get to their truth.

So I am hoping that by sharing my research experiences — the highs and the lows, the frustrations and breakthroughs — I will encourage and help others find the real stories in their own black past and reclaim their ancestors lives and experiences to help create a new collective narrative of black history that is as rich, and nuanced as their lives really were.

I am no expert, but I’ve learned a lot over my years of research and I’m happy to pass along my tips and tricks to the next intrepid family genealogist! Hope you enjoy the journey with me!

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