Dublin Core
Title
Heritage Weekend 2009 Genealogy session
Subject
Genealogy
Description
The genealogy session took place during Lakeland Heritage Weekend 2009. The video includes an introduction describing the importance of genealogy and ends with a discussion/work session. The workshop was conducted by Violetta Sharps Jones and Portia Barker.
Genealogy is used as a method to trace back your family history. When conducting genealogical research on African American history numerous factors should be taken into consideration that might lead the research into several dead ends. For instance, the first speaker spoke of how the 1890s Census data is not available. Other obstacles for doing genealogy for African Americans are linked to slavery. It may be difficult to trace enslaved persons, so the researcher must look at death certificates, manumission documents, and property documents in order to find relevant information. Even birth certificates can be misleading because many African Americans do not have proper documentation or may often have more than one birth date listed in public records. These obstacles require researchers to constantly redraft their questions and replan their strategies.
Family trees are usually used as a starting point for genealogical research. The research starts at the base of the tree, which is name of the researcher and branches out to the names of his/her parents. The parents also have branches with the names of their parents and the list continues. Genealogy is the history which comes between the branches. African American history is segmented and not well documented and one of the reasons is that most African Americans have been wary of giving their personal information to reporters of the Census Bureau. The census is taken every 10 years and researchers sometimes find gaps and inconsistencies in the information they receive from it on their family members. Sometimes the birth dates from the census data do not match the information on that person's birth certificate, so it might be helpful to look up death records as well. Death records may bring to light some of the maiden names that are often times lost during oral history.
If you are looking at African American history earlier then 1870 you must begin to look at slave, property, and manumission records and it is important to know who the owners were. For many African Americans researching their families, this part can be very emotional but it is important to stay dedicated. One of the lecturers in this clip felt discouraged but she noted that it was important for her to keep going until she traced her history back to Africa. This was motivation for her to continue her research and her suggestion for the audience is to not limit their research to their family. They should go to the elders of their church or the elders of their community. It is important to share the information found through this genealogy research so that these histories are never forgotten.
Family trees are usually used as a starting point for genealogical research. The research starts at the base of the tree, which is name of the researcher and branches out to the names of his/her parents. The parents also have branches with the names of their parents and the list continues. Genealogy is the history which comes between the branches. African American history is segmented and not well documented and one of the reasons is that most African Americans have been wary of giving their personal information to reporters of the Census Bureau. The census is taken every 10 years and researchers sometimes find gaps and inconsistencies in the information they receive from it on their family members. Sometimes the birth dates from the census data do not match the information on that person's birth certificate, so it might be helpful to look up death records as well. Death records may bring to light some of the maiden names that are often times lost during oral history.
If you are looking at African American history earlier then 1870 you must begin to look at slave, property, and manumission records and it is important to know who the owners were. For many African Americans researching their families, this part can be very emotional but it is important to stay dedicated. One of the lecturers in this clip felt discouraged but she noted that it was important for her to keep going until she traced her history back to Africa. This was motivation for her to continue her research and her suggestion for the audience is to not limit their research to their family. They should go to the elders of their church or the elders of their community. It is important to share the information found through this genealogy research so that these histories are never forgotten.
Creator
Gregory McCampbell
Source
[no text]
Publisher
Lakeland Community Heritage Project
Date
9/19/2009
Contributor
Lakeland Community Heritage Project
Rights
[no text]
Relation
[no text]
Format
Digital Video
Language
English
Type
[no text]
Identifier
[no text]
Coverage
[no text]
Contribution Form
Online Submission
[no text]
Posting Consent
[no text]
Submission Consent
[no text]
Contributor is Creator
[no text]
Moving Image Item Type Metadata
Transcription
[no text]
Original Format
[no text]
Duration
[no text]
Compression
[no text]
Producer
Gregory McCampbell
Director
[no text]