African American Family History Step By Step

Before you assume that your ancestors were slaves prior to the U.S. Civil War, think twice. At least one out of every ten Blacks (more than 200,000 in the North and another 200,000 in the South) were free when the Civil War broke out in 1861. If you aren't sure whether your ancestors were enslaved prior to the Civil War, then you may want to start with the U.S. Free Population Schedules of the 1860 census. For those whose African American ancestors were slaves then the next step is to identify the slave owner. Some slaves took the name of their former owners when they were freed by the Emancipation Proclamation, but many did not. You will have to really dig in the records to find and prove the name of the slave owner for your ancestors before you can go any further with your research. Sources for this information include county histories, the records of the Freedman's Savings and Trust Bureau, the Freedman's Bureau, slave narratives, the Southern Claims Commission, military records including the records of the U.S. Colored Troops.

Additional Resources:
Freedman's Bureau Online
Civil War Soldiers & Sailors - includes the U.S. Colored Troops
The Southern Claims Commission - an article