Approaching Black genealogy

There is no more appropriate month than June (think Juneteenth) to approach Black genealogy.

What’s more is that we now have an increasing number of great data bases at our disposal for tracing that genealogy.

Over the past few years, “Family Tree Magazine” has kept readers up to date on advances in this field of study. New data collections include “even manifests naming the Africans who disembarked in America,” writes Shamele Jordon in a 2023 article.

While there is little space here to go into detail on these treasure troves of information, let’s take an overall look at what’s become available to family researchers.

An article in the November/December 2022 issue entitled “Learning About African Heritage” offers insight into the various DNA tests then available. The article focuses on learning where in Africa the genealogist’s origins are.

However, I’d advise the genealogist to search online and try to update that testing information, which is now two years old in a rapidly changing field.

Two more articles over the past year and a half bear a look. The January/February issue for 2023 features an article entitled “Black Roots Online,” by Shamele Jordon, which focuses on “12 premier websites for finding African American ancestors.” Some are free and some are subscription-based.

Collectively, the websites cover major areas of research, including the postwar Freedmen’s Bureau and the Civil War regiments known as United States Colored Troops. You’ll even find links to sound interviews with people who lived through the era of slavery.

Census records, of course, are vital. The sites include descriptions of how slaves were enumerated and named (sometimes not very well) by the pre-Civil War U.S. Census.

Another major area of focus is the Great Migration – the movement northward in the early and mid-20th century. There is a handy list of the types of records to be on the lookout for.

Voyages to slavery are covered by several websites, such as slavevoyages.org and enslaved.org. They are filled with many thousands of names making the sad journey from Africa to North America.

The current issue – July/August 2024 – updates a few of the previous year’s websites and adds some more in the annual “Best Genealogy Websites” article. One site that looks intriguing is 10millionnames.org., which is an attempt to recover the names of the millions of enslaved people by using a broad range of records.

Check out the magazine and learn how to gain access to previous issues and articles. Go to familytreemagazine.com for information.

Of course, don’t forget our own region’s sources of genealogical and historical information. Public libraries and the Bishop Library of the Luzerne County Historical Society (membership-based) have city directories and newspaper files. The Northeast Pennsylvania Genealogical Society (membership-based) has many resources, including high school yearbooks and church records.

As for local books, read “African-Americans in the Wyoming Valley 1778-1990,” by Emerson Moss. It is available in area libraries.

Computers: It wasn’t so long ago that ownership of a computer was such a rarity that books were being published to tell people how to do their genealogy with this “new” device. No more, though! The Bureau of the Census recently released statistics showing that 95 percent of American households now have some type of computer, with 90 percent having an Internet subscription. The most popular Internet access devices are desktops and laptops.

Events: Don’t miss the many local and regional historical re-creation and celebration programs this summer. Watch your Times Leader for listings and updates.

Tom Mooney is a Times Leader history and genealogy writer. Reach him at tommooney42@gmail.com.