Juneteenth for Genealogists

How exciting it is to finally have Juneteenth declared a national holiday! Celebrating the strength and courage of our ancestors is what we genealogists are all about, and being able to recognize those who preceded us as they fought for freedom and equality is part of so many family stories. Juneteenth commemorates the end of slavery in the United States, and it also opens the door to remembering all of our ancestors who were caught up in the system from the earliest days of the colonies, to the end of the Civil War, and then through decades of blatant discrimination that followed.

Whether your ancestors were enslaved or fought the laws and suffered consequences for their beliefs, learning about them and sharing their narratives is a way to make sure they will never be forgotten. If your ancestors were slaveholders, discovering whatever records you can about the people who lived and worked in their households and sharing those records may help to complete another genealogist’s family tree.

Researching enslaved ancestors can be challenging because they were not enumerated by name in the U.S. population censuses unless they were free Blacks, and if they were mentioned in the slaveholder's personal papers, such as wills, probate records, deeds, or plantation records, it was by first name and age only. You can find helpful research guides, information, and resources on many genealogy websites. Here are a few:

• Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society
• American Ancestors' website includes an extensive "African American Research Guide."
• Ancestry has a free guide to African American research in the "Support" section of their website.
• Family Search has a blog post called "Tracing Your African American Genealogy."
• The National Archives has a downloadable PDF that includes federal records for tracing enslaved people and slaveholders.

How you can help identify enslaved people . . .

Because slaves were considered property, identifying their owners is essential to learning more about them. Here’s what you can do, if you are the descendant of a slaveholder. When you encounter wills and probate records, plantation ledgers, family bibles, or any other documents that mention or enumerate enslaved people, look for ways to share that information with others. 

One scholarly project online, begun by Matrix: the Center for Digital Humanities and Social Sciences at Michigan State University, is called “Enslaved: Peoples of the Historical Slave Trade.” They are currently capturing the names of as many enslaved individuals as possible and sharing that data on their website. Their mission is to give names to people: “individuals who were enslaved, owned slaves, were connected to the slave trade, and worked to emancipate slaves.” Start at the home page  to explore or go directly to the page that explains the project for more specific information. Their publication guidelines are quite strict, so this is not a site for a casual researcher to submit just a few names, but if you have an interest in contributing, their guidelines are here.

A site for those looking for an easier way to contribute is a blog called the “Slave Name Roll Project” where you can post transcriptions of family records, which are arranged chronologically and by state. Instructions for submission are on the site’s “About the Project” page. You can watch a YouTube video that explains how the project evolved and find more resources for sharing on the blog's “Resources” page.

Finally, if you have African American ancestors who lived in St. Louis City or County, please consider adding their biographies to the St. Louis Genealogical Society's St. Louis City/County Biographies project. You can learn more on our website. 

With Juneteenth now part of our yearly holiday schedule, genealogists collaborating as we make new discoveries will undoubtedly have a meaningful impact on this new day of celebration.